A/N: This is what happens when I should be doing homework... I get bored, check my ff.net account, find a review and begin writing the next chapter. Stupid me. And I wonder why I'm failing Chemistry. But I have to admit, it was also very tempting to write Nicole falling in love with a random Orc... (thank you for that brilliant idea! lol). Well, I hope you all have fun reading my story. I'll get to the chapter in just a second. Or, if you'd rather not read all the stupid author's stuff I write, skip to the beginning of non-bolded print. Enjoy!
Crecy, you are a genius. *wink* read on, and you'll see why.
Naomi, thank you so much for making my crappy day a LOT better.... just the thought of Legolas having to call Nicole mommy is so... omg. I'd love to see that happen... I think I'll end up writing it in as a daydream or rambling thought in one of the chapters... and Elrond. Let's not get me started on that. LOL. Thanks for your brilliant ideas and your great reviews!
Disclaimer: nothing is mine. even my crazy brain. I sold that to my friend for a donut. *hangs head in shame* I'm so pathetic... all I own now is Nicole... the bid has been lowered to four cents, if anybody is interested.
Home Sweet Home
Chapter Twenty-Two ~ Annoyance and Running, and Confusion, and More Running
"What?" she repeated. The looks they were giving her began to alarm her and she stopped in her tracks. "What's wrong?"
Nicole searched every face. Aragorn was staring at her with something that was either awe or fright. Legolas had no emotions on his face but his eyes looked... somewhat expressive, for an Elf anyways. He looked interested. That's a first, Nicole thought, then set her gaze on Gimli. His reaction shocked her most of all. The Dwarf stood stiffly, staring up at her, mouth open, eyes wide, arms hanging loosely at his sides. But it was his facial expression that hit her hardest: disbelief and... distance. He was withdrawn from her, the friendly connection was gone. It was like he was staring at a stranger. Gimli... what did I do? Nicole wondered, her brow furrowed.
"I'm not kidding, guys. Tell me now, what's wrong? What's going on?" she demanded, her tone getting hard, just like her eyes.
Aragorn glanced at Legolas momentarily, glanced back at Nicole, softly cleared his throat and stared at the ground. Nicole glanced between Aragorn and Legolas, and met the Elf's blue eyes. Blue eyes... Elf... oh no. Gimli knows... Nicole tensed and stared silently at Gimli, waiting for him to say something. The silence was heavy and a small breeze stirred her hair, clearly displaying her ears. No one moved, no one spoke.
"Gimli?" Nicole said impatiently. "Gimli, are you... are you alright?" The Dwarf still hadn't come out of his shock and in fact, wasn't moving at all. Thinking that something was wrong, Nicole took a step forward and reached a hand out to Gimli. "Gimli, is everything OK?" He took a step back from her when she advanced and stopped in her tracks. Pain etched across her face for a moment, but was quickly erased by a hard mask of determination. Nicole dropped her hand and turned back to the direction in which they were tracking the Uruk-hai. Without a word, she set off across the plain again. In spite of her apparent disregard, Nicole was on the verge of tears.
The three hunters stared at each other for a minute and then Aragorn sprinted after Nicole, seeing that no one else seemed inclined to move, leaving the Elf and the Dwarf by themselves. As he ran after her, he scanned the land for the girl. She appeared to have disappeared, but the ranger could have sworn that she had been here moments ago. He followed her tracks through the grass, and reached a small cliff where her footsteps suddenly stopped. Fearing the worst, Aragorn approached the ledge, and looked down the wall of rock. Luckily, it was only twenty feet or so (seven meters) of a drop, so that was a big relief. The crumpled figure at the bottom didn't move, however, so Aragorn quickly and carefully climbed down the slope.
Nicole was lying there, just staring up at the sky, ignoring her oddly positioned limbs. She twirled a piece of her long dark hair between two fingers when Aragorn found her. He immediately began checking her for injuries.
"What happened? Are you alright? Do you hurt anywhere?" he asked, feeling her arms gently.
"He doesn't like me anymore... he doesn't know me," she said softly, biting her lip.
"Did you hit your head?" Aragorn continued, lifting her head off the ground and forcing her to sit up.
Nicole laboriously moved her legs into a more normal position. "Gimli... what am I supposed to do, Aragorn?" She met his gaze and asked for a solution.
