Disclaimer: For full disclaimer, please see chapter 1.
A/N:
*gives FF.net look of deep, heartfelt disgust* Sometimes I wonder if this website's only aim is to drive us all mad. It would explain a lot, actually... Three days is a bloody long time to crash! *grim expression* We hatessss it, we doesss, my ssssweet....
Well, I hope you forgive me for posting a day later, but I really am quite busy right now. As I mentioned before, I will leave in a week, I have to get all the material I need for a paper I have to hand in in a month _and_ I'm moving out of my flat in five days. *sighs tiredly* I really missed moving, everybody should do it at least twice a year...
That means that right now we enter the phase of not-posting-so-regularly, I'm truly sorry. Don't worry, I will not let you wait for too long, but I don't think that I can update quicker than every five or six days. Make that six, I think... Plus, I do not know when I will be able to post in England, but we will cross that bridge when we come to it... *g*
Oh, and to answer your other questions: A. No, I was not on an illegal drug while writing the last chapter, and neither was I on a sugar high. I was just having a ... good day, I guess. *g* And B. I don't know yet how long the story's going to be. Right now I would carefully say about 25 chapters, could be more, could be less though. I'll be able to tell you in a few weeks... *g*
Okay, so enough of that, here is chapter 16, and yes, Aragorn is exacting his revenge on his poor, helpless elven friend for drugging him all the time in Lake-town. Plus, they meet the king of Dale, find out just why Dale and Erebor are about to make war on each other and get even deeper into trouble without even knowing it. *sighs* But they'll find out, trust me on this...
Enjoy and review, please!
Chapter 16
The next morning dawned anything but bright and beautiful. In fact, Legolas thought somewhat grumpily from his spot on the windowsill, it was a rather dreary day. The sky was grey and covered with low-hanging clouds that looked as if they were just waiting for the perfect opportunity to shower the ground with thick snowflakes.
'And said opportunity,' he thought, brushing a wayward strand of blonde hair out of his eyes, 'Will be the exact moment we leave this building.'
Of course it would be, when had it ever been any different?
The elven prince sighed and hopped down from his seat, giving the street below him a last glance. They had retired rather early yesterday evening, since Aragorn had been obviously tired – even though he protested loudly that he wasn't, of course – and Celylith in a rarely subdued mood.
Legolas started rummaging through his pack, frowning slightly. Celylith had really been rather quiet the whole evening, and he was beginning to get worried. His friend was one of the most cheerful persons he knew, and if he was in a dark mood it was usually a bad sign. It either meant that he was having a problem he could not solve on his own, or that he was having one of his feelings, a feeling of the kind that most elves had at one point or another during their lives.
While few elves were gifted with Fore-sight like Lord Elrond and Lady Galadriel, most of them got "feelings" once in a while, which was not surprising considering how close to nature the firstborn were. Elves unconsciously picked up things that nature whispered to them so subtly that not even they could hear it, and these warnings resulted in the aforementioned feelings.
Legolas had them quite often, and they had saved his life on more than one occasion. As far as he knew, Celylith had experienced them not nearly as often, but when he did, they were always correct.
The fair haired elf slowly shook his head, resolving to ask Celylith what was wrong with him later this morning. If he had the feeling that there was danger coming, they would be well-advised to listen to him.
Putting down the pack, Legolas frowned again. He could have sworn that his brush was somewhere in here; he hadn't used it yesterday evening, had he? He brushed yet another strand of his hair back that was falling in his face, mocking him for all that he knew. He hadn't slept well tonight, and at one point he had even woken up, having almost been able to swear that there was someone in his room. Of course there hadn't been, and so he had tried to go back to sleep, without much success however.
Now it was finally morning, and he decided that it was late enough to go and wake Aragorn. While he was very glad to see that his human friend was finally sleeping enough, his body obviously trying to catch up with as much rest as possible, they needed to get a move on if they wanted to find out anything today.
They had spent an hour in the tavern yesterday evening, and what they had heard had been anything but reassuring. The men and women had talked about the dwarves as if war was already upon them, and while he agreed with some of the terms that the humans had used to describe the smaller beings that lived in the Lonely Mountain, the last thing he wanted was a war between Dale and Erebor. But things really had sounded rather dire, and he was beginning to agree with Aragorn. If nothing was done, this situation would get out of hand, quicker than anyone would have anticipated, and this part of Wilderland would descend into war, chaos and bloodshed.
He shrugged, deciding to talk to his companions about that, and finally spied his brush on a chest of drawers next to the door of his little room. Odd, Legolas thought as he walked over to the piece of furniture, he could have sworn he hadn't used it yesterday…
He grabbed the brush and sat back down on his bed, quickly changing into another shirt and starting to comb his slightly tangled hair. It would probably best if they went to see King Bard sometime today, he decided, and he had even met the man when he had visited Mirkwood some years prior. He should be able to tell them what was going on here, and together they should be able to put a stop to these rather alarming events.
Legolas noticed that it was becoming harder and harder to move the brush through his hair, and he raised an eyebrow in confusion. His hair couldn't have got this tangled, could it? His hair rarely was this uncooperative, only when he somehow managed to drench it in spider blood and he had certainly killed no spiders yesterday…
A few second later, both of his eyebrows climbed up his forehead as he grabbed the handle of the brush with both hands, vainly trying to move it an inch through his thick tresses or remove it from the hair altogether. With something akin to panic he realised that he wasn't able to do either; the brush firmly stuck to his hair.
'How is that possible?' Legolas thought shocked, tugging at the brush with growing urgency.
Then, when he had calmed down a little, he could smell something, something he hadn't smelled for a long time, but when he had last, it had been in … Rivendell.
The elven prince's eyes darkened and he shot to his feet, looking rather ridiculous with a brush glued to the side of his head.
"Aragorn!"
The yell could probably have been heard at the foot of the Lonely Mountain, but right now, Legolas didn't care. That impertinent, presumptuous little human, he thought as he stormed into the direction of the door, how dare he! This was Estel's revenge for the sleeping potions, it just had to be! He wasn't only an impertinent, presumptuous little human, soon he would be a dead, impertinent, presumptuous little human…
He flung the door open, turning to the right and rushing into the direction of the young ranger's door.
"Aragorn! Gwannathach as sen, dúnadan!"
"He's awake," Celylith commented, rather dryly, and, Aragorn thought, equally unnecessarily. The whole inn had been able to hear the elven prince's murderous shout.
"Really?" he asked sarcastically. "What was that he yelled?"
"I think," Celylith supplied helpfully, a smug grin on his face, "That it sounded rather like 'Gwannathach as sen, dúnadan'."
Aragorn gave him a equally smug look.
"Why would he say that?"
Celylith arched a silver eyebrow at the far too innocently looking man. He had already been amazingly compliant when he had changed his bandages yesterday evening, and hadn't even moaned or protested when he had told him that he would need to keep the chest bandaged for another few days. That had been the exact moment he had got suspicious, and when he had looked at the young ranger this morning who had greeted him in a friendly, innocent tone of voice, he knew that he had done something to Legolas.
'Ah well,' he thought with a mental shrug, 'Rather him than me.'
Right then Legolas appeared at the bottom of the staircase, and the silver haired elf looked up, his eyes growing wide when he took in his friend's appearance. Suddenly, he felt the almost irresistible urge to roar with laughter, and only the deadly glare Legolas shot him prevented such an action. Apart from that he was very glad no other customers or guests were here yet, and he wished for nothing more than have a painter at hand who could immortalise this particular sight.
And a rare sight it was too, he decided, keeping his face as neutral and emotionless as possible. His prince slowly came closer, glad in a pair of dark breeches and a light green shirt, already with his boots on. He looked rather normal, actually … well, apart from the brush that stuck to the side of his head. Celylith cocked his head to the side in confusion. The brush looked as if Legolas had been brushing his hair until it got stuck … or glued to the hair.
The silver haired elf closed his eyes, praying to the Valar for composure. This was priceless, this was wonderful… Oh, Aragorn was dead, Legolas would simply kill him…
"Five seconds," Legolas said in a low, very, very dangerous tone of voice, eyes fixed on the friendly smiling ranger. "You have five seconds to explain this. After that I am afraid I will have to kill you."
Aragorn grinned and raised a dark eyebrow.
"Good morning, my friend. What happened to your hair?"
From Celylith's point of view, this ranked among the ten stupidest things the man could have said. Perhaps it even was the stupidest, he wasn't quite sure about that yet.
Legolas eyes seemed to literally light up.
"Oh," he said, slowly coming closer, "I thought you might be able to explain that."
"Me?" Aragorn replied innocently, inconspicuously looking for escape routes, "Why should I know what happened … is that your brush?"
'I stand corrected,' Celylith thought with an inward snicker. 'That was the stupidest thing he could have said.'
"No!" Legolas snapped, rounding the table with one lunge, "It is baby eagle pretending to be my brush! What do you think it is? You used your brothers' special brand of home-made glue, don't deny it! I recognise the smell!"
"Ah, come now, calm down, Legolas," the young ranger said, trying to appease the furious elf that was slowly advancing on him. "It is not really my brothers' glue, I improved it a bit."
"Did you?" Legolas was very close to yelling now. "Did you???"
Aragorn recognised the signs of an approaching mental breakdown, or perhaps a killing spree, and slowly edged backwards on the bench he was occupying.
"It is not permanent," he said quickly, before Legolas could start doing the painful things to him that the elf's eyes promised him.
That was the first clever thing the young human had said today, Celylith decided, watching as Legolas' face slowly reassumed a more or less normal colour.
"In fact," Aragorn added, "You have approximately ten minutes to wash it out. Then it will harden and you would have to cut the brush out."
The look the elven prince shot the man was filled with something that could only be described as passionate, all-consuming hatred. He seemed torn between the urge to dismember the man in front of him and the urge to remove that particular ridiculous-looking brush from his hair, and, after a few seconds, vanity or common sense won out.
"This isn't over, ranger," he hissed at his human friend and disappeared quickly up the steps.
Aragorn leaned back against the table, projecting the aura of a man who knew he had fulfilled his duty. Celylith looked at him, shaking his head slightly.
"Remind me never to get you mad at me," he said quietly, something like fear in his eyes. "That was cruel. You spend far too much time with your brothers, Estel."
"I do, don't I?" Aragorn asked, a wide grin on his face. "But you have to admit, the look on his face was priceless."
The two looked at each other, and after a second they both started chuckling loudly, garnering curious looks of the innkeeper's wife who had just entered the lounge.
"I … I would leave now if I were you," Celylith gasped, fighting another wave of giggles. "He will … Valar, he will kill you, Strider!"
"I know," Aragorn chuckled, fighting for composure, "I know. But, Elbereth, it was worth it."
He got to his feet, still laughing lightly.
"I will have a look at our horses," he told his elven companion. "I'll see if I can find some provisions that do not include cram and will see if I can find out where the king's residence is. Legolas will surely want to pay him a visit. Once he removes that brush that is, of course."
The young ranger quickly walked out of the door, politely wishing the innkeeper's wife a good morning. Celylith looked after him and asked himself just why he had been so bent on coming with these two. The only danger they were in was apparently killing each other, and in his opinion that would occur rather sooner than later.
Two hours and a lot of mindless wandering around the town later, Aragorn carefully opened the door that led to the ground floor of the inn and silently slipped inside. There were already a few customers here, mostly merchants who had arrived early with their merchandise via the River Running.
In fact, Aragorn, Legolas and Celylith had considered using the waterway as well, but the thought of what the horses would say to a journey of at least three days they would have to spend on a cramped barge had quickly dissuaded them from using this means of transportation.
Aragorn shuddered when he imagined what Rashwe would have done. That demon-horse would probably have sunken the boat and watched with the greatest of pleasures how they all drowned, he decided quickly. No, that way would have been less straining than riding through inhospitable wastelands – no, they weren't wastelands anymore, not since Smaug's death, but in his opinion they were still anything but homely – but he would not have wanted to see Legolas' horse on a small barge. He was beginning to suspect that his brothers had been right about this animal, and while he had been taught to at least respect every living creature, he found it very hard with this one.
