5/4/05
NOTE:
Friends, I must tell yo know, I apologize for the false update... BUT I'M GOING TO JAPAN!
I will be there from late June to mid-August and will post something of both my LotR fics before leaving, and definitely write while I'm there. But GAAAH! I'M GOING! I have hero-worshipped this culture for so long, I've been trying to get over there for 6 years and now, FINALLY, I'M GOINGGG!
I love you all!
Em
3/28/05
Wow, you guys! The reviews and response were AMAZING! Thank you so much! I'll try and respond to everyone next chappie, but I'd rather have more room for the writing you guys seem to like!
Quote of the year (in my opinion):
(Sorry, I just thought that this was hilarious; I actually heard Orlando say it in the commentary)
"...I mean, if Peter told me that Legolas was gonna be running around naked at that point, I probably would have stripped off and started skipping a jingo, d'you know what I mean? ...We were all such, sort of, 'Jackson followers' that he could have said anything and you'd go 'Yeah, sure. So at this point, Aragorn grabs Legolas and tongues him' and you'd go ' ohh, ahh, yeah, that makes sense.'" -- .' Orlando in the LotR 3 extended version commentary.
(A/N: Maeri's name is pronounced "Mary". And this is pre-LotR.)
o-o-o-o-o-o-o
IMMORTAL STRANGER
o-o-o-o-o-o-o
CHAPTER TWO
o-o-o-o-o-o-o
"Where is that boy? I'll kill him when he gets back, I really will!"
Maeri, Arad's mother, was not exactly what one would call 'happy' right now. A short, plump woman of about thirty, she looked nothing more than a normal villager. Arad, however, knew better than to think that when she was angry. Her dark auburn hair was often a reflection of her temper and spirit, and her green eyes blazed dangerously as she stalked out of the house, skirts flaring.
"Has anyone seen Arad?" Maeri called out into the street, a rag dangling from her hand. The children and adolescents mulling 'round the dirt path shrugged their shoulders, answering negative. "Oooh, I will get him when he gets back," she fumed. 'Honestly, leaving without giving any kind of notice or telling me when he'd be home... If he does it again there'll be trouble, I swear it!'
In reality, Maeri was a kind, good-natured woman. She had a very short fuse when it came to nonsense, but her spirit was bright and her passion deep. It was this fire that had made her husband fall in love with her, and in their younger days they had kept each other on their toes with humor and tricks. Theirs was a bond of mutual respect and friendship, and as a wife she had always been neat and happy in her work.
However, because of her spirit and quick mind, Maeri found flaws (in the household) very quickly. Thus, scolding was one of her favorite pastimes. Currently, dirty rooms were her favorite pet peeve, and her oldest son had just brought her wrath down upon himself.
Before he'd left the house that morning, Arad had managed to accomplish the miraculous feat practically every twelve-year-old boy was famous for: utter destruction in his wake. The sheets in Arad's room were completely unmade, a pile of his dirty laundry was spreading like a monster over a good bit of the house, and to top it off, the breakfast dishes were still on the table, covered in crumbs. Maeri had sworn silently to herself, trying to keep her annoyance at bay, but then she had tripped on a pair of his muddy boots just inside the door.
If it had been physically possible for steam to come out of her ears, it would have.
"Aaah! ARAD! Where is that blasted boy!"
"Mama! Mama!" A small, tow-headed girl of six came rushing through the front door, tripping on the top step and dragging a doll behind her. It was Maeri's daughter, Kit. The name was short for Katerin; the nickname had stuck after the young one's pronunciation had not been up to the task. "Mama! Daddy's back! Daddy's back with Awad!"
Maeri silently rejoiced, wringing the rag in her hands like a whip.
The woman abruptly noticed that her child was almost in tears, and her ire disappeared. "Kit? What's wrong, sweetheart?" Maeri knelt and gathered her child into her arms and against her shoulder, patting her back as she clung to her.
"There's dead people, mama," she whimpered. "They're all ripped up."
