Disclaimer: We only own the new characters and the plot.
»«»«»«
Special thanks to: Maresia Eterna, for being always there for me; and to Crisundomiel, for your reviews and support.
»«»«»«
Chapter 15 – In the war
With a small cry Inwë cut the head of an orc before spinning around, and block the attack of another one. Her flushed and dirty cheeks and sweat that resembled to bullets dripping down her face, indicated how tired she was; the elleth was aware of how weak she was becoming. They had been battling all night, but even though the sun was threatening to raise, all elves refused to give up; they were under the direct order of Haldir, after all.
With a groan, Inwë felt a bit of skin being ripped from her upper-arm along with a piece of her grey coat, and with another cry she slashed the orc that was standing behind her. Everyone was exhausted, many of the wounded refused to stop because they were too few, but orcs were still coming… determined to kill every being until they had the forest under their control.
A cry of pain made Inwë turn around, and she powerlessly watched as another of her friends lost his life. Their eyes meet for a quick second, but the empty look on the now dead elf had been enough to give Inwë all strength she needed to continue. She was sick of all those battles, of seeing her friends getting killed because of their dreams for peace.
As she desperately tried to stop a tear from rolling down her cheek, Inwë attacked another orc with her sword. She was fighting for peace; of that no one could say the contrary, but the black haired elleth was also fighting for her family; her two sisters who thankfully did not have to see the horrors of war.
The two of them – Eowáthiel and Léssien – were her life, and Inwë would do everything in her power to keep them safe. That was why she had asked Haldir to train her, and allow her to go to the battles.
"Inwë, behind you!" someone shouted, and the emerald-green eyed elleth spun around prepared to be hit, but all she saw was one orc standing still, his arms rose on the air since he was holding a sword.
With a growl the orc fell forward, and Inwë jumped to the side in order not to crush under his weight. Then, she noticed that the orc had been hit on his back by three arrows; but who had helped her?
"Are you all right?" a male voice asked, but Inwë only had time to notice a hooded man before throwing her sword at something behind him "What th-"
"I am now", the black haired elleth answered before running past the man, and take her sword from an orc's chest "Thanks, but I didn't need your help."
"Of course you didn't; you were only ready to lose your head." the man stated sarcastically "And I mean, literally."
"I really don't think this is the right time to start fighting", Inwë retorted, taking a streak of her hair away from her eyes "Just keep out of my way, and no one will get hurt."
"Well, your welcome!" the man exclaimed, and with a roll of her eyes Inwë prepared herself to attack another group of orcs when…
"Onóre, something's burning!" Léssien spoke suddenly, and Inwë snapped from her daze with a shake of her head. Only then did the older elleth notice that the soup she was preparing was getting burned at the bottom.
With a tired sigh, Inwë took the soup away from the fire, and put it away before closing her eyes for a second; what on earth was going on with her? The last few days had been almost surreal to the elleth, who often found herself gazing at empty space and remembering distant memories. She speculated if those memories had something to do with Legolas and Eowáthiel imminent departure…
»«»«»«
A lonely figure was walking slowly towards the stables; only the sound of the horses' neighs could be heard, along with the sound of the wind playing with the trees. As the wind blown harder, a long blond hair started billowing behind an elegant figure dressed in a white dress with blue embroideries.
Eowáthiel was tired of being let out, tired of being treated like a weak being; she was stronger than they all believed. After all, hadn't she managed to survive to all those years without Legolas? Hadn't she survived at their parents' departure?
She had stayed with Léssien and Milanil when Inwë had left to follow her dreams… it was more than fair that she was informed of what her sister was planning, and who better than Milanil to tell her?
"Milanil?" Eowáthiel called out, smiling when the elf turned around to stare at her.
"Oh, hello Eowá", Milanil greeted turning around to face her and crossing his arms over his chest. "What's going on?"
"You know Inwë just as well as I do, Milanil, and sometimes, she even confides to you", Eowáthiel started, locking her brown eyes with the elf grey ones. "I need to know what you two were arguing about in the kitchen the other day; and before you refuse to tell me", she added, for Milanil was shaking his head, "think about the consequences that may come from whatever decision she has made."
