Chapter Twenty Seven: In Which Star Wars is Referenced Far Too Often
DISCLAIMER: It's freaking summer. Why am I so busy? Oh right, because I'm taking online courses and got a part time job…silly me :p
Author's Note: Hey ya'll! Super big thanks to all of you for sticking with this story! Reviews are always a welcome incentive to update more, hint hint :)
Random Quote: "Remove child before folding." ~A baby stroller label that won the Wacky Warning Label Contest of 2006
All of the riding Estela had done during her time in Middle Earth so far was with the sole purpose of getting from point A to point B as fast as possible. To be riding again just for the sake of enjoyment was the most wonderful sensation in the world. The wind whipped around her face, carrying mingling scents of fresh grass and crisp mountain air. The sun spread its warmth over her skin. The motion of the horse beneath her was so familiar, the speed she rode at exhilarating. The White Mountains swam past her in a hazy blur of green and brown.
So immersed was she in the feeling of riding once more that she did not notice when Legolas slowed and she passed him. "Estela!" he called. She slowed to a walk to match his pace.
"Yes?" she said, when he had caught up.
"Are you enjoying yourself?"
She smiled. "Very much so. Back home, I've only ever ridden on a farm. The scenery here is simply incomparable."
Legolas suddenly laughed.
"What?" she said, confused.
"You are quite cheerful," he said. "It is…infectious."
Estela chuckled. "Eowyn said something similar to me earlier. Though she did not use the word infectious. That has a somewhat negative connotation, does it not?"
"I suppose you are correct. A more suitable term would be contagious."
"Indeed," she nodded. "Infectious brings to mind diseases."
"It is interesting," Legolas said suddenly.
"The scenery?" she asked, confused again.
"No," he shook his head. "I was referring to your manner of speaking. As your time in Middle Earth has lengthened, your speech has become more refined and less human like."
Estela considered this. "You mean that I'm not using contractions or saying 'like' as frequently."
"Indeed," he nodded.
"Next thing you know I'll be talking like Yoda."
"Pardon?"
"Never mind," she laughed. "Do you want to continue south or head back toward the city?"
"Which would you prefer?" he asked politely.
Estela grinned. "Do you see that large rock formation in the distance? Adjacent to where the mountains reach their high peak?
"Yes," Legolas responded.
"I'll race you there," she laughed before kicking her horse and bolting off. She heard Legolas' melodic laughter follow her as he hastened to catch up.
She leaned forward on the horse, feeling the wind whip her hair and the sunlight on her face. She turned around slightly, and saw that Legolas was a mere distance away from her. She grinned at him, and sped up.
Estela felt absolutely elated, more so than she had in quite a long time. A feeling of pure happiness flooded her. She laughed as she rode, even as Legolas passed her. He saw her smiling, and smiled back. He reached the rock formation sometime before her, and dismounted off of Arod.
"You win," Estela laughed as she slowed her horse and dismounted beside him. She looked at him, and saw that he had a very amused smile plastered on his face.
"What?" she said.
Legolas laughed. "Your hair. It is somewhat disheveled, and is almost entirely obscuring your face."
Before she could respond, he walked closer to her and brushed her hair aside. For the second time that day, Estela felt her breath catch. Just as she was thinking of doing the exact same thing, Legolas bent down and kissed her. He cupped her face in his hands, and she leaned into him. This kiss was different than their previous ones…It was a moment of absolute joy and trust. Her earlier feeling of happiness waxed, and she was utterly surrounded by it. He was an excellent kisser…Warm and sweet, right on that edge between demanding and requesting.
When they pulled apart, he moved his hands to her arms and held her lightly. She stared into his eyes. "I love you," she said. "I…I never thought I'd be in love, but I am."
"You are so beautiful, Estela," he said simply. "Melin le."
He kissed her again, and this time, every cliché phrase about love she had ever heard came to mind…For a moment, she shied away from the cheesy as hell chick flick moment feeling, but then she simply let go and allowed it wash over her. It felt amazing.
"What do you mean you don't know what chocolate is?" Adonnenniel gasped.
Merry and Pippin just stared at her. They were sitting on the forest floor, learning against a tree. Or at least Adonnenniel hoped it was just a tree. She wouldn't want to be leaning on an Ent, after all. The sun shone brightly through the forest, brightening the green tips of the trees.
