All Shall Fade

Chapter 23

Sweet Dreams

***Alice’s Point of View***

I sighed and rested my head on Aragorn’s back, closing my eyes as I tried to get comfortable on the galloping horse. Despite the ‘healthy’ façade I’d put on back in the forest, I’d never felt worse in my entire life. Everything hurt, I was cold and tired, and ever since Aragorn had told me about Boromir I’d had this numb pain in my chest that I couldn’t get rid of. And then I was confused about the whole Gandalf matter. Of course I was happy that he was back… But how was he back? The whole thing was leading up to a massive headache that I just wanted to sleep off, but I was afraid to go to sleep in case I lost my grip on Aragorn and fell off the horse. I closed my eyes but didn’t loosen my hold on Aragorn’s coat. Falling from a speeding horse onto uneven ground was definitely not on my agenda for today. Which was why I really shouldn’t have let myself start yawning, or let my head begin to drop… To hell with it, if I fell off I had no one but myself to blame, after all, it was my fault if I let myself fall asleep…

I blinked awake in a dark room and frowned as I found myself lying on a cold, black, stone floor. I sat up and looked around, my eyes widening as I spotted the man dressed all in white sitting in what looked like a black throne.

“This is getting ridiculous.” I groaned, staring intently at him. “I’ve never even met you and yet somehow I know what you look like and have nightmares about you.”

“That is because I allow you to see me.” The wizard spoke in a low voice and I rolled my eyes.

“Whatever.” I sighed, rubbing my temples, “Can you go away for a bit? I was kind of hoping I’d catch a decent bit of sleep.”

“You and the Halflings escaped me and my Uruk-Hai once; I will not allow it to happen again.”

“Oh shut up.” I muttered, crossing my legs so I was more comfortably seated on the ground. “This is my dream, therefore, this is all in my head, and therefore you have absolutely no right to threaten me or my friends – or I’ll kick you out for trespassing.” The wizard twitched his black staff and a sudden force hit me like a punch in the chest and I was sent spinning across the ground.

“I am the one with the power here.” He growled as I rolled onto my back and stared up at the impossibly high black ceiling.

“Piss off.” I grumbled, “I’m not going to help you with anything, so you’re wasting your time. I don’t know anything about warfare anyway.”

“That is what you think. I know you are not from this world, and that war in your world is much more advanced then this.” I noticed that he had stood and was walking slowly towards me.

“It doesn’t change the fact that I know nothing about it.” I scowled, “Go work it out for yourself, I want nothing to do with it.” Again, I felt like I had been struck by something and I my body rolled to the side of its own accord. “And you’ve got magic on your side.” I pointed out as I once again pulled myself into a sitting position. “So you’ve got the upper hand there.” I stared hard at the tall man and curled my knees up to my chest. “You can beat me black and blue but it won’t change anything. Now go away and let me sleep.”

“This is far from over.” The wizard sneered, and I gasped as I felt a sharp pain in my hand, I glanced down at my palm to see a deep red line being drawn across it, as if by an invisible knife. Blood welled up to the surface of my skin as I gritted my teeth.

“Bitch.” I muttered as he lifted his staff and I was suddenly falling backwards. I yelped in alarm as the room began to fade away, and my hand was caught by some invisible force and I was pulled forwards into darkness.

“Alice?”

I groggily opened my eyes to find myself back on the horse, but it had stopped moving, and in front of me, Aragorn had grabbed my hand.

“What?” I groaned, pulling away from him and looking up at the darkening sky.

“You almost fell.” He murmured and I sighed.

“Oh.”

“We’re going to rest here for tonight.” He said, swinging himself off the horse as I looked around the cliff-like shelf we appeared to be on, and glanced down at the narrow path we must have taken to get up here. I was glad I hadn’t been awake for that. I nodded as I looked down at the ground and tried to think of the least embarrassing method I could use to get off this beast. Aragorn reached up to me, offering me his hand, I bit my lip nervously as I took it and began to swing my leg over the saddle, when my hand slipped from Aragorn’s and I fell. He quickly wrapped his other arm around my waist and caught me before I could hit the ground.

“Um, thanks.” I blushed awkwardly as he released me and I planted my feet firmly on the ground.

“What happened to your hand?” He asked, taking my hand in his and turning it upwards, revealing a long cut along the palm. The fresh blood smeared across it was what had caused my hand to slip from his. It was too fresh for me to have received it when I had been captured. My eyes widened as I recognised the wound from my dream, the one Saruman had given me.

