Disclaimers can be found in chapter one.

Many thanks to Michelle and Eärwen for editing this chapter for me.

Please note that my Calendar is a month off from Tolkiens as I had the characters remain in Lorien for a month instead of a few days.

Chapter 26: Promises to thyself…

Kaitlyn was somewhat relieved when she and Legolas returned to camp and the Elf did not stay with her. A large group of men, women and children were an easy target on the plains of Rohan and Legolas' heightened Elvish eyesight would be able to detect a threat long before men did. He wished to offer his abilities to the King and people of Rohan.

Legolas left her in Gimli's care while he went off to keep watch. His leave was slow, his eyes lingering on Kaitlyn's form before he stepped away into the night.

Gimli was silent as Kaitlyn sat beside him by one of the campfires. She gathered her pack and pretended to rummage through it.

Aragorn was sitting alone off in the tall grass smoking his long stemmed pipe. The white smoke drifted around him as he sat deep in thought. He paid little mind to the world around him.

While there was the sound of talking, of horses whinnying and stomping, and of fires crackling, the silence between Kaitlyn and Gimli was too much for the mortal woman.

She toyed with the nylon strap of her backpack. "It's a nice night," she commented softly.

Gimli nodded. "Aye. Warm for the middle of April."

"It's April?" she asked in surprise.

Gimli nodded. "Aye. " The Dwarf regarded her curiously. The mortal woman seemed deep in thought. Gimli let her think for a few moments. "Is there something important about the month of April?" he inquired.

"Not April, but March. I turned 28 on the 26th."

"Ah, the day of your birth."

Kaitlyn grimaced. "Yes. I missed my birthday completely."

Gimli sighed, resting one gloved hand on his thigh as sat. "March…A month ago my eyes beheld the most beautiful sight to behold." He frowned, his mood suddenly becoming somber. "Alas, I fear that I shall not see such fair beauty again."

Kaitlyn smiled warmly, remembering how highly Gimli thought of the Lady of the Wood. "You were quite taken by her. Considering that she is an Elf."

Gimli huffed for allowing himself to make any mention about the Lady of Light while in the presence of one of his companions. He toyed with a long stick that sat beside the fire and picked it up, pointing and shaking it at Kaitlyn.

"Someone I know seems to be quite taken by an Elf. So smitten that she takes to sneaking off with him in the dark to steal a kiss," he shot back and immediately regretted it.

Kaitlyn's eyes widened at the remark and then she looked away. She felt her cheeks flaming bright red to her absolute horror.

"Lass, I am sorry. I didn't mean anything by it. I-"

"-It's fine, Gimli," she said, cutting him off. "I'm going to sleep. Good night." She rose to her feet and walked away with her pack, choosing to sit away from the fire and the Dwarf.

Gimli frowned. He had hurt her and perhaps shocked her. Her clipped tone was testimony to that. But he knew the best thing he could do was let her retreat and apologize again later if the opportunity presented itself. "Good night, lassie."

Kaitlyn lay down, her back to Gimli. She pulled her cloak around her and used her pack as a pillow.

She felt anger and embarrassment at what Gimli had said and she also felt fear. Was she smitten by Legolas? Is that why she had felt a stab of disappointment when they were interrupted? Is that why she felt it still? There was just no way…

Unthinking, she touched her lips with the fingers from her left hand. She had been so close to kissing an Elf. What would that have been like? She wondered if she would ever know.

Gimli kept his eyes on Kaitlyn for a long while. Then he turned to gaze in the direction of the Elf, but could not see Legolas due to the darkness and distance. He gave a sigh and crossed his arms over his chest.

He had not meant to offend or embarrass the mortal woman. The words had just come out. He had not meant to interrupt her and Legolas that night. It had been a very awkward situation for him to come along and find them standing so close together.

Gimli could still picture Legolas' hand buried in Kaitlyn's hair and the look of anger on the Elf's face.

