Disclaimer: I do not own any of Tolkien's works.
A/N: Thank you for all the reviews. Doing some brainstorming, but I'm going to post the story as I wrote it for Nanowrimo. If you have any suggestions for changes, please share. Each character made their contribution, and I'm trying to make sure Glorfindel's isn't too extraordinary. Most stuff I want to change is in RotK, but I'm up to editing and adding more scenes in this part of the story later.
Chapter 7
They ran a considerable distance from the exit before the hobbits collapsed in tears. Glorfindel could not bear to force the hobbits onwards when their grief was so deep they couldn't see the world in front of them. Frodo's eyes met Glorfindel's for a moment, filled with shocked pain and sorrow, as if he still couldn't believe what had happened. Glorfindel couldn't believe it himself, but when he tried to stretch his senses to find Mithrandir's presence, there wasn't even the smallest trace. If Mithrandir was still in any way alive, the crevice in which he fell would have to be considerably deep. If that were the case, Glorfindel could only hope Mithrandir's passing would be painless because that was the only hope left to him.
Estel's grief manifested in a much different form than the rest of the company. He held his emotions tightly to himself, letting not a glimmer of grief appear on his face. With great strength in his voice, he said, "We must leave now. By evening orcs will cover these lands, looking for any trace of our presence. We need to travel a substantial distance before nightfall."
Boromir resisted the orders. "Give them a moment! Their grief is too great."
Glorfindel seconded Estel's orders, adding, "If we give them a moment now, we may not escape pursuit later. We must quickly make our way to Lothlórien. If we can pass into their borders, we have a better chance of avoiding battle altogether."
"Help them up, Legolas, Gimli. Glorfindel, if you can," Estel asked, looking pointedly at Frodo and Sam. Glorfindel nodded, despite the fact he did not want to be placed in such a position. In the face of the balrog, the balrog slayer had been completely useless, and the guilt was eating him alive. Gandalf had been right in saying great elven lords would have little bearing on such a quest. All Glorfindel had to offer was his so called strength and wisdom, which had been for naught in the face of his worst nightmare.
Glorfindel pulled Frodo and Sam quickly to his side. Their injuries, much like his own, needed to be tended to, but there was little time or opportunity to address them. "We need to get a certain distance away from this place before we can tend to our wounds. I will stay by your side, so let me know when the pain becomes too much." His arm stung at the reminder, and he struggled to keep his face from grimacing. It needed salve and bandages, but until they made the time, it would have to go without treatment.
The two hobbits nodded, silent. Glorfindel would have preferred to probe them further and help them a little past their grief. All he could do was place a hand on each of their shoulders and squeeze gently. Glorfindel hated himself for offering such pathetic comfort to his comrades, but it was all he could do.
Frodo, who seemed to have sensed Glorfindel's thoughts much to his shock, stared into his eyes, contemplative. A small pale hand covered Glorfindel's and squeezed back. This little hobbit looked to be trying his best to get Glorfindel to cry, or at least that was what golden-haired elf was feeling in the face of such compassion. Glorfindel gave the smallest of smiles back, with a quiet, "Thank you."
They stopped momentarily at Durin's stone, where Gimli insisted on his need to see the location where Durin had looked into the Mirrormere; with him he brought Frodo and Sam to gaze upon the wonders remembered by all dwarves. Glorfindel followed behind, keeping a careful eye on the mountain.
Gimli's awe carried on to his companions as he suggested, "Let us look in the Mirrormere and see what we may."
While holding his elbow painfully tight to temporarily block the pain, Glorfindel looked in and let out a low whistle. There certainly was a type of magic to the location; in the beautiful stillness of the lake was the mirror image of the mountain peaks, like sparkling jewels. Caradhras was one of the beautiful gems in the image, and Glorfindel wondered if Caradhras had always been so cruel or if its cruelty had been a result of the evils that had slipped into Moria.
He urged the two hobbits and Gimli to return quickly to the fellowship. They didn't have any more time to delay their retreat from Moria; he had no doubts the orcs would pursue them given the chance. Only the light of the sun prevented any imminent attack.
They finally reached the wooded area beyond the mountains, and Estel led the fellowship down a direct path to Lothlórien; they could not afford to take any detours. Glorfindel maintained his position at the rear of the company, giving Frodo and Sam encouraging words to keep them moving.
Heartening words, however, could only push the body beyond its limit for so long. Glorfindel hated to admit it, but he was not just keeping Sam and Frodo company but lagging behind with them. He longed to shout out Estel's name, but he could hardly breathe while exerting the effort to keep moving. He clenched his jaw as hot sharp pain traveled up his arm with every step forward. Likewise Sam was shivering, likely a response from some kind of poison while Frodo gasped for breath with a pained expression.
