Silmarillion Writers' Guild

This is the latest chapter in the story "Ilmarë the Handmaiden", which is an entry in the "Strong Woman" challenge. The details are below.

STORY TITLE: ILMARË THE HANDMAIDEN
CHAPTER TITLE: MALICE AFORETHOUGHT
AUTHOR: Digdigil
RATING: 14A for Mild to Medium Horror
WARNINGS: Since Melkor is a character in this story, and there are big spiders, too, I guess I would have to give people a squick warning if they are bothered by these sorts of things.

CHAPTER SUMMARY: Melkor has entered Niënna's house in order to talk to his sister and his niece, Ilmarë, about doing him a favour.



Disclaimer: The characters and settings in this story are the property of the J.R.R. Tolkien estate and possibly New Line Cinema. I will not be receving any remuneration for this writing.

Melkor held the attention of Niënna and Ilmarë as they sat before him in the parlor. For this meeting he had assumed a form of a smaller-sized man as he did not want to frighten Ilmarë, since he had decided that he needed her to be on his side along with Niënna. He still was unpleasant to look upon, with a grim, thin face that shone with malice rather than the true light of the Valar, whether he wanted it to or not. His raiment was black, his eyes still held a faint tinge of yellow, and his hair was a disturbing shade of grey with streaks of white running through it. It looked like a tangle of dead bramble that would be found under a log in the deepest hidden places of a forest.

Niënna had placed the frightened and traumatized Liamo in a basket in the kitchen next to the warm oven, after she had shed her tears of healing upon the spider’s broken body. These had helped to soothe the creature’s pain, but could do little in the way of fixing her broken legs. It would be a very long time before they would be useful again and allow her to crawl and climb about as she once had. Unfortunately too, her colour would remain a permanent black. Niënna spoke and sang soothing words to her as she prepared tea for her guests.

As Ilmarë and Niënna sat in Niënna’s dark green parlor listening to him, Melkor spun his web of deceit, interweaving compliments and flattery with a falsely sympathetic sense of understanding, as he skillfully tried to draw out information from Ilmarë of how she felt about her lot in life. When he had first asked Niënna to let him come into her parlor in order to have a chat and get to know his niece properly she had refused, berating him for his treatment of Liamo. He had insisted that what had happened was not his fault, but merely a misunderstanding by one of his minions. Then he started by complimenting the women’s appearance.

“You both look beautiful tonight, my Ladies”, he said, bowing down low to them.

Niënna would not be appeased. “I do not understand, brother, how you could submit one of my pets to torture and then expect me to welcome you here”, she complained.

“My dear Niënna, as I have tried to explain, I was not aware of what had happened to your spider. I was away at the time the beast was taken and tortured”.

“I do not believe you”, she said. “And you have tried to take them in the past. You wish to corrupt them into becoming slaves for you”.

“Those are harsh words, Niënna. In any case, I do not understand your liking for these creatures. They are unpleasant and will give a nasty bite if they feel threatened and even if one is not threatening them”.

“They are harmless”, Niënna retorted. “They will not hurt you unless you hurt them. And they are useful. The silk that they spin has special qualities that Vairë likes to use in her tapestries”.

Ilmarë had been sitting quietly listening to the exchange between her aunt and uncle. “Niënna tells him far too much”, she thought, “and may reveal things he should not know. He is the enemy of all free peoples and I don’t know why she seems not to be aware of this. I think it would be wise if I kept quiet and tried to find out by listening to their conversation his purpose for coming here. I suspect it is for more than merely collecting spiders”.

Niënna left to retrieve the tea tray and Melkor in that moment turned his attention to Ilmarë. “My lovely niece, I am very much pleased to see you again. You were but a babe when last I gazed upon you. You are quite lovely now, but do I detect an air of sadness about you?”

“Sadness? I know not what you refer to”, Ilmarë replied, shifting uncomfortably in her chair.

“Your eyes hold knowledge – much knowledge”, he went on. “Yet they show frustration also – as if that knowledge is not asked for or wanted to be heard by others. Tell me, Ilmarë. Do you feel that your talents are used in a just and fair way? Or do you feel that others show you a lack of respect?”

Ilmarë was startled by these questions and regarded him anew. Suddenly he appeared not as a malevolent spirit, his eyes full of malice, but as a kindly uncle with only her best interests at heart.

