Notes: This was written with Fiondil’s full permission. This story is also dedicated to Fiondil for all of the ways in which he has inspired other writers with his love for canon and his contributions to fanon. Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but sometimes inspiration of others can be just as rewarding. I hope this is the case here. Sometimes it is fun to play in Tolkien’s sandbox with other people who don't get to make any money from it either :-)

Thanks to Fiondil for the beta, for the wonderful fodder for the imagination he provided, and for his permission to post this story. I also forgive him for Ingwë's reaction to this conversation as depicted in chapter 138 of Elf. LOL!

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“…and this is one of the differences between our respective clans. When do your ellyn here in Aman ever have to prove themselves?”

The three kings of Aman along with their heirs and a few of the other delegates from Tol Eressëa all looked up at that comment and quietly moved closer to the group of ladies to better hear their discussion.

“They have proven their leadership skills and their wisdom often enough,” Queen Eärwen reproached. “The delegates from Tol Eressëa are here in Aman are they not? Here to try to establish a government for themselves with the advice and aide of ellyn from Aman.”

“Yes, yes, I know,” the Nandorin delegate dismissed with a wave of her hand. “But when have they ever had to prove themselves physically? For example, our Nandorin chieftains are skilled at arms and at hunting. We ellith know without a doubt that they can defend us and provide for us. They are wise of heart and cunning of mind, but they are also strong of body as well. I just do not see this in most of the ellyn of Aman.”

“Ingwë and Olwë proved themselves worthy enough when they led us on the dangerous path here from Cuiviénen. We have no need of might of arms to defend us here in Aman, thereby freeing us for more intellectual pursuits and the chance to better ourselves in fëa at the feet of the Valar,” Queen Elindis of the Vanyar countered with a huff.

The kings and other Amanians nodded approvingly among themselves at the comments of their queens.

“I realize this, but merely pursuing growth of the mind softens the body. With the exception of the Reborn who died in Endórë, from all that I have seen since coming to the mainland, your Telerin mariners are strong of mind and body,” (Queen Lirillë of the Teleri drew herself up proudly at this statement) “but the rest of the ellyn are all pretty faces with elaborate words in fancy robes. When the Final War comes, your abundance of beauty, knowledge, and lore will be of little use, and you will be slaughtered.”

The Tol Eressëan ellyn, particularly those of the warrior’s guild, smirked arrogantly at the Amanians and took appreciative sips of wine.

“Oh, I beg to differ,” Lady Findis, sister of the Noldóran, replied irritably.

“As do I,” Queen Eärwen agreed clearly affronted. “You did not see our ellyn when they were training for the War of Wrath – the war they fought in Endórë to free your ever so physically endowed people from Morgoth.”

“There were training camps set up all over Aman so our ellyn could be close to their families to continue to help out during their training period,” Queen Elindis reminisced proudly. “I can assure you those ellyn in their leather and armor would impress with their fine forms of hröa even one as discriminating as yourself.” She lifted her eyebrows suggestively as she sipped her wine.

“In fact, our ellyn were so impressive during their ten years of training,” Queen Eärwen continued, “that we ‘overly intellectual’ ellith came up with categories for describing the prowess and power we so appreciatively observed in our ellyn.”

The Amanian ellyn stopped mid-drink amidst their own pompous indulgence in their beverages.

“Categories?” Prince Ingwion mouthed silently to the others, as he warily lowered his glass.

King Arafinwë shrugged his shoulders, shaking his head in denial of any knowledge of this.

“Really,” the Nandorin delegate asked, her interest obviously peaked. “Pray, do explain.”

“Well,” one of the other ladies joined in the conversation. “Because we had the delightful opportunity of watching our ellyn practice the arts of war every day, we used the days of the week to describe their skills and prowess. An ellyn was Elenya if he was excellent with a bright sword with a swordsman’s build to match. He was Anarya if his countenance shone with the deadly light of battle in his eyes. Isilya if he was very nice to watch from behind.”

The Noldorin ladies nodded vigorously in agreement amidst snickers from the other ellith.

“Aldúya if he was excellent with a bow and arrow with that fine archer’s form,” the first lady continued. “Menelya if he exhibited the shear brute strength of body to load and operate the catapults, launching all manner of interesting things into the heavens. And last and, ah… most appreciated… Valanya for those who encompass all of the traits of the others. Need we say more?”

There was much giggling and the Nandorin delegate smiled approvingly, clearly amused. “I look forward to seeing your ellyn in action so I can judge by these standards myself.”

“We Vanyar have our own set of standards for judging, so perhaps you should hear ours before you decide in which perspective you would view warriors. Although we also appreciate our ellyn for their positive attributes, we are less generous in our praise for we are not blind to the negative attributes as our Noldorin counterparts sometimes are wont to be,” Queen Elindis admonished.

