A/N: Here's where the actual story starts. Yay! I must make note of a few things. The character of Idrial is not mine. I got her from 'Lord of the Rings: The Third Age' video game...because she just kicked butt. What I HAVE done is given her a personality. I also lifted Aranel from the same game, but I gave him a personality, too. I hope. Valandil is mine, however. I really like his name. So glad I came up with it.
One more thing. I am not familiar with any 'family' attachments Erestor had. So I gave him some family. Slightly distant family, but family nonetheless. If, in your eyes, that makes this AU or OOC, then I apologize.
Disclaimer: Told you I wasn't going to do this again.
SHOUT-OUTS:
Angoliel: My friend! (embraces Angoliel) And my first reviewer! You get the special prize, which is a bitten piece of lembas bread with Haldir's teethmarks in it.
Haldir: What?
Okay, I'll come up with something better. Ah! An elven cloak and broach!
Haldir: That's mine!
Not anymore. Behave yourself. Thanks so much for the review! And this story just might not go where you expect it to.
Mercury Gray: Yay! My other friend! Lots of potential, huh? I'm incredibly flattered. And I hope I don't disappoint you. As for missing the bonfire...I think we can do something about that.
""""""""""""""Lothlorien – Two Weeks Later
Haldir walked swiftly towards the talan of Lady Galadriel and Lord Celeborn. He heard someone call out his name, but he didn't stop. 'Urgent business' the messenger had said. He had only just returned from a scouting mission with Valandil and several others. His thoughts immediately turned to his brothers, who were on their own scouting mission on the eastern borders, far from where his own party had been. Had Rumil or Orophin been injured?
This unwelcome thought propelled Haldir onward and he walked even faster, passing a group of elleths who giggled and whispered as they always did when the Marchwarden was in the vicinity. One of the elleths, Idrial by name, did not take part in the giggling or the whispering. She rolled her eyes at the antics of the elleths she usually called friends and concentrated instead on the expression Haldir wore. Instantly, she knew he was worried about something. She followed him quietly to the base of the mallorn tree that housed the talan of Lord Celeborn and Lady Galadriel and waited, confident that he would tell her what had transpired after it was all over with.
Normally, Haldir would have noticed immediately that Idrial was following him and he would have told her to go back to her friends. She would've refused of course, he would've insisted, and then they would've argued and he would have been late for his meeting with Celeborn and Galadriel. Such was the nature of the friendship between Haldir and Idrial. But Haldir was so caught up in his concern for his brothers that he didn't realize Idrial was following him. So he entered his Lord and Lady's talan completely unaware that he was being stalked.
"Haldir, please come in and be seated," Celeborn smiled when he saw the Marchwarden.
Haldir relaxed slightly. Surely Celeborn would not be smiling if something had happened to Rumil or Orophin. But why did the messenger say 'Urgent Business'?
"Would you like some tea?" Celeborn inquired.
Understandably perplexed, Haldir briefly glanced over at Galadriel, who still had her back to him. Turning back to Celeborn, Haldir shook his head.
"No, thank you, my lord."
There were times when Haldir wondered how he got himself into certain predicaments. This was one of those times. 'Urgent Business', indeed. Had he been invited to a tea party?
"Haldir, we have asked you here because I have a very…..delicate task for you."
Galadriel had finally spoken. On impulse, Haldir stood and Celeborn hid a smile. Haldir was always so serious!
"We have received word from Rivendell," she continued, "that Lady Arwen may be coming to Lothlorien for an extended period of time."
"An extended period of time?" Haldir queried.
"I will not bore you with details," Galadriel informed him.
'Meaning the reason for her sudden departure from Imladris is none of my business,' Haldir thought before he could stop himself. He had long ago managed to school his thoughts. It was a skill that was very useful when one was in the service of Lady Galadriel.
Galadriel looked at Haldir thoughtfully and arched an eyebrow, but the Marchwarden adopted a bland expression. The Lady of Light let the errant thought pass.
"She will need an escort while she is here," Galadriel went on. "I have decided to appoint you."
Haldir could not have been more shocked if Galadriel had just asked him to take Arwen's hand in marriage.
"Me? But I hardly know Lady Arwen!"
"You will get to know her. The first thing I suggest you do is stop calling her 'Lady Arwen'. She will not let you do that very long. You shall have to get accustomed to 'Arwen', only."
"Surely one of the elleths of Lothlorien would be a better choice for an escort, Lady Galadriel. Idrial, perhaps. She and Lady Arwen have been friends since they were elflings and they often correspond."
Galadriel shook her head.
"Idrial is leaving in a week for Mirkwood with her mother. Had you forgotten?"
