Good day to you all! I didn't get flamed for the previous chapter so that makes me happy! YAY! Okay…I don't think I have anything to say…so, uh…Oh! 'Call of the Red Bird' is up! I'm so happy now! And I also finished another spiral and got a HUGE journal with about five hundred pages in it. If I can't finish the LimM in that, then I need help! Okay, story.
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Chapter 23- From My Eyes
Elrohir slipped his maroon colored tunic over his head and buttoned it half way up. He looked over to his foster brother, Estel, and yawned.
"Why are we awake now?" He asked.
"Lady Turwaithiel has been found and we need to do anything we can to help her." The human responded but the elf only yawned again.
"She chose a bad time to come back," Elrohir said, "Why do the others get to sleep?" Elladan dropped his pack on the floor and glanced at his twin.
"Elrohir, I think you are spending too much time around Estel. You are beginning to sleep like a human!" He laughed and Elrohir scowled.
"I am not." He mumbled.
The soft slapping of wet feet came from the tunnel and the three brothers turned their attention from their discussion to the sound. Norui appeared into the main cave with Turwaithiel in his arms. The three smiled when they saw her but immediately frowned again when they saw Legolas coming up behind. Estel leapt up from his spot, glaring at the young prince.
"Legolas, what are you-" He was cut off when the prince put his hand in the air, silencing him.
"I will explain later." He stated simply and then stooped down beside his kneeling brother.
"Her wounds are not too bad." Norui said, "Just some athelas will do the trick." Elladan took some athelas from his pack and gave it to the prince. Norui chewed it up for a moment then rolled up her torn dress to place the plant in the wound on her thigh. This brought a small gasp from the lady and they all looked to her face hopefully.
Slowly, her eyes fluttered open and she stared wide-eyed at the ellons around her. She quickly pushed her dress back down and sat herself up. She winced and fell back but Elrohir caught her in his arms. She immediately pushed him away and backed away from them all.
"Milady, how do you feel?" Norui asked quietly, "Are you hurt anywhere else?" She stared into his emerald eyes and after a while, she shook her head in the negative. The Crown Prince smiled, "That is good. Are you hungry?" She nodded once, "Alright, we will cook something up for you."
"I will wake the others." Estel said, and then trotted off to do just that.
Soon, the entire group was awake and was giving Turwaithiel all of their attention. A few had lent her their cloaks and blankets and all of her wounds had been taken care of. They had made a steaming stew with bits of rabbit that Espenshade had caught and other herbs that they could find. The lady immediately started gulping it down greedily but still tried to use the manners she possessed. The others took the remainder of the food and sat around her.
"Milady, what happened to you? Where did you go?" Melyanna asked her as she carefully ate around the bits of meat. Turwaithiel swallowed a bit of the broth and wiped her mouth with her sleeve before answering.
"After the first battle with the wargs and we found Prince Legolas and Lady Jaimea, I broke away from the group to heal my wounds. I couldn't do much with what I had so I searched for some healing herbs in the wild. Perhaps I accidentally drove the wargs to attack you again." She explained with a raspy voice. The others nodded and then let it go.
Silence reigned and the other noise that could be heard was the rushing of the water outside and the scraping of spoon against bowl. No one spoke to anyone or made a move. Their main goal was to stay warm and dry.
"But why were you wounded so badly when we found you? Surely that wound was not enough to hurt you as it did." Legolas said, staring hard at the woman. She glared up at him.
"After you all drove the wargs away, I was caught in them and was attacked again." She explained. Her lips then turned up into a smirk, "But I think you are the one who should be explaining, prince. Did you or did you not suffer grave wounds from your encounters with the beasts?"
Murmurs then circled through the group as this came to their realization.
"Yes, Legolas, how are you healed?"
"You could not have recovered that quickly!"
"What happened exactly?"
Legolas did not pay attention to any of these questions but kept his hard glare on the smirking face of Turwaithiel. To the elf, her eyes seemed to twinkle with trickery and deceit. The voices around him did not exist and he studied her intently. She just continued to smirk.
"Legolas!" Someone shouted and the prince snapped out of his stare, "Are you going to answer or not?" The young prince just sighed quietly and stood.
"I will be back by morning." He stated monotonously, then left the group and headed for the mouth of the cave. He heard the beats of Espenshade's wings above his head and then the shuffling of someone standing but he continued out into the bitter rain and howling wind.
Jaimea watched the fleeting back of the prince disappear behind the waterfall. The Peregrine falcon lagged behind a bit and the elleth noticed that the bird was watching her intently. Her golden eyes shined in the dark cave and they beckoned her to follow. She set her empty bowl on the ground and stood up.
"Milady?" Estel questioned but she didn't respond. She watched Espenshade vanish behind the wall of water.
