Something Special
Author: Lil-Hellraiser
Disclaimer: Don't own any of em. Nope, just my computer here and my poster of Orlando.
Author's Note: READ THIS! READ THIS! READ THIS!
Guess I've got some s'plainin' to do.
I'm DEEPLY and HORRIBLY sorry about the lack of updates lately. I just started high school in August. Any of my high school reviewers know what a drag that is (geometry…oi). My sister is due to have her third baby any day now (and if it's another boy, I WON'T GO! All her boys are demons, I swear). Its football and basketball season so I've got to perform at lots of the games on Friday nights and I spend my Saturdays resting up. Sunday I can be found getting my homework all done at last minute. During the week I have dance team practice and I have hardly any free time because I've got studio dance to do as well. I need to hang out with my friends, and I have hardly any time for that, and now that it's a three-day weekend, I can write this! It's been horrible to just watch the months pass without having anything done about this story.
You probably don't care too much, but lets just say that I'm sorry, and here's the next chapter. There's a HUGE surprise at the end (no peeking, do you want to ruin it?)!
-----------
I loaded up my packhorse and smiled. Finally, after about a month, Lord Elrond had given in to my request. I was going to Lothlorien with a small group of advisors and Glorfindel. It had taken SUCH a long time for him to decide, too.
--------------
"Lord Elrond…"
"Jolie, we have talked about this. You must be patient with me. I must be positively sure about this."
"But it's been two weeks. How long does it take to be sure?"
"I've discussed with you already the dangers of traveling in such harsh conditions. With the times now, such careful precautions are absolutely necessary."
--------------
"Have you decided yet?"
"Nay. I'm still waiting for word from the council in Lorien."
"How long is that going to take?"
"Who knows…it could be today, possibly tomorrow, possibly weeks from now. If something has happened to our scouts carrying the message, it may never come."
"Oh, such a happy thought."
---------------
"THEY'RE HERE!"
"Estel, calm down! Who, now?"
"Lorien elves, father! They've just passed the gate! Had you not heard the hoofbeats?"
"I was preoccupied with Lady Jolie. She will be very pleased when she finds out."
"Finds out what?"
"Aunt Jolie, there you are! The elves from Lothlorien are here bearing news of your visit!"
"Why didn't anyone tell me sooner?!"
------------
And after a while of wondering, Lord Elrond announced at dinner that a group of scouts and me would make the journey to Lorien. Glorfindel volunteered to go with me, of which I was happy because he was one of my dearest friends.
On the morning of my departure I packed up some items for the trip: some nice dresses to have while I was in Lorien, some boots and sandals, brushes and clips, my journal, some jewelry for when I was in the presence of the Queen, my circlet, some rags (you probably know what for, think back to the bloody dress explanation) and some books. After a moment of thought, I stuck my Discman in there as well. I didn't like using it much because if I ran out of batteries I wouldn't be able to get anymore, so I played it sparingly, but for the trip there, I didn't want to be bored as hell.
I found a leather pouch and put Legolas' golden harp in it gently. I hardly ever went anywhere without it.
Lastly I nestled my sheathed sword into some strapped leather just big enough to fit around my waist. I went to my closet and pulled on some traveling clothes: heavy brown tunics with dull gray leggings underneath so that no one could peak at me while I was riding. I slipped on some knee length boots and fit the strapped leather over my waist. I pulled my hair back into a ponytail so the wind wouldn't catch it and looked in the mirror.
I didn't look half-bad. The sword hanging at my side gave me some extra edge.
I had eaten a wholesome breakfast with Gilraen, who kept crying and saying how I had to write her the moment I got there. I told her I would tell her everything. I'd be there for about two months.
"Where is Estel?" I asked her tearfully.
"Out by the pond." She answered, clearing my plate from the table for me. She shooed me away, and I went to look for the boy.
I found him sitting on a rock near a small pond filled with lilies near the garden. He didn't look up as I climbed up and sat next to him.
"This will be the first time we've ever been apart, kiddo." I said to him, dipping the toe of my boot into the water.
He turned his head away from me.
"I only wish that you could come with me. You really don't deserve to be left behind like this." He didn't move.
"Don't say all your thoughts at once." I joked.
He sighed, but said nothing. I couldn't figure him out.
"I'd better leave, then." I said coldly, crouching down and hopping off the rock. I was a little hurt by his display of
emotion towards me. As I was walking away I heard a scramble of feet. Small arms encircled me from behind. I turned around to see little Estel gripping me around the middle.
"I'm sorry, Jolie." He said kindly. "I've been feeling dreadful about you leaving."
"Why's that?" I asked. "It's only two months." I almost laughed at how stupid that sounded. ONLY two months?
"Yes, but you'll be gone. To be honest, you're the only reason anyone around here tolerates me." He paused.
"Please, go on." I urged. He looked me straight in the eyes.
"I just feel like I'm such a burden. I'm still a child to everyone here. Nobody bothers with me most of the time, but you seem to always have room for me." I smiled at him.
"I will always have room for you." I said, and kissed his forehead.
"The elven children, they only stick by me because I'm Lord Elrond's son." He said bitterly, his eyes downcast. "But you, you like me just for me. I'd hate for you to leave."
I grinned at him and planted another sloppy kiss on his forehead (at which he protested greatly). But thinking about it, those words would probably haunt me for a good while.
"…you like me just for me." He'd said. That made me think. Did I only spend time with Estel because I loved him like my own child, or because he was destined for greatness? I chewed on this thought as I said my last good-byes to the other members of the House.
