Høød ➵ Lord Of The Rings

† Chp. XVII †

"Saruman has poisoned the mind of the king and claimed lordship over these lands. My company are those loyal to Rohan. And for that, we are banished. The White Wizard is cunning. He walks here and there, they say, as an old man, hooded and cloaked. And everywhere his spies slip past our nets."

His eyes drift to Legolas, hesitation and caution seeping from his intense gaze.

"We are not spies." Aragorn once again speaks up, his voice low but honest. "We track a party of uruk-hai westward across the plain. They've taken two of our friends captive."

"The uruks are destroyed, we slaughtered them during the night." The leader replies with a monotone voice.

"But there were two hobbits!" Gimli bellows in desperation. "Did you see two hobbits with them?"

"They would be small, only children to your eyes." Aragorn adds on.

The horseman lowers his gaze, a deep breath racking through his chest as he goes to speak, but the dwarf cuts him off.

"Or a girl? Robin Hood she goes by! Lassie wouldn't have gone down without a proper fight!" Gimli remarks, as he stares at the man with expectance.

The leader of the horsemen snaps up his gaze at the mention of the outlaw, a hint of despair gathering in his eyes as a low murmur stirs from within the group of men.

"You are friends of Robin?" He questions, a stern expression embedded on his features.

"You know of her." Aragorn utters, his eyebrows slightly furrowed as the elf tilts his head. "She is a part of our fellowship."

Once again lowering his gaze, the leader sinks in his thoughts, before his head raises, all emotion erased from his features.

"Every living person knows of Robin Hood." He replies, before lowering his tone and slightly shaking his head. "We left none alive."

Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas tense as a deep sadness swells from within their chest, but there is also a twinkling glimmer of hope. Robin would have protected the halflings with her life, and the three know this.

"We piled the carcasses and burnt them." The horseman states, pointing into the direction of a wafting smoke cloud.

A heavy atmosphere lowers onto the gathering as Aragorn looks to the ground in despair, Gimli uttering words in shock. Legolas bows his head and places a hand on the dwarve's shoulder, he himself hurt by the horseman's words.

"I am sorry." The leader utters, as he surprisingly looks to also be in mourning. The man then whistles, summoning two riderless steeds.

"Hasufel! Arod!" He calls, handing the reins to the man and elf. "May these horses bear you to better fortune than their former masters. Farewell."

The two look to the ground, grateful but also still in mourning of their friends, and the horseman remounts his steed, giving one last statement.

"Look for your friends, but do not trust to hope." He remarks, looking down towards the trio with a sudden coldness. "It has forsaken these lands."

And with that, the horseman orders his men to ride North. With the thundering of hooves and the rippling of banners, the steeds gallop down the hill, leaving the trio with the forsaken job of locating the possibly deceased bodies of their friends.

•

~Røbins P.Ø.V~

I grin at the feeling of earth and soft moss beneath my bare feet. It has been a little while since I've visited Fangorn, and unsurprisingly, the forest hasn't changed at all. It still holds its fresh, sweet-scented, and warm atmosphere.