AN: I do introduce a female OC here, (along with several male ones, but you don't seem to have so much of an issue with those…) but DON'T PANIC! This character will not be Mary Sue (mostly because she won't be alive much longer) and will not be involved with any of the male characters (because they all seem to be involved with each other).
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Daefindir and Minastir, after spending near a week in the contagiously good-humoured company of Elrond's sons, were beginning to relax a little in the Lords' company. This was of great relief to the twins, who were very much unused to the attention, so unlike the household at Imladris where people served others out of respect, not duty. Even though they had spent much time in Mirkwood over the last few decades, their relationship with Legolas and their own standing meant they were often isolated from the rest of the society. They had had little experience with the peoples of Mirkwood.
They were making their way in haste down the east side of the forest to enter the southern realm of Mirkwood close to Legolas' destination. It would cut days - not to mention several large mountains - off of the journey had they gone through the forest instead, as Legolas and his companions had been expected to. Hopefully, it would allow them to reach the larger group fairly quickly. Of course, it did rely upon finding them, and assuming they had not already begun to make their way back and been caught up somewhere along the way.
Finally reaching the path into the forest - which looked to the twins rather a lot like the rest of the forest: thoroughly impenetrable - they set up camp for their last night out in the open. The days being as long as they were in the summer, they needed no fire to enjoy the evening's soft warmth. Together, they sat upon a cluster of rocks and watched the sky's own dazzling display of multicoloured lights as the horses grazed on the green grasses of the East Bight.
"What were they doing down here, Daef?" Elladan finally posed the question that both brothers had pondered for the duration their journey thus far. "What was their task?"
"They were sent as spies on Dol Guldur." Two identical inhalations were drawn and held. "We have heard rumblings from the darkling tower these last few months. Orcs and spiders roam more freely than ever before, and Our King is too proud to call the Grey One back so soon."
"Daef, watch your words." Minastir spoke sharply.
"Tell me it is not true, Mina, and I will not say it again." The retort held echoes of an argument long unsettled. "We hear rumours of Sauron in Mordor once more, we would know what now inhabits the tower."
"So he sends his only son?" cried a twin in an incredulous voice. "It is lunacy! Though I would speak no disrespect against your King, Mina, surely even you can see this?"
"Our King has no say over which troupe will be chosen for the missions he subscribes. I think, even if he did, he would not know if Our Prince was with them, for he has refused to acknowledge Legolas' actions as one of his guard. He feels it lowers him somehow."
"And that is lunacy, in my opinion." Daefindir added with a snort of derision.
"There I have no objection. In many things I cannot know the mind of my King. The Prince was given permission to join one of the most highly skilled companies the Woodland has - not through his position or standing, but because he is the best archer we have."
"How many is in your company?" Elrohir asked. This was time the first the soldiers had talked freely about their missing companions.
"There are five missing, including Legolas - we two make seven over-all; the best the Mirkwood realm has to offer." Minastir declared proudly, blushing suddenly as he realised how conceited he had sounded.
"And all of us under one thousand, this being most vexing to our elders." Daefindir grinned widely.
"We were born in a time of conflict, we have been trained to it all of our lives." Minastir replied softly, a truth not often spoken amongst those of Mirkwood, who would not have had their children so fraught with the conflict of their land. On this sobering thought, the four quieted for a moment.
"What are your skills then, if you have been picked out?" Elladan asked curiously, bringing them back out of introspection.
"Mina is the best swordsman in all of Mirkwood, I the second." Daefindir answered, becoming animated at the thought of his friends. "Legolas is the best archer by far, though the youngest of our company at only 300 and a few more years; Túrith is the best with his knives, and quite handy with the bow when needs call; Baranir is the best horseman I know, save the horse-master of the halls who is too comfy to leave his warm hayloft; Elanor is a tracker of awing skill, as good in the trees as she is on the ground; Dîngor is a great strategist, and he leads all of our advances. And that is our whole, save one or two who join us when there is some skill needed that we do not possess, and that is not often."
"If we may ask, My Lords…" Minastir trailed off, his courage disappearing with the end of Daefindir's enthusiastic roster.
"You may ask whatever you like." Elrohir spoke with a grin. "Though whether or not we answer will depend on the question."
"Will you tell us of your home? Our Prince speaks of you often, but it seems more often than not you accompany him here after only a short time over the Mountains, and he says little of the Last Homely House or its people."
"I was led to believe it is a taboo subject amongst your people, through your King's rulings, along with the speaking of Quenya." Elladan asked, his own curiosity speaking up.
"Within the Kingdom, that is true, but we are far from Our Kings ears here, and cannot offend him with our curiosity." Daefindir supplied, a look of pride in his eyes. He had not believed Minastir had it in him, though he had known him to be curious.
