Legends of Belariath
Melanthe Silverleaf
I remember only flashes of my mother; auburn hair, a soft voice, a gentle touch; the gleam of sunlight on her armor as she went off to war against the humans who had been raiding our forest, burning homes, stealing women and children. Mostly I remember the big hole where her presence used to be. She never returned from that battle. Another soldier reported that she had been seen captured, alive. We waited for a ransom demand, or an offer of trade for humans we’d captured, but neither offer ever came.
As time wore on, father became more bitter, drawing away from my twin sister Marrianne and myself. My aunt did what she could to help out, coming in to cook, clean, make sure we had clean clothes, and learned to read and write. My sister and I were very close as children; we learned together, played together, and had the same friends. We were strong for each other, offering the love and care we lacked from adults, for while Auntie tried, in truth, she had no patience for children. We spent a great deal of time outside while she worked in the house.
Joining the ranks of apprentice Druids when we came of age to do so was only a logical step. Now we had a teacher and classmates; adults to guide us. Neither of us knew how to handle it. My sister followed everything they said, striving to please the teachers, be a good student. I followed a different path. I was the rebel, I did what I needed to do for Gaea, yes, but I constantly questioned our teachers, challenged what they said. I wanted to know why, how, inquisitive and demanding. Slowly my sister and I drew apart, she and her friends excelling through every lesson. My friends and I doing the bare minimum, following our own way, discussing what we felt Gaea was telling us, debating with teachers and each other.
When we came to adult hood, things shattered us further. Father was still distant; he never recovered, really, from Mother’s loss. My Aunt was killed during another of the even more numerous human raids. Luckily my sister and I were deep in the forest under the tutelage of one of the Druids when it occurred. Several women who weren’t so lucky disappeared, including my boyfriend’s sister, Anna.
He was, understandably, incensed. But when he caused a riot amongst the other elven males, the village Council decided he needed ‘more time to mature and see the world,’ and banished him until such time as he could display an ability to become more dignified as was suitable to our race. My sister was by then engaged to one of the council member’s older sons. And of course was constantly sticking up for her future father-in-law’s decisions. This led to a huge fight between her and I a month or so later, the worst between us that I can remember.
“Eliwn says it was a good thing Dornal was banished, before he got you into trouble as well,” she said conversationally at dinner one night.
“*Elwin* can keep his pointed nose out of my business.” I answered stiffly. She was always going on about ‘Elwin this’ and ‘Elwin that’.
“He’ll be family in a few months. The family’s reputation *is* his business, and you’re doing nothing to help it!”
“What do you want me to do, Marianne? Turn into a little submissive ‘yes’ girl like you? ‘Yes teacher, of course Teacher’, ‘yes Elwin, whatever you say Elwin,’” I mocked her, “That’s not who I am.”
“Well you need to do *something* Melanthe, you can’t keep going as you are!”
Father just looked from one to the other of us, but said nothing. I looked back at him a moment, then pushed myself back from the table.
“Sit down Mel,” My father said, “she’s right, it’s time you got married. I’ve been asking around, and have a few likely candidates for you.”
“Goddess! I’m tired of this crap! Just because miss goody two shoes is getting married, she can speak to me like dirt and you can arrange for me to be farmed out to some elder’s son? I’m out of here! I’m supposed to meet Brilla at the tavern anyway.”
“Melanthe,”
I waved Marianne off and stormed out the door, stalking down the street to the bar. Brilla was already there, drinking dwarf’s sweat and half drunk already. I chuckled wryly and took a seat beside her.
“You’re late.”
“Yeah, sweet little Marianne had her panties in a bunch again. And father’s trying to marry me off to someone I hardly even know.” I wrinkled my nose.
Brilla shook her head and belched. “Your sister was so much nicer before Elly… Elween… Elwin!”
I smiled. “You’re drunk already, now I’ll have to catch up,” I ordered a double.
“Your other sister was pretty cool though.”
I stopped, glass to lips. “Other sister? Are you that drunk Bri? You’re seeing double.” It was an old joke between us.
She shook her head. “No, a year or so ago, just before the raid and Dornal’s..” she looked at me and swallowed, “before his sister went missing.”
I took a large gulp of the whiskey. “What are you talking about Brilla?”
“You must remember. The half human girl? Your Da was pretty upset, talked the council into sending her off real quick- too much of a reminder of your Mum, looked just like her.”
I set the shot glass down slowly. “No, I don’t know anything about this girl…” I said.
