Two and a half weeks I followed them and they were currently resting on a rock out cropping on a mountain of which I knew not. To say the least, I was lost. If it was not for the party of people I followed, then I would be damned to wander this mountain. Luckily, they had not detected me and so I continued to live. The break was nice to have, it allowed me to rest and listen in on their conversations and try and find out where they were heading. Yes, I know, eaves dropping was the reason I was a jaguar, but hey, old habits die hard. I perched silently as their words drifted towards my sensitive ears.
"…I'd say we're taking the long way! Gandalf, why don't we take the passage through Moria!? My cousin, Balin would give us a welcoming feast you'd never forget."
It was easy to recognize the rough; gravely voice of the dwarf, Gimli was his name. There was a moment of silence before Gandalf responded, "No, Gimli. I would not take the road to Moria unless there were no other choice."
The feisty dwarf grumbled in frustration, and I thought that was the end of all discussion, but the smooth elven voice spoke up. "What is that?"
"'Tis nothing but a cloud!" Gimli exclaimed, but I could feel the tension and nervousness emitting from the group from where I sat. Which, might I add, is quite a ways off.
"No, it's moving too fast." The man named as Aragorn argued.
"And against the wind." murmured Boromir.
And then I felt it, the growing dread inside of me. The cloud of which they spoke of was coming closer, and I realized that the cloud was indeed a flock of bird like creatures. I snorted in laughter. These warriors were afraid of BIRDS!? I watched in amusement as they all scrambled to hide behind rocks and under bushes. The birds suddenly swooped down and circled the cliff on which they hid, and then I realized why they hid from these birds' gaze. These creatures where evil! Probably servants of Sauron or……Saruman.
Closing my eyes, I laid my head down upon my paws. I was not worried of being spotted for my black fur hid me among the shadows. Soon it was silent, the birds now gone, and I drifted off to sleep. I guess I was more tired than I originally thought I was.
I awoke with a start and jumped up. My head snapped in the direction of where the party had been and my keen eyes raked over the rocky land. Damn it, they were already gone and I had no clue where they were going! I leapt forward and ran over to where they had rested earlier that day and sniffed the ground for any trace of their scent. Again, I cursed when I came up short. No sent, no tracks in the dirt - for the ground was hard, frozen soil - and so there was no way to catch up with them. The only chance I had was to go to the entrance of the mines of Moria. I admit, it was a slim chance. Gandalf had been wary of the place, and if there was another path to where they were going, they would surely take it. But it was the only hope I had and I was not about to give up and have followed them for NOTHING! So off I set, hoping against all odds that I would somehow see my friends again.