Wild Monster

by Matthew Harrington

  "Yes. I will." Haldir finally spoke, his voice soft and airy but tinged with an overwhelming emotion. Saeleth nodded her appreciation then leaned closer to the elf, squeezing his shoulders gently.

  "Ú-firo i laiss e-guil lîn. Cuio vê, Haldir." [May the leaves of your life never die. Farewell, Haldir.] With one last squeeze, Saeleth smiled and released the elf. Haldir, still struggling with a barrage of overwhelming confusion, gratitude, surprise, and joy, took a steadying breath before nodding to the beautiful elleth before him.

  "Cuio vê, Saeleth." [Farewell, Saeleth.] And with those final words, Haldir slipped into a final bow then turned and left the room, leaving a very... emotional Saeleth behind to continue watching over her sleeping sister. Elle looked back to Maethien and heaved a weary sigh, a smile brightening her tired face.

  "Do I have a story to tell you when you wake up, big sister." She breathed enthusiastically, then proceeded to drop onto her chair at Maethien's side and continue her watch over her sleeping sister.

  On the third day, Saeleth awoke in her own bed. Aragorn had slept a solid six hours the day before and, upon his return, he had found Elle nodding off in her chair. The exhausted elleth had barely made it to her bed. Concerned that she would collapse along her way, Aragorn had asked Eowyn to accompany her to her chambers. Eowyn had been happy to help the weary sister and had been pleased when the elleth had drifted off to sleep from the moment that her head had touched the furs on her bed.

  It was early morning, and Saeleth was eager to return to her sister's side, ready for the moment that Maethien opened her eyes. She stepped out of her chamber, closed the doors behind her, then turned around to run smack into a solid wall of armor. With a soft yelp, Saeleth stumbled back and immediately felt a pair of strong hands grip her arms, steadying her. She was not sure how, but she knew immediately that those warm, firm hands belonged to Eomer. For whatever reason, Elle felt her heart race as she slowly lifted her gaze to look upon the warriors handsome face, his expression serene and... amused. It was the amusement that nettled Saeleth, and again she was not entirely sure why the man made her react as such.

  "Do you ever take off that armor?" She asked as she stepped away from the man's hold, her tone unusually sharp.

  "Do you ever fell that brazen facade?" Eomer retorted, his tone far from sharp... in fact, there was a lighthearted humor in his voice. Saeleth paused, not expecting the warrior to be so... witty, and looked up at him again. She could tell that he was reveling in having caught her off guard.

  "Yes." She answered honestly before she could stop herself, the man smiled, surprising Elle once again. It was the first time she'd seen him smile genuinely.

  "Then, yes." He responded in kind, then said nothing else, leaving Elle to search for something, anything, to say to fill the awkward, on her part, silence. It took her a moment, but she finally found it. Honestly curious, Saeleth glanced back to her room and saw that he had been standing just two feet from the door when she had come out, almost as if he had been there specifically to see her.

  "What were you doing outside my chambers?" She asked, lifting her puzzled gaze to meet Eomer's warm brown eyes. He smiled and turned away from her to start walking, leaving her with no choice but to scramble after him to hear his answer.

  "My sister designated herself your caretaker while you rested." He began, glancing down to watch the elleth's reactions to his words. "She was unable to step away from her duties, so she asked me to come and check on you."

  "Oh." Elle was surprised, but pleasantly so. A soft smile gracing her lips as she thought warmly of Eowyn, she reminded herself to find the princess later and thank her for her kindness.

  "So you do smile. I had begun to wonder." Saeleth resisted the urge to laugh even though she really, really wanted to. It seemed that Eomer was well stocked with witty remarks, and Elle personally enjoyed a man with the capability to counter her, sometimes, bold statements. Saeleth bit the inside of her cheek, forcing herself not to laugh.

  "Yes, well, you no longer need to wonder." Saeleth said unsteadily, breathing deeply to try and still her laughter. "Now you know." Not her wittiest response, but it was difficult to think of a snappy comeback when she was fighting her urge to laugh, and Elle so loved to laugh.

