Disclaimer: See last chapter.
A/N: Wow, 54 reviews! Thanks guys! *tears in eyes*. I would like to thank the Academy...!
I'm glad that at least one person got the hint about Legolas [well done Ezellohar Shark and Shark,the smart half] ... did anyone else catch on?
And uh, about Casey's swearing... I don't think I over did it but hell, if a huge octopus thing tried to attack me, I'd probably start swearing like there was no tomorrow!
I agree with Harle, Frodo romances are damn hard to find, and usually they're slashy ones with either Sam or Aragorn! Y'see, that's why I decided to write this fic.
I will keep the marriage thing as a possible ending, by the way. Aw, wouldn't that be cute?! However, I do have other possible endings "up my sleeve", or so they say. But I won't say, or else it'd ruin the surprise.
And yes, there will be some Casey/Frodo action... just be patient. Would anyone else like a special Saruman fic, dedicated to him singing lovely songs?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Frodo stared, stunned. She was standing in front of him, soaking wet and still clutching his sword.
"Um, hi?" she said.
No one spoke.
Gandalf cleared his throat in an authoritative manner.
"Ah Casey, you've decided to grace us all with your presence," he said. She smiled shyly, and shifted her feet a little.
"And who is this girl that you know of, Gandalf?" asked Gimli.
"This is Casey," replied Gandalf, "Frodo's guardian for this journey to Mordor. She is no ordinary girl, but an angel, and has been following us since we left Rivendell. Already she has proved her capability, when she saved Frodo from the orcs. "
There was an uncomfortable silence, as Gandalf's lengthy speech soaked in. Casey nervously chewed her lip and brushed her hair behind her ears, while Frodo showed a sudden interest in the floor.
"A-an angel?" asked Pippin, staring at Casey with large eyes. Casey blushed a little at her new-found attention, and smiled at Pippin. Legolas tightened his grip on Casey's shoulder.
Frodo still said nothing. He was still trying to recollect his thoughts. He couldn't believe that she was standing in front of him, and almost clear and solid but not quite. There was still in ethereal glow about her, which reminded him that she was not of living blood, as she was very pale. The only color about her were her dark eyes and hair. He carried on stealing glances at her between inspecting his feet, soaking in her appearance and presence.
This time it was Aragorn's turn to clear his throat.
"Shouldn't we be going?"
Gandalf came back to his senses, and said, "Ah yes! Come, we must carry on our journey through the mines, since there is no other way. It is four days journey, and I shall be glad when we reach the end."
The Fellowship began to follow Gandalf, deeper into the heart of the mines. But there was something lurking there, that the dwarves had awoken from their greed, that only Gandalf and Saruman [hence his victory/theme song] knew about.
They remained silent as they journeyed through the mines. Gandalf was in front, leading them, closely followed by Gimli. Legolas and the hobbits came behind, with Casey walking close behind Frodo. In the rear were Aragorn and Boromir, both turning around every now and then as they detected someone - or something following close behind the Fellowship.
Casey walked silently behind Frodo, her feet making no noise on the ground. Frodo had to turn around every now and then to make sure she was still there - if she disappeared, he didn't know what he'd do. He had so many things to ask her. Who she was, where had she come from and - well, he just wanted to get to know her better.
But every time he turned around to speak, no words came out of his mouth. He would blush, close his mouth, and turn back to face the front, while Casey would just look puzzled.
"Stupid, stupid," Frodo said to himself, after he had it again for the tenth time. He sighed to himself, and quickened his pace to walk alongside Sam.
Casey smiled to herself. The ring bearer, a fifty-something year old hobbit, who Middle-Earth was depending on, was behaving like an adolescent teenage boy.
Their path became steeper, until eventually they were crawling on all fours. Everyone, including the nimble Legolas, found it much harder to walk. Even Casey kept tripping over her own skirt, and had to face the humiliation of Frodo catching her more than once.
"Sorry," she said quietly. Frodo smiled charmingly at her, and then carried on walking.
