*le sigh* I'm so sorry. I honestly didn't mean for it to go this long with out me updating... things just are busy right now for me. I really did mean to update this a while ago, I just never got the time. I'm so sorry guys!
Disclaimer: I own, like, nothing. The plot is mine, though it's not the most original thing in the world, not yet, anyhow. I'm trying to spice it up a bit, remove it from the blasé path it currently walks, change it to make it less predictable. We shall see if I succeed.
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Lian: Part Two
By Hollie
"How far are we from the borders?" Anil asked, bringing his mount up near the front, where Faith and Lian rode.
Faith wrinkled her nose, thinking. "A few hours, I assume. We're very close to the Gates now, I daresay we'll arrive ere the sun sets."
Next to Faith, Lian gulped. Neither her aunt nor Anil noticed, a thing she was thankful for. The last thing she needed was for people to start reassuring her that everything would turn out to be fine. She knew all too well that she would be lucky if Galen even wanted to speak to her. With a sniff and a deep sigh she recalled the very last time she had seen the Prince of the Woodland realm.
"Lian!" Arwen Undomiel's voice carried down the hallway, drifting in through the open door near the end of the corridor. Lian rushed out at her mother's call, moving a slight too fast to be dignified for a princess. Her long dark hair flowed untidily down her back, a circlet of entwined silver resting lopsided atop the black locks. She stumbled a little, her midnight skirts tripping her up as she ran, slippered feet trying to keep their balance on the stone of the floor.
She skidded to a halt where Arwen, elegant and regal in a long white gown, waited for her.
"They have not yet left, have they?" she asked frantically. Arwen placed a calming hand on her daughter's shoulder, the other gently adjusting the circlet oh Lian's head.
"They await us in the courtyard for final farewells. But Lian, you should—"
Whatever it was that Arwen thought Lian should do was lost as the young girl swept past her mother, flying down the marble steps two at a time. Nimbly she darted around servants and others that worked in the Citadel, picking up her long skirts as she ran. In no time at all, she was at the front entryway, pushing her way through the grand doors, then through the crowd outside them.
Not for the first time did she sorely regret her height, or lack thereof. She could barely see to the shoulders of most of the people, making it doubly difficult to locate her quarry. Finally, she was able to free herself from the crowd, running to stand before the farewell party.
Almost breathless, she halted besides her father, whose splendor was beyond the words of mortal men. He looked down in surprise at the youngest of his children, as she brushed matted strands of hair from her face and readjusted the silver diadem. Her cheeks were pink, a shade that deepened as her eyes met those staring down at her.
"I apologize for my lateness," she muttered, staring down at her feet. The figure standing across from her laughed jovially. She looked up at Legolas, the King of Mirkwood.
"Do not fret, daughter of Gondor. Your arrival 'tis better late than not at all." She managed a weak smile, and shuffled uncomfortably from one foot to another. She both liked and admired the elf, but now there was awkwardness between them. Undoubtedly it was due to her refusal of Galen's marriage proposal.
Galen.
Lian scanned the faces around her, looking for the fair prince. She spotted his face, half hidden behind his parents. He shifted as she looked at him, and with a grievous heart Lian realized that he was moving himself so that she couldn't see him. Either his grief was too much or he was filled with anger at the prospect of looking at her, and to Lian, the latter was much more likely.
"He must hate me," misery grew in her heart. "Not that I can blame him," she added. "I think that I'd hate me as well. As a matter of fact, I think that I do hate myself." Tears welled up in her eyes but she forced them back. Instead she focused her attention on her father, who was speaking to Legolas.
"Farewell my friend, farewell. Your presence has brought much grace to the festivities and the," Aragorn paused, choosing his words carefully, "ah, many events that we have been witness to."
"Let us hope that we never go as long without correspondence as we have in recent years," was the elf's reply. The two kings grasped forearms and clapped each other on the back. Miriel and Arwen, who had had somehow managed to reach the group only moments behind her daughter, yet showed no signs of having been rushed, hugged like sisters, tears shining in each of their eyes.
"Return soon Miriel. Always are you welcome here." The other elf maiden tossed back her shimmering hair and smiled.
"Namaarie Arwen. Aa' menealle nauva calen ar' malta.*"
"Lissen ar' maska'lalaith tenna' lye omentuva.**" The two women hugged once more, than continued goodbyes with the others.
"Arwen," Lian watched as Legolas touched his fingers to her mother's cheek. "Oio naa elealla a lasse'.***" Arwen smiled, as did the king.
"Diola lle, mellonamin. Namaarie.****"
As Lian watched the adults, she rued the fact that she had only a limited knowledge of elvish. She knew that 'namaarie' meant 'goodbye', and that 'mellonamin' was the famaliar term for 'my friend', but not too much more than that. "Why did I never pay attention when mother taught us elvish?" she scolded herself.
