The words to the song are by ZOEgirl, all rights reserved.
Well, on with the show!
Chapter Six: Haunted words of song
********
Malaika slowly came back into consciousness. She sat up and looked around, seeing that it was close to about five o'clock in the afternoon.
"What happened?" she mumbled.
"You passed out," a voice said, the person shadowed by the light of a small fire.
"Aragorn? Is that you?"
The figure nodded and said, "Yes. Here is a little food for you, but we are running low. Legolas, Boromir and Gimli are looking for some type of plant to bring back to us for a bit more food, and the hobbits are over there." He pointed to a spot by the fire where the four hobbits sat talking. Malaika nodded.
"Where's Gandalf?"
"I don't know."
The girl sighed. She got up and walked over to the hobbits, sitting next to Pippin. "Hello Pippin," she said with a smile.
"Hello Malaika. How are you?"
"Good."
Pippin nodded and smiled, turning to the others and resuming their conversation, now seeming to ignore the girl who sat next to him.
Malaika rose and took a short walk around the campsite, admiring the beauty and hidden danger of the mountain. She yawned, realizing how tired she really was.
Turning back to the campsite sleepily, she tripped on a stone and fell, scraping her left shoulder blade on an extending rock and screaming in pain. The hobbits rushed to her aid, all of them asking repeatedly what had happened. All the girl could do was whimper from the sharp sting in her left shoulder blade, suspecting what had happened. She reached up and gingerly felt the small throbbing triangle shaped protrusion on her shoulder blade. She had another one on her other shoulder, and she knew full well what they were.
'I can't keep it a secret much longer,' she thought with a twinge of misery. Malaika pulled back her fingers and gasped at what covered them. Blood. 'Oh no,' she thought with horror, 'what happened? I must have hit something hard when I fell.'
Pippin noticed the crimson liquid covering her shoulder also, and reached to touch it, unbeknownst to the girl. His fingers stroked the diminutive protrusion gently, making a bit of the cloth shirt that had been torn upon impact to shift, revealing the bloodied skin and that the small triangle on the left side of her back was covered with a thin layer of skin. He accidentally touched the gash, causing Malaika to yelp and turn her head to look at the young man, narrowing her eyes and whispering, "Why did you touch my wound, Pippin? I can take care of myself. I don't need your help to give me more pain than what I already have." With that the girl got up, slowly making her way toward the others. She flopped down on her bedding, taking special care to avoid her wound, ignoring the others who sat around the fire staring at her.
Malaika's eyes slowly fluttered open to a dark world around her. She sat up and saw that the fire was out, Aragorn and the rest of the Fellowship were asleep, and that there was a pale sliver of moon in the sky.
She got up and walked over to the nearby hill and sat down at the top, sighing.
"I remember when me and Mother used to do this," she whispered sadly. Then she thought of her journey here, and began murmuring words to a song that she had thought of.
"I led a lonesome journey
Full of disdain and fury
I kept my anger yearning
Close to me like fire burning
I watched a million chances
Slip through my weathered hands
I almost lost myself
When I looked around there was no one else
I followed habits around and swept up above the clouds
But fallen down left shaken
Abandoned by the pills I've taken
I could have kept on going
With no one ever knowing
Who really wants to see a tired nobody like me?"
"I do," came a voice from behind. Malaika spun around and saw a dark figure standing at the base of the hill, looking at her.
"Who are you?" she snapped, not realizing who it was in the dim moonlight.
"It's me, Malaika," a soft voice answered.
"Pippin? What are you doing here?"
Pippin didn't answer, instead asking another question.
"Did you really go through that?"
Malaika's eyes widened, realizing that he had listened to her song, and then lowered in memory.
"Yes, I did."
"Why are you up?"
"I- I- couldn't sleep."
"Oh, okay," Pippin said, turning to go back to bed. "I thought your song was really beautiful, nothing like the songs of the Elves, in an odd way."
Malaika smiled.
"Malaika, I was just wondering, what are those, those... things... on your shoulder blades?"
The girl gasped, the smile vanishing off her face like the wind.
'He really has seen them then,' she thought.
'I can't tell him, not now.'
'But now's the perfect time,' her mind argued.
'No it's not. He can't know.'
'Yes he can, he'll probably find out anyway, Malaika.'
She sighed. 'All right, fine, but I won't tell him now, not when others could be listening.'
'What about the others? What will they think when Pippin tells them?'
'I- I- don't know.'
"Malaika?" Pippin asked, interrupting the argument in the girl's mind with herself.
"Y- yes, Pippin? Did you say something?"
"Yes, I ask you a question. What are those things on your shoulder blades?"
Malaika gulped hard.
"I can't tell you, not right now, perhaps later."
"Alright. Good-night Malaika," Pippin whispered, turning back to the camp and lying down in his bed, closing his eyes.
"Good-night, Pippin. I'll tell you someday," the girl murmured.