Gimli looked to Kaitlyn and then glanced in Legolas' direction. He knew that the two had grown close, but how close had they actually grown? The Mirkwood Prince had never shown an interest in women while they traveled together, and yet he seemed very interested in Kaitlyn. Legolas was rather old, even in Elvish terms, to be without a wife.

Had it truly been a kiss they were about to share? Suddenly, Gimli was not so sure when moments before he would have been. From what he knew of Elves, they did not take matters of the heart lightly. It was obvious that Legolas cared for Kaitlyn, but had that concern developed into something more?

Gimli sighed and shook his head, bidding the thoughts to leave him. Despite being so curious, this was not his business. Thinking about things he did not have enough information about would only lead him in circles. He threw the stick he held into the fire and kept watch over the area that surrounded them.

When morning came, Kaitlyn offered to help the women of Rohan with breakfast. She hated how she did this to get away from Gimli, but she admitted to herself that it wasn't so much that she was being a coward, but she needed time and space.

The meal consisted of bread and water, something easy to hand out so that they could return to traveling. Since there was nothing to prepare, Kaitlyn carried a basket of bread for an older woman named Hannrin.

Hannrin handed out the bread to other women and children as well as some of the older men who were with their families.

Hannrin had been among those who had prepared dinner the previous night and while Kaitlyn had not dealt with her directly she could tell that Hannrin was respected by the other women. She was a tall thin woman with long gray hair that was left long and shaggy and she had bright blue eyes. She was dressed in dark grey clothes that were tattered, but that did not seem to bother her. She appeared as one who made the best of any given situation.

"They say you are from a land that none have heard of…"

Kaitlyn blinked, realizing that Hannrin was speaking to her. "Uh, I guess you could say that," she said nervously. After the incident with Eowyn, Aragorn had told Kaitlyn that it was best not to discuss where she hailed from.

"You have much to learn here, traveler," Hannrin told her as she reached into the basket for another piece of bread. She handed it to a young boy who eagerly began to eat it. Hannrin patted the boy on the shoulder and reached into the basket for another piece of bread.

"More than you know…" Kaitlyn replied softly, repositioning the basket on her arm. She frowned. "Is it so obvious that I'm different?" She wondered if she stuck out like a sore thumb.

Hannrin smiled at the question, intending to answer it, but then she frowned as she glanced down.

"We have run out of bread," the older woman noted. "Our work is done for now. Go with your companion. He waits for you." Hannrin held out a wrinkled hand that had seen a lifetime of work, and pointed in the direction they had come.

Kaitlyn turned to see that Legolas was standing beside the wooden cart that was filled with breads and vegetables. He was gazing at her and there was a warm smile on his face.

Kaitlyn felt herself blush like a schoolgirl who had a crush pay attention to her.

A woman beside Legolas dropped what she was carrying and he bent to help her pick up the basket and the bread that she had dropped, letting his gaze from Kaitlyn drift only once.

Kaitlyn watched him and smiled, the blush and heat fading slowly. Legolas was forever a gentleman. She turned to bid farewell to Hannrin, but the old woman was gone. Hannrin was walking away with the empty basket that Kaitlyn had not realized that the older woman had taken from her arm.

She walked toward Legolas, who smiled gently.

"Maer aur," He bid. Good morning.

Kaitlyn nodded.

"Lostennch mae?" he asked, his voice smooth like silk. You slept well?

She nodded, even though she had not rested well. She had been awake most of the night, listening to the sounds of the camp and thinking. "How was your watch?" she asked softly.

"Uneventful," Legolas smiled, seeing her cheeks beginning to redden.

"Well, that's a good thing," she smiled.

"Indeed." Legolas cleared his throat and for a moment he looked nervous. Tension lingered in the air. "Gimli is riding Lady Eowyn's mare again," he started.

