Hello. This is my first time posting anything ever, but I'm pretty hopeful with this piece. Yes, it is a story where young Estel gets sick and the members of the Last Homely House worry and freak out, but I love it.

You should all know that I take the view that Gilraen died with Arathorn when Aragorn was two and Elrond took him in as his own son, so I'm sorry if you are against this view, but that is just what I prefer.

Plus, I do not claim to be any sort of expert in Tolkien writings, and I will make use of my artistic license to change things into what I want them to be, but don't worry, it's nothing drastic, you might not even pick it up.

*Disclaimer* I don't own anything, you're chasing the wrong author, people.

"Ada?"

Elrond was surprised to hear his youngest up so late at night. He was even more surprised that he had not heard Estel come into his study, so immersed in his papers he was.

"What is wrong, ion nin (my son)?" Elrond asked, turning in his chair and holding his arms out for the little boy.

The four-year-old quickly leaped into his father's arms, wiggling around until he was comfortably cradled against Elrond's chest, his small curly head resting against his ada's (dad's) shoulder.

"I don't feel good," came the small voice. "And I'm cold." As if on cue, the small boy shivered in Elrond's arms.

Frowning, Elrond moved his hand to feel Estel's forehead. His frown deepened when he felt unnatural heat radiating off Estel. "Where do you feel bad, tithen pen (little one)?"

Estel shivered again, causing Elrond to reach for a spare robe draped on a nearby chair. After Estel was snuggly wrapped in the robe, he spoke. "My stomach isn't happy, and my throat, and my head."

"It sounds like you're sick, tithen pen (little one)." Elrond told him.

"What's 'sick'?" Estel asked, lifting his head to look at his father.

"It's something that happens to humans every so often. It's when your body doesn't feel very well because there is something that is wrong, so it tries to get rid of what is wrong with you."

"Like that time when I ate too much of 'Restor's cake after you told me not to and I throwed up?" Estel asked.

Elrond's eyes twinkled at the memory, remembering how after the incident Estel refused to have any dessert for three weeks. "No, tithen pen (little one), not exactly like that. You didn't do anything to make yourself sick this time, but your body feels bad because it's trying to make you better again."

"Am I going to have to throw up again?" Estel asked suspiciously.

Elrond smiled at his son. "I don't think so. You will just feel bad for a day or two, ion nin. You will have to stay in bed and drink some special tea, but after that, you will feel better again."

"Tea?" Estel's eyes widened in panic at these words, causing Elrond to groan inwardly. It seemed no one in Middle-Earth liked his special tea, not that he blamed them, of course, it was very bitter, but it seemed his youngest disliked it most of all. It had been a very long time since Estel was last sick, so long that even Estel didn't remember it, but he did remember the tea.

Elrond sighed mentally. "You won't have to drink any tea tonight, Estel. But we will have to see how you are in the morning."

"Okay, Ada." Estel gave a huge yawn and snuggled his head up against his father's neck, shivering as he did so.

"Come, Estel, let us put you back to bed." The boy still in his arms, Elrond stood and walked to his son's room. Estel was practically asleep by the time Elrond laid him in the bed and wrapped extra warm blankets around him. Looking around, Elrond spotted Estel's teddy bear, Growly, lying on the floor next to the bed.

He picked the bear up and laid it next to his son, who, even in his barely conscious state, wrapped his arm securely around the bear, drawing it closer to him.

"'Night, Ada," Estel murmured.

"Goodnight, Estel." Elrond leaned down and brushed his lips against his son's forehead, pleased to find that already the heat from earlier was fading. It looked as if Estel's body was fighting the sickness off by itself, maybe Estel really wouldn't have to drink any of his 'special' tea.

Elrond, sure that his youngest was going to be just fine, went back to his study, intending to finish a few more papers before returning to his son's room to watch over him during the night.

00000000000

However, what Elrond didn't plan on was his falling asleep at his desk. It wasn't like such a thing could be unexpected. It was almost winter, the busiest time for Elrond, at least where important papers were concerned. Trade documents had to be completed for the season; store rooms had to be counted and recounted, goods had to be bought, traded, harvested, then stored; the surrounding villages needed to be checked up on to be sure everything was in order for the cold season; troops had to be relocated to accumulate the coming snow; so on and so forth.

Elrond had spent the last four nights up late trying to complete everything in time before the first snowfall. It seemed that his lack of sleep had finally caught up with him that night when he awoke the next day with his head lying on a document concerning the wheat storage.

Elrond sat up from his slumped position and was unsurprised to find that his back and neck were very stiff. Rotating his shoulders and stretching his arms, he stared out the frosted window to the cool fall morning. He was lost in thought when he heard a knock at his door.

"Come in," he said, straightening his robes, hoping he didn't look too untidy.

"My lord," Erestor chided gently as he entered, "you wouldn't have happened to have stayed in here all night, did you?"

"I didn't plan on it, mellon nin (my friend), but it seemed time got away from me." Elrond smiled at the seneschal ruefully.

