"He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge. His truth is your shield and armor." -Psalm 91:4

_______________

Eilonwy

Rain pounds the window pane of the Healer's Wing as I look out of the cool glass sullenly. I wince harshly as lightning rips through the black sky, thunder booming so loudly that I feel it like a drum in my chest. I turn out of habit to check on Estrith in order to see if maybe the noise has somehow broken the magic that keeps her unconscious, but she remains completely still, the only signs of life being her chest rising and falling softly.

I jump this time as thunder claps deafeningly once more. My heart races in my chest as I try to calm my breathing. I have never been good with storms. In Alabama, many times we had tornadoes touch down near my home, so even the smallest of storms was enough to throw me into a full blown panic attack. Apparently, being an elf does not make you immune to panic attacks. In fact, my sensitive ears hurt worse with the thunder than they ever did in my past life.

I clutch the soft fabric of the gray shawl Arwen gifted to me this morning in my fists and pull it tighter around me. It has been storming all day, and the cool winds that blow in from the rainfall make the castle even colder than it usually is. I furrow my eyebrows as I look out of the window at the vast expanse of blackness. There is something about storms that always puts me on edge. It is as if the earth is sending out a warning that something bad is soon to take place. Maybe this is God's way of confirming my fears. There is something dark on the rise, and we all must be prepared.

I stand, flinching once again at the sound of thunder, and I slowly walk to Estrith's bedside. The lit candelabra sitting on her nightstand casts an eerie glow across her pale, chalky skin, and I fight back a shiver. I sink down onto the edge of her bed, taking the shawl from my shoulders and tucking it over the many blankets that already lie across her chilled skin. I stroke the tangled curls that frame her face tenderly, wishing more than anything that I knew how to help her.

I open my mouth and begin to sing to her, a song that is deserving to be heard by the pure heart of little Estrith, unlike the vile song sung to her by the mysterious lady in the garden.

"If you love me, dilly, dilly,

I will love you

Let the birds sing, dilly, dilly,

And the lambs play

We shall be safe, dilly, dilly,

out of harm's way."

My voice fades at the end as I stop singing, my eyes filling with tears. I stare at her for a moment as silence rains down upon us before I lean down, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. A single stray tear falls from my eye, sliding down my cheek slowly until it drops onto her porcelain cheek. I pull away from her, dabbing away the annoying moisture that continues to build up on my lashes. I must stop with this crying. Crying does not solve anything.

I release a shaky breath as I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to reign in my emotions. Thunder rumbles loudly again, and I open my eyes. I gasp, shooting up from the bed in alarm. A strange golden aura surrounds Estrith's body as she lies motionless on the bed, and its warmth seems to fill the whole room. I stare wide eyed at the scene unfolding before me, having no idea what to do. The golden color is very light and transparent at first, the beautiful and mesmerizing color outlining the shape of her body like a blanket. It begins to become brighter and brighter and gains a slight glittery sheen to it that reminds me instantly of what I think a fairy's glow would look like. The light becomes brighter evermore until I have no choice but to turn away and shield my eyes. My body shakes in fear of what I have done. Have I hurt her once more?

The warmth slowly fades, but the room is no longer chilly as it was before. I uncover my eyes, but I do not yet turn, afraid to see what has happened.

A melodic giggle fills my heart with warmth, and I listen in disbelief as Estrith speaks to me, a sound I feared I might never hear again. "Oh, Lady Eilonwy, do please sing that pretty song again!"

I whip around in shock and surprise. In front of me, Estrith sits on the edge of her bed, her legs dangling over the side. She holds the shawl I placed on her earlier around her shoulders, covering the top of her nightgown. Her hair falls around her like a waterfall of silk, and she stares at me with her breathtaking, wide blue eyes. Her skin is now a healthy color, and it glows faintly in a way that is just barely noticeable.

"If you love me, dilly, dilly, I will love you," she sings with her heart melting toddler voice, and a sob escapes my lips. I run to her, pulling her up from the bed and into my arms. She giggles as I spin around with her, holding her body as close as possible to mine. She buries her face in the crook of my neck, and I hold onto her as if she is the only thing keeping me alive.

"Estrith," I breath out as tears flow down my cheeks uncontrollably, "Oh, my dear Estrith, I am so sorry." I tangle my fingers in her soft, long hair, unable to process that this is really happening, that she is really okay.

She pulls away from me to look down into my eyes with an irresistibly cute grin. "Whatever for?" she asks slowly, having a bit of trouble pronouncing the words correctly, "I loved your song. You should not apologize for waking me! I was having a bad dream, after all, and you made it go away."

I look at her in confusion. "What do you mean?" I ask softly.

Her nose scrunches up as she shakes her head. "I do not remember what happened in the nightmare, but I was really scared and cold. I heard you singing to me, and I became warm again. I was no longer frightened because I knew you came to help me."

I nod, words escaping me at her explanation as more tears pool in my eyes. Relief is not a strong enough word to describe what I am feeling right now. Looking into her lovely blue eyes, I feel as if I have finally done something right since being in Middle Earth. Ever since I was sent here, all I have been doing is following everyone around like a lost puppy as I learned how this place works. Now, things seem to be changing, and I am thankful. I was able to save Estrith from the evil lady in the garden, and now I was able to save her from myself. I refuse to ever allow myself to harm the child again, even if that means spending less time with her.

"Let me inform your parents that you are awake. They will have lots to tell you," I say as I walk to the door.

I open it and peep out, spotting the guards standing on either side of it. They turn to me, their eyes widening when they see Estrith curled up in my arms smiling.

