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Chapter 12: get lost along the way
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The remaining members of the fellowship follow Gandalf through the forest, in search for the light of day. Dark and murky as it still is, at the white wizard's side it somehow seems much less scary now.
As she keeps up with his urgent stride, Adrienne tries prevent her thoughts from swirling around the new information she learned from Gandalf, lest she get sucked down under and trapped beneath the rip current.
"One stage of your journey is over, another begins," the wizard tells them. "War has come to Rohan; we must ride to Edoras with all speed."
"Edoras?" Gimli repeats. "That is no short distance!"
"We hear of trouble in Rohan," Aragorn says, ignoring Gimli's complaint. "It goes ill with the king."
"Yes, and it will not be easily cured," Gandalf informs them solemnly.
"Wait, so we're really just leaving then?" Adrienne blurts out in disbelief. "What about Merry and Pippin?"
She just ran for three days straight, worried sick for the little guys and she's not even allowed to see them? It's not that she doesn't trust Gandalf, per say, but seeing them with her own two eyes would put her mind at ease. That can't be too much to ask for.
"Yes," Gimli agrees with her, "have we run all this way for nothing? Are we to leave those poor Hobbits here in this horrid, dark, dank, tree-infested–" at his words, the trees let out loud creaks and groans as if angered. "I mean, charming, quite charming forest," he amends nervously.
"Gandalf, can't we just–" Adrienne begins.
"It was more than mere chance that brought Merry and Pippin to Fangorn,"Gandalf reveals. "A great power has been sleeping here for many long years. The coming of Merry and Pippin will be like the falling of small stones that starts an avalanche in the mountains."
Confusion settles over the group. What could he possibly mean by that?
"In one thing you have not changed, dear friend," Aragorn speaks up and at Gandalf's inquiring look he explains in amusement. "You still speak in riddles."
They laugh lightly together, and Adrienne almost feels as if she's left out of an inside joke. It's a startling reminder that the fellowship had been through quite a lot before she stumbled her way into joining them.
She's unsure of what exactly Gandalf's next words mean, but from the delivery alone they send chills down her spine.
"A thing is about to happen that has not happened since the Elder Days. The ents are going to wake up…and find that they are strong."
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They reach the edge of the murky forest and step into the bright sunlight for what feels like the first time in years. Wide open land stands before them to cross.
Great. More traveling.
They're all still blinking trying to adjust to the change of light when Gandalf lets out a loud whistle, and on cue, a magnificent white horse soon appears.
"That is one of the Mearas unless my eyes are cheated by some spell," Legolas says in awe.
"Shadowfax," the wizard introduces proudly. "He's the lord of all horses and has been my friend through many dangers."
He's as beautiful as what Adrienne would imagine the lord of horses to look like.
Aragorn, Gimli, and Gandalf all climb up onto their respective horses in preparation to leave, but Adrienne doesn't move. She stands still, sadly staring back at the forest while thoughts of her dear Hobbit friends consume her mind.
What if they think we gave up on them? That they weren't worth saving?
Sensing someone at her side, she sighs. "I know, I know. Gandalf said they'll be fine. But I still hate leaving them like this. I feel…guilty."
"Merry and Pippin will understand, I'm sure," comes Legolas' words of comfort. "There is much to be done; they have their part to play and we have ours. But we'll see them again soon, of that I'm sure."
"I hope so."
"We shall, trust me," he insists, and Adrienne turns to face him. "Now," he says charmingly, nodding towards the rest of the group, "shall we go?"
He gently takes her elbow to guide her in the right direction.
Warmth floods her as she smiles and allows him to lead her over to where the others are patiently waiting. As he so effortlessly lifts her onto Hasufel's saddle, she tries to ignore the butterflies fluttering in her stomach at the feel of his hands on her waist.
She fails.
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They ride harder than Adrienne expects, and she finds herself hanging onto Aragorn with a death grip.
"I knew we were gonna go fast, but I didn't know we were gonna go this fast," she says to Aragorn as she bounces down onto the saddle– hard .
Now I understand what they mean when they say horseback riding can break your hymen.
He doesn't respond, just as he hasn't for the last five things she's said.
She sighs. It hadn't taken long for her to grow bored; there's a lot of ground to cover from Fangorn to Edoras, and just sitting makes her feel antsy. Especially with no one to talk with to make the time go by faster.
"How would your girlfriend feel if she knew a pretty girl had her arms wrapped around you, bouncing up and down?" she says, deciding to try a different tactic in an attempt to get a reaction out of him.
