CHAPTER SIXTEEN - TRIAL
Kelly woke up from bed and stretched. She'd decided to get off that window before she fell off through exhaustion. Although she'd considered it in a moment of darkness, she wasn't that suicidal yet.
Her stomach growled and she eyed the contents of the tray longingly. It looked like soup or broth, although not surprisingly, there was no cutlery. Looking out the window again and seeing it could only be just past dawn, she cursed at the time before noon.
She eyed the chair in front of her, looking mostly at the legs. The way they curved at the bottom was almost like the neck of a spoon. A smile on her face, she placed the chair on it's side and snapped off one of the legs. The guards would just love to see her now with a sharp chair leg in her hand, it might just give them that excuse to kill her they'd been looking for.
Regaining her position on the windowsill, she began using the rough wooden corners of the sill to sand down the chair leg. She sat for several hours in the sun, enjoying the simple work of sanding down the wood to make a spoon. It was by no means perfect, or very good, but Kelly had always been a practical person and as long as it completed it's function, she was happy.
She propped the chair up against the wall, hoping no one would notice it's missing back leg. She allowed herself one spoonful of the broth and a swirl of water. When she checked, it was now near midday.
She glanced at the bed sheet and momentarily imagined herself knotting it into a canopy, just enough for her to glide to the ground without breaking her neck. Sure she'd have bruises, but she'd survive. She sat back at the windowsill and looked outside once again. She had come here for a reason she told herself, it was no good getting emotional over it now.
She hated the way Galadriel had made her feel last night, how vulnerable she'd felt. She heard the door open and instantly knew it was Damien without even turning around. No one else had heavy footsteps like his.
He paused and looked around. "I see you ate something, well that's good. What did the chair do to you?"
She smiled, half glad he couldn't see her face. She tried to remain cold and composed once more. "I needed a spoon."
He looked on the table and saw the crude wooden spoon she'd made. She heard him drop it and felt him pull her from the windowsill. She offered no resistance as she watched the Elves begin to gather on the forest floor, pulling together chairs as such like. It was nearly time.
Damien followed her glance. "You don't have to do this Kelly, I know you have some way you could escape."
"I killed Laneth, I deserve this."
He cut her off. "Yes I know, you've told me this a hundred times before. Why don't you just cut the crap and tell me what's really going on?"
"I'm tired of fighting."
He cut her off again. "Yeah I've heard that one as well. Do you know what I regret? Ever letting you talk me into this mad idea? There is no reason for you to be here, Kelly, none at all!
Kelly listen to me. We don't have to fight anymore, in case you haven't noticed, we won. We destroyed the sect and saved the Fellowship, wait scrub that; YOU saved the Fellowship. You did what needed to be done without hesitation or thought for yourself and I like that. I'm proud of you. What did you think made me come after you?"
Kelly sagged a little and sat down on the bed. "Don't do this to me Damien, not now. I have less than a hour to live and all you're doing is making this harder for me."
"Don't do it then. I know Galadriel came to see you last night and I know that it changed you, whatever it was she said. Yesterday you were empty, emotionless and cold. Today you made a spoon."
Kelly smiled slightly. "You should go now, they'll be here soon."
Damien paused then stood up and walked out, slamming the door in frustration.
***
Kelly sat, twitching slightly in impatience as the Elves filed in. Her hands were bound once again in Elven rope, but it didn't really matter anymore. All of the Elves looked at her with disgust, except some which seemed to have a morbid curiosity about her. She held her head high and looked straight ahead.
Galadriel rose, followed quickly by Celeborn, Elladan and Elohir.
"You come before us Kelly, accused of killing Laneth of Lorien, a messenger. Did you or did you not kill him?"
Kelly gulped. She knew what Galadriel wanted her to say and she knew what the truth was.
"I did, in cold blood. He didn't even see me coming." She added for emphasis, hoping it might be over sooner.
Then she noticed four faces that did not seem to fit within the Elves gathered here. They pulled down their cloaks and she groaned. She hoped they didn't do anything stupid.
