1: Finrod’s First Day at Work

Finrod stared at himself in the mirror in his bedroom and tried not to sigh. He wore a pair of light brown corduroys with a pale blue dress shirt open at the collar and a cream-colored V-neck cashmere sweater. His feet were shod with brown suede ankle boots. His hair was carefully combed into a queue and tied back.

“You look just fine. Don’t sweat it.” The words were in English.

He turned to find Glorfindel leaning against the doorjamb, his arms and legs crossed, smiling.

“You are more used to this than I,” Finrod said in the same language, turning back to give his image a final scrutiny.

“You’ll get used to it, too,” Glorfindel said, coming further into the room to stand behind Finrod. “Don’t forget, I and the others have had millennia of wearing the latest fashion among the Mortals. After a while you just don’t bother to comment. Fashions change too quickly among them, or certainly they have these last two or three hundred years. Actually, today’s more relaxed style is very comfortable and you should be grateful that you are here now instead of, say, a hundred years ago.”

“I will still need to supplement my wardrobe,” Finrod said, brushing an imaginary crease from the sweater. “I cannot continue borrowing from you and I cannot wear the same outfit every day.”

“No, of course not, but you can get away with wearing the corduroys more than once and just change the shirt and the sweater combination. As long as you dress neatly, no one will really care, for you are unlikely to see the same people at the bookstore every day. Once you get your first paycheck, we’ll take you shopping for a few more clothes.”

“I promised Finda we would buy skates for him,” Finrod reminded Glorfindel.

“And you will, but a couple more dress shirts and pants will not break the bank, as the saying goes. You may not have much left over but that’s all right.”

“I should help contribute to the household as others already do.”

“You brought along plenty of precious metals and gemstones and they are being appraised and sold. I checked with the bank manager last week and we’re doing just fine. You should plan to save up as much as you can toward your own place.”

Finrod turned to stare at his gwador. “Do you wish me to vacate Edhellond?”

“No, not really, but you might be happier having your own place. You’ll certainly have more privacy than here. It’s something to think about. Now, as I said, you look just fine. You had better get going. You don’t want to be late on your first day.” He smiled knowingly.

Finrod gave Glorfindel a searching look. “Are you fine with me working at Nicholas Greene’s bookstore?”

“Yes, hanno,” Glorfindel said, giving him a sincere hug, “now that I’ve gotten used to the idea of the great and glorious Finrod Felagund being a working stiff, I am quite fine about it.”

“Working stiff?”

“Just an expression. I’m one, too, in case you’ve forgotten. Now, off with you. Why don’t you meet me for lunch at the café after your shift? You get out at one, right?”

“Yes, and I will be happy to meet you there.”

“Good. I know you’re going to be just fine.”

“Thank you,” Finrod said sincerely as the two exited Finrod’s room and headed downstairs to the foyer. Daeron was there as well, for he was going to drop Finrod off before heading for the Academy to check on the students who were still working for the various resorts as Elf Guides for the next week until the New Year.

“All set?” the former loremaster from Doriath asked, giving them a smile.

“All set,” Glorfindel said, speaking for Finrod, who occupied himself with putting on his cloak, which he preferred wearing rather than a ski jacket, as most of the others did. For some reason, he felt more comfortable wearing the cloak. So much of his self-image had changed since returning to Middle-earth; the cloak was a way of holding on to that part of him that was Finrod Finarfinion and not Quinn O’Brien.

“iValar raitar lyenna síra, meldonya,” Glorfindel said in blessing as Daeron opened the door and waited for Finrod to leave first. Finrod cast Glorfindel a grateful smile as he exited the mansion and headed for the car with Daeron right behind. In moments they were away and heading down Kodiak for the town center.

“Nervous?” Daeron asked sympathetically as he turned the corner.

“A little,” Finrod admitted. “This is all very new for me.”

“And yet you have had work before, have you not? As a Fëanturnildo as I believe Loren called it. You were under someone else’s command then, were you not? You were not your own master.”

“No, that is true. I answered to Lords Námo and Irmo. Yet, they gave me great leeway to do what I thought best, offering more suggestions rather than commands and only if I asked for their opinion, which was rare indeed.”

