Discord
Brianna allowed Gandalf to lean on her as if he was a decrepit old man entering a large hall that required one too many steps to take. They went forward passed what Brianna believed was the Rohirric version of an entrance hall and into a great, golden hall vast and expansive. She took a moment, only a moment, to allow the part of her that had lived among humanity as an archeologist to gape at the wondrous hall that greatly resembled the one she imagined the authors of Beowulf had sun about one thousand years prior to her birth. Her jaw fell, unable to remain on any closed state, and she gaped at the beautiful expanse of horse carvings and humanoid figures telling their historic tales. Oh how she wanted to study them!
"You should stay for a time after we win," Gandalf whispered into her ear after shifting his weight to where he leaned into her almost completely.
"What?" Brianna asked, stunned.
The wizard smiled, "You want to write what you see and study what you know. Stay for a time. Learn of us and return to earth with a thorough understanding of the people here."
Brianna shook her head and decidedly kept her head erect so as to not indicate her true motivator to stay. If such a thing was possible. She doubted it even if he did feel for her as she did for him.
She swallowed and pushed that thought to the very back of her mind where she felt it needed to stay. There were more important things to focus on than romance or lack thereof.
"I may take you up on that if I can," she responded.
It was the truth as she entered the vast expanse of the Golden Hall. Brianna actually did gape as she felt the true depths of her history-nerd personality begin to overtake her. Who would have thought that, just one world away, existed a world that had perfect real life examples of Norse/Viking life and buildings?
Maybe staying will be more fun than she first thought?
The five of them walked past the bonfire that blazed in the middle of the hall. Brianna felt the heat warm her skin and her fingers twitched, wanting to move and mold the flickering flames. They halted again and looked down eight feet to the end of the hall where a dais gradually rose by three long steps. In the middle of the dais rested a chair gilded in glittering gold. On that chair sat a man with wiry white hair and dim grey eyes staring at the lot of them. Behind him stood a tall, blond woman who stood cold and erect, like a Valkyrie ready for battle only her hair was down in long golden waves and clothes in a white dress.
You're in the wrong profession, kiddo, Brianna thought wryly.
She then cast her gaze to the foot of the dais and fleetingly glanced at the huddle man before her attention was riveted on the tall woman. She froze, too stunned to utter a single word. Beneath the dais, her baring proud and dark hair long, straight and free, stood Daenith the sister of the very late Morgana, and high priestess of the Morrighan's cult. The black irises of her eyes met Brianna's feel and blood red lips curled into a smirk that barely marred her fine porcelain cheeks.
She had known Nix and Hecate had enlisted the aid of the Morrighan to perform the ritual instrumental in tearing the wall between Earth and Arda. What hadn't occurred to her was the possibility that Daenith would take a personal interest in the matter.
Then again, I am here. She probably decided I was worth the effort, Brianna thought frowning.
Seeing an enemy from earth, realizing that whatever was going on was larger than the remnants of Ba'al's dying kingdom, may have startled her but it also gave her a greater sense of certainty than she ever thought to have.
To answer Daenith's smirk Brianna sent her the sweetest smile she could muster. Gandalf sent her a warning glance and tugged on her arm to indicate he wanted to continue moving forward.
Gandalf inclined his head to Theoden and greeted, "Hail Theoden son of Thengel! I have returned and bring tidings of woe. A storm is upon us and we all must gather together as friends lest we each be singly destroyed."
Slowly the old king stood using a black staff to help his ascent. Brianna saw that he was still talk despite being bent out of shape. She frowned. His hands did not remind her of a decrepit eighty-year-old, she glanced at Aragorn, human. In fact, there seemed to be more to him than some stature of an old man.
Daenith smirked when Brianna cast her gaze back to her. She narrowed her eyes. She wasn't sure what the sorcerous could do, but she did know that anyone with training easily had the ability to manipulate a person's mind into thinking they were less than they were. Even if they had forfeited the magic of their ancestors to pull it from demons.
"I greet you," spoke the king, "and maybe you look for welcome, but truth be told your welcome is doubtful here, Master Gandalf. You have ever been a herald of woe and when I heard of your passing I did not mourn. Yet here you are, come again, heralding evils worse than those that came before. Why should I welcome you Stormcrow?"
