Arwen listened. Tears ran down her cheeks. She waited. She was silent, sitting on the bed, crying bitterly. Estel will never come, she thought. Where is he? Visions flashed through her head, Ada, Nana, and – she gasped. It was a picture of her, clad in white and wearing a silvery crown, threaded with emerald beads. She was hugging – kissing – Estel. Suddenly, she stiffened. Standing behind her, in her vision…

“Ada…” she whispered. He was frowning. More pictures flickered by. Her screaming. Estel angry. Ada yelling. Wild crowds scrambling to get away. Arwen felt torn. Aragorn… or Ada? Echoing through her head. Then… a door opening, closing. Footsteps. A man, calling her. She smoothed her hair, wiped her eyes on a tasseled kerchief, and forced a smile. She stepped into the hall.

“I’m here, Father,” she called sharply. She saw his head poke around the wall. “Oh.” He smiled broadly as he walked up the stairs, holding something behind his back. “I have something for you.” Arwen caught a glimpse of white. A letter? A letter from Estel? She leaned forward eagerly.

“Yes, Ada?” she almost whispered, all hardness gone from her voice. He handed her… a letter. She almost laughed. “A letter…” Elrond wiped ink from his fingers.
*
Arwen was stunned. She reread the letter, her heart pounding, her eyes blazing, and her cheeks scarlet.

Arwen –

I am afraid all I can spare time for is a curt note. I can never see you again. You bring back memories of Mama, Gilraen. Farewell, and do not mention me again, nor I will you. I lift a glass to you; to a love untold; to a future unknown; to a marriage uncovered. To a forgotten friendship.

– Estel

She could hear his voice in her head. “A forgotten friendship… a love untold – how can he say this!” In anger, she leaped to her feet. Then she crumpled back to the bed. “But I loved him… I loved him!” She wept into her pillow until dawn the following morning.
*

Estel, meanwhile, sat in a tent, penning a letter. He grimaced.

Dearest Love,

I am sorry not to have written sooner. I can’t find the time to think lately, much less write. Much chaos here. Lots of things happening. I am at a camp in the forests of Mirkwood, with my fellow Rangers. I love you. I can’t express my love for you. Dear one, you are more precious to my heart than my belongings, my home. I can’t explain my joy of being with you. I stumble over the words and mix them on my tongue, but on paper, ink flows out into words. You are beautiful, lovely. You are all I could ask for. More than I could ask for. But I am glad every morning that I know you, and I hope that you will agree, someday, to be mine, and be with me forevermore. I love you, Arwen. I long to kiss you, but that is improper conduct. Oh, my love! I adore you.

Your Friend,
Estel

Estel stood, folded the letter, slipped a piece of paper between, and sealed it with white wax. In bold letters he wrote Arwen. He hurried outside where he could hear horse’s hooves.

“Gerahiel,” he shouted. “The mail!” Estel handed the mail carrier a bundle of letters. A folded paper slid to the ground. Gerahiel nodded, tucked the mail into his leather pouch and galloped off. As Estel walked back into his tent, he stepped mere inches away from the letter. It read Arwen.

Elrond tipped the wad of paper into blaze. He could read the paper as it burned into ash.

I can’t love you anymore… I have no use for your love. Estel

Arwen buckled the cloak round her throat with a golden sword pin, pushing her scimitar into the sheath, lashing the quiver to her back, thrusting a knife into her belt, and grabbing a silver bow strung with fine cord. She wiped tears from her eyes as she dropped a note on the floor.

Dear Ada

I love you. I must find Estel. He has broken my heart. He says he does not love me, and I must ‘get even’. I love you.

Your Undomiel

Arwen

She swept to the stables, leaped onto her horse unsaddled, and whispered,
“To a friendship forgotten…”