Chapter Fifteen: Brotherly Love
" Even though we appear to be sewn in a different pattern, we have a common thread that won't be broken-by people or years or distance."
Rhiannon walked as quietly down to the stables as she could, hoping to surprise the elf. For some odd reason, as long as this day had been, she was in a very playful mood and felt the need to tease Legolas more than she normally would. She willed her footsteps to a sound almost like silence, she pulled the hood of her cloak over her head, so as to not be shown to the men in the stables. She did not feel the need to answer anymore question on what exactly she was today. It was hard to explain, half-elven they got, 3/4 they did not.. How hard was that to grasp, her mother was a full elf, her father's mother was an elf, not that difficult. She stopped her pondering as she realized someone was following her. The stairways of the stables were dark, torches not being lit at the moment, just enough sunlight filtering in through the long thatched roof to see the step in front of you. She stopped and turned, staring into the darkness, trying to sense the presence of the being she knew was there. She felt a sudden rush of wind past her face and knew that the being had moved past her. By the scent she knew it was male, he smelled of forest, of ashen wood, and she knew it was not Legolas. She prepared herself, ready to run if this person came forward. She quickly moved her hand into the pocket hidden in her dress, she grasped the small dagger, the precious gift her brother had given her, the only weapon she knew how to fight with. She concentrated on the thought of light, of warmth, praying that it would allow her to see more into the darkness, willing for more sunlight to filter through. Trying to at least see the face of the person that now occupied the stairway, now right below her. A quick arm swiftly disarmed her, a rough voice stated,
"Potes currere sed te occulere non potes, avicula" (You can run but you can't hide, little bird).
Rhiannon shook her head, and was about to curse the man in front of her when he was suddenly lifted off of her, thrown against the hard stone wall. She knew it had to be Legolas,
"Legolas, No! Stop! That is Brhagdan, my brother, let him go!"
"He tried to attack you!"
"He was testing me, you idiot! Believe me, if he meant to cause true harm, I would be close to death now."
"I do not want you here in the dark," Legolas spat out, as if punishing a child, "Go to the stables, get into the light."
His cold tone surprised her. The elf chose anger over fear interesting.
"Stop being an ass, Legolas, my brother would have you flat on your back if he meant to cause harm. Let him go, now!" Legolas removed his hand from Brhagdan's throat slowly, his eyes flashing like that of a cat's in the dark. Rhiannon reached for Brhagdan before he could return the "favor" Legolas had just bestowed upon him. Men, honestly. You live 900 years, they still treat you like a child. Rhiannon gave Brhagdan the hardest squeeze on the hand she could, warning him to stay back. She nudged Legolas forward, pushing him towards the stables. The first meeting between her brother, and the elf, had not gone as she had planned. Not at all.
As they walked into the stables, Rhiannon shoved her brother off to a place to sit. She did not want him to say anything rash at the moment. Legolas was not in the best of states at this time. There was a slight quiver to his hands, his eyes still held fear. Rhiannon took one of his hands within her own. Lightly rubbing a circle into his palm with her thumb.
"Legolas, what is wrong? Why are you so frightened?"
Legolas took a small, shuddering breath, "I felt your fear. I had felt you in the stairway, knowing you were trying to sneak up on me. I'd thought to play along. Then you stopped, and I felt this tense feeling in the air. As if someone was about to attack something, I could not breathe freely, and that rarely happens to me. I felt your fear, and apparently I overreacted."
Rhiannon gave him a small smile, dropping his hand and running a finger lightly down his face. Trying to get him to laugh at the sensitive contact.
"Silly elf, if I was truly being attacked you would have reacted in the correct way. Unfortunately, I did not recognize my brother until he spoke. That is how we greet each other, by testing our reflexes. He clearly showed that I am failing miserably when it comes to my self-defense."
"That is an odd greeting for siblings."
"Well, we are not normal." Rhiannon replied with another smile as she reached up to tug on one of his braids. "Now, calm yourself while I handle my brother. Why don't you go see Gimli and make sure he does not anger the horses. Believe me when I say they do not forget insults."
Legolas gave a small laugh and then moved off into the direction she had just gestured to.