Tentatively, she glanced over at Galen again. He was standing off to the side, clearly avoiding her. She took a step towards him, smiling nervously.
"Well, I suppose this is goodbye," she said, each syllable taking more and more effort to pronounce. Galen turned, finally meeting her eyes. When he did, she immediately wished he hadn't.
Anger she had expected to find in his eyes, hatred, possibly grief or despair, but she found none. There was absolutely no emotion whatsoever in his features. It was like his soul had evaporated, leaving behind only the empty shell of a person. He held her gaze for a moment, then turned to his father.
"Ready Galen?" Legolas asked. Galen nodded once, then turned with out a word and headed for the grand carriage that awaited the elves. Despite the fact that Arwen stood to one side of her, Aragorn the other, Lian felt horribly alone.
Lian shivered again, recalling that terrible feeling of complete and utter solitude as it pressed in around her. Anil noticed and came to ride by her.
"What ails you friend? Does not the cold air suit you?"
She smiled despite her misery, forcing herself to be cheerful.
"Nothing, Anil, nothing, I am fine. Thank you though, I appreciate your concern." He gave an odd smile in return, doubt lingering on his face. Lian flashed what she hoped was a more confident grin than the last had been. "Really, I am fine."
"If you're certain," he said with a shrug, dropping back in line to converse with one of the Gondorian guards. Anil was immensely fascinated with mortal warfare, and for the past few days he had hounded the guards with innumerable questions. The three men were equally as intrigued by the elven styles of combat, so it seemed they had found good company.
Faith did not let up as easily as Anil had. She placed one hand on her hip, using the other to stroke her horse's mane.
"You know as well as I that you are not fine." Lian rode with baited breath, waiting for her aunt to reassure her that her fears were off base, that she was just being silly and everything would turn out fine. But it never came. Instead, her aunt just gave her a little smile, then turned to watch the path ahead.
After a few moments, she spoke again. "Tis such a funny thing, love. Don't you think?" Lian looked curiously at her aunt, who's eyes were suddenly strange; distant and unseeing.
"It works in strange ways, oft when it is expected least." Now Lian was thoroughly confused. Not by the words themselves, but by the strange way in which they were being spoken. Faith sounded almost sad, but that just didn't make sense. As far as Lian knew, her aunt had never been in love. She had no husband, no children, but yet she spoke as if she had, once upon a time. But that was impossible. Lian would have known if she had cousins or an uncle.
Then another thought occurred to her, another memory from the year past.
She had been talking with Eomer, the King of the Riddermark, trying to find out more about her then fiance, Eomer's son Eower. She inquired about his mother, a subject that was clearly painfull for the king to recall. The lady Keladry had died in in a riding accident when Eower had been only a year old. Eomer had done the best he could raising a child on his own, but eventually he had needed to ask the help of his sister, Eowyn. There were many times, however, that the White Lady had been unable to assist him with the young lad, as her own home was in distant Ithilen, and Eomer had looked to another source of help; aunt Faith.
That had surprised Lian when he told her of how amazingly helpful Faith had been. She had a naturally kind personality, yet with a certain unmistakable air about her that he said 'drew people to her; like a magnetic force.' Lian wondered if perhaps Faith was remembering her life as an almost-mother to the prince. She knew there was great friendship between her aunt and King Eomer, and perhaps she missed that.
"Maybe," she told herself. "Maybe."
*~*~*~*~*
The four guards sat in silence, listening intently for any sign of life, besides the normal call of birds and squeaks from the squirrels. They had been posted here, near the darkest edge of the forest, on specific business; to find the intruders and shoot them down. For two days they had sat in complete silence, not a single one of them moving a muscle. All had their bows notched and their swords at their sides, ready to be unsheathed faster than one could blink.
Their sharp eyes had long adjusted to the darkness, yet they all longed for the time when the relief group would come and they would be able to return to their homes inside the Great Gates.
"The relief group should be arriving any moment now," the captain, a tall, well-built blonde thought. He closed the lid over his blue eyes for the briefest of seconds, lack of true rest wearing on him. He was young still, not completely accustomed to all the endless waiting.
That second proved to fatal however, because at that instant, an arrow flew from behind a bush, piercing him in the heart. He crumpled to the ground, eyes open wide in shock and horror. His men looked down on him for a moment, practically seeing the life seep out of him, before they sprang into action.
They fired arrows in rapid succession, aiming at the bush the arrow had come from. They heard a cry, and saw a shadowy figure fall, dead. The three remaining guards formed a circle, fresh arrows notched and ready to fly if a new onslaught came. And come it did. Arrows suddenly flew at them from all directions, faster and faster. Within mere moments, all three of the guards had taken deadly hits, and lay lifeless on the forest floor.
