My Brother's Keeper

Hi! Welcome back to My Brother’s Keeper!

Disclaimer: I do not own Lord of the Rings or anything associated with Tolkien.

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My Brother’s Keeper

By: Ponytail Goddess

Part Two: The Start of Something Good

“NO!!!” Haldir screamed, his tears flowing freely now, dripping into the mirror and blurring part of the vision. His shaky hands latched onto both sides of the table that the mirror rested on as his knees started to give out.

Rumil was dead. Despite the extra ripples that were in the mirror from his tears, he could still see the pale, unmoving figure on the ground below. His blue eyes were open, but they were still, no longer registering anything…and the blood, there was so much blood. His body must have hit several tree branches and the sharp edges of tallans on the way down…

“Oh dear Vala…”

Haldir could take no more. Though the mirror was continuing onto what appeared to be a full-grown Orophin, Haldir could no longer support himself and fell to the base of the mirror’s pedestal. He wrapped his arms around himself as his body jolted with loud sobs.

The whole forest seemed to quiet at his uncontrolled tears. All intelligent thoughts ceased in Haldir’s head until he felt a small, tentative hand touch his back. He looked over his left shoulder to see Galadriel sitting delicately beside him, her face unreadable.

Knowing that he must have looked like an absolute mess, Haldir quickly brushed away his tears as best as he could before looking at the lady again. “I am sorry, my lady-”

“Do not be sorry, Haldir. It was the hiding of your emotions that got you into this situation in the first place. You must not let the pain of the mirror’s tidings overtake you, my warden.” She said, lifting his chin up with two of her fingers. “With knowledge comes great power and responsibility Haldir. What you have seen in the mirror tonight is not set in stone. It is only one possibility for the future. Now that you have seen these grim things, I trust that you will do everything you can to ensure that the future you were shown does not come to pass.”

She paused for a moment. “Can I trust you to do this Haldir?”

“Yes…yes, my lady.” He answered hastily. He could not let Rumil die; he could not bear to see his brother take his own life. Even the mere thought of it sent waves of overwhelming emotional pain coursing through his body. This future could not come into play—he refused to let it. He felt the terrible pain lift away as Galadriel’s words sank in.

Because of the grace of the Valar, Rumil did not have to die.

He was going to live!

Another question loomed in Haldir’s head though as he finally started to get his body under control. “My lady…I understand why I saw all of the visions of Rumil and Orophin, but why would the mirror show me my parents and Niphredil?” He quietly questioned, his curiosity getting the better of him.

A small smile appeared on the lady’s face as she slowly rose to her feet, Haldir quickly following the suit, though being very careful to avoid hitting his head on the mirror’s pedestal in the process. “Let us walk.” She said, which Haldir immediately responded to by offering her his arm, which she graciously took. With that done, they started to stroll back through the garden at a leisurely pace.

“Haldir, do you recall the first thing that the mirror showed you?” Galadriel asked quietly as they walked under a small terrace that was laced with a flowering vine.

“Yes, it was my parents at a festival dancing.” He replied, not really sure where she was going with this.

“They looked very much in love there.” She stated, not meeting his eyes, but staring ahead as they slowly maneuvered through the garden on the white stone pathway.

“Yes, one could see the love in their eyes.” He said with a small, nostalgic smile.

“Did Niphredil ever look at you like that?”

The question surprised him and he stopped abruptly, though Galadriel did not seem surprised by it in the least. Quickly, he flipped through his memories in search of something that would resemble that…but found nothing.

Indeed, he was a fool.

“You morn for her, yet she did not love you as you loved her. Because of this, you have forsaken your brothers, despite the fact that your father told you about the importance of family all of those years ago.” She said, now turning towards him to look into his embarrassed eyes. “They need you Haldir. They both need guidance and a prominent male figure in their lives. They need the comfort and strength that they can only receive from you, Haldir. Will you go to them and set things right?”

“Yes.” He said, with complete honesty and truth in his eyes. However, he found himself staring at the ground in shame a few moments afterwards. After all of this, he knew he did not have any chance of become the March Warden of Lorien. The lady had pointed out that he could not even take care of his brothers properly…why would she give him the great responsibility of watching over her whole realm when he could not properly care for two young ones?

