Previously on Chapter 7...
"And talking about Legolas, he wondered how the elf was doing..."
Chapter 8
Legolas' heart was beating one thousand beats per second.
Normally, he could've easily fought his foes off but right now, he did not stand a single chance against the five, very angry and hungry wargs that had chased him all over the southern part of Fangorn. He'd lost his arrows behind him, while he had been stuck in a tree by the wargs and the arrows had fallen off while he had painfully climbed the tree. He wanted to look back and retrieve them, but he knew he should keep running (or well, limping) and try not to look back to his imminent death.
He sighed with longing. First his knives and now his arrows? Mandos really did hate him.
And to make matters worse, Legolas was injured. His left knee was dislocated and therefore, he had to drag it as he walked. The only thing that kept him going was his right leg and a long stick he'd picked up as support. He could also feel the homemade leaf bandage on his right shoulder getting damper by the second and if he didn't patch it up properly soon, he knew he had a good chance of dying of blood loss. It was that or getting turned into elf chowder by a couple of wargs. Neither was very good to him.
The only good thing of this situation was that he did have the flowers Estel needed.
Legolas loved nature. Being a wood-elf, loving trees and anything natural was an instinct they all had when they were born, but Legolas knew that from this day on, he would never see flowers the same again. And, his hate for wargs was just going to increase more. How greedy could they be? There was an entire bush of these flowers right in the forest (unfortunately, that bush just had to be under the tree that these wargs had been resting in) and they couldn't even share a couple with him?
Talk about selfish.
Suddenly, Legolas let out a small scream as he felt a dash of pain cross his leg. He fell unto the ground with a great thump and looked back. One of the wargs had catched up with him and had been able to sink it's teeth into Legolas' leg...and to make matters even worse, he had bitten Legolas' good leg, meaning that he now had injuries in both of his legs. Legolas, gritting his teeth, grabbed his bow and swung it across the warg's head. The warg whimpered and fell down unconscious in the ground. The archer quickly got up and started on his way, with four very hungry wargs behind him.
Legolas knew his bow could be an effective weapon for his defense. However, he knew that he could not use it for offense. The bow certainly didn't have the same uses as a sword or an ax and it was just barely strong enough to become a very weak club. Other than that, the bow was close to useless without its arrows.
And yet, he was lucky to have something to protect himself with. He'd done worse things with worse circumstances than this. He had to be grateful for what little he had. Besides, if he lost his bow again, his brother would kill him, since this had been his birthday present for Legolas when the archer had turned of age. As Legolas half-ran, half-limped, he thought about the warg bite. Sure, a lot of blood was gurgling out from the wound and bleeding in two places was not going to be good for him. Even now, he felt slightly dizzy and soon, blood loss would overcome him. He needed to either kill these wargs, which seemed a bit impossible in his current state or hide somewhere until he could get them by surprise.
Legolas sighed, at least they didn't have rabies.
Or...did they? The elf really wanted to not think about it as he ran. In the distance however, he saw something that made him gulp. Thinking too much about the wargs that were about to devour him, he had ran into nowhere and now...he was lost. He looked around, trying to identify some kind of sign or feature he'd seen before...but nothing. Everything looked exactly the same! He realized now that the trees he had been dodging as he ran were now getting less and less. Legolas had arrived at a large valley with almost no trees and that not a few feet away from him...it was a dead end.
Legolas looked to both of his sides and saw that the wargs were slowly keeping up with him, trying to surround him so that they could overpower him more easily. He grabbed his bow and swung it at them. Unfortunately, these wargs were more clever and were able to avoid every hit but it did slow them down, which was the only thing he wanted to accomplish. Soon however, he reached the dead end and realized he was on top of a cliff. He looked down and hissed. Beneath him, at least thirty meters below, was a river. Legolas was not fond of water, at all. Sure, he knew how to swim but it didn't mean he liked doing it. He prefered to have firm ground under his feet or better, the thick bark of a tree. But water? He shuddered...no way in Arda.
