Another Darkness

Chapter 5: An Unwanted Companion

A/N: Ah, I knew I couldn't help myself. Anyway, thanks for those who have favourited and followed. Just so you know Thranduil won't always be so OOC, he's just adjusting. I plan to make this a long and epic story, but to do that, I would like some encouragement. So please review!

Ithil slipped through the cover of darkness, beneath the cover of forrest. Moonlight barely filtered through the leaves. Despite evil having left it over 180 years ago, the forest still had an air of danger. The leaves had changed to green and the paths were once again clear, just as when it was the great Greenwood, however, the water still tainted with enchantment, and Ithil knew from speaking with Thranduil to stay clear of the water, and do not upset the trees.

She was close to Lake Town after only a day, yet, now she had to travel on the riverbed. It wasn't long before she had reached the frozen town. Looking around her on the river cusp, she realized it would have been far easier to steal a boat and sail up the River. Then she would at least have a boat to get to the town. Steeling her breath, Ithil dropped her heavy cloak and dived into the icy water.

It bit into her skin like cold fire and soaked into her bones. The cold stole away her breath and made her body like lead. Yet still, she pushed forward, her arms strongly propelling her. Her leather made her heavy. It was a long way to swim, a fools errand really. Yet what other choice did she have? It was cross the lake, or not get to where she had to go.

After hours of swimming, her entire body was tired, she only had little to go, another hour at most...Her lungs stung in agony and her body was colder than the peak of a mountain. Her vision was beginning to darken along with the night. Her tired body fell fatigued and began to sank deeper into the water, unable to hold herself up.

The last thing she saw before the unyielding cold took her was a pair of arms reaching into the water.

Ithil awoke later in a warm bed. Her eyes focus on the room around her, it was a wooden shack it seemed, yet comfortable. It seemed new in terms of buildings in Middle Earth. To be honest, Ithil was getting tired of waking up in strange beds.
"So, you finally decided to wake, I see?" Ithil looked to the voice and frowned. A human man stood before her. He had dark hair tied at the nape of his neck, he was fairly clean shaven, though stubble dusted across his jaw. He had deep brown eyes, far richer than Voron's muddy ones.
"Where am I?" she asked, standing away from the bed. He was far taller than her, she noticed with dismay, that she only came to his chest.
"You are in Lake Town, which is a far better choice to the lake you were drowning in. What kind of idiot tries to swim across the long lake? I'm surprised you did not die earlier." He crossed the room, just out of arms reach of the woman.
"I had no other way to cross."
"You should have waited on the barge for a bargeman, like a normal person. You wouldn't be the first person smuggled into this town. I doubt you'll be the last."
"If I did that, then I would have been caught up to, not something I am keen on."
"Who did you upset? Got enemies tracking you down?"
"Oh, no. My friends most likely. Or the ruddy elves," she replied. He chuckled and crossed his arms.
"You're running from your friends? That's not very nice, is it?" he laughed. Ithil scowled at him.
"It's for their own good. And I do not have time for this. I need to get further North, to Erebor." She pushed past him and made for the door.
"Why do you need to go there? It's nothing but waste. Sure, it was prosperous for a while, but over time...gold runs out. The dwarves moved to the misty mountains where they have found new gold. Head West."
"I am not after Dwarves or gold."
"Then what are you after?" He asked in a low voice, his deep brown eyes pondering. Ithil stared at him a moment and almost laughed. Almost.
"I don't know. Hopefully I'll know when I get there."
"You're the stupidest person I have ever met..." Ithil raised her eyebrow at him.
"You don't even know me."
"No, what is your name?"
"Ithil. Yours, human?"
"Vicor Bard," he answered with some pride, "Really, I'm the only hope you have to getting to Erebor...alive. My great grandfather was the man in charge of the human side of things in the battle for Erebor. Well...the second one...with Smaug." Ithil smirked.
"Ah yes, Smaug. Everyone in the mainlands were so scared of such a puny dragon."
"Puny? How dare you! What do you know of dragons?"
"I come from the North. The real North. Dragons there are real dragons." Vicor stared at her.
"The North? Don't be absurd, nothing lives in the north."
"Where do you think all the bad creatures come from? All the ones in your nightmares. They come from the North... and the East."
"Are you a monster, Ithil of the North?"
"I don't know," she answered honestly. Ithil left the room, entering further into the house. Looking out the windows she could see an icy river.

"Hey...HEY! Don't think you can just wander into the bloody Erebor! You cannot find the Arkem stone, it's pasted down the line of the next royal dwarves. There is nothing under that mountain! It's bled dry."
"I am not after some stupid stone, at least I don't think so." He looked indignant.
"I did not rescue some bloody drowning woman to have her freeze to death in the bloody mountains! All because she was too stupid to allow her friends to help her." Ithil turned on the black haired man with fire in her eyes.
"You know nothing of my journey, or what I have to face. I would keep your mouth shut, Vicor Bard of Lake Town. I am from the North, I have seen my fair share of darkness, but never have I seen something as dark as whoever is after me and whatever is under that mountain. Either I get to it first, or he gets it first...or he gets both of us if I do not hurry fast enough. So excuse me if I take my leave." She side stepped the man and continued on her way out of his home.