Maeri's blood froze. "Dead people?"
"Mama, they look scary. I don't wanna see them anymore," the child sobbed.
'Arad... Alerenn... what happened?' Maeri held the child close to her bosom and swiftly ran outside, leaving her dishrag lying discarded in the middle of the floor.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o
People were backing away swiftly from the approaching hunters, retreating into shops and whispering ominously to each other. Alerenn led the way back into the village on the dirt path, followed closely by two men.
One, a dark-bearded man named Haln, held someone that was unmistakably dead; his chest and back were decorated with deep teethmarks and covered in blood. His face and head were wrapped in a cloth, completely shielded from view. Another hunter, the man closest to Alerenn, held someone else bundled in a cloak, and nothing could be seen of them but their legs. The thick green fabric was stained darkly with blood, and it was obvious that the person had been sorely wounded.
As the rest of the group trudged into the square, Arad was revealed to be standing behind his father. There was a scream from the crowd as his mother caught sight of his clothing.
"ARAD!"
The woman had left her daughter with a friend in the crowd and was running frantically to meet him. The blood that was still bright on his clothing had scared her to death, and she was so shaken that her knees almost gave out before she reached him. Maeri was all over him, pulling his clothes, grabbing him by the arms, looking him over and over and screeching in panic all the while. "Arad, what happened! Where are you hurt! What were you doing out there..."
"Mother, please," Arad interrupted, rather embarrassed by the scene. "I'm fine, it isn't... it isn't my blood."
"Not...?" Maeri saw the limp body of the elf whose face was wrapped, and she paled slightly. "Arad, what happened?" she whispered.
"I'll tell you later Mum. Please, we have to get them inside," he urged her, his eyes pleading for compliance.
The woman saw the look on her son's face and knew that he had somehow transformed into an adult for the moment. This request was important, and so, despite her overwhelming need to know what was going on, she followed Arad's wishes. "Very well. Hurry up then, let's get back inside the house." She looked behind them and shared a brief look with her husband before taking Arad by the shoulders and leading him away.
"I'll take him from here," Alerenn told his subordinate, motioning for Haln to follow.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
"Now, young man, first of all, what were you doing out in the woods alone?" Maeri began, glad to be back in control of the family... or so she thought. "You know you have to tell me where you're heading before running around by yourself!" Seeing Arad with his clothing completely soaked in blood had nearly given her a coronary. Now Maeri was more than happy to vent her fright on his misbehaviour.
"Mother, please, not now!" Arad said sharply, lifting his eyes to the door as she stripped off his damp shirt. "You don't understand! We have to help him!"
"Maeri, I need you over here," Alerenn called just as sharply, striding past her and laying the cloaked body down on the fresh linens covering the bed. "He's wounded; I need you to help me patch him up."
"Oh, Good heavens," Maeri breathed as Alerenn removed the cloak from Legolas' body, revealing the elf's majestic person. "Alerenn..."
The Firstborn moaned, twisting slightly as consciousness returned to him, along with the pain. Arad, Maeri and Alerenn didn't dare make a sound as the elf awoke, breath hitching slightly when he tried to move his shoulders. His eyelids cracked open, revealing the tortured crystal-blue orbs beneath, moving rapidly over them as they stood above the bed. "W-what... where?" he rasped softly, bleary and uncomprehending, his forehead slick with sweat and creased in pain. A small sliver of memory returned to him through the haze and his heart contracted. "Telerin..."
"Shh, lie still, master elf," Alerenn placated, gently pressing him back to the pillow when he tried to rise. "You've been injured. We're going to try and help you. Just relax."
"Telerin... Telerin, where are y-you?" The elf's deep yet confused gaze searched the room in vain for his companion.
Alerenn's heart clenched. 'He's delirious. He doesn't remember losing the other one. Valar, what am I to do?' "Please sir, don't move, it will only make the pain worse," the hunter told him, both hands on his shoulders to keep him immobile.