“Well, just remember, Nick is your boss and if you wish to implement something or change something because you think it will be beneficial to the business you have to ask Nick first rather than just do it on your own. That will probably be the hardest thing for you to remember, especially when you’ve always been in a position to issue orders rather than to take them.”

“I will keep that in mind, thank you,” Finrod said humbly.

Daeron gave him a bright smile. “You’re going to be just fine. I think this is a good match for you and when business is slow you will have an opportunity to read and learn something of how Mortals see the world these days or how they once saw it, if what you read is more historical.”

“Nick warned me that there might be days when I will be lucky to see even one customer,” Finrod said.

“Well, if you want my humble opinion, when the good people of Wiseman learn that the great and glorious Finrod Felagund is working at the bookstore, people are going to be flocking to see you and perhaps they may just buy a book or two along the way.”

Finrod laughed as Daeron pulled over to the curb. “Manadh vain na le, hîr nîn,” he said solemnly as Finrod stepped out of the car.

“Thank you, for everything,” Finrod said then watched as Daeron drove away, giving a wave. He took a deep breath and squared his shoulders and headed down the side street that would lead into the town square and made his way to the bookstore, where he saw Nick Greene just opening the door to the shop. The young Man turned at his approach and gave him a bright smile.

“Good morning! How are you?”

“I am fine,” Finrod said. “Thank you for calling my friends to see if I had made it home safely. If you had not….”

“Hey! We’re all here to look out for each other. I couldn’t have lived with myself if I had failed to check to see if you were okay. Now, here is the key to the front door.” Nick handed him a pair of keys, pointing to one of them, “and this one unlocks the back door which opens up on a service alley, since there’s only pedestrian traffic inside the square. Let’s go inside.”

Nick opened the door and switched on the lights. “So how was your Christmas?” he asked as they went inside. Nick fiddled with the thermostat to turn up the heat while Finrod doffed his cloak and hung it in the back room.

“It was very good. Everyone loved the pins. How was yours?”

“Quiet, which is the way I like it,” Nick responded with a grin. “Now since this is your first day, I’ll stick around in case you need assistance, but I think you’ll do fine. Here, I wrote this up.” He fished out a piece of paper from a pocket and unfolded it. “It’s step-by-step instructions for using the register in case you forget the procedure for, say, doing a credit card charge as opposed to doing a cash transaction.” He placed it on the counter next to the register. “So, let me see if you remember how to log into the register. I wrote that out as well, just in case. It took me a bit to remember all the steps I needed to make to get the stupid thing to open up.”

“I think I remember, but I am glad you wrote down the instructions,” Finrod said and proceeded to log in, having to consult the written instructions just once before he was in the system.

“Good,” Nick said with a satisfied nod. “So, I’ll go make some coffee for us while you man the fort.”

“Do you think we will get many customers?” Finrod asked as he checked the counter to see that he had everything at hand.

“Hard to say,” Nick answered from the back room. “The kids are off from school this week so we might see some come wandering in wishing to use their gift cards. No two days are the same and some days are so busy I barely have time to think and other days I’m the only person here.”

“What brought you here to Wiseman and why this bookstore?”

Nick came out. “Coffee should be ready shortly. Would you believe a woman? Met Heidi at university down at Fairbanks. Her folk come from Chandalar. Anyway, I thought it was love, she had other ideas. It didn’t work out but I did not want to return to Fairbanks or to Richardson where my parents live. Was looking around for work and saw that this place was up for sale. The last owner of the store was retiring. I’ve always loved books and as I had the money I bought the place, remodeled it a bit to make it more homey looking and, well, here I am, and here I plan to stay.”

“And Heidi?”

Nick shrugged. “Hooked up with some trucker and now lives in Anchorage last I heard. Anyway, if we’re trading stories, what’s your deal? I assume you’re married, since I know your son came with you.”

“My wife, Amarië, was not able to join me at this time, though I hope she will be able to soon.”

“Was it love at first sight?”

“Hardly, but I had to die first before we finally married.” Finrod gave him a merry look.

