@Young Storyteller : It's nice to know that somebody else also caught the ROTK bug just like me. Let's suffer together!
@beginning-end-14 :It's Legolas' poster, of course! I tried to get one of Gimli but no such luck! And yes, I'm very lucky to be able to get the premier tickets. But I had to line up for hours!
@LegolasLover2003 ; Thank you, thank you. We just love sexy Legolas, don't we?
@Queen of Shadows : Yes. LOTR carnival. You're green with envy? Oh, it was you then! I thought it was the monster called Incredible Hulk! LOL!
@Lady Lenna ; Yes, girl. I'm the author. I hold the power over the story…and I will place as many cliffies as I want! Muahahaha!!!
@Sailor Elf : Thank you, mellon. I'll take up your suggestion.
@Karina : I'm waiting with bated breath for the site. Can't wait!
@Hp-Azn : I'll be eagerly giving you all those wonderful cliffies! He! He!
@Alkvingiel : Yes. I'm mad at Glorfindel too. And I plan to see ROTK for…uh…6 times at least?
@szhismine : She may be in this one (hint).
@Reianne : Really? Thank you for pointing that out. I'll make sure of it from this chapter on. And I believe you'll see more Nara/Legolas in this one. Be prepared for a surprise. Oh, I've read 'Perchance To A Dream'. It was awesome (though it's still ongoing). I went and reread it and found that you are right; they both started at quite the same manner. But don't worry. No intention of copying MN Theis, though. And I'm definitely going in a different direction.
@Aranel of Mirkwood : Yes, you better get some tissue. But I won't be making this very sad. It's a holiday season, mind you, with Christmas and all.
Thank you everyone for the get well wishes. I still have the flu but it's slowly receding. And to those who are having their exams, do your best and hope you excel. Good luck!
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Aragorn, King Elessar of Gondor and the founder of the ruling house of Telcontar, was silently seething.
The Haradrim were moving fast and fierce and unpredictably, like phantoms in the mist. The king's great anger was not fully caused by the wild clan's incessant rebellion, but was mostly triggered by his vassals' failure to stop it. Meetings after meetings, and councils after councils they had gone through, putting up strategies and plans to overcome the Haradrim. But so far, they were all for nothing.
Besides anger, Aragorn was also feeling worried—for his wife. He had been married to Arwen for seven months now, and it was a wonderful marriage. Never had he felt such happiness and full contentment before. But to be married to him, Arwen had given up her immortality, giving her place in Valinor to Frodo who was still suffering from the lingering effects for carrying the One Ring.
Arwen had a disturbing time adjusting to her new physical being. She just recovered from a severe cold, something very new and quite a terrifying experience for her. Apart from that, Arwen was also mourning her father. Lord Elrond had joined the ship that took Frodo the hobbit, Gandalf the wizard and Lady Galadriel of the Golden Woods to Valinor. Once in a while Aragorn would find his wife crying in their chamber, clutching one of Elrond's favorite books to her breast. Aragorn knew her sorrow would not last forever, but he couldn't stop worrying and feeling totally helpless. And those feelings combined were pressing him from all sides and he was surprised he didn't get a nervous breakdown from them.
Aragorn gazed sharply at the all faces surrounding the round table of the council chamber, his blue eyes cold and unyielding. His gaze rested longer on his elven friend who was the last to arrive for the meeting. Legolas stared back at him, unflinching. Due to the grim situation, there had been no jovial greetings between them both earlier, only an exchange of nodding heads and raised eyebrows.
"Asfahn, how many lives this time?" The king suddenly shot the question at the man sitting several seats away from Legolas' right.
"Fifty eight, my lord. Ten are badly injured," Lord Asfahn, one of Gondor's important noble men, replied.
Aragorn had already known of the answer but he had asked anyway for the benefit of the other council members who were still unaware of the total amount destruction brought onto the village of Colomar. Most of them couldn't help but flinch in dismay to hear it.
Legolas closed his eyes briefly in sorrow. "Ai Elbereth grace their souls," he softly whispered.