"I'll ride with you," Kaitlyn replied before she was able to stop herself. Why had she agreed so easily? She was nervous enough around Legolas as it was. She cursed herself and wondered if she could retract her answer.

Legolas grinned with delight and relief and then it was too late to change her mind.

The Mirkwood Elf was quite pleased that she would be joining him. He had missed her while he was on watch and had longed for morning to come so that he could see her again.

"But only if you promise me something," Kaitlyn continued.

Legolas waited patiently for her to speak.

"That you'll show me how to steer Arod."

Legolas' eyebrows rose in surprise. "You wish to learn to ride?"

She nodded, biting her lower lip as she did so. " I know nothing about horses or how to ride them. I…This is my world now. I need to know," she told him.

Legolas smiled warmly. "I shall teach you. Bring your pack and we shall go."

A short while later, Legolas lifted Kaitlyn into Arod's saddle. They were both aware of how his hands lingered on her waist when she was already seated in the saddle. He leapt up behind her in a graceful movement. Her bag made it awkward for him to fit comfortably but he made due. He would gladly deal with her annoying pack if it meant that they sat astride the same horse.

There was a moment when Kaitlyn realized that her idea of learning to ride might be a bad one. The decision was half made because this was her world and she did need to learn to ride, the other half was because she thought the concentration involved with riding might keep her thoughts off Legolas and his proximity to her.

"Are you well?" Legolas asked when he saw her skin lose its color.

She nodded and swallowed. She gazed down at the right stirrup and attempted to slip her foot into it. It took her several tries to get her foot in and took several more to do the position her other foot in the left stirrup.

"Keep your heels down and position the metal of the stirrup beneath the ball of your foot. This will help you sit more firmly in the saddle," Legolas suggested.

She nodded and put her heels down.

He gathered the reins, which sat upon Arod's neck, and then took her hands into his and lifted the leather reins into her fingers.

The leather of the reins was old and worn, and soft to her fingers.

Without words, his hands slipped over hers and he positioned the reins correctly in her hands. "This is how you hold the reins."

She nodded, trying to memorize how the reins slipped between her pinky and the finger before it on each hand and how the rest of the flat leather strap came up her palm between her thumb and first finger and flipped down between her two hands.

"I think that I can remember this."

"Maer" Good

"So, how do you steer this thing?" she asked nervously. This wasn't a thing like driving a car. Arod had a mind of his own, even if he was standing calmly, just swishing the flies away from him with his tail at the moment.

Legolas could sense her nervousness but he was proud of her for trying this, just as he was relieved that she was not shying away from him, as he feared she would this morning.

Last night had left him pleased and worried. Pleased that she would have kissed him had Gimli not interrupted, but worried that she might see the kiss they nearly shared as wrong or frightening when she had time to think by herself.

As an Elf, he should have felt attempting to kiss her was wrong, but he did not feel this way. The act did not feel wrong to him at all, but strangely right. Kaitlyn was a breath of fresh air in a time so foul. She was a shining light when the world and times were dark.

He had felt dread and worry while on his watch. He did not think he could handle losing her friendship and he had vowed to be more careful when dealing with the warm pleasant feelings that engulfed him while in her presence.

"Legolas?"

The fair-haired Elf blinked. He had been so deep in thought that he had nearly forgotten where he was.

"Goheno nin," he told Kaitlyn. He blushed slightly under her intense gaze and immediately returned to his task of helping her learn how to ride. Forgive me."If you wish to turn left you pull the left rein out to the left side." His hand slipped over hers and he gently pulled out to the left. Arod moved his head and took one step left.

"And if you want to go right you pull to the right?" she asked.

"Aye."

She tried this and Arod moved to the right.

Kaitlyn laughed. "I did it!"

Legolas chuckled softly. "Aye, you did. Mae carnen." Well done.

Kaitlyn was so proud that she had been able to make Arod move in the direction that she wanted to that the first part of their ride was spent in satisfaction and enjoyment.

