At the last minute Ester said he couldn't go with them because he said Elrond wanted to talk to him. Everyone thought this was a lie, including Isa, but they said nothing. The trio went through the woods to the outer limits of Rivendell, like they had when they were kids.

Dinner followed later that night, after they returned from their outing, and everyone noticed Ester acting a little strangely. He barely touched his food, and he wouldn't even bate Arwen like he usually did. Isa noticed a change in his demeanor, too. He was usually more relaxed, not so formal. Isa tried to pry whatever it as that was bothering him out, but he refused to even talk. The half elf shrugged and went back to eating, knowing that he would talk in time.

Later that week, Isa was washing in the waterfall when she felt a strange dull pain in her abdomen. It felt like a knife twisting in her gut, but she couldn't feel it. She suddenly had a picture of Ester in her mind, clutching his stomach in a ball on the ground. She gasped at the pain, but threw on her robe and staggered through the forest. She found Legolas and Arwen under a birch tree, talking. Legolas got up and picked her up. The pain subsided a little.

"Ester" she gasped, "is hurt." A vision of where he was flashed through her mind. "In the garden under the oak tree." Arwen left, telling Legolas to take care of Isa and that she would help Ester. Legolas put Isa down at her insistence and examined her. Nothing appeared to be wrong, and now the pains were gone.

"What happened?" Legolas demanded, looking like one very pissed off elf. He softened when he heard how he sounded. "Sorry, you just scared me, that's all"

"I have no clue what happened. I was under the waterfall when I felt a knife was being rammed into my stomach, but it was a dull pain, like I didn't really feel it. Like my mind was disconnected from my body." Legolas thought for a second.

"Sounds to me like you were rammed in the stomach with a knife. Under great pain, the human mind seems to disconnect from the body."

"And where did you hear this?" Isa laughed

"In Gondor. I visit there sometimes, and I talked to one of their doctors."

"Why did you go there and talk to one of their doctors?"

"My education. My father wanted me not only to be a warrior, but to study other types of things, too. Like medicine, art, and agriculture"

"I see" Isa stood up from her place on the stone bench she had been sitting on. Her robe was clinging to her wet body and despite the relative warmth she shivered. Legolas took the cloak from his shoulders and wrapped it around the half elf.

"Let's go get your clothes" he laughed, putting his arm around Isa. The two trotted through the forest and collected Isa's clothes. By the time they had made it back they saw that Ester was fine, walking around and everything. Arwen was at his side, talking about who knows what.

"Is everything okay?" Isa asked.

"Now it is. I found Ester under the oak tree, holding his stomach. The pains went away on their own, though" Lord Elrond had chosen that time to come around the side of the castle and heard the whole conversation.

"What happened?" he asked in his authoritative elf lord way.

"Noth-" Isa said, but Legolas cut her off.

"Isa felt pains in her stomach and knew that Ester was in trouble and where to find him." Isa shot the elf a dirty look.

"I saw a-sort of- vision in my mind of Ester under the oak tree."

"And these pains you had?"

"Felt like a knife in my stomach, but like my mind was disconnected from the pain." Lord Elrond nodded but still looked grave.

"Ester?" he asked

"It just felt like a hot knife in my stomach, but I wasn't disconnected from the pain" he responded. This looked like it didn't worry the elf lord.

"You're both all right now?" he asked, giving the two a once over. They nodded.

"Good." He said and walked off, in the direction of Isa's house. Isa groaned

"He's going to tell my mother, and now she'll be mad that I didn't tell her, and she'll get really worried and my life is over!" the half elf pouted. Legolas laughed.

"I'm sure it won't be that bad" he chided.

"Shows how much you know" she muttered darkly.

~

Lord Elrond found Isa's mother in her house, weaving a tapestry.

"You daughter just felt Aragorn's pain and knew where to find him" he said outright. The giant needle she had been using at the loom clattered to the floor. "Explain yourself" he demanded.

"She is not my daughter," said the elf sadly, "She is the daughter of my sister, Isildor's wife" Elrond looked genuinely surprised by the news.

"So she's..."

"Isildor's last living child".

Elrond's voice was barely a whisper, "His heir."