As it was told to me sometime later: the whole of Doriath stood still that day. No wind blew through the trees and nary a forest creature could be seen. Time seemed to stop within our borders. Even within the halls of Menegroth there was an unsettled anticipation. Silence filled every chamber and the only sound heard was our footsteps—like heartbeats they filled our ears with anxious desire for a return to normalcy. This day would never be forgotten in the annals of time. Yet in the moment, one could forget there was ever a time such as this to remember.
It was the day Lady Lúthien and her Beren would return to Menegroth. Even as the day began as always, an uneasy excitement whispered through its hallowed halls.
I was called upon by Elmo and Orowen to receive the returning couple with the rest of the family. I had met the request with some doubt—for I feared it was all in vain. Nonetheless, I acquiesced for the sake of Mîrwen.
At sunrise on that day, I rose to find Mîrwen standing across our chamber draped in her robe and staring upward.
“Mîrwen,” I began. “Is something the matter?”
“Would you think ill of me if I were to say I wished this day had never come,” she asked softly.
“You know I could never think ill of you,” I said as I got up and walked over to her. “May I asked why you fell this way?”
She turned toward me; her eyes felt like daggers through my heart.
“I know of your visions, Orothôn,” she said. “I know you have seen was is to come and it will be this day that casts its long shadow upon this world.”
“What are you saying,” I asked.
“You know well what I am saying,” she snapped.
“If I did, my love, I would know how to answer.”
“Why did you say nothing to me of what you have seen,” she demanded.
“I did not wish to upset you,” I said. “It would appear I had just cause.”
“I am not amused, Orothôn,” she said.
“Nor am I, Mîrwen. What has brought you to this, dare I ask?”
“I know far more than you think,” she said.
“Well, that would not surprise me as you spend your days with the ladies of the court,” I answered. “I can only begin to imagine what you talk about when your husbands are not around.”
“We do not discuss Súlwë,” she said.
Words escaped me.
“Where did you hear that name,” I asked.
“It does not matter from where I heard it,” she answered as her voice seemed darker. “What matters is he knows the reason why this day has come. Your visions are what lies in the future this day foreshadows.”
“Mîrwen, please,” I said softly. “No more.”
“For now,” she whispered as we heard a knock at the door. “Enter.”
Servants entered the room to dress us for the day.
“I will tell you as much as I can,” I whispered.
“No, Orothôn. You will tell me all that you know.”
She smiled and motioned to her dressers and disappeared behind her screen.
I made my way to my attendants and we were dressed in silence. When we were ready, Mîrwen and I entered the hall where we met Oropher and Nimeithel.
“Ada,” he said. “You clean up nicely. How long has it been since we have had the occasion to be so formal?”
“It has been too long,” I answered.
We began making our way to the main vestibule. I put aside the events of the morning the closer to the throne we came. Not since we first entered into Menegroth had it looked so festive. I allowed myself a moment of much needed peace.
© 2015. “The Kingdom of the Woodland Realm Trilogy—Book I: The Epic of Eryn Galen” by Jaynaé Marie Miller. All Rights Reserved.
The Kingdom of The Woodland Realm Trilogy 