It works, too.
"Continue speaking and I just may ask to switch riding partners," he responds shortly.
That doesn't sound so bad to me , she thinks as an image of having her arms wrapped tightly around Legolas' waist, her body flush against his, pops into her head before she quickly shakes it away. "Aw, you don't mean that."
"I do. You talk too much."
"And you don't talk enough."
"Just–no more talking, please."
"Would you hate me forever if I sang instead?"
"Yes."
"Awesome." She grins and starts to sing the first song that comes to mind given their current form of transportation: Wild Horses by Birdy.
As she takes an exaggeratedly deep breath and starts to belt out the lyrics, Aragorn groans. "That is not necessary."
Her grin only grows wider and her voice louder, and not too surprisingly his complaints quickly cease. He did call her music magical, if she recalls correctly.
Her gaze strays over to Legolas, who's riding on Arod with Gimli across from them, her eyes traveling from his lithe but muscular arms to his silky, flowing blond hair. Majestic is a good word for how he looks at the moment.
Meanwhile there she is with greasy, unwashed hair trailing behind her in a messy ponytail.
God I must look like a musty colonial boy. What I need is a bath.
Nevertheless, she continues to sing, and when he glances over and their eyes meet she fights off a blush, opting for a charming grin.
She closes her eyes, tightening her grip on Aragorn. Unwashed as it may be, her red-brown hair blowing in the wind behind her makes her feel like she's in a movie, living out every horse girl's dream.
As she reaches the chorus, her voice carries that indescribable emotion she has whenever she sings or plays.
I will survive and be the one who's stronger
I will not beg you to stay
I will move on and you should know I mean it
Wild horses run in me
A human hurts, forgets how strong they are
And they get lost along the way, hey
It's not giving up, it's letting go
And moving to a better place
And when she looks over at Legolas once more, his eyes have that same indescribable emotion.
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Eventually, they stop during the night to let the horses rest for a bit and to get a couple hours of sleep in for themselves. It might not be much, but after their non-stop actions for the past several days, a couple hours of rest sounds absolutely heavenly.
Adrienne slides off her horse, her entire body sore, but especially between her legs.
She groans as she waddles over towards where the others are gathering. "Feels like the first time I ever fucked a dude," she mutters, and Legolas chokes on the water he's drinking, his sensitive elf ears burning.
He looks at her with wide eyes, taken aback at her forwardness.
She just shrugs. "What? It's true."
"What's true?" Gimli asks.
"Nothing!" Legolas says quickly, causing Adrienne to grin.
As she walks past him she leans and tilts her head up close to his and smirks teasingly. "Prude," she says in a low voice only he can hear before moving past him to take the waterskin from Aragorn.
After they're all rehydrated, Legolas offers to take watch while they sleep, and they're all sound asleep within a few minutes.
All except Adrienne, of course. That's not to say that, in this instance, she's not tired. She's fucking exhausted, actually. But as she tries to get comfortable on the tragically thin bedroll, her gaze keeps traveling to Legolas.
There's just something about him that keeps drawing her closer and closer, which she knows is dangerous. She's playing with fire, bringing herself toward the edge of something she's refusing to acknowledge.
Whatever it is, its too intriguing to ignore completely, so she'll blindly keep edging close to that line.
Against her better judgment, Adrienne goes over to sit down next to Legolas.
"It sucks that at our first real chance for rest after all that running you get stuck with night watch duty," she comments.
He slowly turns his head towards her, an unreadable expression on his face. "Yes, but you are not. And yet you are awake."
She shrugs. "I've already told you, lack of sleep doesn't bother me that much."
And I now know why.
He raises an eyebrow in skepticism. "You have been up for three days straight."
"Okay, so maybe I'm a little tired."
"Then what are you doing here?"
What am I doing here?
She stares at him, frozen in the beam of his eyes. "Because I…" she licks her lips. Why are words suddenly the most difficult thing in the world? "Because I want to keep you company."
He turns away, head facing straight ahead. "Go to bed, Adrienne," his voice devoid of emotion.
Oh. Okay then.
Bitter disappointment tastes in her mouth and a coldness settles over her.
She gets up. "Okay fine," she says stiffly.
His hand suddenly shoots out to grab her wrist, preventing her from getting any further.
"It is only out of my concern for your wellbeing, mellon nin," he explains.
She stubbornly turns away and tries to free her wrist from her grasp, but he holds firm. In a fluid motion, he tugs her down closer to him, and the air rushes out of her.
