Leaving Haldir's World

Leaving Haldir’s World
By Sinda

Chapter Eight – Confrontation in the Woods


Elisabeth didn’t know how long she and Haldir stood in the hall, holding each other. She hadn’t even realized that she had been crying until he brushed away her tears with his fingers. Pulling her tight against his chest again, he stood and rocked her back and forth, whispering into her ear in Elvish as she clung to him.

Haldir pulled back for a moment, finally, so that he could look at his mate. He eyed the tight jeans and he smiled, liking the way she looked.

“I almost forgot how beautiful you are,” he told her, touching his lips to hers and letting them linger.

She reached up and ran her fingers through his hair as if she had forgotten what it felt like to do so. “You have no idea how glad I am to see you.”

“I think I do,” he said, brushing his lips across her ear. “I know how glad I am to see you.”

The sound of a door opening caught their attention and they decided that maybe it would be wise to get out of sight. Haldir put his arm around Elisabeth and led her down the hall to the others. When they walked into the room, he smiled broadly and said, “Look who I found.”

Orophin, who had been sitting on the closer bed, jumped up and hugged Elisabeth. Rúmil took it one step further and kissed her on the lips, earning a dark look from Haldir.

“Elisabeth, we have been searching everywhere for you,” Rúmil chided her.

“That is what I have been doing as well,” she said. “It was terrible. Rowland is dead.”

“Good,” said Haldir, his face hard.

She remained silent. He did not understand what she was feeling right now. She wasn’t sure she understood it herself, but there would be time to talk about it with him later.

Rúmil introduced her to Elda now as he went to the woman and wrapped his arms around her. Elisabeth’s face brightened when she saw them together, sensing their feelings for one another.

“Elda has helped us tremendously,” Haldir explained, sitting on the bed next to Orophin and pulling Elisabeth onto his lap. “She has let us stay at her home and she has fed us. I do not know what we would have done without her.”

“That was very kind of you, Elda,” Elisabeth smiled at her.

“I didn’t mind,” the woman said, looking into Rúmil’s eyes. It was obvious to Elisabeth that the two were in love and she wondered what would happen with them.

“One small problem,” Orophin finally said. “We are running out of sleeping space in this room.”

“I just happen to have my own room,” Elisabeth said, smiling at Haldir. “I believe that will leave you with your own bed, Orophin.”

“Good, I did not want to share with Haldir anyway. He takes up the whole bed. Now if only I had a supple young maiden to spend the night with me…” he said, longingly.

“I am sure that Felicity would accommodate you,” Haldir said wryly. “She seems to like elves.”

“She likes males, period,” Elda corrected, laughing.

Elisabeth was curious about this Felicity person but at the moment all she wanted to do was to climb into bed with Haldir and not let go of him until morning. She whispered that thought into his ear and he gave her a hard kiss. “That can be arranged,” he said, slowly running his hand up her back.