He was still contemplating this when suddenly someone stepped in front of him, barring his way, and only his elven-trained reflexes saved him from a graceless collision. The young ranger looked up, already suspecting whom he would see, and really, in front of him stood his elven friend, looking at him with an unreadable expression.
Aragorn's eyes quickly travelled up to Legolas' head, and found that his friend's hair was perhaps still a little damp and extremely shiny – which was probably because Legolas had washed it about thirty times in an attempt to get rid of the last remnants of the glue – but all in all absolutely brush-free.
The fair haired elf just kept staring at him, and Aragorn was beginning to wonder if he was attempting to bore holes into his forehead when he finally narrowed his eyes and spoke up.
"That was evil, Aragorn."
The young man rolled his eyes.
"Yes, and?"
Legolas glared at his human friend.
"You needed the rest, you know that as well as I do! It would be well within my rights to severely harm you for this."
Aragorn chuckled merrily, not at all intimidated by his friend's dark stare.
"But you won't, and that is something you know as well as I do. I am still not fully healed, and you know that. Besides…"
"That is pathetic, human, hiding behind your injury like this…"
"…as I said, elf, besides, I didn't do it for you making me drink those horrible potions."
"You didn't?" Legolas asked, appearing honestly surprised.
"No," Aragorn shook his head, noting with satisfaction that it didn't hurt him anymore to do so. "No, I didn't. I did it because you enjoyed making me drink them."
Legolas shook his head a little too quickly.
"I didn't! That is ridiculous!"
The young ranger only snorted, looking at the elven prince with an incredulously lifted eyebrow.
"Is it now? Don't try to deny it, mellonamin, you relished it!"
"No," Legolas said haughtily, but a smile was lurking in the depths of his silver-blue eyes. "You overestimate your importance, human."
"Do I?" Aragorn grinned cheekily at the elf, "Well, elf, then I am sure you can explain to me why…"
"He will do nothing of that sort, or we will still be here in a few hours until you two have had enough of your bickering," Celylith's voice interrupted him, and the two of them turned to face the silver-haired elf who had soundlessly stepped closer.
"We are not bickering," Legolas and Aragorn said simultaneously, and Legolas added, "We are merely trying to … to…"
"…have a decent discussion, that's all," Aragorn quickly finished his elven friend's sentence.
Celylith snorted, for Aragorn yet another proof that his father's habits were slowly being adopted by other elves as well, a phenomenon that both astonished and scared the young ranger.
"A discussion, right."
The young man wisely decided to use this opportunity to change the subject, and he looked expectantly at the two elves.
"Are you ready to leave? Where do you want to go first? Directly to the king or somewhere else?"
Legolas looked sharply at the ranger, mentally resolving to do something dreadful to his friend for this little incident in the near future. As soon as he was completely well again, to be precise. Perhaps tie him to a tree and leave him to a pack of wargs? Then he would take a ship to the Undying Lands, of course, before the twins found out about it…
"I think first we should go and have a look around," he said, resolving to think about appropriate revenge later. "Hear what the people are saying; see if we are perhaps overreacting."
"I don't think so," Celylith said seriously as they were making their way into the direction of the door, "There is danger coming, and you feel it as well as I do."
"Aye," Legolas sighed softly as they stepped out of the inn, "Aye, I do, and the longer we are here the stronger that feeling becomes."
Aragorn looked at the two solemn elves next to him. He was having that feeling as well, and if that was the case for Legolas and Celylith too, then it was a very bad sign.
"Well," he said with forced cheerfulness, "That means that we're on the right track, doesn't it?
Legolas stopped shortly and gave the man a long look.
"That is the kind of attitude that will get you killed very quickly."
"Is it?" The young ranger asked, eyes twinkling evilly. "If you say so, then it must be correct. Leafie."
Legolas resisted the sudden very powerful urge to either hit his head against something solid or strangle his cheekily grinning friend.
"What have I told you about using that name?"
"Uhm, I don't know," Aragorn said innocently as they took up their walk once more. "I cannot remember. Do you know what he said, Celylith?"
The silver haired elf hastily raised both his hands in a gesture meant to appease his companions and to express his unwillingness to get involved in their bickering.
"No, I don't, Strider. In fact, I am sure that I was not present when you were discussing that topic."
Legolas glared at his traitorous friend.
"You were! You were riding next to him!"
"You must be mistaken, my lord," Celylith said in a firm voice. "I was nowhere near you two. I have seen nothing, heard nothing and know nothing. Nothing. I will not get involved in this."
"Coward," Aragorn muttered under his breath as they entered the main market square.
"No, ranger," Celylith retorted testily. "Sane person."
Legolas only grinned at his two companions, asking himself not for the first time how he had managed to find two people in all of Arda that were equally insane. It hadn't been easy, he decided with an inward smile as they moved over the market place, stopping at several market stands to talk to the vendors, but now, after more than two thousand years, he had managed to find two beings of which one was just as crazy as the other. A great feat indeed.
After some time they decided to leave the market and make their way to King Bard's residence. Aragorn had found out earlier that the King lived in a large, palace-like house in the very centre of the city, even though the building could certainly not be compared to Mirkwood's Halls or even the Last Homely House of the young ranger's elven father.
What they had found out was not too good either, Legolas thought as they were slowly walking up a broad alley that shone white with freshly fallen snow. There hadn't been a large group of men here for some time, and that meant that both Gwemyr's group and the mysterious third group were clever enough to camp outside the city walls. Nobody had noticed anything out of the ordinary as all men and women they had questioned stated consistently, apart from the trouble with the dwarves, of course.
And this was exactly what they needed to talk to Bard about, the elven prince thought with a mental headshake of mild disgust. While he could understand perfectly well that the Men of Dale were annoyed with the dwarves' behaviour – what kind of normal person wouldn't be? – he really did not want to return home to tell his father that Dale and Erebor had gone to war.
They slowly ascended a small hill, and finally reached the gates of the king's residence which were open, but guarded by a small contingent of soldiers that looked a little alerter than Legolas would have expected – after all, guard duty was one of the most bring things in existence. Behind the men, the three young beings could see a large, white stone building that looked to Legolas' eyes as if it had been at least partly been constructed with the help of dwarven masons. Its wings were still in the process of being put up.
"Halt!" the man who was obviously captain of the guard called, and Legolas suppressed the distinct feeling of déjà vu. He just hoped that this man was not as stupid as the one at the city walls, but then again, that was something he thought highly improbable.
The man surveyed their appearance closely, doing a slight double-take when his eyes wandered over the two elves.
"Who are you and what do you want?"
Legolas was just about to answer that the courtesy was somewhat lacking in this town of late, but once again Aragorn quickly spoke up and prevented his elven friends from saying anything unwise. That human should become a diplomat, the fair haired elf thought somewhat grumpily.
"We are here to see the king," Aragorn said politely but firmly. "These are two elves from King Thranduil's Halls, and I am Strider, a Ranger of the North."
The other man eyed Aragorn with much more interest than the elves. While elven visitors from Mirkwood were a rather common sight here it had been quite some time since he had last seen a ranger this far East. There were not many of their kind left, and it was a rare occurrence indeed to see one on this side of the Misty Mountains.
"A ranger, eh?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "Well, ranger, I am sorry, but you will have to come back later. The king is a very busy man and you cannot just come here expecting to see him just like that. He doesn't have time to speak to anyone who wishes to tell him something."
Legolas' eyes darkened somewhat, and while he was still ignoring Aragorn's pleading gaze and opening his mouth for a scathing reply, Celylith had already stepped forwards, dark blue eyes flashing in his fair face.
"Anyone?" he asked, piercing the man with a fierce stare. "Well, then you are lucky that we are not just 'anyone'! You would do well to show some respect, human, for this is…"
Legolas' hand on his arm stopped him in mid-sentence, and he closed his mouth with a snap, still glaring darkly at the guard.
"Don't," the elven prince said quietly in Elvish. "If you tell them now, the whole town will know in a matter of minutes."
He looked at the captain that seemed to have shrunk somewhat in the face of Celylith's anger, and said in a quiet tone of voice,
"Just tell your king that Legolas of Mirkwood is asking for a short amount of his time. He will not refuse this request, believe me."
The captain looked at them with more than a little disbelief in his eyes, clearly not recognising the elf in front of him, which was not surprising at all, since Legolas hadn't been to this part of Rhovanion for more than a hundred years.
"Very well, Master Elf. Please wait here, I will be back shortly."
The three companions remained at the gates, Celylith glaring darkly at the guards for not showing his prince the due respect. Aragorn was hard-pressed to hide a broad grin when one guard after the other found a convenient excuse to get as far away from the irate silver haired elf as possible.
"Impertinent humans," Celylith mumbled under his breath, sending a man that had dared look at him a scathing glare. "No respect at all, one really should…"
At this point the captain returned, a lot quicker than one would have expected, and Aragorn and Legolas exchanged a highly amused look at Celylith's mumblings, even though Legolas' was mixed with no small amount of annoyance. He appreciated his elven friend's concern of course, but sometimes he really, really hated the position he had been born into.
The guard looked at them with a mixture of suspicion and surprise.
"Please come with me, sirs," he said with a small bow. "The king will see you immediately."
He turned on his heel and walked up the broad alley that led to the front entrance of the white building, and the three of them followed, but not before Celylith had shot the men at the gate a last dark look. Soon they had reached the doors and entered the house and were led through several corridors with high ceilings and fine tapestries on the walls until they stopped in front of a large door.
Legolas noted with surprise that they were not even asked to surrender their weapons as he had expected, but before he could dwell longer on that thought the captain had raised his hand and knocked at the door.
After a muffled invitation from inside the captain opened the door and held it open for them, allowing them to step into a small room that was obviously a study of some sort. The room was warmly lit by a fire that flickered in the marble fireplace, and all the furniture, decorations and drapes spoke of wealth and power.
A good part of the room was occupied by an enormous, carved wooden desk that was covered with what appeared to be several layers of paper that were piled on every single square inch of the desktop. Legolas had to suppress a grin. This looked not at all like his father's study; the King of Mirkwood would never have allowed his desk to descend into such a level of chaos.
Behind that desk and flanked left and right by two men that looked very much like advisors to Legolas' in these matters very experienced eyes stood Bard, the King of Dale. He was a tall, black haired man, not young anymore, but still strong and proud in both his stance and mind.
Right now, however, he looked rather as if to see them was the very last thing he had expected, and as if this occurrence was nothing he enjoyed overly much either.
"Prince Legolas!" he called, smiling politely as the captain closed the door behind them. "Your Highness, there was no word that you would come and visit! Please excuse my guards' behaviour, I hope they haven't caused too great an inconvenience."
"None at all, your Majesty," Legolas inclined his head to the king while Celylith and Aragorn gave the king a pair of identical bows. "This isn't a formal visit either, there was no way you could have known of our arrival."
He quickly introduced his companions to the king, and soon they were all seated in comfortable armchairs in front of the fireplace while servants brought light refreshments. Bard seemed to have recovered somewhat from the shock of having to greet the crown prince of the most powerful kingdom between the Misty and the Ash Mountains, and he relaxed comfortably in his chair. He hadn't changed much, Legolas saw, except perhaps for more grey in his hair and a few more wrinkles on his face.
"You will stay here, naturally," the King of Dale told them, gesticulating with a half-eaten pastry he held. "I will give a banquet in your honour, of course, and…"
"To be honest, my lord, that is exactly what I was trying to avoid," Legolas told the man. "I was hoping to keep our presence here a secret, so to speak."
"Why?" the man asked, wrinkling his brow. "Excuse my bluntness, your Highness, but why would you want to do that?"
"There are some men that we would like to remain ignorant of our presence here, for the time being, that is," Legolas replied carefully, and explained shortly why they were here, only telling the king that they were following a group of Lake-men that were probably in a very real danger of being killed by another group of men.
Bard knitted his brow and looked sharply at the elven prince.
"And what, Prince Legolas, has given you the idea that they have come to my realm?"
The elven prince smiled mirthlessly.
"Let's just say that we know that they have. Beyond any doubt."
The man shook his head.
