Writer's Notes:
Work started to get busy again, so I will not be able to update as frequently as before. Another thing is that I have been rewriting this particular chapter for a few times until I can get a more satisfactory version that won't contradict with what I have already wrote before and can link with the future chapters… Phew, writing story is not as easy as I've thought!
Please, please~~~ review after reading the chapter. Your encouragement and comments are very much needed and appreciated!
Raider-K : Legolas truly meant it when he said the line ;-)
McSparkles : Yes I do intend to make it sounds like a prophecy. But as what Game of Thrones have shown us, prophecies can be misleading… lol
TheRadiantFire : Thank you very much for your support all along!
LovelyBoA : I preferred dividing the story into shorter chapters so I could keep up a rather regular update, but since I cannot update as frequently as I used to be I may make the chapter longer than before. Hope you'll enjoy.
Kristen: I do believe that Legolas will have a lot to comment on our ways of life, and I would like to write him as a more open-minded Elf than most of his people, which based on his unlikely friendship with Gimli I think I can safely assume that.
Melody: Yes, the topic of religion is something I have planned to include in future chapters. I think this is inevitable as the Elves are deeply religious people, and I hope I can find a point where our world can connect to theirs.
Guest: Thanks for your encouragement! Hope you like this chapter as well.
Goddessofwarriorcats: Thank you =)
Disclaimer: I do not own Tolkien's work, of course.
Chapter 10 - Hiking
What am I doing here? Shannon asked herself again the nth time within the last two hours as she crouched down to catch her breath. She glared vehemently at the winding wooden stairs in front of her and traced up until she saw Legolas lithe figure standing there, who was admiring the greeneries around him while throwing her jovial looks from afar. To her right she caught sight of a chubby squirrel a few steps above, who swayed its fluffy tail left and right while looking down at her with its curious beady eyes as if mocking her incompetence along with the edhel. Shannon tried to recall how she ended up panting miserably in the middle of a remote forest trail in a lovely Sunday morning.
Over the breakfast Shannon sighed as she browsed through her company emails from her iPhone.
"Is work bothering you again?" Legolas said without looking up from his tea.
"Yes… Marcus and Karl had tried to hook up with another designer from Spain, but he just reverted back and said he couldn't accept the offer due to conflicting schedule." Shannon put down her phone with a frown, her fingers massaged her temples wearily. "It seems that the project timeline has to shift by another month, which means we have to pay our staff another month of salary without any real work being done."
Legolas took another sip from his teacup and then gently put it down onto the saucer. "Do you want to take a walk?" It was rare for him to make suggestion on how they spend their weekend together as he always let Shannon made the decision. "Recently I found a place with a pleasant view. We can bring our lunch there too."
"A picnic?" Shannon eyes brightened up instantly.
"Yes. I am quite sure few men notice the place so we can have it all for ourselves."
"Sounds like an adventure!" Shannon quickly got up, her cheeks flushed with excitement, "Oh… a picnic… we got to prepare now… where is my picnic mat? Ohhhhh … and food! Do we have enough time to chill some lemonade?" She quickly drafted a checklist for picnic items in her mind and moved around the house in a blur, busied herself with the preparation. Legolas smiled satisfactorily as his proposal got quickly accepted and easily pulled Shannon out from her gloomy state. He was always amused by how easy his little human friend could perk up. Out of her usual calm and controlled demeanor, he often caught glimpse of innocence and curiosity that were ingrained in her spirit. Gave it a little boost, like what he just did as suggesting an impromptu outing, could effectively divert her from depression. His ada would probably degraded it as fickleness of men, but he perceived it as a endearing aspect of her character, a positive force to drive her (and unintentionally people around like him) forward in life.
