A/N: Thanks for all the reviews I got! //\\Forlorn//\\: Yea.. I tend to do
that and then not notice it when I go through and proofread it 0.0 Thank
you soo much for telling me. //\\Silcawen Uvanimor-dreamingfifi//\\:
Ohhh, I think I'm going to take you up on your offer!
Oh yea- Incase you haven't noticed, I switch between third person POV and
Kaurea's POV. Sometimes Kaurea's will come first, and sometimes the third
person will. And, later on, I might throw in a little bit of Elrond's POV.
I guess I'll just have to play around with it.
Anyway, here's the next chapter. Enjoy!
I was finally allowed out of bed about a week after my arrival in Rivendell. Everyone there was kind to me, but strangely distant in a way. I was an elf who couldn't even utter a word in her own language, and therefore deemed a bit of an outsider. My rather unusual arrival did not help at all either.
Aragorn was the one who really looked after me. He was one of the few there that could understand the human tongue, and the only one other than Elrond who took the time to talk with me daily and see to it that I was comfortable and taken care of. While Elrond was kind, he was also more of my healer rather than my friend. He lay down some rather strict rules for me- I was to stray from my bed for only short periods of time, and I was to remain in the Halls of Healing.
"Your heart is weaker that it should be and some of your injuries do not heal well. You are elf-kind and should not have problems such as these, yet you do. Something has taken a heavy toll on you." He said to me after he had examined me one day. He looked towards me as if I was to provide the answer to this mystery, but all I could do was shrug.
"I do not know what." I managed to reply, being only somewhat truthful. Fortunately, he never pressed me for answers. His eyes seemed to hold a strange look that reflected patience and I did not know if I should even fear or trust it. Sometimes he would try to ask me about my past, but I casually pushed him away.
One day, I was busy drifting in and out of sleep when I faintly heard the sound of running footsteps outside my door and beyond, accompanied by shouts of excitement. Over the past week or so I had become stronger, and was now able to pull myself out of bed and out of the door. But no matter how hard I tried, I was unable to walk unassisted to the end of the hallway. Aragorn always looked on with worried eyes whenever I tried, but he never attempted to stop me.
'Well...I suppose today will be the day that I try..' I thought to myself as I cautiously sat up and got out of bed. Getting changed into something other than the white frock I had woken up in was out of the question for two main reasons. Firstly, I did not even know how long it would take me. And secondly, I did not have a maid and no one in the house had shown me where to get a change of clothing.
Carefully and ever so slowly, I made my way out of the room and into the bright hallway. My hands clung tightly to the wall, but the tiny steps that I took were still wobbly ones. A few jerks of pain skittered along my side after a few moment of walking. All that I could do was grit my teeth and continue onwards.
The commotion appeared to be coming from the very same courtyard where I had been brought in such a short time ago. It was conveniently not far from my room, and I was thankful for it. The pains began to increase, but I had already begun to take my first steps out into the sun. Nothing was going to hold me back now.
I panted heavily as I leaned back against a magnificent stone column, from which I could get a near perfect view of the hectic event that was probably soon to take place down below. There was a huge crowd of elves gather and shouting elvish to one another, but I naturally could not understand it. I was content to merely watch the commotion from a safe vantage point. Hopefully, neither Aragorn nor Elrond would spot me.
But the point that I was standing at was far from perfect. I was unable to see the two riders on horseback until they were almost at the gates and even then it was still difficult to see them. I craned my neck as hard as I could and stood on my tip-toes, but it didn't help much.
I was able to see that the two riders were identical in appearance and dress. They both had long black hair that was very similar to the Lord Elrond's and they both wore brown riding outfits. This puzzled me greatly. I had never seen messengers like these before.
Suddenly, Aragorn burst through the crowd of elves and dashed over to the twins, a huge smile upon his friendly face. I could hear them only faintly as quiet phrases of elvish were exchanged and the horse's reins tossed to a nearby elf.
A gasp built in my throat as I saw the crowds disperse and the trio began to head right up the stairs near where I stood. As quick as I could, I began to walk back down the hallway towards my room as the chorus of voices came closer and closer to me.
My breath came ragged and fast as I clung onto the walls, grappled for anything that might help me along and steady me from the waves of dizziness that threatened to engulf me. My heart pounded faster than ever as I felt my eyes roll back in my head and my weary body sink to the floor in exhaustion.
///\\\
Aragorn, Elrohir and Elladan walked steadily down the hallway, every footstep echoing softly off the beautiful stone walls. Aragorn managed to fill them in on most everything that they had missed while they were away in Lorien, spare the matter of Kaurea and her odd arrival. He had figured that he would tell them when the time was right and not trouble them with his worries.
