This chapter took longer than expected to get up. My computer kept crashing down. I was going to put it up last night but I didn't have time to finish the review responses and well, I couldn't have that now could I? By the way, once upon a time, many many moons ago, I asked someone to be this stories stalker. They agreed and we communicated through e-mails. Well, I lost your e-mail address! So, if you're still reading this story, could you e-mail me? Now, on to the story! Also, if you've not noticed, I am attempting-
Haldir- and faling miserably-
*glares* at updating every Monday.
~~~
A soft sigh of content escaped lipstick smeared lips as Akira snuggled into the warm body beside her. Wait...body? What the...?
Cracking open one eye slowly, she saw soft green fabric, a few strands of long golden hair, and pale skin; all of which came attached to their very own march warden. She blinked a few more times, now fully awake. She was snuggled up to Haldir in a rather warm and comforting embrace. Noting that this was a very strange but not at all unpleasant position to wake up in, Akira attempted to sit up, but was stopped when she felt that there were two strong arms wrapped around her waist. What happened last night?
The young woman hazily remembered the events of the day before. She'd heard Celeborn and Galadriel talking, ran to her room crying, spilled out her heart to the march warden, made out with said march warden, and had ended up falling asleep with him.
Well...this was awkward...
She wondered if he was awake. Lifting her head up a few inches, she peered over the smooth planes of the elf's face, trying to see his eyes. They were, of course, wide open and staring straight up. Elves really *did* look creepy like that. She waved a pale hand in front of his face, frowning when he did nothing. He was still asleep. The red haired teen was pretty sure that she didn't want to be the one to wake him up, since she really didn't mind being held like this; plus, she didn't think she could deal with one cranky march warden on her hands. Akira bit her lip, fighting back a giggle as a mental image of a screeching Haldir, complete with a fluffy pink bathrobe, fuzzy slippers, and a green facial mask entered her mind.
"I see you are finally awake."
The young woman nearly jumped at the sound of his voice. He looked down at her, a bit of mirth dancing behind his light eyes. She glared at him. "Don't scare me like that," she told him.
He gave her a warm smile. "How?" he questioned.
"Like...that. I thought you were still asleep."
Still smiling he asked, "Then why did you not wake me?"
Sighing, the young woman wriggled from his grasp, Haldir watching in bemusement as she did. "I figured you needed your beauty sleep," she commented dryly. He blinked at her. Akira noticed how the comment actually seemed to stun him.
"Are you saying that I am ugly?" he questioned. Though he did not know the term which she had used, the captain assumed that one would need beauty sleep only if they were not beautiful to begin with. And, though he had never really thought on the subject, the fact that Akira may find him unattractive rather...well...hurt his feelings.
"...no," the young woman answered. She could have sworn she saw actual hurt flicker across his icy eyes. "You're uh...you're a very very pretty elf."
A soft smile made its way onto his lips. She said he was pretty, and he was ridiculously happy about it. A few moments passed, and Haldir found himself unable to stop grinning like an idiot. Akira starred at him, her expression blank. The elf met her eyes, his smile fading, and the two starred each other for long moments of almost deafening silence. Sometime later, they broke into hysterical laughter, neither being able to stop, even when Haldir felt tears in his eyes and Akira was clutched her side in pain.
"Why are we laughing?" the march warden questioned as he attempted to breath.
"Sudden...unexplained...bursts of idiocy," she mumbled between giggles. Looking down at the march warden, the teen realized just how much he had grown on her. Suddenly, she got an idea. A wonderful idea. An awful, evil, wonderful idea.
The elf looked up at the auburn haired girl. His chuckling ceased immediately when he saw an evil grin slowly spread across her features. He swallowed hard, and began backing away from her. She was just too fast for him.
~~~
Orophin smiled softly at his brother, holding the arm that was slung around his shoulders in a firm grip. Rumil had been healing, slowly but steadily, and in an effort to help him regain his strength, Orophin was helping him to walk around the gardens and other sites of Lothlorien. After a while, they had decided that it would be much more interesting to watch Haldir drag around the constantly whining elf.
Only, no one had seen him since yesterday. It was almost as if he had disappeared; vanished into thin air. They had searched everywhere for him. Who knew annoying one's sibling could be so exhausting? Finally, they had opted to find Akira to inquire if she knew where the captain could be.
They stopped in front of the door way. Rumil would have lost his balance if his brother wouldn't have caught him. Both elves blinked at one another.
The strange scene in front of them was...simply...weird.
It was their brother, the heartless march warden of one of the greatest Elven cities on Middle Earth...
...a young teenage woman who had been nearly ready to bite said march warden's head off only a few days ago...
...and they were on top of each other...
...laughing...and crying...
"Do you yield?"
"Never!"
"You, are a foolish maiden."
"And you, are a freaky dude."
"I suppose it's better than Chester..."
"What in the Valar are you doing?"
