Heart of a Healer

Disclaimer: I don't own them. A couple of quotes are taken directly from the book.

Summary: After the battle of Pelennor fields, Aragorn helps the injured and remembers the first time he had used athelas. When Legolas is badly wounded, young Estel might be the only one who can help. But is friendship enough to replace experience and at what cost?

Note: Written for the Teitho Prompt: "That's a First". Third Place Winner.

Rated: K+

Aragorn looked sadly at his patient. Faramir was faring very badly and his chances of survival seemed slim. In spite of that, everyone expected him to be able to cure the young Captain. The hands of the king are the hands of a healer, people said. But he knew that they were wrong.

It was not his hands he could cure with. It was something else.

Faramir's condition seemed to worsen every minute. Aragorn tried to ignore his dark thoughts. He could save him. He had done it before, a very long time ago. Back then he had no idea how to call someone back from the shadows and had to let his heart lead the way. He had to believe he could do it again.

OoOoOoO

Elladan and Elrohir rushed to meet the party of Mirkwood Elves. They didn't need a second look to tell that they were bearing ill news. Elladan froze in his tracks as he spotted the prone elf, lying on a stretcher. "What happened?" he asked in a trembling voice.

Elladan wasn't really surprised. He knew very well the dangers Mirkwood was facing every day. Long ago Sauron had sworn to turn what had once been Greenwood into a realm of darkness. And, so far, he was succeeding. The dreadful spiders and other evil creatures that inhabited the forest were a constant threat to anyone who ventured in the great forest.

The only thing that kept Mirkwood from succumbing to darkness was the power of the Elves living there. Because of that Sauron was constantly trying to destroy them. And, apparently, he had focused on the royal family.

"A large party of orcs attacked King Thranduil," one of the Silvan elves replied. "What they didn't plan was that his son would die before he lets any harm come to his father. And he almost did." The warrior sighed heavily. He couldn't push away the feeling that his prince would die anyway.

"Legolas! No!" A fourteen-year-old, dark-haired human ran past the twins and knelt beside the stretcher, lightly touching the unconscious elf's forehead. His friend looked unnaturally pale and his lips were an alarming shade of blue.

"He was stuck by a poisoned arrow," the Mirkwood elf continued. "We have experience with poisons, and we tried everything we knew. But he is touched by an evil unknown to us. We hoped that Lord Elrond could help."

Elrohir painfully shut his eyes. "Ada left for Lothlórien several days ago. He wished to visit our sister." He spoke softly, his voice on the verge of despair. Why did his father have to leave? Arwen hadn't visited Rivendell for a long time and Elrond missed her, they all did. But the Elf Lord had chosen the worst possible time to go.

Elladan looked at the prince carefully. His body was exhausted from the long trip from Mirkwood and he wouldn't last much longer. "We can send a messenger to call father back," he suggested although he knew that wouldn't really help. This would take at least a week. Legolas didn't have that much time.

The older twin knelt by the wounded elf, gently removing the bandages from his shoulder. He winced as he saw the black tendrils spreading around the wound. "Morgul poison," he hissed in disgust. The situation reminded him of how he found his mother, tortured and poisoned by orcs. They were unable to help her. Elladan pushed the dark thoughts aside and placed his hand on the prince's forehead, trying to read his symptoms.

"There is something more," he whispered and tried to concentrate. Suddenly, his face grew pale. "This poison has been cursed. It has been touched by the Black Breath." He shuddered. The mere thought about this sent shivers down his spine.

"But this means that there is only one thing that could be done!" Elrohir spoke, his voice fearful.

"And only Father can do it," Elladan continued. "We will do everything we can to fight the poison," he spoke softly to the Mirkwood warriors. But his voice held no hope. Yes, they would do everything they could, but they would never save the prince. He knew it.

"What do you mean do everything you can?!" tearful gray eyes turned towards him. "Won't you save him?"

Elladan winced. He wished he could give his little brother some hope, but there was none. "I'm sorry, Estel. We will try everything we know about fighting poison, but we can't promise anything."

"But you must!" the boy's eyes shimmered with unshed tears. "You can't give up! There is still hope!"

The older twin sighed heavily. How could he tell his brother that his best friend was going to die and there was nothing anyone could do?

OoOoOoO

"My lord?" a voice interrupted his thoughts. Aragorn looked up and saw Ioreth, the eldest woman serving at the Houses of Healing.

"You have store in this House of the herbs of healing?" he asked. The wise woman started an endless blabbering about what herbs they had, and how difficult it was to find them in those dreadful days. Aragorn let her finish, showing more patience than was expected in this situation. "Have you athelas?" he asked as she finally paused to catch her breath.

"I do not know, I am sure, lord, at least not by that name. I will go and ask of the herb-master; he knows all the old names."

"It's also called kingsfoil," Aragorn clarified, and instantly regretted it, as his explanation was followed by another wave of blabbering about how Ioreth knew that plant, but have always considered it useless. Therefore, they had none of it in storage.

