Hello everyone reading this and welcome back to another chapter of Resilience. I know that you probably didn't expect a chapter so soon due to my track record for being busy, but I really like keeping you guys guessing. I have been told a few times by my co-writer for 'The Monster Within' - a badass, dark!female Harry Potter/Tom Riddle Fanfic if you guys are the slightest bit interested - that she doesn't understand how I keep up with it all. (Check her profile out if you want at AvalonTheLadyKiller. She had an awesome story called Iridescent, check it out if you like HP.) I have this awesome, huge binder that keeps everything together and I use Google Docs more than half of the time to write up chapters. My muse hits me more on some stories than it does on others, so please continue to bare with me!
The chapter has a bit of an overview to it, since I really want to move the story along and I know for a fact that you do too. I will probably do this sort of thing here and there in the form of flashbacks. I hope that you like it! Thank you for your continued support (and my multiple cups of strong coffee that helps me soooo much, btw). I thank you for your reviews, favorites and follows. For those that have just discovered my story or are already caught up, feel free to overlook the 'Previously on Resilience' part that follows this. :D This has more three thousand words.
Chapter 8: The drums of War
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Previously on Resilience:
And as Elesia gripped her stomach that now ached painfully, she quickly told Gandalf of the pains she felt when he asked about the movement… of how she swore upon everything she was and hoped to be that she was not involved in Bilbo's disappearing act. As she watched her friend head off to Bilbo's house after she had spoken to him, she couldn't fathom just what was to come. Though a sensation settled heavily within her gut, warning her of what she yet knew naught.
The crowd began to talk excitedly amongst each other, one theory as outrageous as the next at how exactly Bilbo turned invisible like he had; none but her realizing that Frodo still stared at the now empty stool with a permanent look of disbelief etched on his face.
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Elesia worried her lip as she stared after the trail that Gandalf had disappeared down to get to Bilbo's cottage quicker than the Hobbit himself would - a shortcut, if you would like call it such - before turning her attentions back to Frodo. He was but a mere boy that was now losing his Uncle to a wandering heart, how he must have felt when Bilbo revealed his true reason for the celebration that he had insisted upon. She hoped that Gandalf could find a way center his friend, Elesia may not know the events that lead to Frodo living with his Uncle… but she was sure that he needed someone to lean on. Everyone did once in awhile, naught everyone could be strong all the time. Lapse of judgements were made, lives were lost every day, it was best to hold dear to what you had and fight to keep it that way.
She moved forward to the dark haired Hobbit and gently placed a hand on his shoulder, making him become startled out of the trance that had captured Frodo's attention. Elesia was sure that he was still in shock, still trying to piece together why Bilbo would want to leave the Shire; but then again the fae was also positive that Frodo didn't know of the open world outside of his home. Sure, he knew of what Gandalf had spoke of but he hadn't seen it for himself. A dreamer is what he was, imagining what others have witnessed without taking the leap to see for himself. Frodo didn't know of the freedom that came with being out there, the adrenaline that pounded through your blood as you stepped out of your comfort zone and into the unknown.
"Gandalf went to speak with him." Elesia felt compelled to tell him; for if anyone could pull someone back from the edge, she knew without wavering loyalty that Gandalf would be able to do so. Frodo knew of that also, the calming ability that the old wizard radiated unto those around him, making the Hobbit nod his head once in understanding before turning his gaze away. She wished she could offer up something to calm him, but as she tried to find the words to say Elesia also dismissed the empty words that came to mind. Frodo deserved more than that, so instead of speaking empty promises that things would be alright, Elesia decided to take his mind off of it. If she fulfilled her curiosity at the same time with doing so, Elesia knew she'd naught complain. "So Frodo… what is Ale made out of?"
He slowly turned his face back to her, gazing up at her with the wide blinking orbs that silently expressed his confusion before he even parted his lips to speak, "...What? Ale?"