"I will be right back." She said quietly and then made her way outside.
IOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOI
Stinging rain beat onto her pale face as soon as she stepped outside and the wind made her blonde hair blow wildly about her. She squinted her eyes, searching for the prince but she saw no one. She sighed and turned around to head back into the cave but the screeching of a falcon managed to pierce through the winds. Looking up into the sky, Jaimea saw a faint silhouette of the bird circling above the trees. Smiling, she slid down the rest of the slope and landed with a squishy thud at the bottom. Mud slashed onto her old navy blue leggings and her boots and she growled. She tried to wipe them clean but eventually gave up and trudged in the direction of the circling bird.
Even under the canopy of the trees, the rain was still able to beat down on her. She wiped away some stray hair that clung to her face and then gazed up into the trees. A clap of thunder boomed in the sky suddenly and she jumped, covering her ears. Once the rumbling had stopped, she moved her hands hesitantly and scanned the trees again.
A bolt of lightning struck through the night sky, lighting up everything in a flash. In that brief moment, Jaimea spotted the golden haired elf she was looking for perched high in a tree. She frowned when the flash went out and another boom shook the earth. The elleth shivered.
'I hate storms!' She thought nervously. She continued over to the base of the tree Legolas was in and growled as she began her climb, 'Foolish prince! He will be killed if he stays up there!' Another flash of lightning came and she looked up. The ellon still sat motionless in the tree, staring out into nothing.
Jaimea finally reached the prince's perch and she peeked over at him. He still moved none. Carefully, she swung her leg over the branch so that she straddled it in front of Legolas. Still no movement from him.
"Legolas?" She called timidly and a small smile crept into his face but he didn't say anything and kept his gaze. The elleth furrowed her brow and slid closer to him. A slight glaze hung over his half-opened eyes. Jaimea smirked, 'Sleeping, eh?' She thought. She leaned to his ear and whispered, "Legolas…" No response and she grinned, "Are you awake?"
This time, the prince stirred a little and mumbled some incoherent words but did not wake. With a playful laugh, Jaimea pushed him to the side just enough to knock him off balance.
XXX-LEGOLAS POV-XXX
I was having a nice dream about Mirkwood. It was pitch black out with only the flickering lights of candles and fireflies to light the gardens. The moon and stars were smiling down at us with their bright rays as we danced and sung amongst each other. It was our annual festival where we say good-bye to winter and greet the spring; a joyous time for everyone.
I was dancing with all of the other elves to a fast paced song. My family was sitting in their high seats in front of everyone else. I could feel my mother's smile on me and I grinned. Turning to face her, I motioned for her to come dance.
She hesitated but then stood from her throne and strode gracefully down towards me, still smiling. My grin grew and I rushed over to greet her. I grabbed her hands in mine and then started dancing with the music again. She laughed as I swung her and twirled around in time with the song. I was about to say something to her but stopped when I felt a strange sensation in my body. It felt as if it was raining but there was no water. I looked at everyone else but they seemed not to notice. My mother was still laughing in front of me but her melodious voice seemed duller and slower.
Then everything started spinning like mad. I suddenly felt like I was falling. All of the faces around me disappeared and the wet feeling was more pronounced. All I saw was black…and the ground rushing towards me.
I made to scream but something soft and cool grabbed my hand securely. I gulped as I hung, staring down at the ground. I shook my head to drive away the sleep in my eyes and then looked up. Jaimea held my hand and was grinning down at me. I smiled.
XXX-NORMAL POV-XXX
Jaimea beamed when Legolas looked back up at her. Rain still came heavily down upon them and it made it hard to keep a grip on him but she held his hand firmly. Another flash of lightning illuminated the sky and the elleth saw that he was beaming at her also. She chuckled.
"Hello, Legolas. What are you up to?" She asked teasingly and Legolas shrugged.
"Just hanging around." He replied with a smirk tugging at his lips. Jaimea smiled and began to pull him up. Once he was able to reach, he grabbed hold of the branch and swung himself up to straddle in front of her. They sat smiling at each other for a few moments, neither making a move nor speaking a word.
Yet another crash of thunder cracked causing Jaimea to jump in surprise. She nearly fell off the branch but Legolas caught her with a laugh and pulled her close.
"Jumpy, are we?" He teased with a grin. Jaimea looked up to him with a slight tinge of pink on her cheeks.
"I suppose. I have never really liked storms." She replied quietly. Legolas smiled and gently brushed away a rolling drop of rain from her cheek with his thumb. The elleth smiled back bu oon faltered. The prince frowned.
"What is it, Jaimea?" He asked.
"I must ask you a question." She began, "Though I do feel awkward doing so."
"You can ask me anything." He said as he cupped her cheek in his palm.
