Winter in Rivendell

"Estel! Look!"

Aragorn looked up from the book he was reading. Winter was coming to Rivendell, and both the twins and Aragorn himself hated this time of year. Everything was grey and it had been raining for days, so they were all stuck inside with nothing to do. Aragorn was in the middle of reading his third book that week, Elladan was nowhere to be seen and Elrohir was walking restlessly up and down the floor. Only at this particular moment, he was looking out the window, standing quite still for a change.

"No, do not look at me. Look at this!" Elrohir pointed at the window quite excitedly.

Aragorn put his book aside and joined his foster brother by the window. Outside, large snowflakes were drifting lazily, quickly covering the ground and Aragorn"s eyes lit up at the sight.

"Snow. Finally." Aragorn sighed happily. "Go get Elladan, we have to go out there."

Each year the twins and Aragorn celebrated the first snowfall with a snowball fight; it had been a tradition for as long as Aragorn could remember. Of course, when he was younger the twins had been very cautious around him but as he got older the fights had gotten more intense and Aragorn doubted that the twins would go easy on him this year.

"Estel, come." Elrohir came running into the room with Elladan at his heels, the latter looking just as excited as his two brothers.

The three of them grabbed their cloaks on the way out and headed out in the snow.

At first, they just stood there letting the snowflakes drift down and settle on their hair and cloaks. This was such a welcome change in weather: they loved the winter and snow just as much as they resented the time that led up to it and little was as beautiful as Rivendell in the winter with the buildings and trees all covered in snow.

"Estel, look!"

Aragorn whirled around and a snowball hit him right in his face, causing Elrohir to laugh triumphantly. This was truthfully a joyful time and soon they were tumbling around in the snow that kept falling from the sky.

After a while Aragorn sniffled as he realized that his nose was beginning to run from the cold. He stood up and started to brush the snow of his cloak, walking towards the house.

"Where are you going?" Elladan wanted to know.

"I will be right back." Aragorn disappeared into the house.

"Elrohir, did you see that?" Elladan was staring at the door in disbelief. "Why did he go inside?"

"I do not care why, Elladan." Elrohir had an evil glint in his eye. "Let"s ambush him when he comes back. Hurry, we have to make lots of snowballs!"

"I like that plan." Elladan smirked and started making a pile of snowballs.

Aragorn kicked his boots off in the hall and proceeded to go to his room, still sniffling. He found a handkerchief and blew his nose on it. The snow was too cold for him but, being the only human in a house full of elves, he was kind of shy about it and preferred to keep it to him self. He then found a scarf and wrapped it around his neck a few times and headed back out.

"Get him." Elrohir shouted at the first movement of the door being opened and before Aragorn knew what was happening he was lying on the ground covered in snow and two overly eager twins were jumping around like a couple of little kids doing a victory dance. Aragorn sat up and shook the snow out of his hair. "You two are going to get it!" He yelled and leapt up, grapping Elrohir and pulling him down in the snow. Elladan let out a playful battle cry and threw himself on top of his struggling brothers.

Eventually they all had had enough and started to get up, laughing and rambling on about who won the fight. Aragorn was a little out of breath and as the excitement backed down he started feeling the cold. He was soaked from the snow and his fingers and toes were numb. His nose was also running again and he sniffed wetly as they entered the house.

"I was wondering how long you were going to stay outside in the snow." Elrond stepped into the hall and greeted his sons with a twinkle in his eye. He had long since gotten used to the way his three, now grown, sons transformed into little kids every winter when the first snow fell.

"Dinner will be ready soon." He informed them.

"Yes, Ada." The twins and Aragorn went to their rooms to get some dry clothes on before dinner.

When Aragorn came into his room, he blew his runny nose again and dried his hair with a towel before changing his clothes. He was shivering from the cold and was utterly annoyed by the fact that the cold got to him so much more than it did his brothers. He wiped his nose on his sleeve and sat down on the bed, wrapping a quilt around him in order to get warm. After a few minutes he stopped shivering and the warmth spread through his body, leaving only his fingers and feet still cold, and he decided to go find his brothers before they came looking for him.

