DISCLAIMER: Lord of the Rings, and its characters, sadly, do not belong to me. They are the property of JRR Tolkien, et al. No money is gained from the writing of this story. Its sole purpose is for the enjoyment of myself and all who read it.
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Destinies Entwined
Chapter Eleven
Part One
For two days Elendil keeps her silent vigil at Elladan's bedside. She has had no sleep and little to eat and her uncle is beginning to get extremely concerned. Several times he has tried to get her to take a rest, but each time she has refused, saying it's her fault the poison was allowed to stay in Elladan's system for so long. No matter how much anyone tries to tell her different, Elendil continues to blame herself.
Both Legolas and Elrohir had awakened the day before, and although they were still hurting from the beatings they had received, they were healing. Later that evening, Legolas was moved from the healing hall to his own chambers but Elrohir refused to be moved to guest quarters until he knew that his twin was going to be all right. He had been informed that Elladan had been treated for poison and had not awakened yet, and Elrohir himself was growing concerned. The bright spots in his day were the numerous times that Meoi came to visit him.
Three days after the poison was purged from Elladan's system, Elendil senses a shift in his breathing. Exhausted as she is, she still responds instantly and is relieved to see Elladan's eyelids flickering. Though elves usually sleep with their eyes open, his had closed sometime during that first night when the poison was running rampant in his blood. Watching closely, she smiles softly as she sees his eyes opening. Kneeling beside him, she sends a prayer of thanks to Illuvitar for shining on them at last.
"Thank
the Valar you're awake," Elendil hears behind her. Turning, she
sees Elrohir
approaching. Moving back, she allows him access to
his brother, relief apparent in his grey eyes.
Moving back even further as Meoi, Strider, Legolas and the healers enter, Elendil is once again consumed with intense guilt. As the activity increases around the Rivendell elf, she quietly slips out the door, two sets of eyes watching her leave.
Leaving the healing hall, Elendil quickly escapes the oppressiveness of the palace for the fresh air and sunshine. Feeling the need to escape for a while, she walks swiftly through the courtyard to the open gates. Slipping outside the barrier that is the walls around the elven city, she allows herself to be enveloped in the shadows of the forest. From the time she was a small elfling, there was one enormous tree outside the gates that was like a haven for her. Her and Meoi both, really.
After climbing into the welcoming branches, she pulls her knees into her chest and allows her guilt free reign. She knows just how close Elladan had come to dying that night, and cannot help but feel that it is all her fault. Leaning her head back against the trunk of the tree, she hears it whispering to her in a soothing, comforting voice. Pouring her sorrow, grief and guilt out in her thoughts, she falls asleep, knowing she is safe in the tree's boughs.
Watching Elendil leave the healing hall, Meoi notes that Elladan sees her go as well. She is still angry with her friend even though it is something that happened several days ago. Staying near Elrohir, who is still a little weak from the ordeal, just in case she is needed, she sees the concern in Elladan's eyes. Ignoring it for the moment, she is thankful that he is finally awake.
After the healers have assured Elrohir that his brother is resting and is going to be fine, he allows Meoi to help him back to his bed. He lies down and quickly falls into another healing sleep. Sitting there watching them sleep, Meoi smiles at how much alike they really are. Neither one would rest if the other wasn't, and their concern for each other is heart warming.
Not long after Elladan and Elrohir drift off to sleep, a soft, soothing melody is heard coming from the door. As her eyes grow heavy with sleep, Meoi smiles softly, allowing the elven songs to lull her to sleep.
Several hours later, Meoi awakens to the sounds of grunts and groans. Looking from her seat beside Elrohir, she sees Elladan struggling to rise from the bed. Rushing over to him, she places a restraining hand on his shoulder. "Where do you think you're going?" she teases, noticing that Elendil is surprisingly absent from the hall.
"To find Elendil, since no one else seems to be too concerned about her," he says weakly.
"What do you...?" she starts, but doesn't finish. She realizes her friend hasn't been there since she slipped out earlier after Elladan had awakened. Groaning, she is filled with great concern for her friend. Seeing the fear in his eyes, she tries to ease his worry. "Don't worry 'Dan. I'm sure she's fine. But I'll go and find her for you. You need to rest. You're still very weak from the poison."
"Please do Meoi. I didn't like the look in her eyes when she left," he says really worried about the she-elf.
