Notes: So
I was listing out reasons in my head of what reasons Elrond and Elros might
have had for choice of fate, and I thought of the worst possible thought
process for them. So I wrote it. (Keep in mind that I literally did this just
now. It may turn out to be complete trash when
I read it again tomorrow. If it isn’t, I’ll
put it on AO3 sometime.) Rated G, 427 words
—
When
Eonwë called for the twins to make the decision about their fates, to be
counted as and Elf or a Man, he insisted upon speaking to them separately. Elrond did not understand why. He and Elros had been born together, raised
together, and stayed together through everything that had happened to them. They were twins, and they needed to stay
together. Of course they would choose
the same way.
“This
choice cannot be undone,” the great herald explained. He was very tall and very bright, though not
a brightness that could be seen with the eyes.
It was difficult for Elrond to look at him. “It must be your choice and not your brother’s.”
“Why
can’t I just be whatever he chooses?” he asked.
“Do
you wish to live your brother’s life or your own?” Eonwë asked. “You must consider who you are.”
Elrond
knew who he was: a mortal. He had always
been mortal. He was not sure what rule
determined the mortality of peredhel souls, but they were mortal. He had never felt entirely at home with the
Elves he had grown up with, either in Sirion or among the Fëanorians. He had never quite felt like anyone he knew (other than Elros, of
course) until he had met the Mannish refugees fleeing the war. Their quick lives, their determination and
lack of desire to sit and wait, made him feel like he belonged. He knew that they needed a leader, someone
born and raised to be a king, trained in history and diplomacy and
statecraft. He could be that person.
But
Elros was different in this way. He had
always been different. He did belong among Elves, and he had never
questioned that. Instead, he had always
been bothered by the knowledge that he was mortal, that he grew up too quickly
but at the same time not quickly enough.
When he had heard the story of their parents, the fact that their souls
were now immortal despite their mixed birth, he had nearly cried in happiness at
the thought that he might have the same option.
So
Elrond did not need to ask to make the same choice as his brother. He did not need to demand to wait and find
out what Elros would choose. He knew
what his twin’s answer would be, and he knew how to keep them together.
“I
will be one of the Eldar,” he said. “I
will be immortal.”
There
was just one thing that he had not considered.
They were twins. And twins
thought alike.
