Chapter Eleven - "Pressure Points"
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Xander sat on a fallen log, shivering as he pulled his cloak around him, tightly. Giles, in his infinite wisdom, decided on a minimal campfire. It produced sufficient light but barely enough heat. The ex-Watcher had made a side comment about a larger fire attracting the wrong sort.
Rubbing his upper arms, Xander snorted. [The wrong sort,] he thought with a smirk. They had enough trouble so far; no doubt more would find them, so why did they have to freeze until then? He shook his head as he looked back to the small fire.
Buffy was never far from his mind. Wondering what horrific tortures she must be enduring, it nearly drove him crazy. They weren't moving fast enough, in his opinion. It'd taken weeks to get this far, and where were they? Still a long journey from Mordor and the Tower. Why did they have to camp when they could keep going?
Frustrated, Xander threw a rock into the fire, sending glowing embers into the air.
Giles heard the rock hit the fire but he said nothing to Xander. He only adjusted his glasses and focused his attention on the perimeter of their small camp. The incident with the werewolves had increased his awareness and he promised himself to be better prepared. They'd almost lost Willow.
[Willow ... ] he thought with a soft sigh. He turned and search for the girl, and he found she sat away from the small fire, her back to them while she gaze off towards the South - towards Mordor. He was worried about her. Not because of the near death experience she'd had but because of the taint of the lesser ring, and what she might do as a result of it.
In the night, he heard her whimpering in her sleep. Also, she whispered words in the Black Tongue of Mordor. A battle raged inside of the girl and only Willow could determine its resolution.
Giles turned around again. He prayed she would win her battle. If she didn't, he regretted already what he would be forced to do.
Willow shifted her gaze from the Southern sky to the ring Galadriel had given her. Despite the lack of moonlight, it shimmered beautifully. She figured it was some sort of Elven magic. With a sigh, she lifted her gaze back to the night sky.
In the dark, things in Middle-Earth seemed peaceful enough but she knew otherwise. She could feel the Darkness taking the world into a chokehold, and the power behind that Darkness, it became more and more difficult to resist. Since Rivendell, every single night, she dreamed of Buffy in horrible pain, or of Sauron in many forms, and also of a mysterious dark haired female. She usually showed up in the dreams of Buffy yet Willow had no idea who the woman was or what she wanted.
The redhead tucked a lock of hair over her left ear as she sniffled. [This is my entire fault. We never should've come back here. It shouldn't have happened.] She'd never actually said she'd dreamed of Sauron but she had a feeling Giles and Xander were aware. The way they would watch her lately - it was as though she were an ex-con.
"Well?"
She jumped a bit at Xander's voice speaking but she quickly relaxed when he sat down beside her. "Oh, hi," she quietly greeted him as she gave him a side-glance. She noted the pensive expression on his face. "Something wrong?"
Xander rubbed his upper arms again. "It's too cold out here. I figure you and I could share a little body heat," he answered. He scooted closer to her. "Aren't you cold over here all by yourself?"
Willow shrugged. "I hadn't really noticed the cold," she replied. She gave him another side-glance, a little more suspicious of him this time. "What about you? How are you?" [Time to get the subject off me.]
"Besides freezing to death? I'm not good," he told her with a scowl. He glanced over his shoulder at Giles who still kept constant vigil. "Why are we sitting here? We could be moving. I don't get this crap. Giles acts like Buffy isn't even in trouble, Willow."
Willow kept silent. It was best to let Xander vent. He'd been in a grouchy mood since they'd arrived, understandably, but if he didn't get it out of his system, things would become even more complicated.
"Do you think we should be camping?" he asked as he looked back to her. "I'm tired of this. We had horses the last time we were here. Why not now?"
"A lot of things are different this time, Xander," she calmly replied. "There's a war on. These people have their own troubles to deal with."
Xander tilted his head to one side. "How can you be so calm about all of this? Buffy's one of your best friends. Would you be this way if it was me Sauron had instead of her?"
"What good does it do to get upset? It doesn't get us to Mordor any faster."
He blinked. She was so cool about it - not even a pause before she answered. "Well, I can't be calm about it," he stated as he stood up. "And I'm going to say something."
"Xander, wait -" Willow started as he headed for Giles. She frowned and her shoulders slumped as her call went unheeded. Nothing good would come of this, she knew.
