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Elf Academy 3: The Enemy Within  by Fiondil

64: Back in the Thick of Things

“…and then Amroth had Gwyn and Gareth fight him with rattan swords and it was almost as good as when Loren fought against five and….”

“Whoa, Zach! Take a breath, man,” Alex said laughingly as he sat in front of Loren’s laptop. It was late Sunday night and Amroth had Skyped at his usual time. Alex happened to be in the library when Glorfindel and Amroth connected and had overheard some of their conversation, joining Glorfindel, Finrod, Daeron and Valandur. Zach had asked to speak to Alex when he learned that he was also there and had regaled them all with a blow-by-blow description of the fighting. Alex had the feeling the younger man just wanted another Mortal to connect with even if electronically.

In the background, Alex could hear Gwyn say, “And you still haven’t told us what that was all about.”

“I felt it was time for the Mortals to see who and what you really are,” Amroth replied, shooing Zach out of the seat to take his place. Glorfindel did the same with Alex and when the two Elves were seated, Amroth addressed his next words to Glorfindel. “Gareth is only hurting himself fighting as if he were a Mortal. That has to stop. He and Gwyn need to show Gwaith-en-Angbor and the rest of the barony just what is at stake.”

“I agree,” Glorfindel said.

“We just didn’t want to intimidate our friends,” Gwyn could be heard saying. “Damn it, Ryan! I wish you would stop treating us as if we were wet-behind-the ears elflings without a clue. Gareth and I have fought in enough wars over the last eight hundred years to know what we’re doing. And it’s not as if we don’t work out on our own. We just felt that doing so in front of Mortals would be a real downer for them. They could never achieve our level of skill. We just didn’t want to give them an inferiority complex.”

“Commendable, but ultimately futile,” Amroth said.

Finrod tapped Glorfindel on the shoulder. “Let me speak with Gwyn,” he said softly.

Glorfindel nodded. “Amroth, Finrod wants to speak with Gwyn.” He vacated the seat and Finrod took his place even as Gwyn was sitting in front of the laptop.

“Your Majesty,” Gwyn said in greeting.

“Finrod,” Finrod corrected. “I have not been ‘Your Majesty’ in more years than even you can count. Now, I appreciate what you are saying but your attitude is all wrong. It is true that Mortals are not capable of achieving the skill level that we have, but that does not mean we must fight on their level. Quite the contrary. They must strive to fight on ours even if they never reach that goal. The Mortals who fought beside us during the First Age were more than capable of holding their own, and were not in the least intimidated by us. We fought and died together and you must teach your people that same truth.”

Glorfindel leaned over Finrod’s right shoulder to join the conversation. “And that was true during the war against Sauron when we laid siege to Barad-dûr for seven years. The Men who fought beside us Elves were full worthy of respect and that respect was reflected in the fact that the Elves fought on their own level and let the Mortals fight on theirs. Had we fought on their level it would’ve been seen as condescending on our part.”

“Exactly,” Amroth said, leaning over Gwyn’s shoulder. “That’s what this is all about. You and Gareth have done an amazing job and I’m very impressed, we all are.” Finrod and Glorfindel both nodded. “But now we must take it to the next level. Eventually, Gwaith-en-Angbor will need to be integrated with the fighting force we are trying to establish in Wiseman, and you and Gareth will lead the way. I think that is what the Valar had planned all along, with Elf Academy to recruit our army and the SCA as the means to train them.”

“That’s what I don’t get,” Alex said. “You’re training these guys to fight with swords and such, but what about the Enemy, whoever that is? He’s not going to stop at swords, not when he has an entire nuclear arsenal to play with. I cannot imagine this Enemy of yours as being so stupid as to limit himself to swords and other primitive weapons.”

“In that you are correct, Alex,” Finrod said, looking up at the Mortal, “but at the same time, it takes no skill to press a button. From talking to the Valar over the years, I have gotten the sense that nothing is as it seems, that this coming war will be fought in ways none of us can imagine, but swords and other so-called primitive weapons will play a part. If nothing else, it is good training. I have the impression that anyone can wield a gun with minimum training. Swords are a completely different matter.”