"Do you not believe me?" he asks, his voice suddenly low.
Her mouth opens and closes.
What was that about playing with fire, again?
"I believe you're holding my wrist for longer than necessary," she finally replies, the ghost of a smile playing at the corner of her lips.
He releases her wrist with an exasperated sigh. "What am I going to do with you?"
I can think of a few things.
To hide her dirty thoughts, she puts a triumphant smile on her face as she straightens up. "Are you admitting defeat?"
"I didn't say that." He eyes her warily.
She stares down at him, continuing to smile. "Look, why don't you accept my company just until I fall asleep?"
"You should go to your bedroll."
"I can bring it over here."
"No."
"Why?"
"Because it's not proper."
"Please. We're trying to save the world from infinite doom and you're worried about being proper? I'm pretty sure we have bigger problems than two people of the opposite gender sleeping next to each other. Platonically."
In the empty silence that follows, Adrienne tries very hard not to think about that last word. Platonically.
After what feels like eons, Legolas finally relents. "Fine."
"Atta boy," she commends, going to retrieve her mat.
Laying it down next to him, she looks over to see him frowning. "Don't worry; if someone asks, I'll just tell them I must've moved over here in my sleep."
He snorts, very unprince-like, at the ridiculous excuse.
"Well if you'd rather, I could say I had a nightmare and got scared," she suggests, using a baby voice for the later end of the sentence.
"Cease your talking, I beg of you," he says, sounding pained.
She only laughs at his annoyance before moving to lay down and stare up at the starry night sky with her hands behind her head. She doesn't think she'll ever get tired of seeing such an abundance of stars. Electricity is nice and all, but if it causes her to miss out on a view like this, then she'll gladly give it up.
When she feels Legolas' fingers lightly touch her ponytailed hair resting over her shoulder, she looks at him in surprise. Out of the two of them, he's definitely not the one to initiate touch.
Legolas' smooth voice reaches Adrienne's ears. "Your hair is a most unusual color," he lazily muses aloud, as if explaining his actions. "At first glance it can appear to be an ordinary brown color, but upon closer inspection it is in fact a very deep red, and in the sunlight that red is highlighted beautifully. And right now, it is dark as night."
Adrienne swallows thickly, taken aback by his thorough analysis of her appearance. She tries to find her voice. "I didn't know you paid that much attention to my hair," she deadpans, trying to play it off.
"It's just a far different color than I am used to seeing is all," he explains. "It stands out."
"Well no wonder, I'm guessing all elves are Barbie blond like you."
"Not all. Most from Lórien and Eryn Galen, yes. From Rivendell, not so much. But regardless, I think most people would agree that yours is not often found."
"I do get that a lot. Hairdressers are always trying to convince me not to dye it. Like this one time I dyed it purple and I swear she asked me like, fifteen times if I was sure." She rolls her eyes at the memory.
Legolas looks over at her in surprise. "You changed your hair color?" he asks incredulously. "To purple?"
"Yep. I was in one of my many crises, and purple is my favorite color, so." She shrugs.
"Fascinating," he says in awe, trying to imagine a world where they could so easily make one's hair such a vibrant color. She continues to astound him with every revelation of her time's world.
"Oh!" she exclaims as another example comes to mind. "Or this one time a customer at my job joked about buying a piece of my hair, but I don't think it was a joke."
"He wanted to cut a lock of your hair in exchange for money?"
"Yeah. People are creepy. Especially men, no offense. You're one of the exceptions."
"I am honored Adrienne Woods finds that I reach her standard of approval."
"You should be," she says with a yawn, "it's very exclusive."
"Then I shall feel twice as honored," he replies, lowering his voice even further, "for not only do you approve of me, but you consider me to be your best friend."
She smiles warmly as her eyes flutter closed. "Mm. My best friend."
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Gandalf awakes before the others and notices Adrienne is missing from the spot she had bedded down. Much to the elf's relief, when he looks over to find her curled up against Legolas, he doesn't say a word, only smiling a knowing smile.
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It's safe to say that Adrienne is very excited to see her first city in Middle Earth. And a human city at that. It's not that she doesn't like the other species she's met, but the only human (besides Boromir, whose demise she is trying not to think about) she has met is Aragorn, and as much as she loves him he's still...him. He's a little too serious and brooding for her taste. But a whole city of people to meet?
She's thrilled, really.
"Be careful what you say," Gandalf warns the group when they arrive at Edoras. "Do not look for welcome here."
