Hot. It was very warm here in the kitchens, steamy in fact. A tendril of Eilanneths' hair had escaped its imprisonment by the clip she wore on the crown of her head. Flour had exploded onto the light blue apron and nearly managed to reach her blue dress. If she was not so steadied, one could imagine beads of sweat on her silken smooth forehead. She continued kneading with a renewed fervour as one of the sculleons hurried past with a large bowl of baked buns. They had work to do.
Knead, flip, knead, flip. The rhythmic movements and the warmth of the dough was somewhat delightfully soft on her hands. With all the aromatic smells wafting at them from all corners of the room, it was as if the very space was filled with comfort. And with the mellow tunes from the halls, she could almost forget about the heat coming from the fire and the frantic movements of the aides. Momentarily she wondered when lord Telpenaro and the rest would return from their journey. No one had heard anything from them for a while and she could use another pair of skillful hands in here. Where were they? She tried to put the worries for her fellows to the back of her head. They had work to do.
A chilled breeze permeated the open window. It was still cool enough outside that it would dissipate the steam inside. As sudden as the breeze entered, a merrier tune came by, and someone began singing. She smiled to herself and hummed along, for she knew none of the words in it. She could imagine the glee by which her husband must carry himself at that very moment. To be chosen to stand on stage with the rest had been a dream of his for long. Considering how he had been chased out of the Last Homely house on a few occasions for playing the pibgorn at rather unfortunate moments, it had been a surprise to her that they asked him. He was known in the house to be quite the stubborn bard, who would play music that sometimes would tear at sensible ears like a cats claws on a chalkboard. He had his moments though, when all of a sudden he managed to hit all the right notes and themusic enveloping them all would be like the glinting stars, almost understandable. Though he was not the best musician, he was more precious to her than anyone else. She knew his hidden potential, knew that if he would just learn to listen, he would make for a great fiddler. Her pride for him was great and his pride was even greater than hers. It had been her lifelong quest to make him happy and to see that his pride did not hit too many sharp corners. Often he would profess his skills to her and she, with a gentle smile on her face, would simply nod ''Yes, dear.''
This time, she would just be in the audience though. She knew the flute quite well herself, and played the harp to an extent that, according to some, exceeded the skills of her husband. Yet, for the sake of Lindaire, she had given up playing music some time ago. Besides, she just did not have time anymore. She had work to do!
Hilariel briskly hauled another batch of bread out of the oven. Eilanneth frowned; it had been somewhat charred on the bottom. She could expect no more from the poor elleth. She was not a cook and would lose herself in books more often than Eilanneth cared for. Just this morning, she had entered the kitchens, noticed the burning smell and just in time been able to release a charred piece of bread from the ovens. Hilariel had been engrossed in a tome on the tale of Luthien and completely forgotten to take note of the baked goods. A hard scolding later and the elleth did not seem to be affected the least. Hopeless! Again she hoped lord Telpenaro would return shortly. Perhaps his voice would break through that cloud Hilariel enveloped herself in. It was either that, or Eilanneth would have to release her of her duties. She had the patience the size of the ocean for her beloved Lindaire, but others would tread more carefully around her.
As Eilanneth prepared some bread and cheese for the must be starving musicians, another tune came by that lifted her spirits once more. She could not wait for the eve of the concert to be here. Setting down the luncheon on the table and seeing them all up there on the podium made her heart swell with pride. She gave Lindaire a wink and a smile, admired the band up on the stage. In their golden attire they looked like gilded statues and the notes that sprang from their instruments danced together in a joyful exclamation of love. As of their own accord, her feet began tapping to the music, until she realised she had taken a too long break. She quickly exchanged a few words with Fimil who had joined to exclaim praise for the musicians. With a concluding nod to them all, she brushed off some of the flour on her apron and dashed back into the kitchens. She had work to do.
