Waking up to the sensation of being moved is not always pleasant. Waking up to that sensation and realizing that your body is tied to the thing moving can be downright terrifying, especially when you're too weak to do anything about it. This was how Danielle awoke. The first thing she registered was the movement. It was uncomfortable to feel an animal between her thighs that she was unused to riding. Her torso was leaning across the creature's neck and shoulders and the pace at which they were traveling was rather sedate in comparison to what it could be. Opening her eyes and trying to sit up, she realized that her hands were tied in front of her and to the ropes that held supplies to the creature's back. Fear and adrenaline raced through her. Why am I tied up? Am I riding a pony? she thought with some confusion. If she'd been found by rescue services, wouldn't they have used a helicopter to get her out? And they wouldn't have tied her up, right? She'd never heard of that before. Lifting her head weakly, she discovered that there were no helicopters that she could hear and the people in front of her were most definitely not rescue services. An involuntary shiver went through her as she realized that her coat wasn't on her, though she was covered with a blanket. She was also a little startled that her shirt had been changed from the green t-shirt that proclaimed her to be a 'superstar' to the plain blue t-shirt.
"Where am I?" she rasped. Her throat burned and that was only the first ache that manifested itself immediately. Her voice was cracking and she barely heard it. Her left arm throbbed where she'd been cut by that branch and her joints ached from the abuse they'd taken. Her shirt was much looser than it had been when she had started her little sojourn. Her jeans were very loose around her hips and thighs. I must have lost a lot of weight, she thought with concern. It had been a goal of hers to lose weight but this was not how she would have preferred to lose it. Around her, there were low murmurs and the pony came to a stop. The man with the stubble came into her field of vision and he looked at her warily.
He said something softly to her. Danielle scrunched her nose in confusion and he sighed in response. Then he tried something in another language, one that was flowing and melodic. She was slightly entranced by the beauty of it. English sounded harsh and painful to the ears in comparison to the two languages this man had spoken to her. She shook her head slowly to ensure that he realized that she wasn't understanding him. A thickly accented, booming voice to her left startled her when it spoke and she jerked at the sound. Her eyes quickly found a very short man with a red beard. Her eyes slid back to the man with the stubble as he took a step forward. His hands were splayed in the universal sign of peace. He carefully untied her hands and helped her to dismount the animal.
Danielle's legs refused to support her and the man immediately had to gently guide her to the ground. He asked her a question and she just looked around in confusion. She was surrounded by men and what appeared to be children... except their faces were those of full-grown men. The group had stopped completely. The child-like men were looking at her with curiosity and apprehension. The others seemed a bit tense. The one with the shield had a look of compassion on his face. The man with the pointed ears gave Danielle a searching look before turning his eyes to the horizon.
"Water," her voice cracked and she looked at the one holding her up. He gave her a confused look and this time, she said it again with her hand up to her face in a sign for drinking. With a nod, he grabbed a skin off one of the packs and popped the top before pulling it to her lips. She drank slowly, coughing as she realized that there were small pieces of plant mixed in. She pushed it back and he gave her a stern look before putting it back in its place. He asked her something and she looked at him in confusion again. Just facial expressions are not going to cut it, she decided. We need to figure out some way to communicate. Thinking for a moment, she rested her hand on her chest and giving him an even look. "Danielle."
"Daan...gell?" he sounded out. She shook her head.
"Dan. Yell. Danielle."
"Danielle?" She nodded and the motion caused her to become slightly dizzy. She blinked away the dark spots that danced before her eyes. She needed to get something to eat and soon. How long had she been out? Long enough for some guys doing... what did they call it, cosplay? Some guys doing cosplay to find her in the forest. Her attention snapped back to him. He mimicked her initial motion.
"Aragorn."
"Aragorn?" she carefully parroted back. He smiled slightly and bowed his head. Danielle gave a tired smile in return. She'd always been good at pronunciations. She learned French in high school and her teacher had been impressed with how well she could imitate the accent and how quickly she had picked up the pronunciations. Once she knew how to say it, it was locked in her brain. He gestured to the old man that had approached them. He wore grey robes and a grey pointed hat.
