Thank you so much! And yes, Gil-galad is definitely a child here. He's about of an age with Abaqai, whom I'd imagined as fourteen or fifteen at most, but Elves mature at a much slower rate than Men, so he appears much younger. 

Thank you, Himring, that was a lovely review to read! I had a lot of fun working with the Easterlings and their perspective, no doubt also thanks to your fic and Broddun (whom I think Ayulan might think of highly as a person, even if they are on opposite sides) who made me entertain the idea of Easterling fic to begin with (in general, not for this prompt in particular, it's just where all that converged) and giving them something of a hopeful ending - if I have any say, they'll be finding their kin in Rhûn again and living out the rest ot their days in peace. 

Gil-galad was a delight to write as well. It was exhausting keeping up with him and his antics (poor Ivrellain! poor Alphangil, although she's obviously absent/busy in this fic), but exploring him was fun. :)

It comes as no surprise, but it comes as a delight anyway - with you as the mistress of informing Middle-earth cultures with real-world counterparts, I was hoping it would pass muster if you decided to read it, and I'm very happy it did! :) I couldn't help treating the Easterlings with dignity - impossible not to when stepping into someoen's shoes as a writer since their motivations and worldview make their behaviour so much easier to understand (looking at you, DM!). I'd briefly considered writing Brodda and Lorgan into this story and ruminated on their characters in the process, and they landed smack in a very grey area in the process even though they fought on Morgoth's side (and now I very much want to write them and their life in Dor-lómin as well). But "pround and barbaric" (as Tolkien puts it) doesn't really cut it, especially not for the Easterlings of Bór's tribe who might have been elevated into Elf-Friend status if the Nirnaeth had gone their way. 

I'm glad Gil-galad and Abaqai convinced, too. I quite like this characterization of him myself, it seems like a good starting point for the longest-reigning king of the Noldor, and I'm very fond of Abaqai as well, and have some ideas how to carry on her legacy in my take on the legendarium. She's going to make it far. :) 

Thank you so much for reviewing here as well.