Aragorn has jumped off his horse and walks towards me, fast. "You said you did not know of the Uruk party."
"I never lied!" I defend. Geeze this guy could get scary if he wanted. "I said I hadn't seen the party. The Riders of Rohan killed the Orcs just outside of Fanghorn."
"How do you know this?" Legolas asks. "Did the Hobbits escape?"
"Yes! Into Fanghorn!"
"Fanghorn?" Gimli asks. "What madness drove them in there?"
"Why did you not speak of this before?" Aragorn asks.
"I—I didn't know what you'd do to me."
Aragorn smiles and I release the tension in my shoulders. "Very well Rachel, Daughter of John. We will follow the Hobbits into Fanghorn. But if they are not there, we will leave you in the middle of the forest. And Fanghorn is not a pleasant place."
He turns and climbs up on his horse with ease, as does Legolas. With a bit more difficulty, I mount my own. I thank god for all those summers of camp counseling I did. Maybe if I can get my hands on a bow and some arrows I may be able to defend myself. I'm a pretty good shot.
I kick Theybrush with my heels and he takes off, following Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli over to the cloud of smoke that is the bodies of the Orcs. "Look!" Gimli calls, pointing to the pile. Legolas jumps off and grabs what the Dwarf was pointing to. Legolas pulls out a charred object. "It's one of their wee belts."
Aragorn gives me a nasty look. I think back to the movie. Aragorn is the exert tracker. "Look at the ground," I call to him. "You can track them into the forest, trust me."
Aragorn hops off of the horse and starts examining. "A Hobbit lay here," he says as Legolas helps Gimli off the horse. "The other here. They crawled, their hands were bound." Aragorn starts following the tracks. He picks up a piece of rope. "Their bonds were cut. They ran over here and were followed." He stands and starts running. "The tracks lead away from the battle into Fanghorn Forest."
At the edge of the trees, we stand. The men don't go it. "So you told the truth?" Legolas asks.
I turn to him. "Why would I lie?"
"Then you are on our side?" Aragorn asks. "Not the enemy?"
"I'm not with Sauron, if that's what you're asking."
Aragorn nods. "Very well." He turns back to the forest. "Here we go."
Okay, so the forest is really creepy. Way more creepy in person than from a TV screen. It's cold and damp and everywhere around me, it's like there are whispers. Gimli touches a leaf that's been stained black and puts the substance in his mouth, spitting it out in disgust. "Orc blood."
"What does it taste like?" I ask. I was always curious.
"Like acid, lass. Stings the tongue."
Aragorn continues following the trail, bending down. "These are strange tracks."
"The air's so close in here," Gimli says.
"This forest is old," Legolas says. "Very old. Full of memory. And anger." Then the trees start creaking. The whispering sound gets louder. "The trees are speaking to each other."
Gimli is shaking with fear, raising his ax into the air. It takes everything I have not to laugh at them. It's just the Ents.
What I am excited for is Gandalf. He should be here any second. If any character in the books knows what happened to me, it would be him.
"Gimli, lower your ax," Aragorn instructs and reluctantly, Gimli does so.
"They have feelings, my friend." Legolas says. "The Elves began it, waking up the trees, teaching them to talk."
"Talking trees?" Gimli mutters. "What do trees have to talk about? Except the consistency of squirrel droppings."
Ahead of Gimli and me, Legolas calls Aragorn over in Elfish. "The White Wizard approaches."
Aragorn flashes me an angry look. He thinks I've lead him to Saruman. But finally, Gandalf is here. "So not let him speak," Aragorn says. "He will put a spell on us. We must be quick."
The men all turn and fling their weapons. I just stand there and roll my eyes. Aragorn's sword burns his hands and he drops it. "You are tracking the footsteps of two young Hobbits," Gandalf says, cloud in a shining white light that conceals his face. This part was always a bit dramatic for me.
"Where are they?" Aragorn asks.
"They passed this way the day before yesterday. They met someone they did not expect. Does that comfort you?"
"Who are you?" Aragorn demands. "Show yourself!"
The light dims and there he is. And if you're reading this I assume you know the drill. Everyone bows, everyone's shocked. Except for me. Gandalf barely pays attention to me as he recounts his battle with the Balrog for Aragorn. I wait patiently for Gandalf to finish.
"Gandalf? Yes, that was what they used to call me. Gandalf the Gray. I am Gandalf the White and I come back to you now, at the turn of the tide."
At this moment, Gandalf waves his staff. Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas freeze. What the hell? I turn to Gandalf, who walks toward me. "Which one are you?" he asks.
"Excuse me?"
"Your friend Claire said she had two companions, Rachel and Kristen. Which one are you?
