"So, lad, final count, 125."
"136," Legolas said smugly.
"8,785." Legolas and Gimli turned to see Tinwe stepping over a dead Orc as she approached. She noticed the look on their faces.
"Oh, were we just doing this fight? I got 113. But I arrived late, so I have an excuse."
"Who are you anyway?" Gimli asked, leaning on his axe.
"Tinwe, at your service master dwarf. Who might you be?"
"Gimli, son of Gloin. You have impressive skills."
"Nearly two thousand years of chasing Orcs I better be," she said, flashing him a dazzling smile.
"So why exactly are you here?" Legolas asked, curious as to where the she-elf had come from. But before he could, the army of ghosts started amassing in front of them, so he turned to see what would happen next.
Legolas watched as Aragorn released the ghost warriors, despite Gimli's insistence to keep them around. They faded away into dust, leaving nothing but the empty, battle-scarred field. Legolas heard soft footsteps behind him, and turned to see Tinwe's black mare approaching her mistress. Aragorn turned too, looking at the elf.
"Who are you?" he asked in surprise, taking a few steps toward her.
"Tinwe of Mirkwood, my lord Aragorn. It is a shame we have not met before now. I have been many times to Rivendell, and have heard much about you."
"Well, your assistance is appreciated, Tinwe."
"No problem at all, my lord. I was in the neighborhood."
Aragorn began talking with Gandalf, and Tinwe whispered in her horse's ear. The mare whinnied softly, and trotted away. Tinwe herself began making her way towards Osgiliath and the river Anduin. Gimli had joined Pippin as he walked through the piles of the dead and dying. Legolas decided to follow Tinwe.
"So what is an Elven prince doing fighting alongside a dwarf and a man?"
Tinwe didn't turn around, but kept going, slowing down slightly for Legolas to catch up to her. He fell in step beside her.
"I joined the Fellowship that left Rivendell to accompany the Ringbearer as a representative of the elves," Legolas said matter-of-factly. "How did you end up here?"
"I have been tracking a group of Orcs. I was out east when I heard about the renewed threat from Mordor. I was hidden among those who answered the call of the dark lord. On the way back, I was ambushed by a party of Orcs. They stole something of value to me, so I have been tracking them ever since."
"Did you find what they stole?"
"Not yet. It's only a matter of time."
The two elves were now in the ruined city of Osgiliath. Tinwe looked around sadly, before continuing.
"I know the devil that stole it is in here. Dead or alive, well, that remains to be seen I suppose."
"You have changed quite a bit since I last saw you," Legolas commented offhandedly. Tinwe smiled.
"Not the blushing maid I was two thousand years ago, hmm?" she said laughing. "Again, I apologize for that. I swear it was all Icaria's fault."
"I am to assume that was the other elfling with you?"
"Yes, she was my best friend, and the worst troublemaker you've ever seen. She'd often get me into situations like that."
"Oh really?" Legolas said humorously. "You often stalk innocent elves in your free time?"
"It honestly was no fault of mine," Tinwe said, ducking beneath a fallen stone arch. "And I have long since grown out of the habit of stalking elves in my free time. However, I cannot say the same for Icaria. Last I knew, she was up to the same old mischief."
Legolas smiled, listening to the elleth's story. She was far different from the little girl he had stumbled upon centuries ago. But as he followed her through a building, he heard a soft scrapping noise over her talking. Looking up, he saw an Orc launch itself from an upper floor at the elleth. He grabbed her arm, pulling her out of the way. But he was not fast enough to avoid injury himself. The Orcs blade sliced through the soft flesh in the small of his back. Tinwe quickly recovered from her surprise, and slit the Orc's throat. It fell to the ground, dead.
"Filthy brute," she said, kicking it over. "About time I found you." She leaned down and pulled something Legolas couldn't see from the Orc's hand. She stood up, slipping the item into her tunic. She turned to see Legolas flinching as he stood up straight.
"A!" she said, stepping over the dead Orc and looking at Legolas's back. "This is my fault. Here," she said, whistling. Her black mare Alagos galloped up to her through the ruins, stopping in front of her mistress. Tinwe slipped her thin hand into one of the saddlebags, and drew out a strip of clean white linen.
"This should help until you get back to Minas Tirith. Come on," she said, mounting Alagos and holding out her hand. "This will be faster."
Legolas hesitated for a moment, but took Tinwe's hand, leaping onto the mare behind her. The mare immediately took off at a gallop, navigating through the maze of dead that had once been Pelennor Fields. As the elves past, several men looked up with haunted, tired looks. Tinwe ignored them, her eyes focused on the White City. She sped through what remained of the gates, and rode through the tattered streets until they reached the citadel.
"Come come, you need that wound cleaned," Tinwe said, pushing him forward as they entered the citadel. Legolas was surprised by the strength behind her words. They found an empty room off one of the halls, and Tinwe forced him onto the couch.