After walking for what seemed like hours in the near-pitch black, Gandalf held up his hand and stopped suddenly. The hobbits and Gimli crashed behind him.
"Oof!"
"Phumph!"
"I have no recollection of this place," said Gandalf, while others were disentangling themselves.
"Here we go again," muttered Merry, sitting down on a nearby rock. The rest of the Fellowship followed suit, and lit a small fire to rest and wait until Gandalf had remembered.
Casey was sitting between Merry and Pippin, who were talking to each other over her. She sighed to herself.
Legolas went over to were Aragorn and Boromir were sitting.
"Is this what Galadriel intended?" Legolas asked. The two men looked up.
"Would you care to elaborate?" asked Boromir. Legolas sighed, and sat down in front of them.
He looked over at Casey, who was still staring emotionlessly into space. Who knew what thoughts were running through her head? Her head jerked up slightly as she watched Frodo make his way hurriedly towards Gandalf. Their eyes met for a few seconds, but then Frodo broke off the intense gaze as he turned to talk to Gandalf. Casey returned to staring at her toes, and twirling a strand of her hair around her finger.
"Was Frodo meant to be able to find out about Casey?" asked Legolas.
"I do not think so. Remember, we were never meant to travel along this path. I doubt that Frodo would even find out about her, since he was never meant to be able to see her," replied Aragorn, while stroking his beard.
"But they barely even talk to each other -"
Aragorn silenced Legolas with a wave of his hand.
"They are just shy," Aragorn said, watching Casey. He smiled to himself. "They will - how do you say it - loosen up a little once Frodo gets used to seeing her around."
Legolas cocked his head to one side, not understanding.
Casey twirled her hair around her finger.
"What are you doing, Miss Casey?" asked Pippin.
"I'm trying to make my hair curly," she murmured, still in deep concentration.
"Oh, you don't want curly hair like ours," said Merry, butting in. He pulled out one of his curls in an effort to straighten it, only to have it flip back to its original curl.
Pippin's laughter mixed with Casey's laugh, as Sam desperately tried to make them shut up. The elf was surprised. It was the first time he had heard her laugh, or even smile out of true happiness. He smiled, and blushed.
"Aah!" said Gandalf suddenly, interrupting them all.
"He's remembered!" cried Merry, leaping up.
"No, but the air here does not smell so foul," said Gandalf, inspecting one of the passageways. "Always trust your nose Merry," he said, patting the hobbit on the back.
They walked on, their spirits raised a little. Merry and Pippin did not bother to whisper to each other, but chatted to Casey quite noisily, telling her about the Shire. Sam and Frodo joined in every now and then.
"Oh, the Shire's a grand place!" said Pippin.
"You should come... when all this is over," said Merry.
"Oh, do you remember the time when we stole from Farmer Maggot?"
"Haha, I bet he never knew it was us!"
"Ooh, what about Bilbo's party..." Pippin's voice faded a little, as Frodo looked up at the mentioning of his "uncle".
"What about the party?" asked Casey inquisitively.
"Well, Frodo will tell you all about it," said Pippin.
"I'd rather not," replied Frodo quietly.
The three hobbits and the angel were stunned momentarily, until Merry saved the day.
"Yes, that's when me and Pippin stole that big firework... I bet that was the highlight of the party..." Sam and Pippin joined in, but Casey looked over at Frodo. The hobbit looked rather sad and solemn.
Not knowing what else to do, Casey walked over to Frodo and slung a casual arm around his shoulders comfortingly. She was quite surprised to find him much shorter than her. He looked up and smiled at her.
Legolas walked behind the pair. A pang of jealously suddenly struck his heart, an emotion that was virtually unknown to the elf.
Soon, Gandalf stopped again.
"Oh, what is it now?" asked Pippin.
"Behold, the Great Hall of Moria," said Gandalf majestically. The others looked around and gasped in awe at the sheer size of it, and the beauty of the grand columns stretching up to the ceiling. They walked along for some time, until Gimli halted.
"Nooo!" he cried, and with as much speed as he could muster, he ran into a room."
