''I will love the light for it shows me the way; yet I will love the darkness for it shows me the stars''

We follow our friend for three days now, three days running and not resting. I am surprised by myself that I still can run. We are at the borders of Rohan, Western Emyn Muil, as Aragorn explained to me. He is now lying on the ground with his eyes closed and his ear pressed to the ground. He is listening. Suddenly, he opens his beautiful blue greyish eyes. 'Their pace has quickened!' He climbs to his feet. 'They must have caught our scent!' He states desperately. 'Hurry!' He start running again, this time towards the North. I take a deep breath, adjust my weapons on my back and at my side and start running. 'Come on, Gimli!' Legolas shouts from behind me. I look over my shoulder and see that Legolas stands on the hill, yelling at Gimli to make haste. He smirks at me and starts running again. Gimli struggles up the hill, he pauses and huffs. 'Three days and nights pursuit. No food. No rest. And no sign of our quarry but what bare rock can tell' And with that said, he starts running again. Legolas is jogging next to me, smiling at Gimli's words. I shake my head. This journey is going to be so long. We run after Aragorn, who is far ahead of us.

At midday we arrive at the east wall of Rohan, we run over hills and rocky roads, hoping to find our Hobbits. Suddenly Aragorn stops and bows forward. He picks something up from the muddy ground. He looks at it and then ahead. 'Not idly do the leaves of Lórien fall' He mutters and passes the thing on to me. I wipe some mud of it. The Elven Brooch! I look at my own, still clasped on my cloak. They are near, it has to be!

'They may yet be alive!' Legolas exclaims happily. Aragorn is again looking at the ground and starts suddenly running again. 'Less than a day ahead of us. Come!' He shouts at us, running of full speed. I look back, Gimli stumbles from behind some rocks and rolls to the ground. 'Come, Gimli! We are gaining on them!' Legolas yells at the exhausted dwarf. 'I am wasted on cross-country. We dwarves are natural sprinters. Very dangerous over short distances' Gimli pants. I chuckle and walk back to him. 'Come on Gimli, we have to save them!' I try to encourage him. He looks up. 'Yes Lassie! I know, come on then!' And he takes off. We run over a hill and Legolas and Aragorn are waiting on us, gazing across the open fields of Rohan. 'Rohan. Home of the Horse-lords. There's something strange at work here. Some evil gives speed to these creatures. Sets its will against us' Aragorn mutters while looking at the open plains. I take this little pause to take a breather. Gimli does the same. He is still panting and his face is red from running. Legolas runs ahead without saying something and looks out to the horizon. 'Legolas! What do your Elf eyes see?' Aragorn shouts at him.

I have learned many things on this journey and one of them is that they are best friends, more like brothers. Without saying anything they understand each other. I see Aragorn looking at me and I blush.

Stupid Ranger.

'The Uruks turn northeast. They're taking the Hobbits to Isengard!' He shouts back at us. I run towards Legolas and he points at the Uruks. A distant cloud of dust stirs up. I squeeze my eyes a bit and I can see figures running, like they are afraid. 'Saruman' I hear Aragorn say. I feel someone walk past me, Legolas has started running again. 'Come on Eleniel! Gimli' Aragorn says to us, for a second I feel his hand rest on my cheek, tracing my cheekbone with his finger. But he is already gone, running with Legolas. I run together with Gimli. 'Keep breathing. That's the key. Breathe' Poor Gimli mutters. Again I chuckle. Gimli has asked me a lot of questions in the time we are trying to find our Hobbits. Like, why am I here, what is my fate? And to his frustration and my own, I can't answer every question properly.

We are less than a day behind our Friends so we run through the night and when the sun rises, we are far in the plains of Rohan. Legolas pauses on a small hill, looking upon the sun. 'A red sun rises. Blood has been spilled this night' He says without any emotion. And we continue our hunt, not speaking, only running. I hear something. I stop running. 'Dartho!'(Wait!) I yell at the others. Aragorn stops immediately and runs back at me with Legolas and Gimli on his heels. 'Eleniel? What happened?' He asks with worry in his voice. I smile. 'Nothing, but listen!' They listen en you can hear the sounds of horses neighing coming closer and closer. Aragorn looks at us warily and he gestures to hasten behind a nearby rock formation, so we can hide. Again the Ranger takes my wrist and pulls me close to him. Riders of Rohan ride over the hill, Aragorn looks up at them passing and lets me go, walking calmly out of our hiding spot. I look anxiously at Legolas and Gimli. 

