35: Misdirection

An hour after seeing his gwedyr off, Finrod was sitting in his pavilion going over some notes Irmo had given him about the extent of the marring Aman had suffered after Melkor had fled. Much of it was actually new to him, for of course at the time he had been too busy preparing to leave Aman and had paid little attention to anything else. He was reading about the events that had occurred after the Noldor had left, appalled at what had happened to his loved ones who had remained behind, supposedly safe. He was making a notation on the vellum as a reminder to ask for more details from his atar at the earliest opportunity when Melian suddenly appeared, looking distraught.

"My lady!" he cried. "What is amiss? The children...?"

"They are well," Melian answered, "but others are not. It seems half the Reborn have become upset over something. Lord Irmo bid me to ask you to come help calm them."

"Do you know what has set them off?" Finrod asked even as he rose from his chair and reached for his harp.

"No," Melian answered with a shake of her head. "I only know that for no particular reason several of them started screaming and running about as if in terror."

"Are any of them exhibiting signs of the blood-trance?" he asked worriedly as they left the grove but when Melian indicated that they were not he relaxed somewhat. Still, it was strange that so many Reborn would become fractious all at once. He wondered aloud if more was going on than they suspected.

Melian gave him a strange look. "Lord Irmo would know better than I," she said and then there was no more time for talk for suddenly five elves came towards them screaming and looking as if all of Melkor’s minions were after them. They didn’t even seem to notice Finrod or Melian standing in their path and the two had to step hurriedly aside before they were bowled over. Finrod gave Melian a surprised look.

"You go after them, I’ll see if I can find Lord Irmo," he said and the Maia agreed.

Moving further into the area of Lórien reserved for the Reborn, Finrod gaped at the sight of nearly a score of elves running hither and yon with Maiar chasing after them. Even when they were caught they continued screaming and fighting. Vaguely, Finrod noticed that the three Maiar who had left with his gwedyr as escort were there as well, chasing after terror-stricken elves. He had no time to wonder about his gwedyr for Lord Irmo appeared before him, looking grim.

"As I said, the Maiar were just for show."

Finrod gave the Vala a disbelieving look. "You knew this would happen?"

"This? No, but I knew something was going to happen that would force me to call off the escort."

"And you think Glorfindel is responsible?"

Irmo nodded and Finrod stared at the mayhem around him as elves continued to scream and run about with Maiar and Lóriennildi chasing after them.

"I’m going to kill him," he muttered darkly and Irmo gave him a thin smile.

"You’ll have to get in line, I’m afraid," he retorted and Finrod could only snort in grim amusement.

"So are they really out of control or just pretending?" he asked as he swept a hand to encompass the Reborn elves still acting out.

Irmo smiled more genuinely. "Let us see." With that he began to sing in a clear voice that, while low, seemed to echo throughout all of Lórien. It was a lullaby, one that every Reborn knew and they began to quiet down almost at once. Finrod removed the covering from his harp and began to play on it even as the Vala continued singing. Soon, there was only the sound of Irmo’s voice and Finrod’s harp as one by one the Reborn drifted off into sleep, some more reluctantly than others. Finally, Irmo brought the lullaby to an end and Finrod stilled his fingers on the harpstrings, glancing around him. Everywhere he looked he saw Maiar gently taking somnolent elves into their arms and moving away, presumably to return them to their respective groves. Lóriennildi were standing around looking bemused, as if unsure what they should do next. Irmo gave them a smile.

"All is well now," he told them. "Continue with your duties. If there are any Reborn still unattended, stay with them until one of my People comes."

The healers all bowed and went their separate ways while Finrod remained by Irmo’s side. He gave the Vala a shrewd look. "So they are not returning to Tirion as they promised."

Irmo gave him a shake of his head. "No. They’re actually heading in the opposite direction. Glorfindel is determined to see Ingwion."

"You have forbidden that meeting," Finrod stated. "Will you stop them?"

"No, I will not," came the bald reply.

"But if...."

"Let us just say that Glorfindel has our blessing to at least try to reach Ingwion. Whether he succeeds is another matter entirely."

Finrod shook his head. "Now I’m confused."

"What is the easiest way to get a child to do what you want?" Irmo asked.

Finrod gave him a puzzled look but as he thought about it, his expression cleared. "You tell him just the opposite."

