Author's Note: Okay guys, here it is! The final chapter of this story is here. Please review and let me know what you think! :D

Chapter 22

3 Days Later…

The patrol arrived back in Imladris the day before, Hildion and Lindon both locked up in the detention wing that was on the opposite side of the building complex that constituted the Last Homely House. The healing wing was on the far west.

On part of their journey back while they made camp during the night, Lindon had deviously chosen to sleep near a specific kind of plant that few knew about. While most everyone was asleep he had stealthily plucked some leaves off and stuffed them in his boots in order to smuggle them into Rivendell. Eavesdropping and bribing had given him knowledge of the plant and its properties a couple years before as he plotted Estel's demise even then.

The leaves of this particular herb were his ticket out of here. Once he was free, he could complete his revenge. Just as he had predicted, he had been searched, his pockets turned inside out to be sure he carried no weapons before his imprisonment leaving the leaves in his boot completely ignored. Lord Elrond had of course immediately seen to his son the moment he spotted them crossing the bridge into the courtyard.

Lindon was not afraid of the infamous Lord of Rivendell and returned his glare with equal venom after he learned of his role in his son's kidnapping. Hildion of course confessed everything immediately after bargaining for his freedom. His information regarding his rather young employer had been invaluable to them as they learned of Findor's apparent innocence. Hildion and his brother were then allowed to leave on the condition they were to never return to the realm of Imladris unless ordered by Lord Elrond himself. They packed up and left immediately, apologizing to Legolas for their involvement before returning to the wilderness from whence they came.

This left Lindon locked up in his merry little cell to brood alone. He did not mind and was in fact welcoming this new development. All he had to do know was wait for the opportune moment and then his escape would be complete.

Meanwhile… On the other side of Rivendell

Elladan and Elrohir ran into their father's study out of breath after a messenger was sent to find them and tell them the news that their brother had been rescued and returned home. The first thing they spotted was-

"ESTEL!"

The boy turned, about to scream his excitement at being reunited with his two older siblings but never had the chance as two highly energetic, dirt smeared, sweaty, overprotective, panic-attacked brothers tackled him to the floor in a bone crunching hug.

Elrond smiled as the twins bombarded Estel with questions, as the boy was half suffocated in their grasp.

"HOW did you escape?"

"…did Legolas really save you?"

"…Were you scared?"

"…Did those orc hearted villains hurt you?"

"Where are those scumbags now…?"

Estel giggled while Elrond shook his head in amusement as Elrohir looked around the room with murderous intent for the kidnappers. Elrond replied as Estel gasped for breath after they finally let him go.

"You are far too late for that, ion nin. They have been banished under pain of death."

Elladan's face fell as he pulled out a slingshot from his belt and looked mournfully down at it.

"Aww…I was hoping I could still use this…"

Estel's eyes widened and he tackled Elladan, grabbing the slingshot from him.

"Hey that's mine!"

Elladan grinned wickedly before mercilessly tickling him.

"I thought you gave me your slingshot for 'safe' keeping!"

Legolas ran into the room at that instant, worry in his eyes. He hated to ruin the moment but something else was happening.

"Lord Elrond, there is a problem. Please, come with me."

Elrond nodded in response, giving the twins a warning look that told them to keep Estel occupied while he saw to it.

He left the room with Legolas as he explained the situation…

(10 minutes earlier in the detention cell…)

Lindon found his opportunity when the guards had a two minute station swap. They were allowed to get water before returning to their posts every four hours. In the past, nothing out of the ordinary had ever occurred with prisoners during that time and certainly not with an elfling in their watchful care…until now.

The minute they left for their water he grabbed the herbs from his boot and stuffed them in his mouth, chewing and swallowing them with the small bowl of water left in the cell. Usually elflings were not detained in such a manner but Lord Elrond still had yet to determine what to do with him, deeming him dangerous and unpredictable enough to be kept in the detention cell until his meeting with his advisors was over. This was a rather unusual case since juvenile delinquents rarely ever existed in the elven realms.

