✓ | Forget-Me-Not ~ Fili FanFiction / Hobbit FanFiction / Fili FF

「 Chapter 29 」

She jumped nimbly down from the large branch that had led her over one of the great ravines in the rock. However, she had miscalculated the height and so she landed on the ground quite clumsily. She almost fell forward, but then found her balance again.
She sighed, a little from exhaustion, a little from anger.
"Everyone else lands elegantly. Of course." she said a little contrite "what the heck, it will work out someday." She couldn't waste time getting upset about small mistakes, it wasn't in her nature.
She looked up. There were only a few clouds in the blue sky, the sun was moving towards the horizon.
It had taken much longer than expected.
"Thats gonna be close." she said to herself as she hurried along the rocks by the river.
With her gray eyes always directed forward, in order to be able to recognize the impending danger in time, she had already made it over half the way. She felt her lungs slowly longing for a break, her feet already hurting a bit.
She couldn't see Thranduil's palace yet, so she forced herself to keep up the pace.
The river bed on her right was getting deeper, the rocks higher and the forest thicker.
When Diari reached a little hill, she heard strange screeches and grunts. The blood froze in her veins. She had already expected to have to meet the orcs at some point, but not in such an inconvenient place.
The elf quickly glanced over her shoulder into the forest. The trees were the only place she could hide and hopefully be safe.
Another scream.
Diari rushed to the side into the forest and set about climbing the first tree that came up to her. She had quickly overcome half of the trunk when she could now hear a loud trampling along with the terrifying screams.
The young elf quickly grabbed the branch above her head and pulled herself up with a soft groan. She landed on her stomach on the dark bark and clung to the wood beneath her.

At the approach of more screams and evil orders, Diari tried carefully to look down. Directly below her she saw two orcs hobbling past the trunk of the tree on which the elf was crouching. To their left, others came down the riverbank. An orc, bigger than everyone else around him, stomped through the group, yelling over and over again things that Diari didn't really understand.
Although she had started to learn some things in black language, she had not made very good progress in a while.
The troop did not slow down, which gave the Elf hope that she would soon be able to make the remainder of the walk to the palace.
She tried to look a little more over the branch to see how many orcs there were and in which direction they were about to disappear. Secretly she hoped that none of the creatures wanted to investigate the trees in the vicinity, Diari's hiding place was working at the time, but it was far from the very best. If even one of the orcs were to look up into the trees from a further distance, she would be spotted instantly.
When the elf carefully moved her head further and further to the edge of the big branch, still lying on her stomach, she could make out orcs at the foot of the tree, who probably needed a little break. That didn't seem to suit others in the group, because immediately more orcs came up to those who stayed behind and immediately a quarrel broke out between the two parties.
Again Diari could only pick up bits of words, but what she understood was really not very nice. The elf tensed her whole body in order to remain undetected and not to make a sound. At that moment a small stone, which had caught in the sole of her boot on her way back to the palace, came loose and fell down.
Diari noticed this little stone, this inconspicuous little stone, and followed its way down with a horrified and rigid expression.
The stone hit the shoulder of one of the orcs and tumbled silently down in front of the feet of the other orcs.
Immediately the creatures' eyes shot upwards, up the tree.
Diari held her breath and just clung tighter to the branch, her breathing was irregular and she screwed up her eyes tightly.
She heard the orcs at the bottom of the tree rise and start walking around the trunk, grunting and growling.

