Well, this chapter is a little bigger than my previous ones. Sorry for the wait.
Thanks to the mysterious 'm' for your encouragement. Though I am writing this tale for my own satisfaction, it is nice to know that someone else is enjoying it too . . . even if it is only one person. I used to shake my head at reading authors who threatened and pleaded readers to review. But now I too understand the power of the review. I'm constantly checking to see if anyone has left me a little something.
Just a note, the S.C.A (Society for Creative Anachronism) is an international group that recreates certain aspects of the Middle Ages. If you want to learn more, check out www.sca.org
Chapter 4: Questions
The next time Siobhan awoke, she was feeling much better and her shoulder was not paining her as much as before. She sat up carefully and to her satisfaction, found that she was not dizzied. Looking down at herself, she noticed that she was wearing a beautiful silk nightgown with a wide neck to make her shoulder more accessible. That meant that someone undressed her, a thought she was not terribly comfortable with. 'I don't think the elves would do anything so immoral . . . Besides,' she reasoned as she wiggled her hips a little, 'everything down there feels fine.'
Satisfied that she had not been molested as she slept, Siobhan swung her legs out over the side of the bed and was just tensing her muscles to rise when she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. There was a man in her room! She quickly scooted back into the privacy that the canopied bed offered her where the guard could not see her and tucked herself back under the covers. Just because she hadn't been 'played with' yet did not mean it could not happen.
'No, not a man,' she reminded herself, 'an elf. And an armed guard by the looks of it. Hmph, so much for famous elven hospitality. Though, it could be worse, I suppose." Siobhan thought to herself. 'They might have had me thrown in the dungeons like in The Hobbit. Except that even if I wanted to, I won't be able to buy my freedom with a share of a legendary dragon hoard.' She was still thinking furiously about her situation and so did not notice the opening of her door or the entrance of the elf until he spoke.
"Excuse me my lady, but I would have words with you now."
Siobhan gasped a little, in surprise at the sound of the soft voice and whipped her head about to face the elf that stood to the side of her bed.
She squinted at him and gave him a thorough once over from the boots on up. He was as tall and straight as she had imagined the elves to be and he looked narrower in the body than most men. His clothing was all in natural shades of green and brown, ornately decorated. His long pale hair was kept off his face by pretty little braids that did not make him look too feminine. Though his face was inscrutable, his clear blue eyes danced with amusement. Her memories were still a bit of a blur but he seemed to be one of the elves who had rescued her, the one who had spoken to her so kindly.
"I apologize for startling you milady. Elves step lightly and make no sound when they walk." He moved forward a few steps so that he directly was at the side of her bed, looking over her. It seemed to Siobhan unnatural for one to be able to move with such utter grace and serenity. He seemed to float more than walk.
"My name is Legolas Greenleaf," his musical voice rang out clearly, though he barely raised his voice above a whisper.
'Legolas,' she thought to herself in awe. 'I always did daydream of meeting him somehow and being the one to ensnare his heart, succeeding where all others had failed.' But now that he was standing before her with his exquisitely beautiful but expressionless face, Siobhan was more intimidated than anything else.
"And you, Lady Siobhan O'Reilly," he carefully enunciated the foreign name. "You are quite the mystery. Never before have we found a human woman in this forest. And the odd time any others do brave the woods, they never travel alone. Were your companions lost? And what were you doing in The Mirkwood to begin with? It is no place for pleasure strolls as you no doubt discovered."
Siobhan opened her mouth to answer then closed it again without uttering a single sound. 'What am I supposed to say?' Siobhan asked herself. 'He's asking me these questions again because he didn't believe my story the first time I told it. If he didn't believe it then, he certainly won't believe it now, though I can hardly blame him for it. It does sound daft. However, it could be that he simply wishes to confirm my tale now that I am lucid. I don't think I could make up anything that he'd believe,' she pondered. 'And I certainly don't want to be caught in a lie. If the guard in my room is any sign, I'm already not welcome here, or trusted for that matter. No, the truth will simply have to do.'
Several moments had passed as he waited for her answer and the prince showed no sign of impatience. 'Must be an elvish virtue,' Siobhan reflected wryly as she prepared herself to begin what she was sure would turn out to be a long interrogation.
