everything-is-black-and-white - most definitely!
Guest - that's awesome! A huge thank you!
LDiana - I think it's more of the fact they were "men" that bothered her the most, and not actual monsters like orcs or goblins, if that makes sense.
Thanks so much for the reviews and messages, I love hearing your thoughts.
- S
- Chapter 50 -
No fire lit their campsite that night, and neither did the moon. Snowflakes drifted down to the riders from a cloudy sky, and the mild wind was chilly. They sat in a small cove of rocks, shielded from the weather and often their eyes would drift to the sleeping frame tucked under whatever blankets they had; strands of her white hair shifting when the breeze caught it; the only light in the darkness around them. For hours she slept soundly, no doubt exhausted from a serious lack of sleep, and they had no problem letting her rest.
She didn't even stir when Legolas took her in his arms and laid her on the ground. Her exhaustion was evident, and told them she had very little chance for rest over the course of her flight from the Dunlendings."
Legolas leaned against the rock behind him, his eyes staring out into the dark landscape as he watched white snowflakes float down onto the tall brown reeds of the surrounding plains. He sat with his arms resting on his raised knees, and between his hands he held the small blade she wielded earlier, twisting it between his fingers thoughtfully, a frown upon his forehead.
The last rays of sunlight were finally gone for the day, engulfing them in darkness.
Sidhel and Nodron rested quietly, although Sidhel was repairing a fletching on an arrow and Nodron's eyes were lingering on the horses.
"Will you stay?" Sidhel asked after a length, breaking the silence of their camp.
Legolas looked over at him and blinked, realizing the question was for him. Sidhel's gaze looked away from the Prince and flicked to the sleeping frame of the elleth next to him, and Legolas knew what he was asking.
"I'm not sure," he said quietly, dropping his gaze back to the blade in his hands.
Satisfied with the repair job on the arrow, Sidhel tucked it back into the quiver only to pull out another one to examine it, despite the lack of light. He repaired enough arrows during his lifetime that it was second nature to him, and little light was necessary to feel for any damages. Finding none, he returned the arrow and repeated the same thing over with another one.
Legolas knew he was just trying to pass the time until the sun peeked over the horizon and they could be on their way. Intrigued by Sidhel's question, Nodron turned his attention back to the group.
"Why would you not stay?" he asked, and Legolas looked up at him.
"I have duties," he replied sternly, as if the two guards could have so easily forgotten that fact.
"Is she not also part of your duties now?" asked Nodron, ignoring the hardened tone in Legolas' voice.
Nodron knew this was not something the Prince would talk about easily in front of her, despite the fact she was sound asleep, but nevertheless it was something that needed to be talked about. Legolas frowned and stuck the knife into the ground next to him, then linked his fingers together.
"If you ask me, you are going to have your hands full with her," Sidhel said, the corner of his mouth twitching just the slightest with amusement. "She seems to attract trouble wherever she goes."
"I did not ask you," the Prince said, his eyes narrowing just the slightest.
Sidhel sighed. "No, you did not."
"I could not leave my troop," said Legolas, reminding them of his duties for the hundredth time. "You know this as well as I."
Sidhel shook his head once but not in disagreement. "Nor can you leave her."
"She will be safe in Lorien once we get her there."
"And then what? You will just turn around and leave her? Until when?" asked Sidhel.
"Enough," said Legolas quietly, his voice sounding strained.
Sidhel looked as if he might argue but Nodron nudged him in the side with his elbow, and Sidhel's mouth snapped shut. Legolas' head rested against the rock behind him and he looked skyward.
"Perhaps you're right," Sidhel said quietly. "I am sure the marchwarden will be able to look after her in your stead."
The furious look on Legolas' face was one Sidhel had seen before and he knew he'd pushed his friend and commanding officer one step too far.
"You -," Legolas cut off when her hand moved and she shifted in her sleep, thinking they accidentally woke her up, but she went still once more and he sent his friend a glare. "You speak of the marchwarden, Haldir, and much too boldly Sidhel."