He looked down, he felt the weight of his choice on him. Either he risked it or he tried to fight these wargs. However, the sound of the hungry growls of the wargs behind him made his choice a bit easier...
And he jumped.
Legolas smirked as he heard the annoyed, frustrated howls of the wargs as they did nothing and watched as the elf fell down the cliff. He didn't have much time to feel triumphant though, as he focused on where he was going to fall. Soon, the archer hit the water and was engulfed in the water. For many minutes, he was trapped under the strong currents. An icy cold sensation drilled through his body and he wanted to scream out but he found out that the water blocked all sound at all. He was in a prison of silence...and he hated every second of it. He fought to reach the surface, for he knew that he was running out of air; however, the potence of the river was too strong and he found out that it was dragging him further and further away.
Until Legolas hit something hard and got whacked his head.
He scowled as he grabbed on to whatever had hit him. Realizing it was an abnormally huge rock, he summoned strength into both of his arms and using his legs to push himself out of the water. Finally, after at least five minutes of being underwater, he was able to break free of the water and reach the surface. Gasping for air, he took a couple deep gulps, recovering his breath and dragged himself out of the water to sit on the rock. He was soaked wet from top to bottom and cursed. This were the only clothes he'd brought with him. He checked his pocket for the flowesr and sighed in relief as he found them wet but other than that, in a good state. Normally, nobody would've had a reason to smile but Legolas cracked a small grin as he touched his hair. Even after being injured, chased by wargs, falling off a cliff and surviving minutes underwater, his braids were in tact and not a hair was out of place. In fact, his hair looked even more shiny than before!
He smirked as he thought of his brother, teasing him and asking him about how he kept his hair so fabulous, even in battle. Although no matter how badly his brother begged...he would never reveal his secret.
He wondered if Treebeard's previous words had been true. Obviously Legolas knew Thalos and his sister loved him. Thalos had basically been there for all of Legolas' childhood, when he had needed someone the most. He had been both a father and a mother to him after...the incident. And sure, Aurell had been absent in his life for about a thousand years but even she had warmed up to him. She was more like a friend than a sister, really. She was his biggest ally, always supporting anything he wanted to do and often acting as that extra boost of confident he needed. And...his Adar. He loved Legolas, the archer supposed but maybe his Adar's idea of 'love' was tougher than that of the other fathers. However, Legolas flinched as he remembered that day. The day of the fight. The day he had decided to leave for this quest of his. They had all turned against him...and darn, it hurt.
A scent was suddenly caught in his nose and he turned around sharply to hear the distant growls of wargs. Damn, were those bastards insistent. Legolas sighed, seriously wondering what he had done to Mandos for him to hate him so much. The archer was already injured in several places, was bleeding from two places, had a dislocated knee and was completely wet. He looked into the clear water, looking at his reflection for the first time in weeks. He looked terrible...or well, at least in royal standards.
He then dived into the water, wincing as he let the water take him further on.
O-O-O
Beluriel frowned as she reached Imladris.
The round courtyard where the guests normally arrived and were greeted was empty. A chilling silence entered through the entire compound and the captain of the Mirkwood cavalry could barely believe this was the life-filled, Vilya-guarded Rivendell. Immediately, she knew something was very wrong. Extremely wrong. She guided her horse towards the stables and fed the horse an apple. Whispering for her to stay there, Beluriel went off towards the Imladris ground to investigate, clutching the letter Prince Thalos had written to explain their situation, firmly in her hands.
She had only gone to Imladris once. She had been very young and had still the shy elleth who had been lucky enough to be the apprentice to Prince Legolas. Until this day, she had no idea why someone as him would have chosen her, a lady who was training to be a blacksmith, to be his apprentice. Anyways, that time, Legolas had taken her on a 'field trip' and they'd ended up tracking a band of orcs for two weeks. They'd traveled over the Misty Mountains and had killed the remaining orcs of that party before they had been trapped in a wild snow storm. They'd taken shelter in Imladris, where she and Legolas had been warmly welcomed.
