| “Surely you don’t mean to wait to remove the fragment until Frodo is nearly gone? Even if you then take it from his body, he will be too weak to ever recover consciousness.”
“There is another way,” Elrond said. “With Vilya, as you know, I have bestowed a timelessness to this valley; I have never attempted it with a person, but I can attempt to do the same for Frodo -- slowing his breath, heartbeat… everything. His body functions will slow such that he will require neither food nor drink. The fading will progress, but at a greatly diminished rate -- perhaps taking days instead of hours. That way, at the first… hint… of transparency, when I can at last perceive precisely where the shard lays within him, there should be time to remove it before it is too late for Frodo to recover.” Elrond fixed the wizard with a steely gaze. “But you must use Narya to strengthen him, and give his body the energy it needs to hold on.”
The wizard nodded slowly. “It may give Frodo his only chance,” he agreed, gazing at the pale, still face. “Let us begin.”
You know I had never really given this issue much thought: How did Elrond get that piece of Morgul blade out of Frodo? I mean I could see why he wouldn’t want to just dig around in Frodo’s shoulder because by the time Frodo got to him he was already very weak. What you have written only makes sense – and I never really thought about it but I suppose Vilya did give Elrond to control the effects of time on Rivendell and its valley – I mean we know Nenya gave Galadriel the ability to greatly slow the passage of time in Lothlorien so I don’t know why it never occurred to me that Elrond could do the same with Vilya.
Clever thinking here!
Merry finished the cupful and lay back, growing drowsy again. “Thank you. I can’t believe we finally got here. We would never have made it, if not for Strider.”
Elrond smiled. “Pippin called him ‘Strider’ as well. An odd name, but I see that you have learned to trust him, as he has learned to trust you.”
“I know he’s not just a Ranger,” Merry declared suddenly. “He can’t be.”
Elrond touched his fingers to the hobbit’s brow. “There are many aspects to each of us -- to you, as well, Merry.”
“It’s more than that,” Merry insisted. He was suddenly finding it hard to stay awake. “I overheard Glorfindel say…things… and the healing plant, and his… grandfather was…”
I like how Merry is starting to suspect that there is something very special about Aragorn…
And I do love Pippin and Merry’s conversations, especially Pip’s reaction to seeing Arwen!
And wow I am glad Gandalf decided it was unwise to allow Bilbo to see the Ring because yes indeed 17 years of being away from it is not enough!
“Maybe Elrond is keeping most of them away from this area,” Merry said thoughtfully. “The Ring is still a secret, I suppose.”
“It sure is,” Pippin agreed. “Gandalf wouldn’t let Bilbo see that Frodo was wearing it.”
“He’s wearing it?” Merry gasped.
“Around his neck,” Pippin hastened to explain. “It’s on a chain that belonged to Strider’s mother. He called it an ‘heirloom of his house’, one of the gifts his father gave to his mother on their wedding day. It’s really beautiful; Strider said that it’s one of the few things remaining of that land he told us about -- the one that was drowned in the Western Seas.”
“Hmmm,” Merry said quietly. “Strider has heirlooms of his ‘house’?”
“Oh!” Pippin suddenly sat straight up. “And the most amazing thing happened, Mer! We were all in the middle of talking about… oh, everthing except the Ring, I guess, because Gandalf didn’t seem to want us to talk about it in front of Bilbo, maybe because---”
“Peregrin Took, what was the amazing thing that happened?” Merry asked in exasperation.
Pippin took a deep breath, his green eyes reflecting the starlight coming in through the window. “A lady came in. You have never, ever, in your entire life seen such a beautiful lady,” he said reverently. “I couldn’t believe my eyes, and neither could Sam. And guess what?” Pippin got so excited he nearly started bouncing, but remembered just in time that Merry still had a headache. “It’s the lady Strider’s in love with! Her name’s Arwen, and she’s so…” He sighed. “She’s really beautiful.”
“You said that,” Merry grinned. “Not too bad looking, eh?”
