Author's Note: Thanks for your reviews! I promise the baby survives, Guest reviewer! :O) Glad ya'll are enjoying the story so far!
The Houses of Healing were quiet at night, and Arwen was so glad for it. The day had been awful with Healers running to and fro and nearly never a moment's peace. Aragorn had returned less than an hour ago while Enguina had been awake again. Before he had left the first time, Legolas had touched her; though it had made her cry all the more, it eventually brought her some peace, which all were thankful for. Upon drinking her tea and being inspected by Talf, the baby had been declared still healthy, though the Healers were demanding that she remain there at least two more days, to recover and have strict bed rest. It was a testament to how worried, how frightened Enguina had been that she never said a word against them.
Arwen ran her fingers through her hair as she lay asleep. Enguina's head and ribs had been aching, though she had tried to stay awake as long as possible, wanting Erumar to wake up so they could speak to one another, so she could thank her for her protection and sacrifice. Erumar, however, had not woken. Arwen took this to be a good thing; the longer Erumar slept before she woke, the longer her body would have to heal before she had to deal with the pain of what had happened. She did not want to see Erumar in intense pain like that ever again; not if she did not have to.
Aragorn reentered the room; he had been down the hall visiting the family of Etan who had come to claim his body for burial. Arwen had wanted to go, but he bid her stay, just at the slightest possibility Erumar was to wake; she had stayed, but she knew it had been more than that. She was not troubled by it; she knew he would speak to her when he could. No, she was troubled by other things, most of them going on in her head.
He held two mugs of tea and he nodded to her. "Come and sit with me," he said, and she rose and went to his side. The two of them sat on the bench beneath the window seat where she took the mug he held for her out of his hand.
"Hildanir has gone for the evening?" she asked, cupping her hands around the warmth of the mug. She sat close to him, so close their knees were touching. For propriety's sake, she kept a reasonable distance, but if she had been sure they would not be bothered, she would be in his arms.
"He has, and tomorrow he will return to his post unless you are to travel in the City, then he will be here to meet you."
She looked into his face. "Why all this sudden protection?"
"There will be more when I have gone," he murmured. "I…" He hesitated, and then lifted a hand from his own mug to hold her chin within it. "Arwen, I should not be worried for your safety within these walls, but I am. I should not have had to worry for Enguina, for Erumar, and yet, look what happened today? Just as you said, in our City, they were attacked. No one is safe."
Her eyes were sad. "I know today has been weighing on you. Meeting with Etan's family…I do not know what your afternoon was like. You have not spoken of it."
He sighed heavily. "I want to tell you the truth, Arwen. Today I felt a vengeful King for the first time. So often I have been the peacekeeper, the one who mediates disputes." His voice was soft, and he felt her lay her hand over his. "Today I was the judge, and tomorrow…the executioner."
She was silent for a moment. He had to make tough decisions; he had to be the King the people needed, deserved. It would never be easy. "Tell me about your day. Speak to me of your anger at these men; speak to me of their trial. You need to talk; I am here to listen."
He glanced over at the door to make sure that he had closed it before he had come to her; he had. "There were a great many witnesses; there was no doubt about what they had done. I do not know how Felof came to be involved with those two; no one is speaking of it. I do not even know how Gildion and Vändir came to be together either. I suppose that two men who have lost their titles, two men like them, would be prone to gather together."
"I…" She shook her head. "Forgive me for interrupting."
"No, what were you about to say? Please."
She frowned. "I knew they were together not four days ago. The…the two of them waylaid me near the gates of Rath Dínen; they were together then and—"
"Why did you not tell me?" he asked, his face full of his concern. "Were they the reason you entered the Silent Street?" She nodded but did not speak. "Damn them to the Halls of Morgoth," he cursed, "Did they insult you?" He was getting angry, and she squeezed his hand. "Did they touch you?"
"Peace, Aragorn," she whispered, her voice soothing. "Take it easy."
"Answer my questions."
