Hi!

I´m back with a short story that was inspired by "Dead Gardens" by Nightwish - not by the lyrics but by the title.

I hope you´ll like it!

A big "thank you" goes to San for her editing - you are the best ;-)

I would also like to thank all you wonderful people who commented on my other stories, especially "The Beckoning". You are great!!! I´ll respond to your reviews when I post the sequel. At the moment I am working on a "team written" story, after that the sequel should be ready to be put onto paper/screen.

Please feel free to review!!

Alina

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: Not mine :-(

Butterflies

It was a butterfly's touch. Gently, the fleeting brush of the wing caressed his cheek, as if asking him to open his eyes and gaze upon the sun that he felt warming his face. Yet, strangely, he felt too sleepy to comply. He felt safe and comforted, as if nature herself held him in her warm embrace, lulling him to sleep. The scent of the flowers hung sweetly around him, lingering on his eyelids and making them too heavy to lift. He curled his fingers when a leaf travelled along his palm. A content sight accompanied the plant's growth and he smiled at all the life that pulsed around him. In the distance, a bird lifted its voice, the light song drifting as it mingled with the leaves' rustling.

The butterfly returned. In its wake, a shadow passed overhead. The wings fluttered past his brow this time, and their touch took on a frantic rhythm that reminded more of a dwarf's axe than of nature's comfort. More wings joined the first pair, battering him. A cool breeze chased away the sweet fragrances and spread over him as if a thin layer of ice grew upon his skin, numbing him. The beats against his forehead grew more persistent and painful, no longer coaxing his mind awake but demanding it to come out of its stupor.

With an effort, his eyelids lifted and the green pupils widened dazedly at the image that danced before them. The thin, shiny wings that filled the air above him took on the grey shade of the clouds that gathered overhead, and only occasionally a stray ray of sunlight caught a fragile layer of red and yellow and made it burst into a dazzling display of color. Not far away, a woman's voice wailed in pain and anger. Finally alerted to the danger, the elf pushed himself to his knees, swaying as his head spun dizzily. He could hear the rapid approach of paws now and willed his vision to clear, hands fumbling for a sword that was not there.

He lifted his head. Dimly, he saw the splendour that surrounded him, the trees laden with fruit and the blossoms that seemed to continue to break from the flowers´ stems as his gaze passed them. Yet his attention lay with the wolf that headed for him, teeth bared. Its fur shone white even with the lack of the sun. Its gaze was fixed upon the elf. Its eyes narrowed. Confusion swept over the elf as he stared at the animal, his will to fight fading as the world tilted around him and he slipped to the ground again. A firm hand, cold as ice, gripped his wrist and began to pull, dragging him over the grass. The first raindrops of an unravelling storm splattered his face and the ground shook with the rolling thunder.

Then, all perception was drowned by the blinding pain that shot through his leg. He could feel the great teeth sinking into his flesh until they hit the bone and his body was abruptly pulled taut between the clasping jaw on his leg and the cold hand on his wrist. He yelled in pain and in a sudden burst of strength yanked his hand free. A frustrated screech rose behind him but it was quickly lost in a turmoil of noise and pain when he was rushed away from the voice, pulled by the leg that was secure in the lock of sharp teeth. All he could do was scream.

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"Elrohir!" Elladan bolted upright, unaware that he had called his younger twin's name until he registered his own voice fading away beneath the trees. Immediately, strong hands clasped his shoulders and he could hear Aragorn's voice behind him. "Sidh, gwadur, le olthach." Peace, brother, you are dreaming. Slowly, the small clearing they had chosen for their rest came into focus around Elladan. With a small rustle of leaves, a blond elf dropped from a tree nearby and approached them with a look of intense worry on his face. Dimly, the distraught twin remembered that Legolas had once again volunteered to watch for the night. For the fourth time in a row.

Aragorn had moved into his line of vision now, eyeing him nervously. "Are you better, brother? It was only a dream." Elladan nodded and attempted to smile at his foster brother and friend, even though the movement felt false on his face and was sure to look it, too. The dark-haired elf winced at the pain in his shoulder and grimaced slightly. "Not all has been a dream, it seems", he said as the reality of their situation slowly returned to him. "The orcs really did attack us."

"Aye." Aragorn relaxed slightly at the coherency he saw in his brother's eyes and sat down heavily with a wince of his own. "But do not worry, it is also true that we defeated them and managed to escape."

"All but Elrohir." Elladan could not keep the bitterness out of his voice. He should have stayed with his twin instead of allowing the fight to separate them.

"Nay, Elrohir escaped too." It was Legolas who spoke now, looking down upon the weary brothers. The tone in his voice clearly showed that he had said this many times before, but there was no impatience or anger in it. Only pity. "I saw him disengage from the battle and take to the trees. He was not injured badly from what I could see, and his movements were sure. I am convinced that the orcs did not catch him."

