Oh my god... I'm so sorry this is so late! I know you don't want to read excuses, but I'll feel better if I type them out. I've had a shitload of stuff to do - mainly marching band and homework. Whatever possessed me to take british literature, Chicago urban history, and art history classes, I don't know. So much reading... Oh well.

Thanks to Forest Walk, Carri007, miladyRanger, UntilTheVeryEnd6, Letterbomb, foxgoddess07, Cee.A, ginnyrules27, stoly123, lanie, and Starlight Drama for following, favoriting, and reviewing it :) You guys are what got me to finally update.

So, the moral of the story is that if you review, follow, or favorite, I will be more inclined to update. :)

As always, I don't own Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings. If I did, I could just go and buy a grey spandex bodysuit and tall purple converse for my b man costume without working for the money.


They heard shrieks behind them as they ran. They didn't need to look behind them to know that the Orcs were following. They were coming up on all sides, climbing the stone and scuttling down the pillars around them like overgrown spiders. They kept running, following quickly behind Gandalf, until they were surrounded. The creatures snarled and growled at them, brandishing their weapons at them gleefully. Legolas drew his bow and aimed at the circle, no matter where he shot, he'd hit one of them. The rest drew their swords and the Weasleys drew their wands, ready to fight to the death. They weren't Gryffindors for nothing. Suddenly, the snarling stopped. There was a low growling rumble, and the Orcs scattered.

Holy shit... If they're scared... Ginny thought to herself. This wasn't good, not on anyone's scale, not even Harry's. Light the color of flame appeared in the doorway they had come from, and they all turned to face this new foe.

"What is this new devilry?" Boromir asked Gandalf. The old wizard closed his eyes and scrunched up his face in concentration and worry. He looked as if he was bitterly wishing that his guess was wrong. They heard the scraping of metal against stone, and Gandalf opened his eyes and looked up at the fiery light.

"A Balrog. A demon of the ancient world." he said slowly. "This foe is beyond any of you."

"Run!" he shouted at them, taking the lead once more, as far and fast away from the Balrog as they could get. Gandalf opened the door at the end of the hall, and Boromir took the lead, rushing through without a second glance. They heard a light shout from the other side, and when they all got through, it was to see Legolas pulling Boromir back from the ledge, saving him from falling to his death. They all got through, Gandalf at the back, and he leaned against the stone archway.

"Gandalf?" Aragorn asked him, worried about his condition.

"Lead them on, Aragorn!" he urged. "The bridge is near." Aragorn paused, reluctant to leave Gandalf.

"But," George protested, he didn't want to leave his mentor in peril again.

"Do as I say!" Gandalf commanded them all. "Swords are no more use here."

"Then let us stay with you, Gandalf! Let us help!" Fred pleaded on behalf of himself, his twin, and his sister.

"No, Fred, you and your siblings are needed elsewhere. Your lives are far more valuable." Gandalf insisted, ushering them forward after the Fellowship. They ran down the stairs quickly and carefully, catching each other when they threatened to fall off the edge. They came to a stretch of stair with a large gap in between, maybe three yards long. The piece they stood on was cracking, ready to break and fall into the abyss below.

"Reparo!" Fred yelled at the crack, aiming his wand at the crumbling stone. It fused back together. As Fred was repairing that piece of stair, Ginny and George were enlarging the edges of the hole to bridge the gap, and when they were done, the Fellowship ran across without problem. They heard a large thud and a crumble, and Ginny looked behind them to see that a large boulder had fallen where they had just been standing, destroying the stairs they had just crossed.

They ran down more stairs and they got to the bridge. The Balrog was close behind them now, the flames licking at the stone as they passed it.

"Over the bridge! Fly!" Gandalf commanded, and he turned to face the Balrog. It was a frightening creature, as large as a giant, black and silhouetted in flame. It was a bit hunchbacked, had large horns curling from its ears to its jaw, and small bright eyes. It carried a whip made of flames and a large sword as it advanced on the Grey Wizard. It growled, and breathed flame like a dragon. Gandalf turned and ran after the fellowship, and as soon as they had all crossed the bridge safely, he stopped halfway and turned to face the Balrog.

Ginny ran as fast as her legs could carry her, and made it across the bridge right behind Aragorn. They ran in single file, Aragorn at the front, then Ginny, Fred, Boromir, Merry, Pippin, George, Frodo, Sam, Gimli, and Legolas bringing up the rear. Ginny turned around to face the bridge, and in a matter of seconds, everyone had made it across except for Gandalf. The wizard was standing in the middle of the bridge, staff and sword raised, facing the Balrog. Her eyes widened. He planned to take it on singlehandedly!

"You cannot pass!" he shouted at it.

"Gandalf!" Frodo yelled for the wizard. He started to go back to the bridge, but Ginny stopped him, tears in her own eyes, not wanting to believe what she knew would soon happen. The Balrog seemed to taunt Gandalf, making the flames around itself brighter, standing up to its full height.

"I am a servant of the secret fire, wielder of the flame of Anor!" Gandalf said. He raised his staff and the light from the tip got a bluish tint to it, expanding and creating a shield around him.

