"And the Fellowship of the Ring Shall Be Ten"
Chapter V~ Caradhras
It was cold . Very cold. The sun beat down on the weary Fellowship , unrelenting in its glare . Caradhras loomed ahead , tall and forbidding , as though it was daring them to scale its heights .
"Mor orod , " Teneriel hissed , gazing up at it , trying to ignore the feeling of dread that was steadily rising in her heart and mind.
A yelp made everyone turn , and an astonishing sight met their eyes . Frodo , who apparently had lost his balance on the steep slope , now tumbled down it . He probably would have fallen the entire way if Aragorn had not jumped into Frodo's path and arrested his slide . Aragorn helped the hobbit to his feet , but Frodo was not concerned with himself . The Ring was no longer around his neck , for he had checked the moment he was safe . Frodo looked up , worry obvious on his face.
Boromir bent and picked something up out of the snow . Teneriel's heart sank when she saw what he held , for it was the Ring , dangling from a thin , gold chain.
Aragorn saw it too , and his eyes narrowed .Unnoticed by everyone but Teneriel , his right hand went to his hip and grasped the hilt of his sword, pulling Anduril slightly out of its sheath .
A tense moment passed , and Boromir did not move, his eyes locked on the Ring.
"Give the Ring to Frodo , Boromir ," Aragorn said quietly .
Boromir's eyes flickered to Aragorn , then back to the Ring, and the spell was broken . He smiled quickly and handed it to Frodom, who took it and hung it around his neck again .
Aragorn breathed a sigh of relief and slid Anduril back into its sheath .
Teneriel sought out his eyes and raised an eyebrow . When Aragorn and Frodo were level with her , she whispered, "That was a near thing , Dunandan."
He nodded , his own eyes following Boromir . "It has a hold on him already ."
~~~
In the space of an hour , the clear , blue day had turned into a blizzard that none of them could have predicted . The men could not see more than two feet ahead , and the eyesight of the Elves afforded them little help . The cold was hampering them all , though none would admit it .
But one by one , the hobbits collapsed . Pippin was first , as he had been lagging behind for some time before he dropped face-first into the snow . Teneriel , who was the rearguard , bent and picked him up , carrying him in her arms . Pippin was shivering uncontrollably and he whispered, "I'm so c-c-c-cold . I can't go any farther."
She nodded , smiling at him . "I know , little one. It is no fault of yours . This storm was unexpected." She looked down at him . "Do not close your eyes , Peregrin Took . If you do , you will not wake again ."
Pippin groaned. "Lovely . Just lovely . I'm dead tired and I can't sleep . How perfectly lovely."
Teneriel would have smiled , but just ahead of them , Merry stumbled ,falling into the snow himself. She reached down and pulled the hobbit up by the back of his cloak . He was unconscious.
"Gandalf !" she called, kneeling beside Merry , attempting to shield both Merry and Pippin from the stinging snow.
The dark shapes ahead of them stopped and turned. Two tall figures appeared out of the blizzard of snow .
Gandalf peered into Merry's face , then into Pippin's . "Well , Peregrin Took," he said. "You are still alive."
"But what of Merry?" Aragorn asked .
Gandalf sighed , the lines on his face increasing . "It is hard to tell . We must find some shelter soon , or we will lose them both."
Aragorn nodded and lifted Merry into his arms.
Not long after , shelter was found , though it did naught to keep out the cold or even the snow .
"We cannot continue this way ," said Aragorn softly . "The hobbits simply cannot do it ."
Gandalf nodded , his head bent under the weight of his many thoughts. "Yes , but where to go from here? If we must descend Carahras , which path should we take when we reach the bottom?"
"What of the Gap of Rohan?" suggested Boromir.
"That will take the Ring to close to the traitor Saruman ," said Aragorn , rubbing his forehead wearily .
"There are always the Mines of Moria, " Gimli reminded them , joining the group huddled by the feeble fire .
Teneriel's head snapped up , her eyes narrowed . "Moria? The Dwarves there delved too deep , and could not control what they found . There is an evil older than Sauron that lives in the mines." She shivered slightly , a ripple of fear running through her. "Elves do not travel beneath the earth if it can be avoided ."
"I think that we cannot afford the time that taking the longer road would steal from us ," Gandalf said with a sigh . He knew that there was only one thing to be done. "Frodo?" he asked . "What does the Ringbearer say?"
Frodo , who was pressed against Aragorn's side for warmth , looked up , surprised that his opinion was being asked for . He was silent for a moment , considering his options , and quickly realized that there was only one course to take.
"We will go through the Mines," he said finally.
Teneriel bowed her head , the feeling of dread that had been with her all day increasing tenfold .
Suddenly ,a low rumbling sound came from far above their heads . They had time only to flatten themselves against the cliff face before an avalanche of snow plunged down atop them from the summit of Caradhras.
"Well ," Gandalf said a moment later , shaking snow off the brim of his wide hat , "that settles the matter .We will descend , and make for Moria."
It was a bedraggled and dispirited group that climbed down Caradhras that day , although worse horrors lay not far ahead .
Mor orod ~ Dark mountain
Thank you all for all the wonderful reviews!!! I do truly appreciate it , please keep them coming!!!!
