[Thinlómien]

"Where do you wish me to put this barrell?" Modtryth asked Frodides. "Put it over there on the floor", the cook replied, organising the spices. "Is there anything else I could do?" Modtryth asked. "There's nothing you can do in the kitchen", Frodides replied and laid the pot containing rosemary on the table. She turned and looked Modtryth straight in the eye. "You could, however, go after your son. It seems he got rather angry at something, I saw him run out of the hall just a moment ago."

For a while Modtryth just stared at Frodides and then took a few steps and glanced quickly to the hall. Stigend was still in his place, looking from Garstan to Lord Eodwine. Garmund and Lèoðern were on their way out from the great hall.

"I didn't hear or see it all, but to me it seemed like the boys had some sort of quarrel", Frodides said. Modtryth nodded. "Thank you, Frodides, for informing me", she said speeding out of the kitchen to the yard.

Now where has that boy gone? she wondered.

----------

Cnebba ran. He didn't have any certain place in his mind when he ran from the hall. He just wanted to go away. The tears were blurring his vision, but the anger was giving him speed. He wanted to be alone for a while so that no one could see his tears.

When he had ran enough he sat down and wiped his tears to his sleeve. "I won't cry. I don't cry. Only girls and babies cry", he told to the little sprout facing him. "I'm not a girl or a baby", he assured the young tree, "I'm not." The tree didn't answer. Cnebba kicked it. "Stupid tree", he muttered. Even trees seemed not to agree with him. Even trees were against him. He felt the hot tears rising again, but he defied them. "I'm not a baby", he whispered.

But it was all still so unfair. Everyone was unfair. They were all against him. Garmund had insulted him. Lèoðern had backed away, not protesting to her brother. That hobbit, Falco, had requested Garmund to conspire against him. Lord Eodwine hadn't done anything to prevent this. Cnebba's dad hadn't said anything, maybe he was surely conspiring with Garmund and Falco. His mother hadn't done anything either. Even the twins themselves surely had been plotting against him somehow, he knew.

------

Modtryth found Cnebba sitting on a small rock, hugging his knees. She walked to him in silence and sat down beside him. He glanced at her (his face was wet and eyes red) but then he turned his gaze away and looked at the maltreated little tree. "Go away", he said. She didn't. She just sat there.

"Go away mum", Cnebba repeated. She made no reply. This time the boy looked at her. "Mum, I asked you to go away, didn't you hear me?" he said, this time rather faintly. "I did hear you, Cnebba, but I won't go away." She looked at her son. He seemed to be in the brink of tears. "I don't cry", Cnebba told her. When she made no reply again, he added, "only girls and babies cry."

Modtryth looked at him. Her face was serious. "Not only babies and girls cry, Cnebba. Boys cry too" she said, looking at Cnebba and making a little pause. He turned away. "Grown-up men and women cry too. I cry sometimes", she told her son. Cnebba looked at her. "Even your dad cries sometimes too. There's nothing to be ashamed of in crying, dear", she told him and gave him a warm smile.

------

That smile was just too much for Cnebba. He burst in tears again. He felt his mother put her arms around him gently and stroking his hair. "It's alright, dear", he heard her familiar voice say, "it's alright".

After a while he became aware that he was in his mother's arms like a little baby. He squirmed away from Modtryth and she let him go.

"What happened?", his mother asked. This time, unlike all the times he had broken something, there was no trace of inquisition in her eyes, only concern. He hesitated, and then replied: "I and Lèoðern went to say hello to the twins and asked them to play with us tomorrow. Then Garmund came and said we should have waited for him to introduce the twins. As if they were his private property, only because he was taken to the adventure, not I and Lèoðern." He crushed an ant with his shoe, but as his mother still loked at her with a question in her eyes, he continued, struggling to keep his tone even: "Then he insulted me and said that I'm a bad friend and then Falco came and rebuked me. He said that he had ordered Garmund to hide the twins form us and that I was making a fuss over stupid things and I should go back to sit."

-------

Modtryth thought about the mess for a moment. I can't form a proper picture of this before hearing other versions of what happened, she decided. She took Cnebba's hand, but he didn't want to hold her hand. "Will you come with me, Cnebba? We must speak with your dad. And with others too. I'm sure there are apologies that should be offered." Cnebba looked at her defiantly. She stood up. "If you wish Falco or Garmund to apologise to you, you must come with me. No one's coming here to apologise you anything, dear."

Cnebba looked at her. "Do we have to go just now?" She looked at him, pondering. "Please mum, not yet, but soon", he asked. "Very well then, dear, but we shouldn't be away for long." She sat down again. "Will you play a match of stone-éored with me, mum?" Cnebba asked after a while. "Definitely", Modtryth said and smiled, "but just one match, then we really should be going, otherwise your dad will get too worried."