"Ack! Where did you come from? We have been looking all over for you two! Your parents would have been worried sick if they had been here!" Glorfindel yelled to no one in particular, "I found them."
The twins dusted themselves off and thanked the Valar that they were home again. "You can't imagine how glad that we are to be back."
"Where did you go? Didn't you know that we would all be worried?" Glorfindel hugged them and continued. "When you didn't show up to lead the cross training and I couldn't find you, everyone took up the search! That was two days ago. Thank the Valar that you are home!"
Elladan managed to quickly interject, "To make a long story short, we were quite unexpectedly pulled away. We returned as quickly as we were able. We will tell you and Erestor all about it tomorrow, but right now we need a bath, a meal and sleep. Perhaps you would be so good as to tell Erestor that we are back."
Glorfindel shook his head. "Erestor is very busy at the moment. You two were scheduled to oversee the sword and knife rotation of archery cross training this week. Since I have been in charge of the search and rescue efforts, I wasn't able to fill in. Likewise, my senior officers that weren't on patrol have spent the past day and a half leading search parties. The last time I walked by, Erestor was giving archers a new appreciation for the long knife." At the look on Elrohir's face, Glorfindel nodded. "You heard me right. Lindir has been filling in for Mel while he tries to fill in for Erestor."
Glorfindel's relieved smile morphed into a smirk. "You do need a bath, and normally I would be more than happy to relay the message. But this time you two need to tell him yourself." Now that he knew the twins to be safe, he allowed himself to be a little angry for the way they worried everyone. Let them explain to Erestor why he spent the past two days sparring and nights catching up on things that Mel couldn't handle. "Now off with you. I need to call off the search and thank everyone for their extraordinary efforts."
Elladan winced. No one in Imladris was as good at spotting equivocation as Erestor. While both brothers were overwhelmed with relief at being home, they were also both filled with dread at having to tell Erestor what they had done.
"You tell him."
Not feeling any desire to be the focal point when Erestor asked for explanations, Elladan demanded, "Me? Why me? You are the one that took the book off of his desk. You do it."
Elrohir kicked the dirt and sighed. "He always knows when we've done something stupid."
"He will probably just be glad we survived yet another of your escapades." Elladan squared his shoulders and suggested, "We are adults. Surely that counts for something."
Elrohir snorted. "You jest. This is Erestor we are talking about."
Elladan sighed. "Tomorrow, we have to come clean. You know that, right?"
"Aye, I do. I'm not up to it today though. The part of my mind that fled that horrid bat cave has yet to return." Elrohir looked all around at his home and smiled. "We are back! Let's get this over with so we can relax."
Erestor's reaction was no less than what the twins expected; a mixture of relief, anger and curiosity. While Glorfindel didn't press for details, he did. Since the twins didn't really want to talk about their misadventure yet, much less in front of an audience of elves breaking from their workout, they gave a weak excuse about being suddenly called away to aid a friend. Elladan made apologies for failing to leave a message before they made a quick getaway. Erestor knew full well that they hadn't been completely truthful and divined their embarrassment as well. He just didn't know what they had done to be embarrassed about.
Elsewhere, in another time and place, an elfling returned to a cabin in the forest. It would be his home for three more long years. His uncle's tireless efforts to bring his parents' murderer to justice were finally rewarded, but not before seven more elves lost their lives to the monster.
A Teleri elf, unhinged from the kinslaying at Aqualondë, had gone on a killing spree vowing to destroy as many noble Noldo families as possible ere meeting his end. Ironically, Aman was closed to him since he left the Blessed Land posing as a Noldo following Fingolfin. He was not able to return, even though it would have healed his sick mind. Instead, he was destined to meet justice at the hands of a werewolf years later after having escaped from a Noldo detention cell.
The elves eventually moved on, leaving the forest behind to follow their leader in search of a safer and more secure home. The elfling never spoke to others about the time when twins appeared out of the mist. His tutor and uncle were wise elves and cautioned against it. However, when he saw his first human, he remembered the two half-elves. Though he never spoke of them, he never forgot.
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Chapter notes: Beta: TWED and KRob