Giles looked up when Xander appeared at his side. The young man was visibly upset but that wasn't anything new these days where Xander was concerned. "Yes, what's the trouble?"
"We should keep going," Xander said as he folded his arms across his chest. It was more of an order than a suggestion, though. "We don't have the time to camp."
He stared at Xander for a moment. "Why should we do that?" he finally asked.
"Who knows what Buffy's going through in Mordor? We're out here, with plenty of food, water and freedom and where's she? I want to travel as much as possible."
"It's much too dangerous to travel in the dark, Xander. We've a better chance at avoiding Sauron's forces until the time is right if we camp."
"Oh, really? Well, I don't care about Sauron's forces," he spat back, eyes narrowing at the older man. He saw that look of surprise on Giles's face. [Yeah, it's always a shock when I take a stand, isn't it?] he thought.
Giles rose to his feet, his hands wrapped tightly around his sword handle. He kept a cool tone as he replied, "You should care. We are up against one of the most powerful evils to ever exist in our dimension. Some respect should be paid. It will allow you to live longer, if you do. Now ... sit down."
"NO!" Xander practically shouted back. His tone made Willow nearly jump out of her skin and Giles gazed at him, more stunned than anything. "I won't respect anyone who kidnaps someone I care about. He doesn't deserve anything except a firm ass kicking, Sunnydale style."
"We aren't dealing with a Master or even a Mayor - this is Sauron," Giles said. His voice was no longer calm. He fought to restrain his anger with the younger man. "Second only to Melkor in the realm of Evil and Darkness. You would do well to listen to me on such issues. I know far more about this land than you." He paused to take a quick breath and settle himself. "Sauron's power is unimaginable. He was able to make his way into the future and kidnap Buffy."
Xander's eyes burned into the man, the one who'd claimed to love Buffy Summers like a daughter; the one who'd sworn to his life to protect her. "Well ... whose fault is that?"
Willow, who'd been watching the confrontation from a distance, held her breath as she flicked her gaze from Xander to Giles. Part of her wanted to stop this thing before it became nasty. Another part, however, wanted them to get it all on the table and deal with it. With the way they were acting towards each other lately, if they managed to reach Mordor, they wouldn't succeed in rescuing Buffy.
Giles, after a few moments of silence, asked in a quiet voice, "And just what are you implying? Whose fault is it?"
"You know exactly what I'm implying," Xander shot back as he took a step towards Giles. "You never should've stayed here. You belong in 1999 with the rest of us. But nooooo. You had to stay behind because you had the hots for some chick -"
"Elenya is not a 'chick', and I would appreciate you not referring to her as such," Giles cut in, sharply. "As for where I belong, there isn't a shred of evidence to support your suggestion that Sauron kidnapped Buffy because of me!" He'd cast off his stuffy British demeanor and resembled more the old Ripper they'd met several months before.
"Evidence? EVIDENCE?" Xander threw up his hands and he laughed mirthlessly. He poked Giles in the shoulder with his finger. "You stayed. If we'd have all gone back, what would he need her for?"
"There are a number of reasons, Xander -"
"Like what?"
Giles paused as he searched his memory for possibilities. "The Slayer is useful in a number of -"
"He HAS a Slayer right here, Giles! In this time period!" Xander yelled, pointing a finger at the ground. His eyes were filled with a rage now, a rage that not even Willow had seen before. "This is all your fault, Giles, and you know it! You swore an oath to protect her and you couldn't keep up your end of the goddamn bargain!"
"My end -" Giles cut in as he threw his sword aside, mostly to curb his desire to use it. "YOU promised you would watch over her! You couldn't even do that, could you? No, because ANY responsibility is too much for you. It always has been, ever since the day you entered my sight. You're blaming me for your bloody bumbling!"
"Why, I oughta -" Xander sprung into action. He grabbed the ex-Watcher, an expression of pure hatred firmly in place now. His fingers dug into the man's throat but Giles was already fighting back.
"Xander! Stop!" Willow yelled as she sprinted over to the two now physically brawling. She grabbed one of Xander's arms and pulled with all of her might. [What a time to need a Slayer around!] "Stop it! Both of you! Xander, st -"
Xander lost his grip on Giles's neck when Giles managed to pry the younger man's hand loose, and his elbow rammed right into Willow's mouth. He watched in horror as his friend fell backward onto the ground, her hands covering her mouth.
