Disclaimer: AU Story. My third large LOTR fic. I can't stop! None of the
characters or settings are mine. They all belong to Tolkien. I wish I were
related to Tolkien, don't you? It would be so cool! Oh, and the plot here
is derived from my own imagination. Hope you enjoy.
TrueFan: Such a scary review! *cowers* I'm really pleased you liked Frodo's line (I liked it too) *blush* AAH! Please don't whip me master! I'm writing, I swear it. You should change your name to oooh, say, Dark Lord or Mrs Uruk-Hai. *innocent smile* Oh yes, and to your query about Legolas carrying Gimli, well, he's a strong lad, I'm sure that a little old dwarf would not be much trouble. Gimli was, er, on a diet...? Plus, I hope your speaker gets better. Give it an aspirin or lime! You put the lime in the coconut and drank it all up...Gotta love that song!
Kiasha: Yay! You like! Thank you very much!
MagicalRachel: Yay, good old Aragorn. Knew he'd come in useful one day. Hehe. Poor Gimli. In Darkness of Mordor, he gets a little torture. Oh, I'm feeling guilty now. I've started a dwarf-torture trend! Ack. The epitome of evil returns... Thank you for the lovely email- very funny!
Shirebound: Currently, I think I'm on a roll. I'm very poorly at the moment and I probably think that staring at the screen isn't helping a lot but the typing is very soothing. Chapter 3 Keeping of the King was so lovely, btw, so beautifully written- go you!
BIGGEST FRODO/ELIJAH WOOD FAN: OK, OK! Please don't hit me! *cringes* Chapters are coming!
Elf of Rivendell: Gandalf will return! Possibly in the next part of this story. That's a thought...hmm, thank you for that idea about Galadriel. I'm really pleased you're enjoying this- thank you for all your comments- you're just so good to me!
Lil*bee: Yeah, go Aggy! No, I do not have any LOTR fics stored away. Plenty of angst-y stuff but not Rings based. Lots of ideas, though! Any suggestions for a Two Towers story?
Jeva: *bows down to almighty author* Yay! T'is you, t'is you! I am so honoured... Aw, wow, thank you so much! I'm really pleased you liked my other fics too. Yeah, quite a few people got a bit freaked in Trials of Lórien- poor Frodo! Hobbits, btw, will appear loads more in this story- the company just have to get together again and help Frodo out. PLEASE update your fic- it is so original! Love it! In reply to your message: noos retteb teg uoy epoh I ,wa'D
????: Yay for Frodo and Aragorn! Glad you're enjoying this. Oh and, btw, how do you pronounce your name?
Ow! I am so ill! *whimpers* Well, you are making me feel so much better with these wonderful reviews!
~ Chapter Twenty-Two ~
The rider had returned from Mirkwood. So had the messengers from Belfalas, Erebor, Erech and the western realms. There was little word. And no sign of King Elessar.
Faramir unrolled the parchment from King Tharandúil and Prince Legolas. There were endless lines of flowing script telling of recent events. Celebrations. Marriages. Proclamations. With a sigh, he folded this away and picked up the one from Erebor. Celebrations. Marriages. Proclamations. Faramir let out a faint groan and pushed the parchments aside. He could not help feeling a little envious of Aragorn for being able to ride off to greet Frodo. Faramir smiled at this thought. The return of the Ringbearer.
Though he, Lady Arwen and Eowyn had attempted to keep the news to themselves, the majority of Osgiliath and of Minas Tirith had now heard of Frodo. The streets buzzed with gossip. The festivities were already being prepared. They convinced them not to put up banners or decorations but Faramir had a feeling that the people were keeping many of their plans secret. Gifts strewed Baggins Street on the eastern side of the river. Notes reading welcomes, praise and verses of adoration fluttered through the air.
Everyone in the city were now singing "Frodo of the Nine Fingers". Faramir could not remember seeing them so happy. Even the doleful bartender at The Silver Net was among the crowds clustering the roads and bridges, a wide smile on his face. This outraged Arwen.
"They will only hurt him!" she often cried. But even the word of the queen herself could not sway their delight.