"Where... where is he?" A new thought came to the blond being. His eyes narrowed dangerously as they focused on the human. "Y-you're keeping me f-from him! Wh-where is he?"
Alerenn looked up sharply at his wife, his gaze saying clearly that she should stand back. Maeri grabbed Arad and pulled him away from the bedside, ignoring his soft protest. If the elf should try to attack him, Alerenn was fairly sure he could take it, but that was no reason for him to involve his family.
"No, master elf, we are not. Your friend is dead," the hunter told him softly. "You could not see him if you tried." Behind the elf's head he gently eased the bow and quiver out of reach, placing them under the bed. The knives were trapped under his back, so Alerenn figured he probably wouldn't be able to use them.
"N-no," Legolas shook his head, his breath catching in a sob. His hands braced Alerenn's wrists as he held the elf pinned to the bed by his upper arms, too weak to fight back or even move. "No... Wh-where are you? Telerin..."
Just then, Haln came in, carrying the other elf, and he placed him on the cot at Legolas' feet, drawing his knife swiftly. "Everything alright, Allie?" he asked softly, eyes trained on the taut elf in the bed. No one noticed Legolas' gaze light on the body and spark with recognition.
"Everything's fine, I just-"
"TELERIN!"
In a sudden burst of strength Legolas sat up and tore his way out of Alerenn's grasp, leaning forward and hunching over the prostrate body at his feet in one flash of movement...
...and was shortly frozen in place as the point of Haln's knife disappeared into his chest.
Maeri screamed. Arad was clutched against her, his eyes full of fear for the elf; he couldn't believe it. Haln was frozen in surprise, eyebrows raised as far as they could go, soft brown eyes as big as dinner plates, mouth dropped open in horror. His hand slid off the handle of the knife and he backed up a pace, trying to find his voice. The elf's shining eyes met his, looking up from where they'd been fixed on the dagger in his body, and a sad, silent question lay there as clearly as if it had been spoken, made worse by the innocence in his gaze:
Why?
Alerenn bowled the other man over, sending him sprawling on his back and supporting the fair being against his chest before he could fall directly on top of Telerin. His eyes had widened and filled to the brim with shock and pain, and his head finally lolled forward over Alerenn's shoulder as he went limp with weakness. A soft cry escaped his lips as the agony flooded through him, no longer dulled by surprise.
The hunter was beyond furious. He turned his head and lit into the man beside him with a severe verbal lashing. "HALN! What in the seven hells did you think you were doing!" he roared. "You may well have killed the man who saved my son!"
The dark-bearded man was deeply shaken, staring up in horror from the floor. "I-I... H-he c-came at me," Haln stammered.
"He wanted to see the other elf! He was hallucinating! You IMBECILE!" Alerenn would have killed the man in his rage right then and there, had he a weapon. "Find me a needle and thread, clean cloths and bindings in the next ten seconds and I might not have you whipped!" the hunter snarled.
In his haste, Haln stumbled and nearly fell on his face on his way out the door.
The human returned his attention to the stricken being lying against his chest, and saw that Legolas was starting to gasp thickly. His bloody fingers were wrapped in a deathgrip around Alerenn's shoulder, the other hand curling uselessly around the knife in his chest. Alerenn slowly pulled the blond away from him so that he could see the dagger more clearly, hesitating for only a moment before placing his own fingers around those of the elf.
A deep breath was his only indication before he swiftly yanked the dagger out of him.
The sudden move startled the already traumatized Firstborn and he exhaled sharply, jerking in response, looking questioningly at Alerenn, wondering why he'd hurt him. Blood was dribbling down his body from the wound, his face white, slightly parted lips moving in silent words.
"Oh no," Alerenn breathed, watching as more red droplets collected. Legolas was whispering in Elvish under his breath, a string of words similar to the cadence of prayer, and his hands were clamped tight around the other man's wrists. Their eyes met, and the unspoken plea for help in the wet, blue gaze tore at his heart.
