Haldir of Lorien had truly begun to hate Erestor, Chief Advisor to Elrond of Rivendell. By the time they walked from the library to Elrond’s bedroom, Erestor had made at least six stinging comments and well-expressed his pleasure at the fact that Haldir and his brothers would be leaving Rivendell in the morning. He seemed convinced that Haldir was sleeping with Legolas, and while Haldir wished that he was, it irritated him that Erestor refused to believe him when he said that he was not.

It was taking all of Haldir’s self-control to ignore the remarks, and he replied to them only in half-formed syllables. He was starting to feel more and more sorry for Isilwen. Haldir blamed Erestor entirely for the scar that she now bore. And scar or no, she was beautiful. How could she possibly have thought that he would think otherwise? Maybe he would go find her later to say good-bye. Maybe she would be more amenable than she had been last night.

Finally they reached the end of the seemingly endless corridor where Elrond’s chamber lay. Haldir glanced up at the roof, wondering if Rúmil and Orophin had managed to repair it. Even with the aid of a glass blower, he doubted that his brothers’ talents lay in that arena. Pushing past Erestor, he went to open the door, but the Chief Advisor put a hand on his shoulder.

“You cannot simply barge into Lord Elrond’s room.”

“Why not? We know he is not in there. We just left him in the library,” Haldir said with irritation.

“Still, it is not proper.”

Glaring at him, Haldir knocked on the door. No reply came from within. Oh well, he could hardly expect Orophin and Rúmil to be lying around in Elrond’s bed all day. Just to be sure, Haldir opened the bedroom door anyway. Erestor made a sound of disapproval. Haldir poked his nose into the chamber, which was empty as he expected.

“I thought you said you knew where my brothers were,” he said, raising an eyebrow at Erestor. The Advisor scowled at him.

“I can certainly not be expected to keep track of them if you can not do it yourself. After all, they are your brothers, not mine.”

“Yes, you have your hands full with your own sibling.”

“Do not speak to me of Isilwen. She is none of your business.”

“Perhaps I would like to make her my business.”

“Too bad you are leaving in the morning. And if you were not, nothing in all of the Middle-earth would ever convince me to permit you to--”

“Shh!” Haldir threw his hand up in the air, urging Erestor to silence.

“What is it?”

“Something is wrong.”

He moved swiftly to the edge of the terrace, which looked out on the garden. Haldir’s eyes widened. He flattened himself against the wall and urgently motioned Erestor over. Erestor’s jaw tightened as he looked out at the hoard of Uruk-hai that were trampling the garden, passing right under the window beneath them. On the other side of the garden, Haldir saw a regiment of Elves emerging with a volley of arrows. He picked out his brothers among them.

“We’ve got to get back to Elrond,” Erestor said.

“I agree -- but first, we arm ourselves.”

“No! It is more important to spread the alarm,” Erestor insisted. The two of them took off at a run down the hallway.

“The alarm already has been spread. You saw the battle begin. But Erestor -- we are far outnumbered.”

“Are you afraid, Marchwarden?” Erestor snarled. “What happened to the warrior who went so bravely to Helm’s Deep? Did nearly meeting your death there turn you into a coward?”

Haldir skidded to a stop. He grabbed Erestor by the collar of his robe and thrust him against the wall. “Do not ever call me a coward,” he said fiercely. “You have no idea what Helm’s Deep was like, or what I saw there. Now, take one moment and think! This attack comes as a surprise to us all. Do the Elves of Rivendell commonly keep their arms about them?”

“Of course not. Rivendell is a safe haven.”

“Or it was, until today.”

“You have made your point, Haldir. Now, release me.”

Haldir let go of Erestor. He should not have let his emotion take control of him, he knew. This was the worst possible time for such behavior. Without another word he reached past Erestor and opened the door to the room they had reached, which was his own. He entered swiftly and armed himself with his bow, his sword, and several knives.

“I have plenty of extra weapons,” he said, tossing a bow to Erestor.

“Prone to losing them?”

