Treebeard drabbles: Ossiriand and Neldoreth by Himring  

The Beeches of Neldoreth

In the Third Age, with fellow Ents Leaflock and Skinbark.

Teens. Beleriand has sunken, and there is a bit more angst.

‘Ah! The gold and the red and the sighing of leaves in the Autumn in Taur-na-Neldor,’ lamented Treebeard, as perhaps he did a little too often for the taste of the dwindling remnant of the Ents who remembered Beleriand. 

‘You forget,’ commented Skinbark morosely. ‘That gold and red—that was only under the light of the Sun. After the first battles. That was almost the beginning of the end.’

Treebeard, taken aback, fell silent. 

‘It does not matter how long Neldoreth lay under the Sun,’ said Leaflock kindly. `What matters is the autumn that it had our friend’s entire attention.’

Chapter End Notes

100 words in MS Word.

Image description of the  image prompt: Red, orange, and yellow leaves on the forest floor, some are blurred from motion. The background, a path through the forest, is blurred, with the sun setting in the distance

4-word prompt: lay, silent, light, remnant
 

Also: poetry prompt: "I do know how to pay attention" (Mary Oliver, The Summer Day)