Kaydriella's POV:
After dinner we all retreated back to our rooms. Any last minute packing was highly encouraged. I was already packed and ready to go so I thought I could catch a nice comfortable slumber before sacrificing my fluffy bed for hard cold dirt and rocks.
I woke up but it wasn't exactly dawn so I still had a little time. I should go fill a quiver with arrows to take on the journey. I am not as skilled with a bow but I am still better than most. My forte lies with my trusty short swords. I made sure to take the ones Lord Elrond gave me for my birthday; the ones that belonged to my Ada. I should probably give them a last minute polish since they wouldn't be getting one for a long time. I always loved going into the armory because of all the endless possibilities it had inside. It was filled with all different types of bows, arrows, bets, swords, shields; anything you could think of. Lord Elrond kept it very well stocked.
When I reached the armory I gave my blades to the smithy for a quick polish. He happily took them and began working on them.
"These are two beautiful short swords, my lady"
"Oh, thank you. They were my Ada's when he fought in Lord Elrond's militia. They were a present"
"It seems to me that they were forged in the end first age, in the halls of Lindon. They are very well made, my lady."
"How do you know that?"
"Well, my lady, this type of steel is only available near the west sea; also the crafter of the blades left their signature mark on them. See" he pointed to the small design on the end of the blades.
"Those marks, my lady, I recognize from Lindon"
I was completely blown away at his knowledge. He was very wise in his craft.
I continued to walk around the armory. The smithy said it would take a little while but how he would do them right away. I picked up a few bows and drew back to get a good feel of the bow. I then picked a quiver full of arrows and was done. I went back to the smithy to get my blades and leave.
"Diola lle"
"Namaarie, my lady. Aa' lasser en lle coia orn n' omenta gurth"
I had everything I needed. I just needed to get my pack from my room and find the others. I had almost made it back to my room when Arwen came to me very distressed and upset.
"Arwen? Whatever is the matter?"
"Oh Kay, you would not believe it, if I told you"
"Come inside Arwen" I opened the door to my room so we would not be heard by others. I wonder who has made her so upset.
"Arwen, sit down and tell me what is bothering you so. Here, have a glass of water" I pour a glass for her out of the pitcher that sits on my table. She takes the glass very reluctantly, which began to scare me. She drank all the water and it still took her a little while to compile herself back together.
"Oh Kay, I am sorry. I did not mean to worry before you left. I just received some shocking news that just took me by surprise"
"Arwen"
"Yes?"
"You are a terrible liar. Do you know that?"
"I beg your par-"
"Arwen?"
"I know but I do not wish to ruin your farewell ceremony. Every elf will be there and now I have made us both late"
"It is alright. Even if they try to leave without me, I can always run and catch up. Now, what is it?"
"I do not wish to say" she lowers her head and suddenly I see how I look when I do the same gesture to avoid social confrontation.
"Then what can I do to help?"
"Will you promise me something?"
"Anything" I sat next to her on the bed and held her hand.
"Promise me you'll keep him alive, that you'll do your best to keep him alive"
"Arwen-"
"I know you never break a promise. I know you do not promise something unless you know you can keep it but-"
"Arwen! You did not let me answer. If you waited a moment more you would have heard me say, yes."
"Yes?"
"Yes. I promise Arwen"
"OH KAY! You have made me happier than you could ever imagine" she practically jumped off the bed and hugged me tightly. She let a few tears slip from her eyes but they weren't because of sadness.
"Happier than me letting you make me a dress?"
"Oh much happier than that my Mellon!"
"So how much happier would you be if I said that I would be needing a dress for when I come home after all of this?"
"Do not play with my emotions right now Kay. Do not say things you do not mean."
"You know me to never say something I do not mean. Why would I stop now?"
"Oh my dear Mellon My dear, dear Mellon, I will miss you so very much. You must come back. Now you must promise me to come back so that I may see you in this dress, okay?"
"Sure"
She hugged me again but this time not as tight. I did wonder about what had made her so distraught, from her promise it seemed like it rooted back to Aragorn. He seems to be upsetting all the ladies lately.
"Arwen, I do have one question for you before I leave"
"What is it Kay?"
"My horse, Fae-hun, I released him a little after I settled down in Isengard. I figured he would find his way back to Rivendell. Was he ever received?"
"I am sorry Kay, but I do not think so. I have not seen Fae-hun since you left for Isengard. I will keep my eye out for him though. I could never mistake him, even if I tried"
I helped her fix her hair and circlet. Her cheeks, however, were still quite rosy from her emotions. I grabbed my pack and strapped on the bow and quiver. I made sure to have both short swords before I closed the door behind me. We both ran to make it on time for Lord Elrond's farewell to the Fellowship. We made it just before he began to speak and Arwen was not kidding about all the elves being present. Every elf was staring at us because we were late. Now both of our cheeks were rosy. Arwen went to go stand in line with the other ladies while I made my way towards the Fellowship. I had to fight the urge to lower my head on my way over to the group. I took my place beside Boromir and Gimli, behind Merry and Pippin. After a good stare down from Lord Elrond, he began his farewell.
