Thanks to Lalaith and LegolasLuver123 for the scrummy reviews, and as always, Laiqalasse and Becki for betaing and encouragement.
Disclaimer: Tolkien's, not mine. Written for love, not money.
A Grain of Truth
Chapter 5: We Look After Our Friends, For It Is They Who Look After Us
Precisely at the moment the sun reached its zenith, the Elven Prince strode up the steps of the House of Healing and into the cool hallway. He cast about him, looking for the Healer, and was gratified to see her descending the main staircase. She smiled when she saw him, a slightly odd expression in her eyes, but he did not have time to wonder at it before she reached him.
"You are early, my lord. I said a little after noon, not right on the dot! Your friend is still sleeping; I was about to go and wake her up to eat her lunch. She should be ready to see you in about half an hour."
The Prince found himself having to hide an expression of disappointment at this. Schooling his thoughts, he allowed the Healer to direct him to a window seat where he could wait. Once she had seen that he was settled, she disappeared in the direction of the kitchens, leaving the Prince alone with his thoughts.
He was soon able to convince himself that he was disappointed by the delay simply because he wanted to see for himself that the warrior was all right. She had seemed so small and vulnerable the last time he had seen her...he cut off that train of thought without really knowing why. He could not quite understand why he was so concerned about this human. He respected her courage and her skill with a sword, and had come to like her sharp wit and her refreshing lack of deference; he had meant it when he said he hoped they were on the road to becoming friends. But as for why he had woken early, thinking of her peaceful face as she slept...he was not sure that he wanted to know.
Hoping to distract himself from this train of thought, the Prince turned his mind to the conversation he had had with his father the previous evening. He had endured the customary scolding for going off hunting on his own without telling anybody; it had happened many times before and would happen many times again, and both of them knew it. Although most of the time he obediently did his princely duties without a word of complaint, every now and then the routine became too much for him and he had to escape for a few days. It was a long-standing habit and nobody seemed to worry too much about it any more, although his father still found it necessary to give him a talking-to each time he returned.
Once they had been through the motions, the King scolding and the Prince acting suitably penitent, he felt it was time to tell his father about the companion he had brought back with him. Predictably enough, the King had been less than happy about the presence of a human in his city, but once the Prince had explained about her bravery and the fact that Elven healing was the only thing that could save her life, he had relented a little, although he had made it clear that he wanted the girl gone as soon as she was well enough. Given her feelings about Elves, the Prince had thought to himself that his new friend would probably agree. She would not exactly be eager to stay, surrounded by a people about whom she had heard nothing positive in all her life. He had refused to entertain the pang of regret he had felt at that.
Sighing, the Prince gazed out of the window at the gardens in front of the House of Healing. Somehow today every thought he had came back to the brave human girl currently lying upstairs in still-indifferent health. The Healer's reassurances had gone some way towards easing his worries, but he would not be certain until he saw her condition for himself. And even when he did, he would still have to deal with the worrying confusion he felt every time he thought of her.
Upstairs, the warrior was floating gently towards awakening when the noise of the door being opened brought her to full consciousness. Her reflexes told her to sit up and go for the knife she always kept by her head as she slept, but her muscles would not obey, and once her brain kicked in she remembered that she was in no danger, and her knife was not there anyway. Rubbing her eyes, she turned to see the Healer bringing another tray in, and struggled to sit up.
"How long have I been asleep?" she queried, trying and failing to stifle a yawn. She remembered the arduous journey up the stairs, but she had no recollection of the room she found herself in; she must have fallen into bed and gone to sleep straight away.
"A few hours," the Healer replied. "It is just past noon, and I have brought you something more to eat. How are you feeling?"
"Tired, and all my muscles ache, but no worse than I did earlier. And I'm starving, though all I've done is sleep since I last ate."
"Sleep and climb four flights of stairs," the Healer amended for her. "Besides, you are recovering from some very nasty injuries; your body needs food to fuel the healing process. Here," she placed the tray on the warrior's lap and crossed the room to open the curtains, "eat this, and I shall return in a few minutes to take the tray. Then, once you have eaten, there is somebody who would like to see you."