"You have spent far too many nights awake, lately, you need a nice rest," Erestor said.

"I planned on doing so last night but-" Elrond's eyes widen as he remembered his youngest son visiting him during the night. Jumping out of his chair, he rushed out into the hall and into Estel's bedroom just as Elrohir was leaving his own room to wake Estel up for the day.

"Ada?" Elrohir questioned as his father hurried into his younger brother's room.

Elrond didn't answer the twin, but instead rushed to Estel's bed and was greeted with a worrying sight.

Estel lay tangled up in his blankets, sweat beading on his forehead, his breathing coming in fast pants. As Elrond watched, Estel shifted restlessly, whimpering and shivering. Elrond sat on the side of the bed and gently laid his hand on Estel's forehead. The skin was hot, burning, causing Elrond's worry to spike even more.

"Erestor, please go fetch a bowl of cool water and a cloth and bring it back here quickly," Elrond spoke to the seneschal calmly.

"Yes, my lord." Erestor left the room in a hurry.

"Ada?" Elrohir asked, stepping to stand beside his father, his voice betraying his worry and fear for his brother. "Is Estel going to be alright?"

"He should be, ion nin. He is just sick and has a fever. A little rest and some herbal tea should make him better again." Elrond began to untangle Estel's legs from the blankets.

"I'll go make some tea for him, Ada." With that, Elrohir also hurried from the room, frowning with worry.

Erestor soon returned with the bowl of water, laying it on Estel's bedside table for easy reach. Elrond nodded his thanks to his friend and began wiping Estel's heated forehead off as Erestor stoked the fire to heat the drafty room.

When Elrohir returned with the tea, he had Elladan and Glorfindel in tow with him. Elrond nodded his thanks to his son and took the tea. Wiping Estel's forehead a few more times with the cloth, Elrond finally laid his hand on his son's cheek and began to softly call his name.

"Estel? Estel, ion nin, I need you to awaken." Estel stirred fitfully at his father's voice, making soft noises of discomfort. "Come, Estel, you must wake up, tithen pen."

After a little more persuasion, Estel finally woke. Fever glazed eyes roamed over those who were in his room, before finally resting on Elrond.

"Ada?" Estel's voice was cracked and weak. His hand reached for his father, who immediately took the boy's small hand in his own.

"I'm here, Estel." Elrond said, laying the tea aside for a moment as he began to gently stroke Estel's forehead.

Closing his eyes again, Estel murmured, "Don't feel good."

"I know you don't, tithen pen, but I'm going to help make you better again." Elrond reached for the tea again. "You have to drink this now, Estel, it will make you better."

"Okay, Ada." The fact that Estel didn't argue against taking the tea severely worried Elrond and the four other elves in the room. Estel's dislike for taking the tea was legendary in the Last Homely House; the measures that he sometimes went to to wiggle out of the task were often as memorable as they were remarkable.

Elladan and Elrohir instantly moved forward to help their little brother sit up, carefully pulling him out from under his blankets and leaning him against their shoulders as they sat on either side of him.

At their touch, Estel stirred and opened his eyes again. "Dan? Ro?"

"It's us, Estel." Elladan told his youngest brother, brushing the boy's curly locks back, "We're here to help you get better."

"You just have to drink the tea," Elrohir continued, rubbing his little brother's back in soothing circles, "I even put honey in it so it will taste better."

The corners of Estel's lip pulled up in a small smile. "Still taste bad," the boy said weakly, resting his burning head on Elrohir's shoulder.

The twins smiled; they too, also hated drinking Elrond's special tea, but nowhere near as much as Estel did.

Taking the cup that held the tea from his father, Elladan brought the herbal drink to Estel's lips. "You must drink this now, Estel."

Other than a small wrinkling of his nose, Estel made no protest towards drinking the tea. As Elladan held the cup to his lips, Estel's small chubby hands overlapped his brother's as he gripped the cup, causing Elladan to smile.

It didn't take long for Estel to finish the drink, and when he did, he promptly fell right back asleep, his head on Elrohir's shoulder.

"The poor lad's worn out," Glorfindel commented, worriedly watching his lord's youngest son.

"He needs to rest in order to heal." Elrond sighed. "Someone will have to watch him at all times should he get worse." Reaching over to the nightstand, Elrond dipped a cloth into the bowl of cool water, wrung it out, and placed it carefully on Estel's forehead. "Some rangers are coming in today and I have to meet with them to sort out some winter trade agreements. I cannot miss this, but perhaps if I-"

Elladan quietly cut his father off. "You can meet with the rangers, Ada, me and El can watch over Estel."

"We didn't have anything planned for today, anyway, Ada. We won't mind looking after Estel," Elrohir agreed with his twin.

"We promise to come tell you if anything changes," Elladan went on.

"We've taken care of him before, Ada, so we know what to do," Elrohir added.

"Plus, you've taught us almost everything when it comes to healing."

"And you'll be right down the hall in your study-"

"So if anything went wrong-"

"We would just have to yell-"

"And the rangers would understand-"

"So you really have nothing to worry about-"

"We can take perfect care of him, Ada."

