The Music in My Heart
folder
Lord of the Rings Movies › Slash - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
75
Views:
3,816
Reviews:
11
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
Lord of the Rings Movies › Slash - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
75
Views:
3,816
Reviews:
11
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own the Lord of the Rings book series and movie series, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Chapter 64 The Path Through the Mountains
Title: The Music in My Heart*, Chapter 64
Author: Sorsha
Fandom/Pairing: Elrond/OFC, Glorfindel/Haldir, Elladan/OFC, Elrohir/Legolas, others implied
Rating:.NC-17 for future chapters
Warning: AU (Story set 770 years after ROTK; Slash and het.
Feedback: This is my first fanfic, so constructive feedback appreciated.
Archive: AAF, FF
Acknowledgements: Many thanks to Alex Cat for her help in betaing this fic.
Disclaimer: Any of the residents of Middle-earth and Aman that you recognize belong to Prof. Tolkien’s estate. The same is true about Middle-earth and Aman. I’m only visiting and admiring the “views”. Summary: Sauron may be gone, but his legacy of evil still lingers. As Middle-earth faces the threat of another dark lord, a party of elves departs Aman on a mission for the Valar, a mission of mercy long delayed.
Chapter 64 --- The Path through the Mountains
“Remember, when life's path is steep, to keep your mind even.”
Horace
*****
Afternoon was starting to fade. Darkness would be upon them in a few short hours as shadows were already beginning to blur the edges of the path.
Elrond was worried. A way out of the rocky wasteland of eastern slopes of the Emyn Muil had yet to reveal itself and he was unsure of where this path headed despite his earlier statements to Seere. It had simply been too long since he had last traveled this rocky ledge and he was all too aware of the effects time had on the landscape of Arda.
He knew their general direction was to the north, northwest, as most of the ridgelines in this rocky hill country ran parallel to the Anduin. Their current path was slowly taking them in the direction of Amon Lhaw and the Falls of Rauros, but what lay between them and the abandoned Gondorian watch was unknown to him. The mountains blocked him from being able to judge how close they were to the river, not that the ruined tower at the Hill of the Ear would offer any shelter from the pack of Orcs and Uruk Hai pursuing them. Without a canoe, the relative safety of Tol Brandir --- the steep rock formation in the middle of the lake above the falls --- was inaccessible.
Therein was his second major worry --- the pursuing enemy. While he may have succeeded in delaying them by obscuring their trail with elven magic, the Uruk would eventually realize they had not taken the second path. At best, he had delayed them by several hours; at worst, they were closer than they had been due to the lost time given up stopping periodically to cast his spell to erase signs of Kaane’s passage along the mountain path. Assuming the worst, they were no more than a mile to mile and one-half behind them. That yet more of the beasts might lie ahead of them was a thought he was trying to keep at bay for the moment.
Instead, he had focused his attention on another troubling fact. That so large a force had been sent after them instead of continuing to fight the main body of their army was surprising. He had expected a small patrol be detailed to the task of disposing of them, but the large number he had spied was confusing.
/They are focused on taking us… or perhaps not us, but one of us./ Dropping his eyes to Seere’s still features, he instinctively pulled her closer to his chest as though to offer her greater protection. /I begin to think that they want to take Seere, alive if possible… that she may be the target of these repeated attacks./
/Their attempt to abduct her stands out in several ways from the overall flow of the battle. The Easterling was one of only a handful of the enemy on horseback. It seems likely he was waiting for an opening to take her as his actions were too calculated to have been spontaneous./
/Also, why take her at all? He had a clean opening into the center of their formation and, on horseback, could have killed her and several others quickly. The warriors they had kept in reserve at the bottom of the hill give weight to this hypothesis. It also sheds a new light on the injuries she received in our earlier skirmish with these beasts. The warg rider was trying to snatch her from her horse, not kill her and his beast attacked once it was left on its own. Aye, she was their target. But, why?/
Studying the elleth in his arms, he faced his greatest and most pressing worry. Seere had not responded to him in over two hours. Not long after he had settled her in front of him, the metallic scent of fresh blood had assailed his nostrils. He had been horrified to find she was bleeding from a deep gash on her right shoulder.
/It appears she was not as quick in getting out of the way of the dead Easterling’s sword as I had hoped. It must have sliced through her tunic and mail shirt when the sword was driven into the ground as she rolled away. Too close!/ he thought shuddering, as he settled her limp body closer to his chest.