"Okay," she said, facing them directly, "Think of your favorite food."
"Mushrooms," they said at the same time.
"Chocolate is even better! It's this delicious, sweet dessert that melts in your mouth and tastes great as an ice cream flavor. Though I guess you guys don't have ice cream either. Ice cream is like really cold, thick cream ice tastes like vanilla or any other flavor you can imagine. Like strawberries or mango. Though that would probably be more like sherbet," she mused.
"Do you think she makes these things up?" Merry whispered to Pippin.
"I certainly hope not," he replied. "It sounds delicious."
Adonnenniel sighed dreamily. "It is. Chocolate is the most delicious thing in the world…I really wish I had some right now. I miss so many things about my home…I mean, it's nice here and the scenery's great, but I really want to go back."
"I wish to return to the Shire," said Pippin. "We have strawberries there. Large, ripe, perfect strawberries. I haven't had strawberries in so long."
"Strawberries are great dipped in chocolate," Adonnenniel sighed. "And I get what you mean about missing your home. It's almost like a physical ache. Right here." She motioned to her heart. "I know that sounds really cheesy, but it's true. I want to go home so badly." She closed her eyes.
Merry placed a hand on her shoulder. "I am sure you will eventually return," he said.
"Me too," she whispered. "If I can't, I don't know what I'm going to do."
Hurt flickered briefly across Merry's face. "Do you really dislike it so much here?" he asked.
Adonnenniel shook her head vigorously and hastened to clarify what she meant. "I don't dislike it here. I just miss my home so much."
"Your sister didn't seem to miss it as much," Pippin pointed out.
"That's because Estela doesn't have that much to miss. She never got hooked on TV shows or websites like facebook, so she doesn't miss anything technological from our world. She was never as close with our father as I am and she didn't have as many friends as I do, so I guess that relationship wise it's easier for her to be separated from people back home. And she was always an introvert…I know she's changed since she's been here, and this might be hard for you to believe, but back home she would just stay in her room all day reading and studying. Whenever she hung out with friends it was just to study. When I asked her why, she would always shrug and say that she just felt more comfortable being alone. On the other hand, all of my weekends were booked months in advance. I miss movies, beaches, swimming pools, my friends, chocolate, my room, my music, my dad…"
Adonnenniel's breath caught and she stopped speaking. She turned away from the hobbits so they wouldn't see her crying.
"It'll be alright," Merry said, and awkwardly patted her shoulder.
Adonnenniel furiously rubbed her eyes, and turned back to them. "I'm sure it will," she said, forcing herself to smile.
As Estela rode back to the city with Legolas, her previous happy feeling was still very present. It seemed to hang around her like a shield, immune even to thoughts of the Prophecy and her sister. The mountains rolled past her in a continuous stream of mingled green and brown, and the luminous gleam of the sun gushed its warmth down the mountainsides and into the grassy terrain, speckling the grass with golden light. As they rode, the sun slowly began to recede into the horizon. Once, Estela closed her eyes and loosened her grip on the reins. She clung onto the horse extra tight with her legs, and for a moment she spread her arms out in the air. The feeling was exhilarating, and she laughed. Legolas rode beside her, and seemed likewise cheerful.
It wasn't until Estela spotted two small figures in the distance that she remembered the events that were to come.
"Estela!" Legolas said over the wind. "Do you see that?"
"Yes," she nodded, and then sped up.
As they neared the figures, Estela realized one was a horse bearing two small children, and the other was Gandalf. Estela and Legolas stopped riding to watch the scene from a distance. Gandalf rode towards the other horse quickly, as one of the children fell from the horse.
"We should return to the city," Legolas said gravely. "This reeks of dire news."
When they reached the Golden Hall, Gandalf was already there with the children. They were seated at the table, and were each ravenously devouring a bowl of food. Gathered in a rough circle around them were Gandalf, Eowyn, Theoden, Aragorn, and Gimli. Estela joined the children at the table, and Legolas listened as the others debated on which course of action to take regarding the news.
"The Wild Men are moving through the West, burning as they go," Eowyn said.
"Where is mama?" one of the children said, looking up at Eowyn with large, sad eyes.
"Shh," Eowyn murmured, and draped a blanket over the child.
