Author's Note: Hey, I'm almost ungrounded if anyone's interested. I worked extra hard for chemistry and my mom said that I'm only grounded for one more week to make sure that I keep doing well. But after that, I get the computer back! Yay!! Anyway, thanks for the reviews and your patience.
"I have been waiting for a very long time to meet you two." The wizard said in a very ghastly voice. Shivers sped up and down Alinne's back. "I do hope your stay here is comfortable."
If Alinne wanted to laugh, Kenisse and the wizard beat her to it.
"Well, what can I say, I adore humor!" As He said this He stepped out of the shadows and His body and face were in full view to Alinne and Legolas. What should have been a most frightful experience however, was instead the biggest shock of their lives. Instead of an ominous and evil figure, out of the shadows stepped a jolly old man, dressed in plain gray robes. His hair was messy and fell down His back, His beard reaching just as low and looking just as unkempt. His eyes were cheerful and almost friendly and although His face was home to many wrinkles, none of them seemed to hold much care.
Is this the man who I have feared for ages? How can this be Him? Alinne asked herself in disbelief. The man looked friendly, and caring, and yet he was the most feared wizard in all of Middle Earth.
"What is there to say? I do believe Kenisse covered almost everything. Are there any questions?" He asked with a smile.
My God I feel like I am back in archery school. Alinne thought to herself.
"There is not much to say now is there? So now Kenisse and Nerodel will take you back up to your rooms and you can get ready for your weddings."
"Wait, I have a question," Alinne quickly said before the wizard could leave (how he was planning on leaving she did not know, would he disappear into smoke again or just walk out the door which would appear again? She asked herself. "Noitamni, where is he?"
"Who dear? Oh right, that other friend of yours, I do believe he is still in the dungeons unless one of my orcs had him for dinner last night." The wizard answered with a cruel laugh. Alinne gasped in horror, she was definitely beginning to see the "Him" in this old man. That was the most sadistic thing Alinne had ever heard and yet the man seemed to show no feeling.
"No, your friend is very useful for me right now. Maybe later I will explain that as well. I certainly cannot just tell you everything in one day now can I?"
Oh no, we would not want to use all of your jokes in one day now would we? Alinne thought, but dared not speak it.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Come out right now!" Nerodel roared as he pounded his fist into the door.
"I said I am not hungry!" Alinne yelled out just as loudly through the other side of the door. After they left the dungeons where they met the wizard (they left through the door which appeared once again, by the way), Nerodel and Alinne came back to their room while Kenisse dragged Legolas up to the room they now shared.
"Get out of that room, NOW!" he screamed again, "And I do not care one bit if you are not hungry, you will go to dinner either way!"
"No…" she answered, suddenly calm in this negatively charged environment.
"Fine," he answered, also in a more calm voice, "but if you are interested, your Legolas will be there."
There was a long silence and no one spoke. Nerodel sat down on the nearby bed and waited without saying a word. After a couple more minutes, which seemed like hours, the door opened and Alinne walked out. She was wearing a new dress, pale blue with flowers printed on it. The dress was put into the room during Alinne and Nerodel's absence.
"All right," Nerodel said, "Let us go before we are late." He held out his hand and waited patiently.
"Are we going or will we be standing here the whole time?" She asked him arrogantly.
In response, Nerodel pushed his hand out further and in Alinne's direction. Alinne looked down at his it and regretfully took it, ignoring the protests in her head, and in her heart.
They walked down long gray corridors. There were no windows of any kind there, only gloomy holes at the top of the walls. It felt very much like a prison to Alinne. Growing up in forests, she loved natural sun and green trees all around her. This hallway was almost suffocating her now. She began to panic as if she was losing her breath. Her pace began to quicken and soon she was practically dragging Nerodel down with her even though she had no idea where she was going.
After what seemed like hours, they were standing in front of two huge doors with carvings of what seemed like flowers on it.
It certainly cannot be flowers. Alinne decided. A place this dark would never allow flowers to be carved into the door. And yet as she tried to look closer, they were definitely flowers, although quite unusual ones, each one had five petals and very unusual looking leafs. It was not a flower Alinne had ever seen before in her life.
She felt Nerodel lightly squeeze her arm, signaling for attention. As soon she snapped back to what was happening, she noticed that the doors were opening and a large hall was slowly coming into her view. It was much lighter than the hallway, for which Alinne was very thankful, but there was still a sort of darkness in the room.
Holding her hand tightly, Nerodel led Alinne into the room. It was beautiful, she realized, a gorgeous magical light illuminated the room. The light was a circular glass sphere, she noticed, inside it there was a magical yellow light. The sphere easily illuminated the whole room. (A/N just think of a really large and circular light bulb) As she turned her head to look into the other direction of the room, she noticed a large table, big enough to seat four score of people. It was empty though, and Alinne felt Nerodel pull her once more. He pulled a seat out for her at the table and helped her sit down. Out of instinct, she quietly said,
"Thank you."
She noticed him turn to her and look. He seemed so surprised and almost so innocent, she felt sorry for him. Why? She did not know, she had no reason to, he was holding her prisoner, soon he would force her to marry him, and yet underneath all that, she saw something. It was something in his eyes, an ever-present sorrow. She had always noticed it, she realized, and yet she never really realized it was there. She never truly looked into his eyes and saw anything inside.
He looked back down at his plate, and quietly sat down right by her. They were seated right in the middle of one of the sides at the table. Alinne closed her eyes for a second and thought about green trees and blue lakes, and the flowers she used to collect as a child. Tears pressed against her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. What set it off? She wondered.
"One is darker," she said quietly.
Nerodel looked over to her questioningly. "Pardon?" he asked just as quietly.
"One is darker," she repeated, "your eyes, your left is darker than your right. I never noticed it before."
"No one has ever noticed it." He answered sounding very surprised, "But then again, no one ever notices any thing about me." He added with sorrow.
"Oh" was all she managed in response.
But then, what do you say to something like that?
Author's Note: Hey, sorry it took so long to get this one uploaded, I had it typed up last week, but I didn't get to use a computer for this whole week. I don't think I've ever gone that long without using the computer once. And just to add to my irritation, ff.net wouldn't let me upload my chapter to the document manager. Anyway, I should upload again soon, I think I got my act together, and hopefully we can finally make these regular.
For anyone who does not know, four score is 80 (a score is 20).
Anyway, please review, and I should be updating pretty soon.
