Everything hurt. Heat suffused her skin, and her mind was overfull. There were scratchy sheets beneath her fingers, a heady herbal scent in the air, and a warm pressure on her hand. Relief eased her lungs. She had to be in the healing hall in the caverns, just as Maethor had shown her.
"You said she was fading out too," a worried voice near her ear said.
Thranduil. Thranduil was here. Safe. Maethor had shown her that too, but it was different hearing his voice with her own ears.
"It has been hours. Why hasn't she woken? Her fëa looks just as it did in the forest. She should be awake."
"She may need more time." Meluieth's voice came from just above her.
"Her fëa is overwhelmed right now," Elrond said, and Charlotte was surprised to find him at her bedside. "Haedirn and Maethor might be required to pull some of that energy from her. You said she had to send the extra into the forest last time."
Charlotte fought the weight in her eyes. Her mouth was dry, and her throat ached horribly, but she needed to see them. She heard a door creak open and then soft shuffling steps across the stone.
"Is nana going to wake today?" Legolas asked quietly.
"Soon, ion nîn. She is strong and stubborn. Right now, she is fighting to come home to us."
The gentleness in Thranduil's voice nearly broke her again. She could smell his pine and vanilla scent, wanted to bury her face in his chest and lose herself in the sound of his heart against her ear. Her lips parted, cracking apart.
There was a flurry of movement, and then Thranduil brushed his hands across her brow, down the side of her cheek. "Wake up, meleth nîn."
She was so damned tired. Her brain sank, dipping away from reality against her will.
But then she felt him. Thranduil's warm fëa brushed against hers, bolstering it as he had in the forest. "Pull on the bond," he ordered.
Pull? How?
She felt twin tugs against her fëa and realized the order hadn't been for her. The heat slipped from her skin, the lighting crackling in her bones eased, and finally, finally, the weight vanished, and she blearily opened her eyes.
Glassy silver eyes met hers. Thranduil. Real and whole and alive.
"You missed all the excitement," Charlotte joked weakly.
Thranduil grinned, though his eyes were misty. "I had plenty of my own, I promise." And then he turned over his shoulder and said, "Would you like to say hello, Legolas?"
It was all the invitation Legolas required.
"Gently!" Thranduil cried as a blond whirlwind slammed into her stomach and clutched tightly to her. Charlotte groaned as all the aches in her muscles made themselves known, but she still stretched a tired hand out to smooth Legolas's hair.
"I missed you too, little leaf."
She'd missed all of them, and they had apparently missed her. Her tiny bed was surrounded. Even Celebrían sat beside her husband, silent tears drifting down her porcelain cheeks. Idhrenes perched regally in a chair near the foot of the bed, her gaze appraising her before she gave a satisfied nod.
"Who's running things right now?" Charlotte asked. Surely, Cúthon couldn't still be in any position of power? But Thranduil was beside her, and Oropher rested his hand atop her shoulder with an affectionate smile.
Thranduil followed her train of thought and nearly growled, "Cúthon has been removed from his position and will be dealt with." Now that you're safe and awake, he seemed to leave unsaid.
Idhrenes's smile was feral. "He's been moved to alternative accommodations in the meantime."
"What will happen to him?"
"Probably not what he deserves," Idhrenes said darkly.
"He will be sent to the west," Thranduil stated. "Duty or not, I find myself unable to see any further blood spilled after what we have just survived. I pray it will be many years before I see such destruction again."
"It will be," Charlotte said with a certainty that sucked the air from the room. Mandos had all but promised it would be so.
"Truly?" Celebrían asked, and her eyes darted briefly to Elrond.
Charlotte's shoulders sagged, but she said, "Gone for now, but not forever. We have time before he tries again."
Celebrían's eyes drifted closed as her lungs eased, and Charlotte couldn't help the feeling that there was more than just relief at being free of Mairon.
"So really," Charlotte asked, "who is in charge around here if all of you are with me?"
