First Meetings

Well, this is a sort of in between bit here, that came to me when I was trying to insert a particular scene into a fanfic. It was a scene I really wanted to write, but I couldn't fit it into any of my existing fanfics. Then my plot bunny jumped out and bit me on the ankle, and the ideas for a whole new fanfic started coming. For anyone wondering, the particular scene that started this is pretty much the start of the fanfic (not the bit with Elladan and Elrohir, that bit came in later when the plot was figured out). And yes, in case anyone was wondering, Legolas will be injured. I just can't help myself sometimesJ.

A little thing about the distances in Middle Earth. It's not really a spoiler, I think, to say that Glorfindel has to travel to Mirkwood from Rivendell and back, very quickly. I have researched it, and the most direct route from Rivendell, over the High Pass and across the ford at the Anduin, and then the elf path to Thranduil's halls, is approximately 400 miles. Now, I am a very experienced horse rider, and the horse that Glorfindel would be riding would be elvish, and would be very strong and fit. Endurance horses can make 100 miles in a single day, and I am betting that elvish horses would be able to do even more, at a push. And Glorfindel is changing horses either side of the Hithaeglir, and is really going as fast as he can. (suspense!)

The very first meeting of Legolas, Elladan and Elrohir has not been written yet, but may be somewhere down the line.

Anyway, that's enough of me blabbering. If you just skipped past the blabbering, and are reading this wondering what on Earth I am talking about, you can read my blabbering if you want. If not, please start reading!

Disclaimer: YES YES, I OWN THEM ALL! Oh, the men in suits are coming again. I don't own anything. Not even the horse, probably.

0-o-0-o-0

The horse paused at the top of the valley. In the darkness it was barely visible, a phantom shape surrounded by shadows. It lowered its head slightly. The snort echoed loudly in the still night as the weary animal tried to draw in breath.

A figure slumped on the back of the horse, a cloak falling over the crumpled shape. One long arm fell down the horse's shoulder, dangling limply. His face turned slightly to the side, looking over the valley in front of him. "Hannon le" he whispered. "Hannon le, mellon-nin."

The horse snorted softly, before beginning to move down the path. His hooves pounded softly on the packed earth as he started to move faster, cantering through the forest.

0-o-0-o-0

Elladan grinned at his brother. "When exactly was the last time we did this?" he asked quietly. It had been a long few days, with a raid on a small village nearby, and Elladan and Elrohir felt like they needed to blow off some steam. Though Elrond could hardly approve of what they were doing.

Elrohir shook his head. "I can't remember" he murmured back. "Not for quite a while, I think." He suppressed the urge to laugh. "I wonder what Arwen will say?"

"You know her" said Elladan with a chuckle. "She will just roll her eyes, mutter something about idiotic brothers and walk off."

"One day I think we might make her move out to Lothlorien" said Elrohir. "She does seem to get rather annoyed with us at points."

"But if she goes, who will be there to roll their eyes at us?" asked Elladan with a grin. "Adar just raises that one eyebrow of his, and Naneth, I think, gave up on us long ago."

Elrohir chuckled. "We got a good haul this time" he said, glancing down at the bundles in their arms.

Elladan nodded. "Pretty good" he said. "It was foolish for the cooks to leave those tarts out to cool overnight." In their arms were stashes of sweet foods from the kitchen of Imladris that the twins had liberated for the night. Both of them objected to the word stealing. After all, they argued, it was their home. You can't steal from yourself.

Elrohir shifted the load in his arms slightly so he could free one hand, and used it to pop a strawberry in his mouth. Elladan glowered. "How did you manage to do that?"

"Magic" replied Elrohir triumphantly. "That was a good strawberry."

Elladan grinned. "It's a pity that our rooms are such a long walk away from the kitchens" he said. "And that there are no hidden paths. Remember when Legolas showed us the hidden tunnels in their stronghold?"

"And the night we used one to liberate food from the kitchen?" asked Elrohir. "Aye, I remember."

Elladan held back a laugh. "Do you think Adar purposely designed it so our rooms were not close to the kitchens?"

Elrohir paused. "No, he couldn't have. We would not have been born for a thousand years."

"But he does have the gift of foresight" pointed out Elladan.

Elrohir snorted. "I think that is used for more important things than seeing if your sons will grow up to sneak food out of the kitchens!"

"You're probably right" said Elladan with a grin. "But still, it would be a useful thing to know in advance."

Elladan suddenly stopped abruptly, causing Elrohir to nearly bump into him. "Watch it!" hissed Elrohir in annoyance. "I nearly spilt some."

Elladan shook his head. "Listen" he murmured. "Can you hear that?"

Elrohir strained his ears trying to pick out a sound, anything standing out against the silence of the night. He couldn't hear the guards moving around; well into the Watchful Peace, there were less than there used to be.