His voice was firm; she understood that he was not angry with her, but he still harbored so much resentment and fury over what they had done to her then. She would not deny him the truth; not any more. "Yes," she answered, thinking of Vändir's hand on her abdomen. It made her skin crawl. She saw his jaw set, that familiar vein in his throat pulsing as blood rushed through him. Fury. Ilúvatar, she never wanted him angry with her. She set her mug down and raised her hand to stroke his cheek. "It is over now, beloved."
"It is never over," he said, trying to rein in his rage. "Not with them; not with all of the things they have done in the past that could have destroyed our marriage. I wanted to kill them today after I saw Enguina and Erumar; you know I did. I wanted to strangle them with my bare hands. For the way they have hurt you, and for what they did today…there is no punishment that a human could devise that would have been fitting."
"Tell me what happened near the wall," she said, trying to divert his focus. "Enguina told me very little; the experience was so devastating, I do not think she can talk about it right now, and I do not think she remembers any of it clearly."
"From pieced-together accounts, the three of them approached Enguina and Erumar. They were angry because they were envious of the fact that she had a child and that…you did not. They thought it should have been you," he said bitterly as he watched her eyes close. "So they took out their anger on Enguina."
"Why must it always come down to this?" Arwen whispered. "They should never have come here. I wish they had never come; that Enguina had never had the idea to see me; that her letter had not been lost; that I could have gone to see her in Ithilien instead of them journeying here. None of this would have happened…"
"No, it would have," he said softly back. "It simply would have come to a head in a different way, perhaps even a different time…but at some point…it would have happened." She did not say anything, so he continued. "Erumar tried to defend Enguina, she was struck twice by Gildion; Enguina was thrown against the outer wall by Vändir who was the first to throw the stones." Arwen thought back to Gildion, how physically strong he had been, how hard he hit. Her face ached with sympathy as she remembered. Aragorn continued, "Erumar then broke Felof's nose and leapt to protect Enguina by covering her with her own body. Gildion and Vändir were throwing stones at the two of them, and when Etan came forward to stop them, Gildion struck him over the head with a rock, killing him instantly. After all the screaming, Ailan and his men came running and brought the accused to the Citadel, the victims here, and you word of them.
"Upon hearing everything that had happened…" He hesitated; how honest should he be? She held his hand tightly; she would not judge him, not she, who supported him in everything. "I sentenced them, Arwen. For assaulting them, for attempted murder on an unborn child," he choked on the words, "for attempted murder on them, and for killing an innocent man. Both Felof and Vändir have five days in the stocks. Felof will then be exiled, never again to return to Minas Tirith—I had a difficult meeting with his wife and children this afternoon. Vändir will never see the light of day after his time in the stocks; he will sit in prison for the remainder of his life. And…and Gildion will hang in the prison square at dawn."
If she was surprised, she did not appear to be. She leaned into him, finally, as he had been hoping she would, wrapping her arms around his waist to pull him close. "I am relieved that these men will never hurt anyone ever again," she whispered. "You are so wise, Aragorn, yet you do not see it. These men needed someone to teach them right from wrong; though I am sorry that needed to be you, I am glad that you have been given the courage, the strength, to do it. You are a good, wise, and courageous King; one not afraid to take a stand against corruption. The people saw that today."
He knew her words were true; he saw the respect in the people's eyes as they left the throne room this morning, how many of them lingered to watch him walk out and bow to him, how even the council remained to stand at his side, to stand with him against these men who had sought to do such evil deeds. He knew.
"I am proud of you," she said, and he leaned his head back to look into her eyes.
"For what, beloved?"
"For admitting that you were so angry, but for keeping your personal feelings and any thought of them out of the proceedings of their case. For doing what was right, what was necessary, even when it was difficult. Oh, Aragorn…you are so fit to be King, and I love you for it." She finished softly, but fervently. I love you so much.
"Thank you," he said softly, humbled by her words. She leaned forward and kissed him very gently, and his hands slipped around her waist, holding her as she was him. "Your words, as always, give me perspective, bring me hope. You have, for so long, been my guiding light."
