Disclaimer: I do not own Lord of the Rings.
Warnings: Angst, torture
Mindless Babble:
Legolas stared at his friend in shock. Aragorn's eyes were still clouded and they stared off in into nothingness. Legolas reached out and gently took the Ranger's chin into his hand. To his surprise, the man screamed in fear and pulled away. The exertion was too much so soon after waking, and Aragorn fell back into unconsciousness
"Aragorn!"
"Estel!" The twins yelled, leaping forward as their father checked the human for life. After a few moments, Elrond sat on the edge of the bed and sighed.
"He is merely asleep."
The tension in the room dissipated some. The twins dropped into the chairs they had occupied that first night, both breathing sighs of relief. Elrond looked at the elf that sat across from him on the bed. Legolas clutched the man's hand like a lifeline. The elder elf saw the damp cheeks; the younger had been weeping.
"Do not worry, Legolas. He will recover," Elrond said as he reached over to place his hand over the others.
"Yes, of…of course he will. He is Estel."
Later that afternoon, Aragorn awoke again. He sensed a presence near him and reached out towards it. His fingers came in contact with an arm and felt his way down to the hand.
"Welcome back, Strider."
"Legolas? You live?" Aragorn smiled in relief, ignoring the pain as his lip split open again.
"Yes, as do you," the elf replied, quietly.
"How long …have you been sitting there?"
Aragorn could almost hear the elf's smile. "Long enough, mellon-nin."
"Where are we?"
"We are home."
"In Mirkwood?" Aragorn once again fought to sit up. This time Legolas helped him to lean against the headboard trying to ignore the heat that radiated from the man's body. He waited for the other to catch his breath, dabbing at the blood that had started to flow from the man's lip, before he replied.
"Of course not. We are in Rivendell."
Aragorn raised his head to cast his unseeing eyes on where he thought the elf was. He was surprisingly accurate. "What? This cannot be!"
"What? Why not?" Legolas could see the fear and panic that clouded his friend's face and it only confused him even more.
"Because … I have been banished from Rivendell."
"By whose order?" Legolas asked, fearing he already knew the answer.
"Ad… Lord Elrond's."
The stars were just starting to appear when Legolas descended the stairs. He found the elf he was looking for in the library. Elrond was staring at the painting of the defeat of Sauron. It did not look like he had slept once in the past five days.
"My lord, I need to speak to you," said Legolas, scarcely keeping his anger in check.
"You have just learned of why my heart is so heavy."
"You banished your own son!" The younger elf could not understand how a father could do that to his own son.
Elrond sighed. "They were words spoken in anger and frustration. Estel and I had been arguing more in the months leading up to his departure. The last time I spoke to him, I let my fury speak for me. I told him to leave and never come back. If only I could take those shameful words back."
"He is afraid of you now. He fears your wrath." There was no malice in the young elf's voice, only sorrow.
Elrond nodded sadly. "I had hoped otherwise, but it is too late." He turned to Legolas. "Will you help me to repair the damage my thoughtlessness has rendered?"
"I will try, for Aragorn's sake."
Elladan walked into the room carrying a tray that held a mug of warm broth, a bit of bread and some water. He had just left to gather some food and was happy to return to find his brother awake and struggling to sit up. He set the tray on the nightstand and sitting down on the bed, helped the human lean against the headboard. The man had fallen asleep again shortly after talking to Legolas and had been that way through the night. The morning light was just beginning to peak over the windowsill.
"How are you feeling this morning, little brother?"
"Tired, sick and sore. And still blind. How are you, Elladan?"
The elf was a bit surprised that Estel could tell the difference between him and his brother. "How did you know it was me and not Elrohir?"
"You walk differently."
Elladan smiled proudly at his brother. "You at least have the hearing of an elf."
The words slipped from the human's mouth before he could stop them. "No, you just walk like … a dwarf."
"Ha ha. Very funny." Though the words were spoken with mock anger, Elladan was thrilled to hear his brother tease even if the voice was dry and raspy. For the last couple of weeks, he had feared that he would never again hear the sharp-witted tongue that he loved so much. "Just you wait, Estel…"
"My name is Aragorn."
Elladan stared at his brother. "But you have always allowed us to call you 'Estel'. Why…?"
"Because hope is dead."
Legolas had just left his own room and was walking towards Aragorn's room when he ran into Elladan, literally.
"Oh! I am sorry, Legolas. My mind was wandering."
"What troubles you, my friend?" Legolas asked, peering into the other's face and seeing a dark shadow there.
"Estel… Aragorn. He told me not to call him by his elven name anymore." Elladan looked down at the floor. "He said 'hope was dead.'"
The eyes of the blond elf opened wide in surprise. He knew Elrond had not told his sons about the last argument that had sent Aragorn on his way but that was not what disturbed him. He had not realized the depth of the emotional scarring that the distance had left on the man. He put a hand on the other elf's shoulder and said, "I will talk to him."
