FicWad

7
The Road to Edoras

The next morning Gimli went into Legolas's room to find the elf so that they could discuss their plans for their upcoming journey. Legolas was not in his bed, nor was he anywhere to be seen. Gimli looked all over the room and checked the nearby rooms, and not finding him, went in search of Aragorn. He walked into the Great Hall and spied Arwen, who was sitting on a settee, doing needlepoint in the sun that was streaming in through one of the high windows.

"Oh, that is pretty, My Lady", he commented. "How are your children this morning?"

"They are well, Gimli, and have gone outside to play".

"I am sure that they are enjoying the fine day", said Gimli. Have you chanced to see Legolas this morning?"

"Thank you, Gimli, but no, I am sorry to tell you that I have not noticed him about the halls. Have you tried the stables, in case he may have gone for a morning ride? Someone there may have seen him", she offered.

"Thank you, Lady Arwen", said the dwarf, and withdrew. "Humph", he thought to himself, "I do not think he would have gone for a ride yet. It's too early, even for him". He continued looking down the hallway leading from the Great Hall. Presently, he came to a room with a closed door. He thought he could hear voices coming from inside, and one of them sounded a great deal like that of Legolas. He knocked on the door, which wasn't shut all the way, and it swung open as he hit it. To his great surprise, he saw Legolas standing beside a bed, naked and holding his clothes in his arms. Lindaril was sitting up in the bed, also naked, and she gasped with horror when she saw Gimli. Legolas, shocked at the sight of Gimli standing in the doorway, darted forward. Gimli cringed and slapped his hand over his eyes.

"Get out, Gimli!" yelled Legolas, and threw the first thing at hand, one of Lindaril's sandals, accurately at Gimli's head. Gimli then ducked hastily out of the room when the shoe bounced off his head, and slammed the door.

Later on in the morning, Legolas met Gimli outside of the stables, where the dwarf had gone for a smoke of his pipe by himself. "I am sorry, my friend, I must apologize for throwing that shoe at you", he said, shaking his head. "That was most unlike me".

"It was not the only thing that was most unlike you", retorted Gimli, blowing a smoke ring at Legolas. "After bemoaning to me the fact that you are constantly being pursued by women, and you don' t want any part of it, I then find you bedding one the first time you meet her! It was not a sight that I would care to behold again, while I still live!"

"I know it does not make any sense", said Legolas. "I was under a sort of spell, and did not know what I was doing. That elf-woman bewitched me. I felt quite out of control for one of the few times in my life, and I must say, I do not like the feeling. It has made me somewhat grumpy and not feeling at all myself. I need to get away to clear my head. Come, let us leave now for Moria. I do not wish to meet up with Lindaril again while we are here. I will tell you about her while we are on our way. I took our leave of everyone before I came here to the stables, so you need not go back to say goodbye."

"Leave now?" cried Gimli. "We cannot leave now!"

"Why not?" asked Legolas. " You were wanting to leave as soon as possible only a few days ago. Come on now! Let us go!" Legolas leapt up onto Arod and pulled the reins to turn the horse around.

"But I wanted to say goodbye to Aragorn, and - oh - grrr! Never mind!" Gimli growled as Arod shot past him and galloped off down the northern road. It took Gimli awhile to catch up as he had to find someone to help him get up onto Cemera. "Hammer and tongs, I hope I haven't forgotten anything important", he grumbled, as Cemera sped off down the road after Arod.

Legolas and Gimli galloped on for several miles at a very fast pace without speaking to each other, before they came to a small stand of mostly evergreen trees just before the Stonewain Valley, where they decided to stop and let the horses rest. They were keeping to the northward road and their plan was to follow it along the north side of the Druadan Forest and then turn west when they reached the road to Edoras in Rohan. They were planning to pay a visit to King Eomer before continuing on their journey to Moria.

Along this road, the war beacons of old of Gondor were located, from that of Amon Din in the south, to the Halfirien beacon at the northernmost edge of the White Mountains. The lighting of these beacons would summon the Rohirrim to come to the aid of Gondor during wartime, but during this time of peace, the beacons were no longer used, and their guardians, the beacon-wardens, had all left their posts and dispersed into the nearby villages.