"Tell the council what had happened, Asfahn," Aragorn ordered. "From the beginning."
The man shifted in is seat with an air of importance before he began, "My men had found the tracks of the Haradrim near the village while they were out hunting several days prior to the attack. They quickly came to me, thinking that the wild clan was about to do something soon. Knowing how small my company is, I started to request help from nearby regions to impede the Haradrim. But alas, we were quite unlucky in that."
"And why is that?" Aragorn's voice grew colder and Legolas involuntarily shivered. There's something more to this, the elf thought, staring hard at his friend's stiff face.
"The nearest help is Emyn Arnen, but Lord Faramir is away. So we hurriedly went on next to Lord Legolas' keep but…"
Legolas frowned. When did this happen? I know nothing of his arrival. He kept his sharp stare on Asfahn as the man continued, "But Lord Legolas wasn't available, and his fellow elves were incapable to lend aid. They were too busy—planting trees!"
What the…! Legolas felt his mouth drop open in shock. Where did that come from?
Asfahn only shrugged back at him. Before Legolas could respond though, the man resumed speaking, "My company had no other choice but to rush back to Colomar. But by then, it was too late. We had wasted our time in Lord Legolas' keep for nothing while the village burned to ashes."
"Now wait just a minute…" Legolas sputtered. He tried to say more but words deserted him, so shocked he was with the unexpected twist of situation. Everyone was staring back at him. Some were accusing and reproachful, while the rest looked as stunned as he was. Prince Imrahil of Dol Amroth sent him a sympathetic gaze, understanding the elf's predicament for being put in such a tight spot.
"Legolas, you have something to add?" Aragorn's voice suddenly cut through the tense silence.
Still speechless, Legolas managed to say, "I believe I do." He looked straight at Aragorn before turning back to Asfahn. "I did not know you came to my keep, Lord Asfahn. When was this?"
"Two nights ago," Asfahn easily answered. "Where were you?"
"I was…" At this, Legolas stalled. Two nights ago, like several nights beforehand, he had locked himself inside his chamber, pleading not to be disturbed. The affliction was too bad for him during those nights and he couldn't bear to have anyone witnessing his pain and misery. He had been crying and sobbing for no reason as his heart wrenched in every direction. It was degrading enough to experience such a malady. But it would be even more humiliating to gain spectators.
"I…I was indisposed," he finished lamely. Aragorn narrowed his eyes. One noble man chose that moment to jump in, "That is an unacceptable excuse! Elves like you do not get sick! "
"That's correct! Is your kind so high and mighty that you would not lift a finger to help us humans?" another man cried out. Soon, the whole table erupted in loud voices as the council members demanded an explanation from the elf.
Legolas just sat there, shaking his head in dismay. How did it come to this? Why am I suddenly the enemy? Being the only elf in the council—as he had left his escorts outside in the hall—he couldn't help but feel intimidated by the whole commotion.
"Silence!" Aragorn roared. "I do not need this on top of everything else!"
The table went quiet once more as the king glared at each one of them. Aragorn then turned to his friend. "What say you, Legolas?"
The prince took some time to reply. "I do not know where such notions come from, that we elves will not help the men of Gondor," he said "We take highly of the old alliance between men and elves, never doubt it. In fact, we have been making daily rounds and campaigns like we had promised in the previous meetings to chase the Haradrim away, and kill them if necessary. Unfortunately, they managed to elude us, as if knowing our every move."
"Your so called campaigns are useless then," one of the men said in disgust. "Another village was destroyed yesterday!"
"What else do you want me to do?!" Legolas fumed as his temper began to flare. He had had enough of them dumping all the blame on his lap. "I don't see you chipping in your effort!"
The man cursed in reply, glowering at the prince. Legolas turned to Aragorn. "Are you actually letting this?"
Aragorn sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in weariness. "Legolas, you said you made rounds to monitor the Haradrim' movements."
"We did."
"Did that include Colomar?"
"Absolutely."