“So, tell me about this Felicity,” Orophin was saying, interested, as Elisabeth and Haldir walked out the door.

~~~~~~~~~

Elisabeth opened the door with her key and flipped on the lights as they stepped into the room. Closing and locking the door behind them, Haldir turned back to Elisabeth and kissed her gently. Gathering her into his arms, he carried her over to a chair by the window and sat, holding her in his lap as his lips brushed softly over her face.

For an hour, they just sat together and between the kisses and caresses, they talked about what had happened to each of them. Haldir tensed up when Elisabeth told him the details of her attack in the alley and she was surprised to hear that he had come along shortly afterwards. She grinned when he told her what he had done to one of her attackers.

“Good,” she told him. “He deserved it. He was lucky I didn’t have my knife.”

“He deserved death,” Haldir replied, “but I was in a hurry to find you. If he comes near you again, he will die.”

Once they had caught each other up on events, the talking decreased and the caressing became more intense. Elisabeth wanted nothing more at the moment than to be as close to Haldir as she could, and he seemed to feel the same. They made short work of their clothing and eventually made their way to the bed, tossing the covers aside. Haldir worked his way from Elisabeth’s neck down to her breasts where he tormented her with his tongue and mouth as she arched up against him. Moving down to kiss her naval he dragged his tongue all the way up to her neck, then back down again, causing her to shiver with anticipation. She let her hands run through his hair before caressing his ears. Moaning when she ran her thumbs along the sensitive tips, Haldir looked up at her, his eyes glazed with passion. He moved down her body even further and it wasn’t long before Elisabeth was grabbing his head and telling him that she wanted to feel him inside her. He didn’t need to be asked twice, but entered her in one hard thrust as he lowered his mouth to hers again and began to caress her tongue with his. They had both known that they would not last long this time and it didn’t take too many strokes before they came together, their mouths still devouring one another as they clenched each other tightly. As her body relaxed at last, Elisabeth dropped her legs down from where they had been wrapped around Haldir’s waist, but the elf did not make any move to disengage himself from her. That was fine with Elisabeth; she wished they could stay that way all night.

~~~~~~~~~

Orophin carefully checked out the apartment building and found where the sentries were stationed before he climbed up the wall and into the open window. The only noise he heard was from the talking box in the living room as he eased his way over to where Felicity sat on the couch, half asleep and half dressed. He held a finger in front of his lips, indicating that she should be quiet and though she appeared startled when she spotted him, she did not scream.

“Who are you?” she asked, taking notice of the ears and long blonde hair.

“I am Orophin, the brother of Haldir and Rúmil,” he replied, smiling as he stepped closer.

“They’re not here,” she told him, looking him over and liking what she saw. “Elda’s gone too and the cops have been here asking questions.”

“I know where they are and they are all safe,” he assured her. “The problem is that they wanted some private time so Elda told me that I could come here and sleep in her bed, as long as nobody saw me come in.”

Felicity smiled as she continued her assessment of the elf. “How about my bed, instead? It’s got a warm body to go with it.”

“Oh, I think that I could be persuaded,” Orophin told her, joining her on the couch.

~~~~~~~~~

“Elda, I am concerned about you staying in this world,” Rúmil told her. “I do not wish for you to have problems with the authorities, but I think that it is going to happen. Will you not come with me to Lothlórien?”

“No, Rúmil,” she replied sadly. “It just won’t work. The cops will forget about me eventually and this will blow over. I’ll be fine here.” Who was she kidding? She’d think about him every day for the rest of her life, but she had no other choice.

He hugged her tightly again, not wanting her to see the sorrow on his face. In some ways, he wished that he had never met her, because he would not forget about her and eternity would be a long time to spend dwelling on this love that he had lost. If he could only get her to go with him, he would do what he had to do to become mortal so that they could be together. He would not let her know his plan until it was too late because she would object, but there had to be a way to get her to go.

~~~~~~~~~

When morning came, Elisabeth woke to see Haldir still sleeping. She loved to watch him sleep but usually he sensed the change in her heart rate and woke soon after she did. The same thing happened to her if he woke first. Sure enough, within moments his eyes were watching her. His mouth turned up in a smile and he pulled her close, softly taking her bottom lip between his teeth. She traced her finger along his dark eyebrow then looked into the blue eyes that she could get completely lost in. Rolling onto his back, he pulled her on top of him but she shook her head, no.

“I want to take a shower with you,” she insisted, a smile on her face.

He raised an eyebrow. “Can we not take a shower…afterwards?”

“I wish to do something for you and I thought that it might be fun to do it in the shower,” she explained.

His eyes lit up when he thought he understood what she wanted.

~~~~~~~~~

Joe had called the others together and was now speaking to them at Dirk’s house.

“O.K. I figure that she doesn’t have a car, because we’ve only seen her walking before. That leaves a fairly small section of town where she could be. I think if we split up and we each take a different area, somebody might spot her. The cops haven’t found her yet, according to Dirk’s sister-in-law, so that was a dead end. Now, we need to find her before they do.”

He pulled out a map and drew a circle, then split it into quarters, giving each of them a section to watch over. They would all keep their cell phones handy for the next few days, too.