Aragorn sat back on the grass, confident that the girl was still in one piece. "He doesn't seem to mind Legolas so much," he said. "What makes you think he will act differently to you? In fact, it should not bother him at all, since the two of you are friends."
"Are you sure? He looked pretty freaked out."
He chuckled. "Perhaps he looked 'freaked out', as you say it, because he was not used to seeing you as I did in Lorien. You are changed, as an Elf, than you were as a girl, Nicole."
Nicole looked at the sky again, leaning back on her uninjured right arm. "I'm still not sure," she said uncertainly and suddenly sat up straight again. "Alright, I have a Plan. I reinstate conversation with aforementioned Dwarf, but should he refuse to continue friendly relations, you shall have to be my only source of amusement for the duration of our journey." She held out a hand to shake. "Agreed?"
Aragorn grabbed her hand and lifted her up from the ground. "Agreed."
She held fast to his hand. "That's something you should consider carefully. I can be a terribly annoying, obnoxious, ridiculous, insane, and troublesome friend." Aragorn repeated himself. Warily, she let go of his hand. "Alright, but it's your problem now." Just then, a clatter of rocks from above them made Nicole turn her head sharply upwards. A cry accompanied a tumbling cloud of dust and rock, and landed with a thump a few feet from Nicole. Legolas jumped down gracefully, landing in a crouch and straightening himself as the dust cleared. Nicole moved forward when she saw that it was Gimli. "Are you alright? What happened? How did you manage to fall like that?" the questions streamed out of her mouth before she could recall that she was an Elf, a fact recently discovered by the Dwarf. Nicole grabbed his arm and hauled him easily to his feet (using her right hand, of course). A moment later, she realized what she had done and stepped back quickly in case Gimli freaked out again.
The Dwarf looked up at her, first making sure visually that the girl was alright, and then his gaze rested on her ears. Pointed ears. Nicole swallowed painfully under his scrutiny. Instinctively, she reached a hand out to Aragorn who had taken Boromir's place as her brother, a title she had placed upon him unbeknownst to him. She curled her fingers around his palm, already feeling that Gimli was still unsure of her.
"We should keep going," she whispered to Aragorn, and nudged him gently in the direction of the Uruks, pleading with her eyes that they keep moving.
~*~*~*~*~*~Legolas & Gimli after Nicole's initial departure~*~*~*~*~*~
"Are you well, my friend?" Legolas asked Gimli. The Dwarf had not yet spoken and appeared to still be digesting the information.
"She... Nicole... she... did you see?" The Dwarf whispered, voice hoarse with bewilderment.
Legolas sighed and thanked the Valar for the strength of Elven patience. "Yes, I did see. I knew about it since we left the woods of Lorien, as did Aragorn," he explained, remembering his conversation with Nicole at the farewell party. "She did not want to tell you because she was afraid that you would... not be pleased. As you know, Elves and Dwarves do not easily befriend one another," he commented with a wry grin.
"But... she... how?" Gimli still couldn't bring himself to actually say what had happened to the formerly human girl.
"I do not know. It is a mystery to me, perhaps the Lady played some part in it. Within all reason, a girl from another kingdom unknown to any of us, who appears from nowhere and is a human, then becomes one of my kind... it is impossible. But these are strange time," he said and brought his talking to a point. "So strange that even a Dwarf and Elf manage to become friends. It should not be so hard for you to do again, should it, Gimli?" Legolas hinted at accepting Nicole, despite her race, and he hoped that the Dwarf could still hear him. His ears picked up a scattering of rocks from the direction of Aragorn and Nicole. "But come now, there is no more time for such thoughts. We still hunt the Orcs who took our friends, and we must catch up to our companions." The two set off at a sprint towards the cliff where Aragorn and Nicole sat talking.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
They ran for the duration of the day, never stopping and talking shortly, if ever. Nicole kept a cautious distance from Gimli, anxious about what he thought of her now. She was relieved that she could keep her hair away from her face without fear now, and that she did not have to pretend to stumble every once in a while, but his reaction still weighed heavily on her heart. When the night was well upon them, and Gimli was starting to get severe problems with seeing, the group stopped, finding a niche under a rocky overhang and sat down on the grass to rest.
