the trouble with love

Chapter thirty one Another scare

Rumil was walking aimlessly through the corridors of The Last Homely House and he turned corner after corner. He had been walking all day and was not going to stop any time soon. Suddenly his path was blocked and he fall to the floor.

“Careful, young one.” the enchanting voice from above said.

But Rumil was unaffected by it. He merely heard the words ‘young one’ and they fuelled his anger. He threw away the offered hand and got to his feet on his own. He glared at the other. “I am not a young one” He spit out the words and brushed past the other in total anger.

Thranduil stared him after, totally bedazzled by Rumil’s actions, but put it to the results of the festivities and continued his way to Elrond’s room. He was tired of waiting in his room, he was tired of walking around and he was tired of searching the Half-Elf, so he went to Elrond’s room and would wait there for the other to arrive.

He made sure no one saw him enter the room and carefully closed the door. Seeing unused candles on the desk he grinned and quickly set to work to make the room look romantic. He didn’t get very far for the door was opened and revealed a highly surprised Elrond.

“Thranduil?” Elrond had not expected him here, but it did save him the trouble of finding him. He had come here to change his robes, he doubted he was going to have time before dinner.

Thranduil tried to hide the candles. Now that his plan had been cut short he didn’t want Elrond to know.

Elrond completely missed the movement and quickly covered the distance. He was surprised when Thranduil did not act to his embrace. The kiss was passionate enough but Elrond didn’t feel any arms encircling him. He broke the kiss and looked at his lover questioningly.

Thranduil blushed as he retrieved the candles. “They were on your desk and I thought…” He couldn’t finish his sentence for Elrond had pulled him into another hot kiss. The action startled Thranduil and he dropped the candles, making them clatter to the floor.

Elrond once more broke the kiss and looked over the blond’s shoulder. “Pity. They would have enchanted the room. But I need your help Thranduil. I was going to find after changing, but you have made that unnecessary.”

“You’re welcome. What is it? Not more trouble is it?” He guided Elrond to the couch. He did not want to have a serious conversation standing up. The temptation was too great.

Elrond shook his head. “No, not more trouble. I hope.”

Thranduil raised his eyebrows. Peredhil elves were the only ones capable of raising just one eyebrow and at times like this it showed.

Elrond hurried to explain. “Well, you knew about Elvil running away, right?”

“Aye, he had lost his memory and clings to Elladan more than ever, they say.”

“Yes, well, what you don’t know is that while he had no memory he claimed to have another name. It was a mystery and I thought Melpomean might be able to solve it.”

Thranduil nodded. He had heard many tales about Elrond’s secretary and had always wondered why he was still a secretary, but not anymore. Thanks to Galadriel they now knew. “That’s a good plan, Elrond, and even if he is unable to figure it out, he will have something to do. Being confined to bed must drive him insane.”

“It did and I already asked him. I have seen him a while back. Oh, Thranduil, you should have seen the room, it was completely covered in books and scrolls and papers and everything. There was hardly any room to sit.” Elrond’s eyes lit up as he spoke about it and Thranduil noticed. “And you know what he said?”

“Not until you tell me, Elrond.”

“He said the medallion, Elvil’s medallion, might be some magic thing. No, what he really thinks is that Elvil is placed under some sort of spell and that the medallion protects him from it.”

Thranduil’s curiosity was peeked. He knew a thing or two about magic. He had to in order to prt hit his realm during the dark years. He did not have a magic ring to help do it, so he had to find other ways. Besides having the best soldiers working for him. The Galadhrim carried the name, but they had seen little of the darkness that had once covered his realm. And most of his soldiers have. Spiders, orcs, trolls, dragons, basically anything that was evil once journeyed or resided in Mirkwood.
“Can I perhaps see it?”

“You will have to ask Elvil. It’s around his neck again. And now comes the really weird stuff. First he claimed it wasn’t his but the moment I put it around his neck his memory came back and he instantly put the medallion on his chest, under the clothes.”
randranduil thought he had heard of something like this before but he wasn’t sure. He had too little to go on. “Can you tell me more?” Elrond looked questioningly, he already had told everything he knew. “About the medallion. What does it look like?”

“Quit normal actually. Flat, round, green with a leaf upfront and there is writing on the side, but we can’t read it. Melpomean tried to decipher it, but he only was able to get two names: Silmaïthil and Silmëninquitálcar.” He stopped when he heard Thranduil’s sharp intake. Did the blond knew that name?

“Elrond, are you sure?”

“Aye. Why?”

Thranduil stood and started pacing. Whenever he had to do some serious thinking he paced about. Back in Mirkwood he had a special room to do it. It had been a request from the workmen. His pacing wore out the floor so fast they had to renew it way to often. And since it was easier to renew one room a bit more than the whole palace Thranduil now had his own pacing-room. But there was no such room here so he just paced where he was. In front of Elrond.

“Elrond, When Elvil was without his medallion, did anything happen?”

“What do you want to hear? That he did and didn’t remember everything? I really don’t know.”

“Elrond, think, it’s important. Did he say anything that was weird or maybe even impossible?”

Thranduil sounded so serious Elrond actually made his memory work. But so much had happened in so little time it was hard to remember properly. “AAAAGG.” Elrond scowled after some thinking which had only lead to an headache. “Maybe I begin to get the memory of a human.”

