Chapter 3. A name
Legolas watched as leaves and twigs fell from the woman's body, Tanaearien's body he reminded himself, he was curious to see how the tiny form he had held in his cupped hands so many years of man ago had grown, no more so than the interest he had in a tree he had watched grow from a tiny acorn he told himself. Beside him, the forest, older even than himself he guessed, rustled and seemed to shift under the weight of the rain, positioning themselves to best take advantage of the moisture. The moisture that was slowly creeping its way under his hair and down his back and it was a little uncomfortable. And it looked like Tanaearien had taken great pains to hide as much of her body as possible, in fact the only part of her he could see was still her eyes.
"Perhaps we should find some shelter." If it were just Gimli and himself he wouldn't have bothered a little voice inside his mind pointed out, in fact Tanae actually seemed to be enjoying it. Her arms were held out wide from her body, her face was turned up and her eyes were closed. Legolas instinctively checked for danger as Gimli shook himself.
"Blasted rain!" Gimli said loudly and then looked at Tanaearien who looked and smelt a lot less like a rotting log, "At least you're getting your bath."
"A bath, now *that* would be something I could happily endure right now, warm water... soap... and towels..." Tanae's voice was dreamy as she spoke, in stark contrast to the pouring rain and the Warg carcasses lying around them. "Lucky you're out here with me." Legolas caught the cheeky glitter in Tanae's eye only a second before Gimli.
"Grufnsk..he he he he!" Gimli chortled and tried to wring some of the rainwater out of his beard. "If you can find a dry place my pointy eared friend I'll occupy it."
"Good point." Legolas looked towards the west and saw blue sky. "It won't be raining for much longer, Arod" Legolas called and the horse ambled over, Legolas scratched the spot on Arod's nose he knew the horse liked and spoke quietly in Elvish. The Horse whickered and then turned and trotted away. "We should move on."
"He says that a lot lass. I never got your name." Gimli smiled at their new companion.
"My name?" Tanaearien looked at Gimli in surprise.
"You do have a name?" Gimli prompted, when she didn't answer straight away Gimli slid at look at Legolas, who looked a lot less perturbed than he should have in Gimli's opinion, in fact he looked like all his arrows had come at once, surprisingly happy and a little mystified and a little scared, if the Elf could look scared Gimli harrumphed. Looked like he'd have to do the investigating, that was no problem he was renown for his subtlety. "Everyone has a name, and before I call you friend I would like to know what it is lass."
"I have a name..." Tanaearien seemed to shrink in on herself and Legolas looked on in concern, he wondered if she ever wondered if she looked like her parents at all. Through the grime the rain hadn't managed to rinse off even he couldn't tell which parent she favored. It was sort of amusing to guess at what was under all that ingrained dirt, for an elf she was very young, as a human he realized she would be considered well past her prime. Legolas admitted he was even more curious, he looked directly at the girl and she shrank a little more, he pondered the feeling he had that she'd spent a lot of time in her short life making herself invisible.
"Mouse." He said softly and by the quick jerk of her head Legolas knew he'd hit on the right name.
"How did you.? You're an Elf." Mouse looked up at him with wide eyes. "You have some sort of mind reading ability?" She asked, a hint of distrust in her voice.
"It seemed like the right name," Legolas said simply, not even considering telling her that she looked more like a drowned rat with rainwater plastering the few greasy strands of hair escaping from under a shapeless knitted hat that dripped onto her nose for a good few seconds before she swiped at it. He briefly considered telling her that he had no sort of 'mind reading' skill but decided it wasn't necessarily something she really needed to know.
An Elf had to keep a few secrets to keep his companions guessing, in pained him to know that in a few short years many of the new friends he had made would be gone... they would die. Die. The word rolled around in his head like a dead weight and he felt the uncertainty that had come into his life with four tiny Hobbits, a Human and a Dwarf. Never before had he considered mortality, and never his own. Life had been precious but never so much as now.
"Mouse eh?" Gimli chuckled and then looked up at his tall friend, Legolas noticed he was being stared at and schooled is face into something resembling interest. "A Dwarf, an Elf and a Mouse who would predict that?"
"Not me Gimli my friend." Legolas said with a small smile, he looked to his right at the tangled 'face' of Fangorn and his excitement grew. He'd almost abandoned the quest of the ring when he'd seen the forest, but the plight of his comrades had drawn him back into the war. Now though he had time to explore. The trees were old, many older than himself, even in their anger there was latent wonder, he felt it, it made his ears tingle..? He turned to see that 'Mouse' had come to stand beside him. One thing was obvious she hadn't inherited her sire's height. Neither had Legolas actually desired to see the grass and twig adorned dripping mass that was the top of Mouse's headgear. "Lets go in."
"You really are going in?" Mouse looked up and Legolas resisted the urge to scratch his ears.
