Hello again! Here's the second chapter! Introducing the characters! (not to mention a certain dark haired ranger… hehehe)

Disclaimer: I don't own anything in or to do with Middlearth. Only the characters not in the Lord of the Rings belong to me. Now enjoy!

A heavy throbbing in Elanors head brought her back into the realm of the world. Her eyes opened slightly, unable to focus, the world was hazy around her. Closing them again she heard voices outside; Male voices. The events of the previous evening came back to her in fragmented pictures and sounds. In her mind she saw the burning houses, the running men and screaming children. Her eyes flung open and she stifled a cry with her hand. Tears pricked her eyes as she saw the body of her mother, lying cold and still on the ground. A new fear caught her. Where was she? Was she with the man that attacked her village?

She was in a tent of some kind that she could tell. Her bed was soft and warm and wrapped in animal furs. Wounds on her arms and head had been treated and bandaged. Elanor carefully swung her legs over the edge of the material bed and tried to stand. She was unsteady for a moment but her legs were willing to support her. Once standing she found herself wearing some kind of long shirt, similar to that which men wore under their armour. Taking a few tentative steps, she fumbled around for her clothes. She did not find her garments but she came across a pair of over sized brown slacks which had been folded neatly beside her bed. Next to them sat a pair of dark brown boots. Elanor grabbed the clothes and hastily pulled them on and, using a thin cord, pulled them tight around her waist. She then pulled the heavy boots onto her feet and stumbled forward towards the tent opening. Straining her ears,shelistened for the male voices she had heard earlier but found none.

Peering outside she found it was still dark. She stepped lightly out on to the soft grass, wet with dew from the cold air. There must have been only a dozen or so tents, forming a small hamlet in the middle of open ground. A little way off, light from a campfire was flickering in the night, casting shadows on the tents. Seeing no sign of any guards Elanor ran as quickly as her weaken legs would allow. She made her way through the tents dodging over ropes and pegs, but the dark made this task awkward and slow. Several occasions she stopped at the sound of voices or movement from a nearby tent. Eventually she made it to the edge of the makeshift village and saw 3 horses tided to stakes in the ground. She moved silently towards the white mare tied in the middle. In the pale moon her coat shone like new snow. As she drew near the horses became anxious and restless. Frightened the horses on either side of the mare tried to back away and, finding they were unable to, became panicked and stomped their hooves upon the ground. Only the mare remained still. Panicked by the horses' reaction, Elanor hurriedly tried to untie the white mares' reins with shaky hands. But it was too late; the noise of the horses had attracted the attention of some men. Elanor tried to move faster but the more she did, the more she fumbled. It was then a large hand clapped her on her shoulder and spun her round. She was faced with a tall, broad shouldered man wearing the same murky brown cloak as the man she had found in her house the previous night. His hair was dirty blond, and he wore a scruffy beard. He looked at her and smirked,

"You best come with me lass" he said, his voice low and rough. In no condition to fight the man, Elanor submitted to his order and allowed herself to be lead back to through the camp with little argument. The man had released her shoulder and now walked alongside her,

"You got a name girl?" he asked her. Elanor nodded, she saw no reason to lie to him,

"I am Elanor."

"My name's Edain" he replied. Elanor relaxed slightly,

"Where are we?" she asked. Edain looked down at her and gave a smile. "We are two leagues east of Fornost" he replied

"So we are still within Arnor" Elanor spoke, more to herself.

"You know the land well lass, for a woman"

Elanor glared at the man and almost spoke out but instead she asked, "Where are you taking me?"

"To see the captain of course"

"The captain?"

"Aye. He'll know what to do with you."

"Do with me?" she asked, unable to keep the panic from her voice, "What will he do with me?"

