Summary: Alternate Universe. A legend of five guardians created by Sauron arises in Rivendell. One of the guardians brings her tale and must return to Mordor to do what's needed to be done but to what sacrifice, she doesn't know. Set after the Council of Elrond but before the fellowship leaves to their journey.
Rating: PG now but PG-13 to R in later chapters
Comments: I never get enough comments, good or bad. Review please. It helps to know what sucks and what sucks less. Lol
Author's Note: As of now, none, but later I may have mentions.
Final Note: This is only undergoing a few drafts, so don't freak about errors.
Five of Five: A Guardian's Tale
Chapter 2: Curious Encounters
The morning's dawning rays entered the hobbit's room and sent a cascade of light to every corner that was darken by the night. Frodo Baggins awoke hearing the familiar sound of birds chirping and Elven musicians playing in the gardens. During the night the music hardly stopped but became quieter and less enthusiastic. The dark haired hobbit sat up in bed and stretched noticing that Sam and Pippin were not in their beds.
"Those two are never up before breakfast unless they're collecting it," he thought thinking breakfast now would be great if he could stay awake long enough and sat on the edge of his bed still fighting off the urge to fall asleep again. His door busted open to see the bright faces of Pippin and Sam, who saw him and rushed to his side as if he had waken from the darkness that he was under when brought here. Frodo looked slightly stunned from their entrance and shook his head trying to wake up.
" 'ello Pippin! 'ello Sam!" Frodo yawned "What brings you two up so early?"
"An Elf, sir," Sam said hastily then blushed feeling slightly stupid. The whole place was surrounded by Elves. Frodo gave a look of concern to his friends a bit disturb by their rather odd behavior.
Pippin went through the story about them seeing a criminal get thrown into a cell and a description of the weapons and clothing. Frodo listened not believing half of it; then again, Sam had snooped him out and found out about the ring. By this time Merry had waken and joined the hobbit discussion.
"What could an Elf do that could be so bad? I thought Elves were peaceful," Sam asked slightly alarmed by the news that Elves were suddenly bad. Frodo laughed.
"Most are, Sam, but we don't have any idea of what she did. The information you gave me was rather vague. It could be something as simple as not getting a lyric of a song right to being banished and coming back." Pippin and Merry exchanged looks of interest then turned back to Frodo.
"Have you heard of anything, Frodo?" Pippin asked.
"Nothing; then again, this isn't my business," he paused, "our business to know about her life. She might have been placed there because it was night and Elrond couldn't see her."
By the look on Pippin's face, the young hobbit had an epiphany and started trying to remember some of the Elf's phrases Sam and he had heard. Frodo listened and laughed when their words came out all wrong or jumbled with others. By the time everything was literally said, the hobbits were in tears from laughter.
"All I got out of that mix of words was 'Elrond', 'message', 'land' and maybe 'prison.' " Frodo said furrowing his eyebrows slightly crossed by the words.
Pippin walked away from the hobbit group pondering. Frodo knew they look in Pippin's eyes; it meant he had an idea that would require him cajoling someone of this group to agree to a devious plan. Frodo watched Pippin carefully and saw the younger hobbit come back with one of his "I have an idea" looks.
"We should talk to the prisoner," Pippin said lowering his voice and creeping up to the group.
"What gives us the authority, Pippin?" Merry asked folding his arms across his chest. Frodo knew no matter how much they argued, in the end curiosity would take over, and they would go on this adventure.
"Besides Pippin, what right have we? She probably doesn't want a group of hobbits jumping in her business," Frodo added. Pippin looked around watching for prying eyes. "The snooper watches for fellow snoops," Frodo smirked.
"Maybe she's lonely--" Pippin began but was cut short by Merry's outburst.
"Or maybe she's a cold-blooded killer!" Merry said suddenly looking worried.
"But she didn't fight the guards, and she had plenty of times when she could have, too. You can ask Sam!" Pippin said in an almost last ditch effort to get them to go. Frodo pondered and confessed that he was now curious about this mysterious Elven female that seem to keep his friends out most of the night.
