I followed Legolas up the stairs to the catwalk of the outer wall. Gimli and Dwalin came up behind me, and I caught myself glancing over my shoulder. Dwalin's presence made me uneasy, and I was still upset that Galadriel had sent him here. But there was nothing that could be done about it now.
We lined up along the wall. I was barely tall enough to see over the top, but poor Gimli was a few inches too short.
"Amariel."
I swallowed at Haldir's voice, and barely kept from flinching when he placed his hand on my shoulder. "Yes?"
He looked down at me, his eyes showing no malice or anger. "I wonder if you would stand with me for awhile; I would speak with you." He glanced at Legolas, who was glaring daggers at him. "With your permission, of course."
Legolas opened his mouth to speak, but I put my hand on his arm. "It's okay, Legoas." To Haldir, I said, "Of course."
He nodded. "Thank you. Come; I am stationed down the wall a ways."
Legolas took me by the wrist, concern in his eyes. "Eda—"
"Legolas, please," I sighed. "I'll be fine."
He glared at Haldir as he released my hand. "I'll be listening," Legolas said.
I sighed again, but a part of me was glad. Just in case. I followed Haldir to a gap in the line of Elves stationed along the wall, and he moved into his position.
"Amariel," he said, "I should never have rejected your apology, or withheld my forgiveness." He met my gaze. "I do forgive you, and I ask your forgiveness for my childish behavior."
I shifted uncomfortably. I couldn't believe he was doing this in front of everyone. Not that the Galadhrim acknowledged that they were listening.
"Of course I forgive you," I said, feeling the relief of a resolved conflict.
There was a lull in the conversation, until Haldir finally said, "I was in love with you, you know. Or rather, I was in love with who I thought you to be."
I could only imagine what was going through Legolas's mind right now. "Haldir—"
"Please," he said, glancing at me. "I know there is nothing for us, but let me speak honestly."
I hesitated, then nodded. "Alright."
He turned back and gazed out into the darkness, at little flecks of red-gold light slowly moving this way. "I imagined a life with you. A quiet life, where we would find happiness together and have children."
Despite the fact that Haldir's words held no bitterness, the weight of what I'd done to him settled heavily on my heart.
Haldir laid a hand on my shoulder. "Do not be grieved," he said gently. "Shortly after your departure, Lady Galadriel presented an elleth to me. I have never cared for arranged marriages...but we're happy together. We've asked Eru for a child." Haldir smiled—something I could count on one hand how many times I'd seen him do. "I am happy, Amariel. I am content. And I forgive you, with my whole heart."
I was quiet for a moment. Haldir, married? I was surprised, but in a good way. "Thank you," I said. "I am glad for you."
"And you." Haldir smirked. "You will do well with Prince Legolas. He cares for you deeply."
I grinned and looked at the stone beneath my feet. "And I care for him."
"This makes my heart glad. But, Amariel, you must be who you are apart from him."
I frowned and met Haldir's gaze. "I don't understand."
"You must not find your identity in your love with the prince," Haldir replied patiently. "Love is not a fixed thing; it waxes and wanes like the moon and seasons. The prince is not as young as you are, so he will have found his own identity by now. But I fear that, being young, you will seek validation in his love."
What he said made sense...kind of.
We fell silent. The steady pounding of the oncoming orcs spurred my heartrate a little faster. Then, just when I thought the odds couldn't get any worse, lightning flashed, and rain began to pour down.
Aragorn came walking down the catwalk between rows of archers, shouting in Elvish, "Show them no mercy, for you shall receive none!"
The orcs stopped their approach a short ways from the wall, and there was a tense silence. Then, one by one, they began pounding their spears against the ground.
Aragorn drew his sword, and as one, the Galadhrim and Legolas pulled an arrow from their quivers and set them to their bowstrings. I drew my own swords, though it didn't look like I'd be seeing any actual action.
Aragorn shouted a command, and as one, the Elves drew back their arrows. A tense silence fell over Helm's Deep, until a single arrow sailed out from the wall defending the causeway.
"Hold!" Aragorn shouted.
A single orc fell, and the mass of his companions began to roar angrily. And then they charged.
"Prepare to fire," Aragorn called. A pause, then, "Fire!"
Arrows sailed past and over me, raining down on the orcs below. A wave of them fell, but dozens more continued running toward the wall. They pulled out their crossbows, and began to fire back.
Just a few feet away, an ellon screamed in pain, an arrow protruding from his chest. He dropped his bow, and fell over the edge of the wall. Far below, his body hit the ground with a sickening crunch.