He shook his head. "I can't…"

Elladan cut him off. "Listen. There it is again."

And this time Elrohir could hear it. The soft pounding of hooves on an earthen track came to his ears, and he stiffened. "What…?"

The sound suddenly changed, the hoof beats abruptly becoming sharper and more distinct, clattering on stone.

Elrohir frowned. "That's…"

"The sound of a horse on the courtyard" said Elladan. He dropped his load of food, wrapped in a blanket in the corner. "Come on, Elrohir!"

Elrohir dropped his bundle and ran after Elladan as they sprinted in the direction of the courtyard. The sound of running hooves stopped, but they could hear the shift and scrape of the horse's shoes on the stone. A sudden scraping sound filled the silent night air as the horse scraped its hoof along the ground, as if it was impatient. As if it needed something.

And then the desperate neigh of a horse cut through the night. Elrohir and Elladan sped up, rounding the corner and coming to the great doors of Imladris that opened onto the courtyard. There was no light from outside; even the moon was weak, a thin sliver in the sky. No torchlight shone through the doors, and the twins frowned at each other. Where were the guards?

Finally they reached the doors. Elrohir, slightly ahead, grabbed hold of one of the handles and heaved.

They paused at the top of the steps. A horse stood in the courtyard looking up at them. They could just make out its silhouette, and Elladan cursed, trying to light one of the torches to the side of the door. They could both hear the horse's frantic panting as it gasped for breath, and Elrohir moved slightly down the steps, curious and yet very worried at the same time.

Finally Elladan lit a torch, and from its flickering light they could make out the horse, its ears pricked as it looked up, its flanks heaving. Flecks of white foam covered its neck and face, and it scraped the ground again, its shoe screeching slightly along the stone.

Elladan moved forwards with the torch carefully. "Where have you come from?" he murmured. "What are you doing here?"

The horse seemed to snort impatiently, and then moved forwards further into the torchlight, turning slightly sideways. It seemed to move carefully, almost gingerly, and as it came forwards the twins suddenly saw why.

A shrouded figure lay awkwardly on top of the horse, falling slightly over one shoulder. The figure's cloak lay over him, and the twins could not see who it was. One hand dangled down the horse's shoulder. In the flickering torchlight, it glowed a sickening red. A droplet of blood dripped slowly from one pale fingertip, falling onto the cold hard stone.

As the doors of Imladris opened, the figure glanced up from the horse's back. He saw the two figures silhouetted in the torchlight at the top of the steps, and smiled slightly, watching them come down the steps. The horse moved underneath him and pain washed over him yet again, but he managed the smallest of smiles. He was safe. And with that thought, the darkness that had been encroaching his vision finally crept in and swallowed him. He fell.

The figure slipped, slowly at first, from the horse's back, which shied away nervously. With a soft thump, he hit the ground, their cloak fanning out on top of them. He was completely still, crumpled in a heap on the cold stones. His fall had left a long smear of blood down the side of the horse, which now seemed to look worriedly at its fallen rider.

The twins rushed forwards, falling to their knees beside the still figure. The horse lowered his head, gently butting Elrohir's shoulder as the two elves reached out for the prone form in front of them.

Elrohir paid no notice to the insistent nudging from the horse. He reached out gingerly. As soon as he touched the elf, his hands came away covered in blood. Elladan hissed as he moved the torch closer. Elrohir managed to roll the figure over, and his head lolled sickeningly to one side, revealing one pointed ear. He made no sound at all.

Elladan held the torch higher as Elrohir tried to see where the blood was coming from. The front of the figure's tunic was drenched and sticky with blood, and yet more covered the elf's arm. Dried blood was crusted over his face, and Elrohir flicked back his long dirty blond hair to get a better look at who the elf was.

Elladan held the torch higher as Elrohir gently pulled the elf's face towards them. Immediately the blood drained from the twins' faces. Elladan tried to speak, but the words turned to whispers of air in his throat. Elrohir felt the same.

The elf, the grievously wounded elf that had arrived on their courtyard covered in blood now had a name. And neither of the twins, in their wildest dreams, had expected the name to be the one they now knew belonged to the elf. They both gaped in shock.

Elrohir unfroze first. He turned and ran back to the top of the steps, his face white and his hands trembling. Throwing open the doors again, he shouted out at the top of his voice through the corridors of Imladris.

"Adar!"

0-o-0-o-0

Elrond jerked awake, his eyes focusing quickly. He sat upright, quickly slipping out of the bed as his beloved wife sat up.

"Meleth-nin?" she asked. "What has happened?"

Elrond shook his head, grabbing his robe and slipping it on. "I don't know" he murmured. "But that was Elrohir's voice. Something is wrong."

Celebrian slipped out of bed, grabbing her own robe and pulling it on. "What do you think it is?"

"I don't know" said Elrond. "But I do not think it is anything good. The twins cannot be in trouble, but someone may well be." He frowned.