Try as she might, the warrior could not entirely keep the surprised happiness she felt at that statement from showing on her face. She had to admit to herself that she had been hoping that the Prince would come back and see her, since she had fallen asleep and missed him the previous night. But it would not do to let this kind Elven-lady see her feelings. She had no business wishing to see her rescuer; she was lucky he had cared enough to bring her to a place of healing. Further contact was not to be looked for. Fearing the Healer's disapproval, she wiped her face clear of any expression and managed to produce a suitably deferential reply.
"That's very kind of His Highness," she murmured, not daring to look up, and so missing the kindly smile on the face of the Healer as she retreated into the corridor, closing the door behind her.
The warrior gave herself a firm mental shake and settled down to eat her lunch. Much to her dismay her stomach was now tying itself in knots at the thought of seeing the Prince, and her appetite had all but deserted her. Sighing in frustration, she resisted the temptation to throw something across the room and instead took a drink of milk from the glass on the tray and surveyed the rest of her meal. More fruit, another bread roll, some cold chicken, lettuce and tiny, sweet tomatoes. She was beginning to revise her opinion of Elves; they were certainly feeding her well.
Taking one of the tomatoes, she put it in her mouth and bit down, feeling it pop between her teeth and spill its sweet juice over her tongue. It had been a long time since she had eaten tomatoes, and she ate another one, having a good look around the room as she did so. It was the first time she had been in a fit state to take in her new surroundings, and she was impressed to find that the room was even nicer than the bathing chamber downstairs. It was decorated in a similar way, with warm cream walls and plenty of carved panelling, but the carpet and curtains were a rich emerald green; another gauze curtain hung over the long window, admitting more than enough light to show a small balcony outside. A small table stood on one side of the bed, a large armchair on the other, and a washstand in the corner, next to a tall cupboard. Opposite the bed were a dressing table and mirror, and a bookshelf containing a few slim, leather-bound volumes. Altogether it was a very comfortable room in which to convalesce, certainly more comfortable than any room in which she had ever spent the night before. The bed was firm and the eiderdown and pillows soft and warm and seeming to beckon her back down into their embrace. But she was not ready to sleep again, not just yet, tired as she still felt. Glancing down at the tray, she was surprised to see that she had finished her meal without really noticing as she took in her surroundings; she placed the tray on the table and settled back against the pillows to await the reappearance of the Healer.
After a few moments, that lady put her head around the door. "All finished? Good. There's somebody here to see you. Let me just get rid of that tray for you, and I'll let him in."
The warrior resisted the temptation to dig her fingernails into her palms; she wasn't nervous, not at all. She thanked the Healer, who laughed.
"No, it's us who should be thanking you. He's been hanging around since noon, waiting to see you, getting under all our feet. It'll be a relief to get him out of the way." She was hard put to it not to laugh out loud at the thunderstruck expression on the warrior's face, mentally marking up another confirmation of her Elven intuition as she left the room, tray in hand.
A moment or two later there was a knock at the door, and the warrior called "Come in!" before she could think about it and get flustered. The Prince did as he was told, closing the door behind him and turning to face her, giving her a long look over.
"How are you feeling?"
"Much better," she replied, remembering to add, "thankyou," and the Prince smiled. She certainly looked better; the colour had returned to her face and she no longer looked so exhausted.
The warrior soon grew uncomfortable with being stared at and broke the somewhat awkward silence. "Please, sit down," she said, gesturing towards the armchair. "You're making me nervous, just standing there."
"Sorry. I'm just relieved to see you looking better," the Prince explained, moving round to the other side of the bed and settling himself in the chair. Well, he thought to himself, it was true, wasn't it? He made no further effort at conversation after sitting down, and the warrior suspected that he was set fair for another round of staring at her, though why, she didn't know, so she grasped at the first topic of conversation that came to mind.
"How did you get on with your father last night?"
The Prince laughed. "Same as ever. He told me off for going off hunting on my own, I hung my head and said I was sorry, we patched it all up. It happens quite often."
"Did he - did he say anything about me?" She really was nervous now; it had been something she'd been trying not to think about, but she had to ask. She wanted to be prepared for being thrown out as soon as was convenient.