They rode at a walk with the rest of the group, Kaitlyn sitting tall and proud in the saddle, beaming as they went. Legolas sat behind her, his hands on his thighs, and a smile on his face.

"I heard that Gimli fell off Eowyn's mare yesterday."

Kaitlyn's concentration on how she was holding the reins faltered when Legolas spoke and she nearly dropped the leather reins.

"Did he?" she asked, re-gathering the reins and checking to make certain that she was holding them properly.

Legolas laughed. "Aye. I heard the men talking last night while I kept watch. He spoke too loudly and spooked the mare, ending up falling off to land on the ground. I wish I could have seen that."

Kaitlyn smiled, but the smile faded quickly. The action caused Legolas' smile to fade as well.

"What is it?"

She shook her head.

"There is something. I felt your mood change, " he told her, tilting his head to one side and viewing her with curiosity.

"Can you always sense what I'm feeling?" she asked with slight annoyance.

"Not always," he told her, surprised by her tone. "There are times when you are unreadable. When you have managed to block what you feel from me."

She nodded and silently vowed to learn how to block what she felt as often as she could. She didn't like being an open book.

"Something happened between yourself and Gimli," he stated.

"It's nothing," she told him, cursing his intuition.

"It is something to have bothered you so," Legolas noted. "There is bitterness in your tone and your light mood disappeared when I mentioned his name."

Kaitlyn felt herself flushing again and she wanted to disappear. Why couldn't he just leave this alone?

"Trenaro nin," he commanded gently. Tell me.

Kaitlyn sighed. If she didn't tell Legolas he was only going to keep at this until she he drove what he wanted to know out of her.

"He teased me. That's all," she said so softly that Legolas had to struggle to make out the words. She shrugged, refusing to glance back at him.

"He hurt you."

She shook her head.

"Aye, he did." Legolas told her. "Of what did he tease you?"

"Legolas, please just leave it be," she said, turning to gaze at him and she wished that she had not looked into his eyes. He was clearly upset and concerned and her refusal to tell him made her feel awful.

"I cannot let things lie when someone has hurt you," he replied. "Please tell me."

She turned away from him and kept her gaze forward.

Legolas frowned at the rigid position of her body as she rode. He feared that she would not answer him, but then her reply came out in a steady rush of words.

"It was just about last night, okay? Sheesh," she said in annoyance.

Legolas did not allow her tone to bother him. She was trying to push him away again by hiding and he would not stand for it.

"What about last night?" he pushed.

She laughed uneasily. "You can't seriously be that naïve," she spat.

Legolas' frown deepened.

"Probably half the camp knows," she said angrily. She blushed and Legolas suddenly knew exactly what Gimli had teased her about. Did the Dwarf have no manners?

Kaitlyn didn't give Legolas a chance to respond. She gave Arod a gentle nudge with her heels as Legolas had shown her and the stallion began to trot.

Legolas felt anger. He did not like that the Dwarf had teased Kaitlyn. Especially about something so personal. It was awful enough that the Dwarf had interrupted them in the first place, but now he sought to tease Kaitlyn?

Legolas felt himself grow angrier with each time that he rose and fell with Arod's movements. He knew that he should have been glad for Gimli's interruption, because what he and Kaitlyn were going to do was against all that he had been taught. Elves did not mingle with mortals. Yet he was the exception to the rule. He loved mortals as if they were Elves. He loved them even though he knew that they would wither and die and leave him.

The thought of Kaitlyn growing old and dying was something he did not wish to think about. He moved closer to her.

She tensed and leaned forward and they rode in silence until mid-day.

"Legolas, who is Isildur?"

The question had come out of nowhere, but Legolas answered it as if they had been talking for hours. "He was a King of Gondor, very long ago. Where did you hear of him?"

"Someone mentioned that you were speaking to Isildur's heir. You know, the Prince of Gondor?"