After Elladan lies back to rest, Meoi quietly leaves the healing hall and searches for her friend. After searching the palace to no avail, she goes outside to look. Remembering the three that had always comforted them when they were younger, Meoi smiles, knowing it is exactly where she will find her friend.
Slipping out of the gates, Meoi sighs as she heads for the massive tree at the south end of the wall. Climbing the tree, she shakes her head at her friend. Elendil is sleeping curled with her knees pulled up to her chest, head lulled back against the trunk of the tree. Looking at her friend, Meoi realizes how foolish she has been acting. Gently shaking her friend awake, she smiles over at her.
"What in arda are you doing here mellon nin? Do you feel so much more comfortable in the trees that you would wish to spend the night in them?" she says, teasing.
As her eyes clear, Elendil looks over at her friend and smiles sheepishly. "I had not intended on falling asleep at all mellon nin," she says, stifling a yawn with her hand.
"Why did you come out here to begin with when 'Dan had just awakened? Didn't you think he would wonder where you were?" Meoi asks, confused by her friend's actions.
"I couldn't stay. Not after what I did... after what I let happen."
"What? Eleni, what are you talking about?"
"The poison... I let it remain in his system and it almost killed him," Elendil says, hanging her head in shame.
"You had nothing to do with
that! How can you blame yourself?" Meoi asks,
not
understanding.
"Because its true. I saw the wounds Meoi. I saw the redness and did nothing about it. I was too concerned with everything else. I almost got him killed!" Elendil says, her guilt deepening with every word.
"No. Eleni. You cannot blame yourself for that. You might have seen the redness, but that does not mean you should have known that 'Dan had been poisoned. Please, nin mellon, come back to the healing hall. Elladan was ready to try to come find you himself, even though he is too weak to get out of the bed, let alone walk. Besides, I for one do not want to have to spend the night in the forest," Meoi adds, laughing.
"Very well, I will come back to the hall. But how am I supposed to face him knowing I could have done something to prevent it?"
Shaking her head at her friend's stubbornness, she remembers when her mother had left Middle Earth for the Undying Lands. She had been just as stubborn and had lost the chance to tell her mother good-bye.
After climbing down from the tree, she waits for Elendil and they return to the healing hall, arm in arm.
Walking into the healing hall, Elendil's heart skips a beat when Elladan's deep grey eyes fall on her. She longs to let herself fall into those deep grey pools and get lost there. She fears his reaction when he learns that she could have prevented much of the suffering that has happened the last few days, but didn't. Going over to his bedside, she sits in the chair and looks into his eyes.
When he had awakened and Elendil wasn't there, Elladan had grown concerned for her. He knew that something must have happened to keep her away, otherwise she would have been there. When she had slipped out of the hall earlier, he had seen such deep sorrow in her eyes it had scared him. He had wanted to go after himself but couldn't. When she walked through the door with Meoi, the sorrow was still there, and something else as well, something akin to fear.
Thinking he has simply mistaken concern for fear, he reaches out and takes her hand in his. Feeling her trembling, he gently tugs on her hand until she is lying beside him on the bed. Folding her in his arms, he holds her to him and soon he feels wetness on his chest from her silent tears.
"What is it? What's wrong melanin?" Elladan whispers to her, not understanding her tears.
"It's my fault 'Dan," she says softly, not looking up.
"What? What is your fault?"
"This. You almost dying. It's my fault," she tells him, still not looking him in the eyes.
"How is any of this your fault melanin? You were not there when Verillian did this. When he poisoned me, Eleni. You are not at fault."
"I might not have been there 'Dan, but I saw the redness and did nothing. You almost died 'Dan all because I wasn't sure you were poisoned."
"You're not at fault Eleni," Elladan says, trying to make her understand.
"But I saw it 'Dan. I knew something wasn't right but I did nothing. So I am at fault," she says, finally looking up at him.
"Silly she-elf. You can not blame yourself for an honest mistake. You were already worried about me, Legolas and 'Ro, so you simply over looked it. That doesn't make you at fault for it melethril nin. So stop blaming yourself, please?" he says, smiling at her. When he gets no response right away, he proceeds to tickle her until there are tears in her eyes.
"Okay, okay. I give up," Elendil says, smiling for the first time in days. As she does, a heavy weight is lifted from her shoulders and she knows that all will be well.