"As you can see, Dale is not yet the town it used to be 150 years ago. If such a group had been in the town, I would have heard about it."
"We know that," Aragorn spoke up for the first time, looking at the older man with serious silver eyes. "There is another thing that is concerning us, however."
"Is there? And what would that be?" Bard asked, a guarded expression stealing over his face.
"The rumours that are spreading in your town," Legolas said quietly, studying the face of the king closely.
"Rumours?" Bard asked. "What kind of rumours?"
"The rumours that say that there will be war between Dale and Erebor," Legolas said with disarming bluntness.
The King of Dale traded a quick look with his advisors.
"They're rumours, that's all."
Legolas merely looked at him, and Bard had to avert his eyes under the burning elven stare.
"These are things that do not concern the wood-elves, if you'll forgive me saying so," he said quickly. "We are in your debt for helping us and our sister town after the battle, but this does not concern you or your father."
"Wrong," the elven prince interrupted the man in a soft voice. "Forgive me, your Majesty, but there you are wrong. It does concern Mirkwood when its allies are beginning to make war on each other. There has been peace in this part of Middle-Earth, finally, after so many years of war, and I would very much like to know why we should descend into bloodshed once again."
The human king looked into the dead-serious eyes of the blonde elf and lowered his head with a sigh.
"I will not attack them, I cannot speak for Dáin though."
"Please, my lord," Aragorn said, looking at the king intently. "Tell us. How has this started? I always though that there was peace between your realms."
"Aye, ranger, there was," Bard nodded, ignoring his advisors that looked none too pleased that he really was answering their questions, Prince of Mirkwood or not. "Since the death of the dragon we've had peace, even though the beginning was somewhat … rocky, one could say."
Aragorn had to smile, one could definitely say that.
Bard and King Thranduil had besieged Thorin and his companions in the Lonely Mountain to make him hand over a part of the treasure that had been hidden there by the dragon Smaug. In the Battle of Five Armies that the Lake-men fought alongside the elves of Mirkwood, the eagles, Beorn and the dwarves Thorin Oakenshield had fallen, and Dáin, his cousin, had taken the titles of King under the Mountain and King of Durin's Folk.
Yes, there might be peace now, but the beginnings had been more than rocky indeed, and dwarves were just like the elves a race that was not exactly known for forgiving quickly or easily.
"Dáin's people helped us build much of the city, as you probably have already seen, and the trade has been good thus far," the king added, looking as if he didn't understand the recent events either.
"What changed, your Majesty?" Aragorn asked, genuinely intrigued now.
"I don't know!" Bard exclaimed with sudden vehemence, throwing his hands into the air. He quickly regained his composure though and continued, probably berating himself for his un-kingly behaviour, "In Eru's name, I don't know." He took a deep breath and stared into the dancing flames of the fire. "It started a few weeks ago. A mission arrived here led by Prince Thorin, King Dáin's son, and they requested to speak with me, which I didn't refuse, of course."
The King of Dale stopped shortly, looking as if he forcefully suppressed a wince at the memory.
"The talks went ill," he said shortly. "I do not take kindly to people who accuse me in my own house, and the prince was not in a very reasonable mood, I'm afraid."
"What did he say?" Legolas asked, trying to find some interest for the words of a dwarf.
"Many things," Bard grinned mirthlessly. "But the most interesting were that he accused us of having kidnapped two of his friends that were journeying North from Lake-town. They had been due to arrive at the mountain a few weeks prior, and never got there."
He looked at the elves and the ranger.
"That accusation is ridiculous, of course. Why would I want to kidnap the friends of Erebor's crown prince? In addition to that he also accused us of disturbing their miners, of trying to steal their secrets and lately of invading their realm without permission. Thorin said that there are people searching the mountainside, humans. And since we are the only human town or major settlement in a radius of more than fifty miles…"
"He would be willing to go to war for this?" Legolas asked incredulously. Then again, he didn't even know why he was surprised. Dwarves were dwarves, and one could hardly expect reasonable behaviour from them.
"No-one said anything about war, your Highness," Bard shook his head. "That is truly only a rumour. But things go ill between our two realms, I cannot deny that. And it is a situation that needs only a very small spark to ignite it, and what comes then I cannot tell."
"So if your men are not the ones responsible for those actions, then who is?" Aragorn asked softly.
The king clenched his jaw, dark eyes flashing, and suddenly they could all very well believe that he had been the one that had killed Smaug the dragon all these years ago.
"I don't know, ranger, but I would give a lot to find out."
"Dwarves!" Celylith mumbled under his breath as they were slowly walking back to their inn half an hour later. They had taken their leave of the now rather dispirited king, assured him that no, they really could not stay for dinner or overnight and promised to visit him again should they find out anything about the unknown human troublemakers.
"There's not a bit of reason at all, not in one of them," Legolas agreed with his silver haired friend, shaking his head in mild disgust.
"Now, my oh-so-perfect elven friends, dwarves are just as reasonable as everybody else," Aragorn reminded them rather sternly.
Legolas and Celylith stopped and gave him an incredulous stare that could not have been stronger had he just stated a Silvan elf had fallen out of a tree.
"If you say so, Aragorn," Legolas finally said, arching an eyebrow so high that it almost touched his hairline.
"I do," the young ranger assured them, shaking his head in exasperation. Elves and dwarves, that was a combination he would never be able to bear for any prolonged amount of time, not even if the fate of all of Middle-Earth were at stake.
"Forget your prejudices and think for a moment, please!" he told the two elves next to him firmly. "They would not just make up such a story! They have nothing to win if they start a war with Erebor."
"They would increase their territory," Celylith commented, thinking as a warrior now.
"They are dwarves, Celylith," Legolas reminded his friend as they made their way through the still busy city, "Not men. They are not interested in land, only in their mountains and mining stone."
"Exactly," Aragorn nodded his head, deciding to ignore the snide tone of voice his elven friend had used. "They are not interested in Dale or anything else here. They have a reason for their actions, and I think we all know who that group is that is disturbing their borders."
"Gwemyr and his friends," Celylith said thoughtfully, biting down on his lower lip in thought. "They are naïve enough to act as thoughtlessly as that."
"Yes," the young ranger nodded. "Even though I cannot imagine where these two dwarves have disappeared to."
Legolas shrugged, suppressing a heartfelt 'And who cares?'.
"It is possible that they have lost their way. Dwarves know nothing but stone, and the living world is nothing they can comprehend."
Aragorn resisted the urge to roll his eyes.
"But they aren't stupid either, Legolas. Besides, it is rather hard not to find your way to Erebor, all you have to do is follow the River Running upstream. Even Seobryn would be able to find his way here. Perhaps it has something to do with Lomar's friends."
"So what do we do now?" Celylith asked as they stopped in front of the inn's large wooden doors, their breath freezing in the cold air. "We need to find these Lake-men before they get killed or inadvertently cause a war."
Aragorn looked at the two elves and asked himself how in the name of Elbereth he would be able to convince them of his plan.
"There is only one way." He took a deep breath and added, "We must visit King Dáin and see what he has to say about all this."
It garnered an interesting reaction, that much was sure. Celylith's mouth fell open, and Legolas' eyes opened so wide Aragorn was convinced that they would pop out of their socket soon.
"We will do what?" both of them asked disbelievingly.
"Are you mad?" Legolas added helpfully after a second. "Visit the dwarves? In their mountain? Without a contingent of guards?" He looked at the human in sudden concern. "Are you well, Estel?" He reached out to place a hand on his friend's forehead. "Do you have a fever? Perhaps you have caught a cold or something, you are not thinking clearly…"
Aragorn did roll his eyes now, and forcefully pressed Legolas' hand down.
"No, I am well, thank you very much for your concern. They will not harm us, they know perfectly well that they cannot fight both Dale and Mirkwood, even if they wanted to. It would be an act of war to harm you, and they are not that stupid."
"You are once again assuming that they think reasonably," Celylith mumbled under his breath, earning himself a dark glare from the young ranger.
The dark haired man opened the door, motioning his elven friend to precede him.
"Trust me, it is a good idea."
"It is not!" two irate elven voices mumbled. "You must be insane, Strider, I am not going under that mountain, not if you promised me…"
Aragorn rolled his eyes again, thinking that he really should stop doing that lest he wanted his eyeballs to come loose or get stuck in a different position than they were in now.
It would be a long evening, that he was sure of. A very, very long evening.
Hanar waited until the ranger had followed the elves inside before he dared move again. He lay flattened on the roof of one of the houses opposite the inn, and even though he was sure that the elves and the ranger could not have seen him, it always paid to be careful.
That was probably the thing that had caused Lomar's downfall, he decided while he was climbing down the house, carefully choosing cracks in the wall to place his hands and feet. He had underestimated the three of them.
'But he is supposed to be dead!' he raged inwardly, moving stealthily through the emptying streets, giving the inn behind him not another glance. 'The ranger is supposed to be dead!'
Hanar forcefully calmed himself. Thinking about these things wouldn't help him now, and he would certainly not make the mistake Lomar had and trust that he could take on two elves and a ranger.
He reached the inn where he had rented a room and stabled his horse for the past two days. His captain had sent him to Dale to warn him and the others should there be any trouble, and especially to warn them should the elves really come here.
Well, he thought darkly as he paid the rent for the room and the horse, they had come here, and they had even brought the ranger, damn them! He was leaving, right now, there was no way he was staying in this town and risking the chance that the man might recognise him.
Personally he was rather sure that the ranger had never really seen his face since Lomar had done all the talking, but he was not prepared to take that chance. He had almost forgotten to breathe when he had seen the elves and the man today, who had looked almost back to normal now. The bruises he himself had partly placed on his face were fading, and he had seemed in good spirits and lively, that accursed whelp of a ranger!
Hanar quickly made his way upstairs to collect the few things he had brought, ever growing rage bubbling in his chest. Now that he had actually seen them again, he was sure that Lomar was dead. There was the possibility that he had been captured of course, but since the Lake-men used to turn over major criminals to Dale to face the king's judgement, he should already have arrived here had that been the case.
No, he thought, grabbing his pack and the bow he had left behind since he had judged it to be useless anyway in the densely packed street of this town, Lomar was dead. Dead because of them. He allowed his fury to grow and intensify; this was at least something he could hold on to until he got a chance to finish their little interrogation with the ranger. He would make the boy wish he had never been born, and make him regret that the elves had found and rescued him in the first place.
Hanar stepped out of the inn, a dark smile on his face. Adruran would be very interested indeed in their arrival and the fact that they had already spoken to the king, and he would hopefully give him the opportunity to take revenge on the ranger. Or on the elves, but he would actually prefer the ranger, he wasn't stupid enough to take on two elves, or even one, for that matter.
Even if his captain did not, he would find a way to get his hands on him, Hanar vowed as he opened the stable doors to get his horse.
They would regret having ever come here, he would make sure of that.
TBC...
Gwannathach as sen, dúnadan - You will die for this, ranger
mellonamin - my friend
*rubs hands* And the stage is set, more or less! Now we can start with the real fun... Meaning: Chapter 18 is just around the corner! *evil grin* Alright, if I get many reviews (I know, the shameless blackmailing again! *g*), I'll try to post the next bit on Sunday, in which we see: Annoyed elves, even more annoyed dwarves, very annoyed evil men and in the end, an exceptionally annoyed ranger. *shrugs* Everybody's annoyed, I guess... So: Review! Please? Pretty please? *puppy dog eyes*
Additional A/N:
TrinityTheSheDevil - *pats her back carefully* Oh ... *insincere sympathetic smile* ... poor you, I'm sure it's a great horse movie... *huggles* I like the pic, really! I can see what you mean, but believe it or not, I never really picture the characters when I write them - weird, I know. *g* You tied Celylith to your desk? *goes away quickly, whistling* I haven't seen anything, I don't _want_ to see anything...