“Prone to leaving them buried to the hilt in the flesh of those who insult me too many times,” Haldir growled. “Let us find Elrond.”

A roar came from the hallway. Haldir’s blood turned to ice. He knew the sound far, far too well. Still, he kept his calm.

“They have made it inside,” Erestor said.

Haldir nodded. “Yes.”

“Take them all alive!” came an Uruk-hai cry from the hall, closer, too close. “Round up the prisoners! Rivendell belongs to the Uruk-hai!”

“We should hide,” Erestor said as the roar grew louder.

“No,” Haldir said. “We should fight.”

Before Erestor could argue with him, an Uruk paused in the doorway. It looked in and saw them, then hollered to its companions. Haldir let an arrow fly and felled it as four more burst in behind it. Two more arrows, then he had to switch to the sword for the sake of the small room. He would not risk hitting Erestor, much as he despised the Chief Advisor. He saw Erestor swing his own sword valiantly. He was no warrior, but he was not unskilled. Together they fought. They were far outnumbered, as Haldir had seen from the hoard in the garden. They moved back to back as the Uruk-hai circled them.

“Tallanz wants them alive,” one hissed.

“But these are armed. Let’s kill them! I’m hungry! Let’s eat the big blond one!”

“That is you,” said Erestor.

“Thank you,” Haldir snapped. “Just be quiet and kill something!”

He lunged forward and stuck the Uruk who wanted to eat him in the gut, taking no small satisfaction in the fact that it died near instantly. They had killed six, but there were still four left. One caught him with the flat of his sword, nearly knocking Haldir to his knees. He caught his balance, whirled around and sliced it in two. Erestor was battling the other three. He brought one down, but was nearly impaled from behind. Quickly Haldir dispatched the Uruk before it could slice into Erestor. In the same moment, Erestor killed the last one. He turned to face Haldir soberly as it fell.

“You saved my life.”

“I was simply watching your back. Come, truly we must find Elrond now!”

He dashed out into the hallway, his bloodied sword still drawn. He looked up and down the corridor, but although they could hear the bellows and cries of the Uruk-hai as they ravished the House of Elrond, the passage which they were in was empty. Haldir headed for the library without looking back to see if Erestor had followed him.

***

Legolas Greenleaf sat silently holding the hand of his beloved Ciendriel, his expression blank. It took all of his powers of concentration to maintain the facade of calm, when inside he was enraged and sorrowful all at once. Still, Legolas knew that he must pretend to be calm in order to keep his friends that way. He did not want any of them to do anything which might make the unpredictable Uruk-hai decide to slaughter them. If only he had his bow!

But even if he did, there were still too many of them. Over and over he counted them, then counted the prisoners. All afternoon the Uruks had been bringing in more Elves, and still there was no sign of Haldir, Elrond, Erestor or Isilwen. How would Haldir take the deaths of his brothers? Legolas knew he had not even the heart to tell him that they had been killed defending the palace.

He was trying, above all, not to lose hope. He was trying not to give in to his inner fear, or to listen to the little voice that was telling him that they were doomed. This was worse than Helm’s Deep. They were prisoners, and had not even a chance. He knew that the Uruk-hai would have little compunction about slaughtering them. Their lives had no value to them. Soon enough they would get hungry.

Legolas turned his head towards the window. If he had only been concerned with himself, it would have made escape easy. Had it been just him and Ciendriel, he would have urged her to flee. Yet he would not abandon Pippin and Angelica -- and all the other Elves of Rivendell. He would have to cling to the hope that Haldir or Gimli or Elrond was alive out there and that they could send for help.

But to whom could they send?

“Weapons,” he muttered softly. “We need weapons.”

“We would still be outnumbered three to one,” Ciendriel whispered back to him.

“At least we would have a chance.”

“I am not without hope, Legolas.”

“And where do you place your hopes?”

“On Haldir,” Ciendriel said. “He will come for your sake at the least.”

“That selfish bastard is probably miles away,” Angelica said. “He doesn’t care about anyone but himself.”

“I do not believe that,” Ciendriel said sadly.

