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Ananynse shifted to her side, the sharp stones beneath her poking through her cloak as she tried to find a somewhat comfortable position on the granite rock she lay across. The wind rustled the leaves of the birch tree above her as she slid over a couple more feet. The snoring lumps of her men across from the glowing coals of the banked fire flickered against the darker backdrop of the forest edge a hundred yards behind them.
This close to a more comfortable bed, and yet she dared not lead them into even a few feet of the forest. Their way through this land of rock and more rock at the foot of the mountains was dangerous enough with the bands of patrolling Orcs from the Mines of Moria to their west and from Mordor to the southeast, but the rumors of the elves within the Golden Wood and their protection of their borders she knew were not exaggerated. There was more chance of being shot on site first, and questions asked later that she dared not take any chance there.
She sighed as the rocks beneath her seemed to dig in further and finally sat up, rubbing her hip as she leaned over her knees. The fire barely gave out much light, banked as it was and shielded from view by the overhang of rock. The lone tree she sat beneath brushed it branches on the overhang and enclosed the area fairly well for them to be hidden enough to get some quick rest. She pulled her heavy braid of copper hair to hang over her shoulder and adjusted the band that held it tightly braided. It’s silkiness was always a problem and she usually pulled it as tight as possible, or else seemed to have a mind of it’s own.
But her hair was her one concession as otherwise from a distance, she looked like one of her men. The tunic and leggings were loose enough that they did not reveal her thin figure, not that there was much there to begin with, and with her cloak and helmet, most could not tell she was female even at close range. Until they saw the braid, and then her dark eyes. Try as she might she could not change the long lashes that framed the dark brown of her eyes, and the high arching brows that spoke of her Elvish heritage. The hair was pulled tightly back over the tips of her ears, then braided, falling to her waist when free, but hanging to the middle of her back while braided. Giving the band a final twist she rubbed her hands to warm them as she stared into the glowing coals. Was it only a year ago that she’d left home? It seemed like a lifetime.
Home, she laughed to herself, was it really that? Grimacing she reached into her belt pouch pulling out a small piece of dried fruit and began to slowly chew. They had followed the Old Forest Road through the forests of Rhovanion, fighting several patrols of Orcs there, the darkness creeping ever further toward her lands. Her home in the Erid Mithrin, the Grey Mountains, had been harsh. It was a land that was not forgiving, but she now was the Oracle of Mithrin, now that her mother was dead. Dead, and why was she here, on the borders of Lothlorien, Moria and the light knows what sorts of dangers, on a quest to find answers. She scratched the back of her head, the last couple weeks of travel had not given them any time to stop long, and too far from the Anduin to take a least a quick dip. Light! She’d lay down in even a few inches of water if it meant she could be clean again.
But the last bath, she had to laugh at that, the last bath had been the fall into the stream as they had passed through Rhovanion, the forests of Mirkwood were dark, but not as dark as her visions. Her latest vision completely overtook her, and if it hadn’t been for Delvan, she’d be lying there still. She laid her forehead on her knees as she rubbed her arms. The wind seemed to swirl about the small cavern, and the coals of the fire burned a bit brighter with the gust of air. Dead, just over a year ago. Still she could hardly believe it, her mother, gone into the shadow. She betrayed you, betrayed your people. How could she do it? Because she didn’t consider them her people, Ananynse grimaced. They only tolerated her mother over the years, first because of her marriage to King Thodren, and then because of her visions.
They had protected the Mithrin for over two hundred years, long enough for her daughter to grow up, and begin to see visions of her own. But Ananynse’s visions were different. They always had been, so dark, so despairing. She grew afraid to touch anyone, so many deaths she saw. Only the barest touch would send her reeling, and of late, unconscious. What did it all mean? She looked up as the sky began to lighten slightly, and stood, stretching the tight muscles. Walking over to where the sentry stood she knelt beside him as he sat looking toward the wood.
“You’ve been thinking of your mother again.” Delvan whispered, turning his head toward her with a frown.
Ananynse grinned, her teeth a white flash in the darkness, “You know me too well I’m afraid, Delvan.”
“You have to let it go, it was not your fault, Deyanan did what she had to do, she wanted more power. You know this. She wanted revenge, Ananynse. For all the supposed wrongs we did to her, after all these years. Why didn’t she just leave after Thodren’s death? She could have gone back to her people, she was fully elven.”
Ananynse frowned, “She couldn’t bear the thought that she might be disgraced, living with a mortal and bearing him a child. I don’t understand why she felt that way, Elrond himself is half Noldor, half human, yet he leads the Rivendell Elves as always.” She shook her head. “ I think she was taken by the shadow long ago, I just couldn’t see it. It was only realizing her “visions” were not really anything but pure fiction anymore made me suspicious.”
Ananynse stood, “It’s time to get moving, with luck we’ll be out of these lands by nightfall and mayhap even get close to the river to camp by.” She grinned at the sour look Delvan gave her.
“I fear we will not leave the Golden wood behind just yet, The river Anduin splits as it heads south along the eastern borders of Lothlorien and is where I thought we’d make camp before nightfall.” He looked over to the wood again, the trees starting to become more distinct as the light brightened in the sky overhead. “I fear we may catch their attention, skirting their borders as we are, but who knows. If they were watching us now, we’d not know it.”