Long Lost Leaves

[The Sasquatch of Fangorn]

Borin chuckeld. "Hehe. I have that effect on people. My brother used to say that if I worked as hard at mining as I did at making people laugh, I'd have been the one to find the balrog!"

[feawen]

Nami finished with her own arrows and sat back, looking up at the sky, "Maybe it wasn't a man," Nami said almost to her self, "Maybe it was a dwarf, ha that would explain a lot!"

[Acalewia]

"Not many, Ellysa," Aelfwine said. "I came to know Legolas and Gimli briefly in Helm's Deep. It was through them that I came aware of the rift between Dwarfs and Elves," She turned to Nami. "I have never understood either," Aelfwine chuckled at Borin's comment. "Then it is a good thing you did not, Dwarf,"

[orithil]

Hedrim walked up casually next to Borin "Everyone seems to be getting along well" he said and sat down "You know I remember the battle of Helms Deep, I wasn't there of course but I was there in the charge with Erkenbrand" he looked into the sky "of course it was a short lived victory with the battle of Gondor and so forth, I came to that as well"

[The Sasquatch of Fangorn]

"Aye." said Borin, pulling out his pipe "I was at the battle of Gondor. And Helms Deep. You see I helped Helm Hammer-hand excavate tose caves. So, naturally I wanted to see that they didn't fall into the hands of orcs!"

[orithil]

"Battle of Gondor?" Hedrim exclaimed surprised "why were you there?"

[Acalewia]

Aelfwine rolled her eyes at Hedrim's words.
"I'm surprised you weren't at Helm's Deep, to hear you boast of all your battles and conquests," She said. Turning from the man she then asked Borin.
"You were at the Battle of Helm's Deep? The only Dwarf I saw was Gimli,"

[The Sasquatch of Fangorn]

"Aye" said Borin "I was indeed there. I was on the other side of the causway. Fighting off the incoming warg riders."

[Coffeehouse]

As he awoke the cool air was gently nibbling Quickleaf's face. He had dozed off while the company sat scattered around in what could be assumed to be a dysfunctional circle with a crackling fire fuming away in the centre. The spectacle of fire shooting into the dark sky was visible for miles to be sure. But as Quickleaf had observed early on, this odd ensemble of characters seemed not to observe any strict conduct of stealth.
A leaf of fading green came sailing down from the higher branches, and landed between his feet. The air was getting crisper. The summer dozing off.
And Quickleaf pondered silently whereto and wherefrom this company was heading. He grabbed his bow, sprung to his feet and moved centre-circle, sending the leaf flying upwards, defying its eventual fate.

[feawen]

Nami turned from looking at the stars and looked a quickleaf as he sent the leaf flying again. She looked around at the group, how odd they all were. loud ones, like Borin! Silent ones like Ellysa. Mothers, wise men, silent warrors. Elf, man and dwarf. All together. This was what the war of the ring was for.

[Acalewia]

"Ah, you were outside the Deeping Wall. Then that would explain why I never saw you," Aelfwine responded. "Theodin King would not let me fight, even with my bowskill. He said it was too dangerous for a girl to be one the wall during the battle," She smiled. "I stood at the ready around the Caves. If anything got past the walls, they would have to get pass the few of us standing guard,"

[The Sasquatch of Fangorn]

"The king and I had a.....difference in opinion." said Borin sheepishly "He told me to come in and I refused. And if I had listened to him, the wargs would've gotten into the caves!"

[Acalewia]

"I'm glad you didn't," Aelfwine laughed. "The battle would perhaps had ended differently,"

[The Sasquatch of Fangorn]

"Aye. That it would." said Borin, starting to whittle with a piece of wood. "So, anyone else want to tell an interesting story?"

