Mandos's Embrace Continuation

A/N: This chapter is in first-person perspective, as if you are sitting there actually listening to her. I like the way this came out, so, enjoy!

Chapter Nine

My parents had been gone for about three centuries. The sea had called them home. A century later my brother Círdan left for Eryn Lasgalen, he wanted to join the royal guard. Needless to say, I was lonely. A bored elf, with no one around to keep them in line..I got into trouble. A good deal of trouble. That's when Lord Celeborn came up with the idea. The former ambassador to Khazad-dum, for it was not called Moria until many years after it's fall, had recently quit after only two years, claiming he could not stand being underground with those 'thrice-damned, stubborn, Dwarves'.

Summer was waning and the leaves were beginning to turn when I received the summons. Celeborn explained his idea to me, I must admit I was a little wary at first, but accepted. A week later, Haldir escorted me to the edge of the forest. A party of six dwarves were waiting for us. Being barely into my sixth century of life, I hadn't really seen a dwarf up close, let alone six of them! I must have been staring because Haldir nudged me. Apparently things had been settled for me to accompany them. Haldir handed me my pack and embraced me. "Take care of yourself, alright?"

"I will Haldir, farewell." He kissed me on the forehead and dissappeared back into the trees.

"Come on elf!" A gruff voice called out. It was the apparent leader of the group. His bushy grey bread almost completely obscured his mouth.

I soon learned very few of the dwarves in the group understood much Sindarin. All except one, actually. Her name was Tanja. I didn't believe it when she told me she was a female. With the bristly brown beard and her stocky frame, she didn't look very feminine. We talked the entire way to Khazad-dum, which was much shorter of a journey than I had anticipated. She took the time to explain things to me as we walked. By the time we reached the doorway down into the mines, we were fastly becoming friends.

"Elf!" It was the grey-bearded one again. I turned to him, but instead he spoke to Tanja, then gestured at me.

"Ye're supposed to go meet King Durin today. I can take you if you're ready. The others wish to get back to their forges."

I nodded and inclined my head in respect to the rest of the group, receiving a grumble from a couple. "I am ready if you are."

"This way." She started off down a passageway. I think that's when it dawned on me, that my life had just taken a very drastic turn. Instead of being surrounded by huge mallorn trees and the life of the forest, I was now in a sea of hewn stone and grumpy dwarves.

The next corner we rounded took my breath away. Tanja turned to me with a smug grin. "Welcome to Dwarrowdelf, City of the Dwarves, Azalea of Lorien. Come, Durin is waiting." I had expected it to be dark and cramped instead of spacious and filled with light and splendor. Dwarves moved all about, many laden with tools or goods fresh from the forges. I was quite dazzled by what I saw. Tanja tugged at my sleeve. "Ye have all the time ye want later to investigate about. Right now we must be going."

Reluctantly I followed her through the corridors. "Tanja?" She turned to look at me. "Is there any way I could get a map or something? I feel I'm going to have a dreadful time finding my way around." She chuckled.

"A map? No. We do not make maps of our own domains. Our secrecy is prized. Although I can help show ye around whenever ye need. The corridors may seem confusing at first, but really they are quite well designed and make sense after awhile." She stopped in front of a huge carved door. "I can take ye no farther. I will stay here until ye come back out."

I was quite nervous, but pushed open the heavy doors and stepped inside. The room was full of light. A dais with a throne on it stood at the far end. A gruff voice, from behind the throne, caught me off guard. I didn't understand the steady flow of Khudzul, but the gist of it didn't seem too pleasant. Finally after receiving no answer, a head poked itself around the large stone chair. Bushy hair and a thick beard, deeply brown to look almost like polished mahogany, almost obscured a pair of bright blue eyes that widened in suprise at the sight of me.

I bowed my head, placing my hand over my heart. "Greetings Master Dwarf. I am Azalea of Lothlorien."

He stared at me for a moment, then broke out in a wide grin. "'Tis a pleasure to meet you, lassie! I am Durin IV, King and Lord of Khazad-dum. I had heard you were supposed to arrive today. Sit, sit." He waved to the steps as he took a seat on the large throne. "Would you care for something to drink before we get down to business?"

I seated myself comfortably on the steps. "That would be fine, thank you."

He barked out something and a dwarf came from one of the side doors with a tray. He handed us each a mug of ale and hurried back out. That was my first taste of ale. Durin laughed heartily at the face I made, but over the course of our ensuing conversation, I suppose I developed a taste for it. I found Durin to be quite pleasant, almost contagiously jolly in fact. He explained how I was to be present during all meetings, mostly just to make foreign delegations more comfortable. Although here were no open hostilities between our races, or the race of men either, an elf being present for them seemed to keep the tension to bare minimums.

