What do you say when a Hobbit who is a human you've wanted to meet all your life drops his pipe and stares in shock? I had no idea, so I sat there and continued to stare. Luitha seemed to have no problem talking to him, yet every time I opened my mouth I forgot what I was going to say.
Luitha was on a roll, though, and I motioned her to keep going. "We were born in the late twentieth century, in our time, and..."
He cut her off. "Did you know, that's my future! And here you are, in what is surely the past. Do you know if I'm still, oh, never mind. I've never liked fortune tellers. So tell me about yourselves!"
I finally found my tongue. "We are guests in Elrond's, Lord Elrond's, I mean, house. He healed us after we were transported her by a lightening bolt."
Tolkien leaned forward, interested. "And what are your lives like? You obviously are friends with Lord Elrond if you are prone to say his name without his title. Few do that."
Luitha grinned, and I knew what was coming, yet was helpless to prevent it. "Tadan and Elrond have a...relationship. A very close relationship. It was he that gave her the dress and crown you see upon her head."
"Ah! So perhaps soon you shall be a queen in truth?" His eyes sparkled again, and I remembered that Hobbits had a thirst for gossip.
"Perhaps. I'm not sure yet." It was time for revenge. "If you wanted details about our lives, Luitha has a relationship as well. Hers is with the Rangers' leader, Aragorn."
Now his eyes went wide. "Son of Arathorn? A human? Well, now that's something different. Now I shall pose a question to the both of you, and I want you to think before you answer. If you were, well, creatively added to a story about the Elves, how would you want to be introduced? I will use the names I gave you at the door, of course."
What to say? Would telling him mess up the story, or would it keep it the same?
He noticed our hesitation. "Never you mind," he said. "I'll figure it out. Now, why did you come to visit me?"
"Is Glorfindel of Rivendell the same as Glorfindel of Gondolin?" Luitha gave me an strange look. "I've never been able to ask him. He seems rather odd."
"Now that is a question for the ages!" Tolkien smiled. "I asked him, once, but he asked me not to reveal it. However, since you asked so nicely, come close." He whispered the answer to us. I smiled. I had been right after all. "And now it is your turn for a question, Luitha," he declared, and turned to face her.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
El luitha urenI smiled lightly. "I have no question for you Professor Tolkien. I had only the desire to meet you. However, if you will kindly hold that question for me, I may ask one of you in the future."
Tolkien chuckled. "Of course. I shall be happy too! But now I wish to hear of your tale in getting here. You don't mind if I take notes, do you?" Tadan and I shook our heads and began narrating the story of our adventure.
"...and so we decided that we'd try to come and meet you," Tadan finished as the night grew late. "And here we are."
Tolkien finished writing with a flourish. "Well spoken! Nicely done! Though unfortunately, I cannot publish any of it. The hobbits here would never believe it! They think I am odd enough as it is." Tolkien chuckled at this, as though amused by their reactions. "I can mold it around however, using the names I gave you..." He fell silent, muddling quietly to himself.
"Ah! I will figure it out! There is so much more I wish to ask you- but you must be exhausted! Come, I'll show you to your rooms!" Tolkien leaped out of his chair and padded down the hall. We followed quietly behind, ducking to fit into the rooms he assigned to each of us.
I slipped quietly into the chair beside a small window, looking out to the stars. The pendant around my neck shone brilliantly, and I wrapped my hand around it, closing my eyes. It was warm. I could feel its heat flowing into my palm, warming my heart.
"Lady El luitha?" I opened my eyes and turned to see the hobbit's silhouette framed in the doorway.
I smiled. "Come in."
"Would you mind if I ask a few more questions?"
"Of course not. Have a seat. I don't intend to sleep for awhile."
Tolkien sat himself on the bed and regarded me. It was a strange feeling, being the object of a life-long hero's curiosity. "You and the Dunedain- would you tell me the story?"
I looked at him in surprise, and then smiled slightly. "Will you ask the same of Tadan?"
"Of course," he replied. "But I am interested in the relationship between an Elf and a Man. There have been only two other incidents in Elvish history of such a pairing. How will you deal with your immortality, as compared with his mortality?"