"Exactly." Elesia murmured exasperated with both her hands coming up in emphasis, pure confusion on her face before she thought to explain why she is asking, "I may or may not have stole Gandalf's drink and it was repulsive. He then called it 'Ale', before laughing at my disgust." She pouted her bottom lip out heavily and crossed her arms around her chest as she moved to sit in the empty spot behind him, "Laughing, Frodo, can you believe it?! Such actions are nothing less than treason of the highest order."
Frodo's shoulders began to shake and then his whole body vibrated, before he finally released the laughter that swelled within him, absentmindedly registering the use of his name that passed Elesia's lips that wasn't as irritated as she would have liked. "Ale is a type of beer." He answered her gently, a soft snort of amusement leaving him as he took in her blank expression that was completed with a downturn of her lips and rapidly blinking eyes, "An alcoholic beverage that has a sweet, fruity taste to it. I heard some places make it much bitter than-" He took pause at how she processed the word 'bitter' in her mind, turning it over and over again as if Elesia couldn't imagine such a thing. "I am guessing then that you really don't care for it?"
Elesia shivered from head to toe before shaking her head from side to side, "I am used to water, pure and untouched. Before I awakened, we didn't have such things when I grew up from a little pixie. Not that my parents would allow such things, mind you. I admit that it was sweet, but certainly not the things that I am used to. Around my home, my ancestors grew these plants that came with the sweetest leaves you would ever taste. Pure, simple and sweet. Pixies craved them throughout the various stages they went through. This Ale tastes nothing like of what I know, it tastes too sweet to me somehow. As if I am sucking on a fermented berry that lost all of it's natural flavor in the end."
Her lips twisted in a downturned expression at the end of her assessment, before downcasting her entire face altogether as she thought of what once was. Her hair proved to be the perfect veil to hide her face from view, and as Elesia sighed out a deep breath that she hoped would take all her troubles away. Unrealistic, even as it was.
Suddenly a hand cupped her right shoulder, the side where Frodo was sitting, and even before she turned Elesia knew it was he that lended her comfort this time. "I would offer to get you water now but I reckon we should check on Uncle Bilbo soon. Maybe he would let you have some there?" He smiled gently up at her face before standing up with a flourish that parted her lips into a mirroring grin. Frodo shifted his features into one that reflected seriousness before the Hobbit straightened up his posture, bowed his head in respect and offered out his left hand for her to take. "Madam?"
For what seemed to be the hundredth time now since she came to the Shire earlier today, Elesia laughed freely as she place her hand in Frodo's in an effort to 'assist' her up from her seat. No one before him had done so since her awakening, and whilst he do so teasingly - she liked the warm feeling that flooded her heart at the action. Even though she didn't need the assistance in doing tasks, Elesia didn't have the heart to push away the familiarity of it. Moreover, Frodo acted this way because he wanted to and that in itself almost brought her to tears.
As she was pulled along by the hand that Frodo had yet to let go of, Elesia caught up with his rapidly paced footsteps as took down the half beaten path that Gandalf had traveled before them. And whilst the night air rapidly decreased in temperature, Elesia smiled gleefully at the back of Frodo's dark curls that reflected slightly with the moon that hung high above the Earth. She sensed that he was destined for greater things than what could be found here within the Shire, Elesia just didn't know what path would lead him there. With each step that they took however, the duo of them knew naught the darkness that hounded their footsteps.
Elesia groaned from within the depth of the darkness that shrouded Bilbo's cottage, the slight pain slowly beginning to increase from where she laid in a fetal position of the bed. She rose with slight difficulty from the soft covers that stilled beneath her, stretching her little arms above her head. The fae had remained in her true form since the event that occurred just a week ago, only now she was about the size of a pointer finger. Clad was she within one of the soft blue dresses that was fashioned for her form, the bottoms of each side met in downward triangles before the material twisted into a delicate looking spiral. The fae was left to blink confusingly for a moment, taking in her surroundings through sleep ridden eyes. It also seemed that for the time length that she was here happened to be much shorter than what it was in reality. Maybe it was due to the fact of how much time she had missed whilst in her induced slumber, but it seemed that the days blended into each other until there was nothing left to remember of it. Maybe it was normal to view life in such a way at times? She made a mental note to ask Frodo.
