Disrupting Haldir's World

Chapter 6 – The Decision

“Give me your hand, Elisabeth,” Lady Galadriel said. Elisabeth held out the mangled limb while Haldir disposed of the bandages he had just carefully removed. She was instructed to place her hand into a bowl of water and told to let it soak. While they waited, Galadriel spoke to Elisabeth.

“Rúmil had the foresight to retrieve your fingers. I can make your hand whole again,” she told the woman.

Elisabeth sucked in a breath. She had never heard of such a thing. “How can this be?”

“The healing waters of the Nimrodel, along with a little magic,” the she-elf smiled.

“Oh, that would be wonderful,” Elisabeth said, already wondering what it would be like to run two hands over Haldir’s body.

The lady glanced at Haldir before adding, “Haldir asked me to do this for you. He wants to be sure that when you leave, Rowland will see you as he once did and not the way he looks at you now.”

Haldir looked up sharply. There was no reason to bring this up. They had very little time left and he didn’t want to spend it with Elisabeth upset.

Lady Galadriel looked at her Marchwarden and spoke to him with her mind.

‘Haldir, you must be responsible for your actions. You cannot wait until it is time for her to leave to tell her of your plans for her future. She has the right to know.’

He nodded and turned to Elisabeth.

“Rowland cares for you, Elisabeth, and I think he would be a good husband. When you leave here I would feel better knowing that you had someone to watch over you.”

She looked at the floor, trying unsuccessfully to hide the pain she felt, “Have you tired of me so quickly, Haldir?”

“No, Elisabeth, of course not,” he said, touching her face with his fingertips. “We shall still be together while you are here. I am just looking ahead to the future. I want to know that you are safe when you leave the Golden Wood; that you will have someone to care for you.”

“Someone that only wants me when I am whole?” she asked, looking up. “Is that the sort of mate you would choose for me?”

Haldir was at a loss for words.

“And if I were to grow ill one day or become an invalid, is he somebody that would care for me or would he simply regard me with disgust as he does now? No, Haldir, no matter what happens, I will not have Rowland as a husband. I would rather spend the rest of my life alone.”

“Once your hand is fixed, you will not have trouble finding a mate, I am sure,” he said, not meeting her eyes.

“My hand did not bother you, Haldir, or so you said,” she reminded him.

“No, but humans have different priorities.”

There was silence for a moment until she replied quietly. “If I were given a choice between the two, I would rather stay with you than to be healed.”

She saw pain on his face before he closed his eyes. “It cannot be, Elisabeth. We cannot be together.”

“May I ask why not?” she queried.

He sighed. “When I became Marchwarden, I took a vow. I swore an oath to serve Lord Celeborn and Lady Galadriel as long as I live or until they leave these shores and release me from my duties.”

“I would never ask you to give up your responsibilities,” Elisabeth told him, confused.

“You would spend half of your time in the woods with me?” he asked.

“Yes, of course,” she said. “Why wouldn’t I?”

He seemed surprised then resigned. “That is not the biggest problem anyway, Elisabeth. The problem is that because of my vows, I could not give up my immortality. It is forbidden and even Lady Galadriel cannot change that.”

“Why would you want to give up…,” Elisabeth looked at him as comprehension dawned on her. “Oh,” she said in a small voice. “You will live forever and I will die.”

He nodded. “Elisabeth, if I could become mortal, I would do it. I would rather spend a human lifetime with you than to live without you for all the ages, but I cannot change that.”

“I would not want you to,” she assured him, understanding now that there was no answer. “I would rather leave you in a week than to see your life cut short for me.”

“And I cannot bear to keep you here only to watch you age and die. It would destroy me,” he told her.

“I would not do that to you, either. I understand now,” she said, touching his arm with her right hand.

“I am sorry, Elisabeth,” he said.

“Do not be,” she told him. “We shall make the most of the short time we have together.”

Lady Galadriel stepped away and returned with a second bowl; one that contained Elisabeth’s severed fingers. The fingers moved in the water as though each one was a separate living being and Elisabeth stepped away in shock.

“Why are they moving?” she asked, appalled.

“The water has given them new life,” she was told. “Place your hand in the bowl.”

Elisabeth swallowed nervously as she glanced down at her mutilated hand. She slowly raised it and placed it in the bowl, watching as the fingers slowly moved into the correct positions. She watched in awe as the flesh began to re-connect.

