[Niluial]

Andtuariel sat up pulled herself from her dream world and looked around, a dazed, slightly confused look on her face. Sometimes the dream world intertwined itself with reality and it was hard to pull them apart. She stared at the pale sky with pink and red streaks across it, looking like an unfinished masterpiece.

She turned her head and saw Elwë shivering, though his face was peaceful as he dreamed of elven lands that were far away from this iceland. Reality hit her like a ton of bricks. Today is the day we go searching for the Palantiri in the ice-cold snow.

“Elwë!” she whispered while shaking him.

“Please, it can’t be dawn already,” he said miserably.

“Well it is and we better get ready." She paused, hesitatingly. Then taking a deep breath as if she was about to go swimming in a dark ocean, she said quickly, "But we need to talk first.”

Elwë pushed himself into a sitting position and sighed deeply. "What about?”

“Everything. I am very concerned. Yesterday you went looking for wood and yet came back with none. You have been acting secretly and I know Luindal doesn’t trust some of us as we might be part of the other side. You are acting so strangely and I don't understand why," she said almost pleadingly. "I really don’t want him thinking you are on the Cor” she quickly interrupted herself, “you aren’t right?” She cast an anxious glance at him and chewed her lip. She didn't want to ask, but she had to. She had to know.

Elwë sprung to his feet, his pale face becoming a splotchy red. “I can’t believe you would even think that! Why would you think that! I…” he shouted. “I am not even going to answer the question. It’s the silliest thing I have heard! And here I thought you trusted me! I thought I trusted you! I… oh I don’t care.” With that he threw his blanket down, grabbed his fur coat, and stormed out of the tent.

“Good morning” Annû said.

“Morning!” Elwë said acting as if everything was fine.

****

The wind wasn’t as strong as it was the day before when he went spying but the snow laden wind still cut into him and the others. Elwë walked closer to Annû. They smiled kindly to each other, they had connected lately and a real bond was forming between them. “I am a bit nervous about today. Luindal looks worried and I just know something… well I feel something is going to go wrong.” Annû said, looking down at the dry yet very cold ice.

“I feel it to, I really do.” Elwë said morbidly.

The rest of the walk was in silence. Elwë didn’t want to talk, he had too much to think about. The Palantiri, the attack that was bound to happen and Andtuariel. He tried his best to not think too much, he had to focus on the ice and the lifeline. He wasn’t cold anymore, his body had just become numb and lazy, it was hard to walk feeling so. Something is watching us, something. Before he could think any further Annû stopped the group as he found something. He took out a stout blade from his pocket and bent down, chipping through the ice but instead of finding the Palantiri he found a larg grey rock. The group sighed and kept looking.