Legolas marveled at the mortal woman in front of him. Not less than an hour ago she was tense and quiet and now she was calmly asking questions as if nothing had happened.

"He is not a prince. He is a lord. One who has not yet taken his claim on his throne." Legolas explained vaguely.

"I thought everyone here was from Rohan?"

"Perhaps you should speak to another of this matter. One who has been to Gondor." he suggested, not liking where this discussion was headed.

"Legolas, you obviously know the lord. Why won't you tell me who he is?"

Legolas forced himself to ignore the hurt in her tone. "Because it is not my place."

She chanced turning back to look at him. "Please?" she asked.

This time he turned from her, unable to keep her gaze. "Speak to Aragorn," he slipped hastily and he clenched his jaw for allowing the name to fall from his lips.

Kaitlyn gasped. "He's the heir isn't he? Aragorn's a prince?" she asked, her voice shaking.

Legolas sighed and shook his head, returning his gaze to her. "Nay, Rodwen. Aragorn is destined to be the King of Gondor."

Kaitlyn's jaw dropped. Her hands shook and she nearly dropped the reins. "Did…did you just say, King?"

"Aye."

He felt her complete astonishment as well as embarrassment.

Kaitlyn had always viewed Aragorn to be an older brother. She had thrown grapes at him in Lothlorien. He must have thought her to be an ignorant child. After she thought of all the stupid things she had done in a future King's presence, she felt deeply hurt that he had not told her who he really was.

Legolas sensed the hurt flood her.

"He did not tell you for reasons of safety, "Legolas explained immediately. "Before we reached Rohan, the knowledge that he is heir to the throne of Gondor was dangerous. It is still dangerous. Do not feel anger or hurt at him because he did not tell you."

"How can I not?" she asked. "He kept things from me, just like you did." Her brows lowered over her eyes and she concentrated on her anger, so that the tears that welled in her eyes wouldn't fall. She felt as if her companions did not trust her.

"You know the reasons that Aragorn and I kept our titles from you was one in the same. These are dangerous times," he replied smoothly. He tilted his head and regarded her intently. He could feel the red hot anger pouring forth from her. He knew it was a disguise for the hurt she was hiding.

She frowned and turned her head to face forward.

Legolas meant to reach out and comfort her, for this was the second time today that they had been at odds, but his body tensed.

"Daro Arod," he commanded, his tone flat. Halt Arod.

Kaitlyn could tell by the tone of his voice that something was wrong. She pulled back gently on the reins and said, "Whoa, Arod." The stallion came to a halt and pawed at the earth.

"What is it?" she asked, turning toward the Elf, but by then Legolas had already climbed down from Arod's back.

"Stay with the others," he told her, walking to stand beside her. "You will be safe with them." His eyes bored into hers for only a moment, before he tensed again and turned toward the road ahead. "I will travel ahead to be certain that the road is clear."

"I'll go with you," she told him even though she was feeling anxious ,nervous and still upset. She watched his eyes dart back and forth and saw that his jaw was set. Something was definitely wrong and she did not want to be alone.

"Nay. You stay with the main group." He reached up, covered one of her hands with his and gave it a gentle squeeze. "I will return."

He stared into her eyes and when her mouth began to open in opposition of him leaving, he did not give her a chance to argue. He released her hand and tore off across the plains, causing many in the group to halt their worried horses and ask what was going on.

Kaitlyn watched him go and felt a horrible feeling in the pit of her stomach. She watched him race to the top of a rocky hill and stop to gaze around. She heard and saw two of Theoden's soldiers ride after him to see what was wrong.

Aragorn stopped speaking to Eowyn and looked toward Legolas to see what was taking place.

There was a cry and all eyes at the front of the group saw one of the King's soldiers get killed by a hairy beast that was being ridden by an orc.

