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Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

It all started out as a normal day

My alarm went off and I turned it off with a groan, not ready to get out of bed just yet but knowing I had to. Dressing myself for the day and sitting down with my breakfast, I decided to read the "Silmarilion" for the umpteenth time while drinking a cup of tea. Hearing my phone buzz on the table, I pick it up to see it was a text from my youngest sister Lillith. "Ready for tonight?" It read and I grinned at seeing it

"You know I am." I sent back. "Reading Tolkien again?" Was her reply and I frowned. "How do you know that?" I asked. "Look outside." She told me and I looked out to see the woman herself waving at me from across the street, a pretty big bag hanging from her arm. I gave her an unamused look as I stood up to open the door. "I don't really have time for this Lil. I have to go to work soon." I said once the door was unlocked and opened 

"I know, I know. I just came to deliver this for tonight. With love and kisses from Milana." She replied as she handed me the bag. I looked inside and saw it was a very pretty dress. "Thank you, Lil and thank Lana for me if you see her. I think she has broken her phone again because she won't respond to any of my calls." I told her and she gave me a mock-salute, before we laughed and she hugged me tightly. "Now, I really have to go. Inspiration has hit me like a lightning rod. See you tonight!" She called as she was already running to her car

I watched her go with a small rueful shake of my head and a smile on my face as she drove away with some loud honking. Some things honestly never changed, no matter what age. Looking at the time and seeing I had to go too soon, I put the bag down, quickly finished my breakfast, brushed my teeth and got into my own car. It'd look ridiculous if the manager of the local Tiffany and Co. was late to her own store after all

I thankfully was on time and things went the way they always did for most of the day. The only weird thing about that day was a man I had never seen before looking at the different people in the store with a look on his face I could not figure out. I stayed near the button to call security after noticing him just to be completely sure he wouldn't do anything funny as I helped some other customers with their questions 

The man eventually came to me as well. "Can I help you, sir?" I asked politely and he hummed. "That remains to be seen. I find myself in a rather peculiar situation and I need someone or someones to help me with this." He said with a sigh. "Well, I can always try, sir." I offered, seeing him change from upbeat to very tired in a blink of an eye. "Thank you, young lady. The short version is that I have a son who is different than most of my other children and now, I fear he may cause trouble for the rest of them." He told me and I hummed at that. "Have you tried talking to him?" I asked

"Many times. He just refuses to listen. He has already... messed up something I worked on. Something I can't fix." He replied and I winced as I could hear this thing was very special. "Sounds like something for my younger sister Lillith. She's a spitfire and can make everyone focus her attention on her." I chuckled. "You have sisters?" He asked. "I have four. Dad almost had a heart attack when Lillith was born as he imagined all the boys in the future." I answered 

Later I would wonder why I told a perfect stranger this, but at the time, I just felt incredibly comfortable with him. "Did he actually have one when it was time?" He asked with a smile. "He may have... if he hadn't died when I was 15 and Lillith was 5." I replied and this time, he was the one to wince instead. "I apologise." He replied sincerely. "Hey, you didn't decide to mug him with a loaded gun." I weakly joked, despite the pain still stinging after all these years. 

Mom had done her absolute best to raise us all on her own and had done a pretty good job if I may say so, until she had eventually died of cancer a few years ago. We all missed them incredibly, but they wouldn't want to wallow in self-pity. As the oldest, I had kinda taken over the responsibility of looking after my sisters, calling them at least once a week to see how they were doing. Even if we were very different from each other and even if we drove each other insane at the worst of times, we were still family and that would never change

"What are your sisters like?" My new talking companion asked as he looked at some rings with jewels in them and I gave him a short description of all my sisters. "Are you happy with your life?" He asked then. "Pretty much, even if I'd like to find someone nice and honest for once. My last partner was a scumbag." I told him and he chuckled "Well, I wish you good luck in whatever comes next." He said as he picked five rings and put them on the counter

"Thank you, sir. What's your name?" I asked. "Edward Ru." He answered as he paid and then gave the rings to me. "For you and your sisters." He said. I completely changed my mind about this guy. He's alright. "Good luck to you too, sir." I replied as I gave him his receipt  and he nodded back, before leaving the shop without another word. It wasn't until much later that I'd finally realise what just happened and what it had to do with what was about to happen

Allowed to leave a bit earlier that evening to get ready, I hurried home and put my new dress on. Milana may be clumsy in life, but she had excellent taste. Even I had to immediately admit that as I looked at the red and gold mermaid dress that I was now wearing. I had just finished putting up my make-up, when I already heard impatient honking outside. "Geez, Lil. Have a bit of patience." I muttered to no one in particular as I put on my shoes, grabbed my bag and walked out, unknowingly leaving my home for the very last time

"Did you girls miss me?" I asked with a smirk as I opened the back door after locking my own door and two of my sisters squealed. Milana, who would sit next to me during the ride, gave me a hug. "How can we miss you, Syl? You call us every week." My second sister, Delmira, commented from the passenger seat and I rolled my eyes. "Okay, no gift for the soldier. Got it." I replied. "Gift?" Pretty much all my sisters asked at the same time

I teasingly hid my bag containing the rings behind my back  "You'll see once we're there." I said with a grin and Lillith immediately drove to the restaurant, me looking back at my home for some reason I didn't understand at the time. We did this at least twice a year when we could as at least two of us were almost always out of the country, so we took every opportunity to meet that we could, especially with Delmira in the army.

Our parents had really decided to go for names that you didn't hear every day when we were born and yes, there has been some bullying in the past because of that. There's yours truly, who has been stuck with the name Sylvaine for her entire life, then there's Delmira, Milana, Asterin and of course Lillith. Once upon a time,  I had hated to, but now, I was honestly glad that I had a name that wasn't one-hundredth "Emma" or "Anna." I did always think it rather ironic that the one whose name had the darkest meaning, was the liveliest of us all

As I told Mr. Ru, Lillith was an absolute spitfire who could almost never sit still like... ever. She was always busy trying to create something new and exciting for her job as a freelance artist or was travelling the world with Asterin when her work allowed it. She and I were complete opposites from each other as I always took responsibility and she almost never did. She drove me absolutely crazy, but I loved her nonetheless and that little brat knew it

Asterin was more calm than our youngest sister, but she was the kind of person who wanted to get everything out of life while she could and had probably seen more places in the past five years than I ever had in my entire life. Then again, she was a travel agent, so it was kind of her job, but even during her vacations she was almost always on the move, trying to find the next exotic spot to put on the list of places she'd been

Milana was the calmest of them all as practically nothing seemed to bother her. With her job as a veterinarian, she has learned to keep herself in for when a dog or another animal bites her or scratches her. It wasn't that weird to see her with another plaster on her hand. If anything, it was weird to see none at all. However, people have often mistaken her for a pushover because she's so calm. Every single time that happens, those people quickly learned the meaning of the phrase "beware of the quiet ones" as Milana is quite capable of snapping at people when she's pissed

Like how Milana was the calmest and softest, Delmira was the loudest and hardest. She was a sergeant in the army and sometimes had trouble remembering she wasn't in the barracks anymore. She acquired a tough attitude when dad died and it was very hard to crack through that shell. Guys avoided her because if they even tried to approach her, she'd glare and they drooped off. One guy who tried to touch her ended up with a broken arm

We were most definitely the oddest bunch in the entire town and everyone who lived here knew it, but we were still family no matter what and when we weren't working, travelling the world or not talking to each other because we had an argument about some stupid thing or another, we were quite a tight-knit group as we were the only ones we still had. Lillith parked outside the restaurant and we went in

"So, how are you and Steve, Delmira?" Lillith asked as we waited for the food and I winced as Delmira's face hardened. "I left a week earlier to surprise him...and found him kissing another woman." She hissed and silence fell. I already knew as she had ranted/screamed my ear off on the phone the week before, probably just after seeing her ex kissing that woman. "Well, sucks to be him to let such a prize slip away." Asterin commented and we all agreed. "Thanks, girls. But I think I'll stop seeing anyone for a while. It only leads to hurt." Delmira said

"But a lot of happiness as well." Milana, ever the romantic, spoke up and Delmira scoffed. "This is not a fairy tale, Lana. There's no such thing as a "happily ever after." She sneered at our third sister. "Oh, boy. Here we go." I thought as I let the rim of my side. "Girls, can we not do this tonight? Our food hasn't even arrived." I said, playing the part of peacekeeper for the I-don't-know-how-many-time in our lives and they thankfully listened

Asterin rubbed the back of a slightly hurt Milana as our food arrived and we ate in silence. "Now, what's this present you talked about Syl?" Lillith asked as she leaned forwards in her seat in expectation once we had our deserts. I told them about the weird customer of that afternoon and how he had bought us all rings. "He even chose different ones for all of us." I said as I pulled them out and put them on the table. 

There were five rings, each with a different jewel: ruby, emerald, sapphire, diamond and amethyst. "He bought all of these?" Asterin asked in shock. "Yep." I replied. "Must've been pretty damn rich. Kinda weird that he just gave it to you." Delmira commented. "Well, weird or not, I think Syl should choose first. She's the oldest and he bought it at her store." Lillith and the others agreed. Smiling at them and thinking for a bit, I chose the Ruby one as it fitted my red dress. Delmira chose the diamond one, Milana the sapphire one, Asterin the emerald one and Lillith the amethyst one

"I really hope I get to meet this generous Mr. Ru one day." A rather drunk Lillith giggled as Delmira and I half-carried her to hear own car, a tipsy Milana and Asterin following us. Delmira had a high alcohol tolerance and I usually chose to be the designated driver. "Maybe, one day, you will." I chuckled as we put her on the backseat of the car, Milana getting in on the other side and helping her stay sitting up. 

Delmira threw me the keys and we were off soon enough. As not everyone of us lived in the same town anymore, I always dropped them off at the hotel they always used when they were here. That was the plan here as well as I turned to the familiar road. "Sorry to hear about Steve." I muttered. "Yeah... well. What's done is done." Delmira replied a bit shortly. I was about to reply, when there was a loud crash and the whole world went black.

"Am I dead?" Was the first thought from after the crash I remember as everything was dark. Just as I was about to panic, there was light ahead. 'Huh, look at that. There really is light at the end and.....COLD!!!' Was my next one as I suddenly felt like I was completely  freezing and cried out in shock. Two warm hands quickly picked me up and wrapped me in something soft. 'Did I shrink?' One irrelevant thought shot through my head as I was still crying loudly. I was moved to a pair of soft arms who gently started to move me back and forth 

"It's alright, my little one. Nana's here." A voice whispered and I slowly calmed down as I opened my eyes for the first time and saw two silver blurs in front of me like sleep was still clouding my eyes and I couldn't make out any faces. 'Were they angels?' I thought "She is beautiful, my beloved Celebassel." A male voice said, so full of love that it made me feel warm and comfortable aid I heard a giggle as I was moved again. Wait....was I a baby?!

Two strong arms were holding me now and I had to admit that yes, I was a baby. What on earth?! "You are the best gift your mother could ever have given me." The man, apparently my new father, said and I let out a small sound, not knowing what to think. I already had parents and these weren't them. "Healthiest elfling I've ever seen." A third voice commented as my new parents cooed over me, but my brain had stopped working. 

Elfling?!

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you can 

"Aw. Look, my darling. She's touching her ears."

No freaking shit, lady. Of course, I'm touching my ears after hearing the word "elfling," but no matter how many times I do it, those pointy tips are still right there as if mocking me with the fact that I'm apparently reborn as a freaking elf. It was then thatI realised I'm in one of those "modern girl in Middle-Earth" fanfictions. I've read some out them a few years ago, but they seemed the same after a while.

Girl goes to Middle-Earth, usually becomes part of the Fellowship of the Ring, falls in love, usually with Legolas, she uses her knowledge to save everyone she can and lives happily after once the War of the Ring was over, eventually sailing to Valinor at the very end of the story. The end. Absolutely no offence to Legolas, but he's not really my type. He was handsome, sure, but I don't think I'd choose him I'd it was up to me. 

"Our little Nemireth has the wisdom of her mother already." My new father said with a very proud tone in his voice as he gently wrapped his arms around my new mother from behind her, resting his chin on her shoulder while they looked down at me. At a few days old, my eyesight had thankfully already cleared up and I could see them now. They were both absolutely beautiful, there was no doubt about it, but I didn't want them to call them my mother and father. I had a dad, who I still missed every day and a mom, who had sacrificed so much to raise me and my....my sisters! 

I started to cry again as I realised I had no idea what had happened to them. From what I could vaguely remember, the car had hit us from my side, so I and maybe Lillith were dead, but what about Delmira, Milana and Asterin? Were they okay? Were they hurt? I had no idea and that terrified me. I was their older sister. I was supposed to look after them, but I couldn't do that if I was a freaking baby in another world

Thinking that I needed something because of my crying, my mother quickly picked me up and tried to feed me, but I wasn't hungry. I was then checked to see if I had soiled my clothes, but they were dry and clean. If I wasn't so upset, I would've noticed that my new parents were starting to panic slightly once all that had been looked after. I wouldn't have been to blame them in any case as the was no way to easily explain this

"Give me her." My new father said and I was handed over. He walked over to the window and let the wind gently blow in my face. "Look, my little one. This is our realm. Our beautiful city of Aqualondë." He said. Once my brain had processed the name of the city, I stopped crying almost immediately as shock went through me instead. It couldn't be... Was there an Aqualondë in Middle-Earth that I didn't know about? Turning my much smaller head to the window, I saw an absolutely magnificent city stretched out in front of me and in the distance, the sea with beautiful ships anchored at the shore

I wasn't in Middle-Earth. I was in Valinor. And I suddenly noticed how everything was bathed in a strange golden glow that definitely couldn't come from the sun. The Two Trees, I realised. What year was this. I was not going to be a helpless victim when that ass Fëanor came calling for the ships. Because I had stopped crying, my new father thought he had cheated me up, but I was simply too shocked to cry

"You're an absolute miracle worker, Olwë." My new mother commented and if I could, I honestly would've facepalmed. No wonder the name of my new father sounded so vaguely familiar. He was the King of the Teleri who did make the trip to Valinor. Thingol's brother. Let's hope he's not as a racist bastard like Lúthien's dad. He and Fëanor were always two of my least favourite characters, together with....

My heart immediately froze in utter fear as I remembered a certain something or someone else. Morgoth. He was still around somewhere too, either stuck in the halls of Mandos or already out of there. Middle-Earth's Satan. 'I changed my mind. I'll gladly be part of the Fellowship and marry Legolas.' I thought desperately. The was no way I could ever face that absolute monster. The mere thought of meeting him one day made me soil my clothing anyway and my parents, for it seemed I was going to have to call them that, sent me off with a nurse to put me in clean clothes with a smile

To the King's and Queen's credit, they didn't hand me off to a nurse to take care of me pretty much 24/7, wanting to take care of me as well despite their busy schedule. A week after I was born,  I was officially presented to the people and they celebrated with a big feast. I thought it was a bit much to be honest, before I realised I was a royal now. Every single milestone I went through would probably be celebrated big

I also met my siblings in that time and it seemed that God or...Eru..... Jesus Christ. Mr. Ru. Edward Ru. E. Ru. No wonder he acted so weird in the shop. Anyway, it seemed that He had some ironic sense of humour inside as where I once was the oldest sibling, I was now the youngest. I had two older brothers named Lanthirchanar and Arnamdir and a sister named Eärwen. Wasn't she Finarfin's future wife? 

Seeing her as a young child, I guess maybe 9-10 years old in human years I guess, made me feel a bit calm as it eventually made me realise something. If she was still a child, happy and playful, then those absolutely terrible things that were going to happen in the future were still pretty far off from now on. She'd still have to marry the future High King, get children and..... wait a minute.... does that mean that Lady Galadriel was my niece? Because that would be absolutely amazing. Although, I guess she wouldn't be as intimidating if I had to change her nappies now, would she? 

Lanthirchanar was the always responsible big brother. He reminded me of myself, even if he had more responsibilities than I would ever have since he was father's, or in guess Ada's heir and that was clear in the way he held me, just as strong as Ada. Arnamdir was definitely a male version of Asterin as he had already explored every single place in the palace and bounced me up and down when he held it.

Eärwen was definitely like my dear Milana as she was incredibly sweet and held me as carefully as she could with our mother's gentle support. She was overjoyed to have a little sister and not be the only girl in the family anymore. I wondered if she would still think that when she saw exactly how much attention a new born needed, but for now, she was very happy and gave my tiny face dozens of kisses

Olwë and his beautiful wife, Queen Celebassel, were honestly amazing parents as much as I was slightly reluctant to admit it at first. After a few weeks of giving them a chilly shoulder as I really didn't want to betray my first parents, I eventually realised that I was probably never going back to that life again and just because I would never see them again, didn't mean that the King and Queen were at fault and that I could give them a chance without betraying my other parents. I realised that they would want me to be happy, even if it was with another set of... rather ethereal parents

When I first reached out to Celebassel willingly, she almost cried in happiness as she quickly picked me up and held me close to her chest. This made me decide that giving them a chance was probably worth it as the Queen of the Teleri was an absolutely amazing hugger. Olwë heard about this action soon enough and kneeled down next to me when he came to spend time with me. I crawled towards him as fast as I could

He immediately opened his arms at seeing this and lifted me up, kissing my tiny face all over as he held me close as well and making me squeal, laughing in pure happiness as he lifted me above his head. I had missed a father's touch ever since dad died and I slowly started to realise that it was nice to have one once again. If only my sisters were here. I think that Milana especially would've liked this family

Olwë then gently held me against his shoulders and I yawned widely as I rested my head on it, my hand very close to my face as I slowly grew tired. I'm not going to suck my thumb.... I'm not going to suck my thumb... I'm not going to... damn it. What can I say? It's a very comforting feeling to have my digit in my mouth while either Nana or Ada was holding me. Ada was gently stroking my back arms my eyes slowly fell shut. The last thing I thought was wondering if I was ever going to meet "Mr. Ru" again. After that I knew no more as I fel asleep

Okay, so elves slept with their eyes open like Gandalf. How do my eyes not dry out? I've honestly got so many questions about elven biology now that I was one myself. The next morning, my mother took me and my siblings out into the city and I looked around in awe. It was definitely a beautiful city. It made me think of Greece oin a way. Asterin had showed me pictures of Santorini and it reminded me of that

I suddenly noticed a man and a woman standing near a stall, the handsome red haired man feeding the woman a berry and her laughing. I squealed and reached out to them. They looked at me and seemed surprised that I could see them. "Who are you reaching out to?" Eärwen asked as she looked in the same direction. I briefly looked at her, before looking back and the couple was gone. I looked around in surprise

Where did they go? 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

The strange couple didn't leave my mind for a very long time.

They seemed so incredibly happy with each other in their own little, peaceful bubble and yet, so incredibly surprised to see that I could see them for some strange reason. My new family thought I had been reaching out to the colourful fruits on the stand, but while they did look quite delicious, it wasn't what I reached out to but it seemed that I was the only one who had even seen them in the first place

Even years later, I couldn't quite put the look on the man's face out of my head. He looked at the woman with so much love and adoration. He looked at her in a way that made my reincarnated baby heart melt at the mere memory of it. It was once of those couples where you could just feel they were together without seeing them kiss or even hold hands. That kind of love was impossible to fake or imitate 

To be completely honest, the very small part of me that used to watch Disney movies as a young child in my old life before everything went wrong with dad's death, kinda hoped to have the same kind of love one day in the future. It really hoped to have someone looking at me like that some day, like I was his entire world and like I was the only person in existence for him. I knew elves only loved once, so I desperately hoped that I would make the right choice in partner. If I ended up with someone like Fëanor or Ëol, I'm gonna join Maedhros and jump into a volcano as well

I was silent as my mother carried me back to the palace with my older siblings, people bowing for us all. Guess I'm going to have to get used to that as well for when I grow up again. Boy, that's going to take a while. Both growing up as i believe elves aren't considered adult until a hundred years have passed as well as the getting used to people bowing. Yes, I had been a manager, but no one's ever bowed to me

Well, until now that is. I looked at the dozens of Teleri elves around us. All of them were looking at my new family with a lot of adoration as well, but more the kind of adoration people have for a kind ruler who they love, admire and respect. It seems like I've got quite some shoes to fill to keep up that reputation... as well as try to make sure they weren't killed by a vengeful Fëanor several centuries down the line

Even as incredibly young as this body was, just a few months at most, I felt determination fill it completely as my "oldest sibling instinct" as Lillith once called it reared its head at sudden remembering what was in store for these people.. These were my people now. They all looked at my family for guidance and protection and therefore, they were also my responsibility once I was grown up and I was not going to let some crazy asshole obsessed with three speciallightbulbs kill them over some freaking ships. I may not be able to save everyone, but I'll be damned if I don't at least try

"Has the trip tired you out, my little jewel?" Ada asked as we walked into the palace again and he took me over. And to be quite honest, yeah. It had. My mind and mental capability may be that of a fully grown human woman, but my body and stamina was that of a baby elfling and I got tired almost frustratingly often. How can I plan to save as many people as I possibly could if my mind was in La La Land like 18 hours of the day? 

I yawned and started to fall asleep. "Shall I put her to bed?" I heard my mother ask quietly, but i felt my father shaking his head. "No, i want to hold her for a bit longer." He answered. "My love, you have a meeting in five minutes." She reminded him. "With Finwë, Ingwë and Elmo about our daughter. One of which is my brother and another just became a grandfather only a few months ago, so I don't think they'll say much." He replied

Wait, there's actually a person named Elmo in this? I let out a sleepy giggle as I imagined a whole different Elmo in my head and I felt my father stroke my back. "See? She agrees." He said and I could just feel my new mother shaking her head at him. Wait, what was that about the meeting being about me? "Fine, but I'm going to get her in half-an-hour." My mother said as my father walked away from her. I desperately tried to stay awake during the walk as I needed to know why this whole entire meeting would be about me, no matter how much Ada tried to make me go back to sleep

"Ah, brother. I see you took your newest family member with you." The other silver-haired elf said as Ada walked into a room with a dark-haired elf and a golden-haired one. It wasn't hard to guess who was who if Tolkien was accurate in his description. It turned out that the meeting was about that the fact that a in their first begetting day, the newest royal elfling had to be presented to the Valar and their Maiar. No biggie, right? 

Once I knew what it was about, I finally fell asleep in Finwë's arms "I think Maitimo would love to meet her. Nerdanel has been looking for a playmate who isn't interested in him because of his title." I heard him say just before I fell asleep. That was Maedhros right? I wondered if he was already tall as a baby. After that, I knew no more, but not before I wondered who the mysterious couple was one more time

Third person P.O.V. Somewhere in Valinor 

"She saw us! She saw us!" A voice shouted through the air, no one around to hear the owner of the voice steaming in frustration. "That's not possible, love. We were in hiding She can't possibly have seen us" The red-haired man Nemireth had seen protested to gently and calm her down before anyone did hear them as they returned to a huge hall and she let out a disbelieving laugh, giving him a tight smile.

"Darling, she literally looked us right in the eyes and reached out to us. She saw us." His companion hissed at him as she pushed his shoulder to make him face her. "How is that possible? This is the second time that this has happened. One time with one of the Vanyar noble ladies and now, a Teleri princess. What's next? The Ñoldor also gain a princess or a lady who can see us too?" He asked as he opened a pair of doors

They walked into the huge and very warm room and she sighed deeply, frustration rising in her chest "I don't know! Lord Eru didn't exactly give me a manual about how to do all of this when I started to follow my Lady, okay?!" She snapped as she immediately glared at him up at him, literally having to crane her neck up to even do that as he was at least a head taller, before taking a deep breath."I'm sorry." She breathed as she's tried to calm down, falling down on a nearby chair as she carded both her hands through her dark hair in utter frustration and a bit of exhaustion as well.

She knew it was not her husband's fault at all and she shouldn't snap at him . He couldn't do anything about how frustratingly confusing this all was. He immediately kneeled down right in front of her and put a hand on her knee, trying to comfort her and make her calm down more. "I'm sorry too, love. I really didn't mean to make you upset." He whispered and she looked at him, covering his hand with hers.

He immediately turned his hand to gently grip hers. He then carefully brought it to his mouth to kiss the back of it, holding it against his face with both hands as he looked at her. "Have i ever told you how much I love you?" He asked in a whisper and she immediately chuckled in answer, looking down with a small blush on her cheek as she still wasn't completely used to his affection after all this time.

"Many, many, many times. Doesn't hurt to hear it again though." She replied with a smile, looking back up at him with a look that made his heart go wild. "You will have to make it up to me for making me upset though." She said in a very low tone as she leaned close to his face, looking at the still open doors behind them. A wind suddenly kicked up and closed them with a loud boom. "Let's hope you-know-who doesn't come by anytime soon." She continued, twirling a lock of his hair between his fingers and he smirked at her. "He and his wife are out with the King. I'm sure we'll be fine for a few hours." He replied

As he was talking, he lifted her up from the chair and into his arms without any difficulty, his desire for her already quite clear and becoming more with the second as she looked down at him with a smile, knowing what she did to him "Only a few hours? Sounds like we'll have to hurry." She replied as she held onto his neck. He laughed loudly, his whole body shaking with it, before calming down and kissing her deeply. 

A few hours later, a man poked his head in to see them busy working again, nothing seemingly out of the ordinary as the smithing hammer was brought down by his pupil and his companion brought him a new bucket of water to cool the scorching hot metal in it. He nodded in satisfaction, before saying one thing. "I hope you cleaned after yourself." He said, making the other two turn bright red

"Yes, my lord." They both replied

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

How fast time can fly at times

Although that was probably helped by how incredibly fast elflings develop. I already said my first word, which was "nana" at only seven months old or what honestly counted as seven months as I believe time was measured differently here, but this seemed par for the course for elves as none of my family was surprised and were simply overjoyed that I had said my first word. It was so weird to be conscious and aware of this

By the time I was almost a year old and preparations were made for this big feast I heard about, I could already talk and walk pretty well, resulting in a lot of cooing when I walked next to Ada and held onto the end of his robes to make sure I didn't fall flat on my face. Apparently, elves coo at times. Ada thankfully never minded me hanging onto him and was always smiling proudly down at me, so incredibly happy to be a father again. 

Did I already mention my new parents were pretty awesome, as much as I was reluctant to admit it? This was a couple who had the responsibility to look after an entire city full of people who were counting on them and they still found time to play and take care of me and my siblings. We had family dinners whenever the schedules of our parents allowed it and especially Ada made sure to see all of us at least once a day for a few minutes, making sure that we were okay. As I had said before, it would've been so easy to just hand us off to a nanny or something 

But they never did that. Yes, I did spent some time with a nanny and a tutor who helped me, but the first steps and words were said in the presence of my parents. My nanny and tutor were surprised as how fast I learned. 'It's almost like I've done this before.' I silently snickered to myself, before Ada lifted me up in his arms again, kissing my little face proudly. I thought elves weren't very touchy-feely beings. Oh, well. I'm not complaining 

Ada was the strong, but playful parent as he tried to teach me things by making it fun, while Naneth was definitely the disciplinarian of the two at times and the one who really ran the royal, at times sightly messy household and kept it together, but still showed us how much she and our father loved us by coming to us at bedtimes and make sure that we knew we were loved before falling asleep with a gentle kiss on our brows

To my complete surprise, my siblings didn't regret becoming big siblings at all as months passed and I grew older, even if our parents were busy with me a lot of the time. On the contrary actually. If they didn't have their own lessons and were with their own tutors, then they were always right at their side and asking if they could help with something. The more I learned about them as months passed, the more I was reminded of my sisters ad my first opinion about them was pretty accurate. Even if I did miss my old family, I had to admit that this family was very nice too.

As High King Finwë had offered, my family went to Tírion to meet his oldest son Fëanor, his wife Nerdanel and their son Maitimo. Seeing Fëanor made conflicted feelings rise in me. I hated him for what he would do in the future as I was sure he wouldn't listen to me if I tried to stop him since even his wife couldn't, but there was not much of that in the elf I saw now. Today I just saw a proud father smiling down at his oldest son and Heir. 

'Until he dies and Maitimo gives the title to Fingolfin. Speaking of which, I wonder where he is.' I thought as I looked around, but it seemed that my family and Fëanor's (for now) small family were the only ones in the room. Maybe it was for the best, before Fëanor held a sword at his throat I don't know how many years too early. I then noticed baby Maitimo looking at me in curiosity as Nerdanel held him and I'd be damned if I said he didn't look utterly adorable 

Our parents carefully put us down on a really soft blanket while they talked about adult stuff that I was glad I didn't have to care about just yet and Maitimo smiled at me. "Hello." He said and I smiled back. For a future kinslayer, he was cute. Before we knew it, we were playing with each other, him being very careful and gentle. I remember how boys had always pinched me and ran me over when I was a toddler so I was glad he didn't do the same thing to me. I didn't even notice both sets of parents smiling at us as I was too busy having fun

About a month before my first begetting day, my family and many of our people travelled to a different city: Valmar, home to the Vanyar and the Valar and Maiar. I looked all around myself in absolute wonder from where I was riding in front of Nana in her saddle. I had read somewhere that the city was based on the idea of heaven and what a heaven this was. Nana immediately smiled down at me and gently stroked my hair

We then show rode up to the Royal Palace of Valmar and were immediately greeted and welcomed by High King Ingwë himself and his family, his wife Nessime and his oldest son Ingwion whom were standing in front of it. Ingwioj was pretty cute as well as I'd say he was a about teenager in human years and I could e some ellyth looking at him dreamingly. Whoever married him later would be forever happy and lucky

Finwë and his family soon arrived as well and I could immediately see a small spark jumping from his youngest son Arafinwë or Finarfin to my only sister in this life and hid my smile in Nana's chest. Eärwen would be taken good care of later. I just knew it. My smile fell as I remembered that of all the children they'd have, only Galadriel would return to Valinor by ship, instead of via the halls of Mandos and that just sucked. I wondered if I could save any of them, but I doubted it. At least, I knew Finrod would be let out almost immediately or very soon after his death. That was a relief

Finally, it was time and on the day of my begetting, I was brought to the palace of the Valar themselves in by my parents and we were let in. It was the most beautiful building I had ever seen and I had seen many beautiful buildings in this past year. It was honestly indescribable and somehow perfectly fitting for what I supposed were the Archangels of this world. The doors to the throne room were opened and we walked in

I could only stare at the glowing beings in front of me. They were all there: Manwë, Varda, Aulë, Yavanna, Ulmo, Mandos, Nienna, Oromë, Irmo, Tulkas, Estë, Vána, Vairë and Nessa. Kneeling before them was way too easy as my knees were already hitting the ground before my brain realised what I was doing. "My Kings. My Queens, allow me to introduce my daughter: Nemireth Istime." My father said as he and my mother were kneeling too

All the Queens of the Valar, called the Valier, slowly stood up from their thrones and gracefully walked towards my still kneeling form, my head lowered in respect. My siblings had already told me that this would happen as the male Valar would stand up when a new Prince was introduced and the Queens would do the same if there was a Princess in front of them. If everything went right, I'd receive some kind of blessing from one of them, but the question was who. My parents stood back and said nothing as the Queens surrounded me

The wait was honestly awful as there was a silence that was almost unbearable, but my mother had told me that looking up while they were deciding would be seen as a sign of complete disrespect so I kept myself still as I heard the Valier talk above me in their own language. One hand finally touched the top of my head from the front and I lifted my eyes slightly to see a the skirt of a dress made out of stars in front of me. Varda

"Rise, little one and welcome to Valinor." The High Queen of the Valar said and I slowly stood up. She smiled at me and caressed my cheek. I was already small as I was still only a year old, but compared to Varda, I was an ant. "There will be a lot of difficult decisions ahead of you, little one and a lot of hardship as well, but I want you to remember you will never be alone as family can be found in the most unexpected of places." I heard her say in my head

Slowly looking up now that they had decided, I nodded and bowed in front of her again. She smiled and caressed my cheek, warmth slowly filling me as I felt stronger than ever. Feeling a warmth on my arm, I looked down to see a mark appearing on my wrist. Three stars forever going around in circles. "Thank you." I breathed and she chuckled. "You're very welcome, little one. I have the feeling we'll see each other again one day, but not for a long time." She replied, kissing my forehead as the other Valar stood up from their thrones as well

Lifting me up in her arms, Varda carried me to what I supposed was the ballroom of this place, my parents walking next to her. I looked down and giggled. They looked so small from up here. All three tribes of the elves were already gathered in the room, from the proper Vanyar to the free Teleri. There were also many other beings who were shining as well, just not as bright as the Valar. I suddenly realised those were Maiar

Everyone looked up as the doors opened and gasped as they saw it was none other than Varda who was holding me in her arms. Maybe I was the first one to be chosen by her or something. They then kneeled in front of the Valar, before Manwë announced that I had received my blessing and that the feast could begin. Varda gave me back to my mother and gave my forehead one final kiss, before she followed her husband. I love her already

My siblings immediately came running, talking my ear off about how special this was. Lanthirchanar had been chosen by Ulmo, Arnamdir by Orormë and Eärwen by Estë. I smiled at them, before a flash of red caught my attention and I looked up. There they were! The couple I had seen. They were talking to another glowing man Completely uncaring of proprietary, I immediately reached out to them from my mother's arms and my family looked in the same direction again. "Do you want to meet the Maiar?" My mother asked and I quickly nodded

I needed to know who they were. My mother walked towards them with my siblings following and I grabbed the robe of the red-haired man. "Oh. Hello again." He greeted in surprise. "Again? What do you mean, my Lord?" Eärwen asked politely. "I mean that your sister saw me and my wife almost a year ago when we were walking through your beautiful city." He explained as he kneeled down to her height

"I thought we had been ordered to be invisible when walking amongst elves." The other Maia they had been talking to commented as he looked at the couple with a raised eyebrow. He was quite a handsome man as well with long brown hair and startling blue eyes. "We were invisible, Olórin, but the Princess still saw us somehow." The only female Maia protested, but the only thing that caught my attention was his name.

I knew that name. I wasn't a Tolkien nerd for nothing. "Gandalf!" I said, before I could stop myself I immediately got several confused looks thrown my way by both my family and the Maiar. "No, little one. My name is Olórin. Not Gandalf." The Maia in question corrected me with a smile, thankfully not insulted by my outburst and I giggled, before noticing how the female Maia was looking at him and back at me in contemplation, making a face that looked kinda familiar. "No wonder you were so interested in the idea of fireworks." She muttered to herself

"What?" Her husband asked. "Nothing." She quickly replied. "Melde." He said in a tone that said he knew she was lying. "Mairon, can we not talk about this now?" She asked, but my heart had skipped a beat. 'Mairon? As in Sauron? What was he doing here? Wasn't he supposed to be in Angband already? Wasn't he supposed to be on Morgoth's side?" I thought as I clung onto my mother. Mairon seemingly conceded, but he did kiss her temple.

That was another thing. Since when was Sauron of all people married. Was this world different than Tolkien told us? I then looked at the wife while my mother and siblings talked to them. She was beautiful with dark hair waving behind her, a lovely green dress hugging her finger and a amethyst ring on her finger. I zeroed in on that last thing and my breathing stopped as I recognised it even if I had seen it once or twice. I looked up at her again

Lillith?

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

I could only stare at the woman in front of me. 

Lillith?! How on earth was this possible? I thought she had died in that car accident. Then again, I had most definitely died during that as well, but I was here now. I then looked her up and down once more. She looked so different from the younger sister I once knew as she used to have a pixie cut and loose clothing. Lillith never was someone who cared much for her appearance she just did what she wanted

Now, her black hair reached the small of her back and her dress was again very form-fitting, but the biggest difference were her eyes. They were a magnificent purple , especially with her looking at Sau- no, Mairon now I guess, with so much happiness and love, which was honestly another thing. How the hell did my spitfire of a younger sister make a respectable hubby out of the dark lord Sauron of all people?!

I had to let her know who I was, but how? Getting an idea, I spoke up. "Can I guess your name?" I asked as i looked at her and she chuckled. "Of course, little ove. Guess away." She said, both Sau- Mairon and Olórin chuckling as well. I pretended to think deeply, my new mother and new siblings all watching in anticipation. "Lillith?" I asked and I could see her face fall in shock, before she covered it up with a small chuckle. "No, little Princess. That is not my name. My name is Runande. Why did you guess that name?" She asked, looking me up-and-down now as well

"If I had younger sister, I would give her name." I said and my mother immediately laughed. "I think we have enough children, my little one." She chuckled, kissing my temple. "And if you were to give yourself a name, what would it be?" My sister asked she took me over for a second with permission and making me giggle. "I like my names, lady Runande." I protested, carefully breathing "Sylvaine" underneath my breath

I could see my sister caught it, because her eyes looked suspiciously wet when she pulled back and gave me to Nana. "We do still have to find out why she could see you when you were invisible." Olórin commented with a thoughtful face. "Has it happened before?" Eärwen asked. "Once not long before your sister. The daughter of a Vanyar Lord saw us as well." S-Mairon replied and Lillith or Runande and I shared a look

We didn't say a word out loud to each other, but like we sometimes used to do back on earth, I knew that we were thinking the same thing. Maybe that daughter was yet another one of our dearest sisters. Ada then called us to him and we had to go. Lillith nodded at me, before walking away with her husband. I knew she'd find out, but the chance was pretty big that I wouldn't find out for a while as Aqualondë and Valmar couldn't be further apart and it would look weird if a Maiar wrote to a one-year old Princess. I stiffened as I realised something else. Holy shit, my sister is a Maia! 

The feast honestly passed in a blur after that. I unfortunately didn't meet Lillith/Runande or Mairon for the rest of the evening anymore as my family had to introduce me to all kinds of people, but I did see them dancing together once and walked away from the adults having a conversation to watch. My older siblings immediately joined me to make sure I didn't get lost in the crowd and we all watched the Maia couple dance

"They look happy." I noted and they really did. They were both smiling at each other as Mairon carefully held my youngest sister close to him. I may be young, but I had always been able to see when someone was lying or putting up a front, which was how I almost always knew something was going on with my sisters. There was no deceit in Mairon's eyes as he looked at my youngest sister as they danced on

"They really do." Lanthirchanar agreed with me as Eärwen sighed dreamily at the pair. "It's so romantic. I hope to have something like that when I grow up." She said in a whisper as our parents went to lead us to the next pair of elves whose names I probably would not remember in the morning anyway. It was quite boring, but I realised that this was going to be my life now as a royal. It was not like I could do very much at the moment, being only a year old. I eventually fell asleep on my father's shoulder when night started to fall and for rather obvious reasons, I dont remember anything after that

We eventually went home with our people just a couple of days later and I really didn't want to leave. I had just found one of my sisters, with a possibility of another being here in this city. I couldn't leave just yet. But alas, I didn't think my family would believe me if I told them this, so I was forced to keep my mouth shut as we rode through the streets of Valmar. I looked around and a flash of green caught my attention

I looked and saw Lillith or Runande standing there, looking straight at me and giving me a nod. I smiled and nodded back, before Nana rode on and my youngest (now oldest maybe) sister disappeared out of sight. My mood was incredibly bright during the entire trip home as I was silently cheering at the fact that two of my sisters were here with me in Valinor, even if I didn't know who the second one was just yet

My parents chuckled as I joined Eärwen in an impromptu dance one night as we camped which she immediately slowed down to allow me to join in, but could you blame me? Half of my sisters were here, safe and sound for now. How could I not celebrate that? I squealed as Lanthirchanar suddenly lifted me up and spun me around, making the rest of our family laugh as well as he put me down again, me dizzy after that so Nana picked me back up again. "I think that's enough excitement for today." She commented and we all agreed as we went to lie down for the night

The next few years passed by rather quickly as I grew up slowly and started to learn about my duties as Princess of the Teleri elves, which was quite a lot, even in a rather carefree environment like Valinor was at the moment. To my surprise, Maitimo and I actually stayed good friends throughout everything as we visited each other once a year. He became one of the few people outside my family I felt I could be myself with.

Well, maybe not completely myself as I really don't think he'd believe that I was a former human from another earth, but not the pretty and perfect little Princess my people expected me to be at times. He was quite literally growing like a weed and was already taller than any other child about our age and it honestly didn't take long before I got a messy little note from him about the birth of his little brother 

I smiled a bit at how incredibly excited he sounded to be a big brother, before it fell at remembering what would happen to the both of them and all the brothers that came after them and that all because of the man that was looking at them with so much pride in his eyes a year after I got the note when it was Maglor's turn to be blessed by the Valar, being chosen by Irmo. I wondered how it could all go so incredibly wrong even as I applauded the young, nervous Prince. I also wondered if he'd still do it if he knew what was in front of him, but I felt it was not up to me to decide that

I sighed as Fëanor and his family went around the room to meet everyone this time, before I heard my name being called. I immediately looked up and smiled as I saw Lillith or Runande quickly walking towards me, Mairon on one side and a golden-haired elleth on the other. "My Lord Mairon. My lady Runande. A pleasure to see you again." I greeted politely and especially my youngest sister was smiling at me. 

"This is Ohtare. She was the other elf who could see us." Runande introduced me to the elleth at side and she made a small curtsey to me and I nodded back. "It's a pleasure to meet you, lady Ohtare." I greeted and she responded likewise. I was burning with curiosity to find out who this was, but not before I asked Lillith something. "How does it feel to have the One ring to rule you both on your finger?" I asked 

"Wait, what?" Lillith asked with a frown

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"I'm married to Sauron?!"

"You didn't know?" I asked with a small laugh from where Runande had pulled me and our other sister to a corner. I only had to take one look at the diamond ring and smile as I knew who she was. "Hello, Mira." I greeted, surprising her and I grinned. "Sylvaine?" She asked as only i called her that and I nodded. The giant smile on her face was honestly like a balm on the hurt I felt at being separated from them for a few years

"I only saw the movies, remember? I never knew so much about Tolkien like you did. Holy shit...." Runande breathed, carding her hands through her hair as she tried to keep herself calm. "Hey, deep breaths. In.... and out. In..... and out." Delmira or Ohtare told her, exaggerating her breathing and our youngest sister imitated her. "Melkor. He took an incredible interest in my Mairon before the elves awoke." She commented

"Wanted him to join the dark side?" I asked knowingly and she nodded. "Or at least join him. It's only because of his love for me that he resisted. When he fled Almaren, which is where we lived at the time, he tried to take my husband with him by force, but I managed to get Aulë and he saved Mairon. I honestly didn't want to know what would've happened if he had succeeded in that, but now I know anyway." She muttered as she hugged herself. As a Maia, she was now much taller than us, but she seemed so small right now. I immediately rubbed her arm and even Delmira helped

"But it didn't happen, Lillith. He's still here with you and honestly looking quite concerned about you at the moment." My second sister commented and we looked to indeed see Mairon walking closer, his eyes completely focused on his wife's upset face. Runande smiled and went to meet him. Seeing him looking her over, no doubt asking if she was alright, Delmira or Ohtare and I shared a look and nodded in unison

Walking towards the couple, I quickly tapped Mairon's arm. "Lord Mairon, can I give you a small warning?" I asked with a tight smile and he nodded, still not letting go of our youngest sister. "You may be a powerful Maia and we may be very young at the moment, but if you ever hurt Runande and break her heart, we will crush you like an ant." I said in a low tone to make sure no one else heard me threaten a Maia 

"Let me guess, you're two of her sisters she told me about?" He guessed and I made a face that showed he was right. "Then rest assured that if I ever did anything to hurt her, I'd beat you to the crushing part myself." He continued and I saw that he meant it. I hummed at that. "You better, unless you want to go through the most embarrassing defeat ever." I warned him, before realising something. "Hang on. If you're here, then did Melkor fail to bring any Maia to his side?" I asked. "Curumo joined him. First, he spied on us to bring him information and after that, he openly joined him." Runande explained 

"Hmm, sounds like he traded in reason for madness several millennia too early." I commented and I could see that both my sisters quickly understood who I was talking about. "No wonder that he was such a creep. He tried to court me for a while, but I honestly wasn't interested away all as I had already met my Mairon at the time. He tried to force a relationship to happen. Mairon just let it happen." Runande said

I made a small face, before my parents called me. "I hope I see you soon. And Mairon, I'm watching you." I said as I walked backwards and did the fitting gesture and he nodded before I turned and walked away. "You seemed to be in a pretty deep conversation with them." My father commented as I joined my family again. "Well, I made some new friends who can teach me so much." I replied innocently and they smiled

The years after that passed quite quickly, more and more babies getting born in the Ñoldor royal family. Maitimo grew up quite handsomely and many ellyth saw the same thing as they tried to catch his attention. "It's so incredibly frustrating, Nem. They only want nee for either my appearance or the fact that in third in line for the throne. Barely anyone wants to get to know me for who I am." He said during a visit to Aqualondë, the two of us watching the sea from the beach with our mothers talking a bit behind us. "If it's any consolation, I'm still here." I said, giving his shoulder a small nudge

"That honestly makes it worse." He quickly teased me with a grin and I shoved his shoulder, making us both laugh. Calming down again, I then gave him a sidelong glance ad he enjoyed the sun with his eyes closed. He really was handsome with his red hair that seemed to burn in the sun's light and his smooth skin. I felt my heart skip a beat and widened my eyes at remembering that feeling from my last relationship

No. No way. No. I really wasn't falling in love with one of the seven freaking sons of Fëanor right now. Absolutely not. This was not happening. I really didn't want to get involved in that absolute shitstorm that was the Oath and the Kinslayings, once of which was against my own people no less. I've had my share of bad boys and my last relationship was hell. I wasn't going to let that happen again. Choose someone else, heart

I quickly tried to focus on something else, but my mind decided to betray me and come up with nothing but how close Maitimo was sitting next to me. Still an appropriate distance away, but still rather close. I looked at him again and just for a second, I wondered if I could make him not swear the Oath, before shaking my head as I refused to let my mind go down that hole. 'But of Sauron of all people can be saved from the dark side, what makes you think he can't?'A little voice whispered in my mind and I took a deep breath. It was almost a relief when Nana called me to go back home

Eärwen soon turned of age and there was a great feast held in our city to celebrate it. My sister danced almost the entire night and I noticed Arafinwë staring at her admiringly. I quickly sidled up to him and gave him a small nudge. "If you want to ask my sister for a dance, go for it." I advised him. "But what if she rejects me?" He asked. Wow, apparently elves can have the same problems as teenagers back on earth

"You won't know if you don't try it. Ara, you're one of my sister's best friends and she honestly really likes you. If you do not ask for her hand for the next dance, either I'll make you regret it or you will regret it forever yourself." I told him. He straightened up at this and walked towards my sister, just as my former sister walked up to me. "Future couple?" Ohtare asked with a knowing grin and I immediately nodded in answer

"And if I'm not mistaken, then Lady Galadriel will be their daughter." I replied and she gave me a look. "Oh, really? That is so weird to think about." She commented. "You're telling me. I'm going to be her aunt." I said, making her laugh. "What about Elrond?" She asked curiously as we kept ourselves quiet to make sure no one would hear that we were talking about people who didn't even exist yet at this point. "Arafinwë's brother Ñolofinwë is his great-great-grandfather. His son Turgon will have a daughter Idril, who will have a half-elven son named Eärendil who is the father of Elrond." I explained

"Got it." She quickly nodded in understanding after seemingly drawing a imaginary family tree in her mind, making me chuckle a bit. "Who are you going to marry?" She then asked just as I took a sip from my water and I almost choked on it, coughing into my elbow as she patted my back. "No one for now." I finally managed to answer while giving her a glare. She simply grinned, before she saw something behind me

"Are you completely sure about that? Because that very tall, red-haired Prince of yours is looking at you the same way Arafinwë was looking at your sister just now." She commented as she took a sip from her own drink and I subtly turned my head to look at him from the corner of my eyes. I saw that he was indeed looking right at me, even as another elleth I recognised from other feasts was trying to get his attention.

I blushed a bit at seeing the look in his eyes. It indeed reminded me of the look his half-uncle had when looking at my sister and in some capacity, of the look Mairon had when looking at Runande. It was a look full of admiration and I had never seen anyone looking at me that way. "He's handsome. Why don't you go for it?" Ohtare asked, seeing that I wasn't jumping up-and-down at this news. "And get involved with the Oath that leads to three...Kinslayings? Haha. No way." I replied, hissing the word "Kinslayings." She gave me a look at this, realising that I was completely serious about this

"Wow, "the Silmarillion" is a lot different than "the Lord of the Rings," huh?" She asked and I made a face in answer. "Well, not to make you panic, but he's coming this way." She muttered and I turned around to see him coming closer indeed, leaving the elleth behind. Once he had reached us, he asked me for a dance as well and I smiled. Even if I furiously denied having feelings for him, he was still my best friend

I took his offer and he carefully led me to the dance floor. Even with neither of us having reached majority yet, we were considered old enough not to be sent to our room earlier. I couldn't help but smile as we danced, something inside me telling me this was right. He was smiling back at me as he guided me with one hand on my back and the other holding mine. Everything fell away until I only saw him and suppressed feelings broke free 

Damn it, I was in love with this man!

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"Mairon, can we talk?"

Mairon immediately looked up to see his beautiful wife standing in the doorway, one hand crossing her chest to grab her elbow which was something she usually did when nervous about something and he immediately frowned in worry. "Of course, Melde. What is it?" He asked, putting his things down and opening his arms. She immediately walked into them and clung onto him for a few seconds

Now, he really knew something was going on as she had the grip she always had when scared or anxious. "What's wrong?" He asked quietly, holding onto her and she took a deep breath. "Sylvaine is in town. She, Delmira and I have something to tell you. I already asked Lord Aulë and Lady Yavanna if we could take the day off and they agreed." She told him and he hummed, still not fully understanding what was going on, but trusting his wife

The two of them met the other women near the Two Trees. "What is going on?" Mairon asked, feeling a bit impatient now and the three women shared a look. "Remember how I told you hope Middle-Earth was fictional in my old world?" Runande asked and he nodded. "Well, in the most popular books of all the books that were published about this place, there is a Dark Lord who wants to take over the world. He was defeated long before the story takes place, but he is slowly regaining strength, needing only an object he made to completely come back to power." His wife continued 

"Okay...." Mairon said slowly, still not fully understanding what was going on. "I thought that Curumo was that Dark Lord, but it turns out that he's actually a different character all together, a wizard corrupted by this Dark Lord." Runande continued and he frowned. "Alright, so if he isn't the Dark Lord, then who is?" He asked and his wife looked at her sisters at this. "It's you." Nemireth answered and silence fell. "Excuse me?" He finally asked

"Well, you would've become that if you had listened to Melkor. You would've been banished from Valinor and would eventually threaten Middle-Earth for two ages straight before finally getting defeated by a hobbit." Ohtare took over. "A what?" He asked in utter confusion as he grabbed his wife's hand. "A hobbit. It's a race created by my Lady. It does take three of them to do so though." Runande said. "Does Gollum count as a hobbit?" Nemireth asked

What followed was a ten minute discussion between both Ohtare and Nemireth about whether or not this Gollum character counted as a hobbit, but Runande focused on her husband and wrapped an arm around him. "Are you okay?" She asked quietly and he let out a shaky breath. "If I actually had followed Melkor and had become this Dark Lord, what would've happened to you?" He asked as he looked down at her and she smiled at the fact that this was the first thing he thought of. "I think I would've died of a broken heart if you had actually followed him." She said

He immediately moaned in pain at the mere thought of causing her so much hurt and pulled her into his arms. "Sssssshhhhh. It's okay. You didn't follow him and I'm alright." She whispered, reaching up and kissing his jawline, right at a spot where she knew he was ticklish. "I'd never do that to you. You know that, don't you? And never to you. Valar, never to you. I would never hurt you like that." He whispered and she immediately nodded 

"I know, my darling and I love you for it." She breathed as her sisters stopped their discussion at realising that Mairon was going through a crisis. Sharing a look, they took some steps back  "It's alright, Mairon. I love you so much." Runande whispered as she hugged him. "I love you too. You are my heart, my saviour and my life." He replied The older sisters shared a look and smile, being able to hear that he truly meant it and now knowing for sure that he loved her

Safely wrapped in her husband's strong arms with her cheek squished against his chest as she was still holding onto him, Runande was smiling at his words as well before closing her eyes for a brief second. Eventually pulling back again, Mairon took a deep breath. "Hang on, did I use the same name? Because "Mairon" doesn't sound very intimidating." He asked. "I believe you did call yourself that, but everyone called you "Sauron."" Nemireth explained. He frowned at hearing that name, before quickly smelling his armpits and making them laugh. 

1st person P.O.V 

It wasn't long after that discussion and revelation that I finally turned off age and I was so excited to be considered an adult. No more asking if I could go somewhere first. I could finally drink wine, although I do applaud elves for keeping their children from drinking until their majority as well. Eärwen and Arafinwë were courting now and I had never seen her so happy as she was right now

Fëanor now had 4 out of seven sons and his brother Ñolofinwe had gotten his oldest son, the famous Findekáno or Fingon, but seemed to wait a bit to gain another child. I remembered reading somewhere that Aredhel and Galadriel were born in the same year, the former gaining another little brother after that, so it seemed that he would spread out when he got children. Maitimo and Fingon were the best of friends despite the animosity between their fathers

Unfortunately for me, my silent crush on the red-haired Prince hadn't faded in the least since my first realisation several years ago and it honestly didn't seem to be going away again anytime soon. I just couldn't help myself.  He was very sweet, funny, charming, calm, patient even when his little brothers were throwing a tantrum about something or another and so incredibly handsome, models would look at him in jealousy. In other words, he was quite honestly perfect for me... if not for who his dad was and what would happen in his future 

I still wasn't sure if I would be able to manage to keep him from swearing the Oath or prevent the Kinslaying against my people from happening. On one hand, I'm their Princess, so if I told them to give the ships, they had to listen right? Unless, if I did marry Maitimo, they would count me as part of that house instead, but I wasn't sure if elves did that. I suddenly paled as I remembered something else, something even worse

Maitimo was captured by Morgoth soon after arriving in Beleriand and would be tortured for years, before eventually getting hung out to dry and Fingon only being able to save him by cutting off his hand. There was absolutely no way he wouldn't be traumatised after that. I already had trouble calming Delmira when she had nightmares or any other form of army PTSD. I have absolutely no idea how I was going to help an 8-foot tall elf

Geez, Tolkien. Couldn't you have given him some kind of break? I mean, seriously, it's almost inhuman how much shit Maitimo goes through. Okay, he isn't exactly human, but you get my point. But again, unless I could prevent him from being captured, I really wasn't sure if I could handle a traumatised husband. Maybe Fingon... no, he gets killed by gothmog. Ecthe... no, same balrog. Glorfindel? Maybe, but he dies as well and I'm not sure if I can go through at least a thousand years without him as elves usually fade when their partner dies.

Celebrimbor wasn't even born yet and neither was Finrod, and he would be my freaking nephew through Eärwen, so that was just eww. Man, now that I really thought about it, there weren't many first age elves that didn't go through something traumatic, died in a tragic way or both and that just wasn't fair. Was Tolkien on a sadistic streak when he wrote the Silmarilion. I'm know he started writing during World War 1, but Jesus Christ.

Among all the dozens of presents that I got for my one-hundredth Begetting day, there was one small, anonymous gift without a card coming with it or anything. Carefully opening it with my siblings next to me, I saw a very familiar ruby ring lying inside and immediately put it on my finger. It seemed that Eru was helping us recognise each other through our rings, so we'd know who was who even if we looked completely different 

During the feast, I wore a blue gown that the seamstresses had made for me just for tonight and I immediately noticed many ellyn staring at me when I was announced and walked into the room. To be completely honest, I had never thought how much of an interest there was in me. With my sister already happily courting Arafinwë with no end to that in sight for as far as I can tell and with my parents having officially stated that they were done having children as they had enough, I was the very last chance for noble ellyn to marry into the royal family

After having danced with my father, uncle and brothers, I was asked for a dance again and again until I could barely rest unless I refused a request. Many ellyn tried to get to know me and one of them was so insistent that it made me uncomfortable until a hand tapped his shoulder. "May I cut in?" Maitimo asked, but something in his eyes said it was not a question and he quickly left as my friend took over. "Thank you." I breathed.

"You looked uncomfortable." He commented while we danced. "You would too if someone you barely know insists on talking to you like you're best friends." I muttered and he laughed. "Oh, I went through that many times." He replied and I chuckled as I tried to calm my racing heart before he noticed. Why did he have to be so close? After a while, he finally broke the silence. "You look even more beautiful than you normally do." He commented quietly 

And my heart went crazy again

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

It was quite funny how immortal life worked

For humans, 150 years was an impossible age to reach with many changes, but for an elf with their immortality, it honestly was a mere blink of an eye. The biggest thing that happened in those fifty years was Eärwen and Arafinwë finally getting engaged. None of my other sisters had come this close and Lillith was already married now, so could you blame me for diving into helping organise their wedding vigorously?

Eärwen herself was actually quite surprised about how incredibly enthusiastic I was about helping with this, even more than the servants who did most of the work. "You are my sister and you are getting married to the love of your life and live happily ever after. Of course, I am absolutely excited." I chuckled as I grabbed her hands and danced around with her, making her laugh as she happily danced with me

Organising the wedding also distracted me from a certain other subject: Maitimo. Ever since I turned of age and he told me that he thought I was beautiful, he rarely left my mind and I had a feeling that I didn't leave his either. I had danced with other ellyn that night, but none had gotten my attention or had made my heart beat so fast like he did and I knew that he was my One, but admitting it to myself was easier said than done. There were so many bad things ahead of him in his future and I didn't know if I could save him from everything or if I could forgive myself if I couldn't

He hadn't officially asked me to court him yet in the past years, but from what I heard my parents talk about one evening, it wouldn't be long anymore. My mother and Nerdanel had become best friends and the latter had told my mother that apparently, I had really stolen her son's heart. His brothers kept teasing him about it, but he didn't care. Hearing that just made my guilt about this grow even more

If he did ask me to court him and I said no, I would completely crush his heart. I couldn't do that to him. He was still my best friend so wasn't a present or previous sibling. But I'm sparro had to think of myself. Beleriand was dangerous, especially in the last hundred years or so with the Ñoldor losing both the Battle of the Sudden Flame and the Battle of the Unnumbered Tears and kingdoms falling left and right 

Oh! And the War of Wrath. How could I forget about that? Tolkien may not write about it much, but it still took or would take 40 years. 40 years! A human child would be born and grown up in that time. Hell, considering Middle-Earth wasn't as advanced as my earth and people probably died younger if they weren't from Númenor, they would probably be at or over the halfway point of their lives at that age. That's how freaking long it took! But no, let's do a whole chapter about how Beleriand looks like and not the biggest battle in its history that ruins a whole continent, Mr. Tolkien

The required year for the engagement passed incredibly quickly and soon, many elves of all ranks and standing came to the city of Tírion to witness the union of Princess Eärwen of the Teleri and Prince Arafinwë of the Ňoldor. I was beaming in pride as my sister pledged her love to her almost-husband in the name of the Valar and Eru himself. She deserved to be happy and I knew he'd take care of her forever and ever

"So, when is it your turn?" I asked Ohtare during the celebration feast. As a noble lady from the Vanyar, she was invited. "I could ask you the same thing. Still not with that handsome Prince of yours? Besides, I told you that I'm not interested in men for a while." She replied. "Oh come on, Mira. That was more than a hundred years ago and do you know how likely it is for an elf to cheat on you?" I asked and she shrugged

"About as likely as swans cheating on each other." I told her. "Really?" She asked in surprise. "Really. Once they have found their One, there will never be anyone else for them. Ever. Marriages aren't until "death do us part." They are forever, even beyond that." I answered and I could see her contemplating this. "Come on, Delmira. Look at how happy Eärwen is and then look me in the eyes and tell me you don't want the same thing." I told her and we quickly found out she couldn't do the latter. I had heard that she had gotten a few courtship offers, but had rejected all of them

"Even if I do decide to find that happiness, where do I begin? Have you seen this place? It's like full of supermodels. You've got it easy with your Prince, but I doubt one of them will notice me." She muttered in a pessimistic tone and I patted her back, just as said Prince walked towards me and asked for a dance. After asking Ohtare if she was alright with it, I accepted it. "Thank you." He breathed as we danced

"For what?" I asked with a slightly confused frown as I looked up at him and he quickly chuckled as he glanced back to where I had been standing with me previous sister. "For accepting my offer for a dance. A certain someone that I know did not dare to approach your friend as you seemed to have fun with each other." He replied as he turned us around so I could see what exactly he was talking about.

A smile slowly spread on my face as I saw none other than Findekáno, who had just turned of age not too long ago, nervously asking Ohtare for a dance and her slowly accepting it as he led her to the dance floor. "Yes!" I quietly cheered to myself and Maitimo chuckled ad he danced on before his cousin noticed we were watching. That reminded me of who I was dancing with and my heart sped up once again and I was suddenly aware of every little detail. The gentle warmth of his body and the hand on my back, his familiar scent, how incredibly tiny my hand was in his as he held it

I knew that I loved him and that he apparently loved me back as well, so why did I feel so very conflicted about everything I did? All I ever wanted was a man who would treat me well and here was one, so why was this so incredibly difficult for me to go through? I looked up once again during the dance and saw those familiar blue eyes looking at me the very same way freaking Sauron looked at my younger sister.

I immediately felt myself smile back at the sight despite knowing what was in store for the elf holding me so gently and carefully and that all because of his father's unbelievable pride and an evil Vala's manipulations which would eventually end in disaster. "Are you alright?" He asked, seeing something in my eyes as the dance ended. "My feet hurt. That is all." I quickly lied, the lie settling rather heavily in my gut.

There was so much that I wanted to tell him at that very moment. I wanted to warn him for everything that would happen to him, but I simply couldn't do it. He wouldn't believe me and would probably call me insane. I honestly wouldn't be able to blame him if he did as "I'm from another world where you're a fictional character and I know every shitty thing that's going to happen in your future" doesn't exactly sound sane. He chuckled  and carefully led me to a nearby empty chair. I sat down with a sigh and he kneeled down next to me, still keeping a small distance away as was appropriate 

"They are still dancing." I commented at seeing Ohtare and Findekáno going for another dance and Maitimo chuckled as well. "Finno has been harbouring an infatuation with her for at least five years now, but she never seemed to notice him." He told me. "Only because she thought there would be no way a Prince would ever notice her." I replied and he laughed. "So they were both idiots?" He asked. "Basically." I giggled 

When my sister and Arafinwë pulled themselves back for their wedding night and maybe create Finrod already, I danced with Maitimo again and it was there that I decided once and for all that there would never be anyone else for me and he was clearly thinking the same thing as every time an elleth came to him for a dance, he did accept it as was proper., but he almost always came back to me as soon as the dance was over

The only times that he didn't ask me for another dance was when I was eating, resting my feet or dancing with my family. I even danced with Maglor a couple of times and while he was very nice as well, there was something that just drew me to his older brother. Eru was one stubborn bastard, wasn't he? I also met up with Ohtare again when she was done dancing. "And? Is the Prince a good dancer?" I asked teasingly and she chuckled. "He's an amazing dancer. What can you tell me about him?" She asked and I blew out a deep breath in answer, wondering what to tell her

"Let's see. He'll be the older brother of Prince/King Turgon of Gondolin, Princess Aredhel and Prince Argon, but the latter barely reaches Middle-Earth before getting killed by orcs." I began. "Poor guy." She immediately commented in sympathy at hearing that and I made a face in agreement. "In the book, he saves Maitimo from captivity, but I'm hoping to prevent that in general." I continued and she chuckled at this

"After Maitimo makes Fingolfin High King, he becomes his father's heir and eventually High King himself, so be prepared to be responsible for much of the Ñoldor if you do continue this." I warned and she nodded in understanding. "However, he's only king for a short time until the Battle of Unnumbered Tears where he gets brutally killed by Gothmog." I finished and her face darkened at this "We'll see about that." She growled and I smirked.

There was the strong sister I knew

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

It was only a matter of time, honestly

I became an aunt only a century after my sister's wedding, which was probably quite fast for elven standards. "Nemireth, this is your nephew Finderáto." Eärwen introduced her new son to me, absolutely beaming in pride as she held onto the adorable baby boy, my parents standing next to her, already having had their turn holding their very first grandchild. "Hi, Finderáto. I'm your auntie Nem." I greeted him as I carefully took him over, tickling his tiny chin 

I smiled at successfully making him laugh with this as he immediately squirmed in my arms. Eärwen and Arafinwë were smiling as I gave little Finderáto to our brothers and parents. "When is it your turn? I'm younger than you and I already have a child while you are still not even courting anyone so when are you going to make father and mother grandparents?" Eärwen asked them, the both of them sputtering a bit.

"When Nemireth does. She still is not courting anyone and not for lack of trying of the suitors." Arnamdir replied.The reason I didn't shove him was because he was currently holding our nephew and I didn't want to scare him. "Very funny." Was all I said. "Even then, I think Prince Maitimo will ask her soon enough." Nana commented with a smile as she looked at me and I blushed. "Speaking of which, did you hear Findekáno is finally courting someone. I thought he would remain unbound forever." Eärwen commented as she leaned against her husband 

She now lived in Tírion with Arafinwë and therefore was a lot closer to the mess that was his family than she used to be. Seriously, the Kardashians got nothing on them. I frowned as I remembered Fëanor having quite an interest in my future niece's hair. "Oh, that is good news. Who is he courting?" My oldest brother asked. "A Vanyar noble lady. Ontare I believe her name is." Eärwen said. "Actually, her name is Ohtare." I corrected her

"Your Vanyar friend?" Nana asked and I nodded. "Oh, how lovely." She then commented with a smile and I chuckled. "They deserve happiness and I believe that they can give each each other that happiness." I replied and my entire family smiled at this. "I do hope so. You and Ohtare have always seemed very close. I hope it stays that way." Ada said and I smiled. " I hope so too. I really do." I agreed with a smile as I looked down at my baby nephew 

Maitimo eventually invited me for a horseback ride in the bountiful forests of Valinor not long after while we were still in Tírion. I immediately accepted the offer and soon enough, we were having a small race through the beautiful nature. I won, but I was pretty sure that Maitimo let me win. I laughed anyway, not noticing Maitimo was smiling at seeing me so incredibly happy. "Man, I must look like a mess." I chuckled once we dismounted as I tried to card my fingers through my windswept hair, wincing in slight pain at the snags that I came across 

"Let me." Maitimo said as he quickly tied his horse to a tree, walked and gently helped me get my hair back in order. "You still look radiant, though." He commented and I blushed as I looked up at him. "You look very handsome as well. Any lady who becomes your Princess will be the luckiest elleth in all of Valinor." I replied as I gave him a smile and he smiled back at me as he finished with my hair

"Well, I do have one elleth in mind. She is the most beautiful woman in all of Valinor, shining even brighter than the Valar themselves." He said and I bit my lip, having a feeling that I knew exactly who he was talking about. "Why are you not courting her yet then, if she's so beautiful?" I asked as I took a few steps away and he sighed. "Because I do not know if she feels the same way." He answered and I looked around at him

"And you will never know if you do not try it. Next time you see that elleth, go and kiss her hand." I suggested with a shrug as I walked in the direction of a nearby meadow. I suddenly felt him grab my hand. Smiling at this, I turned around again as he stepped a bit closer to me and, without breaking eye-contact with me, kissed my knuckles. He really made it clear who the elleth he had in mind was and I blushed once more. Pulling back, he waited for my answer and I took a deep breath as this was one the biggest choices in my life

If I refused him and his advances now, I might save myself from a lot of pain, stress and fear in the future, but I would completely and utterly crush the heart of my best friend underneath my shoe. He was looking so incredibly hopeful and I couldn't bare to see him sad.I didn't know if he'd ever recover from such a blow, nor did I want to know and to be very honest, if I said I didn't want him, I'd be lying to myself as well

Making my final decision about this, I tightened my grip on his hand and held it against my chest, giving him a smile. He let out a shaky breath in relief as cupped my face with his free hand. "Thank you." He breathed. "Do not thank me just yet.  I will turn my life upside-down." I replied and he laughed. "I do hope you will." He said as he kissed my forehead and I closed my eyes. There was no going back now

Riding back towards Tírion after a while, it seemed that pretty much all our friends and family immediately noticed a difference between us and our siblings immune teased us about it.  I honestly didn't care as the happiness I saw in my new suitor's eyes was more than enough to cheer me up as I knew I had made the right decision. No matter what will happen, I had the feeling that he would do his best to protect me just like I would do my best to protect him. Together, we would keep each other safe from harm. I had to believe in that

"It's honestly about time you two finally got together." Ohtare commented with a teasing smile on her face the next time we saw each other during and I chuckled. "I could say the same to you. How is being courted by Prince Findekáno?" I asked with a grin of my own. "It's... really nice. You were right about him. He's so very sweet and always respects my feelings about things. He listens to me, no matter what I say." She replied 

"According to Maitimo, he had a crush on you since a few years before he asked you for a dance, but you never seemed interested." I told her and she laughed. "For some reason, I can totally believe that." She said and we both chuckled, before both our respective Princes came to ask us both for a dance. Sharing a look and a knowing grin, we happily accepted their offers, laughing as they pulled us along with them

"What were you talking about?" Maitimo asked as he pulled me close for the dance and started to sway us back-and-forth on the rhythm of the music. "Finno being an idiot." I answered and he threw his head back as he laughed. "You are the most amazing woman I have ever known in my entire life." He commented with a chuckle and I immediately smiled back as I rested my head against his chest for a second. I just couldn't help it, he was so freaking tall. He stroked my hair for a second, before holding me close to him again

"You are so beautiful, my amazing Ohtare." Finnon breathed in the ear of his partner and she blushed. People hadn't often called her beautiful back on earth, nor had she cared, but she could hear that he truly meant it. "You do not look very bad either." She replied with a grin and he chuckled as he ducked his head in response. "Did the Prince just become shy?" She teased him and he rolled his eyes as they danced on 

In a dark corner, a man was standing. No one noticed him as he watched the two couples dancing together. He smiled at the sight, despite knowing what was in store for them in the future. "You will not be alone ever again, my dear girls. Speaking of which, I need to make sure that they will soon be joined by another. Let us hope that she will make better decisions than she does on paper." He muttered to himself 

When someone passed the corner five seconds later, he was gone

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

The next few decades were honestly bliss

Maitimo was an absolute darling ever since we officially started to court each other and attended to my every need. While he was very proper in public, the minute we were alone, he immediately turned into an literally huge cuddlebug. My favourite thing was when he suddenly hugged me from behind and lifted me up from the ground as he nuzzled my neck. It tickled and never failed to make me laugh

His younger brothers never stopped to constantly tease us about our relationship, the elf who would later be known as "Celegorm the Cruel" pulling me into a headlock and rubbing his knuckles over my head until I stomped on his foot and he let me go. I stumbled back and Maitimo could barely catch me, all of us laughing at it. Despite most of them being rather nice, it was rather hard to forget their future actions

I also had trouble remembering who was who with their Quenya names, having gotten used to their future Sindarin names from the books. Makalaurë or Maglor was rather easy as he was almost always busy composing a new song and his reputation for being a great singer definitely wasn't unfounded. Tyelkormo or Celegorm wasn't often home as he lived to hunt with the Valar whose blessing he had received: Oromë. Curufinwë/Atarincë really was his father's son and Carnistir or Caranthir had a fierce temper and even Maitimo didn't often leave me alone with him

The twins weren't born yet and I gulped at remembering Amrod's future fate and looking up at my Maitimo. I didn't want to know how he'd react if one of his youngest brothers died because of their own father. I leaned against him and he immediately looked down at me in concern. "Are you alright?" He asked. "I'm fine. My mind just tends to run away from nee at times and I need to focus myself." I told him

He immediately chuckled at this and quickly wrapped his strong arms around me, rubbing my back but not saying anything and I was grateful for that as I really didn't want any reassurances about how "everything will be alright." I just needed some peace and a warm hug to calm my mind down, Maitimo giving me both without even knowing it. I took a deep breath and relaxed at his touch as I closed my eyes

After a while, I pulled back and looked up at him. "Thank you." I whispered and he smiled. "You are very welcome, my Nemireth." He replied as he brushed my silver hair back from my face and I leaned into his touch, his hand as big as the entire left side of my face. He chuckled and kissed my forehead, before nuzzling the top of my head. Who knew that one of the most famous and fearsome warriors of the first age could be so incredibly sweet? I couldn't help but let out a laugh at the feeling add he suddenly wrapped his arms around me and spun me around, wanting to hear me laugh more

Time moved even faster than it had before and before I even knew it, at least twenty years had passed. We didn't see Runande that often as she had to work for the Lady Yavanna, but she was ecstatic to hear about us finally finding someone in our lives. So much so that she came for a visit to almost tackle us into a hug. Only the fact that no one but the three of us knew that we were sisters stopped her from doing so

Instead, she gave us a smal bow and congratulated us, telling us she hoped our futures would be happy with a hidden mischievous grin on her face and her eyes showing how much she meant it. Ohtare and I smiled back at her as we looked at Maitimo and Finno, me leaning against my own Prince and him smiling down at me. I could see the happiness in the eyes of my former younger sister as she looked at us

"Well, if a Maia of the Lady Yavanna blesses your relationships, it just cannot go wrong." Finno's mother Anairë commented with a delighted smile on her face as she clapped her hands once Runande had left and Ohtare and I simply smiled without saying anything, knowing that this was not a Maia from the Lady Yavanna blessing our relationships per se. It was simply a youngest sister happily celebrating the fact that her oldest sisters finally were in happy relationships for once in their lives and with two Princes nonetheless. I just hoped she was eventually right about our futures

Speaking of Anairë, she surprised us all by telling us she was with child and it resulted into cheers. "Who is next again?" Ohtare asked quietly when we pulled back into a quiet corner once we had congratulated the expectant mother to discuss this. "I believes it is Turgon, then Aredhel and then Argon." I told her. "And how many survive God's first age you talk about." She asked, her protective instincts clearly rearing up

I didn't say anything in return and she let out a deep breath as she realised what it meant. "Shit." She muttered and I sighed. "You may not be able to save everyone. Just try and keep your own elf safe." I told her and she nodded. "Who kills him again?" She asked. "Gothmog, lord of the balrogs. Remember that thing that temporarily killed Gandalf? He's the boss of those creatures." I elaborated and she gulped 

"And he'll fight that?" She asked in a horrified whisper as she tried to imagine it in her mind. "It's a very big battle, Mira. Everyone fights everyone. For as far as I know, it was actually the fault of the second Balrog that he was killed as that one bound him in his whips and made him unable to fight and then, to quote the Queen of Hearts "off with his head..." and I went too far with the description, didn't I?" I asked with a small wince on my face at seeing her looking a bit sick. "A bit. Yes." She conceded and i patted her back. "Deep breaths. He's still here. He's fine." I whispered to calm her

Seeing her trying to calm herself, I quickly went to get Finno to help her. "Ohtare? What is it? What happened?" He asked in concern as he looked at me"I once was part of an elfling's birth when one of our servants went into labour. She wanted to know more about it and I may have gone into too much detail. Sorry." I apologised and he hummed in understanding as he took my sister a bit apart to let her calm

"Damn it, Tolkien. I'm completely blaming you for this as this is your fault. Maybe if you gave one of your First Age elves a happy ending for once but noooo...." I muttered to myself as I walked back. "Is Ohtare alright?" Maitimo asked. "She will be fine. I just went into too much detail about a certain subject." I explained and he smiled as he kissed my forehead. "She will be fine. She's strong." He whispered to me

I quickly smiled at that, knowing he was right in more ways than one, even if he didn't know it. "Even if she is and she really is very strong, it is honestly nice that she will finally have someone to be her pillar when she can't be strong and needs a break. Someone to protect her when she can't protect herself. She deserves it and I'm happy she finally has it." I commented with a smile as I looked up. He smiled back at me. "She is very lucky to have you as a friend." He commented. "Right. "Friend."" I muttered to myself as I hugged my own elf. He smiled at me and stroked my hair

Boy, this was going to be difficult when or if our other sisters arrived. Lillith lived far away, so she couldn't slip up as often. Delmira and I would be in-laws in a very distant way with our potential husbands being cousins and best friends. We were going to see each other a lot. That was for damn sure. I wondered how long out would take before one of us would finally tell them the truth about where we came from

Finno and Ohtare eventually returned and we celebrated the impending new baby royal. Anairë was positively glowing as Ñolofinwë never let her go throughout the entire evening. Eärwen was absolutely ecstatic to become an aunt herself, even if it was through marriage. Arafinwë simply smiled at her as Finderáto was standing next to him. I smoked at how happy she was, before taking a deep breath and promising myself something

I was going to do my best to protect her children while on Middle-Earth, no matter what. 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you 

"Hello, little Turukáno."

I smiled at the baby in my arms, knowing what a formidable ellon he would become one day. Maitimo was standing behind me, smiling at his baby cousin as well. Ñolofinwe and Anairë were smiling from a small distance as their new son was carefully passed around, absolutely glowing with pride. I wondered if I would be like that one day with Maitimo. I blushed at thinking so far ahead already. Let's take it one day at the time, shall we?

Finno was one of the proudest big brothers I've ever seen in my entire life as he stood next to his parents, obviously already having met his little brother before any of us had. Ohtare was standing right next to him, her hand tucked in the crook of his arm. Ever since I told her too much detail about how the ellon she loved dies, she was understandably hesitant to leave him alone. She did do it, but she was always relieved to see him again

I had recently reminded her again that as long as we were here in Valinor and even for at least four-hundred years after that In Middle-Earth, her lover would be fine. "He's strong, Mira. Just as strong as you. Not to mention that the Finno in the books had no one at his side, he'll have you." I had told her while we were doing embroidery together, just the two of us. It was rather boring to do, especially for Mira, but it was one of the few ways we could talk together without anyone listening. She had nodded in understanding at this and had backed off slightly 

Giving baby Turgon to my handsome Prince, I smiled at how incredibly good he was with children. It honestly was not that weird considering he had several brothers, but still. I leaned against him and he smiled down at me, giving his cousin to Makalaurë so he could wrap an arm around me. When with family, he wasn't a loose as he was when it was just the two of us, but he wasn't as formal as he was when fully in public

"I wonder what our children will be like one day." He commented while we were taking a walk through the gardens. "Maitimo!" I hissed, whacking his arm and completely ignoring how my mind had already gone in that direction not too long ago. He laughed at this. "I know. I know. It is not proper to think about that just yet, but with such a radiant elleth at my side, can you blame me?" He asked and I gave him a look

"You really are a charmer, aren't you?" I asked and he shrugged with a mischievous grin on his face, before he leaned down and kissed me deeply. I kissed him back, a part of me growing more and more relieved that I had chosen for this. I fell in love with him more and more every day and I never wanted to stop. Breaking apart, we continued walking, until Maitimo saw a beautiful red rose. Carefully picking it from the bush and quickly getting rid of all the thorns, he put it behind my ear. "There. Perfect." He commented and I was pretty sure my face was as red as the flower

There was a feast held to celebrate the newborn Prince and as the only two unmarried ellyth in the family, Ohtare and I helped each other getting ready. "I'm curious how long it will take our Princes to propose to us." She commented as she brushed my hair. "I'm curious to find out exactly who Gil-Galad's dad is." I replied as I put on some light jewellery that I had gotten from both Maitimo and my children "What do you mean?" She asked.

"Well, Tolkien wasn't clear on that decision. It was either Fingon, which will very likely make you his mother or Orodreth who will either be my nephew or my great-nephew. I even read a fanfiction series once where he was Maitimo's son, even if I'm confused about the timeline in the first story of that series as Maitimo meets his daughter after getting rescued. She was born on the frozen wasteland of the Helcraxë and is apparently still a baby." I commented 

"How is that weird?" She asked as she pulled back to take some water from a nearby goblet. "Crossing the Helcraxë takes thirty years." I replied and she choked on her drink, letting it fall back in the goblet. "Thirty years?!" She hissed and I nodded. She stared to the side for a moment as she took this in, before looking back at me. "So, my Finno and his family have to lead many elves across this barren and frozen wasteland, probably losing a lot of them in the process and they eventually get killed for their efforts?" She asked and I nodded again

"Tolkien had issues." She noted and I made a face as I agreed with that even if I loved his works. "I haven't even started on the situation with your future sister-in-law Aredhel and her "marriage" yet." I commented. "Oh boy. What is it?" She asked. "Okay, so for elves, the true marriage isn't the ceremony. It's when they do the horizontal tango while doing their vows if they didn't have a ceremony, right?" I asked to see if she still followed me.

"Right." She nodded. "Well, Turgon and Aredhel will eventually live in a grand city hidden in the mountain, but to keep it secret, no one is allowed in or out and Aredhel eventually gets a bit antsy about being cooped up. She manages to convince Turgon to let her go with an escort, but gets separated from them. After arriving at her destination, she eventually goes travelling again and ends up in a dark forest called Nan Elmoth." I continued 

"Got it." She nodded again. "In that forest lives an elf named Eöl who, after noticing her, sets enchantments on the forest so she couldn't find her way out and eventually went to his house. She then stays with him and married him, about which Tolkien writes that she "wasn't entirely unwilling," whatever that means." I finished and she stared at me in horror. "I don't like the implications of that." She commented. "No. I never did either. Now, come on. We need to hurry before we're too late." I replied as we quickly continued getting ready

Thankfully, we were still in time for the great feast despite the small delay caused by me telling the uncomfortable stories and both Maitimo and Finno were waiting for us, their eyes full of love as they looked at us and offered us their arms. "You look magnificent, my darling." My Prince whispered to me and I immediately blushed as I tucked my hand in the crook of his arm and he and Finno led us into the ballroom

The entire feast honestly passed by in a blur as we ate and danced throughout the night. The main focus today was obviously baby Turukáno and his proud parents, which left us free to sit or dance pretty much wherever we liked as long as we behaved. Maitimo and I danced a lot once we had eaten, him always holding me close to him with one hand on the small of my back and the other practically engulfing one of mine was we danced

To be completely honest, even if book Maitimo would one day be known as a ferocious and infamous Kinslayer and even if I completely failed to stop that from happening in the future, I always felt safe when he held me close like this, knowing that he was right there with me. I felt like nothing could hurt me as long as he was at my side, keeping me close. He would protect me from Morgoth himself if he had to and I'd do my absolute best to do the same thing for him. That monster wouldn't lay a finger on either of us as long as we had each other

I laughed as Maitimo suddenly dipped me in accordance to the dance and he immediately smiled at the sound as he righted us again, very quickly kissing the top of my head before anyone noticed him doing it. "I must be the luckiest ellon in all of Valinor." He breathed and I immediately giggled. "I'm sure that Finno thinks the same thing." I commented. "Well, he's wrong." He replied matter-of-factly and i laughed once more and he chuckled too 

I suddenly felt like I was being watched and looked around to find the source. There! In the corner was a woman, her evening dress barely reaching her knees and her hair a mess. Still, she happily smiled at me and blew me a loving kiss at seeing I had noticed it. She mouthed something and I somehow managed to understand it. "See you soon." Was what she said, before vanishing into thin air and I could only stare at the place she had been

Asterin?!

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"You are amazing, my love."

"Thank you, but what did I do this time?" I asked with my eyes closed and a smile on my face as I lied on the grass of the royal gardens, my head in the lap of my beloved Maitimo. "Just being yourself." He replied and I rolled my eyes at the huge, unexpected sap I was dating. "Well, you are absolutely perfect as well, my Prince." I said, reaching up and tickling his chest as that was the furthest I could reach from my position.

He immediately grabbed it with a small chuckle and kissed the back of it. "I love you." He breathed and I smiled. "I love you too. Now and forever." I promised, sitting up and turning to face him as I grabbed both his hands in mine. "Oh, my Nemireth." He whispered, before pulling me into a hug. I smiled as I leaned against his chest for a few minutes. Just for those few minutes, everything was quite honestly perfect

It had been a couple of since Turgon was born and i had seen Asterin. I had obviously immediately told Ohtare and Runande about seeing her as soon as I could and they were excited to have another one of our sisters here. I had also become an aunt three more times since then as Eärwen gave birth to Aegnor, Angrod and Artanis. Holding the latter was especially weird as I knew she'd one day be known as the famous Lady Galadriel, which would make Lord Elrond my great-nephew-in-law. Jesus, these families were all connected to each other. What was this,  "Once Upon a Time?"

I sighed and relaxed again, before I heard my name being called by a child's voice and smiled. "Someone's looking for you." Maitimo teased me and I sighed as I pulled back."She is just in time, actually. Maglor asked if I could help him carry his new harp upstairs to his room this afternoon. The thing is huge. I have no idea how he is planning to play it." He quietly confessed and I giggled as I stood up and he did as well

I smiled at him kissing my forehead in goodbye before he went back inside, almost running into the one loudly calling for me: Irissë who would later be known as Aredhel. Irissë had been born in the same year as my little niece and for some reason had really grown attached to me. Artanis was incredibly calm and quiet, wise beyond her years and already showing signs of the calm and noble Lady I knew she'd be one day

Irissë on the other hand was always on the move, trying to be outside as much as possible and dodging her tutors. It had quickly become a guessing game who would bring her in next "Hey, hey. Hello little cat." I greeted her as I often compared her to a cat since cats also always did what they wanted. She giggled as she tackled me into a hug. I quickly hugged her back and lifted her up in my arms, before we heard her mother calling her. "Irissë! Did you run away from your tutors again?" Anairë asked in a tone of every exasperated parent as she walked towards us with Ohtare.

"No. I was done for the day. They let me go." The elfling in my arms protested and for once, it seemed that she was actually telling the truth. "Hmm. Very well then. Seems the preparations for your brother's wedding longer than expected." Anairë conceded. Yeah, that was another thing that had happened as a few months ago, Finno and my former sister had finally engaged themselves in front of the entire family.

He and my future brothers-in-law had immediately started to tease poor Maitimo about us still being at the courting fase, but I told him I didn't mind. I myself had quickly teased Delmira relentlessly about her getting married earlier than me, making her turn an impressive shade of red"Ohtare, will you and Nemireth look after Irissë for a while? I need to discuss a few things with my husband." Anairë then asked.

"Of course, Your Majesty." Ohtare replied with a curtsey and I did the same to the best of my abilities with an elfling in my arms. She nodded back and walked back inside as the three of us walked further into the garden. "Are you excited about marrying my brother, Ohtare?" Irissë asked."You know that I am, little one. I cannot wait to pledge my love for him and wear his ring oin my finger for the rest of my life." Ohtare replied as she showed the silver ring above her diamond one. "Oooohhhh." Irissë breathed in awe as she grabbed her hand to look at them both and we smiled at how adorable she was.

"Who gave you the diamond one?" She asked. "Nemireth did. A long time ago." Ohtare answered . "Did you have anyone before my brother?" She then asked, surprising the both of us. "Why do you ask?" I asked and she shrugged. "Just curious." She replied. "Once, a long time ago. He didn't treat me right." Ohtare answered. "If there was a song that could describe your feelings about this guy, what would it be?" Irissë asked 

"No idea. What song do you think would fit?" Ohtare asked, poking her nose. She giggled, before thinking. "There's a fire starting in my heart. Reaching a fever pitch and it's bringing me out the dark. She began to sing and Ohtare and I shared a look as we recognised the lyrics and realised who this was. "Asterin?" I breathed and she nodded as she continued singing. Smiles grew on our faces as we quietly joined her at the chorus

We could have had it all

At the end of it, we were all laughing as we shared a three-way hug, me and Ohtare practically squishing Iressë/Asterin. "I missed you." She whispered. "We missed you too." We chorused as we hugged her. Pulling back, we smiled at her and she smiled back. "Are we the only ones here?" She asked. "Lillith lives in Valmar with her husband Mairon." I answered, whispering the word Sauron underneath my breath

"Lillith is married to the flaming eyeball?!" Irissë asked in utter shock. "Yeah and the funniest thing is, she had no idea. I told her and she practically fainted." I replied and we all laughed. I can totally believe that." Irissë/Asterin stated as out of all the sisters, she and Lillith had been the closest to each other. Ohtare and I chuckled before the former made a face. "Girls, do you think I should tell Finno the truth. I am not sure if I want to get married to him while keeping such a big secret from him. John kept his affair a secret from me." She said and we hummed at that

"As long as he promises not to tell on. I can understand your reluctance." I said and she nodded. "When are you going to tell your father about, you know.... that?!" Ohtare asked and I bit my lip. "When Fëanor makes the Silmarils. Then I know the peace will soon be ending." I replied. "Ending?" Irissë asked and we quietly told her everything we knew about what would happen. She shivered, before holding onto me even tighter.

"It's okay. We'll protect you." I promised, before remembering who I was holding in my arms. "Irissë, if I'm not mistaken, then you will live in the hidden city of Gondolin one day, but you won't be allowed to leave it for safety. If you ever get antsy and want to get out and Turgon allows you to, do NOT go to Nan Elmoth no matter what." I told her sternly. She frowned and  looked at Ohtare. "It's for the best." My second sister agreed

"Okay, I promise. What happens if I do go in there?" She asked. An elf will enchant the forest to not let you leave and after you escape after marrying him and giving him a son, those actions will eventually lead to your death and the fall of Gondolin itself." I replied and she immediately gulped at that. "Okay. I promise." She repeated, but with a bit more fear and determination to keep the promise in her voice and I stroked her hair. "Then everything will be fine." I whispered to calm her Dunham and she smiled, before wiggling to grey out of my arms and I put her down

"At least we averted that crisis." I told Ohtare and she nodded in agreement. We spend the rest of the day together and I was honestly loving every single moment of it. Now, we just needed Milana and we would be complete. Well, apart from our previous parents, but they would be with us still, just not physically. I shook my head and focused on spending time with them both, knowing that soon, the peace would be over

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Third person P.O.V

"Today's the day!" A voice shouted and Ohtare let out a grunt as her future sister-in-law/former biological sister jumped on her bed. "Irissë! Manners!" Anairë scolded her daughter as she walked in with Eärwen, Artanis, Nemireth and Ohtare's new mother Avalda. "I do not mind, your highness. This is Irissë's first wedding. I cannot blame her for being excited." Ohtare chuckled as she sat up in bed and stroked the elfling's hair and the girl smiled at her

She also knew that this would be the first wedding of her sisters that Asterin would attend with Lillith apparently already married long before any of them arrived in Valinor, so she was doubly as excited as she would be as a normal elfling, so she really couldn't blame her for jumping on her, even if her midriff protested as that had taken the biggest hit from her little sister. Anairë hummed at that, before pulling her daughter off the bed

Tradition was that all female relatives of the bride, both biological and almost in-laws would help the bride get ready. Even though Nemireth wasn't married to Maitimo yet, Ohtare had requested her to be there as she didn't want to do this without her sister and they had thankfully agreed. Runande had travelled all the way from Valmar to be here today with Mairon and Irissë had stared at him in just the slightest bit of fear from where Nemireth and Ohtare introduced her to him. "Another one of your sisters?" Mairon had asked and Runande had nodded.

"This is the sister before me: Asterin or Irissë." She introduced her to her husband.  Mairon then kneeled in front of the slightly frightened girl as she looked at him and  smiled at her, realising that she also knew who he would've been if not for his wife. "Hello, Asterin. Don't worry. I will not turn into a giant flaming eyeball and try to take over the world. That would really hurt your sister and I refuse to let that happen." He had told her

Runande was standing on the side behind him with a smile on her face as she saw her beloved husband interact with her closest sister. "Promise?" Irissë asked. "I promise." Mairon vowed in the most solemn voice he could manage, being completely sincere in it too and they could all hear it. The sisters all smiled at this, before Irissë gave him a very careful hug. "Oh, you're warm." She commented, making them all laugh

Back in the present, Ohtare was carefully helped in her wedding dress by her family. Normally, elf wedding dresses could be in pretty much any colour, she had asked for a white dress, just to include that little tradition from her old world. Her new mother got slightly emotional and that made her feel slightly sad that her other parents hadn't been able to see this. Despite honestly having the life of her dreams here, even if that would eventually end one day because of Morgoth and his lies, she still missed her original parents and she knew her sisters did too 

Shaking her head harshly, she looked at herself in the mirror, really liking it. Her hair was carefully braided beautiful and she was soon ready. The smile on Nemireth's face couldn't be bigger even if she tried as she looked at her younger sister. Delmira had always been tough as nails ever since their former father died, so to see her being relaxed for just one day and that day being her wedding day made her very happy. 