***
Brhagdan surveyed the scene before him. His baby sister, his little bird, was consoling an elf. An elf that had just attacked him no less. This was not normal. Ever since Elladan, Rhiannon had stayed as far away from male elves as she could, even the male half-elvens in their land. Now, she was being very pacifying to him; running a finger lightly down his face to get him to smile, tugging on one of his blonde braids. What in the name of Hades had happened? This was not the female he left. Damn nymphs, he had told father not to let her hide with them, they probably taught her their nymphly ways. Such was not the behavior for his sister. Oh, they would be having a talk. He strained to hear the conversation between the two, knowing it was futile, the elf could hear better than he could, Rhiannon was most likely speaking as softly as she could. He studied his sister. Some time while walking down the stairs, her hood had fallen. Her hair was it's usually messy disarray, never enjoying the feeling of being held back. Like Rhiannon herself. One ear was covered, the other not, and as a mortal man walked past them, Legolas swiftly covered the slight point that peaked out. Ahh, so the elf wasn't all that stupid. As if sensing the insult that played in his mind, Rhiannon turned to give him a censuring gaze. She muttered something to the elf, and then pointed him in a direction, most likely telling him to go off somewhere. She turned and walked towards her brother, amusement playing in her eyes.
"He is not stupid; granted he has his moments; but he's a wood elf." Rhiannon declared to her brother, watching as he tried to hold in his own amusement.
"Since when are you associating with elves again? Last I checked, you were hoping to castrate the lot of them."
"Well, times change. And I didn't say all elves, just a few twin males of Rivendell."
"Ahh, Rivendell. How is Lord Elrond?"
"Trying to control my love life, as always."
"He loves you, you are like a daughter to him. A difficult, misbegotten, pain in the-"
"Brhagdan!"
".daughter, nonetheless. So, explain the elf."
"You should ask Gandalf, and how did you get here so quickly?"
"My summons was sent as soon as you left Rivendell, maybe a day earlier. I was to meet you in Lorien. You do not need to be in Gondor at this time. You would not enjoy being surrounded by all that human sadness."
"There were many questions about you in Lorien."
"Well, I am quite striking."
"Only because your mother prayed to a god for you to not turn out like a monster."
Brhagdan cockily raised his face, "It worked, did it not?"
Rhiannon did not even attempt to hold back her snort of disbelief, "Not when it came to your personality."
"Well, the same could be said for you. Don't roll your eyes at me, because I know you want to."
"Where are we going from here?" Rhiannon asked, trying to change the subject.
Brhagdan looked at his younger sister, knowing she would soon be involved in war, see it right in front of her face. He had tried to keep her from the battlefield, the true ugliness of war for the longest time. She was not an innocent, and yet she was still very inexperienced in this life.
"We will accompany this whole group to the Helm's Deep. After that, if we shall live, we will head back to Lorien and then possibly Mirkwood. Gandalf believes both will be under attack in the coming days." Brhagdan wondered at Rhiannon's sharp intake of breath when he said "Mirkwood."
"Why do you do that, sister? You have never been to the woodland realm of Mirkwood."
"I know two elves from there, they guided me to and from Rivendell. Legolas, the elf you met today, he is also a prince of Mirkwood.."
Brhagdan could not stop the slight drop of his jaw, "He, that male elf that just tried to kill me, in your defense, is a prince of Mirkwood! What, how do you know him, why is he defending you? What has happened since I saw you last!"
Rhiannon turned to her brother, "Well, it all started when my powers decided it was time for me to connect with my soul mate, or something along those lines. This connection happened when Legolas touched me, I went into his mind.why are you looking at me like that?"
"Father is going to kill you. You bonded with the prince of Mirkwood! Ugh, how could you? I mean, you have just met him!"
"Brhagdan! I did not bond with him like that, no ceremony, nothing like that, all about the mind."
"I'm sure it was all about the mind, do you take me for a fool? No one can have a bond like that, it is too rare, and while I admit you have power Rhiannon, that is a thing beyond you. Plus, you are not even of the same race. He is full elf, you are not, why would the gods choose to bond you to eternity with someone you can not truly be with. You can not go to their version of paradise, Nirvana as my mother calls it."
"Well then, Oh All-Knowing Brhagdan, explain to me what this is: Through a simple touch, a great power came over the two of us causing us to connect, accessing each other's minds and visions. Since that has happened, we are able to see what the other sees, feel what the other feels. We are able to sense each other, know each other's presence. Just now, Legolas felt my fear, and it scared him. Hence the reason he reacted as he did. So, if that is not finding a soul mate, bonding with that person. Please explain to me what is?"
Brhagdan was silent, then shook his head and spoke, "Okay, I admit, I was wrong. You bonded. I bow to you, All-Knowing Rhiannon." Brhagdan paused for a second, almost fearing to ask his next question, fearing the possible repercussions of the answer, "Do you love him?"
Brhagdan watched with bated breath as his sister let out a soft curse, and then looked every where around the stables, but at him. Her eyes finally resting on one spot. He turned to look, the elf was jesting with a, dwarf? Well, that was something he never believed he would ever see.
"I don't know yet. I do not know much about him. I think I could, I think if I have the strength, I will." She glanced back at the elf, smiling as he said something to the dwarf.
Brhagdan shook his head, "Ahh, my little one, I think you already do."