"Is it true that you surrendered yourself on our southern borders? Came here looking for us and gave up without any resistance?"
Kelly nodded. Some of the Elves started to look a bit puzzled.
"Why is that?" Galadriel asked softly.
Damn her, Kelly thought. She glanced back and saw the guardsman raise his eyebrows at her. If she didn't answer, he was going to do something to make her talk, there was no doubt about that.
She took a deep breath. "Because I knew what I had done and came here to accept whatever punishment you deem necessary."
"You're a good deal more honourable than any sect member I've ever come across." Elladan said, eyeing her suspiciously.
"Tell me, how did you kill him?" Galadriel said, her musical voice seeming to echo around the forest.
"I hit him on the back of the head with the hilt of my dagger." Kelly said, slowly realising too late just what game Galadriel was playing.
"But he could have woken and sounded the alarm. Would it have not been wiser to just slit his throat? You are an assassin are you not, and they have no qualms against such things."
"I did not want to kill someone who did not have to die." Kelly said, realising Galadriel was in complete control here and she really had no say in it at all.
"So you did nothing to him except leave him unconscious."
"No, but unconscious in the wild."
The guard silenced her by nudging his sword in the back of ribs, unfortunately right in the place where Faramir had stabbed her. She felt blood seep through the extra bandage she'd put on several nights ago. Self- consciously, she touched the back of her jacket, just as surprise as everyone else when her hand came away bloodied.
Galadriel called for a healer, who came warily, thinking perhaps Kelly might stab her in the back when she wasn't looking. Kelly lifted her shirt slightly and winced as the healer unravelled the many bandages. Every time it had bled, she'd just put another bandage on top, thinking she'd deal with it later.
Each bandage was blood stained, some covered in dirt and grass stains, some still soaked with dirty river water. One was charred slightly.
Kelly felt the eyes of everyone on her. "Nothing is the matter with my tongue mi'lady, if you would care to continue." She would not show weakness now, not in front of *them*.
Galadriel looked at the wound as the healer pried out the old broken stitches. "How do you get that wound?"
Kelly sighed. That stupid guard. "Faramir of Gondor gave it to me."
Several Elves turned to whisper to each other. Faramir was known to them, known for his honour and bravery in battle.
"And why was that then?" She continued.
"I went to Minas Tirith and found both my friends captured by Faramir and heard that he had begun torturing them. Like the fool I am, I broke straight into the Steward's House and confronted him, challenging him to a duel for their lives. He's too much of a gambler for his own good."
Kelly twinged slightly as the healer planted the first stitch in her back, but tried not to let it show too much. At a nod from Galadriel, she continued.
"I beat him."
There were several gasps from around the Elves.
"Did you kill him? You had every right to I believe, Gondor being the place it is."
"No. Chrissie and Fred reminded me moments before that he had an important.important business to attend to that could affect the fate of Middle Earth if he did not complete it. I walked away to collect my sword and he stabbed me in the back. Literally."
Kelly scowled at the healer as she applied some burning cream to her wound, but she ensured that she did not flinch.
"But is it also true that you visited him several nights later to ensure that his experiences with you did not change the way he completed this 'business' as you call it. He also apologized to you, and I believe you accepted."
"I did. It was an impulsive action he did and he later regretted it. He'd thought he'd killed me and the only way for him to move on with his life was for me to forgive him." Kelly breathed, silently cursing Galadriel and her bird bath.
She looked quickly to see Fred and Chrissie rapidly discussing something. She wondered what Fred thought of her answer, now that she had it.
"So after pretending to be a part of the sect again to save your friends, you then deceived them into coming to Cair Andras, where you managed to kill seventeen of them in one swoop. You almost sacrificed yourself and your friends to save Middle Earth, once again. I believe there are few Elves still among us who could say they have killed seventeen sect members, let alone in one day."
She shared a glance with the other members of the Council.
