Hello there! Nice to see you! This fic is the result of Estel and I wanting to write a joint fic... we hope you'll enjoy it! You can find out a bit more about us in our bio. Enjoy!
x Queenie x
Chapter One -The First Leaf of Autumn
A red leaf drifted down from the tree it had been in since spring, tumbling in the autumn breeze one way, then caught up in a draught and flying the other. It fluttered for a moment before landing on the stomach of a young Elf.
Legolas had followed the leaf's journey from the moment it had loosened from the twig, and watched with interest, lying on his back underneath the big oak. He removed his arm from behind his head, where it had been providing a comfortable headrest, and with long skinny fingers, he gently grasped the stalk and lifted it up, inspecting it in front of his face.
"Look Estel," he said softly, not turning to the young man that sat just behind him, propped up against the tree trunk.
The youth looked up from his book, eyebrows raised. He had dark brown nearly black hair that nearly reached his shoulders, and intense grey blue eyes.
"What?" asked Estel, looking with slight confusion at his best friend twiddling the leaf between his fingers.
Legolas looked up, and although he was seeing the boy upside down, he still saw the look of confusion on Estel's face. "This," he said simply. He still received a blank look.
"It's a leaf." said Estel pointedly, frowning. Legolas laughed lightly, and it sounded like birdsong on a summer's day.
Grinning, he rolled over onto his stomach. "This, my friend," he said, holding up the leaf proudly. "This is the first leaf of autumn."
Estel rolled his eyes. "And that is important to you?" He returned to his book. Legolas frowned.
"Well, who woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?" he mumbled to no one in particular.
Estel poked an eye over the top of the book. "What did you say?"
"Nothing, nothing..." said Legolas innocently, pulling his infamous 'Who, me?' face. Estel eyed him suspiciously for a moment, before going back to his book for the third time.
Legolas was getting fed up with this. "What are you reading anyway?" Reaching over he pulled the book out of the boy's hands and read the cover. "An archery book?!" he gasped, feigning shock, although it was blatantly sarcastic. "Well I never..."
"Give me that!" cried Estel grumpily, pulling the book out of Legolas' hands again.
"Temper!" laughed Legolas. "Why are you reading that anyway?"
Estel looked at him as though he had grown another head. Legolas looked around.
"What?!" cried the Elf, wondering why his friend was so reluctant to tell him just why he was reading about a subject he was rather good at. "Only an innocent question..."
Estel looked uncomfortable. "Look..." He trailed off. Glancing up, he sighed as he saw Legolas' wide eyed pleading look. "Alright, alright! I'll tell you, but... but, just don't tell Dan and Ro!"
Legolas raised his left hand. "I promise," he said solemnly.
"Right hand."
"Pardon?" asked the Elf, not understanding what the boy was talking about. Estel sighed.
"You use your right hand if you're making a promise," Estel explained. Legolas arched an eyebrow, but not seeing any reason for Estel to lie, he sighed and raised his other hand.
"I promise."
Estel fell silent for a moment, before starting. "You and Dan and Ro have always been better than me at archery," he mumbled. He looked down uncomfortably at his feet. "I thought if I read about it I might get better."
Legolas smiled. "Estel," he laughed. "We've had a good few longer years than you to practise. After all, you're only seventeen; you're still a child!"
Estel's eyes darkened, but he grinned. "I am not a child."
Legolas laughed out loud. "Well you are to me!" He took off, running down the worn dirt path that led to Rivendell. Estel growled, running after him.
As they dodged the trees, two twins were busy a little further into the city, practicing archery.
"Dan, that's cheating!" cried Elrohir, watching his brother try to move the target, a dead bit of wood, back a few paces without him noticing. Elladan grinned.
"You might want to move forward a bit." said Elladan, not explaining why. Elrohir was confused.
"Why on Middle-Earth would I want to do tha-" He was cut off by two blurs of gold and dark brown and green and red that slammed into him, sending him flying. The group rolled over the fresh green grass for a few moments before slowly coming to a halt. Elrohir shook his head, trying to stop the world spinning.
Before his eyes, he saw what looked like two little demons, one blonde and the other dark haired. 'Oh no...' he thought.
"I caught you!" cheered one little 'demon' happily.
"I let you!" grumbled the other.
The colours swam back into place, and he saw, sprawled out over the ground, Estel and Legolas.
"Oh, hello there Ro!" beamed Estel, seeing his older brother. He got up and brushed himself off.
"Sorry about that," apologised Legolas, pulling a few blades of grass from his braids. Elrohir scowled.