Ingwë and the other Vanyarin ellyn blanched at those words while Arafinwë and Olwë consolingly patted the Ingaran on the shoulders. The rest of the ellyn remained silent, but the wary expressions on their faces betrayed their commiseration.

Queen Elindis’ daughter continued for her amillë. “Our observations about the ellyn are based on comparisons to the Valar.”

Ingwion swore vilely under his breath at this, bemoaning, “This is so unfair. We do not stand a chance.” He remained uncomforted by the unanimous agreement of those around him.

“We call a warrior Námo if he is not very good at the arts of war and most likely will be visiting him soon.”

The ellith snickered while the ellyn scowled.

“We call him Manwë if he bears a most commanding presence. We call him Ulmo if one could drown in his eyes and rugged handsomeness…”

“Or just drown him,” one of the Telerin ladies added with a sneer.

“Yes, quite,” the Vanyarin princess laughed with the others. “Aulë is an ellyn with powerful arms and upper torso. Tulkas, my personal favorite,” she paused and licked her lips appreciatively, “is an excellent swordsman with that nice full body build to match. Oromë is an excellent archer and spearman with strong upper body suppleness. And lastly, Irmo dreams of being a hero, but, alas, that is likely to be all that he will ever do.”

“My, you are harsh,” Queen Eärwen commented.

“We prefer ‘exacting’. After all, we dwell at the feet of the Valar always and that does color how we measure everything,” Queen Elindis explained reasonably.

“You have said that you have confidence in King Ingwë and King Olwë, and I do not question that. But do tell me how you judge the Noldorin king by these standards?” The Nandorin delegate asked.

The Noldorin king attempted to nonchalantly drink his wine as if what the ellith were about to say would not bother him at all while the other ellyn silently admired his courage in the face of certain humiliation.

“King Arafinwë…,” one of the ladies began.

“Valanya!” Many of the Amanian ladies exclaimed at the same time, inciting snickers and much ribbing among the ellyn.

“I disagree,” the first Noldorin lady said, sufficiently silencing both groups. “I would definitely call him Isilya. You see, we do not follow our king merely for his abundant wisdom and fine leadership skills… if you know what I mean.”

The giggles and comments of full agreement erupting from the ladies sufficiently covered the sounds of coughing as a violent spasm seized King Arafinwë when he choked on his drink. The remaining kings snorted good-naturedly while the rest of the ellyn looked on the Noldóran admiringly.

When the pink-cheeked ladies finally calmed, fanning themselves with their hands, Queen Lirillë declared, “I cannot wait for the next tournament so I can try out these interesting evaluation methods.”

The Nandorin delegate smiled as a servant refilled her glass. “It is most unfortunate that all of our ellyn have not yet begun training for the Final War.  It would be a delight to travel amongst the different realms to see all of the ellyn and join Queen Lirillë in evaluating them.”

“In fact, ladies, let us take this a step further,” Queen Eärwen proposed, tapping a forefinger to her lips thoughtfully. “If each realm did have training camps set up which operated continually as opposed to the sparse training sessions of late, then that would give us all an excuse to travel among the different realms, evaluating the ellyn and discussing our findings afterward.”

“If a market were set up near each of the training areas, then we could also explore the wares of each realm while we… ah… enjoyed the ‘local scenery’ and tasted the local wines,” an ellith from Tol Eressëa added.

“Ah, I like this idea!” Queen Elindis exclaimed, clapping her hands in delight. “We must explore all of these possibilities for trade, commerce, and cultural appreciation. When this Council about the leadership of Tol Eressëa ends, I invite each delegation to have one or two ladies remain behind for an extra day and we will discuss this further.”

Turning to the Nandorin delegate, the High Queen gave her a profound curtsey. “Thank you so very much, my lady, for your questions and observations for they inadvertently have guided us to a very plausible solution to the trade disputes and lack of cultural understanding among the different clans and cultures.”

The other queens, princesses, and ladies curtsied to the blushing Nandoriel as well, offering their heart-felt agreement.

As the ladies dispersed, the eavesdropping ellyn stared dumbfounded in disbelief, for not only had the ellith proposed a viable solution to many of the problems they broached, but they did so at the ellyn’s expense.

****

ellith – females

ellyn – males

Nandoriel – daughter of the Nandor

DAYS OF THE WEEK and their meanings:

1. Elenya: Star-day

2. Anarya: Sun-day

3. Isilya: Moon-day

4. Aldúya: Two Trees-day

5. Menelya: Heavens-day

6. Valanya: Powers-day