AN: Hello lovelies, I'm sorry it's been so long. It's been over three months. I'm a piece of crap for making you wait this long. That being said, I want to thank everyone who reads this chapter for sticking with me. It doesn't end where I originally planned it to, but its still pretty long and hopefully it won't be three months before the next chapter, but I can't make any promises. School is hectic and stressful, and there is a lot of stuff that needs doing in my academic life so unfortunately, this stuff, the fun stuff, needs to take a backseat.
Thanks again for sticking with me and continuing to read this story! I am still working on edits of the earlier chapters - if you want to check them out, they can be found on AO3 under the same title and penname.
I still don't own Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings. If I did, I'd have a car.
Nearly every soldier in the hall was in a saddle. The only ones who remained were a select strong few who were bracing the gate. Ginny was seated astride Léobuhr, beside Gamling and just behind Aragorn and King Théoden who were at the head of their column. Legolas was somewhere behind her on his own horse, the twins were waiting for the command to charge up to the battlements to use more widespread magic, and at Théoden's command, Gimli had run up the stairs that led to the horn of Helm Hammerhand. At the gate, there was another thud that rumbled through the hall, rattling the men that were holding it closed. They were the only defense now, the rest of the barricade having been cleared. The Weasleys' magical shield had long since shattered, and it was now only a matter of time before the Uruk-Hai broke through.
"Let this be the hour when we draw swords together," Theoden said to Aragorn. "Fell deeds awake," he said as he drew his sword, prompting everyone else to do the same. "Now for wrath," he said a bit louder, "now for ruin, and a red dawn!" he called out. The King strapped his helmet onto his head and seconds later, Gimli sounded the horn, the noise deep and low, sending vibrations through the stone to Ginny's very core. She could feel the sound, deep in her chest, and it brought a grin to her face. At Théoden's command, Gamling nodded to the soldiers at the gate and they left their posts, running back along the column to their own horses. There was a beat before the final blow of the battering ram, and the Uruk-Hai finally broke through.
"Forth Eorlingas!" Théoden shouted, and they charged with deafening war cries and pounding hooves. They bowled through the few Uruks that had gotten inside and broke through their ranks into the sunlight. Swords were flashing in the sun as they cut down Uruk-Hai, sending them falling off the causeway and Ginny felt more than heard Gimli sound the Horn again as she sent another Uruk careening off the side. The horses trampled fallen Uruks and leapt over the accumulating piles of bodies, taking them back down to the ground outside the Deeping Wall. In the process of the fighting, Ginny and Aragorn had gravitated to each other yet again, looking out for each other as they fought. Ginny dispatched another Uruk and turned to the east to find something else to fight when something caught her eye.
At the crest of the hill was a white figure astride a white horse. The horse reared back and neighed for all to hear, drawing the attention of men, elves, and uruks alike to the white figure. Behind the figure, the sun rose up above the hill - first light on the fifth day, Ginny remarked to herself - and illuminated the valley, making the Uruk-Hai wince and recoil.
"Gandalf!" Ginny said, grinning at the wizard's arrival. She was so distracted that she nearly let an Uruk slay her horse, but she caught the movement out of the corner of her eye and slit the beast's neck before it could do any more harm. Damn it, Gin, she berated herself, you cant get distracted, not yet, she scolded herself firmly. She returned her attention to the waning battle, but she allowed herself a few glanced back up at where Gandalf stood - though it was no longer just Gandalf, but Gandalf and an entire legion of Rohirrim. The sight renewed her resolve.
"And there's the cavalry!" Ginny shouted to Aragorn, making him chuckle from beside her, and Ginny could hear the relief and hope in the carefree nature of it - well, as carefree as Aragorn got. The Uruks were ordered to form ranks to face the Rohirrim on the hill, and so they left the other remaining fighters behind, giving them a bit of a respite to watch what Ginny swore was one of the most impressive sights she had ere seen. One of the Rohirrim gave a battle cry, and they charged, Gandalf at the head, brandishing a brilliant light at the tip of his staff as they thundered down into the valley, crashing headlong into the Uruk-Hai.