"Gandalf." Ah, so it's time for introductions then? she thought. She dutifully repeated the name. He pointed to each of the group and stated their name carefully. She repeated them back and only struggled on the name of the blond that she could only describe as beautiful. Each of the men she'd seen here was, in her opinion, uncommonly attractive but he was beautiful. She never thought she'd use that word for a male but that was what she was doing now.
"Legolas."
"Leggola?"
"Legolas," he sounded for her again. Scrunching her face in concentration she gestured for him to say it again and he complied. The blond in question was looking at them now with an expectant look on his face.
"Leg. Oh. Lass. Legolas. Legolas," she sounded out slowly at first. It was so close to the word 'legos' that she had to take a moment to dissociate the word in her head with the name that she was trying to learn before her. With the final try, she got a nod of approval from the name's owner. A sigh of relief left her. It would have been embarrassing if she'd continued to say it wrong. Her stomach chose to groan at that moment and Danielle didn't care enough to flush with embarrassment. While she'd been on the ground, Aragorn had moved slightly back and had let her sit on her own. He crouched next to her instead. He turned and said something and the group around them began to disperse with the determination of people who had set tasks they were meant to accomplish. A fire was built and a pan was placed over it to heat. Aragorn and Boromir helped Danielle to stand and get close to the small camp they were making. Glancing up at the sky, she took note that it was getting dark. Hadn't it been dark the last time that she woke up?
While the smell of some salted meat wafted from the pan, Aragorn had reached for the bandage on her left shoulder. She hissed in pain and pulled back when he pushed on the angry red wound. "What the hell?" she gasped. He lifted his hands in a placating gesture and she frowned but allowed him to touch the wound again. His fingers probed and prodded. He had a skin of water at his side and opened the top. Then the bastard pushed on the edges of the wound and Danielle pulled back again as the edges came apart and a thick mixture of pus and blood emerged. Her voice was hoarse as she moved back, falling over as she tried to retreat from the source of her pain. The others paused, some looking tense as they watched her. Danielle even saw Gimli (at least that's what she thought his name was) lift his ax a little higher as if getting ready to strike.
Aragorn stood up and had his arms out, gesturing for the others to back away. He stepped forward and Danielle just looked up in fear and confusion as she pressed on the damaged flesh. She didn't understand what he was saying but his meaning was clear: he's just trying to help. He gestured to the seeping wound and then to the water skin. Looking around, Danielle realized that they were all waiting for her response. Hesitantly, she nodded.
"I guess I have no choice, right?" she muttered as she let him tend to her. His methods were simple: he pushed out as much infected tissue as he deemed necessary, dumping a little water over the flesh to clear it and then he chewed up some plant before spitting onto her wound. That part had disgusted her more than anything and she tried to pull away again. Aragorn gave her a stern look before continuing with his work. "Wow, this is unsanitary. I mean, really, really unsanitary," she moaned in disgust as he pushed the messy stuff on her skin before wrapping it in a bandage made from the very same sleeping pants she'd already started tearing up for that purpose. I guess they looked through my stuff. Thank god I don't have to worry about them finding any tampons in there. So glad I chose to get my Depo shot last week.
He finished wrapping up the wound and helped her to get closer to the fire. The smell of the food cooking was making Danielle's stomach twist in all sorts of ways. A water skin was offered to her and she drank from it gratefully. It was the same one with the herbs in it. This time, she choked it down without complaint. She was feeling better than she had in a while and could only guess that these men had something to do with it. She didn't feel feverish anymore and from the fact that her stomach hadn't felt like it was painfully empty when she woke up, she could only surmise that they had put forth the time and effort to force her to swallow some kind of drink or broth while she was blacked out. A small plate was handed to her with slices of an apple, a little bit of sausage and some carrot pieces on it.
