Family Ties by LilPip

[LilPippin]

Chapter 7
The loneliness was not the only thing that bothered Estel. Elrond had still not come out of his room, even after he had heard of Estel’s recovery. Faelon, Glorfindel and Gandalf were the only ones that came into his room, so that he could confide in them. He missed is brothers’s laughter and Legolas’ humor. He wanted them to come and make everything like the way it used to be, but then certain words came back to him.

"What am I supposed to do if he never wakes and I am left to deal with Gondor on my own. Estel was supposed to fulfill his destiny as King of Gondor, if he dies...”

" Bye, Bye, son of Gondor.”<br>
His family had lied to him, his life had all been a lie, and he was destined to be a king! It all was too much to bear.

Estel ran to Elrond’s study ignoring the searing pain in his side. He nearly slammed into the elf lord when he got there. Elrond’s eyes were blotched and ashen. His face was pale and all strength seemed to leak from him as he saw his son standing in his room.

“Ada, I don’t want your sympathy,” he lied, “I want you to tell me about my heritage and I want the truth.”<br>Elrond was unable to answer, so he just shook his head.

“Lord Elrond, am I destined to become the King of Gondor?”<br>
Elrond looked at Estel with tears in his eyes he slowly nodded his head. Estel looked at his father in horror before turning to run.

“You-Are- NOT- my father,” he screamed. Elrond cried with more velocity at Estel’s harsh words and how he had ceased from calling him Ada, and instead used Lord Elrond.

“ESTEL!” he called finally finding his voice.

Estel turned the corner to run into Legolas. Legolas looked at him in fear, but Estel was not going to take that.

“You knew,” he spat. “You knew about my heritage and never told me. Didn’t you?”<br>
Legolas slowly nodded with remorse, but before he could say anything Estel turned his head in disgust and ran away.

“ARAGORN!” Legolas cried, falling to his knees.
Estel turned back and whispered, “So that is my name. Thank you, mellon nin.” He had not meant for Legolas to hear him and the seriousness in his words, but Legolas did, and it made him smile.

Aragorn walked over to Legolas, “ I never meant what I said, Legolas. You were falling into despair. Seeing my fath- Lord Elrond - today made me realize that. I am sorry, mellon nin. Please forgive me.” He didn’t mention that being shunned from his family was killing him inside.
Legolas slowly pulled himself up and said, “There is nothing to forgive, Aragorn, son of Arathorn. For you were also falling into despair, and I should never have given up hope. Go. You wanted to run, but don’t stray too far.”<br>
“Legolas, I don’t plan on running for fun. I can’t stay here. My whole life was a lie. This place will always be a reminder of what can not be. I must go. And I must go alone.”<br>
The life-long friends embraced before Legolas watched Aragorn run from Imaldris. They both were crying.

“Why did I let Estel go? It was stupid,” Legolas thought to himself. “ Estel needed to find out why his past was hidden from him, but he wont now, because I have let him go."

“Legolas! Legolas, have you seen Estel?” Elrond asked as he approached the elf.

He nodded.

“Where did he go?”<br>“I let him run.”<br>
“You mean you allowed him to leave Rivendell? What possibly possessed you? He doesn’t know his name does he?”<br>
“Actually, I told him.”<br>
"LEGOLAS! If the enemy hears that name uttered they could learn that he is still alive, and they’ll be looking for revenge!”<br>
“I know that! I don’t know why I let him go, I just did!” Legolas cried before running into Elrohir who was passing by and then running straight for his room.
Aragorn was still wandering near his home of Rivendell. Now that he knew who he was, he felt like his heart had been filled with something that he never knew was missing. But, he was concerned about how he had left his brothers and his father. Elrond had barely been able to talk to him and the twins had not talked to him at all, in fact, they had been avoiding him. He was glad for Legolas’ support though, he had missed that above all else, while he was holding his grudge.

[Faramir_is_my_guy]

That's great, Pip!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't wait to hear what happens next!

[Rev]

Oh my goodness! Poor Aragorn!! You;ve simply got to write more!! Me'sa have to know what happens next!! *waits anxiously*

[LilPippin]

Thanks FimG and Rev for reviewing. youre the best! And Rev, you know what happens.

Anyway heres part 8...?