Then, much to Haldir’s surprise, the lady chuckled softly for a moment. “You underestimate yourself greatly Haldir. You have many admirable qualities, otherwise you would not even be considered. Do not give up hope just yet Haldir.” She said with a smile. “Now go and make things right with your brothers.”

She gave him a small push in the right direction and he started to walk out of the garden. “Oh, and Haldir, be very careful with what you say to Rumil. He has a very sensitive heart and can be broken down with the smallest of misunderstood words.” Haldir turned back to question her, but found himself suddenly quite alone.

Well…almost. A lingering, airy voice in his head rang out quietly. “You are your brothers’ keeper Haldir. Now go change the course of the future!”

With this said, Haldir quietly walked back towards his flet with many things passing through his head. He was not sure what he could say that would make everything right again. Would it even be possible for Rumil to stop hating him now that he had started? And what about Orophin, whom he had been ignoring for the past year as best as he could? Would they have forgiveness in their hearts for their idiot of a brother?

Suddenly, Haldir’s breath caught in his throat as he looked up.

Time stopped.

Up on the stargazing platform stood Rumil…entirely too close to the edge. The edge that he had fallen from in the mirror. Haldir found himself frozen in place with fear. His blood ran cold.

Was he too late?

He screamed Rumil’s name at the top of his lungs, then suddenly regretted it.

The young ellon jumped up in surprise and spun around to see where the voice had come from. However, he had not yet developed the full balance of the Eldar and tottered on the ledge for a few seconds. He waved his arms, trying to regain his balance, alarm evident on his face. With a loud cry, he lost control of himself …and fell.

Haldir’s blood ran cold and his heart stopped. He waited helplessly for the inevitable. He waited for his brother’s dead carcass to hit the ground…

But it never did.

Stunned, he pulled himself out of the trance he was in and ran faster than he ever had before towards the large mallorn. Not seeing Rumil anywhere around it, he flew up the stairs at the speed of lightning, taking two or three at a time, not stopping for anything. Determination was in his eyes as he reached the platform.

Three fingers were gripping the edge as best as they could, but were slipping… Haldir did not hesitate for a moment. He continued running and dove for Rumil’s hand as his fingers let go of the edge…

He grabbed him, but the momentum from his run catapulted him over the edge too. Fear struck him hard and he reached out with his other hand to find something to grasp, but there was nothing to grab onto. Hope was lost.

But then, everything stopped.

Haldir opened his eyes and started to breathe again when he realized that the fall had been stopped. What had just happened? His fingers had caught on something…a small warp in the old wooden deck—a mischievous work of the Valar, no doubt. His left hand and leg clung to the old stargazing platform securely while the rest of his body was dangling dangerously over the edge. He looked down at Rumil, who looked like he was close to fainting with fear.

“Pull me up Haldir…” He begged in a high and shaky voice of desperation, “I do not want to die!”

With that said, Haldir started to do just that. He propelled his right foot back up onto the platform, then pulled himself painfully up into a kneeling position. He then dragged the top of his brother’s body up onto the deck, then reached down, grabbed his legs, and pummeled the rest of him up.

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Rumil had never been shaken quite this badly in his life. He found that he could not bring himself to move, so he just laid on the deck on his stomach, shivering with fear. If Haldir had not come at the exact time he had…well, Rumil did not want to think about it.

Then again, Haldir had also been the cause of his fall…yelling at him like that; was he out of his mind?!? Had he been scared like that a foot or two away from the edge, the very same thing could have happened!

He turned his head and took in a breath to yell at Haldir for his stupidity, but stopped when he saw an unusual sight. Haldir was…crying?

Haldir?

Never in his life had Rumil seen Haldir cry—he had never even seen his eyes form unshed tears. Rumil was utterly shocked at the sight. Haldir always kept his emotions in check, as he claimed was the warrior’s way. Tonight, however, tears ran freely down his fair face as he stared at the platform stoically. He could hear his brother’s uneasy breathing and was disturbed at his bent over form displaying pain.