"This is but a taste of the terror Saruman will unleash," Gandalf said to Theoden. "You must fight! Meet him head on and draw him away from your women and children."
Theoden spoke sharply. "I will not risk open war."
"Open war is upon you, whether you would risk it or not," Aragorn said pointedly.
"When last I looked, Theoden, not Aragorn, was King of Rohan," Theoden said firmly.
A heavy silence followed his words.
"Then what is the King's decision?" Gandalf said slowly.
"We make for the refuge of Helms' Deep." With that, Theoden walked away quickly.
The men stared at each other for a moment, and then dispersed. "I will see you tomorrow, Estela," Legolas said briefly before leaving.
Estela was left alone in the Golden Hall with Eowyn and the children.
"It will be alright," Eowyn said comfortingly. "I am sure your mother is fine. Do not worry."
Estela watched them awkwardly. To put it mildly, she had never shown an affinity towards handling children, much less towards comforting them.
"Estela?" Eowyn said suddenly.
"Yes?"
"Will you look after them for me tonight?" Eowyn said as she started cleaning the table. She picked up their finished utensils and bowls, and quickly swept a cloth across the tabletop. "I have duties to attend to and the servants are busied with preparing for our departure to Helms' Deep."
"Of course," Estela nodded.
Eowyn was all brusqueness. She started walking towards the kitchens, and Estela hastened to follow.
"Come on," she said to the children, and held out her hands for them. The girl took her hand first, and then the boy held her other. They walked quickly to match Eowyn's pace.
"They will be staying in one of the guest rooms," Eowyn said. "It lies three doors to the left of your quarters."
"Okay," Estela said. "Don't worry. Just get some rest tonight, Eowyn."
Eowyn stopped walking and smiled briefly. "Do not worry for my wellbeing, Estela. You should be getting them to bed now. I am sure they have had a long day."
Estela watched as Eowyn vanished into the recesses of the kitchen. She looked down at both of the children. They did look tired. Estela sighed, and brought them to their room.
"What's your name?" she asked tentatively when they reached the doorway.
"Freda," the girl said in a voice barely louder than a whisper. "My brother is Eothain. He doesn't talk very much though. What is your name, miss?"
"I'm Estela," she smiled. She looked around the room, and spotted a pile of clean clothes atop one of the beds. "We should get you into fresh clothes," she said, eyeing the children's' muddy shirts. "There's a washroom through that door. How about you clean up? I'll be in my room if you need anything. It's just three doors to the right."
The children did not say anything, but simply stared at her with wide eyes.
"It's alright," she said, awkwardly patting each of them on the shoulder. "You'll be safe here."
After Estela had bathed and changed into night clothes, she spared her room a cursory glance. She really didn't have that much to pack except for a few dresses and the Elvish history book Galadriel had given her. She hadn't even looked at that book yet.
Curious, Estela sat down on her bed, leaned against the pillows, and examined the book. The cover sported an intricate design of trees that elongated towards a purple sky, where their branches intertwined. Reverently, she opened the book. The first page was empty, save for a faint stenciled depiction of another forest. She flipped to the next page, and an assortment of Elvish words greeted her. Estela groaned. The last time she had read Sindarin was when they had still been in Lothlorien. That was nearly a month ago.
Determined to read the book despite the language barrier, she delved into reading the first page. The font was spidery and narrow, making it even harder for her to decipher. However, slowly, the words began to make sense again. It was a creation story, telling the story of how Illuvatar, the One, had created the World through music. Estela read on, enchanted by the story.
As she read, a familiar sense of content and comfort engulfed her, and for a moment she stopped reading to try and figure out why she was suddenly so cheerful. Then it hit her. She was sitting on a bed, propped up by pillows, and reading! Back home, that simple act had been such a familiar routine for her each night. Now she realized how much she had missed the simple comfort of relaxing with a good book.
Suddenly, a small knock at the door broke her serenity. She shuffled out of bed and opened the door. Freda and her brother stood there, looking up at her with frightened eyes. Estela felt something in her wrench at their expressions, and she hastened to usher them into her room, murmuring comfortingly to them as she did so.
"Here," she said, indicating for them to sit on her bed. She picked up a spare blanket and draped it around them. They huddled closely together.
"Are you alright?" she asked, somewhat uncomfortably. What did you say to two children who had just been through a horrible ordeal?
