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The Misty Mountains
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The next morning, the sun rose brightly, greeting the elves as they ate breakfast. Elves tend to be early risers.
Beorn had returned to the house just as they were waking up. He had been out most of the night, hunting down the any of the remaining orcs in the area.
When the elves prepared to leave, Beorn presented them with two new flasks.
"They're filled with mead," he said with a wink, "in case you get tired of water."
Legolas smiled warmly as he took the flasks from Beorn's gigantic hands.
"Many thanks!"
"Yes," put forth Nimue, "many thanks for everything! The shelter and the mead."
"My pleasure to serve the First Born."
Legolas and Nimue soon took their leave of Beorn's Hall and continued on their journey Southward to the Old Ford.
The trip to the Old Ford was thankfully uneventful. It was mid-morning when they reached the crossing.
"Do you think that we will run into any Goblins while passing through the Misty Mountains, Hir nin?" Nimue asked as they crossed the ford
"I cannot say. It is a possibility, but less of a one since we did not cross by way of Carrock."
The two rode in silence for quite some time, each to their own thoughts.
Nimue stared at the Misty Mountains, which rose into view up ahead. Her eyes scanned its peaks and followed the clouds swarming about them.
The trek up the mountain was not as hard as Nimue had imagined it to be, for the mountain sloped gradually, giving Nimue's legs a chance to adapt to the incline without getting too tired too fast.
Legolas was walking two feet infront of her. Nimue saw that he left no trace of footprint, and though she was not surprised, it made her a little ashamed. When she looked back over her shoulder she could see the slight outlines of her footsteps in the snow.
Even though elvish eyes would be the only ones capable of spotting her footprints, it still bothered her. It was the mortal blood in Nimue that made her weigh more than a normal elf.
Legolas glanced back at her, his gaze falling to her feet and to the path behind her. His eyebrows rose.
Nimue felt a deep blush creep into her cheeks. Legolas turned back to concentrate on the road ahead. Nimue was grateful for Legolas' silence.
It was mid-day by the time the elves reached the part of the mountain-path which clung to the peaks.
The snow began to fall heavily, and the wind had picked up, hurling the drifts in their direction.
The wind loosened strands of Nimue's hair; stinging her face with them.
Legolas peered into the blinding depths of the blizzard, his eyes just barely making out the path ahead. He turned to his companion, to find that she was not there.
"Nimue?"
Nimue had fallen farther and farther behind. Her legs had grown so cold, she could barely feel them, and although she could not fall ill from the cold, it could hinder her abilities to dangerous point, making her vulnerable to attacks.
Nimue hugged herself as she trudged along. Her teeth were chattering so loud that Nimue could hardly hear anything else above the wailing wind, except . . .
Was that her name being called?
Nimue's head whipped up. She saw the figure of Prince Legolas through the torrent of snow. He was calling her name.
"Nimue! Ias bennich?" (Where did you go?)
Suddenly as Nimue ran, actually it was more like stumbled, towards him, she saw another dark figure appear and pounce upon Legolas.
"Hir nin!"
Finally, when Nimue reached the spot where Legolas had been, she found him to be gone.
Nimue forced down the panic that welled up inside her and looked about. She spied a set of fresh tracks. They had the basic structure of a man's footprint, yet she could see that the toes were longer, much longer, and the indentations in the snow right above the toes marked claws.
Suddenly, an awful noise that sounded like a cross between a screech and a growl reached Nimue's ears.
"Goblins!"
Nimue, ignoring her freezing limbs, set off at a run, following the tracks and the sounds.
The footprints went onward in the direction she and Legolas had been taking.
Nimue stayed close to the side of the mountain as she ran along. Suddenly she slowed down. Nimue stopped for a moment and pressed a delicately pointed ear to the side of the mountain-face.
She heard the scraping sounds of clawed feet scurrying over stone floors. She even heard the sound of a few ugly voices.