All of the angry words that had been in his mouth dissipated and Rumil’s face went blank as he stared at his brother. He did not know what to do. He did not feel right just leaving him like that, but at the same time, he thought that if he offered comfort, it would be harshly rejected.

Finally, he managed to use a small quiet voice to address Haldir. “Brother?”

Rumil slowly crawled on his knees so that he was a little closer to Haldir. Gently, he placed a comforting hand on his shaking shoulder. When Haldir looked up though, it was apparent that he did not want comfort. His face was filled with a mixture of great fear and great anger. “What were you thinking?!?” He boomed with a power that Rumil had not even expected, “You could have been killed Rumil!!! You know better than to get that close to the edge of a platform without a railing!!! What were you doing so close anyway?!? I demand an explanation! NOW!!!”

Rumil’s cheeks flushed with anger at Haldir’s outburst of fury. “It is none of your business brother! Stay out of my life!” With that said, Rumil quickly got to his feet and started walking heavily towards the stairs as a foul mood overtook him.

“You were going to jump, were you not?” An eerily soft and low voice came from behind him. Rumil whipped around in surprise to find that it was Haldir. He did not sound like himself at all. He sounded calm, too calm…and dark. Haldir’s voice was snobby and domineering, but it did not have any evil quality to it.

The meaning of his words slowly sank in.

“What?!?” Rumil exclaimed, in total disbelief that he had just heard his brother say such a thing.

“You heard me Rumil, I asked if you were going to jump. Jump and…hurt yourself on purpose.” Haldir said, obviously trying to avoid the word death at all costs, though Rumil knew the implications of what Haldir was so vaguely suggesting.

Rumil opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by Haldir, whose voice had now softened a bit. “Brother…you must promise me you will not do such a thing. If you did…my…my heart would shatter. I know we have not been on the best of terms this year, but I still care about you deeply. I…I love you brother. Do not forsake your immortal life when you are still cared for here. There is much you can still experience and learn. Please…please promise me you will stay.” He said, slowly coming undone with every word, almost begging towards the end.

Rumil stared at Haldir in shock. Why did his brother think he was going to kill himself?!? He had not had that intention on this night! Though Rumil did think death could be a solace from life, he knew that he could not leave yet. If he was not here, who would care for Orophin? He would not abandon his younger brother…he simply could not. As long as he was needed, he would stay, even if his was life terrible.

Haldir had said that he needed him though…that he would fall apart without him.

He was sincere…

He was crying.

The world around Rumil blurred as tears welled up in his eyes. Everything that he had held so painfully within came pouring out: his parents’ death, lack of friends, the quitting of his studies…everything. His thoughts flooded so quickly that he thought he would be overtaken by all of the sorrow, but two kind arms caught him up in a strong hug, saving him from becoming lost in the storm.

Rumil did not know how long they stayed like this, but he felt a huge wave of relief blow over him after it had all come out. Finally, he pulled away, wiping a few straggling droplets away from his cheeks and looked into Haldir’s clear blue eyes.

“You really care about me brother?” Rumil asked softly.

“Yes. Yes I do.” He replied.

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Haldir slowly breathed out a sigh of relief. For the first time in a year, the tension between the two brothers had diminished and was replaced with a tentative understanding of the other. It seemed quite small, but it was significant. Any progress was good progress in Haldir’s eyes.

“Brother…” Rumil said slowly and gently, “You must realize that I did not come up here to do that which you assumed. I would not do that to myself…not when Orophin needs me. I could not betray him as such.”

Hearing this and seeing the sincerity in his brother’s eyes was exactly what Haldir had needed. In fact, when Haldir thought back to what the mirror had shown him, the scenario had been quite different. Rumil had been aged, withered and wilted with time. He had been partially faded. Rumil was not faded now though; the scenario that had played in the mirror had been further in the future.

Perhaps tonight would prevent that future. Haldir really hoped that his hypothesis would be true. Tonight had almost been more than he could mentally and physically take. Though he now understood much of what had been going on, still one question lingered and remained unanswered.

“If you were not doing…that…then why were you so close to the edge?” Haldir questioned with a sincere curiosity. This increased even more when Rumil started to blush and look around nervously.

