I don't own LotR.
Chapter 3: At Archery
At three o'clock, the same day, Jac was waiting in her assigned room. After finishing lunch, Legolas had shown up briefly to say that archery practice was at 3:30. Sighing, Jac looked wistfully at the shelves full of books across from her. It was too bad that her grasp of the elven language was not yet good enough to read it fluently.
Finally, it was time.
Jac hurriedly grabbed the quiver of arrows Aragorn had given her and headed to the west courtyard, where her training would take place. Eagerly she ran down the stairs and almost trampled Pippin and Merry. They had been on their way to get Evelyn, who was also supposed to be here. Their distaste for their chore was clear on their scowling faces.
"Merry, Pippin! What are you doing here?"
"We're going to watch you and Evelyn the Brat at target practice. 'Cept Evelyn still hasn't shown up."
"Legolas is going to teach us, right?" At the hobbits nodded, Jacqueline smiled. "No need to worry. She'll be out here no time knowing the Elf Prince will be the teacher." After a moments thought she added, "She'll definitely be here because she knows that the teacher going to be an elf. And she thinks all elves are the cutest things on Earth."
Legolas heard the last part of it and winced. "Mistress Jac, come to the armory with us to pick the right bow for you. If that Evelyn woman doesn't show up, she'll spend her day with Lady Arwen."
Entering the armory was like entering a very well lit tomb. It was warm, but very plain and bare compared to the rest of Mirkwood's city. Built of stone and underground, it was difficult to keep the dry rot away from the wooden shafts and handles of the various weapons, but the elven kind managed along admirably. The strings were kept in a waterproof cabinet and doubly ensured against the damp by being carefully wrapped in oilcloth. The bows were placed on racks two feet about the ground and away from the walls. The arrows were in closed quivers hung on hooks embedded into the wall or laid out in neat stacks on tables.
There were other weapons besides the bows, but Legolas went past them and picked up a fancily carved bow made of oak in his hand, weighing it. He handed it to Jac, but at first sight, she knew something was wrong with it. It did not seem balanced somehow and she told him so. He raised an eyebrow and stepped back while the hobbits grinned. "Very well, Mistress Jacqueline. Pick your own."
Hesitantly, Jac ran a hand across the curve of several bows before hovering uncertainly above a plain and simple longbow. It was made of the heartwood of an ash tree and looked right in Jac's hand. "Is this one all right?"
Legolas took the bow and examined it, before his mouth stretched itself into a dry grin, "It'll do." He led the way back to the target and demonstrated how to shoot and the correct way to position the body before allowing Jac to try. He started her on a simple wooden circle about ten feet away.
Jac adjusted her position and shot. The arrow landed in the exact center. The hobbits whooped. Legolas only showed her the next level target, a bull's-eye fifteen feet away. Again, she got the center. The hobbits were now cheering madly. When Jac finished practice with another arrow in the exact center of an extremely small bull's-eye more than fifty yards away. Legolas finally spoke, "Are you sure this is your first time with the bow?"
Jac only had time to nod before Evelyn finally flew down the tower stairs, shouting something that sounded like, "Sweetums!" Legolas groaned and Jac almost saw him cower before he straightened his back with resolution and tossed Evelyn a beginner's bow and arrow and repeating the process with as he had done with Jac. But while Jac could string the bow, the line almost hit Evelyn as it sprung loose, just when she was about to shoot. The hobbits looked disappointed that the wire had missed.
When she finally strung the bow correctly, she could not hit the wooden disk. Legolas moved it a little closer.
She missed.
Finally, she was only five feet away and still she missed. The hobbits were rolling around the ground howling with laughter. Never in their entire lives had they seen anyone so bad at archery.
- -
Later that night, Jac snuggled underneath her blanket, for once, happy about life. Evelyn's look as she missed the target that was only one foot away still made her laugh until she cried. Only Legolas' presence had kept Evelyn from breaking the hapless bow. Jacqueline's last thought before drifting off to sleep was, Not bad for my first day in Middle-Earth. I don't want to go back . . .
- -
The next morning was bright with sunshine and filled with birdsong. Jacqueline yawned, wondering what the day would bring. Looking up at the position of the raising sun, she realized it was about nine o'clock. Getting out of the bed, she found the bathroom and combed her hair. Walking over to the closet when she was done, she took out some clothes. After putting them on, she looked in the elegant mirror attached on the wall next to the oak door.
Why, this not only feels good, it's comfortable, too! In her experience, the most comfortable clothes were the oldest, most beaten-up ones. I guess that only applies for humans, because the plain white shirt, green tunic, and brown trousers were clearly brand-new. Only her boots looked used. Jacqueline looked around, wondering what to do. Nobody had told her what to do today.
Just before finishing the thought, a knock sounded on the door. Gratified, because she did not like doing nothing, she hurried to open the door, "Hello?"
A familiar voice said, "Down here, Jac."
Obediently, she looked in the direction aforementioned. "Merry! What are you doing here? And where's your other half? Did you lose him somewhere?"
Merry looked a little put out at her reply and answered a crossly, "Pippin is not my 'other half' and he's still pigging out at the breakfast hall."
"They have a separate hall for breakfast!"
"Of course."
"Why?"
"The breakfast hall is smaller, since not all the occupants of the palace eat early, with skylights for more light to come in. The dinner hall is a lot bigger, for more people, and there are only a few decorative windows. It's mostly lit by glowstones. Now, can we please go somewhere before I die of boredom?"
Jac laughed, but said, "Sure, I'm a little restless, too. But I don't know the layout of the palace or the city that well."
"Hey guys! What's up?" Pippin ran around the corner, wiping the corner of his food-smeared mouth with a napkin.
"We were deciding whether to go to the city or somewhere in the palace." answered Jac.
Pippin flashed a smile at Merry, who returned it. They chorused, "We know the perfect place!"
Unlike them, however, Jacqueline was a little uneasy. Pippin and Merry reminded her of a pair of twins she'd seen pulling a prank on an innocent bystander. Well, she might not know what'd they do, but she'd be on her guard.
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