Glorfindel only walked a couple of miles when he spotted them. Elladan was giving Elrohir a piggyback ride. They were arguing about something.
"Why did it take you so long to get there?" Elrohir asked.
Elladan snorted, "I don't know why, but I had a little belief in your skills. I see now that that was a mistake."
"That's not fair." Elrohir pouted, "He used cheap tricks. I was wounded."
"Yeah I can feel it, your blood is right now ruining a perfectly good tunic of mine."
Glorfindel smiled, he knew that this was the twins' way of handling something that scared them. He could hear a slight shake in both of their voices. He had seen some of all the wounds on Estel's body and knew that this was their way of handling it.
"Perfectly good? You've worn it for a week, without bathing." Elrohir sighed; his voice was starting to get shaky, "If I do say so myself, then you could use a long bath."
"Are you okay?" Elladan asked worriedly.
Elrohir leaned his head against Elladan's shoulder. "I'm fine…" He mumbled.
"Like I'm going to believe that." Elladan said, "You're bleeding through my clothes, that is not okay."
"What happened?" Glorfindel asked, surprised they hadn't noticed him yet. They must have been tired.
Elladan jumped causing Elrohir to flinch in pain.
"Sorry." He told Elrohir, "Glorfindel, what happened to Estel?"
They had both seen him run to their little brother's rescue.
"The wound on his side got reopened, but he's alive. Your father is taking care of him now. Luckily I wasn't too late. Legolas is also back, the only ones who are gone are you two." Glorfindel said.
Elladan stiffened and asked, "What about Aerque?"
"I knocked him unconscious. He's in shackles in the cell."
Both Elladan and Elrohir nodded, they were relieved that he had been caught.
"What happened to you Elrohir? The elves that went to find you couldn't." Glorfindel asked. Then he offered to carry him, but Elladan shook his head.
"There was someone out to find me? Well I guess they couldn't. I struggled against the man and it ended with us tumbling down a little cliff. Luckily he broke my fall, although I can't say the same for him. Only a couple of bumps and bruises."
Elladan groaned, "Only a couple of bumps and bruises… You were half dead when I found you."
"Don't overdramatize it, Elladan." Elrohir said hugging Elladan around the neck.
Elladan felt Elrohir's tiredness and pain flow into him. "Rest."
Elrohir smiled at him but nevertheless rested his head on Elladan's shoulder and was soon fast asleep.
"Thank you for saving him, Glorfindel." Elladan said.
"Don't mention it."
They went on in silence until Glorfindel asked, "How did you find Elrohir?"
"He was calling me… I mean through our bond; I wouldn't have found him otherwise. I had to climb down a cliff to help him and then take another way back where it wasn't so steep." Elladan shook his head.
"Is he wounded seriously?"
"Depends on how you define serious. He'll be fine after some time. He had a wound on his leg from the imprisonment; apparently he ripped the stitches when he fell and opened it again. It's fairly serious if he keeps losing blood like this, but I've got it under control. He also sprained his ankle, broke a rib and got some other bruises." Elladan said. "Gave me quite a scare when I first saw him."
Glorfindel looked at Elrohir's leg and saw a piece of tunic wrapped tightly around his thigh. Nevertheless the blood had already started seeping through it and onto Elladan's tunic.
Elladan. Elladan flinched and stopped walking.
Ada? Are you sure you should be doing this? How is Estel?
Not so good, but I've stabilized him. Sorry, I needed to know if anything was happening to you two. You can't blame me for being a worried father.
I found Elrohir and we're on our way towards you now. It'll probably be a while because we're moving slowly, but don't worry.
Is Elrohir wounded?
Yeah. He fell down a cliff.
What!
Don't worry; it's not that bad. He opened the wound in his thigh again, sprained an ankle, broke a rib and got some bruises, but he'll be fine. He's sleeping right now.
…Now I can't help but worry. Can you get here as quick as possible?
We'll be there.
"Elladan?" Glorfindel asked, waving his hand in front of Elladan's eyes.
Suddenly they focused again and he looked at Glorfindel.
"What happened?" Glorfindel asked.
Elladan smiled slightly, "I just had contact with a severely worried father."
Glorfindel smiled as well, "What did he say?"
"He said that he stabilized Estel and that we should hurry because he was worried." Elladan said tears of relief rolling down his cheeks. He had been so worried, that he had lost his little brother.
Glorfindel's eyes widened when he saw the tears. Elladan acted as though nothing was wrong but it apparently went deeper than he thought.
"…What happened Elladan?"
Elladan eyes darkened, but he took a deep breath and started telling everything. Glorfindel deserved to know. He was after all the one who rescued them and he had without doubt been worried himself. He found it easier to keep going when he had started. Though he choked when he came to talking about the time he had hurt Estel.
He could see Glorfindel's fury and sadness climbing the more he heard. When Elladan finished he punched a tree in anger. After that he calmed down and apologized.
"It's okay."
They walked in silence through the trees until the camp unfolded before them. The elves had lined up some tents and made a fire.. They had constructed a fire in the middle of the camp.