With that the king sat.
Brianna glared at him, "You shouldn't blame Gandalf for trying to save your life, my lord."
He cast his eyes upon her, "And who are you, elf-witch?"
She drew herself up, erect and proud and confident despite how small she was, "I am a huntress, sire. I'm a bit more than a witch."
The king stared at her as if unsure about what to do about this little elf who seemed to enjoy mouthing off at nobility. This is where Daenith used her magic. She turned slightly in the king's direction and opened her mouth.
The words and the power behind them, made Brianna's skin crawl. She hated sorceresses.
"My king, barely has your son passed into his eternal slumber did Eomer show his colors as an untrustworthy son of your house. Now not only has the Grey Wizard come with a storm in his wake, but the irrational elven Queen who ran away from her crown has come to us with all of her arrogance on display. Do not trust this coward, for coward she is and will ever be," the sorceress said.
Brianna didn't react exceptto raise a delicately slanted eyebrow. She placed he free hand on her hip and laughed.
"Daenith, I declined my queenship because I was too busy hunting down Ba'al. And, remind me again, didn't I succeed in killing him?" She asked sweetly.
Daenith's lips pursed into a prim line. Brianna smirked. She hit a nerve. The withered man next to the sorceress turned fully to King Theoden and stepped onto a higher step than previously there.
"It was justly said my lord. The Dark Lord stirs and the Grey Wizard brings three ragged men and an elf woman in a false attempt to bring aid. Where is his armies? Such is the hour you have come! I name you Lathspell. Ill news and ill news is an ill guest," the man said.
Now that's just insulting, Brianna thought. Where is his armies? I am an army! She resisted the urge to smirk. Wouldn't it be fun to prove it?
Brianna glared, "You realize I'm not above setting you on fire, right? Gandalf may be, but I'm not as nice."
The king looked at her. His eyes were still dead, but she saw a spark of irritation and suppressed the urge to show her satisfaction visibly. Her initial assessment of the king had been correct. Maybe there was a way to get him angry enough?
A light squeeze on her bicep startled her from her reverie. She looked up at Gandalf and saw the warning in his eyes. He wanted to deal with the king. Brianna tilted her chin into an imperceptible nod to show that she understood and returned her attention to Daenith. The sorceress' eyes were narrowed and she could clearly perceive anger in their black depths.
Brianna tried really hard not to look self satisfied by the expression. She wasn't sure if she succeeded.
"The courtesy of the hall is somewhat lessened of late Theoden son of Thengal," Gandalf remarked dryly.
Brianna bit back a giggle when she saw the irritated expression on the king's face.
"Seldom do the names of my companions be received in any hall this far west. In fact, the presence of the elven woman has never been had in any court on Arda and she is most deserving of the respect of kings. Grey is their raiment, but it is the grey of the Golden Wood," Gandalf explained in a tone that suggested he was lecturing a gaggle of children.
The man next to Daenith seemed to jump on that remark and eagerly interjected, "So, you admit that you are in League with the sorceress in the wood?"
Brianna let go of Gandalf's arm and stepped forward. Better to get this out of the way now rather than later.
"The only sorceress I've seen is the one in this room, Daenith daughter of Morgause, sister of Morgana Pendragon," she said.
Daenith's smile was cold, "You've done your research, your reluctant highness."
She grinned, "Enough to know how to kill you."
"Would you shed blood in your host's house?" She asked sweetly.
Brianna raised an eyebrow, "For the protection of Arda, I am prepared to spill a lot of blood in inappropriate places."
Silence deafened the hall as Brianna engaged in a battle of wills with the sorceress. Teal eyes burned against cold, fathomless orbs of endless night. Daenith opened her mouth and began to chant in a low, soft voice meant to be seductive and, whatever she wanted to do she wanted it to affect everyone in the room. Brianna didn't wait to find out what the woman was doing.
Elemental magic was pointless in this case. She had to employ the only other magical method she knew. Her lips parted, as if unbidden, as if once her voice discovered it could sing to awaken magic it was eager to do so again. Light lyrical notes sounded in varying pitches with certain intents. The men in the room fell deaf to her words. Then she attacked Daenith's tone and garbled the resonance of her chanting spell as best she could.
