Twenty down, nineteen chapters to go!

Disclaimer: None of it's mine, except my original characters, such as they are.

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Marja looked up at them with empty eyes. Slowly she released the still form of the man who had been her husband. She let the fabric of his cloak slide through her fingers, falling limp to the floor.

Behind her a servant crept into the room, her hand pressed tightly to her lips in horror. Marja met her eyes. The servant cowered back even further. The young girl who had grown up with them was gone, her spirit, her laughter seemed lost forever.

In her place stood a young woman, brought about by circumstances she could not control and come to a world less forgiving than the one she had left. This young woman absently wiped the blood from her hands, never speaking, strode from the room.

As she left the world seemed once again to turn and the sense of danger closer than ever. The servant girl hurried after her mistress, the horror, fear, and a grief she could not now and perhaps never would, apparent in her eyes. Gimli nodded to Legolas, carefully leading Inara around the fallen man, allowing no part of them to touch him. The elf followed, with a final glance over his shoulder at his enemy. He still held in his hands his unsheathed dagger.

Behind them all, lying in the spreading pool of blood remained Lord Kent, Master of the Hall. The sole remaining torch guttered fitfully, sending shadows over man and hall, finally flickering out in a stray gust of wind, plunging the hall into darkness and one man's bright dreams with it, forever lost in shadow.

Marja closed her eyes in her room. She clenched her fists for a moment, taking a breath. The world would continue to turn, lives would still be lived, and her own would go on. She reached up, pulling her arm free of her dress. She stripped it from her, unmindful of either ties or carefully mended sleeves. Finally in her shift she calmly set the dress in the fire. As she watched it burn, tears ran down her face, but she never moved or looked aside.

Gimli guided Inara to one of the tables that filled the main hall. He sat beside her, as Legolas paced restlessly, his hand slipping to the hilt of the dagger in his belt. Inara took a deep breath, her hand tightening on Gimli's.

"We must go. I do not want my child in that creature's hands."

"Aye, but there rests an army between us," Gimli sighed, sitting beside her.

Legolas looked over at them, "Then we shall deal with this army as we have dealt with others before them."

Gimli shook his head at the unreasoning tone in the elf's voice. Legolas had seemed distracted for several days. Gimli could not yet determine the reason. Deep within though he feared it was some act he had done, or the companionship his heart had found. It was not often loved crossed the boundaries set by the separate races, and when it did, it most often ended in tragedy. He knew Legolas feared for two of his closest friends, now both mortal, and was distraught by another risking facing that tragedy.

But if such was the cause of Legolas' unhappiness Gimli knew there was little he could do. This was something he could not bear to lose. Dwarves had lost much in these long years. But this would not suffer that same fate.

Legolas threw himself down on the bench beside the dwarf, "I know not why we must wait! Can we not leave now?"

"No, we owe Lady Marja at least this much. It is her people who will be facing the Uruk-hai who wait beyond these walls."

"What she says is true. They followed us here. We must take responsibility for this at least."

Legolas sighed, and resumed his nervous pacing. Gimli gritted his teeth, about to snap at the elf in an attempt to make him cease what was quickly becoming extremely irritating.

Marja stepped into the great hall, her hair bound behind her head, wearing a simple dark dress, a mourning dress. Behind her crept a maid whose eyes betrayed her fear to any who looked upon her.

Gimli stood at her approach. There was something gone from her eyes, now so cold, but there was something new there as well, something strong, very strong. This was one who would not surrender easily and would give no quarter to those who had brought her to this juncture.

"We will begin to fortify the hall." Her voice was as firm and cold as her eyes, "Freya, run to the village, tell them they must come within the walls."

"But M'Lady! Our homes! Our farms!" Freya's voice caught.

Marja broke in, "There are many more monsters waiting at our gates than we have defenders. We could not hold the village. The only hope is to retreat within the walls of the Hall. We cannot even flee." Bitterness crept into her voice, but she brushed it away, "Hurry, we have little time, but send me Hadar before you leave."

