Disclaimer: I don't own Lord of the Rings or any of the
characters I used in this story. It was written for pure fun and no money is/was
made with it.
Genre: General/Drama
Rating: PG
E-mail: kaeera@yahoo.de
Summary: When the twins fight too much, Elrond and Celebrian decide to
separate them for a few months…How will Elladan and Elrohir find life without
each other?
Notes: Delay, delay...sorry. I absolutely didn't know what to write! Elladan has realized how important his twin is, but Elrohir, he's still quite stubborn. It is as if they developed a life of their own!! *groans* Now I need to think of something to convince Elrohir that he shall forgive Elladan, but that is easier said than done. Have you ever discussed with stubborn elflings? It's very tireing, I can tell you that. And with my orchestra and such...ya know, we participated in a competition and we won, which means that we are the best youth orchestra in our state and will enter the German competition. Cool, huh? But it was much, much work...free time, where are thou??
A Life shared by Two
by Kaeera
Part Eight: Nightmares
Elrohir dreamed. At first it was a peaceful dream and his face was relaxed in
his slumber, giving the impression of youthful innocence. Glorfindel, in his
usual sarcastic mood, had once stated that when the twins slept, it was the only
time they looked that peaceful. And it was true, for during the day, both they
created so much mischief, it caused the closest to them an overwhelming amount
of exasperation.
Alas, his dreams changed as the night wore on. An irritated frown on his
forehead was the first sign for an approaching nightmare. The elfling tossed
around on the bed, but since he was alone in his room, no one was there to wake
him from his dreams. His small whimper of fear went unheard, for his mother's
room was on the other side of the corridor and not even her elven hears could
hear the soft moan.
With a gasp he finally woke and bolted up in his bed, breath coming in short,
irregular gasps. Tears were visible in his large, pale eyes as he searched
frantically for what ever shadow had been haunting him in his dreams.
"'Dan?" he whispered softly, voice barely audible.
"'Dan, are you here?"
No reply. He looked around, his eyes scanning the room fervently, but he was
unable to see his twin. Neither did he recognize the chamber he was in, and for
a moment he panicked.
Then memory flooded back to him and he breathed a sigh of relief. Elladan wasn't
here because his brother had stayed in Imladris while he had come to Lothlorien,
the elven realm of his grandparents.
However, his relief disappeared as quickly as it had come. The fact that he knew
where he was didn't change his current situation, he was still alone in his room
and very, very scared. The shadows seemed to whisper around him and every time
he turned his head, he imagined he could see something moving, creeping up on
him.
"No!" Elrohir quickly ducked beneath his bedcovers and lay still, trembling
miserably in the large bed.
He couldn't deny it anymore, at this very moment he wished for nothing more than
to have his brother at his side, even though Elladan could be annoying at times.
His twin always managed to soothe his nightmares away, his presence alone being
enough to chase away the darkness.
Elrohir curled up and shivered. Sometimes he hated having such a vivid
imagination for right now, he could almost feel the hot breath of terrible
monsters on the back of his neck, sneaking up to him with their claws stretched
out…
He squeaked and hid even deeper under the covers, waiting and listening to the
sound of his own breathing. The elfling was too scared to fall asleep, but
getting out of bed didn't seem like a very good option either, so Elrohir was
stuck. He briefly considered calling for his mother, but pride kept him from
doing so – what would Elladan say if he heard about it?
No, no, he couldn't do that, he would rather stay awake the whole night than
suffer the embarassment.
Anyway, Elladan always seemed to be the stronger of the two and sometimes, it
irked him. His twin was far too stubborn to cry, and if he was frightened –
which happened more often than anyone knew - he refused to give in to his fear.
Right now he wished he could be like his brother as well. Alas, as was often the
case with twins, their identical features had nothing to do with their
individual characters. Elrohir had not the stubborn courage of his brother, so
giving in to his fear, he stayed where he was, unable to shake off the lingering
fear.
Minutes passed in which he didn't dare to move, didn't even dare to breathe
normally, and he grew more and more uncomfortable with each passing moment.
Although he was tired, he knew that he wouldn't would find no more rest this
night.
The images of his dream came back to his mind, and he shuddered as he remembered
the coldness, the screams and the horrible feeling of emptiness as he was hunted
through dark cellars and caves. Elves hated dark and narrow spaces, and Elrohir
was no exception.
The idea of being miles under the earth, cut off from the sun and green forest
he loved so dearly, scared him. His ada had often told him stories about other
races who liked living underground, but he couldn't understand how any creature
could possibly prefer darkness to light! Darkness was scary, monsters and other
evil things often hid in the darkness…
Elrohir couldn't remember exactly what his dream had been about, but he was
pretty certain that there had been monsters, and that he had been alone, like he
was right now. He didn't like being alone. If only Elladan were here, perhaps
then, he would feel better. Maybe they shouldn't have fought. Maybe they should
have made up and…
No! He growled stubbornly and closed his eyes in defiance. He wouldn't give in!
Not this time! He was always the one to give in first, to restore the peace
between them, and now he was tired of it. Elladan had made his share of
mistakes, too, it was only right that *he* should apologize first this time, not
Elrohir!