"He wasn't too pleased at first, but he warmed up when I told him how brave you were. He's a great admirer of courage in females, most of the she-Elves at court are silly creatures who are only interested in embroidery. Rather like your friends at home, I would imagine." He grinned, and the warrior laughed, all nerves and awkwardness disappearing.
"I think most females are the same, whichever species they belong to. It's partly why I went off to be a mercenary; I could never get a decent conversation at home. All the girls were too busy talking about dresses, and the boys wouldn't talk to me at all because I was better with a sword than they were."
"I can imagine. Anyway, my father has no objection to your being here, although I think he'd rather you left once you're fully healed. Which is what you were planning anyway, I suppose?" He tried very hard not to let hope creep into his voice; what was he hoping for, anyway?
The warrior considered for a moment. "I hadn't really thought beyond convalescence, which the Healer lady seems to think is necessary, but I wasn't exactly planning to live out my days among the Elves, if that's what you mean." She looked up at him and was surprised to see - was that disappointment in his eyes, hastily hidden?
"Well, I hadn't exactly expected you to. Still, you won't be going anywhere for a few weeks, not until that wound's fully healed and you've got your strength back."
She looked horrified at that. "A few weeks? But I'm already late returning; my employer will be having kittens. I have to get back as soon as possible."
"I'm sorry. Not after a wound like you've sustained; as soon as possible is going to be several weeks hence, and I think the Healer is sure to agree. I can arrange to have a message sent to your employer, if that will solve matters."
"I suppose it'll have to do." She realised how ungrateful she sounded, and amended quickly. "Not that I'm complaining about you helping me or anything, but I hadn't really planned to be away so long. I meant no offence."
"None taken. I understand. Do you want to write a message now? I believe writing implements are kept in the drawer of the table."
She investigated the small drawer, and found a quill, an inkwell and a few sheets of parchment. Fishing them out, she turned back to find the Prince handing her a volume to rest on. "Easier than twisting round to use the table," he explained, "although less conducive to tidy writing."
She smiled. "My writing's terrible anyway. My employer won't bother if it's worse than usual." Resting the parchment on the book and the inkstand on the table, she scrawled a brief note to her employer, explaining the situation, then when the ink was dry she folded it up and tucked the ends inside each other. Addressing it quickly, she handed it to the Prince. "I haven't got a seal, but it doesn't contain anything I wouldn't want anyone else to see."
"I'll put mine on it, if you like. Might lend a bit of weight to your story."
"Thanks. I hadn't thought of that. He's a suspicious one, liable to think I've just taken the time off to go drinking or something. Not that I ever do that, or at least, not often and never on a job."
The Prince smiled. "I don't doubt it. You're very dedicated to your job."
The warrior shrugged. "I have to be. It's all I have."
The Prince raised his eyebrows in surprise. "All you have? But what about - what about family, friends?" He could not imagine being alone; all his long life he had been surrounded by the Elves at court, his family and friends and all the servants.
"My parents are dead; they died when I was twelve. Plague. And I don't have any friends. I told you, the girls are only interested in dresses and men, and the boys, the men, they've no time for a girl who can handle a sword better than they can. I'm all I ever needed."
The Prince felt his heart twist at the bitter loneliness in her voice, and almost without realising it he reached out and took her hand in his. "As long as I draw breath, you will have a friend," he declared. "Nobody should have to live their life completely alone."
She shrugged, but did not pull her hand away; deep inside, she found the Prince's touch strangely comforting. "Some of us don't have the choice," she said, unable to keep the bitterness entirely from her voice. "But I thank you for your friendship, and I offer you mine in return, for what it's worth."
The Prince bowed his head, and with his free hand made the Elven gesture of friendship, placing his hand to his heart and then bringing it forward to cup her face. "The friendship of another is worth everything," he told her, "for it is that which transforms life from a mere task to something in which to rejoice. We Elves learn that lesson early on, and we learn to cherish our friends."
The warrior didn't quite know what to say to that, so she contented herself with squeezing his hand and thanking him; she was beginning to learn what a gift it was for an Elf to grant her their friendship. They sat in companionable silence for a while, their hands still clasped.
