It was once again there. Right in front of her. The silent wind toying with her golden hair without ever touching her. Absent. She could see the endless canopy of the trees swaying above her head but could not hear its leaves. She walked straight to the front, the grass caressing her bare feet.
She knew this place. But why was she here? The stream leapt freely through the forest, shallow waters glittering in silver sparks. She could almost hear their song as if splashes downstream, but no sound ever reached her ears. She
She looked up, eyes expecting to see something that was never found. The elfling was not there. She looked over her shoulder, to her sides, but never found his little light blond hair anywhere. There was no one.
And she waited.
Nothing came. Nothing happened. There was nobody.
The absent wind continued to twirl around the tall leaves and branches, the forest so alive, and so dead.
She started to make her way towards the water, the silent hum of the rivers seeming to call her, the crystalline prancing surface inviting. But she stopped. She looked around her once more, but she was still alone. There was no one around.
And she waited.
Nothing came.
Her eyes flew open. The dim silvery of the cave swirled in haunting patterns over the imposing grey stone, caressing languidly the scribblings and symbols carved on the walls. She could not remember falling asleep, but fund herself sitting comfortably against the stone, the cold hard surface pressing on her back. A cold shudder ran down her back as she pushed away the remaining images of the dream.
She could not tell for how long she had slept, but this cave seemed to give no indication of whether it was day or night outside. She turned her head to look around her. The King was asleep next to her, his ice blue eyes uncharacteristically closed in the manner of human sleep, his body sitting also against the hard rock. She wondered how long it would take his body to free itself from the weakening poison. Galion sat quietly next to her father, also seeming to be completely asleep.
She sighed silently, blinking a couple of times. Lossenel and Arahaelon had returned. She could see them sitting right across from her, against the opposites stone wall. The snowy Princess seemed to have also succumbed to sleep, her body lying sideways on the cold hard stone, her head pillowed on her eldest brother's lap. Her long platinum hair, strands which had always been of pure spun moonlight, perfectly combed and braided, now remained in a tangled mess.
She looked up, only to find her gaze petrified by a pair of immobilizing impenetrable green eyes, as silent as the absent echoes in this majestic imposing cave. The images that the King had just shown her flashed again inside her head, and for a second she did not know how to react, what to do or say. He did not say anything either, emerald eyes piercing through her, gentle yet unreadable, once again giving her the impression that he could see right through her, could see thing she could not.
She sighed again, breaking the piercing gaze as she slowly pushed herself up to stand, absently brushing the dust from her dress. There was really no point in trying to clean her dress, it was already too stained, at the moment she honestly could not have cared less what she looked like. Silently she crossed the ample space of the cave, lowering herself to sit next to the Crown Prince, feeling the weight of those emerald eyes following her every step. She did not know why she did it, but somehow the hollowness of these overly large majestic cave felt unsettling, too empty, and even if he would not talk he was awake. She did, however, leave a calculated distance between her and her eldest brother, the images the King had shown her still spinning inside her head. She did not want to touch him. Not even accidentally. She had already done so much damage, even if she had not known at the time.
She noticed her eldest brother's eyes turning to look once again at the front, and she did the same, now silently observing the sleeping form of the King from the other side of the cave. The silence felt louder than words, and at the same time its lurking hollowness carried something that was both calming and eerie about it, like that perfect precarious calm before the fiercest of storms. Next to her, the Crown Prince remained as serene as ever, his careful hands absently attempting to untangle Lossenel's long strands of platinum hair while she slept, even if such a task seemed an impossible feat at the moment.
"He showed you." The quiet words startled her, and her green eyes turned to look at her brother's face once more, but his eyes remained fixed on the King. And still, his voice remained perfectly calmed, gentle even, and for a moment she did not know how to reply. He knew.
She had not come to ask him anything, had not even wanted to approach the subject. The King had also asked her not to, and even she had been sure that Arahaelon would not want to speak about it. Btu she could never predict what he would or would not do.
"Yes." She looked down, her fingers once gain playing with the stained fabric of her once pristine dress. She did not see his eyes turn in her direction but she felt the sudden weight of that gaze on her. "Sorry."
