Welcome to Gaia! ::

"Of course!" Earendil exclaimed, Lin's reminder stirring his memory. "At the banquet! And when we asked about it, she said that they were clothes from a place she had seen when she'd been a child, though she couldn't remember where it was."

He was stunned by the implications of it.

"That means that Jess's mother is from here, even though she doesn't remember it," he mused. "I wonder if Jess would have relatives here, then."

"Maybe we should mention it to him," Earendil chuckled before turning back to Amanya. "Please continue."

Amanya nodded and went on. Earendil didn't recognize the next three names, but the fourth one was somewhat familiar.

"Elarinya, apothecary," the librarian read. "Left Caras Galadhon in 28 895. Nothing has been heard from her since, but her intention from the beginning was to live in the Westland and share her knowledge of healing."

Earendil nodded. "Yes ... and didn't she say something about ... she wasn't fully accepted there because she was different from most people ... but ... she didn't care because she could help them?"

He tried to remember if there was more to it. "Though ... I kind of got the impression it was because she was a widow, though that shouldn't have made her so different that she would be treated differently because of it."

"True," Earendil agreed, "but she never explained, and no one thought to ask."

He shrugged. He supposed they wouldn't know unless they went back to ask her in the future. And who knew when they would even be back in that part of the world?

"Please continue," he requested of Amanya.

She nodded and finished off the page, but there were no other names that Earendil recognized.

"So three people that we know fairly well in the Westland and Southland," Earendil mused. "I don't know why I'm surprised that there are even that many, but I am."

Earendil laughed. "No, I hadn't expected it at all," he grinned. "Shall we see if there are names we recognize from other countries we've been to, then? Nauros and Amon Darthir?"

They really were the only other places they'd been to and met people, though he was a little doubtful of recognizing names of people who had gone to those countries: after all, if people had only gone to visit countries of the same race as them, logic stated that there would have been no visitors, as there were neither Sky Elves nor Night Elves here in Caras Galadhon.

Amanya flipped through the book, searching for the right page, and a confused look briefly crossed her face.

"There is no mention of Nauros here," she murmured. "That ... is where the Night Elves are from, correct?" She looked to Earendil for confirmation, and he nodded. Amanya let out a soft 'ah' of enlightenment. "Yes, that would explain it. Until that girl flew overhead and set the city in a panic, we were completely unaware that there were people in their land."

"So no one there, I suppose," Earendil smiled.

Amanya shook her head. "No. None."

"Precisely," Amanya nodded, flipping through the book again. "Amon Darthir ... Amon Darthir ..."

She nodded. "Simple. One entry. Caranthir, Light Elf. Left Caras Galadhon in the year 28 700. Never heard from again."

Earendil blinked. Had he heard that correctly?

"Once more, please," he requested politely.

Amanya nodded and did as he asked, repeating the entry more slowly, word for word. To her, it was the same as when Earendil had asked her to repeat the other entries.

"You know," Earendil mused, looking at Lin, "that does explain why he's always so secretive about his past. Do you think he's told Aerin at least? Given how much time they've spent together, I think he might have ..."

Not that he could say for certain, of course.