The twins smiled up angelically at Elrond, who was trying to hide a smile at being ganged up on by his sons.

"If it weren't for the circumstances," Glorfindel said, one eyebrow raised suspiciously, "I would say that you two sound entirely too convincing." The twins continued to smile their innocence.

"Are you questioning my sons' abilities to negotiate?" Elrond asked that warrior.

"I would never do that, except for that one time when they tried to negotiate with the exotic animals dealer; what I am questioning is their modes behind this flawless argument. And, like I said before, if it were not for the circumstances, I would believe they were up to something." Elrond just gave a very elegant snort as a reply, silently agreeing with the warrior.

Elrond gave his twins a hard look. "The two of you can watch Estel today, but you have to remain quiet so he can rest and come to me immediately the moment something changes."

"Yes, Ada," the said in unison, sharing a smile, making Elrond wonder if maybe the two of them really were up to something…

Sighing inwardly, he realized that there was nothing more he could do, and he went off to his study to prepare for the meeting with the rangers later that morning.

0000000000

"El?"

"Yes, El?"

"With Estel sick, are we still going to go through with the plan?"

Elladan sighed and laid his hand on his baby brother's forehead. "His fever's down, almost gone, he should be better by tonight, but I doubt Ada will let him eat in the dining hall so…"

"Plan postponed?" Elrohir finished.

"For now." Elladan ran his hand through Estel's curls, watching him as he slept.

000000000

Elrond was very glad when the day was finally over. To his utter relief Estel's fever had left, leaving his son tired, but almost healthy again. And to add to his relief, it looked as if the twins decided not pull a prank on the visiting rangers, like he suspects they would; however he would have to keep an eye on them over the next two weeks of their visit.

"But, Ada," Estel said through a rather large yawn as Elrond was tucking him into bed, "I'm not tired."

"I know, tithen pen." Elrond stroked his son's forehead, glad to find it cool to the touch. "But it would make me feel better if you were to rest."

"If that's what you want, Ada…" the boy said, his eyes drooping.

"Sleep well, ion nin." Elrond brushed his lips against the four-year-old's forehead.

"'Night, Ada," Estel murmured sleepily.

"Goodnight, Estel." Elrond smiled down at his youngest.

"'Night Dan. 'Night Ro," Estel murmured a little louder to the twins who were trying to subtlety peak in on their little brother without being noticed.

"Goodnight, Estel," they both said, smiling.

Within seconds, Estel was asleep, his breathing deep and even. The twins entered once they were sure their little brother wouldn't wake up.

"He didn't eat very much," Elrond observed, glancing at the food tray the twins had brought up for Estel earlier.

"He said he didn't want to eat," Elladan told is father quietly. "He said his stomach still wasn't very happy."

Elrond smiled at his youngest's word choice. "The two of you should go to bed," Elrond said after a while, "I will watch over Estel for now."

The twins quietly said goodnight to their father, then left silently for their own rooms.

0000000000

Estel's fever came back during the night, this time with a vengeance. By morning, Estel was quivering like a leaf in the mound of blankets wrapped around him, his face pale and sweaty. He was unresponsive to any attempts made to wake him up, causing Elrond to worry.

With the help of the twins, Elrond managed to pour the fever reducing tea down Estel's throat, which his son swallowed instinctively. Elrond sat vigilantly at his son's bedside, constantly changing the wet cloth on Estel's forehead with a new one, trying his best to lower the fever.

By mid-day, Estel still burned, but not as harshly as he had just hours before.

"Estel, ion nin, you must wake up," Elrond was once again trying to coax his youngest awake.

"Yes, Estel, you have to wake up." Elrohir added his voice to his father's.

"Otherwise, what else are we going to do with all this 'special' tea of Ada's?" Elladan queried.

Whether it was the combination of voices calling to him or the mention of his Ada dreadful tea that finally broke through the fog in Estel's mind, no one knew, but whatever it was, the four-year-old finally woke.

Estel's eyes were glazed with fever, and Elrond doubted that the boy was even aware what was going on around him. Once they managed to coax him to drink the tea, Estel lay in his bed breathing heavily, sweat rolling down his face, and after feeling his forehead, Elrond confirmed his suspicions: the boy's fever had risen again.

"Ada…" Estel whimpered after a while, stirring fitfully under the blankets.

"Shhh, ion nin, I am here." Elrond brushed back Estel's curls, hoping his touch would soothe the boy.

"Ada…" The boy whimpered again, cracking his unseeing eyes open.

"I am here, Estel, you need not worry." His son calling for him awoke a fear inside Elrond's heart that he didn't understand, all he knew was that he was suddenly very worried.

"Ada!" Estel called louder this time, causing Glorfindel, who had been just down the hall, to rush into the room. Estel's eyes darted back and forth across the room, seeing things that weren't real.

"He's hallucinating," Elrond stated worriedly, propping the boy up in his arms, hoping that his touch would bring Estel back to the real world. "You need not fear of anything, Estel, I am here," Elrond spoke gently in his ear.