"Then why has he not returned to us?" Elladan frustrated question was the one that had kept them worried and on the lookout for days now, searching for the younger twin within the dense undergrowth of Mirkwood´s darkness. They had ventured far from the palace in their hunt for orcs, too far to get help quickly. Unwilling to divide their group further or abandon their efforts, they had stayed and searched for Elrohir, but so far to no avail. It was as if Elrond's youngest son had been swallowed by Mirkwood itself, never to return.

The forest had always been a place where life and death dwelt side by side; where legends were born and then continued to whisper their secrets beneath the ageing trees. Even Legolas had reluctantly admitted that this particular part of his home was one he seldom visited, as did his kin. The trees quietly discouraged them to come, and the woodelves heeded the warnings. Still, the Rivendell brothers had argued that the absence of elves might well have prompted less favourable creatures to seek shelter here.

Their thirst for adventure and orc-blood had led them into this dark region, and thus had lured them into a trap. They had found what they were looking for, but now their ambition had returned to haunt them.

"We will continue our search in the morning, mellyn-nin" Legolas said gently. "You should rest and allow your wounds to heal some more." With that, he turned to his tree again and nimbly disappeared into its crown, his presence now hidden to all but those who could sense the content humming of the tree as it enjoyed the rare company.

Elladan lay back tiredly and was not surprised at all when he found Aragorn dragging his bedroll next to him. The elf did not object. Quietly, he gazed into the darkness.

The ranger watched the elf from the corner of his eye. He could see the tension that radiated from the silent form and knew that sleep would be slow to come, if it graced the elf with its comfort at all tonight. "It is amazing, isn't it?" the human said quietly, "I think this is the first time ever that Legolas is the only one to escape a fight unscathed."

Elladan did not turn his head but a wry smile appeared on his tired face. "Aye", he agreed, "even though it was only my sword that kept him from losing his head to an orc´s blade."

Aragorn chuckled. "But that was after I lost my knife protecting his back. Had I not pierced that orc´s throat with it he would have never lived to be saved by you, brother."

A disapproving snort came from the tree next to them, but that was all the reaction they got.

Still, the small taunt had done its purpose. The ranger could see that his brother had relaxed slightly, cradling his wounded arm to his chest in an effort to get more comfortable. It had been a small blessing that neither the arrow that had caught the elf in the shoulder nor the blade that had graced Aragorn's ribs had been poisoned. At least they were healing properly, or as well as could be expected with little rest and much anxiety.

The ranger turned his attention to the tree where he knew Legolas to be, even though he could not see his friend. The prince had done his best to restrain the two brothers from pushing themselves too far in their restless search for Elrohir and had insisted on taking every night's watch. By now, the strain was beginning to show, even though Legolas hid it with the same skill that he usually applied to cover up injuries. The human knew only too well that they would not be able to carry on like this much longer. He dreaded the moment they would have to decide to return to the palace. It would feel like abandoning Elrohir. Or worse, like accepting his death.

Glancing at Elladan again, he saw that his older brother was still unable to find a comfortable position. He had drawn up his right leg and was massaging his calf absent-mindedly, his eyes slightly glazed but his brow furrowed as if in pain. Aragorn frowned and sat up.

"What is wrong with your leg?" he asked, "have you been hiding an injury from us?"

Elladan looked at his brother in an expression that was honestly incomprehensive. Only then did he seem to realize what he was doing and stopped abruptly. His eyes narrowed. "No", he said slowly as if he came to realize something, "I felt Elrohir´s pain. In my dream. A wolf bit him and dragged him off..." Elladan grew silent again but his breath quickened as his dream re-emerged and flooded him once again with the sweet scent of the plants, the butterfly's waking, the hurt and the fear. He could feel Aragorn's eyes on him and shook off his reverie.

"Do not hover so, Estel", he quipped lamely, "I am simply reliving the dream. It was very vivid." He did not say more and lay back again, yet unwilling to give in to the hope that was beginning to grow in his heart. The dream had indeed been more than vivid. It might well have been a vision. Even though he did not share his father's powerful gift of foresight, he had been able to locate his brother before by the strong bond that tightly laced their souls.

It had frustrated him beyond words that this connection seemed to have been severed after the battle. Afraid of the implications, he had tried to tell himself that his injury had weakened him to such an extent that he could no longer use this hidden sense. And yet, now he felt like the door had been opened again. His heart sped up when his conviction grew that not only his brother was alive but he would find him soon.

Aragorn had watched his brother closely and had easily guessed what had caused the older twin's expression change to one of eager impatience. The ranger sighed when he lay back down, hoping for sleep to come and relieve him of his worries for a short while. When it did not, he silently prayed for the Valar to keep Elrohir safe and to protect Elladan from false hopes that would shatter his heart beyond repair.

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The first light of dawn had barely begun to tinge the sky a shy shade of lighter grey when Elladan insisted that they should move on. Neither Aragorn nor Legolas objected. They could sense the fresh hope in the older twin and granted him the lead, never complaining when he not even studied the ground for tracks. They both knew that he was guided by his instincts now, and they were only too aware that instinct was all that they had left.