"Haldir." He stepped forward from the row of guards eyeing Kelly like a hawk. "How many Uruk-Hai, goblins and servants of the Dark One did you encounter in the previous two days before finding Laneth's body."
Haldir paused. "About a hundred or so, mi'lady."
"And would you describe the condition in which you found Laneth's body please."
Haldir grimaced. He had hoped never to relive that memory. "It was as if it had been torn apart by animals. There were.pieces as far away from the main corpse as hundred paces or so. We counted over forty stabs wounds on the main corpse."
The Elves gasped in horror, and even Kelly looked surprised.
"So Haldir, under your vast experience in these matters, who did you first think had killed Laneth?"
"A pack of wargs, orcs with them."
"So why did you think it was Kelly?" Galadriel raised an eyebrow.
"We caught glimpses of two assassins fleeing north and we presumed they were running from us. That decided their guilt for us, since those.things.have been known to play with their victims. We share no kinship with them."
Silence filled the area as Haldir stepped back. Galadriel was smiling to herself and even the other members of the council were looking pleasantly surprised.
Chrissie stood up, quickly followed by Mark, Damien and Fred.
"We were told that anyone could speak if they wished, Lady Galadriel and we wish to."
Kelly put her head in her hands. Why did they have to get involved, this had all been so simple in her mind before. When she saw the smile of a fellow conspirator between Galadriel and her friends, she very nearly swore. They'd planned this all along, the little beasts!
Damien stepped towards her and she scowled at him. "I will not let you die for me Damien, or any of the others. If that is what you are thinking, even though I am apparently restrained, do not think I will allow it to happen." She hissed out, hoping the Elven hearing was not as sharp as it's reputation. By the expression of several Elves, she guessed it was.
Damien smiled as Chrissie, Fred and Mark stood together with him. "I do not think that will be necessary." He said, some kind of mischievous grin plastered to his face. It looked incredibly strange to see him shoulder to shoulder with her friends.
"Roll up your sleeves Kelly, it is time for them to see."
Kelly flinched as the healer tightened up the bandage and stepped away, leaving her alone. If looks could kill, Damien would be long dead by now. However, the Elves definitely seemed to want to know what was going on now.
Kelly held up her bound hands and smiled sarcastically at him.
Damien moved over to her and rolled her sleeves up, letting everyone see the scars that twisted around her arms.
She could feel their gaze on her, their sorrow and sympathy. She tried to block it out, she didn't want their emotions, not this close to death.
"Tell them, Kelly. It is time for them to know."
Kelly visibly withered. If there was one thing she did not want to say in front of the Elves, it was that.
"No." She whispered. He shook her slightly, still holding onto her after rolling up her sleeves.
"Tell them."
Kelly looked up at him, saw the fire and determination in his eyes.
She took a deep breath. "To rule out the weak candidates, every person joining the sect is tortured and streamed."
Galadriel raised an eyebrow, even she did not know that.
Damien whispered a silent apology to her as he began to unbutton her jacket. He'd noticed how she always wore high necked cloaks and jackets since she'd arrived here and apparently so had Chrissie and Fred.
Slipping her jacket over her head, she sat almost shivering in rage. Damien put a hand on her shoulder, trying to calm her down. Although her shirt still decently covered her, the low neckline and lack of sleeves showed what he wanted them to see. A tangle of scars and burns tracked down her neck and arms, some a foot or more long.
He could feel the shame coming off her in waves and she watched him with murderous eyes. It was time for him to let them know just what had happened to her.
"And who conducted your streaming, Kelly? Who tortured you unmercifully during the day then comforted you during the night? Who used you to get a better mission, used your pain and suffering to get ahead in the game? Who tracked you through the night and watched you nearly kill yourself for your friends, but didn't raise a hand to help you?"
Kelly looked up, the first signs of tears in her eyes. In that moment he realised she'd always known yet had never said. Again it made him wonder why she'd done the things she had. "You did." She said quietly, hoping no one would hear.
"But when you had the chance to kill me, you didn't, you couldn't. Why?"
