Chapter 8: A Shadow Named Strider

The Inn of the Prancing Pony was in a riot. Butterbur was "crashed" under the heavy, icky figure of the squirming, mushy Shea, with Frodo squirming wildly, then violently in her tight huggles. ("Heeelp! Anyone!!!! Please!!! SAVE ME!!!") Cliff, Sam, Merry and Pippin stood a mile away from her, ganging up on each other, arguing on who could save Frodo from fangirl-suffocation. Little do they know, that they are gathering too much attention.

"Why Sam, why don't you save your master?" suggested Pippin, pushing Sam forward.

"Oh no, Pippin," reasoned a scared Sam, who looked at Shea (who also wanted to drool on him, pour whipped cream on his body and -) who seems to be planning something BAD for him too. "I'm afraid… I am afraid of women… why don't you, dear Merry?"

Merry shivered and hid inside Cleff's cloak. "Eeep."

Cleff had to pluck Merry from her cloak, and gathered up all her courage, amidst all the weird people, men for instance, who started murmuring against each other. Cleff, went over the mile, pulled Butterbur under from Shea and her encaptured Frodo, with a small "sorry", and gathered up all her strength to pry Frodo away from the squirmy teen who has her glasses slide down her sweaty nose.

"SHEA…" moaned Cleff, as she put on a firmer grip on Frodo's shoulders, trying to pry him out of her arms. Butterbur quickly roused himself and hid behind the counter. "LET GO OFF THE HOBBIT!!!" Shea squirmed even more. Cleff could have turned into a raging bull. The three other hobbits gasped, as Frodo began to squirm even more, and it became a frenzy tug-of-war between the two girls.

"FRODO, WOULD YOU SIT STILL… SHEA LET GO OFF HIM!!!"

"No!" ("Eeeeeeek!" screamed Frodo.)

"FRODO KEEP STILL… LET GO!!!!"

"NOOO!"

"AAAAAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!"

Finally, Merry and Pippin, nodded to each other, and ran over to Cliff and Frodo's rescue. Merry gave Cliff a bearhug from the back and pulled, while Pippin tipped closer to Shea and gave a great risk – and tickled her.

"Mwa… Hah-hah…hah-hah-hah-hah-hah… HAH-HAH! You silly little… you silly…" Shea moaned, and finally, Frodo slipped and landed on Cleff and Merry, causing them to double over and fall on each other. The crowd clapped and cheered (to see women doing some mortal combat), as Cleff blushed, grabbed Shea, Pippin and Frodo and dragged them over to a nearby empty table, followed closely by Sam and a worn-out Merry.

Sooner or later, the cheering died down, as everybody loved the entertainment, and gave the two girls and the four hobbits free drinks. (Merry & Pippin: All right!) As soon it all died down, Cleff set Frodo and the obits two miles apart from her and Shea, by getting another table. As she grabbed another empty table for two, Sam gave her a scared look.

"Where are you going?" Sam said with a squeaky voice.

Cleff sighed, shoved a giggling Shea who gave Pippin one last huggle, across the table. "I have to negotiate. Maybe, if you got aspirin there, I can save myself."

"What's aspirin?"

"Anything to cool my high-blood?" Sam handed her a tub of ale. "Never mind." Cleff shuffled.

She slipped over the other table where Shea kept winking, peering ove Merry and Pippin who seemed to be getting fond of her. Sam hurried over next to Frodo, where for the first time, Frodo dared to look over Shea. He only had to cringe and look back when the girl had to blow out a flying kiss.

Cleff rolled her eyes and grabbed a stool, whacking it on Shea's head. "Stop it will you?!! You're scaring them!" she screamed. Shea rubbed her head and muttered, "They think I am cute!" Cleff swore that without even looking into a mirror, she had turned into different shades of green and black.

Shea started looking over the hobbits again, getting weird expressions from the other people, that Cleff had to turn her head so that she could face her. "WHAT…ARE…YOU…DOING…HERE?!!" she screamed. Merry and Pippin quickly stopped giving Shea seductive looks and winks, when they heard Cliff bellow. (Like Gandalf, never mess with Cliffhanger's businesses. ^-^)

Shea shrugged and giggled. "Remember after I was dragged into detention, because I was trying to stalk Elijah Wood who came in Ian McKellen's position in the Career Day? I saw your book and I opened it and I saw Elrond!!! Then, he spit a pill out of me – how rude – and he said with it I could become Queen of Middle Earth without getting high grades in Literature or stalking those cute hobbit or elf actors!" And with that she did her "adorable smile again and sipped in her ale. This left Cleff with this kind of expression "X_X".

