Perplexities of Growing Up
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the places or characters used here except for Náriël-I did invent her and if she resembles anyone else's character in anyway, I'm sorry- not done on purpose. Everything else belongs to Tolkien.
A/N:
Ok! I'm back:-) School is starting on Monday. Bleh. I hope I'll still be motivated to write…im so sorry for the slow updates, I need to get back into my LOTR mode…maybe I need to go watch one of the movies…again…lol! anyhoo, enough rambling, on with the story! Enjoy and please review at the end! I love reading the reviews and they provide wonderful motivation for me to keep going!
Ch. 16: a new beginning…or history repeated?
POV: Author
It was a dismal day – all damp and dark and rainy, perfectly fit for the mood she was in. She ran through the forest as fast as her feet could carry her, the small beaten path a blur before her tear-soaked eyes. She choked out a sob as a branch whipped her across her exposed collarbone and shoulder. The blood was pounding in her ears; her heart was racing. She dared not stop to see if he were still following.
Náriël clutched her now torn dress tightly to her body to keep it from slipping down during her hasty retreat. She shook her head as she screamed at herself inside and yet the heartache would not go away – he had betrayed her, and for that, she could never forgive him.
'Maybe Ada was right…'
As she ran farther away from her assailant, she began to feel a sharp pain in her side. She dropped down on all fours and attempted to catch her breath. Her once beautiful dress was now covered in mud from the recently fallen rains, but she did not care for the giant tear in the back of the dress was irreparable anyway. Her labored breathing slowed down, but the tears only increased. She strained her ears, and indeed, she could still pick up his quick footsteps not far behind.
Her eyes opened wide in panic as she scrambled up from the ground and shot off once more. Her feet hurt from her fast pace and she wanted to yell out the fury and anguish building up inside of her. And suddenly, the heavens opened up…and it started to rain.
'Why! Why did things have to turn out this way!'
The rain sped up and began to pelt her back as torrents of water poured down from the sky. The wind howled threateningly through the dark trees whispering of a spring soon to come. The tears were now burning her eyes and she no longer knew where she was going. It had grown so dark that one would have thought it to already be dusk had they naught the previous knowledge that it was only a bit past noon. Through the stormy gloom and what seemed to be a waterfall descending upon her, she did not even notice the young elf before her until it was too late.
She collided with him head on, her ankle nearly twisting as her shoe flew off somewhere out of sight. She sat there on the cold wet ground in a confused stupor. Through the wet locks that clung to her face so adamantly, she could make out a male form with long hair braided back. She was seized with fright as a thought ran through her mind.
'No, how could he! But I never noticed! He couldn't have passed me! Oh Valor, please, I beg you, don't let it be him…'
She squeezed her eyes shut as knew waves of dread rolled over her. She resumed her furious sobbing as she attempted to back away while still remaining on the forest floor. Her back was suddenly met by a large tree trunk and upon realizing that there was no escape, she brought her knees up to her chest and clutched them tightly.
"Náriël?"
'That voice…where have I heard it before?'
She tentatively opened her eyes and through the haze of the storm attempted to identify the elf before her. The mist hid his facial features and her crazed mind began to form illusions as to whom he might be.
'Legolas?'
She looked up at him in surprise and confusion. In an instant a whirlwind of emotions swept through her, but the ones that remained were hurt and anger. She turned her head away from him and scowled, forgetting her precarious situation for the moment.
POV: Legolas
"Náriël, what happened to you?"
I knelt down beside her in a bit of a panic. The last time I saw her this disheveled was on our first meeting. Her dress was filthy and torn in places; it looked like her death grip was the only thing holding it up. Her hair was dirty and tousled and the wet strands clung to her face, giving her a wild appearance.
A noise suddenly caught my attention and I shot up, grabbing my bow and pulling an arrow taught upon it. Pointing it in the direction of the disturbance, an elf appeared out of the mist like an apparition. I heard Náriël give a small exclamation of what seemed to be horror and surprise rolled into one. Then it dawned on me.
"Aniolad?"
I turned to Náriël incredulously. There was no way I could believe that after everything, after all these years, after the three centuries that I was gone, she would have gone back to him, and still be with him to this very day (A/N: ok, age/maturity wise, Náriël is 17, Legolas is 20 and Aniolad is 18) I heard him take a step forward and I whipped my head back in his direction. Náriël began to softly cry behind me once more. I narrowed my gaze into a glare as I stared at the one elf that I hated the most.