I could almost a reporter hat sitting on his head with that comment. I sighed and stared out the window. I admired Tolkien greatly, but did not particularly wish to talk to him about this. "We first became friends in the spring of Rivendell, riding through the forests as I recovered my strength..."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Tadandader HalfElven
It had been only a few days, and already I missed Elrond. I stared at the stars, finding Earendil easily.
"Earendil, I hope you are not angry at me. I am not trying to be an interloper in your son's life." I sighed, and watched the stars move across the sky.
A soft knock drew me out of my reverie. "Enter," I said, and watched as Tolkien came in. "What can I do for you?"
"Just a few details about your relationship with Lord Elrond would be nice, my Lady."
I smiled. "I thought our story would make others think you insane. Very well. What would you like to hear?" I motioned him to take a seat in the chair, and I sat down on the bed.
"What started it? How did your relationship really begin?"
I glanced out the window, my gaze falling yet again on Earendil. "He saved my life, and he showed such concern while doing so. I think I liked him right away, as a friend. He seemed close and honest. Some things I have always looked for in a man, and honesty is one of them." My eyes moved and saw him scribbling as fast as his hand could move. I continued on in the same vein for quite a while, until he left me to get some sleep.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
El luitha urenI woke when the first ray of sun cleared the hills beyond Hobbiton and covered the hobbit hole with light- shining directly into my eye, of course. I groaned and rolled over, wrapping myself tighter within the blanket and hiding my head under the pillow.
I suddenly became aware that my feet were freezing and looked down to see them sticking out from the blanket on the very small bed. I sat up, grumbling to myself, just as a knock sounded at the door.
Tolkien came in with a cheerful expression on his face, and as the door opened the smell of tea drifted into the room.
"Breakfast, my lady! Second breakfast actually- do all Elves sleep this late? Well, humans-turned-Elves anyway. Come!" He shut the door, and I groaned again. My dreams of Estel's bright blue eyes had been broken. They had seemed so real.
I got up and threw on the midnight blue dress I had been wearing the day before. Still grumbling and in a rather bad mood (I was not a morning person), I pulled my pair of Ranger pants from my traveling back and slid them on underneath. If I was going to be forced into a dress, darn it, I was going to do it my way.
I began to stuff the rest of the Ranger outfit back into the bags but paused for one moment. They smelled like him. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply, once again caught up in dreams of his blue...
Knock. Knock. "Luitha! Are you coming?"
I grumbled an answer to Tadan and stuffed the clothes in. We met in the hallway and continued to the kitchen.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Tadandader HalfElvenLuitha came to breakfast wearing pants. I was instantly jealous. Where had she gotten pants? Then I noticed the coloring and cut closely recalled that of the Rangers. Oh, that made sense.
Breakfast was delicious, but I didn't notice a whole lot of it. Tolkien's questions had made me think about Elrond, and I was really missing him. Even though I was happy to be in the Shire, I was very excited that today we would head back. The seedcakes were magnificent, and I crossed one more thing off my 'Things to do in ME' list, eating seedcakes.
Soon we were ready to depart. After heartily thanking Tolkien, we headed off, underneath the warm sunlight.
"Hey, Luitha?"
"Yeah?" she asked, looking up from the necklace she was wearing. I didn't blame her. I'd been playing with my crown all trip long.
"On the way back, can we stop at Weathertop? I want to camp there for a night. And then we can have a race toward the Fords, shouting a certain Elvish phrase the whole way!" I was grinning with the thought of it. That would be fun.
"Tadan, sometimes.." she trailed off, smiling. "Why not? We will have to have a roaring bonfire, though. And plenty of tomatoes."
"Ah, but then I would have to kick the fire so you could say 'ashes on my tomahtoes'."
"You're obsessed."
"And you're not?" We laughed.
"At least I didn't ask for keychains at the Prancing Pony!"
"It could have been worse! I could have asked him to autograph my pack for me! And Tom Bombadil!"
"What about J. R. R.?"
My grin widened. "Did you look at my pack?"
"You didn't." She leaned over to see. "Oh my word, you did! Tadan, you're insane!"
"I'm willing to bet that you would have had yours autographed too if the thought had crossed your mind." She gave me a guilty grin, and once more we burst out laughing.
