A/N: My muse is still a tad shaky, have patience with me.
We rode as if Hell itself was on our heels all the way back to our camp. No one spoke; we just put all our energies into galloping for home. Kai hadn't even come to a full halt when she vaulted out of the saddle and sprinted into the caves. Brynne and I followed, while the more dignified royals had to settle with a very fast jog.
"We did it! Hazel, Aragorn, Legolas, Faramir!" Kai yelled as she hurtled inside the cave. It seemed deserted. I panicked for a moment, thinking we were too late and Destiny-Favian had broken out of its cell again, killing everyone. Then we heard joyful voices heading towards us.
"HE'S NOT DEAD!" I cheered, bursting into a victory jig. Sure enough, Hazel, the other royals, and Favian soon stepped out into the main hall. Hazel was obviously crying happily, and even Kai seemed misty-eyed. They all pounded Favian on the back and congratulated him on his (however foolish) bravery in saving Arwen. The queen in question hugged the poor boy, who looked terrified to have a royal fawning over him like a fussy aunt. Brynne vanished into the back and returned with a barrel of mead under one arm and a heavy jug of ale dangling from the other. I helped her pass this out (ale to the men, mead to the rest of us). I whimpered when I saw there was no rum.
"Why is the rum always gone?" I sighed as I stared moodily at my drink. No one laughed, so, heartily disappointed, I tipped my head back and downed a large gulp of mead.
"So," asked Favian as we settled down with our respective drinks, "How did you free me from the vampire's possession?" We all cringed and made excuses to not recount the tale. Brynne finally succumbed out of exhaustion and lack of proper excuses and explained the whole thing. Favian's eyes got wider and wider as her story went on. He blushed scarlet when she mentioned he had tried to both strangle and bite me.
"My deepest apologies," he said in a monotone. I smiled slightly at him from my corner.
"Ú-moe edhored, mellon nîn." I replied in Elvish ("There is nothing to forgive, my friend."). See, I told you I could speak three or four phrases of it! Anyway, Favian didn't look convinced or greatly comforted. What do I have to do, force my forgiveness down his throat? Brynne cleared her throat loudly at this point and continued without further interruptions. By the time she had finished it was almost starting to get dark, well past decent mealtimes. We hadn't the time to make a celebratory feast, so we settled for bread and more mead.
"I'm assuming we're still hunting Sues, right?" Favian inquired over a mouthful of garlic bread. I choked on my mead.
"You still want to hunt Sues?" I coughed, staring incredulously at the boy.
"Well…yes." I peered at him suspiciously.
"Are you certain that vampire didn't somehow addle your brains?" Legolas looked alarmed at the thought.
"Yes," Favian said firmly, "But isn't this what they'd do to all of Middle-earth?"
"I should hope not," I answered, appalled, "Sues possessing innocent teenage boys…just plain wrong…"
"No, no, I mean turn the whole world into something like their camp. All pink and lacey?" Those who had actually seen the camp exchanged horrified looks. I tried to picture the court of Minas Tirith covered in pink and purple draperies, with sequins littering the floor and huge posters of Viggo sloppily taped to every space not occupied by an equally large poster of Orlando. The thought along made my feel sick. I took a long swig of mead, but it tasted strangely sour.
"Again, my boy, you have a point," Gimli grunted. I swallowed the last of my mead and sighed.
"We have to find out how they're getting in. Otherwise they'll just keep coming." Everyone murmured his or her agreement. Brynne suddenly brightened.
"Say, remember the Sue Rana killed? HMS?" she asked, clearly excited by something. I snorted.
"Kind of hard to forget…" I muttered. Brynne ignored me.
"She mentioned a portal. Do you think, maybe, that's…?" Kai and I were nodding vigorously.
"Aye, aye, that is definitely a thought…" I said in a low voice. Arwen frowned.
"It's rather a narrow hope, don't you think?"
"Not if more Sues tell the same story," I put in, leaning back against my wall and rubbing my chin thoughtfully. Kai and Gimli perked up.
"This means catching more Sues, I take it?" the captain grinned, more a statement than a question. Gimli cast a covetous eye on his axe, which was leaning against the far wall.
"And umm…if they get out of hand, my services will be needed?" he asked hopefully. I followed his gaze and smirked as I saw his mighty axe.
"By all means, if we run into more vampires we'll need a sturdy warrior." Aragorn, Legolas, and Faramir glared at me.
"Hey!" Legolas snapped.
"Hay is for horses, so go take it up with them," I replied, not amused.
"What are we, food for Sues?" protested Aragorn hotly.
"You will be soon if you don't shut up," snarled Arwen in exasperation at her husband's ego. We all stared at her. I made a mental note never to upset her in any way. Hazel stood and smiled brightly.
"Well, if we're hunting tomorrow we should all get some sleep!" she suggested. Arwen yawned and nodded.
"Yes, the little one and I should get some rest," she muttered, patting her round stomach. Aragorn frowned at her, obviously unhappy that she was gallivanting around when she was with child, but he said nothing.
A/N: Well, sorry it was so short but this is an in-between chapter. I should have about...I'd say four more chapters (including the epilogue) before the end. After that I'll be doing some revising –nods respectfully to NuttyGummy-, and then…the sequel! I have it al planned out.