Finally the weather cleared up and the travellers deemed it safe enough to continue their journey. Carefully they climbed out of the tree and received the bier the same way they had seen it taken into the tree.
They travelled as quickly as they could, eating sparingly of their rations, for they had another one and a half days at least.
Fortunately for them, there were no enemies to be seen. Though relieved that they did not have to fight, the men and Elrohir were anxious and confused. Orcs were not known to be generally intelligent, but why should they have come upon so few signs of the ugly creatures?
The weather was clement and so they walked for as long as they could before resting for the night. For this reason, the next day, it only took three hours to reach the borders of Imladris instead of the expected seven or eight.
Earlier, Elladan had stopped breathing for a moment. The men had looked on, horrified, as Elladan's lips turned blue and his face went even whiter than it had already been. Elrohir had been afraid to break their connection and had taken it upon himself to carry the older twin the rest of the way. They discarded the bier.
Elrohir was on the verge of collapse when they heard the sound of galloping hooves and six horsemen, Glorfindel at the head, appeared on the edge of the surrounding forest.
As the Elves rode up, the Dúnedain sheathed their swords. Glorfindel leapt off Asfaloth before the great stallion had stopped and was beside the twins in an instant.
'Glorfindel...' Elrohir muttered. 'El stopped... breathing.'
'Elvrannon, take Elladan on your horse. I will take Elrohir. He can tell me what happened on the way,' Glorfindel ordered in a clipped tone.
But when Elvrannon tried to take the unconscious Elf from Elrohir, the twin somehow managed to find the strength to bring back his foot and land a well-aimed kick on the well-meaning Elf's shin.
As Elvrannon yelped in surprise, Elrohir explained weakly, 'I will take him. He cannot leave me.'
'Elrohir, he must. You will not be able to go on this way. You also will collapse,' Glorfindel insisted.
'Then I will ride,' Elrohir answered weakly.
'Blast the Peredhil for their blasted stubbornness,' muttered the Captain. 'There is no extra horse.'
'Asfaloth.'
'But he is my horse!' Glorfindel cried.
'You walk. Asfaloth will not let us fall. Lead the... Rangers.' Elrohir was quickly losing his strength.
'Oh, very well,' Glorfindel finally agreed, knowing well that Elrohir would collapse before he gave up. 'Let me at least take Elladan while you mount.'
Reluctantly, Elrohir handed his brother to Glorfindel while he slowly pulled himself into Asfaloth's saddle. Reaching out for Elladan, he very nearly toppled over, but Asfaloth moved to the side quickly, causing him to lean the other way and regain his balance.
'Asfaloth, noro lim,' Glorfindel murmured to his great horse, before turning to the remaining five riders. 'Watch them well. I shall follow on foot with our guests.'
The other horses and their riders formed a protective circle around the Master of Imladris' two sons and they cantered off at an easy pace.
'What happened?' Glorfindel asked one of the men.
'Lord Elladan was injured in an ambush – Lord Arathorn was taken by an arrow through the eye. Lord Elladan's leg will not heal; it is terribly infected and earlier today he stopped breathing. His brother managed to save him, but now, while Elladan is stronger than he was before, Elrohir is on the point of collapse,' the Ranger replied.
Glorfindel nodded thoughtfully, hiding his anxiety behind a emotionless mask.
'Is it just coincidence that you came upon us at the right moment?' Gilraen asked suddenly.
'No, not really,' Glorfindel replied, glancing at her. 'Lord Elrond sensed when his sons entered Imladris, but he could tell that one or both of them were in danger of death. So he sent us out to find them and bring them back to the house.'
'I see.' Gilraen glanced at the child in her arms. Aragorn had been sleeping peacefully, but he was waking now.
'Mama?' he croaked.
'Yes, darling, it is Mama. Lord Glorfindel, this is my son, Aragorn. He is two years old.' As she looked at the chubby baby face, her eyes filled with tears.
'Please accept my deepest sympathy, Lady. Your husband was held in high esteem here in the Valley. You shall not mourn alone,' Glorfindel assured her gently.
'Elrohir has brought us here to keep the Heir of Isildur sheltered,' she explained in a shaky voice. Now that she knew they were safe, she was losing control over her emotions. Grief tightened in her chest, making it feel as though it were about to burst, fatigue caused her brain to feel fuzzy and hunger made her feel faint. she had been giving most of her food to her son, while making sure that the others did not notice.
