A/N: Did I throw you all for a loop with Théodred still being alive and
Boromir being Mr. Evilpants? Well, try not to worry too much about the
Boromir thing, I know he's being all weird now, but the explanations are to
come chapter by chapter. Hope you all don't mind! There will be answers
eventually. Patience dearies! And did anyone know that Théodred is like,
40 years old? Hmm. . . I'm losing my marbles. Oh! And thank-you all for
the great critical reviews, it really helps me so much! And don't worry,
nothing bad happens in this chapter, just a bit more enjoyment and reading
material, along with the usual chitter-chatter. So I'll leave you now and
say: Enjoy!
ELLI'S POV
I didn't know what Caitlin was trying to pull, but I knew that for the last two nights she had gone out to see Legolas. What did she take me for, a dingbat?
I had bumped into Théodred on out third day at the Golden Hall. I had visited with Éowyn again; she said she would be leaving the healing chamber later that day, and I had even spent a few good hours talking with her brother. He was a really handsome fellow, strong and sure of himself. I left feeling very gay and happy. That was until I came back my chamber and found that Caitlin was gone.
Looking around, I noticed that nothing was made neat, and a scattering of clothes told me that she had attempted to change into something other than her pajama-looking things. All her weapons were in tact. . . except for her dagger. Fearing the worst, I grabbed my cloak and bolted out of the room and down the halls.
Flying past a confused guard, I yelled back sorry and kept running. Where was she? Was she in trouble? Had someone tried to barge into the room and harm her? Had it been Boromir? These thought fluttered thru my mind as I made my way out into the cold. I didn't know where I was going, but I kept running. The only thought I had was that something had happened in the room, she had grabbed the daggers and made a mad dash to escape her predator. I hadn't a clue where I was planning on finding her. Maybe I was looking for someone who would be able to help me? I kept on running. Until I finally saw her.
She was a few feet from the Hall, standing with the dagger firmly in her hand and aiming it at her target. She was standing next to Legolas. And they were practicing. They were on the practice field, and he was teaching her how to throw a dagger.
I gave her a mad glare for scaring the heck out of me. She finally noticed it a moment later. She smiled, and then raised an eyebrow.
"What did I do?" she asked as I scowled at her.
"Leave a note next time," I grumbled loudly, and then headed off again, leaving the two lovebirds to their happy games.
CAITLIN'S POV
I watched Elli walking away and I wondered what I had done wrong. She had been gone when I woke up, and I realized that it was Legolas who was prodding me awake with his fingers. He wanted to know if I wished to practice some forms of self-defense. So, in a rush, I threw things around the room in order to dress myself, leaving Legolas's head under a spare shirt so he couldn't see a damn thing. Once dressed, I grabbed the daggers, left the room in chaos, and left for the practice field. And apparently, Elli was mad that I didn't know how to clean up after myself. I didn't have time little woman! Geez, was she really gonna get so angry with me about that?
Throwing the dagger, I just barely hit the target, and looked up to see Legolas smiling at my progress.
"You have done some nice work this morning. I am proud with how good you are becoming. But I think we should stop for now." Disappointed but determined not to show it, I placed the dagger back in it's sheath and we headed back into the Golden Hall.
I was hungry, and also curious to talk to Elli about her show-up on the practice field, and Legolas said he wanted to see if Éowyn had been released from care yet. So, grabbing an apple from a nearby table, I headed off to my chamber with Elli.
But when I walked in and put down my dagger, I noticed that Elli wasn't there at all, and there were no signs she'd even been here recently. Plopping down upon the furry rugs, I relaxed a bit. Maybe Elli would show up in a few minutes or something, looking for me once more. But why would she had run all the way down the practice field just to yell at me? What was she had grumbled? Something about leaving a note, was it?
Letting it go, I lay back and closed my eyes, but opened them up a few minutes later when I heard a gentle rapping at the door. Hauling myself up, I went to open it, unsure of who would knock so nicely, and was somewhat perturbed when I found Boromir.
"Oh!" I remarked, trying not to sound startled. "Uh, hello Boromir."
"Good day, Caitlin," he began. "Would it be alright if we had a talk."