1st person P.O.V 

I eventually had to take my place for the ceremony and quickly found Maitimo. Not that he was very hard to find with his height and red hair, but still. Maitimo immediately smiled at me and I smiled back, my knees feeling weak as they always did when he smiled at me. He grabbed my hand and squeezed it as Ohtare arrived as well and I could see the moment Finno had seen her as he immediately beamed at her

He quickly took her into her arms as the feast started. Yeah, apparently elves actually married during the feast to celebrate the marriage instead of getting married first and then having the feast. The almost newlyweds couldn't keep their eyes off each other as they danced as every time I looked, they were looking each other right in the eyes as well. Not that I looked much as I had the same thing with Maitimo as he danced with me

Eventually, the couple moved to a certain part of the room where everyone could see them properly and we all knew that it was time. Ohtare's new mom and Ñolofinwe walked forwards and said the most ethereal blessings I've ever heard. All I can honestly tell you is that she said the name of Varda and he said the name of Manwë and I'm pretty sure I heard the name of "Mr. Ru" somewhere during the vow. No, I am still not over the fact that I literally met this world's God all these years ago and can you blame me?

Maitimo had one arm wrapped around me, smiling down at me and I smiled back. I honestly had the feeling that it wouldn't take long before we finally exchanged rings as well. Speaking of which, both Finno and Ohtare gave each other the rings they had given each other at their own betrothal and gave each other golden ones that were worn on the.... index finger? Huh, never noticed that. Learn something new every day

Ohtare's mom then gave Finno a diamond on a chain and Ñolofinwe gave Ohtare a sapphire on a chain and the couple thanked them both with beaming smile on their faces as they were finally married to each other once and for all. There was absolutely no getting rid of each other now, nor do I think they would ever want to get rid of each other. I didn't want to get rid of my Maitimo and we weren't even married yet. 

Finwë then officially crowned her princess of the Ñoldor with Finno standing at her side, beaming at her with nothing but pride in his eyes.The feast continued on after that after we had all congratulated them. Irissë hugged them both tightly as she was clearly overjoyed for them both. "You really deserve this happiness, Mira. Enjoy it to the fullest" I whispered as I hugged her when it finally was my turn and Maitimo was busy congratulating his cousin. "Thank you, Syl." She breathed back as she held onto me tightly for just a few seconds.

I knew Runande was about to congratulate them soon as well and I hoped that dear Milana would soon join us as well in one way or another as she was the only one missing from the five of us and she was missing all of our weddings like this. Granted, Irissë was still a child , butstill.Once everyone had finished congratulated them, the feast continued on for quite a while and it honestly passed in a blur of dancing and drinking.

I had known Ohtare or Delmira literally her entire life, apart from the tears when we were separated at first arriving here and were growing up in two very different cultures and cities, but I had definitely never seen her like this as she was glowing in happiness while dancing in her new husband's arms "She really is happy." I heard Runande say as Maitimo was dancing with his mother for a minute and I stood at the sidelines.

She and Mairon joined me and I immediately smiled at them. Irissë soon joined us too after getting permission from her parents and was smiling at the sight that both her former sister and current brother made right now. "A shame we cannot send a photo of this to her ex with the caption "suck it."" The now youngest of us commented and Runande and I both snorted. "That would be a laugh, wouldn't it?" I asked and she grinned. "He would deserve it too." Runande muttered and we laughed for a second, before Runande got serious 

"I heard Lady Yavanna talk to Lord Aulë. Apparently two out of three ages of Melkor's imprisonment are over, so now might be the time to start planning to make sure there isn't as much chaos and death." She said, Irissë and I sobering up. "I'm going back to Aqualondë next week. I will talk to my father then. Let's hope he listens so the first Kinslaying won't happen." I said and they nodded, before Maitimo took me for another dance

As I had said, Maitimo, me as well as Eärwen and her family travelled to Aqualondë for a visit. After a few days of gathering my courage for this conversation, I asked if I could speak to Nana and Ada alone and that it was important. They immediately led me to Ada's study and sat down. "What is it,  sweetheart? What do you want to say?" Ada asked and I sighed. "It's a long and crazy story, so please bear with me and believe me." I begged

They nodded and I slowly began to talk

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

This is going to be weird

"Long ago, there was a family on a world far away from here. A mother, a father and five sisters. They were very happy, but the parents eventually passed away and all five sisters grieved in their own way. The oldest sister, whose name was Sylvaine, she buried herself in a series of books." I began. "What does this have to do with any of this?" Ada asked. "I'm getting to that, Ada. Please be patient." I begged and he conceded 

"Some of the books she read were about a world with elves, beings called the Valar and a God named Eru Illuvatar. They were about this world." I told them. "Nemireth, that's not possible. This world cannot possibly in a book." Nana protested. "And yet, it is. From Eru to Melkor to you. You were all in those books. Nerdanel is pregnant now, right? It will be two sons this time. Twins with their mother's hair." I replied

"Who is Melkor?" Ada asked with a frown. "He is the Vala locked up in the halls of Mandos right now, but he will be released sooner rather than later and when he does..." I said, before letting out a cold chuckle as I stood up. "Things will go downhill fast." I finished. "This really stresses you, doesn't it?" Nana asked and I nodded "How do you know all this?" Ada asked. "Because I'm the oldest of the sisters I told you about. Eru sent me here with my other sisters to try and keep Melkor from causing as much chaos as we possibly can." I said

"Why would Lord Eru do that?" Ada asked and I could see he didn't fully believe it yet. "I have absolutely no idea to be completely honest. I'm literally the only one of the five of us with the most knowledge about this subject. My youngest sister didn't even know that the man she married was one of the most famous fictional villains ever. Lord Eru could just as well just have send me, but until now, I have already met three of my sisters." I answered 

Seeing them share a look, I sighed deeply. "Look, I told you this would sound crazy, but I'm telling you the truth right now. I just really need you to believe me because if you don't... then one of the worst things in the book will happen and believe me when I say that with all my heart, I do not want it to happen." I said with closed eyes as I felt sick at the mere thought of it happening now. "What will happen?" Ada asked in a soft tone

"Melkor will make almost all of the Valar, apart from two, believe that he had turned over a new leaf, but he's utterly lying. I can't stop that. I doubt Runande can stop that. Now, bear with me, this will sound even more insane than what I already told you. He then starts to sow lies and deceit amongst the Ñoldor slowly turning against the Valar and against each other. Things will go from already bad to even worse then as Melkor eventually destroys the two trees, steals Fëanor's precious jewels and kill High King Finwë." I told them

"He does what? Please tell me you're lying." Ada breathed. "Ada, have you ever known me to lie?" I asked and the silence of him and nana was enough. "I rest my case. I promise to do my best to save His Majesty, but the worst has yet to come after that. Fëanor swears revenge on Melkor and vows to get the silmarils back, making a terrible Oath that will cause more havoc and pain than you can imagine, starting here." I told them

As I was talking, I wrapped my arms around myself as I got to the most uncomfortable part. "What do you mean?" Nana asked as she stood up and gave me a hug. "Melkor flees to Middle-Earth and Fëanor wants to follow him, but he need our swan ships for that. You refuse to give them to him, so he decides to take them... by force. This results in the first blood spilled on this soil and our people losing their ships.... and lives" I said

"Are you saying that Fëanor will kill our people?!" Ada asked in a low tone and I sighed deeply, giving him a look that said that yes, that was exactly what I was saying. "I can't believe it." My mother breathed. "This cannot be true. Nemireth, tell this is just a big joke." Ada said. "I wish it was. I really do. I do not want this ant more than you do. I will do my best to prevent it from happening as much as I possibly can, but i need your help for this. Ada, please. I don't want our people to suffer because of Fëanor's actions." I whispered as I stood up again

I then kneeled next to his chair and grabbed his hand, giving him my best pleading eyes and he sighed. "Are you absolutely sure that this will happen?" He asked. "We'll know once Fëanor makes the silmarils. As I said some things have changed. Maitimo was unmarried in the book, but that will soon be changed. Neither was Finno or the Maia Mairon for that matter. Ohtare, the Maia Runande and the new princess Irissë are all my sisters." I replied 

"I thought you said that you had four sisters." Nana commented. "I do. One of my sisters just hasn't been born yet as far as we know, but we are honestly digressing right now. Ada, please let Fëanor have the ships. I cannot let our people die because of his pride and selfishness." I begged and he sighed again. "Once Fëanor makes those silmarils, I will believe you." He said and I sighed this time, knowing it was as good as I would get for now

I then stood up and bowed to him and my mother, before walking out of the room and leaving them behind me. I immediately rejoined my siblings, niece and nephews and expertly dodged the questions about what we talked about without raising suspicion from my family, as much as I hated to lie to them. Even though I absolutely hated those things and everything bad that they caused together with the Oath, I hoped that Fëanor would start on making those stupid silmarils soon enough, even if it was to prove to Ada that I was telling the truth. 

A bit of time passed after our talk and Maitimo invited me for another horseback ride across the shores of Valinor and it was honestly one of the most fun things we did together. Knowing that once we were in Middle-Earth, such happy things wouldn't exactly happen as often if at all because of Morgoth except maybe during the Long Peace and wouldn't be as peaceful even then because of orcs and other things, I enjoyed such rides even more

"What has your beautiful face in such a frown?" Maitimo asked after a while when he saw me frowning as I thought of all the bad things in the future and if I could stop them from happening. "I had a really bad dream last night, Maitimo. I saw you captured by the ugliest things I've ever seen and I saw you hanging from a huge cliff. It was absolutely terrifying." I whispered, not even really lying and looking up at him with fear in my eyes

"Oh, Nemireth." He immediately breathed at seeing the fear there, quickly taking me into his arms and pulling me against his strong and warm chest. "I am right here. Do you feel my heart beating, my love? I am right here with you and I promise that nothing bad will happen to me." He whispered as he stroked my hair. " I love you so much." I breathed as I buried my face in his chest, reminding myself that he was okay. He was alright and I'd be damned if I let Morgoth and his creatures lay a finger on him when we were in Middle-Earth.

Feeling his warmth right there with me made me want to forget everything that was ahead of us, his father's growing pride and insanity, the terrible Oath, Morgoth and his creatures, which all really begged one question. How were we supposed to fight all of that, even with my knowledge? "Nemireth, can I ask you something?" Maitimo asked and I looked up. "You can ask me anything you want." I replied and he gave me a shy smile

Not long after that, we returned to Aqualondë and servants immediately took our horses over. With a beaming smile on his face, Maitimo helped me get off my horse and we walked inside the castle. "Naneth, do you think you can place an order with the royal smith?" I asked once I had found her. "Uhm, of course. What do you need to order?" She asked. "Two silver rings." I replied and she stared at me in utter shock.

I smiled at her and tears of happiness filled her eyes as she gave me a tight hug

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

It's funny how the next year was both the shortest and longest year ever

Maitimo and I exchanged the special silver rings in front of both our families to confirm that we were officially betrothed and Maitimo made my heart race once again by immediately kissing my knuckles as soon as he had put the ring on my finger, making me melt all over again. How did that guy do it? Smiling at him, love in my eyes, I suddenly realised that I would have to tell him the truth as well now

I decided to do that two months after our betrothal after talking to my sisters about it. "Maitimo, remember that dream I talked about when we promised ourselves to each other?" I asked while sitting on a cliff overlooking the sea and my fiance next to me. "Of course. Did you have it again?" He asked in worry. "Not exactly, because it was not a dream." I told him and he looked at me with a frown." What do you mean?" He asked

I told him the same story I had told Nana and Ada about the five sisters and how I, Ohtare, Irissë and Runande were four of those sisters and how I had a lot of knowledge about a man named Tolkien. "What does this have to do with the bad dream you apparently didn't have?" He asked, utterly confused. "One of the books or Tolkien are about the struggles of an elven race named the Ñoldor and how their crown prince named Fëanor creates three jewels named the Silmaril which eventually causes a whole lot of chaos and pain, especially for his oldest son Maitimo." I said

"It... was about us?" Maitimo asked in shock and I looked down as I bit my lip and nodded. "What was that about me getting captured?" He asked then. "That's what happens to you in the book. Melkor, an evil Vala who will steal the Silmarils from your father will "offer" you one and because you and your brothers swore a binding oath to take the Silmarils back, you agree to meet, but its it's a trap and he captures you." I replied 

My hands slowly curl into tight fists at the thought of the ellon I loved more than anything going through that trauma. "You're his captive for at least thirty years, including heading from a cliff by your wrist. Finno eventually saves you, but at the cost of your hand." I whispered, my voice barely audible as I hunched into myself. I jumped at suddenly feeling him wrap his arms around me and pulling me closer to him

"Ssssssshhhhh. Please don't cry, my heart. I cannot take it if you cry." He whispered as he stroked my hair, using a new nickname. I wiggled so my chest was against his. "You believe me?" I breathed. "As much a part of me doesn't want to, I can see you are telling the truth. Yes, my darling Nemireth. I believe you." He replied and I let out a little sob in relief as I started to cry from all the nerves, fear and relief all mixed together. Maitimo kept hushing me, kissing the top of my head several times. Even when I had eventually calmed down, he kept holding me as we looked over the seemingly endless sea

"Do I survive this story?" He eventually asked and my silence was enough answer as his grip tightened on me and he buried his face into my silver hair. "What happens?" He breathed. "You eventually steal two of the Silmarils with Makalaurë, who is your last remaining brother at that point, but because of all the bad deeds you did, they burn your hands. Makalaurë throws his into the sea... you jump into lava with yours." I whispered 

I tightly closed my eyes in pain once again at the mental image of my darling Maitimo killing himself in that  horrible way and he immediately noticed it as well. "Ssssssshhhhhh. It's alright, my amazing Nemireth. It is clear that that version of me didn't have something that I do have." He hushed me. "What's that?" I asked as I sniffed, looking up at him and he smiled at me as he cupped my face and wiped a tear from my cheek

"It's you, my beloved Nemireth. I could never leave you behind, not for any treasure in the whole entire world and beyond." He answered sincerely as he pulled me closer to him once more, his lips brushing against the pointy tip of my ear as he talked. I shivered a bit at feeling it and his breath tickling the sensitive skin, before hiding my face into his red robes to seek his comfort and he immediately continued to hold me, reassuring me time-and-time again that he was there with me and that he would never leave me.  I slow calmed down again, before we left that spot to go home

On the day of my wedding, my mother and Eärwen woke me a lot more gently than Irissë had woken Ohtare on her wedding day. The women gently helped me get ready, me having chosen for a white wedding dress like my sister as I wanted to have that tiny tradition from earth as well. I even put a flower in my hair instead of the normal bouquet. I playfully twirled around with a laugh once I had it on properly

My mother had tears rolling down as her youngest daughter was about to get married as well. I simply laughed and gave her a tight hug. "I will always be your little girl, Nana. No matter how far away I am." I promised, meaning that more than Nana knew. She smiled nonetheless, before Eärwen gave me a hug as well. Nerdanel was next thi hug me as she thanked me for making her oldest son so incredibly happy and I blushed

Eventually, it was time for us to join the others and we all left for the hall where the great feast was held. I would never forget the look of love and adoration on Maitimo's face when he saw me, Makalaurë having to reach out and close his hanging jaw. Remembering I wished for someone to look at me like Mairon looked at my sister all those years ago,  I realised that I had finally found that person and was about to get married to him forever more "You look.... utterly magnificent, my heart, my Nemireth." He breathed once I had joined him and I blushed as I smiled at him.

He, I, Finno, Irissë and Ohtare had come together to discuss everything important. Poor Finno had looked terrified when hearing about his death, clinging onto his wife with all his strength and she hadn't let him go either. I couldn't blame them. If this happened, I wasn't sure if Ohtare could survive that. She was definitely the strongest of us all, but even the strongest person in the world have their breaking point

The feast soon began and honestly passed by in a blur. I do remember my mother and Fëanor blessing our marriage and the both of them giving us both a jewel on a chain and I remember giving the silver ring back to Maitimo and getting a golden one in return. The next time we kissed, it was as husband and wife. "My Prince. My Maitimo." I breathed against his lips as our families and the crowd applauded us

"My heart. My Nemireth." He replied in the same tone, brushing a few loose strands that were framing my face away as those moment was just for the two of us, everyone else falling away for a second. I beamed as I truly realised that I was married for the rest of my life to this man. No take backs. Pulling back from him at hearing someone clearing their throat, I then turned around and immediately kneeled in front of Finwë. He then crowned me Princess of the Ñoldor as well and I thanked him as was proper, before Maitimo took my hand and we shared our first dance as husband and wife

"My beloved Nemireth. My heart. My wife, now and forever. I am the luckiest ellon in all of Valinor." He eventually breathed into my ear and I immediately giggled at the tickling feeling, briefly nudging him with my shoulder and making him laugh as he spun me around, before pulling me close once more. I was aware of everyone looking away us, but I found they I honestly couldn't care less about it right now

My former sisters and I did pull back for a minute to celebrate together, before returning to the feast. Eventually though, it was time for the feast to end and for us to leave "Let's see if anything else about him is tall." Ohtare teased during our hug and I hit her on the back. Maitimo led me to the rooms that we would share from now on and looked at me as soon as the door was closed. "Are you ready?" He asked and I nodded 

He then kissed me in a way that blew my mind. 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

I woke up surrounded by warmth

I was lying on Maitimo's warm and extremely naked chest, his arms loosely wrapped around my body and him still fast asleep. The light of the Two Trees shone through the window and I had never felt more at peace than I had ever before. I felt better in a way I had never felt before in my life I closed my eyes for just a moment as I wiggled a bit in his hold, Maitimo unconsciously tightening his grip on me as he was still sleeping.

I smiled at the memory of the night before, a mischievous glint definitely in my eyes as I looked down 'He's certainly tall in other parts of his body.' I thought as I glanced back up at my husband. My husband. I still became utterly giddy at the thought that this wonderful elf sharing a bed with me was my husband now and forever. Our souls were tied together until the end of the world. He would always look after me like I would look after him.

Now that we had consummated our marriage, we were forever bound to each other. I took a deep breath as I fully relaxed against my Maitimo, burying my face in the crook of his neck and smelling his familiar scent. He hummed at the feeling as he moved a bit, seemingly starting to wake up from his sleep as well. Seriously, it was also illegal how cute he was right now and I giggled quietly at the thought, before calming down again. "I love you, Maitimo. More than anything." I whispered as I closed my eyes again, one hand resting on his chest, right above his heart

"I love you too, my Nemireth. This is the best way to wake up" My darling husband muttered just a second later, his voice extremely rough with sleep as he slowly woke up, the sound doing more to me than I could have ever imagined I immediately smiled up at him as one hand came to cup my face and caress my cheek gently. "Then let's never change that." I suggested and he laughed for a few seconds, before growing serious 

"How are you feeling?" He quickly asked in concern as he looked me up-and-down, trying to see if I was hurt . "I'm just fine, Maitimo. I promise. I have honestly never felt better before in my life, now that I can feel you too. I'm alright. You took care of me before going in. I've heard of people on my old world not doing even that." I replied. "Thank the Valar." He breathed in relief as he nuzzled the top of my head and I giggled at the feeling.

"I love you so much, my beautiful heart. You have made me the happiest ellon in the entire world." He whispered as he looked down at me. If this is what the honeymoon period or even the rest of our lives were going to look like, sign me right up. I'd like to stay I immediately smiled up at him at these words, that giant, handsome, adorable sap of mine. "Just like you made me the happiest elleth in all the universes. Trust me. I should know" I replied as I leaned up on one arm and cupped his face as well, before kissing him deeply.

I literally felt him smile happily against my lips at my words and actions as he pulled me closer to him and kissed me back with all that he had, our chests practically squished against each other. Breaking apart after a while as elves quite unfortunately still needed air, even if we could go on longer than a regular human couple could, he gently brushed my hair back and pulled me down to his chest once again

"Sleep, my amazing Nemireth. We have nowhere to go." He said as he stroked my hair. "I like the sound of that." I commented and his body shook with laughter, making me shake with it and making me smile, before I took another deep breath and rested my head back on his chest. "I wish things could stay like this forever." I whispered as I closed my eyes. "I know, my Nemireth. I wish so too. How long until this Melkor breaks out?" He asked.

"Runande said at least another age, but we do not know how long that will be." I replied honestly. "I'm so scared that he will capture you and hurt you." I then breathed after a while, unable to go back to sleep and he immediately hushed me, holding me tightly and kissing the top of my head. "He will not hurt me, my darling. You have warned me against his tricks. I promise that I will not fall for his lies. He will not take me or you." He assured me, his hand almost covering my entire face as he cradled my head against his chest

I immediately clung onto him with all my strength as I quickly snuggled closer to the warmth and comfort he had always offered ever since we were young, one hand tangled in his thick, red hair as I was desperately trying to get the scary and lonely image of him hanging from the walls of Angband by his wrist out of my head by reminding myself that he was here with me. This was my freaking honeymoon, damn it!

For once since the moment I arrived here in Valinor, I really didn't want to think about what the dark and uncertain future possibly held for me or those I loved and I didn't want those worries to ruin this for me. Maitimo sensed my distress through our entwined Fëa and immediately tried his best to lessen it. "I'm right here, Nemireth. I'm here with you and we're both safe and sound." He breathed, kissing my temple

Melkor will never get to me or to you. We will protect each other from whatever might come." He promised and I nodded, knowing he was right"Just promise me you will not swear that damned Oath." I breathed, my voice almost inaudible and I was pretty sure that if it wasn't for elven hearing or the fact that he felt my breath against his skin, he wouldn't have heard me at all and his body sagged as he finally understood what else was bothering me. "Oh, Nemireth. I promise. If it means that I could lose you because of it or drag you into the mess it causes, then I will not swear it." He whispered 

"But what if your father tries to force you to swear it when you refuse? You know how incredibly proud he is, which will honestly only be worsened once he has made those thrice blasted silmarils and how do you think it will look for him if his oldest son doesn't join him and he will do in response?" I said and I both heard and felt him sigh at this at seeing that it was still bothering me despite his reassurances.

"It he does actually try that, then he will immediately regret doing so, I promise you. He may be my father, but I will not choose him over you. But my dearest, darling Nemireth, we literally had our wedding yesterday. Can we please enjoy that?" He asked. I smiled at him and relaxed. "Of course, Your Highness." I replied teasingly. "Thank you, Your Highness. He shot back and I immediately scowled at him, before quickly tickling him.

This was immediately successful in making him laugh as he tried to shake my tickling fingers and hands off without actually throwing me off the bed or his body or accidentally crushing me under his weight and my tongue peeked out in concentration as I continued on. I grinned at hearing that I had managed to make him laugh again after talking about such a dark subject on what should be a bright and happy morning, my tickling being almost impossible for him to fight by now as I knew all his weak spots after knowing him for so long

I made it even worse by eventually sitting up more and carefully straddling his stomach to reach those special weak spots. After a few minutes, I finally stopped and just put my hands on his chest, leaning forwards and kissing him deeply.He immediately kissed me back, one hand cupping  my face and the other holding onto my hip as I felt a certain something rise behind me, smirking in the kiss as I knew exactly what it was

"My turn to be on top." I said in a low tone after we broke apart from the kiss, whispering to make sure no one heard me, even though this wing was to be left alone so we could have the utmost privacy and I immediately grinned as I saw the lust in his eyes growing as well, his light blue eyes looking incredibly dark with desire. "By all means go ahead, My Lady." He breathed as he gently squeezed my hip.

I grinned again, before kissing him once more

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

The honeymoon period was great

For once since my arrival, I completely forgot about what was coming to the Ñoldor elves in the future and I simply enjoyed spending time with my beloved husband, the word still making me giddy and I had the feeling it would continue to do so for a while. Maitimo seemingly didn't get enough from calling me his wife at he pulled me into his arms ay least three times a day and called me that, before kissing me deeply

Not that I was honestly complaining about this little habit of his, mind you. Quite the opposite in fact. Every kiss from Maitimo made my head spin, hearing him calling me his wife made my heart beat so fast, it felt like hummingbird was stuck in my chest and every time his arms wrapped around me, I felt like melting into his hold, never wanting to leave the embrace but eventually forced to for one reason or another 

Once we had officially returned to public life again after at least two weeks of pure marital bliss had passed, Ohtare eventually commented to me that like with her and Finno, she had never seen me this happy ever before. "I could say the same thing about you every time your husband walks into the room." I immediately shot back with a warm smile as the four of us spent some rare quality time together, making her blush and me and the others laugh. Despite us now having different lives once more and technically nor being related anymore, we were still as close as ever

Especially Runande visiting was always a rare treat as she was an extremely busy Maia and the rare days of that she got, she usually spent with Mairon. She only visited every once in a while she even then, the three of us were usually very busy and didn't have time to see her together. Irissë was usually the one she saw the most and even then that was if her mother let her see the Maia that was once her sister

Both Maitimo and Finno had immediately laughed at the fact that Irissë had actually been one of our several sisters once upon a time, Finno going even further by jokingly turning towards her and asking her if it meant that she was both his sister and his sister-in-law, making them both laugh as Irissë risked his hair despite him being much taller and her older brother. Everyone else had smiled at this little interaction

Eventually, after a couple of centuries, everyone I knew was in the royal family of the Ñoldor had been born, Celebrimbor being the last one by Curufin and his wife and by the Valar, he was adorable as a baby, me immediately swearing to myself to make sure that Saruman would stay away from him if he would try to do the same thing as canon Sauron and it was only a matter of waiting for the Silmarils to be made. I didn't remember all the dates, so I wasn't sure when exactly he would make them, but I did notice that Fëanor was getting more and more distracted when the family got together

This usually meant that he was thinking about a new project to make in the forges and it was even worse than it had ever been before as he barely listened to his wife anymore whenever she tried to make him focus on his family arms not whatever plans were going through his head. Because of this,  I had the feeling it wouldn't be much longer before they were created and that thought honestly frightened me

Things didn't become much better as not long after that, I felt something change inside me one night and I loudly groaned as I realised what it was. "My heart? What is it?" Maitimo immediately asked in concern. "Can't you feel it?" I asked and I sensed him reaching out through our connection and feeling the same thing as I: the newly created Fëa inside of me. "Oh, Nemireth." He breathed in shock and awe

"Eru must hate me." I muttered and he laughed, tears in his eyes as he pulled me into his side. "Right now, I really don't care if anyone hates us. Not when I'm going to be a father." He breathed and his enthusiasm was infectious as I slowly smiled as well. "How is this possible though?" He asked. "I may have been thinking about how you would make a really good father to any children we might have." I admitted. I really had thought that just a few minutes ago as despite the almost certain darkness ahead of us in the seemingly near future, he always took such incredibly good care of me

He always granted my wishes, whether we were in public, in private and in bed so I had thought and even dreamed about how he would make a very good father too to any possible children in the future. I probably shouldn't have thought about it while I was having sex with him though as that apparently counted as a child wish and both parents needed to wish for children for it to actually happen. Wait a minute...

"Were.... were you thinking about children as well?" I asked slowly and I rose and sank with my husband's deep sigh as he kissed the top of my head and held me even closer. "I was. You have made me so incredibly happy, my love and I wanted for us to share that love. I know you'll be an excellent mother and I will do my best to keep you both safe from harm. I promise." He whispered as he stroked my hair.

"I'm scared, Maitimo." I confessed after a while and he nodded, caressing my cheek. "I know. I'm scared too." He replied, before we fell asleep. One good thing about me being unexpectedly pregnant, even in these uncertain times were the incredibly overjoyed reactions from my newest family, many of my in-laws and all my sisters that were there with me at the moment, from Ohtare to Eärwen as they were all absolutely ecstatic to become aunts, some of them for the very first time love Runande and Eärwen. Only Ohtare and Irissë had already become aunts

Turukano had married lady Elenwë quite a few centuries ago by now. She was a noble Vanyar elleth and good friend of Ohtare, me having a small laugh to myself one day as I realised that both the oldest sons of Ñolofinwë had married Vanyar ladies. He had fathered the elleth who would be known as the famous lady Idril one day in the future andhad made both Ohtare and Irissë aunts as well, but they were still very happy

When hearing the news of my pregnancy, Ohtare demanded to be named whatever the elven equivalent of godmother was and I had agreed with a small laugh. With how close Finno and Maitimo were, it was for the best. A feast was held to celebrate my pregnancy and Maitimo barely left my side a beaming smile on his face. Mairon surprised me by visiting with Runande and giving me a charm bracelet infused with protection charms by the both of them and I thanked him with a smile, but it also reminded me what was to come. "Eru, please give us a way to protect those we love.' I thought

After a while, Ohtare, Irissë, Runande and I pulled ourselves back to celebrate amongst ourselves for a minute. My husband, Mairon and Finno thankfully understood and let us go. "To the baby!  Cheers!" Runande said as she held up her drink. "Cheers." We repeated as we toasted and laughed, me drinking some water. "Sounds like you are having fun." A voice commented and we all turned to see a man standing there

"Who are you?" Ohtare immediately asked, but I stared at Him, recognising Him immediately from oh so long ago. I then kneeled in front of Him in utter respect. "Lord Eru." I greeted with my head bowed, my sisters following my example as fast as they could and "Mr. Ru" smiled at us all. Stand up, My daughters. I have something to give you." He told us and we slowly stood up again, unsure how to act around a literal God standing in front of us. 

The years of peace are almost over. I can feel it and I am afraid that there will be a lot of hardships for all of you in the future, even with your sister's knowledge and that is why I have decided to give you another gift. Something to help you when times are dark." He told us. "Absolute no offense, Lord Eru, but why did you choose us? Don't get me wrong, I have never been happier, but why us?" Ohtare asked and we all looked at Him. "Because you are perfect for this. Your youngest sister has kept Mairon from falling into darkness and with these gifts, you can do much more." He said with a smile

There was honestly nothing we could say in return to that, but then again, this was really Middle-Earth's God that we were talking to at the moment. so I doubted that there even was anything to say in return. With a warm smile Lord Eru held out His hands and light shone out of his palms. A blue orb, a white orb, and a grey orb slowly floated up from his hands and in the air. We all stared at them, unsure what this was exactly

"The orbs all contain a certain power, unique to anything in this world. The blue one has control over the elements, the grey orb will give you the ability to absorb energy and expel it and the white one will grant you a healing ability for both yourself and others." He told us. "What about my child? Will it get the same power? And what if they get children? Besides, I noticed there are three orbs and four of us." I commented

"You still are the oldest sibling in your heart, I see. Even after all these years" Lord Eru commented with a small, touched laugh and I blushed as my sisters laughed. He thankfully took pity on me and smiled at me. "Your children will not get your powers and I'm afraid that Runande will have to stay here for now. For her and Mairon's safety as well as your own. The risk of corruption is too great. If she and Mairon go with you to Middle-Earth and that will happen, no matter what you try, you might have to deal with Sauron nonetheless, only this time with his wife." He explained

"I am not letting Melkor get anywhere near my husband after all the pain and utter fear that he already caused him when we were in Almaren. I'm sorry." Runande whispered in determination, quickly apologising to us in the next breath and we immediately waved her apology away, taking absolutely no offence to that. "No, no. I would do the same thing." I replied without hesitation, Ohtare agreeing with me.

"I'm not married yet, so I would not know." Irissë joked to try and lighten the mood even a little bit and we chuckled nonetheless. "Could You still give her something? It would make me feel better." I said, still feeling responsible over her even if she was now technically older than me. and to my surprise, He agreed as a fourth, black orb appeared, flashes of light being seen from the inside. "Control over light and shadow." He explained.

Well, if we get all this power, then Melkor will be defeated in no time." I commented and Je chuckled. "I'm afraid that the gifts will only work once you have crossed the seas to Middle-Earth and start your lives there. They will start small and build up over time." He told me and I scowled a bit at this. Of course, there was a freaking catch about this whole thing "Are we allowed to tell our husbands?" Ohtare asked. "Only them and your children once they were old enough. No one else. It would be too dangerous if Melkor finds out." Eru explained

"What about Milana? She isn't reborn yet." Irissë said in worry. "She's not my child, is she?" I asked in fear "She is reborn, actually and no, she is not your child, Nemireth. She's waiting for you on the other side of the sea." He answered both our questions and I sighed in relief. "Thank goodness. Thank you." I breathed and He smiled  So, what will it be?" He asked. We all looked at each other, trying to see who wanted which power

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

That night, I was lying in bed, feeling tired and wide awake at the same time

Maitimo was lying right next to me or rather behind me, keeping one of his arms wrapped around me with his hand on my stomach and my back against his chest. I looked at my hand and took a deep breath as a small part of me wondered if I had made the right choice. Lord Eru had left us, but not before saying that we were stronger than we thought and that our newly gotten powers might just surprise in more than one way

Does that mean that we had like secondary powers that we had to find out for ourselves? Sweet... Eru, I really hoped that we didn't turn into freaking Mary Sues with impossible capabilities and being so annoyingly perfect at everything. Then I remembered Ohtare almost making a fool of herself when she had still been learning the appropriate etiquette for a princess by hungrily snatching a biscuit before the tea was served

I hummed at that, thinking that as long as my sisters and I would just stay true to ourselves, we'd be fine. Irissë still had that travelling spirit as she was more often outside hunting in the forests than inside in the palace doing embroidery or something like that. That was not like her, although I had told her to enjoy it while she could as it would be pretty much over one she went to Gondolin with her brother. "What if I don't go to the city?"  She had asked and I shrugged. "Then it might not fall or it might still. Eru works in mysterious ways." I replied and she had laughed at that

I wasn't really sure if she wouldn't actually go to the city as she had found her One as well, an ellon named Ekthelion. She had immediately seen my face pale at hearing the name when she had introduced him to us. "I recognise that look. What is it?" She had asked later once the ellon had left. "If I'm not mistaken, then that's Lord Ecthelion of the fountain, also in Gondolin." I had replied after biting my lip for a second 

"He dies, doesn't he?" Irissë had immediately asked as she realised the reason why I paled and I nodded in answer. "Practically everyone dies to be honest. Out of all our Ones for now, the only one who survives the First Age in the book is Mairon....and he's the bad guy in that." I said, making my sisters chuckle despite the subject. However, I could see that this conversation had made my second-youngest sister think

"My heart, I cannot sleep if I can sense you're troubled. What is it?" My husband's sleepy voice breathed in my ear from behind, snapping me pit of my thoughts and I immediately smiled as I turned around in his grip. He immediately pulled me even closer to him and gently brushed my hair back. "When my sisters and I pulled back for a moment, we received a private visit.... from Lord Eru Himself." I admitted and I was pretty sure that if he had been drinking something, he would've spat it out as he choked on air. "Lord Eru?" He breathed and I nodded. He let out a small laugh at that

"I cannot believe it. What did He want?" He asked quietly as he caressed my cheek. "He wanted to help in our mission to keep our people safe by giving us all a special power. Elemental control, energy control, healing abilities far above even elves can do and control over light and shadow. They will start to work once we're in Middle-Earth,  or which he said He said is inevitable. We were allowed to choose one." I explained 

"Which did you choose?" He asked curiously. "Healing abilities. If I want to protect our people, then I need ro make sure they're alright and healthy. There are so many battles ahead of us and if it means I can save many soldiers and innocents from going to the halls of Mandos, then I'll gladly take it." I replied and he smiled. "Our people will be lucky to have you as their Queen." He whispered as he kissed me for a second

"Even if you will give the Kingship to your uncle?" I asked. "Well..." He hummed and I whacked his shoulder. "Maitimo!" I hissed and he laughed. "I'm joking. I will give it to him. Although, if you do save my grandfather, how would I be High King?" He asked in confusion. "In the books, there was a High King in Valinor, your uncle Arafinwë and High Kings in Beleriand/Middle-Earth, Fëanor, you Nolofinwë, Finno, Turukano and finally Ereinion Gil-Galad, of whom I'm very curious to see his parentage as he's either the son of Finno or the son of Orodreth." I explained and he sighed deeply

"You said that most of us do not survive that first age, so our people go through at least four kings in just 500 years?" He asked and I nodded against his chest. "Who has the shortest reign?" He asked. "You and Finno. You're king for about thirty years but spend literally 99.99% of that imprisoned and Finno was king for I believe 16 years before he was killed, although I desperately hope that Ohtare will make it longer." I said

He let out a shaky breath. "What powers did the others choose?" He then asked once more. "Ohtare took the energy one, Irissë the elements one and Runande the light and darkness one. Although, Runande will actually stay here when we leave as the risk that Melkor will corrupt her and Mairon is too big. Sauron was already almost impossible to beat for the heroes in the books. Imagine if he had a wife." I said and he shuddered 

"Lord Eru did say that our last sister was already reborn and waiting for us on Middle-Earth, which means that she's either one of the Alvari or one of the sindar." I added,  remembering that just now and with success as he immediately brightened. "Oh, that is good news. You and your sisters must be so incredibly happy." He commented and I smiled. "We are. We really are." I agreed, before yawning and he chuckled. "Go to sleep, my heart. You will need a lot of rest." He whispered. "Could you talk to me? Your voice soothes me." I said and he started to talk, the sound sending me right off

As my stomach slowly grew bigger with precious life over the next few months, an elven pregnancy lasting an whole entire year, so did both my already budding love for the tiny elfling growing inside of me and the incredible worries that plagued me about what would happen in the future and if I could protect my child. There were so many battles and troubles ahead of us and what if I lost my child because of that

Maitimo always hugged me when he sensed my troubled thoughts and I immediately hugged him back with all my strength, needing his comfort for a moment. "We will protect them together, my heart. I just know it." He whispered and I closed my eyes. "That's honestly what scares me the most. That you'll die protecting us." I admitted. "Then I'll die happily, knowing I kept you safe." He whispered and I clung onto him

A year after I realised what would happen and sensing the small being inside of me, it was finally time to give birth. I honestly think that I cursed more than I ever had as I tried to bring said child into the world. I also realised exactly why elves usually had only a couple of children in their lives, Nerdanel not included as when my child finally entered the world as it had with my pregnancy, I felt a part of my Fëa leave me as well to nourish and strengthen it. I immediately sagged in relief once I heard my child cry and felt them leave my body, healers immediately taking them over.

"It's a girl!" My mother immediately announced happily from where she and Eärwen were holding my hands in support during the birth, their hands probably completely broken by now as even as an elf, giving birth still hurt like a bitch. I quickly smiled in pure happiness as the healers quickly cleaned up my little daughter and soon gave her to me. I immediately wrapped my arms around her and looked down at her

She was so tiny despite her father being one of the tallest elves in existence. She quickly calmed down from crying at feeling that she was being held by someone and opened her eyes to look right at me. Oh, I remembered being in that stage and the utter confusion of going to a human to an elf. A hand on my shoulder made me look up to see my mother had been replaced by Maitimo as he sat on the edge of the bed.

I smiled up with happy tears rolling down on my cheeks, before I moved our baby just a bit to give him a proper look of her. "Our little girl." I breathed and he immediately teared up as well as I carefully gave her to him. "Hello, my little one. You make me and your mother so incredibly happy." He whispered, giving her tiny forehead a very gentle kiss. I smiled and leaned against him. "She really does." I agreed and he smiled at me as we looked down at our little miracle. She had inherited her father's eyes and my hair colour. She was honestly a perfect mix between the two of us

Our families came to meet our precious baby after a while and Maitimo had the honour of giving her her fathername. ""Fearil." It means "brilliant soul." He told us and everyone immediately smiled as they carefully passed Fearil around, the grandparents and aunts and uncles going first. Once everyone had they fill, Maitimo led them all out to give me some rest. I looked down at our baby and slowly started to sing, rocking her to sleep

At the end, my baby was fast asleep, which actually looked kinda disturbing to be completely honest with those open eyes staring straight at me. I gently laid my hand on her chest just to feel it going up and down as she breathed. "She's just fine, my heart." Maitimo breathed and I looked up to see him walking closer again and I smiled at him. "I know, just still weird to see a child sleeping with their eyes open." I muttered 

He chuckled as he sat down next to me again and we looked down at Fearil. "She is going to be such a looker when she grows up. We're going to have suitors banging our door down." I commented and he paled. "Nemireth, my love, my darling, my heart. She has just been born. Can you not make me panic about suitors already?" He hissed and I laughed, which was harder than expected as I tried not to shake my baby. As a compromise, I gave her to her father again and I realised that I had been right. She had been born just a couple of hours ago and he was already a fantastic father

"Our little Fearil." He breathed as he gently caressed her cheek with one finger without waking her up from her very first sleep. I had always thought he looked big compared to me, but compared to our little girl as he was holding her like I  had just given him the most fragile treasure in all of Arda, he looked positively giant! "Thank you for giving me this wonderful gift, my heart. She is perfect." He then said 

I smiled at him leaned against him once more, Maitimo carefully letting our daughter go with one arm to wrap his now free arm around me, kissing the top of my head as I took a deep breath. "She really is and we will take care of her.." I agreed. After all my fretting and worrying, I suddenly realised that I didn't care what was going to happen as even if Melkor got free tomorrow, nothing could take this moment away from me

We were all safe for now and that was important 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Fearil sure lived up to her name

She was an absolutely brilliant child, even at barely a month old, much to the extreme pride of me and Maitimo. She was almost always happy to he around people, which was quite different than what I had been at her age when I had just arrived here. But then again, she thankfully wasn't a human turned elf with a lot of knowledge about what was to happen in the future so she was allowed to be a normal elfling. 

The only times she wasn't a very happy elfling was when neither I nor Maitimo were with her or when she really needed something, which was either food, which again meant she needed me for now or clean clothes. It was that I had helped with my younger sisters, especially Asterin and Lillith as I barely blinked when she pooped. Maitimo wasn't very disgusted with it either as he actually helped me as much as possible 

He absolutely doted on her, even more so than I honestly did and she was always happy to see him. Even if I was holding her in my arms, playing with her and keeping her attention completely focused on me, the moment that she saw him approaching from whenever he had spent time with his father, she'd reach out to him with a squeal. "Looks like someone missed you." I commented with a smile as I handed our daughter to my husband. "It does seem that way." He chuckled as he took her over, looking at her with so much adoration that it always made my heart melt

Fearil immediately grabbed her father's red hair in her tiny, chubby fist and I immediately snorted at seeing that. It really seemed that our beloved daughter was almost obsessed with her father's famous hair, always grabbing it whenever he was holding her. He always chuckled at it as well as he gently kissed her cheek. She then calmed down and rested her head on his shoulder as he started to rock her back-and-forth 

I eventually joined them both as well with a smile on my face and he immediately wrapped one arm around me as I rested my own head against his chest, putting my own free hand on our daughter's small back. "Our precious girl." He breathed in wonder as he looked at our daughter and I smiled up at him. "Our little family." I continued and he laughed, before leading us to a nearby couch and sitting down with us in his arms

I immediately snuggled closer to him as I relaxed in his hold, taking a deep breath. "What did your father want?" I asked. "He actually talked about how he was planning on a certain project bigger given we've ever seen before." He said, the both of us sharing a dreading look,  I tried to convince him that it may nor be the best thing, but I'm not sure he'll listen to me." He continued and I gulped in fear as he tightened his grip on me. "I know, my darling. I fear the worst as well. I'm scared that it will be the Silmarils, but know that they will not be more important than you." He whispered

"Please no. Our little girl is still a young baby. I really don't want those things around now." I whimpered. We then heard a squeal and looked to see our daughter reaching out to me, clearly not wanting me to be upset and I immediately took her over from my husband. I held her close to my chest and rocked her back-and-forth as well, Maitimo wrapping both arms around me. I took a deep breath and started to sing another song

At the very end of the song, both my precious baby and I thankfully were quite a bit calmer again. I still really didn't like the fact that the Silmarils were on the cusp of being made, especially with our daughter being so incredibly young and helpless, but I remembered Lord Eru telling me and my sisters that it was inevitable, but that didn't mean that I had to like it. Maitimo kissed my temple as I took a deep breath

"I will protect you both, my heart. You and our beautiful little Fearil." He whispered as he quickly tightened his grip on me and I took a shaky breath as I buried myself into his chest as much as I could with a baby in my arms. "I love you so much." I breathed and he immediately smiled. "I love you too." He replied, before kissing the top of my head. "You and our daughter are my entire heart, my life." He replied and I tried to calm myself down as I closed my eyes. "He also told me grudgingly that Irissë is being courted by an ellon named Ekthelion." He said and I grinned

That was actually very good news. He was an incredibly honourable man or elf from what I've read about him in the books and heard about him from other elves and if Aredhel was taken and happily married, then that hopefully meant that Eöl would never get his dirty little fingers all over my second youngest sister. Hell, I'd like to see him try. Ecthelion headbutted and killed the most powerful Balrog in existence.

An Alvari elf lusting after his wife should be easy compared to that. But there was also the matter of his death. Apart from Milana, Asterin was probably the most romantic out of all of us. She wouldn't survive if he died. I'm not even sure she'd last a month I frowned at this as I realised something and hummed "Might honestly be for the best that she got elemental powers from lord Eru now that I think about it." I said

"If this version of Ecthelion also jumps at Gothmog to try and kill him with that seriously pointy helmet of his and with impeccable aiming skills, might I add and falls into the fountain as a result of that. she can get him out of there before he drowns while making sure that that Balrog stays freaking dead." I continued with a smile and he chuckled."Unless Ohtare kills that thing before that when he tries to kill Finno. I honestly don't think many will miss him." I muttered as I decided to sit on my husband's lap to make us both relax a bit. Fearil had fallen asleep on my shoulder in the meantime

As obviously happy I was that she could actually be a normal elfling for now and happily play with us, family members and her personal nurse the few times we gave her to the nurse instead of a family member or kept her to ourselves, I also envied her that she didn't have to worry about the future just yet. I never had that luxury as the minute I realised where I was and what was about to happen, I pretty much panicked

I sighed and leaned back against Maitimo and he immediately wrapped his arms around me. If it happened, it happened. Lord Eru himself said that some things were inevitable. I would just do my best to make sure those I truly cared about weren't as caught in the crossfire as possible. "I love you, Maitimo." I said as I held our daughter. "I love you too, my heart. You and our Fearil." He promised as we both looked down at her. 

Neither of us said anything for a while 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Look, just because it was required, doesn't mean I had to like it

I watched my dear brothers-in-law holding and playing with my sweet baby. I obviously knew they weren't crazy kinslayers yet right now, but it was coming and it made me feel rather uncomfortable. Especially when the ellyn who would later be known as Caranthir, Celegorm and Curufin were holding my daughter did I feel extremely nervous, considering one of them would be nicknamed "the cruel."

Makalaurë, his and Curufin's wives, the twins, Celebrimbor and Nerdanel were the only ones I trusted a bit more with my only child, especially the red-haired elleth as she was one of the wisest beings I had ever met and I had already met a lot of people by now. Try as I might, I could not fully suppress my smile when Nerdanel practically pulled a grumpy and grumbling Fëanor from his forges to spend time with his granddaughter and not just his projects.

Nerdanel just rose on my list of awesome elves because of that. I knew Maitimo had the same problem at seeing the sight as ever since he knew what his father would do and what horrors he'd indirectly in the future, he'd started to subtly pull away a bit from him, not wanting us to land into the mess that was the Oath. He still spent time with him, but he didn't automatically agree with everything he said anymore either. He had told me that we were his priority and not what his father wanted from him. No, he did not get a special reward that night, why do you ask? 

Watching Fëanor actually spend time with my Fearil and not being the proud, temperamental asshole he'd become, it ease almost hard to believe this was the same guy as for once in a long time, I saw the same ellon who had smiled at little Maitimo all those centuries ago when I had first met my husband, but I didn't let myself be fooled. 'Maitimo gets captured in the book because of him.' I reminded myself as I took a deep breath

Sensing my incredibly dark mood,  Maitimo joined me and wrapped his arm around me, trying to comfort me in anyway that he could as his father spent time with our daughter, knowing what I was thinking off as Fëanor pulled himself away more and more often and we both know why. I took another deep breath at this as I leaned against him and closed my eyes. Thankfully the brothers eventually split up again soon after that

On her very first begetting day, we finally travelled to Valmar with both our families to receive our daughter's blessing. It already seemed so very long ago that I had received my own blessing from Varda when it had been my turn. Walking into the enormous palace of the ruling beings of Valinor and Middle-Earth with my daughter and husband, I actually felt even more nervous than I did when it had my turn as we entered the throne room once more and bowed before the Valar, before I gently told Fearil to walk forwards on her own and introduced her to the Valar

The Queens stood up and surrounded my very nervous daughter until I couldn't see her anymore. 'Please don't let her show them any disrespect.' I prayed to anyone who would listen as Maitimo grabbed my hand without looking at sensing my nerves. We heard the Queens talking like they had with me, before the whole room lit up as my daughter was chosen by one of the Valier. It was Nienna, the lady of mercy and I sighed in relief as the Queen picked her up

The Queen then walked towards us and smiled. "You should be very proud of her. She will be a very strong elleth when she grows up." She told us and we bowed again as we thanked her and were escorted to the ball room. Nienna then gave my daughter back to me and kissed her forehead, before leaving. The Valar must've been tired of seeing your parents over and over again." I muttered and Maitimo laughed before we joined the others

Not long after that, it finally happened. The one thing that we had dreaded came true as Fëanor revealed the silmarils to everyone in Valinor after none other than Varda herself hallowed them and he had somehow managed to contain the light of the Trees inside them. The only good thing was that he did so at a feast to ironically celebrate the important Union between the Ñoldor and the Teleri people and my parents were there. I gave my father a pointed look and he gave me a solemn nod, now knowing for certain that I had been telling the truth 

I kept my daughter close to me for the entire feast, only giving her to people I truly trusted like my husband, all four of my sisters and their families if they had them and my mother-in-law. While Nerdanel was off with Fearil for a few minutes to show her to some other ellyth, I leaned against my husband and closed my eyes for just a second. Something then happened that I had never ever experienced before in my entire life

dozens of sights and sounds assaulted my brain without warning or anything Things I had never seen before and wasn't sure I'd ever see again after this. I saw a beautiful woman in armour with silver hair and blue eyes leading a group of people away to safety, a heavy battle clearly going on in the background and her fighting off two orcs attacking the group at the same time, before lifting up an injured elfling in her arms and carrying them further.

I stumbled back against Maitimo and he immediately caught me, looking down in utter concern. "My heart? What happened? What's wrong" He asked in worry as Nerdanel sensed something was off with me. "I have no idea. I just had some kind of vision." I muttered with a small groan as I rubbed my head and held onto his arm as he supported me. I only looked up after a few seconds to see that Nerdanel had approached us and was now giving me my daughter back. "What did you see?" She asked gently and I frowned as I tried to remember 

I obviously couldn't tell them about the battle I had seen in the background of my vision as Valinor was still very peaceful, even if not for long with the way things were going, so I had to leave some things out. "I saw... Fearil leading our people somewhere. It was just for a second, but it was so incredibly vivid." I muttered with a small frown as I looked up at her for advice as she had gone through this before.

I knew that most mothers got a vision about their children, but I still didn't expect it and it had rather taken me by surprise.I looked down at my little girl and she immediately smiled at me. "Nana." She said, reaching out to me and wrapping her arms around my neck. I held her closer to me and closed my eyes."That's good news. That means that she will be a worthy Princess of the Ñoldor." Fëanor said from near us.

I immediately raised an eyebrow at that, not liking the way he said that at all. "Was there any doubt, your highness?" I asked, seemingly joking about it, but just the slightest edge to my words. You could only hear it if you were looking for it and I felt Maitimo tighten his grip just for a second in warning as he caught the implications as well. "Of course not." Fëanor immediately protested and I seemingly let it go at that. However,  I never forgot how he had apparently thought my daughter would not be a proper Princess. 

"I think it's time you gave Fearil her mother-name." Nerdanel said with a proud smile and I nodded, but I needed to think about it. "What did you really see?" Maitimo asked as soon as we were in private and our daughter was put to bed. "I did see Fearil leading our people, but away from a battle and killing two orcs. She will be a warrior and that scares me." I whispered and he immediately pulled me into a hug

"It will be alright, my Nemireth. We just need to have hope, because we will be lost without it." He said and I knew he was right but that didn't mean I was happy. The fact that we weren't there with her in the vision scared me more than anything. "Have you thought of a name?" He asked and I didn't answer for a while. ""Bellamdir." I finally said and he hummed in agreement. "Strong hope." Because that's what my daughter gave us and would give our people.

I could just feel it

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise

Well, talk about things slowly going to shit

At first, it seemed like nothing had changed much in the royal family as Fëanor wore those blasted jewels on every feast, but he slowly started to become prideful and suspicious that the Valar and other Eldar coveted them, so he started to keep them more and more to himself and his closest family. His marriage with Nerdanel was starting to slowly break apart and it was really painful to see it happening in front of me

As I had already expected, he had asked Artanis for a strand if her hair three times before making them and she had refused his request each time. If Valinor actually had ice cream, I would've treated my niece on one. Poor Maitimo was torn to see his father slowly stopping to listen to advice from anyone and start to become someone he barely recognised and not even our daughter and I couldn't cheer him up at times

It hadn't really helped that about fifty years before he made the Silmarils and the true beginning of the end of peace had truly been set in motion, there was a frantic knocking on the door of the private house Maitimo and I shared when we weren't needed at the palace and the biggest reason I was so very scared to have my daughter was revealed as I had opened the door to see a frantic and panting Runande and Mairon standing in front of it. Seeing their scared faces had already been enough to know what had happened, but Runande has confirmed it with two small words: "he's out."

Apparently, Melkor had convinced almost all of the Valar that he had redeemed himself and with only Valar in attendance during the trial, they had found out in the worst way possible. Runande had walked into the forge to see Melkor waiting for them and had immediately left it again, running into her husband. Seeing Melkor come sound the corner, Mairon has done the only sensible thing, lift Runande in his arms and run away

With me, Maitimo, Finno, Ohtare, Irissë and later Irissë's new husband Ekthelion once he was aware of our shared secret, being aware of Melkor being free thanks to them, we were aware of the rumours that started to go around the Ñoldor and did our best to dissuade our people from listening. Thankfully, with at least six members of the royal family telling them not to believe those rumours, many elves listened 

Unfortunately for us, my father-in-law did believe these rumours about how the Valar were just keeping us in Valinor to give Middle-Earth to the race of Men or something like that. Oh yes, because living in literal heaven clearly wasn't good enough and Middle-Earth was much better. I mean, don't get me wrong I absolutely love Middle-Earth, but if I had to choose, I know which option I'd choose. And even then, Melkor was clearly ignoring how the Sindar and Avari elves were living there in spreading these rumours. But then again, he had been rightfully imprisoned by that time

With us dissuading the rumours, peace kept on for a bit longer, but the Ñoldor grew restless after a while the longer the rumours persisted, especially with their crown prince repeating the lies . I knew that Lord Eru said that certain things were inevitable, but that didn't mean I had to like said things, okay? I situatio knew that Runande tried to convince the valar that it was Melkor who was spreading the lies, but with limited success

After a while, as the unrest amongst our people grew with every day that passed and I slowly started to get stressed out more and more as I desperately tried to keep the peace for as long as I could before it inevitably ended with the infamous flight of the Ñoldor, my husband and two of my former sisters all agreed to send me to Aqualondë to my other family. I of course protested, but they wouldn't hear of it

"We'll keep an eye on things here. I know you don't want to leave the city right morta with everything that's happening, but you need rest for what's to come next. Lord Eru said it would happen. Take care of things from your side of the family and just relax a bit before it's too late." Ohtare whispered as Maitimo helped me onto my horse, our daughter riding her own and him climbing on his steed to join us. Fearil was fully grown up now, having turned a hundred years old five years ago and there were many noble ellyn trying to court her, but she really wanted to find her own love 

I did honestly hate that my only daughter had grown up in a darkeningtime of growing unrest and protest against the Valar instead of the happy peace the others, Maitimo and I had known during our childhoods. I had the feeling that if she married someone soon, it might be the last happy feast the Ñoldor in Valinor would see in a while. Melkor's freedom had also definitely stopped my sisters from having children for now

They were absolutely terrified that they'd first get sons who would eventually receive blessings from the male Valar as was tradition. They were terrified that Melkor would give them his blessing as that was the very last thing that they wanted right now with Melkor being who he was and I honestly couldn't blame either of them for thinking that way. I honestly really lucked out with my child being a little girl.

Back in the present I sighed as I realised that they were not letting this go. "Fine, but call me back when Fëanor puts a sword to your father-in-law's chest." I murmured as I started to ride away from them."Wait, what?!" I heard Ohtare call after me and grinned before we rode out of the palace gates. "Is your mother okay?" I asked Maitimo's. "She could be better. She sees the changes in Atar as well and it scares her " He answered and I sighed, looking down at my hands. "I cannot blame her. It is terrifying to see your husband change into someone you don't recognise whatsoever." I replied

I heard Maitimo ride next to me and grabbed my hand. "You will never have that with me." He whispered, trying to comfort me and I gave him a sad smile."I'm afraid you cannot promise that, my darling. As I think Ohtare can tell you, battle and war changes people. I remember how she was when she came from her very first tour in Afghanistan. It was honestly terrible to see her like that." I said, before sighing again.

"Just promise me that at the core, you'll remain the same ellon I married." I whispered and he smiled at me, squeezing my hand. "I promise, my heart." He whispered as he briefly kissed the back of my hand, before letting go and riding onwards. "Are you okay?" Fearil asked in worry and I smiled at her. "We're fine, sweetheart. Don't worry about it." I told her and sure hands me a disbelieving look, but let it go for now

We were immediately welcomed to Aqualondë by my parents and brothers, my daughter greeting her grandparents and uncles with all the enthusiasm that she thankfully never lost from when she was a child and they were justas happy to see them. Even my brothers had finally found good ellyth to settle down with, my oldest brother already having two children, one of them a son so our father's line was more than secure. I took a deep breath as my husband helped me from my horse, kissing my forehead for a second as I sagged against him, hosed to be back home again

Nana soon gave me a very tight hug as well and held me close to her. I closed my eyes as my parents always managed to make me feel young again and considering I'm at least several hundreds of years old, that was saying a lot. My brothers ruffled my hair and interrogated Maitimo about how he had been treating me and our daughter. It was a pretty funny sight to see as Maitimo was about a head taller than them

"We have a lot to talk about." My father said solemnly once all the greeting, hugging and catching up was finally over, which admittedly took a while and I nodded as we walked into the palace. I asked my daughter to look after her young cousins and she agreed. We walked into my father's office. "You were right. What happens now?" My father asked. I sighed as I rubbed my temple tiredly, not wanting to say it but having to

"Now, everything goes to shit." I muttered 

Chapter Text

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It was nice being with my family again

I would never ever deny that, but there was still an underlying sense of stress, fear and nerves that not even the everlasting love of my husband, daughter and family could take away. Maitimo tried to distract me, bless him, but it became harder and harder as days passed. At times, I just hugged him tightly as I feared what would happen next. I felt like I had done everything I could, but that it still wasn't enough

Maitimo always hugged me back and held me tightly against his body. "I know, my darling Nemireth. I know." He whispered every time. I had sent a very thick envelope containing what would happen between Fëanor and his half-brother, so everything was now up to them to try and change things before it was too late. As his daughter and daughter-in-law, I had the feeling that they'd be more successful with Fingolfin

Thankfully, my daughter didn't notice much of the thoughts that plagued me and Maitimo as she had a lot of fun catching up with my brothers and parents and playing with her younger and older cousins. I had told Maitimo the true vision I had seen of our  battle-hardened daughter learning our people away from the fight and ever since then, he'd become even more protective over her. One small advantage of the Ñoldor starting to forge weapons was that he'd used them to teach herself self-defence with them, promising to go further once we had left for Middle-Earth 

I had also told my parents everything that I remembered happening from now on and that I hadn't told them yet.  My father had promised to freely give the ships to my father-in-law once he asked for them, valuing the lives of our people to the borders that, while they were most certainly beautiful, could be rebuild again. Now, Fëanor and my own people just had to keep themselves calm to prevent or from happening anyway

Runande wrote to me after a few months and I could practically feel the frustration from her writing as every time she and Mairon tried to convince the other Valar that Melkor was still just as evil as he had ever been, the bastard would do something that "proved" that he had seen the light and their concerns were mostly waved away. "It's like falling with Jafar from the movie Aladdin. He's clearly evil, but no one sees it." She wrote

Only Tulkas seemed to believe them about the Vala as he remained distrustful of Melkor and soon became a good friend of them. Still, two maiar and one Vala who wasn't one of the Aratar apparently still wasn't enough for the others, although Runande did write that Aulë had started to give Melkor glances at times after seeing Mairon practically run away in fear at seeing the evil Vala. I honestly felt sorry for my poor brother-in-law. I had no idea what I'd do if I was forced to face the person who had tried to kidnap me and my own boss would constantly take his side

That was another thing. Had Aulë just... forgotten that Melkor had literally tried to kidnap his own maia from underneath his very nose? Had Melkor said "sorry, I didn't mean it" to him or something when he was released?" Because if so, that was bullshit as he very clearly had meant it. Runande wrote that Mairon wasn't sleeping very well and she had the feeling he wouldn't until Melkor was gone again

My heart broke once more for him at reading that particular part as despite my previous doubts about him because of his canon counterpart and his actions, especially to my nephew-in-law, Mairon had eventually proven himself to be a just as loving and devoted husband to my former youngest sister as my Maitimo was to me and he honestly didn't deserve to live in fear because no one listened to him or his wife.

Seeing how they were both Maiar, I would probably never get any nephews and nieces from them, but since Runande had always said that she didn't want any children ever since she finished puberty and learning how pregnancy worked, I don't think she minded a lot. Still, it did make me wonder how Mairon would be like as a father. He'd definitely be the strict one, that was for sure. Shaking my head as my thoughts started to take me other places than I wanted, I quickly started to write back to Runande to tell her to hold on and keep an eye on her husband

I told her that if Melkor's fate followed canon, he'd leave Valinor and when he returned, he'd be thrown in the void until the end of time. Her next letter was calmer as she had apparently been reassured by my letter and I chuckled at her wondering if she could literally kick his ass into the void once it was time. Just the image of my little sister kicking Melkor's ass into the door like a cartoon was enough to cheer me up

About a month after that letter, we were extremely surprised to see Tyelkormo or Celegorm as he would later be known, Huan at his side as always. "Brother, what a surprise. We didn't think that we would see you here." Maitimo stated as he greeted his second brother, me right behind him. "Maitimo, I'm worried about father. He really has started to change." Tyelkormo stated as he gripped my husband's arm

Sensing that this was a very private situation, Ada who had followed us out to the courtyard as well, quickly allowed us to use one of his sitting rooms. "He has already starting to change ever since he made the Silmarils, but lately, he's been acting even stranger and he's been forcing Curufinwë to try and make something like the silmarils, snapping at him every time he fails." Tyelkormo said as he paced around in front of us. It didn't surprise me that this was the thing worrying him the most as these two were thick as thieves and this no doubt upset them both

What did surprise me was that he had come to get our help about this. He had always been very stubborn ever since he was a young elfling and preferred to solve his problems on his own when he could. "How can we help with this?" Maitimo asked and Tyelkormo finally turned to face us. "I told Irisse about the situation has told me to go to you with my concerns, but that's not the only reason I'm here today." He stated

"You have been pulling away from father ever since he made the Silmarils. You have done it very subtly, but I have noticed it. Why?" He asked as he leaned forwards. My husband and I shared a look, before I bit my lip as I tried to decide on the best course of acting. I was hesitant to let one of my brothers-in-law know that I had knowledge about the future as either my father-in-law or worse, Melkor could hear about it,

However, telling Tyelkormo even a bit of the truth could also mean that there would be one more brother who wouldn't swear the oath and would hopefully not die a horrible death. That is, if he actually believed it. "On our wedding night, I received a terrible vision of the Silmarils being stolen from your father's grasp and of him, you, Maitimo and all your other brothers swearing a terrible Oath to get them back at all costs..... including the blood of my people." I finally stated, looking him straight in the eyes to make sure he knew I was dead serious about this and he stared at me

"You're lying." He finally stated in denial. "Have you ever known me to lie?" I shot back, knowing that in all my years of knowing them, I had rarely if ever lied to them and I knew that he knew it as well. "I didn't like it when I first heard about it either Kormo, but I'm not risking my wife and daughter if this actually happens and father does swear the Oath." Maitimo  said as he grabbed my hand and I gave him a small smile

"I even went to Lord Irmo with it and he said that it had a chance of happening." I stated and Tyelkormo looked between the two of us. "And you believe what the Valar say?" He scoffed. "Yes, I do and so did you once." I replied in a calm voice as I pointed through the window at Huan waiting outside, not rising up to the question and once again looking at him without an ounce of dishonesty on my face and he could see that. 

He sank down on a chair and hid his face. I could see he still refused to believe it and I looked at my husband who nodded as I stood up and went to find my daughter to give the two brothers some time alone. I knew that out of the two of us, he'd have the bigger chance of convincing his brother we were telling the truth. Well, mostly as I wasn't planning on telling him about the "I'm from a different world and you guys are all fictional characters there" bit yet. For now, it was for the best if the only ones who knew were us, my sisters and their husbands and my parents 

I found my daughter with my parents as they taught her some more about the history of our people. I smiled at seeing her before clearing my throat. "Sweetheart, do you want to go for a walk in the gardens?" I asked and she nodded after Ada gave her a nudge to show he didn't mind. "Where is atya?" She asked as we walked through the gardens. "Your uncle Kormo has arrived and they really needed to talk in private." I explained 

"About what?" She asked and I shrugged. "No idea. I may have married into the family, but there are things that have to stay between brothers." I replied, even though I was pretty sure I did know what they were talking about and I didn't like it. If Tyelkormo refused to believe us, he might tell Fëanor about it and that could lead to disastrous consequences as Fëanor could see it as conspiracy against him in the worst case scenario

"Do you think we could go for a ride with Atya over the beach?" My sweet daughter then asked, seemingly oblivious about my dark thoughts and the risk we were taking right now by telling my brother-in-law even a tiny bit of the truth and I smiled as I stroked her hair. "I'm sure he'd love to go for a ride." I promised and she beamed at me, before we continued walking and were soon joined by Huan who had grown a soft spot for both my daughter and Celebrimbor as he'd been with them ever since they were born. I bit my lip as I thought over the options available now

I really hadn't forgotten that Tyelkormo was the very same elf who wanted Luthien, who I had already raised was now my own cousin of all things, to marry him to force my uncle to support the Ñoldor in their fight against Melkor and together with Curufin was the biggest reason most people of Nargothrond forsook their king, my nephew and why the kingdom didn't help in the Battle of Unnumbered Tears

He was probably one of the riskiest elves to tell even a portion of the truth to, but knowing him and his temper, he would eventually have asked about us slowly pulling away from Fëanor anyway and he might have done it a lot more in public if he had waited until we were back in Tírion to do so. And if he did believe us, he might save himself from being killed by my second cousin Dior. I sighed as I walked further with my daughter

I could only wait and see now he would react

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Things had changed

We immediately noticed that as we rode back into Tírion after spending a few months in Aqualondë. Things were a lot more tense and hushed whispers were heard all around. I was pretty sure I saw some weapons hidden underneath robes, mostly small daggers and I gulped. It really was the end of peace. I could see that my husband and even my daughter noticed the same thing as my sweet Fearil moved closer to me.

Maitimo carefully moved closer as well. Even though these were his own people and he trusted them, the tension in the air clearly made him feel uncomfortable and protective over us and it was even unsettling me. If this was our first few minutes back home, then I really don't want to see how the next several months/years went until things came to a head. Little did I know that this day was going to be even worse

Tyelkormo had gone back a few weeks ago after a lot of thinking and I'm pretty sure I saw him having a one-sided conversation with Huan about it. Hey, wait a second. If he decided not to swear the oath, does that mean that he won't kidnap Lúthien and Huan won't die? Because that sweet boy really doesn't deserve to die after all the times he allowed me to cuddle with him. For such a big dog that defeated my brother-in-law in the books (still weird to say, even after all these centuries) and fought the most dangerous wolf ever to the death, he was an amazing cuddle hug

Anyway, after promising he wouldn't tell anyone, not even Curufinwë about my vision, he had gone back home too and just a few days before we left, he had sent us a letter that Fëanor had welcomed a mysterious new guest with whom he was often in his office. At reading that Huan growled at him every time they passed him, I had a suspicion about who it was and I desperately hoped that I was wrong.

'Please don't let it be who I think it is. I did such a good job avoiding him until now and I like to keep it that way.' I thought to myself and I quickly sensed that Maitimo had caught this ad he sent me a worried look. I shook my head as we reached the courtyard of the palace where Nerdanel, my brothers-in-law, Fëanor and several others were waiting for us, but my eyes were on the tall figure next to my father-in-law 

Even from my horse,I could feel his power as he looked at all three of us and I really did not like the way his eyes lingered on my husband for a second longer than with us, but I'm pretty sure Maitimo thought the same way when he turned his eyes on us. I tried not to flinch as black eyes focused themselves on me next, looking me up-and-down. He was actually not that tall compared to his description in the book. Yes, he was at the very least a head taller than my husband, but he wasn't exactly the size of a mountain or anything

He clearly had a theme going on though with black eyes, black hair and black robes. 'Yeah, he is very clearly a good guy.' I thought sarcastically, before realising he could perhaps read my mind. Could he read minds? I honestly had no idea anymore? As we arrived in front of the people waiting for us, Maitimo dismounted from his horse and helped us get off ours with a smile on his face as if happy to be home.

However, I immediately noticed how he kept watching Melkor from the corner of his eyes as he helped me dismount. "Is that him?" He breathed and I gave him a minuscule nod against his chest. His grip on me tightened for just a moment, before he went to help Fearil off her horse, making sure I was nearby. "Nelyafinwë, Nemireth, Fearil. This is lord Melkor. Our honoured guest." Fëanor introduced him to us

We immediately bowed and curtsied to him as was proper, no matter how much it hurt to do so and he solemnly nodded back. "It is nice to finally meet you as we never seemed to have the chance to do so before." He said with a very low voice. Seriously, James Earl Jones would sound like Mickey Mouse compared to him. "No, my lord. We always seemed to just miss each other." I replied as we straightened up, me and Maitimo standing right next to each other despite both wanting to have the other a bit behind them so they could be protected

I obviously didn't tell that this was completely on purpose as every time that Runande sensed him leaving for Tírion, we just happened to go on a small trip to either visit my family or Othare's family in Valmar. Hell, we even joined Irissë on a hunt every now and again even though I wasn't a big fan. I was just that desperate to stay away from the literal satanic archetype of Middle-Earth and could you blame me? 

Sensing I was beginning to tremble, Maitimo quickly excused us, stating that it had been a long journey and that we were tired. They thankfully let us go then and after making sure that our daughter was with Ohtare and Finno, Maitimo took me to the nearest empty bedroom and pulled me into his arms as my breaths became shaky. "Sssshhhh. I'm here, my heart. I'm here with you." He whispered as he rocked me back-and-forth 

I desperately clung onto him with all my strength, the simple, but devastating words 'I just met Morgoth. I just met Morgoth.' repeating themselves over and over in my head. Even when he wasn't visibly doing anything but greet us, the mere sight of him was enough for me to get an image of my darling Maitimo hanging from his wrist in my mind and sensing said elf tightening his grip on me, I knew he had seen the image too. "That won't happen, my beloved Nemireth. I promise I won't leave you or our daughter." He breathed, confirming my thoughts

"You can't know that! Melkor is the second most powerful being in this world apart from Lord Eru. He can do almost anything." I whispered back, although I felt like I had said this before and he hushed me, kissing my silver hair. "I know, my love, but I'll fight to stay with you and our Fearil. I'm not losing you and you're not losing me. And neither of us is losing Fearil." He added and I let out just the smallest of giggles

I could practically feel him smile slightly at the fact that I was laughing and when he pulled back and cupped my face, I could see it. "I said it before and I'll say it again, no matter what happens, know that I will always have your back and I know you'll have mine." He continued and i nodded as he kissed my forehead and I held onto his wrists. We actually did hop to bed as this had been an incredibly taxing day for us

I would've loved to say that our arrival was the only time I met Melkor, but it unfortunately wasn't as I met him a few days later when I was on my own taking a stroll in the garden. Maitimo was talking to his father and brothers and Fearil was with Nerdanel to tell her about our time in my old city and I thanked my lucky stars for that because the less time my daughter was around Melkor, the better. I was picking flowers to surprise Maitimo with as despite his tough exteriors, he absolutely loved things like this, when I suddenly heard someone clear their throat

I tried not to flinch as I had a pretty good feeling who this was, but I'm not sure if I succeeded as I slowly stood up and turned to face him. I had to remind myself to take deep breaths as I came face-to-face with the reason for all evil in this world. You know, people on our old earth may not believe that there's a God or a Devil, but it was pretty hard not to believe it when you have met one and are now facing the other

"Princess Nemireth." He greeted me and I curtsied again. "My lord Melkor." I greeted back and I could see his lips twitch as I seemingly gave him respect. As if! "Are you happy here in Valinor?" He asked. Was he going to try and get me to want to go to Middle-Earth and Beleriand? "Why wouldn't I be happy? I've got my husband, a daughter, more in-laws than I could count. I'm happier than I could ever be." I replied

And I truly as well meant it. Even with the trepidation about what my brothers-in-law could become, that still left many others like my nephews and niece, who were also my half-cousins by marriage at the very same time and I had almost all my former sisters. The only reason a part of me wanted to go was to keep as many of my family safe and find my final sister, but I knew the being in front of me would never understand that, so I kept my mouth shut as we started to walk together after he insisted on walking with me for a bit.

I tried to keep my distance as much as possible without seeming rude to the powerful being. I had the feeling that if I openly rebuffed him now, he'd keep an extra eye on me during our time in Beleriand at best and actively try to kill me at worst once he was completely free from Angband. Granted, considering that Maitimo was always described as one of his greatest foes in the book, he might actively try to kill me anyway to hurt him.

However, I was also pretty sure that his behaviour towards me would be even worse in Beleriand if I spat in his face now or something else that was utterly suicidal like that. Okay, incredibly bad use of the word considering my husband does commit suicide in the book, but I really didn't want to think about that. Maitimo promised me today he wouldn't willingly leave me and I believed him, no matter what

As we walked through the palace gardens, Melkor constantly talked about the huge and great lands that were spread or beyond the sea and how incredibly beautiful they had been before he had been "wrongfully" imprisoned, clearly trying to make me want to go there, but it only made me want to snort instead of long for the unfamiliar places that were beyond Valinor. Sure, Beleriand had sounded like a very beautiful place in the book, but then he came in and ruined it. I was going to go there, but not because he made me want to go there

"Nemireth!" I suddenly heard Ohtare calling me from behind and it really took all of my strength not to say "oh, thank Eru" out loud as she and Finno joined us. "My lord, I hope you don't mind if we steal the princess from you. We just returned from a small trip in the woods and I really want to show her something we found there." Ohtare said, although I noticed how she carefully put herself between me and Melkor

Finno subtly pulled me back just slightly as well to create even more distance between me and the Vala. "Not at all. I hope to see you again soon, your highness." Melkor stated as he walked away and into the palace again. "I hope not." I muttered as soon as he had completely disappeared, shivering in utter revulsion. Ohtare watched the Vala go as well, before looking at me. "That was him?" She asked quietly and I nodded 

"That was him." I confirmed

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"My heart?"

I immediately looked up to see my beloved Maitimo looking incredibly torn about something, rubbing his hands. Melkor had finally left, no doubt having sown more lies and deceit. After Finno and Ohtare had told my husband that they had found me all alone with the Vala, he hadn't left my side until the powerful being had finally left the city. Not that I really minded as he always made me feel safe, even with the devil nearby

"What is it, my darling?" I asked in concern as I stood up and walked towards him, grabbing his hands. He gently lifted my hands to his mouth and kissed my knuckles as he prepared to say what he wanted to say. "I want to tell Makalaurë the same thing we told Kormo. If this oath is really as bad and devastating as you say, then I don't want to think of him swearing it and ruining his life like that." He confessed quietly and I gave him a small smile as I kissed his cheek 

It honestly didn't surprise me in the very least that he finally wanted to tell his second brother most of the truth now that Melkor had "graced" us with a visit. Ever since they were children, Maglor and my husband had always been extremely close as the former was the very first brother Maitimo had and now that things were seemingly about to explode, even if Ohtare and Irissë had done their absolute best to keep the peace between their father/father-in-law and his half-brother as we hoped that he wouldn't get a sword pointed at him in this universe. 

Yeah, Ohtare and especially Irissë hadn't been very happy to hear about that bit and I honestly couldn't blame them. If I heard that my uncle Elmo would point a sword at my father, I'd be very pissed too. Thankfully, my only uncle in Valinor was an absolute sweetheart, even if me, Ohtare, Irissë and Runande had a good laugh about his name as we all knew a certain puppet of the very same name. Especially Runande thought it was absolutely hilarious 

Yes, Elmo was really sweet, but I was honestly wondering if I would be as close to Thingol once we arrived in Middle-Earth as I was to him with his freaking ridiculous bride price and the chaos and death it causes. Hell, together with the oath my nephew swears, he's one of the reasons he dies. If he hadn't demanded a silmaril in the book, then Finrod may have survived the first age if he didn't get himself killed during a battle or something like that

However, if the first kinslaying didn't happen in this universe, then perhaps the Ñoldor would be allowed in Doriath and maybe, he would help in the battles. And even if he closes the borders of his kingdom, would he close them for his own niece? 'Maybe he'd order you to make a choice. Either you choose him with your aunt and your cousin Lúthien or you choose Maitimo and his family.' My mind supplied and I had to admit that it did sound like him. If that would be the case, then sorry uncle, but my husband and his as well as my family would always come first 

I'd always chose the people I'd spent centuries with over people I've only heard about until now. Shaking my head to get rid of my thoughts, I looked up at my husband again. "If you  want to tell him, then we can go and tell him. We just make sure that he does promise not to tell anyone else." I stated and he immediately smiled at me as the light of the two trees shone on him. By the Valar, he was handsome. How did I get so incredibly lucky? 

"I love you." I breathed before I could stop myself and he chuckled as he let one hand go to cup my face, looking down at me with a warm smile. "I'm glad the feeling is mutual then." He joked and we both laughed for a few seconds. "We should probably also tell Fearil." I then said a bit more reluctantly and he stiffened up. "I know. I know. We promised to keep her innocence as long as possible, but she's not a tiny elfling anymore, my darling." I quickly told him

"She's already noticing that things are slowly going terribly wrong in both our city and her own family and she's getting scared. She deserves to know the truth. We may tell her the dream version if you really want to, but she needs to know what's going to happen." I insisted and he sighed as he looked down. This time, I was the one reaching out as I gently lifted his head up again to make him look at me, his blue eyes showing that he was clearly torn between knowing I was right and protecting our daughter from the terrible truth that was in front of us

"We must tell her, Maitimo. You want to stop lying to your brother and I really want to stop lying to our daughter" I insisted as i squeezed his hand and he sighed. "Alright, we're telling the truth to both of them." He finally conceded and I immediately smiled as I kissed him, before pulling back and hugging hi. "Even if it's too make sure your people won't suffer." He continued and I smiled. "They're not the only ones here who I want to save." I said

He sighed as he remembered another thing I had told him over the years, mostly the fact that if we didn't do anything, his paternal grandfather would be killed by Melkor when he came to find the silmarils. I tightened my grip on him. "I already told Ohtare and Irissë to start to nag him about the feast if he still refuses to come and if we tell Makalaurë, the four or five of us may need to start asking as well until he hopefully gives in." I reminded him

"I honestly do have my doubts about if we will succeed in this mission if it comes this far as Fëanor clearly inherited his stubbornness from someone, but I absolutely refuse not to try." I continued and he nodded as he tightened his grip as well. "I'm scared, my heart. Scared of what will happen to my brothers and my family." He confessed quietly and I gently rubbed his back. "I know, my beloved Maitimo. I know, but if we tell Makalaurë the truth, then that might save him from his doom." I told him and he nodded as we stood there for a while

We eventually asked Makalaurë and Fearil to join us. They happened to have been spending time together as my brother-in-law had personally assigned himself as my daughter's music teacher when she was born, so we didn't have to look far. I sighed as we sat down together and started to tell them everything. Well, mostly everything as we did give them the dream version of the story, rather than the "I'm from another world where this is fake" version 

Both Makalaurë and Fearil grew more and more horrified with the moment. "Is that what is going to happen with our family?" My poor daughter asked in a very quiet voice as she looked between me and her father for comfort and reassurance like she always did as an elfling. "We will try and stop it as much as possible, my little princess." I tried to promise her, but I could see it didn't help much, not that I could honestly blame her

It really scared me as well and I was the one who had to try and keep people safe together with my sisters and their Ones and perhaps now one or two or my brothers-in-law. "I don't understand. Yes, father has become more possessive over the silmarils as he will now only allow family to see them, but I cannot believe he'd swear an oath that will bring ruin for them." Makalaurë said and I shared a look with my husband. "There was one other thing that I saw. A shadowy figure stealing the silmarils and killing someone who stands in their way." I revealed slowly 

"Who did this figure kill?" Fearil asked as she held onto my hand. "Finwë." I answered in a very quiet voice and both my brother-in-law and daughter stared in utter horror, before the former stood up and walked out. "I'll go after him." Maitimo promised as he ran after his brother. "Nana?" My dearest Fearil asked in a tiny voice and I immediately pulled her into my arms. "We will try and save him, sweetheart. I promise." I whispered, kissing her temple 

Maitimo eventually managed to get his brother back into the room. "Is there anything else you saw in that vision?!" He demanded to know. "Just many terrible battles and the silmarils burning the hands of those who had sworn to get them back." I told him, not telling him that both elves whose hands were burned were sitting in this very room at the moment. I felt Maitimo grab my hand as he read that thought. "I'm here, my darling." He said silently 

"So the ones who swear to get the silmarils back will eventually find themselves having become unworthy of holding the silmarils?" Makalaurë asked slowly to Sr if he had everything correct "It seems that way." Maitimo replied in a rather short tone, very aware that it it hadn't been for me, that would've been his fate, fighting so hard and sacrificing everything from his reputation to his family to get the silmarils back, only to be judged unworthy and finally committing suicide to get rid of the pain, torment and guilt because of everything he had done

"What kind of cruel God would make something like that happen?" My brother-in-law asked. "J.R.R Tolkien." I thought, my husband giving me a confused look. I made a writing motion with my hand and he understood. Letting out a deep breath, Makalaurë made a decision as he could see we meant it. "Okay, if this does come to pass, then I will not swear this Oath and I will help you save our grandfather in anyway I can." He promised and we sagged in relief.

"Me too!" Fearil exclaimed loudly, making us smile again as I gently stroked her hair. "I'm glad." I told her and I really meant it too. As we discussed several things we could do once the time was there, I literally felt my husband's relief coursing through our bond as I squeezed his hand and he smiled at me. I smiled back as I leaned against his side, one arm around our daughter and he kissed my temple as we continued talking for a while

At least, one other brother would be safe from the Oath

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Well, it had to happen eventually

Even though my father-in-law had allowed Melkor to stay with us for a while, he greatly distrusted him yet still continued to spread his lies and tales. Melkor had also showed the rumour that his half-brothers and especially Nolofinwë were planning to usurp his place as Finwë's heir and seize the Silmarils for themselves. Never having liked his half-siblings, Fëanor unfortunately had no trouble believing this

The Ñoldor had truly started to forge weapons and Fëanor had even forced two lighter swords and daggers for me and my daughter. 'Well, call me Mulan.'I thought to myself as we did start to train, but only to be able to protect ourselves against what was to come. Ohtare was a huge help with this as her old army training showed itself in how fast she adjusted her stances to block attacks from her husband

"Have you ever used swords on your world?" Ekthelion asked us quietly as the six of us took a break. Fearil was currently with her grandmother, helping with her sculpting to distract herself from the tension. Unfortunately as time passed, the marriage between my in-laws deteriorated. It was terrible to see, especially since I had grown quite close to Nerdanel and she honestly didn't deserve to go through this. I just hoped that once all this was over, I'd be able to reunite her with at least two alive sons and in the very best situation, with more grandchildren as well

"Humans on our world haven't truly fought with swords in at least a century or so. There's fencing, but that's more competition than anything. We now mostly use other weapons." Ohtare explained. "Like what?" Finno asked. "Trust me, love. You really don't want to know about some things humans have invented in our time. There was a time where two huge countries were threatening each other with giant weapons." She replied

"If they had actually gone to war, then in the worst case scenario, they might have killed millions of people." She continued and both Irissë and I knew she was talking about the Cold War and nuclear bombs. "Would be a giant help with Melkor though. Just drop one of these on Angband and you're done." I muttered as I rested my chin on my hand. "And you'll immediately kill everything on Middle-Earth." Irissë snarked

"Is it that devastating?" My sweet Maitimo asked in horror and I nodded as I grabbed his hand.  "Humans don't have as long as elves so they spend every day for as lying as they can working if they have a gift or a passion. That can lead to both good and bad things. In the century before we lived, the was a huge war that had countries all over the world fighting each other. At the end, one country dropped two of these devastating weapons on an enemy country. It killed hundreds if not thousands of people and the country surrendered." Irissë said

As our Ones tried to take this horrible information in, a servant suddenly came running towards us, telling us that Finwë himself was summoning us right that moment on a matter of great urgency. We immediately went to the palace as fast as we possibly could. There, we heard that my father-in-law had finally threatened Nolofinwë with utter violence and that Finwë was calling a meeting of all lords in his house

Because this was about their own fathers, Finno and Maitimo were allowed to come to the meeting as well, but us women plus Ekthelion as he wasn't officially family yet, weren't. "This is with the sword, isn't it?" Maitimo asked quietly and I nodded. "What do we do?" He asked and I sighed as I tried to figure out the best course of action. If Maitimo let his father do it, then his whole family was banished to Formenos

If he did try to stop it, then they'd probably be banished anyway and he'd be in big trouble with his father because of his attempt to stop him. "I'm not sure. Just keep an eye on them. I really want to keep this Valinor bloodshed free." I muttered and he nodded as he kissed the top of my head, his arms and body practically swallowing me in warmth before he and Finno had to leave with their grandfather. "It's starting, isn't it?" Ohtare muttered as she crossed her arms and I shook my head. "It isn't starting, because it already has." I stated

Sure enough, next thing we knew, Fëanor was being summoned to the ring of Doom to explain why he pointed a sword at his half-brother. While Melkor's lies were uncovered and I could practically hear Runande go "I told you so" Fëanor's actions were still considered his own, so he was banished to Formenos and took his sons with him. I was the only one of the few daughters-in-law he had to go with them as well

Finwë went with us as well, actually renouncing his kingship until his oldest son wasn't banished anymore. I had always liked Finwë ever since I started courting my husband and this action finally made me realise why. He made me think of my father. Not Olwë although he was an amazing father as well, but John, the normal, human father of me and my sisters. He would've done the same thing of all five of us

I had always been close to Finwë, because he reminded me of someone I had lost a long time ago. Well, that made me even more determined to save him. Melkor was not going to lay a hand on him if I had anything to say about it and I do believe that I had a lot of things to say about it. Besides, like us, Finwë had tried to lead his people back to the Valar and not to listen to the lies and rumours going around they Melkor had caused. He couldn't help it that many of his people were stubborn mules away the worst of times, his oldest most of all. 

To be completely honest, I immediately disliked Formenos. The palace of the Ñoldor was always light and airy with lots of open windows that looked out over magnificent gardens. On the other hand, this was...a fortress. There was no other word for it with thick stone, small windows and rocky cliffs all around. It was that Maitimo, Fearil, Makalaurë and surprisingly Tyelkormo were there, otherwise, I'd have gone insane

To my own surprise, I had grown quite a bit closer to the third son of Fëanor during the banishment, despite me knowing what he tries to do with Lúthien in the book. However, a small part reminded me that if we managed to stop him from swearing the oath, then he may not do it. And it actually seemed to be going that easy as ever since his father was banished, Tyelkormo's faith in him seemed to have taken a big hit

I knew how much he liked to go out hunting and there was nothing to hunt here. Poor Huan was absolutely miserable being stuck in the stables and if he was miserable, then so was Tyelkormo. Never thought I'd feel the same way about a situation as him. Poor Fearil hated Formenos to the point that when I told her sure could return to Tírion if she wanted to, she actually seemed tempted, before resolutely deciding to stay with us and we smiled at her as we hugged her. We're knew that once the banishment was over, things would only get worse

Melkor came for another visit and tried to tempt my father-in-law again and almost succeeded until he mentioned the Silmarils and Fëanor finally realised that what he was after. I was standing right around the corner as he called Melkor a jail-crow of Mandos and slammed the door in his face. I may not have always liked him, but slamming the door shut in the face of literal Satan? That was worthy of respect

In the twelve Valian years that we were there, we tried our best to convince Finwë to come back with us once the Valar summoned us again as he still felt angry about his son's banishment and honestly didn't really feel like their king anymore. While I could understand his feelings, I knew things would be much worse for him if he stayed. I mostly talked about the other family members who also needed him. 

'Finwë, I love and respect you, but Fëanor isn't your only child, you know?" I thought to myself as I talked about how much Irissë wanted to show her grandfather her new dancing skills. Maitimo, Makalaurë and Fearil joined my efforts at seeing my increasing visits and walks with their grandfather/great-grandfather. Ohtare, Finno and Irissë all sent letters talking about how much they couldn't wait to see him again and apparently, one of them either got Indis slightly in it or she just really missed her husband as she sent a letter as well

When the Valar finally summoned Fëanor to a huge festival to make up with his half-brother during a festival, I, Maitimo, Fearil and Makalaurë were all overjoyed and relieved when Finwë said that he'd actually join us, even if it was just to see the rest of his children and grandchildren again. 'Oh, thank Eru.' I thought as I hugged my husband tightly, hoping that if everything went well, there would be no murder in Valinor

I'll freely admit that when the day of the festival arrived, I practically escorted Finwë to his horse to make sure that he was actually going. He did give me a weird look at my eagerness to leave, but I quickly explained that I just really wanted to see Ohtare and everyone else again, which was honestly true. He thankfully didn't ask any questions after that and we finally left Formenos behind. I really hoped it was forever

We arrived and Fëanor and Nolofinwë made up, albeit very reluctantly on my father-in-law's part and I looked at the Two Trees, knowing that this would probably the last time I'd see them. I couldn't see them, but I felt that Ungoliant and Melkor were coming closer. During the festival, I heard someone clearing their throat and looked up to see Runande standing there, a tiny smile on her face and what looked like an container in her arms, a pretty big egg inside of it. "A gift from lord Manwë who got it from Mr. Ru." She stated as she gave it to me and I quickly took it over 

"It will live just as long as you do. It will only listen to you and those you trust and be the most reliable messenger you can think off." She told me as Ohtare and Irissë came to see what I had. "Thank you." I breathed and she gave the three of us a tight smile as she knew we'd soon leave her behind in a much more empty valinor, but knowing she wouldn't change her mind as she had to protect Mairon 

Speaking of which, he approached us as well, a wolf cub in one arm and a panther cub in the other. He gave the wolf cub to Ohtare and the panther cub to Irissë. "The wolf will become just as big as Huan and the panther will always be near you." He told them both. I felt like there was something else, but I didn't know what. I was then distracted anyway as Runande started to ramble a bit in her nerves

"Just... be careful, okay? I know you guys trained but that was just training which is very different than real life and I don't want to see you coming out of the halls of Mandos. A-and look after Milana when you find her alright? She was always the softest of us all and I don't want her to get hurt and..." She went on until I gave the container to my husband and simply gave my sister a very tight hug. Apparently, this urged Ohtare and Irissë to do the same as they quickly joined us and squished Runande in a tight family hug for several minutes

"We'll do our best. I promise and we'll look after Milana once we find her." I said as she sighed and tried to hug us back as much as possible. "I'll miss you." She confessed. "We'll miss you too, just look after yourself and Mairon, okay?" Irissë asked and she nodded. "The same goes for you too, Mairon." Ohtare then stated and he smiled. "I promise I'll look after her to the best of my abilities." He said and we believed him

We then tried to enjoy the feast saying that the new animals were meant as a gift of good will between the houses of Fëanor and Nolofinwë when people asked and many believed that. I'm not sure how long it took before things went wrong. All I know is that we all tried our best to keep finwë at the festival. Eventually though, I noticed the light was flickering and looked at the Two Trees, holding onto my husband and daughter. 