“I-it’s nothing.” I stammered, pulling my hand out of his and taking a step back. He frowned at me in confusion before turning to the horse and busying himself with removing its saddle. I turned away and walked towards the rock wall on one side of our cliff, avoiding the gazes of our other companions. I sat down, leaning my back against it as I shrugged off Aragorn’s cloak and followed it with my own slightly damp cloak and coat. I then looked down at my shirt – which was pretty bloodstained and cut-up – and ripped a long strip from the base of it. I tried to clumsily wrap it around my bleeding hand. I got it wrapped around, but tying it with one hand proved to be difficult. I sighed and was about to give up when someone crouched down beside me. I glanced up at Aragorn as he held out his hand.

“May I?” He asked and I timidly outstretched my hand. He neatly tied my makeshift bandage, but didn’t let go of my hand as he examined the raw wound that encircled my wrist. There were still fibres of the harsh rope caught in the dried blood around the edges of the deep cut. As I stared at my own wrist, Aragorn reached for his light pack and pulled out a water flask and a few strips of fabric. He silently began washing away the dried blood and debris from my wrist and I hissed through my clenched teeth as it stung. He cast me an apologetic glance before he did the same with my other wrist and then set about neatly binding them in the fabric. He then dampened one of the leftover cloths and then gently began cleaning a cut on my forehead that I didn’t even remember getting. It must have been sometime between my battle with the Uruk-Hai and my capture. I couldn’t help but pull away from him slightly as my head throbbed in protest, but I clamped my eyes shut and tried to focus on something other than the pain. As Aragorn sat back I slowly reopened my eyes and stared at the ground.

“Thank you.” I murmured as he stood and lifted his cloak from where it lay beside me and draped it over me. “I’m alright, really.” I insisted half-heartedly, glancing up at him as he smiled slightly before walking over to where Legolas was trying to start a fire. I pulled his cloak a little tighter around myself, my fingers brushing over the small leaf-shaped broach that was fastened to the pale green fabric. For some reason it reminded me of Boromir. It was times like these when I wished that I was back home, and that I’d never heard of Middle Earth or met any of these people that were so easily taken from me… Suddenly, Legolas appeared at my side and crouched down, offering me a wafer of the Lembas bread as I blinked away the few tears that had been gathering in my eyes. I smiled weakly at him as I took it and bit off a corner, chewing slower than was probably necessary. He sat down beside me and I leant my head on his shoulder.

“Are you alright?” He asked quietly, tilting his head slightly so he could look at my face.

“As alright as I can be, given the circumstances.” I shrugged, closing my eyes. I felt him nod a little as we fell silent, the only sounds coming from the other side of our camp, where the fire crackled quietly and Gimli was talking to Gandalf whilst the horses grazed on the coarse grass. I sighed a little as I tried to ignore what was going on around me as I slowly dropped off to sleep.

*

I sat up, gasping for breath as I looked around the dark cliff-top. I’d had the nightmare again. The same suburban street, Toby running up to me, the Fellowship and the army, only this time, Boromir wasn’t there and Gandalf was. I wiped my clammy forehead on my sleeve as I glanced around. Legolas and Gimli were asleep, but I spotted Aragorn and Gandalf standing at the edge of the cliff looking out at a red glow in the sky. I shuddered a little, remembering the red sky of my dream as I pulled Aragon’s cloak around my shoulders. I curled my knees up to my chest as I tried to get back to sleep, but I couldn’t. I was tired, but I was afraid of having the nightmare again. The two pretty much balanced each other out, leaving me in the restless limbo between consciousness and sleep.

“Sauron fears you, Aragorn. He fears what you may become.” Gandalf’s voice reached me and I glanced up slightly so I could listen better, “And so he'll strike hard and fast at the world of Men. He will use his puppet Saruman to destroy Rohan.” I tensed at the mention of the wizard’s name, but continued to listen, “War is coming. Rohan must defend itself, and therein lies our first challenge. For Rohan is weak and ready to fall. The king's mind is enslaved. It's an old device of Saruman's. His hold over King Théoden is now very strong.” I frowned as I wondered what Saruman could be doing to get inside my head, “Sauron and Saruman are tightening the noose. But for all their cunning, we have one advantage: the Ring remains hidden. And that we should seek to destroy it has not yet entered their darkest dreams. And so the weapon of the enemy is moving towards Mordor in the hands of a hobbit. Each day brings it closer to the fires of Mount Doom. We must trust now in Frodo. Everything depends upon speed and the secrecy of his quest. Do not regret your decision to leave him. Frodo must finish this task alone.” I saw him turn to Aragorn as he finished his lengthy speech.

“He's not alone. Sam went with him.” Aragorn murmured and I smiled at the Hobbit’s loyalty to each other.