It only took those two precious minutes for the poisonous herbs to take effect. The dosage he gave himself was not enough to kill him but just enough to make him sick to the point of being taken out of the cell for treatment.

Lindon fell to the floor as waves of dizziness assaulted his vision, soon followed by violent vomiting and minor convulsions. The guards shouted for help, Legolas being the closest one they could find as he had been on his way to question the elfling himself…

They immediately sent Legolas to inform Lord Elrond while picking the elfling up and running to the healing wing. A few minutes later found the elfling shivering violently from non existent cold as his lips began to turn blue.

Elrond strode in all business and barked orders to the one assistant healer on duty who had just finished seeing to one of their wounded that had returned two days before from the hunting party that had encountered a rockslide. Five were injured, three minor and two severely. The two severely injured elves slept in beds on the other side of the room, legs, arms, and heads bandaged completely oblivious to the drama taking place yards away from them.

"He has been poisoned…Legolas, I need you and Glorfindel to question the guards that were on duty. I need to know how and when this happened."

"As you wish my Lord Elrond."

He left to do as ordered taking the two sentries with him to Glorfindel's study for questioning. Elrond did what he could, finally concluding that the poison had in fact been an herb that was only seen every five years. Eaten raw, it acted as a poison but when mixed with athelas, became a powerful antibiotic to fight infections. A question weighed heavily on his mind as he attempted to solve this case.

Was this young one attempting to kill himself? Or did someone else try to harm him… perhaps the child is completely innocent despite the bounty hunter's claims.

Another ten minutes later found the elfling sleeping peacefully on one of the many beds in the healing wing, now stable after Elrond administered the antidote. He left his healing assistant to watch over him and left to seek out his advisors. They had much to discuss.

One hour later…

"…it's okay, honest! You guys go clean up…you smell."

Estel wrinkled his nose to prove his point. Two identical laughs rang out in the air, one of them ruffling his hair before they both went to clean up and find some food.

The boy grabbed his new practice sword, the one he had been given by Glorfindel before his kidnapping that even he had no knowledge of until he found it on his bed with a note that said:

Estel,

I am most proud of you. You are showing remarkable improvement and skill. I believe you ready to wield this new practice sword. Congratulations and welcome to the intermediate class.

-Glorfindel

The boy grinned and picked it up only to nearly drop it. It was much heavier and looked and handled exactly as a real sword, only the blade was not sharp. The length of the blade was shorter too to compensate for his smaller size and build. He overlooked those minor differences. To Estel, his new training sword was perfect.

The ten-year-old ran eagerly out to his favorite glade overlooking the cliff beside one of Rivendell's many waterfalls. He began practicing immediately, promising himself he would not let Glorfindel down.

(Back in the healing wing)

Lindon woke up, his face pale and his body covered in a thin sweat. He heard voices passing by the healing wing before fading away but not before he overheard crucial information that was vital to his plans.

"…the boy is safe thankfully. Elrond was so worried about him."

"Where is he now?"

"Last I saw he was heading down to the western glade by the lookout…"

"…hope he stays out of trouble…"

He looked around and grinned wickedly when he noticed the healer on duty had fallen asleep in the chair next to his bed from exhaustion. The elfling snuck out, climbing out through a nearby open window and made his way down to the meadows by the woods where he kept his special provisions.

He uncovered his stash after dodging a few elves on patrol duty and made it without discovery. Many of the troops had been recently deployed to help Mirkwood battle Mordor's evil spread while others had been sent to continue helping the Ranger's rebuild their base of operations after the orc attack. Leaving few left to catch one runaway elfling…

Lindon strapped on his practice armor and grabbed his sword before swiftly making his way to where he knew Estel would be with murder in his eyes and darkness in his heart…

(Back in the glade)

Estel swung his sword, still struggling to adjust to the added weight compared to his old one and performed his old forms and techniques.

