Chapter Text
Glorfindel wakes up. He feels terrible and vaguely remembers what's going on. Oh, right, he's alive -- it's uncomfortable. He was dead, he thinks. The Valar told him to return and serve the heir, Elrond.
Eventually he comes out of his stupor and realizes he's not alone in the wilderness. There's an elf boy looking at him who looks like Luthien is said to, really. The lovely elf notices he's awake and smiles at him. He looks gentle and kind, and young.
"How do you feel?" he asks him.
Tired, he thinks. "Strange," Glorfindel says.
"I have medicine, and food and drink," the elf tells him. His aura is comforting, soothing him. "Would you like anything?"
"No," he murmurs, and falls asleep. When he wakes up, he's more alert this time, and feels better. The other elf is still there.
"Who are you?" he asks the elf.
He looks up at him. "I had a vision you would be here. I am Elrond -- the half elven one."
Oh, he thinks. So this is him. The one he's supposed to help. He doesn't look like the rulers Glorfindel has seen before; he looks like a strange otherworldly child.
Glorfindel is used to aggressive, commanding rulers and strict hierarchy; he can tell at a glance that Elrond is gentle, cooperative, sage, mystical. His aura oozes kindness. This is the opposite of what he knows.
"I was sent by the Valar -- " he starts, but Elrond puts a cup with a straw into his hands.
"I already know," Elrond assures him. "To join our fight against evil. And to be by me."
He nods and tries the stuff in the cup. It tastes good, actually, to his surprise. "I must tell you," Elrond continues, "I don't know why they sent you to me, despite the bloodline thing. I'm not very warrior-like. I'm a healer. I will stay in my city mostly, which we will start building soon as a refuge for healing and learning. So you may want to pick someone else to hang around."
Glorfindel almost laughs. This elf is definitely his speed; this is what he wants now, after his former life. He wants more calm and sure, a little fighting if necessary. But mostly boring guarding would be great at this point.
Elrond takes him back to the high king's court after he's rested as much as he desires. He helps him comb his hair and he's even brought extra clothes in case he wanted them. Then he introduces him to the high king, and doesn't even find it stupid that Glorfindel asks how he looks before he goes in.
He likes that.
Gil-Galad is just like Elrond described him; calm, wise, and he's clearly with Elrond. He can almost see the tie between them, if such things even exist. Glorfindel could tell they loved each other from how Elrond described him, and then seeing them interact seals the deal.
It is kind of fun to see elves back up from Elrond as indeed he was technically sent back to protect him. Which he mentions in front of everyone. He already likes Elrond. [When Elros dies, his brother is destroyed, and Glorfindel sits with him for endless ages until he recovers.]
Elrond closes his eyes when he sleeps, he tells him after Glorfindel forgets that Earendil did too and freaks out and shakes him awake in fear.
"Oh," Glorfindel says, embarrassed. "I actually heard that about ... your father, but I forgot. For a second."
Elrond shrugs, which is very un-elven. He does many things in that vein, it seems. "It's okay, come on, let's sleep."
He never asks about Earendil or his other relatives; Glorfindel decides not to say anything.
Of course elves enter reverie, not sleep, but he gets it. Elrond actually sleeps. Glorfindel would like to rest like that too because it looks very satisfying. From the outside at least.
They spend a little time in Lindon, where the high king is, and then go off to create this valley city Elrond tells him about. Apparently he's had a vision about that too. He has Glorfindel meet the people [a few elves in Lindon; mostly Feanoreans outside Lindon] who are coming with him, and the two of them spend all their time together. Glorfindel can tell that Gil-Galad thinks he is stealing his beloved, not that he says or does anything, but it is not like that.
Elrond tells Glorfindel to be honest with him, and he will do the same. And then he tells Glorfindel everything about himself -- his loves and hates, his insane childhood, all of it. We must know each other, he says. But he doesn't press Glorfindel to do this back, which relaxes him.