“Did he? Did he, indeed? Good. Yes, very good.” Gandalf nodded cheerfully before turning away, and I quickly closed my eyes, pretending to be asleep as he passed me. I heard him lie down near the dying embers of the fire and after a while his steady breathing joined Legolas and Gimli’s. I allowed my eyes to open, and then I jumped as I realised that Aragorn had moved so he was standing a few feet away from me, with his back to me.

“Shouldn’t you be resting?” He asked and I sighed. So I wasn’t as great an actress as I thought.

“Can’t sleep.” I mumbled as he turned to me.

“Is something wrong?” He asked, taking a few steps towards me as I shrugged.

“Just stuff, you know?” I sighed as he sat down in front of me. “Do you think Merry and Pippin are alright?”

“Gandalf said they were.” He shrugged, “I can trust that.”

“Fair enough.” I said, glancing down at the ground, “Did you see Frodo and Sam before they left?”

“I saw Frodo before the Uruk-Hai attacked, and I saw them crossing the river.” He informed me quietly as I nodded silently.

“If I hadn’t gone into the forest with the Hobbits in the first place they wouldn’t have gone off on their own, and none of this stuff would have happened.” I sniffed, “Boromir would still be alive, and the Fellowship would still be together.” I glared at a random spot on the ground, trying to force back the tears that stung at my eyes. “It’s my fault.”

“Alice,” Aragorn reached out and gently touched the back of my bandaged hand. I glanced up, meeting his piercing grey gaze and he quickly withdrew his hand. “You could not have prevented what happened.”

“You don’t know, you weren’t there.” I muttered, folding my hands around my knees as I felt his eyes practically boring into my face. “If I’d made any one decision differently…” I shook my head, “Things would be different.”

“He didn’t blame you.” I glanced up at his low murmur and scowled.

“How would you know?”

“I was with him when he died.” His pained whisper made me drop my stubborn expression and I found myself unable to argue with him. It was then that I noticed that Aragorn was wearing Boromir’s leather vambraces with the White Tree of Gondor stamped on them. I remembered asking him about them, one day back in Rivendell, and he’d told me the story of the tree, and how the people of Gondor believed it would flower again when a king returned to the throne. He’d loved his homeland so much, and it hurt to know that he wouldn’t return. I reached out and lightly touched the worn leather tree, my fingertips brushing over the subtle design as Aragorn watched me. Neither of us said anything as my fingers travelled down his arm and rested on the back of his hand. I could feel him analysing me, but I couldn’t look up at him.

“Why do you have to wear that bracelet?” His sudden question startled me and I glanced up, meeting his curious eyes.

“Erm, well I don’t really understand it fully,” I began, “But Galadriel said that my connection with this world is weak, and if it breaks, then I’ll fade away. I might return to my world or I might just disappear. I don’t know which.” I sighed and glanced down at my own wrist where the silver bracelet rested, “The bracelet’s supposed to delay the fading, but the only way to permanently stop it is to anchor myself to this world.”

“What does that mean?” Aragorn asked and I shrugged.

“I don’t know… I guess I’ll have to figure it out soon though.” I smiled weakly as I resumed my activity of tracing patterns on Boromir’s vambraces. “I’m a little surprised that nothing happened when I got captured.” I murmured before we both fell silent, and a slight breeze toyed with my hair as I sat quietly.

“I thought you had been killed.” I glanced up at Aragorn’s quiet whisper and my finger paused it’s tracing for a moment and I lightly bit down on my lower lip.

“Sorry.” I mumbled, even though I wasn’t quite sure why I was apologising. To my surprise, Aragorn took my hand that was resting on his arm and gently held it. It was like an electric current jumped from his body to mine, ricocheted off my bracelet and then back to him. I would have shrugged it off as just a static shock if not for the fact that I’d never felt anything like it before, and I knew Aragorn had felt it too, because his hand tightened slightly around mine. “Alice I…” He lowered his head as I felt my heartbeat increase, and I hoped he couldn’t feel it through my hand. “I’m glad you’re alright.” He sighed and I smiled slightly.

“I’m glad too,” I mumbled, “I thought I was as good as dead, and I was worried that I’d never see you again.” I frowned as I realised that I’d said ‘you’. Why had I been so specific? I’d wanted to see the others too. Aragorn smiled a little and glanced down at our entwined hands, before he released mine.

“You should get some rest.” He murmured as I clenched my hands into fists, suddenly feeling uncomfortably vulnerable.

“S-sure,” I stammered, curling back into a ball and staring at my knees. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight Alice.”

I glanced up to see Aragorn walking over to the dying fire and poking at the ashes with a stick. He managed to coax a small flame to life as I closed my eyes and leant back against the rock wall behind me.

“Everything here is so absurd.” I murmured under my breath as a smile crossed my lips and I dropped off into a thankfully dreamless sleep.