'Lady Gilraen!'
She started, the sudden motion clearing her head somewhat. 'I am sorry, I am just tired.'
'Can you walk?' Glorfindel asked, concerned.
'I think I shall have to,' she said, smiling slightly. 'I see no horse.'
'Very well. Let us be off, then.' Glorfindel turned to face the direction the horses had gone in. 'The sooner we leave, the sooner we will get to the House. There you shall find food, rest, and comfort.' He paused for a moment. 'Do you want me to carry Aragorn for a while? Truly, Lady, you look exhausted.'
'Thank you,' Gilraen murmured, not alert enough to be wary of the great Elf. 'He gets very heavy, and he will not be calm in the basket.'
After the child was in the Captain of Imladris' arms, they set off at a steady pace towards the House.
Meanwhile, Elrohir swayed in the saddle. It took a mere half hour to reach the House from the borders when one was riding, but Asfaloth refused to go faster than a trot with his burdens, and so it took closer to an hour.
Elrond saw the small party of horses coming from a balcony. The sight, though it worried him, did not surprise him greatly: one twin riding, with the other lying limply in front of him. Quickly he made his way to the front steps and was just in time to see the horses stop at the bottom of the stairs.
The twin sitting was Elrohir, but he looked like he was in as bad shape as was his twin. And he was riding Asfaloth. That meant that Glorfindel had stayed behind. But why? What had Glorfindel been thinking when he let Elrohir carry his brother back? Most times Glorfindel knew enough to split them up when they were in conditions like these.
He smothered a cry when Elrohir dismounted and pulled his brother off the stallion, only to land in a heap on the cobblestones, Elladan's weight too much for him. Their fall was broken by one of the Elves, who, with his well-honed reflexes, threw his arms around Elrohir and kept him from banging both their heads on the stones.
'Why are they riding together?' Elrond cried as he ran towards them.
Elvrannon, the one who had broken the twins' fall, replied. 'The Captain tried to separate them, my Lord, but Elrohir would have none of it. Apparently, Elladan...'
'What? What about Elladan?' Elrond snapped while picking the Elf in question up off the ground.
Elvrannon continued quietly. 'He stopped breathing, Master Elrond. Elrohir managed to start him again, but he kept giving Elladan his own energy. Glorfindel is back with the Lady Gilraen and the Rangers.'
Gilraen? What about Arathorn? 'Take Elrohir and follow me,' Elrond ordered sharply. He turned to the remaining Elves. 'Ride back to Glorfindel. Bring extra horses for the guests.'
A couple of Elves ran towards the stables to get a two more horses while Elrond and Elvrannon made their ways inside to the healing wing.
On the way down the halls, Elrohir stirred. Cracking his eyes open, he smiled as he recognised his home. 'E-Elvrannon...' he muttered. 'El-ladan?'
'He is right in front of you. Your father has him. He will be fine,' the Elf reassured. 'Just rest.'
They reached the healing rooms and before long the twins were deposited in two beds. Elrond came towards Elrohir, now knowing what Elladan's situation was, and wanting to gauge Elrohir's.
'Adar...'
'Elrohir, what happened?' Elrond asked, kneeling down beside the bed.
'Elladan needs help, Adar,' Elrohir whispered. 'Leg... badly infected...' He half sat up and suddenly his glazed eyes searched the room frantically. 'Gil-Gilraen... Arathorn is d-dead!'
Elrond nodded, gently pushing Elrohir down to lie flat. 'Do not let that worry you. You must get better, or Elladan will die.'
'He promised...' Elrohir trailed off.
'Who promised? Elladan?' Elrond questioned.
'Ladan... told me in the tree... he would not d-die. But he will! He is dying right n-now!' Elrohir cried. 'He–'
'Hush. Try to sleep; I will go to Elladan.' Elrond kissed Elrohir's hot, dry forehead and moved to the other bed.
He uncovered the injured limb, removing the boot and cutting away the leggings from the knee down. When he saw the leg, he closed his eyes in horror.
It was bright red, the wound was oozing pus and...
The worst part were the small black lines spreading in all directions from the wound. Hardly daring to breathe, Elrond took a small scalpel, and lanced a small blister that sat next to the wound.
