They reached the next temple just as the sun was dipping down under the horizon, Tracey wasn't surprised at all by the exterior, a massive pale tree with a circular staircase leading to a pale wooden building in the limbs. Artemis chuckled. "Leave it to your temple to look just like Lady Galadriel's library."
Tracey's blue eyes studied the temple closely. She was able to pick out several details that she didn't think the Gods could have added without them having picked through her mind, an uncomfortable thought. But her temple did look exactly like Lady Galadriel's library and it comforted her a little. If there was a place she'd like to go back to and remain there it would have been Middle Earth instead of going back home to their universe... she just felt more at peace there. It was also because she knew Middle Earth and quite a few of its secrets, not just that she would have the most amazing Elf lover, but Middle Earth was special to her and she felt she had a deep connection with the forests and nature there. Shifting herself to her normal human form and tying up her body bandages, Tracey looked at Artemis and shrugged her shoulders.
"It's a small comfort I can assure you of that." She replied, looking back to the temple high above her and then to the horizon. "I would prefer to complete my test in the light, does anyone object?"
Artemis eyed the temple her fingers running over the leather covering her cast, Tracey noticed that her fingers were tracing some kind of design over and over, Amphiaraus moved up to stand beside them and he had the same look on his face, his finger roamed up and down the haft of his spear in the same unseen designs, Artemis turned to Tracey and shook her head. "It's not going to let you wait." She said her voice a little unsteady.
"Alright... I'll go in now." Tracey said with a sigh and looked up at the temple again. "I'll see you guys soon, that I have no doubt about."
Taking a deep breath, she slightly hesitated scaling the staircase, but she knew that she had to. They had all come this far and it was crucial that they all continued their journey together. Her fingers tracing the bark of the thick tree, while her bare feet touched the cold slab steps making her feet feel heavy like lead. She pulled her cloak closer to her body and used her other hand to pushed the elaborately carved door open and entered the temple.
"I don't know what I'm going to face in here and I'm not sure I want to, but this has to be done and I think I'm strong enough to do this." She muttered under her breath as she closed the door behind her and let her hazel eyes adjust to the light.
The room was as she remembered it, warm sunlight filtering in through the windows and the soft leather covers of the book perfuming the air pleasantly alongside the flowering plants in every corner. The wings on her back opened and closed slowly catching the light with pale blue motes of dust in the air.
"This brings back pleasant memories..." Tracey said slowly, glancing over at her wings and fluttering them again, a smile rising to her lips. "I have missed these too."
She continued to scan the room and kept her back to the door she had come through. Her fingers traced over very familiar book covers and Tracey sighed heavily, letting the book smell fill her nose until she exhaled. She kept her cloak close to her body while she walked and her bare feet making no noise on the tiled floor. All of this was pleasant to behold again and gave her nothing but acceptance and peace, but Tracey had to try to push all of this from her mind and remain focus on what was at hand. She started to get worried and gazed around the still empty room expectantly.
"For all that is or isn't fair in this world, please don't let him appear... I will lose all my composure." Tracey started to say in Elvish, the atmosphere she was surrounded by affecting her speech. "If Moriarty appears I will kill him."
She slowly became aware of the music floating in from the outside and the sound of a festival, the door opened behind her and Legolas stepped in a smile curving his lips and making his eyes glow. "What are you doing up here alone? The festival is in full swing and that friend of yours is teasing all the young elves with kisses."
Slowly a smile passed over Tracey's lips as her pointed ears wiggled at the sound of his smooth voice. She turned and her smile only widened when she beheld his handsome face too. Looking down at her hands for a moment, Tracey tried to think of a reason why she was up here when there was a lively party going on downstairs. It wasn't like her to keep anyone waiting for her and there would be a lot. She looked down at her clothes and shook a little confusion from her mind before looking up at Legolas and being drawn into his beautiful blue eyes.
"I'm sorry my love, I was lost in thought... I guess." Tracey replied, fingering her cloak in a fidgeting manner.
He smiled at her and took her hand motioning to the door. "So long as you also get lost in the festivities I'm sure I can forgive you."
"You'll be by my side... I don't even think you'd let me get lost in the crowd for too long before you'd want to dance with me again." Tracey said with a laugh, giving his hand a gentle squeeze as she let him lead her from the room. "As for Artemis... What can I say, she likes to play a little and her heart belongs to another."
She quickly shed her cloak and folded it over a chair, straightening the fabric of her attire. Her clothes consisted of a pair of baggy, light blue pants, a beautiful top with transparent sleeves and a silver embroidered corset that fit perfectly around her waist. Tracey's feet were still bare, like she usually went around in the Elven cities.
He gave her a puzzled look. "I wasn't speaking of Artemis, Arwen is the one doing the teasing." They got to the bottom of the stairs and the music surrounded them.
Tracey giggled behind her other hand and nodded when she saw Arwen surrounded by a group of no more than five young Elves who were captivated by her smile and bright eyes. They were holding a very interesting conversation because they were all talking in turn and a few laughed loudly. Tracey couldn't help but smile and nod.
