Two updates in as many days, has the world come to an end? (Wait, I did get Shadows Creeping in before midnight, didn't I…? Oh well, close enough.) No, actually I was just waiting to update until I could do both. Less cd-burning and transferring trouble when I do a two-for-one deal.

Anyway, I hope everyone's really enjoying their summers, whether they still get summer vacation or not. I've been working a bit more than I anticipated, which is part of the reason why I haven't gotten to update like I hoped to, but it's Renaissance Faire season now, and I just got new chapters posted, so life just couldn't be better! Here's to hoping you're all having as much or more fun than I am:)

I know some people who aren't…so let's check in on that wonderful vacation paradise known as Ostad, shall we…?

Chapter Twelve

The warren-like maze of half-fallen buildings and dusty tents seemed much the same street after street. The sky was visible only as a thin slit of pale, washed-out blue overhead. Mallor did not know how anyone could keep their bearings in the confusion of the Outer City, but he followed his king and the Elves without hesitation.

Suddenly Legolas cried out softly and stopped. Elladan, with the reflexes of the Elves, was far less than a second behind in abruptly ceasing his pace as well. Aragorn stumbled slightly into Elladan, but the king was far too quick on his feet—not to mention used to Elves—to fall even without his foster-brother's aid. With Elladan steadying him, the king still managed to catch Éowyn and slow her rush as well. Mallor was not so fast, and his headlong sprint did not end until it slammed full into Gimli. Their feet tangled in their cloaks, and they rolled to a stop. Swift hands flew out and snatched at the Dwarf; the prince held tightly to Gimli's arm to stop his tumble. Elladan, with his hands still full of Aragorn, and the king, with his own helping the Lady Éowyn, had no time to catch the Ranger. Skidding on the duty road, Mallor found he had tumbled just around the edge of the corner the Elves had so unexpectedly stopped at.

He was yanked back around the decrepit building before he had fully ceased moving, and was hauled to his feet. But it was too late; the guards gathering down the street had seen him. Whether they knew what they had seen was irrelevant; they knew there was a disturbance in the city, and they had just seen something strange. They were coming to investigate.

Mallor remembered few details of the ensuing chase. The Ranger had always considered himself swift of foot, but he was struggling to keep up with the leaders. Suddenly Mallor remembered that King Elessar had been named "Wingfoot" by King Éomer during the dark days of the War of the Ring. It was, he decided, a fitting name. Legolas and Gimli had also been of the Three Hunters who had made that famous chase across the plains of Rohan, and both Elves seemed to be tireless. The Lady Éowyn did not slow either, and although Mallor was not the only one cautiously watching her stamina, he saw no sign of stumbling in her feet or eyes.

They sprinted onwards through the dusty streets for hours uncountable. They met no others, but Mallor could hear the sounds of soldiers running or people conversing only a street away at times. Without the keen ears of the Elves, they would have long ago been caught. It seemed that they had no more turned down a street but one of the Elves would bolt down another road to avoid the enemy, and they would all follow as quickly as they could run. The Ranger worried for his wounded king, but knew that they could not afford to pause and deal with the arrow and blood. One hesitation, and the enemy would be upon them.

He did not know if they ran with any plan in mind, or if the Elves were simply focused on keeping them away from their pursuers. He thought vaguely that it seemed they were gradually heading further away from the Outer Wall, but he could not be sure in the maze of decrepit buildings and billowing dust. He wondered if the others noticed, or if they were too concentrated on listening for the enemy to pay attention to the direction in which they traveled? Mallor wished that they had had time to speak, but it was all he could do to keep up the grueling pace headlong through the tattered streets.

And he wondered why Rhìmbron was not with them.

But he did not wish to think of that.

……..

Suddenly, there was a dusty, once-white wall of stone before them. The ramshackle, half-fallen buildings of rotten wood and tattered cloth were strangely juxtaposed next to the relic of older times, like growths of mold on once-clean rock. It was a jarring sight to the companions, used as they were by now to the decrepit tent city through which they ran.

