Ghosts of the Past

Chapter 6. Reunion

Liliana woke a few days later, feeling an unfamiliar sense of peace. For the first time in many years, she had slept soundly. Her heart felt lighter knowing that Faramir was mostly healed. As she sat up in bed, she realized she had no idea whose room this was or how long she had been there. Sunlight streamed in, casting soft shadows across the room, revealing a mix of blues and greys. Four large beds were spread evenly throughout the space, and her eyes caught the banners of Dol Amroth hanging on the walls. Healing. The few men she had met from Dol Amroth seemed kind and told tales of their land as she treated them, though she never met Prince Imrahil himself or his sons.

Blinking slowly, she tried to remember the moments before she passed out. Only flickers came to her mind, concerned voices, blonde hair, and feeling herself swept into someone's arms before the darkness. She realized it must have been the Rohanese warrior that carried her, everyone else in the hallway had dark or black hair...black hair she thought as revelation hit her. Those men she had seen behind the King -the ones who looked like the three older boys from her dream -must be the princes of Dol Amroth.

She indeed knew very little of Dol Amroth but had heard whispers that the ruler, Prince Imrahil caused quite a scandal many years ago. He had married a half-Rohirric wife over a noblewoman of Gondor, shaking the foundations of "Gondorion Civility". Prince Imrahil had three sons born to him and a young daughter. The prince and his sons all had dark hair with only his wife and daughter being fair of hair and feature. It was also rumored that the Lady of Dol Amroth and her young daughter had been murdered in a fiery Corsair attack while on vacation at their seaside cottage. If the Prince and his three sons had not been hunting, they would have met the same fate. Liliana shuddered at the thought, she would have been the same age as the little princess at the time. Though she had no actual family in Minas Tirith, Ioreth, Mairi, Faramir, and Boromir meant the world to her. She could not imagine losing all of them. Boromir's death had broken her heart- she could not have lost the others. Standing and stretching her limbs, Liliana wasn't certain how many nights had passed. A rush of concern filled her mind as she worried about the condition of the Houses of Healing in her absence.

Anxious to leave, the unfamiliar room Liliana hurried out of bed and swung open the heavy door, only to find herself face-to-face with a tall and strikingly familiar man. He had a fair complexion like her own, midnight black hair, piercing grey-blue eyes, and a smile that seemed to light up the dim hallway. For a fleeting moment, his smile stirred something deep within her—a distant sense of belonging, though she couldn't place why. Recognizing the man as one of the Princes of Dol Amroth she curtsied.

 "My Lord," she greeted. "Ah, Lady Liliana. It is a pleasure to meet you in person." He said kissing her hand in a courtly manner, "I am Prince Elphir of Dol Amroth, and these are my brothers, Amrothos and Erchirion." He gestured toward the two men who had appeared from the antechamber adjacent to the room she had awoken in. "The pleasure is mine, my Lords" she replied. 

The brothers exchanged brief saddened glances- after their conversation with Mithrandir, they had agreed it was best to wait before revealing themselves to their sister. Yet it took everything within them to restrain the urge to pull her into their arms. Eighteen years had passed, and now that she stood in front of them, it was almost unbearable.

Liliana thought it was strange that, the three men before her seemed to be stoically holding back a great tidal wave of emotion, both of joy and sorrow. Awkwardly, she realized that she must have taken them from their rooms during her time unconscious.

 Looking down and then back at the princes, she spoke softly, "I apologize if I caused you any inconvenience. I must have been a burden to you." Prince Elphir stepped toward her, taking her hands "It was no trouble at all, my lady." His voice was reassuring and quiet. With his left hand, he gently tilted her face until their eyes met, "You could never be a burden," he said as his thumb brushed her cheek before dropping his hand.

The prince stood so close to her that she could smell his clothing—something about it was familiar, tugging at the edges of her mind. Images from her dreams flashed to her—the older boy by the sea, laughing as he held her, dipping her toes into the water. She blinked, caught in a haze of warmth, and staring into the prince's stormy eyes, everything around them seemed to freeze. His right hand held hers, grounding her in a way that both comforted and confused her. The air between them thickened with a charged emotion she couldn't quite grasp, and echoes of the laughter from her dream drifted faintly through her mind. Elphie. The name hung on the tip of her tongue, the memory so close and yet unreachable. She felt an overwhelming urge to embrace all of them—but she did not know why.

The shattering of a vase echoed down the corridor, and the moment was broken. Liliana jumped, startled, as she dropped the prince's hand. She glanced at the three men, all of whom seemed to be holding their breath. The overpowering intensity of their gazes unnerved and calmed her, as though they were on the verge of telling her something but couldn't. Clearing her throat, she excused herself politely and slipped past Amrothos, who clenched his hand tightly, as if willing himself not to reach for her. With quiet sorrow he watched her walk down the hall never once looking back at them. 

"It wasn't the reunion we hoped for," he murmured, shaking his head. "No, it wasn't," Erchirion agreed. Elphir, stepped placed a supportive hand on both his brother's shoulder. "There will be time for family reunions later," he said softly, though his gaze, like his brothers', remained fixed on the door through which Liliana had disappeared