"Therith?" a low voice calls, pulling my attention away from the drops trickling down the tree's bark from the rain that fell the previous night. "Aragorn." I acknowledge as he sits down next to me on the lonely bench.
"How have you been faring?" he questions, worry hidden within his tone of voice. "We have not seen you since last night." I sigh at the question, expecting it, but not looking forward to it.
"I can hardly imagine that you cannot guess at my feelings my friend. They reach deep." I state leaving him silent. "But…I decided not to give in to it anymore. I will continue on and try to bare it." I continue, nodding as if I need to convince myself.
Aragorn nods slowly, taking it in. "I am very sorry Therith, for what happened. But I am glad, that you continue to persevere. I am sure I speak for all of us if you decided otherwise; we would have greatly missed you. Your strength of mind would have made him proud." he states, making a ghost of a smile leave my lips. "I would not have such strength, were it not for the company." I state, grateful to be with friends.
"Aragorn?" I question after a moment of thought, deciding to go for it while I have him to myself, though reluctantly, considering the subject. "Why have you and Arwen parted in such a way?" I ask, knowing he will understand my meaning. He hums, seeming to overthink his answer.
"I have told Arwen, it would be better if she sailed." he finally admits, making me look at him shocked. "Why would you do that? I thought you would be together until the end of your days." I exclaim, making him smile bitterly. "It is for the best. She will not have to wither away while me returning is chanced so slight."
"I highly doubt she agreed with you willingly." I say, not able to imagine Arwen giving up her future with him. She wanted to become mortal for him. He looks to the ground sadly. "No, she did not. But it is done." he states, before gathering himself rather suddenly. "Well milady, now that I have made sure you are still among us, I shall go gather us some information for the journey ahead." he says, giving a mock bow before leaving me to myself.
I raise a brow at him, taken aback at his sudden mood-change. "You fool." I mutter under my breath. "Do you often go around calling your friends fools behind their back?" a light voice questions as Legolas sits down at Aragorn's previous seat before it has even cooled. If it weren't for me feeling so at ease, I would have jumped at his sudden appearance. Did Aragorn know he was coming?
"Sometimes. Especially such a royal fool as Aragorn." I state, drawing my legs to my chest and hugging my knees. "What has he done to ensure your wrath?" he asks, making me shrug. I cannot discuss such matters with anyone else; I would not do that to Aragorn, despite my agitation with him.
"Well, have we not all acted foolishly once?" Legolas defends, not going into the core of the subject further. His question makes me think. "Have you acted foolishly before?" I ask, genuinely curious. Legolas breaks a smile. "I'm surprised you hadn't noticed. You were with me almost the entire time." he hints back to our previous adventure.
The memory nearly makes me snort, remembering how much he changed during such a short time and how bravely he fought, despite his father's wishes. It was a selfless act I can only admire. "That wasn't foolish. Not to me anyway." I say softly. "I'm glad you think so." he replies to my comment in a voice just as soft.
For several more days, we rested, until the danger grew too near and Galadriel urged us to move on. She bestowed us parting gifts, mine being a feather, coated in silver and hung from a tiny chain with a clasp on it. The feather was one that Gandalf once brought to her after one of his journeys she said, and was one of my own from when I was just a youngling. Now, it hangs from my left ear, as my own personal banner, reminding those old enough to remember, of my kin.
We were lastly given three finely crafted boats, with which we drifted out of the forest and along the great river Anduin, on to our next destination.
I finger my gift absentmindedly as Gimli coos over the kindness of the Lady of the Woods. He has changed his mind of her altogether and will not tolerate anyone speaking a single bad word about her.
Looking around carefully, I look into the woods surrounding us left and right. For some time now, I've been aware of how silent it is within them. There are no birds, even though these forests are rich in food and greenery. Instead, a feeling of weariness lies over it. I should have known that peace will not be with us for long, but after these last days, I almost have taken it for granted.
At some point, the forests make way for high cliffs, leaving us no way to go but forward. I was nearly asleep when Legolas speaks up. "We'll be entering the lands of the horse lords soon." he announces, making me look up. My eyes widen as I look upon the great statues flanking each side of the river. Great kings they once were.
"Horses you say?" Gimli starts, huffing. "Me and horses have never seen eye to eye. Willful creatures they are, hardly regarding their rider as they rush on and on. Quick to forget you if you happen to fall off." he continues sourly, making me chuckle. "It seems to me that you've had some bad experiences concerning horses." I remark, as Gimli grunts embarrassed but says no more as we pass by the great watchers.
From here, the river broadens to a lake before falling down in great torrents from a waterfall. This is where our ride ends and will have to rely on our feet once more.
"We cross the lake at nightfall, hide the boats and continue on foot…we approach Mordor from the North." Aragorn decides after we made a fire and settled down. I wiggle my toes in the clear water by the shore. It's cold and wakens my mind as I stroll from one way to the other.
"Oh, yes, just a simple matter of finding our way through Emyn Muil, an impassable labyrinth of razor sharp rocks. And after that, it gets even better...a festering, stinking marshland, as far as the eye can see." Gimli responds to Aragorn's decision, clearly not looking forward to it, but then again, no one in their right mind would look forward to that.
I blink as a pebble drops from above to right in front of me, water spattering my legs, making me shiver. Looking up at the culprit, I spot Legolas sitting on a tree branch, looking rather smug. I smile up at him before a thought crosses me.
Picking up one of Sam's pots from besides Boromir, who quickly caught on, judging from the wide grin he carries, I fill it with water. "That is our Road...I suggest you take some rest and recover your strength, Master Dwarf." Aragorn muses in the background as Legolas' eyes widen when I dart into the tree he's in, leaving him stuck between me on side and the lake on the other.
"Take your pick Prince. Wet or very wet?" I grin. "I feel like I've made a terrible mistake." Legolas mutters, before I fling the contents of the pot at him. "Recover my…." Gimli huffs, but is cut off by two splashes.
Heads turn, before roaring laughter echoes across the lake. I wipe my wet hair from my face as I look around bewildered. I did throw the water at Legolas, but instead of just taking it, the elf just had to trip me up. From there on, he grabbed hold of me and let himself fall backwards, making us both tumble from the overhanging branch and into the lake.
"You have my answer, my lady." he laughs, making me look at him stunned. My mouth opens and closes several times, trying to think up a comeback, but I'm rather left speechless. Not just because of the actions of the strangest elf I ever met, but also from the cold.
"Hurry and dry, before you grow ill." Aragorn chuckles, motioning to the fire as Legolas helps me to my feet. "I cannot believe you did that." I manage to say between the clattering of my teeth. Legolas doesn't look very affected by the cold, making me resent him a little. "I do not wish to be predictable." he counters, setting me down by the warmth of the fire before placing himself down beside me.
I must have dozed off as the heat of the sun and of the fire warmed me to the core, drying me quickly, for when I woke, my attire didn't feel as heavy anymore, but the reason of my awakening is rather unpleasant.
"I was dreaming that I heard an league of orcs approaching." I mutter in a daze, not yet registering that the others are on high alert until Legolas folds my hands over my sword. "That may be closer to the truth than you might think." he says, before rushing off, his bow in hand, I'm the last one left in at the campsite.
Suddenly my eyes open wide as my blood starts pumping through my veins with renewed vigor. "I hate it when I miss out on things." I groan, having caught on to our dire situation and run after the elf.