He had managed to stop the bleeding with the cloth he had used to still her moans. A brief stop further down the path had allowed him to clean the wound with water from his water skin and pack healing herbs into the gash. He had also used part of their precious water supply to mix an herbal wash to rinse as much of the blood from them and mask its metallic scent. /No use in giving the Uruks a scent trail to follow./
Seere had watched him with glassy eyes while he treated her wound. She had laid her head against Kaane’s neck to allow him to access the injury. Not a sound had left her throat while he worked, but her silent tears had ripped at his heart as surely as her cries would have.
He knew the latest injury to her knee was much worse than the original. She had hit the ground hard when she freed herself from the Easterling’s grip. /Considering the pain she must have been feeling, tis a miracle she was able to move out of the way of the sword at all./
Pulling the bay to a stop, he shifted Seere’s head more snugly into the curve of his neck. Taking up the water skin, he forced her lips apart and began to trickle small streams of water down her throat. A soft moan was her only response.
Hanging the skin back onto his saddle horn, he let his eyes scout ahead along their path. The glint of falling water caught his attention. Urging his mount to step closer to the edge of the path, he could see a small waterfall emerging from a fissure in the rock face of the steep mountain wall. Looking down he saw a pool of water feeding a small stream cutting across the Dagorlad Plain toward the marshes.
Looking back up to the source of the water, he raked his eyes over the face of the rock searching for a safe way down to refill his nearly empty water skin. Deciding he could safely climb down and back by rope, he moved Kaane to a sheltered position under an overhang on the opposite side of the path.
Slipping down from the horse’s back, taking care not to disturb his wounded elleth, he removed rope from the back of his saddle and slung the skin’s leather strap over his head and right shoulder, settling it out of his way on his back. Pulling several leather bindings from a saddlebag, he eased Seere forward to lie against the stallion’s neck. Moving quickly he tied her to the saddle to prevent her falling while he was gone.
After whispering a few words of comfort to his love and asking Kaane to keep watch on her while he was gone, Elrond went in search of a secure place to tie his rope to allow him to begin his decent to the waterfall. Accomplishing this, he took a deep breath and sat along the edge of the sheer drop, feet dangling and studied the rock for the best path to take. Seeing adequate foot/hand holds, he tied the rope around his waist and eased himself over the side.
*****
Climbing down as quickly as he dared, it took him only a few minutes to reach a small ledge near the falls. Double checking that the rope around his waist was securely tied, he edged over to the falls pulling the skin around to allow him to fill it. Taking care to keep the skin out of the main hard flow of water, he patiently waited for it to fill.
Looking about, his eyes settled on an area several feet below his position that seemed darker and deeper against the pale grey of the mountain face. It appeared to disappear into the cliff face beneath the ledge where he was standing. With the skin now full, he slung it back onto this back and bent down to examine the area. /A cave!/
Checking the play in his rope to assure himself he had adequate rope to investigate, he slide off the ledge keeping his chest plastered to its hard surface to avoid being caught in the flow of the waterfall. Within a minute he was standing at the mouth of a modest size cave, a cave invisible to the path above.
A quick review of their options lead him to an equally quick decision; he and his wounded Seere would shelter here.
*****
It took two trips back up to the path to complete their move to their temporary quarters, but he managed it in under an hour of hard climbing. Seere was his first priority and the most difficult to move. Using their blanket to cradle her still form, he tied her securely to his back and began the slow climb down to the cave. She was starting to move in response to the pain of being jostled about by the time he reached the upper ledge. A quick healing charm settled her sufficiently to begin the tricky maneuvering necessary to squeeze them both between the waterfall and the ledge. He was breathing hard from fear and exertion by the time he laid her down against the back wall of the cave.
Assured she was deeply asleep, he placed a gentle kiss to her brow and began the climb back to the path, taking the full skin and blanket with him. Moving up to Kaane, he offered the stallion a drink from the skin, pouring the water in a slow stream into the bay’s mouth. Once he was sure the bay had drank enough see him through the night, he removed all supplies and equipment to take with him to the cave, including his saddle and tack. Kaane needed to be free of the extra weight and would draw less attention thus.
He took two of the larger apples he had picked that morning and offered them to the stallion. As the bay munched the offered treat, he whispered words of praise to the weary stallion in soft tones. Stroking Kaane’s neck, he asked the stallion to continue along the path as quickly as he could seeking a way to the valley below. Receiving an affectionate nuzzle to his throat, Elrond smiled knowing his friend understood his mission. “Hannon le, mellon nin. Tenn’ enomentielva, lema varma. Noro!” (Thank you, my friend. Until we meet again, travel safe. Ride!)
