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Understanding
--
Elladan was sitting in front of the fire in his room, staring into the flames. It was one of the days which found him sad because of his mother; he missed her terribly and could hardly bear her absence.
It would never cease, he knew, though on most days he could handle it better.
-
It was raining heavily; the grey sky obscured the light, bathing the valley in an untimely gloom and adding to the Elf´s sadness. Elladan was so lost in thought that neither did he hear the door opening, nor the soft tapping of little feet approaching him.
He jumped when something touched him, and to his surprise he found Brown on his lap, Estel´s stuffed horse. He looked up: his young foster brother was standing next to him, a grave look on his small face.
“Is everything well, little one?”, he asked.
Estel only nodded, then started to climb on Elladan´s lap. The Elf pulled the boy close, who immediately snuggled against him. Thus they sat in companionable, comforting silence: neither of them did speak, for neither of them had the wish to do so.
Elladan had thought that he had wanted to be alone. He had thought that he was feeling too vulnerable even for his twin to share his feelings. Elrohir had been with him on that dreadful day, had been as helpless as himself; he only reminded his twin of what he was trying to forget.
But now he realized how much he appreciated Estel´s quiet presence. The boy seemed to sense that something was grieving his brother, but he did not ask.
The way he offered consolation by just being there was very comforting indeed, though Elladan wondered if it was normal for a child to behave like this. Most likely it was not, he decided, but then Estel possessed a sensitivity that was not to be found in many.
Cradling his young brother close, Elladan felt how his sadness started to ease; he would have to face more days like this in times to come, but he would not necessarily have to be alone, after all.
--
The End
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