Part 9
Three days later Strider stood beside his horse Guar ready to depart from Tiriki. He had already said his good-byes to both Halabrad and Aquila earlier that morning. The man had thanked them for all their help and then promised to return as soon as he sorted everything out back in Rivendell. Now all that remained was to say farewell to Picket and Pharra.
The young woman and her husband to be came strolling down the street together stopping beside Strider's mount. Picket smiled warmly at his friend, "It was good to see you again Strider. I look forward to seeing you out in the wild."
Strider nodded and shook Picket's hand. "Thank you my friend. And might I give you both my congratulations. So when is the wedding anyway?"
Pharra looked over at her betrothed and smiled, "Next spring."
Guar neighed in excitement as though he knew what was going on. Strider patted him gently, "Don't worry Guar we're going." He added, "Hannon le Pharra." The man then mounted Guar and picked up the reigns. As he tapped his horse he called, "And I'll be sure to be back by spring. I wouldn't miss the wedding for anything in the world."
Pharra and Picket both waved good-bye as Guar rode up the hill and away from the village. Pharra hoped that everything turned out alright between Strider and his family. From what she knew of Elrond she was pretty sure that they would. Picket put his arm around her and called, "What do you say we go down to Rainbow Valley love?"
Pharra smiled, "I'd love to."
Strider rode on down the road toward Rivendell. The closer he got to his destination the more nervous he became. Several times he thought of turning back, but then he remembered his talk with Pharra and knew he had to face Elrond. It took several days to arrive at the forests surrounding the valley, but he finally made it.
It took him the rest of the day to get to the outskirts of the valley. Strider looked down on the valley and wondered how things would work out. It was already quite late and he wasn't even sure if the elf lord would be awake. Slowly he and Guar made there way down into the valley below. After stabling his mount Strider headed toward the main house.
Meanwhile within the walls, Elrond paced the floor of his bedroom. He couldn't sleep tonight and finally grew tired of trying. He stood and walked over to his balcony and looked out over the valley below. Things had been so different without Estel. It was becoming harder to convince the elves that Estel had merely gone away for a while. They knew something was wrong. But still Elrond did not speak of it, not even to Glorfindel or Erestor.
It was a beautiful night, but the elf lord could not truly enjoy it. He happened to see the star of high hope shining in the night sky. It reminded him of Estel and fresh tears spilled down his cheeks. Then a lone rider caught his attention. The lord of Rivendell was not expecting visitors and wondered who it could be. Deciding to greet him or her upon their arrival, Elrond quickly pulled a robe over his nightwear and headed down to the main entrance.
A surprise met the elf upon opening the door. Estel stood staring at him a shocked look on his face. Elrond was sure his face matched that of his distant nephew. This was not whom he had expected to see this night.
Strider looked up at the elf lord in front of him. After recovering from the shock, Strider found himself glued to the doorstep. He had not expected Elrond to answer the door, but was relieved that he didn't have to face any of the other elves right now. He broke the silence, "We need to talk."
Elrond moved aside allowing his young nephew to enter. He led the young man to the Hall of Fire. He was glad to find it empty, and did not particularly want to have this conversation in his study. The last one the two had in there had not turned out very well. Hopefully a change of environment would ease the tension.
Strider sat down in a chair across from his uncle. Now that he was in Rivendell he had no idea what to say. The speech he'd planned on the way over was completely lost to him. He shifted uncomfortably in his chair. Where should he begin?
Elrond stared across through his grey eyes at the young man. He was fidgeting terribly and the elf lord could see he was nervous. He tried to get the boy to talk to him, "Aragorn?"
Instead of having the desired effect of calming the human it made him tense. Elrond realized the young man still was uncomfortable with the name.
Strider was afraid the use of his birth name was the sign that he was not welcome in Rivendell anymore. What he had done was unforgivable just as he had feared. The man slowly rose from his chair muttering, "I'm sorry my lord, it seems I've wasted your time."
Elrond stopped his nephew with his hand. Why had his nephew called him by a title rather than Uncle El as he always did? Something was bothering the human and this time he was going to find out. Seeing the reaction his birth name garnered he switched to the one the boy knew so well, "Estel, what's wrong?"
Strider couldn't take it anymore. He loved his uncle and didn't want to be disowned. And hearing his old name brought all the emotions from the past few months to the surface. He broke down for the first time since the argument. This time however he broke down in tears. He flung himself into Elrond as if he were still a small child and began to sob uncontrollably.
Elrond soothed gently, "Estel, what is it?" He slowly smoothed out the man's matted hair pulling his head up gently. The elf lord rested his forehead against that of his nephew and whispered comforting words in elvish.
After a while Estel finally was able to control his emotions enough to speak. He blurted out, "Uncle I'm so sorry that I said all those awful things to you. I don't hate you; I love you. Please don't send me away. I know I'm just like them. All of them, weak and helpless, but I just.." He broke off again in fresh sobs.
Elrond realized what was wrong. The man thought he was like his ancestors. Nothing could be further from the truth. "Oh Estel, you are not like them." He raised his nephew's head so he could look him in the eyes, "Did you hear me? You are not like them at all." He smiled, "And I could never send my Estel away. Come here." He pulled the young man into a warm embrace and rocked him gently back and forth.