Bundling his gear securely in the blanket, he lowered them the upper ledge rather than risk carrying their weight on his back in his weary state. Once he had the bundle settled on the ledge, he draped the now empty skin and the two swords over his back, not wanting to take a risk of losing them should the bundle fall. Taking one last look around, Elrond scanned the area for signs they had stopped in this location. Speaking the words of the spell to remove the final tracks left by Kaane, he slipped over the side to make his final trip down the cliff wall.
Checking the knot holding the bundle of their supplies to be sure it was tight, he used the play in the rope to lower it to the cave’s mouth, then flicked his wrist to settle it well away from the edge of the opening. His way now clear, he made the final decent along the side of the falls to the mouth of their cave. Looking up, he whispered to the rope to release itself and pulled the last link to the path above into the cave behind him.
*****
The light of Anor was rapidly disappearing behind the mountains, throwing their side into twilight. Moving quickly while the light still lingered, Elrond organized their supplies so he could quickly find weapons, his medical kit, their limited supply of food, the water skin, and the blanket/cloaks in the dark. The saddle, saddlebags, rope, and other items were placed together next to where he planned to make Seere’s bed for the night.
Once this was done, he moved back to check on Seere. Finding her still unconscious, he gently gathered her in his arms and moved to the cave entrance to examine her wounds in what was remaining of the light. Her shoulder wound was his first priority, so he positioned her on her left side after untying the bindings of her mail shirt. Easing the heavy garment away from her shoulders, he pulled it off and set it next to the saddlebags. Using his knife, he cut away the stained tunic and undershirt to expose the wound. To his relief, the wound did not appear to be infected. The likelihood of a poisoned wound was also unlikely, given the lack of a high fever or signs of discoloration around the torn skin.
After refilling the skin, Elrond selected the necessary herbs to make a cleansing wash. This he poured slowly over the wound, holding the moaning elleth close as the herb-filled water chilled the abused flesh. Satisfied that the wound was clear of dirt or other contaminates, the healer studied the slash itself. The cleaning had reopened the wound, so Elrond spread a numbing salve across the area to deaden the nerves so that he could suture the wound closed. Completing that, he reapplied a tincture of healing herbs and bound the area in strips of soft, clean linen pulled from his kit.
Satisfied he had done as much as he could for her shoulder, he settled her back to her side and turned his attention to her knee. As he had suspected, the impact with the ground had dislocated the knee joint. /Undoubtedly, the tissue underneath has been damaged … torn ligaments and tendons at the worst, strained at the best. I do not see any sign of broken bones, which is good./
Sighing, he shifted his position to allow him to maneuver her leg into the correct angle to reset the joint. “Seere, my love? This will hurt badly I am afraid, but it must be done now. I am putting a piece of cloth in your mouth for you to bite into and to muffle any cries. We cannot risk being heard by those that pursue us. Please forgive me for hurting you, ind nín. Gen melin.” (my heart) (I love you.)
Taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, Elrond gently positioned his hands, one cupping her calf and the other just above her knee, and quickly jerked the joint back into alignment. A frantic, pain filled scream was absorbed by the linen in her mouth. She appeared to sink into a deep faint, but her breathing and heart rate soon settled into a near normal pattern.
After coating the area with a soothing, cooling paste of yet more herbs to keep swelling contained, Elrond moved her several feet back from the cave entrance. He would have preferred moving her to the back wall, but he needed to stay close to the cave entrance to listen for the approaching enemy while keeping watch on the unconscious Seere. Spreading the blanket from his bedroll to cushion her back and insolate her from the cold, damp stone floor, he retrieved his saddle to provide elevation for her leg. He did not want to bind the knee while she was sleeping for fear of constricting her blood flow. Once he was satisfied with her placement, he covered her with her cloak.
Ideally, Elrond would have liked to treat the injury as he had before with his healing powers. Sadly, that would leave him too depleted to stay awake and stand guard for the coming night. He could only hope her natural elven healing would be enough to allow her to heal quickly, so they could travel as soon as possible.
Elrond moved back to their supplies and used the mug from his saddlebag to mix fresh water with herbs that would prevent infection and fever, strengthen her system, and help deaden her pain. It was an unappetizing mix. Sighing, he raised her head and managed to pour most of the concoction down her throat without choking her with the foul taste.