But Estel just whimpered, his unseeing eyes wide, his breathing harsh.

Then, suddenly, Estel's eyes rolled back in his head and his small body began to thrash uncontrollably in Elrond's arms.

"It's a seizure!"

Glorfindel and the twins quickly rushed forward to the bed, taking Estel's body and holding it down while Elrond quickly stuffed the cloth used for Estel's forehead into his mouth to keep his son from choking on his own tongue.

The seizure, caused by a sudden spike in Estel's temperature, lasted for over a minute. When it stopped, Estel lay unnaturally still.

Elrond quickly felt for his son's pulse, which took him a moment to find. When he gave a sigh of relief, the other three elves in the room also relaxed, visibly slumping into a chair or against the wall in relief.

"Ada?" Elrohir asked, his voice sounding small.

"Yes, Elrohir?"

"Is- is Estel going to be okay?"

Elrond closed his eyes, his heart clinching in fear and worry as he held Estel in his arms. "I don't know, ion nin." And that was what was really scared the elf lord.

00000000000

Estel spent the rest of the day in the claws of the fever, and nothing Elrond did would bring his temperature down. When the fever still hadn't left him by nightfall, Elrond was at his wits end. For a young human to have such a high fever for such a long time could result in brain damage, if Estel even made it out of the fever.

The next morning found Elrond and the twins once again pouring tea down Estel's throat, but to no avail, the young boy's fever would not be lowered.

"Ada," Elladan said, his voice betraying just how worn he was, "you need to rest. You have been awake for over two days. Sleep. Elrohir and I will look after Estel."

"We'll come get you if anything happens," Elrohir said.

His sons, looking at him with pleading grey eyes full of concern, and the stress and exhaustion of the past couple days were enough to persuade Elrond to leave his youngest in the care of his older siblings for a few hours. Kissing Estel lightly on the forehead, doing his best to ignore the worry within him at feeling the heat there, he left his youngest's room knowing the twins would alert him the moment anything happened.

After taking a short bath to wash the stress and worry of the past few days off of him, Elrond made his way to his bed and sank in a deep, dreamless sleep.

Meanwhile, in Estel's room, Elladan and Elrohir sat worriedly beside their fevered brother, wondering if the young one would ever recover from that which ailed him.

Reaching his arm forward and placing his hand on Estel's forehead for the fifth time in the last ten minutes, Elrohir sagged dejectedly. "He still burns fiercely, Dan. It's been over a day now and he still has a fever. If it does not break soon…" The younger twin trailed off and looked sadly at his little brother.

"Estel will be alright, Ro. He is still a child, the Valar are not ready for him, they will not allow him to leave us yet, there is much he is still destined to do." Elladan leaned forward and lovingly wiped a cool cloth across the boy's forehead.

"I know the Valar are not yet ready for him, but they will not turn him away were he to come to them."

"Have faith in the Valar, Ro." Elladan put a hand on his twin's arm, trying to comfort him. "I do not wish to lose Estel anymore than you do, but have hope that they will do what they see fit."

Elrohir nodded, but doubt still clouded his mind. What if the Valar saw it fit to take his younger brother away from him?

00000000000

Elrond awoke hours later from his rest to find the sun already well into the sky, so great was his exhaustion that he had slept almost half the morning away. The escape to his waking-dreams did him good, he felt much more refreshed and able to deal with the stress that was surely waiting for him. He dressed quickly and went to go relieve his twin sons from their watch over their little brother.

He soon found that someone had already taken over the task of doing so the moment he walked into Estel's room and found Erestor and Glorfindel murmuring quietly to one another as Erestor instinctively wiped a damp cloth over Estel's heated forehead. Both looked up at the sound of Elrond's rustling robes.

"We took over for the twins a few hours ago," Glorfindel told him quietly, "the two of them seemed ready to drop."

"I have already given orders that no one is to wake the two of them unless Sauron himself is walking through Imladris with an army of orcs behind him." Erestor added.

Elrond nodded his head at this news, he sons needed to rest just as much as he had. Moving forward, he pressed the palm of his hand against Estel's forehead, and was saddened to find that it was still burning.

"He has made no improvement throughout the night it would seem." Elrond frowned at the gaspy breaths his son was taking and the soft whimpers he made, they did not bode well.

"He has not eaten anything since two nights ago," Erestor said, "and even then what he ate would not have been enough to sustain a fly. Nothing will bring his fever down, my lord. Even your special tea won't have any affect.."

Elrond frowned and pondered these words. They needed to lower Estel's temperature or the boy would surely perish, the fever dragging him under. Turning ideas over in his head he spoke aloud, "Then we will just have to take more drastic measures."

0000000000

More drastic measures, in this case, was to forcefully bring Estel's fever down. Elrond held Estel in his arms, rocking him back and forth in a rocking chair while continuing to bathe the child's head with a cool cloth. Erestor and Glorfindel, along with a few servants rushed to fulfill Elrond's new orders. They ran to the coldest spring in the valley, filled buckets full of the ice-cold water, and brought them back to the Last Homely House, quickly dumping the cold water into a tub before hurrying back for more.