"Thanks," she smiled at Sam, who flushed under her gaze and turned quickly to giving food out to everyone else. The fact that he had served the one named Frodo first, and with the largest portion, didn't escape her notice. Every bite that Danielle took was spent carefully chewing and swallowing, her eyes examining this strange group for the first time.
She was sure that they were some kind of cosplay group at first. The medieval clothes, the swords and shields, bows and arrows. The axes. Even the old man with the big stick seemed like he was out of some fantasy novel. But then there were little things that made Danielle doubt this first theory. Merry, Pippin, Sam and Frodo all had these big, hairy feet that couldn't have been prosthetic. The toenails looked alive and healthy and the toes actually moved and gripped as they walked around. And their ears. They had these big ears that swept back into slightly wavy points.
Then there was the blond, Legolas. He was inhumanly beautiful and his eyes held ancient knowledge. And what of those delicately pointed ears? She'd never seen anything like them except in old fairy tales. She chewed thoughtfully on a piece of sausage as she directed her gaze to Gimli. If she had to think of a name for him out of the fairy tales she'd heard as a child, she'd have to say he was a Dwarf.
Looking at him now, it was fairly obvious that he matched the description. He was short, stout, strong and the brunette wouldn't have been surprised if he started singing 'Hi Ho! Hi Ho!' at any second, though he had a bit of a gruff demeanor. He'd make an excellent Grumpy, she thought with a little smile. He caught her gaze and his eyes narrowed. Danielle looked away and found that she was being stared at as well. The man named Boromir had a pensive look on his face. She hesitantly smiled in his direction. He blinked and then sent her a charming, somewhat roguish grin in return. It made him look younger, more handsome. Blushing, she finished what was on her plate and Sam collected it with a smile.
"Thank you," she said softly. Though he didn't understand her words, she hoped he understood the sentiment. Things seemed to settle down as the light continued to fade from the sky. Merry and Pippin had come to sit next to her during the meal and were now whispering to one another while looking in her direction. I wonder what it is they're talking about, she thought as she picked at a string on the bottom of her shirt. That action reminded her that it was a bit chilly and she pulled the blanket that had been loosely placed around her shoulders closer.
Then a thought occurred to her that should have earlier. Danielle frowned and looked down at her shirt. Last she remembered, she'd been wearing the green one. That's the one that had the hole in the sleeve from the wound she'd received. When had she changed? In fact, who had changed her? Glancing around the camp, she spotted Aragorn over by Gandalf. They were speaking in low voices and pulling out pipes. In fact, most of the camp except for Boromir, Legolas and Frodo had pipes drawn and were stuffing dried herbs into the spouts.
As Danielle watched, Aragorn and Gandalf lit their pipes and took deep draws of smoke, their eyes occasionally darting to her. The smell of weed filled the air and she raised her brows as she realized just what they were smoking. "You guys like the ganja, don't you?" she asked with some incredulity.
The men around her looked at her curiously for a moment. Shaking her head, the young woman waved at Aragorn to get his attention. He stared at her and she pulled at the collar of her shirt and gave a questioning expression on her face before pointing around the camp. The question was obvious: Who the hell saw me topless? The older man had the courtesy to blush slightly before he pointed to himself and to Gandalf. Danielle's face turned redder than a tomato and she used the blanket on her shoulders to hide her face. "Gods, can this get any more embarrassing? No, wait. Don't answer that. The answer to that question is always an emphatic yes," she groaned.
When she peeked out from behind the blanket, she saw some of them looked just as embarrassed as she did, though there was some mirth lurking behind Gandalf's eyes. Yawning, she realized that she was exhausted and wondered how that could be when she'd barely been awake a couple of hours. With a huge yawn, she pulled the blanket around her shoulders more tightly and leaned to her right where a large boulder was at. She wasn't sure if she would be able to sit back up if she tried to lay down. Getting into a comfortable position wasn't hard. As tired as she was, she just fell asleep as soon as her eyes were closed.
0o0o0o0
Someone was gently shaking her awake. Irritation flew through her.
"Go away. I'm not going to work today," Danielle grumbled, waving her hand in a shooing motion.