"Take off your tunic. I'll be right back." She exited the room swiftly, her light brown hair whipping around the corner after her. Legolas watched her go, still adjusting to the new Tinwe. After a while, he removed his quiver, and carefully took off his multiple tunics. He flinched as the fabric rubbed against the cut. He took a deep breath as he threw the tunics on a spare chair, and sat bare-chested on the couch, looking out over the city.
"Here, cut this up and put it in the bowl while I clean your cut." He turned to see Tinwe standing next to him, holding out a pouch filled with a leafy green plant. He took it, looking it over carefully before pulling out his knife and doing as she instructed.
"What is this?" he asked, cutting up the plant as she sat beside him on the couch.
"Alfirin. It will help with healing." He nodded, looking at the plant curiously. He had never heard of it before.
As he sat chopping up the plant, he was not prepared for the gentle touch of Tinwe cleaning his wound. Her soft hands caressed his skin as she rubbed a cloth across the cut. Legolas was barely able to control himself and not shiver at her touch.
As she finished cleaning his wound, Tinwe plucked a hair from her head, and strung it through a needle.
"To be honest," she said suddenly, now speaking in their native elvish, making Legolas look over his shoulder at her. "I am surprised you even remembered me."
"Why is that?" Legolas asked, returning to cutting the alfirin.
"It's been two thousand years. I figured my small part in your life would have been long forgotten."
"You are not so easily forgotten," Legolas said with a half smile. Tinwe smiled too, keeping her eyes on her stitching. "You made quite the impression. And few of our kin have your brown hair. That is not a trait that is easily forgotten when combined with your unusual personality."
Tinwe laughed at this, her voice ringing gently in the quiet room.
"I am just lucky that personality has not resulted in my death as of yet. Though I have had some close escapes."
"Tell me about your adventures. I heard that you spent most of the last two thousand years exploring the far reaches of Middle Earth."
"It is true. I have seen wonders that few have the privilege of witnessing. I have been to the extreme north, farther even than the Rangers venture. There are things up there you would not believe. They have large white bears that swim in the icy waters along the shore. They feast on these strange creatures that resemble dogs, except for they lack legs, and instead have flippers. Further inland, there are herds of thousands of deer three times the size of those we hunt in Mirkwood. Oh, they were magnificent to behold. If I had the talent for painting, I would have sat in the frigid air for hours, just to capture their beauty."
Legolas listened to Tinwe's description, picturing in his head all the things she spoke of. Just listening to her voice made him forget his injury. But the tranquility was soon interrupted.
There was a loud knock on the door, and both elves looked around.
"Enter," Legolas said in common tongue. The door opened, and Gimli walked in, surveying the scene before him with wide eyes.
"What happened to you?" he asked Legolas, glancing at Tinwe as she tied off the end of the stitches, biting off the extra thread, her hair lightly brushing against Legolas as she bent over.
"It's my fault," she said, sitting up and taking the bowl from Legolas. "I wasn't being careful. An Orc was hiding in the ruins of Osgiliath, and it attacked me. Guess he remembered the chunk I took out of him a fortnight ago."
"Hmph, well lad, Aragorn is looking for you. He's going to have a big meeting in the throne room shortly. Best hurry."
"Thank you Gimli," Legolas said, as the dwarf shut the door.
"It won't be much longer," Tinwe said, taking some of the paste that had come from the mixture in the bowl and rubbing it along the gash. Legolas visibly shivered this time.
"Hand me those bandages would you?" Tinwe asked, indicating the pile of cloth on a table beside the couch. Legolas handed them to her, and she began wrapping it around his torso.
As she covered the wound, she would repeatedly wrap her arms around his waist, her soft breath gently tickling his delicate skin. A strange feeling ran down his spine, and all too soon she was done, tucking the end in with the other layers.
"There. Now, I found a spare tunic you can wear until I sew up your old one."
"You really don't have to do that," Legolas said, standing up and facing her. "You've done more than enough already."
"Nonsense, it was my fault. Here," she said handing him the spare tunic. "I will repair your others while you meet with Lord Aragorn. My mother managed to pound a few lady-like skills into my head at least." Tinwe smiled up at him as he pulled the tunic on over his head.
"Thank you Tinwe," Legolas said softly, thinking off nothing else to say. Her smile widened, and she proceeded to turn him around and push him out the door.
"You can thank me later. You don't want to miss the meeting."
Legolas shook his head as he moved down the hall towards the throne room.
Tinwe flopped down on the couch after Legolas left, releasing a huge sigh. Through the past hour or so, she had been fighting an inner battle. When she'd heard that there was a war between Men and Orcs in the west, she would never have guessed that Prince Legolas would have been among them.
She sat up and picked up the tunics laid out on the chair. Carefully, she cleaned the fabric around the hole, and began sewing it back together.