" Even though we appear to be sewn in a different pattern, we have a common thread that won't be broken-by people or years or distance."
Rhiannon walked as quietly down to the stables as she could, hoping to surprise the elf. For some odd reason, as long as this day had been, she was in a very playful mood and felt the need to tease Legolas more than she normally would. She willed her footsteps to a sound almost like silence, she pulled the hood of her cloak over her head, so as to not be shown to the men in the stables. She did not feel the need to answer anymore question on what exactly she was today. It was hard to explain, half-elven they got, 3/4 they did not.. How hard was that to grasp, her mother was a full elf, her father's mother was an elf, not that difficult. She stopped her pondering as she realized someone was following her. The stairways of the stables were dark, torches not being lit at the moment, just enough sunlight filtering in through the long thatched roof to see the step in front of you. She stopped and turned, staring into the darkness, trying to sense the presence of the being she knew was there. She felt a sudden rush of wind past her face and knew that the being had moved past her. By the scent she knew it was male, he smelled of forest, of ashen wood, and she knew it was not Legolas. She prepared herself, ready to run if this person came forward. She quickly moved her hand into the pocket hidden in her dress, she grasped the small dagger, the precious gift her brother had given her, the only weapon she knew how to fight with. She concentrated on the thought of light, of warmth, praying that it would allow her to see more into the darkness, willing for more sunlight to filter through. Trying to at least see the face of the person that now occupied the stairway, now right below her. A quick arm swiftly disarmed her, a rough voice stated,
"Potes currere sed te occulere non potes, avicula" (You can run but you can't hide, little bird).
Rhiannon shook her head, and was about to curse the man in front of her when he was suddenly lifted off of her, thrown against the hard stone wall. She knew it had to be Legolas,
"Legolas, No! Stop! That is Brhagdan, my brother, let him go!"
"He tried to attack you!"
"He was testing me, you idiot! Believe me, if he meant to cause true harm, I would be close to death now."
"I do not want you here in the dark," Legolas spat out, as if punishing a child, "Go to the stables, get into the light."
His cold tone surprised her. The elf chose anger over fear interesting.
"Stop being an ass, Legolas, my brother would have you flat on your back if he meant to cause harm. Let him go, now!" Legolas removed his hand from Brhagdan's throat slowly, his eyes flashing like that of a cat's in the dark. Rhiannon reached for Brhagdan before he could return the "favor" Legolas had just bestowed upon him. Men, honestly. You live 900 years, they still treat you like a child. Rhiannon gave Brhagdan the hardest squeeze on the hand she could, warning him to stay back. She nudged Legolas forward, pushing him towards the stables. The first meeting between her brother, and the elf, had not gone as she had planned. Not at all.
As they walked into the stables, Rhiannon shoved her brother off to a place to sit. She did not want him to say anything rash at the moment. Legolas was not in the best of states at this time. There was a slight quiver to his hands, his eyes still held fear. Rhiannon took one of his hands within her own. Lightly rubbing a circle into his palm with her thumb.
"Legolas, what is wrong? Why are you so frightened?"
Legolas took a small, shuddering breath, "I felt your fear. I had felt you in the stairway, knowing you were trying to sneak up on me. I'd thought to play along. Then you stopped, and I felt this tense feeling in the air. As if someone was about to attack something, I could not breathe freely, and that rarely happens to me. I felt your fear, and apparently I overreacted."
Rhiannon gave him a small smile, dropping his hand and running a finger lightly down his face. Trying to get him to laugh at the sensitive contact.
"Silly elf, if I was truly being attacked you would have reacted in the correct way. Unfortunately, I did not recognize my brother until he spoke. That is how we greet each other, by testing our reflexes. He clearly showed that I am failing miserably when it comes to my self-defense."
"That is an odd greeting for siblings."
"Well, we are not normal." Rhiannon replied with another smile as she reached up to tug on one of his braids. "Now, calm yourself while I handle my brother. Why don't you go see Gimli and make sure he does not anger the horses. Believe me when I say they do not forget insults."
Legolas gave a small laugh and then moved off into the direction she had just gestured to.
