Title: RESTORATION
Number Author: Fianna
Rating: R
Disclaimer: Tolkien owns the elves of Lothlorien and I write only for the pleasure of their company.
Cast: Haldir, Orophin, Rumil and my own characters
Timeline: Several hundred years after the War of the Ring
Chapter 29
Orophin sat outside Haldir's window, left open so he could hear any movement from within, sitting outside to continue the scowl he had glued to the King of Mirkwood.
Thranduil sat a few paces away, ignoring the anger coming from Orophin, his gaze set upon Rowen as she sat next to Orophin humming.
It was an odd tableau, with stranger emotions passed between them. Orophin had gone to speak to Haldir and had met Rowen at his door. Told of Haldir's condition. Orophin had meant to take the Mirkwood King to task but Rowen had intervened, and then Tauriel, holding him fast against his anger, while Thranduil...
Had only laughed in amusement and a wickedness rarely seen in the elf. Or so Tauriel had said, laughing as well, reminding Orophin that Haldir would recover without any ill effects.
Rowen had shaken her head, but her lips had curved at his glare, leaving him feeling sheepish and annoyed at their lack of concern.
How Haldir would feel would be interesting. Thranduil might not be so smug when the March Warden awoke from his spell-induced sleep.
A faint sound from within made Orophin rise slowly to his feet. The door opened and they all turned to find Haldir standing stiffly within its frame, fingers tight to the wood as if to steady his steps, chin at an angle that made Orophin send the Woodland King a tight smile.
"Thranduil..." Haldir began but then stopped, pressed a hand to his brow as if it pained him, and then, looking through the long strands of his hair, grinned at the Mirkwood King. "It is done?"
Thranduil smiled back, ignoring Orophin still. "Aye. Rumil is coming to tell as we speak, I can hear him already."
Haldir had turned as Thranduil spoke, noting Rumil clearly, stepping outside without releasing the door frame as yet. "What is it?"
Rumil stopped and laughed, grasping Haldir by the shoulders to pull him free of the door, and then had to take several steps to re-balance as Haldir nearly dropped to his knees. "What … Haldir, are you all right?"
Haldir leaned against Rumil and waved an airy hand. "What have you come to tell..."
Rumil frowned, opened his mouth more than likely to argue, Orophin thought, but then couldn't hold back his news. "The trees, Haldir! I stopped to check on one and it's nearly as tall as I! I saw several more and they have grown so much I swear I can see them stretching upwards even as I watch!"
Haldir sank down on the bench next to Orophin. Covered his eyes and then sat so still no one spoke for a moment. Rowen was the first to move as she sank down at Haldir's knees to grasp the hands covering his face.
"It is done, March Warden."
Haldir took a deep breath and looked up, lashes wet, lips tight with control. Orophin could feel the emotion in Haldir, a release of something so long held that he knew it was taking everything in Haldir's arsenal of control not to allow it to consume him.
Thranduil smiled and leaned forward. "It is done, March Warden. Your forest will grow again, perhaps not to what it was for many more generations, but it will be a powerful place once more. A place needing a strong and loyal guardian to care for it."
"As I have promised already," Haldir agreed. He smiled at Rowen and then gripped Orophin's knee beside him. "I am all right, Ori, relax your vigil. I am not angry with Thranduil."
Orophin sniffed faintly, and sent the King another glare for good measure. "You were defenseless under his spell."
"I was well protected, brother. No harm came, or was intended."
"Indeed," Thranduil sighed. "I offered Rowen a prime opportunity but she refused my gift."
"It was no gift, Mirkwood King," Rowen countered, but with a smile at the Woodland King. "But appreciated all the same."
Orophin rubbed his brow. "I do not understand any of you. Had Haldir been placed under such a spell by anyone else, we would have hung him by his toes from the tallest tree."
Thranduil turned toward Orophin with a lift of dark brows, his own chin lifted regally, as if to dare Orophin to try. "He was already overcome by the magic to recant Galadriel's spell, would have slept even had I not woven a bit more. It was a minor spell, warden, and as Haldir has said, never meant to harm."
Rumil looked at Thranduil intently, and then at Haldir. "If you are all right, I will return to my post. I just had to tell someone." He grinned and then bowed deeply toward Thranduil. "I am in your debt, Mirkwood King." He strode off, whistling, a rare sound in the Golden Wood.
Rowen grasped Haldir's hands, leaning against his knees as he sat back with eyes closed. "You are still dizzy."
"No, but I feel rather weak. It is not a welcome feeling, but it will pass. Orophin, if you will, I would like something to eat."
Orophin leapt to his feet. "The Baker has made fresh bread. I will get you something." He started toward the newest building in Lorien, and then stopped with a frown to look back over his shoulder. Haldir met his gaze and then offered a tiny dip of his chin. Orophin slanted a final look at Thranduil and then continued on his way to the baker. A few moments between them, and then Thranduil would find out how Haldir really felt.
A hand on his arm made him smile, stiffly as it was Tauriel who matched his pace, her green eyes curious. "He is well?"
"So he seems."
"But you are still angry."