“Meriadoc,” Pippin said frostily, “wait until you see her. Sam nearly passed out, I think.” He looked thoughtful. “I wonder how old she is.”
“Too old for you, I’ll bet,” Merry said teasingly.
“It doesn’t matter,” Pippin said with deep regret. “The way she and Strider were looking at each other, well… it was like there wasn’t anyone else in the room. Or the world. Strider suddenly looked so different, all of a sudden… But Mer, guess who she is? She’s Elladan and Elrohir’s sister. She’s Elrond’s daughter! It’s like Strider’s betrothed to a princess or something!”
“Prince Strider,” Merry chuckled. “What’s going on out there, now?”
I do love Pippin and Merry’s conversations, especially Pip’s reaction to seeing Arwen!
Pippin found Merry in what had become their favorite place -- indeed, a favorite place for many -- the grand porch on the east side of the House. It lent a view of the high mountains, and the air was filled with a sweet fragrance from the many gardens and the sound of waterfalls near and distant. The evening’s shadows darkened the valley beyond, and a few stars had begun to twinkle in the clear skies above them.
“What are you doing out here all alone, Meriadoc?” asked Pippin. He plunked down on the luxuriously padded bench beside his cousin, who seemed lost in thought. “It’s nearly suppertime!”
“I was just talking with Gandalf,” Merry said. “Pip, did you know that the Rangers are the last remnant in the North of the great people, the Men of the West? Gandalf called them ‘the race of the Kings from over the Sea.’”
“Oh Merry,” Pippin scoffed. “The kings are just legend.”
“I’m beginning to think that they’re not,” Merry murmured.
Yep, I’d say Merry more than suspects there is more to Aragorn than meets the eye *g*
“Shall we speak of other things?” Aragorn asked, seeing the hobbit’s discomfort.
“Yes, please,” Merry whispered.
“Very well.” Aragorn joined the hobbits on the bench. “What shall we talk about?”
”Frodo,” Merry said promptly. “No one will tell us anything specific. I want to know what everyone’s waiting for! Why hasn’t Elrond or someone cut that evil thing out of his shoulder? It’s been days, and…” Suddenly he gasped and turned ashen.
“What’s wrong?” Pippin asked anxiously.
Merry stared at Aragorn in terrible comprehension. “Which of you is going to be the one to kill him?” he blurted out.
“What?” Pippin cried.
“Merry!” Aragorn grabbed the hobbit’s suddenly-cold hands and held them tightly. “Merry, no! No one is planning to kill Frodo.”
“You are,” Merry said wildly. “You can’t help him, and he’s fading, like you said, and he’ll become a wraith and disappear and take the Ring, but before it happens… one of you will… will have to…”
“Merry, calm yourself and listen to me,” Aragorn said firmly. “Elrond believes that Frodo can be cured, but he’s waiting for just the right moment to take further action. He doesn’t want to cut into Frodo until he perceives exactly where the shard lies, and he has told me that soon he will know.”
“Soon?”
“Very soon.”
“Swear it,” Merry insisted. “Swear it on your house, and your lineage.”
Now it was Aragorn’s turn to be speechless. After a long silence, he slowly nodded.
“I do so swear it.”
Merry slowly relaxed. “I’m sorry,” he said at last. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”
“You love him,” Aragorn said gently. “We all do, Merry, but he could not be in better hands.”
Wow – I can’t believe Merry could actually think they were going to kill Frodo – I mean Frodo is surrounded by the people who love him most, Aragorn included. Still I can’t blame Merry too bad he is just getting to know and understand how much Aragorn loves his cousin!
Man, oh man you MUST continue soon – leaving off at the beginning of Elrond’s surgery on Frodo!
Please UPDATE soon!
On another note sorry I have not commented the last several chapters – I have been reading this story and I still love it – it has just been a matter of finding time to comment when I have been busy lately. Please know I love this story and I hope you’ll continue it for quite awhile!
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