"Willow ..." he softly said as he looked upon her, such guilt overcoming him.
Willow could feel the warm blood in her mouth and spilling into her hands. She slowly took her hands away then whimpered quietly when she saw how much blood there was. Her eyes shifted up to Xander and Giles, both had forgotten their argument, and gazed at her - ashamed.
"God ..." Giles whispered. Poor Willow's lower lip had been busted open. Blood trickled down her neck and chin, but the girl just stared up at them, as if in some kind of shock. He took a step closer, reaching out a hand. "Willow, are you all right?"
She scrambled back from him while still on the ground. "Just ... stay away," she warned in a low voice. She looked over to Xander. "Both of you," she added when he made a move to help her. "If you two want to kill each other, fine. But don't take me with you." She paused. "Somebody has to get to Mordor to help Buffy."
"Willow -" Xander started as she stumbled to her feet, hand back to her injured lip. He sighed heavily when she waved a dismissive hand at him as she headed back to the other side of the camp where she'd been earlier. His shoulders slumped as he head lowered in shame. [What am I doing? What's going on here?]
Giles plucked up his sword but never took his eyes off Willow who sat with her back to them, tending her wound alone. He closed his eyes, shook his head then opened them. "Sauron's more powerful than I imagined," he quietly said, then looked over to Xander.
"What do you mean?" he asked, his brow furrowing. He glanced at Willow but Giles shook his head.
"No, I don't mean her. I mean us ... " He gestured from Xander to himself.
"Oh." Xander swallowed as he felt his flesh flush. "Yeah. I see what you mean now." He dug his toe into the dirt and wrapped his arms around himself to try to keep warm. He cleared his throat then gave Giles a side look. "You think I should go ... apologize?"
Giles shook his head once more. "I don't suppose she'll want to speak to either of us for the rest of this evening, Xander. I'm not sure I want to deal with myself, either." He sat back down, his back to Xander, and his eyes back to watching the camp perimeter. [What have we done?] he thought as he stared off into the trees.
Slowly, Xander sat back down on his log and rubbed his arms to keep himself warm. After a few minutes, he let his gaze drift over to Willow.
Willow fished out a bottle with some sort of Elven medical potion contained within it. After she dabbed a bit on her wound, it was only a matter of moments before the cut healed. Once she snugly replaced the cork in the bottle and slipped it into her pack, she glanced back at Giles and Xander. They were practically back-to-back, one looking at the fire, the other at the trees.
"Do you now realize how pointless your venture is, Willow?" asked Bilbo Baggins' voice.
She pressed her lips together, trying to pretend that she didn't hear it. [If I ignore it, he'll go away. If I ignore it, he'll go away ... ] she thought as she closed her eyes, tight. When she turned around and opened her eyes, she felt her heart sink as 'Bilbo', fatherly expression on his face, gazed at her. He almost appeared ... sympathetic. If she didn't really know who it was behind the mask, she might've hugged him for support.
"The one with the 'pointless venture' is you. Go away and leave me alone. I'm not going to give in to you. Ever." She folded her arms across her chest and looked away. "Quit wasting your time on me."
"My time is not wasted. You will soon learn that to resist is foolish. The closer you come, Willow, the less you will be able to ignore my presence." 'Bilbo' sat down on the ground beside her, a warm smile on his face. "Come along. I offer you another chance to save your friends, your Slayer ... what have you to lose?"
"Besides my soul?" Willow snorted. "Why do you want me so much? What is it about me that you can't live without?"
"You have power, young Willow. Power that can be cultivated under my tutelage." A hand gently stroked the Wiccan's cheek. "Isn't that what is most important? Power?"
"No. It's not. There are other things. Things you'll never understand." She pulled away from his touch, narrowing her gaze at him. "Friendship, love and loyalty - that's what's important. That's why we're coming for Buffy."
Bilbo smiled again but a sinister glimmer was about his eyes this time. "Yes, Willow. This is what I expected from you. No more, no less." With that, 'Bilbo' faded from her sight.
She sighed heavily, mostly out of relief. Sauron had a point; it was becoming more and more difficult to resist his offers of power. But she found herself a little disturbed by his comment about what she considered to be important. What had he meant by all of that? [I suppose I'll find out soon enough.]
Moving over to her bedroll, she spread it out and snuggled up to rest for the night.
