A/N: This chapter is dedicated to all the faithful pet therapists, the dogs, the cats, even the Shetland pony who have all selflessly and unconditionally given of themselves to others.
A/N: By what mechanism animals are able to reach the sick and aged giving them hope or purpose, or how they are able to put a smile on the face of someone with Alzheimer's Disease or how petting a dog or cat can help lower someone's blood pressure or make an abandoned elder feel wanted is something the medical community is still trying to figure out. Some say it is the unconditional love these animals, birds and other pets are so willing to give. There may be much truth to this. After all, what else could it be?
A/N: Merc may be occasionally be used instead of the word mercenary.
A/N: I saw the Walk of the Dead done on an episode of Stargate SG-1 when SG-1 was honoring a supposedly dead friend whose body was not recovered after he had been killed. The Walk raised the hair on the back of my neck and also made me cry. It is absolutely awesome to see military personnel performing this ritual.
Chapter 24
The Rescue
Legolas had not slept at the previous night and neither had the twins for they were all too concerned for Aragorn's health to be able to rest. His breathing was again ragged and uneven and without the continuous use of the decongestant herb, his lungs again began to fill with fluid. The four prisoners had been given no water or food the day before and so the three had to make due with the little they had to clean the young Ranger's many wounds. Legolas sat rocking his friend, trying in the only way he knew to comfort the young human when Aragorn coughed violently and all three saw the blood that Legolas gently wiped away before he resumed his rocking.
"Legolas."
"What Elrohir?"
"I want you and Dan to look at the top of the tall pine tree directly in front of me."
Carefully and without being too obvious, the two elves looked. They were not so much surprised as they were expecting to see the black falcon sitting there watching them.
Elladan brought them all to alertness. "Get ready, everybody. Whatever is going to happen is going to happen any time now."
Legolas leaned over his unconscious friend and whispered into his ears.
"Estel, I need you to be very still and quiet for me for a little while, all right? Your sister is here to help us and we do not want to draw any attention to ourselves until we can be set free. Just hang on a little while longer, it will all be over in just a little while."
Gently he stroked his friend's fevered brow, knowing that while the Ranger was not fully conscious, that on some level he still understood what was being asked of him. With only a tiny whimper of pain, the Ranger stilled his occasional movements.
Legolas and Elrohir had been so intent on quieting Aragorn that they had not been paying attention to their immediate surroundings. Their inattentiveness was corrected by the sound of Elladan's surprised voice.
"What in sweet Elbereth's name do they think they are doing?"
Legolas who had spent some time talking with the new Guards answered the question.
"Hiding in plain sight, mellon-nín - doing what the enemy least expects. I think what they are doing right now is what is called The Walk Of The Dead. It's a ritual walk and is called by that name because it is usually only done while carrying a dead body or in a ceremony honoring someone who has been killed and whose body has not been recovered."
"It gives me the shivers just watching it!"
When the Thurin Tirith warriors and Anayah came marching into the middle of the mercenaries' camp, they got exactly the result they had been expecting. Any human that was awake, no matter how he was occupying himself at the moment, stopped to stare, with knives paused halfway to lathered up beards, boots half on and half off.
Finally, when the group was in the approximate middle of the camp, Anayah flipped her cloak off her hands and raised her small crossbows, and together with her archers, who had grabbed their bows off their backs, began to fire. Within the first few minutes of the battle, all the mobile weapons had been disabled. Then the warriors went to their choice of either sword or long knives and began the dirty work of mucking out the camp.
The leader, in his arrogance, failed to respect the she-elf as a warrior, thinking that all females were weak and should be married, pregnant and in the home where they belonged. He was doubly surprised when she met his sword, blow for blow. He was even more surprised during the last 30 seconds of his life after the weak, helpless female managed to slit his throat almost without breaking a sweat.
Relieving the now dead leader of the mercenaries of his ring of keys, Anayah whistled for Shakir then held the keys over her head. A few seconds later a shadow fell over her and she felt the keys lifted nimbly from her hands. Behind her, she heard Arminas exclaim, "Have them," as he had been instructed to do so she would know that he was now in a position to free the prisoners.
The twins and Legolas had been watching the fight, as best they could, while Arminas unlocked the manacles on their legs and set them free. None of them had seen a Thurin Tirith warrior fight before with the possible exception of Legolas who had been too young to remember when four of them had been a part of his mother's royal guard.
