To everybody who reviewed:
A VERY BIG THANK YOU!!!
I can hardly believe how many of you took the time to hit that little button and tell me how much you like my writing...
And I am sincerely glad that the last chapter seemed to keep all of you from taking any drastic actions...
So, I hope to hear from you again, my dear readers... !!! :-)
____
Once more Calenuial led them to the huge hall were meals were served. None of
them had had more than a few bites for breakfast and now as the worst seemed to
be over, hunger made itself known. This time they found themselves not alone; a few
elves had already taken seats and greeted them in a friendly manner.
Using the elven tongue, they started asking Aragorn questions as soon as they had
settled down. Quickly losing interest in a conversation he understood not, Gimli would
have turned his attention towards food had Faramir not used the moment to finally
ask the question that had plagued him ever since he had been silenced by Gandalf.
'What just happened, Gimli?' he addressed the dwarf. 'One moment all seemed lost,
and the next Legolas awoke. What is it that you did?'
Eomer was seated next to him, and the faces of both men showed a mixture of relief
and joy as well as confusion and trepidation. For a moment Gimli tried to find the
words to tell them what had happened, but found himself incapable of doing so. He
could hardly understand himself what he had done.
It was Gandalf who spoke up, realizing the dwarf was at a loss for what to say.
'Amayn was able to reach Legolas, and she almost succeeded in bringing him back.
But her strength left her ere he had awoken, and it was only due to Gimli that Legolas
found his way to wakefulness.'
Faramir had always been fascinated by elves and drawn towards them. He felt a
deep respect for Legolas, although he had never come to know him as well as
Aragorn or Gimli did. He knew the elf had been wounded before, that being immortal
did not make him invulnerable. But he had seen the weakness and disorientation of
the elf and he remembered Gandalf's words only too well.
'Do you think he will be well?' he asked, his gaze flitting from Gandalf to Gimli. The
dwarf's face was tense.
'The way he fought to return shows that he knew to trust Gimli, and I would take this
as a good sign,' the Istari answered. 'But only time will tell.'
'And if not?' Eomer's voice rose to voice the question burning in all of them.
Gandalf's face was grim as he spoke.
'I have seen only a few elves that have been violated in similar ways. Some of them
found the strength to recover fully, and some...' His eyes seemed to focus on
something very far away. 'The memory never left them, and it drained them of their
ability to love and enjoy Middle Earth. They became not much more than shells of
what they once were.'
Gimli remembered something he had heard before.
'Would they not be healed if they chose to sail over the sea?'
'Maybe, friend Gimli. Those I have seen have chosen to go this way, but I know not if
they have found their peace there.'
Silence settled once more. The relief they had felt over Legolas' recovering was now
painfully shadowed over by the uncertainty of how much he had been affected.
Gimli had lost the last little bit of appetite he had, and he sat in gloomy silence until
he could take it no longer. Rising, he mumbled an apology and quickly left the room,
ignoring the looks that followed him.
'He takes it hard,' Aragorn commented.
'It is the guilt he feels that lays heavy upon his heart,' Gandalf answered softly. 'As
long as we know not for sure if Legolas will fully recover, there is no way to resolve
this.'
'What do you truly think, Gandalf? Will Legolas recover?' The man tried to read
something from Gandalf's face but failed in deciphering the expression in his eyes.
'I know not,' the Istari repeated his earlier words.
@@@
He had simply walked, choosing his way only by chance and after his next turn he
found himself in the gardens. He could not even say that he was surprised, for some
part of him had been expecting no different. They were elves after all.
What took him by surprise was the tall figure he could see standing next to a bush of
roses, her fingers gently stroking the petals of one beautiful flower.
He wondered what she was doing here, outside, instead of staying with her son. But
he felt reluctant to disturb her as she seemed deeply absorbed.
Once more he had underestimated the senses of elves for she had heard him
approach. When she could not hear his steps coming closer, she turned her head to
look at him. As her dark eyes met his, he could not help but feel a twang of pain in his
heart as he remembered the pain and confusion he had seen in Legolas' only a short
while ago.
'Do not hide yourself in the shadows, elf friend,' she softly called out to him, 'but join
me here in the sunshine. Surely you would know to enjoy the beauty of nature, as it is
the most perfect of all craftsmanship?'
He only smiled at her and did as she bid him, coming to stand next to her.
'How does Legolas fare?' he asked.
Her eyes became even darker, a sign he knew well as he had seen it many times in
his friend. 'I cannot tell. I needed to come outside for a few moments to restore my
strength. I thank you for what you have done, Gimli, for it was you that he held on to
and that guided him out of the darkness he had fallen into.'
