Different Views

When I climbed down into the caves behind Gimli, I didn't expect much more than a stalactite grotto, like some I had visited before. Legolas had excused himself, saying there was an old friend who seemed to be in Helm's Deep at the same time as we were, and so the elf had left me in Gimli's care. I had wondered what kind of friend this might be, but had not inquired further. Instead, I had listened to Gimli's talk about the wealth of gems that were apparently found in Aglarond as we descended the stairs.

But my expectation couldn't have been further from the truth: When we entered the cave, the first thing I heard was the characteristic dripping of water. So far - so ordinary. But then, after we turned the corner, I held my breath. The cave might once have been a dripstone cave. But that was before the dwarves had taken over.

Some remnants of stalactites and stalagmites were still visible, but the dwarves had knocked the light brown stone open in most places to reveal the beauty of the gemstone veins running beneath. In the light of many hundreds of flaming torches and lamps, the walls of the cave shimmered in every imaginable color of the rainbow. Some distance away, I saw the grotto make a bend. Behind it, it seemed to go even further. "How big are the caves?", I asked in awe.

"The system consists of many tunnels, chamber and paths," Gimli replied. He had been following my gaze, looking with a chest puffed with pride at what he and his dwarves had already tickled out of Aglarond over the past few years. "A small stream runs through the fortress and makes our work down here easier. Not only is it a source of water for the Hornburg, but it's also very useful for our task."

"That means the cave system is naturally formed and extends many miles under the White Mountains?", I asked.

The dwarf nodded. "As yet we are only exploring the naturally formed chambers, but I am sure we will find more."

"It's beautiful." I smiled. Then Gimli showed me some other things the dwarves had brought to light in the short time they had been here. When we returned to daylight a good thirty minutes later, I said, "I was once in a cave with an underground lake. The sound of the running water reminds me a little of that."

"You will have to tell me about that cave."

"Another time, perhaps," I replied. "I think I'll turn in now. Before we worry about what to do tomorrow, I need to take it easy on my sore muscles. Besides, I still haven't quite warmed up to Aescrof." That was the name of my horse, Legolas had told me. It meant something like 'brave in battle' and I could understand how a horse that had earned such a name would not be pleased with a rider like me. But the bottom line was that I hadn't asked for it and we had to get along. This, however, seemed to be increasingly displeasing to Aescrof.

"Aye." The dwarf grinned. "You'll get used to it."

"They're dangerous at both ends and crafty in the middle," I muttered, remembering the quote from one of the Sherlock Holmes movies. "How does Legolas manage to ride Arod without a saddle or rein?"

Again Gimli grinned as he escorted me into the Hornburg and to one of the rooms we had been assigned. "He is an elf. Elves have a closer connection to nature than you or I will ever have. You should ask him if you need help guiding Aescrof."

"Can't you help me?"

"I am glad to no longer have to sit behind Legolas on Arod. I much prefer ponies to horses - you don't fall as deep and their tempers are calmer."

"So you are not a horse lover either."

Gimli muttered something unintelligible into his beard before replying, "Don't let the elf hear that."

"My lips are zipped." We had reached my room. Gimli and I said our goodbyes, and after closing the door behind me, I let myself sink onto the bed. The exhaustion of the last few days was only now really setting in. So was the excitement that was still circulating through my veins because of what we had found out. No one told me that the third piece of stone was really waiting for me in Esgaroth, but it was possible. And if I found it, then I was one step closer to home than I had thought just a few weeks ago. Nevertheless, I couldn't get too attached to that idea. It could just as well happen that the third part was in a completely different time. Or no longer existing at all.

I shook my head and undressed. Then I washed properly at the basin that someone had kindly filled with water for me. I also brushed my teeth, washed my hair, and groomed my nails. Although I had insisted on a minimum of hygiene during the journey, which had earned me a shake of the head from Gimli and surprised looks from Legolas, it had not really been comparable to a bath. The basin here was probably the closest thing to that.

