Estarfin

Cold winds whipped past him tugging at his robes, pulling his hair back from his face. The taste of the sea was in his mouth, and he could feel the salt upon his skin. The stone cliff beneath his feet fell several hundred feet away below him, yet the white foam of the waves crashing into the rock  still had the power to throw spray high enough to soak his robes. The day was growing late, the heat of Vása spent for the day. He shivered slightly; the wet robes clung to him, pulling the warmth from his flesh.

What began as a friendly hunt for rabbits in the hills behind Celondim, takes an unexpected turn. 

('A Bitter Argument by Parnard.' )

Estarfin watched the stars closely,lost in their beauty. He stood motionless, as in a dream, walking through memories of long ago when the world was fairer.

“Mmm, I see,” said Parnard, nodding. “That this rankled in your breast so, all this time: you should have told me sooner.” 

The words stunned Estarfin into a temporary silence. Even after the passage of years, Parnard still did not understand him, did not understand how deep of a wound his failure in the mountains had caused him.

And the mood shifted yet again, as I watched the stars, and them. Estarfin was pointing to constellations and giving the name for them we Noldor used. Parnard was responding with the names from the Greenwood. They spoke as friends discussing a shared joy.

Joy? My heart was happy to witness such. May it be we all grow closer. May the Star-Kindler show us the way.

I went to replenish the wine, with a lesser sort alas. But it would still make for a mellow mood. 

And as I returned I thought they had been...disagreeing? There was a feeling in the air, of tempers barley controlled? 

And as I watched them it came to me that Parnard, though annoyed, was doing his best to speak kindly. And Estarfin....he was controlling his short temper. I could have embraced them both. But then the stars were in the sky, and as usual, Estarfin turned to view their beauty. Parnard and I joined him.