"It was not your fault." Once gain it surprised her to find his voice so calmed and gentle, not a hint of the cold distance she had almost half expected. But she did not look up.
"Almarëa?" And there it was again, one silent patient request that almost immediately made her head turn up, only to find his impenetrable yet soft emerald eyes still fixed on hers.
"I do not blame you." He stressed again, and she believed the honesty in his eyes. This conversation seemed all too familiar to her, although this time she finally knew the full extent of what had happened….the full consequences of that accidental connection. And she felt all too young once more.
She had already known that. She knew he did not blame her, always the noble eldest brother. But still he was always so cautious around her. And she could almost understand all too perfectly why.
"Can I see it?" She did not know why she had asked, her voice sounding as calmed and composed as his. Perhaps she should not have asked at all, she was crossing a boundary. Why was she doing this? Why was she reminding him of things that had obviously hurt him? And still part of her needed to lay eyes on those burned fingerprints once more, needed to remind herself that it had indeed actually happened, to understand finally through her own eyes the full results of her innocent actions.
He did not reply, and for a moment she thought he would merely ignore her, but then slowly she saw his hands stopping their gentle work over Lossenel's hair, his right hand moving to pull up the sleeve of his left arm up to his elbow, extending it for her to see. And there it was. It took her less time to find it this time, the tiny mark of her own baby hand on his left forearm, the burned mark only a few shades paler than his otherwise flawless skin, barely even visible. But it was there.
"Stop blaming yourself." His voice was quiet, soft, as if nothing could ever anger him, and she once again felt like an elfling in his comforting presence. And once again she could not name what she felt.
"Does it hurt?" She did not know from where the question came from, but she found herself not able to take her eyes off the tiny merely visible mark. She had never thought it would, always seeing it as a left scar from a long ago healed wound. But it was not healed, and she remembered seeing in the images just how much pain his arm had been causing him when he had first woken up.
Such a small thing, and yet such a horrible outcome. He took his time answering her, piercing yet gentle emerald eyes never leaving her figure. And she suddenly felt guilty and stupid for thinking that he would have bene angered at her for asking, that he would have been cold. He had been so furious in those memories she had accidentally seen, and yet it seemed as if none of it was really directed towards her.
"Sometimes." He did not lie to her like she had half-expected he would, and she nodded her head in silence.
"Does it now?" Her eyes turned up to meet a gentle pair of the same shape and color, unreadable yet welcoming, cautious yet warm, reminding her suddenly of the age difference that existed between the two, even if she did not know just exactly how old he was.
"No." She could once again see the honesty in his eyes as he replied, and her gaze turned once more to look at his still extended arm, as if he would allow her to look for as long as she needed too.
And then, before she could stop to think her actions through, she reached her fingers to touch his skin, there on the barely visible mark of her hand. His reaction was immediate, pulling away his arm in a move so fast she barely even saw it, and she petrified. She should have guessed it. She had meant no harm, had intended the touch as a comforting gesture, but perhaps should have stopped to think just where her fingers were headed. And yet his quick reaction only confirmed something that she had already known yet until now had not fully realized.
"You are scared." She spoke her thoughts before she could realize it, her voice barely audible as a long moment stretched, impenetrable eyes looking at her carefully, studying her. But she did not need him to confirm her correct assumption, his action had spoken louder than words.
"I do not think you will ever try to harm me." His voice was as silent as his eyes, yet also as honest. But still he had once again chosen his words carefully, trying to comfort her and reassure her but without telling her the full truth.
"I know." And she was honest too. She believed what he had said, believed it completely, but that changed little.
"Almarëa?" He asked once again and her eyes immediately turned to meet his gentle ones once more, the weight of the situation seeming to fall heavily upon the two of them. And she could see the silent apology in his soft emerald eyes, the saddened smile on his face. "I do not think you are dangerous."
And it was once again true, it was clear in his welcoming eyes. And she once again believed it fully.