Seeing how Elrond got frustrated Thranduil decided to let it go, for now. “It’s not such a big issue Elrond. Maybe if we go find Elvil you’ll remember. Do you know where he is.”

“Yeah just outside. Horse riding, or learning how to.” Now Elrond remembered something and he cleared, like sun breaking trough after a day rain. “He said he owned a horse. Elvil. A mare. And that he could ride. He told Elladan in the stables. Oh, and if he slept he heard voices. I’m sorry but that is all I got out of him as well.”

Thranduil grabbed Elrond’s wrists and tagged him along. “Thranduil, what…” “I want to see that medallion. And you’re coming with me.” Elrond had little choice but to run after Thranduil as the blond king marched away.

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“Just rub it in three times a day for three days and your muscles won’t trouble you after that.”

Ecthelion gratefully accepted the phial Lomiol handed him. His actions when he had saved Elvil’s life had strained his muscles. At first he hadn’t even noticed and then he tried to make it lessen in hot water, but it hadn’t gone away. So he now had gone to the Healing House to get some medicine.

Lomiol had quickly decided what needed to be done and made the concoction Ecthelion now held. He saw Ecthelion looked over his shoulder to the occupied bed. “No use talking to him. Nothing works. He sits and stares. Nothing more and nothing less. I don’t even know if he knows where he is or if he even sees and hears us. He has not moved a muscle since he’s been here.”

“But there must be a reason.”

“Your guess is as good as mine.”

Ecthelion decided to give it a go. He sat down next to the limp body, his own back to the gardens. “Hi there, Sealbeth, isn’t it? I am Ecthelion. I’ve been here a couple of days now, but I still get lost. I wonder if I will ever learn my way. I came here to get some salve for my muscle. Apparently I overdid it when I killed those orcs.”

Lomiol stood and watched, doubting Ecthelion would have more luck. But soon his mouth was wide open as he saw Sealbeth move his head towards Ecthelion, who continued to talk. If Sealbeth wanted to him to stop, he had to tell him.

“Ha, I see you remember me. I must say Imladris is a really lovely place, even this boring Healing House. I think Wing would be more appropriate, don’t you? But why are you here anyway? Certainly they wouldn’t keep you here because you refuse to speak. And that doesn’t matter, I can talk enough for two or three if I have to. Do I have to?”

Ecthelion saw a glitter appear in the other’s yellow-brown eyes. It told him the other still had a sense of humour, if nothing else. About to continue to talk he swallowed his words back in.

Sealbeth had opened his own to speak but erupted in a laughter when he saw Ecthelion almost choking himself by swallowing his words. “You won’t be able to talk if you choke.”

“Quit right, quit right. Is there anything you wish to talk about? I am known for my listening, you know.”

“Really? I thought it was your mouth.” Came the immediate reply.

“Ah, a battle of wits is it? A verbal joust. I must warn you my record is not yet broken and I have not yet been beaten.”

“There’s a first time for everything.”

“And exceptions make the rule, I suppose. Just bear in mind that if, and I said -if-, you win, it is because I graciously decide to lose. But I have not yet decided.”

“Well, that remains to be seen. Maybe it is I that will let you win.”

“Ah, you think you can best me then?”

“I know I can and AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!” Behind Ecthelion stood a sinister looking elf, cloaked and hooded, but Sealbeth had recognized him. He had hoped never to see him again.

Ecthelion was on his feet immediately and told Lomiol to get help. Acting on instinct he stood in between Sealbeth and the dark figure. When swift feet where heard approaching the cloaked figure made himself scarce. Ecthelion wanted to follow, but he could not leave Sealbeth alone and he did not have a weapon. ‘mental note to me: always wear your sword’

Glorfindel was the first to enter, followed by several other Imladris warriors. When he heard what had happened he made a quick link with the elf seen on Elvil’s balcony. He told his men to search the premises and he asked Ecthelion to help him get Sealbeth, who was now shaking like a leaf, to Elrond’s study. Lomiol was asked to go find Elrond and the twins, while someone else had to go find Celeborn and Galadriel. There was something about this situation Glorfindel did not like and he wanted it solved. And fast.

End chapter thirty one
TBC

Notes:
I hope nobody will shoot me for making Thranduil a bit of a sorcerer, but I needed it and I doubt he would have mind some magic to keep the forces of Darkness at bay.

Translations:
Silmaïthil is Elvil’s real name. For those who have forgotten by now: Elvil means shooting star and Silmaïthil means silver moon.

Silmëninquitálcar is a name I combined out of the following Quenya words:
Silmë which means starlight
Alcar or Alcarë meaning radiant
Ninquita- is an adjective meaning shining white.
So the meaning of the name is Shining white starlight that is radiant.
I had three ways of writing the name:
Silmëninquitálcar
Silmëninquita’lcar
Silmëninquitaalcar
But the first was the best looking so I went for that.

A little note: the observant reader will no doubt have figured out some details of Elvil’s mystery themselves in this chapter. I am not going to tell you yet, but you might be right.

Another note I have to place under the translations.
I grow tired of constantly adding entire glossaries. So I stop doing it. Rest assured that I do my utter best to make Proper Quenya. If you would still want the complete lists, mail me and you’ll get it.