AN: So I remembered where this Inkling came from. Last November I went to the theatre to see 'Beyond Borders' with Angelina Jolie. That night this story was born on a couple sheets of paper at 2am. If you want to know where this story is going I highly recommend you watch it. It's an excellent movie that didn't do very well at all at the box office, something which I still don't understand. The core love story of the movie is where the Ameron/ Mirien/ Haldir triangle came from and as I watched it again last night it all came back to me.

I hope you enjoy this new chapter. The plot thickens...considerably *wicked laughter*

-Melanye

Chapter Nine:

Current Mood: Predatory

Current Music: Hate to say I told you so – The Hives

I do not like this. I never wanted to go into the forest so far south in the first place, and now we go after dark. In my opinion anywhere outside of Lothlorien is dangerous after dark. Anywhere outside Lasgalen? Much worse. The others stay to await the scouts from the city, and part of me wishes I could to, but Mirien does have a good point. Celeborn said Thranduil should receive my message as soon as possible.

She seems in quite a hurry to go also. Even if my message could wait, I think part of me would still wish to go with her. She cannot go alone into that dark forest at night. But yet...I still think waiting untill morning would be better. I do not like this at all.

Haldir stopped.

"Where are the scouts that were supposed to meet us?" he whispered, peering into the trees as if he may find them. Beside him he heard Mirien's breath quicken and turned to see her look up. The faint ring of a sword being drawn reached his ears and he unconsciously did the same.

"I don't think they're coming," she whispered back, sheer terror in her voice. She didn't like the woods any more than he did, he saw. It was a necessity that they travel through them, nothing more. He watched the expression on her face carefully, and saw her eyes suddenly shift from his to something behind him. Then he heard it...a hiss, at shoulder level. He felt his skin crawl and tried not to move, but it was too late. The sounds were all around them now, and as he looked up he saw the web, hanging ready to drop on them.

In a blinding move, Haldir brought his sword up in a wide arc, halving the three spiders behind him in one stroke. At the same moment Mirien also erupted with a whirl of her blade and the battle was on. Little did they realise how deep in spider territory they were. The huge black bodies surrounded them, and their two blades were no match for the hundreds of legs and teeth and stingers. Mirien saw this, but there was little she could do about it. They were completely cornered.

In the midst of battle she chanced to catch Haldir's eye for the briefest of moments, but it was all she needed. She saw the concern and fear in his eyes, not for himself, but for her. She prayed he saw the same in hers. It was that look, held longer than it should have been, that broke her deadly dance just long enough for one spindly spider's leg to break through her defences and sting her leg. She fell, unable to control the urge to clutch the wound, but it was her downfall. The spiders were on her immediately. He couldn't see her for the black mass of writhing spiders, but he heard her scream when they stung her, and it nearly killed him. The only thing that brought him back to the present was a claw scratching his own skin and he turned to swing his sword at as many of the foul creatures as he could.

On and on he fought, and out of the corner of his eye he could see them beginning to spin the other elf in their hideous webs. Despair threatened to take over, but still he fought, thinking that at least one of them had to make it out alive. Dead spiders piled up around him, but still they came, stepping over their slain brethren to reach the warm-blooded elf in the centre. Just when he thought he would give up he saw an arrow bury itself in a spider in front of him. Then another went down and another. Elves had appeared out of nowhere and began fighting off the creatures with him. Soon they were overpowered, and those with any sense of self-preservation at all hissed their defeat and scurried off back into the woods.

Haldir stumbled over the dead spiders to where Mirien lay, half encased in spider's silk on the ground. The most shocking part to him was that her eyes were closed, for rarely had he seen an elf's eyes closed save for when they were dead or severely wounded. He fell to his knees and his sword fell to the ground beside him, ignoring the others who had saved his life. They hung back as if they understood, allowing him his space.