Alerenn lowered him gently but quickly to the bed, taking care not to touch the wound. "Maeri, help me!"
The woman rushed forward and helped her husband cut away the leather jerkin and unbutton the silvery tunic. Arad watched in silent agony as the elf's eyes found his, his head turning towards him in a spasm of pain.
The boy was miserable. 'I'm sorry. Forgive me,' he implored mentally. 'Please, I didn't mean for anything to happen.' Legolas' hand reached toward him again, and this time he took it, giving him what comfort he could. He heard it again, clearly this time:
"E-Estel... Estel..."
"Father, what does 'Estel' mean?" Arad turned to his father, watching as he cleaned and dressed his savior's wounds.
The man did not look up. "I believe it meant something like 'dream', or... no, hope? Yes, that was it. Hope." He stole a glance at Arad and managed a smile before being completely reabsorbed into his work. "Seems he hasn't given up yet, hm?"
"I dunno. I hope not."
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
Three hours later, Legolas was deep in the realm of unconsciousness, his face as pale as death. The only thing Alerenn was glad to see was that it was still light out. That meant he would be able to see the pallor of the elf's skin and the condition of his wounds without candles. Candle light also gave things a golden tint, and if there was an infection, the telltale yellow-grey coloring would be harder to see.
"Well, at least his breathing is stable," Alerenn sighed, mopping his sweaty face and wiping bloodied hands on a wet rag.
"I've never seen someone last this long after a stabbing," Maeri commented softly. "He's hardy, that's for sure."
"Yes... If he starts convulsing again or his breathing gets shallow, come an' get me. I need to go wash up." Alerenn kissed Maeri briefly and took his leave, rebuttoning his vest on the way to the wash-basin.
Arad quickly took the vacated seat and examined Legolas thoroughly. White cotton was stained deeply with ruby-red. His bare torso was heaving in strained, wheezing breaths, his face and shoulders shining with perspiration from the pain. One look at the tortured form on the bed left Arad awash in empathy and guilt. One of the elf's hands was gripping the edge of the wooden bed frame, knuckles white and shaking.
"He's not doing so good, mother," Arad commented bleakly. "What can we do?"
"I think we've done all we can, Arad," she replied gently, wiping her hands on a dishrag and throwing a blanket over the elf's shivering body. Maeri took a place next to him in the vacant chair, and gazed thoughtfully on the fair being. "Poor dear. I only wish we could have kept him from this."
"I know. Me too." Arad was silent awhile. "The other elf... Telerin, he called him... He saved my life, mother. There was a warg on the path near the stream, and he shielded me with himself. The creature killed him, mother; on top of me..." Tears were gathering in the boy's eyes and Maeri leaned towards him to take him in her arms, pressing him to her bosom.
"Oh, my baby boy," she whispered. "I'm so sorry. I am eternally gratefully to them for sending me back my child."
"T...lr...n..." The pair of humans turned back towards him at the whisper of air from the blond being's mouth. "Te... Tele... rin... Telerin..."
"He thinks of no one else," Maeri mused. "We couldn't give him what he gave us: his loved one."
"He said," Arad remembered, "he said that... that the other one... the one near the bed... he said they'd been friends for two thousand years. Can you imagine that, mother? I mean, knowing your best friend for that long and just... losing them like that--"
Maeri shook her head, partially in sadness, partially in surprise at the number of years. Legolas had started tossing and turning under the sheets once again and she laid a cool hand on his forehead to comfort him. The movement stilled somewhat, as he murmured something like, "Naneth..." Maeri knew about as much of Elvish as she knew of wargish, but the tone and similar sound told her enough.
"It'll be alright, dear," she soothed him. "Don't worry. You'll be safe here."
'Or so we thought,' Arad thought bitterly. 'That stupid Haln... Why would he just go off like that without a thought!' Arad watched despairingly as the Firstborn moaned again. 'They've saved my life and all I've managed to do is hurt them... I can't let him die! I can't!' The boy sat glued to his chair and prepared to wait out the long hours before Legolas would stabilize.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o
Alerenn was seething.