The two friends let their horses drink at a nearby stream, and they themselves decided to build a fire so that Gimli could cook some food and have a smoke of his pipe before they moved on again. After they had been at camp for a while, sitting and talking, they heard the sound of approaching voices, and horse's hooves. Presently, a band of raggedy-looking men came within sight of them, leading an old horse by a rope tied around its thin neck. The poor, bedraggled animal was laden with bags and bits of furniture and other meager possessions. The men were five in number, and three looked to be of the Rohan people, but looked more like farmers than Rohirrim, the horse masters. The two others seemed to be of the mountain people, or possibly of the wild men of the Druadan Forest.

"Well met, strangers", said one of the men to Legolas and Gimli.

"How do", replied Gimli.

"Mae govannen", said Legolas morosely.

"Are you all travelers out of Rohan?" asked Gimli, as the two groups of men looked each other over.

"In a manner of speaking, and reluctantly, yes", one of the men, a lanky grey-haired fellow, spoke. "My name is Eodrain, and I am from the Westfold. My companions are Halgame and Falodred from Dunharrow, and the other two are Calaquith of the Druadan Forest and Sumnarem from the White Mountains. We were once farmers, then we became soldiers. We fought in the Great War against the forces of Mordor, and then we tried to go back to farming again afterward, without any luck. I speak of Halgame, Falodred and myself. Calaquith and Sumnarem are not of our kin, but they are good men. They are traveling with us".

"Will you sit with us and have some food and drink?" offered Gimli. "There is plenty. My friend Legolas is an elf, and has no need of food".

"We will not say no", replied Eodrain. "We have traveled many a mile without eating anything at all". The other men nodded and grunted in agreement. They looked malnourished and hungry.

Presently, they were all sitting and talking with Gimli, while Legolas went to tend to the poor old horse. After he had taken the rope off of its neck, and the bags off its back, he soothed it with words and gentle strokes of its poor old neck, and led it to the stream for a drink. "Please take care of him, Arod", he whispered to his own horse, and returned to join the men.

"Are you on your way to Minas Tirith?" Legolas asked of them.

"No, My Lord", spoke Eodrain. "Not Minas Tirith as such, although we travel into Gondor as there is nothing for us in Rohan any longer. The country is in poor straits since the war. There is no work for us here, nor any land left worth farming. We go to try our luck in Gondor, to see if things are any better in those lands".

"I think that you will find it so", said Gimli. "Just how badly have things become in Rohan? I used to dwell there for many years, but have lost touch since I have been away traveling".

"Too many farms were burned to the ground. Fields and crops were destroyed in great numbers. It will be many years until the land will be fit for growing anything again. And too many men have been killed in the many battles Rohan has fought. Most of the women and children, and some of the men, the old and the weak, have retreated in large numbers into the cities, such as Edoras, where they now live in poverty, scratching and begging for food and scraps. Until Rohan's boys, still too young as yet, grow into men, there is far too much for those who are left, to do to rebuild. And now, the people of the plains have been attacked by a deadly plague, which has swept through them and left many more dead in its wake. It is from that, more than anything else, from which we are escaping", said Eodrain.

"I am much grieved to hear of this sorry state of affairs", said Gimli gravely.

"I, too, am truly saddened by what I have just heard", said Legolas. "However, I do not think that leaving your own land is the best thing you can do. In Gondor also there was much loss of life and the population of able-bodied men there was also decimated".

"We have it in our minds to go to Gondor to look for work", replied Eodrain. "We have all lost our wives and families during the fighting or the burning of our homes, or from the dreaded sickness, and there is nothing left for us in Rohan except terrible memories".

As the men made ready to continue on their way, Legolas went to re-pack their horse, who was greatly refreshed after being able to eat, drink and rest a while.

"We are friends of the King of Rohan", Gimli told the men. "We are traveling to Edoras to visit with him. We will be sure to tell him your stories. Our blessings go with you. May you find what you are looking for in Gondor".

The men continued on their way along the road as Legolas and Gimli stood watching them, feeling shocked and helpless by the terrible stories they had just heard. "I did not realize that things were so bad outside of Gondor", said Legolas sadly. "I admit that I have been mostly concerned with my own problems and have been out of touch with Rohan. We shall have much to say when we meet with Eomer".

"I did not realize how desperate it was either", said Gimli. "I, also, have been too busy with my own affairs and did not notice anything amiss more than the usual. The people of Rohan seem to be in dire circumstances indeed, according to those poor men".

