Disclaimer: This story was written for enjoyment only. I do not own any of Tolkien's characters.
Author's Note: I apologize for the delay in posting this current chapter. I also must apologize since it is not the final chapter as I hoped it would be. The month of August was a very busy one for me. I worked six day and sometimes seven day weeks. I did not find the time nor the energy to write more of my story with the time I did find available to me, and I kind of lost focus of it. I had written the second part of this chapter in early August, but I was displeased with its outcome even after many attempts at editing it. It just did not feel right to me, so I decided to shelve my efforts and give myself some distance away from the story. Unfortunately this time coincided with my increased work schedule. I was also in a quandary with how to handle a certain aspect of the final chapter when I do get a chance to write it. I tend to think about a chapter for some time before I write it down. I believe today I've come up with a suitable solution to my problem. I'm sorry this is not the conclusion to the story, which many of you hoped for. I will say in advance that it does not contain an Aragorn and Legolas' reunion. That is still yet to come. I was going to hold off posting this bit until I had it all finished, but that might be some time yet, and the chapter would have been very lengthy making it even rougher for me to edit. So, I felt Aragorn deserved a chapter of his own, since he has spent so much of this story either unconscious or sleeping. :)
Thank you all for your continued enthusiasm and support of my story!:) All of your gracious comments are greatly appreciated. I love hearing your thoughts, so please feel free to share them with me. It is amazing how some of our ideas are the so similar and how others differ. This story could have gone in so many different directions. To me this is the challenge, inspiration, and enjoyment of writing fan fiction especially the pass along variety that I am involved with on another site. It is always fun to imagine the many possible outcomes a story might take, and I have thought about each suggestion that has come my way regarding this story, though I have tended to stay true to my original vision. I'm sorry this chapter is so long in coming, but my work schedule has eased somewhat. Hopefully the next one, the final conclusion I hope, won't be so long of a wait. Thank you all, once again! :) Sue a.k.a. Quickbeam
Relesen Chapter 20- Part 1
Closing the door quietly behind him, Elrond made his way out into the now darkened corridor of his realm. The hour was late, just surpassing the harkening of a new day. With great reservation the elf lord was departing Aragorn's company. The preceding hours they had spent together had been marked with deep conversation, most of which had been carried out in the Eldar's own voice as he went about explaining to his son all that he knew about the tragic accident that had debilitated him, and the subsequent consequences it served to bring about. Aragorn had made little comment during this time spent together remaining reticent, and when the elf lord was at a loss for any further words with which to speak, his son seemed content to allow the long periods of silence that followed until Elrond's growing uneasiness propelled him toward initiating an attempt at conversation once again. For though the Man could be perceived as accepting all that Elrond had been communicating to him, his eyes could not adequately school the myriad of emotions that played out upon his soul. For how could Aragorn untroubledly reconcile with all that had taken place to both his body and spirit? It was because of this, his son's relative ease in acceptance and his following uncanny silence, that the elf lord chose to linger on further within his son's chamber long past the hour of comfortableness.
He would have welcomed any type of reaction from Aragorn, anger, frustration, grief, disbelief, dismay, but the Man chose to offer up none of these feelings to him. Aragorn's lack of emotional response worried Elrond all the more. His sustained silence proved almost stifling. Surely his son must feel something, even if he chose not to share it? For how could one survive such trauma without any trace of emotional repercussion? With this hesitancy, the elf lord was loathe to leave his son's side should some delayed backlash surface and overwhelm him. If Aragorn, at present, had been physically stronger, then perhaps Elrond would have been less reluctant to part from his company, and allow the Man more distance with which to sort out his feelings, but recurring concern played heavily upon the elf lord and prompted him to remain.
It grieved Elrond as he did so that Aragorn was beyond the years in which he felt comfortable with unburdening his feelings to him. He was no longer the little boy, who would so readily seek out the solace of his enfolding arms and comfort of his spoken words. But to imagine that such grievous wounds, from which he now suffered from, could be so easily remedied was imprudent. To discover that it was not only by the hand of his closest friend that he had sustained such life threatening injury, but that Legolas also now chose to maintain a distance from him was insufferable. How could Aragorn capitulate to such a request without any statement of feeling? Surely his son could not keep up with this pretense? For though Elrond truly believed that Legolas did not deliberately plan to inflict any additional hurt upon his friend, the Silvan elf's actions would only further promote the ill that Aragorn now suffered with.
