This is the end :-( Special thanks to my two wonderful betas, Kalisona and Calenlass, who corrected my stupid mistakes.

Also, thanks and hugs to everyone, who walked this path with me. I would have never reached the end if I have walked it alone.

Dedication: This chapter is dedicated to Silivren Tinu because of her strong dislike towards one of my original characters. Meaning a certain dead and rotting character, with four legs and a tail. Yes, my friend, I had to include the rat one last time before the end. Hope you like the ending!

Beta: Kalisona

14. The Punishment

"The war is over."

"I know, my Lord."

"You failed."

"This could not be foreseen. The plan was good. It had to go smoothly."

"But it did not."

"I apologize, my Lord."

"You are fortunate that I need you still. These fools trust you. They will come to you for advice when the time is right."

"Yes, they will come. I will be prepared."

"That man. The elf's friend. He is hiding something. I want to know who he is."

"He is a mere ranger, and he is dying. It matters not."

"I said I want to know who he is."

"As you wish, my Lord."

Slender fingers covered the Seeing Stone with a cloth and he breathed a sigh of relief. Saruman shuddered. Every encounter with the Eye made him feel weak and frightened.

It had all started so well. Sauron had sought his help, and he had given it willingly. The Dark Lord had tried for centuries to spread darkness over the entire forest of Mirkwood, but his forces in Dol Guldur had been unable to overcome the Light of the Elves, and the northern regions of the great wood were still inhabitable enough.

This was why the White Wizard had devised a plan to change the balance of forces. They needed allies. If they could make various human settlements close to Mirkwood join their side, the defeat of the Elves would be possible.

But it was not an easy task to turn someone against the Elves. He had needed someone from inside, an elf from Mirkwood willing to destroy his own realm. And he had chosen Pelilas.

It had not been easy. It had taken nearly fifty years of torment to convince the captive that his prince and friend was responsible for his predicament. It had taken many foul potions that induced gruesome hallucinations and false beliefs. But in the end he had succeeded.

When Merzak had decided to attack the Elves, Saruman had tasted victory. He had easily sent orc armies that would offer the men their assistance. The combined forces of men and orcs would have delivered a severe blow upon the Elves, and would have made them vulnerable to further attacks.

But it all had failed. The Istar clenched his fists and frowned in anger. It mattered not. Not everything was lost. The fools still did not know that he had abandoned them. They did not suspect that he had decided to bow before the only true lord, the one that would one day rule Middle-earth. Furthermore, none of them knew that he possessed one of the palantíri.

Saruman grinned. Those elves stood no chance against the forces Sauron was preparing and his own. A load groan sounded from somewhere below the ground, and the wizard smiled proudly. The experiments would continue. He was trying to create a new race, a better race. Orcs that could easily travel during the day, stronger and more resilient. True, all his attempts until then had been futile, but he would continue trying.

And then, one day when the right time had come, those same elves would come to him. They would seek his counsel and fall into his clutches.

His grin broadened. No, he had not lost. The game was only beginning.

---

Ai, Valar, it hurts! Tired eyes opened and swiftly closed as bright light assaulted them. Various thoughts passed through the confused brain. His ribs and broken leg still hurt, but he felt considerably better than before. He had the feeling that they were skillfully wrapped in secure bandages. Why am I still alive? Is this another dream? Why am I not cold anymore?

It was no wonder that he was warm. Not only was he placed close to a fire, but he was also tightly wrapped in Legolas' cloak, Merzak's coat, his own cloak, which had mysteriously appeared from somewhere, three more elven cloaks on top, and a pair of strong arms.

One of the hands was lifted and gently brushed some snowy hair from the pale forehead. "You scared me, ion nîn," a gentle voice whispered. "You will never know how much you scared me."

"Estel!" An overexcited fair face appeared in front of his tired eyes, and a light kiss was placed on his hair. "El, come! He is awake!"

Elladan did not seem to share his twin's enthusiasm. He stared for a long moment at his foster brother's face and his features softened imperceptibly. "You little, reckless fool," he whispered, his voice a peculiar mixture of anger and pain. "You nearly killed us all!" The traces of pain in his stormy eyes were still visible, and Aragorn had no doubts that his brother spoke the truth. The elf had been prepared to either sail or fade.

