A/N:
Mari Clair Roemajji Celts: hello again my friend, well you are right, it is my doing that poor Merenwen has gone through so much but I still feel bad but it was necessary. My thoughts were that if she never left Lothlorien she would continue to be immature (as much as an elleth of her age could be in other words), unsure of herself and unsure of her people (Galadriel to be specific) and of course she would have never found that she's as strong as Haldir always believed her to be. There will be more good things that come to pass for her than bad now though, and even in those times of uncertainty and struggles, I think she's equipped with enough confidence and spunk to get through it with her chin held up high. But in short, you are right, those hardships made her strong! You nailed it!
Aw I bet you are a fantastic writer, you should give it a try one day! I'd be your first reviewer for sure! But until then, I am certainly glad to have you as my reviewer, critic and friend!
Yes, I too fall in love with Legolas over and over haha, he is the soft side in the relationship don't you agree. He's strong but still just as sensitive…it's so endearing in a character such as him! I'm glad you like Anion, I worried introducing a new character may not go well but the more I write about him, the more I am excited to develop his character. I'm thinking about a chapter where more of his past and character will be revealed, I like each of my characters to be well rounded and developed enough to where people either love them or hate them haha! Well as always thanks for your words and critiques, I hope you enjoy this chapter, it's short again but only because I was excited to post again! I update sooner this way! Well thanks again!
Joss: I unfortunately do not know who the picture I used for the story icon, I found it online and edited it enough to be able to use it. Sorry I am of no help!
Dork Dog: Thanks for reviewing! You sound like me, that's exactly how I feel. I like them both but I will always bias when it comes to Legolas as well. How can anyone not have a soft spot for that handsome and sweet elf? I think both ellons would have been a good fit for her, but I think as the story unfolds more, we all will see Legolas was the best choice in the end. So happy to hear you're enjoying the story and the twists and turns, I'm trying to keep it interesting and make sure no one can think it was too expected of a storyline. Well, this chapter is for you hope you enjoy it, thanks for reviewing! Hope to hear from you again!
Elleth of Light
Chapter Twenty-One
Merenwen's POV
These men of Gondor were proving to be quite the elusive bunch; I was beginning to wonder if Anion I were chasing a rumor, that is, until we found a promising lead in the form of two uruk-hai in the distance. They were trackers, trained to relentlessly search for their prey. It was no coincidence these trackers were in our sight; my suspicions were confirmed when I heard them expressing the scent of blood shed by men of Gondor. It had a sweet aroma to it they said, a real treat they continued.
Such twisted talk was making it hard not to charge at them and kill them myself; put an end to their words but I knew we would not be able to find these men without these creatures.
"We will put an end to them…the moment we're able." Anion assured me. We were creeping silently through the wilderness a great distance behind the uruks.
"It may come sooner than that I'm afraid. These are no lowly orcs; they are trained to take notice of the slightest change in their environment. There is a good chance they will realize they are being followed. I just hope they will lead us close enough to the men that we will be able to find them ourselves." I breathed. I refused to take my eyes off of the two, I was waiting for the moment they turn to us in realization. It was only a matter of time.
"What happened to positive thinking?" I chuckled silently at his remark.
"I'm just being realistic." I replied, peering over the boulder we were crouching behind. The uruks had brought us to a formation of rocks that mimicked a cliff side erupting from the ground. I could hear the faint sound of a waterfall nearby and the air was heavy with humidity from the source of water.
Suddenly a branch snapped behind us, we both spun around and scanned the area for movement. It then hit me, I quickly returned my gaze ahead to find the uruks had vanished. Great.
"Well that didn't take long." I hissed, quickly pulling my sword from its sheath. Anion drew an arrow back, steadily aiming it to the slightest movement of shadows, awaiting the moment to fire.
Within seconds I felt a strong hand grabbing a fistful of my hair and pulling my body onto the boulder's rough surface. I swung my sword violently, catching the muscular arm of the uruk enough to allow my release. I leapt onto my feet and engaged the hideous creature before me. I snarled at the sight of the white hand pressed upon his face.
"I see your master let you out to play."
"Bold words for a she-elf about to die." He growled. With a mighty swing his blunt blade crashed against my sword, I was instantly brought to my knees from the sheer impact. I then began to swing my sword in a fury of speedy attacks I hoped the beast could not match; unfortunately that was not the case. He matched me blow for blow; he would dodge my every attack only to replace it with his own. He was certainly trained well.
His advances were driving me back towards a gathering of trees; the sheer force of his attacks were making it hard to stand firm. It took one more attack from his muscular arm to drive me right against a tree. I was shoved hard against it, driving the air from my lungs. I heard a laugh slip through his fangs; I quickly drove the hilt of my blade into his face.
"Who's laughing now."After my final word reached his ear I felt his elbow crash into my face. My lip busted instantly. I stammered backwards, spitting the irony taste of blood from my mouth before lunging towards the beast once again. We fought in a dizzy display of blows; our swords clashed loudly, creating high pitched sounds dancing through the trees. I studied his movements carefully; waiting for the opportune moment to drive my sword into his belly. Soon my wait would appear to have paid off as his guard dropped slightly as he drew back his mighty blade. Before I could shove my blade into his flesh I watched as four arrows connected with the uruks body. With a grunt of pain he fell to the ground, the four arrows staring back at me as if I needed to be rescued.