It didn't hurt the woman, but it caught her off guard long enough to allow Brianna to slip through her sorcery and launch a powerful gust of acutely focused wind at her stomach. Daenith hurtled past the king and the woman and hit the wall like a slid to the ground completely dazed.
She struggled to rise. Brianna turned to Gandalf.
"Do what you need to do. She's mine!"
With that, she turned away and ran towards the sorceress just as she launch acidic globs of darkness at her. She rolled out of the way and jumped for the Daenith, her fist curled into a ball of furious fire.
Aragorn watched her second attack with wild orange fire. He saw the sorceress meet that fire with a darkness that held a consistency similar to it. They held an aggressive deadlock for a moment before Brianna somehow commanded another gust of wind to hit the other woman in the side and knock her tall, willowy frame off the dais and into the wall perpendicular to it. Brianna reached into her boot and pulled out a small, compact knife and jumped after the sorceress.
He suppressed a fond smile. It was classic Brianna.
"The darkness of our enemy has been found in your own court, it seems Theoden, King," Gandalf said.
He cast aside his cloak and leaned no longer on his staff. Aragorn saw the little man glower at the wizard.
"The wise speak only of what they know, Grima son of Galmod. A witless worm you've become. Therefore, be silent and keep your forked tongue behind your teeth," he said, voice sharp and commanding.
He raised his staff and thunder rolled. Sunlight was blotted from the eastern windows and the hall became as dark as night. The fire dimmed to embers and only Gandalf could be seen along with the struggling form of Brianna pushing against the inky darkness of the sorceress' night. Her skin glowed its usual pale moon radiance.
In the gloom Wormtongue hissed, "Did I not counsel you to take the wizard's staff? That fool Hama has betrayed us and allowed the elf-witch to bring a weapon into this sanctuary!"
"It is council I bring, Theoden, council and hope and the pure fire of the divinely gifted lady of an ancient house," Gandalf continued while studiously ignoring Grima, "Not all is dark. Take courage for better help you will not find."
Theoden stood again as the room brightened by soft rays of sunlight that flowed through the window. Aragorn noticed, to his alarm, that neither Brianna or the sorceress were in the room. Startled, he turned his attention to the window and saw what he knew to be her fire blazing against withering dark frost. He smiled. She would be fine.
Faltering footsteps brought his attention back to king Theoden, who he knew was much too young to look as old as he did. The man slowly clambered down each long step until he was level with a cowering Grima. The blond woman rushed to help him just as a loud explosion rocked the hall and made each resident jump.
"Our elven representative from earth does not have much of a grasp for subtly," Gandalf remarked.
The elleth in question climbed over one of the windows and back into the hall. The slight tick in her brow indicated irritation.
"Daenith escaped. I'll have to kill it later," she said primly.
She looked around, "Did I miss anything exciting?
He smiled. Never before had she looked as beautiful as she did at that moment with her travel clothes torn and disheveled, hair wild and free from all restraint and sunlight illuminating each strand like burnished gold. Her eyes met his and he knew. He knew he loved her and had since the first day they met whenhe pinned her against the ground for falling on him.
Brianna finally heard the name of the man who had been "advising" the King Kong after said king banished him from Edoras. Wormtongue was certainly a just name for the little fool in her opinion. The man had wormed his way into the king's council and left a wide opening for Daenith to finish the job with the king's appearance. Before that, though, Eomer, Theoden's nephew, was released from where Grima had ordered him to be and along with him had come Maf.
Brianna, walking along the lonely stables, smiled at the memory. Aragorn had said Maf was in Arda, but she hadn't believed she would see him. The wizard had hugged her, like a father reuniting with his lost daughter, and she became overwhelmed with affection from him. It had been a while since she'd seen her master, but master had come for her, his wayward student, to save her from whatever evil she'd landed herself in. Brianna couldn't ask for a bettor mentor even if she hadn't wanted him or anyone else to trouble themselves with the likes of her.
"My lady?"
Brianna turned and beheld the tall, proud figure of Eowyn, the King's niece and Eomer's sister. She smiled, glad for the chance to formally speak with her.
