The wind blew the stench of death and burning flesh to the on coming four. Phoenix couldn't bear to look up with the fear she would see Pippin's dead body lying in the pile of dead Orcs and Uruk-Hai.
Gimli bent down and picked up a leather strap. "Tis…very small…"
"No…" Phoenix uttered.
Legolas, Gimli and Strider looked at the pile. Phoenix refused to look up. "Why couldn't they have checked?" she asked. "Why did they just kill everything in their path?" she looked up at the pile. More tears were cutting their way down her face. Strider was kneeling on the ground.
"A Hobbit lay here," Strider said suddenly.
"What?" Phoenix looked down from the sky. "Did you say…"
"And rolled over," Strider traced the ground with his hand. "Crawled…" he stood. "Tracks…one got grabbed here." He pointed to the ground. "The belt…" he followed the tracks. "They ran…into the woods."
"He's alive?"
"With hope," Legolas said. Phoenix began to run for the dark forest. "Phoenix wait!" Legolas caught up. "Where are you going?"
"To find him? Aren't you coming?"
"You're heart is strong young Hobbit," Gimli said as he and Strider walked towards Phoenix and Legolas.
"But you must be careful when entering Fangorn Forest," Legolas said. They walked into he darkening forest.
Being in the forest was unnerving. Phoenix hand her hand on the sword from the second she stepped in the woods. The trees were extremely large and covered with much moss and many vines.
"These woods are very old," Legolas said, observing his surroundings. "Full of memory…anger…" the group heard low whispering. "The trees are talking to each other."
Strider stood atop a rock a little ways from Legolas. Legolas said something in Elvish as he approached. He and Strider spoke the unknown language for a moment. Phoenix realized that was the language was the same that was on the rock that transported her to Middle Earth.
"The White Wizard approaches," Legolas said with darkness in his voice.
"We must act quickly, do not let him speak, we do not want to be put under the spell," Strider grabbed his sword. Gimli took hold of his axe, Legolas positioned his bow and Phoenix slowly began to draw her sword. Strider nodded and the four turned around raising their weapons.
A great white light appeared. Gimli's axe fell to the ground. Legolas's arrow bounced off some sort of shield. Strider and Phoenix's swords burned in their hands, causing them to drop them.
"You track the trail of two young hobbits…" an old wise sounding voice came from the light.
"Yes," Phoenix said very eagerly.
"They met someone they did not expect, if it means anything to you,"
"Who are you?" Strider asked. The light slowly faded and a white staff crossed the face of its owner. "It cannot be." Strider said to himself in shock.
"Gandalf," Gimli smiled.
"Yes…Gandalf the Gray…" he replied as if he had just stumbled upon a long lost memory. "That was my name. I am Gandalf the White."
"How is this so?" Strider asked.
"I fell threw fire, rain and to the last level of this earth. I fought the Balrog and defeated my enemy. Darkness came over me. I saw the stars where a day took as long as an age on earth. I felt life come back to me. I return to you now in your time of need," he carefully explained.
"Pippin," Phoenix piped up. "You said that he and Merry met someone…where is he? Is he safe? Hurt?"
"Phoenix," Gandalf said, looking at her. "Yes…" it was like he was trying to recall the hobbit that stood in front of him. "You are the one that is not of this world."
"What? How did you know?"
"You come from a different time…you're of the man race…not a hobbit," he had a look of curiosity. "You do not belong here."
"I've been telling myself that since the day I woke up in Rivendell…" she looked down at her feet then up at Gandalf. "But I don't care about that anymore…I don't care how I got here…why I'm here or why I was changed to a hobbit. All I care about is where is Pippin?"
"Fear not," He said. "He and Merry are safe. Come. We must ride to King Théoden." He put on a tattered gray cloak and led the company out of the dark woods back to the open field. The two horses were already waiting. Gandalf let out a long, almost mystical whistle. A moment later a white stallion began to approach from the distance.
The stallion went right up to Gandalf. "It is a horse of mearas if my eyes are not under a spell."
"This is Shadowfax," Gandalf said petting the horse. "He is the lord of all horses, and a very dear friend."
"He's beautiful," Phoenix said. Gandalf mounted Shadowfax, Legolas and Gimli got on their white horse and Strider and Phoenix got on the brown one. They three horses rode off towards Edoras to King Théoden.