7: The Elfling Brigade

The incident at the picnic caused several changes in the way things were done in Lórien. For one thing, no Maia was allowed to appear or disappear if any of the children or, for that matter, if any of the adults who had been at the tournament, were in view. Irmo decided that even for the older elves seeing that might trigger anxiety attacks. So, the Maiar started playing what Olórin called ‘hide and peek’ games with the elflings, checking around hedges to make sure none of the children were around before materializing. Irmo also assigned a Maia to each of the children separately, though these remained unclad.

"Just as a precaution," he told them and the Maiar understood.

There was also a noticeable change in the elflings actions. The two youngest, Veryandur especially, appeared to regress. Eruanna refused to let Elindis out of her sight and the Queen of the Vanyar ended up sharing their pavilion with Eruanna sleeping next to her. Veryandur settled for acting out, even going so far as wetting the bed once. Sorondil and Oromendil showed him no mercy in their ridicule and three Maiar were forced to physically intervene, one of them taking Veryandur to Irmo who kept him from the other children for a couple of days until the ellon began to feel safer.

Sorondil and Oromendil, on the other hand, were acting as if nothing were truly amiss and appeared to be taking things much more calmly than the others.

"Too calmly," Irmo opined to Estë and she agreed.

"I suspect one or the other will suffer a crisis of faith soon," she said.

"If Lindorillë doesn’t beat them to it," her spouse quipped with a sour grin.

Lindorillë in fact was spiraling into a state of despair. The night of the abortive picnic she was found trying to sneak out of Lórien. Ostensibly she was on her way to the privy situated close to the trees on the side opposite the entrance to the grove. Instead, she slipped around and made her way through the woods. Her Maia attendant relayed the information to her Lord asking for instructions.

*Let her go,* Irmo answered. *We’ll see what she’s up to. Perhaps she just wants to explore.*

Lisselindë had her doubts about that but kept her thoughts to herself as she watched her charge crawl across the sward to a yew hedge. The elleth then ran down the sward until it met with another. Lindorillë stopped for a moment or two to get her bearings and to check to see she had not been followed. Lisselindë smiled in amusement at the child’s attempts to remain unobtrusive. The elleth actually flattened herself on the ground and inched back away from the crossway when two Maiar and a Lóriennildo wandered by, deep in discussion. Lisselindë gave her comrades a silent greeting and a warning which the two Maiar acknowledged without breaking stride or seeming to be aware of anything but what the Lóriennildo was telling them.

Lindorillë breathed a sigh of relief when they passed her, never knowing that half of Lórien knew where she was even if they didn’t know where she was heading. Several of Lisselindë’s companions went unclad and stationed themselves around key points of the Woods waiting to see what the elleth would do next. Some were even laying bets as to which direction Lindorillë would take and how far Lord Irmo and Lady Estë would allow her to run before reeling her back in.

Lisselindë merely snorted in wry amusement at that, shaking her head as she watched her charge with deep fondness. She had to admire the elleth for her determination if not for her intelligence. The child obviously was unused to dealing with the Powers and their servants, believing that she went unwatched even in the heart of the Lord of Lórien’s demesne.

Ah... so that’s where she was headed. Lisselindë relayed the information, snickering to herself when she ‘heard’ several of her fellow Maiar groan, knowing they had lost whatever bet they had made with their brethren. Lindorillë, unaware of what was going on around her, set off again, heading in the direction from which the Lóriennildo and the Maiar had come. She then worked her way towards the stables. There were actually elves who worked at the stables, seeing to the horses of visitors as well as the ones belonging to the residents of Lórien. Irmo issued orders when it was obvious where Lindorillë was heading and why and Olórin was sent to keep the stablehands unaware of anything. Several other Maiar were sent to keep the horses themselves quiet.

Lindorillë made her way slowly towards her goal, stopping every few feet to make sure no one was around. She was just young enough and naive enough not to wonder at the ease with which she had reached the stables, unaware that the elves who were still awake and wandering through the groves were being kept out of her way. Most of them were unaware that they were being redirected away from Lindorillë’s path, though one Reborn ellon wondered aloud why he could not reach the lakeshore towards which he was heading even though he could plainly see it. Estë appeared to him then and gently guided him past Lindorillë running down the sward. Neither elf was aware of the other’s existence thanks to the Valië’s intervention.

Finally, Lindorillë reached the stables, actually a series of stables, and she was momentarily at a loss, for she had no idea which building housed the pony which had been lent to her. She was not an expert rider but the journey had not been overlong or strenuous, so she had managed to stay in the saddle that had been provided her due to her inexperience in riding. She thought she could manage without a saddle this time. Now all she had to do was find her pony.

