Hello all! Here I am again to supply you with another chapter! Wee! Less then a week and I will be in Pittsburgh! YAY! But Billy almost got himself killed surfing! AH! POOR BILLY:(
Anywho, on with the show!
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Chapter 29- Curious Elleths
Mithrandir chewed on his pipe thoughtfully as his gray eyes stared into the distance. Norui and Turwaithiel had not yet returned and that worried him. After a few moments, he sighed and stood up, stuffing his pipe in his belt. He strode over from his watch post to the human that lay on the ground and tapped him lightly with his foot.
"Estel?" He called quietly. He blinked tiredly and looked up slowly, taking in the Istar's expression. He gasped suddenly and leapt to his feet.
"What is it, Mithrandir? Are there orcs nearby?" He asked worriedly, searching his belt for his knife.
"Peace, Estel, everything is fine." He assured him, "But our comrades have not returned yet and that does not settle well with me."
"I will wake the others." The man said immediately and went to do just that.
A few moments later, the company was awake and searching desperately for their friends. The twins carried torches that they had lit again and they all called out worriedly, ignoring the danger it might put them in. Estel had gone ahead, trying to find any traces of either of the elves. He found this quite difficult though for elves left little or no track to follow by. After they walked a little ways, they heard the young human call back to them.
"I have found him!" He shouted, "Come quickly!" They exchanged quick, hopeful glances before dashing off after him.
They found Estel leaning over the unconscious Crown Prince of Mirkwood, searching him over for anything that might explain his current state. The two princesses gasped and dashed to their brother, shoving Estel out of the way. Melyanna stroked his pale face and pushed stray hairs from his face, tucking them behind his pointed ear, while Lothron gently shook him.
"Norui?" She whispered, "Norui, wake up." She pleaded as the others gathered around. The younger elleth furrowed her brow when she found a large bruise on the ellon's temple and gently prodded it. Norui gasped suddenly at the touch and shoved them both away, covering his head with his arm. The youngest princess growled but her sister just smiled, "Are you alright?" She asked gently and he groaned.
"My head feels ready to burst." He mumbled in annoyance. Slowly, he sat himself up and glanced around. His eyes widened suddenly, "Where is Turwaithiel!" He exclaimed, leaping to his feet but he soon grew faint and fell back down. Lothron caught him quickly and gently lowered him.
"I am not sure." She replied, "Why? What is wrong?"
"She betrayed us!" He hissed, "She knocked me out with her staff after transforming into some horrible creature!"
The companions glanced between each other worriedly. Did he speak the truth or was he still shaken from his injury however he obtained it?
"Are you positive, Norui?" Mithrandir asked as he approached. The Crown Prince nodded vigorously.
"Absolutely! I remember it clearly." He was breathing heavily at this point, outraged at their blindness and her treachery, "Legolas was right all along." He breathed, placing his head in his hands. The group absorbed this new information with worry and anger. She had tricked them all and they never stopped to think about it. It seemed that Legolas was the only one who saw her for who she was. How he knew this baffled them even more.
"Where are Legolas and Jaimea?" The wizard asked.
"I do not know. I thought I heard them scream but then that Turwaithiel," He spat out her name in disgust, "Knocked me out."
"Why would they scream?" Arwen asked, fearing the worst. Norui only shook his head.
"I believe I have an answer to that." The Istar said, "There is a gorge not far from here where a river runs through. Perhaps they have fallen down that."
Sharp gasps escaped their mouths and their minds were filled with images of the two elves speared upon jagged rocks or pinned down underneath the current, slowly drowning to . The three siblings of Mirkwood were ly pale and looked as if they could faint right there.
"But I do not know this." Mithrandir amended, "I do not know how they would manage such a thing. They would have passed the stream to reach the gorge but if this did indeed occur, I know who we can go to for help."
"Who?" Elrohir asked.
"If you remain silent, I will tell you." He snapped impatiently. The Noldor Elf stepped back, "As I was saying, there is a young elleth who patrols a section of the White Mountains. Her range covers a shallow area of the river. The two are bound to be washed up there and she will find them. If we can catch her, we will find Legolas and Jaimea."