Aragorn tried to push away the fear gripping his heart as he sent Ioreth to search the entire City for the herb. What if she couldn't find it?

Gandalf noticed his concerns. "Don't be troubled," he spoke. "Faramir will live even if Ioreth doesn't find athelas. It is not the plant that can heal. It is you.

OoOoOoO

Estel sat by his friend's bed, gently caressing the elf's pale hand. His brothers had done everything they could, but the prince hadn't improved at all. He had actually gotten worse.

The boy got up, planning to go and look for Elladan and Elrohir and ask them if anything else could be done. He froze as he suddenly heard Elladan's voice.

"We knew that this would happen," the older twin spoke. "This evil cannot be counteracted by a simple antidote. Legolas is dying."

Estel felt his heart was breaking. He walked quietly behind his brothers, careful that they wouldn't notice him. He saw the twins sitting on the stairs, Elladan's head buried in his hands.

"You know what has to be done," Elrohir said. "He needs to be called back from the shadows."

"Yes, but we cannot do it, and Ada isn't here," Elladan's voice was filled with pain.

"Ada is not the only one who can do it," Elrohir was speaking slowly, carefully observing his twin's reaction.

His brother turned and stared at him incredulously. "You can't be suggesting that!" his voice was shaking. "Estel is not ready!"

The young human almost jumped in surprise. What were they talking about?

"We cannot know if he is ready unless he tries," Elrohir countered.

"And how do you suppose are we going to explain to him why he has these abilities?" Elladan wasn't ready to accept this idea. Estel didn't know who he was, he knew nothing of his heritage and destiny, and he intended it to be like that for at least several more years.

"We will think of something, El. We should try. The risk is worth it."

"Worth it?" Elladan asked in disbelief. "Do you have any idea at all what we are risking? Don't you know how hard this is? Haven't you seen how exhausted father is after he does it? And father has knowledge and experience, he knows what he is doing, unlike our little brother. El, this cannot save Legolas. It can only kill Estel."

But the child didn't hear the last words. He was already running back. He had healing abilities. Why? This question troubled him, but he didn't give it much thought. Only one thing mattered now. He was the only one who could cure Legolas. And he was determined to do it.

He had seen Lord Elrond do this, so he had some idea where to start. He boiled water in a small kettle and brought it to Legolas' room. He also took a few athelas leaves from where his father kept the herbs.

"I will get you out of this, mellon-nin," he promised quietly. Fear and doubt suddenly entered his mind, and he bent his head. "I don't know how to do it," he admitted. "What if I fail? Goheno nin, mellon-nin. Forgive me, my friend."

No! How could he even allow such thoughts? He wouldn't fail. He couldn't. True, he had no experience, but his will and desire to save Legolas would surely compensate.

Estel took the leaves in his palms and breathed on them. Then he crushed the leaves, filling the room with freshness and life. The boy dropped the leaves into the kettle, letting the boiling water consume them.

The fragrance that came out of the water filled the room with joy. It lightened his heart and cast away his troubles. But the prince didn't stir.

Estel gently laid his hand on Legolas' brow. "Come back, my friend," he called. "Come back to me, mellon-nin! Come back to the light!"

Legolas didn't seem to hear him. Estel stood there for hours, calling again and again, his voice growing fainter, as if he himself was somewhere else. He didn't notice as weariness he had never felt before spread across his body.

All around him was darkness. Gray shadows were stretching their arms towards him, like evil tentacles. He was dying. Or maybe he was already dead.

Legolas was weary. Very weary. The shadows were tearing him apart. But then he saw the Darkness.

Deep, bottomless Darkness, luring him, lulling him to sleep. It promised rest and escape from the shadow world. Maybe he had to give up. He didn't even remember why he was fighting anymore. The elf took one more step towards the darkness.

"Legolas!" a voice stopped him. It sounded oddly familiar. And oddly far away. Had he heard this voice before?

"Don't give in, mellon-nin!" the voice called again. "Listen to my voice! Come back to the light!"

Memory slowly came back to him. Estel? What was the human doing here? He turned his head to face the direction the voice was coming from.

But then the shadows around him grew denser, pressing him from all sides. A shadow walked towards him, forcing its hand into his chest and gripping his heart. Stopping its beating.

Legolas couldn't stand this anymore. He had to get away. All memories were forgotten.

The prince turned and walked towards the Darkness, more resolutely than ever.

"Legolas!" the prince's forehead had grown colder under his touch. In frightened him. Estel focused all of his consciousness in looking for the prince, daring in realms no human mind had ventured before.

All around him was darkness. And shadows. Estel looked around and shuddered. He was terrified. But he couldn't go back.

The human walked through the shadows, boldly pushing them away. He didn't know for how long he had been walking, but he didn't care. Suddenly he stopped and stared in shock.

Among all the darkness, there was a light. Still bright even though it was fading as he was watching it. Legolas.

What was he doing? He was giving up!

"NO!" the boy screamed and rushed forward. The shadows were standing in his way, trying to push him back. But he wouldn't stop.

