Of Roses and Rings
Summary: Rose never ended up in Pete's World; something when horribly wrong with the vortex manipulator and she was separated from her family. Instead, she finds herself in Middle Earth, travelling alongside men, hobbits, a dwarf and an elf.
Author's Note: Okay, so I had a little bit of difficulty when it came to writing this chapter. I don't know why, but it was so hard for me to write. I personally think I need to reread the books, since I'm going off just my memory. So, I apologize if I completely butcher something that was beloved to people. I really don't mean to do it.
Chapter Two
Despite the fact that she had a deadly weapon pointed at her head only a few short moments ago, Rose Tyler was happy that she found some sort of companions in this strange new world. One of them may have almost tried to kill her, but she was so glad to have found someone else in this strange universe that she was willing to look past it.
She had a feeling that these people did not trust her. As the three of them walked deeper into the forest, they spoke in a language that she did not understand. It was odd for her; Rose had become so used to the Tardis translating everything for her, even the most simple of Earth languages. Having any language barrier again startled her, and she felt herself trying to follow along with the men's conversation and failing miserably at it. She knew that they were talking about her, although she didn't know what they were saying. For all Rose knew, they could be taking her back to their camp so they could eat her, or harvest her organs. If the Doctor were here, this never would have happened. Then again, if Rose was still with the Doctor, she would be in her own proper world, where she belonged.
Her thoughts of the Doctor made her instantly sad. Having a sharp arrow pointed to her head made her forget her situation for a moment, but she felt relatively safe and thoughts of the Doctor came rushing back to her. She would be without him forever now. She did not even have a choice in the matter. How could she manage living like that? How could she manage being on a strange planet like this one without him? She could never do it on her own; she needed him. She needed him to get out of this mess, but he had no idea she was in trouble. He believed she was fine with her mother and father and Mickey. Her mum! What would Jackie Tyler think? Pete would know Rose wasn't with the Doctor; her poor mother would be worried sick about her. Merely thinking about the Doctor and the family that she would never see again made Rose Tyler want to bawl. But she dare not show any weakness with the two strange men so close to her. If there was one thing that travelling in the Tardis taught her, it was that she had to appear strong, even when she was terrified.
After a few minutes of walking with the two men, Rose saw another group in the distance. She braced herself for the worst; if she fought off the Daleks, she could take a small group of bow and sword wielding cannibals. Once again, she looked at her surroundings, trying to plan an escape route if necessary. But it was no use; she felt defenseless without the Doctor. All of her resourcefulness had been due to his influence. She was strong because of him, and without him she had nothing worth fighting for.
The group greeted the two men, all of them eyeing Rose carefully. She did not appreciate the way that they were looking at her; it was as if she was some evil alien. But she tried not to let her fear show. She looked at each one of them, assessing them in case of a fight. Five of them were extremely short, while the other one appeared to be an average man. Four looked like they were barely children, but each held a sword. Rose had to wonder what kind of world she was on, or what kind of parallel universe this was.
The group spoke to one another in hushed tones to make sure that she could not hear them. Occasionally, one looked up at her with distrusting eyes. After what seemed like forever, she heard someone say, "Frodo will decide." They all turned to one of the smaller people. They looked at him expectantly, but he was staring at Rose. He was sizing her up as if making a decision. Was he deciding to let her stay? Or if they would kill her and be done with it? Rose wondered if he was the leader of the group. What made this small person so special that he was able to decide her fate? Rose shifted her weight uncomfortably; there was something about him that just didn't sit right with her. There was something strange and off putting about this Frodo.
He spoke to his companions, "She will stay with us." His words led to more arguing within the group. Especially from the blonde man.
"We know nothing of this woman. She appears out of nowhere at the edge of the woods, right after we have lost one of our own. We cannot trust her. And she is another burden to bear. One that we cannot afford." Another man nodded in agreement at the blonde's words.
Rose was indignant at the assumption that she would have been a burden. "I have faced Daleks, Cybermen, Autons. You name it. I can handle myself." Rose didn't mention that she faced all of those terrible creatures alongside the Doctor. She didn't want to explain the mad man with a blue box to these people. Her situation was already far too complicated, and she did not want her face to betray any emotions regarding the Doctor.