It wasn't long before the activity alerted both Elladan and Elrohir, and discerning what their father intended on doing, they rushed down to the deepest and darkest cellar and chipped away at the ice-blocks stored there from the previous winter. It wasn't long before the tub adjoining Estel's room was filled with freezing cold ice-water.

They stripped Estel of his clothing, and moved into the washroom. The twins, Glorfindel, and Erestor all followed Elrond.

"Elladan, I want you to help me support him in the water." His eldest son moved forward and kneeled beside the tub, ready to help.

"Elrohir, make sure a blanket is ready for him."

"Yes, Ada," was the respond followed by a quick retrieval of a dozen blankets.

Steeling himself against the dreaded reaction his youngest son was about to have, Elrond removed the blanket that Estel had been wrapped in and, with Elladan supporting the child's head, lowered his youngest into the freezing water.

The reaction was almost instant. Even in the grips of the deadly fever, Estel's body reacted instantly to being dunked into the painfully cold water. The small body in Elrond's hands jerked and spasmed at the sudden cold; Estel's eyes snapped open, the pain of the cold water against his abnormally heated skin jerking him to consciousness.

Crying out, the boy's fevered glazed eyes roamed around the room, seeing but not taking anything in. Elrond's heart constricted at the sounds of pain his son made, but he continued to hold his son in the water until his body stopped reacting and his eyes fell shut once more.

Seeing that it was time to remove the boy, Elrond pulled Estel out of the water and he and Elladan quickly moved him to the pile of blankets Elrohir had ready for them. Quickly drying the boy, Elrond ignored the instinct to wrap the four-year-old up in the blankets and sit him by the fire to quickly reverse the effects of the ice-water, but Elrond was a healer, and instead he laid the boy on the washroom floor with only a thin sheet for covering.

"His fever has not dropped, Ada," Elrohir said, worriedly feeling his brother's forehead.

"Then we will have to keep soaking him."

And that they did. A few minutes after Estel's first dunking in the tub, Elrond and Elladan put him back in. Once again Estel cried out and struggled to get out of the water, his unseeing eyes snapping open. Elrond kept his face a smooth impenetrable mask, not letting his pain show through because he knew that this was necessary to save his child.

They continued to put Estel into the tub and remove him, each time hoping that the fever had finally been pushed out of him by the cold water. But every time they laid Estel on the floor with a thin blanket, they were all discouraged to see that his fever still raged strong.

"Ada," Elladan spoke as they once again dunked his littlest brother into the tub of water. Estel's body was so exhausted by the ordeal of uncounted submerging in the water that it no longer reacted to the icy prick of it, instead he laid limply in the hands of his father and oldest brother. "He can't take more of this. It's not working."

Elrond looked into the pleading eyes of his eldest, their grey depths telling him to stop submitting his brother to this torture. He turned his gaze to his four-year-old son, his small, pale body floating in the water. The boy's fever still raged; if they stopped now, it would never break. If they stopped, Estel would die.

"He can't take anymore, Ada." Elladan said softly.

Indecision warred within Elrond. If he stopped he was giving up on his son, but if he continued, it would kill him.

With a painful sigh that was barely audible, Elrond began to lift the boy out of the water, Elladan helping him.

"Ada?" Elrohir saw the resignation in his father's face as he and his twin brought Estel over to him to be dried off.

"The fever won't let go of him, Elrohir. We must stop." Elrond swaddled the boy in the thick blankets, then lifted the little body into his arms and walked back into the bedroom. He sat down in the rocking chair and cradled the body against his chest as he softly began to rock back and forth, singing a soft lullaby to soothing the dying child's exhausted body.

"But Ada!" Elrond heard Elrohir quickly scramble to his feet and race out of the washroom, followed by his twin and Glorfindel and Erestor. "Ada, if we stop the treatments then Estel will… he will… Ada…" Elrohir trailed off when he realized what his father was doing.

"Ro…" Elladan moved towards his brother and put a comforting hand on his arm.

"We can't just stop trying and watch him die!" Elrohir exclaimed, but his grief was so much that his words only came out as whispers as tears began to appear in his eyes.

"If we continue we will only cause him more pain, muindor (brother)." Elladan's own voice was choked up from the emotion sweeping over him. "It's best if he leaves peacefully."

By now tears were running down not only Elrohir's face, but his twin's, Glorfindel's, and Erestor's. All four of them were overwhelmed with the grief of preparing to lose the youngest inhabitant in Imladris.

Only Lord Elrond was left tearless, but despite the no outward signs of distress, inside him his soul was in misery, keening loudly as he slowly rocked his dying son back and forth as he sang softly.

0000000000

It had been hours since the elves had stopped giving Estel the ice-baths and still the boy lived, but faintly. Now the young one was struggling for breath, each gasp a huge effort on the child's part, his body continuing to fade.

Elrond still held the boy in his arms, refusing to relinquish the contact with his son for anything, not wanting to miss a second of the child's dwindling life.