But just as they turned the corner, Aragorn spotted Kaurea sprawled across the floor and apparently unconscious. It was quite obvious she had not heeded Elrond's advice and had gone out to see what all the fuss was about. Quickly, Aragorn raced to her side with Elrohir and Elladan close behind him.
"Kaurea." Aragorn whispered as his well-trained fingers probed the fallen form carefully before scooping her into his arms with very little effort. Elrohir and Elladan simply looked quizzically at the elf girl, silent for the time being. Aragorn nodded at them, a look of urgency reflected in his eyes.
"Go fetch Ada." Aragorn said. This could all be explained later. Perhaps his twin brothers would have some valuable input on what they would do with the girl once she had healed, though if she kept up with her antics it was not likely she would ever recover. Once they had finished staring, the twins sprinted off down the halls towards Elrond's study.
Aragorn was left with the task of carrying the feather-light Kaurea back to her room, a job that was easily completed. She did not stir until he lay her down in her bed, when a shiver and a moan coursed through her already weak body. Aragorn brushed the back of his hand against her forehead. It came away drenched in sweat.
Quickly, he crossed the room and began to brew a tea of herbs, hoping that his father would arrive soon. Until he did, it was up to Aragorn to get the girl's fever down. Brewing the tea was, of course, the easy part. But Aragorn correctly predicted that getting Kaurea to drink it would be far from simple.
"Here, telella. Drink this." He coaxed, leaning her up in the bed. She coughed once before opening her tired eyes just a little. Aragorn soothingly rubbed her on the back and stroked her hair, all the while urging her to just take a little sip of the tea. Her pretty eyes seemed to look right through him and suddenly a burst of fear shot through them.
"No! I won't! Get away from me, don't touch me, please! I'll be good, I swear it!" She shrieked, her voice coming out unnaturally high. Her whole body jerked backwards and away from Aragorn, almost spilling the tea all over the bedcovers.
"Please don't take her away! Merheyl, don't leave me!" Tears pooled in her eyes and flowed down faster and faster. Just as Aragorn felt he had lost complete control of the situation, Elrond burst through the door, worry etched in every line of his face.
"I found her lying on the floor out in the hallway...at first she said nothing, but now she is screaming like we are going to hurt her... talking about someone named Merheyl..." Aragorn said hurriedly as Elrond rushed to Kaurea's bedside. His face immediately went white at the mention of the name Merheyl.
"I think there is more to Kaurea than we see at this time, Estel." Elrond said softly as he stroked the girl's cheek. Her cries had ceased, but her eyes still lay wide open as she stared straight ahead but did not make a sound.
I was finally allowed out of bed about a week after my arrival in Rivendell. Everyone there was kind to me, but strangely distant in a way. I was an elf who couldn't even utter a word in her own language, and therefore deemed a bit of an outsider. My rather unusual arrival did not help at all either.
Aragorn was the one who really looked after me. He was one of the few there that could understand the human tongue, and the only one other than Elrond who took the time to talk with me daily and see to it that I was comfortable and taken care of. While Elrond was kind, he was also more of my healer rather than my friend. He lay down some rather strict rules for me- I was to stray from my bed for only short periods of time, and I was to remain in the Halls of Healing.
"Your heart is weaker that it should be and some of your injuries do not heal well. You are elf-kind and should not have problems such as these, yet you do. Something has taken a heavy toll on you." He said to me after he had examined me one day. He looked towards me as if I was to provide the answer to this mystery, but all I could do was shrug.
"I do not know what." I managed to reply, being only somewhat truthful. Fortunately, he never pressed me for answers. His eyes seemed to hold a strange look that reflected patience and I did not know if I should even fear or trust it. Sometimes he would try to ask me about my past, but I casually pushed him away.
One day, I was busy drifting in and out of sleep when I faintly heard the sound of running footsteps outside my door and beyond, accompanied by shouts of excitement. Over the past week or so I had become stronger, and was now able to pull myself out of bed and out of the door. But no matter how hard I tried, I was unable to walk unassisted to the end of the hallway. Aragorn always looked on with worried eyes whenever I tried, but he never attempted to stop me.
'Well...I suppose today will be the day that I try..' I thought to myself as I cautiously sat up and got out of bed. Getting changed into something other than the white frock I had woken up in was out of the question for two main reasons. Firstly, I did not even know how long it would take me. And secondly, I did not have a maid and no one in the house had shown me where to get a change of clothing.
Carefully and ever so slowly, I made my way out of the room and into the bright hallway. My hands clung tightly to the wall, but the tiny steps that I took were still wobbly ones. A few jerks of pain skittered along my side after a few moment of walking. All that I could do was grit my teeth and continue onwards.