"Hi ho, hi ho, from work to home we go," Nicole mumbled tiredly as she slumped against the rocks. They sat in semi-darkness, Aragorn thinking that they were getting too close to their prey to light a fire. The moon was half-full with a strange glow and the stars were bright and provided some silvery light, reminding Nicole of Lorien. The estimation of the time when they would confront the Uruk's was either late tomorrow evening, or tomorrow night. She held her bow across her crossed legs and stared blankly, wanting to fall asleep but her damn glow was too bright. Nicole groaned.
"Something troubles you?" Aragorn asked distractedly as he was trying to polish his blade.
"You've lived around Elves for a while, haven't you?" she asked. Legolas glanced up at the conversation but Gimli remained silent, face turned towards the plains.
"Yes. I lived in Rivendell and often traveled in the company of Elves."
"Do you sleep well? Any problems with insomnia?"
His brow furrowed slightly but he replied. "My sleep is undisturbed, for the most part."
"And you can fall asleep easily, even when surrounded by Elves."
"It has never been a problem for me. Are you alright, Nicole?" Her line of questioning didn't make much sense to him.
"Never been better," she grumbled and pressed the heels of her palms into her eyes. Stupid stupid stupid me... this journey is too stressful. Number One: first thing I do here is land myself on a sharp pointy rock and deliver a lovely injury. Number Two: I climb up and down, and all I get for it is a cold and a good friend that fell into a hole. We could really use Gandalf right about now. Number Three: I become an Elf. An ELF. What is this, Mary-Sue Mania? Number Four: Boromir is brutally murdered by a group of ugly Uruk-hai that are going to die tomorrow by my hand, and Pippin and Merry are taken from us. And Number Five, to top it all off: Gimli is angry with me, or scared of me, or something, because he won't talk to me because I'm an Elf. I'm splendid, Aragorn, how are you?! She groaned again as she finished her mental tirade and took her hands away from her eyes nothing was working.
"Why did you ask such strange questions?" Aragorn wondered.
Nicole mumbled something so softly that he had to ask her to repeat it. "I can't sleep." She glared at him, and then at Legolas, partly for listening in on the conversation, and partly for being an Elf himself.
"Why not? Does something ail you?"
"Nothing ails me but this damn glow thing!" she whispered fiercely so that Gimli wouldn't catch on to what she was saying. Nicole noticed and was much annoyed that her comment was very amusing to Legolas. *What're you laughing at, Elf?* she snapped in whispered Elvish.
*He has no part in this, Nicole,* Aragorn tried to reason with her.
*You seem to forget, once more, that you are an Elf,* Legolas replied coolly. *And I am simply amused by your behavior, for it is much like that of Elfin children.*
Nicole's mouth fell open and she turned to Aragorn. *He just insulted me! He said I was a child!*
Aragorn chuckled. *Very well, tell me then, how old are you, Nicole?*
She put her bow on the ground beside her, pulled her knees to her chest and buried her head in her arms. Again, her response was mumbled.
*I didn't quite hear you,* Legolas said, far too amused by her suffering.
*I forgot,* she ground out through clenched teeth. She looked up and glared at Legolas, who had turned his attention now to his knives so that she couldn't see his face. *So? Wouldn't you forget? Aren't you wondering if you've reached 2500 or whatever?*
*I know exactly how many years I have been alive,* the Elf replied pointedly.
*Oh yeah? Fine, how old are you?*
*It's not polite to discuss ages,* Aragorn added in, to calm down the fight that seemed to be stirring. *Nicole, how old do you think you are?*
*I honestly have no clue,* she admitted. *I think I was somewhere around sixteen for sure... but that was a while ago. I think I'm older now. I feel older now. It must've been because of Lorien. Everyone was so stiff and old and mature there. But it was nice...* she trailed off, lost in her memories now...
"Nicole? Nicole?"
"Huh? What? I'm awake, I'm awake!" she said and sat up straight, looking about her. She frowned. "Wasn't the sky black a few seconds ago?"
Aragorn spared her a smile as he slipped his sword back into its scabbard. The sky was now lightening towards dawn. "For all your worries that you would not be able to sleep, when your memories took their hold on you, you fell into your own kind of sleep. With open eyes but senseless to the world, you, Nicole, slept as an Elf."
