A/N: Sorry I took so long!!! I've been really busy with school work, and then I went to visit my cousin...Any way, here it is! I couldn't find the name of the elven city in the middle of Lothlorien, so I had to make one up. I anyone knows the real one, please tell me and I'll change it!
Chapter 4: Two Tears
When Kathara awoke, she was swaying, heard clopping hooves, and didn't know where she was. A second later, she remembered where she was and realized she was in a sort of swing hung between two horses. On one horse sat Legolas, and on the other sat Tienthe. Elves she didn't know were there too, one riding ahead and one behind.
Kathara jerked into a sitting position and nearly fell out of the sling. As she grabbed for the edge (nearly swinging completely upside down) Legolas and Tienthe slowed their horses to a stop, dismounted, and ran over to help.
"I'm sorry, I hadn't realized you were awake...Are you ok?" Legolas said. Kathara nodded.
"You should lie down! You could get worse! And then..." Tienthe trailed off under Kathara's glare.
"I'm quite well enough now, thank you. And if you don't have a spare horse, which it looks like you don't, I'll walk. I'm sure I could use the exercise better than I could use even MORE sleep!" Kathara wrapped up her speech by intensifying her glare. Legolas chuckled.
"I warned you!" he told Tienthe. Tienthe stopped cringing and glared at Legolas.
"How was I supposed to know? She was so sweet and polite earlier!"
Legolas laughed again. "As far as I'm concerned, she's still sweet and polite. I would have hit you over the head just to prove I wasn't made of crystal."
Kathara glared at the two elves and sniffed as they continued their conversation. She hated it when people talked over her head! She slipped off of the sling-thing and walked around a little bit, carefully staying within sight of the horses. Something about Legolas...Well, actually, his name...tugged at her memory. What was it? Not that they were related, she was sure she hadn't even known him until recently...something to do with a book...This was absurd. A book? What could Legolas have to do with a book? If she hadn't known him, she couldn't have borrowed one from him, and he was to young to be mentioned in one, rare as they were, so...
"Kenturiel! Come on, let's go! If we leave now we can still reach Lothlorien by nightfall."
Kathara turned towards Legolas's voice, with an angry sigh of annoyance. Her first chance to explore and stopped already...She wasn't a child, to be told what to do all the time! But, at the same time, she knew that Legolas was right. The sun was far past noon.
As she turned to jog back to the horses, Kathara noticed an odd bit of stone on the ground. It was just like the odd, black crystal tear she had had with her when she awoke the first time, except that it was a translucent bluish-white. She stooped to pick it up, and heard Tienthe yell, "Hurry up, Kenturiel! We need to go NOW!" followed by the sound of Legolas talking to him in an annoyed mutter. She quickly scooped it up and tucked it into a small pouch she had found at her waist, along with the other one. Then she went back to the horses, where Legolas, Tienthe, and the two other elves where waiting.
***
An hour or so later, Kathara was riding behind Legolas on his horse, and wondering about the two crystals. As far back as she could remember (in other words, since she had woken up that first time), the black one had felt important, somehow. And then she had found that other one, in the woods...Where had they come from? Why were they important? And, most of all, what WERE they? It was fairly obvious they were more than just crystal. There was more to them, a feeling, well...a feeling of magic. There was no other way to describe it.
There was no way that Kathara could find the answers to her questions now, so she shoved them to the back of her mind. Right now, there were more immediate things to worry about. When they were going to eat, and how far from where they were going they were, for instance.
"Legolas, when are we stopping to eat? I'm sorry, I know we're in a hurry for some reason, but I'm starting to get hungry."
Legolas laughed. "Don't be sorry. I'm getting hungry too, but we don't have any food with us. We'll have to wait until we get to Valorien."
Kathara sighed. "Ok. But aren't those blueberries over there ripe? They sure look it."
Legolas stared. Kathara was pointing at a blueberry bush a few feet away and to their right, and he could have sworn it hadn't been there before. And they DID look ripe. "I suppose there's no harm in checking. Lentos! Theriban!" The two previously anonymous elves reigned in their horses and looked back.
"Legolas?" the one on the right asked.
"We're going to stop for a minute. Kenturiel found some berries." All five elves dismounted and ran at the bush. Seconds later, they were hungrily eating the berries.
A few minutes later, they were all either lying on the ground or sitting against trees, falling asleep. Tienthe mumbled something about it not being the season for blueberries, but it quickly degenerated into snores. One of the other elves...was it Lentos or Theriban? Kathara wondered...yawned and fell asleep as well, quickly followed by the other. As though they were under some spell, Legolas thought, and he began to grow alarmed, but an immense lethargy seized him, quelling the warning, and he too fell asleep.
After seeing the alarm appear and fade on Legolas's face, Kathara became frightened. For a reason she did not know, she took out and held tightly the two crystal tears she had found. The lethargy became lassitude, and she alone of the five remained awake. And she was the only one to see the hooded figure coming out of the shadows...