After what must have been a couple of hours, he dimissed me to get some rest and familiarize myself with the layout of the mines. Tanja had kept her word and stood as I exited Durin's throne room. She stepped closer to me and sniffed, then she beamed. "Ye did well elf. Come, let's get something to eat. Supper is being served in the Great Hall." At my confused look, she laughed heartily. "Ye drank with him. That's something the other elf would'na do." At that, I began to laugh as well.

"To tell you the truth, Tanja. I think I've aquired a bit of a taste for it as well." We made our way to the dining hall and I had my first experience of dining with dwarves. An hour later, Tanja and I emerged from the dining hall covered in an array of vegetables, sauces and a sticky syrup.

"I can't believe ye started a food fight!" She chuckled, picking a lettuce leaf from my hair.

"Well he started it by flinging gravy on me."

"He's just a messy eater is all."

"Now he's alot messier."

Our friendship grew stronger as the weeks passed. I was quite proud of myself. I could now make it from my quarters, to Durin's office, the dining hall, and Tanja's rooms. I had also discovered a slender passage, not nearly wide enough for a dwarf, that lead me to the surface, where I could watch the sun set over the boughs of Lorien.

A rough knock at my door alerted me that Tanja had arrived, she was going to show me the forges. "Come in."

She walked in and stared at me approvingly. I had adopted braiding my hair during the days. Some of the corridors were a bit short for one of my height and I kept getting my hair caught on patches of rough stone. "Hope ye're ready for a good long walk. The forges have been moved to a deeper level recently." I nodded. I had soon after coming found that my softer boots left my feet slightly sore after long walks so I had also adopted a pair of tougher dwarven-made ones. I didn't need the flexibility in the mines as much as I needed the support. Little things about myself had been changing I suppose.

A delegation from Lorien was due the next week to check in on me as well as to barter for goods with the dwarves. Durin was quite pleased with how I had adjusted as well as with my growing diplomatic skills. "Zallie?"

"Hmm?" I looked down at my best friend.

"We're here." She pushed open a wide door and I stared out across the forges. The cavern was huge and swelteringly hot with the sound of hammer on anvil ringing almost musically. Dwarves hard at work were making all manner of things, one group were busy on a growing pile of halberds, several were making swords, axes, shields. Smiths were bent over glowing pieces of armor, from gauntlets to breastplates.

I felt her tugging at my sleeve. "Come, I'll show you where I work." She lead me through the throng to a second door. She pushed it open and the air felt much cooler immediately. There were many fewer dwarves in this room. "Only those with the most delicate of hands make it in here. These are the jewlery smiths, as well as those involved in the making of mails." She finally stopped at an empty forge. "This is mine. I am one of the honored to make things that get given as gifts and are bartered for by your people." She stepped around and pulled out a small velvet pouch. "Ye have proven yourself to be strong in how you have adapted to life here. I want you to have this." She pressed it into my hand.

I gasped as I opened it and emptied it out into my hand. A finely woven mithril chain lay in the palm of my hand. "It is truly beautiful. Are you sure you want to give this to me?"

"Aye. It is very stong, yet delicate, just like my crazy elf pal." She motioned for me to kneel down and clapsed it around my neck.

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"I still wear it to this day." Azalea looked up at Glorfindel. He had been listening intently to her the entire time. She reached under her tunic and pulled out the silvery chain.

He had seen it on her that previous night and had been appreciative of it's craftmanship. He reached out gently and fingered it. "It is indeed some of the very finest work I have ever seen." He poured them each another glass of wine. Her tale so far had been quite enthralling. "Do continue, melamin. You have quite captured me with this." He smiled at her and received one in return, she took a sip from her glass, before she continued on with her tale.

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That day, she would also lead me to another forge, one her brother worked at. "I have seen the thing ye have the nerve to call a weapon." I looked down to the slender rapier at my side. It was of elven make and quite effective, at least on the training fields. "If ye're gonna be living with dwarves ye need to be able to fight with dwarves."

I had to admit, she was right. "But how can I? Many of your weapons are far too heavy for my slender arms."

"They just are not made by the right smiths. My brother is skilled in enchanted weapons. I have, behind ye're back," she grinned sheepishly up at me. " commissioned a weapon for ye." Her brother, Thorian, was hard at work at his forge when we arrived. "Aye! We're here to get the weapon!" He appeared to not hear. She picked up a hammer and flung it at his helm. It hit with a resounding clang.