“Er… well, that’s… um… interesting.” Nick stammered, looking rather nonplused.

“Do not concern yourself, my friend. My death was a very long time ago and was a temporary state, as you can see.”

“Still, it has to be just weird to be dead and then to be alive as if nothing happened.”

“Oh, it is not as easy as that. I had a long period of adjustment to living again once I was re-embodied. Glorfindel is also a Reborn, as we who have died are called.”

Before Nick could respond to that, the door opened and a woman stepped inside with a young girl who had one hand on the woman’s elbow and carried a cane in the other. Finrod guessed she was about twelve, though he still had difficulty figuring out ages among Mortals. He realized with some sadness that the child was blind. The woman’s eyes went wide as she took in Finrod. Nick apparently recognized the pair for he smiled.

“Good morning and Merry Christmas, Gail, and you, too, Shelby.”

“Oh… er… morning, Nick,” the woman said, sounding a bit flustered. “Um… Shelby received some gift cards and wants to buy an audiobook.”

“Well, my new assistant, Quinn, would be happy to help you. The audiobooks are toward the back on the left wall,” he reminded Finrod, who nodded.

“Would you follow me, please?” he said to Gail.

“Thank you,” she said, pulling herself together and concentrating on her daughter. “Why don’t you go with… er… Mr. Quinn while I visit with Mr. Nick,” she suggested.

“Here is my elbow,” Finrod said and they headed toward the back. “Here are the steps,” Finrod warned her. They climbed the steps and he led her to the left. “And the audiobooks are right here,” he said, stopping before a wall of shelves. “What kind of book are you looking for?”

“Do you have any steampunk?” she asked.

Finrod raised an eyebrow. “Er… steampunk?” He cast an anxious look at Nick and Gail.

“That’s what I said,” Gail said with a laugh.

Nick just smiled, apparently willing to allow him to figure it out for himself.

Finrod glanced over the shelves, hoping that they would be labeled, but he did not see anything that could help. As far as he could tell the audiobooks were filed by author. “Do you have a favorite author?” he finally asked.

“Well, not really,” Shelby replied, “but I liked Paul Brandon’s book The Iron Angel. Maybe he has another book?”

Finrod looked, and found two titles with Paul Brandon as the author. He pulled them out. “You are fortunate, as we have two of his books: Crossing Midnight and Seraph’s Song.”

“What are they about?” Shelby asked.

“Why don’t we go over and sit down and I will be happy to read what they say,” Finrod suggested.

Finrod led her to one of the chairs before the stove and brought another chair closer and sat. “Well now, according to this, Crossing Midnight is about a boy named Jack who….”

He read the blurbs and when he was done he commented, “They both seem like interesting stories. Which one do you like?”

“I’m not sure,” Shelby replied. “How much are they?”

Finrod took a look and told her the amount.

“I don’t think I have enough on my card to buy both. I think I would like to try Seraph’s Song. That sounded very interesting.”

“Then, Seraph’s Song it is,” Finrod said. “I will just put the other one back. If you want to meet me up front, I believe the steps down are perhaps five or six paces from the chair. Do you think you can manage on your own?”

“Yes, thank you,” Shelby said, rising and slowly making her way toward the front, sliding the cane across the floor before her. Finrod watched in case she needed help, but she maneuvered the steps without much trouble. Satisfied that the child would reach the counter without mishap, he quickly put Crossing Midnight back on the shelf and made his way to the counter.

“And if I can have your gift card,” he said and the girl fished in a coat pocket and pulled out a plastic card and handed it to him. “Thank you. This will just take a moment.”

“Your voice is so lovely,” Shelby said. “Are you an Elf?”

Finrod nodded and then belatedly answered as he double-checked the instructions Nick had written out to remind himself how to handle gift cards. “Yes.”

“So Quinn isn’t your real name?”

“I am also called Finrod,” he answered as he ran the card through the scanner, “but Quinn is acceptable.”

“Oh, you’re that Finrod?” Gail asked as she came to the counter carrying a couple of paperbacks. “But… I thought they said you were a king… but kings don’t work in a bookstore, do they?”