It was as he had feared. Pus flowed forth in spurts, but dotting the oozing liquid were small black spots.
The poison which had damaged Celebrían's body to the point of fading, causing her to sail, was now attacking Elladan's body with its vicious symptoms.
So many years ago... but he still dreamed of it so often and so vividly. The dream was nearly a reality again. Arador had managed to save her life then, but now the Heir was a two-year-old baby, unable to pronounce his s's. No help would come from the Dúnedain this time.
There was no time to lose. He had to find the antidote, and quickly. Elrohir could not help him, but he had other apprentices who would be able to look through books for him.
Ringing a bell, he was relieved when two healers appeared immediately in the room. 'I have seen this poison but once before,' he said in a strained voice. 'I do not know the antidote. The poison took his mother from us. I will not allow it to take my sons, too. Find it.'
The healers left and Elrond turned to the storage room, meaning to make a poultice to try to reduce the swelling. Perhaos, with any luck, Elladan's case will be lighter than Celebrian's, he thought hopefully. At any rate, he has surely not had it in his system for as long as she did.
When he returned with the poultice, he was startled to find Elrohir's bed empty. Glancing around the room, his eyes alighted on Elladan's bed, where both twins were lying now, one unconscious while the other held his hand and stared at him unseeingly.
Elrond placed the poultice on Elladan's leg. 'How did you manage to walk here by yourself? You appear to be as weak as a babe.'
Elrohir shook his head. 'I have to s-stay with him,' he muttered. 'How is his leg?'
Elrond sighed. 'See for yourself.'
Rising with his father's help, Elrohir's brow creased as he recognised the ugly wound despite his feverish frame of mind. 'That looks like Naneth's arm did,' he murmured. Suddenly he realised what his statement meant. 'It is the same poison!'
Elrond nodded. 'It is. I sent healers not ten minutes ago to find the antidote.'
'But you could not find it for Naneth!' Elrohir cried. 'Arador healed her. But Arador the First and Arathornare both dead, and Aragorn is too young.'
'Yes, but your mother had it in her for who knows how long, and her body was already severely weakened from... what happened before you rescued her,' Elrond reasoned. 'When was Elladan injured?'
'Twelve days ago, I think.' Elrohir closed his eyes as he remembered. 'We were in the middle of an unexpected skirmish when I saw an archer aiming for Elladan. I warned him and went for the Orc but it was too late. Elladan ducked, and the arrow sailed harmlessly over his head.' Here Elrohir laughed bitterly, opening his eyes. 'Arathorn must have turned at my cry because the next thing I knew, he was lying there with the same arrow through his eye.'
Elrond had momentarily stopped working to bring Elladan's fever down and was now staring at Elrohir, morbidly fascinated. 'How was Elladan harmed, then?'
Elrohir drew in a shaky breath. 'A second Orc came up behind him. Again I warned him, but he did not move. So I ran towards them but the Orc was too close... when I killed it, its scimitar flew out of its hand and cut Ladan's leg.'
'And has he woken up?' Elrond questioned, returning his attention to Elladan.
'A few times, while we were in the Dunedain camp. Other than that, just once, when we were in the tree,' Elrohir said softly. He was swiftly losing energy from talking so much.
'What tree?' his father asked.
'It was about to storm... caves were dangerous... Orcs... I... asked the tree... to help,' Elrohir gasped. His eyes slowly slipped shut and he drifted into a troubled sleep.
Elrond, upon seeing that Elrohir was asleep, turned all his attention on his unconscious son. Placing his hand over Elladan's heart, he concentrated on transferring some of his own energy into Elladan. While doing so, he took care to show his presence to Elladan's wandering mind.
He could sense very little more than pain in Elladan. Nonetheless, he found that in a small corner of Elladan's brain, there was something. He could not figure out what. Pain and something.
Elladan.
No response.
Elladan, where are you?' Elrond waited hopefully for a reply.
At last one came. It was so very soft Elrond could hardly feel it, and it was but one word. Elrohir?
No, not Elrohir. Adar. You are home. Will you not wake up?
Elladan's response came a moment later. I do not know how.
A/N: Yay, I finally posted! Sorry for the long wait. Please drop me a review, even if it is just one word! I reply to them all! Also, I want to thank Eldhoron for supplying me with Elvrannon's name.:)