They were fast, they were strong, they were lethal, and they were merciless. The Thurin Tirith were warriors with only a single duty, a single purpose in their lives and that was to serve one being until death and to fulfill that duty and purpose the four warriors would go to any lengths and use any means necessary. When one mercenary soldier got close enough to Anayah to strike her with his sword, he found himself instead, facing a very focused and intense Semoro. The merc made a fatal error - he froze - he froze when he should have turned around and ran. He got one last chance to look into the emotionless grey eyes of the big elf standing in front of him - and then he died.
Semoro, having been too close to the merc to use his sword, had reverted to hand-to-hand warring techniques, something they seldom ever used in battle unless sorely in need to do so. He struck the merc that was about to strike Anayah - he struck him in the chest with the heel of his hand in an area just below and to the left of the heart, driving splinters of bone from the ribs into the beating organ, effectively stopping it forever.
Looking back over her shoulder, she looked to see if the prisoners were yet free, from the bonds that had held them, as well as the mercs, while keeping one eye on the fight going on in front of her. She saw that Legolas had picked Aragorn up in his arms and had left the field followed by Arminas and Elrohir. But when Elladan had paused, as if wanting to join the fight, Anayah yelled at him, reminding him that it was his job to protect Estel. Nodding his head in understanding, Elladan quickly ran after the others.
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The mercenaries were not just ordinary soldiers themselves. They were all battle tested and hardened veterans of many fights and it was not that easy to kill one. Saeros was somewhat surprised when he looked over to where Anayah had engaged one of the mercs and saw her ebony bladed sword cutting bloody gouges in the man and the next, not only was she busy fighting two soldiers but she was using two swords. The move had evidently surprised the two she was fighting for they paused - right before they died.
The battle was finally over and she sank to one knee, her sword, now one sword once more, supporting her weight as she rested, fighting her weariness. Having had to fight wounded, the small amount of energy she had stored up by sleeping all the way to the merc camp, had been expended and now, she was running on pure adrenaline and not much more.
When Rahan walked up to her, he discreetly helped her to her feet, understanding not only her weariness but also her need to see the job done.
"Let us get out of here before any more of them show up."
With nothing left to do, their mission having been accomplished, the five elves left the field of death at a run. As they left, they failed to see that there was yet someone alive for a shadow moved in the trees on the far side of the battlefield, a shadow that had watched the battle very carefully, a shadow with glowing red eyes.
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Arminas had the six horses of Anayah's group saddled and ready and when Elrohir and Elladan whistled, the other four horses came to join the first six. Mounting quickly, the group rode for some distance until they felt they were reasonably safe from pursuit.
As the camp was quickly set up, bedrolls laid out, and water started to boil, Anayah went from elf to elf, checking to see who was wounded and how severe the wound was. Elladan found himself ready to remind her that he and Elrohir were healers also, when he felt Legolas lay a hand on his arm. The eldest twin looked over at the blonde Prince questioningly.
"You have never had a chance to watch her work under these kinds of conditions before, have you?"
"No, I have not although I must admit that I am amazed she has any energy left to do any of this!"
Able, for the moment to take everything in, Anayah got the feeling that the twins were feeling a little bit left out, and that their skills as competent healers were being ignored. She called to them and they were immediately by her side. Quickly, and in one smooth motion, she hugged each brother, kissed both on their foreheads, rubbed it in, then asked them to see to the injuries of the guards, which though minor still needed to be cleaned and bandaged. Then, she told them, after they were finished, they could come and help her with Aragorn.
Kneeling beside her brother, she quickly assessed his injuries and ordered them in amount of severity. He still had some congestion in his lungs, which would impede his recovery rate, especially if he was not getting enough oxygen to breathe. Looking into his eyes, she noticed the unequal dilation and when her fingers probed the head wound, she felt the bones move and give slightly which meant that her brother's skull had been fractured.
He had coughed up blood twice since they had arrived in their camp however, with the massive bruising on his rib cage, it was difficult to find the area where the broken ribs were either pressing against or had punctured the lung. The marks from the whip on his back would have to be diligently cleaned then stitched to prevent infection. His left wrist was broken cleanly but the many small bones in his hand were not and in addition the left arm had been pulled completely out of the socket. There was definitely much work to be done before either her brother or even herself could be comfortable.
She did not realize just how long she had been working on Aragorn nor had she noticed the others as they had gathered around and watched her work, soundlessly handing her water, needle and thread, herbs and bandages as she had asked for them. It was many hours later when she finally wrapped the last bandage and tied the last knot.