"Uh. . ." I took a quick look around the room. Too messy; he might be offended. What the hell was I thinking, did everything have to be proper in this world, or was I just faking it? But I looked back at Boromir and answered anyway. "We could talk outside. The room is uh. . . umm. . ."
"So, I see," he chuckled. "Very well. Then grab your cloak and we will talk outside. It shouldn't take very long, our conversation."
"Ok," I nodded, shakily. What the hell was he getting at? But, without asking any more questions I snatched my cloak and hurried after the Gondorian, closing the door behind me. I securely attached my Lothlorien cloak, trying to keep the chill out as we exited the doors and walked along the wall.
"I wanted to apologize for my behavior as of recently, Caitlin," he stated bluntly, not bothering to waste any time on this conversation. "I know that it was uncalled for and alarming. I meant no harm, really." He paused here, looking at me with an unrecognizable face. He then continued as he turned back away from me. "I do not know what came over me that day, but whatever it was, I will suppress it and try not to scare you like that again."
He had turned back to look at me again, and so I faced him. I found it very hard to look him in the eye, though. I began fiddling with a chain around my neck, one that bore the present Galadriel had given me when we left Lothlorien. It was the star pendant, shining with silver light and also incredibly beautiful, in an elven sort of way.
"I just wanted to say I am sorry, Lady Caitlin," he said once more. This time he took one of my hands in his, and I turned my head down to see my little pale hand sandwiched between his huge bear paws.
I really didn't know what to say. All I could do was nod my head. He slowly let go of my hand with a faint smile, but then his eyes fell on the pendant. He stared at it a moment, lost in thought. I saw a hungry look beginning to form in his eyes, and trying to back away, I suddenly remembered that he was grasping one of my hands. He tightened his grip, and pulled me closer. His eyes never left the treasure around my neck. One of his hands held my wrist in place, while his other hand let go and moved up slowly, reaching out to touch the shining star.
I began to shake, fearful of what he was doing and scared that he might hurt me. Sure, he meant me no harm, but then he went and pulled a three- sixty like this and what was I supposed to think?!
"Boromir," I whispered, my voice soft and nearly lost in the gusting wind. "Boromir - please....let me go, please?" I asked, my voice quivering.
He seemed to suddenly realize where he was. His eyes became more focused after blinking a few times, and they lost their darkness. He let go of my hands in a sudden jerk, smiled at me with a forced nod, and walked away.
I was even more scared of him now than I ever was.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Elli was back in the room when I returned a long while later.
She was no longer scowling, but she didn't look thrilled to see me at first. The confused and scared expression on my face must have changed that though. Before she could say a word, I spoke first.
"I -I just had a talk with Boromir," I replied, stuttering to get the words out. Elli's eyes widened. "Or rather," I continued. "He apologized, but then moved in again as if he had changed his mind once more about raping me."
"What did he say?" Elli squeaked. She seemed just as perturbed as I was.
"He said he knows he's been acting weird, but then he did it again!" I remarked, sitting myself on the floor.
"Did what again?" Elli asked, moving closer to me.
"He...he got this, look in his eyes. Like he was madly in love with me or something, lusting for me even, which is scary to say the least. But -but then he couldn't take his eyes off my pendant."
"What pendant?" Elli interrupted.
I pulled it out from under my tunic. "This one," I answered, showing it to her. "Galadriel's parting-gift to me." Elli leaned over and toyed with the pendant with her fingertips a moment. She seemed to be studying it with her brows knitted in concentration.
"This has elven light in it, unless I'm mistaken," Elli said in a tone of know-it-all importance. "He might be attracted to this, rather than to the One Ring. That doesn't really add up, but it's just a suggestion, a guess on my part..." Her voice faded as she buried her mind in thought.
"So wait. You're telling me that he's in love with me because of this dang thing around my neck?" I shrieked. 'Well that's an all time love," I sobbed.
"I said it was a guess Caitlin, I could be wrong."
I nodded, then changed the subject. "So why were you so mad at me when you saw me on the practice field."
Elli looked up at me, scowling once more. "Because you left the room in disarray and I thought you were in trouble!"
