Disclaimer: I do not own the Characters or places that hold pride of place in J.R.R. Tolkien's middle-earth. I do own Elliven and Colton.
A/N: NO FLAMES! Not accepted! Constructive criticism is welcome.
2nd A/N: If anyone seems OOC I'm sorry. I'm still kind of new to this fandom. This is movie-verse with OCs.
Chapter Two - Estel
"You said Gilraen was dead. How?" Elrond asked as he and his second daughter sat in his study.
"Colton said it was almost certainly Orcs. They are the only ones who use black arrows and the poison that had killed most of the rangers. I'm scared that they will come looking for Aragorn. We must protect him. We have to give him an elfish name." Elliven said. Elrond nodded agreeing.
"Did you have anything in mind?" He asked. Elliven thought for a minute. Her father looked thoughtfully towards the woods beyond Imladris.
"Estel. Because he will be the last hope for the race of men and Adar." Elliven said finally. Elrond smiled.
"Estel it is." He said. Elliven smiled but a cry from down the hall made it vanish. She got up and hurried down the corridor to her brother's room. She opened the door only to have a little body throw itself into her arms. She held the little child in her arms before she looked up at her brothers seriously. They looked guiltily at her chewing their bottom lips.
"What did you do?" She asked them. Almost hissing the words out.
"We didn't mean to." Elladan said.
"Tithen pen…what did they do?" She asked.
"Mean Elf." Was all he said burying his face once more in her hair. She shot a look of pure venom at her brothers.
"We said we were sorry!" Elladan said.
"Sometimes, Gwador, sorry isn't enough for a child." Elliven snapped scooping the sobbing child up and taking him to her chambers.
Aragorn sat watching her curiously as she sorted through a pile of Elfling-sized clothes, her brothers had long outgrown. Their father had kept them in the case of another son being born. And when Celebrían passed into the undying land, he couldn't get rid of them. He couldn't bring himself to.
"Aha!" Elliven held up a pair of child-sized breeches and a tunic. Aragorn looked down at what he was wearing. He gave her a confused expression. He already had clothes why did he need more? "Oh come on tithen pen. These are so those clothes can be washed. You don't want them to get smelly." She said. He suddenly understood. That was why Mama had had so many different dresses. He hopped off Elliven's bed and dug through the pile for something he'd seen before. He held it up. It was a pair of sleep shorts. She smiled. She crouched down to his level.
"Estel…are you tired?" He frowned.
"Aragorn." He told her.
"Yes I know. But I think," She picked him up, "that you are an Estel too. Estel is elfish for Hope. And I think you have a lot of hope and you give people Hope. So can we agree on that?" Aragorn thought about this then nodded, "Good, because while you're here, you'll be Estel. Not Aragorn. Okay?" Another nod after a pause. Elliven was pleased and took the sleep shorts from him and helped him get into them. Before she put him on her bed and pulled the covers up to his chin. She kissed his forehead.
"Goodnight tithen gwador." She whispered, "little brother," Estel was truly one of the family. And he wouldn't be allowed to forget it either.
"Estel? Estel wake up." The words were whispered and for a moment Aragorn wondered who Estel was. Until he remembered the elves and that they had given him a new name. He rolled onto his back and promptly hit the hard wooden floor. Instantly before he could make a sound he was scooped up into the same comforting arms that he remembered from yesterday, and soothing words of Elfish were whispered in his ear as he let sobs escape from his lips and he felt tears fall. She held him until the tears stopped. She settled him down on her hip and looked at him.
"You, gwador nîn, need a bath." She said; he frowned at the use of the elfish term, "'Gwador nîn', is elfish for my brother. You, Estel, are now a son of Elrond." He looked thoughtful for a moment before grinning at her toothily. Elliven kissed his forehead softly. She put him down in the washroom, where a servant had already drawn a bath for him. Elliven saw that they'd laid out towels for him as well.
Elliven helped him out of the night clothes he was in and then lifted him into the bathtub. Where Aragorn giggled as he sat in the warm water. Elliven smiled, she grabbed the soap from the side and rubbed it though his hair and over his body as he had the time of his life in the warm water.
"Humans are funny creatures," Elliven mused to herself as she washed the soap out of his hair and he giggled as the suds tickled his nose. She sat back on her heels and Aragorn looked at her a smile on his face.
"You truly are my brother, little one. Come on. Out you get." She lifted him out and wrapped him in a warm towel. He gripped it with his little hands and held it tight. She took him back into her room and dressed him in breeches and a tunic. She grabbed a comb she barely used and ran it through his hair getting out all the tangles and smiled at him in the mirror. He let her pick him up when she'd finished and he buried his head in her neck. She laughed, he was really attached to her. She hated to think what would happen if something happened to separate them.
The dining hall already had Elrond, Elrohir and Elladan having their breakfast. As Elliven sat Aragorn up next to her and helped him eat his breakfast.
"You're acting like his mother." Elladan remarked a bit more sharply than he meant to.
"Oh I'm sorry…I'm supposed to act any other way?" Elliven said.
"Like a friend perhaps." He said, "have you forgotten that you have archery today?" She looked up at Elladan and smiled.
"Oh no I hadn't forgotten, but thank-you for volunteering 'Dan." She said.
"Volunteering for what?" He asked.
"Baby–sitting duty." She said, Elrohir began to laugh, "'Ro will help you." That shut him up.
"Did you forget that we're are mean elves?" Elrohir said.
"Don't worry. Estel won't be any trouble." She said.
"Estel?" Elladan spat standing up.
"What's wrong with that?" Elliven asked.
"Why not using his real name?" Elladan retorted.
"Elladan, have you forgotten that this house has fostered Dúnedain Chieftains long before this little boy came into the world?" Elliven said also standing.
"Oh and we're just supposed to open our doors to him?" Elladan snapped.
"Don't start! You loved spending time with Arathorn when he was here!" She pointed out.
"That was different!" He barked.
"Was it? Was he so different to his son?" Elliven demanded. Elladan threw his hands up and stormed out. Aragorn tugged on Elliven's tunic. He pointed to where Elladan had exited from.
"Angry." He said quietly. Elrond glanced at Elrohir and they shared a knowing look. Elladan would cool off and realize that maybe he over reacted.
"Yes Estel. He was very angry." She said sitting down.
"I think Estel suits him." Elrohir said. Elliven smiled.
"He has lots of hope in him and he will give the race of men hope too." She replied. Elrohir offered to look after Aragorn while Elliven did her archery. Aragorn gladly let Elrohir carry him back upstairs after breakfast and Elliven before going out to do archery found both curled up in a chair asleep a book of children's stories open in Elrohir's hands.