Chapter V~ Caradhras
It was cold . Very cold. The sun beat down on the weary Fellowship , unrelenting in its glare . Caradhras loomed ahead , tall and forbidding , as though it was daring them to scale its heights .
"Mor orod , " Teneriel hissed , gazing up at it , trying to ignore the feeling of dread that was steadily rising in her heart and mind.
A yelp made everyone turn , and an astonishing sight met their eyes . Frodo , who apparently had lost his balance on the steep slope , now tumbled down it . He probably would have fallen the entire way if Aragorn had not jumped into Frodo's path and arrested his slide . Aragorn helped the hobbit to his feet , but Frodo was not concerned with himself . The Ring was no longer around his neck , for he had checked the moment he was safe . Frodo looked up , worry obvious on his face.
Boromir bent and picked something up out of the snow . Teneriel's heart sank when she saw what he held , for it was the Ring , dangling from a thin , gold chain.
Aragorn saw it too , and his eyes narrowed .Unnoticed by everyone but Teneriel , his right hand went to his hip and grasped the hilt of his sword, pulling Anduril slightly out of its sheath .
A tense moment passed , and Boromir did not move, his eyes locked on the Ring.
"Give the Ring to Frodo , Boromir ," Aragorn said quietly .
Boromir's eyes flickered to Aragorn , then back to the Ring, and the spell was broken . He smiled quickly and handed it to Frodom, who took it and hung it around his neck again .
Aragorn breathed a sigh of relief and slid Anduril back into its sheath .
Teneriel sought out his eyes and raised an eyebrow . When Aragorn and Frodo were level with her , she whispered, "That was a near thing , Dunandan."
He nodded , his own eyes following Boromir . "It has a hold on him already ."
~~~
In the space of an hour , the clear , blue day had turned into a blizzard that none of them could have predicted . The men could not see more than two feet ahead , and the eyesight of the Elves afforded them little help . The cold was hampering them all , though none would admit it .
But one by one , the hobbits collapsed . Pippin was first , as he had been lagging behind for some time before he dropped face-first into the snow . Teneriel , who was the rearguard , bent and picked him up , carrying him in her arms . Pippin was shivering uncontrollably and he whispered, "I'm so c-c-c-cold . I can't go any farther."
She nodded , smiling at him . "I know , little one. It is no fault of yours . This storm was unexpected." She looked down at him . "Do not close your eyes , Peregrin Took . If you do , you will not wake again ."
Pippin groaned. "Lovely . Just lovely . I'm dead tired and I can't sleep . How perfectly lovely."
Teneriel would have smiled , but just ahead of them , Merry stumbled ,falling into the snow himself. She reached down and pulled the hobbit up by the back of his cloak . He was unconscious.
"Gandalf !" she called, kneeling beside Merry , attempting to shield both Merry and Pippin from the stinging snow.
The dark shapes ahead of them stopped and turned. Two tall figures appeared out of the blizzard of snow .
Gandalf peered into Merry's face , then into Pippin's . "Well , Peregrin Took," he said. "You are still alive."
"But what of Merry?" Aragorn asked .
Gandalf sighed , the lines on his face increasing . "It is hard to tell . We must find some shelter soon , or we will lose them both."
Aragorn nodded and lifted Merry into his arms.
Not long after , shelter was found , though it did naught to keep out the cold or even the snow .
"We cannot continue this way ," said Aragorn softly . "The hobbits simply cannot do it ."
Gandalf nodded , his head bent under the weight of his many thoughts. "Yes , but where to go from here? If we must descend Carahras , which path should we take when we reach the bottom?"
"What of the Gap of Rohan?" suggested Boromir.
"That will take the Ring to close to the traitor Saruman ," said Aragorn , rubbing his forehead wearily .
"There are always the Mines of Moria, " Gimli reminded them , joining the group huddled by the feeble fire .
Teneriel's head snapped up , her eyes narrowed . "Moria? The Dwarves there delved too deep , and could not control what they found . There is an evil older than Sauron that lives in the mines." She shivered slightly , a ripple of fear running through her. "Elves do not travel beneath the earth if it can be avoided ."
"I think that we cannot afford the time that taking the longer road would steal from us ," Gandalf said with a sigh . He knew that there was only one thing to be done. "Frodo?" he asked . "What does the Ringbearer say?"
Frodo , who was pressed against Aragorn's side for warmth , looked up , surprised that his opinion was being asked for . He was silent for a moment , considering his options , and quickly realized that there was only one course to take.
"We will go through the Mines," he said finally.
Teneriel bowed her head , the feeling of dread that had been with her all day increasing tenfold .
Suddenly ,a low rumbling sound came from far above their heads . They had time only to flatten themselves against the cliff face before an avalanche of snow plunged down atop them from the summit of Caradhras.
"Well ," Gandalf said a moment later , shaking snow off the brim of his wide hat , "that settles the matter .We will descend , and make for Moria."
It was a bedraggled and dispirited group that climbed down Caradhras that day , although worse horrors lay not far ahead .
Mor orod ~ Dark mountain
Thank you all for all the wonderful reviews!!! I do truly appreciate it , please keep them coming!!!!