“You may remove your hand now, Elisabeth.”

She did so and was relieved to find that it appeared to be completely intact. If anything, it seemed better than it had before in a way she did not yet understand. She thanked Lady Galadriel profusely and left with Haldir who seemed very happy for her.

“Maybe I am being selfish,” he told her, kissing the top of her head, “but I have been thinking of how much nicer it will be to have both of your hands on me.”

“I have been thinking much the same thing,” she admitted, forcing away all thoughts of her bleak future. “Shall we go find out?”

Smiling, he led her back to his talan where they spent most of the day in bed, not only making love but talking and holding each other. In the late afternoon while Elisabeth was catching up on some much needed rest, Rúmil came to the door again. Haldir answered in just a robe, which caused Rúmil to glance up into the bedroom where Elisabeth lay sleeping. There was a sheet thrown over her, but enough flesh was showing to make Haldir uncomfortable.

“Quit looking at her,” he told his brother, walking up the few stairs to adjust the sheet covering her body.

“But she is so nice to look at,” Rúmil insisted.

“Find your own woman,” Haldir told him.

“I cannot, you sent them all away.”

“I did not, Lady Galadriel did.”

“Because it was what you wanted. She always lets you have what you want,” Rúmil pouted.

“Not always,” Haldir said, eyes haunted. “Not that she has a choice this time.”

“You would honestly rather have one mortal lifetime with her than to have eternity without her?” Rúmil asked, still not quite believing it.

“Yes,” Haldir said. “Maybe. I think so.”

“You sound so certain,” Rúmil stated.

“It is easy to say that I would do it when I know it cannot happen,” Haldir admitted. “If it were actually a possibility, maybe I would not be so willing. All I know for certain is that I love her and it is going to be close to impossible to let her go.”

“Why do you not compromise and stay with her for the next twenty years before sending her away, rather than just keeping her here for just a week?”

“Simply discard her when she wears out?” Haldir asked, eyebrows raised. “Use up the best of her human years and leave her with nothing; no husband, no children to care for her when she grows old?”

“I guess that would not be right, either,” Rúmil admitted.

“No, it would not and if I let her stay more than a week, it will become two weeks, then three. Where would I draw the line? When would I know that the time is right for her to go? No, I have to let her go at the end of the week. She will forget about me and find another. Her hand is healed now so that will not be an issue.”

They both turned when they heard Elisabeth stir in the bedroom and soon she joined them. She showed Rúmil her hand and he kissed it, earning a look of disapproval from his brother.

“Thank you for bringing my fingers back,” she said. “I never would have thought of that.”

“You were in no condition to think at all,” Rúmil said, his face clouding as he pictured the Uruk holding Elisabeth’s hand down on the stump.

“No, and I owe you thanks for my rescue, too,” she added.

He smiled. “I am supposed to make sure you come to dinner again tonight. Apparently, Lady Galadriel thought you might be…preoccupied and not make it.”

“I imagine that we can squeeze in some time for dinner,” Haldir said wryly as he sat down and pulled Elisabeth onto his lap.

“I imagine,” she told him.

“I think this may be a good time for me to leave,” Rúmil offered, heading towards the door. He wasn’t even sure they noticed.

Elisabeth ran both of her hands through Haldir’s hair as they kissed deeply.

“Are you sore?” he asked her gently.

“No,” she said, flexing her hand, “it seems to be completely healed and there is no pain.”

“That is not what I meant,” humor shone in his eyes.

“Oh, yes I am sore,” she replied, “but I don’t mind. I shall have the rest of my life to recover.”

“I desire you now, Elisabeth, but I do not want to make you hurt more than you already do,” he told her, biting her earlobe.

“I could do what I did this morning,” she offered him. “There is no more fruit, but I think that I could improvise.”

“Do you want to try something similar, where we can both receive pleasure?” he asked, arching an eyebrow.

“You have not disappointed me thus far. I shall trust your judgment now,” she told him, as he led her to the bedroom.

“You do what you did this morning and at the same time I will use my tongue to pleasure you,” he explained as they rid each other of their clothing.

Elisabeth tried to picture that in her mind and couldn’t quite figure out how it would work without one of them being a contortionist.

“I do not see how that would be possible,” she finally admitted as he lay on the bed, pulling her on top of him.

He placed his hands on her waist and lifted her, then turned her around so that she was facing the other direction.

