Disclaimer: I own Thûlocuil (and owning her is a lot of fun!) The rest is owned by J.R.R. Tolkien.



Review of reviews: at the end.

Warning: there are somewhat filthy thoughts in this chapter. Don't like it? Don't read it. I think this is as 'erotic' as this story will ever get.



12. Food for thought.



Night had fallen. Although everywhere in the camp fires and torches had been lit, to Legolas, the world looked darker than it had looked for some time. Although he was sitting in the middle of some hundred soldiers eating, drinking, jesting, boasting, yelling and singing, it seemed more silent than it had been for some time. And even surrounded by all these man and with Gimli sitting just opposite him eating and drinking, he felt lonely, lonelier than he had felt for some time.

She had left.



After Gimli had burst in, he had tried to get any information from her. But Ragnor had made it very clear that he thought a meeting with elves, and a she-elf for that matter, was not up to his standards, was indeed a joke. He asked every general who agreed, to come with him. Not one stood up from his seat. "So you all choose her site then?" he had asked and then had looked at Thûlocuil and hissed: "I will get my revenge woman, don't you worry about that!" with that he left the tent.

In the silence after his leaving, Thûlocuil got up and said: "Maybe I was a fool to think that the people of Middle Earth could work together once more to smother evil while we still have the change. But now it seems like not even one people can agree on a simple thing as to hear information from another. I leave now. If you need me, I'll be watching my enemy."

She had left.



He had run after her and grabbed her by the shoulder as she was walking away. She turned like she had been stabbed. Her brown eyes were narrow and blazing; her gaze was like ice when she saw it was him. "I'm sorry that I raised my voice to you," he said, "but you must understand: I've lost friends over this, both in life and spirit."

She briefly shut her eyes and seemed to brace herself. For a moment it looked like she was going to say something to him but then she just turned and started to walk again.

"You leaving will not help matters." He had called after her. She just continued and he stared at her back for a moment, before turning from her.

"Nîn nauth avar tegi mellyn nad, h'ava úcaron în morgul, Im hebin cuiol nîn cuil a faron an râd alaphad."

["My thought(s) will not bring your friends anything, it will not undo his evil sorcery, I keep living my life and hunt for (a) path that does not follow (= that is different)."]

He swirled around on her very first word. They were some fifteen passes apart; she was facing him again and merely whispering. A tear rolled down her cheek and with a brusque gesture she wiped it off.

Then she turned again and left.



"Look out! There's an orc trying to cut one of your golden tresses!" Legolas leaped at Gimli's sudden outburst. Only to see no other foul creature then the one sitting opposite him and laughing his brains out!

"Do not bend too much in your mirth my friend, least you want to eat some delicious beard-broth" Legolas replied on sitting down again. That made Gimli instantly stop laughing and quickly grab at his beard. "Still gloomy from the fact that she would not tell you a thing, are you Legolas? I just wanted your attention my friend, since I have been talking to you for some time now without even a 'hum' for an answer...", Gimli said. "I suppose you did not overhear the conversation those soldiers next to us were having just before they left to fetch some more 'delicious beard-broth'?" Legolas just looked utterly disinterested. "Yep, just as I thought! Well, before you go dreaming off again... they were just talking about this 'Great Warrior'. Uhuh, thought that would rouse your interest. Now listen..." Gimli continued to the now completely alert Legolas: "They are just rumours, remember that, so do not get all worked up about this but..." as he lowered his voice to continue, the two empty places beside them were once again taken and Gimli hushed. A meaningful nod from him told Legolas that these were the two soldiers in question.



"No, no, no! I tell you, I know one of Ragnor's company, he is a friend of mine and he, Bregon, was on duty guarding his Lord's tent this afternoon, I got this first-hand! He just went mad about the visitor being a woman, Ragnor that is, well, and Bregon says that the general said something about 'filthy elves'. And have you ever seen him, that is her, yielding a sword? That speed is not human I say to you, although...maybe it is not elvish either..." here his voice dropped and he looked around.



Yet, he only saw two other soldiers completely absorbed in a game of cards and to his other side two strange men discussing something that one of them was holding. They were foreign looking though. That little one might be a dwarf and the other, well his ears were invisible since all the hair covered them, but his garments sure had an elvish appearance. He moved a bit away from them on the bench and continued.



Legolas and Gimli were frantically staring at the tip of Gimli's beard. That had been the closed things within Legolas's grasp when he had seen the movement of the man's head. It surely was something that took Gimli's attention immediately away from the two soldiers. "They are continuing again," Legolas whispered. "Well, in that case, get your hand off my property!" Gimli muffled. "Hush!" Legolas said, and after a friendly tug, let the dwarf's beard go free again. With his hearing he could still easily pick up what their table companion was saying to his friend.