After I was done, I put on some clean clothes. As tired as I had been, the cold water had revived my spirits and I wasn't ready to sleep yet. So I sat down on the bed and began to read the only book I had brought with me: a tiny copy of Jule Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth. I had read it many times since I arrived, but returning to that world made my mind forget its true surroundings for a while.

However, after two more hours I was still not calm enough to lie down, so I decided to leave the room again. By now it was night, late summer was slowly being driven away by the onset of fall. I knew what that meant: as the days grew shorter and the temperatures colder, our journey would also become more burdensome. If we still planned on riding to Esgaroth and all the way back to Minas Tirith, we wouldn't be able to wait long to decide what to do. We had to leave as soon as possible to get back to Minas Tirith before winter. If we were to make it at all.

My feet had unconsciously led me to the inner walkway of the Hornburg. From here, the entire landscape was in view. I did not notice the shadow standing some distance away beside me on the walkway until he cleared his throat. "Gimli told me you had turned in."

I winced. "It's like you appear out of thin air, you know that, right?"

"I was here before you."

"It was just a joke." He tilted his head but said nothing, which was why I added, "I better go back inside."

"Keep me company for a moment." There was no mistaking the insistence in his voice, so I did as he asked. "I've been watching the sky. We should move on as soon as possible."

"I know," I responded. "Winter seems to be coming early this year."

"I have the same impression."

We remained silent for a moment before Legolas asked, "What makes you so sure you are from another time and not another world?"

I collected myself for a moment, then said, "Do you see the constellations? It's the end of August, so you can see Vega very brightly in the sky." I pointed to the star that was next to the swan. "Down there is Capricorn, Scorpio, and between the two is Sagittarius. I know all these constellations from home, too, in the same way. If I were on another planet, they would be arranged differently."

"You have different names for the constellations than we do, but if they are the same, that would be a convincing theory."

"I could be wrong, but in the end it doesn't matter. I'm trapped here, and the constellations aren't going to take me home again."

"You can't know that."

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I ran into an old friend today. It just so happened that he had been in the same place at the same time - a happy coincidence, if I may say so. I told him in bits and pieces about what we found out today. Don't be concerned," he said, noticing my alarmed look, "he knows nothing of you, nor of you having traveled to Middle Earth with help of the stone."

"Have I?"

"Well, that is yet to be seen. The point is that he reminded me of something that might change our perspective on your appearance here in Middle Earth once again."

"And that is?"

"It's not just the Arkenstone that has been said to have magical powers. There are other magical stones, Palantíri for example. I don't assume that your stone is one, but we should keep that in mind. While we're in Esgaroth, we should also travel on to Thal at the Lonely Mountain. There is another large archive. Maybe we'll find out more about magic stones in it - including how you can use your stone if we actually find the third part in Esgaroth."

For a heartbeat, I looked at him. Then I remembered what he had said in the Lower Gardens about his motives, "You fear that the stone has something to do with the shadow you mentioned."
Legolas nodded. "The more we learn, the less I believe there is no connection between the two."

I let that sit for now. It could very well be. However, that would give my journey a significance that worried me. Because then I hadn't just ended up here on a whim, but because someone or something had intended to. "I can't imagine that anyone would have wanted me in particular here in Middle Earth," I said from within my thoughts. "In my time, I'm no one special."

I shrugged. "I'm not a princess or otherwise influential in any way so that I could have changed the fate of my time."

"Frodo wasn't anyone special either, and neither was Bilbo," the Elf countered.

"Gandalf basically coerced Bilbo into traveling with him and the dwarves, and then Frodo had to finish what Bilbo unwillingly started."

"And you were taken to Middle-earth by a stranger."

He had a point there. Still, there was a key difference: "I never consciously chose to go." Not as Frodo and even Bilbo had done to some degree.

"Wasn't it your choice to go through the door?"

I gave him a sharp look. "Are you going to compare my situation to Frodo's? I'm not a Ringbearer, and I'm actually very happy about that."

"No," he said, "but you have made a choice - an uninformed one, but a choice nonetheless."

I couldn't argue with that. So I just folded my arms in front of my chest and asked, more to distract myself from that fact than out of interest, "Do you want to come with me at all? You seemed anything but enthusiastic in the tavern."