Disclaimer: The Lord of the Rings is property of Tolkien and there are many references throughout to Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series. I only own what you do not recognize. The character Chinky is not meant to cause offence and is named after a real horse whose name has been shortened from a Fiat Cinquecento (Chinky – Chento).

Chapter 22: A Group of Fools

"Aragorn you fool, get off of me!" Amy yelled trying not to laugh.

"What did you say? I'm sure there were some people in Gondor who didn't quite here you!" He said with a huge grin on his face, still refusing to move.

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Legolas was wandering outside the great hall talking with Gimli. Gimli was still trying to convince him that dwarf caves were the best place to live.

"No I'll think you'll find, my friend that the elven caves in Mirkwood are far better than the mines you call home!" He said trying to mock the dwarf.

"No, you have never seen the beauty of Erebor." Gimli said smiling.

"I have seen it! I spent years of my life looking at it from the outskirts of my home!" Legolas retorted.

Gimli laughed as they walked up the steps to the great hall.

Legolas stopped for a second. He could have sworn his elven hearing just picked up Amy's scream. Jumping up the remainder of the steps he pushed open the door to the hall. He quickly scanned his surroundings searching for her.

His eyes came to a halt behind the table on the right hand side. A smile broke his face, before he saw Amy he noticed Aragorn's sword hanging nine feet in the air. Walking round to the other side of the table he saw Amy.

"Aragorn, you're not having it back until you get off me!" Amy said now cracking up with laughter.

"No I think not! I'm not going to stop tickling you until you get my sword down!"

Legolas leant on the table and grinned at the elf and man before him.

Amy was lying on her back with her hands pinned above her head by Aragorn. He in turn was sitting one leg each side of her belly tickling her with his free hand.

Legolas laughed as he watched Amy squirm underneath the stronger man. She did not stand a chance. Her legs were kicking wildly out and she was struggling with all her might, but to no avail. Aragorn wasn't budging.

"So this is what the person I love and my best friend do in their spare time!" Legolas said trying to sound upset, but his voice betrayed him, the sight before him was just too funny.

Amy stopped squirming and Aragorn stopped tickling as soon as they heard the older elf's voice.

Looking up at Legolas Amy smiled sheepishly. "He said I fight like a girl!"

Aragorn tried to look innocent, yet it wasn't working; Legolas could read him like a book.

"Well you do!" Aragorn said.

"That's because I am a girl you fool!" Amy retorted. "Any way, I taught his sword how to fly."

Legolas sat himself on the table and looked up at the sword and smiled. Aragorn never took lightly to people touching his sword.

"So I tackled her, and then I found out she's ticklish!" He said with a shrug.
Amy noticed that Aragorn slightly loosened his grip on her hands then, using this to her advantage she rolled over on top of him - with a little help from a certain power - and pinned him.

Aragorn gasped as he felt himself getting flipped over. Opening his eyes - which he didn't realize he shut - he looked up at Amy. "I give!" He said reluctantly. "Though I want my sword back!"

Amy laughed and stood up whilst she lowered Aragorn's sword, before stepping over him to Legolas.

"Oh, so I'm only second best to Aragorn am I?" The prince said with mock horror.

Amy hushed him with a quick kiss. Smiling against her lips Legolas kissed back lightly before picking her up and placing her on his lap.

Aragorn grunted before picking up his sword, and walked off in search of Éowyn.

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Théoden sat on his throne, his fingers tapping on the wooden armrests. At the moment he was deep in thought. He wasn't entirely sure he had made the right decision about fleeing to Helm's Deep. Okay he knew the Deeping wall had never been breached, but he still had his doubts. As long as the Deeping wall wasn't breached the fortress couldn't be taken, no matter how hard Saruman tried. Shaking his head he turned his attention to a few of his servants who were preparing to leave. He had ordered that Edoras should be emptied. Though he hadn't told Amy yet, and he hoped with all his heart that she wouldn't find out until it's too late.

The servants filled out quickly and didn't come back in through the two main doors. He was about to stand up and follow them, 'what had made them stop?' he thought.

He was soon answered. The double doors were flung open and Amy stalked in. Théoden gulped and slouched further into his throne. Willing it to swallow him: she didn't look happy.

Well that was an understatement, she was furious. Not only had he ignored Legolas' request to send out riders, he had now completely ignored Aragorn when he suggested meeting the army head on, was he ever going to listen!

After finding out from one of the servants what was going on, she ran off to the great hall in a blind fury. When Gimli had tried to stop her, she had thrown him five feet in the air, leaving him in a very undignified heap. She made a mental note to apologize later.

She walked purposefully towards Théoden and noticed with a grim satisfaction that he appeared to be quivering.

"What can I do for you child of Onlee?" He asked nervously.

"One, call me Amy. Two, sit up straight and three, listen to me you fool!" She said in a voice that brooked no arguments.

Théoden gulped but none the less sat himself up straight and mentally scolded himself for being even the slightest bit afraid of the young elf before him.

"I hear that you are fleeing to Helm's Deep." She said with her hands on her hips.

"Yes, it has saved us in the past."

"I don't care if it was an orc's snout in the past; it will not save you, not now, not without Éomer's help." Amy said feeling her temper boil up inside her.

"He will be three hundred leagues from here by now!" The king said with a feeling that he had just won that one.

"Why on earth did you think Legolas suggested sending out riders?" Amy yelled.

