A/N: After 100 thousand years I finally got the chance to post the next chapter! I hope it will be to your liking! :D And for the third time, thank you to my BETA LOTRLover23 for being my guide in Middle Earth! :) if it wasn't for her, I would be lost by now and will be somewhere in Mordor! XD)

Disclaimer: I do not own anything except the OCs.

~Chapter 5: The Handmaiden and Her Lady~

Even though it was early morning and the sun had not yet risen, the Hall in Lorien was alight and full of the elves that were needed at the Council. Legolas was there, standing beside his father, Thranduil. Elrond and his two sons were present as well, along with Erestor, his chief counsellor and the head of his household. Haldir stood beside Celeborn and Galadriel, is face grave.

"We are dealing with another dark presence, one that concerns us all," Galadriel stated. "An unnamed evil now haunts our haven and has destroyed it."

The King of Mirkwood raised a brow at this."How are we sure that Valinor is really destroyed and many were killed? None of you have returned there as of yet."

"'Tis the reason why we have not yet sailed, Thranduil." Celeborn eyed him."We have proof for this happening. One of Arwen's friends who long sailed to the Undying lands has returned, bloodied and beaten like an animal."

"Where is she?" Legolas was concerned, and his emotions were evident in his voice.

"She will join us later," the Lord of Lorien replied.

"You are saying that we cannot sail to Valinor anymore." It was not a question. Glorfindel appeared behind the elven knights standing near the pillars.

"You are late!" Elladan's smug whisper was just loud enough for the other elves around the pair to hear.

The Balrog slayer ignored him and waited for the other elf's answer. His right hand held his bow

tightly, knuckles white.

"It is not that we cannot return anymore, it's just…" Elrond struggled to find the right words. "…dangerous, because there is an unknown enemy roaming the shores of the Undying Lands."

"It is surprising that we are still alive." Thranduil spoke once more. "The Trees are in danger and this enemy could destroy it if he so wished."

"Even if the Trees are destroyed, we would still live, my lord," Haldir said sternly.

"Aye, that is true. But we will weaken and suffer slowly without getting physically hurt," Thranduil

replied. "The Trees are what make us higher than Men, and without them, we would be easily killed and become much weaker than Men."

"We need to move as soon as possible before they destroy the Trees," Galadriel said in a smooth voice.

-LOTR-

Eowyn opened her eyes and the ceiling greeted her gaze. She was glad that she

slept peacefully after what happened to her last night. For once she had not had any vague dreams or nightmares. But still, the dream she had lingered in her mind. It did not leave her, and the part where she met someone in the woods kept replaying over and over again in her head. The White Lady prayed that it was not a bad omen that might cause chaos to those around her.

A knock on the door pulled her out of that particular thought. She climbed down from the bed and

walked towards the door to open it. Eowyn was greeted by her brother. The dream about Eomer

killing her went through her mind but she brushed it off and fully opened the door.

"Brother, what has brought you here this morning?" Her voice was gentle, almost timid.

"I apologize, Eowyn, were you still asleep? I did not mean to disturb," Eomer replied, smiling

slightly.

Eowyn shook her head. "Nay. I am already awake."

"I wanted to introduce you to someone." The new King of Rohan stepped to the side to reveal

the person behind him.

The Shieldmaiden stared down at the petite woman with curiosity. The woman had rather messy blonde hair and dark brown eyes. She found her eyes beautiful; it was the first

time she had seen a person who had such a combination. The woman wore a long dark green dress with brown trim, one that could make her appear to be a woodland sprite, so alike to the forest was she.

"This is Ashelia, sister." Eomer lightly touched the woman's shoulder."She arrived here yesterday afternoon. She is your new handmaiden."

Ashelia curtsied before speaking. "A pleasure to finally meet you, my Lady."

Eomer turned to her. "This is my sister. You will be her servant and tend to her needs. I will leave you two to prepare for breakfast."

As Eomer vanished out of sight, Eowyn turned to Ashelia. "Hello, Ashelia. I have not heard of you before."

"I am not well known, my Lady for I have always stayed in seclusion." Ashelia smiled at her. "I prefer the company of nature to that of most other people. They are not usually as quiet."

Eowyn laughed softly. "You have humor, Ashelia. Come inside and help me prepare for later."

"Yes, my Lady."

-LOTR-

Legolas stood alone on one of the fleets of Lothlorien. His eyes were on the beautiful sky but

his mind was far away, thinking of what was happening in Valinor. How naive he had been to think that all evil had been vanquished with the destruction of Sauron!

"I think that we have the same thing in mind, mellon nin." Glorfindel stepped up to the railing and joined him.

"You are right, Glorfindel." He glanced at the other elf. "Why were you late? You have never been so before."

Glorfindel smiled sheepishly."I was..." He did not know how to tell him that he stayed longer in Gondor than he had expected to because of a certain woman named Ashelia. And a human maiden, at that! He had told her that he would take her to the Lady Eowyn, but he got rather carried away. He had given her a tour of the city, bought her clothes from the stalls so she could look "presentable" for her Lady, and then spent hours in the gardens talking with her. It was obvious to him that she was uncomfortable with such attention, but she went along with it and he was glad. He found Ashelia good company, but he had never had female human friends before. For eons he had focused on his work and barely even visited the places of Men, spending most of his time among his own kind.

"I was training in the woods and almost forgot about the Council. My apologies."

Legolas looked at him with amusement. "That is so unlike you, my friend."

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