For a moment she sat back, closed her eyes then took a deep breath and wiped the sweat off her brow. She opened her eyes wide in surprise when she felt a hand on her forehead, feeling for and finding her own fever that she, herself, had forgotten all about. Gently she brushed Legolas's hand away and smiled. Legolas caught Rahan's eye and when Anayah got up to get fresh water, she found her path to the nearby stream blocked. She looked up into the grey eyes of her Captain who was noticing how her hands were beginning to tremble and how unsteady she had been when she had risen from the spot she had occupied for hours as she had tended to the many wounds of her brother.
Now, Rahan stood before her, arms crossed, grey eyes serious. "No more, Anayah. You have done enough for others and now it is time for you to rest and let us take care of you. Your brothers can finish what you have begun and you can rest assured that they will take good care of Estel."
When Anayah tried to go around the big Noldor, he put a gentle hand on her shoulder. It was about that time that all the dizziness, weakness and fatigue finally caught up with her and she felt herself falling into darkness, giving a sigh of relief that this part of the craziness was finally over.
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Lord Elrond felt the vibrations made by many horses moving quickly and knew it could only mean one thing - all the children were home - and there were injuries. Looking wordlessly at Glorfindel, he walked quickly to the doors that opened up onto the courtyard, calling to his healers as he went. When the ten horses galloped through the gates and came to a stop in front of him, he could not help but gasp for there were very few of those before him that were not wearing bandages.
As his eyes roamed over the group, he even counted an extra elf - meaning that Anayah's mission must have been successful as well. As to how and why everyone else was in the condition they were in was probably a story left for a different time. He followed behind as he directed Elladan who was carrying Estel and Rahan who was carrying Anayah to precede him to the Healing Wing. He then instructed the other healers to take care of the other wounded elves, changing bandages and comforting as necessary.
As he carefully checked Aragorn's numerous injuries, he made the mistake of asking what had happened. Elladan was about to answer his father's question when Anayah who had been watching closely from the adjacent bed sat up and started to answer. Elrohir gently pushed her back. As Elrond looked at another injury, Anayah again sat up and started to speak. This time both Elrohir and Rahan pushed her back onto the bed. Elrond's eyes met those of his eldest son in silent communication, who then nodded his head and left the room.
The third time Anayah tried to interject, Rahan moved the bed two feet further away from her brother. The fourth time she tried to speak, the bed was moved back another two feet and the final time, the only thing Rahan had to do was act like he was going to move the bed, and Anayah lay back down, glaring daggers at her Captain who only smiled benignly in return.
Finally, Aragorn was resting comfortably and Lord Elrond turned to his foster daughter who was sitting on the edge of the bed as far away from her Captain as she could get, and giving Rahan dirty looks, while he continued to patiently ignore her. Elladan came back in with a cup of tea and when she acted like she was not going to drink it, all Rahan had to do was look at her and raise an eyebrow after which she took the tea and drank it without further protest then laid down. Raising his own eyebrow, Elrond leaned towards the big Captain and whispered, conspiratorially, "You are going to have to teach me how to do that!"
"Anayah, your brother is resting comfortably for the moment."
"How is his hand? I was a little worried about that. I had to fix it as best I could at the time so he would not lose the use of it entirely. I had to set the bones by feel except for one place where I had to cut because I could not feel the bones well enough to know whether they were aligned so I do not know if I did him more harm than good and then there is his skull fracture that I could tell that was what it was right away so I just left it opened and bandaged."
Elrond finally put a gentle hand over his foster-daughter's mouth to quiet her.
"Anayah, hush." Seeing that she was about to begin talking again he held up a hand. "Hush daughter. Your brother is fine, all his wounds were clean and free from infection although he pulled a couple of the stitches on his back getting here. His hand is fine for you did a wonderful job of setting the bones. Now how about you? Anayah?"
All four elves bent closer and looked at Anayah, only to find that at long last she had fallen asleep. When Lord Elrond looked her over, other than a few new bruises and cuts, she was fine except for the low-grade fever she was running. After she got a good night's sleep she would probably feel much more herself.
As Elrond, the twins and Rahan were leaving the healing wing, Legolas and Saeros were coming in to sit with friend and charge. Legolas looked at Lord Elrond but when he saw the pain in the Noldor healer's eyes, his own heart clenched.
"It is the skull fracture, Legolas. We should know soon whether or not he will be himself when he wakes up. A small blood vessel that was injured when he was kicked in the head has ruptured causing pressure on the brain. Now oftentimes when this happens, the person will wake up and will have no aftereffects but sometimes the person will wake up not knowing those around him or not being able to speak and sometimes they wake up with the mind of a child. Rarely, but it does happen, the person will never wake, existing for the rest of their lives in an unnatural sleep."