"It is as I said before," she stated plainly, her voice trembling slightly. "Though, I expect you shall not believe me." Siobhan tried her hardest to speak in what she figured was the proper style for Middle Earth, attempting to emulate what she remembered of the formal speech of the heralds and royalty in the courts at the S.C.A. events she frequented.
'I don't want to seem more out of place than I already am,' she decided.
"Well, it is quite plain that you do not hail from anywhere we have ever heard of. I have closely examined the clothing you were wearing when we found you and its style and fabric do not resemble anything I have ever seen in all my considerable travels."
"Strange too is your manner of speech, which you are going to such pains to conceal," he paused as she blushed a dark pink.
'Damn,' she silently cursed at herself. 'It's just as well that I decided to tell them the truth. They'd have had me figured out before I closed my mouth.'
"I also find it most bizarre that you dress and behave much as a man would." His eyes lit up with laughter as she frowned in response to his accusations.
'I get enough of being told to be more lady-like back home!' she sighed to herself. 'But, what else did I expect in Middle Earth?'
"You wear breeches," Legolas continued. "And, your hair is much shorter than any respectable woman would dare."
"Have you finished insulting me yet?" Siobhan huffed, she'd already had quite enough of being told how weird she was before even stepping foot in Middle Earth. And though she had long since come to terms with being 'eccentric' as she liked to think about it, she did not enjoy having the fact shoved up her throat by a stranger, Prince Legolas Greenleaf or not!
His expression softened for a fraction of a second before it returned to its usual unreadable state. "I meant you no offence, Lady Siobhan," he soothed. "I was simply attempting to explain to you that because of the evidence my eyes see before me, though your claim of amnesia is most suspicious, I do believe you."
That was a surprise. Siobhan had resigned herself to being labelled insane at best. She didn't even want to think about the worst case scenario.
"And," he hesitated, "I must admit, I found your actions to be quite brave. Most maidens I know, elf or human, would have fainted dead away at the sight of one of the Mirkwood spiders. You fought quite valiantly though you were practically unarmed."
Siobhan lowered her face in attempt to hide the soft blush that spread across her cheeks. When she looked back up, Legolas had extended his hand to her, and in it was her pocket knife. She reached up and took it gingerly, her fingertips briefly brushing the cool skin of the elf's palm. Her tiny Swiss Army knife had been cleaned and oiled with care. She quietly thanked him and set the knife aside on her pillow.
"So, you have no knowledge of how you came to be in the forest?" he asked again, one final chance to change her story.
"None at all," Siobhan shook her head solemnly.
"Where then do you come from?" he changed the subject. "It must be very far from here."
"Further than you could imagine," Siobhan sighed slightly. "You would not have heard of my home even if I told it to you."
"Tell me anyway," Legolas insisted.
"Victoria," she whispered softly, knowing the elf would hear. "It is a fairly large city in British Columbia, which is a province in a larger country called Canada."
"Tell me, what is it like there?" he asked.
"It is a beautiful city on the ocean, full of flower gardens," Siobhan smiled in remembrance, feeling slightly homesick. "Not far away, there is a great forest of tall, ancient trees with no giant spiders to eat you! I love to go there to walk the paths under the trees, listen to the birds sing and enjoy the clean air. I do think you elves would like it there."
"I miss it a lot," she confided. "I wonder if I'll ever see it again."
"Do not worry yourself Lady Siobhan. I shall ensure your safe return to your home." Legolas knelt and looked solemnly in her eyes as he made the promise.
"I'm afraid that may be a promise that even the Prince of Mirkwood will not be able to keep," Siobhan sighed, with just a hint of despair in her voice.
She saw the elf stiffen slightly when she addressed him as prince. 'Uh oh,' she thought to herself. 'He didn't say anything about being Thranduil's son, did he? How am I going to explain this one?'
But, to her surprise, the prince did not even ask. He simply rose to his feet and bowed gracefully to her.
"I am afraid that I must now take my leave of you, milady." His face showed none of his alarm. "I shall send Nenril with a meal and new bandages. Good evening, Lady Siobhan.
With that, he turned and walked out the door.
'Maybe he didn't notice,' Siobhan hoped to herself as she waited for her next visitor.