Thranduil laughed, but it was Meluieth who answered, "Poor Ellavorn earned a temporary promotion. He's handling as much as he is able to, but Thranduil has been reigning from the healing hall." She handed Charlotte a cool goblet of water and motioned her to sip slowly before she said, "I cannot apologize enough, Charlotte." The healer eyed the elves around her but forged ahead. "I was failing them, and I was certain I was not prepared to take on the role I had stepped into, and I shifted the blame where it did not belong. I am—"
"It's okay," Charlotte said, lifting her hand from Legolas only long enough to squeeze Meluieth's fingers. "The enchantment was my fault. Even if I did it accidentally, even if it benefitted us later, it caused you pain, and I would never wish to be the cause of your suffering. Forgive me, mellon nîn?"
"To be called 'friend' by you once more is all that I could have hoped for."
"Well," Idhrenes said, standing, "you need your rest. I will send dinner to you shortly, and I expect it to be eaten. And not by you two," she pointed to Maethor and Haedirn.
Idhrenes turned her attention to Elrond and Celebrían and added, "Allow me to walk with you to your chambers, Lord Elrond? I've heard a rumor that the young prince is quite fond of Lady Celebrían's oatcakes, and I would be pleased to compare recipes, if possible?"
Charlotte resisted the urge to snort as Idhrenes gracefully cleared the room, and then Maethor said, "We'll give you some space."
"Some space" apparently meant that they would guard her from the inside of the healing hall's double doors, but she appreciated the gesture. Watching them walk the length of the hall between the two columns of beds led to another pleasant discovery.
Charlotte was the only patient.
Her head whipped around to Meluieth. "How did you heal them?"
"With your help," she winked, "and Legolas's."
Charlotte's brows scrunched in confusion, and a tiny voice piped in, his words muffled by the blankets. "Meluieth found my flower when I was… sick." A shiver racked his body, and for the first time, Charlotte purposefully rose her fëa to soothe him. His body grew boneless against hers.
"You accidentally created the cure," Meluieth explained. "I made tea with the flower. It took me a few days to get the dosage correct, but about three cups of tea a day brought them all around. They'll still be on it for a week or so, but most have returned home with instructions on continuing their treatment. Some joined the charge into the battle from the caverns."
Charlotte beamed proudly at her friend. "Thank you," she said. "Do they remember any of it?"
"Most of them do not," Meluieth said. "There are a few who remember seeing people or places from long ago. But these are matters we can discuss later. For now, you should rest, and so should I."
"And I," Oropher said, turning to Charlotte, "have a meeting to attend to now that I am assured of your wellbeing." He pressed a gentle kiss to her brow, and when he pulled away, she tried to ignore the faint shimmer in his gaze. "I promise to return to you soon."
Thranduil smirked at her as Meluieth and Oropher slipped through the doors. "I thought I would never get you to myself."
"She's mine too," Legolas chirped, and both Charlotte and Thranduil chuckled at him. He finally popped his head up, his gaze intent on hers. "I named you," he said.
Charlotte tilted her head in confusion. "You named me?"
"Remember?" He slid his knees under him but kept his hand on her stomach. "You said I could decide on what to call you."
"I remember." Her throat felt tight again. "I remember, and I heard you when I was… gone. And I heard you during the battle."
"Is it alright? That I call you that?"
"It is more than alright," Charlotte said, and this time she pulled him into her arms. "I am honored to be your nana."
Legolas's words were wet as he said, "I thought you were going to leave me too."
"Never," she vowed, but then she tilted back so she could see his tear-stained face. "But Legolas, sweetheart, what were you doing out there? You were supposed to stay with Celebrían."
"I, too, would like an answer to that," Thranduil said, and his lips thinned. "As it is, we're teetering on the edge with Imladris. They were charged with the safekeeping of the heir to Eryn Galen, and they lost him, allowing my son to reach a battle where he could have been killed. Celebrían's oath is called into question."
"But it wasn't her fault!" Legolas cried. His face turned pale as his adar's eyes narrowed with suspicion.
"How did you get past both the Imladris and Lórinand hosts?"
"I—"
"A prince does not lie, Legolas."
But Charlotte was a step ahead. "Someone helped you," she said, eyes narrowing. "Who? Certainly not Celebrían."
"I promised I wouldn't tell," Legolas said softly.
"Legolas," Thranduil sighed. "If someone tells you to keep a secret that puts you in danger, then it is not a secret worth keeping."
"But I'm a good elf!" His lower lip wobbled, and he turned to Charlotte. "I'm good, and no one would let me help, and I always help, and then you were gone, just like her. You left me!"