He had tried to make Legolas see this earlier in his chamber, but perhaps his subsequent anger and frustration had hampered his efforts at trying relay this point to the younger elf. Dejectedly Elrond acknowledged he was limited in what he could achieve. He could not force what he desired for all to happen. He could only impart to them the wisdom of his experience and the value that he perceived, but ultimately the choice lay with those immediately involved, Legolas and now Aragorn. The decision was theirs alone to make, and he could only pray that the right course of action would come to them both. For now that determination seemed to solely rest with Legolas, and with the precarious state of the fair-haired archer's present emotions, he perceived little chance toward an outcome that would favor all those involved.
This is what had impelled him to remain in Aragorn's chamber long into the night. Elrond was consumed with the overwhelming desire to shelter his son from any further harm, whether it be physical or emotional in nature. It was only after many long hours spent in withdrawn silence, and Aragorn's subsequent agreement to take more of the pain relieving elixir that would assure him some rest this grievous night along his own mounting struggle against looming fatigue that Elrond finally agreed to quit his son's room.
'But this was no firm solution.' The elf lord chided himself. 'For he could not go about delaying the hurt Aragorn would ultimately feel from Legolas' betrayal by drugging his son. No, his actions tonight, though well meaning, were only preemptive. His concern for his son's frail state had prompted him to behave as he did, but eventually Aragorn would have to come to terms with all that had happened to him, and he could only stand by while the Man did so and offer comfort and guidance if Aragorn should seek it from him.
Drawing a hand upward toward the wooden frame of the door now shut beside him, the elf lord allowed his slender fingers to reluctantly trace the intricacies of its decor, while his mind played over his parting words to Aragorn. "Rest well, my son! For though all may seem bleak now when cloaked by the shadow of darkness, we must hope that the promise of a new dawn will shed light upon our troubles and help guide us toward finding the solutions we hope to obtain."
So inadequate his parting assurances now seemed, for his son had endured so much already. With a heavy heart, Elrond moved off toward his chamber, though any hope of finding some peaceful rest this night had been shattered.
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A cloak of darkness suffused Aragorn's chamber. Only a subtle hint of light, cast off from the crescent moon out of doors, now filtered in through a gap in the draperies to prevent the room from being thrown into further shadow. The accompanying quiet of night filled the spaces surrounding him attempting to lull the Man toward much needed rest, but the Dunadan fought against the pull of its lure and the effects of the pain draught his father had administered to him before leaving. As testament to the urgent restlessness that had overtaken him, Aragorn's bedcovers now lay in a tangled heap about his feet.
"Legolas, why?" Aragorn sighed aloud. Even with the news that Elrond had conveyed to him earlier, Aragorn felt cut to the quick by his friend's obvious attempt to dissociate himself from him. 'It makes no sense . . . ' The man mulled. 'His overwhelming desire for distance . . . ' "Legolas, you must know that I do not hold you in blame? ..." Aragorn spoke out roughly into the dismal quiet now surrounding him. "Why then my friend do you choose to continue shunning my presence?"
The grim uneasiness that had taken hold of Aragorn would not abate, and it only grew stronger in its claim joining forces now with the Human's drugged senses. This building distraction gave rise to baseless doubts that only festered further as the Man's mind struggled with the haziness attempting to gain control over the corners of his mind, while he diligently tried to pour over the facts of both the past and the present. "This is not you, my friend. Surely, you must know this? Regardless of all that took place in the wilderness, you will always hold a place within my heart. How can you doubt this? I would have died had it not been for your life saving measures. It was your voice alone that held me to this life. Do you not realize this? Do not allow grief or despair to blind you to these facts and work to keep you from me, Legolas! If it be the burden of responsibility that holds you back still, then I should bear a share of its blame. I let myself become distracted. When the blow from the orc scimitar felled me, I allowed the accompanying pain to cloud my judgment. Knowing that I fought alongside another, I should have considered the consequences of my perilous actions before returning to the battle especially when numerous orcs were dropping about me." Aragorn concluded as the burden of his troublesome thoughts turned even further toward himself.