Chapter 8

Aragorn was slowly hobbling along the many forests of Rivendell. Forests he happened to know nothing about. He had left in such a rush that he didn’t even take Glorroh or a sword. He felt naked, in a way. His sword was part of him, he felt unprotected and vulnerable to the wild without it. He also knew that he was unprotected from himself. He had just suffered a poison and a coma and only a few hours later he was running away, without food, without weapons to catch food, and without a coat for the bitter winter air. As he walked along he tripped over his own feet and felt his head hit the ground, hard. He was weaker than he thought. No intelligent person would run away from home without resources. He also realized that Legolas had not said anything about his lack in comforts either. Surely his friend would have said something.

He sighed. What was up with that elf? When he found his breath again, he slowly got up and examined himself for injuries. He saw none, he would just have a bad headache for awhile. He knew he needed something to support him, as his side was still giving him trouble, so he went walking stick hunting.

“Are there no good sticks around here?” Aragorn said to no one in particular. The ground was littered with sticks, but either they were too small, skinny, wide, or uncomfortable. Aragorn moved farther into the forest, searching for the perfect walking stick.. He found the perfect walking stick in a clearing. It was a “y” stick and would easily hold him up if he started to fall. He went to pick the stick up and heard a growl behind him. He froze in fear and felt the dread of what was coming tingle throughout his body.

Turning his head he saw a wolf still growling hungrily at him. He quickly picked up the stick and held it up, ready for the attack.

When it came he was unprepared for it. The wolf snarled at him and showed his teeth. Aragorn lunged the stick at the top of his head, hoping that it would knock him out. The wolf kept snarling and biting and Aragorn kept hitting, until Aragorn no longer knew what he was hitting. He just hit whatever was near. The wolf jumped on top of his prey and prepared for the kill. Aragorn felt a sharp pain in his arm and knew that he wouldn’t last long. Searching for a sharp rock he stabbed it into the wolf’s eye, temporarily blinding it on that side, and pushed the tip of the walking stick into the heart of the beast. It dropped on him dead.
He wondered why the stick had easily gone through, it wasn’t sharp at all, but he didn’t really pat attention to it. He was just glad that he was alive. Pushing the body off, he was cursed with the smell of the dead, and he vomited. Usually he wouldn’t have been sick, but it was a sign that he was not completely healed. Picking up his unharmed walking stick, he slowly pulled himself up.
*~*~*~*~*~*~

//Manwe watched the young human, and was happy. The wolf would have killed him, but luckily he spared the young human. He had so much more to learn. So much more. Manwe knew what was coming and he knew what would happen if Aragorn had died, so he saved his life, unfortunately he could only do it once. If the human got into trouble again, no one could help him.//
*~*~*~*~*~


Arwen Undomiel, daughter of Elrond Peredhel, walked through the forest. She loved her home of Rivendell and missed it greatly while residing in Lothlorien with her grandmother. She avoided the trails home and instead wove through the forest and let the trees tell her the way. She couldn’t wait to see her father and brothers again. But who she most wanted to meet was the young mortal that her father had taken in, the mortal that her brothers had written so fondly of. She didn’t know how much would result in that small desire. The love of more than one lifetime was about to form.

*~*~*~*~*

“Tinuviel, Tinuviel!” he cried out. Arwen turned to the noise and smiled.

“Who are you and why do you call me by that name?”Smiling she noticed the embarrassment flush the man’s cheeks.

“Because I believed you to be indeed Luthien Tinuviel, of whom I was singing. But if you are not she, then you walk in her likeness.”

It was true, Estel had been singing the song of Luthien and Beren. It was one of his favorites when he was younger. His fath-Lord Elrond had sang it to him often. It had become stuck in his head a little after he bound the bite from the wolf with a bit of his clothing. Very-thin clothing he had, and it was extremely cold.

“So many have said. Yet her name is not mine. Though maybe my doom will be not unlike hers. But who are you?”<br>
“Estel I was called, but I am Aragorn, Arathorn’s son, Isildur’s Heir, Lord of the Dunedain.”<br>
“Then we are akin from afar. For I am Arwen Elrond’s daughter, and am named Undomiel.”<br>
“Often is it seen, that in dangerous days men hide their chief treasure. Yet I marvel at Elrond and your brothers; for though I have dwelt in this house from childhood, I have heard no word of you. How comes it that we have never met before? Surely, your father has not kept you locked in his hoard.” Aragorn felt the twinge of red flush against his cheeks once more.