"Elrohir." Elladan whispered into his twin's ear. Elrohir opened his eyes tiredly and looked around.
"Where's Ada?" He asked.
"I'm about to find out." Elladan said and went over to one of the elves, which pointed him over to one of the tents. "Ada, stabilized Estel." He told Elrohir as they walked over there.
Elrohir tightened his arms around Elladan and asked, "How do you know."
"Ada contacted me while we were walking here."
Elrohir nodded.
"Thank you for coming for me Dan."
"Any time Ro."
Elrond rose from the place he was seated on the floor as soon as they stepped into the tent. He looked relieved at them, though there was worry hidden in his expression. They could see why by looking over on the bed role, it was clearly Elrond hadn't been able to any more than make Estel stable. He looked like he was in a dangerous situation. Elladan put Elrohir down as he stepped closer to where Estel was lying. Glorfindel also went over to where Estel was lying.
Elrohir limped a bit further and then settled down on the ground. Elrond came over to him and hugged him. Elrohir felt guilty for the amount of worry he spotted on his father's face.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to worry you." Elrohir apologized, but Elrond shook his head.
"There's no need for you to apologize. I wasn't your fault. I'm just glad that you're all right. Both of you." He said looked at Elladan too. "Now let me look at your injuries Elrohir. You too Glorfindel, I can see the wound on your arm."
Glorfindel frowned, "There's no need to. It's just a scratch. Nothing to worry about."
Elrond really had nothing left to argue with, he was so drained. He didn't have to strength. He just nodded mutely and went in a daze over to Elrohir and began taking care of his wounds.
Glorfindel's eyes widened when Elrond agreed to what he had just said. Elrond had never been so tired before that he had just accepted his excuses. The Elrond he knew would have argued and in the end if Glorfindel kept disobeying he would glare him into the ground until he gave in. Then he would take care of the wounds. Glorfindel was speechless.
Elladan apparently saw this and went over to him making him sit down on the ground. He then began taking care of the wound himself while Glorfindel was in a slight state of shock if one could call it that. He had also been surprised at what his father done and so had Elrohir. They had looked at each other right after Elrond had nodded, disbelief their key emotion.
When Elladan finished he bent over to Glorfindel and whispered into his ear, "He's exhausted, give him time to rest. You can talk later."
When Elrond acted weird or needed advise on anything it was Glorfindel who was ready to help him. They were friends, more than just lord and commander. Elladan naturally assumed that Glorfindel was going to talk with Elrond. Glorfindel always said the right things, always knew what to say.
Glorfindel nodded at what Elladan said, already having come to that conclusion on his own. While Elrond finished taking care of Elrohir, Glorfindel found three more bed roles and put them down inside the tent, he knew that he wasn't going to get them to leave Estel more than that.
When Elrond was done with Elrohir, Glorfindel immediately ordered all of them to sleep. Protests came flying at him from all of them, but he didn't yield.
"Sleep." Glorfindel ordered, glaring at them. He knew that they were his superiors, but in times like this he took command as their friend. This was something they needed. "All of you are exhausted. Don't try to tell me anything else. I'll look after Estel; if there is any change at all I will wake all of you. You won't do him any good if you collapse at a time when he needs you."
That was what finally made them go to sleep, although grudgingly. Soon they were all fast asleep and Glorfindel sat alone watching the slow raise and fall of Estel's chest.
The sun slowly went down into the horizon. He heard the camp begin to settle in for the night. A few of the elves had come inside during his vigil, but he hadn't paid much attention to them. He watched Estel closely as if afraid that he would die at any second. He trusted his second in command to keep the elves under control, though they hardly needed it. He could hear him yelling orders sometimes, but he didn't go out to take command. This was something he had promised them that he would do. If it gave them a moment of peace then he didn't mind the slightest.
Legolas came in some time in the evening, but Glorfindel managed to get him to sleep as well. Not without an argument, of course. He was surprised that Legolas hadn't come into the tent earlier, but he guessed that the prince needed time to sort his thoughts.
Now there were no sounds coming from the camp and it would have been pitch black inside the tent if it wasn't for the lamp some of the elves had placed inside.
He must have fallen into a light sleep at some point, because the next thing he heard was a low moan. Glorfindel jerked and looked around the tent before realizing that it had come from Estel. He looked down and saw Estel fidgeting in his sleep and mumbling under his breath. He looked so scared…
Glorfindel reached down and gently shook Estel's shoulder to wake him from the nightmare he was currently having. Since Estel didn't wake up he shook him a bit harder. Suddenly Estel's eyes shot up. He jerked away from Glorfindel's hand his frightened eyes staring at him. Estel breathed quickly and looked at Glorfindel.
"Shh… Estel it was just a dream. You're safe." Glorfindel said softly, calming Estel. Finally recognition glowed from his eyes.
He moved closer to Glorfindel again, the frightened look wiped off his face and replaced with a pained, but calm, one.
"…Glorfindel." Estel whispered and smiled at him tiredly.