"Danielle," a soft masculine voice whispered. The gentle shaking was a little more firm this time. With a groan, she popped an eye open and then the other. Whoa. Just. Whoa, she thought as she realized that she was, indeed, awake now. Legolas gave her a gentle smile as he moved on to wake Merry and Pippin. I could definitely wake up to that every morning. Quite happily. With pancakes. And strawberries.
Gimli snored loudly off to the side and broke the dazed woman from her thoughts. Sitting up, she realized that someone must have moved her during the night. She was laying on the ground with a cloth bedroll underneath her and the blanket she'd fallen asleep with tucked around her. What's more, she felt significantly better than she had the day before. She decided to test that feeling by slowly getting to her feet. Though her legs wobbled a little, they kept her up. That's when her bladder decided to make itself known. It was painfully full. Seeing that the others were in various stages of wakefulness and were taking care of some task or another, Danielle decided to take care of her problem without bothering anyone else.
With a single backward glance, she stepped into the trees. She walked for a few minutes before she was satisfied that the foliage was dense enough that she couldn't be seen. Doing her business didn't take long and a deep sigh of relief left her. Her eyeballs were no longer floating, as her mother would say. Grabbing a couple leaves from the tree she was squatting next to, she wiped and then pulled her panties up. She made a note to herself that she would change into a clean pair as soon as she figured out what they'd done with her pack.
Danielle was on her way back when a hand covered her mouth and another arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her to a hard body that smelled badly of rotting things. The hand over her mouth was vile and dirty. A chuckle in her left ear left her sick to her stomach. A harsh language was spat out from that mouth, spittle and stench following the words. Her stomach rolled and she struggled against the arms of her attacker. Another chuckle sounded next to her ear. Gods, but does his breath stink! The sound of metal being released from a sheath made her freeze. The arm that had been around her waist had moved and now a blade was pressed against her throat. Adrenaline surged through her and her mind raced.
Remembering that movie with the undercover federal agent at a beauty pageant, she flashed to the part where good ol' 'Gracie' taught a little self defense. Never hurts to try it, she thought as she brought her elbow hard into her attacker's gut. He gasped and his grip loosened. The blade shifted away from her throat. She stomped on his foot hard and his hands were completely off her now. Curling her fingers into a fist, she slammed her knuckles into the nose of the thing, because she couldn't think what else to call it, and was satisfied to hear the crunch of a nose being broken. Spinning around to face him, she was temporarily stunned to see how hideous it really was before gathering her wits and taking a few steps back before running forward and kicking with as much force as she could between his legs. Having played soccer as a youth gave her excellent aim.
The thing only had a loincloth to protect its family jewels and wore a shoulder guard for armor, nothing more. The howl it let out was loud and full of rage as it dropped to its knees, the blade dropping to the ground and forgotten. A rather impressive trickle of blood flowed down its exposed thigh and the front of the loincloth was dark and damp. Oh, Gods... I must have ruptured a testicle. I mean, I heard only eight pounds of pressure could do it but, damn... That's got to hurt. I don't care who you are.
She backed up slightly from the wailing and enraged creature uneasily. It glared and pulled out a nasty looking blade that was dented and scratched. Its bulging eyes and scarred skin were pale and as it stepped forward with a faint wobble when a blur of blond and green and brown erupted from the brush behind her, followed by a much more visible Aragorn and Gimli. The twang of a bowstring sounded through the air and a sickening thud silenced the mutant. The three newcomers looked around anxiously for a few moments before ushering the stunned woman back to camp.
Legolas had pulled his arrow from the eye of the foul beast and wiped the shaft of the gore that stuck to it on the grass. He frowned and eyed the blood that streaked down its thigh and then soaked the loincloth before turning to look at the retreating woman with a raised brow and a slight shiver in his shoulders. He muttered something she couldn't understand in that melodious language she'd heard the day before and then followed behind them. She got the gist of his words. That's right, don't piss me off. I'll break the family jewels.
