Our Most Beloved Star by Uvatha the Horseman

Mother closed the door to her bedchamber, then pulled the shutters shut. She brought out a small box of polished wood like her jewelry box, but more finely made.

"You're six now, so you're old enough to know about this."

Mother lifted a massive white stone from the box. In the dim light, it glowed with a pure white light, as if lit from within.

"This is a Silmaril, the greatest treasure of our house." She gazed at it with something like infatuation. "We won it at great cost. My grandparents risked their lives to cut it from the Great Enemy's crown."

Rays of light from the Jewel danced on the table and the walls.

"it cost our family dearly to hold onto it. When I was a small, red-headed raiders attacked this house. They killed my mother and father, then carried off my brothers and abandoned them in the forest. I survived only because I was asleep in my cradle and they didn't notice me."

"Do you think they'll come back?" A chill ran up Elrond's spine.

"No. All but two of them were killed in the raid," said Mother.

"If the Jewel draws such terrible danger, why not get rid of it? Father could take it on one of his voyages and drop it in the sea," said Elros.

Mother flinched. "It came to me from my grandmother Luthien. I could never give it up."

"May I hold it?" Elrond held out his hand. His mother hesitated, then placed the Jewel in his hands. Elrond studied it from all sides. White and gleaming, it was heavier than it looked and cool to the touch.

"It's not an ordinary jewel, it's a vessel that holds starlight," said Mother.

"Is it magic? Does it confer great strength?" asked Elros.

"Does it have healing powers?" asked Elrond.

"No, it doesn't do anything. It just is." Mother looked annoyed.

Bored, Elrond passed the Jewel to his twin. Elros studied it for a moment, then returned it to its box.

"Can we go outside now?" Elros sprang to his feet. "Come on, Elrond. I want to show you a bird's nest I just found."

The sound of horses' hooves and the jingle of harness mixed with the murmur of voices. Mother jumped up.

"They're here! I want you on your best behavior. Remember, Auntie Maiele is the one who took me in after my parents and brothers were killed."

Mother went outside, leaving the boys in the reception hall. They waited while the adults talked outside. A shaft of sunlight caught the dust motes. A mouse scratched inside the wall. It was hard to be good for so long.

"Shall we?" Elros was already moving toward one of the window seats.

"Let's!" Elrond sprinted to its twin on the opposite wall.

He lifted the lid, climbed inside, and pulled it shut after himself. Dust and old wool blankets folded away from last winter made his eyes water. He pressed the side of his hand against his lip to block a sneeze.

Adult voices sounded above the crunch of their footsteps on the gravel. Door hinges creaked. A dozen pairs of feet thumped across the floorboards as a small crowd entered the reception hall.

Mother's voice sounded muffled through the walls of his hiding place. "It's so good to see you again. How long has it been, five years?"

Elros cleared his throat.

"Elros, say hello to your Auntie Maiele. I'm sure you won't recognize the twins, they were babies when you saw them last."

"Auntie Maiele, do you want to see my magic trick?" There was a squeak, a pause, and wood banged against wood. In a voice More muffled than before, he said, "See? I made myself disappear!"

Auntie Maiele clapped politely. "Oh, where can he be? Were did that little boy go? I can't see him at all."

On the far side of the room, Elrond lifted the lid of his own window seat. "I'm right here, Auntie Maiele. I didn't really disappear, I traveled through the Void."

Auntie Maiele's jaw hung open. Her servants and men-at-arms stood frozen in place, equally astonished. Elrond basked in glory. This was their best performance yet.

Mother crossed the room in a few long steps, flung open the lid of the first window seat, and pulled Elros out by the scruff of neck. "There are two of them, you know."

"That was an impressive trick," said Auntie Maiele.

"It's well-rehearsed. They pull it on every new visitor to the house," said Mother.

"Were you ever fooled by it?" asked Auntie Maiele.

"No, I'm their mother. I can tell them apart."

"Even when they were first born?"

