Chapter Two: The Shores of the Anduin

By Ellwyn J

The trees in the center of the forest seemed to loom over their heads menacingly. The sun's bright rays could hardly penetrate through the treetops, and Ellwyn began to feel the cold through her cloak. Ellwyn, the elven prince, and the two other elves (who had spoken with her enough to briefly tell her their names: Arod and Durwyn) had been traveling on horseback for several hours now. It had been silent for the entire way, although once or twice Legolas would start humming quietly to himself. His voice was sweet and she couldn't help but strain her ears in an attempt to listen to the beautiful elven melodies. Ellwyn was just beginning to drop off into her own world, staring at the treetops, but a quiet noise in the bracken, probably a mile off, startled her. The other elves, apparently, had noticed it also, as they had all turned in the direction of the noise.

Legolas held out a hand, signaling them all to stop. He turned his head to listen more carefully, but they could hear nothing more. His body visibly relaxed, but his eyes continued to peer about warily.

"What was that?" Ellwyn whispered, breaking the long silence.

Arod and Durwyn ignored her remark, which she had grown accustomed to, and merely started their horses back up to a trot, leaving the prince and the half-elf behind.

"None of our kind are abroad that I know of and it is daylight…it cannot be Orc."

"Giant spider?" she interjected timidly, feeling quite stupid after saying that. Perhaps it ran in the family, or else Thranduil had taught his son to make others feel inconsequential when around him, too.

Legolas, surprisingly, turned his blue eyes onto her, as if the one remark she thought stupid was actually of importance. Ellwyn could not describe the effect she felt when he looked directly at her. He gazed straight into her eyes, as if searching out a truth that she herself did not know of, or did not want to admit to herself. But there was something warm in his gaze, also, and his eyes always softened when he looked at her.

"Most likely," he said, "from here, we continue north and skirt around the edge of the mountains until we find the Old Forest Road. That will take us out of Mirkwood, and from there we can travel southward to Mordor."

Without another word, he urged his horse forward again. Ellwyn stared after him, wondering how he could just brush off the threat of the giant spiders as if it were just as dangerous as a whistling bluebird.

* * * * *

They were traveling south along the Anduin now, and the sun had long since disappeared beneath the horizon, leaving a dim trace of daylight behind. Legolas looked troubled. Ellwyn brought Phaere next to him and tried to look as concerned as possible.

"What is it?" she asked quietly.

"Night draws near, and there is nowhere to seek shelter in this barren land."

Ellwyn nodded, then said, "I'm used to staying out in the open. We should camp by the river and be careful not to light a flame."

Legolas gave her the most condescending look she had ever witnessed. "Don't you think I know that? It is still unsafe, for the Orc band that had attacked you earlier was seen traveling southwards. They must be around these areas."

She bit down on her lip, repressing any snide remarks she wanted to throw at him. She knew enough to get by on her own, but the elves knew better. Legolas, after all, was probably over a thousand years old. Staring at his profile, she wondered to herself how old the young and handsome elf actually was. She put it into words but only got another scornful look in return.

Legolas motioned for them all to stop and they dismounted near the bank of the Anduin. Durwyn sat against a rock and stared blankly at the quietly flowing water. Ellwyn figured he was asleep, for she had heard tales from the men about how elves were always alert, even when they slept. Arod took up a watch and sat by the horses. Legolas was kneeling, digging in his pack for something. Finally, he handed her a piece of the lembas they had been eating since they left, but she remained quiet and did not take it.

She suddenly stood. "If the Orcs are wandering in these areas, someone should go find their whereabouts instead of waiting here for them to stumble upon us in the dark." Legolas did not have time to reply before she mounted Phaere and galloped off quickly. He shook his head and sighed resignedly. Perhaps he had been too hard on the girl; he had joined them because he was curious about her, yet he had not so much as tried to ask her of her parents or her past. Arod was beginning to drop off to sleep, so he decided to relieve him of his position. Legolas sat, trying to reassure himself that the girl could take care of herself.