Finally, finally, Legolas looked back at them and spoke to Estel, and the company halted. Estel, Boromir, and Legolas rushed back, worried expressions spread across their faces.
Estel apologized to Frodo. "I did not mean to ignore your pains; you should have told us. We are in need of haste, but we could have taken time to address your wounds. As well as Sam and Glorfindel. Only a little further to a place we can stop to rest. Boromir." Estel turned to the other man and elf. "We must carry the hobbits. Legolas, stay by Glorfindel's side and offer support as needed."
Glorfindel could only be glad no one asked if he needed to be carried. The horrors if such were to happen and Elladan and Elrohir found out. He would never ever hear the end of it. With that thought, he could push himself a little further. From time to time, Legolas had to keep him from falling, but otherwise Glorfindel did a decent job of keeping himself moving.
They crossed a stream that would eventually join the Silverlode before taking rest. Gimli and the two younger hobbits took care of starting a fire while Frodo, Sam and Glorfindel were being tended to.
As luck would have it, Sam had not been poisoned, which caused both Glorfindel and Estel to sigh in relief. Orc blades were normally poisoned, and it could only be called a stroke of luck that Sam's first wound and kill did not yield those results.
It was Frodo's injury that got the most attention, though it had nothing to do with his wound and everything to do with the pretty mithril shirt he had under his clothes.
Estel laughed. "It looks like there is more to hobbits than I can keep up with. More would travel to the shire if they knew what hobbits had in their possession."
Glorfindel disagreed with a smirk. "Not just any hobbit could have that. If I'm not mistaken, that's the mithril shirt gifted to Bilbo."
"Gandalf's description did not do it justice," Gimli said, in awe of the sight before him.
Frodo was blushing profusely, trying to cover the silver corslet back up. Estel quickly regained his senses and had the embarrassed hobbit to take it off. Underneath was a large ugly bruise, and finally Glorfindel heard the story about the injury.
"You were skewered?" Glorfindel asked faintly. "That corslet is even more precious for keeping you alive."
Compared to the two hobbits, Glorfindel's injuries were not too severe. The burn on his arm could have been much worse, and Estel applied athelas-infused water to it, which could only serve to temporarily ease it. The real problem was that his body was ridiculously exhausted, and he could barely hold himself up. As such all Estel could do was give him a sip of miruvor out of his own pack. "You will be able to rest for a time in Lothlórien, but not before we reach the borders. Will you be able to keep up?" Estel asked with concern.
Glorfindel wryly replied, "You think I can admit otherwise?" He wasn't particularly happy about showing any weakness anywhere near Galadriel's borders. They may be allies, but that didn't mean Glorfindel had to actively like her.
His grudge against certain Noldor could be described as childish as he had no direct dealings with the kinslayers. However after hearing the stories from King Turgon, his mind always held those elves who had willingly left the Blessed Realm with contempt. To disregard the words of the Valar, to kill kin who refused to accompany them, Glorfindel could not forgive that quest for power. That quest had broken friendships and families apart just for the retrieval of the Silmarils. And so many died as a result…
Estel read his dark thoughts, Glorfindel would love to learn how he did that, and asked, "Is there going to be any problems getting you and Galadriel in the same room together?"
"As long as she keeps her mind out of my thoughts, we'll be fine," Glorfindel grumbled. Though he couldn't help but privately think that pigs would fly before Galadriel valued others' privacy.
Glorfindel shouldn't have been surprised that Haldir and his brothers would try to sneak up on them. He could only be amused at his comrades' surprised reactions. What had surprised him was the instant dislike imposed on Gimli by Lothlórien's elves. Also a surprise was the level of anger it incited within Glorfindel.
He adamantly refused to leave the hobbits in their own talan. Really it was not because he didn't trust them, but he would prefer to yell at them without embarrassing Gimli.
"Gimli is a trustworthy member of our company," Glorfindel seethed, after making sure the hobbits could not hear their whispered argument. "He showed great courage in the face of our enemy, and we all owe it to each other to defend our collective honor. You diminish that honor by distrusting our comrade."
Haldir didn't seem to be listening. "That all may be true, but we do not trust dwarves. Why should it pain you if we blindfold him for a time?"
"Will you join him?" Glorfindel asked. "Maybe then I would allow it, though you would also look like a fool. Even then, if you do not, the entire fellowship will suffer similar fates. Either we all go free, or we all go sightless. I can guarantee Estel will have the same reaction."
Haldir left without another word, and Glorfindel could only hope Haldir would regain his intelligence over the night. He did not fancy living by his words and walk blindfolded through Galadriel's woods.
