The adventures of tiny Crablor by Aprilertuile

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Finding Maglor

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For close to 5000 years now, every few years Elrond had taken a leave of absence and had gone looking for his foster father. This time again, he had left Imladris in the capable hands of his sons, hoping there would be no issues in his absence.

Orcs and wargs had started to be a problem again, and he really, really hoped he didn’t leave the valley at the worst moment but he had a feeling he could find Maglor if only he left now.

He knew that Glorfindel had been anxious at his, admittedly, hasty decision to leave, and leave now, but the twins had been admirably willing to step up for however long he’d need.

His children always made him proud in everything they did. Elrond had no doubt that now his children would do admirably in the task of leading the valley. And the twins had an advantage over him, they were two, for when things became too much, even though he had no intention of leaving for long enough for things to become too much for them.

The journey has been nice, the weather was fine, and he saw no trace of orcs, wargs or goblins on the way.

Admittedly, that was a relief to him as he reached the shore. Now he just needed to find the place he had seen in his vision…

Or he just needed to follow his foster father’s voice.

For indeed, on the wind he could hear a heart-breaking melody without lyrics sung by a voice he had once known well.

Elrond sighed. Had Maglor spent the last 5000 or so years in misery? That made him dismount quickly, leaving his horse behind for he knew Maglor would hear the horse long before he could hear Elrond himself, and he was very able to disappear if he wanted to. Elrond didn’t want to risk it.

He then walked toward the direction he could hear Maglor’s voice coming from, walking quietly and…

And he saw no one on the beach, even though he was sure that Maglor was there. The song couldn’t come from nowhere.

Elrond walked on the pebbles toward the water, taking a look at the rocks and cliff nearby and… His eyes grew wide as he saw on one of the rocks a crab large like his palm… and a torso that looked like Maglor… And it seemed that this creature had been the one singing.

The voice was definitely Maglor’s…

But how was it even possible?

Elrond didn’t realise he spoke aloud and the song stopped even as the creature, tiny Maglor? hastily dried his face from tears but looked at him without hesitation.

“Some years ago, I lost count, there were giant waves coming to the shore. I was too close and was taken by the currents. I died. Or I should have died at least. Lady Uinen saved my life but to do so she… Well, you see the result.”

Elrond stood speechless in front of him for a moment.

“Well, she has my gratitude for saving your life, even if… It’s not exactly what I thought I would find.”

Maglor’s smile was shaky and tearful, even as he looked slightly down, and Elrond couldn’t help himself, and offered his hand for Maglor to get on.

He couldn’t exactly hug him as he would have an elf, but he could offer comfort nonetheless, and a hug adapted to his foster father’s new size.

Maglor looked up at Elrond, and wasn’t that a strange thing when Maglor had seemed just so tall to Elrond, even next to Maedhros who had been downright a giant to the twins.

Elrond smiled gently:

“No matter your form, you are my foster-father, an elf I love like any member of my family, and my children really want to meet their grand-father.”

Maglor escaped a sob and got onto Elrond’s hand, and got on his shoulder as soon as it was feasible, jumping from the peredhel’s hand to his shoulder and… Hugging the side of his face.

“I missed you atto.”

“I missed you too, Little Star.”

Maglor let go of Elrond’s face, but he twisted one of his pincers in Elrond’s hair to keep his balance on the elf’s shoulder.

“Come back with me to Imladris.”

“You know I can’t, Little Star. I’m…”

“You will find that Imladris is a haven where everyone is welcome, and you will also find that the words of the Valar are not exactly of great importance for the inhabitants of the valley. And my children would love to meet you.”

“You know I’m… Cursed.”

“Yes, well, you can be cursed as well in Imladris you know.”

Maglor looked at his hands with regrets, as if he could still see the blood on them, despite all the years that had passed.

“I shouldn’t…”

“Great, that means you agree, let’s go then, I left my horse this way. What do you eat now? Can you eat lembas? I’m afraid that I haven’t exactly planed for finding changed to quite that point.”

Maglor sighed but settled properly on Elrond’s shoulder, so that his balance wasn’t just guaranteed by his pincer’s grip on Elrond’s hair. His son had come by his natural stubbornness honestly from all sides of his family so…

“I haven’t had lembas in years. But I managed with fishes and algae since… Well, since lady Uinen saved my life.”

Elrond frowned at that. They were days of travel from Imladris, weeks perhaps depending on what he’d find on the way, and he really didn’t appreciate the idea of carrying fish for that long.

“My upper body is that of an elf.”

“A tiny one perhaps.” Elrond chuckled a bit hysterically.

Elrond yelped as the free pincer just pinched the skin of his ear for that.

“My upper body is that of an elf, I could probably eat something else than typical crab food, and I’d appreciate to have lembas as I haven’t managed to get those in millennia, thank you.”

Elrond had to stop and sit even as he was suddenly overtaken by definitely hysterical laughter, and he leant his head into the crab like body of his now hand sized foster father, even as the tiny elf… Crab? Cryptid? Gently touched his face, while whispering slightly panicked reassurances.

Maglor yelped in alarm as Elrond’s hysterical laughter turned into sobs and Elrond picked him up and took him to his chest, against his heart, both hands surrounding his body.

“I missed you so much, I feared so much our last meeting would have really been our last and… I never thought… I was hoping but I never thought I’d see you again… I’m… If I had found you sooner.”

Maglor hated himself just a bit more, for being unable to hug his foster son as he so wanted to, and as it’s the only thing he could do, he just started to sing, a lullaby full of his love for the peredhel who held him, his own tears falling down his face for the limitations that prevented him to really help his son.

They stayed there for a long time, Elrond kneeling on the rocky beach, holding Maglor to heart like the most precious treasure, and when they both calmed down, sun was already setting on the horizon.

“I’m…” Elrond started quietly.

“If your next words are an apology for something you had no control over, like your ability, or lack of thereof, to find me, know that I will pinch you.”

Elrond snorted at that, amused despite himself.

“Alright then, no apologies. We should probably spend the night here and go in the morning.”

Maglor nodded, and Elrond let him climb back to his shoulder, even as he rose to his feet carefully, and walked back to his horse.

The animal was peacefully munching on the herbs he found at the edge of the beach, waiting patiently. It was a good horse, very calm, very patient, and very clever.

Elrond took off the horse’s gear, and put his backpack next to the saddle on the floor. He sat next to it and rummaged in it to find the few lembas he had left, offering a piece of one to Maglor on his shoulder, and he couldn’t help the amused smile at the way the tiny piece of lembas looked big in Maglor’s hand: Elrond had given him a lembas that was the size of his head!

Maglor just cut a piece he could actually eat and let Elrond pick up the rest.

“Talk to me of your valley and of your family.”

Elrond’s smile turned tender as he started to talk about his children.

They fell asleep late at night; Maglor stealing just a tiny corner of Elrond’s cloak to ward off the cold, feeling warm for once in this season, and the next morning, Maglor took place in one of Elrond’s pockets for safety’s sake, even as they started on their way toward the valley.