In the Middle of Middle-Earth

In the Middle of Middle-Earth

Chapter 4

Author: Frosty the Glo-Worm
Rated: NC-17
Codes: Legolas, Boromir, Aragorn, Faramir, Elrond, Eowyn, Elros, Haldir, OC, AU, N/C
Summary: Has evil come to the elves of Lorien? Can Legolas get control over his sister? Is Boromir not the coolest thing ever?!? R&R!
Author's Notes: Taking extreme creative license here: Aragorn and Arwen are married. Faramir and Eowyn are not together. Boromir is alive. Haldir is alive. All the hobbits are alive and well. Takes place after the defeat of Sauron. More notes as I think of them.
Disclaimer: LOTR is not mine! Who knew?!

*

"I'd watch that sister of yours," said Boromir as he entered the large room where all the elves and men had gathered. He stayed at the back near the entrance so he could easily watch over everything that happened. "She could get herself hurt."

Legolas frowned and uncrossed his arms. "What are you talking about?" he asked, "Is Valawen alright?"

Boromir looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "She's fine, thanks to me." He lowered his voice and leaned toward the elf, "I found her out wandering the woods outside Rivendell. She gave me quite a fight when I tried to bring her back."

The elf sighed darkly. "Did you bring her back?" he asked, feeling annoyed at having to hear this. He didn't understand why she just couldn't sit quietly and behave.

"I did," replied Boromir, smirking, "But it was a bloody hassle. You owe me." He smiled at Legolas, but the elf only threw him a withering glance.

The two stood in stony silence as Elrond spoke with his twin brother. The resemblance was nothing short of astounding. The only real way Boromir could tell them apart was by their clothes. He hadn't asked about why the two brothers were estranged, nor did he even really care. His only concern at the moment was protecting his people.

He shifted when Aragorn joined them. "Have your scouts come back yet?" he asked.

Boromir pursed his lips and nodded. "They found nothing. Seems this is the only group." He jutted his chin towards the visiting elves in the centre of the room.

"Well, that's good news at least," sighed Aragorn, "Have guards been posted at their quarters?"

"Aye, Legolas took care of that," replied Boromir, glancing at the elf on his far side. He noticed that the blonde was fingering the handle of his blade.

Aragorn said nothing, only nodded, and walked away when Elrond gestured to him. Boromir chanced a glance at Legolas again, and watched as the elf's eyes followed Aragorn like he was the prey to Legolas' predator. Boromir allowed himself a "whatever" head shake before restoring his concentration on the group in front of him.

*

Valawen was getting irritated. Obviously everyone was having another meeting somewhere, and obviously she wasn't invited. Again. She figured they must be with the group of elves that had arrived, but with so many buildings in Rivendell, she couldn't figure which one they would be in.

She began to get worried. Something was happening, and she still hadn't been told what it was. It must've been important, important enough to have so many leader of states in one place, but not important enough for Legolas to let her in on the secret. She hated him for that. He could be so childish sometimes.

Licking her lips, she decided there was no use in getting depressed over it. She left the garden and went to her room, intending to stay there until someone cared to check if she was still alive.

It was hours before Valawen heard any sounds of life. There was some shuffling of feet outside her door before a very quiet knock came. "Whaaaaat?" called Valawen, not interested enough to get up.

The door creaked open and she was surprised to see a small blonde head poke through. "Valawen?" said Eowyn, stepping inside the room. Valawen sat up. "Are you alright?"

The elf shuffled to the end of her bed. "I'm fine," she replied, looking at the human. The expression she wore was much different than the one she had when they had spoke of Aragorn. This one was almost friendly. "What's going on?"

Eowyn smiled. "I just thought I'd invite you to dinner. It's kind of lonely down there."

Valawen narrowed her eyes. Maybe she knows what's going on, she thought, and her curiousity got the best of her. "Sure," she replied, "I'd love to."

Eowyn was quiet as they walked down the hall on the way to dinner. She barely made eye contact, smiling only occasionally, looking generally quite uncomfortable. Valawen shrugged it aside, only vaguely interested in why Eowyn would bother talking to her.

When they had seated themselves with their food, Valawen took the opportunity to question Eowyn. "Where is everyone?" she asked, "Are they still in a meeting?"

Eowyn nodded, looking down into her soup. "I was getting tired, so I decided to leave for a while," she said, and Valawen's anger flared up again. Even the human girl had been invited! "Everyone else is still there. It might go on all night."

Before she could respond, a voice came from behind Valawen's shoulder. "I certainly hope not," said the man, and she turned to see Faramir smiling at the two of them, "Even elves need to rest sometime." He winked at Valawen, and she fixed him with a frosty stare. She hated how he was always winking at her.

