The Risingsun of Lindon

A: N/ well…come on! You know I did not invent Middle Earth and its habitants! (Though I wish I did) so here! Not Mine! (Except for the Lindon family, of course)





The counsel of Elrond



“Pray repeat that again…”



Arwen threw her head back and laughed.



“You are 2158 years old, my dear Risingsun, and that is according to last winter”



It seemed hard to eat anything at all at breakfast due to the importance of the people who sat across, beside and around me, but it was even more difficult to chew on anything once interesting and useful facts concerning ‘my’ life were laid before me on the dining table.



“You are not jesting, are you?” I asked as a frown of dawning realization sliced my brows.



She shook her dark head and smiled.



“Why should I jest? You were born in the year 860 of the third age, and that, as

I have already said, makes you 2158 years old.”



I sighed and looked away. My wandering gaze fell upon a company of dwarves who were eagerly chatting with two hobbits, whom I have immediately recognized as Frodo and Bilbo Baggins.



“Arwen…great peril is hung upon Middle Earth” I whispered, not taking my eyes off Frodo “And the time of the Firstborn is waning”.



Evenstar touched my shoulder and pressed her lips to my ear, whispering urgently: “I am frightened Risingsun, I fear…” she paused “I fear for him…”



I leaned my head against her own, knowing to whom she referred.



“Do not be, Estel is strong and wise, he shall know what to do when the time comes”



A soft kiss that was planted on my cheek caused me to smile.



“Hanta lle Arlome…” (Thank you Arlome…) came the gentle whisper.



“You are welcome, my friend” I said and rose from the table, as my eyes caught the nod that Elrond used as a sign to let me know that I must follow him.



“It is time I leave, Arwen, I shall see you once all is over”



She placed her hand on her chest and bowed her head as did I amilemiled.



“Peace Lady Risingsun” she said and turned to an Elf maiden who claimed her attention.



I turned to make my way to the porch where the counsel was held when I had fearfully realized that I had no idea where it was. I lifted my gaze to scan the crowd but Master Elrond was nowhere to be seen.

I frowned as a tightening feeling in my chest, otherwise known as panic, threatened to rip my heart apart, when a gentle but steady hand came to rest upon my shoulder.



“A! My Lady Arlome, do you require guidance around Imladris?” asked the amused, music like voice of a male that stood behind me, patiently awaiting my response.



I turned around and nearly dropped to my knees at the sight that greeted me.



He was tall and beautiful. Eyes grey, and Hair of shining gold, his raiment was white and a light woven from the silver strands of the stars and the moon illuminated his fair form and features.

It seemed that I forgot how to breathe as I took this mesmerizing sight into myself.



“Lord Glorfindel…” I whispered, not taking my eyes of the beauty.



His laughter reminded me of the ringing of bells. Such ringing that you can hear emerging from the walls of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, on a Sunday morning, if you had the luck and wealth to live, or just be, in the old city of Jerusalem at such a time.



“Indeed my Lady, it is I” he said taking my hand and leading me towards the exit of the dining hall “But come, the counsel must now begin, and they cannot start without us”



“My Lord” I said, regaining a bit of ‘my’ courteous Elvish Manners “I name you my savior for if you would not have come to my aid I would have never found my way out of the hall”



He laughed again and turned to me, his golden locks shimmering in the sunlight as if they were the very rays that belonged to the beautiful Anar.



“A! Then thy savior I shall be, Lady of Lindon, whenever thou forgets where the porch is set”



I joined in his laughter and allowed him to lead me further on, until I could see a circle of great chairs on a sunlit balcony above my head. The Golden Lord turned to me and smiled. He was indeed a marvel to look upon. Both mighty and beautiful, wise but yet so joyful and kind, young of face, but old in the reckoning of the world.

He reached for my shoulders and drew a hood upon my head, concealing my face from all eyes.



