I don't own Lord of the Rings. I only own Edleneth.
When Edleneth awoke in the morning, Elladan and Elrohir were whispering to each other quietly. When they saw that she was awake, they immediately stopped and walked over to her. They smiled at her, but Edleneth noticed that their smiles didn't reach their eyes, which looked worried.
Edleneth nervously smiled back at them. "Is everything alright?" she asked, looking between them.
Elrohir shook himself. "Everything is fine," he replied, "We're just waiting for you to lead since you're the only one who knows where we're going." Elladan nodded in agreement.
Edleneth raised an eyebrow at them and shrugged after a moment. If there's something they're keeping from me, I can't blame them, she thought, I'm keeping secrets from them as well. She sighed and mourned the loss of trust between them. "You really shouldn't come along with me," she said as a last attempt to send them back to safety.
Elladan smiled smugly. "See, last night you were saying how we can't come, but now you're saying we shouldn't."
Elrohir smirked. "Seems like you're warming up to the idea!"
Edleneth frowned. "I'm warming up to it because you aren't giving me a choice," she stated coldly. She walked towards the horses, but as she drew near, they began to pull on their tethers and whinnied in fear. Edleneth stopped. They can smell the evil in me, she realized sadly.
"That's odd," Elrohir said, "I've never seen a horse react to an elf like that before."
"Me neither," Elladan agreed. The twins shared a glance before walking up to the horses carefully. They were happily welcomed by the horses and mounted them easily. Once settled, they looked at Edleneth expectantly.
Edleneth held out her hand towards Suldal. "Suldal, it's me Edleneth," she told him. She smiled sadly at him and took a step forward. Suldal stopped pulling on his tether and looked at her. He carefully walked up to Edleneth, as Elrohir and Elladan's horses whinnied in fear. Suldal sniffed her hand and snorted, taking a step back. Edleneth sighed and looked down. "It looks as though I will be walking," she told them, "You should take the horses back to Rivendell."
Elrohir and Elladan quickly dismounted their horses and took the saddlebags off the horses. "You're not getting rid of us that easily," Elladan told her.
"We'll walk with you." Elrohir said, handing her one of the saddlebags, "Let's repack these so we can carry the supplies with us." He and Elladan sat down and began to sort through the saddlebags.
"What about the horses?" Edleneth asked them as she joined them.
"They know the way back to Rivendell," Elrohir told her offhandedly.
"But won't they send people out looking for you?" Edleneth asked, "Arwen wouldn't even need to convince Lord Elrond to look for you."
Elladan stopped and looked at her. "Ada knows we can handle ourselves. We defeated those orcs that had captured Mother with no extra help, and if we can do that, the only person that can defeat us is Sauron himself."
Edleneth froze for a second before forcing a laugh. "Full of yourselves, aren't you?"
Elrohir grinned. "Elladan exaggerates of course, but it is true. Ada might send some people out, and if they find us, we can simply explain then."
"Or if Lothlorien is on the way, we can stop there and tell everything to Lady Galadriel, who will gladly relay the message," Elladan stated.
Edleneth frowned. "It is not on the way," she told them. She picked up her finished pack and placed it on her shoulders.
Elrohir and Elladan shared another glance and shrugged simultaneously. They stood up and placed their packs on their shoulders. "Okay then," Elrohir said, "We'll just have to hope that we don't cause too much distress."
Elladan looked at Edleneth. "It might be better that they don't know we're on some kind of mission, since you refuse to tell even us where we're going."
Elrohir glared at his brother and turned to Edleneth. "I'll send the horses on their way," he said. He walked towards the horses and whispered in each of their ears before tapping them lightly on the rump so they would head back to Rivendell. He walked back to Edleneth and Elladan, and smiled at her. "Lead the way," he told her.
Edleneth looked between them. "There is absolutely no way I can stop you from coming along?" she asked hopelessly.
Elladan and Elrohir shook their heads. "You're stuck with us," Elladan replied.
"So be it," Edleneth sighed. After one last look up at Caradhras, she began to walk south. The twins followed her silently. Manwe, she prayed, Please let no harm come to them on my account. Do not give Lord Elrond more reason to mourn.
Please review?