Kaitlyn felt her heart pound in her chest when she saw the creature. It was some sort of wolf and it was almost the size of a horse. It was in the distance but she could see it's enormous teeth. It had torn the soldier from his horse as if he were a toy. She felt tears course her cheek when she realized the dead soldier was Hama. He had been the soldier who had greeted them with orders when they first arrived in Edoras. The other soldier that Kaitlyn recognized as Gamling was fighting the wolf's rider with his sword.

An arrow pierced the heart of the beast and its rider fell to the ground. Legolas jumped down from the rock he had been standing upon and shot another arrow. In moments Legolas was upon the orc. He withdrew one of his long white knives and he slit the orc's throat. He gritted his teeth, threw the creature to the ground and gazed up with anger.

"A scout!" he cried out.

Aragorn had run forward to see exactly what was happening, stopping dead in his tracks when he heard Legolas' words. Where there was a scout, there was bound to be a scouting party.

He turned and ran down the hill at full speed, causing several horses to rear or toss their heads. Kaitlyn held the reins in one hand and gripped the front of the saddle to keep from falling off Arod, who pranced about.

"WARGS!" Aragorn yelled. "We're under attack!"

His words caused complete chaos as people screamed and ran about in circles. Theoden ordered his riders to the base of the hill.

Arod was prancing in place and Kaitlyn dismounted, half falling as she made her way to the ground. The stallion was charged and ready for action and she wasn't ready to handle him when he acted like this.

Gimli appeared not two moments after she had dismounted the stallion. "Get me up there! I'm a rider!" he cried out. Several soldiers helped him into the saddle and he nearly fell off.

"Charge forward!" Gimli commanded.

Arod moved backward instead but Kaitlyn saw that Gimli was pulling the reins back instead of giving Arod his head.

The Dwarf dug his heels into the stallion's sides and slapped the reins against his neck. "I said 'Charge forward!'" With the proper cue, the stallion leapt forward and Gimli nearly fell off for a second time.

Aragorn rushed in Kaitlyn's direction and she saw him move quickly toward Hasufel. Eowyn was holding the stallion for the Ranger, handing him the reins. He flipped the reins over the stallion's head and looked quickly at Kaitlyn.

"Go with Eowyn! Help her in anyway that you can to get these people to safety!" Aragorn shouted as he mounted his horse.

Kaitlyn nodded. Her heart was hammering in her chest. She watched Aragorn and Hasufel join the horses and riders already charging up the hill.

Eowyn watched Aragorn for a long moment before she began shouting orders. "Head to the lower ground! Stay together!" she cried out.

For a moment Kaitlyn was lost to the sight of horses and riders galloping in the opposite direction and the men, women and children who were running about, yelling and crying out. Snapping out of her trance, she realized she needed to do something other than stand, gawking at everything that was happening around her. Things like this happened in this world and if she was caught standing around, she was going to be lost in the tide.

Immediately, she began to assist anyone that needed help. She helped an older woman walk down the steep hill. She carried the pack of another woman who was trying to keep her children together. She lost herself in the task of helping the people of Edoras. It was all she could do to keep from worrying sick about her companions who rode away from her and into unknown danger.

She turned for a moment, her heart in her throat, when she heard the sound of barking, growling and shouting. She saw Legolas fire an arrow from where he stood on the ground and then the Elf leapt onto Arod as she had never seen anyone mount a horse before. That was all she saw of him as he was swept away in the sea of soldiers and horses.

She turned away and back toward the women , children and men around her. She forced the tears away that threatened to fall.

She promised herself that she wouldn't think about losing any of the men that she loved. She promised that she would do what Aragorn, the future King, asked of her so that when her companions returned to her, they would be proud to hear what she had done in the face of danger.

Kaitlyn vowed that she would not be useless again.

To be continued…

Things should start to get more interesting from here on out. Much action coming! I would like to thank all of my incredible reviewers. I received nearly 50 reviews for this past chapter alone and am now almost at 400 reviews for this story. You are all wonderful! Please keep those reviews and comments coming. They mean a great deal to me.