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When she woke, Raefindan was asleep and Tharonwe was nowhere to be seen. She watched her sleeping friend and leaned in close to kiss his forehead, like her mother used to do to her. His eyelids fluttered gently, but he did not stir. The fire had become mere embers.
From the darkness, she saw eyes gleam and stiffened, ready to scream. It was Tharonwe; she did not relax.
"Why do you hide in shadows, Tharonwe?" she asked. "It is so hard to see anything."
"My vision exceeds yours, human child."
"But the sun is so pretty."
"Light blinds sensitive eyes. In darkness, every vision is possible."
She shook her head. "You are silly. I miss sunshine. My mama says the sun is like a hug. It makes you warm and safe."
"Your mother was a human fool."
"You," she said firmly, "are mean."
Tharonwe inspected his nails in the darkness. With a stick he prodded a breath of sparks into the air. "Do you believe that you are not mean?"
"I try to be good." she said hesitantly, and then said, "No. I am not mean, and you are not being very nice to me."
"What is nice, little girl?" His voice was almost too sweet. She shivered as he prodded the fire; she watched the embers glow and sparkle.
"Nice is stirring soup before Mama has to ask and nice is picking pretty flowers."
"What if stirring the soup too much makes it thick and unsavoury? Is that nice, to ruin what nourishment your mother has concocted for you, because you have not the patience to wait for instructions? Is it nice to kill plants for your amusement? I think you are a very not nice little girl."
She took an indignant breath. "I am too nice."
"I think you lie."
"My papa taught me that lies are bad."
"And you never lie, surely." His voice was a hiss.
Indil propped her fists on her hips. "Never."
"Do you know where Nimrodel is?" He looked into her eyes as she stood silent, frozen. "Ah, you do know. And her servant told you not to tell me. Do not lie to me. Good girls never lie."
When Raefindan woke, he found Indil wrapped up in blankets in total darkness, sobbing.
"What is wrong, Indil?" he asked, glaring into the dense blackness for the form of the Elf.
"He asked me to tell him a secret."
Raefindan gathered her into his arms, still unable to hear or see Tharonwe. "And did you tell him a secret?"
"They asked me not to tell him things. But he asked me. He said only naughty children lie."
"What did he ask you, Indil?" Raefindan asked gently, but insistantly, forcing her to meet his eyes.
She shook violently and accidentally bit her lip. "He asked me where to find the ladies."
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