'Here we go.' I thought as the trees went out and Valinor was covered in darkness

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Everyone immediately panicked 

Not very surprising as everything was suddenly pitch black. I couldn't even see my own family and they were literally right next to me, Maitimo holding both me and Fearil against him with an almost iron grip. I couldn't see it, but I had the feeling he was trying to look around for any threat that could harm us. "Nana? Atto?" Our sweet daughter whispered in fear and we both immediately hushed her. "It's going to be okay, sweetheart." I promised 

"Maitimo?! Nemireth?!" We heard Finno call. "Over here!" Maitimo called back as the loud voice of Finwë was heard, telling his people to calm down just as a big flame was shot into the sky and exploded to light up the place, Finno and Ohtare quickly finding us thanks to that. My sister was holding onto her husband with one arm and holding the wolf cub with the other. "Magical flare." I joked weakly and only Ohtare let out a very small snort

Turned out it was actually Mairon who had been responsible for the light as torches were soon lit and people calmed down again now that they could actually see things. The Valar had gone to the Two Trees, but couldn't save them anymore. Yavanna could only save one single fruit from each tree. They summoned my father-in-law till the Ring of Doom and asked if they could use the silmarils to restore them as they were the only things still holding the light of the amazing trees, but he immediately refused, saying that he'd die if the silmarils were destroyed.

'Dramatic much?' I thought at hearing about this later. Not that it mattered as a servant who had stayed behind in formenos arrived and told Fëanor Melkor had stolen the silmarils. At this point, Irissë, Ekthelion, Makalaurë and Tyelkormo had joined us and they all could sense the tension. I had tried my best to make sure the twins wouldn't swear the Oath without telling them of the dream as they'd almost definitely tell Fëanor, but this would prove if they listened 

"Even if the rest swears it, you still saved three brothers from it. Your efforts were definitely not in vain." Ohtare whispered as we had quietly explained that Tyelkormo had already told us that if it came this far, he wouldn't swear the oath either. "You have saved me and two of my brothers. You have tried your hardest." Maitimo agreed as he held onto me and Fearil. "And we'll support you no matter what." Our daughter stated, making us smile at her

Despite his father now actually being right there, alive and well and with him trying hard to stop his eldest son from making the biggest mistake of his life, Fëanor broke his banishment and still made a huge speech about how we should go to the east and how the Valar had always held us back for so long. I looked at my husband and two of my brothers-in-law and my heart broke as they were looking at their father like he was a total stranger holding a hate-filled preach. His followers, not counting three of his sons wanted to go, but so did my niece Artanis

She had always talked about wanting to have a realm of her own and I knew she'd eventually have it, but not as Queen. Although, if she didn't leave, she also wouldn't meet Celeborn and Elrond's wife Celebrían wouldn't be born, which means that Arwen would never exist. Funny how one person leaving made a huge difference Most of the followers of Nolofinwë disagreed with leaving and tried to convince those wanting to leave that it would be best to stay

However, not many people listened to them. We and the others huddled close to each other as the tension rose  more and Fëanor walked towards us with the rest of his sons.Despite the ellon being his own father, Maitimo immediately put himself between me and Fearil and the elf he barely recognised anymore "Nelyafinwë, Canafinwë, Turcafinwë. You shall help me get revenge on this.. this.. this Morgoth and get the silmarils back." Fëanor ordered

"It's of the utmost importance that we get them back." He insisted, but his oldest three were not convinced. "And how will we do that?" Maitimo asked slowly, me peeking out from behind him to see my father-in-law growing angrier. "We will swear an oath that no matter who holds the silmarils and no matter who stands in or way, we will not rest until we have all the silmarils in our hands again." He stated. "And if an ally gets one silmaril and can't give it to us because of circumstances?" Makalaurë asked. I knew there was a reason he was my favourite brother-in-law 

"It doesn't matter. Either, they give us the silmarils or we'll force them to." Fëanor dismissed like it was no big deal. "Doesn't matter?! These are the lives of our own kin that we are talking about here! Are we supposed to kill them if they fail to give them up?" Maitimo asked in a hiss. "If we have to, then yes!" His father snapped and even in the light of the torches, I could see my husband stiffening in shock as Makalaurë and Tyelkormo stared as well

Maitimo then shook his head as he took several steps back, gently pushing us back as well. "No. I'm sorry, Atar, but I'm not swearing an Oath if it means having to kill innocent people. They could be my wife's kin for all we know." He said, me having already told him that the first and even the second kinslayings were exactly that. This really pissed my father-in-law off. "You will swear the Oath with your brothers." He growled and Maitimo glared at him

"I. Won't." He stated, pulling me more behind him and his father noticed this. "It's because of her, isn't it? Since you married her, you have changed. You're not the loyal son you once were." He sneered and I could sense this hurt Maitimo, so I shot Makalaurë a look. I was terrified that if Fëanor continued in this line of thought, he'd instigate the First Kinslaying anyway to get revenge in this state of mind "That's what happens when you love someone and I don't think that Nemireth has anything to do with him realising this oath will do more harm than good." Makalaurë stated.

"And what makes you say that?" Fëanor sneered at him. "Because I'm not swearing it either and she's definitely not married to me." My brother-in-law quickly snarked and both me and my former sisters, who had stepped back at Fëanor's approach, but had stayed nearby, suppressed our laughter. "She's not married to me either and I refuse to swear it too." Tyelkormo said. Again, never thought I'd be so incredibly thankful to have Celegorm on my team

Fëanor was harshly glaring at his three oldest sons, trying to intimidate them, but especially Maitimo refused to back down as he knew he had to protect me and Fearil and seeing how he wasn't giving in, his two brothers weren't either. In the background, I saw Finwë trying to calm his people down with Arafinwë, so that's why he hadn't realised something was going on. He soon would as Fëanor started to swear the oath, only some of his sons now joining in

“Be he foe or friend, be he foul or clean. Brood of Morgoth or bright Vala, Elda or Maia or Aftercomer, man yet unborn upon Middle-earth, neither law, nor love, nor league of swords, dread nor danger, not Doom itself hall defend him from Fëanáro, and Fëanáro’s kin, whoso hideth or hoardeth, or in hand taketh, inding keepeth or afar casteth Silmaril. This swear we all… Death we will deal him ere Day’s ending, Woe unto world’s end! Our word hear thou, Eru Allfather! To the everlasting darkness doom us if our deed faileth… On the holy mountain hear in witness and our vow remember Manwë and Varda!" They swore

Maitimo pushed us back even further as Huan went to stand in front of Tyelkormo and Makalaurë as we felt the magic of the oath. 'So, it's definitely magical. Got it.' A irrelevant thought flitted through my head. To my surprise, I suddenly noticed how there was one other brother who wasn't swearing it, but also seemed uncertain about joining us. It was one of the twins, although I still didn't know who was going to be Amrod and who was going to be Amras.

However, my relief that one of the other sons also didn't swear it was huge and I immediately reached out to him. He quickly grabbed my hand and joined us. "I don't want to kill innocent people." He said and Maitimo immediately wrapped one arm around him. "You won't have to. You did good." He promised as he nudged him over to Tyelkormo so he could be defended once Fëanor realised one other of his son hadn't sworn his oath

I honestly had to say, this version of the infamous oath being sworn actually looked rather pathetic with only one of the twins, and the two ellyn who would later be known as Curufin and Caranthir swearing it together with their father instead of all seven sons swearing it together like in the book, although I could see it was hurting Tyelkormo to see his brother swear something he knew was incredibly bad. I hadn't dared to tell him that the oath eventually resulted in the death of all but one of them in my "dream," so I knew that it would eventually hurt even more. 

"Fëanáro, what have you done?" Finwë breathed in horror as he came running towards us at realising what was going on. "I need to have the silmarils back, Atar. They're the pride of the Ñoldor and I need to have them back." My father-in-law stated like it was obvious, before telling those who wanted to come to go with him. "Come with us, Atar. We can build a new kingdom there. Free from the restrictions the Valar put on us." He stated, but Finwë shook his head

"Our place has always been here, with our people where we are safe. The son that I raised understood that. I wonder where he has gone." He stated as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing and I winced at the fact that even Finwë couldn't recognise his son anymore as well as the irony of him saying we were safe, considering he was killed here in the book. Fëanor stared at him, before his face hardened and he started to lead the people away.

Even Finwë ordering them to stop only made the followers of Arafinwë, apart from his children and some others stop as Fëanor's words had changed them. I really felt bad for him as I saw his grief-stricken face as he saw his oldest son lead his people to ruin. Because of that, I stayed behind for just a minute as I turned to him. "Your Majesty. I promise you that no matter what happens in the east, I will try my hardest to protect our family." I stated with a small bow. He looked at me and saw the determination in my eyes tiredly make my promise come true

His eyes then suddenly and briefly lit up like he was being possessed or something, before going back to normal before I could ask if he was alright and he then looked at me like he was seeing me in a completely new light. "Look after them, Sylvaine." He ordered and I widened my eyes at hearing him use my old name, before quickly bowing and running towards my husband. My mission was truly about to begin and I was not failing it

On the other side of the ocean, a silver-haired elleth was riding through a forest, a dark-haired woman behind her. They rode up the hill where they both stopped, out of breath and laughing. The silver-haired elleth then suddenly frowned and looked out over the ocean. "What is it?" Her companion asked. "I'm not sure. Something is coming." She muttered as the other concentrated. "I sense it too." She said as they shared a look and gave determined nods

Whatever it was, they'd face it together

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise

The closer we got to Aqualondë, the more tense I became

Maitimo soon noticed it and immediately grabbed my hand to try and comfort me. "Maitimo? Nemireth? What is it?" Tyelkormo asked at noticing this. "Father is not thinking clearly anymore. We're worried that innocent casualties will fall with his rashness and desperation to have the Silmarils back in his hands, especially with Nemireth's city being between us and the east." My husband stated and it wasn't even a lie

"If he does, then we'll stop him." The only twin I managed to save stated with a determined tone in his voice. "We're only with a very tiny group and he has most of our people. We can't exactly do much." Makalaurë said and I sighed, looking down. I had asked my father to start making weapons other than bows just in case and to keep everyone inside. I just hoped that he had listened to me, even if it was for self-defence 

My old city eventually came into view after what had to be several days after we had gone to prepare ourselves for the journey, many torches shining in the darkness to show where it was. I took a very deep and shaky breath as I knew our group would be visible as well and I hoped my father really had ordered our people to stay in their homes, just to make sure they wouldn't get hurt. It was my duty to protect or people and if even one of them died, then it meant to me that I had failed miserably. I saw Maitimo give me a look at hearing this thought and he squeezed my hand.

My parents and their bodyguards soon greeted us at the city gates and Ada immediately looked at me. "Please." I mouthed, desperately hoping that he would allow Fëanor to have the ships. He and my father-in-law then pulled themselves back and I turned away, walking right into my husband's arms. "I've got you. I've got you." He whispered as my mother and Fearil put a hand on my back, trying to comfort me as well

As he tightly hugged me and stroked my hair, I simply knew that he was watching the proceedings between my father and his father. They talked for an hour at least, every minute making me feel even more nervous and scared. Eventually, I felt my husband release a bit of tension, just as we heard the followers of Nolofinwë arrive. "They shook hands. They have agreed." He whispered and I tried not to cry in relief

As we started to follow my father-in-law through the city towards the harbour, Ada and Nana pulled me into a tight hug before I could leave them for what was definitely going to be a very long time. "Be very careful, my little princess and never forget how much we love you." My father whispered and I clung onto him and my mother. "I love you too, Ada. I love you, Nana." I whispered. "I love you, my little one. Be strong." Nana whispered, probably not having wanted to miss saying goodbye to me. I eventually had to let them go and follow the others

Believe me when I say that it was one of the hardest things I've ever done in my life. "Look after Ëarwen. She will need at the support she can get now with her children away." I requested and they nodded, before I slowly let them go and walked to where Maitimo, Fearil, Makalaurë, Tyelkormo, Finno, Ohtare, Irissë and Ekthelion were waiting for me. I took a deep breath. I may leave some family behind, but I wasn't alone

Getting on the ships after walking through a very quiet city, Ada thankfully having listened to me and having ordered everyone to go home. Many elves watched us through the windows arms I even recognised a few of them. It then really hit me that once the boats sailed away, I wouldn't return home willingly for at least five thousand years as I wasn't planning to leave everyone in Middle-Earth as long as evil was out there

The only way I'd return home sooner was if I got killed and I had no plans on dying anytime soon. We got on the ships and I stayed tense until we sailed away and the light of Aqualondë started to fade in the distance. Just as we were starting to get out of sight, I saw my parents standing on the dock, watching as their youngest daughter and most of their grandchildren sailed away from them. I had managed to keep the followers from Arafinwë who wanted to come with us in case we didn't have to cross the Helcaraxë and they'd be there all alone 

I waved at them with Fearil and they waved back until they were out of sight. It wasn't until they and the city were all but dots in the distance that I slowly started to relax, tears of relief rolling down. No Kinslaying. My people weren't needlessly killed. I had saved them. "You did it, my darling." Maitimo breathed and I smiled at him as he kissed my forehead. "Now, we need to make sure no one gets left behind." I whispered 

He nodded as we sailed on. I nervously tapped my finger against my leg as I waited. In the book, this was when the Doom of Mandos was made, but with no kinslaying having happened now, would he still cast it? As we went on, things got colder as we came closer to that damned place. I had told Maitimo, Ohtare and Irissë about the Helcaraxë and they heard made sure to pack a lot of warm cloaks and clothing

We didn't see any mysterious figure telling us that Doom was upon us, but knowing what was ahead of us, that was a big relief and maybe the Valar wanted to see what would happen. Not to speak ill, but they seemed to almost always acted when it was too late like with Morgoth or nearly too late like the War of Wrath. We finally docked at the edge of the Helcaraxë and especially Irissë, Ekthelion, Ohtare and Finno looked at it dubiously, knowing that if we didn't do anything, they'd have to cross it and would lose many good people in the process. 

I didn't know this until quite a bit later, but since Irissë naturally had absolutely no intention to cross the Helcaraxë, she came up with something that was rather brilliant. Because she, Tyelkormo and Curufinwë had hunted as often as they had and was therefore very light on her feet and because things were still pitch black except for the fires made, she managed to sneak around the camp and spy on Fëanor

She later told me that Huan had apparently sensed what she was doing as he had either distracted people or even hid her behind him when she was about to be spotted. She heard Fëanor whisper to Curufinwë that he was planning to leave her father and his followers behind and immediately went to inform said father of this. Because of this, when we went to leave after a few hours of rest, Nolofinwë was ready to go too

The look on my father-in-law's face made me think of a child who realised he wasn't getting his way and tried to find ways to keep his brother behind, but Nolofinwë wasn't having it, so we all trooped onto the ships again and no one was left behind. During the rest of the trip to Middle-Earth, she quietly told me what she had done. 'Note to self: by my sister something amazing once it's possible.' I thought to myself. Sailing towards Middle-Earth after making absolutely sure that everyone was on the ships, I knew that the days of peace truly were over

We would have to fight for our place in Beleriand in the next five hundred years, both literally with the orcs, trolls, balrogs and whatever else Morgoth would throw at us and figuratively as even without the Kinslaying, things would probably still be awkward between the Ñoldor and Sindar. I looked down at the container containing the egg that my youngest sister had given me before everything literally went dark

I already wondered what would be in it and what Runande had kept a secret from me as it had been clear that there was something about this. Needless to say considering what was ahead of us, I really hoped that it could help me keep my family and friends safe as I'd fight to that end as well. I also hoped that my parents and siblings, Runande, Mairon as well as everyone else back in Valinor would be okay with us gone

"Nemireth, look." I suddenly heard Ohtare say, snapping me out of my melancholy thoughts as it was too late to turn back even if I wanted to go home and leave my most of my family to die in horrible ways, which I definitely didn't want to do. My oldest sister quickly came to stand next to me with her wolf cub and pointed forwards to what she had seen, Irissë with her cub, Ekthelion and who would later be known as the four Unbound sons of Fëanor came to stand with us, a united group literally facing the unknown future ahead of us.

Despite things being incredibly dark and staying that way until the sun and moon, we could still see the stars above us and a bit further, it seemed that they were suddenly blocked at irregular intervals, more and more getting blocked as we sailed onwards. It honestly took me a minute to realise those intervals as I called them were actually mountains blocking the sky and coming closer with every minute. We were almost there

Docking again, I made sure everyone got off in case Fëanor became a pyromaniac. I knew what happened to Amrod in Tolkien's plans and I was not going to let that happen here. Doing a quick headcount and walking past all the ships, I sighed in relief at seeing everyone was on land and about 90% of the stuff had been gotten off the ships. Hurrying back to Maitimo, we then all turned to look at the huge lands in front of us

We had arrived. 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

And wouldn't you know it. We arrived and almost immediately had to fight

We encamped at the shores of lake Mithrim after my husband and his two oldest brothers forcefully stopped Fëanor from burning the ships by reminding him that it really wasn't necessary and when his other sons agreed, he thankfully left them alone and continued on. That's when a huge horde of orcs came to attack us to try and destabilise us before we had settled down.

Thankfully, we were still powered by the light of the two trees and quickly killed them all with relative ease, pursuing those fleeing further into the lands. This actually turned out to be a very good thing as several of the Sindar had been cornered by the forces of Morgoth whose were were still arguing and preparing things in Valinor. They were ultimately split in the east and west and we immediately went to help.

I had to admit that even though this was my very first real battle that wasn't simply sparring, it felt almost exciting as adrenaline took over and I killed many orcsI later winced as I realised that these were likely first generation orcs AKA those who had been elves once and had been tortured and corrupted into what they were. After that, I whispered a small apology for every orc I killed. Would they go to the halls or were they too corrupt? I honestly wasn't sure I wanted to know. Maitimo didn't leave me or Fearil out of his sight and we both protected our daughter.

I knew that my sisters and their Ones were very nearby as well as I could hear their voices shouting things over the chaos and the growls of Huan almost sounded like an low earthquake as he viciously ripped the orcs apart as we tried to free the Havens of the Falas from their besiegement. Honestly, the battle was almost like "the long night" from Game of Thrones, meaning that we barely saw a damn thing.

The sun and moon still weren't there yet and we had to rely on the stars and the torches to light our way, so we had to be very careful not to harm allies in the darkness and chaos. I grunted as my sword cut through another orc neck, wincing when it's blood hit me in the face. "Please be black blood." I whispered. I honestly didn't know what I'd do if the blood was still red like mine was when I accidentally cut myself

Most of my family and I quickly followed Tyelkormo and his host when he went to ambush the orcs who tried to attack the rear of the Ñoldor from the north to protect those who were fighting there. Unfortunately for us, these orcs were very flexible to change as they immediately attacked us back and I slowly had to push my sweet Fearil behind me for protection as the orcs started to close in on us. Still, we fought on, never giving up and killing as many as we could. Maitimo just blocked an attack aimed at me when it happened

There was a bright light slowly coming closer to us and the orcs panicked not unlike the goblins did when the Balrog roars in Moria and for a second, I feared that that was exactly what was coming towards us, before remembering the light of a Balrog was the same colour as fire. This light was pure white as it came even closer and scared the orcs away. Arrows came from the light and killed many of them, us taking care of the rest

Remember that one scene in the first LOTR movie, where a fatally injured Frodo sees Arwen for the first time and she's all glowing brilliantly like an angel? That was pretty much what this looked like as the light died down a bit to reveal a silver-haired elleth on a beautiful white horse, a bow in her hands and the light coming from the horse. 'Shadowfax?' I thought before wondering if Shadowfax was that old.

The elleth had reached us in the meantime. "Is everyone alright?" The elleth asked in what had to be Sindarin. Thankfully, many of us had been raised with that language taught. "We're fine. Thank you." I replied and she smiled. "No, thank you. We had been besieged for weeks and my family is on the other side of the lands. All communication by ravens is shot down by orc's, so they probably fear the worst. Because of you, I can go see them again and reassure that I'm alright. Now, let us destroy these monsters."  She stayed, before leading the way on the horse

I heard Maitimo quietly snorting behind me and immediately looked up to see Tyelkormo actually staring at the retreating back of the elleth with wide eyes and a slightly hanging jaw as Huan let out a huff at seeing it too, looking at her like he had seen an angel and considering he had often hunted with Oromë, that was honestly saying something. "Eyes on the fight, brother and not the elleth." My husband said and even I grinned.

All these centuries in Valinor, Tyelkormo had never shown the slightest bit of interest in any elleth, despite there being many that would have loved to become his princessTo see him staring after one who hadn't even looked at him like a teenage boy staring at his crush was honestly rather hilarious and even Fearil giggled as we returned to the main battlefield as we knew they needed all the help they could get.

"You do realize that if this goes according to the book, your father will not make it through this battle?" I whispered to Maitimo as we ran back and he took a deep breath, showing that he had realised that and as much as it hurt, had accepted it, even if for a part. "I know, but I do have one question. In this book, I give the crown and kingship to our uncle to make up for leaving them on the ice, correct? We never left them there now, so what am I supposed to do now?" He asked and I opened my mouth to answer, before realising he had a point

"Um, I'm not quite sure to be honest." I muttered as I frowned, looking to where Fearil was walking with her three unbound uncles. While the Maitimo in the book was a brilliant warrior and politician despite the Oath and my version would still be a very good High King as well, there was also the risk that if anything happened to him, Makalaurë or Tyelkormo, the kingship would fall into the hands of the Oathbound brothers

Boy, not leaving the others to face the dreadful ice made things both easier and more difficult at the same time. Maitimo sensed that I was troubled and immediately grabbed my free gloved hand and squeezed it, making me smile at him before we arrived where the main battle was brewing and immediately went to fight again. Eventually, we started to win and this orcs began to flee back to Angband 

Feeling overconfident and high on his victory over those following Morgoth, Fëanor queally followed them with only a small group of elves going with him instead of waiting for the rest of us to make sure he had enough backup. I grabbed and briefly squeezed my husband's free hand as he noticed it and he immediately understood what I was trying to say as he took another deep breath and we went to follow him with his brothers and their followers, but he was already far ahead of us, which I knew would very likely lead to his death

I was right as when we finally caught up to him, he was surrounded by Balrogs and already heavily injured. Okay, together with slamming the door in the face of literal Satan, I always felt that this was one of Fëanor's most badass moments as we drove them away. My eye briefly fell on the biggest one of all and somehow, I simply knew that that was Gothmog, king of the balrogs and the killer of two of my brothers-in-law 

I already felt enormous hatred course through my body as my husband and his brothers tried to carry their father to safety as fast as possible. 'I wish you good luck getting to Finno and Ecthelion, you asshole. You got lucky this time, but my sisters will die before they let you get close to their Ones.' I thought viciously as we hurried to safety, but Fëanor eventually told us to stop as he knew it was too late to save him from death

He then made one last grand speech which was basically "screw you, Morgoth" three times in a lot more words than honestly necessary, before telling his "loyal sons" to keep to the Oath. Wow, even when he's about to die, he has to be a giant prick to four of his sons who had been mostly loyal to him for almost their entire lives simply because they refused to listen to him once and for the better as well. Way to kick the dog, Fëanor. As he died, his fiery spirit literally burned his body to ashes left us to go to the halls of Mandos

Even though his Oathbound brothers didn't agree, Fëanor had forgotten to name anyone else High King in his hate-filled rant, so the title still fell to Maitimo as he was the oldest, which made me High Queen but to my surprise, my husband didn't immediately relinquish the title to his uncle. I didn't fully understand, thinking it was because it wasn't necessary now that they hadn't been left behind, but I was very wrong

Not too long after the "Battle of under the stars" as it would be known later in the common tongue and as we were carefully preparing an official visit to my other uncle Thingol to try and make the bonds between the Sindar and the Ñoldor stronger more that there hadn't been a Kinslaying in my city back in Valinor, a servant ran in with a pale face and looking like he was about to faint on the very spot.

"Your majesty, there is an embassy from Morgoth himself with a message. He says he's surrendering and is willing to give back one of the Silmarils if you agree to meet." He told us all and my blood froze in my veins I immediately looked at my husband in utter fear and panic at hearing this news as it had been the one message I had feared getting most of all, eyes wide and my breathing already starting to get rather heavy as I dreaded to think what was going to happen to my husband now. He took one look at me at feeling my fear

He immediately understood what it meant and took a deep breath. "Tell him "no."" He stated as he grabbed my hand and I slowly relaxed again as I squeezed his hand ball. "What?!" Curufinwë loudly demanded as he couldn't apparently believe what he was hearing and my husband looked at him coolly "I am not believing a word he says. Thanks to him, we are sitting here in darkness, far from home." He stated

"If it wasn't for us eventually managing to convince grandfather to really come with us to the festival instead of staying like he had been planning to do with his reluctance to come because of father's banishment, Morgoth may have killed him without any mercy when he came to steal the Silmarils from Formenos and grandfather would be in his way." He reminded them and especially Makalaurë and Fearil looked down at this

Maitimo then looked at me and our precious daughter, knowing what would happen if he agreed to meet with Morgoth and that he wouldn't see us for a while, even if Finno was with us now and would immediately try to save him with me at his side. I could see his determination to stay with us grow in his eyes. "I am not leaving my family in these uncertain lands just because Morgoth says he apparently wants to surrender, which can just as well be a huge lie and I forbid everyone to meet with him in my place." He ordered

His Oathbound brothers immediately growled at hearing this as in their eyes, he was giving up the possibility of getting a Silmaril, but my husband didn't back down in the least as he looked at them. "I want double the guards at the edge of our property. I do not trust Morgoth not to try and attack us." He continued, holding onto my hand. They eventually slinked off with the others and once everyone was gone, he turned to me.

"I think we need to meet with Nolofinwë to talk about the kingship." He then whispered to me. I immediately gave him a surprised look at hearing this. He smiled at me before leaning closer to me. "I didn't want to relinquish my kingship in case my uncle did fall for it and got himself captured." He explained quietly and a huge grin started to grow on my face as I immediately kissed him deeply at his utter brilliance 

Eru, I loved this elf

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"Here we go." I muttered as we approached 

I honestly had never been sure how to picture Doriath in the past before our arrival in Middle-Earth, but seeing the massive forest slowly looming up in the distance, I realised I'd be way off in any imaginings regardless. We carefully came closer as I was very aware of the protective girdle around the forest that was set by my aunt by marriage Melian. If she didn't want us in her and her husband's kingdom, then we simply wouldn't get in, no matter what. 

Although, if I was able to see the forest, then that was a good sign, right? 'Hang on a minute, if Melian is a Maia and has been here since the beginning, then that means she probably knows Mairon and Runande as well.' I thought to myself. I had sent word ahead to my uncle, telling him I was in Middle-Earth and that I wanted to meet him. Saying it like that honestly made it sound like I had moved to another city instead of being born on the other side of the world

He was very enthusiastic to hear that I was there now, although he did ask a few questions about our family to be sure that it was me, which I could honestly understand with the returned darkness in the world. Once I had proven over a few letters that I really was his niece, he immediately invited me over, allowing me to take a part of my family with me. I had decided to obviously take my husband, daughter, my four Unbound brothers-in-law, my sisters and their Ones as well as all my nephews and niece with me as they were family as well

Despite us having already talked with Nolofinwë about the Kingship, he had stated that Maitimo should do this as High King as well as it might help the bonds between Sindar and Ñoldor if the High Queen of the latter race was related to the King of the former. I honestly couldn't help but look at my oldest nephew, knowing that it was because of my uncle's ridiculous order to Beren that he eventually lost his life and I really didn't want that to happen

We rode over a hill, banners waving in the wind and were soon met with a waiting group of elves, most of them being guards except for one. It was an elleth I immediately recognised from the battle and with the way I saw her eyes widening, I could see she recognised us as well. We got off our horses and immediately bowed to the group as we knew we had to be respectful and the elleth nodded back, before she dismounted and inspected me

I gave her my father's seal, something he had given me years ago for when we left and she took it, looking it over with one guard as they quietly murmured to each other. The guard, seemingly a captain or commander nodded and she nodded back. We were then allowed to enter the kingdom and the elleth joined us, riding her horse next to mine and smiling at us all in gratitude. "I really want to thank you once again for breaking through the siege and freeing us. I dread to think what could've happened if you hadn't come." She said and I smiled at her.

"You're very welcome. It was a true pleasure to free their wretched heads from their miserable shoulders." I replied, secretly quoting another elf from the movies. Wait, could I meet him here? He should be here around this time right? I mean, I'm not sure when he was born, but imagine that. Meeting baby Thranduil. As I was thinking about this, I missed the elleth frowning at me as she opened her mouth to say something, before deciding against it.

We were allowed through the magical barrier and into Doriath itself. We rode through the thick forest for a while, not seeing much because the sun and moon hadn't come up yet before arriving at a gate hewn in rock and had to dismount. I tried not to look at Tyelkormo as i knew he lost his life here during the second Kinslaying in the book. Servants took our horses from us, Huan going with them willingly at his master's orders and we walked inside.

Maybe, it was because it was actually inside somewhere now and therefore an more enclosed space, but it was much better lit here as we went to the throne room where my uncle and aunt were waiting. The elleth leading us made a curtsey before them both. "Our esteemed guests, your Majesties." She stated, before looking at Melian especially and they seemed to share a silent conversation, before the elleth went to stand next to the throne of the Queen. As we all bowed in respect to the couple, I noticed another elleth standing next to the King's throne

Okay, I could see why Beren was willing to go on a entire suicide mission for her. Lúthien was absolutely stunning! I could see why she was called "the most beautiful of all the elves" and not just because she was based on Tolkien's wife Edith. My uncle then stood up from his throne and came to inspect me as well. I gave him my father's seal as well and he looked it over. Approving of it, he then looked me up-and-down, before giving a tiny smile

"I can see my brother in you. Be most welcome." He greeted and we bowed/curtsied again, knowing that we were in his kingdom now and this was not the time to show disrespect. "Indeed. I hear that it is because of you that we can hold our beloved daughter Celairel in our arms again." Melian stated as she gestured to the elleth next to her and I tried not to raise an eyebrow. 'Since when did they have two children?' I thought as I looked her over

My eyes suddenly zeroed in on a ring on her finger. Even though it had been literal ages since I had been given the rings, I could remember what all of them looked like, although I suspected that Mr. Ru had something to do with that. We were then introduced to both princesses and escorted to guest rooms to relax from the journey. I tried not to skip my way through the halls, but I was smiling. "What are you grinning about?" Ohtare asked with a knowing look. "The silver-haired elleth. I think she's a certain old friend of ours." I replied quietly, wiggling my eyebrows

She stared at me as she took this in for a minute before a grin grew on her face and she immediately went to tell Irissë. Maitimo and I were given a room right next to our daughter's and since she had already said she was going to take some rest, I knew she wouldn't disturb us. I barely waited until the door was closed before I tightly hugged my husband. "Woah! What's this about?" He asked in surprise, even as he instinctively hugged me back.

"The silver-haired princess Celairel. I think that she's my final sister." I whispered as I held him even tighter, tears of happiness in my eyes.He gasped at hearing this news, knowing how much the four of us had wanted to see our sister again and how long we all had waited for this. "Oh, Nemireth." He breathed as he hugged me back. My other sisters soon arrived as well. "You really think it's her?" Irissë asked with a beaming smile and I nodded.

"I saw the ring on her finger when Queen Melian introduced her. Exactly the same as Milana choose the evening we were sent here. Not to mention that in the book, Thingol and Melian only had one daughter Lúthien, just like Eärwen was the only girl in the book." I replied with a grin and she immediately squealed as she hugged Ekthelion like I had done with Maitimo not too long before. Even Ohtare was covering her mouth in happiness at the thought of finally having found our final sister. "I can't believe it. Our search is finally over if you're right" She whispered

As she talked, she grabbed Finno's hand with her free one for support as she took this in and he immediately walked closer, pulling his hand free to wrap an arm around her instead and kissing her temple. Maitimo had a hand on my shoulder and Ekthelion was still hugging Irissë and I relaxed as our Ones supported us through this moment. The only thing that could have made this better was if Lillith had been here with us if it really was Milana

However, I'd rather have her reunite with her later than having to fight Sauron. "So, if it really is her, then how are we going to approach this?" Ohtare asked after a few minutes had passed, ever the logical one. Just as she finished talking, there was a knock on the door. "Who is it?" I asked, remembering that these were my rooms. "It's me, cousin. Celairel." Came from the other side of the door and we shared anxious looks as I went to open the door

The moment of truth had come

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I quickly opened the door to see her standing there 

"I'm terribly sorry, cousin. I hope I'm not disturbing you in any way. I just came to see if you need anything." She said and I smiled as I let her in. "That's very kind of you." I commented as she walked past me and I closed the door behind her. She was rather surprised to see the others standing there, but thankfully for everyone involved, Irissë was a master of breaking awkward silences and today was no exception

"Hello, I don't think we've properly met yet. I'm Irissë Nolofinwiel and this is my One Ekthelion." She introduced herself with a tiny bow and her One quickly followed suit, the others introducing themselves as well. "It's so very nice to meet you. I have never met Ñoldor elves before." She commented. "Eh, they're not that great actually." I commented, earning me very unamused looks from the Ñoldor elves in the room

I just gave them an unrepentant grin in return, not feeling sorry as all and knowing they weren't really angry with me. Celairel chuckled as well, before I decided to ask her about herself. "So, cousin. What do you do in this kingdom apart from apparently fighting in battles?" I asked as we all sat down on chairs and the couch that was provided for us. "Not that much to be honest. My father originally refused to let me go out there into battle, but I managed to convince him as I wanted to protect our people and I was getting rather bored here anyway." She told us

My sister really likes to spend her days dancing through our kingdom, but that just becomes so dull after a while if you're forced to dance in the same places every day. Although, I do sometimes sing songs that no one else knows and watch them flounder as they try to figure out what comes next." She continued. "Like what?" Ohtare asked. "Like.....if there's a price for rotten judgement, I guess I already won that." She started to sing

The three of us immediately shared very happy looks as we recognised the song, Irissë silently cheering to herself as our family was finally as complete as it could be under the circumstances. " No man is worth the aggravation. That's ancient history, been there, done that. Our official final sister continued the song, unaware of our looks and stopping her singing as she expected us not to know the rest. She was in for a surprise 

"Who d'you think you're kidding? He's the earth and heaven to you. You try to keep it hidden. Honey we can see right through you." We started to sing, Celairel immediately looking up in utter surprise, before a disbelieving smile grew on her face at hearing us singing along. "Oh nooooooooooo." She sang as we continued. "Girl you can't conceal it. We know how you're feeling, who you thinking of." We sang as we stood up and walked closer to her, squishing her into tight hug at the "thinking of" bit and she laughed as she hugged us back as well as she could

"No chance no way I won't say it, no no." She continued, our partners watching with smiles as they knew how much had wanted this and how long we had been waiting. "You swoon, you sigh. Why deny it, oh oh?" We sang teasingly and she simply grinned as she pulled herself free again as it got a bit too tight. "It's too cliche I won't say I'm in love. I thought my heart had learned its lesson. It feels so good when you start out." She sang

Once the song was finally done, Celairel/Milana slowly covered her mouth with tears in her eyes as she looked at us. "Who... who?" She asked as she then looked at the three of us. "Sylvaine." I quickly answered, holding up the hand with my ring. "Delmira." Ohtare took over. "Asterin." Irissë finished. "Lilith is back in Valinor with her flaming eyeball hubby." Ohtare said. "What?" Celairel asked in utter confusion and I chuckled

"Lillith or Runande was the first one of us to arrive here, actually being recreated right after the first singing as a Maia for the lady Yavanna. She then fell in love with another Maia named Mairon and eventually married him too. It's honestly a good thing too as Melkor or Morgoth wanted him to join the dark side, but because of his love for our sister, he refused. If Lillith hadn't been there, Mairon would have joined him." I explained 

"And would have become Sauron." Celairel then took over as she finally understood the situation and I immediately nodded. "Naneth told me about Runande several times in the past. They were pretty good friends despite not serving the same Valier. I never thought that she was actually Lillith. Small world." She then commented and we all chuckled. "What.. what kind of husband is Mairon?" She then asked slowly. "I will admit that I had my doubts about him because of his reputation, but he's actually really loving and devoted to her." I replied

"They're almost sickingly sweet together." Irissë agreed and we laughed. "So, why isn't she here?" Celairel asked curiously and I sighed. "When I was pregnant with my daughter, your niece, we received a visit from none other than Lord Eru." I started to explain and she stared at me. "He told us that if Runande and Mairon joined us here with the other Ñoldor... we might have had to eventually deal with Sauron anyway." I continued 

Her eyes quickly widened as she realised that if Lillith had come with us, things would've become much worse for everyone. "So, does Morgoth not have any Maia at his side now?" She asked. "He has Saruman. The a-hole." Ohtare huffed. "Not to mention that the Balrogs are technically corrupted Maiar as well." I piped up. "He really liked corrupting things, doesn't he? Elves into orcs and Maiar into Balrogs." Irissë commented

"He's literally this world's version of Satan. Of course, he loves corrupting things." I muttered as I sat back down on my husband's lap and he quickly wrapped his arms around me. With everyone here family or almost family in Ekthelion's case, I knew I wouldn't be scolded for this"You said you saw Lord Eru as well?" Celairel asked. "You too?" We asked at the same time. "I saw him in a dream. He offered to give me a power after telling me you'd eventually come here and that the power I chose would only start working once you had arrived." She explained

"Because you all got to choose your powers together according to him, he actually offered to give me any power I wanted." She continued as she shrugged and I had to admit that was fair as it wouldn't make sense if she didn't get to choose what her power would be. "What did you choose?" Irissë asked. "Something that will make Morgoth's creatures tremble in fear." She replied in a dark tone and silence fell for several seconds 

Milana was always the sweetest of us, so to hear her say something like that honestly surprised and scared us at the same time. "Why would you ask such a power?" Finno asked and she sighed. "Our mother has a pond that gives her vague visions of the future, but she never tells anyone. She only tries to act to either make the future happen or prevent it from happening. It's honestly like Galadriel's mirror." She started to explain 

"That makes sense. According to the "Silmarillion," Artanis or Galadriel will actually study under Melian for quite a while pretty soon if I'm not mistaken, so honestly, it would be perfectly plausible that she picks up a few things along the way." I commented thoughtfully. "Artanis is lady Galadriel? No wonder I thought she looked like Cate Blanchett." Celairel muttered after I nodded at her question and despite her dark statement a few minutes ago, we were chuckling again. "Anyway. Go on." Ohtare stated and our final sister nodded 

"When Lúthien and I finally came of age, naneth allowed us both to have one single look into her "mirror" for lack of better word at the moment. I still have absolutely no idea what my dear sister saw in it when it was her turn, but she was inconsolable for a long time." She told us and I winced slightly as I had a pretty good feeling what she saw and I suspected it had something to do with Beren and her future mortality 

Our last sister then took a deep breath. "When it was my turn, I saw a fortress covered in darkness. I saw a shadowy figure standing over someone as they shook in pain and even though there was not supposed to be sound, I heard a voice screaming in my head and my heart lurched. Naneth pulled me away, but I think... no, I know that I saw my One getting tortured by someone. Maybe Morgoth, maybe Saruman." She continued 

We all stared in horror as most of us couldn't even think of getting such a vision. The closest I got was knowing my Maitimo's fate from reading back on earth and even then, most of that was just my imagination from a description in a book. To actually see an image of your One getting tortured had to be terrible. "I just can't let that happen, so I asked Lord Eru for a power that will make sure I can protect him from that." Celairel finished as she hugged herself and I quickly stood up, sitting down next to her and wrapping an arm around her shoulders

Now, that sounded more like the sister I remembered. "And we will help you in any way we can. Although, I feel like I should tell you that we will first make sure that your One treats you right." I stated and she chuckled. "I wouldn't have expected anything less." She replied, before visibly collecting herself. "So, tell me about all of you and your stories. I want to know everything about yourrelationships." She said with a grin

We told her pretty much everything, starting with me and how I had met my darling Maitimo when I was little. The others all chuckled when I talked about how I tried to deny I was falling for him, not unlike the song we just sang and how I had managed to keep four brothers away from the Oath and what that entailed. Ohtare and Irissë told their stories as well, but I had one question. "Celairel..." I started and she looked at me

"How close are you to your sister?" I asked with a small wince

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Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"So that's what happens?" 

I don't think I've ever seen my sister this brokenhearted before in both our lives as I told her what happens to Lúthien in the book. It was clear that even though she hadn't had us until now, she had grown incredibly close with her newest sister. "I'm afraid so." I replied as Ohtare petted her wolf cub who she had named Varyar and Irissë her panther cub Arata. Both animals had been kept back at the camp during the battle

They were way too small to do anything to help us yet and mine was still inside its freaking egg. Still, none of us could possibly imagine what it would be like to lose your sister forever, not to see each other again until the end of the world. Even if we died now, we'd be reunited in the Halls of Mandos andv just wait to be let out. To find out that this might not be the case for you and your sister had to hurt like you wouldn't believe

Celairel sat down on what would be my bed and hid her face behind her hands as she pretty much sagged, looking incredibly defeated at hearing this news. With a sigh, I sat down next to her and wrapped an arm around her, Ohtare going to sit on her other side and Irissë kneeling down in front of her to show that she wasn't alone. Even if Lúthien chose to go the way she did in the book, Celairel would still have us  and we weren't planning on leaving her anytime soon. "That's what she saw in naneth's mirror, wasn't it?" She then asked. "That's a possibility, yes." I agreed

"Is there no way to prevent it?" Ohtare asked as she looked at me. "I honestly doubt it. I mean, all our ones were single in the book and we did manage to save four sons and Fëanor from that stupid Oath, but there are things that cannot be avoided like the Flight. I wish I could tell you we can change things, especially considering the quest she and Beren go on results in the death of Finderáto, but even I can't say for certain." I replied

"So basically, we're rather stuck and have to wait and see now." Irissë muttered and I looked down. "There is this battle in the book where we win and basically ground Morgoth to his fortress and keep him inside for several hundred years, but that's also the last time we win until the War of Wrath." I said. "Why? What happens after that battle?" Irissë asked in concern and I sighed deeply, knowing they were not going to be happy.

"Right now, Morgoth mostly has orcs, trolls and balrogs, which he usually doesn't use unless as a last resort. When the Ñoldor thoroughly destroy the orcs and lay siege on his fortress, he realises this isn't enough and starts creating new monsters as the mountains make sure the elves can't fully surround Angband. Remember how big Smaug was in the hobbit?" I asked and all three of my sisters nodded. "He's the smallest out of all of them." I continued and they all paled. "Honestly, I think the biggest one makes Drogon seem like a baby." I said

"Happier subject please." Irissë muttered as she looked a bit green morta and Ekthelion went to check on her. "What kind of creature is this Smaug?" My Maitimo then asked. "I never told you?" I asked with a frown and he thought for a minute, before shaking his head. "Can't believe I forgot this part. He's a dragon. Basically a giant, flying, fire-breathing lizard." I said and now, our ones paled as well. "How many are there?" Finno asked

"Pfff. That's a really good question. There will be dozens or maybe even more according to the book, but the writer only names like three or four significant ones. Smaug, the very first dragon created named Glaurung and Ancalagon the Black." I said after thinking for a minute. "He sounds cheerful. Do... do the dragons kill anyone significant?" Ohtare asked and I knew she meant if the dragons killed anyone of our family or friends.

"Honestly, you and Irissë should concern yourselves with the Balrog that killed Fëanor, Gothmog considering he kills two more significant characters in the book, even if the latter was a mutual kill." I replied and Ohtare gulped as she remembered what I had told her about her husband's death many years ago, standing up and hugging Finno tightly. He immediately hugged her back and quietly hushed her as Irissë looked at me in horror and I gave her a sympathetic glance. Celairel, realising the two ellyn were those characters, then turned to me

"Do you have anyone to watch out for?" She asked me quietly and I knew she was actually asking me if my husband was killed by someone. "Morgoth mostly, but not on the way guest our sisters have to watch out." I replied, before looking down. Celairel saw this and looked at Maitimo. "You don't survive either, do you?" She asked. "I'm afraid I don't. In the book, I actually do take these Oath that Nemireth just talked about." He said

"It slowly takes everything away from me. My reputation, my followers and my father and brothers until only Makalaurë and I are left. We get two of the Silmarils, only for them to immediately burn our hands because of all the crimes we committed. I jump into a volcano right after that." He continued as I looked away at hearing this. He quickly sat down at my other side and hugged me tightly as well as my second sister just stared in horror

"Are you sure that Tolkien wasn't secretly a sociopath or something?" She asked and we let out quiet laughs. "I'm honestly scared to find my own One, especially with what I saw in the mirror Is there literally anyone who survives the upcoming battles until this War of Wrath? Because that sounds rather final." She continued. "It does mark the end of the first age and we're definitely determined to make our husbands survive." I stated as I gestured to Ohtare and Irissë who both were standing in the arms of their own Ones and they immediately nodded in agreement 

"There's Elron but he won't be born until the very end of this age. He'll also marry Galadriel's daughter and he will be your great-great-nephew through Lúthien anyway, so better not. "I said and Celairel made a face. "No thanks, but Lúthien will have children?" She asked. "In the book, she has one son after turned mortal. He has a daughter named Elwing, who is the mother of Elrond and his twin brother Elros... before she abandons them." I said 

"She does what?" Celairel asked in a very slow tone. "Yeah.... because Lúthien and Beren manage to get a Silmaril, Maitimo and his brothers demand its return because of the Oath and your family refuses, even when it eventually caused the death of your father when he refuses to give the dwarves the silmaril and they kill him in revenge. In response to that refusal, they attack and kill their kin for the second time in the book." I told her

"Second time?" Celairel asked. "Yes there was one time in Valinor in the book, but I managed to prevent it." I replied. "Oh, thank Eru." She breathed and I smiled. "Anyway, they attack and in said attack, your nephew and his wife are killed, but Elwing manages to get away with the Silmaril and flees to the Havens of Sírion where she eventually meets Prince Eärendil of Gondolin, the city irissë lived in in the book. They marry and get Elrond and Elros, before Eärendil goes to try and ask the Valar for help as the situation in Beleriand is much worse by then." I continued 

"When book Maitimo and his remaining two or three brothers, depending on the version you read, realise the silmaril is there. they demand its return again and attack once more. At the end of it, only Makalaurë and Maitimo are left as he already said and Elwing literally jumps into the sea with the Silmaril rather than giving it to them, leaving her two young sons all alone to be raised by the last two sons of Fëanor." I finished

Silence fell for a long minute after that. "What did you mean with two or three brothers, depending on the version?" Maitimo asked and I winced. "Yeah, that's something I had honestly preferred not to tell you." I muttered. "What is it?" He asked, dread already in his tone and I bit my lip. "We prevented it from happening, but after leaving your uncle on the ice,  your father burns the ships to leave them stranded there." I started 

"In the officially published version, all your brothers are with you, but Tolkien had several ideas that he wrote down but never published that were eventually brought out by his son. In that version, one of the twins was sleeping on the boats when your father sets them on fire.... he does not get out." I continued and I saw Irissë cover her mouth in shock as my husband let out a pained moan and hid his face in his hands. Like he had done with me, I quickly kneeled on the bed so I could reach higher and hugged him now, rocking him back-and-forth 

"It didn't happen, my love. All your brothers are here and alive... for now." I whispered as we both knew that three brothers had still sworn the Oath and he held onto me as well. "Are you absolutely sure the writer wasn't a... what did you call him again?" He asked Celairel. "A sociopath." She answered. "Yes that." He agreed and I smiled. "I'm pretty sure, but then again, I never met the guy." I replied and we all smiled at that.

Ohtare's wolf, who had been walking around the room in the meantime, suddenly let out a small whine and scratched at the door leading to the hallway outside. I walked towards it, wondering what was going on.  Opening the door, I stiffened up at seeing Tyelkormo and Makalaurë standing there and the way they looked at me like I was a completely different person, they had been there for a while and had heard a lot

"Nemireth, I think you have something to tell us." Tyelkormo said

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"All this time?"

It was almost dinner time by the time I finished explaining most of my story to Tyelkormo and Makalaurë. It probably would've been longer, if Makalaurë didn't shut his younger brother up every time he went to open his mouth so that I could finish my story with help of my husband, my sisters and their Ones if they had one. Trust me, Tyelkormo wanted to interrupt many times, but I could eventually tell the truth

"You knew what would happen to our family all this time and you instead said you had a dream?"  Tyelkormo then asked and I nodded as I looked down. "Would you have believed her if she told you she was from a different world where all of this is fiction and you'll eventually die a gruesome death? I sometimes have trouble believing the fictional part as well.... and I was her sister." Celairel immediately shot back

I smiled at my sister coming to my defence and my second brother-in-law looked at her, before looking at Maitimo. "How long have you known?" He asked. "She told me the truth when we were engaged." My husband replied as he held onto my hand. "And you believed her? Never mind marry her?" Tyelkormo asked and even if my focus wasn't on him, I could practically feel Maitimo's face darkening in anger. "I never saw any reason not to believe her and she's still the elleth I love more than life itself. I get that you're upset at us, but that was just unnecessary." He stated

"He's right, Kormo. They may have kept the complete truth from us, but from what I've heard, they saved our lives by trying to make us choose differently. If they hadn't done that, who knows what would've happened?" Makalaurë asked. "Six out of seven of you would've died one-by-one." Ohtare stated bluntly. "Okay, out of all the people in this room, shop survives until after this War of Wrath I heard about?" Tyelkormo asked

When i pointed at Makalaurë and him alone, I think he truly started to realise exactly how incredibly bad this was as I could literally see the air leaving him. "And out of our entire family? Who survives?" He then asked a bit more timid. "Of those who are alive now, Makalaurë, Artanis, Idril and Celebrimbor. The rest all die one way or another." I replied. "And what you said about grandfather..." Makalaurë breathed and I sighed

"He would've been the very first one of your family to be brutally killed. Morgoth kills him because he's in the way of getting the Silmarils. "We at least managed to stop that by convincing him to go to the festival, which wasn't easy at all but we managed by slowly wearing him down." I stated and he looked down. The realisation that almost your entire family died in a book in a different world would never be easy, no matter which elf I tell the truth to. "What happens to me?" He then asked very quietly and I let out a deep breath in return.

"After you get the last two Silmarils with Maitimo, they immediately burn your hands because of the crimes you committed. You throw yours in the ocean and  wander the earth forever, singing songs of utter lament." I told him. He then looked at Maitimo, but my husband shook his head. "I jump into a volcano with mine." He said, letting go of my hand to instead wrap his arm around me as he knew the mention of his death still hurt

Silence fell for several minutes as the other two brothers really took this in and I leaned against Maitimo tiredly. Even though I was glad I didn't have to lie to either of them anymore, this was the second time today I had to talk about the really depressing stuff of the Silmarillion with someone and it was honestly quite draining and I felt really tired now. Maitimo immediately pulled me closer to him and nuzzled my temple

Tyelkormo then finally stood up. "I need to think about this." He muttered, before he walked out and we shared nervous looks. He could still be impulsive at times, so we feared he'd do something stupid. Celairel eventually stood up as well. "I'll go after him. I need to change into different clothing anyway. Dinner starts in half an hour, so you better change as well before you have to explain why you're still in your travel clothing." She stated, before following him out and the others slowly walked out as well until it was just Maitimo and I again.

With no one around anymore now, Mario immediately pulled me onto his lap and held me close to him. "It's okay, my heart. It's okay." He whispered. "I'm tired, Maitimo. I'm so tired and we're only just beginning the First Age. When I realise the things about to come, I almost want to jump into a volcano." I muttered into his chest, allowing myself to stop being strong all the time and just let myself be comforted by the elf I loved

Tears of fear slowly pricked the corner of my eyes and I sniffled just a bit, making my husband's grip tighten even more. We were only at the beginning of the First Age and if we followed the books, even with Saruman replacing Mairon, we still had two more ages after this and those lasted over 2 to 3000 years. I remember wondering why the elves never did that much in the books, Peter's Jackson's version of Helm's Deep not counting

However, if this was only the beginning and I was already tired, then I could completely understand that bit "You have spent so long hiding so much inside for the good of so many, my love. It's time to let us help you so you will not have to carry this burden all by yourself." Maitimo told me and I nodded, before leaning against his chest for a few minutes as I relaxed a bit, closing my eyes as he stroked my hair and kissed the top of my head. I kissed him back, before I eventually went to change my clothing for dinner with his help

To celebrate our visit to their kingdom, Aunt Melian and uncle Thingol (still really weird to say even if my in-laws had been the famous/infamous Ñoldor family for several centuries now) held a great feast to officially welcome us. "Thank Eru we managed to prevent the Kinslaying and boat burning or I'd feel uncomfortable the entire feast." I muttered as I got ready, having already checked on my daughter and she was more than ready

I heard Maitimo chuckle from behind as he walked closer and hugged me. "Just remember that you did prevent it. You've already saved the lives of so many, my beloved Nemireth. Not just me and my family, but the lives of your people as well, even if they don't know it. No matter what happens from here on out, you are a hero, my heart and that will never change." He stated and I smiled as I leant against him, before it was time

To the King's and Queen's credit, they knew how to throw a feast and it really reminded me if the feasts my father threw back in Aqualondë. 'They really are brothers.' I thought with a small grin as I drank from my goblet ot wine and looked around. Many elves were dancing, talking and laughing as music played. My husband and daughter were right beside me, even if Fearil got invited for a dance several times. I had to make sure Maitimo didn't intimidate those poor ellyn too much or the poor thing wouldn't dance again after tonight

A very familiar tune then started to play and Maitimo immediately perked up as he smiled at me and I quickly grinned back. This was a very old song of my people and it was kinda like the waltz from earth: slow, soothing and perfect to just dance closely and intimately with your partner on. We're had used it on our wedding and it was no surprise that it was one of or favourite songs with me having the feeling it always would be.

My husband held out his hand to me and I immediately grabbed it as I carefully put my goblet down. He quickly pulled me onto the dancefloor and pulled me close to him, one hand on my back and the other holding one of mine as I put my free hand on his chest as I couldn't reach his shoulder without it feeling awkward. "I honestly have never been so glad you kept me from accepting Morgoth's offer." He eventually whispered to me

I immediately looked up in confusion and he smiled at me, even as he continued to lead me through the dance. "You told me I'd lose my right hand in the process." He started to explain as he looked at said hand holding mine, he then looked at me once now ."The idea of never being able to hold you like this ever again terrifies me more than I could ever put into words." He continued and I immediately smiled at him. "Sap." I teased him, having explained what it was a long time ago. "For you? Always." He replied and I beamed as we continued to dance.

From the corner of my eyes, I also saw Finno and Ohtare as well as Irissë and Ekthelion dancing together, both couples looking like they were the only ones in the room for them and I smiled to myself at seeing this. No matter how happened after tonight, almost all my sisters had found someone who loved them more than life itself and who they loved in return. Only Celairel still had to find her One, but I was sure she'd find him soon

Speaking of which, where on earth or any world was she? Looking around the room, I saw her talking to Tyelkormo. My brother-in-law had come eventually and said he believed us and that he wouldn't tell anyone while helping us save as many family as we could. As I watched, I noticed that my second sister looked down and blushed as she nodded and Tyelkormo took her to dance as well. They seemed pretty happy dancing together too 

"Well that's news." I commented thoughtfully, before continuing to dance.

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"So, what was that about?"

"What was what about?" Celairel asked in confusion. "You and Tyelkormo. You seemed to really enjoy yourself yesterday during the feast" I elaborated and she blushed. "It's nothing. He just asked me for a dance. That's all. You three were all dancing as well." She replied in a rather defensive tone and me, Ohtare and Irissë all smirked at her. "Hey, we're all married, Lana. You're the only one of us who isn't." Ohtare told her

"Kinda ironic when you really think of it. Those who were the most romantic ones out of the five of us get married later than the ones who didn't really care like Lillith and Mira over here." Irissë chuckled and after our sister gave her an unamused look, we all smiled as we caught up with each other after so many years and centuries of not seeing each other. We told her about Valinor and she told us about Beleriand

"Can you believe we actually started to hunt dwarves until I managed to clear up the situation that they weren't Morgoth's creatures?" Celairel asked and both Irissë and Ohtare stared at her while I made a face. "Wow. If this was how the first meeting between elves and dwarves went, then it's no wonder that they hate each other by the time of "The Hobbit" and "Lord of the Rings." Ohtare muttered and despite the subject matter, I snorted. "It won't always be like that. The elves of Eregion had a good partnership and friendship with the dwarves of Moria in the book." I told them

"Oh, that's good. I just don't remember there being an Eregion in the movies." Irissë muttered. "It's long destroyed by that point. If I remember correctly, when they're travelling, you hear the famous theme and they barely escape the bird spies of Saruman is about the place where Eregion was." I muttered thoughtfully. "Oh, what happens to it?" Celairel asked with a frown. "Our brother-in-law ironically." I replied and they stared 

"You know, whenever you say something like that, my first thought is "Mairon? No way!" Then I remember he's Sauron in the books, so of course he'd do something that evil. What's the story, exactly?" Ohtare asked. "In the published version, my nephew Tyelpë or Celebrimbor leads Eregion while in the unfinished stories, it's led by Artanis and her husband first before Tyelpë takes over and they leave for Lothlórien." I began

"In any case, around the year 1500 of the second age, a being named Annatar appears and claims to be an emissary of the Valar, offering gifts and knowledge. He was rejected in Lindon by the High King Gil-Galad, although I'm not sure how that lineage bit will go now, but he was welcomed in Eregion as Tyelpë wanted to show that he was different from his family by making something that will help all races. They make the seven rings for the dwarves and the nine rings for the kings of men, before Annatar leaves the kingdom." I continued

"Right, right." Irissë muttered quietly as she and my other sisters nodded in understanding to show they were following my story. "While he's gone from Eregion, my nephew makes the Three Rings for the elves, but because he used the very same magic or techniques "Annatar" had used, they were still bound to a certain other ring that was being made around that time, just not as much as the others were." I then told them

"I think you can already see where this is going. "Annatar" is actually Sauron who returns to Mordor to forge the One Ring. When he puts it on, the elves sense his treachery and take their rings off. Angered by this, the evil version of our brother-in-law goes to war against the elves and completely destroys the gardens of the Ents as well as Eregion. By this point, my nephew had sent the Three rings away to Lindon and Lothlórien." I said

"He's captured by Sauron and tortured for information on where all the rings are. Whatever Sauron did to him is not told, but it was bad enough that he gave up the location of at least the Seven dwarf rings and maybe the Nine too whose wearers eventually become the Nazgûl. However, he never tells Sauron where the Three rings for the elves are... not even when Sauron tortures him to death." I finished as I looked down. Now that Celebrimbor was actually related to me, even if it was by my marriage to his oldest uncle, his fate in the book was even worse for me to remember.

Not the mention the horrified look on my poor Maitimo's face when I had to tell him that his one and only nephew got horribly tortured to death in the books. "Was he married in the book?" Celairel asked as my sisters all took this in with horror on their faces and I quickly shook my head. "No, i believe it was said in the unfinished tales that he was in love with Artanis, despite being slightly related, but he wasn't married in any case." I replied

"Do we need to find a different elleth for him? Because from what I hear, he deserves happiness." Irissë muttered. "You can't force something like this, Rin. If he finds someone this time around, good for him, but we're not going to shove ellyth in front of his face in the hope she's his one." I told her and she backed off. "Is he.. what do you call it... "shipped" with anyone?" Ohtare asked. "Yeah. Annatar." I answered in a deadpan voice

All my sisters all made disgusted faces at this, before Celairel looked rather thoughtful about something, seemingly weighing some pros and cons about something before speaking up again. "If I may say anything. I actually have one Lady-in-waiting who usually accompanies me almost everywhere. Anyway, her family is good friends with my family and they have a very high standing here." She said. "Okay and what does this have to do with my nephew?" I asked. "Simple. I saw her continuously glancing at him last night." She replied

"It was pretty clear to me she felt somewhat attracted to him even from a distance. If he actually feels the same way about her, then perhaps, there is some matchmaking that could be done. She should be high enough in rank to stop his Oathbound father from making any protests and your nephew might actually find happiness." She continued and we shared a look. It was true that I had taken Tyelpë with me as well on this trip

I wasn't sure what would happen if I left him behind with his Oathbound father and uncles, even if my husband's uncle was keeping an eye on them while we were gone. Could this be his chance of happiness? I then remembered one time where my sisters and I were all dancing with our Ones and I suddenly noticed Celebrimbor looking rather lonely as he had no one to dance with. Sure, he asked some ellyth, but none were his One

I then made a decision. "We can always try to see if they're each other's One, but we'll start very light and careful, understood? This is honestly not something we can play with and it's not that we immediately prepare a nice candlelight dinner for two or anything like that." I said and my sisters snorted even as they agreed. "How can we start?" Irissë asked. "Celairel, does your Lady-in-waiting or whatever you call it here accompany you often?" I asked my second sister. "Almost every time I'm not with my sister apart from now." She nodded

"Then wouldn't it be a rather funny coincidence if we suddenly came across each other in the woods while I was taking a walk with my nephew and you with your friend?" I asked and a smirk quickly grew on her face at this." That would be quite the coincidence indeed." She immediately agreed and the four of us smiled at each other. "However, if it doesn't work out, we'll drop it immediately, agreed?" I asked. "Agreed." They all chorused

A couple of days later, while most of the men were doing some business and especially my husband and uncle as they tried to see if there was anything they could trade between them and their people, I took my nephew out for a small walk in the forest surrounding Doriath with Irissë, Ohtare and a couple of guards coming with us to make it look a bit more normal. We eventually came to a small pond that Celairel had told us about.

She said that was her favourite spot in the entire kingdom and it wouldn't look very weird if she wanted to go there for a few hours with her friend, just happening to meet us there. I just hoped our little plan was a success. For both us and my nephew as he did really deserve happiness. Sitting against a tree as we took a break, I could quickly see why this was Celairel's favourite place to be as it was rather lovely with the stars shining in the lake and the peace and quiet of the protected land. Now, we just had to wait for my sister to do her part

"What do you think the princess Celairel?" I eventually asked my nephew and sisters after a few minutes, giving the latter two a pointed look as we were not supposed to know her very well yet and Irissë thankfully caught on as she grinned at me. "I think she's just lovely. Her sister as well. I feel like we can be good friends." She replied and both Ohtare and Tyelpë agreed. I smiled in return, before we settled down and waited

A few minutes later, Celairel arrived with another elleth at her side. We stood up to get her as we were still in her family's lands. "I apologise. I didn't realise you were here. Do you mind if we join you?" She asked and we shook our heads. "This is my dear friend, Arodeth." She then introduced her companion and she curtsied as we nodded back and Tyelpë kissed her knuckles, making her blush as we shared hidden grins 

Now, all we had to do was wait and see if anything grew from this

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Well, that went pretty well. 

To our secret relief, Tyelpë and Arodeth actually seemed to hit it off quite well with each other, even though they just met. During our "coincidental" meeting at the forest pond, they talked to each other for quite a while and I could see my nephew going from making some general and polite small talk, to being genuinely interested in what she had to say, especially when she told him she had always been interested in jewellery and the like

They were actually still talking by the time my sisters and I had finished talking about most of the subjects that didn't show everyone around us that we already knew each other very well and didn't seem to be ending the conversation anytime soon. The four of us shared subtle, but excited looks as we all hoped that this might actually turn out. 'Thank gives the Doom wasn't pronounced. Otherwise, this might've gone bad anyway.' I thought

"They seem to really like each other." Irissë whispered after at least an hour had passed and Ohtare hushed her before they heard her, even if she was right. "I've known Tyelpë since he was born and I've never seen him be this relaxed this quickly with someone he doesn't know or who isn't family." I quietly agreed and the four of us smiled as we glanced over to the ellon and elleth who had no idea what we we're talking about. "Her family will probably be very delighted that she managed to catch the eye of a prince." Celairel muttered and I let out a small scoff at that

"Especially with there being no Kinslaying... yet." I breathed in return and they immediately nodded in agreement and also a bit of fear as they remembered that while I had obviously managed to stop the first one, there was no telling if we could prevent the second one. "Yeah, that reminds me..." Celairel said, before looking at the guards and leaning closer. "What was that you said about my father being killed by dwarves?" She hissed

"I'll explain later." I whispered back at her and she nodded, before looking at her close friend and my nephew. "They do seem pretty happy and you told me Lúthien will find her one in this Beren. Do you think I can find that happiness one day?" She asked. "Well, Tyelkormo is still single." I muttered and she gave me an unamused look as our other two sisters snickered. "You're hilarious." She snarked at me and I grinned at her

"Actually, no. I'm dead serious. He doesn't have anyone he's romantically involved with. There's no one with us and there's none waiting for him back in Valinor like with Makalaurë. There were ellyth who tried to become his princess, obviously, but he was never interested... until he saw you during the battle." I told her quietly and it was all true. My oldest brother-in-law had practically begged his wife to stay back in Valinor as he knew that even if he didn't swear the Oath, Beleriand would still be incredibly dangerous and he didn't want her to be in danger

"How exactly did he react at seeing her?" Ohtare asked curiously, not having been there. "Like he was seeing a literal angel. His jaw had to be closed." I told her with a smile and Celairel blushed as the rest of us grinned at her. We eventually had to go back so we could be in time for dinner, but we noticed that Tyelpë and Arodeth kept talking on the way back. I actually had to pull my nephew out of the way so he didn't walk against a tree

The next day, my aunt actually invited me, my daughter, Ohtare, Irissë and her daughters for some tea and asked those from over the sea how Valinor was since she had left it. "Queen Nemireth actually told me she is pretty good friends with Runande and Mairon." Celairel told her mother. "Oh, Mairon and Runande! It's been too long since I've seen them. How are they?" Melian immediately gushed with a big smile on her face

"Probably still as sickeningly sweet together as they were when you knew them." I replied with a grin on my face and we all chuckled. "Well, I have to be very honest. When Runande and Mairon just started courting, I was not very sure if it was a good match. Obviously, Mairon was a very strong and loyal pupil to Lord Aulë, but he always seemed so closed-off and took everything so seriously while Runande was more light-hearted and didn't mind a joke every once in a while, but I eventually realised that they fitted perfectly together." Melian told us

"Their personalities, while seemingly clashing at first glance, are just what the other needs. He always managed to get her to calm down when she was in one of her energetic phases and she always succeeded in making him laugh and take a rest when he was too focused. However, it was around the end of the Time of the Lamps that I really saw how much they loved each other." She continued and we leaned closer to listen

"Did Runande ever tell any of you about the time Melkor or Morgoth as I believe your people now call him tried to take Mairon with him by force?" She asked and I nodded. "Yes, she actually did once not long after Ohtare and I met her. She told us she went to get Lord Aulë and he saved her husband." I replied, Ohtare nodding in agreement as she remembered it too. "Sounds just like her to wave off her own involvement." Melian chuckled 

Seeing our confused looks at this, she started to elaborate. "I was spending time with her and Mairon at the time when Morgoth revealed his intentions to be evil and suddenly burst into the forge we were in at the moment. He harshly knocked Runande and I back when we jumped up and tried to attack Mairon as well to presumably subdue him and take him. Mairon gave his everything to fight back and at first, I obviously thought he was fighting for himself, until he intercepted an attack that was aimed at Runande, even if it caused him pain." She said

We all stared at her at hearing this, but she wasn't done with the story. "I was conscious but incredibly dazed at the time because of the hit I had made against the wall when he threw me back, but I distinctly remember Mairon telling Morgoth that he would not allow any harm to come to Runande as long as he was there to prevent it." She told us, pretty much all of us making very touched noises at how much Mairon loved our sister

For obvious reasons, me, Ohtare, Irissë and Celairel were pretty much the loudest in the room as this really showed how powerful their bond was. Melian then continued to tell the story. "Mairon kept fighting, but with him having to protect both himself and Runande eventually became too much and Morgoth knocked him unconscious. He was then lifted on Morgoth's shoulders like a puppet and he started to leave with Mairon." She said

"However, he had been so focused on subduing Mairon that he hadn't realised Runande had gotten up. When she saw him about to take her husband away, she ran to him as fast as she could. She then grabbed the biggest hammer in the entire forge, jumped on Morgoth's back and started to hit him on the head with it repeatedly until he finally managed to get her off by slamming backwards into the wall and knocking her unconscious as well. By that point, several of the Valar had come towards the commotion and he had to leave without Mairon." She continued

"I was at their bedside the whole time they recovered from the attack and the first thing the both of them said when waking up was asking where the other was. Runande woke up first and was terrified that Morgoth had succeeded in taking him away while Mairon feared Morgoth had killed her. They rarely left each other's side for a long time after that." She dished the story and silence fell for a second, before I had to suppress a laugh

I simply couldn't help myself with this. The image of our sweet baby sister harshly whacking literal Satan on the head like she was Boo in the Monsters Inc movie was so surreal and yet, so incredibly fitting for her that it was pretty hilarious. Looking around, I saw that my sisters had the same problem as Ohtare was covering her mouth, Irissë was smiling with tears of laughter in her eyes and Celairel's shoulders were shaking

"Remind me to buy something really special for her next time I see her." I quietly muttered to Ohtare as we left and she agreed as we split up to ho our respective husbands and I immediately told mine the story of how my little sister had prevented Mairon's corruption in more ways than one. "She really is quite fearless, isn't she?" He chuckled and I grinned as I remembered the huge amount of times she and Asterin/Irissë went to do things like skydiving or bungee jumping together. "Yeah. Always has been." I agreed, missing my youngest and final sister

I obviously knew and understood exactly why she didn't come with us as I'd rather have Mairon with me than Sauron against me, but I still hated that my family was still split up with one sister separated from the other four. First it was Milana here in Doriath. Now, it was Lillith back in Valinor. Maitimo quickly pulled me closer to him. "You'll see her again one day, my heart. You'll see." He whispered and I sighed as I clung onto him

I really didn't want to think about how the next time we saw her, it would very likely be when she arrived right before the War of Wrath and who knew how we'd come out of that one. Who would survive and who wouldn't. It was an absolutely maddening thought, but unfortunately a realistic one. Morgoth's forces would be uncountable and I honestly wouldn't be surprised if he was specifically focused on us and perhaps Runande most of all

She had already prevented him from corrupting and taking Mairon with him way back in the beginning and I highly doubted he had forgotten that. The logical part of me knew that Runande was now much more powerful than I could ever possibly imagine, that she could handle herself and that, like he had loudly sworn when Morgoth tried to take him by force, Mairon would fight until the end to keep her safe, but the irrational part of me still saw her as my little sister that I needed to protect. I simply sighed again and hugged my husband tightly

It wouldn't be for another five centuries if we followed book timeline. I looked up as I felt my husband short his grip on me and he smiled at me. "You're one of the strongest people I know and we will help carry our people through whatever comes next." He told me. I immediately had a certain Hamilton song in my head, but ignored it as I smiled at him. "Just don't leave me." I breathed. "Never." He replied as he kissed my forehead.

We then heard a strange noise and looked around in confusion for a moment, until I realised where it was coming from. "My egg!" I exclaimed and we rushed towards where it was standing on the desk. Sure enough, there was a hole in the shell that grew bigger until a baby bird crawled out of it. "Hello, little one." I whispered as it chirped. It seemed to be a falcon or something in that direction, which led to my next thought. 

'How am I going to feed a bird of prey without losing my fingers?'

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Okay, apparently my new buddy wasn't a falcon according to my aunt. It was an eagle

Maitimo thought it was absolutely amazing. If this was an anime, he would've gotten stars in his eyes as he looked at our new pet. I smiled at his enthusiasm at seeing the baby bird who really didn't seem to care about anything but it's empty stomach. With mama bird obviously nowhere to be found, it was up to us to feed him and figure out a schedule. "I really hope it learns how to fly on its own, because I have no idea how to teach that." I muttered 

Both my husband and aunt chuckled as the latter ordered raw meat from the kitchens as well as a clean set of pincers, carefully tearing a tiny piece of the meat once it had arrived and holding it out to my new bird. It immediately ate the morsel and even Maitimo thought it was adorable. I wouldn't be surprised if he tried to steal my familiar later on. Maybe, we could find a way to share once it could actually fly as I had the feeling my husband would appreciate that

"What are you going to call it?" Maitimo asked me and I thought for a moment, trying to find a good name for my new buddy. "How about Súldor?" I asked. ""Brother of the wind. Very fitting." Aunt Melian commented with a smile and my husband agreed. I had told my aunt that I had gotten my egg from Runande, but not why and she thankfully didn't ask. I suspected that she either had a feeling or simply knew why we were sent here as there was a chance she had seen it in her "mirror." I decided not to question it and showed my new familiar to my other sisters

"So, we all got an animal familiar?" Celairel asked. "You too? What did you get?" Irissë asked in return and she told us to follow her. "Right before the attacks happened and we had to fight, we found a foal wandering the woods and he took an immediate liking to me. I think he's supposed to be my familiar." She told us as she led the way to the stables where a young horse was waiting for us. "What did you call him?" I asked. "Gilroch." She answered and I snorted.

"You literally called him "star horse?" Very original." I chuckled. "I never named anything in my life before. Give me a break." Celairel defended herself and we all snickered in return. We knew that three of us would soon have to leave again, so we tried to spend as much time together as possible. "I wonder what animal Runande has." Ohtare commented thoughtfully. "I wouldn't be surprised if she got something extra special." I replied with a smile

"Because she had to stay behind?" Celairel asked as we left the stables. "And because she's a Maia compared to us." I agreed. "True and considering the story of her whacking Morgoth on the head like crazy, I think she deserves to have something special." Irissë giggled and we all laughed. That tale definitely wouldn't get old anytime soon. That was for sure. "I wonder if she knew she was hitting literal Satan on the head." Ohtare said. "Well, I'm pretty sure she knew Morgoth was one of the most powerful beings in all of Arda. She just didn't care" I replied 

"I bet that the moment she saw him about to take Mairon with him, all sense of rationale went flying out of the window and she only thought of saving and protecting her husband like he had protected her." I continued and my sisters immediately agreed as we smiled at how much our brother-in-law loved our youngest sister. "And then to think I was incredibly nervous at first meeting him." Irissë muttered and I laughed again as we entered my room

"Well, considering his reputation, it's not that weird" I chuckled as Maitimo, Fearil Finno and Ekthelion were all looking after our animals with my daughter cooing over the bird. With Makalaurë and Tyelkormo now knowing that we were from a different world, we told her the complete truth as well as it wouldn't be really fair to keep her out of the loop. She was absolutely shocked, but eventually accepted it as I was still her mother, coming different world or not

Fearil immediately looked up at hearing us talk and bit her lip. "I've actually been meaning to ask you about that." She said. "What is it sweetheart?" I asked with a smile as we all turned to use. "If...aunt Runande stopped uncle Mairon from becoming evil... then why is there a version in your world where he is evil in the first place?" She asked, having gotten permission to call them that in private with only those in the know after learning that the really nice Maias who had come to visit us several times in her childhood were technically her aunt and uncle in a way

I opened my mouth, before realising I was stumped. "I.... actually have no idea." I said. "You can ask the same thing about almost all the bad things in the book. You stopped the first Kingslaying, so why is it in the book? We didn't cross the ice, so why did we did we cross it in it? Why are Maitimo, Ekthelion and, depending on the version, Finno not married? Or to summarise all the other questions: why am I the only one of us who's actually in the book?" Irissë asked

Silence fell as we had no idea how to answer that. "Will the events of "Lord of the Rings" even happen now that the actual title character is far more content living his life in Valinor with our sister at his side?" Ohtare asked. "If he doesn't come here as a wizard like Gandalf." I said. "Like he would willingly leave Runande behind to fight his old colleague." Ohtare scoffed. "Maybe she comes with him. Oh! She can become the White Istari instead of Saruman." I said

"You mean that she would be called the White Witch if she does come here? Because that's a whole different world and story altogether." Celairel joked and we snorted. "Well, the authors were actually best friends with each other, so it would still be very fitting either way." I chuckled and we laughed "What about "The Hobbit?" Will that still happen." IIrissë then asked. I could see that our husband's and my daughter were kinda losing sight of what we were talking about, but they just watched as they knew we did know and trusted us to know what to do. 

"Sauron has little to do with the plot of that book, except for Bilbo finding his Ring and the Necromancer bit in the movies, so I highly doubt those events will change much. As for the "Lord of the Rings," I'm afraid we'll have to wait and see how that goes, even if it's not for another five-thousand years at the very least. Although, if Saruman actually tries to make the same rings as our brother-in-law, I'm going to make sure he'll choose a different smith." I muttered 

"Tyelpë?" Maitimo asked in a quiet voice and I nodded as I squeezed his hand. "What is it with cousin Tyelpë?" Fearil asked in concern. "Something terrible happens to him in the books" I muttered and she backed off. "Where is he, anyway? I haven't seen him all day." Irissë commented. "Arodeth wanted to introduce him to her family." Celairel answered and the four of us immediately grinned at hearing this. Seeing our husband's and Fearil's confused looks, I chuckled 

"The four of us have decided to play our hand a bit in very careful matchmaking with Tyelpë and Celairel's lady-in-waiting Arodeth after noticing their interests in each other. It actually seems to work out quite well until now." I explained to them and they were all pleasantly surprised to hear that, but none more so than my husband as he already knew his nephew's fate in the book: to be completely alone from the Second Age forwards and to be used and eventually tortured and murdered by someone he thought a friend, even if Mairon would never do that now

"Thank you." He breathed into my hair as he kissed my temple and I smiled at him as a closed my eyes for a second. "You're very welcome, my love. Besides, he's my nephew now as well. I'm not going to let anything happen to him." I stated. "So, something terrible happens to him in the books?" Ekthelion asked with a frown as Irissë sat next to him with her panther on her lap. "Yeah. Pretty much." I muttered as I leaned against my husband

"In my opinion, he suffers one of the worst fates in a book filled with people suffering terrible fates. Long story short: evil Mairon eventually manipulates him into creating several powerful rings that can control almost all of the western races in Middle-Earth apart from the hobbits, creates three all of his own for the elves after Sauron leaves. Sauron makes a Ring to control all the other rings and attacks the city Tyelpë rules over." I started to explain

"Before he attacked, Tyelpë quickly sends the three rings he made himself away for safety and when Sauron captures and mercilessly tortures him, he gives up the location of almost all rings except those three, even when he eventually dies from the torture and torment." I finished and Finno, Ekthelion and Fearil all looked at me in horror, my daughter looking a bit sick. As the only grandchildren of Fëanor and Nerdanel, she and Tyelpë had always been quite close, even if he was quite a bit older than her. "You won't let that happen, right?" She asked in a tiny voice

"Of course not." I whispered as I pulled her close, her holding Súldor in her hands. "Tyelpë will be safe and besides, the person who does it to him in the books is living in Valinor right now and won't even think of torturing anyone." I told her and she relaxed. Irissë then chuckled. "Considering our sister was crazy enough to hit Morgoth on the head, I have absolutely no doubt she'll drag Mairon back by his ear if he so much as think about torturing anyone." She said

We all laughed at that, before my daughter relaxed a bit and leaned against me. At times like this, I was incredibly thankful that she had inherited my height rather than her father's. "Does anyone and I mean literally anyone have a happy ending in the books?" Finno asked, his voice slightly hysterical as he held onto his own wife with their ever-growing wolf lying at their feet. "Not many and even those who do have suffered and lost a lot." I replied with a wince

"What kind of a person writes something like that?" Ekthelion asked in absolute horror as Irissë was practically squished against his side and him having a tight grip on her. "Someone who definitely needs to go back to "Arda history 101" considering the terrible inconsistencies in the books." Celairel piped up from where she was sitting alone and the four of us snorted while those actually from Middle-Earth frowned. "It's something we say when someone really needs to go back to school for something." Ohtare explained at seeing their faces and they now nodded in understanding 

We then split up and most of the others went back to their own chambers to pack as we would leave again in a few days. There would be another feast to say goodbye, before we really had to go. I was brushing my hair, but was apparently lost in thought as Maitimo carefully put his hand on my shoulder. I called you two times. What is it?" He asked as he kneeled down. "I was just thinking of how exactly the situation with the books works." I said

"Irissë and Fearil are right. If we changed things and considering this is real, then how is there a book about you on my world in the first place? How did Tolkien get all the info?" I asked. "I don't know, but let's not worry about this. It exists and it warned you of everything so we can try and stop it." He said. "Even if Runande did part of the job for us without even knowing." I replied and he laughed, making me smile. He was right. It didn't matter how the book came out

The most important thing is that it would help us

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

I sighed as I adjusted the sleeve of my dress

It was almost time for the final feast that my aunt and uncle were throwing to say goodbye to us for now, the relationship between our two races hopefully much better and stable than it was in the book now that there weren't any Kinslayings yet. Things had been incredibly nice and it was very relaxing to be in what had to be the safest place in Middle-Earth right now with aunt Melian's girdle around the kingdom 

Speaking of aunt Melian, Artanis asked my and Maitimo's permission to stay here yesterday and I had agreed as I knew this was important for her development into the strong and wise elleth I knew from the movies. Besides, I had already seen her growing close to an ellon I was pretty sure was her future husband, so I knew there was probably more than one reason that she wanted to stay and i honestly couldn't blame her

If Maitimo had lived here, I would've been very reluctant to leave this place as well. I know Tyelpë didn't really want to leave either, but one of the bigger surprises was the fact that Tyelkormo seemed incredibly reluctant to go as well as he and Celairel had become good friends during our stay and perhaps, they could become more in the future. Once thing that people always used to get wrong about Milana back on our earth was that just because she was the most romantic of the four of us, she would want a perfect Prince Charming as her partner

If that was actually the case and she really did want such a partner, then I would have bet my title that Ingwion would be a perfect match for her eventually as nee really was such a Prince Charming, even with him currently being on the other side of the ocean and only coming here for the war of Wrath at the end of this age. However, I once asked her about it and she actually said that such a relationship would be extremely boring

She had then immediately proven herself to truly be Asterin's and Lillith's sister by saying that she wanted excitement and adventure in any of her future relationships. Well, with "adventure" and "excitement" practically being Tyelkormo's middle names (mothername and fathername obviously not counting with this) I think they may have a very interesting and unique relationship if they did continue on with this

I then snorted just as my husband walked in, having talked to Finno. I looked up at him and smiled at seeing him staring at me with a lovestruck gaze. "Like what you see?" I asked as I did a twirl and he smiled as he walked closer and pulled me into his arms. "You know I do." He whispered into my ear and I shivered. I felt him smile against my neck as he left a trail of kisses down from the bottom of my ear to the edge of my dress. "Maitimo, if you continue on like this, we will miss the feast." I protested, even if I couldn't fully stop a moan from escaping 

"Would that be so bad?" He asked teasingly as he pulled me even closer and I rolled my eyes. Honestly, we weren't newlyweds anymore and we had more responsibility now than we're did back then. "We're the High King and Queen now, my darling and this feast is thrown by my aunt and uncle. Yes, it really would." I replied as i pulled back and he sighed as he grabbed my hand before I could fully pull free and kissed my knuckles 

"Very well, my heart. We will do it your way." He said and I chuckled as he then offered his elbow to me as it was almost time for the feast to begin. I put my hand in the crook of his elbow with a smile as we walked out. Makalaurë was escorting our daughter and Tyelkormo had actually asked the privilege to escort Celairel. She had accepted, no matter how much Ohtare, Irissë and I teased her about it in the past few days 

"What were you laughing about when I came in?" He asked as we walked out and I looked around to see if anyone was listening. "I just realized that if Celairel actually does start a relationship with Tyelkormo over time, then Lillith will be the only one out of the five of us who won't be related to your family by either birth or marriage." I muttered as I leaned closer and he chuckled as well. "Alright, that is rather funny." He agreed and I giggled as we walked to where the others were waiting for us. I smiled at seeing my sisters with their partners in different ways

Seeing Celairel smiling just a bit as she glanced sideways, I subtly followed her gaze to see Tyelpë and Arodeth quietly talking together a bit further. It was clear that they were each other's date for the evening, perhaps even on the cusp of a courtship and I couldn't be happier about it. Tyelpë needed someone who would always be in his corner with his father having sworn the Oath, even if he'd have us supporting him instead

I sighed, once again wishing that book Celebrimbor had someone after practically his entire family died and he probably had to live with the stigma of being part of the family that caused so much pain and death, before being manipulated by Sauron and tortured to death. I swear if you put all the deaths and fates of those in the Silmarillion next to each other, J.R.R Tolkien would sound less like a writer and more like a sadist

Eventually, we were announced by our names and titles one-by-one and walked into the room to join my aunt and uncle at the head table as we had the dining portion of the feast first and good thing too, because I was honestly starving right now so I quickly dug in. I heard my daughter and Lúthien talking next to me and they seemed to get along very well too, which made me already feel sorry for my sweet Fearil if my cousin's canon fate actually happened and I honestly didn't see any reason why it shouldn't as much as it hurt to say so

Even if the quest resulted in the death of my nephew and even if Elwing abandoned her children for it, if Lúthien and Beren didn't get that Silmaril, then the Valar would never come to help us beat Morgoth once and for all. I had been nice to my other cousin during our stay, but I had been careful not to grow too close to her. I already knew I was going to lose many friends and perhaps even family in the next few hundred years

It just didn't feel good to grow close to someone I almost knew for certain would die and never come back as she would go somewhere I could never follow anymore. At least any other elven friends and family who I didn't manage to save over the next several centuries/millennia I'd eventually see again in Valinor once it was time for us to go back. Or if I died somehow. One of the two, even if I obviously preferred the former. 

Dinner finished eventually and aunt Melian then asked Maitimo and I to sing a song to start the next part of the feast. "What kind of song do you want us to sing, Your Majesty?" I asked, but it was my uncle who answered. "A romantic one and one no one has heard before." He said, a teasing and challenging glint in his eyes. Yeah, I was staring to see why he would sent out Beren on a death quest if this was how he acted around his own family. No offense to Celairel or her sister, but I had actually grown to dislike my uncle during our stay here

He was just so stuck-up and arrogant, thinking our people weren't as good as his simply because he married a Maria. Yeah well, my former sister is a Maiaand you don't see me crowing about it, do you? Still, I loooked at my husband and whispered something in his ear. He nodded and we went to stand in the middle of the room. I'd never been so glad I had taught him some songs from earth as I started to sing

"All those days watching from the windows. All those years outside looking in. All that time never even knowing just how blind I've been. Now I'm here blinking in the starlight. Now I'm here suddenly I see, standing here it's all so clear, I'm where I'm meant to be." I began to sing, despite not having any music to support me, but I didn't care as I only focused on my husband's loving face and that was enough for me

At the end, Maitimo and I stood very close to each other with our foreheads touching the other's as the elves around us applauded. I beamed at him and he smiled back as he pulled me into a hug. I closed my eyes as I knew that no matter what would happen to us after we left this kingdom, we'd always have each other's backs. "I love you so much." I breathed. "I love you too. More than anything, besides our Fearil." He replied as he pulled back

With that, the dancing part of the feast finally began and we enjoyed ourselves as my sisters, their ones and many others joined us and music began to play, but not before I enjoyed the rather put-out look on my uncle's face as I had easily completed his challenge without even panicking once. I'm not exactly sure what he expected to happen, but Maitimo and I seemingly pulling a romantic song out of thin air clearly hadn't been it

After at least two dances had passed and while the six of us were dancing near each other, our husbands apparently decided to shake things up a bit just for fun and switched right in the middle of the third dance so that I was suddenly dancing with Finno, Ohtare was with Ekthelion and Irissë was with my husband. We simply laughed as we didn't mind the change at all and simply danced on with different partners without really caring about this switch. Finno was a really good dancer too anyway, so no big loss there to be completely honest

During the next few hours as we danced, drank and had fun while we still could, me, Ohtare and Irissë kept a close eye on both Tyelpë and Arodeth as well as Celairel and Tyelkormo to see if there was any progress yet and while especially the former couple seemed to have grown incredibly close to each other, our sister and my brother-in-law seemed to prefer friendship over actual courtship for now, which was fair enough. 

Especially with Morgoth still completely free out there and not confined to Angband and the Ñoldor still trying to find their place in this different part of the world, starting a new courtship might not be the best thing for two of the most prominent royals of both races just yet, with Celairel being the oldest daughter of King Thingol and Queen Melian and Tyelkormo now being third-in-line for the throne after his older brothers

Although, in that very moment as I switched to dance with my husband again after having danced with Makalaurë for a bit while Fearil happily danced with her father, I swore to Lord Eru and all the Valar that if the two of them do start to court each other and my uncle tries to pull the same kind of ridiculous bullshit on my brother-in-law like he does with Beren in the book, the two of us are going to have words with each other and not very nice ones either. Although, I wouldn't be surprised if Celairel already beat me to the punch if it came to that. 

'Maybe, she'd beat me to the literal punch.' I thought to myself with a small grin on my face as even though she definitely was the most romantic out of the five of us, the Milana I remembered tolerated no bullshit or harm when it came to those she cared about, the powers she chose to have from Lord Eru being proof of that as even though she still hadn't told us what kind of pets she had chosen to get, they sounded very serious

Eventually, the feast came to an end and we had to go to bed one-by-one. I couldn't help but smile as Maitimo came across Tyelpë on our way back to our chambers and I saw the love-struck gaze in his eyes. "He's got it bad." I commented to my husband and he snorted. "I just hope he'll be happier than he is in that book of yours." He said and I smiled. "We'll make sure that he is." I promised and he nodded, before we went to bed

We were out like a light very soon

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Returning to where our people lived, we immediately had to go to work

In our absence, Nolofinwë had decided to let us keep the High King- and Queenship for now as even though he was the next son of Finwë, he thought it would be for the best if our people didn't have to change Kings like three times in a very short amount of time. I bit my lip as I knew that was exactly what happened in the book. So, with that answer, Maitimo and I truly and officially became the rulers and protectors of our people and let me tell you... it was hard

We had to build houses, make sure we had enough food for everyone and find ways to make new food so our storages didn't run dry like Bilbo's pantry after the dwarves arrived, keep up our alliance with the Sindar, build a wall around our place to keep orcs and other monsters out. Thankfully, my husband's uncle had started the process of much of those things and my own uncle had sent food with us when we left Doriath, so that was some things handled

A couple of months into setting up our new city while keeping an eye out for Morgoth and his creatures and seeing how a certain nephew-in-law of mine was growing a bit restless as he was probably missing a certain lady-in-waiting back in Doriath, I suddenly got an idea how to make sure our alliance with my uncle's people could stay strong and wrote a letter to said uncle and aunt, while also discussing it with Maitimo and he agreed it might be a good idea. Thankfully, Melian and Thingol agreed with me, so it was time to inform Tyelpë

"Your majesties. You wanted to see me?" Tyelpë asked as he came in and bowed to us. "First of all: don't ever call us that again when it's just us. We didn't transform into different people simply because we're High King and Queen now." I stated as I held up my hand and he chuckled as he looked down for a second, before nodding. "We have a small situation concerning the Sindar of Doriath and we were wondering if you could help us." Maitimo took over

"What is it, uncle?" Tyelpë asked as he sat down. "Morgoth may keep himself quiet for now, but he will attack again and we may have to spread out our people to lessen the damage he causes, but we don't want our relationship with Doriath to suffer during this." Maitimo began to explain. "Even if the King of the Sindar is my uncle, things can still go wrong over time so we wanted to send an ambassador to Doriath to prevent that from happening." I continued 

"We want you to be that ambassador." I then told him and he stared at me in surprise. "Me? Why me?" He asked in confusion as if he couldn't comprehend why we would choose him. "I do not really see why not. You made a very good connection with the people during our visit, you're related to us and you know enough of politics not to make a mistake. Besides, don't tell my uncle I said this, but I'm not sure if he would take anyone less than a Prince as he takes rank incredibly seriously." I answered with a gentle smile and he smiled back.