At dinner, the mood was much better than it had been for days, well, at least until Elrohir declared to Elrond that he had won the snow fight. Elrond stayed out of the discussion that was bound to arise and sat back in his chair looking joyfully at his sons all claiming victory over the others. Therefore he also watched Aragorn"s every move as he turned away from the table and lifted a hand to his face.

"Huh-Esshhoo!" Sniffling, he turned back to the table.

"Bless you." Elrond raised an eyebrow and looked at his foster son thoroughly.

"Thank you, Ada." Aragorn saw the worry in his father"s eyes and hurriedly threw in a few remarks in the snow fight discussion to avoid any questions the elven lord might have regarding his health.

The rest of the evening passed quickly and Aragorn went to bed with a nice feeling of physical exhaustion and fell to sleep almost immediately.

Waking up the next morning, Aragorn discovered that his throat was sore and his nose getting stuffy. He sighed as he recognized the signs of an oncoming cold. He loved the snow but it wasn't the first time it had caused him to catch cold and he certainly did not enjoy being sick. He sat up slowly rubbing at his nose and sniffling a few times.

"HuhIshoo! HeIschhoo!" He pinched his nose shut and waited for the tickle to die down, then threw the covers aside and got out of bed.

There was a knock on the door and without waiting for an answer Elrohir burst into the room.

"I could hear you from my room, are you alright?"

"Well, good morning to you too." Aragorn mocked and pulled a shirt over his head.

"I guess somebody has gotten out of bed on the wrong side!" Elrohir smiled at his now fully dressed brother, who glared back at him.

"No, but I am getting a cold and it is all your fault for getting me soaked in the snow yesterday." Aragorn knew he was being ridiculous but could not help himself. It was so unfair that he was the only one who always got sick.

"Oh, that is why you are so grumpy." Elrohir nodded thoughtfully. "In that case you should get back to bed and I shall go get Ada for you.

"No, Elrohir. I am not that sick. My throat is just a bit raw and my nose is stuffy, that is all." Aragorn said, rubbing at his nose to make it stop tickling. "Lets go get breakfast, I bet Ada is waiting f.. for..heh..us-- HehCHOO!" He nearly doubled over with the force of the sneeze. "HehECHoo!"

"Bless you." Elrohir frowned at his brother.

"Thank you, Elrohir. Now, come on." Aragorn closed the door behind Elrohir and followed him down the hall to the dining hall.

Elrond was already there and smiled when he saw them coming.

"Good morning, sons." Elrond greeted as usual and frowned when he from his youngest did not receive the usual answer but instead a wet sniffle and a series of sneezes.

"Sorry, Ada. I think I caught a cold yesterday." He sniffed again and sat down next to Elrohir.

"Good morning." Elladan came whirling in from the kitchen full of energy, but slowed down when he realized that the atmosphere around the table was not as enthusiastic as usual. "What is wrong?" He asked curiously.

"Estel is sick." Elrohir blurted out.

"Again?" Elladan looked at Aragorn.

"I am not sick, it is just a cold." Aragorn grumbled and sniffed.

Elrond raised an eyebrow at his son"s statement. "That may be, Estel, but you were sick only a few months ago. You need to take better care of yourself and dress warmly when you go outside."

"I do, Ada. It is not as if I like being sick," said Aragorn.

"We do not like it either," Elrohir grinned, "Last time you were sick your coughing kept us awake all night."

Aragorn glared at him and was about to say something rude when Elrond interrupted.

"Here, Estel, drink this." He placed a mug of steaming hot tea in front of Aragorn.

"Thank you, Ada." Sipping at the hot tea Estel felt the congestion loosen up and his nose began to run instead. Sniffling wetly, he wiped his nose on his handkerchief.

"Ada, Legolas should arrive today, right?" Elladan asked.

"Yes."

"Maybe Elrohir and I should ride out to meet him." Elladan suggested.

"I want to come too!" Three pairs of eyes turned to Aragorn.

"But you are sick." Elladan stated matter of factly.

"As I said before it is merely a cold, and Legolas is my friend too. I am coming with you whether you like it or not." Aragorn sniffed stubbornly.

"Fine," Elrond sighed, "You are old enough to make your own decisions, but make sure you stay warm and dry."

"Of course, Ada."

