Chapter Text
Chapter I
Memories
The soft rays of the sun filtered through the curtains. The smell of morning dew and something else slowly drew Eruanna Úlumiel out of the deep trenches of sleep. She shifted around in her bedsheets, a low, gnawing feeling in her gut settling over her. She sat up, letting her deep blue eyes adjust to the light. The first thing she saw was her windows thrown wide open. A breath left her lips.
She remembered closing it before bed the previous night. Did someone break in? Was it her two mischievous uncles planning another prank? No, they didn’t do that during this time of year. But then again, nothing was normal this time of year. And Eruanna hated that.
A low snore startled her. Looking over, she was shocked to see Naurion sprawled on one side of her bed. Her dragons were now fully grown but being the descendants of the Valar-bred dragons of the First Age had given them powers others could hardly fathom. One of these was the ability to change their size.
Ever since they had gotten bigger, it had been clear that Eruanna could no longer carry the dragons around as she used to. This had clearly disappointed them, though they rarely voiced it aloud. Sometimes, they would still try, clamouring on top of her only to have her fall down. Other times, they would decrease their size to fit in her arms, but something would always come up before they could get too comfortable.
However, even after they had started sleeping outside under the stars, Eruanna had discovered something else: they loved sleeping in her room. The orange scaled Naurion loved sleeping next to her, curled up on her bed, though usually, he would accompany Sûlion at the foot of her bed on the rug. Sure enough, Sûlion, whose scales were black as a starless sky, was there, slumbering.
Ceveniel, the largest of the dragons, slept near the plants. Eruanna had given her that name for a reason. The dragon’s turquoise scales always looked lovely next to plants and indeed Ceveniel loved nature and everything in it. Helegiel was curled up on the bay window, which Eruanna figured her dragons had opened. The sun made the dragon’s white scales shimmer.
And of course, the beautiful golden scaled Faroniel was on the seat at the dresser, purring happily. For some reason, Faroniel loved the dresser and Eruanna had often caught the dragon admiring the many jewels she kept there. Valar-bred dragons didn’t have an innate desire for gold and jewels as the dragons of Morgoth’s brood did, but that didn’t mean they didn’t appreciate the wonders of elven craftsmanship.
Naurion stirred and woke, opening his golden eyes. “It was chilly outside,” he informed her. “And you left your window unlocked. Your room is much warmer. Though I suspect Helegiel forgot to close the window as we told her to.”
Eruanna smiled and stroked the dragon’s snout. “You are always welcome to sleep here.” The dragons’ ancestors were made specifically to fight the beasts of Morgoth yet here were her dragons, preferring comfort and warmth to war. Eruanna honestly couldn’t complain.
Naurion lifted his head and looked at her. He suddenly shifted, becoming more alert, sniffing the air. “I smell blood,” he said. “But not the kind borne from war or hunting. Something…different…. Dare I mention it?”
Eruanna indeed felt something wet and sticky between her legs. “Oh Valar…” she murmured.
“What is it?” Sûlion rumbled, finally stirring awake. His tail smacked the chair Faroniel was sleeping on and the golden she-dragon hissed in annoyance before waking up. She saw the open window and the slumbering Helegiel.
“You were supposed to close the window,” Faroniel said to Helegiel.
Helegiel stretched and yawned. Looking at the open window, the dragon huffed. “Goheno nin,” she said. As descendants of the Valar-bred dragons, the dragons already had knowledge of the tongues of elves, men, and dwarves. “I thought I had closed it. I was tired yesterday from hunting.” She looked at Eruanna. “We flew nearly halfway across Middle-Earth just for a meal. An interesting one. We’d been eating deer for days. Thankfully we found bears.”
“Did you make sure they weren’t skin-changers?” Eruanna asked.
“We did,” Helegiel reassured her. “If the bears weren’t normal, we would have known.”
Ceveniel stirred and awoke at last. “Morning has come,” she sighed. Then she sniffed the air. Before long, all of the dragons smelled the same thing and turned to Eruanna.
“Eruanna,” Sûlion said, cautiously. “I think your time has come. Your cycles.”
Eruanna sighed. Her dragons did have an excellent sense of smell.
The Princess then hissed as she felt a crippling stomach cramp. She felt something wet and sticky between her legs. Reaching in between her legs, she felt the liquid on her fingers. With mounting dread, she pulled her fingers out of the area and saw the blood. Cursing beneath her breath, she called, “Falathren!”
“She may not be up yet. I can find her,” Ceveniel offered.
“Nay. She heard. I hear footsteps,” Faroniel put in. As if on cue, the Lady’s faithful attendant came. The dragons immediately stepped aside for her. They grew fond of Falathren and she often brought them treats.
Falathren had been the lady’s faithful attendant ever since Eruanna came to live with her maternal family as a young girl who had just lost both her parents. In her younger days, she’d been a maid for Celebrian, Eruanna’s maternal grandmother. Her dark hair was pulled into a long, neat braid, and her green eyes twinkled. Just then, she saw the blood on Eruanna’s hand. “It’s that time of the month, hmm?”
Eruanna nodded. “Yes.”
“I shall gather the needed supplies and have a bath fixed for you then,” Falathren said without missing a beat. “Are you sure you do not want me to tell anyone? This isn’t something a young girl should go through by herself.”
