Italics is the past, non-italics is the present day and italics in bold is a song


Chapter 4: You listened to Me

The first thing that Gabriel felt was pain. The second was a burning feeling around his abdomen. The third was panic. Where was he? What happened? Why were people talking so loudly? Why was there so much noise? All the noise was making his head hurt.

"Gabriel!"

He strained his eyes to focus on his wife. He cracked his lips in an attempt to smile. He was so thirsty. "Aur-"

"Shhh." He could see the tears in her eyes. "I'm right here. Don't worry."

"The boys-"

"Are fine." She kneeled next to him.

"I feel like I'm on fire." He whispered, to himself more than anything.

"It's your wound." Aurora said, surprising herself with the strength in her tone. "You-you were sliced by an Orc's sword, and you were bleeding badly." She brushed the hair out of his eyes. "But they stitched you up and you'll be okay." She smiled shakily. "They're going to help us get you home, where you can be with the boys."

Gabriel smiled painfully. "My boys…"

Aurora stroked his forehead and then kissed his dry lips softly. "Yes, your boys."

Aurora looked up from her plate directly into Elrohir's eyes. "We were lucky that soldier saw that he was still alive."

Aragorn nodded and said softly. "I know Hayeth and he's a good soldier. We are lucky to have him in the guard."

"In the end though," Aurora replied, her voice barely above a whisper, "It didn't matter."

"DADDY!" Luke cried, running to the door to hug his father's legs. "I'm so glad to see you!"

"Luke, let go please, Daddy has to walk to our bedroom and he's very tired."

"Not that tired." Gabriel contradicted quickly, shooting his wife a look.

The two slowly walked to the bedroom, leaving the boys playing in the living room. Aurora helped Gabriel lie down on the bed and then walked around the bed to lie down next to him.

We'll do it all

Everything

On our own

We don't need

Anything

Or Anyone

"You can't pretend, Gabriel." Aurora said, watching his closed eyes carefully and the slow and steady rise of his chest. "Not about this."

"I'm not."

"You can't pretend you're not in pain when you are. You can't pretend everything's okay when it's not."

"Who says things aren't okay?"

Aurora gave him a look. He grinned sheepishly back. "Alright, I understand. No pretending." His face contorted in a sudden bout of pain. He looked over at her.

If I lay here

If I just lay here

Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

"Will you just stay with me for a bit?"

Aurora smiled. "Forever."

But the smile faded as Gabriel began to cough franticly, his hand immediately covering his mouth and what came out of it. The coughs stopped and left Gabriel gasping for gulps of air. He smiled in a strained sort of way.

"See? I'm alright."

Aurora nodded shakily. "Of course."


"It wasn't bad at first." Aurora said softly, not realizing that Aragorn and Arwen had already quietly left the room, leaving her and Elrohir alone. "He'd cough a little here, and little there. But for the most part he was alright."

Elrohir nodded, deciding it was better just to let Aurora talk things out, rather than Elrohir interjecting sentiments of sympathy every other sentence.

"It was once he tried to go back to his guard duties. He worked too much, too soon and it made him sick again."

"DADDY!" Luke yelled as he always did whenever his father came home. "I missed you today!"

"You did?" Aurora did not miss the slight sign of strain that passed over Gabriel's face when his picked up his youngest. "What did you do today?"

"Me and Grandpa played Orcs and soldiers. I got to be you, and Grandpa was an Orc." He paused for effect. "I won." He continued as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Of course." Gabriel replied as he put Luke down and walked in the direction of he and Aurora's room, reminding himself how lucky he was that they had decided to let him work days so he could be with his family in the evening. Probably because he was still partly injured.

Back in the kitchen Aurora said, "Lea can you do me a favor and get that big blue bowl from the cupboard?"

"Yes mamma."

Aurora paused in her cooking as she heard Gabriel cough violently from the other room. She dropped what she was doing and walked quickly to the other room.

"Gabriel?" She walked into the room to see Gabriel leaning heavily against the wall, still coughing violently. "Gabriel?" She said with a bit more panic in her voice. "Are you alright?"

He nodded, waving her away with one hand, but still kept coughing.

"Should I send for the healer? Gabriel!" He dropped to his knees. "Is that blood? Gabriel!"

"Momma?"

She turned to see Dean standing in the doorway, his brothers behind him a few feet.

"Dean," Aurora said quickly, the sound of her husbands sickening coughs echoing behind her. "Dean honey," She put both hands on his cheeks and looked straight into his eyes. "I need you to run next door, and get your Grandfather. Do you understand me?" Dean nodded, taking a deep breath. "Alright go!"

I don't quite know

How to say

How I feel

Those three words

Are said too much

They're not enough

"Aurora, he's tired, and sick." Thandir, the head healer in Minas Tirith, said to Aurora softly, so they boys sitting behind her would not here. "It seems he's been coughing up blood for a while now, did he not say anything to you?"

Aurora swallowed. "No, he hasn't." She said in a broken tone.

"He must have hidden it well for you not to notice." He continued. "I know you are very observant."

Aurora only nodded. "How bad is it?"

Thandir looked at her. "Do you really need me to tell you?" he said gently, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I think you know."

Aurora nodded. "I'd like to go see him, could you watch the boys for a few moments?"

Thandir nodded. "Of course."

Aurora walked into the room and closed the door behind her quietly. She turned to face her husband who looked at her guiltily.