“Come” he said, as mirth lighted his features “ let us not ruin our surprise for them”



As Glorfindel beckoned me to sit by his side, I noted that there were still three more chairs left empty. I sat down between my savior and another raven haired Elven Lord, who leaned towards me and whisper in my ear: “It is a pleasure having you in Imladris once more, Lady Risingsun, how are you faring this fine morning, are you well?”



I turned to him and tried to smile, for the only thing visible in my face were my lips and with a note of concern in my voice I said that I was indeed well.



“And how are you my Lord…-“



Glorfindel who had noticed that I was facing a dead end, came to my aid and ced hed his throat, leaning towards the raven haired Elf himself.



“Erestor, tell me, have you set your eyes upon the manuscript that I have brought from Lothlorien already?”



To that the head counselor of Imladris titled his head and leaned towards Glorfindel, causing me to sit back in my chair and relax.



“A! Yes, yes! It is indeed a very interesting manuscript, I must add. Have you noticed that it is written in primitive Quenya?” he asked eagerly, examining the Elf Lord’s eyes. The other one nodded and turned to look at Elrond for a moment, before returning his gaze to the counselor.



“Aye, indeed. But have you tried-“



I do not know whether Erestor had indeed tried to do something for in that very instant, a Wizard and two hobbits that have arrived and were shown to their places interrupted the conversation between the two Elves. Erestor frowned and returned to his seat, straightening up and sighing.



“Hanta lle, Heru’nin “ (thank you my Lord) I said under my breath, turning slightly to the Golden one.



Glorfindel nodded and smiled, casting his gaze upon the arrivals.



Elrond observed all the seated before him and cleared his throat, motioning towards one of the hobbits.



“Here my friends is Frodo of the Shire…”



And so on and on and on it went until lunchtime and poor Bilbo Baggins was already loosing his nerves, and so was I.



After the tale of Mithrandir about the treachery of Saruman an argument had awoken among the Elf Lords and the wizard as to what shall be done with the ring.

Some had said that it must be sent to Tom Bombadil, others claimed that the ring must be thrown into the sea. But none, however, spoke of precious Mount Doom as the answer to all our prayers.

So in that very moment I have decided that I had retreated into the shadows for far too long and had raised ‘my’ clear, melodic voice in an outraged protest.



“Can you not see?” I cried, leaning forward in my chair “The ring must be sent to Mount Doom, where the fires that had bore it shall consume its evilness”



All the tur turned to me and each member of the secret counsel fell silent. I straightened up and placed a hand upon my knee, for a mental support.



“We must destroy the ring, and it can only be done in the place where it was made. We must send it into the fire”



To that the man named Boromir sneered and titled his head.



“And who be thee, pray answer, to tell us what shall be done with the ring, what is thy name and who art thou?”



Glndelndel, who had been looking at me for the whole time, coughed quietly and murmured in my ear:” take off the hood”.



I heaved and reluctantly pulled the fabric down, revealing my face to the entire world. The whole counsel held their breath all of a sudden, causing me to blush and cast my eyes to the ground.



“I am…” I sighed and frowned “I am Arlome Risingsun”



Boromir arched an outraged eyebrow and gestured with his hand for me to continue.



“And that is…” he said shrugging.



It was my turn to arch my eyebrows and whisper inwardly.



‘You ask me?’



Elrond cleared his throat and beckoned me to come to his side.



My footsteps were not heard as I approached the Lore Master. The only sound that was piercing the reigning silence was my heart that was beating so fast that I was sure it would soon break free from my chest and flee from this place forever, leaving me bleeding on the floor.



“This, my friends, is Arlome Risingsun, daughter of Lintecamion, Lord of Lindon” he said and placed his hand on my shoulder. Again the whole counsel (mostly the Elvish part actually) stopped their breath with a sharp intake of air, why were they breathing so loud??



But one Elf was not sighing and exhaling loudly every time my name was mentioned, for he had already stopped breathing at the point that I took off my hood and yet failed to regain his breath.



Legolas Greenleaf was glued to his chair.