A tear rolled down Kelly's face. "Because I knew. When I looked into your eyes you didn't mean to do it. You were forced into doing it. You never wanted to hurt me and you would have been killed had you not."
Damien let her go and turned to face the Elves. "Is this really someone who deserves to die? She came here because she was ashamed of doing the right thing, because everyone she knew had rejected her for being who she always has been. It is a shame Laneth died, but it was not her fault. She did not even kill him for pity's sake."
Damien paused as Chrissie and Fred stepped forward next to him.
"Kelly saved our lives when she didn't have to, when it would have made more sense not to. She's fought off orcs and assassins alike, trying to correct that one mistake she made. Some people would have just given up, but Kelly was determined to correct her mistake, whatever the cost. And she did." Fred said triumphantly.
"She had a chance to kill Duin-Shiel, she even swore that someday she would hunt him down and kill him because he killed her best friend in front of her eyes. But when she realised what he meant to me, she didn't. She left, isolating herself so she had no chance to hurt him again. I'll never forget that." Chrissie said, smiling at the thought of Duin-Shiel. "When he died." She paused, wiping a stray tear from her face. ".she searched out his body herself, not letting anyone else know. She buried him too, not wanting me to see what remained of him. She carried that burden for me."
Mark paused. "From the time I met up with her, I was nothing but a burden to her, always picking at her, always questioning her. Yet she pulled me out of that fire too."
Lady Galadriel looked slowly at Elladan, Elohir and Celeborn. She knew their minds, knew what their decision would be. There was really no other choice for them, despite what everyone had said today.
It was the only choice they had and the only punishment they could give.
Elladan stood up. "Have you any last requests before the judgement?" He asked Kelly.
Kelly looked up at him. "Make it quick."
***
Okay I'm in a bit of pickle as which ending of the story to upload so I'll go with the reviewers. Do you want Kelly to live or die?
Do you think she deserves it after everyone she's killed, every crime that she's commited. Does she deserve their pity?
Or do you think she's redeemed herself enough to warrant forgiveness.
Please tell me!!
Forest Elfin
Kelly woke up from bed and stretched. She'd decided to get off that window before she fell off through exhaustion. Although she'd considered it in a moment of darkness, she wasn't that suicidal yet.
Her stomach growled and she eyed the contents of the tray longingly. It looked like soup or broth, although not surprisingly, there was no cutlery. Looking out the window again and seeing it could only be just past dawn, she cursed at the time before noon.
She eyed the chair in front of her, looking mostly at the legs. The way they curved at the bottom was almost like the neck of a spoon. A smile on her face, she placed the chair on it's side and snapped off one of the legs. The guards would just love to see her now with a sharp chair leg in her hand, it might just give them that excuse to kill her they'd been looking for.
Regaining her position on the windowsill, she began using the rough wooden corners of the sill to sand down the chair leg. She sat for several hours in the sun, enjoying the simple work of sanding down the wood to make a spoon. It was by no means perfect, or very good, but Kelly had always been a practical person and as long as it completed it's function, she was happy.
She propped the chair up against the wall, hoping no one would notice it's missing back leg. She allowed herself one spoonful of the broth and a swirl of water. When she checked, it was now near midday.
She glanced at the bed sheet and momentarily imagined herself knotting it into a canopy, just enough for her to glide to the ground without breaking her neck. Sure she'd have bruises, but she'd survive. She sat back at the windowsill and looked outside once again. She had come here for a reason she told herself, it was no good getting emotional over it now.
She hated the way Galadriel had made her feel last night, how vulnerable she'd felt. She heard the door open and instantly knew it was Damien without even turning around. No one else had heavy footsteps like his.
He paused and looked around. "I see you ate something, well that's good. What did the chair do to you?"
She smiled, half glad he couldn't see her face. She tried to remain cold and composed once more. "I needed a spoon."
He looked on the table and saw the crude wooden spoon she'd made. She heard him drop it and felt him pull her from the windowsill. She offered no resistance as she watched the Elves begin to gather on the forest floor, pulling together chairs as such like. It was nearly time.