"Lets all get dressed and go find this person," Frodo finally said and went to dress first behind the dressing curtain. When they were all set, Sam lead the group to the dark chambers where the Elf was hid.
Surprisingly, there weren't many people out and about in the main halls and rooms. The hobbits began their journey through the long corridors and stairs. With them walking down the slightly darker halls, Frodo was reminded of his travels through the forest before reaching Bree; only this time he was growing weary from all the walking. He hadn't fully recovered from the stab wound and long periods of walking and traveling made him very tired.
About the moment he was going to protest, the group came upon a door with two windows on either side of it looking in. Pippin ran ahead and checked the interior through the windows then opened the door. Frodo walked ahead and looked inside the room. It was bare with only two chairs and a desk to the left and a door to the right probably leading to the cell he figured.
The room itself was of light stone with old wooden columns holding the thatched looking roof. This room didn't hold the same warm, beautiful feeling the rest of the city held. Frodo felt a little uneasy in such a place void of the beauty that seemed to pour in from every corner of Rivendell. This place seemed buried away from everything.
Frodo observed that he seemed to be the only one feeling this and continued to look around. Merry looked gravely around the place and stuck close to him; Pippin had found the stack of clothes and weapons from before and started looking through them. Frodo looked at Pippin disapprovingly.
"Those aren't our things to look through, Pippin," Merry said reading Frodo's looks. Pippin pulled out the two weapons and gazed at them. The foreign weapons had three blades with the middle blade being longer than that other two. The two side blades curved, almost bending back on itself, with a thin metal connecting the three blades together near the handle. The weapons held a graceful and beautiful look to them from what Frodo could see. Pippin fumbled with the blades not knowing exactly how to grasp the weapons.
"I never seen blades like those before," Sam commented.
"Elven blades, I think Sam, but I've never seen those types either." The elder hobbit walked up to Pippin and grabbed one of the blades looking at the handle. Something caught his eye. Across the handle and partially on the middle blade was the old Elven script--the same that was inscribed on the One Ring. "I see why she was kept imprisoned," he thought and set the blade down gently now seeming more dangerous than a minute ago.
"What's wrong, Mr. Frodo?" Sam asked.
"Nothing. Just curious about where such came from," Frodo answered trying to fake smile. The rest of the items were mainly clothing. Frodo kept feeling a warning in the back of his mind saying this pillaging was going to get them into trouble. "Hobbit curiosity could kill," he figured and saw the door to the cell. Sam placed a hand on Frodo's shoulder and looked at him. He knew exactly what the hobbit was thinking and sighed.
"We've looked, Pippin. Let's go." Frodo commanded looking sternly at the teenage hobbit, who just stopped looking through the items but knocked a book off. The book fell and opened to a page where an Elf male was drawn. Pippin crouched down to grab the book but didn't get the chance as Frodo snatched it and closed it without looking any further through it.
"I wonder who that Elf was," Merry said apparently thinking aloud. Frodo shook his head.
"We'll just have to wonder then" Sam hastily said once again as Frodo put the book up. Frodo was curious about the picture that looked hand drawn in charcoal or some other tool. To the far side of the wall were the keys to the cell. He made his way over without saying a word to the hobbit group. Something instinctively felt right about him speaking to this woman.
He turned to the others after he had unlocked the door. "Keep watch and stay put." was his command then the Ringbearer opened the door and walked in closing the door behind him. The cell looked larger than it seemed from the bare stone room of before.
This room was barer with dark stone for the walls that carried no beauty matching the tone of the previous room to a peak. He saw a figure lying down on the far wall on a raised up bed. Manacles were on her hands and feet, but the bonds didn't seem to stop her from sleeping. Curled up on her side, Frodo saw her resting peaceful with her blonde Elven hair hanging loosely in her face with a long beige dress on. "Her prison gown," Frodo thought walking unknowingly closer.
He didn't want to wake her so, Frodo crept quieter. Outside the cell the room had grown quiet leaving Frodo to believe that either the group was pillaging again or watching his every move. It was when he was a yard away he noticed that she had a jagged scar over her right eye where possibly a sword had bitten at her flesh--from a battle or struggle, he wasn't sure.