Several curse words flew out, and with a smirk, I recognized a few of them. Tanja had taught me a good deal of her language and I could communicate a few things. Mostly I understood the way dwarves showed displeasure. He turned and glared at the offending hammer, but his frown became a wide grin as he spotted his sister. "'Bout time ye showed up! I've been waiting for almost an age to see how this fits her hands!" He scurried over to a cabinet and pulled out a shining hammer embedded with a handful of blue sapphires. He came over to me. "Hold out ye're hands elf, yer touch will activate the enchantment."

I reached out and he placed the hammer in my hands. It was heavy at first, but gradually lightened until I could wield it easily and without strain. "It's beautiful."

"Aye. The enchanment it holds will change as yer aptitude and strength increase. It only feels light to yer hands, but it can really pack a punch. Here, ye'll need this as well." He handed me a leather sling that would strap to my back and hold the hammer.

I knelt down next to him and planted a kiss on the visible part of his cheek. "Many thanks Master Weapon-Crafter. I am in your debt, as well as your sister's" He blushed scarlet, then grumbled and returned to his work.

I was sent out with the party of dwarves to greet the arrivals from Lothlorien. Even cloaked and hooded, I recognized the forms of Celeborn and Rumil. I was shocked that Celeborn himself had come. The elves in the group seemed shocked by my changed appearance. "Mae govannen Lord Celeborn." I placed my hand over my heart in the customary show of respect. "King Durin is awaiting you. Come with me please." As I led them through the well-lit tunnels and into the realm of Dwarrowdelf I could feel their eyes on my back. As we passed through, Celeborn and Rumil stepped up to walk beside me.

"I trust you are doing well here?" Celeborn asked quietly.

"Oh aye. I have become quite accustomed to my position here." I assured him.

"Your appearance has changed drastically in the past four months." Rumil ventured.

"I have to adopt what is practical here. It is the only way to avoid maddening pain in my feet as well as leaving strands of hair attached to some of the frightfully low ceilings. Which by the way, this next corridor is one of the ones in question, so you might want to pull up your hoods and duck down a bit."

I gave a sharp knock on the council room's door before entering. Durin was seated at the head of the huge stone table. He smiled warmly at Celeborn. "Why if it isn't the Lord of the Golden Wood himself! Mae govannen Lord Celeborn!" His use of the traditional greeting didn't go unnoticed. Celborn returned his warm smile and took his seat at the foot of the table, Rumil on his right. The other elves seated themselves as well, and I took up my seat next to Nain, the next in line for rule of Khazad­-dum.

The meeting lasted nearly three hours, but at the end all parties were satisfied. Afterwards I sat in with the elves to eat. My new appearance seemed to disquiet several of them, whispers that I was turning into a dwarf caught my ears. I merely laughed. Celeborn and Rumil soon engaged me into telling them all I had learned about Khazad-dum. It was well into the evening that I finally pulled myself from conversation with Celeborn and Rumil, giving them a letter to send to Círdan.

I paused at the door. Turning back I told them to come to my rooms just before dawn. They looked puzzled but agreed. I decided to show them my hidden view before they departed to reassure them that Lorien was forever in my eyes.

They arrived perfectly on time, waking me from a light reverie. "Rumil, Lord Celeborn. I am glad you came. Come, I have something I wish to show you before you leave." I lead them through the passageway and out onto the slight overhang. A large rock provided just enough space for us to sit.

"This is truly a majestic view." Celeborn replied in awe as dusty pink light crept over the boughs of his home.

"It keeps me forever close to the place that holds my heart." We sat in silence after that, watching the sunrise. With each subsequent visit, whether it be Haldir, Orophin, or Rumil, watching the sunrise became customary. Thus time passed and I was happy.

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Azalea stopped. "I think I shall stop there. It is a good place to stop and it is getting late, I tire." Glorfindel looked over at her and noted she did indeed look weary. He reached up ans stroked her cheek.

"Aye, we can continue this tomorrow night, perhaps?" She nodded. "Good, then I shall retire and allow you your rest." He made to stand, but she pulled at his sleeve.

"Stay here, please? Reliving all this.." She trailed off. He could see the conflict in her eyes, admiting a weakness was not apparently easy for her.

He smiled reassuringly. "If that is your wish." She nodded and he helped her up and guided her to bed, tucking her in gently before crawling in himself. He pulled her close to him, and her rhythmic breathing soon told him she was deeply asleep. She had told him much so far, with her body language as well as her words. He wondered what the next night's telling would involve. Slowly, he drifted off into reverie as well, holding Azalea close.