"I know." She repeated, finally understanding something that had seemed so puzzling before. Everything made sense. It was all so clear. The distance amidst his gentleness and welcoming gestures, the caution amidst his closeness. "I know you do not blame me. I know you do not think I will ever try to harm you. And I know you do think I am a danger to you. But you are still scared." Her eyes bore deeply into his open ones, and she was sure that she had never before been allowed such an unguarded access into his ever impenetrable eyes. "You are scared of the possibility of another accident. Not of me."
And she had touched straight on the matter. She did not need him to confirm it to her, but his long stretched silence, his deep penetrating eyes staring at her told her that he was aware of that. They both were. It was never about her. It was not her. It was something beyond her. A possibility that no matter how cautious she could ever try to be, how much he trusted her and believed that she would never actively try to harm him or how much he believed that she could control herself, the possibility would forever remain there. And she had already seen the outcomes such an innocent accident had caused. She did not need to be told to know what would happened if it ever happened again. And it was that which scared him thus. If it happened again, he would not survive. The damage had already been too great.
"I cannot…" He did not finish the sentence, voice breaking into the hollow echoes of the cave. Btu she did not need him to finish it. It was all too present in the pained apology of his eyes, one so troubled that it hurt to see.
And suddenly there was no age difference, no barrier, simply brother and sister, as if for once not hiding from her underneath a perfectly composed mask, for once not being the cautious eldest brother, and as he let her look, she realized that the situation pained him more than she had anticipated. She watched as he closed his eyes, and she felt her heart constrict painfully, agonizingly as she felt that it was as if watching him break from the inside.
"I am sorry." He apologized once more as his gentle eyes once again found hers.
"I do not blame you." It was her turn to say, and nothing else came after that for there was nothing else to add.
Their silence, however, was short lived for suddenly the heavy roots and branches protruding from the stone started to crack and move, making her nearly jump. She looked around her immediately, barely noticing as Lossenel too sprung awake and sat up at the sound. The cracking sounds echoed loudly through the vast space, the swirling silvery glow suddenly intensifying. And there was light coming from one side of the ample stone room, daylight.
He heart raced inside her chest as her flew in that direction, only to land on the ending of the long spiraling staircase they themselves had climbed down not too long ago. And as quickly as it had appeared, the daylight that had suddenly invaded the room was gone, the branches stopping their churning and once again remaining in eerie calmed silence. But there was something else. Footsepts. Descending the stairs. Someone was coming. Btu no one could have been able to ever find this place. Not unless…
Her eyes turned to look in front of her, only to find the King's ice blue eyes suddenly wide awake, staring calmly at the staircase. He still seemed exhausted and somewhat weary, but she felt a small wave of relief at the sight of him fully aware. So he had opened the passage. She knew nobody else could but the King.
Next to her the Crown Prince remained calmly sitting down, as if he could already tell the identity of the newcomer, and his lack of worry served to somewhat make her relax, even though her eyes never left the stair.
"Legolas!" Infinite blue eyes met hers, and she was suddenly running, throwing her arms high around his neck and feeling her brother's comforting arms wrapping almost immediately around her, a surprised chorus of laughter leaving his lips and echoing in her ear. Valar, she felt so relieved. She had missed him already. Had missed his warm and safe presence around.
"Such favoritism in this family." The familiar ever carefree voice that seemed to mock the world around him made her eyes fly in his direction, her arms gently releasing their hold around Legolas' neck as the latter turned to meet the rest of his family.
And there it was, that ever teasing unbothered sparkle in her brother's clear blue eyes, as if no situation could ever result uncomfortable or too serious for him. His characteristic grin sparkled in his handsome face, standing always tall, always inviting. She noticed as Lossenel's thin arms wrapped around Legolas from her peripheral vision, Arahaelon smiling widely.
"It is good to see you too, Tadion." She let out a silent laugh as she too let her arms wrap around him, once again surprised at how comforting his presence felt. she had not laughed in days. Only one of his arms wrapped tightly around her in return. His bright personality could easily lighten up the darkest of rooms. Where had they been? Had the King been guiding them here? What had happened to them?
