1Disclaimer: I do not own LOTR.

"It was said to me by Elrond Halfelven that I should find friendship along the way, secret and unlooked-for. Surely I looked for no such friendship as you have shown."

–Samwise Gamgee, To Faramir, The Two Towers (the book)

"Man is the only creature that blushes. Or needs to."

–Mark Twain (but I think we'd better add wizards to that.)

Chapter Five

Many (Strange) Meetings

Dawn seemed to come only after forever, yet Elrond wished it would take longer. Eomer was going back to Rohan. Arwen was going back to Gondor. Radagast was going . . . . wherever. He was staying in Imladris for the moment. And Elrond Halfelven was traveling into the unknown for the first time in years.

"You'll do fine," Glorfindel assured him.

"I still think you should be doing this," Elrond answered uneasily.

"You're worried . . . . that you'll be a liability rather than an asset."

"Yes."

"Nonsense. Why, back in the second age, you were the best fighter I ever saw."

"I'm a little out of practice."

"You? Really? I don't believe that."

"I do."

"Then draw your sword and let's see."

To Elrond's surprise, he wasn't rusty at all. His sword felt perfectly right in his hands, and his movements and reactions hadn't slowed. The lord of Rivendell still had his touch.

At last, Glorfindel held up his hand. "I wasn't going easy on you, either," he told Elrond. "You did well."

"You and Erestor keep things in one piece while I'm gone," Elrond told the Elf as he headed over to join the others.

"Le ab-dollen," Legolas observed, looking at the sun, which was rising. "What took you so long?"

"Last-minute discussion with Glorfindel," Elrond said as they started out. Gandalf nodded knowingly, and Avanwë smiled.

"Three elves," Gimli grumbled.

"Two and a half, Master Dwarf," Elrond corrected. Normally he forsook all kinship to humanity, but he didn't feel like letting a Dwarf be right.

Eowyn smiled. She knew how Gimli felt. She and Avanwë were outnumbered, as well, as the only females in the group. It didn't matter, though. She had always been a match for any man with a sword. It was comforting, however, to not be alone.

Bergil, more than anyone else, felt totally out of place. By far the youngest and least experienced, he had been sure no one would let him come along. After all, Pippin had barely been allowed to join the Fellowship on their Quest, and he was years older. Elrond had agreed more easily this time, though, and said Bergil could come after Faramir had promised to keep a close eye on him.

Avanwë and Gandalf were at the head of the group, followed closely by Legolas and Gimli. Elrond followed them, and then Bergil, Faramir, and Eowyn. Aragorn took his preferred place at the back, happy to again be relieved of the title of leader.

"There's someone up ahead!" Legolas shouted once they'd gotten maybe two dozen meters out of Rivendell.

"I see them, too," Avanwë confirmed as Legolas joined her at the front, followed by an out-of-breath Gimli.

"Draw weapons," Elrond ordered, "and don't be fooled by appearances."

"It's about time," Gimli commented, raising his axe. Legolas and Avanwë stood ready with their bows. Aragorn, Gandalf, Eowyn, Elrond, and Bergil drew their swords. Last of all, Faramir reluctantly drew his, determined not to fight unless attacked.

"Eight of them," Legolas reported.

"More coming, most likely," Gimli said.

"They don't look like Orcs," Faramir observed, squinting into the morning light.

"I told you not to let appearances fool you," Elrond reminded the Human.

"Should we charge?" Gimli asked.

What made Elrond say 'yes,' I don't think I'll ever know, but seven of them charged as soon as Elrond gave the word. Only Avanwë lingered at the back by Faramir, watching as the two groups collided.

"You're not going to join them?" she asked.

"The strangers already have the disadvantage. Half of them, at least, look like children. I can see only two grown men, one of them very old. I don't think my help is needed. I'll join if the tide turns."

"A wise decision, especially coming from a Human."

Faramir sighed. There were times he honestly wished he was an Elf. The other reason he'd stayed back was clear. He didn't like to fight, and even when it was necessary, he didn't get the thrill from it that Boromir had, or even the sense of accomplishment that Eomer and Eowyn got. The only comfort the young steward had was that when Elrond had given the order to charge, he had also said not to kill the strangers.