~~~~~~~~~

Haldir and Elisabeth had finally made their way to the shower where she was now kneeling in front of him, water cascading down both of them. Haldir was holding onto the walls of the shower and watching with half closed eyes as Elisabeth’s mouth moved over his rigid member.
He loved to watch her when she did this. Her hands reached back and grabbed his tight buttocks when she knew that he was close and that was all it took to bring him to completion. His eyes glazed over as he cried out, throwing his head back in bliss. When she finally pulled away from him, he knelt down in front of her and took her in his arms, oblivious of the running water.

“Oh, Elisabeth, I love it when you do that for me. I love you, Elisabeth. I was so lost without you,” he told her, feathering her face with kisses.

“Were you lost without me or without my skills that you enjoy so much?” she asked, teasing him.

“I was lost without you,” he assured her. “Even if we could never join together again, I would be happy as long as I had you with me.”

She smiled at him and touched her lips to his. “I love you, too, Haldir. I hated being apart from you.”

Reluctantly, they dressed. They had to be at the park by midnight, but that left the whole day where they would need to hide out from the police and no decision had been made yet as to what they were to do. Going down the hall to Rúmil and Elda’s room, Haldir knocked on the door.

“Where’s Orophin?” Elisabeth asked when they were let in.

“Orophin decided to go visit Felicity, under the pretext of giving us our privacy,” Rúmil said, rolling his eyes.

“How thoughtful of him,” Haldir replied. “Did Felicity know that she was going to be visited?”

“No, but I’ve got to assume that it went well, since he has not returned yet,” Elda laughed.

“Unless he was captured by the authorities,” Haldir pointed out, worry showing on his face.

“Good point,” Elda said, pulling out her cell phone. “I’ll call and find out.”

“Tell Orophin to meet us in the woods near the park tonight a little before midnight,” Haldir added. “We do not want to take any chances on anything going wrong. And tell him to bring our weapons.”

Elda made the call while the others talked quietly and when she got off the phone she laughed, shaking her head.

“Sounds like Felicity will be calling in sick today so she can keep Orophin company until tonight.”

“And what should the rest of us do until tonight?” Haldir asked the others.

“Personally, I think that Orophin has the right idea,” Rúmil replied. “If we are out on the streets we may be spotted. Besides, today will be my last day with Elda.” The sadness on both of their faces caused Elisabeth to look away, empathizing with them.

“We’ll need to get the rooms for an extra day,” Elda said at last. “Why don’t Elisabeth and I go do that?”

As soon as they were outside the door, Elda turned to Elisabeth.

“Rúmil told me how you became elf-kind through the blood union, but he does not want me to risk it. What do you think, Elisabeth? You’ve been through it.”

Elisabeth relayed her experiences to the other woman, telling her how it had almost killed her. Since she had survived, it was easy now to say that it had been the correct decision. Elda nodded and they stopped their conversation long enough to talk to the desk clerk. Once they were away from other ears again, Elda continued.

“My life here isn’t bad, but it’s nothing special. I have a brother and his family here and I would miss them, but we’d all get over it, I’m sure. I love Rúmil, but I don’t know what to do. He wants me to go with him but he insists that I should not do the blood union. If I don’t, then we can’t be together.”

“Maybe he is planning on giving up his immortality,” Elisabeth suggested. “If he were to do that, you could be together.”

“I could never let him do that,” she insisted.

“I felt the same way. This is exactly what Haldir and I went through,” Elisabeth told her. She also explained how Haldir had been furious when she did the blood union without his approval.

