A/N: Wow, long chapter! ;) Hope it was worth the wait, despite the
sappiness.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN - DISCOURAGED
Chrissie was the first to wake the following day, which was quite unusual really. Almost instantly, she woke Fred. Within half an hour, the horses were saddled and ready to go. Kelly and Damien had not seemed put off by walking all the way, in fact they seemed rather happy about it.
They walked along in conversation, although it was clear to see Damien had several bruises around his neck, which made Chrissie wonder exactly what Kelly had done to him last night. The fact they were always together made her miss Duin-Shiel even more.
Chrissie was still wary of Damien, especially after what he'd said about Duin-Shiel. She'd had nightmares all last night about finding him dead somewhere and so was very irritable this morning. She hoped no one crossed her.
They set off at a reasonable pace. Fred had measured how far it was roughly on their map and it seemed it was going to take them at least a week, if not more. Chrissie had frowned at the time and felt like sulking. Although she wanted to go home, spending a whole week with Kelly and Damien didn't seem at all attractive.
***
Mat leant back against the tree trunk and sighed. It had been a nice evening so far, and now that the shadows were drawing in, he was just about ready to snooze off. He wasn't in the mood to think of his actions the previous night, of how he'd dug that hole and put the Elf in it. Of how he'd buried that Elf alive.
He rubbed the back of his spine and tried to get into a more comfortable position. His orders had been to wait for further instructions, to stay here and just wait. Nervously he glanced over to the pile of disturbed earth, almost afraid the Elf might burst out at any minute.
Laughing at his own anxiety, he closed his eyes and enjoyed the warm breeze. No doubt Connor would be here soon, reliving him of this pointless wait.
Mat turned sharply as he heard a faint rumbling sound. Nervously re- assuring himself that the Elf was indeed dead, he tried to ignore it. Maybe the Great Lord had some greater plan at work, how was he to know, he was merely a slave.
***
Kelly brought her hand up, silently signalling for everyone to halt. She'd been scouting ahead and had heard something much like snoring. Signalling to Damien to remain with Chrissie, Fred and Mark, she circled out in front to the source of the noise.
Tiptoeing forwards, she peeked over a bush to see a young man snoring gently against a tree. A patch of roughly disturbed earth lay only metres away from him. Something clicked in Kelly's mind and she preyed that this was not what she thought it was.
Racing silently towards the man, well a boy really, she grabbed him by the throat and raised him several inches from the ground. Spluttering awake, he stared wide eyed at her. Luckily, for him, he didn't seem to recognise her.
"Tell me your name, fool." Kelly intoned calmly, which she were as calm as her voice.
".M.Mat," he blurted out.
"What the hell are you doing here?" She asked, keeping her voice level.
The boy's eyes widened at the thought of betraying Lee. A quick flash of steel against his throat soon changed his mind. "I had instructions to bury.bury the Elf. I was to make sure.he was to be definitely dead. Lee was supposed to be coming to relieve me."
The boy panicked when he realised he'd blurted out the source of his orders.
"And when did you do this?"
The boy tried to squirm free, but only succeeded in Kelly tightening her grip on his throat.
"Yesterday night." He squeaked.
Kelly dropped him, thinking about whether to slit his throat or not. He couldn't be more than fourteen, but then again, he had murdered an Elf. And that Elf might well be Duin-Shiel.
She approached the disturbed square of earth and noticed a spade not far away. Damien approached from behind her.
"Tell the others to make camp where they are. Stay with them and ensure that none of them, especially not Chrissie, come anywhere near this place."
Damien nodded, seeing that she had that stubborn look on her face that said she wasn't taking any questions on this.
Kelly pushed the spade firmly into the soil and began digging.
***
Moonlight shone down on her through the night, thankfully helping her see the dense blackness around her. The hole was fairly wide, at least four or five feet and by the look of things, extremely deep. Carefully tying a rope around a nearby tree and dangling it over the side of the hole ensured she wasn't about to get stuck down there.
She dug as quick as she could. After her initial questioning of Mat, he'd also revealed the hole had been about fifteen feet down. Looking back to the surface, she had at least five more feet to go.
When her spade hit something soft and came back bloodied, she tossed it aside and began digging with her hands. A body shape began to emerge beneath the earth, revealing once golden locks of hair matted in soil and water around it's face.
She brushed off the last of the dirt and looked at the body, carefully taking in the sharp features, the clothing already beginning to rot in this moist environment, the deep scar on his right hand where it looked as if an arrow or blade had been pushed through. It was indeed Duin-Shiel.
Feeling stupid, but knowing she had to do it for her own piece of mind, she felt for a pulse. She waited for several moments, hoping against hope she would feel something. Finally she stood up, accepting he was dead.
She climbed slowly back up the rope and sat on the edge of the hole. She had wanted to kill him, had dreamed of doing it to avenge Karth. And now he was dead, just like that. Shaking herself, she realised there were more important things to do now. Like breaking the news to Chrissie that the love of her life was dead.