"Will King Thingol send someone as well?" He asked as he thought about this. "My uncle is planning to send his oldest daughter Princess Celairel in return with guards and advisors obviously, but the Princess herself wrote me a letter saying that she will keep her lady-in-waiting in Doriath as she doesn't want her to be in any danger out here and to ask if I knew any ellyth that could take over her duties." I said casually as I looked at a letter that said exactly that

Okay, it also said Celairel practically nagged her father until he gave in once aunt Melian gave her approval for her to be their own ambassador. Looking at my nephew from the corner of my eyes, I saw a tiny smile on his face at the thought of seeing Arodeth again and had to suppress my own smile. It was honestly so adorable to see my nephew so incredibly love-struck. A few weeks ago, I came across him in the hallway with a letter of his own

I didn't have to ask who it was from as the smile on his face said enough. Besides, the relationship between him and his father had cooled down considerably in the past few months. It most certainly was not "Tyelpë breaking away from his entire family" yet, but they definitely weren't as close as they once were before the Oath came into our lives. At times like this, I was again reminded that my nephew practically had no one after the First Age. His only remaining uncle disappears and he only had rather distant relatives like Artanis and his kinda sorta cousin Elrond

Tyelpë eventually said he wanted to think on it and we agreed as this was not a decision to take lightly. A few days later, he eventually told us he wanted to do it and we both smiled at him in gratitude as we knew this was a big thing to be saddled with. "Thank you." I breathed and he bowed to us before leaving. "Two birds. One stone." I muttered once he was gone and my husband smiled at me. "How long until we have another wedding feast?" He asked teasingly.

"Hopefully after we manage to lock Morgoth into Angband and everyone is relatively safe for a couple of centuries." I replied thoughtfully and he laughed in answer as he quickly pulled me closer to him and kissed my forehead, making me smile as I immediately walked closer to enjoy this moment even more. Even though we were busy trying to give our people the best possible future, he never let an opportunity go to tell or show how much he loved me

Curufinwë was not happy with us sending his son away to another race of elves, trying to forbid Tyelpë from going as soon as he heard about it, only to be surprised when said son immediately stood up to him, saying that we had given him this job and that he really wanted to do it. We soon had to wish him luck and wave goodbye as he left us with several of our own guards and some scribes and advisors. It was going to be weird not having him around, but if it meant that he'd find happiness, then I'd be more than willing to do it

Celairel arrived with a group of Sindar elves a few days later and Maitimo later told me that he could actually see it took everything in me, her, Ohtare and Irissë not to run to each other and hug like the sisters we once were. We thankfully managed to save that for when we were in private as we tackled each other in tight hugs with Maitimo, Fearil, Makalaurë and Tyelkormo all smiling at seeing it. Especially the way we converged on Celairel made them laugh

Once we had finally calmed down, we discussed what would happen now. The biggest difference until now was that Maitimo was still High King. "So, if anything happens to us in the upcoming centuries and we don't have a son yet who can inherit the title, then it will go on to Makalaurë or Tyelkormo and that's where it gets tricky because if anything happens to you as well, the Kingship will fall into the hands of your Oathbound brothers." I muttered 

We all looked down at this as we tried to think of what our best course of action was now with the changed situation than what happenedin the book. Morgoth had kept himself since the request for a meeting after the last battle, but he'd return again eventually. He always did, that absolute bastard. With Maitimo still being High King, it made things both easier and me complicated. Easier because if anything happened to us, the Kingship would go to one of two people who knew the truth as opposed to only Finno if anything happened to his father 

It also made things more complicated because of the earlier stated reason about the Oathbound sons getting the title if anything happened to the four of us in the next few centuries unless they died in their pursuit of the Silmarils first. This honestly just strengthened my already pretty big determination to protect my family as I had the feeling the Kingship in the hands of Curufinwë would be a very bad thing. I took a deep breath and straightened my back

"For now, we look after ourselves and keep quiet. One of the biggest reasons the Glorious Battle was won in the books was because Morgoth was falsely informed by spies that our kind was too busy with domestic things to be ready for an attack. If we can give him that very same impression as in it, while secretly being prepared for anything, it will almost certainly give us an advantage, even if the host of Nolofinwë doesn't arrive later." I said and everyone agreed

And as I said, we just kept our heads down as much as we possibly could and took care of our own people for the next few years while still living in the almost complete darkness like the sindar probably had lived before we came here since Celairel and her companions gave us some pretty good tips to still live a relatively normal elven life even without the Two Trees lighting our way. Despite their very nice advice, I never thought I'd miss the sunshine so much as I did now. It was like living in a constant moonless night with only the stars to guide us.

I was honestly surprised that my internal system wasn't completely thrown off by the lack of light, but I wasn't complaining as we managed to make a system with the servants of when they they had to wake us up for a new day or what counted as a day here. My eagle, Ohtare's wolf, Irissë's panther and Celairel's horse all grew in this time and were soon fully grown. They seemed like normal animals until now, but we'd eventually learn they were anything but

One "evening" after being practically forced to bed by Finno and Ohtare once they saw we were overworking again and were having none of it, I was lying with my head on my husband's chest when I felt him take a shaky breath and immediately looked up in worry. It wasn't often that he let out a scared breath like that. He quickly tried to smile at me"Forgive me, my heart. I didn't realise you were awake." He whispered as he cupped my face, but I didn't buy it

"Hey, what's wrong, my amazing Maitimo?" I asked him quietly as I gently stroked his hair and he immediately leaned into my touch almost desperately. "Yesterday, I was thinking about what you told me once a very long time ago. About me hanging from a huge cliff after actually falling in Morgoth's trap." He replied as he held onto my hand and kissed my palm. "What about it?" I asked in slight confusion. "What if you were ever captured by him?" He asked, his voice almost breaking in fear at that very thought. I fell silent and he quickly pulled me closer.

"You know so much, my darling and if he ever found out about your knowledge he wouldn't rest until he had you so he could torture and break you for information and I.... I wouldn't survive if that ever happened." He breathed as he buried his face into my neck and I could really feel how much this had bothered him until now."Oh, my darling Maitimo. It's okay. I'm here. He will never get to me, my love. You'll protect me from him. I just know it." I whispered

He was about to say something, when we noticed things were slowly getting lighter around us. It was like when you were waking up during... the edge of dawn. With that thought, I hastily jumped out of bed and opened the curtains. Maitimo immediately followed me and wrapped his arms around my waist as we saw a bright ball of light slowly appeaing over the horizon to light up the sky. "What is that?" He asked and I smiled as I leant against him. 

"That's the sun." I breathed

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"Never thought that I'd miss the sun so much."

I immediately chuckled at Ohtare's words as the two of us, our husbands as well as Celairel, Irissë, Ekthelion, Fearil, Makalaurë and Tyelkormo were all standing together on the balcony watching the sun rise in the sky for the very first time. "You had a sun where you lived too?" Finno asked. "Yes and I thought I saw a bit to much of it when I was fighting in the middle east, but after this darkness, I really missed it." She muttered 

I saw Finno look down at the reminder that Ohtare had already fought in her life and would do so again. I wouldn't know what I'd think if I found out Maitimo had been in life-threatening situations before meeting him. "It's odd though. In the books, it's the moon who rises first. Not the sun." I muttered. "I wouldn't be surprised if a certain sister would have something to do with that. A final middle finger to Morgoth." Celairel said

We snorted as that sounded like something that our sister would do. Lillith was a sweetheart most of the time, but she could hold a grudge like none of us could. Granted, it was very understandable with what Morgoth tried to do with her husband as I already got nightmares from the mere scenario of Maitimo being taken by Morgoth and I now knew he had the same fears about me. I couldn't imagine what it was like to almost see it become reality... to see literal satan walk away with my husband over his shoulder like a rag doll was something out of horror stories

I took a deep breath as I stepped out of my husband's arms and spread my own as I closed my eyes and enjoyed the sunshine. "Weird to think we're literally older than the freaking sun and moon." Celairel commented as she casually leaned against Tyelkormo. I had seen my brother-in-law turn slightly red at this and hid a smirk. I took another deep breath as I knew that the ages of the sun and moon had officially begun

I was going to miss the beauty of the Two trees, but we had to move on and make sure we survived this age. I smiled as we walked back in and closed the doors behind us. I then started to hum a certain song, before quietly singing it. "From the day we arrive on the planet and, blinking, step into the sun." I began as I looked out of the window, my sisters immediately sharing a look and smile as they recognised it within an instant

"There's more to see than can ever be seen, more to do than can ever be done.There's far too much to take in here, more to find than can ever be found. But the sun rolling high yhrough the sapphire sky. Keeps great and small on the endless round." I continued, before my sisters joined in and we sang the chorus as quietly as we're could in case anyone heard us singing "It's the circle of life and it moves us all hrough despair and hope, through faith and love. 'Til we find our place on the path unwinding. In the circle. The circle of life. We finished,

At the end of it, me, Ohtare and Irissë quickly hugged our husbands and they immediately hugged us back. "Another song from your world?" Maitimo asked me and I nodded. "It's beautiful." Finno commented as he kissed Ohtare's temple. "Could you teach me how to play it on the flute?" Ekthelion asked Irissë as he rested his forehead against hers and she immediately nodded. "I'll do my best." She promised 

Celairel seemed to be the odd one out as she was the only one of us not married yet and this really seemed to show during times like this. "I think I'm going to go for a small ride. I want to see how everything looks like now." She muttered. "I'll go with you. Morgoth's orcs can still be out there." Tyelkormo stated and she nodded as they and Makalaurë left and Fearil watched them go for a second. "Do they like each other?" She asked

We chuckled as my daughter was as blunt as her paternal family at times. "Not yet as far as we can see as they both seem to be in the "we're just friends, nothing more" phase, but who knows? Maybe this ride might bring them closer." I commented. "Good, because they look really nice together." My daughter stated and we laughed again, before she left. "If I didn't know how very loyal and monogamous elves are and if I didn't know Milana before, I'd make a joke about her having a lot to explain if their baby wasn't blond." Ohtare muttered, much to her husband's consternation. 

"It's okay, Finno. Something like that joke was just the kind of humour we shared between the five of us." Irissë told him and he relaxed as I agreed with my sister. We then split up and I looked at the perch Tyelpë had made for my eagle before he left, sitting down on the bed with Maitimo. It was still weird at times not to see him around anymore, but from the letters we had received from him, he had settled in very nicely in Doriath

The relationship between our people was thankfully still going strong, even if we hadn't visited in person anymore. Tyelpë had even told me he and Arodeth were growing closer to each other, much to the happiness of me and those who knew his canon fate in the book. Súldor let out a cry as he jumped from his perch and onto my arm. For some reason, his razor-sharp talons never hurt me even when he used my arm as a perch

"My heart, can I ask you something?" Maitimo asked as he wrapped an arm around me. "Of course." I answered with a smile and he smiled back. "From all the songs this company you told me about has made, which one is your favourite?" He then asked. "Oh, that's a good one. Well, concerning duets, I always loved the one we did in Doriath." I began, leaning closer to him with a grin and he chuckled. "I also loved "A whole new world" I'll teach you that one another time, but there was one solo I always loved." I continued He tilted his head and I smiled.

"When we were all very small in our previous world, our father and later our mother would never sing the same lullaby to two sisters and gave us all one song before sending us to sleep that was a completely different one than the songs the others got. It was our father who did it first, before he died and our mother took over for Lillith and Asterin who were five and seven at the time. This one was mine." I said, before singing it

About halfway through the song, my husband had eventually let himself fall backwards on the bed and seemed to be dozing a bit as he listened to me singing. I quickly let Súldor fly back to his perch and carefully joined him there while still singing the song. He smiled and wrapped his arm around me again, practically locking me against his chest and I didn't mind it one single bit as I enjoyed his warmth and comfort for a bit. 

Once I was done, there was silence for a while. "I'm sorry about your father, my darling Nemireth." He eventually whispered. "I'm sorry too about yours." I replied as even though Fëanor had changed, he had still been my husband's father and I knew his death still haunted Maitimo. He gave me a tiny smile before pulling me even closer so that I was pretty much lying on his chest. If anyone walked in now, this would look very wrong 

"Do you think I'll ever see him again?" He asked quietly as he gently stroked my hair. "I'm not sure. In our world, it was said that he was never reincarnated until the final battle at the end of time, but I'm not sure if that still counts with there having been no Kinslaying or Doom. I'm sorry. I really don't know." I replied, genuinely meaning it and he looked down as he kissed my forehead. "Not your fault, my heart. You did well to stop the murder of your people, even if it was instigated by my own father." He told me. "You better stay alive though." I said

"Why?" He asked in confusion. "Because if you die and you come out of the halls odd Mandos, your mother will be waiting for you to send you back there." I stated, silently cheering to myself at hearing him letting out a snort. "She definitely would be waiting." He agreed as he kissed the top of my head. "I miss her." He then confessed and I nodded. I missed my parents, brothers and sister as well, but we couldn't stop and go back

Our people needed us and we couldn't let them down, especially not with Morgoth still out there in the world. Silence fell for a while then and I once they thanked Finno, his father and Ohtare for taking over for us today as I was really, really tired and felt like I could fall asleep any second now, even with the sun brightly shining in the sky. We were supposed to tell our people about our strange phenomenon and would do so soon

"When do you think we'll see my mother and your family again?" Maitimo asked. "Depends on how long you're planning to stay alive." I replied and the bitchface he gave me away that was hilarious as I gave him a cheeky grin. "You're lucky I love you." He muttered as he started to sit up so he could go and get ready to reassure our people. "You would eventually commit suicide if you didn't love me, so when you look at it that way, you're the one who's lucky." I reminded him as I was forced to sit up top and he hummed. "Yes, that's true." He conceded as he got up

I quietly smiled at the huge, protective, kind and lovable sap of an elf that I had managed to marry and reminded myself again that his fate was changed now and that it would never happen. Maitimo would never willingly leave me or our daughter behind if he could help it. Fan arts of his suicide flashed through my mind like they always did in moments love this and I tightly squeezed my eyes, shaking my head to get rid of them

I then felt Maitimo's hands gently cup my face right after doing that, half of it immediately being hidden by them and quickly opened my eyes again to see his light blue  eyes looking at me in extreme worry as his thumbs carefully caressed my cheeks. "We really should stop talking about that dark subject. I can see it still hurts you even though it will never happen." He muttered as I grabbed his wrist and leaned into his touch.

I mostly agreed, but it was important to remember why and for who I was here when things got really harsh and dark. "I'm here, my heart and if I ever see a chasm filled with lava, I will immediately run the other way." He told me as he kissed my forehead and I let out a giggle at the image of my strong, brave husband running away screaming from a volcano like it was Morgoth himself. He immediately smiled at heading me laugh again and nuzzled my face. It was still crazy to see how dangerous he could be on the battlefield and so sweet with me and Fearil 

We then told our people that the strange light in the sky was a gift made by the Valar and everyone relaxed at that now that they knew it was nothing dangerous that could harm them. "Weird to think how something from a tree could give a bigger amount of light than a star." I muttered as we sat on our thrones and my husband chuckled as one hand covered mine with his thumb constantly rubbing gentle circles over my skin.

That night with the sun mostly gone, we went to bed again to rest. "I do believe the next battle won't be too far off now that the sun is here. Morgoth will not like this new addition in the sky." I muttered as I was lying on my husband's chest and he hummed in agreement. "We'll be ready, but not if you keep talking so I can't sleep." He teased me and i giggled, before settling down. "I love you." I breathed. "I love you too." He replied

Within five minutes, we were fast asleep

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

We stayed on our guard despite the sun having risen

There were times where I found myself standing on the balcony for a few minutes and looking up away the sky, simply enjoying the warmth and light that the sun gave us after years of darkness. I would always miss the beauty of the two trees, but I wasn't going to see them again until the end of time, so better get used to their last remaining fruits being carried through the sky and giving us light like that. It was better than nothing. 

Maitimo and I were extremely busy looking after our people and keeping an eye on his Oathbound brothers, but it seemed that for as long as Morgoth held all the Silmarils, they would play reasonably nice. They were rather salty and blunt in their interactions with us, never to the point of it being treason but still and Curufinwë didn't talk to us unless he absolutely had to because we sent his son away, but we made due

Speaking of which, Tyelpë had actually sent us a letter about him starting to court Arodeth, making the two of us, my daughter and sisters and his two oldest brothers cheer quietly to ourselves. "When is it your turn?" Irissë asked Celairel with a teasing smile as my sisters, daughter and brothers-in-law were helping us with paperwork late in the evening. "When Morgoth is finally stuck in his fortress. I still remember the vision I saw when I turned of age and I don't want to risk him hurting my One." She replied and we all had to concede as that was a good point.

She had already seen her One getting hurt by someone so it made complete sense that she would be a bit careful about entering a relationship while morgoth still roamed free. "Well, as long as we don't have to sing "kiss the girl" for you, I'm fine with it." I commented as I read some reports on the darkness surrounding Angband. As expected, Morgoth had darkened the skies around his fortress to protect his orcs from the sunlight

Celairel gave me a very unamused look. "You have a song named "kiss the girl?"" Tyelkormo asked with a tiny laugh. "Yes, we do. However, I don't think that it would fit the situation." Ohtare commented. "Thank you." Celairel muttered as she continued to read her file. ""Maybe you won't die alone" would be much more fitting." Ohtare continued and me, her and Irissë all laughed as our last sister hid her face behind the parchment 

"Do I want to know how that one goes?" Maitimo asked at seeing our reactions and we actually had to calm down. "Well.... basically, it's a song from a show called "Galavant" which unfortunately only lasted two seasons as it was really funny and one of the main characters named Richard goes on a date with his childhood sweetheart, but starts to mess things up, so his companion and the show's title character starts singing a song to still make sure it's a success and it's not exactly a usual, romantic song." I explained, still chuckling 

My husband smiled at this, before going back to reading. We then heard thunder staying to rumble in the distance and I quickly sent to the window to see I'd it was a natural storm or something worse. Timeline wise, we had to be around the start of the Glorious Battle after all. Seeing lightning shoot across the sky made me feel a bit more assured that it was just an ordinary storm as I closed the curtains and walked back

"Reminds me of the spooky stories we always told each other on Halloween as kids." Irissë reminisced with a smile as she leant against her husband. "Spooky stories? Like what?" He asked. "Like... oh, did you girls know that many people get the story of Jekyll or Hyde wrong?" Ohtare asked us. "Who?" Pretty much everyone who was born in Valinor asked. "Oh, right. You guys don't know who Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are." She realised 

"And apparently, neither do we. What do many people get wrong?" I asked. "Well, let me explain the story and the background of it first and then talk about what many people who adapt it get wrong." Ohtare suggested and we nodded. "In my defence, I didn't know the part that people change either, until I took the original book last time I was stationed overseas, mostly because I had nothing better to do. Anyway, the book was written before the book about you all, so in a way, these characters are older than you are, which is quite an achievement." She began

We quickly snorted before she really got in the story. "The book was written at least a century before we were born. It starts off with our protagonist: a man named Gabriel John Utterson, who is probably one of the most boring leads in a book ever. I could name at least ten characteristics of everyone in this room while with him, I'll be lucky if I can name five. Although, he does have one hilarious line, but I'll get to that." She said

"Anyway, Utterson often walks with his cousin named Richard Enfield. On one such walk, Enfield tells Utterson about something peculiar. Enfield had been walking home one night not too long before when he saw a man trample a little girl. And when I say trample, I really mean it. He bowls her over as she runs into him, steps on her and prepares to walk on." She continued "What a despicable man." Finno spat and Ohtare made a face.

"Enfield stops the man from leaving while the girl's family come out to see if she's okay with a nearby doctor or healer. She's mostly fine after what happened, just really freaked out as you can imagine and Enfield and the doctor suggest that the man, named Mr. Hyde, pays the family in recompense. Mr. Hyde reluctantly agrees and walks into his house and comes out with a written and signed cheque, which is something we can also use to pay things in our world." She explained to those who didn't know what it was and they nodded in understanding 

"The peculiar thing was that while the cheque was completely genuine, it was written and signed not by him, but by someone else. Someone who is a very respected person and Enfield tells Utterson that he's worried the despicable Hyde is blackmailing this poor man into cleaning up after him. This makes Utterson very curious as he actually handles the finances of the man whose name was on the check: Dr. Henry Jekyll." She then said

By this point, even me and my other sisters were listening very intently to the story as while we knew of the story as did practically everyone else on our world, this was a far more detailed explanation. "Dr. Jekyll had sent Utterson a letter to state he made Mr. Hyde his sole beneficiary in his will, stating that if he mysteriously disappeared for more than three months, everything would go to Hyde, no questions asked." Ohtare said

"That is not suspicious at all. This Dr. Jekyll must have done something really bad for this Mr. Hyde to force him to let him inherit everything." Makalaurë stated with a scowl on his face as he crossed his arms and all the elves who were actually born here agreed I, Ohtare, Irissë and Celairel hid our smiles. Oh, these poor innocent people. "Well like you, Makalaurë, Utterson finds this very suspicious and decides to investigate and see if Hyde really is blackmailing Dr. Jekyll as he fears Hyde will kill him for his money." Ohtare continued 

"This results in the line I just talked about as Utterson states that if the person he's going to investigate is Mr. Hyde, then he shall be Mr. Seek." She told us with a giggle and we all cracked up, thinking that was the perfect pun. "I spent five minutes laughing at that line and it was also the line that made me want to continue reading even if practically everyone knows the story already." Ohtare giggled once we had calmed down a bit 

"Anyway, Utterson starts by asking a mutual friend of theirs, one professor Lanyon. Unfortunately, the professor hasn't talked to or even seen Jekyll in about ten years, stating that he had delved too deep into what he calls "dark science" and isn't much of a help. With that being a dead end and after meeting Mr. Hyde in person after staking out his house, Utterson goes to see Dr. Jekyll instead." She said, now completely calmed down

"He isn't home, but his servants are so Utterson immediately decides to ask them about Mr. Hyde instead and they tell him that Dr. Jekyll has ordered them to give Hyde completely free reign in the house and do as he says if he ever shows up. Utterson gets even more worried as this really sounds like the good doctor is firmly under the thumb of Mr. Hyde and when the kind and gentle man gives a party a few weeks later, he stays behind after and asks him about it. Dr. Jekyll insists he's fine and that he can get rid of the man whenever he wants." She continued

"All the evidence pretty much states the opposite of that, Dr. Jekyll." My daughter quickly snarked with a sceptical look on her face and we all laughed. "It really does, doesn't it. Not too long after that, an old man asks Hyde for directions and immediately gets murdered for his troubles. When inspecting the murder, Utterson finds a piece of the cane that murdered the old man and discovers it belongs to Dr Jekyll." Ohtare told us

"Hang on. How many people does Hyde actually kill? In the movies, shows and all other adaptations, he usually kills several people in cold blood." Irissë said with a small frown. "In the book, I believe that he kills exactly two people." Ohtare replied as she briefly thought about it. "Wow, that's a difference." I muttered in surprise as we were pretty much used to Mr. Hyde being an absolute murderous psychopath and she nodded.

"Did Dr. Jekyll also allow Hyde to borrow his cane?" My husband asked in the exact same tone as our daughter and we laughed in return. "Considering he gave Mr. Hyde free reign over his house, I highly doubt that the man asked to borrow his cane." Ekthelion replied and Maitimo agreed, but I noticed that Tyelkormo was deep in thought and wondered if he'd figure out the twist ahead of time. Because he often spent time in nature and preferred outdoor activities over intellectual ones, people sometimes underestimated how sharp he really could be

"Anyway, back in the story, Utterson then goes to the home of Mr. Hyde during the investigation and finds a mostly ordinary house, but he also finds the other half of the murder weapon. When Utterson goes to see Jekyll, he finds the doctor completely hysterical as he says that he's done with Hyde for good, giving him a letter from Mr. Hyde apologising for everything he has done and that they'll never see him again." Ohtare said

"I don't trust it. That's far too easy for Hyde to just stop." Makalaurë said and many agreed with this. Even we nodded as he was pretty much right in one way. "Well, you're not wrong. Utterson is reassured for a bit as he tells Jekyll that he'll never have to worry about Hyde possibly killing him again." Ohtare agreed. "Oh, the second person he kills is Jekyll, isn't it?" Ekthelion speculated and Ohtare made a face as he was right in a way

"The reassurance of Utterson cracks a bit when on the way out a servant tells him that that a messenger never came by to drop the letter off and when he has one of his employees inspect the letter, he gets an invitation from Jekyll for dinner. The employee states that the writing on both the letter and invitation are the actually the same and Utterson realises that Hyde is still using Jekyll to get away with his crimes. Still, he doesn't say anything as in the next few weeks, it seems Hyde vanished into thin air" My sister told everyone

The minute she talked about the writing being the same, I saw Tyelkormo making a face like a revelation came to him and I was pretty sure he figured it out. "During those weeks, Jekyll seems much better until he suddenly isn't anymore and confines himself to his house, refusing to see all visitors. Utterson goes to see professor Lanyon, only to see him on his deathbed with only a few weeks to live" Ohtare continued, not noticing Tyelkormo 

"Even while being terminally ill, he still refuses to talk about Jekyll, telling Utterson not to speak his name when Utterson says Jekyll is sick too. Utterson sends a letter to Jekyll asking what happened. Jekyll replies that it's his own fault, that he can never see Lanyon again and that he'll stay in his house forever. Lanyon dies not long after and sends Utterson a letter south instructions to only open it if Jekyll disappears or dies." She said

"Things get weirder from there as Utterson tries to see Jekyll and during one of his walks with Enfield talks to him through the window until Jekyll stops talking mid-sentence and slams it shut. One day, one of Jekyll's servants goes to get Utterson and tells him the staff have been terrorised over a week and something has gone very wrong. They go to his estate, meet the other terrified servants and when the first servant goes to the barricaded lab and says Utterson is there, a voice tells them to go away... but not the doctor's voice." She stated, her voice starting to lower

"It's Hyde, isn't it?" Tyelkormo asked us and we all nodded. "How did he get in without the servants noticing?" Fearil asked. "Shall we tell them?" Ohtare asked. "Let's tell them, although I do think someone has already figured it out." I replied as I looked at Tyelkormo and everyone followed my lead. "There were some things that didn't add up until a certain point and when you said the writing was the same, it started to make sense." He said

"What started to make sense, brother?" Maitimo asked curiously and Tyelkormo looked at us first. We nodded to show he could tell what he thought was the truth. "If I'm right, then the fact that Mr. Hyde was both the sole inheritor of the will as well as someone the servants had to listen to if he came by, was not because he was threatening Dr. Jekyll.... but because he was Dr. Jekyll." He said, my and my sisters smiling as he nailed it

"What?" What?!" "What?!" Came the answer from pretty much everyone else in the room as they clearly couldn't believe their ears and we laughed as they stared at us for confirmation. "It's true. You see, in the time the book was written, there were many things that were frowned upon and while dr. Jekyll was a very respected member of the community, he had a darker side that he kept hidden deep inside himself. He then created a serum to make the split more literal and physically transformed into Mr. Hyde for the first time." Ohtare told the others

"He once transformed back from Hyde back into Jekyll again in front of Lanyon which is why the professor hates him as he thinks Jekyll has gone too far with this. The thing adaptations usually get wrong is that they always portray Hyde as this evil, split personality, while it originally was nothing more than a fake identity. As Hyde, Jekyll can do whatever he wants without getting into trouble or damaging his reputation." She continued 

"The thing is that he starts getting more and more careless over time and the more he turns into Hyde, the harder he finds it to actually stop. I started reading the book, thinking that it would be the cliche horror story adaptations usually make it out to be and instead came across a really interesting allegory for being addicted to something, in this case it being the freedom of doing whatever it is you want to do." She confessed

"That does sound more interesting." I agreed as it was actually better than the overused "split personality" it's usually given. "Indeed. Jekyll eventually tries to stop being Hyde as he barely escaped getting into trouble that time with the little girl. He stops using the serum he made for two months, but then gives into the temptation, drinks a bit and immediately murders that old man I told you about. This has serious consequences as because of that, Hyde isn't an anonymous person Jekyll can turn into to escape the repressive lifestyle he leads, he's now a wanted criminal." Ohtare stated

"Wait, you said he killed about two people before. One is the old man, but who's the second one?" Ekthelion asked. "Himself. The reason Jekyll barricaded himself was because even though he stopped using the serum he created, he started changing into Hyde without it at irregular intervals and he couldn't be seen turning into Hyde as that would mean he would have to stand trial for everything he did as him." Ohtare answered

"He also couldn't get the transformation serum right anymore as something about one of the ingredients was different and it didn't work. Hearing Hyde's voice inside the lab, Utterson and the servant break down the door and Jekyll/Hyde kills himself as he realises that once they realise the truth, he'll go to jail if he's lucky and instead kills himself, leaving a letter stating that he left everything to Utterson. The story ends with that." She said

"Huh. I never knew Hyde was more of a secret identity than a split personality. Although.... his name does make a lot more sense now." Celairel muttered thoughtfully as she smiled at Tyelkormo for having figured it out. "Yeah, he sure does "hide" behind his identity as Dr. Jekyll." Irissë chuckled. "How many horror stories do you have on your world? Maitimo asked. "Oh, hundreds and hundreds. My personal favourite is one where two little girls are raised by a ghost in the woods and when they're found and taken in by their uncle, the ghost goes with them." I answered

"I really loved "the woman in black." A ghost that kills people everytime someone sees her." Irissë commented "Don't forget "the ring."" Ohtare piped up  "I wasn't a big horror fan. I usually loved romantic movies." Celairel said sheepishly as she scratched the back of her head and we chuckled. "I was more of a fantasy person myself." I replied, gently nudging my husband and he chuckled as he pulled me closer and kissed my temple

Silence fell after that as we calmed down after scary story time and I yawned a bit after a few minutes as I rubbed my eyes, wondering if we could go to bed soon, but luck was unfortunately not on our side as we heard rushing footsteps coming closer and Nolofinwë ran in without even knocking. "Your majesties! Orcs are approaching! Morgoth has made his move?" He started and we shared looks as we instinctively jumped up.

"From a fictional horror story to a real one." Celairel muttered as we rushed out to get ready

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you 

We prepared for battle in record time

Putting a quiver of arrows and my bow on my back once the servants were done putting my armour on, I turned and saw Maitimo holding out my sword to me. I gave him a smile as I took it over and he came closer. "Be careful." He breathed and I nodded as we shared a brief kiss, before we went to the stables where our horses had already been saddled, ready to go with our family already sitting on theirs. At Maitimo's order, we rode out into our second battle 

When Ñolofinwë had refused to take the High Kingship, we had instead asked him to set up establishments in the East with many of his followers. Two of my nephews who in the book were known as Angrod and Aegnor as well as his youngest son immediately went with him too. "Did Aredhel have a little brother in the book?" Irissë once asked me. "In the Unfinished Tales, yes. He dies in an orc ambush before he even reaches Middle-Earth." I explained 

She had obviously not been very amused at hearing that and I honestly couldn't blame her. I had already told her that apart from her niece Itarillë or Idril, none of her direct family or even her husband actually survived the first 500+ years in Beleriand and that included herself as she was killed by Eöl. Ekthelion had (understandably) not been very happy to hear that either as he immediately clung onto his wife and she hugged him back. It reminded me of when Finno first heard he died in the book and his first instinct was to hug Ohtare as well. 

'Must be an ellon thing.' I had thought with a grin on my face as I then also remembered Maitimo doing the same thing as well, not to mention Mairon with Runande when she first told about him becoming Sauron in the book. Then again, learning that there was a book in which you all die in horrible ways or became an insane, evil Dark Lord who wanted to do nothing but spread pain, fear and discord around the people of Middle-Earth was obviously never fun 

I couldn't blame any of them for looking for the nearest source of comfort which was usually me or my sisters as we were right next to them. Especially seeing Mairon practically collapse to his knees while tightly clutching onto his wife when she told him that she probably would've died of a broken heart if he had actually followed Morgoth had really been heartbreaking to witness as we had been able to see that hurting our sister was the last thing on his mind

They all loved all of me, my daughter and my sisters so much, their hearts being ours just as our hearts belonged to them. We were practically their entire world and the mere idea that there was a universe where they were either killed in battle by a Balrog, committed suicide in absolute despair after having led two attacks at your own kin or turned into an evil psychopath, which in this universe meant leaving us behind was just so terrible to think about that it actually caused them pain. They'd never do it to us and that was one of the biggest reliefs ever

I just hoped Milana would find love like that one day, even with the vision she had had. Glancing at said sisters as we rode to face the orcs and whatever other creature Morgoth sent out, I saw her riding her aptly named horse as it had grown into adulthood as well in the past several years and it had seemed to stop aging as well. Whatever that horse was, it seemed that it was just as normal as my eagle, Ohtare's wolf and Irissë's panther, meaning not at all

Over the years, we had learned that once Súldor was in flight, he could travel at the speed of light and deliver a message without being spotted and faster than any other messenger bird could. Ohtare's wolf was as big as Huan like Mairon had told us during the final festival in Valinor while also having an impenetrable skin and Irissë's panther could disappear and reappear in shadows so even when it seemed she was alone, her familiar was always nearby.

We weren't sure what Celairel's horse could do yet, but I had the feeling we'd see one day. She told me that she hoped it was something just as awesome as our animals once we had figured out they had powers and what they were. Still, us having sent Ñolofinwë to the east actually worked just as brilliantly as Maitimo moving to the east with his brothers did in the book as we took the orcs by surprise. They hadn't expected us to be ready for war thanks to our ruse of pretending to be more busy with domestic affairs and setting up new realms

With help from my eagle once we hatched up a quick strategy to try and beat the orcs before they could cause too much damage to the lands, my husband's uncle was immediately aware of our plans and we trapped them right in the middle of us like a pincer of a crab. With every orc and troll that I killed, I imagined the pain and difficulty my husband had to go through in the book, having to fight with only one hand after going through horrendous torture

'That didn't happen. He's right here. He's okay and he's safe.' A little voice whispered in my head as I took a deep breath before I saw red and started to take unnecessary risks in my anger. I know Maitimo sensed my dark moods though as he made sure he stayed very close to me and Fearil. We originally wanted her tying stay back where she'd be safe, but with a stubbornness that she inherited from both me and her father, she had insisted

It was quite a surprise when Sindarin warriors suddenly joined us in the middle of the battle, being led by none other than my uncle in person and Tyelpë being one of his right-hand men as he now had Arodeth to protect and had family in this battle. Doriath had completely refused to fight with the Ñoldor in the book and while the Laiquendi of Ossirand still refused to fight as they had apparently still lost their leader in the very first battle, it seemed that reports of me and Celairel fighting in it had actually convinced Thingol to go and help.

I later learned that my nephew had also helped a tiny bit in convincing him by being completely willing to abandon his given duty to leave Doriath so he could come and help us in any way possible. If that didn't scream Tyelpë, I didn't know what did. I was so glad he inherited his mother's personality. Still, I hoped this helped unite our people even more as we had a common enemy and not counting a certain Kinslaying, we shouldn't fight amongst ourselves

We fought for a long time but finally beat beat the orcs, chasing the remainder all the way back to Angband and destroying them in sight of the Thangorodrim. The other elves cheered at the victory and I first did too, before noticing my husband looking pensive as he looked at the three volcanoes. I suddenly remembered that if I hadn't been here, he would've hung from them for thirty years and he was completely aware of that fact, so his look made perfect sense

I gently and carefully grabbed his hand as I didn't want to startle him and he immediately looked down at me, a large cut on his cheek bleeding sluggishly from the battle. I gave him a tiny smile to try and reassure him he was okay and his eyes softened as he pulled me into a hug. I immediately hugged him back as much as I could as with both our armours currently on, it was even harder to completely wrap my arms around him and rub his back than it usually was. A very tired Fearil eventually joined us and was immediately pulled into the hug as well

Looking up, I put my hand on the cut and concentrated as I felt my Eru-given powers inside of me. White light was briefly seen coming out of my hand and when I pulled back after a few seconds had passed, the cut was completely gone. "Thank you, my heart." Maitimo breathed and I smiled, before the others and that included both my and my husband's uncles joined us to discuss what we had to do now that Morgoth had proven himself to be awake and aware

It was then decided that we had to create a siege around Angband and even though I knew it wouldn't be completely successful, it still made for about four centuries of relative peace. It was decided that we would watch it from the west as in the book, our city in Hithlum had become the main seat of the High King in the Ñoldor. My oldest nephew Finderato would keep watch from the first Minas Tirith, a tower he had built and Orodreth went with him

Angrod and Aegnor or Angaráto and Ambaráto as they were still known as since my uncle didn't banish Quenya from his lands, held the northern slopes of Dorthonion and as much as it hurt to be separated from them, we also spread Finno and Ohtare, Makalaurë and Tyelkormo out over the east after the three Oathbound brothers declared their intention to settle in the east as well and it was for the best someone kept an eye on them Only Irissë and Ekthelion as well as Celairel and the Unbound twin stayed with us in the west

I knew Irissë would eventually leave for Gondolin. "If you want to have any kids this age, now is probably the best time." I whispered to Ohtare and Finno and they nodded, before we shared hugs and told each other to be careful and eventually went our separate ways for the first time since we arrived here. Still, I was in a pensive mood the entire way back and my husband quickly noticed as he rode closer to me, having found spare horses after ours were killed

"What is it?" He asked quietly. "Things were mostly the other way around in the book, with your uncle and Finno holding the west and you and your brothers the east. This attack still worked thankfully, but I'm wondering what it will mean for our people that things are turned around now. When the battle of the Sudden Flame happens, your kingdom is one of the few that remains standing because of your actions. Not sure what will happen now." I confessed

"Well for one, it won't exactly be the Battle of the Sudden Flame if we know it's coming." My husband whispered with a little grin as he tried to cheer me up and out worked as I snorted. "Also, I remember you telling me that Hithlum will still be under several attacks and we can't reach the Northern parts of Angband. It might be for the best that we try and stop those attacks as much as we possibly can and prevent Morgoth from taking more of our own." He then continued and I nodded. He grabbed my hand and squeezed it for a second as we rode on

When we returned, the only Unbound twin told us he wanted to change his name for when things would go bad and his brother's reputation would go downhill, wanting to stand as far away from the Oath as he could and we allowed it. After thinking, he decided on the name Varyaro, which meant "Protector." He later said that if his brothers really were going to cause harm, then he wanted to protect the people from them. No, I did not hug him, why do you ask?

And so, the siege of Angband began and despite knowing there would still be several attacks on our people, just not as big as this battle had been, I finally relaxed as much as I could as I knew this ex the most peace we would get in the entire First Age. Once we were completely rested up from the harsh fight and were allowed to go to bed, Maitimo gently carried me to it and took care of me in a way that he hadn't dared to do so in a while with Morgoth out

I just hoped that if we did get more children, we'd be able to protect them.

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

And so, it began

I didn't immediately let my guard down as I knew that Morgoth would still attack our kingdom as we couldn't completely surround his fortress. Not to mention that while he didn't have Mairon, he did have the bastard Saruman at his side and even though I hadn't met him in person during battle yet, Mairon and Runande had told me enough about him to know that he was not to be underestimated. This was the same man who bred the Uruk-Hai after all

Things would not be peaceful for a while and we had to stay vigilant to make sure Morgoth didn't take any elves prisoner to turn into orcs. These were my people and I didn't want to fail them. I jumped as Maitimo hugged me from behind and kissed the top of my head. "We will do our best to fend off any attacks, my heart. Our people will be safe." He whispered as he rubbed my arms to try and calm me down, knowing me well enough to know I was worrying 

"I'm just so incredibly worried, Maitimo. It's one thing to know Morgoth basically kidnapped elves in the very beginning to turn them into the monsters we have to fight over the next I don't know how many years. It's another thing to have to fight orcs in the future and know that it might just have been one of ours once." I muttered as I turned around and he rubbed my back to try and comfort me. "I just wish there was a way to know orcs were coming so we won't be taken by surprise." I said, not knowing that a way was actually about to present itself to us

With Ohtare living in the east with Finno and his father in the realm that Ñolofinwë had began in the years between the Battle of the Stars and the Glorious Battle and with Tyelkormo and Makalaurë having established their own realms near theirs to make sure they could help soon if anything ever happened, Celairel, Irissë and I met at least once every month so that our bond would stay strong as Celairel lived with us and Irissë in the kingdom next to us

One day, Irissë was rather concerned about something as she quickly hurried to us the moment she dismounted from her horse with her husband's help (even though she could do it herself, she loved the feeling of Ekthelion holding her in his arms too much to ask him to stop) and said she needed to speak to us and our sister about her brother and we immediately led her to a private room, Celairel eventually walking in after a servant went to get her

"What is it, Asterin?" She immediately asked in concern and our second-to-last sister took a very deep breath as she started to talk. "Turukáno went out with Finderáto a while back and ever since then, he keeps disappearing without telling us where he's going. He's building that city, isn't he?" She asked and I nodded in answer. She looked away for a second and seemed really torn about something, looking at her husband and he gave her an encouraging nod. "Do I really have to go with him once it's time?" She then asked and that actually threw me for a loop

"You don't want to go with your own brother?" I asked her and she bit her lip. "I love Turukáno and his family, but if I really go with them to...Gondolin, right? I'll be pretty much useless until the city falls and even then, you told me my husband dies during that event and there was no way I'm going to let that happen." She scoffed, making me, my husband Celairel and especially Ekthelion smile as the latter kissed her temple and she leaned into his touch

"Besides, what do I do while there? I basically get kidnapped, marry the elf who kills me later and give birth to the elf who betrays the city. There's literally nothing positive about that. Besides, Turukáno rarely listens to me so even if I told him the city would fall, he wouldn't believe me." She continued and I looked down as she made a good point, but there was one thing that she had to think about. "You do realise your brother dies during the Fall too?" I asked

Irissë immediately looked down at that, a tear rolling down as she knew this and Ekthelion did his best to comfort her as he pulled her close. "Finno and I already talked about it quite a bit before he and Ohtare left for the east and as much as it hurts me to say this, you defend need me more here than my brother does in the city. I just didn't realise that he would start building the city so soon." She replied after taking a very deep breath, knowing that if she stayed here, she was practically dooming her brother to die and with him Elenwë probably too.

"Even then, is there a way for me to save him during the Fall?" She asked and I found that I couldn't answer that. If I remembered correctly, then Turukáno would defend his Palace and not leave until it literally collapsed around him. The only way Irissë could possibly save him was if she seriously risked her own life by staying at his side and use her Earthbending as we started to call her earth-based powers to get them out of there and to the other refugees

Even then, it wasn't even completely certain it would even work or if Irissë would even survive that long as dark as the thought was. Morgoth really pulled out all the stops to bring the city down in the book to the ground and with my sister's powers probably revealed at that point as she would have fought in at least one major battle, she would be a major target for his creatures. "See?" Irissë asked as she saw that I came to the same conclusion as she had

"I'm not even completely sure if I can save anyone if I go to Gondolin. In the book, I practically bring it down myself, albeit a bit indirectly by bringing my son to live there. If I stay here,  I can help you with the attacks you talked about that Morgoth sends out to try and capture elves. I've been practicing my "Toph vision" to sense anything incoming through the earth. I can actually be of use here." She stated and Maitimo and I both shared a shocked look at this. "We actually talked about those attacks not too long ago." I confessed, to the surprise of my sisters

"Really?" Celairel asked and I nodded. "I talked about how I wouldn't want to fight against an orc while knowing it was one of our people once. If Irissë is willing to do it, then she can hopefully prevent that from ever happening." I explained and the elleth immediately puffed her chest out, a hopeful look entering her eyes. "Are you both absolutely sure that you want to live around the most dangerous place in the entire kingdom?" I asked them to be certain 

Irissë and Ekthelion shared a look at this question and smiled at each other, before looking back at me and nodded. I nodded back as I looked at Maitimo. He was still the High King after all and the final decision fell to him. "Very well. You can stay here. However, you'll be the one to tell Turukáno about it." He said and the other couple laughed as they easily agreed before leaving to rest from the pretty long ride and the stress of having made this decision 

"That's one thing taken care of." Maitimo stated with a relieved smile after Celairel had left as well and I smiled as I leaned back against his chest. "Indeed. We will need to send guards with them and maybe establish a small settlement there as I'm not going to let them face Morgoth on their own." I muttered and he chuckled as he wrapped his arms around me from behind and nuzzled my silver hair, making me smile as well. "I wouldn't dream of leaving them defenceless, my love." He told me, before we had to separate and take care of other matters 

From what I heard later, Turukáno was not happy to hear that his sister was not going with him to a place where, to his and the city's credit, she would be much safer than here. Up until a certain point that is, but he obviously didn't know that. Irissë stood by her decision and with us having her back, Turukáno had no choice but to concede. He definitely wasn't happy about it though and if I was in his situation, I knew I wouldn't be happy about it either

Eventually, Turukáno's now former city of Vinyamar in Nevrast became abandoned as he led his people to the mountains in the north where Gondolin was waiting for them, not to be seen again for a few centuries. "So, in the book, he briefly became High King after Finno died, right? Did he even do anything when he had that title?" Celairel asked as we discussed this move. "Yeah. He died." I snarked and my sisters, husband and daughter shook their heads at this

"So basically, he did nothing?" Irissë asked. "Well in his defense, by the time he became High King, there wasn't much to do as after the Battle of Unnumbered Tears and the fall of Nargothrond, he was the only one of the House of Finwë who still had a realm. The other members of the family were either dead or scattered around the lands, unable to raise an army until the Valar came to help, even if he didn't live to see it." I muttered. "Are you absolutely sure "Lord of the Rings" and The Silmarillion" were written by the same person?" Celairel asked and we snorted

"She's right though. What on earth exactly happened to "there's good in this world and it's worth fighting for?" Now, it's more like "there are about three good things in the world and fighting for them is a terrible idea."" Irissë agreed and we laughed at that. Once we had calmed down again, I then looked at a letter Súldor had brought to me that morning from my nephew who was now ruling Nargothrond and bit my lip as i thought about this kingdom

While Gondolin was perhaps too difficult to save, even if Maeglin would never exist now, my nephew's realm had more of a chance as it's mostly because of Turin and his big head that it falls in the first place. "You're thinking of saving cousin Fin's kingdom, aren't you?" My daughter asked and I nodded. "I may have an idea that could help." She then told us and we looked at her. "What is it?" I asked, her answer surprising us all, but none more than Maitimo and I 

"Send me there."

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Gotta be honest, i was reluctant to let Fearil go

Even though I knew that my nephew's realm was one of the safest places in all of Beleriand until a certain human gets in, but I still didn't like the fact that my daughter would be so far away. With Runande in Valinor, Ohtare, Finno, Makalaurë and Tyelkormo in the east and with preparations already underway for a small settlement in the east of Mithrim so my sister could watch out for any attacks, my family was slowly being split up and I really didn't like it

Still, I knew it might be for the best, so I contacted my nephew through Súldor and he agreed to take Fearil on as advisor and spokesperson for us if it was ever necessary. "Thank goodness our daughter and Finderato were the best of friends when she grew up." I muttered to my husband and he chuckled as he held me close and kissed my temple. "She's going to be fine, my heart. He will keep her safe." He whispered and I nodded as I took a deep breath

Finderáto soon came to pick his cousin up personally with several guards which once again reminded me how weirdly intertwined our families were in some ways. My husband was Finderáto's (half)cousin from his father's side while our own daughter was his cousin from his mother's side, not to mention that my former sister was now the cousin of both him and Maitimo, Ohtare was married to another cousin and Irissë's brother and Celairel might have a crush on Tyelkormo. If this goes on even longer, we'll almost be like the Targaryens from Game of Thrones.

Everyone who was still here hugged Fearil tightly one-by-one as they wished her luck in her new home, Maitimo and I being the last as we held her as tightly as possible. "Be careful. No matter what." Maitimo told her and she nodded. "Try and find happiness in Nargothrond. Perhaps, you'll find your One there." I stated and she giggled before we pulled back after several minutes of hugging. I fussed over her one more time, before turning to my nephew 

"Look after her, Finderáto." I ordered and he bowed to me. "She will want for nothing, Your majesty. I promise." He swore and I smiled as I walked to him and gently kissed his forehead, briefly letting the High Queen fall away to make way for the ellon's aunt. "Thank you." I breathed and he smiled at me. "You're very welcome." He said and I smiled back at him, before walking back to my husband and daughter just as Maitimo was quietly giving her some last advice

I heard something about how she had to inform us immediately if she actually found her One in Nargothrond and who it was and I rolled my eyes. It was pretty funny how much my elf Prince of a husband now sounded like any typical human father when his daughter gets her first boyfriend. It was honestly adorable to see and I could see Fearil was a mix of amused and slightly embarrassed. Again, this looked pretty human to me. "Maitimo, I think she gets it." I told him and he hummed as I gave my daughter a final gift: a beautiful necklace

It had rubies and pearls in it to represent me and Maitimo. "As long as you wear this, you'll always have us with you." I promised as I put it around her neck and she smiled as she bowed to us, before climbing on her horse and slowly starting to leave with her cousin. Maitimo wrapped his arm around me as we watched our daughter leave us as well. I knew she deserved to live her own life, but like any parent knew, it was hard to separate from your first child

Because our castle was built on pretty much the highest point around us, we could watch our daughter go for quite a while until she and the group around her finally disappeared into the distance and Maitimo gently led me inside. It was very hard not to immediately go to Fearil's old room and just have a good cry about her being gone and perhaps not returning until this city fell if it did, but we had to continue on and look after our people as was our duty. 

Over the next few years, nothing really major happened in our kingdom as we tried to look after everyone,  apart from the expected orc attacks, but thankfully for us and our people and unfortunately for those following Morgoth, the attacks started only after Irissë's new home had been completed and as our powers grew over the years, she managed to use the mountains surrounding our realm to open chasms that swallowed the monsters and close them once she felt no more footsteps, crushing and burying them at the same time

Celairel and I were having breakfast one day, Maitimo already busy when Súldor appeared on his perch with a letter, a gust of wind being the only thing announcing his arrival through the high and open window we had made for him. "Ah, there you are. Any news?" I asked as he gave the letter to me. Opening it and reading it over, my eyes widened and a smile grew on my face. "What is it?" Celairel asked and I looked up. "Ohtare is pregnant." I announced 

Celairel, who had been about to take a bite, froze with her fork halfway to her mouth. "Really?" She asked and I nodded. My final sister who lived in the same place calmly put her fork down first, before letting out a very unlady-like squeal and laugh. I couldn't blame her. With none of us having had kids in our previous life, Beren not to be born for a few centuries and Fearil already grown up by the time they met, this was the first time she'd met a niece or nephew

She then hurried over so she could read the letter with me. Ohtare wrote that she had first sensed the new spark of life the day before and had gone to the healers to be sure. She had told her husband last night and as she was writing this letter to us, a very ecstatic Finno was writing about how he was going to be a father to his father and siblings. "He's reminding me of Darth Vader of "How It Should Have Ended." She wrote and we both laughed as we could easily believe that. "Like in the clip for "Revenge of the Sith?" Celairel asked quietly. "Probably." I agreed

About a year later, we got an official letter announcing the birth of Princess Alassinde Findekániel, her name meaning "joyful." Like my younger sister before me, I briefly left go of manners and giggled like a schoolgirl as I hugged my husband sideways from where we were sitting on our thrones and he laughed as he wrapped his arm around me, just as happy for his cousins as I was. We then announced it to our people and we had a feast to celebrate it

A few years after that, Irissë asked for soldiers to be sent to where she and Ekthelion lived. When I asked why, her reply was incredibly blunt. "Because I can't exactly Earthbend when my stomach is the size of a bowling ball now, can I?" I spent about five minutes laughing at both the news and the way my sister announced it before sending an extra battalion to go there for the next few years so she could have her pregnancy and raise her firstborn in relative peace

She and Ekthelion had a son named Ñaltanáre, meaning "Radiant Flame." I was a bit surprised he wasn't called Lómion like in the book, before remembering that this Irissë was very different than in the books and probably wouldn't want to name her son after the elf who betrayed her brother's city to Morgoth. Because they lived a lot more nearby, Celairel and I were there for the birth and after the boy's own parents were the very first ones to hold him. Irissë and Ekthelion were at first content to watch us with their son, before the former realised something.

"Wait, I just realised that because I go to Gondolin in the book, I never see my father or Finno again." She breathed. "Well, that's your counterpart's fault. Book Turukáno only let her out of the city on the condition that she would visit Finno. She agrees, only to change plans and wanting to go to Tyelkormo and Curufinwë. It all goes downhill from there." I said as I was holding the baby. "Book me is an idiot." Irissë stated in a deadpan voice and we all laughed. 

Because she had to protect our kingdom from Angband, she couldn't visit Finno when Alassinde was born, but they could visit her and did so with a very ecstatic grandpa Ñolofinwë who now had two new grandchildren to spoil and see grow up. I still had no idea if I could stop his duel with Morgoth, even if he wasn't High King now, but I had the feeling it was in the "unavoidable" category like the Ñoldor leaving and had told Irissë and Finno that

They had thankfully understood even if it had obviously hurt them to hear it, but this day was definitely not the day for sad and pessimistic thoughts. I watched as the ellon carefully held his new grandson with a huge and beaming smile on his face and smiled as well. With one brother dead even if there was no love lost between the two of them, his other brother back in Valinor with both his parents and sisters and with one of his sons now hidden in the mountains, the poor guy could probably use a new family member or two to cheer him up a bit 

We also met Alassinde as Ohtare and Finno proudly introduced her to us and boy did she look like a female version of her father. I wondered if she inherited her mother's personality and immediately wished anyone standing between her and those she cared about good luck. Still, the girl was a happy little kid for now as she met her baby cousin. I smiled at the adorable sight, wishing we had cameras here, but I guess I had to do it with my own memory 

At least two decades after the Glorious Battle, things had settled down for the most part as everyone was used to their homes and did their best to stay united against our enemy. Irissë was once again taking care of any orc attack while she and Ekthelion raised their son, Fearil had found her place in Nargothrond and even Tyelpë wrote us a letter to say he was planning on proposing to Arodeth. One morning, I woke up feeling off and immediately smiled 

"Guess it's my turn now." I muttered as I put a hand on my stomach 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

I immediately turned in my bed, only to find the other side empty

"Damn it!" I sighed, having hoped to share this special moment with Maitimo but he was already taking care of business and I had missed my chance. For such a huge guy, he had really mastered the "sneaking out of bed" technique. He refused to tell me how, but Iimagined it was thanks to years of trying to sneak out of his brother's beds when they had fallen asleep and their parents were busy. I sighed again and rolled onto my back, looking at his empty side

He always tried to make me rest more so that I wouldn't get stressed or surprised by anything because of my tired mind, but I sometimes had to drag him to bed as well. We were a team and it didn't work out if only one half of the team was well-rested while the other one was just on their last bits of energy. We definitely didn't have Red Bull or anything like that here. Besides, our bond would get stretched like a rubber band if we spent too much time apart

A rubber band... yeah, that seemed like a good metaphor for an elven bond in some ways. If two halves of a pair would spend much time apart either through business or through a lot of travel, the bond would stretch and the couple would get more easily tired than when they're together and when one dies, the band completely snaps, leaving only a torn bond that almost always takes the other one. 'Man, if Celairel does get with Tyelkormo, she better prepare to spend a whole lot of time in the woods." I thought to myself with a small grin on my face

My former sister and brother-in-law seemed to be enjoying their friendship too much to change it into something else, although I did notice the former starting to write more letters to him over the past years. It seemed it was slowly going in that direction and unlike the situation with Lúthien in the book, Tyelkormo would get a Sindarin Princess who was actually interested in him. I shook my head and put my hand on my stomach. This was more important now

Looking up at the ceiling, I immediately tried my best to keep my pregnancy a secret from my husband through our bond as I wanted to tell him out loud, but I already knew that I wouldn't be able to keep it hidden for long. Even if you didn't take our bond into account, he was always fantastic in reading me and knowing when something was going on. I didn't want to just tell him like I did with Fearil. I wanted to do something special this time around 

I suddenly got an absolutely brilliant idea and smiled. I just hoped that I could get the right present and keep it a secret from Maitimo until then. I quickly got out of bed after that and servants immediately helped me dress. Sharing breakfast with Celairel, she immediately noticed something was going on, although me bouncing my foot probably had something to do with that. "Okay, you're clearly excited for something. What is it?" She asked about halfway through. "I just got the prefect gift for Maitimo to surprise him. I just hope it's done in time." I replied 

"You're the literal High Queen of the Ñoldor, cousin. I'm sure that if it's something to be made, it will be done post-haste once you make the order. What is it?" She asked, making sure not to call me "sister" now we had servants around us, waiting for us to tell them to do something. I wrote something down and passed it over to her, not wanting to say it out loud yet. Leaning over to read it, her eyes widened at reading it and realising what it meant

She then looked at me with those wide eyes and I put my index finger against my lips, telling her to keep quickly and she immediately nodded in understanding as she clearly tried to suppress her very happy smile and laugh. Crumbling the piece of paper up into a ball and throwing it into the fireplace, I immediately went to my destination once breakfast was over and placed my order. The elf responsible promised it would be done as soon as possible 

I then finally joined my husband in his study and immediately poked his side as soon as I sat down on the armrest of his very luxurious chair. "How much did you sleep?" I asked as I quit crossed my arms. I hated it when he didn't wake me up and the stubborn bastard was very well aware of it, yet he still kept doing it as much as he could. He gave me an apologetic smile as he wrapped one arm around my waist and kissed my temple. "I slept enough, my heart. I'll be fine, especially when I have you at my side." He promised and I bit my lip at hearing this

Something that this 8 foot tall giant also knew very well was that I could never stay angry at him... or at least, not for very long no matter how much I tried. Especially when he gave me that sheepish smile of his was it incredibly hard to remain mad at him. I huffed, even as I covered his hand with mine. "You go to bed early tonight or I'll have the guards lock you in our chambers." I threatened him and he chuckled as he pressed his lips against my ear next

"They could lock us in our chambers together." He breathed and I rolled my eyes even as my body instinctively shivered. "How long have we been married? Two months?" I asked and he laughed wholeheartedly as he hid his face in my neck and I smiled at hearing my belly husband laugh again. Ever since we became High King and Queen, he was often too busy or too serious to fully laugh like he once used to. I managed to keep my secret that day

Only a couple of days, the elf I had placed my order with gave it to me and I thanked him. Miraculously, I or rather the new little Fëa inside me had managed to escape my husband's notice, but not for lack of effort on his part to have our souls join again. I either told him to go to sleep or pretended that I was tired instead. I knew I was frustrating him a bit, but after tomorrow, I probably had to convince him to make love to me. He had been so extremely careful with me when I was carrying Fearil that i had no doubt he'd be the same now

The very next morning, I managed to wake up before my husband and carefully sat up without waking him, just admiring the handsome ellon I was privileged to call mine in the early morning light. He seemed so peaceful now and I hoped to extend that bit of peace even after he woke up. Speaking of which, I leaned down and started to kiss him awake like a gender-flipped version of "Sleeping Beauty." Well, Maitimo did mean "well-formed" for a reason

I felt him smile in the kiss as one hand reached up to carefully cup my cheek. "Good morning, my darling." I whispered after breaking apart from the kiss. "Thank you, my heart. This is the best way to wake up." He replied and I grinned. "It's not over yet." I told him and he frowned as I turned and leaned over the edge of the bed, getting something out from underneath it. I had told the servants I had hidden my surprise there so they knew not to disturb it

I could feel Maitimo putting his hands on my waist to support me as I hung upside-down from the bed, however brief it was and helped me sit up straight again as I gave him the long and wrapped gift. "Thank you, my dearest." He said, before inspecting it as he weighed it in his hands and tried to guess what it was. "Is it a dagger?" He asked and I giggled. "Of sorts." I replied as I nudged him to open the present and he did, revealing a very tiny wooden sword. I watched his face with careful attention as I could see the cogs turning into his head

He then slowly looked at me with wide eyes, before his eyes fell on my stomach. "Oh, my heart." He breathed as he put one hand on my still flat stomach. I covered his hand with mine as he rested his forehead against mine. "You have no idea how happy you make me." He whispered and I smiled as I closed my eyes. "And you have no idea how hard it was to keep this a secret from you." I replied, making him laugh before he kissed me with all that he had

I then finally told those who weren't Celairel about my pregnancy and they were all ecstatic. Fearil was super excited to be a big sister and soon came to visit us with an ellon she introduced to us as Gwindor. She apparently saw my smile tightening at hearing the name as she later asked what happened to him. The absolute horror on her face suggested that she felt more than just friendship for him and I smiled at seeing it, but kept it quiet for now

About halfway through my pregnancy, the healers told me something interesting and I went to get Celairel again, hatching a very quick and simple scheme with her. That evening, she, Maitimo, Fearil and I were spending time together. "You know? The result of this pregnancy can be summed up in just one line." I said. "Which is?" Fearil asked curiously as she tilted her head and Celairel and I smirked at each other "Prepare for trouble." I stated. "And you can make that double." Celairel continued with a giggle. My family never lost their smiles that entire evening 

At the end of the year, though, I was tired of being three people and couldn't wait to hold them in my arms. Although, Maitimo's reaction to feeling both his children kick had been adorable. Fearil stayed with us through the year, wanting to meet her little siblings. "You are so screwed if they're both girls." I told my husband one evening and we both laughed, before I groaned in pain as my stomach cramped. "Well, guess it's time to find out." I muttered 

Several hours of labour later, I gave birth to both a boy and a girl. Like with Fearil, I was already crying before they were even put in my arms. Maitimo soon joined me with Fearil and I looked at him. "Guess you're half-screwed." I muttered tiredly and he laughed as he held his son while Fearil looked at her new baby sister lying in my arms. "What are their names, Atya? She asked and Maitimo smiled. "Varno and Naire." He stated and we nodded at that

We then simply enjoyed this moment as a family

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

And I thought Maitimo was happy before

I honestly don't think he barely let his eyes leave our newborns during that entire first day after they were born. Varno already had a tuft of red hair on top of his hair and I genuinely wouldn't be surprised if he would grow up to be a miniature version of his father. Naire's hair colour was a bit harder to decipher as it looked like silver normally, but if you held her up in the sunlight, it had an almost red gleam

"It's like cousin Artanis' hair." Fearil commented with a smile as she held her little sister. I was still on bed rest while our advisers and several of our family took care of everything so that my husband didn't have to leave us for long periods of time. Maitimo himself chuckled as he had one arm around my back while I was holding Namo. "Again, we're going to have to beat the suitors away with a stick." I commented with a grin

Maitimo gave me an unamused look and I grinned at him, kissing the underside of his jaw as I knew he could not stay angry at me when I did it. His lip twitched and I smiled as I leaned against him as I looked back at our son. Maitimo kissed my temple and I grinned as I enjoyed this moment with my family. Naire then let out a wail and her big sister practically jumped in surprise. "I've finished feeding her and Varno. What is it now?" I asked with a small frown as I tried to keep my son asleep as having two crying babies was already a handful and they were only a few days old

Fearil held her crying sister up and took a small sniff, immediately making a face that both told me exactly what was wrong and was pretty hilarious to see on our oldest daughter as Maitimo took Naire over and gently brought her to the table to be cleaned. This was the first time Fearil saw an elfling being cleaned as it was either done by the baby's parents or considered not something to be done by a princess 

It was pretty adorable to see her looking along with her father and even from behind I could see her taking things in so that if the need ever arose, she could do it herself. Thankfully. Varno stayed asleep as he just turned his face into my chest and slept on peacefully. Oh, to have the ability not to worry about anything. From the moment I arrived in Valinor, my brain was almost always in a constant state of "shit, shit, shit!"

I sighed as I looked at my sleeping son. Even while asleep and completely away from the world, he basically looked like a miniature version of his father, maybe a bit more pudgy with baby-fat but incredibly adorable nonetheless. I still wait completely used to my babies sleeping with their eyes open, even after centuries of living with Maitimo and honestly, even he scared me at times when I woke up in the middle of the night to see his eyes staring at me without blinking. There's a reason I prefer the spoon position or burying my face in his neck

Still, feeling my son's warmth as he laid in my arms and seeing his little chest go up-and-down with every breath reassured me that he was okay. Naire's crying stopped as Maitimo successfully cleaned her and then blew raspberries on her stomach to make her laugh while Fearil smiled at the sight. One of the most fearsome warriors in all of Middle-Earth.... and he turns into a total goofball when playing with his children 

I looked at the peaceful picture in front of me and locked it forever in my mind and heart. No matter what happened from now on, we had this moment of tranquillity and that was enough for me. Maitimo then returned to me with Naire as Fearil went to the bathroom for a minute. "Speaking of suitors, I think our oldest daughter is rather interested in lord Gwindor. Don't even start." I added when my husband raised an eyebrow

"She's a fully grown elleth, my love and from what I remember, Gwindor is one of the most sensible elves in the book. He's one of the few elves who try to keep Nargothrond hidden when Túrin vouches for an open war so he can be a hero. He wins.... and my nephew's realm gets sacked by dragons and other monsters not long after." I continued. "I'm surprised Finderáto lets that happen." Maitimo commented, briefly distracted now. "He's already dead at that point. My great-nephew rules it in his stead and he decides to go to open war." I explained 

"That makes more sense. Finderáto is not exactly one to bow to peer pressure." Maitimo hummed. "He is a definite keeper of his word though, even if it means going on a suicide mission." I muttered. Over the past few years, I had tried to think of ways to keep my nephew out of the Silmaril quest, but unless I manage to stop him from getting into danger during the next battle, seei Barahir won't have to save him, I'm stumped.

I then suddenly got to a horrifying realisation and paled. "Oh crap." I whispered. "What is it?" My husband asked in concern. "I was just thinking, Celairel saw her One, who is very likely Tyelkormo getting tortured by someone. Tyelkormo is heavily involved in the Silmaril quest my cousin Lúthien goes on. The difference is that in the book, he makes things worse than they already are by threatening people with the Oath." I began to explain

"Considering that he's on our side now, he might actually join Lúthien and Beren either with or instead of Finderáto. What if Celairel saw him getting hurt by Curumo while on that quest?" I asked him and he paled too at the thought of his younger brother getting hurt by the Maia. "Did... did Finderáto get hurt by him?" He asked slowly. "No, he got hurt and eventually killed by evil Mairon." I replied and he groaned in pain at imagining having to lose one of his brothers. Yes, with three of them having sworn the Oath, that would likely still happen, but Tyelkormo was good 

I shuffled closer to him to give him as much comfort as I could in my situation and somehow, my gentle movement somehow did what Naire's trainer loud crying did not: waking Varno up from his deep sleep. He looked at the both of us, before focusing himself on his father and reaching out to him with a small squeal. Carefully handing him over, I leaned against my husband's side as he now held one twin in each arm

"We'll do our very best to protect him, Maitimo and besides that, we still don't know what exactly Celairel's power is since she always trains in the forest, but it's powerful. I can feel it. If Lúthien could make Sauron surrender with nothing more than a certain hound of Oromë at her side, then she'll make Curumo piss his pretty armour with a furious Celairel and Huan with her if he dares to harm one hair on Kormo's head." I assured him

After letting out a snort at the image of Curumo peeing himself, he then looked down at our precious twins as they babbled at him in baby talk. Many of our family, who had come to visit us in the past week, had all already met our new children. Only Irissë and Ekthelion had already left for their small settlement again to keep our realm safe. I wad pretty sure we're could expect several gifts to make up for their short visit. The three Oathbound brothers refused to come and to be completely honest, I was actually glad they didn't come.

I had already been incredibly nervous sharing Fearil with them way back in Valinor and that was before they swore that dreadful thing. If they actually held my children now, I'd be the one ready to commit Kinslaying if they so much as looked at them wrong. "It's not for another few centuries, love. We'll be fine." I whispered and he nodded, even if I could see it still bothered him. I carefully grabbed Naire and held her up in front of him

"Atya, no sad faces today." I stated to him in a tiny baby voice to try and cheer him up as I gently wiggled our daughter a bit in front of his face, Naire unwittingly helping in my goal by suddenly squealing as she put one of her small baby hands on her father's nose and making us both laugh at the adorableness that was our new daughter. Maitimo then gave me a small but genuine smile and I decided to take it for what it was

Fearil returned soon after, having been talking to Ohtare and having gotten some papers for us to look over while I was still in bed. She immediately felt that something had happened. I shook my head at her look, not wanting to bring up the subject again and she let it go, albeit rather reluctantly and I couldn't blame her. I'd hate it as well if people constantly kept secrets from me, but this right now was a happy day and I was going to try to keep it that way. Multitasking by each holding one twin in one arm and reading the papers with the other, we could still work.

Celairel and Ohtare came to meet their new nephew and niece again that evening and I told them and Fearil the same thing as Maitimo and they all paled as well and I was pretty sure I saw Celairel gulping at the idea of Tyelkormo being hurt. "Is there no way we can stop it?" She asked. "Not if we're not in the right place at the right time and even then, maybe not." I mutterred and she loudly groaned as she held Naire in her arms.

"Man, knowing the possible future sucks." She muttered. "How do you think I feel 24/7?" I asked and all three of them snorted at this. "We'll try to look after everyone, but that doesn't mean that we can save everyone. Irissë already made that sacrifice with Turukáno and we may have to make the same choice." I said. "But we'll still do our very best. We avpsy managed to save many elves and we can't stop now." Ohtare stated and we all agreed

My new babies kinda hogged our attention after that

Chapter Text

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"WAAAAAAHHHHH" "WAAAAAAAHHHH" 

I sat up with a small groan and rubbed my eyes, Maitimo doing the same from next to he as he already went to get Varno out of his crib. With our busy duties as High King and Queen, we really had to juggle looking after our people and looking after our twins with looking after ourselves. While I was pregnant, Maitimo and I had made a small deal that I took the morning off to sleep in a bit sud take care of Varno and Naire while he took care of state business

I'd eventually join him after lunch while either Celairel, Fearil or a couple of other trusted elves looked after our children. I still checked up on them every hour and spend a bit of time with them, Maitimo trying to squeeze as much time with them between meetings and all that as possible as well. Like my parents, we refused to be the kind of parents who were never there for their kids. We had been there for Fearil, so we sure as hell would be there for them

Still, like human babies, elflings also had to be fed in the middle of the night at times and one enormous disadvantage of having twins was that if one started to cry, the other one was almost sure to follow. Thankfully, their cribs were right on either side of our bed, so for us it was a simple manner of reaching out and pulling Naire into my arms while my husband did the same with Varno. Some Lords had thought it weird that we'd let our babies sleep in the same room while we could just ask a servant to watch over them, but I honestly preferred this option 

While I knew that orcs wouldn't get inside here and that only elves we trusted would be in the palace at night, I wanted my babies to be right next to me until they were older. Trying to hush Naire as Maitimo returned with Varno, it quickly became clear what they wanted and within a few minutes, both were happily nursing while I tried to stay awake. Seeing my husband watching me as he laid on his side, I smiled at him while making sure my arms didn't fall asleep

"Go to sleep, my love. I'll bring them back to bed myself." I promised in a whisper, my body making an involuntary movement at my son drinking a bit harder than his sister, making my husband chuckle. "I'll be fine, my heart. I already miss enough of them during the day. I don't want time miss anything more." He replied as he leaned up on his elbow and gently caressed Naire's little tuft of hair. I smiled at him, before it fell as I looked down at our twins again

"What is it?" Maitimo immediately asked, always aware of my changing moods and I sighed. "I just hate that, unlike us and their big sister, they and the kids of Ohtare,  Finno, Irissë and Ekthelion won't have the peace of Valinor to happily grow up in. Sure, we have peace now, but even then, they'll grow up learning to be on their guard, to never be alone at anytime, to be wary of strangers. They'll grow up in a castle built for its defense, rather than its beauty." I muttered. I knew I had to protect them, but it was going to be a lot harder here than in Valinor

Maitimo looked down and I could see that he hadn't thought of that. "I understand what you mean. They'll never know the beauty of the Two Trees and the amazing peace that came with them. My mother and your parents won't meet them until they're all grown up. They may not see them until we finally return, whenever that is."" He agreed as he sat up and carefully pulled me closer without disturbing our twins who were still filling their bellies.

Watching them for a moment I eventually spoke up. "There was this game I used to play not long before we came here and it had this song at the end credits. I only now realise that one part of the lyrics actually fit my situation back in Valinor." I commented. "And what part was that?" He asked. "Reach for my hand, I'll soar away into the dawn. Oh, I wish I could stay. Here in cherished halls in peaceful days, I fear the edge of dawn knowing time betrays." I sang quietly

"I can see why you'd relate to that part. It must've been torture for you to know what would eventually happen to us, my family and of course, your family. You've been so incredibly strong to keep it all together." He whispered as he rubbed my arm. "It was especially hard in the beginning when I was the age of our twins. I was confused, I was already stressing out over the possible future dangers that were waiting and I thought I was all alone. I thought I had lost my sisters just like we had lost our parents." I muttered as I leaned against him tiredly

He kissed my temple as our twins filled themselves and we took one to burp them, before Maitimo still took them to bed himself. Lying down once we were sure they were asleep, we quickly snuggled together to try and fall asleep as quick as possible to catch as many hours of sleep as we could. While sleeping like this as often as we did wasn't considered healthy for humans as it was seen as being co-dependent on each other, elves were a different thing

We needed the close contact for our bond to flourish again, especially after a very busy day of doing many different duties separately. I knew that I always felt incredibly tired when I hadn't spent much time with him. I stroked his long red hair as I used his chest as a pillow, happy he hadn't bound it like he usually did during the day. "Nemireth, could you sing the full song? Your voice always soothes me." He asked and how could I say no to him? 

Reach for my hand

I'll soar away

Into the dawn

Oh, I wish I could stay

Here in cherished halls

In peaceful days

I fear the edge of dawn

Knowing time betrays

Faint lights pass through colored glass

In this beloved place

Silver shines, the world dines

A smile on each face

As joy surrounds, comfort abounds

And I can feel I'm breaking free

For just this moment lost in time

I am finally me

Yet still I hide

Behind this mask that I have become

My blackened heart

Scorched by flames, a force I can't run

At the end of it, I wasn't even sure if he heard the final part of the song as he had slowly succumbed to sleep again as I had sang the song on a slightly slower speed and much softer volume than it had, but I didn't mind that he had fallen asleep on me. He needed the sleep and I had the morning to catch up. I gently kissed the tip of his nose, before settling down and falling asleep myself. There was another busy day waiting for us and we needed all the rest

Not too long after that, our little ones started their attempts to talk and like my parents before me and like we had done with Fearil, Maitimo and he were there every step of the way as much as we could and it seemed that they understood that as one day, when Maitimo and I had a little bit of precious free time, we immediately went to where Fearil was being the best big sister ever while watching them with Gwindor and Celairel when she wasn't busy

Naire, seeing us walk in from over her big sister's shoulder, gave a big smile and reached out to us. "Nana!" She called and we all stiffened up. "Was that what I think it was?" Celairel asked with a big grin on her face and I nodded as I shook myself out of my stupor and lifted my daughter up in my arms, covering her face with dozens of kisses. She squealed and giggled as I then nuzzled her head and Maitimo took Varno for a minute, before we switched and he could show his daughter how incredibly proud he was of her and she laughed again

I smiled as I held my son who squirmed a bit to get my attention and I looked down. He gave me a big smile as well. "Amma!" He squealed and I laughed as I held him up and twirled him around. My children had said their first words and it was their name for me! Suck it, darling! I couldn't be more proud as Varno was net to be covered in kisses and he loved it as I then held him close. "Can you say "Atya" now? Come on, say "Atya."" I encouraged him

"Ata." He repeated. "Almost there." I muttered as I smiled at my husband and he beamed back at me as I walked closer to him and he wrapped an arm around me as we smiled down at our twins while the others left. "I love you. So much." I whispered. "I love you too and so do our children." Maitimo replied as we enjoyed this moment. A few days later, Maitimo had a few minutes of and went into the nursery while I just walked past, hearing a loud cry coming from it

"Atya!

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"Are you certain?" 

"Positive. It's been exactly six months since the last orc attack.... or rather since the last orc battalion was swept away by an unexpected wind." Irissë answered with a big grin on her face, having figured out that if she only used Earthbending to repel any attacks, the orcs would eventually figure out that something was going on. By using wind and at times water as well, she kept surprising them and defeated them with relative ease

It had been several years since our dear twins were born, Varno and Naire now 43 years old and both the children of Ohtare, Finno, Irissë and Ekthelion being even older. Time really flew by when you had children, even with elves. Of course, none of them were adults by long shot, but they could thankfully walk, talk and were already rather independent, especially now that they didn't need me or my sisters for food anymore.

Fearil had returned to her cousin's realm after a few years once she was certain her younger siblings would remember her and Gwindor officially asked our permission to start courting her a couple of years ago. We gave that permission, but not before Maitimo somehow managed to scare the living daylights out of him over paper and I just rolled my eyes. As if Gwindor wasn't aware enough that the elleth he loved was the oldest daughter of the High King and Queen. Still, I knew he meant well and so did Fearil as she only sent me a fondly exasperated letter back when I told her

Speaking of relationships, Tyelpë had finally married Arodeth as well in the past few decades. We had all gone to Doriath together to witness their union and despite having been rather against it in the beginning, Curufinwë still gave his blessing after seeing how very happy his son was with the elleth he loved, sweet Tyelpë being unable to take his eyes off from the moment he saw her to the moment they left together

My sisters and I shared hidden looks and grins at seeing them leave. "We should play matchmaker more often." Celairel giggled quietly as she hid her face in her goblet and I grinned. We're had all used this opportunity to do other things as well. Celairel spent a lot of time with Lúthien after I reminded her that her older sister would very likely be gone forever in a few centuries and she quickly went to catch up to her at this

Maitimo and I also didn't sit around doing nothing as used the time in Doriath to discuss business and protection with my uncle and see how Artanis was doing despite now living far away from most of her family. I was happy to see my once little niece practically glowing in happiness as she introduced us to an ellon named Teleporno in Quenya translation. No, my sisters and I did not have to suppress our laughter at the name, why do you ask? I was the best at keeping it in as I already knew it and happily greeted him with an smile

I knew that no matter what would happen in the future, my niece would be taken care of with this ellon at her side. I asked him to take good care of Artanis and he immediately promised with a bow, me having to hide a grin at seeing my niece's cheeks turn slightly red. "Aunt Nemireth!" She hissed when her future husband was talking to Maitimo. "What? Your parents aren't here, so I'm making sure you'll be looked after in their stead." I replied

She gave me an unamused look, but hey! I usually helped Ëarwen cleaning her when she was a tiny elfling as weird as it was to think that I was cleaning the Lady Galadriel, so I felt I had to make sure she'd be happy even when far away from both her mother and me. We eventually had to go back home again after wishing Tyelpë and his new wife all the luck in the world. We were all in very good spirits for the entire ride back to Hithlum

"What does this mean?" Celairel asked me back in the present, snapping me out of my thoughts. "I'm not sure. In the book, Morgoth stopped attacking our kingdom to focus on creating the dragons, but then again, those attacks were much more successful in the books as he takes elves prisoner to turn into orcs as well. It might just as well be that he has given up... for now. He'll probably try again sooner or later if not focused on creating the dragons. Problem is that we won't know until the next attack or when we see a huge lizard eventually walking around." I muttered 

I was of course happy that Irissë had managed to fend off any attacks and had kept our people safe. I couldn't be more even thankful if I tried, but it did make anticipating Morgoth's next move quite difficult. Was he giving up on attacking? Was he waiting for us to lower our guard? Was he now planning on creating the dragons a bit more early now that no matter what he tried, he couldn't get into our kingdom? I had absolutely no idea 

"That's one slippery snake, that Morgoth." Ohtare muttered, having come to visit us while Finno looked after their realm, which ironically was around where my husband's realm had been in the books. It was on the other side of Beleriand, but her wolf could travel big distances for much longer and was faster than any horse. "It's like what I imagined travelling on Aslan's back would be like if Aslan was a wolf." She had commented once

"You could say that again, but at the very least, we've robbed him of the chance to take more elves into Angband and are more united than inb the book." I agreed. "There's another thing that we've robbed him off if I remember correctly." Irissë commented and we all looked at her. She grinned as her eyes twinkled with mischief. "His original right-hand man." She elaborated and we all chuckled. "That's true. That's very true." I immediately agreed, knowing that with Sauron out of the picture, things would be very different indeed

"I wonder how they are now." Celairel muttered after calming down again. "Do you think that after the War of Wrath, they'll come to help like Gandalf?" Irissë asked curiously. "I have no idea. From what I've heard, Curumo was not as powerful a Maia as Mairon is, but still very powerful in his own right. It all depends if the Valar consider him enough of a threat because I highly doubt things will just be over after the first age." I replied.

"That would be nice, but also extremely anticlimactic." Ohtare agreed. "Well, if they come in disguise, then we'll at least have a code phrase to determine their real identity." Irissë said as she looked at me and I smiled. It was true that not long before we left Valinor, I had taught Mairon a couple of lines to make sure we knew it was him if he came in disguise. Only me, my husband and sisters and their ones knew it for safety reasons

"Tell me your name." I breathed to see if they still knew it, trying to sound as distressed as Galadriel in the show had been during that scene. "I've been awake since before the breaking of the first silence." Ohtare stated. "In that time." Celairel took over. "I've had many names." Irissë finished and I gave them two thumbs-up, making them grin. Yes, that show had not been a good adaptation, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't like those two lines. "Funny how that show made us root for our brother-in-law before he ever became our brother-in-law." Ohtare laughed.

"It might also explain in a way why Lillith had a small crush on the guy playing him in the show." Celairel commented as she snorted at the thought. "And I hadn't even met Mr. Ru at that point. Go figure." I said with a huge, crooked grin on my face and we then all laughed at the irony of our youngest sister having a slight crush on a fictional character, before actually marrying said fictional character without even knowing it.

That was basically every fangirl's biggest dream and she (and I too in a way) were living it right now. I wondered how our old friends back on earth would react if they ever found out. Well, it was never going to happen, but it was definitely a lot of fun to think about. I used to have several friends who were just as huge Tolkien nerds as I was. If they ever somehow voted out what happened to us, they would definitely faint

I then told all four of my sisters to always stay on their guard even slightly no matter what happened and peaceful things seemed if Morgoth really had retreated into Angband to create the dragons as like Ohtare had said, Morgoth was a very dangerous snake, ready to strike at any moment if he sensed that we were distracted by other things or had grown lax in our peace. They immediately agreed to look out for any suspicious activity, before Ohtare eventually went back to her family and Irissë went back to her settlement

No attacks happened over the next few years as our children grew up even more in that time. Naire really had a rather red glow in her mostly silver hair like we had seen when she was a baby and Varno truly became a (slightly) smaller version of his father. Personality wise, though, Varno definitely took after me and Naire took more after her father as they trained to defend themselves once they were old enough to do so

However, I eventually noticed that something was still bothering my husband, even without the attacks and I wanted to know what it was, so I asked him one night while lying in bed. "What is it, my love? You're not yourself." I asked and he sighed. "Sorry, my heart. I was just thinking about something. This Battle of Unnumbered Tears you once told me about, it all started with me right?" He asked and I nodded as he bit his lip.

"What if I don't start it?" He asked

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"Uhhhhhh....."

For once, I actually drew a complete blank. I honestly hadn't expected the question, but I really should have. Maitimo in the book didn't know the disastrous consequences his plan to attack Morgoth would bring while mine did. Now that I really thought about it, I was honestly more surprised it took him this long to ask or think about it, but with the Long Peace apparently setting in, it did sound like him to already think ahead

Seeing my expression, Maitimo smiled as he brushed my hair back. "I refuse to lead our people in a battle that will inevitably fail and cause ruin to the last realms we have, apart from Nargothrond and Gondolin. If we just stay defending our territories, then perhaps we can hold out much longer than we did in the books. We may not win from him in battle, but I'll see that as a victory as well." He explained to me and I smiled back

"That does sound like you." I muttered and he quickly chuckled, making my whole body shake with his and I grinned at hearing him laugh. Even with Morgoth still in Angband, the duties and stress of being High King had seriously sobered him up, even more than when I told him the truth. "Defending sounds like a better idea than a hopeless battle." I muttered as I buried my face in his collarbone and I felt him smile as he kissed the top of my head. "Maitimo?" I then asked quietly and he hummed as he gently stroked my hair. "I'm sorry for complicating your life." I then said 

His hand in my hair stopped moving. "My heart..." He breathed, but I wasn't done. "If it wasn't for me, you would've enjoyed the peace of Valinor to it's fullest, instead of worrying what wouldn't happen for many years or even centuries. If it wasn't for me, uou wouldn't have to think about the complicated future and what could possibly in store for your family. If it weren't for me..." I ranted, before he tightened his grip on me

"If it weren't for you, I'd be stuck in a fatal Oath with all my brothers that eventually claims all of our lives in one way or another and I'd be so desperate that I jump into a volcano after killing my own kin three times, including your people simply to get some boats. If it weren't for you, Tyelpë would be absent miserable having to live with his reputation as the last Fëanorian after the first age." He stated as he pulled back to look at me

"If it weren't for you or your sisters, me, Finno, Ekthelion and even Mairon would either die or turn evil, giving our people a worse adversary than Curumo and without us there to keep them safe. You have done far more good than harm, my amazing Nemireth and no matter what happens, I will never regret falling in love with you. Things may be complicated, but I know we can make it through as long as we stay together, so don't ever say such a thing ever again, do you hear me?" He then asked in a very Steven tone as he looked straight into my eyes

I looked down and nodded as one tear made it down my face when I closed my eyes. I felt my husband wipe it away with his thumb, followed by another kiss on the top of my head. He then lifted my head up to give me a proper kiss. I immediately kissed him back with all that I had, before breaking apart and snuggling closer to him, nuzzling his neck as he held mine. "I love you, my Nemireth and that will never change." He whispered 

"I love you too." I breathed in return, revelling in the comforting warmth that was my husband's body. I knew that a small part of me would still feel bad alot complicating things for a while, but I also knew that Maitimo would always be there for me, just as Finno, Ekthelion and even Mairon were there for my sisters. Perhaps, Tyelkormo would be counted among those ranks one day as well once he and Celairel finally got together

It didn't seem very long until it was going to happen now as Tyelkormo had been visiting our several times lately and I was pretty sure it was not just for his niece and nephew or even Irissë, despite them being best friends as he had spent a lot of time with my other former sister instead, even going out riding together if they had the time. "Just friends," my ass. If they didn't get together before the dragons came out, I was actually going to sing "Kiss the girl" and they couldn't stop me. With that thought, I fell asleep with a smile on my face

About one-and-a-half decade later, we received yet another letter from Gwindor politely asking our permission for something once more. This time, it was him actually asking our blessing to marry her as he didn't and I quote "want the king to accidentally cut me in half during our next battle." Who knew Gwindor could be this little sassmaster? I certainly didn't and I honestly loved it as I laughed at the letter for five minutes straight

Honestly, i just loved finding out these little things about these elves that Tolkien didn't tell us about. Finno had a pretty big sweet tooth, Makalaurë liked looking at the stars late at night, Ekthelion sometimes fell asleep with his flute in his hand, although that was usually after playing a little tune to put his wife to sleep. Hell, I even learned from Runande that Mairon always flopped down on the bed when he was really tired

Even though elves didn't really need permissions or blessings to marry as they usually knew exactly who was their one (even if they sometimes tried to deny it to themselves) it was still really sweet of him to ask as he knew how important we were to the elleth he loved so much. We obviously gave it and the couple soon came to visit us again with Finderáto, Orodreth or Artaresto and Gwindor's brother Gelmir for the exchanging of the rings and all my sisters and their Ones if they had them came as well to celebrate the upcoming union

"Nana, I have to ask: was Gwindor married to anyone in your book?" Fearil asked when we and my sisters pulled ourselves back to get ready. "No. He was betrothed to Artaresto's daughter, but they never married because he got taken captive by Morgoth, got back maimed and with this Turin guy I told you about. She falls in love with him instead, but eventually, everyone dies." I explained and she looked at me in horror

I couldn't blame her as her One being captured by Morgoth was the exact same horror scenario I had nightmares about for a long time and they still weren't gone even now. I grabbed her hand. "Just keep him safe as much as you can without endangering yourself as well. Keep him and his brother in Nargothrond if you have to, but if it makes you feel any better, the battle where he gets captured very likely won't happen." I told her

"It won't?" Irissë asked. "In the book. Maitimo was the one who came up with the idea of the battle in the first place. It obviously ends up in absolute disaster with the Ñoldor losing their second High King in less than 2 decades, almost every single realm being overtaken by orcs and other monsters and almost all their armies decimated. He has decided to just focus on defending rather than attacking. It might be a lot more boring, but we might be able to hold out longer than we do in the books and it's a lot less risky." I explained 

I noticed Ohtare relaxing a bit at hearing this news and knew she had realised this was the same battle Finno dies in. I gave her a quick smile to confirm this, before focusing myself on my daughter again. "We'll all help you keep him safe, my little princess. No matter what." I stated, all of my sisters nodding in agreement and she smiled. "Thank you, nana." She breathed as she hugged me and I immediately hugged her back

No matter how old she'd become, she would always be my precious little girl and my oldest daughter. I couldn't believe that she was getting married already. My little Fearil. At lost I knew that the ellon she was going to marry would worship the ground she walked on. I had seen him do it before. During the feast to celebrate the birth of our twins, he only had eyes for her despite her younger siblings being the centre of attention

"It's still a shame we missed Lillith getting married. It must have been the feast of the age." Celairel commented. "I'm not sure. Lillith was never much for big ceremonies and all that. Remember when we asked her how she'd want to get married and she just said "I'd just go to the courthouse and sign the papers?" Knowing her, she probably tried to keep it as simple as a Maia wedding could be." Ohtare responded and we all nodded as that did sound like Lillith, who always was the one least bothered about something, unless it involved us and now her husband

"Wow. Aunt Runande really doesn't like being the centre of attention, did she?" Fearil asked us with a small laugh and we shook our heads. "Not really. She was the youngest of us, so she already got a lot of attention from us and our parents, but whenever we'd throw her a birthday party, she'd usually remain upstairs and read a book, maybe watch a movie with us and some friends, but that was about it." I agreed even as I chuckled 

By the time she reached her teens, we had thankfully figured out her growing distaste for parties and simply went out for the day as a family instead. Well, as long as mom could afford it to take a day off." Irissë stated with a sigh and we all looked down, remembering the woman who made us and especially the younger ones into the women or ellyth we were now. The woman who had two jobs just to be able to take care of us

Because I had been 15 years old when dad died with Ohtare being 13, we had tried to help her out as much by working weekend jobs in my case and doing chores in the house in hers, but it was still very hard for us to get through life with enough money to support a family of six. It was even one of the reasons Delmira went into the army in the first place as the pretty nice paycheque she got was a big help, even if by that time, mom already had two less mouths to feed as both she and I had left home by that point to start our respective careers

"I wish I got to meet them." Fearil stated at seeing our moods sobering and I smiled as I wrapped an arm around her. "They would've loved you, your siblings and you're cousins." I said, everyone agreeing with that. "Can you imagine dad wanting to do the overprotective dad speech to Maitimo, only to have to crane his neck up to even look at him in the first place?" Celairel asked and were all laughed at that very hilarious image

Not that dad would have had anything to worry about concerning our safety with Maitimo or any of the others. Our Ones would lay down their lives in a heartbeat if the need came to it. We'd prefer it if they didn't, but they would. "Honestly, I could easily see mom telling them to do something and they'd be like "yes ma'am." Irissë chuckled and we laughed again, before telling Fearil more about her human grandparents

And so, we managed to turn a sad subject into a happy one

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

The ceremony was beautiful 

I was beaming in pride as I gave me blessing during it as the bride's mother, Gwindor's father doing his own part and Maitimo being the one to oversee the ceremony as High King. Seeing the love the ellon had for my eldest daughter plain in his eyes made me smile. As long as they stayed together from now on, they should be fine. The couple were officially blond together and I wiped away a tear of happiness as I beamed at them

A few minutes later, I leaned back against my husband as Fearil danced with her husband. "It seems only yesterday we did the same thing and now look at us." I whispered to him to make sure I didn't interrupt them and I felt him smile against the top of my head as he had both his arms around me. "My love for you has only grown since then." He replied and I turned my head to smile up at him, before we continued watching

All my sisters who were in Beleriand had come and almost all of them apart from Celairel pulled back with me and our spouses and most of our children to celebrate the union together. "One of our children is already married. I wonder when it's your turn." Ohtare teased her daughter with a grin. "Amil!" Alassinde hissed with a blush on her cheeks and we all laughed. "Anyone want some wine?" I asked as I held up a bottle and most agreed apart from Ohtare who gave me a pointed look and I quickly hid a smile. 'A bit late to have children, but I'm not complaining.' I thought.