“Something to keep in mind, Elda, is that the only reason Lady Galadriel agreed to the blood union in my case is because she felt led to do so. She came to me and told me about it. There is no guarantee that she and Lord Celeborn would even be willing to do it again, so you would be taking a risk by coming to our world, though I would very much like to see you and Rúmil together if it is at all possible.”

Elda’s eyes were haunted as she thanked Elisabeth for her help before returning to her own room.

By late afternoon, they were all hungry and by mutual consent they decided to go eat something. They hoped that with the baseball caps, the elves would not be recognized and as far as they knew, nobody was looking for Elda yet. Keeping their distance from the tavern where Elisabeth had gone with Rowland, they found a sports bar that was fairly dark inside and asked for a table in the back corner. When Elisabeth told them that she was buying the meal, Haldir raised his eyes, asking where she had gotten money.

“Rowland gave it to me before he died,” she said, her eyes distant. “Elda, when we go, I will leave the rest of the money with you. It will do us no good in our world.”

“That is if I cannot talk her into coming with us,” Rúmil added, kissing Elda’s cheek.

“Rúmil, you know that I can’t do that,” she reminded him.

~~~~~~~~~

Dirk had turned to get a better look when the two couples had walked in, his eyes lingering on the women. It had taken him a moment to recognize Elisabeth but even with the baseball cap on, the pale blue eyes drew his attention in contrast to her dark hair. Besides, he’d know that body anywhere. He’d thought about it often enough lately. Turning quickly away, he thought that the bigger guy must be her husband, the one that had given T.J. problems. So now that the boyfriend was out of the picture, she’d gone back to her old man. He had no idea who the other two were and didn’t really care. Pulling out his cell phone, he held a quiet conversation with Joe.

~~~~~~~~~

While they sat and talked, Elda’s mind was elsewhere. She did not know how she was ever going to let Rúmil go tonight, but she was going to have to do it. It would be far less painful for both of them than the other alternatives, if the blood union might not be an option. Elisabeth had brought up an interesting point, too. It was possible that Rúmil was going to try and get her into his world, then give up his immortality for her. She could not let that happen and the only way to prevent it was for her to stay here.

They dragged out the meal as long as they possibly could and when they were done they returned to their motel where they would stay until it was time to go to the park. The plan was to arrive separately, hoping not to draw as much attention as they might in a group. Haldir and Elisabeth would leave first, getting to the park before everybody else to make sure it was safe. Rúmil would come later with Elda but they would say their goodbyes at the park.

~~~~~~~~~

Dirk watched the four of them go into the motel and immediately called Joe to update him. Joe, in turn, called the others but was not happy with the responses he got. Not only was Don getting cold feet but T.J. had insisted that he didn’t want to be involved after the run-in he’d already had with Haldir in the alley. Joe informed them both that they didn’t have a choice. It would probably take all four men to ensure their success.

“I’m bringing a gun, this time,” Joe had said. “We need to be sure and finish it tonight.”

“What about the other couple?” Dirk had asked.

“If they get in the way, we’ll do ‘em, too,” Joe said.

Feeling like the whole thing was spiraling out of control, Dirk had hung up the phone. They had started out as accomplices in a beating that had gone bad. Now suddenly they were planning the murders of four additional people. Not knowing what else to do, he had agreed to continue to watch the motel in case they came out again. He realized that it was likely he’d be sitting there all night, but if nothing had happened by midnight, Joe was going to take a turn. Somebody would know when they left the hotel.

~~~~~~~~~

“Hmmm. That is not good,” Orophin said, peeking through the blinds. “It seems that the authorities are watching both the front and the back now. I wonder how long they will stay.”

“Like you care,” Felicity said, dragging him back onto the couch.

“I do not care now,” he told her between kisses, “but it may become an issue if I cannot leave tonight.”

“Let’s worry about it then. Maybe I can cause a distraction or something.”

“I will wager that you would be very good at causing a distraction,” he said, eying her extremely large chest. “All you would have to do is walk outside.”