Amelie - *g* I know that sloths do not hibernate, especially since they live in the jungle, but THEY don't know that, do they? *g* Uhm, nope, you can't have Legolas in between the chapters, I'm afraid, he's not safe. He tries to escape the entire time, so I must keep them locked in the basement for that time... And see? Chapter 18 is only one more chapter away, don't worry - hmmm, or better yet, DO worry... *evil grin*
XsilicaX - *nods* Yes, _I_ would have killed them too, a long time ago... And I don't think that him travelling with Aragorn, Legolas and the twins would be a very good idea ... he might get violent, don't you think? I know I would... *ducks one of her Celylith plot bunnies* It's already written! It's too late to change it now! You will have to wait and see, I'm afraid.... *cackles madly* LOL, sure, you would have to bathe poor little Estel, yeah, right.... *snorts* Oh no! *worried* Don't tell me the weather is bad! I am coming in a week! It HAS to be good! *whines*
Coreinha - *huggles her more tightly* What, you don't like group hugs? Why not? LOL, I hate them mysekf, but that's another story... *g* *looks at Cor's pocket* You really have a big pocket, don't you? I mean, if he can dive into it and stuff ... but okay, if you think he likes it there, that's okay. Hold on to that thought! *defensively* I didn't smoke anything! It was my naturally insane character! *g*
Leggylover03 - *g* Why do you people all think that they will find trouble? I never said that - but ah well, whom am I kidding? OF COURSE they will find trouble! Mhahahahah! *runs off giggling madly* And I think I mentioned it once or twice already, you're bloodthirsty. Let's just say that yes, Estel will get hurt, but so will Legolas. Happy?
Alex Mistress Squirrel - Yes, it did come out rather quickly, but FF.net screwed up again, so most people couldn't read it for a long time... *shrugs* Life's not fair... And hey, you would be paranoid too if you were travelling with these two! I know I would be! T.T.F.N.? The third fanfiction nerd? Take those frogs not? What does it mean? *g*
Halo - *whistles innocently* No, whatever gave you THAT idea? And go ahead, kill Aragorn in TCoV - you know that I know what happens, so that's not much of a threat... *g* Oh, it's your birthday in a week! Yay Halo! You want a present? What about my undying love and devotion? No? Hmm, I will have to think of something then... You know what? I thought of something ingenious! What about we meet sometime after the 8th of August and go and see PotC together? Huh? What do you think?
Strider's Girl - Oh, thank you! I'm doing my best, glad you liked it, even though it was rather insane... *g* Thanks for the review!
Mouse - *blushes* Well, I'm glad someone likes the setting-up-part - I know that it is not THAT interesting, but it has to be done, hasn't it? I mean, I can't have them do weird things that no-one understands just because I wa too lazy to explain things a bit... And the wicked part: I think it gets interesting from chapter 17 on, so only one more chappie and you're there!
Alilacia - Yeah, FF.net can be a pain sometimes, huh? What am I saying, somtimes? Most of the time, actually! Uh, no, they don't have orcs looking for the treasure - it was an insult. No orcs in this story, I think, perhaps a little, but not really. They need a break too, don't they? The men's names could very well be Dumb and Dumber, I haven't actually thought of names. Would fit them, though... *g* Cellyith didn't sound as bad as Legolas! I DESPISE that scene in the movie, and I resent that comment! *grins sheepishly* Well yes, maybe he did sound a little bit like him... You're right about the tattoo! I watched it again, and there IS a bandage!
Jambaby1963 - Yes, well, I know. Most of the readers don't want me to kill him, but ... I really WANT to! Anyway, it's written now, so you'll just have to wait and see... *g* And I do that with my sister sometimes, too. I mean, I am already 21, but there's no reason not to annoy your mother a bit from time to time, huh?
CrazyLOTRfan - *hangs head* I PROMISE you an evil cliffy in chapter 18, alright? Chapter 17 has a tiny one as well, and from then on there are lots - okay? *g* Yes, we would never have found that one out if Legolas hadn't pointed out the likelihood... *nods* Celylith's life is not easy, definitely not ... but then again, Legolas' is worse right now... *evil grin*
Sirithiliel - _Everybody_ had problems with FF.net - I sometimes really, really hate it.... *hands twitch* I do hope it's not doing that again in the near future, or I will go mad, I swaer I will... *g* Thanks for reviewing!
Jack Sparrow - Aha! A PotC fan! You're so lucky, I wish I'd have seen it already... I think I can safely say that yes, they will get into more trouble and that Adruran is planning something nasty... *g* But you already knew that, so... Thanks for the review!
Aron - *blushes* Wow, thanks for all the compliments! They only serve to inflate my ego, but they DO sound nice.... And I agree with you there, I don't think that Aragorn and Celylith or anyone else for that matter will forget about that wonderful name in the near future... *g* And don't worry, Adruran is NOT going insane, he is just a little bit stressed out lately. I'll admit that that isn't good either for our intrepid heroes, but he's not cracking - not yet anyway. Right now he is still rather reasonable... LOL, no, Geran is NOT a nice fellow, that is true. They SHOULD have stayed at home, but then again, it would be boring if they did, right? *g*
Imbefaniel - Well, I think you're right, Rammstein is good when you wnat to develop aggressive feelings or into a psychopath, so go on, it's nice music... Oh, it wasn't your fault that FF.net went bonkers again, so no need to apologise! Congrats! Your dad has a new bow! And admit it, you LIKE that you're a better shot than him... *g*
Reginabean - *g* So, chapter 15 made more sense after you'd read chapter 14? That's comforting, it was meant to be that way... *g* I would hate to write chapters that are not important to the story... Oh, and yes, there is going to be elf/dwarf hatred in the future, don't worry. Legolas can be quite arrogant sometimes, too... *g* And Celylith HAS to be saved? Look, I am really sorry about Nólad, but I thought we'd out that behind us! And the Celylith bit is already written, you'll just have to wait and see, I'm afraid... *g*
Alisha - *shrugs* I don't know either where the sloth came from. Perhaps because I had just watched Ice Age? But nah, it was before that - I have no explanation either, must have been my weird brain... *stern look* No kidnapping, you hear me? Not even a baddie! No-one kidnaps my characters! And yes, you have my permission to try and extract some DNA from Celylith, good luck with that. He's wicked fast, he is... *g* Thanks for your review! I love your reviews! *huggles* Really, I do!
A Person - Aragorn's revenge is here! *pushes into direction of the chapter* Go, shoo! Read and be merry! *g* Great you like the story, and were you the person that threatened me with pancakes? If so, then you're really insane... Thanks for reviewing, anyway!
Helen T - *huggles* Great to see you again! *sighs* It wasn't a cliffy, not even a semi-cliffy! Just a little bit of foreshadowing, no harm in that, is there? Well, not much, anyway... *g*
Firnsarnien - Gwaihir is coming too? Well, then ... *pats her flak cannons* ... he will be in for a surprise, the sweet little birdie... *evil grin* None can defeat me! I am invincible! Mahahahahah! And hey! I resent that! My feet aren't smelly! *looks at feet* Not much, anyway... Okay... *tries not to grin evilly* I will _consider_ not killing him. Happy now? Let's just say that it's already written and that you'll simply have to wait and see, okay? *g*
TrustingFriendship - I really missed you! Honestly! I always think that people don't review for a while because the chapters were bad, so I was really afraid for a while here... *g* And I love Elrond and the twins too, but I needed Aragorn to stay in Mirkwood, and they couldn't have stayed as well, sorry... 'Hopefully it will help them bear the inevitable torment...'? Honestly, what are you people thinking? I'm not that bad, am I? On second thought, DON'T answer that...
Firniswin - I knew what you meant, I was only joking, don't worry... Uhm, and no, I haven't read that, sorry ... is it here on FF.net? But Dark Visions I know of yourse, as I said, I know what you mean... Glad you liked the last part, even though he was slightly mad! Thanks for your reviews!
Seveawen - Uhm, don't you have The Hobbit or the LOTR books? There are maps in both of them... But yes, Dale (and therefore Adruran) is right next to the Lonely Mountain. *g* And yes, Geran is a little bit like Donyc, but then again, he's evil and all these evil guays are alike, aren't they? *grins* So you''re 'ill'? Poor you! Stay in bed and drink tea then!
Cestari - Gosh, you were stung in the finger by a bee? That's bad, I hope you're not allergic to them? I kinda like bees, but onl if they don't sting, that is... *g* Great you liked the chapter despite its weirdness! Thanks for all your nice reviews!
Marbienl - Well, young men can do that, really. My brother and several of my boyfriends could, but then again, my sister can sleep for ages too. Well, as I said a few chapters earlier, Celylith did have nightmares, and I guess so has Legolas, but the last thing that could have given them some has been some time in the past. Besides, they are LOTS older and had had more time to figure out how to deal with these things. Well, I guess to be able to deal with dwarves and elves, a ranger would need a doubly stiff neck then, huh? *g* You have such an evil mind, did I ever tell you that? Get a grip, woman, I will tell you when he is injured, okay? His burns are fine, Jeez... LOL, I didn't see the connection between the guards and the cave troll, but now you mention it... *g* Uhm, I... *blinks* You too? You like Celylith, huh? Well, just wait a little bit longer and ye shall see... *g* And I am really, really sorry for your loss. Not. I mean, I am, poor you, without Anca... *g*
Critternut - Nope, I didn't have to much sugar, nor was I drunk or high, I was just having a good day, as I said. That happens sometimes, and it really was spontaneous... I haven't seen that movie either, but as soon as it's coming out in England I'll see it! No-one will be able to stop me! Mhahahah! *clears throat* Ah well, whatever...
Aratfeniel - Yeah, rub it in, go on.... I KNOW that I haven't seen it yet, so why don't you tell me another _hundred_ times, will you? *g* To be honest, I don't kow it either, they just like so different things and their lifestyle is different as well, I think... Plus they're both stiff-necked and stubborn, so that's probably not helping either... Well, I didn't have much time to write, too much to do. But I see what I can do...
Fliewatuet - *g* Yes, I agree, they are most definitely annoying... And yes, I do want to kill Celylith. Please don't ask me why, I just do, okay? But everyone else here doesn't, so I'm really torn. There probably is a petition you can sign somewhere around here, just go and ask Zam, she's really obsessed.... *g* So you too? You would 'never ever' forgive me? Well, that's a threat worth considering, so _perhaps_ he'll live... *g*
TigerLily713 - Well, I don't know yet who's going to kill whom, but I'm thinking about it, believe me... Yay! You coould read the chapter more or less on time! Congratulations! *huggles*
Tapetum Lucidum - *g* So it was YOU who broke FF.net? Shame on you, I cried for three days because of the withdrawal symptoms...*g* It is in fact a miracle that they managed to get to Dale without getting killed or killing each other - if I were Celylith I would have killed them! LOL, 'Geran sounds like a bad, bad man'? Well, you could definitely say that, I think... And no, I don't understand his obsession with elves either. I know nobody who is obsessed with elves, do you? *g*
Kaeera - *irres Grinsen* Neeein, tu gar nicht erst so ... ich weiss, was du planst ... du bist gar nicht du! Du tust nur so, als waerst du du, dabei bist du in echt dein boeser Zwilling oder so! Kaeera ist in Wirklichkeit tot, du hast sie ersetzt um die Weltherrschaft an dich zu reissen oder so... LOL, schoen dich 'wiederzusehen'! Ich dachte schon, etwas furchtbares sei dir widerfahren oder so ... wenn es 'nur' RL war, dann ist ja gut... Hoert sich ja wirklich beschaeftigt an... *g* Ich hoffe, du hast nicht allzu viel Arbeit! Und ich wuerde gerne gucken, leider bin ich aber vom 30.7. bis zum 1.9. wieder in England, wird also leider nix...
ThE iNsAnE oNe - *huggles* Miki! You're back! You survived the journey in the giant bird! Well done! *pats her back* Once again, I hope you had lots of fun in Costa Rica and wherever else you went, and I really hope Estel didn't bring the sloth, no matter if it was a three-toed or a two-toed one. It's quite hard to get them the food they like, so... *g* I missed you and your insanity, and I hope that your stories are ... well, that they are being written? Huh? I'm still waiting for that Gollum/Aragorn scene... *g*
Okay, I need to get back to Hannibal and my studies now. I am really getting tired of him... A huge Thanks to all my reviewers! Thank you so much!