I tried not to let out a snort. "Why would you think that?" I asked, hiding my smile behind my hand.
"Because your dagger was missing, the room was a disaster and....and what was I supposed to think? That's you'd just wandered off in a hurry to go practice?" she bellowed, waving her hands in the air.
"YES!" I cried back, fuming, but attempting to stifle my laughter at her ignorance.
Elli just wrapped her arms around her knees. "Oh," she remarked quietly. "Well now I feel stupid."
I let out a very loud sigh. "Come here you," I smiled, crawling closer and pulling her into a warm embrace. Elli laughed into the crook in my elbow, and hugged me in return. Damn could she be a pain in the neck.
~*~*~*~*~*~
"Well, that settles it," Elli remarked, returning from the hallway and joining me on the floor.
"What did he say?" I asked. Éomer had stopped by the room, and Elli had gone out into the hall to talk to him. She had just come back with some answers. "Éowyn has been released from the Healing Chambers, Gandalf has talked with the King, and in the morning we are leaving for Helm's Deep."
"Well, should we pack now and sleep late then?" I asked, surveying the room with a smirk.
"You're actually gonna sleep tonight?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at me. I turned my head away, turning a few shades of red. She knew?! She knew I had spent the last two nights sight-seeing with Legolas? And she didn't let on that she knew! What a brat . . .
"I'll sleep eventually. I need to talk to him though."
Elli let out a short, little laugh. "Fine, I ain't stopping you. Just make sure you're packed and ready in the morning, so I don't have to do it for you!"
"Hey, I carried your pack around for you when you were kidnapped by orcs! The least you can do is cut me some slack now!"
"I am," she retorted kindly. "I'm telling you to go and stand guard with Legolas. Ask him about the pendant while you're at it."
I nodded and left with my dagger stashed into my belt. It was late and I was sure Legolas would be out there shortly.
~*~*~*~*~*~
"Boromir apologized to me earlier," I told him, as we stood watch. We'd been out there in the chill for the past hour. I had yet to bring up Galadriel's gift to me. It hung like a cold finger on my collarbone right now.
"He did?" Legolas asked alarmed, but trying his best to sound quite calm. "What did he say? What happened?"
"Well. . . he seemed fine, telling me he knew he had gone out of lines. That is until he saw this," I said, and placed the pendant on the palm of my hand and turned it for Legolas to see. He came closer, taking the pendant into his own soft fingers. He fiddled with it a moment.
"Where did you get such a beautiful thing as this?" he asked in a slight tone of amazement.
"It was Galadriel's parting-gift to me," I stated plainly.
He stared at it a long time, seeming to be lost in thought. I saw a look of happiness and pleasure come into play in his eyes, but it was soon lost to a gentler look. "This has elven life in it," he said, looking up and into my own eyes. I could tell he was startled by such a realization, but I was lost on why this was important.
"And what's the big deal with that?" I asked him, his hands still holding the silver twinkling star.
"Galadriel has given you a piece of the elven immortality. You are becoming more and more of an elf as the days pass. This has probably attracted Boromir to you."
I'd stopped listening at that point. Why would Galadriel feel she had to give me elven light? Was she trying to tell me something? Was is possible she was certain we'd never get home, and that I was just destined to become and elf? I didn't want to be immortal, not even if it meant spending my days forever with Legolas. I didn't want that. I wanted to go home someday.
Legolas dropped the star back onto my chest, his fingers halting a minute on my skin until he finally removed them. I shivered, unsure of what the reason for it was. His eyes stayed in their gentle hues, but I didn't look up to acknowledge them.
I placed my fingers on the pendant. Legolas stood at my side and placed a soothing hand on my shoulder.
"You should sleep, Caitlin," he crooned. "You will be waking up early. Go inside, ease your mind of all your troublesome thoughts." He touched his fingertips to my temple. I looked up at him, and knowing he was right, placed my hand on top of his and walked towards the door. I left the elven prince to stand guard on our last night, unsure of what to think anymore. I should have been thrilled, ecstatic, excited beyond belief. Instead I felt somewhat hallow.