"Mirien?" an alarmed voice called from behind him. One of the wood elves rushed over and knelt by the fallen captain, opposite Haldir. He briefly met the Guardian's eyes and saw fleeting recognition in the silver gaze before checking over the elf beneath him. He ripped the webs away form her face and chest, feeling for a pulse. He then called to one of the other elves for medicine and bandages, exposing the several stingers and scratches along her arms and neck as he did. Suddenly out of his despair, Haldir finally had a name for the face of his saviour.

"Thrandulion?" he asked in amazement, his voice a whisper. "Legolas, is it really you?" The other elf only paused long enough to glance up at his friend with a faint smile of confirmation before accepting the supplies from one of his scouts and setting to work.

Mirien woke later that night seeing at first leaves against the stars. Her vision was blurry and her head and body ached, the pain forcing a quiet moan from her throat. She was still disoriented from the spider's venom, but nevertheless attempted to sit up. She managed to pull herself halfway up before a wave of nausea forced her back down. She turned onto her side, fighting the pain in her stomach, head and arms at the same time.

She heard the leaves gently rustle behind her but did not turn, still trying to keep from being sick. Soft hands caressed her shoulders as whoever had come knelt behind her. One hand smoothed back her damp hair while the other rubbed cooling cream into her forehead and temples, massaging away her headache. When at last the nausea passed she gently rolled onto he back and slowly opened her eyes.

"Legolas," she said hoarsely. He smiled grimly at her while reaching up to continue his ministrations. She closed her eyes, grateful for his help.

"I am sorry we did not find you sooner," he said softly. She heard deep pain and hurt in his words. "We...lost the dock to darkness almost a month ago. There was no way to send word." Mirien felt her heart break at those words. She had helped build that dock.

"Where is Haldir?" she asked. Legolas regarded her for a moment before answering.

"He's fine. He's with the scouts," he motioned behind him.

"Is he hurt?"

"No." He took his hands from her temples and began to check her bandages. The wounds were not deep and had already begun to heal, but the poison still held sway over the rest of her for the moment. He told her as much.

"When do we leave?" she asked. He sighed.

"Soon. It is not safe here, I fear," he replied. "We do not usually travel this way anymore, you are lucky we found you at all." Mirien felt tears burn her eyes.

"We will take back the dock," she said. "We have lost ground before and won it back." Legolas sighed in despair.

"Mirien, you know how it is," he said in an anguished whisper. "For every inch of forest we save, we loose half of one somewhere else. My scouts are spread so thin that even where defence is possible it is not nearly effective enough. We are loosing."

"Send for help."

"We have sent for help," he said a bit too quickly and a bit too cynically. "None will come. We have even asked if the men of Dale would spare fighters. It is not an easy thing for father to ask of Men for aid." Mirien nodded, knowing well of the King's pride and stubbornness. She knew that Many long debates with Legolas had to have taken place before he would even consider requesting aid, much less from mortals. He smiled sadly and clutched her shoulder. "But I must not speak of such things to one whose task is to heal," he said quietly. She smiled back.

"Then what should we speak of?" she asked, trying to sound happier.

"How is Lorien?" he asked lightly.
"Good."

"And Ameron?" Without thinking she avoided the Prince's eyes and he nodded knowingly. "I see. Are you going to tell them?" he said after a pause. Her eyes again found his. As they stared at one another he slowly saw them begin to mist with tears.

"I...don't know what I will say," she said. There was a long silence as they listened to the woods around them. "I missed you," she said finally. "I miss our talks. We used to be able to talk about everything," she said, reaching for his hand. "What happened to those days?" He looked down at their joined hands before removing his from hers.

"You married," he said, "and we haven't 'talked' since."

"We're talking now."

"And?"

"There are days I wish it had been you." Legolas smiled grimly and stood.

"Your parents didn't want me," he replied, "and you always do what they tell you to do, don't you?" Mirien opened her mouth to respond, but closed it when she saw the look on his face. He made for the forest and then turned back to her. "I could have given you everything," he said. He gave her a long wanting look before melting back into the trees.