"I won't give in!" he whispered harshly and gasped surprised at the hollow sound
of his voice. The shadows seemed to whisper again, and he buried himself deeper
under the covers, willing the night to pass quickly.
Finally, after many long dreadful hours, morning dawned and he was up as soon as
the golden sunrays filled his room. It was much earlier than his usual time to
wake up, but he couldn't sleep anymore and he was eager to leave the stifling
room.
He peered out his door and down the corridor and was relieved to find everyone else still sleeping. The birds had just started singing and Elrohir, suddenly filled with renewed burst of energy, decided to explore the gardens a bit more. Maybe he would see some animals or plants he hadn't yet seen. Besides, the garden would be very peaceful this time of the morning, surely no one would disturb him.
The higher the sun rose, the more his nightmares faded. The garden filled with
light and the shadows disappeared, leaving only brightly coloured red and yellow
flowers and lush green grass in its wake.
Elrohir giggled and stretched out on the ground, enjoying the scent of the earth
and nature. It smelled like spring, like life, banishing any lingering darkness.
Here in this garden no one could possibly have nightmares, he was sure about
that.
Before he realized it, Elrohir was lulled to sleep by the soft singing of the
birds curling up under the rose bushes of Lothlorien.
"Elrohir, nin mellon, it is time to wake up!" Celebrian called cheerfully, as she entered the room of her youngest son. The sun was shining and it was promising to be a beautiful day. Celebrian was in good spirits.
However, the smile on her face vanished quickly when she saw her son's empty
bed.
"Elrohir?"
The lady of Imladris worriedly scanned the room, but found no trace of the twin.
Frowning slightly, she stepped out into the corridor and asked a bypassing
servant. "Have you seen my son, Elrohir, anywhere? He isn't in his room."
The servant, a small, female elf with beautiful light brown hair, shook her
head. "No, my lady, I haven't seen the young Lord at all this morning. I assumed
he was still sleeping."
"He isn't." Her frown deepened. "That's strange – he usually waits for to wake
him."
"Maybe he already went down to breakfast." The servant suggested. "I will ask
the others if they have seen him."
Celebrian nodded. "Thank you very much."
The servant bowed and hurried away. Celebrian tried to think where her son could
be. Lost in thought, she walked down the stairs, and into the breakfast room
where her parents awaited her.
Alas, as she reached that room – it was more of a porch, large windows without
glass giving a full view of the magnificent trees outside – she could discover
Celeborn and Galadriel, but no Elrohir. Her confusion changed to worry and she
decided to approach her mother.
"Are you searching something, my child?" Galadriel spoke before Celebrian was
even able to open her mouth.
"Elrohir isn't in his room."
Celeborn frowned at this. "Where could he have gone at such an early hour?"
"I find myself asking that as well."
Galadriel smiled. "Have you searched everywhere?"
"No." Celebrian flushed. "I actually came here first for I thought he had joined
you for breakfast."
"Then, my child, you should probably go and look in the gardens. If you do not
find him there, then we can worry."
She nodded. "Of course."
Celebrian left hurriedly, leaving a rather confused Celeborn and a mysteriously
smiling Galadriel behind.
"Where did he go?" Celebrian murmured under her breath as she hurried down
another staircase. It was untypical for Elrohir to disappear like this, he was
usually the more responsible one of the twins. He had been known to slip up
though, on occasion, and he had inherited his father's stubbornness.
She stepped into the garden and stopped for a moment, breathing in the fresh
summer air. As much she loved Imladris, nothing could compare to her first home,
Lothlorien. The familiar places she had used as a playground in her childhood,
her parents, and, of course, the trees. They should visit her parents more
often.
A small smile played around her mouth as she promised herself she would talk
about that with her husband as soon as she returned home.
"Elrohir?" She called out softly, reminding herself of the actual reason she had
ventured into the gardens in the first place.
"Elrohir, nin mellon, are you there?" Celebrian searched under the trees,
knowing that her search would be fruitless if her son didn't want to be found –
Lothlorien was far too big and there were too many hiding places for an
adventurous young elfling.
The gardens were empty, and the only reply to her calls was the chirping of the
birds. Her worry was increasing as she continued to search and could find no
trace of the elfling. Where did he go?
Wondering if she should ask someone else if he or she had seen Elrohir, she
walked towards the rose bushes, her most favourite place in all of Lothlorien.
Celebrian would never have found her son if she hadn't stumbled over a tree root
at that very moment. Actually, the tree root wasn't a tree root at all, but a
small foot sticking out from under the bush.
Celebrian's heart skipped a beat as she recognized her son's foot. What was he
doing out here in his nightgown? She quickly knelt next to him and looked at him
closely, realising that he was only sleeping soundly.
"Elrohir?" Celebrian whispered, as her worry slowly vanished. Why was her son
sleeping in the gardens instead in his own bed?
She gently nudged him and he groaned, then rolled over on his side as he woke
up. His usually neat hair was dishevelled, covered with bits of grass and twigs,
and he wore an adorable look of confusion ion his face.
"Amme?" Elrohir sat up and his head collided with the rose bush. "Ouch!"
