CHAPTER TWO
Some time after night had fallen, Tala heard a scrambling noise at the ladder and the elf who had guided her to the flet – Rumil – appeared in the pale moonlight at the entrance.
He nodded to her and settled down in one of the corners to sleep, without another word. He was shortly followed by the other elf who had not been introduced to her. He stared at her curiously but again did not speak.
Tala debated whether she should speak to him and searched furiously for something to say. Just as she was about to ask him how the evening's patrol had gone and whether any yrchs had been spotted, he followed the other elf's example and settled down to sleep.
Tala was relieved to see that the March Warden did not appear and lay back down, shifting her cloak under her in an effort to be more comfortable. The night air had turned cold and the leaves lifted and rustled in a slight breeze. She stared up at the tree branches above her, taking the place of a roof for the shelter. What would the next few days bring, she wondered. She thought of her audience with the Lord and Lady with a mixture of anticipation and nervousness. Would they allow her mistress' request? Her mind seemed too busy for rest.
Yet sleep must have come because she was awoken later in the night by low whispering. She shifted uncomfortably on the hard wooden floor and sat up. Her left arm had gone to sleep and she rubbed it absently.
The two elves were standing at the edge of the flet looking out into the forest, their pale hair evident in the moonlight. Their tone was now fairly urgent although still not above a murmur.
Tala crept silently up to them. "What is it?" she whispered.
They did not turn to acknowledge her but Rumil replied, still looking out in the forest canopy,
"Yrchs. They have come within the borders of the forest."
The other elf looked angry. "They grow ever more confident."
Rumil nodded to him. "My brother, Orophin."
Tala smiled at him in greeting. She was grateful to have some acknowledgement that she existed and decided that perhaps not all Galadhrim elves were as bad as their March Warden.
"We should go." Orophin said, and Rumil nodded in agreement.
She watched them climb easily down the ladder and meet the tall figure of another elf at the bottom. The three had a muttered consultation which resulted in the two brothers striding off into the trees and the other elf climbing the ladder.
Tala turned away from the opening, dismayed to see it was the March Warden. She did not completely understand the reason for her strong feeling but only knew that she had no wish to come face to face with that elf again. The closeness of him disturbed in ways she could not begin to understand.
He leapt gracefully onto the wooden platform, barely looking at Tala, but stood at the entrance of the flet watching the forest floor.
Tala would have stayed as far away from the March Warden as she could but she was curious. As she neared the opening of the shelter to ask what was happening, there was a strange whistling noise and in a single movement the March Warden reached out and shoved her roughly to the floor as a black- feathered arrow thumped into the wooden post just above her head, barely missing her.
"Yrchs" he exclaimed heatedly as a group of the foul creatures surrounded the tree.
The orcs must have spotted the flet high up in the branches and began hacking at the trunk with their blades, the vibration of the axes caused the whole flet to vibrate.
The tree began to sway and Tala turned her horrified eyes to see the March Warden had grasped one of the stout poles that the flet was constructed of.
Before Tala could make herself secure the floor tilted sharply and she cried out as she was thrown to the boards and tipped towards the opening. She scrabbled desperately and managed to grasp a crack in the boards and save herself.
She lay still for a moment, sucking in air – trying to still her racing heart. The pounding of the orc blades seemed to have stopped for the moment and the March Warden pointed to the rear of the flet.
"Get back. Secure yourself." He said curtly and turned away.
But Tala was slow to react, partly because of her recent scare and partly because she had no wish to comply meekly with the supercilious elf.
She sat for a moment to recover her breath and stared furiously at his back. Just as she lifted herself to move to the back of the shelter, she heard the same whistling sound as before but as the elf reached to push her again to safety, the movement unbalanced him and the precarious state of the tree was the contributing factor in his fall from the flet.
Tala was horrified to see him slip from the edge of the opening.
Tala didn't think but reacted instinctively, pushing her body across the floor of the shelter, she managed to just catch his wrist as he fell.
His strong fingers immediately wrapped around her own wrist. Wincing with the pain of catching his entire weight on her shoulder, she looked down from the edge of the flet to see his gray eyes looking up at her.
There was relief in them, she saw, and concentration, and something else – flickering in the background. Could it be? No, she decided, he could not be laughing, not at a time like this. And as she thought this, the flicker died away and was replaced with determination, and also concern.
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Haldir stared up at the frightened face of the elleth who was the only reason why he wasn't now plummeting to his death. Her dark hair fell like a raven cascade and strands blew against his face in the breeze. What a position to be in – suspended from one of his own flets by one arm.