The day passed swiftly as we rode on.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
El luitha urenWe passed through Bree again on the way back, but we stayed only for a meal. The uneasiness that I had felt the last time we had passed through only increased with our return trip. I did not like the way the men looked at us as we rode through.
Our hearts were lifted as we hit the open road again. Tadan looked admiringly at the mug she had bought from the Prancing Pony, Butterbur's signature scrawled across the side. She sighed in happiness and tucked it into her pack, turning her eyes on me suspiciously.
"Luitha, what?"
"Huh?" I turned to face her, startled out of my musings.
"You've been looking behind us every five minutes since we've left Bree. Is there someone following us?" She grinned suddenly. "Do you expect a certain Ranger to come riding out of nowhere?"
I grinned back. "You look forward as much as I look back. Rather anxious to get back to our Elf Lord, aren't we?"
She laughed at me. "Seriously though, is someone behind us?"
"I don't know." I glanced at the road beyond Asfaloth's tail again, but even with my Elf zoom eyesight, I could not see anything unordinary. "I can't tell. But I have this funny feeling... well, never mind." Tadan gave me a worried glance, but let it go.
It was nearly dark by the time we reached Weathertop. The horses had trotted all day, and Tadan and I were still in good cheer. The trip had been easy and comfortable so far, and as much as we missed Rivendell, it was nice to go exploring for awhile.
We thoroughly explored Weathertop as the sun set beyond the horizon. The night was clouded and unusually dark. I was grateful for the star hanging from my neck; it's light gave off an unearthly brilliance when I willed it to.
We sat beside the fire, laughing and discussing our visit to Hobbiton. I was cozy in my Ranger clothes, having discarded the dress altogether as soon as we made camp. Wrapped in a very warm cloak, I basked drowsily in the heat of the fire.
I heard the leaves braking in the valley below us, heard footsteps upon rock and soil. But by the time the sounds registered in my mind and I cried out a warning, it was too late.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Tadandader HalfElvenI grinned at the fire. Luitha had thought I had started it by traditional means. However, when she had wandered off for more firewood, I made it mentally. All I had done was concentrate on heat within the wood. The logs exploded into flame, and I was glad I hadn't been sitting closer.
I looked at her glowing necklace, and my thoughts wandered until I heard a loud cracking noise behind me. I whirled at the same time as Luitha shouted to find five of the Men from Bree staring at me.
"What do you want?" I demanded. Their foul grins served as an answer. I turned to run, only to see that we were surrounded. I glanced toward our horses, which were outside of the heartless ring.
"Lelya Rivendell, Miel!" I shouted as loud as I could. Miel snorted and darted away. At least Elrond would know that something had happened when Miel reached him.
Beside me I heard Luitha echo me. "Lelya, Asfaloth!" Many of the men burst into curses, and a few ran to their horses to pursue. But the horses of Men were nothing compared to Elvish steeds.
We were still vastly outnumbered. They crowded in, there were about twenty or so still at Weathertop not futilely pursuing our horses.
"Come on, play nice, little Elves." One stepped forward, and the others laughed. I wasn't thinking straight when I stepped back toward the fire. It's warmth filled me, and without conscious thought raised my hands in front of me.
The six closest to me burst into flames. Screaming, they ran around, human torches. My voice joined theirs in screaming. What had I done! I fell to my knees as my stomach heaved. There was chaos everywhere as other men tried to help their friends. I felt rough hands throwing me forward, but my mind was still reeling from shock and horror. How could I have done that?
"The flames won't go out!" one of the men shouted, a desperate tone to his voice.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
El luitha urenI stared, numb with shock, as Tadan dropped to her knees and fiery chaos ensued around me. Was this her gift? One of the men threw her to the ground, but it did not help. The flames and the screams of the burning men continued. My stomach churned at the sight.
I closed my eyes, even as I felt a rough hand on my shoulder. I wanted to fight and get the men off of me, but my own gift was calling. I did not wish to be taken without a fight, but I could not watch as the men slowly burned to death either.