"What happened? What have you done to her?"
I did not remove the arrow from my bow as I interrogated him. He took another step forward as an arrogant smirk appeared on his face. His eyes flickered to Náriël and then quickly back to me; he seemed to take no heed of the dangerous weapon I wielded at the moment.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here? Our tragic hero has returned at last? Here to save the little princess, are you?"
His smirk twisted into a sick smile, giving him the look of a madman.
"Well guess what, Prince Legolas? I'm no longer afraid of you. I've spent these past centuries honing my skills and I'm proud to say that I do believe I could kick your ass all the way back to Mirkwood…send you home with your tail between your legs! Now, what's going on between Náriël and myself is none of your concern, so I'm warning you, turn your back on this and leave before I make you regret it."
His warped smile turned into a full blown grin as he slowly turn his head towards Náriël, lowering his lids and lifting his chin in what he probably thought was a "sexy" look. I was so infuriated by is pretentious speech that I gripped my bow till my knuckles went white.
"Care to give that theory of yours a try? Why don't we have a go at it, eh?"
I let the arrow loose, making sure it landed mere millimeters away from what I would have much rather had as its target. His eyes grew wide as he looked down at the arrow now lodged in the ground and in between his feet. I saw his glance swiftly shift to his family jewels before his head snapped up in anger.
"Not quite as good a marksman as you say I see."
I glowered at him. If he only knew…growling out my fury, I knew of only one way to satisfy my rage. I dropped the bow and flung off my bag of arrows as I quickly stalked towards him. My fists were balled up in anger and I could practically feel my eyes glinting in malice. I saw fear in his eyes at that moment and it made a corner of my mouth curl up in a tiny smile. He still attempted his façade of courage; he wouldn't budge.
Oh well, all the better for me.
Before he could blink I grabbed the front of his tunic and hurled my fist toward his face. I heard a few bones crunch as I made perfect contact with my target. I am a pretty good marksman, if I do say so myself. I threw him back so that he landed on his behind and I stood above him in what I hoped was a very threatening manner.
"If you ever, and I mean EVER come anywhere near Náriël again I will make you believe that the pain you are experiencing now is paradise."
My voice was a deadly hiss and my blood boiled in my veins as I looked down on him.
"You can be sure," I spat out, "that Lord Elrond will know of this, and you will be lucky if he does not throw both you and your family out of Rivendell for good!"
He stared up at me with a mixture of pain and fear before attempting to hurriedly stand up. After two attempts in which he simply slipped and fell back into the mud, he finally managed to right himself and scampered off like a scared cat from whence he came. A deep sigh escaped my lips as I looked into the fog that Aniolad had disappeared into just moments before. My brain was mulling over the dire situation in which Náriël had found herself in previous to my arrival. I was angry with her. How could she have been so stupid? Not only had I warned her about him, but so had her father…leave it up to Náriël to be stubborn and do her own thing anyway.
I turned around and made my way back to the still sobbing elleth. How she had such a store of tears, I could not say. The rain had finally stopped, and I knelt down beside her once more and tried to wipe away some the stray strands of hair that were glued across her face. The moment I touched her though, she shrunk away from me, shutting her eyes tighter and pulling her knees in closer. I sighed once more.
'I only pray to the Valor that he did not succeed in …his intentions…however, with the way she is behaving…I just don't know. Maybe I was too late.'
The thought scared me more than I would like to admit. I gently scooped her up into my arms bridle style as I whistled for my horse. She quickly began to panic at my touch and thrashed around, attempting to push me away from her. I only held her closer and tried my best to console the frightened elleth. The scared whimpers escaping her broke my heart.
POV: Náriël
I sat there still huddled by the tree and quietly wept. As degrading as it was, I did not know what else to do. I was cold and wet and more frightened than I had ever been before. For some reason, at this point Aniolad scared me more than that Warg had three centuries ago. Just thinking about any male touching me revolted me at the moment. It sent such fear and pure panic through my body; I was confused by it all.