As the realization that they'd killed the creature hit her, Danielle stopped and the other three men tried to urge her on but she turned away and ran to the nearest tree trunk before emptying her stomach. She'd never seen anything killed before and it made her sick to think they were just leaving the corpse in the woods. In the light of the dawning day, the woman knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that these men weren't playing games. This was no joke. They were deadly serious about the weapons they carried. After a moment she stood up straight and spat out the bile taste that lingered in her mouth. She looked in the direction of the creature and made a vague gesture.
"What the hell was that?"
The three of them looked at her with slight confusion. She repeated herself a little louder, her eyes getting a bit wider as the fear began to return. Her body was already trembling from the adrenaline that had just been pumping through her from the last encounter. With narrowed eyes, Gimli stepped forward this time and pointed.
"Orc."
"Orc? Orc? What the hell is an orc?" Danielle put a hand on her forehead where a headache had started to form. The three in front of her were getting antsy and it took a second of discussion before they began to lead their distraught and confused charge back to camp. The others were already packed and ready to go with anxious looks on their faces. The fire had been hastily covered with dirt to put it out and the overall feeling was tense as they looked for any signs of trouble. Lions and tigers and orcs, oh my! Lions and tigers and orcs, oh my! She thought repetitively, a harsh laugh leaving her lips. "Gods, is that what I am? Was that flood my tornado? Is this Oz? Next you'll be telling me we're off to see a Wizard! I'm going bonkers. I really must be going insane," she concluded almost hysterically, her hand trying to go through her hair but being stopped by the massive number of tangles and knots. When did I last brush it? Do I still have a hair brush?
Nine pairs of eyes watched her with both interest and concern. It was obvious that she was distressed. But, then again, she'd never seen an orc before. Whatever that was. It looked like walking scar tissue.
Gandalf and Legolas spoke briefly before the pointy eared beauty disappeared into the woods with his bow drawn. The brunette could have sworn that he leaped into a tree branch that should have been too high in a single bound. Super legs? What the hell? The old man gave her a measured look before he stepped forward with his staff in hand and grasped her wrist and wrapped her fingers around the wooden shaft just below his own grip. After a few muttered words, an odd sensation of warmth and tingling slowly made its way up her arms.
Then it happened. Images poured into her head of more creatures like that orc. They were foul smelling and were committing horrific acts upon others. She had an image of a great battle between these orcs and Dwarves and people dressed in golden armor that looked like supermodels. Even Legolas was there. In fact, the supermodel warriors all had pointed ears like his. A single word transferred itself to her mind when that image came to her: Eldar. Was that what Legolas was? An Eldar?
Next, images of little people walking around a crowded but happy street. They had big, furry feet like her smaller companions and the same kind of curly hair and ears. The word that she suddenly associated with them was Hobbit. Suddenly her head ached terribly and she let go. A wave of nausea passed through her and she stumbled. A pair of strong arms caught her before she fell. Her legs already were a bit wobbly. This hadn't helped one bit. Looking up, Boromir offered a concerned look while he used a piece of cloth he tore from somewhere to wipe at her nose. A small smear of blood was there. She hadn't even realized that Boromir had moved during her little vision quest.
Gandalf looked at her expectantly and she took a second to stand up and right herself. Her legs took a moment to become sturdy again. He said something but she shook her head and held her forehead with a wince.
"I still have no idea what you're saying but that was one hell of a headache you just gave me. How did you do that? Hobbit? Eldar? Was that your version of a crash course to people of the world? Needs a little work, if you don't mind my saying so. Just a little too much oomph on the back end."
Disappointment shown in the older man's eyes and he sighed. Legolas returned with a grim look on his face and spoke quickly to the others. The alarm that raced through the others caused Danielle to feel that fear rise up through her again. Whatever was going on was serious. Boromir grabbed hold of her wrist and dragged her to the pony. She thought she heard Sam call it Bill. From one of the packs that were tied to its harness, her pack if she wasn't mistaken, he pulled out her coat and handed it to her. The blanket she'd been using yesterday and last night was nowhere to be seen. They must have put it away. Sam handed her a small piece of fruit that she determined was a pear and a piece of dried meat after she'd shrugged on the coat. She hadn't realized how cold she'd felt until her arms started to warm up.
