Chapter 4

The shortcut

…

"LEGOLAS!" Élchalad screamed, panic rose in her chest when she looked out in the cliff. "You stupid Elf!" She screamed down when she saw him, completely fine, looking up at her and laughing.

"You said you didn´t worry about me!" He yelled back at her with a smile on his face.

"Be quiet! You´ll distract every evil creature!" She yelled back.

"Ha! Says you!" She growled. "Come on, it´s quite safe. It´s like falling on a pillow." Élchalad looked around and saw all the usual sharp edges that could kill you slowly.

"I´m going to kill this Elf one day," she whispered and then let herself fall. She rolled down, in the most inelegant way of a woman. Legolas had to laugh seeing her. She ended up on her butt, with her eyes still shut. "Shut up, Elf!" She snapped at him, making a snowball and hit him in his neck.

"Ow!" He said. She knew it didn´t hurt. He bent down to make a snowball. Élchalad placed her hand on the snow and the ice reached out towards Legolas. He did not notice the ice until it was too late and he slipped right on his back. "Now that did hurt." Élchalad laughed. "And that was not fair."

"Oh really?" Élchalad laughed. She stood up and looked up before them. Legolas had fallen through the snow, finding a cave under. She frowned. "I´ve been going this way multiple times, with friends too, nothing like this has ever happened." She turned to Legolas. "Unless you wood-elves weight more." She joked.

"Ha, ha," he said with sarcasm. "Where are we?" Élchalad looked around, it was six tunnels leaving away from where they were. But where they stood had shocked Élchalad with surprise. The walls were made of ice, and the light that came from the hole above made different colours to it.

It was few tall ice spikes here, which in Élchalad eyes, only made it beautiful. "I have not a slightest idea," she said. "Never been here before." Legolas looked into the tunnels, it was pitch black, even for Elven eyes. Élchalad kneeled down and let her hands touch the little snow that was here, the rest was covered with ice, not even earth.

Ice came from underneath her hands and it went to every direction of the tunnels. She had her eyes closed. Legolas thought he saw the ice shine brighter, almost like a light. After few minutes, Élchalad opened her eyes.

"It´s nothing in there for miles, though I do think that leads the way out," she said and pointed one way.

"You think?" Legolas asked. She looked at him, placed her hands on her hips.

"Yes, I think. Did I not mention that I don´t know where we are, and I´ve never been here before?" She asked him. Legolas sighed.

"Forgive me," he said. Élchalad rolled her eyes.

"Wood-elves and their polite talk," she mumbled. Legolas smiled by it. He followed her through the tunnel she thought would lead them out. For Legolas he thought it only led them further in, but he did not question her. He didn´t actually know the way out better.

After hours of walking they had approached to a slighter bigger tunnel, almost the same as they jumped into at first. They looked up and could barely see the light through the ice. Though it was getting darker in here.

"I think we should hurry up," Legolas said. "I don´t like this place." He met Élchalad glare. "No offence, but I like myself up there better."

"Same here, it is something wrong about this place." They continued to walk faster, until they both stopped. They heard noises in the dark. Hissing noises.

Orcs.

"We are lost! Again!" One Orc said. "I thought you said this will lead directly to the filths kingdom!"

"It does!" One Orc said. "Trust me, you idiot, I know where we´re going!" Everything went quiet. "Do you smell that boys, Elves!" Élchalad and Legolas looked at each other worried before they ran the way they came from quietly. Élchalad had blocked the tunnel with a thick ice, not having the risk to let the Orcs follow them.

"Will the ice hold?" Legolas asked when they came back to the start.

"Yes, don´t worry about that," she answered. She looked at the other tunnels; she then looked up at the hole they came from. "How much food do we have left?" Legolas checked the sack he had been carrying.

"Not much," he said. "How far are we from where you will leave me?" He asked her.

"Three days," she answered. "If we can get out of here." They tried another tunnel, and ended up seeing Orcs again, so they walked back. Élchalad yet again blocked the tunnel with ice. They tried every single tunnel, and all of them were filled with Orcs.