“Also, keep in mind, Alex, that the war is unlikely to come in your time,” Amroth said. “In the meantime, we need to begin training the Mortals under our care to a particular mindset. Whenever this war commences, these Mortals need to be prepared. Teaching them fighting skills and having them pass that teaching on to younger generations will help in that respect.”

“Well, I still think it’s stupid, but I’m not running this show, so what do I know?” Alex said with a shrug.

Amroth decided to change the subject. “Anything more on Farrell, Loren? Do you have any idea how much longer we have to stay here? We’d all like to get back home however much we’re enjoying ourselves in Fairbanks.”

“I wish I could give you a definitive answer to that, but I can’t,” Glorfindel said as Finrod gave up the seat for him so he could speak to Amroth directly. “I promise, the moment we know for sure, I’ll call you.”

“Okay,” Amroth said with a slight sigh. “Have you decided which of the healers you’ll send down?”

“Manwen will be on the first bus tomorrow. It should be in Fairbanks somewhere around three or four depending on road conditions and the weather. She’ll call you when she gets in.”

“She can share the bedroom with Misty,” Amroth said with a nod. “Good. I’m surprised Randall’s letting his wife travel alone.”

“Oh, he wanted to go as well, but Finrod pulled rank.”

“I have their lives,” Finrod said. “They had no choice but to obey me, Laurendil especially. I promised him that he would be able to speak with Manwen every day when you and Glorfindel connect.”

“That won’t be a problem,” Amroth assured him. “Okay, great. We’ll wait to hear from her. I’ll call you as soon as she gets in so you know she’s arrived safely.”

“Good enough. Talk to you tomorrow. Good night.”

“Good night,” came a chorus of voices from the other end and then Glorfindel disconnected Skype and shut down the laptop. He looked up at the others. “Darren, you want to plan to take Manuela to the bus station, make sure she gets on the right bus and all?”

“Sure, no problem. If you want, Finrod, I’ll drop you off at the same time. The bus leaves at seven so we’ll leave around six-thirty, or is that too early?”

“Not for me,” Finrod replied. “The store will not open until nine but I would not mind having some time to straighten shelves and get some other work done. Nick will be in later in the afternoon.”

“Well, I’ll say goodnight,” Alex said. “I don’t have office hours tomorrow, but I think I might go in and work on my linguistics assignments there. I still need to finish them up. Got too caught up in the game to bother doing any work today.”

“It was a good game,” Valandur said.

“Still can’t believe the Patriots lost to the Giants again,” Alex groused.

“Well, there’s always next year,” Glorfindel said with a smile. “Good night.”

The other Elves wished Alex good night and the Mortal left.

“He seems calmer,” Valandur commented when the Elves were alone.

“Who? Alex?” Glorfindel said and shrugged as he got up and stretched a bit. “I guess. We still need to keep an eye on him, though.”

“That goes without saying,” Valandur retorted with a smile. “I will accompany him to the college tomorrow.”

Daeron gave him a knowing look. “Do you think someday you’ll want to teach at the college?”

“Perhaps,” Valandur replied. “I suppose I could teach one of the classes at Elf Academy, if others wish to pursue other activities. I can certainly teach Sindarin, if nothing else.”

“We’ll have to see,” Glorfindel said. “If we decide to increase the number of students to be accepted, we’ll need to add more classes to the schedule, so some of you may need to step in and help out.”

“That would be good for us all,” Finrod said. “Well, it is late and I think I will retire myself.”

“Shoulder still giving you trouble?” Glorfindel asked.

“Not so much and my energy level seems to be improving, but I find that if I rest more I am able to function better at the bookstore. Also, some of the shipments of books can be quite heavy. I usually let Nick handle those, but I hate to do that all the time. I need to build up muscle strength. I keep asking Vardamir when I will be able to wield a sword again, but he keeps putting me off.”

“Hmm… I don’t know why that would be a problem,” Glorfindel said. “You usually fight right-handed anyway.”

“True, but I have always trained with my left just in case,” Finrod pointed out.