A/N:
*gives FF.net look of deep, heartfelt disgust* Sometimes I wonder if this website's only aim is to drive us all mad. It would explain a lot, actually... Three days is a bloody long time to crash! *grim expression* We hatessss it, we doesss, my ssssweet....
Well, I hope you forgive me for posting a day later, but I really am quite busy right now. As I mentioned before, I will leave in a week, I have to get all the material I need for a paper I have to hand in in a month _and_ I'm moving out of my flat in five days. *sighs tiredly* I really missed moving, everybody should do it at least twice a year...
That means that right now we enter the phase of not-posting-so-regularly, I'm truly sorry. Don't worry, I will not let you wait for too long, but I don't think that I can update quicker than every five or six days. Make that six, I think... Plus, I do not know when I will be able to post in England, but we will cross that bridge when we come to it... *g*
Oh, and to answer your other questions: A. No, I was not on an illegal drug while writing the last chapter, and neither was I on a sugar high. I was just having a ... good day, I guess. *g* And B. I don't know yet how long the story's going to be. Right now I would carefully say about 25 chapters, could be more, could be less though. I'll be able to tell you in a few weeks... *g*
Okay, so enough of that, here is chapter 16, and yes, Aragorn is exacting his revenge on his poor, helpless elven friend for drugging him all the time in Lake-town. Plus, they meet the king of Dale, find out just why Dale and Erebor are about to make war on each other and get even deeper into trouble without even knowing it. *sighs* But they'll find out, trust me on this...
Enjoy and review, please!
Chapter 16
The next morning dawned anything but bright and beautiful. In fact, Legolas thought somewhat grumpily from his spot on the windowsill, it was a rather dreary day. The sky was grey and covered with low-hanging clouds that looked as if they were just waiting for the perfect opportunity to shower the ground with thick snowflakes.
'And said opportunity,' he thought, brushing a wayward strand of blonde hair out of his eyes, 'Will be the exact moment we leave this building.'
Of course it would be, when had it ever been any different?
The elven prince sighed and hopped down from his seat, giving the street below him a last glance. They had retired rather early yesterday evening, since Aragorn had been obviously tired – even though he protested loudly that he wasn't, of course – and Celylith in a rarely subdued mood.
Legolas started rummaging through his pack, frowning slightly. Celylith had really been rather quiet the whole evening, and he was beginning to get worried. His friend was one of the most cheerful persons he knew, and if he was in a dark mood it was usually a bad sign. It either meant that he was having a problem he could not solve on his own, or that he was having one of his feelings, a feeling of the kind that most elves had at one point or another during their lives.
While few elves were gifted with Fore-sight like Lord Elrond and Lady Galadriel, most of them got "feelings" once in a while, which was not surprising considering how close to nature the firstborn were. Elves unconsciously picked up things that nature whispered to them so subtly that not even they could hear it, and these warnings resulted in the aforementioned feelings.
Legolas had them quite often, and they had saved his life on more than one occasion. As far as he knew, Celylith had experienced them not nearly as often, but when he did, they were always correct.
The fair haired elf slowly shook his head, resolving to ask Celylith what was wrong with him later this morning. If he had the feeling that there was danger coming, they would be well-advised to listen to him.
Putting down the pack, Legolas frowned again. He could have sworn that his brush was somewhere in here; he hadn't used it yesterday evening, had he? He brushed yet another strand of his hair back that was falling in his face, mocking him for all that he knew. He hadn't slept well tonight, and at one point he had even woken up, having almost been able to swear that there was someone in his room. Of course there hadn't been, and so he had tried to go back to sleep, without much success however.
Now it was finally morning, and he decided that it was late enough to go and wake Aragorn. While he was very glad to see that his human friend was finally sleeping enough, his body obviously trying to catch up with as much rest as possible, they needed to get a move on if they wanted to find out anything today.
They had spent an hour in the tavern yesterday evening, and what they had heard had been anything but reassuring. The men and women had talked about the dwarves as if war was already upon them, and while he agreed with some of the terms that the humans had used to describe the smaller beings that lived in the Lonely Mountain, the last thing he wanted was a war between Dale and Erebor. But things really had sounded rather dire, and he was beginning to agree with Aragorn. If nothing was done, this situation would get out of hand, quicker than anyone would have anticipated, and this part of Wilderland would descend into war, chaos and bloodshed.
He shrugged, deciding to talk to his companions about that, and finally spied his brush on a chest of drawers next to the door of his little room. Odd, Legolas thought as he walked over to the piece of furniture, he could have sworn he hadn't used it yesterday…
He grabbed the brush and sat back down on his bed, quickly changing into another shirt and starting to comb his slightly tangled hair. It would probably best if they went to see King Bard sometime today, he decided, and he had even met the man when he had visited Mirkwood some years prior. He should be able to tell them what was going on here, and together they should be able to put a stop to these rather alarming events.
Legolas noticed that it was becoming harder and harder to move the brush through his hair, and he raised an eyebrow in confusion. His hair couldn't have got this tangled, could it? His hair rarely was this uncooperative, only when he somehow managed to drench it in spider blood and he had certainly killed no spiders yesterday…
A few second later, both of his eyebrows climbed up his forehead as he grabbed the handle of the brush with both hands, vainly trying to move it an inch through his thick tresses or remove it from the hair altogether. With something akin to panic he realised that he wasn't able to do either; the brush firmly stuck to his hair.
'How is that possible?' Legolas thought shocked, tugging at the brush with growing urgency.
Then, when he had calmed down a little, he could smell something, something he hadn't smelled for a long time, but when he had last, it had been in … Rivendell.
The elven prince's eyes darkened and he shot to his feet, looking rather ridiculous with a brush glued to the side of his head.
"Aragorn!"
The yell could probably have been heard at the foot of the Lonely Mountain, but right now, Legolas didn't care. That impertinent, presumptuous little human, he thought as he stormed into the direction of the door, how dare he! This was Estel's revenge for the sleeping potions, it just had to be! He wasn't only an impertinent, presumptuous little human, soon he would be a dead, impertinent, presumptuous little human…
He flung the door open, turning to the right and rushing into the direction of the young ranger's door.
"Aragorn! Gwannathach as sen, dúnadan!"
"He's awake," Celylith commented, rather dryly, and, Aragorn thought, equally unnecessarily. The whole inn had been able to hear the elven prince's murderous shout.
"Really?" he asked sarcastically. "What was that he yelled?"
"I think," Celylith supplied helpfully, a smug grin on his face, "That it sounded rather like 'Gwannathach as sen, dúnadan'."
Aragorn gave him a equally smug look.
"Why would he say that?"
Celylith arched a silver eyebrow at the far too innocently looking man. He had already been amazingly compliant when he had changed his bandages yesterday evening, and hadn't even moaned or protested when he had told him that he would need to keep the chest bandaged for another few days. That had been the exact moment he had got suspicious, and when he had looked at the young ranger this morning who had greeted him in a friendly, innocent tone of voice, he knew that he had done something to Legolas.
'Ah well,' he thought with a mental shrug, 'Rather him than me.'
Right then Legolas appeared at the bottom of the staircase, and the silver haired elf looked up, his eyes growing wide when he took in his friend's appearance. Suddenly, he felt the almost irresistible urge to roar with laughter, and only the deadly glare Legolas shot him prevented such an action. Apart from that he was very glad no other customers or guests were here yet, and he wished for nothing more than have a painter at hand who could immortalise this particular sight.
And a rare sight it was too, he decided, keeping his face as neutral and emotionless as possible. His prince slowly came closer, glad in a pair of dark breeches and a light green shirt, already with his boots on. He looked rather normal, actually … well, apart from the brush that stuck to the side of his head. Celylith cocked his head to the side in confusion. The brush looked as if Legolas had been brushing his hair until it got stuck … or glued to the hair.
The silver haired elf closed his eyes, praying to the Valar for composure. This was priceless, this was wonderful… Oh, Aragorn was dead, Legolas would simply kill him…
"Five seconds," Legolas said in a low, very, very dangerous tone of voice, eyes fixed on the friendly smiling ranger. "You have five seconds to explain this. After that I am afraid I will have to kill you."
Aragorn grinned and raised a dark eyebrow.
"Good morning, my friend. What happened to your hair?"
From Celylith's point of view, this ranked among the ten stupidest things the man could have said. Perhaps it even was the stupidest, he wasn't quite sure about that yet.
Legolas eyes seemed to literally light up.
"Oh," he said, slowly coming closer, "I thought you might be able to explain that."
"Me?" Aragorn replied innocently, inconspicuously looking for escape routes, "Why should I know what happened … is that your brush?"
'I stand corrected,' Celylith thought with an inward snicker. 'That was the stupidest thing he could have said.'
"No!" Legolas snapped, rounding the table with one lunge, "It is baby eagle pretending to be my brush! What do you think it is? You used your brothers' special brand of home-made glue, don't deny it! I recognise the smell!"
"Ah, come now, calm down, Legolas," the young ranger said, trying to appease the furious elf that was slowly advancing on him. "It is not really my brothers' glue, I improved it a bit."
"Did you?" Legolas was very close to yelling now. "Did you???"
Aragorn recognised the signs of an approaching mental breakdown, or perhaps a killing spree, and slowly edged backwards on the bench he was occupying.
"It is not permanent," he said quickly, before Legolas could start doing the painful things to him that the elf's eyes promised him.
That was the first clever thing the young human had said today, Celylith decided, watching as Legolas' face slowly reassumed a more or less normal colour.
"In fact," Aragorn added, "You have approximately ten minutes to wash it out. Then it will harden and you would have to cut the brush out."
The look the elven prince shot the man was filled with something that could only be described as passionate, all-consuming hatred. He seemed torn between the urge to dismember the man in front of him and the urge to remove that particular ridiculous-looking brush from his hair, and, after a few seconds, vanity or common sense won out.
"This isn't over, ranger," he hissed at his human friend and disappeared quickly up the steps.
Aragorn leaned back against the table, projecting the aura of a man who knew he had fulfilled his duty. Celylith looked at him, shaking his head slightly.
"Remind me never to get you mad at me," he said quietly, something like fear in his eyes. "That was cruel. You spend far too much time with your brothers, Estel."
"I do, don't I?" Aragorn asked, a wide grin on his face. "But you have to admit, the look on his face was priceless."
The two looked at each other, and after a second they both started chuckling loudly, garnering curious looks of the innkeeper's wife who had just entered the lounge.
"I … I would leave now if I were you," Celylith gasped, fighting another wave of giggles. "He will … Valar, he will kill you, Strider!"
"I know," Aragorn chuckled, fighting for composure, "I know. But, Elbereth, it was worth it."
He got to his feet, still laughing lightly.
"I will have a look at our horses," he told his elven companion. "I'll see if I can find some provisions that do not include cram and will see if I can find out where the king's residence is. Legolas will surely want to pay him a visit. Once he removes that brush that is, of course."
The young ranger quickly walked out of the door, politely wishing the innkeeper's wife a good morning. Celylith looked after him and asked himself just why he had been so bent on coming with these two. The only danger they were in was apparently killing each other, and in his opinion that would occur rather sooner than later.
Two hours and a lot of mindless wandering around the town later, Aragorn carefully opened the door that led to the ground floor of the inn and silently slipped inside. There were already a few customers here, mostly merchants who had arrived early with their merchandise via the River Running.
In fact, Aragorn, Legolas and Celylith had considered using the waterway as well, but the thought of what the horses would say to a journey of at least three days they would have to spend on a cramped barge had quickly dissuaded them from using this means of transportation.
Aragorn shuddered when he imagined what Rashwe would have done. That demon-horse would probably have sunken the boat and watched with the greatest of pleasures how they all drowned, he decided quickly. No, that way would have been less straining than riding through inhospitable wastelands – no, they weren't wastelands anymore, not since Smaug's death, but in his opinion they were still anything but homely – but he would not have wanted to see Legolas' horse on a small barge. He was beginning to suspect that his brothers had been right about this animal, and while he had been taught to at least respect every living creature, he found it very hard with this one.