"My Lord, you have given him the best care possible and now he is in Ilúvatar's hands. He is strong, and I am sure that he will wake and be his normal self in no time."
"Does your heart tell you this, young Prince, or do you have some foreknowledge of future events?"
"Nay, Lord Elrond, I do not foresee this. However, I do have faith in Aragorn and his natural inner strength, and it is my faith that tells me that he will survive this. You must not lose your own faith in your son. Tell me what we can do to help him?"
Elrond put a grateful hand on Legolas's shoulder.
"Just be with him, Legolas. Speak to him, not at him, read to him, hold his hand, make physical contact with him for if he knows that he is not alone, it might encourage him to wake. Other than that, all we can do is wait."
Legolas watched the sadness in the Noldor Lord's eyes. It mirrored in large part, the sadness in his own heart.
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For the next two days the twins, Legolas and Anayah took turns sitting beside Aragorn's bed. True to Elrond's advice, they read to him from his favorite books, talked to him about what was going on in Imladris and other places and sometimes they would just sit and hold his hands. The young ranger was never alone for a moment.
It was late in the afternoon of the second day after their return to Imladris that something finally happened that gave them all some hope. The four elves were sitting around the bed. Elladan was holding Aragorn's hand and Elrohir was gently bathing his brother's face with a cloth that had been dipped in cool water and Legolas and Anayah had been taking turns reading to the young man. It was Elrohir who first heard the scrabbling of tiny feet on the stone floor. Looking down, he smiled, then touched his twin's arm to get his attention. All four elves then looked down to the floor to see a small black squirrel trying to climb up the leg of the bed.
It was Elladan who reached down and picked up the smallest member of their family. After holding the squirrel for some minutes, stroking his back, he brought Chubby up to his face and looked him in the eye.
"Well, Healer Chubby, have you come to see how your patient is doing?"
The little squirrel trilled at him in reply making the elder twin smile.
"Maybe you can achieve success where we have failed." Rubbing the squirrel's soft hair against the side of his face, he then placed him on the bed near Aragorn's chest. "Bring him back to us Little Man."
The four were silent as they watched the squirrel walk to Aragorn's face then stand for a moment as if contemplating the man laying before him. Then he reached up with his tiny paw and tapped the unconscious being's cheek then once more sat back and watched for results. Trilling as if in irritation at being ignored, he reached up and patted the man again. Then it happened.
While he had been in his unnatural sleep, Aragorn had been curled up in a fetal position. Now he straightened out his legs then reached out with his good hand and drew the little black squirrel closely to his chest.
There were tears in everybody's eyes for this was the first time that Aragorn had moved on his own since he had returned home. Quickly Elladan left the room and went to find his father.
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Somewhere off in the distance he could hear voices and knew they were talking and their conversation somehow seemed to be directed at him but for some reason he could not understand what they were trying to say to him. He did not really want to wake up but those annoying voices just refused to let him alone. Perhaps if he opened his eyes for just a moment they would leave him alone and he could go back to sleep.
"Estel? Open your eyes son, just for a moment. Please? Come on son, open your eyes. I know you can do it."
Those standing around the bed watched as the young man's eyes slowly opened and he looked at them.
Elrond looked at his son.
"Estel do you know who I am? Come on son. Speak to me. Tell me who I am and then you can go back to sleep."
The young ranger looked up at him then furrowed his brows in concentration before he spoke.
"Mithrandir, it is nice to see you again. What are you doing here?"
Laughter erupted from those gathered around the bed.
"How do you feel Estel?" A relieved father asked.
"My head hurts, Ada. But other than that I do not feel too bad."
"Well, my son, I think I can help with that. Drink this tea then go back to sleep and when you wake up you will feel much better."
It was a testament to how poorly he was feeling that he took the tea and drank it without arguing shortly thereafter falling back to sleep.
Chubby, who had been watching all that went on as if supervising, saw as the human's eyes closed in sleep. The little one walked to his usual position near the sleeping man's chest and curled up. He went to sleep along with the human he had accepted responsibility for and all those who looked at him could swear that the tiny squirrel had a little smile on his face.
TBC
COMING NEXT: The Legend of Osp: It was like someone had put out the light. There was no explanation. They had figured out one part of the mystery only to find themselves pointed in the direction of another.
