Disclaimer: My birthday's this weekend... Maybe if I wished hard enough I'll wake up with a real Elfy under my bed? ((hopeful look))
Then again, I've no wish to be set upon by rabid fangirls, which makes lots of sense considering I'm one myself. And I think I should stop rambling and start the chapter.
Chapter 10: Mirkwood I
The journey to Mirkwood was uneventful, thankfully for Elrond. Like Estel, he had no idea what they would do if Orcs had ambushed them along the way. They could have run, but he didn't think they'd get very far if they had to carry to painting at such an odd angle on horseback.
The watches in the dead of the night had fallen to Estel during their journey. The Human had been very enthusiastic in volunteering himself, for reasons unfathomable to the twins. Elrond, however, had a slight inkling as to his willingness to sacrifice his sleep.
He had woken up once to find the blonde Elf with his Human son, humming softly. Estel had fallen asleep with his head leaning against the Elf's shoulder, and Legolas had carefully drawn a blanket around him to keep him warm. The Elf was sitting with his back to a tree, and his hand gripped his weapons lightly while his eyes roved the woods outside the confines of their fire.
'Their bond is strengthening, that is good. They will need it before the end comes.' A gentle voice whispered softly into his mind as they rode towards the forests of Mirkwood.
'You saw something in your mirror, my Lady?' Elrond asked.
'Snatches of the future, nothing definite. But it is clear that their fates are entwined in more ways than one. If either falls...'
'They will not fall.' Elrond said, his mental voice coming across harder than he intended.
'Peace, young one. I have faith in them. Just remember. It is always darkest before dawn.'
"Ada? We've reached the borders of Mirkwood."
Elrond blinked, coming out of the slight stupor he had been in. Galadriel's presence faded from his mind and he became aware of the menacing trees looming up before him.
He nodded to his sons. "Alright, we're almost there. Hopefully we will meet up with some of the scouts before we encounter any spiders.
X.x.X.x.X.x.X.x.XEstel fidgeted on his horse. The stillness was oppressing, and that half-light... it was really getting on his nerves.
The twins were silent, which was rare. He noticed that their hands strayed constantly to their weapons at their sides, even as Elrohir's grip on the cloth-covered canvas tightened slightly.
There was no sign of any life near them, even the sounds of the horses' hooves on the leaf litter was muted. A faint trickling could be heard, but a quiet comment from Elrond confirmed that it was the enchanted stream flowing through the forest.
There was a sudden change in the air around them. An evil aura surrounded them, gradually building up until the horses were snorting in anxiety and shying away from the trees that lined the narrow path.
"'Dan?"
The elder twin frowned at him as he drew his sword in a fluid motion, his actions mirrored by Elrohir.
"Spiders," Elrond breathed as his worst fears were realized.
"We must run, Ada. We cannot afford to waste time here." Elladan urged.
"But the spiders know the paths better than us. We will not make it." Estel objected as he drew his sword as well. By now, he could smell the stench of the spiders as they drew a ring about their prey, waiting for the moment to pounce on them.
Elrohir shoved the painting into the Human's hands. "Take it. Take it and go. You and Ada. Now."
Estel opened his mouth to protest, but Elladan silenced him with a gesture. "He is right. You cannot afford to linger. The circle is closing, you must move before we are completely surrounded."
Elrond glanced at the twins, his heart aching at the thought of leaving them to fend off the deadly Mirkwood spiders all by themselves while he fled for safety with his youngest son. "We will alert the Mirkwood patrols as soon as we encounter them. May the Valar protect you."
He nudged his horse with his knees and whispered a command into its alert ears. Immediately, it sprang away from the group, followed closely by Estel's horse. As the Human clung on to the reins with one hand and the portrait with the other, he heard the furious screeches of the spiders as they realised their prey were getting away. He looked behind him and saw dark shapes scurrying through the trees, heading towards them.
"Ada! They're chasing us!"
Elrond said nothing, only urged his horse to go faster, faster...
A shriek exploded from behind them. Elrond whirled around on his horse, watching in horror as a spider leapt off the tree, aiming for his son...
A volley of arrows slammed into the spider, making it fall short of its target by a few feet. Elrond whipped his gaze back to what lay before them, only to find a unit of Mirkwood soldiers hastening towards them, some on horses, others running lightly on the branches of the trees above them.
The commander shouted as he galloped up to the Elf Lord, "Lord Elrond! Hurry! Get back to the palace!" Turning to look over his shoulder, he barked out a command. "The five of you, get them back as quickly as possible. The rest of you, come with me!"
The Elves swept by the stunned Elf Lord and his equally surprised son, leaving a trail of dying spiders in their wake. One of those left to escort them tugged urgently at the horses' bridle. "Come, my Lords, they will take care of the spiders."
"My sons, they are - "
"Fear not, my Lord. They will be safe. We must hurry."
Elrond glanced at Estel before following the Elves' lead deeper into the forest towards the realm of Thranduil. He could only pray that his sons were holding their own against the spiders.