“I have just the right outfit for it, too,” she admitted, smugly.

~~~~~~~~~

Dirk watched Haldir and Elisabeth leave the motel, both wearing their caps and dark glasses. He called Joe immediately and passed the message on. Following at a safe distance, the man trailed them until it became obvious that they were heading back to the park then he called Joe again. The others would drive on ahead and be waiting for them.

Dirk wasn’t thrilled about the idea of killing these two, but he was less happy about the thought of going to prison, even as an accessory. Being involved in more killings would make it worse if they got caught, but if they didn’t get caught, it would solve the problem.

~~~~~~~~~

“Haldir, what is wrong?” Elisabeth asked, noticing that her husband had grown tense.

“Do not turn around, but we are being followed,” he told her, squeezing her hand. “So far it is just one man, but I suspect that there may be others nearby.”

“Oh,” she gasped. “They said that they wanted to find me and kill me because I knew they had killed Rowland. Do you think it is one of those four men?”

“I do not recognize this one, so he was not in the alley that night, but if there were four he could be one of the others,” Haldir warned.

“What do you want do?” she asked. They did not have much leeway with their time if they wanted to get back into their own world. To make things worse, their only weapon was her knife.

“We will take care of the problem before Rúmil and Orophin arrive, if possible. I want everything to go smoothly,” he said simply.

“Haldir, what about Rowland’s sword!” Elisabeth said suddenly. “I know where it is buried!”

“It will be better than nothing,” he agreed. Following Elisabeth, they detoured through the woods and dug up the sword. Elisabeth also took her dress, though it was covered with dirt. She had always liked this one. Rowland’s clothes would be left behind.

~~~~~~~~~

Orophin looked out the window again, growing more concerned. It was past time for him to go and it looked like the distraction was going to prove necessary.

“I will have to sneak out, carrying three swords, bows and quivers full of arrows. That just might attract some attention,” he told Felicity, sardonically.

“Well, lucky for you I’m around to take care of things,” she informed him. “I have it all figured out.”

“Really?” he asked, arms crossed.

“Yep,” she said, telling him the plan.

~~~~~~~~~

Haldir cleaned off the sword and attached the scabbard. Hefting the weapon a few times, he tried to get a feel for its weight and balance.

He made a face. “These human-made swords are so ungainly. They are made of heavy material and do not swing well. I suppose it is better than nothing, but I wish I had my elvish sword.”

“Did you notice if the man is still behind us?” Elisabeth asked quietly.

“He went the other way. I am sure that he is meeting the others here,” he said, calmly. “Elisabeth, why do you not wait in the woods for me. I do not want you harmed.”

“Absolutely not,” she stated, frowning. “I will not let you attack four men by yourself. I have my knife.”

He gave her an indulgent smile, which irked her. She told him about the confrontation she had had the previous night and Haldir changed his look to one of admiration.

“I am proud of you,” he told her. “But I want you to promise to stay close to me.”

“I will do that,” she assured him. “But do not think that I am a helpless female.”

He turned and kissed her. “I do not think that. I have seen you battle Orcs, remember? I just worry about you and I do not want you getting close enough to one of the men to use your knife. I would feel better if you had your bow.”

They made their way closer to the clearing before Haldir asked Elisabeth to wait behind a tree just long enough for him to check out the area. She agreed as long as he promised not to try and take on all four men by himself.

~~~~~~~~~

Rúmil and Elda left their room and headed towards the park.

“Please come with me Elda,” he pleaded with her, once again. “We will figure something out when we get there.”

“And if we don’t?” she asked. “Then I’m stuck in a strange world all alone. I don’t have a problem with giving up my life here, but I won’t do it if we can’t be together. I can’t think of anything worse than to have to see you and know that I can’t be with you.”

“I will give up my immortality,” he finally confessed his plan to her. “We will have a wonderful life together and I will be much happier than going through eternity without you.”

She sighed. “I was afraid that was your plan, Rúmil. You know that I can’t let you do that.”

“You would rather have me go through eternity without you?” he asked.

She turned to him and hugged him close, breaking down into tears against his shirt. When she finally got herself under control, she answered him. “Yes.”

They walked in silence after that.

