Strange Allies

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Annowe awoke slowly, feeling the strong arms about her and she pressed herself closer into Haldir, sliding her hands around his slim waist and squeezing him tightly as she snuggled closer. He smiled. Today he would not ruin her fantasy or his by speaking. She would have to discover for herself that it was not Legolas holding her.

Lightly he stroked her hair, urging her awake. She murmured something and crawled up his body to nestle her cheek in his neck as she slid one arm around his shoulder and relaxed against him, dozing peacefully. He closed his eyes and groaned to himself. She was warm and firm in his lap, the smooth skin of her cheek soft on his neck. He could not let this go on. He needed to wake her before he gave into his own urges.

“Annowe,” he whispered and squeezed her. “Annowe!”

She quickly awakened and extricated herself from him, seemingly embarrassed about her behavior. “Sorry,” she apologized when she realized what she had done. “I thought you were Legolas.”

“I know,” he answered, then quickly changed the subject before she could berate him for taking advantage of the situation. “If we keep a steady pace through this day and into the next we will be on the plain. Does that make you happy?”

“Yes, very happy,” she agreed.

Slowly they crawled from the alcove, fighting the snow that had built up over the night. Annowe was grateful to be out of that cramped area and stretched happily in the sun, although she would miss the warmth of being next to Haldir.

He smiled indulgently at her then began to negotiate the pass as Annowe caught up with him. Fortunately, the snow was a fine powder that made the trek much easier than it had been and for that, Annowe was grateful. The sun was bright in the clear blue sky so there would be no more snow (at least for a while), and the wind had subsided, making the temperature not quite so cold. She sighed optimistically. Now if only Haldir weren’t so hateful, she mind find this journey actually tolerable!

But he did not torment her at all in fact; he remained strangely silent throughout most of the day as he led her over the pass. She was not in a mind to complain about it, though, and enjoyed the quiet walk, taking the opportunity to appreciate the rough beauty of the land around her. The snow sparkled like mithril flakes under the bright sun and once she saw an eagle fly over and shouted excitedly at Haldir, pointing to it in the sky.

He watched it carefully and frowned. “It is flying south,” he murmured to himself before continuing east.

When they finally stopped for lembas and water just after midday, she asked him about the eagle.

“What does it matter that it was flying south?” She asked.

He shook his head. “Nothing. It was just an observation,” he said but she was not so sure. Was he trying not to alarm her? He seemed rather anxious when the great bird had appeared and watched it carefully until it was well out of her sight before he continued walking again. She frowned. She would wait until they stopped again for rest and try to see if she could discern the significance of it.

They continued and Annowe could feel the subtle change in the landscape, the craggy rocks giving way to more gently sloping hills and she knew they would soon be on the plain. She was determined to keep going and Haldir seemed to be content to let her continue as long as she was able.

Once it became dusk, Haldir stopped and turned to her. “Do you want to continue, little one?” He asked softly.

She nodded. “Yes, if you are willing,” she answered.

He smiled indulgently at her. “Very well, but I would ask that you stay close to me. I believe we are being followed but I am not certain.”

Immediately, Annowe looked around anxiously. “By who?” She asked.

“Not who. What. I am not sure. Perhaps I am merely over reacting to some mountain goats following the trail after us but I cannot be certain as yet,” he said softly as his eyes peered into the growing darkness.

“I will stay close,” she agreed, grabbing onto the hem of his cloak so she would not lose him as he started off again. So that is what he was so silent about, she thought, noting to herself that she would remain more alert.

He smiled to himself as he felt his cloak move with her gait. He would not have let her out of his sight but he was glad she was staying so close – it was one less thing for him to worry about as darkness overtook them and the sounds of their watchers grew closer.

The March Warden knew that if they were being followed, their trackers would use the cover of night to draw closer and assess their strength. They would not attack until they could be certain that the nymph and the elf were outnumbered.

The night was cold and the stars twinkled merrily in the velvet sky as they walked but the wind was still calm. The silence was almost eerie and Annowe could almost believe that they were the only creatures alive and the world was still new. Several times during that long night Haldir stopped and gazed toward the stars with a strange longing on his face.

Annowe smiled indulgently at him, knowing that she had the same look about her when she gazed at the south sea. He was such an odd creature. In the daytime he was a merciless tormenter of her, never ceasing to remind her of Legolas’ absence but in the quiet of the night she could almost imagine him as a gentle and sensitive creature, not the arrogant bastard who tried to make her as miserable as possible.

Each time he stopped and gazed to the heavens, she took the opportunity to study him, even being so bold as to lift up his cloak on one occasion to admire his lithe backside. She giggled at her own audacity as her eyes ran up and down his long muscular legs. It was such a shame he was so vile and hateful, she thought. Had he only been half as sweet as the Prince of Mirkwood, she would have given herself to him long ago.

At the thought of Legolas, her heart ached and she wondered where he was and when he would return to her. He was out there, somewhere, gazing at these very stars. She sighed and turned her gaze to the small sliver of moon, Haldir’s firm backside forgotten.

“It is beautiful, is it not, little one?” The March Warden murmured to her when he realized she was staring at the sky as well.

“It is even more beautiful on the warm waters of the south sea,” she replied softly. Suddenly, she felt a terrible surge of loss for her home. It was warm and safe there and she would be free from this foreboding atmosphere. She sighed deeply.