"Rachel," I answer, immediately confused. "You've seen Claire? I thought it was just me."
"No," Gandalf counters. "There are three. Where Kristen is, I do not know."
"What about Claire? Where is she?"
"With Merry and Pippin. She will be safe in the company of Treebeard."
"Oh, awesome! She loves Treebeard."
"Yes, yes. Now, my dear, what have you told them," Gandalf points to the men. "Do they know of where you come from?"
"No. I just helped them find Merry and Pippin. Do you know why I'm here, Gandalf?"
"Yes, you're here to mess up the story."
I do a double take. "Huh?"
"This is Sauron's plan. To bring in three humans from the outside world to corrupt the story, to change things. Fortunately for us, you already know the story, so you can keep it on track."
"Right, I know the story and Claire knows the story. But Kristen doesn't. You said she was here too? What if she ended up in Mordor, surrounded by Orcs or with the Wildmen who are destroying Rohan—,"
"Silence, child, you mustn't give away anything."
"Well, then how am I supposed to guide the story?"
"You are a smart girl, you will figure it out."
At that, Gandalf waves his staff and the men wake up. "Might you have something a little darker?" Gandalf asks, motioning to his white robes. "I don't exactly blend in."
Aragorn nods and reaches into a pack on his back, pulling out Lorien cloaks. He hands one to Gandalf and one to me. "What's this for?" I ask.
"You are one of us now, yes?" Aragorn says. "You lead us back to Gandalf, and for that I am grateful."
I take the cloak with a smile, wrapping it around my shoulders. I always wanted one of these. "Might you have something the girl can defend herself with?" Gandalf asks.
"What is your weapon of choice?" Legolas asks.
"Bow and arrow," I say.
Legolas pulls one off his back, not the same one he used to shoot Gandalf with just now. "Here. I received a new one from the lady Galadriel. You may have this one, crafted by my people."
"And a quiver," Aragorn says, pulling his own off his back. "I prefer swords anyway."
I smile at them, putting everything on. "Thank you," I say. I do a twirl. "How do I look?"
Gandalf laughs. "You look like a fighter." He starts to lead us out of the forest. "Quickly," he says. "We must travel to Edoras at full speed."
"Edoras?" Gimli asks. "That is no short distance."
"We hear of trouble in Rohan," Aragorn says. "It grows ill with the king."
"Well, lucky for us, we have a guide," Gandalf says, looking at me. "The coming of Rachel and her friends will be like the small rocks that start an avalanche."
Aragorn smiles. "In one thing you have not changed, my friend. You still speak in riddles."
Gandalf leads us further to the tree line and we break at a sunny hill. Somehow, our horses have made their way here. Gandalf stands on the edge of the hill and lets out a whistle. A white horse comes out of nowhere, galloping in our direction.
"That is one of the Meras," Legolas says. "Unless my eyes are cheated by some spell."
"Shadowfax," Gandalf says, petting the horse's mane. "He is the lord of all horses and has been my friend through many dangers."
We all mount horses and follow Gandalf until well after nightfall across the plains of Rohan. When I get off my horse, my buns are absolutely crying in pain. The boys all go to sleep as Gandalf stands at the edge of the cliff. I'm afraid to go to sleep. If I do, what if I go back home? I'm not ready to leave this yet.
I get up and walk over to Gandalf. "The vailing shadow that takes clouds in the East takes shape," he says. "Sauron will suffer no rival. Through the Gates of Barad-dur his eye watches ceaselessly. But he is not so mighty yet that he is above fear. It is why he sent you and your friends. Doubt ever knaws at him. He will know by now that you and Claire have sworn allegiance to his opposes and he will not be happy.
Saruman had poisoned the mind of the king and he and Sauron are now tied in allegiance. And together they are tightening the noose on the world of Men. They will strike Rohan first. But for all that, we do have one advantage."
"What's that?"
"The Ring remains hidden. And that we should seek to destroy it has not yet entered their deepest thoughts. And so the Ring makes its way slowly into Mordor and each day it gets closer to its doom. We must trust now in Frodo. Everything depends on speed and the scrutiny of his quest."
I sink to the ground, sudden realization of where the story is headed. "I forgot about the Ring again." I mutter.
"What?"
"That's where Kristen is," I say. "If we were put here to change things, Kristen would be most dangerous with the Ring. She's with Frodo and Sam."
"Sam?" Gandalf asks. "Sam is with him?"
"Yes."
"That is good. As for Kristen, we must hope for the best. Hope that she can keep things on track without knowledge of the future." He pauses before turning to me. "You must get some rest. We still have much more ground to cover."
I want to tell Gandalf about Gollum. He's with Frodo and Sam and he's a threat. But I know I can't.
Knowledge of the future will surely change the future.