  They reached the doors to Maethien's room, and Elle reached for the door handle, relieved that she would be able to release her laughter, though quietly, once safely inside. But apparently Eomer had other ideas, he reached out swiftly, beating Elle to the handle, and blocked her entrance into the room. Surprised and a little wary, Elle took a step back and looked up at Eomer, he was watching her calmly, a curiosity in his eyes.

  "You do not seem to like me very much." He said bluntly, catching Saeleth by surprise again, which had apparently become a habit of his. "Why is that?"

  Elle struggled to think of a response, the look of amusement in Eomer's eyes not really helping with her cause. Why didn't she like him? Well... the fact was that she didn't dislike him, she just disliked what little she had already known about him once upon a time.

  "I suppose it's because I have an ill preconceived notion about you." Elle answered honestly, watching the man's brow furrow in confusion.

  "But you do not know me." He argued, prompting a secretive smile from the elleth.

  "Oh, I know you Eomer..." Saeleth frowned and looked to the ground as she realized that that was a lie. She did not know Eomer, just as she had not known Aragorn or Legolas or Gimlli. What she knew about him was what a film had portrayed him to be in her past life. "Or at least I thought did." Elle lifted her amber gaze to meet Eomer's patient and puzzled expression.

  "You do realize, I hope, that you are making no sense." It was then that Saeleth lost the war against her laughter. Eomer blinked, surprised, but pleasantly so, when the elleth suddenly burst into a fit of laughter, the sound bringing a smile to his own lips as he watched the beautiful elleth. Oddly glad that she had finally permitted him to see a side of her that he had not had the privilege of seeing before.

  "I'm not, am I?" Elle asked through her laughter, running a hand through her hair to move it away from her face so that she could smile up at Eomer fully. After another moment of laughter, Elle breathed a sigh and smiled mischievously at the man in her way. "I suppose I should do away with those preconceived notions." She admitted.

  "But can I see me sister, first?" She asked, gesturing to where his hand still held her only means to get by him and into Maethien's room. Looking down, Eomer smiled then nodded his agreement, pushing the door open and holding it so that Elle could get by.

  "Thank-" Saeleth froze, prompting Eomer's senses to come alert as he followed her gaze into the room. Sitting up in the bed, with her glittering green eyes wide open and a brilliant smile adorning her face, was Maethien. She sat there with her hands clutched in Aragorn's, the warrior smiling grandly as both her and his lady, for that was who she was, looked to Saeleth with expectant smiles.

  "Hey, Elle." Maethien called out cheerfully. "You ready to kill me now?"

  "Wake up!" Anoreth jerked away, jumping up straight, her hair a mess of curls around her face as she searched her surroundings wildly for danger. Instead she found a smiling Gollum looking down at her and the hobbits. "Wake up, sleepies! We must go, yes. We must go at once!" Gollum dropped from his perch above them and landed swiftly in front of Sam, shaking the weary hobbit to wake him up.

  Anoreth smiled at the sleepy hobbit softly then turned away, lifting a hand to rub her pounding head gingerly. The darkness in her thoughts had thickened, she had quickly realized that the closer she got to Mordor, the stronger Melkor's powers over her got. She was tired, weary, frustrated, and strained... she knew that she was forgetting something important and she knew that it was something she should be able to remember, but nothing struck her memory. She remembered where they were going, who had sent her, who she was... but she had forgotten how this story ended, and that frightened her terribly.

  "Haven't you had any sleep Mr Fro
do?" Sam asked him softly, concern in his eyes. "I've gone and had too much. It must be getting late."

  "No, it isn't. It's not midday yet. The days are growing darker." Frodo murmured, Ann couldn't stop herself from grimacing... he sounded so broken.

  "Come here, Frodo. Just for a moment. Please." Anoreth smiled kindly at her friend and gestured him forward as she moved closer to him, he didn't move right away but once he realized she only meant to help, he inched closer to the pretty elleth. He watched carefully as Ann smiled at him gently, then began to rub her hands together slowly, a white light glimmering between her palms. Did she mean to make him warm? He had seen her do that movement before, and it had been to give them warmth during a stormy night.

  "What are you doing that for?" Frodo asked, curiously. Ann winked at him.