"I am sorry, Dan. I never meant to hurt you," he replied seriously, trying to hide the weakness from his voice.

"I know, Estel," Elladan sobbed and bent forward until his forehead touched the man's. He wrapped his hands behind his little brother's head and pulled him closer. "I know."

Elrond cleared his throat. "There is a lot to talk about, but Estel needs to rest. I have taken care of his wounds, but they will take a long time to mend."

Elladan nodded and took a step back. He hastily placed another log into the fire and watched as the hungry flames consumed it. He had to make sure his human brother was warm.

"Ada, we need to talk," Aragorn whispered. "Legolas… he had overdosed. I sent him home. Did you meet him?"

The elven lord shook his head. "He must have taken another path, we never met him."

The human frowned in confusion. "How did you find me on time? Surely the snow has covered my tracks."

"We could still find some tracks near Gradek. We could see that someone injured had gone up the mountains, and we thought that it was Legolas. We did not know that you were with him. We thought," Elrond suddenly paused and his face constricted in pain. We thought you were dead. "We thought he went alone," he added quickly, and his son nodded in understanding. "It was harder to follow your path here," the elf lord continued. "We would have never found you on time without her help."

"Her?" Aragorn followed the elf's gaze and smiled in wonder. From this distance he would have never guessed that the magnificent eagle was a she, but he trusted his foster father on that matter. He nodded his thanks, and the bird circled above his head one last time before disappearing.

"You must rest, ion nîn. Your injuries are grave." Elrond's voice took him out of his thoughts.

"No, ada, we should go back," the man protested weakly. "We need to know what happened to Legolas. Maybe he never made it. We have to find him!"

"We will, ion nîn, we will," Elrond promised softly. "I will send one of your brothers to look for him. But you must rest now. Rest, Estel, all will be well."

Elrond's soft words and his own tiredness lulled the man into sleep. The elf lord watched him for a while, unable to tear his grey eyes from the pale face he had thought he would never see again. "One of you has to go and look for Legolas," he finally said.

"I will go, ada," Elrohir volunteered. "But may I… may I just stay for a while longer?" He whispered, gazing at his sleeping brother.

His father nodded in understanding. "Stay, my son. You need it." Suddenly he frowned and looked up. "Did you hear that?" He asked urgently.

The twins exchanged a glance. They had heard it too. Elladan crouched and pressed a pointy ear to the ground, so that he could hear it better. Someone was coming. A rider.

Suddenly the sound stopped, which could have meant one of two things. Either the rider had stopped to rest, or he had dismounted and continued on foot, and his footsteps were too soft to be detected. The peredhel did not need to think hard to guess the answer. "It seems, brother, that you will be staying here longer than you expected," Elrond said, and his eyes twinkled merrily.

None of the three peredhil was surprised when a slightly disheveled and alarmingly pale golden-haired elf appeared before them and stared with wide eyes, filled with a peculiar mixture of relief and fear.

"I am glad to see you relatively well, my prince," Elrond said to no one in particular as the younger elf rushed past him and bent over his friend's sleeping form, without giving any indication that he had heard him.

"He lives," Legolas whispered in wonder and relief. His heart was still pounding wildly in shock and he was unable to fully comprehend what was happening.

"We could have told you that if you had but asked," Elrond answered, unsuccessfully trying to hide his amusement.

"He is so pale!" Legolas exclaimed, once again not showing in any way that he had heard the elf lord.

The peredhel look at him critically. "He is not much paler than you," he observed. "I heard that you have overdosed. Are you supposed to be out of bed already?"

"I will kill Merzak for this," the prince hissed, conveniently avoiding the question. "I care not if he regrets what he did. I will kill him!"

"Legolas!" Elrond had to raise his voice this time to get the younger elf's attention.

The prince blushed slightly and looked at him. "I am sorry, my lord, I was just so worried."

"I know, young one," Elrond said with a sigh. "We all were. Now, answer my question. Are you supposed to be out of bed?"

"My healers gave me something to drink," he mumbled guiltily.

"This doesn't answer my question," Elrond pointed out.