She shook Legolas off as she walked through the halls. If she kept thinking about how he was, it would make this search much more difficult.
The halls were mostly empty, occasionally filled with some passing servant running to do an errant or some kind of scholar clutching a pile of books heading off to some meeting. They had all greeted her with a nod and she'd replied likewise but she still found this all very strange. Something was definitely wrong...She couldn't shake out this eerie feeling off her shoulders. It was as if a cape of silence had settled upon Imladris. A sensation of sadness hung in the very air.
Beluriel twisted through the maze of pristine white halls to head towards Lord Elrond's office. She realized soon that the famous-or well, rather infamous Trickster Twins of Imladris were not home. If they were, this place would be filled with more laughter and yes...shrieks. Although she knew that wasn't the source of this quiet around Imladris.
Suddenly, sensing another presence in the same hall she was walking in, she looked up to see a woman walking from the direction Beluriel was going to. She was pretty, with long sunshine blonde hair streaming down her shoulder. Her eyes were a deep gray, bold and shaped in a smooth, almond shape. Her face was round but kind-looking, with a warm glow about her. She wore a richly done, yellow and green dress. She wore a circlet with jewels hanging from it, so it meant she was someone with a rank in court. The woman walked miserably, as if all life had been sucked away from her. She looked down at the floor and without looking where she was walking and before Beluriel could say something, the woman bumped into her.
The captain didn't think clearly and in instinct, she scowled and exclaimed, "Oí, watch where you're going!"
The woman looked up startled and frowned at her, making signs with her hands. Now, it was Beluriel's turn to be confused. Slowly, the woman spoke up, speaking in flawless common Westron. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bump into you. And...I-I don't speak your language. I just never could-"
Beluriel put a hand up, waving the issue away. She, herself, switched to her rough Westron. "No worries. I am sure it was just an accident."
She then squinted closely at the woman. An elf had superior senses. How come this person did not sense that she would bump into Beluriel before it happened? Then...she realized this was no elleth. The woman did not have the celestial aura most elves did and neither did she have sharp ears. So then...why would a mortal woman be in Lord Elrond's court?
"You are not an elleth," Beluriel said, almost to herself. "Are you visiting Lord Elrond?"
The woman bit her lip, as if she were thinking something over and she said. "Aye. I am no she-elf. I'm just a plain 'Mortal,' as you elves call me. And no, I am not visiting Lord Elrond, although I suppose he...is a friend of mine. I live here," she said. "Are you looking for him? I could show you the way to his office."
Beluriel was stunned. She had no idea that Lord Elrond had mortals in his settlement. And if she was a friend of his...then she must be a very good one. Or perhaps she was a friend of Lord Elrond's sons...the captain had heard that the Elrondion twins had many friends within the Dunédain. Maybe this Gilraen was related to one of their friends? "It is nice meeting you, Lady Gilraen. I am Captain Beluriel of Mirkwood. Your offer is most gracious...yet I must refuse. I know the way myself and besides, I would not like to disturb you."
"Nonsense...I wasn't going anywhere anyways," said Gilraen. "Consider this as my apology."
In the end, Beluriel had to agree. She followed the woman through the Imladris ground and realized that she was grateful for this woman's guidance. She knew Legolas went to Imladris regularly but Beluriel had not gone in centuries...memory could get rusty. For a long while, she and Gilraen walked in silence until curiosity probably got the better of the woman.
"You speak Westron...like Lord Elrond. Why is that? Most of your kind don't really know how to speak it," Gilraen said.
"That is true," admitted Beluriel. "My people choose not to meddle with yours. They have grown wary of Mortals and even avoid their language. I, myself did not want to learn but my duties as captain required me to learn multiple languages. Besides, the quantities of elves who speak Westron are little and the chances of your kin teaching mine are even smaller."