Soccer-Bitch: Thank you for taking the time to read the previous chapter and review it. I am sure that this is a difficult time for you right now. I hope you got a chance to read Chapter 19 for it was dedicated to your Grandfather. (PS: The entire ghost story runs from Chs. 16-19)
A/N: By what mechanism animals are able to reach the sick and aged giving them hope or purpose, or how they are able to put a smile on the face of someone with Alzheimer's Disease or how petting a dog or cat can help lower someone's blood pressure or make an abandoned elder feel wanted is something the medical community is still trying to figure out. Some say it is the unconditional love these animals, birds and other pets are so willing to give. There may be much truth to this. After all, what else could it be?
A/N: Merc may be occasionally be used instead of the word mercenary.
A/N: I saw the Walk of the Dead done on an episode of Stargate SG-1 when SG-1 was honoring a supposedly dead friend whose body was not recovered after he had been killed. The Walk raised the hair on the back of my neck and also made me cry. It is absolutely awesome to see military personnel performing this ritual.
Chapter 24
The Rescue
Legolas had not slept at the previous night and neither had the twins for they were all too concerned for Aragorn's health to be able to rest. His breathing was again ragged and uneven and without the continuous use of the decongestant herb, his lungs again began to fill with fluid. The four prisoners had been given no water or food the day before and so the three had to make due with the little they had to clean the young Ranger's many wounds. Legolas sat rocking his friend, trying in the only way he knew to comfort the young human when Aragorn coughed violently and all three saw the blood that Legolas gently wiped away before he resumed his rocking.
"Legolas."
"What Elrohir?"
"I want you and Dan to look at the top of the tall pine tree directly in front of me."
Carefully and without being too obvious, the two elves looked. They were not so much surprised as they were expecting to see the black falcon sitting there watching them.
Elladan brought them all to alertness. "Get ready, everybody. Whatever is going to happen is going to happen any time now."
Legolas leaned over his unconscious friend and whispered into his ears.
"Estel, I need you to be very still and quiet for me for a little while, all right? Your sister is here to help us and we do not want to draw any attention to ourselves until we can be set free. Just hang on a little while longer, it will all be over in just a little while."
Gently he stroked his friend's fevered brow, knowing that while the Ranger was not fully conscious, that on some level he still understood what was being asked of him. With only a tiny whimper of pain, the Ranger stilled his occasional movements.
Legolas and Elrohir had been so intent on quieting Aragorn that they had not been paying attention to their immediate surroundings. Their inattentiveness was corrected by the sound of Elladan's surprised voice.
"What in sweet Elbereth's name do they think they are doing?"
Legolas who had spent some time talking with the new Guards answered the question.
"Hiding in plain sight, mellon-nín - doing what the enemy least expects. I think what they are doing right now is what is called The Walk Of The Dead. It's a ritual walk and is called by that name because it is usually only done while carrying a dead body or in a ceremony honoring someone who has been killed and whose body has not been recovered."
"It gives me the shivers just watching it!"
When the Thurin Tirith warriors and Anayah came marching into the middle of the mercenaries' camp, they got exactly the result they had been expecting. Any human that was awake, no matter how he was occupying himself at the moment, stopped to stare, with knives paused halfway to lathered up beards, boots half on and half off.
Finally, when the group was in the approximate middle of the camp, Anayah flipped her cloak off her hands and raised her small crossbows, and together with her archers, who had grabbed their bows off their backs, began to fire. Within the first few minutes of the battle, all the mobile weapons had been disabled. Then the warriors went to their choice of either sword or long knives and began the dirty work of mucking out the camp.
The leader, in his arrogance, failed to respect the she-elf as a warrior, thinking that all females were weak and should be married, pregnant and in the home where they belonged. He was doubly surprised when she met his sword, blow for blow. He was even more surprised during the last 30 seconds of his life after the weak, helpless female managed to slit his throat almost without breaking a sweat.
Relieving the now dead leader of the mercenaries of his ring of keys, Anayah whistled for Shakir then held the keys over her head. A few seconds later a shadow fell over her and she felt the keys lifted nimbly from her hands. Behind her, she heard Arminas exclaim, "Have them," as he had been instructed to do so she would know that he was now in a position to free the prisoners.
The twins and Legolas had been watching the fight, as best they could, while Arminas unlocked the manacles on their legs and set them free. None of them had seen a Thurin Tirith warrior fight before with the possible exception of Legolas who had been too young to remember when four of them had been a part of his mother's royal guard.