While Shannon was absorbed in preparing the "perfect picnic", Legolas languidly got up and tidied away their breakfast. He inwardly grinned as he observed her zooming around the house. For Legolas, he could depart the house anytime without much preparation (if he could choose he would only pick his bow and arrows but Shannon forbade), but he knew Shannon would pack more than enough for both of them that probably could allow them to stay in the wild overnight. He was not sure if this was a common trait for women in this world, but he was always fascinated by how she could stuff so many items and other "essential belongings for modern ladies" in her medium sized handbag.
After Shannon finished her packing, she asked Legolas about the detail of their destination. She was surprised when Legolas showed her the location from Google Map, which was a mountain conservation area at the outskirt of the city. She had heard of the place before but never visited in person; she was never an outdoor person and would have prefered spending weekends in libraries or shopping malls rather than hiking in the wild. She declined Legolas suggestion of riding there by bike and decided to drive there instead, which still took them an hour driving on highway.
"How did you know about this place?" Shannon got off her car and gaped at the forest which crept up and wide along the slopes of the mountain. Following the roadsign she could identify the wooden stairs among the shrubs which marked the entrance of the trail.
"The trees tell me about it," Legolas shrugged and guided her towards the walking trail. Shannon gulped and decided to swallow back her witty remarks on the edhel's source of information. By the steepness of the slope her gut feeling told her to better save up energy and prepare for the strenuous journey ahead.
Shannon wiped the sweat off her forehead. She realised Legolas had already descended the stairs and stood right in front of her, his hand holding out a drinking bottle. She took a mouthful and shoved it back to him in shaking hands.
"We are almost there," he encouraged her with a smile and she took a critical look at him. He had volunteered to carry all their belongings, and now after two hours of hiking he still looked spotless and clean without a single piece of hair in disarray while she sweated like a pig.
"I am starting to get annoyed by your handsome face," she groused. His smile only broadened and he took her hand. Shannon immediately wanted to pull back, worried that her sweaty palm might have disgusted him, but Legolas held to her firmly and gently pulled her up the stairs. After they made a few more turns along the windy trails, he stopped at a spot where they came near a cliff with ivy sparsely climbing across. She looked questionably at him.
"Just a little way up." Legolas answered her unspoken question. "Up?" Shannon looked at the stairs, "Then why are we stopping here?"
"Up." Legolas looked behind her, and she followed his gaze and caught sight of the cliff. "No, no, no," Shannon slowly shook her head and started to back off, "You don't mean it."
He gave her a roguish grin before suddenly lifted her up in bridal style. She gave out a short yelp and instinctively clutched to him tightly. Before she threw any insult or complaint he darted towards the cliff and pranced upwards, one hand holding Shannon firmly in place while the other hand grasping the ivy, he pulled the two of them up the cliff swiftly and effortlessly. Shannon, at least to her credit, did not scream like a banshee and kept her eyes shut all the way long. After a great deal of swinging and swaying she felt they finally stopped.
"We arrived," Legolas whispered near her ear and grinned as she shuddered. Her eyes shot open wide and saw Legolas' smiling gray eyes gleaming at her. She was immediately aware of their closeness and flushed furiously. He seemed to read her uneasiness and gently dropped her to the ground, his hand lightly held the small of her back to keep her steady. She took in her surrounding and gasped.
"This is…" Shannon was at a loss for words. She found herself standing near the edge of the cliff, which oversaw a vast forest of Cedar and Fir trees. Beyond the trees there was an inlet, long and narrow, with its end reaching the sea at the far right. The blue water glistened like millions of mirror shreds, and range of mountains in various shades of gray lined in the background. The place that they were standing was in fact a small clearing with grass and small shrubs on top of a large flat boulder erected from the tall mountain at the back. It was like a natural platform especially built for revering such exquisite scenery.
"This is my recently found favourite secret spot."
Shannon, still in awe, replied, "Thanks for sharing. This place is impressive."