In response, they just stared at her.
Estela smiled tentatively at them, and then was struck by a sudden idea. "Do you like stories?" she asked.
Freda nodded, and Estela took that as a sign of encouragement.
"I'm going to read you the Elvish story of how the world was created," she told them earnestly, taking a seat on the wooden chair next to the bed and flipping back to the beginning of the book. "My Sindarin is not the best, so I apologize if I mess anything up in translation." She peered up at the children, and was surprised to see that their expressions had changed from fear to expectancy.
Estela smiled again, and then began reading. She wasn't quite sure how long she sat there, translating roughly and watching their eyelids slowly droop, but eventually the light outside began to wane and she found herself reading by mere candlelight. She slowly closed the book, and then glanced up at the children. Their tired looks had been deceptive…They both still appeared wide awake.
"That was nice," Eothain said in a small voice. "Would you tell us more? I don't want to go to sleep yet." He seemed to shudder as he spoke.
"Are you having bad dreams?" Estela asked worriedly.
Both children nodded, and Freda looked as if she was about to cry.
Estela sighed. She was exhausted, but it would be horrible of her to tell them they had to go to bed. "Well," she started, "My head hurts a bit from translating Sindarin to Westron. Would you mind if I told you another sort of story?"
"Not at all, miss," Freda replied.
Struck by sudden inspiration, Estela closed the Elvish book and grinned. She faced the children directly, sat on the edge of her chair, and then launched into a story.
"Once upon a time, there was a farm boy named Luke Skywalker who lived with his aunt and uncle on the planet of Tatooine." She paused to see if they were following her.
Freda looked confused. "What's a planet?" she asked.
Estela laughed, wondering how to explain that concept. "You know how there are stars in the sky at night?" she said slowly.
Freda and Eothain nodded.
"Well," she continued, "Imagine if some of those stars are not actually stars, but other worlds." Okay, she thought, definitely not the most factual way to describe what planets are, but what the heck. "And there are people living on them. People just like us."
"Just like us?" Eothain echoed.
"Well," Estela said, "Usually they would be. But not in this story. In this story, instead of horses they have machines that can fly like birds. Instead of swords, they have weapons called lightsabers that sort of look like swords. Lightsabers glow different colors such as red or blue, and they can slice through anything with hardly any effort."
Eothain's eyes widened. "Slice through anything? Even metal?"
"Even metal," Estela said, excitement leaking into her voice as she began to relay the story.
As she told them the story, Estela surprised herself. Though she spoke softly because it was nighttime, she became rather animated. She acted out the battle scenes using makeshift props and spoke in different voices for each character. She watched the children transforming before her eyes…Soon, they were laughing at parts of the story, sobering at other parts, and rooting for certain characters during the battle scenes.
"But then Han arrives in the Millennium Falcon, and sends Darth Vader's ship spiraling off into space! Meanwhile, Luke closed his eyes and used the Force to focus his aim. He fired yet another shot, and this time it is successful and destroys the Death Star mere seconds before it would have open fired at the Rebel base…."
And so on. She reached the ceremony at the end of the first part of the story, and then her energy was spent. She looked at the children to see two wide eyed faces staring up at her in rapture. By the end of night, she was able to successfully usher them into bed and return to her own room. She fell asleep smiling.
Estela woke in a cold sweat for the second time since she'd been in Rohan. Her sheets were strewn in a tangled mess on the floor, and a lingering feeling of fear encompassed her. Gasping, she looked furtively around, unsure of her location for a moment. The dreams had felt so real again. They had been the same dreams as last time…The dark forests and the starless skies, the creature stirring in the darkness and the woman putting the tiara on her head and then vanishing…It felt all too real.
Estela sighed and stood up. She walked over to the window, and saw that it was still night. The moon hung in the sky, a large silvery orb amidst the star strewn sky. She unlatched the shutters and opened them as far as they could go. A wind carrying the mingling scent of horses and grass greeted her, making her feel more awake and helping her to forget about her dreams.
After a while, she turned away from the window and remade her bed. She was picking up the tangled mess of sheets and spreading them neatly atop the bed when she caught a glimpse of a small sheet of paper protruding from between the sheets. Confused, Estela picked up the paper and brought it to the window so she could read it under the faint light of the moon.
