Beauty and the Warg
Chapter Five: On the Road Again
A/N: Sorry for the delay, but to make up for it here's a somewhat longer chapter than I usually write. Hope you enjoy! Reviewer comments are at the bottom. A great big huge whopping THANK YOU to everyone who's reading!
Disclaimer: Lord of the Rings and all related characters, settings, events, etc. belong to J.R.R. Tolkien and New Line Cinemas. Beauty and the Beast belongs to Disney and their associates. The Broadway play belongs to… well, someone who is not me. I make no money from this venture.
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Wendy stayed in her little stall in the stable for two days. She busied herself by counting the cobbles on the floor (she got up to 2,367 before she lost count) and trying to talk to the other horses. The most response she ever got was a loud snort of fear, so Wendy gave that up pretty quickly.
Finally, in the early evening of the second day, the stable doors banged open and happy, celebratory warriors came in. They each went to their own horse's stall, where they were greeted with nuzzles and whinnies of joy. Sadly, Wendy turned her back on the celebrations so she didn't have to see the warriors give her nervous or outright frightened stares.
But then she heard a voice. A quiet, soothing voice. She lifted her head, sure it couldn't be talking to her, but she was curious all the same.
"Good evening, Lady Draugwen. I hope you can forgive me for leaving you here for so long, but we had a slight problem to deal with above," the voice was saying, a slight laugh embedded in the speech. Slowly, Wendy turned around and found Legolas leaning casually on the half-door of her stall, smiling charmingly. He looked weary, but happy. Wendy stepped towards him hesitantly, as if fearing that he would run away in terror. But he did not.
Instead, Legolas raised one hand and placed it on her large, hairy shoulder. He ruffled the fur there, smiled, and looked Wendy right in the eyes.
"You know, it's funny," he commented. Wendy cocked her head quizzically, begging him to explain. "In all my long years on this earth, I have never had such a connection to anyone so quickly. I only met you yesterday, yet I already feel as though we've known each other for centuries. Perhaps this is some devilry of Saruman's… but if it is, I'm not complaining."
Legolas stood like that for nearly a full three minutes, just rubbing Wendy's shoulder and smiling into her eyes. Only by sheer force of will did Wendy keep from melting into a huge puddle of Warg right then and there. But then Gimli, that meddling Dwarf, had to come up and ruin the moment.
"Legolas! Aragorn has been looking for you. He and Théoden are trying to decide their next move," Gimli said in his loud, gruff voice. Legolas blinked, shook his head, and quickly removed his hand from Wendy. Feeling disappointed, Wendy bowed her head and turned away.
"Thank you, Gimli. I will go see him straight away. Draugwen…"
Wendy looked at Legolas hopefully.
"I'll… ahem… well, see you around." With that, Legolas made a quick departure. Wendy's head bowed again. When she glanced up again, Gimli was still there, looking at her oddly.
"I don't know what you've done to that Elf, but it's certainly put him in an odd mood. Just don't hurt him, we need that bow of his," Gimli requested. His tone was solemn, but there was a twinkle in his eye.
Wendy nodded, laughing. Unlike her smile, her laugh did not send warriors fleeing in panic. It was a low rumble that came from deep in her chest, and it made Gimli smile, which in turn caused a warm feeling to spread all through Wendy. Gimli gave her giant head a pat before he took off after Legolas.
Very early the next morning, the Riders of Rohan returned for their horses, this time not for a celebration but to prepare for another journey. Wendy felt out-of-place and curled up in a corner, trying not to scare anyone with her ugliness. But then a lovely face appeared in the doorway, smiling at her. Wendy leapt up, energized with the happiness she felt. It was Legolas.
"Suilaid, Lady Draugwen!" he said exuberantly. "There's an Elvish greeting for you. I hope you slept well! I am sorry these were the only accommodations we could find for you."
Wendy licked his hand in an effort to tell him she appreciated it all the same, too small for her or not.
"Well, the battle was successful, and Helm's Deep is secure. But Théoden is eager to get moving, so we make for Isenguard today. A place I'm sure you know quite well," Legolas said.
Wendy shuddered, remembering the hellish place. Legolas looked at her with concern.
"I am sure Saruman does not treat his servants kindly. He does not strike me as the type that would love his beasts as the Rohirrim do," Legolas said, softly and empathetically. Wendy looked around at the warriors who were speaking to their horses in soft tones, giving them thorough a grooming and plenty of treats before asking them to bear them once more under saddle. She looked again at Legolas and shook her head, touching the wounds in her mouth with her tongue. The sharp pain made her wince, which deepened Legolas' frown of concern.