They started moving at a hurried pace. Whatever Legolas had said to the rest of them had certainly put a fire under their feet. The group moved quietly, and Danielle had the gut feeling that they were trying to avoid something very nasty. She didn't try to ask any more questions. She was already reeling from the imagery she'd already been subjected to. They didn't stop moving until well after dark and by then, she was exhausted. Her legs ached and her lungs burned from having kept a constant pace. Her head was swimming from the headache she'd endured all day, though it had dimmed a little with a sip of the herb-laden water that Aragorn insisted she drink.
There was more caution this time when they set up camp. The area was scouted thoroughly before even one branch was gathered for kindling. Gimli and Boromir seemed to be on a watch while the meal was made and distributed. Frodo was gazing at the woman with curious eyes. Merry and Pippin made a point of sitting on either side of her. The two jovial hobbits were talking with her animatedly, and after a few minutes, she realized that they were trying to tell her what things were called. They made a game of it.
When she had mastered how to say things like rock, fire, wood, water, frying pan, names of foods, hot, cold and other basic words relating to the woods around them, she held her hand up for a high-five. They gave her confused looks until she showed them what she was waiting for. They looked at each other and then gave an experimental high-five to each other before grinning at her.
"You two are just adorable," she laughed as she taught them a low-five and then fist bumps. Aragorn had amusement on his face as he observed her interactions. She got up and handed her plate to Sam, who gave her a smile. She rubbed her stomach and made 'yum' sound before saying, "Thank you." He flushed and tugged her hand as she turned to walk away. He said something and she repeated it back; he was teaching her how to say 'thank you' in their language. He nodded and then said what must have been the equivalent of 'you're welcome.'
Walking over to Aragorn, he looked at her with an expectant expression. Making a motion like she was adjusting something on her shoulders, she repeated the word she thought Pippin had meant for 'pack.' His eyes lit up and he walked over to the pony and untied it from the harness. She took it gratefully and began to dig through the contents. It looked like they'd gone through her clothes and rolled up everything they'd taken out. Jeans, tank tops, her shorts and her ruined Superstar shirt were all neatly rolled and stowed. Her blanket was there too. The bras and panties were behind the rolled up fabrics.
The plastic bag with the solar charger and her cell phone was at the bottom. The lighter she carried was sitting underneath it but the knife and flint were missing. Her first reaction was to look through all the pockets on the pack. She discovered an unopened packet of thin mint girl scout cookies she'd forgotten were there and . Putting the cookies back, she looked further until she looked to the man waiting beside her. He had expected her to ask him questions.
She opened up the pack and gestured to the bottom. He pulled back his long coat on his right and revealed the hunting knife she'd been looking for. She frowned and searched her memory. Had Pippin and Merry told her the word for 'give'? No. She didn't think so. She held out her hand and gestured instead.
"Give it back, please." He shook his head and patted on the hilt of the knife on his hip. He had no plans to return it. Rubbing her eyes with her hand she shook her head. They might be helping her get better but they obviously didn't trust her. Looking back up, she put her hands together and asked again. "Please."
The simple word he used to deny her was obviously 'no.' Danielle sighed. She wasn't going to get anywhere tonight. If they didn't trust her, they certainly weren't going to arm her. Turning back to sit between Merry and Pippin, she noticed that Gandalf and Sam had come to flank Frodo. Giving them an odd look, she sat down and began to review the words she'd learned during the meal with the two.
0o0o0o0
Several days passed and the group of nine males and one tired and confused female continued walking wherever it was they were walking to. Danielle had seen no settlements, no evidence that they were anywhere near civilization. The night previous had been rather... interesting, to say the least. She'd gotten bored and had pulled out her iPhone after the evening meal and turned it on. She'd been letting the solar charger hang off the top of the pack from a clip and the phone had charged during their walk. She pulled out the earbuds she always had wrapped around the thin device and tucked them into her ears. Tapping on the music app and selecting Kings of Leon, she hummed to the tunes that played loudly in her ears.