"Yes, you've been in there." He pointed out she looked back at the trees and then at him again, her eyes were becoming shadowed, she looked concerned. "There is no need to fear, I can sense most dangers."
"Oh I'm not afraid for me," Mouse said airily for some reason her tone made Legolas want to grind his teeth as well as scratch his ears, he couldn't remember being that uncomfortable since rinsing the Orc blood off his clothes. He waited, sort of patiently for Mouse to elaborate. "The tree's hardly ever try to harm me, but they don't know you two very well."
Legolas frowned at the trees before looking down with a wide smile, "They know us well enough. For the white wizard showed us a path not to long ago through the wood."
"Oh, ok." Mouse shrugged and slung her bow across her back, the casualness of the gesture doing nothing to disguise the care she put into it. "Do you always talk like that?" Mouse asked and Legolas looked at her blankly, "Nevermind." She was still plainly amused but he couldn't work out why, his method of speech was strange? Compared to what? He dismissed the thought.
A mouse Legolas thought instead, absently scratching at his ear until he caught Gimli staring at him. Trying not to look too guilty he settled the weight of his quiver, sheath and bow more solidly and grinned. "Come Gimli let us explore the forest."
"Ok we'll explore the forest, and if it doesn't eat us we'll be visiting the caves of Helm's Deep next." Gimli seemed to be trying to bolster himself, Legolas his a smile and clapped Gimli on the shoulder, getting a muffled 'oof'. "Damned Pointy ear..."
"Not too soon though Gimli, not too soon." Legolas said dryly and moved light-footedly into the edge of Fangorn
"The caves?" Mouse's light voice was full of curiosity as she moved as quietly as Legolas, something that didn't go unnoticed.
"Yes, the caves they are an awesome sight, untamed, but with a beauty that could steal your heart away in a heartbeat youngling."
Breathing deeply of the close humid air of the forest Legolas let the sound of his two companions voices wash over his senses. Turning he saw his friend the dwarf and his charge from years before laughing as they walked, discussing the finer points of honing an axe, it seemed as they moved through the semi-twilight of the trees that the trees themselves seemed to lose much of their animosity, Legolas noticed after a while that as she walked Mouse would touch each of the trees she passed, lightly caressing their bark, he didn't think that she spoke but the trees were calmed, there was magic in her touch, it seemed Tanaearien was truly a daughter of the forest.
Light were his feet and heart, as Legolas walked the dim paths of Fangorn.
Legolas watched as leaves and twigs fell from the woman's body, Tanaearien's body he reminded himself, he was curious to see how the tiny form he had held in his cupped hands so many years of man ago had grown, no more so than the interest he had in a tree he had watched grow from a tiny acorn he told himself. Beside him, the forest, older even than himself he guessed, rustled and seemed to shift under the weight of the rain, positioning themselves to best take advantage of the moisture. The moisture that was slowly creeping its way under his hair and down his back and it was a little uncomfortable. And it looked like Tanaearien had taken great pains to hide as much of her body as possible, in fact the only part of her he could see was still her eyes.
"Perhaps we should find some shelter." If it were just Gimli and himself he wouldn't have bothered a little voice inside his mind pointed out, in fact Tanae actually seemed to be enjoying it. Her arms were held out wide from her body, her face was turned up and her eyes were closed. Legolas instinctively checked for danger as Gimli shook himself.
"Blasted rain!" Gimli said loudly and then looked at Tanaearien who looked and smelt a lot less like a rotting log, "At least you're getting your bath."
"A bath, now *that* would be something I could happily endure right now, warm water... soap... and towels..." Tanae's voice was dreamy as she spoke, in stark contrast to the pouring rain and the Warg carcasses lying around them. "Lucky you're out here with me." Legolas caught the cheeky glitter in Tanae's eye only a second before Gimli.
"Grufnsk..he he he he!" Gimli chortled and tried to wring some of the rainwater out of his beard. "If you can find a dry place my pointy eared friend I'll occupy it."
"Good point." Legolas looked towards the west and saw blue sky. "It won't be raining for much longer, Arod" Legolas called and the horse ambled over, Legolas scratched the spot on Arod's nose he knew the horse liked and spoke quietly in Elvish. The Horse whickered and then turned and trotted away. "We should move on."
"He says that a lot lass. I never got your name." Gimli smiled at their new companion.
"My name?" Tanaearien looked at Gimli in surprise.
"You do have a name?" Gimli prompted, when she didn't answer straight away Gimli slid at look at Legolas, who looked a lot less perturbed than he should have in Gimli's opinion, in fact he looked like all his arrows had come at once, surprisingly happy and a little mystified and a little scared, if the Elf could look scared Gimli harrumphed. Looked like he'd have to do the investigating, that was no problem he was renown for his subtlety. "Everyone has a name, and before I call you friend I would like to know what it is lass."
