High Princes of Tirion
by Nemis

My thanks go to a bunch of people, but especially those on LJ who helped out a hand and supported me through possibly the most nerve-wrecking round of exams I’ve ever gone through, and everyone who took the time to leave a review last chapter.

Great thanks to Sphinx for the bouncy plotbunnies, and to Earonn, Ellie and Adele for reminding me to at least write something. ;)

*chocolate elfies for everyone* :D

Chapter Thirty-Seven     Celebrations?

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Early mornings in Fingolfin’s house were characteristically quiet, and this morning was no exception. Fingolfin cherished the peacefulness which was in such a stark contrast with the hectic goings-on of the Council sessions. But that peacefulness did not feel complete today. Walking through the marble hallways, not having changed into the robes he typically wore during the day, Fingolfin found himself preoccupied.

It was by one of the large windows which let in the bright rays of Anar, caring little for the worldly concerns of the former high king, that he joined Anaïre, letting his hands, which he had held clasped behind his back, slide to his sides. She smiled up at him and caught one of those hands, not shifting her gaze to the outside again but meeting his eyes intently.

‘So what will you do?’

‘It depends,’ he said slowly. ‘That Elernil came to me was sensible, I can perhaps succeed where he cannot. I am arrogant enough to believe my name still means something in Tirion society. But the only way to take care of the matter behind closed doors is to involve Ereinion. Aewendîs is his cousin.’

Anaïre shook her head.

‘Instead of his parents?’

Fingolfin smiled, grey eyes thoughtful, observing how the trees outside filtered the light and created a play of shadow and brightness on the floors.

‘This is a matter between two people, not two families. However much I trust Fingon, he would approach the matter differently from Ereinion; speak to the young lady’s parents rather than to her personally. And the fewer people that know of this the better. If the answer given by the young lady is not satisfactory to Elernil’s expectations, she must in no way be limited in her choices. If she wishes her betrothal to proceed, none must know. And Ereinion cares much for Elernil. He will help, if he can.’

‘How does Elernil?’ Anaïre asked, exacting some pressure on her husband’s hand.

‘He has slept a little. I left him dozing off just now. Though I do not doubt his nerves will get the better of him again in not too long a while.’

‘And how does my lord Fingolfin?’

He smiled warmly.

‘He hopes he can be content with an early night, this eve, finding this matter resolved.’

Rising, Anaïre kissed his cheek.

‘I shall go see Ereinion myself.’

‘Yes,’ Fingolfin whispered, ‘perhaps it would be best to move swiftly in this matter.’

‘Be well, husband.’

Caressing her cheek with the tips of his fingers he nodded.

‘Blessings be with you, Anaïre.’

-~~*~~-

Much to her surprise, the lady Anaïre found her grandson up and awake already, rummaging through some papers in one of the drawers of his desk, certainly not working, but there nevertheless. He appeared as surprised to find her there.

‘Daernaneth? What can I do for you at this early hour?’

‘Do your grandfather and one of your cousins a great favour in bringing Aewendîs to his halls.’

Frowning, Ereinion left the paper-filled drawer and looked up at her. He remained silent, but something resembling understanding flitted across his face.

‘Elernil?’

Anaïre nodded almost imperceptibly.

Sitting back in his chair Ereinion appeared momentarily caught up in contemplation.

‘I would have seen it more clearly, I would have taken care of this if he had only let me.’

‘He came to Fingolfin late last evening. They spoke for much of the night. Have you any knowledge on the matter?’

‘No, I did not wish to interfere,’ he answered, looking at her again. ‘I thought they had come to an understanding between them when her betrothal was announced. I take it I was mistaken?’

‘Elernil says they have not spoken, had no opportunity to, and that they will not allow him to see her now.’

‘And there shall be no opportunity for them to speak if the matter is left for too long,’ he nodded. ‘I shall go at once. He will not make the same mistake I made before. I will not allow it.’

Rising, a new kind of urgency about him, he nevertheless halted a moment.