"I do not like to see Haldir put under such a spell."
"Perhaps it was not avoidable. The magic to free the trees, to make them grow must have been a powerful spell. To be involved as he was, to be part of the magic, Orophin, can be overwhelming."
"But Thranduil did more than just aid the trees."
"Aye, perhaps uwisely, but not as he said, intended to harm. He was trying to offer Rowen an opportunity to get what she so clearly desires."
"Haldir."
"Of course, Haldir. She has had eyes for him ever since I first met her. They delay what they know is meant to be."
Orophin stopped to look at Tauriel. "Meant? You believe this?"
She glanced over his shoulder and then stepped back a step, folding her hands behind her back. "Would you have refused me, had you been Haldir, and in his place as leader and March Warden? Would you put this forest before love, Orophin?"
"No, but then I am not Haldir nor have I a full understanding of what he does and must do." He caught Tauriel close, pulled her against his chest, amused when she flashed him a coy smile. "I am Orophin, and glad to be such an elf. But Haldir is my brother, and what happens to him matters to me. Thranduil can play such games with someone else."
"Ah, true, but to play them with an elf like Haldir, so stoic and honorable, so steadfast in his duty, I can see why he could not resist." She laughed at Orophin's annoyed expression, reaching up to hold his face between her hands. "He is not angry, so let go your own anger, warden. You play such games with him yourself, it is a measure of Thranduil's burgeoning affection for Haldir that he even considered it."
"Affection?" Orophin stepped back with a snort. "Thranduil?"
Tauriel poked Orophin in the chest with her fingers, pushing him back another step. "Aye, affection, warden. Your brother has a way with people, annoys them, irritates, and even angers them with his nobility, yet I have seen Thranduil look at him in envy and amusement, in the same way he looks at his son."
"I cannot imagine Thranduil looking at Legolas or Haldir in affection."
"Yet it is there, hidden as he feels it must be, from most who would not think to look for it. He softens, Orophin, as I have never seen him do, in a way that makes me glad to be his Captain."
Orophin turned away, his throat tight for her words brought to mind the question he had hoped to ask, yet now wondered if he should.
Her hand gripped his elbow, the other slid around his waist. "Why do you turn from me, Orophin. Have I said something to upset you?"
"No."
"Foolish elf, I did not say I was going back."
Orophin's breath caught, his chest suddenly tight. "I have not asked you..."
She slid around him and pressed her fingers to his lips. "No, not yet. But you will. And I will answer then yay or nay, which I cannot say as yet. But know this, Orophin of Lorien, you have my heart." She kissed him on the cheek with a rueful smile. "Haldir will be wondering where his breakfast is."
Orophin gasped and then glanced over his shoulder but could not see Haldir or his cottage. "I am so much in trouble, in many ways." He laughed and then kissed Tauriel, holding her fast for a moment before letting her loose to find the baker.
0o0
"Shall we go inside so you can speak freely?" Thranduil stood after Orophin's departure, and waved a hand toward the door to Haldir's cottage.
Haldir allowed Rowen to help him stand, paused for a moment to gain his balance and then brushed off her aid to step through the door and back into his home. Rowen followed, sniffing faintly as she passed him to pull out a chair at his Sweeney-made table, and then removed to his kitchen to bang pots and cups in a clear declaration of her irritation with him.
Haldir smiled, sat in the chair with relief. "How long will this last?"
Thranduil sat across from him and shrugged. "A day, maybe two."
"Why do I feel this way?"
"Do you not know? Can you not feel that she has taken from you something so deep and true to counter what was done to your forest? You were a guardian before, now you are more."
Haldir blinked and then placed a hand to his heart. It beat steadily as it always did, but he felt something different , as if part of him was apart, separate, distinct in a way. He looked at Thranduil intently. "She has taken a piece of me, how?"
"The spell required many things. Rowen was needed," Thranduil explained, nodding as she placed a cup of tea before him on the table. "To be your voice, to provide the connection between you and the trees. I was needed for my magic to create that connection. The spell took what it needed, from the trees – their joy and determination to grow, from you – a strength unmatched in Arda to remain after all you have been through in your long life."
Rowen sat between them, quietly, placing her cup with care on the table as if not to interrupt, her eyes wide.
"That is why I cannot leave, then. She has placed a part of my soul here."
"Has it not already been here, March Warden? Have you not stayed here against all reason?"
He knew it was so. He closed his eyes, could feel the pulse of the forest, a heart beat much like his own – steady, solid, alive... "Galadriel's connection."
"Was much the same," Thranduil agreed.
"And yours?"
"I am part of all the earth, Haldir, no matter where I place my feet."
"Even in the West?"
Thranduil sat back, his gaze distant. "No. There the world is different. I am not of that place. I do not know that I will go there."
"What about Legolas?"
"My son?" Thranduil smiled briefly. "He will go where he chooses. I will miss him when he does."
Haldir sipped his tea, glanced at Rowen with a smile as brief bits of his memory flashed into his mind. "How long will you stay, King of Mirkwood?"
