Disclaimer: I own the fish, the ranger and a drool machine.
A/N: 'This is thoughts'
"" This is mind to mind Far Speak ""
To My Lovely Readers: Thank You!
To My Wonderful Reviewers:
Morwen12: Glad you enjoyed it. A lot of personal feels are explored slightly and Haldir meets his match in stubbornness. lol
Celtic Cross: Made up the poem in 10 minutes. Just popped into my head to suddenly put a prophecy and bam there is the poem. I am so glad you liked it! I too love his over protective behavior. It kind of gets out of hand in this chapter, but he also throws Fire for a loop when he reacts like a mate not an adversary at first. Lol
Captain Jade Sparrow: She was sent for both reasons and yea I put in really subtle clues to where she was from and what she was. Don't feel bad because so far you only one to figure out who is holding Haldir of which you will hear more about. I laughed myself sick writing about Haldir's predicament. Talk about getting the wind taken out of your sails. lol
Crecy: Hehe yea the poem gives some clues to the future. Watch the wording, think of the visions and watch for reoccurring words / themes. Leggy gets in hot water with Fire but is sweet to her too
Ephona: Yea Fire ruffles Leggy a bit and he does it to himself as well. Lol Haldir is in a bit of a pickle too ENJOY!
ShopGirl 1: Actually, as a teaser hint of things to come, the part of the prophecy that states "life once lost" refers to Haldir NOT Leggy, tough her choice directly effects Leggy. When the chance to save Haldir comes, it might mean sacrificing Leggy. Who will she pick to save and why? OH NO! More to be answered lol Also look to the poem for reoccurring theme or words to help with unraveling the mystery. Of course that's what a guy is SUPPOSED to do and I am glad Leggy is going all out to win Fire too. In this chapter it is kind of a two step forward one step back wooing technique. His fear for her safety kind of makes him a bit overbaring. lol I still hold out hope for him getting her yet lol
Scoobygang-Alumni: Well the prophecy poem was written by me in a surprising 10 minute burst of clarity. I had not even thought to include such a thing, but this story has a mind of its own and sends weird thoughts and twists my way. Leggy / Fire start to heat up again and Haldir sleeps with another. ROFL! You get a bit of information on the similarities / differences between Cat and Elf kind from Galadriel. Her talk with Fire is coming. Promise!
The Problem with Drool
After over an hour of contemplation, Haldir had come to the realization that the problem with drool, verses the problem with blood, was a logistical one. Blood, however gooey, tended to stop immediately after the victim had been drained completely. Drool on the other hand, continued forever or until the offending party chose to wake up, remove themselves to a more dignified position and close their mouth. Unfortunately for the poor trapped elf, the offending party was quite happy to continue drooling in an undignified manner all over his shirt. Any attempt to wake or move said offender resulted in a nasty look and a snort of contempt. So Haldir, March warden of Lothlorien and favorite of the renowned Galadriel, Lady of the Golden Woods, lay flat on his back helplessly being drooled on while staring at a really boring cave ceiling. It was going to be a Long Night!
Fire stood looking out the window of the talan. Her mind whirled in a thousand different directions at once, only to settle on Gandalf or Legolas. 'The blasted old goat was her ADA! Well when she saw him again, there was going to be Hell to pay! They were going to have a really, really long talk, with lots of flying objects, if she had anything to do with it. He could have told her for Heaven's sake. Great does that mean I get wizard powers to try and control. Hellfire! I truly hope not, what I have already is bothersome enough. Well I guess I will just have to see as time goes on.' Frowning hard at an unsuspecting tree, Fire let her temper cool marginally. She had come to understand the wizard had his reasons, but she would not let him off that lightly.
When her mind began to drift again, it landed, like a over weight butterfly, on the subject of the strange elf that had taken Legolas' place. 'Well he looks like the elf. He sounds like the elf. Hell, he even smells like the elf. Does the elf boy have a twin? That would be a reasonable explanation for his weird and unsettling behavior. Maybe a BeNice spell or something was used on him, because that could not have been the same elf I have been traveling with all this time. He did not glare at me, not even once, or get angry or get haughty or condescending. Damn this is creepy! I kind of like him better when he gets ruffled. Ok now that is a CREEPY thought! Looks like I am going to have company. Ok, NOW the elf is angry and glaring! What did I do now?' Perplexed, Fire looked into the blazing blue eyes boring a hole through her hide and tried to figure out just what she had done to make the elf mad.
Legolas stood in the doorway seething. The ranger was not only out of bed but next to the open window where a light breeze was passing through. 'Does she not understand how very worried we all were? How scared we were of losing her to the darkness of her dreams? Does she even care that our hearts ached with the fear of such a loss? NO! She does not, or she would not stand there like she has only been asleep for a few hours; not unconscious for four unbearably hellish days. She will rest quietly and stay in bed or else I will tie her to it for her own good.!' That Legolas was over reacting, was totally missed by the elf in question.