"Yes, my lady," Eowyn said, "But you must understand, their love for Frodo and the Fellowship is so strong. For they have lived on the borders of Mordor for many long and cruel years. They saw Minas Morgul fall and saw Emyn Muil rise up as the earth shook. Frodo released us all from darkness. He drove back that shadow. That was an immense task. We know that he sacrificed everything for it."
"And Lady Arwen, Frodo will wish to see us again. He will wish to see his companions, will he not?" Faramir added.
The elf shook her head and she shook with anger.
"But we must think of his suffering! Would you wish to be the one who brought that back to him?"
She did not wait for an answer but stormed away into the cheering throng.
"She is right. We are being selfish," Eowyn murmured, squeezing her husband's hand. Faramir looked sadly at her.
"I know. But so many want to remember. I am sure that only the Fellowship truly wish to forget..."
--
Snow was starting to fall heavily now and it swirled about the company along with the great gusts of wind. Emáten went in the lead, trying his best to shield the hobbits and his steed. In the distance, he could make out the faint outline of mountains and a dark smear of trees climbing up at the edges. The weather, though, was growing more frenzied and it was all he could do to keep his balance.
Behind, Sam was practically dragging the horse after him and there was not enough breath in his lungs. He glanced at his companions, whose faces were all turned to the ground as they struggled into the blizzard. There was a sudden crack and Emáten let out a cry. The hobbits fell back as he tumbled down among them. Frodo quickly dragged the man aside under the weak protection of a dead tree.
"What is it?" he asked urgently. Emáten was a little pale but shook himself to reply shakily,
"We nearly stepped into a river. It has frozen a little but I almost went through. Do you know which river this could be?"
"The Brandywine," said Merry, "We must be near the second crossing. But we're not going to be able to find it in this snow..."
The rest of his words were spiralled away by the wind. Emáten huddled under the tree and the hobbits sat close about him. The snow did not let up for an hour...two hours...three hours and still it roared about the sky. Frodo watched fearfully as in this time, first Pippin then Emáten, then Sam and finally Merry drifted off into a deep sleep. It was an eerie silence, even in the gale's lament. The hobbit fought it so hard. But the cold seemed to seep into his very skin; it leadened his eyelids and numbed his mind. The landscape appeared to sway and blur before his eyes. And though he forced his eyes to stay focused and tried to occupy his thoughts, it was a losing battle and in the end, sleep claimed him also.
What Frodo saw in his nightmares almost crushed his very mind. A mountain of fire. Clear as light. Red and gold blossomed from its head and spilt down the sides in a cascade of ash and ember. He was walking towards an opening in its face. The mountain raced up in a flurry of dust and fumes to let him climb its face. Inside, it was boiling hot. Geysers of lava exploded on every side. He spun round in horror, shielding his eyes from the glare. He was almost choked with the smog that hung like a shroud of death over the pit before him. It bubbled and swilled, sending up criss- cross arcs of flame. Frodo stood before it and it was as if two voices were calling to him from across the cavern. "Please, no, Mister Frodo! Not after all that- you can't give in. Destroy It! Destroy It!" Frodo raised his hand behind his head, ready to fling it into the abyss. But then...the second voice stopped him. It was his own voice... "No, my precious. There is no need for this. Why destroy me, precious? I am part of you now. You cannot kill yourself."
"What are you?" Frodo screamed, "Who are you?"
"I am your soul," said the voice. "And you will never be rid of me!"
Frodo woke to find someone shaking him. It was still light and the storm had still not died. Sam was bending over him, a hand to his brow and at his shoulder. His face was filled with fear.
"Mister Frodo, are you alright?"
Frodo sat up awkwardly, running a hand through his hair. He looked at his hand. It was shaking badly. He could hear his heart beating loudly in his ears. He fixed his shining eyes on Sam's.
"I heard It's voice, Sam," he whispered, "I heard It calling me. It...It said It was part of me." In a sudden flood of terror, he gripped his friend and shouted at him- "You have to tell me, Sam! I'll go mad! I cannot go on like this!"