"So, you were really trying to huggle Elijah huh…" she said with a gulp of ale, turning into terrible shades of blue now. "So… (gurgle, gurgle) Why don't you come back to DETENTION, save yourself, cause, for now, we are at a difficult quest in the moment, huh?" Cleff said assuringly, hopingly that the fangirl-fruit would listen to her. "It's very dangerous… and you wouldn't want to see hobbits when they are dangerous… right? Heh-heh-heh…"

To Cleff's dismay, Shea brightened up, showing her braces and screaming, "OH! Those poor little hobbits! They need my help ("No, they wont-" tried Cleff.) in saving the world and that One Ring, for all they know," she gives her 'cute' little smile. "I am their queen." Cleff gulped, as she tried to argue even more why Shea should return to the real world, without mentioning that Ash has turned on against them, but all Shea could say is, "Now, now dear. I know you try so hard to protect my dear, cutie-wootie, little hobbits (Sam and Frodo has merrily choked on their dinner bread on hearing this) but I, their sweet little love servant (Cleff has turned into dark blue-green in this stage and will be running for a vomit-bucket really soon) must swear allegiance to my sweet Frodo for saving his little life forever. (Sam is now giving Frodo the Heimlich-maneuver for him to spit out the dry dinner bread.)"

Cleff slammed her palm to her forehead, as Shea brightened up, having expressed her mission. "Shea," she tried to explain. "Gandalf has declared me into a Cliffhanger-" Shea brightened and said, "Oh! The immortal children born to save the legend of the One Ring!" Cleff gave her the "DOH" look and said, "Yes. And I am afraid, as Cliffhanger, I can't let you do this." And with that statement, Cleff patted the book, and Frodo and Sam finally sighed. Shea gave her a puzzled look. "Have Gandalf declared me Cliffhanger too?"

With that horror, Cleff viciously shook her head, as Pippin went past her, winking at Shea, to get another pint. (YEAH, you know this scene.) As Cleff tried to explain to Shea what the hell has she been in, from the Shire, to Isengard, till her roadtrip to Bree, Frodo took his notice off from the girls, but to a black-hooded figure watching them closely, huffing mysteriously on a pipe, it's face hidden in it's black hood. Frodo tried to alert a busy Cleff, still defending her side why Shea CAN'T be a Cliffhanger, when Pippin started muttering some "exclusive" things about their company.

"Oh yeah! Baggins! Frodo Baggins! He's my mother's, father's, uncle's dog's, cat's girlfriend's, muse's, cousin's, bartender's, Merry's cousin!!!" Frodo quickly alerted Sam to point out the black-hooded figure to Cleff, and darted off to make a distraction.

And Cleff said to Shea, "But that was only ONE blue pill! That book is only a portal, you can't-" she was quickly interrupted by Sam, who sneaked up her back, almost giving her a heart attack. "SAMWISE GAMGEE!!! Have you been eavesdropping?!!!!" Sam vigorously shook his head, and blushed at Shea's "hello". Cleff snorted. "Then what are you doing-"

Sam quickly whispered to her ear and pointed over to the small side of the room, a mysterious black-hooded figure, with it's face invisible. "One stranger watching us from a-far, he may be a Wraith for what we know as we may be, Master Cleff!" Shea gave Cleff a scared look, mimicking Sam's as Cleff gulped. "It could be Ashley, the living Wraith." Cleff muttered under her breath, as she quickly tugged on Shea's wrist, looking around muttering "Let's get outta here." Sam quickly tugged on her cloak and asked, "What's going on? Master Cleff, do you know who that black-hooded person is-"

Cleff quickly bent down and gave Sam a small "Shhhh." Sam turned red, as Shea gave him a small blushed smile. "We do not know whom we are up against," Cleff mustered comfortingly to Samwise, as the hobbit quickly nodded. "As far as I know, we must gather Frodo, Sam and – wait a minute?!! WHERE IS FRODO?!!" Sam gulped.

