Disclaimer: I do not own or claim any of the characters or the world of The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien.
She clambered over the dirt-covered rocks. Her feet continued to plod over the grassy landscape, tired and worn-over with blisters and scratches. Rodaìn limped slightly due to the poor condition of her feet. Earlier in her travels, her gray and white horse had collapsed after falling down a sudden rock-face. Unfortunately, she had to leave him behind due to her lack of healing skills and his two broken legs. It saddened her, but she had nowhere to turn back to.
Rodaìn's tense senses picked up the faint sounds of footsteps and rustling. She quickly turned around and her eyes noted figures not far behind herself. She whirled around, her feet shuffling in a haphazard direction. Her bulky brown cloak flapped with the hurried movements. I must hide. I cannot be seen, not now.
She managed to find a small grove of trees which she stumbled into. Frantically spinning around, Rodaìn found a tree that she could climb up, to hide from searching eyes. She was hyperventilating. She was panicking.
Rodaìn could not see well through the leafy foliage, but the noises grew louder over the conflict with the other noises of the valley. Peering through, she counted three definite figures, but there were an uncountable number of others traversing through the high grass. Rodaìn stayed silent and bit her lip, hard, in an attempt to control her breathing. Her fingers trembled as she gripped the tree branch she was perched on. Rodaìn waited in violent anxiety for the travelers to pass by.
"Legolas, I see no figure upon this hill. Did you notice where it may have gone off to?" a messy, dark brown-haired ranger questioned another figure as he sauntered up the hill, just to the right of the tree grove.
"I know not. Perhaps we should survey the area," a blonde elf suggested. Rodaìn had seen many elves during her stay at Rivendell, and had almost grown used to their beauty. However, they possessed an individual aura, one that never failed to stun her at every sight. Due to the light hair color and green garb, she assumed this elf hailed from Mirkwood.
Her body started to shake as she bit her lip harder at hearing their plan. Oh no. Can't be found. I cannot be found. Not back. Oh no. Not now.
Her breathing picked up again. She was on the verge of a panic attack. One of her fingers snapped a twig at the the sudden increase of pressure place upon it. The elf's head whipped towards the trees and Rodaìn held her trembling body still as best as she could. It was a poor attempt.
The elf strung his bow as he slowly advanced. My bow. Oh no, now how will I avoid death. Then again, maybe it would be for the best.
Still yearning to protect herself, she slid her hand down her boot and gripped the biting metal of her dagger. Taking her bow off her shoulder would attract to much attention, and she had enough unwanted attention placed upon herself at the moment.
The elf halted several feet away from her tree, far enough that she knew her aim with her dagger may prove faulty. His eyes fully scanned her hooded form now, crouched and shaking against the tree branch.
Sticks crunched as the ranger approached her tree as well. She did not know what to do. She knew they each had the ability to outrun her and easily overpower her limited ability with weapons. Rodaìn waited for them to make the next move.
"I ask you to dismount this tree. Come down slowly and drop your dagger right now. We have you outnumbered and I regret to inform you that you do not stand a chance against us. We wish to seek your business in these uncharted lands."
She dropped her dagger, disappointed that she had not been as sneaky as she first thought. Rodaìn climbed down the tree slowly. She was scared. She did not know what they would do to her. One could never trust men, or elves for that matter. With no other choice, she turned to face them.
"I ask that you remove your hood, as we wish to know the identity of the one we question."
Her hand hovered over her mouth, her breaths coming out in a forced calmness so as not to reveal her true state of fright, and clasped the edge of her hood. Rodaìn glanced back up at the ranger, seeing him give her a slight nod at the beginnings of her action. She inhaled a deep breath through her nose, and dropped the hood of her cloak, wholly unprepared for the reaction to this action.