Chapter 4: Amon Hen
Dobby watched as his friends paddled away down the river. The house-elf was nervous about seeing Harry Potter go on without house-elf protection, but Dobby was sure Professor Snape could handle it. Dobby hopes so, at least.
He was startled out of his blank gaze by Galadriel. "Come, Little Elf, we shall find lodging for you. Where would you like to stay?"
"Please, My Lady, whatever is available is suitable for Dobby. Dobby is not needing accommodation. Dobby is merely a house-elf."
Galadriel smiled kindly. "In this world, you are one of a kind. You may have more status than you're used to. Let us go introduce you. What would you like to accomplish while here?" she asked as they began walking towards the main part of the city.
"Dobby would learn recipes to take back home, if possible. House-elves exist to serve masters, and new foods could bring favor. If it's not too much trouble, Dobby would learn your language."
They were now reentering Caras Galadhon. The Lady of Light beckoned to one of the elves wandering in a guard uniform. "Prepare a room for our new friend, and inform the Head Cook that he should expect a visitor that wishes to learn some recipes."
The guard bowed and moved quickly away. Galadriel stared after him, and in a second, the guard began to move even faster.
~"Come, Dobby, we go to meet the city."~
Dobby was startled. He had heard the Lady speak, but not with his ears. She had somehow put her voice in his head. A little unnerved, he followed after the tall beautiful elf. Elves in this land are odder even then house-elves.
* * *
As they rowed down the river, Harry let his mind wander. He wondered where they were headed now. He had no idea why they were even traveling. No one had told the visitors anything about this voyage. He decided to ask one of the others about it when they landed.
Harry was snapped back to realization by voices in the boats ahead of him. He glanced up and gaped in amazement. Gargantuan statues loomed just ahead of them. He heard two words, "the Argonath," and supposed whoever had said it meant the two giants. Aragorn's voice came softly over the water; "Long have I desired to look upon the kings of old." The words had a chilling effect. Harry shivered slightly as they passed between the two stone megaliths.
Ahead of them was a small lake, and beyond that was what seemed to be a gigantic waterfall. Fortunately, they pulled off to the right bank before they reached it. As they exited the boats, Harry glanced around to see who would be good to ask about their mission. He noticed Frodo wandering off on his own and followed him quickly.
"Frodo, wait up!" he shouted. Frodo slowed down until Harry had caught up. "Hey, why are we traveling anyway?"
The hobbit was a bit surprised by the question. He got over it quickly and began to respond. "Our Dark Lord, Sauron, made twenty rings of power, although in the beginning only nineteen were known of. The nineteen were given to the elves, dwarves, and men. The final ring Sauron forged and kept for his own. It had the power to control the others. Prince Isildur cut the ring from Sauron's finger during the final battle. The Dark Lord's body was destroyed, but his spirit lived on. He's trying to get the ring back. In order to kill him for good, the ring must be destroyed. That is our mission." He pulled a ring on a chain out from under his shirt. It was a simple gold band. It hardly seemed extraordinary; until Harry felt the power radiating from it. The pure evil surrounding it was terrible, yet oddly compelling.
Before the feeling overtook him, Harry thanked Frodo for explaining and left swiftly. He almost collided with Boromir in his haste. When he reached the others, he dragged Hermione away from Legolas and brought her over to where Professor Snape was giving a potions lesson to the obviously bored Ron. The teacher was more docile than usual, not yelling at the redhead nearly as much.
Harry told them about what Frodo had said. They agreed that their situation had become more dangerous than they'd imagined.
When they finished their discussion, they noticed Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli were gone, as well as Boromir and Frodo, who apparently had not returned from the forest yet. Pippin, Sam, and Merry beckoned to them to follow, then turned and started off into the woods. The four visitors rapidly stood up and jogged after them.