“I…I was…uh…admiring the scenery.” He said awkwardly, staring at the ground.

“The scenery…in the dark?” Haldir questioned with one eyebrow cocked up, sensing the telltale signs of a lie. He got to his feet and approached the area. He looked out into the distance and confirmed that there was nothing worth looking at there—nothing out of the ordinary and nothing worth looking at without the light of the sun. It was only when he looked downward in frustration that he saw what Rumil had been looking at.

He did a double take. There, in the tallon below, lay a lithe ellith cuddled up in her bed, clearly visible through her open terrace.

She was naked.

Well, not really naked, but very close. His keen Eldarin eyes could tell that she was sleeping in the nude, only covered by a thin white satin sheet that clung to every luscious curve of her body. The sheet had fallen quite low. One wrong roll in the bed and her supple chest would most certainly be exposed.

His brother had been staring at a naked ellith. How wonderful.

“Rumil, voyeurism is not a gentlemanly quality.” Haldir said, sending him a reprimanding glance. “You will not do this again brother. That ellith deserves more respect than what you have given her.”

Rumil sighed and looked at his feet, blushing even more with embarrassment from the whole thing. “I…I did not originally come up here to…to do that either, brother. I like to stargaze up here often…but when I looked down and saw her there, I could not stop looking. She is the fairest of the fair, but does not look at me with anything other than a glare while she is awake. She looks so peaceful now…I just could not stop looking brother. I know it was wrong. It will not happen again.”

Haldir sighed as he looked up into the deep, dark abyss of stars. His brother was infatuated with his first ellith...at least, Haldir hoped this was the first ellith. “Suddenly, dealing with Orophin does not seem to be as daunting of a task,” thought Haldir as he tried to think of some sort of advice to give his brother.

Nothing was coming to him though. Haldir saw himself as a failure at love—after all, he had thought that what he had with Niphredil was love, though it quite obviously was not. Haldir was not even sure what he should call it…infatuation? Or had she simply tried to snatch him away for position and power? He did not know…

“Brother…” He said, sighing again as he drew his hand wearily down his face, “Do not rush such things. You will have plenty of time to find an ellith to love after you become of age. Why not try to become friends with a few first? After all, friendship is the starting place for any good relationship.”

“You were not friends with Niphredil before you started to romance her-“ Rumil started to counter, but Haldir interrupted him before he could get too far into it.

“Brother, Niphredil was a mistake. You are right: I did not go about things in the correct manner and what we had was not love, though I was naïve enough to think differently at one time. The more I think about it, we barely even knew each other. Of course it was not love.” He said, shaking his head with disdain as he mentally berated himself for making such a stupid mistake. “Rumil, you must not make my mistake. Do not rush love and do not rely solely on infatuation to distinguish it. This is the little advice I can offer you on the matter.”

Rumil finally looked up and gave him a small, awkward smile. “Thanks Haldir.” He was about to hug him again, but then froze as a small scream pierced the air.

Orophin.

Quickly, Haldir sprang into action, running towards the stairs. As he started to descend the stairs, he quickly glanced backwards to see if Rumil was following him-

Only to see him jump off of the platform.

“RUMIL!!!” He screamed, running back up to where his brother had jumped, in a general state of panic. He stopped at the ledge and looked down, staring at the unbelievable while taking in rapid breaths from his tremendous exertion.

His brother had jumped onto the balcony outside of Orophin’s room…which was about two floor levels down. “Rumil!!!” Haldir hissed angrily, his adrenaline pumping crazily from the scare he had. “Why did you do that?!?”

Rumil shrugged, then grinned mischievously and walked into Orophin’s room.

Apparently, he had done that before.

Idiot.

Haldir stormed down the stairway and back in the ‘real entrance’ of his flet. Quickly, he walked to Orophin’s room and flung open the door, more than prepared to yell at Rumil for his stupidity, but stopped short when looked at his two brothers.

Orophin was in tears, clinging to Rumil who was now sitting on the little one’s rumpled bed with him. Rumil was trying to comfort him as best he could by rubbing his back and whispering that everything would be alright. Haldir felt the anger melt away as he saw the tender care that Rumil gave to Orophin in his time of need.