Damien followed her glance. "You don't have to do this Kelly, I know you have some way you could escape."
"I killed Laneth, I deserve this."
He cut her off. "Yes I know, you've told me this a hundred times before. Why don't you just cut the crap and tell me what's really going on?"
"I'm tired of fighting."
He cut her off again. "Yeah I've heard that one as well. Do you know what I regret? Ever letting you talk me into this mad idea? There is no reason for you to be here, Kelly, none at all!
Kelly listen to me. We don't have to fight anymore, in case you haven't noticed, we won. We destroyed the sect and saved the Fellowship, wait scrub that; YOU saved the Fellowship. You did what needed to be done without hesitation or thought for yourself and I like that. I'm proud of you. What did you think made me come after you?"
Kelly sagged a little and sat down on the bed. "Don't do this to me Damien, not now. I have less than a hour to live and all you're doing is making this harder for me."
"Don't do it then. I know Galadriel came to see you last night and I know that it changed you, whatever it was she said. Yesterday you were empty, emotionless and cold. Today you made a spoon."
Kelly smiled slightly. "You should go now, they'll be here soon."
Damien paused then stood up and walked out, slamming the door in frustration.
***
Kelly sat, twitching slightly in impatience as the Elves filed in. Her hands were bound once again in Elven rope, but it didn't really matter anymore. All of the Elves looked at her with disgust, except some which seemed to have a morbid curiosity about her. She held her head high and looked straight ahead.
Galadriel rose, followed quickly by Celeborn, Elladan and Elohir.
"You come before us Kelly, accused of killing Laneth of Lorien, a messenger. Did you or did you not kill him?"
Kelly gulped. She knew what Galadriel wanted her to say and she knew what the truth was.
"I did, in cold blood. He didn't even see me coming." She added for emphasis, hoping it might be over sooner.
Then she noticed four faces that did not seem to fit within the Elves gathered here. They pulled down their cloaks and she groaned. She hoped they didn't do anything stupid.
"Is it true that you surrendered yourself on our southern borders? Came here looking for us and gave up without any resistance?"
Kelly nodded. Some of the Elves started to look a bit puzzled.
"Why is that?" Galadriel asked softly.
Damn her, Kelly thought. She glanced back and saw the guardsman raise his eyebrows at her. If she didn't answer, he was going to do something to make her talk, there was no doubt about that.
She took a deep breath. "Because I knew what I had done and came here to accept whatever punishment you deem necessary."
"You're a good deal more honourable than any sect member I've ever come across." Elladan said, eyeing her suspiciously.
"Tell me, how did you kill him?" Galadriel said, her musical voice seeming to echo around the forest.
"I hit him on the back of the head with the hilt of my dagger." Kelly said, slowly realising too late just what game Galadriel was playing.
"But he could have woken and sounded the alarm. Would it have not been wiser to just slit his throat? You are an assassin are you not, and they have no qualms against such things."
"I did not want to kill someone who did not have to die." Kelly said, realising Galadriel was in complete control here and she really had no say in it at all.
"So you did nothing to him except leave him unconscious."
"No, but unconscious in the wild."
The guard silenced her by nudging his sword in the back of ribs, unfortunately right in the place where Faramir had stabbed her. She felt blood seep through the extra bandage she'd put on several nights ago. Self- consciously, she touched the back of her jacket, just as surprise as everyone else when her hand came away bloodied.
Galadriel called for a healer, who came warily, thinking perhaps Kelly might stab her in the back when she wasn't looking. Kelly lifted her shirt slightly and winced as the healer unravelled the many bandages. Every time it had bled, she'd just put another bandage on top, thinking she'd deal with it later.
Each bandage was blood stained, some covered in dirt and grass stains, some still soaked with dirty river water. One was charred slightly.
Kelly felt the eyes of everyone on her. "Nothing is the matter with my tongue mi'lady, if you would care to continue." She would not show weakness now, not in front of *them*.