... Elrond never asks about his fight, his death. The famous stuff. He asks what his favorite food is, his favorite book. What nature was like in Gondolin, what plants they had. What the healers were like in terms of treatments and medical theories.
And also he tells him that the last Feanorean supporters are coming with him to his city. They will live with him and help him build it.
Elrond knows where they are going, and when they all enter the valley he seems to conjure up out of nowhere, everyone is shocked. People's mouths hang open. Elrond keeps smiling at the nature around them. The Feanoreans start to build sleeping structures, cooking areas, latrines, and bathing areas.
Glorfindel sleeps beside him of course, for safety, and touches his hair by accident once. Then he asks if he can again.
He shrugs, and says okay. So he gets to, and runs his hands through his hair, which feels strange, like slippery somehow. The hair of elves pales in comparison. This is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of odd half-elven things.
Elrond turns out to actually be decent, unlike many elves with that much power. He is loyal to Gil-Galad in his heart, and looks at no one as they all build his new city.
Elrond treats the Feanoreans like regular elves. He personally heals literally everyone as they build the city, over time. Many of the Feanoreans have old injuries that he works on, too. Later on, he is consulted by the healers of Rivendell in special cases often as well. He also tries to help build the city physically, using his magic to help elves lift or move heavy materials.
[Everyone tries to reserve asking for him to use his great powers in either area only in times of true need. Because everyone knows that despite his record of zero kills of any kind, he will be the one who can attempt to protect the valley from destruction with magic.]
All are awed by his power. They respected him before, but this is something else. Glorfindel takes him to his room to sleep after he does great feats like moving extremely heavy building materials because he seems woozy afterwards.
The Feanoreans look at Glorfindel with suspicion until he shows them through repetition that he values them, respects them and counts them as equals. Also, they like how he treats Elrond, he can tell. They would die for him, Glorfindel can sense it.
Elrond is sweet and gentle, and says his city is free to all who wish to enter in peace, but he brooks no allowance of fighting. At all. He personally warns all that the price of entering his city is peace at all costs. None dare gainsay him due to his history, and who he already has living with him.
No one complains about who he has living there either, since they are acting as his servants -- many elves think it a good end for them, to obey the child whose life they destroyed.
Glorfindel is shown his ring of power, given to him by the high king. Elrond wears it around his neck, afraid if he puts it elsewhere that elves will be drawn to it and try to take it. This seems like a less worse option than the current one though, since won't elves attack Elrond directly for it?
But Elrond says he thinks Gil-Galad's ring would protect him, which is creepy to think about, but good, too.
He tells Glorfindel that every night he speaks to Gil-Galad with magic, which is shocking to hear. Lindon is extremely far away. Glorfindel gets a surprise when he realizes how different Elrond really is -- it happens many times. When he sees how he is not like an elf or a man, but something magical. How he sleeps with his eyes closed. What he eats. He often drinks instead of eats.
So life goes on at Imladris, where their first temporary structures eventually turn into a real, lovely city. Elrond works with Erestor to design it, and at night they sleep all beside each other, with him in the middle, in their makeshift first buildings that are for shelter as they build the real ones. Glorfindel is pleased with Erestor, who seems to be a distant Feanorean that knows Elrond. He matches Erestor's hesitant outreach towards him, showing him who he is.
They develop a great bond of trust because they both know their real task: to look after Elrond, whose life has been horrific. They both protect him, Glorfindel physically and Erestor by controlling who gets to see him. He creates his schedule, though Elrond often goes off and does other things as well. He's hard to control, Glorfindel has noted. But he's very nice.
Instead of doing leisure things, like a normal elf king, he goes off to the healers or the gardens and does things there. Erestor gives him many 'days off' so he can rest, as they all know the burden of Gil-Galad's ring is enormous upon him.
Glorfindel often has the job of 'making sure Elrond rests', which is a pretty fun yet wild and unpredictable task. They go walk around together, eat little cakes and Elrond reads some of his favorite books to Glorfindel when Glorfindel asks for it.