A tap on her shoulder brought her attention to Frodo, who had been slowly warming up to her over the last few days. At first, he'd been very reticent to get too close but had given her kind smiles and glances. He had started to help the other hobbits that were always pointing things out and trying to teach her new words. The others in this strange group had been putting in their two cents. She could now ask and answer some things in very broken Westron. That was what they called the language they spoke. Pulling the earbuds out of her ears, Frodo smiled curiously at her.
"What is this?" he asked, gesturing to the device. She didn't know how to say music in Westron yet, so she hummed and pointed to it. He frowned, his head cocking to the side and she smiled.
"Come. I show," she replied. He stepped forward slowly and she turned the volume down before carefully tucking an earbud into his ear. She selected a different song, something by Enya and hit play. The widening of the hobbit's blue eyes and jaw dropping was comical.
"Gandalf! Come! See!" he called after a moment. She looked up in surprise when the old man appeared rather quickly before her, hand gripping his staff tightly. She eyed it wearily. Frodo took the earbud out of his ear and when Gandalf got a little closer to his level, he plopped it into his ear. The curiosity in his twinkling blue eyes turned to mirth and pleasure at the soothing sounds being produced.
The old man gestured to the device and said a word. He repeated it, then hummed. Danielle nodded. "Yes. Music." He took the earbud out and handed back to her. By that point, others who had been observing were curious, most notably Merry and Pippin. They wanted to try it, so she put one bud in each ear and turned on the music. Since she had selected the Enya song from the song list instead of the artist list, the song that came up next on shuffle was Hotel California by the Eagles, the live version. Their eyes lit up and their bodies were swaying to the sounds. Danielle giggled as their faces screwed up while they tried to figure out the lyrics. The protests when the song finished and she pulled the buds out of their ears made her laugh outright.
With matching pouts, they walked over to where Sam was taking inventory of the supplies and tried to distract him while one of them attempted to sneak an extra bit of fruit. Standing up, Danielle had to adjust her pants again. The legs were extremely baggy and she had to fold the waistband over on each side before tightening the belt to make sure that they stayed up. Nearly a month of having very little to eat and suffering from an infected wound, which she was amazed hadn't killed her, had caused her to break through that plateau she'd hit before this little adventure started. From what she'd seen looking down at her body the few times she'd been alone, she estimated she'd lost a good thirty or forty pounds in that time.
She was about to pop the buds back into her ears when she noticed Boromir looking at her again. He had taken to walking beside her whenever she wasn't surrounded by the hobbits. Gimli was another of the group that had taken to walking beside her. She'd discovered that beyond his gruff demeanor was a very warm and jovial personality. Boromir would gallantly assist her if she seemed to struggle with things, often offering to carry something with a, "I will help."
He came to sit next to her and pointed to the earbuds. Danielle showed him how to place the bud in his ear and then put the other in hers. She skipped past the Britney Spears song (a guilty pleasure and only one of three you could find in her collection) and grinned at the appearance of the Nickelback song Shaking Hands. Hitting play, she watched his face carefully as the rock riffs started. The dark blond man grimaced at the sounds but kept the bud in his ear. It was obvious that he did not like this kind of music. With a stifled chuckle, she changed the song to something a little more soothing. His expression relaxed and the tension in his shoulders released.
"This music is good." Boromir's eyes closed as he listened to the sounds of Loreena McKennett. Danielle was pretty sure that the song playing had bagpipes as the primary instrument, though she wasn't a musician. She could sing pretty well but it was something she rarely displayed to others. She only had two years of choir in school. She hadn't pursued it after that. She often wished she'd taken up an instrument in her youth. She couldn't play a guitar to save her life.
"All my music is good," she murmured in English. She received a grunt in response. They sat in a companionable silence, listening to the music that she carefully selected for being gentle in comparison to the Linkin Park and Static X that was sprinkled throughout her playlists. Danielle had very eclectic tastes. The only music she couldn't listen to was from Slipknot, though she had tried very hard to like it in her teens. It always ended with a headache for her.