Legolas helped Gimli get up onto Cemera, and the two friends trotted off side by side. They traveled along the valley until the flat ground gave way gradually to a steep slope. They climbed to the higher ground and continued through a hilly, rocky area. Legolas suggested that they turn westward as he did not want either of the horses to throw a shoe. There would be no smithies for many miles or possibly not at all, according to the tales of desolation that Eodrain had told them. They were approaching the southern slope of Mt. Mindolluin, and the rocky hills began to give way to another green valley. This should be a more pleasant route for us", Legolas said to Gimli. When they reached the valley, they stopped again beside a small stream in order to let the horses drink. Legolas looked around at the countryside. They had stopped in a small enclave of green hollowed-out ground shaped like a huge shallow dish, with the stream in the middle. There were willow trees and rushes growing around one side of the dip, and on the other was a slope angling up toward the higher ground. He walked toward the trees and could see that there were woods a little further along.

"Gimli, would you like to explore those woods?" he called to his friend.

"Ah, no, if it's all the same to you, I'll just stay here and enjoy my pipe", Gimli responded. "You go on, though, and I'll keep an eye on the horses".

Legolas turned and walked toward the wooded area. Once he was surrounded by the trees and standing in the shade that they cast, he sensed that the atmosphere had changed. There was no breeze, and nothing seemed to be stirring. He felt, however, that he was not alone. He stood very still, his senses working acutely. The feeling of a presence grew stronger. He closed his eyes and stood stock-still, trying to determine the whereabouts of this presence.

Gimli had been waiting for a while with the horses when Legolas walked back out of the woods. "You took long enough!" growled the dwarf.

"I had a sense when I was in there among the trees that someone or something was very near", said Legolas. "Then the feeling went away rather suddenly. I think we are being followed, but the follower does not wish to be discovered, and has moved farther off. I think he, or it, sensed that I was aware of its presence". He looked thoughtful.

"Oh, well, that is good news!" said Gimli sarcastically. "Thank you for putting me at ease, Legolas! Come, we had better move on again. I had thought that this would be a pleasant place to stop for the night, but now you have unnerved me". He made to go for the horses.

"No, Gimli", said Legolas. "I do think this would be a good place to stop. I believe that whoever was following us has gone away now, as I do not sense a presence any longer. And if there is someone following us, then they will still be doing so, no matter where we did decide to stop. Also, this area really is open enough that if anything were to attack us, we would have enough prior warning to stop it".

Gimli snorted. "This is beginning to feel like old times! I am glad that I brought my axe. I never know when I might need it, and I am comforted that you also have your bow and arrows".

"But I do not have them", replied Legolas.

"What?" exclaimed Gimli. "Are you saying that you have not brought your bow and arrows?"

"Yes, I am saying that. I did not think that we needed to worry about being attacked, now that the war is over".

"Are you mad?" Gimli shouted. "We could still be attacked by bands of Dunlendings, or by wolves!"

Legolas looked sheepish. "To tell the truth", he said, "I probably would have brought them, but I left Minas Tirith in such a hurry that I did not think to pack them".

The two friends looked at each other. "Let us not worry about anything until there is something to worry about", said Legolas. "Come, and we will make a comfortable place to camp, and then we can talk about various things".

After they had made camp, they sat where they could see all around them in case anyone were to approach during the night. "It has saddened me to hear of Rohan's troubles from those poor old men we met earlier", said Legolas.

"I am sure that Eomer must know what is going on in his own country and is managing to deal with those problems", said Gimli, "although different people have different ways of dealing with changing times. For some it is far more difficult to adjust than for others, it seems. I mean that Gondor seems to have handled the aftermath of war much better than Rohan has".

They talked on through the night. Legolas told Gimli what had taken place between Lindaril and himself, not sparing any details.

"I am sure that she put me under a spell of some kind", he said. "Against my own wishes, I succumbed to having relations with her".

Gimli coughed with some discomfort at hearing of his friend's personal relationship matters. "I do not understand why something like that should bother you", he said. "Can you not just put it behind you?"

"No", replied Legolas. "I feel quite upset about it, and very unsettled. I do not like the way I feel and it will be a while before I will be able to put it behind me".

After several hours, Legolas became suddenly alert. "Stay here", he whispered to Gimli, and, crouching down low, he sprinted swiftly toward the grove of trees. He moved as silently as snake would through the grass. When he reached the edge of a patch of brush, he suddenly thrust his arm through the tall grass. There was a brief struggle, and then Legolas pulled out a small figure, cloaked in black. He carried it, while it kicked and squirmed in his grasp, back to camp, where Gimli stood holding his axe, on the ready for a battle.