"I still need you to be mine," she whispered honestly. "It has been a very long day, and I…have been thinking too much."
"Never a good sign," he teased. She lowered her face and rested her forehead against his chin and he kissed her skin. "What is it?"
"When…when do you leave?"
His heart fell; he barely wanted to think of it. "The day after next," he replied. This time his voice held no teasing and nearly no emotion except his sadness over not being at her side.
"Two days…" she murmured. Dear Ilúvatar, that is all?
"Be honest with me," he said. He wanted her to say what she had been thinking, wanted her to voice it aloud so that he could help her, them, so that he too could say what he felt he needed to say, what should be said.
"I am…I am afraid of your leaving," she whispered. "I am afraid to be without you, now…when everything has been so hard for me…when this has happened to Enguina and Erumar…when I am still feeling so broken at times."
He reached over and gathered her into his arms, pulling her over gently into his lap and holding her so that he could look into her face as he held onto her. He could care less if the entire world walked in on them right now; he would still cuddle her close to him. Today had been awful, and he needed her just as much as she needed him.
"I am afraid, too," he said in the same tone of voice as her. "I am afraid of the same things, of leaving you. What if you have a dream and I cannot lie beside you and hold you until you fall asleep again? What if Nardur, or heaven forbid some other citizen says something incredibly wrong to you and I must put him or her in their place? To be without you at my side, as you have been for these past ten years, will be difficult."
She lowered her head to his shoulder, pressing her face into his neck as she had earlier today, breathing him in. "How did I live for over two and a half thousand years without you?" she said. "How did I never desire to share my life with someone, never realize I was missing something so important, until I met you? How is that even possible?"
He felt her press her lips to his throat and he sighed. "Heaven only knows," he replied, "but I am the luckiest man in the entire world to be the one that you chose." He tilted his head to let her kiss him beneath the chin and she did, knowing full well what he was letting her do. Do not rile me up. This is not quite the place…nor the time.
He heard her chuckle. You are the one who lifted your chin. He turned his head and she pressed her lips directly below his ear. And turned your head… He stretched his neck away from her as she lifted her hand from his chest to cup around his face, turning his mouth back to hers to kiss him gently.
"It is in these times," he whispered into her mouth, "that I rely most heavily on Ilúvatar. I do not want to leave your side. Not at all. Not ever."
"I am already relying on him so heavily," she murmured. "What is one more reason?" He rested his brow upon hers and met her eyes. "I love you."
"I love you," he said at the same time.
Something creaked, and both of them turned their heads at once toward the bed where Erumar lay on her back. Arwen slipped out of his lap and set her bare feet on the floor, moving over to see if she had woken. There was sweat across her face, her neck, and Arwen sat down beside her, Aragorn just over her shoulder.
"Erumar?" she asked softly. She knew that the elf was awake, and by the sight of her, it had been more than a few seconds. Aragorn reached down and touched his hand to her neck, cupping her face from her jawline to her ear.
"We have been worried about you," he told her gently. He glanced at Arwen. "She is much too hot, and she needs relief. I will get one of the Healers, can you—"
"Of course," she replied.
He bent over and kissed Erumar on the cheek. "Thank Ilúvatar you are all right." He straightened and turned for the door. Arwen replaced Aragorn's hand with her own.
"Erumar—"
"The baby," she tried to say. She opened her eyes and attempted to meet Arwen's, but instead swallowed hard, seeing double of her friend. She blinked a few times, but with the same result. "The baby…Enguina…" she said, and this time her voice was fairly clear. Her head was another story.
"The baby is fine, thanks to you," she said, stroking her cheek. "Enguina was awake and talking. She has a few broken ribs and some serious bruising, much like your own, but thankfully, that is all. You are sweating, Erumar. Are you only hot or—"
"In pain," she said, and a tear slipped out of the corner of her eye. Incredible pain. Her entire right side ached terribly, and the pain firing through her shoulder, down her arm, her back, her neck was unbearable. She wanted to reach up and separate the offending limb from her body. She attempted to lift her left arm and Arwen caught her shoulder.
