Life After High School. Is It Scary? You Bet.
By Risty Maskell and Silver15
Disclaimer: Not ours. Unfortunately.
Summary: I can't tell you. I'm brain dead.
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(Emma's POV)
Billee and I joined the conversation in the kitchen. Poor Blue looked really upset and nothing Jaime said could reassure her. I could understand why. It had been dark outside for a while and Wendy is usually very good about getting home before dark. Or calling if she'll be somewhere else. Even though she was very young, she was also very sensible. I didn't believe that she would just go wandering off alone.
"Emma" Billee put a hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry, I'm sure she just lost track of time," he said softly. I knew that he was just saying it, in an attempt to keep us calm. "Damon, Benny, Legolas and I will go and look for her," he continued. "Elrond's upstairs with Colan, when he comes down, tell him what happened, but that it is under control and there is no need to panic. Boromir, Frodo, stay here with the girls. And please don't worry. We'll find her, no problem"
They put on their jackets and called for the three dogs. As the door shut behind them, Blue put her head on the table and began to cry. Jaime and Frodo were doing their best to comfort her when Elrond walked in, with Bilbo just behind him.
"Colan's asleep," he said, then suddenly noticed Blue. "What's the matter?" he said immediately. "What's happened? Where are Billee and Legolas?"
"Wendy's…gone missing" I told him, then felt the tears beginning to slide down my own cheeks. Boromir held me and rubbed my back as I cried against his shoulder.
"Please let her be alright," I whispered, over and over again. "Please let her be okay. Please"
(Billee's POV)
Outside Jaime's house, the four of us stood still and looked at each other helplessly. Although none of us wanted to admit it, we had no idea where to look. She could be anywhere: the park, the Easy Traveler, someone's house… Hobbiton is such a big place that the possibilities were almost endless. There was no time to lose; yet unless we knew where to look, searching for her was pointless.
"Where would you go if you were young and scared?" Benny asked finally. We could only shrug. "Then let's just walk around and call her name for a while" he suggested. "That's all I can think of"
Suddenly, Laddie gave a growl. As we turned around, he shot off with Casper behind him. They were heading in the direction of…
"The lake!" Damon yelled suddenly. "Oh crap! Quick guys"
He ran after the dogs as quickly as he could. We looked at each other and dashed after him. As we came to the edge of the lake, we heard a loud splash.
"Look!" Benny yelled suddenly. We all looked to where he was pointing. Near the middle of the lake, right where the water was deepest, Laddie was struggling to keep himself above water. He held Wendy firmly by the shoulder, but she seemed to be unconscious. Our worse fears had been confirmed. And worse still, we could do little to help. The lake, as well as being deep, is full of weeds. Even the most experienced swimmer would be in danger in there. All we could do was stand on the bank and encourage Laddie to keep going.
And continue he did. Twice Wendy slipped from his grip and the second time she went under the water. We thought we had lost her, but the brave dog dived down and dragged her up again. Even when he caught his leg on a weed, he pulled away, ripping the muscles in his leg and kept struggling. Finally he reached the shallow water and Damon went to take Wendy from him. Laddie collapsed on the ground, completely exhausted. Casper and Sol-leks sat beside him, licking his head gently. Damon hesitated briefly, just to make sure that no serious damage had been done, and then brought Wendy over to us. Gently he put her on the ground and he and Benny knelt down beside her. Legolas and I stood back, not wanting to crowd her. Benny picked up her wrist and checked for a pulse. Damon looked panicky.
"She isn't breathing," he said urgently. "We are going to lose her"
"No we aren't" Benny said sharply. "I can feel a pulse, but it's very faint. Give her mouth-to-mouth. Now!"
Damon leant over Wendy and held her nose as gently as he could. With Benny guiding him, he preformed CPR on the little girl. Colan's best friend. How would my little brother cope with losing another person close to him? I only hoped that we would not have to find out.
Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, Wendy coughed and opened her eyes.
"Where am I?" she mumbled weakly. Damon stood up and moved back, allowing me to kneel beside her. I helped her to sit up and she threw her arms around my neck. She was scared and still very weak, but other than that, and a small cut on her shoulder where Laddie had caught her with his teeth, she was all right. She needed medical treatment since she had swallowed a lot of dirty water, but at least she was alive.
Damon took off his jacket and I wrapped it around her. Then I picked her up and we began to walk back to Bag End. Laddie was limping; his leg was obviously hurt very badly.
"I'll bandage his leg as soon as we get back" Benny told me when I voiced my concern. "Then he can have some food and a long rest. The damn dog is a hero, that's what he is. A bloody hero" I couldn't help but agree. Neither of the other dogs could have done what he did, but Laddie did it without thinking. A brave dog with a heart of gold, that's what he was.
"Billee" Wendy whispered quietly, half asleep. "He won't get me will he?" Legolas heard her and looked puzzled. I was too.
"Who Wendy?" I asked gently. "Who will get you?"
"The man who made me fall in the lake" she whispered quietly. "A bad man said he was going to get me. And you. All of you. I ran way, but I didn't see where I was going. I fell in"
"This man" I didn't want to ask her, but I knew that I had to. "What did he look like? Was he an elf? Like me?"
"No" Wendy shook her head. "He was smaller than you, but I couldn't see. His face was all shadowy"
"Don't worry about it," I whispered as Bag End came into view. "He won't get you, we'll make sure of that. Your sister is in here, she'll be really glad to see you"
But despite my reassuring words, I was worried. At least I knew that it wasn't Mr Silverblade, but who else could possibly have it in for us?
