Authors' Note: Here is my third chapter. Thank you so much for the reviews. I will definitely continue this story now. I am so glad you enjoyed. If you have any questions about this story, let me know and I will be happy to answer them. Thanks again! And I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Tolkien's work.

Chapter 3 Lintelin

            I was quite shocked to not see Rumil and Orophin standing before me. Instead there stood a young maiden, with long golden hair and a slight figure. She wore the garb of a soldier and had a quiver of arrows strapped across her back. Her eyes were a light blue and her smile perfectly white. My composure was momentarily shattered when my eyes fell upon her. Who was this elleth and why was she here? No one ever came to call, except for Haldir's brothers.  She had no reason to be here. Suddenly I was on guard with my hackles raised. I was not a very trusting person. The maiden seemed to sense my discomfort the moment I opened the door.

"Oh mae govannen," to me her smile appeared to be forced and her gentle voice fake. "I am sorry to have startled you dear," she was immediately out of my good graces with that statement. Dear? Who did she think I was? I was probably much older than her. I could never stand it when people belittled me. "But your husband has sent me to you," the elf continued on without even flinching under my cold stare. "My name is Lintelin. Your husband, the March Warden, said you would have extra short knives. He is training me in that manner of defense and we need to borrow a few." The maiden titled her head and let her gaze fall into our flet. I felt a blush rise upon my cheeks, my home was presentable enough for my brothers-in-law, but not nice enough for a strange elleth. She then looked back at me with an expectant smile. I sighed, knowing I would have to fetch the knives.

"Wait here," I spoke for the first time, making my voice as steely as possible. I now knew why Haldir had called me an icy elf during one of our arguments. I trod through my home, tripping over several dropped quivers that I had neglected to pick up. Finally after digging through a cabinet that held assorted weapons, I managed to find my old short knife. "Here," I thrust it into her waiting hands. "I expect it to be brought back in the condition it was given." She smiled her false smile once more.

"Of course dear," she let her emphasis fall on the last word of her statement. "Thank you."

Rumil and Orophin arrived shortly after the departure of Lintelin. They found me pacing (a bad habit of mine) across the floor of the flet in a very agitated manner. But when I saw them, I immediately calmed myself. They sat with me on our terrace and inquired as to my disturbed mood. But unfortunately they recognized the maiden the second I described her.

"Ah, Lintelin, she just joined the guard," Rumil said with a bright smile. "She is quite a good fighter. Haldir has been spending a lot of time with her. Her skills need to be honed and she needs to be prepared for the life of a soldier." This for some reason upset me more, why I did not know. But my emotions must have shown upon my face, for Orophin asked me if I was well.

"Yes," I replied, my thoughts wandering like a ranger from the north.

"Are you sure Elenwen?" Orophin met my gaze. "If there is anything troubling you, we should like to be made aware." This I could not answer. What could I tell them? I myself did not know what was bothering me. Finally I managed to put my feelings into words.

"Why is it that Haldir spends so much time with her?" They were taken aback by my query; I could see it in their faces.

"Well, he must," Rumil answered for them both. "Even though she is a good fighter, she still needs training."

"But I needed training as well and he did not spend as much time with me." The brothers exchanged glances after I had said this. "What? What?" For some reason I was frightened.

"Nothing," Orophin dropped his eyes and changed the subject.

            I sat inside on this gorgeous night. My head was resting in my hands and every now and then I sighed. It was late, very late. Haldir was not home yet. Rumil and Orophin had left late in the afternoon after an enjoyable visit. At least I had not been alone all day.  Dinner sat uneaten in the pantry. After a few hours had passed, I had stored it away. When he came home I would fix it for him. But my worries lay heavily upon my mind, there was no orc attack. I almost wished there had been an orc attack I was that upset. The moon was high in the sky, the sounds of night moved around about me. He finally arrived home, four hours late. Tonight I was less enthusiastic about his return. I raised my eyes to meet his. He smiled an almost silly grin.

            "I am truly sorry meleth nin," he moved to my side and brushed his fingers down my back. "I spent more time with Lintelin than I had planned to." I wasn't angry with him, just worried.

"Why did you send her to pick up the short knives?" I tried to seem indifferent, but it did annoy me that he had told her to drop by. He knew I didn't like anyone at our house when I wasn't expecting them.

"I am sorry for that too," he looked guilty. I accepted his apology, kissing him and throwing my arms around his neck. "Good, now I am exhausted, so I would like to get to bed," he moved away from me into the bedroom after he had said this.

"But what about dinner?" my hand pointed towards the pantry. "What about watching the stars with me?"

"Its too late tonight," his voice came from the other room. "Tomorrow night, I promise." I did not argue with him and moved into bedroom as well. Haldir fell asleep almost immediately; I could hear his soft breathing beside me. I moved over to lay closer to him, wrapping my arms around his muscular chest. The starlight trickled in to the room through the sheer curtains. The beams lay upon my face and reflected the tears falling from my eyes.

Mae govannen: Well met

Meleth nin: My love

Elleth: female elf

aldiHH   HHHh