"Where's Celairel? I haven't seen her in a while." Irissë commented just as I looked out of the window and my eyes widened. "There she is." I said and everyone joined me to see her and Tyelkormo walking together. "I swear: the urge to sing "kiss the girl" is overwhelming." Ohtare said. "What's that?" Alassinde asked. "A song from when we were young." I explained to her before starting to sing it nonetheless 

At seeing them dancing together and seeing that they were slowly leaning closer when we ended the song, we quickly ducked away to give them their privacy as we cheered among ourselves for finally managing to get them together. "It's about time. If I had to go through another decade of them skirting around each other, I would've had them locked in a room until they finally confessed." Irissë muttered as she sat down in relief. "We can't exactly force it like that. We can at most give them a nudge like now." I replied and she shrugged

It was a very unamused Celairel who joined us not too long after that, our spouses and children going back to the feast at her request. "Was that really necessary?" She asked in a hiss and we all smirked at her. "We warned you. Be happy we didn't do "maybe you won't die alone."" I told her. "I would've sunk to the ground in embarrassment of you had sang that song for everyone to hear." Celairel muttered and we chuckled

"Is he a good kisser though?" Irissë asked with a small smirk and the tiny smile that instinctively made its way on our sister's face said enough as we laughed and hugged her. "You deserve happiness, Lana." Ohtare told her and we agreed. "I guess. Thank you." She whispered, before we pulled back and went to rejoin the feast again. I highly doubt Fearil even noticed we had left as her complete focus was on her new husband

Not long after that, Maitimo, Makalaurë, Varno and I went out hunting. Naire never cared for hunting so she was staying back with Celairel, irissë and Ekthelion to take care of any business while we were away. A few minutes into riding to meet with my nephew, I suddenly noticed something odd. "Hey, wait one second." I called and everyone stopped as I turned my horse to an open spot in the forest surrounding our city. "What is it, Nemireth?" Makalaurë asked as I stared at an empty spot in the meadow. "Maitimo and I were here a few years ago." I began

"There was a big rock right here where we had a nice picnic. It's completely gone now." I continued as Maitimo looked at the spot as well. "You're right. It is gone." He realised. "How big was it?" Varno asked. "I'd say about knee height for me and we could easily fit on the rock in a circle." I said as I tried to remember it and my husband nodded in agreement. "You don't think any dwarves could've taken it?" Makalaurë asked

"Wouldn't make any sense and we'd see if there had been dwarves around here at any time in the ground, but there are no traces of that." I replied and we all looked at the empty spot again, before going on at not finding anything that told us what happened to the big rock. We met with Finderáto and had a lot of fun hunting, but my nephew and I eventually tired of it and decided to split off from there other three

"You better bring our son home safe." I whispered to my husband as we hugged goodbye since he wanted to continue on. "I will. Be careful." He whispered back and I nodded before he reluctantly let me go and helped me climb back on my horse. Finderáto eventually noticed that I had been rather quiet. "Are you alright, aunt Nemireth? He asked and I gave him a quick smile. "I'm fine. I just had a terrible dream a while ago and it was about Nargothrond." I told him and he looked at me in horror. "You're only telling me this now?" He asked in a hiss

I couldn't blame him for that. "I didn't know how to break it to you. It didn't feel right to tell you about it via a letter." I replied and I could see he reluctantly agreed with that. "What did you see?" He asked and I basically told him about how for some strange reason, his nephew was King in the vision and how he agreed to go to open war with an out and about Morgoth, resulting in the kingdom being completely destroyed

I was rather vague about some details, but the fact I seemingly had a vision about the destruction of his Kingdom was enough for him, especially when he asked where he was in the vision and I couldn't (or rather wouldn't) give him an answer. He was in a pensive mood for a while, before we suddenly heard voices in the distance. We were pretty far from any elven realm so this put us on our guard as we dismounted and snuck further

Peeking over some bushes, we saw a group of people talking and laughing together, their ears rounded instead of pointed and I smiled at realising what they were. 'Men.' I thought as I couldn't believe it. For the first time in over I don't know how many years, I saw normal humans again. I then tilted my head. 'Were we always this small?' I thought. Finderáto and I watched them until they went to sleep. We then snuck into their camp and my nephew picked up a harp their leader, Bëor had put away as I started to sing a song of our people

When the humans slowly woke up from hearing us singing and playing music, they looked at us like they were in a dream and I couldn't blame them as it must have been completely otherworldly to meet elves for the first time. When I first realised in was an elf, I was panicking a bit too much to truly realise how beautiful the world and the people around me were and by now i was rather used to it after all these years

We stayed with them after we managed to tell them we were real despite the language barrier. The language the humans used here was definitely not English. I honestly didn't realise how long we stayed there as we slowly learned their language and taught them Quenya and Sindarin in return, until a frantic Ohtare eventually found us on her wolf. Apparently, I had been gone for three months and my family was worried sick

Whoops

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"Three months... can't believe it... so reckless...." 

I just winced at hearing my younger sister rant underneath her breath as we rode back on the back of her wolf, knowing that it was because of me that she had to ride her while several months along and that couldn't be easy. Finderáto had promised to keep things going with the humans and to get my horse back as well. I could only imagine the scoldings I was going to get from everyone else once we were back home 

We eventually crossed familiar mountains and Irissë greeted us after popping out of the earth, having sensed us coming. "Look who finally came back. Do you have any idea how worried we all were? Maitimo hasn't slept properly since he and Varno returned from the hunt and heard you hadn't come back yet, having sent letters to sl the other realms and asking everyone if they had seen you." She grumbled as she crossed her arms

"Varno has almost trained himself to exhaustion several times over the past few weeks, Fearil has sent letter after letter begging us for information during what should be the happiest time of her life and I don't think that I've seen Vaire smile since the news. You better have enjoyed this freedom, sister, because I highly doubt Maitimo, me or anyone else will let you out of their sight again." She stated before covering her face with her hand which I recognised as a sign she was trying not to break down and I dismounted as much as I could without actually having a saddle.

Walking towards her, I pulled her into a hug and she let out a shaky breath as she hugged me back "Damn it, Sylvaine! We thought Morgoth had found you. Maitimo feared that he was torturing you or something worse." She whispered. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so terribly sorry. I didn't realise I was staying so long. Finderáto and I met humans and we spent all our time with them." I said. "Humans?" She asked, but Ohtare interrupted

"We should return to the castle and tell everyone that the High Queen has finally returned." She said and Irissë nodded as she let me go. "I'll go ahead and spread the news." She stated, before stomping on the ground to create a hole and jumping in it as I jumped back on behind Ohtare and we rushed to my home again. Now that I knew how long it had been, it also explained something I hadn't quite realised yet

I had been incredibly tired at the end of my stay, but I had wanted to interact with other humans so badly that I had brushed it off as being tired of having to make sure that the humans trusted me and my nephew, learning their language and everything else. I now realised it had been my bond with my husband aching because of our separation. I had so much to make up for with him, or commen and everyone else, it wasn't even funny. I wouldn't be surprised if my usually calm Maitimo actually shouted at me. I completely deserved it anyway

By the time that we arrived at the courtyard, many elves had already seen me riding with Ohtare and cheered at my return just as Maitimo, Varno Celairel and Naire ran out of the front doors. Looking at my husband, I could see how much my absence had hurt as he looked incredibly pale, exhausted and dishevelled as he looked at me like he had seen a ghost. "Nana!" Vaire called and that set him into motion as he rushed towards me

He didn't even wait for me to dismount as he wrapped his arms around me and just pulled me off, spinning me around with one arm underneath my behind and the other holding my head. Even with my face pressed in his shoulder, I could feel him shake with sobs as well as the tears streaming down his face she'd into my hair. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." I breathed, repeating those words over and over again

He eventually let go of my head and put me down, pulling back to really look me over as Varno and Naire came running up as well, stopping right next on either side of their father and it really hit me how incredibly selfish I had been. "Where were you, Nana? We were so worried and scared." Vaire said and I sighed as I pulled her and her brother into a hug as well, kissing them both on their foreheads. It was a bit of a chore because Varno had inherited his father's height, but I managed as I held them both close to me, having missed them more than I had realised 

"I know. I know you were, sweetheart and I am so very sorry for scaring you so much. Your aunt Ohtare really gave it to me on the way back here. Very long story short, Finderáto and I found another race living here. A race of men. That's where I've been all this time." I told them, looking at Maitimo I honestly thought this would relieve him at hearing that humans were here and that I had been completely okay in the past few months,

However, instead of relief, I saw his eyes narrow just slightly in clear anger before he turned around and walked back inside, me and our two youngest watching him go. "When he heard you weren't here or in any of the other realms, he pretty much fell apart." Varno told me once he was gone. "He couldn't look for you personally with his duties and it ate him up every single day." Naire took over and I sighed as I rubbed my face

I had really screwed things up between me and my family and I had to make it up to them before Glaurung showed his scaly face. "I know. I'll go talk to him and tonight, we'll share a family dinner like usual. Also, can someone please give Ohtare everything she wants until she can go home? Thank you." I said to some nearby servants as I walked into the castle with my children and sister. "I'll write to Fearil that you're back home." Naire said as she walked away. "I'll tell the crook to make your favourite." Varno stated se he went the other way

"I'm going to go to see the healers. Finno will definitely lecture me into the next age if he hears I haven't." Ohtare muttered as she went her separate way as well. Clearly, none of them wanted to be anywhere near me or Maitimo. 'How on earth am I going to do this?' I thought as some servants pointed me in the direction they had seen Maitimo go after telling me how happy and grateful they were that I was back home safe

I found him training with his sword outside and the way he fiercely swung it despite his obvious exhaustion  showed that my explanation had truly bothered him more than I thought it would. Well, there was no better way at times to get rid of your anger than to direct it at the one who made you angry. I pulled my own sword and walked closer to him, waiting for the right moment and blocking his hit when he swung around

He was surprised for a moment, before his face smoothed over in a more neutral expression as he pulled back and I did the same, holding my sword loosely in my hand. "Three months, Nemireth." He said and I winced. If he used my name, then it was really bad. "Three months of worrying where you were while trying to look after everyone. Three months of fearing the worst and guilt eating at me every second as I thought you might have been kidnapped or worse. Three months of that and you eye just gallivanting with humans." He stated with a barely there sneer

At that moment, he sounded so much like his father that I curled into myself a bit. "You couldn't have sent a letter?" He asked, his voice just a tiny bit softer at seeing me pull back. "They didn't have any ravens or anything and I had left Súldor here. Even then, they didn't speak our language at first, so it would've been hard to explain I needed to write a letter. But that doesn't excuse the fact I made you worry for so long." I replied 

"I was just so ecstatic to see actual humans here, a certain part of me so incredibly excited to have them around me that I just completely lost myself in learning their language and getting them a home that I didn't realise how much I was neglecting you and our family until Ohtare pretty much slammed it into my brain. I promise that I'll never leave for so long ever again." I continued and he sighed as he rubbed his face

"You know you and our family are the most important people to me and no human is going to change that. I promise I will do anything to make up for all the pain, fear and stress that i caused you and the others and you should know that once I make a promise, I always keep it." I stated and he nodded,  before slowly sinking to his knees as everything caught up to him. I quickly put my sword away and walked closer until I was standing right in front of him and he looked up at me. "I have not fully forgiven you." He said. "I would've been surprised if you had." I replied. 

There was silence for a moment, before he suddenly grabbed my arm and pulled me down into his lap, practically crushing me to his chest. I grunted away the impact, before quickly wrapping my arms around his neck, stroking his red hair and hushing him as I felt his body shake. Some tears escaped my eyes as well as I revelled in the comfort only the ellon holding me could provide and that I had missed without realising it

We had a very long road ahead of us, me obviously more than him after what I did, but I knew that we would eventually prevail and as long as a certain evil dragon didn't show itself and broke the peace we were having right now, we would be fine for now. However, repairing my bonds with me family was far more important to me right now. I turned my face into his robes and nuzzled his chest, breathing in his familiar scent

I was finally home

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

It wasn't easy to mend my mistakes 

I had  expected that it wouldn't be easy after pretty much abandoning them, but still. My husband barely let me out of his sight like Irissë had predicted he would and he also seemed extremely torn between grabbing hold of me and never letting me go again or keeping his distance while trying to sort his feelings. I honestly would be fine with either, but the shifting moods were rather starting to put me on edge as I never knew what Maitimo would do next

One morning, I woke up very quietly without barely any changes in my body language or breathing to even indicate I had woken up in the first place while lying with my back towards my husband as ever since I had returned, he insisted on lying behind me as the big spoon. It wasn't that bad since the days were slowly turning to winter and his body heat kept me warmer than any blanket could, but it would be a problem if he still did it during the summer 

For a moment, I wondered exactly why I had woken up, before feeling my husband's hand slowly caress my arm from behind as he let out a shaky breath. "My amazing Nemireth. I know you won't hear this, but you are my whole entire world together with our children. To lose you like I thought I had would utterly and completely destroy me in so many ways that not even Morgoth would be able to replicate. Even if he ever managed to capture me, I would hold out for as long as I could to be together with you and our children again." He breathed

"But if it were the other way around and you were the one captured.... I wouldn't know what to do. I would probably and foolishly try to get in Angband just to get you out and die in the process. I know you wouldn't approve of that and would want me to take care of everyone, but I'm not sure if I could without you by my side. I hope I never have to go through that fear ever again." He continued and I finally knew what he was thinking deep inside

I turned around in his arms and immediately felt him jump as he hadn't realised I was awake. "You'll never have to go through that fear again. I promise." I whispered as I rested my forehead against his. He let out a shaky breath, before giving me a tiny smile. "Do you swear?" He asked. "Cross my heart." I replied as I sealed that promise with a kiss that he thankfully returned. We just spent the rest of the time before the start of the day kissing and cuddling 

Fearil sent me a letter from Nargothrond once she heard I had returned, the letter being both sides of her ranting at me for worrying them so very much and telling me she had done the same for her cousin when he had come back after giving the humans a place to live. However, I could sense this was more anger born out of worry and that was confirmed when she and Gwindor visited us and she ranted to me in person until I pulled her into a very tight hug. She immediately deflated like a balloon running out of air and hugged me back as she started to cry in both fear and relief.

"Ssssshhhhhhh, sweetheart. It's okay. I'm alright. I'm right here and I'm so sorry for making you worry." I whispered as I held her, reminding myself once again if the hurt I had caused. Damn it, Sylvaine! A child is not supposed to worry about whether or not their parent is still alive, but I made Fearil, Varno and Naire worry about exactly that anyway. Not to mention what Maitimo had to have gone through while worrying Morgoth had me or Saruman perhaps

"We were so worried, Nana." My sweet daughter breathed as she buried her face in my shoulder and I quickly hushed her again, stroking her hair and kissing her temple to try and calm her down. "I know, my little one. I know. I'm so sorry. I have absolutely no excuse for what I did" I replied as I rocked her back-and-forth a bit. It took quite a while for her to calm down as she sniffled when I pulled back and gently wiped away her tears, kissing her forehead

"I'm never leaving without warning any of you again and your father definitely won't let me leave on my own, so you will never have to go through this ever again. I swear it." I promised after the kiss as I kept stroking her cheeks like she was still a little girl who had scraped her knees instead of a fully grown and married elleth who had gone through the worst fear of her life because of her mother's own stupidity. I sighed a bit, before hugging her again. "Everything will be fine, sweetheart. We'll all stay together from now on." I whispered 

Like his older sister, Varno had been rather angry at me as well as he and Naire had had front-row seats on how much my disappearance had pained their father in the past three months without them being unable to do anything about it, but I thankfully knew a good way for him to get rid of his anger. Where Fearil was more passive and had enough with ranting, Varno really was his father's son and that's why I took on a more physical approach to him

I challenged him to a sword duel in the training field and he really went at me in a way he had never done before, which was a pretty big pain for my poor muscles as Varno had inherited his father's height and strength and as I blocked his attacks, it was not unusual to see my feet slide backwards in the sand because of the harsh attacks as I tried my best to keep my sword up. This went on for a while before my son had slowly spent all his anger

Breathing heavily as he stepped back after several minutes, something shifted in his body and face as he dropped the sword and fell to his knees. I quickly put my own sword away and rushed towards him, kneeling next to him and hugging him from the side. He immediately clung onto me like he was still a child and in a way, he was. He was my child and he always would be, no matter what. I hushed him and rocked him back and forth, simply allowing him to let it all out. "It's okay. I'm here. We're okay. Let it out." I breathed. We sat there for a while

Naire was probably the easiest one of all as she was more relieved that all their worries had been for nothing and wanted to know more about these strange beings called "Men" and I happily told her everything I knew, even including some things I knew from my own experience as a human. Her reaction when she learned about periods had been hilarious and yes, human women still had those here and it was very dangerous to let out blood in the wild

"I'm so glad none of our children are half-elven so we won't have to go through a situation like Elrond. Can you imagine the heartbreak of our partners?" I asked Celairel as we spent some time together when she returned from a visit to Tyelkormo to tell him that I had been found and to be with her new lover anyway. "Well, technically they are. We were human once." She muttered quietly. "Yes, but we are fully elves now." I replied with a snort as I leaned back

She chuckled, before silence fell. "Do you think we'll ever forget them?" She then asked and I frowned. "Mom and dad. I mean Naneth and Adar have been amazing parents, but I still miss them." She explained and I looked down. "Well, Lillith was five when dad died, so I don't think she remembers him much anyway, but for her and our sake, I hope we don't and especially our mother after everything she has done for us. I actually refused to acknowledge my new parents as such because i felt like I was betraying mom and dad." I confessed and she nodded

Ohtare gave birth to a son named Ereinion, making me smile as an old mystery was finally uncovered. Finno was Gil-Galad's father in this world. Good to know. "Don't tell me my son dies in the book as well." Finno himself pleaded when they came to properly introduce the baby to the official High Court and we pulled back with everyone who knew the truth apart from Maitimo as he had to rule so I could tell him about his son's confusing parentage in our world.

"He does, I'm afraid. However, the one killing him is not only on our side, but currently very far away in Valinor with Runande" I explained and after first sighing in relief at hearing that his son would be fine for now, his eyes widened as he figured out who I meant with that and realised that Mairon. "How... how does it happen?" He asked slowly. "I'm not sure if you want to know. It is anything but a pleasant and quick death." I stated with a wince on my face

"Tell us, Sylvaine." Ohtare ordered me as she held her son, her daughter and my children all catching up with each other in another room with some trusted elves watching over them all. "Okay, remember the battle you see in the beginning of the Lord of the Rings movies? Where Isildur cuts The Ring from Sauron's finger and he explodes?" I asked my sisters and they immediately nodded. "While the movie does show Elendil dying and while the scene was filmed, it was never put in and so, it never shows your son's death." I began trying to stall a bit

"Irissë, could you warm your hand a bit with your fire powers? Not to uncomfortable levels, but enough that it's noticeable." I requested of my second-to-last sister who had come as well and she nodded as she held out her hand which began to glow with power. "After killing Elendil, Sauron then focuses himself on Ereinion and kills him in a pretty horrific way." I stated as Irissë patted her hand. "Okay, it's warm. Now what?" She asked as she looked at me

"If he's okay with it, gently grab Finno by the throat." I stated in answer and she looked at him. "Do you mind?" She asked and he shook his head. "Go ahead." He replied. She walked to him and gently grabbed him underneath his chin. "That is pretty much what Sauron does in the deleted scene, only then much harsher and the heat of his body burning him alive until he eventually dies." I stated as silence fell as Irissë dropped her hand to look at me in shock

Ohtare was now holding her baby son in one arm as she was covering her mouth with the other. She then silently looked at her husband and he immediately pulled them both closer to him as they both looked down at their sleeping son. "Is that why there is no High King mentioned in the movies from what I remember?" Celairel asked quietly. "He was the last one, yes. After the War of the Last Alliance, too many elves died or left for them to make another powerful army and neither Elrond nor Artanis wanted to rule." I explained and everyone was silent as they took this in

Years passed and the bonds between me and my family were slowly restored. Despite that, I felt myself slowly getting on edge. It had been a couple of centuries now since the Glorious Battle and I knew from the book that Glaurung would probably show his ugly face soon. "Would be awesome if we could kill him and already remove the threat he makes, especially to Nargothrond." I muttered to Celairel and she hummed. "How big is Glaurung?" She asked.

"Well, Smaug is already the size of a Boeing 737 and Glaurung is even bigger than that." I answered and she paled, before muttering underneath her breath. I caught the word "training" but let it go as I told her to go home a bit more often. Once the Battle of the Sudden Flame happened, Beren's and Lúthien's quest wouldn't be far. Not long after that, a scout came running in the throne room shouting about a terrifying monster and Maitimo shared a look

"Here we go." I muttered as we ran out

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"So, on a scale of 1 to 10, how important is it that this beast dies?"

"100." I answered in a very deadpan voice as we rode out to battle an actual dragon and Celairel nodded. "Got it." She muttered as she took a deep breath. "Just don't ever look into his eyes and don't let him talk to you. That's how two characters married each other." I told her. "That doesn't sound too bad." Irissë said from behind us, only family riding next to Maitimo and I and part of our army following us from a few feet away

Before we had set out on this fight Celairel had told us that if she used the powers that Eru had given her together with us, we actually wouldn't need all of our army to fight Glaurunh, so we were placing a lot of faith in her at the moment and hoped she would not fail us. Our people were counting on us and we could not let them down. Our kingdoms would fall and that was the last thing we needed and wanted

"They were actually each other's brother and sister." I deadpanned as I snapped myself out of my thoughts. I  looked straight ahead and my sisters immediately gagged as my husband looked at me in revulsion at the thought of siblings marrying each other. "Are you absolutely sure that that bloody book is not part of the "Song of Ice and Fire" universe?" Celairel asked. "The first time I read it, I almost thought the same thing." I admitted as I shivered at the thought. Our children were staying behind at our orders together with my youngest brother-in-law

it was very hard for Maitimo, Irissë, Ekthelion and I to leave them behind, even if I knew this was just one dragon instead of an entire army of them. From what we had heard, Glaurung had already taken Ard-Galen and was causing havoc there We soon met with Finno and Ohtare, as well as Tyelkormo and several others and parts of their armies. Tyelkormo paled at seeing Celairel with us and immediately went to ride next to her.

"Are you certain you want to be here?" He asked and she smiled as she grabbed his hand. "I'm sure, Kormo. I may actually know a way to get the upper hand on that thing. Just trust me on this" She replied as she squeezed it. He gave her a tiny smile and briefly lifted her hand to kiss her knuckles. I smiled at seeing how adorable they were, even if they didn't see each other much because of the distance between our realm and his.

We then rode to meet Glaurung and soon saw him in the distance.Even though he was still young, he was already the size of at least three elephants. This definitely was not going to be an easy fight as we stopped at a safe distance, somehow without Glaurung noticing us just yet "We can attack him with archers." Finno suggested carefully. "That will only hamper him a bit and send him back to nothing where he can grow in peace and cause more pain and suffering later." I muttered, only those in the know hearing me 

"Do I need to use my powers against it? I can do too that thing what Zaheer did to the Earth Queen in the "legend of Korra show." Irissë piped just as quietly as she kissed her hand to create a tiny cyclone in her palm, none of us noticing Celairel pulling herself back on her horse as we argued about the best course of action. "On who did you try that out?" I asked in horror, knowing what she meant with that

She wanted to take the air out of Glaurung's lungs and create an sphere around its head without any oxygen so it would suffocate, but how did she learn that? "Some orcs from a distance. Although, I now doubt that may have been enough or if I can hold out long enough. I bet that beast has very big lungs." Irissë answered. She bit her lip as we knew we had to be quick in killing Glaurung before he retreated back to Angband

If he managed to get back, he'd be the father of many dragons. If we could nip that in the butt, then that would put a big hamper on Morgoth's plans, but how? A solution then suddenly showed itself as a shadow flew over us. Looking up, we saw that it was Celairel on her horse, now actually having wings, flying right to the dragon "Celairel!" Tyelkormo shouted in horror at seeing his beloved going to meet a freaking dragon head-on and that all on her own without any backup, Glaurung looking up at hearing his voice and finally spotting us in the distance.

"Milana...." Me and my sisters all breathed at the same time with wide eyes as we pulled our weapons and started to rush forwards to aid her before Glaurung could make her his dinner and before we lost our sister after only just finding her. 'This is how the Battle of Unnumbered Tears started. This better not have the same outcome or Milana will be in so much trouble.' I thought as I pushed my horse forwards even harder

As we all rode forwards to the dragon, we saw that Celairel had stopped right above Glaurung with it looking at her instead of us. I then noticed her spreading her arms to the side. "What is she doing?!"  Ohtare shouted in utter confusion as we raced even harder . We then were forced to stop as bright white light shot out of Celairel's hands and enveloped Glaurung's head, everyone being forced to cover their eyes against it.

Even behind our hands and arms, we saw the light eventually disappear and a loud crash sounded as the earth shook by something big falling on it. Slowly looking up again, we saw Glaurung's body lying on the ground, his head completely missing. Completely.... disintegrated. We stared as Celairel landed in front of us. "Woooh. I did it! I've been training on rocks and things like that, so when I saw its size, I wasn't completely sure if I could do it." She sighed in relief as she slumped over her horse's neck in exhaustion, the wings disappearing from sight

Tyelkormo jumped off Huan and gently pulled her from her horse into his arms. "Don't ever do that again." He whispered as he carried her to us and she wrapped her arms around his neck. "So, that's your power? You can just completely destroy things?" Ohtare asked. "Well, disintegrate is a better word for it and there are limits. A certain someone understandably didn't want me to destroy everything when I want to." She muttered 

"During training, I can only use it on inanimate objects and in a fight, only use them on Morgoth's creatures. The bigger the object, the more tiring it is for me. This was my first dragon and I'm exhausted." She continued. "I just cannot believe you never told us." Irissë muttered as she crossed her arms and Celairel shrugged. "I'm sorry, but I thought that in my case, it would be better if I showed you rather than told you." She replied

"Well, do not ever do something like this again, understood?" Maitimo half-asked/half-ordered her and she immediately nodded as she held onto Tyelkormo who seemed equally reluctant to let her go in return as he kissed her temple. "We need to go before Morgoth finds out and turns his anger on us." I said and we all moved as we quickly got off the defiled plains and to our realm to discuss what would happen after this. Celairel went on Huan together with Tyelkormo, but her horse easily followed us without her riding it.

"This was probably the shortest battle in history." Ohtare commented and we all laughed. "Well, don't expect me to come and save you every time. I might be busy doing other things." Celairel said from her spot in front of her Prince. "Like escaping Tyelkormo?" I teased her, the relief that the battle was over so quickly and one of the major dragons of the book was dead before he could do anything making me feel a lot lighter

She gave me a smirk as I heard our soldiers already starting to praise her name for her easy victory. "But I mean it, be careful. Even when you have such power, I do not want to explain to your parents what happened if you die because you decided to charge ahead like that. Such actions can cost you the battle and then, there will be unnumbered all around." I told her and I could see she understood what I was trying to say

The Battle of Unnumbered Tears happened because someone charged ahead like that and broke the entire formation. Granted, that someone was now my son-in-law and my husband wasn't planning on doing that battle in general, but still. I genuinely did not want to tell my aunt and uncle that their eldest daughter had died while under my care, especially considering they were very likely going to lose their other daughter before the age was done. We didn't have enough time to warn them of the dragon as well, so that was why they weren't there

Back home, a great feast was held with Celairel being hailed as a hero. "How ironic that the most calm and nice of the five or us has the most destructive power." Ohtare commented as she stood next to me with Irissë and watched as everyone wanted to talk to her. "I know, but at the very least, I finally know where that rock went to. She destroyed it." I replied, having told them off the missing rock during the hunting trip

"I already thought I saw her grin when you told us about the rock." Irissë commented with a thoughtful hum, before our husbands came to pull us into a dance. Next time I looked at Celairel, I saw her happily doing the same with Tyelkormo and suddenly realised exactly what would likely come Curumo's way if he actually took Tyelkormo captive and tortured him during the Quest for the Silmaril. I almost felt sorry for him.

Almost

Chapter Text

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"So... any guesses how pissed Morgoth is now?" 

Let's hope that he's very angry, but won't take it out on us for now." Maitimo chuckled quietly as we both laid in bed together as we simply waited for dawn to come, having both been awake for a few minutes after Maitimo had a nightmare. Thankfully, it was another "what if" nightmare of me being captured by Morgoth, instead of the flashbacks to the actual torture he would've gone through if I hadn't come into his life. 

These nightmares were thankfully always the easiest to calm him down from as he just had to see and feel that I was alright and he'd relax again as he'd realise I was completely okay. I'd usually wake up because of his body shake a bit at waking up and I'd immediately try and comfort him as much as I could, including nuzzling his neck or leaving tiny kisses all over his skin to tickle him and he'd be smiling soon enough.

I did hate seeing him like that though, so incredibly scared that he had failed me or our family like he felt his father had failed them. Even after all these years, his feelings about his father were still understandably conflicted with the familial love he had for him growing up and the knowledge what he would've done to him, his brothers and many other elves albeit indirectly on the latter through the Oath and the Kinslayings he and his seven sons would start. Even though Fëanor had been dead for years, I still spotted my husband looking for him at times, before remembering he was gone 

I knew that no matter what, at least a small part of my dearest Maitimo would always love his father. "Hey, Maitimo..." I breathed and he hummed in answer to show he was listening to me, his whole chest vibrating with the sound. "Do you want to have another child or di you think that three is enough?" I asked as this had been on my mind for a while now and he immediately looked down at me as he caressed my cheek.

"There's nothing that I would love more than to have another child with you, my dearest heart, but I'm absolutely terrified that Morgoth might attack us soon and that they will be too young to defend themselves." He replied with a sigh and a longing in his voice that told me how much he wanted to have another kid, with made sense considering the amount of siblings he had. I hummed in return as I stroked his famous red hair

"We can always send them away if that happens. I just.... I want to have one more child before I grow too old and my interest in it wanes." I said with a sigh as I really did want to have just one more and he chuckled and kissed my temple. "An elf growing too old for something. Now I've heard everything." He said. "Oh, do you still play with blocks or tiny wooden sword like we used to?" I asked with a smirk that wasn't even visible on the dark, but my voice revealed it nonetheless. "Touché, my darling." He said, before we left the subject for that day

Asking my sisters to see what they thought about it through letters by Súldor so they'd definitely arrive safely without any spies being able to read it instead, Irissë actually revealed to me that she was pregnant once more, having found out only the day before and not even having told her husband yet. I was naturally ecstatic to hear about it, but waited a bit to congratulate her until I was sure that she had told Ekthelion the news

Irissë did tell me that this child was very likely going to be her gestu last one as she was happy with two children and she still had to make sure that our realm was completely guarded from orcs. I sometimes wondered how lucky she had slept when Morgoth sent his regular attacks as she would have to be ready for it at all times, including in the middle of the night. Ohtare told me she hoped for one more child to have a trio of kids

Celairel wasn't married just yet as she and her ellon were still busy courting each other, but I wouldn't be surprised if she got a few kids as well. Maitimo and Tyelkormo were brothers after all and she had always told me she'd love to have three or more children. Anyway, all three eventually told me that as much as they would love to become aunts again because of me, it was ultimately my and Maitimo's decision as it were our bodies and it would be our child and no one else's. I smiled at reading this as I took a deep breath before really thinking it over

Was it actually responsible of us to have another child right now? Yes, I knew that in the Silmarillion book, Morgoth left the elves alone for a bit as he focused on corrupting men and breeding dragons instead, but that was in the book.... where Glaurung wasn't killed during his first trip outside. There was no telling what he'd do now. Would he stew while using other dragons to refill his army or would he attack in revenge? 

There was absolutely no way of knowing the absolute answer, but I did have the feeling that if I waited until the War of Wrath, it would be too late and I wouldn't be interested in having children anymore. I then made a small decision to wait a few months to see if Morgoth would do anything in retaliation for Glaurung's death, before eventually deciding about whether or not it was alright to bring one more child into the world.

Maitimo happily agreed with this solution and we simply waited for Morgoth to make the next move and see if he'd attack us for the death of his first dragon or not. I hated this cat and mouse game that we were playing with that bastard, but what could we do? We're weren't the Valar. We weren't Tulkas who could physically beat him into submission or any other variety who could fight him without it being a suicide mission. We could do nothing, but be on the defence at all times and try and protect ourselves, our families and our people. 

About a year later, my newest niece, who was given the father name Rilyanasta was born, adding to Ñolofinwe's family once more . "I'm actually pretty sure that your family is slightly bigger than it was at this time in the book " I told Irissë and when we visited her to meet the baby and she smiled at me as she held onto her daughter, a very proud Ekthelion sitting next to her. We left when Rilyanasta started to cry from hunger

Morgoth still hadn't attacked us even after that year had passed and Maitimo and I eventually decided to try to have one last child. Maitimo seemed to be even sweeter with me this time as he knew this would be the last child we'd have. I held him close as well, knowing that no matter what happened once our child was born and what Morgoth would do, he'd be an amazing father to them just like he had been to our oldest three children.

A couple of months later, I woke up and felt a new fëa inside or me and I smiled as I held my stomach. I then looked at my husband and gently woke him up. He blinked a few times at waking up, before his eyes fell on me. "What is it, Nemireth?" He asked, immediately worried about me "We did it, my darling." I breathed and his eyes widened as his hand immediately covered my stomach as well. "Oh, my heart." He breathed as he planted several kisses on my face and I laughed as I gently grabbed his face and gave him a proper kiss

He quickly kissed me back as he pulled me closer to him, although like the last two times I was pregnant with our children, he was extremely careful while holding me close. Once again, he was nervous about hurting me or our new elfling with his strength and I smiled as I kissed him with all that I had. This would almost definitely be our last child as I didn't think I could lose more of my own fëa if we got a child after this

I would obviously not do the same as my husband's grandmother and leave my family behind forever, but I would be much weaker if we actually did have one more child. I honestly still didn't understand why she did it in the first place. I would never leave my own family and friends behind if I could help it. "I love you, my darling Maitimo." I whispered as we broke apart and he smiled as he brushed my hair back and cupped my face

"I love you too." He replied, before rolling us over and showing it

Chapter Text

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"One more, Your Majesty. Just one more push!"

With Celairel and Fearil holding onto my hands, I gave one mighty push and finall y felt my final baby leave my body, my Fëa weakening a bit more in the process as my baby let out a mighty cry. "It's a boy!" Celairel announced in an ecstatic voice as I sagged against the pillows in both relief and exhaustion, glad that we had one more son to dote on. "You really know how to even things out, don't you?" Fearil asked as she waved her hand to get feeling back in it

I simply smiled in return as healers quickly cleaned up my still crying newborn son and wrapped him in a blanket, before giving him to me. Even if I had already gone through this process twice before now, I immediately started to cry again as I held onto my baby. Celairel, Fearil and the healers left the room and finally let my worried husband get into the room, Varno and Naire having kept him company so he wouldn't go insane with concern about me. 

I immediately smiled at him and reached out with one arm. He quickly walked closer to the bed, grabbing my hand as he sat down at the edge of the bed. "Our final son." I told him as I carefully gave our baby to him, leaning against him after that. Holding our son in one arm, he wrapped the other one around me. "Are you alright?" He asked, brow furrowed in concern as he looked at me. "I'm just incredibly tired. As much as I love our children, I'm glad that he's our final one. I don't think my body can take another baby." I replied 

He immediately kissed my forehead and held me even tighter as we then both looked at our now calm son. "You have done so well though, my amazing wife. You have given me so much and I will always be grateful for it" He whispered not wanting to wake our baby up again. Still, it seemed that he actually liked his father's body heat as he dozed off to sleep. Can't blame you there, buddy. Eru knows that his warmth always makes me fall asleep too

A soft knock on the door made us look up to see our three eldest standing there. "Come in, my loves. Come meet your brother." I whispered and especially Varno and Naire didn't have to be told twice as they came closer and Varno went to stand next to Maitimo while Naire climbed on the bed next to me. Fearil stood next to her brother and all of them were beaming at their new brother. Especially Varno seemed to be happy that he wasn't the only boy anymore 

As i sat there, surrounded by my husband and our children, I closed my eyes and wished both sets of my parents as well as all my siblings were there. Ohtare and Finno were looking after the realm with help from Varyaro so Maitimo could really focus on us, Irissë was still keeping an eye on our borders and Runande was in Valinor with my second life siblings. I wondered what they were doing now. I took a deep breath and immediately smiled when everyone looked at me in concern. "I'm just tired." I muttered, before actually falling asleep

The recovery period took a bit longer than it had when I had given birth to Fearil or Varno and Naire, which made me really glad we had finally stopped at four children. I then actually remembered that nana had to stay in bed for a few days after my birth as well, me having been a bit too busy panicking about being an elf to really think about it ah that point. I guessed that if your name wasn't Nerdanel, four children is usually the limit that an elleth can bear 

Maitimo made the announcement of the birth of our son himself as I was briefly allowed out of bed to stand at his side during the announcement at my own insistence as I really wanted to see our people completely with joy at hearing the news of the newest Royal birth. Because I was still feeling a bit weak at this point, Varno supported me as we stood at the back of the balcony, out of sight of everyone while Maitimo started his announcement 

When Maitimo finally announced the name of our son: Arnion, I quickly walked forwards on my own with our  son in my arms as our people immediately cheered in celebration. Maitimo wrapped his arm around me, both to show everyone how much he loved me and to support me as well. Arnion fussed a bit at the noise, but I gently covered one ear with my hand, gently pressing the other one against my chest so he'd hear my heartbeat instead and he calmed down again. Once the announcement was over, I was immediately sent to bed again 

As the news of the birth of our son was sent to other realms, almost every royal came to meet him and that included my aunt and uncle, plus Lúthien and Artanis/Galadriel. Especially the latter was ecstatic to meet her final cousin from my side of the family. Tyelkormo visited as well, which obviously made Celairel very happy. While my uncle and aunt knew they were courting, this was the first time they had met him since Celairel had told them the news

Poor Tyelkormo was immediately asked several questions by uncle Thingol to see if he was worthy to be with his daughter. However, thanks to aunt Melian and my brother-in-law being completely honest when he told the King he'd protect Celairel with his life made him accept the courtship. Tyelpë had come with the delegation as well and had some very exciting news to share: he was going to be a father too. I immediately gave him the tightest hug imaginable 

I was just so completely overjoyed that he was actually and truly happy. He had a wife who loved him with all her heart, not that much family drama yet and Arodeth would definitely support him if or when that happened, not all of his family would die in terrible kinslayings and hopefully with not every son of Fëanor in on the Oath, the reputation wouldn't be as bad and now, he and Arodeth were going to be parents as well. He literally deserved every single part of this happiness after what happens in the book and I hoped he was allowed to keep it  

Even as a baby, Arnion was definitely the most fierce and loudest of our children as he could scream louder than Varno and Naire could combined when they had been born. "He definitely gets that from your side of the family." I once told Maitimo as Arnion was greedily filling his stomach after loudly waking us up in the middle of the night once more and he gave me a sheepish grin in return. I then looked down at our son and instinctively smiled at him

Yes, even if he woke us up at the most inopportune times in the night, he was still our sweet baby and we both would do anything to protect him and his siblings. I gently nuzzled his tiny head as he finally let go of me and Maitimo took him over to burp him and put him to bed as he quietly told me to go to sleep again. It didn't take long for me to do exactly that as I barely felt my husband coming back to bed and wrap his arms around me again as I dozed off

Just because I had to take it easy for a bit didn't mean that I was ever bored as I soon took over some administrative work again and almost all my sisters and my children usually kept me company, until Ohtare and Finno eventually had to go back east again as did Tyelkormo and Celairel went with him this time. Fearil and Gwindor went back to my nephew's realm as well. I honestly didn't mind it that much that I went from having three sisters with me to having none as I knew that they were all happy and Irissë was nearby anyway

Sure, it was harder to stay in contact than it had been when we had lived in the same city like way back in Tírion or the same castle, but I knew they were safe with their Ones and that was enough for me. Even if Tyelkormo was quite a bit... well... wilder than Finno, Mairon Ekthelion and Maitimo were, I knew that the moment Celairel was in danger, he would immediately fight until the end with Huan to protect her and keep her safe and the same for her

One evening not long after everyone who had to leave, had left for their own realms, I was lying in bed with Maitimo. Neither of us were sleeping, but we were resting as we just laid there. Even Arnion was quiet for now as he slept peacefully in his crib, but we had the feeling he wouldn't be for long. "Hey, Maitimo?" I began to say and he hummed, his whole chest and me rumbling with the sound. "Who do you think the Ones of our other children are?" I asked

He groaned and I giggled

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

It took a while before things went to hell

In a weird way, I was actually rather grateful for that as it gave us enough time to raise our very last child without constantly having to fear that Morgoth's orcs and other monsters would storm into our Kingdom and try to kill us all even with Irissë keeping an eye on things. Arnion grew up to be almost as tall as his father and just as strong as well as was shown when he was old enough to train and accidentally broke a few training weapons with his grip.

"No wonder I was so exhausted when I gave birth to him If his spirit is that strong." I whispered to Maitimo as we watched our three youngest children engage in a playful melee against each other. He gave me a smile and kissed my temple before our children invited us to join in as well. To help Naire as she was the only female, I grabbed my sword and joined them, much to their joy as they all knew their father was the true warrior between the two of us

It went really well for several minutes as I parried and dodged attacks from my three youngest children and saw how much they had grown in their sword manship training despite having grown up in tentative peace. Through again, we had grown up during the actually peaceful Years of the Trees and Maitimo was already gaining his reputation as one of three fiercest warriors in Middle-Earth thanks to his fighting in the Glorious battle. However, one brief moment of distraction and one slightly too enthusiastic hit from Varno accidentally knocked me out

When I opened my eyes, I saw nothing but chaos, fire and death around me and stared in horror. Were we too late? Was this right now? What on earth or any world was going on? Unholy loud roars made me cover my ears as I looked up to see dragons flying overhead, setting fire to everything that moved. The earth rumbled as the volcanoes of the Thangorodrim as many people screamed in fear as they tried to escape or got killed by Morgoth's creatures.

"Is this it? Is it coming? When? Please tell me how long we have." I pleaded whoever was listening to show me something I could use to protect my family and people. That was all I cared about. A silvery light fell on me and I looked up to see the full moon shining through the smoke and ash. It had been the new moon about two days ago, so we only had a few weeks before it was time. "I understand. Thank you" I whispered as things darkened around me

I heard voices calling my name, the most panicked of which was my darling Maitimo's. "Nemireth, please wake up." He whispered as more senses came back to me and I felt him holding me in his arms. "Nana, wake up. I'm so sorry. This is all my fault." I then heard Varno say in the most guilty voice I had ever heard and I immediately frowned at hearing it. "Nemireth?" Maitimo breathed as I slowly opened my heavy eyelids to look at him. "Don't blame yourself, sweetheart. I should have been more careful. At least, you were not an orc." I muttered 

I needed to tell Maitimo about what I had seen, but not in front of our already panicked children, so I quickly reassured Varno first instead. Maitimo let out a small, but relieved laugh as he pulled me closer, burying his face in my neck. "I was so worried." He breathed. "I'm just fine. I'm not so fragile that an accidental hit from or son can hurt me." I told him as I wrapped one arm around his back while looking at my oldest son and reaching out to him with the other.

He immediately grabbed my hand as he kneeled next to us, eyes full of regret and guilt. "I'm sorry, nana. I'm so sorry." He breathed and I immediately hushed him as I pulled my hand free and cupped his face instead. "Sssssssshhhh. It's alright, my little Prince. This will teach me to keep my attention at all times in the upcoming battles." I assured him with a small smile and he gave me a tiny smile back as I caressed his cheek, Arnion and Naire relaxing as well

While I had said the words "upcoming battles," I had made sure that the hand on Maitimo's back tightened in his robes to give him a warning that something had happened to me while I was knocked out and with the way he stiffened up slightly, I could sense he understood at least slightly what I was saying as I wriggled a bit and he finally relaxed his hold so i could look at our other two children and reassure them I was alright too as healers came running to us. Huh, apparently I hadn't been out for very long even if the vision had felt like minutes had passed

They checked me over, but I was mostly alright, just a bit freaked out over what I had seen even as I tried not to show it. Our people would soon be engulfed in a devastating war. Let them have these few last days of blissful peace. Still, Maitimo insisted that he brought me to bed and I was honestly not going to protest as I wrapped my arms around his neck as he carried me bridal style. "What you said about upcoming battles..." He breathed and I bit my lip

"He's coming, my darling. Just a few weeks and fire will burst forth from Angband. We need to evacuate as much of the north of Beleriand as we can and get ready for war without Morgoth's notice before its too late and many will perish." I whispered back and he tightened his own grip on me. "We will. I promise." He whispered as he kissed my forehead and I clung onto him, me now being the one to bury my face in his neck as I started to tremble and shake

Here was that unavoidable fear and dread again and this time, it was honestly even worse than before in Valinor as in the books, Morgoth would practically become the ruler of Beleriand with so many places ruined and realms lost, only a few remaining after this. We would have to tell everyone to sharpen their defences to an all-time high while also making sure my nephews and the people living north of Angband would be safe from the fire and lava. Maitimo hushed me as he felt me shake and walked into our bedroom, putting me down on our bed

He pulled back a bit then, but hesitated before he fully let me go. He clearly was torn between immediately leaving to prepare as much as possible and staying here with me to make sure I was okay after getting knocked out. I cupped his face and made him focus on me. "Go. Be the High King and make sure our people will be as safe as possible." I whispered and he nodded as he kissed my forehead and left. I took a deep breath, before manning myself

I quickly ordered a servant to get me a quill, ink and four pieces of parchment. After getting exactly that, I wrote a letter to my three sisters as well as my aunt and uncle, telling them i had gotten a vision of Morgoth attacking us in only a few weeks time and that we all had to prepare. Whistling for Súldor, I made him deliver the letter to my aunt and uncle first, followed by Ohtare and Celairel who was still with Tyelkormo we they were the farthest away

Irissë was much easier for me to contact as she lived relatively nearby so my bird didn't have far to for her. The next day, I sent Súldor out again for the replies and they all promised to start preparing immediately with Finno and Ohtare planning to help with evacuating the north and my aunt and uncle ready to supply men, weapons and more as even Thingol had sensed the urgency in my letter and had realised I was completely serious about this. However, this didn't help stop all of my worries as I knew there was much more to be done

Over the next several days, secret messengers were sent out to those living in Dorthonion, telling them to evacuate. Irissë travelled there to help by making tunnels to our Kingdom or that of Ñolofinwë. I later heard my two nephews had been sceptical about our warning, but since I was still their High Queen, they listened and helped their people get to safety. It was a lot of sleepless nights for all of us as time seemed to move faster than ever before

Thankfully, help from Doriath came soon enough as I also told Fearil to keep her husband and brother-in-law in Nargothrond. I glanced at the moon every night and the closer we got to a full moon, the bigger my fear and dread became. Celairel returned to our Kingdom so she could help. One night, we stood on a mountain range near our Kingdom with our army and felt the earth shake and red light start to glow in the distance as fire lit up the night sky

"It's time." I muttered as I grabbed my sword

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

It was chaos

Even with all the preparations we made, even with the complete north of Beleriand evacuated, it was still chaos as orcs, trolls and other monsters stormed towards us. Maitimo squeezed my hand, before we dove into the fray. I cut down as many orcs as I could, thankful that as far as I knew, none of these were any of our people. I still hated what happened to the elves who did get corrupted, but I had managed to keep our people safe

Irissë and Celairel were fighting right next to me, being protected by their respective Ones as even the usually sweet Ekthelion cut down Morgoth's creatures with a ferocity that honestly made me want to run for the hills and I knew him ever since he started to court my sister. I remember reading how in the fall of Gondolin, he and his house killed more orcs than ever before and his name became the equivalent of Voldemort's name for orcs

Seeing him protecting my sister now, I could very clearly see why that was, even if he technically didn't have a house now. Tyelkormo and Huan were both protecting Celairel as we fought to go further east while the armies of Ohtare, Finno and the others were fighting west so we could unite. I obviously killed many orcs, but my main focus was healing as I tried to help as many of my family, friends and people and keep them from the Halls of Mandos as I could. Maitimo had given me a set of bodyguards who had to protect me while I was healing and my focus was somewhere else. 

It was quite a surprise when one orc tried to charge at me and Súldor appeared out of nowhere, scratching the orc's eyes out before flying away again"Good job, sweetie." I breathed in gratitude as I quickly healed the cut off arm of a soldier and had another take him off the battlefield as fast as possible. 'Now where are....' I began to think, before roars eye heard and fire rained down on our people as dragons officially joined the battle. 

'Okay. Never mind. There they are.' I thought as I quickly hurried to the spot where the fiery breath of the beasts hit the ground, Irissë joining me as we rushed to the place as fast as we could. The utter devastation that greeted us as we crossed the hills would stay with me and my sister until the end of time as we saw so many death elves lying around, some having become completely unrecognisable because of the flames.

I suddenly noticed one Sindarin elf moaning in plain and utter agony as he held onto his face and hurried towards him. He jumped when I touched his shoulder. "It's okay. I'm a friend." I weirdly said, before briefly stiffening up as he turned towards me. Even with his face half burned, I could still recognise him. 'Holy shit. It's Thranduil.' I thought before quickly focusing myself and flying my best to heal the burned side of his face. Irissë and my bodyguards covered my back before the former whistled for her panther and we put Thranduil on her back

Irissë then looked up at the many dragons flying overhead causing more destruction and seemingly got an idea. "Your majesty, do you remember Sypha from a certain piece of fiction with another kind of dark lord?" She asked in a whisper and I knew she meant "Castlevania" so I nodded in answer, only to jump as she whistled and tried to gain the attention of a dragon. "Over here!" She shouted as she waved her arms like an idiot

One dragon started to fly towards us at seeing us and I genuinely wondered if our Irissë hadn't inherited some of her canon self's recklessness."What are you doing?!" I demanded to know as we ran away, having to still cut down many orcs in the process, Ekthelion and Varyaryo joining us. "Improvising." She replied as she kept looking at the dragon as she stopped running, forcing us to surround her so she wouldn't get herself killed.

The moment that the dragon's throat lit up as it got ready to fire, she threw out her hands while we covered her back from any other attacks from orcs trolls and other monsters. The effect was immediately visible as the dragon suddenly looked like it was heavily choking on something while the fire in its body only grew. It let out a final roar before its throat exploded and it fell out of the sky. Irissë immediately slumped in exhaustion and Ekthelion quickly caught her. "No more exploding dragons for you." He ordered and if the situation wasn't so dire, I would've snorted at the phrase "exploding dragons." 

We fought for hours before something else happened. We had just managed to unite with the other armies and I had found Ñolofinwë, asking where Finno and Ohtare were and he told me that they were helping Finderáto. It was clear that my sister had remembered me telling her about how my nephew got ambushed in the book and how that had been the start of his involvement with Beren's and Lúthien's quest and his death

I had been fighting orcs near him when I suddenly sensed something coming up from behind me and whirled around just as my guards were blown miles away. My blade met another and I grunted at the immediate strain as my opponent was very strong. Looking at the man in front of me, I saw almost unnatural beauty with black hair and glowing grey eyes, but it was completely tainted by darkness as he smirked at me.

"Well, if it isn't the High Queen Nemireth herself. What a delight to finally meet you." He crooned mockingly as he tried to force me down to make me fall to my knees, but I managed to remain standing. Even without him saying his own name, I knew who this was. "Wish I could say the same, Curumo." I spat and he raised an eyebrow. "Oh, I didn't think you would know me. What an honour to be so well-known among royalty." He sneered and I shrugged as I managed to deflect the hit, taking a step back. "Mairon told me enough about you to make an educated guess." I replied

I quickly noticed the flash of anger on his face and smirked just a bit. "Ugh, so you're friends with that fool. Lord Aulë never appreciated him like lord Melkor could, but he still stayed with those Valar because of that pathetic wife of his." He stated and this time, I was the one trying not to let my anger show. Suddenly seeing him glance up, I jumped sideways just as an orc tried to tackle me from behind and I ran to Ñolofinwë

"Take the Queen! We want her alive!" I heard Curumo shout and I felt fear course through my veins as a troll blocked my way and tried to swing at me. I lifted my sword, but before it could hit the arm of the troll. I literally felt the earth fall away underneath my feet and yelped as I was suddenly surrounded by darkness. I had no idea where I was, but I felt the earth moving me around at a very fast pace before pushing me up to the surface again

Just as I was trying to reorient myself, I saw a sea of red as Maitimo pulled me into a crushing, but brief hug as we had been separated hours ago by all the chaos. "Oh, thank the Valar that you're alright. We heard someone order them to take you and I was so worried." He breathed in relief as he pulled back again. "You're welcome." Irissë stated from a small distance away as we then continued to fight. Later, when the fight was over, I was relieved to find several of my guards had survived, one unfortunately having been killed by orcs when he landed after Curumo blew him away

I remembered that the settlements in the east were in the most danger of being overrun by Morgoth's forces in the books, so we did our best to kill as many as we could. Especially Celairel made many casualties as she usually either blew a head of or another limb so her opponent would be too shocked to defend itself against the next attack from either Huan or Tyelkormo. I did make sure our kingdom was protected as well 

Irissë stayed behind to ensure it wouldn't be taken while we went further east to help those living there. Maitimo honestly fought like an absolute beast after we reunited as he made his anger at Curumo's order to capture me very clear to anyone who had the misfortune to meet him in the rest of our battles. Working together, we thankfully managed to save the realm of Makalaurë as well as the one of Ñolofinwë, Finno and Ohtare 

We fought for days, weeks, months and it never seemed to stop. Even though I tried to save as many as I could, many still died and Maitimo often had to pull me away from a body of someone I reached a moment too late and I couldn't save. Several weeks after the fighting had started and thankfully without seeing Curumo again, I reunited with Finno and Ohtare. "Finderáto?" I asked frantically and they told me he was safe, but that they had seen Fearil on the battlefield as well, leading a group of people away from their burning village and I remembered my vision from when she was a baby

"That's my girl." I whispered with a small, but very proud smile, before we continued to fight. Maitimo and I were busy fighting a huge troll to notice that a dragon had started to focus on us and was getting ready to fire at us. We had just killed the troll when we saw the fire coming towards us. My husband immediately pulled me against him and got ready to jump to the side when Ohtare jumped in front of us with a scream of "No!"

The flames bounced off a shield of pure energy as my sister seemed to float in the air as long as she kept up the shield. Celairel then appeared out of nowhere and shot one small, concentrated beam past the fire and towards the dragon as it hung still in the air to fire at us, hitting it in its eye. It roared in pain and flew away as Ohtare let the shield fall and almost collapsed and Finno caught her. Things were getting desperate

After at least a year of fighting, we heard the news that Ñolofinwë had gone to face Morgoth all by himself and I and Ohtare both looked at Finno who lowered his head as he knew this would be his father's death, but we were too far away to stop him and with Irissë far in the west to guard our kingdom from getting invaded, there was no way we could reach him in time and even then, we didn't know if we could even save him from Morgoth of all beings if we actually managed to get to him. "I'm sorry, Finno." I said and he took a deep breath, before he went to fight even harder

I didn't really know why exactly Ñolofinwë made this fatal decision now as he wasn't High King, but I guessed that didn't matter to him as he had to protect our people from the evil Vala, no matter if he was their King or not. If I ever saw him again, whether it was in the Halls of Mandos if I ever died too or back in Valinor if I managed to survive this and all the madness that came after this, I'd give him the biggest hug imaginable 

By spring, Morgoth's forces finally lessened quite a bit and the battle was officially considered over. We went back to our realms as fast as possible, but not before sharing goodbyes with the others. "Look after him." I whispered to Ohtare, both knowing who I meant as we had received the news of Ñolofinwë's death by Morgoth's hand and now that he was gone, Finno and Ohtare were now the de-facto rulers of their realm

That was a huge responsibility to be saddled with after just losing your father, so finno was definitely going to need my sister. It wasn't as bad as in the Unfinished Tales as he very likely became High King without apparently having a wife to lean on if Gil-Galad was Orodreth's son in there. Ohtare nodded in answer as we separated and went to our homes. Looking at our quite diminished amount of soldiers, my heart broke as I silently wondered how many significant others waiting back in our kingdom had already started to fade at feeling the death of their Ones

Thankfully, Irissë had managed to keep our kingdom safe with help of my uncle and his forces as he understood things would be even more lost if Hithlum fell. We  had a small feast to celebrate the relative victory, but it was incredibly subdued compared to the one after the Glorious Battle. My uncle's forces stayed for the night, but when everyone was asleep i went to a our balcony as I looked up to the stars and started to sing quietly 

At the end of the slightly changed song as I had replaced the words "heralds" with "soldiers," I finally broke down in tears and fell to the ground as I cried for all the lives lost. I never thought that song would ever fit my situation, but it did and I hated it. I hated that I had sent my people to their deaths to protect others. I had cried with the Glorious Battle as well, but this was ten times worse as I still felt like I had failed so many

I hadn't heard him getting out of bed or his footsteps, but the moment I felt Maitimo wrap his arms and a cloak around me from behind, I instinctively turned into his chest and let everything out while he gently stroked my hair. He didn't say anything to me, but he honestly didn't need to as I felt his grief for our people as well. He just held me underneath the stars as we both knew that things would only go downhill from here.

We sat there until the sun started to rise

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

My husband's hands caressing my cheek woke me up

Starting to blink a bit, I looked up to see him giving me a gentle smile and I sighed as I snuggled closer to him, his grip shifting from my face to my back as he gently stroked my back. Today was the first day we'd properly resume our duties again and to be honest, I was having a huge amount of difficulty with the thought. I finally found some connection with Frodo and the other hobbits at the end of "Return of the King."

I may not have carried an item of uncontrollable evil that was slowly corrupting me for months while being captured several times, stabbed by a spider, gotten my finger bitten off by Andy Serkis or so many other things that the poor thing went through, but I finally understood the meaning of what he said in the end. How did you go back to your usual life, knowing that nothing was the same or would be the same again? 

I knew or at least hoped that Ohtare would have a bit less trouble with this bit than us after the battle as she had been a veteran once, but that had been thousands of years ago and she'd mostly lived in peace since then. Not to mention that she now also had her family and especially poor Finno to look after with her husband having lost his father. Having lost one of my fathers before, I knew what he was going through at least a bit, but at the very least, he, Irissë, Turukáno and Arakáno would see him again one day. My sisters and I would never see our original parents again

I hadn't realised how much hurt that thought still caused me even after all these years until Maitimo gently wiped my tears away and gave me a look that was full of concern. My heart, what is it?" He then asked in a whisper and I slowly told about how I was thinking that no matter what I did or what happened, I'd never see the parents who had raised me and my sisters together and he immediately hushed me as he held me tighter to him

"I'm so sorry, my dearest Nemireth. I know you must still miss them with all your heart, but you're not alone in this. I'm right here with you and so are our children, your sisters and their families. You will never be alone again if we can help it." He whispered as he gently kissed my temple, which was such a stark difference from the fierce and dangerous warrior he'd been during the battle that it was almost hilarious in a way

I then pulled back from him just a bit to look up at his face and I smiled at seeing the concerned look in his eyes, before I gently grabbed his arm so I could look at his hand, the same one he'd be missing if he had actually been captured all those centuries ago and with which he had killed so many of Morgoth's creatures in the past months and with which he was holding me so gently and carefully now like I was made of fragile glass. I then gave his palm a kiss before pressing it against my cheek as I reminded myself we had survived another battle. 

He simply watched me doing this for a minute as he kept stroking my hair and back with his other hand. "I'm here, my heart. I'm here with you and I'm not leaving. We survived this devastating battle and will continue to protect our people, especially with us not instigating the next one that goes horribly wrong. We managed to save as many elves and men as we could and they will always be grateful for you for that." He whispered 

We eventually did get out as we had to look after our people again. Our advisors and children had done the job for us as well as they could while we had been off to battle, but it was still our duty to take over again as soon as we could. Varno, Naire and Arnion had been utterly relieved to see us come back to them alive and whole, but I had noticed Irissë looking away during our reunion and my heart had broken at seeing it

While Ñolofinwë had visited us and especially her and her children as much as he could during the times of peace while leaving Finno in charge, much to their joy and even though she had treasured every minute she had with him when he was there knowing that perhaps one day, he'd be gone and she wouldn't see him until she returned to Valinor. Considering that me and all my sisters were likely going to try our very hardest to stay for as long as we could and as long as Eru would give us, she wouldn't see him again for perhaps millennia and even for an elf, that had to be a long time

It was honestly no surprise to any of us when Irissë had left to go to her own home not very long after the battle so she could grieve her second father with her family in as much peace as she could while keeping an eye on our borders. She had only been seven when our other father had died and while she had obviously loved him, she had once confessed to me that she didn't remember much of him and that was completely different now

She'd now had much more time with Ñolofinwë this time around and while she was likely thankful for that as she now had a much closer bond with her second-life father than she had with our former father, it also meant that his loss hurt all the more to her now. Me and my family wished her, Finno, Turukáno and Arakáno all the strength necessary to go through this painful time as we slowly started to look after our people again.

Fearil eventually came by with a pretty big escort to see how we were doing, reunite with us and her siblings, reassure us that she was alright and vice versa and proudly tell us that she had managed to keep Gwindor and his brother safe and I smiled as I then told her about the report of her saving people. She gave me a sheepish grin as she knew that I had told her to stay inside Nargothrond as well, but had disobeyed and to be completely honest, I was not even mad at her as those people most certainly would've died if not for her arriving and leading them to safety

Seeing my family complete again soothed a bit of my hurting soul, as did going into the town surrounding our castle and having many elves, especially those who had stayed behind, thank me for keeping them safe. I even talked to several families of those who had lost their lives and none of them blamed me for their loved one's deaths as they all pretty much said the same thing: the soldiers had known the risks and accepted them.

A part of me still felt rather guilty and likely always would, especially when I met some widows who had rather young children created late during the peace as I knew very well what it was like to lose a father young, but even they told me they had known the risks of marrying a soldier and many were planning to hold out as long as they could for their children before fading once they were old enough to be able to take care of themselves

That incredible strength in so many of the ellyth to try their very best continue on for their own children despite what had to be excruciating pain as their souls called it for its other half on the other side of the ocean immediately reminded me of my former mother and I smiled as I solemnly promised said widows that if they did fade before their children were of age, I would personally make sure they'd be taken care of and they all thanked me. Maitimo always had a few guards be near me when I did this just in case, but they stayed nearby without actually disrupting my work

Unfortunately, the small realm of Tyelkormo had eventually fallen to the enemy at the very end of the battle, even though many of his people had thankfully been saved from being taken or murdered just in time by their lord and Celairel and they had now settled safely in Doriath with said people and with my uncle's permission as my sister had wanted to spend more time with her own sister before it was too late and she died forever.

Years passed and we threw up more defenses now that Morgoth and his forces were out until the end of the first age. Tol-Sirion was still taken by Curumo and my blood froze in fear as I really hoped I wouldn't have to lose my nephew soon. Ohtare said that Barahir still helped, but that my nephew hadn't promised anything as far as she knew. That's why my heart skipped a beat when I received a note from Fearil one day

"Nana, uncle Tyelkormo is here with a man named Beren"

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Well... that happened

As I had already predicted, Tyelkormo pretty much took Finderáto's place in the quest of Beren and Lúthien after my uncle had still foolishly demanded that Beren had to get a Silmaril from Morgoth, only without the dying (thank Eru." Finderáto had also joined the quest despite several protests from my daughter and several others as he didn't want his cousin to perish and he still owed Beren's father Barahir for helping him.

They had still gotten captured as even though Curumo wasn't as strong as Mairon, he was still pretty powerful in his own right. He had managed to overpower the tiny group Beren, Tyelkormo and Finderáto had taken with them, it not being tiny because they had been threatened with the Oath this time as Curufinwë had gone to live with Makalaurë after the battle of the sudden flame and Makalaurë kept a close eye on him

Instead, it was because my sweet nephew had refused to lead his people on what was essentially a suicide mission after the battle we had already gone through and had taken them captiveUnfortunately for Tyelkormo, his light hair made him rather easy to recognize and Curumo had quickly set out to torment and torture him him as much as possible to try and get information on Maitimo and myself. However and unbeknownst to all of them, Celairel had secretly followed her One together with Lúthien and Húan who had been ordered to stay behind by Tyelkormo to protect her 

This was also after they had both escaped from Doriath as my uncle had forbidden them to go, my former sister's powers helping them get out of the place uncle had put them in. They had been hiding in the forest near the island and despite not being married yet, Celairel had felt her One's pain. She had stormed towards the fortress, forcing her sister and dog to follow her as they hurried after her to make sure she didn't get killed.

Like in the book, Huan had had killed any and all orcs, wolves and other creatures that Curumo sent out to meet them and when the fallen Maia came out himself, he barely had time to open his mouth to make his threats when Celairel already lew his arm off and Huan had him in his jaws right after. The three of them had quickly forced him to surrender the island to them before he had wrestled himself free and had tried to flee 

Lúthien had been completely willing to let him go as her focus was on finding and saving Beren, but Celairel definitely wasn't and she had sent a beam straight at his back, both for what he had been doing to her and her sisters Ones, my nephew and her second cousin and for all the trouble he had caused Mairon and Runande back in Valinor. I wouldn't be surprised if Runande would laugh her ass off once she heard about it. His physical body had been completely gone in the wake of her attack, but we all knew he'd be back sometime soon as his spirit hadn't been destroyed

Now that he was very aware of Celairel's powers after likely already seeing me suddenly disappear from what would have been his dark and terrible grasp during the battle, we had to tread very carefully as we didn't know if he realised we had powers that came from the Valar. We were hopefully in the latter half of the first age, but with Morgoth out and about in the world again, we had to be very cautious and watch out for anything 

Anyway, after destroying Curumo's physical form, Lúthien, Huan and Celairel had rushed inside the abandoned fortress and had found Tyelkormo, Beren, Finderáto. Because they had been so early compared to the rescue in the book, most of the other elves they had with them were still alive and they had managed to get them free. Celairel would later tell me that she'd rarely been so relieved as when she saw Tyelkormo was mostly okay

They had still gone to Angband after that (and no, I was definitely not freaking out about the fact that my sister had gone into what was literally hell on Middle-Earth) and to make sure that they didn't pull even more attention from the place's dark master, Lúthien and Beren had quickly disguised themselves as two of Curumo's now dead followers and had managed to get themselves into the place while Celairel, Tyelkormo, Finderáto and the others stayed behind to take care of Morgoth's little watchdog after Lúthien had put him to sleep through her own powers and killed him off

I'll admit I was a bit confused when I heard about that part as it was that same monster who killed Beren in the book and I wondered what was going to happen now. The end of the quest had pretty much gone like in the book with Lúthien managing to make Morgoth and his court fall asleep and Beren being an idiot and wanting to take two Silmarils waking the Vala back up again and they had quickly been forced to escape 

They had returned to Doriath with a Silmaril actually with them and after Celairel had privately shouted at her father for several minutes forcing Beren to go on a quest that had not only threatened her One, who was a Prince of another race but his own great-nephew, he had allowed Beren to marry Lúthien. It was a very shaky Celairel and Tyelkormo who arrived at our door not long after and told us everything that had happened

I had rarely seen Maitimo this incredibly relieved as he pulled his younger brother in a hug, uncaring of anyone who was watching and I felt the same way as I hugged Celairel as well. "Don't ever scare us like that again, understood?" I asked her sternly and she nodded, but she also quietly said that she didn't regret destroying Curumo's physical form and I sighed as I knew I wouldn't feel sorry either if Curumo had been threatening or even torturing my Maitimo or any of our children so I nodded to show I understood the feeling and didn't blame her for feeling that way

I then quickly sent Celairel and Tyelkormo back to Doriath and told them to keep me updated on any changes while I was torn about whether or not we could or would take the Silmaril. It was Lúthien's line that took it to the Valar and convinced them to help them, but I was also wondering if the Oath was fulfilled if we got it and we wouldn't have to worry about any Kinslayings whatsoever. That option definitely seemed very appealing

The next (or first here) Kinslaying would be taken against Celairel's people to try to get the Silmaril Lúthien had stolen and considering she had just destroyed Curumo's ass in defence of her One, she definitely wouldn't be scared to kill my (and one day her) brothers-in-law to defend her home against them and to protect her nephew. Asking my uncle for the Silmaril would definitely be the option with the least amount of bloodshed 

But would Maitimo and I having it be enough to appease the Oath to actually release my brothers-in-law from it or would the three Oathbound sons of Fëanor eventually decide that we were their enemies now too and attack us as well to get it from us? Maitimo didn't swear the Oath so he could be seen as an outsider from that perspective but he was still a son of Fëanor, so it would also technically fulfil the requirements, right? I honestly didn't even know anymore. It was obviously amazing to have saved several people from their terrible fates, but very confusing as well

Then again, we first had to see if my uncle even gave it back to us as he absolutely refused to give it away in the book and that eventually resulted in his death. I had told Celairel that it went downhill for her home from now on in the book and she had promised to keep an eye out on things, but she was still only one of us and it wasn't like any of us could leave to go help her. Ohtare and especially I had our own realms to look after

I also had to look after our entire people and make sure they were as safe as possible and Irissë was making sure we were as safe as possible. I decided we would wait a bit to see what would happen in Doriath first as the ball (or Silmaril) was now mostly in my uncle's corner.  In the next several months, I asked my uncle about it, but he stayed vague and I prepared for the worst which came in one small tear stained note from Celairel 

"Dwarves killed Beren. Lúthien's dead too."

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

We went to Doriath as soon as we could

Celairel was already waiting for us with a solemn Tyelkormo when we arrived at the border and as soon as we stopped our horses and had servants take the reigns, I immediately jumped from mine and rushed towards her. The moment I pulled her into my arms, she started to cry as she clung onto me. "Y-you told me it was likely going to happen, s-so why does it still hurt so much?" She whimpered and I sighed as I stroked her hair 

"Because loss always hurts, especially for elves as she will hopefully return soon but as a mortal and when she dies then in just a few decades, it will be forever." I whispered in a solemn tone and she just held onto me tighter. I simply hummed her old lullaby that our mother always used to sing for her. She had been ten years when dad died, so while still having memories of him, mom was definitely more prominent in her mind

I just stroked her hair to comfort her while Maitimo quietly asked Tyelkormo what had happened and I listened along. Like in the book, my uncle had commissioned the dwarves to put the Silmaril in a necklace (my husband raised an eyebrow at this as we had repeatedly asked for it and I really hoped that Thingol had been wanting to gift me that necklace) and had refused to give it after that. The dwarves had invited him for a hunt and because I had warned Celairel and Tyelkormo about it, they had gone with my uncle and had thankfully prevented the assassination from happening 

However, some dwarves had managed to get into the kingdom and had attacked the elves living inside. Ben had died protecting Lúthien and Melian and my cousin had died of grief right after that. Thankfully, Celairel had managed to tell the soldiers and guards she had received a vision of dwarves attacking. Because her mother was still a Maia, no one looked up weird at this and when the dwarves did attack, the response had been fast

Thanks to that decision from my younger sister turned cousin, while there had been a few casualties in the ensuing chaos that came after the dwarves had been spotted, even though there thankfully were more casualties on the side of the dwarves than the elves, the kingdom hadn't been sacked like in the book and it still had its King. I did hand the feeling that I had to play mediator between my uncle and husband soon enough though

That feeling came true not long after that because once Celairel had calmed down slightly and we had left her in the capable arms of Tyelkormo to continue looking after her (weird to think that when I first married my Maitimo, I never would've willingly left any of my sisters with any of my brothers-in-law, except for maybe Makalaurë and even that would've been iffy) and Maitimo was rather tense as we met my aunt and uncle. I gently put my hand on his back and he took a deep breath as he tried to relax and start this meeting calmly before he made a grave mistake

I could understand why he was so incredibly tense though. The Silmarils brought nothing but destruction and death with them, even with me and the others trying our very hardest to reign in the bad consequences that they just seemed to bring with them wherever they went or who currently had them, even without the Doom in place as far as I could tell and this dwarf attack was a definite example of such terrible consequences 

And if we didn't agree very soon about what to do with this one Silmaril, another terrible consequence would likely happen in the form of the first Kinslaying here as my Oathbound brothers-in-law would soon hear about this event happening, as well as the fact that Lúthien and Beren succeeded in their quest and try and get the Silmaril. I then got an idea and looked up at my aunt. It was risky, but it was honestly the best bet we had

My husband gave my uncle a small speech that basically boiled down to "what the absolute hell, Your Majesty?! We have asked for the silmaril countless times over the past few years and you have refused to give it to us and now, your daughter and several of your people are dead and the bond between dwarves and elves may be permanently damaged." My uncle gave a speech back that basically said "I know what I'm doing. This is my kingdom and my daughter was the one to get it in the first place. Finders keepers." How he and my second father were related, I had no idea

I kept quiet for a minute as I wrote something down on a piece of parchment and slid it over to my aunt. She looked it over and looked at me, knowing that it was going to be quite a sacrifice for me if certain people made certain decisions. I then held up my hand and both my husband and uncle looked at me. "Clearly, talking about what has already happened will not help us get any further." I began to say as I sat up straight

"We need to look towards the future and with that, I mostly mean my three brothers-in-law who have sworn the Oath together with my father-in-law and who will not rest until they have obtained at least one silmaril and Morgoth who will almost certainly be looking for both revenge and to get the silmaril back. I may have an idea to make sure neither side get it, but it will take a lot from you and especially Queen Melian." I stated

Maitimo and my uncle immediately looked at her at hearing this and even for her already calm and serene doing, she was incredibly solemn as Maitimo asked what the idea was. I grabbed his hand as I knew he was very likely not going to like the first part of my proposal. "Uncle, you can keep the Silmaril on two conditions." I told him and while my husband whipped his head around to look at me in surprise at he had apparently expected anything but me giving it up that easily, my uncle just raised an eyebrow in intrigue as he asked what those conditions were

"For one, you will close the girdle around your kingdom even tighter than it already is. No one will be able to get in or out for as long as either Morgoth or my Oathbound brothers-in-law are out there in the world and that includes even us. Even my brothers-in-law with all their might can't go up against the magnificent power of your wife." I stated and I could see my husband taking a deep breath from next to me as he knew what this meant

With Tyelpë, Artanis/Galadriel, Celairel and Tyelkormo living here in this kingdom and if they decided to stay in Doriath before the girdle tightened around it, we wouldn't be able to see them again until both Morgoth and my Oathbound brothers-in-law were gone. I honestly wouldn't blame them if they decided to keep living here as even with Irissë guarding our borders, a realm protected by an actual Maia was always going to be safer 

I honestly didn't really see Tyelpë actually leaving the utter safety of this place to come and live with us now that he had a wife and child of his own that he had to protect from any harm, especially with his father being one of those wanting the silmaril and my niece had Celeborn now, but Celairel and Tyelkormo would definitely be more torn. If Celairel left Doriath and came to live with us again, she wouldn't see her parents and people anymore for however long this age took, but if she chose to stay, she wouldn't be able to come and visit us or our sisters anymore either

Tyelkormo would also have to choose between his One and his unbound brothers if she chose to stay, unless Maitimo gave him the order to protect Celairel during our absence. In any way, it was going to be a very big change for many. I then also realised that if Celairel decided to stay, she wouldn't be able to see Lúthien again, so it all came down to my aunt, uncle and husband agreeing and my sister's/cousin's decision

My uncle then asked what the second condition was and I smirked as I was honestly going to enjoy this bit. "You start listening to your wife more. She is wiser than any of us combined, but from what I've heard, you constantly dismiss or ignore her advice. With Morgoth out and about, it might be for the better if you start taking your advice... before your own daughter has to save you from another assassination attempt." I told him

He looked pretty outraged at being rather called out like that while I could see my husband turning his head away to hide his amused smile from my uncle before he saw it and my aunt silently giggled behind her hand herself even as she smiled at me for pretty much stating the truth. She really was much wiser than any of us, even me with my knowledge of the book and it honestly was about time my uncle realised that it was only because of her that the kingdom had been so safe as it had been for so long and that it had been because of him that danger had come to it.

To be completely honest with you, Thingol had always been one of my least favourite characters before I came to live here and while he had been nicer to me ever since we arrived in Beleriand than he likely was in normal circumstances because I was his niece, I was starting to see more of his book character now that he had the silmaril. Still, I just kept looking straight at him before he looked down and nodded in agreement 

I then looked at my husband and after thinking for a bit, he nodded in agreement as well. We didn't know what would happen if we took the silmaril to our realm and my brothers-in-law or Morgoth would attack us if we had it. Not to mention that Irissë would likely me far more hesitant to throw other elves off the mountain than she was throwing orcs of. Keeping the silmaril hidden in Doriath under strong magical protection was our best bet

My uncle made the announcement of the girdle tightening that night and while many of the elves either didn't really care or were happy for the extra protection, but Celairel was immediately upset as she went through the same realisation as me about leaving or staying. She went to talk with her parents privately and stayed there for hours, until eventually coming out of the room very emotional and telling us she was coming with as she absolutely refused to leave us out there while she was nice and comfy behind magical barriers and we all nodded as Tyelkormo supported her

Tyelpë and Galadriel got upset at realising that we wouldn't see each other for an uncertain amount of time and I comforted my niece while Maitimo comforted his nephew as we told them to stay in Doriath where they were safe. Finderáto was still safe in Nargothrond with my other nephews, so I knew they would be fine as long as Túrin didn't show his ugly mug and if Artanis could stay safe as well, I'd be able to keep my promise

When we left Doriath not long after, the goodbyes were  more emotional than usual as Celairel hugged my aunt and uncle while sniffling, Tyelpë was patted on the back by Maitimo and Tyelkormo as they told him to look after his family and Galadriel hugged me as well while begging me to be careful. We eventually left and as we crossed the hill and turned around, we saw mist appearing and growing until it hid the forest from even us

'I just hope this won't be for nothing.' I thought as we then rode home

Chapter Text

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Despite Doriath becoming inaccessible, there were some small, positive things

Even though I knew it hurt my sister to be separated from her parents and her second childhood home, it also meant we were hopefully going to the end of the first age and towards Morgoth's defeat. With the Battle of Unnumbered Tears not happening as Maitimo kept his promise about focusing on defense rather than offence and apart from some minor skirmishes Irissë was involved in at the border, there was no major battle anymore

As we had expected, my Oathbound brothers-in-law demanded the return of the Silmaril as they had apparently heard we had visited Doriath, but we truthfully told them all that we didn't have it. We did lie a bit by saying that my uncle refused to give it to us, rather than that it was me who suggested that the Silmaril stayed in the well-protected kingdom. Curufinwë came by to check on our claims and hummed when he saw we really didn't have it

It did hurt a bit to see that apparently my in-laws didn't trust their own brother's word anymore, even if we did tell a tiny lie about why we didn't have it, but it really hurt to see the significantly cooled relationship between Tyelkormo and Curufinwë when he visited. Those two were thick as thieves once upon a time and now... Tyelkormo literally shielded Celairel from his own brother when he came too close to her for his liking. Tyelkormo knew how far his Oathbound brothers were willing to go to get the Silmarils back and his trust in Curufinwë had vanished

Two years after Doriath was hidden from us, Maitimo and I were discussing about sending more supplies to Irissë's settlement when a guard arrived and said someone claiming to be my cousin had arrived. I immediately smiled as I had a suspicion of who it could be and told the ellon to let the woman in. Sure enough, Lúthien soon walked in and even though my husband had already known she'd return, to actually see it was a whole other thing

He stared as Lúthien gave me a hug and I could feel the difference in strength compared to the hugs before she died. It was clear she had chosen to become mortal like in the book. I ordered a servant to get my sister and after bowing, they quickly hurried out to do exactly that as I gave my now weaker cousin a seat on my throne, sitting down on the armrest myself as I rubbed her back and she explained how she had been unable to find Doriath 

I immediately winced at hearing this as I realised that by keeping the Silmaril in Doriath and making my aunt tighten the girdle around the Kingdom to hide it from everyone, I might also have prevented my cousin from ever seeing her parents again until the Second Singing if we didn't find a solution to this little thing. I probably should have waited until she returned back to life again, but my mind had completely been on the safety of both my people and those of Celairel at the time as they wouldn't have been safe with a Silmaril in either our or their possession 

We then heard a loud gasp from a small distance and turned to see Celairel standing there in the doorway, covering her mouth at seeing her resurrected sister sitting there as her eyes already grew teary and Lúthien immediately ran towards her with open arms, overjoyed to see at least one member of her family. Celairel hugged her back as she started to cry, knowing that with her sister now being mortal, every second with her counted

We and Tyelkormo, who had followed his One once they heard that Lúthien was here, smiled at seeing the sisters reunited with each other, even though it was also tinged with a bit of sadness as we knew that this time, they wouldn't be together forever. From the moment I married Maitimo, I had known that I would have to say goodbye to Ëarwen and my brothers one day, but they at the very least were still alive and on the other side of the ocean

Once Lúthien died this time and in what would likely be in only a few short decades now, that would be it until the end of time. Celairel wouldn't see her again until the Second Singing, whenever that was. Yes, she would of course still have her parents, her people, me, the rest of our sisters, our ones and our children,Tyelkormo and any children they might have in the future, but if there was anything our family knew better than most people here was that you never got over the death of a loved one, especially not if it was a family member you were really close to

When Lúthien left the kingdom again, Celairel went with her after asking permission and we had naturally granted it. From what I heard when she returned after her sister had passed away for the very last time, they'd been able to get into Doriath one more time by using their Maia powers and shared blood with Melian so Lúthien was still able to see her parents once more before she and Celairel moved to the island where Beren had built a home

There, Celairel stayed with her sister and brother-in-law until the end, eventually returning in the year 503 with a heartbroken expression on her face and a man named Díor. I wanted to hug her but Tyelkormo beat me to the punch as he rushed towards her and pulled her into his arms, Celairel immediately breaking down as she clung onto him. I felt my own tears fall as I realised my cousin was dead forever now. I wouldn't see her again either

Maitimo quickly pulled me into a comforting hug as well as I mourned my cousin like I hadn't mourned anyone since mom had died in our previous life. "I'm so sorry, my dearest heart." He breathed with a voice filled with sympathy as he stroked my hair while I hugged him just as tightly as Celairel was likely clinging onto Tyelkormo right now. It took quite a while until we had calmed down a bit, Díor being shown to a guest room by a friendly servant. My sister/cousin would later bring him to Doriath so that her parents would still have something of Lúthien with them

As for her, she had a beautiful necklace Lúthien had given her and that would always be very special to her. And so, years passed as we just defended ourselves against Morgoth as much as we could. My husband and I did get a letter from Turukáno in his hidden city of Gondolin suggesting that they took up arms against Morgoth as they might have a chance if Beren and Lúthien succeeded. Maitimo gave him a short answer back: "No." 

It surprised me to hear how long Gondolin stood until I realised the elf that betrayed the city had never been born as his mother was married to someone else and had other children. Around the same time as the Quest for the Silmaril had taken place, we allowed some special people into our Kingdom: Húrin, his brother Huor and both their families and people were welcomed by us as I had realised we could stop Túrin from ruining Nargothrond

Túrin was cursed in the book because of his father's capture and subsequent refusal to give Morgoth the location of Gondolin. If I managed to completely prevent both things from happening, the man might actually live out a normal life, not cause so much death in destruction without meaning to and marry someone who wasn't his own sister. Of course, the last part was because of that damned dragon Glaurung and he was long dead, but I wasn't taking any risks. The only problem of this was that I had to get Tuor into Gondolin one day so he could meet Idril

They were Elrond's paternal grandparents, so their meeting was important. Oh well, I'd figure it out on the way as the humans were given a settlement of their own that was in-between ours and Irissë's and they were incredibly grateful for the safety we granted them. We nodded and promised we wouldn't interfere much with them on the condition that if or when we did do that and gave them an order, they would listen and they agreed with that

Still, I couldn't help but grow nervous as time passed, the Quest for the Silmaril happened and Lúthien died and returned as I knew we were slowly going to the endgame now if everything went correctly. In just a few decades, the biggest war on Middle-Earth happened in the book. A war that would last over forty years. From now on, every decision counted it I wanted to get everyone I cared about through that period safe and most importantly 

Alive

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Turned out I didn't have much to worry about Tuor and Idril

Irissë's niece actually came to visit with her mother and three Lords of the city, including a certain golden-haired one: the famous Glorfindel. He and Ekthelion had been close but had been forced to separate when Turukáno moved his people to Gondolin while my sister and brother-in-law stayed with us to keep us safe. I smiled at the ellon, desperately hoping he wouldn't have to sacrifice his life during a harsh battle with a balrog in this universe.

That was just a horrible way to die in a world already filled with so many bad ways to die. In any case, it seemed that Idril "or rather Itarillë as she never had to change her name because of my uncle banning Quenya from his lands) and her mother had taken the place of what we liked to call "Book Irissë" in wanting to leave Gondolin for a bit to visit family. The only difference was that they actually had kept their words about where they were going.

When Itarillë took one look at Tuor while on her way to see her aunt, she was in love with him almost immediately and with permission from the man's family and especially his father, she took him with them when they returned to Gondolin after visiting Irissë and her family, Itarillë and her mother meeting their cousins in Itarillë's case and niece and nephew in Elenwë's case for the first time as they'd been born after they had gone to live in Gondolin. From what I heard, it had been a very happy time in an age tainted by darkness before they left with Tuor.

It made me happy to see that hopefully soon, Elrond's father would be born. It seemed that even though several elves who were single in the book had found a partner here (all our ones and Gwindor) or had been married to someone else (Irissë) some couples were still destined to get together like Beren and Lúthien before and Itarillë and Tuor now. I still kept a close eye on his cousin after healing his little sister, but it seems he was a normal man.

I later heard that despite my husband's orders not to antagonise the Sindar as they were my people as well and my uncle would not condone it, his Oathbound brothers had still gone to Doriath with their followers to try and get the Silmaril back and where Curufinwë, Pityafinwë and Morfinwë had gone into the most that surrounded the kingdom, only the former two had come out as Morfinwë was forever lost in the mist and the dark forest.

We would later find out he had eventually been killed by some guards when he got a bit too close to the Kingdom and a small part of me wanted to go "Ha! Karma!" as that was the same fate that had been given to poor Elúred and Elurín in the books, but I was a bit too busy with comforting my husband to actually do it. Oath or not, it was still his brother who had disappeared and later killed and I wrapped my arms around him as much as I could, our three youngest children also helping him as much as they could as he mourned the loss of his brother.

To my surprise, my aunt visited us with the Silmaril not too long after and explained how she was going back to Valinor with Thingol and plead for the Valar to come help us instead of her granddaughter like in the book. She explained that Díor would rule Doriath in their stead and that the moment they and especially she were gone, the protection around the Kingdom would fall, but the Silmaril would be gone as well so it wasn't as dangerous anymore.

Still, she asked us to help keep her people safe and we agreed, sending Celairel, Tyelkormo and some men with her. Once she was gone, the two of us shared a look as it suddenly hit us that if the Valar agreed to come, this would be it. The biggest battle in Middle-Earth history would happen and who knew what our families and allies looked like at the end of it. Maitimo then pulled me into an almost bone breaking hug that I immediately returned.

I sent Irissë, Ohtare and Makalaurë letters with Súldor as he could fly without being spotted by the enemy and they all sent letters back to me that basically boiled down to "Oh shit." We nervously waited for anything to happen as we still readied ourselves for war nonetheless and this war would he like nothing we had ever experienced. "I don't want to be in a battle, but waiting on the edge of one I can't escape is even worse." I muttered one day, remembering the little hobbit who said it. Man things were so much simpler back then when all of this was nothing but fiction.

I now knew what Gandalf meant with "the deep breath before the plunge" as we simply knew that shit was about to go down, but we didn't know when or how. After the last big battle, Morgoth had caused trouble all across Beleriand, but our defences had held against his forces and it seemed he was now waiting for us to make the first move. It would be a whole different thing once he realised the Valar, Maiar and so many others were coming.

I winced at realising Mairon and Runande would likely come as well and even though they were more powerful than all of us combined, Morgoth also very likely had it out for them after my sister prevented him to bring Mairon over to his side. Nevertheless Maitimo and I always went to bed feeling wide awake with nerves, clinging onto each other for hours for even a semblance of comfort until we actually did fall asleep and even that was restless. 

One day, I was sitting on my throne reading something about possible trade between Doriath and our Kingdom starting up again. My brothers-in-law had quickly demanded the Silmaril again when they realised the protection was gone, but Díor had truthfully stated he didn't have it anymore and Pityafinwë had gone to check, Celairel and Tyelkormo keeping an eye on him the whole time and came to the conclusion that he didn't have it either. They had then demanded recompense for the death of Morfinwë, but my husband had put a stop to that himself.

Back in the present, something drew my attention and I looked up. There was something off today. A change in the air. I got up from my throne and walked out of the room. Maitimo was in a meeting and I knew i couldn't disturb him yet as I climbed to the highest point of our castle. Our castle was built on a hill so we could see all around us and in the far distance, I saw something moving, the sunlight gleaming on something that looked like.... armour.

