Having finally managed to calm the child enough to bring her out of the room, the elves and Mithrandir proceeded down to the dining hall; Elrond carrying Alassë in his arms as her broken ankle still prevented her from walking.
They found the twins, Haldir, Legolas and Arwen seated at the table with Celebrian, in the middle of a merry and noisy meal. Aware that the youngest members of the party had been thoroughly shaken by what they'd seen in the mirror, Elladan and Elrohir were trying to cheer Legolas and Haldir up and, judging by the sound of the giggles that met their ears, their attempts were certainly successful. Elrond's wife got to her feet as soon as she saw them, looking at the child in her husband's arms with concern. When she had dressed her this morning, she had been able to count every rib.
"Are you hungry, little one?" she asked, taking the child from Elrond at once and sitting down with her on her lap at the table. "You are far too thin. I'm going to have to put some weight on you."
She put some fruit and a slice of bread and jam on a plate and placed it in front of Alassë. The child turned to look at her in astonishment, her eyes as big as dinner plates. Surely she wasn't expected to eat all that!
Celebrian noticed this sadly. It was only an average sized plateful for a child, but the elfling was looking at the meal as though it was a banquet. It was yet another reminder of how badly she'd been maltreated.
"It's all right, my dear, you do not have to eat it all," she assured her. "But I would like you to eat as much as you feel able to. You are free to have as much as you want."
Alassë nodded and looked back at the plate, thinking that living here was going to take some getting used to. She was not used to everyone being so nice. She put a slice of apple into her mouth and chewed nervously. She had not tasted anything so nice for a very long time.
While the children were eating, Elrond, Thranduil, Celeborn and Glorfindel put their heads together and spoke in low voices. They still needed to meet and talk over the issues they had arranged to discuss before this unexpected arrival, but they were also determined to track down the group of humans who had so viciously hurt the child on Celebrian's lap. As well as that, they would have to choose a new name for her.
As the meal concluded, Celebrian regarded Alassë's plate sadly. The child had only been able to eat a quarter of what she'd have liked to see her eat, and yet she was full.
They must have been starving her! she thought angrily, looking over and meeting Elrond's eyes. She saw her own feelings reflected there. It was strange, how this child managed to make everyone fall in love with her and want to protect her. But looking at those huge green eyes, so nervous and afraid, maybe it wasn't so strange after all.
When they were finished eating, Elrond took Alassë back up to bed as he wanted to take another look at the many wounds all over her. To his utter shock, when unrolled the bandage from around her hand, the cut caused by the glass was completely healed.
"I have never seen wounds heal so with such speed!" he gasped.
"I heal quickly," Alassë replied shyly, still nervous at speaking in front of this wonderful kind elf. "I got in trouble if I was too sore to do my chores. Only my back does not heal so fast."
"Have you always healed so quickly?" asked Elrond, running a gentle finger over the skin where the cut should have been. He was pleased that she was beginning to talk to him naturally. At least he knew that she was starting to trust him.
"I think so." the little one screwed up her forehead confusedly. "I never really had bad wounds before…He took me. My brothers hit me a lot, but never enough for Ada to see."
"Well, you certainly have been given a gift." Elrond told her gently. "You have a healing energy beyond that of any elf I have ever known."
"I do?" Alassë blinked. She'd had so much new information to digest; she didn't think she could deal with more. A gift? What did that mean? Still, at least he wasn't saying her horrible name anymore.
After inspecting her ankle and her back, Elrond told her that she must stay sitting on her bed and not try to walk, as her ankle needed to set and her back needed more time to heal.
"How often did he thrash you with that riding crop, penneth?" he asked, as he rubbed some more salve onto the deep welts on her back.
"Every day, if he was in a bad mood," she answered, wriggling uncomfortably under his touch. "And sometimes more than that if I made him angry. If he was having good days, it was maybe twice a week."
"I promise that you will never have to suffer any punishment like that again," Elrond told her, as he sat her back up again and began to replace the bandages.
Just as finished setting her clothes to rights again; the twins, Haldir and Legolas came into the room. Celeborn, Thranduil and Glorfindel had gone to meet with Erestor in the library and the younger elves had decided to keep Alassë company.
"I shall leave you with these four." smiled Elrond, getting up and heading for the door. "We will only be down the hall if you need us."
"You do not have to be so scared anymore," said Elrohir, sitting next to her and reaching for her hand. "Everyone in Imladris is always safe."
"And everyone is very kind." said Legolas brightly. "You will like it here."
"There are so many elves here." said Alassë, awestruck and yet nervous about talking openly to so many people at once. "I have never seen so many before!"
"You will soon learn who everyone is." said Elladan reassuringly. "We will help you there, gwaleth."
Sister. He'd called her sister. It suddenly struck Alassë that they really hadn't been lying. She really was part of their family now.