Haln's humiliation was going to be harsh and extremely public; he'd made sure of that. To start with, the chief hunter was giving him a demotion in status and a dressing down that would have cracked a brass monkey... in front of the entire village. The mayor had looked on silently, giving his approval to his number-one in command before he burned his subordinate's dignity like a wisp of hay in a bonfire.
"You may have killed him! This man was an innocent, and more than that, he'd already given up his kin to save someone who was no relation to him whatsoever!" Alerenn shouted in his face, circling the man like a green-cloaked vulture. "I owe him my son's life, and you have forced me to repay him with a death sentence!" This thread of reprimand had been going on for the past twenty minutes straight, and Alerenn was growing weary.
He concluded the briefing swiftly and effectively. "You will be on probation for the next three months, with only the lowest-ranking duties to perform. On top of accomplishing these, you will be required up before dawn for extra farm work and after nightfall to groom and feed the horses. All of them," he said pointedly. "And cleaning the stalls. You may leave, and be grateful I didn't kill you for your thoughtlessness."
The people watched in awe as the man nodded slightly and left the circle, head bowed.
The mayor of the small town waited until the majority of the townsfolk had dispersed and sauntered over to where the chief hunter had stopped, catching is breath. He waited patiently for Alerenn to face him before he voiced his question. "What are we going to do with him?" the plump man asked, motioning with his chin at Alerenn's cottage. "Is he holding on?"
"We were lucky. The area he'd been stabbed in was just between everything vital, but he also has a great deal of strength," Alerenn reported. "I'm not sure what else I should be doing."
The mayor sighed and rubbed his greying beard. "Well, I know what else you can be doing," he remarked. "Before all this started up, I was going to have you greet our new arrivals."
"New arrivals?" Alerenn echoed, confused.
"Tomorrow we have a group of officials from a nearby town coming in for trade, and apparently they would like to ask permission for one of their children to visit our village on a daily basis. It seems that he's the only one of his age where he lives, and his father would like him to have some playmates. I believe he's about the same age as your Arad, Alerenn," he commented. "It would be nice for you to meet them, if you're not too busy." His tone suggested he understood if he was; the elf could fail at any time. "Perhaps you and Arad could accompany them for an hour or so?"
Alerenn sighed deeply; he didn't want to leave his son's rescuer any more than he had to. "I'll see about it first thing in the morning, depending on how he's holding up. "
"I understand. Good day, Alerenn." 'Good day, he says.'
The hunter made his way slowly with dragging steps back to his cottage. The days events had wasted him, and yelling his brains out at Haln hadn't helped either. The man was usually reliable and quite friendly; he hadn't wanted to do that to him. Point of fact, he probably felt worse about the stabbing than any punishment could force him to be, but Alerenn had to send a message to his men: regardless of race, you don't just knife someone without good reason.
Sighing deeply, the chief hunter ascended the front steps of their home, preparing to wait out the night.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o
3/28/05
I am SOOOOO sorry! I know, I know, lateness, but I have reasons!
My good friend the Consul-General of Japan is leaving for Tokyo on February 22nd, so we've been visiting a lot, I just got the part of the mean orphanage caretaker Miss Hannigan in Annie with a local community theatre company, (my FIRST role in anything theatrical), I just had my first private art lesson today with my brother, and we are going to Italy for Gramma's 70th birthday for two weeks at the beginning of March! PLUS... I still am waiting to hear if I got the scholarship to go to Japan for two months in April, and IT'S DRIVING ME NUTS. Oh yes, and did I mention school? - -;
I think I'm getting sick, and I need a little cheering up right now. Please feel free to leave reviews, preferably of an amiable nature? And P.S., no, I am NOT just being mean. This chapter needed to happen; it's foreshadowing. Everyone, say it with me: "Foreshadowing."
Ta!