"Okay, I think it was… high block, parry, disarm, strike… no wait… high block, low block, parry, disarm, and then strike."

He continued muttering to himself and grinned as eventually the new practice sword began to feel less heavy.

In the middle of his third form, Estel heard warning signs in the forest around him. He recognized the warning cries of some birds in the trees that alerted to approaching danger, followed by silence. The boy scanned the bushes and the pathway with his eyes, trying to catch signs of the intruder. He barely breathed and the grip on his practice sword instinctively tightened until his knuckles turned white.

A few minutes passed until the birds returned to normal, as if nothing had ever been amiss. Estel sighed with relief and returned to practicing, trusting the wildlife around him. Just as he did an about face while swinging his sword in a diagonal arc, clashed blades with Lindon who was now two feet away from him. The young elf's eyes were burning red with hate and rage, his face speaking volumes of his murderous intent.

"LINDON! Wha—"

Lindon shoved Estel's blade aside and in one swift movement, kicked Estel hard in the ribcage, sending him reeling to his knees. He groaned in pain and looked up just in time to bring his own sword up to high block the vertical slash aimed at his head.

"You are going to DIE for your crimes, HUMAN pit-spawn."

"I don't know what you are talking about! I didn't do anything!!"

Lindon screamed in fury and brought his sword down again, his rage clearly fueling his attacks as he savagely struck at Estel who managed to just barely keep a grip on his sword to block each strike. The two combatants continued dueling, both coming dangerously close to the ledge of the cliff a few times.

He decided that the best course of action would be to keep blocking Lindon until someone heard them sparring and came to investigate. How hard could it be, they were fighting with practice swords that could only maim not kill, right? Estel growled low when he found out how wrong he was when Lindon's extremely sharp blade nicked his forearm. Not to mention one of Glorfindel's earliest teachings resurfaced.

Anything around you can be used as a weapon. Just because it isn't sharp, does not mean that it can not kill…

Estel's breathing began to quicken and his movements began to slow as fatigue slowly set in. The boy knew though, that to give up would mean his almost certain death. So he managed to hold on to the hilt of his weapon despite the sweat that slickened his palms and despite the savage blows that when blocked, made small shockwaves of discomfort or pain run up his arms all the way to his shoulders.

His adrenaline and survival instinct gave him strength enough to keep up with Lindon, long after he would have normally quit from fatigue. Estel was shoved back until he was near the side of the cliff, his feet sliding to the edge causing small rocks to fall into the waterfall below. Both of them staring defiantly into the other's face, one determined to kill and the other determined to survive, as their swords remained deadlocked. The fight now turning into one of strength as Lindon struggled to push Estel off of the cliff.

To the Elrondion's horror, his nightmare replayed before his very eyes only this time, it was real.

"It's YOUR fault!"

"I didn't do anything!"

"I HATE YOU!!"

"Please…let me go!"

"It's too late for that…it's time for you to die, human filth!!

"NO!"

With one last burst of strength, Estel finally broke the saber lock and shoved Lindon back, now taking the offensive as he rained blows upon his foe. The tide had turned it seemed, in Estel's favor until something unforeseeable happened.

A small root sticking up from the glade that had been completely unnoticed by either party finally made itself known as Estel's foot connected with it. The boy tripped over the tree root, allowing Lindon to disarm him in one fluid strike. A well aimed hit to Estel's sword that sent it careening out of his sweat slickened hand and into the bushes a few yards away. He rolled over, missing a near fatal blow that would have cut him in two and there he lay panting and defeated.

Lindon grinned in triumphant, his wicked eyes now locked onto Estel's as he pointed his sword down at him.

"Tsk, tsk…I suppose this was to be expected. You were never meant to win this battle or any other, weakling. This is proof, that justice will be served for what your kind did to my family!!"

Estel looked up at Lindon with pleading eyes, silently begging him to explain.

For some reason the elfling could not describe, he felt obligated to tell Estel the truth figuring the truth would soon die with him, never to see the light of day again.