***
Kelly tiptoed across to the campsite and assessed the situation. She'd filled in most of the hole again, not wanting Chrissie to see Duin-Shiel in that condition. Chrissie and Fred sat playing stones on the other side of the campfire, obviously something they'd learned from the Elves. By the look of Chrissie's face, Fred was winning again.
Damien was lounged across the floor, half asleep by the look of it. Some watch he stood. Mark eyed the night around him carefully, as if expecting something terrible to jump out at him at any time. It was a good attitude to have.
She circled back around, stopping to stare at Mat as she went past. He sat wide awake, looking up at her with wide eyes.
"I remember who you are, traitor." He whispered, spitting the word out. "You were once spoken of with respect amongst my brothers, but now I see that you have sided with men. And elves."
Kelly grimaced, cursing him for having brains.
"You act like one of us and speak like one of us. Hell, you even curse like one of us. Why did you betray us?" His voice rose as he began to shout.
Kelly looked quickly around. Damien would have heard that and probably Mark as well. They would be here soon to see what was going on.
"Because they are my friends and I cannot abandon them." She muttered, drawing a knife from her belt. In one fluid movement she stepped forward and plunged the knife into his chest, feeling the blade scrape between his ribs.
"You even...kill like one... of us...You are still...one of us..." He stuttered, blood foaming in his mouth.
Kelly pulled her dagger free and stepped back, watching as his body sagged. Her oath to Karth was fulfilled, without killing an Elf. Wiping the blood from her dagger on the back of her trousers, she untied his bonds and let him fall to the ground. At least it looked less like slaughter now.
***
She walked waveringly into the camp and watched Damien leap up and run towards her, obviously noticing her bloodied state.
"Are you alright?" He asked.
"It's not my blood, don't worry." She answered, not breaking stride. Staying a few paces short of the girls, she stopped. Both looked up at her.
"Been fighting with a bramble bush, Kelly?" Fred said, noticing the blood on her, but not really seeming surprised.
"Not exactly, no. Can I speak to you for a moment?" She looked down at Fred and watched her slowly stand up. But Fred did follow her and Damien just out of Chrissie's hearing range.
"Up ahead, where I've been for the last few hours," Kelly began, still not knowing how to word this. Thankfully, Fred seemed to understand and just waited silently. "I found a body. An Elf to be exact."
Fred's hands went to cover her mouth, her lip trembling. It couldn't be him, it just couldn't.
"It was Duin-Shiel." Kelly said, almost hearing her word's effect on Fred. Tears ran down Fred's cheeks. She hadn't loved Duin-Shiel like Chrissie did, but he'd become a part of their group, saving her from the spiders like he did. And now he was gone.
"I know it's selfish, but will you tell Chrissie for me?" Kelly whispered. "She'll think it was me, as much as I would have liked it to have been. It'll be better for her coming from you."
Fred narrowed her eyes at Kelly, thinking that Kelly was just saving herself the trouble. "How did this happen?" She asked, suspicion showing in her voice.
Kelly gulped. "He was murdered, by a member of the sect." Right now, the details didn't seem important. "Don't worry, he won't bother anyone else. I took care of him." She couldn't help but let a smile glimmer on her face, no matter how much she tried to deny it.
***
Damien put a hand on Kelly's shoulder as they watched Fred walk slowly towards Chrissie. They couldn't quite hear what Fred said to her, but when Chrissie began hysterically crying and screaming, it was obvious that the truth had been told.
Kelly turned away, trying not to see the accusing gaze Chrissie was giving her, almost glad she couldn't hear what obscenities Chrissie might be shouting.
She heard Mark get up to see what all the fuss was about and soon even he had a few tears for Duin-Shiel. She could hear him cursing himself, the sect and even her now he rose his voice high enough.
"What did you do with the killer?" Damien asked softly, trying to draw her attention away from the increasingly aggressive Chrissie.
Kelly looked up at him, silently thanking him for his strength at this moment. "I.I just left him there. I.he's just a boy.but he owed me blood." She stopped, watching him study her. "Do you understand? I had to kill him, for Karth."
Damien nodded and silently pushed her away. "I will take care of it. They do not have to see."
Kelly leant back against a tree, not trusting her legs to hold her up. Chrissie was beginning to stop crying, though whether that was from lack of tears or increasing anger, she did not know.
No doubt there would be questions later on, accusations and anecdotes as well. But for now, she would sleep. The world would still be broken in the morning, or afternoon as it would be.
***
Nobody left the campsite that day, whilst Chrissie was shown Duin-Shiel's grave. She cried hard over it, cursing him for leaving and herself for making him do it. She cursed that he wasn't in the Undying Lands beginning a new life and thanked him for coming back for her, even though he hadn't found her. Even though he'd never known just how much she'd loved him; she'd never had a chance to tell him before he'd died.