“It seems to me that if you feel you’re ready to wield a sword with your left hand then you should,” Valandur said. “If you find that it still pains you, then you know that you need to wait a while longer.”

“You only work a half-day tomorrow, right?” Glorfindel asked.

“Yes. I will finish around one o’clock.”

“Then why don’t I pick you up and we’ll go over to the college. I’m still not allowed to pick up anything heavier than a feather, but I can certainly get you into one of the smaller gyms and you can work out there. Maybe I can get one or two others to join us.”

“How are your stitches, anyway?” Daeron asked.

“Almost completely healed, of course,” Glorfindel said, “and it no longer pains me to bend over. Still, I need another week or so before I’m ready to start working out again.”

“I am glad to hear it, Brother,” Finrod said with a grin. “I feared we would have to sit on you to keep you from playing with the rest of us.”

“Hmph, yeah, well, some of us do grow up eventually,” Glorfindel retorted with a sniff. The others chuckled. Finrod was the first to leave, wishing everyone a good night, but soon the others wandered off to do their own thing, leaving Glorfindel alone. After a moment or two of indecision, he got up and went to the foyer, grabbing a coat and making his way back through the house, into the kitchen and out the door, meaning to spend a little while wandering in the woods. When he got to the clearing, he met Beleg and Brethorn quietly sitting before a blazing fire and the three Reborn visited with one another as the night deepened.

All three returned to the house in time to see Manwen off, with Laurendil insisting on accompanying her and Daeron to the bus station. Finrod joined them and when they were away, Glorfindel suggested breakfast and soon they were joined by some of the other Elves, along with Alex, while Glorfindel made some pancakes for them all.

Alex and Valandur left around nine to go to the college. Felicity was already teaching, so they had the office to themselves for a while. When she returned she and Alex chatted, discussing the concert, while Valandur listened. After a while, a companionable silence fell between them. Alex continued working on his assignments, while Felicity prepared notes for her next class. Valandur occupied himself with the book of puzzles and brain teasers Elrohir, his Secret Santa, had given him as a Christmas gift while keeping a close eye on Alex. He was all set to call Vorondur if necessary, but the Mortal seemed to have come to some acceptance of what had happened, for he worked on the poems without any obvious distress. By eleven-thirty or so, Alex finished writing and sent the essays to the appropriate instructor.

“And with five hours to spare,” he said with a satisfied grin as he leaned back in his chair after pressing ‘send’. “So how about some lunch?” He addressed the question to both Valandur and Felicity, but his eyes were on the Woman.

“I’d love to,” Felicity said, “but I’m meeting up with some friends to do some shopping and then I have a two o’clock class. In fact, I’d better leave now or I’ll be late. See you tomorrow?” She got up from her desk, turning off her computer, and went to put on her coat.

“Yeah, sure. Have a good time.” If Alex was disappointed, he didn’t show it. When Felicity left, he stared at Valandur. “Looks like it’s just us guys, then, unless you have plans, too.”

“Let us go have lunch and then perhaps you would like to join me when Glorfindel brings Finrod over.”

“Oh?” Alex said, switching off his computer and standing. “What are they up to?”

“Finrod wishes to start working out,” Valandur replied. “I would like to be on hand.”

“Yeah, well, it sounds… pretty boring, but I have no other plans, so okay. Lead on, MacDuff.”

“Ah, a reference to your Shakespeare, is it not?”

“You got it,” Alex said as he turned off the lights and the two exited the office, making their way out of the building. They headed across the quad to Hayes Hall and were soon sitting and having lunch. Alex would not sit near any of the wide windows that made the dining hall a light and airy place, but sat further away. Valandur approved.

They did not rush through lunch, since Valandur assured Alex that Finrod could not get to the college much before one-thirty. “I am not sure where this gym is or if there’s more than one,” he admitted.

“They’ll go to the phys. ed. building,” Alex told him. “There are several gymnasiums there, both large and small. It might take a few minutes, but we’ll find them. They’ll need to find a gym that isn’t being used.”

