Fangorn Forest was beautiful.

Evelyn could hardly believe that it was a real place. The moment she stepped beneath the canopy, she could hear the trees whispering all around her. They were happy to see her, they greeted her as an old friend. She could feel the difference in them, how the great oaks had grown not from seeds but from the hands of Yavanna herself. Perhaps that's why they loved her so much, they could sense the blood of their creator flowing through her veins.

Danger

Black Beasts

Murderers

Chasing

The whispers turned harsh and Evelyn could sense the anger and rage of the trees. Someone else had invaded their home, someone not welcome.

"I can smell them," Nightshade growled, her nose in the air.

Black Beasts

Hurry

Help

With the cries of the trees all around, Evelyn chased Nightshade who had taken off like a rocket. They picked up speed as they went, branches parting in front of them to ease their way and guide them towards their goal. As they got closer, Evelyn could hear them- she could smell them.

"Orcs!" She snarled aloud as Nightshade put her head down and raced faster.

When the monsters were finally within sight it took less than a second for Evelyn to figure out what was going on. A small band of six orcs were chasing two small figures. One had managed to climb out of reach in a tree, but the other was about to be crushed by one of the disgusting creatures.

Without pausing in stride Evelyn pulled her bow from her shoulder and fired an arrow at the orc hovering over the small thing. An expression of shock crossed its face before it swayed and collapsed. The rest of its brethren screamed in fury, charging forward only to be waylaid by Nightshade who launched herself from the underbrush like she was on a spring. The quarters were too close for arrows to be effective so Evelyn withdrew her two new blades; the black patina glistened under the filter sunlight as she twisted in her deadly dance.

Black blood gushed from precise strikes at arteries as one by one the band of orcs fell. A cry from one of the nearby trees distracted Evelyn enough for one orc to manage a swipe at her side, but between the creature's messy technique, rusted blade, and Evleyn's elvish armor there wasn't even a scratch.

All too soon, the orcs were dead. The woods became silent and still once more.

With the threat gone, Evelyn turned to look at the two figures who she had rescued. They were short and almost childlike in appearance. They both had mops of curly hair, their feet were rather large...

Oh... short, curly hair, large feet... Fangorn Forest...

"Merry and Pippin I presume?" She already knew the answer but half hoped that she was wrong.

"Y-yes..." the Hobbit who had been attacked stuttered slightly as he spoke. "Th-thank you Miss..."

"...Raven, you may call me Raven," she said after a slight pause. She still wasn't ready to use her real name.

"How do you-"

"It's a long story," she said with an exhale as the other Hobbit climbed down from the nearby tree.

It had been a long several weeks flying for Fangorn and after the battle she was exhausted. Thus, she jerked her head to Nightshade who immediately began leading the way. Evelyn followed and gestured for the Hobbits to follow her.

"Miss Raven... we should like to-"

"I don't plan on having this talk surrounded by orc carcasses. We need to set up camp. I wouldn't suggest the two of you staying in these woods by yourself so you're welcome to join Nightshade and me."

"Is your wolf going to eat us?" The one who Evelyn was pretty sure had to be Pippin asked.

"Are you going to try to slit my throat tonight?" She asked. Apparently the dry sharpness to her tone was mistaken for sincerity by the frightened Hobbits.

"N-no Miss! Absolutely not! We-we're very very grateful for you killing those orcs and-"

"If you're not planning on harming either of us then Nightshade won't hurt you. Relax."

She then turned back to walking and listened to the sounds of scurrying footsteps behind her. Eventually they came upon a small clearing that Nightshade hand found and Evelyn immediately began setting up camp. She cleared a space for a fire, laid out her bedroll, and began digging through her provisions. She figured that for the night, lembas would do. She could go foraging for more variety when she was no longer exhausted.

Once the fire was going and the nervous Hobbits were nibbling on a square of lembas each, Evelyn took to her swords. They were certainly made of a fine steel and experienced no damage were however caked with blood that Evelyn was careful to wipe off. She ran her rag across he edges of the blade, removing all traces of orc blood. Once they were clean she removed her and Nightshade's armor, laying them out on a blanket. The Ents might not exist in this version of Middle Earth, but the trees of Fangor were still more alive than any she had met so far. If there was a threat, they would warn her.

Eventually, Evelyn ran out of tasks to do and thus she was left to sit by the fire and eat her lembas. The Hobbits were watching her, half in fear and half in awe. She knew they were curious. She could practically see the questions in their head trying to leap from their mouths.

Resigning herself to their inquiries, Evelyn sighed and began the conversation.

"I know who you are as I am well aware of the Fellowship of the Ring. I have just come from Imladris. I know Aragorn and I am a... friend of Gimli's father, Gloin."

"So you know about our quest?!" Pippin asked in excitement.

"Indeed... I'm here because at the edge of this forest lies Saruman's tower. I'm here to bring it down."

"H-how?" Merry asked with his eyes wide.

"...I'm not sure yet. For now, eat. I need to rest."

With those words she made her way back over to her bedroll and laid down. Nightshade quickly took her place curled up next to her. As usual, Evelyn kept one hand on her blades as she listened to the soft music of the trees whispering goodnight.

"Miss Raven," a hesitant voice which Evelyn was pretty sure came from Merry inquired.

"...yes."

"Could- do you think we could stick with you?"

"It's just we really don't want to run into any more orcs and you seem pretty hand with those blades-"

"Yes. Now sleep. If there is danger I'll know."