When morning rose on the following day, the decision was made to make back towards Lothlorien. Or rather Kelly told them to get their arses and stop moping. She was trying to harsh to keep them together, it was only a week to Lothlorien and after that, home.
They walked and rode peacefully for much of that day and two days after that, eating what food they still had from Minas Tirith and drinking from streams and rivers. Chrissie and Fred were somewhat queasy out about it at first, but when they realised they had no choice, they quickly drank as much as the others did.
The occasional argument broke out mostly between Mark and Damien, but Kelly received plenty of evil looks from the other members of the group, especially when she and Damien seemed to be in their own little world. Chrissie grew more distant as she dreamed about Duin-Shiel and how silly she'd been to let him go. No one mentioned his name again, for fear of upsetting Chrissie. The mystery surrounding his death and the exact circumstances of it was left unsaid.
Fred wandered on, thinking about what she was going to say when she met Lady Galadriel. Mark had told them much about her, since he'd been in Lothlorien for a time. Fred felt a little intimidated by the sheer brilliance in which Mark described her. She felt sorry for Chrissie, but didn't know what to do to help.
Mark seemed to grow happier as they drew closer to Lothlorien, but seemed to fly off at Damien more often. He always seemed to be edgy. Fred personally thought it was because of the proximity of the palantir, but there was nothing they could do about that. It was plain he thought that Damien and Kelly had murdered Duin-Shiel between them and hidden it, even though he said not a word. The looks were sufficient.
Kelly strolled along, trying to forget the world around her for the moment. She knew the Elves would kill her on sight and possibly Damien unless she could figure out a way around their laws. Thinking on that, she alone planned her next move, not letting anyone in on her strategy.
***
When they sat down to camp that night, Chrissie decided to hell with it and built a fire anyway. She'd had just about enough cold nights and any orcs could damn well come and find them. When it was burning well, Damien stood up and left.
Fred watched him go, relieved to see him leave.
"Do you have to do that?" Kelly said impatiently. "Frown at him all the time and you're always putting him down. He's really trying to be civil to you, but you have no time for him."
Chrissie snorted. "Well what are we to take example from? We saw the bruises on his neck. If you can't stop fighting with him, why should we?"
Kelly grimaced and glanced behind her. "You're not being fair to him. Chrissie admit it, if that were Duin-Shiel back there, you'd be all over him, no matter what he'd done." An uncomfortable silence settled on the camp. It was the first time anyone had dared bring that up, in case of upsetting Chrissie. But Kelly had had enough of treading quietly.
Chrissie's eyes narrowed in anger. "But he's not though and Duin-Shiel's not an assassin either." She hissed out.
Kelly stood up. "Why is it we can't even talk anymore without fighting about Damien? Why can't you just forget about him? Fred, you're usually so open and forgiving, and Chrissie you're usually.well not like this. Is he really that bad, or are you just exaggerating your feelings?"
Mark grunted and Kelly shot him a sharp look. "I know exactly what you think about him, Mark, so don't even bother speaking."
Kelly picked up her sword belt from the ground and fastened it around her waist. She attached her sword to it and walked away, heading north by what the others could tell.
"But he tried to kill us, Kelly. How can we possibly trust him?" Fred said standing up behind her, almost managing to hold her face calm.
"And so did I, twice now I believe. Do you know why I didn't this last time? It wasn't because I had second thoughts or didn't have the guts, it was because Lady Galadriel asked me not to. If she had not come, I would have done it and we all would have died there that night. I would have died with a clear conscience."
Mark's mouth hung open. How could Galadriel have crossed that distance in such short time. What was going on?
"Why are you protecting him, Kelly?" Chrissie said, standing up to face her.
"Because.I." Kelly stuttered, trying to put into words what she felt for Damien. It wasn't love, yet it was more than just attraction. She fell silent, giving up on words.
"Open up to us, Kelly. Why should we trust him? Why won't you talk to us anymore? You won't talk about your torture, except for a few fever stricken moments in Minas Tirith, you won't talk about Damien, you refuse to mention anything to do with the sect or even how many you've killed. You haven't even told us how you killed Laneth. You won't even tell us what really happened to Duin-Shiel."
Kelly stared at them with cold hard eyes, which softened slightly at the obvious amount of pain reflected from the others. Even Mark had seemed to soften slightly.
"What do you mean what really happened? I told you the truth and I stand by it. But.I will not talk about what happened on any one of those nights, not now and probably not ever. They are locked away within me and there they will stay. They are my burden and shame, and mine alone to bear."
Kelly turned quickly and disappeared into the night, throwing a few last final words over her shoulder.
"I will meet you at the borders of Lothlorien."
Not even a mouse seemed to stir, as those remaining around the campfire sat silently.
***
Damien met her only metres away, but did not ask any questions. She was already on the verge of hysterics and she was glad that it was so damn dark for once. After she'd regained what composure she could muster, she stopped.
"I do not ask you to come with me, Damien. In fact I would rather you went and lived a long happy life. I am turning myself in to the first Elven patrol I find and they may do what they wish with me as I no longer care.