X.x.X.x.X.x.X.x.X
An imposing Elf was striding back and forth in the courtyard as Elrond, Estel and the guards clattered in. Before Elrond could dismount, the Elf was beside him, asking with feverish excitement, "Well? Where is he?"
Elrond tried to calm the almost frantic Elf. "Patience, my friend. Perhaps we should take this inside..."
"Yes, yes, of course." The Elven King composed himself slightly as he waved the guards away, then took hold of Elrond's elbow and practically dragged him into the palace, leaving Estel standing by himself, still holding onto the portrait and wondering whether he should laugh. Shaking his head, the Human followed the two Elves in.
He could hear the King chattering away as he wove his way down the numerous halls. The palace was even more of a maze than Rivendell.
"Elrond, you cannot imagine how happy I was when I received the message that you had found Legolas! I've already sent riders out in search of Mithrandir; if all goes well he should be here shortly. By the way, where are your sons?"
Estel scowled slightly as his presence was overlooked by the King, who was remarkably similar in looks as the blonde Elf who had turned his world upside down. Speaking of which...
He quickly lifted a corner of the cloth covering the portrait and peeked under it to make sure he wasn't carrying it upside down. He had no wish to be set upon again by the irate Prince, much as he enjoyed teasing him.
"Elladan and Elrohir were fighting off the spiders when I last saw them. We were forced to flee, as we had no hope of defeating the spiders. Thankfully we ran into your soldiers not long after."
"We?"
"Ah, yes, you haven't met." Elrond waved to the Human to step forward. "This is my son, Estel."
The Human came forward and bowed deeply. "It is an honour, Your Majesty."
Thranduil scrutinized Estel and commented, "He's a Human."
Estel bristled. Elrond shot him a warning look that made him remember what Elladan had said about the Woodland King not liking strangers.
"Thranduil, I pray that you will forget your grievances against strangers and heed my counsel," Elrond urged. "Estel may be a Human, but he is not like some of his kindred. He will never wish harm upon an Elf, much less your son. Besides, now is not the time for these ancient grudges to cloud your judgment."
Thranduil stared long and hard at the Human, his disdain apparent in his eyes, yet with a tinge of indecision. The last time he had allowed strangers to stay with him, he had lost his son. And now, the situation had a feeling of déjà vu to it.
Elrond pulled the King closer to him and whispered softly into his ear, such that Estel could not hear him, "Remember what the Seers said."
Thranduil sighed and said grudgingly, "Welcome to Mirkwood, young one. You've the honour of being the first Human allowed to dwell in my house for the past millennium. See that your father's trust in you is not misplaced."
He turned away and led them down the corridors in silence until they reached a door that led to one of the living quarters of the royal family, apparent from the more ornate carvings on the dark wood, coupled with the royal crest. Elrond followed behind with Estel, taking the opportunity to caution his son.
"Do not take his harshness to heart; he is merely worried about his son. And do not say or do anything that may cause him to doubt you. The situation may turn more complicated if that happens."
"I'll try, Ada."
Thranduil opened the door and gestured for them to enter.
X.x.X.x.X.x.X.x.X
TBC
Author's notes:
Whee!!! Another chapter done and up!!! And yep, my birthday's this weekend, so maybe I'll post another chapter to celebrate. XDXD Sigh... the last year of my teens.... I HAVEN'T PLAYED ENOUGH!!! I WANT TO GO BACK TO BEING A 5 YEAR OLD KID!!!!! But then again, if I was a 5 year old kid, I wouldn't be warped enough to write this.... ((confused by own logic)) To grow up or not to grow up, that is the question. But it's not like I actually grew up anyway. XD
This is the first of my dreaded 'action' chapters. I suck at writing action. It plays out fine in my head, but when it comes to expressing in words, that's when it gets stilted and... stuff. Sigh. I experimented with the spiders first, since they're much easier to write than Orcs... just a mass of things jumping out at you trying to suck your blood instead of a mass of things jumping out at you screaming for your blood... err... then again, maybe they are rather similar.... O.o Anyway, I think Thranduil's a little OOC.... Ok. VERY OOC. He'll be like this for most of the story... high-strung, worrywart etc. Oh, and notice that this chapter is called 'Mirkwood I'? it actually doesn't mean anything... except that I ran out for intelligent chapter titles so. ((sheepish grin)) For the observant ones, I'm trying to use 1-word titles for the whole story, and most of the titles sound cheesy, hence the use of "I" and (hopefully not) "II" etc.
Next chapter: Estel meets the real Legolas, erm... various fillers before the actual story starts. Hee... believe it or not, the main point of this story hasn't arrived yet, and I'm almost halfway through the story. ((whistles)) And I used to wonder why I never had enough space to write my answers in the exams.... Tsk tsk.
Thanks for reading, remember to leave a review to tell me what you think! And most importantly to (coughinflatemyegocough) help me write better. Insane replies are at the bottom, so beware of sugar overload. XD
Someone Stupid: No no no... commas are good... and fun... you should use them more often. XD It helps ensure that the use of commas will never be forgotten as our grammar goes down the drain. XD And warpedness is fun!!! I'd make them snog and ahem ahem at every given moment... but think of the mental and emotional trauma it would cause Elrond and the twins. XDXD plus, I doubt Estel would have the stamina to match Leggy's and - Ok. I think I ought to go whack my head a few times against the wall now. I was sweet and innocent once. A long, long time ago... sniffle.
