"And the Fellowship of the Ring Shall Be Ten"
Chapter 4 ~ "The Crebain"
They had been on the road only a matter of days ,and already Teneriel was tired of hearing the hobbits bicker. Actually , it was only Sam ,Merry and Pippin who were arguing.
It seemed that with every step they took , Frodo drew more into himself , became more quiet . His silence was worrying her.
She glanced over her shoulder and noticed that Frodo was lagging slightly behind the rest of the group . His head was bent toward the ground , and he was losing distance on them with every step . Teneriel sighed almost imperceptibly and walked back toward Frodo , ignoring the odd looks that she was receiving from the rest of the group .
"Frodo ," she whispered , falling into step with the exhausted-looking hobbit. "What is troubling you?"
He glanced up at her , and the weariness in his eyes tore at her heart. "I should've known that I couldn't hide anything from an Elf." Frodo smiled halfheartedly, and the lines on his face partially smoothed away, revealing the boyish face beneath. "It's the Ring , " he said softly , making sure that no one else was listening . "It gets heavier and heavier with every mile I walk . And it's getting harder not to think about it ."
Teneriel gently laid a hand on his shoulder and knelt in front of him, her eyes boring deep into his . "That is why my father chose companions to go with you. If we could help you by carrying this burden , then we would. Myself included."
Her eyes closed slightly , for even now , she felt the fingers of the Ring enter her , tempting her , begging her to take it from Frodo. Teneriel stood , breaking the connection with the Ring. "It is a fell thing , Frodo," she said quietly . "And it weighs heavily on you soul. I am sorry. But I consider it to be an honor to help you on your Quest."
"Thank you ," Frodo whispered.
A shout came from the top of a nearby hill . "Teneriel ! Frodo! Come!!!" Legolas called , for he was at the rear of the group.
Teneriel waved a hand to him . "Well , Frodo , we must continue ."
Frodo nodded , starting slowly up the hill . Teneriel walked behind him , watching him until he joined Sam . Sam looked at her and nodded knowingly , mouthing , "I'll watch him."
Legolas glanced at him , then back at Teneriel . "Is Frodo all right?"
"Nay , Legolas . The Ring weighs heavily upon him , and it touches everything near it. It tempted me to take it from him ," she said quietly , watching the small figure walking up the hill . "But , he is strong . Stronger than anyone ever gave him credit for."
~~~~~
Midday came and found the Fellowship camped on a rocky flat , somewhat near to Caradhras . Shouts came from the lowest side , accompanied by the clash of metal against metal .
Boromir was carefully sparring with Pippin and Merry , teaching them how to properly defend themselves. He grinned suddenly and twisted his sword around , catching Pippin's hilt and whipping it out of his hand . Pippin yelped as the sharp blade ran slightly across his wrist .
Merry yelled in anger , flinging down his own sword, leaping onto Boromir's back and pummeling him with his fists . Pippin jumped off of the ground and tackled Boromir low around the knees . Boromir toppled , Merry and Pippin atop him.
Boromir laughed , pulling the two struggling hobbits close and hugging them loosely .
Teneriel smiled gently at the sight. "Well, Dunadan , I am glad that they are enjoying themselves during our respite."
There was no answer .
Teneriel turned and saw Legolas standing on top of the highest point of the hill . his eyes narrowed . Aragorn was watching him , not far away at the foot of the rise .
"Dunadan , what is it?" she asked , coming up behind Aragorn and laying a hand on his shoulder .
He spoke without turning to look at her. "We're not sure yet . But I think that Legolas could use another pair of Elven eyes."
Teneriel nodded , springing lightly onto the hill beside Legolas. She glanced at him , then in the direction in which he was gazing. A dark something was coming steadily nearer to them , but it was some time before it was near enough to be seen .
In perfect unison , Legolas and Teneriel jumped off of the hill. "Hide!" she snapped , rolling underneath a nearby bush . Aragorn , Legolas , and Frodo joined her no less than a second later . A quick glance around showed that everyone was under cover .
And a moment later, her eyes widened in shock . The thick , dark something was a massive assembly of crows. But these crows were not regular crows , they were larger than any other she had ever seen .
"Crebain ," Aragorn said , so softly that only Teneriel and Legolas could hear.
Once the crows had passed over , the Fellowship came out of their various hiding places .
Gandalf sighed , his eyes dark beneath his heavy brows . "So , he knows that we are coming. I feared as much ."
Teneriel moved up beside him , a faint look of worry in her eyes. "Then they were of Saruman ?" He nodded his head once, very quickly . "I thought as much . It is truly unfortunate that we were not able to avoid Saruman's eye . Alas , it cannot be helped."
Gandalf glanced down at her . "You know enough of Saruman to somewhat understand him . I am sure that he knows we are coming , but he may not know where we are. If it is possible , we should stay out of sight wherever we can."
Teneriel nodded in affirmation and agreement. "Yes , we should . I know not whether we can stay out of his sight until Caradhras , Gandalf. But we shall certainly try."
And the Quest continued, knowing not that their greatest challenge was yet ahead.