"Who taught you then?" asked the woman curiously.
Beluriel bit her own lip. Legolas was always a tricky subject these days. "M-My mentor did. He is fluent in many languages and while I was under his apprenticeship, he said that I would use the common tongue in the future."
"Did it take you long to learn?" asked the woman, with a small, empathetic smile.
"No...well, I mean, yes I suppose. It took me a few decades or so and for us, elves, a decade is not as long as you humans imagine it," said Beluriel and sighed, letting out a small chuckle accidentally. "Besides, even centuries after learning it, my common tongue is bad. I must sound pretty terrible."
"No, no!" assured Gilraen. "It's excellent, really. Maybe you do have a slight accent but other than that, you speak great! It's flawless if you compare me learning your language. I don't get one single thing. Estel in the other hand, speaks it perfectly. He-"
And then she stopped mid-air. Her face paled and turned back into it's former, miserable look. Estel...what an interesting name. Hope was much more of a girl's name but it was a rather beautiful name, in her opinion. But who was Estel? And was he human like Gilraen or was he an elf? She whispered softly, "Is this Estel very precious to you, my lady?"
Lady Gilraen replied just as softly, her voice cracking. "H-He is my son, Captain."
For a while, Beluriel was quiet. Before she could speak however, she realized they had already reached Lord Elrond's office. The beautiful oak door was open and the captain of the Mirkwood cavalry took a peak inside. The walls were made of alabaster and were covered in maps and charts. The ceiling itself was a painting! It was all very surreal. And it was also incredible how the Lord of Imladris could make a mess of papers, books, scrolls and herbs seem warm and welcoming. Currently, Lord Elrond was standing over his large, rich ebony desk with four other elves. They spoke in hushed voices as they pointed and moved their hands over what seemed a map. The meeting ended though, when Lord Elrond saw them at the door and dismissed them all.
Three of the elves that were with Lord Elrond went out. They seemed almost oblivious of Gilraen's existence as they passed right next to her without a greeting, their faces serious and grim. They nodded to Beluriel though as they saw her badges and warrior braids. The captain was forced to nod back, although not willingly. Sure, mortals and elves would never be friends for a long time...however, this was no reason for someone to not acknowledge somebody. She could not believe her very own kin, the wisest race of all Middle Earth...could have racism inside them. She had only been with Gilraen for five minutes and she could already tell the woman was a very good person. Gilraen however, seemed used to this and showed no emotion about the issue.
Lord Elrond beckoned them inside with a smile. "Gilraen, Captain Beluriel. Please come in, I hope I did not make you two wait too long. There were matters to be discussed."
Beluriel and Gilraen entered the office and Beluriel took a deep bow, handing the letter Thalos had written to the elf next to Elrond, who thanked her and quickly started reading it. She assumed he was Lord Elrond's chief counsellor. "There is no need to be so modest, hir-nín. It is I, that must apologize. My lord, Prince Thalos, apologizes for not sending a letter in advance. The circumstances are grim at home...we did not have time to send a messenger."
Elrond smiled again, beckoning them both to sit down in the chairs in front of his desk. They both did and that was when he spoke, "We understand. Imladris is always a friend of Mirkwood...any elf from there is welcomed here. With or without letter." Then he added, flashing a warm smile at Gilraen, "Oh, and how have you been faring, Gilraen?"
"Excellent, thank you my lord," said Gilraen, although Beluriel could tell she was not as happy as she seemed. However, Lord Elrond seemed to find that answer satisfactory enough and let it go.
"Now, let us speak about your issue," said Elrond and turned once more to Captain Beluriel. "Let me guess...does this problem of yours include Legolas?" When Beluriel responded with a bare nod, he sighed. "Oh no, what happened again to that dear child?"
"H-He is missing, hír-nin," whispered Beluriel.