At the sound of Rumil and Orophin's shocked voices, both Akira and Haldir looked up from their...activities. The young red haired woman was pinned underneath the march warden, and the elf's hands rested frozen on the bare skin of her abdomen. Upon entering the two had been laughing and yelling; the sounds of cries muffled by uncontrollable chuckles echoing throughout the talan.
The march warden was unable to move as he thought of the way his interesting position could be interpreted by the two elves in the door. Akira was blushing madly.
"It's not what it looks like!" the two said in unison.
Rumil and Orophin both exchanged glances.
"Perhaps we should take our leave," Rumil said.
"No...we were doing nothing inappropriate..." Haldir assured them quickly.
"Nothing at all!" Akira added.
"Then, what *are* you doing?" Orophin questioned.
"Tickle wars," they answered.
Raising an eyebrow, Orophin began to question this 'tickle war', but then decided against it. He didn't want to ask; it was better not to ask. He hooked his arm around Rumil's and began dragging him away, much to the other elf's protest. Even if Orophin didn't want to know, Rumil was still curious. This tickling seemed quite amusing.
Haldir looked down at Akira, noting how incredibly adorable she looked with that blush on her face. The young woman's brown eyes starred up into his as a warm smile crossed her face.
"Do you yield?" he questioned her again, leaning closer to where his face hung only inches from hers.
Smiling, she shook her head, lifting up to press her lips against his and letting them linger for only a few moments before pulling away. "You will have to kill me first, pretty boy, for I shall never yield to you. Hey! Stop! Don't!" she laughed happily. Haldir smirked as he continued moving his fingers, tickling her ribs mercilessly. Though it had been she who started the tickling, the march warden found it quite entertaining. He leant down, stealing another quick kiss before continuing to tickle her. She had a beautiful laugh.
~~~
The march warden walked briskly, hiding all emotions behind his stoic mask as he headed towards the meeting place of the Lord and Lady. If someone would have looked closely, however, they would have seen him trying desperately not to laugh. He had just left the young lady Akira, quite reluctantly, to go speak with Galadriel and Celeborn. It was this very young woman he was going to speak about. After her confession last night, Haldir knew that he would have to go and speak with the Lord and Lady. She could not have possibly understood what they said correctly. She was pure of heart. He could see it; he could feel it. Was there something they knew that he did not?
The two were sitting, looking serene and peaceful as usual when Haldir approached. He bowed deeply and greeted them in Elvish.
"Tell us now, good march warden, why do you wish to speak with us?" Celeborn questioned. Galadriel looked up at him, scanning through his thoughts and finding the reason why he was here.
Looking up, he gave a rare warm smile. "It is nothing of a very important matter," he answered.
"Then what is the meaning of this?"
"What I meant to say," Haldir corrected himself. "Was that I *hope* it is a matter of no importance. It is about Lady Akira." Galadriel smiled. It had not gone unnoticed by any who were close to the march warden that ever since he had been injured by the orcs, he had no longer referred to Akira as 'girl' or by her name simply, but as a Lady. "She over heard the two of you speaking last night. I am sure it is nothing, but she was rather distressed. I was hoping that you could make sense of a few things. Like why Lady Akira seems to think that she is...evil."
Both of the elder elves exchanged concerned glances. Lord Celeborn stood, his face expressionless as he walked towards the march warden.
"Tell us all you know," he demanded softly.
Haldir stared up at his Lord, unsure what he did to cause such a change in his demeanor. Obviously there was more to what Akira had told him than he had first believed.
"I know nothing more than what Lady Akira told me herself. Which was that last night she came upon you and the Lady discussing something, presumably her. She began going on about a sibling of hers and being evil and bringing harm to our people."
"Did she tell you nothing more?" Celeborn questioned.
The march warden narrowed his eyes. "I pressed for nothing more," he answered coldly.
The Lord starred at the elf in front of him. He dared show any kind of disrespect to his elder? Fearing there was to be some time of confrontation, Galadriel stood and placed a hand upon her husband's shoulder, calming him almost immediately. Her eyes met Haldir's briefly. While his face appeared neutral, he could not hide his emotions from her. She was surprised by what she found lurking in the elf's mind. He was concerned for Lady Akira; worried about her fate. He had come to care deeply for her. Galadriel hoped for all of their sake's the young woman had come to feel the same way.
The elfin woman opened her mouth, beginning to speak to both of them. It was time Haldir truly knew of Akira's fate. Before she could say anything, however, Lord Celeborn began to speak.
"Take her away from here Haldir."
Confusion was shown clearly on the elf's face as this was said. He blinked at his Lord, not understanding what he meant in the slightest. "My Lord?" he questioned.
"Lady Akira is no longer safe among our people. The Golden Wood can not protect her."
"I do not understand," Haldir said in confusion. "Why would she not be safe here? If the power of our people could protect the Fellowship, who were hiding from the dark Lord Sauron himself, then why would we not be able to protect Lady Akira?"
