When I Needed You *

Chapter Two: Bruised but not Broken

Where, where were you
When I needed you most
When I needed a friend
~Erasure~

Aragorn blinked in shock at what he saw before him. He was on his way to Bree for Gandalf. He was still several weeks away and had no time to spare but the sight before him stopped him in his tracks. There was a girl laying on the ground under a tree, that was in and of its self very strange as he was in the middle of no where. But the really strange thing was that he could see the tree and ground through the girl as if she were a ghost. He walked up to her slowly, she appeared to be elven and very young. The closer he got the more substantial she became until he finally reached out a hand to touched her shoulder and found her to be flesh and blood.

“Hiril nin,” he whispered softly. Upon closer inspection he could tell that she had been sorely abused. Everything about her screamed oddment to him, from her garments to her bedroll even the pack she rested her head on was of a strange make. He had traveled almost all of the lands of middle earth and he had never seen the likes of this material before.

“Hiril nin,” he repeated a little louder. He knelt down beside her, it was still very early in the morning and the sun had not fully risen but from the looks of the marks on her face and the full pack, she was probably running away from someone. She would delay him, but he could not in good conscience leave her here in the middle of the wood, especially not now in these dangerous times. He put a little distance between them as she began to awaken.

He watched as her eyes fluttered open which really concerned him as elves only slept with their eyes closed when they were either very exhausted or injured. She looked confused for a moment before her eyes started moving, she spotted him immediately. She scrambled to her feet in a flash, with a look of panic on her face. Aragorn stood and held out his hands palms.

“My name is Strider. I meant no harm, you look hurt. Are you lost?” he spoke in the common tongue.

Renee stared at the stranger, Strider, his clothes were strange, almost medieval. Lost? Was she lost these trees looked very different from where she had laid down. Wait, did he really say Strider? She dropped her gaze to the ground as she thought furiously. Could this really be Middle-earth? The lady’s chanting came back to her, could middle earth be real? The flash of silver trees haunted her. She pulled on her midnight black hair the ends reached just below her hips. She looked back up to Strider and tucked her hair behind her ears. Wait! Oh shit, what the hell is that. Her ear was pointy. ‘I’m an elf. I’m in Middle-earth meeting Strider, so this is before the Ring Quest. My father beats and rapes me and I go to Middle-earth and become an elf. This has just got to be the most fucked up thing ever!’

“Yes,” she said in a whisper, looking down again. Well there went twenty five straight days. Her voice was hoarse from non-use and little water in the last few days.

“Yes, you are lost? Well then, were are you supposed to be?” Aragorn hoped it was somewhere close by so his trip was not too awfully delayed. He would see her to what ever village she was from or just take her along to Bree with him.

“I,” Renee just didn’t know how to answer him, “where are we?”

“Just north of Fornost,” he saw no recognition in her eyes at his words. He sighed, with him to Bree then, he hoped she didn’t slow him down very much. Those hobbits would need him.

Renee didn’t know what to think, her body didn’t hurt like it had and it might not be so uncomfortable to walk anymore as the swelling in her nether region had finally gone away but her thighs probably still had scratches and bruises all over them. And lord she really wanted a hot bath and a good cry. She took a deep breath and stood tall, this would not defeat her.

“May I travel with you? Are you going anywhere closed to Rivendell?” If she were an elf perhaps Lord Elrond would see her and possibly know why she was here.

“Eventually, yes I am going to Rivendell. I must warn you that first I go to Bree to meet friends. I am to guide them to Rivendell also. The way will be long and fraught with danger,” Perhaps he could convince her to stay in Bree or another village between here and there. He knew the wraiths would be after the ring Frodo carried.

He was startled by the look in her eyes at his explanation. The look was familiar, it was the same look Elrond got when he looked into the future.

“The hobbits, yes. We must hurry,” Renee realized she had walked into the beginning of the Quest. Maybe she could help Frodo. If she could keep him from getting stabbed his life and the quest would go much more smoothly.

“How did you know? Are you a seer?” As he asked he bent down to retrieve her bedroll, he rolled it up and secured it to the bottom of her pack where he assumed it went, just like his.

Now that the panic was wearing off, Renee’s ribs where starting to ache. She wrapped her arms around her middle and tried to stand straighter.

“Yes and no. Sometimes I just know things, but never like on demand or anything. And,” she looked down at her hands, thankfully still covered, “when I touch things, I can see things about them.”

Aragorn noticed how she was holding herself and thought of her injuries.

“My lady, do your injuries need tending?”

“Do you have anything to wrap ribs with? I think I’ve broken one but I can’t wrap myself.”

“Yes, In my pack. My step-father would have me if I wasn’t prepared for something like this!” He laughed thinking of the elven healer.

Renee sank down to the ground gracefully still trying to keep her back as straight as possible. She blushed when she realized she would need help getting her shirts off.

“Um, Strider? I think I will need some help undressing.”

Aragorn saw her blush and tried to put her at easy.

“I was trained by one of the finest healers in Middle earth. Please do not be embarrassed.”

She untied her hoodie from around her waist and pulled the t-shirt up as far as she could get it, Strider reached over and helped her strip until she sat there in just her sports bra. It covered more than her two piece swim suit so she was not in the least embarrassed about showing her body. No it was the bruised and scratch marks that embarrassed her. She was a trained fighter, she should have been able to defend herself better than this. She tried not to be angry, tried not to remember, but when Aragorn touched a bite mark on her shoulder she flinched.