Frodo has gone up the bar counter, creating a distraction, dancing, laughing and singing with Pippin, to cover up his disguise. Then as the three watched, Cleff sporting an absurd face, and Sam and Shea, blushing and laughing, somehow, ACCIDENTALLY, Frodo slips on the Ring, and quickly disappears. "WOOOOW!!!" went the crowd, as Pippin stood there aghast, looking for Frodo. Cleff quickly put on a straight face, tugged on Shea's wrist and beckoned to Sam. "HE'S GOT IT ON!!!" Cleff hissed, as Sam began to panic, grabbing all their things. Merry and Pippin, looked around for Frodo, as Shea and Cliff tried to make it through the crowd, looking over the spot where Frodo disappeared. To Cleff's horror, the black-hooded figure was making it's way towards them, and in her thoughts, "Oh no, he must have seen Frodo!"

To Shea's relief, she saw Frodo reappear, as Cleff turned to see him panting and sweating, pulling the Ring off his finger. The crowd parted, as a babble of talk broke out, then Cleff urged Shea to move, so that they could claim Frodo. Just then, as fast as lightning, the hooded figure grabbed the hobbit, much to Cleff's horror.

"NOOO!!!" She felt a cry escape her lips. "What?!!" Shea muttered. She looked around to see the hooded figure making it's way towards the stairs, dragging the poor, bewildred Frodo. "NOOO!!! Sam, Merry, Pippin! Let's get him!" Shea quickly made a patriotic move of assembling the three hobbits, grabbing chairs, bread knives and stools, storming up the stairs, leaving Cleff down the bustling crowd, thinking.

"If I was right, and if I was too late, the Wraith has got the Ring, and time and hour for the hobbit is already too late."

Cleff saw the rune appear in the book, which was lying in her arms open all that time, when she grabbed it to escape. "ASHLEY!" she mused, as she ran up the stairs after her colleagues.

~ ~ ~

As for Shea, and her band of hobbits, they have broken into the wrong rooms, being pelted by dried fruits, rotten tomatoes, or anything horrible as possible. "Where is he?!!" Shea screamed, as they closed in another intersection, turning left. Quickly, Shea approached the edge of the corridor, noticing something moving towards it. She raised her stool and almost bopped the figure on the head, when it turned out to be Cleff's shadow, and Cleff was coming from the other corridor.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!!" Cleff screamed at Shea, as she almost brought down the stool down her head. Shea quickly hid the stool behind her back, flashing an innocent smile.

Cleff rolled her eyes, raised the heavy book over her head (YUP, it's still heavy and is getting heavier every minute!) and brought down the door of the first room in the corridor, almost crashing in. To Shea's shock and the hobbits's surprise, a long sword poked out of the room which Cleff broke down the door, and directed its way towards her throat.

Shea, Sam, Merry and Pippin held their breaths, as a tall man retreated out of the room, the hooded black figure Sam, Shea and Cleff has seem downstairs, holding the sword. Shea motioned the hobbits to lay down their weapons, as Cleff gulped, feeling the sword's cold blade touch her throat.

"And what are you doing with the Book of the Ring, my child?" the man hissed, pointing her to step aside, almost cutting in her throat. Cleff narrowed her eyes, about to throw an insult, when Frodo quickly went out of the room unharmed, the shock to see Cleff and the man in some sort of duel.

"Strider!" Frodo called to the tall man. "They are my companions! And she," he proudly pointed to Cleff, who carefully lifted down the book to her waist. "Is one of the most finest Cliffhangers of Middle Earth, and she promised loyalty and companionship to me." The stranger named Strider gave Cleff a calculating look, and drew back his sword, placing it safely to his belt. Shea and the hobbits sighed, as they threw their "weapons" aside.

"Well, a Cliffhanger, as Frodo would say," said Strider, eyeing Cliff with a smug smile. "You must be more than what I have expected."

Frodo beamed at an aghast Cleff, who quickly exchanged glances with a surprised (and excited) Shea. The hobbits themselves, were clueless.

"Unexpected," muttered Cleff to Strider. "Indeed."

A/N: Wondering why Shea isn't a Cliffhanger? Remember, Cleff and Ash took a RED and a BLUE pill to transport themselves to Middle Earth in Chapter two, isn't it? Shea only took a BLUE one, and in order to maintain a balance, there must be a RED for one Cliffhanger, and a BLUE one for the other Cliffhanger. In order to be a Cliffhanger, you need to have a partner, and at least choose a red or a blue pill. ^-^

Reviews please! I will be sending up more chapters soon. And to Zephyr… HIIIIIIII!!!!