After Merry finished coughing, he went and made Merry some spearmint tea to clear his throat when he heard gasps and moans from the couch. He went back to Merry and took his hand once again. "Merry, it is going to be alright. Just relax," he paused and whispered, "Go to sleep...sleep," as he watched as Merry's eyelids fluttered and closed. He then returned to the tea he was making and made it as strong as he possibly could. He left it over the fire to keep it hot until Merry awoke. Aragorn then went and sat in a chair and watched him intently.
Merry felt Aragorn as he took his hand and heard him speak to him. Relax? How may I relax? I cannot breathe! This is bad, very bad, He thought, you don' even know how bad this is! I am worse then even Pippin got and he about died. A strangled sound came from his tight throat at the last word that entered his mind. Merry was dying and it scared him.
Merry was with his dear Pippin. They were fishing, laughing, and having a grand time. Merry stood as something pulled on his line. The hobbit pulled back, but he was pulled in and under the water. Merry gasped and water filled his lungs.
Merriadoc's face turned chalky white and the skin around his lips went pale blue. His chest barely rose and with the pitiful breaths that came into his lungs, a sound of death echoed from deep within.
Aragorn rose and grabbed Merry. He sat him up straight and began to hit his back slightly, to loosen up the deadly fluid. "Come on Merry, you can make it through this." He laid Merry back down when he breathed in a more normal way, took a cloth, dipped it in water, and mopped Merry's forehead once again. Aragorn then went and filled a cup with the spearmint tea he had made and sitting Merry up once again tried to get him to swallow at least a little. "Just try to swallow a bit Merry, it will help you." When Aragorn got a very small amount down Merry's throat, he sat the cup on the table. Then, he rose and crushing more athelas, soaked a few rags in it and laid them again on Merry's chest. He held the bowl once more in front of Merry's face. His thoughts drifted back to when he first had healed Merry. That time he had been successful but he did not know if he had the power or skill to heal him this time. If only he had brought Ioreth with him for she was the most skilled healer in all of Gondor, he thought with a sigh. Aragorn tried to brush away the "what ifs" as he held Merry's hand in his. "You cannot give up Merry. There are people who need you, Pippin for instance. You are very dear to him and if you were to die, he would never recover from the shock. You must pull through this and be strong, my friend." Aragorn sat back, wondering how long it would take Legolas and Gimli to find Pippin.