After checking on the hobbits individually, he settled himself at the edge of the talan. The pain in his arm had slowly intensified since Estel treated it, but he would have to live with it until they had access to better treatments. Exhaustion tugged at his mind, struggling to pull him under its strong effects. Instead of letting it succeed, though, he focused on expanding his senses once more. Moria was now too far away to try to sense Mithrandir, so he centered his attention on any orc presences. And yes, there was the sense of filth coming in from the west.
"Haldir," Glorfindel whispered loudly. Rúmil silently appeared beside him. "Do you have a patrol nearby to take care of the incoming orcs?"
Rúmil paused to consider Glorfindel, almost as if he couldn't believe who was in front of him. Glorfindel gently prodded him before Rúmil admitted, "We have some elves who will lead them away to a larger patrol laying an ambush. They will not find us here."
Glorfindel nodded before dismissing the elf. If Rúmil was displeased, it did not show. Glorfindel shuddered to think that he had found another elf who hero-worshipped him. He did not want nor need the attention for dying in battle alongside his enemy, doing his duty to his king's heir. He knew the fellowship would be curious of his confrontation with the balrog; he had heard Legolas give some of them a hurried explanation of his past despite Estel's disapproval. If he did not want the hobbits to misunderstand, he would have to share his story. The whole story.
After that, Glorfindel could not fall asleep even if he tried. That in itself turned out to be godsend as his sensitive ears picked up the soft sounds of someone or something moving on the ground.
The creature , whatever it was, had a unique breathing pattern, and it seemed to be muttering words under its breath. Glorfindel peeked through the leaves to find the creature moving softly but swiftly up the tree. At that moment, Haldir returned, arrow strung and drawn, scaring the creature away.
Turning around, Glorfindel was startled to find Frodo right behind him. His senses were definitely not working properly, even if hobbits were well known for their ability to vanish in the background. Frodo inquired softly, "Was that Gollum?"
Glorfindel started, before peering back out into the darkness. "You may be correct. If that is the case, he may have been following us since Moria."
Frodo gazed at Glorfindel with a confused look. "You didn't know that before? Gandalf and I heard him creep too close during one of our breaks in the mines."
Their conversation was interrupted by Haldir, who had returned after attempting to follow the creature. In his usual domineering voice, at least according to Glorfindel's ears, Haldir asked, "Do you know what that creature was?"
Glorfindel stayed silent as Frodo explained, "That is Gollum, and he has been following us for a time. We should probably tell Aragorn." The last part was addressed to Glorfindel who nodded in agreement.
"We may have a couple of things to tell Aragorn," Glorfindel said while eyeing Haldir carefully. But either Haldir had no answer or was purposefully ignored Glorfindel's pointed statement; he refused to answer and withdrew from the talan.
"Go back to sleep, Frodo. I will keep watch." Glorfindel informed the hobbit calmly.
Frodo however seemed to have lost his will to acquiesce. "You are just as tired, if not more so, than myself. We seem to be guarded sufficiently, so please rest with us. We may need your sharp mind tomorrow if Haldir or the other elves try to force their will on Gimli." With many soft words edged with forceful tones, Frodo forced the elf to lay down beside the others. As Glorfindel's eyes closed despite his best efforts to stay awake, he couldn't help but wonder when Frodo had become just important to him as Estel or Elrond.
Feeling well rested after the night's sleep, Glorfindel was more than prepared to take on the stubbornness of elves and dwarves. After watching the hobbits reach the ground safely, he slipped away to where Estel was standing. He quickly informed the man of all the happenings since they separated before deferring to Estel; he wanted to make sure Estel knew Glorfindel would follow the man's orders.
Estel slowly said, thinking through his words, "I'm not surprised about Haldir's reaction. I would have been if Haldir welcomed Gimli with open arms. However our safety is in their hands, and we should try to keep any disagreements from escalating."
Glorfindel asked, "Would you have Gimli suffer the humiliation alone?"
"Oh no," Estel smirked. "We cannot have that. It is their responsibility to lead us safely if we all must suffer such humiliation. And I have no doubts Gimli will put them firmly in their places if anyone so much as stumbles. More so, it is Legolas we should be worried about. He will feel more injustice at the slight."
Glorfindel asked, puzzled, "You mean at having the prince of the Greenwood wear a blindfold? We are a fellowship, bonded by our common goal. He should understand and accept."
Estel laughed. "My friend, where have your eyes been the last couple of weeks? They're still nowhere close to a working relationship."
Rolling his eyes, Glorfindel said, "And so the side show continues."
Thanks for reading! Please review if you have the time : )
RenoOfTheTroika