What is he doing?

'Riders of Rohan, what news from the Mark?' Aragorn calls out to them. The head horseman signals the pack with his spear and the Riders of Rohan wheel around. Legolas rushes out of our hiding spot, standing next to Aragorn. 'Put your hood on Lassie' Gimli whispers before he runs after Legolas. I sign and do what he asked. I join the other three and we watch the Riders approach. I can see that Aragorn looks worriedly at me, so I move closer to him, so I stand in the middle, between Aragorn and Legolas and Gimli before me. The Riders circle tightly around us but they suddenly stop and point their spears at us! Aragorn holds his hands up in surrender and the Head Horseman rides forward. 'What business does an Elf, a Man and a Dwarf have in the Riddermark? Speak quickly!' He addresses us from his steed. 'Give me your name, horse-master, and I shall give you mine!' Gimli states defiantly. The man gives his spear to another rider, and gets off his horse. Gimli nods arrogantly at the riders approach but I put a hand on his shoulder to stay him. 'I would cut off your head, beard and all, Master Dwarf, if it stood but a little higher from the ground' The man sneers at Gimli. I hear some of the other riders chuckle. Fast as lightning, Legolas nocks an arrow and points it at the man. 'You would die before your stroke fell' The Princeling hisses. The moment is heating up but luckily Aragorn is wiser than any of them and lowers Legolas's bow. 'I am Aragorn, son of Arathorn. This is Gimli, son of Glóin and Legolas of the Woodland Realm-' Before Aragorn can introduce me, The man pulls my hood back and my long hair falls out of it and my ears are visible. 'A she-elf?' He exclaims. 'Yes, I am of elven kind'

'Why did you hide her from my sight?' He asks Aragorn, who is clearly angry at what the man did. 'Because she is a women and a warrior, I hide her for her own safety' The man stays still for a bit and nods at Aragorn. 'I understand, I have a sister myself'

Me? Sister of Aragorn?

I see him looking at me. Again I feel my cheeks becoming red.

Great.

Aragorn clears his throat uneasily, but nobody notices, except for me. 'This is Eleniel of Rivendell. We are friends of Rohan and of Théoden, your king'

'Théoden no longer recognizes friend from foe' The man removes his helmet. 'Not even his own kin' He states sadly. The Riders withdraw their spears. 'Saruman has poisoned the mind of the king and claimed lordship over these lands. My company are those loyal to Rohan. And for that, we are banished' He continues. He steps closer. 'The White Wizard is cunning. He walks here and there, they say, as an old man hooded and cloaked. And everywhere, his spies slip past our nets' He says in a quiet voice, accusing us. 'We are no spies. We track a party of Uruk-Hai westward across the plain. They have taken two of our friends captive' Aragorn says defensively. The man signs. 'The Uruks are destroyed. We slaughtered them during the night' Gimli shakes my hand of his shoulder and springs forward. 'But there were two Hobbits! Did you see two Hobbits with them?' He says desperately. Aragorn gestures him to stay calm. 'They would be small. Only children to your eyes' The man shakes his head. 'We left none alive. We piled the carcasses and burned them. He points towards the way they came from.

'Dead?' Gimli mutters in shock. The man nods his head. 'I am sorry' I put my hand on Gimli's shoulder. Not only to comfort him but also to stay upright. I feel sick. They cannot be dead! The man turns and whistles. 'Hasufel! Arod!' He shouts and two beautiful steeds move towards us.

