Standing tall on top of the ridge, Thennil watched the pass, eyes unwavering, every muscle tense, waiting. She was much like the statues at home in the garden, frozen in time. She had sat upon this hill for days, waiting for her mother and her escort. But she had seen no one. Grant it, her mother's guards were known to take their time when traveling, making sure that she was always comfortable and well watched over. It unnerved her how long it had been since she had heard the news. The orcs had started to increase slowly in their numbers within the misty mountains and the goblins were not so frightened of the sunlight as they had once been. Deep in her gut she wondered if something had gone wrong.
"I can't sit here any longer, Arthmos, I am going to meet them, where ever they are," she told the near invisible man who stood next to her, unmoving.
"Perhaps they are just late, Todaphel, your people tend to take their time when traveling." He replied, crossing his arms.(Guard-daughter)
"I am unsure, I have felt the darkness growing, and I do not trust that the roads that were once safe are the same."
"Wait another day, then go after the escort, it cannot hurt to be certain." He tried persuading her.
"Nay, I shall leave this minute, tell the children that I shall see them soon," she stated, whistling a long high note into the morning air, "Make sure that Aravorn continues the drill that I have been teaching him, I will not tolerate any slacking."
He chuckled softly, and nodded.
From the woods behind them a stallion trotted forth, summoned by her whistle. He held his head high, mane billowing in the wind, and tail flying like a flag. He was a magnificent beast, dapple grey in color with feather hair that grew on his legs. Her father had gifted her the horse many years ago on her begetting day, and he had been most useful.
Swinging up on to the stallions bare back she looked over her should, "If I do not return within three days, sent a messanger to Rivendell, something has wrong!"
"Aye, we shall wait your coming!" She nodded and snapping the reigns, sprinting down the ridge, hair flying, sun at her back and heart beating quickly.
Trotting down the path upon her mount, her mind ran over the many different things that could have gone wrong with her mother's escort. They could have left late, one of the rivers that they had to cross could have been too high, they had met someone on the way and that had delayed them.
"Something must have come up, she reasoned with herself, "that is the only reason that they could be late."
Deep in her heart she knew that this was untrue, she could sense that something was wrong. The Mountains had become too quiet, too still. The creatures that lived within it's shadows were hushed in their movements, ever watchful. The rangers had found tracks of newer Orc packs that they had not seen before, and had begun to hunt them down in small groups. It was not enough, she had told them; the orcs were multiplying like she had never remembered, and it worried her. She knew that within the last month they had found tracks for a large group of orcs that had been moving around this area, but they hadn't seen any signs of them within the last few weeks. Her heart nearly stopped. They had been scouting out the area, looking at the Redhorn Pass' vantage points and where it would be easiest to attack an unsuspecting traveler. Urging Talagor on faster, she prayed that she wouldn't be too late to warn the escort. She had to be in time!
Riding around one of the bends in the path two days later she stopped abruptly, jaw hanging open. Flinging herself from her mount she rushed forward and fell to her knees before the scene that met her aching eyes. The ground was littered with the bodies of her people, torn and bloodied. It was apparent that they had been lying there for a day or two at least, the ground soaking up the blood like a sponge. There were limps dismembered from the bodies, and the faces of the slaughtered were twisted with the pain of their last moments. The clothes of some of the warriors had been ripped and torn from the bodies, and the hair of some of them had been hacked off. She had choked at that sight. The hair of her people was considered sacred, never to be cut unless some great doom had befallen their people, if ever. Strewn among the bodies of her people were the bodies of a few Orcs, larger than she had seen before, and twisted with evil.
She wailed, heart breaking at the sight. Tears flowed from her eyes as she stumbled to her feet and made her way among the slain, trying not to look at the faces of those she had known. But alas, it couldn't be helped, especially when she came upon a few of her brethren that had been torn to shreds, making her almost vomit at the sight. The orcs had clearly decided to make a meal out of their kills. Her mourning turned to anger as she continued her way, weaving between the dead looking for her mother's body. These orcs had no honor whatsoever!
Her eyes began to glow silver as she began to realize that her mother was not to be found among the bodies that lay at her feet. Rushing through, moving bodies, and muttering prayers under her breath she searched quickly, hope above hope that she had just missed her. When she had looked amidst the fallen twice over she shakily concluded that her mother was not there.