Mother looked embarrassed. "Well, when they were about five days old, there was an incident. I'd tied a ribbon around the firstborn's ankle so I could tell them apart. I took it off to wash it, then couldn't remember which baby it belonged on."

"The more I tried to remember, the worse it go. Finally, your father summoned the midwife, who said, 'You're not the first mother this has happened to. The only thing to do is rename them and start over.' So that's what we did." Said mother.

"You really don't know which one was born first?" asked Auntie Maiele.

Mother shrugged. "I haven't a clue."

The dogs outside started barking hysterically, almost masking the whinnying of horses and the shouts of men.

"Eärendil? Is that you?" Mother rose from her chair.

"Father!" Elros ran to the door. Father was away at sea more than he was home. He'd become almost a stranger to them.

Through the window, he saw a group of strange men approaching the house. Their faces were hard with deadly purpose, and every one of them was armed. His mother froze in mid-stride. Nanny screamed.

"Bolt the door!" Mother pulled a dagger from her belt.

Elros jumped up and slid the bolt moments before something struck the planks. A crack split the panel. Mother backed out of the room, her eyes wide, and shut the door behind her.

Another kick and the bolt gave way. The door slammed against the wall. Two armed men strode in, a red-headed warrior of great height and bulk and his slender, dark-haired companion.

Both had drawn their swords, longer and heavier than anything Father owned. One of the attackers was left-handed and the other was right. They moved in a coordinated way, covering each other's flanks. It looked like they'd done this before. A group of men-at-arms came in after them, pushing into the entry hall until no more could fit.

"Search the house." The redheaded warrior ordered his soldiers into every part of the house. The twins were herded into a corner and ordered them not to move.

The sound of dishes breaking and furniture being smashed came from every room in the house. The door of his parents' bedchamber was kicked in, followed by an agonized wail. Their guard abandoned them and ran off in that direction. Elros followed, with Elrond right behind.

A group of soldiers crowded in the doorway of his parents' bedchamber. Elrond peered around their legs. The bed had been shoved aside, revealing a loose floorboard with an empty space beneath it.

The red-headed warrior held the polished box. Its lid stood open, revealing its velvet lining. There was nothing inside. The Silmaril was gone.

"It's not here," said the redhead. He tried to punch the floor, but missed because part of his arm was missing.

A shutter banged. Redhead turned to the window. "That's how she got out. I wish I'd put a guard on the back of the house before we went in."

"That seems to be our family motto. 'Go in with a heart full of resolve, but not an actual plan,'" said Dark Hair.

Redhead got to his feet. "I'm going to make her sorry." He unsheathed his sword and held it level with Elrond's chin. Elrond shrank behind the bedroom door until he bumped into Elros, who was already there.

The redhead yanked back the door. His eyes were crazed.

Elrond tried so hard to be brave, but then he thought of how their mother who would find their dead bodies, and began to cry, the full-throated bawling of a small child who knew what was about to happen.

Dark Hair put a hand on the redhead's arm. "Maedhros, you don't have to kill them."

"Shut up, Maglor. Did you have something intelligent thing to say, or are you just wandering around lost?"

"We could take them with us, and trade them for the Silmaril."

Maedhros' sword wavered slightly, then dropped. He made a sound of disgust and then sheathed his weapon.

"Fine. Let's grab the brats and get out of here."

Maedhros chirruped to the horse and they broke into a trot. Soon, last sight of the stone chimneys of their house vanished behind the trees.

They rode off at a brisk pace. Elrond went rigid and gripped the horse's mane, afraid he'd fall off, even though Maedhros wrapped an arm around his waist. The stump ended in a ropey scar, blue-white and unhealthy looking. Elrond was torn between being afraid it would touch him and being afraid of falling.

They slept rough that night. As the embers of their cooking fire died down and he had started to fall asleep, a thought nagged at him. Why had Mother chosen to save the Jewel and not them? It must have been by accident, amidst all the chaos. That's what must have happened. Mother would never have abandoned them on purpose.

