After changing into the elvish day gown that Elrond had left for me, I set off to find him, as his note had instructed. I found both him and the renown wizard, Gandalf the Grey, in the courtyard that overlooked the gardens. They were sitting on a bench, talking in hushed tones. I still held some of the frustration towards Elrond from earlier, when he allowed my solitude to be invaded, and resisted the urge to storm in and give him a tongue lashing that would make my mother roll over in her grave. Instead, I walked in calmly, and they both looked up at me.
Gandalf stood first. We'd only met a few times before, and rather the fatherly embrace that I recieved from Elrond, he stuck to a low bow. I nodded my head in recognition, and Elrond swept me into his arms again.
"Silly," he began, after releasing me, "it is wonderful to see you again, but unfortunately, it always seems as though the darkest times are what brings us together."
"Dark times, indeed," I replied, standing back from him. "What did you wish to see me about?"
Elrond sighed. "Come, sit down." He led me over to the bench where he and Gandalf had been seated previously. "It seems some good news has come about. The fourth hobbit, Frodo--the one you had yet to meet--is doing much better. He's roaming around Rivendell as we speak, after recovering from the incident at Weathertop."
"The Ringbearer."
"Yes." Gandalf spoke. "But the wound he suffered from will be with him for the rest of his life."
"And yet, to have come so far," said Elrond, "still bearing the Ring, the hobbit has showed extraordinary resilience to its evil."
"It is a burden he should never have had to bear," Gandalf argued. "We can ask no more of Frodo."
"I agree," I interjected. "It's amazing that Frodo came so far, but this does not give us the right to ask that he do...whatever it is your planning on asking him to do."
"My friends, the enemy is moving," Elrond said tartly. "Sauron's forces are massing in the east. His Eye is fixed on Rivendell! And Saruman, you tell me, has betrayed us. Our list of allies grows thin."
I recalled Lauxely saying something about Saruman turning to the other side. The thought of such a powerful wizard being a pawn in the Dark Lord's plan made me ill.
Gandalf sighed. "His treachery runs deeper than you know. By foul craft, Saruman has crossed Orcs with goblin-men. He's breeding an army in the caverns of Isengard...An army which can move in sunlight, and cover great distance at speed. Saruman is coming for the Ring."
"Why isn't it safe in Rivendell?" I asked them, confused. "Why can't we keep it here? The forces of darkness cannot enter here...can they?"
"You don't understand, Silly." The Elf Lord looked away. "This evil cannot be concealed by the power of the Elves. We do not have the strength to fight both Mordor and Isengard!" He stood, and wandered over to a fountain. He placed his hands on it, as if bracing himself. "The Ring cannot stay here."
From our places on the bench, Gandalf and I stared. "This peril belongs to all Middle-earth. They must decide now how to end it. The time of the Elves is over. My people are leaving these shores. Who will you look to when we've gone? The Dwarves? They hide in their mountains seeking riches. They care nothing for the troubles of others."
"It is in Men that we must place our hope," Gandalf said softly.
"Men!" Elrond scoffed, turning back to us. Men are weak. The race of Men is failing. The blood of Numenor is all but spent. Its pride and dignity forgotten. It is because of Men the Ring survives. I was there, Gandalf. I was there three thousand years ago...And Isildur took the Ring. I was there the day the strength of men failed."
His eyes were cast to the side, remembering that day so long ago, his eyes telling the story that his mouth could not do justice to. "I led Isildur into the heart of Mount Doom. Where the Ring was forged. The one place it could be destroyed. It should have ended that day, but evil was allowed to endure. Isildur kept the Ring. The line of kings is broken. There's no strength left in the world of Men. They're scattered, divided, leaderless."
"They're not," I protested. "Aragorn--"
"He is the one who could unite them," Gandalf interrupted. He nodded his head in agreement towards me. "He could reclaim the throne of Gondor."
Elrond scowled. "He turned from that path a long time ago. He has chosen exile."
I rolled my eyes. "There is still time."
"Time is something we do not have," Elrond said forcefully. His eyes darkened. "There was a reason why you were called here, Silly. If all else fails, we will need you to--"
"I cannot," I said immediately. "When it comes to the Ring, there is not much I can do. As far as I know, just by touching it, it could suck the life force out of me. I cannot even enter Mordor. If you were to entrust me with this, you may as well just sign over your own death wish now."