Elladan nodded, a tear running down his cheek. "I left some food in there for him, but he would not touch it. And he needs his wounds tended to. I would have done it but…"
"I understand." Legolas said. "And I will make him understand."
The feelings that weighed so heavily in Legolas' heart disappeared briefly as he walked into the human's room. He found Aragorn on the floor next to his bed, hopelessly tangled in the covers. The elf rushed to his friend's side and helped to untangle him, all the while trying to keep from laughing. He gently lifted the man back onto the bed, shocked at how little he weighed, and covered him with the blankets.
"What were you thinking, mellon-nin?"
"I just wanted to breathe fresh air," replied Aragorn, shifting to a more comfortable position on his side, his back towards his friend. His breathing was labored and the words were spoken between gasps for air.
"That is not the only reason, is it?" Legolas peered down at the man, noticing that Aragorn did not even try to face the elf. "You mean to leave."
"I am not welcome… in this house anymore," came the muffled reply, as the man snuggled further under the blankets, wishing to burrow away from this place.
"Is that why you said those hurtful words to your brother?"
Aragorn looked over his shoulder, his useless eyes seeming to focus on a point somewhere over Legolas' shoulder. "It will be easier on him… when the time comes."
"Then where will you go?"
"I was hoping you would help… me get to Mirkwood."
"Mirkwood?"
"There is no place for me with men… and I cannot go to Lothlorien for …Arwen is there." The last was spoken in a whisper.
"And did Elrond forbid you to be with her as well?"
"Yes… but I agree with him now. She… should stay with her people and… not with a weak human that will die."
Legolas sighed in frustration. Aragorn must have spent the last months very much alone, thinking about what was said and done. A thought sprang to the elf's mind.
"You sent the message to your brothers to leave them. Forever." Horror crossed the fair-featured face. "You did not mean to come back for you would be dead!"
"That was the plan." Aragorn again turned away from his best friend. "Then I was captured… and I never got the chance to say… 'goodbye'."
"That was the only reason you fought?"
Aragorn nodded, closing his useless eyes. "I must leave, Legolas… Will you help me?"
"I am sorry, Estel. I can not do that." He saw the pain of betrayal and hurt in his friends face and felt a tear trickle down his own cheek. He heard movement by the door and knew that Lord Elrond was listening.
"That is not… my name anymore," the man whispered.
"Why do you say that?" Legolas cried, his concern causing him to nearly shout.
"The same reason I need to leave… Elrond does not want me here…. He no longer cares for this weak… human."
Elrond chose that moment to enter the room. He made no noise that Aragorn could hear. He could see the man drowning in despair and wondered, briefly, if there was any hope for his son.
"If he does not care, then why did he shed so many tears when your brothers and I brought you here?"
Aragorn slowly turned his head back towards the younger elf. "Ada cried?"
Legolas smiled when he heard the human call the elf his father again. "As did we all when we saw the wounds inflicted upon you." He paused for a moment and glanced at the elven lord. Elrond shook his head and motioned for Legolas to continue.
"He loves you, Estel. He never wanted you to disappear from his life, contrary to his words. He was angry…"
"And my words were thoughtless; they have hurt many," Elrond interrupted, as he walked towards the bed. He did not miss the way his son cringed at his voice. "You most of all."
Legolas stood to leave, but found his hand trapped by another. He looked down at the death grip Aragorn had on him and gazed at Elrond. The elf lord's features held so much pain and sorrow that Legolas thought his own heart would break.
"It is well, Strider. I will be just outside the door."
Aragorn reluctantly let go. He cast his blind eyes back to the far wall, knowing his adopted father stood at the foot of the bed. He heard the door close and it seemed as if the sound was the closing of an iron gate locking him in a prison.
"You injuries need to be tended to. Will you allow me to do this?"
Aragorn simply nodded. Elrond walk over and sat on the edge of the bed. He pulled the blankets down and helped the man sit up. He began to gently unwrap the bandages that covered most of his upper body. As he did, Elrond noticed the unnatural heat radiating from the man's body. The elf tried to touch his son's forehead but the human flinched away.
"How do you feel, Est… Aragorn?" Elrond asked, trying to keep the pain from his voice.
"Cold, tired," was the flat reply. "And dizzy."
"I was afraid of that. You seem to have a fever that I fear may have come from an infected wound."
Nothing more was said as Elrond removed the old bandages and cleaned the wounds. He found the tainted injury and treated it with extra care. Aragorn did not move the whole time and only hissed in pain when Elrond cleaned the infected cut. He had finished rewrapping the man's torso and was caring for his wrists, when Aragorn spoke.
"Will I ever see again?" he asked softly. He swayed slightly and Elrond pulled him to his chest and let the man lean against him until he was done wrapping the bandages.
"I …I do not know." Elrond was surprised to feel arms encircle his waist, holding him in a weak embrace.
"Ada…" A sob and Elrond's heart broke. He wrapped his arms around his youngest son, holding him.
"I swear to you, Estel, if there is a way, I will find it."