'May these horses bear you to better fortune than their former masters. Farewell' He puts his helmet on and returns to his horse. 'Look for your friends. But do not trust to hope. It has forsaken these lands' He says bitterly. 'We ride north!' He shouts to his soldiers and the men quickly ride of and disappear to the North. Aragorn is looking at the place where the man was pointing to. Dark clouds of smoke rises up. 'Menathab?'(Shall we go?' I asks quietly. Aragorn nods and takes Hasufel. He holds out his hand. 'Ride with me' He says only for me to hear. Legolas helps Gimli on Arod. I nod and takes his hand, I put my hand around his waist and hold on tight. Hasufel and Arod ride on full speed across the Plain towards the smoke. We arrive at the edge of a forest. It feels cold and dark. Aragorn stops Hasufel beside the smoking pile and dismount. He grabs my waist and without a word he pulls me of the horse. When my feet hit the ground, he pulls me close to him. For a second or so we stand like this. Suddenly he pulls away and walks closer to the pile.

I look around, for a sign but there is none.

They are really dead.

Gimli starts to shift through the smoldering orcs with his axe, he reaches down and holds one of their sheathes out. 'It's one of their wee belts' A sob escapes my lips and tears starts rolling down my cheeks. Legolas takes my hand an bows his head in grief and closes his eyes. 'Hiro hyn hîdh ab 'wanath' (May they find peace in death) Aragorn turns frustrated around and kicks a helmet. He screams a cry of anguished defeat and falls to his knees, hanging his head low.

I look at him in shock, I never have seen him before like this. So vulnerable. I want to move towards him, but Legolas hand around my own stops me. 'We failed them' Gimli whispers. But Aragorn turns head and moves towards something on the ground. He touches the spots with his hands. 'A Hobbit lay here. And the other' He mutters. He moves towards another spot and rises on his feet. 'They crawled' He begins to track our Hobbits, with us following closely behind. He points the marks out. 'Their hands were bound' He finds a short length of rope buried in the trampled grass. 'Their bonds were cut' Aragorn continues tracking across the grass. We follow Aragorn and he points their tracks out in the ground. 'They ran over here' He follows the prints and points another out. 'They were followed..' He mutters in worry. He begins to run. 'The tracks lead away from the battle..' He adds. We run after him, only to stop at the beginning of the forest. '...into Fangorn Forest' The trees of the forest stand close together, it's as if it is guarding against entry. 'Fangorn? What madness drove them in there?' Gimli mutters quietly.

'Fear' I reply and walk into the forest. The others follow quickly. Aragorn rushes towards me, taking lead again, I smile at him. Thankful.

We walk through the dark forest. Aragorn leads and we follow, I stay behind the ranger. And I have to admit, I feel save with him. Suddenly I hear someone spit. I turn around and see that the person is Gimli. 'Orc blood' He mutters and wipes his finger of on his jacket. I smile at him. Aragorn is still following the tracks and hums. 'These are strange tracks'

'The air is so close in here' Gimli states fearful. Legolas nods and looks around the forest. I can feel it too. The forest is old. 'This forest is old. Very old. Full of memory...and anger' Legolas explains to Gimli. Low groans can suddenly be heard throughout the forest. I hear Gimli gasp. 'The trees are speaking to each other!' I say in amazement. Aragorn turns to Gimli, I do the same and see him fearfully waving his axe around. 'Gimli!' Aragorn whispers. 'Lower your axe' Aragorn gestures. He lowers his axe, like he surrenders. I chuckle at the stubbornness of our dwarf.

'They have feelings, my friend. The Elves began it. Waking up the trees, teaching them to speak' Legolas states. 'Talking trees. What do trees have to talk about? Except the consistency of squirrel droppings!' Gimli replies in disbelief.

Oh Gimli..

We continue walking through the forest. But I feel something approach. I look towards Legolas and he nods. He feels it too. 'Aragorn, nad nâ ennas!' (Aragorn, Something is out there!) Gimli looks at me for explanation. 'Something is out there' I whisper to him, he nods and lifts his axe up. 'Man cenich?' (What do you see?) Aragorn asks the Princeling. Legolas is searching with his eyes and suddenly he gazes at something behind the trees further away. 'The White Wizard approaches' He whispers. Aragorn looks at us. 'Do not let him speak. He will put a spell on us' He orders. He takes his sword and Legolas nocks an arrow. This time I choose also my sword.