The orcs began raising ladders, and Aragorn shouted a warning, calling for the Elves to draw their swords. I tightened my grip on my own sword as a ladder clunked against the wall in front of us. Moments later, an orc appeared at the top. A flash of silver, and Haldir's sword had severed the head from the body.
"Eda!" Legolas yelled. He beckoned to me.
"Go," Haldir said.
I strode back toward where Legolas and Gimli were stationed. An orc appeared at the top of a ladder in front of Gimli, and the Dwarf chopped him down. "Legolas!" he bellowed. "Two already!"
Legolas cut down an orc before it could swing at one of the Galadhrim. Then he shot a cocky smirk at Gimli. "I'm on seventeen!"
"Wha—? I'll have no pointy-ear outscoring me!" Gimli bellowed indignantly. He swung his axe at an orc coming over the wall, hitting it between the legs. It squealed in pain, and Gimli swung again, taking its head off.
"Nineteen!" Legolas smugly reported.
The battle wore on in a slur of orc blood and Gimli proudly counting off his kills, and even stealing a couple of mine. Truthfully, it's hard to get any action when you have a long-handled axe on your left side and a recurve bow on your right.
But the moment I thought the battle would remain this simple, Aragorn yelled, "Causeway! Causeway!"
"Eda, cover me!" Legolas shouted, aiming up and to the left.
I moved forward and slashed at the orcs coming into range. I squinted, trying to see what the Elves were shooting at, but I couldn't see through the rain pouring down in sheets. Something down below caught my eye, though. Two orcs lugging a massive round something, running through the hoards, dodging arrows.
"Legolas," I called a warning.
"What is it?" he asked, still looking toward the causeway.
"Down there, it's...something."
"Where?"
I looked again. It was gone. But another one was on its way. "Right there!" I yelled.
Legolas spared it a glance, then returned his attention to the causeway. "What are they going to do, throw it at the wall? Eda, there's a unit rushing the front gate!"
I bit my lip and focused on killing the orcs coming over the wall. He had a point.
"Legolas!" Aragorn yelled urgently. "Legolas, bring him down!!"
Legolas whirled, firing an arrow at a massive orc carrying a torch. The arrow sank deep into its chest, but the orc kept running full tilt.
"Kill him!" Aragorn cried. "Kill him!"
Legolas fired another arrow, but it was too late. The orc reached the wall.
An explosion knocked me off my feet. My head cracked against the stone floor, and my vision went hazy.
"Eda...?"
I blinked and sat up, shaking my head. Eru, that had hurt. A few feet away, Legolas lay on his side, a gash in his forehead dripping blood.
"Legolas!" I crawled over to him.
Wincing, he put his hand on my shoulder and pulled himself up. "I'm okay," he said, standing slowly. His eyes widened. "Eda—!"
I whirled. An orc was charging at us, his sword raised. I looked around frantically, trying to find my swords. Suddenly, the orc collapsed, a silver arrow in its back. Haldir met my gaze for a moment, then continued fighting.
"Find my swords!" I yelled to Legolas, but he was already handing them to me. I blinked, then nodded my thanks.
"Where is Aragorn?" Legolas exclaimed, looking around. His eyes rested on something, and his lips parted. I followed his gaze, to see the massive hole in the wall. Aragorn was sprawled out on the ground in front of a hundred charging orcs.
"Aragorn!" Gimli bellowed, leaping off the edge. He landed in the thick of the oncoming orcs and started swinging his axe.
"I'm going down there," Legolas said, pulling a shield from an orc's carcass. He pauses, then hands me his bow. "Here—take this."
"What are you doing?" I cried as he took off his quiver and strapped it onto me.
"Keep as many as you can from going through the gap. Understand?"
"Legolas!"
He set the shield on the floor at the top of the stairs, then drew his own blades. "I love you, Eda." And he stepped onto the shield. It raced down the stairs, and Legolas disappeared from view.
Tears of shock slipped down my cheeks. I sheathed my swords and moved to take his position on the wall, drawing an arrow and setting it to the bowstring. No surprise, it was agonizingly difficult to pull the string back.
"Keep your elbow up," Haldir said, suddenly appearing at my side.
I nodded and followed his instruction, releasing the arrow into the masses pouring through the wall. They were packed so thick, it was impossible to miss.
Haldir began firing into their number as well. We shot in silence; I was still too shocked that Legolas had thrown himself into the center of the fray. I shouldn't have been, but I guess I'd thought Legolas would stay with me.
"To the Keep!" Aragorn yelled, and I breathed a sigh of relief. He was alive. "Eda, Haldir, to the Keep!"
I nodded, and shot the arrow on the string.
"Sword!" Haldir cried. "Amariel, sword!"
I fumbled with the bow as an orc charged me.