Finrod smiled broadly at the nonplused expression on Gail’s face as he slipped the audiobook into a plastic bag. “Only if they no longer have a kingdom and must earn their bread like everyone else. Here you go, Shelby, and you have five dollars and forty-three cents left on your card. I’ve put the card in the bag along with the sales slip.” He handed her the bag.

“Thank you, Mister Finrod,” she said. “Did you find something, mama?”

“Yes, I did and if you would like to go and see what kind of donuts the bakery next door is selling I will be there shortly.”

“Okay. Nice to meet you, Mister Finrod.”

“I am glad to have met you, Shelby. I hope to see you again soon. You must tell me how you like your new book.”

The girl made her way to the door. “Bye, Mister Nick. Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas, Shelby, and I hope you enjoy your new book.”

Shelby exited and Finrod watched as she turned right and found the bakery door. He then turned his attention to Gail, who held out her purchases, which he took and processed.

“Thank you,” Gail said softly.

Finrod raised an eyebrow. “For what?”

“For not treating Shelby the way most people do.”

“Well, as you may notice, I am not most people,” Finrod replied with a slight grin. “That will be twelve sixty with tax. Cash or credit?”

“What? Oh, yes, sorry. Here’s my card.”

Finrod competently ran the card and soon the woman was on her way out, leaving Finrod and Nick alone.

“Nicely done,” Nick said.

“I still have no idea what steampunk is, though,” Finrod said.

Nick laughed. “Tell you the truth, neither do I.”

“It would be helpful if we could shelve the audiobooks by genre rather than strictly by author.”

“I know, but I have so few audiobooks in comparison to regular books that it’s almost not worth it, which is why I shelved them alphabetically by author. However, if you want to shelve them differently so it’s easier for you or anyone else to find a particular audiobook, go ahead. I have some blank labels that you can use. If you can’t figure out what the genre is, look for the book itself on the computer. Oh, I haven’t really taught you how to use the computer for ordering books and such, have I?”

“Perhaps you can show me when we are not too busy,” Finrod said. “I think we’re about to have another customer.” He nodded toward the door and they could see an elderly man approaching.

“Then I’ll leave you to it,” Nick said, grabbing his coat and putting it on. “I need to do some banking and run a couple of errands that I’ve been putting off. I’ll be back in a couple of hours. If you get really stuck, you have my cell phone. I wrote the number down for you.”

“Thank you,” Finrod said.

“Morning, Amos,” Nick said as the door opened and the man stepped inside.

“Morning, Nick,” the man answered. “Ya leavin’ already?”

“I have a new assistant. His name’s Quinn and he’ll be more than happy to help you if you need it.” With that he stepped outside and closed the door, leaving Finrod with Amos who, when he removed his hat, revealed a shock of white hair.

“Is there anything in particular you are looking for?” Finrod offered politely.

Amos gave him a skeptical look. “Ya got any books on ice fishing? Been meaning to do some since retiring from the post office, but haven’t gotten around to it yet.”

Finrod smiled. “Why do we not look and see?”

****

When Nick returned to the bookstore a couple of hours later, he almost had trouble opening the door for the crowd of people who were milling about inside. He saw Finrod standing behind the counter.

“…and that will be twenty-two fifty with tax, Mrs. Cramer,” Finrod was saying as Nick came inside.

The woman handed him a credit card and in moments she was making her way to the door clutching a bag with three books, looking somewhat stunned for some reason. Nick made his way around several customers standing in line waiting to make their purchases and reached the counter, removing his coat and throwing it carelessly on a stool.

“How’s it going?”

Finrod gave him a glance, smiling slightly. “You can see it is going very well.” Then he turned back to the young man standing before him. “So, Jonathan, which books did you decide on?”

“Well, I couldn’t find anything by Martineau, but I found this one by Zimmerman that sounds interesting and he writes sort of the same kind of stuff. Thought I would give it a try.”

“Good. Trying new things is always fun and something like an adventure. Why I remember when I was newly reborn how I was very suspicious of the oatmeal which my caretakers gave me to eat. They had to convince me that I should give it a try and when I did, I thought it was the most delicious thing I had ever eaten.”