"No, no…they strapped you down, Erumar," she informed her gently. "I want to release you, but you must promise me that you are not going to move or try to rise. Your right arm is broken but has been set, and your shoulder was displaced. You have a terrible head injury."
"I knew that," she muttered, her words slurring. She tried to turn her head but stopped mid-move, an expression of pain on her face. "Eru…that hurts. I could not get up if I wanted to…everything hurts, and there are two of you…which cannot be good."
Arwen laughed softly, and Erumar gave half a smile. "No, that is not good. Do you promise?"
"I promise."
Arwen removed the blanket over her friend, and Erumar was glad that they were essentially alone in the room; she was not modestly dressed. The strap releasing across her hips felt good because it alleviated the pressure on her lower back which was bruised and painful. The strap releasing across her chest let her arm slide a little; that was excruciating.
"Ah…" she gasped, "ah…Arwen…put…put it back!" The muscles in her chest were so tight for a moment that she thought she was about to seize up, but Arwen laid her hand gently in the middle of her wounded shoulder and a bit of heat flooded her.
"Shh…it will stop; let your arm rest," she said softly. Erumar tried to breathe; as she did, she found that Arwen was right. The arm had settled correctly now and had slipped to a roar instead of a squeal. Painful as it was, it had been worse seconds ago. She let her eyes roll back and swallowed again. "Better?"
"A little," she whispered.
"They are on their way." Aragorn's voice sounded from over Arwen's shoulder, and Erumar tried to look at him as well. "They are going to have to tilt that neck of yours to drink," he said honestly.
"Oh…good…" she said humorlessly. "There are three of Aragorn…oh, that is not good…"
"Stop looking," he instructed her. "Keep your eyes closed before you make yourself ill. You do not want someone to have to try and turn you in this condition, do you?"
She paled and Arwen made a noise. "Aragorn…" He reached down and tugged the sheet over her hips, leaving her legs exposed to get some air, but in an attempt to keep her more modest.
"Thank you," Erumar said, a little embarrassed, but as she could hardly move on her own, she could not worry about it. "She really is all right?"
"Yes," Arwen told her. "I wish she would wake up right now so she could talk to you."
"Be careful what you wish for," Erumar replied. "You would not want both of us to contend with." Aragorn chuckled under his breath, and Erumar raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"This must be what you would sound like if elves could be seriously affected by ale."
Arwen laughed softly as well, and Erumar rolled her eyes. "I do not like you at all right now."
"No, I am sure you do not," he admitted. "Oh, and here comes Talf." Erumar closed her eyes, trying to prepare herself for the inevitable.
It only took a few moments for Talf to assess what needed to be done with the pain relieving tea. Between Aragorn and himself, the two of them lifted her head carefully so she could drink. It was difficult enough with her neck in that position, but it was even harder with the strain it placed on her shoulder and neck. She struggled to keep from crying out loud.
In the meantime, behind her, Arwen rose and went to Enguina's bed to give the two men space to maneuver around Erumar. Enguina's head was tossing back and forth. Arwen knew immediately what she thought was happening; she knew Enguina was dreaming. Taking a seat beside her on the bed, she shook her shoulders gently. Perhaps Erumar was right; this was not the way she had wanted to awaken her friend.
"Enguina, wake up, dearest."
The elf blinked and groaned, swallowing hard at the anxiety on her friend's face; fear in her own that she tried to shake away. "Where…"
"The Houses of Healing," Arwen immediately said. "You were wounded and you need to lie still. You broke a few ribs, remember?"
"Ugh…how could I forget that," she mumbled as she felt Arwen's hand caress her stomach once, and then reach down and place Enguina's hand on it beneath hers.
"You were dreaming about him…I know it," she told her gently. "What brought it upon you?"
