A letter, with a green wax seal in the shape of a running horse, given to a caravan heading north from the Riddermark along the Great River until striking the East Road and traveling west. Specific instructions are included to stop in Bree-town at the Inn of the Prancing Pony, and deliver the letter to "the elf wearing red, sitting on the floor just inside the door, and if she is not there, to the proprietor, Barliman Butterbur".
My Dearest Cesistya,
Forgive me, my most beloved friend, for not having written to you much sooner than this. I will reassure you at once that I am well and safe, and have been living at home in Rohan since leaving Bree last autumn. I pray that all is well with you, and that this letter finds you without difficulty. I find comfort in the thought that you may still be in Bree, sitting in your "spot" as always. But if you have left for some reason, even if this letter never finds you, I hope that you have gone home to the Dwimordene (though it is not a haunted vale at all, but truly the Golden Wood of your people, as I have seen it with my own eyes!), or perhaps to the west with whatever kin would make you feel loved and at home. As that is how you deserve to feel, always.
Sadly, it is my own fault that so much time has passed, and now I could not possibly confine in these few pages all that has happened since my departure. Do you remember that I left with Gamferth of Snowbourn? I do not recall now, if you ever met him properly. The finest man in all the world to my mind (my own dear husband no longer being with us, of course). He provided a warm and comforting company on the journey, and is living once more in Snowbourn on his family's farm, where I think he hopes to settle down and grow old in peace.
As for me, I remained in Snowbourn, since it would be near my dear friend Gamferth, and there is always work to be found for someone who isn't afraid to get some dirt on their clothes. A position was offered at the stable by the south-gate, and a small cottage as part of the compensation, and that was quite suitable for me.
Have I made new friends here? That is not so easy a question to answer as you might think! But then, you know me. It is not difficult to smile and enjoy someone's company, if it is pleasant, but does that make them a "friend"? You and I place much meaning on the word. A friend is one in whom you keep confidence and trust, and that is not done lightly. I will say that I have found one or two souls that I might consider as true friends. Though none as dear to me as you are. How I miss you!
Soon, it will be a year that I have been gone from the north. A year! Time is a sneaky and sly thing, rushing past us when we aren't looking. Oh, sweet Ces, I came south with my heart still broken and shattered, and I thought it would never feel any differently. And for a long time, it seemed that it would indeed stay that way, with me always on the verge of tears, always a breath away from being drowned in my love for what was lost. But now, and it has only been very lately...I have begun to feel something else.
I don't know what I would name it. Not "hope". Not "happiness". A sort of...grim distance of feeling within my heart. The grief is still there, and if I were to step towards it, how easily and utterly I would fall into it again. But now I can stand a little away from it. Just a step away. But it feels enough to be able to think of other things, at last. At long last.
I will be traveling soon. Now that I am not on the cusp of weeping and apologizing for myself constantly, I feel a profound need to find clarity of thought. And to do that, I must be alone. I am not sure of where the road will take me. Perhaps to see the wider and wilder reaches of the Mark and go no further. Perhaps I will wander into places unknown and meet an untimely fate. I can imagine your face going white at reading those words. I am not very serious! Please do not worry for me. Aeruthuil said that I should return to Bree to face my ghosts and my grief head-on. I told him I could not. But, at least I think I am a little closer to saying that I could. Of course, the temptation that I could see you again would make the idea all the sweeter.
Dear me, this letter is getting long. But I know you will not mind.
There is just one more thing I wanted especially to tell you, before I send this letter off. I have not seen any other elves since leaving Bree, save for one very brief instance on the road, and I do not recall too much about the figure I met, but that she was tall and solemn. Well, that was until a few nights hence, while in the meadhall of Edoras, of all places! This elf was immensely tall, garbed in black, and his raiment seemed to be decorated with things I can't even describe; even in his hair! He was excessively polite and gracious, happy to speak with the people who were there, including myself. I do not think he was from your homeland, as the elves there seemed to me to be fair and light, and this figure felt dark (though not in an evil way at all) and...somehow very old, and full of a dignity that felt almost kingly. I am probably doing an awful job at describing these things! Ah well, if anything, enjoy a chuckle on my behalf, my dear Ces. But if you are able to write back to me, tell me what you think about this elf? He called himself "Silwë" if that is of help to you.
I should end this now, before I write an entire tome. Please write back to me, if you can. Even if I am away and traveling when it arrives here, I will look for it as soon as I return, whenever that may be.
I pray our paths cross again one day, and that it will not be a day too far in the future. I miss you, and I love you always.
Your friend,
Brynleigh