However, the moment was ruined when Orophin looked over and saw him. Quickly letting go of Rumil, he saw the young one’s arms reach out towards himself to be held. “Haldir!” He called out in a small voice, whimpering a bit in fear as tears continued to flow down his face.

Sighing, Haldir finally gave into this and took Orophin in his arms before sitting down on the bed with Rumil. “What is wrong Orophin?” Haldir asked in a nervous voice. He had never dealt with a crying elfling before and was not certain about what course of action he should take. The little elfling did not answer him though. He only burrowed his face into his shoulder and hugged him tightly, clinging to his tunic for dear life.

Not knowing what to do, he turned to Rumil for help only to find him looking slightly discouraged and sad. What was wrong with him? Could it be that he was…jealous?

He was.

Haldir could see it in his eyes. Orophin had chosen him instead of Rumil to comfort him and Rumil was- “He had a bad dream Haldir.” Rumil said sadly, interrupting his thoughts.

Haldir frowned at this, his head still swimming with thoughts and warnings about Rumil…what was he going to do? Slowly, Haldir started to rub Orophin’s back as Rumil had, not really knowing how to go about comforting an elfling.

“Orophin…” Rumil questioned softly, “What did you dream about?” He reached over and touched the little elfing’s cheek, making him look up from Haldir’s damp shoulder.

“Ada and nana died…then Sticky was squished and died too!!!” He wailed rather loudly. “They all died!”

Haldir’s eyes widened at this. He had thought that the elfling had gotten over their parents’ death quite easily. Haldir had originally thought that Orophin had been too young to understand what had happened, which would explain why he had quickly returned to his normal carefree self. Apparently, it had affected him more than he had originally realized…

“Sssshh…” Haldir said softly, kissing his youngest brother on the top of his head. “Do not be sad Orophin. We will see adar and naneth again. One day they will be reincarnated and then will sail to Valinor and meet us there. We have not seen the last of them…”

“And what about Sticky?” The little asked, sounding terrible from all of the crying.

Haldir cocked up one of his eyebrows. “Who is Sticky?”

“A bug.” Rumil stated quite bluntly.

Orophin’s eyes lit up at this question though. “He’s about this long…” he said excitedly, holding his finger about three inches apart, “and he’s really, REALLY thin!!! He looks just like a twig off of a mallorn tree! Rumil said other bugs cannot see him because he looks like that, so he will never get eaten!”

Haldir smiled with relief. At least Orophin had snapped back to normal. “Well, I am certain that if Sticky can blend in as you have said, he will be safe from danger. Now, little one, it is time for you to go back to bed-“

“NO!!!” Orophin suddenly screeched, clinging to him again. “I do not want to dream bad things again! Please stay with me!!!” He begged, staring into Haldir’s eyes sadly.

“Very well then…” Haldir said, giving in to the young elfling for the second time that night. He pried the little one off of him and laid down on the bed…then tensed as Orophin cuddled up right next to him, hugging him and resting his head on Haldir’s shoulder. Haldir tried to adjust himself in a way that Orophin would have to move, but stopped as he felt the bed shift. He watched as Rumil got up and walked towards the door, head down in defeat…

“Rumil, do not go!!!” The elfling bellowed.

Rumil looked back with surprise. “Do not leave me!!!” Orophin cried out again, “I need you too, brother! You can protect me! Two are better than one!”

Both brothers looked at Orophin, quite surprised. That was a very intelligent thing to say for such a young elfling. Rumil smiled a small, half smile and slowly came back. Haldir scooted to the very edge of the small bed in an attempt to make room for Rumil. The bed let out a small groan when he sat on it, as it was not made for three occupants. Rumil quickly squeezed onto the bed, laying on his stomach with one arm draped around Orophin and the other dangling limply off the edge of the bed. As Haldir maneuvered the blanket to cover all three of them, Rumil pulled Orophin close and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

“Good night brother. If you need protection, all you must do is ask.” He whispered softly, then settled back down to fall into a slumber.

