Stalking the Fellowship
Chapter Thirty Seven: Francesca gets a new playmate
Fran was bored, terrible bored. Mo was talking to Elladan while Maddy was conversing with Legolas, animatedly laughing.
I need to get myself a Middle Earthian friend. She grimaced an idea forming in her head.
"Gimli?" she asked walking over to him, "can you teach me how to make a fire, I've heard dwarves are good at them."
"No lassie, I have not the time, and you needn't know."
"But I want to!" Fran burst.
"I'll teach you," offered Aragorn, looking up from a map.
"No, you're busy Aragorn. I will do it."
Fran turned to see a ranger that she vaguely recognised. His hair and beard were longer and more straggly then Aragorn's, and even more greasy. "Er, sure?" He smiled, though it looked more like a grimace.
They set to work building a fire, though he quickly broke the silence by saying, "My name is Haramph."
"Francesca." Fran replied trying not to let a look of distaste spread across her face.
"I know, I've watched you from afar."
"Really?" she choked out.
"Aye. For your raven hair is the colour of a raven, your skin the colour of…mud. Your-"
"Er, look, sorry. I've just remembered I have to go and do…stuff." Fran got up and hurried away.
Ooooo0ooooO
"He said my skin was the colour of mud!" Mo, Maddy, Legolas and Elladan bit back laughter.
"A good poet and author writes about what they know." Maddy started, "He knows nature. At least he didn't compare you to tree bark or horse shit!" Legolas immediately covered her mouth with his hand while Maddy sighed, exasperated.
"What's he doing?" Mo asked.
"I'm not allowed to swear, it's unladylike apparently."
"Back to my problem!" Fran exclaimed.
"Just leave him alone, eventually he will go away." Legolas suggested.
"Because that so worked with Elladan." Mo replied dryly.
"But we're friends now!" the elf in question offered.
"I don't want to be friends with him." Fran's face was full of revulsion.
"Yeah, we all have to put up with people we don't like," noted Legolas looking at Maddy affectionately.
Maddy whacked him on the arm, "I resent that comment!"
"Of course you do," he replied, poking her.
"Don't encourage her." Mo pointed out, "because if you're ticklish, like me, she'll never leave you alone."
"You're ticklish?" Elladan voiced.
"Don't you dare!" Mo started to run and Elladan quickly followed.
"Are you ticklish Legolas?"
"No." He stepped slowly away.
"Fine!" groaned Fran; "leave me to deal with it on my own."
Five minutes later Fran still stood, glaring at Maddy and Mo who were being chased, or chasing another.
"This plan is not working," she murmured to herself. She turned to find herself face-to-face with Haramph she visibly recoiled.
"Lady Francesca," he greeted.
"Hello Harry, can I call you that?" she asked.
"Of course." He bowed.
He has some manners I suppose.
"Would you like to continue making fire?"
"No, not at the moment, I'm not really in the mood."
"Ahh, mayhap later?" he grinned devilishly, if you could call it that. His yellow decaying teeth were rather rank, though they could (thankfully) not be seen fully due to his beard.
"Yeah." Francesca slowly edged away, bumping into Aragorn. "Hi!" she greeted, latching onto his arm and leading him away from Harry.
"How fair you?" he asked.
"We've been marching for days with a spiritual host behind us, what do you think?"
"That you are having a great time." Aragorn smiled softly while Fran snorted, "Now why, truly, did you decide you needed to know how to light a fire? You've been oblivious to it until now."
"I was bored." She replied.
"Truthfully please."
"I was being truthful. I was bored."
"Because?"
"The nature has been the same for the last day, there hasn't been any change."
"And what of conversation?"
"I am conversing with you, am I not? Oh for pity sake, I'm starting to sound like you."
"But are you speaking with Mo and Madeleine?"
"Yep, we're on good terms. We just made a pledge to live through the battle."
"Which battle?"
"The inevitable one," she replied smoothly.
"If you are talking, then why are you bored?"
"They're talking to Legolas and Elladan."
"Yes." Aragorn smiled wryly, "Elrohir feels left out."
"Oh, we can be outcasts together." Fran grinned happily, turning her head in search of him.
"'Tis a shame neither of you are ticklish." Aragorn commented offhand, grey eyes gleaming.
"I am ticklish." Fran immediately realised her mistake.
"Elrohir!" Aragorn called, his voice carrying over the squeals of Mo and the restful murmur of the rest of the camp, "she is ticklish as well."
"That is so evil." Fran glared half-heartedly.
"He is ticklish as well, but just his ears."
"And I can't even reach those. And I swear elven ears are sensitive for another reason," Fran replied dubiously, quickly taking in Aragorn's smirk. But before she could hear his reply she ran away from a fast approaching Elrohir.
A/n I'm currently very busy, very frustrated and very peeved with the way my school is treating me at the moment. College applications have to be sent off in about three weeks and I'm away on a field trip for a week on Monday. This means I won't be updating next week and I can't reply to reviews today. Sorry. We do appreciate them all though. I will reply to reviews in the next chapter though, I promise!
PiXiE