"Brianna, my friends call me Brianna, and in these times I believe it's best to err on the side of friendship than mistrust," she said.
Eowyn smiled, "My uncle has offered refreshments and lodgings for tonight. He gathers our forces and will ride forth on the morrow for Helm's Deep as per Gandalf's instructions."
She nodded, not sure what Helm's Deep was, but deciding to go along anyway.
"I'll be joining the men. They'll need me. Too many sorcerers not to," she explained.
Eowyn smiled and held out the crook of her arm as an evident offering. Brianna returned the expression and linked her arm with Eowyn's and the two left the stables and headed back into the hall.
"I will remain behind to guard the city," she said mournfully.
Brianna sighed, "They need someone. Think if we win but your uncle and brother die in battle. Logistically speaking someone must look after the people. But, I understand the frustration. Logistics be damned, it's hard to watch your friends and family go into battle without knowing if or when they will return."
Eowyn was silent for a few moment before asking, "Were you left behind?"
Brianna smiled, a mix of fondness and bitterness stirring her memories, "Once. I was too stubborn to stay long, though. I didn't have anything to lose other than my life so I followed the crowd and entered into the most terrifying war I've ever been apart of to this day."
"More terrifying than the Dark Lord?" She asked.
Brianna closed her eyes and navigated loose cobble stoned that led to short stairs and the keep. There were moments of those years in the second word war that continued to haunt her dreams. Aragorn had been present for one of those terrifying opened her eyes, cheeks suddenly flushing at the memory, and allowed the human girl to help her into the house.
"There are some things more terrifying than a bloody eye," she said, tone hollow and empty.
Stillthe faces of children and still she remembered her surprisingly steady hand as she killed the bodies of all of them: the poor, young children who had been experimented on until no soul remained, but the shell.
When she entered the hall Aragorn noticed that her skin was paler than it usually was and her eyes held a gaunt expression. He excused himself from Eomer's presence and stood, intending to go to her. The woman who accompanied her, Eowyn, glanced at him and raised an eyebrow. It took him a moment to realize he was not needed and Aragorn relaxed and sank back onto the bench where Eomer and Mafortion gazed at him with identical curious expressions.
"I wasn't aware you were at my apprentice's every beck and call. When, exactly did this happen?" Maf inquired, amused.
Aragorn sighed. He wasn't going to hear the end of this.
"She is a beauty. A rare light shine from her, one that rivals the sun. If I were any man I would certainly be prey to her every whim," Eomer joked.
Aragorn, while knowing the jest for what it was, frowned nevertheless. Brianna didn't use her whims to prey on anyone let alone him. It hasn't been a whim that caused him to fear for her wellbeing. The haunted expression had.
Several moments went by before Aragorn realized that Maf was studying him thoughtfully. Brown eyes, to lightly browned skin and dark hair watched him, took everything in and understood all. A knowing crept over Aragorn's soul.
The wizard knew he loved her.
"Brianna has whims she keeps to herself. Her true weakness is also her strength. She cares to the point where she neglects herself. I sometimes fear for her," he glanced at where Brianna and Eowyn sat, near Gimli, both listening to him tell a humorous story about the antics of dwarves and both smiling. Brianna's was broader, beautiful, and enchanting. Her lips moved, forming words that had the cold niece of Theoden leaning to one side away from her food descending into fits of uncontrollable guffaws into his ale.
Eomer followed his gaze, eyes soft, "My sister approved of the elf and the dwarf. I have heard little of her laugh for many a year and it gladdens my heart to hear it in earnest."
"Brianna and Gimli are certainly a pair to reckon with," Aragorn said tactfully.
There were certain conversations he wasn'tcomfortable with repeating. He'd never realized that an elleth from a respective lineage could be quite as vulgar as she could. It had only been at Gimli'sdiscretion, though and she never heard her speak so around anyone else.
"There has been little to smile about, I fear," Eomer remarked sadly.
Aragorn inclined his head, "I fear that is so."
Eomer turned to him, "What is she to us all? Why has Gandalf given a maiden head to challenge kings and advisors of kings?"
Mafortion quirked an eyebrow and watched Aragorn intently till it made him feel uncomfortable. Yes there certainly were mannerisms Brianna and the wizard shared. It was disconcerting.