On the second day of travel, they entered a patch of forest darker and more ancient than what they'd traveled through so far. The trunks of the trees were gnarled and impossibly thick, suggesting great age. The trail was almost not there. The horses picked their way along a trail that was more rocks and tree roots than path. If they were to slip on a crumbling patch of rock, or a pile of leaves decaying in the wet, they could plunge down the side of a cliff so steep they could never climb up again, assuming they survived the fall.

Near a small waterfall, Maedhros reined in. "Dismount. Someone help me with this one." One of the men-at-arms came over and lifted Elrond to the ground.

Elrond could hear his own heart beating. In the language of Men, he said to Elros, "I think this is the place where Mother's brothers were abandoned. Do you think they'll do that to us?"

His brother's face went pale. "It looks that way. Were you able to keep your dagger?"

"No, they took everything when they searched us."

Maedhros twisted around in the saddle. "Maglor, what are they saying?"

"I don't know. It sounds like a secret twin language."

It wasn't. It was the language of mortal men.

"Amrod and Amras had a secret twin language, too." Maedhros looked wistful. "Everybody back in the saddle, it will be dark soon." He lifted Elrond into the saddle and swung up behind him.

After five days of hard riding, they turned onto a path so narrow it could never be called a road, as it was only wide enough for the horseman to ride in single file. They didn't pass a village or even a small hamlet. There were no other houses, only the looming forest.

Hours later, the path opened up onto a small clearing. A great manor house rose from its center, two stories in height. Stone chimneys towered above the ends of each of several wings, and diamond-paned glass filled the windows. The house was surrounded by outbuildings including stables, dog kennels, and smoke houses. As far as he could tell, there were no other people around.

They entered the clearing and the dogs began to bark.

Maglor looked uncertain. "What are we going to do with them?"

"Lock them up somewhere until we figure it out. Maybe the spring house. It's stone, and it doesn't have windows," said Maedhros.

They're not going to separate us. Elrond relaxed slightly.

Maedhros lifted Elrond under the arms and a soldier reached up to receive him. Beside him, Maglor was handing Elros to another soldier.

A small stone structure occupied the lowest slope in the clearing. They move toward it. The ground was damper here. They slipped on the steeper parts, and the mud sucked at their boots.

The eaves of the spring house almost touched the ground and thick patches of moss on its roof covered the slates. The planks of the hatch had rotted from damp.

Someone produced a key. The hatch swung open, releasing a wave of damp. Elrond twisted away and tried to breath through his mouth.

"Inside." Maedhros pointed to the yawning door.

Elros ducked inside and Elrond followed. The door slammed closed, leaving them in darkness. The key clicked in the lock and the voices retreated.

Elros threw himself against the door. "Let us out!"

A line of daylight showed around the edge each time he hit the door, but the lock didn't yield.

Details of their prison began to emerge in the dimness. Light came in between the rafters and the top of the wall, and reflected from a pool of water at the far end of the structure. It looked bottomless in the dim light, but it was probably knee-deep, with shelves for eggs and butter.

After what seemed like a very long time, a serving woman brought a tray of food, mild, buttered bread, and a couple of apples.

"It's dark and damp in here."

"When can we get out?"

The old woman ignored them. She set the tray on the dirt floor, then pulled the door shut behind her. Elrond picked up a piece of bread but returned it to the plate, untouched.

"What's the matter. Aren't you hungry?" asked Elros.

"My stomach won't eat." Elrond hugged his knees and stared into the darkness.

When the light began to fail, the serving woman came back with some blankets, then left without a word.

Elrond wrapped himself in the scratchy wool and used his arm as a pillow. The damp from the dirt floor soaked through at his hip and shoulder. He lay in the darkness, his stomach in a knot.

"Elros, are you awake? What do you think they'll do to us?"

"If they were going to kill us, they'd have done it already."

"But they seem so angry. At least Maedhros does, and he's in charge."

"They want the Jewel and they're mad because they didn't find it. It has nothing to do with us," said Elros.

Elrond dozed, but he woke when Elros whimpered, "Mamma! Mamma!" in his sleep. Elrond bit his lip against tears.

