INBOX ANSWERS. @milteine. | [ gift ] for arwen to surprise elrond with a gift ! ♥ meme.
the day is warm, almost hot with the hints of summertime. he walks down hall, bare feet silent on the stone floor as he reads a letter. his wife and daughter have been visiting the Lady Galadriel and so when looks up to see the beautiful elf-maiden standing further down the way, he smiles bright and promptly rolls up the letter. she runs to his side, and he opens wide his arms to welcome.
“my sweet girl! what are you doing here? I didn’t expect you back so soon,” he exclaims, joy clear on his face. daughters and wives have a way of filling a house that two wayward boys off on adventures just can’t quite match, and he has missed her sorely. as the hug releases, he keeps an arm nestled around her shoulder and they walk down the hallway. “where is your mother? what is this?” he inquires, looking down as Arwen produces a carefully wrapped package. she hands it over to him, and he tucks the paper in his hand under his arm and takes it.
“for me?” he asks, genuinely surprised. that’s one thing about Elrond. he’s a giver, not a receiver, and he always finds himself so genuinely surprised at small gifts or tokens of appreciation. it shouldn’t so much from his own family, yet here he is unwrapping it with an almost child-like sense of curiosity. the paper falls away to reveal a most magnificent golden paperweight in the shape of a lion, curled up and sleeping. the smile on his face never wavers as he takes in the detail in the face, the mane, the paws. it’s so beautiful.
“come here, darling,” and his arm, that left only for a moment to unwrap the gift, went back around her shoulders and pulled her in tight for a hug and a kiss to the top of her head. “it’s wonderful. I love it!”
“Papa,” she says sweetly, her tone like elderberries. She had missed his hugs -- as any daughter would miss their fathers’ arms. He’s always been so warm, in the way a blanket nor fire can provide. Truth be told, she hadn’t expected to be home so quickly either, but she was rather eager to share her new gift. Perhaps the reason why Elrond is so adept with giving is what makes Arwen the same. Though Arwen is feminine and unlike her brothers, she still managed to stir up mischief and tricks when she was younger.
Her cool gray eyes watch him, eager for his reaction, pupils flicking between the gift and his face. “Of course it’s for you,” she gently tells him. “Who else would it be for?” And oh -- the satisfaction of a good gift never quite leaves Arwen. It’s addicting in nature, to see someone light up and soften like so many candles. “I’m pleased you like it,” she says, a smile sticking to her face.
She hugs him, squeezes around his back with a gentle hum. “I trust you’ve been faring well? How are my kin since I’ve been away?” it hasn’t been that long. A year, or two. “Mother decided to stay with Galadriel for some time yet,” she explains. “Yet I was finding it hard to delay your gift any longer.” And it’s true -- the lion had been tucked away for 6 months, and every time Arwen crossed paths with it, it would only stoke the urge to come back home.
She had missed the open ceilings, the waters rushing, the breeze caressing her face and hair, never-ending autumn that she craves like air. For her, being home is like being able to breathe again, with the sun parting through the shaded canopies and the cool marble floors under her toes. “Would you like to catch up over tea, papa?”