I have no family or home here, friends or possessions. I cannot go back to Earth. I have nothing to live for anymore, except you. All that lies ahead of me is a life of running from the remainders of the sect, running from the Elves and running from myself. Although if I am to die, I may as well put my death to some use. With the Elves' bloodlust sated, they may well send them home."
Damien drew her into his arms and hugged her tightly. "I go where you go, Kelly, even if it is into the jaws of death. If you go to die, then so will I, because I would not care to live alone. Anyway, I'd be bored."
Kelly gave him a playful punch, but the sudden movement made her back twinge.
Damien felt her tense. "Go to sleep. I'll keep watch."
Kelly smiled at him and lay down. Sleep came quickly. She hadn't realised how tired she was.
***
As soon as her breathing slowed and he guessed she was asleep, Damien ran swiftly back to where the others were camped.
He picked up Kelly's cloak where she'd left it and his own, trying to ignore the stares he was receiving.
"What are you doing? Where's Kelly?" Fred said, standing up.
"She's fine, just feeling a little sore after shouting at you all evening. I'm just collecting our things."
Chrissie stood up next to Fred. "Kelly might not see it, but I do. I see what you're really like and I know there was some truth in what you told us that night and we know the truth in some things you didn't tell us.
When Kelly and I were in Minas Tirith, she told me just before she finished her streaming, she hit one of her tormentors across the face. Right side. I wouldn't be surprised if it left a small scar like that one you have on your cheek.
She had not said it, but I saw the similarities between your apparent fabrication and what happened to Duin-Shiel. If it was just your imagination, how did he end up in that exact situation? Or did you really give that order and can't admit it."
Damien self-consciously felt the two-centimetre scar on his right cheek and his cheeks flamed in anger as much as embarrassment.
"Right now she feels just about at the bottom of the world and guess who put her there? You! I did what I had to do, but I never pretended to be something I wasn't. You pretended to be her friends, built up her hopes that she might be accepted by you again, but as soon as she behaves like the person she is, you push her away, put her down.
All she's done is protect you, rescue you when you needed it and guide you towards where you can go home. And how do you repay her? By trying to force her into reliving her worst moments, times when she'd thought she'd failed herself, or worse, you.
She's surrendering you know, to the Elves I mean. She just told me she didn't care any more, and I could see it in her eyes. If she dies, you may as well have killed her yourselves.
She may kill, but always for a reason. Her survival or the survival of those she cares about. I hope your reason is as justified as that."
Damien cast a look of distaste at them and walked away. He should have just left the damn cloaks.
***
Fred and Chrissie slumped to the ground, shocked beyond belief at what they'd just heard. They saw their entire experience in Middle Earth in a whole new light. Whenever they had been with Kelly, she had protected them, come after them under impossible odds. She could well have left them in Minas Tirith to be tortured by Faramir, but she hadn't. She could have saved the Fellowship by herself, but she hadn't.
And what had they done to her in return? They'd bullied her, questioning her in every spare minute about her worst experiences, when not once had she asked them to share theirs.
The one thing that had always kept Kelly going was her hope. That somehow things would be all right. Even in her darkest moments in Minas Tirith when she was near death, she had still had time to spare a few jokes with them.
Fred turned to Chrissie and Mark. "We are turning the tables, Chrissie. It is not us that needs rescuing this time, but her." Chrissie nodded. "Mark, are you with us?"
Mark looked at them, looked at the determination in their eyes. If the Elves caught Kelly, they wouldn't hesitate in killing her.
"She told me this would happen, Galadriel I mean. I saw you both in the cell, saw the exposing of the fellowship. In the final vision, Kelly was presented before the council of the Elves, bound and tied. The news they delivered was not good, I'm afraid." He answered, a measure of sadness in his voice.
Fred clenched her fists. "But that hasn't happened yet, so every moment up until then, we can change it. And we will. Are you with us?"
Fred and Chrissie stood up and held out their hands. Mark smiled and shook. Now that the Fellowship was safe, they had other problems to sort. And they were ready for them.
***
Hobbit-Eyes: Thanks! *blushes* Hope you're not too upset by the loss of your "koolies" characters.
Chrissie: If you weren't emotional in that chapter I'm not *that* surprised. If you weren't emotional in this chapter, I definitely will be, I mean the love of your life is DEAD!
Chrissie: Why surprised that I saved you? I mean it's only chapter 13 and there's five more chapter to go. Five more chapters to torture you, who could resist that? Fred will get compensation crumpet.
Hannah: Nifty chapter? Hell yeah. Thanks. Hopefully you now know what is happening with Duin-Shiel.