"Legolas, I'm sorry—" Charlotte tried.
"Why did she leave me?" His voice cracked. "Didn't she want me? I've been trying to be a very good elf, and then you were gone, and I don't know why the Valar are punishing me if I'm not a bad elf."
Thranduil sat on the edge of the bed, his thigh brushing hers, and ran his long elegant fingers through his son's hair. "Your naneth couldn't stay, Legolas," he whispered. "Her fëa was sick, and she had to sail to find peace."
"She sailed?" Legolas whimpered. "She sailed west, and she didn't say goodbye? Didn't she love me?"
Thranduil's throat bobbed. She could tell he hadn't planned on having this conversation today.
"Little leaf," she said, when it seemed like Thranduil was struggling to find the words, "you do not have to be perfect. You are allowed to be angry or scared or sad. We will love you. Always. It would be impossible not to. What happened with your naneth was not your fault. Her choices were about her, and it's okay to miss her and be mad at her. It's okay to still love her. Just know that you are worth loving too. You don't have to earn it. It's yours without conditions."
"I'm not bad?" His eyes darted between Thranduil and Charlotte, and he rubbed the sleeve of his tunic across his eyes. "You really love me?"
Thranduil's shoulders plummeted, and his sigh of relief was audible. "Always, ion nîn. Charlotte is correct; you're the very best elf." Thranduil, brave, aloof Thranduil, had tears coursing down his cheeks. He didn't bother with wiping them away, and his throat bobbed as he tried to work past the tightness. "We love you, and we will be by your side for as long as you desire us."
"Does this mean you're finally going to bond to Nana?" Legolas asked, and he allowed his adar to gently wipe the tears from his cheeks.
Thranduil chuckled and gave Charlotte a wink. "As soon as possible, ion nîn. Before she gets into any more mischief. Who knows? Tomorrow, she may run off to fight a dragon."
Charlotte shook her head and rolled her eyes. It was good to be home.
— O —
Thranduil snuck her out of the healing hall just as the sun peeked through the western windows.
"Am I allowed to leave?" Charlotte asked, glancing around as Thranduil scooped her into his arms.
"I am the king," Thranduil said smugly. One of his brows raised, and he smirked at her. "So naturally, I'm kidnapping you."
"Afraid of Meluieth too?" She grinned as his cheeks flushed pink. "And where exactly is my king taking me?"
"You'll see."
King or not, Thranduil slipped from the healing hall like a wraith, and Maethor and Haedirn followed on silent feet. Celebrían had taken Legolas to the kitchen hours ago for lunch and planned to let him rest in her chamber for the night. The elfling had quickly extracted a promise from Elrond regarding another performance of the Lay of Leithian, which Charlotte had found out was an extensive piece.
Legolas was turning into quite the mastermind at delaying bedtime.
Charlotte was surprised Thranduil had arranged the whole thing, considering Celebrían had failed her charge to keep Legolas away from the battle. But one glance at his calculating eyes and Charlotte knew he was plotting something as usual.
"Celebrían did not assist him," Thranduil said when she'd asked him about it. "Not only would she be incapable of putting an elfling in harm's way, but Celebrían is well known for her loyalty. She would not betray a vow made to a friend. Nor would she betray Legolas in such a way, as it is clear that she loves him dearly." He frowned, eyes distant as his mind turned over possibilities. "Even without that knowledge, I am disinclined to believe her involvement. Legolas displayed far too much shame upon greeting her, and his apology was genuine."
Many of those had been Charlotte's same reasons for dismissing the possibility. And Legolas had been particularly hesitant around Celebrían, concerned that she would be angry with him. But it left the question: who was Thranduil trying to smoke out?
Thranduil carried her through the caverns, ignoring the stares of the elves they passed. When the pressure of their eyes became too much for her, Charlotte tried to wiggle herself free. She would walk past them on her own feet with her chin high, not carried like a damsel.
But Thranduil tightened his grip.
"Ignore them," he said. "You'll find they're staring for far different reasons anyway. You're still recovering, and I—" His breath hitched, and his eyes bore into hers. "Just, please allow me this? If you truly do not wish it, I will release you at once, but if you worry only about their opinions, I beg you will ignore them and allow me to do this for you."