----------
Sitting upon a chestnut mare, I began to strum quietly at Legolas's harp. It was now early fall, and the leaves were beginning to turn from vivid green to a fiery orange. We'd been traveling for about three weeks, taking safe passes and guarded roads because this particular area, though the safest route, had been sighted with Goblins and Orcs lately, and we had to be slower. We passed the Misty Mountains as our first great hurdle, and I had been looking and looking for the Trolls that Gandalf had tricked into arguing until sunrise, when I realized that it had not happened yet. It couldn't have. Maybe? I dunno. I couldn't quite remember the date at which Bilbo, Gandalf, and the dwarves were supposed to be visiting Rivendell.
I had only caught one elf checking me out, and had told Glorfindel to keep an eye on him. Yay.
As I picked at the harp, I suddenly felt a chill. I looked up at the forest we'd been traveling through. It was golden and I couldn't put my finger on WHY I hadn't noticed it before. The leaves looked as if they had been painted with the light of the sun itself, and the trees were a brilliant platinum color. I had never seen anything like it in my life. I almost dropped my harp. Several of the scouts regarded me with chuckles.
"Where are we?" I asked the nearest one.
Your presence in this wood has been greatly anticipated, Aurenàrë.
A voice tore through my brain and this time I did drop my harp in surprise. Glorfindel swerved his horse sideways to avoid it and deftly swooped down to retrieve it. I pulled on the reigns of my horse to keep it still. I was holding up the company, and I wasn't the only one to notice.
"My Lady, we must keep moving." A dark haired elf said, riding up beside me. Glorfindel placed my harp into my shaking hands.
"Are you alright, Jolie?" He asked curiously.
"Did you not hear that voice?" I asked, genuinely startled. He looked at me with a secretive smile and mounted his horse once more.
I kicked my horse's side and she began to trot forward again. 'Was that Galadriel?' I wondered. 'I'm probably just hoping that she'd talk to me, like in the movies. Get a grip.'
There are some that have longed for your arrival for many years.
That voice again. I pulled back on the reigns and looked up into the mass of gold. It wasn't a female voice, but something about it was distinctly feminine. Perhaps the way the words seemed to flow together so nicely. My horse had begun to get nervous now. She was moving slower and slower the farther we moved into the woods, and was altogether welcome when we came to a second stop. Glorfindel rode up next to me.
"No matter what you hear, you must continue to move." He ordered, and gave my horse a commanding pat on the backside, which got her moving again. I was still unnerved by the voice I'd been hearing. I rubbed my ring, which had begun to glow softly. I heard movement.
"Greetings, company of Imladris," Said a voice that everyone seemed to hear this time. I looked ahead and saw nothing, but followed the voice cautiously and looked up to see a group of elves in the trees above us. They were dressed in silver tunics and breeches, with dark gloves and boots on their hands and feet. Their golden hair wasn't out of place, and their bright eyes sparkled with the light of the dying sun.
An elf hopped down from a low branch and landed in front of my horse, watching me carefully.
"A human in elven territory?" He wondered aloud. "Hail, Glorfindel. My dear friend, we did not expect this."
"Hail, Diyerne, Marchwarden of Lorien. We have come far to seek the council of the Lady of Light. We had expected you to know of this." I loved how they talked about me like I wasn't there.
"We were not told that—" He paused and suddenly looked decided. "Very well. Follow us." It seemed like about a dozen elves rained down from the trees in a magnificent display of colors and grace. They landed, a few racing ahead with the news of our coming, and a few stayed to guide us though the wood.
One was wearing a green cloak and seemed unusually bigger than the other elves. He wasn't bigger as in weight or girthwise, but he seemed just more bulky, I guess. The other elves were lean and tall, while he was just a smidge shorter and was undeniably more muscular. His hood was pulled up and he took my horse by the reigns, leading it down a dirt path. He moved quietly and with the grace of an elf, but he still made noises, and my instinct was to wonder if he was even an elf at all. I could see some blonde hair from under his hood, but his ears, I could not.
After about thirty minutes we reached a large tree with a staircase winding around it and a deep gorge on the other side. At the top was a platform with a string of rope over the gorge crossing to another platform a few meters away. From there on were many trees, and that is all I could see. What was this?
"Should we blindfold the human?" Asked an elf who was scouting along the side of the path. Diyerne glanced at Glorfindel, who shook his head. "Lady Jolie is a friend. She is the Aurenàrë of Imladris, trusted with all secrets of the city. She is to be treated as our own kin."
The elf leading my horse nearly dropped the reigns. I looked at him oddly.
We all pulled to a stop. The elves began to de-mount their horses, and the elf leading mine held out his hand to assist me.
"My Lady," He said, his voice quite deep. I knew that voice. I swear to you all, I did. I reached for his hand, which was rough and callused, much unlike the slender, flawless elven hands I had been near most of the time. As I gripped his hand, my finger slid across a bulky object sitting on his own. I peered at it. It was a ring. And it looked just like Lord Elrond's.
No…
In my surprise I got my foot caught on one of my saddlebags and slammed right into my guide. He stumbled back and caught me as I fell, but that didn't prevent us from tumbling down to the ground. Landing on top of him, my hand ripped across his hood and removed it from his head, his face visible to me. I almost screamed in shock.
"Chase." I breathed, looking into his blue eyes, the ones I thought I'd never see again. "…What? How…?"
He grinned and pulled me into a bear hug, which I returned.
---------------
Oh, cliffhanger. Well, I don't know, what do you guys think? Good enough for being away for so long? It probably isn't near long enough, but at least its here. Review, pretty please!