“Aragorn?”

The single word echoed around the cave as he smiled at me. My lips pulled into a wide grin as we looked at each other.

“Rana.”

My smile became wider as he spoke my name and held his arms out. I ran towards him and threw my arms around his neck, crushing him in a hug. He laughed and hugged me back, before lifting me by my waist and spinning me around – like he always did when we had been parted for a long time. I felt giddy with happiness and was still laughing when he set me back on my feet.

“Im gelir ceni ad lín.” (I am happy to see you again) I murmured softly, gazing into his stormy grey eyes. “I missed you.”

“I missed you also,” He replied, hugging me again, “There was never a day when you were not in my thoughts.”

I smiled, feeling like I could explode with happiness. There was no place I would rather be, than here, in the arms of my closest friend.

We stood for a few minutes, before I looked up at him.

“I was tracking you up until several years ago, where did you go?” I asked quietly, releasing myself from his embrace. He ducked his head and sighed.

“I was travelling, with Gandalf. We were searching for the creature, Gollum.”

“Gollum?” I repeated the harsh word curiously.

“Yes, he is a creature that was previously in possession of The One Ring.” He murmured.

“The Ring? But it was lost!” I cried, suddenly fearful. Aragorn shook his head sadly.

“It was found. And I fear that we may have realised it too late. I pray that there is still time.”

“Do we know where the ring is now?” I asked. He nodded slowly. “Where?” I whispered.

“It’s here, in Rivendell.”

My eyes widened and I felt pure, unaltered fear rising up inside me.

“What must we do?” I kept my voice low, trying to remain calm.

“A council will be held soon, to decide the fate of the Ring, as soon as Frodo is awake.” He replied.

“Frodo?” I frowned, “The nephew of Bilbo Baggins?” I had known the old hobbit for many years, but it had been some time since I had seen him. I had never met his nephew. Aragorn nodded, confirming what I had just said. Hundreds of questions threatened to burst from my lips, but I finally settled on the obvious one.

“What is the matter with Frodo?”

Aragorn’s face fell and he sighed, running one hand through his matted hair. He held out his hand and I took it.

“Come, I’ll show you.”

***

Aragorn lead me into a bright, airy room. The walls glowed crimson as they reflected the light of the setting sun. I looked over at the large bed. A Hobbit lay there. His face was drawn and pale, and he wore a loose, white shirt. I walked over to his bedside and stood over him; brushing back his thick, dark curls I could see he was deeply asleep. All around me I could smell the sweet scent of athelas, a commonly used healing herb. I turned to Aragorn.

“What happened to him?” I murmured. He walked to my side and pulled back the neckline of Frodo’s shirt. I gasped quietly at the sight of the deep, ugly wound, just below the hobbit’s shoulder.

“He was stabbed by the Witch King of Angmar.” He whispered.

“So the nine are abroad once again…” I muttered under my breath.

“Yes, they came to the Shire, disguised as riders in black. I met Frodo and his three companions in Bree, and we were able to avoid them for some time, but they caught up with us at Weathertop.” He replaced Frodo’s shirt and stepped back.

“Why were they pursuing you?” I asked.

“Because Frodo is the bearer of The Ring.” He replied in a low murmur. I stepped back, only noticing now the plain, gold ring that hung on a thin chain around the Hobbit’s neck. I felt physically sick at the sight of it. This simple object was created for one purpose: destruction. Yet here it lay, around the neck of an innocent hobbit in one of the most peaceful places in Middle Earth. Without another word, I turned and left the room. Aragorn followed me quietly until I stopped and leant against a pillar in the darkening hallway, breathing heavily. Just being in the same room as the ring left me emotionally drained… Aragon touched my shoulder lightly and I turned towards him, leaning against his chest. He wrapped his arms around me and held me tightly. I sighed and closed my eyes, slowly recovering. I looked up at Aragorn after a minute or so and stepped back from his embrace.

“Aragorn, tell me everything.”

***

I sat opposite Aragorn on my bed. We had moved to my room to talk, where it was more private. He told me everything that had happened since Frodo had left the Shire that he knew of, and was now telling me of what happened after Frodo had been stabbed.

“How did you escape the riders?” I asked, interrupting him once again (I was an impatient listener, but Aragorn had grown tolerant of my constant questioning over the years).

“Glorfindel* found us and gave Frodo his horse; they made it across the ford to Rivendell, then Lord Elrond was able to cast a spell. The riders were swept away by the waters of the ford.”

[*Note* In the books, it was an elf called Glorfindel who saved Frodo from the Nasgûl, not Arwen.]

I nodded. The nine would not have been killed, but they would have lost their horses, and would now be unable to follow the ring. That was a relief at least. So Frodo – and the ring – were safe here, for now. I stood up and stretched. I had not noticed the room grow dark; the sun must have slipped away while we were talking. Aragorn also stood, and made his way over to the door.

