Long After Everyone Else Had Left The Beach, Erestor Remained, Patiently Waiting For His Young Charge

Long after everyone else had left the beach, Erestor remained, patiently waiting for his young charge standing knee deep in the waves. The light faded from the sky and the stars rose, but he stood still as if he could see the path his brother sailed, as if he were determined to wait until Elros set foot on his new lands.

Elrond didn’t stir as he drew closer, gray eyes fixed in the horizon.

Erestor knew there was little he could say to offer comfort, so he remained silent, letting his presence speak more than his words ever could.

He had sworn to Maglor years ago that he would remain with the twins, had promised his lord that his children would be safe as long as he drew breath. It had seemed logical to remain with Elrond after Elros had made his choice. Middle-earth was still full of great peril even after Morgoth’s fall, and Elros would soon pass from the world while his brother remained behind. Elrond was the one who would need him, though he would never admit it.

“You could still go with him, if you wished.” His voice was quiet, barely audible over the rush and murmurings of the sea.

Erestor snorted at the ridiculousness of such a statement. “So could you.”

Elrond looked at him at last, his features carefully schooled into a neutral expression. “No, I’ve made my choice.”

“And so have I.”

“Have you?”

“Yes, I have. I have no wish to dwell in a realm of Men in Numenor, nor to go back to Valinor yet.”

He had no desire for Valinor, not as long as the Valar barred his lord from returning home nor as long as his young charge needed him. His place was with Elrond, to serve and protect, it was what he wanted.

Elrond’s brows furrowed, but before he could set out another attempt, Erestor shook his head.

“No, no more well meaning attempts to set me free, I made a promise, and I intend to keep it. I shall continue to nag and plague you and keep Gil-galad’s books in order until you set up a household of your own for me to manage.” Brow arching, Erestor added dryly, “You cannot be rid of me so easily.”

A blink, then Elrond laughed, the sound like starlight, and he at last turned away from the sea.

In that moment, Erestor knew he would be all right.

Screaming crying laughing wildly I love this so much

This has probably been done before but…

Mama Mia but it’s Gil-Galad trying to find out who his father is.

As season one of Camlann ends tomorrow, I wrote a short fic with some sweet nice vibes, with special dedication to Angharad, the first among Morgan x Gwen stans. Enjoy everyone and good luck tomorrow!

Winter Help

When the group comes back from under the hill, there are chores and late winter preparations to do. When Gwen volunteers to help check the anti-faeries fence, how could Morgan say no? | 2,186 words Read below or click here to go on AO3

“I could go with you” said Gwen standing in the doorway.

She had this her typical expression on her face – the one saying that she needed to help, needed to do something, needed to be helpful. The one that made Morgan feel torn. She longed to say yes, so Gwen would go with her and they would spent time together, just the two of them. But she didn’t want to just use Gwen and made her do something just because she felt like she had to be useful to stay.

“Oh, you don’t have to. I can do it myself.” Morgan answered hoping that her voice did not betray how much she wanted woman to go with her. She leaned forward to put on the snow shoes and by that hide her face. 

“I know that.” Gwen laughed and Morgan fumbled with her shoelaces. Oh, to hear that laugh more often. “You are the most capable person around. But I still would like to go. For company.”

Her voice sounded so sincere that all of Morgan’s hesitance melted away.

“If you want to spent the next hour or two freezing outside with me, who am I to forbid you?” She said trying to sound casual and sent Gwen a smile. She got a smile in return and her heart skipped a beat.

“Oh, it will be a true pleasure to freeze my ass with you.” 

Gwen took the step forward and also started putting on her shoes. They dressed in silence but their arms touched from time to time in a small space next to the doors. Gel, who was calmly laying on the carpet, noticed what they were doing, quickly got up and went to wait for them at the door wiggling his tail with excitement. 

When they were ready, Morgan took her tool bag and reached for the door. She didn’t even open them, when Perry peered into the room. 

“Are you going to check the fance now? I was going to chop more wood for the fireplace but I will go with you.” They said coming closer.

“No!” Morgan answered so quickly Perry stopped in their tracks. She felt warm blush creeping on her cheeks. “I mean, there’s really no need for you to go with us, Perry. We are not going far and it’s just a routine check, it’s really not a three people job.”