"Now what?" Élchalad asked as they returned once more.

"It´s your land," Legolas said. She looked at him with stupidity.

"Really? Ah, stupid Elf," she whispered and went to one wall that did not have a tunnel on. She sat down against it. Legolas watching her as she sat down, she was nervous and afraid. He saw it easily. He sat down next to her.

"The Orcs will die if they reach your forest," he said to her. She did not answer to it, not look at him either. "For thousands of years you´ve lived up here in the north. Orcs won´t kill you and your kin."

"You don´t know that," she finally said. "If I only can warn them, I might spare the lives. They will get the time to set up defences."

"Let´s go directly to them." She looked at him as if he was insane. "I mean, I´ll come with you. I don´t care what they will do to me."

"You´re stupid, you know that right?"

"I did hear a woman say it," he said. She rolled her eyes again. "A beautiful woman at least."

"I hate you," she whispered. Legolas chuckled. "After everything I did, you could have killed me. I´m not letting you come closer to my people, they will know you´re from Greenwood."

"It will be worth it, Élchalad. We cannot fall into the darkness, for it feels like it grows every day."

"It does," she said. "We see it every day." She rested her head on his shoulder. "Even after his defeat, the Orcs still increasing. As if he never died." Legolas saw it frightened her speaking of this, of Sauron; even it did not look like it when he was her prisoner. Legolas hesitated at first, but he touched her cheek. She took his hand, keeping it close.

"We see it in Them," she continued. "They can see the darkness is growing, and so can we. Even the stars tell us that."

"For helping me, I´m not going to let anything hurt you," he said. She looked up at him. "You will not fall into the darkness, neither your people."

"You´re not an bad Elf after all," she said. They both smiled, their lips coming closer and then they kissed.

…

Legolas took a deep breath of the free air out in the sun. They had been stuck in the tunnel for two days, not that they actually mind it being there, for they didn´t. They wanted to stay their forever, only the two of them. But they were already low on supplies entering it and now it was empty.

Legolas helped Élchalad up and they both looked around. Élchalad had no problem being down there, it was worse for Legolas. He took his arm around her, taking her closer to him. She looked up at him and smiled.

After they had found supplies in this winter morning, they left for south. Through dangerous cliffs, thin ice that could break beneath them and sometimes through an Orc pack that ended up dead in the snow.

Élchalad stopped and looked ahead. Legolas saw what she looked at. The green lands. "Over the hill there should be a village, and from there you can go south to Imladris," she said to him. She did not like saying it. "I suggest you to not go directly to east."

"I know, those paths are not safe," Legolas said. She turned to him.

"Promise me you´ll be fine, promise me you don´t go after me." Legolas did not answer to it. "Please, Legolas. You cannot come back to find me." Legolas looked around and saw a great oaken tree. He walked under it, bringing Élchalad with him.

"In two months," he said. "I´ll be standing under here, waiting for you. I don´t want to leave and never see you again." She smiled to him.

"Two months, all right," she answered. "I´ll be here." She went in her pocket and took up the crystal, placing it in his hand. "Have this, a remember of me. Don´t forget me."

"I could never do that," he said and kissed her. They did not want to break apart, but when they did, Legolas pulled up a knife. "Keep this."

"I—"

"Keep it," he said. She took the knife. It was beautiful. "Come with me when you return, to Greenwood. Stay with me."

"Your father won´t allow it because of who I am, where I come from." He touched her cheek.

"He will, for he wants me to be happy." She smiled and kissed his lips.

"Very well," she finally said. "Go." Legolas kissed her one more time and he went off. Legolas kept walking back as he left her. Élchalad stood there, looking at his disappearing form.

"Your father will not approve us," she said. Legolas was too far from her to hear her. "Not one of me. Take care Legolas son of King Thranduil. Let the stars shine upon your journey, on your path." She tightened her hold on the crystal in her hand. She looked up at the sky. "Until our next meeting."