“I am sorry love that I cannot heat this. That would improve the taste greatly, but I dare not light a fire. Drink what you can, for it will make you feel better and give you strength.” He whispered softly in her ear.
With Seere’s needs taken care of for the moment, he rose once more. Using a trowel he carried in his saddlebags, he dug a shallow pit in the back of the cave in the loose soil he found there. After taking took care of his personal needs, he added a layer of soil to mask the scent.
Relieved, he moved to the front of the cave and stepped out on the lower hidden ledge. Extending a cloth into the flow of the waterfall, Elrond leaned against the cave wall and began washing away the stains of the day. Staring out over the plain below, he took several deep fortifying breaths now that they were settled for the night.
/I hope this was the right decision. We would have been very vulnerable in the dark and I saw no sign of another place to take shelter. If they find us here, I will be hard pressed to do more than defend the entrance and hope to last until our family finds us./
/If we do succeed in hiding, I hope Kaane finds his way to the valley below us. Until I see him or members of our party, we will have to stay here. Our food is limited, but we will have plenty of fresh water. In any case, Seere will need to rest for a couple of days to heal./
/The waterfall will make it difficult to hear them coming until they are right above. On the positive side, it will also muffle any noise we make and will help cover our scent, especially the blood from Seere’s wound. This promises to be a very long night!/
Wetting his cloth once more, he refilled the skin a final time for the day and moved back into the cave toward the sleeping elleth. Stopping briefly to break off a piece of bread, he found a comb and his sword. Thus armed, Elrond returned to the sleeping elleth’s side. Gently, so as not to wake her, he caressed her face and arms with the damp cloth, removing the grime of the day.
Satisfied he had done the best he could in the low light, he positioned himself near her head and shifted her slightly so he could cradle her head in his lap. A few minutes later he had worked the tangles from her hair and then his.
Setting the comb aside, he settled back to eat his meager meal, sighing with pleasure as the cool, fresh water soothed his dry throat. Finished with his last task, he began to gently stroke the soft, silky hair of the beauty at his side. “Esta, pen vuil. Avo gusto. Ni tiruvatyë.” (Rest, dear one. Do not worry. I will guard you.)
The moment of peace was broken by the faint noises reaching his ears. Their moment of truth had arrived. The enemy was approaching.
*****
Author: Sorsha
Fandom/Pairing: Elrond/OFC, Glorfindel/Haldir, Elladan/OFC, Elrohir/Legolas, others implied
Rating:.NC-17 for future chapters
Warning: AU (Story set 770 years after ROTK; Slash and het.
Feedback: This is my first fanfic, so constructive feedback appreciated.
Archive: AAF, FF
Acknowledgements: Many thanks to Alex Cat for her help in betaing this fic.
Disclaimer: Any of the residents of Middle-earth and Aman that you recognize belong to Prof. Tolkien’s estate. The same is true about Middle-earth and Aman. I’m only visiting and admiring the “views”. Summary: Sauron may be gone, but his legacy of evil still lingers. As Middle-earth faces the threat of another dark lord, a party of elves departs Aman on a mission for the Valar, a mission of mercy long delayed.
Chapter 64 --- The Path through the Mountains
“Remember, when life's path is steep, to keep your mind even.”
Horace
*****
Afternoon was starting to fade. Darkness would be upon them in a few short hours as shadows were already beginning to blur the edges of the path.
Elrond was worried. A way out of the rocky wasteland of eastern slopes of the Emyn Muil had yet to reveal itself and he was unsure of where this path headed despite his earlier statements to Seere. It had simply been too long since he had last traveled this rocky ledge and he was all too aware of the effects time had on the landscape of Arda.
He knew their general direction was to the north, northwest, as most of the ridgelines in this rocky hill country ran parallel to the Anduin. Their current path was slowly taking them in the direction of Amon Lhaw and the Falls of Rauros, but what lay between them and the abandoned Gondorian watch was unknown to him. The mountains blocked him from being able to judge how close they were to the river, not that the ruined tower at the Hill of the Ear would offer any shelter from the pack of Orcs and Uruk Hai pursuing them. Without a canoe, the relative safety of Tol Brandir --- the steep rock formation in the middle of the lake above the falls --- was inaccessible.