"You should be," he said darkly, ignoring Elladan's pitiful attempts not to laugh. "I was just about to beat our dear brother here in an archery contest!"
Elladan snorted. "Oh Ro, don't be stupid. You know that would never happen!"
"Speaking of archery..." Legolas smirked, watching to see what Estel's reaction would be. The boy's eyes went wide.
"Legolas, you promised!" he hissed from behind Elladan's shoulder, his face furious. He was thinking of all the possible ways to exact revenge on his friend if he told...
"...we ought to do something constructive, to practise I mean." finished the Prince. Estel let go of the breath he was holding, but still sent a smouldering look of fury towards the Elf. The four thought for a moment.
"We could go out on a little hunting trip," suggested Legolas. "I mean, we've been here most of the summer; it would be nice to get out for a while." He was met with bright smiles all around.
"Great idea Legolas!" said Elrohir. "That way, we can have a bit of fun, and Estel could practise his archery."
Elladan stood, thinking for a moment. "Oh dear..." he mumbled suddenly. Elrohir frowned.
"What's the matter Dan?" he asked. He was met with an answer he'd half expected, but didn't want to hear.
"We'll have to ask Ada," Elladan sighed. The other three groaned in unison.
"He'll never let us go!" moaned Estel, folding his arms. "Remember the last hunting trip we went on?" He repressed a shudder. There never seemed to be a time when they came back from any kind of trip whatsoever without having at least one of them injured one way or another.
"Well if someone hadn't been so eager to go running through the forest -" started Elrohir.
"I was being chased by a Warg!" protested Estel in a pained voice.
"- Then maybe we wouldn't have woken that entire pack of wolves -"
"You were the one screaming like a girl..." grumbled Estel.
"- And then you wouldn't have been shot in the arse, and we wouldn't have had to carry you home, whinging and whining." finished Elrohir, folding his arms over his chest and raising an eyebrow at his younger brother.
"And who, pray tell, was the one whose archery was so bad that he shot Estel in the arse?" smirked Elladan, his eyes twinkling as he glanced at his twin. "Looks like you'd better face up to the facts, Ro - I'm a better archer than you."
"You reckon!" snorted Elrohir in disdain, "The only reason I missed is because you tripped into me..."
"And that was because the wolves Estel had just woken up were trying to eat me!"
"So we're agreed Estel is to blame then?" grinned Legolas mischievously.
"Oh shut up, you blonde..." teased Estel, dodging nimbly out the way of Legolas' playful shove. Seventeen years of living with the twins had taught him some very, very useful survival skills.
"'Blonde'?" repeated Legolas in mock horror, placing a hand upon his heart. "I am deeply wounded by this Estel! I thought you were better than that... And besides," he added mockingly to the twins, "I think you'll find that being from Mirkwood, I'm the best archer."
"Poncey Prince..." mumbled Elladan.
"Moany monarch..." agreed Elrohir.
"Older brothers..." tutted Estel, shaking his head in hopelessness.
Even though he wasn't a member of the family, Legolas was still considered by Elrond as a fourth son.
"I suppose we could try..." shrugged Legolas, aiming another whack at Estel. Finding its mark, it left a proud red mark on his forehead. Elladan sniggered as Estel shot him a seething look.
Elrohir sighed. "Yes well, if he bites off any of our heads, seeing as it's your idea we'll make sure it's yours..."
"And if anyone gets injured, are we all agreed its Estel's fault?" asked Legolas.
Estel hit him round the head. "Blondes..." he muttered.
~
A cold, biting wind swept through the Iron Hills, past the foremost peaks of the Misty Mountains, on towards the desolate hills by Fortnost. It swirled icily around Lake Evendim, throwing the freezing water into plumes upon the rocky, barren shore. Nothing but the wind stirred here; barely living thorn and thistle thickets scratched and tore at the rock hard ground, almost ripping their roots from the ground as they struggled against bonds to reach the water, so near and yet so far away. The ruins of the once formidable and mighty tower of the Kings of Arnor now stood empty and forlorn, haunted by memories and ghosts of the past... For nothing but the wind stirred there now - nothing but the treacherously whispering, never letting, bone-chilling wind...
...A shadow flitted across between the ancient boulders. Malice seemed to lay like a mantle about it, covering the ground in a hazy blackness. The thickets withdrew from its gaze, cowering before its oozing sense of pure evil. It remained in the shadows, unmoving and yet everywhere at once. It watched, with hollow, raven eyes the antics of four hunters from afar...
...One stood out. Tall, fair haired, different from the others.
The shadow sneered. Its time had now come...
~*~*~*~
Hope you like that! Please R&R and make us both happy! ^_^