"No! Come back!" cried Gandalf, chasing after him. The others followed suit, slightly bewildered at the dwarf's actions.
They had entered a room, which stored Balin's tomb, Balin being the cousin of Gimli. The dwarf knelt at the great white tomb, sobbing uncontrollably. A shaft of light shone down on the tomb, illuminating the inscription, which Gandalf now read out.
"Here lies Balin, lord of Moria. It is as I've feared," he said. He paused, and then, taking off his hat, he gave it and his stick to Pippin to hold. Casey stood close to Frodo, and stared warily at the skeletons nearby.
Gandalf picked up a large book from a skeleton, and after blowing the dust off it, began to read.
"We have blocked the gate, but there is no way out. We cannot get out," he said solemnly. Pippin decided to inspect the skeleton in a nearby well.
"We must not linger here," said Legolas to Aragorn. Gandalf looked up from his book.
"They are coming," he read. It was the final line of the diary entry.
Suddenly, they all jumped as they heard a mighty crash. They look at a very guilty Pippin, who was trying to look innocent while the skeleton, chains and bucket behind him fell into the well rather noisily.
The Fellowship held their breath. Had the noise alerted them of their presence? Obviously not. They breathed a sigh of relief.
"You fool of a Took!" said Gandalf, snatching his hat and stick from Pippin. [A/N: Don't you love Pippin's look in the movie when he does that? It's *so* cute!] "Next time throw yourself in and rid us of your stupidity!"
Pippin mumbled something incoherent, and scampered to the other hobbits for their sympathy.
Just as Casey herself had breathed a sigh of relief, a chill went up her spine.
"Damn, I hate it when my spine does that," she thought to herself. Then she heard it, thanks to her sharper than normal hearing. Legolas' ears pricked up at the sound.
It was the sound of drums, getting closer and closer, and the shrieking sound of orcs. Soon, the others heard it too, and the hobbits began to gather around each other more tightly, while the warriors drew out their weapons.
"They are coming."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N: Aaah! The suspense!! Sorry folks, you'll have to wait for the next chapter for more action!
A/N: Wow, 54 reviews! Thanks guys! *tears in eyes*. I would like to thank the Academy...!
I'm glad that at least one person got the hint about Legolas [well done Ezellohar Shark and Shark,the smart half] ... did anyone else catch on?
And uh, about Casey's swearing... I don't think I over did it but hell, if a huge octopus thing tried to attack me, I'd probably start swearing like there was no tomorrow!
I agree with Harle, Frodo romances are damn hard to find, and usually they're slashy ones with either Sam or Aragorn! Y'see, that's why I decided to write this fic.
I will keep the marriage thing as a possible ending, by the way. Aw, wouldn't that be cute?! However, I do have other possible endings "up my sleeve", or so they say. But I won't say, or else it'd ruin the surprise.
And yes, there will be some Casey/Frodo action... just be patient. Would anyone else like a special Saruman fic, dedicated to him singing lovely songs?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Frodo stared, stunned. She was standing in front of him, soaking wet and still clutching his sword.
"Um, hi?" she said.
No one spoke.
Gandalf cleared his throat in an authoritative manner.
"Ah Casey, you've decided to grace us all with your presence," he said. She smiled shyly, and shifted her feet a little.
"And who is this girl that you know of, Gandalf?" asked Gimli.
"This is Casey," replied Gandalf, "Frodo's guardian for this journey to Mordor. She is no ordinary girl, but an angel, and has been following us since we left Rivendell. Already she has proved her capability, when she saved Frodo from the orcs. "
There was an uncomfortable silence, as Gandalf's lengthy speech soaked in. Casey nervously chewed her lip and brushed her hair behind her ears, while Frodo showed a sudden interest in the floor.
"A-an angel?" asked Pippin, staring at Casey with large eyes. Casey blushed a little at her new-found attention, and smiled at Pippin. Legolas tightened his grip on Casey's shoulder.