"Very well…I shall 'enlighten' you since you only have a few minutes left to live anyways.

Lindon began circling around Estel's fallen form, his sword never wavering as he kept it lowered near his face.

"She was on her way to Mirkwood…secretly in love with one of the ellon there, against mother and father's wishes. They forbade her to have anything to do with Mirkwood or its people, saying it was too dangerous. On her way there riding alone to be united with her secret lover, was brutally attacked and killed, all of her possessions stolen. They left…my big sister…. to rot in a ditch. I HATE THEM…AND YOU."

Estel's eyes brimmed with tears as he heard the story and he shook his head in disbelief, unwilling to believe it was true. His people could be that vicious and cruel hearted? Before he could continue, Lindon leaned down next to him, placing his blade against his throat.

"And that isn't all…all these years Findor has believed his parents were killed by your kind when the truth is….much more sinister. All these years he believed what I told him, thanks to the fact father and mother forbade we ever mention them again. You disgusting worm, are no better than the orcs who took their lives!! NOW YOU DIE!!"

Time seemed to slow down for Estel as soon as Lindon screamed those words. His panic flared, igniting all the bonds he had, sending out a distress signal to his ada, brothers, and Legolas. He rolled clear before Lindon could behead him.

The boy turned and ran in the general direction of where his sword had flown before, urging his lead weighted legs to keep moving despite his weariness. Just as he got to the edge of the tree line, another elfling leaped out screaming in rage running past him. Estel slid to a halt, his feet kicking up dust and he turned his head to see what was going on as the sounds of swords clashing filled the air. He stared in shock to see Findor, his bully and tormentor fighting Lindon. Why?

The answer was soon discovered as he overheard their loud, rage filled voices through the clash and clanging of swords.

"You LIED to me!! HOW COULD YOU?!"

"I had to or else you would have become weak…hating men has made you strong, admit it!!"

"NO! That is not true!"

"No? Well then let us see if what you say is true then."

Lindon pulled out a small throwing knife from his belt and threw it handle over blade at Estel. The boy saw it coming from a distance and dropped to the ground, the spinning knife missing him by centimeters. Findor immediately moved to block Lindon from Estel's sight, his sword raised in the defensive as he placed himself between them.

Lindon smirked and pointed his sword at his cousin, hate still in his eyes.

"So, you are weak!!"

"Lindon, not everyone from the race of men are bad! From what I have learned, Estel has done nothing wrong…he is an innocent party!!"

"Not from MY point of view! THIS ENDS TODAY!!"

The two continued fighting, once again the opponents moving dangerously close to the cliff edge but this time both too distracted to notice. Estel cried out a warning, just in time to see Lindon pull his signature move, knocking Findor's blade from his hand with a flick of his wrist. Findor's sword plummeted over the cliff side down into the raging waterfall. The young elf put his hands up in surrender, his face showing his displeasure.

Lindon laughed maniacally and once again, pointed his sword at his enemy's chest.

"Like I said, TRAITOR…this ends today….starting with YOUR death!!"

In the blink of an eye, Estel saw a vision of the future. He knew what he had to do, uncaring of the consequences since he knew he was doing the right thing. This time it was as if time really had slowed down as he ran faster than he ever had in his life. He came in behind Findor and shoved him aside just as Lindon's blade was thrust into his own body.

A scream got stuck in his throat as the pain was so intense it cut off his vocal cords from the agony he was feeling.

He looked up into the sick, leering face of Lindon and then down at the short sword that was now embedded in his left shoulder.

Lindon's sword if it had hit the intended target would have pierced Findor's heart. Thankfully, the elves were much taller than him even at a young age. Estel saw the vision of Lindon striking Findor dead and this time, was able to stop a horrible future from taking place.

Lindon wrenched the blade out of Estel's shoulder, this time eliciting a scream as he sagged to his knees while clutching his right hand over his now bleeding stab wound. Tears fell from his eyes and he glanced over at Findor who was staring at him in shock. Findor stuttered, as if unable to believe what just happened.