Any thought that he had just won that point left him faster than an arrow leaving Legolas' bow. She was right, and he was blind. Yet they were still going to Helm's Deep whether she liked it on not.

"We are still going to Helm's Deep." Théoden said calmer than he felt. "Nothing can change my mind."

Amy sighed and spun Air around her.

Théoden took a short breath as he felt his arms being forced to his sides. He looked down and noticed with some horror that he was nearly four feet above his throne. He gathered himself before glaring at Amy hard.

"Put me down! I order you to put me down! You may be the child of the dragon, but I am still the king of Rohan! Put me down!"

"I will not put you down until I feel like it. If you go to Helm's Deep you go to your death!" She said as she started to rock him backwards and forwards.

Théoden noticed what she was doing and tried to move, every time she swung him he got a bit further upside down, until finally he was hanging head first above his throne.

Despite his currant situation his mind was set. "To my death be it!"

"FOOL!" She yelled before tilting him slightly and dropping him. Storming back out of the hall she did not even look to see how he landed.

If she had looked back she would have seen him lying in a very undignified position on his throne. His head was hanging off the front and his legs were resting on the back. Grunting he shifted himself and he fell into a heap at the base of his throne.

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Amy stood outside the great hall and looked across the plains. Two great banners were rippling above her. On her right was the great white stallion of Rohan and on her left was her brilliant gold dragon twisting and turning in the wind.

Collecting herself, she went in search of Legolas and Aragorn. She really should not have lost her temper with the king, but he was making his people flee into a trap. Though she knew she would be able to wipe out Saruman's army in a few minutes she was intending on letting him suffer.

She found Legolas and Aragorn sitting behind the stables. Aragorn, as usual, was sharpening his sword. Amy had the feeling if he sharpened it anymore it would slice its scabbard in two when he sheathed it!

She sat herself down between the two males. Aragorn looked at her before lightly placing his hand on her stomach and pulling her sword out from its scabbard. He then leant over her and did the same on the other side. Smiling, Amy shifted her weight towards him so he could pull it out easier.

Once he had both her swords he lay down his own and set to work sharpening them. Smiling, Amy leant towards Legolas to see what he was doing. Knowing Legolas she should have known. Unlike Aragorn, when Legolas had any free time he was constantly making new arrows.

Leaning to kiss his cheek, she picked up a few shafts and set to work fletching them.

"How did it go with the king?" Legolas asked placing a kiss on her hand.

"Yes, as far as we know we are still going to Helm's Deep. Any changes?" Aragorn said picking up her sword.

"Erm, no. I sort of lost my temper with him after he didn't see my way of thinking. We are still going to Helm's Deep, but the last I saw of him he was hanging four foot in the air upside down!" She said.

Aragorn smiled at her. "You what!"

"He wasn't seeing my way of thinking so I sort of tried to persuade him. Didn't work though!"

"Remind me never to get in an argument with you!" Legolas said picking up his newly made arrows and handing some to Aragorn before placing the rest in his quiver.

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"Should we wake her?" Legolas said looking over at the sleeping elf.

"No leave her be for a minute, we have a long journey ahead of us and she will need all the strength she can get." Aragorn said watching his friend sit down on the bed next to the sleeping elf.

Smiling, Legolas brushed his hand across her hair, pushing any wisps back behind her pointy ears. He leant down to kiss her before following Aragorn out the room.

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It would be a long day. They were leaving for Helm's Deep, and Edoras was teeming with horses, carriages and people carrying things. Wading through the crowd Aragorn and Legolas made their way to the royal stables to check that everything was ready. The journey would take three days and plenty wagons of food had already been sent out. All that was to be done was saddle the horses and somehow find it in their hearts to wake the sleeping elf in the hall.

Shaking himself out of his thoughts of more travelling, Aragorn opened the door to Hasufel's stable. The horse whickered lightly as he brushed the dust from his chestnut coat. He looked over the partition into Chinky's stall to find Legolas apparently in deep conversation with the mare. He was well aware that both Amy and Legolas could talk to the Mearas, yet he was jealous. He didn't like to admit it though. He knew full well that Chinky could understand him, but that was nothing to actually having a conversation with the creature.

Slowly he placed the saddle on the Stallion's back and tightened the girth. Once he was sure that the horse was well tied up he walked into Chinky's stall to help Legolas with grooming the mare. Who apparently couldn't stand being dirty. 'Typical female' he thought with a smug grin.

Just as he and Legolas finished cleaning Chinky so that she shined, Amy walked in through the stable door.

"So nice of you to wake me!" She said leaning on the door to her horse's stall.

"You looked so comfortable, and there was no real rush to wake you." Aragorn said leading the Mearas out of the door into the courtyard.

"Sorry," Legolas said pulling her into a hug, before leaping up onto Arod.

"Don't worry! Come Gimli, do you want a hand?" She asked looking at the dwarf struggling up behind the elf.

"No, it's all right. I am up!" He said finally swinging his stocky leg over the grey's back.

Making sure that the banner was firmly attached to Chinky she rode off followed by Legolas and Aragorn.

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Amy rode at the front of the line next to Théoden on Snowmane. Legolas, Gimli and Aragorn flanked them to each side.

Turning round Amy saw the hundreds of people filing out of Edoras. Dotted along the column were countless mounted soldiers, which she knew in her heart would probably all die.

Shaking her head she looked forward and threw the banner in the air making it ripple in the wind. Looking into the distance, she prayed that Gandalf would find Éomer in time.