Thus, when they were finally finished with lunch, they wandered over to the phys. ed. building. It took Alex a few minutes to orient himself, using the map at the entrance that marked all the rooms. “We had our own classes in these two large gyms,” he said, pointing to the map, “but there are a few smaller rooms that they might be using. Let’s go down this way.” He pointed to a corridor that branched off from the foyer and they wandered down it, stopping to look into various rooms. They reached the end of the corridor and Alex turned left. Valandur was willing to follow him. Two doors down they came to a medium size gymnasium where they found Glorfindel, Finrod and the Twins. Glorfindel was seated on a bench against the wall but the other three were on the floor apparently warming up, the three ellyn dressed in sweats and T-shirts. Alex and Valandur entered and everyone greeted them.

“Come to see the show?” Glorfindel asked, patting a space on the bench, inviting the two to sit.

“I wished to see how Finrod does,” Valandur said calmly. “Alex is merely tagging along.”

“I do that a lot when I’m with you guys,” Alex said as he sat between the two Elves. “You’ve been busy.” He gestured with his chin at a pile of rattan swords.

“Dan and Roy made them,” Glorfindel said. “In our day, we carved practice swords out of wood, but these will do just as well.”

“No live steel?” Alex asked.

Glorfindel shook his head. “No. Not yet. Finrod is simply going to see if he can handle a weapon without straining his shoulder. He won’t begin serious training until he’s had time to build up muscle strength. I’ll begin doing the same in another week or so.”

“I enjoyed the fencing class, but I seriously doubt I would want to deal with swords,” Alex said as they watched the three on the floor go through a series of warm-up drills. “Give me an Uzi any day of the week. It’s like that scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark, remember? The bad guy is flashing wicked swords at Indiana Jones and everyone’s frightened, even Indiana, and then he remembers he has a gun and he pulls it out and shoots the guy.” He gave Glorfindel a wry look. “Game over.”

Glorfindel chuckled. “I suppose, but a warrior never disdains using any weapon. What if you are without a gun? What then? Better to learn to wield as many different types of weapons as you can so you are never caught shorthanded.”

“I guess,” Alex said with a shrug.

Finrod and the Twins finished their warm-up exercises and Elladan ambled over to pick up the practice swords, handing one to his brother and another to Finrod. “If it doesn’t feel right, we can trade,” he said. “We tried to make them as much the same as possible.”

“This is fine,” Finrod said, taking a few practice swings.

“You’ll let us know if you’re feeling any pain, right, Uncle?” Elrohir said, giving Finrod a shrewd look.

“Don’t be a hero, Finrod,” Glorfindel called out.

“I am not so foolish, my brother,” Finrod said with a rueful look even as he nodded at Elrohir.

Alex saw the expression and turned to Glorfindel. “Something tells me there’s a story behind your words.”

“There is, but the telling of it would take too long. Suffice to say that Finrod learned a valuable lesson once a long time ago, and yes, I learned one too. Don’t snicker, Val. It wasn’t funny.”

“No, it was not, not from your perspective, but the rest of us all found it amusing even as we were castigating the both of you for your foolishness. When Elrond was visiting Vanyamar once he regaled us with some of the antics you and the Twins pulled together or separately and stated that it had been enough to give him gray hairs. We laughed uproariously at that, knowing exactly what he meant.”

Alex couldn’t help grinning at the discomfit look on Glorfindel’s face, but then his attention was drawn to the three Elves on the floor where the Twins were taking turns going through a series of sword-fighting drills with Finrod. They finished one set of drills, all three wielding their swords with their right hands. Then they stopped to let Finrod catch his breath.

“Any pain so far?” Elrohir asked him.

“No, just stiffness,” Finrod replied, accepting some water from Elladan.

“We brought some salve that should help keep the muscles loose after our workout,” Elrohir said. “Shall we try the left now?”

Finrod nodded and they went through the same drill using their left hands.

“Must be handy, if you’ll excuse the pun, to be ambidextrous like that,” Alex commented. “I’ve had to shoot with my left hand once or twice and it felt all wrong.”

“Ambidexterity in Mortals is rare,” Glorfindel allowed. “Elves are naturally ambidextrous, but even we have a hand preference.”

The drill continued for a little longer and then the three stopped again. This time the Twins also accepted some water.