"Ah I see what you mean." Tracey said with a smile. "Good for Arwen, who else is here that we know?"
"Gandalf is making free with the food and drink." Legolas pointed the tall wizard out near the tables. "Lord Elrond and Celeborn are with Lady Galadriel under the bower." He motioned to the far end of the festival ground. "And of course my father is here somewhere."
"Your father?" Tracey asked, her heart suddenly beating faster. "I didn't realize he would be attending as well."
Subconsciously she started to fidget again and brushed invisible dirt from her pants. Tracey had never met Legolas's father and she wanted to make sure that she was presentable if they were to happen upon him. Legolas took her hands and smiled down at her. "You look lovely as always my love."
"As lovely as the first dawn." A cultured a voice said from behind her and she turned to see Thranduil behind her.
For a moment Tracey's wings tensed at the unfamiliar and smooth voice and she stood up straighter. Her breathing was slightly uneven for several moments before a few breaths calmed her down greatly. Upon King Thranduil's arrival her wings had suddenly tensed up collapsed, folding against her back before she could even think about it. Tracey turned on her bare heel, bowed her head while placing her right hand over her heart, and curtsied respectfully.
"Thank you kindly for your compliment my Lord." Tracey said, straightening her posture and looked carefully into his misty gray eyes. "I hope that you're enjoying the festivities."
"Lady Galadriel has never thrown a unsatisfactory regalia." Thranduil replied and gave a slight bow. "My apologies for startling you and my condolences on your recent loss."
Tracey blinked in confusion for a moment and then looked to Legolas for some explanation.
"I'm sorry my Lord, but I don't understand what you mean by my recent loss... will you enlighten me please?" She asked quietly, her heart starting to pound again in her chest.
Legolas put a comforting arm around her shoulders and Thranduil looked at his son in concern. "I thought you said she was recovered?"
Legolas gave him a reproving look then looked down at Tracey. "The loss of her soul sister was a deep wound upon her heart and mind Father." He gently took her hand. "You returned to Middle Earth some months ago… without Artemis and in great distress."
"No..." Tracey said in a whisper, not only to keep the pleasant atmosphere with the other patrons going but also in a disbelieving manner. "She's not dead... I refuse to believe it."
She didn't know what to think of this new information, but it couldn't have been true... Artemis couldn't be gone. Legolas held her reassuringly. "You refused to speak of what happened, you would only say that you were here to stay but you have had… disturbed dreams and for a time we feared you had gone mad. Especially when you began cutting your arm."
He pushed one sleeve up, the scars were gone, all but a few new cuts that ran in short crooked, wavering lines on her left arm. The clean straight scars were all gone leaving her arms smooth. That was wrong somehow but she couldn't remember why. Despite the evidence Legolas provided on her smooth skin, Tracey started to shake her head again and wanted to pull away from him. She examined her arms and traced the scars with her fingers, something wasn't right but she could understand what yet.
"That doesn't sound like something I would do Legolas. I would grieve in my own way but I would never hurt myself intentionally." She said a little louder, her wings fluttering in slight irritation that he would think she was capable of it. "Did I tell you anything about my nightmares? Any names that I've told you in relations to them at all?"
He shook his head. "You barely spoke when you returned, Barely ate or slept for days. Galadriel and Celeborn did everything they could but eventually we had to send for Lord Elrond. It wasn't until Arwen arrived with him that you began to recover."
As she looked down at her skin she began to see faint lines, almost illusionary on her skin and memories started filtering back. Not the ones she feared but the travels, the people, the places and the lives they'd changed. "I did not do this to myself." Tracey stated firmly, looking directly into Legolas's calm blue eyes. "I need to speak to Arwen and Lord Elrond … Please excuse me Lord Thranduil, Legolas, there's something going on here and I need to figure out what's going on..."
She gave the Elven king a respectful curtsy and turned away to find Arwen amongst the patrons enjoying the festivities. Tracey found her still within the circle of the young Elves and she excused herself so she could step into their midst and steal her away.
"Pardon me my friends, but I need to discuss something important with Lady Arwen. Have no fear, I will return her to you when I'm finished."
Arwen moved away with Tracey and gave her a gentle smile. "Are you well Tracey? You look upset."
"Arwen I'm sorry to put you through this trouble again, but I need to know what happened when I returned to Middle Earth." Tracey answered quickly, looking straight into her soft brown eyes. "Where is Artemis?"
Arwen gave her a sympathetic look. "Well I don't know about the events directly after you returned, Father and I were called here a week after you returned and it took us a few weeks to get here but when I got here you were a wreck. Wouldn't eat, wouldn't sleep, refused to talk. The only rest you found was in Legolas's arms. When I arrived you seemed unable to discern my identity, you kept calling me Artemis and begged me not to leave. Not to leave you behind. I don't know what happened to her, you wouldn't speak of it." She took Traceys hand and looked at her arm. "You kept saying your arms were wrong too. We had to remove anything with a sharp edge from your reach, you kept trying to make straight cuts and screamed that you could bring her back if the lines came back."
