As they always did, the fever passed from the Lord of Imladris' body but
this particular one left him weakened and the color didn't return to his
face.
"I wish I could join you in the gardens, it's such a beautiful day out." Celebrian shook her head against his chest. She was in his arms, smiling, happy that her beloved had survived another attack. But in the back of her mind, the part that was as her husband's was, she windered just how many more he would…could survive.
"It is, but that doesn't matter, I am just as happy wherever, so long as you are there." Elrond held her closely but even he could feel how weak his limbs had become.
"I am sorry, I should not have disobeyed the order to abstain from strenuous activity." Celebrian kissed his cheek as she rose from their bed.
"Matters not."
When Celebrian left their room and started down the hallway, she noticed her son looking out over the land from a window.
"Elladan?" He didn't move nor did he acknowledge her with a word. Celebrian felt something similar to anger emanating from him, surprisingly enough, towards her. She called his name once more ere he placed his hands on the window sill and answered.
"What is truly happening to father?"
"He fell to-."
"A fever, I am angered to think that my own mother lies so readily to me whilst everyone else does as well." Celebrian was caught off by the sharpness of his tone.
"What do you speak of?" She asked of him, laying a hand upon his shoulder but Elladan shrugged it off as he spun about to face her.
"You know what I speak of! How long have you known? Were just going to allow us to go through the darkness as father slipped from us?" Celebrian shut her eyes and lowered her head ere she looked back up and continued.
"Elladan, this was not meant to harm you, we were trying to protect you-."
"I do not think you were attempting to put forth a falsehood but you had no right to deny us this knowledge." His cold tone cut through her. Rarely was it that anyone spoke to her in such a manner but Elladan had never even raised his voice to her.
"I didn't want you to worry-."
"No, of course not, my father is dying, why should I worry?" He ended with a choked voice as he fled her presence. Celebrian stood in that hall a long while ere she went to her own study. There she stayed until the moon drew over the sun, pondering, wondering, contemplating and considering. More and more becoming lost.
"Meleth nîn?" Elrond said quietly as he poked his head in the door of her study.
"I am here Elrond." He slid in and shut the door silently before crossing to her.
"What's wrong?" He asked as he noticed the slight irritation in her pensive posture. She looked up, quickly replacing the worried, strained look with a smile, something she had picked up from Mithrandir.
"Nothing…you should not be out of bed." Elrond looked down at himself sheepishly.
"Probably not…but…Does my Lady wish to join me for supper?" Celebrian took the hand he offered her and they walked from her study without words much as they shared their supper. Celebrian still could not shake her sons words or the feeling they stirred. The uncertainty followed her even as she fell asleep in Elrond's arms.
She awoke the next morn to see that Elrond had left her side earlier. She rose and dressed quickly, wanting to find him as quickly as possible.
"You wish to journey somewhere?" Glorfindel watched his Lord, still pale and slightly weak looking, look over maps of Middle-Earth despite the fact that he knew every map off by heart.
"Yes, I need to leave Imladris for a while, journey to see Círdan once more perhaps. From there, possibly go to Forlindon and walk upon it's shore again…maybe go to Harlindon and do much the same." Glorfindel was not aloof about the traveling as his Lord seemed to be.
"It seems to me that you take theses travels as a mortal man about to die does so with his home." Elrond stopped looking over the maps for a moment and turned slowly to Glorfindel.
"I…Do not wish to leave without once more visiting the land where…Ereinion walked…look upon his grave once more." Glorfindel drew his eyes from Elrond's and to the ground.
"Are you saying what I think you are?" Elrond's face fell to one of sadness.
"I wanted to hold on to this world for as long as I could. See my children marry, see my friends marry…," Glorfindel let his head sink lower, not seeing anything but pain in his words. "I wished to do so much, to stay and keep those I love from the grips of the Shadow…But I'm falling, brûn meldir, It's becoming harder to wake in the morning, harder to keep my head up in the day, harder to see the colors in Echuir." Glorfindel looked up at him with a deep sadness in his eyes.
