(Closed + Open)

[castintoflames]

Who: Maedhros & Family | Maedhros & Open
What: Quality time is good for the soul.
Where: All around the train.
When: Day 30
Notes: Usual warnings for Maedhros's issues. Other than that, I don't foresee any problems?

(For Nerdanel -)

(Thousands and thousands of years could pass, he could see countless battles, countless losses and his need for his mother's company remains unchanged. So Maedhros seeks her out, quietly approaching her and cautiously resting his cheek against her vibrant hair.)

Mother... (He saw a certain sculpture and it has weighed heavily on his mind.) How are you?

(/)

(For Fingon -)

(A bouquet of flowers in one hand, ears red, Maedhros approaches his cousin and presses gently against his back.)

For you. (He presents the colorful gift, tilting his head to give Fingon a small smile. This time, at least, he isn't planning on telling him horrible news. Of course that is no guarantee that their conversation won't drift in that direction.)

(/)

(FAM)

(If you are kin to Maedhros, he will be seeking you out. The visit can be brief - a hug, some words of encouragement and then he leaves you to your business - or it can lead to longer conversations. He is an Elf that can sense when he has overstayed his welcome, so don't worry about him becoming a large pest.)

(/)

(OPEN)

(With his family accounted for and settled, Maedhros is freely wandering, humming ancient songs under his breath. No, his voice isn't bad. Of course, next to his musical brother, a songbird would sound ill-trained. Perhaps that is why he rarely sings, though he does enjoy the pastime.)

(/)

Comments

[marriedanidiot]

Nerdanel lifts her head from contemplating a book of sketches and smiles, tugging Maedhros to sit down.

"Hello darling, come and sit. What's wrong?"

[castintoflames]

He lowers himself onto the seat beside her, immediately resuming his position, his head on her shoulder.

"I'm worried about you, Ammë."

[marriedanidiot]

She reaches up and unbraids his hair, and sets about rebraiding it, the motions soothing and well-practised, even if they haven't been done in yeni.

"Oh? Why is that, my son?"

[castintoflames]

The gentle tugging is comforting and he closes his eyes, his shoulders relaxing.

"I saw your sculpture." he hesitates, adding, "What can I do?"

[marriedanidiot]

Her hands do not falter or slow.

"Oh." She murmurs, and her voice is sad. "Ah my son. Do not trouble yourself over this. Your father and I are... talking. What is between us has no bearing on our love for you."

[castintoflames]

Maedhros opens his eyes and glances at her, unwilling to interrupt the braiding. But the moment she finishes, he will cover her hand with his own.

"I love you and so I worry when all isn't right." he has no place in commenting on his parents' marriage, yet it pains him to see them struggling, "We are together; that is a miracle we must celebrate."

[marriedanidiot]

She smiles at him.

"Tis not your place to worry." She says firmly. "You are our son, Maitimo. Not our keeper. As glad as I am to see you boys again, things went ill for your father and I long before you left me. Until we settle those, neither of us will rest easy."

[castintoflames]

"Whether it is my place or not, there are emotions I cannot help." he wraps an arm around her and closes his eyes, "You were blessed with seven sons, Ammë. That is unusual. I think perhaps there is great good at the center of your love for Atar. But we know now that bright light casts long shadows."

[marriedanidiot]

"Dear Maitimo." She smooths back his hair and presses a kiss to his brow. "Always so responsible. It's alright, my darling. We'll work things out - your father has been trying very hard, and I appreciate that. But it won't be swift, nor easy. I... was badly wounded, my son, by first your leaving, and then your deaths. Such wounds leave deep scars."

[castintoflames]

"You shouldn't push yourself. I don't mean to make you feel poorly." he frowns and gently touches her hair with a scarred hand, "A thousand times I wanted to sail back to you. Each time I lost a brother or I was Oath-bound to kill, I wanted to escape." he looks away, pained, "Morgoth hung me by my wrist on the Thangorodrim. I wanted to die, but he refused me that fate. I prayed that my brothers would not follow me and perhaps my prayer was heard. Finno was the one who came and it was he who severed my hand to free me."

Maedhros takes a steadying breath.

"I wasn't the same. The torture and all the time I spent hanging left me terribly weak. But my brothers stayed with me, keeping me company during my nightmares. We are family no matter how much we hurt."

[marriedanidiot]

"Ssh. I know, I know, my darling boy." She soothes him.