Oh.
Suddenly she's much less thrilled.
Just as they are arriving at the gates, a flag of sorts blows by. As it lands in some nearby grass, Aragorn pauses to look at it.
"Do you think that's an omen of what we'll find inside?" Adrienne quietly asks from behind him.
"I'm not sure," he answers, looking over his shoulder to make eye contact as best he can. "But we are about to find out."
Sure enough, the townspeople blatantly stare at them as they pass by, their faces worn and somber. The sight is so depressing Adrienne's stomach knots in discomfort.
It's definitely not the lively atmosphere she's been imagining.
"You'd find more cheer in a graveyard," Gimli comments.
"No kidding," Adrienne mutters in agreement.
When they reach an important looking building, guards immediately appear and approach them.
We must be in the right place.
One guard in particular catches Adrienne's eye; holding his helmet in one hand, his young, chiseled good looks are on display, much to her gratitude. He's tall and has chin-length dark hair that is substantially less gross looking than the rest of his peers.
She mentally nicknames him Hot Guard Guy on the spot as he stands next to the one who Adrienne can only presume is the captain of the guard, due to his demeanor.
It is that captain-looking one who speaks first. "I cannot allow you before King Théoden so armed, Gandalf Greyhame by order of Grima Wormtongue."
Adrienne lets out a short laugh. "That is not a real name!" She looks around expecting to find other amused expressions but without such luck. "Is it?"
Hot Guard Guy turns his attention to her with one raised eyebrow, and she quickly sobers her look.
"Tell me, do you think it proper for a single woman to accompany four men without a chaperone?" the captain asks with a disapproving frown.
The men all look at each other sheepishly, realizing they had let such a thing slip their minds and now their poor presentation to the king looks even poorer. Meanwhile Adrienne tries to wrap her mind around how something like that is such a big deal here. Just another harsh reminder that she sticks out like a sore, 21st century thumb here.
"You dare come before the king as such?" another guard comments. "The disgrace."
"You think we would allow such a thing?" Gandalf hurries to say, feigning offense. "Nay. You are mistaken."
"Then which of you has a claim over her?" the guard asks, skeptical.
" A claim –?" Adrienne starts but the looks she gets makes her realize this is, unfortunately, a situation wherein she should just shut up and let Gandalf handle it.
Gandalf's gaze flickers over to the three other men he traveled here with, and they stare back with wide, questioning eyes. They didn't prep for this.
He quickly looks back at the captain and clears his throat. "Why, the elf of course," he says, somehow able to sound as casual as he always does. "They are engaged to be wed. Did you not notice how close they stand together?"
Legolas and Adrienne immediately each take a half step away from one another.
"Or the hearts in their eyes," Gimli adds for good measure, but Adrienne is certain he knows that wasn't necessary and for that she shoots him a glare.
The captain seems to buy it, but Hot Guard Guy looks at Adrienne skeptically. "You're betrothed to an elf?"
"I—er," she glances over at Gandalf, who pointedly raises his eyebrows in encouragement. "Yes. He's the love of my life, alright."
He looks her up and down, and for some unknown reason she fights back a shiver. "Curious," is all he comments before turning away as the captain addresses Aragorn and Gandalf.
"Well, that was awkward," Adrienne mutters to Legolas beside her as they begin to hand their weapons over to the guards.
"Indeed."
"You both liked it and you know it, lassie," Gimli comments, sounding smug.
"Shut up, Gimli. People who only reach to my knees don't get an opinion," she snaps just as a guard asks for Gandalf's staff.
"Oh," Gandalf replies, "no. You would not part an old man from his walking stick?"
The man begrudgingly turns away to lead them into the hall.
Slick, Gandalf. Real slick.
To seal the deal on the whole frail-old-man-in-need-of-a-cane-thing, Legolas offers his arm to Gandalf as they walk in. As they approach the king, Adrienne can't hold back the small sound of surprise she makes at the sight. "Oh!" she exclaims with a wince. "Yikes!"
Her companions all shoot her mortified warning looks, while Gimli just snorts.
"Sorry," she whispers, genuinely feeling bad. She hadn't meant for that reaction to slip out, it's just that the sight was so unexpected.
Seriously, someone needs to get my man some good ol vitamin D. And some moisturizer while we at it.
"Why should I welcome you, Gandalf Stormcrow?" comes the weak, unwelcome greeting of the king.
Adrienne mouths the word "Stormcrow?" at Aragorn, who walks beside her, but is dismissed.