"Is it thus, which keeps you away, my friend? My vulnerabilities? For had you fought along side either Elladan or Elrohir or any other Elf, you would not have found yourself beset by these same set of troubles that were so grievously thrust upon you with my presence! You were slow to warm toward me from the very start, Legolas, because of our differences. Is it that, which now holds you back once again?"
"But this is not you, Legolas . . ." Aragorn muttered roughly. " Or at least the friend I thought I had come to know!"
Unable to remain quiescent any longer, Aragorn pushed his body forward, while he swung his legs toward the side of the cot, wincing at the accompanying pain his actions brought about. "I cannot sit idly by, . . . " The Man gritted. "Not while you so lightly toss our friendship aside. It is dear to me, even if it has not proven to be thus for you! No, elf! Before this night is out, you will have to face me and speak the truths you have chosen to keep concealed!"
Resting his palms against the soft tick beneath him, Aragorn attempted to rise up from the narrow bed he rested upon. He found his legs beneath him as wobbly as those of a newborn foal's, compelling him to reach forward toward a nearby table to gain stability. The weakness from his prolonged infirmity and the effects of the pain tonic he had taken minutes prior now worked towards encumbering him. He waited for his head to clear before he tentatively set about placing a foot forward as if to test the waters before venturing any further from the surety that the cot and table now provided him. This slight action proved grievous to him as he felt the protesting pull of his recovering wounds. Drawing an arm around his middle to cushion against the additional threat of pain, he left his other free to steady himself further should the event prove necessary. Undertaking yet another small step, he raised wary, gray eyes to consider the distance still left to him and gritting his teeth once again, he pressed onward.
It was long minutes later before he reached Legolas' far suite. His body quaked with both pain and exhaustion from his risky endeavor. It was by the sheer strength of his will alone that he still remained upright upon his feet. Raising a shaky hand forward, he brushed aside sweat dampened hair that now clung to his face as he tried to slow his ragged breathing. After regaining some semblance of composure, he moved forward to rap lightly against the door before him. Not wanting to alert the remaining household to his covert actions, he did not wait for the Silvan elf to answer, but proceeded hastily forward using what diminishing strength he had left to push open this one final barrier that remained in his pathway.
Entering the darkened chamber, he allowed his eyes time to adjust to its dimness before his gaze swept through the area now surrounding him. His search came up empty. The room was vacant save for the furniture about him. It bore no evidence that any still laid claim to its amenities.
" No! This cannot be!" Aragorn stammered, as he looked on in shocked disbelief, while mounting frustration grew upon his haggard features. "Father said you would not leave before the morn! Where are you then, Legolas? " He exclaimed, while staggering forward toward a low laying cabinet suddenly coveting its stability as his recovering strength finally began to give way. Reaching his goal, he once again tried to steady the uneven breaths his strenuous actions had wrought upon his weakened flesh, while his heart raced rapidly beneath his battered rib cage in protest to his body's opposition against the drugs that sought to subdue him. Sweat now beaded upon his forehead and beneath the weight of his long hair laying upon the back of his neck, trickling down in rivulets to dampen the tunic beneath it causing Aragorn to shiver in reaction. Pain and frustration clouded his gray eyes as his gaze once more swept through his friend's suite, while he continued to cling to the cabinet beside him for support.
'Had Legolas departed from Rivendell already? How could the elf have left so willingly? Was the distance Legolas craved so crucial that he could not even wait till morning to take his leave from him?' Aragorn's head dropped forward to join his now bowed shoulders, while his hard fought for resolve began to dissipate. He desperately sought to maintain some thread of control over his precarious emotions, though he felt the sharp sting of tears threatening to betray him, and he raised a hand upward to halt their progression as he concluded resignedly that his efforts to confront the elf had been in vain. Legolas was no longer here! He had failed to put a stop to his intentions!
Sorely acknowledging this sorry fact, Aragorn shakily made to quit the room surrounding him. He slid his hand along the polished surface now beneath it, using its solidness to aid his now failing strength. He could not remain in Legolas' chamber any further. The starkness of its interior seemed to call out and mock him, but as his knuckles whitened from their exertion to help propel his faltering gait forward toward the doorway, his eyes were drawn like a magnet toward the far corner of the chamber. The flame of hope he thought extinguished only moments earlier was reignited within him again. Swallowing back both pain and exhaustion, he slowly moved forward in claim of this new found chance at promise.