"I know," the hobbit answered. There were tears glistening on his cheeks. Putting a hand to his master's face, he said softly, "Frodo... you were the bearer...of the One Ring."
And Frodo passed out.
TrueFan: Such a scary review! *cowers* I'm really pleased you liked Frodo's line (I liked it too) *blush* AAH! Please don't whip me master! I'm writing, I swear it. You should change your name to oooh, say, Dark Lord or Mrs Uruk-Hai. *innocent smile* Oh yes, and to your query about Legolas carrying Gimli, well, he's a strong lad, I'm sure that a little old dwarf would not be much trouble. Gimli was, er, on a diet...? Plus, I hope your speaker gets better. Give it an aspirin or lime! You put the lime in the coconut and drank it all up...Gotta love that song!
Kiasha: Yay! You like! Thank you very much!
MagicalRachel: Yay, good old Aragorn. Knew he'd come in useful one day. Hehe. Poor Gimli. In Darkness of Mordor, he gets a little torture. Oh, I'm feeling guilty now. I've started a dwarf-torture trend! Ack. The epitome of evil returns... Thank you for the lovely email- very funny!
Shirebound: Currently, I think I'm on a roll. I'm very poorly at the moment and I probably think that staring at the screen isn't helping a lot but the typing is very soothing. Chapter 3 Keeping of the King was so lovely, btw, so beautifully written- go you!
BIGGEST FRODO/ELIJAH WOOD FAN: OK, OK! Please don't hit me! *cringes* Chapters are coming!
Elf of Rivendell: Gandalf will return! Possibly in the next part of this story. That's a thought...hmm, thank you for that idea about Galadriel. I'm really pleased you're enjoying this- thank you for all your comments- you're just so good to me!
Lil*bee: Yeah, go Aggy! No, I do not have any LOTR fics stored away. Plenty of angst-y stuff but not Rings based. Lots of ideas, though! Any suggestions for a Two Towers story?
Jeva: *bows down to almighty author* Yay! T'is you, t'is you! I am so honoured... Aw, wow, thank you so much! I'm really pleased you liked my other fics too. Yeah, quite a few people got a bit freaked in Trials of Lórien- poor Frodo! Hobbits, btw, will appear loads more in this story- the company just have to get together again and help Frodo out. PLEASE update your fic- it is so original! Love it! In reply to your message: noos retteb teg uoy epoh I ,wa'D
????: Yay for Frodo and Aragorn! Glad you're enjoying this. Oh and, btw, how do you pronounce your name?
Ow! I am so ill! *whimpers* Well, you are making me feel so much better with these wonderful reviews!
~ Chapter Twenty-Two ~
The rider had returned from Mirkwood. So had the messengers from Belfalas, Erebor, Erech and the western realms. There was little word. And no sign of King Elessar.
Faramir unrolled the parchment from King Tharandúil and Prince Legolas. There were endless lines of flowing script telling of recent events. Celebrations. Marriages. Proclamations. With a sigh, he folded this away and picked up the one from Erebor. Celebrations. Marriages. Proclamations. Faramir let out a faint groan and pushed the parchments aside. He could not help feeling a little envious of Aragorn for being able to ride off to greet Frodo. Faramir smiled at this thought. The return of the Ringbearer.
Though he, Lady Arwen and Eowyn had attempted to keep the news to themselves, the majority of Osgiliath and of Minas Tirith had now heard of Frodo. The streets buzzed with gossip. The festivities were already being prepared. They convinced them not to put up banners or decorations but Faramir had a feeling that the people were keeping many of their plans secret. Gifts strewed Baggins Street on the eastern side of the river. Notes reading welcomes, praise and verses of adoration fluttered through the air.
Everyone in the city were now singing "Frodo of the Nine Fingers". Faramir could not remember seeing them so happy. Even the doleful bartender at The Silver Net was among the crowds clustering the roads and bridges, a wide smile on his face. This outraged Arwen.
"They will only hurt him!" she often cried. But even the word of the queen herself could not sway their delight.