They were fast, they were strong, they were lethal, and they were merciless. The Thurin Tirith were warriors with only a single duty, a single purpose in their lives and that was to serve one being until death and to fulfill that duty and purpose the four warriors would go to any lengths and use any means necessary. When one mercenary soldier got close enough to Anayah to strike her with his sword, he found himself instead, facing a very focused and intense Semoro. The merc made a fatal error - he froze - he froze when he should have turned around and ran. He got one last chance to look into the emotionless grey eyes of the big elf standing in front of him - and then he died.
Semoro, having been too close to the merc to use his sword, had reverted to hand-to-hand warring techniques, something they seldom ever used in battle unless sorely in need to do so. He struck the merc that was about to strike Anayah - he struck him in the chest with the heel of his hand in an area just below and to the left of the heart, driving splinters of bone from the ribs into the beating organ, effectively stopping it forever.
Looking back over her shoulder, she looked to see if the prisoners were yet free, from the bonds that had held them, as well as the mercs, while keeping one eye on the fight going on in front of her. She saw that Legolas had picked Aragorn up in his arms and had left the field followed by Arminas and Elrohir. But when Elladan had paused, as if wanting to join the fight, Anayah yelled at him, reminding him that it was his job to protect Estel. Nodding his head in understanding, Elladan quickly ran after the others.
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The mercenaries were not just ordinary soldiers themselves. They were all battle tested and hardened veterans of many fights and it was not that easy to kill one. Saeros was somewhat surprised when he looked over to where Anayah had engaged one of the mercs and saw her ebony bladed sword cutting bloody gouges in the man and the next, not only was she busy fighting two soldiers but she was using two swords. The move had evidently surprised the two she was fighting for they paused - right before they died.
The battle was finally over and she sank to one knee, her sword, now one sword once more, supporting her weight as she rested, fighting her weariness. Having had to fight wounded, the small amount of energy she had stored up by sleeping all the way to the merc camp, had been expended and now, she was running on pure adrenaline and not much more.
When Rahan walked up to her, he discreetly helped her to her feet, understanding not only her weariness but also her need to see the job done.
"Let us get out of here before any more of them show up."
With nothing left to do, their mission having been accomplished, the five elves left the field of death at a run. As they left, they failed to see that there was yet someone alive for a shadow moved in the trees on the far side of the battlefield, a shadow that had watched the battle very carefully, a shadow with glowing red eyes.
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Arminas had the six horses of Anayah's group saddled and ready and when Elrohir and Elladan whistled, the other four horses came to join the first six. Mounting quickly, the group rode for some distance until they felt they were reasonably safe from pursuit.
As the camp was quickly set up, bedrolls laid out, and water started to boil, Anayah went from elf to elf, checking to see who was wounded and how severe the wound was. Elladan found himself ready to remind her that he and Elrohir were healers also, when he felt Legolas lay a hand on his arm. The eldest twin looked over at the blonde Prince questioningly.
"You have never had a chance to watch her work under these kinds of conditions before, have you?"
"No, I have not although I must admit that I am amazed she has any energy left to do any of this!"
Able, for the moment to take everything in, Anayah got the feeling that the twins were feeling a little bit left out, and that their skills as competent healers were being ignored. She called to them and they were immediately by her side. Quickly, and in one smooth motion, she hugged each brother, kissed both on their foreheads, rubbed it in, then asked them to see to the injuries of the guards, which though minor still needed to be cleaned and bandaged. Then, she told them, after they were finished, they could come and help her with Aragorn.
Kneeling beside her brother, she quickly assessed his injuries and ordered them in amount of severity. He still had some congestion in his lungs, which would impede his recovery rate, especially if he was not getting enough oxygen to breathe. Looking into his eyes, she noticed the unequal dilation and when her fingers probed the head wound, she felt the bones move and give slightly which meant that her brother's skull had been fractured.
He had coughed up blood twice since they had arrived in their camp however, with the massive bruising on his rib cage, it was difficult to find the area where the broken ribs were either pressing against or had punctured the lung. The marks from the whip on his back would have to be diligently cleaned then stitched to prevent infection. His left wrist was broken cleanly but the many small bones in his hand were not and in addition the left arm had been pulled completely out of the socket. There was definitely much work to be done before either her brother or even herself could be comfortable.
She did not realize just how long she had been working on Aragorn nor had she noticed the others as they had gathered around and watched her work, soundlessly handing her water, needle and thread, herbs and bandages as she had asked for them. It was many hours later when she finally wrapped the last bandage and tied the last knot.