"Are you hurt, Draugwen?" Legolas asked. Wendy shook her head, but Legolas opened the stall door and slipped inside, taking her head in his hands. "Open your mouth, please. Let me help you."
Feeling those piercing pools of deep blue boring into her, Wendy had no choice but to comply. She stretched open her mouth, baring her saliva-dripping fangs. (She always seemed to produce more spit whenever Legolas was around; it was the strangest occurrence!) Legolas did not flinch when he saw those fangs. But when he noticed the two cuts on either side of her mouth he did cringe in sympathy.
"Those look quite painful," he said. "I am sorry I did not see to these before." Legolas turned and saw a young boy, one of the stable attendants, walking past carrying a bridle. He stopped him and requested that he bring warm water steeped with some herb whose name Wendy did not recognize, as well as a cloth. The boy nodded, giving Wendy a strange look when Legolas' back was turned. Wendy curled her lip in the merest hint of a snarl, making the boy move his feet twice as fast.
"Are you in much pain, Lady Draugwen?" Legolas asked. Wendy shook her head. "I must see to Arod. I have given him to Gimli so that I can ride you, if that is all right with you." Wendy nodded. "Unfortunately, Gimli is too short to saddle him, so while that boy is preparing the wash for your cuts, I will assist him."
Legolas left Wendy alone in her stall once more. She sighed contentedly, keeping in her mind the image of his compassionate eyes looking at her with concern and worry. He actually cared about her! She was one step closer to becoming human again.
When Legolas returned, he had with him a small wooden bowl and a scrap of white cloth. He entered the stall and shut the door tightly behind him, apparently not noticing that Gimli had been following him. The Dwarf stared at the Elf's back indignantly, making Wendy giggle. Legolas looked at her curiously, then glanced behind him.
"Oh, Gimli, I'm sorry! I did not mean to slam the door in your face. Did you want to come in?" Legolas asked with false niceness.
"I just wanted to make sure the Lady Draugwen was all right, if that's fine with you," Gimli answered gruffly.
"I'm sorry Gimli, but this stall is barely big enough for Draugwen, much less Draugwen, myself, and a Dwarf," Legolas pointed out. Gimli huffed angrily but saw that the Elf was correct, so he just leaned against the door to watch.
Legolas wet a corner of the rag and asked Wendy to open her mouth, which she did. Gently he wiped away the dried blood with the warm, wet cloth, ignoring the foul stench issuing from her mouth.
"Legolas," said a new voice. Legolas glanced behind him, keeping the cloth in place in Wendy's mouth. She peered over the end of her nose and saw Aragorn standing next to Gimli.
"Yes, Aragorn?" Legolas asked, a little irritably.
"Théoden and the other Riders are ready to go. We await only yourself and Master Gimli," Aragorn informed the Elf.
"Give me a moment, I will meet you out there. Actually, why don't you go ahead and start without me. You saw yesterday how swift Draugwen is. We will catch up in no time," Legolas suggested.
"If you're sure…" Aragorn said hesitantly.
"Oh, go on," Legolas said with a wave of his hand.
"Fine. Come along, Gimli, I will help you mount Arod," Aragorn said.
"Actually, Aragorn, why don't I stay here with Legolas? It would be safer if we traveled together, don't you think?" Gimli asked.
"If that is your wish. I expect to see you both within a few hours," Aragorn said before striding out of the stables.
"Gimli, I'm sure Draugwen and I can handle the journey on our own," Legolas said through gritted teeth. He had been looking forward to a ride alone with his new friend and did not want a Dwarf up in the middle of it all.
"Nonsense, Legolas, you might get lost," Gimli said.
"You don't know the way any better than I!" Legolas pointed out, his voice raised slightly.
Wendy cleared her throat. She was getting tired of sitting there with her mouth hanging open and hoped to attract Legolas' attention. She only succeeded in sparking a new argument.
"Now look here Legolas, you're doing it all wrong. Let me show you how to properly clean a wound," Gimli said, opening the stall door and stepping inside. He tried to grab the cloth out of Legolas' hand, but Legolas jerked his hand away. Wendy closed her mouth, then opened it again and closed it with a snap, trying to stretch the stiff jaw muscles.
"I am doing just fine, Gimli, I do not need your so-called 'help!'" Legolas argued. "Come on now, Draugwen, just open your mouth and let me clean those nasty cuts. I shudder to think of a kind beast such as yourself being handled so roughly by those Orcs."
