Chapter Fifteen

"Gandalf the White. Gandalf the Fool! Does he seek to humble me with his newfound piety?" Saruman thought aloud as he paced the darkness of his small throne room in Orthanc.

"There were four who followed the wizard: an elf, a dwarf, a man, and a woman," Grima said, approaching his Lord.

As he got within a fathom, Saruman sniffed before saying in contempt and disgust, "You stink of horse." In response, Grima turned his back and paced over to the other end of the room.

After a shot pause, Saruman asked, "The man...was he from Gondor?"

"No. From the North. One of the Dunedain rangers I thought he was. His cloth was poor, and yet...he bore a strange ring...two serpents with emerald eyes, one devouring, the other crowned golden flowers," Grima said.

Saruman hurriedly walked over to his adjoining study. He pulled a large tome from the far side of one of his tables and drew it close before looking up what he thought to be the correct ring. He was right. "The Ring of Barahir...So Gandalf Greyhame thinks he has found Isildur's heir, the lost King of Gondor. He is a fool. The line was broken years ago." As he closed the book, he said quietly and with finality, "It matters not. The world of men shall fall. It shall begin at Edoras."

After a long pause, Saruman asked without turning, "What of the fourth, the woman?"

"She was cloaked in rich purple. She was strong, and slender, and pale as moonlight. Her eyes sparkled from under her hood," he described, remembering vividly her appearance. His first sight of her was a memory which would stay with him for the rest of his life, he was sure.

"I did not think she would be so foolish," Saruman said under his breath. That earned a frown of confusion from Grima. "She will matter, by the end, more than anyone could guess."

Quite suddenly, the wizard turned to his lackey and commanded harshly, "Leave." Grima scrambled to obey. When he spoke like that, it was best not to interfere.

The second the doors were closed, Saruman walked swiftly to the palantir. He threw aside the cloth covering and held his hand over it. Seconds later, the connection was complete.

"My Lord, I have found Ilmare," he said both verbally and mentally, though only the mental speech was transmitted.

"Where?" Sauron asked urgently and demandingly. There were notes of other emotions in his voice, though it was admittedly hard to judge emotion when his voice was so low, gravelly, and cruel.

"She is travelling with Gandalf. She is in Edoras," Saruman said, filling in two things of which he would undoubtedly want to know.

"Capture her alive. She is not to be harmed. Do not fail me." As quickly as that, the connection was broken.

oooooooooo

The population of Edoras travelled through the mountains to Helm's Deep. Amongst these desperate people a dwarf and a woman smiled and laughed together. One who appeared to be a woman observed them, wistfully noting their joy in such a time.

Honestly, she missed Olorin. It was an issue which had plagued her every time they were separate. Even after they had first met, she had felt somehow...empty without him.

"Excuse me, my Lady," a voice said from beside her.

"Yes? What is it, Legolas?" she asked in Elvish, looking up at the elf who rode beside her.

"I did not wish to intrude, but you seem sad," he said, looking at her with concern.

"As compared to what, precisely?" she asked, not intending to be cruel.

"You are normally a mystery. Nothing can be said about what you feel or think. Now, even I, only an elf, can sense that something weighs heavily upon you," he said.

"You think too little of yourself, Legolas. You are far more perceptive than you believe, more so than most elves, even," Ilmare said. Normally when one compliments another so, one touches the other in some respectful way. Ilmare did not, nor did Legolas expect her to, for she had thus far only touched one person: Gandalf. With that one thought, he knew what bothered her.

"You miss him," Legolas said quietly.

Only now did Ilmare look at him. Through the darkness of the hood, Legolas could see her bright eyes grow dim. "You undoubtedly now of your kind's longing for the sea." He nodded. "That is the only longing I find comparable to my longing for him. I feel it in my very bones when he is gone."

Legolas hesitated for a few seconds before reaching out to lay his hand very gently on her shoulder. "You will see him again. I do not think your fate would be so cruel as that."

Instantly, she sobered and said whilst moving her horse away from his, "It already is."