The hatch swung open, revealing a dazzling square of white. Elrond put his hands over his eyes, momentarily blinded.

"Let's go to the house and get you cleaned up, and then we'll have some breakfast." Maglor helped him climb out into the morning sunlight. The air was cold, and fog had settled low around the trunks of the ancient forest trees.

Inside the house, a long wooden table held fresh-baked bread and pots of jam. While they ate, his captors talked in hushed voices.

"If we don't lock them up they'll run off, and we'll have nothing to bargain with," Maedhros hissed.

"They can't run off. There's not a village or even an isolated farm anywhere nearby. And they won't hide in the forest, it's too dangerous."

"They don't know that. They might be stupid enough to try."

Maedhros fell silent for a long time.

"This is what I've decided. You're going to stay in the house until you're ransomed. You can't run away because there's nowhere to run to. And don't even think of trying to escape into the forest. It isn't safe. You'll get lost, and in desperation, you might eat poisonous berries or mushrooms, or you'll drink tainted water and get a case of the flux that could kill you."

"Maedhros is right. The forest is dangerous. If you got separated from each other and one of you twisted an ankle, you could die right there within a couple of days. No one would ever know what happened to you."

Elrond felt a knot in the pit of his stomach. The b0ys who would have been their uncles were abandoned in the forest when they were six. In spite of the family legend about being raised by woodland animals, they'd almost certainly perished. He didn't think he and Elros would do any better.

"How long do we have to stay here?"

Maglor patted his shoulder. "Just a little while. We'll send a ransom note to your parents, choose a place to do the trade, and then you can go home."

"Maglor, I need you to be my scribe." Maedhros pushed paper and ink across the table.

"These are our terms. If you want to see the boys again, we'll trade them for the Silmaril." Maedhros suggested a bridge in a neutral location and a date, two weeks in the future.

Maglor lowered his pen. "We have to allow time for our messenger to reach them, and to come back with a reply. And they might need some time to think about it."

"What's to think about? We're giving them the chance to buy back their children. I don't think it will take them long to agree," said Maedhros.

Except for one thing. When the house was attacked, Mother made a split-second decision between her boys and the Jewel. She chose the Jewel.

Elrond pressed his nose against the glass, watching the trail head where the path plunged into the forest. A messenger left for Doriath on that path seven days ago, with the ransom note that would set them free.

He missed his mother. He wanted to go home. Elros chafed under their captivity even more. He passed the time by thinking up ways to torment their captors. Because he was bored, Elrond helped him.

"I want to do things that will keep them off-balance." He broke the fire apart to make it go out. He put vinegar in the milk to make it sour. But his acts of vandalism seemed to go unnoticed.

"See this key?" Elros hung it among the metal rods of a wind chime. "From now on, this wind chime is going to be on key."

Then he decorated the sculptures and pieces or art that filled the house. Apparently the Fëanorians liked to make things. They found a bronze statue of a hero on a pedestal and decided to give it tiny little pigeons. "It needs pigeon poop, too. A statue can't be happy without pigeon poop."

Days and days of effort went into their pranks, which for the most part went unnoticed. Elros kicked the wall in frustration. "This isn't working. We need to take it to the next level. Are you game?"

They practiced for an hour, then waited until Maglor and Maedhros sat down at the table to work. Elrond crept into the room and hid under the table. He waited there in absolute stillness and silence. They spoke of adult matters, unaware of Elrond's presence.

Elros strode into the room, stomping his feet to make sure they heard him. He stood at the end of the table where Elrond was hiding.

"Can I ask you something?" Elrond said from his hiding place.

"Can I ask you something?" Elros mouthed the words with a slight delay.

The corner of his brother's mouth twitched. Elrond shot him a look. Don't laugh, don't laugh, you'll give us away.

"I was trying out a new spell," …new spell, "and it got stuck." …got stuck. "Can you fix it for me?" …for me?

Maedhros jumped to his feet and hauled Elrond out from under the table. "Do you think I haven't seen that before? My youngest brothers were twins."