Why had she given this to me? What did she know? And why hadn't she told us?
(A/N: apologizes now because the next chapter will be delayed longer than usual. School work, work on other fanfics I'm trying to get out to you by May. Also, apologizes that it might not be an LoTR fanfic. Don't hates me! But please, read, review, ya get cookies.)
ELLI'S POV
I didn't know what Caitlin was trying to pull, but I knew that for the last two nights she had gone out to see Legolas. What did she take me for, a dingbat?
I had bumped into Théodred on out third day at the Golden Hall. I had visited with Éowyn again; she said she would be leaving the healing chamber later that day, and I had even spent a few good hours talking with her brother. He was a really handsome fellow, strong and sure of himself. I left feeling very gay and happy. That was until I came back my chamber and found that Caitlin was gone.
Looking around, I noticed that nothing was made neat, and a scattering of clothes told me that she had attempted to change into something other than her pajama-looking things. All her weapons were in tact. . . except for her dagger. Fearing the worst, I grabbed my cloak and bolted out of the room and down the halls.
Flying past a confused guard, I yelled back sorry and kept running. Where was she? Was she in trouble? Had someone tried to barge into the room and harm her? Had it been Boromir? These thought fluttered thru my mind as I made my way out into the cold. I didn't know where I was going, but I kept running. The only thought I had was that something had happened in the room, she had grabbed the daggers and made a mad dash to escape her predator. I hadn't a clue where I was planning on finding her. Maybe I was looking for someone who would be able to help me? I kept on running. Until I finally saw her.
She was a few feet from the Hall, standing with the dagger firmly in her hand and aiming it at her target. She was standing next to Legolas. And they were practicing. They were on the practice field, and he was teaching her how to throw a dagger.
I gave her a mad glare for scaring the heck out of me. She finally noticed it a moment later. She smiled, and then raised an eyebrow.
"What did I do?" she asked as I scowled at her.
"Leave a note next time," I grumbled loudly, and then headed off again, leaving the two lovebirds to their happy games.
CAITLIN'S POV
I watched Elli walking away and I wondered what I had done wrong. She had been gone when I woke up, and I realized that it was Legolas who was prodding me awake with his fingers. He wanted to know if I wished to practice some forms of self-defense. So, in a rush, I threw things around the room in order to dress myself, leaving Legolas's head under a spare shirt so he couldn't see a damn thing. Once dressed, I grabbed the daggers, left the room in chaos, and left for the practice field. And apparently, Elli was mad that I didn't know how to clean up after myself. I didn't have time little woman! Geez, was she really gonna get so angry with me about that?
Throwing the dagger, I just barely hit the target, and looked up to see Legolas smiling at my progress.
"You have done some nice work this morning. I am proud with how good you are becoming. But I think we should stop for now." Disappointed but determined not to show it, I placed the dagger back in it's sheath and we headed back into the Golden Hall.
I was hungry, and also curious to talk to Elli about her show-up on the practice field, and Legolas said he wanted to see if Éowyn had been released from care yet. So, grabbing an apple from a nearby table, I headed off to my chamber with Elli.
But when I walked in and put down my dagger, I noticed that Elli wasn't there at all, and there were no signs she'd even been here recently. Plopping down upon the furry rugs, I relaxed a bit. Maybe Elli would show up in a few minutes or something, looking for me once more. But why would she had run all the way down the practice field just to yell at me? What was she had grumbled? Something about leaving a note, was it?
Letting it go, I lay back and closed my eyes, but opened them up a few minutes later when I heard a gentle rapping at the door. Hauling myself up, I went to open it, unsure of who would knock so nicely, and was somewhat perturbed when I found Boromir.
"Oh!" I remarked, trying not to sound startled. "Uh, hello Boromir."
"Good day, Caitlin," he began. "Would it be alright if we had a talk."
"Uh. . ." I took a quick look around the room. Too messy; he might be offended. What the hell was I thinking, did everything have to be proper in this world, or was I just faking it? But I looked back at Boromir and answered anyway. "We could talk outside. The room is uh. . . umm. . ."