Eventually, no longer feeling awkward around the Prince, the warrior gathered together the courage to ask him the question she had been longing to ask since she woke up that morning.
"Last night, after I fell asleep, did you come back to see me?"
The Prince could not help smiling at the memory. "I did; I promised you, did I not? It was you that could not keep your promise." He winked, to show her that he did not mean the reproach that his words carried. "It was late when I managed to escape my father, and in truth I did not expect you to be awake; you had had a very long and exhausting day. The Healer told me you were sleeping, but I had to make sure for myself that you were all right, and that they were looking after you well."
The warrior felt a tiny secret warmth in her heart at his words; here was a true friend, for the first time in her life, somebody who cared enough about her wellbeing to come and check on her when he didn't have to. Her smile was broad and genuine as she looked up and met his eyes. "Thank you. I've received nothing but the best care since you brought me here. I have to admit that I didn't expect it, but the Healer and her apprentices have been very kind. They gave me a bath, and everything. I haven't had a proper bath in months, and I've never had one such as the one that was waiting for me last night. I thought I'd landed in paradise!"
"So you admit that there are some advantages in being cared for by Elves?" the Prince teased, a mischievous smile upon his face.
"I have to," she returned, "for I am enjoying myself too much to deny it. You are making me revise my opinions!"
"I'm glad to hear it! Perhaps if a few of the race of Men knew our true nature, then word could be spread and the two races could enjoy a closer friendship."
The warrior sobered. "I'm sorry about what I said, back in the forest. I'd never met any Elves before, so I only knew what I'd been told. I didn't know any better, but I do now. I promise you, when I return to my people I'll be sure to tell them about the kindness and hospitality I was shown."
"Don't overdo it," laughed the Prince, "or we'll be overrun with Men looking for a holiday away from the cares of their everyday lives. The occasional guest is fine, but can you imagine hordes of your people overrunning us?"
The warrior did not answer straight away, and for a moment the Prince was afraid that he had offended her. But then she laughed, and the relief he felt threatened to overwhelm him.
"I can. And it would be horrible. The beauty of this place is that it is untouched by Men. If we came to visit all the time it would be ruined. I consider myself very lucky." She paused, gathering her courage again. "And I'm especially lucky that I met you. The Healer told me that you saved my life three times over, and for that I thank you from the bottom of my heart."
The Prince stared at her, taken aback by her unexpected words, and she dropped her gaze to the bedspread and their clasped hands. Feeling that she ought to explain, she continued. "You killed that Orc for me; you bound my wound with the herbs that slowed the bleeding and the infection; and you brought me to your home, which I am sure cannot have cost you nothing. Without any or all of those things I should surely have died. You can say what you like about the Elven reverence for life, but to me it's no ordinary thing that someone should go out of his way to help me. I'm used to fending for myself, and it means a great deal that you have bothered to help me, and even more that you have taken the time to come and see me today. I'm sure you've got far more important things to do."
"Nothing so important that it couldn't wait," he said warmly, and watched as a faint blush worked its way up her face. "We look after our friends, for it is they who look after us."
The warrior couldn't speak for a moment, almost overwhelmed by his words. Nobody had looked after her since her parents had died. She was so used to looking out for herself that she no longer expected it in anyone else. But somehow, somehow this felt right. She had a friend, a true friend. She raised her eyes to his again.
"Thank you," she said, and while she still had the courage, she plunged onwards to ask, "Was it you who put my lamp out last night?"
The Prince smiled, again remembering the scene that had greeted him when he looked in on his warrior the previous night. "It was. You were so fast asleep that I did not think you would need it again, and there was no point in leaving it burning all night."
She smiled, trying to cover up the rush of emotion that she felt sure was shining clearly from her face. "Thanks; that's been bothering me all day. I'm - I'm glad it was you, and not somebody I didn't know."
The Prince squeezed her hand reassuringly. "You will come to know everyone here, I'm sure. You'll be spending enough time around them, after all. And I promise I'll come and see you every day."
"Every day?" The warrior could not make her voice anything but hopeful.
"Every day. Until you're sick of the sight of me, at least."
"Somehow, I can't see that happening." She smiled warmly up at him, and in that moment their friendship was sealed.