“By the Valar! What happened? Who did this to you?” He had known she was injured but this, his stomach clenched in anger. These marks showed more than just beating.

“My Lady, I can tell by these marks, this male,” Aragorn swallowed, afraid of her answer but needing to know, “did he finish what started?”

“My name is Renee.”

“Renee then. I need to know how much damage was done. Cuts and scrapes here in the wild infect easy. If he, damaged you, let me help.”

Renee closed her eyes and gave herself a stern talking to. This was Aragorn right, he was noble, he would not hurt her. He would keep this between them she could trust him. Some of the cuts on her legs she thought might be getting infected. She stood back up and opened her eyes.

Aragorn watched as she stood and kicked off her shoes. He took this as a good sign and turned back to his pack. He would need some water and salve. When he turned back she was standing there in the strangest undergarments he had ever seen and she was blushing to the tips of her pointy little ears. The sight of her body didn’t stir him, no, instead it made him very, very sad. His respect for her grew as she didn’t bother to cover herself but stood tall and straight. It was obvious that whoever had attacked her had not spared her a thought as her legs, stomach and back were covered in bruises.

“I’ll put the salve on the bruises first, it is elvish medicine and should sooth any pain. And then, I’m sorry my lady but you will have to lay down so I can see to the cuts on your thighs. I think you would not be able to with your ribs.”

Renee just nodded her head, trying to hold on to the little bit of dignity she had left. She wasn’t ready for the flood of images that hit her when his touched her back. Usually her gift only worked through her hands. She gasped.

“Strider, Captain of the Dunedain Rangers, last of the Numenor. Aragorn, son of Arathorn, Estel, King Elessar, the Elfstone. The Legend who Walks. Wielder of Narsil, the blade re-forged. Protector of the Ring-bearer. King of the Dead Who Walk. Son, lover, husband, father.”

Aragorn snatched his hand away and turned her to look at him. Her eyes were glazed over. He understood her gift but this would be difficult if she did that every time he touched her.

Her shoulders slumped as she fell silent. He waited until her gaze refocused on him.

“Are you going to do that every time I touch you?” he smiled, to let her know he was not upset.

“No, it usually only happens once with the things I touch. That was the first time it happened with anything but my hands,” she whispered still effected by the visions that went with the speech. The fellowship, the war, his years of ruling, his death.

“Okay then, let’s get you seen to. We need to get moving.”

Despite his hasty words he took his time cleaning and bandaging all of her wounds. There were small scars all over her, he wondered about them but was more concerned at her more recent injuries than the scars. Her womanhood had been violently penetrated and there was tearing. He would ask Lord Elrond to examine her when he could. He hoped there would be no permanent damage. Neither of them spoke as he put ointment inside her, he prayed to the Valar that his medicine would be enough. By the time he was finished he was ready to kill whoever had done this to her. She hadn’t spoken since the vision, even though it took over an hour to care for all of her hurts. Hopefully with her elvish healing she would be able to reapply the ointment herself tomorrow, he could tell that she was horribly embarrassed.

Renee tried to put her mind somewhere else like she did at the doctor while he was examining her. It was difficult, every time he touched her she had to fight herself from flinching. The sky helped, she stared up through the canopy of trees. The blue of the sky was deeper than back home she realized. She let her mind drift away with the clouds.

When she was finally dressed again and her pack was on her shoulders she looked around for her sword. Hoping it had made the trip to middle earth. She found it about three feet from where she had been sleeping. She pulled it from its sheath to make sure it was intact.

The blade caught Aragorn’s gaze, “I didn’t know you were armed.”

“Yes well it’s more ornamental than anything but I couldn’t leave it behind.”

“Can you use it then,” he was curious, most elven maids wouldn’t touch a sword, Galadriel and Arwen being the only two that he knew who would.

“I’ve been trained yes, but I’ve never had to use it in a real battle. I don’t know if the blade would hold up to a proper fight, like I said it is mostly for show. I won it in a tournament.”

“May I see it? I have never seen a blade quite like it before.”

She handed him the katana sword, she thought it looked a lot like Conner’s sword from the Highlander movie but instead of a dragon the hilt had a phoenix etched into it. It was really quite beautiful, especially because she had earned it.

“Who crafted this?” Aragorn asked as he tested the swords balance.

“I don’t know probably some random guy in a sweat shop.”

“Tis an excellent blade, it will hold up fine in battle. Tonight in camp I will sharpen it for you,” he sheathed the sword and made to hand it back to her but paused to look at the hilt.

“What bird is this?”

Renee smiled for the first time, he smiled back glad to see her spirit return. Her smile lit her entire face. He returned her sword as she spoke they headed out.

“It is a phoenix, a fire bird. Where I am from it is a legend. It is an immortal bird it ages but instead of dieing it bursts into flame. In its ashes it is reborn. They say that the tears of a phoenix can heal any wound. Its feathers are red, orange and gold, just like a flame. It’s a very mystical bird.”

“You never said where you are from, Renee, but I do not believe you are from around here. Middle-earth has no such birds or legends of such birds that I know of.”

“No Strider, I am not from around here.”


tbc...