The others had already said their good-byes. The memories of their words still brought tears to Elrond's eyes.

Glorfindel had been first, the tall, broad, golden-haired elf had been the first one to step up and begin.

"Estel," he began, kneeling in front of Elrond who held the boy in his arms, "my little warrior, how I grieve that I will never be able to teach you. You have that spark in your eyes, the reflexes in your limbs, the cunning in your brain that show all the signs of you one day becoming a great warrior. I have spent much of the past two years since your arrival awaiting the day that you and me will one day begin your training because I knew the day that you began that you would become one of the most gifted fighters of this Age.

"But I will miss you for more than just the great leader of men that you would have become. I will miss you because no longer will I have anyone to help me saddle Asfaloth, no longer will someone try to sneak up on me in the hallways on the way to breakfast, no longer will I be able to carry you on my shoulders through the valley. I will miss you Estel, and I will miss not being able to watch you grow up into the strong man you were meant to be."

With tears running down his face, Glorfindel had cupped the child's face in his hands and kissed his still burning forehead then stood and left the room. The fever-held child gave no response to the tearful farewell.

After watching his friend leave the room with sad eyes, Erestor stepped forward and stood in front of Elrond and Estel.

"You are, without a doubt, one of the most annoying beings Arda has ever seen in all its Ages. Some days I wish I could trade you for a snarling pack of hungry wargs, or that I could send you to the Black Gate because surely of all the things that could rid this world of Sauron it would be you, or that you would at least just close your mouth long enough so I could finish my paper work. But… I'm going to miss you, you obnoxious little human.

"I won't be able to teach you all the things I have wanted to teach, because I know you are a bright child and will one day have a great mind. I won't be able to watch you stick your tongue out as you try to write or read. I won't be able to bring you warm milk when you have a nightmare, or cook apple pastries with you on rainy days, or hold you in my arms when you are sleepy. You may make me despise you at time, little one, but I love you with all my heart."

Erestor leaned forward and brushed his lips against the boy's cheek, before following his friend out of the room, tears streaming down his face.

The twins came forward next, their arms wrapped around each other, falling to their knees in front of their father and brother, tears streaming down their faces.

"We love you tithen gwador," Elladan spoke, Elrohir nodding his head in agreement. "We love you and we are going to miss you every day for the rest of our lives." (little brother)

"We are so sorry that we won't ever watch you grow up tithen pen," Elrohir said. "That we will never see the man you will become." (little one)

"We won't ever be able to teach you how to pull pranks on Erestor," Elladan said.

"Or where you should always hide if someone is looking for you." Elrohir.

"Or when it's the best time of the year to go fishing."

"Or how to look innocent when you are guilty."

"Or how to ride a horse."

"Or throw a knife."

"Or dye someone's hair."

"Or shave off their beard."

"Or to braid your hair."

"Or where you should always hide Mithrandir's staff."

"Or where is the best place to hide when Mithrandir comes looking for you."

"Or how to wash the dye out of your hair after Mithrandir colors it in your sleep."

"Or how to plan complex pranks to get Mithrandir back."

"Or how to gracefully-"

"-or ungracefully-"

"-plead defeat."

"We won't ever be able to teach you all the things that we know. We will never get to watch you grow up and grow old like we always planned. We will never watch you claim the throne of Gondor or save the race of Man," Elladan said.

"We will never watch as you make a fool of yourself among women. We will never see you in love, or get married, or have a family." Elrohir choked on the last words.

"We love you, Estel."

"So much."

"And we are going to miss you."

As Elladan spoke the last words, the twins broke into sobs and stood and quickly fled the room, finding it suddenly unbearable.

As tears had run down his face then, they ran down his face now as Elrond remembered the tearful farewells to his son. He himself had yet to say farewell to his youngest, not wanting to believe that he was truly about to leave him.

The twins had since returned and were now sleeping on Estel's bed, their arms wrapped around one another for comfort. Glorfindel was snoring lightly in a chair by the bed, his feet propped up, and Erestor was constantly popping in and out from the hallway door, quietly checking on the dying child and his father.

Elrond looked down at the boy in his arms and his heart squeezed painfully. He had always thought that he would see Estel grow into the great man he was sure to be and see the boy bring Middle Earth into the next Age. Elrond had always believed that he would watch his youngest son grow, that he would still have many years ahead of him, and he had always looked forward to those years knowing that the joy he would get from it would be worth the pain of losing Estel to the gift of mortality.

But he hadn't counted on the young human becoming sick and having a fever claim him so early in his life. How did humans live knowing that the ones they loved could be taken from them by unseen assailants? He never imagined that his little Estel would be stolen away from his family simply because some foreign particles made their way into his body, the thought alone was as tragic as it was unfair, the poor boy had no way to defend himself against something he couldn't see. A mortal wound in battle, Elrond could accept that easier, but from a sickness? It was almost too much for the elf lord to bear.

