Who Shall Take the Road?

By pmochizuki

Author's Note: This is a story I wrote seven months ago but was written in script form. Recently, has made it clear that both chat forms and script forms are not allowed any more on their site. Since I do not want to get my account frozen as fanfiction tends to do a lot, I deleted the story, wrote a revised version, and am now posting it on again.

For those who have read the previous version, just to tell you that it is basically the same though I changed a few places and added in some new parts.

Summary: When Elrond sends Glorfindel to search for Aragorn and the hobbits, he never dreams that his daughter would wish to take the mission!

Well, here it goes!

"Who Shall Take the Road?"

Elrond waits impatiently at his desk as Erestor sits in a chair, fiddling with the arm rests. While Elrond reeks with barely restrained agitation, Erestor acts as if nothing could phase his relaxation of being able to sit down quietly without the Lord Elrond ordering him around. Being the chief counselor of Elrond's household was usually so hectic. For once Elrond was being extremely quiet…

Finally Elrond hits his hand on the desk. "All right, where is he?" he said, pointing an accusatory finger at Erestor.

Erestor withholds a sigh. And it was just becoming quite peaceful… "That must have hurt."

Pausing in confusion, Elronds blinks. "Excuse me?"

Talking in slow, careful words so that Elrond can understand him, Erestor explains. "Hitting your hand on the desk. I said 'that must have hurt.'"

Elrond suddenly gasps and looks at his hand with worry, tentatively poking the tips of his fingers. "Do you think the redness will fade..." He suddenly looks up at Erestor with a shocked expression on his face. "You interrupted!"

"Sorry." Erestor doesn't seem sorry in the slightest.

" As I was TRYING to say, where in all of Rivendell is Glorfindel!"

The door opens and a blonde regal looking Elf stumbles in with an embarrassed look on his face. He goes to stand before Elrond and Erestor.

"So sorry I'm late," Glorfindel says, for this blonde, regal looking Elf was obviously Glorfindel, "it was just that..."

Elrond waves his hand in an irritated manner. "No excuses. Let's get down to business. You know why you were called?"

Glorfindel bites his lips. "Well..." He pauses looking up at the ceiling. He opens his mouth to speak than shuts it again. "Maybe..." He stops again. He tries to speak once more but is interrupted by Erestor.

"Lord Elrond, this will take forever!" Erestor growls. "May I please just tell him?"

Looking as regal as an Elf can under irritating circumstances, Elrond nods for him to proceed.

Erestor snaps his head in Glorfindel, causing the blonde warrior Elf to jump in surprise. "Ok, here's the situation, Glorfindel. We got some news from some of our kindred who were journeying near the Baranduin and they told us that some things are amiss. The Nine Riders..."

Glorfindel gasps. "Not… not… not THE Nine Riders?"

Erestor nods gravely while wondering if it was worth it even trying to explain it to the blonde Elf. "That's right."

Glorfindel's eyes widens. "Whoah!"

"Anyway, as I was TRYING to say, we were also told that a hobbit is traveling with a few others, and he carries with him the One Ring."

Glorfindel gasps again. "Not THE One Ring!"

Rolling his eyes, Erestor mimics Glorfindel. "Yes, THE One Ring!" He continues his explanations in a serious tone. "Now quit interrupting. They are not much of us who can ride openly against the Nine, but such as it is, Lord Elrond is sending some Elves out north, west, and south. Whatever happens, the Ring MUST get here safely."

" Riiiiight." Glorfindel looks up at the ceiling for a second. "So... I'm one of those Elves you're sending out, right?"

Seeing the way Glorfindel was acting extremely pleased with himself for figuring it out, Erestor mumbles to himself sarcastically, "Genius, pure genius."

Elrond shoots Erestor a warning glance, signaling the other Elf to keep his opinions to himself. "I had wished to wait until you had come, but since you were delayed, we had to go ahead and draw lots. And here's yours."

Elrond picks up a very short piece.

The blonde Elf groans and closes his eyes for a moment. "Don't tell me I got the shortest stick!" he whines.

The chief counselor, who had secretly rigged the whole drawing of lots, grins evilly. "Oh, yes indeed you did!"

As Glorfindel tries not be affected by Erestor, Elrond gives Glorfindel his instructions. "You are to take the Road, and go to the Bridge of Mitheithel."

Glorfindel gasps as Erestor laughs uncontrollably. Glorfindel stutters as he always does when he's nervous. "You, you can't be, be... serious?"

"Oh, VERY serious." Erestor tries to act serious but fails ultimately as he wiggles his eyebrows.

Sighing, Glorfindel raises his hands in defeat. "All right, if I must, I must." He glares at Erestor. "I don't understand why you're looking so pleased."

Erestor allows himself a smile of victory. "Because I'M not the one taking the Road to face Nine Riders."

The curtains in the room suddenly move and the three Elves hear a shuffling of feet. Elrond, looking extremely puzzled, walks over to the curtain and moving it aside, reveals a red-faced Arwen.

Elrond, being very surprised, gasps. "Arwen, what are you doing here? I cannot believe you are eavesdropping on your own father!"

Rolling his eyes at the situation, Erestor lays a comforting hand on Elrond. "Come on, Elrond, you should have expected her to be a little rebellious after hooking up with that Ranger guy."