"The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udun!" he said powerfully. The Balrog struck Gandalf's shield with its flaming sword, and it broke. The pieces fell like water droplets over the side of the bridge and the Balrog snarled again at the wizard. Ginny felt Frodo trying to free himself from her grasp, to go to Gandalf, but she tightened her hold. She saw Aragorn and George moving closer to the bridge as well.

"Aragorn! George!" she called to them both, bringing them back to reality.

"Go back to the shadow!" Gandalf said. The Balrog seemed to take that as a challenge, as it only took a step forward, brandishing its whip.

"You! Shall not! Pass!" Gandalf shouted, bringing his sword and staff together, and driving them soundly into the stone he stood upon. A flash of light came from the point of contact, and the Balrog recoiled a bit before resuming its advance. It growled and swung its whip again, but as it stepped forward, the stone fell from under its feet, and it fell into the chasm. Ginny didn't want to believe her eyes, it was too good to be true! Gandalf had defeated a Balrog! She started to smile as Gandalf turned wearily to finish crossing the bridge, but that expression quickly melted into one of disbelief and sadness. The fiery whip of the Balrog reached up and curled itself around Gandalf's ankle, pulling him off of the bridge. He dropped his sword and staff, and was barely hanging onto the edge.

Frodo broke free of her arms, but Boromir managed to stop him from running to Gandalf. There was nothing they could do. Any spell would be too risky, there was too great a chance of it going awry, since their minds were so preoccupied with worry.

"Gandalf!" Frodo wailed, struggling in Boromir's arms. Gandalf tried to pull himself up onto the bridge, but to no avail. He fell back, holding on by his fingertips. Ginny could see the sadness in his eyes, the regret that he couldn't stay with them.

"Fly, you fools!" he gave them one last command before relinquishing his hold on the bridge, and falling after the Balrog. Ginny felt numb. She was frozen on the spot, it was like Dumbledore all over again. He was gone, dead, forever beyond their help or rescue. Frodo's cry for the wizard, and Boromir's cry to get Aragorn moving both came to her ears as if she was underwater. She thought she might have heard someone calling her name, but she didn't respond. She couldn't move. It wasn't fully processed by her brain, she wasn't functioning properly. She felt someone pulling her arm, and when she wouldn't move, he picked her up, carrying her as he ran from the bridge and towards the outside world.

They got outside the mine, and the fresh air helped to rouse Ginny and bring her back to her senses. When she did come back, it was with tears in her eyes. Whoever was carrying her, Aragorn, it turned out to be, set her down on the rock, and she gratefully sat. She felt a shooting pain in her left arm that she hadn't noticed earlier. She looked at her arm to see it bleeding profusely. She let out a small gasp and grasped her forearm, trying to staunch the bleeding. Aragorn knelt beside her, worry in his eyes.

"Are you wounded?" he asked her. She nodded and removed her right hand from the gash, allowing Aragorn to inspect it. He took her arm in his hands, pushing up her sleeve so he could get a better look. He took out his waterskin and cleaned the wound before using it to clean a strip of cloth he ripped off from the hem of his shirt. Ginny started to protest, but with a look from Aragorn, she closed her mouth. His eyes were pleading, desperate, and sorrowful. Ginny was shocked to see him in such a state, so she let him bind her wound in silence. When he finished, they stood, and Ginny hugged him fiercely. He returned her embrace, burying his face in her hair.

"I'm glad you're safe, Ginny." he murmured.

"Same to you." Ginny replied. They broke apart, and now his eyes held determination. We must go on. Ginny thought. She and Aragorn both knew that they couldn't linger. It was too dangerous. The grief weighed heavy on them, but they had to bear it for at least the rest of the day before they could properly deal with their sadness.

Ginny looked around at the rest of the fellowship. It seemed broken, almost hollow, without Gandalf's grumpy and wise presence. She smiled a little through the tears at his memory, but that sad smile was wiped away quickly by the sight of the crying hobbits and her somber brothers. She approached them, and they pulled her into a hug. She was not afraid to cry in front of them, they were her family. Though they would tease her in any other situation, they were grieving too. There were tears in their own eyes as they comforted each other.

"Legolas, get them up." Aragorn said, taking on the role Gandalf had given him before he fell. Ginny was right, Aragorn knew that they couldn't stay there safely. The Weasleys broke apart, and went about helping Legolas, convincing the Hobbits to stand, drying their tears.

"Give them a moment, for pity's sake!" Boromir said, almost begging.

"We will have time later to grieve." Ginny said to Boromir as she helped Sam to his feet. "For now, we must move."

"Yes, by nightfall, these hills will be swarming with Orcs!" Aragorn said, affirming Ginny's last statement. "We must reach the woods of Lothlorien." he said.

"Come Legolas, Boromir, Gimli, Aendir, Gladhron, get them up." he said again.

"Come on Sam, on your feet." Ginny said gently. He nodded tearfully, but stood up bravely.

"Frodo?" Aragorn called to the Ringbearer. He had been staring out over the stone hills, a vacant and depressed look in his eyes. They would all have to bury their grief for the time being. They had no time to spare.


Thank you so much for reading! I know by now not to make any promises about when I'll update, but I'll try to do so relatively soon...