The elf dared not open her eyes and concentrated on getting her breathing under control. Her face pressed firmly against the trunk, the woody smell immediately penetrated her nose.
The orcs had now walked around the tree several times when one of them probably got the idea to actually climb up the tree.
Diari heard the creature begin to grab the branches beneath her and press his heavy boots against the trunk.
Now the elf was beginning to come to terms with the fact that she would be discovered, the orc would call for his comrades, and be hacked to pieces by a whole horde. The thought of it made her blood run cold and she became more and more desperate. She tried to remember her lessons, she tried, after opening her eyes again, to look for a way out over the treetops, but nothing really seemed to work as she imagined.
There was a deep and vicious roar.
Now they must have discovered her.
But instead of the expected ugly hand that grabbed her arm and dragged her down, nothing like that happened. Instead, there were only high-pitched screams from below and the suspicious sound of a large blade being stabbed through a body.
A touch of security came back to Diari as the focus was obviously no longer on her. She waited until the hideous noises ceased and shortly afterwards there was another pounding and trampling. The young elf did not dare look down again for several minutes until she was not really sure that there would be no more orcs lurking for her there.
After almost 20 minutes of lying cramped on the branch, she moved her head to one side to look down the tree.
An orc corpse lay next to the tree trunk, slashed and bled.
The leader probably didn't like it that his followers dawdled so much. It should be fine with Diari.
After one more look to see if there really wasn't any living orc around, she straightened up, moaning softly.
Her chest and collarbone ached after lying so cramped for so long. The elf swung down the branch and landed on the next one below her. From there she got to the forest floor with a daring leap.
She took a deep breath, then dropped her gaze to the dead orc beside her. The creature was brutally struck down, but definitely by its own ranks.
Diari did not have to dwell in this place beforehand. She had to hurry, the orcs were further than she had thought. The palace shouldn't be too far away now.

The Elf turned out to be right in her assumption. Only a little later she saw some of the towers of the Elven Palace tower up in front of her. She climbed one last hill and saw the stone bridge and the path that would lead her to it in front of her.
She ran nimbly towards her goal.
When she reached and crossed the bridge, the guards at the gate looked at her suspiciously.
"What are you doing outside, Diari?" one of the two warriors asked.
Diari glanced briefly from him to his guard partner and back again.
"Training." she replied tersely and still a little out of breath.
She had never lied to the royal guard before.
But this was, for once, more important than Thranduil's opinion.
The guards looked at each other again before opening the iron gate to Diari. Without another word, the elf hurried in and immediately started looking for Legolas. Ilèyn's words were still in her mind as she walked down the long corridors and looked for the chambers. She was a little uncomfortable invading so far into the prince's privacy, but she had no choice.
She stopped in front of his door, after having walked countless meters, and knocked cautiously.
"Come in." it came from inside and Diari carefully pushed open the ornate wooden door. She didn't really dare to set foot in the room, so she stood a little unsteadily in the doorway. She was breaking all the rules that her mother, her people, and herself had taught her.
Do not lie.
Never bother the royal family.
Two things she had already done were clearly two too many.
In front of her was the prince's chamber, a large, spacious, nobly furnished room. Just as one would expect of Thranduil's son.
The very same one stood in front of his bed and eyed several robes which were spread out on it.
When Diari made no sound, the Elf Prince turned to the door.
"Ah, Diari." he said in greeting and smiled slightly.
Diari's heart leaped.
She was definitely not the only Elf girl to adore the Prince of the Woodland Realm. But it made Diari a little proud that she was one of the few who had the honor of being trained by him.
"What brings you to me?"
"It... well, uhm..." Diari didn't really know where to begin "Forgive me very much for bothering you so inappropriately, Hîr Legolas."
She quickly bowed politely.
"Where have you been? They were looking for you." Legolas examined the young elf.
"I was on the path to the trading post." Diari said quickly.
"The one we chased the orcs on?" Legolas stepped closer and looked a bit stunned. "How could you put yourself so carelessly in danger?"
Was that worry?
Not worrying about losing a soldier but worrying about losing a loved one?
No, wrong time, completely wrong time, Diari!
"I need to talk to you urgently, Legolas."
The Elf eyed her. Her haste worried him a little.
"Well then..." he said and motioned for Diari to come in. "Speak."
Diari quickly entered the room and carefully closed the door.
She turned to Legolas and took a deep breath.
"It's about Ilèyn."