Aragorn was instantly in a better mood after learning that Legolas was coming to visit. The three sons of Elrond hurriedly finished their breakfast and got ready to leave.

Just as Aragorn mounted his horse a snowball hit him in the neck. "Elrohir!" He yelped in surprise.

"What?" Elrohir asked innocently and looked up at his brother and grinned when he saw that Aragorn was covered in snow. A look of confusion appeared on Aragorn"s face as he realized that none of his brothers could have hit him from behind. He turned around slowly and grinned widely when he saw Legolas throwing another snowball that hit Elrohir directly in the face as he turned around to see what Aragorn was smiling at.

"Legolas!" Elrohir was so surprised to see Legolas that he forgot to be mad. Instead he ran to Legolas and hugged him closely followed by Elladan. Unfortunately for Elladan, Legolas had yet another snowball hidden behind his back which he now threw in Elladan's face with an evil grin. "One should never discriminate brothers. Did you really think you would be left off?"

Elladan did not answer the question but threw himself at Legolas and Elrohir, who landed in the snow with a thud with Elladan on top.

Aragorn dismounted his horse and walked towards the fighting, laughing and snow covered elves. Not wanting to get soaked again but anxious to greet Legolas and not wanting to feel left out he just stood there fidgeting with impatience as his nose began to tickle and he turned his back to the elves and lifted a glove covered hand to his face. "HurCHOO! HehIschoo!" When he turned back around, something or someone came flying at him and the next thing he knew he lay on his back in the snow with Legolas sitting on his stomach. "Estel, I have missed you." The prince smiled widely and smeared snow in his friend's face.

"Legolas, get off of him. He is sick." Elladan warned.

"Sick?" Legolas stopped immediately. "Then why are you out here?"

"I am not sick I just have a cold." Aragorn said grumpily and sniffled. He was getting irritated that no one seemed to understand the difference. But then again, how could they? They were elves and hence never fell ill. He sat up and brushed the snow off his coat, turning his head to the side as his breath hitched again. "HehCHOO!" He sneezed loudly and wiped his nose on his sleeve.

"Legolas, you and Estel go inside. Elrohir and I will take care of the horses." Elladan pulled Aragorn to his feet and showed him towards the house.

Legolas put a hand on Aragorn"s shoulder as they walked. "I apologize. I did not know," he started, but Aragorn interrupted. "I am fine, it is just a cold. You need not worry about me."

Legolas could not help but smile. "I had forgotten how much you loathe being fussed over."

"There is nothing to fuss over, it is just a cold." Aragorn opened the door for Legolas.

"That may be, but you do need a handkerchief, your nose is running." Legolas walked past Aragorn and entered the warm hall. "Ah, it is nice to be in Rivendell again."

Aragorn nodded briefly as he searched his pockets for a handkerchief.

"HehISHHH! ISHHUHH!" He quickly blew his nose before more sneezes could follow.

"Bless you." Legolas tried hard not to smile at his friend who was clearly not as well as he let on.

"Thank you." Aragorn muttered from behind the handkerchief and coughed.

"Legolas!" Elrond appeared in the doorway. "Welcome to Rivendell."

"Lord Elrond." Legolas greeted.

"Estel, will you show Legolas his room?"

"Of course, Ada."

"And then come have a cup of tea with me, I believe your cold is getting worse. And Legolas, I would like to know how things are faring in Mirkwood."

Legolas nodded and followed Aragorn to his room. He put his pack on the floor and fetched some clean and, more importantly, dry clothes, and changed while Aragorn went to his own room. Legolas could hear him coughing and blowing his nose through the wall.

"Ada is right, it is getting worse." Aragorn thought to himself as he entered Legolas" room again. His head was aching and his nose was getting stuffier.

"Your nose is getting red." Legolas commented.

"I know." Aragorn grumbled, pinching his nose shut to hold back a threatening sneeze. "Are you ready? Elrond is waiting for us."

"Yes, and please just sneeze, you look silly like that."

Aragorn released the grip on his nose, blushing furiously, and to make matters worse, the sneezes that he had tried to hold back were teasing him. He badly needed to sneeze but couldn't, and he just stood there panting heavily, certain that he looked like an idiot. When the sneezes finally struck they were so forceful they had him doubled over. "HurCHOO! ACHOO! CHOO! HurACHOO! Ugh! Sniff Excuse me."

