Glorfindel looked at Elyndiriel and saw a single tear roll down her cheek. She reached up with her hand and touched the teardrop. Alexa stared at in surprise and rubbed it between her fingers. She shook her head and sighed in annoyance. “I have not cried since the day Alora died.”
“It is all right to cry, little one. You do not always have to be so strong.”
She lowered her eyes. “Yes, I do. I do not know how to be any other way.”
He reached out and took her hand. “You are safe here. You have nothing to fear anymore. Your people will always be here to protect you. I will always be here to protect you.”
Alexa looked up at him and frowned slightly. She did not know how to respond to this. It had been so long since she had had someone who cared about her, so long since she had been part of a family. She felt odd and somewhat unnerved by the thought. She flinched slightly as he brushed the hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear.
“Tell me what happened to you, my child. “Where have you been all this time?” he asked.
Alexa cringed inwardly at the thought of telling him of her life. Most of her tale was so dark and disturbing. ~Will he be ashamed of me?~ she wondered. She did not know this Elf, but the thought of him being ashamed of her made her wince. She sighed heavily. ~He told me what I desired to know; now I must do the same for him.~ She drew a ragged breath and began.
“I was sold to a man named Dargon. He gave me to one of his house slaves, Alora, who named me and raised me until I was old enough to work. Alora was like a mother to me. She loved me and took care of me from the day I was given to her.” She paused for a moment as a mixture of joyous and sad memories washed over her.
Glorfindel looked at her. She looked so lost, and he could hear the pain in her voice. He squeezed her hand, encouraging her to continue.
“She was the only person to ever show me love and kindness. When I was very young, we used to sing together. It is the only time I have ever sung in my life.” Her voice became colder as she continued.
“When I was old enough, I became a house slave as well. I did all that was asked of me, but it was never good enough. Dargon loved to beat his slaves, even though they rarely deserved it. And they were hard, brutal beatings. If I escaped a day without getting beaten, I was very fortunate. Every time he beat me, he would tell me how worthless I was, and how my father had wanted nothing to do with me.” She paused for a moment and looked at him.
“I am glad to know that it is not true. Alora would have been glad to know that as well. She would always tend to me after a beating… until the day everything changed.” Hot tears stung her eyes, but she blinked them back, refusing to succumb to her grief.
“Dargon was beating me, and she stopped him. He killed her for trying to protect me. She returned my medallion to me, right before she died.” Alexa removed the medallion from her shirt and tenderly traced its carvings.
“Alora had taken it from around my neck when I was given to her, and kept it so that Dargon would not take it from me. She died in my arms, and it shattered me. But from my pain came rage. I took a knife from the table and went after him. I found him in the great hall, sitting at a table. He ordered me to bring him a scroll that was sitting on a small stand across the room. I brought it to him, and came up behind him. He reached for his whip, and then I killed him. I slit his throat.” She shuddered at the memory.
“He was the first person that I ever killed, and it changed me,” she said bleakly. “Growing up in that place did not allow most of the slave children to retain their innocence. Nor did it me, for I lost what remained of mine in that moment. I no longer felt alive; rather, I was empty and cold, consumed by pain, and wishing for oblivion. Whatever love and sweetness I had left in me died along with Alora, and remained dead for a very long time.” She sighed heavily. Even though Dargon had been a horrible Man, she still felt a small twinge of remorse at her first kill. She frowned and shrugged it off. ~He felt no remorse at what he did and neither will I.~
“After I killed Dargon, I took his keys and gave them to the house master. No one cared that he was dead. All of the slaves hated him. I left without any of them trying to stop me. From there I have traveled all over Middle-Earth. I have been to Gondor, Rohan, and numerous other places. The only places that I avoided were the Elven lands. I met my horse several years ago. We saved each other, you could say. I saved him from the men who were trying to capture him, and he saved me from a lonely life. He gave me someone to love. Spitfire was the only friend I had for a long time.” She stopped.
“How did you end up in Lothlorien?” Glorfindel asked.
She looked up at him with a slight smile. “If not for Haldir—”
“Haldir?” Glorfindel asked in surprise.
“Yes. He is the March Warden of the Galadhrim.”
He smiled at her. “Yes. Elyndiriel. I know of him. I have met him before during my travels.”
“Then you need to know that he saved my life.” Glorfindel stared at her in surprise. She began to tell him of how she had met Haldir and of how he had saved her life. She smiled at the many emotions that crossed Glorfindel’s face: amusement, shock, fear, and gratitude.
“If you know Haldir, you know that he is a very persistent Elf. Even though I threatened him many times, he still refused to give up on me. I owe him much.”
“As do I, little one. As do I,” Glorfindel replied and tenderly touched her hair.
That loving gesture broke down the remainder of her defenses, and she lowered her head, trying to fight the tears that were so dangerously close to the surface.
“I am sorry I tried to kill you. I just…,” her voice broke. “I am sorry,” she whispered.
Glorfindel put his arm around her. He felt her body tense slightly, but she did not resist.
“It is all right,” he said softly. “I understand why it happened. It is all right.” He knew she was trying to fight her tears. “Go ahead and cry, little one. Do not fight it anymore.”
Alexa could not fight her emotions and grief any longer. She broke down and allowed her tears to fall. Glorfindel felt the gentle shaking of her shoulders and knew she was crying.
“My little girl,” he whispered and held her close. “My sweet little girl.”
They remained this way for a few moments, until Alexa drew back. She reached up and brushed the tears from her eyes. He looked at her. She looked completely exhausted.
“Go and rest, Elyndiriel. I will be here when you want to talk again.”
She nodded and rose. Glorfindel watched her as she walked away. He knew they had made progress today, but they still had a long way to go before she would completely trust him. He smiled. It was a start.