Anaïre looked at the balcony doors only now, and saw Ereinion extending a hand to Celebriníel, who must have been there all the time.

‘I shall find you later, it will not be long.’

The young lady nodded silently and allowed him to go. Anaïre extended an arm to her as she heard her grandson descend the stairway.

‘Come. No matter how his errand will go, his grandfather’s halls will be his final destination. You will meet him there.’

-~~*~~-

The horses in the stables had been surprised to see him, Ereinion thought. He was rarely in such a hurry as to travel on horseback within the city, and they had no doubt grown accustomed to their life of leisure. But speed was of the essence now. Or perhaps it was not, and he just wished the matter to be resolved one way or another as soon as it was possible.

Aewendîs was the great-granddaughter of his mother’s sister, and when he was younger he had spent quite some time at his aunt and uncle’s house, where a large part of the family assembled often, resulting in a friendly acquaintance with the young elf lady. She was only some years younger than he was, and never before had either of them held back of speaking directly of something to the other. Had their friendship been less close, he would have thought twice about what he was about to do. The whole situation could very possible turn into a quagmire of hurt family relations in the blink of an eye.

When he settled in Tirion upon taking up his duties in the Council, his mother’s family had already been present daily in his father’s halls, and that presence had by and by transferred to include his halls also. Aewendîs and Elernil had met each other in those surroundings, and Ereinion had understood they had become close friends.

The exact definition of this closeness now appeared to be becoming increasingly important.

The house of his mother’s family was on the other side of the city, but it did not take him a very long time to reach it. Once he had arrived, he permitted someone to stable his horse and entered into the bustle of the house; most of the family had assembled here in preparation of the celebrations of the coming days. In the end, it proved easy enough to avoid anyone who would inquire after the reason of his presence; the family was overly occupied with preparations and appeared relieved he kept to merely raising a hand in greeting from across a hallway.

As expected, the garden was quieter, except for the talking and chuckling of several young ladies, among them indeed the girl he had come to find. When she noticed him, Aewendîs rose immediately and came to meet him.

‘Ereinion! I did not think to see you until tomorrow.’

He smiled and kissed her cheek in greeting as she did the same.

‘There was something I wished to ask of you, and it was a rather urgent matter.’

‘It must be urgent if you leave that lady everyone speaks of to her own devices,’ she said teasingly. ‘It is quite the subject of discussion everywhere. They say yours shall be the next betrothal ceremony Tirion will celebrate.’

Ereinion found himself too preoccupied with present matters to smile whole-heartedly on the subject.

‘Your own betrothal, Aewendîs, are you certain?’

She averted her gaze to a nearby rosebush a moment but then looked up again with a smile.

‘Ardhion is a good person.’

‘You love him?’

Avoiding his eyes again, Aewendîs did not look up with the reassuring smile of before.

‘He loves me, and I hold him dear.’

With a nod Ereinion stared in front of him. He had practised his own kind of self-denial long enough to recognise it in another.

‘In Middle-earth, I loved someone once. I did not tell her, and when my duties took me away from her for several years I returned to find her married to another.’

‘I regret to hear that,’ she told him softly.

‘No need to regret it, it is in the past. Only,’ he said quietly, realising very well their conversation was being observed closely by those who were in the garden with them, even if they did not hear much of what was being exchanged, ‘I would not wish to see you make a similar mistake.’

Meeting Aewendîs’s eyes, he saw the surprise. ‘Elernil has attempted to speak to you himself,’ he added, ‘but he could not accomplish to be allowed to see you.’

Shaking her head, Aewendîs released his arm and turned away. Averting her face might have shielded her tears from his view, but it was not difficult to distinguish them in her voice when she spoke.

‘Where is he now?’

‘At my grandfather’s halls. Will you speak with him?’

Remaining as she was for a time, Aewendîs finally faced him again.

‘I will.’ She met his eyes. ‘If you promise not to mention this to my parents.’

He nodded resolutely.