"A just question, my liege," says the man standing at the king's side before going on to speak ill of Gandalf. Besides his trash talking, his appearance is also garbage. His skin is sickly pale and his teeth yellow. Atop his head is stringy, greasy hair. He also has no eyebrows, for some reason.
"Be silent," Gandalf replies. "Keep your forked tongue behind your teeth. I have not passed through fire and death to bandy crude words with a witless worm."
Ha ha, he called him a worm.
Wormtongue's eyes widen in alarm. "His staff! I told you to take the wizard's staff!"
At that, soldiers rush to apprehend the small group and save the king from a non-existent threat. Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli instantly start throwing punches.
Without her swords, Adrienne reaches for her pepper spray. She flicks off the safety and aims it at a soldier heading her way.
"I'm warning you, " she says, "I won't hesitate to use this."
A mixture between confusion and amusement crosses the guard's face as he stares at the tiny, brightly colored object. Ignoring her warning, he rushes at her.
Pressing the button, the offensive contents shoot out towards the man's face, and he immediately cries out, covering his burning eyes.
"Sorcerous!" he cries, catching the attention of others in alarm.
"You know what? Sure," she complies. Sorcerous does sound pretty badass, so she'll take it. "And there's more where that came from!"
She does have limited shots left in the thing, but they don't need to know that.
Legolas' fist comes up to punch a guy rushing at him from behind, not even needing to turn around. And God dammit if that isn't the hottest thing Adrienne has ever seen.
Gimli steps on Wormtongue as he tries to slink away, warning him to stay down as Gandalf addresses the king.
It seems like the wizard is trying to perform an exorcism, if his 'I release you' bravado is any indication. The king only laughs though, the sound chilling Adrienne to her bones.
Forget a bath, just throw the whole king away.
"You have no power here, Gandalf the Grey," he says.
In the most badass response, Gandalf throws off his cloak, revealing his shining white robes, and tries to exorcize the man once more.
Just then, a pretty blonde haired young woman appears and tries to rush towards the king, but Aragorn holds her back.
"If I go," the king rasps, "Théoden dies."
"You could not kill me," Gandalf says as they all watch on, "you will not kill him."
"Rohan is mine!"
"Begone!"
The king roars and lunges at Gandalf, who avoids the attack and uses his staff. Théoden falls back with a pained groan that is soon followed by more.
Gandalf sighs in relief.
Aragorn finally allows the woman he's holding to go up to the king, who helps him up and watches in awe as his face returns to a normal color. Clarity comes back to his eyes and he looks at his surroundings, his gaze coming to rest on the girl.
"I know your face," he says softly, and the girl breaks out into a wide, watery smile.
The spell has been broken, just like something out of a fairytale.
"Éowyn," he breathes. "Éowyn. Gandalf?"
"Breathe the free air again, my friend," the wizard replies, just as relieved as the king himself.
"Dark have my dreams been of late."
"Your fingers would remember their old strength better if they grasped your sword," Gandalf wisely suggests.
As the king of Rohan carefully lifts up his sword, his eyes shining with renewed resolution as they stare upon the shiny weapon, the entire room can feel the change in energy. Their old king is back and more determined than ever.
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"Where is Théodred? Where is my son?"
Adrienne stares dully at her empty plate, the earlier scene replaying in her mind. The most horrible silence had fallen over the people after the king asked that question, and Adrienne knew something just awful had happened. The guards and commoners alike looked at one another helplessly, until Éowyn made her way over to him.
The young woman relayed the bad news, and Adrienne could see the way her chin quivered ever so slightly as she spoke, despite the composure she maintained, telling of his son's passing.
But the worst part was what came next.
It was the way he violently flinched, as if someone had physically stabbed him in the heart. It was the way he said, "No," and shook his head in utter disbelief. It was the way his face was hauntingly impassive as Éowyn led him inside.
No tears were shed then, but Adrienne knew better. It was only a matter of time before reality set in.
The whole thing stirred something in Adrienne, though what she's not sure.
"Adrienne?" a voice asks, startling her from her thoughts.
She turns to Legolas seated beside her and blinks. "Hm?"
"You were…not present," he says with a concerned frown.
Adrienne tries to ground herself. It's evening now and they're at the dining hall having their fill. Earlier their horses were tended to while they were shown to their rooms to put their belongings. It's rather nice to be among people and treated like guests again, despite it all.
"Sorry," she answers, noticing they're all waiting for her to respond. "I just…I still can't believe Théoden was so deeply under that spell he didn't even know his own son had died. Or cared, at least."