No, I have dwelt for a time in the land of my mother’s kin, in far Lothlorien. I have but lately returned to visit my father again. It has been many years since I walked in Imladris.”<br>
“Where are you headed Aragorn, son of Arathorn?”<br>
Guiltily, he looked into her eyes, “ I am not sure.” Knowing that that would not be a good enough explanation he added, “ I am looking for an herb, for my father, I mean Lord Elrond, for we have run out of a certain root.” It felt terrible to lie to someone so beautiful, but he knew that he had to at least make up a good story or she would pester.


“Well, what root is this that father needs so desperately? I will help you find it.” Aragorn felt his heart sink. After all of that, his unplanned escape might go down in flames.

No! No my lady, I am sure you are eager to see your brothers and father. Go on ahead, I will be there shortly.”

For awhile she seemed unconvinced, but slowly she gave a nod. Aragorn felt himself breath again. As she left, Aragorn collapsed. He had been trying to remain standing in her presence and he was surprised he managed to stay upright. The bite seemed to be doing fine, it was the his side that he was worried about. Talking about his family like nothing was wrong, seemed cruel and painful also. Something was wrong, and he believed it never could be fixed. It was hurting. That was probably to be expected, but still-.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*


A few hours later Arwen glanced back into the thick forest. She felt her heart tingling and her knees shaking. It was the human, she knew. She dreaded the answer to the question that had been haunting her mind, because the answer was that she was in love, not only in love, but in love with a mortal man!
Sighing, she noticed she was close to the Rivendell gates. She smiled, it had been too long. She walked inside the doors, but her thoughts kept lingering on the human, why was he that far in the forest? Surely he didn’t need to be out that far. She just hoped he was behind her somewhere.

“Arwen!”

She smiled as Legolas came running toward her.

“Arwen, I had no idea you would be coming home, finally.”<br>
“How are you, Legolas? And what are you doing here?”<br>
“I was visiting Estel, but he-” Legolas trailed off he couldn’t say it.

“He looked fine to me. He said he would be here after me. Said he was out collecting some herb.” She looked at how pale Legolas’ face went, and asked, “Legolas, what is wrong?” She now noticed that no one else had come down to say hello to her. Not even her father.

“They're looking for him.” Legolas whimpered simply.

[Faramir_is_my_guy]

It's GREAT Pip!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ;d

[duby<3]

I have just one word to say: AWESOME!!!

[LilPippin]

Thanks you two. You're the best.

Chapter 9

Kurlakh and Skraluk were sent on an important mission. That mission, little did they know, would determine the fate of Middle Earth. By what they had heard, the future held not what they expected. The heir of Isildur was still alive! After all these years of suffering, they could still fail to take over Middle Earth.

"We better get back to the master." growled Kurlakh. Skraluk nodded in agreement.

The two orcs arrived back in the orc camp a little bit later. They demanded to see the master as soon as they got there, and their orders were carried out. They were now telling "the master" what they had seen.

"Bashgurk’s entire group was wiped out. None survived. It was those prissy elves. They slaughtered them all," Skraluk hissed in anger.

"Master, we should have heeded Bashgurk's warning; there is no doubt that the heir of Isildur lives. We saw him with our own eyes. Dressed in horrid elf clothing he was. And I he was falling for a she-elf." Kurlakh stated.

"Shouldn't we get word to Lord Saruman, master,” said Skraluk.

Finally speaking, Snikzog, the master, hissed, “And what do you think he'll do to us if he finds out that we discovered the Heir alive and we did not kill him? Give us a pat on the back? No, he'll kill us. We do not tell Saruman until we have good news on the subject!"
"So what does that mean, Master?"

Snikzog answered, with a wicked grin, as if it were obvious, "Prepare the troops, we will see the Heir of Isildur dead soon." He smiled mischievously.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Arwen followed Legolas into Elrond’s Council Chamber. She remembered it well from when her father held meetings, though she’d never been included in them. She looked around and noticed how quiet it was in there.

"Legolas, there is no one in here."

In reply, Legolas said quietly, "They will be here soon."

Legolas was right. Single file everyone came in and collapsed into the chairs. There was an awkward silence before Elrond finally spoke. "Anyone have any luck?"
Everyone was too weary to answer so most just shook their heads.

"Ada, he is no where to be seen. If he wants to be left alone, he will be. He's too good at hiding. Especially in the dark.” said Elladan.

His twin brother seemed not in the conversation, but instead calculating something in his head.

Faelon looked down in disappointment, and Glorfindel was the first to notice Arwen and Legolas. He walked dejectedly over to them as if he carried a heavy weight on his shoulders and hugged the elven princess.