Frodo still said nothing. He was still trying to recollect his thoughts. He couldn't believe that she was standing in front of him, and almost clear and solid but not quite. There was still in ethereal glow about her, which reminded him that she was not of living blood, as she was very pale. The only color about her were her dark eyes and hair. He carried on stealing glances at her between inspecting his feet, soaking in her appearance and presence.
This time it was Aragorn's turn to clear his throat.
"Shouldn't we be going?"
Gandalf came back to his senses, and said, "Ah yes! Come, we must carry on our journey through the mines, since there is no other way. It is four days journey, and I shall be glad when we reach the end."
The Fellowship began to follow Gandalf, deeper into the heart of the mines. But there was something lurking there, that the dwarves had awoken from their greed, that only Gandalf and Saruman [hence his victory/theme song] knew about.
They remained silent as they journeyed through the mines. Gandalf was in front, leading them, closely followed by Gimli. Legolas and the hobbits came behind, with Casey walking close behind Frodo. In the rear were Aragorn and Boromir, both turning around every now and then as they detected someone - or something following close behind the Fellowship.
Casey walked silently behind Frodo, her feet making no noise on the ground. Frodo had to turn around every now and then to make sure she was still there - if she disappeared, he didn't know what he'd do. He had so many things to ask her. Who she was, where had she come from and - well, he just wanted to get to know her better.
But every time he turned around to speak, no words came out of his mouth. He would blush, close his mouth, and turn back to face the front, while Casey would just look puzzled.
"Stupid, stupid," Frodo said to himself, after he had it again for the tenth time. He sighed to himself, and quickened his pace to walk alongside Sam.
Casey smiled to herself. The ring bearer, a fifty-something year old hobbit, who Middle-Earth was depending on, was behaving like an adolescent teenage boy.
Their path became steeper, until eventually they were crawling on all fours. Everyone, including the nimble Legolas, found it much harder to walk. Even Casey kept tripping over her own skirt, and had to face the humiliation of Frodo catching her more than once.
"Sorry," she said quietly. Frodo smiled charmingly at her, and then carried on walking.
After walking for what seemed like hours in the near-pitch black, Gandalf held up his hand and stopped suddenly. The hobbits and Gimli crashed behind him.
"Oof!"
"Phumph!"
"I have no recollection of this place," said Gandalf, while others were disentangling themselves.
"Here we go again," muttered Merry, sitting down on a nearby rock. The rest of the Fellowship followed suit, and lit a small fire to rest and wait until Gandalf had remembered.
Casey was sitting between Merry and Pippin, who were talking to each other over her. She sighed to herself.
Legolas went over to were Aragorn and Boromir were sitting.
"Is this what Galadriel intended?" Legolas asked. The two men looked up.
"Would you care to elaborate?" asked Boromir. Legolas sighed, and sat down in front of them.
He looked over at Casey, who was still staring emotionlessly into space. Who knew what thoughts were running through her head? Her head jerked up slightly as she watched Frodo make his way hurriedly towards Gandalf. Their eyes met for a few seconds, but then Frodo broke off the intense gaze as he turned to talk to Gandalf. Casey returned to staring at her toes, and twirling a strand of her hair around her finger.
"Was Frodo meant to be able to find out about Casey?" asked Legolas.
"I do not think so. Remember, we were never meant to travel along this path. I doubt that Frodo would even find out about her, since he was never meant to be able to see her," replied Aragorn, while stroking his beard.
"But they barely even talk to each other -"
Aragorn silenced Legolas with a wave of his hand.
"They are just shy," Aragorn said, watching Casey. He smiled to himself. "They will - how do you say it - loosen up a little once Frodo gets used to seeing her around."
Legolas cocked his head to one side, not understanding.
Casey twirled her hair around her finger.
"What are you doing, Miss Casey?" asked Pippin.
"I'm trying to make my hair curly," she murmured, still in deep concentration.
"Oh, you don't want curly hair like ours," said Merry, butting in. He pulled out one of his curls in an effort to straighten it, only to have it flip back to its original curl.
Pippin's laughter mixed with Casey's laugh, as Sam desperately tried to make them shut up. The elf was surprised. It was the first time he had heard her laugh, or even smile out of true happiness. He smiled, and blushed.
