A/N: Again, thanks to Cheysuli for betaing. Sorry it took so long to
update, I have exams to consider but anyway, here is chapter 3 now. Thank
you to those who reviewed. It means a lot to me. I hope you guys like
what is in chapter 3.
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Chapter 3
"Legolas, may I have a word with you?" asked Lundil as he rode alongside Legolas.
"Tell me, Lundil, when did you become so reserved? Whenever you have something to say, you always ask away. Why the formality? My father is not here," said Legolas, arching a brow.
"I overheard your conversation with your father and he is right you know. It is about time for you to find a wife. How many more adventures do you seek? How many more battles do you want to fight? Do you not want to find someone and fall in love and have a family together, before sailing to the west?" questioned Lundil as he rode beside Legolas.
"Do not get me wrong, my friend. I do want that. It is just that my passion for adventure has been putting everything else on hold. Due to uncertainties in Middle-Earth, I vowed to myself never to fall in love because with love there will be more worries to deal with. I am of royal line and there are many responsibilities which I have to fulfil," mentioned Legolas, hurt showing in his eyes. He then urged his horse to ride ahead, hoping to get away from Lundil.
Wanting clearer explanation, Lundil urged his horse forward. "Middle-Earth is now at peace. Most of our people have sailed over. Estel is now King of Gondor and the Dark Lord has been defeated. What more excuses do you have, Legolas, for not finding a wife?" questioned Lundil, confused.
"All I can say, Lundil," Legolas said, anger colouring his voice, "is that when the time comes, I will embrace my destiny." Legolas shook his head, visibly calming himself. "Let us ride on before darkness creeps upon us, we have some distance to travel before arriving Lothlorien."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*** Back in Lothlorien ***
"Father, what do you mean? Both you and the Lady speak in riddles, riddles that I do not understand," I said, confused. I glared at my father, waiting for an answer.
"My dear Aurwen, have you been having any dreams? Dreams that you do not understand?" asked Haldir, gently, as he held my hand.
"Nay, father," I answered, shaking my head in exasperation.
"But you had one of L-"
"Not now, father," I interrupted. Pulling my father aside, I whispered, "Can we discuss this later tonight, in my chambers?" I did not feel comfortable sharing my dreams with Elladan and Elrohir around.
"Alright then. We will discuss this tonight. By the way, how is your arm?" asked Haldir as he switched his concerned gaze over to my arm.
"It does not hurt as much as it did earlier but the pain does remind me that it is still injured," I said, letting go of my father's hand and giving my arm a gentle rub.
"You can not speed up the healing process, Aurwen," said Haldir with a stern voice. "However, I am sure that by tomorrow you will have full mobility with that arm of yours. Be patient, my daughter."
I know that father worries about me and I wished that this had never happened. However, before I could utter a word, father turned to Elladan.
"What more news do you carry from Lord Elrond in Rivendell?"
During the afternoon, Elladan shared news of his home. He also mentioned Gondor and how well Arwen and Estel were doing. We also learnt that Arwen is now with child and Estel could not be happier. Lord Elrond was also overjoyed, after all, he has been waiting for a very long time.
"Well, Elladan, you could have shortened Lord Elrond's misery by giving him a grandchild long ago. Both you and Elrohir should have been married by now. Why must you wait for Arwen instead?" I said teasingly, trying, and failing, to hide a grin.
"Well, Aurwen, you should be doing the same, as I am sure that Haldir cannot wait to have one either," smirked Elladan.
"That is not fair," I objected, crossing my arms and glaring at him.
"You started it first," replied a smug Elladan.
"Calm down, both of you. Elladan is right. You did initiate this Aurwen. It is every father's wish to hold a grandchild but I am not pushing you," said Haldir. "Ahh, I see Dunhirion is making his way here," said Haldir as he turned and faced Dunhirion.
"My lord. Aurwen," greeted Dunhirion, bowing.
"Dun, so happy to see you here. There are some people that I want to introduce to you," I said as I pulled him over to the twins. "This is Elladan and that is Elrohir. They are Lord Elrond's twin sons from Rivendell. They are here visiting their grandparents, the Lord and Lady of Lorien." Elladan, Elrohir and Dunhirion exchanged greetings while father drew me aside.
"Aurwen, do not forget that we still have things to talk about, tonight," Haldir said, staring hard at me.
"Yes, father," I said, rolling my eyes, "Are you leaving us now?"
"Indeed I am. I have things to discuss with Lady Galadriel. I will see you before the ball. Have fun and remember to take it easy on that arm." He gave me a kiss before he bade his farewells to the rest of them.
"So, Dunhirion, how long have you known Aurwen?" asked Elladan while he studied my friend.
"Elladan! Remember what I had mentioned earlier?" I interfered before Dun could answer.
