All Shall Fade (LOTR-Wattys 2014)

All Shall Fade - Chapter 43 - Let Go

All Shall Fade

Chapter 43

Let Go

I woke in the late morning, cracking one eye open and peering blearily at the stream of bright sunlight that flooded into the room through the thin material of the curtains that covered the window which directly faced my large bed, causing the dust motes that danced in front of my face to be eerily illuminated. As I rolled over I groaned in pain as my stiff muscles protested the movement – apparently battle was too vigorous an activity for my body to cope with. Resisting the almost overwhelming urge to return to the peaceful realms of sleep, I sat up and rubbed my eyes drowsily. As I swung my legs out of my bed I stretched and tried to work all the knots out of my muscles as I looked around the room, and then down at my torn, muddy, bloodstained clothes. I stuck out like a sore thumb in this regally clean place. With a sigh I turned and walked over to a small table where I’d spotted a clay jug and basin, eyeing them hopefully and smiling as I discovered water inside. I proceeded to wash my face and neck, paying careful attention to the now-faint bite marks that scarred my skin. As I finished I began searching the room for something to wear and opened up a somewhat dusty, heavy wooden chest. Inside it were several folded items of clothing and I grabbed the nearest one, which after examination appeared to be a large shirt with the dark colour of red wine. I shrugged and changed into it, rolling up the too-long sleeves and discarding my tattered green shirt at the foot of my bed. After recovering my battered coat and boots, I made my way for the door and out onto the busy street outside. The bright sunlight bounced off every white surface it touched, creating an illuminated pathway through the streets. As I looked around, I spotted the guard from last night and walked up to him.

“Erm, hi.” I greeted him awkwardly, “Do you know if Ara- I mean, Lord Aragorn is about?” I caught myself mid-sentence, realising that I should probably refer to him formally around strangers.

“I believe he is still in his quarters.” The guard replied, “He returned to them not long before dawn.” I rolled my eyes and quickly thanked the guard before beginning to walk down through the streets. Trust Aragorn to work through the night and totally exhaust himself. I figured I should pay a visit to Eowdrin and Eówyn in the Houses of Healing, so after a brief few minutes of losing my way, I arrived at the tall white building and was shown to a quiet back room that contained three beds. Two were taken up by the blond sisters, but the one nearest the door contained a much smaller form.

“Merry!” I gasped, rushing over to his bedside where I noticed Pippin sitting holding his friend’s hand. “What happened?”

“Had a bit of an accident.” Merry smiled, lifting his arm that wasn’t being tightly clutched by his companion, and revealing a sickeningly familiar sight that prompted another gasp from me as I took in the sight of the dull, greyish-black veins that ran down his forearm.

“Oh Merry…” I sighed, leaning on his bed and pulling up my own sleeve, revealing the pale grey scars that permanently stained the inside of my forearm. “We match.” I smiled weakly causing him to laugh a little as I wondered how on earth he’d managed to cross the path of a Ringwraith in battle and live to tell the tale. As he proceeded to animatedly fill me in on everything that had happened since we had left the camp at Dunharrow, I cast a glance over at the other two beds and saw that Eómer was still sitting with his sisters and on the other side of Eowdrin’s bed, Legolas sat holding her hand. I quietly excused myself from Merry’s bedside and walked over to them, frowning as I saw tears tracking down Eowdrin’s cheeks. “What’s wrong?” I asked, crouching down beside Legolas’s chair as he looked up from where he had been talking quietly to her.

“Théoden fell in the battle.” He murmured softly, causing Eowdrin to whimper quietly.

“No.” I breathed, closing my eyes for a moment, unable to comprehend that the King wasn’t coming back. “Eowdrin, I’m so sorry.”