“How are you feeling, Finrod?” Glorfindel asked.

“Well enough,” came the answer. “I think I will be taking a soaking bath later on though.”

“Take a hot shower before you leave here and use the salve,” Elladan said. “I brought towels.”

Finrod nodded his thanks and took another swig of water. “Shall we go a round or two?” he asked.

“Sure, but don’t push yourself, Uncle,” Elladan said. “There’s plenty of time. The Dagor Dagorath is not likely to begin in five minutes.”

“Little do you know, hinya,” Valandur said with a grin. “I very much doubt the Enemy will send us a note naming the time and place. He will simply attack.”

“So how do you prepare for something like that?” Alex asked. “You can’t go around with an arsenal at your beck and call and you can’t exactly have sentries. What would they be looking for?”

“Vigilance is the key,” Finrod answered before either Valandur or Glorfindel could speak. “We will need to establish armories throughout Wiseman where people can obtain weapons if necessary.”

“Something to discuss later,” Glorfindel said. “Right now, our main task is to begin setting up a training program and for you and me to get back into fighting form as quickly as possible.”

“So, if you are up to it, Uncle, we can spar,” Elrohir said, “but we’ll go one at a time, if that’s all right with you.”

Finrod nodded and gave them a sly grin. “So who wishes to be trounced first?”

The Twins looked at each other and then at Finrod, grinning back. “Who says you’ll be the one doing the trouncing, Uncle?” Elladan said and then even as Elrohir stepped away to give his brother room, Elladan began attacking Finrod who just managed to counter the ellon’s move and then they went at each other while Elrohir acted as a referee.

“Is that legal?” Alex asked Glorfindel.

Glorfindel chuckled. “Remember the old adage about all’s fair in love and war? And Finrod was half-expecting the move. He provoked them deliberately, you see.”

“Hmm….” was Alex’s only comment as he turned his attention to the sparring. He was no expert, but he thought Finrod was just a shade faster and more assured than Elladan, in spite of having to hold back so as not to overstrain his shoulder muscles. At some point, and Alex was never sure how they knew to do it, the Twins actually switched roles, with Elrohir stepping in to take the blow meant for Elladan while his brother stood to the side, his sword held loosely in his hand as he watched the match.

Finrod switched hands, for Elrohir was wielding his sword with his left. Round and round they went, the younger Elf holding his own. Finrod’s expression was blank of any emotion, his focus solely on his opponent.

“How long can he keep this up?” Alex whispered.

“For as long as necessary,” Glorfindel answered, “but I think he will be ending this soon enough. He’s tiring, more quickly than he should be.” He frowned at that. Valandur reached around Alex and patted Glorfindel’s knee.

“It will take him time to recover his strength completely,” he said. “Frankly, I’m surprised he’s lasted this long.”

“Uh oh,” Alex said and the two Elves looked to see what had caught the Mortal’s attention. Elladan had entered the fray again, but this time Elrohir did not step back, so now Finrod was facing two opponents. “That’s not fair,” Alex said almost plaintively. “Why don’t they give him a break?”

Glorfindel and Valandur exchanged knowing smiles over the Mortal’s head. “Don’t worry, Alex,” Glorfindel said in a whisper, giving the Mortal a one-armed hug. “Finrod can handle it, you’ll see.”

And it appeared that Glorfindel’s estimation would prove true. Even fighting against two of the deadliest fighters among them, Finrod was holding his own, his movements assured and economical as he countered the blows. Alex leaned forward to watch more closely, analyzing everyone’s movements, noticing the smooth, graceful dance of death that the three were engaged in. It was only a practice, but he could tell that they were deadly serious about it and he realized that for these three, and possibly for Glorfindel, if not Valandur, the swords were an extension of themselves. They might not carry them as they would have in ages gone by, but they still lived by them. It was a startling revelation for the young Man.

“Give up, Uncle?” Elladan called as he and Elrohir continued their attack.

“Never!” Finrod said, actually laughing. He was on the defensive, but was holding his own.

Alex, however, started feeling agitated for some reason. “He can’t keep this up,” he whispered, his pulse quickening and his breathing becoming ragged. “They’re going to kill him.”