“Oh,” she said, understanding.

~~~~~~~~~

At dinnertime, Rowland was shocked to see that Elisabeth’s hand had been healed. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her during the meal and in spite of what Haldir had told Lady Galadriel, it bothered him now. As the meal was drawing to an end, Rowland finally said, “Something has changed. You are different.”

Elisabeth smiled brightly, “Yes, I have four more fingers than I did yesterday.”

“Besides that,” he regarded her closely.

She blushed and Rowland glanced at Haldir.

“Oh,” the man said, understanding. “I thought that had already happened.”

“I do not think this is a suitable conversation for the dinner table,” Elisabeth informed him quietly, uncomfortable under the man’s scrutiny.

He dropped the subject, but suddenly wondered why Lady Galadriel hadn’t healed him as she had done to Elisabeth. It was because of Haldir, he decided. She was giving the elf time to spend with Elisabeth and that knowledge upset Rowland. The sooner he got her away from here, the sooner he could win her over. Now that her hand was healed, he wanted her, badly.

“Lady Galadriel, is there any reason that you could not heal me as you have done to Elisabeth? We could leave at once and not infringe upon your hospitality any longer,” Rowland said.

“Elisabeth has not yet finished healing,” Lady Galadriel informed him, without explanation. “There is more to be done and it will take several days.”

The man sullenly returned to his food when it was obvious that she was not going to change her mind. Each day they stayed would make it more difficult to get her away from here.

~~~~~~~~~

Elisabeth was working on her second glass of wine. Two glasses of wine was not a lot under normal circumstances, but she had never even touched spirits before. It had gone straight to her head and as she glanced over at Haldir, a wave of desire washed over her. She couldn’t wait to get back to his talan. Very carefully so as not to shock him, she placed her hand on his leg under the table and began to slide it up. He quickly grabbed her hand to halt its progress before turning to raise an eyebrow at her.

She simply smiled in return but every time he loosened his grip on her hand, she took advantage and let her fingers play up and down his leg. Though his face showed no change of expression, she could feel the tightness growing in his thigh muscles. Eventually, he turned to her and whispered, his breath lightly touching her ear, “You are going to find yourself in trouble.”

“That was the plan,” she answered, smiling.

When the meal was done, Haldir waited until most of the others had gone before whispering to Elisabeth, “You need to walk out ahead of me.”

“Why?” she asked.

“Why do you think?”

Glancing down at his leggings, she laughed. “I am sorry.”

“I doubt that,” he replied. “Just stay in front of me. My tunic should provide some cover, but I would rather not have everybody else see just what you do to me.”

They descended the stairs quickly and reached the ground but now saw Rúmil moving towards Haldir’s talan.

Haldir groaned and glanced quickly around. “I need you right now, Elisabeth. I cannot wait for Rúmil to leave. This way,” he said, pulling her along.

She could not see where they were going, but simply held his hand and followed. He led her to a small opening in the trees, where ferns and moss covered the ground.

“This is going to be fast, Elisabeth,” he warned her. “I cannot wait any longer.”

He pulled her down with him and immediately began devouring her mouth as he fumbled with his leggings. It was only a matter of seconds before he had freed himself and pulled up her dress. As soon as he rammed himself into her, she wrapped her legs around his waist, urging him to go deeper. It was not long before they both lay spent on the mossy ground, gasping for breath.

“I have no self-control with you, Elisabeth,” he said finally, looking concerned as he stroked her hair. “It bothers me. I have never been like this before.”

“It will no longer be a problem after next week,” she reminded him, pulling her dress back down. “Rúmil is going to wonder where we are.”

“I think he shall figure out where we have been when we walk in covered with grass and ferns,” Haldir smiled, pulling a leaf from Elisabeth’s hair.

He re-tied his leggings and helped her to her feet. Sure enough, when they walked into find Rúmil in the talan, he took one look at their hair and clothing and laughed.

“You could have just kicked me out,” he said.

“That would have taken too long,” Haldir told him.

“I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you and I need to go check the fences tomorrow, according to Lord Celeborn. We can take horses and be back in a few hours, but he is concerned about it and wants us to leave at dawn.”

Haldir sighed. Normally this would not be a problem, but this week, every minute counted. He thought about taking Elisabeth along, but decided instead to give her a few hours to rest. She could sleep a little and he would be back before she hardly had a chance to realize he was gone. He told her this and she was agreeable.

