Disclaimer: Aren't mine. I can't have them. (Boo hoo hoo)
Reviewer Responses:
Deana: Yes I'm afraid it is time to heal. But don't worry; there is still some good tearful interaction for him to come. And I'll give you a hint. The first sequel (which I promise I will start immediately as soon as this one is over) has a lot of our favorite elf in it. And as I said don't we always hurt the ones we love the most?
manveri mirkiel: Chapter 15: She was more concerned with helping Legolas, than with killing Uglúk yet, but then again he plays a major role in things to come, so I can't kill him yet. And Garin, yes I like him quite a lot too. I think of him as sort of the father Atavus never had, even if she is quite a lot older than him.
Chapter 16: I wasn't really thinking of cooking him when I wrote that, but I'm sure the orcs were. Yes I am getting good at the torture thing. My husband has never read any of my stuff before. I think I'm starting to scare him. He keeps begging me to stop torturing them.
Chapter 17: Well what do I say to that? Your probably gonna hate me for this, but you won't find out Uglúk's secret until the sequel. (But as I promised Deana I am starting it immediately when this is over) I am torn between giving you more info, but I don't want to ruin the surprise. It's a big one. I was tempted just to continue it as part of this story, but where I'm planning on ending this one just seems like a good place, even if I do leave Uglúk sort of hanging in the wind. And about your friend, this is not meant as an insult, but I think poor Legolas would rather withstand all the torture I could throw at him than to be turned into a sissy/himbo. Ugh. But that is just my take on him. You're a Pippin fan huh. Well I haven't planned anything for the hobbits yet, but you never know when an evil plot bunny might strike. (I do believe poor Pip would be fun to torture, so young and impressionable he is, mrrahahaha.)
Karone Evertree: Yes Legolas is who I'm talking about. He will always be the hottest elf in my eyes. I never said Uglúk was dead. Sorry. I said she stabbed him in the chest. They just assume he'll die. But you'll learn more in the Sequel.
Old Friends and Healing
Laston led them down a very unused hall behind the servant's quarters, going deeper into the fortress. "How much further, Laston?" Aragorn asked shifting Atavus' weight slightly. The poison was beginning to weaken him more.
"Just around the corner." He said turning the corner. As Aragorn and Atavus rounded the corner they could see their friends waiting for them. But Atavus sucked in her breath at the sight of the dwarf who was with them.
"It's not possible." She said trying to move forward without Aragorn, but fell to the floor instead. They all moved forward to help her, but it was Garin who reached her first.
"Yes child it is." He said kneeling in front of her and taking her hands in his.
"But your dead." She said in confusion.
"If I'm dead, they didn't bother to tell me." He teased.
She reached her hand out and touched the side of his face. It finally dawned on her that it was him, and he was alive. She threw herself into his arms, with tears of joy streaming down her cheeks. "They said you were dead."
"They told me you were dead too. I didn't dare believe it." He admitted. "Now come. Time for reunions later. We have need to get in the tunnel before any of the orcs waken." He said pulling her up letting her lean on him as they entered the tunnel.
The twins were helping Legolas and Aragorn travel through the tunnel. Soon they had to stop. "Atavus, Garin we have to stop. Estel needs help. The poison is weakening him too much."
Atavus could not believe she had forgotten about Estel's poisoned shoulder. She was so thrilled to see Garin again. They had stopped next to an underground stream. It would be a good place to camp for the night. Even though it was impossible to tell whether it was night or day in the tunnel.
"I'm sorry Estel. I should have done something sooner." She said as Garin helped her to kneel beside where Elladan had laid him down.
"You're hurt Atavus. You shouldn't use your gift while you are hurt. You remember what happened when you dislocated your shoulder." Aragorn said.
"Yes I do. I was fine, with Legolas and your help." She answered pulling the slaves robe away from the wound.
"Atavus, we are out of the pain-killing herb." He said knowing she would need it for her ankle.
"Then I will just have to make do without." She answered. She looked at her companions. Normally she would have asked Legolas to help, but both of his arms were in makeshift slings. She knew he couldn't help. She felt very guilty that she hadn't been able to prevent his pain. But she had to push that from her thoughts as so she could help Estel. "Elrohir, can you help me?" She asked deciding the younger twin would be able to help.
He nodded. "You saw how Legolas held my hand on the wound the last time I healed Estel." He nodded again. "Can you do that for me. It is very important that I don't lose contact before it is done."
"Yes, but Estel is right. What if you become too ill afterwards and we can't care for you?" Elrohir asked a little frightened.
"If I become that ill you will take care of me. My body will eventually catch up. Don't worry. This poison is not as far along as before. It should not be so bad." She took his hand and squeezed it.
Garin watched uncertainly. He heard the words they spoke. He trusted Atavus to know what she was doing, but they were all so worried for her. "Are you sure?" He asked. She turned to him smiling and nodded.
"You best listen to her human. She has that look in her eyes." The dwarf said noticing the silent resolve she held.