A strange sound came from behind one of the trees, a cackling sound, almost laughter. It rang out, disturbingly twisted and full of hate, then disappeared as sudden as it had come.
*~*~*~*~*
"Shhh," Faith whispered to Anil and one of the Gondorian guards. "We have come to the very heart of Mirkwood. King Legolas has done well in his years of reign of cleansing the forest of evil, but even he could not wholly cure this place. We must tread carefully, and cautiously. And," she added as an afterthought, "let's try to not have any more incidents with the horses."
Lian shivered, looking around the eerie forest as she rode atop Hoshi. The two remaining guards that had traveled with her all the way from Gondor flanked each side of her, keeping watch, making sure that the princess was not struck with any more arrows.
The princess herself was fascinated. The forest was so eerie, so old, and if other things hadn't been pressing on her mind, she would have much loved to jump off her horse and go exploring. Everyone had clearly underestimated this place when they had told her of it. It was at least ten times more beautiful, more mysterious, more compelling than any had said. Even the realm's king did not do it justice in Lian's mind.
Suddenly, the procession stopped. They had come to a clearing, yet from Lian's position near the end of the group, she could not see what the cause for halting was. She craned her neck, spotting Faith up front. She saw her aunt's back stiffen, then her head lower. All those in the front followed suit, lowering their heads in what seemed to be prayer.
Lian, having no idea what was happening, dismounted and walked towards the front. She had gone about halfway, when she stopped, almost fainting. In the centre of the clearing, four bodies were sprawled out on the ground, each with several arrows poking out of their bodies. Lian fought the urge to wretch as she looked at them; one had an arrow through his heart, another one had them sticking out from the back of his head. One looked like a human pincushion, his fair body riddled with arrows, and the last... had two arrows, one in his heart, the other through his eye.
Lian's stomache heaved, the sight and smell of the decaying corpses making her woozy. Faith jumped from her mount as she saw her neice and ran over to her. She swept Lian up in a hug, holding her while the girl sobbed into her shoulder. Lian had never actually seen a dead person, as a princess she had been sheltered from such things. Now, to see four of them all piled up... She cried heavier, her body rocking uncontrolably.
"Shhh, shhh," Faith crooned, still holding the sobbing girl. "Shhh..."
Meanwhile, Anil and Magen had also dismounted, coming forward to examine the bodies. They examined the fair-faced beings, immediately recognizing them as their kin.
"Faith," Magen strode towards her, fighting back his own grief. "We must move, and move with all the speed we posess. The arrows that killed these elves, they are the same kind as the ones we were fired upon with." Faith looked up at his last words, brushing a tear from her own eye.
"Come on sweet," she said to Lian, leading her to the front, "you ride with me."
Lian gave one last sniff, then shook her head. "I think I'm all right now, I can ride Hoshi."
"Are you certain?" Faith asked, concerned. The girl nodded, and without even being called for Hoshi sprang towards her Mistress, nuzzling her once before she mounted. Lian hugged her around the neck, then waited for the others to mount their horses.
As they rode, going as fast as they dared on the uneven path, Faith looked up to the roof of the forest, where the great canopy of trees blocked most of the sunlight.
"Please Valar," she thought, "let us live through this."
*~*~*~*~*
They found another pile of corpses before sunset. Magen said they looked like they were a relief squad, probably heading towards one of the lookout posts. Lian didn't even look as they passed, yet she could not escape the now familiar scent of death, though she tried with all her might.
Even in the dark they rode, slower than they had in daylight, but still as fast as they could. They did not stop to make camp, fearing the possibilities that a break could bring. It was with much relief that they broke out of that accursed forest, finally coming before the Gates of Mirkwood. Lian let out a sob of relief as she saw the patrols of elves, all alive and well. One group came up to them, barring their way with arrows and swords.
"Who are you, and what business do you have here?" one of them, presumably the captain, asked.
Faith, ever in the lead, spoke first. "I am Faith, ruler of the Elvenhome Rivendell. Friend am I to you king, Legolas of Mirkwood. We have passed through much to stand before his highness, and we request permission to pass."
"We know you, Faith of Rivendell, and passage you shall have. But what of your companions, who remain unnamed?"
Faith smiled slightly in the darkness. "My companions are Magen of Rivendell, an elf of esteem whose name you undoubtedly know; the brothers Anto and Anil also travel with me, loyal guards from my home. With us is my niece, Lian of Gondor, the daughter of King Elessar and Queen Undomiel, and three of her personal guards from her realm."