He found no words to say and only shook his head. How could he accept words of
thanks when he himself had been partly responsible for his friend's plight?
Her eyes regarded him and he found not the strength to hide from her penetrating
gaze.
'What is the burden that is weighing your heart?' she asked, but he would not
answer.
'I can feel the grief you carry for someone who has been lost.' Her voice was soft and
her words brought a sharp pain to his heart. He had not forgotten Nirith and her loss
still tore at him.
'And then there is a deep guilt you carry.' She paused, her eyes boring into him,
searching his soul. He could not bring himself to look away although everything in
him screamed to do so. The moment the expression in her eyes changed he knew
that she had seen the truth.
Taking a step backwards her voice remained soft as she spoke.
'There are many things I noticed that found no explanation in what Aragorn has told
us. Legolas' wounds were one of them, as well as why this creature could overcome
him. I would ask these explanations from you now.'
The emotion in his eyes as he looked back at her told more than many words. His
voice was rough as he spoke, trying to explain what had happened between him and
Legolas. He concluded his telling with the words: 'It was pain and anger that clouded
my mind and that drove me to lash out at Legolas like this. I am to blame for what
has befallen him and I would do anything to make it undone.'
She looked at him for a long time, her gaze never wavering. If she was angry, it did
not show. Finally she spoke.
'What has been done is done, and what caused it has been the deed of evil. Your
friendship is strong and true, and that you are still here and that he still has trust in
you tells much to me. It is not my place to judge you, for it is Legolas you hurt with
your actions. I will not speak of this to anyone, for I fear many others would not
hesitate to lay blame on you.'
He could feel relief sweep through him, for he had feared he would no longer be
welcome to stay here. Her face showed nothing of what she thought of him.
'I will return to my son now. As soon as he has calmed enough for you to see him, I
will let you know.' She walked away from him, leaving the dwarf to his own whirling
emotions.
Calenuial stood frozen until she had slipped from sight, his own thoughts in an
uproar. There was no misunderstanding of what he had just overheard.
The dwarf had dared to hurt Legolas. He held himself back from turning on the dwarf
right now and here. But his eyes burned as he turned and disappeared back into the
palace as silently as he had come.
A VERY BIG THANK YOU!!!
I can hardly believe how many of you took the time to hit that little button and tell me how much you like my writing...
And I am sincerely glad that the last chapter seemed to keep all of you from taking any drastic actions...
So, I hope to hear from you again, my dear readers... !!! :-)
____
Once more Calenuial led them to the huge hall were meals were served. None of
them had had more than a few bites for breakfast and now as the worst seemed to
be over, hunger made itself known. This time they found themselves not alone; a few
elves had already taken seats and greeted them in a friendly manner.
Using the elven tongue, they started asking Aragorn questions as soon as they had
settled down. Quickly losing interest in a conversation he understood not, Gimli would
have turned his attention towards food had Faramir not used the moment to finally
ask the question that had plagued him ever since he had been silenced by Gandalf.
'What just happened, Gimli?' he addressed the dwarf. 'One moment all seemed lost,
and the next Legolas awoke. What is it that you did?'
Eomer was seated next to him, and the faces of both men showed a mixture of relief
and joy as well as confusion and trepidation. For a moment Gimli tried to find the
words to tell them what had happened, but found himself incapable of doing so. He
could hardly understand himself what he had done.
It was Gandalf who spoke up, realizing the dwarf was at a loss for what to say.
'Amayn was able to reach Legolas, and she almost succeeded in bringing him back.
But her strength left her ere he had awoken, and it was only due to Gimli that Legolas
found his way to wakefulness.'
Faramir had always been fascinated by elves and drawn towards them. He felt a
deep respect for Legolas, although he had never come to know him as well as
Aragorn or Gimli did. He knew the elf had been wounded before, that being immortal
did not make him invulnerable. But he had seen the weakness and disorientation of
the elf and he remembered Gandalf's words only too well.
'Do you think he will be well?' he asked, his gaze flitting from Gandalf to Gimli. The
dwarf's face was tense.
'The way he fought to return shows that he knew to trust Gimli, and I would take this
as a good sign,' the Istari answered. 'But only time will tell.'
'And if not?' Eomer's voice rose to voice the question burning in all of them.
Gandalf's face was grim as he spoke.