She hoped her explanation sounded rational. Perry, as always, had a concerned look on their face and didn’t really look convinced. After a moment they sighed and reached for the walkie talkies laying on the shelf near the exit. 

“At least take this and if anything happens or you will need help, call, okay?” They handed her one of the devices and didn’t let go until both of them agreed. “Okay, be careful and have fun.”

“We will.” Gwen assured opening the door. Gel run outside with an excited bark and bell on his collar ringing. They left and Morgan could still feel Perry’s worried look until the door closed. “It’s time for some girls time!”

Gwen smiled to her clearly not bothered by Morgan’s earlier fumbling and she felt the relief she didn’t mess everything up before they even stepped outside. She returned the smile because there was no other option than to do this, Gwen’s smiles always had something infectious in them. 

The world around them looked beautiful. It snowed during night and everything was covered in fresh snow, completely untouched. All the trees and bushes had thick white layer on top of them shining lightly in the winter sun. On the ground there wasn’t a single footsteps or animal trace. The only sound was creaking of the snow beneath their boots and hum of the river nearby. 

“Wow.” The faint word escaped Morgan’s mouth when she took in the whole view in front of her. 

“Yeah.” Gwen’s voice was filled with the same wonder Morgan felt. She was speaking quietly as if afraid that even her words could ruin the scenery. “It looks like from a fairy tale.”

Exactly like from a fairy tale, Morgan thought and her wonder deemed a little. Just another aspect of the Cataclysm - fairy tale winters. This one at least looked pretty and, with a warm cabin behind their back, relatively harmless.

Gel didn’t really care about beauty of an untouched snow and was running with excitement far in front of them and then back. Big clouds of snow raised behind him and after a moment he had to stop to shake of the snow from his fur. Women laughed watching him.

Their small group was getting closer to the fence and from the quick look it seemed fine. No branches or trees fell on it and straight lines hang from one fance post to another unbroken.

“Okay, so what are doing now?” Gwen said without taking her eyes of the fence as if it could disappear suddenly. 

Morgan grabbed the strap of her tool bag harder and shifted to her work mode.

„We need to check if all the wires are fine, if something is broken or detached. Generally, is everything in perfect condition like when we left it.”

They started to work in amiable silence. Morgan was checking all the hooks and nails on the fance posts and the posts themselves, meanwhile Gwen walked next to hanging wires inspecting their condition. She moved them lightly and big cloud of snow, which moment ago lay unbothered on them, lifted into the air. She laughed when it fell on her and the sound made Morgan looked up from her work.

“This one looks fine.” Gwen said noticing Morgan’s look and shook her head to throw off the snow from herself. Gel barked and shook his whole body with her. “Ha ha, just like that, Gel.”

Morgan turned back to the post. She could feel the itch in her hands to walk up to the woman and help her sweep the last of the snow from her eyelids.

Not the time for it, she thought and attempted to focus on her task. However, no matter how hard she tried, she continued to be extremely aware of woman’s presence. She heard the snow beneath her boots, her hand on the wires, rubbing of her jacket when she moved, muttering under her breath. Every time it seemed Gwen was not paying attention to her, she couldn’t stop herself from stealing a glance at her. It didn’t help at all with task at hand and Morgan found herself checking the same nail three times before finally moving on to another fence post. 

They slowly made their progress. Morgan tried not to think that it would go faster if she wasn’t getting distracted by Gwen’s footsteps every other moment. At some point the sound started getting closer and closer and she held her breath, while still continuing to hammer the nail. Gwen leaned to her and gently touched her shoulder. Her hand with the hammer shook slightly when she looked at the woman. Her eyes seemed to shine in the winter sun. They were so close, she could see few perfect snowflakes caught in her eyelashes. 

“Look.” Gwen whispered and pointed at something on the other side of the fence. 

It took an immense willpower from her to look away at the thing Gwen was pointing at. Bush in front of them was shaking slightly. Morgan wanted to ask what she was supposed to see, when she noticed a movement near the ground. Small brownish head moved among lower branches and a moment later bird jumped from the bush with something in its beak. Another brown bird flew from the side to join it.

“Wrens.” Gwen whispered into her ear and she could hear an excitement in her voice. Smile immediately showed up on her lips.

They continued to watch birds looking for food in the bush. Gel, thankfully, was busy with digging a hole in the snow and didn’t notice the wrens. Gwen didn’t move even an inch away and her breath tingled Morgan’s ear. She didn’t move either. 