The captain nodded, though none could really see the motion in the darkness. "You may pass," he agreed. "Eron," he called out, and another elf stepped forward. "Lead out guests inside, and see that they are well cared for.
"Yes sir," Eron replied. "Follow me please." He was suddenly off, Faith and the rest leading their horses behind him. In almost no time, they had passed through the grand gates and were inside the great building, one that was practically built into the hill.
Immediately elves came to the group, wordlessly taking the reins of the horses and leading them off to the stables. Faith came forward to speak with Eron, who was revealed to be a rather old elf.
"I need immediate audience with his royal majesty, please," she said, trying to mask the urgency in her voice.
"I shall see if that can be arranged, highness," Eron answered formally.
Lian had already forgotten the horrors of the forest as she looked at her surroundings. Everything was so beautiful, so perfect, she felt as if she had strayed into a dream.
Or perhaps a nightmare.
At that moment they had come to the bottom of a grand stair. Lian looked up, and felt her whole world shift under her feet.
There was Galen at the top, looking more handsome than she had ever seen him. And on his arm, was one of the most beautiful elf-maidens in all of Middle-Earth.
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hehe... how was that? Did ya like my little cliffie at the end? *evil grin*
Well, again, I'm really sorry that this has taken so long to post! I apologize in advance for really atrocious spelling/grammatical errors... my computer is being really funny, it won't let me go back and edit things without deleting everything! Oh, and another apology is for Mirkwood. It is built into a hillish thing, isn't it? I really need to find my copy of The Hobbit, I'm sorry!
Okay, I've got some thanking to do now!!!
Quiet One- Ah buddy, what can I say... your reviews crack me
up! (~Kolia: Oh, poor Anto, give him a
hug for me!
Farin: Hey, don't hug him!
Quiet One: Will you all shut your mouth and read!!!!) hehehe.... I'm
glad all you guys like reading Lian (Lian: hi Farin!!!
Me: *locks Lian in closet*) My OCs
(minus Lian) would like to respond to yours.
Anto: (to Anelith) heh, yea, sometimes they are more trouble than they're worth.... *smacks self on head* well, not Her, the one I love.... *swoons*...
Anto: (to Kolia) well...I wouldn't mind if /you/ hugged me.... *dashing grin*
Me: *bonks Anto on head, locks him in closet too*
Me: (to Jeron) ah, unfortunately Faith cannot answer, being that she is not my OC, I merely borrowed her from my genius friend, Lani. I'm sure she'd agree tho!
Me: (to Jeron again) hehe, yes, you may call me Hollie! (as long as I can call you Jeron) aw, thanks so much, you're too sweet! (I don't know why Quiet One complains, she seems to have such nice, sweet OCs... lucky duckie!)
Me: (to Quiet One) yes, you would've thought Haldir would figure it out!!! Man,... Oh, and I will give Anto a hug from you guys... I hope his head doesn't become too swollen. And don't worry Farin, all the girls over here just love you! *Kelly pops up* Kelly: I don't... but Lian's obsessed... so I guess that makes up for it.
Me: whoo... this thank you is getting long! Anyways, thanks again (all of you!)
Lani- Was Faith okay in this chapter? Was the Eomer bit too much? Do you want me to give stuff away..... ??? ah, thanks for the lovely reviews, and for the use of your lovely character! I honestly don't know what I'd do without her! And thanks for the details about Faith's involvement in the Battle... that'll be very helpful! Ooh.... I like the Eomer idea.... do you mind if I use it? That would be very, very good..... =D ah, thanks again my friend, as always, you are so awesome!!! (oh, btw... when will we get to see more of your amazing poetry???)
FalconSong- Thank you so much! Hope this was good!
Ailin- Aw, thank you! I love the enthusiasm! Thank you!
Sarai Ice-Elf- hey, I'm soooo glad that you like this! And I can't wait for you to write another story... The Wave Warrior was sooo good... I'm still sad that it's over! I liked the happy ending though.... and I'm waiting on the epilogue! =D
Queen Libby- well thanks so much for reviewing it now! I'm really glad that you enjoyed it... I love it when people like my work! Thanks again!
Faery Tragedy- Ah, cool new name! I'm glad that your back, and I'm glad that the poetic style is back! I fear that I may have lost it in this chapter... *sigh* I dunno. Please, let me know... I can count on you to tell me! Thanks again for r/r-ing this, its sooo helpful!
Okay, I think that's it.... my deepest apologies if anyone was forgotten!
Thanks for reading this chapter, I hope it was worth you time!
Always,
~Hollie
oh, yes, the translations---
* "Farewell Arwen. May your ways be green and golden."
**"Sweet water and light laughter till next we meet."
*** "Ever is thy sight a joy."
**** "Thank you my friend, farewell."