As Little Might Be Thought by Writing Gecko

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Sacking of Sirion

Maedhros and Maglor at the Sacking of Sirion meet Elrond and Elros in the ruin.

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Maedhros watched as the light, the Silmaril he was certain, plunged from the cliff. Just before it touched the waves the light lifted, and sailed away across the water.

He sunk to his knees, his mind reeling. They had lost it; they had lost their father's jewel. As the light disappeared over the horizon he sat numbly watching out the window and thinking of all that had been lost to attempt to regain the jewel. His brothers Celegorm, Caranthir, and Curufin, and the Ambarussa Amrod and Amras; his own father and mother (though she was not dead); the Peredhel twins Elurid and Elurin; countless lives both for and against the Feanorians. For all he knew Maglor too lay among the dead and dying. He had to stop thinking else he would go mad.

He brought his mind back to reality using a trick he had learned to remove pain from his mind during torture. He focused on the room he was sitting in, bringing every sound, sight, and smell to his attention. The floor is cold,he thought. Grey stone simply cut, much like Amon Ereb. To my left, the fireplace is grand, carved and painted like the sea. There is a rug to my right, with more sea-life. There are carved animals of both land and sea on the floor by the door, and picture books on the shelves.

I smell smoke and blood, probably my robes not this room. I taste blood, most likely my imagination. I hear the sea outside the window, and the sound of fighting has stopped. I hear crying, my imagination again, those Peredhel children have not left my conscience.

Then he sat up and looked around himself, taking in the room as the details all snapped together in his mind. He did hear crying, there was at least one child very near-by. He was kneeling in a nursery.

"Little one?" he called softly. "Is there a child here?"

He heard footsteps behind him, and turned in time to see a dark-haired child dart away through the door that he had broken down. It was locked to keep the child safe. The guard he had slain must have tried to protect them.

Maedhros gave chase.

The boy was small, and seemingly able to be everywhere at once. "Child please," he called, "come back and let me help you!"

The brat swore at him. They ran through the wreckage of the once beautiful city, the boy darting around and behind broken furniture and crumbling stone. This is not possible, Maedhros decided, he moves from one place to another too quickly. Then he recalled rumors he had heard. Twins. I am chasing Peredhel twins.

Finally he cornered them, he was now convinced there were two, in what appeared to be kitchens. For a moment he wondered why boys would run to a kitchen, then one clumsily threw a kitchen knife at him. Thankfully it bounced harmlessly off his armor, but years of instincts carefully honed took over and took two long strides forward and grabbed one boy's tunic and pinned the other with his stump. "Listen carefully," he said, "for this is the last warning you shall get. Never, ever, try to kill an elf."

The boys cried and tried to wriggle away. The one pinned by his stump escaped easily, but found that the other was not so lucky and ran back. Maedhros released them and strode to the door and closed it. He turned to face the trapped boys. "Are you the sons of Elwing?"

They looked at one another, then nodded.

"Have you names?"

"I am Elros and this is my brother Elrond." The speaker was the one he had previously pinned with his stump. Now that he could see them better, he noticed that beneath the grime their clothes were identical in style, but not color. The one who identified himself as Elros wore red, his brother Elrond wore blue.

"I am Maedhros," he said. "I will not kill you." Even as he spoke the words he felt the oath, buried in his heart, protesting. He offered it the only compromise he could, for never again would a child die at his or his men's hands, "You will come with me, as you will serve as hostages to be traded for the Silmarill." He rested his hand on his sword hilt as he spoke.

The boys seemed fearful. Eyeing his sword and the hand that gripped it Elros said, "You said you would not harm us."

Realizing they would not come without a fight he snapped, "I said I will not kill you. What elves can survive would surprise you." He held out his stump for them to see.

Both began to cry. "Come with me now," Maedhros ordered. To his surprise they complied. They walked to him as stiffly as puppets, made to move by other's hands. "Before I open this door, know this, I may not be able to catch you both should you chose to run, but I can very easily catch one." He opened the door and all three of them filed through. "Lead me to your rooms, and be quick about it."

