Healing the heart CH 4: The

beginning of the end

So, remember in the movies where it seems like they didn't waste any time in leaving Rivendell, well they totally did, it took a few hours just for every one to get ready (mostly because Kayla and me). That doesn't change the fact that apparently it took a half an hour to get ready to leave (subtract the time me and Kayla 'waisted' (according to Boromir) to get caught up on, well, everything). The men spent half that time checking their weapons, even Frodo, who was given Sting (Bilbo's sword). So me and Kayla were passing the time, we were already ready, after being lectured by Boromir about the "importance of this quest" and "not wasting time" and we shot back with "you're one to talk", which he didn't understand very much, we didn't get to explain because Legolas ushered him off to 'sharpen the swords' and such. We were playing a game of twenty questions, we each got a turn to ask the other a question about what happened when we got here.

"So...do you have any particular interest in any of the guys?" Kayla asks, not surprising me in the slightest.

"Not really, I mean we just got here. This all just seems too...cool." I reply, frowning, it wasn't really a lie, but I'm not really sure how I feel about Frodo right now. Especially since I know what happens at the end of the movie. For a few moments, my vision was filled with Frodo's fair face and messy hair, silvery tears cascading down his face, his blue eyes sad but distant like he was on a whole different planet. All of those images were wiped away when Kayla waved her small hand in front of my face. A concerned look washing over her face.

"Are you alright?" She asks, gently grabbing my shoulder.

"Yeah!" I say, forcing a smile, while trying to prevent tears from pooling in my eyes.

"You are the single most terrible liar I know." Kayla replies, rolling her big, green eyes, which were still filled with concern.

"I'm n-not- I just- Fuck." I mutter biting my lip, surprisingly Kayla's face filled with amusement, she was smiling, a real smile, which was rare for her and her eyes glowed with innocence, she reminded me of my cat sometimes.

"You just...Fuck?" She questions playfully raising an eyebrow.

"Really? You choose now to make sex jokes?" I whisper, just as someone enters the room, they were short with sand colored hair, someone I dubbed to be Samwise, most likely.

"Hello lady Kyra and lady Kayla!"

He says cheerfully. "I couldn't help but overhear some of what you were saying and I have a few questions."

Great, now Kayla and I are going to have to sit here for hours on end trying to explain ourselves to a fictional character... And that's officially the weirdest thing I've ever thought.

"Of course you do." Kayla chuckles, smiling at me.

Welp...this is gonna be a long night.

"What?" Sam asks just after Kayla had tried to explain lighters to him, it was almost midday at this point... I'm even starting to talk like them.

"Yeah, you squeeze the button near your thumb and it causes fire to come out of the end. True story." Kayla replies, mimicking the 'true story' meme by pretending to raise a glass.

"Are the guys done yet?" I whimper, falling back onto the soft bed.

"Yeah, they sure are taking their time, aren't they?" Kayla says, stretching causing her elbows and knees to crack, Sam's face grew worried.

"Lady Kayla! Your bones-"

"Yeah, they do that." She replies, rolling her eyes at him, then looking back to me. "Sam? How far along were the guys when you were down there?"

"Oh, about halfway, so they should be finishing up now." Sam replies, rubbing his chin.

"Okay, I guess we should probably get our stuff to the great hall now." Kayla says, rubbing her temples.

"I'll catch up." I say, smiling warily.

"No way, you are getting your ass up and helping me carry these bags down stairs." Kayla replies, actually annoyed at me, usually it was the other way around.

"Okay. Mom," I mutter to myself, while gathering the left over bags that Kayla wasn't able to carry.

"Would you like some help with that?" A familiar, soft voice asks, causing me to jump and the small black bags to fall out of my grasp.

"Holy crap! You scared the Hell out of me! You jerk!" I scorn, playfully.

"Oh, so sorry lady Kyra, I will help you, if you'd like." The soft voice I had identified as Frodo mutters nervously, causing me to smile.

"I thought you'd never ask." I reply, turning to him, thrusting a medium sized, to me, sack into his small hands, but it was far to big for him to hold properly, being a Hobbit and all, he fumbled around, trying to find a good way to carry it, causing me to snicker.

"I- um-I believe this bag is too big for the likes of me." Frodo says, his face flushing a bright pink.

"Yeah, that's kinda the idea." I reply, smiling playfully, causing his blush to deepen.

"I-uh-I'm sure-uh-can handle it though." He replies, absolutely flustered, he made it too easy sometimes.

"Yah, sure you can big guy!" I laugh, gripping his shoulder, it must've hurt because his face twisted in pain, but he was a gentleman and didn't say a damn thing. This was one of those moments when I wish I had a camera in my head so I could take a mental picture of it, the moment was so perfect, it seemed to go in slow motion.

"Uh- we should probably get the bags down stairs...nngh." Frodo says, breaking the tension, causing my head to come back into reality. I recoiled from him, noticing I had overstepped a boundary, as soon as I released him he winced and let out a heavy breath.