Legolas looked up and his eyes shone angrily. "And what would you have me do?" He asked sharply. "What would you have done if you were me? Stayed in bed until the healers let you leave? I think not."

Elrond sighed and the younger elf was surprised to see how tired he looked. "I am sorry, Legolas," he whispered. "Of course you did the right thing. Forgive me." He pulled the prince in an embrace, and he readily returned it. But when he pulled back, he was once again embraced by a set of relieved twins.

"Thank you, Legolas," Elladan whispered in the golden hair. "Thank you for everything you did for him."

"No, mellon nîn, you should thank your brother for what he did for me," Legolas protested and looked at his sleeping friend, once again shocked at how pale the human looked. "How is he?" He asked softly.

"When we found him, we feared the worst," Elrohir admitted. "I think he had given up then. He had broken leg and ribs, numerous older wounds, not to mention that he had frozen almost completely. But we took care of his wounds, and if he is kept warm, he will recover. And how are you?"

"I will recover too," he whispered, still horrified by what he had just heard. He dropped to his knees next to his friend and stared at the sleeping face, tense with pain. For a second time he had been so close to losing his friend. Legolas suppressed his tears of relief and quickly took off his cloak, and wrapped it around the sleeping ranger.

"Legolas, he is warm enough," Elrond said sternly. "It is you I am worried about."

"I will be alright, worry not," the elf said. He bent down and whispered something in the sleeping man's ear that Elrond did not hear, and watched with a smile as the pained features relaxed at his soft words. Then he placed a log in the fire and stood up.

The peredhil looked at him in surprise. "Where are you going?" Elladan asked.

"Hunting," Legolas replied simply. "He is very weak. He will need food when he wakes up."

"Legolas, you are in no shape to hunt, and we have food for now," Elrond said. "You decided to leave your bed at home, but lying down to rest close to the fire could do you some good. You need it."

"I said I will be alright," the prince repeated. "And what food do we have? Lembas and dried berried. He will need meat to regain his strength."

"As you wish," the elven lord said, much to Legolas' surprise. "You may go hunting. And I will give you something, that will help your strength return," he said, while putting some herbs into the boiling water. "When Estel awoke, he told me about your symptoms, and I know with what medicine you overdosed. This will help you," he said and handed him a steaming cup.

"Thank you." Legolas nodded and accepted it gratefully. But as soon as he took the first sip, his face constricted with shock and betrayal at the too-familiar taste.

"Lord… Elrond… how… could… you…" he whispered weakly before his eyes glazed in sleep.

"Ada, that was a dirty trick," Elladan said in surprise.

"I do what I think is necessary," Elrond replied simply. He took the cloak the prince had wrapped around Aragorn, and spread it over Legolas to keep him warm. "I wonder how this one has survived to come to this age," he said amused. "His selflessness is not very healthy."

"Same could be said about our Estel," Elladan said. "I sometimes wonder how he is still alive."

"I know how," Elrohir said suddenly. "If you are selfless, you have a much greater chance to live to old age than if you are not."

Elladan and Elrond looked at him skeptically. "That does not make any sense, El," the older twin said. "If you are selfless, you are likely to sacrifice yourself for the ones you love."

"Exactly," Elrohir replied. "As they will sacrifice themselves for you in return. If you are willing to do anything for the ones you love, you will have many friends, who will love you dearly. If you take more care of them than of yourself, it is likely that they will also take good care of you."

"Wisely said, my son," Elrond agreed. "No one is meant to live and survive alone. If you take care only of yourself, no one will care about you, and you will likely not get far. But if you care about others and help them, others will help you as well in times of need."

"This is what makes us different from orcs, for example," Elladan said. "In a battle, each one of them fights for himself. But we fight for each other, we protect each other. If one of them is wounded, they would leave him to die. If any of our own is wounded, we would do anything to save him."

"And this is what makes us stronger," Elrohir agreed.

"That is true," Elrond said and looked at the two sleeping beings. "And this is why these two will be strong and unbreakable as long as they are together. Even in the darkest times."