"The Ring-bearer is setting out on a Quest of Mount Doom. On you who travel with him, no oath or bond is laid to go further than you will. Farewell. Hold your purpose. May the blessing of Elves and Men and all free folk go with you"
Lord Elrond bowed to us. Legolas, Aragorn ,and myself all responded the same to his gesture. A proper crossing of our arm over our hearts and bow of the head is the elvish way to receive a farewell.
"The Fellowship awaits the Ring-bearer"
Gandalf spoke to Frodo, letting him know that it was time to leave. Young Frodo turned towards the exit and looked at all the companions he had gained. He began to walk and everyone followed behind. Aragorn and I were the last to exit Rivendell. His eyes were fixed upon Arwen who gave him no expression of emotion on her face. I stared at what was my home for the past two centuries. I saw Elladan and Elrohir amongst the elves on the balcony and looked at them. They looked back at me and we all smiled. The held their hands up and waved from the distance. I bowed my heads to them and then turned to see Aragorn still looking at Arwen. I put my hand on his back and he looked at me. We both knew it was time to leave home and we both knew we could not look back. Together we walked forward, following the rest of the party and leaving behind our home and loved ones.
The first night was not as bad as I pictured. The ground was cold but I did not bother me like it did the Hobbits. I have discovered that Merry and Pippin do not sleep, they bicker all night long. Legolas and Aragorn took night watch while the rest of us slept. I did not need too much sleep because I there was no strenuous activity that made me tiered. I sat closer to the hobbits than anyone else. I couldn't tell if Gandalf was asleep or not because of his eyes being open when he sleeps. Half way through the night Frodo seemed to be having a bad dream. He was tossing and turning in his blanket. I got up to move closer to him. I rolled him so that he was lying on his back but the dream still did not cease. Sam was sleeping next to him and awoke. He saw Frodo shaking and immediately went to wake him up.
" -"
"Shhhhhhh Sam. Do not wake him"
"What? You've got to be joking. He is having a-"
I cut him off to show him. I put my hand on Frodo's face and the other one on his chest. I read about nightmares in a book from Saruman. The best cure is to send warm impulses from myself to the one having the night terrors. I did not know if it was going to work since I had lost my magic but I remember doing it on Grima once. It felt good afterwards and all you need to do is think warm. I thought of the summer nights in Rivendell; How even the cold moon was warm in the summer.
Frodo's shaking stopped, his breathing slowed down and became more relaxed. He tugged more into his blanket and fell easily into a deeper sleep.
"How did you do that? What are you?"
"Shhh Sam. Let's not wake him now"
I took my blanket and wrapped it around Frodo to keep him warm. I gestured to Sam that we should talk away from where others could hear. We walked away from the camp and sat down behind a tree.
"Sam, the answer to your question has a long story. A story I'm not sure I can even begin to explain to you"
"But what you just did. No ordinary folk could do that"
"No Sam, no ordinary folk could"
"Then what are you?"
"I am a mage Sam, but you have probably never heard of such a being"
"No I haven't miss"
"My kin lived and died long before this age"
"What is a mage?"
"Well, I am not entirely sure Sam. I've been trying to figure that out myself."
"But you can do magic like Gandalf"
"I could do magic but not always like Gandalf. Mages were mainly restricted to the manipulation of the four elements but I've found ways around the rules"
"How many are there left of your kin?"
"There once were many, but then evil arose and wiped them all out. Now there is just me"
"Wow! So you can really do magic"
"I could"
"What do you mean by that?"
"I could do magic until" do I really wish to spill everything. I guess there is no point in hiding the truth any longer
"Until what Kaydriella?"
"Until they were stolen by another" there it was the plain truth.
"Stolen? I did not even know that was possible"
"Nor I. However, I do not think it permanent. As we both just witnessed, there is still something left within me to perform magic"
"Well that was not too bad. You know compared to other stories I've heard."
"Oh Sam, do you always try this hard to cheer people up?"
"I have no idea of what you're talking about"
"Come on Sam. We better head back before Legolas or Aragorn come looking for us"
I help Sam back up and we both walk back towards the camp.
"Oh Sam, one more thing, I don't want people knowing just yet about his. I want to tell them in my own time. Would you mind holding onto my secret for me? At least, for a little while?"