"I have a name..." Tanaearien seemed to shrink in on herself and Legolas looked on in concern, he wondered if she ever wondered if she looked like her parents at all. Through the grime the rain hadn't managed to rinse off even he couldn't tell which parent she favored. It was sort of amusing to guess at what was under all that ingrained dirt, for an elf she was very young, as a human he realized she would be considered well past her prime. Legolas admitted he was even more curious, he looked directly at the girl and she shrank a little more, he pondered the feeling he had that she'd spent a lot of time in her short life making herself invisible.
"Mouse." He said softly and by the quick jerk of her head Legolas knew he'd hit on the right name.
"How did you.? You're an Elf." Mouse looked up at him with wide eyes. "You have some sort of mind reading ability?" She asked, a hint of distrust in her voice.
"It seemed like the right name," Legolas said simply, not even considering telling her that she looked more like a drowned rat with rainwater plastering the few greasy strands of hair escaping from under a shapeless knitted hat that dripped onto her nose for a good few seconds before she swiped at it. He briefly considered telling her that he had no sort of 'mind reading' skill but decided it wasn't necessarily something she really needed to know.
An Elf had to keep a few secrets to keep his companions guessing, in pained him to know that in a few short years many of the new friends he had made would be gone... they would die. Die. The word rolled around in his head like a dead weight and he felt the uncertainty that had come into his life with four tiny Hobbits, a Human and a Dwarf. Never before had he considered mortality, and never his own. Life had been precious but never so much as now.
"Mouse eh?" Gimli chuckled and then looked up at his tall friend, Legolas noticed he was being stared at and schooled is face into something resembling interest. "A Dwarf, an Elf and a Mouse who would predict that?"
"Not me Gimli my friend." Legolas said with a small smile, he looked to his right at the tangled 'face' of Fangorn and his excitement grew. He'd almost abandoned the quest of the ring when he'd seen the forest, but the plight of his comrades had drawn him back into the war. Now though he had time to explore. The trees were old, many older than himself, even in their anger there was latent wonder, he felt it, it made his ears tingle..? He turned to see that 'Mouse' had come to stand beside him. One thing was obvious she hadn't inherited her sire's height. Neither had Legolas actually desired to see the grass and twig adorned dripping mass that was the top of Mouse's headgear. "Lets go in."
"You really are going in?" Mouse looked up and Legolas resisted the urge to scratch his ears.
"Yes, you've been in there." He pointed out she looked back at the trees and then at him again, her eyes were becoming shadowed, she looked concerned. "There is no need to fear, I can sense most dangers."
"Oh I'm not afraid for me," Mouse said airily for some reason her tone made Legolas want to grind his teeth as well as scratch his ears, he couldn't remember being that uncomfortable since rinsing the Orc blood off his clothes. He waited, sort of patiently for Mouse to elaborate. "The tree's hardly ever try to harm me, but they don't know you two very well."
Legolas frowned at the trees before looking down with a wide smile, "They know us well enough. For the white wizard showed us a path not to long ago through the wood."
"Oh, ok." Mouse shrugged and slung her bow across her back, the casualness of the gesture doing nothing to disguise the care she put into it. "Do you always talk like that?" Mouse asked and Legolas looked at her blankly, "Nevermind." She was still plainly amused but he couldn't work out why, his method of speech was strange? Compared to what? He dismissed the thought.
A mouse Legolas thought instead, absently scratching at his ear until he caught Gimli staring at him. Trying not to look too guilty he settled the weight of his quiver, sheath and bow more solidly and grinned. "Come Gimli let us explore the forest."
"Ok we'll explore the forest, and if it doesn't eat us we'll be visiting the caves of Helm's Deep next." Gimli seemed to be trying to bolster himself, Legolas his a smile and clapped Gimli on the shoulder, getting a muffled 'oof'. "Damned Pointy ear..."
"Not too soon though Gimli, not too soon." Legolas said dryly and moved light-footedly into the edge of Fangorn
"The caves?" Mouse's light voice was full of curiosity as she moved as quietly as Legolas, something that didn't go unnoticed.
"Yes, the caves they are an awesome sight, untamed, but with a beauty that could steal your heart away in a heartbeat youngling."
Breathing deeply of the close humid air of the forest Legolas let the sound of his two companions voices wash over his senses. Turning he saw his friend the dwarf and his charge from years before laughing as they walked, discussing the finer points of honing an axe, it seemed as they moved through the semi-twilight of the trees that the trees themselves seemed to lose much of their animosity, Legolas noticed after a while that as she walked Mouse would touch each of the trees she passed, lightly caressing their bark, he didn't think that she spoke but the trees were calmed, there was magic in her touch, it seemed Tanaearien was truly a daughter of the forest.
Light were his feet and heart, as Legolas walked the dim paths of Fangorn.