"Back in the caves before Turwaithiel came back, something happened that confused me. I have forgotten about it until now." She said. His eyes bore into her's, urging her to continue, "You kissed me, Legolas, and I do not know why."
Legolas's face fell at her comment and he put his hands in his lap, averting her gaze. Jaimea continued to watch him fixedly, waiting for his answer.
His head suddenly sprung up and a smile graced his lips. He took her hands in his and brought them to his lips.
"It was a thank you." He said and the elleth quirked her head.
"A thank you for what?"
"For making that promise to me." He answered as he let her hand drops. Jaimea felt something wash over her body, but she couldn't tell what.
'Relief.' She thought and then spoke aloud, "Oh."
She gazed down to the forest floor. A pair of rabbits were scampering around under some bushes and birds were pecking at the ground, trying to find a meal. When she looked back up at Legolas, he was still smiling.
"Now I have a question for you." He said.
"Yes?"
"Why did you kiss me back?" Jaimea felt heat fly up and down her body and she hoped Legolas couldn't see her flushed skin. She looked away, biting her lip. The ellon watched her with expectant eyes as she contemplated her thoughts, "Jaimea?"
"I do not know." She whispered finally, "I was caught up in the moment." And said nothing else. The prince sighed quietly with a frown and looked up into the tree. Espenshade was perched on a branch over them and she gazed down at Legolas with a twinkle in her eye. Her rolled his eyes in a very un-elflike manner and turned back to the elleth.
"Jaimea…" He whispered, and then slowly lifted her head with his forefinger, "It is alright. Don't be embarrassed. I understand." Jaimea smiled slightly and nodded. Legolas placed a hand on her shoulder and kissed her forehead. The elleth chuckled and the prince grinned, pulling her against his chest, "I am going to stay out here tonight," He said, "You might want to go back to the caves if you do not like storms." Jaimea shook her head.
"Nay, I will be alright. I want to keep you company." She said and he shrugged.
"Alright," He put his cloak around her and himself, "But be prepared to get wet." He added with a chuckle. She smiled and nodded.
They then let the sound of the falling rain fill their ears and they sighed in content. Espenshade swooped down from her perch and landed on her master's shoulder. Much to the elve's annoyance, she then shook her feathers to dry off, and then crept in between the two. Jaimea laughed when she felt the falcon begin to tug and chew gently on her hair. Legolas smiled and brought his arms around her tighter.
"Do you like her, Jaimea?" He asked quietly and she nodded, "That is good." She sighed and rested her head against his chest as the falcon moved onto her lap.
"Legolas?"
"Hmm?"
"Why did you leave so suddenly? Is something bothering you?" She heard him sigh and he leaned against the trunk of the tree. When he did not respond, she asked him again.
"It is Turwaithiel." He said suddenly, "I do not trust her. She brings ill fortune to our journey." He explained and Jaimea furrowed her brow.
"Why do you not trust her? She has done no wrong." She retorted. Legolas sighed again and stroked Espenshade's chest without noticing.
"Am I the only one who sees it?" He whispered to himself.
"Legolas, if you know something you must tell someone. The success of this journey is at stake." The elleth said and the prince nodded.
"I know," He said and paused, "After she explained where she was, the pieces came together in my mind."
"What do you mean?"
"She said that she thinks she might have provoked the wargs to attack us a second time and that she got caught by them after they were driven out of the cave, yes?"
"It is very well possible she could have been attacked by them, Legolas." She said.
"Yes but that is not the point."
"Then go on." She replied and he nodded.
"She said she knew of the last two warg encounters," He began, "But how could she know of these things when she was not present at either of them?"
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There you go! A new chapter finally! Short but it is up. I hope you liked it. And please check out 'Call of the Red Bird'! Okay, reviewers!
Jousting Elf with a Sabre- Ooh that would be fun to co-write! It sounds like you have a lot of stories on your hands. lol. I do, too. Ug, stressful sometimes. Thank you for reading and reviewing!
Lasien- Hmm, well, you could just call it suspicion but this chapter should clear some things up, hopefully. And I can not tell you if she is evil or whatever. That would spoil it, wouldn't it? Thanks for reading and reviewing!
Legolas's Girl 9- Oh, fine. You can have him. I get the real one! YAY::hugs Legolas: Elfy! Thanks for reading and reviewing!
Swasti- Welcome aboard! It is good to have you. Thanks for reading and reviewing this story and 'Call of the Red Bird'!
reyenoi- Okay, you didn't review this chapter but I want to thank you for the other reviews anyway! Thank you for reading and reviewing!
Okay, all done. Off to work on my school project that is due Thursday and I have done nothing on…ehehe…Namarie!
Have any of you seen Kingdom of Heaven yet! It is brilliant!
Until Next Time,
Manwathiel
