"Ohtar, come back," Anywien begged as she trudged along after her brother. "I'm tired. They're probably eating by now."

Ohtar kept walking. "You don't have to follow me."

"Where are you going?"

He turned to look at her, his anger and frustration in his eyes. "I do not know. I am going to walk till I'm tired, and then and only then I will come back."

"Don't you think you could accomplish the same thing by sitting for a prolonged amount of time?" she whined.

Ohtar shook his head and turned back around to walk some more. "No, I doubt it. You can come, or you can go back."

"What would I tell father?"

"He won't notice."

Anywien sighed and continued on. She walked quickly until she was beside her brother, then slowed to his pace. "How many times must we go over this? Father-"

"I know, I know. "He loves you, Ohtar." "He's just busy, Ohtar." "The kingdom is important, too, Ohtar." I've gotten none but that from mother, father, Aragorn, and now you. But the moment someone says something meaningful to prove that he does in fact care, then I will believe it. But not a moment sooner."

"Your whining gets old, just the same."

Ohtar looked to her, now angrier than he had been before. "Whining?" he demanded. "Whining?! I don't whine."

"But of course you do. All the time, actually. All I ever hear from you is your want for pity."

"I do not accept pity."

"Well, you sure ask for it, whether you accept it or not."

"Be careful, sister, you are walking a thin line!"

Anywien returned his glare, trying to be as intimidating. She knew that he wouldn't do anything to harm her, which is why she was so brave at the moment. "Try something," she said, daring him.

Ohtar glared at her for a moment, then looked away and continued walking on. When he spotted something, he stopped. Far, far off in the distance, was what looked like a large mass of moving… bodies.

"What is that?" Anywien asked, wincing.

"I'll bet it's the army," Ohtar replied. "No wonder father wanted to only stay for the night. They will be here by noon tomorrow, or sooner."

"I'm scared, let's go back."

Ohtar shook his head. "No, they are far away. We can barely even see them. They won't be here soon."

"They may," replied the princess. "We should tell father."

Ohtar took a few steps forward. "Let's see how close we can get," he said suddenly.

Anywien's eyes widened. "Are you out of your mind?! They could kill us! They will kill us! I am not going with you!"

"Then you can go back and… eat. While I'm having the adventure of my life."

"While you die," she muttered.

Ohtar shrugged like he didn't mind what she did, but he knew what her weakness was. "That's too bad. You always were the safe one in the family."

"Safe" was his insult for her. It implied that she never did anything adventurous… or, to put it plainly, she was boring. His actual statement was a lie… Galia was much more "safe" than Anywien, but Ohtar knew that his respect meant a lot to his younger sister, and he knew how to take advantage of it.

He could see her weakening. "Well… how close did… you, wish to, get?" she asked slowly.

"Oh, not too close," he replied. "I would never put myself in any real danger. But we shall definitely feel the rush."

Anywien smiled mischievously. "Let's go!"

With the new inspiration, the two young elves ran towards the army. They ran for quite a bit, when suddenly a dark feeling came upon Ohtar. He stopped instantly. "Wien," he said to stop his sister. "Halt."

Anywien looked back at him. "What is it?"

Ohtar paused to think. He tried to sort out this new feeling, this new sense. He could almost… feel evil. Feel the army in the distance, still miles away.

"I… don't know," he replied. He realized suddenly his pounding head. "I need to sit," he choked out. Everything began to be blurry, and vision was now a matter of lightness and darkness. His legs wobbled and suddenly he knew that he would collapse if he couldn't find a place to sit or lie, so when he discovered a rock nearby he tried to get to it. He put one leg in front of the other, then again and again, and when he was only three feet from his destination he fell to the ground and everything went black.

"Ohtar!" Anywien cried. She looked at her brother lying there and wondered what to do. She looked to the army and wondered how far away they were, but then she realized that Ohtar had said they wouldn't reach the castle till noon the next day, and they certainly hadn't been running far enough to meet them halfway. They wouldn't reach her in 5 hours, at least.

But what should she do with Ohtar? Would she have enough time to run to the castle, tell someone, and lead them back? What if she got lost? What if she mislead them, and Ohtar lay here all the while, and eventually the army found him and killed him… assuming he wasn't already dead?

Making up her mind to try and carry him back, Anywien picked up her brother and slung him over her shoulders, grunting as she did so. He was heavy, but not too heavy. She would be able to walk for at least 15 minutes without stopping for a break. But she needed to get back… fast. If he needed attention, it needed to be soon. Why, oh why had she given into his taunting?

Maybe it's best that I did, she told herself. For, if he went without me, he would have no one to take him back. She tried to convince herself that there was nothing she could have done to prevent this, but deep down she wasn't sure. Deep down, she was deathly guilty.

She arrived back nearly an hour later. She set Ohtar down on the ground and sat down then and there, not wanting to walk in. She didn't have enough will-power to do it. She was tired and hungry, and she did not want to go any further, especially not carrying her brother.

One of the servants came out and demanded to know what happened, and she told him. He ran back inside and retrieved Legolas and a few others… Anywien didn't care enough to pay attention to who else was there.

Legolas rushed up to her and grabbed her by the shoulders. "What happened?" he demanded. "Tell me!" His voice was a mixture of anger, curiousness, and worry.

Anywien was panting hard. "I… he fell. He… he hasn't moved. I don't know what happened."

"Did he trip? What?"

"No, he fell. Gave out."

"Are you all right, Wien?"

Anywien nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. Just tired. Help Ohtar."

Legolas nodded and picked up his son, then brought him inside. Anywien, who had been sitting up, laid down on the ground, then Arwen approached her.

"Are you all right?" Arwen asked gently.

"Yes," Anywien mumbled.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Why don't you sit up, so that I know you won't faint on me." Anywien did. "Would you like some water?" The child nodded and Arwen held out her hand to help her up. She accepted it. "You need rest. And then you must tell us what happened." Anywien nodded but didn't say anything. She was too tired. She would tell them later, when she felt better-rested.