A few days later, they huddled in a darkened hallway, discussing their next prank.

"Here's what we're going to do. I'll walk across the room and go outside. You wait a minute, then you come down the stairs, walk across the room, say the very same thing and go outside, exactly like I did."

They were already wearing matching clothes, so that part was easy. The crouched in a stairwell where they couldn't be seen from the main room. Checking to see that both Maedhros and Maglor were there,

Elros came down the stairs and said, "I'm going out for a walk in the garden." Maedhros grunted.

The outside door slammed. Elrond went down the stairs, exactly like Elros had.

"I'm going out for a walk in the garden." He crossed the room and let the outside door bang behind him.

"What the …did you see that?" Maedhros' voice wafted through the open window.

"I saw a boy come downstairs and go outside." Maglor held a straight face, then snorted with laughter.

"You've never seen that before? How much time did you spend away from home? Amrod and Amros used to do that trick all the time."

Elrond stood in his customary place by the window, watching the path. He hadn't seen anything but deer and rabbits, but he continued to watch.

He heard music another room, something ancient and sad. When the song came to an end, Maglor joined him at the window, the harp in his hands.

"You don't have to stand there and watch. The messenger will come into the house when he gets here." Elrond knew that, but he continued to watch the path.

Several days later, loud voices drew him to outside, where one of the soldiers was dismounting while Maglor held the reins.

Maedhros bolted out of the house. "What news?"

"I found the house in Doriath, but she wasn't there. I left the note with the servants."

Maedhros' face tuned scarlet. Maglor put a hand on his shoulder and pulled him aside. "So we'll stay here and wait for their answer. They'll send a messenger of their own."

A week went by, and then another. "Maybe Mother went to stay with Auntie Maiele."

Another week went by. Elrond tired of standing at the window. He spent his days outside, searching the clearing for herbs with healing powers.

Spring turned into summer with still no word from Doriath. "The Jewel came to Mother from great-grandmother Luthien. Maybe she'd like to trade it, but she feels like it's not hers to give up," said Elrond.

"Then Father will persuade her to give it up, once he returns from the sea."

Elrond wished Mother would decide that all by herself. He and Elros were her children, and she was supposed to love them.

"This will be our best prank yet, if we can pull it off. They can usually tell us apart by now, so let's not make it easy for them to tell us apart," Elros said as he checked their tunics, belts, shoes, and jewelry.

"That's as identical as I can make us. Ready?" Satisfied, Elros disappeared down the servants' stair.

When Cook blew the horn summoning them to dinner, Elrond clattered down the stairs and took his accustomed place at the table. Maedhros and Maglor were already there but Elros' place was empty.

"Where's your brother? It seems to me he's extraordinarily fond of eating, for one so small," said Maedhros.

Elrond served himself from the bowl in the middle of the table. "I haven't seen him since noon." He made an effort to look worried. "Excuse me, I'm going to have a quick look for him outside."

He pushed back his chair and went into the kitchen. When Cook's attention was on a cauldron over the fire, he looked behind the pantry door and found Elros there, as planned. Elrond ducked behind the pantry door and Elros came out. From his hiding place, Elrond strained to hear the voices from the dining room.

"You didn't see him?" asked Maedhros.

"No, I called for him from the kitchen door, but the yard was empty."

"Do you have any idea where your brother might be?"

"He said something about wanting to go home."

A chair scraped against the floor. "I'm going to search outside. Maglor, you look for him upstairs." Maedhros sounded angry.

Between the door and wall, a glimpse of cloak and red hair swept by, and the kitchen door slammed, and someone took the stairs two at a time.

"Elros where are you?" Maglor called. Doors opened and closed, and the lid of a chest banged against the wall.

Elrond waited until Cook went outside, then went into the dining room. Elros sat at Elrond's place, still heating.

"Go upstairs and help Maglor search for you, and I'll join Maedhros outside."

Outside, it was still light enough to see but it wouldn't be for long. Inside the stables, the horses whinnied and stomped their feet.