The rest of the battle felt like it was over in seconds. Ginny and Aragorn fought together to the end, but thanks to the reinforcements, there were nowhere near as many Uruk-Hai to kill. There was still the clanging and clashing of swords, the neighing of horses and thudding of hooves; the metallic tang of blood in the air and the deafening noise of battle, but it flew past Ginny in a blur. Before she even got to make her third kill since the charge, the creatures recognized their defeat, turned tail, and ran. The beasts rushed past their mounts, leaving them behind.
"Victory!" Ginny heard Théoden's voice call out over the din, "We have victory!"
As the Uruks retreated, a good number of the Rohirrim reinforcements went to chase them down, but before they could, one of their generals - Éomer? Ginny thought she recognized him from the riddermark, but she couldn't be sure - galloped out in front of them, cutting them off.
"Stay out of the forest!" he ordered, "Keep away from the trees!"
"What the hell's he on about?" Ginny asked Aragorn, her words accompanied with a sidelong glance. He opened his mouth to reply, but before he could, the sight before them answered for him. The trees moved. Ginny was forcibly reminded of the Whomping Willow the way that the trees swayed and groaned, eliciting squeals and screams from the Uruk-Hai that had escaped into their forest.
Holy shit, Ginny thought to herself, and her jaw dropped open a little. When she realized, she snapped her mouth shut, but that didn't change the fact that the trees were fucking moving. Ginny smirked to herself. Her brothers were going to shit themselves and George was going to regret their little bet. Oh, this is going to be good. She just had to see their faces when they found out.
Around her, things were settling down. Soldiers were relaxing, tightly knit ranks were dissolving, and riders were dismounting. A wave of chatter was growing and soon the babble of soldiers talking amongst themselves was nearly as loud as the din from the battle. Ginny dismounted from her horse in the midst of it all, and she immediately went to Aragorn. When she saw him again, the relief and anxiety and exhaustion hit her again in full force, and she flung her arms around him, just on instinctual action and reflex, more than anything else. He hugged her back fiercely, holding her tight. They were both okay. They each had their fair share of bruises and scrapes, but they were okay.
After a minute or so, Ginny finally released him, and following her lead, Aragorn let her go as well.
"Shall we?" Ginny prompted, nodding towards the gate. Aragorn nodded.
"We shall," he said simply, and the pair of them made their way back inside the keep, leading their horses behind them.
"How are you holding up?" Ginny asked him as they walked.
"I am alright, Ginny, I promise," he said with a little bit of a sigh.
"Bullshit."
"Really, I am alright. A little tired, admittedly, but alright," he said. He looked over at her and noted to himself that she had earned herself a wound to her upper arm. "I am more concerned about you, honestly," he said. "Has anyone looked at your arm yet?" he asked her. She sighed.
"It's fine, it's just a scratch," she fibbed. She was fairly certain that it was deep enough to warrant stitches, but she wasn't about to make Aragorn worry more than he already was. "And don't change the subject, you have gotten about five hours of rest in the last two days," she said. He opened his mouth to argue- "and unconsciousness doesn't count," Ginny said before he could say anything.
"You may have a point," he conceded, "but you still have a gash on your arm - do not try to tell me that it is merely a scratch - and I am going to take care of it for you whether you like it or not," he insisted. Ginny made a show of huffing and grumbling about it, but she wasn't that upset. She was touched. She was grateful that she had Aragorn there to look out for her and care for her. Aragorn grinned down at her and nudged her in the side. She retaliated, nudging him back and he played along, stumbling a bit off course with a smile on his face when she collided with his side. They may have just come out on the other side of a battle, but Aragorn couldn't be happier. She was there, and she was with him. They chatted for awhile longer as they made their way to the stables, left their horses, and headed for the infirmary, per Aragorn's request. He was going to fix her arm, damn it, and after he did that, he was going to join forces with the other healers.
He still wouldn't just rest, no matter what Ginny tried to do to convince him.
They entered the keep and Ginny's eyes found the twins' ginger heads immediately.