No, Haldir had not forgotten. But he had hoped that this sudden arrival of Lady Arwen might change Lady Galadriel's mind on the matter of Idrial accompanying her mother on this diplomatic mission to King Thranduil's court.
"What of Orophin?" he suggested, grasping at straws as Celeborn looked on in amusement. The elf lord had never seen his Marchwarden so flustered. "I seem to remember that he and Lady Arwen got along well when they were elflings."
"Orophin and Arwen are close in age, that is true. But Orophin is part of the escort that will accompany Idrial and her mother to Mirkwood. And so is Rumil, before you suggest him."
For once, Galadriel was wrong. Haldir never would've suggested Rumil as an escort for Arwen. The Marchwarden would've trusted his younger brother with his very life, but never with an elleth. To Celeborn's further amusement, Haldir reached up and ran a hand over his hair. Galadriel raised her eyebrows. For Haldir to resort to a nervous habit from his youth, he must be shaken indeed.
"My lady, I do not think…."
"It is obvious to me, Haldir, that three months of non stop scouting missions have hindered your ability to think. Otherwise, you would not be standing here trying to argue your way out of a task that I have very clearly already appointed to you."
There was no harshness in Galadriel's tone, but her words stung. Haldir took his position very seriously and he had always taken on his tasks with no complaints. He lowered his head in shame, feeling very much like an elfling who had just been chastised by his naneth. Galadriel couldn't help but smile at his stance.
"Haldir, you know I would not do this without reason. I have complete faith in you. Your task is not to guard Lady Arwen, but to keep her company."
Haldir raised his head and looked at Galadriel incredulously. Keep an elleth company? Had she lost her mind?
"I assure you, Haldir, that I am quite sane. I have the feeling that you are just what..." Galadriel looked into Haldir's eyes and seemed to catch herself. "But never mind about that. I have given you two weeks to rest here in Lothlorien before your next scouting mission. When you return, Valandil will be taking over your duties temporarily. Does that please you?"
Valandil. Idrial's father. Haldir couldn't think of another Elf in Lothlorien he would rather hand his duties to.
"Yes, my lady."
"I thought it might. Now, I think we are done here for the time being. There are still a few things to be sorted out, but they can wait. You may go, Haldir. But be mindful as you leave. Our borders are well protected, but there are still some dangerous creatures that manage to slip by."
Puzzled by these parting words, Haldir bowed to both Galadriel and Celeborn and left the talan. When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he was pounced upon.
"What did they say?" Idrial demanded, grabbing onto Haldir's arm. "Is anything wrong?"
Haldir frowned and removed her hand from his arm, then walked off, shaking his head.
"'Dangerous creatures', indeed," he muttered.
Undeterred, Idrial followed. She easily kept up with his long strides, much to his irritation.
"Haldir, is anything wrong? Has something happened to Rumil or Orophin?"
"No," came the short reply.
"There is something wrong, though. I can tell. What happened?"
"Why are you so inquisitive? Is it an illness?"
"Perhaps. Maybe it is contagious. Shall we see?"
Jumping in front of him so that he had no choice but to stop, Idrial leaned forward and gave Haldir a light kiss on the cheek. He stared at her, shocked, as a color that could only be described as flame red crept up his neck and across his cheeks.
"Why did you do that?" he finally asked. She smiled at him.
"Aha! It is contagious! You are inquisitive already!"
He stared at her a moment longer before finally breaking out into a smile and putting an arm around her shoulders as they continued their walk.
"You are incorrigible, Idrial."
"Thank you. My mother says the same."
"Your mother despairs of you, I think. If you would only act like a proper elleth…."
Idrial rolled her eyes.
"Proper elleths bore me. And they bore you as well, so please do not begin to lecture me. And do not even think that turning the subject to me will make me forget why I followed you in the first place. Why were you summoned to the lord and lady's talan?"
Haldir sighed and Idrial became truly concerned. She once again moved in front of him so that she could look him in the eyes.
"What is wrong, Haldir?"
"It seems that Lady Arwen is coming to Lothlorien for an extended stay…." Haldir began.
"Arwen is coming!" Idrial exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. "Oh, how long it has been since I have seen Arwen! This will be wonderful! Well, it will be wonderful once I return from Mirkwood," she finished, wrinkling her nose as she remembered that she was being dragged off to Thranduil's realm in a few days. In spite of his mood, Haldir couldn't help but smile.
"Oh, cheer up, Idrial. Prince Legolas is quite handsome," he teased, receiving a glare for his efforts.
"I am well aware of the real reasons my mother is dragging me to Mirkwood and I will not be married off to a haughty prince, no matter how handsome he is. Besides, I am hardly nobility myself. Arwen would be more suited to Prince Legolas."