Faramir didn't seem to notice, though, because he sat down beside her and asked how she was doing. When she gave the obligatory answer, he smiled and started a conversation with Eowyn. Valawen sighed when she realized the topic wasn't the elves she had seen earlier.

They had been talking for several minutes when Valawen heard something of interest. "...Arwen was a little upset, I think, because Aragorn forgot," said Eowyn, and Valawen immediately regretted not listening earlier.

"What did Aragorn forget?" she asked, and both Eowyn and Faramir looked at her strangely. Valawen blushed a little, "I'm sorry, I wasn't listening. What was it that he forgot?"

"Arwen's birthday," said Eowyn, sighing, "It was yesterday. She said he didn't even show up in their room until late in the evening, and he was obviously trying to make up for forgetting."

Valawen bit her lip and felt embarrassed, but soon felt anger more than anything. "What a giant ass!" she growled, and Faramir raised an eyebrow, "How could he be so thoughtless?"

Eowyn frowned, but Faramir looked a little taken aback. "I'm sure they'll work it out," he said.

Valawen made brief eye contact with the blonde woman across from her, then looked at Faramir. "She'd be better off without him."

Faramir blinked slowly and nodded, not intending to pursue it any further. Aragorn had obviously screwed something up, and he really didn't want to get in the middle of it. "Yes, well, perhaps it's time we got back, Eowyn," he said, rising from the table.

The woman looked at Valawen sadly, "I'll come by to see you later," she said, and Valawen noticed that she looked very sincere in her caring. She knew that Eowyn knew why she had been so upset with Aragorn. She had to admit that she wouldn't mind having someone around who she could bash him with.

"Alright," she said, and watched as the couple walked off, leaving her all alone. Again.

Valawen sat at the table for nearly 20 minutes, willing anyone, even a hobbit, to show up so she could get information out of them. But no one showed. "Damn hobbits," she snarled, stalking out of the dining hall, "They're supposed to have radar for food!"

The sky was darkening overhead as she walked into the gardens. She noticed that the jasmine was blooming, but only felt bothered by the flowers' existence. Walking down the path, she intended to spend the evening by the waterfall soaking her feet, but halted when she heard voices. They were coming in her direction. She continued her way down the dark path and slowly she could make out figures in the distance. Hoping one of them was Legolas, she pressed on, determined to kill him.

When she got closer, though, she realized that Legolas was not among the group. Three elves she vaguely recognized surrounded a fourth individual, someone turned away fher.her. She continued to get closer, until a voice echoed through the gardens. "Valawen, stop!" yelled one of the elves, "Go back to your room."

She glared and advanced very slowly. "I'm looking for my brother, Ellandir," she said, addressing the elf, "Have you seen him?"

The figure in the centre turned towards her, but she couldn't make out his face. Before she could get any closer, Ellandir walked up to her. "Valawen, you shouldn't be out. Didn't Legolas tell you to stay inside?" His voice was urgent and quite low.

Valawen was very disconcerted by the elf's demeanor. "Legolas didn't tell me anything," she said, craning her neck to see around him, "Who are you protecting over there?"

Before he could answer, the dark figure spoke, "She's not a child, Ellandir. Why don't you just let her go where she pleases?"

Valawen would've been very pld byd by those words if they had not been accompanied by the voice of Elrond. But she knew immediately that it wasn't Elrond, that it was the dark elf she had seen earlier.

Ellandir frowned but kept his gaze on Valawen. "Go to your room. I'll send your brother up there when I see him."

The dark elf began to walk closer to where she was standing. The elves surrounding him walked steadily with him, watching his every move. When they moved into the light, she nearly gasped. This man looked exactly like Elrond.

Ellandir turned back to him. "Not one step closer, Elros," he said sternly.

The elf called Elros smiled at Ellandir, then turned his gaze back to Valawen. "What a pretty young thing," he said, blinking slowly. He cocked his head as his eyes travelled her frame. "You look very familiar, my dear," he said as his eyes met hers, "Has Elrond told you that yet?"

Valawen frowned at his smirk, and she could tell that Ellandir wasn't happy. "Meren, Caldir," he said, speaking to the other two elves, "Please escort our guest to his quarters. I'm going to take Valawen to her brother."

"Goodnight, sweet Valawen," said Elros as the two elves directed him away. She watched in silence as they disappeared into the darkness.

"Who was that?" she asked, before Ellandir could speak, "Why does he look like Elrond?"

Ellandir muttered something under his breath as he escorted Valawen towards the meeting hall. "Your brother should have informed you of this. Why didn't he?" He looked at Valawen like it was completely her fault.

