grundyscribbling: Dawn Summers, eyes wide, text "OMG" (buffy - dawn omg)
[personal profile] grundyscribbling
Title: Surprise
Author: Grundy
Rating: FR13
Crossover: LotR/Silmarillion
Summary: Tindomiel's been asked to meet a ship in Alqualondë, but she has no idea why.  
Word Count: 1050
Note: Sorry, no Anariel tonight. At least, not directly...

Tindomiel tried not to let her agitation show as they waited.

Gramma Elwing had sent a note saying she needed to meet this ship. Apparently her sister was sending someone and didn’t trust any random elf to take care of them.

“You don’t suppose she’s found a loophole and is sending one of our nephews or nieces?” Tindomiel asked hopefully.

She felt the sigh before she heard it.

She’d asked that question before. Multiple times. But she honestly couldn’t think who else would need special handling to the point that her sister wouldn’t trust anyone else.

Granddad could have explained it, had he been awake. But he’d been keeping a particular eye on the ship – which lent some weight to Tindomiel’s theory, at least in her mind – and was tired enough that Gramma had chased him to bed with orders to sleep so he didn’t crash Vingilótë tonight.

The ship was finally in sight, but that didn’t make Tindomiel any less impatient for it to dock.

She scanned the decks hopefully, but didn’t see anyone who looked like Estel or Arwen – or anyone else in their family, for that matter.

“Do you see them?” Maeglin asked.

He was sitting on a barrel nearby, sketching out a project he was planning. It was easy for him to work, given he wasn’t burning with curiosity like she was. He’d already said several times he’d be interested if it were her sister, brothers, or grandfather, but he wasn’t much fussed about anyone else in Ennor.

He’d also expressed his doubts that anyone could find a loophole to send another mortal to Aman given there were no more Rings and Ulmo wasn’t sending messengers these days.

“Nooo…”

She was unwilling to admit out loud that she’d seriously gotten her hopes up on meeting another nibling. She knew Arwen had four children now, but the only one she’d seen was Eldarion. Hearing about them in letters was the only time she regretted having to sail with her parents.

It wasn’t until the incoming ship was nearly at the dock that she finally recognized anyone aboard.

Gwaiwen wasn’t anyone she had known well, but Tindomiel still did know her face. Her daughter Tiriel had been a scout – unfortunately, one who become a cautionary tale for Tindomiel and the Glorfindiel when she disappeared several years before Willow’s death. When no body could be found, it was feared she’d been taken alive by orcs in the mountains.  Tindomiel had known enough by then to know that was literally a fate worse than death.

More puzzling were the two young elves Gwaiwen was keeping a sharp eye on.

Tindomiel waited impatiently while the ship docked. Gwaiwen strode down the gangway, shepherding not only the two boys, but a girl small enough to be carried. Tindomiel wondered why the child’s head was covered. By her size, she wasn’t so young that she ought to be sleeping in the middle of the day, particularly not with all this excitement…

“My lady,” Gwaiwen said briskly. “Your sister sends her greetings.”

“Thank you,” Tindomiel said politely. “I did not expect to see you here.”

She hesitated, and Gwaiwen spared her the need to ask.

“The two boys are my grandsons. I will be taking them on to Lórien. But the girl is your charge.”

She glanced around before uncovering the child’s face.

Tindomiel nearly yelped in surprise. Maeglin was at her side instantly.

That’s an orc!

“Elti is three,” Gwaiwen informed her. “And she has been a very brave girl.”

The little orc smiled, showing a startling number of disconcertingly sharp teeth.

“This is Anariel sister?” the child asked.

Her grammar wasn’t quite right, but Tindomiel couldn’t tell if that was because she was a toddler or because Sindarin wasn’t her first language. She could only imagine the reaction that would ensue if the child started babbling in orc-speech.

“Yes, this is Lady Tindomiel,” Gwaiwen answered. “She will look after you and see you to her father’s house.”

“Rivendell here?”

“Yes, the Rivendell here. You’ll be a good girl for her, right?”

That got a toothy smile and an enthusiastic nod.

Tindomiel then found herself accepting an armful of orc toddler, and a letter.

She was tempted to use the power of the Key then and there to ask her sister just what the hell, but Maeglin put a restraining hand on her shoulder.

She’s three, he pointed out quietly. And appears to expect that you will be kind to her.

Tindomiel bit her tongue. He was right that she shouldn’t hurt the child’s feelings.

She would have liked to ask the only other person who seemed to know what was going on a few questions, but Gwaiwen said her goodbyes and hustled the two boys down the dock without delay.

“Do you know those boys, Elti?” Tindomiel asked carefully.

“Uluk and Albuk,” the little girl replied cheerfully.

Those are orc names!

Maeglin’s head whipped around to look for Gwaiwen, but she was already out of sight.

“Are they friends of yours?” Tindomiel said, deciding that they should probably follow Gwaiwen’s good example and make themselves scarce before anyone in sight could ask questions she didn’t have answers for. (“Why the hell is your sister sending orcs to Aman?” came to mind. Then again, Anariel had not only slept with a vampire, she’d been known to make alliances with demons, neither of which was exactly orthodox for a Vampire Slayer.)

She also wasn’t entirely sure she wanted to find out what the general reaction of Alqualondë to the girl would be. While elves were invariably kind to children, she wasn’t too sure that most elves would follow Maeglin’s lead and extend that kindness to orc children.

“They’re my half-brothers,” the little girl replied as if this should have been obvious. “But they have to stay with their grand mother.”

“Oh?” Maeglin asked.

“Everyone said so,” Elti nodded emphatically.

I think we’d better spend the night at my grandparents’ house, she told Maeglin.

She doubted the kid could fully explain what was going on. But her grandfather must know more. And she needed somewhere to read Anariel’s letter in privacy. She wanted the whole story – or at least a damn good summary of it – before she brought a baby orc home to her parents.
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