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End Chapter Eleven
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Xander sat on a fallen log, shivering as he pulled his cloak around him, tightly. Giles, in his infinite wisdom, decided on a minimal campfire. It produced sufficient light but barely enough heat. The ex-Watcher had made a side comment about a larger fire attracting the wrong sort.
Rubbing his upper arms, Xander snorted. [The wrong sort,] he thought with a smirk. They had enough trouble so far; no doubt more would find them, so why did they have to freeze until then? He shook his head as he looked back to the small fire.
Buffy was never far from his mind. Wondering what horrific tortures she must be enduring, it nearly drove him crazy. They weren't moving fast enough, in his opinion. It'd taken weeks to get this far, and where were they? Still a long journey from Mordor and the Tower. Why did they have to camp when they could keep going?
Frustrated, Xander threw a rock into the fire, sending glowing embers into the air.
Giles heard the rock hit the fire but he said nothing to Xander. He only adjusted his glasses and focused his attention on the perimeter of their small camp. The incident with the werewolves had increased his awareness and he promised himself to be better prepared. They'd almost lost Willow.
[Willow ... ] he thought with a soft sigh. He turned and search for the girl, and he found she sat away from the small fire, her back to them while she gaze off towards the South - towards Mordor. He was worried about her. Not because of the near death experience she'd had but because of the taint of the lesser ring, and what she might do as a result of it.
In the night, he heard her whimpering in her sleep. Also, she whispered words in the Black Tongue of Mordor. A battle raged inside of the girl and only Willow could determine its resolution.
Giles turned around again. He prayed she would win her battle. If she didn't, he regretted already what he would be forced to do.
Willow shifted her gaze from the Southern sky to the ring Galadriel had given her. Despite the lack of moonlight, it shimmered beautifully. She figured it was some sort of Elven magic. With a sigh, she lifted her gaze back to the night sky.
In the dark, things in Middle-Earth seemed peaceful enough but she knew otherwise. She could feel the Darkness taking the world into a chokehold, and the power behind that Darkness, it became more and more difficult to resist. Since Rivendell, every single night, she dreamed of Buffy in horrible pain, or of Sauron in many forms, and also of a mysterious dark haired female. She usually showed up in the dreams of Buffy yet Willow had no idea who the woman was or what she wanted.
The redhead tucked a lock of hair over her left ear as she sniffled. [This is my entire fault. We never should've come back here. It shouldn't have happened.] She'd never actually said she'd dreamed of Sauron but she had a feeling Giles and Xander were aware. The way they would watch her lately - it was as though she were an ex-con.
"Well?"
She jumped a bit at Xander's voice speaking but she quickly relaxed when he sat down beside her. "Oh, hi," she quietly greeted him as she gave him a side-glance. She noted the pensive expression on his face. "Something wrong?"
Xander rubbed his upper arms again. "It's too cold out here. I figure you and I could share a little body heat," he answered. He scooted closer to her. "Aren't you cold over here all by yourself?"
Willow shrugged. "I hadn't really noticed the cold," she replied. She gave him another side-glance, a little more suspicious of him this time. "What about you? How are you?" [Time to get the subject off me.]
"Besides freezing to death? I'm not good," he told her with a scowl. He glanced over his shoulder at Giles who still kept constant vigil. "Why are we sitting here? We could be moving. I don't get this crap. Giles acts like Buffy isn't even in trouble, Willow."
Willow kept silent. It was best to let Xander vent. He'd been in a grouchy mood since they'd arrived, understandably, but if he didn't get it out of his system, things would become even more complicated.
"Do you think we should be camping?" he asked as he looked back to her. "I'm tired of this. We had horses the last time we were here. Why not now?"
"A lot of things are different this time, Xander," she calmly replied. "There's a war on. These people have their own troubles to deal with."
Xander tilted his head to one side. "How can you be so calm about all of this? Buffy's one of your best friends. Would you be this way if it was me Sauron had instead of her?"
"What good does it do to get upset? It doesn't get us to Mordor any faster."
He blinked. She was so cool about it - not even a pause before she answered. "Well, I can't be calm about it," he stated as he stood up. "And I'm going to say something."
"Xander, wait -" Willow started as he headed for Giles. She frowned and her shoulders slumped as her call went unheeded. Nothing good would come of this, she knew.