Irmo nodded. "Glorfindel wished to see Ingwion, and we Valar are actually curious as to why, but if we had acquiesced to his request immediately he might have become suspicious, though there would have been no duplicity on our part. Glorfindel has become... wary where we are concerned. It was decided to encourage him to go to Ingwion by forbidding him to go at all."

"If he ever finds out he’s been outsmarted...." Finrod couldn’t help saying with a knowing smile.

Irmo laughed. "Well, I won’t tell him if you don’t," he said with a wink.

Finrod joined the Vala in laughter. "I just hope they don’t get into trouble along the way and whatever do I tell the escort when they get here?"

"Ah... well, as to that, I sent one of my People to intercept the escort and inform them that I would see to Beleg and Sador’s safe return to Tirion in due time. Your atar should be receiving my message just about now."

Finrod nodded. "I’m still going to kill him... all three of them in fact."

Irmo just smiled, knowing full well that the ellon was only half-serious in his threat.

****

The storm lasted for what seemed like forever, but was only for about an hour or so. The three elves were rather miserable and their horses were no better off. As the rain slackened the ellyn started wringing the water from their cloaks. They were relatively dry underneath, but the ground was soggy and the mist that shrouded them was damp and cold.

"I doubt we could start a fire in all this wetness," Beleg said with a frown.

"I don’t want to stay here at any rate," Sador said. "I don’t like the feel of this place."

Glorfindel nodded. "I agree. Let’s see if we can find a way out of here."

"Which direction though?" Beleg asked. "This damnable mist makes it hard to see anything."

"Now that the rain has stopped I can hear what sounds like water running in that direction," Sador said, pointing to his right. "If it’s a stream we could follow it out of the valley."

"Good idea," Glorfindel said. With that, the three of them led their horses towards what they assumed was a stream, carefully picking their way around boulders. The rushing noise of the water grew louder but they never seemed to come to it. The mist made it impossible for them to see more than a few inches past their noses and when the sun, which they couldn’t see, set behind the hills, it became totally dark and they found themselves traveling blind.

"This is no good," Glorfindel shouted in frustration above the sound of what they realized had to be a waterfall. "I can’t see my hand in front of my face any more!"

"We’ll have to camp here, then," Beleg shouted back. "Let’s move away from the falls though. I don’t fancy having to shout all night."

The other two agreed and, turning their horses around, they headed back the way they had come, or so they assumed. At least, after a few tense minutes as they attempted to avoid the boulders that suddenly loomed before them, the noise of the falls lessened and they were able to hear themselves think again, as Sador put it.

"This looks like as good a place to camp as any," Glorfindel finally said. "There appear to be some flat rocks here we can sit on. Let the horses fend for themselves tonight. Hopefully with daylight we’ll have better luck getting out of here."

The other two sighed, not liking the idea of having to spend the night in the vale but there was no other choice. Soon the horses were divested of their saddlebags and allowed to forage while the elves found a couple of large flat rocks on which to perch. Sador and Beleg shared the larger of the rocks while Glorfindel was hunched on the smaller one facing them. They didn’t even try to start a fire, nor were any of them interested in eating, so they spent the night huddled miserably under their cloaks, listening to the sound of water dripping off branches, each lost in his own thoughts.

****

Morning came, though with the mist still surrounding them they could not see the sun. The elves rose from their cold beds feeling sore and hungry and frustrated. Whistling for the horses they were relieved to see that their mounts had not wandered too far from them and soon they were loading their bags and setting off again, determined to find a way out of the valley.

"If we can find the stream we can follow it," Glorfindel said. "It’s bound to lead out of the valley."

"We can only hope," Beleg replied darkly.

"Let’s just find it," Sador said firmly.

So they listened for the sound of the water, gauging whether they were getting closer or not by the increase in volume. At one point it seemed as if they were moving away from it and they stopped to retrace their path as best they could until the noise not only got louder but became quite deafening. Without warning the mist seemed to part and they suddenly discovered they were standing on the banks of a large cauldron into which a mighty waterfall cascaded. They stared up at it in awe and for several minutes none of them could tear their eyes away from the sight.