Tears ran down his face as he gazed upon his little boy, his little Estel. The human's rattling gasp for air pierced Elrond's heart. He rubbed his hand over the boy's chest, hoping that this movement would ease the boy's breathing, but it seemed to no avail.

It seemed the boy was merely sleeping in his father's arms; if not for the shallow, uneven breaths and the fearful pallor of his skin one would assume that this night was like any other night, Elrond slowly rocking the boy to sleep after the child had been stricken awake by the night terrors that plagued his nighttime hours.

But tonight was not like every other, tonight had lost its innocence as all the inhabitants in Imladris waited with baited breaths to see what would happen once the lord's youngest departed this world forever. Many elves would weep this night for many reasons, but the cause of all the tears was currently being held by his father, slowly being rocked back and forth as he drew his last breath.

Elrond was shocked out of the memories of his youngest when he suddenly no longer heard the rasp of Estel's breathing. Panicked, Elrond's eyes searched his youngest's face, his hands fumbling at the young one's neck, searching desperately for a pulse. With a sob, he found none.

At the ceasing of Estel's raspy breaths, all the elves in the room, as well as Erestor who was pacing in the hallway outside, started out of their reveries, the sudden silence like a clarion call to them. Instantly, all four elves were surrounding the father and little boy.

Tears were in all of their eyes the moment they heard a sob break through Elrond's lips. Heads were bowed and tears ran freely.

"And so Aragorn, son of Arathorn, and Estel, son of Elrond, has left this world," Glorfindel murmured quietly through his tears. "At least he went peacefully."

"Oh, ion nin (my son)," Elrond sobbed, his heart ready to burst from the sorrow that was consuming him. He was never supposed to be here, he was never supposed to see his son die. He never wanted to add Estel's name to list of all the others he had loved and lost through his long years. This was never supposed to happen. He was meant to leave his son behind in Middle Earth once peace reigned once more, his son forever the lively and healthy man waving to him on the shores as he sailed away, in his memories, never to die as Elrond lived on in immortality.

But now he was gone, having taken his last breath in Elrond's very arms…

The twins were crying, Elrond was aware of that through his own sobs, the two of them had collapsed against their father's legs, their heads resting in his lap, their hands gently holding the other twin and the body of their baby brother.

Erestor and Glorfindel stood beside Elrond, looking down at the sad family, their hearts breaking at the misery they saw and the misery they themselves felt. Oh, Estel had wiggled his way into many hearts in the two short years he had spent at the Last Homely House, and those many hearts were now grieving at the loss of one so young and so innocent.

Elrond was sure his pain was going to drag him under, he was sure that the loss of this human he had claimed as his own would finally be the one to tip him over, to take him down so far that he would never recover. He was sure this little boy would finally be the one that broke him completely.

He was already beginning to feel the first effects of fading, his mind dully wondering how this would affect his twin sons and his daughter, when the little body in his arms stirred.

"Ada?" A child's voice asked, confused and groggy. "Why is everyone crying? Did they have night terrors too?"

"Estel!" The five crying elves all exclaimed at once, their heads snapping up, their souls becoming hopeful once more.

The poor boy was utterly confused now. He was not used to seeing all the strongest people in his life crying, let alone shouting his name in what he thought was anger. Having grown up around Elladan and Elrohir he did what had become instinctive whenever he thought he was in trouble: he went on the defensive.

He gave his ada the most tragic display of a puppy-dog face Middle Earth had seen in the last century and said in the most heartbreaking voice, "I'm sorry Ada." Hopefully that would cool whatever ire the elf lord had towards him.

But to add to the four-year-old's confusion, his Ada pulled him into his arms and hugged him tightly, making it clear that he was not angry with him.

"Ada?" Estel asked, patting his ada's face with a chubby hand, trying to make him feel better. "Are you okay?"

Elrond pulled back, hearing the uncertainty in the little ones voice. "I'm fine Estel, I am wonderfully fine."

"Estel!" He felt hands pick him up and then he was suddenly in the loving embrace of his gwedeir (brothers) as they hugged and kissed him, twirling him around in their arms and squeezing him between the two of them until he was laughing at the excitement they were causing in the boy.

"Estel!" Elrohir cried happily, throwing the boy up into the air and catching him, then pulling him into yet another hug. "I'm so glad you're back!"

"But Ro," Estel laughed, resting his forehead against the twins and crossing his eyes trying to look his older brother in the eye. "I didn't go anywhere! How can I come back?"

That question reminded Estel of his earlier question. Pulling back from his brother, Estel looked around at the rest of his family, once again wondering why they were there and crying. "Did you all have night terrors?" he asked. "Do you want Ada to rock you, too?"

This caused all the elves to chuckle, the sudden change in the room's atmosphere leaving them all giddy.

"Here, let me hold the little warg a moment." Huffing, Erestor pushed through the twins and plucked the boy from Elrohir's arms, bringing him into his own embrace, wanting to make sure that he was truly there and alive. "Don't you ever scare me like that again, little one," he whispered more to himself than to Estel.

"I'm sorry I scared you, Restor," Estel said, patting the elf on the nose, much to the amusement to those in the room. "I didn't mean to."