With a shallow nod, Sidhel's face was serious. "They have met before and he showed her favor, is that not what you said? You're right, she will be safe in Lorien when we get her there."
"You're pushing him unnecessarily Sidhel," warned Nodron. "It is already a hard enough decision without you attempting to interfere."
"I would not wish to leave my bonded behind," said Sidhel as he fixed Legolas with a look. "Your troop would understand if you chose to follow her for a while."
Legolas took in a deep breath and sent his friend a dangerous look. Sidhel knew he was already treading on thin water, but he absolutely hated to see his friend be parted from the elleth he bonded with, without even getting a proper chance to know her. If he had to tread on thin water, then he would certainly tread on thin water.
"I have no desire to leave her but it is not only my troop I leave behind," the Prince said.
"Mellon nin," said Sidhel leaning forward seriously. "We have had to watch you suffer through countless dinner parties and feasts while you were introduced to elleth after elleth in the hopes you would pick one to be by your side; each one of them as dull as the last. The attempts at arranged marriages, the pressure from the councilors to take a wife; those days are now in the past."
Shyloh stirred beside him and Sidhel fell quiet as she sat up looking extremely groggy and tired yet.
"You three talk so loud you could wake the dead. Even dwarves are quieter at night then you, and they snore. I think he's trying to tell you you're a free man now," she said, before burying her face in the blanket while she yawned. Then she fixed him with a mock serious expression. "You're welcome."
He could see the amusement in her tired eyes as she wrapped the blanket firmly around her shoulders, then looked up at the sky and scowled while watching the snowflakes drift down into their little campsite.
"It's not exactly that simple," groaned Legolas and she shrugged.
"We were not trying to be loud," Nodron said, shooting Sidhel and Legolas pointed looks. "And we did not mean to wake you."
She shrugged again. "Honestly though, I thought he was going to hit you for a minute," she said looking over at Sidhel.
"I still might," Legolas muttered next to her.
He knew Sidhel was just trying to be a good, encouraging friend, but that didn't excuse the fact it angered Legolas. He wasn't concerned about the marchwarden; he knew Sidhel was only trying to push him into staying by making him jealous.
Well, he huffed quietly to himself. It was working.
He could hardly be upset that any other ellon had shown her favor. She was beautiful after all and it was so easy for her to claim the attention of everyone around her without even trying. It hadn't escaped his attention the looks she received from his guards during her time with the host of Mirkwood, nor had it escaped his attention the amount of looks the Lakemen gave her either. She was beautiful both inside and out. She was unique and strange and aside from befriending the dwarves, what was not to like?
The marchwarden Haldir he had only met twice during courteous visits between realms for council meetings and found him to be pleasant company, but the thought of Haldir getting to know her better did not exactly sit well with him either.
But it wasn't that simple.
He would make sure she arrived safe and sound in Lorien, then he would go back to his duties in Mirkwood and she would reside in Lorien or perhaps travel back to Rivendell, but he could not see her returning to Mirkwood for the foreseeable future.
Why had the Valar paired them up? Why had they deemed the two of them compatible for each other? What was it about the two of them that was so unique and special? These questions never seemed to fade from his mind and as he stared out into the night he ran a hand over his face in frustration. There was so much about her he didn't know; so much he figured he would never know. He could see the conflict in her eyes; the struggle for acceptance that haunted her every step. She was not like any elleth he ever met before.
He didn't hesitate for a moment when word came that she was in trouble. The distance between the two of them at that very moment on the Old Forest Road didn't even seem to register in his mind. Only now when he thought about it, did it seem a crazy notion to travel so far for an elleth he barely knew.
Not crazy at all... he thought.
He could have kicked himself. He might barely know her but she was his soulmate. Patience would be his enemy where she was concerned, and he had to remind himself that she was still trying to figure this life out and find her place in it.
