He lay now in a quiet corner of the keep, on a pallet softened by a thick blanket. Lindir had found him lying nearly insensible close to Haldir after his heedless run to the wall which had cost him more blood than he could afford to lose. With the help of another he had carried him back to the Keep, and kept watch over him until he awoke.
�You must be a little more careful,� he told Aldamir when he opened his eyes. �If you lose more blood you won�t survive this.�
Aldamir seemed not to have heard him, gazing up at him with eyes so full of grief that it pierced Lindir to the heart. �Haldir...� murmured Aldamir, and closed his eyes again.
Lindir bit his lip to keep back the tears. Bending over Aldamir, he clasped his friend�s shoulder. �Please, Aldamir, don�t despair. The battle was won; Haldir�s sacrifice was not in vain...�
Aldamir showed no sign of having heard; his face was pale and drawn, and Lindir felt a sudden fear for him. Even if his wounds were not deadly, he might yet lose the desire to live, and then nothing would be able to hold him back from death. �Aldamir, don�t do this to us...�
Aldamir wandered through strange dreams... images from the battle... orcs� eyes leering at him as they lifted their cruel knives... Haldir�s still, pale face... Uruviel holding out her hands, reaching for him, with an expression of grief and pleading in her eyes... then he seemed to fall into swirling mists and lay there with closed eyes.
When he opened them, he seemed to be standing on a flet in Lothl�rien again, but instead of golden light everywhere, there were shadows and grey mists. Haldir stood before him, his cloak stained with blood. �Haldir!� he called, trying to reach out to clasp his shoulder, but he could not. Haldir looked at him, and his eyes were both peaceful and sorrowful. �Aldamir...my friend...do not grieve overmuch for me. I will never see L�rien again, but my spirit will be at rest...�
Aldamir frowned, and his heart twisted with grief once again. �Haldir...don�t leave, please...�
The shadows were swirling slowly around Haldir, and he was fading from Aldamir�s sight. As he departed, he spoke once more. �Namarie, my friend, and do not despair...all is not lost yet. But you must not let the darkness win...trust to hope...�
Then he faded from Aldamir�s sight, as did the flet and everything around him, and he found himself lying somewhere, he knew not where. Water was tinkling over stones somewhere near him, and he found himself looking up into Uruviel�s clear eyes. �Aldamir...I feared for you so...� she whispered, and bent to kiss his cheek. �Please, don�t leave me...come back to me...�
Then she faded away and he awoke to find himself lying once again in the quiet corner of the keep.
Lying there, he could hear the sound of people moving about outside and inside, but it was quieter in where he lay. He tried to rise, but winced and lay back again as a jab of pain stabbed through his side. Turning his head, he could see that many other wounded lay in the room where he was, and women moved about among them, tending to their hurts. He sighed and closed his eyes, his heart aching more than his side or shoulder.
Soft footsteps approached, and a shadow cast itself over his face. He opened his eyes, and saw Lindir stooping over him. �Lindir! Glad to see you... you�re not hurt?�
Lindir smiled. �Not badly,� he said, and lifted his left arm. A white cloth had been tightly bound about it. �I received a nasty cut from one of those orc-swords, but otherwise I�m all right.�
�You fared better than me,� said Aldamir with a faint smile.
�You�ll come through it,� said Lindir, trying to keep the anxiety out of his voice. �Keep quiet and you�ll be up again in a few days.�
Aldamir sighed. �Right now I feel far from that,� he said ruefully. �When does R�mil plan to return to L�rien?�
Relieved, Lindir smiled at his friend. �As soon as you and the others who are wounded are ready to,� he said. �Th�oden is riding southwards with his riders, and Mithrandir and the others are going with him, but before he left he spoke with R�mil. I know not what passed between them, but Th�oden gave the friendship of Rohan to the Elves of L�rien in return for our aid, and has given us horses to ride back to L�rien - one for each of us.�
�Horses of Rohan? That is indeed a great gift. And glad I will be to ride back to L�rien on such a fine creature.�
Lindir chuckled. �I�m with you there. They are beautiful horses; you ought to come and see them. But not until you are better-!� he laughed, and put his hand on Aldamir�s chest as he pretended to rise. �Get some sleep now, and maybe you can get up tonight, or tomorrow morning.�
Aldamir grinned. �Make that tonight.� Lindir laughed, and bidding him a good rest, went out. Aldamir smiled as he went, and very soon fell into a deep, healing sleep.