~~~~~~~~~

Orophin finished tying all the weapons up in a tarp, which would make it easier to carry them. He hoped that he wouldn’t need them any time soon because they would not be easy to get back out.

“Are you ready?” he asked Felicity.

“Yes I am,” she said, giving him a kiss first. He ran his hands over her back before moving them around to her chest, which was now only partially covered by a very small bikini top. Meaning to just indulge in a good luck kiss, it escalated and the distraction was delayed for several minutes.

“That was some kiss,” she told him afterwards. Orophin raised his eyebrows and headed towards Elda’s bedroom with the wrapped tarp.

Opening the front door, Felicity stepped outside onto the balcony. She carried a towel over her arm, hiding the car keys that were in her hand. Bending over to adjust the doormat, she made sure to give the cops in the car a good look at her backside. Walking down the stairs slowly, she noticed that she had the full attention of both of the cops that were sitting in the car in front. She saw that one of them was already on the radio, calling the cop in back, no doubt. Ignoring them, she walked around the building to where the pool was. She opened the gate and made a show of noticing the cop right away, acting startled.

“Oh, I didn’t know anybody was here,” she told him, stepping closer.

“Uh, yeah, just please don’t alert anybody as to our presence. I’d hate to have to arrest you for being an accessory if you aren’t already involved in this.”

“Oh, I’m not,” she assured him, swaying as she walked over to the Jacuzzi and turned it on, hoping that the noise would help cover Orophin’s descent. She saw the elf in the window but was careful not to look up at him. She stepped into the water of the Jacuzzi just long enough to get wet before coming back out and approaching the cop again.

“That water’s way too hot tonight,” she told him, stopping right in front of him. He turned so that he was facing her, unable to drag his eyes away from her dripping wet form. He hated surveillance and had been upset to get this duty but now he was having a change of heart.

Felicity watched out of the corner of her eye as Orophin climbed down the wall with the blue tarp. She didn’t know how he managed it; these elves were incredible. When the cop looked like he was about to turn around, she stepped closer to him.

“I just love men in uniforms,” she told him, running her fingers down the buttons. Now the trick was to get him to turn his back as Orophin made his way around the pool and up the street to where her car was parked. She sauntered over to the pool, making sure his eyes were following her as she tested the water.

“Oooh, that’s cold,” she said, bending down to run her fingers through the water. His mouth almost fell open as he watched her, wondering if she was going to fall out of the bikini top; hoping she would. Standing back up, she walked around the far side of the pool, getting him to turn towards her once again. She watched as Orophin ran past the cop’s back and disappeared up the street, all according to plan.

Approaching the cop once more, she said, “You know, I think I’m going to run to the store and get something to drink. I didn’t plan on staying out here long, but if you’re going to be around for a while, I just might hang out here tonight.”

He grinned as she grabbed her towel and slipped out the gate and up the street.

~~~~~~~~~

Haldir found the four men easily enough. The problem was, they were all together now and one of them had a weapon similar to what the cops carried. He didn’t know anything about these weapons, but he remembered the projectiles whizzing past his head and knew that they had a long reach. In less than a half hour, Rúmil and Elda would arrive and he did not want them walking into a trap. Watching from the treetops, the elf saw the men split up and go in different directions to hide in the trees. Good. He immediately went after the one that was the closest to Elisabeth. It was the man that had tried to rape her in the alley; the one that Haldir had already warned to stay away from her. Dropping out of the tree, Haldir drew Rowland’s sword across the man’s throat after allowing a second for recognition to spark in his eyes first.

He made his way back to Elisabeth now and explained that the men had separated.

“I killed the one that tried to rape you in the alley, Elisabeth. He deserved to die,” Haldir told her, stroking her hair.

She nodded in agreement. She had been having bad dreams because of what he had done. Now he would not be around to succeed with some other woman, where he had failed with her.

“I think it will be easier if I do this alone,” he explained to her. “Since they have separated, it should not be hard for me to take them out, one at a time. I would like you to wait here and listen for Rúmil and Elda. If they come by, please have them wait with you, but keep your knife ready in case you need it.”

He had a valid point and she agreed, knowing that he could handle the men, one at a time. She would only be in the way. She pulled him down to her and kissed him before he left, “Please be careful!”

