Disclaimer: I own only the characters not crated by Tolkien.

Glorfindel skewered the last orc and looked around him. Bodies of the foul creatures were already starting to be piled in the center of where the patrol had been fighting.

They had been patrolling the valley for over three days now. The patrol had met several groups of orcs, the closest being two leagues away from the valley. Too close, in Glorfindels opinion.

" Captain," said one of the warriors, " The orcs have been searched and are ready to be burned."

" Did you find anything important?" The warrior shook his head and Glorfindel indicated that the bodies could be burned.

The foul smell of burning corpses touched his nose and he felt his stomach turn. Orcs smelled bad, but it was even worse when they were being destroyed.

Nodding to his companions, they moved off to rest away from the smell, but in sight of the fire. It would not do to leave the burning pile completely unattended and risk cause for problems.

As Glorfindel shrugged off his pack, and leaned against a tree, he thought about what he was going to do once he got back to the villages. The people there needed to be trained in order to protect themselves. Sure, some of them were, but a group of orcs could easily over take what defenses they might have. He needed to ensure the safety of those villages. He could not go back to Rivendell and wonder if the villages would be safe. Wonder if the people would be unharmed. Wonder if the children, like Lalaonna, were still alive.

At this last thought, Glorfindels mind unwilling turned to another memory. A memory that he had hoped to put behind him. A memory that seemed to haunt his dreams and turn them into nightmares.

" My lord," said a warrior to Glorfindel, " We have found the party of orcs, and he is not among them."

" You are sure?" asked Glorfindel.

" Yes," said the warrior. He seemed to have something else to say, although Glorfindel could see the hesitation.

" We found the scrolls Lord Elrond had asked him to bring from Lothlorien. They are covered in blood."

" Really," said Glorfindel in a tight, angry voice.

" There is also much blood around the orc camp, and it is not theirs. It is elven blood. The healer that we brought believes that whoever was the injured could not have possibly survived because of blood loss."

" Is there any sign that this elf was the advisor we are looking for?" Glorfindel asked fearfully.

" The scrolls we found confirm that he was taken by this group of orcs. We have seen no signs of any other captives." The warrior before him bowed his head grievously.

Glorfindel dropped his head in despair. How many times he had felt loss of a life, yet he could never come to terms with it. The elf they had been searching for, for months was dead. This elf that Glorfindel had once searched for long ago when he was lost in the woods. This elf he had seen grow into a successful being. This elf was gone.

' It is better this way,' Glorfindel thought,' Better to be in Mandos than to be in the company of orcs.'

"My Lord Glorfindel," said a voice bring Glorfindel out of his stupor. He smiled gratefully at the elf for bringing him out of that terrible memory. The warrior in turn, shifted from one foot to the other, a little nervous that his captain was grinning at him without knowing the cause.

" The fire is out and the troop is ready to go," continued the elf.

" Thank you Lieutenant," said Glorfindel, " Let us head south. We have only a few days left on patrol before we need to meet with the village leaders in the valley."

" Yes my lord," said the elf with a bow.

Margaret looked at Lindir who was putting away the music he had written down. She had just managed a small piece of music Lindir had written especially for her. She was filled with joy at the thought that she could play the flute in a decent manner.

" You have improved greatly," said Lindir, " Glorfindel will be proud."

Margaret beamed with pleasure at the praise and bid Lindir good bye. It was time for midday meal and she was hungry.

Skipping into the hall, she took a seat next to Elrond, who had smiled when she entered the room.

" Good day Margaret," said Elrond, " I thought I would take lunch here today, seeing as I havent in a while."

" Lord Elrond?" asked Margaret, " Why do you not always take lunch here? You eat dinner and breakfast in the hall."

Elrond chuckled, " Because it is in the middle of the day, and most of the times I am too busy."

Margaret thought this over for a minute. Glorfindel had once said the same thing to her. He also had missed a few midday meals with Margaret. While she knew that Glorfindel worked with the warriors, and dealt with the safety of Imladris, she had no idea what Elrond did. Well, except heal people.

" Lord Elrond?" asked Margaret, " Why are you busy?"

" You are not going to keep asking 'why' after I answer this question are you?"

Margaret grinned back at him, " Only if I truly need to."

Elrond sighed and explained, " You know I am a healer, correct?" She nodded and he went on.

" I also do various other things. I study herbs and medicines. I go over reports that my advisors have collected, such as the amount of food the kitchens have stored. Or what is going on outside Imladris."

" Oh," said Margaret as she thought this over. She thought it would be fun to be able to know what happened outside Imladris. Neither Glorfindel nor Sulwen ever told her anything like that.

" Would you like to become my assistant for a while, Margaret?" asked Elrond with a twinkle in his eyes.

" You mean I can help you?" asked Margaret excitedly.

" Yes," said Elrond, " And I think I should start by giving you a report I received this morning. Elladan and Elrohir are well. They have reached Lothlorien by record time."

Margaret frowned a little, " Were they in a hurry?"

Elrond began to laugh outright. " I believe that the stay home made them restless. From what I have gathered, they have been racing each other across arda, and so ended up a day ahead of time in Lothlorien. I hope that will settle their restlessness a little. I would not have set such a terror as two wild twins upon Lothlorien. That is something even the Lady of Light cannot handle."

Many of the adults seated near them began to laugh at the Lords description of his sons. Margaret just stared, plainly confused.

" Well then," she said officially, " Business is taken care of. My asmen... amensass..."

"Assessment?" supplied Elrond helpfully.

" Yes, my assessment is that they are well then."

Elrond nodded seriously although the corner of his mouth twitched.

" With that taken care of, let us finish our meal. We have a hard days work ahead of us."

" Yes we do!" said Margaret eagerly, " And I plan to take care all of it before bedtime."

A/N: Gah! Im getting attacked by major plot bunnies! Luckily though, its for future stories in this series. Short, I know. But Im thinking of posting up another chapter this week. Also, I just got hold of a song called Lord of the Rings by Nightwish. It's a great song, and I recommend you listen to it! Review if you have comments!

I hope everyone re-read chapter 9! I added to it!