Shadows and Whispers by StarSpray

Chapter 1

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In the great hall of Ost-in-Edhil, where the council met and feasts and dances were held, there was a series of tapestries. It was the work of many hands and many years, depicting the journey of the Noldor from the time of the Darkening to the present, with thriving kingdoms in Eregion and in Lindon. In many of these tapestries Celebrían could easily pick out her mother, a recurring glimmer of bright gold that remained even after all the other great ones died or passed away across the Sea.

It was very strange, sometimes, to remember that her mother was not merely her mother but a figure of legend too. Eregion had been at peace for so many years that it was very rare that Galadriel needed to display any of the fiery spirit that had carried her across the Helcaraxë and through the turbulence of the First Age.

Celebrían saw that fire in her eyes when Annatar first came to Ost-in-Edhil. Galadriel would have thrown him out, but he had already befriended Celebrimbor and the Gwaith-i-Mírdain, who were eager enough to learn all that he could teach them that they disregarded the warnings from Lindon, and so Galadriel and Celeborn were overruled. So Galadriel's eyes burned with frustration and Annatar smiled—Celebrían saw something like triumph in his eyes before he veiled himself from all scrutiny. He glanced at her with a brief smirk before turning away—clearly this slender silver shadow sitting nearly hidden behind the bright golden light of her mother was not worth his attention or consideration. It made her bristle.

So she found a young gem-smith and flirted her way into the workshops to learn gem craft and silver smithing. She learned a great deal from the friends she made among the young apprentices, but very little of what Annatar was doing behind closed doors with Celebrimbor. But she did discover, eventually, how he intended to wrest control of Eregion from her parents—through whispers, little rumors and murmurings of discontent. They always ceased when the speakers noticed her in the room—but more often than not it was too late by then, and she heard many things that otherwise her parents would not have known.

No one could prove the discontent stemmed from Annatar himself, and when the time came the Gwaith-i-Mírdain took control of Ost-in-Edhil with little resistance—but at least it did not come as a surprise. And when Celebrían packed her things, she tucked away a small white gem on a silver chain, both of her own making.