Galadriel looked at the wound as the healer pried out the old broken stitches. "How do you get that wound?"
Kelly sighed. That stupid guard. "Faramir of Gondor gave it to me."
Several Elves turned to whisper to each other. Faramir was known to them, known for his honour and bravery in battle.
"And why was that then?" She continued.
"I went to Minas Tirith and found both my friends captured by Faramir and heard that he had begun torturing them. Like the fool I am, I broke straight into the Steward's House and confronted him, challenging him to a duel for their lives. He's too much of a gambler for his own good."
Kelly twinged slightly as the healer planted the first stitch in her back, but tried not to let it show too much. At a nod from Galadriel, she continued.
"I beat him."
There were several gasps from around the Elves.
"Did you kill him? You had every right to I believe, Gondor being the place it is."
"No. Chrissie and Fred reminded me moments before that he had an important.important business to attend to that could affect the fate of Middle Earth if he did not complete it. I walked away to collect my sword and he stabbed me in the back. Literally."
Kelly scowled at the healer as she applied some burning cream to her wound, but she ensured that she did not flinch.
"But is it also true that you visited him several nights later to ensure that his experiences with you did not change the way he completed this 'business' as you call it. He also apologized to you, and I believe you accepted."
"I did. It was an impulsive action he did and he later regretted it. He'd thought he'd killed me and the only way for him to move on with his life was for me to forgive him." Kelly breathed, silently cursing Galadriel and her bird bath.
She looked quickly to see Fred and Chrissie rapidly discussing something. She wondered what Fred thought of her answer, now that she had it.
"So after pretending to be a part of the sect again to save your friends, you then deceived them into coming to Cair Andras, where you managed to kill seventeen of them in one swoop. You almost sacrificed yourself and your friends to save Middle Earth, once again. I believe there are few Elves still among us who could say they have killed seventeen sect members, let alone in one day."
She shared a glance with the other members of the Council.
"Haldir." He stepped forward from the row of guards eyeing Kelly like a hawk. "How many Uruk-Hai, goblins and servants of the Dark One did you encounter in the previous two days before finding Laneth's body."
Haldir paused. "About a hundred or so, mi'lady."
"And would you describe the condition in which you found Laneth's body please."
Haldir grimaced. He had hoped never to relive that memory. "It was as if it had been torn apart by animals. There were.pieces as far away from the main corpse as hundred paces or so. We counted over forty stabs wounds on the main corpse."
The Elves gasped in horror, and even Kelly looked surprised.
"So Haldir, under your vast experience in these matters, who did you first think had killed Laneth?"
"A pack of wargs, orcs with them."
"So why did you think it was Kelly?" Galadriel raised an eyebrow.
"We caught glimpses of two assassins fleeing north and we presumed they were running from us. That decided their guilt for us, since those.things.have been known to play with their victims. We share no kinship with them."
Silence filled the area as Haldir stepped back. Galadriel was smiling to herself and even the other members of the council were looking pleasantly surprised.
Chrissie stood up, quickly followed by Mark, Damien and Fred.
"We were told that anyone could speak if they wished, Lady Galadriel and we wish to."
Kelly put her head in her hands. Why did they have to get involved, this had all been so simple in her mind before. When she saw the smile of a fellow conspirator between Galadriel and her friends, she very nearly swore. They'd planned this all along, the little beasts!
Damien stepped towards her and she scowled at him. "I will not let you die for me Damien, or any of the others. If that is what you are thinking, even though I am apparently restrained, do not think I will allow it to happen." She hissed out, hoping the Elven hearing was not as sharp as it's reputation. By the expression of several Elves, she guessed it was.
Damien smiled as Chrissie, Fred and Mark stood together with him. "I do not think that will be necessary." He said, some kind of mischievous grin plastered to his face. It looked incredibly strange to see him shoulder to shoulder with her friends.
"Roll up your sleeves Kelly, it is time for them to see."
Kelly flinched as the healer tightened up the bandage and stepped away, leaving her alone. If looks could kill, Damien would be long dead by now. However, the Elves definitely seemed to want to know what was going on now.