The elder elf sighed. A look of seriousness set on his features. "I wish that I could tell you of these things. But I fear that I can not."
"And why is that? What is the trouble of me knowing? If she is in danger than I need to know how I can protect her."
"There is no guarantee that you can protect her," Galadriel said softly, gaining both of the elves attention.
Haldir swallowed hard as she said this, fear beginning to rise in his chest. "What do you mean?"
Meeting his gaze, she spoke again, louder and more forcefully then the last. "Lady Akira has a long journey ahead of her. The road she must follow to her end is filled with both peril and despair. The only thing you can do for her, Haldir of Lorien, is to guide her as far as you can on this path. You can not save her, though you may try. She must fight her own battle; carry out her own will. It is her heart that must hold true during her time of need, not your own."
Stepping forward, Celeborn joined his hand with his wife's. "She must take her leave of this place quickly. She must go to another place, where she can stay with her own kind," he said.
"If we can not use the power and good of the elves to help her, then there would be no use for a thousand armies of Men," Haldir said, locking his eyes with Galadriel.
"No one can help her now," she said. "Only push her towards her fate and pray that she is strong enough to save herself."
"And if she is not? What if she comes upon this evil and she can not battle it on her own?"
"Then she will be lost," she answered.
A deafening silence followed after she had spoken. Haldir did not understand. Akira was in danger, but he could not save her. He could guide her, but how far would he be allowed to do that? He would not leave her alone in a time of need. He would not allow her to be left out to fend for herself when there was no guarantee that she would survive on her own.
"I will take her to Gondor."
With that, he turned, not waiting for any sort of response from either the Lord or Lady and began heading towards Akira's talan.
Both elves watched him leave. Hearts weighing heavily with grief and guilt, the two turned to one another.
"Do you think it wise?" Celeborn questioned his wife. "If we let him go along with her on such a journey, he may not return."
"Even if he knew this," Galadriel said. "He would still go with her."
He let out a sigh. "He can not save her," he said softly.
"No," she agreed. "But she can save him."
"And if she does?"
"Then perhaps she will have the strength she needs to save us all." After a moments pause she added, "Or destroy us."
~~~
All right, it was kind of short and kind of sucked but revealed well…not a lot either. I'm sorry. I've been so scatter brained! We had like, four trips in a row this week! It's scary!
Gothic Angel of Death- Soo glad you're liking the story! Oooo…role playing LOTR sites huh? *twitches* I should go check those out. *twitches* For research only I swear! *hands Haldir his blue see-through tunic*
Pippin-luva99- Yes, homeskillet is the greatest! *blushes* the ground I walk on? Wow. You are just to much eh!
I love tom felton 4e- Freddy is awesome! Ah, Haldir acting like Tarzan? *giggles* I can do that!
Haldir- Hey…where'd my tux go? Why am I in a loin cloth? Why am I on a vine? Why is the sky blue?
I think that falls out of the line of questioning. Hey, watch out for that…!
Haldir- AHH!
…tree.
Fanfictiongeek36- Oh oh. I told Eric that sometimes, when I got mental images of him in a loin cloth, I get…excited (the other one…just not using it so I don't scare all these loverly people who are reading I's story!)
Jack Sparrows Only Love- Your looney for wearing a powder blue tux…yo homie dawg.
Haldir- Well I'm not in a tux anymore am I? I'm in a freaking loin cloth.
I know. *twitches* Can I touch it?
Haldir- AH!
I'm just joking…really…
Brynne- Did I get your name right? Eh…I'm an idiot. Thank you for reviewing eh! And sure, here you are, your very own Haldir clone. And I suppose I could make Leggy clones.
Haldir- HA!
Legolas- I've only been in like…two chapters…and I still have to be tortured in the A/N's?
YES!
Here ya go. You're very own Haldir and Leggy clones!
pad wan_jinx- Did I get your name right? Crap I hate being a dumb blone. Thank you for reviewing, and as long as your reading/liking the story, it's all good!
Commodores R Ppl 2- One Tree Hill rocks! Oh I love Nathan, and Haley, and Brook even though she can be a b-I-t-c-h sometimes she is still cool! I'll send Hally over tonight! Um…sometimes you might want to know he's a vegetarian.
Haldir- I am?
Yes.
Haldir- Good for me!
Leggy- Why good for you?
Haldir- I'm making a statement.
Leggy- I want to make a statement!
Vampiress Adora- Cool name eh. *hands Haldir clone* There you are!
Haldir- *takes out hankerchif that VA gave him* *blows nose* Thank you so much! This chapter was kind of sad too…me not being able to save her…*sniff*
Review and save a life! You guy's are the bomb! Oh, and just wondering, anyone heard Silver and Cold by AFI? It's the best song ever written, so if you haven't you might want to check it out. AFI is also one of my current obsessions. *twitches* Davey *twitches*