"I remembered, now stop interfering. My apologies Dunhirion, do ignore her as she can be annoying at times," said Elladan with a big smirked over his face. I threw him a 'This means war' look before Dunhirion answered.
"I had known her for more than a millennia. She is my best friend and we have been inseparable ever since we met," answered Dunhirion as he drew me close to him.
"I assume that you must really know her well, and well enough to know of her secrets," continued Elrohir. "Now, now, Aurwen, no interfering," said Elrohir as I was about to protest. "Did she share her love interest with you?"
"Ummmm..this is hard. Aurwen is my best friend and I do not want to jeopardise our friendship. All I can safely say is, there were a few more of crushes than love. That was long ago and she has not been sharing any since. She had been busy focusing on training and that is all she ever discussed," said Dunhirion, somewhat nervously, while he turned and looked at me while I mouthed the word 'Thank you'.
"Alright then, I respect your friendship with Aurwen, although I have a favour to ask of you," said Elrohir. "You see, Dunhirion, both Elladan and I love Aurwen, like a sister. We worry that she will end up regretting this single life that she is living. Since you have known her for so long and had informed us of her interest in defence, I now know of whom to approach. Aurwen, you will not be disappointed."
"Now, the three of you do not go crazy pairing me up with all eligible elves who will fit that description in Lothlorien. I have an image to uphold and I am Haldir's daughter. If you do not respect me, at least have the respect for my father. I do not want his reputation tarnished because of your silly games." I stared hard at them, almost challenging them to defy me.
"Oh, Aurwen, you are very much like Arwen Undomiel. I am sure that Haldir himself will agree on this, when he hears of who I have in mind," said Elrohir with a big grin. That was the biggest grin I had ever seen coming from him, so full of mischief. "I am doing what is best for you."
"It is almost time for the ball so we had better go and get ourselves ready. We will see you again tonight and it is nice to finally meet you Dunhirion," said Elladan before he and Elrohir excused themselves.
"So those two are your so called brothers," said Dunhirion, smirking.
"Yes, Dun. I too am happy that you finally get to meet them. I thanked the Valar for keeping me alive after the attack and giving me the second chance for having such a wonderful family. I wished my real parents could see the things I have achieved so far," I said as I touched the mithril necklace that I was wearing, marvelling at the feel of it.
"Haldir has done a great job so far. He had thought you everything from being a lady to becoming a Lorien warrior. You are lucky to have him as your father," he said, wistfully.
"I know, Dun, and I love him dearly. My world would be shattered if anything happens to him. It worries me much when he goes on his nightly patrols, although no Orcs have been sighted ever since the Dark Lord was defeated," I said, staring off into the distance.
"You worry too much, just like Haldir. There is much more to him in you than you realise," Dun said, suddenly cheerful.
"I hope that father knows that he had created a 'monster', worst then any Orcs he had slain," I replied, smiling teasingly.
"You can be silly at times, Aurwen. I do hope you will find your match one day," said Dunhirion, glaring at me in mock anger. "I would love to sit and chat but the ball will start soon and both you and I have yet to be ready."
"You are right. I will see you then. It was nice to share things with you again," I said, giving Dunhirion a big hug before heading to my chamber.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*** Meanwhile at Galadriel's chamber ***
"My Lady, it is I, Haldir. I have matters to discuss with you. May I enter?" asked Haldir.
"Enter, Haldir, Guardian of Lorien. I have been expecting you," said Galadriel. "I know that you wish to discuss Aurwen. I have given her the necklace and it is rightfully hers. I hope that you have no objection towards my decision?"
"Nay, my Lady. I have come here to thank you personally. It was because of you that I had the opportunity to love her as my own. She is a wonderful daughter and a great student. As her father, I could not have asked for more," he said, smiling brightly.
"You know that she loves you and respects you as her father. You have set an example Lorien can be proud of."
"I need to discuss about the arrival of the Mirkwood elves. Do you want us to ride out to greet them? I have news of dark activities happening outside the borders of Lorien."
"Ride out to meet them, but do not alarm the people of Lorien of those activities. Middle-Earth has been at peace for some time now. However, do take precautions, as we do not know what to expect."
"Very well, my Lady. I will have my guards patrolling within the borders as well as out. No one in Lorien is aware of this except you, my guards, and I. Thank you again, for giving Aurwen such a gracious gift."
"It was my gift to her. You are doing a fine job raising her and I am proud of what you have accomplished. Raising a child alone and being Lorien's chief of defence is no easy task. You have taught her well," Galadriel said, admiration showing in her face.
"I had your help in raising her. You were responsible for all the grace she now carries and I thank you for that. I will send Aurwen to see you if she has any enquiry which I cannot answer."
"Do not worry, old friend. She will do fine. Alert the guards, I do not want surprises as we do have guests to entertain," said Galadriel, smiling . "I will inform Celeborn of this news."