"She has challenged Sauron as a way to protect our hope," he answered carefully.
To this day Aragorn always wondered whether Mafortion had syphoned the truth from his thoughts because his brown eyes suddenly glittered in understanding and he nodded and turned away. There was even a barely decipherable mutter about "bloody useless jewelry" following such epiphany. Aragorn repressed a grin. They certainly were much alike.
Hours later Aragorn noticed Brianna was no longer in the room and that Eowyn had been commandeered by her uncle. He excused himself from his dwindling conversation with Hama and left the feeding hall in search of her.
He began at the stables where the niece reportedly found her, but couldn't find her. After a few cycles around the perimeter he concluded that she was no where in the grounds. He was about to head back into the building when he saw Legolas, Mafortion, Gimli and Eomer rush out of the house and to the gates.
"Legolas! What're it?" Aragorn called.
Gandalf answered for the paused group as he followed shortly after, "The city is being attacked by the dark creatures of earth. A woman was found drained of blood and a man in a pool of unidentifiable pink sludge. Both dead."
A loud crash from the house startled them and made Aragorn's gut clench. He met Gandalf's grim gaze almost pleading.
"Go," the wizard said.
He hastened into the house and towards the guest quarters where he now knew Brianna was. It was what was with her to cause her to attack that worried him the most.
Brianna woke in the night feeling as if something unwelcome was inside her room. Never one to ignore a gut feeling she lifted into a sitting position and made a point to yawn and act as if she'd slept deeply. Ever so slightly she stirred the wind and followed each slight current until she detected the invisible being shrouded by some fell magic in the back corner near the large window. A mix of fear and anger flushed through her as she slid the covers aside and grabbed the wooden cup set on a table a few feet away.
Brianna was just about to concoct an act of defense when the figure threw a blast of magic. Thinking fast she dove for the table that held the water jug provided. She grunted as the bare skin of her arms scraped against the stone floor. Before she could rise rough fingers grabbed her loose hair and jerked her head back. Her scalp felt as if it was on fire.
Brianna opened her mouth to scream, but a second hand shoved multiple fingers into it. In response Brianna bit down and growled. She angled her legs correctly and kicked the ankle of her assailant. His voice rumbled loudly with pain and he sagged against her back. Despite the pain she knew it would cause, Brianna followed by jerking her head back andthankfully into the bastard's nose. He let go of her and removed his hands from her mouth. She was about to make a break for the door, but the mysterious assassin or kidnapper or whatever she figured it could be grabbed the back of her flowing shift and threw her backwards into the soft of her bed. It occurred to her stunned mind that he was trying not to damage her when one of his hands latched around her neck and blooded lips formed the dark words of a sleeping curse she barely recognized. Unable to counter it without her voice Brianna frantically tried to struggle as darkness began to snake across her limbs but to was trapped.
Then, blessedly, the door to her room burst open and Aragorn charged into the room just as the forbidding hand of the Fae warlock rose into the air to begin the final part of the curse. It froze in mid archaic black language to hiss.
She couldn't hear much beyond his outraged cry that identified him as Aragorn. Her cheek pressed into the wool covers of her sheets and gaze turned to her pillow. The fingers on her neck shuddered as asickening sound of metal slicing into flesh met her, after a minute of gagging and heavy breathing, the fingers slackened their grip and the body of the once-warlock slid to the ground and freed her from the uncomfortable position.
Brianna struggled to rise, but a strong arm slipped around her waist gently and lifted her from the bed. She tried to wave Aragorn away, but he didn't seem to notice her protests and gently set her on her feet several paces away from the bed. She turned to him, opened her mouth, and closed it abruptly. The expression in his blue eyes was one of utter horror. His hands cupped her face, thumbs gently rubbing her cheeks, and delicately turning her face to and fro. It occurred to Brianna that Aragorn was breathless and she wasn't sure if that was completely the fault ofhis running to her room.
"Are you hurt?" He asked.
She shook her head and tried very hard to smile and banish the urge to shake uncontrollably. There had never been a moment in her life where she'd been completely caught off guard and helpless! Humiliation colored her cheeks a rosy red, but she hid it under false bravado.