Something funny fluttered in Evelyns chest as she listened to the Hobbits shuffle about gettin ready for sleep. There had been something so open and honest in their question. They didn't care that she had wings, that she wielded blades with deadly precisions, or that she kept company with a wolf. They saw her rescue them and they... trusted her. Just like that... so simply and so innocently.

They reminded her of what she once was.

"This is a terrible idea."

"Keep your voice down," Elladan whispered to his twin. "Are you trying to get us caught?"

The two sons of Elrond were crouched low over Elrohir's bed as they packed their bags. There was very little light as neither dared to light a candle, thus they made do with the scarce glow of the moon and stars. They were in Elrohir's room as Elladan had already packed his things before barging into his brother's room and demanding that he pack as well.

"Right now... I think getting caught might be the most sensible thing."

"Oh quit your whining," Elladan began rifling through his brother's things as Elrohir was apparently taking too long to pack. "This was your idea."

"It absolutely wasn't," he shot back.

"You're the one who said that you had a 'bad feeling' about Glorfindel going," Elladan was trying to find his brother's spare whetstone but Elrohir's chest was proof that he was an absolute hoarder.

"Yes... a bad feeling," it was true, Elrohir had several dreams over the past few days that involved Glorfindel falling from a great height. He wasn't sure if it was a metaphor or a vision of the future, but they left his with a racing heart and a heavy ache each time. "But that doesn't mean that I wanted to sneak out at night and join the company of soldiers that he's leading."

"But you had one of your visions-"

"I never said it was a vision," Elrohir corrected, but Elladan was undeterred.

"And Ada always tells us to trust our instincts and have faith in messages that the Valar send us-"

"There's no way to know that the Valar sent that image."

"So really," Elladan tied the top of his brother's rucksack and shoved it into his arms. "This is Ada's orders."

Elrohir paused, his still sightly sleepy brain taking a moment to catch up.

"That's some of the most twisted logic I've seen you come up with... and I've seen you try to explain to Erestor why the horse you led to the library was supposed to be in there."

"Okay, then how about this," despite Elrohir's verbal protests, Elladan was already strapping armor onto his brother as he spoke. "If you think something's up with Glorfindel... then that means he needs our help. Also, with what Raven said about the battle... Estel needs our help too. Are you really planning on leaving our little brother to face the wrath of Sauron himself without us?"

"You know that I'm coming," Elrohir glared as he finished buckling on his chest plate. "I'm just making my protests to this stupid idea abundantly clear. You remember how anxious Ada was the last time we slipped out."

"But that time he though that Glorfindel was dead. This time he'll know that we're with him... it'll be fine."

The sky was still dark as they were a few hours off from dawn, but as soon as the sun showed its face, Glorfindel would be departing from Imladris with a company of soldiers who volunteered to fight for Middle Earth. Elrohir knew that there would be more present than Glorfindel expected... the elves of Imladris would always come when the Balrog Slayer called.

"Okay... I'm ready." Elrohir was fully outfitted for both war and travel, armor and cloak identical to his brother's.

"The window?"

"The window."

Elladan, as always, went first. He threw his rucksack over his shoulder and gripped the wooden trellis tight. One hand over the other, he scaled the rickety structure structure with ease. When he landed lightly on his feet, the cool evening grass softening his landing, he called up to his brother who followed.

They had left a note, scrawled onto a piece of parchment and left on Elladan's desk explaining where they went and why. They knew that their father would be upset with them running off to battle more orcs, but this was no longer just a quest for vengeance. Instead, it was a mission to help their friend, their mentor, and their brother. It was something they had to do.

The twins kept themselves close to the building walls, slinking low under the cover of dark they made their way to the stables. They were careful to open the old doors without allowing them to creak, slipping inside and reaching for their saddles. When they got to the tack storage however, they were surprised to see their gear missing.

"You're late."

Both twins turned around at and almost comical speed as they came face to face with their father who was holding the reins to both their steeds. The horses were groomed to perfection and fully tacked, ready for war.

"Ada!" Elladan was the first to recover. "Elrohir and I were going for... a midnight ride. You see we were feeling a bit restless-"

"And you just happened to decide on going for a ride at the time when Glorfindel said to meet him in the courtyard if any wish to go with him to fight?"

"Uh-"

"We're sorry," Elrohir elbowed his brother, rolling his eyes at his absolutely failed attempts at a cover. "We-"

"I know," Elrond place one hand on each of his sons' shoulders. "I know you're sorry and I know that you two have to do this... but I'm still disappointed in you both. You should've come to me before slipping into the night like thieves."

"We thought-"

"You thought that I wouldn't approve," he shook his head. "You boys have the spirit for war no matter how much I wish you didn't. But, you are my sons and just like I understand that your sister's path lies with Estel in the world of Man, I know that yours lie with this war. I cannot and will not change that about you."

"We love you, Ada," both enveloped their father in a hug. For several moments they stayed like that, holding each other close before their father eventually pulled away.

"Go," he handed them the reins to their horses. "Join the company. There are a few things that I still must see to before I send you all off. May the stars light your way."

"May the stars light your way," they both pressed a palm against their chest and bowed low before turning to exit the stables, their saddle bags packed with extra healing supplies.

"And Elladan, Elrohir," the twins turned to look at their father. "Bring each other back safe."

They nodded and together made their way to the courtyard. Middle Earth was their home, Estel was their brother, and Glorfindel and Raven were their friends. They would fight to save them all.