A/N: Hi, all. Sorry this didn't get up last week as I said that I would do. Real Life has been absolutely wretched to me lately. Working 38 hours and going to school and all that is not fun. Anyways, here is this chapter. I don't think that there is much to explain about it all. Thank you to all who review. It makes me so happy to read them. Again this chapter is un-beta-ed so if you find mistakes please let me know. I tried to go through it all, but I am definitely not an English major. See previous chapters for additional notes and disclaimers.
1 YEAR LATER
"Elrohir," Elladan called down the hall to his twin. Elrohir turned balancing five books in one hand and a glass of wine in the other hand.
"What's up, El? I have a meeting in ten minutes."
"I can't find Estel."
"And that's odd how?" Estel had a habit of being late to things or disappearing for hours. He did not exactly have the best sense of time. "He's probably just with some of his friends."
"We had a fencing lesson planned." Suddenly Elrohir understood the worry he saw in Elladan's eyes. Estel was never late for anything that had to do with a sword. He loved the practice and training begging both twins to practice with him at every free moment.
"Let me set these things in the library and I'll help you look. Go tell Ada. He'll want to know."
"I'll meet you in the gardens in ten minutes." Elrohir rushed off to the library and dropped the books and wine before going to his room and grabbing his bow, quiver, and sword. In these times, he rarely left the house without weapons. Imladris may be safe, but you never knew. There were an increasing number of orc and warg attacks.
Elladan was waiting with Glorfindel and a few other elves when Elrohir reached the garden. Elrond was talking to a few young elflings a little ways off. He walked over to the group elves dismissing the elflings with a stern word and a promise to tell their parents.
"What is it, Ada?" Elladan questioned worriedly.
"It seems that the elflings were terrorizing Estel about being adopted again. They said that we only feel sorry for him. That we don't love him and he isn't really a part of the family. That combined with a few well meant, but harsh words from his archery instructor today seems to have sent him over the edge. He ran off into the woods a few hours ago."
"But it's winter," Elladan began.
"And it's snowing," Elrohir continued.
"And Estel is human."
"He'll freeze"
"Or get sick"
"Or attacked." Elrond shook his head. The twins still finished each other sentences and thoughts even though they did not notice it anymore. At least, he was now able to easily follow their train of thought unlike when they were elflings.
"That's why we have to find him and quick. At least the snow should provide us with some workable tracks as long as it doesn't start snowing harder." Elrond stated leading the group out to where the elflings said that they were playing when Estel ran off.
Unfortunately the weather did not listen to Lord Elrond and the snow was falling heavily by the time that they got there. All of Estel's tracks were hidden even though he was unable to walk on top of the snow like the elves.
'Great,' Elrohir thought. 'Just our luck. The stupid storm couldn't hold off for a few more hours.' He looked over at Elladan and knew that he shared the thought.
"El," Elrond called to both twins. "You will search north of here. Give two sharp whistles if you find him. Glorfindel, you…" The twins took off looking to the north without listening to the rest of Elrond's directions.
They walked about 20 feet apart with all of their senses alert. Even at 5 years old, Estel was hard to find when he did not want to be. They called to him every few moments. There was never any answer and after an hour they both began to get frustrated and even more worried. They were getting closer to the borders of Imladris and they knew that more dangers lay outside of its borders.
They walked another hour. Not a word was said by the two except for calling to Estel. Elrohir looked to his right and saw Elladan there looking at him. He looked as though he wanted to break something, anything in half just to release the building frustration. Elrohir's own feelings shone deeply in his eyes.
"Where could that child be?" Elladan said whipping a snowball at a tree and missing it in his frustration.
"Ow," came a small and weak reply from the direction of the tree saving Elladan a few teasing words from his twin. The twins exchanged a confused look and headed towards the noise. As they got closer, something tried to scurry away only to fall back down. Both twins rushed to the side of the fallen. It was face down in the snow, but both would have known the tangled mess of dark hair anywhere.
"Estel," Elrohir said quietly rolling Estel onto his back in the snow. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." Estel choked out. "Leave me alone. I know you don't want to be here."
"What do you mean?" Elladan asked before letting out the two sharp whistles.
"Never mind." Estel said trying to stand only to find himself back in the snow.
"What happened?" Elrohir asked.
"I hurt my leg."
"How?"
"Fell out of a tree." Elrohir carefully examined the leg around Estel's boot. Estel winced in pain slightly. The ankle did not seem to be broken, but it was hard to tell with the boot still on. Elrohir pulled his cloak off and wrapped it around the shivering form of his younger muindor.
"Now do you want to tell us why you ran away?" Elrohir questioned softly.
"No. You don't want to know. You don't care." Estel replied trying to pull away. Elladan pulled his own cloak off and wrapped it around Estel catching the boy in his firm embrace.
"Of course we care Estel. Why wouldn't we?" Elladan said. Estel did not reply and pulled out of both of their grasps. He was instantly swept up again.
"There you are, ion-nin." Elrond whispered happily. "You had us all worried." Estel did not reply, but did not try to get away either. He let his Adar carry him, but if anyone could have seen the look in his eyes they would have seen defiance not thought possible in a five year old.
Once home and back in his own bed with the sprained ankle attended to, Estel laid with his eyes closed and faked sleeping. He did not want to talk to anyone and was looking for the first opportunity to escape again. Even after that evening's events, he was certain that his family only felt sorry for him. Elrond had tried to talk to him while he saw to the injured ankle but did not get very far. He had left the Estel's room a few minutes ago having been summoned to a meeting.