"Don't mention it miss"
I walked him back to Frodo and he tucked himself back into his covers. I stood back up and felt no inclination to sleep. Instead I took over Aragorn's post so he could sleep a bit before the next day. Legolas and I were both on watch and it felt a little uncomfortable. I met him right before I left for Isengard and the last time we spoke he hugged me like we were closer than just friends. It's hard to deny that he isn't attractive, but his presence is very unsettling to me. I've never really felt this way about someone else. It has always been just friends or very good friends, which feels open and relaxing. This feeling is very foreign to me and I'm not sure how to act around him. ARHHHH, I'm so confused.
I watched from the opposite side of Legolas. He looked over the east and I the west. The night was mainly quite and relaxing. It is a shame that all nights couldn't be like that. When dawn broke, I woke Gandalf to let him know it was time to continue moving. Legolas proceeded to wake up Aragorn, Frodo and Sam. I woke Merry, Pippin, and Boromir.
"Merry? Pippin? Are you guys actually sleeping?"
Snore
"Boys, it's time to get up"
They were not getting up and everyone was almost ready to leave.
"Why don't ye shake em, or perhaps kick em around a bit. That'll get em up lassie"
"I prefer not to damage them just yet Gimli. Hey Sam, toss mea piece of bacon"
"Okay"
Sam hands me the bacon and I bring it to both of their noses. They suddenly begin to inhale the smell of bacon and open their eyes to see the meat.
"Good. Now that you both are up, it is time to leave"
I walk back to Sam and hand him the piece of bacon. I wink at him and he smiles back. He is very positive. Gandalf leads on with Frodo in the front with Sam close behind. I follow behind Sam while Merry and Pippin stand to my right. Aragorn, Boromir and Legolas are at the end. Gandalf says we are heading for the Gap of Rohan to use to travel to Mordor.
Legolas POV:
The nights have been too quite. They seem too peaceful. Something is going to happen. It feels too easy. Kaydriella and I take the night watch tonight. I know she feels this too. It is an unsettling simplicity that is deceiving us. I just cannot find its true origin. Kaydriella spends a lot of her time with the hobbits and that disrespectful man from Gondor. Why does she cling so to that man? He is filled with greed and pride, what could she possibly see in him? Maybe she is amusing him out of pure sympathy. She has such a big heart. I should talk to her now before she is ambushed by others.
"My lady Kaydriella?"
"Legolas, how many times must I tell you to drop the formalities?"
"At least once more my lady"
"What can I help you with, Prince Legolas of Mirkwood?"
"Do you feel it?"
"Feel what? Legolas?"
"I know you feel it. It cannot be just me"
"I have no idea what you are talking about Legolas, I beg you would excuse me."
No. She is lying to me. I grab her arm as she tries to brush past me and turn her to face me.
"You are lying to me Kaydriella, I know you're lying and I know you feel it too. Be honest with me Kaydriella, please"
She won't look at me. She is looking at the ground. Looks like she finds the dirt more intriguing.
"Look at me and tell me I am not crazy" her gaze slowly moves from the ground up to meet my eyes
"No Legolas, you're not. I feel it too. It scares me; I don't know where it is coming from. And it is utterly unsettling."
"We must be on our guard. The others cannot tell but we can which means we have to stay alert"
"Legoals can you please let go of my arm, your grip is getting tighter"
I quickly look down to see I am holding her arm and I quickly let go.
"I am so sorry. That was very rude and improper of me to do such a thing. I just didn't want you to go"
Now I can't seem to look her in the eye. I feel a hand on my chin slowly bringing up my face so that I can see her.
"I know"
She smiles at me and then leaves. She goes to sit back closer to the others and the hobbits immediately sit around her. Frodo cuddles with her right arm; Merry and Pippin are fighting for her left. How life must be so free for her. Everything comes so naturally to her, and that smile. It was almost like my own personal star. She is by far one of the prettiest creatures I have seen.
Kaydriella's POV:
Ugh why did I smile? I must have looked so stupid. Stupid, stupid , stupid. Why can't I control myself near him? He is just so, so, so, ugh. Just forget about it. Don't think about it.
"Frodo, I need my arm back now. I have to go stand watch. You know to make sure we are not secretly ambushed in the night"
"Oh, sorry, yea of course you can have your arm back"
"Here, take this-" I give Frodo my blanket. He seems to have grown very fond of it the past days. But I guess anyone would. It is one of the softest and warmest blankets ever, if I do say so myself.
"It will make a good replacement in my absence"
The hobbits laugh at my joke and Aragorn lets out a chuckle. Boromir remains silent and the dwarf is already sleeping. I walk away from the fire and it on a nearby rock across from Legolas' position. He looks at me and I at him. We both nod in agreement and turn our backs. Tonight, we will find out where this visage of peace is coming from.
Authors Notes:
So I tried to make this just as long as the last chapter but better to end it short than bad. Please, I am in need of ideas so if you have any let me know what you think. I've been trying to play around with the point of views. Read and Review. I want to hear what you guys think. Thanks!