"The hold Saruman had over him was very great," Aragorn tells her. "We cannot blame him for his negligence during that time."
"Oh, I didn't mean it to sound like I was blaming him," Adrienne quickly corrects herself. "I just meant to say it's crazy how powerful that spell was. It's sad, really."
"Quite so," Gandalf inputs.
Just then Éowyn walks up and places a plate of freshly baked honey rolls on their table. "Here," she says, "I had these made just for you."
"Gee thanks!" Adrienne takes one and almost moans at the warm, fluffy bread she bites into. Studying the angel who brought them said bread, Adrienne notes that the girl is quite pretty; long blonde hair, cute nose, and light dusting of freckles. She also notes that Éowyn's eyes keep landing on Aragorn.
"I have not yet had time to properly thank you all," she says. "These have been dark times for Rohan, but you have brought hope into our hearts."
"We merely reminded King Théoden of who he is," Gandalf replies modestly.
The girl hums in agreement. "I'm afraid I have felt quite lost myself, even if it did not show, but no longer. Today I am strong as ever, now that I have my true uncle back." Her gaze goes to Aragorn expectantly, but he's as quiet as always.
God dammit man, she tries to mentally project into his mind, get your head in the game.
"Here, here!" Adrienne says around a mouthful of bread, filling in the conversation's lull. She raises her glass of water for effect.
Éowyn only stares at her curiously, as if not sure what to make of her, but smiles ever so slightly.
"Well I think it's time we all retire for the night," Gandalf suggests, earning a tired chorus of agreement from the others. "We must rest while we can to prepare for the coming days ahead."
"It's gonna be weird sleeping on an actual bed, in a tiny room by myself tonight," Adrienne comments. "I've gotten so used to sleeping under the open sky with you guys."
"I can walk you to your room, at least," Legolas offers.
Her eyes subconsciously snap to the others, but they give nothing away. "Oh, that's really not necessary."
"It is no trouble, truly."
"Um, alright then, if you insist."
"I do," he says firmly, making her cheeks warm even as she bids the others goodnight.
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The walk down the halls as Legolas escorts Adrienne to her assigned room is a surprisingly quiet one. The girl rarely runs out of things to say, and especially now that they're among walls and people of men, along with the peace of mind knowing Merry and Pippin are alive, he expected her to be extra chatty. Her not saying much concerns him.
"Well, here we are," Adrienne says when they arrive at her door. "Thanks for walking with me." She reaches for the handle, but Legolas places a hand on her shoulder, prompting her to look at him questioningly.
"What weighs on your mind this eve?" he asks.
She shrugs, looking like she's choosing which answer to go with. "I'm not really looking forward to the funeral tomorrow," she ends up saying.
"That can be expected. Funerals are not happy occasions."
He doesn't care for them much himself; it pains him to see mortals grieve. It's something he doesn't think he'll ever get used to.
"Yeah, I know. It's just," she exhales and shrugs in frustration, "I haven't been to one since my mom's."
"I see."
"Yeah…" She rubs her arm uncomfortably.
He hates seeing her like this, so he offers a solution. "You do not have to attend if it will trouble you so."
She quickly looks up at him. "No, no, it's fine. That would be rude."
"I'm sure King Théoden and Lady Éowyn would understand."
"My mom's funeral was over five years ago now. That's a long time."
"Adrienne–"
"Legolas, I'll be okay, really." She gives him a smile as if to prove her point.
He seems to consider arguing it further, but finally decides otherwise. "Alright, I'll let it be."
"Thank you," she says, her smile turning appreciative.
She waits for him to say something else, but he doesn't, so they just stand there in front of her door in silence, staring at one another. Eventually, she makes to enter her room, creeping closer to the door. "So…I guess this is goodnight."
"I suppose so."
"Well…goodnight, then. Or wait, losto vae."
A warm smile stretches across his lips. "Losto vae, Adrienne."
He watches as she opens the door and enters her room, all the while his insides are screaming at him to say something more, but he doesn't. He doesn't even know what it is he wants to say.
She turns around and starts to close the door, but stops. "Legolas?"
"Yes?"
She opens her mouth as if to say something, but ends up just giving him a tight smile. "Nevermind." Still smiling at him, she slowly closes the door until she can no longer see his soft face.
Legolas is left staring at the now closed door, unable to shake the feeling that she's not telling him something-and ignoring the feeling that's telling him he might be doing the same thing.