"I did not mean to start any trouble," Sidhel said apologetically. "I only wish for the two of you to have a fair chance."
Nodron turned back to the group and nodded. "The war certainly did not help anything."
"Neither did Iamben," she muttered, and Legolas turned to look at her. She caught his look and shrugged. "He didn't help anything by trying to get me banished."
"That is true," Sidhel said with a dark look. "I never liked him much."
Legolas raised his eyebrows with amusement. "That fact has been true for centuries."
Nodron laughed and Sidhel rolled his eyes. "He is infuriating, and the way he treated you did not help anything."
She blushed at that, and was touched by his protectiveness towards her. "What is the history between you two?" she asked curiously.
Sidhel shook his head and looked up at the sky. "Where would I even begin?" he wondered. "Well, it doesn't help anything that my mother is Iamben's sister."
Her eyes widened with shock. "What! Iamben is your uncle?"
A pained look crossed Sidhel's face. "Yes," he sighed heavily. "They say you can choose your friends, but you cannot choose your family."
"You never said anything before about it," she stated but it was his turn to shrug.
"It is not exactly something we boast about," he said with a less than amused laugh. "Anyway, it started before my father married my mother. My father, Lord Erist, is the oldest Silvan elf in Mirkwood. If King Thranduil were to step down from his reign, and Legolas were to abdicate his place as next in line, the rule of the Woodland Realm would go to my father, instead of the oldest Silvan family."
"I don't understand," she said.
"Erist's family relocated to Mirkwood well before Erist was even born," explained Legolas. "But, they are a much older Silvan family than Iamben's. Iamben's family also relocated to Mirkwood but only a few centuries before Erist's. So, although Iamben's family has lived in Mirkwood longer than Erist's, Erist is older than Iamben by twelve centuries, making him the oldest Silvan elf in the realm."
"King Oropher ruled that should his line fail or abdicate themselves from the throne, the kingdom would be ruled by the oldest Silvan elf, not the one who has lived there longer, and in turn, follow that elf's line," said Sidhel.
"So to sum it all up, you're saying if Legolas abdicated his role that your father would be made King of the Woodland Realm and you would be Prince?" she asked, and the three of them nodded. "Wow. That explains why Iamben was so pushy for you to marry Lastril. He just wanted the title and all its glory."
A pained look crossed Legolas' face now at the mention of the she-elf.
"Iamben's parents sailed many centuries ago, partly because of King Oropher's ruling, so you could say he's held a grudge against my family for a very long time, even though he's technically family," said Sidhel.
"Well, that's not confusing or frustrating at all," she sighed and gave the guard a sympathetic look.
When Legolas looked back over at her, she was staring absentmindedly at the ground in front of her, clearly lost in her own thoughts, and Sidhel was making himself comfortable on the ground. Nodron was already drawing his cloak over himself to prepare to take the first night watch, so he reached over and took the hand she was using to pluck dried bits off of her blanket and drew her closer.
Even though it was dark, her wide eyes met his and his heart raced when their skin met. Would that feeling ever go away?
She scooted closer, unable to lay down on the ground anymore and to his surprise she rested her head on his shoulder and interlaced her fingers in his. He only meant to hold her hand in a reassuring way, and wasn't prepared for such an intimate gesture or to have her so near. He wasn't quite sure what to make of it. Sighing quietly, she closed her eyes and it was not long before she drifted back off to sleep.
When Nodron looked over and caught the Prince's confused look, he only smiled gently and turned back to keeping watch.
His heart rested a little easier knowing she was safe, but the troubled thoughts of what could have happened to her if she'd been unsuccessful in taking the Dunlendings down weighed heavily on his mind. He took comfort in having her close by, and though they both seemed to have accepted (to a point) the fact they bonded, they had a long, long way to go, but maybe this moment right here and now was a good start.
Boss snorted at the water's edge and once more Shyloh turned him in a circle for the third time.