"No that's not right... I wouldn't hurt myself on purpose, why does everyone think that I would something like that?" Tracey insisted, shaking her head and sighing heavily. "Did I mention any names to you at all?"
She was growing frustrated with the lack of answers the was getting for her questions. Arwen thought about it. "You screamed a word once. It didn't make any sense at all though. Moriarty."
The name resonated in Traceys head sending everything shattering out of focus. Her arms burned and she felt like she couldn't get enough air as the festivities faded around her. Arwen faded away leaving a void around her, a blackness that smelled of smoke and fire. Tracey's arms burned and were outlined by white hot fire, paining her to the point that she doubled over and gasped for breath. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to block out the pain, but it didn't work. Eventually she relieved herself by crying out and as loudly as she could, her voice traveling out until she lost her air and had to gasp for another breath. The air was hot and burned her throat, sweat perspiring on her forehead as she knelt on the bare ground.
"Bastard."
"Well you are the one who insisted on poking at it until it all broke apart." A voice issued from the darkness. "You could have been content, home at last with your beloved, a little mangled to be sure but the emotional pain would subside leaving you happy and in love."
Tracey's head shot up and her normally hazel eyes turned completely black as she scanned the darkness around her.
"Show yourself!" She growled, touching the dagger she still had sheathed at her thigh to make sure it was there.
A figure resolved itself out of the smoke and Artemis stepped forward cocking a hip and propping a hand on her hip, only it wasn't Artemis, it was Dahok. The bright viper's eyes glinted at her and she smirked. "You're both so scared of me and I'm not even the worst you've run into since the first time we met. I mean really, I barely even damaged either of you."
"You really should pick your own body, that one doesn't look good on you." She said with a less-than-amused look on her face. "And for your information, yes I could have stayed, but it wouldn't be the same. I would have holes in my memories and I've already been through that and it was far from a tasteful experience."
Tracey crossed her arms under her chest and shook her head at Dahok.
"We're not scared of you anymore." Tracey added, pushing back her hair from her face. "You're a figment of our imagination and have no power over us anymore... like you said, you, an all powerful spirit, couldn't even hold Artemis for fifteen minutes before Ares and I dispelled you... too bad, so sad."
Dahok laughed throwing Artemis's head back and Tracey hated seeing that so familiar gesture from Dahok. "Oh you're too good. I like this body, she's comfortable, clean and oh so powerful."
She sobered suddenly, like a switch being flipped. "You're here to face your fears, and that twisted son of a bitch wasn't the top of your nightmare list. How does that feel?"
Tracey started at Dahok for several minutes, contemplating what he was talking about before forming an answer.
"Actually I was a little surprised Moriarty wasn't the one who appeared to torment me... and we already know you're not a fear to myself or Artemis anymore." Tracey replied with another smirk. "You're just present here because you're the first pitiful spirit we had to deal with in the other Ancient Greece universe, I guess you're an appropriate manifestation for this place."
She shifted her weight to her other leg and continued.
"At least this proves I'm not afraid of him anymore, so I'll thank you for that."
Dahok chuckled again and took a step closer. "Oh you're still scared of him, he haunts you but he's not the thing you really fear most of all."
The hellish light dimmed a little when she came closer. "You're so afraid of not knowing what's going on, so afraid of being left out, it eats at you like a cancer. People keeping secrets and people making decisions for you. That's why you're so angry with the Voice. It chose your path and won't even tell you why. Oh it told Artemis though didn't it. Artemis who seems to know everything, who has all the answers and always seems so unphased by anything while you stew in your own anxiety. And it never touches her does it? The fear, the pain, the worry. Like she Knows something but just won't tell you because after all, how could you possibly help her? She has power, she always has and you're just so human." The words dripped like venom making Tracey's stomach clench and her heart thundered in her ears.
"There's nothing wrong with being human and there's plenty of ways I can and have helped Artemis. I may not have the glorious powers and abilities that she has, but that doesn't mean I'm helpless either. I've been able to learn many new things on my own too." Tracey spat back at Dahok, jabbing a finger into the figure's chest to emphasize her point. "We all keep secrets, it's what makes us human. The fact that Artemis is keeping something from me is probably for my own good and all I have to do is ask her if I want to know something."
This did make her start to think a little harder about what she had witnessed just now before she and Dahok started to talk. As he said, Tracey's greatest fear was not knowing what was going on and feeling left out, but that is something she could change. Standing up straighter, she rolled her shoulders back and shifted her weight again.
"I was a little sidetracked in London to ask Artemis what she had found out from the Voice, but my point is I have but to ask if I want to know something."
Dahok smiled and leaned in close whispering in her ear as the hellish light faded away and the blistering cold of the mountain filtered back in. "So ask." The temple was gone and Tracey stood in the freezing dark listening to the soft murmur of voices around a fire nearby.