“Where are you going?” I asked.

“To change before we eat.” He smiled. I only now noticed that he was still dressed in his travelling clothes, as was I.

I smiled and walked over to him.

“Will you meet me later?”

“Of course, Namárië.”

“Namárië” I echoed as he softly shut the door behind him. I turned away, kicked off my long boots and began to pull off my travelling clothes, casting them onto the floor in an untidy pile. I reached for a jug of water that stood on a desk at the far side of the room and poured its contents into a shallow basin. I splashed the water onto my face, shivering at its cold temperature, before beginning to wash my hair. Locating a towel I dried it off quickly, then opened the heavy wooden chest that stood in one corner of my room. It was covered by a thin coat of dust, which dislodged itself and flew into the air as I lifted the lid. After a few minutes of searching, I found one of the only dresses I owned that I could bear wearing (as there were no less feminine clothes in the room). I pulled it over my head and then went to examine myself in the tall mirror beside the door. The pale green colour of the dress accented my emerald-green eyes and the light material highlighted my willowy figure. I smiled and began to comb out my hair, which seemed to be in a permanent state of untidiness. At least the messy layers only stuck out at strange angles when it hadn’t been washed, so it looked half-respectable right now. I exited the room and made my way through the hallways that were illuminated by solitary candles, placed at various points along the walls. Up ahead, I saw Aragorn casually leaning against a pillar. He looked up and smiled as I approached.

“I see your dress still fits.”

“Don’t say another word about it!” I mock-scowled as I walked straight past him. He had to jog slightly to catch up with me as I walked into one of the main banquet chambers.

Most of the seats were already taken by elves, who sat talking quietly amongst themselves. I spotted two free seats and made a beeline for them, not bothering to look back to see if Aragorn was following. I knew he would be right behind me. I reached for my chair, but found Aragorn had already reached for it and pulled it out for me. I turned around and smiled as I sat down.

“Mára aurë Rana!” I was greeted from across the table. Smiling, I made polite chat with everyone who spoke to me, occasionally glancing at Aragorn, who sat beside me. I managed to catch his eye as he was drinking from his goblet; he finished drinking and leant closer to me.

“Have you finished eating?” I whispered.

“Yes, I sense that you want to go somewhere quieter?” He grinned, as if he was holding back laughter. I bit my lip to hold back my own laughter; remembering how, as children, Aragorn and I often had to excuse ourselves from the table because we couldn’t stop laughing at some joke.

I quietly made my excuses as left the table, making poor attempts to hide my laughter as I exited the room. I hid behind a pillar in the hallway until Aragorn joined me.

“What are you laughing at?” He murmured maturely.

“I have no idea!” I giggled hysterically. “I see the years have forced you to mature!” I snickered, ducking my head to avoid his playful swipe.

“And I see that you have not matured at all!” He laughed.

“I simply take great joy in life!” I grinned, gasping for air. “I wanted to talk to you some more anyway…” I mumbled, once I had recovered.

Aragorn smiled gently and took my hand in his, leading me towards one of the many libraries scattered around Rivendell. We walked into a quiet corner behind a bookshelf. There were hardly any seats in the libraries, but the floor was scattered with large cushions, and the warm glow of candles made it seem very inviting. Aragorn sat down on one of the cushions and pulled me down beside him.

“I think it’s time you told me what you have been doing all these years.” He smiled. I sighed and leant against his shoulder, holding up my hand so I could count on my fingers.

“Let me see… I haven’t seen you in… Ten years?”

“Nine.” He corrected me quietly.

“It feels like ten years…” I muttered under my breath. “Well, it hasn’t been too interesting, I spent most of my time in the west, and I haven’t been to any major realms since I was travelling with you… I got bored a few years ago and decided to try tracking you, I had to ask around a lot, you seem to go by quite a few names!” I laughed, thinking of all the times I’d had to describe Aragorn to various innkeepers.

“Yes, and not all of them are friendly…” He muttered.

“I noticed.” I sighed. “Well, I finally managed to find a lead, and I was only a few days behind you, when you totally disappeared!”

“Yes, that was when Gandalf first asked for my help. I had to cover my tracks to ensure that no one would follow us.”

I smiled to myself, glad to know that I hadn’t lost my touch.

“Well, I gave up after a few days of aimlessly wandering around in the wilderness-” I fired him a glare and he mouthed ‘You’re welcome’ and smirked. “I gave up.” I continued.

“That was a few years ago. What did you do after that?” He inquired.

“I found Halbarad, and the rest of the Dúnedain, and spent most of my time with them. I had just set off on my own again when Lord Elrond summoned me.” I explained. Halbarad was an old friend of both Aragorn and I, we had spent a few years with the Dúnedain in the past.

“I see.” He murmured, pulling me from where I sat beside him onto his lap, hugging me tightly. “I missed you.” He whispered.

“I missed you too.”