* * * * *

Ellwyn rode in the darkness, peering around and listening for any unusual sounds. But her mind was mostly on the journey ahead of her. She thought of her father the way she remembered him: he was a dark haired man with a kindly face and deep, understanding eyes. She had no memories of her mother, save for an image of a beautiful sandy haired woman. Her father used to play with her in the water; she remembered that he had taught her to swim. He had even taught her to ride Phaere, then just a tiny foal, and taught her how to fire an arrow. He had made a target on a tree a hundred feet from the cabin, and she tried repeatedly to hit it. Finally, she had succeeded, just as she succeeded in riding her horse the way the elves rode, without reins or bridle. She loved her father, who was the only person she could speak with in the entire town.

But sometimes he would disappear for days and come back, each time looking more and more haggard. He got this distant look in his eyes and would look to the south with a great thirst in his expression. He grew rough with other people and refused to speak with his daughter, until suddenly he disappeared completely when she was around the age of eight.

A shout from the direction of the camp she had left an hour ago brought her out of her memories. Ellwyn turned Phaere and galloped quickly back to the Anduin, her heart racing, praying nothing had befallen the three elves by the riverside.

* * * * *

Legolas had been dozing off when an arrow suddenly hurtled past his ear and planted itself in the haunch of one of the horses. The horse reared on its hind legs and bolted. Arod and Durwyn were already firing arrows back at the twenty or so Orcs that were coming for their camp. Legolas fired three arrows in rapid succession, hitting two in the midsection and one through the eye. Half of the Orc band was already slaughtered, but the rest were upon them, making their bows and arrows useless. Legolas drew his two knives, as did the other two elves, and stabbed through two more Orcs. There were only a few remaining and Legolas relaxed a little. The Orcs were few and easily killed. There was nothing to worry about.

But out of the darkness came another band of Orcs, the same size of the other. They charged from Legolas' right. He fought the Orcs off bravely, but noticed out of the corner of his eye that Arod and Durwyn were tiring, having been taken by surprise by such a number. An Orc behind Legolas drew a bowgun and aimed at Legolas' exposed back. He turned just in time to see the Orc and knew for a split second in the back of his mind that there was no time for him to do anything. His mind readied itself to fight against the pain he knew was coming.

But the Orc misfired and the arrow landed several feet away from Legolas. The elf peered into the darkness and saw that the Orc had an arrow protruding from its back. Ellwyn had reached the camp and fired the arrow, saving Legolas' life. But her attention was drawn away from the four Orcs that were running for her. They dragged her off her horse almost effortlessly. Legolas recovered his senses and drew three more arrows and fired them at the Orcs. The last Orc managed to throw its remaining strength into the black knife that pierced Ellwyn's shoulder before Legolas' last arrow killed it. Ellwyn let out a gasp and cried out in pain.

There were Orc bodies strewn about their camp. Arod and Durwyn were scratched a bit, but were not seriously injured. They turned and saw Ellwyn on the ground and Legolas rushing over to her. He fell to the ground next to her and carefully tested the area around her wound. Legolas could not bring himself to believe she had saved him and let herself be hurt. He saw in her eyes that she knew the Orcs were bearing down on her. Something deep within him stirred, and he looked straight into her fading eyes, knowing he could not let her die.

"Ellwyn, hold on…" he whispered, cradling her in his arms. "You cannot let go. I'm here for you, just look at me and hold on." His mind raced. Arod kneeled on the ground near him and muttered something about the knife tip being poisoned. She wasn't going to recover on her own; she needed help.

Legolas suddenly turned and yelled to Durwyn, "Take my horse. Get to Lorien and tell the Lady that we need help! Arod, go with him!"

Arod and Durwyn shook their heads, but at a determined look from their prince, they mounted and rode off quickly. Phaere was nearby, watching Ellwyn with sad eyes. She was moaning, and the poison was traveling quickly through her. Her eyes flickered open for a moment and she looked up at him.

"Mellen," he whispered, "annathon dulu angen." My dear, I will help you. Legolas carefully lifted her in his arms and walked over to Phaere. He placed Ellwyn's limp body on Phaere's back and mounted behind her, then led Phaere into a slow trot through a shallow area of the Anduin.

A/N: New, much more accurate Elvish translations are now inserted. Many thanks to Aerlinnel for that!

Email: jidai_rinoa@hotmail.com *please review!

All names, places, or plot/history affiliated with LOTR are entitled to J.R.R. Tolkien. The rest is from my imagination. If there are any errors in the history/land/names of anything related to Tolkien's works, please inform me.