"I assure you, Idrial, that Legolas is far from haughty. I think you will find that he is very much like the twins, actually…."
"Elladan and Elrohir? Ai! By the Valar, I do not need a husband that is anything like one of them. A friend, perhaps, but not a husband. And you are changing the subject again. What does Arwen coming here have to do with you?"
"Lady Galadriel has asked me to be her escort. To keep her company when she arrives."
"And what is wrong with that?"
Haldir stared at Idrial as though she had gone mad.
"Idrial, I do not know Lady Arwen. She is younger than I am. Orophin knew her well, they played together when they were elflings and she came to Lothlorien to visit. Rumil knew of her through his association with the twins…"
"Oh, I would keep Rumil away from her," Idrial interrupted him. "He is an incurable flirt."
Haldir just shook his head before continuing.
"I know nothing of elleths in general, Idrial. You are the only one I can talk to. How can I possibly keep Lady Arwen company?"
Idrial smiled and wove her arm through Haldir's.
"Haldir, you are like a brother to me. And that is why I feel completely at ease telling you this. You are quite charming, when you want to be. Just talk to her. For Eru's sake, be yourself! Try not to act like such a proper Marchwarden around her. Every elleth in Lothlorien thinks you are handsome and brave. And every elleth in Lothlorien also thinks you are arrogant and far too serious."
"Good," Haldir nodded with satisfaction.
"You want them to think you are arrogant?"
"I want them to stay away from me. I have more important things to do than listen to a silly elleth go on about how strong I am and how I should take better care of myself…"
"You should take better care of yourself. My mother was just saying the other day that you are getting far too thin."
The Marchwarden frowned and looked down at himself.
"I am not! I am perfectly healthy."
"Nevertheless, I was instructed to invite you to our talan for dinner every night before we leave for Mirkwood."
"Ai! Even though I am not involved with an elleth, I am destined to be mothered and fussed over!"
Idrial smiled and patted Haldir's arm comfortingly.
"You will come to our talan for the evening meal tonight and you will enjoy it. And you will be Arwen's escort. Haldir, you will do a fine job."
"How can you be so sure?" he asked her, as they took the path that led to her parent's talan.
"Because in all the time I have known you, you have never failed at anything," she replied simply.
"Far be it from me to disappoint a lady," he said, grinning down at her. "I shall do my best to keep Lady Arwen occupied until you return from Mirkwood."
She nodded her approval as they began to climb the staircase to Valandil's and Lessien's talan.
"See that you do. But, please, Haldir. Do not go off and fall in love with her. And see that she does not fall in love with you."
Haldir adopted a puzzled expression and tilted his head to one side.
"Now you dictate Lady Arwen's emotions as well as my own? You know my own opinion of love, Idrial. But, pray tell, why is it that she must not fall in love with me?"
"I may need to pass off a certain Prince of Mirkwood when I return. I can think of no better recipient than the daughter of Lord Elrond," Idrial replied, her eyes sparkling with mischief. Haldir laughed.
"Fear not, Idrial. Lady Arwen's heart will be quite safe," he assured her. Satisfied, Idrial turned and continued her ascent. As Haldir watched her go, his smile faded and he sighed.
"By the Valar, I wish mine was as well," he whispered.
"Haldir! Can it be possible that you have gotten lost on a staircase!" Idrial called down.
"I am coming!" Haldir replied. Not for the first time, he thanked the Valar that he had mastered the art of schooling his emotions as he finished climbing the staircase and entered the talan.
""""""""""""""""""""""""One Month Later
"Arwen!"
Coming from anyone else, it would have seemed like a joyful greeting, almost a shout. But coming from the Lady Galadriel, it was little more than a rather loud whisper. The Lady of Lothlorien seemed to float towards the party from Rivendell, her joy at seeing her granddaughter clearly written on her face.
Elrond watched Arwen carefully, waiting for a reaction. Any reaction. What he saw was a tiny smile as his daughter was embraced, first by Galadriel and then by Lord Celeborn. Well, that was more than he had been able to coax out of her during the entire journey to Lothlorien.
"Lord Glorfindel, it is so good to see you again," Galadriel held her hands out to the balrog slayer.
"It is indeed an honor to be in your presence again, Lady Galadriel," Glorfindel replied, taking her hands in his and bringing them up to his lips. Celeborn watched with raised eyebrows.
"None of that, now, if you please," he said, pushing himself playfully in between the two of them. Elrond smiled at the banter that, no doubt, was meant to get a smile out of Arwen. But the attempt was unsuccessful. Galadriel locked eyes with Elrond and, after a moment, he looked away, not wanting to hear what she was saying.