"Where could she have gone?" she wondered aloud, not wanting to think about the alternative before she had to.
Turning to the abilities that she had honed over the years of her existence, she began scanning the ground. It was littered with the tracks of the orcs, moving away from the group of dead elves she crouched low to the ground, observing the tracks and where they moved along the path. They were around a day, two at the most, old, going by the way that the dirt around them had settled and the small amount of water that had pooled in the indents. There were many larger footprints, some without the strange boots that the beasts made from the hides of their victims. Crawling along upon the ground she followed them, and soon noticed that there was one pair that seemed to have made a deeper imprint than the others. Amongst the matted soil in the area she saw that there were smaller, lighter footsteps, which she surmised must belong to an elf, of which she was certain was her mother. Further up the trail she found a delicate leather shoe, one that was defiantly a elleths riding shoe. She climbed up the side of the path, following the trail, noticing smaller indications that the Orcs carried a prisoner with them.
Heart in her throat she whistled for Talagor, shutting out the images that appear within her mind as she realized what the orcs could possibly be doing to her mother. Mounting up she used some of the training that she had received on a visit to Lothlorien with her grandmother. Whispering a few words to the wind that was swirling around her she sent a message to her brother's in hopes that they would hurry to her aid, she prayed that she would make it in time.
She had been late. Horribly, shamefully, deplorably, late.
Her brothers had joined her not long after her message was sent, somehow having known that something was wrong long before she had send any word. When she told them of what she had seen and where she believed that their mother had been abducted to, their anger had been like nothing she had ever seen. They had set out immediately, her in the lead having already been on the trail of those they pursued, riding at a fast pace. When they had come upon the place where the orcs rested, a pit filled with the bones of past prisoners and spider webs, the showed no mercy. None were left alive as the righteous anger of the three siblings raged before them like a well-oiled machine.
When they had rushed into the darkness, a light shining from the white crystal that lay upon Thennil's breast, they were rattled at the declined state of their mother. Her clothes were torn and bloody, her hair, ripped out in places. And the state of her fea that Thennil could sense was battered and had a shadow covering it, it was broken and the light that still tried to shine had quickly been fading.
They had cautiously crept up to the crumbled woman that they had known as their mother, trying not to startle her. She had come shakily with them out of the dark pit that the beasts had drug her to, clinging to her daughter tightly, like she was her only anchor. Thennil had held her and murmured calming words, all the while urging her stead on faster. She could feel how the darkness was seeping deeper and deeper into her mother's being, battling with the weak light that radiated out. When they were not far away she had sent Elladan to ride ahead to have their father prepare a room in the healing ward, fearing the worst.
And that was where most of the siblings sat, helping their father heal their mother as best they could. It was after nearly after months that the four began to despair of their mother ever really returning to them. The Orcs had truly done their job right, snuffing the light within their mother to barily a flicker. She had become empty, like a shell.
The twins anger continued to grow, and many times when there was word that an orc pack had been sighted, no matter how large or small, the disappear into the shadows and no one would see them for a few days. They would come back covered in the black blood, hair disheveled and clothes a mess, the animosity in their eyes dimmed for them moment, but never fully quenched by their lust for the blood of their mother's abductors.
Arwen had taken to watching over her mother, telling her of the things that were going on and the weather. She refused to speak of her mother's capture, hoping that by ignoring it that it might fade and be as if it had never been. She tried to continue where she had left off, but everyone could see how hard it was for the young she-elf to admit that her mother was not the same, that who she had been was never going to return. She merely turned a blind eye.
Elrond, try as he might, could only heal her body, but her mind and spirit never truly recovered from the torment and poisoned wound that she had received while among her captures. Many times she would tell him that she had no wish to stay in Middle-earth any longer, but he would persuade her to wait, to see if she would change her mind. She didn't.
Thennil took the change of her mother hardest, knowing that if she had been sooner, that if she had been faster or had decided to meet her mother when she had invited her to join the escort before leaving Lothlorien, that none of this would have happened. She blamed herself for her deterioration. Her family would find her staring off into the distance, a blank haunted look in her eyes. She should have reacted sooner.
"Thennil, please, I need you back to yourself," Elrond begged her one evening when he found her languishly standing on a bridge overlooking the valley with a vacant expression. "I can't have you fall into despair like your mother, my heart cannot take anymore."