Arwen pouts her pretty lips in an indignant manner. "Aragorn is no mere Ranger! He is..."

"Heir of Isildur, son of Arathorn, Chieftain of the Dunedain, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera." Elrond finished for her. "Yes dear, we know. That does not answer the question to what you are doing here."

The beautiful she-Elf takes a deep breath and all around her cringe as they can tell that whatever she was going to say would be very shocking.

"I want to be the one to take the Road."

As her statement is very shocking indeed, Elrond turns beet red as Glorfindel looks dumbfounded and Erestor just shakes his head. "I knew she would say that, I just knew it..." Erestor mumbles to himself.

"You can't Arwen," Glorfindel says with an elegant stamp of his elegant foot. "The task is already mine!"

"But you didn't want to take the mission in the first place!"

"Well..." Glorfindel sputters for a few seconds then announces proudly, "Your father is the one who commanded me to do it so I cannot disobey."

Both Arwen and Glorfindel fix their eyes upon the Lord of Rivendell. Elrond looking terribly uncomfortable stands very still for a long moment. Suddenly he raises his hand in exasperation.

"I will have no part in this decision!" Elrond points a finger at Erestor. "Erestor, you take care of this."

Erestor looks at the Lord of Rivendell in horror.

"You can't put this one on me, my Lord!:

Moving towards the door, Elrond smirks. "Oh, yes I can. Besides, you ARE my chief, so you are most adept to handle this kind of situation."

Elrond escapes out the door and silence fills the room. Erestor turns first to look at Glorfindel who is looking at him with harsh glare. Arwen on the other hand is looking at Erestor with a sweet expression on her face.

"Dear Erestor," Arwen coos softly. "You know how much you love me…"

"Ha!"

Seeing as that tactic wasn't going to work, Arwen tries a different tactic. "Well, you know how much of a better rider I am..."

"Ha!" Glorfindel sniffs the air huffily.

" ...and I will be very responsible with the mission," Arwen finishes as if not interrupted at all.

Erestor snorts. "Yeah, the only reason you want to go is because your beloved Aragorn travels with the hobbits."

Arwen blushes with embarrassment as Glorfindel starts laughing.

"I KNEW you had an ulterior motive!" the blonde Elf announces triumphantly.

"That's not true! I wish to help in..."

Erestor interrupts her with a flick of his hand. "Well, WHATEVER your reasons are, we must all agree that Glorfindel's horse, Asfaloth is the fastest of all."

All three Elves become silent. They look at the one then the other, then at the exact same time, their eyes lighten up.

Grinning uncontrollably, Erestor says, "May the best Elf, or Elf-Maiden, win."

Arwen and Glorfindel look at each other and a split second later, the two start running for the door. Glorfindel, being the taller Elf, reaches it first and is the first to go down the hall leading to the stables.

Glorfindel calls over his shoulder, wrinkling his nose at Arwen, "You will never reach Asfaloth before me!"

"Oh yeah!" Arwen suddenly yells in a very loud voice. "THERE GOES GLORFINDEL, THE BALROG SLAYER!"

Suddenly, Elf-maidens come streaming out from different corridors and they all shriek in excitement as they see Glorfindel, all of them talking at once.

"There he goes!"

"After him!"

"Don't let him get away!"

Before long, Glorfindel is cut off by all the Elf-maidens and is forced to plaster a smile on and nod to the Elf-maidens in greeting. Arwen giggles as she rushes by.

"See you when I get back, Glorfindel!" she taunts.

Growling through clenched teeth, Glorfindel tries to get away from the Elf-maidens to no avail. What can you do against dozens of very determined she-Elves? "You'll pay for this, Arwen!"

A few minutes later, Glorfindel is rid of the Elf-maidens and runs to the stables.

Glorfindel begins talking to himself, reassuring himself that he couldn't have lost. "It doesn't matter anyway. Asfaloth will not let any rider ride him unless it is I who command him to bear the person. Arwen will not get four feet before my horse will unseat her." He smiles wickedly to himself. "Take that, Elf-maiden!"

Hearing the clippety-clop of a horse's hooves, Glorfindel turns to see Arwen cantering Asfaloth towards him. His jaw drops and Arwen executes a swift halt before the blonde Elf.

Arwen smiles sweetly down at him. "You won't believe how much Asfaloth LOVES honeycakes."

Glorfindel's watches in horror as Arwen winks then with a light touch of her heels, rides away like the wind astride his horse. Glorfindel hears chuckling behind him and turns to see that it is Erestor.

" Never underestimate an Elf-maiden, Glorfindel," Erestor whispers confidentially. "And another thing, never compete with them either. It's not worth it."

Glorfindel sighs unhappily. "I guess you're right."

Erestor puts his arm around the blond Elf's shoulders. "Come with me to the library, we can have a glass of wine and talk of troublesome Elf-maidens."

Glorfindel perks up. "That's a fine..."

"Or…" Erestor continues with a wicked grin, "we can go to the dining hall and I can yell, "Here's the Balrog slayer'...!"

Glorfindel clamps a hand over Erestor's mouth, glaring down at the chief counselor. "You wouldn't dare!"

Prying Glorfindel's hand off his mouth, Erestor says slyly, "Or would I..."

To be continued in epilogue…

Author's Note: I will be posting the epilogue very soon, not to fear! Please tell me in a review what you think!