~~~~~~~~~

Orophin was already in the passenger seat, slumped down out of sight, when Felicity jumped into the car and started the engine. He reacted much as Haldir and Rúmil had at their first car ride and she had trouble helping him to get buckled as she maneuvered the car around.

“Watch for the cops,” she told him. “I don’t know if they’ll follow us or not, but I’m going to try to lose them if they do.”

“I was very impressed,” he told her, running a finger down her chest. “You handled that officer perfectly.”

“Well, thank God he was a rookie or it wouldn’t have worked. I’ll be he gets his butt chewed over this one.”

Orophin made a face and repeated, “…his butt chewed?”

Felicity explained the term to him and had just turned onto another residential street when a cop car flew past.

“I think they’re on to us,” she said, worried. She pulled into a driveway and turned her lights off for a few minutes as two more cars went by. When she thought it was safe, she reversed directions, deciding to approach the park from the back way. It would take longer to get there, but it would be safer.

~~~~~~~~~

Haldir decided to go after Joe next. Not only did he have the weapon, but he had been responsible for starting the whole thing. He was also the leader and once he was dead maybe it would end without him even having to kill the others. Haldir didn’t care much, one way or the other, but he knew Elisabeth and she didn’t take death as lightly as he did. As he had done with the last man, Haldir dropped from the tree in front of Joe, wanting the man to see him coming. Joe’s eyes got big as the elf grabbed him and slammed him hard against the tree trunk. As he tried to pull the gun up, Haldir hit Joe’s wrist with the handle of the sword. When the man brought the weapon up once more, Haldir drew the sword across his throat, before Joe had time to pull the trigger. Watching the body fall, Haldir moved off through the trees towards the third man.

Don had made a decision. No, he didn’t want to go to prison and he also didn’t want to betray his friends, but damn it, he had a wife and three kids to worry about. So far, he hadn’t really done anything wrong. Yes, he had been there when it had happened but he had not actually intended to participate in the attack of the woman. He had his wife and he didn’t need anybody else, especially if it meant taking them by force. He hadn’t told the others that because they’d accuse him of being a pussy, but he had already been thinking of excuses to back out when the cops had shown up, saving his butt. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed 911 now, hoping he was making the right decision.

When he got the dispatcher on the line, Don explained the situation briefly and told them that he would be waiting in the parking lot to talk to them. They assured him that officers would be on the scene, soon. He clicked the phone shut and looked up to see the big blonde guy standing in front of him. Haldir had overheard the phone call and now he placed his hand on the man’s forehead to make sure that it had not been a trick. Don froze, not knowing what the guy was doing. As Haldir pulled his hand back, he told the man.

“You cannot go to the parking lot. You need to draw the cops away from us for a while, or I can just kill you.”

“No, please don’t do that. I’ve got three kids,” the man said, shaking as he looked at the bloody sword that Haldir held.

“I want you to go out to the road and start back towards town. Run. When the cops show up, wave them down and tell them the whole story, but do not mention that anybody is in the woods right away. Try to stall until after midnight if possible. It shouldn’t be long now. Can you do that?”

“Yeah, sure,” Don said. He’d do whatever the guy asked.

“Go,” Haldir told him.

Don didn’t need to be told twice. He ran.