However, Rose's interjection did not seem to help her cause. The group of eight only regarded her with even more skepticism. These people had apparently never heard of Daleks or Cybermen. Rose felt compelled to explain her case even further to these people. Perhaps then they would understand.
"I was travelling to the Parallel World with Pete, my father I guess you'd say, and I got lost. I'm from the planet Earth." Rose tried to reason with the group. It was infinitely more difficult to gain their trust without the Doctor by her side. What she wouldn't give for some psychic paper at that moment. It would be so much easier to defend herself against their accusations. She wished the Doctor was there. The thoughts of the Doctor brought back a wave of pain. She felt herself getting emotional at the mere thought of him. "I just want to go back home!"
The group looked startled at her outburst and one of the men moved quickly to put his hand over her mouth. Rose panicked; what were they trying to do to her? Were they going to restrain her? Did they decide that they were going to kill her? She did the only thing that she could think to do. She bit down on the man's hand. He jerked his hand back as a reflex and Rose used that time to break herself free of his grip.
One of the other men took a step towards her, and put his hands out in what Rose could only assume to be an effort to calm her down. "You must keep quiet. There are creatures in these woods that would love to see you dead." Rose quieted instantly. She took a step back, not trusting any of the men that she was with. Rose had faced many dangers in her life, but never before had she been so uncertain of her safety.
"We must keep moving," The lighter haired man said to the group. "The woman has drawn attention to our location; we will have orcs upon us within the hour." Without another word, the group moved deeper and deeper into the woods. Rose had no choice but to follow them; she did not want to stick around and find out exactly what these orcs were.
Rose walked with the small people, for they seemed the less threatening out of the group of eight. Two of the smaller people kept to themselves, while the other two were more sociable. "What's your name?" One of the short ones asked her.
Rose smiled, grateful for at least some friendliness in the party, "I'm Rose. Rose Tyler."
"I'm Pippin," The one that addressed her said, "And this is Merry. Tell us about where you are from."
Rose hesitated for a moment. Thinking of home was a little too painful. If the Doctor was right, and he always was, the Void sealed itself shut. Home was lost to her now. She was stuck in this strange place forever. And while she didn't necessarily want to talk about the home she had just lost at the moment, any silence on it would make them distrust her even further. So, Rose indulged the young man before her. "I'm from the Planet Earth – a city called London."
"London," Pippin repeated slowly, letting the word roll off of his tongue. "I have never heard of it before. What is it like?"
"Busy," Rose replied, "And not like this. There are only a few wide open spaces. There are buildings everywhere. Everybody is always rushing about, and it is so crowded. It wasn't for me – which is why I spent most of my time traveling."
"Traveling?" Merry said, his voice becoming eager, "Do you go on many adventures?"
Rose smiled sadly at his question, "Yes. When I met the Doctor, my entire life became one big adventure."
"The Doctor?" Pippin asked, "Who is that?"
Rose Tyler gave the small man a sad smile. "He was a man. A remarkable man." And that was all that she would say on the subject.
Pippin looked like he could sense her discomfort, so he mercifully changed the subject. "Well, hobbits are not really known for their adventures. Unless you count us, and Bilbo, that is."
"Hobbit?" Rose asked, "What's a hobbit?"
This caused a chuckle from a few members of this strange group that she was now with.
"We're hobbits, Lady Rose." Came another voice. It was another one of the shorter men. "Samwise Gamgee, my lady."
Rose had to give a small smile at the politeness of the young man in front of her. "Tell me about where you're from," And so, Sam, Merry and Pippin began talking all about their homeland. She heard all about the quiet life in the Shire, their proud lack of adventures, and, most importantly, the food. Rose fell into a comfortable stride with the four hobbits, listening to their stories and trying desperately not to think of her own home.
They had been walking for what felt like an hour when she heard it. It was faint, almost like a whisper. It was her name, and she could recognize the voice almost anywhere. It was the Doctor. She stopped dead in her tracks, looking all around her for the man to whom the voice belonged. But he was nowhere to be seen. The group that she was with all stopped as well, confused as to Rose's erratic behavior. Couldn't they hear it too? Merry, Pippin, and their companions all looked at her with wonder as she scoured the area for the source of that amazing, wonderful, perfect voice. She peered behind every tree, and her eyes searched the sky. They must have thought she was insane, but Rose didn't care. She wanted the Doctor to be here, to come and bring her away from this strange place.