He's not transitioning super well to being alive again.
Elrond spends a lot of time with the Feanoreans, acting as if they are the same as any elves, and his example leads the others to treat them the same way. Once the Feanoreans all see this, they happily extend their respect to the other elves Elrond had allowed to come live at and build Rivendell.
And so the community became tight knit. It was different for them, as Rivendell mostly consists of Feanoreans and they all felt protective of poor little Elrond. [The other realms don't have this weird interplay and obsession with their 'child' [yet not] king.]
Beyond that, they felt they had all moved history forward -- for the first time kinslayers and regular elves lived together in peace, the past pushed away behind them all. Elrond's moods and example greatly affected all the elves there, though Glorfindel doubted he saw or understood it.
His quiet happiness and kind personality inspired many, and the Feanoreans liked especially that he had Glorfindel as his personal attendant. They didn't know that Elrond never actually ordered him to do anything ... he did basically nothing. The Feanoreans also liked how Elrond roughed it like they did, though they did think of him as their little lord, the heir of sad Maglor and his sad-fated brother.
Many would come to Glorfindel, giving him things meant for Elrond. Mostly extra niceties, or blankets or sweets. Many would tell him Elrond might like them, not knowing that Glorfindel knew too that he actually did need to be kept warmer than a regular elf. Both sides weren't sure what the other knew, and neither was going to betray more information about their lord.
Elrond asked for Glorfindel's help in having a calendar of events that included both the holidays of Valinor and also those of Lindon. This way all felt their cultures were being honored. If Elrond was busy all day, he would show up at dinner to make his appearance known, something Erestor insisted on. Many elves almost unconsciously looked to Elrond for reassurance and his presence soothed them.
He wasn't just their king, he was extremely powerful. Politically, bloodwise, magic, everything. And the ring, of course. But that was more of a secret. Despite the hush hush nature of his possession of it, time slowed in the valley, and the weather was more mild. All could feel that Rivendell was different, and it was due to Elrond somehow, but no one knew the details--it seemed obvious that Elrond had magic powers due to his bloodlines, so no one cared about the details.
Erestor managed the household as a kind of administrator, and Glorfindel organized patrol groups to keep the area around their valley safe. Elrond is never dressed appropriately, always in plain clothes like a low elf, and the Feanorean group constantly made him clothes or gave him gifts to try to up his style. Glorfindel confided in several of them that he too was trying to make Elrond dress more grandly but he always seemed to slip away like a fish wearing old rags.
As old fashioned, early elves, they preferred their kings and lords to look lordly and great. Elrond was impossible to corral in this fashion but they kept trying. They were very patient with him and subservient, and it took Glorfindel a bit before he realized they personally knew him as a boy.
So they often treated him with the indulgence you'd have for a child, but also saw him as their merciful [adult] savior at the same time. It was an odd mix of manners they had with him.
Interestingly, they were pleased with Glorfindel's over the top security measures. And they didn't even know them all -- like that he tries Elrond's food and drink before he eats it, secretly.
Of course he later found out they did that too ... and that they controlled all aspects of the creation of which food and beverages Elrond took part in.
No one is brave enough to talk back to Glorfindel [due to his fame and imposing stature] or Elrond [due to his mysterious, magical aura and disconcerting soft manner]. Both of them together really put almost all elves off their guard.
As for audiences, Elrond asks everyone who needs to see him personally [and not Erestor for administrative purposes] to write down what they want to talk about and put it in his mailbox, which he puts out in a central location. Glorfindel actually doesn't have much to do other than organize patrols and he often stays close to Elrond, especially since their city allows visitors.
He also sleeps next to Elrond still in his rooms. So sue him, he got used to sleeping beside him and Erestor as they were building the city. After the work was complete he didn't want to go back to sleeping alone in cold sheets in a lonely room. He couldn't sleep when he tried it.
He likes to be beside Elrond in his bed, even though Elrond isn't as warm as a real, full elf is. He's cooler to the touch and needs more blankets and warmth.