Enguina thought about Vändir's hands on her abdomen and his words, 'I enjoy a pregnant woman.' Tears came to her eyes. "It was…it was Vändir by the wall. He touched me, touched the baby, and I…I froze. I was there once more," she whispered desperately, squeezing her eyes closed. Yet again, she wished with all her might for Legolas; oh, how she wanted him to hold her, to be at her side, to chase the bastard away once again!
"Oh, sweet one," Arwen whispered, holding her hand tightly, "I am…I am so sorry for what happened today. I am so sorry." She stared at her stomach, stared at the hand she was holding in hers.
Enguina shook her head slowly. "This was not your fault."
"You came here for me," she murmured, "and this is our City…and some madman—"
"Yes, three madmen," she said. "Not you. Stop it now. Are you not carrying enough already?" Arwen hesitated, and then slowly nodded. "Good. As you have said many times before, we cannot help what we dream, so let it go…and thank you for noticing and waking me."
"We are here with you," she said softly, looking back into her eyes.
"Aragorn, too?"
"He is here. And Erumar is awake."
"She is?" she asked, turning her head, trying to half-sit up. "Let me see—"
"Stay down," Arwen reminded her, catching her shoulder. "You need your rest, and Erumar is indisposed drinking pain-killers at the moment. As soon as she is ready, the two of you can look at each other."
"Look at each other?"
"That is about all you shall be able to do because you are not getting up," she said firmly.
"No…I suppose not," Enguina replied and Arwen's hand tightened on hers. "Sit back a little; I want to see her."
"Let Talf finish with her first," she urged. "I…think she would like her privacy for a few more moments."
"She is in pain." Arwen nodded. "She never likes people to see her that way; she tries to hide it, but she is not very good at it."
Behind them, Talf urged Erumar to get more rest and that she should not remain awake for long. Aragorn assured them that she would sleep. As Talf nodded and left, he reached down and wiped her face, sitting beside her hip on the end of the bed.
"The tea will help," he comforted her. The tears had slipped out when they had been moving her, and she gave a bit of a broken sigh.
"I hope so," she whispered back. He looked up and then smiled.
"Enguina is awake. Before you return to sleep, do you want to talk to her?" She tried to turn her head, but it was simply too much strain.
"Erumar, I can hardly see you!" called Enguina softly, and Erumar rolled her eyes as Aragorn smiled. "Where are you?"
"Enguina, I cannot turn my head right now," she replied. "Perhaps tomorrow morning."
"Then I shall have to speak without seeing you. Thank you…for saving our lives today." She meant every word. "I am so grateful for you. Ilúvatar knows that it could have been a thousand times worse than it was. I praise and thank Him for you."
"I am so thankful that you are all right. Arwen said you have broken ribs?"
"Yes," she replied. "But you fared much worse."
Erumar was silent a moment and then she said, "I would do it again."
"I know you would. If you could have taken every stone you would have."
"So would I," Arwen whispered, rubbing her hand along Enguina's abdomen as he maneuvered around in her womb. "We would all give our lives to be sure that your baby was safe."
"I know," Enguina stated. "I am so grateful." Erumar's eyes closed.
"She is fading quickly, Enguina," Aragorn said softly. "You may want to hurry with whatever you wish to say." Erumar attempted to crack an eye, but could not get it open; she did smile though.
"Stop teasing me."
Aragorn winced. "I will try, if it pleases you." Arwen laughed softly from across the room.
"I am…still traveling with you in two days," Erumar forced out. "It is two days, is it not?"
"Erumar, you cannot possibly!" cried Enguina.
"Everyone calm down," Arwen said softly. "Two days is a long time."
Aragorn and Enguina looked at her incredulously.
"'Two days is a—?' Are you mad?" asked Enguina.
"It is a possibility that Erumar could travel with her arm as it is," Arwen said. "That would be her choice. She can decide if she is well enough."
Enguina stared at her. "No, she cannot, Arwen. If I am on bed rest, how much more should she be on? She was hit with far more rocks than me, and she has admitted she is not a very good rider."
