3. Twenty-two Red Rangers
"It – it was Darlon's idea!" The sheepish ranger eagerly pointed a finger in Darlon's direction.
Halbarad aimed his glare at the new focus of attention. Darlon raised his eyebrows, then said, "No! It was Erel's!"
Halbarad watched as each ranger passed the blame for the homely touch of Yule treats in his pack and the sprigs of evergreen around the fire tonight. Did they think him lonely? Whosever idea this was would hear what he thought of that – but each ranger continued to pass the blame as shamefully as children. Finally, Aragorn held the blame of the entire company. All looked to him for his response.
"Actually, Halbarad, it was – your wife who put me up to it." Aragorn smiled, although he, like the other 21 rangers, were as red as beets.
This is a work of fan fiction, written because the author has an abiding love for the works of J R R Tolkien. The characters, settings, places, and languages used in this work are the property of the Tolkien Estate, Tolkien Enterprises, and possibly New Line Cinema, except for certain original characters who belong to the author of the said work. The author will not receive any money or other remuneration for presenting the work on this archive site. The work is the intellectual property of the author, is available solely for the enjoyment of Henneth Annûn Story Archive readers, and may not be copied or redistributed by any means without the explicit written consent of the author.