Chapter 4 ~ "The Crebain"
They had been on the road only a matter of days ,and already Teneriel was tired of hearing the hobbits bicker. Actually , it was only Sam ,Merry and Pippin who were arguing.
It seemed that with every step they took , Frodo drew more into himself , became more quiet . His silence was worrying her.
She glanced over her shoulder and noticed that Frodo was lagging slightly behind the rest of the group . His head was bent toward the ground , and he was losing distance on them with every step . Teneriel sighed almost imperceptibly and walked back toward Frodo , ignoring the odd looks that she was receiving from the rest of the group .
"Frodo ," she whispered , falling into step with the exhausted-looking hobbit. "What is troubling you?"
He glanced up at her , and the weariness in his eyes tore at her heart. "I should've known that I couldn't hide anything from an Elf." Frodo smiled halfheartedly, and the lines on his face partially smoothed away, revealing the boyish face beneath. "It's the Ring , " he said softly , making sure that no one else was listening . "It gets heavier and heavier with every mile I walk . And it's getting harder not to think about it ."
Teneriel gently laid a hand on his shoulder and knelt in front of him, her eyes boring deep into his . "That is why my father chose companions to go with you. If we could help you by carrying this burden , then we would. Myself included."
Her eyes closed slightly , for even now , she felt the fingers of the Ring enter her , tempting her , begging her to take it from Frodo. Teneriel stood , breaking the connection with the Ring. "It is a fell thing , Frodo," she said quietly . "And it weighs heavily on you soul. I am sorry. But I consider it to be an honor to help you on your Quest."
"Thank you ," Frodo whispered.
A shout came from the top of a nearby hill . "Teneriel ! Frodo! Come!!!" Legolas called , for he was at the rear of the group.
Teneriel waved a hand to him . "Well , Frodo , we must continue ."
Frodo nodded , starting slowly up the hill . Teneriel walked behind him , watching him until he joined Sam . Sam looked at her and nodded knowingly , mouthing , "I'll watch him."
Legolas glanced at him , then back at Teneriel . "Is Frodo all right?"
"Nay , Legolas . The Ring weighs heavily upon him , and it touches everything near it. It tempted me to take it from him ," she said quietly , watching the small figure walking up the hill . "But , he is strong . Stronger than anyone ever gave him credit for."
~~~~~
Midday came and found the Fellowship camped on a rocky flat , somewhat near to Caradhras . Shouts came from the lowest side , accompanied by the clash of metal against metal .
Boromir was carefully sparring with Pippin and Merry , teaching them how to properly defend themselves. He grinned suddenly and twisted his sword around , catching Pippin's hilt and whipping it out of his hand . Pippin yelped as the sharp blade ran slightly across his wrist .
Merry yelled in anger , flinging down his own sword, leaping onto Boromir's back and pummeling him with his fists . Pippin jumped off of the ground and tackled Boromir low around the knees . Boromir toppled , Merry and Pippin atop him.
Boromir laughed , pulling the two struggling hobbits close and hugging them loosely .
Teneriel smiled gently at the sight. "Well, Dunadan , I am glad that they are enjoying themselves during our respite."
There was no answer .
Teneriel turned and saw Legolas standing on top of the highest point of the hill . his eyes narrowed . Aragorn was watching him , not far away at the foot of the rise .
"Dunadan , what is it?" she asked , coming up behind Aragorn and laying a hand on his shoulder .
He spoke without turning to look at her. "We're not sure yet . But I think that Legolas could use another pair of Elven eyes."
Teneriel nodded , springing lightly onto the hill beside Legolas. She glanced at him , then in the direction in which he was gazing. A dark something was coming steadily nearer to them , but it was some time before it was near enough to be seen .
In perfect unison , Legolas and Teneriel jumped off of the hill. "Hide!" she snapped , rolling underneath a nearby bush . Aragorn , Legolas , and Frodo joined her no less than a second later . A quick glance around showed that everyone was under cover .
And a moment later, her eyes widened in shock . The thick , dark something was a massive assembly of crows. But these crows were not regular crows , they were larger than any other she had ever seen .
"Crebain ," Aragorn said , so softly that only Teneriel and Legolas could hear.
Once the crows had passed over , the Fellowship came out of their various hiding places .
Gandalf sighed , his eyes dark beneath his heavy brows . "So , he knows that we are coming. I feared as much ."
Teneriel moved up beside him , a faint look of worry in her eyes. "Then they were of Saruman ?" He nodded his head once, very quickly . "I thought as much . It is truly unfortunate that we were not able to avoid Saruman's eye . Alas , it cannot be helped."
Gandalf glanced down at her . "You know enough of Saruman to somewhat understand him . I am sure that he knows we are coming , but he may not know where we are. If it is possible , we should stay out of sight wherever we can."
Teneriel nodded in affirmation and agreement. "Yes , we should . I know not whether we can stay out of his sight until Caradhras , Gandalf. But we shall certainly try."
And the Quest continued, knowing not that their greatest challenge was yet ahead.