These Lovely Scars (Lord of the Rings Fanfic)

The White Wizard

Thump. Thump. Thump. I'm jostled awake.

It's bright around me; I can tell even before I open my eyes. The wind rushes against my face as we ride forwards. I'm on a horse, and someone sits behind me, acting as my pillow. I know it's Legolas. He has a lovely, woodland scent that I would recognize anywhere. Opening my eyes, I sit up and turn around to face him. "Adrianne," His eyes light up like the sky.

"You found me," I breathe, letting a smile ease its way to my face. "How?"

Before Legolas has the chance to reply, another horse comes galloping towards us and almost collides with our horse. "Adrianne!" I'd know his voice anywhere. Aragorn sits on the horse now next to us, with Gimli riding behind him since he's too small to ride his own horse. "You're awake!" He reaches at his hip and pulls out something I never thought I'd see again. "And I believe you lost this."

"My sword!" I exclaim, my voice breathy with delight. Seeing my obsidian blade with its little rubies sparkling in the hilt gives me so much comfort. "Diola Ille, mellon (thank you, friend) I won't lose it again!" Aragorn holds my sword out to me, and I take it in greateful hands. It feels so good to have the familiar hilt back in my hands. Happily, I sheath it at my side. "I was just asking Legolas: how did you manage to find me?" When Aragorn shares a conspiratorial look with Legolas, I frown. "Hey, what is it?"

"Hopefully you'll still be able to recognize our old friend. He has gotten a bit of a...new look..." Gimli chuckles through his red beard. What are they -

The sound of pounding of hooves grows louder behind us, and I find the sense to look back. Galloping towards the four of us is a horse of the purest white I've ever seen. Light itself seems to radiate from the horse...and it's master, who is in fact familiar to my eyes! "G-Gandalf?" I stammer, speechless. "But, how!"

Gandalf, no longer grey, comes to a stop on the other side of us. "I am now Gandalf the White." He speaks. His voice is still the same as I remembered. If even, a bit wiser, perhaps. "And I come back to you now at the turn of the tide."

• ⧫ • ⧫ •

"You're a lucky one, lassie!" Gimli shouts to me from his and Aragorn's shared horse. "If it weren't for Gandalf, I doubt we would have found you in time."

" 'Found me in time?' What do you mean by that?" I shout back against the roar of the wind.

"Yes, you were lying in a wee pool of your own blood. Wee? No, I shouldn't say. It was quite a lagre pool of blood, if I should say so myself." Gimli goes on.

My thoughts go back to the events that happened before this. I led the Uruk away and killed him...with my powers! Yes, I remember that much. Perhaps I'll have to speak separately with Gandalf later on about my newfound powers. Maybe he'll be able to help me understand them. Anyways...oh, yes! I must've passed out from blood loss...due to the fact that I had been whipped earlier. My hand immediately goes to my back, and I find that my skin is no longer sticky with blood. But the lashes in my skin have not quite healed over yet, and I wince as my fingers trace the jagged lines in my skin. "What happened while you were held captive?" Legolas asks upon noticing me examine my wounds. "We found you with bloody lashes in your back. How did you get them?"

"I, um, managed to kill a few of the Uruks earlier on, and I was whipped as punishment." Feeling Legolas's body tense behind mine, I add on, "But I'm okay now...because I'm with you." Whoa - where in Middle Earth did that come from? I don't know, but my heart flutters as Legolas tentatively twines his fingers with mine from behind me. Looking down, I smile satisfactionally at the sight of my smaller hands resting in his larger ones on my thighs. I'd like to capture this moment and just live in it forever: the wind blowing gently, the sun perfectly warm on my skin, Legolas's gentle arms around me...

I'm being fluffy, aren't I? Okaay, enough of that.

"The plan is to ride to Edoras, where King Théoden of Rohan's mind is overthrown by Saruman." Legolas tells me, luckily breaking me out of my love-sick spell. "Gandalf has business to attend to there."

Suddenly, a horrible thought pricks at my mind. Gasping, I jerk my upper half around to face Legolas, tearing my hands from his in the process. "I-I-I...oh no! Oh no!" Panic creeps into my body.

Legolas looks worridley down at me. "Hey, hey. What's wrong?" He bends down, whispering soothingly into my ear.

"I...I was separated from Merry and Pippin during an attack on the Uruks. I don't know what happened to them, I don't know if they're okay, I - " Legolas cuts me off with...a laugh? How can he find humour in a matter such as this? "Are you laughing?" My voice cracks, shocked beyond belief. "They're our friends! Don't you care about them?"

His expression shifts to a more serious one, but still he does not look worried. "I do care about them. And I know you do too, which is why you'll be relieved to know that Merry and Pippin are safe. Gandalf came across the two before he found us. They are in good hands with a friend of his and will be safe and out of harm's way for the remainder of time." He says. Exhaling, I become aware of the fact that I had been holding my breath in anxiety the whole time. I let my eyes close for a second, bathing in the feeling of utter relief.

"That's good," I sigh, relaxing against him, only to tense up once again. "What of Frodo and Sam?"

Legolas hesitates before he speaks. "Aragorn let them go. He felt it would be...best if they continued the quest without the company of the fellowship."

"I...agree," I say, surprising myself a bit with my opinion. "The temptation of the ring was too strong for some." My mind wanders back to thoughts of Boromir, how enamoured he was with the ring. But in his last moments, he fought and died as a brave man. I think he really did have a good heart. But he just didn't understand the evil of the ring. He didn't understand how easily it could corrupt a good man's heart. With a sigh, I shake away the thoughts. It does no good to dwell on the past - that's one thing I've learned from my encounter with Lady Galadriel. Don't dwell on the past. "I just hope they'll be able to make it." I say, thinking back to Frodo and Sam. "I hope Frodo will be able to fight against the ring."

"He will." Legolas says. "Hobbits are strong, and both Frodo and Sam have noble hearts. Frodo can do it. And Sam will protect him."

"Do you think they'll reach Mordor?" I ask.

"I do." He says.