"I know you didn't mean to, little one," Erestor said, kissing the boy on the head.

"Alright Erestor, you had your time with the little lad, now hand him over." Glorfindel smiled good-naturally at his friend while stealing the boy away from him.

"Glorfy!" Estel squealed as the Balrog Slayer spun him around and tossed him in the air, making the boy's head spin.

"Oh, Estel." Glorfindel stopped spinning the boy and pulled him into a tight embrace. "My little warrior, I'm so glad you're okay."

"Of course I'm okay!" Estel exclaimed with as much exasperation as a four year old could. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Forgive us, Estel," Elrond said, standing and lifting the boy from Glorfindel's arms and bringing him back into his own, "We were just worried about you. But now it's obvious that you are perfectly alright, I think it's time you went to bed and got some rest." In all honesty Estel's sudden turn of fortune left Elrond's head spinning and he was more than worried that Estel would take ill again.

"But Ada," Estel complained, as he always did when told to go to bed, "I'm not tired." After those words left his mouth, a huge lusty yawn claimed the boy.

"Amuse me," Elrond said, watching as the boy began to blink his eyes sleepily.

It wasn't long until Estel was settled into his bed, his head resting against his father's chest since Lord Elrond refused to leave the boy. On either side of him were his two brothers, and beside the bed were Glorfindel and Erestor each plopped down in a chair. Were anyone to walk into the room that night, they would have seen one of the most heartwarming scenes of that Age as the entire Perendil family slept peacefully, the stress of the past few days vanished in the return of the little boy that had captured their hearts.

It was truly a gift from the Valar.

00000000000

"El, did you remember to do it?"

"And since when have I ever forgotten?"

"Remember that one time after the Summer Solstice with the snake-"

"Alright! So I forgot once! Let it go! It was 700 years ago! No one's perfect!"

"… I've never forgotten."

"Oh, look at me! I'm Elrohir! I'm so perfect I never forget anything!"

"Real mature. No wonder Ada's worried about our influence on Estel… So did you do it?"

"YES! I snuck in while they were all out at the archery range trying to beat you at the hundred yard target... By the way, did any of them beat you?"

"El! Of course they didn't beat me! How could you think so little of me?"

"Well, El, if you must know… your shooting leaves something to be desired. Now if it were me who were shooting against them, there would be no uncertainty as to who would win."

"Are you trying to imply something about my shooting, El?"

"Oh, no, not really. Only that you could never shoot as well as I could."

"I'll kill you."

"Now really, El, this is no example to set for our little brother, now is it? Running in the halls? What will Estel make of this?"

"Get back here!"

"Come now, El, aren't you taking this a bit too hard? I was just giving you constructive criticism!"

"Argh!"

"Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!"

"It. Serves. You. Right!"

"Oh look! The Rangers have arrived for the feast!"

This caused Elrohir to pause in banging his twin's head into the hallway floor. An evil smile spread across the twin's face when he caught view of the Rangers entering the Dining Hall. "It worked."

"Uh, El? Still down here." Elrohir looked down and saw he still had Elladan's face shoved into the polished wood floor. Setting the twin's head free, Elrohir removed the knee he had painfully pressing against his brother's back and stood to get a better view of the rooms reaction to their latest prank.

The main reaction was a lot of stifled laughter that the Rangers did their best to ignore as they walked to their seats. But no one could ignore Estel when he very seriously walked up to the head ranger, tugged on his pants to get his attention, and said with all seriousness, "Did you dye Glorfindel's underpants too?"

This caused the whole hall to burst into fits of laughter, remembering how just weeks previously the twins had dyed all of Glorfindel's underclothes pink which the golden warrior returned cheerfully by dying the twins dark hair pink. Since then, Estel had taken it into his mind to warn people as often as possible to never dye Glorfindel's underpants.

The room roared with laughter as elves everywhere remembered the event fondly, and as the Rangers, all with bright pink hair and beards, blushed deeply, but did their best to uphold some sort of dignity.

Elrond was the only person in the room who had managed to keep a straight face, mainly because he knew who the culprits were.

"Elladan! Elrohir!"

His voice rang out over the laughter, and the identical sons of Elrond immediately stopped laughing, quickly stood from where they had collapsed on the floor, and immediately took off down the hall.

"Quick!" Elladan exclaimed. "Head to the stables! If we hurry we can make it to Lorien and grandmother will defend us!"

"And what if she turns against us?" Elrohir asked as they both hopped the garden wall.

"Then we'll use Arwen as a shield!"

"Good plan!"

They continued to run towards the stables, knowing their ada was very angry with them. But they saw the twinkle in his eye, the slight twitch in his mouth; they knew he was glad to see how happy Estel was by the excitement in the hall, even if it was at the Ranger's expense. If it made Estel happy, then it was worth it.

The End

So, let me know what you think. If you have any questions please don't be afraid to ask. And let me know if you're interested in more stories from me, maybe give me an idea or two to work off of. Reviews are apprieciated!