The man eventually stood up and pulled the bud from his ear. It was his turn to take watch. With a slight bow and a charming smile, he headed to relieve Aragorn and Legolas. Danielle blushed at the attention. This was not something she was used to. She had some male friends and they had smiled at her but she was the fly on the wall in most cases. She could tell when someone was flirting because she'd seen it directed at other people enough but to have it directed at her? It was just downright weird. She could hear Pippin talking to the recently relieved pair in animated tones. He gestured over to the brunette and then to his ears, obviously regaling them with the news that she could play music from a shiny rectangle. Aragorn nodded sagely and responded to the hobbit's excited outbursts with something that she didn't yet understand. Legolas smiled slightly at him and then drew his gaze to her. He raised a brow in question towards her.
Danielle realized that she wasn't going to get very much time to listen to the music by herself and waved him over. He sat down next to her, his back much straighter than the previous blond that had occupied the spot. It was getting late and the others were beginning to settle down for the night.
"Want music?" she asked with an earbud offered. He examined the tiny thing and then held his hand out to see the phone. She clicked the power button for a second and the screen lit up with an image of the desert that she liked. She unlocked the phone and the music app opened. The album cover showing right then was of a forest scene. The look of wonder as he examined the glowing device was adorable on his handsome face. She took a moment to really examine his features and decided that while Boromir's face was attractive for the maturity of his features, Legolas was attractive for the youth he displayed. His fair skin was smooth and blemish free, his lips were thin but sensual and his jaw was more masculine than she had initially thought. Her eyes were drawn to his ear and the delicate point. She wondered if his ears felt different than hers.
"I will listen," he said softly when his examinations were done and he handed the phone back to her. She demonstrated putting the bud into her ear and he parroted the motion. Checking that the volume was low to start with, she selected another Enya song. She had the feeling that he would like that kind of music the most. Orinoco Flow gently played and Danielle watched as a pleased and surprised smile crossed his lips. Maybe it was the fact that she'd been working in customer service all her adult life but she loved to see people light up with happiness. She was a people person.
Another Enya song began to play, something she'd heard was related to a famous film trilogy but she'd never really taken too much time to think on it. Her eyes had closed some time during the last song but they snapped open when Legolas gently touched her shoulder. His eyes found hers with an unreadable expression. He asked her a question but she didn't understand it. Carefully, he asked it again more slowly, indicating her phone in her hands.
"This music again?" he clarified. He wanted her to replay the song? Thinking he just liked it, she nodded and hit the back button. Glancing at the name of the song, she didn't understand why Legolas's expression was suddenly so serious. May It Be was a great song, sure, but he was quite somber as he listened to it.
"What is it? Is something wrong?"
He didn't respond. He held up a hand and called softly to Gandalf. Again, the grey clad man came over. He had a questioning look on his face. He knew what the device was. The blond held the bud he'd had in his ear out and said something quickly in that melodic language he and Aragorn seemed to know so well. Gandalf gave her a sharp look before placing the bud in his ear.
"Again," Legolas said. She hit the back button and May It Be began again. Listening to the lyrics, Danielle realized that there were two parts to the chorus that weren't in English. She'd thought they were Celtic of Gaelic but obviously they recognized the words. Gandalf gave her a hard look after the song ended. She hit the pause button.
"What wrong?" she asked. He seemed to consider her for a moment before he responded.
"Old words. Quenya," and the rest of what he said was lost on her. Old words? What the hell does that mean? And what is Quenya?
Gandalf walked away and called to Aragorn, who was smoking his pipe before he settled down. Legolas remained behind and sat back down next to her. He laid a comforting hand on her shoulder and she could only give him a look of confusion before she decided to go to sleep. She didn't know what was going on but she was too tired to think about it. Stowing her phone after turning it off, she laid down on the blanket she pulled from her pack, which was a dark blue fleece-like fabric, and wrapped it around her before letting the darkness claim her for the night.