Hobbit-Eyes: Hope your questions are answered. Re-reading Ac.1 is always good, but remember lots of stuff i.e. Damien, streaming etc. is not mentioned for creative tension reasons. Explanations for people's loyalties and deeper feelings will be explored in the final few chapters (only four to go!) so just try and wait it out! Thanks! (
CHAPTER FOURTEEN - DISCOURAGED
Chrissie was the first to wake the following day, which was quite unusual really. Almost instantly, she woke Fred. Within half an hour, the horses were saddled and ready to go. Kelly and Damien had not seemed put off by walking all the way, in fact they seemed rather happy about it.
They walked along in conversation, although it was clear to see Damien had several bruises around his neck, which made Chrissie wonder exactly what Kelly had done to him last night. The fact they were always together made her miss Duin-Shiel even more.
Chrissie was still wary of Damien, especially after what he'd said about Duin-Shiel. She'd had nightmares all last night about finding him dead somewhere and so was very irritable this morning. She hoped no one crossed her.
They set off at a reasonable pace. Fred had measured how far it was roughly on their map and it seemed it was going to take them at least a week, if not more. Chrissie had frowned at the time and felt like sulking. Although she wanted to go home, spending a whole week with Kelly and Damien didn't seem at all attractive.
***
Mat leant back against the tree trunk and sighed. It had been a nice evening so far, and now that the shadows were drawing in, he was just about ready to snooze off. He wasn't in the mood to think of his actions the previous night, of how he'd dug that hole and put the Elf in it. Of how he'd buried that Elf alive.
He rubbed the back of his spine and tried to get into a more comfortable position. His orders had been to wait for further instructions, to stay here and just wait. Nervously he glanced over to the pile of disturbed earth, almost afraid the Elf might burst out at any minute.
Laughing at his own anxiety, he closed his eyes and enjoyed the warm breeze. No doubt Connor would be here soon, reliving him of this pointless wait.
Mat turned sharply as he heard a faint rumbling sound. Nervously re- assuring himself that the Elf was indeed dead, he tried to ignore it. Maybe the Great Lord had some greater plan at work, how was he to know, he was merely a slave.
***
Kelly brought her hand up, silently signalling for everyone to halt. She'd been scouting ahead and had heard something much like snoring. Signalling to Damien to remain with Chrissie, Fred and Mark, she circled out in front to the source of the noise.
Tiptoeing forwards, she peeked over a bush to see a young man snoring gently against a tree. A patch of roughly disturbed earth lay only metres away from him. Something clicked in Kelly's mind and she preyed that this was not what she thought it was.
Racing silently towards the man, well a boy really, she grabbed him by the throat and raised him several inches from the ground. Spluttering awake, he stared wide eyed at her. Luckily, for him, he didn't seem to recognise her.
"Tell me your name, fool." Kelly intoned calmly, which she were as calm as her voice.
".M.Mat," he blurted out.
"What the hell are you doing here?" She asked, keeping her voice level.
The boy's eyes widened at the thought of betraying Lee. A quick flash of steel against his throat soon changed his mind. "I had instructions to bury.bury the Elf. I was to make sure.he was to be definitely dead. Lee was supposed to be coming to relieve me."
The boy panicked when he realised he'd blurted out the source of his orders.
"And when did you do this?"
The boy tried to squirm free, but only succeeded in Kelly tightening her grip on his throat.
"Yesterday night." He squeaked.
Kelly dropped him, thinking about whether to slit his throat or not. He couldn't be more than fourteen, but then again, he had murdered an Elf. And that Elf might well be Duin-Shiel.
She approached the disturbed square of earth and noticed a spade not far away. Damien approached from behind her.
"Tell the others to make camp where they are. Stay with them and ensure that none of them, especially not Chrissie, come anywhere near this place."
Damien nodded, seeing that she had that stubborn look on her face that said she wasn't taking any questions on this.
Kelly pushed the spade firmly into the soil and began digging.
***
Moonlight shone down on her through the night, thankfully helping her see the dense blackness around her. The hole was fairly wide, at least four or five feet and by the look of things, extremely deep. Carefully tying a rope around a nearby tree and dangling it over the side of the hole ensured she wasn't about to get stuck down there.
She dug as quick as she could. After her initial questioning of Mat, he'd also revealed the hole had been about fifteen feet down. Looking back to the surface, she had at least five more feet to go.
When her spade hit something soft and came back bloodied, she tossed it aside and began digging with her hands. A body shape began to emerge beneath the earth, revealing once golden locks of hair matted in soil and water around it's face.
She brushed off the last of the dirt and looked at the body, carefully taking in the sharp features, the clothing already beginning to rot in this moist environment, the deep scar on his right hand where it looked as if an arrow or blade had been pushed through. It was indeed Duin-Shiel.
Feeling stupid, but knowing she had to do it for her own piece of mind, she felt for a pulse. She waited for several moments, hoping against hope she would feel something. Finally she stood up, accepting he was dead.
She climbed slowly back up the rope and sat on the edge of the hole. She had wanted to kill him, had dreamed of doing it to avenge Karth. And now he was dead, just like that. Shaking herself, she realised there were more important things to do now. Like breaking the news to Chrissie that the love of her life was dead.