Kelly held up her bound hands and smiled sarcastically at him.
Damien moved over to her and rolled her sleeves up, letting everyone see the scars that twisted around her arms.
She could feel their gaze on her, their sorrow and sympathy. She tried to block it out, she didn't want their emotions, not this close to death.
"Tell them, Kelly. It is time for them to know."
Kelly visibly withered. If there was one thing she did not want to say in front of the Elves, it was that.
"No." She whispered. He shook her slightly, still holding onto her after rolling up her sleeves.
"Tell them."
Kelly looked up at him, saw the fire and determination in his eyes.
She took a deep breath. "To rule out the weak candidates, every person joining the sect is tortured and streamed."
Galadriel raised an eyebrow, even she did not know that.
Damien whispered a silent apology to her as he began to unbutton her jacket. He'd noticed how she always wore high necked cloaks and jackets since she'd arrived here and apparently so had Chrissie and Fred.
Slipping her jacket over her head, she sat almost shivering in rage. Damien put a hand on her shoulder, trying to calm her down. Although her shirt still decently covered her, the low neckline and lack of sleeves showed what he wanted them to see. A tangle of scars and burns tracked down her neck and arms, some a foot or more long.
He could feel the shame coming off her in waves and she watched him with murderous eyes. It was time for him to let them know just what had happened to her.
"And who conducted your streaming, Kelly? Who tortured you unmercifully during the day then comforted you during the night? Who used you to get a better mission, used your pain and suffering to get ahead in the game? Who tracked you through the night and watched you nearly kill yourself for your friends, but didn't raise a hand to help you?"
Kelly looked up, the first signs of tears in her eyes. In that moment he realised she'd always known yet had never said. Again it made him wonder why she'd done the things she had. "You did." She said quietly, hoping no one would hear.
"But when you had the chance to kill me, you didn't, you couldn't. Why?"
A tear rolled down Kelly's face. "Because I knew. When I looked into your eyes you didn't mean to do it. You were forced into doing it. You never wanted to hurt me and you would have been killed had you not."
Damien let her go and turned to face the Elves. "Is this really someone who deserves to die? She came here because she was ashamed of doing the right thing, because everyone she knew had rejected her for being who she always has been. It is a shame Laneth died, but it was not her fault. She did not even kill him for pity's sake."
Damien paused as Chrissie and Fred stepped forward next to him.
"Kelly saved our lives when she didn't have to, when it would have made more sense not to. She's fought off orcs and assassins alike, trying to correct that one mistake she made. Some people would have just given up, but Kelly was determined to correct her mistake, whatever the cost. And she did." Fred said triumphantly.
"She had a chance to kill Duin-Shiel, she even swore that someday she would hunt him down and kill him because he killed her best friend in front of her eyes. But when she realised what he meant to me, she didn't. She left, isolating herself so she had no chance to hurt him again. I'll never forget that." Chrissie said, smiling at the thought of Duin-Shiel. "When he died." She paused, wiping a stray tear from her face. ".she searched out his body herself, not letting anyone else know. She buried him too, not wanting me to see what remained of him. She carried that burden for me."
Mark paused. "From the time I met up with her, I was nothing but a burden to her, always picking at her, always questioning her. Yet she pulled me out of that fire too."
Lady Galadriel looked slowly at Elladan, Elohir and Celeborn. She knew their minds, knew what their decision would be. There was really no other choice for them, despite what everyone had said today.
It was the only choice they had and the only punishment they could give.
Elladan stood up. "Have you any last requests before the judgement?" He asked Kelly.
Kelly looked up at him. "Make it quick."
***
Okay I'm in a bit of pickle as which ending of the story to upload so I'll go with the reviewers. Do you want Kelly to live or die?
Do you think she deserves it after everyone she's killed, every crime that she's commited. Does she deserve their pity?
Or do you think she's redeemed herself enough to warrant forgiveness.
Please tell me!!
Forest Elfin