Title: Memories

Author Name: Red Lasbelin

Contact Email: red.lasbelin@gmail.com

Beta Name: Keiliss

Main Characters: Elrond, with mentions of Celebrian

Rating: PG

Genre: uh…drama?

Word Count: 488

Summary: Unsuspecting Elrond and a box.

Original Request: Elrond/Celebrian, notebook/journal, Rivendell

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Elrond pulled the box off of the shelf and brushed the dust off before he set it on a nearby chair. He had taken over a disgruntled servant’s job after hearing a stream of rather inventive curses coming from one of the storage rooms while on his way to the kitchens. A quick conversation later resulted in him sending the elf off with orders to acquire drink and sustenance while he searched for an elusive box of decorations for their Yuletide tree.

This one was unmarked, and he thought that perhaps the silver bells were in it, so when he opened the lid, he was wholly unprepared for what he found within. He carefully removed each item from the box – a stack of books, a silver handled brush, a jewelry box, and a delicate glass figurine of an Elven maiden.

He remembered the figurine, a gift to her from him at a Yuletide long ago, and the jewelry box, carved from wood from her home, from a fallen branch off of one of the famous mallorn trees. He ached when he turned to the brush, palest blonde hair still caught within the boar bristles. The books, however, were another matter entirely. He held his breath without realizing it as he reached out to take the first of the stack in his hand.

They were her journals, leather bound with lilac ribbons to hold the writer’s place. Their worn pages were filled with a familiar feminine script and held something very precious value to Elrond – her thoughts. Pages were turned, grey eyes scanning each, mouth tensed with emotion. The well known story unfolded slowly, a tale of two elves in love, a home being built, twin sons being born, followed in time by a daughter.

Grief twisted inside him, hot and burning within his gut. He could see her now, writing at her desk, heavy with child. He would call her to bed, promising a foot-rub if only she would now rest, and she would laughingly acquiesce. He remembered Elladan’s binding, he read the lists she made for herself of the plans for the ceremony. After the feast and resulting celebration, she had kissed her new daughter-in-law before they left, hugging her son tightly. She insisted on writing an entry before they went to bed, although tired from the important, life changing day. He now saw the words she wrote that night – a poignant mixture of joy and sadness, a new cycle of life, saying goodbye to the old and welcoming the new, something beautiful and terrible at the same time, nature at its peak.

He read that passage over and over again, unable to help himself. He could hear her voice in his head as he read, she seemed so very much…alive. That last thought was where he finally broke, buried his head in his hands and wept. Say goodbye to the old, try and accept the new.