Elesia bit her bottom lip with her teeth as she thought back to what brought her here, what she had started to dream of and awakened before she could finish. Something gnawed at her insides, warning her that things were to swift and deadly. Elesia struggled not to release a sigh, and just when I thought things were starting to get better. The more time that she spent in the Shire - around Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin - she adjusted within their company in such a way that the faerie had never hoped to imagine. Aside from Gandalf, whom spent months earning her trust and getting past the tough exterior that she shielded herself with, no one had gotten through. She had been too wary of the dangers that these lands posed to her, to things that were different, that she had forced herself to remain closed off. Now though, in the passing days, she felt truly alive whilst she wasn't at Bilbo's cottage. Maybe she was coming down with a sickness of some sort? She didn't know, but as her insides twisted once again, Elesia hoped that it passed quickly.
It was when they arrived at Bilbo's cottage that Elesia instantly knew that something was wrong, something felt off in a way that she just couldn't pinpoint right away. She ignored her rolling stomach as Elesia moved forward to track down where exactly Gandalf was. If anyone would know what was going on, Elesia decided quickly as she moved rapidly towards the opened doorway, it was Gandalf. Only when she crossed the threshold, something made her take pause It wasn't the fact that Bilbo was absent from sight nor the fact that Gandalf seemed to be staring blankly at the fire murmuring to himself about something being only 'Riddles in the dark'. What was more suspicious than all, was the fact that lightning seemed to surge within her veins the very moment she took three steps inside. It was preposterous, indeed but it was the only description that she could give to the anguish that immobilized her body. Absentmindedly, Elesia was aware that her foot fit something left in the pathway she had taken and the sound of her name echoing distantly within her ears.
Frodo had to have rushed after her as soon as she started to fall, for his worried expression came into view first before she even realized that his hands hovering over her body as if he were at a loss at what to do. As if he was afraid that a simple touch could worsen whatever was wrong with her, she tried to twist her lips into a smile as an attempt to reassure Frodo but Elesia was sure that a pained grimace was all that came out of it. Her name was soundlessly spoken against his lips and as Elesia world darkened around the edges, the faerie could have sworn that she witnessed the eye of a cat within her mind. Fierce and deadly like the glowing fire that engulfed it from the darkened slit in the center, the eye danced with a kind of malice that Elesia had not known of previously; and as the fae failed to remain conscious…
Elesia Fay had a dreadful feeling settle within her heart, attempting to tell her that she should very well know what such a odd image was.
Whatever it was, it felt Elesia to be uneased by the eye that invaded her mind. She couldn't shake the feeling that surged within her at it's sight, yet try as she might Elesia couldn't understand why in fact that was. Pain like no other ached at her bones when she was here at Bilbo's house, and as she took the chance to contemplate it more - Elesia found that it very well could have something to do with the plain, golden ring that seemingly looked innocent. Almost too innocent for the Fae's comfort. She remembered when regained subconsciousness, the size of Frodo's pointer finger and a dry wash cloth hugging around her form like a large blanket, to watch as Gandalf departed from them in a hurry. What could have happened between Bilbo and Gandalf to make the normally calm wizard so jumpy? He said that he sought to find the answers to questions, a whirlwind of movements that made Frodo promise to keep something 'secret and safe'. Something weighted heavily within her heart at the urgent tone that Gandalf had used to utter the words, as if it were the utmost importance that Frodo hide something from everyone else.
Later, Frodo explained to her that Bilbo had apparently went to stay with the elves and her mind instantly went back to the amusing event where Elesia had met Elrond and wondered if he too was still alive. His uncle had left Frodo 'Bag End' - the name that was of Bilbo's cottage, apparently - and cheekily asked of her if she wanted to have 'a sleepover'. As if she had anywhere else to go since Gandalf thought not to bring her upon this adventure he had partaken. As he moved past her to put the envelope in hand away in a secret place that only he knew of, Elesia could have sworn that she heard the distant murmur of the forgotten language that was Black Speech. She knew naught what it said because the drums of war sounded in time with it, and Elesia had been overwhelmed with the gut feeling that she was better off not finding out.