My eyed widened as I realised I was looking at the largest host I'd ever seen in my life slowly moving closer to our castle from the west as I began to run downstairs to warn everyone, soon bursting into the room where Maitimo was holding his council meeting and everyone looked up in surprise while I just looked straight at my husband. "They're coming." I stated as I panted and he stared as he realised what I meant. "Merciful Eru." He breathed.

What happened next was honestly a bit of a blur to me from that little moment in the council room until the day the battle truly beganin all earnest as we humbly welcomed the truly enormous host of the Valar after i had sent letters to everyone else to tell them about their arrival. They and their men would slowly trickle in as well over time as they realised this was it and we had to unite as much as possible. War camps upon war camps were soon set up in our Kingdom as a mix of elves, men, Valar and Maiar got ready for the biggest fight of their lives.

Nargothrond and Gondolin completely emptied out around the same time after Turukáno and Finderáto had received dreams of the ruin of Beleriand and realised that their kingdoms wouldn't be safe. The men immediately prepared to fight while the women and children were sent east to be safe from the horrors of war. Maitimo and I as well my married sisters and their ones tried to send our children to the east as well, but they refused to leave.

As I was trying to convince them as I couldn't bare the thought of losing my children, even as an arrived Fearil was already dressed for battle, I heard a voice calling me and turned to see my father running towards me. Rant about my children's safety forgotten, I ran to meet him and jumped into his arms. "Oh, my little Nemireth. Thank the Valar that you're still alive." He whispered. I simply clung onto him as I hadn't realised my father would be there too.

The Teleri hadn't participated in the War of Wrath apart from ferrying the host over because of the.... kinslaying.... that didn't happen because of me..... I'm an idiot. Eventually letting go, I introduced him to his grandchildren and he was overjoyed to meet them. He immediately joined me in trying to convince them to go to safety. In the end, only Naire and Arnion of my children, Rilyanasta of Irissë's children and Alassinde of Ohtare's children went east. Most of our sons and Fearil refused to go and my youngest Unbound brother-in-law went with those leaving to keep them safe.

It was in the very last days of preparation as my three sisters and I, Celairel and Díor having sent the people of Doriath east too, were walking through the camp with our ones meeting with Eonwë, my father and even Arafinwë about the best possible ways to do it that I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned to see Runande and Mairon standing there. I immediately pulled her into a hug with the others joining in when they saw her as well.

"Milana?" Runande asked at seeing Celairel as they hadn't met before today in this life, receiving a very quick and happy nod before Celairel noticed Mairon watching this from the sidelines and gave her a grin as she realised who he was. "Shut up." She muttered, making us laugh. "I'm just saying that most of us don't fall in love with a villain, sister." Celairel chuckled quietly, still enjoying the fact Runande had married Sauron without knowing.

Runande hissed about how she hadn't known and we laughed again. Even Mairon grinned at her embarrassment. "Not to mention that you weren't honest about how you prevented your husband's kidnapping. You really have guts to bash the devil of Middle-Earth on the head like a whack-a-mole game, my dear sister." I giggled and we all laughed again as Runande smiled. I did notice that the moment we let her go, she grabbed her husband's hand again and held it tightly. It seemed that she was aware of the danger she and Mairon were in as well with their history with Morgoth. 

That night the five of us sat around a campfire after hearing the battle would begin soon. Our Ones, animals, including Runande's kitsune Ilvane and Makalaurë sat around us as none of us said anything, knowing that starting tomorrow, it was all or nothing. "How long does it take in the book again?" Irissë asked quietly as she poked the fire with a stick, our children having been sent to bed. I replied it took over forty years and I could see the despair

Ohtare looked sick as she covered her mouth with one hand and clung onto Finno who held her tightly. Out of all of us, she knew the horrors of war better than any, even after all these years and to realise that the next 40+ years would be nothing but fighting against all kinds of monsters with your family was not something anyone would want to hear. Celairel was visibly shaking as Tyelkormo held her close to his side, her eyes shifting at every shadow

Irissë dropped the stick she had been using in the fire as it sank in how long this would likely take as she looked at me in horror and I made a face while I was leaning against my husband. I logically knew that he survived the War in the book, but he didn't exactly have much to care about anymore there. With me and two of our children in the fray, he would likely be more reckless as he'd try to protect us until his last breath and I just couldn't bare the thought of him dying to protect me and held him even tighter as I stared into the fire and opened my mouth

"Do you hear the people sing?" I sang, sisters joining one-by-one. "Singing the song of angry men? It is the music of a people who will not be slaves again. When the beating of your heart echoes the beating of the drums, there is a life about to start when tomorrow comes. Will you join in our crusade? Who will be strong and stand with me? Beyond the barricade, is there a world you long to see? Then join in the fight that will give you the right to be free!" We sang 

At the end of the song, we all lowered our heads before actually getting applause from the soldiers around us who had listened to us singing. Even my father, Arafinwë and Eonwë had come to see what we were singing about. Over next few hours, I actually heard it being spread around the entire camp. "I just hope that they don't ask what "France" exactly is." I muttered and my husband, sisters and brothers-in-law all chuckled dryly.

We then received the order to go and rest and went into our assigned tents. Despite the Maiar having their own section of the camp, Runande and Mairon had been allowed to set up a tent near ours and after sharing a group hug without caring who saw and would wonder why a Maia would know us so intimately. We then had to separate and go to sleep. Shaking like a leaf and feeling unwell, I clung onto my husband until sleep finally took me.

The next morning, we were already prepared for the upcoming war at dawn as we heard the growls and roars of Morgoth's creatures in the distance as he had noticed their arrival too and I told Gwindor to look after my daughter in case we were separated and he solemnly promised to do exactly that. Varno was practically glued to his father's side as he met with the other leaders and that included Ingwion who had grown into a very handsome ellon indeed. From what Runande had told me, he was still waiting to meet his own One and I wondered who it would be.

Speaking of my youngest sister, I noticed her giving Mairon a dagger before they kissed each other with a passion only such a situation could bring. They broke apart and hugged instead and I looked away, only coming closer once Mairon had gone to join Eonwë. "What was that dagger?" I asked quietly as I went to her and she smiled. "It was the first thing I ever made on my own. My talents do not lie in his craft, so I was very proud of it." She explained. 

"I told him to keep it on him if we get separated and to give it back to me next time we meet. He promised he would but with Morgoth very likely after our heads, I will be happy if it's just the dagger I lose." She continued with a sigh and I patted her back and she gave me a tiny smile, before giving me a tight hug. "Be careful." She whispered and I promised I would, before we broke apart and she went to join her husband with Ilvane at her side.

I went back to my own husband and children as I pulled them into a tight hug, my sisters doing similar hugs. "I love you all so much. Never forget that." I whispered and they promised they wouldn't as we eventually had to break apart. As our children walked away, Maitimo and I shared a look and the same kind of kiss Runande and Mairon had shared. "I love you. I love you. I love you." I whispered after we broke apart and he gave me a fragile smile. "I love you too, my beautifully brave Nemireth. Thank you so much for everything." He whispered to me. 

"Don't talk like that. You're not saying goodbye." I hissed and he smiled as he pulled me into one last hug. I clung onto him with all my strength, his armour cold and hard under my touch but at that moment, it felt like heaven as I felt Maitimo's warmth from underneath it and it reassured me that he was still alive. He kissed the top of my head and repeatedly told me that he loved me and our children so very much, before it really was time to go.

Hugging my sisters one-by-one and begging their ones to look after them as wellcas giving my father a hug, I climbed on my horse and patted its neck as it likely wasn't going to survive the first charge. "Thank you for everything, my friend." I whispered, before we left. We didn't have to travel far as we soon saw Morgoth's forces ahead of us.  Sharing a look with my family and pulling my sword, we heard a trumpet in the distance and charged.

No matter what would happen, I would fight until the bitter end to protect the ones I loved

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

If I thought the Battle of the (not so) Sudden Flame was chaotic, it was nothing compared to this

It was honestly nothing but fighting terrible creatures and corrupted men, dodging attacks from our enemies and in my case healing the injured from day 1. Maitimo and my two children always stayed at my side as did Makalaurë. We honestly hadn't seen him much in the past few centuries as he had been busy ruling and defending his own realm, but it was nice to see him again, even if it could be in much better circumstances.

My father was always fighting near our little group as well, clearly not wanting to lose me in all the chaos that was the terrifying battle after only just being reunited after at least five centuries of separation. He did briefly stare at seeing my healing powers for the very first time when one of our people took a hit meant for me and I made sure he didn't go to the Halls of Mandos. I shook my head at seeing his look as this was not the time.

From the corner of my eyes as we kept on fighting, I noticed how much of the fire the dragons tried to breathe over us and our allies got redirected to those on Morgoth's side and immediately smirked in pride for just a very brief moment as I knew exactly who was responsible for it. Apparently Irissë had found a new way to help with the dragons as keeping the fire in until they exploded took too much out of her and this way, she could still fight against them in a way that didn't take too much energy from her and hurt Morgoth's numbers more than it hurt our numbers.

From my other side, I saw Ohtare and Celairel in the distance taking care of several trolls and Balrogs with their ones. I knew why they were focusing on the latter category as both Finno and Ekthelion were killed by one Balrog in particular and even from where we were fighting, I could see one Balrog that was bigger than any of the others combined as he made many casualties: Gothmog. The very same beast that had killed my father-in-law. 

From the way that both my husband and Makalaurë quickly stiffened up, they had very clearly recognised him as well, but I put a very gentle hand on my husband's back for a just a second. We really had to concentrate on fighting to live yet another day, not on revenge for what that bastard did. Maitimo took a deep breath, before he instead cut off the head of a troll that was charging towards Fearil, papa wolf instincts in full blast.

I couldn't exactly see where Runande or Mairon were in all the chaos that was the biggest battlefield in the history of Middle-Earth ad the Maiar had gone ahead in the very beginning, but I did notice brief flashes of white light appearing all over the place at certain times. If I remembered correctly, then Runande had been given the powers over light and darkness by Lord Eru when I was pregnant with my dearest Fearil oh so long ago, so I was pretty sure that those flashes were her. I just hoped that she'd look out for herself and that Mairon would keep harr safe and stay safe as well.

My sisters and I did have to be very careful over time as our powers tired us out more and more every time we used them and we couldn't fight if we were utterly exhausted. Especially as the war slowly progressed did I have to leave injured soldiers to either die there or to be carried off the battlefield and pray they got to the base camp in time for them to be healed as I knew I wouldn't be able to fight if I used my last energy to heal them.

Irissë, Ekthelion and their son were fighting a huge troll near us when Maitimo and I felt suddenly heat approaching us from right behind. My husband grabbed me and Fearil who was near as well and jumped to the side right before a fiery axe buried itself where we had been standing. Looking at the owner, we saw that Gothmog had found us and was apparently looking to kill another High King of the Ñoldor. Well, not on my watch.

We immediately fought the huge being after quickly pushing our children to Irissë and Ekthelion so that they would be completely safe from him and his attacks as we did our best to defeat him once and for all despite the harsh heat coming from him in waves creating gushes of sweat on our bodies and making our weapons almost unbearable to hold. I kept looking around to see if there was a second Balrog coming up from behind us like when Finno died in the books, but it seemed it was just the one and I thanked Eru for that as fighting him was already hard enough.

Despite the both of us fighting with all our might, we were slowly pushed back by him bit-by-bit until we were near a river. Gothmog raised his blade again and brought it down when Ohtare appeared out of nowhere and created a shield around us. The fiery blade broke on the shield just as a huge torrent of water was shot at the Balrog, completely drenching him and creating a lot of steam as his fire disappeared, obscuring his view as well.

Celairel quickly joined us as well, shooting one of her powerful beams at him and it thankfully connected. Because of the steam around him, we didn't see what she had hit for a brief moment until we heard a thud as Gothmog's disembodied head fell to the ground, the beam having burned away his neck. "Ha! Karma!" Ohtare shouted with a manic grin on her face as the being that killed her husband by cutting off his head died in the exact same way.

I grinned as Irissë then joined us again and I immediately thanked her for her help in killing that damned Balrog. "No problem. Pretty clever strategy to lead him to a river on your part." She commented as Fearil, Varno and my father who had been unable to do anything but watch as we faced Gothmog on our own, all gave us a quick but relieved hug at seeing that we were mostly alright. I decided not tell her that us leading Gothmog to a river had honestly been nothing but coincidence as we had simply been pushed back every few minutes as we had bigger things to worry about

We continued fighting our enemies after that and quickly left the decapitated body of Gothmog behind us before orcs realised who had been responsible for that and wanted to get revenge for it. I did love that no matter what world Gothmog was in, his downfall had been brought on by water and that instead of Ekthelion, it had actually been his wife, someone who had been long dead in the book at that point, who had helped in his final defeat. 

It was very weird to see how much difference just five people could make and especially how much my knowledge had changed things. Not only were there many more of the Ñoldor royal family still alive and Nargothrond, Doriath and Gondolin hadn't fallen, but because we hadn't started the Battle of Unnumbered Tears and had instead focused on defending our people and with a lot more realms still in existence, our armies were still quite strong.

I couldn't help but smile a very small a bit as I suddenly realized that while the tail end of the first age had been completely tainted by Morgoth's darkness, I had made sure that things hadn't been as utterly hopeless as it had been in the books by trusting those around me with the knowledge i had and letting them change things. Maitimo didn't start that terrible final battle and because of that Finno hadn't died, Irissë never married Ëol in a dubious manner and hadn't even met him ever and four of the Sons of Fëanor weren't bound by that absolutely horrible and devastating Oath.

No matter what happened from here on out and if I would survive this entire battle or not, I would always keep that in my mind and heart. However, I didn't have anything to do with one of the biggest gamechangers concerning the future of Middle-Earth: I wasn't the one who had kept Mairon from being corrupted and turning into Sauron by loving and supporting him. That had all been Lillith and I honestly couldn't be prouder of her if I tried.

For many years, we fought Morgoth's forces like we had never fought before in our entire lives as we tried to stay together as much as possible. There were many times where we had to save someone else from the attack in the back while they were occupied fighting something else. "I'm not sure if I can take over forty years of this!" Ohtare shouted as she cut off a troll's arm. I didn't say anything, but I knew we were all feeling the same thing.

Little did we know that the war would soon be drastically shortened... because of the worst reason possible 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

It happened about twenty years into the war

Ever since the beginning, we had to fight wave after wave of forces as Morgoth had clearly spared no expense in this to quote a certain movie. Again, things had seen much simpler back then and while a part of me missed those days, I wouldn't trade in my dearest Maitimo or my entire family for anything and I didn't think my sisters would either, especially Ohtare with her bad luck in relationships before we came to live here.

In the fighting, I got slightly separated from my family and briefly fought back-to-back with none other than Mairon and Runande, the two of them covering my back as we fought our way over to my family before my husband had an aneurism at me not being at his side anymore. With two Maiar at my side, it was easy and Maitimo quickly pulled me in a hug in utter relief. I then turned to my oldest brother-in-law. "Tell me your name." I said.

He chuckled in slight amusement at my rather bad timing even as he killed a troll that was headed for Runande. "I've been awake since before the breaking of the first silence. In that time, I've had many names." He replied and I smiled as I told him I was checking if he still knew the words. "Oh, your sister made sure that I remembered it." He muttered and despite the situation, I snorted at the look Runande gave him, before he briefly squeezed her hand and they soon disappeared in the chaos again. And then to think that I threatened the guy when I first realised who he was.

You know that your life has become incredibly weird when you threaten the guy who would've become Sauron as an actual elfling instead of a human, someone who's in a very high position as a Maia and one of Aulë's best students and actually get away with it scot-free. I remembered seeing them as a baby and their relationship hasn't changed since then. They were still as sickeningly sweet as they were then.

It wasn't just us fighting as most of our animals had joined the fight too and made many casualties among our enemies, especially Ohtare's wolf and Irissë's panther. Only Celairel had sent her horse east with those leaving for safety as, like I had expected, most of the horses hadn't survived the first charge, mine included as Maitimo and I had pretty much been one of their prime targets. Damn that recognisable red hair of his.

Even Súldor was in the fight and he watched my back from above. If he let out a cry, I knew someone was trying to sneak up from behind. My second father and I fought together as well with my husband and children a bit further. "You really have grown incredibly strong in the past centuries, my little Nemireth and I couldn't be more proud of you if I tried. I love you more than anything" He said one day when the fighting got especially bad and I smiled as I knew why he was saying this. He was afraid he was not going to survive  and wanted to tell me as much as he could.

"I know Ada. I love you too, but let's focus on surviving this before we say anything more." I replied as we fought on, me fighting just a little bit harder as I refused to lose any of my family. Looking to the left I saw Ohtare and Finno working together with their son, my sister creating shields to block attacks and Finno and Ereinion attacking. Many orcs and other enemies tried to focus on Ohtare because of that to literally cripple the defence.

However Celairel and Tyelkormo absolutely refused to let that happen at all as they and Huan immediately attacked many enemies together before they could even reach Ohtare in the first place, Celairel shooting arrows out of the sky with her own powers as that strategy thankfully didn't take that much out of her since those beams were incredibly small while Tyelkormo and Huan cut and bit their way through the oncoming forces.

Looking the other way for a second, I saw my husband, my two children who were still in the fight and Irissë, Ekthelion and their son working together. They were all still in the harsh fight despite several years having passed since the fighting had begun and many elves, men and dwarves had having lost their lives in the process. I was pretty sure I even saw some dead Maiar lying on the ground at times as the battlefield shifted practically every day and maybe it was because Maiar are more powerful than us, but that sight messed me up even more than the sight of dead elves.

It also really didn't help that I had a sister and brother-in-law who were Maiar and who Morgoth almost definitely still had a grudge against. He didn't forget the slightest action against him and even cursed a whole family just because Hurin refused to tell him about Gondolin's location. He was petty and with his darkness and his power, that was a very dangerous thing to be, so we had to be careful as the war continued on.

Eventually, Maitimo and I managed to convince our battle weary children to go to safety anyway, Ohtare's wolf and Huan being the ones taking them away as they were faster and stronger than any horse in existence. We kissed their foreheads and told them they were loved before they rode away. As we watched them go, we both knew that it might be the last time we would see them as the war was really taking its toll.

Huan and Ohtare's wolf eventually returned to our sides and silently reassured us that our children had safely arrived in the far east, much to our relief. "Do you hear the people sing? Singing the song of angry men. It is the music of the people who will not be slaves again." I quietly sang to myself as I kept fighting, reminding myself why I had to fight for as long as I could. Why I had to stay alive to fight another day. I had to protect my people and my family, both here and in the east. Their safety was still my responsibility as High Queen and mother and I could not fail them.

The fighting continued on for several months after that with only minimal periods of rest in-between for us. Just enough for us to catch our breath and get enough energy back in our bodies to continue the fight as we couldn't bear to leave our people out fighting without us for too long. I could sense that Maitimo desperately wanted to send me east as well ag the war worsened, but he knew I wouldn't ever agree with that.

Celairel and Irissë joined us as we heard the loudest roar we had ever heard and looked up to see the biggest dragon in existence. Ancalagon had joined the fight and without Ëarendil and his ship, I had no idea how we would beat him. We then heard a neigh and Celairel's horse landed near us. "What are you doing here?! You should be in the east where you're safe!" My sister hissed as she rushed towards her horse and it neighed again.

It clearly didn't want to be left out. Makalaurë joined us as well from where he had been fighting near his half-uncle and Prince Ingwion and I was glad to see him mostly alright apart from a bleeding arm that I healed. We shared a brief but dreading look as we knew that if something didn't happen  soon, we could lose the fight. I looked at my sisters and got a reckless idea. "Irissë, Celairel! With me! Jump on!" I shouted as i sheathed my sword and rushed towards the horse. Because it was no ordinary horse, it could carry at least three people. Maitimo asked what i was doing, but I didn't answer.

My two sisters quickly followed my lead and jumped on as well. I  kicked the horse in the sides and we took off into the air. I led the horse or rather, pegasus to fly around the huge dragon and waited until we were behind him. I then noticed darkness surrounding us a bit, obscuring us from view, but I could still see. Looking down, I saw Runande looking up at us amidst all the chaos and realised she was hiding us from view.

In the years leading up to the war, my sisters had learned a few new things in regards to their powers and it was time to use them "Irissë, use your lightning powers and aim for his right eye! Celairel, his left!" I ordered  "On it!" I heard Irissë call as celairel, who was sitting behind me, carefully let go and prepared her powers as I carefully let the Pegasus fly lower to the dragon's head, hearing the sound of static behind me.

"Ready?" I asked and got confirmation from the both of them as Ancalagon drove the forces of good back and was about to turn the tides in Morgoth's favour. "Hey! Ugly head!" I shouted and the dragon turned as my sisters immediately shot their lightning and beams at him. The lightning hit him right in the eye, but the beam missed and hit his neck instead, burning his scales as he roared in pain. I then grabbed my sword and did the most reckless thing I had ever done: I jumped from my sister's familiar and landed right on the dragon's head as I heard my sisters screaming my name.

Ancalagon immediately moved his head wildly to try and get me off him, but I somehow managed to hold on by grabbing some scales with one hand as I grabbed a dagger and stabbed him in the other eye. The vibrations of his next roar almost made me fall off to what was very likely going to be my death, but I managed to cut away some of the scales on the top of his head while my sisters flew around us to catch me if I did fall. 

"Irissë! Lightning! Now!" I ordered as I used my dagger to climb down the dragon's neck a bit and Irissë reluctantly started to work her powers up again. In the distance, I could hear Morgoth roar in anger and denial as he realised what was happening. I waited and right as Irissë shot off her lighting, I jumped off and into the air. The lightning hit Ancalagon right in the spot I freed up, electrocuting him alive as he let out his final roar.

I felt myself starting to fall down before a harsh wind suddenly blew up from behind me to slow my fall as my sisters steered the Pegasus to end up underneath me, Irissë quickly grabbing my arm and pulling me on it. "You are the most reckless person I have ever met! Do you know that?!" She screeched and i let out a breathless laugh as i was all shaky from the adrenaline with the realisation that i just used a dragon line a bull in a rodeo hit me. Celairel quickly brought us the hell out of there as other dragons came after us to try and kill us while we quickly went to the good side

Landing harshly on the ground near our Ones as we all took deep breaths to try and calm ourselves down, I barely had time to reorient myself again, before I was already pulled into someone's arms and held tightly against someone's chest . "Don't ever do that to me again. You reckless-" Maitimo hissed as he held me in his arms, before letting out a shaky breath and burying his face in my hair as my brothers-in-law covered us

My father quickly rushed towards us as well at seeing Maitimo tightly holding onto me and told me that I was to be grounded the moment that I returned to Valinor for my actions. I just chuckled breathlessly as I took a very deep breath. Ancalagon was dead and that was all that I wanted. I would take any punishment in return for worrying them so much as long as that stupid dragon couldn't take anyone I loved away from me

We eventually continued fighting again and to my surprise, Maitimo, Makalaurë my father, and I were eventually joined by my youngest sister again and just her this time as her husband was nowhere in sight. "Where is Mairon?!" I shouted as I stabbed an orc as it was honestly nothing like him to confront Runande alone and that in a fight like this and she immediately replied that she didn't know. She said that Eonwë had taken him and several other Maiar ahead to get closer to Morgoth's centre of power to try and take his closest circle down.

Something about that reckless strategy made cold shivers run down my spine as I hoped that he would be okay. It was extremely dangerous for him to go that close to that bastard as we didn't know what Morgoth would do once they were close. We fought on for several hours, eventually getting joined by our other sisters, who had spread out a bit to take down other enemies once more and their ones and families one-by-one 

Once we were al together once more and after sharing some very quick looks, we all faced Morgoth's forces together as a family and making sure we didn't lose anyone to any enemy that came. 'Normal families go out camping as a family activity. We're fighting monsters instead' I eventually thought to myself dryly as I let out a very humorless scoff, before focusing again. It was when we were in that formation that it happened.

Runande had just killed a troll with her giant sword (seriously, Sephiroth from the "final fantasy" games would be jealous of it) when she suddenly slumped over out of nowhere, heavily leaning on her sword and for a moment, it seemed like she had actually stopped breathing. "Runande?" I  immediately asked in worry, but she didn't react at all even as our sisters repeatedly called her name as well, looking back-and-forth between her and the oncoming forces as we quickly surrounded her to keep her safe and make sure that she didn't get attacked in this state.

Realising something was wrong, I ordered my husband and Makalaurë to cover me and they nodded as they turned and looked out for any danger. I quickly went to my youngest sister. "Runande?! Lillith?!" I called as I noticed that she was starting to tremble and hyperventilate and I grabbed her arm to try and bring her back to the present moment. When I used her original name and touched her, something broke as she looked up and screamed.

Everyone immediately looked back at her in shock and horror as she fell to her knees while still screaming and her powers went completely wild right as there was a roar of victory from Morgoth's side. Looking his way, we then saw that he was holding someone's head in his hand. Just the head and nothing else. Even from where we stood, we could immediately recognise those flaming red locks and that extraordinarily beautiful face.

It was Mairon's head

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

For a moment, it was like time stood still

We all could only stare in utter horror at the sight in front of us. Mairon, our oldest and most powerful brother-in-law out of all of them, the one who'd been keeping our sister safe long before we arrived and in our absence, was dead. Killed by the same being he would have served if not for Runande showing him that he was loved and appreciated. Morgoth smirked in satisfaction in our direction, having seen our sister's powers go out of control too.

'This was his plan. To take away Mairon from my sister anyway like he tried to do long ago, only this time, in a very different way. Let's hope his spirit is okay.' I thought as the moment we saw that smirk, time resumed and we all reacted. Celairel stumbled and had to lean on Tyelkormo as she tried not to throw up. Irissë's eyes teared up as she looked at Runande, unable to think of what she was feeling right now. Ohtare straightened up and took charge.

"This ends now. Nemireth, get Runande out of here! Go back to the camp." She ordered and despite me technically being the higher in rank, I simply nodded as Makalaurë and I started to help my youngest sister up even as it was extremely hard to do as Runande seemed to have lost all of her energy and life when she belt her husband die. "Come on, sweetheart. We need to get out of here." I whispered as Huan laid down next to us and allowed me to help her on his back, before Makalaurë and I climbed on as well and after nodding at my husband and the others, we were off.

As we rushed back to the camp, the wind quickly picked up in strength and soon enough, we had to lean close to Huan's back to get a bit of cover. Looking back, I saw that Irissë was now flying in the air, a ball of air around her and the other elements soon joining her as well one-by-one. She was like Aang in the final battle against Firelord Ozai of "Avatar the last Airbender." I wouldn't be surprised if her eyes were currently glowing white as well.

Beams of light and explosions were seen and heard as Celairel and Ohtare made their way over to the bastard too, but my main concern was my almost unresponsive youngest sister as we reached the camp and some Maiar who'd stayed behind to heal greeted us and asked what had happened, gasping when I told them Mairon was dead and we were quickly led to a nearby tent, Makalaurë and I having to practically carry Runande there.

The moment we walked in and put her down on the bed, she immediately sagged and curled into herself as she started to cry, muttering her husband's name over and over again and I could do nothing but rub her back to give her even a smidge of comfort. "I'm so, so terribly sorry, sweetheart." I whispered as Makalaurë went to guard the tent to give us privacy. "Sylvaine... I want Mairon back." Runande whimpered after a while and my heart shattered at seeing my usually energetic sister who was always so happy and full of laughter, so completely broken and small

"I know, Lillith. I know. I'm so sorry, little one. I can't even imagine what you're going through right now." I whispered to her as I brushed her hair back, trying my hardest to help in any way that I could. And to be completely honest with you, I obviously hoped I would never have to go through the pain she was going through right now. Runande simply cried again as I started to hum a song, before starting to sing it, hoping it gave her a bit of comfort 

At the end of the song, Runande wasn't outright sobbing anymore, but tears streamed down her face silently. The wind then suddenly began to blow inside the tent as I heard Makalaurë state there was some mist moving closer. Soon enough, that mist got inside the tent after going straight through my brother-in-law. I narrowed my eyes and saw a very pale figure inside the mist. I then instinctively knew what or rather who it was, stepping aside a bit

The figure flew over to my sister. "Mairon?" She breathed and he smiled as he kissed her forehead and she let out a sob, before he turned to me. He apparently couldn't speak in this form, but his eyes said enough "Look after her until I'm back." I immediately nodded and gave him a small smile. "You better return soon though or we'll all come and collectively kick your ass." I then threatened and he smiled as he then looked at his wife

Even though he was barely visible, even I could see the love in his eyes as he caressed his wife's cheeks, her likely only feeling a small gust of wind on her cheeks, but leaning into his touch nonetheless as she knew this would be their last contact for what was likely going to be a long time. He then kissed her forehead once more, before he disappeared while still in that position as he was likely called back to Valinor or maybe even Lord Eru's side. Not sure where Maiar went when he died. "Well, at least his spirit is okay. That's good." I commented after a few seconds 

"How's that good?" Runande asked in a completely broken tone as she just laid there and I explained that if his spirit was intact despite his physical body being destroyed, he'd eventually return again. If Morgoth had destroyed his spirit together with his body, only Eru might've been able to restore him and even I wasn't sure if that was possible. Still, the possibility of her husband returning to life one day was enough for her as she took a deep breath 

Olórin then ran into the tent after arguing to be let in with Makalaurë and I could see the heartbroken look in his eyes when he saw Runande lying there on the bed, the pain in her own eyes clear as day as were the tear tracks on her cheeks. "So, it's true. He really is gone." He breathed and my sister looked down as she nodded. "My dearest Runande. I'm so sorry." He then whispered as he kneeled down next to the bed and she squeezed her eyes shut

I sighed deeply as I rubbed my face, before going outside to give the two Maiar friends some privacy and climbing the mountains surrounding just in time to see Morgoth in the distance, fire raging around him, clearly burning him as Irissë was still flying around him, staying out of his reach and not even the fire of the dragons and Balrogs could hurt her. We watched as with a huge flash of light, an explosion of power and all four elements hitting him at once, finally brought Morgoth down and right after that,  Turks was there and wrestled him in submission again

The earth rumbled heavily as Morgoth was bound once more and I had to hold onto Makalaurë to stay upright. Realising this was it, we quickly went back. "What was that?!" Runande demanded to know as soon as we arrived, Olórin supporting her and I smiled as I told her that it was Morgoth being defeated forever and she let out a shaky breath, before smiling as well as she realised that by killing Mairon, he had basically ended the war right then and there

We went back to the battlefield right after that, Olórin and I keeping an eye on my youngest sister and after taking care of the remaining forces even as theuy tried to flee and run for their lives, my sisters, their Ones who were still alive, Makalaurë, my father, the other kings and I had front row seats as Eonwë told him exactly what was going to happen to him now. Runande was leaning heavily on Olórin, but I knew she wouldn't have wanted to miss this

However, something about the way of how incredibly calm Morgoth was being at the moment even as he had been utterly and completely beaten and defeated by three elven Princesses of all things and Eonwë quickly took his crown with the two remaining Silmarils away from him to be taken back to Valinor, immediately rubbed me the wrong way and I stayed close to Maitimo, holding onto his arm with one hand and my sword with the other as I didn't trust the bastard not to try and pull something to get one last laugh over us as he was known to do that.

He looked like a guy with a plan and knowing him, that could not be anything good. Maitimo felt how tense I was and held me close as Morgoth was taken away and he came past us. It was just the smallest of movements in Morgoth's eyes that tipped me off as he looked at my husband and a blade appeared out of nowhere, going straight towards him and I panicked. 'No! I can't lose him after everything!' I thought as I then pushed him away

Enormous pain was the next thing I realised as the blade hit me and I fell to my knees. I vaguely heard screaming around me as Maitimo caught me in his arms, his eyes wide and panicked. "Nemireth, my dearest heart. No." He breathed in horror as Runande fell to her knees beside us and tried to heal me. Despite her actions, I still felt myself growing weaker and looked in my husband's teary eyes and reached up to cup his face. "I'm sorry." I whispered 

Maitimo screaming my name was the last thing I heard before things went black

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"We meet again, Lady Sylvaine."

I groaned as I slowly lifted my head to look at the person talking to me and I gulped at seeing a very familiar man sitting in front of me as He waited for me to wake up properly, even if I knew that this was definitely not his true form. I carefully sat up and waited for my head to stop spinning, before looking at Him once more and biting my lip. "Mr. Ru. Am I dead?" I asked in worry as I knew my husband wouldn't survive anyway if he lost me and He chuckled 

"No, little one. You are not.... yet. You are on the brink of it, however. It is that I have called you here as your soul would have gone to my son's halls if I had not intervened." He explained and I sighed in relief. I knew that if I had gone to the Halls of Mandos, Maitimo would no doubt join me very soon and leave our poor children orphans and where our sweet Fearil would have Gwindor to look after her, I didn't know how the others would fair 

I obviously knew that my sisters and the others would take very good care of them, but still. Lord Eru then spoke up again and I immediately paid attention again. I mean, what else could you do when a literal God talked to you? "I have called you here, because I wanted to thank you for everything you have done and all the pain you have prevented by trusting those with the information you had. If you had not, it would have been impossible to change things, even for you and many of your family would still have fallen in battle or in other ways." He told me

I bit my lip and lowered my head at the praise, having absolutely no idea what to say in return and He chuckled again at my reaction as he put a gentle hand on the top of my head. "You and your sisters have done so incredibly well in the past few centuries and as you have seen, your actions will were vital in my son's final defeat, but I am afraid that the darkness has not left Arda completely." He stated and I groaned as I could guess who he meant

"You mean Curumo, don't you?" I asked and he nodded in answer. I sighed and rubbed my face. That was what I was afraid of. I knew exactly what Sauron did in the Second and Third ages from the book, but I had no idea what Curumo would do in his stead. While he wasn't as powerful as Mairon, he was still rather powerful in his own right and quite a deceiver as well considering how long he kept people thinking he was still on the side of good

Less powerful or not, he was not to be trifled with as I'd noticed when I fought him years ago and I immediately looked at Lord Eru as I was already worrying about the future of my family with Curumo in the same world as them. "What on earth are we supposed to do now? Will my sisters and I still have our powers after this? I mean, they were created to defeat Morgoth and he's gone now, so will our powers disappear as well. Will any Maiar come to help?" I asked rapidly, only to immediately stop when Lord Eru held up a hand to slow my long stream of questions 

"I am delighted to see that I was not wrong in choosing you to help save my creations all those years ago. As for your powers and the powers of your sisters, they are as much a part of you as anything else, so you will not lose them, but they will be reduced in strength for your own safety as you have seen how much it takes out of you and your sisters to use them." He explained and I quickly had to admit that He had a very good point with that

"Another reason I have called you is to give you a choice like your cousin Lúthien and no, I will not turn you mortal so you do not have to worry about that." He said, adding the latter part at seeing my panicked face and I relaxed. "The choice is for you to go to the Halls of my son and wait to be reborn and see your parents and siblings once more and the other choice is to go back to Arda and join your husband, children and sisters again." He told me 

I narrowed my eyes as I felt like there was a catch. "As I suspect you have already guessed, there is a condition. If you choose to go to Valinor, you will not be allowed to go back to Arda and if you choose to go to Arda, you will not be allowed to return to Valinor until Curumo has been defeated for good. Unless you die a second time, you will not be able to arrive in Valinor by boat." He told me as we our surroundings changed into a beautiful meadow and two paths appeared next to me, one being clean and wide, the other narrow with weeds growing at either sides

"The wide one is the path to Valinor, the narrow one to Arda. Choose wisely." Eru stated as he then stepped back and I looked back-and-forth. I knew many would love to go back to the very peaceful and quiet Valinor after an age of fear, stress and the knowledge that at least two more ages like it would come. It was a nice option, but I couldn't take it. I couldn't leave my family to face Curumo on their own, so I turned to go down the narrow path.

"Very well." Eru stated and I turned to face him. "As for your question about Maiar, I am planning to send at least one, but he will not be able to reveal himself until Curumo does." He stated and I asked who he had in mind. "Oh, I think you know whom I speak of." He chuckled and I smiled as I realised who he meant, before bowing and turning to go further, my surroundings growing lighter with the second until I had to close my eyes against it

Slowly opening my eyes again, I saw that I was in an unfamiliar room. Looking down my body and seeing a white nightgown, I lifted it up to see the wound where Morgoth's blade had struck me had completely vanished. Slowly sitting up and managing to get out of bed without falling, I walked to the window and looked out. I saw an elven city around what was likely the castle I was in, but not our city back in Hithlum. It made sense as that was likely destroyed with Beleriand like in the book, but I still mourned the place that had been our home all the same

I suddenly heard a gasp from behind me and a male voice saying "naneth?" I looked up to see Varno and Naire standing there in the doorway, both looking like they had seen a ghost. I quickly smiled and reached out to them and my daughter was the first one to move as she practically bowled me over while crying her eyes out.  I tightly hugged her back as I then kissed her hair and temple several times while rubbing her back, trying to comfort her.

I had no idea how long I'd been gone, but that didn't matter. Not when I was holding my daughter again since the beginning of the War. Varno joined us and I pulled him into the hug. "My darling children." I breathed as I held them close, Naire starting to cry even harder and even Varno had tears rolling down. It took several minutes before we calmed down and I pulled back, looking them over. They were okay and they seemed fine, much to my relief.

"Where's your father and siblings, my little ones?" I asked as I had to see him again and they immediately told me they were in a meeting with everyone that had begun a few minutes ago, them having volunteered to watch over me. Once I had changed my clothes, Naire grabbed my arm and pulled me along with an almost delirious giggle as Varno followed us. Running through the hallways, we arrived at a room with two pairs of guards in front of it, all of them widening their eyes at seeing me, but Naire told them to be quiet and they nodded as they let us through 

Naire opened the door and poked her head in as she waved at whoever was inside, Varno keeping me to the side so others wouldn't see me. "Naire? What is it? I thought you and your brother would look after your mother." I heard Maitimo state and I closed my eyes at hearing his voice. It was weaker than I was used to, but he was still there and that was important. "Yes, I know. However, a small complication showed itself." Naire said as I walked in

You could have heard a pin drop for several seconds, it was so quiet. I looked around the room and saw several different faces that I recognised but they looked different all the same. Ohtare and Irissë both had shorter hair than I was used to and my darling Fearil, Arnion and Maitimo looked paler and thinner than I'd ever seen before. I realised that it likely had to do with my previous condition and I gave them especially a loving smile.

"Now, come on. I choose to join you again over returning to a peaceful Valinor and this is how you greet me?" I asked then as a put my hands in my sides after a few minutes had passed and they were still staring at me in utter shock. Next thing that I knew, Maitimo rushed towards me and pulled me into his arms. Lifting me up into the air and holding me so tightly I could almost feel my back breaking, he then spun me around until I felt dizzy. Eventually putting me down again, he still held me incredibly close as I could feel his body starting to shake with sobs

I smiled as I then sagged against him and enjoyed his touch. Even though it had only felt like minutes since I had taken the hit meant for him, I immediately felt much better once I was in his arms. It was clear that it had been quite a while longer than it had felt for me if they had managed to set up a new kingdom and people looked different "Oh, Maitimo. It's alright, my beloved. I'm here. I'm back and I'm never leaving you again." I whispered

"My darling. My dearest heart. You have no idea how incredibly happy it makes me to see you again." He breathed, his voice breaking and I smiled as I joked that his tight grip on me gave me an idea and he let out a sound that was half a sob and half a laugh, before he pulled back and cupped my face. He then kissed me with all that he had and I immediately returned it as people around us started to clap and cheer at seeing us reunited once more

We broke apart at the sound and chuckled slightly once we realised we had just kissed in front of everyone, but knowing that no one would blame us for it. Our eldest daughter and youngest son then quickly joined us and I quickly pulled them in a hug as well. "We missed you, Nana." Fearil whispered and I smiled at them both as I told her I had missed them too, even if it had felt like five minutes for me since I had taken the attack for my husband. I still had no idea how long it had been for everyone else, but it had clearly been long enough for things time change

My sisters were next to give me a hug once i was finally done hugging my closest family and that took a while as Maitimo eventually joined the hug I was sharing with Fearil and Arnion and Varno and Naire weren't far behind and we just held each other for several minutes. Every single one of my sisters told me how happy they were to see me again and if I could never do something like that again please? I simply laughed as I promised

After Irissë had her turn, an elleth I didn't recognise stepped forward with a hopeful smile on her face as she showed the amethyst ring on her finger. "Lillith?" I asked in a whisper and she nodded as she gave me a hug as well and I hugged her back, overjoyed to finally have all my sisters in the same place. I then asked what I had missed. "Quite a bit, Naneth. Over two hundred years have passed." Arnion stated and my blood ran cold for a moment

Two hundred years?!

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

My head was swimming with information 

My family and especially my husband were careful not to overwhelm me with news, but that was rather impossible when you had missed over two hundred years, even for an elf. Thankfully Maitimo and I quickly figured out a way to make sure I could process it all without trouble. He would hold onto my hand and whenever I needed time to really take something in, I'd squeeze it and he'd either stop talking or hold up his hand for someone else to stop.

I learned that while my family, my sisters and most of their Ones and families were obviously still there in Middle-Earth, there had been several members of the Ñoldor Royal family who had decided to go back to Valinor at the end of the War of Wrath, including all of my nephew's from Earwen's side. They likely expected me to be sad about that, but I was way happier that I had managed to keep my vow to let them return by boat that I still cheered.

When i explained to everyone why I was very happy instead of sad, they all smiled in understanding as they were happy that I had kept my promise. Hearing that my two remaining Oathbound brothers-in-law had both passed away in the War with most of their followers was a bit of a surprise too, but at the very least we wouldn't have to worry about them becoming a threat in this new age. I wasn't sure if we could have Curumo and them trying to attack us at the same time. The Silmarils were now all back in Valinor where they'd be kept safe until the end of time.

My father had returned to Valinor as well with a lot of reluctance at leaving my unconscious body behind. Fearil later told me that he and Maitimo had argued for hours about whether or not I should be taken back to Valinor as well, until Eonwë finally put a stop to it and stated that if my fate was to go to Valinor, I would have been there already. A bit of a blunt way to put it, but it had done the trick and my father had left with his remaining men.

Finno's and Irissë's brothers had left as well as they had wanted to see their mother again and so had my youngest Unbound brother-in-law as he had wanted to see Nerdanel again. However, one of the most surprising things that had happened was that about fifty years after the war, Cellineth, Makalaurë's wife had arrived after quite a dangerous journey as Makalaurë had decided to stay and help his oldest brother rule while I was unconscious.

Naire then straightened up and happily told me she had found her own One in Ingwion, who had decided to stay as well with permission from the Maiar. I was obviously overjoyed, but still resolved myself to speak to him later and really form my opinion on him. Especially the fact that he was pretty much my and Maitimo's age made a small part worry, even though i used to ship couples like Aragorn and Arwen and their I don't know how big of an age gap they have. I then snorted when I thought of the reaction my father-in-law would have if he found out.

Speaking of Arwen, I was also happy to hear that even though their parents had now met and married years later, having met while hiding from the War instead of before, Elrond and Elros had somehow still been born. I guessed some things just still happened no matter what, although neither twin was able to choose between the whole "elf or man" decision as it had been Melian who had returned to Valinor with the Silmaril instead of their parents.

Hey, if it meant that Elrond could grow up with both his parents actually being there instead of being practically orphaned when his mother decides that a rock is more important than him and his brother, before being raised by two kinslayers and losing said brother and later his daughter until the end of time, then I was all for it. From what I later heard, Celairel had kept a very close eye on her great-niece to make sure she took good care of the two.

Also, because my uncle decided to go to Valinor and be with Melian again in a rather ironic reversal of the book and with Doriath having been sunk under the sea, she, Tyelkormo and her nephew now sort of co-ruled the biggest Sindar realm on this side of the Misty Mountains, with the Greenwood and Lórien still coming into existence on the other side with her and Tyelkormo being more ambassadors than actual rulers as my uncle had apparently chosen his grandson as his successor. If it wasn't clear my sister was happy with this, I'd have words with him when I returned.

Finno and Ohtare as well as Irissë and Ekthelion and their families had small settlements near our city as well, but Maitimo and now myself again still held the highest ranks while Runande or Melinde as she called herself now after Mairon's nickname for her, was the one check if there was anything that needed to be done in the Kingdom and bring it to my husband's attention and Tyelpë had gone back to Valinor as well with his own family.

I sighed in relief at realising Curumo wouldn't get to him like Sauron did, before biting my lip. "There are two things on my side that you should know." I began to say once everyone was done and they all looked at me. "The first and immediately the biggest thing is that I saw Lord Eru and he gave me a choice. I could go back to Valinor through the Halls of Mandos... or I could return here and I think my choice was obvious." I said as I looked at my husband.

Everyone immediately chuckled at this as Maitimo squeezed my hand, making me smile. I then looked down and took a deep breath. "There was a catch, however. If I had chosen to go back to Valinor, I would be forbidden to return here and now that I am here... I am not allowed to go to Valinor until Curumo is defeated once and for all." I continued and I immediately felt Maitimo pulling me closer as my family whispered around me. Leaning against my husband's chest, I felt him take a shaky breath as he realised what kind of choice I had been forced to make. 

Melinde asked what the second thing was and I smiled as I reached out to her. She took my hand and I squeezed it as I knew this was about her. "Once Curumo finally starts to make himself known, we will eventually have some help from another Maia in disguise, much like the wizards in the books and movies. He will not be allowed to reveal himself until Curumo does" I stated and I heard many sighs in relief as everyone was happy to hear that.

"I really hope that he won't turn evil like Saruman does. That will absolutely suck" Ohtare muttered and as everyone chuckled as I later learned our children had been told where we really came from and therefore knew what we meant with this, I grinned as I looked at our youngest sister. She had saved the one I was talking about once before and I was sure that she would do it again if she had to, even if she had to smash every single Palantir if she had to.

"As long as his wife stays at his side and supports him through thick and thin like she has done long before we were even created, I do not think that we will have to worry about that. She has protected him from the darkness before and Curumo can't be as bad as Morgoth." I replied, looking her straight in the eyes. I could see the very moment she realised who I was talking about. She covered her mouth with her free hand and closed her eyes as she realised she'd get her husband back one day in the future and that the pain and grief she was going through would stop.

Pulling myself out of Maitimo's arms at seeing her starting to cry, I immediately hugged her instead and our other sisters quickly joined us as Melinde quietly asked if I was sure about this. "I got pretty solid confirmation right before I came back and neither I nor Lord Eru would lie about this. He will come back one day and you will be together again. It might just take a bit because of the disguise part, but everything will be alright." I whispered.

She relaxed and nodded as I kissed her temple, before we split up to return to our duties and Maitimo turned to me once we were alone. "Are you absolutely sure you are up for this, my heart? You can always go back to bed after learning so much and rest for a bit." He told me and I shook my head as I cupped his face. I had rested for long enough and I was not going to let him rule on his own anymore, even if he had gotten help from everyone else.

Telling him this, he took a very deep breath as he gently kissed my palm while covering my hand with his and I could see the enormous urge in him to try and argue his point even more in his never-ending worry about me, but eventually deciding not to as he knew that my stubbornness could outmatch his at the worst of times. I immediately smiled at him, before gently pulling him down a bit so I could kiss him more easily. Despite everything, he smiled in the kiss and when we broke apart, he soon leaned down several times for another few kisses as he held me close

"I have waited so long to hold you in my arms again. There were some dark times when... when I....." He breathed after pulling back, before shaking his head and pulling me closer to him and I could figure out what he meant. He had thought I'd eventually go to the Halls of Mandos and leave him and our children behind much like his grandmother had done with his grandfather and father and I rubbed his back to comfort him as much as i could.

I'm here, Maitimo. I'm here." I whispered. He took a deep breath and held me tighter, before pulling away and leading me to our throne room. We sat down for a few hours, before we heard growing noise outside and a guard ran in to tell us the news of me being awake had spread and everyone wanted to see me. Looking at each other, we smiled and grabbed each other's hands as we walked out. The people cheered at seeing me and I waved at them

A new age had started for all of us and I would do my best to lead us all

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

It was weird, going back to work

From my point of view, it had only been around twenty years since I'd been sitting on a throne, the amount of years that the War had taken, but it had been far longer and not only was our kingdom in a completely different place, albeit a much warmer place than before as our previous kingdom had even been chilly at times during summer because of its choice proximity to the Helcraxe, many faces were now very different as well.

Several of our servants had either died during the War or had left Middle-Earth after that and other elves had replaced them, leaving me to scramble to try and learn the names of those new people as I never wanted to be a Queen that people were too intimidated by to ask for help. It is my duty to become both Queen and trusted friend indeed. Thankfully for me Run- sorry, Melinde was a big help with teaching me those names.

Since she was the one who kept an eye on things in the kingdom, it made sense that she'd know the names of everyone. "You know, I just realised. With your job of having to check everything and see if everything is alright, you have technically become the new never sleeping eye in a way." I joked one day and she snorted. After I had told her that Mairon would eventually return to her, she had visibly improved compared to that first day. Ohtare had told me that she had almost looked like a walking corpse at times, running herself literally thin without her husband.

It wasn't until I heard that coming from her that I realised another big irony. In the book, my husband died right after the War of Wrath while Melinde's husband survived, albeit while actually being on Morgoth's side instead. Here, my Maitimo had been the one to survive, even if he likely would have died if I had chosen to go to the Halls of Mandos instead and he would have followed me and Mairon was the one to die.

It did look weird to not only see my sister look so completely different than what I was used to now after seeing her in Valinor many times as her appearance was changed power was greatly diminished so she looked like any elf who had seen these Two Trees and only her voice still had that slightly magical lilt and (when she was angry) power that betrayed her as something more powerful, but it was even stranger to see her alone.

Every time that she visited us in Valinor wherever she could, Mairon was never far from her side, always nearby the woman he loved and to see her walking completely alone felt incredibly off. It made me think of the ending of the "Battle of the Five Armies" movie where Thorin's company sees Bilbo off and there are three members missing. Three people (or one person in this case) missing didn't seem like much, but it still felt like an empty space that you just wanted to be filled. Then again, I could only guess how my youngest sister was feeling right now.

Mairon was her husband. Her beloved One since before the elves had woken up. Until my sisters and I arrived here, he had been her only family in this strange new world and had been protecting her and making her feel comfortable from the moment she arrived here. She told us that she had been created (or re-created I guess) during the First Singing and while lacking a body, she had nonetheless joined in with the beautiful singing.

That's when a loud sound that she described as this really harsh and irritating noise that just brought many out of their peaceful and tranquil state until the singing stopped and Eru started again. As you can probably guess, that was Morgoth's or Melkor's singing. Apparently, Melinde had slightly freaked out at the noise, especially as others began to join in the literal discord and began to listen to Melkor more than they did to Lord Eru.

She had backed up in slight fear as the noise of the discord grew louder and louder until she had walked into another spirit right behind her who had quickly wrapped itself around her at sensing her distress and she had immediately relaxed a bit. The other spirit was of course Mairon himself and from what she had told us, he had been briefly tempted to join the singing of Melkor...... until she had flinched at hearing the harsh noise coming from so close. He had paused, as if to analyse her reaction and why she had flinched before starting to join the original song again.

"Wow, sister. I honestly wouldn't be very surprised if that single flinch from you was basically the start of the butterfly effect that has been around you and Mairon. The fact that he immediately changed back to joining the original song because of you says a lot." I commented with a smile at hearing this story and it really did as our brother-in-law had been stopped from listening to Morgoth before they even had physical bodies.

Melinde blushed a bit in answer, but smiled that little pleased grin she always had when I reminded her how she had changed Middle-Earth history without even trying nonetheless. Still, I could only hope that Lord Eru would allow Mairon to get his ass into gear and return to us sooner than later. To see my youngest sister look so miserable was the last thing that I wanted and it didn't help that the others and i still had our Ones.

Iressë quietly told me one day that she and the rest of our sisters had always done their best not to be all fluffy and romantic with their partners in front of our youngest sister to make the hurt even worse by reminding her of what she had lost in the past two hundred hearts. Thankfully for all of us, Melinde was usually on the move to keep an eye on everything in the kingdom and even beyond at times if it was really necessary or if she was ordered to by my husband, trying to keep herself busy as much as possible so she wasn't in one place often and they didn't have to refrain themselves often.

Even so, it was a bit harder to do for me as Maitimo was still in the "I'm so happy you're alive" phase and often pulled me into his arms for minutes at the time, burying his face in my hair and breathing in my scent to reassure himself that I was alright. I did notice that even he made sure not to do it in front of Melinde, but now that she knew Mairon would return to her one day, I wonder if it would hurt as much, but I wasn't going to find out.

One evening a few months after I had woken up, we all came together with our spouses and children and had a bit of fun catching up with each other again, something that was honestly way easier to do now that we all lived in the same general area instead of being spread all over the continent like before. It reminded me of the short time Ohtare, Iressë, Celairel and I had briefly lived in the same castle before eventually splitting up.

This particular evening, Ereinion had a very careful question for Melinde after biting his lip and clearly hesitating on actually asking it before eventually speaking up and making us focus on him. "What kind of song would have fitted your husband if you hadn't been there in his life?" He asked quietly and when Ohtare immediately began to scold him for asking such a question, our youngest sister stopped her as she told us that didn't mind it. She then hummed in thought as she tried to think of a good answer. Her face then cleared up as she came to an answer.

"Honestly, after Nemireth told me who I was married to, there was a brief time of how I would have reacted if he did go to the dark side. As much as it would have hurt me, I wouldn't have gone along with him as I hated Morgoth with everything in me, even more now, but I do think a fallen Mairon would have tried to convince me to come and I do know one song that fits that scenario almost perfectly." She told us before going to sing quietly

"It goes on for a bit longer after that about how he's actually going to blow up a whole building in his madness, but that part was constantly in my head for a while until Ohtare, Nemireth and I told him about what he would become and it almost broke him to hear it." She explained, before a rather confused Fearil slowly turned to me and asked what exactly "high school" or "Vietnam" was. I told her that I would explain later.

"You know, if you actually replace "high school" with "Valinor" and "those a-holes" with "those Valar," I could easily see Sauron singing it in his insane state. No offence." Ohtare muttered to herself as she thought about it and I nodded in agreement, before she quickly apologised to our sister who waved it away. I noticed that Maitimo was looking thoughtful as well and asked what was going on in his head and he blushed a bit.

"It's rather stupid, but since we were talking about songs at the moment, I suddenly remembered that when you were discussing the possibility of Celairel courting Tyelkormo, you mentioned that if they didn't make a move soon, you'd sing this specific song called "maybe you won't die alone." How exactly does that one go?" He asked and my sisters and I (even Melinde) snorted and giggled. "I'm not sure if you really want to know." I said, but the others said that they wanted to know as well and I sighed, before shrugging and saying that they had asked to hear it.

"To give a bit of background, the song happens when the main character of a show we all loved watches as his best friend completely embarrasses himself in front of his childhood sweetheart and decides to help out with this very peculiar song. One fun fact before we start: the guy who wrote this song also wrote very child-friendly songs." I explained to everyone and they all nodded in understanding before I began to sing.

Gaze at the person across from you now. Feel the sweet spark of connection. If you don't screw up this moment somehow, maybe you won't die alone." I sang, swaying a bit back-and-forth as I remembered the tune and this was how I kept it up. I could see some wondering why i had warned them, but that part came next. Don't be too needy or bring up your ex. Don't say the words: "Herpes Simplex" I continued with a grin.

I saw some mouth the words "herpes simplex" with confused looks on their faces. Oh to be a race where such things don't exist. I then quickly noticed Maitimo about to take a sip from his wine and my grin got wider as did those of my sisters as they waited for me to drop the bombshell that was the next line. "Don't ever mention you've never had sex." I sang a bit more quietly and my husband choked on his drink, many jaws fell and some let out those loud "Ha's!" that you make when you hear something shocking that you actually found hilarious, but weren't sure if you could laugh

My sisters certainly laughed at their faces as Ohtare quickly reminded them that I had warned them for iit. "Trust me, I promise, she knows." I continued to make it even worse and now, more people were laughing, even as several others, especially my brothers-in-law, plus Tyelkormo as he and Celairel still weren't married, looked absolutely mortified. Thankfully for them, they was the biggest shocker of the entire song

"And now her defenses are starting to fall. Smile and return her affection. If you don't manage to ruin it all, maybe you won't die alone." I finished and my sisters immediately cheered while even Maitimo started to chuckle. "Well, you most certainly gave us plenty of opportunity to back out and we didn't. Just make sure you do not sing that song when there are other people around, please." He said and I immediately giggled as I promised 

"I would have been even more mortified that night if you had sung that instead of "kiss the girl." That song is honestly a really nice choice to actually have your first kiss to, instead of someone telling your almost lover not to tell me he never did it before." Celairel chuckled as she leant against her One and he smiled at her, his mortification from before mostly forgotten in the moment she moved towards him and he wrapped an arm around her. We eventually left and went to our respective rooms to rest for the night, although I knew Melinde wouldn't sleep much

In the time that I picked up my duties again, I also met Ingwion for one first time in centuries and even though my heart belonged to my dearest Maitimo, I could easily say that the Vanyar Prince had grown up into a handsome, strong ellon who from what I could already see, pretty much worshipped the ground my daughter walked on and loved her with all his heart. One look was more than enough to see that Naire loved him too

I told him to take good care of my youngest daughter and he swore on his life that he would, making me nod in growing appreciation. And so, years passed as I settled into my role again, Súldor also happily greeting me and resuming his tasks. About a decade after I woke up, Celairel and Tyelkormo walked into the throne room with a huge smile on their faces. "What are you all smiling about?" I asked and I never forgot my sister's answer 

"Let's just say that we will need a couple of silver rings, cousin."

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Well, that cheered things up exceptionally 

Even though Celairel's closest family members were all gone in either one way or another and I technically belonged to Tyelkormo's family as well through my marriage with his oldest brother, it was quickly decided by us that I, my children and Melinde and Ohtare would represent her family as we were related by blood and so were Melinde and Ohtare once so her side of the room wasn't completely empty when they exchanged the rings. 

I had to admit that I hadn't seen Celairel this happy since that time when we first reunited all those years ago, but to be fully fair with her, with all the family drama and fighting that had happened and that she had been forced to go through since that day, that was honestly not a big surprise. Still, to see her huge and beaming smile and sparkling eyes as she exchanged rings with her soon-to-be husband made all of us smile in happiness.

Celairel had been incredibly bummed out to hear that she had missed out on all of our weddings when we first told her as we had all obviously married before coming to Middle-Earth, but she was very happy that all of us and with that, she truly meant all of us as even Lillith was with us now, were thankfully there to celebrate her upcoming union. "If it makes you feel any better, none of us saw Melinde's wedding either." I had told her when she admitted to feeling bummed out that she had missed our weddings and that had thankfully made her laugh again.

The five of us retreated and as we were talking about things, I remembered something. "You know, Melinde. I still can't believe you, you know?" I asked and they gave me a confused look as she asked what I was talking about. "Still can't believe that when we talked about Morgoth trying to take Mairon way in the beginning, you said that you had warned Lord Aulë. You didn't say you jumped on the devil's back and bashed him on the head." I said.

My other sisters immediately snorted as they remembered the story from Melian as well and even Melinde smirked despite me mentioning Mairon and Morgoth in the same sentence. "Yeah, well. I panicked and wasn't thinking clearly. I just saw him throwing my husband over his shoulder like he was nothing and I simply knew I couldn't let him leave so I grabbed the nearest thing I could grab that looked like a weapon and attacked." She stated.

We simply snickered in response again and even she chuckled at her own expense as she realised how incredibly reckless she had been. "What about the relationship between you, Mairon and Curumo? You said he tried to court you, but were you guys friends before that?" Ohtare asked, both Irissë and Celairel asking if this was true in a slightly surprised tone as they hadn't been there when our youngest sister told us this. Melinde confirmed it before trying to think of a way to explain how things had been between the three of them before Curumo officially joined Morgoth.

"We were... acquaintances, I guess you could say. Mairon and he often worked together as they were two of Aulë's best students and they got along fine, but then I came into the picture and I guess they both fell for me around the same time, but where Curumo tried to impress me with lavish gifts he had made himself and I honestly didn't know what to do with and making his intention clear as day, Mairon didn't do any of that." She said.

We shuffled closer and got ready to listen as none of us knew much about how her courtship with Mairon had been. She'd told me, Ohtare and Irissë bits and pieces from time to time, giving us advice despite Maiar being different than elves, but she'd never gone into detail as she wisely said that every relationship was different and that we couldn't expect our relationships to work the same way hers did or that he advice would even work.

She chuckled as she realised she now had our full attention by speaking of the beginning of her courtship with Mairon, before actually starting to talk about it. Ohtare had quietly told me that in the two-hundred years I'd been asleep and no one knew if her husband would return here or be sent back to Valinor, she mostly refused to speak of Mairon at all because of the pain his death has caused, but it seemed that my confirmation that he would return to her one day had made her feel comfortable enough again to start talking about him once more.

"Mairon gave me gifts as well, but where Curumo's gifts felt like a peacock showing his feathers like "Hey, look what I can give you," Mairon's gifts were more thoughtful and things that I would actually like instead of just jewellery. He'd give me books or a new dress when my old one got ripped. Of course, they soon realised they were both vying for my attention and the easy partnership they once had soon turned into rivalry." She told us.

"Curumo tried even harder to get my attention and perhaps even my love, but the more he tried to prove he'd be the better partner between him and Mairon, the more he honestly freaked me out and pushed me further towards Mairon who simply allowed me to take my time and treasured our friendship more than trying to make it into something else and it honestly didn't take long before I found myself falling for him as well." She continued. 

"When Curumo realised we were actually starting to court each other, he threw such a fit that Lord Aulë relocated him to a different part of his halls, but he never forgave Mairon for "stealing" me away from him even if he mostly drove me away himself. He once tried to corner me when Mairon was out for a minute and kissed me to prove that I had made the wrong decision in choosing Mairon over him, only for me to knee him in the groin to make him let go just as Mairon came back without him noticing and pulled him away from me." She said.

We immediately made faces of disgust at hearing this as that was not something you did when you wanted to get someone to like you, especially if they were in a relationship already. The mature thing for Curumo to do would have been to let go of his attraction to our sister and find someone else to be happy with, but then again, this was Curumo/Saruman we were talking about so he likely would've continued to focus on her no matter what.

Melinde nodded in agreement at seeing our faces. "I've rarely seen Mairon as angry as he was that day as he used his powers to force Curumo out of the forge we were in and lordly screamed at him to stay as far away from me as possible and that he'd regret if he came closer again. Even after that and after Lord Aulë had taken Curumo away after hearing what had happened, it took me a long time until I had finally calmed him down." She said.

"He also said that day that if he ever saw Curumo close to me again, he'd grab the nearest hammer, hit him between the legs with it and drag him away from me once more, perhaps even destroy him if necessary. However, I wouldn't be surprised if my rejection and decision to choose Mairon over him was at least part of the reason Curumo eventually joined Morgoth. Perhaps, that bastard promised that Curumo would get me if he won. Pffft. As if I would ever stay with him if he killed my Mairon." She spat in revulsion and I nodded in understanding.

"Okay, first of all, what is it with the two of you and hitting people with hammers?" I asked and we all chuckled at this. "Second of all, if you had chosen Curumo, we might have had to deal with Sauron anyway and you might not have kept him from falling into darkness like you did with Mairon. This is still Saruman we're talking about here after all. He is still the same bastard that sent tens of thousands Uruk-hai to Helm's Deep." I reminded her.

She hummed in agreement, before she told funny stories of her and Mairon's courtship like that time Mairon wanted to try and make a bracelet with a flower motif to represent both their powers, but had failed and had been so embarrassed that he'd tried to hide it, only for her to find it anyway and still loving it. We talked for several hours before eventually going to bed and I happily joined my husband and snuggled up to him before falling asleep.

Preparations for a royal wedding feast were set into motion not long after that, the very first royal wedding of this age on his side of the Misty Mountains. I obviously hoped it wouldn't be the last one, even if Ohtare told me that Alassinde had found her One as well, but he was in Valinor. I asked who it was and my jaw fell to the floor when she told me it was none other than Eonwë. "I did not see that one coming." I admitted and she snickered and explained that Alassinde had refused to leave her family behind and Eonwë couldn't leave his duties to Manwë.

However, he'd promised that he would wait for her for as long as he had to and my heart melted at hearing this. What was not a surprise was that Ohtare and Finno had immediately asked Melinde what kind of man the other Maia was and she had been honest when she had told them both they pretty much couldn't wish for a better partner for their daughter as he even though he was the higher one in rank, he'd worship the ground Alassinde walked on.

I teased Ohtare about the fact that her future son-in-law was the same age as Melinde and she whacked me on the arm, before chuckling as well as she could see how happy her daughter was about finding her One. The months passed by as preparations were rounded up one by one and other royal families came from the other side of the Misty Mountains to witness this event after invitations were sent out. One thing became very clear very soon.

This was going to be a feast to remember 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

The wedding was beautiful 

Celairel was quite literally glowing in happiness as she joined her almost-husband with me and our sisters and I could see that Tyelkormo could barely believe his eyes when he first noticed her walking towards him in a  beautiful dress that seamstresses had worked many months on. He honestly reminded me of the day we first saw Celairel in battle. He was just staring at her in nothing but complete awe and wonder

And then to think that I was incredibly suspicious of him and was extremely nervous when he gently played with Fearil when she was a tiny elfling because I thought that he'd take the Oath one day in the future and would become a fearsome enemy to Maitimo and myself because of it. Instead, he had become one of my closest allies and was about to become my brother-in-law from both sides as well as my cousin-in-law. 

Seeing him just absolutely beaming at Celairel now as she joined him with us, I had never been so glad to have been completely wrong about someone as I could see that he truly loved her and that unlike with Lúthien in the book, those feelings were completely returned as Celairel was smiling back at him as they swore to love each other until the end of time. Because neither Tyelkormo's father nor my aunt were there, we skipped the gifts and considering I didn't know if my cousin even wanted something from Fëanor in the first place, that was probably a good thing

Seeing them eventually share their very first kiss as married elves in front of us and all the invited guests, my sisters and I were the first ones to applaud as we had our own smiles on our faces, followed by everyone else as the feast then really started. Celairel and Tyelkormo were obviously the centre of attention but I managed to get some pretty good conversations with other royals, including King Oropher and Thranduil

The Sindarin Prince immediately thanked me once again for saving his life during the Battle of the Flames as it was now called since the attack hadn't exactly been very sudden and I smiled as I nodded in answer, telling him it was my pleasure. Oropher told me that if we needed anything or if we ever needed his help, he'd do his best in gratitude for saving his son and I thanked him, before we split up and I went to find Maitimo 

I saw him busy talking with some other elves on the other side of the room and decided to leave him to it as I didn't want to interrupt his conversation. I instead went to find one of my sisters. I soon found Melinde silently watching the activities while standing in the corner and carefully joined her. "You know, it isn't a wedding feast without the bride's sister." I muttered quietly and she chuckled dryly as one hand played with the golden ring on her own index finger and I realised that she was missing Mairon, mentally hitting myself for not realising it much earlier

"I'm sorry, Syl. I just wish that Mairon was here with me. I know you said that he would return to us eventually, but I wish he'd hurry up and reveal himself to us again. Every time I wake up and I'm in that state between awake and asleep, I always forget for a second and reach out for him, only for my arm to hit nothing but air. I look around, thinking that he is just getting ready for work and then...I finally remember." She muttered 

I wrapped an arm around her as she curled into herself a bit, not unlike when she realised exactly who she had married back when I was growing up. Back then, Mairon had immediately come to comfort her at sensing her distress and make her smile again, but he wasn't there so it was up to me. "Even though I know he will eventually return, that realisation is like seeing that horrible moment again and again, every time." She continued 

I didn't say anything in response to that because what exactly was there to say? My sister had lost the most important person in her entire life in the most horrible way possible. The was honestly nothing that I could say. Seeing her grow more upset with the second, I gently led her to a nearby room so she could calm down after telling Fearil where we would be. Apparently, she had seen how distraught Melinde was as well and had warned my other sisters as Ohtare. Iressë and even Celairel came to check up on us, before I gently sent the latter back so she could enjoy her wedding.

We joined everyone once Melinde had calmed down again, but one of us always kept an eye on her and no one looked up weird when she went to bed early. I honestly couldn't even imagine what it was like to see your sister so very happy while getting married and know that it will take who-knows-how-long before you can kiss and embrace your own husband since we won't even immediately know he has returned because of Eru's order

Over the next week, many of our guests left again to go back home to their own realms, many alliances strengthened during the time they were here. Celairel and Tyelkormo left as well to go on the elven equivalent of their honeymoon and it honestly didn't surprise me that they decided to travel instead of staying either here or in their realm. Then again, I was glad they didn't stay. The last thing I wanted was to hear my sister having sex

Time naturally went on after the wedding was done and even though we all stayed on our guard the whole time for anything suspicious, even the newlyweds, things stayed very quiet in both the east (where we heavily suspected Curumo to be considering the amount of elven realms there  was far less than it was here) and west. In fact, it was so quiet in this period of time that Melinde didn't have anything to do or report to us at times and instead went further east to try and find something that could distract her and that was something of note that she could tell us

In the year 450 of the second age, we had our annual meeting with everyone to see if anything important had happened in their realms in the past year. Ohtare, Finno and their children talked about this lovely wedding that had happened a few months before and Iressë, Ekthelion and their family proudly told us that at least three elflings had been born in the past year. "Melinde? Do you have anything of note to report?" I asked her 

"A few things, actually. The head cook wants a meeting. There wasn't much grain in the harvest this year and he wants to suggest a plan to make sure we'll have enough. Also, the smith has a new apprentice who he says is promising. Talked to him for a while, very nice guy, albeit a bit clumsy and the hunters have noticed a decrease in the deer population. They suspect wolves are the cause." She said as she looked through her notebook

I immediately focused on the latter part of her report and frowned in slight suspicion and fear. "Wolves.... or wargs?" I asked her very slowly as I knew that it would be a big problem if it were actually wargs and everyone immediately looked at me or shared looks as Ohtare piped up and said that for the sake of our sanity and safety, it were just regular wolves that we had to deal with. I immediately made a faceat this as I silently agreed with her. Iressë promised she would go out with the hunters next time and figure out what was going on through her earth senses and I nodded 

As she had promised, Iressë went out with her husband and the hunters the very next time they went out and when they found the place where the most deer had been killed, quickly used her powers to find the culprits. To our utter relief, it really were normal wolves who had been responsible for it and now that they had that information, the hunters and scouts could use it to keep the balance in the forests surrounding our realms 

We also had a brief meeting with the head cook and quickly approved of his plan, before we completely relaxed again at the news there weren't any wargs near our kingdom as far as my sister could tell. Still, if I remembered correctly, then Sauron started to make some noise in the year 500, but then again, Sauron was far more powerful than Saruman in the books so it was a very bad and incredibly tense case of "wait and see"

We unfortunately had to wait until he made his first move and if it would be around the same time as Sauron. Maitimo had forbidden everyone to further east than Lórien as I had told him that was where Sauron had his realm in the books and thankfully, everyone had listened as they mostly kept to their own realms and only crossed the Misty Mountains if they absolutely had to. I did go and visit the underground realm of Moria with my family, plus Iressë after getting invited by the dwarves and by Eru, the movies did not do it justice.

Of course, Moria was completely abandoned by that point in time and for very good reason too, but it looked absolutely beautiful when actually inhabited. I wondered if the Balrog was somewhere down there and had taken my sister with us for that specific reason as she could find out if it was actually there so we could hopefully save the dwarves before it was too late and they delved too deep, causing their own destruction

She later reported that she had tried to go as deep as possible, but had eventually been stopped by some guards and from that point, she hadn't sensed anything no matter how hard she tried. Either the Balrog wasn't there or it was even deeper and asleep to the point where my sister's bite weaker powers couldn't pick up on it. We decided to keep an eye on it for now and went home to the rest of our families to spend time with them

We had peace now and we were not going to waste it

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Could I be completely honest with you?

Even over 200 years after finally waking up after my incredibly long sleep, I still had to get used to our new kingdom. There were times where I'd wake up and open the curtains while expecting the hill- and mountainsides of Hithlum in the distance with the town next to our castle being big, but compact as we didn't have that many resources when we first started building it, plus, it was easier to defend if it wasn't stretched out.

Instead, I always opened the curtains see the mostly plains filled view of Lindon with our capital city being far more stretched out than what I was used to out as not only did a lot more elves live with us now that several realms had stopped existing after the war of Wrath, we had way more resources to build houses now and with Curumo hopefully being much farther away than Morgoth, it was also a lot more safe to do so. 

Also, as happy as I was with this development, it was also still a bit weird that my sisters lived so close again and that none of us would have to cross miles and miles of dangerous territory to visit or report something. It took me a bit to get used to seeing Lillith/Runande/Melinde as well, but I was way too happy that we were all finally together again that I didn't mind. Besides which, I was a bit too busy making sure that she had something to do to really focus on it, as odd as it was sometimes to know that I was giving orders to a Maia, even if that Maia was my sister.

Iressë and Ekthelion currently held a realm near the Misty Mountains with their children plus Glorfindel. They actually lived around the same place that Rivendell was in the books while always keeping an eye out for anything suspicious happening in the mountain range and be ready to warn us if they did notice something, even with my sister's powers having been diminished by Lord Eru like my powers and those of our sisters.

Celairel had been understandably bummed out at first by the fact that she wasn't as strong as she had been in the first age anymore as she was now scared that she wouldn't be strong enough to help us against Curumo and wouldn't be able to protect us or her own family when or if she and Tyelkormo ever got any children somewhere in the future, but I reminded her that she still had her powers, albeit not as strong.

I told her that if she couldn't win by sheer power above, then she would have to grow and rely on her skill to outsmart and defeat him. "Besides, maybe the bastard will flee when he sees you because you gave him trauma last time." I commented one day as we watched our husbands sparring together from a balcony with Melinde sitting next to us. Both my sisters snorted as Celairel quickly conceded to that point, before looking at Tyelkormo and sobering up as her face became solemn again. I tilted my head at seeing this and she let out a long sigh.

"It's just that Curumo managed to get Kormo once and was hurting him before Lúthien and I arrived, I could sense that he was in incredible pain before we distracted that stupid Maia. I'm scared that if that bastard ever comes close to him again, he won't hesitate for even a second and kill him this time. I saw what it did to Melinde and I am absolutely terrified what it would do to me if such a thing ever happened." She confessed.

Both Melinde and I immediately hummed in understanding as we could see why she felt that way. "We'll all protect him, Lana. Curumo will never come even close to him ever again." Melinde promised and I nodded in agreement. Celairel smiled and thanked us, before I looked back at the training grounds and saw that only Maitimo was still training with some random soldiers. Tyelkormo was absolutely nowhere to be found.

I was about to ask either of my sisters if they had seen where he had suddenly gone to while we had been talking, when we heard slightly hurried footsteps coming up from behind us and immediately turned around to see the ellon himself walking towards us at a fast pace, his eyes completely focused on Celairel. I realised he must have sensed her worried thoughts and it seemed that Celairel came to the same conclusion as she stood up to greet him and let herself be pulled into his arms without much fuss as she buried her face in his chest

Melinde and I wisely decided to leave them be and quietly slipped away. "Anything else we can do? Or aren't there any pressing kingdom matters to stand to?" My youngest sister asked and I made a face as I explained there was a meeting planned in about 2 hours, but I first needed to go past the smithy to ask them to repair a necklace. Its lock was broken and since it was an anniversary present from Maitimo, i did want it whole again.

Telling Melinde about this, she quickly agreed and went along with me as we went down to the smithy after I picked up my necklace. Even though we were living in very peaceful times and as far west as possible now, I usually had at least one guard either with me or near me if none of my sisters were with me. I was honestly pretty sure that even when they were with me, there were still guards keeping an eye out on me just in case.

Walking into the smithy after a a small walk as it was on the other side of the city so people wouldn't have much hinder of the smell or heat, we saw an ellon sitting at a desk writing on a piece of parchment wome looking at another a few times. It seemed that he was doing inventory or some kind and I frowned as I had never seen him before. "He's the new apprentice I told you about. His name is Thurimen Mahilion." Melinde breathed in my ear and I gave her a quick nod in understanding. Him doing inventory and me not recognising him made a lot more sense now.

An apprentice did have to learn everything there was to know about being a smith after all, even things that barely had to do with forging and if he was new, then it also made sense I had never seen him before. We walked towards him and he looked up, his eyes widening as he realised who was standing in front of him and he jumped up. "Your Majesty!" He exclaimed, wincing as the inkwell rolled off the desk and shattered on the ground. 

"Oh, I'm going to get into trouble for breaking that and right in front of the High Queen too. Good job, you idiot. You have really done it now." He whimpered to himself as he hurriedly apologised to me with a deep bow and kneeled down to clean up the mess as much as possible. I gave him a gentle smile as I assured him he wouldn't get into trouble as I'd tell the main smith Martion that it was my fault it broke as I had startled him

"But.... your majesty, it really was my fault. I should have paid better attention to my surroundings, but I didn't and I made a fool out of myself instead. This is not how one of Martion's smiths is supposed to behave." He protested, before hissing as he accidentally cut himself with a glass shard. After sharing a look, Melinde and I kneeled down as well, my sister helping to clean up the mess and me healing the cut on Thurimen's hand as I asked him if he could get his master. "Yes, your Majesty. I will get him immediately." He said as he jumped up and ran away to obey my request

"He is sweet." I whispered to Melinde as he was gone and she gave me a look that said "told you." Martion arrived and was horrified to see me cleaning up the mess his apprentice made, an ashamed Thurimen standing next to him as his master was about to scold him. "It's no trouble. I startled your apprentice which resulted in the inkwell falling. Helping with cleaning up is the least I could do." I quickly said before he could get in trouble

Martion thankfully accepted this explanation for now as he apologised and asked what he could do for me and I quickly showed him my necklace and the broken lock. He immediately promised to do his very best to repair it as he and Thurimen bowed to me once more and I thanked them both as Melinde and I left once the mess was gone. I hoped that Thurimen wouldn't still get into trouble for something that was my fault.

A couple of days later, I was spending some quality time with Makalaurë and his wife as I hadn't seen either of them for a while as they had been travelling the world to see what it had. The irony of my brother-in-law wandering Middle-Earth was not lost on me, but at least he hadn't been alone. My children were with their father as he had been feeling like he was slightly neglecting them as well, even if they were all fully grown up now and didn't need him or me that much anymore. Still, it was incredibly sweet of him to make sure that our children were completely okay, even if we were busy. 

"How long do you think it will take before evil rears its head again?" Makalaurë asked and I genuinely told him that I had no idea and that it could be in five hundred years or just fifty and he sighed as it clearly was not an answer he wanted to hear, but it was the only one I could give him at the time. If we were still dealing with Sauron, I could have given him a more straight answer but since we thankfully weren't, I had no idea. 

I obviously hoped that Curumo stayed incredibly far away from us for as long as possible, but he would eventually show his figuratively ugly mug again and we could only keep an eye out. Thankfully, the waiting game didn't feel as bad as it did with Morgoth, since he was ten times worse than Curumo could ever be, but I could understand that Makalaurë would want a bit more clarity. It was driving me nuts too, but we could only wait. 

'Here's hoping that we'll get some kind of sign first.' I thought, before continuing the conversation 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

One of my favourite things to do? 

Watching my husband sleep while lying in bed early in the morning, as creepy as it sounds. I swear, I'm not like Edward Cullen from "Twilight" and stalk someone because I can't control myself but there is just something so incredibly calming at seeing Maitimo truly get the rest he deserves, his chest slowly going up and down with me sometimes going with it when I was lying on his chest, but I wasn't this time so I got the full look

Seeing him lying on his side, his face completely peaceful despite his open eyes (and yeah, even after all these millennia of being an elf myself, getting married and starting a family, those open eyes still creeped me out at times when I woke up in the middle of the night to find my husband staring at me without blinking.) It was very tempting to try and reach out to either grab his hand or caress his cheek, but I managed to resist.

I wanted him to sleep a bit longer before waking him up to face another stressful day full of long and dreary meetings and mountains of paperwork. Some might say that if I woke him up now, I'd have a bit more time with him before our respective duties pulled us apart for several hours, but I decided that my husband's health came first to spending time together. Early watching him for several minutes, I was once again stumped that this ellon had not only chosen me to marry, but to also believe me about the absolutely crazy nonsense that my story had to be to anyone else.

He loved me so much that even though he had learned that there were terrible things ahead for his family, he still believed me and made sure to support me and protect our precious family from any threat that came our way. That reminded me of something else. It was now the year 565 of the second age and we still hadn't noticed anything suspicious in the east. None of the eastern elven realms had reported anything off.

Honestly, this whole waiting game to see when Curumo would finally reveal himself was slowly putting me more and more on edge. While Curumo wasn't as powerful as Mairon or rather Sauron would have been, he was still an absolute bastard and as long as Mairon himself wasn't here, I really hoped he didn't find out the woman who had rejected his advances was here without her very protective and powerful husband at her side.

Yes, I knew that Melinde could handle herself and me, our sisters and our families would help protect her in any case while Mairon was out of commission so to speak, but it still made me very nervous to think of what Curumo would do if he found out she was here. He likely would not be very happy. In fact, I honestly wouldn't be very surprised if he helped Morgoth defeat Mairon dubrov the war, before quickly running when my sisters went completely apeshit on the huge bastard. I obviously never said any of these things to Melinde, but still.

To once again be completely honest, a small part of me also wanted Curumo to reveal himself so Mairon could come back or at least reveal himself to us again as well and I wouldn't have to watch my sister sometimes turn to the side as if about to say something, before deflating and looking away when she remembered there was no one there or see her standing alone in a corner during feasts when most couples were dancing.

I know  my sons as well as the sons of our other sisters sometimes asked her for a dance, as did our husbands, but it definitely wasn't the same for her. There had been times that when I walked past her chambers late at night, I'd hear her quiet sobs and my heart would break to hear her pain. It was clear that even though she'd gotten some hope about her husband returning, she wouldn't be alright until he actually was back with her. 

Besides, it had been over three hundred years since I had woken up from my nap and had told her that Mairon would eventually return and nothing had happened yet at all. If my sister was even a slightly lesser person, I honestly would have expected her to lose hope years ago, but apart from a few very understandable times when it became too much, she kept strong and had even started to help at the smithy again, becoming very good friends with the elves working there after she proved her prowess in the arts. Having an apprentice of the biggest Smith in the world as your husband had its advantages.

Feeling a hand gently land on my cheek, I was quickly pulled out of my thoughts and looked up to see my husband watching me for a second, still half-asleep but awake enough to realise I was deep in thought. "My heart. What are you thinking of?" He asked in a whisper and I hummed as I snuggled closer now that he had already woken up and I didn't have to be as careful. He immediately pulled me closer and stroked my hair.

"I'm just worried about Lillith. She's strong, but this wait for Curumo to do something so that her husband can properly return isn't doing her any favours, even with her new friends at the smithy keeping her busy whenever she visits them. I'm scared that if Mairon takes too long in returning to her, she will return to the state she was in while I was asleep and I've only heard about." I explained and he hummed in understanding.

"I will not lie and say that Melinde was not in a pitiful state before you woke up. She tried her hardest to be there and be involved in everything we did, but there were times, especially in the beginning right after the war, where there were days when she'd refuse to come out of her room and even your sisters weren't safe from getting something thrown at them when they tried to get in. It wasn't until she travelled pretty much the entire western side of the Misty Mountains and returned that she calmed down a bit. I really don't think she'll return to that now that you've told her Mairon will return" He told me.

My heart immediately broke once again at hearing that as it was clear my sister had been grieving her husband's death heavily and I definitely couldn't blame her. If Maitimo had been the one killed, then our children likely would have become orphans as I would have followed him into the Halls of Mandos. The fact that she was still here while she could have waited for Mairon back in Valinor really showed her strength.

"She will be okay eventually, Nemireth. We just need to be patient. Who knows? Perhaps Mairon has already returned and we just do not know it yet." He muttered and I smiled. That honestly would be the best possible scenario, but we simply didn't know it. After that, we just laid there, until a servant knocked on the door and announced that Fearil really wanted to see us. After sharing a look, we quickly got out of bed

After getting dressed for the day as fast as we possibly could since our daughter needed us, we soon met with Fearil and Gwindor in the parlour of our chambers. I immediately and instinctively looked my oldest daughter over as I had heard that she had been feeling a bit off lately. "What is it? What's wrong?" Maitimo asked as he looked her over as well, actually putting his hands on her shoulders to get a close look and Fearil smiled as she grabbed one of his hands and squeezed it with a warm smile on under face to try and reassure him she was completely okay.

"Nothing's wrong, nana. Everything is pretty much perfect actually, even if you'll show your age soon." She said and both Maitimo and I frowned in confusion as I asked what she meant. "Well, you've got to be pretty old to become grandparents, right?" She asked and we both stared at her in utter shock while she and Gwindor were both beaming at us. I then covered my mouth in shock with tears in my eyes and tackled her into a hug

For that very moment, I definitely was not High Queen Nemireth of the Ñoldor. I was just a mother who was told that my oldest daughter was pregnant. Fearil laughed as Maitimo joined the hug as well, enveloping us in his warmth. I then planted dozens of kisses on Fearil's face and she giggled once more until I calmed down and enjoyed the hug, eventually pulling Gwindor in as well. He was part of the family after all

After telling the rest of the family and having everyone cheer, we made the announcement to our people and they all celebrated as well, throwing a feast only a few days later with Fearil and Gwindor being the guests of honour. I went down to enjoy the celebrations for a bit with all my sisters, who had come to congratulate Fearil personally, with me when we came across several of the smiths, Martion and Thurimen included and the latter now being a full-fledged smith. They all bowed to me and congratulated me on my first grandchild and I thanked them with a smile, before we went on

"Hey, Melinde. I really have to ask. If a certain someone returns, do you think that the two of you will be able to have children? Or is it still impossible?" Ohtare asked and we all turned to our youngest sister. She made a face as she told us she highly doubted it as their spirits were still the same, even if their bodies were different. She situatio mentioned it was probably for the best considering how happy she would be, making us laugh.

A year later, my and Maitimo's first grandson was born. He was named Thurundion and for a few decades, even we let our guards down a bit. That happiness was eventually ended when we received a missive from Lothlórien and I could see Maitimo's face falling as he read it and I asked what was wrong, even though I could guess. "There has been strange activity in the east." He told me and we both prayed we were wrong in our suspicions 

I was wrong. Curumo could stay as far away from us as possible 

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So, the bastard had finally shown himself, huh? 

And that right when we were enjoying our first decades as first-time grandparents too. Couldn't he have waited a bit longer? Thurundion wasn't even of age yet and I really didn't want to be the one telling Fearil that they're might be danger ahead while she was still in bliss from becoming a mother for the first time. Oh, who was I kidding? Curumo didn't give a rat's ass about whether or not his timing was convenient for us.

He's an asshole even if I wasn't allowed to say that out loud as High Queen, had apparently almost always been if we had to believe Melinde or at least since she rejected his advances and started a relationship with Mairon instead and between you and me, I could totally understand it. Maybe it was because I didn't meet Curumo until looking after he was officially Morgoth's right hand, but I was completely with my sister.

While Curumo did still have this other-worldly beauty about him (he was still a fallen Maia who didn't turn into a Balrog like some others. How could he not still have rusty?) there was also just this general darkness and creepiness around him when I faced him in battle all those centuries ago, not to mention his very loud and dark order for those under his command to try and take me prisoner. It really reminded me of how he was portrayed by Sir Christopher Lee. You just immediately get bad shivers down your spine at seeing him and wanted to stay as far away from him as possible.

Thinking of that portrayal of him also made me remember that in the books and movies, Curumo was purposefully weakened by those above him as to, rather ironically, not to draw Sauron's attention on him or the other wizards. He failed rather spectacularly on that, but considering what Melinde told us, that was not a big surprise. When we would eventually face him in the future, it was going to be him at full power.

Maybe not as powerful as he had been back in the First Age when he had the full might of Morgoth behind him and his master as well, but he would definitely needs difficult to deal with, especially when uwe was pretty much a wildcard. Morgoth mostly did the very same things he did in the books and that made it easier to defend our people from him. Now... we were reaching in the dark as we had no idea what to expect now.

The being we were facing was a completely different person than the one in the book. In fact, I was honestly wishing that the biggest enemy in the books from now on would hurry up, get off his lazy ass and come back already. Then again, a lot more heroes of the First Age were still alive too. Maitimo and three of his brothers, even if one was in Valinor with Tyelpë and my nephews, Finno, Ekthelion and so many others were still alive and kicking, ready to face any darkness, but where did we begin if we didn't know what our enemy was planning

"Nemireth? Are you alright?" Maitimo eventually asked in growing concern from where he was sitting next to me on his own throne and the fact that he actually used my name rather than a nickname really showed that worry over me as I had apparently been staring into nothing while my mind was going several miles an hour. I gave him a small smile and apologised as I explained that I had been thinking on what to do next.

He immediately gave me a very gentle smile back and kissed my temple to try and help me relax a bit after that troubling news that we might have to deal with Curumo soon. "That is what you do best, my love and that's why our people are lucky to have you as their High Queen. Imagine if Ohtare was Queen now." He muttered with a teasing grin and I immediately gave him a shove, making him laugh and I smiled as well.

"I'm sure that she would have been an amazing High Queen over time, especially in the battle-torn First Age and later on when Curumo truly reveals himself and will no doubt come and fight us. Out of all of us, she has fought before and she knows how to deal out commands and use the best battle strategies." I defended my sister, before telling him to stop with the butt-kissing and he laughed again. His laugh is pretty contagious, so I was soon giggling too, before I sobered up. "We will have to tell the others though." I said and that quickly made him get serious once more.

We sent out some slightly coded letters to Celairel, Ohtare and Iressë saying that "Christopher Lee" might have woken up from his nap in the east and to keep an eye out, while we went to tell those who lived with us the same thing. As expected, Fearil was not a happy bunny when she heard it and I could understand it. I remember fearing the worst with Morgoth when she was born, so she was kinda in the same boat as I was.

Gwindor wrapped his arms around her with a look that just screamed "I'm not going to let anyone lay a single finger on her" and that was why I was really glad Fearil had him. My other children were pale, Naire clinging onto Ingwion. Over the past few centuries, we had been waiting for them to get engaged and married, but it hadn't happened yet so far. I just hoped they wouldn't regret it now. I then looked at Melinde and gulped

Melinde's eyes were spitting fire, the quill she had in her hands when we broke the news already broken into three pieces and her thumb slightly bleeding where the tip was puncturing her skin. I walked over and gently made her let go of the completely ruined quill, healing her thumb right after. Her pretty heavy reaction did surprise me a bit considering side had been pretty casual talking about Curumo before, but I supposed that either because he was now becoming a true threat or because she had to focus her anger for what happened to Mairon on someone, her reaction was bigger than before

I honestly could hardly blame her for her reaction. This was someone who had been.... perhaps not a friend as she had said once, but someone she had known pretty well until he had betrayed everything she, the Valar and the other Maia stood for simply because he didn't get the girl he wanted. Who did he think he was? Severus Snape? No, completely different fantasy series. Keep your mind on task, Sylvaine, before it's too late.

My other three sisters soon sent letters back the next day, all of them telling me they'd come for a meeting in a month's time to discuss the situation and I went to take a walk though the city to try and clear my head. Melinde had set out that very same morning to try and gauge the situation, so a couple of guards accompanied me on my trip instead as I tried to think of what we were supposed to do now to keep everyone safe. 