Glorfindel smiled back, "Are you in pain?" He asked gently. "Shall I wake Elrond?"
Estel shook his head, "Let him sleep… How are they?"
Glorfindel smiled sadly, it was so like Estel to wake up from having nearly died and then the first thing he does is worry about his family. But then he wouldn't be Estel if he didn't. "You don't have to worry about them. At least not right now. You should just think about recovering. They can wait until you're healed enough. I'll take care of them, so you don't have to worry."
"…Thank you." Estel whispered. "And thank you… For saving us…"
"Did you doubt that I would?" Glorfindel asked smiling.
Estel shook his head tiredly, "No… If you were alive you would definitely… come for us."
Glorfindel looked shocked and asked, "Did you think that I was dead?"
Estel's expression pained for a second, "The fact that… Aerque drugged all of us… and that we couldn't find both of you… made us worried."
Glorfindel nodded mutely, than told a bit of his story seeing that Estel wasn't going to stay awake for long. "Me and Erestor woke up about half a day after you had been taken. Then we went after your trail. I apologize for not being here earlier."
"…You don't have to apologize." Estel murmured, more and more pain appearing in his expression, even in his voice. When he started trembling, Glorfindel all but panicked.
"Elrond." He said loudly. He knew what reflexes being a healer had given Elrond and was not surprised when Elrond quickly got up and came over. He kneeled beside Estel and kissed him on the forehead. He then began mixing some herbs into a glass of water. Noticing immediately that his son was in a large amount of pain.
When it was done Elrond slowly helped Estel drink it. Then watched as the lines of pain disappeared from his face and his eyes slowly slid shut, before he forced them open again.
Estel studied then look of worry on his father's face. Elrond was slightly pale and looked at him with slightly wider eyes than usual.
"Thank you Ada…" Estel said softly, "For keeping your promise."
Immediately Elrond relaxed, some of the weight lifted off his shoulders. It had been important to him to keep that promise; it had been something he had bound himself to. Thought about during the capture. He had done what he was supposed to. Even though that wasn't something that he had thought would bring him the slightest bit of happiness, it did. Hearing Estel thank him for something so terrible, and still so necessary, lifted a weight off his shoulders. Though he wasn't healed, the process had started.
Elrond smiled at his son. "Never make me promise such a difficult thing again."
Estel's eyes drooped and closed, "I can't promise anything…" He murmured before falling asleep. Finally giving in to what his body needed.
Both of them noticed that his breathing wasn't as shallow as the last time he had been unconscious. Glorfindel pulled the cloak that covered Estel further up until it reached his neck. Then he stoked the hair away from his still extremely pale face.
"What was the promise?" Glorfindel asked Elrond after some time.
Elrond smiled sadly to him and answered, "I promised him that I wouldn't give in. I also promised him to not stop Aerque and to take care of Elladan and Elrohir. Probably also a lot of other things…"
"Elladan told me about it." Glorfindel said as he touched the cross shaped scar on Estel's cheek.
"I couldn't do anything Glorfindel…" Elrond choked. "I just watched as Aerque hurt him. He didn't deserve something like that. He didn't do anything to deserve to be hurt. It was my fault. He wouldn't have got hurt if it wasn't for me."
"There was nothing you could have done for Aerque's son. I remember him. You and Elladan did all you could, but he had been given a poison with no cure. You worked relentlessly, but had to face that there was nothing you could do but ease his passing. Remember those days Elrond. You stayed up all night for several nights before knowing that there was nothing you could do."
"I should have taken care of Aerque and his wife." Elrond protested. "I should have made sure that it never ended like this."
"Both Aerque and his wife didn't want help. It was their right to choose as well. Would you have locked them up if you knew that it was going to end like this? You know just as well as I how fragile the future can be, probably better." Glorfindel said.
"I know…" Elrond said softly. "Even if I foresaw what was going to happen then I wouldn't have locked them up."
Glorfindel smiled, "That's because of who you are Elrond. You know that everyone deserves the right to make his or her own destiny. Aerque chose his destiny; he wrapped himself so much inside despair that it became a part of him. It was his own deranged thoughts that made him think of you as the reason for him loosing his son and wife. He chose to act from that in the way that would bring you most pain and he did. He knew that the thing that would hurt you the most was having Estel tortured in front of you. What he didn't know is the strength of our Estel."
Elrond took Estel's hand under the cloak and looked at him. All the times when Estel had talked to them flashed through his mind. "Yes… If it wasn't for his strength them I don't think we would have made it. If he had shown just one inch of despair we would all have been lost. But he didn't… locking his feelings inside himself and helping us through. He must have been scared, but he never showed it. There will come a time when he will need to talk about what happened. He'll never come to us, afraid that he will see the hurt and guilt in our eyes again. Will you help him Glorfindel, if he needs it?" Elrond asked and looked at Glorfindel.
"Of course I will." Glorfindel promised.
"Thank you." Elrond said, "Now let me see your arm."
Glorfindel groaned, Elrond had returned.