"Your escort will be taken to their talans," Galadriel said, gracefully ignoring Elrond's blatant shut-out of her attempt to communicate with him. "And we have prepared the talans for you as well. Arwen, you do not mind staying in a talan with your father?"
"No, not at all," Arwen replied, speaking for the first time since their arrival.
Galadriel nodded.
"I realize you must be tired. Everything has been made ready for you. Tomorrow, we can talk more. Tonight, you should rest."
She looked directly at Arwen as she said this and the young elleth squirmed under her grandmother's gaze. Elrond frowned. That was new for Arwen. Never had his daughter felt uncomfortable under the eyes of Galadriel. Deep in thought, and with a final look at the Lady of Light, he followed their escort to the talan that he would call home for the next month.
''''''''''''''''''''''The Next Day
Elrond, as was his habit, rose with the breaking of dawn. He shook his head mournfully. He would never be able to sleep in. It was a curse. A glance behind the curtain of Arwen's bed told him that his daughter was still asleep and was sleeping peacefully. Moving quickly and quietly, Elrond dressed and left the talan, searching for Galadriel.
He found someone, but it wasn't the someone he was looking for. Celeborn was awake and walking through Lothlorien. He nodded a greeting to Elrond and beckoned him over.
"Elrond, how did your company fare on the journey?"
"We had no trouble. It would seem that my sons are doing quite a fine job on their orc-hunting adventures."
Celeborn did not miss the rather bitter tone in Elrond's voice.
"I take it, then, that the twins did not get to say good-bye to their sister?"
"They have not been home in nearly three months. Have they been here?"
"No. Word has reached our ears, however, of two mischief-making, dark-haired Elves being seen in the company of a certain Prince of Mirkwood-."
Elrond blanched.
"Legolas? Ai! I shall never see my sons again! At least, not in the same condition."
Celeborn smiled. Legolas' penchant for getting into trouble was well-known. Elrond had 'fixed' the young Elf many, many times.
"They will be fine, Elrond. And I am fairly certain that their road will lead them here in due time. With Legolas in tow, no doubt."
"Oh, no doubt," Elrond agreed.
The two walked on in silence for awhile before Celeborn brought up another topic, steering clear of the one that had brought Elrond to Lothlorien in the first place.
"Is Erestor handling things in Imladris during your absence?"
Elrond nodded.
"I hated to leave him behind, since he has family here. But we needed an escort and Glorfindel was the best person for that. If this had been a simple diplomatic mission, I would have sent Erestor and Glorfindel, but I could not send Arwen to Lothlorien and not go myself."
"That is understandable. And you need not worry about Erestor seeing his family. None of them are here, anyway."
"Oh?" Elrond quirked an eyebrow.
"No. Valandil is with Haldir on a scouting mission on our borders. They are not expected back for at least another three weeks. Aranel has led his own scouting party out closer to the borders of Rohan. There is no way of knowing when he will return. And Lessien took Idrial to Mirkwood with her."
"Mirkwood!" Elrond was astonished that the protective Valandil would let his wife and daughter travel through the dangerous territory of Mirkwood. Celeborn laughed.
"Do not worry, my friend. Rumil and Orophin, as well as several others, are with them. Besides, with Idrial along, it is most likely that the spiders are running for cover at the moment."
Elrond thought about this and then nodded slowly. Idrial was a mystery to him, but he adored her nonetheless. She was the only daughter of Valandil and Lessien, who was Erestor's younger sister. Skilled with both bow and sword as a result of her father's teaching, Idrial went 'against the grain', as Erestor said.
"I was hoping she would be here," Elrond said.
"Who?"
"Idrial. Arwen has always seemed rather fond of her. I thought it might be easier for her if there was someone here that she knew well. It has been so long since she came to Lothlorien and Idrial, strangely enough, was really the only person she kept a correspondence with. When do you expect their return?"
"Lessien went to speak with Thranduil on Galadriel's behalf. I also suspect that she intends to 'make a lady' out of Idrial. That elleth is quite a handful. I do not know how long they will be gone, Elrond."
Elrond sighed heavily and Celeborn cast a worried glance in his direction, but he said nothing. He had known Elrond long enough to know that whatever was weighing on the Elf lord's mind would come out eventually.
"Ah, there you are! Elrond, I wish to speak with you."
The voice came, quite literally, out of nowhere. Both Celeborn and Elrond were startled by the sudden appearance of Galadriel, who looked rather amused by their stunned expressions.
"Galadriel, my love, is it really necessary to sneak up on us?"
