Sons of Destiny [CURRENTLY EDITING AND REWRITING]

The Family Enlarges

It had been over two weeks since Elros and Elrond had first called Maglor their Ada. Life in Hithlum changed for the better, though the servants still somewhat hated the little Halfelven boys interrupting their every breath with their silly needs and obvious questions. Maglor, however, was in a world of his own—and a blissful parenting world it was. In a few days, he had achieved so much.

The boys had already begun their schooling, though Elrond thought his brother should skip the music lessons. Elros had taken surprisingly well to things related to battle, writing and geography, while his younger twin would need to be torn away from books of lore, history, and plants. Each wasn't a perfect child, as the servants made obvious through constant scolding, but Maglor swore in his heart that there were no better sons than his little boys.

It was nearly noon, and the twins were near finishing their calligraphy practice. For the
last three days, Maglor had gone outside the palace to wait for his brother at the main entrance. Maedhros had a habit of leaving in secrecy and arriving later than planned; therefore, the stretched two-week deadline did not worry his younger brother.

Just as he was about to turn back inside to call the boys down for lunch, Maglor heard the sharp blast of hia brother's hunting horn.

"Praise Eru," Maglor sighed in relief.

"Hey, you there!" he called to one of the servants lingering around.

"My lord?" he bowed awaiting instructions.

"Tell my sons to come down at once."

Forcing himself to not scowl at the term "sons," the servant bobbed his head and scuttled off to the second floor and Maglor's study.

Seconds later, four little feet pattered on the once silent stone floor.

"We're here, Ada!" the children said in their natural unison.

"Good, because it seems my brother is here too," Maglor kept his eyes on the horizon as he spoke. Elrond and Elros scrambled to stand by his legs and watch.

Maglor spied his brother's hunting party first. Riding on his usual black mare, Maedhros formed the head of the small party, along with his personal butler and the page who cared for his falcon. Five others dragged along a light supply wagon.

"You ate all the packed food again, didn't you Neylo?" Maglor shook his head to himself when he saw that the dried goods barrels were nowhere to be seen.

Cathcing sight of home, Maedhros urged his mount into a spontaneous gallop. He dismounted inches away from his brother in one swift motion. "Kano," he nodded in greeting.

"Neylo! Good to have you back!" Maglor jumped on his brother in a hug.

Maedhros staggered back in surprise. "Whoa! No lecture? No argument?"

"You're a big boy; I don't need to keep track of you," Maglor smiled, letting go.

The redhead huffed. "Be lucky that there are children watching!"

"Hi! Hey, down here!"

Maedhros looked about for a second, suddenly realizing he had to look down at his brother's legs.

"Uncle Neylo!" the boys squealed, each hugging one of Maedhros's legs.

Surprised, he gawked at his brother, "Uncle!?"

Maglor blushed. "I'm sorry, I just can't force myself to call them my—you know—prisoners."

"I am far from angry, brother! But it took them this little to change," Maedhros marveled, gently pulling the boys off his legs.

"We can talk about it later if—"

"No. When I left, I was hoping a few days away from here would clear my judgment. And my judgment has been cleared. They stay—as sons."

"Thank you, brother!" Maglor squeezed Maedhros again.

"Oh—alright! You can let go! Just, er, keep them out of my things?" Maedhros ended weakly, still mulling over the fact that he had nephews now.

"Anything you say! Boys, want to help your uncle unpack?"

"Ada, really?! Can I pet the birdie?" Elrond jumped up excited, pointing at the servant passing by with a tired falcon.

"NO!!" Maedhros yelled abruptly. Elrond shot him the blank stare that comes before tears. "No, no, I—Eru help me—I mean no. The bird is dangerous."

Elrond's shoulders relaxed, realizing Maedhros meant no harm. "Oh. Okay. Can we pet the horsey?"

Maedhros chuckled to himself, reminded of every time the Ambarussa begged Turko to let them pet Huan. "Yes. But I'll watch you."

"No fair!" Elros wailed. "Sunny's nice! Ada lets us pet him by ourselves!"

"Well," Maedhros explained with his arms crossed, "animals reflect their owners. Striker and Rána reflect me. Therefore, they are dangerous."

"Aw, you aren't dangerous!" Elrond smiled.

Maedhros looked down and gave the boy a weak smile. "Believe me."

"Can we go pet Rainy now?" Elros urged.

"That's Rána, little one. Maglor owns the Sun, but she is the Moon," the redhead elf explained.

"But can we go now?"

Unnerved by the boys' uncanny unison, Maedhros chuckled and ran his left hand through his hair. "Fine. Steer clear of the servants. They're generally moodier than even me."

"Yaaaaaaay!!" the twins cheered, running after Maedhros because of his long strides.

Arriving at the stables, Maedhros tied his mare to the post in the tack room and began taking ofd her trappings. She flicker her tail and pulled at her rains when she saw the twins out of the corner of her eye.

"Easy, girl. For once, don't be a mood queen," Maedhros patted the anxious mare's haunches. "Come here, boys she won't bite." The elf glared at his skittish mount. "Because I told her not to."

Slowly, as Maglor had taught them, the twins snuck up behind Maedhros to reach up to Rána's nose. Surprisingly for the eldest son of Fëanor, the mare stayed still and actually seemed calm around the boys. After a few strokes, the twins decided they should go inside for lunch. Maedhros promised he would join them as soon as his horse was rubbed down and fed.

About half an hour later, Maedhros stomped into the kitchen. "Knao, what's on? I'm starving!" he called.

"Let me guess, you only caught a few rabbits?" Maglor laughed, walking towards the dining hall.

"Yes," Maedhros said quietly. "I went hunting with a falcon. Striker can't catch deer."

"Falconry is such a useless sport," Maglor smirked as the first platter of pheasant came down.

"It was Finno's favorite sport," Maedhros growled and slammed his fist on the table.

Maglor went slightly pale. "Forgive my words."

"Forgiven," said his older brother between his teeth. Glancing at the empty seats beside Maglor, Maedhros asked with a softer voice, "What about the twins?"

Suddenly, a string of laughter and chattering approached the dining hall.

"Never ask that question at mealtime, brother," Maglor smirked.

This one was odd, but I like it. Tell me what you think in the comments! I will be continuing the fluff, so fear not v3Olympus ! Thank you all for FIFTEEN chapters of support! (PS: Can you tell I am madly in love with horses?)