For a moment she sat back, closed her eyes then took a deep breath and wiped the sweat off her brow. She opened her eyes wide in surprise when she felt a hand on her forehead, feeling for and finding her own fever that she, herself, had forgotten all about. Gently she brushed Legolas's hand away and smiled. Legolas caught Rahan's eye and when Anayah got up to get fresh water, she found her path to the nearby stream blocked. She looked up into the grey eyes of her Captain who was noticing how her hands were beginning to tremble and how unsteady she had been when she had risen from the spot she had occupied for hours as she had tended to the many wounds of her brother.
Now, Rahan stood before her, arms crossed, grey eyes serious. "No more, Anayah. You have done enough for others and now it is time for you to rest and let us take care of you. Your brothers can finish what you have begun and you can rest assured that they will take good care of Estel."
When Anayah tried to go around the big Noldor, he put a gentle hand on her shoulder. It was about that time that all the dizziness, weakness and fatigue finally caught up with her and she felt herself falling into darkness, giving a sigh of relief that this part of the craziness was finally over.
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Lord Elrond felt the vibrations made by many horses moving quickly and knew it could only mean one thing - all the children were home - and there were injuries. Looking wordlessly at Glorfindel, he walked quickly to the doors that opened up onto the courtyard, calling to his healers as he went. When the ten horses galloped through the gates and came to a stop in front of him, he could not help but gasp for there were very few of those before him that were not wearing bandages.
As his eyes roamed over the group, he even counted an extra elf - meaning that Anayah's mission must have been successful as well. As to how and why everyone else was in the condition they were in was probably a story left for a different time. He followed behind as he directed Elladan who was carrying Estel and Rahan who was carrying Anayah to precede him to the Healing Wing. He then instructed the other healers to take care of the other wounded elves, changing bandages and comforting as necessary.
As he carefully checked Aragorn's numerous injuries, he made the mistake of asking what had happened. Elladan was about to answer his father's question when Anayah who had been watching closely from the adjacent bed sat up and started to answer. Elrohir gently pushed her back. As Elrond looked at another injury, Anayah again sat up and started to speak. This time both Elrohir and Rahan pushed her back onto the bed. Elrond's eyes met those of his eldest son in silent communication, who then nodded his head and left the room.
The third time Anayah tried to interject, Rahan moved the bed two feet further away from her brother. The fourth time she tried to speak, the bed was moved back another two feet and the final time, the only thing Rahan had to do was act like he was going to move the bed, and Anayah lay back down, glaring daggers at her Captain who only smiled benignly in return.
Finally, Aragorn was resting comfortably and Lord Elrond turned to his foster daughter who was sitting on the edge of the bed as far away from her Captain as she could get, and giving Rahan dirty looks, while he continued to patiently ignore her. Elladan came back in with a cup of tea and when she acted like she was not going to drink it, all Rahan had to do was look at her and raise an eyebrow after which she took the tea and drank it without further protest then laid down. Raising his own eyebrow, Elrond leaned towards the big Captain and whispered, conspiratorially, "You are going to have to teach me how to do that!"
"Anayah, your brother is resting comfortably for the moment."
"How is his hand? I was a little worried about that. I had to fix it as best I could at the time so he would not lose the use of it entirely. I had to set the bones by feel except for one place where I had to cut because I could not feel the bones well enough to know whether they were aligned so I do not know if I did him more harm than good and then there is his skull fracture that I could tell that was what it was right away so I just left it opened and bandaged."
Elrond finally put a gentle hand over his foster-daughter's mouth to quiet her.
"Anayah, hush." Seeing that she was about to begin talking again he held up a hand. "Hush daughter. Your brother is fine, all his wounds were clean and free from infection although he pulled a couple of the stitches on his back getting here. His hand is fine for you did a wonderful job of setting the bones. Now how about you? Anayah?"
All four elves bent closer and looked at Anayah, only to find that at long last she had fallen asleep. When Lord Elrond looked her over, other than a few new bruises and cuts, she was fine except for the low-grade fever she was running. After she got a good night's sleep she would probably feel much more herself.
As Elrond, the twins and Rahan were leaving the healing wing, Legolas and Saeros were coming in to sit with friend and charge. Legolas looked at Lord Elrond but when he saw the pain in the Noldor healer's eyes, his own heart clenched.
"It is the skull fracture, Legolas. We should know soon whether or not he will be himself when he wakes up. A small blood vessel that was injured when he was kicked in the head has ruptured causing pressure on the brain. Now oftentimes when this happens, the person will wake up and will have no aftereffects but sometimes the person will wake up not knowing those around him or not being able to speak and sometimes they wake up with the mind of a child. Rarely, but it does happen, the person will never wake, existing for the rest of their lives in an unnatural sleep."