Turning from the pitted stone in front of them, they started to look for another path when Legolas suddenly stopped them. "They are coming!" he hissed, staring at the empty streets. Elladan stepped forward and lifted his sword, hearing the distant sounds of many booted feet and jingling weapons. The Elves' eyes met for a moment. Then Legolas seemed to sigh and he nodded. "Quickly," he instructed the others reluctantly, "over the wall!"

The Elf sprinted to the wall and leapt up it. It was a beautiful jump, so graceful that it seemed more that he had naturally decided to fly than that he had expended any effort to launch himself from the earth. He landed lightly on the top of the wall, expertly balancing himself on the crumbling stone. A few dirty white pebbles shifted, but he had landed so softly that it hardly seemed he had connected with the wall at all. He instantly flattened himself along the top of the wall and peered over. The slightest tension in his shoulders vanished as he saw the flat surface in front of him. The streets directly on the other side of the wall were devoid of people.

"It is safe to cross here," he whispered to the others below him.

"Mallor," Aragorn spoke quietly, no more than a word and a nod necessary to explain his desires to the Ranger. He nodded and sheathed his sword, moving to the wall. He formed a cup of his hands and knelt expectantly. "Éowyn," Aragorn commanded.

The woman wasted no time arguing, but accepted Mallor's boost. Legolas caught her wrists and hauled her to the top of the wall. Some dislodged pebbles rained down making small patters like waterless raindrops in the dust. He steadied the woman, but the wall was large enough that she could maintain her balance on it without his aid.

Motioning for her to wait, the Elf dropped from the wall to land in the Old City. Éowyn watched, and after a moment she followed. Legolas was back atop the wall a second later, nimbly silent on the crumbling stone.

"Gimli," Aragorn hissed in a tone of command. The Dwarf scowled, but Aragorn met his eyes without flinching. "Now," he ordered, moving towards the wall with the Dwarf. Gimli scowled at both the men and leapt, ignoring their offer of aid. Legolas dived forward, almost topping from the wall, and caught his friend's hands. Mallor and Aragorn quickly pushed the Dwarf upwards by the boots, and together they managed to set him high enough that he could get a grip on the top of the wall. He hauled himself onto it, trying and failing to shake off Legolas's assistance, and spent a moment to scowl at the Elf and Men before dropping heavily to the other side.

Legolas sighed and Aragorn hid a smile before the king crouched and nodded for Mallor to go next. "My lord," the Ranger protested, "you should go first. You are injured, and you life infinitely more important—"

"And with my injured shoulder I will need both you and Legolas to haul me onto the wall," Aragorn cut him off sensibly. He extended his cupped hands. "Now jump, Mallor."

The Ranger frowned, but did as his king commanded, trying to put as little of his weight on the other's hands as he could. Aragorn anticipated his reluctance, and half-rose to give the man the boost he would need to reach the Elf's waiting hands. As soon as Mallor was settled on the wall, Aragorn leaped. The Elf and Ranger caught his hands and he tried not to wince as his skin tore against the arrow. Blood dripped down his chest, and he hoped that it would not pool on the ground and give away their trail.

Then he was balanced on the stone. Mallor leaped down, rolling as he landed to avoid injury. The wall was almost too tall for them to leap, even with Elven assistance; had it been properly cared for they would not have been able to do so at all. Fortunately, in spots the inner wall was less than perfectly maintained. The wear and tear of years and use had taken their toll, and as the wall was no longer the city's outer defense, it was not cared for as well as it might have been, and they had been able to find a spot where much of the top had crumbled away. It made for difficult balancing on the broken, age-cracked stone, but it meant that they could cross into the Old City unhindered.

Aragorn paused before he jumped, and turned back to Elladan, who had not moved. "Hurry!" he whispered to the Elf.

Elladan shook his head. "I will lead them away, so that they do not think to follow us into the other part of the city. When I have brought them far enough, I shall leave their awareness. I will either come find you or, if that does not seem feasible without bringing risk upon you, I shall wait outside the city for your escape."

"Elladan," Aragorn frowned, but the Elf ignored him and, with a grin and a half-bow, ran nimbly down a small side street and out of sight. Aragorn sighed. He knew that the Elf was right, and their escape would prove short-lived if their trail ended at the Inner Wall, but just because something was necessary did not mean that he liked it.

Arwen would kill him if he got her brother hurt.