Another familiar elf descended the stairs just as she hugged Tadion, safely carrying a delicate unmoving figure in his strong arms. Her heart skipped a beat, even though Tadion hadn't let go of her yet, immediately recognizing her mother in the Lord's arms. The elf, Lord Agoron she remembered his name was, did not stop to greet or acknowledge anyone, his sure quick steps walking only in the direction of the King, and she did not need to turn to look to imagine the overwhelming combination of despair, pain and joy that must have been crossing her father's ice blue eyes. She did not want to look.
And, it was as if a sudden heavy fog had been casted upon the cave the second the unconscious Queen's presence had been registered, as if nobody could still believe it was really her, that she was indeed alive. Yet, no one approached the King, even if the elves present- safe for Galion- were his immediate family.
She was only glad as Tadion's warm hand fell lightly on her back, casually guiding her back to where the rest of her siblings now sat by the narrow stream, opposite from the King. And yet she did not miss the way Lossenel's body had suddenly tensed, the way her delicate frail figure had begun to tremble uncontrollably, her face buried in her hands as Legolas' arms wrapped tightly and safely around her. But no comfort would be enough, even if her silver tears strolled down the snowy Princess' sharp cheekbones in complete silence. Legolas kept whispering soothingly something in elves, but Lossenel did not seem to be listening, her face now completely hidden to the world. And she suddenly wondered if her sister had even known before hand? Or was she only finding out that her long believed dead mother was indeed alive and apparently unharmed?
"I told her." As if reading the direction of her thoughts, she felt Arahaelon's silent emerald eyes meeting hers momentarily before his attention turned towards Tadion.
"What did you do to yourself?" The Crown Prince sighed in an almost defeated almost scolding manner, and still she did not miss the worried look that had crossed over his peaceful eyes as he turned to look at his younger brother, Tadion merely grinning in return.
"Legolas receives a hug and I do not?" Tadion's voice teased gently once more, seeming once again completely unbothered by anything around him. But his eldest brother did not seem to find anything funny about the situation, the worry still present in his perfectly defined features.
"Come sit." Arahaelon commanded in his ever peaceful yet authoritative tone as he gently guided Tadion to sit down next to him by the silvery waters of the narrow stream crossing the cave, the latter muttering complains.
"Ar, I am fine." Tadion kept insisting, but the Crown Prince seemed to not believe his words, ignoring his younger brother as his hands ever so carefully started to pull Tadion's cloak from his shoulders. Tadion stifled a grunt at the movement, and one of Arahaelon's eyebrows flew high up his forehead, as if daring his brother to repeat that he was 'fine', and even though his emerald eyes remained perfectly calmed and composed she did not miss the increasing worry in them.
And for the first time, now without his thick dark green cloak she noticed the long deep jagged wound over Tadion's left shoulder, drying blood staining his otherwise perfectly clean silver tunic. The injury did not seem dangerous, but it must have been painful, although Tadion seemed to be hiding it well.
Still the sight of the painful injury in her brother's shoulder made cold shivers run down her spine and anger flare through her veins at whoever it was had caused it. She felt like screaming, like yelling, as if they could no longer control anything around them, stuck here in this place as long as it remained safe. Those elves had burned her Palace, had burned her home, had caused chaos, panic had caused them to separate and spread, her mother had been kept alive all these years hidden form them, they had torn at her father's heart in a way that was simply sheer violent cruelty and a guard had even tried to kill him!
She closed her eyes, trying to calm down, to not let her despair take hold of her, but she still could not calm the ever increasing worry consuming her heart. And still her eyes had done nothing but keep glancing back towards the staircase as she lowered herself to sit next to Legolas, expecting someone else to walk down those steps, two identical figures that she missed so much, and one of them which felt like a piece of her was missing. Elladan had told her they were with Tadion and Legolas. What had happened? Where were the twins? Why had she not heard from him in what felt like days?
She closed her eyes once more, concentrating deeply into her spirit, into their bond, feeling that she could still feel his soothing presence there. He was unharmed. But she could not communicate with him. Why? She could not reach him. Could he reach her?