"How are you doing, my lady? It is good to have you back." Arwen hugged the blond elf back. Everyone now looked over at Arwen. She had grown in beauty and stature in the past few hundred years. She smiled at her brothers and approached her father with love.

Giving him a hug, she whispered in his ear, “I saw him Ada. He was in the woods, past the Bruinen."

Elrond looked up at his daughter with tear filled eyes and rasped, "You saw him?" She nodded.

Before there could be any reaction, Elrohir spoke, "Ada! It’s his birthday."

Everyone looked at the elf and realized he was right. Elrohir broke down sobbing in anguish and Elladan placed his arms comfortingly around his grieving brother. Elrond realized his jaw had dropped and he quickly shut it before anyone noticed.

"Arwen, you must tell me everything."

It was in these moments that Legolas decided to go after the human that had become as close as a brother. He exited the room and made his way to his room. Picking up his weapons and Aragorn's sword, which he had been holding while he was injured, he left Imladris.

~*~*~*~*~*~
Aragorn had gotten up only a little while before he heard the twins' voices calling him. They were near and he knew it. Knowing he couldn't out run them, he hid as best he could, letting his instincts kick in. His instincts seemed to be the only thing keeping him going at the moment. He was tired, in pain, cold, and knew if he didn't find warmth and shelter soon, the snow storm would surely kill him. He set off again, letting his feet take control of where he was going. Little did he know in his half-concscious state, that he traveled deep into the Trollshaws and toward the Angle, where the rangers resided. The cold finally got to the young adopted son of Elrond and he collapsed in the snow, the wound in his side was bleeding freely once more.

[Faramir_is_my_guy]

Like Duby said, there's only one word to describe it: AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!

[LilPippin]

Chapter 10

He didn't realize how late he truly was until he saw the sun slowly disappearing in a riot of colors. It was just another day lost, nothing to be concerned over. His Uncle's anger however, well, that was a different story.
Running home to his Uncle Hal's house was torture. He knew that he was in trouble and he knew he would be punished. His Uncle wouldn't let him off that easily.

Home. It was such a weird word, full of thought. Though he had been living with his Uncle for more than a year now, it never seemed like home. Home was with his mother and father; wherever they were, that was home.

Reaching his uncle's house and hoping he was in a good mood, Gabriel opened the wooden door. Quietly, he strode into the house, praying that his Uncle was not waiting for him. However, the Valar apparently were not on his side, because Halbarad, ranger of the North, was waiting in the living room for his nephew to arrive, holding his arms across his chest in a sign of disapproval.

"Gabriel, were you by the river again?" he questioned.

"Uncle, I-"

"Gabe! It is dangerous down there. I have told you multiple times that the Hoarwell is forbidden to you. Were you there all this time?"

"Yes, uncle. I lost track of time. The river was just so pretty and -"

"Gabe, you were late and in a place that shouldn't exist for you!"

"JUST BECAUSE FATHER AND MOTHER DIED THERE DOESN'T MEAN I WILL TOO. I AM NINE, AND QUITE CAPABLE OF TAKING CARE OF MYSELF."

"OH! AND I SUPPOSE YOU BEING LATE SUPPORTS THIS THEORY.'

Gabriel stared daggers at his Uncle, before looking down in shame. His Uncle was right, no matter how hard he argued, he was late. However, he liked that river and was going to continue residing by it. Halbarad noted his nephew's defeat and sighed in frustration. That boy was just so darn stubborn. Just like his father.

Cooling down a bit, Halbarad said, "You missed dinner. There is some leftover chicken on the table. Eat that and go to your room. You are confined there tonight. You are not to leave this house until I say so. Gabriel?"

"Yes, Uncle. I understand." But the young human was already forming an escape plan.
*~*~*~*~*~
A few days later...

The next time Estel woke it was still snowing as if in defiance. He tried to force himself up but the wound in his side had re-opened, again. The poison had thinned his blood so much that it refused to clot, in spite of the healing herbs that he'd been fed by Thalion and Gandalf. And the pain forced him down. Sighing, he realized he was stuck out here with no food, no water, no warmth, and worse, no family.

"Oh, Ada. I am so sorry." he whispered. But his words were drowned out by the sound of the harsh wind.
*~*~*~*~*~
Lord Elrond heard everything about Arwen's meeting with Estel in the woods. Everything except the small part about them falling in love. That was knowledge better not said. The twins insisted on continuing the search right after the news, but the wind picked up and Elrond forbid it as a result. The rest of the search parties collapsed on their beds. A whole two days wasted, for the young human had not been found. Now, a week after Estel's disappearance, the search parties were heading out again. This time with Lord Elrond accompanying the search. He was not going to sit in safety while his son possibly froze to death. While loading up the horses, his twins sons came up to him out of breath and started speaking around the same time.