Therein was his second major worry --- the pursuing enemy. While he may have succeeded in delaying them by obscuring their trail with elven magic, the Uruk would eventually realize they had not taken the second path. At best, he had delayed them by several hours; at worst, they were closer than they had been due to the lost time given up stopping periodically to cast his spell to erase signs of Kaane’s passage along the mountain path. Assuming the worst, they were no more than a mile to mile and one-half behind them. That yet more of the beasts might lie ahead of them was a thought he was trying to keep at bay for the moment.
Instead, he had focused his attention on another troubling fact. That so large a force had been sent after them instead of continuing to fight the main body of their army was surprising. He had expected a small patrol be detailed to the task of disposing of them, but the large number he had spied was confusing.
/They are focused on taking us… or perhaps not us, but one of us./ Dropping his eyes to Seere’s still features, he instinctively pulled her closer to his chest as though to offer her greater protection. /I begin to think that they want to take Seere, alive if possible… that she may be the target of these repeated attacks./
/Their attempt to abduct her stands out in several ways from the overall flow of the battle. The Easterling was one of only a handful of the enemy on horseback. It seems likely he was waiting for an opening to take her as his actions were too calculated to have been spontaneous./
/Also, why take her at all? He had a clean opening into the center of their formation and, on horseback, could have killed her and several others quickly. The warriors they had kept in reserve at the bottom of the hill give weight to this hypothesis. It also sheds a new light on the injuries she received in our earlier skirmish with these beasts. The warg rider was trying to snatch her from her horse, not kill her and his beast attacked once it was left on its own. Aye, she was their target. But, why?/
Studying the elleth in his arms, he faced his greatest and most pressing worry. Seere had not responded to him in over two hours. Not long after he had settled her in front of him, the metallic scent of fresh blood had assailed his nostrils. He had been horrified to find she was bleeding from a deep gash on her right shoulder.
/It appears she was not as quick in getting out of the way of the dead Easterling’s sword as I had hoped. It must have sliced through her tunic and mail shirt when the sword was driven into the ground as she rolled away. Too close!/ he thought shuddering, as he settled her limp body closer to his chest.
He had managed to stop the bleeding with the cloth he had used to still her moans. A brief stop further down the path had allowed him to clean the wound with water from his water skin and pack healing herbs into the gash. He had also used part of their precious water supply to mix an herbal wash to rinse as much of the blood from them and mask its metallic scent. /No use in giving the Uruks a scent trail to follow./
Seere had watched him with glassy eyes while he treated her wound. She had laid her head against Kaane’s neck to allow him to access the injury. Not a sound had left her throat while he worked, but her silent tears had ripped at his heart as surely as her cries would have.
He knew the latest injury to her knee was much worse than the original. She had hit the ground hard when she freed herself from the Easterling’s grip. /Considering the pain she must have been feeling, tis a miracle she was able to move out of the way of the sword at all./
Pulling the bay to a stop, he shifted Seere’s head more snugly into the curve of his neck. Taking up the water skin, he forced her lips apart and began to trickle small streams of water down her throat. A soft moan was her only response.
Hanging the skin back onto his saddle horn, he let his eyes scout ahead along their path. The glint of falling water caught his attention. Urging his mount to step closer to the edge of the path, he could see a small waterfall emerging from a fissure in the rock face of the steep mountain wall. Looking down he saw a pool of water feeding a small stream cutting across the Dagorlad Plain toward the marshes.
Looking back up to the source of the water, he raked his eyes over the face of the rock searching for a safe way down to refill his nearly empty water skin. Deciding he could safely climb down and back by rope, he moved Kaane to a sheltered position under an overhang on the opposite side of the path.
Slipping down from the horse’s back, taking care not to disturb his wounded elleth, he removed rope from the back of his saddle and slung the skin’s leather strap over his head and right shoulder, settling it out of his way on his back. Pulling several leather bindings from a saddlebag, he eased Seere forward to lie against the stallion’s neck. Moving quickly he tied her to the saddle to prevent her falling while he was gone.
After whispering a few words of comfort to his love and asking Kaane to keep watch on her while he was gone, Elrond went in search of a secure place to tie his rope to allow him to begin his decent to the waterfall. Accomplishing this, he took a deep breath and sat along the edge of the sheer drop, feet dangling and studied the rock for the best path to take. Seeing adequate foot/hand holds, he tied the rope around his waist and eased himself over the side.