He was still contemplating this when suddenly someone stepped in front of him, barring his way, and only his elven-trained reflexes saved him from a graceless collision. The young ranger looked up, already suspecting whom he would see, and really, in front of him stood his elven friend, looking at him with an unreadable expression.
Aragorn's eyes quickly travelled up to Legolas' head, and found that his friend's hair was perhaps still a little damp and extremely shiny – which was probably because Legolas had washed it about thirty times in an attempt to get rid of the last remnants of the glue – but all in all absolutely brush-free.
The fair haired elf just kept staring at him, and Aragorn was beginning to wonder if he was attempting to bore holes into his forehead when he finally narrowed his eyes and spoke up.
"That was evil, Aragorn."
The young man rolled his eyes.
"Yes, and?"
Legolas glared at his human friend.
"You needed the rest, you know that as well as I do! It would be well within my rights to severely harm you for this."
Aragorn chuckled merrily, not at all intimidated by his friend's dark stare.
"But you won't, and that is something you know as well as I do. I am still not fully healed, and you know that. Besides…"
"That is pathetic, human, hiding behind your injury like this…"
"…as I said, elf, besides, I didn't do it for you making me drink those horrible potions."
"You didn't?" Legolas asked, appearing honestly surprised.
"No," Aragorn shook his head, noting with satisfaction that it didn't hurt him anymore to do so. "No, I didn't. I did it because you enjoyed making me drink them."
Legolas shook his head a little too quickly.
"I didn't! That is ridiculous!"
The young ranger only snorted, looking at the elven prince with an incredulously lifted eyebrow.
"Is it now? Don't try to deny it, mellonamin, you relished it!"
"No," Legolas said haughtily, but a smile was lurking in the depths of his silver-blue eyes. "You overestimate your importance, human."
"Do I?" Aragorn grinned cheekily at the elf, "Well, elf, then I am sure you can explain to me why…"
"He will do nothing of that sort, or we will still be here in a few hours until you two have had enough of your bickering," Celylith's voice interrupted him, and the two of them turned to face the silver-haired elf who had soundlessly stepped closer.
"We are not bickering," Legolas and Aragorn said simultaneously, and Legolas added, "We are merely trying to … to…"
"…have a decent discussion, that's all," Aragorn quickly finished his elven friend's sentence.
Celylith snorted, for Aragorn yet another proof that his father's habits were slowly being adopted by other elves as well, a phenomenon that both astonished and scared the young ranger.
"A discussion, right."
The young man wisely decided to use this opportunity to change the subject, and he looked expectantly at the two elves.
"Are you ready to leave? Where do you want to go first? Directly to the king or somewhere else?"
Legolas looked sharply at the ranger, mentally resolving to do something dreadful to his friend for this little incident in the near future. As soon as he was completely well again, to be precise. Perhaps tie him to a tree and leave him to a pack of wargs? Then he would take a ship to the Undying Lands, of course, before the twins found out about it…
"I think first we should go and have a look around," he said, resolving to think about appropriate revenge later. "Hear what the people are saying; see if we are perhaps overreacting."
"I don't think so," Celylith said seriously as they were making their way into the direction of the door, "There is danger coming, and you feel it as well as I do."
"Aye," Legolas sighed softly as they stepped out of the inn, "Aye, I do, and the longer we are here the stronger that feeling becomes."
Aragorn looked at the two solemn elves next to him. He was having that feeling as well, and if that was the case for Legolas and Celylith too, then it was a very bad sign.
"Well," he said with forced cheerfulness, "That means that we're on the right track, doesn't it?
Legolas stopped shortly and gave the man a long look.
"That is the kind of attitude that will get you killed very quickly."
"Is it?" The young ranger asked, eyes twinkling evilly. "If you say so, then it must be correct. Leafie."
Legolas resisted the sudden very powerful urge to either hit his head against something solid or strangle his cheekily grinning friend.
"What have I told you about using that name?"
"Uhm, I don't know," Aragorn said innocently as they took up their walk once more. "I cannot remember. Do you know what he said, Celylith?"
The silver haired elf hastily raised both his hands in a gesture meant to appease his companions and to express his unwillingness to get involved in their bickering.
"No, I don't, Strider. In fact, I am sure that I was not present when you were discussing that topic."
Legolas glared at his traitorous friend.
"You were! You were riding next to him!"
"You must be mistaken, my lord," Celylith said in a firm voice. "I was nowhere near you two. I have seen nothing, heard nothing and know nothing. Nothing. I will not get involved in this."
"Coward," Aragorn muttered under his breath as they entered the main market square.
"No, ranger," Celylith retorted testily. "Sane person."
Legolas only grinned at his two companions, asking himself not for the first time how he had managed to find two people in all of Arda that were equally insane. It hadn't been easy, he decided with an inward smile as they moved over the market place, stopping at several market stands to talk to the vendors, but now, after more than two thousand years, he had managed to find two beings of which one was just as crazy as the other. A great feat indeed.
After some time they decided to leave the market and make their way to King Bard's residence. Aragorn had found out earlier that the King lived in a large, palace-like house in the very centre of the city, even though the building could certainly not be compared to Mirkwood's Halls or even the Last Homely House of the young ranger's elven father.
What they had found out was not too good either, Legolas thought as they were slowly walking up a broad alley that shone white with freshly fallen snow. There hadn't been a large group of men here for some time, and that meant that both Gwemyr's group and the mysterious third group were clever enough to camp outside the city walls. Nobody had noticed anything out of the ordinary as all men and women they had questioned stated consistently, apart from the trouble with the dwarves, of course.
And this was exactly what they needed to talk to Bard about, the elven prince thought with a mental headshake of mild disgust. While he could understand perfectly well that the Men of Dale were annoyed with the dwarves' behaviour – what kind of normal person wouldn't be? – he really did not want to return home to tell his father that Dale and Erebor had gone to war.
They slowly ascended a small hill, and finally reached the gates of the king's residence which were open, but guarded by a small contingent of soldiers that looked a little alerter than Legolas would have expected – after all, guard duty was one of the most bring things in existence. Behind the men, the three young beings could see a large, white stone building that looked to Legolas' eyes as if it had been at least partly been constructed with the help of dwarven masons. Its wings were still in the process of being put up.
"Halt!" the man who was obviously captain of the guard called, and Legolas suppressed the distinct feeling of déjà vu. He just hoped that this man was not as stupid as the one at the city walls, but then again, that was something he thought highly improbable.
The man surveyed their appearance closely, doing a slight double-take when his eyes wandered over the two elves.
"Who are you and what do you want?"
Legolas was just about to answer that the courtesy was somewhat lacking in this town of late, but once again Aragorn quickly spoke up and prevented his elven friends from saying anything unwise. That human should become a diplomat, the fair haired elf thought somewhat grumpily.
"We are here to see the king," Aragorn said politely but firmly. "These are two elves from King Thranduil's Halls, and I am Strider, a Ranger of the North."
The other man eyed Aragorn with much more interest than the elves. While elven visitors from Mirkwood were a rather common sight here it had been quite some time since he had last seen a ranger this far East. There were not many of their kind left, and it was a rare occurrence indeed to see one on this side of the Misty Mountains.
"A ranger, eh?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "Well, ranger, I am sorry, but you will have to come back later. The king is a very busy man and you cannot just come here expecting to see him just like that. He doesn't have time to speak to anyone who wishes to tell him something."
Legolas' eyes darkened somewhat, and while he was still ignoring Aragorn's pleading gaze and opening his mouth for a scathing reply, Celylith had already stepped forwards, dark blue eyes flashing in his fair face.
"Anyone?" he asked, piercing the man with a fierce stare. "Well, then you are lucky that we are not just 'anyone'! You would do well to show some respect, human, for this is…"
Legolas' hand on his arm stopped him in mid-sentence, and he closed his mouth with a snap, still glaring darkly at the guard.
"Don't," the elven prince said quietly in Elvish. "If you tell them now, the whole town will know in a matter of minutes."
He looked at the captain that seemed to have shrunk somewhat in the face of Celylith's anger, and said in a quiet tone of voice,
"Just tell your king that Legolas of Mirkwood is asking for a short amount of his time. He will not refuse this request, believe me."
The captain looked at them with more than a little disbelief in his eyes, clearly not recognising the elf in front of him, which was not surprising at all, since Legolas hadn't been to this part of Rhovanion for more than a hundred years.
"Very well, Master Elf. Please wait here, I will be back shortly."
The three companions remained at the gates, Celylith glaring darkly at the guards for not showing his prince the due respect. Aragorn was hard-pressed to hide a broad grin when one guard after the other found a convenient excuse to get as far away from the irate silver haired elf as possible.
"Impertinent humans," Celylith mumbled under his breath, sending a man that had dared look at him a scathing glare. "No respect at all, one really should…"
At this point the captain returned, a lot quicker than one would have expected, and Aragorn and Legolas exchanged a highly amused look at Celylith's mumblings, even though Legolas' was mixed with no small amount of annoyance. He appreciated his elven friend's concern of course, but sometimes he really, really hated the position he had been born into.
The guard looked at them with a mixture of suspicion and surprise.
"Please come with me, sirs," he said with a small bow. "The king will see you immediately."
He turned on his heel and walked up the broad alley that led to the front entrance of the white building, and the three of them followed, but not before Celylith had shot the men at the gate a last dark look. Soon they had reached the doors and entered the house and were led through several corridors with high ceilings and fine tapestries on the walls until they stopped in front of a large door.
Legolas noted with surprise that they were not even asked to surrender their weapons as he had expected, but before he could dwell longer on that thought the captain had raised his hand and knocked at the door.
After a muffled invitation from inside the captain opened the door and held it open for them, allowing them to step into a small room that was obviously a study of some sort. The room was warmly lit by a fire that flickered in the marble fireplace, and all the furniture, decorations and drapes spoke of wealth and power.
A good part of the room was occupied by an enormous, carved wooden desk that was covered with what appeared to be several layers of paper that were piled on every single square inch of the desktop. Legolas had to suppress a grin. This looked not at all like his father's study; the King of Mirkwood would never have allowed his desk to descend into such a level of chaos.
Behind that desk and flanked left and right by two men that looked very much like advisors to Legolas' in these matters very experienced eyes stood Bard, the King of Dale. He was a tall, black haired man, not young anymore, but still strong and proud in both his stance and mind.
Right now, however, he looked rather as if to see them was the very last thing he had expected, and as if this occurrence was nothing he enjoyed overly much either.
"Prince Legolas!" he called, smiling politely as the captain closed the door behind them. "Your Highness, there was no word that you would come and visit! Please excuse my guards' behaviour, I hope they haven't caused too great an inconvenience."
"None at all, your Majesty," Legolas inclined his head to the king while Celylith and Aragorn gave the king a pair of identical bows. "This isn't a formal visit either, there was no way you could have known of our arrival."
He quickly introduced his companions to the king, and soon they were all seated in comfortable armchairs in front of the fireplace while servants brought light refreshments. Bard seemed to have recovered somewhat from the shock of having to greet the crown prince of the most powerful kingdom between the Misty and the Ash Mountains, and he relaxed comfortably in his chair. He hadn't changed much, Legolas saw, except perhaps for more grey in his hair and a few more wrinkles on his face.
"You will stay here, naturally," the King of Dale told them, gesticulating with a half-eaten pastry he held. "I will give a banquet in your honour, of course, and…"
"To be honest, my lord, that is exactly what I was trying to avoid," Legolas told the man. "I was hoping to keep our presence here a secret, so to speak."
"Why?" the man asked, wrinkling his brow. "Excuse my bluntness, your Highness, but why would you want to do that?"
"There are some men that we would like to remain ignorant of our presence here, for the time being, that is," Legolas replied carefully, and explained shortly why they were here, only telling the king that they were following a group of Lake-men that were probably in a very real danger of being killed by another group of men.
Bard knitted his brow and looked sharply at the elven prince.
"And what, Prince Legolas, has given you the idea that they have come to my realm?"
The elven prince smiled mirthlessly.
"Let's just say that we know that they have. Beyond any doubt."
The man shook his head.
