Chapter 3:

The elves waited in the parlor for two hours before Elrond crept quietly out of the room. Indareun was the first to notice him walking down the hall.

"How are they?" He asked Elrond as he ran hastily over to the elf lord. "Anduril will survive although I did have to do surgery on his arm. It was a very deep wound and it hit an internal artery." Elrond's face was tired and worn. "And Elrohir? How is he?" Indareun said after taking a second to think about Elrond's answer. Elrond looked down at the ground. "I've done all I could think of but I can't figure out what he has. He's getting worse by the hour and I'm afraid he won't live much longer."

As Elrond said this, tears started forming little rivers down his cheeks. Legolas and Aragorn had come up from behind Indareun and they tried their best to comfort their father though the tears were flowing freely from their eyes too.

Indareun's heart felt like a bomb had been dropped on it. He walked into the forest to be alone and think about his brother and friend. "We should never have come here Anduril." He said mournfully even though he knew his brother could not hear him.

Indareun sat on the forest floor and wept for hours. When he went back into the gates of Rivendell to eat supper, his tears had dried but the stains they had left still showed on his fair face.

He reached the dining room and didn't find a soul. He figured that they were all in the healing hall watching over Anduril and Elrohir so he started to walk across the halls.

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Aragorn sat on his bed in despair. He wondered where Indareun had gone when he walked off. His mind was filled with memories and thoughts about his brother. He didn't want to lose Elrohir like he had come so close to a few years before.

He thought about the time that Elrohir had gotten captured and tortured by orcs while on his way to Mirkwood. Elrohir had gotten injured so badly he almost died. He was confined to the healing hall for six months.

Aragorn remembered how he felt when he saw Elrohir the day after he was rescued. He had felt the same way he felt now. Like he was losing his companion and he was being tortured and torn apart limb from limb. He wished he could take Elrohir's place and he gladly would if he got the chance.

Aragorn prayed to the holy Valar that Elrohir wouldn't die. Tears ran from his eyes as he quietly talked to his lord.

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Elrond walked into his room and lay on the bed. Tears started flowing down his face. He really did not know if Anduril would be okay. The wound had gotten infected and Anduril already had a high fever.

Elrond also worried about his real son. "What is it that Elrohir had? Is it just because he blames himself for what happened to Anduril and after a bit of rest he will be okay?" Elrond talked to himself through the tears while he sat there on his bed. "No. It couldn't be that. That wouldn't explain the fever and white face. What is wrong with him?" Elrond was blaming himself for this incident because he had allowed the twins to persuade him not to tell of their arrival.

He was so exhausted. He was weeping and he just fell back and looked at the ceiling. Before long, the elven lord was fast asleep with tearstains on his cheeks.

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Legolas walked into the gardens after Elrond had gone to his room. He'd never heard of Elrond not knowing what was wrong with someone. He was the best healer there was! If he didn't know what to do, no one would.

"I suppose we'll just have to wait and see what happens." He thought out loud.

"I guess we will." Came a voice from behind him. It was Elladan. Legolas looked into his eyes and they were a silvery gray. He could see that Elladan had been crying. "This has been a sad day for everyone. Maybe we will wake up tomorrow and it will all just be a dream." He said solemnly. "No, this is no dream. This is real and you can't hide from the truth. Elrohir is dying." Elladan's voice was shaky and Legolas could tell that he was about to cry.

"Come here mellon nin. I know that it may seem that Elrohir is dying, but I don't think that the holy Valar would take him away from us right now. He will be okay. You just have to believe." Legolas pulled Elladan close to him and started weeping.

"That's what Aragorn told me. That's almost exactly what Aragorn told me. Elrohir and I have this…connection. We can sense when the other is in trouble and when one of us is weak, the bond between us weakens and the other can feel it. I feel it now and the bond is almost gone. That is why I say he is dying. The connection is almost broken." After these words, Elladan burst out crying and all of his pain came out. He lay on Legolas' shoulder and just wept. There was really nothing else he could do. The two friends sat in the garden for the rest of the evening.

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Indareun was almost to the healing halls when he heard a faint crying sound. He quietly looked around and his eyes found Legolas and Elladan in the gardens. Indareun watched the two with grief. He saw the love and the pain in their faces. The pain was so great but the love in their eyes was greater.

The twin walked on and went into the healing hall. He saw Elrohir in the corner. His friend looked so graceful lying there in the sun with the big pink and white cherry tree in the background. "My friend, you need to get well. Your family is worried about you and you have brought grief to Rivendell. Your mother would hate to see her eldest son like this." He whispered softly into Elrohir's ear.

Indareun walked over to his brother. He couldn't even tell this was the same elf. Anduril's face was pale and sweat was running down it. The pillow behind his head was soaked. Indareun looked at his twin's closed eyes then at the injured arm. It was wrapped in a bandage and he couldn't see the damage that the arrow had done. "My brother, you have to wake up now. If not now, then you have to later. If you don't wake up I won't have anybody to play tricks on or to accompany me on my journeys. Please brother. Do it for me. For nana."

Indareun walked over to the rocking chair that had been set near Anduril's bed. Sitting down, he remembered his nana. He wondered what she would say if she was still with them. A tear quickly rolled down the side of his face and he fell into a long, troublesome sleep.