*****
Climbing down as quickly as he dared, it took him only a few minutes to reach a small ledge near the falls. Double checking that the rope around his waist was securely tied, he edged over to the falls pulling the skin around to allow him to fill it. Taking care to keep the skin out of the main hard flow of water, he patiently waited for it to fill.
Looking about, his eyes settled on an area several feet below his position that seemed darker and deeper against the pale grey of the mountain face. It appeared to disappear into the cliff face beneath the ledge where he was standing. With the skin now full, he slung it back onto this back and bent down to examine the area. /A cave!/
Checking the play in his rope to assure himself he had adequate rope to investigate, he slide off the ledge keeping his chest plastered to its hard surface to avoid being caught in the flow of the waterfall. Within a minute he was standing at the mouth of a modest size cave, a cave invisible to the path above.
A quick review of their options lead him to an equally quick decision; he and his wounded Seere would shelter here.
*****
It took two trips back up to the path to complete their move to their temporary quarters, but he managed it in under an hour of hard climbing. Seere was his first priority and the most difficult to move. Using their blanket to cradle her still form, he tied her securely to his back and began the slow climb down to the cave. She was starting to move in response to the pain of being jostled about by the time he reached the upper ledge. A quick healing charm settled her sufficiently to begin the tricky maneuvering necessary to squeeze them both between the waterfall and the ledge. He was breathing hard from fear and exertion by the time he laid her down against the back wall of the cave.
Assured she was deeply asleep, he placed a gentle kiss to her brow and began the climb back to the path, taking the full skin and blanket with him. Moving up to Kaane, he offered the stallion a drink from the skin, pouring the water in a slow stream into the bay’s mouth. Once he was sure the bay had drank enough see him through the night, he removed all supplies and equipment to take with him to the cave, including his saddle and tack. Kaane needed to be free of the extra weight and would draw less attention thus.
He took two of the larger apples he had picked that morning and offered them to the stallion. As the bay munched the offered treat, he whispered words of praise to the weary stallion in soft tones. Stroking Kaane’s neck, he asked the stallion to continue along the path as quickly as he could seeking a way to the valley below. Receiving an affectionate nuzzle to his throat, Elrond smiled knowing his friend understood his mission. “Hannon le, mellon nin. Tenn’ enomentielva, lema varma. Noro!” (Thank you, my friend. Until we meet again, travel safe. Ride!)
Bundling his gear securely in the blanket, he lowered them the upper ledge rather than risk carrying their weight on his back in his weary state. Once he had the bundle settled on the ledge, he draped the now empty skin and the two swords over his back, not wanting to take a risk of losing them should the bundle fall. Taking one last look around, Elrond scanned the area for signs they had stopped in this location. Speaking the words of the spell to remove the final tracks left by Kaane, he slipped over the side to make his final trip down the cliff wall.
Checking the knot holding the bundle of their supplies to be sure it was tight, he used the play in the rope to lower it to the cave’s mouth, then flicked his wrist to settle it well away from the edge of the opening. His way now clear, he made the final decent along the side of the falls to the mouth of their cave. Looking up, he whispered to the rope to release itself and pulled the last link to the path above into the cave behind him.
*****
The light of Anor was rapidly disappearing behind the mountains, throwing their side into twilight. Moving quickly while the light still lingered, Elrond organized their supplies so he could quickly find weapons, his medical kit, their limited supply of food, the water skin, and the blanket/cloaks in the dark. The saddle, saddlebags, rope, and other items were placed together next to where he planned to make Seere’s bed for the night.
Once this was done, he moved back to check on Seere. Finding her still unconscious, he gently gathered her in his arms and moved to the cave entrance to examine her wounds in what was remaining of the light. Her shoulder wound was his first priority, so he positioned her on her left side after untying the bindings of her mail shirt. Easing the heavy garment away from her shoulders, he pulled it off and set it next to the saddlebags. Using his knife, he cut away the stained tunic and undershirt to expose the wound. To his relief, the wound did not appear to be infected. The likelihood of a poisoned wound was also unlikely, given the lack of a high fever or signs of discoloration around the torn skin.
After refilling the skin, Elrond selected the necessary herbs to make a cleansing wash. This he poured slowly over the wound, holding the moaning elleth close as the herb-filled water chilled the abused flesh. Satisfied that the wound was clear of dirt or other contaminates, the healer studied the slash itself. The cleaning had reopened the wound, so Elrond spread a numbing salve across the area to deaden the nerves so that he could suture the wound closed. Completing that, he reapplied a tincture of healing herbs and bound the area in strips of soft, clean linen pulled from his kit.