The commotion appeared to be coming from the very same courtyard where I had been brought in such a short time ago. It was conveniently not far from my room, and I was thankful for it. The pains began to increase, but I had already begun to take my first steps out into the sun. Nothing was going to hold me back now.
I panted heavily as I leaned back against a magnificent stone column, from which I could get a near perfect view of the hectic event that was probably soon to take place down below. There was a huge crowd of elves gather and shouting elvish to one another, but I naturally could not understand it. I was content to merely watch the commotion from a safe vantage point. Hopefully, neither Aragorn nor Elrond would spot me.
But the point that I was standing at was far from perfect. I was unable to see the two riders on horseback until they were almost at the gates and even then it was still difficult to see them. I craned my neck as hard as I could and stood on my tip-toes, but it didn't help much.
I was able to see that the two riders were identical in appearance and dress. They both had long black hair that was very similar to the Lord Elrond's and they both wore brown riding outfits. This puzzled me greatly. I had never seen messengers like these before.
Suddenly, Aragorn burst through the crowd of elves and dashed over to the twins, a huge smile upon his friendly face. I could hear them only faintly as quiet phrases of elvish were exchanged and the horse's reins tossed to a nearby elf.
A gasp built in my throat as I saw the crowds disperse and the trio began to head right up the stairs near where I stood. As quick as I could, I began to walk back down the hallway towards my room as the chorus of voices came closer and closer to me.
My breath came ragged and fast as I clung onto the walls, grappled for anything that might help me along and steady me from the waves of dizziness that threatened to engulf me. My heart pounded faster than ever as I felt my eyes roll back in my head and my weary body sink to the floor in exhaustion.
///\\\
Aragorn, Elrohir and Elladan walked steadily down the hallway, every footstep echoing softly off the beautiful stone walls. Aragorn managed to fill them in on most everything that they had missed while they were away in Lorien, spare the matter of Kaurea and her odd arrival. He had figured that he would tell them when the time was right and not trouble them with his worries.
But just as they turned the corner, Aragorn spotted Kaurea sprawled across the floor and apparently unconscious. It was quite obvious she had not heeded Elrond's advice and had gone out to see what all the fuss was about. Quickly, Aragorn raced to her side with Elrohir and Elladan close behind him.
"Kaurea." Aragorn whispered as his well-trained fingers probed the fallen form carefully before scooping her into his arms with very little effort. Elrohir and Elladan simply looked quizzically at the elf girl, silent for the time being. Aragorn nodded at them, a look of urgency reflected in his eyes.
"Go fetch Ada." Aragorn said. This could all be explained later. Perhaps his twin brothers would have some valuable input on what they would do with the girl once she had healed, though if she kept up with her antics it was not likely she would ever recover. Once they had finished staring, the twins sprinted off down the halls towards Elrond's study.
Aragorn was left with the task of carrying the feather-light Kaurea back to her room, a job that was easily completed. She did not stir until he lay her down in her bed, when a shiver and a moan coursed through her already weak body. Aragorn brushed the back of his hand against her forehead. It came away drenched in sweat.
Quickly, he crossed the room and began to brew a tea of herbs, hoping that his father would arrive soon. Until he did, it was up to Aragorn to get the girl's fever down. Brewing the tea was, of course, the easy part. But Aragorn correctly predicted that getting Kaurea to drink it would be far from simple.
"Here, telella. Drink this." He coaxed, leaning her up in the bed. She coughed once before opening her tired eyes just a little. Aragorn soothingly rubbed her on the back and stroked her hair, all the while urging her to just take a little sip of the tea. Her pretty eyes seemed to look right through him and suddenly a burst of fear shot through them.
"No! I won't! Get away from me, don't touch me, please! I'll be good, I swear it!" She shrieked, her voice coming out unnaturally high. Her whole body jerked backwards and away from Aragorn, almost spilling the tea all over the bedcovers.
"Please don't take her away! Merheyl, don't leave me!" Tears pooled in her eyes and flowed down faster and faster. Just as Aragorn felt he had lost complete control of the situation, Elrond burst through the door, worry etched in every line of his face.
"I found her lying on the floor out in the hallway...at first she said nothing, but now she is screaming like we are going to hurt her... talking about someone named Merheyl..." Aragorn said hurriedly as Elrond rushed to Kaurea's bedside. His face immediately went white at the mention of the name Merheyl.
"I think there is more to Kaurea than we see at this time, Estel." Elrond said softly as he stroked the girl's cheek. Her cries had ceased, but her eyes still lay wide open as she stared straight ahead but did not make a sound.