"Y-you…you saved me…after all I did to you…you saved me…"

Estel weakly nodded and shuddered as he began to feel cold. Lindon laughed maniacally and spat at Estel before twirling his sword in his hand.

"Now… my sister shall be avenged!!"

He twirled the sword until the blade was now pointing down at the ground and raised it prepared to finish Estel off, right as Elladan, Elrohir, Elrond, Glorfindel, Erestor, Legolas, Lithion, and just about the rest of the Imladris warriors ran into the glade.

Just as Lindon turned his head to burn daggers into the newcomers, Findor took his cousin's momentary distraction to his advantage and tackled him sending Lindon to the edge of the cliff. Lindon looked right at Findor as he flailed trying to catch his balance but the sword still in his hand tipped the scales as his body reeled backwards, gravity pulling him down. The two cousins locked eyes, loathing disgust written on Lindon's face just as he fell over the cliff and into the raging waters below disappearing beneath the tumultuous, thundering waters.

Elrond was already at Estel's side, faster than anyone could blink.

"A-ada…"

"Yes ion nin, I am here…"

Estel passed out from exhaustion, pain, and blood loss after hearing the strong, comforting voice of his father.

Elrond placed one hand on Estel's forehead and one on his shoulder and closed his own eyes, using some of his healing power to slow the bleeding down. He then gently picked up Estel and ran back to the Last Homely House, the rest of the crew following with the exception of Glorfindel and his troops.

Glorfindel looked grave as he eyed Findor up and down before barking out orders for them to set up a perimeter and to send a search party to find Lindon's body down in the Bruinen River. They all ran off to do as told, leaving Glorfindel alone with his former student.

Findor looked down at the ground unable to meet the Balrog Slayer's intimidating stare. He looked back up however at the soft, awe filled voice of his teacher.

"You have redeemed yourself, young one. Thank you, for your bravery and quick thinking."

With those words, the ancient elf turned around and walked silently down the path, leaving the confused elfling alone to ponder his words and the consequences of his actions.

Three Days Later…

Estel was recovering quickly, thanks to the adept skills of Lord Elrond and the loving support from his family and new friend. Findor never left his side, refusing to leave for any reason. He remained vigilant until the second day when he fell asleep at his post beside Estel's bed, only to wake up the next morning in a guest room down the hall.

That same morning as soon as Findor raced back to Estel's room to resume his watch, Glorfindel and his patrol finally returned with Lindon's body retrieved from the Bruinen River. They prepared him for burial while his parents were informed of the tragedy by Lord Elrond himself, sharing the true story of how it all began and ended after they fit the puzzle pieces together. Lindon's parents after the funeral sailed West a few weeks later, the loss of their second child weighing heavily on their hearts. Not even Findor, their only nephew, could keep them there any longer.

Findor finally found the courage to try and make amends, feeling guilty for his past misdeeds almost believing himself to be unworthy of the forgiveness that he desperately sought for.

Estel of course smiled kindly at him, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder before turning and continuing on his way without saying a word.

And the matter was dropped, Findor receiving his forgiveness freely. He saw Estel in a new light and realized that there was much good to be found in the race of men after all.

Estel also learned that being human was nothing to be ashamed of and that being unique by being true to his heart and having the courage to be genuine was indeed a blessing from above. Estel's uniqueness brought a warmth and inner light to the valley and to all those who crossed his path.

Findor stayed in the Last Homely House to learn both the healing arts under the tutelage of Lord Elrond and also that of combat and warfare under the careful instruction of Lord Glorfindel. He grew to be a fine healer and warrior, serving many years in Imladris until the day he was called to Lothlorien. Over the years Findor visited all of the elven realms in Arda and brought with him the unique story of redemption and forgiveness.

And so it came to pass, that Estel Elrondion's worst childhood nemesis became one of his closest friends. And how a young boy's self sacrifice restored honor to his kind, forever redeeming the race of men…

THE END