……..

Arwen sighed and rubbed at her temples. She had cancelled everything this week that she possibly could, citing the king's "ill-health" as the reason. She did not like deception, even when it was well intended and necessary. That the deceived should be their own subjects and councilors made things all the worse. When you could not even trust Gondorians…!

But that thought was unfair and more a product of stress than reality. Gondor was still true and noble, and they dearly loved their king. But there were those within the city who felt differently. Arwen hoped that they were none of them citizens of Gondor, but she had learned not to trust to that. Not all Men were as honorable as most, and those that were not gave more trouble than she would have thought possible years ago. Now they had to "play politics," as Faramir put it, and walk a fine line with their words. Who would have thought that peace could prove difficult after the darkness was banished?

She shook her head to banish her dreary thoughts. The day was over at last, and she was free of the constraints of state. Her only duty this night was to keep up the pretense of her lord's illness.

……..

Aragorn glared at Legolas; he was not so injured that he had required the Elf helping to brace him when they landed on the other side of the wall. Before he could reprimand Legolas, however, Éowyn had spun him around roughly and started inspecting the arrow in his shoulder. He tried to protest, but the glower he received from the woman was enough to silence his words.

"My lord, we cannot walk inconspicuously through the city while you have an arrow imbedded in your arm and are trailing blood behind you," she pointed out. Aragorn sighed; she was right, but they did not have the time to tend to it.

"Break off the shaft and bind the wound," he commanded. "I will see to it later, when we have a safe moment to rest."

"My lord—" Éowyn started to object, but he shook his head firmly.

"We have not the time now. Break the shaft and bind it tightly," the king said firmly.

Éowyn scowled, but wrapped a hand around the shaft. "Brace yourself, my lord," she whispered apologetically. Aragorn nodded; it would not be a painless experience. He closed his eyes—then opened them when Éowyn removed her hand.

"Perhaps if the shaft were to be cut, rather than broken by hand?" Legolas offered, holding out a sharp, white Elvish knife with a small smile.

"Oh," said Aragorn. "Well, yes, that would be another option…"

The Elf nodded, keeping a more-or-less straight face. Éowyn stepped back out of his way and began searching through her pack for suitable bandaging. Legolas firmly grasped the arrow's shaft and smoothly sliced it just above the leather jerkin it had pierced. The Elvish knife was sharp and swift enough that Aragorn hardly felt the change. Then Éowyn was there, tying strips of cloth around the wound. Aragorn flinched but made no other sign of his discomfort until she was done. Wincing, he rubbed at his shoulder gingerly—careful not to touch the slightly protruding arrow—and smiled thinly.

"Thank you, friends," the man said dryly. Éowyn shook her head and swiftly threw her pack back around her shoulders. Legolas half-bowed and hid a smile. Elves, Aragorn thought with a fond grin of feigned annoyance. They never change.

Legolas used another scrap of bandage to wrap the bloody remains of the arrow, which he stowed in his quiver. Aragorn smiled. Apparently, some of his endlessly repeated lessons about not leaving a trail for your enemies to follow had been taken to heart.

Éowyn paused as she re-adjusted the pack and glanced meaningfully at the cut oozing blood across his cheek, but Aragorn shook his head. "We have not the time to care for all our scratches; it will not show beneath my hood." Éowyn frowned, but stayed silent.

Aragorn at last looked around himself as they moved to set off again; this was a far cry from the ragged, rough hovels of the outer half of the city.

When they had dropped over the side of the Inner Wall into the Old City, it was as if they had dropped into a different world. The sense of danger and pursuit was gone, and the buildings no longer threatened to suddenly tumble and smother them beneath rotten boards and dirt-encrusted cloths. The stones beneath their feet were crumbling and cracked and stained with dirt and time, but it was a great change from the plain dust they left behind. While the air was still hazy from dust that blew and seeped through and over the Inner Wall, it was clearer and their footsteps left no clouds behind them.

Of course, everything has a drawback. While it was now easier to breathe, visibility was increased, which meant that they had to be doubly on their guard. The streets were wider and exposed to more sunlight, and they stretched further without twisting. This part of the city had been laid out with forethought rather than simply growing like an untended garden, and while that made navigating it easier, it offered greater danger of discovery to the companions.

