Hello, all! So, I probably know what you're thinking right about now…

"Another multi-chapter? Really, 1monster2? Really?"

Yes, really-I am starting another multi-chapter. This one probably won't be updated for a while, but I just wanted to get the first chapter out there, in order to say that I actually got it done. ;) This story is set before the Fellowship is formed-even before the book begins, and so the other Walkers (Fellowship members) will probably not appear, unless I add Aragorn in for some odd reason. Just a quick side note-the whole thing about the "Ladies of the Night" is something that I made up for my books that I'm writing…and felt that it was appropriate for this story. If you're interested in them, I can probably explain more about them, so feel free to PM me with questions!

DISCLAIMER I DON'T OWN LORD OF THE RINGS AND NEVER WILL I JUST LOVE TOLKIEN! I OWN SAELRIN, HADASSAH, AND THE OTHER LADIES OF THE NIGHT!

Quick note-Belhadron, Legolas's second-in-command, is an OC who does not belong to me either. He is on loan from the fantastic Scribe-of-Arda, who has agreed to let me borrow him on the condition that I treat him nicely. I love Belhadron, so there is no way that I will be hurting him! :D I hope I portrayed him correctly!

Please enjoy "Ladies of the Night" Chapter 1!

The blond Elf shifted his weight, rising slightly on the balls of his feet. Behind him, a black-haired Elf sighed in frustration. "Calm down-they'll be here soon." he murmured. "You look antsy, and that never bodes well in any discussion." The blond elf sighed, and his companion nodded slowly. "Yes, I know-but you have to have faith in these sorts of things, Legolas. Isn't that what you are always telling me?"

"That…is a fair point." Legolas murmured, looking over at his friend. "Why can't you come to all of my council meetings back home, then, if you are so wise?" Belhadron shook his head violently, pushing his friend slightly. "No way-you know me and politics. We don't get along very well. I'm surprised that I even decided to come on this trip." Legolas had been sent by his father to renew negotiations with the Lord and Lady of Lothlorien and to come to some sort of agreement about defensive strategies for the coming age. Belhadron-to the surprise of both-had decided to go with Legolas…although he had griped about it the entire trip. The group was briefly interrupted by a younger Elf running up towards them. "My Lord and Lady-the last patrol has returned."

"Saelrin and her Ladies?" At the Elf's nod, Lord Celeborn sighed. "Bring them in, then. They have been gone for much too long." The Elf immediately headed out of the room, running down the stairs as he did so. "Who is Saelrin?" Belhadron queried. "And who are the Ladies?"

"The Ladies of the Night are a core of female Elves who go around and guard Elvish and human lands at night. They've been trained to stay up many nights in a row and hear-and sense-things from many miles away. Saelrin leads our topmost company, and they have been scouting a group of Orcs encroaching on our northern borders for two months now. They were supposed to be back four weeks ago. We have had no word from them for a month."

The door opened again, and six figures walked in. They were all wearing dark blue cloaks, and still had their weapons strung over their backs and waists. As they entered, they removed their hoods, so that the other four could see their faces. The closest to them was a tall Elf with long black hair and brown-almost black-eyes. She was carefully looking over everyone in the room, standing slightly in front of the others. They also noticed a slightly smaller Elf talking to the rest of the group. She had honey blonde hair and bright hazel eyes. All six of the Elf maidens looked exhausted.

"It is good to see you again, Saelrin. We have missed you and your Ladies this last month." The blonde Elf turned towards Lady Galadriel and bowed. "It is good to see you as well, My Lady. We meant to be back sooner, but were…unavoidably delayed." She shot a glare towards the black-haired Elf, who shrugged, smirking at her. "You were the one who wanted to go and investigate it, Hadassah-not me!"

"You were the one who agreed to it!"

Saelrin rolled her eyes, a small smile lighting up her face. "Sorry about that, Lord Celeborn, Lady Galadriel…and guests…" She uncomfortably cut off, looking nervously at the other two Elves in the room. Lady Galadriel smiled. "Legolas and Captain Belhadron, meet Captain Saelrin, the highest-ranking captain of the Ladies of the Night."

"It's an honor, sirs…I am Saelrin Cylyn, and this is my second-in-command, Hadassah Gaeldrim…Hadassah?"

"Sael…we've got a problem." Everyone turned to see Hadassah kneeling by one of the other Ladies. The younger Elf was wincing in pain as the second gently pressed on her knee. "What is it, Hadassah?" Saelrin walked over to the group and knelt down, moving the other's pant knee up, before sucking in her breath. "What did you do, Brooke? You said you weren't injured!"

"I wasn't that bad when I got the slice! It just got bad once we got back. Plus, if I had mentioned it, you all would have made fun of me!"