"Well, Mithrandir, I am not too keen on trusting anyone that we find here in the Wild." Norui scoffed.
"You will trust her if you want to find your brother, princeling." The wizard replied hotly, his temper rising, "I have known this since the day she was born. I was there the day she came into this world and it was I who raised her." The Crown Prince's face fell into complete shock and confusion.
"What do you mean?" Elladan asked.
"That is a story for later but we best be off if we want to catch her this night. Come!" He turned to run back to the camp but another voice stopped him.
"What of Turwaithiel, Mithrandir?" Estel asked, "What are we going to do about her? And if she betrayed us, how should we believe that the east passage of the Mountains is safe as she told us?" The wizard sighed tiredly and turned back to the human.
"We will figure that out later, Estel." He said, "But as for our path, Legolas lies to the east, not to the west. We shall continue with the woman's plan and pray that our luck holds."
With that, the Istar dashed back to their camp with the others quickly following behind. They gathered up all of their belongings and hurriedly strapped them to their backs. Despite much protesting and confusion, they let their horses go at Mithrandir's bidding. They doused the small flame and set out in search of this new elleth.
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The sensation of smooth pebbles rubbing against cold skin clouded her senses and she found comfort in it. The playful trickling of water filled her ears and she came to a slow stop. All was silent and dark.
Jaimea opened her eyes wide a groan as she pulled her shaky arms out from underneath her body. She could barely detect the cool water running past her body. As she lay there, memories of what just happened came streaming back to her and she suddenly remembered who was with her.
"Legolas!" She gasped and struggled to push herself. She finally noticed that she lay in a shallow area of the river and the cliff had disappeared. A sandy beach-like area was on one side of her and the rocky wall was on the other. She spotted the limp body of the prince face down in the water, resting a little ways from the shore.
The elleth crawled frantically over to the ellon, not having the strength to pull herself to her feet. She hurriedly pushed him onto his back and pressed her pointed ear to his chest but found almost nothing.
"Legolas?" She whispered hopefully as she shook his vigorously, hoping he would open his eyes and laugh, saying that it was all a joke and he was fine. But he didn't. Tears began to trail down her cheeks and they blended with the river water. She glanced nervously between his lips and his chest, wringing her hands in anxiety.
Suddenly, she leaned down and put her mouth over his and blew into him, his chest rising slightly in response. She did this one more time before putting her ear to his chest but there was still nothing. Not willing to give up, she pressed his chest multiple times bu eemed to have no effect. She repeated this until she was exhausted. Hot tears stung her eyes but she did not take notice.
"Please, Legolas, do not do this." Jaimea breathed, "Wake up." Her shoulders racked with sobs and she rested her head on his chest. Espenshade appeared out of nowhere and landed on the shore. Her head lowered to the ground in sorrow when she saw the two elves before her, "Legolas, please don't leave me. I-" She stopped in her sentence when she heard the faintest fluttering of the ellon's heart.
Instantly, she began pressing on his chest, repeating the movements she had before. The falcon watched her sadly; all hope for her master had left her small body.
Legolas's eyes sprang open and he fell into violent coughing fits, rolling quickly onto his side. Jaimea leapt back from him to give him some room, excitement and relief etched on her face. Water spewed out of the prince's mouth and, regaining her senses, the elleth came forward again and pulled him to the shore with strength that surprised herself. The ellon's eyes were wide and shot from choking. He glanced around frantically, searching for anyone there with him. He barely noticed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Thank Eru." Jaimea breathed as she kissed his shoulder and face. Espenshade flew over to them with a screech and landed on the other side of the ellon, pecking at his sodden golden locks. The elleth stroked his back soothingly and his choking soon died to nothing but rasped breaths.
"Jaimea?" Legolas whispered hoarsely after a moment, turning onto his back to look up at her but she stopped him, pushing him gently back onto his side.
"Shh, Legolas, you must stay on your side in case there is anymore water in your lungs." She said softly. The prince gave a deep, gasping breath and then rolled over to his side.