~~~~~~~~~

Felicity squealed into the parking lot and they both jumped out, Orophin bringing the tarp full of weapons. They made their way to where Haldir was supposed to be, but found a body instead.

“Oh, oh,” Orophin said. “This could be a bad sign.”

“You think?” Felicity asked, staring at the body whose throat was cut ear to ear.

Following Orophin she moved through the woods until they found Elisabeth who updated them on everything.

~~~~~~~~~

Dirk was close to panic. He had heard something happening off to his left. Somebody was talking and he didn’t recognize the voice, but then he thought he heard Don’s voice. He went to find Joe and found him, all right, but the man was deader than a doornail. Dirk picked up the gun with shaking hands and stuck it into his pocket. He would have to finish this without Joe.

~~~~~~~~~

Elisabeth turned to the sound of movement through the trees and was relieved to see Rúmil and Elda approach.

“Nothing like making things suspenseful, is there?” Elda stated, looking at her watch which read 11:55. “We need to hurry. The portal should open in five minutes.”

They moved into the clearing and soon Haldir joined them. Opening the tarp, the elves strapped on their swords, bows and quivers. Felicity said her goodbyes to Orophin, making him promise to come visit her someday if he could manage. He smiled and agreed to do so.

Elisabeth handed the wad of cash to Elda and hugged the woman, thanking her again for her help. Elda smiled and wished her luck, but turned and handed the money to Felicity.

“Can you hold onto this? I don’t have any pockets.”

“Where did this come from?” Felicity asked, eyeing the thick pile of bills.

“A gift from Rowland,” Elda told her.

Tucking the money into her purse, Felicity stepped well away from the clearing, having no desire to go to Middle Earth with the rest of them. She liked her modern conveniences a little too well.

The sound of police sirens began to wail in the distance and Felicity decided it would be a good time for them to get out of there but Elda hesitated.

“Felicity, go without me and I’ll walk back. It’s O.K.” Elda said, trying not to cry.

Felicity nodded and gave Orophin one last kiss before heading to her car and taking off in the opposite direction from where the cops would be approaching.

Elda looked at her watch. “Two minutes.”

Rúmil pulled her into his embrace and kissed her deeply. “Cannot I convince you to change your mind, Elda? I do not want to leave you here!”

“Rúmil if you find a way for us to work things out, come back for me and I will go with you,” she assured him. “I will wait a year for you, I promise!”

“Come with me now and if it does not work out, you can return here. I think that the portal may be open all the time from my world.”

Afraid that he would simply give up his immortality if she went back with him, she told him no.

“Look!” Elisabeth said, pointing to a fog that was filling the clearing. “It is time.”

The sound of police sirens grew louder now and they heard car doors slamming.

“We must go,” Haldir said, kissing Elda goodbye and thanking her before he and Elisabeth stepped into the fog. Orophin followed next.

Rúmil pulled away from Elda, pleading with his eyes as he stepped towards the fog.

“Please, Elda,” he said. That was when Dirk stepped into the clearing, waving the gun frantically.

“Don’t fucking move!” he told them, his hands shaking as he held the weapon. The gun was pointed at Rúmil and Elda saw from the look on Dirk’s face that the man was going to pull the trigger.

“Go!” she told Rúmil. Turning, she knew what was going to happen. She knew it. She leaped in front of Rúmil just as the man’s trigger finger jerked.

The sound of the bullet filled the night and everything seemed to happen in slow motion as blood exploded across Elda’s white shirt. She met Rúmil’s eyes even as her own began to close and her body slumped to the ground. Dirk staggered backwards, shocked that he had actually pulled the trigger and wondering what to do now. As several officers ran up with their guns drawn, he threw the weapon aside and lifted his arms into the air. Oblivious as to what was happening around him, Rúmil scooped Elda’s still body into his arms and ran into the fog with her, just as it began to dissipate.

~~tbc~~