When he put it like that…
She snuggled farther into his embrace, and something loosened in his posture. It was nice, she thought, to have people to lean on. And she finally did. She had a family that had her back. There was strength in opening up to the family she'd made, to learning that she could count on them.
So she let Thranduil carry her, knowing that he was right, and her few attempts at standing led to her knees buckling beneath her. When he stepped into the late afternoon sunlight, and she saw Belegroch saddled and standing beside Maethor and Haedirn's horses, she knew she would be riding with him too.
"Close your eyes," Thranduil whispered after he'd climbed into the saddle behind her. His words sent a shiver across her skin, and he bent to press his lips to the hollow just beneath her ear.
"And where are we going again?" Charlotte asked, arching her back as his hand slid over her hip, settling across her waist and pulling her tightly against his body.
"I told you: you'll see." The tip of his nose skimmed her neck, and Charlotte let her eyes flutter closed as she grinned. So he wanted to play it like that, did he?
His lips smiled against her ear, and then his thighs tensed, and Belegroch's hooves clacked on the stone bridge.
She waited to hear the sound of Maethor and Haedirn following, but it wasn't necessary. With her eyes closed, every other sense intensified, and that was how she noticed the two tethers reaching out from her fëa. At either end, Maethor and Haedirn's fëar were vibrant and warm.
She'd have to figure out how to use the bond, as they had done when she was in that strange in-between place where dreams and reality had merged, but that would be a trial for another day.
A break was more than needed and definitely deserved, though she wasn't sure she would get it. There would likely be families to visit and funerals for the deceased. The visiting delegations from Imladris and Lórinand would warrant some events. Cúthon would still need to be sentenced. And Charlotte would desperately need some training on what her future duties would entail.
"I can feel you thinking," Thranduil chuckled. His free hand tightened around her, and a pleasant warmth settled in her belly. His words were soft in her ear. "We're nearly there now."
Moments later, Belegroch stilled beneath them, and Thranduil's cloak slithered down her arm as he dismounted.
"Can I open my eyes now?"
"Not yet."
She could practically hear his smirk.
"May I help you down?" His hand settled on her thigh.
"I don't really see another alternative."
"Maethor or Haedirn would be willing, I'm sure. I need only summon them back from the trees. Or you could."
Charlotte let out a playful sigh. "Since I have yet to learn the intricacies of the bond, I suppose you will have to suffice."
His warm hands burned through her oversized tunic, another one he'd gifted while she'd been unconscious in the healing hall. His fingers wrapped around her hips and lifted, and then her newly-borrowed boots toed the grass.
"Now?"
"So impatient," he tsked.
His chest pressed against her spine, his hands sliding down from her shoulders until her skin pebbled.
"Open them."
Charlotte flicked her eyes open, and her jaw dropped. The beeches and pines climbed high above her head, and the Tithenduin gurgled just ahead. This was the same clearing where she'd bonded with Maethor and Haedirn, where they'd become her gwaethainn, the same clearing where she'd worked the orcs into a frenzy and led them to their deaths.
Except, the ground was covered, nearly every inch consumed by familiar tiny white blossoms. They ran behind her, and when she turned, she could see them blanketing the path she'd run during the battle.
"We discovered them the morning after the battle," Thranduil said. His arms wrapped around her once more. "They're all over the forest, but the elves are calling this stretch that leads to the caverns Fû Nan Gilith."
Charlotte's eyes burned. Path of Starlight. Or, more simply: Starlight's Path.
"How many elves did we lose?" She asked, and if her voice was a little rough, Thranduil didn't comment on it.
"Too many," Thranduil said, studying the white blossoms, "but far fewer than we anticipated. I have visits scheduled throughout the week to personally see each of the affected families."
"May I come?"
Thranduil's throat bobbed for a second, and then he nodded. It had to still be so foreign to him, the idea that he wouldn't have to do any of this alone anymore. She was more than ready to spend the rest of her days standing hand-in-hand with him; they'd face this world together.
"I searched for you, you know?" She said suddenly, and even she couldn't hide the question in her tone. "Before the battle, when we reached Elrond's camp on the western border. I couldn't find you."