By the time they'd caught up, they saw Boromir fighting off big ugly creatures, trying his best to protect Pip and Merry, who were crouching behind him, clutching the daggers Galadriel had given them. The biggest and ugliest of the disgusting creatures launched an arrow at Boromir. It embedded itself in his chest. Pippin and Merry became enraged and started trying to battle the enemy. Another arrow landed in Boromir, who was still fighting. He continued to do so until a third found its mark. As Boromir fell to his knees, two of the creatures picked up Pippin and Merry and started carrying them off.
Suddenly, from behind, Harry felt a whoosh of air and realized Ron was no longer beside him. Looking ahead, he saw the redhead over the shoulder of one of the creatures.
Hermione went running. Finding Legolas, no doubt. Then Harry noticed Sam running through the forest. He took off after him. Harry heard Snape following him. This ought to be interesting.
* * *
Legolas looked up sharply at the sound of footsteps racing towards him. He was relieved to see it was only Hermione, but nervous at the distressed look on her face. The young girl threw herself at him, and he caught her in an embrace. "What's wrong, Arwenamin?"
She began to cry. "They got Ron! Those nasty creatures got Ron! And Merry and Pippin, too!"
As he held the weeping girl, thoughts began racing through his mind. Why would the Uruk-hai take them alive? Well, they would have been told by Saruman to take hobbits, since one of them has the ring. But what of Ron? There was no need to take him. Perhaps he looked a bit like a hobbit. He was one of the young ones, after all, about as tall as a hobbit. But why not the other two? Why not take Harry and Hermione? Well, Harry had the hat on, so they might've guessed he wasn't a hobbit. As for Hermioneā¦I don't know. Perhaps they could only grab one, and Ron was more obvious with his red hair. His hair was the same color as Merry's and Pippin's, after all. I'm just glad they didn't take Hermione; I'm not sure she could have made it through alive.
Hermione's sobs began to fade. Legolas lifted her chin up to look into her teary eyes. "It will be all right, Melamin." He gave her a small kiss on her forehead, then hugged her to him. "Don't worry, we shall get them back, no matter what. We wouldn't let Boromir die in vain."
They separated and went over to Aragorn and Gimli. They were discussing the hobbit-napping. Legolas told them that Ron had been taken as well. The four of them took off for the shore, Aragorn and Legolas carrying Boromir's body.
* * *
Ron was amazed to see the Professor and his two best friends disappearing behind him. The shoulder he'd been slung over was hard as a rock and very grimy. His elbows banged painfully against the armored back attached to the shoulder. A strong clawed hand kept him from going head-first over the iron-clad shoulder. Next to him, the creature's greasy filthy hair flopped in stringy strands down its back. On either side were Merry and Pippin being carried similarly by two other creatures.
Suddenly, the one carrying Ron leapt over a fallen log. Ron's forehead knocked forcibly against the iron armor. Everything went dark.
* * *
Harry and Professor Snape caught up to Sam just as he stepped out of the forest. They watched as he waded into the water. Harry and Severus quickly got into one of the other boats and paddled out after Frodo, who had just rescued Sam from the water. Frodo glanced at them and, after a moment's consideration, nodded his consent. Together, they rowed to the opposite shore.
As they reached it, Harry sneaked a look back. Just before they headed into the forest, he caught a fleeting glimpse of his other friends. Be careful, 'Mione.
* * *
Hermione sprinted out of the forest in just enough time to see Harry disappearing into the woods on the other side of the lake. The others laid Boromir's body in a boat, his arms crossed and clutching his sword, and let it drift over the edge of the immense waterfall.
Legolas rushed up to get one of the other boats, saying that if they left now, they could catch Frodo and the others. Aragorn rejected the idea, replying that Frodo's fate was no longer in their hands, and that as long as they held true to each other, the Fellowship would never fail.
Then they took off running, ready to chase the orcs down, and Hermione had little option but to follow.
* * *
A/N: Should I go onto the next book?? I know I ended here with the beginning of the second book, but the movie is easier for me to follow (pretty pictures are easy to keep in order!) If you'd rather I followed the book for the second portion, leave a review and let me know. Just keep in mind that it'll take me longer to write chapter then. Even if you don't want me to follow the book, please review!! No reviews, no chapter 5!