And saved by an elleth. By the Valar, he would never hear the end of this. His wardens would be telling this tale for many years, he thought dryly. Her reactions had been impressive. As he shifted his fingers more tightly round her wrist, he could see the determination in her eyes.
His voice was gentle when he finally spoke.
"I don't think I can climb back up from here. You are not strong enough to assist me. Will you be able to hold on for a little while longer? Rumil and Orophin will return once they have seen the yrchs from the borders."
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Tala did not trust herself to speak but merely nodded, biting her lip with the strain. The pain in her shoulder was sending heat shooting down her arm and it felt like it was being wrenched from the socket, but she would not let go, as she looked into his steel gray eyes and saw the trust in them, she knew she would never let go.
She could feel his fingers gripping her wrist, warm and hard, and for some reason the thought created a tingling in the pit of her stomach. The muscles of his arm bulged with the strain against the soft fabric of his tunic. She realised she was still staring into his eyes and quickly looked away, awkwardly.
She found herself staring at the ground and it was then that she fully appreciated the situation. Her head and shoulders were hanging from the edge of the flet at a height that made her whimper silently. The ground seemed to fall away from her as she looked. She dragged her eyes away from the forest floor and decided it was best if she just closed them.
Just at that moment, when the pain in her shoulder was becoming unbearable, Rumil appeared, running out of the trees. He took in the situation in an instant.
"Haldir!" he shouted urgently and dashed to the bottom of the ladder.
Even in that moment, all Tala could think as she hung desperately on was that she now knew the elf's name. Haldir. As her eyes met his for an instant she saw in them again that twinkle of amusement – as if he knew her thoughts - and she blushed.
Rumil now lay beside her and reached down his hand to Haldir's free one, which he gripped and drew him effortlessly onto the flet without Tala's help.
The sudden loss of weight on Tala's arm was a relief for a moment and then the pain became excruciating. She stumbled quickly to the back of the shelter, and curled up onto her cloak, not wishing the March Warden and the other elf to see her hurt, wanting only to be alone, her mind filled merely with the pain of her shoulder.
She saw Haldir glance curiously and turn to come across to her and she immediately closed her eyes, pretending to sleep.
Rumil spoke "Will the flet be safe for tonight? The orcs did a lot of damage."
Haldir replied in a low tone. "It will be safer than her sleeping on the ground. They should not return tonight but who can tell with those foul creatures."
Tala was glad when the two elves disappeared down the ladder and all was silent. Her shoulder was throbbing and it was obvious to her that the act of catching the March Warden as he fell - and then taking his weight on her one arm for some time, had damaged it in some way, and quite badly.
She resolved not to speak to Haldir about it. He would only see her to be a weak elleth and the very idea of sharing such feelings with him was abhorrent to her. Tala neither wanted nor required his help. She decided that she would seek advice from the healers of the city once she had reached Caras Galadhon.
She drifted into an uneasy and pain-riddled sleep, feeling alternatively hot and then freezing cold, shivers running through her.
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When she awoke, light was filtering through the tree's canopy and Rumil stood over her, waiting patiently for her to awake.
"It is time to go. We must leave now so that I can return to the border as quickly as possibly." And with that he turned and lightly descended the ladder, leaving her to collect her few belongings.
Tala just managed to silence her gasp of pain as she sat up and unwarily put some weight on her damaged arm. She would be more than glad to leave the tree – but first to get down.
Slowly she packed her bag, and rolling her cloak was a feat she managed with one arm and not a little difficulty but she tried to block the pain from her mind.
Tala looked out from the entrance of the flet and, waiting until Rumil and the Warden were in deep conversation on the forest floor beneath her, climbed slowly to the ground, her fingers gripping every single rung of the ladder firmly before she moved onto the next.
She reached solid ground with relief and stood for a moment to compose herself. As she turned to look for her horse she caught movement from the corner of one eye and looked across to see Haldir striding towards her, a grim look on his face.
Tala closed her eyes and took a deep breath, before turning to face him.
The slight morning breeze and his movement caused his long fine hair to fly across his face and he brushed it impatiently away with one hand. He spoke curtly, his dark eyes revealing nothing, his face with a slight frown.
"Last night you were almost killed by that orc arrow. When I tell you to do something I expect it to be done – and immediately."
