10: The Twins and Námo

The twins walked beside Námo in silence down a corridor and then up several flights of stairs until they came to a mithril and blue quartz door that opened silently as they approached. Stepping through the portal, they stopped and Námo allowed the ellyn time to look about, their expressions turning from fearful to wonderment at the sight of the conservatory. It was much larger than they had anticipated, made of clear quartz set within a mithril frame. They could see the peaks of the mountains surrounding Ilmarin, eternally wrapped in snow, yet, here was warmth and eternal Spring.

All about were trees and flowers in a park-like setting and the twins visibly relaxed at the sight of butterflies flitting through the air and the sound of birds singing high in the trees, invisible save as flashes of color as they flew from tree to tree. Flowers of every shade and hue and species lined the path and when they saw a herd of miniature red deer calmly foraging, both ellyn gasped in delight. Námo led them further into the park to a fountain where there were benches and bade the twins to sit as he remained standing, gazing at them.

"How do you feel about all that has happened of late?" the Lord of Mandos asked them. Both ellyn shrugged, not really looking at him, but not quite not looking at him, which amused him. He knew the effect he had on most of the Eldar, and admitted to himself that he purposely played upon that, giving himself an aura of mystery far beyond those of his brethren. It was meant to distance him from the Children for their sake as well as his, for the burdens of foresight that were his forced him to maintain a certain reserve, even among his own kind. His fellow Valar, and to a lesser extent, the Maiar, took him as he was and valued him for himself, but the Children were often caught up in their own preconceptions and misconceptions and he did little to dispel them.

He waited patiently for an answer to his question, knowing eventually one or the other would brave one. He was making a silent bet with himself as to which twin would speak up first, guessing it would be Ingwion. He was not wrong.

The older twin took a deep breath before speaking. "Fëanáro only got what he deserved...."

"That is not what I asked, though," Námo interrupted in a mild voice. "I asked how you were feeling."

"Confused," came the answer, not from Ingwion, but from Ingalaurë, "and angry."

Námo nodded, his expression giving nothing away. "The confusion is felt by many, but anger? Do you feel as Ingalaurë does?" he asked Ingwion.

The ellon nodded. "Confusion, anger, sadness... All of these and more until I don’t know where one emotion begins and the other leaves off."

"Uncle Ingoldo scares me," Ingalaurë whispered, feeling abashed at making such an admission before the Vala, especially this Vala.

"Why does he scare you, Ingalaurë?" Námo asked in a gentle voice that surprised the twins.

"He just does," the ellon replied. "He’s always glaring at us, arguing every decision we make, and I’m pretty sure he’s trying to turn Atar’s Privy Council against us. A few have begun to echo our uncle’s words and we don’t know what to do. I wish Atar had never gone to Tirion. He’s needed here."

For a long moment silence stretched between them as Námo contemplated what he had heard, passing the information to his fellow Valar for their consideration.

*We cannot interfere with the internal politics of the Children,* Manwë reminded them, even as he was listening to Valandur telling him about the unrest he was uncovering among the Vanyar. *I would advise caution as to what you tell them,* he directed at Námo. *Ingwion and Ingalaurë need to learn to stand on their own.*

*Yet, Ingoldo is clearly a threat to them,* Námo pointed out. *I have to agree with young Ingalaurë that Ingwë should not have left Vanyamar at this time.*

*What is done, is done,* Manwë intoned, *and short of ordering Ingwë back to Vanyamar there is little we can do but offer a friendly ear and hope that a solution comes to them on their own. They will learn nothing about themselves or others if they are always handed a solution. That is as true for someone as wise as Ingwë as it is for his sons.*

To that Námo could only agree. "Have you told these things to Valandur?" he asked the twins. "As I understand it, your atar left him and Findis as your personal councillors. Have they offered you no solution to your problems with your uncle?"

Ingwion scowled. "Valandur only says to continue as we have, to remember that Atar will return soon and he will put Uncle Ingoldo in his place."

