CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Arwen looked up sharply when Aragorn entered the room. "How is he?" she demanded at once.
"Unconscious. Arwen, it was the same poison that injured your mother," said Aragorn, sitting down.
"No!" cried Arwen. "I will not lose my son!"
"Meleth nîn, it is alright. Elrohir managed to remove most of the poison. We will have to wait until the morning before we can tell if there is any residue." My love
"How can you say that!" exclaimed Arwen. "You didn't see what happened to my mother! She was in so much pain that she had to leave for Valinor. Not even Ada, the best healer is Arda could save her and you sit there and tell me that my son, who is mortal, will be alright!"
"Yes," replied Aragorn. "Because unlike your mother, Eldarion only has one wound, he was not tortured, his wound was treated more rapidly than your mother's and Eldarion is a fighter. He will not let himself be beaten by an Orc."
"You said the same about Kalya!" exclaimed Arwen. "And look where she ended up! The Eternal Halls!" Aragorn inhaled sharply and stood.
"That was below the belt, Arwen!" he snapped. "What was I supposed to tell my six-year-old son? How was I supposed to explain that Kalya gave up her life when all he had known was a warrior?"
"I am asking you not to give false hope!" replied Arwen.
"What do you want me to tell you?" exploded Aragorn. Faramir and Éowyn seemed to want to disappear into the walls. Never had they heard the royal couple have such a row. "That Eldarion is lying close to death only because a fox took most of the poison before the arrow struck him?"
"What of Elboron?" asked Éowyn quickly before Arwen had a chance to respond.
"He is with Eldarion," Aragorn said, breathing deeply to prevent himself from lashing out at someone else. "You can go see them if you want but don't wake him up, he has been through about as much as Eldarion."
"What do you mean?" asked Faramir.
"I will not explain now. Go see your son. Glorfindel and Erestor are still with them. Arwen you go as well since you are unwilling to take my word on Eldarion's condition." Faramir flinched at the harsh edge in Aragorn's voice but Arwen paid little attention as she gathered up her skirt and hurried to the healing wing. Faramir and Éowyn followed after casting concerned glances back at Aragorn.
Unable to sleep, Aragorn turned and marched out of the room, heading for the site of his mother's memorial.
'Mellon nîn you have to learn that you are not living with your people at the moment,' said Lindir as Aragorn sat murmuring to himself, his head resting against the cool marble. my friend
'What do you mean?' whispered Aragorn.
'I mean half of Imladris heard your argument with Arwen.'
'Sorry.'
'It is understandable,' said Lindir, crouching in front of the Man. Aragorn looked so much like the youth who had just been told who he really was – lost and confused. 'You are concerned about your son who is very similarly injured to your sister and is suffering from the same poison as Celebrían. Tensions are high and you are not thinking properly. Neither is Arwen. You both said things that otherwise you would never have thought.'
'What have I done, Lindir?'
'Something stupid and irrational but under the circumstances completely understandable,' comforted Lindir. 'Come, your son needs you by his side, not out here feeling sorry for yourself.'
Despite himself, Aragorn chuckled; 'I can always count on you to be brutally honest.'
'I babble on enough in my profession without having to do it in real life as well,' replied Lindir. 'Besides, how did you want me to put it?'
'I'm sure you could have thought of some flowery way of putting it, giving the time' said Aragorn. 'Alright, I'm coming.'
Elboron had woken up the moment Arwen came, almost literally, crashing into the healing wing. Glorfindel and Erestor looked up startled. The two older Elves had been sitting, Erestor's head resting on Glorfindel's shoulder, simply watching the two children sleep, every so often checking to ensure that no sign of fever hinted on Eldarion's skin. So far, the raven-Prince was not succumbing to the wound in his stomach but only time would tell. As Arwen came into the healing wing, Elboron curled up tighter next to Eldarion, as though to protect him from something.
"Arwen this is the healing wing!" exclaimed Erestor, trying his best not to sound angry or startle Elboron. Eldarion was still unconscious and Glorfindel could probably have taken on the Balrog for second time at the foot of his bed and he wouldn't have so much as rolled over.
"How is he?" demanded Arwen, ignoring the admonishment from Erestor.
"Unconscious," replied Glorfindel. "You have however just woken Elboron." Éowyn immediately brushed passed Arwen and sat on the bed.
"Elboron?" she asked gently, laying a hand on his shoulder. Elboron murmured something and rolled his head to face Éowyn, though he did not renounce his position spooned against Eldarion.
"Mamma?" he whispered. Éowyn nodded a weak smile on her face.
"I'm here, little one. You're alright. You're safe here," she soothed.
"Eldarion?" he asked, rolling his head back to his friend.
"He's still unconscious," replied Glorfindel for the second time. "He is no longer in any pain. But how about you?"
"Side still hurts, but not as bad as when Elrohir was working on Eldarion," replied Elboron. Éowyn and Faramir both raised a eyebrow at Glorfindel's question but when Elboron rolled flat on his back, and held his hand out to Éowyn their questions went unasked.
"Mamma, I'm scared."
"Of what?" asked Éowyn, gently taking the hand she was being offered. It was a long time since she had been called 'Mamma' and it demonstrated how scared Elboron actually was.
"Of Eldarion dying," replied Elboron in a quiet voice.
"He won't die," reassured Faramir as he took the seat next to the bed. "Not while you hold out hope that he will survive."
"Elboron, would you let go of Eldarion?" asked Arwen. She had moved around the bed and was now sitting on the other side, her hands resting on Eldarion's sides. Elboron was about to shake his head but felt that it was unfair for Eldarion's own mother not to be able to hold her injured son close while his own parents had the opportunity. Upon his release, Arwen pulled Eldarion into a tight embrace, no being as mindful of his stomach as she could have been. Though deep in the realm of unconsciousness, Eldarion groaned in pain at the movement. In response, Elboron hissed.