"What is it about this river that you don't like?" she wondered out loud. "It's not like you've never been in water before."
Legolas watched quietly off to the side. Sidhel's horse stood in the middle of the shallow part of the river crossing, while Nodron waited patiently behind the Prince, neither of them daring to leave her alone for one minute until they were safely across.
"I just don't understand what his deal is," she muttered as Boss' feet planted firmly in the ground once more.
"He has crossed rivers before?" asked Legolas.
"We had a few small streams back home, but nothing this big. But still, he never had a problem crossing them before."
Boss was clearly not interested in following the other horse across the gurgling waters and Legolas frowned.
"Were you always the one that rode him?" asked Legolas and she nodded. "I have an idea."
He sidled his horse up next to Boss and held out his arm to her.
"Climb aboard," he told her and she gave him a confused look. "I just want to try something."
Sighing in defeat, she kicked her feet free from the stirrups and let Legolas help pull her aboard behind him. His horse shifted only a little at the added weight, but stood quietly. Boss swung his head around curiously, his ears swiveling with confusion.
"Okay, now what?" she asked, wrapping her arms around his middle a little bashfully. He placed a hand over hers and held her to him while he nudged his mare forward and they stepped into the river.
"Now we cross," he said.
Her eyes widened. "But what about Boss?"
"You'll see."
Suddenly, a splash came from behind them, then three more, and when she twisted around to get a better look, Boss was pawing with a front hoof unhappily, his ears pinned back.
"Serves you right to be left behind," she called back to him and his ears perked forward to catch her voice.
He pawed three more times with his front hoof, demanding she return at once, sending water droplets scattering in all directions before he pinned his ears back and snorted again.
"Come on twinkle toes," she urged, and Legolas gave her a weird look over his shoulder. "Daylight's wasting."
They reached the other side of the river and Legolas continued up the bank after Sidhel, not even bothering to stop. Nodron wasn't far behind and was almost all the way across the river when a loud splash came from behind him. Finally, at long last Boss plunged into the knee deep water and stomped across it like a child throwing a tantrum. His legs rose high in the air as he stepped and his ears were still pinned back.
"What a baby," she muttered, then turned back to Legolas. "How did you know that would work?"
He shrugged. "I didn't, but we needed to leave whether he came with or not, and I wasn't going to leave you behind."
She gaped at him. "You were just going to leave him?"
"I wasn't going to sit and play games all day," he told her sternly.
"But what if he didn't follow?" She scowled and he could sense her displeasure.
"I let him have his chance to take you across and he refused," said Legolas steadily with the tone of authority. "I was done waiting."
"Can I get off now?" she snipped and she tried to tug her hand loose from his, but he only nudged his horse faster.
"No. Boss needs to learn a lesson."
"You didn't need to trick me," she snipped and he sent her an angry glare over his shoulder.
"Do you not remember what happened the last time he refused to cross the river?" he asked with irritation, so she snapped her mouth shut unhappily.
She glared at his backside as they rode but he didn't seem to care if she was upset. Boss followed, his ears still pinned back; reins bouncing as he cantered behind them. They rode quickly and Legolas never let her hands go so she could shrug herself free from his possessive grip.
"What exactly is the lesson he's learning here?" she asked after a length when Boss pulled up beside them in a grudgingly way.
"He doesn't do as he's told, he doesn't get to keep you," Legolas said simply.
She raised an eyebrow and gave the back of his head an irritated look. "I wonder if that theory will work on you."
Sidhel and Nodron snickered but Legolas stiffened and gave her a narrow eyed glare over his shoulder. "Don't count on it."
She frowned and could easily sense his irritation.
"A broken sword, now a broken bow," commented Nodron as he looked over at Boss. "I hope this isn't going to become a habit for you."
"It wouldn't have broken if the guy hadn't fallen on top of me."
"Better a broken bow then a broken you," snapped Legolas. "You would not have been able to fight if you'd been the one to break your leg."