[orithil]

"Interesting story I have many of those" Hedrim said "Most of them are war storys" Hedrim looked at the ground and seemed to be thinking for a moment "what I am surprised at is that during the charge of the Rohhirm I'm not sure if a direct charge was the wisest of things to do, maybe we should have fallen back to the city, used Gondors trebuchet's to fight off the Mumakil." he sighed "an order was an order though, I was just lucky to survive that battle, were you there Aelfwine?"

[Acalewia]

"No, I stayed behind with the few Riders charged with protecting Edoras," she answered. "I'm not skilled with the sword, I fear, and a knife would have done little against the hoards of orcs and their beasts," Aelfwine smiled. "We lost many a good Rider in that charge and the following battle. Many I had grown up with and knowing through my father," The mention of her father sent a pang of grief through Aelfwine's heart. She missed him, but knew he was watching over her.

[Coffeehouse]

As Quickleaf paced towards a few men and a dwarf he heard talk of the siege of Gondor. The daylong bombardment of the White City, Minas Tirith. A city he viewed with fascination.. and puzzlement. He had never understood the desire for great structures of rock and stone, overturned earth and naked mountains. Of course, he had not seen this city with his own eyes. He had heard of the great siege and the spectacular ride of the Rohirrim in their rescue of the Men of Minas Tirith. The last stronghold of the Men of the South.
But back then, in the middle of it. When darkness crept up here, in fair Greenwood, he had not cared for the faith of Minas Tirith. It was too far away, irrelevant. When the forests were all too quiet. When it's pulse was on the verge of stopping. When the masses of orcs and Easterlings were poisoning Mirkwood. Beasts and birds hypnotized by Sauron, wave after wave pushing deeper into the greens.
When trees and bush were alight, and its aftermath. Black ashes and foul death. Never again.

Quickleaf rubbed his eyes. He emptied the flask of water over his face, cool water running down his hair and streaming onto his neck. The light drizzle and moist air was filling his lungs. Felt good.

[Earniel]

Radagast had put away his maps and lay quietly listening to his companions' stories. Gondor, Rohan, the Lonely Mountain and then some... my, these people got around! He wasn't entirely sure how much of all these stories he could believe entirely. Hedrim for one, seemed rather fond of exagerations.

Still, the companions Gandalf had selected seemed quite up to the task if there would be any battles to be done. Radagast didn't think it would come quite as far. Finding the Entwives couldn't be compared to ousting a dragon or routing an orc army. He didn't think either of those situations would come up, surely they wouldn't.

But he hadn't thought they'd be attacked by spiders either and that miscalculation bothered him. It wasn't as if he had locked himself away from the world in Rhosgobel. He travelled and had travelled far, met and had seen many. And yet, it seemed the world was always one step ahead of him. He sighed. The world was ever changing, and Radagast not so much.

"Still," he muttered, "it'll be a dark day again in Valinor, ere I abandon this task..."

The company finally tired of stories and each rolled themselves into their blankets and went to sleep. But not until a watch was established. Radagast wasn't the only one who didn't want to be surprised by spiders yet again.

Two days later, in the early afternoon, the company started to see the first signs that they were at last approaching the ruins of Dol Guldur: traces of hewn trees, long stretches of overturned earth, remnants of crumbling walls, surprisingly quickly grown over by grass; but also dark spots where fires had been and were nothing would grow.

"We are approaching Dol Guldur," Radagast said, stating the obvious. "Do not be alarmed if you see somebody moving about. The Silvan Elves of East-Lórien are guarding the entrance to the underground tunnels of Dol Guldur for me, and no doubt they've put out sentries to spot our arrival."

[feawen]

Nami looked about herself at the ruins and wrinkled her nose.
"The very air smells of evil here, i had forgotton what it was like. It has been a few years since Giladral removed the evil from these parts but the woods still hurt from its presence."
Nami shivered and held her bow tighter.

(occ: sorry about my spelling just finished work, it's very late and im very tired!)

[The Sasquatch of Fangorn]

Borin's warg sniffed the ground. "I think that it would be best if we all remained on guard."