Elrohir sat looking at his muindor. He was not fooled as his Ada had been. He knew that Estel was awake. He got up from the chair where he had been keeping his vigil and sat down on the bed. He was careful to not disturb Estel's blankets. Estel had developed a cold while out in the snow for so long.
"So do you want to tell me why you ran?" Elrohir said to the unmoving form on the bed. The only answer was more silence. "Estel, I know you are not sleeping."
"Go away." The still form answered.
"I can't do that. I know what the elflings told you." Estel rolled over. "They were lying. I thought we talked about this the last time they said something." Estel sat up pulling the blankets up with him, but still did not speak. "Elflings say mean things at times. You can't believe them. You have to believe what you know in your heart, what you feel. You know we love you. You know you are a part of this family."
"Elflings not the problem." Estel muttered almost silently. Elrohir only heard because of his elven hearing; a human would have missed it easily.
"Well if it wasn't the elflings, what was it?" Estel stayed silent. The door opened distracting Elrohir for a moment until he noticed that it was only Elladan bringing their dinner. Elladan set the tray down and joined his twin. "Dilthenor, talk to me."
"Don't want to."
"Well, these things won't just go away." Elladan replied.
"You know you can always talk to us." Elrohir put in.
"Don't want to."
"He's very articulate, isn't he?" Elladan said teasingly to his twin.
"What's arti… artic…?"
"Never mind, Estel. Just tell us what's wrong." Elrohir said.
"You don't care. You don't love me."
"Meleth lle." Both twins said at once and shoved each other moments later simultaneously as well which sent Estel into a giggling fit.
"See," Elrohir started.
"We love you," Elladan continued.
"And so does Ada."
"But I'm not family. I'm adopted." Tears sprang to Estel's eyes and Elrohir quickly wrapped him up in his arms. Estel tried to wiggle out of his arms when he stopped crying, but Elrohir would not let him.
"Estel," Elrohir started again. "Just because you are adopted, doesn't mean that you are not family."
"In fact," Elladan continued as Estel once again relaxed in Elrohir's arms. "It means that you are family and that we love you incredibly much." Estel looked a little perplexed.
"See, Elladan and I got stuck with each other and Arwen. We had no choice to be family. We were because we had the same parents, which we had no say in either."
"But you love each other." Estel replied looking at one twin and then the next for further explanation. "And you love Arwen, right?"
"Yes, we do." Elladan replied playing with Estel's ever messy hair.
"But you see we didn't choose to be family. We chose you."
"We chose to make you our brother."
"And Ada chose to adopt you."
"But I was little. You just felt sorry for me." Estel cut in.
"No, we didn't just feel sorry for you." Elrohir answered finally letting Estel out of his protective and loving hold.
"We loved you the moment we saw you." 'After we had killed off the orcs, sifted through the carnage, and found your silent form in the mists of it all.' Both twins added silently to themselves.
"And were overjoyed when Ada told us he was adopting you. You are our brother just as much as Arwen is our sister." Estel knew little of his sister, other than the fact that the twins loved her and were protective of her, and she lived in Lothlorien with his grandparents, whom he has also never seen.
"Estel, who told you this? What made you think this?"
"Heard adults talking." Estel barely choked out wrapping himself back up in Elrohir's arms while Elladan laid a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Who?"
"What did they say?"
"I don't know who. I didn't see them. They said that I could never be family because I was human. They said that you guys could not love me. They were lying, weren't they?" Estel looked up at the twins, apprehension apparent in his voice despite the conversation so far.
"Of course they were lying." A voice from the doorway floated in to the trio's ears. Elrond walked over to the bed and pulled Estel out of Elrohir's arms and into his own. Estel smiled at the sight of his Ada. "Meleth lle, ion-nin."
"Ada, I am family, right?" Both twins smiled at their brother's complete trust in Elrond's answers. Elrond smiled down at Estel. He was so much like the twins were at that age. They had different fears but were much the same in how they expressed them. It was amazing that the three were not truly related.
"Yes, you are. I adopted you and love you, as do El. That is enough to make you family, ion-nin. You want to know what, though?"
"What?" The twins looked at their Ada slightly confused. 'Would could he possibly tell, Estel?' Elrohir thought.
"You are related to us."
"I am!"
"Yes, you are."
"How? I'm not an elf."
"Well, I had a twin."
"Like El."
"Much like them." Elrond laughed slightly remember how mischievous he and Elros had been. They were as bad as Elladan and Elrohir, if not worse. "His name was Elros and he is one of your forefathers."
"What's that mean?"
"It means that he was you great great great grandfather by a few hundred generations."
"So if he was your muindor, then I would be your nephew, right?"
"Yes, you would."
"But how did that happen? He's an elf."
"Yes, he was. Estel, I am only partially an elf. I have human blood in me."
"Like me." Estel said beaming.
"Yes, like you. Since Elros and I had that human blood, we had to decide whether we wanted to be an elf or a human. I chose to be an elf; Elros chose to be a human." Elrond kept a smile on his face hiding the true emotions from his face. It was a painful memory, but if it eased Estel's pain, he would gladly endure it. The twins did not miss it and both placed a comforting hand on his shoulders.
"Oh, if I'm related to him, so I have to be related to you too." Estel looked incredibly happy and gave Elrond a big hug. Then, he wrapped himself in the twins' arms again.
"Okay, ion-nin, it's time for you to go to bed. Say goodnight to your brothers." Estel regretfully did as told and laid easily in his bed falling asleep quickly.
"I am going to find out who he heard and make them pay." Elladan said quietly walking out of the room.
"I'm with you." Elrohir replied even though he did not need to. Elladan already knew that he was.
To Be Continued...