'I have seen only a few elves that have been violated in similar ways. Some of them
found the strength to recover fully, and some...' His eyes seemed to focus on
something very far away. 'The memory never left them, and it drained them of their
ability to love and enjoy Middle Earth. They became not much more than shells of
what they once were.'
Gimli remembered something he had heard before.
'Would they not be healed if they chose to sail over the sea?'
'Maybe, friend Gimli. Those I have seen have chosen to go this way, but I know not if
they have found their peace there.'
Silence settled once more. The relief they had felt over Legolas' recovering was now
painfully shadowed over by the uncertainty of how much he had been affected.
Gimli had lost the last little bit of appetite he had, and he sat in gloomy silence until
he could take it no longer. Rising, he mumbled an apology and quickly left the room,
ignoring the looks that followed him.
'He takes it hard,' Aragorn commented.
'It is the guilt he feels that lays heavy upon his heart,' Gandalf answered softly. 'As
long as we know not for sure if Legolas will fully recover, there is no way to resolve
this.'
'What do you truly think, Gandalf? Will Legolas recover?' The man tried to read
something from Gandalf's face but failed in deciphering the expression in his eyes.
'I know not,' the Istari repeated his earlier words.
@@@
He had simply walked, choosing his way only by chance and after his next turn he
found himself in the gardens. He could not even say that he was surprised, for some
part of him had been expecting no different. They were elves after all.
What took him by surprise was the tall figure he could see standing next to a bush of
roses, her fingers gently stroking the petals of one beautiful flower.
He wondered what she was doing here, outside, instead of staying with her son. But
he felt reluctant to disturb her as she seemed deeply absorbed.
Once more he had underestimated the senses of elves for she had heard him
approach. When she could not hear his steps coming closer, she turned her head to
look at him. As her dark eyes met his, he could not help but feel a twang of pain in his
heart as he remembered the pain and confusion he had seen in Legolas' only a short
while ago.
'Do not hide yourself in the shadows, elf friend,' she softly called out to him, 'but join
me here in the sunshine. Surely you would know to enjoy the beauty of nature, as it is
the most perfect of all craftsmanship?'
He only smiled at her and did as she bid him, coming to stand next to her.
'How does Legolas fare?' he asked.
Her eyes became even darker, a sign he knew well as he had seen it many times in
his friend. 'I cannot tell. I needed to come outside for a few moments to restore my
strength. I thank you for what you have done, Gimli, for it was you that he held on to
and that guided him out of the darkness he had fallen into.'
He found no words to say and only shook his head. How could he accept words of
thanks when he himself had been partly responsible for his friend's plight?
Her eyes regarded him and he found not the strength to hide from her penetrating
gaze.
'What is the burden that is weighing your heart?' she asked, but he would not
answer.
'I can feel the grief you carry for someone who has been lost.' Her voice was soft and
her words brought a sharp pain to his heart. He had not forgotten Nirith and her loss
still tore at him.
'And then there is a deep guilt you carry.' She paused, her eyes boring into him,
searching his soul. He could not bring himself to look away although everything in
him screamed to do so. The moment the expression in her eyes changed he knew
that she had seen the truth.
Taking a step backwards her voice remained soft as she spoke.
'There are many things I noticed that found no explanation in what Aragorn has told
us. Legolas' wounds were one of them, as well as why this creature could overcome
him. I would ask these explanations from you now.'
The emotion in his eyes as he looked back at her told more than many words. His
voice was rough as he spoke, trying to explain what had happened between him and
Legolas. He concluded his telling with the words: 'It was pain and anger that clouded
my mind and that drove me to lash out at Legolas like this. I am to blame for what
has befallen him and I would do anything to make it undone.'
She looked at him for a long time, her gaze never wavering. If she was angry, it did
not show. Finally she spoke.
'What has been done is done, and what caused it has been the deed of evil. Your
friendship is strong and true, and that you are still here and that he still has trust in
you tells much to me. It is not my place to judge you, for it is Legolas you hurt with
your actions. I will not speak of this to anyone, for I fear many others would not
hesitate to lay blame on you.'
He could feel relief sweep through him, for he had feared he would no longer be
welcome to stay here. Her face showed nothing of what she thought of him.
'I will return to my son now. As soon as he has calmed enough for you to see him, I
will let you know.' She walked away from him, leaving the dwarf to his own whirling
emotions.
Calenuial stood frozen until she had slipped from sight, his own thoughts in an
uproar. There was no misunderstanding of what he had just overheard.
The dwarf had dared to hurt Legolas. He held himself back from turning on the dwarf
right now and here. But his eyes burned as he turned and disappeared back into the
palace as silently as he had come.