A/N: Please read & review! And once again I'm sorry I took so long.
Chapter 4: Two Tears
When Kathara awoke, she was swaying, heard clopping hooves, and didn't know where she was. A second later, she remembered where she was and realized she was in a sort of swing hung between two horses. On one horse sat Legolas, and on the other sat Tienthe. Elves she didn't know were there too, one riding ahead and one behind.
Kathara jerked into a sitting position and nearly fell out of the sling. As she grabbed for the edge (nearly swinging completely upside down) Legolas and Tienthe slowed their horses to a stop, dismounted, and ran over to help.
"I'm sorry, I hadn't realized you were awake...Are you ok?" Legolas said. Kathara nodded.
"You should lie down! You could get worse! And then..." Tienthe trailed off under Kathara's glare.
"I'm quite well enough now, thank you. And if you don't have a spare horse, which it looks like you don't, I'll walk. I'm sure I could use the exercise better than I could use even MORE sleep!" Kathara wrapped up her speech by intensifying her glare. Legolas chuckled.
"I warned you!" he told Tienthe. Tienthe stopped cringing and glared at Legolas.
"How was I supposed to know? She was so sweet and polite earlier!"
Legolas laughed again. "As far as I'm concerned, she's still sweet and polite. I would have hit you over the head just to prove I wasn't made of crystal."
Kathara glared at the two elves and sniffed as they continued their conversation. She hated it when people talked over her head! She slipped off of the sling-thing and walked around a little bit, carefully staying within sight of the horses. Something about Legolas...Well, actually, his name...tugged at her memory. What was it? Not that they were related, she was sure she hadn't even known him until recently...something to do with a book...This was absurd. A book? What could Legolas have to do with a book? If she hadn't known him, she couldn't have borrowed one from him, and he was to young to be mentioned in one, rare as they were, so...
"Kenturiel! Come on, let's go! If we leave now we can still reach Lothlorien by nightfall."
Kathara turned towards Legolas's voice, with an angry sigh of annoyance. Her first chance to explore and stopped already...She wasn't a child, to be told what to do all the time! But, at the same time, she knew that Legolas was right. The sun was far past noon.
As she turned to jog back to the horses, Kathara noticed an odd bit of stone on the ground. It was just like the odd, black crystal tear she had had with her when she awoke the first time, except that it was a translucent bluish-white. She stooped to pick it up, and heard Tienthe yell, "Hurry up, Kenturiel! We need to go NOW!" followed by the sound of Legolas talking to him in an annoyed mutter. She quickly scooped it up and tucked it into a small pouch she had found at her waist, along with the other one. Then she went back to the horses, where Legolas, Tienthe, and the two other elves where waiting.
***
An hour or so later, Kathara was riding behind Legolas on his horse, and wondering about the two crystals. As far back as she could remember (in other words, since she had woken up that first time), the black one had felt important, somehow. And then she had found that other one, in the woods...Where had they come from? Why were they important? And, most of all, what WERE they? It was fairly obvious they were more than just crystal. There was more to them, a feeling, well...a feeling of magic. There was no other way to describe it.
There was no way that Kathara could find the answers to her questions now, so she shoved them to the back of her mind. Right now, there were more immediate things to worry about. When they were going to eat, and how far from where they were going they were, for instance.
"Legolas, when are we stopping to eat? I'm sorry, I know we're in a hurry for some reason, but I'm starting to get hungry."
Legolas laughed. "Don't be sorry. I'm getting hungry too, but we don't have any food with us. We'll have to wait until we get to Valorien."
Kathara sighed. "Ok. But aren't those blueberries over there ripe? They sure look it."
Legolas stared. Kathara was pointing at a blueberry bush a few feet away and to their right, and he could have sworn it hadn't been there before. And they DID look ripe. "I suppose there's no harm in checking. Lentos! Theriban!" The two previously anonymous elves reigned in their horses and looked back.
"Legolas?" the one on the right asked.
"We're going to stop for a minute. Kenturiel found some berries." All five elves dismounted and ran at the bush. Seconds later, they were hungrily eating the berries.
A few minutes later, they were all either lying on the ground or sitting against trees, falling asleep. Tienthe mumbled something about it not being the season for blueberries, but it quickly degenerated into snores. One of the other elves...was it Lentos or Theriban? Kathara wondered...yawned and fell asleep as well, quickly followed by the other. As though they were under some spell, Legolas thought, and he began to grow alarmed, but an immense lethargy seized him, quelling the warning, and he too fell asleep.
After seeing the alarm appear and fade on Legolas's face, Kathara became frightened. For a reason she did not know, she took out and held tightly the two crystal tears she had found. The lethargy became lassitude, and she alone of the five remained awake. And she was the only one to see the hooded figure coming out of the shadows...
A/N: Please read & review! And once again I'm sorry I took so long.