"Then let us tell you what we may to quench your curiosity. Firstly, it is through no fault of our home that Legolas spends so little time there. He feels his duties are always first to the people of Mirkwood, and hates to leave for extended periods during this time of unrest. Rivendell is still relatively untouched by the shadow, and so we are often free to roam - indeed encouraged to, for it saves our mentors the stresses of our company…" And so talk continued long into the night as the twins described all the aspects they cared to reveal of their peaceful home and their own positions in it.
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Dawn the next morning was misty as the clouds clung low to the ground. It boded for a hot day to follow, and the twins agreed they were quite glad that they would be under the cool shade of the trees before the sun reached its zenith.
They were surprised to
find that, despite the almost invisible nature of the path into the
trees, it was quite easy to ride the horses in, if one was wary of
low branches. They rode for several hours, slowly feeling the air
become more oppressive as they travelled. Though reason told them it
was simply the air becoming hotter at they neared noon, it brought
hairs on their neck to attention and soon they were jumping at
shadows, and the horses along with them. Coming to a trickle of a
brook across their path, the two Wood elves dismounted and gestured
for the other two to follow suit.
"We go deeper into the
forest now; the horses cannot follow." Daefindir explained, his
voice low. "There is a floodplain at the other end of this path,
on the west side of the forest where they may graze there until we
return. They will probably find the other horses there if the company
have not already started making their way north again. They will be
safe." Shouldering their packs, Elrohir turned to Cúdîn
and grasped his chin to get his attention back from the shadowy
trees.
"Go, my friend. Await us on the riverside, out of this perilous forest." Snorting his agreement, the grey horse turned and followed his red-coated companion, happy to be away from the darkling trees. They hopped over the stream elegantly and continued along the path after the two Mirkwood horses, both black as the night.
"They will be fine, My Lords. We must keep moving now, we are not in safe lands any longer." With a nod and one final glance back to where the horses had already disappeared into the dense foliage, they pushed on further south.
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The four horses were nearing the borders of the forest - the trees beginning to thin around them - when Carangil stopped suddenly, snorting at the air with wide rolling eyes. Cúdîn nudged him, sensing his companion's fear and wanting to get out of the darkling forest as quickly as possible.
Turning from the path and delving deeper into the trees, Carangil disappeared into the foliage. After a moment's indecision, Cúdîn followed. The two Mirkwood horses, knowing a little better what threats lingered deep in those trees, hesitated a while longer before herd instincts kicked in and they turned into the trees themselves.
Carangil's cry of panic drew the Mirkwood horses on urgently, and they skidded to a stop when they came across Cúdîn and Carangil nuzzling the still form of a horse, near buried in leaf fall. The leaves here had fallen early here; cursed by the evil that seeped into their very roots. The horse's coat was dark chestnut, but the scent Carangil had caught had been blood. Patches of the stallion's skin were stained a darker brown where his blood had been spilled. All four horses knew this one, a frequent visitor to Rivendell and a citizen of Mirkwood, he was the mount of Legolas, Prince of Mirkwood, and Seregon was his name.
Cúdîn spooked wildly at a movement in the trees, something catching his eye. It was Carangil that moved forward first, with a black shadow. Pushing through the trees they found another horse. This one was still standing, though how was a good question for he seemed on his last legs and his breathing was laboured and hoarse. Moving closer, Daefindir's horse, Lindi snuffled at the newcomer, taking a step back as she found the scent of orcs strong on this one. The horse gave a sigh and collapsed, his message finally communicated. Lindi looked up at the others when he made no further move, and the same look of wide-eyed panic was mirrored in all of their eyes. In unison, as though some unspoken agreement had been made, all four began a mad dash to the edge of the forest where they split up, the Mirkwood horses heading north and the Imladris horses veering to the north-west - towards the mountains and Imladris. The message had to be taken home.
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Jedi-Bant: Sorry, this is a little different to my other fics, because I tend to like jumping straight into the angst, but sometimes people like action which means something before the angst. It's a concept I'm not too familiar with myself, so I hope you can be patient with me. Thanks also for the Imperfection review; this will not be quite so sad, I hope.
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LadyJanelly:
Glad you liked it. Daef and Mina were characters that completely fell
out of the box pre-formed, and that's a special thing, so I hope to
keep them around for a while.
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Sesshyangel: Sorry darling, you weren't. But you got to read it before anyone else anyway :p You cant have everything. LOL. Thanks a bundle for the beta.
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Blaise: Aren't we a strange groups of people that can see our favourite characters in mortal peril and celebrate. Hehe… Yes, you guessed it, angst coming right up, v. soon.
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Gemini969: Here you go! Thanks for the review.
