To Leila's delight, what was left of the fellowship was going after Merry and Pippin. With Frodo and Sam going to Mordor alone now, it was the only logical choice left. Aragorn was very intense, stopping almost never for breaks or food. Gimli complained about this a lot. Leila was also worried for Soriel, who was bearing a brave face, even when they had been running on foot for three days straight.
When they finally got through the wooded area, Legolas and Leila were able to see the Uruks, and this helped as well. When they ran ahead this time, Aragorn called out to them, "Legolas! What do your elf eyes see?"
"The Uruks turn north-east!" Legolas replied. "They're taking the Hobbits to Isengard!" Aragorn picked up the pace.
Leila was trying to hurry, but started to look back to check on Soriel, when her foot caught a rock she could not see. She would have fallen had it not been for Legolas, who swiftly caught her. This made her blush, and Legolas smile shyly. Gimli chuckled and shook his head.
They were now in the country of Rohan, and Leila felt a twinge of discomfort. Aragorn finding a leaf from Lothlorien distracted her from such feelings. When they determined that Merry and Pippin may still be alive, they quickened the pace even further, until they heard the rumbling of hooves. At first, they hid from the company, but Aragorn seemed to recognize them.
"Riders of Rohan!" he called, coming out from his hiding place. "What news from the Mark?"
The band of riders turned to surround them, and they found themselves face to face with spears. Leila instinctively stepped in front of Soriel. The leader emerged and began to speak, "What business does a man, three elves, and a dwarf have in the Riddermark? Speak quickly!" he commanded.
"You give me your name, horse master, and I shall give you mine," Gimli said, unexpectedly.
"Gimli…" whispered Leila under her breath, as the rider stepped down from his horse.
"I would cut off your head, dwarf," he threatened. "If it only stood higher from the ground."
"He does not stand alone," Legolas retorted, acting quickly and drawing his bow. "You would die before your stroke fell."
Leila was as alert as she had ever been, willing Legolas to put down his bow. Luckily, Aragorn acted. He lowered Legolas's bow, and even though the men still glared at each other, at least the immediate threat to Legolas was no longer there.
"I am Aragorn, son of Arathorn," Aragorn began. "This is Gimli, son of Gloin; Legolas, son of Thranduil; Soriel of Lothlorien; and Leila of Mirkwood. We are friends of Rohan and Théoden, your king."
This made the man pause. "Théoden no longer recognizes friend from foe. Not even his own kin," he explained, removing his helmet. "I am Eomer, son of Eomund. My riders and I are those still loyal to Rohan, and for that, we are banished."
"We are tracking a band of Uruk-Hai through these lands," Aragorn explained. "They had taken two of our friends captive and were heading this way."
There was a trace of guilt on Eomer's face. "We slaughtered a group of orcs in the night," he said. "We piled the carcasses and burned them." He pointed in the direction, and they all could see the smoke.
"Two Hobbits," Gimli said, almost dire. "Did you see two Hobbits with them?"
"They would be small," Aragorn said. "Only children to your eyes."
Eomer shook his head slightly. "We left none alive," he told them gravely. "I can give you these horses for your journey," he said suddenly and whistled to summon them, and Leila was impressed by the animals.
"May they bear you to better fortune than their former masters," he offered, as he remounted his horse and replaced his helmet. "Look for you friends, but do not trust a hope. It has forsaken these lands," he advised. Leila noticed his last glance was for Soriel, but thought nothing of it for the moment. He was a man, after all, and Soriel was very beautiful.
"We ride on!" he called to his riders, and they left the company there.
Leila was not sure what to think of this new information as she rode her horse towards the smoke. She wanted to believe Merry and Pippin were still alive, but the scene before her looked bleak. Eomer had spoken true. There were carcasses piled very high, the smoke still rising from them. The stench was almost overwhelming. Orcs smelled bad in life, and even worse in death.
When Soriel caught up to her, Leila whispered to her, "That man stared hard at you. I think he liked what he saw." This caused Soriel to roll her eyes, and Gimli's voice brought the two she-elves back to the present moment.
"It's one of their wee belts," he whimpered, pulling it out of the pile. "We failed them."
Leila felt tears come up in her eyes as she and Legolas began a prayer for the two Hobbits. Aragorn kicked an orc helmet and cried out as he fell to his knees. It was Soriel who truly surprised Leila.
"It was for nothing," she whispered. "It was for nothing," she repeated, louder this time. Leila could almost feel the wave of emotion overtaking her friend, and now Soriel began to shout. "Boromir gave his life for these Hobbits and now they are dead! His sacrifice is meaningless now! He died in vain!"
Soriel also kicked an orc helmet, but did not fall to her knees as Aragorn had. She did, however, weep openly and let out a wail in her grief. Leila felt her heart sink, and her stomach clench. She was so upset for Soriel and was just about to go to her, but Aragorn beat her. He wrapped his arms around Soriel, and she cried into his chest for several moments before continuing.
"I hate this," she cried, and Leila let some tears fall as well. "I hate that he is gone and will never see his child. I hate that I will be alone."
"You are not alone," Aragorn said, comfortingly. "And Boromir died bravely. His death was not-" He suddenly stopped and was looking especially hard at the ground near to him.
"Aragorn?" Soriel asked, wiping the tears off of her cheeks.
He bent down and inspected further. "A Hobbit lay here," he said, indicating with his finger. "And the other…" he trailed off. Leila was thoroughly confused as to why this was significant. "They crawled… their hands were bound," he said, starting to follow a trail away from the burning orc corpses, causing Leila's heart to fill with hope.