"So, I see," he chuckled. "Very well. Then grab your cloak and we will talk outside. It shouldn't take very long, our conversation."
"Ok," I nodded, shakily. What the hell was he getting at? But, without asking any more questions I snatched my cloak and hurried after the Gondorian, closing the door behind me. I securely attached my Lothlorien cloak, trying to keep the chill out as we exited the doors and walked along the wall.
"I wanted to apologize for my behavior as of recently, Caitlin," he stated bluntly, not bothering to waste any time on this conversation. "I know that it was uncalled for and alarming. I meant no harm, really." He paused here, looking at me with an unrecognizable face. He then continued as he turned back away from me. "I do not know what came over me that day, but whatever it was, I will suppress it and try not to scare you like that again."
He had turned back to look at me again, and so I faced him. I found it very hard to look him in the eye, though. I began fiddling with a chain around my neck, one that bore the present Galadriel had given me when we left Lothlorien. It was the star pendant, shining with silver light and also incredibly beautiful, in an elven sort of way.
"I just wanted to say I am sorry, Lady Caitlin," he said once more. This time he took one of my hands in his, and I turned my head down to see my little pale hand sandwiched between his huge bear paws.
I really didn't know what to say. All I could do was nod my head. He slowly let go of my hand with a faint smile, but then his eyes fell on the pendant. He stared at it a moment, lost in thought. I saw a hungry look beginning to form in his eyes, and trying to back away, I suddenly remembered that he was grasping one of my hands. He tightened his grip, and pulled me closer. His eyes never left the treasure around my neck. One of his hands held my wrist in place, while his other hand let go and moved up slowly, reaching out to touch the shining star.
I began to shake, fearful of what he was doing and scared that he might hurt me. Sure, he meant me no harm, but then he went and pulled a three- sixty like this and what was I supposed to think?!
"Boromir," I whispered, my voice soft and nearly lost in the gusting wind. "Boromir - please....let me go, please?" I asked, my voice quivering.
He seemed to suddenly realize where he was. His eyes became more focused after blinking a few times, and they lost their darkness. He let go of my hands in a sudden jerk, smiled at me with a forced nod, and walked away.
I was even more scared of him now than I ever was.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Elli was back in the room when I returned a long while later.
She was no longer scowling, but she didn't look thrilled to see me at first. The confused and scared expression on my face must have changed that though. Before she could say a word, I spoke first.
"I -I just had a talk with Boromir," I replied, stuttering to get the words out. Elli's eyes widened. "Or rather," I continued. "He apologized, but then moved in again as if he had changed his mind once more about raping me."
"What did he say?" Elli squeaked. She seemed just as perturbed as I was.
"He said he knows he's been acting weird, but then he did it again!" I remarked, sitting myself on the floor.
"Did what again?" Elli asked, moving closer to me.
"He...he got this, look in his eyes. Like he was madly in love with me or something, lusting for me even, which is scary to say the least. But -but then he couldn't take his eyes off my pendant."
"What pendant?" Elli interrupted.
I pulled it out from under my tunic. "This one," I answered, showing it to her. "Galadriel's parting-gift to me." Elli leaned over and toyed with the pendant with her fingertips a moment. She seemed to be studying it with her brows knitted in concentration.
"This has elven light in it, unless I'm mistaken," Elli said in a tone of know-it-all importance. "He might be attracted to this, rather than to the One Ring. That doesn't really add up, but it's just a suggestion, a guess on my part..." Her voice faded as she buried her mind in thought.
"So wait. You're telling me that he's in love with me because of this dang thing around my neck?" I shrieked. 'Well that's an all time love," I sobbed.
"I said it was a guess Caitlin, I could be wrong."
I nodded, then changed the subject. "So why were you so mad at me when you saw me on the practice field."
Elli looked up at me, scowling once more. "Because you left the room in disarray and I thought you were in trouble!"
I tried not to let out a snort. "Why would you think that?" I asked, hiding my smile behind my hand.
"Because your dagger was missing, the room was a disaster and....and what was I supposed to think? That's you'd just wandered off in a hurry to go practice?" she bellowed, waving her hands in the air.