"We would have teased you, yes, but it's not to be mean. It's just how we are, you know-I don't know why Lady Galadriel let us six be in a group together. We're the most sarcastic people I know."

"True that." Brooke chuckled. She accepted the helping hands from her friends and slowly levered herself to her feet. She then looked up at her rulers. "If it is all right with you, My Lord and Lady-"

"Yes, by all means go take care of your injuries, Brooke. We will only need to talk to Saelrin and Hadassah for a little while, and then they will be able to come and visit you. Go now and tend to yourself." Brooke nodded, and she and the other Ladies slowly made their way out of the room. Saelrin and Hadassah then both turn back to the others. "Saelrin…why was your company back so late? We were expecting you back a month ago from investigating the northern border."

"We did investigate the border, my Lady, and we cleared it of all Orcs." She sighed, flashing a glare behind her towards her second. "Then-"

"Then we got news that there was potentially an Orcish poison invading a nearby human village. We convinced Saelrin to let us check it out, and we found some flowers that were purportedly supposed to contain the poison inside of them. Then, we, uh…we convinced Sael to poke it with a stick. To see if it actually did contain poison."

"You told your captain to poke a flower…that could contain Orc poison…with a stick." Belhadron responded, staring at Hadassah. She shrugged, grinning as she did so. "None of the humans were going to do it, we're less affected by the poison, and she's just so eager to poke things with a stick."

"I am not eager to poke things with a stick-it's just a thing that happens!" Saelrin protested. Then, she smiled sheepishly. "Although…I am definitely not against poking things with a stick." She grinned quietly as Hadassah smacked her on the shoulder. "After that, we all were slightly affected by the poison and spent a week recovering, before then helping the humans to come up with an antidote that would work for them."

"And then we got waylaid by a couple Orc ambushes on the way back. We just entered the city thirty minutes ago." Hadassah finished. As the two Elves finished speaking, both Legolas and Belhadron could see how exhausted they both were, both looking in need of a day-long nap. Apparently Lady Galadriel could see it too, as she murmured, "Thank you for your report-both of you. Now, I want you two to go bathe, eat something, and then rest. Your fellow Ladies are doing the same thing. I am also pulling you all from active duty for the next month. You all need time to recover from a two-month mission that was only supposed to be one month long." Both Saelrin and Hadassah grinned, nodding, before bowing and starting out of the room. As they left, Legolas turned to Lady Galadriel. "Lady Galadriel, seeing as we know our way around Lothlorien, we could make sure that Saelrin and Hadassah do end up getting some rest."

"Yes, because you're so good at getting rest." Belhadron replied, rolling his eyes. Legolas chuckled slightly, before Lady Galadriel nodded. "Very well. Those two are not very good at taking care of themselves. They are more likely to stay up all night in their friends' rooms than rest themselves."

"Don't worry, my Lady-we'll make sure that they rest as well." Belhadron commented quietly. The two bowed again, and then left the room, following the same path that Saelrin and Hadassah had just traveled. "They are foolhardy and reckless…but strong." Belhadron murmured to Legolas as they walked. "I can see why the Lady Galadriel likes them." Legolas chuckled. "Yes-I can as well. They seem to remind me of us, when we were their age."

"Hmm-I can understand that. You were better looking then." Legolas let out a strangled gasp, but before he could smack Belhadron across the shoulders, his second dodged out of the way, before running ahead slightly. The blond Elf shook his head, smirking, before pursuing. Finally, they both reached the bottom of the hill and entered the large main building. They secured directions from a passing Lady, before walking up the stairs and entering the nearest room. It was a long room, with multiple beds on either side. Saelrin's company was sitting around one, where their injured friend was laying. "I'm all right, Saelrin-just a bit bruised. I'll be more than ready by the time we set out again."

"I know you will be, Brooke-as will the rest of us. Lady Galadriel took us off duty for the next month, so you'll have plenty of time to rehab your knee." Brooke groaned good-naturedly. She never liked being in bed-or in a bed in the hospital wing-and would usually sneak out after a week or so. Now that her team was benched for a month, they would be keeping a close eye on her. She looked away from the others briefly, and suddenly cleared her throat. "Sael, Dassah-we have visitors." All six Elves turned to see Legolas and Belhadron.

"How are you faring?" Legolas asked as they slowly walked closer, keeping an eye on Saelrin all the same. If he knew anything about Elvish captains (and he hoped he did, since he was one), there would be a maximum distance that he and Belhadron would be able to come within. Every captain got a bit jittery with strangers around their teammates, and so usually wouldn't let them past a certain point. As soon as Saelrin's eyes flashed in warning (when they were next to the closest bed), Legolas ground to a halt, Belhadron stopping almost as quickly. "I am doing well, thank you. An Orc landed a lucky hit on my knee as I was stabbing him in the gut. It's not too bad-"

"It got infected with poison, Brooke."