Casting their hoods over their faces, they did their best to avoid people. The dust that coated them proved helpful, for looking like refuse that had somehow crept in from New City made them less than welcome without being precisely ill-tolerated. Rather, eyes were averted and they were all but ignored. There were no searching glances, for those who saw them quickly turned away as if the dust that marked the distinctions between the two different social standings was contagious.

Sometimes being a pariah could be helpful.

Reviewer Responses:

Lil Pippin Padfoot – Crazy crazy crazy! Normal and sane people frighten me… You're welcome, and yeah, sorry about the great gaps. Faramir…heh. (Yeah, I just did that to freak you out…sorry, I'm evil, I know.)

Deana – "Injured?" Rhys replies innocently. "Now whoever said dear Legolas was injured?" She giggles and grins slyly. "I certainly never said he was injured…did I?"

Slayer3 – Well, I'm glad you've seen it now. However, I have to say the arrows are much cooler. I don't know why, maybe because I suck so badly at archery. Then again, as I found out at the Ren Faire yesterday, I suck pretty bad with swords, too…

lindahoyland – Time will tell, time will tell…and thank you muchly! Swordfights fun. :)

Laiquendi – BwahahaEH? Nutella? Alas, my precious! Innocent pondering, hey, I thought that was my things this time around! Oh well, I guess you can innocently ponder the fiery fate of the nutella if I can innocently ponder why you all seem to think Legolas is hurt…?

Avalon Estel – Who, me? Impossible situation. Would I do something like that? Oh darn, I would, wouldn't I… Sneaky sneaky Elves and Rangers, eh? And people always think they're so aboveboard and everything…ha! Gimli, for one, could have told them better. But don't worry, Éowyn will get her moments to shine just like that.

Jebb – Right, let me just turn down the heat on the stove and remove head from pot… Ah, that's better. Ah, that must be why everyone thinks Legolas is hurt…they're just anticipating the axe-whacking the Dwarf has in store for him! I get it now, thanks. Heh, yes, Elladan moment forthcoming…heh heh heh…er, I mean, um, yes…la la la, look at me, I'm so innocent and certainly not plotting anything…la la la…

Aranna – Nope, poor old Rhìmbron just wasn't used to fighting with legends. Of course, I bet I'd be doing about the same thing if I ever got the chance to see any of 'em for real, so I shouldn't be too hard on the poor guy…although it's a bit late for that, now. Hmm…oh well! Ah yes, the beautiful, terrible wrath of the Eldar…man I wish they'd been in the movie…sigh… Sheesh, are you even starting summer break now? Ugh. Hope all that went well. And thanks, finals went off great, especially the one where I got to light my project on fire and watch it burn away…that was pretty. Fire…mmm…so pretty… But you want cliffie? I can give you cliffie…mwahahaha. ;)

East Coastie – Well, I'm burnt like a lobster because I was too dumb to remember to put sunscreen on the shoulders and lack-of-bosom that hadn't seen any sun since last Ren Faire, so I guess that means I'm having fun, right? ;) Hee, I love Ren Faire. Can't wait for labor day, it's Children's Fantasy so I get to wear Elf ears:D And luckily for all, the old man did manage to get the tractor beam out of commission (although not before a horrible evil what-were-you-thinking Nuzgûl-Rancor crossbreed savaged my ankle). As for saving our Gondorians, well, I'm gonna leave that up to a certain Elf, Dwarf, and Legendary Warrior Woman. 'Fraid my fighting leave a lot to be desired… ;)

Cosmic Castaway – Yep, but fortunately I give indigestion so it pulled an Artoo and spat me back out again. Hee hee hee hee hee. Gee, I'm so glad you're enjoying this…hee hee hee hee hee…Ai, I do love it when my life is threatened…then I know I'm doing my job properly… Thanks:)

And that's all this time. I hope to have more done soon, but we'll see how much time I can scrape up. Enjoy the rest of your summer until I see you again, and as always, I so very much appreciate your continued interest in this perpetually-late story. Give yourselves a pat on the back, you deserve it—and my thanks and apologies. Namarïe…until our next meeting. ;)