She creaped back out of her mind, and turned to her father, tears in her voice, "It was my fault, I felt it in my fea, I knew that something had gone wrong, but I waited till the last minute. I could have saved her, and all of those who died trying to keep her safe. They would all still be alive an enjoying the stars if I had but acted sooner!"
"You did what you could! You used the wisdom that you had and made a decision, do not fault yourself for making what ou think was the wrong one," he cried, grabbing her by the shoulders and giving her a shake, "If you had gone after them sooner I'm sure that I would not be losing only your mother! My heart could not bear to lose two of those that I love at the same time, Thennil, I fear that I would fade."
Hearing her father's admission, her heart stopped, and she asked in a hoarse whisper, barely believing her ears,"You have thought that you might fade?"
He nodded, eyes showing his true age, heavy with grief, "But I have not. I have you and your siblings to live for, you are my hope, the star that shines bright in the morning and evening. I cannot lose you both! Do not leave me, daughter!"
Trembling at his words, she threw herself into his arms, reaching up to brush the few tears that he hd not managed to reign in away with her slender fingers. "I will not fade, Ada, though I don't know how much longer I can go on watching Naneth suffer. You must let her go, or else she is going to resent you ad what you have done for her."
Her father closed his eyes, knowing that she spoke the truth, "I had hoped that I could heal her enough that her fea would become like it once was, she has become so empty that it breaks my heart. I have tried everything, but some things cannot be mended by elven hands."
"She longs for the shores of Valor," she murmured, looking to the West.
"Aye, she does, and I have been trying to change her mind. I knew all along thought that I would not be able to hold out on her long. I have never been able to withhold anything from her that she asked for, and so it shall be the same for this."
They had traveled as one company, their family, among the other's that were making their way to the Grey Havens. They passed through the hills and valleys, skirting the beginnings of the Shire, all the while enjoying the starts of spring that could be seen. The flowers and plants were beginning to bloom and the sent of their blooms permitted the air. The traveling was slow, with much mournful singing and silence. The weight of the departure of their people weighed heavily on their shoulders. The Four siblings tried to occupy themselves with conversations and small games to to avoid the thought of their mother leaving them, though it hung like a dark cloud over the backs of their minds.
They arrived at the Havens in late May, and were guided to the rooms that they would be staying in for the time up until the departure of the ship, which was still a small way out. They rooms were spacious, but not as homily as their own back in Imladris where each had their own things lying about. They were mainly used for those who would be leaving the world of Middle-earth, so there was not many things that decorated the place. There biggest feature was there high ceilings and many windows facing the sea.
Thennil found it hard to remain indoors, even when she wanted to spend ever moment of her waking life with her mother before she departed, but it seemed to suffocate her to abide in the halls. When she was not sitting at her mother's feet she was out exploring and investigating the workings of the port along with the woods and beaches that surrounded the settlement. She was not overly fascinated with the sea, it was beautiful, yes, but she was thankful that she had not felt it's cal yet. The thought of getting in a boat and sailing away from everything that she had known and those that she had made promises to pained her. For hours she would ride Talagor through the woods, letting the wind rush through her tresses and whip against her face, wiping away all that was to come for a few short moments. Then it would all come rushing back in rapid succession, bringing her closer and closer to the day of her mother's departure with surprising speed.
Walking down the halls of the Haven, she took a deep breath before turning down the one that led to her families chambers. Slowly she made her way up to the door of her parent's apartments, knocking softly before entering. Holding her emotions in check she lifted her skirts as she walked up the stairs to the enclosed balcony, unsurprised to see her mother sitting in the middle of her three siblings, white blond hair shining out from amidst the dark black of her young children. Her father stood behind them all, gazing out at the sea.
Looking up, her mother smiled sadly, "There is my little star," she murmured and Thennil released the hold that she had gripped her emotions with, a large tear leaking out from the side of her eye as she dropped to a crouch beside her mother. Leaning against her knee, she crossed her arms and looked at her siblings. Her sister was weeping silently, still in denial over the whole event. Her mother, her Naneth, could not have chosen this, to abandon them.