Immediately, both Lord Elrond and Gilraen's faces became sheet white. They both glanced at each other with worried gazes and even Lord Elrond's chief counsellor looked up from the letter, startled. Nobody dared say a thing until the counsellor asked, "Oh dear, Mandos seems to follow every move that dear child does. When was this, may I ask?"
"Eight weeks ago," said Beluriel and added after she saw their faces become even more grim. "And we know that Legolas often leaves but he has never left us for so long. The maximum he's ever left us is four months...it is troubling us all very deeply."
"Troubling indeed," said Elrond and then said quietly, almost to himself, "It is even more troubling to me..."
"Why is that, hir-nin?" asked Beluriel curiously but with a worried look in her face.
"Because..." Lord Elrond looked at Gilraen, who was almost at tears and looked back to the captain of the Mirkwood cavalry, "two weeks after that, my foster son went missing as well."
O-O-O
Estel could get used to this.
He was sitting against a huge willow tree. Treebeard had told him to explore Fangorn as much as he wanted while he and the Entmoot spoke about something. A cool breeze swayed and shook his shoulder-length dark brown hair and sighed. Peace and quiet. He breathed in and smiled. He could finally understand why Legolas liked this forest so much...it was old but it was so very pure. It was as if it had never been touched at all and Estel could imagine this forest in the First Age. He could feel the memory in the very air.
Next to him, a small stream trickled into a medium-sized pond. Estel had considered swimming in it, after all, he did love water. The pond was not even deep anyways, so it was safe enoug for him, if Estel's feet touched the bottom, the water would only reach the bottom of his neck. However, he went against it. He was a bit tired after so many things and he thought some rest would be much better. He smiled with his eyes closed, he thought about the times the twins had secretly taken him diving.
He sighed, he truly missed his brothers. He thought about the true purpose of this journey...but now, after all the adventure he'd gone through. Did he truly want to go to Lórien? Even now, as close as he was right now from achieving it...he still felt unsure. How would his brothers react anyways? How would Daeradar and Daernaneth? He groaned and shook his head, opening his eyes. Why was his life so complicated? He sighed once again and played with the powerful amulet that was currently resting on his chest. The nestad-gond glowed with a warm green color and the Quenya runes glowed with a bright golden color.
Suddenly, he heard a strange sound and quickly stood up, picking up his sword. He looked around in case of any danger. However, from the corner of his eyes, he saw a small figure coming from the river towards the pond and as the figure drifted closer to him, Estel gasped, dropping the sword and jumping into the water.
It was Legolas.
In the water, Estel grabbed Legolas by his shoulders and slowly dragged him closer to the rim of the pond. As gently as he could, he pushed Legolas out of the water and jumped out of it himself. As he spread Legolas out, he examined the elf for any injuries...which he obviously had. The boy snorted in disbelief...this elf seemed to drag trouble everywhere he went. He made a brief scan through the elf. He was bleeding in two places, his shoulder and one of his legs. He had some cuts and bruises in some places, which could be easily healed with some athellas paste. Estel was not very sure, but he knew something was wrong in Legolas' ribs and in one of his knees.
First things first, he cleaned the wounds. After making sure they weren't infected yet, he grabbed his sword and cut two long pieces of the green fabric of his shirt. He made them into long strips and bandaged Legolas' shoulder and knee. As he finished his work, Estel gave himself a pat in the back. His father would be proud of him...it turned out that maybe those medical lessons weren't a waste of his time after all. Suddenly, Estel realized something...he hadn't checked to see if Legolas was breathing! He quickly put two fingers on Legolas' throat and...
No heartbeat.
Estel went into panic. He had no idea what to do. He practically went insane at that moment. After all, what would you do if the body of a dead elf sailed down a river to ruin your peace? Estel quickly tried again and again, using various methods to determine if the elf was alive. Should he scream out and ask for help? Should he get Legolas to the Entmoot? He tried to return back to those faithful medical lessons in Imladris. He needed to remember...and quickly. He leaned into Legolas' chest and after minutes of intensity, he realized there was a heartbeat...although a very faint one. He sighed and leaned back against the tree in relief.
