The Eastern Woman

The hidden path

Walking in the darkness and in the still of the night, Haldir and Goneril arrived at the beginning of what looked like a tunnel of branches and fronds, a small path that deviated from the main road.

The soldier girl had lit a torch, which illuminated the path with an orange light. The cloak and the golden sword - which Haldir had recovered from the treasury just before it was thrown into a furnace - had been returned to her.

"Here we are." announced the Elf, pointing the way through the tree trunks. "Now, you have to follow this path. You will come to a barren plain, which slopes downhill. You will have to follow it to the end, being careful not to slip. It is still winter, the ground is hard and there may even be ice."

"I could lose myself." said Goneril.

Haldir smiled. "Don't worry. I left traces as I passed. Follow them."

"What traces?" asked Goneril. "And how come your father doesn't know about this road? He allowed you to go to Dale once a month, why did you have to find a secret way?"

"The official road to the human realm, the one that the King knows, is over there. But as you may have guessed, I often disobeyed his orders. I visited my mother ten times in one month, and of course I had to ... find an alternative. " revealed the Prince. "Nobody ever surprised me."

"Well, your heighness, you have a remarkable temperament. And great courage." said the warrior. "I wonder, though, why you let me go like this." She added.

Haldir looked at her, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Your father must have told you who I am, I suppose. I mean, what was my profession until recently." she answered.

"Yes. He said you are a ruthless cutthroat. He called you a murderer, a brigand. Scum."  retorted Haldir.  "My father has no respect for you, if you wanted to know."

Goneril nodded slyly.  "I know very well his opinions. And do not believe that in the rest of Middle-earth I've earned more consideration. That's why I am surprised: are you releasing a criminal like me...?"  She asked him.  "...you have no scruples?"

Haldir moved closer to her, his features enlightened by the fire were even more beautiful.  "My father said another thing: that you are the daughter of a King. The King of Rohan, Théoden."

"A nice tale that has come this far, I see. The fact must still be proven."  she answered.

"He has read your mind, there's no need for a proof. It's true. And that's why I want to trust you."  the young Elf explained.  "I want to believe that that noble part of your soul, the one that descends from Théoden, will win over the other ... the dark, evil one. The King of Rohan is a good man, I knew, and a person of honor  .You must have inherited something from him. "

Goneril chuckled.  A good man, she thought, who abandoned a daughter who was still in her infancy.  Who betrayed his Queen.

Then she ran a hand over her forehead, because a sudden pang had hit her where the scar was.  "The only thing I could have inherited from that guy is the total inability to respect duties. You don't know Théoden. But you can believe me if I tell you that he has so many regrets that it is even incomprehensible how he can sleep at night."

Haldir remained silent, he was perplexed.  Yet, Thranduil had told him how much he admired that human ruler.  He had been a great leader in his youth, his father had said.

"What are the traces you left?"  Goneril asked, bringing him back to reality.  "I mean, how can I orient myself?"

"I placed stones on the path up to Dale ... small particular boulders, which have nothing to do with the other stones in this wood."  explained Haldir.  "Follow them, you will reach a series of hills after a few hours. Look at the sky: Men light the chimneys in winter, the smoke in the distance will show you where to go."