“Alex, relax,” Valandur said, wrapping an arm around the Mortal’s shoulders. “Take a deep breath and relax. It’s all right. Finrod is in no danger.”

“No,” Alex whispered, never taking his eyes off the match. “No, he needs help. He can’t win against them all.”

“Alex?” Glorfindel said, giving the Mortal a concerned look. “Alex, look at me.” But Alex refused or did not hear, his focus on the three ellyn fighting. Finrod was still on the defensive and the Twins were slowly pushing him back with the intent of forcing him into a corner. The swords were moving fast and furious and in spite of being outnumbered, Finrod appeared to be holding his own, but even as he began to swing his sword at one point he winced as a sudden stab of pain assailed him and his concentration was broken, giving Elladan the opening he was looking for.

“NO!!!” Alex screamed and jumped up before either Glorfindel or Valandur could stop him and, heedless of his own danger, he ran toward the fighters and tackled Elladan.

“Alex, no!” Glorfindel cried as he leapt up and ran after the Mortal who was now pounding his fists into Elladan’s face, screaming invectives, while both Elrohir and Finrod, dropping their swords, rushed to pull the Mortal off. They and Glorfindel converged on Alex at the same time and it took only a moment for them to subdue the young Man, still screaming invectives.

“It’s the blood trance!” Finrod yelled.

“Impossible!” Glorfindel exclaimed. “That only affected us. No Mortal was ever affected by it. Alex! Alex! It’s all right. Finrod is safe. See? He’s safe and alive. You saved him. Brave lad. It’s all right. Shh… that’s it. Calm down… All is well. See? Finrod’s alive and well thanks to you.” Glorfindel gave Finrod a knowing look and Finrod took his cue, bending down so Alex, now calming slightly, could see him.

“Yes, thank you, mellon nîn.”

“I couldn’t save you,” Alex said, speaking haltingly in Sindarin, tears streaming down his face. “My lord, forgive me. I couldn’t save you.”

“Shh… it is well, penneth,” Finrod said, also speaking Sindarin. “I forgive you.”

That seemed to be all Alex needed to hear, for he simply collapsed and fell asleep or unconscious, they weren’t sure which. Valandur, meanwhile, was tending to Elladan, wetting a towel that he applied to the ellon’s cut lip and bloody nose. Seeing that Finrod and Glorfindel had Alex in hand, Elrohir rose to go to his Twin who was sitting up with Valandur lending him support.

“Are you badly hurt?” he asked as he knelt beside them, giving Elladan a clinical look.

“No. Just bruised,” Elladan replied, sounding a bit muffled with the towel pressed against his face. “I was able to ward off most of the blows, but I’m going to be an interesting shade of purple for a day or two.” Then he lowered the towel and looked at Glorfindel and Finrod. “What the hell was that about?”

“We don’t know,” Glorfindel replied as he stroked the Mortal’s hair. He glanced up at Finrod. “You think it was the blood trance?”

“It seemed as if he was acting much as anyone who enters the trance would act,” Finrod replied with a sigh, wiping the sweat off his brow. “He obviously felt Elladan was a threat against me.”

“But no Mortal has ever suffered the trance,” Glorfindel said. “At least never in my experience. And who was he?”

“What do you mean?” Valandur asked. When Elrohir joined his brother he had gone and retrieved water bottles and was passing them out for everyone.

“I don’t think he was Alex there at the end,” Glorfindel answered. “He was someone else.”

“Bregdal?” Elrohir asked.

“Or Beren,” Finrod said in a strained whisper, gazing down at the Mortal still unconscious.

“I wonder if Ron does past-life regressions?” Elladan asked. “We ought to get to the bottom of this. Alex is proving too dangerous to us and to himself in this state. Remember what happened at the picnic? We were lucky he didn’t go postal then with children present.”

Glorfindel nodded. “Well, we’ll have to speak with Ron about it, but in the meantime, I think we need to get Alex back to Edhellond. Let’s see if we can wake him up.”