She was half way down the bridged path when she heard Vicor fall into step with her.
"What...what are you doing?" Ithil asked. Vicor cocked his head.
"I'm here to make sure you don't die."
"I don't even know you, Bard."
"Yeah, well, I'm not in the habit of saving people just so they die later."
"I am not you responsibility. Go home."
"Ah, and let a pretty little thing like yourself get lost in a dwarven mountain. Nah, not a chance." Ithil rolled her eyes.
"You are awfully trusting, how do you know I'm not the bad guy? How do you know that what I am seeking will not be used to kill you all?"
"If that were true, it would mean you'd be smarter. Considering your little marathon swim, I doubt it."
"That is a very poor judge of character. Maybe I'm a dumb bad guy."
"...No. I don't think so. Besides, I am so very curious of why and what, that I cannot turn back."
"You... are annoying," Ithil hissed. She heard Vicor laugh.
"Oh, yes."

**Orma and Voron**

The two humans stood on the edge of the river, unknowingly faced with the same predicament as Ithil. However, these two did have the sense to stay until a Bargeman showed up. It wasn't long before the shape of a boat appeared over the mist. There was a silence between the two since they had left. Orma, because of her distaste for the criminal and Voron, for the love of his head attached to his body.
"You two okay?" asked a man upon the water. A shaggy man with a crooked smile.
"Fine, lad. Don't suppose you'd have room on that vessel for the two of us, would you?" Voron asked the man with his own lopsided grin.
"There seems to be a rather big influx of people into Lake Town, just a week ago a young lass was carried in on Vicor Bard's boat. The silly girl decided to try and swim across the lake."
"So she did go this way?" Orma mused to herself. Voron smiled at the bargeman.
"Yes, we'd be looking for that silly girl. A friend of ours."
"Alright, climb aboard, we hardly have to hide any smugglings any more."

**Legolas**

Legolas watched from further upstream, out of sight to the three at the dock. He could hear everything that was being said, however, he had no interest in going to Lake Town. He had no doubt that Ithil was already past the rebuilt town. As he watched the humans sail off, Legolas took to dashing across the riverbed.

The elf was unsure what to say or do when he did find the Ithrandur, he knew to keep his distance but he wanted to know why she ran away. Something to do with the vision she had, he was sure. Was she heading back to her home in the North? Either way, he knew his father wanted her back, but Legolas wasn't sure that was a great idea.

**Ithil**

The further North they went, the more chills set into her skin. It had little to do with the cold, and all to do with seeing a magnificent city like Dale a ghost town. Ithil knew of the South better that most in Ensam. If she were honest, she had always wanted to travel to the mainlands and thus had read about everything that had happened. In the North, culture was all but non existent and history was all but lost.

So seeing the City Of Dale silent and dried up as much as Erebor, it was heart wrenching. To Ithil, it seemed wrong to see cities of the south as desolate as those ruins in the North.
"It's just like it was after the first attack of Smaug all those years ago. We thought that after the Dwarves returned to the mountain, then there'd never be poverty in these parts again. Really, the Dwarves took most of the gold to the Misty Mountains where they made a new kingdom, just under a different mountain," Vicor told her quietly as they walked through Dale.
"Why did the Dwarves leave? I thought the mountain ran out of gold..." Ithil asked.
"No one really knows, they just up and left, telling people that the mountain had run dry, but my grandmother told me some saw them leaving with bundles of gold, heading west to the misty mountains. I think they found something under there that they wanted no part of. Out of pure coincidence, do you think you should mess with whatever it is you're looking for."
"I don't know what is under that mountain but I have to find it, before the other one does."

They made it through the city and began walking to the lonely mountain. The close she came to the mountain, the more she felt the pull from deep beneath it. Like an invisible string tugging at her, urging her to keep going. it called to her like a siren.

Vicor watched as Ithil's extraordinary eyes glazed over, her pretty face going slacker the closer they came. He knew not why he decided to tag along with this strange woman after he saved her from drowning. It was just in his gut, to make sure she was not alone. She seemed like she knew nothing of her environment, so focused on what lay beneath her he was surprised she did not just start clawing at the ground.

They came to the gates of Erebor, left open as a sign of abandonment.
"Why hasn't anybody claimed the mountain, if only just for settlement?" Ithil asked absently as they passed through the great gates. The halls were dusty and barren. The place was in fairly good condition, abandoned no more than 50 years ago, it seemed.
"Well...there's a superstition. It's said that the mountain is cursed," Vicor replied, looking around him.

Ithil wandered through the halls as though she had lived there her whole life. They came to the mine part of the mountain.
"How do we get down there? All the shafts were destroyed," Vicor asked, peering over edge and down into a bottomless pit. Ithil grabbed two abandoned pickaxes and shoved them at Vicor.
"If you're absolutely sure you want to follow me, despite how stupid it is, follow me." Ithil grabbed some pickaxes of her own and flung herself at the wall of the cavern. Sticking the axes into the wall. She slid down about 10 paces until they stuck.
"You're insane!" Vicor called from above.
"Yes!" Ithil laughed.
"Here goes nothing," Vicor whispered to himself. He took the leap of faith and jumped at the wall. he landed beside Ithil and turned with a grin.
"You know, if you get yourself killed because you decided to trust a stranger, that will not be my problem."
"I was bored anyway."
"Nothing you are doing makes any sense," Ithil mumbled as she began lowering herself. Stabbing into the earth.
"What makes you think something is down here?" he asked, following her.
"Would you believe me if I said I had a hunch?"
"I'm already hanging off a cavern wall, why not believe you?"
The two continued to descend into the darkness.