"Where are the twins?" She tried to keep the worry and fear form showing on her voice as her desperate eyes turned to meet Legolas, her voice barely audible. Some space next to them she could hear Tadion complaining as Arahaelon tried to gently help him out of his tunic in order to properly clean and bind the wound, the younger brother testing the other's patience.
"I do not know." Legolas' whispered reply felt like a hot dagger trough her already hurting heart, his infinite blue eyes trying to be comforting but failing miserably. And yet her only comfort, what kept her maintaining a strong façade was the fact that she could still feel Elladan's strong spirit trough her bond. He was alive. And seemingly unharmed.
Lossenel's silent cries continued to echo trough the cave as she remained trembling in Legolas' safe arms, her face completely buried in his shoulder, seeming oblivious to anyone else in the room.
"What happened?" he asked in an equally quiet, proud at how she managed to make her voice remain strong and serene.
"There were orcs. And…..others." He did not need to specify to know that he meant those black hooded silhouettes, the silhouettes of elves that she had seen running and following them through the burning palace. "There was fighting and we were separated. And then Ada reached for Tadion and led us here."
She could tell that he had made the tale short and left many pieces out, but the overall events were narrated. And yet, the worried look in his eyes as he held his trembling sisters stopped her from asking any more details. She knew he would latter tell them what exactly had happened.
"I cannot reach him." She whispered her fears to him, and was thankful he understood that she meant that she could not communicate with him, offering her a small comforting smile that did little to appease her.
"You will not be able here. Only Ada could reach anyone outside of this place." And he did not need to tell her more for her to understand. Of course. She could still feel the overwhelming power, the swirling magic that floated like a thousand of whispered voices inside this cave. Only the King could find this place, and everything inside it was under the King's protection, under the forest's shielding care. She would not be able to reach Elladan from here….and neither could he reach her. And oh Valar, he must be as frightened as she was then, if he too could not reach her, could not communicate with her, and she only prayed that wherever they were they were safe.
"Gentle." Tadion suddenly hissed through gritted teeth, making her attention turn back to where he was as a welcome distraction, watching her brother's clear blue eyes seeming to be deeply warning the Crown Prince. His good hand had wrapped around Arahaelon's wrist, stopping him from pressing a now wet piece of cloth to his shoulder.
"I will be gentle." The eldest brother replied calmly, but Tadion seemed to take his time before finally releasing the grip around Arahaleon's wrist, the later carefully moving the cloth towards his injured shoulder.
"Ow!" Tadion complained, and she saw Arahaleon sigh in patient exasperation as he once again stopped his hand midair.
"I have not touched you yet." The Crown Prince pointed out, and she felt her lips curving up in a smile, her heart filling with warmth at the seemingly typical interaction between the brothers, managing to give a sense of normality to the situation.
"Do it carefully." Tadion warned once more, and she was now starting to wonder if he was partially complaining for the sake of stressing and annoying Arahaelon.
"I will be careful." She heard Arahaelon promise once more, once again gently reaching the wet cloth to Tadion's shoulder, but his younger brother stopped him once more at the wrist.
"I still have not touched you." The Crown Prince pointed out once more, and even he still seemed patient and calmed about his younger brother's actions she could see that Tadion was succeeding in getting in his nerves.
"I will do it." Tadion finally decided, and she heard Arahaelon sigh silently before once again patiently relenting, handing Tadion the wet clean cloth he had been holding. And still Tadion made no effort to place it to the injury, reaching it close enough before stopping, as if not really wanting to touch it. She knew it must have been painful, but Tadion's carefree grins and obvious desire to test his eldest brother could only mean the injury was not serious.
"Help me?" Tadion's eyes resembled those of an elfling suddenly realizing he had been wrong, looking up at his eldest brother, an apologetic, yet teasing grin appearing on his face as he offered the cloth back to Arahaleon, who patiently took it in his hands once again, making her laugh lightly.
"No, give that to me." Tadion seemed to change his mind just as Arahaelon's ever gentle hand had once again approached his shoulder, once again snatching the cloth from his eldest brother hands.
"Tadion!" For the first time it was Arahaelon's turn to complain, even if he still did not seem to be out of patience, eyes looking worriedly at the wound his younger brother was not letting him clean and bind. And she laughed silently once more, knowing that Tadion was only openly complaining and voicing any sort of discomfort because it was Arahaelon the one treating him.