Leaving Shannon to absorb in the surroundings, Legolas started to unpack their belongings. He spread the picnic mat on the grass and took out their lunch: a long baguette, a chunk of cheese, assorted cold cuts, a jar of jam, a bunch of grapes and two bottles of lemonade hastily chilled by throwing into the freezer in the last minute. Shannon finally recovered from astonishment and settled herself with Legolas on the picnic mat. They ate their lunch in relative silence as they both enjoyed the tranquility and peace the place was providing.
After finishing her last piece of bread, Shannon said, "Thank you."
"You said already."
Shannon shook her head lightly, "Not only for this place, but for... everything."
"I should be the one to say so," Legolas replied nonchalantly.
Shannon shook her head again. "You have helped me in more ways than you've realised." Taking a glance at his confused expression, she continued, "You remember I told you about Marcus?"
Legolas' eyes narrowed immediately as he heard the name, "He broke your heart," he said frigidly.
"Yes he did when he called off our engagement," she leaned back a little and exhaled deeply, "Have I told you why he broke up with me?"
"No."
"He said he was bored."
"Pardon me?"
"Bored," she repeated. By the bewildered look of her handsome friend Shannon knew more explanation was required. "He said after so many years together our relationship had turned routine and mundane for him," her voice dropped lower and lower as if muttering to herself, "He said he had tried, really tried, but by the end of the engagement party, he knew he couldn't do it anymore."
Shannon's eyes were glistening with tears. She stubbornly wiped them away with her sleeves, refusing to let them fall. "He said he still cared for me, but only as siblings…. He said … he said his love for me just… died out… diminished." She paused and took in a few deep breaths, struggled to regain her composure. "And you know what was the worst part of all? It was still seeing him everyday, witnessing how his life seemed perfectly fine without me while my whole world just tumbled down!"
Finally gave in drying her tears, Shannon let her tears fell freely across her face while Legolas suppressed the urge to dry them. As little as he knew about comforting the fairer sex, at least he understood that at this moment he should be patient and gave her space to sort out her emotions.
After a long pause Shannon continued, "I was still a complete mess a few months ago," she glanced at the edhel, "Until I met you."
Legolas slowly reached out for her hand and squeezed gently, "I was a good distraction, ain't I?"
Shannon broke into laughter through her teary face, a moment that Legolas did not fail to capture. "Sure you were! I was glad that among the options of running away or calling the police, I chose to take you back home." Her glossy eyes were now shining with a touch of excitement and humour, "I couldn't leave you behind, like you couldn't just walk away from an abandoned kitten."
The edhel quirked his eyebrow, obviously not quite content with the metaphor, "A kitten?"
"A lion then, if that soothes your male's ego," she giggled while wiping away the last drop of tears, "A lost one, nevertheless. I didn't think much at the beginning, I just felt compelled to help you fit in here. But as time went by I started to realise I was probably the one who benefitted the most." She turned to face the him, looking right into his fathomless eyes, "I started to pick up things I hadn't done for years. It's like rediscovering myself… unearthing the original Shannon Fraser before enthralled by her first love." She looked down at their hands, lightly squeezed back, "I feel that I can continue to live on now, without him." She looked up again and smiled with her eyes, "Thank you, Legolas, for being with me all these time."
Being edhel, who were so rich in culture and with years to perfect the art of literature, were rarely rendered speechless, but Legolas now found himself being caught in one of such scarce circumstances. He still kept a rather neutral face and composure, but deep inside he was overwhelmed with emotions. Some remote feelings that had been dormant for so long were stirred up again yet he could not decipher now.
He slowly withdrew his hand, hovered his arm over her shoulder and then gently pulled her towards himself. Shannon took the cue and leaned her head against his shoulder blade. After a period of comfortable silence, the edhel started to hum with his soft, deep voice. She pressed her ears nearer to his chest, listening to the most beautiful yet saddest song she had ever heard of. Silently she wept for her lost love, for herself, and for this foreign, heartbreaking song.
Sindarin-to-English Translation:
Edhel : Elf
Ada : Father