All right Estel, all you need to do is perform some basic cardiopulmonary resucitation, he said to himself. You've seen Ada do it all the time...it should be easy, right?
As he knelt next to Legolas' unconscious body, he imagined his Ada right next to him, dictating the instructions. First, he placed the heel of his hand in the middle of Legolas' chest. He put his other hand on top of the first and interlaced his fingers. He then compressed some thirty times, hoping that in one of the times, he'd be able to get some water out of Legolas' lungs. Estel turned out to be lucky (for the first time in weeks, it seemed) because by the fifth time, he watched as Legolas' chest rose up high and then the elf started spluttering, coughing out water.
Estel sighed in relief and stood up, dusting himself as he watched his...well, companion, coughed a bit more water and slowly pushed himself up in a sitting position, rubbing his eyes and wiping some water out of his chin. The human used this opportunity to tease him, folding his arms against his chest and standing over Legolas with a grin, "Did you have a nice swim?"
For the first time, Legolas returned with a glare and a scowl. "Very funny. Out of all times, Mr. Shadows finally learns how to make a joke...although a very bad one."
Estel only smirked as he slowly watched the drenched elf struggle to stand up, dizzily crashing towards the willow tree Estel had been sleeping under for support. "Whatever...but I still think a 'thank you' should be in place. I did patch up your wounds and revive you."
"Correction, you patched up the wounds I would never have had if I hadn't gone searching for those flowers you needed for your antidote," said Legolas. He grabbed a few flowers out from his pocket and handed it to Estel. Then, the archer let out a small hiss and winced as he painfully clutched his left leg.
"Does it hurt?" asked Estel, stuffing the flowers in his pocket.
Legolas glared at him again, almost as if he were annoyed. Apparently, wet elves didn't have the best of moods. The boy made sure he remembered that. "No Estel. I'm totally fine. I feel as if I'm on vacation in Valinor and I could just lie there in the sandy shores counting stars forever!"
The boy frowned at him. "Is that sarcasm?"
"OF COURSE IT IS, ESTEL!" said Legolas. The elf had expected the boy to be much smarter than this. After all, Estel used a lot of sarcasm himself...courtesy of the twins. "Because jumping off a cliff bloody hurts! Now please get me a stick so that I can go walk. Where is Treebeard, anyways? Shouldn't he be taking care of you? You can't be left alone in Fangorn!"
Estel grabbed a random stick, which looked long and sturdy enough and he handed it to Legolas."Treebeard has taken care of me...he's just discussing something quick with the Entmoot. By the way, your knee...it's dislocated, isn't it?"
The elf swallowed up his pain and replied, "I believe so, although I'm not very sure."
"It's almost impossible to walk with a dislocated knee," said Estel. "And if you do, then it's not going to get any better soon."
"I'll manage," was the elf's gruff response.
They walked towards the center of Fangorn into the home of the Tree Ents. They passed through the thick woods, Estel occasionally shooting a glance sideways at the elf, who was visibly having trouble walking. And even after Estel offered some help, the elf had refused him, shooting him a glare. The boy had shrugged it off...maybe water was what made him so grumpy.
"Seems like you don't like water a lot," said Estel.
Legolas sighed, although the boy saw a small smile form in his lips. "Well...I did actually like it, once. My mother used to take my brother and me fishing all the time when we were young. I went diving with my friends often. Not anymore though."
"How come?"
The elf smirked. "I've never really had time with all my duties. But well...when I was young, word was that there was a river in Mirkwood. An enchanted river. A river so dark and corrupted with black magic, that all who touched it fell into a deep sleep and eventually woke with amnesia."
Estel chuckled, not being able to contain his laughter. It echoed through the forest and it was a pleasant noice, and a sound that Fangorn hadn't heard for many centuries. "Oh my, an enchanted river? You didn't believe that, did you?"