"Okay…so it could have been better…but I'm doing better now!" The rest of her team rolled their eyes, chuckling. Finally, Saelrin sighed. "All right, everyone-it's been a long two months, and we all need our rest. If you're not eating, relieving yourself, or visiting Brooke, I don't want you out of your rooms for the next week. Understood?" The other Ladies grumbled under their breath, but finally nodded, after receiving a glare from Hadassah. "Get going, then." she ordered gently. The four younger Ladies left slowly, all bowing to Legolas and Belhadron as they exited the room, who bowed in return. Eventually, it was only Saelrin, Hadassah, Legolas, and Belhadron in the room. "If I may ask, my Lord…why are you two here?" Hadassah quietly asked, turning towards the two older Elves. Legolas smiled at her. "First of all, please call me Legolas. I don't want my friends to act all formal around me-I already get enough of that with Aragorn…when he's being an idiot, anyways." He chuckled gently. "Second, we wish to help you."

"Help us?"

"Yes-I know from experience that the first night back in a…relatively safe…space after fighting for a long time is always disconcerting, especially when sleeping alone for the first night, since you've become accustomed to someone staying up on watch. Belhadron and I have both dealt with this before many times, and hope to prevent you two from having to deal with it." Saelrin and Hadassah looked at each other, seemingly having a silent conversation. "Very well…I would not mind the company, honestly." Saelrin finally murmured. Hadassah nodded, her dark eyes slowly searching both Legolas and Belhadron. The two Mirkwood Elves bowed slightly in response, and followed the younger Elves through a series of passageways and rooms into a cluster of large chambers. The first they entered seemed to be a sort of combination living room/kitchen, and was tinted a light blue, lots of natural light flowing in from the windows. In the back of the room were two sets of stairs-one curving to the right and one to the left. The two girls took off their cloaks and placed them on the hooks near the door, and the older Elves followed suit. "Are you not tired as well…Legolas?" Hadassah queried, looking over at him as she slowly sank into a chair. Legolas shook his head. "No-we arrived a week beforehand, and so have had time to sleep plenty while we waited for you to get here. It was almost strange to have that much time, given all that is going on back home." Both Saelrin and Hadassah sighed sympathetically as they stretched out, Saelrin beginning to fidget as she did so. "I know this probably doesn't mean much, but I am-we are-sorry about what is going on in Mirkwood. We have wished to lend aid for a long time, but have not had men or women to spare who were not protecting our borders."

"It does not mean much now, but thank you anyways." Belhadron murmured quietly, sitting down opposite them. He seemed unable to relax, and Legolas rested a hand on his shoulder. "Easy, my friend." he muttered, so quiet that only his second could hear him. "They mean no offense."

"Sael-stop fidgeting." Both Legolas and Belhadron looked over to see Hadassah rolling her eyes at Saelrin, who was staring right back at her. "What are you talking about-I'm not fidgeting."

"You were running your hands through your hair repeatedly a second ago, and now you're twisting them together in your lap. I don't know where exactly you picked that up, but it's not a normal Silvan thing to do, as you keep saying-nor do I think it's a Sindarin thing to do either-and neither is you actually feeling the cold as much as you do."

"I'm not cold either."

Hadassah was very clearly fighting the urge to smack her friend. "Sael-you're curled up under a blanket. In front of a fire. If that doesn't say cold, I don't know what does." Saelrin sighed (also clearly fighting the urge to punch her friend) before clasping her hands together. "There-not fidgeting." Hadassah rolled her eyes, gently smacking her on the shoulder as she did so. Belhadron cleared his throat, and both Elvish ladies turned to him. "Did you say…did you say that you are a Silvan Elf?" Hadassah nodded, while Saelrin bit her lip, clearly not sure what to say.

"I am a Silvan Elf, as is most everyone in our Tribe of Ladies. Brooke is the sole fully Sindarin Elf, and Sael here is…well…she's a hodgepodge." Saelrin let out a small chuckle. Seeing Legolas and Belhadron's confused faces, she explained, "I am two-and-a-half quarters Silven, a quarter Sindarin, and a half-quarter Noldorin. I get it from my parents…my father was a Silven Elf, and my mother was a half Sindarin-half Noldorian Elf." She smiled shyly. "Kind of puts me at odds with everyone, really."