"My eyes are blurred, Jaimea. I feel as if I cannot see a foot in front of me." He said quietly. The elleth frowned and carefully crawled around to face him, then lay down next to him. His cerulean eyes were half closed but she could see that they were darting around quickly.
"I think it will pass in time, Legolas. Just rest." She replied, stroking some stray hairs from his face.
"You will not leave me?" He asked, reaching blindly for her hand and she quickly grasped it in her own hand. At his question, she found herself having to bite her bottom lip to hold back her tears. She moved up to his face and placed small kisses all over his face. She shivered when she felt his lips brush against her neck but she convinced herself it was chaste, perhaps even al, and left it at that.
"I will stay with you forever, Legolas." She whispered. The two elves stayed in that position for a few more moments. The prince found the strength to put his arms around her waist and pull her closer to him, resting his chin on her head. Jaimea sighed contentedly as she grasped his wet tunic in her hands and buried her face in his neck.
"We need to heal your wounds." She said suddenly, making the ellon jump slightly at her voice. He felt his heart fall when she pulled away from his embrace and traced her fingers down the gashes on his legs.
"Espenshade can help." Legolas said softly and the elleth nodded.
"Alright, Espenshade, heal your master again." She said with a chuckle. The falcon screeched softly and began her magic once more.
A few moments later, the wounds on Legolas's back and legs were gone, leaving only tiny scars. The elleth smiled at the falcon who cackled in return. Jaimea leaned down over the prince and smiled. His face was still paler then normal but color was slowly returning to him. His eyes fluttered open and locked gazes with hers. He furrowed his brow and reached up slowly, touching her forehead.
"You are hurt." He said softly, already looking towards Espenshade.
"I am?" She questioned, never having noticed any injuries. She placed her fingers gently on her forehead and hissed in pain when she came in contact with an open wound, "How did I not notice that?" She wondered and Legolas simply shrugged with a small smile.
Once the falcon had healed the elleth's wounds, she sighed tiredly and flew off a little ways to find a good place to rest. The two elves watched her leave with a smile, wondering at the creature. Jaimea turned back down to Legolas with a worried frown.
"Do you think you can manage to make it to the shore?" She asked. He didn't respond at first, as if measuring his strength.
"I think so." He said and sat up on his elbows with the elleth supporting him. He hissed through his teeth when he felt his lungs constrict and rested in that position for a moment before finally continuing. Very slowly, Legolas made it to his feet and was guided carefully to the river's shore. Jaimea bit her lip worriedly when she heard his grunts of discomfort and let him lay back down once they came to land.
Legolas lay down on his back and the elleth allowed him to rest his head in her lap. She brushed his hair away from his face, tucking it behind his ears, and slowly began to undo his plaits. Once they were all out, she ran her fingers through his matted hair, combing it out, and then kneaded his head gently. She smiled when a soft sigh escaped his lips and he looked up at her again.
"That feels nice." He said softly.
"I am glad it pleases you." She replied.
"Once we get back to the palace, I will have you as my personal massager and no one else can use you." He chuckled but Jaimea's hands suddenly stopped. Legolas furrowed his brow and looked up at her, "Jaimea?"
"I am sorry." She said quickly, then resumed her ministrations.
"No, you do not need to apologize. I am sorry if I offended you." He replied repentantly, "It would be your choice were you to do that for me." He reached up tiredly and caressed her cheek, gaining him a small smile.
"Legolas, I must tell you something but you must promise not to be angry with me." At his nod, she continued, "As you know, my parents died and my brother left me. With no where to go, I did the only thing I thought would work; I joined-"
A high pitched whinny cut the elleth off and both elves snapped their heads to the direction of the sound. The soft beating of hooves reached their ears until they saw the silhouette of a horse and rider making their way towards them.
A moment later, they heard the rider hop off and their bodies constricted in tension. They heard the soft shifting of the small stones and sand as the person came towards them. Legolas pulled Jaimea down on the ground suddenly.