Legolas scratched the back of his head, his smile growing wider. "Erm...maybe. Anyways, I went with two of my friends to investigate it to see if the tale was true. We got attacked by spiders in the way but after that, we did eventually succeed in tracking down the river. It smelled horrible and it was black as well. Obviously we weren't going to bathe in there but...eh..."
"Let me guess, something happened to you?" said Estel, smirking.
"Yes, I fell in," murmured Legolas, looking down although with a smile.
Estel laughed even harder. "Why am I not surprised?"
O-O-O
"Missing, what do you mean missing?!" asked Elrohir, genuinely concerned.
Aurell sighed, turning to flash the Marchwarden a sad look and then she looked back at the twins. "Eight weeks ago, my little brother had an argument with us. There had been an incident at a patrol he was leading. Adar, as always, was being too harsh with him. And things simply got from bad to worse when Thalos joined in...not as the peacemaker, but joining Adar's side. And-And I don't know why, but in the heat of the moment, I joined their side too."
"Whoa," said Elladan. "Three against one? That's kind of cruel."
"It was," the princess said with a shake of her head, "and it was foolish. But my idiotic brother just had to mention a quest which got Legolas all hyped up, only to be harshly turned down by Adar. Legolas stormed out of the office and we really didn't check on him until dinner time...until we realized he was missing. We ran a search through the entire compound and found that Legolas' weapons, some food and a horse were missing-"
"Wait, what's this quest thing your older brother was talking about?" asked Haldir, before she could continue.
She turned to glance at him. "Not very sure. Apparently it was some classified 'Adar-Thalos' issue. However, I think it has to do with some letters Mirkwood has been receiving. Threats. Apparently, those filths think they're smart enough to bring down Mirkwood. I think that Thalos wanted to retrieve something from the orcs. Not very sure what either...but apparently, if we don't want to have Mirkwood overrun by orcs...we need to find that thing, and soon."
"If Mirkwood is overrun by orcs," said Haldir gravely, "we will have less hope against this darkness. Not only will the orcs be able to expand themselves from Dol Guldur but the orcs would have two strongholds-"
"And my home would be obliterated, silly! That's what matters," snapped Aurell whacking him in the side of the head and causing the twins to chuckle beneath their breath. "Honestly Haldir, can't you keep your political mumbo jumbo until you're at work? This is kind of personal."
"Yes, yes, of course," muttered Haldir, although he had a thin smile, as if he were deeply amused by her. However, that smile was immediately clouded by concern. "We could always send some wardens there to help, I suppose."
"That's a good idea," she said. "Haldir and I-"
"Whoa, whoa!" exclaimed Elrohir stepping forward. "What do you mean 'Haldir and I?' Dan and I want to help too! I mean, he's our friend-"
Aurell bit her lip. "Look Elrohir, you and Elladan...I know you two are close to Legolas but-"
"What she wants to say," said Haldir stepping in front of her protectively, "is that you two will only worsen the situation. You two would normally be good help, I admit, but you're just as accident prone as he is...we can't afford to have him and you two lost. I'm sorry Elrondion, but this is beyond your reach. We will handle this fine."
Before Elrohir could snort and say something in reply, Elladan sighed, waving his brother away and looking deep into both the Marchwarden and the princess of Mirkwood. "Fine. Have it your way. Let's go Ro."
Elrohir turned to gape at his twin as he dragged Elrohir away from the scene, while the princess nodded in agreement. "Good. I'm glad you get the point. Stay safe and don't cause any trouble around here." She then turned around and smiled slyly at the Marchwarden. "And as for you, I believe we have some unfinished business from my last visit."
"Unfinished business-?" Haldir didn't seem to get it until suddenly, a small smile creeping out of his face, he nodded, trying to look as serious and unsuspicious as he could. "I believe so. We'll discuss that in my office. Follow me."