"Their bonds were cut!" he cried, lifting cut rope from the grass. Leila got even more excited. "Their tracks lead away from the battle! And into the forest of Fanghorn."
"Fanghorn," Gimli said. "What madness drove them in there?"
"We will rest outside the forest," Aragorn commanded and began preparation for camping there, despite sunset being hours from then. Even though they were all concerned for Merry and Pippin, they also needed some rest, and they were all quite intimidated by the forest. Even Legolas was wary of it. Gimli was the most vocal, but they took his comments as jokes and remained there.
When dark fell and Aragorn started a fire, Leila sat down next to Legolas. "I seek wisdom," she said plainly.
"I shall do my best," Legolas agreed with a smile that Leila returned.
"I wish to help Soriel in her grief, but I know not how to do so," Leila told him. "I have never lost a lover."
Legolas thought this over. "But you have experienced loss," he said.
"I feel as if our losses cannot be compared," Leila told him. "I do not want to assume."
"Loss, despite the specifics, is still loss. While none are the same, it is a shared feeling among all races. Dwarves, Elves, Men, and even Hobbits feel those things. It is just as we share happiness, that makes us capable of sharing loss as well," he explained.
Leila couldn't help but smile at his profound and sensitive words. "You are wise beyond your years, my friend," she joked.
Legolas smirked, and patted her hand gently. "There is still very much to teach you, penneth," he retorted, making her laugh.
Leila approached a very lonely looking Soriel and sat next to her. "How are you doing?" she asked.
"Not well," Soriel replied gloomily. "My actions earlier today… that was not becoming."
"Soriel," Leila began. "You are allowed to show your feelings. We want to be here for you."
Soriel paused and Leila saw tears come back to her eyes. "Thank you," she whispered.
Leila reached out and embraced her friend. After a moment and a deep breath, Soriel returned it. Leila tried to put many unsaid things into that hug. She was not always great with words, and she hoped she could show Soriel how dear she was to everyone there with her actions. Leila pulled away and looked at her friend.
"And listen, I understand completely. I had more than one unbecoming moment when I was with child," she said, trying to comfort her further.
"That's reassuring," Soriel said, and after a pause she continued. "I hope this is not too difficult for you."
This took Leila aback. "You having a baby? Not at all. I'm happy for you, Soriel," Leila said.
"Thank you, my friend," Soriel said, smiling at Leila.
When they returned to the men, Soriel began to speak. "I would like to apologize for earlier. My feelings took hold and I was not myself."
"It is nothing," Aragorn reassured her. "We all understand how difficult this is for you."
With that they all gathered by the fire and started to relax. Leila was feeling very warm, and was just about to fall asleep when a hooded figure appeared, causing her to leap to her feet. She readied her swords, but the figure was gone as quickly as he came, taking their horses with them.
"Who do you suppose that was?" asked Leila.
"It must be Saruman," Gimli chimed in. "Only he would do something such as this."
"He was clad in grey," argued Legolas.
"Well, he could not very well go walking about Rohan as himself," Leila pointed out.
"With the power he holds now, he could," clarified Aragorn.
"Well, I hope Eomer was not expecting those horses back," Leila replied, causing them all to laugh. However, they remained on their guard the entire night. The next morning, they entered the forest.
"This forest is old," Legolas said, admiring it. "So old I almost feel young again."
"Are you so old?" Leila teased.
"I should be to you, penneth," he replied, causing her to fake offense, but they exchanged playful smiles. Suddenly he became quite serious.
"Aragorn, something is out there," he said, walking in the direction he heard the noise. Aragorn stood beside him. "The white wizard approaches," Legolas whispered.
Aragorn turned to the rest of the company. "Do not let him speak," he told them. "He may cast a spell on us."
Leila felt her heart pounding loudly in her chest and her breathing increased. She had never faced someone as dangerous as Saruman before and she was not quite sure she could handle it. He approached, and Legolas fired an arrow, that he brushed away as he would a pest. Gimli threw his axe, but he shattered it. Leila felt her swords grow hot in her hands and she dropped them quickly, and the same happened to Aragorn.
A bright light still hid the wizard from view, so Aragorn yelled, "Who are you? Show yourself!"
The light darkened to reveal the wizard, who was not Saruman, but Gandalf. Leila was surprised to see the old man, who looked slightly different with white hair and robes, but still the same. She followed the company to their knees at Gandalf's feet.
"Forgive us," Legolas said. "We mistook you for Saruman."
"I am Saruman," replied Gandalf. "Or rather Saruman as he should be."
Aragorn, however, had remained standing and staring at the wizard in shock. "You… you fell," he said.
"Through fire," Gandalf began. "And water." He then told the tale of his fight and defeat of the Balrog. He spoke of his death like experience and resurrection as Gandalf the White, taking Saruman's place as the White Wizard and the leader of that Order. He also brought back their horses, revealing that it was in fact, he who stole them. His last point was concerning Merry and Pippin. He told them that the Hobbits were safe in the hands of the Ents and that the rest of them must accompany him out of the forest and to Edoras and Théoden the King. This eased Soriel and Leila's worry, but only a little. For now, they had to trust Gandalf.
When they got to the edge of the forest, Gandalf whistled for his own horse. Shadowfax, he was called, and he was the most immaculate creature Leila had ever laid eyes on. He was pure white and the world seemed to slow down when he approached. He was majestic and beautiful and Leila was honored to ride next to him to the heart of Rohan.