After a few moments, the black haired man urged Rose to keep moving with the rest of the group, "We need to keep moving. It is dangerous to stay in one place for too long."
Rose did as she was told, although she continued to keep her eyes out for the only one who could save her from this place.
Legolas was still distrusting of the maiden who seemed to have literally dropped from the sky. Two of the hobbits were conversing with her, telling them stories from their homeland. Legolas wished that they would not do that. Whoever she was, it was best if she knew as little of the Fellowship as possible. Legolas was not interested in personal issues, but rather the details as to why she was here and what brought her so close to the Fellowship in the first place. Was this Doctor that she spoke of another spy? When she called for him at the edge of the forest, was she signaling for an attack? He was hoping that upon reaching Lothlòrien, the Lady Galadriel would have some answers. The powerful elleth would know something about this stranger, Legolas was certain of it.
Until they reached the city and could be certain of her intentions, Legolas kept his eyes on the maiden, watching her every move in the case of an ambush. She stayed away from him, noticeably wary of his presence and distrust of her. As he looked on from a distance, Legolas could see that she was looking around expectantly. Who was she looking for? She was searching for something, or someone. Perhaps it was this healer that she spoke about upon their first meeting. He scanned the surrounding area, thankful that he was gifted with elvish sight. He would see someone approaching long before this woman would. Legolas' thoughts were interrupted as the Fellowship saw a ring of arrows surrounding them. The hobbits looked frightened, and Rose let out a cry of fear. Instinctively, Legolas raised his own bow in retaliation, ready to defend the Fellowship if need be.
"The dwarf breathes so loud, we could have shot him in the dark," came a voice from behind the arrows. Legolas could see Haldir, captain of the Guard. Gimli looked at the elf with contempt; it was no secret that the dwarf hated the elves. Out of the corner of his eye, Legolas watched the maiden. She was staring wide eyed at the elves, and at the bows pointed in her direction. While she was on edge, she seemed much calmer than she had when Legolas had threatened her.
The elves of Lothlòrien lowered their bows, much to the relief of the hobbits and Rose. Legolas saw her calm down as the immediate threat subsided. Legolas, Aragorn and Haldir all greeted each other, while the dwarf grumbled about not being able to understand the Elfish that was being spoken.
Haldir looked on, assessing the Fellowship and its new companion. Legolas hoped they would be allowed into Lothlòrien; they needed to recoup after losing Gandalf. Without the Istar, he feared that the quest was doomed to fail. Gandalf was the backbone of the Fellowship. It was futile without him. Haldir's eyes fell upon Frodo, "You bring a great evil with you. You can go no further."
Aragorn stepped up to speak to Haldir, in an attempt to convince him that it was necessary that the Fellowship stay with the elves for a short time. While standing guard for that conversation, Legolas looked to Rose once again. She was sitting with two Halflings, while Frodo and Sam were sitting at a distance. Merry and Pippin were watching the conversation intently, while Rose continued to pester them with questions. Even though she whispered, Legolas could hear her quite clearly, "Who are these people?"
"Elves," Merry said quietly, unwilling to give any more information.
"Elves," She repeated warily; Legolas could hear her groan. "It is official, I have gone insane." She huffed to herself, and the conversation between Haldir, Aragorn, and Legolas continued. Despite its importance, Legolas felt his attention divert back to the maiden. He could not help but wonder at her circumstances. He still did not trust her, but he was curious about her.
Finally, the silence was broken. "You will follow me." Haldir said solemnly; Aragorn had convinced the elf to let the group stay in Lothlòrien. Legolas was grateful; the group was in need of rest. He could only hope that the elves would allow Rose to stay with them. The Fellowship's quest was already in danger of failure. The risk of that increased if this stranger was forced to stay with them.
Legolas, along with the rest of the Fellowship followed the elves. Legolas looked to Rose to make sure she was following. He saw her head shoot up, as if someone had just called her name. She was looking around again, as if looking for someone who was not there. This was the most enthusiastic that Legolas had seen her since he and Aragorn had found her. Her eyes continued searching through the trees, even as the Fellowship entered Lothlòrien. This was the second time that he noticed her doing that. The rest of his companions also noticed the strange behavior on the part of the woman. Legolas and Aragorn exchanged worried glances. Legolas frowned; who was this woman and what was she doing in Middle Earth?