A/N: Aaaaaaaaaannd...here we go! New chapter! :D Once again, be prepared for some serious angst from Íverin. For those of you that have seen the movies (which is hopefully all of you), you should know why I say that. I do want Galadriel's gift to her to still appear in the story, so yeah...Íverin's gonna go through some crap. :3 Have fun reading!

Disclaimer: You know the drill. Íverin, and only Íverin, is mine.

Random guy: O RLY?

Me: YA RLY.

We were all gathered inside Mesufeld. Théoden sat on his throne, deep in thought, while Gandalf sat by his side, giving him counsel. Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli and I were grouped around a nearby table. Éowyn was tending to two small children who were found alone with a horse outside the gates of Edoras. For awhile now, we had been listening to reports of the destruction of Rohan, and the invasion of the servants of Saruman.

"This is but a taste of the terror Saruman will unleash," Gandalf said.

I sighed. "Well, we cannot simply sit back and watch Rohan fall to ruin."

"No," Théoden replied, "we cannot. But I will not bring further death to my people. I will not risk open war."

"Open war is upon you, whether you would risk it or not," Aragorn said.

Théoden glared at him. "When last I looked, Théoden, not Aragorn, was King of Rohan."

"You have no other choice, lord!" I said.

"Ah, but that is where you are wrong, my dear. The people of Rohan are not as weak as many assume them to be. We have the magnificent fortress of Helm's Deep to secure us. Many a war has been fought there, and we have always come out on top."

"But you cannot assume the same thing for this war. You are dealing with more than just a simple attack, you are dealing with Saruman."

"And if Saruman attacks Edoras, imagine the shock he will feel upon discovery that it is empty!" the King smiled. "No, Íverin, we do have another option. We will empty the city!" He turned to his soldiers. "Take only what is needed! We leave at sunrise tomorrow. We make for Helm's Deep!"

His soldiers hurried off, already beginning to spread the news. "Go now, guests! Rest for tomorrow's journey!" With that, the King turned and went back to his throne, and the rest of us stood and exited to our quarters, but not before I cast one last glare at Théoden.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

I watched the ground moving underneath my feet as Aragorn and I slowly walked on with the citizens of Edoras, slowly but surely making our way into the depths of the mountains. He had a hold of the reins, as we had been riding for some time, but we had both gotten tired of sitting, and thought it best to walk.

"Aragorn..." I said quietly. He looked up at me. "We are not doing the right thing, are we?"

"Why do you think that?" he asked.

I sighed. "Théoden should not be running away from his enemy. He keeps assuming that things will work out in his favor, but that is never a good strategy when it comes to war. Saruman is a stronger enemy than he supposes; he will not give up that easily. And the people of Rohan cannot live in the mountains forever. They would have to return to Edoras for supplies eventually, so why do they flee?"

A bemused look was in his eye. "You know much about war. How did you come to learn all this?"

I shrugged. "I do not know. Just an opinion, I guess. If there's one thing I have learned in my lifetime, it is to never doubt the enemy."

"You are very smart, Íverin. But do not worry. I do not think we are doing the right thing either, but...Théoden is only doing what he thinks is best for his people. And we have many strong warriors. We will be all right."

I smiled. "We have the White Rider." Aragorn tried to smile convincingly back, but I saw right through it. "What?"

"Nothing," he replied.

Panic rising in me, I looked around. I finally realized that I had not seen Gandalf at all since yesterday evening. "Aragorn, where is Gandalf?" My cousin looked away. "Tell me!"

"He left us."

I was shocked. "Why? Surely he sees the error of Théoden's ways!"

"He does," Aragorn assured me, "and that is why he left. To get help."

"But...if the enemy follows us...he would not make it back in time!"

"Do not doubt him," he said. "Gandalf knows what he's doing."

I frowned and began to look at my surroundings once more. My eyes landed on Legolas and Gimli, who were on Arod several yards ahead of us. I remembered the conversation the elf and I had on the banks of the Anduin. It seemed like so long ago. "Aragorn?"

"Yes?"

"...have you and Legolas been friends for a long time?"

He shot me a look, confused by the question. "I would say so. Why do you ask?"

"Has he ever told you anything about his family?"

"Like what?"

"Well," I said, "just after we left Lórien, he told me that his mother died when he was young."

Aragorn frowned. "He told you that? He must trust you an awful lot. We had been friends for many long years before I learned that about him."

I perked up. Another sign, perhaps? "What else is his past like? He seemed reluctant to talk about it, but...I cannot help but be curious."

My cousin was quiet for several moments. "...I do not feel the need to tell you, Íverin. It is Legolas's choice what he keeps private and what he shares with you."

I pouted. "Please?"

"If you wish to know, you may ask him yourself. But, if you choose to do so, be careful what you say. The last thing you want to do is say something you'll regret." He smiled. "You do that a lot."

I laughed. "You know me too well." I reached up and messed up his hair. "I love you, cousin."

"I love you too, Íverin."

Suddenly, there came a cry from far ahead. "We're under attack!" Aragorn and I shared a look, and hopped back onto Hasufeld. Aragorn snapped the reins, and we sped off, rushing up the hill. As we came to the top, I saw Legolas standing there, shooting off into the distance at horrible creatures that looked like a hybrid between wolves and hyenas, with Orcs riding their backs.

"What are those things?" I shouted.

"Wargs! More servants of Saruman!" Aragorn replied over his shoulder. I watched as Legolas expertly swung underneath his horse and landed safely on top, with him and Gimli riding up next to us.

"Pretty impressive!" I said. He laughed.