"Be silent!" He hissed, watching the person come steadily closer to them. The elleth did as she was told.
Sure enough, the person walked right past the two elves with even a glance. The two elves were able to see that the person was a female due to her shapely curves and slender waist. A darkly colored cloak was pinned over her shoulders and just touched the ground. The hood was placed over her head, concealing her facial features. Only when she dropped the cloak from her shoulders did the ellon and elleth speak again.
"Should we run?" Jaimea whispered, not noticing the closeness of their bodies.
"I don't know. She might-" Legolas gasped, his eyes widening, "Sweet Eru…"
The woman had waded into waist deep water and was busy unbuttoning her flowing riding tunic, then peeling it off her body. While the prince just gaped in shock and embarrassment, not being able to tear his eyes away, the elleth just glared and him and slapped his head. He hissed in pain, taking his eyes off of the woman.
"Keep your eyes !" She reprimanded a bit too loudly.
The lady's eyes shot up and she gathered the tunic around herself again, eyes wide. Her horse's head looked up as well and gazed into the shadows. Legolas mentally slapped himself.
"Runyariel, do you see anyone?" The lady asked worriedly. The horse snorted and trotted off into the darkness with the woman's bright eyes watching.
Jaimea and Legolas stiffened as the strangely painted horse trotted towards them and stopped at their heads. The two elves looked up to see a pair of inquisitive eyes staring down at them. The mare sighed heavily and pressed her snout to the ellon's face, leaving the elleth to giggle. The prince snorted in annoyance when a big tongue ran over his face.
"Runyariel?" The woman called, walking in the direction of her mount. The two elves on the ground inhaled sharply and instinctively grabbed each other in an almost protective way. The mare looked to her master and nickered softly. Swallowing hard, the woman took the few tentative steps towards her, "Who is it?"
The lady gasped softly when she saw the elves on the ground. Much to the confusion of Legolas and Jaimea, she blushed crimson and turned away from them.
"Oh, I am so sorry!" She exclaimed, "I hope I wasn't interrupting anything!" The prince's jaw dropped while the elleth just blushed. Legolas quickly pushed himself away from Jaimea and sat up, ignoring the sharp pain that shot through his chest.
"No, it is not that at all!" He assured, trying to hide his embarrassment. The lady glanced over to the other elleth who nodded in agreement and she chuckled.
"Oh, alright then." She said cheerfully. Suddenly, the smile was wiped off her face and she turned to glare at the ellon, "And why were you watching me bathe?" She asked tensely. Legolas's eyes widened and he looked to Jaimea. She only gave him a smug smile. He swallowed and turned to the lady again.
"I apologize, my lady. We have been here for a long while and we weren't sure if you were a friend or foe." He replied nervously.
"So I assume it is necessary to watch me in order to determine that?" She spat and he flinched at her response. Jaimea was beginning to feel sorry for the ellon.
"Please, my lady," The elleth began, "We need help. We were driven off a cliff by a pack of wolves and we do not know where our companions are."
The woman tore her suspicious gaze from the prince to Jaimea. She gazed at her up and down, then nodded once.
"Who was in your party?" She asked.
"There was a man by the name of Estel along with a few other elves. We had one wizard with us as well; Mithrandir." The elleth replied. The lady's face brightened suddenly.
"You travel with Mithrandir?"
"Indeed."
"Then you truly mean no harm. He is a great wizard and any of his friends are mine as well." She said happily, "My name is Iaurtondariel. Who might you be?"
"I am Jaimea and this is Prince Legolas of Mirkwood." She answered and the prince smiled sheepishly, "Though he usually behaves better then this." She added with a smile. Iaurtondariel smirked and then looked to the ellon.
"Would you come with me for a moment, my lord?" She asked him, stretching out her hand with a smile, "I would like to discuss something with you." Legolas instantly froze and her smile faded. Jaimea frowned, finally remembering his 'timidity'.
"My lady, I don't think-"
"Come now, my lord! I won't hurt you!" The lady insisted. Legolas shook his head.