"... She is powered by the black land!"

"No!" on the face of the second soldier was an expression of expecting disbelieve. "Such a lovely face, you would not say..."

"Well, hey..." at this the first one winked meaningful to his companion, "you do not expect the Lord of the Nazgûl to go all that time without you-know-what!"

Legolas clenched his fists. "No!" again the same encouraging disbelieve was heard in the voice of the second one.

"Or, hey, hey... for that matter Sauron himself, hey, hey!" The name of the Black Lord was spoken so soft, that even Legolas could barely hear it.



"Only rumours... Legolas, only rumours..."Gimli, not being able to hear the two anymore, could clearly read the expression on Legolas's face. "Here, take a good look at the tip of my beard again, that should put things in perspective!" and he took the tip of his beard between his short fingers and moved it like it was waving to Legolas.

Legolas relaxed, "You would not believe your ears, Gimli..."



But this last statement went too far, even for the 'fine' audience of the story-teller. His voice was more determent on his next "No! I mean, you can have friends with interesting work, but you really had too much to drink if you can say such a filthy thing!"

"Calm down, calm down, just jesting... Hey, but I did hear stories about her that point that way..."

"No, no, I just don't know what to believe anymore..." but his voice was encouraging enough for the first one to continue.

"Well, how do you suppose that she comes to all this detailed information then, hey? You think the little fairies of the trees tell them to her at night?"

"Well, you surely must have heard those stories about elves and trees," the other cut in again.

"Well, I daresay that if those trees would speak in the Black Tongue she would be able to understand them!"

"No! You don't say..."

"Yes, I do, and this comes straight from Ragnor's lips..."

"Yeah, but through Bregor's ears and your lips again" the second one cut in once more.

"Now, do you want to hear this or am I ruining your hot dreams for tonight?" the first one sneered.

"Hey! Don't tell me that you do not..." the other was actually sounding assaulted this time! Talking about 'filthy elves' now, are they, Legolas thought.



"Right! Just tell me what you think about this: she is the only source our generals have concerning the terror in Udûn, she gets in and out of Mordor more easy than you and I get in and out of this camp, she is the only one with detailed information about how many orcs and where they are heading... now how would she, being an elf and a woman, get this information, hey? Now, what do you say now, hey, hey?"



And there goes the whole purpose of gathering for secret meetings, Legolas thought. From now on I should ask the next soldier how the Elves of Eryn Lasgalen should react when it comes to a New Ringwar! He smiled. Hear, hear, she has even got Thranduil's son thinking like this! Now there is a great story! he stopped thinking for a moment... Now is there? He felt a warmth flowing from his heart to his neck and face. Gimli, thinking that he had heard something disgusting again, once again waved the tip of his beard at him. "Just think of my beard Legolas, the beard!"



"Now I say, that you definitely had had too much to drink, my friend. And that I'm going to get some sleep before we're on duty again."

"Well, I tell you she's suspicious and probably a turncoat or a spy! I know on what side she fought in the last war!" But his companion gathered his dishes and disappeared towards the camp-scullery: a big barrel full of water and dishes.



"Sweet dreams!!!!" the first one yelled after him. Then he too stood up and gathered his stuff. He noticed that the elf-like creature to his left was covering his face with his hands. Whatever this dwarf was showing him was obviously not becoming him. Or he had trouble with the good healthy soldier's food. He let out a 'humpf': Elves! Mighty warriors with a weak stomach!

And with that thought, he turned and left.



As promised:

Red Cinders: you're thinking just along my line of thoughts: I like so much what Miranda Otto said in the Making of: "It is always nice when a female gets to kick ***!"

Lady Aniviel: thank you for your kind review and for your comments on the age-thing.

TheBlackNinja: Thank you for your reviews, you should keep reading, I think you'll like it!



So this was the next chapter, for all you reviewers: I hold you so dear, since you really make my day. Please keep reviewing: I always get the feeling like I won't be able to write one word, just before I start writing again. It's awful! So thanks to you all! (Elven beauty, Forest Elfin.)

To Cruiser: I do not like to give it all away, that would spoil the fun, I think.



Only to translate her sentence into Sindarin took me about three hours! In my much extended source there is no translation for words like 'can', 'undo', 'evil', 'search'. That makes it difficult.



29-03-03: changed my choice of words.

13-09-03: improved some spelling.