"Your Majesty? Are you alright?" A familiar voice asked out of nowhere and I looked up to see Thurimen looking at me in slight concern. Because my guards knew the young smith as he and Melinde had worked together a few times now, they simply nodded at him Not wanting to concern him or anyone else around me if they were listening, I gave him a smile and told him I was fine. "Are you sure, Your Majesty? You seem rather pale. Do you need me to get you some water? The well is only a few miles down the road." He offered as he straightened up, ready to help me in any way he could. 

'He's honestly like an adorable, excitable little puppy.' I thought with a small, hidden smile as I could almost imagine the raised ears on top of his head and a wagging tail behind him. "No, but thank you for the offer. It is just being a Queen is very stressful so you can ease up." I explained as I patted his back, grateful for the concern nonetheless. You really got so much in return when you were nice to those who were under you.

Not only would you evely build mutual trust and respect, people were willing to do so much for you in exchange for everything you did for them. If you didn't care about them and treated them like they were dirt, then they wouldn't care about you and either fear you or hate you. Thankfully for both me and my people, I always tried my very hardest to treat everyone with respect, even the elves in the lowest positions or jobs.

Thurimen eventually agreed to let the subject matter of my pale face rest and bowed to me before leaving and I returned to the palace as I had a meeting with the seamstresses soon since some rooms needed new curtains. Not really wanting to waste too much time on the meeting as there were more things that I needed to be concerned about, so after choosing a new fabric,  I told them that if they went into the village and helped anyone else who needed new curtains, I'd raise their pay myself and they quickly hurried off with happy smiles, making me sag in slight relief.

I really wasn't kidding when I said being a Queen was stressful. Even if relative peaceful times, there was still so much I had to do to keep the kingdom running. While my husband used control over the army and relations to other elven realms (which was rather easy since the rulers of pretty much every realm on this side of the Misty Mountains was related to either him or me) I had to take care of things inside our home

It really was tiring and stressful at times, even if you didn't take the equivalent of a fallen angel out for revenge into account, but as I said before, we also got a lot for it in return. Leaning back against the couch and letting my head fall back, I closed my eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. Hearing a soft knock on the door, I bit back a groan. One more disadvantage of being High Queen: you almost never had a moment's rest

After controlling my expression so my irritation wouldn't be visible, I called the person in, only to be pleasantly surprised when I saw it was just Naire as she slowly walked inside, her face slightly nervous. Frowning a bit at this, I immediately reached out to her and she sat down next to me, grabbing my hand and I could feel it shaking. "Hey. What's wrong, sweetheart?" I asked in the most gentle tone I could manage, my motherly instincts rearing their heads even though all my children had been fully grown adults for centuries now, one even having a child of her own.

"Do you really think it's the evil Maia growing into power, nana?" She asked and I sighed as I pulled her into my arms. I admitted that I wasn't sure. We couldn't be, until hopefully Melinde could find out more from her travels. "If it really is him, then he has the worst possible timing." She then muttered and I asked her what she meant. She gave me a pointed look and I realised what she meant: Ingwion had asked her to marry him

Starting to laugh in pure happiness, I hugged her even tighter and rocked her back and forth as I asked her when it happened. "A couple of days ago. We wanted to wait until Ada's birthday next week to tell you, but this takes precedence. Varno and Arnion really need to catch up." She stated and we both laughed. "I'm just scared he might ruin this." She then muttered once we had calmed down and I rubbed her back as I kissed her temple

"We'll figure something out, sweetheart. I promise." I whispered 

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Despite the threatening news, we still had something to celebrate 

We waited until Melinde returned to tell us what she had discovered in the east to truly announce the engagement, which admittedly did take a bit considering we were on the far west side of the continent. Thankfully, neither of the couple minded the wait. A few months after she left, she came back with the news that some easterlings were stirring up trouble, but that she hadn't been able to figure out if Curumo was behind it. 

"To be completely honest with you, Your Majesties. I didn't really stay long either in case Curumo really was there and sensed me. The Lothlórien delegation I was with already received nasty looks and I did not feel like unnecessarily cause fights and risking lives when we didn't have to. Something is definitely going on out there, but I don't think Curumo is up to full strength yet or be strong enough to attack any time soon." She reported.

We hummed in understanding before sharing a look and deciding that for now, we'd just keep an eye out. No need to go on high alert if there wasn't much going on yet. It would only tire out the guards and make it easier for Curumo to attack us in a moment of weakness. I then told Melinde what hadd happened in her absence and she literally jumped around the room in pure happiness at hearing of Naire's engagement with Ingwion. For a moment, she wasn't a disguised and solemn Maia, she was an aunt who was told her niece was getting married to the love of her life.

I chuckled as for a few seconds, the little spitfire of a sister that I remembered was back as I turned to my head Lady-in-waiting Avahaire. She was the daughter of a lower Ñoldor lord who had been assigned to help me when I woke up from my sleep. She was very sweet, but also very quiet and a bit meek, usually going with everything I said or did. I did my best to help her get her be a bit more assertive, but it was a slow process.

"Avahaire, could you get everyone of our families to the dining hall? Now that the final guest has finally arrived, we can finally have the engagement feast." I ordered her as I smiled at Melinde and she beamed back as my Lady-in-waiting bowed to me and left. Maitimo cancelled every meeting and appointment he or I had during the rest of the day as we made our way to the room where the exchanging of the rings would happen.

Soon enough, my children, Gwindor and Thurundion as well as the rest of our sisters, who had already started to travel here the very moment they heard that Melinde was on her way back with me having used Súldor to tell everyone that, walked in with their families and rather ironically, Naire and Ingwion were the last two to arrive. After giving her aunt a tight hug at seeing she was back home, Naire then turned to her One and we were all witnesses as they exchanged plain silver rings, before sharing a soft and loving kiss as we cheered.

I gently leaned against my husband as I wiped away a tear of pure happiness while watching this lovely scene, Maitimo holding me in his arms. Another one of my children was getting married to an ellon who would take very good care of her and I honestly couldn't be more proud of both her and her sister. Now, my boys would really have to step up before Curumo came and they couldn't get married because of wartime.

"Do your aunts and I also have to set you up with someone like we did with your cousin Tyelpë?" I eventually asked my sons teasingly while everyone was focused on the couple. They both immediately shook their heads and I chuckled. "I'm just messing with you, my darlings. With your sisters already married or about to be married, we have enough to focus on, but your faces were hilarious." I told them and they scowled at me.

"Not funny, Nana." Varno muttered at me and both Maitimo and I chuckled at how petulant he sounded. I then kissed both their temples to make them feel better, honestly quite a feat considering they had inherited their father's height but the fact that they both bowed down to help me reach the right spots told me they weren't truly angry at me. It wasn't like we were in a rush. As dark and disturbing it was to think about it, we now had several ellons who would be capable of taking over in the worst case scenario unlike in the books where Gil-Galad was the last of his line and almost alone.

Looking at the ellon himself as he was talking to his father, I couldn't help but smile at seeing how relaxed he was. Sure, he had Elrond, Galadriel and several others to help, support and advise him in the books, but it had to be extremely lonely for him to be the last High King in Middle-Earth and considering he apparently never took a wife, he didn't have a Queen or a truly close family to support him like Maitimo had me and our children.

To be honest, book Gil-Galad's life was also incredibly tragic when you really thought about how his life went. Yes, he was the longest reigning High King in Middle-Earth (not that the bar was obviously very high with Ñolofinwë having the second longest reign after him with only about four-hundred years), but he was King of a race that had been past its peak and that was coming from the current High Queen of the same people.

He likely lost his father, whether it was Finno or Orodreth, at a young age depending on when or where he was born by either a Balrog or a dragon and who knows what happened to his mother. Tolkien never tells us. Eventually, because of Morgoth's actions, he is suddenly High King and responsible for a race of scared, war-torn and traumatised elves. Being in that position right now, I knew exactly what that was like and I still had my husband, sisters and children to rely and lean on when it all became too much. He only had a couple of members of his once mighty family left. 

Feeling my husband give me a gentle squeeze with his arms as he could sense my troubled thoughts, I shuffled closer to him without taking my eyes off the happy scene in front of me. "Just thinking how many lives have changed for the better, even by just keeping one or two extra people alive." I muttered and he hummed, his whole chest vibrating with the sound and making me laugh, before we fully joined the festivities again.

Making the announcement of the upcoming union to our people, they celebrated once again. Avahaire later told me that she'd heard some elves talking about how the fact a royal wedding happened so soon after a royal birth could only be a sign that good fortunes were waiting. I smiled at her at hearing this, before wincing once her back was turned. These poor people had no ideas what was ahead, but then again, neither did we.

The year passed as I helped my daughter get ready for her wedding aside my normal duties, helping her choose a dress design and so forth. Once she knew the design, Melinde made a beautiful necklace that was just for her. She later did admit that Thurimen had helped her a bit as despite having done her best to learn the finer aspects of being a smith with Mairon, it simply wasn't her profession. She was a Maia of the lady Yavanna, not her lady's husband. If she wasn't happily married and waiting for her husband to return, I would've made a joke about her perhaps making a move on Thurimen.

However, such a joke would only be tasteless, shameless and just plain mean so I didn't nor did I ever mention having such a thought to Melinde, not that day and definitely not after. I did tell her to keep the design of the necklace simple as Naire wouldn't want it if it was extremely extravagant and she immediately promised to do her best with a small bow, before leaving to go back to make some amendments to her drawings.

Thankfully, Naire absolutely loved the necklace when her aunt finally gave it to her a month before the wedding and it fitted perfectly with the dress she had chosen. At seeing Naire fully dressed in her final fitting just a week before the date, me, Melinde and the rest of my sisters who had arrived one-by-one as the date neared and Fearil all got emotional. I stood up and pulled her into my arms and held her tightly. 

"It seems only yesterday that you were first put in my arms and now, look at you. All grown up and ready to be married to your own One." I muttered and she chuckled as she hugged me back. Pulling back, I then let her sister and aunts give her a hug. Helping her get dressed in a normal dress, we left while excitedly talking about the upcoming feast, several other royals having come to be witness the union as well. We all knew we couldn't ignore the vague but slowly growing threat in the east, but we'd be damned before we let it ruin this day.

A week later, it was finally time for the wedding to happen and we all bore witness of our daughter, Princess Naire of the Ñoldor being married to Prince Ingwion of the Vanyar. Maitimo and I were very proud after I apologised to Ingwion that his own parents couldn't be there, but he waved it off as he knew that even if they could take time away for weeks to make the journey here, said journey was very perilous to make.

He suggested maybe doing a renewal of the vows once we were finally back in Valinor again and that seemed like a reasonable solution. "Do make sure to discuss it with your wife first though." I joked and he laughed. Seeing the love in his eyes now whenever he looked at my youngest daughter, I knew that she had chosen right in her One and that no matter what happened, he would always protect her with his life. 

Dancing with my own husband during the feast after they were officially pronounced husband and wife, I made sure to keep an eye on Melinde so I could make sure she was okay at being another wedding feast. Thankfully, I could see her talking to Thurimen and Avahaire near the head table and seemed pretty relaxed. I knew that inviting the smith in gratitude for helping Melinde with making the necklace had been a good idea if he and my Lady-in-waiting managed to distract my sister from feeling the same way she did when Celairel got married.

After that, I simply focused on dancing with my own husband and looked up at him. He immediately smiled back at me as he gently squeezed the hand he was holding. I knew that sooner or later, this peaceful bliss would be over, so I enjoyed every minute of it. "We'll protect each other and our people, Nemireth. I swear it." He whispered and I beamed at him, before three my sisters came with their husbands and we switched partners 

I got Ekthelion as my new partner which was nice as out of all the alive husbands of my sisters, I actually saw him the least as his and Iressë's realm was on the other side of our half of this continent and Iressë usually made the trip of her own whenever she had to report, plus Tyelkormo and Finno were blood related so they visited more often too. Still, they were very clearly happy and who was I to demand they'd move somewhere else. 

I knew the threat was still out there, but for just today, I completely forgot about it

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"They seem happy."

"That's because they all are, my love." I stated as I felt my husband wrap his arms around me from behind as we stood on the balcony connected to our rooms and watched our daughters sitting and talking in the garden together with their husbands and son in Fearil's case. He hummed in answer as he rested his chin on top of my head, making me smile at how adorable this fearsome warrior could be when he was with us and not on a battlefield.

"Any news from the scouts?" I asked him as I looked up, him moving his head so I didn't have the weight on my head. It had been about half a century since the wedding of Naire and Ingwion and the rumors and stories coming from the east were slowly growing worse. It was clear that despite what Melinde had seen when she went to check it out, there was someone stirring trouble there and my money definitely was on Curumo being the one. 

While I was obviously glad that any darkness didn't immediately show itself right after my youngest daughter's wedding so she could have a few years of bliss with her new husband and just be as happy as her father and I were right after we married each other, but the wait really was driving me nuts right now. Every day, I was waiting for the other shoe to finally drop. Waiting for ny news from other elven realms that some kind of mysterious figure was either seen in the east or news from our border guards that such a figure had arrived and wanted an audience with us.

"Nothing yet, my heart. You know that once I do get some news, you and the others will be the first ones I tell, do you?" He asked quietly as he let go with one arm to gently cup my face. I sighed as I nodded to show that I did know that. It was just driving me crazy how long Curumo was taking to show his ugly mug. It wasn't as bad as the wait before the War of Wrath, but the complete radio silence apart from some rumours set all my nerves alight.

Telling Maitimo this, he hummed again before kissing my temple and letting me go as he had to go to yet another meeting in a few minutes time. This time about trade relations or something if I remembered correctly. "Be safe." He whispered like he always did when he had to leave me, even if I didn't even go out and like always, I promised that I would be as I gave him a proper kiss before sending him on his way and he left with a smile.

Left behind in the bedroom after watching him go with a small smile, I took one more look at my happy daughters and their families, before letting them have their fun and going to my parlor. Neither of my sons were home currently with Varno staying with Finno and Ohtare and Arnion with Celairel. The latter couple sent me a letter just a few days ago that maybe, my youngest son had finally found his own One in an elleth who lived in their realm as he had been spending more and more time with her during this visit and I silently cheered to myself at reading it. 

I was obviously overjoyed that my children were finding their own Ones to love like I loved my Maitimo, especially after the war-torn first age, but I was also terrified that Curumo could ruin this blossoming love if Celairel truly was correct about this. Pacing a bit back-and-forth, I turned to Avahaire and asked her to bring Melinde to me and to ask another servant to bring some tea. "At once, Your Majesty." She said with a small bow before she left.

Melinde arrived very soon, not long before a servant arrived with tea and some cookies before leaving us. "Reminds me of those fake tea parties we had when we were kids." She muttered once we were alone and I smiled at her as I remembered those tea parties as well. When she had been very young, dad had been the one to do those with her and Asterin, but when he died, I was the one who had taken over while mom tried to keep us all afloat.

It had been rather awkward at the worst of times, especially in the beginning as Lillith often and innocently asked where dad was since she had only been five years old at the time of this death and therefore too young to understand why dad wasn't ever coming back, but we managed to make it work over time no matter how much these questions hurt at times as Lillith eventually stopped asking about it once she finally realised dad was not going to come to the tea parties ever again. "Well, the tea is completely real now." I joked and she snorted as she sat down.

I asked her a few different questions about Curumo and what he could possibly be doing now. She answered them as honestly as she could. "You have to remember that I haven't seen him since he left to fully join Morgoth and that was thousands of years ago. From what I've heard from you and Celairel about your encounters with him, he has only gotten worse ever since then." She reminded me and I hummed as that was a good point. 

I then decided to change the subject and asked about her work in the smithy instead and she immediately lit up. "I really enjoy my time there. Everyone is honestly nicer to me than some of Aulë's Maiar were back when I first started to hang out with my Mairon. It probably has to do with the fact that I've shown I know how to forge things from what Mairon taught me and that I won't be a load that is in the way, but still." She replied and I chuckled. 

That reminded me of something else that I learned a few weeks ago and I really wanted to know if it was true. "Is it true that you sing Disney songs while working?" I asked with a teasing smile and she immediately stiffened up as she asked who told me that, confirming it without actually saying it out loud. "Thurimen did. My sword had to be repaired so I went in and heard him sing that opening number from "Frozen" under his breath. He said that you used it to keep rhythm while using a hammer." I explained and she looked down at this, still looking very surprised.

I frowned a bit in growing confusion as I asked if she was alright. "I'm fine. I just didn't realise I still did it. I used to do that when I was learning to forge things in Almaren as the strokes of the hammer have to be consistent so you don't get tired easily and so you get the best results of the hammering. Must have done it subconsciously even after all this time." She explained and I immediately hummed in understanding as that made sense. 

Eru knew that I still did things from when I was human at times, like gnawing on the nail of my thumb when I had to make a big decision or when I was feeling a bit stressed, so it made sense that Melinde and the rest of our sisters still did little things out of habit as well. We talked for a bit longer, until Avahaire told me it was almost time for one of my own meetings and after sharing a hug, we went our separate ways and I prepared for a long meeting.

A bit more time passed and much to our happiness, Arnion eventually confirmed that the elleth he'd been spending more time with was in fact his One and I gave my youngest son a tight hug while also hearing Fearil and Naire slightly tease Varno about when he was going to meet the elleth he was meant to be with and if he shouldn't hurry up a bit. "Shut up." He muttered and his sisters all snickered until Maitimo gently told them both to leave their brother alone, reminding them that there was no shame in not finding your One yet and they calmed down.

I did tell Arnion to be careful with those rumours and to not hurry things along because he was afraid we'd be at war and he nodded as he promised as he'd take as long as it was needed. "We are still only getting to know each other, nana. You do not have to worry about that. Besides, you are already a grandmother. I think you can wait a bit before the next one." He said with a grin and I ruffled his hair while calling him a cheeky brat and he laughed.

Eventually, the day that we all unconsciously dreaded came to pass and Maitimo called me, our children and Melinde together. "I have just received word of King Amdír of Lórien. He writes that his scouts and wardens have noticed a shadowy figure moving west and when they shot warning arrows as it came too close, they didn't seem to pierce it at all." He told us with a solem look and we all stiffened up as we instinctively knew what this meant.

Curumo was coming

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Well, that completely soured the mood. 

Now that we almost definitely knew that Curumo was almost certainly coming our way for one reason or another, we quickly went on high alert, but in a way that hopefully not many people noticed something was wrong. We already had ordered Martion and his smiths to make new weapons and armour over the past several years in preparation, so they didn't look up weird when we asked them to make some more.

My eagle almost worked overtime sending several messages to my remaining sisters about what was likely coming our way and where Ohtare and Celairel soon came to discuss the situation, Iressë stayed back in the east for a bit longer as she and Ekthelion had their settlement near the gap of Rohan which was one of the more accessible ways to cross the Misty Mountains and she wanted to see if he'd come past them.

With him being a Maia and a pretty powerful one at that, it was obviously guessing if he actually would use it or simply use some kind of magic to pass over the mountains. It honestly wouldn't surprise any of us it he did the latter, but if he was going the "Annatar" route as I would like to call it AKA "pretend to be a good guy only to manipulate us to try and gain absolute control over us." I swear, if he did go that way or something in that direction, I was going to laugh. Not to mention how Mairon would react once he came back (if he wasn't already) and realised the irony as well

Melinde was gone a bit more often than usual ever since we got the bad news, but considering her history with Curumo, that was rather understandable. At least, she still joined me, Ohtare and Celairel at times. "You know, this might also be a good thing in a slight way. If this really is the fallen bastard, then that means Mairon might come back or at least reveal himself and you can finally be together again." Celairel said one day.

Melinde immediately smiled at her in return, before looking down at the fire burning in the hearth. I could only guess how incredibly hard it must have been to be so far apart from Mairon for so long, even if she seemed to do slightly better lately  "I do really hope so. It has been torture not being with him after all those years together." She commented as she rested her chin on her hand. I stated and she beamed as she thanked me

"I do have a question though: if you and Mairon had come here as old people like how Gandalf or Radagast came to Middle-Earth in the books and movies, which famous actor and actress do you think you would have looked like?" I asked curiously and she hummed  as she first asked what the true name of Radagast was. "Aiwendill." I answered, figuring that she'd know him since they were both maiar of Yavanna and her reply of "yeah, that adds up" quickly confirmed that and we all chuckled as she then kept thinking about my question. 

She then suggested they'd look like Julie Andrews and Dick van Dyke if they had come back like wizards, making our laugh more as we tried to imagine looking at Bert and Mary Poppins in robes and know that they were technically two of the most powerful beings on this side of the world. It was honestly incredibly surreal to think about it. "Imagine a man looking like Dick van Dyke saying the "many names" line." Ohtare snickered 

"How does that one go again?" Melinde asked with a small frown on her face and we each did a part of it, showing that we all still knew it even after all this time. Melinde smiled at us before she leaned back in her chair, her head leaning back until she looked set the ceiling. "Can't wait to hear those words. Don't even care how he will look like. I just want him back with me." She muttered and I could completely understand that.

"You do realise that if you actually had eventually come here looking like Julie freaking Andrews to try and stop Curumo like that, we would pretty much always tease you about it and constantly whistle "a spoonful of sugar" literally every single time you entered a room, right?" I asked to cheer her up, thankfully with success as she snorted and laughed. "Or "Step in time" whenever Mairon walked in. Imagine him doing the dance to that song." I continued and we were all laughing now as we couldn't imagine the usually serious Maia dancing like a certain chimney sweep.

Unfortunately, we couldn't keep laughing as we soon got word that Iressë had intercepted a  man of whom she could practically sense power and was currently escorting him with Ekthelion and several guards. My heart leapt in my throat at hearing this as even though I knew my sister was a powerful elleth and still had her powers, albeit diminished and panther, I was still nervous something would happen to her if it was Curumo

We met them halfway to shorten her time with him, Finno and Tyelkormo staying back to protect their homes, taking a small retinue with us as well, including Avahaire and even Thurimen as he had asked to come and with Melinde agreeing with it, I didn't really see any reason to refuse. We did ask our children to stay behind just in case, Makalaurë and his wife staying with them to keep them safe even though they were all fully grown adults. 

My husband, sisters and i had decided to give this guy three chances before we would sent him away and with pretty much every elven realm on this side of the Misty Mountains being either ruled by one of my sisters or have one of them as an advisor in Celairel's case, he would likely find it very hard to find someone who would listen to him here. I just hoped that king Oropher and King Amdír would do the same. I was admittedly more confident about Amdír refusing to listen as his realm was closest to the southeast and had therefore felt the darkness, but the ruler of the Greenwood was another story

Meeting with Iressë, Ekthelion and their mysterious guest outside a village at the eastern border, I immediately noticed that the man they had with them looked a bit too otherworldly even for our standards. It was like he was trying to look like an elf, but not quite succeeding. Sensing the power from him as well, despite him likely trying his best to suppress it, I decided to call it "Strike 1" and squeezed my husband's hand. 

He quickly squeezed back, before stepping a bit ahead to keep me behind him and greeting the stranger with a small smile that I knew from experience was something what I liked to call "a politician smile." The stranger immediately bowed to him and me. "Your Majesties. It is an absolute honour to meet you. My name is Vanimóre and I would like to offer my services as an advisor to you." He said. Wrong thing to say to us, buddy. Strike 2.

I immediately patted Melinde's back twice to show how far we were and she carefully passed the silent message along to the others while I stayed with my husband to quite literally watch his back. To make sure that "Vanimóre" or whatever the hell he called himself didn't get too suspicious, we were dressed in relatively normal looking tunics and trousers and even though we did have our swords strapped to our sides and some had quivers with arrows on their backs, we hadn't outright come to him in armour so we just hoped he wouldn't attack us right then and there.

Even Thurimen and Avahaire were armed just a bit for their own safety as the former had a sword and a small forging hammer and the latter a dagger. "Exactly what kind of advice could you give my cousin and her husband that you would come all this way just to offer your services?" Celairel asked him as she then walked forwards and the moment Vanimóre turned to face her, a very brief flash of fear was visible for just a moment

He then put on a neutral face again and told us what he could help us with. Strike 3 and my hand slowly, but automatically went to the hilt of my sword. There was no reason that someone would be scared of Celairel... unless they remembered getting physically destroyed by her. Hearing the slight sound of me putting a hand on my sword was enough for everyone else to slightly tense up as they spread out to cover more ground.

Iressë and Ekthelion joined us with their guards and we all turned to face him. "I'm afraid I must decline your services. I already have advisors enough as it is." Maitimo stated, one arm pulling me slightly behind him. Some of us snorted at this while Vanimóre was at first seemingly stunned at us refusing his services as he tried to bargain but Maitimo didn't give a single inch. I had never been more proud of him and only gave the man the same neutral stare when he turned towards me. Really looking in his eyes, I saw the same darkness in there as back with the Battle of the Flame.

If this wasn't actually Curumo in disguise, I'd definitely eat my tunic as Melinde walked to the side while "Vanimóre" grew more angry as it became clear none of us would be accepting his "services" whatever the hell he meant with that, but he barely managed to keep his cool. I then told him to leave our kingdom. "You will regret this decision, Your Majesties." He sneered as he went to turn around before his eyes fell on Melinde and he stopped.

"Hello. Who do we have here?" He asked as he walked towards her instead. I growled and was ready to pull my sword, before I noticed Thurimen walking towards her and pulling his own sword, looking nothing like the happy puppy I knew him as. He lifted his sword as Curumo almost reached her, forcing him to stop unless he wanted to get beheaded. "I do believe the High Queen asked you to leave." He growled as he glared at the man who scoffed as he gave Thurimen a derisive glance. "How incredibly brave. Almost foolishly so." He commented and I knew that Maitimo was ready to pull his sword as well

To my surprise, Melinde walked forwards and grabbed his arm to make him stop, although it was likely for the best before "Vanimóre" revealed his true colours and turned him into a splatter of blood. Thurimen looked at her and she gave him a pointed glance. He lowered his head at seeing it, removing his sword. "Vanimóre" smirked as he thought he won, before he shouted in pain as Thurimen's forging hammer hit him in the groin

We automatically winced as the smith then pushed him away and he fell to the ground in an undignified heap. "How dare you treat me this way?! I demand that you tell me your name right now. Tell me your name!" He thundered as he stood up again. Thurmen briefly glanced at me and gave me a small grin, before looking back at the other man and it honestly took everything in me not to react to his next words

"I've been awake since before the breaking of the first silence. In that time, I've had many names."

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Looking at my sisters, I saw most of them were in the same boat as me

Celairel was hiding herself behind a soldier as she silently laughed to herself in utter happiness and relief. Ohtare had a hand pressed to her mouth to hide the beaming smile on her face and Iressë was rubbing her forehead in a "how did I not see this coming" kind of way. Looking at Melinde, I was surprised to only see her smiling a bit. Had she known? It certainly would explain why she suddenly was a bit happier lately. 

Unlike us as we knew exactly what those words meant, Curumo was quite confused at the rather strange answer. "What does that nonsense mean?" He asked and keeping my face straight, I told him to figure it out very far away from here. He glared at me and even without looking, I could sense Maitimo reaching for his sword as he told him to leave as well. He told us once more that we'd regret our choice, before finally leaving.

We all watched him go and apparently, "Thurimen" knew exactly when we could talk completely honest about him without him hearing us arwen's hopefully not figuring out that we knew exactly who he was. "Bastard." He spat and we immediately started to laugh loudly as even Maitimo quickly changed his demeanour from stern to happy as he turned to face our final brother-in-law while all my sisters and I either cuffed him on the back of his head. Melinde joined us and Celairel noticed the same thing as me: she wasn't shocked at this reveal at all. "You knew?" She asked in shock 

"Figured it out not too long ago. Nemireth actually mentioned how he was singing "Frozen Heart" while with her and that he had told her I'd been the one to teach him that song. Thing is: I was very sure I hadn't sung that song ever since Valinor when I first started to join my husband in smithing so there is no possible way he could have known it.... unless he was the man himself." She explained and I remembered that conversation.

Melinde did look happier and healthier since that day and I realised it was because she'd known exactly where her husband was. "I will freely admit that when she called me by my true name, I almost got something I believe the race of men call "a heart attack." Thurimen confessed as he wrapped his arms around Melinde and we laughed, before I asked if he wouldn't get into trouble as he technically hadn't kept himself to the rules.

Thurimen immediately shrugged in answer even as he never let go of his wife who already looked way happier and more relaxed than I'd seen since Valinor. Before the War of Wrath, she'd been all tense and after the War.... well, we all knew how she'd been after the war. "Lord Eru told me that I wasn't allowed to reveal myself until Curumo did. He never said anything about any of you figuring it out." My final brother-in-law stated and I had to concede at that, even as I hoped that Lord Eru really would allow this loophole. "So, nothing will change much for you now?" I asked.

"Wel, there is one thing. I can now do this in public." He replied and before I or any of the others could ask what exactly "this" was, he gently turned Melinde around and kissed her, me and my other sisters all letting out small "oooooooh's" at seeing it happening. When they broke apart, I could see the same look in Thurimen's eyes as he had back in Valinor when I was a baby: a look of pure and utter love and devotion to my youngest sister. 

I smiled at seeing them together again, before Maitimo suggested going back to discuss the changes revealed today. Ecthelion and Iressë decided to go east to their home in case Curumo went to pay a little visit to their realm, but the others and us went west. Looking at my youngest sister, I then suddenly noticed a dagger hanging from her belt and I realised it was the very same one she'd given her husband before the War. 

Seeing my surprised look at seeing the dagger when she glanced at nee, Melinde herself chuckled from where she was riding right next to Thurimen. "He gave it back to me when I figured it out, even though he technically should have given it when we first met again." She explained as she gave her husband a look and he sent a very sheepish grin in return. It was pretty clear to me that even though she was obviously overjoyed that he was back with her, she was understandably angry that she had to go through years and years of grief and pain while he was right there underneath our very noses.

He and the One Ring had that in common too now that I really thought about it. Not too surprising obviously considering that he was the one who made it in canon, but still. I also slightly understood Thurimen's side as when Lord Eru gave you a big assignment, you couldn't exactly break it unless you wanted to be heavily punished for it, but I could only imagine how hard it had been to see Melinde in pain while he was right there.

Maitimo immediately rushes to my side whenever he senses I'm feeling slightly off, so to either see or feel your wife's pain (I wasn't sure how their bond worked while Mairon had been in disguise) and be unable to go to her and comfort her for years, even while you were so close. That reminded me of something else. "I still can't believe you became a smith of ask things. Talk about hiding in plain sight" I told Thurimen and he snickered 

"Well, I had to do something while waiting. Might as well do something I'm good at, even if it was really hard to pretend I was only starting out. Not as hard as pretending I didn't know any of you or my darling Runande, but it was still pretty hard. To be fair, it wasn't the only hint I gave you." He told me and me, my husband and my sisters, who were all riding nearby, gave him confused looks. "My name "Thurimen." It literally means "hidden husband." Again, hiding in plain sight as you said." He explained and I facepalmed as well as I could while on a horse as Ohtare and Celairel laughed. 

Returning home and meeting together in a private room once we told our children the truth and they were very happy, things became more serious now that we knew Curumo was up to strength enough that he actually dared to show his face and give us an offer. Even if we had two Maiar on our side now and that included at least one Maia who was normally much stronger than Curumo, they were still depowered quite a bit.

That changed things. Still, seeing Melinde absolutely beaming every time she looked at Thurimen and seeing her becoming more healthy with the day felt good as their hands had honestly never let each other go from the moment they dismounted once we had returned to our palace. Maitimo eventually ended the meeting as it had been an eventful couple of days. Watching Melinde and Thurimen go, I slowly shook my head.

"I still cannot believe I never saw it coming. I mean, he literally was a smith who grew close with Melinde once she started working with them. I actually thought about teasing her about him if she wasn't already waiting for Mairon, only for them to be the same person. There's being subtle and then, there's biting us in the face with the facts like Melinde constantly hit Morgoth." I muttered and Maitimo laughed as he wrapped an arm around me and kissed my temple, making me smile as well. My family on this side of the world was finally complete and that was the most important thing.

A few days later, I spotted Melinde and Thurimen in the gardens of the palace from my balcony. They were happily walking and talking with each other at first, before Thurimen suddenly took her in his arms and started to dance with her through the gardens without any music, but the happy looks on their faces told me they didn't need any to be happily dancing. "They're even more sickeningly sweet than before." I commented.

I heard my own husband chuckling as he joined me. "In their defence, my heart, they have to make up for at least four centuries of separation, even after he technically returned as he had to stand to the side and watch as she lived without him and was unable to do anything about it." He replied as we continued to watch them dancing, smiling when Thurimen twirled Melinde around and the wind carried her laughter to us.

Chuckling at seeing my youngest sister so incredibly happy once more, I then let out a small hum as Thurimen and Melinde slowly danced further away from the balcony and into the gardens. "I wonder if we can still make him dance to "Step in time," even if he doesn't look like Dick van Dyke." I joked and he laughed and agreed that would be quite a sight as I'd told him about the conversation my sisters and I had about what Runande and Mairon would have looked like as wizards, explaining the significance of the actors the names belonged to. I laughed at the mental image as well. 

Thurimen and Melinde eventually stopped dancing and the way that he then slowly cupping her face told us everything that was about to happen next. We quickly pulled back to at least give them some privacy during their kiss. "It's honestly a shame Maiar can't have kids together. I bet they'd make wonderful parents, but then again, Lillith was never really interested in starting a family." I commented, much to Maitimo's surprise. 

I shrugged at seeing his face. "She told us she was more than willing to babysit for us if we ever had kids, but she simply wasn't interested in having kids of her own. Then again, she wasn't interested in a relationship either and look at her now." I continued and he smiled before he had to go and attend to our duties again. Looking out a window, I saw them sitting together on a bench, looking completely happy and peaceful.

"Congratulations, sister. Let's hope you'll never be separated again." I muttered, before walking on

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise.

Thurimen practically moved into the palace after that. 

He and Melinde were honestly plastered to each other at the hip for a long time after the meeting with the disguised Curumo and who could honestly blame them after everything they'd been through? After getting abruptly separated from each other during the War of  Wrath in the most horrible way possible and then have to wait several centuries to reunite, I know I would have been in the same boat if I had been in her position. 

I had also realised another obvious hint that honestly should have told us right from the start that Thurimen was secretly Marion in disguise: his last name was Mahilion. What do the dwarves call Lord Aulë? Mahal. It's honestly unbelievable that apparently, you still miss things that are blindingly obvious once you really start to think about it, but he hast revealed himself now and everything was okay so I let it go.

Melinde soon returned to her healthy appearance and cheerful demeanour now that she wasn't alone anymore and finally had her husband back away her side and either me or one of my sisters often saw the two of them simply talking to each other in the garden, catching the other up with everything that had been happening since they were separated while one of them, usually Melinde was leaning against the other's side to try and keep as much skin contact as possible, the other usually stroking their hair as well and kissing the top of their heads while listening to the story. 

I honestly had absolutely no idea what exactly Marion had been doing before he became Thurimen and joined the smithy while keeping an eye out for any news about Curumo, but my personal guess was that he stayed with Lord Eru in the void where he was once created for a bit and where he got his new body and assignment before getting sent here. I had decided not to ask now that he was so happy to be back with Melinde. 

Speaking of Curumo, now that he had finally shown himself, we needed to find out what he was planning next and prepare for whatever it was. We had immediately sent out warnings to both the Greenwood and Lórien about how a figure claiming to be a help but radiated darkness and who we suspected to be Morgoth's lieutenant had offered his help and had been rejected by us and hoped they would follow our lead.

My sisters had quickly gone back to their own realms after that day to see if he'd go there but he had seemingly vanished after our confrontation, likely having gone back to Mordor or wherever he stayed now to plan something different now that he had been forbidden to enter our realm and court like he had probably hoped he would and with the majority of the rulers of the western elven realms having been there, he knew he had no chance with them either and hopefully with our warnings, he wouldn't have a chance in the eastern realms either

For now, all we could do was keep our guard up, make sure we had covered everything as much as possible and hope that the Sindarin kings listened to us about Curumo despite my husband not being their High King as that had been my uncle so ward now probably living the high life back in Valinor while my father and uncle Elmo constantly teased him about him missing the trip to Valinor because he saw a pretty girl.

I was their King's niece though, so hopefully my word still counted for something. They had listened to me before and Oropher owed me for saving his son's life so they would hopefully listen to me again. I had also sent a letter to my niece who lived in Lórien as well and hopefully, she'd be able to convince their King to listen to my warning. I'd hate for either the Greenwood or Lórien to become this version of Eregion.

"My heart? Are you alright?" Maitimo asked in concern, snapping me out of my thoughts as I had apparently been staring at nothing for several minutes as we sat together in my husband's study. I immediately gave him a small smile as I stretched my back and told him I'd just been lost in thought about Curumo and he hummed. "I think we have honestly done everything we can against him for now. Your sisters will keep an eye on their realms and I have a feeling Artanis or rather Galadriel will help keep an eye in the east after you sent her that letter." He replied and I sighed.

I knew that he was right, but that didn't mean I had to like it. We then heard a knock on the door and we quickly let those on the other side in, only to look up in surprise to see it was Melinde and Thurimen. It had been a few months since the confrontation with Curumo and Thurimen revealing his true identity and we had spent a lot of time together but this was the first time they had actually come to see us in private. 

Maitimo and I immediately asked what was wrong and they smiled at us to calm us down. "Nothing's wrong, Sylvaine. It's just that we have noticed some elves are giving us looks when we spend time together, probably assuming that we're courting and I even heard some maids whispering amongst themselves when the wedding is and I thought to myself "what a great idea."" Melinde explained with a small chuckle.

I frowned in confusion as I didn't fully understand what exactly she meant with that and from the corner of my eye, I saw that I wasn't the only one feeling that way as my husband was looking rather befuddled as well. Yes, not many people outside our pretty big family actually knew Melinde's true identity or that she had actually been married before to Thurimen himself, only knowing her as a very important ally and friend to their royal family and accepting that, but what exactly did she mean with great idea? Seeing our confused looks, it was Thurimen's turn to let out a small chuckle.

"We were thinking that since you weren't there for our wedding, we could actually do something that looks like one so that we can stop pretending to just be "courting" and we won't have to look out for people noticing us coming out of the same room again. I believe my Runande called it something similar to "renewing our vows." This way, we can kill two birds with one stone." He explained a bit further and my eyes lit up at this. 

It was honestly true that my sisters and I had always been incredibly bummed out about having missed our youngest sister's wedding since we hadn't been born yet and the opportunity to be at something similar honestly sounded amazing, but was there even such a thing as "renewing your vows" in Middle-Earth. Granted, the people who knew Melinde and Thurimen were already married could be counted on a couple of hands but still. 

Telling my sister about this, she immediately smiled at me. "Like you said, not many people here will know the ceremony will technically be unnecessary and to be completely honest, I feel like a young teenager sneaking around with her new boyfriend and we both know how that went last time." She replied, Thurimen immediately giving her a look and asking when that was and I couldn't help but hide my smile at hearing the tone in his voice. It was like he'd completely forgotten that we had a full life before coming here and he thought it had been during their relationship instead.

"Back on our world. We eventually broke up because he found a prettier girl." Melinde explained to him with a  smile but this was clearly not helping him feel better at all as her husband's eyes darkened in anger and he muttered about how my sister's ex should be glad he wasn't there with us right now. Melinde gave him a touched smile and kissed his cheek. "It's okay, Marion. I have you now." She whispered and he relaxed again.

Maitimo and I smiled at seeing them being so happy with each other, before we shared a look and nodded. We gave them permission to "get engaged" and exchange silver rings with each other, Melinde having given her wedding ring to Maitimo not long after the War of Wrath as she didn't want to be constantly reminded of who she was missing so he could give it to Marion during the ceremony so that he could give it to her again.

I also made them both promise that the moment were received any news about Curumo's actions or suspicions about his current whereabouts, they'd immediately postpone the ceremony until it was safe and peaceful again and they naturally agreed with that as Melinde gave me a very tight hug that I happily returned, knowing that she deserved to openly be with the man she loved and had missed so much without anyone thinking they were doing any funny business outside of the marriage bed and getting judged for it by elves who didn't know the full story. 

Not long after that, Melinde and Thurimen eventually exchanged silver rings once more in their lives in a very small and humble ceremony with just us, our families and some of Thurimen' friends that probably didn't fit éowy of them at all considering that they were actually two Maiar with Thurimen being one of the most powerful ones, but they didn't seem to care. I honestly hadn't seen either of them this happy in quite a while.

Probably hasn't since back in Valinor where no one looked up weird to see them together. The fact that in hopefully just a year's time, they could finally be as openly together as they had been while in Valinor made them feel lighter than they had on a very long time and I could only hope that Curumo didn't let himself be heard of again in that year so they they could just get "married" and no one would give them strange looks anymore 

They deserved it. 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

'And I thought Melinde was happy before.'

I quickly smiled at seeing my youngest sister almost literally beaming in happiness as she was fitted for her wedding dress. From what she told me, her first wedding dress had been extravagant and made by lady Yavanna and the ceremony had been with almost all of the Valar and Maiar in attendance, apart from Morgoth as he had already fled to Middle-Earth at the time, so she was way happier with a more simple feast.

Curumo was still keeping himself quiet in the east, but every elven kingdom was on alert pretty much 24/7, even Lothlórien and the Greenwood after we explained an agent of Morgoth might try to weasel his way in. Even if the Sindarin Kings didn't always see eye-to-eye with me and my husband, this was one thing they could all agree on. I just hoped that none of them made the same mistake that Celebrimbor made in the book.

Even though we were very good allies with the two elven realms on the other side of the Misty Mountains, there was absolutely no denying that our eyes and influence were both limited in the east, even with my niece keeping an eye out as well as much as she could. The thought of Galadriel made me think of something else, even if we were still rather in the beginning of the Second age: the war that was "The War of the Last Alliance" in the book. Would it still happen with so many things having changed and if it did, would we still be as lucky as we were in the War of Wrath?

While definitely not as big as the former War for obvious reasons, it was still the end of an age and the start of the decline if the elves with their last High King dead and simply not enough people left to deserve the need for someone to carry that title. It was partly because of the elven rings losing their power with the One's destruction that made the final leaders, apart from Círdan (and Celeborn in the books) to leave for Valinor

With the creator of said One Ring currently and happily preparing for his second wedding and with Curumo being pretty much a loose cannon, unpredictable as hell, there would be no telling when the time of the elves would be over, especially with the fact that unlike Gil-Galad in the books, Maitimo and I had two sons who would be able to take over if anything did happen to their father even though I'd fight to prevent that. 

Feeling a hand on my shoulder, I realised I'd been lost in thought for a bit and Melinde had eventually noticed it as she was currently giving me a slightly concerned look. I dismissed the maids who had been tending to her dress for a moment and they quickly left with a synchronised bow. "I was just thinking of the future and what's in store for us, especially with many things having complicated our even changed the things that i knew from the book. As happy as I am that you are happy with your husband, you really changed things by marrying Mairon." I muttered.

She quickly gave me a very sheepish grin in return, knowing how much she had changed history by simply falling in love with Mairon and making him fall in love with her. "Sorry, not sorry." She replied and I chuckled as well, knowing that I couldn't fault her for it either. I fell in love with my Maitimo despite knowing what could possibly be ahead of him at the time. She simply fell in love and changed the known future through it.

"I know how much I confused things by marrying Mairon so many ages ago and how me rejecting him was likely one of the things that eventually turned Curumo to the dark side, severely shaking things up as you know it from back on our world, but I also know that we both will help you get through with whatever will happen in the future. Let's first just focus on my scuff, okay? She asked and I quickly nodded in answer.

Calling the seamstresses back in so they could finish the dress,  I eventually left to return to Maitimo who immediately asked if I was okay, likely having felt my morose mood even from a distance. "I'm fine, my darling. I was just thinking how much things have changed and how so many differences have been made compared to what I know. Many of these changes are obviously for the better, but it makes things a lot more difficult to predict. Some of those who were here in the books now aren't and many who weren't now aren't it makes everything uncertain." I explained.

Maitimo gave me a sympathetic smile as he pulled me closer and sat me down on my throne. "I understand you want to help us in the same way you have in the first age, but that time is over, my heart. Now, it's our turn to help you. We'll face whatever will come on our path the same way we have faced everything before: together. I think it's time you let the book go and simply act on whatever happens when it happens." He said. 

I sighed as I knew he was right, but it was easier said than done since my knowledge of the books was what saved us many times and I was scared that now it had technically ended, people I cared about would die. My knowledge had been our greatest trump-card in the first age and since Morgoth thankfully never found out about it, he was easy to predict. Curumo was anything but. Still, I nodded and went back to ruling.

Not too long after that and thankfully without any bad news from the east, it was finally time for my youngest sister's rare second wedding and we were all there to witness. My other sisters, me and our daughters all beamed at seeing Melinde all dressed up for said wedding as she twirled around with a giggle once the seamstresses and the maids were done with the finishing touches. Since this was her second wedding, she had decided to skip the white colour and wear a dress that was green and gold instead. It honestly looked amazing on her and I couldn't wait to see Mairon's face.

"He is not going to believe his eyes when he sees you." I commented and Melinde chuckled as she replied her husband once told her he couldn't believe his eyes every day he was with her, the rest of us immediately cooing. If you told me when I was still a human that the Dark Lord Sauron could be such a romantic, I would have laughed straight in your face. I mean, Sauron being a good and loving husband? Come off it.

Yet, the proof was right in front of me once we had arrived at the ceremony hall and he saw her for the first time. The starstruck gaze in his eyes was enough to know his devotion to my youngest sister as she joined his side and he took her hand, kissing her knuckles while keeping eye-contact with her. It reminded me of when Maitimo first confessed his feelings for me and seeing my husband looking at me, I knew he thought the same.

We watched with huge smiles on our faces as the Lady "Melinde" and the smith "Thurimen" solemnly promised to love and care for each other (again) as they exchanged golden rings (again) and shared a kiss (again.) We immediately applauded them as they broke apart and rested their foreheads against each other's. If I didn't know any better, i would have thought them to actually be newlyweds, although I supposed that they were also relieved that they could finally stop being secretive about their relationship to those not in the know without getting questions.

The feast that followed the exchanging and kiss was not as big as some of the other wedding feasts we had as, even though Melinde was once our sister and in our minds and hearts, she was still part of the family which meant she was technically part of the royal family too, she was no royal or noble, but knowing our youngest sister, she didn't mind the smaller feast as she danced with her husband without a care In the world.

I did the same  and I saw my daughters doing it as well. "Now, look at that." Maitimo whispered after a while as he carefully turned me around to show what he was looking at: Varno talking to a Sindarin elleth who had come with Celairel and Tyelkormo. I immediately beamed at my husband and he did the same before dancing on. Maitimo was right: it was time to let the book go and improvise as much as possible.

I just hoped I'd do a good enough job

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise

Once again, time proved to be the most annoying bastard together with Curumo.

To be constantly on edge and waiting for the next move to happen, never knowing what the evil Maia was planning or doing at all was the worst and despite my husband's best efforts to comfort me, the worrying was slowly bringing my general health down. I started to get pale and tired like when Maitimo and I had been separated for months without me realising it. My people were in danger, we just didn't know what kind. 

"My heart, you are really worrying me. You are slowly growing paler and thinner by the day, you are not eating or sleeping and the others have already begun to notice and get concerned for you as well. What is going on in that amazing mind of yours and how can i help you with it?" Maitimo asked me one day after a meeting with our closest family. Honestly, it was more pleading than anything, his blue eyes bright with worry for me.

I sighed and completely sagged against him as I let everything go, my whole body suddenly feeling like it was made of lead even as he caught me and pulled me closer, his lips resting against my temple. He didn't plant kisses like he would usually do, but he made it clear that he was there for me. "I'm just so tired of waiting. I know that you said to let things happen now that we are in unknown territory concerning future events, but I am so tired of not knowing what measures I need to make to keep our people.... our friends.... our children safe from that vile bastard." I muttered 

"All that is going through my head right now every single day is mind-numbing fear that I will completely fail in my duty and I will be forced to watch as you and everyone else are killed in front of me. I left you to rule on your own for two hundred years already and you were so very strong to keep going even with the uncertainty of my fate hanging over your head, but I do not think up have that same strength as you did." I continued.

Despite looking straight ahead to the empty throne room that was in front of me I could practically sense Maitimo squeezing his eyes shut for just a few seconds as he buried his face in my hair and held me even tighter, one hand coming up to gently cradle the side of my head and hold it against his chest. Closing my own eyes, I turned my head until my nose was practically smashed against his chest and into his warm robes.

"You'd think that after everything bad that I knew would happen has happened in the first age, I would be able to relax and the stressful times would be done, but they have honestly gotten so much worse as i know the danger is not over. It feels like I'm in a clearing in a dark forest and i know there is a predator stalking the woods around me, ready to strike. I just do not know from which corner it will attack, so I'm just wildly facing every direction in the hopes of catching it when it pounces and no matter how much i know I'm not alone, the feeling doesn't not leave." I breathed as I held onto him.

He hummed in answer, his chest vibrating with it. "You have done so well though and I understand your fears, but I fear you underestimate the strength of our people, allies and family, my love. They will fight just as hard to protect themselves as we will to protect them. Not to mention that I am sure that Melinde and Thurimen would love to get revenge for everything that he has done." He said as he pulled back to look me in the eyes.

"Thurimen already has taken a bit of revenge with that hit in-between the legs when we met him." I replied and he laughed, glad that I was slowly coming back to my usual self. He then cupped my face and kissed my forehead as he begged me to look after myself and I promised to do my best. He smiled, before some advisors came to request his attendance for another meeting and he left once I'd assured him I'd be fine.

Walking outside the throne room, I smiled at hearing a familiar cry and Súldor landed on my shoulder, starting to preen my hair like I was his chick. My loyal eagle had been missing for centuries after the war and I had lost consciousness because of Morgoth's final attack and had only recently returned after visiting and seeing I was awake. I was a bit ashamed to admit that I had forgotten a bit about him, but my mind had been so busy with everything else that his absence had slipped my mind. The familiars of the others either stayed back in their homes or were in Valinor in Melinde's case. 

'Speak of the devil.' I thought as I soon came across the disguised Maia in question, for once not accompanied by her husband a he was likely working in the smithy. Just because we knew who he really was and he was now married (again) to Melinde did not mean that he could quit working. I bit my lip as I wondered how Martion would react if he knew he had an actual Maia working under him and he didn't even know it.

Seeing my youngest sister giving me a concerned look as well, I gave her a smile in return. "I'm fine, Lilith. I just go stir crazy from waiting the whole time." I told her and she hummed as we went to take a small walk as my next meeting was not for another hour and I needed to clear my head. She asked if I perhaps could describe my situation in a song and I thought for a second, before finding an appropriate one

At the end, a lot of the elves around us quickly applauded the song, even if they didn't know why I was singing it as some elflings ran up to me and I kneeled down in fron of them as I once again reminded myself why I put myself under all that pressure: so that these children and their families could live out their lives in peace without having to look over their shoulders in fear that Curumo and his followers would attack them.

"Very fitting song for the situation at hand. You have had this huge amount of pressure on you ever since becoming High Queen. No, scratch that. You had taken on so much stuff on your plate way before becoming Queen or even Princess, ever since dad died and you had to take over at least part of the care while mom worked two jobs to support us all." Melinde commented a few minutes later once we were on our way again

I simply made a small face in return as we walked for about half-an-hour before returning to the palace so I could spend some time with my children before I had to separate from them once more.  I hated that we both knew that she was completely right about that. Ever since dad died in my teens, I had immediately taken on a lot of responsibility for my younger sisters while mom tried to earn enough money to keep us afloat with a bit of help from Delmira once she was old enough to get a small job as well and I had honestly never stopped caring for others ever since then.

I went from an older sister, to a manager who looked after her employees, to an actual Princess and eventually High Queen of an entire race of elves. It was in my nature, but as I had shown in the past few weeks, I'd sometimes forget myself in the process. "I will look after myself better from now on. I promise. " I said and Melinde made the "I'm watching you" gesture and I chuckled before we separated and went our own ways

As years and decades passed slowly and still nothing seemed to happen as far as Curumo was concerned, I also tried to look after myself a bit better so that I would not suddenly collapse to Gur ground and worry everyone even more under Maitimo's watchful eyes as he made sure I actually ate and slept enough with our precious children right behind him when they noticed how bad my self-neglect could be at times.

My sisters carefully watched over their own realms as well and kept us informed of anything important that was going on. Melinde eventually returned to her traveling once she knew her husband was okay with it as they knew that the safety of everyone was important too and as long as she was careful, he promised to always be there to welcome her home. I knew she was ecstatic to have him back in her life and not have an empty home anymore We kept our gazes to the east, but we soon learned we were watching a bit too far and it would have cost us a lot of not for one factor.

Irissë went on a simple, diplomatic mission to visit the dwarves of Moria to keep the relationship between our people strong. It was supposed to only take a few days, but it stretched on into at least three weeks and when we wrote a letter to the dwarves to find out where she was, they stated she had already left. I immediately knew something was wrong as I had gotten a letter from a worried Ekthelion that she hadn't returned home.

I trusted his word more than theirs, so I knew something was wrong. I was sorely tempted to go there myself and find out what was going on, but Maitimo stopped me from doing so for my safety and we soon learned it was a good thing too as Irissë suddenly stormed into our throne room four weeks after she first left, looking disheveled, dirty and all manners of pissed off as we quickly jumped up and asked what had happened.

"That bastard has bought off the dwarves." She hissed.

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"Okay, tell us what happened."

"Things felt off the moment I arrived in Moria. The way the dwarves gave me tight smiles and seemed disappointed I was the only one as well as asking after my children, you and even Melinde made the hairs on the back on my neck stand up straight. They also acted differently than they had before, constantly finding excuses to extend my stay, but I started to get really tired and impatient after one and a half week." Irissë began.

We were in the healing halls of the castle at my insistence. The head healer was checking her over for any injuries and a scribe was writing everything she said down as i was there in my job as Queen "When I stated that I was leaving, I was suddenly put at spear point and told to stay unless I wanted an army to sneak into my city and take my children, maybe even have some "fun" with Rilyanasta." She then hissed, spitting the word "fun."

I honestly could not blame her as the implications were disgusting and I'd be furious too if someone tried to imply the same with my daughters. It was clear that Curumo had likely enchanted the dwarves in one way or another. "I was put in a tiny room and put under guard for the remainder of my "stay" and it wasn't until I was led to the king where he tried to convince me to give him secrets to our kingdom unless I wanted to be starved even more that I saw the gleam of a palantir hidden just behind the throne and it was clearly active. Curumo was listening." She continued.

"I obviously refused, was smacked in the face and pulled back to my "room." I could feel whenever my guards changed shifts through the stone and when two guards changed shifts in the middle of the night, I used my powers to get out of the mountain. I spent at least a week traveling to get here to you to warn you. I just want to see my family now." She whispered as she sagged against the pillows now that she was done.

I rubbed her back and gave her a comforting smile. "Once you're fully recovered and clean, we'll bring you home." I promised and she thanked me as the head healer told us she was just exhausted and a tiny bit thinner than usual, but okay for the rest of it. "See? You'll be back with your family before you know it." I said and she replied it couldn't be fast enough with the threat the dwarves had made about her kingdom. 

Maitimo quickly sent a powerful regiment of soldiers east to help defend against any kind of upcoming threat while Irissë was still out of the running so to speak. "I guess that Curumo will definitely know about my powers now if he didn't already after the first age." Irissë and I knew she was talking about when she'd save my life back in the Battle of the Flames and while it was easy to excuse him losing me in a chaotic battle, it was less easy to explain a valuable prisoner somehow managing to escape with likely a big hole in the wall as the exit hole. I could see his face already.

"That reminds me: why did Curumo never tell Morgoth we had powers. The orcs and trolls usually didn't live to tell the tale about them, but his body was quite literally destroyed by Celairel and yet, Morgoth was still surprised if I have to believe the stories from when Mairon was killed." I said and Irissë replied that our sister/my cousin had the excuse of being the daughter of Melian and having Lúthien as her sister. She did not

A few days later, Irissë, Melinde, Thurimen, Varno and I went east as well with some guards. Irissë was ecstatic to finally go home and be with her family again and I once more could not blame her. Her bond with Ekthelion must be aching like crazy after weeks of forced separation. Once we neared her kingdom, she pulled the hood of her cloak over her head to surprise her family and people with her reappearance.

The moment the people living in their kingdom saw me and Varno riding, they immediately converged on us to know if there was any news of their beloved Princess. I could sense how much Irissë wanted to pull off her hood and reassure them she was okay, but she needed to see her family first. Instead, I told them all if we had any news, I would tell Ekthelion immediately and he would tell them. That was enough for them for now, but I heard the worried whispers as they drooped off and I know Irissë did as well if the white knuckles around the reins of her horse were any indication.

Arriving at the palace, I was very grateful for the fact  I was the High Queen as the guards saw me arrive with a hooded figure and fully trusted me to know what I was doing, letting us inside without a fuss and telling us where to find Ekthelion and his children. Going to the sitting room I let Irissë go on first and she pulled off her hood as she knocked on the door. Ekthelion's voice called her in and we both winced at the sound.

It reminded me of when I had just woken up from my coma and my sweet Maitimo had weakened quite a bit in my forced absence. Irissë understandably did not waste any second and opened the door, me quickly peeking around the corner. Ekthelion, Ñaltanáre and Rilyanasta were sitting on the couches and chair, all looking tired, pale and stress. None other than Glorfindel was keeping them company at the moment.

Rilyanasta was the only one who was facing the door and she looked up at seeing it opening. It took her a few seconds to realise her mother was really standing there after at least a month of absence. Her eyes widened and she shot off the couch. "Amil!" She practically screamed as she ran straight into her mother's open arms and Irissë laughed as she caught her only daughter. Looking at the ellyn in the room, they were clearly just as shocked as they all stared at her, before Ñaltanáre followed his sister's example and ran over, wrapping his arms around both her and his mother. 

Irissë laughed as she held onto her children, whispering sweet nothings to them and eventually cupping the faces of them both as she planted dozens of kisses all over, tears rolling down their cheeks as Ñaltanáre and Rilyanasta tightly clung onto their previously missing mother. "Irissë...." We then heard Ekthelion breathe after a minute and both their children turned and reluctantly took a step back to let their father through.

Slowly letting go of their children, she reached out and cupped his face with both hands. He let out a shaky breath at her touch and quickly pulled her into his arms, Irissë letting out a grunt in response before she relaxed. As their children joined them as well and practically hid her from view, I looked at Glorfindel and silently moved my head to him to let them have some privacy and he immediately agreed as we walked away. 

I rarely saw the famous blond elf to he honest, even if he never had to sacrifice his life since Gondolin was never betrayed and attacked as he often stayed behind to protect the kingdom and often my niece and nephew when Irissë and Ekthelion were visiting us. Despite the attention of many ellyth, he had never found his One, nor was he quite interested in finding it as he found his duty to protect his best friend's children and kingdom more important. I did have a lot of fun catching up with him as we walked through the hallways with Melinde, Thurimen and Varno.

When we heard the people starting to cheer outside after about an hour, we shared a knowing look and smile as we knew that irissë had revealed her return to the people. That evening during dinner, both Ekthelion and Irissë arrived together and they both already looked a lot better and healthier as their bond was quickly restoring itself now that they were together, although I did notice he still didn't let her hand go.

He thanked me for bringing her back and I smiled. "She did that all by herself. Do not let her out of your sight for a while though and keep your eye out for what the dwarves might do. Maitimo is already in contact with the dwarves living in the Blue Mountains to see if Curumo has infiltrated there too, but we're not sending anyone of our family to Kingdoms that aren't from our people." I said and they agreed, but I still smiled.

Things were growing darker, but Irissë was back home. That was the most important thing. 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Thankfully, the dwarves of the Blue Mountains were still sane.

Apparently, Celairel and Tyelkormo as well as their followers had helped restore their kingdom after the War of Wrath and they owed them a favor now, so when Maitimo reached out to them through emergency letters and they heard of how Irissë was captured and basically held hostage, they were absolutely horrified. Their royal family had gotten invitations to visit Moria, but had been so busy they had been unable to.

At hearing the situation, they had immediately sent word to all the other Dwarven realms to warn them. Thankfully, it seemed the dwarves of Moria and by very involved extension, Curumo, had shown their hand too early by capturing Irissë as none of the other realms had gotten a visit yet and were therefore immediately put on their guard. One good thing about dwarves was that they were very loyal to each other. 

If the royal family of one realm told the other royal families to be on their guard 24/7 and not let a wizard convince them to let him give them some kind of magical item even if he constantly promised to give them power, they immediately listened as they trusted their kin to have a very good reason to say this. All the other realm immediately promised to keep an eye out and to not accept any invitations from Khazad-Dûm to see their progress or something. The king of the Blue Mountains asked us to let them try to handle this situation and we hesitantly agreed on a few conditions.

We had to constantly be in contact with them, they wouldn't have direct contact with those in Moria and the moment they sensed things going down they'd let us help and they agreed. No offence to the dwarves, but I highly doubted they'd be able to save the dwarves in the Misty Mountains as Curumo was way more powerful than them, but if they could limit his influence in the other Dwarven realms and get any innocents out, I'd take it.

"Curumo and the dwarves are both so incredibly lucky that I was still in the east when irissë was captured. Otherwise, they'd have gotten a very nasty visit from me very soon." Melinde hissed a few days later as we were taking a walk through the city, a couple of guards following a few feet behind us as Maitimo had gotten a lot more protective over me and our children now that Curumo was definitely being more active.

From what my other sisters who were not in the same city had told me, they were in the same boat as their husbands and animals barely left them alone and they were rarely alone, especially Irissë. Melinde had to leave hers behind in Valinor where Olórin would take care of it as she had felt she would be unable to look after it while mourning for Mairon. Speaking of the Maia, he was the only one who still let his wife move freely without any guards. Mostly because as of right now, he was just a smith and could not order anyone to guard her, but also because he knew she was a lot harder to kill.

Even with our quite literal God-given powers, we were still just royal elves who were definitely way weaker than a Maia of Aulë and he would have very little trouble going after us, even if he was a fallen one. Yes, we were Valinor elves who had seen the light of the Two Trees, but still. Even though both Melinde and Thurimen were depowered Maias, but they were still more powerful than any of us could ever dream of being. 

"Honestly, we should really count ourselves lucky I was not the one captured by the dwarves. Irissë used her earthbending to get out of there and now, she's safely back home where she belongs with her family, Ohtare and Celairel would have blasted their way out, but I have healing powers. You guys would have to get me out of there and Maitimo would let everything descend into chaos while being worried about me." I said.

As much as I dearly loved my amazing husband with all my heart and soul, it was pretty clear that if the choice came between my life and prosperity of the kingdom, he would almost definitely choose me. We all still remembered how he had been when i had gone missing with Finderáto and i had just been with the humans back then. If I had been captured by the enemies with almost no way of getting out by myself, who knows what he would have done to get me back home and how much he would have been distracted of ruling the kingdom and protecting our people

Thankfully, we had four amazing children who would definitely have been able to help Maitimo with ruling the kingdom if anything bad did actually happen to me as unlike way back in the first age, we were all together in the same place rather than having Fearil in Nargothrond with her husband, but still. I would absolutely hate for our people to suffer simply because I was stupid enough to get myself captured by the enemy.

Melinde hummed in answer, snapping me out of my thoughts and I glanced at her, briefly taking in how much better she looked compared to when i first woke up. Her face was full again to the point where I could not see her cheekbones anymore and there was a small spring in her step at times, especially if we were going to the smithy to see Thurimen as when he was still missing, she had almost shuffled her feet forwards.

"What are you looking at?" Melinde asked curiously as she tilted her head at seeing me staring at her and I quickly smiled as I replied I was looking at how much she had healed since "meeting" Thurimen. She chuckled as her cheeks darkened just slightly. "Can't say you're wrong there. Finding him has brought light into my life that was definitely missing." She replied and I immediately beamed at her as I was glad to hear it. After being so violently separated from each other, they deserved to have some peace, even with Curumo growing more and more active in the world.

We then went on as Melinde asked what was going to happen to the dwarves in Moria as we continued walking. "Depends on how far Curumo's influence over the dwarves go, how much is the same of what we know and how much Curumo knows about what we know." I replied and she gave me a confused look. ""Fly you fools."" I quoted and she let out a quiet breath in understanding, before paling slightly.

"Do you think Moria is like that island you told us about?" She then asked and I opened my mouth to answer, before really considering it. Because of circumstances being completely different after the War of Wrath, Númenor had never been created and from what I heard, both Elros and Elrond were still happily living in Celairel's realm. The humans who had fought for the Valar had been given a realm in the east instead. 

But the possibility of Moria actually being the Númenor of our version had not even crossed my mind until now, but the more I thought about it now, the more it honestly fitted. I just wondered what their big mistake would be ala "going to Valinor and try to take over" kind of mistake. Maybe Curumo would convince them to dig even deeper for Mithril for his army of orcs and the Balrog would be their Eru burying them all underground for good and instead of being forced to stay lost in the caves forever, they'd just die. Jeez, that was a dark thought. Let's go back to happier topics.

"I do hope Curumo is not into ring-making. He's already giving us enough trouble." I muttered as we reached the edge of the city and headed towards the havens instead, the fresh sea-breeze blowing in our faces. In the distance, we noticed the familiar figure of Círdan standing on the docks. It was still a bit weird to see an elf with a beard, even with my grandfather-in-law being Mahtan, but he was very kind and wise.

"Hmm. He was more into building actual things that jewels. It started off innocent enough with him wanting to help others by building them stuff, but I dread to think what he could be doing with those skills now." Melinde said quietly, before sighing. "Why did Melkor have to go after those I knew of everyone?" She asked and I replied that Aulë and Melkor were slightly similar in that they wanted to create new things.

"However, where Melkor or Morgoth wanted to be the owner of all, Aulë was happy to give his creations to everyone, but his pupils did have something Morgoth could exploit: ambition and the drive to make things as perfect as possible." I said and she hummed as she agreed it did sound like how Mairon had been. He had wanted everything to be perfect until she had ironically pointed out the flaws in that desire, making him realise how incredibly boring things would be if everything was perfect. Once again changing fate without knowing.We joined Círdan as he was looking out over the sea.

"Your Majesty. Lady Melinde." He greeted us both solemnly and we nodded as I asked him what he was looking out for. "That." Was all, he said as he pointed at a small dot on the horizon. A boat was coming this way. "I already sent one of my apprentices to the High King. I thought you were here in response to that." He explained and I replied my husband would not sent me alone to greet a mysterious ship coming our way. 

As the ship came closer, my husband and sons arrived and Maitimo immediately pulled me close I could soon make out three figures on deck and i already started to smile at seeing one in particular. The ship soon docked and three men walked out. One in white robes, one in brown and one in grey and especially the latter caught my attention as he stepped forwards and said one thing that made Melinde and I share a look and smile

"I apologise for the sudden arrival, but let me first introduce myself. My name is Gandalf. Gandalf the grey"

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise.

It was pretty hilarious how neither Melinde, nor I could get the shit-eating grins off our faces.

But it was practically impossible not to smile for us. Gandalf was here! Gandalf, arguably the most famous old wizard in fictional history together with maybe Dumbledore was standing right on front of me with his usual kind smile on his face. Even after meeting him as a maia when I was a baby, it still honestly blew my mind to see him in the way most people knew him. I put a hand on my husband's shoulder and he glanced at me. 

I gave him a smile and nod at seeing he was still distrustful of the situation, telling him they were to be trusted. Well, for the most part as I looked over at the other two wizards. One was definitely Sylvester McCoy's Radagast, but the one in white was a mystery to me. Funnily enough, he did actually look like Derek Jacobi like I mentioned once centuries ago when we discussed how Mairon would look like if he came here as a wizard.

He definitely looked very different than the tall, intimidating stature of Sir Christopher Lee. That was for sure. He honestly looked a lot more like your average, stout grandpa rather than a powerful wizard and Maia in disguise, but then again, I was almost certain that was the intention. The question was: which Maia was he? "It is good to meet you, Sir Gandalf. I am Nemireth Olwiel, High Queen of the Ñoldor. This is my husband Maitimo Feänorion and my good friend: the lady Melinde." I stated as i gestured to myself, my darling and my sister

The way their eyes all lit up in happiness at seeing her indicated they knew exactly who she was and were ecstatic to see her again after she spent so long here in Arda.I noticed how Gandalf carefully looked her up-and-down and I could not blame him since the last time he'd seen her must have been right after the War of Wrath when she had lost her husband and had been inconsolable. Looking down at her hand, he noticed something.

"And I see a very lucky man is fortunate enough to call her his wife, is that right?" He asked as he looked back up into her eyes. Translation: "Runande? Is that you and if so, does that ring mean what I think it means?" I guess they did not hear about Mairon's return. Maybe Eru kept that a secret from the Maia too, even if I did not see the reason why. Melinde smiled and held her hand up to show the ring properly to him

"My husband Thurimen crafted it himself for me when he returned after a long period of absence." She replied with a beaming smile on her face as she was finally able to tell her friend that her husband had returned to her. Translation: "Mairon is finally back with me where he belongs, old friend and I'm back to my old self again. For the most part" Gandalf's smile immediately became bigger. From what Melinde had told me and from what I had seen, they had been pretty much the best of friends in Valinor so of course, he was ecstatic to hear this

"That is wonderful to hear. I am very happy for you, my dear." He stated with a small bow and we could both immediately hear that he was saying this to her as Gandalf the wizard and Olórin the Maia. Melinde quickly beamed back at him as Maitimo asked who his two companions were. "Oh, do forgive me. These are my good friends Radagast the Brown and Alagos the White." Gandalf quickly introduced the other two.

Glancing at Melinde and mouthing the latter name to her, she could only shrug as she clearly had no idea who this was either. As we walked to the Palace after thanking Círdan for his assistance Melinde and I slowly fell back a bit while my husband talked with the Istar. "Do you have any idea who the white one is?  Can you sense his powers?" I asked in a whisper and she shook her head as she had her eyes fixed on Alagos.

 I could not blame her, considering Curumo was the Canon white wizard at first, so the track record of being the original white wizard was not very good. "No, it's all.... muddled and hidden away. I cannot even recognise Thurimen's magic if not for our bond and the same for him. I obviously  understand that it is for the best in the long run with Curumo hopefully not figuring out who they are for a long time, but it's a bit annoying for us right now." She muttered and I nodded as I asked if she could think of any of his or her old colleagues.

"Aiwendill, but he's right there as Radagast." She muttered as she nodded at the wizard's back and I had to concede at that. For the rest of it, I genuinely have no idea who it could be. Ossë? Alatar? Pallando? Who knows?" She whispered and I replied the latter two are actually the two blue wizards whose names Gandalf forgets in the hobbit movies, the real reason he doesn't say their names being they didn't have the rights.

"So they're not here. I see. Why aren't they here?" She asked as we entered the palace and I replied I didn't know. My best guess was that Curumo was not as powerful as Sauron was in the books, so they were not needed. Seeing Melinde smirk at the reminder she kept the more powerful Maia from going to the dark side, I gave her a small nudge as she laughed. Maitimo then requested to talk with the Istar in private, giving me a look.

He didn't need to say anything for me to know what he wanted: for me to use Súldor to go and tell the rest of my sisters. I nodded and took Melinde with me. Going to our chambers, we wrote three notes that "Magneto, the 7th Doctor and Professor Yana" had arrived. Whistling loudly, I soon felt the talons of my familiar on my shoulder and gave him the notes as I told him to take all three of them to my sisters. He took the notes in his beak and flew off. "Hey, wait a second. If Gandalf's here, then who is looking after my animal?" Melinde asked and I shrugged.

It did not take long before Celairel and Tyelkormo arrived after the notes to meet the wizards, who had carefully made it clear they knew about us being from another world. Damn, Manwë and Varda most have had absolute trust in these three for them to just drop that little bombshell on them. Now, I knew Gandalf would not say a word and Radagast was positively harmless, but I still was not sure about the white one.

He had said he preferred not to reveal his true name for safety reasons as he would not be surprised if Curumo had already heard of their arrival and that was fair enough, but it made it ten times harder to gauge which fate was waiting for him. It wasn't until Melinde and I saw him gently talking to some children to reassure them he was there to help them that my sister relaxed a bit. "Curumo was far too proud to do something like this." She said.

Fearil, Naire, Varno, Arnion and all their own partners and son in one case: Gwindor, Thurundion, Ingwion, Cevenil and Yáre all met the wizards in the meantime as well and liked them well enough despite their rather sudden arrival, although I immediately noticed my children and sons-in-law carefully watching how I was around them first, before they came a bit closer to them. At seeing how at ease I was with Gandalf and Radagast, they were quickly assured that they were friends and treated them as such at my gentle encouragement 

Irissë and Ekthelion chose to stay home as they were nearest the Misty Mountains and therefore Moria, but they sent Glorfindel in their stead. However, the most surprising arrival came from Ohtare and Finno as they arrived with Alassinde, who I had not seen in a long time as my sisters preferred to have their children stay home where they were more protected than on the road even when Curumo was still in the east.

Even centuries later, the consequences of living through the many dangers of the First Age still showed their faces in our behaviour. Don't leave your home for too long in case it gets attacked. Don't stay on the road for too long where you yourself can get attacked. Keep your (at the time) vulnerable children back home where they will be safer. I can go on for a while honestly as even with my daughters happily married, I was very much the same.

Anyway, it was nice to see my niece again as that was how I still saw any children of Ohtare, Irissë and hopefully one day in the future, Celairel. They may be my second cousins or something concerning blood relations, but to my heart and mind, they were still my nieces and nephews. She was very happy to see me, Maitimo and her cousins as well as she explained that she was getting stir crazy in their home and I could understand that. Apart from going to Irissë's home and meeting Curumo, I had not exactly left our realm a lot lately either. 

However, I was so busy with my duty that I did not really had time to travel or even contemplate my limited travel freedom. Nonetheless, I introduced Alassinde to Alagos while her mother was talking to Gandalf with Melinde next to me. "It is an honour to meet you, Princess." He greeted her as he kissed her hand like a gentleman and I briefly looked away to read a parchment as Alagos eventually went to officially meet Finno

I suddenly felt Melinde rapidly tap my shoulder and looked to see her nodding at Alassinde who was staring at Alagos with wide eyes. "Reminds me of when I realised who Thurimen was." She whispered and I frowned as I was about to say her situation was different as while her One was a Maia, he was in Vali... and that was when the penny dropped and my jaw fell. If Alassinde felt some kind of connection, then that meant Alagos was....

"Eönwë." Melinde and I whispered together 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you want 

Well..... that changed things. 

"Holy shit!" I whispered to Melinde and she was silently laughing in disbelief too. If we were right about this, then the white wizard was none other than the herald of Manwë himself. "What is he doing here? Shouldn't he be at a certain someone's side?" I asked her and she could only shrug as she had no idea what he was doing here either. Either things must have been worse than we thought or the Valar wanted to get this over with.

"Maybe he was missing someone." Melinde guessed herself as she glanced at Alassinde who was still staring at Alagos, before eventually getting pulled into an ongoing conversation by her mother and now that I was paying more attention, I noticed the white wizard sometimes glancing at her as well, his eyes incredibly soft whenever he saw her even if she didn't see it herself and I smiled at seeing it.

It reminded me of how Maitimo looked at me or how my brothers-in-law looked at my sisters. "You know, I just realised that if they tie the knot and have a family of their own, if they are allowed to have children, their kids will be even more powerful than Celairel and Lúthien." I then whispered and she widened her eyes as she realised I was right. As powerful as Melian was, there was a reason Eönwë was the right-hand man of Manwë and while Alassinde was not as strong as Thingol, she certainly was no slouch either thanks to who her parents were.

"Would that be safe? For a female elf to have the child of a Maia with their different power levels? Yes, Thingol and Melian obviously had Lúthien and Celairel, but in their case, the maia was the one who gave birth, so would it be safe for Alassinde in the future?" I then asked in slight worry and she assured me that even though she did not want to think about Alassinde and Eönwë having sex together, she knew they'd be fine.

Apparently, if a Maia had found their One in one of the races of elves, said One would slowly strengthen slightly over time to be able to withstand the power of the Maia during the more intimate moments once they were married, even though she never had to go through it herself since she and Mairon were both Maia. I guess that this was exactly what aunt Melian and uncle Thingol did when they stared at each other for so very long.

The way she quietly explained the whole thing while everyone else was meeting the three wizard, it was basically that with every touch and later on kiss didn't matter how brief, just the smallest of bits of Eönwë's magic would go into Alassinde's body to help her acclimatise to his power. While I highly doubted that they'd kiss while the maia was in disguise and I wished her good luck with this, it was interesting to learn nonetheless and I smiled as Maitimo approached us. "What is making you smile?" He asked as he lifted my chin up. 

"Melinde and I think the white wizard is none other than Eönwë because of how Alassinde reacted to his presence and how he's keeping an eye on her even now." I whispered as I pulled him close and he quickly glanced over just as Alagos briefly looked at Alassinde as well from where he was talking to Glorfindel. Giving me a small nod, he went to tell Finno and both Melinde and I snorted at the look Finno gave Alagos immediately after.

It was the look every man dreaded to get from the father of the girl they were interested in and a look our father was never able to give our partners before he died. It seemed that despite knowing that if it really was Eönwë and Finno knew he was an honourable Maia of the highest order, a part of him still felt protective over his only daughter and I could not say I blamed him. Maitimo and I were the same over our daughters after all.

Honestly, even if it really was Eönwë in disguise as Melinde and I were now almost certain of with his actions and words and he'd likely have to keep his distance from Alassinde as not to draw any attention to her to keep her safe from Curumo's gaze, I was still glad that her One wasn't at the other side of the ocean anymore and they could hopefully still spend some time together every now and again. We talked for hours until night fell and we went to bed after dinner as this had been a very exciting day and I fell asleep with a smile.

The next day, Melinde practically dragged her husband over to meet Gandalf and it didn't take long for the them to realise who the other one was, giving each other a warm smile while speaking many sentences that had double meanings with Gandalf saying he was glad his old friend was back where he belonged after so long and that Melinde was finally better after having been absolutely devastated at the end of the War

Thurimen replied that it was about time we got some help with everything that had been going on and Gandalf chuckled in response. My brother-in-law took one look at Alagos and stiffened up, before giving him a bow of the head and Alagos nodded back. He would later say he recognised the look in the other disguised Maia's eyes as that of the Herald, confirming once and for all that it truly was who we thought it was.

Over the next few days, many of our allies went home again to prepare for anything Curumo might try and throw at us once he realised something was going on. The wizards eventually spread out as well after we told them of the situation and how the dwarves of Moria were almost certainly under Curumo's sway and Galadriel had send some concerning missives regarding Rohan as well, so we told them to be very careful. They promised to keep an eye out and watch themselves as Alagos gently kissed Alassinde's hand and she smiled at him.

Not long after they left, the King of the Blue Mountains visited and one look at his solemn face told us he had bad news. "We have tried to get through them at any means save actually visiting them ourselves, but all we get in return are invitations that are almost orders for us to come to them and it is very worrying, but that is not even the worst part." He said as he met with me, Maitimo, our sons, Melinde and Thurimen in our study.

At seeing our curious faces, he took a very deep breath. "There are some dwarves in Khazad-Dûm who are still loyal to us. They went to live there before everything went bad and they have been telling us that King Durin has been inviting families into his chambers and they have come out very different." He said and Melinde gently spoke up that she would not be surprised if Curumo used the palantir to brainwash those families.

"Have those dwarves told you anything else about the situation?" I asked and the king nodded as he said the miners had been told to work harder and dig deeper for more mithril, which was bad news for two reasons: one was that Curumo should not get his hands on arguably the strongest material in Middle-Earth and of course, the possible threat deep underground. The King noticed our nervous glances and immediately demanded to know what they were about. "We have reason to believe there might be a balrog hiding underneath Khazad-Dûm." I said slowly.

The words he let out in response to this are better left unsaid, but let's just say it was a lot of understandable swearing at realising his kin were now at the mercy of an insane king, who was being mind-controlled by a psycho Maia and perhaps sooner or later, they would find their deaths at the claws of another demon. The slight irony of he fact that the dwarves were stuck between two fallen Maia was not lost on me, but I kept quiet.

"Is there any way we can get the still sane and innocent people out before it's too late? Dwarves that Curumo has not gotten his hooks into yet?" Melinde asked and the king replied all the gates were watched closely and not many were allowed in or out. "We don't need to use the gates. Princess Irissë can bend the earth to her will. It's how she escaped. If your people lead them to the outermost wall, it can work." My sister stated.

Maitimo and I agreed it was definitely possible with her help, but did also warn that his people could likely only do this just once as once Durin and by very heavily involved extension Curumo realised he had just lost several subjects, he might lock down Moria even more and quickly double down on the whole hypnotising bit. "I fear that you are right, Queen Nemireth. I will tell my people to get ready and I hope you and your husband will do the same." The king stated and we both quickly nodded before we went our separate ways to prepare for an exodus.

Three weeks later, we were at the edge of the Misty Mountains in the middle of the night with a small legion of both elves and dwarves, waiting at a spot we had been told the dwarves would be brought as it was apparently part of a completely abandoned mine shaft. We were all wearing dark cloaks to conceal ourselves from the enemy and had several provisions ready to help those who would have to leave everything behind for good.

I did feel sorry for them, but it was for the best. Looking at Irissë to see if she was comfortable here considering what happened last time she was here, she immediately gave me a smile to assure me that she was fine since she was not going inside this time, before stiffening up at sensing something. "They're coming. I can hear their footsteps." Irissë whispered, before she made a face as she continued to listen.

"Wow, they have certainly pulled out all the stops to quickly get as many people as possible out of here while they can. I count at least a few hundred footsteps trying to cautiously but hurriedly walk this way. It's a good thing that I haven't sensed any guards in the hour we've been here. I guess it really was abandoned like they said." She continued as I ordered everyone to get ready. We then faintly heard a tapping sound on the other side of the mountain wall and Irissë immediately went to work as she stomped on the ground and threw her arms out.

The wall opened up wide and a stream of dwarves immediately rushed out as fast as they could, not even greeting us but we didn't mind as we told them to hurry. A couple of dwarves I assumed were those from the Blue Mountains stayed with us to help guide them to the carts we had made ready for this. Irissë made another opening and Melinde and Celairel hurried inside with some soldiers to help in case they were spotted by guards.

"Hurry, hurry. Come on." I whispered as I gently helped a mother and child get outside and she quietly thanked me for our aid. I smiled, before I heard Irissë swear and saw her shooting a flame into the tunnel over the heads of the fleeing dwarves: a signal to Melinde that guards were coming. She then concentrated deeply as she focused on the earth inside the mountain and stomped again, this time throwing her arms up instead.

According to what Melinde later told us once she had a very strong drink in hand, several guards had indeed been rushing towards them at spotting the intrusion, only for the ground to suddenly shoot up from underneath them and they were harshly crushed against the ceiling. "Another reminder to not piss our sister off." She had muttered. She and Celairel had taken care of the others with the soldiers until the last group of dwarves had left and they followed them out with Melinde shining a bright light in their eyes to blind them and keep them at a distance.

"Let's go, let's go, let's go!" Celairel muttered as they rushed out, the carts already having left the moment they were full with women, children, the sick and the elderly while the young dwarrow ran alongside them. Irissë closed the wall and made it even thicker than before. We then jumped on our horses and raced away. We rode through the night until we reached Irissë's home and the dwarves cried in relief at realising they were safe.

According to stories I heard later, many had seen their friends change and had been terrified for themselves and their families. Because of our cloaks, it was pretty hilarious to see the dwarves realising they owed their lives to none other than the High Queen of the Ñoldor once I removed mine. "You know Curumo will not let this go unanswered." Celairel said as we helped them settle in and I scoffed in response as I was more than aware

"Let him come." I said. It was about time the bastard showed his face

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Well, you cannot say dwarves aren't thorough.

Over 850 dwarves had been saved from Moria in just one night and with only three weeks of preparation to get them out. From what I heard later, several of the families that were part of those who had left, especially those with very young children, had already started making preparations of their own to get out and once they got the message that us elves were willing to help them get to safety, they jumped at the chance.

The royal family of the Blue Mountains were absolutely ecstatic to see so many of their kin safe and sound and promised that everyone would have a stable home very soon with many families who lived in the Western mountain range being more than willing to let the people stay with them until their new houses were done. The King would soon thank us for our help and promise that if we ever needed something, we'd only have to ask.

There was one thing that happened that I'd never forget for the rest of my lord as we were carefully leading the dwarves west to safety with soldiers and Irissë constantly checking our surroundings to see if there was no ambush waiting for us from the evil dwarves. I was currently helping a family with carrying their stuff and I noticed the young son trying his best to comfort his mother about the fact they had to leave everything else behind. "What's your name?" I asked from atop my horse, several of their supplies tied in a bag on its back. His response? Narvi.

I immediately grinned at recognising his name as I greeted him, a small part of me wishing Celebrimbor was here so he could meet his Canon partner in making the majestic doors to Moria, not that they'd come into existence here for obvious reasons, but a bigger part of me was happier that he was safe in Valinor with his mother, grandmother, a wife who loved him and perhaps a few more children now that he was living in peace.

Considering all of what happened to him in the books, he deserves every bit of happiness and peace he can get. I was just wondering how we were supposed to know when our time was at its end. If i remembered correctly, then the fate of the elves was pretty much tied to Vilya, Narya and Nenya as they preserved the beauty of this by stopping change and warding of the passage of time. I paled at suddenly realising something.

If we did not have those rings to help us in the long run.... did that mean we were even more on a time-limit to defeat Curumo than in the book? Eru, I really hoped that was not the case, but if I had to be completely honest with myself and everyone else, then there was just no denying that I did not feel as strong as I did when we had just arrived in Middle-Earth, even after my two-hundred year long nap. At least two millenia had passed since then and I was tired of all the stress and headaches ruling could give me, but I had to carry on for my family and our people.

'At least I'm not alone.' I thought as we arrived in our city and the dwarves were led to nearby inns and I immediately headed to the Palace. I had only been separated from my husband for a week or so, him having to stay behind in case any spies of Curumo were watching us, but it was long enough. I had pretended to go visit Celairel and I technically had, only for us to immediately go further east to the mountain range.

Arriving at the Palace, the guards let me in after I quietly said a password I had invented for safety reasons, the password being "clotpole" after one of my favourite series "Merlin." It was not exactly a word you'd expect the High Queen to say or even know, which was why it was perfect since if anyone tried to pretend to be me, they'd be found out very soon. That Maitimo rolled around the floor with laughter at first hearing it also helped

Walking into the throne room with a deep breath after a very tiring and stressful week, I saw my husband talking together with our children and their partners, all of them immediately beaming at me the moment they saw me walking in. Maitimo quickly got up from his throne and hurried across the room and I could not help but speed up my own stride as well until I almost crashed into his open arms and he immediately hugged me tightly, burying his face in my hair and I felt myself practically sinking into his warmth after spending a week mostly outside.

It didn't help that it was the middle of winter and I had spent at least half a night right next to some chilly mountains, so I happily welcomed his body warmth as our bond relaxed at us being together again. In the background, I could vaguely hear our children leave to give us privacy, knowing me well enough after all these centuries to know that I would find them to catch up with them in person once Maitimo had released me from his grip

"I'm so relieved and glad you're safe." Maitimo eventually whispered as one hand cradled my head to his chest and the other was wrapped snuggle around my waist and even without looking, I knew he was slowly relaxing now that I was safely in his arms again. I smiled and held him even tighter as I asked how things were going here. "We are preparing to respond in case Curumo sends an army." He replied with a sigh.

I knew what he was thinking about: the last time we were at war when he almost lost me because of Morgoth. Squeezing him around the waist to remind him I was there, he chuckled quietly as he explained he had ordered the soldiers to start training more regularly and the smiths to slowly begin making more weapons. All throughout the kingdom, it slowly became clear to many that the peaceful centuries were coming to an end and apparently, Thurimen had told Maitimo more and more people came to the smithy asking for smaller weapons like daggers and bows.

They were getting nervous and I definitely could not blame them since the first war against Sauron in the books was almost lost on the good side if not for the men of Númenor coming in clutch in the very end. We did not have that luxury here, but we did have a lot more elven realms on our side of the mountains as well a lot more elves who were originally from Valinor and the first age and we could only hope that was enough.

That did remind me of something else. "I really do not want to see our children fighting in a war." I whispered and he stiffened up, before sighing as he replied he did not want that either, but he highly doubted that we could send them away this time. The most we could do was hopefully keep one of our sons here so that if the absolute worst did come to pass and we both died, our people would still have a High King leading them.

And I can already hear you thinking "but Nemireth. Curumo is not as powerful as Morgoth was or physically strong as Gothmog." Yeah, but Sauron was weaker than Morgoth too and he managed to burn poor Gil-Galad alive, leaving the elves without a proper leader. Thankfully for us, Maitimo had both our sons and two brothers to take over in case the worst did happen, even if Makalaurë was more out of the kingdom than he was in it, gathering information all across the continent together with his wife while pretending to just be a simple travelling ministrel.

He had decided to do this now Melinde was more often here to understandably be with her husband, so we could still get info about things happening on the other side of the continent. Some things apparently will definitely still be the same in a manner of ways, no matter what universe but at least, he was now travelling with a purpose and his wife was right at his side the entire time. That was a lot better than his Canon fate.

Eventually pulling back and kissing my beloved husband, I indeed did go to see our children as this was something I always did whenever I returned from a journey. No matter how busy I was or in how many directions I was being pulled, I always made sure to see my children a couple of times a day as I refused to be that kind of parent that was never there because of how busy they were like mom had been at times after dad died.

God and Eru know she had tried her best to be there for all of us as much as she could, but it had been practically impossible with all her jobs. All four of my children were incredibly relieved to see that I was completely okay too and I hugged them tightly. This time, I was the one burying my face in someone's hair as I held onto my precious daughters while my strong sons both stood behind me with each having a hand on my shoulders. "Is war really coming, Amil?" Naire eventually asked and they all looked at me as I let out a deep sigh.

"I'm afraid so, sweetheart. Melinde told us how proud Curumo is so one way or another, he will definitely not let the fact that we managed to save so many dwarves from right underneath his nose go and he will respond." I stated and my daughters held me even tighter while my sons squeezed my shoulders, all of them wanting to get a bit of comfort from my presence like I could chase the fear away like I did when they were small.

The problem was that most of their fears were mostly fake or relatively small when they had been young elflings, so they had been easy to soothe and chase away. This was a powerful, pissed off Maia coming after all of us because he just couldn't leave things alone and tried to brainwash our allies. "I'm here, my darlings. Your father and I will do our very best to keep you safe." I whispered as I held my girls close and looked at my sons.

I hoped the determined look I had in my eyes was enough to soothe them a bit since my hands were full with their sisters. they nodded nonetheless as they walked even closer and soon enough, I was in the middle of a tight family hug. "Poor Maitimo. He's always missing everything." I thought as I let myself be surrounded by my children. I then paled as an old fear of mine suddenly shot back into my mind. 'If Curumo found a way to become more like the Night King and resurrect his victims as his mindless minions instead, I'm going to murder his ass even harder.'

Over the next months, we prepared for the worst as all my sisters were in a state of utter preparation too. The Istar promised to help us in any way they could, but they could not play their hands too early and I completely understood as I had already given Alagos one piece of advice: "if you see a Palantir, do us all a huge favour and smash it or drop it into a ravine or the nearest ocean. Just don't interact with it."

Realising I was likely saying this with a good reason as both the High Queen and relative of the woman he loved, he promised to keep an eye out and stay away from the things. I sighed in relief as even though I knew Eönwë was more powerful than Curumo, you could never be too careful. It was when Maitimo sat down for dinner with our children that Súldor appeared with a note from Makalaurë in the east.

