I was bored, so decided to update today. I'm sure no one will complain, right? Good…
Who's gone back to school yet? I haven't! Woo hoo! Go back on 6th September. Can't wait…
Ok, here's chapter 7 of Runaways, The Journey Continues. Enjoy.
Faerlain
Mayrana – At least you did finally review! Hope you had a good vacation. Where did you go? Yes, I will post it soon, don't worry. Stop bouncing for goodness sake! You might hit your head on something! Then you'll have a lovely big bump in the middle of your forehead for your wedding!
Noon would be good. And if it's held in Lothlórien, the Sun won't be too hot, know what I mean? It'll be nice and airy. Shopping for weddings is great fun! I'm free Monday too! Let's go and spend all our money!
Wow, I'm getting married!
Ok, I'm bouncing round the room too so we'll have matching bumps.
Thanks for reviewing!
Oh, and I was thinking of going to Ithilien for my honeymoon. I mean, it's got no Orcs, and is all nice and clean and evil-free. At the moment…
DaydreamingTurtle – Confusing girl! And yes, I have that song! I miss my cat, but we're thinking of getting a rescue one, so at least our house won't be empty for much longer.
Of course he found her. How's a ten-year old girl supposed to survive in the middle of Mirkwood by herself?!?! Thanks for reviewing.
Rayame325 – 3 dogs? Cool! When I went on holiday, there were 16! I miss them already! I really want a Labrador or Retriever. But we're probably going to get a rescue cat, which will be nice. I'll get a dog of my own when I'm older! Thanks for reviewing.
ShadowStar21 – More? Ok, here you go. Thanks for reviewing.
Elerrina – Poor everyone! You're so caring Elerrina! They might be having another child. Read on and you'll find out.I got 5 out of 6 reviews. That'll do! Thanks for reviewing.
Chapter 7: The Journey Continues.
"I don't want to."
"But Celille…"
"No buts! You've ran away, I'm running away too."
"Yes, but I have good reasons."
"So do I."
"Oh yes? And what are these reasons?"
"I have no family left. I'll be all alone…"
"Gaenry will look after you."
"But he's not my father! Legolas, don't you understand? My father is dead. My mother died in childbirth. There's no one and nothing there for me now. I'm better off out here."
"But you'll still be alone."
"But…what about you?"
"I'm getting out of Mirkwood as fast as I can. Why do you think I ran away in the first place? I only stayed to look for you, take you back to Befret, then get out of here."
Her face fell. "But I can't survive without you."
"Then go back to Befret!"
"No!" She stood up and stormed away to the other side of their makeshift camp. I followed. "I can't go back," she whispered. "Please, don't make me go back there."
"But why? That's all I want to know."
"I hate it. I have no friends."
"Yes you do, you told me so yourself."
"They're not proper friends. They only pretend to be my friends because Gaenry is like my second father. They want to get closer to his sons, who I am friends with, in a way."
"Well, think of them. You can't leave them with the girls!"
She laughed softly. "They'll survive."
I crouched down to her height and turned her face to look at me. "Your father wouldn't have wanted you to do this."
"He would have understood though. I know he would have."
I sigh. "Fine. But I'm leaving Mirkwood. I was meant to take you back to Befret when I found you, but…"
"…but I am being really stubborn and not letting you," she finished, grinning.
"Yes. Couldn't have put it better myself. Come on, the moon is up. Get some sleep."
"Ok." She crawled back over to her bedroll, and curled up. I placed a blanket over her, and stood guard.
The next day, I felt quite tired, but hid it from Celille, who was now riding Star-mane again. We made good progress, going roughly 10 miles. Mirkwood is very big, remember.
A couple of days later, we reached the Western Border. I knew patrols had been around for a lot of that journey and the word will have spread quickly that I was still in Mirkwood. We had to get as far away as possible, as quickly as possible.
"Where are we going exactly?" Celille asked me as we left Mirkwood far behind.
"I'm not sure exactly. We'll just head in a South-westerly direction, and see where we end up."
"Ok." She was just doing as I said. I think she was trying to keep me sweet after I decided to let her come with me. And it was nice to have some company. Even if it was a ten-year-old girl.
"We could go into the Pass, but that might take us too close to Rivendell. Fancy a trip to the Gap of Rohan?"
"But that's miles away!"
"So? Remember that we've run away. We've got all the time in the world!"
She joined in my laughter, and we turned to head straight south.
We were still on the East Side of the Anduin, which was where I wanted to be. We followed it down for days, passing the Gladden Fields on the way.
"We'll be nearing Lothlórien soon," I told her as we rested one night. "We'll have to be careful. Adar may have got word to them already that I'm missing. Rivendell will certainly know by now, but we've left them far behind."
"What about Southern Mirkwood? I thought it was all evil down there."
"No. After the War, Dol Goldur was abandoned. It still is."
"Oh, ok. Orcs? Wargs?"
"Don't worry. If they reside in the forest, that's where they stay. Remember that Orcs can't bear the light. They'll stay under the dark canopy. As long as we stay near the Riverbank, we'll be fine."