Maedhros held the girth against his horse's flank while he tightened the buckle with his teeth. "Fetch Maglor and tell him to bring a lantern. We're going to search the forest."

How many times had Maedhros told them not to go into the forest? It wasn't safe. Even a warrior as tough as Maedhros could get lost and never come back. And that was in daylight.

Guilt washed over Elrond. "Maedhros, wait. You don't need to go into the forest. Elros isn't missing."

Maglor came out of the house with Elros on his heels. "I couldn't find him upstairs. Oh, there he is! " Maglor's face lit up. "Where have you been? We were so worried."

"It was just a prank. We're sorry. It was supposed to be funny," said Elros.

"Well, it wasn't," said Maedhros, wrapping the both of them in a one-armed embrace.

Elrond frowned. Maedhros and Maglor seemed to care about them more than their own parents did, and had done more to keep them safe. He shook his head. He'd worry about it later.

Almost a year into their captivity, Elrond came down to breakfast to find a small parcel wrapped in brown paper beside his plate. There was one at Elros' plate, too.

"Packages! What are they for?" asked Elrond.

"For your birthday. You're seven years old today," said Maedhros.

Elros tore the paper from his parcel. It was a small dagger made to look like a real sword, but scaled down to child size.

"I can show you how to use it," said Maedhros. "You want to be a warrior when you grow up, don't you? I'll give you lessons."

Elros eyes lit up and he nodded happily.

Elrond opened his package carefully, unfolded the paper so he could use it to write on. Inside was a leather case. It held small glass phials containing ordinary herbs, but special, because each one had healing powers. There was also a mortar and pestle, and a small brass scale.

"Thank you. I don't know what to say."

"It's not every day you turn seven," said Maedhros.

Elrond tried to remember their sixth birthday, a year ago. Had there been presents, or a special meal? He didn't think so. Mother didn't normally make a fuss about birthdays, although she did mark their sixth by letting them hold the Silmaril.

Shoving away feelings of disloyalty, Elrond admitted that he liked this way better, being fussed over and getting presents.

Elrond walked in the garden, watching the stars come out. The Sickle of Melkor swung high overhead, but the lesser stars weren't yet visible. Lingering traces of orange revealed where the sun had been.

A huge star hung low on the horizon, white and gleaming. For some reason, it made him think of a wild creature released from captivity. It was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen.

"Elros, come see this! There's a new star in the sky, brighter than any I've seen before.

Elros came out of the house.

"There, at the edge of the orange traces of sunset. Have you ever seen it before?"

"New stars don't just appear. You must be … ," Elros clapped his hand over his mouth. "By the Ainur! That wasn't there yesterday."

The dome of the sky darkened to a deep blue. As it filled with lesser stars, Elrond noticed that the new star lay midway between two stars in the Lion's tail.

The next day, just after sunset, they went out to look for the new star. They found it easily, as it was brightest one in the sky. It appeared even before the largest stars in the great constellations.

They lay on their backs and watched as deep blue gave way to black and the dome above them filled with stars. Presently, the faint stars of the Lion's tail emerged against the night sky. The new star was still between the two stars in the Lion's tail, but tonight, it was almost touching one of them.

Elrond sat bolt upright. "Elros, it moved!"

"Stars don't move. Even trolls know that. You just remembered wrong."

They watched for an hour as the new star passed over the Lion's tail star and kept going.

"It's moving in a straight line, like Father's ship when he steers a course through the ocean," said Elrond.

"I think it's an omen. It's sending us a message about a voyage." Elros sat up abruptly. "I think it's trying to tell us we're going home soon!"

Elrond had stopped believing they were ever going to go home. When Mother was forced to choose between the Jewel and her boys, she chose the Jewel.

Elrond chose his words carefully. "I'm willing to believe it's an omen, but I think it means that we've been cut loose, and that we'll have to figure out our own futures."

Elros looked at him. "Meaning?"

"I think the star is trying to tell us our ransom will never be paid."

As soon as Elrond spoke the words, he felt that they were true. He was filled with an aching sense of sadness, but at the same time, he'd never felt so light or so free.