Milanil opened his mouth to reply, but no words escaped his lips; all he wanted to say was that she should ask Inwë that same question, but he knew perfectly well that she was not going to answer. And true to be said, the consequences could be catastrophic… maybe it was up to him to prevent a disaster from happening… Sighing deeply, he nodded and said: "Alright, Eowá, I'll tell you why we were arguing, but you have to promise me something."
"What?" the blonde elleth asked, raising an eyebrow.
"That you won't say a word about this to Inwë."
»«»«»«
Legolas was calmly folding a green cloak when a knock was heard on his room's door. "Come in", the elf said, placing the cloak over the bed and grabbing another one.
The door opened to reveal a small man with light-brown hair, who lost no time in walking in and closing the door behind him. "Hi Legolas, thought about coming to see if you need any help", he declared, walking over to the bed and sitting on the border.
"Thanks Merry, but I'm almost done packing", Legolas replied, grabbing the two cloaks and taking them over to a small trunk that could be easily tied to a horse's back. "What about you and Merry, have you already packed your stuff?"
"Yes, we didn't bring much with us anyway", Merry answered, watching as Legolas kept walking around, putting his belongings on the trunk. "Hum, Legolas… do you really think it is safe for Eowáthiel to come with us? I mean, we defeated Sauron, but there are still too many evil creatures along the way…"
Legolas smiled and glanced at the hobbit before replying, "Thank you so much, my friend, for worrying about Eowá, but she can fight. Her father taught all his daughters the art of using a sword, and besides she'll have us to protect her." He winked at Merry, who laughed pleasantly.
"You know, I'm going to miss little Léssien", the hobbit declared in a gloomy voice. "She's a sweet elleth and plays hide and seek really well."
The blond elf laughed, and commented, "No matter how many years go by, you hobbits never seem to loose your inner child. If more people were like you, Middle Earth would certainly be a happier place."
"You bet", a playful voice said, and both Legolas and Merry looked over their shoulders only to see Pippin climbing through the window and entering the room.
"You know, Pippin, you could have used the door", Merry said in a scornful voice.
"Yes I could, but where would be the fun of it?" Pippin replied, biting an apple.
The three friends started laughing; though Legolas seemed to be having as much fun as the hobbits, dark thoughts were clouding his mind.
»«»«»«
The Leagallow family along with their visits was all sitting on the living-room. Merry and Pippin had been telling old stories from Hobbiton, delighting not only Léssien but the other elves as well.
When no one seemed to be staring at them, Eowáthiel leaned and whispered something at Legolas ear. The elf rose from the armchair where he was sitting and followed the elleth through the entrance door into the cold night.
When they reached the exterior, Eowáthiel shivered and Legolas placed his cloak over her trembling shoulders. "Thanks", the blonde elleth thanked, following Legolas' example and sitting on a small wooden bench they had in the porch.
"You seem troubled, Eowá", the blue-eyed elf commented in a concerned voice.
"I am", she replied quietly, dropping her gaze to the floor. "Legolas… we should leave as soon as possible", Eowáthiel said, after a few seconds in silence.
Legolas eyed her for a full minute before replying. "What's wrong, Eowá? What makes you wish to leave so soon? We agreed we would go only by the end of the week, and-"
Eowáthiel interrupted him almost immediately, "You don't understand, Legolas; it is extremely important that we leave in short time. We can leave tomorrow night, for instance; we have all of our belongings packed, and Merry and Pippin as well." The elleth stared deeply at Legolas' eyes, who felt that she was hiding something from him.
"Will you at least tell me what is rushing you?" he inquired, but the look he saw on Eowá's face made him realize she was not going to tell him anything; at least, not yet. "Fine, but we should inform Inwë-"
"No!" the blonde elleth cried. "Only Merry and Pippin should be informed. As for the others… leave that to me."
"Are you sure?" Legolas asked, but his only reply was Eowáthiel arms wrapping around his torso. He then kissed her forehead softly, and wondered silently why Eowáthiel was acting so strangely…
To be continued…
Important note: Sorry if I took so long to post, but I haven't been feeling really inspired lately. I hope you liked the chapter!