Finally, though, Glorfindel shook himself and motioned to the other two to follow him and the three made their way around the pool to where a stream rushed away. They found the going a bit easier with a definite route to follow but the ever encroaching mist made it impossible for them to determine their direction so it was a complete shock when they realized that the sound of the falls which had been receding was now increasing and before they knew it they were back at the pool gazing up at the falls again.

"Th-that’s impossible!" Sador exclaimed as he stared upward in total disbelief.

Neither Glorfindel nor Beleg bothered to reply to that rather obvious statement.

"So now what do we do?" Sador then demanded but to that question the other two had no answer as they continued to stare up at the falls, rooted in rising dread that perhaps there was no escape from the vale for them.

****

As soon as Ingwion made his choice, he found the mysterious elf had disappeared, but then he saw Aldundil and Vorondil coming through the mist towards him and their reunion was a glad one.

"Are you two all right?" he asked, giving them both a hug.

Aldundil nodded. "Well enough. I’m sorry about all this...."

Ingwion waved a hand in dismissal. "Let’s get away from here first. We can exchange tales later."

The others agreed and in a short while they were making their way out of the vale where they found that it was well past noon. Towards the northwest they saw dark clouds mounting and they elected to head cross country to where their camp lay rather than follow the trail back, hoping to beat the storm they could see coming. They made it back to their camp after a couple of hours, grateful that the storm had not reached them as yet. Ingwion and Aldundil quickly set up the tent that they had not bothered with previously while Vorondil prepared a hot meal. He was ladling out the stew for them just as the first drops of rain fell. They grabbed their bowls and fled to the tent, eating their meal in silence, then pushing their bowls outside to be washed by the rain.

For a while they sat looking out as the rain turned everything grey. The sun set somewhere behind the clouds and it grew darker. Only the oil lamp swinging from the central post illuminated their surroundings. Ingwion sighed and cast a wry glance at his companions. "Lady Nienna did say she couldn’t guarantee it wouldn’t rain."

Aldundil gave him a grin back. "At least we got back in time and should be dry enough if the storm doesn’t last all night."

"I hate camping in the rain," Vorondil muttered, frowning. "Why does it always rain whenever I go camping?"

His elders looked upon him with amusement. "How many times have you actually gone camping, Vorondil?" Ingwion asked.

Vorondil blushed slightly. "This is only my second time," he said.

"Well, I’m sure it won’t always rain when you go camping in the future," Ingwion replied. "In the meantime, why don’t we share our stories about what happened in the vale? Who wants to go first?"

For a moment no one spoke and then Aldundil sighed. "Since all this is my fault, I might as well start."

"How is this your fault?" Ingwion asked in surprise.

"It just is," Aldundil replied and then proceeded to tell them about his encounter with the strange elf and their conversation.

"Hey! That’s the same elf who found me," Vorondil exclaimed.

"And me," Ingwion said, looking thoughtful.

Aldundil gave them both a concerned look. "Did he... demand anything from you?"

Ingwion nodded and after a momentary hesitation Vorondil did as well. "He said I had to make a choice," Ingwion said. "Life or death." He cast them both a deprecating grin. "I chose life."

"S-so did I," Vorondil whispered, looking a little frightened.

Aldundil put a comforting arm around the ellon’s shoulders and hugged him. "As did I," he said, giving his son an encouraging smile. "It seems we all had to choose one or the other, though I suspect for different reasons."

Ingwion nodded. "So I think as well."

"D-do you think that elf was really an elf?" Vorondil asked, confusion written all over him.

His atar shrugged, as did Ingwion. "I think perhaps not," Aldundil answered. "I suspect that he might have been a Maia, perhaps one of Lady Nienna’s People."

"Or even one of the Valar," Ingwion added.

Vorondil shivered with more than the encroaching cold at that thought and Aldundil wrapped his cloak and arms around his son to give him what warmth he could while the rain continued to fall.

****

The next morning dawned fair and the three elves climbed out of their tent in better spirits than when they had climbed in. They had talked long into the night, comparing notes of their strange encounters, coming to the conclusion that each of them had needed to face the realities of their particular situation and make a choice, to live or to die.

"I indeed did die in that vale," Aldundil had said at the last. "I died to the past and to the guilt to which I have clung all these centuries since the War. In doing so I find that I now can face whatever the future brings with greater equanimity and with clearer vision."