Galadriel adopted an affronted expression that would've had quite an affect on most Elves in Middle Earth. But Celeborn was unmoved.
"I never sneak, Celeborn. Such behavior is beneath me. I merely move quietly, as most Elves do."
Celeborn shook his head in surrender and turned to Elrond.
"What do you do with such an elleth? I leave her to you, Elrond. There are things I must see to."
With a most un-lordly wink at his wife, Celeborn departed. Galadriel smiled at Elrond.
"We have much to discuss, ion nin. Come."
Elrond followed Galadriel back to her talan, where a breakfast had been laid out for him. But he found he was not hungry. Galadriel watched him closely, fighting the urge to smile. She didn't want him to think she was laughing at him.
"Forgive me for saying so, Elrond, but you are acting as you did when you courted Celebrian. I did not bring you here for interrogation."
"I know," Elrond sighed.
"You are concerned about Arwen, and rightly so. She was uncomfortable with me last night and that has never happened before. You were right to bring her here, I think. But I cannot help her."
Elrond's eyes widened.
"What do you mean!" he questioned, his voice rising with panic.
"Peace, Elrond," Galadriel said softly as she poured hot tea into a small cup. "Drink some tea. It will calm your nerves, I believe. I said I could not help her, but I did not say that no one could."
The lord of Imladris took the cup that was offered to him and sipped the tea, glancing at Galadriel over the rim of the cup with a wary expression.
"I am appointing an escort for Arwen," Galadriel continued. "I believe that, not only will it help her, but they will be a great deal of help to each other."
Elrond raised his eyebrows at this information.
"An escort? Galadriel, my daughter is not a prisoner…"
"I am well aware, Elrond, that Arwen is not a prisoner. The purpose of this escort is not to guard her, but to keep her company. Many things have changed in Lothlorien since the last time Arwen was here. Her friends have grown, they have duties and many other things that must be attended to. Many of the girls are married. The young boys she knew as friends of Elladan and Elrohir are now guards of our borders."
A frown passed over Elrond's features. He had not thought of this problem, but he was grateful Galadriel had. Now he wished more than ever that Idrial was not in Mirkwood.
"Idrial will return soon enough," Galadriel's voice brought him out of his thoughts and Elrond sent her a look that plainly said he wished she wouldn't do that. She smiled at him sweetly, then her expression abruptly altered as she felt the stab of pain that her smile sent through his heart.
"I am sorry, Elrond," she said softly. He shook his head.
"Is it any fault of yours that your smile so closely resembles that of your daughter's?" he replied, attempting a smile of his own. "But we were discussing Arwen…." He prodded, changing the subject quickly, and none too gracefully.
Galadriel frowned at this and started to say something, but changed her mind.
"As I told you before, I have appointed an escort for Arwen. And I have the feeling all will work out in the end."
"Who is this escort? One of the elleths of Lorien?"
Galadriel bit back a laugh at the mental image that conjured in her mind. With the right dress and a few accessories………but no. There was still no smile on the face. Well, that would be put to rights soon enough.
"No, Elrond. I have appointed Haldir to escort your daughter after you are gone."
Elrond stared at Galadriel as though she had suddenly turned green. She merely stared back and waited for him to have his say. She had known he wouldn't take it well.
"Haldir?" he questioned, after he found his voice. "Your Marchwarden?"
"Is there another Haldir living in Lothlorien that I am not aware of?" she asked innocently.
"Galadriel, you cannot be serious. Arwen cannot traipse around Lorien with a male Elf, unchaperoned! It just would not look right!"
"Elrond, I cannot think of anyone she would be safer with. Believe me. Haldir is the very epitome of honor. I have already spoken to him and he is honored to take up this task."
Well, that wasn't entirely true. But that is what he had said to her before he left for his scouting mission and Haldir would never shirk his duty. Elrond shook his head as he rose from his chair.
"I do not mean to cast aspersions on Haldir's character, Galadriel. I have known him since he was an elfling. You are right. There is no one she would be safer with. But it just does not look proper. All of Lothlorien will be talking!"
"You honestly think that gossip will fly about the granddaughter of the Lord and Lady of Lothlorien and the Marchwarden? Oh, Elrond. Not only do you underestimate me, but you underestimate Haldir as well."
"What do you mean?"
"Never mind. The point is that it is already done. Haldir will be Arwen's escort and that is that."
Elrond recognized the tone. The conversation was finished. His daughter's fate was in the hands of the Marchwarden of Lothlorien.
""""""""""""""""""""""
A/N: So...I actually had this written months ago, too. I just wanted to wait for a couple of responses before I posted this. Kind of see how it was received, I guess. Anyway, I love reviews! And so do Daniel and Haldir!