"My sons, slow down. What has concerned you so?"
Elladan said, "Father, we went to tell Legolas that we were heading out and his room was deserted. All weapons were gone."

"And so was Estel's sword." picked up Elrohir.
Realizing what was going on, Elrond's eyes searched the stables.

"Faelon, when was the last time you remember seeing the young Prince of Mirkwood?"

"Legolas, sir? At the council, after that, well, I don't know."

"Oh, Eru! He's gone after Estel!" exclaimed Elrond
"Let us pray that the Valar are on his side," said Faelon, eyes closing in prayer.
*~*~*~*~
Tracking Estel was actually more difficult than Legolas first supposed. 'By the Valar', he thought to himself, 'he's become better at hiding than I realized'. After a few hours of trying to decipher the many tracks, Legolas decided to let the trees guide him in the right direction. Several hours later, he was still wandering aimlessly, when he came upon the corpse of a wolf. He bent down to inspect it and noticed that one of it's eyes had been put out, with a rock by the look of it. But that couldn't have caused it's death, so Legolas turned over the stiff body and discovered a gaping puncture wound in the chest. Knowing that Estel had run off unarmed, the Prince wondered what had been used to kill the beast until he saw faint indentions in the frozen ground with traces of blood in them. 'A stick? Estel killed this wolf with a stick? Truly the Valar must have been watching over him for him to have accomplished this in his present weakened state.' He then proceeded to look at the mouth of the creature, to see if perhaps, his friend had sustained any additional injuries. With horror, he found scraps of cloth caught in the teeth that looked to match what he recalled Estel to be wearing when he ran from Imladris. "Oh, no," he wailed, "why did I let him leave? I'm sorry, mellon nin. I'm so sorry."
**~**~**~**
Night had fallen when Gabe crept silently from his room, avoiding all of the creaking floor boards in the hallway. He made his way into the kitchen and set his small pack on the table and proceeded to fill it with fruit. What was left of the chicken from dinner, he wrapped in a napkin, along with the remains of the day's fresh loaf of bread. Placing them in his pack, next he found a skin to fill with water, knowing that it was important to have water when you traveled, even when you were near a river. One last time, he inspected the contents of his pack, hoping he hadn't forgotten anything. 'A knife!' he thought. 'I almost forgot to get myself a knife.' He looked around the kitchen and grabbed the large butcher knife that his uncle had used to cut up the chicken before cooking it. To a nine year old boy, it looked like a short sword, and he grinned at it, swishing it back and forth in the air.

Even though he didn't have a sheath to place it in, and didn't want to take the time to hunt in the weapons cupboard for one to fit it, for fear of making too much noise and awakening his Ranger uncle, he decided to wear it loosely stuck through one of his belt loops and rest his hand on the handle while he walked. 'OK, is there anything else I'll need? I have a spare shirt and leggings, a blanket, food, water, a knife and my coat. I guess I'm set.' Gabe thought about leaving Uncle Hal a note, but decided against it. It would be better if he just left and didn't look back. Grabbing a cloak to wear over his coat, he carefully slipped out the door and headed toward his beloved river, intent upon making a home for himself somewhere near it but as far from his uncle's house as he could get.

Morning found Gabe several miles from his 'former' home and searching for a place to sleep during the daylight hours.

~*~*~*

Now, after finding a trail to follow, Legolas knew where he was going. As his best friend was wounded, Legolas was able to follow the blood, and hopefully find its source. It was kind of cruel to think about, but Legolas was fairly grateful that there was blood to follow, he wasn't wandering aimlessly now. If he could find Estel, then he could try to at least heal him some. The thought made him think about how injured his best friend really was. He was eager to find Estel so he could help him , but at the same time, scared of what he would find.

"I promise to you that I will do whatever I can to ensure your safety, mellon nin." Legolas swore. He knew that Estel would not hear him, but it was comforting to hear himself say the words.

"Where are you my friend? How do you fare? I should never have let you leave?" Legolas thought bitterly.


A/N Okay so it is getting a little bit better. And the plot is finally moving! YAY!

[stormecho]

It is great! Inever read anything like it!

[LilPippin]

Im getting bored with it. See I started it like 2 years ago and I can't seem to get back in the mood I had then. Ah well...

[stormecho]

That's too bad...