Thranduil exhaled through his nose, and something dark crossed his gaze. "I'd tried searching for you too. Many times. I heard you, in the end, calling out for me." His eyes closed, and his body deflated. "I cannot apologize enough that I was not there when you needed me most. That I failed you once more. The orcs lured us east, trying to bait us into following them into Ered Mithrim."
The mountains to the north. Oropher had warned that there were beasts far worse than orcs there.
"What happened?"
"Hunger," Thranduil shrugged. "We were at a stalemate for days; I refused to track them into the Withered Heath, and they had long anticipated a meal made out of my people. It took only a few days for them to tear apart from within. After the initial carnage, only half the host remained.
"Hunger makes a vicious enemy, but a sloppy one. We're fortunate. They were likely under orders to crush us or keep us from returning to the Greenwood while the second host came up from the south. When we met them at the border, even they were wise enough to understand we had the advantage."
"But Oropher and I searched the northern border. You weren't there."
"Depending on when you searched, we might have already been tracking the rest along the eastern edge of the forest, between here and Erebor."
She had no idea what or where Erebor was, but it would make sense then why she hadn't been able to find him. He hadn't been in the forest at all, and they hadn't checked the northeastern edge of the forest since Thranduil was supposed to be in the north near the affected guard post on the western side.
"I'm just relieved you're safe," she said finally. "If you hadn't arrived when you did…"
"If only I'd arrived sooner." He cupped her cheek and leaned his forehead against hers. "Adar told me everything. I could not be more proud of how you have protected our people in my absence, meleth nîn. Even with them against you. They will not soon forget how you shielded them despite their failure to protect you."
"They came eventually. Though I'm not sure what changed their minds."
Thranduil grinned. "That," he said, "would be due to Idhrenes."
"Idhrenes?"
"As the oldest living Silvan elf in Eryn Galen, she was the only one with enough standing and respect to challenge Cúthon. With her knowledge of the forged orders and a quiet confession from Eithoril, she decimated what support he had. When he ordered the gates to remain sealed while our people were slaughtered outside, while you fought to defend them… it was the final crack that sent everything crumbling for him. Idhrenes had him and Lothuial sent to the dungeon and put under guard, and then she rallied the remaining wardens."
Charlotte found it easy to picture the regal elleth cutting Cúthon down and taking over the soldiers. She was a fierce, unflinching elleth, a force of nature, and Cúthon wouldn't have stood a chance against her.
"So now what happens?" Charlotte asked.
"Well," Thranduil slid his hands down to her hips and gently pulled her closer." That choice belongs to you. Mereth Nuin Giliath is days away. I believe the delegations from Lórinand and Imladris will remain here for a while. Should you change your mind, I have no doubt either party would be delighted to have you amongst their people. Though, if you choose to travel with Imladris, you should know they are escorting Cúthon and Lothuial. The Imladris guards will take them the rest of the way to the Havens and ensure their passage on a ship bound for Valinor."
Charlotte froze in his arms, her brows dropping as she studied him. She was relieved to hear that Cúthon and Lothuial would no longer darken Eryn Galen, but… "Do you not… I mean… Have you changed your mind? About us?"
Thranduil huffed a breath and shook his head. "There will be no moment in this life or any other where I do not crave you by my side. I have waited thousands of years to find you and would beg you to remain with me for thousands more if I did not fear that it would wound you to stay."
Charlotte's mouth curved, and she bit her lip. "You would not have to beg."
"Oh?"
"Unless you really wanted to." Her smile blew wide, but then she said, "Mandos offered me a choice, Thranduil."
He stilled.
"I could return to Virginia or stay here in Middle Earth." She tilted her head back, watched the heat scorch in his gaze as he tracked her lips, eyes tracing over her jaw and down the line of her neck. "And I will always choose you."
His mouth descended on hers, hot and insistent. Hands slid to the base of her spine, and he pulled her flush against him as he ran his tongue along the seam of her lips. Her toes curled in her boots, but Charlotte had other ideas.
She peeled away, placing a hand on his heaving lungs, and said breathily, "I thought you said you wouldn't bond with me where Maethor and Haedirn could hear?"
Thranduil raised a brow. "I did."
"Then take me home."
Thranduil's grin stretched wide, and he swooped down, lifting her easily into his arms and pressing his lips to hers once more.
AN: Only three more left! Thanks so much for your lovely comments and for reading!