Ingwion had nodded. "I think that is true for all of us."

Now with the morning Ingwion suggested they start gathering up their supplies and return to Lady Nienna’s.

"How do we know we can go back?" Vorondil asked him. "Aren’t we supposed to wait until someone tells us?"

"What do you suggest we do instead?" Ingwion replied. "Surely the purpose of this outing has been achieved, wouldn’t you say?"

"With the Valar, I wouldn’t bet on it," Aldundil said with a wry grin.

"So should we just sit here and idle our time away waiting for permission to return to Lady Nienna’s?" Ingwion retorted.

"Let’s go back to the valley," Vorondil interjected suddenly before Aldundil could reply to Ingwion’s question.

The two older elves looked at him in surprise. "Whyever would you want to do that?" Aldundil asked his son.

Vorondil cast his eyes down. "I... I want to see the birds flying through the rainbows again," he answered shyly. He looked up and they could see the wonder in his eyes. "They were so beautiful."

The two older ellyn gave each other measured looks. Aldundil shrugged. "The valley holds no terror for me now. Perhaps we can go there and simply enjoy its beauty."

So it was decided though they spent a few minutes wondering which trail to take. "If we follow the first trail we took the other day we’ll end up on that ledge," Ingwion pointed out. "I think we would only see the birds from there. I don’t recall seeing them while in the valley itself. The mist was too thick."

"True," Aldundil said, then glanced at his son who was frowning at the map. "What’s the matter, Vorondil?"

"I would rather take a different trail," he said. "I don’t want to take the same ones we’ve already taken."

"How do you know any of these other trails even lead into that valley?" Ingwion asked with a hint of amusement in his eyes.

Vorondil gave him a blank look. "I don’t think it matters which trail you choose. I bet they all end up in that valley. That’s why Lady Nienna sent us here, isn’t it, knowing that no matter what we decided we would always find ourselves in that valley."

Ingwion stared at the younger ellon in surprise then nodded. "I think you’re right, Vorondil. I hadn’t thought of it quite that way before." He handed the map to him. "In that case, why don’t you choose the trail?"

But Vorondil shook his head, pushing the map back into Ingwion’s hands. "Atar and I got to choose so now it’s your turn."

Ingwion smiled. "Very well. Since all trails appear to lead to the waterfall, let’s take this one." He pointed to a trail that actually headed southwest away from the hills and the other two ellyn nodded in agreement.

Soon they were off, heading towards the seacoast. The trail actually did skirt the headlands so they could see the ocean but then it curved back upon itself until they found themselves walking through the pine-shrouded hills but now coming at them from the south. There was still a brooding air about them that disturbed them but they continued on in spite of their unease. By noon they found themselves walking along a stream flowing merrily through a defile between two hills.

"This must be the stream that flows out of the valley," Aldundil said.

"We can only hope," Ingwion commented.

They continued following the stream but at one point the trail veered suddenly to their right and after a moment’s hesitation they decided it was more prudent to follow the trail than the stream and so they continued on, finding themselves beginning to climb as the trail wound its way around the side of a hill. It was hard to see where they were going for they were deep in a forest and the trees were tall, blocking out the sky. Eventually though the trail flattened out and the trees thinned a bit until they rounded a bend and found themselves looking across to the waterfall but from a fair distance, for the noise of the cataract was barely heard. Still, they stood there in awe as they watched birds flit in and out of the rainbows.

"The trail seems to continue into the valley," Ingwion said at last. "Should we go on?"

The other two nodded. "Perhaps we’ll be able to get a closer view," Vorondil suggested and so they went. It took them the better part of an hour to reach the valley and while the falls could not be seen for the mist, it could be heard and they made their way towards it, meeting up with the stream along the way.

As they neared the pool, Ingwion, who was slightly ahead of the others, suddenly stopped dead, gasping in surprise. Aldundil and Vorondil nearly crashed into him and the latter gave a yelp of surprise.

"Hey! What’s the..." But Vorondil never finished his protest for it was obvious just why Ingwion had halted.

There before them were three dark shapes standing by the cauldron staring up at the falls. The mist made it hard to see who they were, but then it parted slightly and they could see more clearly.

"Glorfindel!" Ingwion cried out. "What in Arda are you doing here?"