Chapter 7: Attacks and Familiar Faces
I don't own LoTR.
The journey has so far been uneventful. Shrubs, rocks, and flattish plains as far as the eye could see began to frustrate me. No matter how far we walked, we never seemed to get anywhere. I ran my hand through my hair once more and rubbed my eyes. I was quite tired having not gotten a very good sleep. One of the few things that I appreciated was the time I got to spend with Windfola. We really didn't see each other often speaking as we lived so far away. Of course, the peaceful walk was never meant to last.
"So, how's it been going back at your village?" I asked, attempting to start conversation. Unfortunately the question asked isn't great for making such conversation and we soon fell back into silence, question unanswered.
Time past and we continued on. It was due to the sheer amount of people traveling to the fortress that we ended up covering only a small amount of land per day. I assumed we would, if staying on our current course, reach Helms Deep in a few days. That is, if trouble didn't reach us. Of course, things never turn out the way they need to be, am I right? Well, fate certainly wasn't on our side. That became clear when shouts arose from in front of us. My head snapped up so fast that I almost thought I heard a crack. Windfola copied my movements. I peered ahead, concerned about Dan and the rest of my family. It was at times like this that I really despised when they, mostly meaning Fastere, would decide it'd be a good idea to ride ahead. Usually I wouldn't care about this slightly annoying habit but these were quite different conditions. When running from thousands of enemies that would like nothing more than to see us all slaughtered, things were quite different.
The fleeing civilians hastened forward towards the fortress. Being nearer to the end, I swung up onto SnawFyr and unslung my bow. Windfola tightened her grip around me as we broke into a gallop. Time flew by. I didn't keep try to keep track of it. To my and many others relief, the fortress soon came into view.
It was not to long until everyone was safely behind the walls. The guards who had stayed had returned in relative safety. Windfola had gone ahead and found a space that we could stay. I made my way through the crowd. Being slightly shorter than most, I had to occasionally jump to see above those around me. I was looking around for Fastere and the others. Weaving around people as I moved about, I strained my eyes to search the sea of faces. Everyone blended together. In my search my line of sight passed over a familiar face. I paused for a moment. Slight dread filled me. A few feet away from me stood Gavin and my father.