Once Haldir was done with the blankets, all three of them settled down in the dim room. Haldir laid there, looking up through the skylight at mallorn branches filled with soft silvery leaves and beyond, to the stars, with their dazzling contrast against the dark blanket of sky.

“Haldir…” Rumil’s muffled, sleep-filled voice said softly, “What I said earlier…I did not …mean it…” He said, slightly dozing in the process.

“It is already forgotten Rumil…now go to sleep brother. Both of you.” He said, looking down at the wide-awake youngling whose head rested on his arm. Unfortunately, Orophin did not look like he would be tired anytime soon.

“Sing to him…” Rumil muttered, almost totally in his meditative state.

Haldir smiled a bit at this and thought back to his past; when Rumil was as small as Orophin, he had always begged Haldir to come in and sing him to sleep when he was on break from boarder patrol. It was a pleasant memory for Haldir. It had been a time when he and Rumil had been very close.

He missed that closeness.

Softly, he started to sing the song about Nimrodel. His soft tenor voice rang clearly and beautifully through the soft breeze that was blowing in through the balcony, fluttering the sheer white drapes that hung there.

Time seemed to almost stop as Haldir sang quietly. He was so lucky to have his brothers…brothers that were so forgiving of his wrongs. He loved them both very much. Towards the end of the song, he solemnly vowed to himself that he would never allow this to happen again. He was his brothers’ keeper: their strength and support, as they were for him. He would not want it any other way.

When the song was over, Haldir carefully bent his head down to look at Orophin. The little one was lying still. Haldir squirmed a bit to get comfortable, and started to doze off himself.

“Haldir…” a light voice questioned, “Will you be here when I wake up?”

“Yes Orophin.” He replied, looking down at the blonde elfling in his arms.

There was a small silence, but then he saw Orophin smile a bit. “You make me…feel safe…” He murmured softly. “That is why you will be the high march warden…” He said as he yawned, “You make lady Galadriel feel safe too…” He said, trailing off.

“Mmm.” Haldir replied, now lost in thought about the position. He still had his doubts about being the right person, but the lady seemed to think he could…and Orophin seemed to see no other option.

Who knew? Maybe it would happen…

As if on cue, Orophin replied, “You will be the best commander ever…Haldir.”

“Go to sleep Orophin.” Haldir said softly, tightening his grasp around the youngling for a second to simulate a hug. “I love you brother.”

“Are you…going to sleep…too?” The persistent voice questioned right back.

Haldir thought that over. With all that had happened during the day, he doubted that sleep would find him easily. The images from the mirror were still haunting him…he could still see Rumil, gone from this world…

“I do not know brother. I might have nightmares.” He whispered, thinking that Orophin was finally asleep as his breathing seemed to have a rhythm to it now.

Wrong again.

“Do not worry brother…if you have nightmares…I shall protect you…Rumil will help too…” He muttered, almost asleep. “I love you…”

“I love you too Orophin.” Haldir said again, softly kissing the top of his head as the elfling finally fell into his meditative state.

“He is so insightful…” Haldir mused as he laid in the bed silently, “He will surely be a great intellectual when he comes of age…”

Slowly, sleep started to cloud Haldir’s pulsating mind as he mulled over everything that had happened. “Tomorrow…” He thought, “Tomorrow is a brand new day. I shall start afresh tomorrow…”

Indeed, there were still quite a few things that he needed to work out between himself and Rumil… Rumil needed to get out more, start his schooling again and meet with his friends on occasion. Haldir did not know how he was going to make this happen just yet, especially if he was given the extra duties of the commanding march warden, but he knew that he would somehow find a way. It was not right of him to abandon him to parenthood for the next 40 years. He deserved to have a life and fun too.

And he would. Haldir would make certain of it.

“A new day…perhaps I’ll even get to meet Sticky…” he thought with a chuckle, then drifted off into a relaxing slumber, knowing that his brothers would love would love him no matter what.

The End.

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There we have it! What did you think of my ficlet? It’s kinda mushy, but I enjoyed creating it. Anyways, please feel free to tell me what’s good and bad about the fic. I love feedback! Thanks for reading! Have a wonderful day!

-P.G.