They don't do anything intimate in the romantic way, and it's oddly a relief to Glorfindel, that Elrond's not interested. Everyone else is, of course. But Glorfindel acts like he's got another person on the line with everyone he talks to, and none know he's actually with no one. He just wants to rest.
Elrond will talk to Gil-Galad by osanwe every night for a while in his private bath, and then later he goes to sleep [quite early for an elf -- he either wants to sleep a huge amount or seemingly can exist without anything at all easily, at times].
Glorfindel joins him at night after he knows he'll be done talking to Gil-Galad. They must get personal, as he often comes to bed drooping and relaxed. Apparently Elrond's power is so great at osanwe that he doesn't even need to be there to ... 'enjoy' talking to the high king. Thank goodness for that, otherwise Gil-Galad would show up at the city, he thinks, amused. He's obsessed with Elrond.
War comes eventually, and Gil-Galad actually moves in as they prepare to fight Sauron in the alliance. Glorfindel stays away from what he's thought of as his bed while the high king is there. But Elrond goes to 'counsel' with him every day at some point in Glorfindel's actual rooms, and takes a nap with him in Glorfindel's bed; he does nap a lot normally.
Of course as the best elven healer Elrond cannot kill, it would lessen his healing power. But he wants to be with everyone, so they compromise and Glorfindel goes with him to the back of the battle where the healers are. Of course the real reason that no one protests Glorfindel not fighting is that everyone understands that Gil-Galad is definitely going to die -- and Elrond is his already declared heir.
Gil-Galad is very polite to Glorfindel, and seems to not be jealous of or threatened by him, which is nice. Of course then the battle actually happens and he's dead, so.
So.
So now Glorfindel has to keep Elrond from sliding into mortal death or fading or whatever would happen to someone with his 'weird blood', as he calls it himself.
He stayed with him in the battle, and they both saw Gil-Galad burned alive into ash instantaneously by Sauron. Thankfully Elendil and Isildur were able to dish out some blows too, during and after Gil-Galad's intense attack on Sauron's physical form, which altogether led to its dissolution.
Glorfindel has one of his men get the remains of Aeglos [it's nothing, ruined totally now, so he has them hide it and not show Elrond] and takes Elrond back to the high king's tent. Elrond is in shock; he's never been in this level of battle before, never mind that he saw his [metaphorical] soul mate die gruesomely. Glorfindel gets their armor off of them, and gets them both into the bath.
Elrond has his magic ring on a chain around his neck, which Glorfindel can tell is dangerous. He avoids touching it and washes them both. Then he washes his own hair and Elrond's in turn.
He puts Elrond into bed ... the bed he shared with Gil-Galad ... well, whatever, he thinks -- and holds him until he sleeps. Then he puts more blankets on him and goes and gets ink and paper. He writes out a list of what should be done and goes outside to give commands, saying these are Elrond's orders.
A Feanorean representative is unsurprisingly waiting at the door for him to give them directives. They have a purpose, and that is to serve Elrond; he is their redemption and their rescuer and their tiny magical sweet forgiving lord. [Glorfindel can tell they think of him as young no matter how old he gets; they give him little presents all the time in secret, like cookies, things you'd give a child.] It keeps them going, and focused. At home in Rivendell there's always something to do.
[The other elves in Rivendell have a harder time healing after the war, and so does Elrond, at first. Unlike that group, they have no crazy level of purpose to distract them from reality.]
To be honest, Glorfindel's often thought that one of the reasons Imladris is so perfect and great is the obsession the Feanorean group has with both work and Elrond. They seem to love both things to an almost disturbing degree. Glorfindel has noticed that if he's not with Elrond, then other Feanorean elves literally trail him around at a distance. They pass it off to each other seamlessly, he's noticed. Elrond is covered at all times.
Good.
The Feanoreans are everywhere, especially in the kitchens and as common servants who clean bathtubs and wash clothes -- they don't see any work as degrading. Even the ones who care for Elrond's clothes and pour his tea and that type of thing are hardcore Feanoreans. Glorfindel realizes slowly that they are in all the positions closest to him, to protect him.