The man simple shrugged but seeing her fear he said,

"Don't worry, he's a good man. Besides I'll make sure no harm comes to you"

The pair walked through the tents and Elanor could hear the voices of men and see the light from a fire. As they drew nearer, she saw a small group of men, no more than a dozen and they were all wearing similar brown cloaks. They were sat around a small fire, their faces lit only by the flickering flames. As they approached, the men sat on the edges turned to watch them walk past. Some nudged the ones next to them and pointed at Elanor. Others smirked at the girl and laughed. Elanor gave a shiver as she felt the stares of the men. She hung her head and stared at her feet as she walked. Edain led her into the circle and stopped in the middle. She looked up at him and he gave another, slightly friendlier smile, "Go ahead lass" he said, giving her a slight push, causing her to stumbled forwards. Elanor watched as the man facing her stood up and pulled back his hood. She gasped slightly and stepped back, before her stood the same man who had taken her from her village. In the light of the fire, his face looked worn and tired but held an heir of authority. His dark eyes fixed one hers but instead of the hardened cold she had expected she found slight warmth behind them,

"Welcome," he said. Elanor looked around at the faces staring at her from in the circle and back around at the captain, "You have slept all day, we wondered if you would ever wake"

"Who are you?" Elanor asked, "What am I doing here?"

"I am the captain of these men. Here I am known as Strider. We brought you back to our camp; I assure you that you are unharmed." The captain gave her a long stare, like he was trying to remember something, "And what of your name and family?" Elanor shifted under his glare, she would have given a false name if she had not already given it to Edain,

"My name is Elanor. My mother, Estarlia, was the women slain at my side when you found me. My father was of elf-kind." Strider nodded as she said this, as if confirming something he already knew, "and what of him?" he asked,

"He abandoned my mother when I was still within her," Elanor said, the anger clear in her voice, "I do not know what has become of him, nor do I care" Strider nodded and regarded her. Her face was pale and in the moonlight made it look even more so. Her dark eyes reflected her fear; her hair was raven in colour and hung low around her waist. He could see the elven blood in her. Aragorn motioned for Edain to join him at his side. They spoke in hushed voices for several minutes. Elanor stared at them, wondering what they were discussing. Many a time during the conversation Strider would look back at Elanor. Finally Edain nodded his agreement to what Strider was saying and pair turned back to Elanor,

"You shall stay here where it is safe…" Strider started to speak,

"I shall? Do I not get a say in what happens to me?" Elanor spoke out,

"Do you have else where to go?" Strider asked. Elanor sighed sadly and shook her head, "Here you will protected and provided for" He continued, "In turn you shall cook and care for the wounded. I trust you can cook?"

Elanor nodded. Tears began to form in her eyes. Was she to stay here as a slave? She was a young woman, alone in a group of men. Her mother had a word for women like that, whores. Did they expect that from her? Elanor closed her eyes, trying to shut out the thoughts invading her mind,

"Do not look so frightened. We are the Dunedain and honourable men and I give you my word not one of them shall touch you." Elanor looked up at his words. The Dunedain. Her mother has spoken to her of them… these men? These few men were the descendents of Numenor? She looked around at them. Each man was facing her, but they were no longer laughing or staring. They merely looked at her, each one with dignity and honour clear in his eyes. She looked back at Strider, the realisation hitting her like stone,

"Then you… You are Isildurs heir?"

Strider nodded and stood to his feet, "I am Aragorn, Son of Arathorn. It is a fact that few know and I wish it to remain so." Elanor stood before him, open mouthed. Before her stood the heir to the crown of men and she had spoken to him so abruptly, "F-forgive me, my lord," she stuttered, "I did not know" Aragorn raised his hand to silence her, "My name is Aragorn. I am not king, nor do I wish to be. I am a ranger and shall be treated as such." Elanor looked up at him as he placed his hand on her shoulder and smiled, "Talin will show you to your tent." At the mention of his name, Elanor watched as a young man, with shoulder length blond hair and a youthful face, jumped up from the circle and stood beside her. "A lot has happened tonight. It is best if you rest and become accustomed to life here." Elanor nodded and turned to follow Talin away from the circle.

Ooohh... whats gonna happen?? hehehe wait n see!