Marbienl: I'd love to get high on caffeine too... except that it doesn't agree with my tummy. ((cries)) Hopefully I'll never forget my keys, the thought of standing out in the rain is very... dampening. XD I think there was corn in my lunch, so now XD Positions Leggy was in... man, I'm thinking warped now... not good... well, for him to get out, he'd have to either come out feet first, or attempt to orientate himself properly in a ... 2-dimensional plane... Argh. Let's just say that he had to figure a way to get his feet out of a very sticky substance that gave him enough problems when he used his hands. He'd probably been trying for.... Hmm... 2 hours? Cos he only comes out really late at night, and Estel probably woke up in the wee hours of the morning, so Leggy wasn't doing headstands for that long. ((wink))
Sielge: Hee.. glad you liked the chapter... oh, and I meant that I had to write 2 more chapters to finish the whole story, but in terms of posting, there's definitely going to be at least 8-10 more. So it's not ending that soon. XD
Empath89: Thank you! But this won't have much slash... unfortunately. Hopefully I can tweak the ending to be more slashy... must cater to the needs of the inner warped fangirl. ((wink wink))
RMC: ((rofl)) The Dallas Cowboys debate reminds me of science back when I was in Secondary 1 (I think that's the middle school equivalent of grade...7? Not sure, but I was 13) We had a science teacher who was very easily sidetracked, so every time we got bored, we ask her about the status of our crystal, 'cos we were growing a copper sulphate crystal for fun in the lab. And... ooh.... Leggy with mussed up shirt... Estel should be glad he didn't see that... wouldn't want him getting wrong ideas right? ((wink)) And I like thinking of Estel as the type of student who sleeps through everything and anything but still manages to charm his teachers despite their temptations to strangle him. XD Last, yep, there's going to be loads of drama in the last few chapters. There's a pretty near guess you made there about something, so you can go chew on it, and tell me your theories. XD
The-Serious-Padfoot: ((ego barks and wags tail)) ((me bounces around happily)) Tee hee. Here you go! Hope you like it too! ((bounces off the walls and out the window... into a trash can and... never mind)) (ps: I think I just threw myself away... O.o my ego is too happy)
Blade6: Welcome back!! ((streamers and balloons)) Ooooh.... Cookie..... and smoothie.... ((big shimmery eyes)) SHHHUGAHHH!!!!!!! ((flying glomps Blade6)) You have just made me one very sugar high author. XDXD Time for to go join Bubbie in eating and sleeping. XDXDXD And that chapter was written while I was high on nothing so... Heeeee.... All my crap was channelled into bullying Leggy dear. XD
Grumpy: I agree!! Everyone should nap! Especially during lessons!!! It should be a crime to make us students (ok, I'm an ex-student for the time being) wake up early in the morning to go to a place we don't want to go to! As for Leggy... well, we can always hope that the bump on his head makes him even smarter. Then maybe he can help Estel remember his ancestors? ((raises eyebrow))
Dawn: Thank you! And you... explained this to your husband??? Wow. Doesn't he find it weird considering the fact that it's slash? But I'm glad you liked the story so far, and good luck with your 'converting' him to read fan fiction! I didn't do review replies until recently, when I came across an author who would e-mail all her reviewers every time she posted a new chapter (not through author alert), and I thought that was really nice, plus it made the reviewers feel appreciated, so I decided to try it out. 'Sides, it's a fun way of communicating. And not to mention an outlet for all my hyperness. XD
Goldmund: The dream... Hmm... it's not exactly real, but it's not exactly false either. XD About Leggy and Danin... I suppose it's the "once bitten twice shy" way of looking at it. He's scared to trust Estel, since the first time someone expressed interest in him (more than just a crush) he ended up being 'kidnapped' etc. And this was from an Elf. So from a Human, whom he probably never had any contact with, he doesn't really know what to expect. Does that make a bit more sense now? Cos truthfully, I didn't really understand my previous argument either. ((cheesy grin))
Losing Grip: Hee... Kissy kissy between Estel and Leggy coming right up! Well, sort of. In a few more chapters... don't have many situations that they can make out in... Unfortunately. Sigh. Hehehe.
Lady Laswen: ((rofl)) Must be quite confusing to have such a long string of ancestors... never bothered tracing mine. I think it'd be rather hard too, cos I have roots that extend to 3 countries at least. ((faints)) And I don't even want to start thinking about the names...
Tmelange: Thank you! Glad you enjoyed the chapters... although this is supposed to be a "drama" not a "humour" story... sigh. Hope you liked this chapter too!
Okie, that's all the replies for this round... I think. Hope I didn't miss anyone out; my fingers are itching to go play Kingdom Hearts for the 5th time now so...
((disappears in a puff of sugar dust))