"Would you to tell me why you are sleeping in the gardens instead of in your
bed?" Celebrian raised an eyebrow at him in a very Elrond-ish way.
"Uhm, I, uhm…"
"I'm waiting."
"Well…" Elrohir frowned, trying to recall everything that had happened. "I woke
up early and then I went outside…I guess I fell asleep." He blushed sheepishly
and avoided his mother's gaze. He did *not* want to tell her about his
embarrassing nightmares and the fact that he had spent the whole night wide
awake, hiding under his covers!
"And *why* did you wake up early?" Celebrian queried, knowing all too well that
there was more behind the story than Elrohir wanted to admit.
The twin flinched. Why were his parents always able to see through his evasion
techniques so easily? "It was…because…" He was at a loss of words, and
desperately searched for something he say that would not be a lie, nor the
truth.
"Nightmare?" His mother suggested, inwardly amused at the visible discomfort of
her son. Elrohir blushed even deeper and wished for a hole to could crawl into.
"Yes."
Celebrian sighed and cradled her son in her arms, although he resisted at first.
"Why didn't you call me, little one? I would have soothed your bad dreams."
The elfling stiffened visibly. "I didn't want to bother you." he mumbled softly
while refusing to look into his mother's eyes. "And they weren't that bad."
"Oh, really?" Alone, the fact that he had fallen asleep outside told Celebrian
that it *had* been bad, despite what Elrohir claimed. She strongly suspected
that he hadn't slept at all after waking from his nightmare. "You know it is
allright for us to be afraid from time to time, don't you?" She nudged him
gently.
"But you and Ada, you are never afraid of anything!" Elrohir exclaimed.
"That is not true, there are many things that frighten us." Celebrian gently
explained. "We are afraid of losing you and your brother, we are afraid that one
day you will be taken from us and we will never see you again. We are afraid
every time Glorfindel rides out with his warriors and we are afraid when they
come home injured."
Elrohir sniffed. "But those are things that are real and the things that scare
me don't even exist… then I feel silly in the morning, but at the night it is
horrible…" He blushed, realizing that he had spilled out the very thing he had
wanted to hide. His mother knew him too well!
Celebrian chuckled. "Oh, Elrohir, if you only knew what kind of dreams *I* had
when I was younger…I was just as you are now, scared, even though it was an
irrational fear."
His head perked up curiously at the mention of his mother doing something
irrational. "Tell me about it, Amme, please?"
Too late she realized that she had manoeuvred herself into a corner – now the
younger twin wouldn't stop nagging her until she had told him about some of her
embarrassing childhood moments, and she really hadn't wanted to do that. Alas,
as Celebrian looked into the hopeful eyes of her youngest son – eyes which still
held a small trace of fear – hear heart melted with love and she found herself
thinking of the time she had been but an elfling.
"Well, when I was young," she began, hugging Elrohir closely, "I was scared of
many things. I was scared of our guards, because they were armed, and I was
scared of the cupboard in my room during the night. I always thought monsters
would come out of it while I slept, and it took me a long time to believe that
only my clothes were inside. I was so embarrassed about that and I never told
anybody about it until now."
"You were?" Elrohir's eyes brightened. "Tell me more, Amme, tell me more!"
Celebrian laughed at the eagerness of the elfling. "Allright, my little darling.
Well, when I was your age, I once…"
Elrohir listened intensely as Celebrian recalled old memories of her childhood,
portraying both Celeborn and Galadriel in a different light and describing
Lothlorien in the most beautiful colours imaginable.
His fear slowly dissipated as he realized that being afraid wasn't something to
be ashamed of. especially since his mother had gone through much the same thing.
He felt content, peaceful and secure in Celebrian's arms, and it didn't take
long for the soft gentle voice of his mother to lull him to sleep once more.
To be continued...
First Mate – Sorry to disappoint you, but it seems as if this time Elrohir is the stubborn one. I like it when their roles are reversed, because although 'Ro is very gentle, one day it will be enough and he has finally reached his limit. I'm quite at a loss right now; it is difficult to write about Elrohir in Lothlorien, because I have no clue what shall happen to him.
Lady of Legolas - I fulfilled your fish - you can read about Elrohir this time. Although nothing much happens^^
Iawen Londae - Yea, I wonder that no...*hasn't got the slightest idea*
Websterans - Thank you for your kind review! I smiled happily when I was reading it! I'm working much with children in my village, that's probably why I can understand what they are thinking. And I can remember how stubborn *I* used to me and that things made perfect sense for me although for adults, it didn't.
Silverfox - Say hello back to your triplet friend^^ I have a fondness of Elrohir, too, but I guess one can notice that only by looking at my stories! He's quite stubborn in this story, though...
Starlight Wolf - Well, I guess having brothers like Elladan and Elrohir would be annoying at times, don't you think? They'd always play pranks on you...This story is more and more developing into a sappy story, I have no idea why...It's absolutely NOT my style!
IceRi - Oh my gawd! An uber-frying pan (I have actually no idea what
this is, but to the hell with it *laughs*)!! Leave me in peace, I'm updating,
I'm updating...although it took me quite a while. *coughs*