Chapter 4: Shadows no more
He had never had a good dream since the fall of Gondolin, but something had changed. Tonight, in his dream, he laid on a field, full of flowers and butterflies, looking up at the bluest sky he had ever seen. The blue sky, the color of his lover's eyes.
Then the shadow of someone was looming over him. He reached out to touch it. In his other dreams, when he touched the shadow, it was always vanished. However, this time, the shadow was forming into a solid body.
'I am shadows no more, Erestor.' His lover smiled at him. 'I am shadows no more.'
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"Glorfindel"
The name of his lover lingered on his lips.
"Yes?"
"What?" Erestor was awoken instantly by the voice; it felt so real, too real.
"You called my name?"
Erestor turned his head to see an elf sitting on a chair beside his bed.
"Why are you here?" Erestor's eyes widen, and he tried to sit upright. "Ouch!" He felt pain from the wound in his shoulder.
"Easy there." Glorfindel helped him to sit and put a pillow under Erestor's back.
"Thanks." Erestor said after setting down comfortably. "Why are you here?"
"Uhm." Glorfindel scratched his head. "You are sick. You need someone to supervise while you are here?" It sound like a question rather than an answer, Glorfindel cringed.
"I don't need a babysitter." Erestor glared at him, which made Glorfindel less confident in every second that passed.
"Of cause not, you are not a baby unless.." Glorfindel dared not to complete his sentence though. "Uhm, let's think that I'm your friend? Companion? The healer's assistant, that is!" Glorfindel smiled widely, but his smile was faded when he saw Erestor's glare.
"Anyway, you need to drink this." He handed the funny smell medicine to the dark-hair elf, and his smile widen when he saw Erestor's reaction. "Here, let me help you drink this." He brought the cup to Erestor's lips.
"I can drink it myself." Erestor countered, but drank the medicine nonetheless.
"Why are you here, really?" Erestor asked again.
"Elrond said someone needed to observe your condition, and I volunteered." Glorfindel answered sincerely.
"Why?" Erestor was confused.
"Honestly, I feel connect to you. I don't know why, but I do. May be because you are the only one that knows me, the old me." This time his smile was sad. "May be you can tell me whether we were friends?" Then he was back to his cheerful self.
Erestor glared at him.
"Not friends? Colleagues? Acquaintances?"
The glare was more intense.
"Enemies?" Glorfindel signed. "Lovers?"
Erestor's heart skipped a beat. He closed his eyes.
"I knew it! We were lovers then." Glorfindel smiled proudly.
"What?" Erestor choked.
"You are lovely. I'm not surprised that we were couple."
"How did you get that idea?" Erestor massaged his temples tiredly.
"You closed your eyes!"
"I closed my eyes BECAUSE my eyes felt fatigue from glaring at you, A LOT!"
"Oh!" Glorfindel's face fell. "We were not lovers then." He sighed dramatically. "What were we?"
"I will not tell you." Erestor now massaged the bridge of his nose.
Glorfindel pouted.
"You are too old to do that!" Erestor had to suppress his smile.
Glorfindel's lips quivered, to add to the effect. "Please"
"What are you, a hundred-year-old? You are the oldest elf in Rivendell, don't act like an elfling, please."
"Ah-ha!" Glorfindel smacked his knee loudly, making Erestor startled.
"At least I know that I am older than you!" Glorfindel said proudly. "It's a start!"
"Whatever." Erestor gave up. He slid down to lay on the bed. Glorfindel helped to remove a pillow from his back and tugged him in comfortably.
"Thank you." Erestor said quietly and then turned his back to Glorfindel.
"You are welcome. Sleep well. Don't worry I'll be here. I promise."
"Don't promise. Please. Don't." Erestor whispered to himself, tears rolling down his face.
'I can not endure the pain of losing you again.'
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Erestor woke up again in the middle of the night from a sound next to his bed. When his eyes were focus properly, he saw Glorfindel still sitting beside his bed. His head rested on the headboard, and sound asleep.
"I will always find you, Vilwarin." He mumbled. Then his breath was ragged, sweat dropped from his forehead, his body shook a little.
"No! Tuor, take him to safety! Go!"
Erestor choked and he knew what Glorfindel was dreaming about, his last moment of his previous life. He touched Glorfindel's forehead wiping drops of sweat from his face.
"You are safe." Glorfindel muttered. "I love you, meleth. I will always find you."
Erestor sobbed silently. The Valars must be very kind to Glorfindel to take his memory. He knew that it's going to be very painful if he could recall that moment. The moment he died.
"Thank you." Erestor said a prayer to the gods. He shook Glorfindel lightly. "Glorfindel, you can lie down here." He whispered to the golden elf.
"Uhmmm?" Glorfindel whined, but complied obediently. He lay down beside Erestor, his glazing eyes told Erestor that he had no conscious at the moment. His head rested on the dark elf's shoulder comfortably.
Erestor kissed Glorfindel's forehead softly.
"Sleep tight, meleth. And forget the past. We will start anew, my beloved. I know we will."
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- - tbc -