"Bless you." Legolas said sympathetically and pushed his friend out the door. "Lets go get that tea."

While Legolas and Elrond were talking about what had happened both in Mirkwood and Rivendell since Legolas" last visit, Aragorn was slowly sipping his tea. Sniffling, coughing and rubbing his constantly itching nose, he was growing tired, and rested his head in his hand. It was not that he found the conversation to be boring; he just had difficulties concentrating with the increasing congestion filling his head.

"Shh!" Legolas interrupted the elven lord. "Look, he is asleep." He whispered and glanced at Aragorn.

Elrond turned around and looked at his son who was sleeping with his mouth slightly open. "Estel, you should be in bed. Come." He shook Aragorn"s shoulder slightly and the man was instantly awake and aware of his mistake. "Sorry, Ada," He croaked and cleared his throat afterwards. "I did not mean to fall asleep." He rubbed at his tickling nose and cupped both hands over it as he realized he was going to lose the battle. "HehIchoo! Achoo!"

"Bless you." Elrond and Legolas offered in unison.

"Come, Estel, you need to be in bed." Elrond stood up and put a hand on Aragorn"s shoulder.

"No, I am awake now. I do not want to go to bed in the middle of the day." Aragorn sniffed and wiped his nose on the handkerchief.

Elrond sat down again sighing at his incredibly stubborn foster son, wondering if all men were equally stubborn.

"Oh, come on, Estel. I shall keep you company." Legolas rose from his chair and Aragorn eyed him hesitantly. "Then you can tell me what you and your brothers have been up to lately." Legolas encouraged.

"If you insist." Aragorn mumbled and followed Legolas to his room, dragging his feet after him as he walked. He flopped down on the bed and Legolas took a seat in the chair standing next to the bed.

"Now I am certain that you have gotten into trouble on more than one occasion since the last time I saw you so please get started, I want to hear about everything." Legolas rested his feet on the bed and made himself comfortable.

"Actually we have behaved ourselves," Aragorn started. "We had to after the incident with the chocolate pudding."

Legolas remembered that "incident" only too well and grinned at the thought of it.

"For the most part we succeeded in behaving, there has only been one major episode--"

"I knew it," Legolas burst out. "The three of you are just not able to stay out of trouble, not even when you really want to behave." He laughed heartily.

"Oh, you are a fine one to talk!" Aragorn coughed sarcastically.

Legolas smirked. "Well, we are not talking about me."

"Heh.. ISHHOO! HehCHOO!" Aragorn sniffled wetly and started coughing. "Excuse me."

"Bless you." The grin on Legolas" face was replaced with a sympathetic smile. "Maybe I should leave so you can get some rest. You can tell me all about it later."

"I suppose Elrohir should be the one to tell the story anyways," Aragorn pondered. "After all it was really his fault."

Legolas watched as his friend tucked the quilt tighter around his body and closed his eyes, then left the room.

Aragorn woke up a couple of hours later, well rested and feeling much better. However, his nose was still stuffy and his throat scratchy so he decided to see Elrond and have another cup of tea. He found his foster father in the living room looking out the window.

When Elrond heard him enter he turned around and looked over the man thoroughly. "I see the rest has done you good."

"Yes, Ada." Aragorn nodded. "I could use some tea though."

"Stay here, I will fetch you a cup." Elrond left the room and Aragorn darted over to the window to see what his father had been looking at.

"Wild horses could not keep your brothers away from the snow." Elrond had returned with a mug of steaming tea that he absentmindedly held out to Aragorn while staring out the window with a smile on his lips.

"They are ganging up against Legolas." Aragorn noted, smiling himself.

"They have always looked out for each other," Elrond said lovingly, then, growing serious, he caught Aragorn"s eyes. "You my son is the only one they are equally protective of. You have no reason to feel left out."

"I know, Ada." Aragorn sniffed and wiped at his nose, hoping that Elrond would not notice the tears in his eyes. "It is just that when I get sick it reminds me that I am only their foster brother." He paused and looked away. "And that I am not really your son."

Elrond pulled him into a tight hug. "You will always be my son, Estel. And the twins could not wish for a better brother."