"I did?" she asked shocked, and poked her eyes, as though checking now to see that they were still open. "Ouch... shouldn't have done that." She adjusted the quiver on her back and cracked her neck as she stood. "Where to, boss?"
Aragorn pointed west. "We keep going the same way as before, as always."
They set off, running across the grass again before the sun was up. Nicole ran side by side with Aragorn and at one point, still before the sun rise, he began a conversation with her.
"After you fell asleep, we tried to find an age appropriate for you, Nicole," he said. She hoped desperately that by 'we' he meant all three hunters and that Gimli was starting to warm up to her again.
"Really? Thanks. So how old am I?" It felt strange to be asking somebody else that question.
"What do you think of being 20 years of age?" he asked with a sidelong glance.
She mulled it over for a while. Hmm... not bad. I'm old enough to be out on my own, by that time. And I probably look 20 too, considering the whole Elf thing. But still young, I've still got time ahead of me. I like it. Nicole nodded. "Twenty, I could live with that. Any particular thing that influenced your decision?"
"To be honest, something older would have been more suitable for your face, perhaps 23? But the way you act is often..."
"Immature? Unwise? Childish? Stupid? Idiotic? Similar to a five year old?" Nicole listed the possible endings to Aragorn's sentence.
"You are truly a strange girl... or woman, I should say now."
"Thank you, I'll take that as a compliment," she replied happily. His words triggered something she had wanted to say. "Oh, by the way, did you notice the moon last night?"
He frowned and replied shortly. "No." Nicole realized that talking to people while they're running is probably not the best idea for their health.
"It was strange," she said, then seeing his questioning gaze, continued to explain. "It kind of had a reddish circle around it... like an aura, y'know?" Apparently, Aragorn didn't know and still looked at Nicole as though she was of uncertain mental health. "Well, there's this superstition that when that happens bad stuff is in the future. Just thought you might want to know." Nicole shrugged, a difficult maneuver while running. They grew quiet again because the difficulty of talking while running was a bit too great for Aragorn, as conditioned as he was.
Slowly but surely, the sky grew to blue and the sun rose red over the hills.
"A red sun rises, blood has been spilt this night," Legolas commented, then ran on.
Nicole rolled her eyes. "I said that a second ago. Well not exactly. But still... word-stealer!" she muttered under her breath. Who is he talking to when he says those things, anyways? The sun itself, maybe? Definitely not Aragorn, he's too far ahead, and Gimli's too far behind. Ha, I bet that he's going insane. Oh, that would be SO good, Nicole grinned with these thoughts, and looked about to see who she could share her insights with. The only person who might have enjoyed her humor was Gimli, but seeing as they weren't talking right now... Nicole sighed. I didn't think this was possible, but this both sucks and blows at the same time. (A/N: I'm pretty sure that Bart Simpson says that, so it's not mine!)
They ran some more. Then they ran. And after that, they ran. Nicole was not amused anymore, getting tired of constant running and no results. Added to that, she was running. And she was getting very worried about Merry and Pippin. Some serious damage could have been done to the hobbits by now, and since she (and Legolas) had noted that the night had looked suspiciously murderous, Nicole was getting jumpy.
Aragorn tapped her shoulder as they were crossing one hill and she nearly screamed. "Don't DO that!" she scolded him, holding one hand to her rapidly beating heart. "What is it?"
"We must hide, riders are coming from the direction in which we hunt," he replied, and led the group to a outcrop of rocks nearer to the bottom of the hill. They hid among the stones, the Elven cloaks hiding them well as the riders rode past them swiftly.
In the silence of the few seconds, Nicole took the opportunity to try conversation with Gimli again. Aragorn was fine, but having just one person to talk to was anything but fun. "Gimli?" she said softly, hoping that he would at least turn around or look at her. He remained stiff and cold to her. That's not fair. I didn't ask to be an Elf, he doesn't have to get mad at me.
The column of horsemen had nearly passed them when Aragorn stood up, seeming to recognize their raiment. "Riders of Rohan, what news from the Riddermark?" he yelled out in a loud voice, and motioned for the others to come out from their hiding places.