“How did you guess how I feel, Uncle Melkor?” she asked. “You seem to know what ills have been done to me by my parents, yet I do not recall that you have ever visited our house”.

“Well, you are not the only one who has been shunned by your mother and father”, he said. “I, too, am unwelcome in their home, although I will admit, it is because of past misdeeds that I have committed”.

“I am aware of that”, Ilmarë remarked.

“Since you wished to know the reason I am here”, said Melkor, “I will tell you. I wish to ask your parents and the other Valar for forgiveness and atone for my sins, but I am having trouble persuading your parents to listen to me. They simply will not hear me out, and I find that a source of much frustration. I wish not to fall back into my old evil ways. I wish to return to Arda to live and I want to make repairs to this earth and correct the damage and hurt to it that I have done”.

“But I thought that you hated Arda and that is why you marred it”.

Melkor feigned sorrow by wringing his hands and assuming a pained expression. “I will tell you the truth”, he said. “I was jealous of the other Valar for what they had wrought, and because I was supposed to be the best and brightest. When I discovered that I was not I lashed out in anger and sought to destroy what my brethren had created. I cannot tell them this and convince them on my own, and therefore I need someone to go to them for me and plead my case”.

At that point, Niënna re-entered, pushing a tea cart laden with a pot of tea, cups, saucers, sandwiches and cakes.

“Niënna would like to help me”, Melkor continued, but she cannot convince them alone to pardon me. If you would consider standing with her by my side we could approach your father who is my brother, and your mother, his lovely wife, to grant me this wish and listen to my pleas for forgiveness and my promise to reform. And then let me come back”.

Ilmarë was silent for a moment as she considered his request. She glanced at Niënna who smiled back at her sympathetically, and asked her aunt, “Is it true that you wish to ask Father and Mother to forgive Uncle Melkor and let him come back to Arda?”

“Ilmarë”, Niënna sighed as she took her seat. “My wish is for peace in this world, once and for all. My greatest desire is that everyone should be happy and live perfectly beautiful lives. I am willing to beg forgiveness for my brother so that everyone then may live as we were meant to live”.

While Niënna was speaking, Melkor considered the manipulative devices that he had used so far upon Niënna and Ilmarë. Niënna had actually been convinced to stand by him long ago, and therefore she was already on his side, but Ilmarë may need more persuading. He had begun by complimenting her appearance; that always seemed to work with females; then, he feigned ignorance, denial and haughty self-righteousness over the harm done to the spider. That sometimes worked to make his victim see that he also was an injured party, falsely accused of committing some crime that he hadn’t. Next, he had flattered Ilmarë once again and then had pretended that he really was interested in her own problems. Then he insinuated that he respected her and admired her talents, and commiserated with her about the lack of appreciation she received for them. He then talked about his own unhappiness with his lot in life in order to make her feel that here was a sympathetic friend with something in common with her. From her reaction to that question of his about feeling whether her talents were appreciated, he could tell that here lay Ilmarë’s weakness. If she would prove difficult to manage in the future, then he would continue to use this tool as a way into her heart. Lastly, he had actually admitted guilt for wrongdoing and begged for forgiveness. If that didn’t put the icing on the cake, so to say, then he was losing his touch and his abilities were slipping. His ridiculous brother Manwë had told him that if he continued to use his powers to change his form often enough that he would weaken his ability to carry out destructive acts on his own, and would require others to do that for him. Pah! He would show Manwë! Quickly, he picked up one of Niënna’s pastries and stuffed it into his mouth.

The two women were still talking about him, but they were not arguing! His thoughts turned back to what they were saying.

“I am not sure about the best way to approach Father and Mother”, said Ilmarë. “They are currently upset with me because of my desire to be Vala as they are. I have been troubling them with my own unhappiness for so long that I do not know how receptive they will be toward my request to pardon Uncle Melkor”.

“Aha!” thought Melkor. “Ilmarë, my dear”, he said, if you would promise to help me in my position to be once more accepted into these lands by my people and not have to sneak in under cover all the time in order to visit Niënna, then I promise that I will arrange for you to become Valar as we are. I agree with you completely on this. Why should you not be one of us? You are their child, after all”.

“And my brother Eonwë as well?” Ilmarë asked, brightening considerably.

Melkor burped loudly. He was suddenly not quite as happy as before. “Yes, of course, my dear”, he replied.