I did not know exactly what prompted me, but I turned my focus inward and concentrated on clearing my thoughts, blocking out the screams of pain. I could sense energy flowing through my veins and knew I could use it to dampen the flames. A green-blue aura filled the insides of my eyes. The bright lights flickering beyond my eyelids came to an abrupt stop.
Dizzy now, I put a hand out to steady myself. Tadan's shoulder was the nearest solid place to put it. I felt the heat of her flesh through her cloak and without a thought, dampened that too. That was when I felt a rough hand forcing me to the ground, and I realized the trouble we were in.
I came to life, dizzy and weak now, but alive and not going down without a fight. I shook the hand off my shoulder, staggered to my feet with a scream of Elbereth, and swung around with a hard kick. My boot connected to something and I heard a grunt followed by a thud. The men, no longer occupied with their burning companions, flooded toward me. My eyes widened in shock. How many were there?
I fought as hard as I could, but was easily outnumbered. They came crashing down on me. A bow, I thought wildly, I needed a bow. But there was none, and I was soon on the ground with my arms pinned cruelly behind my back.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Tadandader HalfElven
I felt a cool rush pass through my body, and the screams of the burning men ended. Then I remembered the danger we were in. Rapidly and shakily I regained my feet, and drew my sword. I felt extremely lightheaded, but I wasn't going down without a fight.
How many men were there? I faced off with four at once, knowing that this would not go well. I ducked the first sword thrust, and, because he overextended, slashed his sword arm. He screamed in anger and pain, and the other three struck as one, knocking the blade from my hand and cutting it.
I jerked back in pain, and grabbed a stick from our bonfire. Although the last thing I wanted to use right then was fire, it was all I had. I felt minor satisfaction as fear was reflected on the faces of those facing me.
"Watch out, she's got more flame!" came a cry. I dropped the flaming wood, and tripped over one of the men I had set on fire earlier. Arms flailing wildly, I fell over.
Rough hands threw me onto my back, and wrapped around my throat while rope was tied painfully and harshly around my wrists and ankles. In seconds I was securely tied, and unable to move anything but my head, which was throbbing.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
El luitha urenI was lifted onto a horse and was nearly secured into the saddle. But they forgot to tie my legs, I realized with grim satisfaction. I kicked out on either side of me and knocked a few more down.
Hands tied behind my back still, I swung one leg over and dismounted with a hop. Hah. I hadn't been a Xena fan for six years without learning something. Many more went down as I fought with every lower muscle I possessed, before something hit the back of my head with a mind jarring thwack. My thoughts muddled for a moment and the air went out of me, but I did not go unconscious. That hesitation was all they needed though. They lifted me once more into the saddle, strapping my legs in so tightly that I gasped and keeled over the saddle horn.
I looked over to see Tadan on a horse behind me, trussed up like a chicken and well away what remained of our campfire. She was eyeing the sword laying on the ground by the fire. When had she learned how to use that? I snorted. Actors. They always managed to surprise you.
With guards on all sides of us, we watched and waited.
What looked to be the leaders of the rabble met together around the fire. Their outlines were not clear, but they were definitely men. I was very glad of my Elvish ears at the moment, for I could hear their entire conversation.
"We should rest until nightfall and make sure that one Elf-witch doesn't burn anymore of our men."
"No. We go now. They're both Elves, they'll have forces after them soon." These two men seemed to have been bickering for awhile.
"We're days from any Elvish forest!" came the first voice. "No one will even know they're missing until long after they're due back."
"Wrong." This third voice was sleek and nasal. The true leader of the group, I realized, and the brains of the operation. "Did you not see their Elvish horses fly? Elves will be here to claim them. Soon. We must leave now and do all that we can to confuse the trail."
"I don't see what can be done," said the second voice. "They're Elves. We have no chance of losing them or outrunning them."
"We make for the Misty Mountains," the leader said smoothly. "We can lose them there, let them deal with the goblins that guard the trails there."
"And if the goblins find us?" The second speaker was clearly not to be disalluded.
"They won't," the leader simply answered.