"No, that is alright. I'd rather stay here." He replied. Iaurtondariel opened her mouth to speak again but was cut off by Jaimea.
""Please, my lady, stop this." She said quietly. The elleth looked between Jaimea and Legolas with a curious smile.
"Alright then." She replied mirthfully. She then stood from her spot, patted her horse's neck and then walked back to the water's edge. The two Mirkwood elves exchanged confused glances.
"Will you help us find out friends?" Jaimea asked. The other elleth turned back to look at her.
"Oh, you wanted help from me?" She asked, "Well, of course! Why didn't you ask?"
"We did."
"Yes, you did, but you did not ask for my help in particular. You didn't seem to trust me when I came upon you so I did not believe that you would want me to help." She replied with a small shrug. Legolas quirked an eyebrow at her but she caught it and chuckled, "You are quite- how do I say it- cute, perhaps, even if you did have a look at me."
"I did not!" He retorted. She just chuckled again and turned to Jaimea.
"You may take Runyariel. She will take you back to my home and I will try to find your friends." She said and the other elleth nodded.
"Hannon lle." (Thank you)
Within a moment, Legolas and Jaimea were mounted upon the mare and, after a few short instructions, had galloped off to the elleth's home.
Once they had disappeared out of sight, the elleth sighed and began gathering her things from the shoreline. She picked up a small dagger that had a green gem plastered in the hilt. A string of elvish traveled up the blade, hidden in small silver leaves and vines. She stuck this into its sheath and fastened her cloak around her shoulders.
"Now, where is that wizard?" She thought aloud. She opened a small pouch at her hip and took out a pinch of white powder. She then took a small cup and filled it with water from the river, then mixed the powder in the liquid. She placed the water to her lips and took a small sip. Within a blink of an eye, a bright light engulfed her and she was gone.
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Mithrandir ignored the complaining of two certain Noldor elves as they continued their blind run. Most of them did not know where they were going but they did not question the wizard. Where ever he was going, they were sure it was of some importance.
Their run came to a halt at the sound of muffled cries from the twins. They stopped and looked back to see a very interesting sight.
Elrohir was on top of Elladan who was on another person that they did not recognize save the Istar. They all laughed at the ellons' position but Mithrandir rushed forward through them all and towards the three on the ground.
"Get off, you fools!" He ordered, waving his staff threateningly in the air. Elladan took another look at the one beneath him and gasped when he saw that it was an elleth, "Off!" The wizard called again and the two elves clambered off. The lady shot up and glanced around with excited eyes.
"Mithrandir!" She exclaimed mirthfully, running towards the Istar. He laughed merrily when she leapt into his arms and he enveloped her in a massive embrace, "It is so wonderful to see you!"
"Long has it been since I have seen you, my dear Iaurtondariel." He replied, smiling brightly, "My, have you grown into a beautiful elleth!" He added and she laughed.
"Mithrandir?" Norui called, interrupting the reunion. The wizard and elleth looked over to the expectant ellon.
"Norui, this is the lady I spoke of." Mithrandir said, "Iaurtondariel." The Crown Prince nodded slightly.
"A pleasure to meet you, my lady." He said softly. The elleth smiled and approached him with curious eyes.
"You wouldn't happen to be related to Legolas of Mirkwood, would you?" She asked and his eyes widened.
"He is my brother!" Norui exclaimed, taking her hands in his, "What has happened to him?" Iaurtondariel laughed at his enthusiasm.
"He and his lady are riding to my home as we speak." She replied and the ellon furrowed his brow.
"'His lady'? Are they courting each other?" He questioned.
"Oh, they are not lovers? I assumed they were by the way I found them."
"Are they alright?"
"Quite alright." She replied, "No wounds." Norui sighed in relief.
"Thank Eru." He breathed.
"Well, now that we have Iaurtondariel with us, I believe we will find out friends quickly." Mithrandir said, "Lead the way, my dear."
The elleth grinned excitedly and nodded.
"Come, it is not but a mile from here!" She exclaimed cheerfully and then turned to run but a voice stopped her from doing so. She stopped and spun around to see who it was that spoke to her.