Rather than sleeping, though, Elisabeth walked the two elves to the stables in the morning to see them off. She took her time walking back to the talan, enjoying the scent of the early morning dew on the trees, and on the way back, Lady Galadriel found her.

“Elisabeth,” she said, “please walk with me.”

They walked along in silence for a while before the lady finally spoke again.

“I sense that your feelings for Haldir are very strong and that your love for him is sincere.”

“I have never felt anything like it before,” Elisabeth admitted. “I did not even know it was possible to feel as I do.”

“I sense the same in Haldir,” she was told.

Elisabeth looked at her, surprised. “But he has had many females. This should be nothing new for him.”

“He has never been in love before.”

“I do not know that he is now,” Elisabeth replied, since he had never said anything to make her believe otherwise.

“He is; I can feel it,” Galadriel answered then sighed, “I would do anything for Haldir. He has served us faithfully for many years and has kept Lothlórien safe. He is like a son to us.”

Elisabeth just nodded, not knowing where this was going.

“What I wish to offer you is very risky,” the lady finally said. “It is a chance to be with Haldir, but there is a risk of death to you as well as a risk of losing Haldir if you should survive. I would not even suggest it but I feel led to do so and I have learned to trust my instincts.”

“I do not understand,” Elisabeth said.

“There is a way for you to become elf-kind,” she continued, frowning as she decided how to explain it. “If an elfling is orphaned, the child can be given to new parents though their blood must be mixed with his blood to create a stronger bond between them. This is called a ‘blood union’. We have learned that when this is done with a human child, the child will actually take on the new parents’ attributes and become elf-kind, if it survives, though sometimes the blood is rejected and the child dies. Because of this, we do not adopt human children in this fashion any longer. Though you are not a child, Celeborn and I would be willing to make you our daughter through a blood union if you wish to take the risk.”

Elisabeth looked at her, stunned.

“You would do that for me?”

“For you and for Haldir, though I do not know how happy he will be about it. He will not want you to risk your life for him.”

“Would we have to tell him?” she asked hesitantly.

“If you do not, you will risk his rejection. He will be most displeased about not being consulted first,” she warned.

“But, as you said, he will not agree if I ask him.”

“It is quiet a dilemma,” Lady Galadriel stated.

“How much of a risk will it be?” Elisabeth asked.

“About half do not survive,” Galadriel warned. “It is very dangerous.”

“But a life without Haldir would not be worth living anyway, so I would be risking little. My future now is grim. I would live as long as Haldir, if I survive?” she asked.

“Yes. Your looks would not change a great deal, probably only your ears, but you would become elf-kind in every other way.”

“If I do not do this, I will go to Rohan and spend the rest of my life trying to hide from Lord Denethor and his men. I will face a lifetime of dreaming of Haldir and knowing how much I have lost. But if I do it and he does not truly love me, I will live an eternity without him and that would be an unbearable fate.”

“You do not have to decide right now, Elisabeth,” Lady Galadriel told her kindly.

“I will take some time to consider it,” Elisabeth said. “Thank you so much for offering me this chance.”

Walking away, Elisabeth returned to the talan where she stared out the window and thought about her options. Life without Haldir was a dismal prospect. She had told him that she would be satisfied with having this week together but now she had fallen in love with him. It wasn’t just the physical union; there was something much deeper though she did not know if he felt the same way. She would have to try and find out exactly how he felt.

Having nothing else to do at the moment, Elisabeth cleaned. Though Haldir was an elf and very clean in general, his talan still needed a little work. She scrubbed from top to bottom before making the bed and tidying up. She was just finishing when she heard his footsteps come up the stairs.

He walked in the door and kissed her at once, but then began to look around.

“Elisabeth, I do not think that you have been taking a nap,” he scolded.

“I could not sleep without you here,” she told him.

“I missed you,” he admitted, before taking her hand and leading her back to the bedroom.

“Now, that was just a waste of time,” he told her, looking at the made up bed. “If you make the bed after we use it each time, you will be doing nothing else.”

“I had nothing better to do,” she reminded him. “I can think of other things I would rather do now that you are back.”

He turned and looked at her, not saying anything at first.

“Haldir, what is wrong?” she asked, touching his face.

“I am shocked at how much I missed you this morning, Elisabeth,” he said, his eyes boring into hers. He pulled her onto the bed and kissed her deeply, spending time just kissing her and caressing her before they finally made love, slowly and passionately this time. It felt different, Elisabeth thought. Something was changed, but she didn’t know what it was. When they were done, he pulled her close and kissed her forehead.

