Disclaimer: Don't own. Never will.
Sorry guys! I didn't mean for the wait to be so long, but peoples in my house didn't give me time to type it up. ;-; Forgive me!
I'll let ya get on with this, though. We all know the wait's been long enough! -.-
Hunted
Chapter Five: Overwhelmed
Elendur and his men had searched and searched and searched. Nothing. Nothing was found in the forest. Nothing that they could see.
They had been searching Imladris' forests for nearly two weeks now. The first of which they still scoured. They had a lot of ground to cover yet as well. Too much.
He, and the others that accompanied him, had been given hope, had had it when they had first set out, however, the string it dangled on threatened to snap with each passing night.
They would keep looking. Oh yes, they would keep at it until they had either found the killer or carried out their order. Hopefully it would be the former.
The ones who awaited their return wished the same and were just as weary. Legolas and Aragorn feared their theory was wrong; that it wasn't Delnen who had been given the necklace—if it had been given away at all.
The only thing that helped any of them in this matter was that Elrond was now receiving an agreeable amount of sleep; nightly. They had convinced him it was useless to force himself further beyond his limits if he could do nothing but wait. The days would pass quicker at any rate.
They continued to look for clues (searching victims' chambers again, going over the notes Elrond had written about the murders, the possibilities, etc.) but they still only had Legolas and Aragorn's theory, which would have been reassuring if Elendur had sent word, a good one. They could all use it—one of the few things that could be said with certainty.
That morning the pressure mounted even greater with the calling of another death, another victim to add to the ever-growing list.
However, upon looking at the body, they noticed that the killer had slipped; instead of the usual slit and kill there were two wounds, the first one obviously hadn't done the job. They hoped this meant that the mad elf was getting nervous. Perhaps they were right after all.
Legolas stooped down next to the bloody corpse and stared at a green object close to it, forehead creased with a frown.
Aragorn stood beside his friend. "What is it?" he asked curiously; not knowing what his friend had found so interesting.
Despite Elrond's demands of not touching anything, Legolas reached out and grabbed the object that close enough to the body to show that it had been put there on purpose, especially since none of the crimson liquid that had been spilt touched it.
"A… A leaf," the prince muttered barely above a whisper.
All conversation stopped and Elrond, the twins and another warrior who was speaking to them, turned to Legolas with dread.
They saw the bright green leaf held delicately in Legolas' shaking hand and felt a cold grip them.
"It's just a coincidence, right? It could have been tracked in when he entered through the balcony," Elrohir said hopefully, quietly, as if he didn't believe his own words and, in truth, he didn't. Nothing had been tracked in with any of the other cases.
"Nay," Elrond said, his voice cracking with fear, "that tree does not grow outside these balconies and there are no prints on that leaf."
Aragorn fell, sitting down next to the blonde—the dead and alive one. His mind was numb with the fear for his friend's life. He could barely think, and what he could think of, was the leaf that was held in the shaking hand.
Elladan had also swayed on his feet; if it hadn't been for Elrohir, he probably would have collapsed. This hit them harder than any thought possible. Their friend's life was in a lot more danger than they had realized.
Legolas just continued to stare at the green leaf, his heart pounding mercilessly. Now they knew for sure: the killer was aware of his presence in Imladris; probably even knew they were all looking for him. He only watched Legolas, though.
Did this mean that he didn't reside in the forest? Perhaps it wasn't Delnen after all. They couldn't have been right with all their speculations, could they? They had hoped so, but it certainly didn't seem that way now.
Elrond focused on the small green leaf, they were everywhere so not much of a hint there. It was just set there to show them all that he knew the golden-haired Prince of Mirkwood was there. A warning. That's what it was and the killer had set it well. Why warn them, though? That made no sense, unless the mad elf was getting some sick type of pleasure seeing how fearful they were over Legolas' life.
The elf-lord looked at Legolas, staring into the sapphire orbs. The determination radiating from them scared him even more than the warning. What was Legolas planning?
"Legolas, please do not do anything rash," he said, feeling it necessary.
And the fiery determination simmered down to understanding.
The prince wished for nothing more than to march right outside, loudly call out to the killer and resolve everything right then and there. However, he had made a promise, a promise that he had to keep, no matter how much he wanted to take it back. If he had his choice, though, he would not be kneeling there, pocketing the leaf—for a reminder—as he tried to reassure the ones around him.
He felt the others' burning gazes watching him as he turned back to pretend like he was focusing on the body, trying to figure things out.
He sighed heavily, shifting his bright blue eyes towards them. "I will not do anything," he reiterated firmly. They obviously thought differently and he did not blame them. "It's fine. Let us get back to work." He had to get everyone back on track. He couldn't help the feeling of anxiousness that rose to the surface or the way his heart sped up like a running horse, but there was nothing he could do. He would have to wait it out… for the moment. He didn't know how much more waiting he could handle. He did know that Aragorn, Elladan and Elrohir were all going to cling to him a lot more now.
