The Sarati School was once located on an immaculately cared for plateau. Gardens were always weeded, pathways were swept, and not a stone ever looked out of place. All that was gone, replaced by wild growth and cracked bricks, paths that now had full-grown pine and spruce, thousands of years old, fourth and fifth generations of the trees before them.
Erestor, Glorfindel, and Haldir were not alone when they arrived. Besides Greyson faithfully following, there was one more in their party.
“If you thinks these maps are accurate, then the first thing I want to do is assess the structures, calculate how much wood, stone, brick, mortar, and paint we need to make repairs, and then confer with Glorfindel whether repairs will be the most effective means, or if we are better off demolishing certain buidings and starting over.” Orophin unfurled the map of the entire grounds. “In fact, Glorfindel, if we do the scouting together, we can probably make those calculations on-site.” Word of what had transpired reached Orophin quickly, and he wasted little time in coming to the Homely House to try to cheer his brother. Upon hearing of the project, he and Valarda decided it would provide Orophin a chance to spend time with his brother while still using his skills as a carpenter.
Haldir and Erestor used the time to walk the grounds, where they marked out where a path would be rerouted around a tree or where, in rare cases, a tree would be felled so that a pathway could be restructured and to provide the necessary wood for doors and furniture which would have to be rebuilt. After two days of exploration and scrutiny, Orophin and Haldir rode to the nearest town to collect supplies, while Glorfindel and Erestor began the task of clearing the land as needed and setting up a makeshift camp. Greyson seemed to know better than to follow into town and happily spent his time chasing squirrels and chipmunks through the ruins.
***
“What are you thinking of calling the school?” asked Glorfindel. He and Erestor were sitting on a blanket in the overgrown courtyard. So far, with the initial supplies they brought and the wood they had harvested, they had only managed to repair one of the buildings, and it was one of the small ones that had seen little damage. The blue on the door had faded to a very pale yellow, but it had once been the House of the Peacock. In fact, there were wild peafowl roaming the grounds, and Erestor was certain from all they had seen so far that eventually the animals from the original school which had served as pets and house guardians had been left to roam wild on the estate when the school closed.
“It used to be the Sarati School, but hardly anyone uses Sarati anymore.” Erestor smiled fondly. “I do have an idea, but I feel like it might be a slap in the face to Rumil. Not intentionally, but he might take it that way.”
“He seems very relaxed,” said Glorfindel.
“He always has been,” reflected Erestor.
“So, Tengwar School?”
Erestor shrugged. “It was that obvious?” he asked.
Glorfindel nodded.
“It just seems like that would be the most logical choice.” Erestor took a few of the nuts from the sack sitting between them and ate them thoughtfully one by one. “I guess I could try to think of something that encompasses what happens here.”
Glorfindel was leaned back, his palms on the blanket behind him for support, as he tilted his head up and looked for shapes in the clouds. “Funny how you never talked about this place before. Even now, I feel like I have to pull information from you.” He turned his head and squinted from the sunlight, but caught Erestor’s frown. “Alright, I know, you will tell me more when you are ready.”
Erestor made no attempt to further the conversation, and upon finishing the food in his hand, he stood up, brushed off his hands, and wandered off with a pair of gardening gloves and a small hand axe. Greyson caught the movement and romped after the retreating figure, while Glorfindel shook his head. “Every time I think I figure you out,” he mumbled to himself before he, too, gathered up supplies and followed after.
***
Most of the afternoon was spent cutting back branches and brush which shaded the path to the library, located in a far corner of the estate. Greyson pounced at butterflies, while the wolf’s Elven companions chopped and sawed, throwing the excess into the overgrown fields and forest. They made the decision that while a few of the areas around the main part of the estate would be landscaped, there would be far more wild and dense land on the estate now than there had once been.
“It looks like these frames could be salvaged for the windows. The overhang kept rain from ruining them. I wonder if I could get Ecthelion to come up with something for the glass. Was there a crest or anything you had in mind for..” Glorfindel spun around. “Erestor?” He circled the building, and found the main door open. “I swear, he is the one that needs the leash, not you,” he said to Greyson before he entered the tower.
Several flights up, Erestor stepped out on the roof of the library. The building itself would be one of the easiest to deal with. Rumil had moved all of the scrolls and other documents elsewhere when the school closed. At least, that was what Erestor hoped had happened. The thought of them turning to dust and blowing away or animals using them to line nests and burrows was a sad one, but he saw no trace, not a scrap of paper or an errant quill. Satisfied that the contents had been saved, Erestor turned his thoughts to happier things.
Just around the corner from the doorway that led to the roof was a barrier wall, waist-high, made of brick. It kept those on the roof from tumbling down the steps from the side, and was not particularly decorative so much as it was practical. There were only a few bricks that had fallen from the partial wall, which looked smaller now than it had seemed years ago, knee high to Erestor now. He sat down, and turned his head up to the sun. The stars would remain unseen for a few hours, and they never seemed as bright anymore anyway.
He heard someone following up after him, and Glorfindel soon emerged onto the roof to join him. “If I had known you intended to come all the way up here, I would have brought supper up for us.” He looked around at the scenery around them. The library was one of the tallest towers, and it allowed Glorfindel his first overall view of the estate from above. “This is a beautiful place.”
“Yes, I always enjoyed coming up here.” Erestor started to stand up, but then changed his mind and patted a spot beside him. “Can you wait a few minutes for supper?”
“I doubt I am going to waste away.” Glorfindel settled on the roof beside Erestor. “Did you spend a lot of time up here?”
Erestor nodded.
“Studying?”
“Something like that,” he answered. He put an arm around Glorfindel. After a few minutes, Erestor pulled on Glorfindel’s shoulder to get the blond to lean his back against his shoulder. “Just.. checking on something,” he mumbled when Glorfindel began to question what Erestor was doing. Erestor nuzzled the back of Glorfindel’s neck before coaxing Glorfindel to rest his head on Erestor’s knee. “Let me see…” He leaned down to kiss Glorfindel, lifted his head just a little, and smiled. “Much better,” he said.
“Better than what?” asked Glorfindel with a curious smile.
“Mmm… mmhmm,” Erestor said, dipping his head back down without answering.
After several minutes, they parted for a moment, and Glorfindel said, “There must be a story behind all of this.”
“Not sure you want to hear it right now,” admitted Erestor.
“Fair enough,” replied Glorfindel as he reached up to tangle his fingers into dark tresses, and pull Erestor back down again.