"My Lord, you have given him the best care possible and now he is in Ilúvatar's hands. He is strong, and I am sure that he will wake and be his normal self in no time."
"Does your heart tell you this, young Prince, or do you have some foreknowledge of future events?"
"Nay, Lord Elrond, I do not foresee this. However, I do have faith in Aragorn and his natural inner strength, and it is my faith that tells me that he will survive this. You must not lose your own faith in your son. Tell me what we can do to help him?"
Elrond put a grateful hand on Legolas's shoulder.
"Just be with him, Legolas. Speak to him, not at him, read to him, hold his hand, make physical contact with him for if he knows that he is not alone, it might encourage him to wake. Other than that, all we can do is wait."
Legolas watched the sadness in the Noldor Lord's eyes. It mirrored in large part, the sadness in his own heart.
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For the next two days the twins, Legolas and Anayah took turns sitting beside Aragorn's bed. True to Elrond's advice, they read to him from his favorite books, talked to him about what was going on in Imladris and other places and sometimes they would just sit and hold his hands. The young ranger was never alone for a moment.
It was late in the afternoon of the second day after their return to Imladris that something finally happened that gave them all some hope. The four elves were sitting around the bed. Elladan was holding Aragorn's hand and Elrohir was gently bathing his brother's face with a cloth that had been dipped in cool water and Legolas and Anayah had been taking turns reading to the young man. It was Elrohir who first heard the scrabbling of tiny feet on the stone floor. Looking down, he smiled, then touched his twin's arm to get his attention. All four elves then looked down to the floor to see a small black squirrel trying to climb up the leg of the bed.
It was Elladan who reached down and picked up the smallest member of their family. After holding the squirrel for some minutes, stroking his back, he brought Chubby up to his face and looked him in the eye.
"Well, Healer Chubby, have you come to see how your patient is doing?"
The little squirrel trilled at him in reply making the elder twin smile.
"Maybe you can achieve success where we have failed." Rubbing the squirrel's soft hair against the side of his face, he then placed him on the bed near Aragorn's chest. "Bring him back to us Little Man."
The four were silent as they watched the squirrel walk to Aragorn's face then stand for a moment as if contemplating the man laying before him. Then he reached up with his tiny paw and tapped the unconscious being's cheek then once more sat back and watched for results. Trilling as if in irritation at being ignored, he reached up and patted the man again. Then it happened.
While he had been in his unnatural sleep, Aragorn had been curled up in a fetal position. Now he straightened out his legs then reached out with his good hand and drew the little black squirrel closely to his chest.
There were tears in everybody's eyes for this was the first time that Aragorn had moved on his own since he had returned home. Quickly Elladan left the room and went to find his father.
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Somewhere off in the distance he could hear voices and knew they were talking and their conversation somehow seemed to be directed at him but for some reason he could not understand what they were trying to say to him. He did not really want to wake up but those annoying voices just refused to let him alone. Perhaps if he opened his eyes for just a moment they would leave him alone and he could go back to sleep.
"Estel? Open your eyes son, just for a moment. Please? Come on son, open your eyes. I know you can do it."
Those standing around the bed watched as the young man's eyes slowly opened and he looked at them.
Elrond looked at his son.
"Estel do you know who I am? Come on son. Speak to me. Tell me who I am and then you can go back to sleep."
The young ranger looked up at him then furrowed his brows in concentration before he spoke.
"Mithrandir, it is nice to see you again. What are you doing here?"
Laughter erupted from those gathered around the bed.
"How do you feel Estel?" A relieved father asked.
"My head hurts, Ada. But other than that I do not feel too bad."
"Well, my son, I think I can help with that. Drink this tea then go back to sleep and when you wake up you will feel much better."
It was a testament to how poorly he was feeling that he took the tea and drank it without arguing shortly thereafter falling back to sleep.
Chubby, who had been watching all that went on as if supervising, saw as the human's eyes closed in sleep. The little one walked to his usual position near the sleeping man's chest and curled up. He went to sleep along with the human he had accepted responsibility for and all those who looked at him could swear that the tiny squirrel had a little smile on his face.
TBC
COMING NEXT: The Legend of Osp: It was like someone had put out the light. There was no explanation. They had figured out one part of the mystery only to find themselves pointed in the direction of another.
Soccer-Bitch: Thank you for taking the time to read the previous chapter and review it. I am sure that this is a difficult time for you right now. I hope you got a chance to read Chapter 19 for it was dedicated to your Grandfather. (PS: The entire ghost story runs from Chs. 16-19)