*So which stable is the pony in?* Lisselindë asked Olórin when her fellow Maia greeted her.

Olórin pointed to the third building back from the paddock.*That one,* he said. *The child is going to discover that none of the other stable doors will open for her. She will find her pony quite eager to see her.*

Lisselindë gave the other Maia an amused look. *The pony knows she’s coming?*

*Oh, indeed yes!* Olórin said with a chuckle. *I told the sweet thing myself. She’s all excited but I warned her that she wouldn’t be going far with her mistress.*

*I bet that didn’t sit well with the poor thing,* Lisselindë said with a smile.

*I promised her an extra helping of that mixed grains and molasses treat they all love if she cooperated. Ah... here’s our little adventuress now.*

The two Maiar watched as Lindorillë, obviously becoming frustrated and fearful at not being able to get inside any of the stables, finally came to the third building and pulled on the door, gasping in surprise when it swung open easily. She peered in, then, checking to see that no one was around, stepped inside. The two Maiar did not bother to enter, knowing full well what was going on. In a matter of minutes they saw the elfling pulling on a halter as a sweet bay pony followed her putative mistress towards a mounting block. The pony remained docile as Lindorillë clambered up her back.

"Go, pony," the elleth whispered, kicking her heels ineffectively against the pony’s sides.

The bay gave a soft nicker and set off at a steady pace in the direction she had been commanded by the Maia. It was not the direction Lindorillë was aiming for.

"Wait!" she cried out, quite forgetting her need for silence. "That’s the wrong way!" She pulled on the halter and pointed with a finger. "It’s that way, and go faster."

The pony complied with the second command but not the first. Instead, she headed down the sward back towards the lake as she had been commanded. Lindorillë nearly shrieked with frustration and fear, wondering if she could dismount, but now the pony was trotting at a fast enough clip that the elleth feared getting hurt if she tried to jump off, so she hung on, tears streaming down her face.

Lisselindë and Olórin followed. The guardian Maia looked troubled at the elleth’s plight and her aura darkened somewhat in dismay even though she knew that no real harm would come to the child. Olórin gave her a brief smile, his usual orange-yellow aura going a deep yellow-gold in amusement. *What is it about these Children and stealing horses?* he asked with a laugh. *First Glorfindel, then Alassiel, and now this one. Do you think there’s a pattern?*

The slyness of her companion’s tone forced a laugh out of Lisselindë and her own deep green aura brightened with regained amusement. By now the pony had slowed somewhat as she neared Lórellin, finally coming to a halt before a brightly lit pavillion where Lord Irmo and Lady Estë stood at its entrance waiting. At a silent command from the Vala, both Olórin and Lisselindë clad themselves, being careful to remain out of Lindorillë’s line of sight as they did. The elleth sat upon the pony with tears streaming down her cheeks, a look of defeat in her eyes.

Irmo looked upon the child with grave compassion. "Come down from there, Lindorillë, and join us," he said. "Lisselindë, perhaps you could give our little escapee a hand?"

"Of course, my lord," the Maia responded softly as she approached the pony.

Lindorillë gasped and turned about, noticing the two Maiar for the first time. Lisselindë gave her a sympathetic smile while Olórin held the pony’s halter. Lisselindë lifted the elleth from the pony and put her on the ground to face the two Valar. Irmo looked at Olórin with a smile. "I believe you promised this little one a treat, Olórin."

"Indeed, I did, my lord," Olórin said with a laugh, "and she has well earned it for her obedience." He cast a meaningful look at the elleth, then shook his head before giving the Valar his obeisance and with a soft word led the pony back to her stall. Lindorillë turned her head to watch the pony with deep regret. Then Lisselindë was pushing her gently forward to join the Valar inside the pavilion where they all took seats around a small table. For a long moment no one spoke. Lindorillë, in fact, refused to look at anyone, her expression bleak, her eyes dull.

Irmo and Estë exchanged looks and the Vala sighed, reaching over to where a decanter of fruit juice sat on the table and poured some into a small cup, handing it to the dejected elleth. "Drink this, child," he said not unkindly.

Lindorillë hesitated for a moment but finally took the proffered cup, not bothering to look up. She sipped on the juice — peach, as it turned out; her favorite — and something of her color returned. Only when she had finished the drink and placed the cup on the table did Irmo speak again.

"Do you mind telling us where you hoped to go, child, in the middle of the night with no provisions, not even a cloak?"