"I have my morning and my evening star's, both glowing brightly, so filled with hope," Naneth muttered, turning to her sons, "And my two pranksters, my laugh bringers," she chuckled sadly, "It has been my greatest joy and gift to be able to bring you into this wonderful world, to teach you, watch you grow. I could have never asked for a better life, I have been so greatly blessed."
"Must you really go?" Thennil gasped in desperation, having buried her head in her arms atop her mother's knees, "I need you!"
"Nay, my loves, you have never really needed me," their mother smoothed out the copper locks that had spilled over her lap with her long fingers, "You have always been able to take are of yourselves, running towards new and exciting things, some I knew that you would. I seldomly saw you, you were so curious about the world around you."
"Was there something that I could have done? Anything that would make you stay?" She pleaded, raising her tear stained face from her arms to look her mother in the eyes.
Her mother traced her face with her slender fingers, much like she had done with each of her siblings at their births, "You have always been so different from your siblings, they take after your father so much, with little bits of me thrown in there somewhere, but you, you have never really looked like them with your molten copper and fire like hair. You know, at first your father thought that you must have been switched with some child that belonged to Glorfindel, you looked so fair." she kissed her daughters forehead with soft lips, "So fiery, so passionate about life in the beginning. You were and always have been such a wanderer, exploring everything that you could get ahold of."
"Is the color of my hair so important? Or the matter of my birth? I am your daughter, and I need you!" She cried, flinging her arms around her mother's white neck.
"My noble little evening star," her mother cooed, turing to her youngest, "Do not lose your hope in the beliefs that good and wonderful things can happen, even in this present darkness. For every darkness must pass away, giving birth to a bright light. You have always been so in tune to the emotions of others, do not let this turn you into someone who is cold and unfeeling, you have so much to offer."
Looking her boys in the eye, she drew them into an embrace, "Do not let this anger control your choices, my sons, it will only lead you down a dark path that many have never recovered from. Do not let this lust for revenge could your vision, it is not in you hands to control the fate of those you love."
"We will try to, Naneth," they whimpered, soaking up every ounce of the time they had with her.
"Come, my children, my ship is scheduled to leave soon," she stood from the whicker chair, slivery gown billowing like a gentle breeze around her, light and airy. If she had not birthed her two daughters she could have rivaled the beauties of old, even Luthien. Even though she felt the darkness weighing down on her, in her last moments with her family she let the strength and love shine, which had attracted her husband to her in the first place, bathing them all in it's soft, comforting light.
They all wanted to beg her to stay, but they knew that her decision had been made. They would never be able to change it.
Standing aboard the ship, Celebrian spoke softly with her family, giving them advice and encouragement with small bits of hope for the future. The captain and his crew worked diligently to prepare the ship for departure, checking the sails and judging the weather and the speed of the current. Soon, they were ready to leave the port. The whole port became silent, the moorings were pulled and the sims let loose, ready for the final journey. Everyone watched as it slowly edged its way into the current, holding their breath.
Not being able to stand the silence that hung over the people, Thennil descended down the stairs to the dock, all the way to the edge. She watched as the boat moved farther and farther away, lifting her hand in farewell, she began to sing:
"Words, words are not enough
For me to say how much I'll miss you
You flew away too soon
I feel so alone without you
But when I close my eyes
Every night
I'll hear your voice like and angel
And you'll be here again by my side
I swear, I'll hear your words
They'll sing through me
And I'll be back where I belong
You are here even though you are gone
You'll be here, everywhere I go
Deep inside my heart forever
And one, one sweet day I know
We will be back together
But until we are, here in the dark
I hear your voice like an angel
I hear your voice like an angel
And you're here with me by my side
I swear I'll hear your words
They sing through me
And I'm back where I belong
You are here even though you are gone
And I know that aside you live on."
She waved one last time as the ship seemed to disappear over the horizon, taking her mother to lands far abroad, and turned away.
So, the beginning is a little bumpy, but I'll be smoothing that out later when I go through and re-edit stuff after the muse is finished with me.
Muse: Finished with you? And when is that supposed to be?
Me: WHAT are YOU doing in here? You're supposed to be thinking up what happens next!
Muse: Oh really?
Me: Yep, so get going!
Muse: Whatever.
So yes, things are coming. Please review, it makes me happy. :)
Oh, the song that Thennil sings at the end is a modification of "Even Though You Are Gone". I can't remember the artist.
Thanks, and enjoy.
Robin