Anger burned inside her – increased by the fever and dull throb which her injury had caused. Her eyes blazed and she felt her cheeks flush pink as she turned to him.
"Last night I saved your life." She spat.
"You did indeed save my life but if you had done as I told you, lady," the last word was said in a tone of insult, "I would never have fallen."
His gray eyes were as cold and sharp as steel and she felt a great emptiness as she looked into them. Tears sprang to her eyes and she turned away from him, saying heatedly,
"You may have many elves under your command on the borders but you do not govern me, March Warden."
He reached out angrily and grasped her wrist, spinning her back to face him. He had chosen to pull at her damaged arm and she cried out involuntarily as hot knives of pain shot from her shoulder.
She suddenly felt light-headed. Her vision began to blur.
"Haldir." She managed to murmur as she slumped against him, and then felt his strong arms close round her and prevent her from falling as the darkness closed in.
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Haldir had seen something wrong in her face, her forehead had crinkled with pain and he could see her eyes cloud.
She had spoken his name as the darkness took her and he had stepped forward in a single elegant movement to catch her in his arms as she fell.
He was surprised at how light she was and as he placed her gently on the ground, her dark hair fanned out from her more than usually pale face. Her ebony lashes curled long against her cheeks.
His breath caught as he crouched beside her. In all his centuries he had found many elleths attractive and had taken not a few of them to his bed, but she - she was something more. She touched him. The nearness of her disturbed him in ways he did not wish to consider.
His reverie was broken by light footsteps.
"Haldir?" Rumil drew close, concerned. "What is it?"
"Hold her a moment Rumil while I put my cloak down." And Rumil lifted the elleth's shoulders slightly for Haldir to pillow her head with his cloak.
The March Warden then felt along Tala's arm and sat back on his heels.
"It is as I thought. When she took my weight on her arm last night, her shoulder became dislocated. I will have to put it back in while she sleeps – it will be kinder on her. Rumil, get me some strips of fabric so that I can bind her arm to her body for travelling."
Rumil nodded silently and sprinted off to comply with his brother's request.
Haldir knelt beside Tala and lifted her arm gently to him. Pausing a moment, he brushed her hair off her face with gentle fingers, before taking a deep breath and twisting the shoulder back into its socket.
Even in unconsciousness, Tala felt the pain and cried out involuntarily.
Some time after night had fallen, Tala heard a scrambling noise at the ladder and the elf who had guided her to the flet – Rumil – appeared in the pale moonlight at the entrance.
He nodded to her and settled down in one of the corners to sleep, without another word. He was shortly followed by the other elf who had not been introduced to her. He stared at her curiously but again did not speak.
Tala debated whether she should speak to him and searched furiously for something to say. Just as she was about to ask him how the evening's patrol had gone and whether any yrchs had been spotted, he followed the other elf's example and settled down to sleep.
Tala was relieved to see that the March Warden did not appear and lay back down, shifting her cloak under her in an effort to be more comfortable. The night air had turned cold and the leaves lifted and rustled in a slight breeze. She stared up at the tree branches above her, taking the place of a roof for the shelter. What would the next few days bring, she wondered. She thought of her audience with the Lord and Lady with a mixture of anticipation and nervousness. Would they allow her mistress' request? Her mind seemed too busy for rest.
Yet sleep must have come because she was awoken later in the night by low whispering. She shifted uncomfortably on the hard wooden floor and sat up. Her left arm had gone to sleep and she rubbed it absently.
The two elves were standing at the edge of the flet looking out into the forest, their pale hair evident in the moonlight. Their tone was now fairly urgent although still not above a murmur.
Tala crept silently up to them. "What is it?" she whispered.
They did not turn to acknowledge her but Rumil replied, still looking out in the forest canopy,
"Yrchs. They have come within the borders of the forest."
The other elf looked angry. "They grow ever more confident."
Rumil nodded to him. "My brother, Orophin."
Tala smiled at him in greeting. She was grateful to have some acknowledgement that she existed and decided that perhaps not all Galadhrim elves were as bad as their March Warden.
"We should go." Orophin said, and Rumil nodded in agreement.
She watched them climb easily down the ladder and meet the tall figure of another elf at the bottom. The three had a muttered consultation which resulted in the two brothers striding off into the trees and the other elf climbing the ladder.
Tala turned away from the opening, dismayed to see it was the March Warden. She did not completely understand the reason for her strong feeling but only knew that she had no wish to come face to face with that elf again. The closeness of him disturbed in ways she could not begin to understand.
