Until recently, Estel had not been allowed to travel very far from his home in Imladris. He fully expected this trip to be an adventure of the grandest sorts. One thing he had learned in his studies was that adventures always followed everyone if given the chance to seek to them out. That was his plan for this trip, to seek out new adventures.
Of course, he was just as excited about learning the weapons of the Elves. He had already had some practice with the small wooden sword he had been given long ago. It was becoming worn out, but Estel refused to throw it away. It was one of the only things that he had that made him remember his father. No one understood this, but he never told his mother of this memory. He feared it would upset her too much.
The trip through the mountains was at times impossible and at others it was almost too easy. The travelers had to pick their way carefully through the pass. There were places that had sinkholes of 10 feet of snow and one step into those would mean the end of horse and rider. And then there were some places that water flowed across like a river from the melting snows.
Estel had never seen this much snow in one place. It was blinding during the day and freezing cold at night. The travelers did their best to make camps comfortable at night for them and the horses, though it was hard. The Rangers were hard-pressed to find caves or covers with enough room for the whole party.
Estel loved when they stopped in the old caverns. After the first few, he finally pestered his mother enough to let him do some exploring of the caves whenever they stopped. She agreed on the condition that he would allow one of the Rangers to accompany him.
Estel called them adventures and he would always pretend to be on the hunt for some wild or rare animal. Although his mother had no desire to see her son as a Ranger, he was already developing the tracking skills necessary to become one. The Rangers always watched him closely when he went on these explorations. They all knew that he would one day become a great leader for them; they saw his father in him.
On one of these “adventures”, Estel stumbled upon a sleeping bear. It was amazing to him to see how the mother protected her cub, even in sleep. On this part of the journey, he was able to spy on the mother bear and her cub frequently because the party got caught in one of the rare springtime mountain snows. Although Estel loved the endless caverns, he was starting to get cabin fever. The blizzard had already lasted for seven days and was just beginning to show signs of weakening. It would still be a few days before they could continue.
One of the Rangers traveling with Estel and his mother was named Cornal. He was usually the one that went with Estel on his wanderings through the caves because he was the only one who really understood the little one’s need for adventure. He had been with Estel when he had found the bears.
II.
“Estel, be quiet. I think I hear something,” Cornal had whispered to the boy. He loosed his sword just enough in case there was danger around the corner.
As they rounded the corner, Estel drew his breath in sharply. He had never seen a bear before. They preferred the mountain caves to the forests of Rivendell.
Cornal started backing away; he did not want to become dinner for the bear. He watched in shear terror as Estel kept walking towards the bear.
Silently, he crept closer and closer until he was on the other side of the cave, facing the bear. Cornal figured that it was the mother because there was tiny baby cub tucked under the bear’s arm. Estel stood in awe for a few moments, and then began to go back to where Cornal stood.
As soon as they were close enough to their camp, Estel began to run. He was so excited; he had to tell his mother. A poem was running through his head as well.
“Momma, Momma!” Estel cried as he ran to her. “Woah, slow down. What is it? What has you so excited?” “You won’t believe what we found in the cave!”
“Which was what?” Gilrean was really starting to wonder what he had found; it had clearly excited him, but he obviously didn’t want to tell her either.
Estel motioned for her to bend down so he could whisper in her ear. When he got through telling the story, she was speechless. Gilrean knew that the bears still had a few more weeks of hibernation; so she wasn’t concerned that they would be in danger while the snow still fell.
After Estel finished telling his tale, he sat down to write his poem. He wrote it for his mother and for the bear he had just seen.
The Bears
The mother bear protects her young
Soft brown fur
Warmth inside
Enough warmth for the cub too
The bears are lucky
They sleep for months and months
Then wake up to the spring thaws
And eat and eat until it is time to sleep again.
The bear is a strong hunter
Much like the Rangers
They find their food:
Fish, nuts, berries
Mothers all over
Take care of their young
Keep them warm
Heart and soul
After he was finished writing, Estel tucked the poem away in a safe place. He would have to save it so Glorfindel could add it to his book in Imladris.
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Everyday he would convince Cornal to take him to see the bears. Estel was amazed to see that he could tell that the cub was growing a bit everyday, even while it slept.
“Am I growing that fast?” Estel asked one day. There were many days where he couldn’t wait to be a grown up, but there was others where he just enjoyed causing trouble too much to think about growing up.
“No, you’re not yet, but you will in a few years. Soon, no orc or animal will have a chance against you little hunter. That is why we are taking this trip, or so I’ve heard. So that you can learn the art of shooting a bow and arrow from the best of the Elven archers,” Cornal told Estel.
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Several days later, the snows stopped and the party made ready to continue the journey. Estel took his mother and Cornal to see the bears before they left. Gilrean had been reluctant to go so near them, but she decided to indulge him. She was shocked to see the sight that was in front of her. Estel cautiously approached the figures of the bears. He was very surprised when the mother opened her eyes and looked straight at him….
III.
Estel began to back away slowly. Cornal and Gilrean could see that something had frightened Estel, though he was trying to not show it. The bear got up slowly and began walking towards him.
Cornal very swiftly and quietly notched an arrow and aimed it at the bear just in case. But, there was no need. Estel told him not to shoot the bear; he didn’t feel threatened. He hoped the bear didn’t either. For a few moments, time stood still for Gilrean. She could not believe what she was witnessing.
Estel calmly reached out his hand and the bear inched her way forward. She allowed the young human to touch her fur. He was surprised when the cub came trotting up to him and gently nuzzled him on the leg. Estel was very much amazed that wild creatures could show him so much affection.
Suddenly, the mother bear knocked Estel down. He was a bit shocked and was praying that he would not become the bear’s first meal of the season. He was even more surprised when she started licking him, trying to groom him.
Gilrean became worried when the bear had knocked Estel over, but all anxiety soon fled when she heard him start giggling. “Hey, that tickles,” he was telling the cub as it started lightly pouncing on him while he was down.
He finally managed to free himself after a few minutes. That was the neatest thing that had happened to him. He wrapped his arms around the bear’s neck and whispered something to her, something neither Cornal nor his mother heard.
“Don’t worry. I will always remember this. I will never willingly hurt a bear when I become a hunter. Thank you for being so kind. I hate to leave you, but I have to.”
He slowly turned around to go back to his mother. When he reached her, he gave her a big hug. “I love you momma, let’s get going before the others miss us too much,” he said with a tear in his eye.
He had meant every word that he had said to the bear. This would be one of those experiences that he would never forget. Elladan and Elrohir would be so mad at him when he told them this story…