‘I will not, you have my word.’

‘Then please take me to him.’

As the two of them made for the stables, Ereinion wondered whether no one would stop them, if only to ask where they were going. In the end everyone was either too caught up in whatever they were doing, or they trusted him enough to feel the need to ask. A pang of regret shot through him as he offered Aewendîs a hand to mount. He had met Ardhion and liked him. His behaviour towards the young man was unfair. As he mounted himself, he considered Aewendîs’s regrets and doubts had to be far greater than his.

The street they travelled to reach Fingolfin’s halls was a straight and broad one, one of the largest and busiest of the city, running through much of Tirion. They were forced to move at a trot for fear of running someone over, but they were not delayed much.

Whether or not Fingolfin or Anaïre had asked their attendants to keep an eye out for early arrivals, as soon as they entered through the great iron gates that led to the house there were people at hand to take their horses, and they were able to enter without delay. Making for his grandfather’s chambers in the western wing of the house, Ereinion found Fingolfin already waiting.

‘I wish to have a word with Elernil first,’ he told Fingolfin, who did not object. Looking back at Aewendîs he reached out to exert some reassuring pressure on her hand and then entered, finding Elernil on tenterhooks. At his entrance the young elf rose to his feet at once.

‘Ereinion, I...’

He shook his head.

‘No, do not speak, I know. I only wish to ask you if you love the lady. Because if you do not, you run the risk of breaking her heart, and I do not intend to allow that, whatever family connection there is between us. I hold her very dear, and by doing this for you her well-being has become my responsibility.’

‘I love her,’ Elernil whispered, his voice becoming stronger, more emphatic. ‘And I was a fool to let it come to this.’

Watching the other, Ereinion finally smiled weakly.

‘We all think we have time, and then discover that sometimes not even the elves have the luxury of forever.’

Then he turned, walking to the door and discovering Aewendîs nearby. He could not be certain how much she had heard, but none of Elernil’s words were likely to hurt her more than she had been hurt already. She met his eyes and then slipped past him, inside, after which he closed the doors.

Nearing his grandfather they both looked back at the closed doors and then turned towards the hallway, walking down it unhurriedly.

‘What do you believe shall happen now?’ Fingolfin asked, his eyes on the shining floor beneath their feet.

‘The betrothal ceremony shall have to be cancelled. Feelings shall be hurt, people might not speak to each other for a little while. But if those two love each other very few would hold it against either of them. Aewendîs’s betrothal would be a mistake if she loved another.’

‘How can you be so certain she will not turn Elernil down?’

‘Oh, she might turn him down yet,’ Ereinion shrugged. ‘But she will not betroth herself to Ardhion if she does, I think. Give her time, give them both time.’

Halting by the entrance to one of the inner courtyards, Ereinion took Fingolfin’s extended hand with a nod. There was little need for words, but Fingolfin made an almost indiscernible gesture for his grandson to enter the courtyard. Smiling knowingly, Ereinion left the elf lord to await the outcome of what now took place behind those closed doors alone.

The weather had heated up considerably since the early morning, and it was likely today would soon turn too warm to do anything but laze about. Enjoying the sun on his face now that other matters were beyond his control, Ereinion slowly descended the steps into the courtyard and found Celebriníel walking in the shadowy regions beneath a covered passage on the other side.

Planning his path so it would meet with hers he neared her quietly, only being discovered when mere steps removed. The beam on her face made it clear she had no objection to his joining her.

‘You have cleared up the problem?’

He shook his head as he folded his arms behind his back.

‘Only Elernil and Aewendîs can clear anything up. But I helped a little to get them together to do so.’

Celebriníel smiled.

‘I believe he cares for her.’

‘And she for him, I dare say,’ Ereinion replied.

‘If that is truly so, why did they not speak it? Why allow it to come to this?’

‘Why not confess love and be done with it, betrothal, marriage, everything?’ Ereinion asked while observing her.

She nodded.

‘Nothing restricts either of them.’

