I do not own Lord of the Rings. Any returning readers might want to reread Chapter 14 as I made some geographical changes.
The next few days were all the same: Edleneth, Elladan, and Elrohir walked along the road from dawn until dusk and took turns watching over the night. They slept away from the roads, because Edleneth's paranoia that they would be captured was high, especially since their current course took them so close to Isengard, and Saruman was no longer someone they could trust.
They talked little, and even then it was mostly Elrohir and Elladan speaking quietly so Edleneth could not hear them. They would glance her way occasionally, so she knew they were discussing her. Edleneth didn't know what there was to discuss beyond the fact that she was keeping vital information from them, which seemed like a conversation that wouldn't last long, yet it had been four days and the two were still talking as if there was much more to say.
Edleneth had given up sleep for the time being after her nightmare occurred twice more and Elladan or Elrohir had had to wake her up. She was exhausted, but she kept pushing on because she knew that in the end, her health didn't matter: what mattered was that she got to Mount Doom.
However, Edleneth still had no idea how she was going to get to Mount Doom, and her lack of sleep was making it difficult to think straight. The Black Gate wasn't an option because it was highly guarded, but as far as she knew, there was no other way into Mordor. Edleneth had considered asking her companions for advice many times, but telling them their destination was too close to telling them the reason why she was going there.
She was going to have to tell them eventually. They refused to leave her, and if she didn't tell them why she had to jump into Mount Doom, they would surely try to talk her out of it. There were only two options for her: tell them, and hope they didn't hate her for being possessed with the deepest evil in the world, or leave them behind and destroy their already fading friendship with a last breach of trust.
A third option came to mind: Edleneth could make them leave. She could act so coldly and distantly that they would give up on her and decide that helping her wasn't worth it. It was far-fetched, because Elrohir and Elladan were as noble as elves could come and would help others regardless of their treatment of them, but it could work in theory. Only in theory. Edleneth dismissed the idea.
"Edleneth!" Elrohir cried, and she spun around, torn from her thoughts. She looked around for any danger and raised her eyebrow at him when she saw none.
Elladan answered her unspoken question when he pointed to the sky. A dark cloud was coming towards them, making the loudest raucous Edleneth had heard since the argument with the dwarves at the council where the Fellowship was first decided.
"Crebain!" she gasped, and instantly the three dove for any form of cover. Edleneth found herself sheltered in a thick bush, and questioned herself as the crows passed by. How had she not heard them? Had she been so deep in her thoughts that only the urgency in Elrohir's tone had brought her focus back, or was it her fatigue finally catching up to her?
Even after she could no longer hear the crows, Edleneth stayed hidden for a while to ensure that there weren't any still lurking about. As she crawled out from her hiding place, she saw Elladan and Elrohir do the same.
"Do you think they saw us?" Elladan asked as they came together.
"They must have at least caught a glimpse," Elrohir said, "If you can hear them, they can see you."
Edleneth shook her head. "Even if they did see us, there shouldn't be too much of a reason for Saruman to care. Three elves traveling along this road isn't too suspicious." She paced back and forth. "Still, we need to be more careful. Even though we may not seem suspicious, we are obviously not on Saruman's side, and with only three of us there isn't much of a threat if he sends a swarm of orcs after us." Edleneth glanced at her companions. "We'll just have to move faster." She started down the road again, at a faster pace than before.
"Any chance you'll tell us where we're headed now?" Elladan asked, running to catch up with her.
Edleneth hesitated. They would have to know eventually, and if she didn't tell them, they would surely realize their destination as they grew closer. But if they knew where she was going, it would be that harder to leave them behind, since they could chase after her.
Elrohir had caught up to them now, and Edleneth could see that her hesitation had put a glimmer of hope in his eyes, as well as his brother's. But in the end, she shook her head, turned her back on them, and continued at their fast pace.
She would have to leave them soon, or they'd be able to follow her easily.
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