Part Two
It is several more days before Elladan is allowed to leave the healing hall. By the time he does, he has driven all of the healers crazy with his grumbling and complaining. There is a collective sigh of relief once the difficult, stubborn elf is gone and their days can return to a semblance of peace.
After such a harrowing experience, both elven princes of Imladris feel the need to sit back, relax and enjoy life for a change. Surprisingly, they do not let what happened sway them from taking part in several other hunting trips during their stay. Trips that were blissfully uneventful.
Several weeks after Elladan's near death experience, a large group of the elven archers partake in an archery contest. Knowing that both Elladan and Elrohir will be occupied most of the day with the contest, Elendil and Meoi decide to go for a ride on the plains that are but a few hours ride from the palace. The woods are too close in for the horses to really run, and both she-elves have the desire to feel the wind rushing past, blowing their hair out behind them. Less than an hour after the archery contest starts, Elendil and Meoi ride out of the gates, headed for the plains.
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For most of the day, the elven archers are occupied by their archery contest. Arrow after arrow flies into the awaiting targets. The competition is fierce, but friendly. As the lesser archers are weeded out, bets begin being made. As the evening sun begins to set, there are only two archers left.
"Well Strider. It looks like its just between us," Legolas says, grinning at his friend.
"Looks like it," Strider says, grinning as well. "Care to make a small wager as to who's going to win?" he adds, a mischievous gleam in his eyes.
"What did you have in mind?"
"The loser has to care for the winner's weapons for a month," Strider says, confident that he will win.
"You have a deal mellon nin," Legolas says. "Hope you have a lot of elbow grease," he adds, laughing.
After several more rounds, a winner has been determined. As a string of elvish and dwarvish curses trail on the breeze, the archers gathered around erupt into laughter.
"I
tried to warn you Strider," Legolas says, accepting the
congratulatory words of his
companions.
"Yes you did," Strider says, agreeing.
The archers all make their way back to the gates of Mirkwood, laughing and enjoying each others company.
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As they ride out onto the plains, Elendil feels her spirits lifting. The last several weeks had been hard on her and she relishes in the feel of complete freedom. "I really needed this," Elendil says, laughing.
"I think we both did mellon nin," Meoi says, laughing as well. "I am sorry for being so stubborn after I found out that 'Ro was so hurt. It was silly of me," she adds, looking at her friend.
"There's nothing to apologize for nin gwathel. It is all forgotten," Elendil says, using the elvish word for blood kin. They are cousins, and Elendil wants to show that bond with her words.
When Elendil calls her nin gwathel it catches Meoi of guard, but after a brief moment, she smiles at her cousin, and best friend. "Very well. It is forgotten then," she says, a mischievous gleam in her eyes. "I'll race you to the rise," she adds, spurring her horse faster.
Leaning forward, Elendil whispers softly to her horse, Istilrama, who springs forward. Reaching and then passing Meoi's horse, they continue racing to the rise, neither one sensing trouble nearby.
Reaching the rise just ahead of Meoi, Elendil turns and grins at her friend. "HA! I beat you nin gwathel," she says, laughing merrily. "And you had a head start!"
"Yeah, yeah. I just let you win is all," Meoi says, laughing too. Seeing movement out of the corner of her eye, she turns and yells. "Watch out!" Meoi says, seconds before an arrow slams into Elendil's shoulder, knocking her from her horse. Half a second later, Meoi is knocked from her horse as well by an arrow.
"Well, well, well, what have we here?" a familiar voice says, causing Elendil's head to jerk up.
"Noooo," she whispers, face paling.
"Rhyden will be very pleased to learn that I found his prize after all this time. Perhaps he will reward me with your friend," Veertal says, sneering.
"Veertal, their horses got away," another voice says.
"It doesn't matter. Let's go," Veertal says in response.
"But Rhyden..."
"Trust me. He will be much more pleased with what I have for him right now. Now move."
"Yes sir."
"This one rides with me," Veertal says, referring to Elendil. "Meran, take the other one. But keep your hands off. She's mine," he adds, daring anyone to argue.
All this time, Elendil has been struggling to hold on to consciousness. Finally giving in, she allows oblivion to claim her, hoping that the return of their horses, riderless, will alert her uncleto her's and Meoi's predicament.
TBC...