***
Kelly tiptoed across to the campsite and assessed the situation. She'd filled in most of the hole again, not wanting Chrissie to see Duin-Shiel in that condition. Chrissie and Fred sat playing stones on the other side of the campfire, obviously something they'd learned from the Elves. By the look of Chrissie's face, Fred was winning again.
Damien was lounged across the floor, half asleep by the look of it. Some watch he stood. Mark eyed the night around him carefully, as if expecting something terrible to jump out at him at any time. It was a good attitude to have.
She circled back around, stopping to stare at Mat as she went past. He sat wide awake, looking up at her with wide eyes.
"I remember who you are, traitor." He whispered, spitting the word out. "You were once spoken of with respect amongst my brothers, but now I see that you have sided with men. And elves."
Kelly grimaced, cursing him for having brains.
"You act like one of us and speak like one of us. Hell, you even curse like one of us. Why did you betray us?" His voice rose as he began to shout.
Kelly looked quickly around. Damien would have heard that and probably Mark as well. They would be here soon to see what was going on.
"Because they are my friends and I cannot abandon them." She muttered, drawing a knife from her belt. In one fluid movement she stepped forward and plunged the knife into his chest, feeling the blade scrape between his ribs.
"You even...kill like one... of us...You are still...one of us..." He stuttered, blood foaming in his mouth.
Kelly pulled her dagger free and stepped back, watching as his body sagged. Her oath to Karth was fulfilled, without killing an Elf. Wiping the blood from her dagger on the back of her trousers, she untied his bonds and let him fall to the ground. At least it looked less like slaughter now.
***
She walked waveringly into the camp and watched Damien leap up and run towards her, obviously noticing her bloodied state.
"Are you alright?" He asked.
"It's not my blood, don't worry." She answered, not breaking stride. Staying a few paces short of the girls, she stopped. Both looked up at her.
"Been fighting with a bramble bush, Kelly?" Fred said, noticing the blood on her, but not really seeming surprised.
"Not exactly, no. Can I speak to you for a moment?" She looked down at Fred and watched her slowly stand up. But Fred did follow her and Damien just out of Chrissie's hearing range.
"Up ahead, where I've been for the last few hours," Kelly began, still not knowing how to word this. Thankfully, Fred seemed to understand and just waited silently. "I found a body. An Elf to be exact."
Fred's hands went to cover her mouth, her lip trembling. It couldn't be him, it just couldn't.
"It was Duin-Shiel." Kelly said, almost hearing her word's effect on Fred. Tears ran down Fred's cheeks. She hadn't loved Duin-Shiel like Chrissie did, but he'd become a part of their group, saving her from the spiders like he did. And now he was gone.
"I know it's selfish, but will you tell Chrissie for me?" Kelly whispered. "She'll think it was me, as much as I would have liked it to have been. It'll be better for her coming from you."
Fred narrowed her eyes at Kelly, thinking that Kelly was just saving herself the trouble. "How did this happen?" She asked, suspicion showing in her voice.
Kelly gulped. "He was murdered, by a member of the sect." Right now, the details didn't seem important. "Don't worry, he won't bother anyone else. I took care of him." She couldn't help but let a smile glimmer on her face, no matter how much she tried to deny it.
***
Damien put a hand on Kelly's shoulder as they watched Fred walk slowly towards Chrissie. They couldn't quite hear what Fred said to her, but when Chrissie began hysterically crying and screaming, it was obvious that the truth had been told.
Kelly turned away, trying not to see the accusing gaze Chrissie was giving her, almost glad she couldn't hear what obscenities Chrissie might be shouting.
She heard Mark get up to see what all the fuss was about and soon even he had a few tears for Duin-Shiel. She could hear him cursing himself, the sect and even her now he rose his voice high enough.
"What did you do with the killer?" Damien asked softly, trying to draw her attention away from the increasingly aggressive Chrissie.
Kelly looked up at him, silently thanking him for his strength at this moment. "I.I just left him there. I.he's just a boy.but he owed me blood." She stopped, watching him study her. "Do you understand? I had to kill him, for Karth."
Damien nodded and silently pushed her away. "I will take care of it. They do not have to see."
Kelly leant back against a tree, not trusting her legs to hold her up. Chrissie was beginning to stop crying, though whether that was from lack of tears or increasing anger, she did not know.
No doubt there would be questions later on, accusations and anecdotes as well. But for now, she would sleep. The world would still be broken in the morning, or afternoon as it would be.
***
Nobody left the campsite that day, whilst Chrissie was shown Duin-Shiel's grave. She cried hard over it, cursing him for leaving and herself for making him do it. She cursed that he wasn't in the Undying Lands beginning a new life and thanked him for coming back for her, even though he hadn't found her. Even though he'd never known just how much she'd loved him; she'd never had a chance to tell him before he'd died.
When morning rose on the following day, the decision was made to make back towards Lothlorien. Or rather Kelly told them to get their arses and stop moping. She was trying to harsh to keep them together, it was only a week to Lothlorien and after that, home.
