Chapter 11: Greasy Serpents & Darkness
Recap:
"My lady, I shall have you know... our King... he isn't very well. He will view you as a possible threat due to his illness."
She gulped, hands clenching at her sides.
"Let us hope," he continued, "that today he shall see through his veil of sickness and aid you."
"Let us hope." She agreed, gulping as she took her first step.
"Weapons" Hama, the elderly captain and doorward, demanded as Aenil reached the top of the stairs.
Glancing down at her nearly dry, dirty, tunic and pants, she smiled slightly, holding her hands up in defeat. "I haven't any on me to give, dear Sir."
He eyed her, struggling to overcome his desire to be captured by her beauty. He had to keep professional. "What is your business here? Where are you from? What is it that you want of our King?" He glanced down to see the guard still at the bottom of the stairs, waiting for her entrance.
"My village was raided, and now I have no place to go."
"What of your family? Your husband?"
She froze, diverting her attention to the ground as she thought of the fellowship, wandering aimlessly towards Mordor and thinking of her dead. "My brothers…my father… I have lost them all." She murmured towards the ground, eyes shining with unshed tears.
"Perhaps we can find some… work… for you here." A younger guard leered, his wandering gaze less controlled than the others.
Eyes widening, she bit her lip, not accustomed to this behaviour. She thought back to in the mines with the Orc, his hands all over her, roaming her body. She shivered, clenching her hands in anger.
"Perhaps," Hama began, directing his firm tone towards the rude guard, "Lady Eowyn is in need of another maid." With that, he opened the door slightly. "What is your name child?"
"Aenil, sir" she muttered, annoyed that she hadn't changed it to avoid the questioning of its Elvish origin.
Luckily, Hama asked no further questions, announcing her in.
The room was huge, and had an eerie feel. Darkness was present. Many other guards were in the room, their posture firm and straight, ready for any attack. It could've been a place of brightness and happiness, but a strange darkness held it out.
Walking down the aisle, she watched curiously as a greasy haired man stood beside the king, covered in black rags. Strange, she thought, as to why someone looking and dressing like this would be so close to the King.
The greasy man eyed her, his gaze creeping up and down her body before leaning in to whisper into the King's ear. Growing near, she could finally see how weary and sick the King looked, his eyes glazed over as if almost blind.
"Your village… was raided…" the King said, his head bobbing towards the greasy man.
Dipping into a courtesy, she nodded. "Yes, your majesty."
He seemed to eye her thoughtfully, almost as if he was calculating and examining her.
"Aenil is a strange name for human…" the greasy man stated, his leering gaze creating her eyes to drop to the ground, clenching her tunic in her sweaty hands.
"My parents were of Gondor… Elvish customs are faint, but still present." she murmured, playing with the fabric in her hands stressfully. What would happen if he refused her to stay, kicking her onto the streets. Where would she go when her grandfather expected her here?
"I -" Greasy man began, but cut off when Eowyn barged through the door, her dress flowing behind her as if it were an angry kite.
"Who is this?" she demanded, staring hard at Aenil.
"Aenil, my lady" she responded, dipping into a graceful curtsey to the fair-haired lioness in front of her.
"You hold yourself strong for a commoner, Aenil." Eowyn commented, watching her come up.
"Self confidence was always something my father preached, my lady"
She nodded, taking her crude answer.
"Before we were interrupted," Greasy drawled, his gaze lingering on Eowyn, "the King was about to announce what is to happen with Aenil as her village was raided."
Pity flooded into Eowyn's gaze, her hands clenching by her sides. "I am in need of another maid," she announced quickly," My Lord, Greta is pregnant and will need to be let go. I believe Aenil will be fine with me, Grima" She drawled out the last name, her lip curling with disgust.
The greasy man, now identified as Grima, scowls at her, his gaze, however, still holding a longing look. Grima sounded oddly familiar, however…
"My King, your answer?" the greasy serpent asked, one hand clenched by his side.
The man once looking as if he held all the power in the world in the palm of his hand, yet now looking as if it were dropped off a cliff, nodded weakly, his eyes still glazed over. "As you…wish… Eowyn."
The fair-haired lioness dipped into a curtsey, along with Aenil. "Thank you my Lord." She held a sad look in her eye as she nodded towards him, her smile dripping off her face and Grima cast himself back into the shadows.
"Come, maid." And with that, she turned and burst back through the doors she came in.
Biting her tongue at the rudeness of Eowyn's tone, Aenil cast another long look at the sick King, darkness encircling him. She was in, she was safe… enough. She would have to thank Eowyn privately for coming in when she did. Nodding once more to the dreary Lord, she followed in suit of Eowyn, unaware of the greasy serpent's angry gaze from the shadows…
Read and Review x
Please don't hurt me… I know I promised this awhile ago…ARHH IM SORRY :'(