"Legolas!" someone was calling. The elf didn't know who or why, but it sounded desperate. He didn't know why, but the voice somehow filled his heart with sorrow. But it didn't matter now. He had almost reached it. Soon he could rest. Forever.

"Legolas!" the voice called again. That name… He was sure he had heard it before. But it seemed so long ago. As if ages had passed.

"Lasto nin, mellon-nin! Echuio! Avo visto! Telo enni! Listen to me, my friend! Wake up! Don't wander! Come to me!" Legolas could almost hear the tears in this voice. He was surprised to feel tears stinging his own eyes.

Suddenly a hand grabbed his. "Estel!" All memories came back at once.

"Aphado nin!" the boy whispered, hoping that the Noble Tongue would fight the shadows and bring them some light. "Follow me!"

The two friends ran through the shadows, but their strength was coming to an end. All around them was darkness. Horrified, Estel realized he didn't know the way back.

He had almost given up hope, when a sweet smell came to his senses. It seemed to dissipate the darkness around.

The athelas… It was still boiling, showing their way. Estel's grip on Legolas' hand tightened. "Noro," he whispered. "Run!"

Legolas rose on his bed, gasping for air. He was feeling incredibly weak, but he felt that the darkness that had imprisoned him was gone.

His gaze suddenly shifted to the unconscious form, prostrated next to his bed. "Estel!" he screamed in horror, gathering the boy in his arms. "What have you done this time, foolish child," he whispered in fear. He wasn't aware of the way the healing process worked and was afraid that the boy had given up his life to save him. He knew very well that Estel would do it, which only added to his terror.

The human slowly opened his eyes and forced a weak smile. "You are back," he whispered before closing them again.

OoOoOoO

Everyone in the room was watching in awe as Aragorn knelt next to Faramir, trying to call the Steward back. They sensed that some great struggle was going on. Aragorn was calling the Captain, but his voice sounded more and more distant and far away, as if it was coming from somewhere else.

Suddenly Bergil rushed into the room, carefully holding six leaves. "It is kingsfoil, Sir, but not fresh, I fear. It must have been culled two weeks ago at the least. I hope it will serve, Sir?" the fear in the servant's voice was evident.

"It will serve. The worst is now over. Stay and be comforted!"

Aragorn smiled in relief. It was true. The worst was indeed over. He had done it.

OoOoOoO

Estel opened his eyes and instantly closed them as a wave of pain passed through his head.

"Glad that you're awake, little brother," Elrohir smiled warmly.

"Of course he is glad," Elladan added with a grin. "Now Father will have to punish you instead of us!"

Legolas chuckled. Estel felt his heart leap in joy as he heard his friend laugh. He was afraid he would never hear that sound again.

"Didn't you father tell you not to try this at home?" the golden-haired being smiled. "I'm serious, Estel," he quickly added. "You shouldn't have done it. It was dangerous."

"But I did it and it worked!" the boy stated triumphantly. "Of course it would work. After all I have extraordinary healing abilities."

The three elves exchanged a worried glance. How much did Estel know? Their doubts were not lost on the human.

"How did I get those abilities?" he asked softly. "Why was I able to cure Legolas when no one else could?"

Elladan swallowed hard. "When you were very little, Ada blessed you. He wished that you would inherit his skills. And you did."

The explanation sounded obviously lame. Elves just couldn't lie. Elladan noticed the look of distrust on his little brother's face and tried again.

"You cured him because you wanted it very much. So strong was your will, that it managed to bring him back. He was lost, but your heart refused to accept it and fought to the end. This is what cured Legolas. You have the heart of a healer, Estel."

His words sounded much more persuasive now. Elladan wasn't lying anymore. This was the truth.

OoOoOoO

Faramir suddenly opened his eyes and stared at the man kneeling beside him. A light of understanding flashed through him mind.

"My lord, you called me. I come. What does the king command?" he asked softly.

"King!" Ioreth exclaimed. "Did you hear that? What did I say? The hands of a healer, I said."

Aragorn smiled. Not the hands heal, he thought. It's the heart. He had learned this a long time ago. Éowyn and Merry were waiting for his cares, but he wasn't afraid anymore. He knew what to do.

The healer looked through the window and breathed the fresh air. "Hannon le, mellon-nin," he whispered. "You are the one who taught me how to heal."

THE END

Thank you for reading! Please review, my friends, and you'll make me very happy :o)

To everyone reading "Friendship is a Family Trait" and "Unbreakable": I just saw that I haven't updated the stories in 6 and 11 days respectively, and I don't know if I'll be able to update any of them soon. That's unforgivable and I'm very sorry, this week and the next are just crazy for me :( However, I haven't abandoned the stories and I'll get back to them as soon as I can. You have been such wonderful readers and I hate it that I have to make you wait.

Note: (I know some of you are reading this for the third time, but still) The Estel Angst Central is organizing a story competition, and the prompt is "Spiders". If you are interested, a link could be found on my profile page.

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