"I've gotta talk to Fred and George real quick, you go on to the infirmary, I'll meet you there," she said, with no real intention of actually going to see the healers afterwards. Aragorn was determined to keep working himself to death, and fine, Ginny could slip him a sleeping draught later, but he didn't need to be fussing over her little cut - well, it really was a gash, but still. Aragorn and the other healers had more severe injuries to take care of. The look on Aragorn's face told her that he knew exactly what she was up to, but that he also knew there would be no convincing her. She wasn't about to put her own pain before anyone else's. So he didn't protest for now, only squeezed her shoulder and bid her farewell before going off to the infirmary. Ginny watched him go, but was quick to turn back and head over to her brothers.
"So, did you guys see the trees?" she said by way of a greeting.
"Ginny!" Fred shouted jovially, hugging her fiercely and laughing all the while. He only released her when George butted in and insisted that it was his turn to hug their dear sister and Ginny ended up having to fight her way out of her brother's arms.
"Honestly, it's like you two haven't seen me all day, Merlin!" she said, feigning annoyance.
"What were you saying about trees?" George asked her.
"Oh, yeah," Ginny said, remembering why she had sought out her brothers in the first place. "Out of nowhere, there was this forest at the end of the valley, and when we drove the Uruk-Hai into the forest, they were, sort of, eaten alive by the trees."
"So what you're saying is that we won the battle thanks to some trees?" Fred asked for clarification, a grin starting to grow on his face.
"Yeah, moving trees. It looked like a forest of Whomping Willows," Ginny replied. Fred grinned widely and let out a triumphant whoop.
"Ha! There are moving trees here! I win!" Fred said, punching his twin in the shoulder.
"Okay, fine, you were right, you win," George grumbled.
"What were the terms we agreed on again?" Fred asked George, the grin he still wore betraying the fact that he most definitely knew what the terms were, he just wanted to lord it over his brother for as long as he could get away with it. George grumbled something under his breath.
"What was that, Georgie? I didn't catch that," Fred said, his grin still ever present and making Ginny laugh.
"Loser has to pull a prank of the winner's choice on a member of the fellowship of the winner's choice," George said.
"Oh, that's right!" Fred said. "Ginny, who do you think our dear brother should-"
"Oh no, you are not dragging me into this," Ginny said, putting her foot down.
"Oh come on, Gin, don't be a spoilsport," Fred said, draping an arm around his sister's shoulders and bumping her scratch - gash, Aragorn's voice corrected her in her head - and making her wince a little. She threw his arm off of her and started her retreat, walking backwards towards the smashed gate and temporary freedom.
"Nuh-uh, nope. You two can settle this on your own," she said, turning around and ignoring their protests as she strode from the hall and into the light.
Having settled the dispute between her brothers - well, excused herself as fast as humanly possible - Ginny headed for the entrance to the caves. She stood off to the side as women, children, and elderly men poured out of the caves. Ginny watched as their faces fell when they saw the outside. Sure, they'd won, but Helm's Deep had certainly seen better days. Names were being shouted over the noise of shuffling feet and clattering metal, and Ginny listened as the cries got more and more desperate.
One woman's voice carried over the others - calling out "Caleth! Caleth!" over and over again. The woman shouted and searched until a soldier approached her and told her something as gently as he could, and the woman burst into tears, falling to her knees. The soldier took her aside and sat with her until she quieted down. She was one of many. Surviving soldiers were taking people up to the infirmary, and the few incredibly lucky boys who made it through were running into their mothers' arms. Ginny watched the scene unfold with a detached sense of grief. Here she was, glad that none of her loved ones had died, and there were countless citizens here mourning their fathers, brothers, husbands, and friends. She felt so bad, so guilty that she didn't feel the same kind of pain that they did.
Ginny was pulled out of her thoughts by a hand on her shoulder. It was Éowyn, with a bittersweet smile on her face. Without pausing to think about her actions, Ginny took the other woman into a hug. The two women comforted each other in silence for awhile before separating. Ginny noticed that Éowyn was trying to discreetly wipe away a few tears and Ginny graciously let her think she hadn't noticed.