It was the Prophecy. It must have somehow escaped her pockets where she usually kept it. Its edges were frayed and its surface slightly wrinkled. Estela placed her hands on the window sill and closed her eyes, feeling the wind tousle her hair. After a moment, she was ready to look at it again. Reading it had become a familiar routine for her…Its words were a part of her, inscribed in her memory as indelibly as they were on paper. She wasn't quite sure how long she stood for, once again searching for some other meaning in the words until they began to blur.
Estela sighed. It was pointless and torturous to keep mulling over it. She folded it neatly and then returned to bed, knowing that she would need rest for the events that were to take place tomorrow.
Coming Up Next!
-Aragorn will take a watery fall!
-Actual plot developments about the Prophecy!
-More storytelling to large groups of children!
Individual Thank You's/Messages:
MissShelz: Thanks! Spain was lovely :) Mint chocolate chip is my favorite ice cream flavor too! And cookie dough. Except that doesn't really count because I never eat the actual ice cream. I just pick out the cookie dough pieces ^.^
Song in the woods: Thanks for your review! I don't know if I'd like to be either of the sisters, just because I'm an evil author and about to do some mean mean things to my characters :)
Blue Dragon of Rivendell: Yay! I finally got around to logging on, updating, and messaging you :) You're an amazing friend for waiting so long for me when I took freaking forever. I definitely want to include more Sherlock Holmes references :) Have you seen the BBC series? I loved the movies, the books, and the series ^.^
iluvspring: Oh my gosh, I just saw the Avengers today actually! I LOVED IT! Iron Man was probably my favorite character in the Avengers, just because he got all of the awesome, funny, witty lines. I saw the first Iron Man movie, but I actually haven't seen the second one yet. I'm going to watch it today because they finally put it on Netflix instant streaming :)
DorkynessOnSteroids: I know, I'm so sorry! But I'll message you today right after I post this chapter :)
rosewriter17: Yes, I have been watching The Legend of Korra :) I love it, but I agree with you that I miss the original characters. But I really do like the new ones, and the subtle steampunk is really interesting. And I love the layout of Republic City with all of the architecture they took from real places. And the political undertones are intriguing too. Thanks for reviewing :D
Lightnin Spark: I enjoyed Spain very much, thank you :) And haha, after a while I just kind of got used to typing 'Estela and Adonnenniel' over and over. At first it was obnoxious though xD Yeah that's what all the 'popular' girls wear at my school too. I personally think they look like strippers and that after they leave high school, if they're still wearing clothes like that, they'll get approached by a lot of strange people who get the wrong impression about their occupation.
yollymolly: Thanks man! :D I'm glad you decided to get an account!
iheartanime07: Haha, sorry ^.^ My updating is really weird…I go through periods when I'm updating every week, and then periods when I'm updating once a month xD Thanks so much for your review :) And yeah I phrased it that way because I personally do not like small children…They scare me. Especially babies. I've turned down babysitting jobs because of that, haha. I'm never having children…
Poppyashes: Thanks so much for reading and reviewing, and I'm glad you're enjoying the story :) Sorry for taking so long to update!
A.R Tinromen: Thank you so much! That's exactly the sort of characterization I like to go for in my stories…Multilayered, dynamic characters with lots of different personality traits. It makes me really happy to know that you, as a reader, picked up on that :) Hmm…I never took the story down, but maybe it was just because I haven't updated in a while? Also, what's a space panda? Thanks for reviewing!
3totravelsing: Let me just start by saying that you literally made my day and encouraged me to keep writing this story. Your critiques are spot on, and I can't even begin to tell you how much it means to me that you went through every single chapter and reviewed every one. Thank you so much :) And yeah I hate the new review thing. It's really confusing and obnoxious if you just don't feel like logging in! And just by the way, I couldn't stop laughing when I read all of your reviews about all the sex you want Estela and Legolas to have xD If you want, I'll write you a steamy scene and send it to you in a message. Pretty sure that I'd have to change the K+ rating on this story if I put that in the actual story though ^.^ Anyway, I can't even begin to express how amazing it is that you reviewed every chapter. Thank you so much! You deserve a steamy sex scene for that!
Another Author's Note: Really random question, but does anyone listen to French music? I need some good recommendations :)