"Meleth?" asked Celebrian, her face worried. "Is there something…?"

Elrond shook his head. "I don't know." He headed out the doorway of their chambers, tying the belt of his robe tight around his waist. "Someone is in trouble."

Celebrian frowned. Exchanging a worried glance with her husband, they both slipped out of the room and ran down the corridor. As they ran they heard muffled commotions, as those woken by Elrohir's cry began to move around. Elrond could already hear the guards moving towards the courtyard. A sudden unease filled him and he began to run faster.

Elrohir appeared as they ran towards the door, his face unnaturally pale in the torchlight. Elrond reached out, grasping his shoulder and steadying the younger elf. "Ion-nin?" he asked. "What has happened?"

Elrohir shook his head, grabbing hold of his father's arm and pulling him towards the door. "He just…he just appeared. Saes, you have to help him!"

Celebrian frowned. "Who, Elrohir?" she asked gently. "Who is here? Why do they need help?"

Elrohir did not appear to notice her question. He tugged on Elrond's arm, and the three of them pushed open the doors. Elrohir immediately sprinted down the steps, falling to his knees beside his brother. He reached out with trembling hands, feeling under the elf's neck for a pulse. "He is alive" he murmured. He turned around the see Elrond and Celebrian running down the steps. "Hurry!"

Elrond jumped down the last few steps and hurried to his sons' sides. Pushing back the sleeves of his robes, he looked down at the limp form. Elladan had taken off his robe and was currently pressing it on the elf's stomach, trying to stem the flow of blood. Elrohir had quickly ripped off the sleeves off his tunic and was currently wrapping them around the elf's arm. The slight fluttering of their fingers and their ashen faces betrayed how scared they were.

"There's so much blood" murmured Elrohir. "The flow won't stop, Adar. You have to help him!"

Elrond gently lifted the cloths pressed against the elf's abdomen, gently moving Elladan's arms away, which were trembling ever so slightly. His face gave nothing away, but inside he did not have the best feeling. Elrohir was right. There was a lot of blood. This was incredibly serious. He looked up at his wife, and Celebrian seemed to read the anxiety in his eyes. She turned to one of the guards who, hearing the commotion, had arrived on the courtyard.

"How did this happen?" she demanded. "How did this elf get past the guards?" She glanced back at the limp figure. The elf's face was turned away from her, but she could still see from where she was the dried blood that encrusted at least a part of his face, and the dirty, blood matted blond hair splayed out across the courtyard. Already the stones were slick with blood in some places.

The guard she addressed gulped nervously. "I…uh…my Lady…we don't know." He dared not look her in the eye. "We were…changing the guard, my Lady. It is possible that he entered whilst that was happening. We are all deeply sorry, my Lady."

"That seemed to pacify Celebrian slightly. "Well go make yourself useful. Fetch a stretcher. And hurry!"

The guards sprinted away, and Celebrian turned to see Elrond and her sons crouched around the fallen elf. Elrond glanced up at her again. "The guards must be quick" he murmured. "We do not have much time."

At this statement Elladan and Elrohir exchanged looks, and Elrond managed to see the silent conversation that passed between them. He could not read it, however, for only the twins were able to fully understand what each other meant by a single look. But he could see the worry and fear that darted between them.

Elrohir shook his head. "You have to save him" he murmured. He looked up from the body of the elf and caught his brother's eyes again. "You have to."

"I will do what I can" said Elrond, peeling back the tunic to see the wound across the elf's torso again. The bleeding had slowed, but some blood still spilt from the wound, staining the stones beneath them.

Elrohir shook his head. "Ai, what have you done?" he murmured, seemingly to the elf in front of him.

Elrond looked up again to see a mixture of anguish and fear in Elrohir's eyes as he pulled back the hair from the elf's dirtied face. He frowned, wondering if his sons knew the elf. Before Elrond could ask them, however, the guards returned, sprinting at full speed with a stretcher. They placed it on the ground next to the blond elf.

Elrond very gently slid his arms beneath the figure. "Hold his head" he murmured to Elladan, and together they slid the elf onto the stretcher. The elf was still, his head turning and falling against Elladan's arms. Not a sound escaped his lips.

More guards immediately picked up the stretcher carefully, trying to be as gentle as possible. Elrond stood and immediately had his hands back on the stomach wound of the elf, holding down Elladan's now soaked tunic to stem the flow of blood. His other hand went under the elf's neck, feeling for a pulse. He frowned slightly, as if not happy with what he felt. With a nod from Celebrian, the guards moved forwards and began to move smoothly towards Imladris. The small party, illuminated in the red torchlight, made their way inside.

To Be Continued...

Oooh, suspense! Who is this injured elf (I think it's pretty obvious, don't you?) Next chapter will be up tomorrow, and featuring the rest of Elrond's family. I do love writing the twins *sigh*