"Then why didn't you find their tracks around the village whereas Asfahn's men did? The elves are the better tracker than them."
Legolas hesitated before answering in resigned voice, "I don't know."
Aragorn's eyes widened. "You don't know? Weren't you out making rounds yourself?"
"No, I wasn't. I was…" Legolas glanced uncertainly at Aragorn. Surely I should not explain my affliction in front of all of these men? "Well, I…"
"What the blazes have you been doing then?!" Aragorn exploded, finally losing his patience. "First, they told me you didn't answer Asfahn's request for help, now you're saying you know nothing of your company's rounds? I'm totally confused, Legolas. Again, I ask you, what have you been doing?"
Legolas stared in silence at the handsome yet formidable looking man who was also his sworn brother, the friend that had shared his tears and laughter. Aragorn was not only a close companion to the elven prince. He was now a king of a reunified kingdom, the one that had been rebuilt on the cost of blood and unaccountable lives. Legolas understood how stressful it was to govern such a big kingdom as Gondor. The pressure was putting its toll on Aragorn and Legolas could see it clearly in his friend's eyes. Still, he couldn't help but feel hurt by the king's words. Instead of replying though, Legolas shamefully averted his gaze and stared at the marble surface of the table in front of him.
That only made Aragorn angrier. "You wouldn't even have the grace to explain? Ai Elbereth!" He abruptly turned around to face the wall. Closing his eyes shut, the man began counting to ten inside his head—a trick he had learned from Lord Elrond to calm himself down. It didn't work this time. In fact, it only made his blood boil.
Aragorn swirled back around and glared at Legolas. "Fine. Don't bother to explain. It won't make much difference anyway. But remember this; as long as you are under oath as my vassal, I fully expect your full commitment in your responsibility to keep Gondor safe. If you have problems with that then make sure you let me know soon so I can figure out something else to rectify the situation, is that clear?"
Legolas heard the words but he could hardly believe them. His own anger was quickly soaring but he put a lid to it, saying absolutely nothing. No use for us to go at each other's throat.
Aragorn was still waiting for a response. "Legolas, is that clear?!"
The elf gradually looked up then to stare directly at his friend. "Yes, my lord."
The king slightly flinched. Legolas may be his vassal, but the elf was a noble born prince of his own right. Aragorn had insisted that Legolas never address him that way. To hear the elf calling him his lord was not only awkward, but also downright upsetting. And so was the dangerous glint in Legolas' bright silver eyes. There was fury there, as well as something else that was akin to pain and guilt.
Aragorn had to look quickly away from that stormy gaze before his nerves crumbled. "That goes to the rest of you!" he declared, staring at the faces of the council members around the table. "I will not tolerate any laxity or negligence from now on. The Haradrim must be stopped at all costs before more lives are jeopardized. I want more patrols outside Minas Tirith and the surrounding ground, as far as the land of Harad if you had to! No more deaths of my people after this, make sure of it!"
Turning to Imrahil, Aragorn said, "Dol Amroth is the closest to the sea. Your fleet must guarantee that no more Haradrim get onto this land through there. Emyn Arnen and Southern Ithilien should have completely covered all the accesses from the desert by now." The king then appointed two of the men to look over matters concerning the welfare of the Colomar villagers. He also stressed the importance to warn the other villages and towns still untouched by the Haradrim of the impending threat.
"Tell the people to be prepared. I don't want them to be defenseless in any unexpected attacks like what happened in Colomar. Make sure they have enough weapons and men to defend themselves in such situation." He stared hard at them all. "And get rid of the Haradrim off Gondor land—once and for all—before I declare War! The meeting's adjourned!"
With that announcement, Aragorn whirled to stare at the Ecthelion Tower through the opened window. There were sounds of scraping chairs and shuffling feet behind him as the council members took their leave. He didn't know how long he stood that way but when he turned back around a while later, he found himself completely alone. The meeting hall was now empty.
And of Legolas, there was no sign of him. His elven friend had left without even saying goodbye.
TBC…