The unspoken words clearly hung in the air, that many things restricted them, but instead of regretting that like she appeared to, Ereinion smiled and touched her nose with his index finger. Celebriníel frowned at him but the smile on her lips overruled it entirely.

‘Yes?’

‘Nothing,’ he said, in such a way that she could hardly take it as the truth.

‘Please, you have a grin plastered across your face which hardly suggests nothing.’

He moved to halt her steps and shook his head a little.

‘It is nothing. Just something you once said to me.’

‘Oh?’

‘The very first time we met again at Imloth, during the festivities, remember?’

She nodded slowly, sharing in his smile as he stepped closer.

‘I took refuge on your arm.’

‘You did. And you said to me you would wait an age to see how you thought about love, and certainly had no wish to betroth yourself to anyone anytime soon.’

‘If you had not been there then I would most likely still be saying the same thing. And I was babbling at that particular occasion.’

Ereinion smiled forgivingly.

‘The best of us do that at times.’

‘I find that hard to believe,’ Celebriníel stated firmly, glancing at him mischievously.

‘I assure you it is true,’ Ereinion said emphatically, reacting on her eyes glimmering in silent amusement. ‘I would find it very easy to babble about the weather, or Tirion orchards and cattle, just so you would allow me to remain here, by your side.’

‘You are a fool, Ereinion,’ she told him, shaking her head in amusement.

‘Ah, but you suffer me gladly,’ he whispered as he bent down to kiss her, bringing up a hand to touch her face.

‘You are an overconfident fool too,’ she whispered against his lips in correction, making him laugh.

‘You know me far too well, my lady,’ he admitted playfully while catching her hand. ‘Is it your wish to remain here until we hear of Elernil or do we go and leave everything to run its own course?’

Celebriníel smiled.

‘Where would we go?’

‘We could go into the City and watch the preparations for the celebrations. Though that would be a rather heartless thing to do, knowing what we know.’

Breathing deeply, Celebriníel walked over to one of the benches which stood against the wall of the covered outside edge of the courtyard, sitting down.

‘Everything shall have to be called off, I imagine?’

‘Very likely,’ he replied, taking a seat next to her.

‘Such a waste,’ she said. ‘It was to be such a magnificent occasion.’

‘It does not happen often,’ Ereinion reassured her, catching her hand. ‘And the inhabitants of Tirion will find other matters to celebrate, I assure you.’

‘Will it mean we shall have to go back to Imloth, though?’ she asked. ‘It is likely to insult one family or another.’

‘I do not know,’ Ereinion answered. ‘Usually it depends on who takes offence, or whether it is taken at all. If Ardhion bears love for Aewendîs he will do all to spare her further pain.’

‘Will our betrothal celebrations be like these?’

He caught her hand and entwined his fingers with hers, concentrating on the action intensely.

‘Only if you wish them to be.’

With a groan she rose to her feet and walked towards the archway which would lead back into the bright courtyard, placing both her hands on either side of the entrance.

‘It is all so imposing, and I hardly know anyone here in Tirion.’

Rising, Ereinion walked towards her and placed his arms around her from behind, embracing her firmly, pressing his lips against her neck.

‘We could always elope.’

She smiled and pulled his arms more securely around her.

‘Do not tempt me.’

He smiled and brought his lips closer to her ear.

‘Or we could lure everyone to my house under pretence of a family meeting and simply exchange rings. Tell only a few people who need to know, your parents and mine, and forget about daunting week-long celebrations.’

She looked up at him over her shoulder.

‘You are tempting me.’

He chuckled and turned her around.

‘Only a little. If you have no wish for such things, we do not need them. But you must realise you rob me from the opportunity to show to all Tirion how lovely you are.’

‘That is not convincing me, you are aware?’

He grinned at her mischievously.

‘No, but I am working on better arguments.’

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Aewendîs: aewen: plural of bird, and dîs: bride

Ardhion: ardh: realm, and ion: son, scion, male

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