Everything that I had felt for Aniolad…the sensations that coursed through me when he touched me, when he kissed me…it was all so new. I did not know how I should act or whether the feelings that his actions elicited were correct or not. All I knew was that it was so different from the light butterflies and embarrassing blushes I would get around Legolas. The feelings brought forth by Aniolad were feelings of need, I suppose. The thing is, when he would hold me close and run his hands over my body, all I wanted was to feel more of him…or maybe it wasn't that I wanted more of Aniolad, but more of the sensations he was creating.
I'm so confused by it all. What happened this morning only added to the chaos already existing inside my head. All I need is some time to my self to sort through everything. The fact that Legolas was now suddenly back most certainly complicated things. All I know at this moment is that I just want to be alone. I don't want to feel anyone beside me, holding me, touching me, kissing me, caressing me. Just alone.
As I sat there contemplating this, still crying slightly, I felt Legolas kneel down and brush the hair away from my face. Despite the fact that I was immensely grateful for what he had just done for me, I could not bear the feeling of his flesh against mine and I shrunk away from him. I tried to make myself as small as possible and shut my eyes tighter, hoping that when I'd open them again, it would just be me, clouded in the gloom of the day's storm, blanketed by the mist from the rain, hidden from everyone…
But alas, it was not so. I felt a strong pair of arms tenderly swoop me up in one smooth and fluid motion and I was reminded…
POV: Author: Flashback
Náriël sat lazily under a tree, hidden from the gentle rain beneath its infinite branches and budding leaves. Aniolad stood several feet away from her, a lustful gaze plastered on his otherwise serene face. He prowled up to her like a panther and falling onto his knees before her, helaid his hands on either side of her small frame, effectively pinning her between the tree and himself. He looked up at her through his lashes before crushing his lips against hers. It was slightly painful, but something about it sparked something inside Náriël and she moaned slightly before wrapping her arms around his neck, pulling him closer.
Aniolad smiled against her lips, a sly smirk gracing his face. He pulled away from her and stood up. Staring down at her for only a second he stooped and picked her up bridle style, nearly keeling over due to his eagerness. Walking a bit away from the glade they had just been in, he set her down in the soft but damn grass. His hands slipped up her body, under her skirts, and back out again. They then proceeded to dip into the front of her dress as he sucked on her neck.
He felt Náriël stiffen slightly at his brash actions, but did not stop. He continued kissing and caressing her even though she was now more hesitant in returning the affections… she had never before allowed his hands such freedom in roaming her body – then again, he had never really tried. He shifted so that his body was covering hers and she could feel is hard arousal against her thigh. Her heart began to race as panic crept up through her body. She could now feel his hand moving to the back of her dress, trying to unzip it.
With her eyes wide she tried to desperately push him off while telling him to stop, but he ignored her and simply pinned her wrists above her head. With a devilish grin he looked down upon her...
POV: Author: End of Flashback
Náriël began to thrash as she remembered how Aniolad acted before attacking her. She frantically tried to push Legolas away from her, unable to stand the thought of a male holding her. Once more, she was reminded of how much stronger they both were. He held her close and tried to soothe her as he carried her to his horse. Náriël began to cry again as all rationale left her. All she wanted was to be curled up in her warm and safe blankets, all alone in her room.
At this point, even Legolas frightened her. She was no longer sure who she could trust and who she should be wary of. All of the sadness and anguish that she felt over the past occurrences with Legolas and the recent ones with Aniolad were turned into bitterness as he held her close.
'No, I have been a fool twice already. I refuse to be dubbed one for a third time. I will not allow my heart to be broken again. I don't need any of them anyway, I'm happier on my own….never again,' she silently vowed to herself.
………..
Where have all the good men gone
And where are all the gods?
Where's the street-wise Hercules
To fight the rising odds?
Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed?
Late at night I toss and turn and dream of what I need
I need a hero
I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night
He's gotta be strong
And he's gotta be fast
And he's gotta be fresh from the fight
I need a hero
I'm holding out for a hero 'til the morning light
He's gotta be sure
And it's gotta be soon
And he's gotta be larger than life
Somewhere after midnight
In my wildest fantasy
Somewhere just beyond my reach
There's someone reaching back for me
Racing on the thunder and rising with the heat
It's gonna take a superman to sweep me off my feet…
(Holding Out For A Hero by Frou Frou)
……..
A/N:
Alrighty! Now we're rolling again! I'm sorry, I know that this is kinda a short chapter and I'll try to make the next one longer but I thought this would be a good place to end this one for now. So yeah, reviews please! *puppy dog face*