It seemed to take forever to get past Lothlórien. I could see the borders on the other side of the River, and it felt as if the trees themselves were watching us. I often wondered if any border guards saw us, but we were never halted.
"How are we going to get across the River?"
"There must be a Bridge or something, somewhere," I answered. We had passed Lothlórien, and were getting closer to the LimLight. It flowed down through Fangorn from the Misty Mountains, into the Anduin on the West Side. Once we passed that, we had to cross the Anduin. We were going to travel through the Gap of Rohan. For this, we had to cross the Anduin. That was our first real barrier.
Almost six and a half weeks after I had originally clambered down the beech tree beside my window and slipped out of the courtyard, we reached the LimLight.
"That's the LimLight," I called over to her. We were having a galloping session. "We'll have to cross the River sometime soon."
A couple of miles South of the LimLight however, we encountered some problems. The Anduin meandered sharply, going in a straight horizontal line to the East. There was no way we could follow the River that way. It would just take too long.
"Well, we'll just cross here," Celille said simply, dismounting.
"But we have no idea how deep the water is," I told her, also dismounting. "And look how wide it is. We'll never make it."
"Horses can swim."
"But not that well. And there could be hidden currents that could wash you away. No, I'm not risking it."
She sighed. "Well then what do you propose?"
"Just let me think." I got out my map and studied it carefully. "We are here," I said, pointing. "The Brown Lands lie to the East, Fangorn to the West. The Brown Lands are empty, save for a few small villages and various woods that aren't even marked on here. No one knows what lives in Fangorn, as hardly anyone lives to come out alive. It's a dangerous wood. There aren't any bridges marked on here either. This map is actually pretty useless."
"Let's just follow the River for a short way," she suggested, filling up her water flask. "If, after a day, we find no bridges, we'll plan another route."
"Ok." I folded the map up and put it back in my bag.
The next day, we did as she said. And guess what. There was a bridge, five miles along. We crossed it happily, and turned southwest again, galloping through the Wold.
It was pretty bare itself, save for a few clumps of trees, and the occasional human settling. We ignored these however, preferring to shelter under trees. Questions would be asked as to why a young human girl and an Elf were travelling around together. Questions we would rather not have.
A week or so, later we reached the Entwash and crossed it easily. We were now in the Kingdom of Rohan, and when I looked over my map again one night, I realised just how far away I was from home.
"We've gone miles," Celille commented, peering over my shoulder.
"Yes, we have," I replied, folding up the map and putting it away again. "Many miles."
It was now late February, and spring would soon be here. Already, the days were growing longer, the evenings becoming lighter. There are snowdrops everywhere, but flowers such as daffodils and crocuses will soon replace them.
To the North, I can see the Misty Mountains, to the South, the White Mountains. The Gap of Rohan is ahead of us. The River Isen runs straight through the Gap of Rohan, but it should be relatively easy to cross.
It takes us roundabout two weeks to reach the entrance to the Gap. A couple of Orc scouts surprised us on the way, but we dealt with them easily enough. I've been giving Celille lessons on how to use her knife properly. She's greatly improved. We rest there for a while, going over what we could do once inside the Gap, then on the West Side of the Mountains.
"I never dreamt that I would get any further away from my village than to your palace. But look at where we are! We've come so far."
"I know. And we'll be going to the West Side of the Misty Mountains. Bet you never thought you would do that either."
"No, no I didn't. It's such an adventure!"
"I think we'll stop here for at least a week. The horses need a good rest, as do we. And I reckon we're quite safe here."
She nodded in agreement. "Legolas, why exactly did you run away?"
"Because I hated my life at home."
"Why?"
"I hate being a Prince. It's such a boring life, so strict and 'perfect'. I had to get out. So I did."
"How old are you?"
"160."
She stared at me, slightly surprised. "I thought you were younger."
"Everyone treats me as though I am. I'm not even allowed out into the forest on my own much. It's ridiculous. I am perfectly capable of looking after myself."
"And you've looked after me all right," she praised, smiling gently at me.
I smiled in return. "You reckon?"
"I'm still here, aren't I?"
I laughed. "Yes, though I think you left your brain in Mirkwood."
She poked her tongue out, so I tackled her to the ground. We ended up having a huge tickling contest, as we have discovered both of us are extremely ticklish. The horses just looked at us as if we were mad, then carry on grazing.
"You're like the older brother I never had," she says later as we're gazing up at the stars.
"I'll take that as a compliment."
"It is a compliment."
"Well you're definitely behaving like a little sister."
"Good." She sighs. "I'd love a real older brother."
"Why?"
"I don't know. Just to…look out for me I guess."
"Do I make a good substitute?"
"A perfect one." She reaches over, and kisses me lightly on the cheek. "Thank you," she whispers, and then slowly drifts off to sleep in my arms.
I drape a blanket over us, and gradually fall into a light sleep myself.
Aww, bless! Isn't that just so sweet? I think so…
New story just popped into my head. Pure tragedy. Will be up on VERY soon. Can't wait to see all your reactions. Teehee…
Until next week guys.
Faerlain