"Well, you have met Ada and Nana and Arwen already. This is Legolas, Thranduil's son. And Haldir here has been fostered by Lord Celeborn. Celeborn is our mother's ada, which makes him our Daerada," explained Elrohir kindly, hoping he wasn't confusing her too much. "Glorfindel is the strong one with the golden hair. He killed a balrog you know."
"A what?" Alassë had never heard the word before.
"A big monster!" Haldir explained excitedly. He idolised Glorfindel. "And he even died, but he was so brave that the Valar sent him back to Middle Earth again."
"And then there is Erestor. He is our tutor," Elladan explained. "You have not met him yet, but he is the kindest of elves. He has dark hair like Ada and he fought at the last alliance. I am sure you will like him. He is the best story-teller in all of Arda."
"And Lindir is a minstrel," continued Elrohir. "He has a truly wonderful singing voice and can play almost every instrument there is. He is the one who taught Elladan and I how to play our flutes.
"When your leg is healed, you will be able to meet everyone properly. It will be less confusing for you that way," Elladan promised. "Daerada and Thranduil will be here for another four weeks yet, so you will have all four of us to help you get used to everything."
Overwhelmed by their enthusiasm, Alassë could only nod, fatigue beginning to set back in again. She rubbed her eyes sleepily.
"Is it true they are going to change your name?" asked Legolas, his bright blue eyes shining with curiosity. She nodded silently. "Why?"
"I hate my name!" she whispered. "Alyan cursed it. I only brought my family sorrow. I did not bring them joy." Her eyes began to fill with tears, as the memories she had rediscovered swam in her head. One of the twins – she still could not tell which one was which – leaned over to gather her in a gentle, one-armed hug. Everyone in Imladris seemed to be full of affection!
"I do not think you brought them sorrow." said Haldir quietly. "Your brothers were the ones who did wrong, not you. You saw the mirror. You did not kill your Nana. The spiders did. Your brothers will be sorry one day."
"Do you really think so?" There was a lot of doubt in the green eyes.
"Yes," said Haldir confidently. "My Ada said they would and my Ada knows everything!"
Alassë smiled weakly, desperately fighting not to yawn. She wanted to stay awake and talk with them some more, for she found that she liked all four of them, but she was so exhausted…
"It's all right," Elladan told her kindly, easing her back down onto the pillows. "You can go to sleep if you want to, little one. We will stay with you, and we will not let any harm come to you."
And so, for the first time in years, Alassë fell asleep without fearing for her life, knowing that she was safe and surrounded by friends.
Meanwhile, down the hall, Glorfindel was recounting the findings of the border guards again. They had found no footprints, as the snow had fallen again in the night, making tracking impossible.
"They are fairly certain that she ran a great distance on her own." he concluded. "Which means the humans could be anywhere by now. We may have lost our chances of apprehending them."
"At least we will know them in future, having seen the mirror, even if we cannot catch them now," Celeborn pointed out. "We may come across them in the future."
"I would have preferred to 'come across them' now," said Glorfindel darkly. "But mayhap 'tis for the best. That child has had a lifetimes worth of grief heaped on her in the space of a few years. Seeing them again would perhaps reverse the progress she has started to make."
"What are you going to call her, mellon-nin?" asked Thranduil. "She cannot go on cringing every time someone addresses her, and we cannot keep calling her 'little one'. She has done nothing to earn shame, but the guilt she bears is incredible. She needs to start again"
"I am not sure," Elrond said thoughtfully. "She says she cares not as long as it is not Alassë."
"How about Eruanna?" said Glorfindel. "I always liked that name."
"Or Faelwen." said Thranduil. "It's the name Laurelin and I picked for a daughter if we ever had one."
"Faelwen…justice." Elrond translated the name. "I like it."
"It will ever remind us that we have sworn to avenge the grief she has suffered." Celeborn nodded. "I like it too."
"You do not have to sound so shocked!" grinned Thranduil. "I do have my moments occasionally!"
"Very occasionally!" said Celeborn wryly and Thranduil flashed him an impish look.
"Like the time I decided you would look so nice with dark hair when I was an elfling. And I...er…borrowed some of my Ada's ink to dye it with," Thranduil and Elrond, who had heard this tale numerous times, burst into laughter.
Celeborn's eyes narrowed. He had not forgotten that episode. He had sworn never ever to look after his younger cousin again after that. It had taken weeks for his hair to return to normal.
"I have not heard this story!" Glorfindel remarked mischievously.
"And you are not going to!" said Celeborn at once. "So are you decided on the name Faelwen, Elrond?"
"I think so." smiled Elrond, amused at his father-in-law's swift change of subject. "I shall ask Celebrian for her opinion, of course, but if she agrees, then Faelwen Elrondiel she will be."