"I will see you and Lord Celeborn at tonight's ball," said Haldir as he bowed and left.
tbc........
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Chapter 3
"Legolas, may I have a word with you?" asked Lundil as he rode alongside Legolas.
"Tell me, Lundil, when did you become so reserved? Whenever you have something to say, you always ask away. Why the formality? My father is not here," said Legolas, arching a brow.
"I overheard your conversation with your father and he is right you know. It is about time for you to find a wife. How many more adventures do you seek? How many more battles do you want to fight? Do you not want to find someone and fall in love and have a family together, before sailing to the west?" questioned Lundil as he rode beside Legolas.
"Do not get me wrong, my friend. I do want that. It is just that my passion for adventure has been putting everything else on hold. Due to uncertainties in Middle-Earth, I vowed to myself never to fall in love because with love there will be more worries to deal with. I am of royal line and there are many responsibilities which I have to fulfil," mentioned Legolas, hurt showing in his eyes. He then urged his horse to ride ahead, hoping to get away from Lundil.
Wanting clearer explanation, Lundil urged his horse forward. "Middle-Earth is now at peace. Most of our people have sailed over. Estel is now King of Gondor and the Dark Lord has been defeated. What more excuses do you have, Legolas, for not finding a wife?" questioned Lundil, confused.
"All I can say, Lundil," Legolas said, anger colouring his voice, "is that when the time comes, I will embrace my destiny." Legolas shook his head, visibly calming himself. "Let us ride on before darkness creeps upon us, we have some distance to travel before arriving Lothlorien."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*** Back in Lothlorien ***
"Father, what do you mean? Both you and the Lady speak in riddles, riddles that I do not understand," I said, confused. I glared at my father, waiting for an answer.
"My dear Aurwen, have you been having any dreams? Dreams that you do not understand?" asked Haldir, gently, as he held my hand.
"Nay, father," I answered, shaking my head in exasperation.
"But you had one of L-"
"Not now, father," I interrupted. Pulling my father aside, I whispered, "Can we discuss this later tonight, in my chambers?" I did not feel comfortable sharing my dreams with Elladan and Elrohir around.
"Alright then. We will discuss this tonight. By the way, how is your arm?" asked Haldir as he switched his concerned gaze over to my arm.
"It does not hurt as much as it did earlier but the pain does remind me that it is still injured," I said, letting go of my father's hand and giving my arm a gentle rub.
"You can not speed up the healing process, Aurwen," said Haldir with a stern voice. "However, I am sure that by tomorrow you will have full mobility with that arm of yours. Be patient, my daughter."
I know that father worries about me and I wished that this had never happened. However, before I could utter a word, father turned to Elladan.
"What more news do you carry from Lord Elrond in Rivendell?"
During the afternoon, Elladan shared news of his home. He also mentioned Gondor and how well Arwen and Estel were doing. We also learnt that Arwen is now with child and Estel could not be happier. Lord Elrond was also overjoyed, after all, he has been waiting for a very long time.
"Well, Elladan, you could have shortened Lord Elrond's misery by giving him a grandchild long ago. Both you and Elrohir should have been married by now. Why must you wait for Arwen instead?" I said teasingly, trying, and failing, to hide a grin.
"Well, Aurwen, you should be doing the same, as I am sure that Haldir cannot wait to have one either," smirked Elladan.
"That is not fair," I objected, crossing my arms and glaring at him.
"You started it first," replied a smug Elladan.
"Calm down, both of you. Elladan is right. You did initiate this Aurwen. It is every father's wish to hold a grandchild but I am not pushing you," said Haldir. "Ahh, I see Dunhirion is making his way here," said Haldir as he turned and faced Dunhirion.
"My lord. Aurwen," greeted Dunhirion, bowing.
"Dun, so happy to see you here. There are some people that I want to introduce to you," I said as I pulled him over to the twins. "This is Elladan and that is Elrohir. They are Lord Elrond's twin sons from Rivendell. They are here visiting their grandparents, the Lord and Lady of Lorien." Elladan, Elrohir and Dunhirion exchanged greetings while father drew me aside.
"Aurwen, do not forget that we still have things to talk about, tonight," Haldir said, staring hard at me.
"Yes, father," I said, rolling my eyes, "Are you leaving us now?"
"Indeed I am. I have things to discuss with Lady Galadriel. I will see you before the ball. Have fun and remember to take it easy on that arm." He gave me a kiss before he bade his farewells to the rest of them.
"So, Dunhirion, how long have you known Aurwen?" asked Elladan while he studied my friend.
"Elladan! Remember what I had mentioned earlier?" I interfered before Dun could answer.
"I remembered, now stop interfering. My apologies Dunhirion, do ignore her as she can be annoying at times," said Elladan with a big smirked over his face. I threw him a 'This means war' look before Dunhirion answered.