Well, on with the show!
Chapter Six: Haunted words of song
********
Malaika slowly came back into consciousness. She sat up and looked around, seeing that it was close to about five o'clock in the afternoon.
"What happened?" she mumbled.
"You passed out," a voice said, the person shadowed by the light of a small fire.
"Aragorn? Is that you?"
The figure nodded and said, "Yes. Here is a little food for you, but we are running low. Legolas, Boromir and Gimli are looking for some type of plant to bring back to us for a bit more food, and the hobbits are over there." He pointed to a spot by the fire where the four hobbits sat talking. Malaika nodded.
"Where's Gandalf?"
"I don't know."
The girl sighed. She got up and walked over to the hobbits, sitting next to Pippin. "Hello Pippin," she said with a smile.
"Hello Malaika. How are you?"
"Good."
Pippin nodded and smiled, turning to the others and resuming their conversation, now seeming to ignore the girl who sat next to him.
Malaika rose and took a short walk around the campsite, admiring the beauty and hidden danger of the mountain. She yawned, realizing how tired she really was.
Turning back to the campsite sleepily, she tripped on a stone and fell, scraping her left shoulder blade on an extending rock and screaming in pain. The hobbits rushed to her aid, all of them asking repeatedly what had happened. All the girl could do was whimper from the sharp sting in her left shoulder blade, suspecting what had happened. She reached up and gingerly felt the small throbbing triangle shaped protrusion on her shoulder blade. She had another one on her other shoulder, and she knew full well what they were.
'I can't keep it a secret much longer,' she thought with a twinge of misery. Malaika pulled back her fingers and gasped at what covered them. Blood. 'Oh no,' she thought with horror, 'what happened? I must have hit something hard when I fell.'
Pippin noticed the crimson liquid covering her shoulder also, and reached to touch it, unbeknownst to the girl. His fingers stroked the diminutive protrusion gently, making a bit of the cloth shirt that had been torn upon impact to shift, revealing the bloodied skin and that the small triangle on the left side of her back was covered with a thin layer of skin. He accidentally touched the gash, causing Malaika to yelp and turn her head to look at the young man, narrowing her eyes and whispering, "Why did you touch my wound, Pippin? I can take care of myself. I don't need your help to give me more pain than what I already have." With that the girl got up, slowly making her way toward the others. She flopped down on her bedding, taking special care to avoid her wound, ignoring the others who sat around the fire staring at her.
Malaika's eyes slowly fluttered open to a dark world around her. She sat up and saw that the fire was out, Aragorn and the rest of the Fellowship were asleep, and that there was a pale sliver of moon in the sky.
She got up and walked over to the nearby hill and sat down at the top, sighing.
"I remember when me and Mother used to do this," she whispered sadly. Then she thought of her journey here, and began murmuring words to a song that she had thought of.
"I led a lonesome journey
Full of disdain and fury
I kept my anger yearning
Close to me like fire burning
I watched a million chances
Slip through my weathered hands
I almost lost myself
When I looked around there was no one else
I followed habits around and swept up above the clouds
But fallen down left shaken
Abandoned by the pills I've taken
I could have kept on going
With no one ever knowing
Who really wants to see a tired nobody like me?"
"I do," came a voice from behind. Malaika spun around and saw a dark figure standing at the base of the hill, looking at her.
"Who are you?" she snapped, not realizing who it was in the dim moonlight.
"It's me, Malaika," a soft voice answered.
"Pippin? What are you doing here?"
Pippin didn't answer, instead asking another question.
"Did you really go through that?"
Malaika's eyes widened, realizing that he had listened to her song, and then lowered in memory.
"Yes, I did."
"Why are you up?"
"I- I- couldn't sleep."
"Oh, okay," Pippin said, turning to go back to bed. "I thought your song was really beautiful, nothing like the songs of the Elves, in an odd way."
Malaika smiled.
"Malaika, I was just wondering, what are those, those... things... on your shoulder blades?"
The girl gasped, the smile vanishing off her face like the wind.
'He really has seen them then,' she thought.
'I can't tell him, not now.'
'But now's the perfect time,' her mind argued.
'No it's not. He can't know.'
'Yes he can, he'll probably find out anyway, Malaika.'
She sighed. 'All right, fine, but I won't tell him now, not when others could be listening.'
'What about the others? What will they think when Pippin tells them?'
'I- I- don't know.'
"Malaika?" Pippin asked, interrupting the argument in the girl's mind with herself.
"Y- yes, Pippin? Did you say something?"
"Yes, I ask you a question. What are those things on your shoulder blades?"
Malaika gulped hard.
"I can't tell you, not right now, perhaps later."
"Alright. Good-night Malaika," Pippin whispered, turning back to the camp and lying down in his bed, closing his eyes.
"Good-night, Pippin. I'll tell you someday," the girl murmured.