Air was gray, and as the sounds of clashing swords and the ring of steel on steel faded behind her, Julia was suddenly afraid. She had not been scared as the orc shot arrow after arrow in her direction (they had never had very good aim anyways), but she certainly was now. She had seen him leave Merry and Pippin on the trail, and had watched helplessly as they were taken away.
She had been torn. Torn between her two best friends and…him. And she had made her choice.
But now she was afraid of what waited for her, just beyond the bushes. She could see him, in his travel beaten clothes, and the elven cloak clasped around his shoulders. She knew that he was leaving. Leaving her, she thought. And Julia understood. But not enough.
"Frodo!" she cried, bursting through the bracken. All was silent for a brief moment as he turned, with a rather resigned look on his face, as though he had already known that she would follow.
He turned, and approached her, gravel crunching under his feet. "You know that I have to leave," he whispered. "You understand what I have to do."
"Yes" she replied. A tear ran down her face. She understood. But how could he do this to her?
"The ring must be destroyed," he said.
"Frodo, don't go," she pleaded.
"You know that you have always had a special place in my heart." Frodo said, reaching forward to tuck a stray strand of her dark hair behind a pointed ear.
"Please," Julia whispered. He touched her hand in that soft way of his, and looked at her with those big blue eyes. There was a deep sadness in them, one that had not been there when they left the shire emptiness.
"I wont forget you," he said.
"You don't have to do this" she whispered, "let me go with you!"
"Julia," he said, "I couldn't do that to you. There would be dangers that I could not bear to have you face."
"You think I'm not strong enough?" She said, her voice growing sharp with anger.
"No, no!" he seemed panicked; worried that this was coming out all wrong.
"You think that I can't face the danger? After all we've been through together, you still don't trust me?" There were tears in his eyes as he again reached up a hand to touch her face.
"I couldn't bear to lose you." he was getting closer and closer to her. Julia was sure she knew what was going to happen, but she wasn't sure she wanted this, if he was just going to leave.
"And I don't want to lose you," she whispered back, "the ring already has a hold on you. It will consume you, like it did Gollum. I couldn't... that cant..." She was crying now, the tears stinging her eyes, "I couldn't let ...it...change you if I knew that I could have stopped it somehow."
He was looking at her, in that way of his, lips slightly parted, as if she were the most beautiful thing in the world. Then he leaned forward, took her face in his hands and kissed her.
She could see it in his face as he pulled away. It was killing him to leave...And yet she knew that he had to. The kiss still lingered on Julia's lips and she knew that if she let him walk away now, she might never feel it again
His fingers brushed my cheek and then his hand slowly fell to his side with a thud. He reached down and grabbed his knapsack, quickly looking away as if his eyes hurt
Her heart was pounding, but it was more of a reminder of who she was, more than the fear rushing through her veins.
"I'll never hold you back ill never let you down. But more than anything, I love you and you need me to make this journey. You cannot go alone. Remember that hope remains while the company is true, and if you keep no company, Fordo Baggins, how will you have any hope at all?"
His eyes said everything she needed to hear.
They would always be together