"Yes, my lady," Eowyn said, "But you must understand, their love for Frodo and the Fellowship is so strong. For they have lived on the borders of Mordor for many long and cruel years. They saw Minas Morgul fall and saw Emyn Muil rise up as the earth shook. Frodo released us all from darkness. He drove back that shadow. That was an immense task. We know that he sacrificed everything for it."
"And Lady Arwen, Frodo will wish to see us again. He will wish to see his companions, will he not?" Faramir added.
The elf shook her head and she shook with anger.
"But we must think of his suffering! Would you wish to be the one who brought that back to him?"
She did not wait for an answer but stormed away into the cheering throng.
"She is right. We are being selfish," Eowyn murmured, squeezing her husband's hand. Faramir looked sadly at her.
"I know. But so many want to remember. I am sure that only the Fellowship truly wish to forget..."
--
Snow was starting to fall heavily now and it swirled about the company along with the great gusts of wind. Emáten went in the lead, trying his best to shield the hobbits and his steed. In the distance, he could make out the faint outline of mountains and a dark smear of trees climbing up at the edges. The weather, though, was growing more frenzied and it was all he could do to keep his balance.
Behind, Sam was practically dragging the horse after him and there was not enough breath in his lungs. He glanced at his companions, whose faces were all turned to the ground as they struggled into the blizzard. There was a sudden crack and Emáten let out a cry. The hobbits fell back as he tumbled down among them. Frodo quickly dragged the man aside under the weak protection of a dead tree.
"What is it?" he asked urgently. Emáten was a little pale but shook himself to reply shakily,
"We nearly stepped into a river. It has frozen a little but I almost went through. Do you know which river this could be?"
"The Brandywine," said Merry, "We must be near the second crossing. But we're not going to be able to find it in this snow..."
The rest of his words were spiralled away by the wind. Emáten huddled under the tree and the hobbits sat close about him. The snow did not let up for an hour...two hours...three hours and still it roared about the sky. Frodo watched fearfully as in this time, first Pippin then Emáten, then Sam and finally Merry drifted off into a deep sleep. It was an eerie silence, even in the gale's lament. The hobbit fought it so hard. But the cold seemed to seep into his very skin; it leadened his eyelids and numbed his mind. The landscape appeared to sway and blur before his eyes. And though he forced his eyes to stay focused and tried to occupy his thoughts, it was a losing battle and in the end, sleep claimed him also.
What Frodo saw in his nightmares almost crushed his very mind. A mountain of fire. Clear as light. Red and gold blossomed from its head and spilt down the sides in a cascade of ash and ember. He was walking towards an opening in its face. The mountain raced up in a flurry of dust and fumes to let him climb its face. Inside, it was boiling hot. Geysers of lava exploded on every side. He spun round in horror, shielding his eyes from the glare. He was almost choked with the smog that hung like a shroud of death over the pit before him. It bubbled and swilled, sending up criss- cross arcs of flame. Frodo stood before it and it was as if two voices were calling to him from across the cavern. "Please, no, Mister Frodo! Not after all that- you can't give in. Destroy It! Destroy It!" Frodo raised his hand behind his head, ready to fling it into the abyss. But then...the second voice stopped him. It was his own voice... "No, my precious. There is no need for this. Why destroy me, precious? I am part of you now. You cannot kill yourself."
"What are you?" Frodo screamed, "Who are you?"
"I am your soul," said the voice. "And you will never be rid of me!"
Frodo woke to find someone shaking him. It was still light and the storm had still not died. Sam was bending over him, a hand to his brow and at his shoulder. His face was filled with fear.
"Mister Frodo, are you alright?"
Frodo sat up awkwardly, running a hand through his hair. He looked at his hand. It was shaking badly. He could hear his heart beating loudly in his ears. He fixed his shining eyes on Sam's.
"I heard It's voice, Sam," he whispered, "I heard It calling me. It...It said It was part of me." In a sudden flood of terror, he gripped his friend and shouted at him- "You have to tell me, Sam! I'll go mad! I cannot go on like this!"
"I know," the hobbit answered. There were tears glistening on his cheeks. Putting a hand to his master's face, he said softly, "Frodo... you were the bearer...of the One Ring."
And Frodo passed out.