"You did your best, I know. And I am so very proud of you. But the things between your father and I go back longer than that, and older. I need to know that I can trust him, Maitimo. He needs to know he can trust himself."

[castintoflames]

Trust is so easily broken and so difficult to fix. Maedhros hurts for his mother and his father. He can see them trying and he knows the efforts are genuine, but the hurt between them remains.

"I believe in him." he gives her a small smile, "And I believe in you."

[marriedanidiot]

She smiles at him fondly and brushes the hair from his face.

"My dear one. Your heart is so very great."

[utulien_aure]

"Russa? What- oh!"

Fingon turns toward his cousin, a surprised smile spreading across his face.

"These are lovely," he says, body visibly lightening as he reaches out to take them. It probably hasn't missed Maedhros' notice that he's been tense and snappish recently- but the flowers are probably exactly the right thing to cheer him up.

"Not quite as fair as their giver, but still. Thank you, Maitimo."

[castintoflames]

The tension is understandable and Maedhros hates that he is the cause of it. However if he hadn't told Fingon the truth and he had run into Fëanor accidentally, that would have been worse. Add on the weather and...yes. He understands.

"Do you think I was considering my looks when I chose them?" he feigns confusion, drawing Fingon into his arms, nuzzling his cheek, "Nothing exists that is fairer than you."

[utulien_aure]

"You never consider your looks," he retorts, and tucks his free hand under Maedhros' chin.

Then he looks up, catching his cousin's eye. There's a clear focus behind his gaze- so it's probably no surprise when Fingon leans up to turn Maedhros' embrace into a drawn-out kiss.

"I, on the other hand, contemplate them often," he says when he finally pulls away, a hint of humor in his voice. "It's very relaxing, I'll have you know. Some of your other virtues as well- though they tend to be less soothing, all things considered...."

[castintoflames]

"They are mine for good or ill; why should I pay them any mind?" he immediately feels hot, torn between squirming under Fingon's gaze and doing far naughtier things. His sweet cousin is only proving his point with the kiss and he lifts him, giving into a moment of dazed pleasure.

"As I contemplate yours." Maedhros sounds huskier, amusement bringing a new light to his features, "Yet those...virtues...can, I hope, lead you to contentment eventually."

[utulien_aure]

"You have no vanity at all, do you?" Fingon laughs, and brushes his fingers through Maedhros' hair. "What sort of Noldo are you, to pay so little attention to your own appearance?"

His eyes gleam. "Oh, sometimes." Then he twines his free hand with Maedhros' dragging him over to a seat. "Now sit down, and let me put this gift to good use."

[castintoflames]

"I'm afraid I lost it long ago." somewhere between the burning of the ships and the nauseating heights of the Thangorodrim. But something like pride stirs at Fingon's touch. If he can capture the notice of his lovely cousin, perhaps not all is lost.

"What sort of use, Finno?" his voice rumbles with amusement and he lowers himself onto the seat eagerly, leaning in to kiss along Fingon's jawline.

[utulien_aure]

"You can't guess?" An amused smile flits across his face, then he deliberately draws back from his cousin.

"Turn around, Russandol. If you won't be vain on your own behalf, I will for you. And for that, I need a better grip on your hair."

Does he have plans for those flowers? Yes, he definitely has plans for those flowers.

[castintoflames]

"Maybe I want you to tell me." he arches a brow, lips slightly pursed at the space between them, "My hair?"

With a soft chuckle, he turns away from Fingon, pushing his hair back so it can be easily reached.

[utulien_aure]

"Hmmm," Fingon breathes, and runs his fingers through his cousin's hair. "I think I shall show you instead."

He doesn't have a brush on him, but it's no chore to work through any tangles in his cousin's lovely hair. Then he begins to work, twisting Maedhros' hair into a pair of braids. The flowers do go to good use- he tucks them into the bends of the braids, choosing the ones which look most striking against his red hair.

Finally he wraps them around Maedhros' head, forming a circlet of bright hair and flowers.

[castintoflames]

Tingles race across his scalp and he is hard-pressed to resist a shiver. He hasn't been touched with affection of this sort in years upon years. The day he laid Fingon's poor battered body to rest was the day he stopped believing that he could have this.

The finished product makes him chuckle and he turns to face Fingon, arching a brow.

"Are you trying to turn me into a lady?"

[utulien_aure]

That gets the snort it really deserves.