"Please inform the King and Queen that Estrith has awoken."

At my request, one of the guards immediately turns and sprints down the corridor, and I bite back a laugh. Even the guards are happy to see Estrith awake and well. Estrith waves cutely at the second guard who remains staring at her in shock, and when I see that he will not be waving back anytime soon, I shut the door. I walk over to Estrith's temporary bed, but she latches onto me when I try to lay her on it.

"No! I do not want to sleep again!" she exclaims, burying her face in my hair.

"Okay," I reply softly, walking over to my seat by the window and sitting down with her in my lap, "'Tis alright, my child. You are safe now."

She squirms in my lap as she tries to bury herself deeper in my embrace, and I allow her to with a smile on my face. I glance out of the window to see that the world is now only black with night, no more thunder or rain or lightning plaguing the sky.

"Will you sing to me again, Lady Eilonwy?" Estrith questions, her voice muffled by my hair.

I laugh at her request, happy that she likes the song so much. "Of course, little one."

"Lavender's blue, dilly, dilly,

lavender's green,

When I am king, dilly, dilly,

you shall be queen.

Who told you so, dilly, dilly,

who told you so?

'Twas my own heart, dilly, dilly,

that told me so.

Call up your men, dilly, dilly,

set them to work

Some to the plough, dilly, dilly,

some to the fork,

Some to make hay, dilly, dilly,

some to cut corn,

While you and I, dilly, dilly,

keep ourselves warm.

Lavender's green, dilly, dilly,

Lavender's blue,

If you love me, dilly, dilly,

I will love you

Let the birds sing, dilly, dilly,

And the lambs play

We shall be safe, dilly, dilly,

out of harm's way

I love to dance, dilly, dilly,

I love to sing

When I am queen, dilly, dilly,

You'll be my king.

Who told me so, dilly, dilly,

Who told me so?

I told myself, dilly, dilly,

I told me so."

Estrith pulls back and smiles up at me. "You sing prettily," she says, "Just like a princess."

"Well, I must say that is the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me," I say tenderly, "But you are the true princess here."

She covers her lips with her tiny hand as she giggles. Her eyes crinkle at their corners as her laugh tinkles around the room.

"What?" I ask with a confused laugh, "Why are you laughing?"

"You are so silly, Lady Eilonwy!" she says, and I look at her, more confused than ever, "You see, when I was dreaming, I remember now that I saw you. You will be a princess, too, just like me."

I shake my head. "I do not understand. Why did you see me?"

"This very nice lady spoke to me in my dream after the scary nightmares went away. She looked almost exactly like you except she had blue eyes instead of green. She told me her name was Hithaeriel."

I keep myself from gasping in surprise. My mother. "What did she tell you, Estrith? Why did she speak to you in your dream?"

"Well," she pauses as she thinks, "She said that you were sad, and that if I woke up, it would make you happy. She showed me you sitting by my bed and speaking to my father. She showed me how sad you were that I was not waking. She also showed me some of your future. I saw you marrying Legolas. Oh, you looked so beautiful! And I was very proud of Legolas. He looked very handsome as he smiled at you! Lady Hithaeriel showed me these things because she said she wants you to be happy, and she made me realize something that I already knew; I want you to be happy, too! So, I promised her to try my very hardest to help your future with Legolas come true. That is when I heard you singing, and I woke up so that I would make you happy."

I smile at her words, happy to know that my mother helped me. "Well, that is truly a great tale indeed! And you have made me happy, Estrith, so very happy," I tell her honestly, kissing her forehead, "Do you only remember that?"

She nods. "Like I told you before, I was cold and scared in my nightmare, but then Lady Hithaeriel came and showed me all those things. I was no longer scared when I knew you were trying to help me," she says.

The door flies open suddenly, and I turn to see Arwen and Aragorn entering with worried expressions. When their gazes land on Estrith and I, however, their worry melts into immense relief.

"Estrith!" Arwen gasps, her eyes filling with tears as she and her husband rush toward us. I immediately hand Estrith over to her mother's waiting arms. Arwen wraps her arms tightly around her daughter and begins to soothe her as Aragorn pulls them both into his own embrace.

I stand from my chair, feeling as if I am intruding. I begin to walk to the door, but Aragorn stops me with his words.

"Eilonwy," he says over the sound of Arwen crying, "Thank you. Truly."

I turn back to look at him, and I smile as I see the tears glistening in his gray eyes. His voice is filled with barely contained emotion, and I respond with the sentence I have been meaning to tell him since the day he allowed me, an elleth with no royal blood, to stay in his magnificent castle.

"No," I state, "Thank you, King Elessar."

And with that, I leave the two overjoyed parents to do some catching up with their beautiful, kind daughter.

________

A/N: I made two Eilonwy POV chapters in a row ;) that's the very first time! Oh, and the song in the story is the link I have at the top. It's from the new 2015 Cinderella movie :D

So, does Estrith remember the lady in the garden or Eilonwy accidentally hurting her? How exactly did Eilonwy wake Estrith from her magical sleep-like state? And where in tarnation is Legolas?!! So many questions to be answered, but don't worry--all will be revealed in time!

Again, another short chapter, but I'm proud of it. I hope y'all enjoy it! As always, remember the ground rules, and please comment because I just adore comments <3 <3 (well, sweet comments, that is. LOL) I will try to update soon, but please remember that I have school and struggle with anxiety and depression, and all of that can make it VERY hard to write. I have some great ideas for future chapters, so if it's boring now, please stick with this story bc the action is just getting started! I love y'all so much and will see you next chapter!

Love,

Josie <3