As she sat cross legged on the now oversized bed, Elesia's eyebrows pulled together with the confusion that hadn't left her since Gandalf departed from the Shire. Nothing had ever affected her so fiercely before and it only served to leave her puzzled when she reflected in the aftermath of it. It was only a ring, Elesia was exasperated by it all now as she remembered how it looked within her mind's eye before twisting the imagine in her brain to and fro, wasn't it? There weren't any special markings on it, nothing to give the impression that it was anything but a plain old ring. On the other hand, if there wasn't anything wrong with it why did Gandalf urge Frodo to keep it safe? Why did every instinct within her body flare up when it was in close proximity, telling her that it was naught by a curse on this Earth? Why did the ring hum with power when it wasn't supposed to?!
Elesia sighed before she shook her head to clear away the thoughts that befuddled her even more, and as she took in her surroundings the Fae came to suddenly realize that she was no longer alone.
A ball of light shone enveloped her form from within the shrouding darkness as Elesia daringly allowed her wings to carry her forward, casting it's soft illuminating gaze upon the walls that confined her. Her dress that cascaded down her form moved with each movement as Elesia cautiously inched forward with wandering eyes. Frodo was at the pub with his friends and as much as Elesia had hoped it to be him, she knew it wasn't. He would have put a light on, at least. She had already been unsettled by what had come to pass with everything that happened the week before and Elesia dared naught to take any chances; even if it was within the Shire. The presence seemed to push forth the kind of desperation that usually boarded onto madness, though not quite; Elesia assessed with the shield that protected her with it's hardened, yet invisible shell. It felt familiar to her though, in a way that she didn't pinpoint immediately due to the sensations that threatened to overwhelm. When she did though, her soft brown orbs widened curiously and her heart pounded within her chest.
Gandalf? Why was he hiding within the shadows instead of coming out to greet her? Surely he too sensed her with his powers from where he stood… even if Frodo wasn't back yet. Elesia grew to be suspicious of all of this by the second, seeming to sense that whatever he had discovered on his journey would change their lives as they knew it. If it drove Gandalf onto the jagged road that led past desperation, Elesia wasn't sure if she even wanted to know what the true was behind the ring.
It was only when Frodo had came up the way to the cottage that he inherited from his Uncle, creaking open the oval shaped door without a thought to what awaited him inside, that Gandalf seemed to be unable to wait any longer. His hand landed weighted onto Frodo's shoulder suddenly, startling the innocent Hobbit that was forced to spin haphazardly by the wizard before him, that moved Elesia further into action.
"Gandalf!" Elesia hissed warningly at her friend and despite not knowing what he had discovered, what she did know was that never before had she witnessed Gandalf acting like this. It worried her more than anything she could ever remember feeling, for within his hardened eyes that were alight with that of her wings… she could see glints of fear within his gaze. He knew what was to come, and it was far from good if his reaction was anything to go by.
Gandalf seemed to not have heard her - or maybe worse, heard her and dismissed it - because his sole attentions were on Frodo. The poor Hobbit looked intimidated by how Gandalf was eyeing him, and he was far from alone in that regard though the Fae didn't dare show it. "Is it secret?" The old magical being demanded of Frodo with crazed blue orbs, his tone of voice low as if Gandalf whole heartedly believed that if he said it any louder the darkness that lingered within the world would pounce upon them. "Is it safe?!"
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So, I hope that you wonderful readers liked this chapter as much as you all seem to like the others before this. Please do me a huge favor and leave a review. Please let me know what you think and/or what you would like to see happen in this story. :) I am eagerly pressing this story forward to Legolas! Your reviews urge my muse so please help me out here? Thank you so much for reading!