"How is everyone?" the blonde woman asked, hugging herself tightly around her middle.
"Everyone's alright. Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, my brothers, and I are all okay," Ginny said comfortingly. "Your uncle got a spear to the shoulder, but he's alright," she said, hastily confirming Théoden's state at Éowyn's panicked look. "I also got to meet your brother," she said. Éowyn looked up sharply at that.
"Éomer?" she asked quickly. "He came?" Ginny nodded.
"Yeah, Gandalf found him and his men and they got here at dawn."
Éowyn's whole posture deflated as she relaxed. Ginny understood completely. Éowyn must have been worried sick about him for weeks - Ginny had heard about his exile at Wormtongue's hands - and now her brother was here and more importantly, he was okay. "Do you want to go find him?" she asked. Éowyn nodded and told her that yes, she certainly did, and the two women went off to where Ginny had last seen Éomer, when she was passing by the infirmary. When they got there, Éowyn picked her brother out of the crowd in seconds, and left Ginny's side, weaving through the crowd of soldiers and distressed families, going up to her brother. Ginny watched as Éowyn hugged her brother and Ginny smiled to herself.
She went to leave, but she was stopped. Aragorn grabbed hold of her good arm and pulled her back towards him.
"I told you that I would take care of your arm," he reminded her. She looked up at him with pleading eyes and her best pout, but he held her gaze with determination. And he wouldn't budge. Ginny sighed. She wasn't getting out of this.
"Fine."
"Come on," Aragorn said, a little smirk on his lips at her reluctance, "just a few stitches and your arm will be as good as new."
Ginny quirked an eyebrow at him. She knew better, her arm was already getting a little itchy. She had let it fester for too long and she could almost feel it getting more and more irritated. Nevertheless, she let him lead her to a table and sit her down, watching as he prepared his supplies.
"When are you planning on getting some rest?" she asked him as he was pulling clean bandages from a basket. He approached her with a wet rag and started to clean around the wound and the fabric of her ripped shirt.
"We may need to cut off that sleeve," he said, avoiding Ginny's question. She rolled her eyes and sighed.
"Yes, yes, fine, do it," she said, "but answer my question."
"I will rest once there is nothing left for me to do here," he said, most infuriatingly in Ginny's opinion.
"And when is that going to be?" she asked. "Oh, don't worry about the shirt, I can fix it real easy," she said as he tried very carefully to neatly cut off her sleeve above the wound.
"I do not want loose fibers getting in the way while I work," he explained, and with a sigh, Ginny gestured for him to just get on with it. "And I do not know when I will be done working in here," he answered her earlier question. Ginny sighed again and stared him down.
"The right answer to that question would have been 'as soon as I finish stitching your arm, Ginny,'" she said. She winced as Aragorn applied hot water to her wound to clean it. "You said that I would let you take care of my arm, so that means you have to let me make sure you get some sleep," she reasoned.
"Is that so?" Aragorn asked as he inspected her wound for infection. Ginny grit her teeth while he cleaned it out as best as he could, whimpering a little when he picked out a small piece of rubble.
"Yes, it damn well is so, you stubborn arse," she said through the pain. He chuckled a bit under his breath and turned away from her to grab a candle and the curved needle he would need for her stitches. He passed the needle a few times through the flame to sterilize it and threaded it with the silk thread before returning to Ginny's side. She was still glaring at him. He sighed inwardly. Damn it all.
"Fine," he finally conceded. "After I finish stitching up your wound, I will take some rest," he said. Ginny's glare turned into a satisfied and approving smile.
"There, now was that really that hard?" she asked him playfully. Aragorn quirked an eyebrow at her and set to work.
Thanks for reading! I hope that you guys don't hate me for my awful updating schedule... It really is shit. There isn't even a schedule to it, it just tends to happen when there is a big assignment that I'm putting off doing so I work on this instead. (Actually, I am kinda constantly working on this story, its just that i keep working on things that aren't next...) Anyways, thanks so much for reading! If you liked it, let me know why in a review!
Natalie out.