Only a few hours into the day the sky darkened and it began to rain, but they trudged on nonetheless. Elladan set a brisk pace that Aragorn soon found hard to follow, and even Legolas began to fall slightly behind. Realizing that his companions were not keeping up, Elladan turned to them with heartbreaking eagerness.

"It is not far now", he urged, gesturing for them to move on, "I can feel us drawing closer. I can already scent the flowers, can you not?" He glanced at his friends expectantly.

Aragorn threw Legolas a questioning look but the prince shook his head ever so slightly, indicating that he could not sense what Elladan thought he could. Their glance turned to worry but it was lost on the dark-haired elf for he had already turned and moved on. Legolas took a deep breath and held up a hand to signal his eager friend to halt. "Elladan... "

"Do not stop him", Aragorn interrupted and caught the prince's hand gently. He looked weary, more so than Legolas could remember ever seeing him. "Let us share his hope, my friend. Just for this one day, let us follow his heart instead of our fears."

The blond elf felt doubtful for a moment, for he knew that the forest was not safe and they were all growing weaker with each day of this hunt. But when he looked his human friend into the eye he inclined his head in tired agreement.

"Aye, mellon-nin. Im aphadthon man le anírach." Yes, my friend. I will follow what you wish for. He sighed deeply and added: "Sina aur, Estel. Sina aur." This day, Estel. This day.

Aragorn nodded as he turned to catch up with Elladan. He fully understood what Legolas was trying to tell him. Tomorrow they would have to return to the palace and get help. Only this day was left to follow hope, then they would have to follow reason.

The rain increased and a strong wind began to rush through the trees, making the branches groan as if they shared the growing headache that raced through Aragorn's head. He could barely make out Elladan's nimble form in front of him as it seemed to fly through the gloom, becoming faster instead of slowing down. Next to him, Legolas stumbled in his weariness and quickly straightened himself, throwing a quick glance at the human. Aragorn decided not to comment but promised himself to relieve his friend of part of next night's watch. If they would ever get Elladan to stop, that was.

So caught up the ranger was in his musings that he would have run straight into his suddenly still brother, had Legolas not grabbed his arm and pulled him to a rough halt. Confused, Aragorn looked up. Elladan stood completely motionless, his eyes eagerly searching the rain-swept forest. One hand reached out and remained in the air, held out as if in invitation or greeting. "Wilwarin tegitha ven" The butterflies will guide us, he whispered, and a sudden cold spread through Aragorn when fear for his brother's sanity sank in.

The human turned to Legolas, but found that the prince also held out a hand, an expression of wonder and delight on his tired features. "He is right", the prince said under his breath, "butterflies are coming. Can you not see them; the way their wings glitter in the rain?" Aragorn turned and looked again, straining his eyes; and it seemed to him that the air itself was shimmering, the way it only would in intense heat. The raindrops were pushed aside and slid off the air that appeared to grow dense and gather before erupting into a sudden burst of color.

Surpirsed, Aragorn threw his hands over his face when the cloud of feathery wings descended upon them. He could feel the rush of light bodies collect around him and to his surprise the tender beings seemed to push him, guide him... On pure instinct, the ranger's hand shot out to the side and barely managed to grab Legolas´ arm as the prince was guided into a different direction. The elf's hand tightened on him. Even though, for a moment, it seemed that the butterflies would try to pry them apart, they were swept of together in a flood of wings.

Red and yellow swirled around them as the forest floor seemed to smooth out beneath their feet. Shadows formed and melted away outside the dense shield of wings and Aragorn could not help the strange feeling that all of a sudden he was standing still and it was the world that madly raced past him. He squirmed and fought to get a better view, but the flurry of bodies would not let him see where they were headed. Had it not been for Legolas´ hand that firmly held his own, the ranger could have lost himself in the mesmerising rush.

Time began the slip past them as they were hastened along. The cocoon of butterflies circled the small group protectively, possessively, until the light faded into grey and shadows grew at their sides. The ground once more became solid beneath Aragorn's feet and he stumbled at the sudden loss of guidance. The wings closed in for one more loving caress before bursting away. Into all directions they went, their wings the only ray of color in the sudden gloom.

The ranger felt the grip on his hand slacken and gasped when Legolas slumped down at his side, unmoving. He fell to his knees beside his friend when his legs buckled beneath him, his vision spinning madly. He could barely make out his brother's form lying still a few paces away, but even though he wanted nothing more than to make sure his elven friends were still alive, he felt his own consciousness feeling.

Aragorn grunted angrily and held on to his wits with all the human stubbornness he was famous for. His eyes drank in the sickening sight of death that surrounded them. Grey grass crumbled into dust beneath his knees and the hollow skeletons of trees reached their branches for him as if imploring him for aid. Darkness overwhelmed him rapidly, narrowing his vision, but even as he sank down beside Legolas, he caught a glimpse of gleaming eyes imbedded in drying flesh. A shape flitted from one dead trunk to the other, closing in on them. Aragorn fought to keep awake but the darkness was stronger, pulling him beneath the surface of the waking world.

TBC