“Tha’s right..” she slurred, “you were out, with teacher! You and Dornal, and the rest.”
“When you were getting over the pox?”
Brilla nodded. I looked at her closely.
“Tell me what happened, all of it. Did you talk to her? Do you know if Mum is still..”
Brilla shook her head, “I dunno. I heard Da talking about it, didn’t talk to her myself, didn’t have a chance, they bundled her out of town pretty fast. Her name was May… Mary, Mirrim! That was it, Mirrim.”
“How did she get here, where did she go?”
“Da said her father, the human, kicked her out cause she looked too much like an elf. He voted against exile- I remember cause he was angry with your Da for a while.”
I nodded, remembering the feud between them, though I hadn’t known the reason for it. I thought for a moment. Things had been getting worse over the past year, especially in the past month or so since Dornal’s exile. My father and sister ganging up on me more often, and now this talk of marriage? But a sister, even a half-human, and who looked like Mum? I set the glass down and stood.
“Where are you going?” Brilla asked.
“To find my sister.”
“But I thought you and Marianne…. Oh! You mean the *other* sister! But Mel, you can’t! You’ll never find her now.”
“It’s that or get married off to some Councilman’s son. I don’t want to be pawned off on some male who thinks he can force his will on me. And I won’t even get a *choice*, Bri. It will be whomever Father and Elwin decide on. And this sister, she may know where Mother is. If I can bring her back.. well, maybe Da will be better.”
“But Me,”
I just shook my head and walked out the door, leaving coin for the drink on the bar. First I would talk to Father, then I was leaving. He was shut up in the front room when I got home, and so I went first to my room, packing what I would need. Clothes, coin, my dagger, a few other small things, all these went into the pack. I was in the kitchen adding bread, cheese, and a few other things when Father came in.
“You’re not going anywhere, Mel. You can’t just run away from this.”
I laughed, and turned on him. “You’re going to hold me hostage, Father?”
“If I must. You’ll never find Dornal anyway. There are other men..”
“Oh yes, ‘other men’, someone to control your wayward daughter!” I scoffed.
“Mel..”
“This has nothing to do with Dornal, Father.” I paused, cinching up the pack “Why didn’t you tell me? Why hide her and why send her away?”
He looked at me confused a moment, then paled. “Mirrim”
“Aye, Mirrim! My *sister*! Father, you should have told me! Should have let her stay! Mother…”
“Your mother is gone! Dead!”
“Mirrim told you?”
“No, she wouldn’t tell me anything, wasn’t in any state to. But why else would she have come here instead of staying with her?”
“You know Mum hasn’t been free to come home, or she would have. How old was Mirrim? She’s half human, so what, 20 perhaps? Mum lived that long among them, why assume she’s gone? Maybe she sent Mirrim here. How else would she know where to come? You should have told me!”
“And this! This going off without thinking and leaving is exactly *why* I didn’t tell you, Mel. You’re too old to act like a stubborn willful child! You’ll be banished just like that no good..”
I bristled, “The ‘Council’ won’t have a choice. I won’t be here to banish. I’m an adult Father, I can go if I please. I will find Mirrim, find out about Mother, and bring both back with me if I can.”
“Mel, I forbid it.”
“You lost that right by the time I was ten! When Mum was taken, you still had us, but you didn’t care about that! You left us to Auntie and took off for months on end. Why should you be able to tell me what to do *now*?”
I left without waiting for an answer. I wanted to say goodbye to my twin, but could not stand another fight with her, and so I crept out of town quietly, disappearing into the night.
I went from town to town asking after Mirrim, finding the trail, loosing it, and then finding it again. I had a few narrow escapes, but my wit, my blade, and razor leaf saw me safely through to the end of the trail: Nanthalian.
Here I found my lost half-sister, and discovered my mother’s fate. She died when Mirrim was born after being held as a slave by her human captors for almost a century, passed from father to son to grandson, each more depraved and cruel than the last. Mirrim had survived, flourished, until her human father turned on her for being too ‘elven’.
Here also I found what my father had long thought I needed. Reluctantly at first, I admit, but Gaea showed me the true path she’d set for me, at my Wolven Master’s feet. Ironically now that I’m happy in my collar, now that I have a ‘strong Male to control me, and tell me what I can and cannot do and keep my wayward behavior in check’, my father has disowned me and refuses to answer my letters. I keep in touch through Marianne and Elwin, my brother-in-law, father to my nieces, who seems to at least understand a little how I feel.
Here in Nanthalian I will stay, at least so long as my Master does.