After a few minutes Estel's crying had subsided. He leaned back and wiped the remaining tears away. Elrond asked kindly, "You look tired. And to be honest so am I."
Estel smiled through a yawn. "My bed is definitely calling me."
Elrond smiled and he began to lead his nephew back upstairs to his room. He put an arm around the human's shoulders and without realizing it nearly bumped straight into Glorfindel. The balrog slayer asked in surprise, "Estel?"
The human smiled sheepishly, "I'm back."
Glorfindel pulled the human into a quick hug. "So you're the reason my dear friend is up so late." He turned his attention to Elrond and asked, "Why did you not wake me?"
Elrond smirked, "I did not wish to disturb you my friend. I was already awake and could easily greet the guest myself. No reason to wake you up when the person would no doubt be seeking me out anyway."
Glorfindel smiled, "I suppose. But you go ahead and get back to bed Elrond. I'll take Estel to his room."
The lord of Imaldris let out a rare yawn and then headed to his own bedchambers leaving Glorfindel to lead Estel to his old room. It didn't take long for him to get the human settled in, and then the servant took his leave for the night.
Just as Estel had about drifted asleep his bedroom door flung open. An elf with dark brown hair and who resembled Lord Elrond bounded into the bed. He pulled the human up and squeezed him tight calling, "Estel! I've been so worried about you."
The human laughed. And here he was thinking all this time they didn't want him around anymore. "I missed you too Ro. How's Dan?"
Elrohir sat back on his knees and gave his little cousin a full examination. He didn't find any marks or bruises and was therefore appeased. He chided, "You shouldn't run away like that Estel. We were all worried sick about you."
Estel put on a puppy dog face and replied, "I'm sorry." Of course the look Elrohir gave him made him burst into laughter. He added, "You never answered my question."
The youngest of Elrond's twins teased, "Dan's going to follow you around like a hawk for the rest of your born days. If you don't feel badly about running off now, you will after he smothers you with love."
The human couldn't help but add with a wry grin, "That sounds like Dan. But at least he'll stop babying you right?"
Elrohir laughed and ruffled his young cousin's hair. He knew that everything was not settled and back to normal but they were well on their way. "I should let you get some sleep. I'll see you in the morning."
Estel yawned and slowly lay back down in the covers. As Elrohir left he couldn't help but tease, "If Dan doesn't drive me off by smothering me with affection."
O-O-O-O-O-O
O-O-O-O-O-O
Estel remained in Rivendell for several long months. During this time he healed the wounds between he and his uncle. Slowly his relationship with his elven family returned to the way it had once been. The argument that transpired between the young man and Elrond was never spoken of to any other in Rivendell. The elf lord saw no reason to reveal the information to any other. It became a secret which was only known between the two of them. Only two other souls ever learned of what caused his flight. His mother learned later through deduction of her own, and from what Strider revealed to her on his own. The other was the Lady Arwen who gave up immortality to become Aragorn's wife and Queen.
But soon the human became restless in Rivendell and felt the desire to return to Tiriki and continue his tutelage under Halabrad. He longed to return to his friends and new found kin. There were problems that still troubled his mind, Pharra's illness and the haunting fact that the rangers seemed filled with so much disorder. The human longed to help his kin from the north, and still greatly feared his heritage and what he would become.
Elrond tried to persuade his young nephew to claim the throne of Gondor, but soon found the human was resolved. The elf lord was gifted with foresight and looked into the boy's future to determine how best to convince him. But instead Elrond foresaw that being a ranger was indeed apart of the young man's destiny, and therefore sent riders to the human city to inform them that Strider would soon be returning to them.
So it came to pass that in early fall Picket arrived at Elrond's door to escort Strider back into the wild. After saying his farewells to Elrond, his cousins and all the other elves whom he considered his friends within the blessed valley, Strider set out with Picket toward Tiriki. But even though he returned to the wild, this time he knew right where he belonged. And he had finally found the road which would lead him home.
A/N: Well that's the end of this story. But don't worry I am writing a sequel. But I have no idea how soon I will be able to start posting it. I have to get everything with this comptuer worked out first, and I have to finish or at least get further into the story before I can even consider it. I would like to thank all of my wonderful reviewers. I appreciate each and every one, and love reading them. I especially want to thank some of the ones who keep coming back every chapter, Lindahoyland, Grumpy, and fading lights all three of you have meant a lot to me as I wrote this story. Thank you for your inspiration. And now for all my reviewers, a preview of my next story...
Title: What a Complex Web We Weave
Author: MusicDreamer
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Strange happenings are going on in Mirkwood. Glorfindel is sent by Elrond to investigate the situation. Little do they know that Strider has been sent to the Misty Mountains to set up a human village at their base. Yet soon the elves are accusing the men of stirring up the trouble in Mirkwood. Yetthere is more going on here than meets the eye. Strider, Picket, Glorfindel, Legolas, and others soon find themselves in a complex mystery that seems to have no end. Sequel to Long Way Home.