"Aah!" said Gandalf suddenly, interrupting them all.
"He's remembered!" cried Merry, leaping up.
"No, but the air here does not smell so foul," said Gandalf, inspecting one of the passageways. "Always trust your nose Merry," he said, patting the hobbit on the back.
They walked on, their spirits raised a little. Merry and Pippin did not bother to whisper to each other, but chatted to Casey quite noisily, telling her about the Shire. Sam and Frodo joined in every now and then.
"Oh, the Shire's a grand place!" said Pippin.
"You should come... when all this is over," said Merry.
"Oh, do you remember the time when we stole from Farmer Maggot?"
"Haha, I bet he never knew it was us!"
"Ooh, what about Bilbo's party..." Pippin's voice faded a little, as Frodo looked up at the mentioning of his "uncle".
"What about the party?" asked Casey inquisitively.
"Well, Frodo will tell you all about it," said Pippin.
"I'd rather not," replied Frodo quietly.
The three hobbits and the angel were stunned momentarily, until Merry saved the day.
"Yes, that's when me and Pippin stole that big firework... I bet that was the highlight of the party..." Sam and Pippin joined in, but Casey looked over at Frodo. The hobbit looked rather sad and solemn.
Not knowing what else to do, Casey walked over to Frodo and slung a casual arm around his shoulders comfortingly. She was quite surprised to find him much shorter than her. He looked up and smiled at her.
Legolas walked behind the pair. A pang of jealously suddenly struck his heart, an emotion that was virtually unknown to the elf.
Soon, Gandalf stopped again.
"Oh, what is it now?" asked Pippin.
"Behold, the Great Hall of Moria," said Gandalf majestically. The others looked around and gasped in awe at the sheer size of it, and the beauty of the grand columns stretching up to the ceiling. They walked along for some time, until Gimli halted.
"Nooo!" he cried, and with as much speed as he could muster, he ran into a room."
"No! Come back!" cried Gandalf, chasing after him. The others followed suit, slightly bewildered at the dwarf's actions.
They had entered a room, which stored Balin's tomb, Balin being the cousin of Gimli. The dwarf knelt at the great white tomb, sobbing uncontrollably. A shaft of light shone down on the tomb, illuminating the inscription, which Gandalf now read out.
"Here lies Balin, lord of Moria. It is as I've feared," he said. He paused, and then, taking off his hat, he gave it and his stick to Pippin to hold. Casey stood close to Frodo, and stared warily at the skeletons nearby.
Gandalf picked up a large book from a skeleton, and after blowing the dust off it, began to read.
"We have blocked the gate, but there is no way out. We cannot get out," he said solemnly. Pippin decided to inspect the skeleton in a nearby well.
"We must not linger here," said Legolas to Aragorn. Gandalf looked up from his book.
"They are coming," he read. It was the final line of the diary entry.
Suddenly, they all jumped as they heard a mighty crash. They look at a very guilty Pippin, who was trying to look innocent while the skeleton, chains and bucket behind him fell into the well rather noisily.
The Fellowship held their breath. Had the noise alerted them of their presence? Obviously not. They breathed a sigh of relief.
"You fool of a Took!" said Gandalf, snatching his hat and stick from Pippin. [A/N: Don't you love Pippin's look in the movie when he does that? It's *so* cute!] "Next time throw yourself in and rid us of your stupidity!"
Pippin mumbled something incoherent, and scampered to the other hobbits for their sympathy.
Just as Casey herself had breathed a sigh of relief, a chill went up her spine.
"Damn, I hate it when my spine does that," she thought to herself. Then she heard it, thanks to her sharper than normal hearing. Legolas' ears pricked up at the sound.
It was the sound of drums, getting closer and closer, and the shrieking sound of orcs. Soon, the others heard it too, and the hobbits began to gather around each other more tightly, while the warriors drew out their weapons.
"They are coming."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N: Aaah! The suspense!! Sorry folks, you'll have to wait for the next chapter for more action!