As the girl ran from the room she turned to the three who had been witness to so much sadness and had brought much of it to her home. Her eyes traveled over them, taking in the restless anger of the elf, the calm acceptance overlying the defensive posture of the dwarf, and the tightly controlled worry that tightened the woman's muscles. She opened her mouth to speak, but paused, willing away her anger, it was not their intent to do such harm, such seemed simply the will of fate.

Marja took another breath, continuing with words other than those that had just been upon her tongue to speak, "Hadar rode with Theoden, he leads those within the village who have skill with weapons."

Gimli broke the tense silence which followed, "How many men can aid in the defense?"

Lady Marja smiled, and for a moment the girl she had been was in her eyes again, "Men? Master Dwarf, it will be the women who defend this village. The men may tell the tales, but it is we who will be doing the practical work." She admonished him.

Gimli snorted, drawing a laugh from Inara, "What she says is only too true, Gimli, I am pleased to find another so enlightened as to see the true workings of the world." She worked hard to keep her face serious in light of the gruff muttering from the dwarf.

"But Inara," Legolas interrupted, "You have been in enlightened company for the duration of our journey together. Do not let this rough dwarf deceive you, elves are the most enlightened of peoples."

Gimli's face darkened further as he was about to respond, Marja put up a hand to forestall the battle this was about to become.

"There are plenty of enemies for you both to face beyond our walls. Let us turn back to the matter of defense."

"Do you know how many there will be to man the walls?" Legolas inquired.

"We can expect at most a hundred to come to our aid. My lands are filled more with empty plains than busy cities. But they are brave, and we have no retreat, so we will fight."

Gimli nodded, remembering a time not so long past when a small force had fought with bravery against an overwhelming enemy and won.

Legolas voiced what he thought, "There is always hope."

Inara turned to where she had heard Marja's voice, "There will be another day after this, and another after that one, the world will continue to turn, but let us act in such a way so peace may follow what we do here."

"Aye, but how will you defend walls as old as these, they may be built of stone, but I can feel their age beneath my hands." Gimli gestured as if to take in the ancient walls that surrounded the hall.

"These walls are as old as my family; they are a remnant of another age, a greater age. We have loose stone and timber to strengthen them with. Our enemies have no siege engines for us to fear, only their numbers."

"And those are formidable enough. We must make our own numbers last. Do you have archers among you people?"

"We do have that," a new voice answered as a man stepped into the room. He was as tall as the elf, but thickset, with the blonde hair and bearded so common among these people. Fighting scars marked his rough hands and face.

He bowed to Marja and her guests, "I am Hadar. I see to defending the town from whatever may threaten it, whether that is bandits or armies of Uruk-hai." The last he twisted as if feeling the near insanity of the burden that was placed on him.

"But I have fought them before and have no qualms about doing so again."

Gimli stepped forward, "And in this we will aid you. I am Gimli, son of Gloin. This is Legolas Greenleaf of Mirkwood, and this Inara, it was her son that was taken."

Hadar took the offered hand, "It is good to meet you. I only wish it was on a better day." He pulled an old and tattered paper from the bag at his side, spreading it on the table.

"This is a map of the Hall and the lands around it." He sketched with his finger, mindful of the map's age, "We have stone walls around the entire hall, and space for most of the people from the village here." He pointed to the main hall.

"It will be crowded and some will have to stay in the lofts above the stables, but we will all manage." He glanced at Lady Marja for approval. She nodded and Hadar continued.

"We will have archers on the walls and those who cannot draw a bow but are still able will wait in the courtyard as reserves. If the gates fall they will defend the hall."

Gimli nodded, "You may wish to use boiling water or oil if you have it to keep battering rams from the gate."

"You're right, it's the weakest point, and the timber is strong but old, like much of our lands and homes."

"We will help you as much as we can, but you must try to send for help." Inara interjected.

But Marja shook her head, "Not yet, I will not send anyone on a journey that will almost surely lead to their death. If it looks like we have lost than and only then will I give such an order. For now, let us reinforce the walls and make our preparations. And you have a rescue to prepare. But remember it is as you said, there is always hope."

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Well sorry for being late again but I hope you enjoyed it.