They spent the day together, walking through the city and talking together, but Haldir was subdued and Elisabeth did not know why. When they returned to his talan and undressed for bed, Elisabeth could take no more. As she climbed beneath the covers, she asked him, “Haldir, what is wrong?”

“I do not know how I am going to let you go, Elisabeth,” he told her, finally. “I thought I could do this but I do not know if I can now.”

She looked at him as she drew circles on his chest with her fingers, “Is there another choice?”

“I wonder if it would not be better for you to leave sooner, before we grow even more attached to each other,” he finally said, not looking at her. “It would be difficult now, but I am afraid that by the end of the week it will be impossible. I do not want to make it worse.”

“You want me to leave sooner?” she asked, a lump in her throat.

“I do not want you to leave at all, but there is no other choice,” he sighed.

“Yes, there is,” she finally told him. “Lady Galadriel spoke to me about it today.”

“What do you mean?” he asked, turning towards her.

She started telling him about the blood union.

“You would become elf-kind?” he asked, his eyes showing hope. “I have never heard of this before.”

“She said it is no longer done because of the risk…” Elisabeth closed her eyes. She hadn’t meant to tell him that part just yet.

“The risk?”

“Well, to a child…there is a risk…” she couldn’t look at him.

“Elisabeth, would there be a risk to you?” he turned her face towards him.

“Yes,” she admitted, grudgingly. “But it would be worth it.”

“Tell me about this risk,” he insisted.

“I could die, but Haldir, without you my life is nothing anyway,” she continued. “Please let me do it.”

“And how great of a risk is it?”

“I am not exactly sure, but I am willing to take the chance,” she tried.

“Elisabeth, how great of a risk? Tell me the truth or I shall go to Lady Galadriel myself,” he warned her.

She sighed. “There is an equal chance that I will live or die.”

“No,” he said, looking her in the eye. “I will not allow it.”

“Haldir, it is the only answer. I love you and I do not want to go through life without you. I would much rather risk death.”

“And if you took this risk and died, I would be left behind to spend eternity knowing that you threw your life away for me. No.”

“I will die anyway. It would simply happen sooner, but if I survive, we could be together if that is what you want. If you are not sure about us, you would not have to make a commitment to me. I could live here and if you decide you do not want to be with me, at least I will be safe from Lord Denethor.”

“I love you, Elisabeth but I will not have you take this risk for me,” he said, firmly.

“You would rather have me age and die alone?” she asked.

He closed his eyes in pain. “Your life would be no different than that of any other human.”

“And I should be satisfied with what my human life holds for me?”

“Rather than dying now, yes,” he said softly.

“All right, Haldir,” she said, holding back her tears. “When would you like me to leave?”

“As soon as possible,” he told her. “Tomorrow, if you can. It is for the best, I think.”

She nodded and got out of bed, putting her clothes on.

“Where are you going?” he asked her.

“I think that if this is too hard on you, we should not be together tonight. I shall tell Rowland that we can leave tomorrow and I will find someplace else to sleep.”

“No, Elisabeth, please stay tonight. It will be our last night together,” he said, his voice strangled.

She looked down at the floor. “I shall think about it. I need to go speak with Rowland now.”

Leaving the talan, she went straight to Lady Galadriel and told her the situation, breaking down in tears before she was done.

“What do you wish to do, Elisabeth?” the graceful she-elf asked gently.

“I wish to take the risk, as it is the only option that I see. I do not want to live without Haldir.”

Galadriel smiled and led Elisabeth to her chambers where Lord Celeborn stood looking out a window.

“Haldir will not like this,” he insisted, when they told him of Elisabeth’s decision.

“Haldir will not find out until it is too late to do anything about it,” Galadriel countered.

“Still, he will not be happy about it.”

“Lord Celeborn, are you unhappy about it?” Elisabeth asked.

He smiled. “I would love to have you for a daughter and I am very happy about giving you a chance for immortality, but I fear for your life. If you die, I will never forgive myself and neither will Haldir.”

“Then I will simply have to stay alive,” she said, watching as Galadriel first cut her own palm, then make a similar incision in the palms of Celeborn and Elisabeth. She mixed the blood in a small bowl before instructing Elisabeth to place her hand in, palm down. She felt the blood as it was sucked up into her wound, and she was able to feel it move through her body for a while.