As they parted their different ways, Elrohir was bursting with two emotions. He wanted to laugh at Haldir and Aurell's awkward yet still functioning relationship but he also wanted to whack his stupid brother in the head. He hadn't suspected that Elladan, of all people, to simply give up in a verbal battle like that...especially with the Marchwarden! And they were talking about Legolas, for Valar's sake...they couldn't just sit around warily while he was missing! Who knows what in bloody Arda was happening to him right now?
And he told Elladan just that.
"What the bloody Arda was that?!" he exclaimed as the twins reached the stables.
"What the bloody Arda was what?" replied Elladan calmly as he got two horses from the stables of Lórien.
"What? Are you kidding me? You honestly didn't remember what you just did?!" growled Elrohir facing his brother. "You never let anybody stop us! Much less the Marchwarden! This is Legolas, for Valar's sake. If our places were reversed, he'd be running in a wild stallion by now with three dozen arrows in his quiver, ready to face whatever was taking us captive! We should be trying to help him!"
Elladan mounted on his horse and flashed a grin at his brother. "Of course we're going to help him, you idiot. But really, you didn't think I was stupid enough to tell them of our plans? And you're my twin...you should know that nobody tells me what to do. We'll get our friend back, even if we have to go through Middle Earth and back. Now brother, will you shut up or are you ready to go save our best friend?"
Elrohir gave him a smile of his own, getting on his own horse. "Bloody Mandos, you bet I am."
O-O-O
AN: Holy guacamole! FOUR POVs! Phew, glad I was finished. No wonder this took me so long, sorry for the tardiness. But I hope these four awesome POVs can make up for that! Your support was awesome guys! Now, here are my responses to the reviews that kept me going while I was practically exhausted and in the verge of abandoning this chapter. BTW, I'm not very good at medical stuff, so I'm not exactly sure if you can still limp with a dislocated knee. So doctors and other people who just feel like correcting me, go ahead! No problem!
Emi the Ninja: Haha! LOL! XD At least for Estel...Legolas hasn't exactly been having fun.
Masked Man 2: Damn it! You know what? The other day I was just checking that chapter for any language mistakes...and out of all the 'God's I erased, I can't believe I missed one! Thanks for the catch though, the elves do worship the Valar, not God. I seriously need a beta. Anyways, thank you for the other compliments. Your reviews are always so thoroughly and well made. I'm glad you liked the different sides of Legolas and the conversation he had with Treebeard. Also, WHOA RIGHT? The royal Mirkwood family is sure having a huge emotional drama right now! And it's just going to get more complicated. :) And a 'dreadful occurence'...haha, you could say so.
Luin: Thanks! It did kind of take me a while. And Thalos doesn't want to betray his sister because his sister...is in a 'relationship' with Haldir, the Marchwarden. The thing is that Thranduil doesn't know that, so Thalos doesn't want to betray his sister in that. And I will add a flashback in the next chapter...so look forward to it! :)
Schattenjagd: Thanks! Hahaha...I know I could've done better in Estel's meeting with Treebeard but I'm glad you liked it! And I'm so glad you love Thalos! He's one of my favorite characters in my fanfics too! I was afraid I hadn't done him well enough since I'm a single child and I don't have any siblings...but I'm glad he was relatable! And yup, Thranduil's relationship with Legolas will definitely appear soon...in fact, there's going to be a flashback next chapter! Finally...awww! Thank you! I'm glad you like this story so much! :)
Saphira: Thank you! And they sure are! :) They're called Trickster Twins for a reason I suppose. And I hope this chapter answers your questions about what Elrond is doing! And hahaha...what's going on with Aurell and Haldir? *Chuckles* That's a bit confidential...but I am planning on making a story for them, so don't worry.
Guest: Thank you for being so supportive! And I can't tell you when Estel and Legolas are going to discover each other's identities...but it will be soon. And about the twins? Well...that'll take some time too.