Legolas set the writhing bundle on the ground, and pulled off its cape. Revealed before them was Lindaril, and she was gasping angrily, trying to find her voice.

"You!" cried Legolas. "You are the one who has been following me!"

Lindaril shivered, and drew her cape closely around her. "I can explain why you found me here", she gasped. "I have not been following you, Legolas".

"Have you not, indeed!" he cried. "I sensed your presence in the woods earlier today! If you were not following me, then what were you doing there, and why did you not make yourself known? You must have seen me!"

Lindaril shivered more violently, and drew the cape more closely around her shoulders. "I would have made my presence known, but I was in the throes of an illness that came suddenly upon me, and I could not speak at the time. When it passed, then it was too late. You had gone".

Legolas looked skeptical. "I do not believe you", he said. "It is not possible that you should be sick. You are an elf, as I am, and we do not get sick, or feel the cold. Why do you shiver so?"

"Well, I am sick, and I do feel the cold", she replied testily. "I do not understand why it is so, but I have not been feeling well for a long time. I feel that something is growing inside me that should not be there, and I feel as if it is slowly destroying me from inside out. At times I feel a sharp pain in the center of my body, which turns me cold and then I start to shiver and shake. If I wait quietly, it passes in a few minutes. I am traveling in the same direction as you because I am on my way to the Grey Havens. I have decided to leave Middle-earth at this time, to escape my illness, because if I do not, then I believe that I shall die".

Legolas looked at Lindaril intently. "I do not know if what you say is true or not", he said. "A lot does not make sense to me. For instance, why do you travel on foot if you are so ill, and not on horseback?"

Lindaril coughed slightly, and looked as if a twinge of pain was passing through her. "I cannot manage to look after a horse if a spell overtakes me", she said. "The spells come more frequently now than they used to, but in between them, I am all right, and traveling by foot is the way I have always traveled, and I do not mind it. If a spell comes, I can lie down until it passes".

"Well", said Legolas, "You have told a strange tale, and it is not the first we have heard today. This has been a strange day in many ways".

Gimli spoke slowly. "The world is changing in many odd ways as we enter unforeseen times", he said. "Perhaps it is possible at this time for elves to get certain illnesses. There are strange plagues about, and much upheaval of the lands. Come, lass. Please lie down and try to rest. We will build a fire to warm you, and we can talk more when the morning comes".

Gimli led Lindaril to a comfortable spot to lie down on the grass, and spread a blanket out for her. He then covered her with another warm blanket from his saddlebag. Legolas spent the rest of the night sitting as far away from Lindaril as possible, staring at the fire as it shrank into red, glowing embers, and keeping a wary eye on her at the same time.

When the red sun of morning broke the horizon, Gimli and Lindaril awoke to find that Legolas had made the horses ready. "As soon as you are able to leave, I will let you ride upon Arod", he said to Lindaril, "and I will walk alongside. You may come with us as far as Edoras, which is where we are headed, and then we will part company with you there".

"Legolas", said Gimli. "Do not be so hasty! Please let the lady have something to eat first, and prepare herself for the ride! Would you like some elvish waybread?" he asked. "Or would you prefer something warm to drink? I have heated up some mead".

Lindaril blanched, and she looked very pale. "You are kind, but I really do not feel like eating anything", she said.

"Then please have some mead, at least", said Gimli. "It will warm you inside. You will need some sustenance for the journey". He offered her a cup of liquid that he had warmed in the dying embers of the fire. She took it and gingerly drank some. Then she smiled weakly at Gimli.

"You are being very kind to me", she said to him, "whereas Legolas is not".

Gimli looked at Lindaril sadly. "Legolas does not mean to be unkind", he said. "It is not his way at all. Please do not feel that you have to leave Middle-earth on his account, if that truly is what you are doing".

"You do not understand, Master Gimli", replied Lindaril. "My troubles began long before I met the two of you. As I drifted between despair and happiness for most of my life, I reflected on how interesting life is because of those two opposites. When I was in despair I began to strive only for satisfaction, never assuming that I could ever achieve happiness. When struggling through bouts of despair, I tried to let it not consume me, but simply counted the days until the cloud lifted. It helped if I adopted some form of ritual during the worst times, because that was a comfort to me. I would walk in the morning when the dew was on the ground and rejoice in the beauty of the world, or eat only foods that I liked most. I bathed daily, to refresh myself, and I sang only my favorite songs".