Satisfied he had done as much as he could for her shoulder, he settled her back to her side and turned his attention to her knee. As he had suspected, the impact with the ground had dislocated the knee joint. /Undoubtedly, the tissue underneath has been damaged … torn ligaments and tendons at the worst, strained at the best. I do not see any sign of broken bones, which is good./
Sighing, he shifted his position to allow him to maneuver her leg into the correct angle to reset the joint. “Seere, my love? This will hurt badly I am afraid, but it must be done now. I am putting a piece of cloth in your mouth for you to bite into and to muffle any cries. We cannot risk being heard by those that pursue us. Please forgive me for hurting you, ind nín. Gen melin.” (my heart) (I love you.)
Taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, Elrond gently positioned his hands, one cupping her calf and the other just above her knee, and quickly jerked the joint back into alignment. A frantic, pain filled scream was absorbed by the linen in her mouth. She appeared to sink into a deep faint, but her breathing and heart rate soon settled into a near normal pattern.
After coating the area with a soothing, cooling paste of yet more herbs to keep swelling contained, Elrond moved her several feet back from the cave entrance. He would have preferred moving her to the back wall, but he needed to stay close to the cave entrance to listen for the approaching enemy while keeping watch on the unconscious Seere. Spreading the blanket from his bedroll to cushion her back and insolate her from the cold, damp stone floor, he retrieved his saddle to provide elevation for her leg. He did not want to bind the knee while she was sleeping for fear of constricting her blood flow. Once he was satisfied with her placement, he covered her with her cloak.
Ideally, Elrond would have liked to treat the injury as he had before with his healing powers. Sadly, that would leave him too depleted to stay awake and stand guard for the coming night. He could only hope her natural elven healing would be enough to allow her to heal quickly, so they could travel as soon as possible.
Elrond moved back to their supplies and used the mug from his saddlebag to mix fresh water with herbs that would prevent infection and fever, strengthen her system, and help deaden her pain. It was an unappetizing mix. Sighing, he raised her head and managed to pour most of the concoction down her throat without choking her with the foul taste.
“I am sorry love that I cannot heat this. That would improve the taste greatly, but I dare not light a fire. Drink what you can, for it will make you feel better and give you strength.” He whispered softly in her ear.
With Seere’s needs taken care of for the moment, he rose once more. Using a trowel he carried in his saddlebags, he dug a shallow pit in the back of the cave in the loose soil he found there. After taking took care of his personal needs, he added a layer of soil to mask the scent.
Relieved, he moved to the front of the cave and stepped out on the lower hidden ledge. Extending a cloth into the flow of the waterfall, Elrond leaned against the cave wall and began washing away the stains of the day. Staring out over the plain below, he took several deep fortifying breaths now that they were settled for the night.
/I hope this was the right decision. We would have been very vulnerable in the dark and I saw no sign of another place to take shelter. If they find us here, I will be hard pressed to do more than defend the entrance and hope to last until our family finds us./
/If we do succeed in hiding, I hope Kaane finds his way to the valley below us. Until I see him or members of our party, we will have to stay here. Our food is limited, but we will have plenty of fresh water. In any case, Seere will need to rest for a couple of days to heal./
/The waterfall will make it difficult to hear them coming until they are right above. On the positive side, it will also muffle any noise we make and will help cover our scent, especially the blood from Seere’s wound. This promises to be a very long night!/
Wetting his cloth once more, he refilled the skin a final time for the day and moved back into the cave toward the sleeping elleth. Stopping briefly to break off a piece of bread, he found a comb and his sword. Thus armed, Elrond returned to the sleeping elleth’s side. Gently, so as not to wake her, he caressed her face and arms with the damp cloth, removing the grime of the day.
Satisfied he had done the best he could in the low light, he positioned himself near her head and shifted her slightly so he could cradle her head in his lap. A few minutes later he had worked the tangles from her hair and then his.
Setting the comb aside, he settled back to eat his meager meal, sighing with pleasure as the cool, fresh water soothed his dry throat. Finished with his last task, he began to gently stroke the soft, silky hair of the beauty at his side. “Esta, pen vuil. Avo gusto. Ni tiruvatyë.” (Rest, dear one. Do not worry. I will guard you.)
The moment of peace was broken by the faint noises reaching his ears. Their moment of truth had arrived. The enemy was approaching.
*****