"How could you?" She said, a tear sliding down her cheek. "How could you hide this from me?"

"Aurora, I-"

"No." She said vehemently. "Why didn't you say something? Why didn't you let us, let me, help you? We could have given you medicine to help! Now you might-" Aurora's voice broke and she stopped. "Why?"

If I lay here

If I just lay here

Would you lie with me and just forget the worlds

Forget what we're told

Before we get too old

Show me a garden that's bursting into life

"I didn't want to worry the boys, or you."

"The boys need a father!" Aurora cried. "But they may not have one because you-" She stopped, knowing that she didn't have to finish that sentence.

"I love you." He whispered.

Aurora's eyes filled with tears and she walked over to the bed and sat down on it. "I love you too Gabe, but-"

He held up a finger to silence her. "No buts."

"Oh Gabe!" Aurora cried, leaning over to hug him, letting the tears fall and soak his shirt with salt.

Lets waste time

Chasing cars

Around our heads

I need your grace

To read my need

To find my own

Coughing could be surprisingly loud when there was silence in the house. (which was no where near normal in Aurora's) And to anyone who listened to it as closely as Aurora did, it was as if they themselves where being hurt each time a cough sounded.

"Momma are you okay?"

Aurora looked down to see Luke tugging at her skirt, looking up at her with those big blue eyes that belonged to his father. She turned her head for a moment to wipe a stray tear from her eye. When she turned back to Luke all she saw was concern in those big blue eyes. She dropped to her knees and hugged him tightly.

"I am just fine, Luke. And I love you so much."

Luke wrapped his tiny arms around his mother. "I love you too."

"Why don't you go play with Lea before he gets himself in trouble?" Aurora smiled as Luke nodded solemnly and went off to watch his younger brother.

Aurora stood up and walked into the bedroom where Gabriel was lying down, a white that was now tinted with red handkerchief in one hand, and now Aurora's hand in the other. His hand tightened around hers. She squeezed back gently.

"I'm right here." She said.

"I know." He paused. "Where are the boys?" Aurora smiled. Her husband's first concern was always 'his boys' no matter what else was going on.

If I lay here

If I just lay here

Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

Forget what we're told

Before we get too old

Show me a garden that's bursting into life

She lay down gently next to him, stroking his head and whispering to him softly. That was all he needed sometimes he said. Just a little comfort from the people he loved and all the pain went away. Aurora did understand how that really could help, but he said it did, so all she could do was help ease the pain.

All that I am

All that I ever was

Is here in your perfect eyes

They're all I can see


"He was dying."

Elrohir had moved to sit next to her by now, and was listening with rapt attention, soaking in every word. He had a pained look on his face, remembering the loss of his own mother to the sea.

"The coughs were consuming him." Aurora continued, seeming to be in her own little world of remembrance. "Bit by bit. Piece by piece." She looked up at him. "He refused to be placed in the Houses of Healing at first. He said that it would only make things harder for the boys." She laughed softly. "He only ever thought about his boys. Never about what might actually help him get better. Eventually he allowed himself to be put in the Houses of Healing."


I don't know where

Confused about how as well

Just know that these things will never change for us at all

"There we go." Aurora said, carefully spooning the broth into Gabriel's mouth. "Nice and hot. Sure to make you're throat feel better."

"Aurora…"

It was the first thing Gabriel had said in ages without coughing or being in pain. Aurora immediately put the broth down.

"Aurora…" Gabriel said, his voice strangely breathy. "I love you…"

Aurora felt a tear slide down her cheek and she climbed into the bed next to him and laid down gently next to him.

"I love you too." She whispered, her voice shaking.

"Tell the boys…" He took a deep breath. "…that I love them so much…"

"I will Gabriel." She nodded, "I will."

Suddenly a burst of wind swept through the room, blowing against everything and making the room chilly. Aurora got up and walked to the window to shut it. She stood there for a few moments, thinking. But she realized that it was suddenly very quiet in the room.

She turned slowly, knowing in her heart that he was gone, and had been taken from her. She let a dry sob out and began to cry. He was gone. She let the tears fall as she laid back down next to him, clutching his once breathing body tightly, letting herself grieve the life ahead she had to live without him.

If I lay here

If I just lay here

Would you lie with me and just forget the world?


"I miss him so much." Aurora said to Elorhir. "I wish he was still here. The boys need him so much." She sniffed and wiped her nose. "Especially Luke, he really misses him and hasn't been the same since he died."

"I noticed that he seemed a bit…" Elrohir searched for the right word. "…distant."

"And I didn't even know that I was going to have Gabe until after Gabriel died." Aurora said. "That's how I decided to name him. After his father."

They heard a noise from behind the doors, no doubt the boys coming back in newer and cleaner clothing. Aurora wiped her face quickly. "Better put a happy face on right? Pretend everything's alright."

"I thought you couldn't pretend." Elrohir said quietly.

Aurora looked up at him, and all Elrohir saw was a great sadness and pain. A sadness and pain that he knew he had felt before. He suddenly realized that he was growing attatched to this woman and in turn her children.

"Sometimes," she said softly. "You have to pretend."


Sorry about the enormously long wait. I've been really busy, but I've tried to make up for it by writing an extra long chapter. (for me at least) The song I used was "Chasing Cars" by Snow Patrol and I do not own that or Lord of the Rings.

Thanks for reading, please review!