And the sky full of stars: Part IV
by: Jen
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The day passed and night fell and the village slept. A new day dawned.

Legolas was stretched out on the couch. His wrapped ankle was propped upon the armrest to elevate it. Legolas tentatively moved his ankle. Pain shot up his leg. He would have to follow Old Rose's orders whether or not he wanted to. He sighed. The sun was just coming in through the kitchen window. He longed to be in the sunlight. Even a day spent inside was stifling to him. Claustrophobic. Stuffy. Not to mention noisy. Gimli lay on the floor beside the couch, snoring loud enough to wake orc several leagues away.

Legolas lay very still, deciding what should be done about the orc and which would be the best way to go up the mountains into their stronghold. Mentally he was half way up the mountains when he heard soft footsteps.

Elesia was awake, quietly coming into the kitchen, careful not to wake her guests. She was dressed in the common dress of the village women. A simple dress, her long hair pulled back off her face. The only thing that separated her from them was the green stone she wore on a leather cord around her neck. Something about the green stone caught Legolas' attention but he did not know what it was.

Though Legolas had known Aragorn for many years, he knew but a handful of other men. And he'd certainly never had the opportunity to know a girl. He had heard the valiant tales of Eowyn, but had thought that women such as her, were the exception and not the rule. The only female Legolas knew were elves. Although Elesia lacked the graceful movement of the elves, her movement was appealing nonetheless. Legolas watched her as she drifted around the kitchen, she started the fire, put water on to boil, and set the table.

Legolas hid a grin as he watched her stand on tiptoes to reach the sack of coffee grounds on the top of the pantry. She pulled it to the edge and let it fall, catching it in her hands before it hit the ground. Though he knew she was no child, her small size reminded him of an elven child, before they came of age.

She worked quickly and quietly. She grabbed a small axe near the back door and walked out. Through the window he could see her splitting firewood. After a few minutes she came in and stacked an armload of firewood next to the fireplace. No helpless hand-maiden was she. By the time she had gotten the wood stacked, the water was boiling and the smell of coffee spread through the room.

The smell of coffee quickly woke Gimli out of his noisy slumber. With a few groans and grumbles he was sitting up rubbing his eyes.

"Coffee? Do I smell coffee?" he mumbled under his breath, yawning.

"You do." Elesia said. She handed them both cups of steaming coffee, bowls of oatmeal, bread, and fruit. They ate in a companionable silence. And once the dishes were cleared away, she sat down with them to discuss orcs and answer their questions.

"What do you wish to know?" She said.

"Please, tell us what has happened here." Legolas asked.

"Many years ago, when Sauron was in power and I was just a baby. The farmers of the valley fled to this forest. They built the gates, they lay traps in the lands to protect us. They knew they would have to go to war and wanted their families to be safe. When I was a little older than the children here, fighting came along the edges of the valley. We could see the fires and smell the smoke of the orcs. When the day came to fight, many men left to protect the village. They didn't return." She said.

"All the men left?" Gimli said. "Wouldn't some stay behind?"

"Some did. 10 men were left to stand guard. After the war was over, they left one by one, to discover the fates of the men who went before them. And they never returned. Only the women, children, and the eldest remained behind." She said.

"And you have been here all this time?" Legolas asked.

She nodded. "For over 10 years we wait. It is too dangerous for us to travel. Many are too weak for a journey of that length without an escort. And so many years have passed that many don't wish to leave. This has become our home. And our prison." She said.

"How did you become mayor?" Gimli asked. "Among our people the oldest and wisest are in power."

"You are not the oldest. So you are then the wisest?" Legolas asked with a smile.

"Neither. While the others my age are busy helping their mothers with their younger siblings, I took care of what needed to be done." She said.

"You have no family?" Gimli asked.

"I was an only child. My father left to fight. My mother died 4 winters ago." She said. "I had to keep busy so I do what needs to be done. I organize the hunting parties. Help Old Rose gather herbs for healing. Check on the eldest of us. Teach the youngsters how to fight. It is not the life I imagined as a child, but it is not a bad one either. The people here are good. But lately the orcs have come close to breaking our defenses. Within the past few months they have nearly gotten in. You say you are here to kill orc?"

"We come at bequest of the Aragorn, son of Arathorn, King of the throne of Gondor. He wishes the roads to be safe for travel and all orcs destroyed. We are following one of the last remaining bands of orcs to their stronghold." Legolas said.

"I can take you to their stronghold, it is but a days hike away in the mountains. But what can 2 do against so many?" she asked.

"You would not ask such questions if you had known what roads we have traveled." Gimli said.

"I meant no offense." She said.

"And none is taken. We are not here to battle, but to scout out the land. After we locate the stronghold, we must return to the King." Legolas said. "He will send us back with an army."

"That could take months." She said.

"And for that I am sorry, but there is no other way." Legolas said. "You lack the forces that will be needed to defeat them. But we will help you fortify your village before we return. It will hold"

"It will have to, won't it." She said.


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