"He's coming and he's bringing an army."

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

I hated how natural our response was. 

Even if this was our first fight since this age started at least a millennium ago, we still knew how to act. We prepared ourselves for the fights ahead, grateful that now, a mountain range was between us and the approaching army to give us more time as opposed as back in Beleriand when Angband was practically our next door neighbour and if not for Irissë, we would have most an lot of people to that place.

 From what we heard, both Lothlórien and Greenwood had already joined together in the east to quickly fight against Curumo on their side of the mountains and I hoped they were having at least a bit of luck as Celairel's nephew sent some battalions through the gap of Rohan as we had made sure to spread the word of Moria's corruption to all the other realms so they would know to avoid going there and it had worked.

As we had eventually agreed on after a lot of discussion between us and our children, even with said children being reluctant as they wanted to help us fight as much as they could, Varno and Cevenil as well as Naire and Thurundion would stay behind in our kingdom to make sure that in the very worst case, our people would still have members of our family leading them. "We know that you want to help us fight, but this is the best way you can help us by making sure our people will devolve into chaos if we die." I said during one last meeting

We had heard that despite the best efforts of the two elven realms on the other side of the mountains and the reinforcements of Dior, Curumo was now officially crossing the Misty Mountains with his army and since many of the dwarves of Moria were now on his side, the armies of the east did not follow as they would almost definitely be lured into a trap. Instead, they made sure to lessen his forces as much as possible

But we want to fight at your side and help you win, naneth." Varno immediately protested as he looked at me with tearful eyes that were so much like his father's and I smiled at him as I kissed his forehead, only being able to even reach it because he was sitting down and knowing that I would definitely hate to stay behind if I was in his place too. I sighed as I simply pulled him into a hug next, closing my eyes for a few seconds.

"I know, sweetheart. I know you do and I wish I could have you at my side as well so I would know you were okay and keep you safe myself, but we need to keep our people safe as well. We are going to try and keep Curumo contained between the realms of your cousin Dior and Aunt Irissë and keep him as far away from here as possible, but someone needs to stay behind to make sure nothing here devolves into complete chaos while we are out there fighting. It was a bit easier in the first age when our kingdom was surrounded by mountains." I said.

"As long as Irissë kept herself near said range of mountains during the harsh fights we had apart from the War, we'd be mostly okay as she could defend our kingdom while all of us were out fighting. Unfortunately, mountains near our kingdom is not a luxury we can afford here apart from Irissë herself and now that Curumo almost certainly knows about her powers, we have lost the element of surprise too." I continued.

At times like these, I did miss our old castle and how it was more built for defence rather than beauty like those in Valinor. Before we had gone to join the armies of the Valar, I had ordered everyone who lived and worked both in the castle and in the town around it to pack all their essentials, all their most precious belongings and move to the east for their own safety. Many had not understood but had listened anyway.

Many had come to me after the War and after I had woken up once more to thank me for ordering them to leave as they had all realised that if they had stayed behind waiting for news, they might have been too late in fleeing the sinking and ruined lands of Beleriand. Once I had given the order to them, I had done the very same thing myself and had packed anything that had any kind of value, both practical to make things easier for my people in case the worst happened and emotional because there were some things that I simply could not live without.

Several precious drawings of my youngest three children as elflings for example, I was not going to leave behind to be destroyed with the lands. Once I had given the bag with sentimental things and some clothes to a soldier who had carefully brought everything to Lindon, I had made one final tour across the entire building as I had simply known we would not return there no matter what the outcome of the war would be.

From the royal master bedroom where Maitimo and I had often snuggled and had fallen asleep together on cold winter nights after another long day of ruling as well as where most of our children were conceived to the rooms of said children where my youngest three had grown up in, had played in and where I had told them many bedtime stories to lull them to sleep and had simply spent time with them whenever I could.

To the ballroom where despite knowing we were not completely safe with Morgoth in the world, we had still held many feasts and balls to give our people something to be joyful about to the throne-room where we had done our best to be a good High King and Queen for all the Ñoldor living in Arda at the time, no matter how spread out they were or what they thought of us like my three Oathbound and now dead brothers-in-law. Eru, I cannot believe it has been over a millennium since I've had to worry about them. Time flies by even as an elf.

While our current castle was more of a mix between our old one in Hithlum and those is Valinor as the times were not as dire as they used to be in Beleriand, but Maitimo also knew that danger was still out there, I still wished it was more like the former now that Curumo was coming this way. Our town was a lot more spread out now than it was before too, so it would be harder to defend for the soldiers staying behind.

Looking at my youngest daughter to quickly snap myself out of my thoughts, I gently reached out to her as well and she immediately walked over, wrapping one arm around me and the other around her twin brother. We were heading out early in the morning so tonight at dinner would likely be the last time we would be all together until we've hopefully won the battle. I highly doubted it would be the last one we'd though.

If this was our version of "The War between Elves and Sauron," even without there being an Eregion around for him to destroy (thank sweet Eru for that change) then we would pehaps have at least two more battles/wars after this. Although, we did have a disguised Eönwë at our side this time and with his One being my niece, it was very unlikely he'd go Saruman and betray us all and Curumo himself was less powerful than Sauron, so maybe if we were lucky and we would eventually win this, we would only have one more battle/war after this, Eru be willing.

I was never exactly religious or believing that there was something beyond life and death before during my time on normal earth as Sylvaine, but when you have personally met this world's God no less than three times ever since you were reborn, you did not exactly have much choice but to believe in Him. "I'm so proud of you both. Don't ever forget that." I whispered to both my children and they smiled at me as they clung onto me.

"We know, Nana. But we will still all worry about you every single minute of every day." Naire said as she rested her head on my shoulder and I once again had to remind myself that even though she was now a fully grown elleth in her own right, she was still my baby in my eyes. My sweet child. They both were. Kissing her temple and holding her and her brother even tighter to me, I closed my eyes again and took a deep breath.

That evening, our last for now family dinner was extremely subdued between all of us as none of us knew what was going to happen tomorrow and how many elves heading out to battle were going to return. I remembered the wails sometimes heard in the night after the Battle of the Flame as widows mourned their loved ones and felt themselves starting to fade to join their spouses. I was not looking forward to hearing it again, but I knew it was part of being a Queen. I also remembered that none of the widows blamed me for the deaths of their Ones. 

"I hate this." I whispered as I crawled into bed one last time after checking in on all our children one last time despite them all being grown up now and Maitimo gave me a tiny smile as he pulled me close to him and kissed the top of my head as he replied that he hated this too. Taking one final deep breath, I felt sleep soon beginning to take over despite my nerves for what was ahead, Maitimo soon following my example.

The next morning, after a very quick and nerve-filled breakfast, we got ready. Getting onto my horse with Súldor on my shoulder, Varno gave me my sword and I cupped his face as Maitimo said goodbye to our daughter and Melinde and Thurimen got on their horses too. "Take care of things while we're gone. We'll fight to come back. I promise." I whispered as I refused to promise to come back in case I couldn't keep it. 

Once everyone was ready and with one final glance to our two children staying behind, we set out hoping this would soon be over

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

A little surprise was waiting for us once we met up with the others. 

At least a dozen dwarves were waiting for us with Celairel, Tyelkormo and her nephew with his army and we later learned they were from not just the Blue Mountains, but also Erebor and even the Iron Hills. They had all traveled around the Misty Mountains to help us face Curumo. "High King Maitimo, High Queen Nemireth. It is good to see you again." The King of the Blue Mountains, Barnuk stated with a smile and we greeted him back

I asked what they were doing here. "You have done us and our kin a huge favour by saving as many as you could from that Maia before it was too late and we have here to repay our debt. As much as I have no doubt that you have been preparing for this battle, so have we." He told us with a grinning Celairel telling us their idea was brilliant as we went to the biggest tent of the camp so Barnuk could tell us his plan and we could create a strategy around it. 

Once we had a clear plan for at least the beginning oh the fight and began to walk out, I suddenly noticed how Thurimen had two swords strapped to his waist, one with a normal black handle and the other with a silver one. I gave him a slightly confused look and he grinned at seeing if. "A present from an old friend and my former tutor. I'm only allowed to use it against Curumo and no one else." He explained, us immediately knowing he meant Aulë with the first part. Conceding at that, we all went to make the final preparations before we would go to war once again 

That evening, I slowly took a deep breath as I finally got ready for bed with scouts having said that Curumo and his army would eventually arrive at what we had already decided would be the first battlefield early the next morning. As much as I was scared to face the Maia, my anger grew as well as I remembered all the grief and pain he had already caused us in the past few ages, even before most of my sisters and I arrived in this world.

I did not just mean Mairon and Runande with this from when he left Valinor to join Morgoth way in the beginning if everything, even if the easy partnership and perhaps even friendship the two male Maiar could have had was destroyed the moment my sister chose her husband over the jealous and prideful Curumo, but also the pain and fear he had caused with us, poor Ekthelion and his children by kidnapping and trying to keep Irissë captive if not for her powers

Who knows what he or the corrupted dwarves would have done to her if she did not have her powers anymore and that thought alone made me furious. How freaking dare he try and hurt my little sister. Yes, I was very aware that Irissë was a grown woman with a husband and children of her own, but still. I had been the one who had helped her with homework back as Sylvaine and Asterin. I had been the one tiredly waiting late at night to Marie sure she came back home safe after a late night out. I had been the one sitting front row at her graduation with mom and our sisters.

So do not judge me for still feeling extremely protective over her even after all this time, okay? I then took a deep breath to calm myself again as I knew this was not the time to be reckless. "I must contain my anger, or I won't control my power, but gods! How long I've waited just to see this very hour! It's just as well I'm not the one who calls the storm of fire or I would turn this battle plain into your funeral pyre!" I began to sing instead as I braided my hair

"The Valar say I must not hate, but I will not pretend. I saw the pain you gave to them, my sisters and my friend. The scars you left in mind and soul will be so slow to fade. Oh, would I had your coward heart beneath my naked blade! I must control my rage, or lose ability to plan. I must direct the fight from here, not charging in the van. As you will likewise do, no doubt, for all that you are cruel and revel in shed blood and pain, I think you are no fool." I continued quietly

"But in the name of all the gods, you're all that I despise. Who planned to take by treachery my kingdom as your prize. My throne, my family, my people. All, you plotted to despoil by tricks that only miracles enabled us to foil.  I must control my fury or let slip all that I've sought, but vengeance would not be enough for all the grief you've wrought. Gods grant this day you fall beneath the steel of me and mine and drink full deeply of defeat, that cold and bitter wine." I sang, before I suddenly felt my husband's warm hands gently be put on my shoulders and I looked up as I stopped singing 

He gave me a gentle smile, but there was pain in his eyes too. "I hate the fact that your voice is so full of hatred tonight." He whispered and I gave him a tiny smile in return as I'm turned around and gave him a hug to try and comfort both him and myself, telling him I knew he hated it, but I couldn't help it. Curumo had to pay did all the crimes he had committed against us and the dwarves. We went to bed after comfort and we soon were fast asleep

The next morning, all our allies on this side of the mountains were gathered together on a field with some lower mountains on one side as we stood ready to face our enemy for the second time if you counted our brief meeting where Mairon could finally reveal himself and this time, it was going to be much longer and harsher. Looking over at our army, I once again hated the fact I was about to lead so many to their deaths, but I knew they had chosen for this.

I could only hope their time in the Halls would be very brief and they would soon be out again in a more peaceful Valinor. We soon heard the growls and stomps of the approaching army and it did not take long before we saw it crest the hills in front of us as I took a deep breath at seeing the sheer size of it. Mithril was shining in the sun as the orcs and hypnotized dwarves all began to approach us, but thanks to the dwarves of the Blue Mountains, we knew the weak spots of the chain mail and armour and were ready to exploit them to win, starting with our first strategy.

Barnuk and the eleven dwarves that were with him stood next to our horses. "Are they ready?" Maitimo asked quietly and Barnuk replied they had been ready ever since they heard what Curumo was doing and i smiled at him as I ordered the Sindar and Silvan elves to get their bows ready. Even though Dior was the King of his realm, he had deferred to me in this situation and had ordered his men to listen to me until the battle was completely done.

Maitimo would order the Ñoldor elves in the meantime. I took one more deep breath "My crown is on my brow, my naked blade within my hand. My army like an eager hound lies waiting my command. With how you tortured, killed and lied revealed to them this day... by all the stars that ever shone, by all the gods, known and unknown, for dear Irissë and my people.......I swear that you will pay!" I finished the song with a hiss as I quickly readied my own bow.

The opposing army stopped at the other side of the field as if waiting for something and it did not take long heir we knew what it was as Curumo slowly appeared at the front lines and from somewhere next to me, I could hear a growl that I would not be surprised if it actually came from Thurimen. Looking over our army, the fallen Maia then raised an eyebrow as we simply kept waiting for him to make the first move. For our first plan to work, they had to cross the field but they didn't seem eager to do so as apparently even they knew those who moved first often lost.

They then began to stomp their spears like they did in Helm's Deep and I hoped that our hidden allies didn't see this as the signal we had agreed upon. At remembering that scene in the movies, I suddenly got an idea and glanced at Fearil who was mostly hidden behind her husband. "Shoot one of them. We will make it look like it was not supposed to happen." I ordered from the corner of my mouth and she did exactly that, hitting one in the neck. 

"Hold!" I ordered to sell the illusion the arrow was shot without order, my voice carrying over. As the orc fell over dead, this had the intended result as despite Curumo clearly ordering them to stay put as even we could see the panic in his face and movements at hearing their growls and roars, they began to charge. Good to know that was still the same as at the right moment, I glanced at Barnuk who stomped down on the ground with his axe three times

We vaguely heard a horn being blown in response and got ready to not fall ourselves. "Take your aim and stay with them!" I ordered as I and all the Sindar and Silvan elves did exactly that. Where Ñoldor elves were better in melee fighting, we were better at fighting from a distance. '"I admire how you keep firing at the British from a distance." Ugh. Shut up, brain. This is no time to quote Aaron Burr.' I thought as at exactly the moment where the orcs and dwarves almost came near us, the ground collapsed underneath their feet and they fell down several meters deep.

The dozen dwarves with Barnuk were not the only ones. At least hundreds of their kin had volunteered to fight in this battle as ever since they had heard of what Curumo was doing, they had prepared for this eventuality as they had created a whole set of caves underneath the fields and some dwarves had risked their lives to make some passes over the mountains inaccessible with Alagos helping so they would have to use the right one to end up here. 

You definitely could not say dwarves were stupid as they'd lured Curumo's army right into their trap and had begun to do so before they heard he was coming with his army. The look of shock on our enemy's face was great as I just said one word "Now!" Hundreds of arrows sailed over our heads and down to the orcs and dwarves now stuck in the hole. It really reminded me of the second Narnia movie which was fitting with how Lewis and Tolkien were best friends

New holes opened up and dwarves charged out of them at the remaining army that had listened to Curumo's order to stay. We obviously couldn't stay behind and Maitimo ordered everyone to charge with Barnuk and his guards being the very first to listen as he ran forwards to join his kin. From what I heard later, he had left his oldest son behind at home like us in case he passed away. Rushing across the field and around the hole with part of our army staying there to take care of any enemies still alive, we jumped in the fray and it was complete chaos from there.

We fought and killed and bled and punched until it was a complete blur of bodies and pain. I tried to heal where i could, but it was almost hopeless at times. The countless pieces of chain mail that was made from Mithril most of the dwarves were wearing were a pain in the ass as you couldn't just hack and slash until you got results, but you had to aim for the right spots instead. I also constantly apologised mentally to said dwarves.

It was not their fault that Curumo had brainwashed them and I desperately hoped that their belief about there being an afterlife for them where they'd be with Aulë were true. To our surprise, even more dwarves eventually charged over the hill several days after the battle had begun as they came from even further east together with some remaining forces of the Greenwood and Lothlórien and immediately began to attack Curumo's remaining army.

I remembered how the War between the elves and Sauron had almost been lost by the forces of good if not for the army of Númenor being a last-minute saviour and driving Sauron back, but it seemed that thanks to Curumo showing his hand too soon and revealing his plan in his desiren to have Irissë as his captive, his army was not as big as he had likely wanted it to be and by using the dwarves of Moria, he had pissed off all the other Dwarven realms enough that they were willing to fight alongside us despite everything that had happened between dwarves and elves in the first age.

I had been fighting close to Melinde when we both sensed power behind us and jumped out of the way just as a giant mace slammed down on the ground where we had been standing. "We meet again Queen Nemireth." An unfortunately familiar voice said as we turned to face the speaker: Curumo himself. We immediately glared at him as we got ready to fight him, me hoping that this wouldn't be our version of the Elendil and Gil-Galad vs Sauron fight.

Melinde and I constantly darted around the Maia as while he was stronger and more powerful, we were faster and more agile. Unfortunately, our luck eventually ran out and we were both harshly blasted back when he hit is with his mace. I heard Maitimo screaming my name in fear as I flew through the air andbraced for impact, only to be caught by none other than Arnion. "I got you, Nana." He breathed and I sighed in relief as I praised him for his quick acting

I then quickly panicked as I realised that I had lost sight of Melinde. Turning around, I panicked even more when I saw Curumo hovering over her as he grabbed her by her throat and lifted her up in the air. "You would have made such a beautiful Queen, Runande. Even better than the High Queen. If only you had listened and come with me " He said and I widened my eyes at realising he knew who Melinde really was, but that was not the reason for my following gasp as while Curumo was distracted, a furious Thurimen snuck up from behind and stabbed him straight through the chest with the silver sword.

Both his eyes and the blade were glowing just slightly as Curumo gasped at the pain and unconsciously let go of Melinde who immediately went to stand behind her husband and at seeing the look on his face, I instinctively shrunk a bit against my son as Maitimo and Fearil hurried to join us while everyone else stared at where one simple elf as far as most knew had managed to stab Curumo. My sisters all had their jaws on the floor in utter amazement 

Something about the utter fury in Thurimen's face and eyes at seeing Curumo near his wife reminded me that depowered as he currently was, he was technically still the very same being as the "Lord of the Rings" himself, just on the side of good. Seeing the ferocious glare made me truly realise he was still the same being as the flaming eyeball who had kept Middle-Earth in an iron grip. The only difference was our version had someone to love and protect before Morgoth got his hooks in him.

Despite being stabbed in what had to be a physically fatal way, Curumo turned his head to face Thurimen and I could see the moment he realised who he was and Thurimen saw it too "I told you I'd kill you if you ever came near my wife again." He hissed. Curumo spat in return about how he was supposed to be dead. Thurimen gave him a wry smile. "I could say the same thing about you." He said as he then kicked the fallen Maia to the ground and off his blade. Before Curumo could do anything except letting out a grunt, Thurimen was already swinging his sword once more and cut off his head.

He then immediately turned around, pulled Melinde into his arms and down to the ground as he shielded her and we all quickly did the same with our loved ones. Just in time too as a huge blast then blew over us as Curumo's spirit left his body. Maitimo held onto all of us as we grunted at the force, before falling silent. Getting up again, we quickly killed whichever orcs were too slow in fleeing now that their master was gone for now. 

Once the last few had been driven off, silence fell. It was then interrupted... by clapping. We all looked over to see Delmira applauding Thurimen and one-by-one, everyone slowly joined in. Elf, man, dwarf. It didn't matter as we all cheered for a now bashful Thurimen who bowed a bit in response while an unmistakably proud Melinde kissed him and I couldn't help but laugh as I realised something else. We had just been saved... by our version of Sauron.

Irony was a beautiful thing at times. 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

We didn't immediately go back home.

We first discussed everything with everyone before we split up to go back to our own homes. Now that Curumo's physical form was destroyed, it would likely and hopefully take quite a while before he would eventually return again as no one believed this was immediately the first and last battle against him. His former master took two long-scaled battles and a twenty year long war to defeat and while he was no Sauron, he was still a powerful Maia.

Barnuk had actually survived the battle as well, albeit very injured with his guards. He was satisfied about the results of the battle though as he felt like he had at least partly avenged the pain many of his kin had gone through. "Between you and me, lassie: I hope that you are right about the Balrog and that it wakes up quickly. Better to die than to spent the rest of their lives under the thrall of that bastard." He told me when I went to check up on him.

I simply looked down at hearing this as it clearly pained him to say this about his kin and i could not blame him. I definitely would not wish a balrog on my own kin, especially since a Balrog was how Ekthelion and Finno met their ends in the books and I knew that both Irissë and Ohtare had definitely not forgotten it even after so long as Irissë had once told me she was terrified to have Ekthelion near the Misty Mountains even if she knew the Balrog down there was for as far as we knew content to just stay there as long as we didn't bother it once Moria was deserted by the dwarves.

"So, what was so very special about that sword exactly and why did you have to use it on Curumo only?" Fearil curiously asked as we finally rode home for the victory party where my sisters would stay for now that the danger was over and they knew the fallen Maia would not be a threat to them now that he would have to start from scratch after this defeat. My sisters, their partners and even Maitimo, my children and I all leaned forward to hear it as he smiled.

"As I already said before, my sword has been made by an old friend of mine who is usually fair, but also can hold grudges like you would not believe." He began and we all grinned at knowing he meant Aulë and understanding why he would have a grudge against his former Maia. "He gave me this sword and enchanted out to take the power away from a being like Curumo. That was why I only used it on him and did not immediately pull my sword back." He continued 

"So, that means...." Ohtare began to say and i realised that once Curumo would return, he would be much weaker than before thanks to this sword. Thurimen had deliberately revealed himself to his former colleague and had threatened him just to keep him on the sword for a bit longer so that more power would be taken away and Curumo would even have more difficulty coming back. "Thurimen, if the both of us were not happily married to other people and I was not sitting on a horse, I would have kissed you." Ohtare stated and we all laughed as Melinde gave her a playful glare.

She was sitting behind her husband on the horse and her cheek was smudged against his back as she still had the same, proud smile on her face as she had her arms wrapped around his waist. "You did good, my love. You did really good." I heard her whisper about halfway home as she moved her head until she was resting her chin on his back and he looked over to her. I felt like they were going through something together so I quickly spurred my horse on. 

Arriving home to two very relieved children and our people, Maitimo and I both practically jumped from our horses to catch the former in our arms as they ran over. "Oh, my darlings. My sweethearts." I whispered in relief as once Fearil and Arion joined us, I was finally holding all four of my children in my arms. It obviously had not been as long as after the War of Wrath, especially when you counted the time i was unconscious, but it had still been too long. 

Looking over at my husband, we were both smiling at each other as we held our precious children close to us, utterly relieved that we had all survived. While there had obviously been casualties and it hurt my heart to already see several of our people beginning to fade at our arrival as their Ones had died in battle with Círdan already building several boats to bring them to Valinor, we still lived. I paled at remembering that if Maitimo had died, I would have been forced to either keep going despite the pain or let myself fade completely because of the deal I had made with Mr. Ru all those centuries ago.

Rings or no rings, I simply would have to suck it up until Curumo had suffered his final defeat or be forced to be the new Maglor and stay in Middle-Earth forever. Although, I knew that my family would not leave me behind that easily while i was stuck here, especially Maitimo. He would refuse to even entertain the mere thought of having to leave me here by myself and my sisters would do the same as we were a team and nothing would tear us apart

I shook my head as Fearil and Gwindor went to greet their very relieved son as my eldest covered his face in kisses even as he complained and I chuckled together with my son-in-law. While I had not really interacted with him a lot lately since he and Fearil had been busy travelling to the other realms to stay in contact with everyone  Going inside once all the hugs and kisses were over, we immediately prepared for a feast to celebrate our victory.

Like old times, my sisters and I all got together with our daughters once the children of my sisters had arrived as well and did each other's hair. I was not really listening to them as I was lost in thought and it did not take long before they noticed. "Amil? Are you okay?" Fearil eventually asked in concern as Naire was doing her hair and I apologised for not really engaging in the conversation, but the fact that many elves were fading reminded me that while I did feel tired compared to when we first arrived here, it wasn't as bad that I wanted to curl up in a corner and die or lie in bed and do nothing.

"We are in the year 1758 of the Second Age, which is way long past the point of the original creation of the Rings of power in the books, but things are relatively stable when you don't count the war we have just fought. Actually, now that I think about it, there is almost no decay going on as far as I'm aware. Not counting the time of war, babies were still being born and the balance is still relatively stable." I continued as I really thought about it now. 

"That is a bit strange. Thurimen is right in another room and while I'm sure he has made a lot of jewelry while working as a smith, I do not think that he as made any special rings. So why are things still relatively okay if you don't count Curumo? We don't have magical rings." Celairel muttered as I scratched an itch on my fingers and touched metal. Looking down at my hand, I saw the ring Mr. Ru had given me so long ago. Wait a minute.....

Holding my hand with the ring up to the others,  I could see the moment my sisters understood what I was saying as they immediately all looked at their own rings. "No way. There is no way that He could have thought that far ahead about this." Irissë whispered, all of us knowing who she meant and I reminded her that we were talking about this world's God here. There was no way of knowing what He did or did not know and she conceded as she looked at her ring and I did the same. If Eru really did infuse our rings with just a tiny bit of magic to help us, I would forever be grateful 

Most of our husbands soon came to pick us up to go to the feast and I could not help but smile at seeing how each of my sisters were greeted by their Ones and especially at how happy they were. Finno pulled Ohtare into his arms, lifted her up and spun her around like he hadn't seen her in ages instead of just a couple of hours while he gushed about how utterly beautiful she looked, looking at his daughter full of pride when she joined them as well.

Celairel simply walked into Tyelkormo's arms and quickly wrapped her arms around his neck as their foreheads touched for a few seconds. Right now, they were the only ones of my sisters and their Ones who could have children who had not had any yet as Melinde and Thurimen could not have children together nor did the former want them. Not sure what Mairon thought about it, but it didn't really matter. Two Maiar could not have any kids together 

Ekthelion gently grabbed Irissë's and their daughter's hands and twirled them both around at the same time to make them laugh for a second as he then kissed his wife on the mouth and their daughter on her forehead once he had pulled back from Irissë. Pulling them both close to his chest, he buried his face in their hair as they both clung onto him. "You both look beautiful." He whispered and they both beamed at him. Watching them from a distance, I remembered how Asterin once told me she wanted to find a man who would treat her like a treasure and she had definitely succeeded in that goal.

Thurimen grabbed Melinde's hand and kissed the back of it while maintaining eye-contact as he pulled her close and cupped her face, before and kissing her properly and she quickly grabbed his robes and pulled him even closer. I chuckled as that was just like my youngest sister. I went over to my own husband with our daughters and he beamed at all three of us as he held us close to him. "I'm the luckiest ellon in the world." He whispered and we all smiled

"Come on. Our people are waiting." I said as we pulled back and we left together. Melinde and Thurimen usually did not walk with us as they were not royalty or nobility, but with the latter now being the hero of the hour, an exception had been made for just this once and I knew that Melinde was loving this as her husband was getting a lot of positive attention, which was something she had told me he had trouble with when he was a Maia of lord Aulë.

Like my aunt had said to me and my sisters all those centuries ago, Mairon was always extremely serious and until she came into his life, not many of his fellow Maiar actually wanted to be around him much as they felt like they walked on eggshells around him to the point where Aulë himself talked about it to Yavanna, not realising both Mairon and Runande had been around the corner and the former had stormed of with tears in his eyes and the latter had first told the Vala he had been heard before hurrying after him and spending the rest of the day with him to try and cheer him up.

She even said she had briefly sensed Melkor's presence before he had left again and she was sure he had been about to try and bring Mairon to his side. Seeing them so very happy together now, I was really glad that she had followed him as we walked into the ballroom and all our people from the Ñoldor to the Sindar to the Silvan as well as the dwarves all cheered and applauded as we entered. I eventually raised a hand to ask for silence and they obeyed.

"My dearest friends, it feels so very good to stand here before you with Curumo no longer a threat.... for now. But let us not worry about that. Today, we celebrate and honour the one man without whom the battle would have lasted a lot longer." I stated as I lifted a glass and toasted to my brother-in-law. "To Thurimen Mahilion. The one who slew the Deceiver." I said, meaning it in more ways than one as everyone joined in and Thurimen blushed while Melinde beamed.

"To Thurimen!!!!

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Going back to regular life after fighting in a battle always felt odd

Even if this was the shortest of big battles compared to those of the First Age we had fought in, thanks to both the hundreds of dwarves helping us as well as Thurimen being able to sneak up on Curumo while he was distracted and stabbing him in the back, me only now realising the even bigger irony of that since stabbing them (and Aulë) in the back was exactly what that bastard had done shrugged he joined Melkor, it still felt off.

Sleeping in my own bed again was nice and nothing felt better than having all four of my children safe and sound around me, but to go back to work knowing that manyn of our soldiers had died and their Ones if they had them were fading or leaving. I made a point by trying to wave as many elves who sailed off and everyone was very grateful to see me give my last bit of support, often with at least one of my children or Melinde with me.

One heartbreaking moment was when a single mother walked past me with a short but respectful bow to both me and Naire who was with me at the time, two young ellyth who seemed to be only about fifty years old with her. Her husband had been in our army and he had eventually been killed in battle, leaving her a widow with two daughters who had lost their father. I obviously knew what that felt like, so I bowed back to them with tears in my eyes as I wished them the best of luck in Valinor and promising that no strife would find them there as someone who had been there.

That reminded me that with every battle we fought, the amount of elves who remembered seeing the Two Trees dwindled more and more. Practically no one from our original soldiers were still with us apart from some of my guards and others spread out over the other realms as they had either died in battle or had moved back to Valinor after the War of Wrath. Eru, did that thought make me feel old. I was older than some of the Canon elves in the book. 

Out of the elves in the "Lord of the Rings" Elrond, Galadriel, Gil-Galad and Legolas obviously were all so much younger than me with only Círdan being older. The only one I was not fully certain of age wise was Glorfindel. No wonder I felt tired at times even with our hopefully magical rings. Now that I really paid attention to it, I did notice I always felt even more exhausted at the end of the day when I took my rings off for the night and went to bed. 

It seemed Eru really had enchanted our rings just a tiny bit to help us and I quietly thanked Him every day for this. One night, I was lying in bed with my head resting on one arm and looking up at the ceiling while deep in thought, Maitimo asleep next to me. Our equivalent of "the War of elves and Sauron" had been done and won, but would things stop at our equivalent of the Last Alliance or would we have to get into a third age? As much as I loved Middle-Earth and even with our rings, I was not sure if I could continue this on for another three millenia after however long this age would take.

Tears filled my eyes as I realised that even with my elven memory, I was starting to forget things about my family in Valinor after being separated for so long. Did naneth prefer to wear pearls or sapphires? Did Arnamdir have blue or grey eyes? Did Ëarwen's favourite perfume smell of roses or lavender? I did not remember anymore and that single thought was absolutely horrifying, especially when I remembered I was basically banished here until Curumo was gone.

I did not realise the tears were already rolling down until a warm hand gently wiped them away from my cheeks and i turned to see two blue eyes watching me with focus. "My heart? What is it? What is hurting you?" Maitimo quietly asked in concern and I turned to bury my face in his chest as I expected I was just feeling homesick while also not knowing when we could go back to Valinor and he hummed as he held me close and stroked my hair.

"I know, my heart. I deeply miss my own mother as well, but I know she would immediately have my head if I left you here. As long as you have to stay here, so will I and our children. We will never leave you." He whispered and I muttered about how I half wished they would leave me so they could finally have peace and he tightened his grip even more in response. "Do not speak like that, Nemireth. We all love you more than anything and peace or not, we will not just abandon you to face what is ahead on your own. Nor will any of your sisters for that matter." He continued in a stern tone.

"I know you won't. And that they won't either for that matter. " I sighed even as I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and nuzzled the top of one shoulder to indicate that I was calming down. "None of you have any sense of self-presevation." I eventually muttered and he chuckled as he reminded me that I was the one working myself into exhaustion at times if not for him having to drag me to bed. "You got me there." I admitted with a small laugh.

One positive consequence of the fight was that while Curumo's brainwashing over the dwarves had not fully ended with his defeat as he had put several corrupted dwarves in power before the battle, there were not enough warriors to watch the exits so several dwarves who had managed to escape notice decided to take the risk and finally flee. With the original exodus included, over 1200 dwarves managed to get out and make it to Irissë's realm.

Thankfully, that was not the only good news as a few centuries passed. Not only did Naire and Ingwion eventually get a lovely daughter of their own who got the Fathername of Almáriel and Mothername of Naminde, making us grandparents once more, Varno eventually proposed to Cevenil and she accepted, once again giving our people some hope. Maitimo and I could not be prouder of our children if we tried as we helped prepare for the wedding feast and apart from maybe when he had become a big brother, I could not remember a time that our oldest son was as happy as he was now

Watching Varno give his love to his One unconditionally in front of the entire family, including none other than Eärendil, Elwing with their twin sons as well as her brothers Elúred and Elúrin who represented their father who had to stay behind with as well as Galadriel, Celeborn and Celebrían, I smiled at seeing so many faces of those who had been long dead at this point or gone in other ways. I was glad that so many were still alive and kicking

Galadriel had not dared to cross over when Naire had gotten married as it had been in winter and the roads were treacherous and she had seen it would be dangerous in her mirror, sending us her deepest apologies at the time. They still had to use the gap of Rohan to come here because orcs liked to lurk in the mountain passes, but they had made it this time and that was the most important thing now, especially when I noticed Elrond glancing at Celebrían 

I really liked them together in the books, what happens to poor Celebrían in the books not counting and I hoped they would have the same happiness and that they'd get to have all their children with them until the end of time. As much as I loved Arwen and Aragorn, I always felt so much pity for Celebrían as she had left for Valinor after going through so much trauma, likely thinking she would see all three of her children again one day, only for her daughter to become mortal and die without any chance of returning and without the chance for mother and daughter to say properly goodbye to each other.

Deciding to move onto happier topics before my mind went down a really dark rabbit hole, I noticed Elrond's glances were not the only ones as I noticed Rilyanasta glancing at Elúrin from where she was standing next to her mother and my lady-in-waiting Avahaire was being glanced at by Elúred. I smiled as these were interesting developments indeed. I quickly tried to figure out if they were related in any case but coming up empty which was good.

I had given Elwing a suspicious look at first seeing her, but it seemed that with no Silmaril being there and her husband around, she was actually a good mother to Elrond and Elros as they seemed to be a happy, healthy family. I did hear birthing twins had taken a lot out of her, which I could completely understand after having done the same thing myself and I did not have a human heritage anymore, so i could see why Elros and Elrond were their only children. 

During the feast after Varno and Cevenil had exchanged their rings and a kiss, it seemed that both Elúred and Elúrin as well as Elrond practically wasted no time in asking Avahaire, Rilyanasta and Celebrían for a dance, nor did it take long for Maitimo to notice that something was going on between the twin elven princes, my lady-in-waiting and our niece as well. "It seems that you might need a new Lady-in-waiting soon." He whispered into my ear as he went to stand behind me and i chuckled as I replied I would not mind it in the least as long as Avahaire was happy with her One.

"Poor Elúrin though. He has to answer to an ellon who has canonically killed a balrog in the books. Granted, he died in the process, but that does not take away that Ekthelion is a very fearsome warrior." I whispered back and he nodded in agreement as we watched the three hopefully future couples. Looking over to the side, I chuckled at seeing Alassinde talking to Alagos, the White Wizard having come by with Gandalf to witness this. 

It was clear they both knew who the other was, but as long as Alagos was in disguise, there likely could not be any developments with them. However, Ohtare had told me that neither her daughter nor he cared much about this as being together again at moments like these made everything worth it after being separated by an ocean. "You have changed so much, my heart and so many lives are all the richer for it." Maitimo said, before turning me around

"Mine most of all." He continued before kissing me in front of everyone 

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Things did not immediately change after the wedding. 

I did receive more and more letters about Rilyanasta going to visit Dior's realm more often to see Elúrin and vice versa. Avahaire was leaving more often as well. Either that or Elúred became a familiar face in our kingdom. From what Celairel told me, her nephew and his wife were overjoyed at seeing their sons finding their own Ones after all these years and didn't care Rilyanasta was related to the ellyn who tried to break into Doriath.

When I wrote him a letter to ask him about it, he sent one back gently reminding me that A: that was more than two millenia ago, B: they had failed in getting into Doriath even if one had come rather close and C: Rilyanasta was only distantly related to them through her mother who was their half-cousin and Celairel was technically closer related to them through her marriage and that was more than enough for him as long as his son was happy 

Avahaire's cheeks was now constantly dusted slightly with red every time she came back from spending time with Elúred as he treated her like a Queen and I couldn't stop the happy smile on my face whenever i saw it. From what I heard, Dior's wife had already started to teach her about their customs and things she would need to know as a future Princess of the Sindar. Avahaire was already a noble, but there was still a difference between our duties and people. It did make me feel better to know  my lady-in-waiting would be taken care of in the future. 

It was a bit weird for me because a part of me would always remember the twins as the poor, unfortunate boys who were cruelly left behind to die in the woods in the Silmarilion, but these versions of them were fully grown ellyn of more than two thousand years old and therefore more than eligible to finally get married. From whey Celairel had told me once, there had been more than enough ellyth who had tried to become their One. 

Since Dior and his family were some of the last things reminding my sister of dear Lúthien, she was very protective of them when she wasn't here and made sure that any elleth trying to get their attention were not only interested in their titles as Princes and their family's connections to the previous ruling family of Doriath like her husband ironically wanted to do with her sister in the book. I decided not to remind her of that irony.

"There are quite a few courtships starting up since our son's wedding." Maitimo commented as he read a letter from Irissë about beer daughter's blossoming romance with Elúrin over my shoulder and I smiled at him as I replied it reminded me of how we were during that stage and how I was actually, genuinely terrified of falling in love with him because of what I knew would have happened in his future if not for me and he chuckled. "And there I was, trying to win your heart and making your anxiety rise even more without even knowing it." He commented with a laugh.

I chuckled as well as i remembered that time. "Still, I do not regret responding positively to your hand kiss when I told you to do that with the elleth you fancied. You have given me so much ever since that moment. I honestly cannot imagine anyone else at my side, nor am I sure if anyone else would believe me, except maybe Finno but Ohtare would have my head if she heard me saying this." I said and he fully laughed at this, making me grin.

It had been a while since he'd laughed like that with the burdens and worries of ruling, having still changed quite a bit from the carefree Prince he had once been in Valinor, even without having gone through the Oath or Angband. I did sometimes miss the happy ellon I had grown up with, but I knew it was necessary to take care of our people and our family and even with my knowledge of the books and movies, I wasn't the same elleth either.

He was such an amazing father, grandfather and High King and that was honestly more important than him keeping his innocence. Eventually leaning against him as much as possible while still sitting on separate chairs, he immediately pulled me closer and kissed my temple. Closing my eyes at the touch for a second, I went to write a letter back, whistling for Súldor to deliver it to my sister. Gandalf had (very vaguely of course) hinted that Varda's handmaiden was now looking after Melinde's animal as Manwë had decided it was better if it stayed back in Valinor.

I guess he had meant well by making sure that Curumo would not figure out that Melinde was actually a disguised Runande by letting a magical animal be at her side, but it was for naught since that bastard had figured it out anyway and now, my youngest was the only one without a familiar to protect. Then again, even depowered and disguised as an elf, Lilith was stronger than any of us, so maybe she didn't need hers as much as we do.

It probably would have been nice for her to have extra comfort when Mairon was still gone, but oh well. He was back now and that was enough for me. Makalaurë was traveling again with his wife after having come back for the wedding, but hadn't had anything of note to tell us yet apart from which mountain passes were reasonably safe to use, but I still told everyone not to cross unless necessary and go south around the mountains if they could.

Time passed slowly as it always did even when you were an elf. Decades went by and three new courtships were soon underway with a member of the Sindar Royal family finding their One amongst the Ñoldor Royal family once more after Eärwen and Arafinwë, Maitimo and I, even if my second life sister and I technically counted among the Teleri and Celairel and Tyelkormo. "We really have something with the sons of Feänor, don't we?" I had asked Celairel once and she had rolled around the floor with laughter at realising the same thing, but neither of us complained.

We both could not imagine any other partners in our lives even with me having been married for much longer than my former sister. I obviously understood that elves were different then humans, but a part of me still thought it was rather odd to know that I had been with the same person for thousands of years with (hopefully) many more thousands to come and I still was not bored of him in the slightest and neither was he bored of me.

With how many stories I'd heard of people cheating on their partners and spouses back on earth, including poor Ohtare's ex and many hearts being broken in the process because people grew bored or wanted something else, the fact that elves were so monogamous I once had to explain to my poor, confused husband what cheating was and how he had been horrified at the mere idea of having sex with someone else while being married to me was so refreshing. 

Going to see how my children was doing with their Ones one morning at least a century or two after my oldest son got married, I smiled at seeing them spending time together with their partners and children in the garden from the balcony of our chambers, them having stayed incredibly close to each other even with them all having found their Ones and even having started families in the cases of my daughters. My new lady-in-waiting Lindiel, who had replaced Avahaire about half a century ago when she went to live in Dior's realm permanently, then knocked on the door. 

"Princess Irissë has suddenly arrived in the throne room, your majesty. She says that it is very urgent." She told me and I immediately frowned as I followed her out of the chamber and to the throne room. If Irissë said that it was urgent, then I always believed her. Walking into the throne room, my sister turned cousin by marriage turned to me and I immediately saw how incredibly pale she was as I asked what was going on and she took a deep breath. 

"Every now and again, I still check the at least part of the perimeter of the mountains to make sure that they aren't planning anything funny. Even with my powers diminished powers, I can still feel them walking if I concentrate hard enough, but the harsh vibrations that I sensed last week definitely did not come from a dwarf and they have suddenly grown a lot quieter now." She said and I paled as well as I took a few steps back, knowing what that meant.

Durin's Bane was awake...an age too early. 

Chapter Text

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"This was not meant to happen, was it?"

"Not now. Not this early. Durin's Bane was not officially woken up until the third age and I am pretty sure that we are currently still in the second if we ever go to a third age with so many things having changed and Curumo being weaker than Sauron ." I muttered as I paced the council room where I had first reunited with everyone after waking up, carding my hands through my hair like I always did when nervous or stressed.

My husband, children and their partners, my youngest two sisters and Thurmen were all there with me and simply watched me go back-and-forth in worry. I was so busy pacing that I didn't even notice Maitimo getting up and walking to me until I bumped into his chest and he wrapped his arms around me. "Deep breaths, my heart. Deep breaths." He whispered and it wasn't until he said it that I realised how quick my breathing had become

I took a deep and shaky breath as I clung onto him with all my strength as I felt like my knees were about to give out at any moment and he seemed to feel it too as without a care that other people were there with us as he knew they wouldn't say anything about gigs to anyone, he lifted me up in his arms and carried me to his chair where he sat down and put me on his lap like I was a child, but at that very moment, I did feel like one. A child who had no idea what she was supposed to do, so if I clung onto my husband like a toddler, could you blame me? 

"Ssssssshhhhh. It's alright, Nemireth. Everything will be alright in the end. We will find a way to handle this as we always have. We will keep our people safe from whatever will come." Maitimo whispered as he stroked my hair as our children all converged around us as well and tried to make me feel better. Fearil even joked that she and her siblings would not leave the palace if it made me feel any safer and I let out a weak chuckle.

Thankfully, that chuckle was enough as the others relaxed a bit at hearing me laugh even a tiny bit. "Durin's Bane never left Moria in the books, did it?" Melinde asked and I shook my head, but did say that its presence made the dwarves abandon Moria which in turn made it a haven for orcs, trolls and goblins. "Right. Sounds like Irissë's former job as border guard is back on then." She said with said elleth giving her a very unamused look

"If the dwarves even abandon the place. Durin's Bane may have killed a lot of them when they woke it up according to what Irissë's powers told her, but since most of those still living there are likely still under Curumo's control, they may make an alliance with it instead and who knows what will happen after that." Thurimen, ever the realist, muttered and that immediately brought the mood down as we realised that was a possible problem too. Maitimo held me even tighter at the thought and I would not have been surprised if I had been practically hidden for the others. 

Who was to say the corrupted dwarves wouldn't be the ones making an alliance? It was a terrifying thought, but realistic. The Balrog served Morgoth like Curumo and it may recognise the magic of that of the bastard. That is, if Curumo had not fled to Moria after the battle. Looking at Thurimen and Melinde, it was clear the former was not happy about the possibility either. "Well, if Gandalf can kill it on his own, so can we by working together." My youngest sister stated.

Not going to lie here, the look Thurimen gave his wife at hearing this was pretty hilarious. It was clear that even though Olórin had fought with them both in the War of Wrath, the thought of him killing a Balrog in his current state genuinely surprised him. "He died in the process, but either Lord Manwë or even Lord Eru Himself revived him and sent him back as the new White Wizard after Saruman's betrayal." Melinde explained with a smile at seeing his face. 

"That makes a lot more sense." He commented, making us laugh again despite the situation. I then told Irissë to go back home and not leave it again unless there was an absolute emergency as she would be our eyes and ears near the mountains and she nodded as I then turned to my youngest sister and her husband and told them both to get ready fiance make the most powerful weapons in case the Balrog was convinced to join the fight and they nodded as well. Looking at my children and seeing their nervous faces, I smiled and cupped my daughter's faces while still sitting on Maitimo's lap.

"While I'm not going to confine you to the castle and order you to stay inside, I am asking you to please stay in the kingdom and not go any further than your cousin Dior's or your uncle Finno's realms. Do not even go to Irissë's realm. No offence, sister." I told them and she waved it off as they all nodded and we split up with Maitimo still supporting me until we were sitting on our thrones until I was sitting down on it and he finally let me go

I quickly wrote two small letters to my remaining sisters to tell them of the situation and the many possible outcomes of it. Ohtare's response was quick and to the point as I had come to expect from my former sergeant of a sister. Celairel's letter on the other hand was, very uncharacteristically, filled with swear words at the news that we might have to fight another Balrog again which was so very unlike her that I raised an eyebrow until I found out why 

She had just found out that she was currently pregnant with her and Tyelkormo's berry first child and she had now heard there may be a Balrog knocking on their door sometime soon. I would have cursed up a storm if I had been in her situation too if I had to be honest. I just hoped that if there was an attack coming, it would wait for a year or Celairel had to sit the next one out because of her pregnancy. To be fair, I actually doubted the dwarves would attack us now even if they managed to make an alliance with Durin's Bane as their forces would be too small.

We had killed Gothmog and like Melinde had said, if we worked together we could almost certainly beat this one too and I think that if Curumo really was hiding out in Moria, he knew this. Once again, I was reminded that out of all our children, only Fearil had known the beauty and peace of Valinor in the times of the Two Trees and I knew that my oldest knew this too as she had often told her siblings and cousins stories about it and the trees.

Seeing the familiar shadow of homesickness in her eyes at the worst of times did make me feel guilty for dragging her to here, even if a part of me also knew she didn't regret anything about it as she had met her husband in this time and wouldn't leave until I could go back to Valinor with her and everyone else. Now that we had beaten Curumo once and knowing he was weaker thanks to Thurimen, I did start to wonder something

How exactly Lord Eru was going to make it clear my self-chosen banishment was at its end. I remembered how when Curumo was defeated in the books and was stabbed in the back by Grima, he rose up like mist and was blown away. Much like Mairon after he was killed during the war now that I thought about it. Maybe the mist was the true essence of the Maiar when their physical form was destroyed. We had not seen the mist this time because of the explosion, but I had not sensed any difference in me between before and after the battle, so my banishment clearly was not over. 

If anything happened to Celairel while she was pregnant though, I would happily break my banishment just to go to the void and attack Morgoth. Thankfully for us, but especially my sister, nothing happened in the next year and we soon got a letter to tell us she had given birth to a healthy son named Duithor and we went to meet the newest member of the family as he was both my second cousin through Celairel and my nephew through Tyelkormo.

The ellon was beaming in pride when he and Dior welcomed us as he quickly led us to where Celairel was resting from the birth. Seeing her with a sleeping baby in her arms, my heart melted and my smile couldn't be bigger as me, my husband and our children walked into the room as quiet as can be and Celairel happily showed us her son. "Nerdanel is going to have so many grandchildren to spoil, she won't know what to do." I whispered and we all chuckled.

Despite the dark times, this moment was a small point of light. 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"Happy begetting day, my darling."

"Thank you, my heart. This is the best way to wake up." Maitimo whispered as I had literally kissed him awake by planting dozens of little kisses on his face. He smiled at me and brushed my hair back, before kissing me again and I happily kissed him back. Breaking apart, we both smiled at each other like we were still the smitten newlyweds we once were.. just now with four children, three of which married and two grandchildren. 

A knock on the door made us quickly pull back as Lindiel's voice sounded from the other side, telling us our children wanted to see us and wish their father a happy begetting day as well. I promised we would be right out and she left as I turned back to my husband. "Duty calls once more." I said and he chuckled as he said he did not mind duty as long as he could spend time with me and our children. I smiled and kissed him again, before getting out. 

After my maids dressed me in another lovely dress and put my hair in a regal knot, I quickly joined by husband and children for breakfast with all four of them and our two grandchildren all had presents for him, from a new scabbard for his sword to a beautiful book about our reign until now and he immediately thanked all of them for the presents as he gave them all a hug one-by-one. I remembered way in the beginning when he asked if his book counterpart had a wife and children and I had simply shaken my head as I had said that he had just his brothers.

Seeing him holding our children from Fearil to Arnion made me smile as I remembered the book version of my husband had been dead for thousands of years at this point, having died alone and in pain after having sacrificed everything. I remembered the immortal character Cain in the TV show "Lucifer" mentioning he had jumped into a volcano once and how it had been a rough six months waiting until he was healed again.

I had never been so glad they never went into detail what happened to him when he jumped in that volcano to try and kill himself, mostly treating it as a bit of joke about the rough six months he went through while healing again. Looking up at my husband as he gently ruffled Naire's hair and chuckled when she complained, I found it was much easier to remind myself that it hadn't happened than it had in the first age

I supposed that it was because it had now been over two millenia since the date where that terrible thing happened in the books had passed and he was still right there with us. If anything, I had come closer to death than he had at the end of the War of Wrath. Standing up, I joined by husband and youngest daughter, Maitimo immediately wrapping his arm around me and smiling at me. I smiled back, before we heard there was a very special guest waiting in the throne room: Alagos. We quickly went over there to see what the White Wizard had to tell us.

It had been about two decades since the birth of Celairel's and Tyelkormo's son and they were still completely focused on raising him. While things were still rumbling around in the debts of the Misty Mountains and even around Rohan as that kingdom was still there in this version too and was sometimes under attack of orcs and goblins, there was not much to worry about... yet, but I had the feeling that Alagos was about to change that.

Walking into the throne room, the wizard immediately bowed to us at seeing us arriving and and we both nodded back at him as we sat down on our thrones, visibly going from just Maitimo and Nemireth to the High King and Queen of the Ñoldor. "It is good to see you again, old friend, but i do have the feeling you are not here with good news." My husband said as our children walked in as well with their spouses/partner.

"I fear so, your Majesty. There has been some very suspicious movement in the west of Rohan near the end of the Misty Mountains. During the day, there is barely anything to be seen by the men living there, but at night when they are asleep, dwarves, orcs and trolls have been building some kind of tower in a large plain. Likely as a stronghold for their master." He told us and I mentally cursed up a storm. Isengard. I guess that even without Gondor technically not existing and being replaced by a different kingdom, that bastard still wanted to have his stronghold

And since he was building it himself this time rather than taking it over, who knew what kind of protections there would be over it as I wasn't sure if a couple of ents would be enough to defeat him this time. "The men have been trying to take it down during the day, but the next day, it is back and higher than before. I suspect they move the materials to the nearest entrance in the Mountains during the day." Alagos continued and I sighed.

"Just what we needed. Bad news after bad news." I muttered as I rubbed my face and Maitimo quickly grabbed my free hand to try and comfort me. We did thank him for the news regardless and I wrote some small notes to most of my sisters to warn them. Their response was the written equivalent of a tired sigh and I could not say that I blamed them, but I tried to distract myself with the party we had planned for Maitimo.

Finno and Ohtare were actually coming too as a little surprise for my husband and so were some human nobles from what I could assume was Arnor's equivalent in the North. It had been a while since we had humans here, myself and my sisters technically not included anymore with that, so I really wanted this party to be a success. We did invite Alagos, but he refused at first. "Alassinde is coming too." I tempted, but he still chose his duty over seeing her again, albeit with reluctance. I simply smiled and let him go without protest after that. 

The human nobles arrived a couple of days later, Maitimo preferring to have the actual begetting day to be spent with just me and our beloved children and I immediately did not like the look of one of them. It was a younger noble who was looking at me like I was nothing but a piece of meat rather than.... you know... the High Queen of a race much older than his with a very protective husband of several millenia.

'Humans and their inability to keep it in their pants.' I thought as I looked away and tried not to roll my eyes at seeing the obvious lust in his eyes. I was not going to say anything about it to Maitimo as I did not want to ruin the party, but if that guy tried anything, he would be quickly reminded that both my husband have led our armies into battles and have fought in said battles long before his furthest ancestors were

As it turned out, I did not have to say anything as the moment our guests were led to their room, Maitimo wrapped his arms around me from behind, tighter than usual. "I did not like the way that man was looking at you." He muttered and I chuckled as I jokingly asked if he was jealous. He huffed in answer. "I do not need to be. You have been my wife for longer than his line exists, but I do not like the fact that you are apparently nothing but an object to him. If he so much as tries to get close to you or do anything, I will have his head." He hissed.

Not going to lie, hearing that protective tone and feeling his tight grip on me made me feel all kinds of fuzzy inside and it was only because we had other duties to fulfill that I regrettably did not drag him off to our bed chambers. "I guess I will not be without a guardian angel on my shoulder then tomorrow." I said as I looked up at him and he snorted at he stud that if he wasn't with me, then one of our sons or sons-in-law would be. 

I chuckled as I turned around and cupped his face to calm him down, knowing him well enough he'd scowl all day if I didn't. "Don't forget our daughters or my sisters. Melinde will cut his hand off if he reaches out to me without my consent." I reminded him and he laughed as he immediately agreed with that, before calming down and kissing me. I happily kissed him back, before we broke apart and went inside.

The next day was a flurry of activity in the Palace as to make the humans feel more at home during a party filled with elves, I had Martion, Thurimen and the other smiths create some gambling games that were popular in the north. One was a very simple game where you had to swing a wooden ball around a pole to hit a few small pins and the more you hit in three turns, the higher your score. The rewards of the games that were collected at the end of the evening would be given to orphanages and healing halls around the west of the Misty Mountains 

True to his word, Maitimo barely left my side, letting Arnion take over when he had to leave and we did often see the noble seemingly coming across us several times and look disappointed that my husband or son was there. "Does he really believe he can just sweep you off your feet like you're an innocent maiden in the tales. No offence, Amil but you killed orcs before I was born." Arnion said in disbelief and I snorted. 

Getting ready with my daughters, sisters and niece, i warned them of the noble and they immediately promised to keep an eye out for both themselves and others. "Make sure he doesn't bother any of our servants either. I already ordered them to always leave the ballroom in pairs and never alone, but you can never be too certain." I ordered and they nodded before it was time and we joined the ellyn, my wrapping my arm around Maitimo's

"Let's hope this doesn't descend into chaos." I whispered, before we walked into the ballroom

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

The birthday ball was soon underway. 

Immediately, Maitimo pulled me into his arms for a dance and my children did the same with their spouses and partner. I chuckled in response as I quickly put my free hand on his shoulder and we danced through the room with our children dancing around us and it did not take long before I suddenly noticed that they were constantly hiding me from view for the noble even while we moved through the room

For just a few minutes, Maitimo and I forgot about everything that was going on outside and at this point even inside our Palace as we danced together, one of our hands clasped together and his free hand on my back and mine on his shoulder. Once the dance ended, we and our children and their partners stepped back and bowed to each other as the crowd around us applauded our danced. Maitimo welcomed them and told them to have fun.

"Stay near one of us at all times for the whole evening." He then whispered to me in Quenya and I promised as we already noticed the noble, Jomion trying to walk over, but Finno and Ohtare, who had already heard about the situation, walked to us and Finno took me over for a dance. He did this in such a way that no one could have seen that this was pre-planned as Ohtare took my husband with her for a dance too. From the corner of my eyes, I could also see my sons blocking the man's way by going to talk to Alassinde while standing right in his way. 

Seeing the grin on my niece's face, it was clear she was in on the plan as they managed to keep blocking his way for at least a minute before he managed to get past them and by that point, my daughters were primed to block his way too. 'Those are my boys and girls.' I thought in pride as I grinned at Finno and he was smiling as well. "Ohtare will likely be your shadow for the evening." He whispered. 

And she was as the moment we were done dancing, she and Melinde quickly attached themselves to my side whenever I wasn't near my husband and even then, they were always near so they could come be at my side again the moment Maitimo and I got separated. It was a good thing too as Jomion constantly tried to get  close to me and ask me for a dance, but my sister always managed to pull me away with an excuse.

Standing at the ball and pins game with my sisters standing at either side and Varno standing slightly behind me to make absolutely sure that he couldn't get anywhere near me while i was patiently waiting for my turn with the ball, Jomion still tried to talk to me from Ohtare's other side and while I did respond politely, my sisters could barely keep their annoyance in check every time he opened his mouth as he barely let them get a word in. Looking over, I could see Maitimo watching us from where he was talking to some other human nobles.

I finally got the ball for my turn and I suddenly remembered the BBC TV show "Robin Hood" that had the exact same game in one episode. The show also ironically enough had Thorin Oakenshield himself, Richard Armitage as Guy of Gisbourne in it, but that was not important now. "Mira, distract him for a minute." I whispered and Ohtare immediately turned around to talk to him as I moved to the side after nudging Melinde away a bit. 

Swinging the ball a little wide, it missed the pins but at hearing the grunt of pain, I knew it had still hit the bullseye. In this case, it was Jomion's crotch. Looking at my husband again, I could see the amusement in his eyes as he was clearly trying to keep his laughter in as to not give away he had likely not spent a single bit of attention to the conversation. "Forgive me, my lord. My aim was a little wide." I said innocently

Since pretty much all the witnesses around the table who had seen this were elves who had seen him desperately trying to flirt with their very beloved and very definitely married High Queen and had seen me clearly losing my patience with him, they stayed silent as I saw many of them hiding their smiles as well. Hell, I had even seen many get out of the way the moment I took a few steps to the left to throw the ball, clearly figuring out what I was about to do. I then walked away to go to the bathroom and my sisters quickly joined me as well.

Feeling my husband following us even from a distance, I knew Jomion was following us too and I was proven right the moment we turned a corner and heard his voice. "Wait just a minute, here!" He called and all three of us sighed in frustration as I grabbed the hilt of a hidden dagger in my sleeve and we slowly turned around to face him. "I have spent a lot of time on you and you think you can hit me in my crotch?!" He demanded to know. 

"Let me correct you there. You have spent almost every minute of your time here trying to force yourself in my personal space and say things you clearly believe are seductive, but are just plain creepy. One of my servants heard you say that if I was your wife, you would not allow me to wear any clothes at any time.  Why on earth would you think I would be interested in anything you say after that?" I asked, my patience have reached it limit.

He claimed he would make a better husband than Maitimo and I raised an eyebrow as I noticed my husband himself watching from a distance, not interfering as he trusted me to know what I was doing, but ready to help. "You are saying that you would make a better husband than the actual High King of the Ñoldor? You claim to treat me better than someone I have known since I was a literal baby and who I have married many ages before your kind ever existed. You really think you can persuade me to betray the father of my children?" I demanded to know.

"I am not a penniless orphan living on the street, desperate to escape my wretched life no matter what I have to do. I am the High Queen of the Ñoldor. I have been on this continent since before your line existed and I will be here long after your line has died out. You want a pretty lady to warm your cock? Then find one among your own kind and stop bothering me before you ruin the trade relations my kingdom has with yours." I continued.

I could see both my husband and my sisters smiling at me in pride while Jomion just stared at me in utter shock. "Wow, you actually thought that you could manage to convince me to leave my husband with whom I have four children and two grandchildren. Even if my kind did not love only one person romantically in their entire lives, I am anything but a cheater. Not everyone is as desperate for a partner as you." I huffed.

I could see Jomion getting angrier and angrier at my words as he had clearly convinced himself that he was pretty much Eru's gift to women and that I would immediately fall in love with him like in the stories. Well, unfortunately for him, I had already found my Prince Charming. Despite his size, Maitimo managed to silently make his way over until he was standing right behind the man. "You disgusting bitch!" He spat at me as he began to storm forward and raise his hand, only for Maitimo to grab him by said raised hand and harsly pull him back and around.

Within a second. Jomion was staring right at a pissed off eight foot tall, powerful and wealthy High King glaring down at him in pure anger. "Call my wife that again and you will spend the rest of your days in the dungeons. Do I make myself clear?" My husband hissed as it was clear he was harshly squeezing Jomion's wrist as the man was barely able to stay standing as he whimpered in pain as I walked closer too.

Pulling his hair, I put my dagger to his throat and he stiffened up. "And if we hear that you tried to put your disgusting little hands on any other ellyth, we will make sure you will regret it even more for the rest of your days, which will likely not be a lot as any attack on our people will be responded to and it will almost certainly end with your head in a basket and my husband's sword covered in your blood." I put in my own threat.

He whimpered that he understood in utter fear and we let him go as he fled with his tail between his legs with Ohtare and Melinde quickly following him at my nod to make sure he would not hurt anyone else. Maitimo then looked at me and I could literally see his anger melting away into pride, his eyes softening as he pulled me close. "That trick with the ball was amazing." He whispered and I giggled as I explained it was from a show I had once watched. The third season had been really bad, but the second one had always been my favourite.

He chuckled as he kissed my forehead and I closed my eyes at the touch. "Come on, I need to go to use the pot and we really should return after that as it would not do if the hosts suddenly disappeared." I whispered and he agreed as he briefly followed me to our chambers, before accompanying me back to the main room where thankfully, our absence had not really been noticed. We did see Jomion avoiding us like the plague.

With that annoyance out of the way, we could finally enjoy the entire party like we should have from the beginning, but we would tell Jomion's family and King about everything he had said and done so he would hopefully be punished in his own country. Dancing once again with my beloved husband, I looked up to see him smiling at me. "I love you, my amazing heart." He whispered and I beamed at him. 

"I love you too, my beloved King." I replied, before kissing him in front of everyone 

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Not too long after the party, the guests are leaving again.

Not a moment too soon in my honest opinion as Jomion had now changed his seductive approach to look like a wet kitten every time we were in the same room as the other. I had once even seen him literally go from normal conversation with his men to suddenly looking downtrodden when he realised I was near. He probably thought he could win my sympathy that way. 

Exactly how naive did he think I was? Did he seriously think his "woe me" pity party was going to work on me? Did he think I was going to regret my words and give him a chance if I saw how utterly "heartbroken" he was by my rejection? Fat chance! I loved my husband and family. I was not going to leave them for a human who would die in a few decades anyway.

It was sometimes weird to think about humans like that since I had obviously been a human once too, but it was the truth. I had been on this world for ages before humans even existed. My nephew and I were the first elves who came in contact with their race for Eru's sake. How could someone be so delusional that he thought he could seduce not just and elf to his side, but an elleth who was the High Queen, was married to the son of the most powerful elf in existence and had four children with him

Like I had told him before, I would still be here long after his line was broken and I was going to stay loyal to my Maitimo until the end of time. He had given me so much in all our millenia together that Jomion really was an utter fool to think he somehow could manage to persuade me to leave him for what pretty much was the equivalent of a one-night stand for me.

My husband and family still didn't let me walk anywhere alone and it was a good thing too as we sometimes came across Jomion in places he had no business of being, including him being dragged way by a guard just two hallways away from my and my husband's personal chambers. If looks could kill, then Maitimo would have been a stone-cold murderer

Standing in front of our castle to wave our guests out and wish them a safe journey, i let nothing of my thoughts show. I did have to hide a grin when I saw the King giving Jomion a very unamused look as my husband had talked to him. It seemed that unlike Jomion, the King at least was very well aware of the repercussions his actions could have had. As we knew from the story of Helen of Troy, trying to seduce and make off with a married Queen definitely would have devastating consequences

This could go from trade relations between kingdoms being immediately cut to causing an all out war between the kingdoms and with the huge difference between humans and elves and with Curumo still being weak, we would have the upper hand. We likely wouldn't even need an Odysseus with a wooden horse to win. It was good that the King at least knew this. 

It was clear to me that once they were back in their kingdom, Jomion's problems would only continue instead of stop as new probably believed as the King honestly looked like a very irritated and humiliated parent who's waiting to scold their child once they were in the privacy of their home. Having been in such a situation before when I was a child, I almost pitied him. 

However, this man had tried to cause a rift between my husband and I just to try and satisfy his own desires about wanting to have a sexy and politically powerful wife to keep in his home and have babies with and if not for the utter faith Maitimo had in me after so many centuries of marriage and working together to protect and lead our people as well as the fact that again, our lifetimes were completely different, he might have succeeded in at least causing trouble between us.

That was not something I was going to forgive and when or even if we heard about his death, I was going to let out a cheer about finally being done with him for good. As the humans left and I saw Jomion looking back as if his delusional mind believed I was going to stop him from leaving or run after him, I did something quite out of character for a regal High Queen.

I raised both my middle fingers and mouthed the words "fuck you" to him. While I didn't think flipping someone off was something they did here, it seemed to finally get the message that I wanted to have absolutely nothing to do with him across, especially when I then turned around and walked back inside without another look, followed by my sisters and daughters.

That evening, we all shared one final dinner together with almost all of the family before Finno and Ohtare went home again, it was a bit quiet at first as we all knew we would not forget this feast anytime soon, but then for the wrong reasons as Jomion's presence and attempts had created quite a bad taste, but I would just have to remind myself that the bond between Maitimo and I had grown stronger in the process and I had made sure he knew how much I loved him. 

Fearil eventually couldn't handle the silence anymore as she squirmed in her seat and asked me if her aunts and I knew any fun songs and I hummed in thought before smirking  and looking at Ohtare, calling her name. "I must say: what a brilliant speech you gave." I began and she smirked as she pretended to look around the room and asked "who's there?

"Just a friend who could help you save your men. A foe like Circe's not to be messed with. You want to beat her?  You'll need the blessing of a certain god. Divine intervention. Someone who's not afraid to... send a message." I continued as Melinde explained the context of the song to everyone else and Ohtare let out a "Hermes?" I let out a laugh to try and imitate the crazy giggle of Hermes. 

At the end of the song, our husbands, children and in-laws if we had them applauded the three of us, even if they had taken part in the last bit of the song and we took playful bows while still sitting down again and taking deep breaths with me grinning at my husband at seeing him successfully cheered up after Jomion's presence had soured his face. Understandable as I remembered this one human princess from a couple of centuries ago who had tried to flirt with him. 

She'd constantly tried to plaster herself to his free side while giving me smug looks when she thought he wasn't looking. It reminded me of one "Game of Thrones" fanfiction I read where Elia, Rhaegar and Lyanna all survive their Canon fates and Rhaegar (the idiot) takes Lyanna as a second wife and she's all smug to poor Elia like "Your husband's mine now, you frail bitch."

Her looks reminded me of that, except my husband thankfully is not a Rhaegar and he constantly pulled himself free from the Princess when she tried to grab her arm until our daughters basically pulled her away at seeing their father was about to snap at her and potentially ruin the political visit as she'd likely go crying to daddy. I then shook my head as I reminded myself we were okay.

And now the guests were gone, we could focus again on the real threats

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

A hundred years is a mere blink in the life of an elf.

It's funny how a line from a movie i saw so long ago would turn out to be so accurate to my life. Funny and maybe just a bit disturbing as it did sometimes feel like time was quickly slipping by while you remained the same for centuries on end. Sometimes, it really did feel like I blinked and several decades had passed as couples got married, elflings were born and raised and Moria was still quiet. I think you can see what the most annoying part was. 

Sometimes, I honestly felt like banging my head against the wall or my desk out of sheer frustration because of the constant t waiting and nothing happening apart from some skirmishes in the human kingdoms that were soon dealt with. We could not storm Moria since the dwarves would have the upper-hand inside, nor could we cross them as scouts had reported more and more goblins and orcs settling down in several of the many caves there.

When Elrond and Celebrían finally got married to each other after a few decades of courting. I congratulated them, but qlso made my great-niece solemnly promise that if she ever wanted to go to her parents in the east, to go around the Misty Mountains rather than crossing them no matter how much longer it would take and she had promised. It thankfully did help that Díor's realm was far more south than Imladris had been in the books and movies since Irissë's realm was around that spot now. It also helped that even though Celebrían and I hadn't really met often, it seemed that Galadriel had told her to listen to me. 

I honestly was not sure if she actually knew that all my sisters and I were from a different world and that i knew more than i let on to most of our subjects and family for the most part, but Celebrían told me that her mother had raised her with the knowledge that a lot of my advice had saved many elves many times over the past ages and when I gave her some advice or a request, it should always be followed, so she immediately agreed to listen.

I really hoped that would be enough to keep her safe as I never did like the terrible implications of what happened to her when she was taken by the orcs that was so bad even her husband, who if I remembered correctly after all this time since i read the books, was called the greatest healer on that side of the ocean couldn't fix. As a woman myself, my mind immediately went to the absolute worst case scenario of what could have happened.

I already managed to save sweet Celebrimbor from a fate worse than death before it happened as he was now safe in Valinor with his family, albeit with some indirect and obviously unintentional help from Melinde when she married her husband without even knowing who his canon self was as she made sure he didn't turn evil. To this day, that still cracked me up,. The fact that my youngest sister saw the one guy who was seemingly destined to become arguably the most famous dark lord in fantasy literature and basically did the fanfiction-y thing of "this guy needs a hug and then he'll feel better" and it actually worked,

However, from what Melinde had once told me in private, even Thurimen himself was getting a bit anxious as time went on because of the waiting for the other shoe to drop. Even though he was the one who had dealt the admittedly temporary final blow during the last battle by taking him by surprise, he still didn't like that Curumo was in the same world as his wife and i honestly could not blame him. Curumo made it very clear that he was still focused on Melinde.

Back in Almaren, it had been because he had grown a crush on her like how Severus Snape and had tried to win her over, ironically doing the exact opposite by freaking her out and pushing her away. Now, it was more along the lines of "You will regret not choosing me when you had the chance" and that was honestly ten times as scary as ""protecting" the son of the woman you seemingly had a crush on but constantly bully him because he looks like his father."

Yeah.... not a big Snape fan as you can probably tell by my sarcasm or of the woman who created him because of her opinions, but that was beside the point and i was really digressing anyway. As I already said, I definitely could not blame Thurimen for feeling increasingly protective over his wife as time passed after Curumo made it clear that not only has he not forgotten the "slight" my sister had given him in the far past by not marrying him and choosing Mairon instead, but he was going to try and make sure that she regretted that "mistake" even if it was the last thing he did. Thurimen was honestly well within his right to be worried and anxious about this

I remembered how absolutely terrified I had been in both Valinor and the beginning of the first age that Morgoth would somehow manage to get and take Maitimo captive, torturing him without me being able to save him and often laid awake at night just to listen to him breathing to reassure myself be was there. After Curumo had ordered their minions to take me during the Battle of Flames, probably because I was my husband's greatest weakness. Maitimo had barely let me out of his sight after that.

I had once gone to the bathroom while he had still been asleep early in the morning and he had gone in a panic when he had woken up a few minutes later and I was seemingly gone without a trace, my sudden absence of three months when i was with the humans and Finderáto definitely fresh on his mind at the time and i stil felt guilty about that, even several millennia later. It was absolutely terrifying to know that someone was after the person you loved the most. 

Even if Curumo was not as strong as Morgoth and thankfully never would be, I had to remind myself that my sister and her husband had worked with him for a long time before he became evil and betrayed everything he had ever known, so they knew what he was capable of and if they grew anxious because he was this quiet, it almost definitely was not a good sign about what could be ahead. One day, I visited their home to see them cuddled together on the couch with Melinde curled up into her husband's side as he stroked her hair. They were about to get up when they saw it was me, but I held up my hand to put them at ease.

"It's okay. You very clearly need each other if you're cuddling during the day and you're actually taking a break from your jobs." I said with a tiny smile as I had been allowed in when I knocked on the front door as my sister's magic had opened the door. They smiled back in relief as Thurimen looked down at his wife with the same look in his eyes that I remembered when I had been a toddler. "Have you two sensed anything?" I asked and they shook their heads.

Last time, Melinde especially had tried to sense Curumo returning, but it seemed that Curumo was either still too weak or hiding too deep underground to be noticed by either of them and i desperately. Galadriel told me she had not sensed him going to the east, so we could only guess that he was hiding somewhere in the Misty Mountains as it would have been easy to slip back inside after Thurimen destroyed him. There was of course the now finished fortress near the south of that

According to Irissë, whose daughter had become Princess of both the Ñoldor and the Sindar about fifty years ago when she had married her One, she still felt some tremors in the earth every now and again, but it seemed that the dwarves and the Balrog had managed to get some kind of truce and that was especially worrying for us. Poor Maitimo had been pulling his hair to try and figure out what to do now. We were not in the first age anymore where our people were at its peak and fighting a Balrog would likely kill many more, even if we had a Canon balrog killer or two among us.

Going back home again after catching up with my youngest sister and her husband for a few minutes with my guards following after staying outside to give us privacy, I suddenly couldn't help my quiet snort as I imagined what would have happened if Ekthelion and Irissë actually had gone to Gondolin and it had somehow still betrayed to Morgoth since Maeglin definitely wouldn't have been born and gotten a crush on his cousin. Actually, Curumo and Maeglin were very alike in that regard

The idea of Ekthelion doing his famous suicide leap to kill Gothmog and falling into the fountain with it to do a murder-suicide with the bastardand a very pissed Irissë just immediately raising him back out of the water and loudly scolding his ear of about his recklessness was pretty hilarious. Then again, if she had been at his side while they were facing that bastard, it might have pushed him to take bigger risks to try and protect her and might even have tried to sent her away

Walking into our palace, I went to see my children to see how they were doing with everything going on right now. They were okay, but they were getting tired and anxious because of the wait as well. "Nana, is there any news? We are really getting tired of the constant waiting." Naire said when it was her turn to be visited and I sarcastically asked how she and her siblings thought I was feeling since i actually had to prepare things for when the situation went south. She snorted and I smiled as i briefly rested my forehead against hers and told her we would do our best to find out what was going on and she conceded at that

A few years after that, my husband and i were currently bending over an issue with a farmer who wanted to expand his grounds, but he would have to cut down trees for that when a very cold wind suddenly blew through the room, even though all the windows and doors were closed. Maitimo and I immediately shared a look as we instinctively knew this could be a very big problem and our panicked children ran in as well after having felt it too and they knew it was bad.

It did not take long before both Melinde and Thurimen quickly arrived at the palace as well and said that the wind had definitely been magical in nature and that Curumo had almost certainly grown enough in power and done something. "Did he create a ring?" Varno asked sarcastically and Thurimen himself chuckled as he said if might have been if his former colleague had decided to create a precaution in case he was caught by surprise again.

"Well, where is the nearest volcano?" I asked

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

Despite my joke about the volcano, the wind did signify a change It started off small: more wargs being spotted near Irissë's realm as well as Dior's realmas the Curumo's fortress was near that and orcs, trolls and goblins becoming bolder in the night. For now, they were held back by scouts, soldiers and my sisters if necessary, but to see more and more reports coming in was worrying as Maitimo and I shared a dreading look. "I am willing to bet my crown that he now lives in his tower rather than hiding away in the mountains." I muttered.

I obviously did not have to explain who I meant as Curumo had been such a headache for so long that I desperately hoped there really was no third age after this as i was so tired. It may sound selfish, but I just wanted to be done with this bastard, go home to Valinor to see everyone who I hadn't seen in millennia, give my crown and title of "High Queen" back to Indis where it belonged and just take a nice, long bath where I didn't need to worry about dark lords, famines or anything else. 

Maitimo tried not to show it often, but I knew he missed his mother and youngest brother too as I sometimes caught him looking at and playing with a bracelet his mother had given him before we left. He had always gone to the smiths to make sure it didn't fall apart, now going to Thurimen specifically to keep it whole and the disguised Maia always made sure to return it in pristine condition as he knew how much the bracelet meant to him. The situation was draining on all of us and I knew I was not the only one who was hoping that things might just be over soon as my sisters all sent me letters about how they felt guilty about being happy that things were finally picking up again.

Like me, they were quietly hoping that this meant we could go home in hopefully less than a millennia and they could go and see her parents and siblings again, not counting Finno and Irissë or my brothers-in-law as after all this time, they were more the exception than the rule. My children had also told me to not expect any more grandchildren until this situation was either resolved or we could go home to Valinor. I even found Fearil telling her children and siblings about Valinor.

"Gandalf and Alagos have already scouted the tower out at night and sensed several spells in place to defend it against a siege and reports say that a lot of forest around it has been removed for unknown purposes. Some parts of Rohan has begun to do the same, so they might be under his influence or at his side as well" Maitimo sighed as he looked at several maps lying in front of us on a table with our children, Melinde, Thurimen, Celairel, Tyelkormo and their son standing around us.

I bit my lip as I wondered if it would be too much to expect the ents to join the fight again like in the book and movie as i always thought that was the perfect karma for that sick bastard. Saruman harshly cut and tore the trees down for his evil plans so the trees themselves eventually came to get revenge and it honestly said a lot when the normally calm and peaceful ents were actually coming to kick your ass for what you did. "I don't suppose we can just ask Treebeard for help in storming the tower." Melinde said, unknowingly having the very same thought as I did and I sighed as I suddenly realised one big factor in why the charge of the ents worked and probably wouldn't here.

"You forget that while the ents attacked Isengard in the book and movie, almost all of Saruman's army was currently at Helm's Deep to try and kill the Fellowship and tear Rohan down once and for all and he didn't have a lot of defenses left against a bunch of furious ents storming his grounds. If we want such a plan to succeed, we will need to wait until he draws out his army against us and even them, we will need to get them convinc3d to join us in the fight too. We don't have hobbits now" I said.

"Cousin Galadriel might be able to do this if Curumo goes against us and you ask her. She can convince the most stubborn of creatures and I know she's been keeping the peace in Rohan and other realms at your request." Celairel said and for some reason, it still blew my mind that THE Lady Galadriel was my niece and cousin by blood for Irissë and marriage for both Celairel and me again, even more then that Maitimo was my husband despite millennia of living this life now. 

Maybe it was because Galadriel was a bit more well known to the world than Maitimo and his brothers as not everyone had read "The Silmarillion" but that was not important as I agreed it was worth a shot to reach out and talk to my niece. It was kinda funny how Galadriel was so important in the books, but because of her first living in Doriath with my aunt and uncle and now on the other side of the continent, I year rarely seen her in person since arriving here. Oh boy, I hope my second life sister wouldn't be too pissed at hearing I had basically left her only daughter on her own. Eh, Galadriel could handle herself and I did manage to keep my nephews safe in the first age.

That would hopefully be enough for her when I did return home. Looking back at the map, I bit the nail of my thumb as I kept wondering what Curumo's plan was. Was he slowly trying to gain ground or was there another plan at work here. Asking Melinde and Thurimen their opinion on this, they shared a look. "It could be very possible. Curumo always did like to pretend he was working on something small and unimportant only to reveal some grand project to show how clever he was." My brother-in-law said. 

"If that really is his play here, then we need to be on our guard even more. Those big projects were always very large and if he still has they habit while evil, I dread to think what he's planning to do now while keeping us distracted with these minor skirmishes. Make sure your army is ready for anything and sent out word to all the elven realms to make sure they are on their toes as well as he might just suddenly focus east as there are only the Greenwood and Lórien on that side." Melinde agreed

Despite her literally giving orders to my husband and I even though we were High King and Queen, we all nodded in agreement as Maitimo made a few notes to give out commands later on. We normally had scribes for that, but for meetings like these where it was more likely that we talked about our previous lives, we preferred to write things down ourselves. Looking at the two of them, I had one simple question. "Are you okay?" Even though we had faced Curumo before and won, it can't be easy realising your old colleague was now using a habit he once used to make them laugh to spread fear, chaos and perhaps death as well, depending on what exactly he was planning to do.

"I'm ready for this to end. I'm ready to go home. If Curumo has made something like the One Ring, then we just have to get and destroy it. I know that it is way easier said than done as I'm sure Curumo will not exactly hand it over to us and we will need to find out how to destroy it, but once we have done that, we should be done.....right?" She asked and I replied that I hoped we would as i would probably jump into a volcano myself if whatever item Curumo made was lost for centuries.

Splitting up after that, Maitimo and I went to our chambers to unwind a bit and really think this through. "You are aware that the moment we give the order for the guards and soldiers to prepare themselves, everyone will soon know that darkness is spreading, right?" I asked and he sighed as he replied our people likely already had suspicions. Stories of the growing attacks had already spread and less and less couples were having children as they realised dark times were slowly coming back. 

The town was slowly growing quieter whenever I walked through as people whispered about an upcoming war and how many of those who had survived the previous one feared losing their loved ones again, which I completely understood  He sat down on the large couch we had and I sat down next to him, gently carding my fingers through his braided hair and he gave me a smile as he grabbed my hand and kissed it. I immediately smiled back at him. "We have already survived so much, my darling. We will survive this as well as long as we stick together." I whispered and he sighed as he nodded, knowing I was right. We just sat there for a while, hoping we would get a warning at least.

Our prayers were answered as not too long after, a frazzled looking Makalaurë and his wife arrived at our palace one day, requesting an immediate audience. We obviously gave it to them and they explained they had been traveling north east of the Misty Mountains, north of the Greenwood when they had seen a huge party of orcs, dwarves and even some humans exiting one cave during an almost moonless night. "If they were aware of our presence they completely ignored us." Makalaurë said.

"Whatever mission they were being sent on as we both have no doubt they were on one, it was very clearly important for them to ignore two seemingly powerless elves and continue further north." His wife agreed with a solemn nod and we thanked them for the news. While Maitimo went to catch up with his brother and find out more about what they had learned, i left the throne room and made several small notes for my sisters and their husbands about what we had just heard. 

Whistling for Súldor, he soon landed on my shoulder and I tied the notes to his feet. "All of my sisters, don't wait for an answer. Just get these to them immediately." I said and he bobbed his head, before flying out of the window and within five seconds, he was already gone. Even if he hadn't had much to do in times of peace, he was always ready to fly and deliver notes when I needed him. Looking out the windows, I soon heard soldiers entering the courtyard as Maitimo began to give them orders to bolster our defenses. Suddenly remembering which creature still lived north if I wasn't mistaken, I paled in fear, before I ran down to join him and give my own orders as there was not a moment to lose. 

About a year and quite a few meetings with the dwarves of the blue mountains later, Melinde and I were walking through the centre of town again with my guards following when we suddenly felt the wind starting to pick up heavily and despite it being winter, it felt really warm too as a sound that made me think of videos of hurricane chasers I used to watch back on earth was heard. "What is going on?" Melinde asked as everyone began to take cover against the wind that only began to pick up more. 

I already had a suspicion as I could only think of one reason why Curumo would want to go north since the kingdom of Angmar never came to existence thanks to the actions of my sisters while I was still unconscious. Looking up at the sky, I saw a large dot hurriedly coming closer. It seemed we were the new Erebor, despite us not having stashed mountains of gold. I took the deepest breath I ever took and screamed one word as loud as I could to make people flee to the new shelters the dwarves had made.

"DRAGON!!!!!!"

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

I never ran so fast in my life. 

Everyone was running towards the shelters and Melinde and I were quickly weaving through to get to the palace to change into armour. My guards were shouting at people to get out of the way and they did so we arrived at the front doors very soon with the guards immediately opening them for us as we rushed in. Maitimo was already in the entrance hall and quickly caught me in his arms when I almost crashed into him. "We don't have time for this." Melinde muttered

"She's right. We need to get ready, now!" I stated as I pulled back and my husband quickly nodded before we all ran to the armoury. Within no time, our servants had helped us into our armour as I used Súldor time send and SOS message to my sisters. "Make sure you're not seen. Go!" I told him and he was gone within a second. I knew that until my other sisters arrived, it was up to us to keep our people safe from this flying threat. 'If only we had a windlance.' I thought. 

Running out of the doors, we had to duck and shield our eyes as the first stream of fire rained down and we heard screams of fear and pain. I was harshly reminded of the Battle of the Flame, but at least Hithlum had been spared during that time, which is not what our home could say now as we looked up in horror as Smaug flew over and soon made a U-turn to do it again. "Nana?!" Naire shouted as she and her siblings ran up to us and i gave them the order to escort our people to the shelters and most importantly: stay there with them. I refused to lose any of my children to bloody Smaug of all things.

Thankfully for my sanity, they now knew better than to argue with me about wanting to fight a dragon as they rushed off with their spouses and children while we rushed to face Smaug. "Archers with me! Aim for the wings and eyes! I ordered the soldiers and they quickly hurried to obey as they aimed and fired when Smaug came back and while it did distract him from firing at our town again, it was very clear that our attacks were just pinpricks to it as he looked down at it. 

"Well now, it seems that I've gotten royal attention already and i barely did anything yet. It is lovely to finally meet you in person, your majesties." He said in a mocking tone as he landed near is, crushing several (hopefully now empty) houses underneath his body and we both glared at him as Maitimo put me behind him and our soldiers all aimed their swords and arrows at him. I shivered at his voice as he did sound exactly like how Benedict Cumberbatch portrayed him.

However, this was not a guy crawling around on the floor in a mocap suit almost ripping his vocal cords by making so many growling noises. This was a real life dragon or wyvern technically since he only had two hind paws and used his wings as his front ones, but i was digressing at the worst possible moment right now. While he was talking to us, I slowly leaned closer to Maitimo's ear. "Keep him talking and busy for as long as possible to give my sisters and our children more time." I breathed and even though he only lowered his head, I knew he had heard me and immediately understood what I was planning

"We honestly didn't expect Curumo to ask for your help. Is he still too weak to face us?" Melinde asked from next to us as she had heard the same thing and Smaug looked at her next, a newly arrived Thurimen doing the same thing as Maitimo and pulling her behind him, not that it would help a lot. If Smaug got tired of our conversation, he'd only have to open his mouth and shoot fire and unless Melinde and Thurimen had fire resistance, we'd be dead within an instant.

"Well, if it isn't the idiot who refused all the power my brother in darkness could have given her. It seems you are willing to die in the belief you are in the right." Smaug replied and despite the situation, the fact that Curumo had apparently either told Smaug about Melinde refusing him or had ranted about it while the dragon was near was pretty hilarious. Several ages later and Curumo still hadn't gotten over the fact that my sister had chosen someone else over him. 

"I am, because I don't regret a single thing about refusing him. Mairon and I genuinely fell in love and I know I have made the right choice when I chose him as my partner. Curumo can whine and complain and rant and twist the story to fit his beliefs and make me out to be the idiot all he likes, it will not change a thing. I love my husband and I will happily show our former colleague who is the idiot here." She said, her fingers starting to wiggle and I noticed. Glancing around, I saw a moving cloud of darkness coming closer without Smaug noticing. Celairel had arrived on her horse and she was getting ready to attack. 

"How very touching. I have never seen two couples this ready to die together, but you have made your choice. After I'm done with you, I will find where you have hidden your children and make sure they will suffer before they join you. I hope you have your said your final words, because your time is up." Smaug stated as his throat lit up and Maitimo pulled me into his arms, trying to shield me from what was coming when two beams of light shot at the dragon.

One beam scorched the scales at his throat and the other destroyed his left eye. He roared in pain as Celairel appeared with her flying horse as she swerved around Smaug's head and tried to stab his other eye, but he moved too fast and she had to break it off as she instead flew in front of us with her sword and powers at the ready. "The rest of us are coming!" She called down and we nodded in understanding as Smaug focused on her and we got ready.

i ordered the soldiers to spread out and they listened as they surrounded the dragon. Smaug shot fire at us, but it got redirected as Irissë and Ohtare joined us on their animals. "Sorry we're late. Our husbands told us to go ahead. Now, let's get this overgrown lizard." Irissë explained as the five of us lined up and shot forwards. As hours passed, the armies of both Dior's realm as well as Ohtare's arrived to help. Irissë explained she had ordered her army to stay at home, both because of their proximity to the Misty Mountains and because by the time they crossed the western part of Middle-Earth, this would hopefully be done.

Over time, I noticed how our attacks had knocked away a couple of scales around his neck. "There, his throat! Make a line of removed scales." I ordered and my sisters immediately focused their attacks. Despite now being half-blind and injured, Smaug still fought back and I quickly learned to ignore the screams of pain as our people burned. For a brief second, I didn't pay attention to my surroundings and Smaug's tail swept down to almost hit me and my eyes widened in fear.

"Amil!" A familiar voice screamed and I was tackled to the ground before it actually hit me. The tail flew over us without harming us and I looked around to see Fearil lying on my back as my other three children and sons-in-law all came running over as well. I asked what they were doing there as I had told them to stay with our people. "But this is our home too! We want to fight too! It is our duty to keep them safe." Fearil protested as she aimed and fired her first arrow.

I sighed at realising there was no arguing with them as we continued to attack with my children actually managing to cut off part of Smaug's tail. How they did that, I honestly don't know as I was focused on Smaug's head, but we knew it had happened a Smaug roared in pain as he wildly moved his tail and took to the sky and we heard screams from where the tail had been. I paled at recognizing Naire's voice as I rushed over to it without even thinking. I heard Maitimo's footsteps behind me at first, before he suddenly stopped. "Celairel, I will need your horse!" He called and Celairel immediately gave it to him

I wasn't paying attention anymore as Melinde, Ingwion and Gwindor and I tore through the ruined streets to see my children next to a ruined building, Fearil, Varno and Arnion huddled around an unconscious Naire, her head and side bleeding. We rushed forward in horror at seeing this and I fell to my knees next to them. "Amil! Help, please." Fearil pleaded and I promised I would, but I needed space. They jumped back with Varno holding Ingwion back just in case.

I quickly poured all my remaining energy into healing my youngest daughter as white magic enveloped my hands and her body. Behind me, I heard Smaug roar in pain as my furious husband slit his throat through the openings we had made, but I kept focusing on my task even as the dragon soon crashed to the ground once he had bled out. The whole ground shook, but I kept my hands steady as my daughter needed me right now and I could not fail her. 

Almost painfully slow, the wound in her side closed and her breathing became easier as I focused on her head now and it soon was healed too. Unable to do anything more as I spent the last of my energy, I collapsed and panted, two warm hands catching me before I hit the ground. Looking up, I saw Maitimo's worried face, completely covered in both dragon blood and his own. "Easy, my heart. We can't have you both unconscious." He whispered as Ingwion was allowed closer and he wasted no time in taking his still unconscious wife in his arms, holding her head and looking her over. 

Behind us, I could hear the others arriving as well, but there was silence as we all waited, almost not daring to breathe. With a tiny groan, Naire slowly opened her eyes just a bit to look into her husband's eyes, but it was enough. "Ingwion?" She breathed and he nodded as he held her even closer to him, tears of relief rolling down while my other children, my sisters and most of their spouses, our soldiers and Maitimo and I all sighed in relief as I leaned against Maitimo.

Smaug was dead and while the damages were huge and there had been casualties which we would mourn and remember and there had been several close calls, our family had survived. Once Ingwion had let Naire go, we went to greet and hug her. Breathing through my nose once i pulled back from Naire and let Fearil hug her, I made a face at the very bad  smell as I looked at my husband. "What? What is it?" He asked and I narrowed my eyes and said one thing

"You're so going to taking a bath when we're home."