Disclaimer: -disclaims self-

Oxynthes- Why thank you, Jessi. :) Why do you think I should "refrain from updating"? (even though it's too late)

Darkaus: Glad you like it. :) It should fulfill your want of evil bad-guy thoughts…

CHAPTER TWO: ELEN

I walked into the stables, where my horse awaited me. I was pleasantly surprised to see Radagast standing next to my horse, stroking its nose and speaking to it in some language I did not know.

"Radagast!" I cried. "It is wonderful to see you. I thought you were just going to put the bird here and leave."

He looked at me solemnly. "Oh, no, I could never do that. I had to make sure that you and the bird would get along. And I wouldn't be able to leave her alone, because she would fly away after me if there was no one there. Or she might get in an argument with one of the horses, and there would be a fight. And then there was the trivial matter of me saying goodbye to you," he said in jest.

"Well, I shan't keep you long." I looked around, but saw no bird. "Where is it?"

"She is up there," Radagast said, pointing.

I looked up to the rafters, and saw a beautiful, but lethal looking falcon.

"Are you sure it's quite safe?" I asked, eyeing its claws.

"She is perfectly harmless- if you stay on her good side. I chose her because she serves as a double purpose: for you to send letters to Olorin, and to hunt if you run out of food, or to supply food for herself. Her name is Elen. It means 'star' in Elvish. Or so Olorin told me."

"I am not learned in the Elvish language, but he is. I have no doubt that it means whatever he said it means."

There was a silence as my eyes wandered to a grey mare, the one Gandalf would have ridden if he had come.

"Well," I said, ending the moment, "will you introduce her to me?"

"Of course." Radagast held up his arm, and said something-I had no idea what- in a series of noises that sounded, well, odd. Immediately, the falcon left the rafters and alighted on his arm. Then he said something else, and she flew over and landed on my arm.

I looked at her nervously. She looked at me disdainfully, and then took off into the air, soared around, then landed with a flourish on the horse's saddlebags.

"She's showing off," said Radagast. "But she likes you."

"Really? She looked at me as if I were a small bug."

"That's usual," he said. "If she didn't like you, then you would no longer have eyes."

"What?"

"Don't worry, if she had started to attack you I would have called her off."

"Hmph."

Maybe I do regret. A little. I remember what I said of Radagast to Gandalf, and feel a pang of guilt.

"Radagast the Simple, Radagast the Bird-Tamer, Radagast the Fool!"

Mayhap I should not have speaken so harshly of him…

No! What am I thinking? That useless thing, he is almost as bad as Gandalf, and here I am feeling guilty about him?

I shake my head, trying to clear it. My mind goes to Gandalf again. Mayhap I will be able to take the ring he has from him… if I do, should I give it to Sauron? Or keep it for myself? Much as I am tempted to choose the latter course, I know that Sauron will find out, and he will never trust me. But if I give Narya to him, he will trust me and value me much more. Narya! One of the missing Elvish Rings! All this time, Gandalf had it, and he never told me. He will pay for that… I will not take it from him yet. I want him to think his secret is safe. He has already spent many nights at the top of Orthanc, and it gives me great pleasure to think of him, cold, wet, hungry, and hurt, up there, with no one to help him.

Yes, he has already suffered, but I wish him to suffer more. I will make him suffer as I suffered.