He leapt gracefully onto the wooden platform, barely looking at Tala, but stood at the entrance of the flet watching the forest floor.
Tala would have stayed as far away from the March Warden as she could but she was curious. As she neared the opening of the shelter to ask what was happening, there was a strange whistling noise and in a single movement the March Warden reached out and shoved her roughly to the floor as a black- feathered arrow thumped into the wooden post just above her head, barely missing her.
"Yrchs" he exclaimed heatedly as a group of the foul creatures surrounded the tree.
The orcs must have spotted the flet high up in the branches and began hacking at the trunk with their blades, the vibration of the axes caused the whole flet to vibrate.
The tree began to sway and Tala turned her horrified eyes to see the March Warden had grasped one of the stout poles that the flet was constructed of.
Before Tala could make herself secure the floor tilted sharply and she cried out as she was thrown to the boards and tipped towards the opening. She scrabbled desperately and managed to grasp a crack in the boards and save herself.
She lay still for a moment, sucking in air – trying to still her racing heart. The pounding of the orc blades seemed to have stopped for the moment and the March Warden pointed to the rear of the flet.
"Get back. Secure yourself." He said curtly and turned away.
But Tala was slow to react, partly because of her recent scare and partly because she had no wish to comply meekly with the supercilious elf.
She sat for a moment to recover her breath and stared furiously at his back. Just as she lifted herself to move to the back of the shelter, she heard the same whistling sound as before but as the elf reached to push her again to safety, the movement unbalanced him and the precarious state of the tree was the contributing factor in his fall from the flet.
Tala was horrified to see him slip from the edge of the opening.
Tala didn't think but reacted instinctively, pushing her body across the floor of the shelter, she managed to just catch his wrist as he fell.
His strong fingers immediately wrapped around her own wrist. Wincing with the pain of catching his entire weight on her shoulder, she looked down from the edge of the flet to see his gray eyes looking up at her.
There was relief in them, she saw, and concentration, and something else – flickering in the background. Could it be? No, she decided, he could not be laughing, not at a time like this. And as she thought this, the flicker died away and was replaced with determination, and also concern.
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Haldir stared up at the frightened face of the elleth who was the only reason why he wasn't now plummeting to his death. Her dark hair fell like a raven cascade and strands blew against his face in the breeze. What a position to be in – suspended from one of his own flets by one arm.
And saved by an elleth. By the Valar, he would never hear the end of this. His wardens would be telling this tale for many years, he thought dryly. Her reactions had been impressive. As he shifted his fingers more tightly round her wrist, he could see the determination in her eyes.
His voice was gentle when he finally spoke.
"I don't think I can climb back up from here. You are not strong enough to assist me. Will you be able to hold on for a little while longer? Rumil and Orophin will return once they have seen the yrchs from the borders."
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Tala did not trust herself to speak but merely nodded, biting her lip with the strain. The pain in her shoulder was sending heat shooting down her arm and it felt like it was being wrenched from the socket, but she would not let go, as she looked into his steel gray eyes and saw the trust in them, she knew she would never let go.
She could feel his fingers gripping her wrist, warm and hard, and for some reason the thought created a tingling in the pit of her stomach. The muscles of his arm bulged with the strain against the soft fabric of his tunic. She realised she was still staring into his eyes and quickly looked away, awkwardly.
She found herself staring at the ground and it was then that she fully appreciated the situation. Her head and shoulders were hanging from the edge of the flet at a height that made her whimper silently. The ground seemed to fall away from her as she looked. She dragged her eyes away from the forest floor and decided it was best if she just closed them.
Just at that moment, when the pain in her shoulder was becoming unbearable, Rumil appeared, running out of the trees. He took in the situation in an instant.
"Haldir!" he shouted urgently and dashed to the bottom of the ladder.
Even in that moment, all Tala could think as she hung desperately on was that she now knew the elf's name. Haldir. As her eyes met his for an instant she saw in them again that twinkle of amusement – as if he knew her thoughts - and she blushed.
Rumil now lay beside her and reached down his hand to Haldir's free one, which he gripped and drew him effortlessly onto the flet without Tala's help.
The sudden loss of weight on Tala's arm was a relief for a moment and then the pain became excruciating. She stumbled quickly to the back of the shelter, and curled up onto her cloak, not wishing the March Warden and the other elf to see her hurt, wanting only to be alone, her mind filled merely with the pain of her shoulder.
She saw Haldir glance curiously and turn to come across to her and she immediately closed her eyes, pretending to sleep.