Nimue began to walk fast paced along the path; running her right hand along the mountain-face while her left hand clutched the hilt of her sword.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The Misty Mountains
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The next morning, the sun rose brightly, greeting the elves as they ate breakfast. Elves tend to be early risers.
Beorn had returned to the house just as they were waking up. He had been out most of the night, hunting down the any of the remaining orcs in the area.
When the elves prepared to leave, Beorn presented them with two new flasks.
"They're filled with mead," he said with a wink, "in case you get tired of water."
Legolas smiled warmly as he took the flasks from Beorn's gigantic hands.
"Many thanks!"
"Yes," put forth Nimue, "many thanks for everything! The shelter and the mead."
"My pleasure to serve the First Born."
Legolas and Nimue soon took their leave of Beorn's Hall and continued on their journey Southward to the Old Ford.
The trip to the Old Ford was thankfully uneventful. It was mid-morning when they reached the crossing.
"Do you think that we will run into any Goblins while passing through the Misty Mountains, Hir nin?" Nimue asked as they crossed the ford
"I cannot say. It is a possibility, but less of a one since we did not cross by way of Carrock."
The two rode in silence for quite some time, each to their own thoughts.
Nimue stared at the Misty Mountains, which rose into view up ahead. Her eyes scanned its peaks and followed the clouds swarming about them.
The trek up the mountain was not as hard as Nimue had imagined it to be, for the mountain sloped gradually, giving Nimue's legs a chance to adapt to the incline without getting too tired too fast.
Legolas was walking two feet infront of her. Nimue saw that he left no trace of footprint, and though she was not surprised, it made her a little ashamed. When she looked back over her shoulder she could see the slight outlines of her footsteps in the snow.
Even though elvish eyes would be the only ones capable of spotting her footprints, it still bothered her. It was the mortal blood in Nimue that made her weigh more than a normal elf.
Legolas glanced back at her, his gaze falling to her feet and to the path behind her. His eyebrows rose.
Nimue felt a deep blush creep into her cheeks. Legolas turned back to concentrate on the road ahead. Nimue was grateful for Legolas' silence.
It was mid-day by the time the elves reached the part of the mountain-path which clung to the peaks.
The snow began to fall heavily, and the wind had picked up, hurling the drifts in their direction.
The wind loosened strands of Nimue's hair; stinging her face with them.
Legolas peered into the blinding depths of the blizzard, his eyes just barely making out the path ahead. He turned to his companion, to find that she was not there.
"Nimue?"
Nimue had fallen farther and farther behind. Her legs had grown so cold, she could barely feel them, and although she could not fall ill from the cold, it could hinder her abilities to dangerous point, making her vulnerable to attacks.
Nimue hugged herself as she trudged along. Her teeth were chattering so loud that Nimue could hardly hear anything else above the wailing wind, except . . .
Was that her name being called?
Nimue's head whipped up. She saw the figure of Prince Legolas through the torrent of snow. He was calling her name.
"Nimue! Ias bennich?" (Where did you go?)
Suddenly as Nimue ran, actually it was more like stumbled, towards him, she saw another dark figure appear and pounce upon Legolas.
"Hir nin!"
Finally, when Nimue reached the spot where Legolas had been, she found him to be gone.
Nimue forced down the panic that welled up inside her and looked about. She spied a set of fresh tracks. They had the basic structure of a man's footprint, yet she could see that the toes were longer, much longer, and the indentations in the snow right above the toes marked claws.
Suddenly, an awful noise that sounded like a cross between a screech and a growl reached Nimue's ears.
"Goblins!"
Nimue, ignoring her freezing limbs, set off at a run, following the tracks and the sounds.
The footprints went onward in the direction she and Legolas had been taking.
Nimue stayed close to the side of the mountain as she ran along. Suddenly she slowed down. Nimue stopped for a moment and pressed a delicately pointed ear to the side of the mountain-face.
She heard the scraping sounds of clawed feet scurrying over stone floors. She even heard the sound of a few ugly voices.
Nimue began to walk fast paced along the path; running her right hand along the mountain-face while her left hand clutched the hilt of her sword.