"Harrumph. Well, that sounds very interesting", said Gimli. He found himself uncomfortably wondering why people seemed to choose him on which to unload details of their personal problems.

Legolas looked impatient. "Could we please be on our way?" he asked. "I do not wish to linger here much longer. The sooner we get to Edoras, the sooner it suits me".

Lindaril sighed. "You do not need to go out of your way to show that you do not care for me", she said. "Do not worry. After we reach Edoras, you will not see me anymore. I wish only to bid farewell to the Lady Eowyn, who showed me kindness in the past, and then I shall leave for the Grey Havens as soon as I may".

Legolas looked at her curiously, but did not say anything. He merely nodded at her as if to make his agreement known to her.

The three travelers then packed up and moved on, Lindaril and Gimli on horseback, and Legolas on foot. After a few hours of traveling, they came to a hilly area, and decided to turn northeast again, and follow the valley that would lead them past the beacon-hill of Nardol. As Legolas could walk at a very fast pace and run without tiring, he had no trouble keeping up with the horses, and they were able to cover quite a long distance in the course of a day. They had no wish to stop again before the next nightfall, so they kept going until they reached the outskirts of a small village. They could see a few sharecroppers' huts in the distance, dotted here and there on the sparse landscape.

As they approached along the well-worn road, which was, in the past, frequently used by stonemasons and quarrymen, Legolas's keen eyes spotted in the distance a woman crossing the road. She walked with halting steps and appeared to be carrying a small bundle in her arms. She was making for a pile of rocks on the roadside. He saw her then place the bundle, which was tightly wrapped, down upon the rocks, and then she turned and stumbled back the way she had come and disappeared into the hut closest to the three travelers.

Legolas, alarmed by what he had seen, halted the horses, and told Gimli and Lindaril to wait. He walked toward the rocks slowly, to look at what the woman had put there, not knowing what he would find. As he drew closer, he spotted the bundle lying in a crevice between two rocks. It was moving slightly, and he bent down to look at it and reached out to pull back its covering. Gimli and Lindaril, who had been watching Legolas, heard him cry out in anguish. Gimli nudged Cemera forward, a look of concern on his face. Arod did not need to be nudged, and shot forward when he heard his master's cry.

Legolas had picked up the bundle and was holding it close to his chest as he ran back to show his companions what was in it. When he unwrapped it, they saw that inside a dirty cloth was a baby girl, all skin and bone and naked. She looked barely alive and she did not or could not cry because of her weakness. Gimli and Lindaril looked stricken.

"Great open pits!" cried Gimli.

"This poor child is half dead!" exclaimed Legolas with anguish. "I am at a loss. I know not what is best to be done. I would like to run her back to Minas Tirith where Aragorn can tend to her with his powers of healing, but I will have to take her on foot, and she may die before I can get there, but I know not what else to do. I saw a woman from that nearby hut placing her here on the rocks to die, I think. One of us should go to try to find out why she has done such a thing. I will have to leave you now and make haste to Minas Tirith". He turned to go, but Lindaril pulled Arod's reins and the horse blocked his way and stopped him.

"No, Legolas, do not go", she said. "I also possess some healing powers. Let me try to help her while you go to the hut to see why her mother left her on the rocks". She took the baby from Legolas and drew back the cloth to look at her more closely. "If you can find it, I will need some hot water, swaddling clothes - clean, if possible - and some fresh mother's milk. If the woman is the child's mother, perhaps she can give us some".

Legolas nodded. He gently placed his hand on Lindaril's shoulder in a gesture of goodwill. "Thank you", he said softly.

He and Gimli then ran towards the woman's hut. Legolas stopped after a few paces. He was sniffing the air.

"What is it, Legolas?" asked Gimli.

"I can sense a sickness swirling on the wind", the elf replied.

"Oh, that is good news", Gimli said sarcastically.

The two approached the hut very slowly. When they came up to it, they saw that the door was open. They went inside. Within, the hut was in poor condition. It had a dirt floor, which was covered in filth. They could see a woman lying on a dirty pallet in one corner. The only other occupants of the hut were a goat and a lantern. There was nothing else in the small dark room, no dishes, or any remnants of food. The hut stank of a foul odor. Legolas and Gimli approached the woman, who stirred slightly and groaned. Kneeling down beside her, Legolas touched her arm with a light hand.