"You do not like that advice," Námo said.

Both twins shook their heads and then Ingalaurë spoke. "I overheard Lord Lassezel speaking to Lord Tamurilon and Lady Lindórië the other day, saying that perhaps the Privy Council should revoke our regency and appoint Uncle to rule until Atar returned."

Ingwion turned to his brother in surprise. "Where did you hear that and why didn’t you tell me?"

Ingalaurë shrugged. "It was after the last meeting of the Council," he said. "We were on our way to attend to some judicial matters when I remembered leaving a pertinent document behind that we would need."

Ingwion nodded.

"So I went back," Ingalaurë continued. "I was just about to enter the Council chamber — the door was partly open — when I overheard Lord Lassezel speaking."

"What were the reactions of the other two?" Námo asked and both twins looked up in surprise, as if they had forgotten he was there. Námo hid a smile at their identical expressions.

"Well... Tamurilon said nothing, but Lady Lindórië was rather vocal," the younger twin said. "She pointed out that the High King duly appointed us to the regency and if anyone attempted to overturn that, then they could be considered traitors. She didn’t think Atar would be very forgiving of anyone who tried to force us from our positions."

Ingwion frowned. "I wish you had told me."

"Sorry," Ingalaurë said, looking contrite. "There’s more, though." At the expectant looks of both his twin and Lord Námo Ingalaurë swallowed nervously before continuing. "Lord Lassezel said that no one would force us, but if we were... convinced that we were in over our heads and that someone older and wiser...."

"Meaning Uncle Ingoldo," Ingwion interrupted, his expression one of disgust.

His brother nodded. "... someone older and wiser should take over the reins of government until Atar returned...."

"And what was the reaction to that?" Námo asked, silently passing on the information to Manwë and the other Valar. He could almost see Manwë’s frown.

"Lady Lindórië said that such an action was still treasonous and even if it weren’t it would still require the full consent of the Privy Council and she would never accede to it."

"And Tamurilon?" the Vala asked. "Did he say nothing to any of this?" He was curious about the young Vanyarin lord, a scion of one of the older noble families, who had caught the eye of Ingwë and Elindis’ daughter. If Tamurilon sided with Lassezel that might spell doom to any alliance between the two families.

Ingalaurë shook his head. "If he did, it was not in my hearing. Just about then I heard them approaching the door so I hid behind one of the arrases lining the hallway until they were gone. Lord Lassezel was still trying to convince the other two about the rightness of his position. As soon as I could no longer hear him, I retrieved the document we needed and went on to court." He turned to his brother. "That's why I was late getting back. I’m sorry I didn’t mention any of this earlier, but there was no way to tell you just then and with everything else it just slipped my mind."

"So Valandur knows nothing about this," Námo said.

Ingalaurë shook his head. "Do you think he should?" he asked somewhat uncertainly.

"That is something you must decide, my prince," the Vala said, not unkindly. "Neither I nor any of the Valar will tell you what to do. We will offer advice but in the end any action you take must be based on your own decisions, not ours. We will not, indeed, we cannot interfere with the internal politics of the Eldar, unless it directly conflicts with our Peace, as Fëanáro’s actions did."

The twins sighed almost as one, then Ingwion nodded. "I think we should tell Valandur about this. I knew that some of Atar’s councillors were siding with Uncle Ingoldo but I didn’t know about this. I wish Atar were here."

"As do we all," Námo said, surprising the ellyn. "However, that is not the case and it is up to you as his sons and duly appointed Regents to deal with the situation until such time as Ingwë does return."

"Do you think we should send a letter to Atar, letting him know what is happening?" Ingalaurë asked, not Námo, but Ingwion.

"Whom could we trust?" Ingwion asked. "Uncle Ingoldo oversees the courier service. Any letter we send to Atar would have to go through him."