They complied, and Maedhros received several strange looks from his men as they passed. None had news of Maglor though, and he ordered each to, "Gather in the main courtyard, tell all you see. We must leave soon." They saluted and continued on, but he knew gossip of the children would quickly spread.

Perhaps it would catch his brother's attention.

The boys lead him to the room he had first seen him in, then into a smaller room which held their beds and clothes. "Sit on the beds."

As they did as he ordered he knealt by the trunk at the foot of each bed and dug through, tossing aside clothes. He was amused to see that all their clothes were color coordinated; Elros's were red, Elrond's were blue.

He selected clothes and shoved them into a bag he had Elros fetch for him, and but saved a simple and practical outfit for each to change into. "Put these on." Seeing their hesitation he said, "I shall turn my back."

They changed quickly and he once again led them from the room. Before they left the nursery a tug on his sleeve alerted him to Elros looking up at him. "Toys?"

"One each, be quick." They each dove for their personal favorite toy. Elros chose a ship and Elrond a stuffed creature nearly half his size. When Elrond also reached for a book Maedhros said, "I have books aplenty."

"It's his favorite," Elros explained.

Maedhros gave them each a scorching glare, "Hand it over." He took the book from a reluctant Elrond and tucked it under his arm; a stump was still good for some things after all. "Tis mine now and your behavior will earn it back. Now we leave."

The walk to the courtyard was silent as the boys, who he made to walk in front of him, kept looking back. When Elros grabbed his brother and made to run, Maedhros simply grabbed Elrond and waited for the other to come back. Elros remained out of reach and watched, as if testing Maedhros.

Maedhros was fed up with them. He did not want to bring them, yet the only way he could be certain his oath would not make him kill them was to bring them. He tightened his grip on Elrond's wrist enough to make the boy cry out and Elros returned in seconds.

They resumed their march to the courtyard.

To Maedhros' great joy his brother was standing in the courtyard waiting for them, he looked at the twins with a raised eye. "I did not believe the rumors." Then he hugged Maedhros, and whispered, "I am glad you are alive."

Maedhros returned the words, then pointed to the twins and said, "They are Elwing's children."

Maglor smiled at them pleasantly, asking in Quenya, "Hostages?"

"Aye," Maedhros replied, "and they know it."

Maglor knelt in front of them and they drew back. "I shan't hurt you, come here."

Elros looked at Maedhros, then back to Maglor. In a whispered he no doubt thought Maedhros couldn't hear he said, "He promised not to kill us, but said he could still hurt us."

Maglor's expression let them all know how displeased he was with that. "I mean you no harm," he said. "I rather like children." He reached into his pocket and withdrew a handful of sweets. "Would you and your brother like a mint?"

Elros took two, and passed one to Elrond. "I am Elros," he said softly, "This is Elrond." Elrond blinked to let them know he acknowledged his brother's words as he ate his candy which Elros had already thanked Maglor for.

Maedhros also took a candy from his brother, though he was not overly found of the mints. "We must leave soon," Maglor said, once again using Quenya which they assumed and hoped the boys would not know. "My scouts have seen ships on the horizon, sailing from Balar. I have already seen to the dead. The Ambarussa shall come with us though, to be buried in our lands."

Maedhros agree. After the deaths of Celegorm, Caranthir, and Curufin they had agreed that burying a Feanorian in an unmarked grave was a disgrace, but to bury them in lands unprotected by their brothers left them at other's mercy.

Maedhros glanced at the children. "How shall we bring them?"

"One can ride with each of us, I do not know what they would do if we left them unattended." He patted the boys' heads, and even though they said and did nothing it was apparent they did not appreciate the touch. Maedhros wasn't certain that his brother had noticed.

Maglor ended up with Elrond, and Elros went with Maedhros. When Maedhros had tried to lift Elrond, Elros had stepped in and shoved his brother toward Maglor, as if protecting him from the red-haired Feanorian. Maglor and Maedhros had exchanged knowing glances, but said nothing, and pretended that it hadn't happened.