Brûn meldir-Old friend
Echuir-Spring
"I wish I could join you in the gardens, it's such a beautiful day out." Celebrian shook her head against his chest. She was in his arms, smiling, happy that her beloved had survived another attack. But in the back of her mind, the part that was as her husband's was, she windered just how many more he would…could survive.
"It is, but that doesn't matter, I am just as happy wherever, so long as you are there." Elrond held her closely but even he could feel how weak his limbs had become.
"I am sorry, I should not have disobeyed the order to abstain from strenuous activity." Celebrian kissed his cheek as she rose from their bed.
"Matters not."
When Celebrian left their room and started down the hallway, she noticed her son looking out over the land from a window.
"Elladan?" He didn't move nor did he acknowledge her with a word. Celebrian felt something similar to anger emanating from him, surprisingly enough, towards her. She called his name once more ere he placed his hands on the window sill and answered.
"What is truly happening to father?"
"He fell to-."
"A fever, I am angered to think that my own mother lies so readily to me whilst everyone else does as well." Celebrian was caught off by the sharpness of his tone.
"What do you speak of?" She asked of him, laying a hand upon his shoulder but Elladan shrugged it off as he spun about to face her.
"You know what I speak of! How long have you known? Were just going to allow us to go through the darkness as father slipped from us?" Celebrian shut her eyes and lowered her head ere she looked back up and continued.
"Elladan, this was not meant to harm you, we were trying to protect you-."
"I do not think you were attempting to put forth a falsehood but you had no right to deny us this knowledge." His cold tone cut through her. Rarely was it that anyone spoke to her in such a manner but Elladan had never even raised his voice to her.
"I didn't want you to worry-."
"No, of course not, my father is dying, why should I worry?" He ended with a choked voice as he fled her presence. Celebrian stood in that hall a long while ere she went to her own study. There she stayed until the moon drew over the sun, pondering, wondering, contemplating and considering. More and more becoming lost.
"Meleth nîn?" Elrond said quietly as he poked his head in the door of her study.
"I am here Elrond." He slid in and shut the door silently before crossing to her.
"What's wrong?" He asked as he noticed the slight irritation in her pensive posture. She looked up, quickly replacing the worried, strained look with a smile, something she had picked up from Mithrandir.
"Nothing…you should not be out of bed." Elrond looked down at himself sheepishly.
"Probably not…but…Does my Lady wish to join me for supper?" Celebrian took the hand he offered her and they walked from her study without words much as they shared their supper. Celebrian still could not shake her sons words or the feeling they stirred. The uncertainty followed her even as she fell asleep in Elrond's arms.
She awoke the next morn to see that Elrond had left her side earlier. She rose and dressed quickly, wanting to find him as quickly as possible.
"You wish to journey somewhere?" Glorfindel watched his Lord, still pale and slightly weak looking, look over maps of Middle-Earth despite the fact that he knew every map off by heart.
"Yes, I need to leave Imladris for a while, journey to see Círdan once more perhaps. From there, possibly go to Forlindon and walk upon it's shore again…maybe go to Harlindon and do much the same." Glorfindel was not aloof about the traveling as his Lord seemed to be.
"It seems to me that you take theses travels as a mortal man about to die does so with his home." Elrond stopped looking over the maps for a moment and turned slowly to Glorfindel.
"I…Do not wish to leave without once more visiting the land where…Ereinion walked…look upon his grave once more." Glorfindel drew his eyes from Elrond's and to the ground.
"Are you saying what I think you are?" Elrond's face fell to one of sadness.
"I wanted to hold on to this world for as long as I could. See my children marry, see my friends marry…," Glorfindel let his head sink lower, not seeing anything but pain in his words. "I wished to do so much, to stay and keep those I love from the grips of the Shadow…But I'm falling, brûn meldir, It's becoming harder to wake in the morning, harder to keep my head up in the day, harder to see the colors in Echuir." Glorfindel looked up at him with a deep sadness in his eyes.
Brûn meldir-Old friend
Echuir-Spring