Galadriel lifted Elisabeth’s hand and showed her the palm. There was no sign of the cut she had just placed there. The blood was gone.

“How soon will it happen, if I…die,” Elisabeth asked, nervous.

“It usually takes the body a few hours to a day to reject the blood,” Celeborn told her.

“Go home and rest. We want your body to stay healthy now,” Galadriel insisted. “Do not tell Haldir. We will tell him when it becomes necessary.”

“If it seems as though I may not survive, I shall try to come back here so that he will never have to know. If I die, please send Rowland away and tell Haldir that I left with him.”

Lady Galadriel nodded in agreement.

Elisabeth didn’t waste time talking to Rowland because she had no intention in leaving with the man. She would either die or she would live here forever with Haldir. He had said that he loved her and that he would have given up his immortality for her. Surely he would want to be with her if she survived this transformation.

When she returned to Haldir’s talan, the relief on his face was obvious. He had been pacing the room and now he came to her and hugged her tightly.

“I am so sorry it has to be this way,” he said, honestly. “What did Rowland say?”

“I could not find him. I will search for him in the morning,” she lied.

He led her back to bed where they simply held each other and talked. It was almost two hours before the first wave of dizziness hit her. She sat up and leaned her head onto her knees, thinking she was going to be sick.

“Elisabeth, are you all right?” Haldir asked.

“I am not sure,” she admitted as the room began to spin.

He sat up and took her hand, noticing that she was shaking.

“Why is this happening?” he asked.

“Maybe it is an illness,” she said. “Humans sometimes become ill.”

“Oh,” he replied, never having experienced an illness himself.

“I probably just need fresh air,” she told him, grabbing her clothes and dressing in a hurry. She knew that her body was rejecting the blood and that she needed to get to Lady Galadriel quickly so that Haldir would never become aware of her death.

“I love you, Haldir,” she told him as she moved towards the stairs, but stopped as a wave of pain washed over her.

“What is wrong?” he asked her, growing more concerned.

“Nothing,” she said, and passed out.

~~~~~~~~~

“Her body is rejecting the blood we gave her,” Galadriel sighed. “I had hoped that this would not happen.”

“What blood? What are you talking about?” Haldir asked, alarmed. “I hope you are not speaking of this blood union.”

Galadriel began to try and calm him down but as Celeborn had predicted, Haldir was not pleased.

“I explicitly told her not to do this! How could you let her do such a thing?” the elf asked them, distressed.

“Celeborn was against it, so please do not be upset with him. I suggested it to Elisabeth and she made the decision. You may be upset with Elisabeth and me.”

“I cannot be upset with her now, she is dying,” he said, anguished.

“Then be upset with me,” Galadriel said. “This is not what was supposed to have happened.”

“You should have not have done it,” he said, holding Elisabeth’s hand.

“Is it better for you to both spend the rest of your days mourning the loss of each other?”

“Yes, better than her dying,” he stated, brushing some hair back behind her ear…her pointed ear.

“Look at her ear,” he said, quietly.

“She is changing and her body is fighting the changes. Nothing has been determined yet. She may still survive,” Galadriel said.

They stayed with her as her body twitched and moved. The ears would pulsate and grow, then recede back to human shaped ears. The transformation continued for hours until at last her body seemed to stabilize, the ears pointed. As Haldir watched her breathing become steadier, she opened her eyes at last.

“Haldir,” she said, smiling up at him.

“Elisabeth, I am glad you survived,” he told her rather coldly, kissing her cheek before he stepped away. “But I cannot believe that you did this after I asked you not to.”

“It is my own life that I risked,” she reminded him.

“You made a decision by yourself that affects us both very much. You never stopped to think what it would have done to me if you had not survived.”

“You were not supposed to know of my death, if it had happened,” she informed him. “You were to be told only that I had left and therefore my death would have affected you no differently than my leaving.”

“Only because of your deception!” he said, his face hard.

“I did it to give us a chance. One that we could not have had any other way,” she insisted, reaching for his hand. “Haldir, I know you are upset…”

He pulled his hand away, “No, I do not think you have any idea how upset I am. I am going to the border and will return after you leave for Rohan. I do not wish to see you again, Elisabeth.”

The proud elf warrior spun on his heel and quickly walked out of the room and out of her life.

“That did not go well,” Elisabeth said, before bursting into tears.

~~tbc~~