"Home," came the whispered answer. "I was going home."

"But you are home, Lindorillë," Estë said firmly. "This is your home for the next year. Best get used to it."

The elleth shook her head, still refusing to look up. "No. I want to go home. I don’t w-want to be h-here," she stammered, beginning to cry. "L-lord Findaráto isn’t here. I don’t want to be here."

"But you are here, child," Irmo said gently. "It is where Lord Findaráto wants you to be, whether he is here with you or not. You and your brother and the other elflings will remain here for the duration of your oaths whether Lord Findaráto returns within that time or not."

The elleth sniffed and wiped a sleeve across her face. Both Estë and Lisselindë produced linen handkerchiefs at the same time much to Irmo’s amusement and Lindorillë’s embarrassment. They waited for her to dry her tears. "Wh-what are you going to do to me?"

"Do to you?" Irmo echoed. "Nothing. The question you should be asking is: What are we going to do with you?"

Lindorillë looked at the Vala with confusion, not sure what he meant. Irmo nodded. "I think I’m going to take a page out of Findaráto’s own book where you are concerned, my dear."

"Wh-which book is that... m-my lord?" the elleth stammered.

"Why the one entitled ‘Creative Punishments for Thralls, Elflings and Other Recalcitrant Underlings’ of course," the Vala said with a laugh. Estë smiled and Lisselindë giggled. Lindorillë just stared at them, wondering what ‘recalcitrant’ meant and if she should be concerned.

****

In the end, the worst that she received was a scolding from both Alassiel and Queen Elindis and then she was put to work washing dishes and scrubbing down tables in the dining pavillion. The other children were also put to work. Eruanna, still not willing to leave Elindis’ side, spent much of her time learning to stitch and was happily planning a small sampler of the stitches the Queen and Alassiel were teaching her. Veryandur returned from Irmo’s care and was given the task of working in one of the herb gardens under the watchful eye of his guardian Maia, learning the names and properties of healing herbs from the elves who tended the gardens. Sorondil and Oromendil, however, were something of an enigma to the Maiar and Irmo. The Vala finally consulted some of the Master Healers, including Meneldil, newly returned from his ‘period of meditation’.

"They are trying to be adult about the situation, my lord," Meneldil said, "believing that they are too... er... grown up to exhibit the types of behavior the other children have shown."

Irmo nodded his head. "I am aware of that, Meneldil," he said without reproof, "but I am at a loss as to what to do with them or for them. The other children seem willing to do what we ask of them, though Lindorillë still needs careful watching, but these two ellyn...." He shook his head. "Though they are outwardly obedient, still...."

"I understand, my lord," the Master Healer said, stroking his chin in thought. "Hmm... they’re children pretending to be adults." He gave his lord a humorous look. "What if we put them with adults pretending to be children?"

Irmo raised an eyebrow at that and then a slow smile crept across his visage. "Meneldil, I think there’s hope for you yet." The Master Healer merely bowed his head, glad that he had finally done something to please his lord.

Thus, Sorondil and Oromendil were taken to visit the Reborn where they were encouraged to play silly games with the elves newly released from Mandos and join in with some of their occupational therapy lessons. Both ellyn were nonplused at first, the sight of one seemingly grown up elf hanging upside down from a tree branch and idly humming a tune to himself bringing both of them to a halt, but when Meneldil, who had offered to supervise the ellyn, explained, they were both willing to ‘play along’, as Oromendil put it.

Lindorillë continued to concern both Irmo and Estë. As the days turned into a week and then nearly two with no word about Findaráto and Glorfindel, the elleth sank deeper into depression, exhibiting a listless resignation that worried Lisselindë and the other Maiar and elves who tried to help her to accept her situation. She barely responded to their attempts to lighten her burden of sorrow and then one morning she refused to respond at all.

When Alassiel sought to waken her, she found the elleth lying on her back staring at the ceiling of the pavillion refusing to acknowledge her presence. When Lisselindë called Lord Irmo, he took one look at the child, grimaced and shook his head. "I need to consult with my brother," he said before fading, leaving the elves looking fearful and the Maiar looking sad.

****

A note on Olórin's and Lisselindë’s aurae: Yellow is full of creative and intellectual energy and symbolizes wisdom, joy and happiness, while Orange is associated with the benign warmth of the sun. Orange-yellow imparts a sense of establishment as well as curiosity and the need to explore new things. Yellow-gold is intimately linked with Divinity.

Green is the color of nature, fertility and life. It symbolizes self-respect and well being. It also means learning, growth and harmony and is the color of the master healer and the life force.