“Oatmeal?” Jonathan asked and he wasn’t the only person there to give Finrod a disbelieving look, all of them hanging onto every word the Elf-lord was speaking.

Finrod nodded and smiled. “It is still one of my favorite foods, especially with apples, raisins and cinnamon. That will be nine thirty.”

Jonathan fished out a ten dollar bill and a minute later he was on his way out the door. Two other people made their purchases and left, but the bookstore was not empty of customers. Nick could see a young woman with two children sitting beside the electric wood stove, now burning brightly, reading from a picture book. Along one aisle he saw an older couple quietly discussing a book between them and there were two teenagers lounging on the steps leading up to the back reading area, actually reading, apparently lost in their books.

“You’ve been busy. I’m sorry I left you alone to deal with it,” he said to Finrod.

“I am not. I have been enjoying myself very much.”

“I’m just surprised to see so many people here at once. It’s usually not this crowded.”

“I think you can blame Amos,” Finrod explained. “He was unsure of me at first and not because of who and what I am, but I was able to help him find the books he wanted and we had a nice discussion about ice fishing.”

“Ice fishing? Have you actually done it?”

“Oh, yes, but a very long time ago in Beleriand. Anyway, after he left, I had the place to myself for about a half an hour and then a couple of people came in claiming to have met Amos at the Safeway and he told them an Elf king was minding your shop and they were rather curious about that. Well, before I knew it the place was full of people, all of them here to see me. I was able to encourage most of them to take a look around and see if there was anything they might like to buy. I was surprised when one or two even admitted that they had never been inside the shop before and barely realized it existed. At any rate, most have gone away with a book or three and I have no doubt they will return for more.”

Nick just shook his head. “I knew you would be good for business, but I didn’t think you would be this good.”

“Mister Elf, sir?”

Nick turned to see a youngster of about ten or so standing at the counter, looking a bit uncomfortable. Finrod smiled at the boy. “Do you need any help finding a book, Christopher?”

The boy shook his head. “I gotta go to the bathroom.”

“Ah… well, I believe it is beyond this door here,” Finrod said, pointing to the door leading to the back.

“Thank you,” Christopher said, giving them a look of relief as he came around the counter and headed past them. Nick and Finrod exchanged smiles.

“You seem to know everyone’s name,” Nick commented.

Finrod shrugged. “It is a talent I have honed over the years. As a king, I found it very important to know who my subjects were so I could address them personally whenever I met them as I traveled through my halls.”

Christopher came out just then, smiling, and Finrod smiled back. “All is well?”

The boy nodded and practically skipped over to the section of books reserved for grade-school readers, plopping down on the floor to examine some titles.

“Well, I wonder if every day will be this busy,” Nick said as the front door opened and several people entered, all of them surreptitiously glancing Finrod’s way while pretending to be interested in the front display of books. Finrod glanced at Nick and rolled his eyes but he had a smile on his face, so the Mortal knew the Elf did not really mind. He gave Finrod a huge grin. “I need to do some end-of-year inventory. I’ll get started on that while you handle the customers.”

With that, he headed toward the back room, leaving Finrod to man the front. Finrod didn’t mind. He smiled warmly at the new arrivals, still standing there trying not to openly stare at him and failing miserably. “Welcome to the Aurora Borealis Bookstore,” he said. “My name is Quinn. May I help you?”

****

Words are Quenya unless otherwise noted:

Hanno: Colloquial form of háno: Brother.

iValar raitar lyenna síra, meldonya: ‘The Valar smile upon thee today, my friend’.

Fëanturnildo: Friend (male) of the Fëanturi, i.e. Nämo and Irmo. The Fëanturnildi are an order of healers dedicated to healing the ills of Aman as a whole that were caused by the Marring rather than healing individual Elves.

Manadh vain na le, hîr nîn: (Sindarin) ‘Fair fortune to you, my lord’.

Notes:

1. My thanks to Alassiel for providing me with information concerning the ways in which blind people navigate.

2. The names of the authors and their books that are mentioned here are all fictional, though the steampunk genre is real enough.