Elladan shuddered involuntarily as he sensed that his father's words were not a simple opinion, but were coming from deeper within him, guided by his gift of foresight. His father had seen it. Dark times would come. "Then let us hope they will be together," he whispered and cringed guiltily. Their conversation had awoken his little brother.

Aragorn opened his eyes and looked at him questioningly. "Dan?" He whispered weakly, trying once again to hide the pain from his voice. "How long did I sleep?"

But before he had heard the reply, he looked at his left and froze in shock.

"Legolas?!"

A shaking hand brushed away some strands of golden hair, to reveal a pale, peaceful face. "Ada, what is he doing here?"

"Is it so hard to guess?" Elrond asked, amused. Had his son really believed that Legolas would stay in bed?

"He is not supposed to be here!" The young man sounded distressed. "He overdosed!"

"I know, Estel, but he was worried about you, and he had to come. He will be alright, rest now," Elrond's voice was calm and soothing, but Aragorn did not seem to hear.

"He is so pale," he whispered.

"Not nearly as pale as you," Elrond remarked dryly and watched in amusement as his son shrugged out of cloak after cloak and wrapped them around the prince.

"He cannot stay here," Aragorn said firmly. "His overdosing needs to be treated. We need to go back."

"You are too weak to walk," Elrond said. "We will go back after you rest."

"But ada –"

"It seems nothing I say will make you see reason. As you wish then, my son," the elven lord said reluctantly and sighed in defeat. "We shall go now."

The ranger's face brightened. "Thank you, ada, I knew you would understand," he said eagerly, not noticing that the twins exchanged a meaningful glance.

"Just drink this, Estel," Elrond said, handing him a cup. "It will give you enough strength to survive the journey."

Aragorn nodded his thanks and took the cup gratefully. But as he took the first sip, he frowned in shock and disgust.

"Ada? How could you?" He said sleepily, before his eyes closed.

"Yes, ada, how could you?" Elladan asked with a smile. "I hope you will never do that to me."

"And I hope you will never make me do that to you," Elrond said. He took some of the cloaks his human son had wrapped around Legolas, and wrapped them around the ranger once again. He looked at them carefully, trying to decide if both of them were warm enough, and sighed tiredly.

"On the other hand," Elrohir said, "Estel is doing everything possible to make me reconsider my opinion on being selfless and surviving to old age."

The peredhil laughed, but suddenly went quiet. The familiar sound of running horses sounded alarmingly close.

"Elladan, ion nîn, please go and meet Thranduil's party, they will have trouble finding us," Elrond said and smiled. He felt sorry for the young prince as he imagined the talk that was about to come.

---

The royal family of Mirkwood and the peredhil of Rivendell were invited to Gradek, where the future peaceful relations between the human town and the elven realm would be discussed. Aragorn limped slowly, supported by Elrohir, and stopped to take a longer look at the faces of everyone present.

Unfortunately he could easily see that most of the people of Gradek still regarded the elves with hatred and fear. Naturally, he could not expect the change to occur overnight. The essential thing was that Lord Merzak had opened towards them, and this was a good beginning.

He saw Tessal and Kalet, but both looked away as his gaze rested upon them, and he could not tell if it was caused by hatred or regret. Elrohir carefully lowered him down on a chair, and he tiredly closed his eyes. Merzak was talking something, but his head hurt too much to listen. King Thranduil's speech was next, and finally the hall was wonderfully quiet. He suddenly stood up, but swayed on his feet and Elrohir swiftly caught him.

"Now, where do you think you are going?" Elrohir raised an eyebrow and stared at his foster brother with obvious curiosity.

"I need to do something," the young man stated and took a step forward. The elf helped him, but Aragorn shook his head. "No, Ro, it is something I must do alone."

The elf snorted. "Alone? You cannot take a single step on your own, Estel. What could be so important?"

"It is important," Aragorn answered seriously. All eyes were fixed on him now, and he shifted uneasily. He considered his brother's words and sighed in defeat. Elrohir was right. He was unable to take a single step by himself. "Legolas may come with me if he wishes," he said suddenly.

"I would love to," the golden-haired elf answered, surprised, and quickly took Elrohir's place, supporting the injured human. "But where are we going?"