"I think," Aragorn tried diplomatically, "that addressing this in the morning, when everyone is not completely exhausted would be—"
"Arwen," Enguina said, "I know you believe that Erumar should make her own choice, but this is a time when we should step in and tell her—"
"I have made my decision," Erumar said firmly. "I will be just fine in a day or so. I have been in pain before."
"Not like this," Aragorn said gently. "And it is not the pain that worries me, but the concussion. Erumar, you cannot even see correctly. But…as I said before, perhaps the morning would be best to talk about such things."
"I wish none of you would go," Enguina said softly, and Arwen stroked her cheek. "I do not want you to leave, not now…not when things are so…not when this happened. I want Legolas to be here, and he is not here yet. Perhaps you can wait until Legolas arrives?"
"This cannot wait," Aragorn said quietly, "or I would not go at all. Everything will be fine while I am away." He reached out and laid his hand on Erumar's head. "Is the pain fading?"
"From my head," she said but she winced and her speech was really beginning to slur now. "My arm still aches like a son of a—"
"I hate it when you curse," Enguina interrupted softly. "And you hardly ever do."
Erumar laughed, but Aragorn could tell that she was so exhausted she was nearly out as it was. "Oh, I know some beauties. Haldir was the worst." Enguina giggled.
"He was, was he not? He swore sometimes as though he was a pirate."
"I do not think Thranduil ever swears," she muttered. "I cannot imagine him ever needing to. One look from those icy eyes and the world would freeze over instantly."
Aragorn glanced over at Arwen and the two of them shared a little grin; perhaps it should not have been funny, but it was. "What the hell is she saying over there?" Enguina said with a laugh. "Does she even know?"
"I think you need to rest, Erumar," Aragorn said with a chuckle.
"Mmm," she said, and he knew there must have been a sleeping draught in the tea as well. She fought to keep her eyes open. "So…handsome…"
"Yes," he said shaking his head, "I know he is. Good night, Erumar."
It only took a few seconds before Erumar was out and Enguina burst out laughing, and then clutched her ribs. "Oh, not a good idea…but that was so funny!"
"I think she may have been talking about you," Arwen said, raising an eyebrow at Aragorn.
"Well, if she was, her comment is still true." He gave Arwen another little smile and then he nodded his head toward Erumar. "I am going to work on her arm and shoulder for a little while," he added, beginning to remove the sling on her arm very carefully. "I am going to try and make it a little better at least. Perhaps it will help her when traveling."
"That would make it easier on her for riding," Enguina stated, but she stared at him. "You can mend bone?"
"Not…as well as I would like," he admitted. "It would take more strength than I have, and more days. But I think I can make the two of you more comfortable."
She rubbed a hand on her ribs. "That would be wonderful," she said honestly, "because it hurts to breathe right now."
He gave her a little smile. "I will try to make it so that you can breathe easily come morning."
"You need your rest, too."
"I can rest tomorrow," he said, and he turned his attention then to Erumar's arm, which was so bruised beneath the covering that it looked as though her skin had turned purple.
Enguina cringed and looked up at Arwen, who was studying her husband. "Has he always been that way? Will he always be?"
"Yes," Arwen confessed, "since I have known him. He gives where he can; I would have him no other way. If he was anything less than what he is…I would not know him. He would be as a stranger to all of us." She looked down and smiled at Enguina. "I hope you dream a good dream of Legolas tonight," she said, "not one as you were dreaming."
Enguina sighed. "At least it had not gone very far before you woke me," she said. "Are you…will the two of you be staying here tonight?"
"Of course," she told her. "We are not leaving tonight."
"I hope you will tomorrow," Enguina said, closing her eyes. "You should so that you can be alone." Arwen looked down into her face. "I know I wanted time alone with Legolas before he journeyed. I would never tell you that was wrong."
"Let us worry about one day at a time, Enguina," Arwen replied softly. Though she appreciated the sentiment, she did not even want to think about Aragorn's leaving in one more day. "Tomorrow has enough troubles of its own."