Disclaimers: I have no claim to Tolkien's characters or the world he created.

Authors notes: This was written in response to the Eldarion challenge issued on the MC yahoo group. The challenge was to discuss what part of Eldarion's elven heritage he inherited, and how it would help or hinder him in his life. The maximum word limit was 1000 words, and while the original story met that limit, the EE version does not abide by it.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Riding beside his father, Eldarion glanced around him with excitement. This was hardly the first camping trip the young man had been on, but the times when his father could travel with him were few and far between. It had been several years at least since the last one. But he could not fault his father for that. As King of the reunited kingdom, his time was not his own.

When they reached the selected campsite in the foothills of the mountains, they each set to their assigned tasks. In this, they were all equal; whether king or page, all had their tasks to fulfill. It fell to Eldarion to gather wood for the fire. Though it was something he was quite capable of doing on his own, he was not allowed to wander out of sight without a bodyguard, so a Ranger named Bellas joined him in gathering the firewood. As Eldarion leaned down to pick up a large stick that would be perfect, images swam before his eyes.

/The scream of a horse was their only warning. The horses were rearing and bolting, trying to get away from something only they sensed. Before they could flee, however, they were hit by a sudden surge of water, knocking their feet out from under them. Just before the entire camp was also swept under the flash flood, he saw his father push aside the flap of his tent, calling out Eldarion’s name. A rush of water hit him, pulling him under. He felt himself tumbling head over heels in the rushing water, having no idea which way was up or down, feeling the unbearable pressure in his lungs, demanding that he release the breath he held. If he did that, however, he knew that he would not be able to draw another. Endless moments later, he had no choice when he impacted a tree and his breath left him in a rush. With one more bruising collision, his world went dark./

Dizzied by the sensation of drowning, Eldarion fell to his knees, dropping the pile of wood he had gathered so far. He was barely aware of putting out his hands to keep himself from falling forward. Breathing rapidly, he blinked when he felt hands on his shoulders, supporting him. “Prince Eldarion?” As he heard the concern in the Ranger’s voice, Eldarion pushed away the clinging sensations from the vision.

“I am well,” he replied, his voice hoarse. A quick shake of the head helped to clear his mind, and he sat back on his heels, not meeting Bellas' eyes.

“I believe we should return to your father, and let him be the judge of that,” Bellas said firmly, helping Eldarion rise to his feet. With a sigh, Eldarion allowed himself to be led back to their camp, knowing his bodyguard would certainly report what he had seen.

Finding Aragorn setting up his tent, Bellas directed Eldarion to wait while he spoke with the king. After a soft-spoken conversation, Aragorn gestured Eldarion over to join him, and placed an arm across his shoulders, leading him away from the camp. When they were far enough away that none could overhear them, Aragorn took a seat on a fallen log, gesturing for his son to be seated as well.

“Bellas is concerned for your well-being. It seems he witnessed what he called ‘a fit’. I do not believe there is any reason for such concern, however. Would you care to tell me what you saw?” Aragorn’s voice was nonchalant, but there was a hint of concern apparent to any who knew him well.

Eldarion just stared at his father, not sure what to think. “What I saw? How do you know I ‘saw’ anything?” He was not truly trying to evade the question, but he was not sure he wished to discuss it just yet.

Leveling a stern gaze upon his son, Aragorn just raised an eyebrow, waiting for Eldarion to answer his question. He seemed quite prepared to wait him out, no matter how long it took.

Knowing there was no use denying that anything had happened, Eldarion related the details of the images and sensations he had experienced. His father simply nodded in places and let him tell his tale without interruption. Once he finished, he returned to his earlier question. “How did you know I had seen anything, Ada?”

Aragorn placed a hand on his son’s shoulder. “Your mother and I have been watching and waiting to see if this aspect of your heritage would manifest. Many of those of the line of Númenor have the gift of foresight, my son, as you know. It has ever been strong in me, and even more so in your mother’s father. It seemed only natural that you would one day begin having visions foretelling the future, or at least possible futures. I know how disconcerting the visions can be for someone who has not experienced them before, and vowed to help you to make sense of them if and when they started.”

Eldarion was silent for several moments. “I knew about your foresight, but never thought that I might have it,” he finally said. “You never told me they were so…real. Are you sure they can be called a gift? I wouldn’t mind if I never had another vision like that in my life.” A faint shudder swept through him at the remembered sensation of drowning.

Giving his son a gentle smile, Aragorn tilted his head in acknowledgment, squeezing his shoulder sympathetically. “Yes, they can be disturbing and far too realistic at times, but what did you learn from this vision that might help us?”

Comprehension dawned on Eldarion and his eyes widened. “There’s going to be a flash flood tonight and we shouldn’t camp here!”

Aragorn held up a cautionary hand. “Not all visions tell what will happen, but they are strong possibilities. You should pay attention to your visions and determine if you should alter your actions. There will be times in the future when a vision will not be so clear-cut, and it may not be easy to decide upon an action. At those times, you may feel free to seek out your mother and I for assistance. In this case, our course of action is clear enough. Whether the vision is a true one or not, it is easy enough to move our camp further from the riverbed and not chance being swept away while we sleep.”

A nod was Eldarion's response, but Aragorn noticed a puzzled expression on his face. "Do you have any further questions, my son?"

"I have heard you and Faramir speak in the past of having a vision and altering your decisions based upon them, only to have your new decisions bring about the very event you were trying to avoid."

"That has happened before," Aragorn nodded his head to his son. "As I said, the course of action is not always clear, and sometimes, visions can be misleading. Sometimes, they show you what will happen, and nothing you can do will avoid the events you foresee."

"How do you tell the difference?" Eldarion asked in frustration. "What if we move the camp, and that location is swept away in a flood? How can we use the visions if they cannot be trusted, or if some cannot be avoided?"

Aragorn squeezed his shoulder again. "Close your eyes and picture the camp. Does the clearing in your vision match the one in which we are now setting up camp?"

Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, Eldarion thought back over what he had seen, and compared the positions of the trees and bushes to the clearing they had just left behind. "They match," he said softly, as he opened his eyes.

"Then we will move our camp to another location, one not as likely to be hit by a flash flood. We will also inform all to be on their guard, and take all possible preparations. Will that be enough?" Aragorn shrugged. "Only time will tell. But I, for one, am grateful for the warning. I will not take any chances with your safety if I can help it." He tilted his head slightly and studied his son. "Would you rather we turned back and headed home?"

Eldarion shook his head abruptly. "No, I do not wish to return home." He took a deep breath. "We should continue." He glanced up at the sky. "If we wish to find a new site before dark, we should return to the others."

Aragorn smiled and stood to his feet, ruffling his son's hair. "Then let us go."

Returning his father’s smile, Eldarion stood and they went to inform the others that they would be moving the camp. Though some were surprised at the announcement, they all took the explanation in stride, well used to their king's visions.

When they rode back by the site of the camp on their return trip, the signs of a flash flood were quite evident. As he studied the ravaged area, Eldarion sighed with relief and smiled. They had made the correct choice. Perhaps the foresight was a gift after all.