The Fellowship watched in bemused silence as the elf stalked over to the now awake ranger. A very quiet, very stubborn ranger watched his approach, with flaming green eyes, that narrowed as Legolas stopped in front of her. She had never seen that look in his eyes before and it did not bode well for her. "What do you think you are doing, little one? I distinctly remember telling you to rest while I was gone. You have been unconscious for FOUR days and awake for mere minutes! Get in that bed NOW!", the leashed violence in his voice raised the hackles on her neck.
"I do not think so Elf boy! I am not some weak willed ninny you can order about. Take your demand, your insufferable presence and go to MODOR! I will not listen to a …." A startled squawk cut off Fire's train of thought. She was very suddenly and effortlessly hoisted over an enraged elf's shoulder, before being unceremoniously dumped back on the bed.
Legolas dragged the covers out from under the disoriented ranger, then threw them over her resisting body. The fuming ranger decided enough was enough and tried to launch herself out of the bed. To her great surprise, the elf was much faster and stronger then she had anticipated. Pinning her down with his upper body, the elf ripped strips off the pillow case and bound her hands to the bed posts. "NOW YOU WILL REST!" he growled menacingly.
Aragorn had started to interfere, but Boromir grabbed his arm and shook his head silently. Gimli was sitting on the floor tears of laughter streaming down his face. The two older Hobbits looked on worriedly, while the younger ones stood mouth agape; for once having nothing to say. They watched the two combatants. Interfering, would probably have spelled the doom of anyone stupid enough to come between them. Aragorn saw the strange glowing light beginning to surround them again. Unlike the last time, when it had been a shimmering pure white light, this time it was bright yellow tinged with red. It reminded Aragorn of the flames of a campfire when new, slightly wet, green wood finally burned. He decided to ask the Lady about the change in color when he got the chance.
The drool had not stopped. It still oozed out and down onto his shirt. How many hours he had lain there, he could not say exactly. Thankfully the rabbit tossed under his chin, though still clenched between the drooling offender's teeth, had stopped bleeding long ago. With the sticky, foul smell of blood attached to his skin like a leech and the wet, gooey feel of drool on his chest trickling like a never ending artesian well, the March warden of Lothlorien plotted his revenge.
At first he had been horrified, then he had been terrified, though he was not about to admit his fear to anyone; especially his brothers. It had taken a good half hour more to get completely infuriated and beyond caring for his immediate personal welfare. Another hour, before he gave up pushing at the offending drooler one armed, as the other arm was under the powerful limb curled across his chest and up to his shoulder. After two more hours, he had become resigned to the fact that the Valar and ERU were punishing him for something. What he truly did not know, because nothing he had done so far in his long, long life would need this much punishment. If it was not punishment, the Valar had a sick sense of humor! Yelling in the offender's sensitive ears, at hour seven, proved a bad move on Haldir's part. The offender had leaned up slightly, dropped the rabbit onto his neck and LICKED him. As if to add insult to injury, after being licked by the drooling menace, the offender decided lay back down, get comfortable again and proceeded to SNORE! By hour eleven, he really needed to relieve himself, was completely ravenous, had a back ache and was seeing the offender's head as a trophy for his wall and its hide for a rug. He most succinctly hated Felines!
Galadriel entered the talan just in time to see a livid Fire being bound helplessly to her bed by an enraged Legolas. She smothered a delighted smile at the antics of the elf and ranger. They were a prefect match in her eyes. Fire's innate ability to rile the elf's anger and yet bring out his protective and caring side, at the same time, was unique and fun to watch. Legolas on the other had brought out the gentler side of the ranger without crushing the ranger's natural willfulness and spirit. The glow around them had changed colors moving from the pure white of a beginning bond to a deeper more passionate bond, which was shown, most clearly, in the bright yellow tinged with red. If all went well and the two did not do bodily harm to one another, the colors would again change as the bond deepened.
After much research into the world of the Kindred, Galadriel had been pleasantly surprised at her findings. The Kindred, the true name of the Cat People, were much like the Elves in their mating practices and way of life. While the Forgotten Ones had started, as a branch of the hated Cat People, they viewed the world around them with an almost Elven quality. As one of the Firstborn, they held the same immortality and affinity to Arda as the Elves did, but their bond with the creatures of nature was far more advanced, then even that of the Elves. The Kindred, like the Elves, would bond only once in their long lives. Their soul would become one with their mate, but unlike Elves, they could not die from grief and would be forced to walk throughout eternity pining for their dead mate.
After mating, the Kindred could communicate, mind to mind, in a form of Far Speak that only their mate could hear. The Elves most intimate act of love, was the joining of song. Each elf had a separate song made by ERU, but at the time of bonding the mated elves would blend their songs together, as they did their bodies, creating a new song that the mated pair could use to sense each other and communicate through feelings, instead of actual mind words as the Kindred did. The binding of Elf and Kindred souls was a very, very delicate and rare occurrence, even more so then the binding of Elf and Man. That she was able to see this happening before her very eyes, was truly a gift of the Valar. Galadriel prayed to ERU to watch over both the elf and ranger. Both of them, would need to survive the encroaching darkness, or the race of the Forgotten Ones would truly perish for all time.