Title:
The Flow of Silver Water
Author: Tuxedo Elf
Pairing: Glorfindel/Ecthelion
Beta: Eni
Rating: R (Eventually)
Summary: Returned to life without warning or
reason, Ecthelion seeks to make the most of life while awaiting
his destiny.
Notes: I’ve wanted to write an ‘Ecthelion
returns’ fic for a while, but I needed a reason for his
return. Thanks to Eni, I have one!
Prologue
“You must return.”
The voice caught him unawares and he jumped,
turning around. Had his heart been beating, it would have paused
in that moment. Námo stood before him, tall and imposing,
his face ever hidden from view, though from a hood or the shadows,
Ecthelion could not tell.
“Return? I am to be reborn?” he
asked, hope rising in his heart. He had been long in the halls
and yearned for life again.
“Indeed,” Námo replied.
“Though I cannot release you to the Blessed Ream. It is
to the Hither Lands you will be sent.”
Ecthelion was utterly stunned by this announcement.
Like most waiting for re-embodiment, he had assumed that he
would be sent to Valinor when his time came.
“Might I ask why, my Lord?” he
said, trying to understand the reasoning behind such an unusual
decision. “Have I displeased you in some way?”
There was a barely perceptible shaking of the
Vala’s head before he heard the response. “Yours
is not to question the judgement of the Valar, but to accept
that there is a reason for all things. You must go, or remain
here indefinitely. That is the only choice you have.”
To Ecthelion, it was not a choice at all. Too
long had he drifted aimlessly through the grey halls. A return,
even if not the one he had imagined, was far better than remaining
here. Life was always preferable to death.
“I will go, though I do not understand,”
he said, bowing low. “For I much desire life, no matter
where it is to be lived.”
A mysterious smile, which Ecthelion felt more
than saw, graced Námo’s face. “In time, you
will know. Seek the vale of Imladris: there you will find much
awaiting you.”
He raised his hand and the grey mists vanished.
Ecthelion gasped in surprise, closing his eyes
as all around him spun wildly. When he opened them again he
was no longer in the halls, but on the outskirts of a large
forest, and he was alive.
Amazed, he took in a long breath of air. How
good it felt, to feel his lungs fill with breath again! He smiled
as the wind blew through his long, unbraided hair. Looking down,
a quick glance revealed he was dressed in a blue tunic with
silver trim and black boots and leggings. He was also relieved
to note the belt about his waist, with a sword attached.
As two birds flew past, he listened joyfully
to their twittering and realised that things he had taken for
granted in his last life were special now, having been so long
denied. He was eager now, to see where his path would lead.
Looking around him, he wondered which way to go.
Head west and you will find one to lead to
you Imladris.
Námo’s voice sounded in Ecthelion’s
mind.
I have also left a small token at your feet-
something you may enjoy having with you.
Looking down, a glint of silver caught Ecthelion’s
eye. His eyes widened and with a trembling hand, he bent to
pick up his flute – the same one that had sunk with him
to the bottom of the fountain.
“Thank you, my Lord,” he whispered
gratefully. “I will do my best to fulfil whatever my purpose
is here.”
A low laugh echoed in his head.
Oh, of that I have no doubt.
Then Námo was gone, leaving Ecthelion
to walk the long road to Imladris alone.
END PROLOGUE