"My lady, how did you appear out of thin air like that?" Elladan asked, taking a few steps forward. She eyed him carefully and shrugged.
"It is just magic." She replied.
"How are you capable of such a thing?"
Iaurtondariel was about to speak but a hand over her mouth stopped her. She looked up at the person with annoyance in her eyes.
"That, my lord Elladan, shall be explained later as well." The old Istar said and released the elleth. She shot him a curious glance but he only smiled and placed a kiss on her forehead, "Now, lead the way."
The elleth nodded with a small smile and then turned around again but, much to her annoyance, was stopped again.
"If you have the power to transport yourself, why do you not just transport all of us?" The same ellon asked again. She sighed and looked to Mithrandir for permission to answer and he nodded.
"It is only capable of transporting one person. I would not be able to do everyone here. Besides, it is tiring work." She replied.
Once again, Iaurtondariel turned around and paused, waiting for another interruption. When none came, she sighed in relief and bolted off with the others following close behind her.
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There you go! All done, finally! This one took a while, actually, and my wrists are starting to hurt. Let's make this short…
Anonymous- A new reader! Yay! I am glad you liked the story! As for the elvish… h t t p/w w w .musefanpage . c o m / N e w F i l e s / s a l o a n s w e r s . h t m l . Check that out. Just look at the second Q&A thing and that should explain it. I think there has been a lot of confusion concerning that phrase but, if David Salo said it, I am going to believe it! ;) Thanks for helping though. I am glad you took the time to try to help. Hehe. It means 'I love you', by the way. Thanks for reading and reviewing! (And take the spaces off the link. Also, if you look closely at it, part of the beginning is missing. I don't know why but the page won't let me add the ':' and the extra '/'. If it doesn't work, drop me an email and I will send something else.)
Jousting Elf with a Sabre- Hehe! I am glad I made you happy! And look! You are in this chapter a lot! Hehe! I hope this was soon enough for you…and thank you for taking the time to answer all of my weird questions concerning Iaurtondariel. Much appreciated. :) As for the number thing, I will tell you that it has to do with Norui. grin Thanks for reading and reviewing!
Lasien- Hehe, you know, I think I am loosing it as an author. I read your review and you said that you knew Turwaithiel was a shifter and I was thinking, "Whaaat? Where'd I put that in?" LOL. I didn't even remember what happened in the chapter until I was writing this chapter! But yes, you are right. She and Uhako are shifters who are in looove:plays some romance sonata: Aw, we are all smart and stupid in our own little way! Hehe! How'd that come to be arranged? Hehe, well, I can't tell you that except that I am his little sister! Muahaha! lol, no, I'm not sadly but oh well. I can dream, can't I! Thanks for reading and reviewing!
Legolas's 9- X'D Wow! Well, thank you! I can really feel the love! LOL! I am glad you still like the story, though. That is what is most important, I think. You can me aaaall you want but if you like the story, I am happy:grin: Thanks for reading and reviewing!
Swasti- Aw, you have no health insurance? Hmm, that is a shame…maybe I can give you Norui and you can sell him for money! (Norui: WHAT! I thought you loved me!) He is, after all, a fine specimen and is worth quite a lot of money. (Norui: ….:sniffle: ) Hehe, I am glad you still have a smirk on your face! That tells me that you are enjoying the story! And that is good, my friend! Good! I hope I get lots of pictures, too! If I get around to it, I'll post 'em here and you and the others can take a look. ;) Thanks for reading and reviewing! (But you no review on Red Bird! I was freaking out, like, "Oh no! My most faithful reviewer is gone! What did I do wrong:searches frantically through her chapters: )
Well, that is about it…so much for keeping it short. Hmm, oh well. :grins: I leave in four days and then meet Billy in five! Woo hoo! But my mom and I are going to stalk him on Friday around Pittsburgh. Hehe, we have a plan all set out! I am going to run behind him and she is going to trip him, then I am going to tackle him and tie him up and take 'em home with me! Yay! Okay, see you all later!
Until Next Time,
Manwathiel