"As you can see, Dale is not yet the town it used to be 150 years ago. If such a group had been in the town, I would have heard about it."
"We know that," Aragorn spoke up for the first time, looking at the older man with serious silver eyes. "There is another thing that is concerning us, however."
"Is there? And what would that be?" Bard asked, a guarded expression stealing over his face.
"The rumours that are spreading in your town," Legolas said quietly, studying the face of the king closely.
"Rumours?" Bard asked. "What kind of rumours?"
"The rumours that say that there will be war between Dale and Erebor," Legolas said with disarming bluntness.
The King of Dale traded a quick look with his advisors.
"They're rumours, that's all."
Legolas merely looked at him, and Bard had to avert his eyes under the burning elven stare.
"These are things that do not concern the wood-elves, if you'll forgive me saying so," he said quickly. "We are in your debt for helping us and our sister town after the battle, but this does not concern you or your father."
"Wrong," the elven prince interrupted the man in a soft voice. "Forgive me, your Majesty, but there you are wrong. It does concern Mirkwood when its allies are beginning to make war on each other. There has been peace in this part of Middle-Earth, finally, after so many years of war, and I would very much like to know why we should descend into bloodshed once again."
The human king looked into the dead-serious eyes of the blonde elf and lowered his head with a sigh.
"I will not attack them, I cannot speak for Dáin though."
"Please, my lord," Aragorn said, looking at the king intently. "Tell us. How has this started? I always though that there was peace between your realms."
"Aye, ranger, there was," Bard nodded, ignoring his advisors that looked none too pleased that he really was answering their questions, Prince of Mirkwood or not. "Since the death of the dragon we've had peace, even though the beginning was somewhat … rocky, one could say."
Aragorn had to smile, one could definitely say that.
Bard and King Thranduil had besieged Thorin and his companions in the Lonely Mountain to make him hand over a part of the treasure that had been hidden there by the dragon Smaug. In the Battle of Five Armies that the Lake-men fought alongside the elves of Mirkwood, the eagles, Beorn and the dwarves Thorin Oakenshield had fallen, and Dáin, his cousin, had taken the titles of King under the Mountain and King of Durin's Folk.
Yes, there might be peace now, but the beginnings had been more than rocky indeed, and dwarves were just like the elves a race that was not exactly known for forgiving quickly or easily.
"Dáin's people helped us build much of the city, as you probably have already seen, and the trade has been good thus far," the king added, looking as if he didn't understand the recent events either.
"What changed, your Majesty?" Aragorn asked, genuinely intrigued now.
"I don't know!" Bard exclaimed with sudden vehemence, throwing his hands into the air. He quickly regained his composure though and continued, probably berating himself for his un-kingly behaviour, "In Eru's name, I don't know." He took a deep breath and stared into the dancing flames of the fire. "It started a few weeks ago. A mission arrived here led by Prince Thorin, King Dáin's son, and they requested to speak with me, which I didn't refuse, of course."
The King of Dale stopped shortly, looking as if he forcefully suppressed a wince at the memory.
"The talks went ill," he said shortly. "I do not take kindly to people who accuse me in my own house, and the prince was not in a very reasonable mood, I'm afraid."
"What did he say?" Legolas asked, trying to find some interest for the words of a dwarf.
"Many things," Bard grinned mirthlessly. "But the most interesting were that he accused us of having kidnapped two of his friends that were journeying North from Lake-town. They had been due to arrive at the mountain a few weeks prior, and never got there."
He looked at the elves and the ranger.
"That accusation is ridiculous, of course. Why would I want to kidnap the friends of Erebor's crown prince? In addition to that he also accused us of disturbing their miners, of trying to steal their secrets and lately of invading their realm without permission. Thorin said that there are people searching the mountainside, humans. And since we are the only human town or major settlement in a radius of more than fifty miles…"
"He would be willing to go to war for this?" Legolas asked incredulously. Then again, he didn't even know why he was surprised. Dwarves were dwarves, and one could hardly expect reasonable behaviour from them.
"No-one said anything about war, your Highness," Bard shook his head. "That is truly only a rumour. But things go ill between our two realms, I cannot deny that. And it is a situation that needs only a very small spark to ignite it, and what comes then I cannot tell."
"So if your men are not the ones responsible for those actions, then who is?" Aragorn asked softly.
The king clenched his jaw, dark eyes flashing, and suddenly they could all very well believe that he had been the one that had killed Smaug the dragon all these years ago.
"I don't know, ranger, but I would give a lot to find out."
"Dwarves!" Celylith mumbled under his breath as they were slowly walking back to their inn half an hour later. They had taken their leave of the now rather dispirited king, assured him that no, they really could not stay for dinner or overnight and promised to visit him again should they find out anything about the unknown human troublemakers.
"There's not a bit of reason at all, not in one of them," Legolas agreed with his silver haired friend, shaking his head in mild disgust.
"Now, my oh-so-perfect elven friends, dwarves are just as reasonable as everybody else," Aragorn reminded them rather sternly.
Legolas and Celylith stopped and gave him an incredulous stare that could not have been stronger had he just stated a Silvan elf had fallen out of a tree.
"If you say so, Aragorn," Legolas finally said, arching an eyebrow so high that it almost touched his hairline.
"I do," the young ranger assured them, shaking his head in exasperation. Elves and dwarves, that was a combination he would never be able to bear for any prolonged amount of time, not even if the fate of all of Middle-Earth were at stake.
"Forget your prejudices and think for a moment, please!" he told the two elves next to him firmly. "They would not just make up such a story! They have nothing to win if they start a war with Erebor."
"They would increase their territory," Celylith commented, thinking as a warrior now.
"They are dwarves, Celylith," Legolas reminded his friend as they made their way through the still busy city, "Not men. They are not interested in land, only in their mountains and mining stone."
"Exactly," Aragorn nodded his head, deciding to ignore the snide tone of voice his elven friend had used. "They are not interested in Dale or anything else here. They have a reason for their actions, and I think we all know who that group is that is disturbing their borders."
"Gwemyr and his friends," Celylith said thoughtfully, biting down on his lower lip in thought. "They are naïve enough to act as thoughtlessly as that."
"Yes," the young ranger nodded. "Even though I cannot imagine where these two dwarves have disappeared to."
Legolas shrugged, suppressing a heartfelt 'And who cares?'.
"It is possible that they have lost their way. Dwarves know nothing but stone, and the living world is nothing they can comprehend."
Aragorn resisted the urge to roll his eyes.
"But they aren't stupid either, Legolas. Besides, it is rather hard not to find your way to Erebor, all you have to do is follow the River Running upstream. Even Seobryn would be able to find his way here. Perhaps it has something to do with Lomar's friends."
"So what do we do now?" Celylith asked as they stopped in front of the inn's large wooden doors, their breath freezing in the cold air. "We need to find these Lake-men before they get killed or inadvertently cause a war."
Aragorn looked at the two elves and asked himself how in the name of Elbereth he would be able to convince them of his plan.
"There is only one way." He took a deep breath and added, "We must visit King Dáin and see what he has to say about all this."
It garnered an interesting reaction, that much was sure. Celylith's mouth fell open, and Legolas' eyes opened so wide Aragorn was convinced that they would pop out of their socket soon.
"We will do what?" both of them asked disbelievingly.
"Are you mad?" Legolas added helpfully after a second. "Visit the dwarves? In their mountain? Without a contingent of guards?" He looked at the human in sudden concern. "Are you well, Estel?" He reached out to place a hand on his friend's forehead. "Do you have a fever? Perhaps you have caught a cold or something, you are not thinking clearly…"
Aragorn did roll his eyes now, and forcefully pressed Legolas' hand down.
"No, I am well, thank you very much for your concern. They will not harm us, they know perfectly well that they cannot fight both Dale and Mirkwood, even if they wanted to. It would be an act of war to harm you, and they are not that stupid."
"You are once again assuming that they think reasonably," Celylith mumbled under his breath, earning himself a dark glare from the young ranger.
The dark haired man opened the door, motioning his elven friend to precede him.
"Trust me, it is a good idea."
"It is not!" two irate elven voices mumbled. "You must be insane, Strider, I am not going under that mountain, not if you promised me…"
Aragorn rolled his eyes again, thinking that he really should stop doing that lest he wanted his eyeballs to come loose or get stuck in a different position than they were in now.
It would be a long evening, that he was sure of. A very, very long evening.
Hanar waited until the ranger had followed the elves inside before he dared move again. He lay flattened on the roof of one of the houses opposite the inn, and even though he was sure that the elves and the ranger could not have seen him, it always paid to be careful.
That was probably the thing that had caused Lomar's downfall, he decided while he was climbing down the house, carefully choosing cracks in the wall to place his hands and feet. He had underestimated the three of them.
'But he is supposed to be dead!' he raged inwardly, moving stealthily through the emptying streets, giving the inn behind him not another glance. 'The ranger is supposed to be dead!'
Hanar forcefully calmed himself. Thinking about these things wouldn't help him now, and he would certainly not make the mistake Lomar had and trust that he could take on two elves and a ranger.
He reached the inn where he had rented a room and stabled his horse for the past two days. His captain had sent him to Dale to warn him and the others should there be any trouble, and especially to warn them should the elves really come here.
Well, he thought darkly as he paid the rent for the room and the horse, they had come here, and they had even brought the ranger, damn them! He was leaving, right now, there was no way he was staying in this town and risking the chance that the man might recognise him.
Personally he was rather sure that the ranger had never really seen his face since Lomar had done all the talking, but he was not prepared to take that chance. He had almost forgotten to breathe when he had seen the elves and the man today, who had looked almost back to normal now. The bruises he himself had partly placed on his face were fading, and he had seemed in good spirits and lively, that accursed whelp of a ranger!
Hanar quickly made his way upstairs to collect the few things he had brought, ever growing rage bubbling in his chest. Now that he had actually seen them again, he was sure that Lomar was dead. There was the possibility that he had been captured of course, but since the Lake-men used to turn over major criminals to Dale to face the king's judgement, he should already have arrived here had that been the case.
No, he thought, grabbing his pack and the bow he had left behind since he had judged it to be useless anyway in the densely packed street of this town, Lomar was dead. Dead because of them. He allowed his fury to grow and intensify; this was at least something he could hold on to until he got a chance to finish their little interrogation with the ranger. He would make the boy wish he had never been born, and make him regret that the elves had found and rescued him in the first place.
Hanar stepped out of the inn, a dark smile on his face. Adruran would be very interested indeed in their arrival and the fact that they had already spoken to the king, and he would hopefully give him the opportunity to take revenge on the ranger. Or on the elves, but he would actually prefer the ranger, he wasn't stupid enough to take on two elves, or even one, for that matter.
Even if his captain did not, he would find a way to get his hands on him, Hanar vowed as he opened the stable doors to get his horse.
They would regret having ever come here, he would make sure of that.
TBC...
Gwannathach as sen, dúnadan - You will die for this, ranger
mellonamin - my friend
*rubs hands* And the stage is set, more or less! Now we can start with the real fun... Meaning: Chapter 18 is just around the corner! *evil grin* Alright, if I get many reviews (I know, the shameless blackmailing again! *g*), I'll try to post the next bit on Sunday, in which we see: Annoyed elves, even more annoyed dwarves, very annoyed evil men and in the end, an exceptionally annoyed ranger. *shrugs* Everybody's annoyed, I guess... So: Review! Please? Pretty please? *puppy dog eyes*
Additional A/N:
TrinityTheSheDevil - *pats her back carefully* Oh ... *insincere sympathetic smile* ... poor you, I'm sure it's a great horse movie... *huggles* I like the pic, really! I can see what you mean, but believe it or not, I never really picture the characters when I write them - weird, I know. *g* You tied Celylith to your desk? *goes away quickly, whistling* I haven't seen anything, I don't _want_ to see anything...