“I’m not going through this by myself. I have you,” came the response. Falathren smiled. She loved the young Lady of Imladris like a daughter and the fondness the two had for each other had only grown since the day the two of them met.
“Still, your daeradar would want you to-,” Falathren began.
“Don’t worry about me, Falathren,” Eruanna said. “I’ll be fine. They don’t need to know.” They are all caught up in their own grief.
Falathren looked unconvinced but Eruanna gave her a pleading look. “Please don’t tell them, Falathren,” she pleaded.
The maid sighed and bowed her head. “Very well. I shall honor your wishes, my lady. Now head to the bathing chamber. I’ll see you there.” With that, she left.
“I like her. She doesn’t waste breath on unnecessary words,” Ceveniel said.
“She does not ask unnecessary questions,” Sûlion said. “Thank the Valar. I hate stupid questions.”
“You hate everything,” Naurion retorted.
“I have training with Glorfindel today,” Eruanna informed her dragons as she slowly rose from her bed. She groaned softly upon seeing her stained sheets. Her monthly cycles were painful - not to the point where it was cause for medical concern - but just enough that it worried her family. Eruanna didn’t need them worrying.
“Oh my star, surely you could skip that,” Ceveniel responded with a sigh. “Lord Glorfindel would understand.”
Eruanna smiled. “I can manage it. I have to. There is a council meeting today which I must attend as well.”
Faroniel sighed. “You look unwell already. Do you elves not understand the concept of rest?”
Eruanna went to her mirror. “I will be fine,” she said.
She looked at herself in the mirror. Eruanna Everstar had already passed her majority two centuries ago. The elven princess touched her porcelain face. Pale skin and rosy cheeks. Full lips and eyes blue as the Sundering Sea. Long raven hair which crept down past her waist in subtle waves. Her face carried memory, everyone always told her so.
Most said she (like her aunt, Arwen) was a remnant of Lúthien’s grace. Some said the light of Eärendil’s star was ensnared in her blue eyes. According to the tales, Eärendil had the same blue eyes she now possessed. Many said she resembled her late mother, Hiriel, the eldest child (and rumored favorite) of Elrond. Hiriel also had beautiful raven hair. But much of her immediate family agreed that Eruanna resembled her late grandmothers.
Eruanna had never met either of her grandmothers. Her paternal grandmother, Queen Itarille of the Woodland Realm, had been slaughtered by orcs when Eruanna’s late father, Amarhil, and her paternal uncle, Legolas, were just children. Her maternal grandmother, Lady Celebrian, the wife of Elrond, sailed West long before Eruanna was born after enduring horrendous torture at the hands of the orcs who had captured her at the Redhorn Pass.
Her face was the same shape as Celebrian’s. So were her lips, full and rosy. Elrond once told her that her laugh sounded similar to Celebrian’s as well. Eruanna had seen portraits of the departed Lady of Imladris all over Rivendell and her statue in the gardens, commemorating her even though she wasn’t dead. She was just in a land far away from her bereaved family. Whenever Eruanna looked at a portrait, it was like seeing another lady wear her face, just with different eyes and hair.
Her eyes were the same as Queen Itarille’s. Much like Thranduil’s late Queen, Eruanna also took joy in nature and kept potted plants in her room which she tended to with care. Thranduil had once told her that if she’d had blonde hair, he would have been constantly mistaking her for his wife. He’d said it as a joke but Eruanna knew of Thranduil’s grief. King Thranduil, had a statue of his wife placed at the entrance to his realm. Eruanna had seen it before and had sometimes wondered what it would have been like had Itarille never been killed.
So many ghosts. So many memories. All morphed into one face.
This month was always a somber time in Rivendell. It was not just the anniversary of Celebrian’s departure West, but also the anniversary of Hiriel and Amarhil’s deaths. What a cruel twist of fate, Eruanna thought. Though her parents died in an orc attack six decades after Celebrian departed, they died the same month Celebrian had sailed to Valinor.
This month, Elrond, her beloved grandfather, would not be the same. He carried so much loss throughout his life but the loss of his wife, daughter, and son-in-law, were the heaviest ones. Elrond was very good at hiding his emotions and taking care of everyone else around him. Yet, during this time, he caved and took it out on everyone. Family, friends, a complete stranger. It could happen any time on any day.
Last year during this very month, Falathren had been one of the victims. However, Eruanna had heard the shouting and she’d stormed in. Then, Elrond and Eruanna, who were normally very close, had gotten into a massive argument. Elrond had apologized soon after, feeling immensely guilty, and Eruanna had forgiven him. Thankfully, he never raised his voice at her attendants again knowing how ferociously protective his only grandchild could be.
“Our morning hunt should commence soon,” Naurion informed her. “We will be off. We will see you in the afternoon. Or evening. Depends on how slow Sûlion is.” The black dragon growled upon hearing this. He was the swiftest of the brood and hated it when anyone challenged his speed.
Eruanna smiled. “Of course.”
“Take care of yourself,” Ceveniel added as the dragons gathered towards the window. With that, they leapt out, one by one. Ancient magic shimmered around them and the dragons took their original forms as fully grown beasts, large as mountains. With roars of excitement, they set out to hunt.
Eruanna sighed to herself. “Time for another day,” she muttered. “Please let this month be over soon.”
And once the month was over, everything would be back to normal.
Just how Eruanna liked it.
Elvish
Daeradar: Grandfather
Goheno nin: Forgive Me