"And why would I do that?" he asks dryly. "We've played this game for a thousand years and more; I know what I like by now."

With an amused grin, he reaches out to fix a few stray strands. "Besides, you should know better to make assumptions like that. Which of our cousins would sit still for this sort of thing, after all- Findarato or Artanis?"

[so_dark_a_road]

Curufin runs into Maedhros in one of the passageways and grins at him. Then he throws his arms around him and hugs him.

[castintoflames]

Maedhros chuckles and lifts his brother as he returns the embrace, burying his face against Curufin's shoulder.

"Behaving, brother?"

[so_dark_a_road]

Curufin clutches Maedhros and feels himself lifted off his feet by this tall brother of his. When his feet plant back down on the deck of the passageway, he gazes upwards into Maedhros' eyes and smiles.

"As best as I can, Nelyo! And yourself?" Grin.

[castintoflames]

He can't help but smile back. The mischief and fire behind his brother's expression is contagious. However he knows better than to simply accept that all is well.

"Am I known for being naughty?"

[so_dark_a_road]

Mischief and fire are Curufin's modus operandi. And of course his brother knows this well.

"All of us Fëanorions are known for being naughty. In our world, at least. I don't know about here." Another grin.

[castintoflames]

"I spent my time chasing my ill-behaved brothers. I didn't have a moment to spare for my own mischief!" Maedhros sounds put out, but he cherishes those memories, "You try being the first in a band of seven."

[so_dark_a_road]

"True enough. We led you a merry chase! You had to be a sort of deputy parent, so you were very busy." He shrugs a little. "I didn't have the choice of being the eldest; I was assigned my position of number five in that band. I assumed my place was either to keep quiet or to shout for attention. So I did both, by turns. Being quiet often involved being sneaky, and shouting involved being disruptive, so again, both."

Smile. He cherishes those memories, too.

"But you did your best, Nelyo. You weren't free to choose until we were all grown up."

[castintoflames]

"You shouted for my attention when you were very small." he pinches Curufin's cheek gently, smirking, "Before you grew as tall and strong as Atar, you were adorable. I had a pack of rambunctious brothers stumbling and wrestling in my shadow and then there was you, small, dark and plotting."

How could Maedhros not carry such a smart baby wherever he wished to go?

"Mm by then... There was the Oath. I don't know if any of us were free."

[so_dark_a_road]

Curufin's shoulders begin to shake with laughter.

"I'm glad you think I was adorable. I'm not so sure. Small, dark, and plotting? Yes, that was me, all right!"

It was so lovely when Maedrhos picked him up and carried him, and little Curvo would put out his little hand and pat Nelyo's face in adoration.

Oh yes, the Oath. "You're right. The Oath took away our freedom. At first, I doubt that any of us had any idea it would have that effect on us. But I think we all knew it by the time of the First Kinslaying. I certainly did, even though I fought fiercely in that battle and in all the others after that, and I used my intelligence in the service of the Oath until the day I died."

[castintoflames]

"Of course you were adorable." he speaks with not even a hint of doubt on that score, "You were also sweet to your family and protective of your brothers."

Maedhros had learned to snuggle his baby brothers well and no matter their fussing or foul moods, he could coax a smile or a laugh from them. To them, he must have seemed like some tree that was fun to climb.

"I stood to the side when I should have dragged you and the rest of our kin home. Can you imagine me carrying Father that way?" his lips twitch in a sad smile, "I will not forget the day I lost you."

[so_dark_a_road]

"All right, I did try to show my affection to all of you, at one time or another. I'd try to comfort you if you were sad. When I was old enough to be trusted with a forge hammer in my hand, I made gifts for everyone. The cousins, too, sometimes. And I did try to protect you all on occasion, especially Amras and Amrod, when they were small and adventurous." Smile. "I remember how often I used to go down to the ravine to search for them because they were late for dinner and our parents were worried about them."

Maedhros was a wonderful tree to climb! A Maedhros Tree! And it was true that no matter how anxious or fussy Curufin was, Maedhros could always cheer him up.

"I don't know how you'd have dragged us all home." He smiles a little, imagining Maedhros picking up their protesting father, slinging him over his shoulders, and hauling him back to Tirion. Even if he had to throw him into a boat and row it himself. "I can imagine. We should have done it. The responsibility shouldn't have fallen all on you because you're the eldest son."

His face turns a little sad now. "Nor will I forget the day I died and left you unwillingly."