'We must be quick' Aragorn states, still looking at me. We rush forward, ready to strike but a bright light envelops from the wizard. Aragorn's and I's swords becomes red hot and we let it clatter to the forest floor. Gimli throws his axe and it is shattered. Legolas fires an arrow but it is deflected. The light is so blinding that I fall on my knees on the forest floor, trying to shield my eyes from the light. 'You are tracking the footsteps of two young Hobbits' The voice of the wizard booms throughout the forest. 'Where are they?' Aragorn yells. 'They passed this way the day before yesterday. They met someone they did not expect. Does that comfort you?' The wizard speaks up.

No.

'Who are you? Show yourself!' Aragorn shouts and the wizard recalls his light, slowly his face is revealed.

'Mithrandir!' I shout and run towards him, throwing my hands around his neck, hugging him. Mithrandir laughs. 'My dear' I let him go and turn to the others. 'It cannot be' Aragorn says in amazement. Legolas kneels for Mithrandir. 'Forgive me. I mistook you for Saruman' Gimli joins Legolas in kneeling before Mithrandir. 'I am Saruman. Or rather, Saruman as he should have been' Mithrandir exclaims. 'You fell' Aragorn whispers. 'Through fire and water. But I've been sent back until my task is done'

'Gandalf' Aragorn says happily. But Mithrandir looks confused for a moment. 'Gandalf? Yes' He smiles. 'That's what they used to call me' He looks at Aragorn and he nods. 'Gandalf the Grey. That was my name' He looks at me. 'Or dear one, Mithrandir, known by the elves' I smile happily at him. 'Yes Mithrandir!'

'Gandalf!' Gimli mutters. Mithrandir smiles. 'I am Gandalf the White.And I come back to you now at the turn of the tide'

After our reunion, Mithrandir leads us through the forest, he wears his grey cloak over his white one. 'One stage of the journey is over, another begins. We must travel to Edoras with all speed!' He states. 'Edoras? That is no short distance!' Gimli protests. 'We hear of trouble in Rohan. It goes ill with the king' I say to Mithrandir and he stops walking. 'Yes, and it will not be easily cured'

'Then we have run all this way for nothing? Are we to leave those poor Hobbits here in this horrid, dark, dank tree-infested?' Gimli cries out angry. But the forest responds to his complains with a low rumble. He stops and looks fearful around. 'I mean, charming...quite charming forest' He adds and the rumbling ceases. I can't help it but chuckle and Aragorn does so too. I stop and walk together with Legolas at the end of our party, leaving Mithrandir and Aragorn talk. Gimli steps fast through the forest, wanting to get out.

'It was more than mere chance that brought Merry and Pippin to Fangorn. A great power has been sleeping here for many long years. The coming of Merry and Pippin will be like the falling of small stones that starts an avalanche in the mountains' Mithrandir turns around to Gimli, explaining. I hear Aragorn something say to Mithrandir and they laugh. We walk out of the forest. 'Merry and Pippin are quite safe. In fact, they are far safer than you are about to be' Mithrandir replies to something Gimli said. 'This new Gandalf's more grumpy than the old one' He mutters and Legolas and I laugh. We arrive at the border of Fangorn Forest. Mithrandir whistles piercingly. It echoes off into the distance. He whistles again. As the echo dies out, a neigh answers him. A magnificent white horse gallops towards Mithrandir over a nearby hill. Mithrandir smiles. Aragorn and Legolas whistle our steeds and hold their reins. 'That is one of the Mearas, unless my eyes are cheated by some spell' Legolas mutters. 'Than I am bewitched to Legolas' Aragorn chuckles. The horse gallops across the plain and comes to a stop in front of Mithrandir. 'Shadowfax. He is the lord of all horses ...and has been my friend through many dangers' He introduces the horse. Aragorn climbs up Hastufel and takes my hand. He pulls me for him, so I can rest against his chest. 'Hodo' (rest) he whispers in my ear. I close my eyes at his plea and the last thing I know is galloping away across the plain towards Edoras. 

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