The urge to leave her sleeping form kept the hobbit's stomach in knots. "Why are you nervous about a sleeping Elf, Baggins?" he thoughts wondered. He didn't have an answer. Frodo turned and began to leave.
"Wait," a voice from the room said clearly sending Frodo into a nervous jump. He turned around and saw the female Elf's eyes open but her body unmoved from her resting spot. The hobbit turned back and looked at the Elf, blue eyes to dark blue eyes. He didn't say anything, which didn't stop her. "You're either very brave or very foolish for entering here with a sleeping criminal." Frodo still didn't answer but was taken back by her comment and was about to protest till she talked again.
"By the looks of you though, I'd say the first part. What brings you here, little one; surely not just to see me?" She asked now raising up to sitting position holding a gaze on Frodo. After his mind screamed out to answer, Frodo walked closer and answered confidently.
"My friends had heard of your capture so--" he was cut off.
"So, curiosity brought you and your friends here, but courage brought you here to visit me," she finished and got down from her bed and sat on the floor cross legged now looking up to him.
"Yes, that's basically it. Who are you, and why are you locked up?" Frodo asked firmly.
"I'm one of the five, five of five, who are the guardians of the Mordor and of the Ring that you bear around your neck." she stated. Frodo was caught off guard, and he knew his faced showed it because the Elf sighed looking at the floor slightly ashamed or nervous about how he would swallow the information.
He almost choked on it. She knew about the ring he bore then calmly tells him she's from Mordor. The hobbit calmed himself not wanting to jump to any conclusions. He knew Elves did not come from Mordor, and he knew agents of darkness did not carry a light and beauty to them like she did. The "guardian" as she claimed to be looked like a normal Elf maiden.
"Who told you about the One Ring?" Frodo asked very quietly.
"No one has spoken to me. I sensed it on you." she once again stated with no emotion. Frodo was once again caught off guard. "Sensed?" In the time he spent here, he thought only the Black Riders could sense the ring and even that depended on it to be used. It occurred to him that he didn't have the time or knowledge to pursue anymore questions and began to exit. Once again, he was accompanied by a "wait" from the Elf, this time like a plea.
"I didn't mean to frighten you, Ringbearer; I thought you were sent here as an interrogator. My apologies." She paused and readjusted herself to a kneeling position sitting on both her feet. Frodo felt like he was in a spell and went to her again. "An agent of evil?" he thoughts pondered and doubted. He had never in his life seen a cruel Elf. He could tell she was watching him because she slightly frowned shaking her head.
"Your naive nature to other creatures is understandable, little one, because you doubt me when I say I'm no better than your enemies you face in the south are, but such innocence will get you harmed in the end."
Frodo looked slightly offended at the hint of ignorance and stared down at her saying sternly "I've seen evil, and know it's feeling. I don't see any malice in you." He pondered his once wounded shoulder that would never fully heal.
"That's because you do not see all sides of me," she countered. Frodo sighed once again calming his nerves. He was not going to play mind games with the prisoner. He thoughts drifted to Gollum and the vile creature's tendencies.
"Are you as bad as Gollum?" he asked slightly confident.
"No, I had never encountered the ring till now, nor do I seek it now for it's power like he does. I am to guard it. That is was I was created to do, but I have done worse than his thieving and attacks." she answered her voice laced with ambiguous meanings. She sounded sad with hints of regret about her job, but she also seemed to feel pride in the job she was "created" for. The Elf stared at him for a moment and said, from he what he could gather, a poem in Elfish that baffled him. Frodo now had a million questions to ask but was interrupted by the door swinging open to two Elven guards with Lord Elrond and Gandalf following.
"If you're finished speaking with her, Frodo, may we?" Lord Elrond asked not hinting about being angry or disappointed. Frodo nodded to Lord Elrond smiling sheepishly then exited the cell. His mind spun from the information. Sam walked up to him and looked concerned.
"Are you all right, Mr. Frodo?"
"Yes, Sam, but I'd like to go to my room," Frodo said pondering the conversation he just had as he and the hobbit group left the Elf maiden to the wisdom of Elrond and Gandalf.