"YES!" I cried back, fuming, but attempting to stifle my laughter at her ignorance.
Elli just wrapped her arms around her knees. "Oh," she remarked quietly. "Well now I feel stupid."
I let out a very loud sigh. "Come here you," I smiled, crawling closer and pulling her into a warm embrace. Elli laughed into the crook in my elbow, and hugged me in return. Damn could she be a pain in the neck.
~*~*~*~*~*~
"Well, that settles it," Elli remarked, returning from the hallway and joining me on the floor.
"What did he say?" I asked. Éomer had stopped by the room, and Elli had gone out into the hall to talk to him. She had just come back with some answers. "Éowyn has been released from the Healing Chambers, Gandalf has talked with the King, and in the morning we are leaving for Helm's Deep."
"Well, should we pack now and sleep late then?" I asked, surveying the room with a smirk.
"You're actually gonna sleep tonight?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at me. I turned my head away, turning a few shades of red. She knew?! She knew I had spent the last two nights sight-seeing with Legolas? And she didn't let on that she knew! What a brat . . .
"I'll sleep eventually. I need to talk to him though."
Elli let out a short, little laugh. "Fine, I ain't stopping you. Just make sure you're packed and ready in the morning, so I don't have to do it for you!"
"Hey, I carried your pack around for you when you were kidnapped by orcs! The least you can do is cut me some slack now!"
"I am," she retorted kindly. "I'm telling you to go and stand guard with Legolas. Ask him about the pendant while you're at it."
I nodded and left with my dagger stashed into my belt. It was late and I was sure Legolas would be out there shortly.
~*~*~*~*~*~
"Boromir apologized to me earlier," I told him, as we stood watch. We'd been out there in the chill for the past hour. I had yet to bring up Galadriel's gift to me. It hung like a cold finger on my collarbone right now.
"He did?" Legolas asked alarmed, but trying his best to sound quite calm. "What did he say? What happened?"
"Well. . . he seemed fine, telling me he knew he had gone out of lines. That is until he saw this," I said, and placed the pendant on the palm of my hand and turned it for Legolas to see. He came closer, taking the pendant into his own soft fingers. He fiddled with it a moment.
"Where did you get such a beautiful thing as this?" he asked in a slight tone of amazement.
"It was Galadriel's parting-gift to me," I stated plainly.
He stared at it a long time, seeming to be lost in thought. I saw a look of happiness and pleasure come into play in his eyes, but it was soon lost to a gentler look. "This has elven life in it," he said, looking up and into my own eyes. I could tell he was startled by such a realization, but I was lost on why this was important.
"And what's the big deal with that?" I asked him, his hands still holding the silver twinkling star.
"Galadriel has given you a piece of the elven immortality. You are becoming more and more of an elf as the days pass. This has probably attracted Boromir to you."
I'd stopped listening at that point. Why would Galadriel feel she had to give me elven light? Was she trying to tell me something? Was is possible she was certain we'd never get home, and that I was just destined to become and elf? I didn't want to be immortal, not even if it meant spending my days forever with Legolas. I didn't want that. I wanted to go home someday.
Legolas dropped the star back onto my chest, his fingers halting a minute on my skin until he finally removed them. I shivered, unsure of what the reason for it was. His eyes stayed in their gentle hues, but I didn't look up to acknowledge them.
I placed my fingers on the pendant. Legolas stood at my side and placed a soothing hand on my shoulder.
"You should sleep, Caitlin," he crooned. "You will be waking up early. Go inside, ease your mind of all your troublesome thoughts." He touched his fingertips to my temple. I looked up at him, and knowing he was right, placed my hand on top of his and walked towards the door. I left the elven prince to stand guard on our last night, unsure of what to think anymore. I should have been thrilled, ecstatic, excited beyond belief. Instead I felt somewhat hallow.
Why had she given this to me? What did she know? And why hadn't she told us?
(A/N: apologizes now because the next chapter will be delayed longer than usual. School work, work on other fanfics I'm trying to get out to you by May. Also, apologizes that it might not be an LoTR fanfic. Don't hates me! But please, read, review, ya get cookies.)