Nicole stood with the rest of them in the open plain, but quickly realized that she was, in fact, a woman who was, in fact, traveling with three males, and added to that she was, in fact, an Elf. A situation that was far too bizarre for these strangers to comprehend, so she swiftly pushed her hair back, hiding its length beneath the cloak, and pulled her hood low over her face so that no features would be seen. The riders formed a circle around them and bent their spears forward, keeping the four hunters close together and far from the riders.
Out of the group, one man rode forward and by the looks of his armor, slightly more embellished than the others, he was the leader of this band of Rohirrim. "Who are you and what business have you in Rohan? Speak quickly!"
Aragorn eyed the rider warily, apprehensive of the helmet still hiding the speaker's identity. "I am called Strider. My companions and I come from the north on the trail of a band of Orcs. Now tell me, be you friend or foe? Whom do you serve, and what is your name?"
"You are strange hunters, who hunt so badly equipped. The others have yet not spoken, and I demand their names as well. But before that, I will say this: Rohan serves no one, and my company is loyal to Rohan and to Theoden King in the Golden Hall. We do not serve the darkness in Mordor, if that is what you mean. My company slew a great group of Uruk-hai and Orcs this night past," he said, and pointed towards the trail where this particular part of the Fellowship had been planning to go. "There you may see that we have piled and burned their foul carcasses. I ask again: what are you names, silent ones?"
"Give me your name, horsemaster, and I shall give you mine, and more besides," Gimli replied in his usual stubborn manner.
Angered, the man dismounted his horse and pulled off his helmet. Blonde hair spilled onto his shoulders and bright eyes regarded them coolly. "For your words, Dwarf, I would cut off your head, beard and all, if it stood but a little higher from the ground," he sneered.
Nicole, infuriated at this man's treatment of her (formerly) close friend, whipped out her bow and strung it, for once being quicker than Legolas. The leader of the Rohirrim had two bows pointed at him, and the archers soon had tens of spears brought closer to them. "Try it," Nicole growled dangerously, her voice not sounding at all female nor Elven.
"You would die before your stroke fell," Legolas said, louder than Nicole.
Gimli looked up in surprise at the two Elves, so quick to protect him. He was especially confused that Nicole would still be attached to him, even though he had shunned her. Guilt began to edge his heart.
Aragorn forced them to lower their weapons, and replied for them. "This is Legolas from the Mirkwood realm. And this is Gimli, Gloin's son, from the mountains," he said steadily, indicating Elf and Dwarf in turn.
"I am Eomer, Third Marshall of the Riddermark, and this is my company," the man said, finally satisfied to have some names. Nicole was grateful that she got away so easy, but has anything ever been easy for Nicole? Eomer gestured towards her. "Why do you not speak, and why do you hide your face? Have you no tongue?"
His tone of voice sparked fury in Nicole and she tensed, about to pull her bow up again, or maybe just punch the guy for the way he was talking to her, all high-and-mighty. And he didn't even know she was a woman. A firm grip on her wrist stayed her and Legolas replied for her. "This is Yaaraer, and this traveler has a strange reaction to the sun and must wear a hood to protect the skin," he explained, carefully avoiding using 'he' or 'she'. Nicole froze when she heard what name he had given her. Roughly translated, it meant something along the lines of 'old one' and he said it with a mocking tone, knowing that Nicole hated being called a child. (A/N: I'm not sure if it actually means that, sorry). She glared hard at him.
Eomer regarded her skeptically. "Very well, I do not wish to cause you harm by revealing your skin to sunlight," he replied unhappily. "I do not understand what draws such a strange group of travelers from the north," he continued, speaking to Aragorn again. "Perhaps we may speak for a moment, away from the others." And the two of them walked a short distance away while the group of riders spread out, allowing Legolas, Gimli, and Nicole to move as they pleased.
Nicole stood where she was, bow still in hand, and not completely sure that she trusted these people. Aragorn seemed fine with them, even the Elf and Dwarf were willing to accept them as allies. Maybe it was just their treatment of strangers that caught her off guard. Is everyone else in Middle Earth this mean and rude? she wondered. Could be true... after all, look at Gimli's reaction to me. And before he found out that he HAD to be civil to me because I was an Elf, Legolas wasn't very kind either.