Elrond likes to talk to them all the time, and eat with them, when Erestor doesn't have him eat with visiting foreigners. He often will eat in the kitchens with some of them in his play clothes. They do not scold him, Glorfindel notices. They like to see him. They treat him truly like a little king.
All the Feanoreans are masters of their skills and Rivendell becomes famous for their products that they sometimes sell. [Mostly they keep their goods.] But they reserve the best for Elrond, and also for Glorfindel and Gil-Galad too. Glorfindel is careful to be respectful and express his gratitude to them, which they seem to like very much.
Weirdly, all they seem to want is respect. So he makes sure they get it.
Back in the tent with Elrond, he watches him sleep as he himself rests a little. He eats and drinks to fortify himself for this difficult stage of 'what do you do after the giant battle is over' ... it's not something he's had to deal with recently, since he died in his last giant battle.
To be honest, he's not sure what should be done. Thankfully the Feanoreans at the door of the tent fill it in for him in whispers, that they would also do x y and z.
He had nodded, a little bewildered. This is Erestor's arena, not his. And Erestor is at home of course, dealing with all the normal things that come with running Imladris.
Making sure the food, plants, animals of all kinds are in order, seeing what they need to trade for, handling the taxes they do very lightly collect. [The taxes come mostly from when Rivendell's elves sell their goods - always through the 'sellers' who are non-Feanorean, who bargain with the outsiders. Erestor has low taxes collected in those cases so that there is money in case of emergency especially.] Handling the treasury. Dealing with any issues that arise between elves that must be dealt with. Planning all the holiday celebrations and also the festivities. And dealing with everything that comes with having guests: rooms, etc. Also, arranging appointments with Elrond for visitors when those of note are there.
Of course recently everything has been different, what with Gil-Galad and many armies camping outside the valley. Gil-Galad stays inside with Elrond some of the time.
Well, stayed there.
Now he's gone, Glorfindel thinks dully. He had been nice to him, when Elrond first brought him to Lindon.
One of the Feanoreans calls his name from outside the tent, so he goes and lets him in. He gives him an update on what's been done so far. It turns out a whole day has gone by. Glorfindel didn't notice.
Eventually they have to go home. There is no corpse of Gil-Galad to burn, he turned to ashes as he died; even his armor melted into nothing instantaneously.
The Feanoreans bring him food all the time, but he can only try it. It's weird how he can't bring himself to eat much. Elrond is still asleep. He's been asleep for days. He's still breathing though, so he's probably good, he thinks.
Then they go home. The Feanoreans pack up Gil-Galad's things, and one of them gently wakes Elrond up. He looks dazed but obediently does what they tell him too.
Glorfindel watches. He's kind of been sitting there.
They go home on their horses. Erestor is standing there silently as they come in. He doesn't have to ask what happened, it's obvious. Some elves tell him that Sauron was seemingly destroyed. Erestor looks unconvinced ... Glorfindel knows the feeling. They will always be waiting for the next resurgence of evil; Morgoth exists, so it will happen again.
Several Feanoreans get Glorfindel off his horse, which is nice of them because he was just sitting there looking at Elrond as they gently manhandle him off his horse.
One of them carries Elrond to his room, and Glorfindel follows them. He wants to be with Elrond. A Feanorean servant-warrior person gives Elrond a bath, and then puts him to bed, and has Glorfindel get in too, and another one gives him a bath like he's a child, and puts him into bed too.
Then a Feanorean sits there on a chair, almost like keeping watch. Glorfindel falls asleep.
Eventually he comes out of his shock, and is more alert. Elrond however does not.
[Glorfindel sees the Feanoreans cringe and back up upon seeing the ring Elrond has, which is good in terms of people trying to take it, steal it from him.]