Giles looked up when Xander appeared at his side. The young man was visibly upset but that wasn't anything new these days where Xander was concerned. "Yes, what's the trouble?"
"We should keep going," Xander said as he folded his arms across his chest. It was more of an order than a suggestion, though. "We don't have the time to camp."
He stared at Xander for a moment. "Why should we do that?" he finally asked.
"Who knows what Buffy's going through in Mordor? We're out here, with plenty of food, water and freedom and where's she? I want to travel as much as possible."
"It's much too dangerous to travel in the dark, Xander. We've a better chance at avoiding Sauron's forces until the time is right if we camp."
"Oh, really? Well, I don't care about Sauron's forces," he spat back, eyes narrowing at the older man. He saw that look of surprise on Giles's face. [Yeah, it's always a shock when I take a stand, isn't it?] he thought.
Giles rose to his feet, his hands wrapped tightly around his sword handle. He kept a cool tone as he replied, "You should care. We are up against one of the most powerful evils to ever exist in our dimension. Some respect should be paid. It will allow you to live longer, if you do. Now ... sit down."
"NO!" Xander practically shouted back. His tone made Willow nearly jump out of her skin and Giles gazed at him, more stunned than anything. "I won't respect anyone who kidnaps someone I care about. He doesn't deserve anything except a firm ass kicking, Sunnydale style."
"We aren't dealing with a Master or even a Mayor - this is Sauron," Giles said. His voice was no longer calm. He fought to restrain his anger with the younger man. "Second only to Melkor in the realm of Evil and Darkness. You would do well to listen to me on such issues. I know far more about this land than you." He paused to take a quick breath and settle himself. "Sauron's power is unimaginable. He was able to make his way into the future and kidnap Buffy."
Xander's eyes burned into the man, the one who'd claimed to love Buffy Summers like a daughter; the one who'd sworn to his life to protect her. "Well ... whose fault is that?"
Willow, who'd been watching the confrontation from a distance, held her breath as she flicked her gaze from Xander to Giles. Part of her wanted to stop this thing before it became nasty. Another part, however, wanted them to get it all on the table and deal with it. With the way they were acting towards each other lately, if they managed to reach Mordor, they wouldn't succeed in rescuing Buffy.
Giles, after a few moments of silence, asked in a quiet voice, "And just what are you implying? Whose fault is it?"
"You know exactly what I'm implying," Xander shot back as he took a step towards Giles. "You never should've stayed here. You belong in 1999 with the rest of us. But nooooo. You had to stay behind because you had the hots for some chick -"
"Elenya is not a 'chick', and I would appreciate you not referring to her as such," Giles cut in, sharply. "As for where I belong, there isn't a shred of evidence to support your suggestion that Sauron kidnapped Buffy because of me!" He'd cast off his stuffy British demeanor and resembled more the old Ripper they'd met several months before.
"Evidence? EVIDENCE?" Xander threw up his hands and he laughed mirthlessly. He poked Giles in the shoulder with his finger. "You stayed. If we'd have all gone back, what would he need her for?"
"There are a number of reasons, Xander -"
"Like what?"
Giles paused as he searched his memory for possibilities. "The Slayer is useful in a number of -"
"He HAS a Slayer right here, Giles! In this time period!" Xander yelled, pointing a finger at the ground. His eyes were filled with a rage now, a rage that not even Willow had seen before. "This is all your fault, Giles, and you know it! You swore an oath to protect her and you couldn't keep up your end of the goddamn bargain!"
"My end -" Giles cut in as he threw his sword aside, mostly to curb his desire to use it. "YOU promised you would watch over her! You couldn't even do that, could you? No, because ANY responsibility is too much for you. It always has been, ever since the day you entered my sight. You're blaming me for your bloody bumbling!"
"Why, I oughta -" Xander sprung into action. He grabbed the ex-Watcher, an expression of pure hatred firmly in place now. His fingers dug into the man's throat but Giles was already fighting back.
"Xander! Stop!" Willow yelled as she sprinted over to the two now physically brawling. She grabbed one of Xander's arms and pulled with all of her might. [What a time to need a Slayer around!] "Stop it! Both of you! Xander, st -"
Xander lost his grip on Giles's neck when Giles managed to pry the younger man's hand loose, and his elbow rammed right into Willow's mouth. He watched in horror as his friend fell backward onto the ground, her hands covering her mouth.