"Are you ready to send me off so soon?" Thranduil's gaze twinkled, moving between Rowen and Haldir.
"No, you are welcome to remain however long you like."
"A generous offer, March Warden. But my son waits for me, impatiently."
"You have few elves now, Thranduil. Keeping your city will not be easy from the likes of men who want it."
"True. I may find it lost when I return, who knows. I have not felt any ill thoughts in that direction, so perhaps it will still be there as I left it. I cannot say what I will do."
"You are welcome to return, with your people if that is what you need."
"Another generous offer. Perhaps my spell has changed you more than I expected." Thranduil leaned closer to look at Haldir, his deep blue eyes full of mystery, sparkling as Haldir had sometimes seen in Galadriel, his magic held and bound by will, but there, if one knew how to look.
Haldir lowered his gaze, fingers splayed on the wood table. "I am indebted to you, Thranduil."
"Nay, our debts are equal and have been paid in full. You saved my life by taking the arrow meant for me, and I your forest. I am satisfied with such a bargain."
Haldir held out his hand, "A truce then, Thranduil?"
The King of Mirkwood smiled and gripped Haldir's hand. "A friendship, March Warden. Well met."
0o0
Sweeney watched the cottage intently, well aware Rowen was inside, with Haldir, and Thranduil, which meant nothing. Or something, their connection so strong between the three he could feel it. He had not asked questions, was surprised when Rowen returned to her cottage late, surprised more to hear Haldir had been nearly unconscious after the meeting with Thranduil and his trees.
Such magics made Sweeney uncomfortable. Made him wonder what kind of ability Haldir had, and if he had used it to draw Rowen to him.
But no, he knew it was not the work of such things, for Rowen he could read easily and her attraction to the warden had been instant the moment she had met him. Even if she had not realized it, nor the elf, for the two at that time had been at odds as much as companions.
He had not missed the kiss Haldir had placed on Rowen, nor the fact she was nearly glued to his side now.
Would he even be able to pull her away should he decide it was needed? For once he thought he might not, for once she might be the stronger.
"Why do you fight what you know is going to happen?" Orophin leaned on the side of the cottage in front of Sweeney, blocking his view.
"I don't know..."
"Do not be annoying. You are over-protective of the elleth."
"She is not..." Sweeney stopped and sighed. "Perhaps I fear to be alone, Orophin. That she will decide to stay here and I will have to move on without her."
"You are welcome to stay, Ranger."
Sweeney looked at the elf, lifted a sleek brow. "Am I?" He shook his head. "I fear Haldir may believe otherwise."
Orophin folded his arms, tapped a hand to his chin. "You think to know everything?"
"I am well aware of Haldir's feelings toward me."
"Ah, so you are like Rowen?"
Sweeney scowled at the elf, rose to his feet but found a hand on his arm.
"You will not walk away, Sweeney."
"I will do as I please."
Orophin's lips curved into a slow smile. "Will you?"
"With Rowen and all else."
"I like you. You are as hard-headed and impossible as Haldir, and Rumil."
Sweeney was taken aback, the anger that had simmered suddenly flattened by Orophin's amusement. He frowned, a deep sense of unease flaring at Orophin's smile and the look in his eyes. "What do you mean to do?"
Orophin took a step forward, cocked his head and then gave a tiny nod that made Sweeney stiffen, but not quickly enough as two elves materialized behind him, taking his arms to hold him fast. "I mean to remove an obstacle in my brother's path."
"She is not his to have."
"Rowen is whatever she wants to be, once big brother is taken away to allow her to choose."
Sweeney struggled in the arms of the elves, but they held him tightly, with chuckles that only made him angrier. "I find this unseemly, Orophin. I thought you a friend!"
Orophin moved closer until they were face to face. "I am, truly Sweeney. You have held onto her long enough. Allow her to choose her own fate, stop being over-protective. I know it is hard to let go, so we will help you."
"Belarian will have your head. He will not allow this either."
"Belarian is taken care of," Orophin returned serenely.
Sweeney jerked forward. "What have you done with my father?"
"Ah, so you admit he is your father."
Sweeney hissed, annoyed beyond reason. "You will pay for this elf."
Orophin moved closer yet, grasped Sweeney's shirt in a tight grip. "Oh I have no doubt we will come to odds over this. You and I, we will fight, for I hold advantage with my friend's help. But know this, half-elf. You are elven whether you like it or not, so use that part of you if you dare. You have ability you have not even accessed yet, your anger with who you are has blocked it."
"What do you know, Orophin," Sweeney snarled. "Once I am free you will rue this moment."
Orophin nodded agreement. "Probably. But in the meantime, Sweeney Half-Elven of Mithlond, you will be held until Rowen makes up her mind."
They dragged Sweeney away, fighting, struggling to no avail, the elve's laughter echoing through the trees.
No one came to help, no one seemed to notice.
They tied him to a tree in a deeply shadowed place in the forest, blindfolded he was not sure just where they had gone. Left alone to stew, to fume and grow angrier, and then finally, to sigh and lay his head back against the tree to figure out how to get free.
Wondering just what Rowen would decide.
0o0