***
Brhagdan surveyed the scene before him. His baby sister, his little bird, was consoling an elf. An elf that had just attacked him no less. This was not normal. Ever since Elladan, Rhiannon had stayed as far away from male elves as she could, even the male half-elvens in their land. Now, she was being very pacifying to him; running a finger lightly down his face to get him to smile, tugging on one of his blonde braids. What in the name of Hades had happened? This was not the female he left. Damn nymphs, he had told father not to let her hide with them, they probably taught her their nymphly ways. Such was not the behavior for his sister. Oh, they would be having a talk. He strained to hear the conversation between the two, knowing it was futile, the elf could hear better than he could, Rhiannon was most likely speaking as softly as she could. He studied his sister. Some time while walking down the stairs, her hood had fallen. Her hair was it's usually messy disarray, never enjoying the feeling of being held back. Like Rhiannon herself. One ear was covered, the other not, and as a mortal man walked past them, Legolas swiftly covered the slight point that peaked out. Ahh, so the elf wasn't all that stupid. As if sensing the insult that played in his mind, Rhiannon turned to give him a censuring gaze. She muttered something to the elf, and then pointed him in a direction, most likely telling him to go off somewhere. She turned and walked towards her brother, amusement playing in her eyes.
"He is not stupid; granted he has his moments; but he's a wood elf." Rhiannon declared to her brother, watching as he tried to hold in his own amusement.
"Since when are you associating with elves again? Last I checked, you were hoping to castrate the lot of them."
"Well, times change. And I didn't say all elves, just a few twin males of Rivendell."
"Ahh, Rivendell. How is Lord Elrond?"
"Trying to control my love life, as always."
"He loves you, you are like a daughter to him. A difficult, misbegotten, pain in the-"
"Brhagdan!"
".daughter, nonetheless. So, explain the elf."
"You should ask Gandalf, and how did you get here so quickly?"
"My summons was sent as soon as you left Rivendell, maybe a day earlier. I was to meet you in Lorien. You do not need to be in Gondor at this time. You would not enjoy being surrounded by all that human sadness."
"There were many questions about you in Lorien."
"Well, I am quite striking."
"Only because your mother prayed to a god for you to not turn out like a monster."
Brhagdan cockily raised his face, "It worked, did it not?"
Rhiannon did not even attempt to hold back her snort of disbelief, "Not when it came to your personality."
"Well, the same could be said for you. Don't roll your eyes at me, because I know you want to."
"Where are we going from here?" Rhiannon asked, trying to change the subject.
Brhagdan looked at his younger sister, knowing she would soon be involved in war, see it right in front of her face. He had tried to keep her from the battlefield, the true ugliness of war for the longest time. She was not an innocent, and yet she was still very inexperienced in this life.
"We will accompany this whole group to the Helm's Deep. After that, if we shall live, we will head back to Lorien and then possibly Mirkwood. Gandalf believes both will be under attack in the coming days." Brhagdan wondered at Rhiannon's sharp intake of breath when he said "Mirkwood."
"Why do you do that, sister? You have never been to the woodland realm of Mirkwood."
"I know two elves from there, they guided me to and from Rivendell. Legolas, the elf you met today, he is also a prince of Mirkwood.."
Brhagdan could not stop the slight drop of his jaw, "He, that male elf that just tried to kill me, in your defense, is a prince of Mirkwood! What, how do you know him, why is he defending you? What has happened since I saw you last!"
Rhiannon turned to her brother, "Well, it all started when my powers decided it was time for me to connect with my soul mate, or something along those lines. This connection happened when Legolas touched me, I went into his mind.why are you looking at me like that?"
"Father is going to kill you. You bonded with the prince of Mirkwood! Ugh, how could you? I mean, you have just met him!"
"Brhagdan! I did not bond with him like that, no ceremony, nothing like that, all about the mind."
"I'm sure it was all about the mind, do you take me for a fool? No one can have a bond like that, it is too rare, and while I admit you have power Rhiannon, that is a thing beyond you. Plus, you are not even of the same race. He is full elf, you are not, why would the gods choose to bond you to eternity with someone you can not truly be with. You can not go to their version of paradise, Nirvana as my mother calls it."
"Well then, Oh All-Knowing Brhagdan, explain to me what this is: Through a simple touch, a great power came over the two of us causing us to connect, accessing each other's minds and visions. Since that has happened, we are able to see what the other sees, feel what the other feels. We are able to sense each other, know each other's presence. Just now, Legolas felt my fear, and it scared him. Hence the reason he reacted as he did. So, if that is not finding a soul mate, bonding with that person. Please explain to me what is?"
Brhagdan was silent, then shook his head and spoke, "Okay, I admit, I was wrong. You bonded. I bow to you, All-Knowing Rhiannon." Brhagdan paused for a second, almost fearing to ask his next question, fearing the possible repercussions of the answer, "Do you love him?"
Brhagdan watched with bated breath as his sister let out a soft curse, and then looked every where around the stables, but at him. Her eyes finally resting on one spot. He turned to look, the elf was jesting with a, dwarf? Well, that was something he never believed he would ever see.
"I don't know yet. I do not know much about him. I think I could, I think if I have the strength, I will." She glanced back at the elf, smiling as he said something to the dwarf.
Brhagdan shook his head, "Ahh, my little one, I think you already do."