They walked and rode peacefully for much of that day and two days after that, eating what food they still had from Minas Tirith and drinking from streams and rivers. Chrissie and Fred were somewhat queasy out about it at first, but when they realised they had no choice, they quickly drank as much as the others did.
The occasional argument broke out mostly between Mark and Damien, but Kelly received plenty of evil looks from the other members of the group, especially when she and Damien seemed to be in their own little world. Chrissie grew more distant as she dreamed about Duin-Shiel and how silly she'd been to let him go. No one mentioned his name again, for fear of upsetting Chrissie. The mystery surrounding his death and the exact circumstances of it was left unsaid.
Fred wandered on, thinking about what she was going to say when she met Lady Galadriel. Mark had told them much about her, since he'd been in Lothlorien for a time. Fred felt a little intimidated by the sheer brilliance in which Mark described her. She felt sorry for Chrissie, but didn't know what to do to help.
Mark seemed to grow happier as they drew closer to Lothlorien, but seemed to fly off at Damien more often. He always seemed to be edgy. Fred personally thought it was because of the proximity of the palantir, but there was nothing they could do about that. It was plain he thought that Damien and Kelly had murdered Duin-Shiel between them and hidden it, even though he said not a word. The looks were sufficient.
Kelly strolled along, trying to forget the world around her for the moment. She knew the Elves would kill her on sight and possibly Damien unless she could figure out a way around their laws. Thinking on that, she alone planned her next move, not letting anyone in on her strategy.
***
When they sat down to camp that night, Chrissie decided to hell with it and built a fire anyway. She'd had just about enough cold nights and any orcs could damn well come and find them. When it was burning well, Damien stood up and left.
Fred watched him go, relieved to see him leave.
"Do you have to do that?" Kelly said impatiently. "Frown at him all the time and you're always putting him down. He's really trying to be civil to you, but you have no time for him."
Chrissie snorted. "Well what are we to take example from? We saw the bruises on his neck. If you can't stop fighting with him, why should we?"
Kelly grimaced and glanced behind her. "You're not being fair to him. Chrissie admit it, if that were Duin-Shiel back there, you'd be all over him, no matter what he'd done." An uncomfortable silence settled on the camp. It was the first time anyone had dared bring that up, in case of upsetting Chrissie. But Kelly had had enough of treading quietly.
Chrissie's eyes narrowed in anger. "But he's not though and Duin-Shiel's not an assassin either." She hissed out.
Kelly stood up. "Why is it we can't even talk anymore without fighting about Damien? Why can't you just forget about him? Fred, you're usually so open and forgiving, and Chrissie you're usually.well not like this. Is he really that bad, or are you just exaggerating your feelings?"
Mark grunted and Kelly shot him a sharp look. "I know exactly what you think about him, Mark, so don't even bother speaking."
Kelly picked up her sword belt from the ground and fastened it around her waist. She attached her sword to it and walked away, heading north by what the others could tell.
"But he tried to kill us, Kelly. How can we possibly trust him?" Fred said standing up behind her, almost managing to hold her face calm.
"And so did I, twice now I believe. Do you know why I didn't this last time? It wasn't because I had second thoughts or didn't have the guts, it was because Lady Galadriel asked me not to. If she had not come, I would have done it and we all would have died there that night. I would have died with a clear conscience."
Mark's mouth hung open. How could Galadriel have crossed that distance in such short time. What was going on?
"Why are you protecting him, Kelly?" Chrissie said, standing up to face her.
"Because.I." Kelly stuttered, trying to put into words what she felt for Damien. It wasn't love, yet it was more than just attraction. She fell silent, giving up on words.
"Open up to us, Kelly. Why should we trust him? Why won't you talk to us anymore? You won't talk about your torture, except for a few fever stricken moments in Minas Tirith, you won't talk about Damien, you refuse to mention anything to do with the sect or even how many you've killed. You haven't even told us how you killed Laneth. You won't even tell us what really happened to Duin-Shiel."
Kelly stared at them with cold hard eyes, which softened slightly at the obvious amount of pain reflected from the others. Even Mark had seemed to soften slightly.
"What do you mean what really happened? I told you the truth and I stand by it. But.I will not talk about what happened on any one of those nights, not now and probably not ever. They are locked away within me and there they will stay. They are my burden and shame, and mine alone to bear."
Kelly turned quickly and disappeared into the night, throwing a few last final words over her shoulder.
"I will meet you at the borders of Lothlorien."
Not even a mouse seemed to stir, as those remaining around the campfire sat silently.
***
Damien met her only metres away, but did not ask any questions. She was already on the verge of hysterics and she was glad that it was so damn dark for once. After she'd regained what composure she could muster, she stopped.
"I do not ask you to come with me, Damien. In fact I would rather you went and lived a long happy life. I am turning myself in to the first Elven patrol I find and they may do what they wish with me as I no longer care.