I felt a thump behind me and the poor beast I was on began moving at once. I had already lost feeling in my hands and legs, and my energy had almost been completely exhausted in healing and fighting. I bent over and let my head loll on my chest, closing my eyes and conserving what strength I had left.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Tadandader HalfElvenI listened to the conversations around the fire. Well, at least they were a little afraid of me, although I probably could have figured that out by the way they had me tied. All of a sudden we were moving. I was tied onto the horse, and was bouncing around that my headache was becoming worse. The man riding next to me wasn't helping, either.
Strapped to the back of his horse was a makeshift travois with one of the burnt men on it, who was obviously his friend. Every few minutes my guard would strike me across the back with a long thin stick he was carrying. "Oops, so sorry, your majesty," he'd say, or "My, aren't the midges something awful this time of year?" All I could do was glare at him, but I hadn't the strength to do even that convincingly.
I looked over to where Luitha was, on the other side of the trail. At least she had beaten up a few of them. I felt rather pathetic.
This was one of the few times I had ever been afraid. We had two bits of hope, though. First of all was that our horses should reach Rivendell in about two days, as they were running free of all burdens. Second, in order to get to the Misty Mountains, one would have to cross the Greyflood, which Elrond monitored. Or they could go through the Ettenmors, which it did not look like they planned to do.
If everything went well, we would have help in about three days. Otherwise, there was no telling what might happen.
The man struck me again. "Lamanfirin!" I said, and he shied back in fear. I gave him my most evil sneer, but he relaxed when nothing happened. And nothing would have happened. I was just calling him names. Unfortunately I hadn't the presence of mind to be creative, so 'dead animal' had to do it.
He looked at the leader. "Sir," he called, "she's trying to do something! I think she spoke a spell!"
The leader dropped back to where I rode right away. "What did she say?"
"I don't rightly know, something about 'fee-reen'."
"Dead? Are you trying to curse us?" He grabbed my chin and forced my head up. My eyes unwillingly caught his. "Speak, witch!"
I summoned every bit of my remaining dignity. "I do not have to answer to you, and I shall not! You will pay for what you have done, son of Morgoth!"
He struck me, and then backhanded me. I felt the bitter taste of blood seep into my mouth. "Learn to be more polite, witch, or I'll have to teach you." The grimace on his face made his meaning very clear, as he looked at me, and the company of men that was close enough to hear laughed.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
El luitha urenI glared angrily as the leader backhanded Tadan and struggled against my bonds. The men riding on either side of me sniggered and struck at me with their own whips. I bit my lip against the sharp pain and turned to look at one of them. The look in my eyes must have been convincing, because he lost his grim smile and turned his attention to the road again.
The night drew on, and the next day and night. The men did not stop. Fear of the Elves pushed them on. Why had they taken Tadan and I? What were they planning on doing with us?
I let my head fall to my chest again and closed my eyes, as I had for most of the ride. Earendil shone through the trees, and I drew strength from its light, filling my reserves and feeling energy flow through my veins once more. My mind drifted, and for a moment I felt a slight burning on my chest. Then all coherent thoughts seemed to melt away. I rode in a trance, without checking my body, letting it swing and bob with the awkward gait of the horse.
I opened my eyes, but they were not my own.
He rushed down the halls of Rivendell at a run, throwing open the doors to the library and standing at the edge of the room. Elrond was bending over a book on a table, and the Elf looked up at his entrance.
"They are gone," he said, trying to mask the fear and panic that was in his voice. "Asfaloth and Miel have returned riderless, I met them on the road."
The Elf Lord's eyes unfocused for a moment. "I have felt something... I did not know what. Tadan is injured, but alive. I felt the explosion of her gift a few nights ago. Something has indeed gone wrong." He looked up, a hard expression on his face. "Have you felt it Aragorn?"
Aragorn nodded. "I have. We must ride. The horses will take us."
"Find Glorfindel and my sons. Get them ready to leave."
"It is done, my lord. We are waiting for you."
They strode outside into the moonlight. Asfaloth fidgeted with Miel in the front of the Elven troops, bobbing his head and whinnying. Aragorn swung onto his white back and turned his head to the road.
"Noro lim, Asfaloth. Find her." The company took off silently into the night...
I woke and jerked my head up. My gift, I realized. I had blended thoughts with Aragorn, seen through his eyes.
They were coming.