The tide didn't look like it would be turning anytime soon. Though the strangers wee armed with swords and, some of them, bows, they wore no armor. Nor had they expected an attack. With no time to plan a strategy, the Woodland Wanderers were forced to 'wing it.'

Faramir, even watching from a distance, was amazed at how well the others worked together. Legolas, Gimli, and Aragorn, especially, worked perfectly in time. Legolas aimed his arrows so that if the opponent dodged by leaping to the side, they would meet either Gimli's axe or Aragorn's sword, Anduril. Eowyn was guiding Bergil like the expert sword fighter she was, and Gandalf and Elrond soon found a pattern similar to the first three. Though the Woodland Wanderers had skill and experience to spare, and were used to being unevenly matched, they quickly found themselves overwhelmed.

Expert fighter that he was, Elrond couldn't help admiring his opponents' skill. One, in particular, caught his eye: a short fellow with long black hair. Nothing seemed to surprise him, and he used his small size to the best of his advantage. In spite of a slight axe-wound in his right shoulder, the warrior had switched hands and kept fighting, anyway. It took a lot to impress Elrond, but that did the trick.

Gandalf, too, had singled out an opponent: an older man with some of the best skill the Wizard had ever seen. The man kept his hood up, shielding his face, either from the sun or from sight, and kept his guard up with it, sticking to defense rather than attack. Finally, Gandalf decided he'd wasted enough time sword-fighting. One blast from the Wizard's staff knocked his opponent to the grown, unconscious. On the way, he met an arrow of Legolas', well-aimed as always, and Gimli's axe. Another flash of white light left only two of the strangers standing: one blind and one with sunglasses.

"You going to surrender now?" Gimli asked them.

"You never gave us a chance to in the first place," the girl with glasses answered. "We sought no fight."

Faramir and Avanwë rushed up. "Everyone all right?" Avanwë asked. "I mean all of you."

"Mavo?" the other stranger asked.

"Glad you recognize me, Noka," the Elf answered.

"In that case, I don't thing a 'we surrender' would hurt," the girl laughed. "I thought you guys were smarter than this. I didn't even have any time for a short 'We come in peace' before Legolas here pelted us with arrows."

"Morgan?" Legolas asked, speechless.

"At your service. Allow me to introduce us. This is Noka. That's Latano and Tandro over there. That's Balo with the really long hair and Rona with the really short hair. The tall guy with black hair's Eric, and the one Mithrandir here zapped is Peter." Underneath her joking tone, however, Morgan wasn't so calm. Just looking around, she could already see the consequences of the groups' mistake. None of the other group was hurt badly, but Peter, as usual, had his knack for getting hurt worse than she thought possible. Eric, as well, had an arrow-wound in his left shoulder, and Noka one in his right. Her own head ached terribly, as well, for Gimli had hit her with the handle of his axe and her right shoulder still stung from and arrow she'd barely had time to remove. Even Balo, the youngest of the group, had a wound in her leg from Gimli's axe, and Latano one from Elrond's sword. None of these were fatal, but they did have the potential to slow the progress of the small group for a little while.

"I didn't 'zap' anyone," Gandalf said calmly, breaking Morgan's train of thought. "He'll be fine soon enough."

"He would've been if you hadn't 'zapped' him in between the Elf and the Dwarf. This is some way to treat old friends."

"Do I know you?"

"Me? I doubt it. Elrond should, but that's beside the point. You sure you don't recognize the guy you 'zapped,' though?"

The Wizard knelt down by the old man. His hood was now cast back, his face visible.

"Daëlin!" Gandalf exclaimed. "Why didn't he . . . . ?"

"Tell you he was coming? Or let you know it was him? He probably would've done both had he been given the time. I'm sorry we had to meet like this, Mithrandir. We're the Woodland Wanderers. Peter, or Daëlin as he's known here, may have mentioned us."

"He did," Gandalf admitted, "but he said there were Elves in your group."

"What do you call us?" Noka demanded.

"Shrimps," Legolas offered.

Morgan just shrugged. She'd leave the explaining to someone else, or at least for some other time. "Elrond, do you think. . . . ?" she started.

"Yes," Elrond replied. "Legolas, run on ahead and tell Glorfindel . . . . well, tell him we're coming back. And that we have company.