"It is true," Gandalf said, "that the vampire slayer cannot carry the Ring." He looked over at me, his blue eyes twinkling. "But there is something she can do."
.................................................
Thoughts flooded my mind as I ventured down to the stables later that day to see Amrun. Strider had trusted him to in the hands of the Rivendell stablemen, and to the best of my knowledge, were taking good care of him. I wandered into the barn, looking over the stall doors until I found him. He neighed in recognition, and I had to stand on my toes to reach over the door to pet him.
"Lady Silly." I turned around, and saw a younger elf--younger than most elves, but certainly not younger than I--standing before me. "A parcel was delivered this morning, and Lord Elrond instructed me to bring it to you. You can keep them in the stables, if you like."
"Oh," I said. "Thank you." He handed it to me, and off he went, leaving me alone in the stables once again.
The parcel itself was rather large. It had come from an anonymous sender and location...which meant it was from Lauxely, Morwenna, or someone from the council. I sat down on a bench outside Amrun's stall. I tore open the paper wrapping to reveal...clothes. Some pants, shirts, and a pair of boots. Lauxely had even thrown in a few extra stakes and a new dagger. The only thing that was relatively curious about the package was the boots.
They were large. If I were to wear them it would mean me standing at least three inches taller...which might not be a bad thing, considering. I'm only five-foot-four, shorter than slayers before me. Anyways, the boots were made of leather and came up halfway to the calf. I picked one up and studied it, wondering why Lauxely would send me a pair of boots when the ones I had were fine.
I turned the shoe around, to look at it from the front. On the edge of the toe, there was a tiny black button, practically invisible. I began to recall something about one of the member's of Lauxely's council coming up with some sort of new technology that would benefit the slayer...well, me. Curious, I pressed the button.
To my surprise, out of the heel, a trapdoor opened and a stake popped out. I stared for a moment, then threw back my head and laughed out loud. Only one of Lauxely's idiots could come up with something like this.
Still chuckling, I pressed the button again and the stake retreated into its little hiding place. I marveled at it for a moment longer.
"My lady. I did not recognize you with your clothes on."
My head snapped around to see Legolas, standing at the barn door. "How long have you been standing there?" I asked him nervously, wondering if he had seen the stake within the heel.
"Not long," he replied, walking over to me. He eyed the boot. "That's some...interesting footwear you've got. A chunk of a heel like that would have to be a burden."
"Maybe so, but it serves its purpose." I stood, folded the boots and clothes back into the paper they'd been delivered in, and put them in a cabinet next to Amrun's stall. I turned back to him. "What brings you down here?"
Legolas didn't say anything. He was staring at something else, something on my head. Without saying anything, he reached up and took a strand of my hair between his fingers. He spoke, finally. "Your hair is red."
I stepped back, and pulled my hair from his grasp. "My mother had red hair."
"Had? Oh." He stepped back as well, giving me room to stand beside him so we could walk together. "How did she...?"
I shrugged. "She died when I was a child."
Legolas seemed to accept that excuse. I really didn't think I needed to tell him that my mother had died over seven hundred years ago. He looked off to the side, somewhere...over the city, over the mountains, or maybe even beyond. "My mother's gone, too," he said. "Well, not gone gone. She grew ill about three hundred years ago, and sailed to the Grey Havens. She's still there, I think...waiting for us. My father and I."
"Hmm." We exited the barns and began the quiet journey up to the dining room. The path for us was lit with fireflies, as the sun began to set behind the dome towers of the city.
"Was she...like you?" Legolas asked, breaking the silence.
Surprised by the question, I paused to think, and remember. "She, uh...No, she wasn't like me. She uh, sang me songs and read me stories. Fairy tales...the good ones with the princesses that go to sleep and wake up from a prince's kiss and live happily ever after. She was always cleaning, too. It wasn't really her house, she was a guest. She had to earn her keep. So she was always sweeping or something. She had this...pearl necklace that she always wore. I think her father gave them to her. But she was always wearing them, even when she was scrubbing floors or cleaning the stables or something."
"Why do you say she wasn't like you?" he asked, glancing at me.
I stared down at the path we were walking along. "She liked being around people. She liked parties and dancing and laughing...I prefer my solitude."
An amused look crossed the prince's face. "So I did interrupt your bath this morning."
The statement made me burst into laughter. Unexpected, but pleasant laughter. "Yes, you did. But I'm not going to hold it against you."
Thankfully, the mood of our conversation lightened after that, and we cheerily made our way up to the dining room.