She glared at Nodron because he had to bring up the topic of her bow but she couldn't respond because the guard's head snapped up.
"I can hear riders," Nodron said suddenly, drawing his bow and nocking an arrow.
"So can I," said Sidhel, and he did the same.
Legolas tightened his grip on her hands, clamping them to him protectively as if she might fall off the back of the horse or something.
She couldn't hear anything until Sidhel said the riders were a quarter of a mile out, and they picked up their pace. They had the cover of the trees but Shyloh began to worry if perhaps the riders approaching were friendly or not. As if sensing her unease, Legolas trailed a thumb over her hand in a calming way.
"These are elvish horses that approach," he said quietly to her. "Worry not."
They slowed their pace after a bit and then stopped and waited. Boss nudged her knee with his nose as if begging for forgiveness, and she would have reached a hand down to touch him but Legolas only tightened his grip as the first riders of Lothlorien appeared. They had their bows in hand; nocked and ready for the first sign of danger. They approached at a quick pace and it wasn't long before the four riders were completely encircled.
"Hail, Prince Legolas of the Woodland Realm," called out a voice and when Shyloh peeked around his shoulder the silvery head of the rider before them was unfamiliar.
"Mae g'ovannen Sano, marchwarden of Lorien," replied Legolas, and with his right hand that held the reins of his horse, he raised his palm up to his chest in greeting.
"Mae g'ovannen Ernil nin," the marchwarden said, repeating the gesture. "We received word that you would be crossing the Anduin this morning and have been waiting. We were beginning to worry something had befallen you."
"Nay, we were only delayed by a stubborn horse, but are safe otherwise," said Legolas and he could feel the glare burning into the back of his head.
Sano looked toward the riderless horse, whose ears were still pinned back unhappily. Shyloh never knew a horse could send a 'stink eye' look to someone, but Boss was totally pulling it off as he practically glared at Legolas; his nostrils flaring slightly as he stood quietly beside the Prince's horse. Sano looked at him curiously but said nothing and then looked to the Prince.
"The Princess has been found then," Sano said matter-of-factly.
"Indeed," said Legolas and shifted ever so slightly in the saddle. Wide blue eyes met the marchwarden's just over the Prince's shoulder. Strands of her white hair had come loose from her braid and fell around her face.
"Mae g'ovannen Nimbrethil, welcome to Lothlorien. We have been anxious for your arrival and were greatly troubled that you were separated from your party. Tell me, how do you fare?"
Shyloh's face reddened at the strange name, and everyone's eyes turned to her. Legolas' finger trailed reassuringly over her hand once more. The Lorien party, though they greeted the four riders with ease, still looked menacing and dangerous as they held their weapons at the ready. They reminded her very much of the Mirkwood elves the first time she saw them: lethal and dangerous.
"Mae g'ovannen marchwarden, I fare well, thank you."
"We heard you were pursued into the south after the ambush; am I correct in assuming you were not injured or attacked?"
She hesitated. "I - I was pursued but other than a few scrapes I'm fine."
Legolas gave her a serious look over his shoulder. She could tell he thought her answer was hardly acceptable.
Nodding slowly, Sano frowned. He apparently was thinking the same thing as Legolas as his eyes caught sight of the cut and bruise on her jaw.
"We cannot linger out in the open like this," Sano said, finally peeling his eyes away from her. "Dunlendings are not common wanderers in these parts but orcs are. You can tell me more about your journey once we are under the safety of the mellyrn trees. We should reach the forest within the hour, and can get better acquainted there."
Legolas nodded firmly. Shyloh would have taken advantage of his temporary distraction and pulled herself away from him, but they were suddenly moving once more and as they fell into step with Sano, the marchwarden's eyes flicked to the Prince's hand over hers and she felt her face flame. Whatever assumptions he was making in his mind went unheard as they nudged their horses into a lope and made for the forest before she could even ask about Elladan and Elrohir.