When Maglor moved to place Elrond in his saddle the boy shivered and gripped Maglor's leg. The toys they had been allowed to bring had been placed in the supply wagon, along with Elrond's book and their spare clothes. It was probably for the best that Elrond and Elros were not aware that their only belongings rode in the same wagon what carried the bodies of Amrod and Amras.

"Child," Maglor asked, "What is it?"

Elrond swallowed and looked fearfully at Maglor, then behind him at his twin who was being lifted onto Maedhros' mount. "Have you ridden before?" Maglor asked suspiciously. Elrond shook his head.

Maglor frowned, and his mind worked quickly for a solution that would not waste too much time. Not all their men were prepared thankfully, so he had a few precious moments to help the child. He pulled the stallion's head down, so Elrond was nearly nose to nose with the creature. "Touch his nose," he said, "He shan't bite."

Hesitantly the boy stretched out his fingers and tapped the velvety nose. A tiny grin danced on his face for a moment, and even though it faded quickly the fear went away and did not seem to return. Elrond continued rubbing the horse's face as Maglor pretended to check the saddle over and make sure the girth was tight enough. Maedhros, though he was aware of the bluff, said nothing.

"Would you like to get on now?" Even though he posed it as a question, his voice allowed Elrond to know that he had little choice. The boy nodded, and Maglor carefully gripped under his arms and lifted him into the saddle. Elrond stiffened when he found himself sitting on the large horse, and grabbed a handful of the horse's mane.

"Hold tight to that," Maglor said as he mounted behind him, "you won't hurt him."

Elrond nodded, hanging tightly to the coarse hair. As they left the city Maglor shifted his body and cloak so that, try as he might, Elrond could not see Sirion disappearing behind him. He did not need to remember Sirion in flames and ruin, but as the beautiful costal haven where he had been born.

They rode the remainder of the day, and long into the night. Occasionally one boy or the other would cry out, a long wail, and the other would answer in kind. Then they would fall silent before even Maedhros could think to hush them.

When Maglor rode alongside his brother the two would reach and try to touch fingertips. Maedhros forced them to stop when such an attempt made Elros nearly fall from his mount, unfortunately to the right where Maedhros could not grab him, and only a desperate lung on Maglor's behalf saved him from a painful fall. Maglor was left clutching the right side of his saddle (he could not grip the front without harming Elrond) hanging between the horses shoving Elros toward his brother to the left. The pressure of Elros' weight against Maglor was all that stopped the Feanorian from a long fall to the ground, and Maglor's pressure on Elros was all that stopped him from the same fall.

Maedhros and Elrond stared uncertain of how to help.

Maglor's squire rode beside him to the left and grabbed his wrist where he clung to the saddle. Maedhros' squire rode to his right side and reached across him to grab Elros. Together they counted down from three and pulled the two apart. Maglor straightened and grabbed Elrond, to assure himself the boy was alright. When Elros straightened Maedhros smacked his head and scolded him.

"Never again," he snarled at both boys.

Maglor remembered to thank the squires. His leaned over and whispered, so that Maedhros could not hear, that, "If it had not have been so serious, I might have laughed." Maglor imagined what they must have looked like and agreed.

They made camp as the sun rose, too exhausted to carry on. A watch was created, of volunteers who claimed to not be as tired as the rest. With nowhere else to put them, Elrond and Elros were led into the tent that Maglor and Maedhros shared. Maglor found warm blankets for them, and tucked them in before collapsing on the bare ground, intending to sleep that way.

Maedhros had other plans, and forced his brother to change out of his filthy clothes and fetch himself a bed roll. The twins watched their bickering in fear. As the Feanorians were habitually speaking Quenya, they did not understand that the argument was not over their lives, but merely Maglor's health.

Soon they all settled down, Maedhros was the first to fall asleep, then Maglor.

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Chapter End Notes

I didn't think I was ADHD until they put me on ADHD medicine, and WHOOO! Now I can concentrate! I can get a couple thousand words in a day, no sweat; I used to only manage a few hundred a day. I have actually managed to write most of this story before I bothered to publish it! New chapters will come soon!

Also, let me warn you, I really don't know ANYTHING about children. So if Elrond and Elros are really strange that's why. Please be patient with me.