It takes a long time for Elrond to recover. After so long, he's back to normal, eventually. Glorfindel gets used to sleeping in bed with him, and having the Feanoreans keep watch. After Glorfindel feels better, they move their watch to outside Elrond's room.
Erestor runs Rivendell like usual the whole time. He comes in once a day, every day to talk to Glorfindel. He tells him what's going on, or asks him his opinion about things. He says hello to Elrond despite him being unresponsive to the world.
When Elrond does wake up though, he's quieter than before. Life returns to normal.
Now in the evenings he talks to Galadriel with his mind, and goes to sleep tired and drawn beside Glorfindel. He sleeps much more now than he ever did before.
Many elves send Elrond letters asking him to become the high king; Gil-Galad did always say he was his heir. Actually he said it in public and told everyone, so it's no secret.
Elrond replies to all with the same response: no.
They all relent, too cowardly to try to force him to do it. [Key word there being 'try'.] The outlier is Galadriel, who does try to force him to. He says back, 'don't make me turn into a frog and hop away. You know I can. It's looking pretty good right now.'
Glorfindel finds this very amusing. Galadriel eventually gives up.
And then one day Elrond wakes up in bed beside him and gasps. This disorients Glorfindel, who had been lazing behind him, snuggling against him as he slept, with his face resting against his otherworldly soft, silky hair. It's much nicer than regular elves' hair.
"Wha?" he murmurs, seeing that Elrond is breathing heavily. "Bad dream?"
He turns and looks at Glorfindel. He looks shocked but then happy, weirdly. He hasn't looked happy since before the battle. "I think I'll be able to find him," Elrond tells him, and gets up, rushing to get dressed.
"Wha?" he repeats.
The person who raised me, Elrond tells him with oswane.
Oh ... the son of Feanor, he means. It's true that people 'say' he died in the sea, but really his fate is unknown.
So he gets dressed too and rushes off with him. And indeed Elrond does find him.
He's the creepiest thing Glorfindel's ever seen, and that covers a lot.
This elf is so thin that Elrond can hold him in front of him on his horse and the horse barely notices extra weight. He's like a really hideous doll; and he gives off no light, as if he's not an elf at all, but some mortal. A dead mortal.
They get him back home and Elrond tries to work on healing him. Tries being the operative word. He's concerned he'll have to take off his hand. Glorfindel helps him since no healer can be trusted now. Not even a supporter of his family; no one can know, Elrond tells him.
He's afraid his people will try to punish him, or interfere, or kill him for leaving them in the end [when he went with his brother to get the two silmarils.]
He's also afraid of what Maglor will do if he thinks he's known. Because then he'll be a target, or a leader, or simply infamous.
So no one is allowed to enter his rooms now, not even Erestor. Glorfindel learns all about healing during this time, as they work together to see if Elrond can fix him. Even after his body is healed [and his hair grows back after they cut it and then shave the rest off], he's mentally gone.
Erestor doesn't ask what they're doing, but simply obeys Elrond like this isn't totally weird, out of the ordinary, and nonsensical. All the Feanoreans act like this, actually, and Glorfindel finds it a little bit creepy. Is he the only normal person here? he thinks.
Elrond reads to Maglor at that point, and sings, and plays music. Glorfindel says things to him too, not that it helps any. He too takes care of him, by choice though. Elrond does it because Maglor's his 'parent', his friend, his little ward now. But Glorfindel just feels sorry for him.
Yes, he's a kinslayer. But there's a point where the punishment is enough. Glorfindel gets to see this with his own eyes. There's a point where things go too far, and that's what's happened here.
He's suffered enough. They have to hand feed him, for goodness' sake. He can't get up, can't read, can't talk. He doesn't seem to be able to think or respond in any fashion. His eyes are open sometimes and technically he's alert once in a great while, but he's not awake at all. He seems brain dead, honestly.
Glorfindel can tell Elrond loves him very much by the way he treats him. And he himself grows to care for him, especially after he wakes up.
Maglor seems to make pleased tiny movements or facial expressions when Elrond soothes him, talks to him, touches him gently. Glorfindel does the same thing; it's nice to see him relax as it happens.