"Anion! I had him!" I shouted behind me only to find Anion was still fighting the other uruk. I raised an eyebrow until I realized something was different in the air. I sighed the moment it struck me. I turned to see an arrow pointed inches from my face. Behind the arrow was a face that struck me as familiar in a sense.
"My Lord, what are your orders?" a voice asked in the woods.
"Bring them to the keep." The man before me replied. Well I suppose we found the men of Gondor, or rather, they found us.
He motioned me towards the direction of his so called keep. He kept his arrow pointed towards me; never once dropping his guard.
"We have not seen spies of your kind before." He whispered as he directed me through the land.
"We are no spies my lord." I tried my best to remain polite with my words despite my growing frustrations of having an arrow pointed at my head.
"Do I look like a hired hand of Mordor? Honestly, I thought you men of Gondor were supposed to be intelligent." So much for politeness; suddenly I felt a boot connect with my back, knocking me down to the ground.
"Don't you touch her!" Anion shouted. I rolled over to face the man only to see him hovering over me with a dagger pressing against my throat but something changed in his expression. His gaze fell onto my scar my throat was now forever adorned with, I felt his hand retract slightly, as if he felt pity for the injury I had endured.
"How did such a fair creature such as yourself receive such a wound if it wasn't because of the nature of your…duties as a spy?" He asked, his auburn locks falling into sight from the shadows cast by his hood.
"I fell victim to an uruk-hai at the battle of Helm's Deep. Perhaps you've heard of it? I am an ally to King Theoden; I am still regarded as a member of the fellowship of the ring." I swallowed hard, feeling the chill of steel against my skin was making me slightly nervous. We had no prior information about this man, nor his intentions. We were gravely unprepared; we charged into this blindly…a mistake that might very well cost Anion and me our lives.
"The fellowship?" He raised a brow.
"Yes. Were you too busy lurking about the mountains with your secret group to hear? The fellowship set out to put an end to the evil taking over this world." The man snarled at my words, returning the blade hard against my throat.
"Watch your words elf. I know of the fellowship, more than you would think. My brother…" Suddenly it hit me as I studied his features, I couldn't even allow him to finish his sentence.
"Boromir. He was your brother."
"He still is my brother. Death does not stop him from being my brother." He spat, his face was riddled with sadness. I felt for the man, despite the fact he was still holding a knife against my throat.
"He was…my friend. I-" I started.
"Don't. Forgive me if I'm not quite ready to discuss his memory with others. But I am curious to learn why you too have left the company of the fellowship." He said while narrowing his eyes.
"Too? I don't understand." Had he encountered the others as well?
"Two hobbits and a gangly creature are currently under my watchful eye. Perhaps you know of who I speak of?"
"I know nothing of a gangly creature but hobbits…I know. There are four hobbits in all; you will tell me the names of the hobbits you speak of!" I demanded as I began to feel the urge to struggle from his hold but I was quickly shoved back to the ground.
"I do not believe you are in the position to be demanding anything elf." I was growing tired of this man. Boromir's brother or not, I was not one to allow another to keep a blade on me for such an extended amount of time before fighting back.
"I would ask you to remove your weapon from my throat." I hissed through clenched teeth.
"Is that so? Perhaps you are a member of the fellowship cast out in fear of disloyalty…or perhaps you weren't a member of the fellowship at all. Forgive me if I don't necessarily trust very easily."
"Disloyalty?" I was offended at the very thought of the word.
"I know what Frodo carries…many creatures would seek to wield its power to save their land." So, it was Frodo in the hands of this man and his group, Sam most likely is the other. I was relieved to have hope of their safety, but if this man knew Frodo carried the one ring, why had he not returned them on their journey to destroy it? Unless…
"You are the very creature you speak of are you not? What, you think if you have the ring you can bring it back to Gondor; perhaps enjoy riches, praise and honor for such a mighty gift to the white city."
"You don't know what you speak of."
"I know enough to know that you are a fool if you believe you can wield the one ring." As I spoke, the image of myself wearing the one ring flashed before my waking eyes. Surely I believed what I said to the man, right?
"Get them to the keep." He ordered to the man who had a sword pressing into Anion's back.
"Yes my lord Faramir." He replied. So that was his name, Faramir.
"I trust you'll understand our precautions until we speak with you further." Faramir said while pulling a rope from his side. I let out a chuckle at the sight.
"Was there something amusing to you?"
"It's been a long time since I've been bound; however do not allow yourself to believe that I have been captured. I'm simply allowing you to feel a bit safer." I watched the young man laugh at my response; he quickly began binding my hands in front of me ensuring a few tugs of the rope until I felt my skin tear from the pressure.
"And here I thought elves were soft spoken, fair creatures." He said while jerking me to my feet, taking hold of my arm and leading me towards the rock formations. His grip was tight; I could tell he wasn't too keen on my personality. Being related to Boromir, he obviously was of great importance, royalty in a sense. I'm certain my lack of respect was not something he was accustomed to but he would learn quick that such respect must be earned from me.
"Not in the slightest."