"You will see," Aragorn replied mysteriously, and the elf had no choice but to follow his friend's lead and do his best to support him.

They walked out of the hall and towards the staircase. Legolas' eyes widened as they started going down the stair. They couldn't be going to the dungeons. He took a brief glimpse of the man's determined face, but it answered none of his questions.

"Legolas, you still have my pipe," the ranger said. "Can I have it back?"

"No," the elf said firmly. "I destroyed it."

Aragorn suddenly stopped in his tracks and stared at him horrified. "You didn't!"

"Of course I didn't, but I am not giving it back to you," Legolas replied. "It is about time for you to give up this terrible habit of yours."

"I know, you just want to keep it because you like to smoke it," the man murmured with a grin. His face turned serious once again. "Please, mellon nîn, I need it."

Legolas sighed in defeat. "You, sneaky, manipulative creature," he whispered sadly. "You know very well that I cannot say 'no' to you so soon after you nearly died, don't you?"

The man smiled innocently. "I am aware of my advantages and I will use them," he said.

"Well, then use them while you still can, human, because my patience with you is growing thin," the elf grumbled and handed him the pipe.

Aragorn grinned. "I knew you would have it with you. I know how much you like it."

Legolas glared quietly at his friend. "Be careful, human, I might decide to accidentally drop you, and I can tell that you will not be able to stay on your feet."

Aragorn's smile did not fade. "My friend, we both know that you would never do that, so your threats will never scare me, and I can tease you about the pipe as much as I want."

The elf shook his head in desperation, but his eyes took a faraway look, and the man later wondered if he had only imagined the moisture in them. "You know very well what the pipe really meant to me only a few days ago," he said coldly.

Aragorn's face instantaneously turned serious and he quickly embraced his surprised friend. "Yes, I do, Legolas, I know it very well. I might jest, but I have not forgotten. I am sorry, mellon nîn. My heart breaks to know that I have caused you such grief." He looked with regret at his friend's weary face, and took out his pipe. "Keep it if you wish," he said hesitantly. "I do not know if it would make you think of the moments of sorrow, or if it will remind you that I keep my promises and will always come back to you. But if it is the second, take it, it is yours to have."

Legolas shook his head. "Keep your pipe, Estel. I have you now, mellon nîn. I need it not."

Aragorn pretended to sigh with relief. "I was hoping you would say that. I am not ready yet to give it up."

This had the desired reaction and Legolas laughed merrily. "My friend, you are incorrigible!" He suddenly frowned in confusion and looked around. "What are we doing here? This is our cell!"

"Yes, it is," Aragorn replied. "I had to visit it one last time. There is something that I need to do."

They entered the cell and Legolas cringed as his eyes found the skeleton of the now completely rotten rat. His friend walked towards the gruesome remains and picked them up with disgust.

"What are you doing?" The elf asked confused.

"I will throw this away. No one, not even the worst criminal, deserves to be locked together with this creature. I still remember what we went through, and I do not wish it to anyone, even to the future prisoners."

Legolas suddenly grinned. "Wait! I can think of a better use of our rotten friend!"

"A better use? What could be a better use than disappearing forever?" Aragorn asked.

"Merzak told me that I could devise any punishment for him, and he would accept it," the elf whispered.

The man looked at his friend with surprise, "Mellon nîn, I never knew you could be so cruel!"

"I can always be cruel to those who harm the ones I love," Legolas replied.

And Merzak never forgot the night he had to spend in this cell, in the company of a dead rat.

THE END

Thank you so much for reading this to the end! If you drop me a line or two to tell me what you think, I will be really grateful.

And now – some news. I am writing another story, once again elf and ranger angst and friendship (lol, what a surprise). It is called "The Only Way to Kill the Dragon" and is set after RotK, and right after "Friendship is a Family Trait" for those who have read it (but you don't need to have read it to read this). However, there is a possibility that next year, between February and June, I will have no internet access, except for public computers, and I don't know how often I will have the chance to write and post. I think I will be able to finish the story before I leave, it won't be very long, but if I decide that I won't be able to finish it, I might wait and post it after I return home in the end of June. I don't want to start a story and then leave you with no updates for a few months.

Once again, thank you for reading this!

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