"We are travelers who mean you no harm", he said. "We saw you put a baby on the rocks beside the road. She is not dead, but she is very weak and we wish to help her. Can you tell us why you did such a thing?"

The woman turned over slowly so that she could see the person who was speaking to her. Her face was thin and dirty, and her hair was dull and dry. She looked fairly young, but extremely ill. She gazed in wonder at Legolas, and thought that he must be an angel sent to take her to a better place.

"My name is Elspeth", she said, her voice thin and weak. "My baby and I have the plague. Do not come near us. I thought she was near death and placed her where I buried her father not four days ago. I meant to bury her as well, but I was too weak to dig her grave. I thought to rest before I made another attempt at digging".

Legolas could see that the woman was covered in sores.

"We are two elves and a dwarf, and we cannot catch what you suffer from", he said. "We would like to help you. Is there no one else living in the nearby area?"

"No, not anymore", she replied, in a parched, hoarse voice. She coughed up some phlegm. Legolas lifted her up by the shoulders so that she could better clear her lungs. "My people are all dead. The plague has taken all of them. Robbers, too, have come and taken all of our possessions, such as they were", she added.

"We see that you have a goat", said Legolas. "Can you give us milk for your baby? If not, we can milk the goat. Thankfully, it is a female, as I can see".

Elspeth tried to sit up. "My milk has dried up", she said. "And I became too weak to milk the goat. She needs to be milked. But Enna is not dead?"

"No, if that is your baby's name, then she is not", replied Legolas, "but she is close enough to it. However, we shall try to feed her and see if that does not invigorate her". Legolas picked up a rag from the floor and gently wiped the woman's face with it. He tried to clean some of the dirt and old vomit from her clothing and bed linens.

Gimli then walked over to the goat. "I can see that this poor animal needs a milking, and soon", he said. "I shall go and fetch our pot, and then see to milking her. I shall build a fire to warm some water as well, and then we can begin to clean up your living quarters". He ran outside to tend to his chores.

Lindaril was treating the baby with some herbs that she had brought with her in a shoulder bag in order to use for her own illness. She had started a fire over which a pot of water was boiling, which Lindaril had hung over the fire suspended between two branches. Gimli looked at her with some admiration in his face.

"You are very resourceful", he remarked. "The baby's mother is indeed lying inside the hut, and she has a goat which I am going to milk, so that the child can be fed, if you think that she needs milk in her state. The mother tells us that they both have the plague, and that it has killed her husband".

"This baby has some sores that have dried up", said Lindaril. "I have given her an infusion of Athelas and some boiled water that should see her strength returning soon. I do not think that she is going to die. She has no cough, nor fever. Her lungs are clear. Can you hold her, please, Gimli, while I go to look at her mother?"

"Er- humph - well - " stammered Gimli, as Lindaril placed the baby in his arms and dashed off toward the hut.

After speaking to Elspeth and looking her over very thoroughly, Lindaril turned to Legolas. "I do not believe that this lady and her baby are going to die", she said. "The worst part of the sickness seems to be gone, as they do not have fever, and their sores are healing. They are both very weak, though, and the mother still is coughing. I do not think that they should stay here". She looked around the hut with distaste.

"Lindaril, you have proved yourself to be a much worthier person than I had before thought you to be", said Legolas. "I feel I must apologize to you for speaking harshly and treating you discourteously".

"Legolas, you really are an obstinate fool!" she replied.

Legolas looked shocked. "How dare you speak to me that way! I am a king, and I had the grace at least to apologize to you!"

"You are no king of mine", she retorted. "Please come outside, as I wish to tell you something that I had vowed I would never tell another living person. However, I think now that you need to know it, as I shall be leaving Middle-earth very soon".

Legolas was aghast that Lindaril could turn so quickly from being a caring nurse to Enna and Elspeth, to thinking only of herself again. He followed her outside, but then she said, "I have changed my mind again. I do not have time to talk to you now. This woman and her baby need tending, and then I think that they should be taken to Minas Tirith, as you had first suggested. I shall take them, as I can look after them on the road".

"Will you not perhaps be overcome by a spell of sickness on the road?" asked Legolas, "as you before mentioned? Then how will you look after a horse, a sick woman and her baby?"

Lindaril shot him a look of anger. "That is a chance I must take", she replied, and went to retrieve some clean clothing and herbs from the provisions she had brought with her.