He frowned at the thought. As much as he loved them, it was getting to be a bit overwhelming.
The five checked every inch of the chambers, making sure it was impossible that they had missed a spot. Still, nothing had been found and they were left worse off than before.
The only knowledge they had gained was that the killer knew Legolas was there. While that was useful—in one sense—it caused the panic to rise in them and made it hard to think.
The archer had been right, much to his frustration. They were all over him now and didn't give him a second to himself. The only times he could get relief from them were baths; even then, if he tried to stretch them into longer than usual, they would check on him and make sure he was alright. He had had to bite his tongue far too many times to hold back retorts that would doubtlessly hurt them, for he knew they only cared deeply for him… as annoying as that was under these circumstances.
However, he had had enough and strove for a way to escape their ever-watchful gazes and relentless questioning. He had to do something before he exploded and lost his temper completely.
After the evening meal, he made his way to his chambers, the brothers right beside him, as per usual.
They sat around, talking for a while until Legolas stood from his chair. It had been long enough; if not, too bad. He had waited too long.
The others looked at him curiously; it was plainly written on their faces: what are you doing? they asked.
"I'm going to take a bath and relax," the prince replied, implying that he would stay in their longer than usual.
They nodded and got the hint. They understood, or thought they did. The young elf was under a lot of stress, especially since the green leaf had been so cunningly placed.
Three pairs of eyes watched him, even as he made the short desistance from his chair to the bathing-chambers. He sincerely hoped that was out of sympathy rather than fear.
Legolas sighed yet again—he seemed to be doing that a lot recently—but said nothing. Shutting the door behind him, he leaned heavily against it as he closed his eyes in relief.
He opened them seconds later—couldn't waste time.
The bath was already drawn, the maid having anticipated his need.
However, the only need it had satisfied was the one that made it possible to continue his ruse and he silently thanked the maid.
One of the main reasons he had chosen these chambers was that the bathing-chambers adjoined to it had a window… with curtains, of course. Sometimes (especially when he first arrived), before or after his bath, he would sit near it and watch the nature around him; he'd close his eyes often, too, just to hear it. This time, however, hearing or seeing it was not in his plans, he wanted to do both, and more.
He prayed he would not be caught.
Looking back at the door, Legolas was able to hear the light chatter coming from Aragorn and the twins.
Good.
He nodded and turned back to the window. Unhooking the latch and opening it, he breathed in the fresh air, briefly closing his eyes again.
The wood-elf quickly reopened them. He would have plenty of time for that later.
He stuck his head out of the window and, looking left and right, he found no one around.
Legolas gracefully jumped out and closed the window behind him, obviously unable to re-latch it.
He almost started laughing, he was so relieved. However, he pulled himself together before that could happen. A big grin was plastered on his face as he walked away. Running would be too suspicious if someone was to round the corner, but he could not slow his quick pace as excited as he was. It wasn't very likely for someone to see him at this time of night anyway.
He felt guilty for deceiving Aragorn and the twins for what he was doing. However, he was suffocating under their constant presence and endless words of concern. Really, they should have known better by now. He had to minimize his little adventure to forty-five minutes—at the most. Surely, they would check on him despite his need of relaxation if it passed that mark.
He was lucky the night was so refreshing, the moon nearly full casting its pale light on the trees and bushes, creating reflections in fountains, the stars scattered across the dark blanket on the cloudless night. Perfect night for his trick.
The archer found a clearing with different types of trees surrounding the area, the breeze occasionally daring to disrupt the calmness.
He breathed deeply and let himself fall onto the thick, rich grass. He stared up at the night sky, enjoying the solitude as the stars twinkled at him.
Legolas completely relaxed, his hands under his head, legs stretched out as he lay there in the silent night. He closed his eyes and felt himself drift. He was too comfortable to remember he was supposed to go back to his chambers in less than twenty minutes; even if he did recall, he wasn't so sure he'd be able to force himself up.
Soon, Legolas was asleep, a tranquil look covering his face for the first time since he had arrived; all thoughts about the murderer fled his mind to be replaced by a feeling of utmost content.
There ya go. n.n Hope you enjoyed it and haven't lost interest! I did figure out that my bro doesn't pester or question if he sees me typing so I might be able to type more often… depends on where he is. XD We shall see. I can guarantee that an update won't be by this weekend, though. Goin' to Sakura-con (anime convention)! So excited. n.n;;
Don't forget. You can go here: http / nightshadow131 .livejournal .com for info and whatnot. n.n
I'll try to update a lot faster than this one, though. I promise. n.n Sorry again.
Ja ne