I do not own Lord of the Rings, ect. Please remember the two R's: Read and Review!
First, I'd like to give a warm thank you to those of you who took the time to review. Your comments are all appreciated!
huzzah: Well, thank you… I think. :)
BlackRobedMagelet: Yes, the characters are admittedly rather OOC in this fic. But I'm glad you liked it!
Jedi Buttercup: Thanks for the information! I had no idea how old Elrond would be, so I just guessed. It turns out that I'm over 2,000 years off. Oops… :) Despite the errors, I'm glad you found a bit of entertainment in this!
Sophia solo: Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it! Hmm… a drinking contest between Elrond and Gimli? It's an amusing concept, to say the least!
Note: Thanks to Jedi Buttercup it has come to my attention that the age listed for Elrond in the title is at least 2,000 too young. I have decided to leave it as it is since I have no idea how old Elrond actually is. (Besides, I've become rather attached to the number 4,978). However, be aware that it is extremely inaccurate due to my own poor guessing abilities.
Now, on with the story!
And so, the various members of the newly formed "Project Partay" (so named by Pippin) went their separate ways, all beginning their different yet equally dangerous quests…
"So this is the party store?" Aragorn gulped, glancing nervously between his guide and the building in question.
The blond-haired elf looked up from examining his fingernails. "Well obviously! Why else would it be called 'Middle Earth Party Supplies'?" He rolled his eyes. "Honestly Aragorn, sometimes I wonder whether those orcs actually did knock all of your brains out!"
"Well," the King fidgeted anxiously. "I was just… just… wondering if this was the right one."
"Aragorn, this is the only one."
"Uh… I knew that." He continued to shift from foot to foot, making nervous glances at the door.
Legolas began to ponder the very interesting rock at his feet.
"So…" Aragorn coughed and mumbled, "Willyoucomeintothestorewithme?"
"What!"
Aragorn turned a very un-kingly shade of red. "I said, 'will you come into the store with me?'"
"Why would I want to do that!" Legolas scowled. "It's not my job to get the party decorations, and contrary to popular belief, I would rather die than have anything to do with decorating something!"
"But… but…" he stammered, "I can't go in there alone!"
"Why not?"
"Um…" The King traced a large 'A' in the dust with his boot toe. "Well, you see…"
Legolas glared at him, tapping his foot impatiently. "Come on! Out with it!" Suddenly his eyes grew wide. "Don't tell me you're broke!"
Aragorn frowned at the elf. "No, of course not. I am the King of Gondor, am I not?"
"Then what is the problem!" he fumed.
Glancing around suspiciously, Aragorn leaned in close and whispered, "You have to swear not to tell anyone!"
Years of friendship with the eventual king had perfected Legolas's eye-rolling technique down to an art form. "Fine, I swear."
"But what if you're lying?" he shouted, panic overtaking his normally calm features.
The blonde elf just closed his eyes and gave an exasperated sigh. "Why does it matter? And who would I possibly want to tell anyway?"
"Swear by the power of the One Ring and the beauty of Galadriel that you will not tell anyone of what I say here today!" Aragorn insisted.
"Fine." He gave a resigned shrug.
"Say it!"
If this kept up, Legolas's eye-rolling would be better than even Elrond's by the end of the day. "I, Legolas, Prince of Mirkwood, do swear by the power of the One Ring and the beauty of Galadriel that whatever Aragorn, King of Gondor, says to me here and now will remain secret until the day I die."
"Good." Aragorn said with relief.
"So what's the big hairy secret?"
Aragorn leaned in and began to whisper once more, "Well, you see…" Pausing, he blushed and looked down at his boots.
"Yes!" hissed Legolas impatiently.
Taking a deep breath, the flushed king continued. "You see… I'm afraid of clowns."
Being an average human being, I cannot read minds. :) Please review! Contructive criticism welcome!
-RW