"I had known her for more than a millennia. She is my best friend and we have been inseparable ever since we met," answered Dunhirion as he drew me close to him.
"I assume that you must really know her well, and well enough to know of her secrets," continued Elrohir. "Now, now, Aurwen, no interfering," said Elrohir as I was about to protest. "Did she share her love interest with you?"
"Ummmm..this is hard. Aurwen is my best friend and I do not want to jeopardise our friendship. All I can safely say is, there were a few more of crushes than love. That was long ago and she has not been sharing any since. She had been busy focusing on training and that is all she ever discussed," said Dunhirion, somewhat nervously, while he turned and looked at me while I mouthed the word 'Thank you'.
"Alright then, I respect your friendship with Aurwen, although I have a favour to ask of you," said Elrohir. "You see, Dunhirion, both Elladan and I love Aurwen, like a sister. We worry that she will end up regretting this single life that she is living. Since you have known her for so long and had informed us of her interest in defence, I now know of whom to approach. Aurwen, you will not be disappointed."
"Now, the three of you do not go crazy pairing me up with all eligible elves who will fit that description in Lothlorien. I have an image to uphold and I am Haldir's daughter. If you do not respect me, at least have the respect for my father. I do not want his reputation tarnished because of your silly games." I stared hard at them, almost challenging them to defy me.
"Oh, Aurwen, you are very much like Arwen Undomiel. I am sure that Haldir himself will agree on this, when he hears of who I have in mind," said Elrohir with a big grin. That was the biggest grin I had ever seen coming from him, so full of mischief. "I am doing what is best for you."
"It is almost time for the ball so we had better go and get ourselves ready. We will see you again tonight and it is nice to finally meet you Dunhirion," said Elladan before he and Elrohir excused themselves.
"So those two are your so called brothers," said Dunhirion, smirking.
"Yes, Dun. I too am happy that you finally get to meet them. I thanked the Valar for keeping me alive after the attack and giving me the second chance for having such a wonderful family. I wished my real parents could see the things I have achieved so far," I said as I touched the mithril necklace that I was wearing, marvelling at the feel of it.
"Haldir has done a great job so far. He had thought you everything from being a lady to becoming a Lorien warrior. You are lucky to have him as your father," he said, wistfully.
"I know, Dun, and I love him dearly. My world would be shattered if anything happens to him. It worries me much when he goes on his nightly patrols, although no Orcs have been sighted ever since the Dark Lord was defeated," I said, staring off into the distance.
"You worry too much, just like Haldir. There is much more to him in you than you realise," Dun said, suddenly cheerful.
"I hope that father knows that he had created a 'monster', worst then any Orcs he had slain," I replied, smiling teasingly.
"You can be silly at times, Aurwen. I do hope you will find your match one day," said Dunhirion, glaring at me in mock anger. "I would love to sit and chat but the ball will start soon and both you and I have yet to be ready."
"You are right. I will see you then. It was nice to share things with you again," I said, giving Dunhirion a big hug before heading to my chamber.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*** Meanwhile at Galadriel's chamber ***
"My Lady, it is I, Haldir. I have matters to discuss with you. May I enter?" asked Haldir.
"Enter, Haldir, Guardian of Lorien. I have been expecting you," said Galadriel. "I know that you wish to discuss Aurwen. I have given her the necklace and it is rightfully hers. I hope that you have no objection towards my decision?"
"Nay, my Lady. I have come here to thank you personally. It was because of you that I had the opportunity to love her as my own. She is a wonderful daughter and a great student. As her father, I could not have asked for more," he said, smiling brightly.
"You know that she loves you and respects you as her father. You have set an example Lorien can be proud of."
"I need to discuss about the arrival of the Mirkwood elves. Do you want us to ride out to greet them? I have news of dark activities happening outside the borders of Lorien."
"Ride out to meet them, but do not alarm the people of Lorien of those activities. Middle-Earth has been at peace for some time now. However, do take precautions, as we do not know what to expect."
"Very well, my Lady. I will have my guards patrolling within the borders as well as out. No one in Lorien is aware of this except you, my guards, and I. Thank you again, for giving Aurwen such a gracious gift."
"It was my gift to her. You are doing a fine job raising her and I am proud of what you have accomplished. Raising a child alone and being Lorien's chief of defence is no easy task. You have taught her well," Galadriel said, admiration showing in her face.
"I had your help in raising her. You were responsible for all the grace she now carries and I thank you for that. I will send Aurwen to see you if she has any enquiry which I cannot answer."
"Do not worry, old friend. She will do fine. Alert the guards, I do not want surprises as we do have guests to entertain," said Galadriel, smiling . "I will inform Celeborn of this news."
"I will see you and Lord Celeborn at tonight's ball," said Haldir as he bowed and left.
tbc........