  "You'll see." Holding her palms open in front of her face, Ann smiled when Frodo and Sam gasped quietly. Nestled on her palm was a fluttering butterfly made of a pure white flame. She held the butterfly for a moment, then leaned down and blew on her palms, smiling when the butterfly dissolved into an army of tiny fire butterflies that flew all around the hobbits, wrapping them up in a warm and pure light. The butterflies fluttered about for a moment, then slowly landed on Frodo and Sam's bodies, sinking into their skin and clothes and providing them both with a warm feeling of... serenity. Frodo was immensely relieved to feel something other than the growing strain of darkness in his soul.

  Suddenly, the ground beneath them rumbled and shook, throwing them all off balance and bringing a wide eyed worry to all three. A sense of unease returned to Frodo, but he was glad to see that the warmth of Ann's magic did not leave him yet.

  "Come on!" Gollum's voice hissed back at them. "Must go! No time!"

  "Not before Mr Frodo's had something to eat." Sam called back sternly.

  "No time to lose, silly!" Sam scowled worriedly before turning back to his friends. Anoreth smiled at the troubled blonde hobbit and reached into her pack to pull out a generous amount of lembas bread to give to Frodo and Sam.

  "Here. Eat, both of you. You will need your strength more than I." She smiled at Frodo and nodded encouragingly, after another moment of hesitation he began to nibble on the elvish bread eagerly. She then turned to Sam and blinked when she found herself faced with a piece of lembas bread. Lifting her eyes she looked at Sam's kind blue eyes.

  "You need to eat too, Miss Ann. Mr Frodo needs your help too." Ann smiled and took the bread gingerly. "We're in this together. We look after one another now." He added with a smile.

  "Thank you, Sam." Anoreth whispered warmly, before taking a healthy bite off the bread.

  Artanis threw back her head gently and stopped moving, stomping her foot uneasily.

  "What's wrong, Artanis? What do you see?" Maethien whispered to her pretty mare. Artanis whinnied to her shakily, then began to step backward, away from Isengard. "Whoa. Shh, it's okay, it's okay." Maethien soothed kindly, looking back in concern as Gandalf rode up beside her.

  "She senses Saruman. Like all pure creatures, she fears his corrupted power." Maethien frowned uneasily at the wizard, gently caressing her mare's neck as she spoke.

  "I thought Saruman's power was gone now." She said.

  "Yes, but even without his power, Saruman is dangerous, my dear." Maethien looked to her sister and saw that she too was looking awfully uneasy, her eyes clouded and her brow furrowed from the strain of darkness. Maethien sighed then dismounted.

  "Mae, what are you doing?" Gimli asked roughly as Legolas moved his horse past.

  "I will not make her go somewhere she does not want to." Maethien said simply as she tangled up the reins and looped them through the bridle so that Artanis would not get her feet tangled in them. "There. Stay close, Artanis. I'll need your help later." Maethien patted her mare's neck gently, Artanis nodded her large head then pressed her large nose to Mae's shoulder before turning and galloping into the trees, away from Isengrd.

  "Now you have no horse." Eomer commented, a chuckle escaping his throat. Beside him, Saeleth rolled her eyes.

  "We're not that far." Elle said, looking up as the trees rumbled around them, she smiled softly. "Besides, she won't need to walk for long." Eomer turned and raised a brow when he saw that secretive, knowing look in her eyes, he had seen it more than once in the little time they had been in each other's company and he had learned to recognize what that look meant.

  Maethien, not having heard her sister's cryptic words, was just about to climb over a massive tree root when someone caught her waist and lifted her off her feet.

  "Aragorn!" She breathed as he brought her up to his saddle before him and wrapped his arms around her.

  "A lady should not walk." He whispered in her ear.

  "Whoever told you I was a lady? They are clearly demented." Maethien retorted playfully, she leaned back into his embrace unconsciously, relaxing into his hold within seconds. She felt her entire being tingle with pleasure when Aragorn chuckled huskily, his warm breath tickling her ear.

  "They are devoted to each other." Eomer chuckled quietly, prompting a rather insultingly surprised look from the golden haired elleth at his side. It seemed that he had the ability to always surprise the beautiful elleth, and he had a feeling that she was rarely ever surprised about anything.

  "Yes, but neither will admit it. Perhaps not until it is too late." Legolas agreed quietly, he was just a few feet ahead of Eomer and Saeleth, his head turned slightly to look at them over his shoulder.