"We could find someone who isn’t a courier, a merchant, perhaps, going to Tirion," the younger twin suggested.

Ingwion thought about it for some minutes. "Too risky. Besides, do you know any merchants?" He gave his twin a wry look.

Ingalaurë scowled. "Well, there’s Nolondur, but he’s not in Vanyamar at the moment," he said, mentioning the name of one of the minor Vanyarin lords who had business dealings in the Southern Fiefdoms.

Ingwion then turned to Námo, who had remained silent all this time. "So... what do you think we should do, lord?" he asked, not really expecting an answer but hoping for some words of wisdom to help them.

"What your heart tells you to do, child," came the reply.

For a long moment silence reigned between them, then Ingwion nodded, coming to a decision. He turned to his brother. "I think it’s time for a family discussion... without Uncle Ingoldo or Aunt Tinwetariel."

Ingalaurë nodded. "But we should include Intarion."

"Agreed."

Námo watched the play of emotions on the twins’ faces. Ingwion’s expression was set and his eyes were dark with purpose. Ingalaurë... Námo blinked, not sure he was seeing things correctly, then looked more deeply into the ellon’s fëa, and nodded to himself. So be it, he thought, neither sad nor elated at the revelation given to him just then, merely accepting it as what must be.

"Let us return to Lord Manwë," was all he said, giving nothing away of what he was feeling at the moment. "He and Valandur have finished their conversation."

The twins nodded as they stood and together the three of them made their way out of the conservatory.

****

They returned to Vanyamar, dismissing the escort and retiring to the twins’ private sitting room where Ingwion informed Valandur and Findis that he and Ingalaurë were calling a family council while Ingalaurë poured them all some wine. "We want you to be there as well," he said. "There are things you need to know, assuming you don’t already."

Valandur and Findis exchanged surprised glances, then gave the twins nods. "Just tell us when," Findis said, "and we will be there."

"By family council, do you mean everyone?" Valandur asked and was unsurprised when Ingwion shook his head.

"Uncle Ingoldo and Aunt Tinwetariel will not be there," he said, "but we will invite Intarion, though I’m not sure how we can do so and not alert Uncle to what we are planning."

"Hmm..." Valandur mused, looking uncertain. "That will be tricky."

"Not in the least," Findis said. "Leave it to me."

The three ellyn stared at her in disbelief. "You?" Valandur asked, wondering what his wife was up to. "How?"

She merely gave them a smug smile. "Now that would be telling, wouldn’t it?" She laughed at the put-upon expressions of the three ellyn. "Just let me know where we will hold this council."

"Hmm..." now it was Ingwion’s turn to be uncertain. "It has to be someplace where our aunt and uncle won’t accidently find us."

"Or would even consider joining us," added Ingalaurë.

"Ah..." Valandur said with a gleam in his eyes. "In that case, I may have the very place."

"And that would be where exactly?" Findis demanded with some exasperation.

Valandur gave her an innocent look that fooled none of them. "Why, that would be telling, wouldn’t it?"

Findis rolled her eyes while her husband laughed, taking her in his arms and giving her a kiss. The twins watched the byplay between the two and snickered at one another. Then Valandur became more serious. "I need to check some things out first, but I will let you know by tomorrow. When did you want to hold this council, my prince?" he asked Ingwion.

"Sooner rather than later," Ingwion replied. "Before next Valanya if possible."

"Actually, I was thinking that next Valanya would be the perfect time for our meeting," Valandur said.

"But we will have to go to Ilmarin then," Ingalaurë reminded them. "We promised Lord Manwë we would continue Atar’s tradition."

"Exactly," Valandur said with a nod.

For a moment the twins just stared at the loremaster, then at each other, contemplating the implications of what was being said. Then Ingwion gave Valandur a wicked smile. "I am so glad you are on our side, meldonya."

Valandur laughed. "As am I."

****

Meldonya: My (male) friend. Referring to a female friend, one would use meldenya.