I have no family or home here, friends or possessions. I cannot go back to Earth. I have nothing to live for anymore, except you. All that lies ahead of me is a life of running from the remainders of the sect, running from the Elves and running from myself. Although if I am to die, I may as well put my death to some use. With the Elves' bloodlust sated, they may well send them home."
Damien drew her into his arms and hugged her tightly. "I go where you go, Kelly, even if it is into the jaws of death. If you go to die, then so will I, because I would not care to live alone. Anyway, I'd be bored."
Kelly gave him a playful punch, but the sudden movement made her back twinge.
Damien felt her tense. "Go to sleep. I'll keep watch."
Kelly smiled at him and lay down. Sleep came quickly. She hadn't realised how tired she was.
***
As soon as her breathing slowed and he guessed she was asleep, Damien ran swiftly back to where the others were camped.
He picked up Kelly's cloak where she'd left it and his own, trying to ignore the stares he was receiving.
"What are you doing? Where's Kelly?" Fred said, standing up.
"She's fine, just feeling a little sore after shouting at you all evening. I'm just collecting our things."
Chrissie stood up next to Fred. "Kelly might not see it, but I do. I see what you're really like and I know there was some truth in what you told us that night and we know the truth in some things you didn't tell us.
When Kelly and I were in Minas Tirith, she told me just before she finished her streaming, she hit one of her tormentors across the face. Right side. I wouldn't be surprised if it left a small scar like that one you have on your cheek.
She had not said it, but I saw the similarities between your apparent fabrication and what happened to Duin-Shiel. If it was just your imagination, how did he end up in that exact situation? Or did you really give that order and can't admit it."
Damien self-consciously felt the two-centimetre scar on his right cheek and his cheeks flamed in anger as much as embarrassment.
"Right now she feels just about at the bottom of the world and guess who put her there? You! I did what I had to do, but I never pretended to be something I wasn't. You pretended to be her friends, built up her hopes that she might be accepted by you again, but as soon as she behaves like the person she is, you push her away, put her down.
All she's done is protect you, rescue you when you needed it and guide you towards where you can go home. And how do you repay her? By trying to force her into reliving her worst moments, times when she'd thought she'd failed herself, or worse, you.
She's surrendering you know, to the Elves I mean. She just told me she didn't care any more, and I could see it in her eyes. If she dies, you may as well have killed her yourselves.
She may kill, but always for a reason. Her survival or the survival of those she cares about. I hope your reason is as justified as that."
Damien cast a look of distaste at them and walked away. He should have just left the damn cloaks.
***
Fred and Chrissie slumped to the ground, shocked beyond belief at what they'd just heard. They saw their entire experience in Middle Earth in a whole new light. Whenever they had been with Kelly, she had protected them, come after them under impossible odds. She could well have left them in Minas Tirith to be tortured by Faramir, but she hadn't. She could have saved the Fellowship by herself, but she hadn't.
And what had they done to her in return? They'd bullied her, questioning her in every spare minute about her worst experiences, when not once had she asked them to share theirs.
The one thing that had always kept Kelly going was her hope. That somehow things would be all right. Even in her darkest moments in Minas Tirith when she was near death, she had still had time to spare a few jokes with them.
Fred turned to Chrissie and Mark. "We are turning the tables, Chrissie. It is not us that needs rescuing this time, but her." Chrissie nodded. "Mark, are you with us?"
Mark looked at them, looked at the determination in their eyes. If the Elves caught Kelly, they wouldn't hesitate in killing her.
"She told me this would happen, Galadriel I mean. I saw you both in the cell, saw the exposing of the fellowship. In the final vision, Kelly was presented before the council of the Elves, bound and tied. The news they delivered was not good, I'm afraid." He answered, a measure of sadness in his voice.
Fred clenched her fists. "But that hasn't happened yet, so every moment up until then, we can change it. And we will. Are you with us?"
Fred and Chrissie stood up and held out their hands. Mark smiled and shook. Now that the Fellowship was safe, they had other problems to sort. And they were ready for them.
***
Hobbit-Eyes: Thanks! *blushes* Hope you're not too upset by the loss of your "koolies" characters.
Chrissie: If you weren't emotional in that chapter I'm not *that* surprised. If you weren't emotional in this chapter, I definitely will be, I mean the love of your life is DEAD!
Chrissie: Why surprised that I saved you? I mean it's only chapter 13 and there's five more chapter to go. Five more chapters to torture you, who could resist that? Fred will get compensation crumpet.
Hannah: Nifty chapter? Hell yeah. Thanks. Hopefully you now know what is happening with Duin-Shiel.
Hobbit-Eyes: Hope your questions are answered. Re-reading Ac.1 is always good, but remember lots of stuff i.e. Damien, streaming etc. is not mentioned for creative tension reasons. Explanations for people's loyalties and deeper feelings will be explored in the final few chapters (only four to go!) so just try and wait it out! Thanks! (