“You and I will do that,” Valandur said decisively, kneeling beside Glorfindel. “Dan, Roy, why don’t you take Finrod to the showers in the meantime?”

“That’s a good idea,” Glorfindel said approvingly.

“C’mon, Uncle,” Elrohir said, helping first his brother to stand and then offering his hand to Finrod who accepted it. “You don’t want your muscles to stiffen up. I saw you wince just as you were ready to strike a blow. Are you still in pain?”

“A bit,” Finrod admitted, rubbing his shoulder. “It surprised me for I was doing well enough. I would have defeated you both.”

“Yeah, sure,” Elladan said with a grin, his face already turning purplish with bruises. “Don’t tell us you were holding back.”

“No more than you, Nephew,” Finrod said with a knowing grin as he and Elladan sauntered off. Elrohir stopped long enough to pick up a duffle bag sitting on the floor by the bench and followed them.

Once they were gone, Glorfindel fished out his phone and soon he was speaking with Vorondur, giving him a recap of what had happened. “Yeah, he was acting upset just before he attacked Dan,” he said to a question Vorondur had asked. “He thought it was unfair that it was two against one… I don’t know, Ron. This whole scenario is freaking me out and you know I don’t freak easily… Okay, we’re going to try to wake him and see what happens…. Uh, maybe in a half-hour or so. Finrod is taking a shower. The Twins insisted so his muscles don’t cramp up especially when we go outside… We’ll expect you when we see you, then.”

He ended the call and looked at Valandur. “Ron’s going to meet us at Edhellond.”

“So I gathered,” Valandur said. “Shall we wake Sleeping Beauty?”

“Sleeping Beauty?” Glorfindel repeated with a laugh. “Wherever did you come upon that?”

“You have several books in your library on fairy tales. I have read some of them. They are most interesting and even entertaining for being Mortal fare.”

“Yeah, well, a discussion for another time,” Glorfindel said. “Let’s wake Alex and hope it’s Alex who wakes.”

“Násië!” Valandur said with great feeling.

Glorfindel bent over the Mortal, brushing a hand through Alex’s hair. “Alex, wake up now. Time to wake up. That’s it. Wakey-wakey.”

Alex stirred, uttering a low moan as his eyes fluttered open. For several seconds his gaze was unfocused and then he was struggling to sit up. Glorfindel and Valandur helped him. “What the hell? What happened?” He looked about. “Where are Finrod and the Twins?”

“Taking a shower,” Glorfindel answered. “Can you tell us what you remember?”

“Huh? I’m not sure. We were sitting on the bench watching the sparring and then… then… I don’t know… it’s all fuzzy and… did I do something stupid?” This last was uttered somewhat plaintively.

Glorfindel gave Alex a reassuring chuckle as he stood up and extended his hand. “No more than usual. We think you were Beren or possibly Bregdal.”

Alex uttered a profanity. “I can’t keep zoning out like that. What if that happens when you guys aren’t around to help me? I could seriously hurt someone.”

“Too late for that.”

They turned to see Elladan standing at the door, grinning somewhat lopsidedly with a split and swollen lip.

“Oh, God, Dan. I’m sorry,” Alex exclaimed, full of chagrin.

Elladan waved away the apology. “Trust me, Alex. I’ve sustained worse injuries than this. Don’t sweat it.” He turned to Glorfindel. “Finrod’s getting dressed.”

“Then let’s grab our gear and get out of here,” Glorfindel said. “I talked with Ron. He’s going to meet us at Edhellond.”

“Great,” Alex muttered darkly. “That’s all I need.”

“Alex, it’s all right,” Glorfindel assured him, giving him a brief hug. “We’ll get to the bottom of this, I promise.”

“I just wish Derek were here,” Alex said with a sigh. “He seems to help.”

“I know,” Glorfindel said sympathetically. “C’mon. Let’s get going. I don’t know about anyone else, but I could use a little drink right about now.”

“Hmph… I could use a lot of little drinks right about now,” Valandur said with a snort and in spite of everything, the others laughed as they gathered the swords and other gear and exited the gym, meeting Finrod and Elrohir along the way.

****

Penneth: (Sindarin) Young one.





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