He was staring at me as if he had seen one of the Valar. His eyes seemed to be fixed upon my forehead, only leaving the sight of it to travel across my body as he frowned and gaped slightly in unbelievable curiosity and awe.



The clear voice of Master Elrond brought us back to Arda and made me turn to face the Lord of Imladris.



“This Elf Lady is very wise and powerful” he said looking at Boromir “she has the mighty gift of foresight and that is why none here must doubt her words of foreboding. It shall be done as Lady Risingsun had said. The ring will be taken into the fire.”



A silence fell during which I pondered the whole affair of ‘me’ being wise, powerful and foresighted.



So…that explains it all! That is how I knew that the Lord of Imladris wanted to see me! And well…I am a person gifted with foresight. The holy foresight of the Fellowship of the Rings, The Two Towers and The Return Of The King, of course.



I mentally ted Ted Tolkien and praised him in my heart.



And so the silence continued to reign upon that fair day and the troubled counsel. The bell for lunch rang, but yet none dared to move. I turned to look at Frodo, who was mysteriously looking back at me. With a slight gesture of my hand towards his direction, I smiled reassuringly and gave him a little nod of respect. His face seemed to lighten as he bowed back and stood up.



“I will take the Ring” he said in a shaky voice “though I do not know the way…”





***



“My Lord Glorfindel, I shall steal the company of this wonderful Lady, if you do not mind”



Arwen had caught up with us as we rose to leave the dining hall. She herself was absent during the lunch, and so was Aragorn.

Glorfindel smiled and bowed.



“Of course Evenstar. Now if you two Ladies will excuse me I shall engage myself in an argument about primitive Quenya with the Lord Erestor” he said, winked at us turnturned to the head counselor who was following, determined to finish the conversation about the manuscript that was so rudely interrupted.



“Come, walk with me Risingsun as we speak” she said and led me to the gardens.



We sat by the bank of a little river that was playfully crossing the valley, separating one green side from the other. Arwen took off her shoes and dipped her legs in the cool water, encouraging me to do the same. The weather was fine, though it was already the end of October, and the fair trees swayed silently in their waltz with the wind.



The Lady of Imladris smiled seductively as she made wee circles in the water with her snow like toes “there are a lot of tales concerning your life, would you like to hear some?”.



I arched an eyebrow and grinned, ignoring the tempting offer she had made.



“What of your brethren, Undomiel, I did not see them in the counsel, but I have heard that they have returned yester eve”



Arwen scanned me knowingly and chuckled.



“What shall I take from it, Risingsun, has the desire to lay again eyes upon my brother Elladan burns bright within you?



I frowned, as I did not altogether liked the tone of her voice.



“What words, Evenstar! What have I done to deserve such cruel scorn? I wish to see your brother Elladan as much as I wish to see his twin”



Arwen’s expression of face became softer and her hand came to rest upon my shoulder, gently brushing my skin through the dress.



“I beg your pardon Arlome, I have quite forgotten about yesterday. I did not mean to offend you, I just…well, I wanted to tease you a bit” she whispered regretfully.



“No Harm is done Arwen, but pray tell me, why such words are meant to stir my heart?”



She dropped her hand and put on her shoes, before standing up.



“Once, about five centuries ago, Elladan wedded you, after four hundred years of courting. But Mithrandir, as a messenger of the Valar, annulled your wedlock after a century.”



I gazed at her unbelievably on hearing this.



“But how could it be? And why?”



Arwen shook her head and shrugged.



“As I have said, Arlome, many are the tales that revolve around you. But this one is not for me to tell. Come, I heard that Atar and Mithrandir were planning to pay you a visit.”



And so I have followed her in much distress and confusion to the doors of my chamber, where with a soft kiss and gentle words of parting she bid me to be at peace and rest.

I watched as the tail of her fair sky blue dress disappeared from my sight and turned to enter the room.



“A Valar…” I sighed and closed the wooden doors behind, hiding myself from all eyes.