Eventually Elrond decides to tell the Feanoreans in his city, one on one. They're all shocked, of course. Even after Maglor truly regains his mind, they don't speak to him, because that's what Maglor wants. They really are loyal beyond reason, Glorfindel muses. Honestly it seems pretty crazy to him.
Maglor turns out to be a very deep person. He's extremely educated, and also very courtly and mannered. He's basically the greatest musician of all time, and the one of the most powerful and dangerous elves of all time too.
And then aside from that, he loves his little child. He and Elrond weep over his dead brother randomly. Glorfindel tries to give them privacy at those times.
Sometimes Maglor jokes darkly about his evil deeds and life; other times he sobs uncontrollably about it. It's really uncomfortable to see. Actually at first before he really is alert, he tries to drown himself. Other times stab himself; Glorfindel watches him constantly to make sure it doesn't happen.
Elrond practically has several strokes throughout this 'suicide attempts' period.
The more he learns about his actual life [Elrond fills him in; apparently he can read minds but it's a secret -- the opposite of Galadriel, who does not keep her power a secret, so all fear Lothlorien and its mistress] he feels even more horrified.
Elrond hugs him, and Glorfindel does too. He has to have physical therapy on his arm with the ruined hand, so Glorfindel does that a lot for him. He also has to have it on the rest of his major muscles as his have atrophied.
He has no glow, that elves like them from the first age should have -- apart from the trees' light, but that too. He's extremely weak, and he cannot eat normal food of any kind. Elrond can only get him to drink, so he finally just focuses on having him eat soup.
Maglor is truly pathetic. Elrond both clings to him like a child, but yet also heals him like a caretaker. He acts like his parent sometimes. It's weird.
It's nice though, to see Maglor slowly heal over so much time. And with Glorfindel's help, too. He's never done anything like this before, it's very satisfying. He can see why Elrond likes being a healer. Maglor trusts both of them, and clearly knows Glorfindel will take care of him way before he actually is fully conscious.
And then he actually gets to meet him. It's kind of exciting. Maglor eventually plays a harp; Elrond provides him with many of them, of different sizes and types, not knowing what he'd want with his one hand so damaged. And he plays.
It's breathtaking. It's not just music, or songs, it's something else. Normal elf music is like a random dead plant compared to the living majesty, the magicalness, of his work. Maglor is famous for a reason, it turns out, and not just for murder/evil infamy. The songs resonate in Glorfindel's soul or something. It jars something open, or apart, inside him. It makes him feel good. There're a lot of emotions.
It's almost like mind control, except it's worse somehow, because he wants it. He wants to hear it all the time. Elrond warns him that many people experience this and not to be worried; thank goodness for that.
Eventually he and Maglor become very close. They talk every day. Glorfindel has to stay in the valley mostly, as leaving it means Elrond and his magic ring of power are unprotected. So they talk a lot.
For a long time Maglor has no energy, so he mainly stays in bed. Glorfindel visits with him all the time.
Maglor sometimes helps Elrond do his work, so he deals with Erestor often. Glorfindel just assists at different times. He also handles the little Feanorean army they have.
It's interesting how harps are all very different, it turns out. Elrond gets him foreign ones too as a fun curiosity. Some are upright with two poles, others are big and lean into your shoulder. There are tiny small ones too, of all shapes. It's weird and fascinating.
Maglor tells Elrond to stop buying him things, but it's clear he likes the harps. And the other little things he gets him. Glorfindel buys him little trinkets, which he accepts -- while scolding him.
Often when he composes he just taps out one or two notes once in a while; when Glorfindel asks about it, he says he can hear what he's writing in his head, so he doesn't need to play it all out.
Glorfindel likes to lay on the floor sometimes and listen when Maglor plays whole pieces. It feels cathartic, all these emotions consuming him and then quieting, and then he rests at an even deeper level.
"What does it feel like, to play?" he asks Maglor one day, and he makes a considering face.