"Glorfindel?" asked Faramir, totally confused.
"We will answer your questions once Eldarion and Elboron are both coherent enough to understand the answers," replied Glorfindel as Aragorn walked into the healing wing with Lindir at his side. "For the moment know that they have formed a bond that, if they wish, will last a lifetime."
As Arwen cradled her injured son to her chest, whispering words of comfort into his ear, Aragorn made to slip out into the corridor again but Lindir grabbed his elbow as subtly as possible and stayed him. Aragorn watched as Arwen rocked their son, biting his lip and swallowing the lump of emotion that was gathering in his throat.
'Sweetheart, please wake up,' begged Arwen as she sat rocking Eldarion back and forward, brushing hair out of his eyes. Elboron sat in Éowyn's arms and despite his best efforts not to, he had fallen asleep again.
'He's exhausted,' said Aragorn sitting down at the foot of the bed. 'And he is in a healing sleep.'
'I just want to know that he is alright,' whispered Arwen. Aragorn reached forward and pressed a hand to Eldarion's forehead, taking his hand in one of his own.
'He's still warm,' said Aragorn. 'And his spirit is fighting. He is not going to let a small wound beat him.' He tucked a stand of hair behind Eldarion's ear and his eyes began to widen as he felt the skin under his hand heat slightly, almost as if Eldarion was blushing.
'Glorfindel, would you feel his skin for me?' asked Aragorn. Glorfindel cocked his head to one side but nevertheless, lent forward and pressed the back of his hand to Eldarion's forehead. When his eyes met Aragorn's he nodded.
'Erestor would you go find Elladan. Tell him that there has been a change in Eldarion's condition. Glorfindel draw a bath of lukewarm water, Arwen help me get Eldarion's clothes off.'
"Aragorn what's happening?" asked Faramir as the Elves began to carry out their requested tasks.
"His temperature is rising. His body is succumbing to fever," replied Aragorn as he pulled off Eldarion's tunic.
"Shouldn't he be showing other symptoms? Discomfort? Restlessness?"
"His unconscious level is to deep. And it is best that he stays that way because Elboron will start to suffer the moment he comes round."
"Pardon?" asked Éowyn, glancing down at her son who was still sleeping peacefully in her arms.
'You should tell them, mellon nîn,' advised Glorfindel. 'It will make the next few days a lot easier if you didn't hide this.' my friend
"Eldarion and Elboron are spirit brothers," said Aragorn. "It means that whatever strong emotions one of them feels will be experienced by the other. When Eldarion comes round, Elboron will start to feel an echo of his pain."
Éowyn and Faramir sat dumbstruck. They stared at their King while said man busied himself with transferring his son from the bed to the lukewarm bath. At that moment, Erestor arrived back with Elladan.
'What's happened?' asked Elladan immediately.
'He has a fever,' replied Aragorn, not caring that this line of conversation was going over the heads of Faramir and Éowyn. Their knowledge of Eldarion's current condition was the last thing on Aragorn's mind at this point in time. Elladan went to his knees and pressed a hand to Eldarion's forehead.
'It's not dangerous to him yet but it will be easier to break now rather than later,' concluded Elladan. "Faramir, Éowyn, take Elboron back to his room. He may waken and it would probably be best if he didn't see this." Faramir and Éowyn, not fully comprehending the situation, nodded. They both knew that the minute Elboron woke up he would demand to see Eldarion but for the moment they did as the Lord of Imladris requested.
Eldarion's temperature continued to spike and true to Elladan's prediction, Elboron woke up. He was greatly distressed to find Eldarion gone from his side. He was, thankfully, saved from the discomfort of Eldarion's fever due to Eldarion's unconscious state.
"Where's Eldarion?" he whispered, finding himself nestled under a thick downy.
"He's still in the healing wing. He has a fever and Lord Elladan recommended that we bring you back to your room."
"You split us up? I can help him! I can take away some of his pain!"
"No you can't," said Glorfindel as he entered the Gondorian's room.
"I did before!" exclaimed Elboron, fighting his mother's hold to sit up.
"What you felt before was only an echo of what Eldarion was feeling. You did not take away his pain, you just shared it."
"If that is the case, what advantage does being spirit brothers give them?" asked Éowyn.
"In time they will be able to take away each other's pain but at the moment they can only feel echoes. It is only just going to light that the bond exists," said Elladan as he appeared. Elboron immediately turned to him.
"How is Eldarion?"
"Still feverish," said Elladan as he came to a stop at the end of Elboron's bed. "Elboron do you understand anything about what being a spirit brother entails?" Elboron shook his head, biting his lip as he did so.
"Do you know what a soul mate is?" asked Elladan. This time Elboron nodded. "Well, a spirit brother is a similar type of bond but unlike the soul mate bond which the children of Ivistular have no control over, the bond between you and Eldarion is something formed out of mutual love and respect…."
"We swore to be friends forever," said Elboron, fiddling with the corner of his pillow case. "Did that….is that why…."
"The oath you swore to each other may well have been the trigger but it is likely that it has been forming since the moment the pair of you became friends," replied Elladan.
"Can it save Eldarion?" asked Elboron, his thoughts once again returning to the Prince who's life was currently hanging in the balance. Sadly Elladan shook his head.
"It is too weak. The only thing you can do for him at the moment is hold on to the hope that he will pull through. Do not despair Elboron, he is at this very minute fighting to return. Trust to hope Elboron. For now, I suggest that you sleep."
Elboron grumbled about being kept apart from Eldarion but lay down in his bed all the same. Within minutes he was asleep once again, entering the dreamscape created by Lórien.