Disclaimers: see previous chapter.

Review replies:

Star-Stallion: You flatter me :) Thanks so much, but please don't advertise this. Thanks a lot and a half though! And it's not like I'm rushing you or anything with "Hearts of Stone"... :)

Astievia: Ah, whoever could this blond elf wearing a green cloak on a white horse be, I wonder?.. Thanks a lot for your review!

Senseii: Thanks a lot! I'm honored. And I tried to make the spacing better, but it doesn't work for some reason. Sorry... Any suggestions on what I can do, save manually putting in empty spaces after each line?

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Chapter 3: Greetings

The red circle of the sun reflected in Legolas's eyes as he looked up at the sky. A red sunrise... There was no reason to assume that the blood that was shed was of someone he knew, but the elf could feel that it concerned him somehow. He mounted Arod and continued down the path he was following for the last few days. A faint worry was growing at the back of his mind, and without even registering it he pressed his horse forward until it was riding at full gallop. His thoughts raced ahead of him, pacing up the seven steps of Minas Tirith and into the throne room of the stronghold.

Legolas had meant to pay a visit to Aragorn for a long time, but fate seemed to enjoy ruining his plans. For over a year various problems kept coming up, and the elf prince had no choice but to attend to matters more immediate than seeing old friends. But now he finally set out to Gondor, praying that the Valar would, for once, grant him an uneventful journey. He was growing tired of endless threats, ambushes and disasters that seemed to follow him ever since the day the Ring was destroyed.

But as the elf rode on, a young man suddenly leapt out of the bushes in front of Arod.

For a few moments all thoughts were driven out of Legolas's head, his mind focused on stopping the panicking horse. When the animal calmed down and he was finally able to look up, he saw the stranger staring up at him in astonishment.

An unnatural quiet passed over the road like a blanket, muffling all sounds until they became hostile murmurs.

And then the human spoke, quietly and monotonously. "Pardon me, sir, for my clumsiness. Might I ask your name?"

Legolas was amazed at how the voice and the eyes of the stranger held only a hint of emotion, while the face showed his surprise so clearly. A sense of foreboding came over him, and somehow he knew that he was facing an enemy, although he couldn't tell what it was that gave him that impression. But his voice betrayed none of his thoughts as he said the single word, "Legolas."

The human made a strange gesture that could either be a fierce nod or a quick bow. "My lord Legolas, I'm lucky to have found you. I have a message..." With that he disappeared into the bushes, and came out again holding a small pack in his right hand, and the reins of a horse in his left.

While he was digging in the pack, Legolas dismounted and studied him closely. The human obviously knew that he was of the royal line. But why would he have a message for Legolas? Wouldn't it be more rational to send the letter to his father?

"You seem to know who I am, but I don't know you," he said slowly.

The human interrupted his search for a moment to smack himself on the forehead. "I am Weidon, my lord, my name is Weidon. I'm a messenger from Terreniol."

What was it that made the elf uneasy? Only his intuition, which, although it couldn't be ignored, couldn't be wholly trusted, either. But as Weidon handed him an envelope, Legolas's distrust found a new focus.
"Blood?" he asked quietly, looking at the rust-coloured stain on the paper.

Weidon lowered his head in what looked to the whole world like grief, but as he spoke his voice seemed even more empty than before. "Yes, my lord. My companion was carrying the message in his pocket. Suddenly a knife flew out of nowhere and killed him. The letter was stained, but I still had to deliver it."

Legolas ripped the envelope and took the letter out. Its beginning was unreadable because of the blood that seeped through the outer layer of the paper, but most of it was still intelligible.

"...asked for help, but now I fear I cannot do without it," the letter's first readable line said. "Strange creatures have been spotted away to the north of my borders, and none who were sent to investigate came back. What I ask for is an alliance, for if this is as serious a threat as it seems, your land is in as much peril as mine. I beseech you, answer me as soon as you read this." Then followed the seal of Terreniol, glaring off the paper and mocking the bloodstain with its red ink.