“How can you trust him so completely?” Pippin asked. “You just accused him of stealing your map. Isn’t that why we came to Rivendell in the first place?”

Legolas watched a pink blush stain Ciendriel’s cheeks. “I have wronged Haldir,” she said.

“She is right, Pippin,” Legolas said. “He will come for us. He will find a way. Have faith. Do not lose hope.”

He spoke the words fiercely, but it was hard to believe them all the way, deep down inside. He only knew he had to keep up the spirits of the others.

His mind turned to Rúmil and Orophin. He was in utter shock that they had been killed in the garden. They were some of the finest warriors he had ever known. They were Galadhrim! Haldir would be devastated. He would be ruined, bitter. Worse than he already was! Legolas feared giving him this news.

They were good Elves, fine Elves. They had ever been kind to Legolas, even when Haldir treated him wretchedly. They had consoled him and cajoled him and teased him. They had gotten him so drunk that he passed out for two days, once. Long ago, they had even taught him to swim. Their faces melded into a blur in his mind and he had to chase the thoughts of them away to prevent tears from falling.

“You are thinking of Orophin and Rúmil,” Ciendriel whispered.

“Yes.”

“I can see it in your eyes.”

Legolas looked down. “This is not the time to grieve.”

“I fear there may be no other time for it,” Ciendriel said.

She reached out for him, and Legolas allowed himself to sink into her embrace. He closed his eyes against her shoulder, and her fingers tangling gently in his long hair were a comfort.

***

Haldir was relieved to find Isilwen alive. For a moment he forgave Erestor for being such an annoying bastard when he finally showed some ounce of concern for the girl. He was glad to know that Elrond was alive, and he hoped they could find a way to rescue him.

“They told him they would kill all the Elves of Rivendell if he did not do as they asked,” Isilwen whispered.

“The Uruk-hai have been taking prisoners. This buys us time,” Haldir said. “We must find a way to get weapons to the rest.”

“They are being held in the banquet hall,” said Erestor. “It is the only room large enough, even for what few Elves remain in Rivendell.”

“The leader is keeping Elrond in his own bedchamber,” said Isilwen.

“They want Rivendell for themselves,” Haldir said grimly.

“I do not understand,” Isilwen confessed.

“They are homeless, aimless without their master, Saruman. Clearly they see that the way of the Elves is better than their own, and so they long to take it from us.”

“It is ironic, really,” Erestor added slowly. “Had they but waited a few weeks more, they might have found Rivendell deserted.”

“That is all very well, but we must get to Elrond,” Isilwen said agitatedly.

Haldir felt a flash of jealousy. Yes, the chit was in love with Elrond. And what was wrong with him that he was standing there thinking how damned desirable she was when they were caught in the middle of a battle? He wanted her, wanted to take her in his arms and kiss her again. Maybe it was just too much adrenaline, caused by fighting a dozen Uruk-hai. Maybe it was just that he had gone too long without a lover. Or maybe it was just that she was so vulnerable, and beautiful, and amusing.

He shook his head. “Yes, to Elrond.”

Erestor opened the library door and peered into the corridor. “It is teeming with Uruks,” he said. “I fear we may be trapped.”

“Too many to fight our way through?” Haldir asked as he pulled out two knives and handed them to Isilwen.

“What are you doing?” Erestor demanded.

“Arming her.”

“She cannot fight!”

“Certainly I can.”

“Who taught you to do so?”

“His brothers.”

Erestor glowered at both of them. “I should not be surprised.”

“No,” said Haldir. “You should be grateful -- especially right now. We have one more to fight with us.”

He looked at Isilwen, and found her looking back at him with an expression that he wanted to label as admiration. She smiled at him and he winked at her.

“Either way, there are still far too many,” Erestor hissed.

“Then we will have to use an alternate method to get to Elrond’s chamber,” said Haldir.

“And what exactly might that be?”

“We’ll take the secret passage.”

“There’s a secret passage?” Isilwen and Erestor said together.

Haldir just grinned and pressed on one of the false books, letting the door to the tunnel swing open.