Amelie - *g* I know that sloths do not hibernate, especially since they live in the jungle, but THEY don't know that, do they? *g* Uhm, nope, you can't have Legolas in between the chapters, I'm afraid, he's not safe. He tries to escape the entire time, so I must keep them locked in the basement for that time... And see? Chapter 18 is only one more chapter away, don't worry - hmmm, or better yet, DO worry... *evil grin*
XsilicaX - *nods* Yes, _I_ would have killed them too, a long time ago... And I don't think that him travelling with Aragorn, Legolas and the twins would be a very good idea ... he might get violent, don't you think? I know I would... *ducks one of her Celylith plot bunnies* It's already written! It's too late to change it now! You will have to wait and see, I'm afraid.... *cackles madly* LOL, sure, you would have to bathe poor little Estel, yeah, right.... *snorts* Oh no! *worried* Don't tell me the weather is bad! I am coming in a week! It HAS to be good! *whines*
Coreinha - *huggles her more tightly* What, you don't like group hugs? Why not? LOL, I hate them mysekf, but that's another story... *g* *looks at Cor's pocket* You really have a big pocket, don't you? I mean, if he can dive into it and stuff ... but okay, if you think he likes it there, that's okay. Hold on to that thought! *defensively* I didn't smoke anything! It was my naturally insane character! *g*
Leggylover03 - *g* Why do you people all think that they will find trouble? I never said that - but ah well, whom am I kidding? OF COURSE they will find trouble! Mhahahahah! *runs off giggling madly* And I think I mentioned it once or twice already, you're bloodthirsty. Let's just say that yes, Estel will get hurt, but so will Legolas. Happy?
Alex Mistress Squirrel - Yes, it did come out rather quickly, but FF.net screwed up again, so most people couldn't read it for a long time... *shrugs* Life's not fair... And hey, you would be paranoid too if you were travelling with these two! I know I would be! T.T.F.N.? The third fanfiction nerd? Take those frogs not? What does it mean? *g*
Halo - *whistles innocently* No, whatever gave you THAT idea? And go ahead, kill Aragorn in TCoV - you know that I know what happens, so that's not much of a threat... *g* Oh, it's your birthday in a week! Yay Halo! You want a present? What about my undying love and devotion? No? Hmm, I will have to think of something then... You know what? I thought of something ingenious! What about we meet sometime after the 8th of August and go and see PotC together? Huh? What do you think?
Strider's Girl - Oh, thank you! I'm doing my best, glad you liked it, even though it was rather insane... *g* Thanks for the review!
Mouse - *blushes* Well, I'm glad someone likes the setting-up-part - I know that it is not THAT interesting, but it has to be done, hasn't it? I mean, I can't have them do weird things that no-one understands just because I wa too lazy to explain things a bit... And the wicked part: I think it gets interesting from chapter 17 on, so only one more chappie and you're there!
Alilacia - Yeah, FF.net can be a pain sometimes, huh? What am I saying, somtimes? Most of the time, actually! Uh, no, they don't have orcs looking for the treasure - it was an insult. No orcs in this story, I think, perhaps a little, but not really. They need a break too, don't they? The men's names could very well be Dumb and Dumber, I haven't actually thought of names. Would fit them, though... *g* Cellyith didn't sound as bad as Legolas! I DESPISE that scene in the movie, and I resent that comment! *grins sheepishly* Well yes, maybe he did sound a little bit like him... You're right about the tattoo! I watched it again, and there IS a bandage!
Jambaby1963 - Yes, well, I know. Most of the readers don't want me to kill him, but ... I really WANT to! Anyway, it's written now, so you'll just have to wait and see... *g* And I do that with my sister sometimes, too. I mean, I am already 21, but there's no reason not to annoy your mother a bit from time to time, huh?
CrazyLOTRfan - *hangs head* I PROMISE you an evil cliffy in chapter 18, alright? Chapter 17 has a tiny one as well, and from then on there are lots - okay? *g* Yes, we would never have found that one out if Legolas hadn't pointed out the likelihood... *nods* Celylith's life is not easy, definitely not ... but then again, Legolas' is worse right now... *evil grin*
Sirithiliel - _Everybody_ had problems with FF.net - I sometimes really, really hate it.... *hands twitch* I do hope it's not doing that again in the near future, or I will go mad, I swaer I will... *g* Thanks for reviewing!
Jack Sparrow - Aha! A PotC fan! You're so lucky, I wish I'd have seen it already... I think I can safely say that yes, they will get into more trouble and that Adruran is planning something nasty... *g* But you already knew that, so... Thanks for the review!
Aron - *blushes* Wow, thanks for all the compliments! They only serve to inflate my ego, but they DO sound nice.... And I agree with you there, I don't think that Aragorn and Celylith or anyone else for that matter will forget about that wonderful name in the near future... *g* And don't worry, Adruran is NOT going insane, he is just a little bit stressed out lately. I'll admit that that isn't good either for our intrepid heroes, but he's not cracking - not yet anyway. Right now he is still rather reasonable... LOL, no, Geran is NOT a nice fellow, that is true. They SHOULD have stayed at home, but then again, it would be boring if they did, right? *g*
Imbefaniel - Well, I think you're right, Rammstein is good when you wnat to develop aggressive feelings or into a psychopath, so go on, it's nice music... Oh, it wasn't your fault that FF.net went bonkers again, so no need to apologise! Congrats! Your dad has a new bow! And admit it, you LIKE that you're a better shot than him... *g*
Reginabean - *g* So, chapter 15 made more sense after you'd read chapter 14? That's comforting, it was meant to be that way... *g* I would hate to write chapters that are not important to the story... Oh, and yes, there is going to be elf/dwarf hatred in the future, don't worry. Legolas can be quite arrogant sometimes, too... *g* And Celylith HAS to be saved? Look, I am really sorry about Nólad, but I thought we'd out that behind us! And the Celylith bit is already written, you'll just have to wait and see, I'm afraid... *g*
Alisha - *shrugs* I don't know either where the sloth came from. Perhaps because I had just watched Ice Age? But nah, it was before that - I have no explanation either, must have been my weird brain... *stern look* No kidnapping, you hear me? Not even a baddie! No-one kidnaps my characters! And yes, you have my permission to try and extract some DNA from Celylith, good luck with that. He's wicked fast, he is... *g* Thanks for your review! I love your reviews! *huggles* Really, I do!
A Person - Aragorn's revenge is here! *pushes into direction of the chapter* Go, shoo! Read and be merry! *g* Great you like the story, and were you the person that threatened me with pancakes? If so, then you're really insane... Thanks for reviewing, anyway!
Helen T - *huggles* Great to see you again! *sighs* It wasn't a cliffy, not even a semi-cliffy! Just a little bit of foreshadowing, no harm in that, is there? Well, not much, anyway... *g*
Firnsarnien - Gwaihir is coming too? Well, then ... *pats her flak cannons* ... he will be in for a surprise, the sweet little birdie... *evil grin* None can defeat me! I am invincible! Mahahahahah! And hey! I resent that! My feet aren't smelly! *looks at feet* Not much, anyway... Okay... *tries not to grin evilly* I will _consider_ not killing him. Happy now? Let's just say that it's already written and that you'll simply have to wait and see, okay? *g*
TrustingFriendship - I really missed you! Honestly! I always think that people don't review for a while because the chapters were bad, so I was really afraid for a while here... *g* And I love Elrond and the twins too, but I needed Aragorn to stay in Mirkwood, and they couldn't have stayed as well, sorry... 'Hopefully it will help them bear the inevitable torment...'? Honestly, what are you people thinking? I'm not that bad, am I? On second thought, DON'T answer that...
Firniswin - I knew what you meant, I was only joking, don't worry... Uhm, and no, I haven't read that, sorry ... is it here on FF.net? But Dark Visions I know of yourse, as I said, I know what you mean... Glad you liked the last part, even though he was slightly mad! Thanks for your reviews!
Seveawen - Uhm, don't you have The Hobbit or the LOTR books? There are maps in both of them... But yes, Dale (and therefore Adruran) is right next to the Lonely Mountain. *g* And yes, Geran is a little bit like Donyc, but then again, he's evil and all these evil guays are alike, aren't they? *grins* So you''re 'ill'? Poor you! Stay in bed and drink tea then!
Cestari - Gosh, you were stung in the finger by a bee? That's bad, I hope you're not allergic to them? I kinda like bees, but onl if they don't sting, that is... *g* Great you liked the chapter despite its weirdness! Thanks for all your nice reviews!
Marbienl - Well, young men can do that, really. My brother and several of my boyfriends could, but then again, my sister can sleep for ages too. Well, as I said a few chapters earlier, Celylith did have nightmares, and I guess so has Legolas, but the last thing that could have given them some has been some time in the past. Besides, they are LOTS older and had had more time to figure out how to deal with these things. Well, I guess to be able to deal with dwarves and elves, a ranger would need a doubly stiff neck then, huh? *g* You have such an evil mind, did I ever tell you that? Get a grip, woman, I will tell you when he is injured, okay? His burns are fine, Jeez... LOL, I didn't see the connection between the guards and the cave troll, but now you mention it... *g* Uhm, I... *blinks* You too? You like Celylith, huh? Well, just wait a little bit longer and ye shall see... *g* And I am really, really sorry for your loss. Not. I mean, I am, poor you, without Anca... *g*
Critternut - Nope, I didn't have to much sugar, nor was I drunk or high, I was just having a good day, as I said. That happens sometimes, and it really was spontaneous... I haven't seen that movie either, but as soon as it's coming out in England I'll see it! No-one will be able to stop me! Mhahahah! *clears throat* Ah well, whatever...
Aratfeniel - Yeah, rub it in, go on.... I KNOW that I haven't seen it yet, so why don't you tell me another _hundred_ times, will you? *g* To be honest, I don't kow it either, they just like so different things and their lifestyle is different as well, I think... Plus they're both stiff-necked and stubborn, so that's probably not helping either... Well, I didn't have much time to write, too much to do. But I see what I can do...
Fliewatuet - *g* Yes, I agree, they are most definitely annoying... And yes, I do want to kill Celylith. Please don't ask me why, I just do, okay? But everyone else here doesn't, so I'm really torn. There probably is a petition you can sign somewhere around here, just go and ask Zam, she's really obsessed.... *g* So you too? You would 'never ever' forgive me? Well, that's a threat worth considering, so _perhaps_ he'll live... *g*
TigerLily713 - Well, I don't know yet who's going to kill whom, but I'm thinking about it, believe me... Yay! You coould read the chapter more or less on time! Congratulations! *huggles*
Tapetum Lucidum - *g* So it was YOU who broke FF.net? Shame on you, I cried for three days because of the withdrawal symptoms...*g* It is in fact a miracle that they managed to get to Dale without getting killed or killing each other - if I were Celylith I would have killed them! LOL, 'Geran sounds like a bad, bad man'? Well, you could definitely say that, I think... And no, I don't understand his obsession with elves either. I know nobody who is obsessed with elves, do you? *g*
Kaeera - *irres Grinsen* Neeein, tu gar nicht erst so ... ich weiss, was du planst ... du bist gar nicht du! Du tust nur so, als waerst du du, dabei bist du in echt dein boeser Zwilling oder so! Kaeera ist in Wirklichkeit tot, du hast sie ersetzt um die Weltherrschaft an dich zu reissen oder so... LOL, schoen dich 'wiederzusehen'! Ich dachte schon, etwas furchtbares sei dir widerfahren oder so ... wenn es 'nur' RL war, dann ist ja gut... Hoert sich ja wirklich beschaeftigt an... *g* Ich hoffe, du hast nicht allzu viel Arbeit! Und ich wuerde gerne gucken, leider bin ich aber vom 30.7. bis zum 1.9. wieder in England, wird also leider nix...
ThE iNsAnE oNe - *huggles* Miki! You're back! You survived the journey in the giant bird! Well done! *pats her back* Once again, I hope you had lots of fun in Costa Rica and wherever else you went, and I really hope Estel didn't bring the sloth, no matter if it was a three-toed or a two-toed one. It's quite hard to get them the food they like, so... *g* I missed you and your insanity, and I hope that your stories are ... well, that they are being written? Huh? I'm still waiting for that Gollum/Aragorn scene... *g*
Okay, I need to get back to Hannibal and my studies now. I am really getting tired of him... A huge Thanks to all my reviewers! Thank you so much!