"Surely not with everyone." Legolas teased, causing Saelrin to smile. She pulled the blanket a little more over her shoulders. "Okay, not everyone, but still…people don't like the fact that my mother was part Noldorian. Doesn't always make me the most popular person in Lorien." She sighed, looking over at the two Elves. "How did you two meet? Hadassah and I had an…interesting…interaction, but what happened between the two of you?" Belhadron turned and glared directly at Legolas, who chuckled, gently nudging him. "He took an arrow in the shoulder for me during a fight with some Orcs. I initially hated him for it, but he stubbornly wouldn't leave me alone, until I got stuck with this idiot."

"Glad to know you like me so much."

"You're welcome. How did you two meet?" Hadassah sighed, turning a little to glare at Saelrin, who smirked right back. "Don't look at me! It wasn't my fault!"

"Right. 'Oh look, there's a piece of meat on the ground! I'm going to poke it with a stick and see what happens!'"

"I was young and immature then!"

"So, what's changed?"

Saelrin rolled her eyes, and threw a nearby pillow at her second, who easily dodged it. "We were part of another Tribe of Ladies then, and had separated briefly from the others to try to track down some Orcs." Hadassah explained. "We reached a small farm and found a random piece of meat lying on the ground. Sael, being the person she is, decided to poke it with a stick to see what happened. We ended up dangling upside-down for four hours, until the hunters who had set the snare came back and found us trapped inside."

"And of course those hunters turned out to be a group of goblins who had wandered really far from Moria and gotten hungry." Saelrin chuckled. "Once we got out of that situation, we realized that we worked extremely well together, and began to hang out and interact with each other a lot more. Then, when we heard that there were open training positions for Captains and Deputy Captains, we signed up, and ended up leading our own Tribe."

"And she still likes to poke things with a stick."

"Oh, shut up."

Belhadron began to laugh, and both Saelrin and Hadassah looked over at him in confusion. "My apologies," he finally replied, "but you remind me of Legolas and myself when we were younger. We acted much the same as you do now. Legolas would say that he has grown up since then, but I disagree." Both Saelrin and Hadassah let out loud peals of laughter, smiling at the Elvish prince, who at this point couldn't even level a glare at Belhadron, settling instead for an expression that seemed almost like a pout. This, in turn, made the other three Elves laugh even harder.

After a while, Hadassah sighed. "Well, I don't really want to end my part in this conversation…but I feel like I'm going to fall asleep right here and now…so unless anyone needs me, I'm going to head up to bed." She grinned tiredly over at Saelrin. "Don't stay up too much longer, Sael. I know that face, and I know that you're going to try to stay up as long as you can…but you were the person who stayed up all night for the last fourteen days that we were traveling. If anyone needs rest, it's you." She slowly got up, waving good night to the others before climbing the left-hand staircase. Saelrin sighed, smiling gently. "She worries too much sometimes."

"Is it true that you stayed up fourteen nights in a row?"

"Yes, but-"

"And you were awake during the days as well?"

"Yes, but-"

"Then you should get some sleep. We'll be here making sure that no one disturbs you…now go and rest. You need it." Saelrin attempted to glare at him, but sighed almost immediately afterwards. "Fine-I'm too tired to think of an adequate response to that…or to properly glare at you." She stood up, stretching as she did so. "Are you sure you really want to do this?"

"Yes, Saelrin-we want to do this. We know what it's like to go through this sort of thing alone, and don't want you to have to as well." Saelrin sighed, recognizing that she was not going to be able to convince Legolas or Belhadron otherwise. "Well…goodnight, then. Hopefully I will be a more coherent person in the morning." She smirked at them, before turning and heading up the right-hand staircase. Both of the older Elves watched her go, and turned to face each other as soon as she walked out of sight.

"Do you want to watch Saelrin, or would you rather take Hadassah? I'm fine with either."

"Shouldn't you take Saelrin, though? You are the Captain."

"True-but don't tell me you didn't feel at least some kinship towards her."

"I felt the same way with Hadassah."

"Still, it doesn't matter to me which one, which is why I'm letting you choose."

"…Very well, I'll watch over Saelrin. You keep an eye on Hadassah."

"Glad we finally got that sorted out."

"Shut up."

A/N 2: Well…I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I'm currently flying blind on this one, so hopefully I outline it and make a plan soon! I actually enjoyed writing this, as I haven't written any Tolkien fanfics since my dud Hobbit story, so it's nice to get back into Middle Earth and start playing around in there. ;) Hopefully this chapter is all right! I should (cross your fingers) be able to upload in a couple of weeks for spring break…so there's that too. ;)

Again, massive thanks to Scribe-of-Arda, who allowed me to borrow Belhadron for this story, and who is probably one of my best friends on this site! Thanks so much, Scribe-you rock! :D

Well, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you all soon!

God bless,

1monster2