Rumil spoke "Will the flet be safe for tonight? The orcs did a lot of damage."
Haldir replied in a low tone. "It will be safer than her sleeping on the ground. They should not return tonight but who can tell with those foul creatures."
Tala was glad when the two elves disappeared down the ladder and all was silent. Her shoulder was throbbing and it was obvious to her that the act of catching the March Warden as he fell - and then taking his weight on her one arm for some time, had damaged it in some way, and quite badly.
She resolved not to speak to Haldir about it. He would only see her to be a weak elleth and the very idea of sharing such feelings with him was abhorrent to her. Tala neither wanted nor required his help. She decided that she would seek advice from the healers of the city once she had reached Caras Galadhon.
She drifted into an uneasy and pain-riddled sleep, feeling alternatively hot and then freezing cold, shivers running through her.
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When she awoke, light was filtering through the tree's canopy and Rumil stood over her, waiting patiently for her to awake.
"It is time to go. We must leave now so that I can return to the border as quickly as possibly." And with that he turned and lightly descended the ladder, leaving her to collect her few belongings.
Tala just managed to silence her gasp of pain as she sat up and unwarily put some weight on her damaged arm. She would be more than glad to leave the tree – but first to get down.
Slowly she packed her bag, and rolling her cloak was a feat she managed with one arm and not a little difficulty but she tried to block the pain from her mind.
Tala looked out from the entrance of the flet and, waiting until Rumil and the Warden were in deep conversation on the forest floor beneath her, climbed slowly to the ground, her fingers gripping every single rung of the ladder firmly before she moved onto the next.
She reached solid ground with relief and stood for a moment to compose herself. As she turned to look for her horse she caught movement from the corner of one eye and looked across to see Haldir striding towards her, a grim look on his face.
Tala closed her eyes and took a deep breath, before turning to face him.
The slight morning breeze and his movement caused his long fine hair to fly across his face and he brushed it impatiently away with one hand. He spoke curtly, his dark eyes revealing nothing, his face with a slight frown.
"Last night you were almost killed by that orc arrow. When I tell you to do something I expect it to be done – and immediately."
Anger burned inside her – increased by the fever and dull throb which her injury had caused. Her eyes blazed and she felt her cheeks flush pink as she turned to him.
"Last night I saved your life." She spat.
"You did indeed save my life but if you had done as I told you, lady," the last word was said in a tone of insult, "I would never have fallen."
His gray eyes were as cold and sharp as steel and she felt a great emptiness as she looked into them. Tears sprang to her eyes and she turned away from him, saying heatedly,
"You may have many elves under your command on the borders but you do not govern me, March Warden."
He reached out angrily and grasped her wrist, spinning her back to face him. He had chosen to pull at her damaged arm and she cried out involuntarily as hot knives of pain shot from her shoulder.
She suddenly felt light-headed. Her vision began to blur.
"Haldir." She managed to murmur as she slumped against him, and then felt his strong arms close round her and prevent her from falling as the darkness closed in.
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Haldir had seen something wrong in her face, her forehead had crinkled with pain and he could see her eyes cloud.
She had spoken his name as the darkness took her and he had stepped forward in a single elegant movement to catch her in his arms as she fell.
He was surprised at how light she was and as he placed her gently on the ground, her dark hair fanned out from her more than usually pale face. Her ebony lashes curled long against her cheeks.
His breath caught as he crouched beside her. In all his centuries he had found many elleths attractive and had taken not a few of them to his bed, but she - she was something more. She touched him. The nearness of her disturbed him in ways he did not wish to consider.
His reverie was broken by light footsteps.
"Haldir?" Rumil drew close, concerned. "What is it?"
"Hold her a moment Rumil while I put my cloak down." And Rumil lifted the elleth's shoulders slightly for Haldir to pillow her head with his cloak.
The March Warden then felt along Tala's arm and sat back on his heels.
"It is as I thought. When she took my weight on her arm last night, her shoulder became dislocated. I will have to put it back in while she sleeps – it will be kinder on her. Rumil, get me some strips of fabric so that I can bind her arm to her body for travelling."
Rumil nodded silently and sprinted off to comply with his brother's request.
Haldir knelt beside Tala and lifted her arm gently to him. Pausing a moment, he brushed her hair off her face with gentle fingers, before taking a deep breath and twisting the shoulder back into its socket.
Even in unconsciousness, Tala felt the pain and cried out involuntarily.