Wendy opened her mouth, allowing Legolas to clean off the other side of her mouth. She winced; there was some medicine in the water that made the cuts sting.
"You're hurting her, Legolas! Don't rub so hard!" Gimli insisted.
Legolas resisted the urge to roll his eyes and simply concentrated on the task at hand. Gimli hovered worriedly over his shoulder until Legolas was finished.
"Now look what you've done, they're bleedin' again!" Gimli said.
"It's only a drop of blood, Gimli, please calm down before you upset her!" Legolas said, glaring at the Dwarf.
Wendy looked back and forth between the two. From what she understood, these two ought to be good friends. The Battle of Helm's Deep occurred well after their stay in Lórien, when Tolkien had documented their budding friendship. Why were they all of a sudden bickering like little children? She nudged Legolas' shoulder and jerked her head towards the door, signaling that it was time to go.
"The Lady is correct, we should be on our way. Come, Gimli, and allow me to help you mount Arod," Legolas said, rising gracefully to his full height.
"Shouldn't we give her time to rest? Surely she is still in pain after such rough treatment," Gimli said.
"Now Gimli, I treated her as gently as I could! I know the medicine in the water must have hurt a bit, and for that, Lady Draugwen, I am deeply sorry. But a little bit of pain in her mouth will not affect her ability to run, seeing as I have no need of bridle nor bit!" Legolas said, his exasperation evident.
"Why don't you let her decide, rather than speaking for her?" Gimli demanded.
Both Dwarf and Elf looked at Wendy expectantly. She stared back at them blankly, wondering how they expected her to respond when she couldn't speak their language and they couldn't understand hers. After a few seconds of uncomfortable silence, she simply pushed past them, through the open door, and to the main door of the stable.
Gimli and Legolas exchanged a look, shrugged, and followed, grabbing Arod on the way out. When everyone was ready, Gimli on Arod and Legolas on Wendy, the foursome galloped away towards Isenguard. Legolas kept a tight, though not uncomfortably so, hold on the thick fur on Wendy's back. His head was near her ears, and she felt his breath on her as they rode. For some reason she felt all warm and tingly inside, and she was hyper-aware of how Legolas was touching her.
At the same time, she heard Gimli's loud breathing to her left, and his occasional grumbles of "are we there yet?" and "this horse is too big!" made her giggle inwardly.
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Reviewer Replies:
Wolf of Gondor: I am indeed following the book more closely because I feel it moves along and gets to the places I want to get to a little faster than the movie, i.e. Isenguard. Arod doesn't necessarily understand Elvish, but all Elves have a bond with nature so I think Arod would feel his call more than actually understand the words. But Brego seemed to understand Aragorn in the EE of TTT, so you never know. As for the Wargs, I based the ones in my story on the movie versions because I figured that's what everyone would think of, but I do love the book Wargs. I'm reading The Hobbit right now (almost done!:-) and I really liked the part when they (the Dwarves, Bilbo, and Gandalf) were trapped in the trees by the Wargs. Wow, long reply, better move on. Thank you so much for your comments!
MP3girl4eva: Yay, I'm always happy to see a review from you! I'm glad you liked that chapter and thank you so much for saying this is your favorite Legomance! I should warn you, though, I'm planning a few twists and turns along the way. *evil grin* Thank you!! (BTW- I'm working on my POTC story and I'm working you in for a cameo. No idea when it'll be done, though)
DragonFly: Yuck, viruses suck. I'm glad your computer let you in to read the chapter, though! Thank you so much for reviewing!
Scifiphantisigurl911: Thank you so much for reviewing again! I think the way Wendy finds love will surprise you… at least I hope so… can't give away anything now, though!
Almost Funny: Hmm, that's an interesting idea. Her paws are pretty big and since she doesn't have flexible fingers it would be pretty difficult, though. I guess we'll see, huh? Thank you for reviewing!
Maria2004: Thank you for reading my story! That reminds me, I think I have a few chapters of Freaking Family to catch up on, don't I? I'll head over there soon. I'm glad you liked that chapter!
Tinánia Legolinde: I love your name, it's very pretty! I'm really happy you like my story! Someone else suggested having her write with her nails, it's a very good idea. Maybe it will occur to her to do that. Ya never know…
Empress Guinevere Sparrow: Aye matey, pirate moments rock! lol thank you for reviewing, it makes me so happy!
Tasyin: Glad you like the story! ; - ) Thank you for reviewing!
THANK YOU EVERYONE!!!