"Only my pride. I have to admit, that was a first. I should have warded my sleeping quarters, but I've been shlupping around with you boys for so long that I forgot," she said as casually as she could.
Even she had to admit the waver in her tone was telling. As much as she hated to admit it she was shaken badly by the event. Because of this she was about to get a whole lot of things wrong in record time.
It was evident by the furrow of his brow that Aragorn didn't know what she meant. Still he shookhis head. Brianna raised a brow. Now what?
"Either Legolas, Gimli or I will keep watch over you from now on. I won't let this happen again," he said with an edge to his tone that wanted no argument.
Her eyes narrowed and Brianna batted his hands from her cheeks and stepped away from him. The anger and felt earlier was back in full force, this time directed at her rescuer.
"Let? If anyone's going to "not let" anything happen again it's going to be me!" She snapped, angrier than she believed herself to be.
Not even the bewildered expression on his face could make her feel remorse for the unjustified lifted a finger and prodded his chest pointedly.
"No one is going to watch me while I sleep! I will take care of my own protection, I don't need your help!"
His bewilderment melted into irritation in an instant as he responded dryly, "Your methods of protection failed this night and it will fail on others. Let me protect you."
"Hell no!" She almost screamed, "I don't need you to protect me! I can prevent this from happening again."
He grabbed her arm and leaned over her, eyes centered directly into hers. Brianna struggled for a moment and then met his will with her own.
"You have made yourself the target of your enemies and mine! You are hunted and, like it or not, I - we need you alive until the end. You must remain safe," he said.
"Oh, what are you going to do? Lock me up with the other women while the men fight?" She snapped.
His lips pursed and dawning creeped into every joint and her lips parted. Outrage throbbed through every single part of her and she wanted to burn something.
"You bastard! You bloody chauvinistic bastard! How dare you treat me like I'm your bloody property? I'm fighting whether you like it or not and I will not answer to you your highness!" She spat the last two words at him.
It felt strange. Like someone else was yelling these terrible things at him. It was all her, Brianna knew, and it dawned on her that she was too busy making assumptions about him and completely ignoring what he actually had to say.
Aragorn's jaw clenched, "I do not ask this of you because I presume ownership, but because your welfare is my concern and because we need you alive. It is evident that you cannot protect yourself on your own. You need help."
That bit stung and she felt like his words had physically flayed themselves across her cheeks. Despite her rational thoughts trying to convince her to apologize, rewind, and listen to him the fear that Aragorn didn't think her capable enough to do anything took over. She bristled.
"I need to fight, not cower, and I don't need you to help correct a gap in my armor that I know how to fix," she said.
"Do you?" He asked voice hard, "Do you truly know how to strengthen your defenses when you seem to enjoy leaving yourself vulnerable?"
Her breath caught and anger pulsed to white hot fury. Despite the voice in the back of her mind agreeing with him Brianna directed heat to her arm and focused it under his hand. He yelped, let go of her and stepped away. She swallowed.
"Leave me and never speak to me again," she commanded softly.
She watched him hunched over his now injured hand coldly. Aragorn stared at his hand, stunned and then met her eyes, his blue irises glittering. Brianna blinked, feeling as if she'd been slapped, but kept her glare in place. The look on his face...
"Anna, don't..." He whispered.
The weight of his tone pierced her heart and she felt every sense of bravado and anger fade. His expression was gaunt, devastated and she found her resolve crumbling. She wasn't going to budge and crossed her arms and turned her back to him.
"Just leave," she said, voice cracking.
Aragorn stared at her, uninjured hand clasping the wrist of the burned one, and then slowly backed out of the room.
"If that is your wish then I will go," he said.
Only when the door closed did Brianna let her countenance fall and she sagged to her bed. The Fae warlock's blood pooled at her feet. She closed her eyes and the words he said and she said replayed in her mind. Her eyes burned.
What have I done? She thought. Why couldn't I just let him help?
Her body convulsed and she started to shiver and cry uncontrollably for several hours.
Aragorn staggered away from Brianna's door in a daze. His hand throbbed painfully as he tread down the hall, but he barely acknowledged it. His heart was broken. His eyes stung. A small part of him was angry. Brianna was damnably stubborn to the point where she would get herself killed. She was also so against letting him help her that all risks were elevated.