  "He's too honorable and she is too afraid." Gimli continued softly, his eyes on the couple at the head of the line. "Too afraid of how this war will end... Perhaps we should kick them along?" He suggested.

  "Leave them be." Saeleth finally spoke, smiling at the three men around her warmly, even Eomer. "Let them have their love for each other in silence, Valar, knows we need more love in this journey. They will make their love known when the time is right... or when they believe it's right." Legolas nodded his agreement, while their dwarf friend grumbled his reply before they trotted off ahead, leaving her with Eomer. Saeleth smiled at her sister and her love sweetly, before breathing a soft sigh and lifting a hand to rub her temples. The further they had traveled into the forest, the darker her thoughts had become, the heavier the weight of the darkness had become on her chest, leaving her oddly out of breath.

  "Are you alright, Saeleth?" Opening her eyes, Elle turned to look at Eomer, who had been watching her already, his eyes narrowed on the hand that had drifted away from her temples and gone to hover over her heart, tightening around her as if she was trying to hold herself together.

  "I am fine, Eomer. The dark magic simply weighs on me much heavier than most." Saeleth said wearily, a kind smile directed at the concerned warrior. "And how many times have I told you to call me Elle?" She asked, hoping to turn his scowl into a smile with her light tease. It did not.

  "Perhaps you should have traveled with my sister to Rohan, Elle." He murmured with concern. It was probably the worst thing he could have said to Saeleth. Immediately after having uttered the words, he watched in surprise as her shoulders suddenly squared and her spine became impossibly straight, her smooth delicate hands tightening around the reins she held. His eyes had been on the sudden changes in her posture, when he lifted them to look at the elleth's face he was even more surprised to see an angry fire gleaming in her amber eyes.

  "I am not as delicate as you seem to believe, Eomer. Far from it." Saeleth snapped, before turning to face forward, pushing Gadriel to catch up to the rest of her friends, leaving behind a confused Eomer to wonder what exactly he had said wrong.

  They soon found themselves approaching the gates and were welcomed by two very... happy hobbits. Jumping up to stand on the wall, Merry raised his arms grandly to his sides and smiled.

  "Welcome! My lords!" He cheered, lifting his pipe at them. "To Isengrd!"

  "You young rascals!" Gimli immediately began to shout angrily.. "Quite a merry chase you've led us on, now we find yo
u feasting... and smoking!" Maethien laughed softly, smiling when she felt Aragorn's chest quiver with his own laughter behind her.

  "We are sitting," Pippin corrected. "On a field of victory, enjoying a few well earned comforts. The salted park is particularly good!" Pippin pointed with his pipe as Merry puffed out bubbles of smoke joyfully.

  "Salted pork?" Gimli asked, his voice going suspiciously soft. Elle looked at the dwarf and laughed.

  "Hobbits." Gandalf muttered, shaking his head in defeat.

  "We're under orders, from Treebeard, who's taken management over Isengard." Merry exclaimed with a smile, puffing out a few more clouds of smoke, then his eyes landed on Maethien and his eyes brightened. " Pip! look! She's alive! She's alive!" Pippin looked away from his salted pork and searched the riders, his smile broadening at the sight of Mae.

  "Well met, my little friends." Mae called out, grinning at them.

  "We thought you dead! Saruman has been shouting from his tower, telling us you'd been consumed by fire and smoke!" Maethien scoffed dramatically, feigning a look of smug confidence.

  "Puh-lease. What can a little fire and smoke do to me?" She asked teasingly, deciding not to mention the fact that she had almost been consumed by fire and smoke, and smiling when the hobbits laughed and cheered. The hobbits flew to their feet and made to set off into a victory dance that was immediately halted by the white wizard.

  "That's enough now, master hobbits. Come. We've still much to do." Gandalf said sternly. Saeleth smiled and pushed forward so that she could look up at the hobbits.

  "Missed us?" She asked as Merry and Pippin moved to stand just above her on the wall.

  "You bet!" Pippin grinned, Elle laughed nodded.

  "Good. Now, go ahead and jump." The hobbits hesitated for a brief moment, but then shrugged and hopped off together. Elle was ready and immediately called for the air to gently settle them down, their fuzzy feet touching the cool ground. Elle smiled.