"Sorry." I mutter, picking up my small duffle bags and walking towards the tall, white door without another word to Frodo, dammit! Why do I always have to make things awkward! Fuck! I wish I could turn back time. I heard Frodo's large feet pitter pattering down the hall, the sound they made was almost nonexistent, but not to Elf ears. Why do people always follow me when I wanna be alone.

"Kyra! La-lady Kyra!" He shouted, his feet becoming louder as he picked up speed.

"What?" I ask flatly, spinning on my heels to face him, not realizing how close he was to me, big mistake, he barreled into me, causing me to land on the floor and seconds later a certain black haired Hobbit landed on my stomach, he was pretty light, for a Hobbit, and was also pretty short but when he landed on my stomach it still knocked the wind out of me.

"Ah, shit, that hurt!" I mutter, trying to stand up without bothering Frodo, which obviously didn't work, the one time when I don't want to mess with him.

"O-oh, I-I am so sorry lady Kyra!" Frodo huffs, a obvious blush appearing on his neck, reaching his Hobbit ears.

"No problem, just make sure you are there to catch me when I fall, and trust me, it will happen." I reply, letting out a short breath. "So why'd you follow me back here?"

"Well, I was going to leave you to your thoughts but then I saw this on the floor." Frodo breaths, brandishing a small copper bracelet, with a cursive engraving on it. It was the bracelet my Grandma gave me the day before she died, we were all getting our tree ready when my mom got a phone call, I was admiring my new bracelet at the time so I almost didn't catch the tear that fell down my mothers face. That bracelet was very important to me, so right now I felt like giving Frodo a big hug, but of course I won't. "I saw you wearing it earlier, I thought you might like it back."

"You're awesome!" I shout which started to echo loudly off the marble walls, grabbing the bracelet from him.

"'Life is a journey, not a destination.'" Frodo says, getting to his feet.

"Huh?" I reply, looking down at the engraving on the bracelet.

"That's what it says on your bracelet... Those are wise words, I shall not forget them." Frodo says, his blue eyes dancing in the dimly lit hallway.

"Neither will I...come on we gotta get these bags down stairs, they're probably all ready to leave now." I reply, giving him a big smile, how can anyone not love this guy?

"And so it begins." Frodo mutters to himself, while I put my bracelet on my wrist.

"The beginning of the end." I mutter to myself, the smile now completely wiped from my face, I really wished I didn't remember how it ended, but I did, and I decided right there and then I was going to do everything in my power to prevent him from getting on that damned boat.

Everyone was ready downstairs, some of them looked solemn and others just looked plain pissed off for making them wait so long, Kayla was among them.

"Did I not explain to you how important this quest is?" Boromir went to continue but I smoothly cut him off.

"Only every second."

"Why are you two so late?" Gandalf asks, his eyes ping ponging between Frodo and I. For a split second I could've sworn I saw a hint of understanding in his eyes.

"Uh- there were-um- complications, as you can see." Frodo replies, holding up the bag he was carrying, for a few seconds I could here the lion king music playing in the back of my head.

"'And I just can't wait to be kiiinnngg!'" I sing to myself, sparking Frodo's interest, I seemed to have a knack for that.

"What are you singing?" Frodo asks, furrowing his brow.

"Oh, nothing, just a song I heard a friend sing once." I reply, giving him a devilish smile, causing him to become even more confused. "Okay, you might now it, it goes something like this."

Little girl, little girl

Don't lie to me, tell me where did you sleep last night, in the pines in the pines where the sun never shines I shall shiver the whole night through

Little girl, little girl, where will you go your mother doesn't even know!

Frodo's face lit up as I sang the end, he gave me the most genuine smile I've ever seen. "You have a...wonderful voice." I went to reply but I was swiftly cut off by Legolas, shouting something that sounded something like.

"If you don't hurry up, Boromir is going to insist we leave without you!"

"Do you know what he said?" Frodo asks me, I narrowed my eyes at him, was he speaking Spanish, I mean come on how could he not- wait a minute, I'm an Elf, maybe he was speaking Elvish and I could understand it, all of a sudden, somehow.

"He said we need to hurry up, let's go!" I reply grabbing his arm as gently as possible.

"Are they leaving?" Frodo asks, not in the least bit bothered by me touching him. And that my friends, is 'what she said.'

"No, we(I) have to hurry to get our(my) stuff in order." I reply, giving him a tiny smile.

"I'm already finished, are you not?" He asks, his eyes finding something interesting on the wall opposite me.

"Yeah he-ugh- yes, of course I am!" I say, just before a big yawn.

"Ring bearer! Are you ready to set out!" Gandalf asks Frodo from his place beside Aragorn, everyone seemed to be staring at me and Frodo.

"Are you sure you're ready?" He whispers to me, and this time I don't think he was talking about the bag. All I do is nod in response, he seemed to resist a bit, he looked like he wanted to argue, but he kept it to himself, he finally answered.

"Yes!" And at that moment I was sure that this place and these people were going to change my life forever. "'Life is a journey.'"

I hear him mutter.

"'Not a destination.'" I whisper in his ear, a ghost of a smile on his lips.