At some point big pile of snow fell from the tree nearby and startled birds flew away.

They returned to their work but this time silence didn’t accompany them. Gwen told how her dad would watch birds outside their window and even had little birdwatching book next to it, in case he would see a bird he didn’t recognise. Morgan in return recalled the times she and Dai would go on hikes on weekends when student life seemed like too much. They would compete who would spot the coolest bird, the funniest tree or the most colourful bug. She instinctively smiled while talking about it - these quiet weekends always held special place in her heart. Her smile deemed when she remembered their recent argument. 

Gwen probably guessed what she was thinking about and changed the subject. They quickly inspected the rest of the fence continuing to talk about one thing or another. Morgan was tightening the last wire around post fance when she hissed with pain.

“Everything alright?” Gwen was immediately next to her and grabbed her hand. Gel was right behind her and put his head on Morgan’s knees as if he too wanted to help.

“It’s just a cut.” Morgan said allowing woman to inspect her palm. Wire had to have a sharp end and cut the inside of her hand. “I’ll be fine, it’s nothing.”

The cut wasn’t deep and there wasn’t a lot of blood but Gwen still looked at it with her eyebrows furrowed as if it could be a life threatening injury. 

“We should clean it up and put bandage on, just to be safe.” She decided after a moment. 

She grabbed her uninjured hand and help her get up. Before Morgan had a chance to take her tool bag, she snatched it from the ground.

“It’s just a cut, I am still capable of carrying my things, you know.” Morgan commented but did not fight the woman for right to carry her bag. 

“I know, however doctor’s orders say you shouldn’t.” Gwen said mimicking serious doctor’s tone. “Come on, let’s head back.”

They moved towards the cabin. Gel stayed close this time, still alerted by Morgan’s pain. She patted him behind ears with her uninjured hand and he wiggled his tail in response. 

In no time they reached their destination. Gwen left the tool bag next to the door and helped Morgan take off her jacket. She dropped on the floor to untie her shoes. Morgan wanted to protest but before she even muttered a word, Gwen said simply but decidedly:

“Doctor’s orders.”

She looked up at her and send her a smile. Morgan was left speechless by how beautiful she was. They just returned from long walk in the cold winter, she wore a warm hat and scarf - by all logic she should look at least a little bit disheveled. But no, her hair were falling down in perfect locks on her shoulders, that weren’t ruined even by few strands wet from the snow. Light blush from the cold graced her cheeks. Some part of Morgan wanted to put the cause of it in Gwen’s royal privileges. But the other part thought, that Gwen would look just as beautiful, Cataclysm or not. 

“Thank you.” She murmured, when Gwen finished and got up.

“Come on, we have to clean the cut now.”

They went to the kitchen. Morgan sat down, while Gwen went for the first aid kit. Gel came after them, turned around in place three times and lay down next to Morgan’s feet. 

Gwen put the kit on the table and started cleaning the wound. She was extremely gentle, as if she was dealing with hurt, scared animal. Her movements were calm and precise, Morgan was mesmerised by them. Gwen put the bandaid and made sure it was straight. Morgan wanted to thank her, but before she had a chance to speak, Gwen brought her hand to her lips and gently, oh so gently, kissed the bandage. 

“Here, it will heal in no time.” She said with a light smile and got up to clean the mess.

Morgan’s eyes followed her, breath caught in her throat. She instinctively brought her injured hand closer, still feeling the ghost of Gwen’s lips on it. If she could form a coherent thought, she would probably be thankful she could blame the blush on her face on the cold. But she couldn’t, so with red cheeks and parted lips she watched how Gwen started preparing them something warm to drink while that little kiss kept playing in her mind. 

She finally broke away from her trance, when Gwen put a steaming cup in front of her.

“Is this also according to doctor’s orders?” She asked with a smile, when she smelled coffee. She brought the cup closer and warmed her hands on it. 

“Of course, you have the best doctor.” Gwen sat next to her and put the puzzles they started doing earlier on the table.

“Yeah, I do.”

A Seed Guy and a War Guy for commission.

Thinking about that first sweet young Liam being the one who goes around saying stuff like "I wanna slam you down big style" is very funny to me

Ok, on my third or fourth @camlannpod relisten I feel like we can start asking the important questions - what happened on April 1st, first year?