The rest of him stung with her words. She sent him away. She didn't want to see him again. He doubted there was anything he could have done differently to have created a different outcome. Any move to help her, to make sure that she didn't become overwhelmed was met with anger and scorn. She refused to allow him in. She didn't want him to protect her where she couldn't.
Whether he loved her or not was irrelevant in this instance, but part of him knew. Part of the reason why his heart nearly convulsed at the sounds of struggle coming from her room was because he couldn't live a full happy life without her. The Thought of her death was unimaginable.
Aragorn wandered out of the hall and onto the parapet. The night air was crisp with predawn dew hanging in the air and the breeze brushed gentle fingers across his face and tousled his dark hair. The shadows of Rohan's expansive plains spread before him and he stood in the darkness, numb. It was a cold night, pre-spring, and when he looked at the sky he saw a crescent moon and spattering a of stars shrouded by thick rolling clouds. His lips pursed.
The clouds came from the west, not the easy as was customary for that time of year. The night's moon was hidden. Anyone who worked in darkness could cross the landscape unencumbered by whatever aid moonlight and starlight could give. The weather wasn't natural.
Did she know?
Yes, he decided, Brianna would know but she wouldn't care. She'd interpret it as a challenge.
"Aragorn!"
He turned to the quiet voice of Legolas who hurried to him from the other side of the parapet. Despite his elf friend's kept physical appearance his expression was slightly harried. It was as stunned as he'd ever seen it.
"The village was attacked by goblins... Goblins as they are in Brianna's realm and creatures Mafortion named as vampires," the elf said, distressed, "I've spent the last hour trying to dispel them with Gimli, Gandalf and Eomer."
Aragorn opened his mouth to say, but he couldn't manage the words. The understanding that their enemies were specifically targeting Brianna was complete. There was no doubt left.
He closed his eyes.
"The enemy tried to kidnap Brianna," he breathed.
Legolas started and cast his gaze about the house. His fist clenched on his bow.
"What? Is she safe?"
"As safe as she will allow herself to be," Aragorn replied bitterly.
He opened his eyes and stared at Legolas. The elf watched him, frowning.
"Aragorn," Legolas carefully began, "what happened?"
"She... Did not appreciate my interference," Aragorn replied tactfully.
"Then she is a fool. Does she not know what is at stake?"
Aragorn shook his head and turned away from him, "I believe she does. I don't believe she expects to reach the end of this quest alive."
Legolas watched him, brows furrowed. He inclined his head and looked away.
"I will speak with her," said the elf.
"Legolas -."
"Brianna must know, Aragorn, she must understand. We are her friends and allies in the middle of a war. It is time she hears us and not her arrogance as well meaning as she thinks it is," he said almost kindly.
Aragorn felt as if the weight of the world pressed on his shoulders. A part of him understood her need to push those she wanted to rely on away. To keep them safe from harm and alive while she risked her life. It was difficult for him to understand why she felt her life worth risking through reckless behavior. A warrior of her caliber could easily find a way to fight effectively and to keep her person safe from assassins and potential kidnappers. The only reason why she would take a more dangerous path could only be because she didn't believe her life was worth preserving.
He looked down at his burnt hand. The injury had been calculated even with her evident irritation at his insistence she be closely guarded. Had she merely been irrational or was she trying to protect him from herself?
But, why?
Aragorn wasn't sure if he was going to find out anytime soon.
Author's Note:
I know, everyone. They had an argument and Brianna was being very unreasonable. That's because right now she isn't. I also wanted to apologize for how this chapter first appeared to all of you and also because it's not up to my usual standard formatting or length. This is because I'm currently working from my phone. I don't have access to my computer. On the other hand, a shout out to the fan fiction app for making updates possible again (and a really special one to Sprint for having a good data plan I could get behind).
Anyway, this isn't my favorite ending to this chapter. The next one will have one that doesn't leave a bad taste in my mouth. It's difficult to write these moments where your character's flaws catch up to them and hurt the people they care about.
Like it? Hate it? DESPISE IT? Review and tell me what you think!
Chapter 12 ❱