"Willow ..." he softly said as he looked upon her, such guilt overcoming him.
Willow could feel the warm blood in her mouth and spilling into her hands. She slowly took her hands away then whimpered quietly when she saw how much blood there was. Her eyes shifted up to Xander and Giles, both had forgotten their argument, and gazed at her - ashamed.
"God ..." Giles whispered. Poor Willow's lower lip had been busted open. Blood trickled down her neck and chin, but the girl just stared up at them, as if in some kind of shock. He took a step closer, reaching out a hand. "Willow, are you all right?"
She scrambled back from him while still on the ground. "Just ... stay away," she warned in a low voice. She looked over to Xander. "Both of you," she added when he made a move to help her. "If you two want to kill each other, fine. But don't take me with you." She paused. "Somebody has to get to Mordor to help Buffy."
"Willow -" Xander started as she stumbled to her feet, hand back to her injured lip. He sighed heavily when she waved a dismissive hand at him as she headed back to the other side of the camp where she'd been earlier. His shoulders slumped as he head lowered in shame. [What am I doing? What's going on here?]
Giles plucked up his sword but never took his eyes off Willow who sat with her back to them, tending her wound alone. He closed his eyes, shook his head then opened them. "Sauron's more powerful than I imagined," he quietly said, then looked over to Xander.
"What do you mean?" he asked, his brow furrowing. He glanced at Willow but Giles shook his head.
"No, I don't mean her. I mean us ... " He gestured from Xander to himself.
"Oh." Xander swallowed as he felt his flesh flush. "Yeah. I see what you mean now." He dug his toe into the dirt and wrapped his arms around himself to try to keep warm. He cleared his throat then gave Giles a side look. "You think I should go ... apologize?"
Giles shook his head once more. "I don't suppose she'll want to speak to either of us for the rest of this evening, Xander. I'm not sure I want to deal with myself, either." He sat back down, his back to Xander, and his eyes back to watching the camp perimeter. [What have we done?] he thought as he stared off into the trees.
Slowly, Xander sat back down on his log and rubbed his arms to keep himself warm. After a few minutes, he let his gaze drift over to Willow.
Willow fished out a bottle with some sort of Elven medical potion contained within it. After she dabbed a bit on her wound, it was only a matter of moments before the cut healed. Once she snugly replaced the cork in the bottle and slipped it into her pack, she glanced back at Giles and Xander. They were practically back-to-back, one looking at the fire, the other at the trees.
"Do you now realize how pointless your venture is, Willow?" asked Bilbo Baggins' voice.
She pressed her lips together, trying to pretend that she didn't hear it. [If I ignore it, he'll go away. If I ignore it, he'll go away ... ] she thought as she closed her eyes, tight. When she turned around and opened her eyes, she felt her heart sink as 'Bilbo', fatherly expression on his face, gazed at her. He almost appeared ... sympathetic. If she didn't really know who it was behind the mask, she might've hugged him for support.
"The one with the 'pointless venture' is you. Go away and leave me alone. I'm not going to give in to you. Ever." She folded her arms across her chest and looked away. "Quit wasting your time on me."
"My time is not wasted. You will soon learn that to resist is foolish. The closer you come, Willow, the less you will be able to ignore my presence." 'Bilbo' sat down on the ground beside her, a warm smile on his face. "Come along. I offer you another chance to save your friends, your Slayer ... what have you to lose?"
"Besides my soul?" Willow snorted. "Why do you want me so much? What is it about me that you can't live without?"
"You have power, young Willow. Power that can be cultivated under my tutelage." A hand gently stroked the Wiccan's cheek. "Isn't that what is most important? Power?"
"No. It's not. There are other things. Things you'll never understand." She pulled away from his touch, narrowing her gaze at him. "Friendship, love and loyalty - that's what's important. That's why we're coming for Buffy."
Bilbo smiled again but a sinister glimmer was about his eyes this time. "Yes, Willow. This is what I expected from you. No more, no less." With that, 'Bilbo' faded from her sight.
She sighed heavily, mostly out of relief. Sauron had a point; it was becoming more and more difficult to resist his offers of power. But she found herself a little disturbed by his comment about what she considered to be important. What had he meant by all of that? [I suppose I'll find out soon enough.]
Moving over to her bedroll, she spread it out and snuggled up to rest for the night.
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End Chapter Eleven