"How would I know?" she shot back, "He's unreliable." She crossed her arms, shivering, and fell into step with Ellandir, constantly thinking back to the strange elf in the garden. He had scared her, more than she would have thought possible from just a few words.

When they arrived at the meeting hall, Valawen was again annoyed at seeing most everyone there. Only Elrond, Arwen, and Aragorn were absent. She watched as Ellandir whispered something to Legolas, which she knew had to do with her, and then turned away when her brother's stare turned into a glower.

With her turn she found herself facing Boromir. She rolled her eyes at his wide, mocking grin, and sat down on the stone wall. Feeling even more annoyed when Ellandir didn't even acknowledge her before he left, she let out a long-held sigh and waited for some kind of explanation.

Legolas walked over to her, his expression one of conflict. She wasn't sure if he was mad or concerned. "Are you alright?" he asked, and his eyes immediately became more subdued.

Valawen stared at the floor. "I'm fine," she said, "But I want to know what's going on." She said the last part loud enough for the whole hall to hear, and felt a twinge of happiness when Legolas had the decency to look abashed.

Boromir glared at Legolas with an expression of impatience. Valawen stared at her brother, and he finally sighed and shook his head. "I'm sorry, Valawen, I should've told you earlier," he said, then added hastily, "But I wanted to protect you!"

"Protect me from what, Legolas? Tell me what is going on. Who was that man who spoke to me? Who were all those elves?" She turned her face to Boromir, hoping perhaps he would help her understand.

Legolas spoke first. "They are from Lothlorien. Something has happened to them, and they've lost the good that used to be in them. We feared a war was coming. The elves you saw earlier, they are here to offer us a peaceful resolution." His eyes turned steely, "On their terms, of course," he grumbled, mostly to himself.

"Are the elves...cannibals?" asked Valawen, quietly. Not quietly enough, though, because she heard Boromir chuckle. At Legolas' confused stare, she waved him off. "Nevermind. Tell me instead, who was that man who looked like Elrond?"

When Legolas hesitated, Boromir spoke up. "He is Elros, Elrond's twin brother. Apparently they never got along, but now that Elros has gone evil, I think an even larger rift is imminent."

"This is not a laughing matter," snarled Legolas, "We could be facing a war!"

Eowyn spoke up before Boromir could respond. "No one is taking this lightly, Legolas, believe me. And fighting amongst ourselves won't help." She crossed her arms and sighed, looking very tired. "I think we all need to rest. Legolas, I'm sure Valawen will have more questions, but I think you should talk to her elsewhere."

Faramir nodded in agreement. "Eowyn's right. It may not be wise to speak in such an open area." He was first to leave, followed by Eowyn and the very quiet hobbits. "We can meet again tomorrow," he said, and left. Eowyn smiled at Valawen before she exited the door.

Boromir sighed heavily as he got up from his chair. On his way out, he stopped beside Legolas. "Believe me, I do not find this the least bit funny," he said strongly, "But if I were you, I would worry about my priorities." He shot a glance at Valawen before sliding by Legolas and leaving the hall.

Her brother looked more than a little angry, but Valawen was sure it was because of Boromir, not her. "I do have more questions," she said, "Will you answer them for me, or do I need to follow Boromir?"

Legolas shot her a look and then took her hand as she jumped down from the wall. "I will answer your questions," he said, "When we get back to your room."

Elrond watched the two elves disappear into the darkness. He had been watching the group from his window for a while now, worried about them. He was quite relieved when Eowyn had ordered them to part.

He sighed and massaged his temple. The arrival of Elros had made him more anxious than he thought it would. But there was something else on his mind, too, something that gave him a healthy dose of guilt to go along with the worry. He was very concerned for Valawen. Elros would no doubt have noticed her by now, and that made Elrond sick with anxiety. Even if he could keep Legolas' sister from his own brother, she would no doubt hear things second-hand. Part of him wished Legolas had not brought her along. Another part of him, though...

Groaning under his breath, he sat down in a chair in front of the window. He couldn't deny that he was attracted to the girl. It had been a long time since he had been interested in anyone, believing that his wife would ever be the only one. But Valawen reminded him of Celebrian, and even at that he felt a bite of remorse. It was unfair to judge Valawen by how she recalled memories of Galadriel's daughter. Elrond wanted to know Valawen, to protect her...Elros had known Celebrian, he would no doubt quickly notice Valawen.

But she was a young girl. A beautiful, young girl. His being enamoured of her was inappropriate. Or so he kept telling himself.

Elrond sighed heavily and resolved to speak with Valawen tomorrow.

*

TBC