"Do you want me to clean it?" Legolas called from her right, and she could hear the teasing grin in his face, as his voice mockingly stressed that if he grabbed the cloth he would not be as patient or gentle as Arahaelon was being at the moment.
"Stay where you are." Tadion's quick reply made another round of light laughter to escape her lips as her brother's clear blue eyes turned to glare at Legolas, once again handing the wet cloth to the Crown Prince. "Be gentle."
"I will be gentle." Arahaelon promised once more, once again overly carefully reching for the injury, and finally Tadion did not stop him. She could see the Crown Prince's hands being so gentle he barely touched the skin at all.
"Ow! Ar!" Tadion stressed almost immediately, determined to be the worst patient possible and seeming intent in letting Arahaelon know if anything that he did hurt him- a thing she knew he would not have done with any of the Palace's hearlers.
"Sorry." Still Arahaelon apologized, and she knew that Tadion's his pain (although exaggerated to annoy his brother) was very real, and that any touch from that wet cloth, no matter how gentle would have hurt like a new blade. "I am barely touching you."
It took many complains form Tadion, his hand stopping Arahaelon's hand multiple other times, many glares from the younger brother and even one heartedly smack to the Crown Prince's shoulder when the wound had really stung before Tadion's shoulder was finally clean of all the blood, the would now clear of the change of infection and ready to be bandaged. But by then Tadion had stopped playfully complaining, and she could see his handsome face contort as the pain seemed to finally fully manifest after being touched, Arahaelon still being overly gentle as he carefully covered the wound with clean bandages he had taken out of a small satchel Legolas had been carrying. Not voicing it anymore Tadion winced only once or twice, but it was clear to her that those silent winces hurt Arahaelon more than the previous complains.
Finally, the injury was bandaged, and she watched as solely but tediously Arahaelon once again helped Tadion back into his tunic, the latter now seeming too tired and in pain to complain anymore.
"Would you like some water?" The Crown Prince offered, but Tadion only shook his head, closing his eyes tiredly as he sat leaning back against the stonewall, resting his head comfortably over his eldest brother's shoulder. Tadion would be fine, she knew, he just needed rest and time to heal.
And silence spread once more through the ample space, but this time it felt somewhat comfortable, even through the worries and fears that she knew plagued all of their minds. At least all of her siblings where together, they were all safe, even if her heart ached in despair to know for certain the same about Elladan and Elrohir.
She had not even noticed that Lossenel had stopped crying, even if she did not move away from Legolas' arms, and for a moment she wondered just what exactly had her elder sister seen, had her sister experienced, in the moments during her disappearance. What had exalt happened to her? Where had she bene taken? How had she ended up out in the forest and running into Galion? She would need to ask her later.
She had started to doze off, once again feeling tiredness consume her when a new silent voice made her blink her eyes once more, her heart stop its beating.
"Alarya?" The King had spoken, the voice so low she had barely caught it but it had bene enough, his ice blue eyes not seeming able to look at anything else but the frail delicate body safely cradled in his arms over his lap, holding the Queen unconscious figure as if nothing in Arda could ever make him let her go. But it was then that she noticed it, so faintly, still so weak. A moment, the Queen's head rolling to bury in her father's robes at his chest. She was stirring.
Here is the next chapter! I hope you enjoy reading it! And before you hunt me down sorry for the cliffie! I will try to update as soon as I can! There is still a lot of important and exciting things to happen in the story! I hope the wait was not as long this time. Also I have not abandoned Greenwood the Great and another update for that one is soon to come.
Again, thank you so much to those of you who reviewed the previous chapter! It's always a joy for me to hear your thoughts on the story and believe it or not you manage to keep it alive! BilboBangingBooty (so happy you returned!), Coco99, The Lead Mare, Amsim, brandibuckeye, Teddy2104, mMy, NeraBella, Yawlewen, Flower-Uchiha, Shayde Revelle, Josie, and the lovely Guest reviewers.
Love,
Elena