Aragorn just nodded. She withdrew the dagger she had in her ankle sheath and slit her hand. She hadn't used her healing powers in so long, but it was second nature to her. She laid her hand on the wound, and Elrohir clasped his over hers. She felt the exchange as it started. This poison was somewhat different than any other she had removed. It seemed sluggish to start to act upon her body. But the Nazgul had said it was slow acting. She pulled it into her searching every part of her friend making sure to collect it all. She brushed passed the bright light that was his soul, and felt pure joy as her senses bushed it. She did not feel as if she was intruding this time as she wrapped herself for a moment in the comforting warmth she hadn't felt since entering Dol Guldur. She heard a voice in her mind. It was Estel. 'Enjoy the warmth my friend. I know how much you need it.' She spoke back to him thanking him. After a moment she let go.
She hadn't needed Elrohir's help. She blinked her eyes, and pulled her hand away. "It is done." Elrohir bandaged her hand, as Elladan bandaged the wound in Aragorn's shoulder. Aragorn sat up looking into her eyes.
"Either the poison was no where near as bad as other times, or you are becoming immune to its effects, my friend. Your eyes are barely cloudy." He smiled.
"I don't know which, but I am tired." She said looking for a comfortable place to lie down. Garin spread one of the blankets he had taken from the slave quarters beside Aragorn, motioning her down. She accepted quite willingly.
After she had fallen asleep Garin turned to the others and asked the question that was in his mind. "What did I just see happen?"
Legolas remembered asking Galen the same question when he first saw her heal a man on the plains of Gondor. ""You just saw Atavus draw morgul poisoning out of a wound, and replace it with her own blood." He answered in the same way Galen had answered him. "Now her own body will work to destroy the poison inside her. She will probably need more blankets though. The poison makes her cold."
Garin immediately layered several blankets on top of the sleeping woman. "Will she be okay?"
"Yes." It was Aragorn this time. He remembered feeling her soul touch his. He had poured as much warmth into her as he could, knowing she would need the comfort it offered. "She will be just fine come tomorrow." He had a knowing look in his eyes that the others did not question.
"She is very close to you two." It was a statement, not a question. "How did that happen? She used to not trust anyone, except maybe me."
"I guess when she started traveling with us she realized she didn't want to be alone anymore. She spent many years by herself. She just changed her mind." Legolas said remembering the Atavus they had first met in Ithilien. "When we first met she didn't like us at all. But things just changed when she saved my life."
The dwarf nodded satisfied with the answer.
"Garin how did you know about this passage?" Elrohir asked what he had been wondering since they entered the tunnel.
"That is an interesting story actually. One day a few months ago I came across a man in the fortress that did not belong. He was one of them rangers from the north. He dressed like you Estel. I could have turned him into the orcs, but for some reason he made me curious. So I gave him a few of the slave robes. Now every so often I see one of them poking around in the fortress. I'm not sure what they are planning. But any how as a thank you for my help the ranger showed me where the tunnel was and told me where it went." Garin finished the explanation.
"You've known about this tunnel for months, and you haven't escaped yet. Why?" Elladan asked not believing that any sane being would actually stay in Dol Guldur willingly.
Garin looked at Atavus' sleeping form. "Well I did plan to leave, but something was holding me back. I had the feeling that I needed to stay a little longer. I'm glad I did."
But Atavus wasn't actually asleep. Her instincts had woken her. She always knew when someone was talking about her. "You stayed for me." She spoke opening her eyes.
It startled the dwarf. He looked to her. "You were asleep."
"That's another thing you got to get used to around her. She always knows when she's being talked about, even in sleep." Legolas grinned at the look on Garin's face.
"That can be unnerving." The dwarf said, choosing not to comment on her statement.
"Garin, there is no way you could have been sure I lived, but you stayed anyway." Her friend's faith in her shook her emotionally.
"Atavus in the time we spent together at Minas Morgul, I only had one thing to live for. You meant everything to me. Even if I were to go back to my people, I would never be whole unless I knew you were safe somewhere. I couldn't go back not knowing. Now you are safe. I know you have a new life with the elves. I can see it in the eyes of your friends. You are their family now." He said looking into the eyes of the others in the room. "And I can see it in your eyes also. You are truly happy with them. That is all I can ask for. Now I can return to my family, and grow old and fat, and be satisfied with my life as it is."
His last statement brought a chuckle from Aragorn. "Yes she is part of our family now. My family started with my foster brothers and sister, and then extended to include me a human, then a wayward prince of Mirkwood." He smiled at Legolas. "And now you Atavus. You might not have been born an elf. But you are one in heart and soul. And I am proud to call you family."
Atavus was completely taken back by the statement. She wasn't sure his brother's would agree with the statement, but when she looked at each of them they held the same accepting look, in their eyes as both Estel and Legolas held. She had left Mordor looking for her freedom, and fleeing the only family she had known, only to find a family that she truly wanted and needed. The Valar had truly blessed her.
Author's note: Well there is one more chapter left in this fic, and then I will start on the sequel The Long Journey Home. Thank you to my faithful reviewers. You have all been a great help to me. (Even if some of you do think I'm evilly morbid) Oops did I say that out loud? Well I guess you might be right, but truly I'm really a nice person. (I fooled them all. Ha,ha,ha.)