"Aragorn!" I looked back to see King Théoden riding up on our other side. He frowned upon seeing my face. "Lady Íverin! Get out of here! Make for Helm's Deep with the rest of the women and children!"

I scoffed. "Why would I do that when I can fight?"

"It is too dangerous!" he shouted. "Go with Éowyn!"

"No!" Legolas shouted from my other side. "Let her stay! It would be unwise to keep her behind! She has more skill than you think!"

Théoden looked from me to Legolas, back to me, and finally at Aragorn. "Fine," he said, and rode onward.

I looked back at Legolas. "Thanks. I owe you one." I grabbed my bow and fitted an arrow to it, shooting the first Warg I saw. Aragorn and I split up from Legolas and Gimli, weaving through the enemies, killing as we went. Once I ran out of arrows, I put my bow away and pulled out my sword. Tapping Aragorn's arm, I cried, "I'm getting down!"

He nodded. "Be careful!"

"I will!" I jumped down from the horse, sticking the landing, and ran off. A Warg charged straight at me and pounced. At the last second, I ducked, and as he sailed over me, I stuck my sword up, driving it deep into his stomach. The beast yelped and went down, and I turned around and stabbed its Orc master, too. Another Warg, this time with no Orc, came at me, and I jumped to the left, bringing down my sword once, twice, three times to behead it. Another one of the foul, twisted dogs jumped at me, jaws open wide, and I stumbled and fell, but then quickly used my momentum to roll back up onto my feet, turn around, and stick my blade in his eye.

Suddenly, I heard a shout from not too far away. Gimli was lying underneath a dead Warg and Orc, and another Warg was crawling up on top of him, crushing him to death. I ran up and slammed into the dog, shoving him off my bearded friend, and sliced him across the back, then spun around and stabbed his heart.

I ran back over to Gimli. "Are you hurt?"

"No, lassie! But I'm afraid I can't move to well underneath all this death!"

I got my arms under the Orc's body, and with a grunt, tossed it away. Standing by Gimli's head, I braced myself against the dead Warg, and pushed with all my might, but it did not budge. "Helo me Gimli, if you can!" I said. He nodded, and with a great cry we managed to roll the mangy beast off of him.

He hopped to his feet, gripping his axe tightly. "Many thanks, Íverin! Were it not for you, I should think I would be long gone by now!"

I smiled. "Not a problem." I looked around. The battle had been a victory for Rohan. Bodies of our dead enemies lay everywhere, and blood stained the grass. But we had suffered a heavy blow as well. Many of our riders were slain, and even some of the horses did not survive. I shuddered as I caught a glimpse of one missing a leg.

I saw Legolas up the hill a bit, and ran up to him. "Final count?" I asked with a smile.

He returned it. "27."

"Ah, you beat me! I had only 23." I laughed. "Where's Aragorn?"

"I was hoping you would tell me," he said. "I have not seen him at all."

Looking around, I called out for my cousin. "Aragorn!"

Gimli searched for him, too. "Aragorn?"

"Come," Legolas said, "we will search for him together. He cannot be too far off." We walked back up the hill, searching for any sign of him. As we came near the edge of a high cliff, we passed an Orc, who coughed up black blood as he laughed, sneering at us.

I went over to him and placed my sword to his throat. "What do you know?"

"About your friend? He's..." he choked, "dead!"

I froze, not sure if I should believe him. "How?"

"He took a little tumble off the cliff."

Legolas, who had been standing next to me, knelt down and grabbed him by the collar of his armor. "You lie!"

The Orc laughed again, but said nothing more. Without hesitation, I bolted to the cliff's edge. Looking over, I saw nothing but sharp, jagged rocks and a raging blue river below. My heart stopped. Images of my cousin that I loved so dearly flashed through my mind. "No..." I whispered. "NO! ESTEL!" I darted forward, my feet slipping off the edge. "ESTEL!" Strong hands gripped my shoulders, pulling me back. I struggled against them. "ESTEL!" Tears streamed down my face.

"Íverin! Stop it!" Legolas tightened his grip on me.

"He can't be gone! He mustn't be!" I cried.

"Íverin!" He dragged me away from the cliff. Suddenly, he stood in front of me, blocking my view. I wrapped my arms around him and sobbed into his chest.

"Legolas, he...he...he was like my brother..."

He returned the hug and comforted me, just as he had done after Gandalf's fall in Moria. "I know how much he meant to you, Íverin. But that is no excuse to throw away your own life so irrationally." Gently, he stroked my hair. "Please...we cannot lose you, too."

I cried for a bit more, his words and embrace soothing to me. Finally, he let me go. Pushing me back so he could see my face, he looked into my eyes. I took a shaky breath.

"Will you be all right?" he asked.

I sighed. "Yes...for the moment. I will be fine." I wiped my eyes and started to walk away, but before I got too far, I felt his hand on my shoulder. I turned to look at him. "What?"

Legolas hesitated for a moment, like he wanted to say something, but couldn't find the right way to say it. He extended a hand, in which he held Aragorn's Evenstar necklace. It seemed to glow in the sunlight. "For you. The Orc had it in his hand," he said. "It might help."

I smiled weakly. "Thank you, Legolas."

After another moment, he reached out and carefully clasped it around my neck. "It looks beautiful on you."

I blushed and looked down. "Thank you...again." I laughed.

He smiled softly and walked off, back to the cliff. I watched him go, but he was not in my thoughts. I could only imagine the blood that now covered Aragorn's body, the horrible crunch he would have made as he hit the rocks. I shuddered and cried some more, sinking into despair. Aragorn was gone. The only family I had left on this journey was gone. I felt so alone. This was too much. If all of the ones I loved were doomed to die because of this quest, then...then I wanted no part in this journey anymore.