"I don't know, it just feels good. Like the highest joy. It feels right," Maglor explains.
Glorfindel understands. He feels that way now, with Elrond. He felt that way knowing he'd fight the balrog, but actually fighting it and dying was not fun.
Elrond has always spent a lot of time working on healing the Feanoreans who serve him, and he still does. Now that Maglor is better, he goes back to his earlier pursuit; though he'd worked on it a little at the time.
Maglor often gives Glorfindel counsel when he's feeling out of sorts, which is often. It turns out it's hard to be reborn and live in some world that's new, with all new people. New everything.
He misses being in Mandos a lot. Elrond helps him feel better with his healing and magic powers. But Maglor's music soothes him to this extra level, it's fulfilling. Completing.
And his gaze on him, his kindness to him despite their natural 'enemy' state, makes him feel comforted. Maglor has never been anything but nice to him. Eventually everyone kind of thought of the sons of Feanor as storybook villains, but Maglor is the opposite of that. He's introspective, quiet, witty.
And Glorfindel can see the only spark of danger in him is for anyone who hurts Elrond. In that he is pure unbreakable iron. But in everything else he's flexible. Adorably, he tsks at Elrond if he doesn't sleep enough, and he fusses over him like he's a little boy if he seems like he's sick.
He smoothes Elrond's hair back like he's a child, and kisses his forehead. Glorfindel wants that for himself, too. He wants him to look at him with love, the way he looks at Elrond. Maglor though is in no shape for things like that. He's weak, emaciated and has bad days all the time. Sometimes he tries to hurt himself on purpose almost, and other times he tries to drown himself, they think.
He goes into a kind of mental stupor and Elrond says there's nothing conscious in his mind then. It's just empty and trying to kill him for some reason. So they start watching him more, and keep more Feanorean guards around on weird pretenses.
Elrond also has to alert people to watch out for 'Lindir' going near water.
[Seeing Maglor restored to his real state, when the world is remade, is wild. He literally looks like a different person. But he is very unhappy to be so changed, that's for sure. It's obvious. He grimaces at his reflection and finally won't look in a mirror at all, for any reason.]
He hacks off his hair constantly with scissors. It looks terrible.
Glorfindel tries to distract him with various things. After a long time Maglor actually seems like he wants him back, which is very gratifying. He seeks him out, he holds him, he wants to kiss him. It's nice.
He still scolds him for being so interested in him. But that's okay. Even as Maglor does that he gives him random gifts, he lets him cuddle him, he gives his opinions on the clothes Glorfindel's picked out for dancers for some of his songs. Maglor just has this kneejerk little speech he has to do all the time. Sometimes it seems like even he doesn't believe it or is listening to himself.
It's nice to have another friend. And it's very nice that that friend is into him -- not too much, but just enough.
He actually prefers it that way. He hates all the fawning, the way people look at him, and see him like a piece of meat. He's a status symbol, a sex symbol. He just wants to be a normal person. Elrond treats him that way. And so does Maglor.
Instead of looking with attraction at his body, his jewels, his clothes, he looks kind of neutral to uninterested. Maglor is annoyed he's so muscular, not impressed.
He shakes his head in concern at Glorfindel's terrible [apparently] harp ability. It's nice to be bad at something. Everyone else acts like he's perfect. He's not.
Elrond too treats him like another random person, and he can relax. He doesn't have to talk about his life, his deeds, his death. His gruesome death. Ugh. He hates thinking about it. But that's what everyone thinks of when they see him.
This must be what Maglor feels like, he thinks. Permanently publicly branded. Forced to be just the reductive summation of only some of his past deeds forever. Never being allowed to grow, evolve, live, change.
It's funny because Glorfindel has been typecast as 'good/hero' and Maglor as 'evil/villain' but neither of those labels are really accurate at all.
For example, Maglor has done so much more good than he has.
Sometimes he greatly envies Maglor's fake name, and how he's hidden here in Rivendell.