He said nothing, not wanting to hear her speak of the sea, lest it stir his own deep longing for it. Instead he turned back toward the pass and continued walking. He did not stop to gaze at the stars again, content to watch them as he walked.

Slowly, the sun began to struggle over the eastern horizon and Haldir relaxed. They would be out of the pass soon and he would be able to see what, if anything, had been following them.

The river valley opened before them. Annowe breathed a sigh of relief and dropped the hem of his cloak. She would no longer fear that Haldir would abandon her out of spite. If he did, it would not matter now. She was near her element and grew more at ease.

The change in her mood was not lost on him. She grew more confident and less anxious and he wondered if she would try and slip off to the river to be out of his presence. He did not believe she would unless he pressed her mercilessly for she had given her word to Elrond that she would stay with him and her word was her deed.

But Haldir understood that he could push her too far and now he must be more patient. She was no longer dependent upon him to cross the high pass and could quickly and easily escape to the river if she chose. He would not give her any viable excuse to terminate their traveling arrangement.

He would have to give her more space and be more subtle in his temptation of her lest she decide she had enough of him.

However, he had more pressing matters on his mind at the moment than the naiad. His keen senses alerted him that they were still being tracked. This was not good, he thought grimly. Had they been followed from Rivendell?

They would need to keep moving to be safe. Several times he stopped and listened, his gray eyes searching the hills. He knew something was out there but he was not quite sure what it could be.

“Are we still being followed?” The naiad asked anxiously when she saw Haldir searching the hills.

“Yes,” he murmured to her. “They have followed us through the pass and now stay to the hills just out of sight.”

“We saw Orcs here when we were scouting for Elrond before,” Annowe warned. “Perhaps they have returned?”

Haldir tipped his head, listening. “No, not Orcs. Not nearly loud enough,” he muttered. “And Orcs would not have been on the western side of the pass.”

Annowe shivered. “What then?”

“I cannot be sure,” Haldir answered and started off again. “It is best if we keep moving.”

Annowe paused and gazed anxiously at the foothills. She had a strange foreboding that whatever it was would continue following them for a while.

Quietly, she caught up to Haldir but her eyes continued to scan the hills as they walked.

“Are we stopping soon?” She asked as he slowed his pace.

“Not quite yet,” he answered. “Walk ahead of me, if you would.”

“Why?” Annowe wondered.

“Because you are standing upwind of me and all I can smell is you,” he informed her. “And, while that is not unpleasant, I need to smell what is following us.”

She grunted. He certainly wasn’t going to waste any opportunity to torment her that much was certain. She brushed passed him and continued to slowly make her way along the plain.

“Keep walking south,” he advised. “I think it is best if we keep moving. Do you need to rest?” He asked softly.

“No. I will let you know if I grow tired,” she answered.

“Yes, that will be safer. Keep walking. Stop when you need to rest and speak to me only when necessary,” he advised.

Annowe smiled at that. It suited her perfectly fine, not speaking to him and walking as much as possible. She allowed herself to hope that perhaps they would be in Lothlorien more quickly than she had first imagined.

With a spring in her step, she continued walking, never stopping and never slacking her pace unless he called to her. Her mind wandered back to Rivendell and the last time she and Legolas had been together. She missed him terribly and hoped he was safe.

Elrond had refused to tell her which path the ring bearer would take to Mordor, fearing that she would follow them. Truth be told, she was glad he refused for the temptation to do just that would have been too great for her to resist.

She had warned the young prince – told him of the Last Alliance of Elves and Men and the power of The Ring – in the hopes that he would never be tempted by it. It was evil. It could and would corrupt anyone it came into contact with. The thought of him so near that evil thing concerned her more than her own safety.

And he was walking to Mordor with it. The thought still amazed her. How foolish and stubborn and noble he was! She had tried to reason with him – tried to explain to him that Sauron hated the firstborn and would use any means necessary to subjugate them but he would not listen. No, Legolas had insisted that since the elves had created the initial rings of power, an elf should be there to destroy the One Ring. She cursed his noble spirit and fervently hoped that he would return safely to her.

~~~~~

Haldir said no more of their shadows but he did not grow any easier as the sun began to drift behind the mountains. Annowe had a feeling that they were, indeed, being tracked but by what she was not certain. Nervously, she placed her hand on her scimitar to reassure her self and drew closer to Haldir. If they were going to be attacked, it would be in the night and she wanted to stay as close to him as possible for her own protection as well as his.

She neither saw nor heard anything as they slowly made their way south. She was growing tired and would need to rest soon or get into the river. But the river was still at least another day’s walk away. She sighed. Whatever it was needed to attack or go away so they could continue on their way unhindered. All of this watching and waiting was delaying their arrival in Lothlorien and prolonging her time in Haldir’s company. Her tiredness only increased her irritability and she grew fretful.

At the first rays of dawn, Haldir turned to her. “Walk ahead of me, if you would again,” he requested.

Without a word, she obeyed, moving sluggishly as she grew more tired. When she finally became too tired to press on, she turned to see if Haldir were still with her. He had stopped several paces behind her and was staring into the mountains. She waited for him to catch up to her.

“Continue,” he said softly. “For a while longer.”

With a tired sigh, she nodded her head and continued south.

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