Aragorn's voice reached her and snapped her back to attention. "We shall move on," he told them. Their search of the two Halflings had been explained to Eomer, and their leader had sadly received no news of them from Eomer. "They have seen no sign of our friends, but perhaps they managed to escape." His voice was subdued, and didn't inspire much hope.
"We shall give you horses to aid you if they can," Eomer added. He whistled sharply, and gestured for one of the men to come closer. Two horses were brought to the four travelers. "This is Hasufel, and Arod. May your fortunes be better than their former masters'." The horseman moved away and mounted his own ride, preparing to lead his company away.
Nicole, once again, found that she couldn't help herself and stopped him. "Hey buddy! I see four of us, and two horses. As much as we appreciate your help, I don't feel like being left behind, so if you don't mind... I know you have horses to spare," she yelled out. Her actions made Aragorn reconsider the age he gave her: five or seven might have been more accurate. Her voice showed her to be a woman, and her movement forward pushed the hood back so that now her face could be seen, but her ears were still hidden.
"A woman?" Eomer asked incredulously and turned his steed to face them again. "The fourth of your companions is a woman? You keep a strange group of friends, Strider."
"Oh I'm sorry," Nicole bit back sarcastically. "Did I offend you by being independent and being able to travel in the big wide world? Was it demeaning to you to know that a mere woman, such as myself, could wield weapons? I apologize for being so manly, in that case. Please, forgive me." Nicole's voice dripped with sarcasm and venom and she gave a half-bow. Her words came out badly and she hadn't meant to be so harsh but the weight of Boromir's death, the fruitlessness of their hunt, and Gimli's recent refusal of friendship were starting to wear on her nerves.
The riders sat stunned at hearing her outburst. Eomer slowly called forward a third horse and cautiously handed the reins to Nicole. "A steed, milady. He is yet unnamed, for his master died before deciding on a name. May he serve you well," he said slowly, as though speaking to someone who might blow up at any second.
Nicole bowed graciously this time. "Thank you, Lord Eomer," she said, sarcasm gone, and happy to be treated nicely for once. "Although I ask of you not to call me Lady. It is a title I have never known, nor do I ever wish to use. May your company fare well on its journeys." Then she mounted her horse and waited for her friends (not literal friends) to mount their own horses.
Eomer rode out a bit and then called to Aragorn, "May our swords shine together in the future!"
Nicole waved cheerfully at them. "Bye! Play nice!" Eomer glanced at her strangely again and then turned his company around and they rode off. "I think that went very well, don't you?" she asked Aragorn.
"You are strange, Nicole, and that is all I have to say on the matter," he replied.
"Thank you. Now c'mon, we have to check that battle site for any clues about Pippin and Merry." Nicole patted her horse's neck fondly. It was a dark brown horse with sparkling dark eyes. "Go, horsie, go!" It didn't move. "Run!" Nothing. "Run, please?" Still nothing. Feeling frustrated, Nicole fought the urge to curse. *Run, you stupid thing! NORO!* The command in Elvish was like a wake-up call to the horse, and it sprinted into a gallop immediately, heading in the direction she wanted it to go. She laughed as the hooves kicked up a cloud of dust.
Behind her, the three hunters spurred their horses into gallops and heard her cries, none of which made sense to them.
"Burn dust, horsie! Eat my rubber!"
A/N: I congratulate you on reading and surviving what is, quite possibly, the stupidest chapter I've ever written. I don't think I developed the coldness between Gimli and Nicole very well... any suggestions?
I'm so proud of all my reviewers! You've gotten me to nearly 80! Good job! Keep it up!
I've borrowed the "burn dust, eat my rubber" thing from National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, so it's not mine!!! And... erm.... I think that's it. Oh, and the reason for the badness of this chapter is that I have exams this week, and I really shouldn't have written anything, but I did, so now both my exams and my chapter turned out less than good. I'm sorry, I'll try to do better next time.
Next chapter: Trees! Whoo hoo! Maybe we'll even get to Gandalf... hmm... we shall see. And what's going to happen with Nicole and Gimli? Can an attack of flying tree monkeys (these vicious animals just keep showing up, don't they?) save their friendship??? Find out when I get a chance to write and post! Bye! ~MoI~