D/N: I don't own anything.
Ch. 12 Surprises and Shocks
Hermione woke up three hours later. She wasn't quite sure how she had managed to awaken but she had all the same. She sat up in bed her fingers delicately putting her few strands of hair behind her ears. She sat up and looked around. The one candle that they had left glowing in the dark had been blown out and everything was pitch dark.
Suddenly Hermione heard someone outside the door. Instinctively she went back down on her bed pretending to be asleep. The door opened and through half-closed eyes she saw Gandalf's tall figure standing at the doorway. He held a lantern in his right hand and with it he began to scan the room. Hermione closed her eyes, her heart beating fast, as the beam passed over her. She opened them again as she watched the beam rest on Frodo. Then she heard Gandalf take a few steps closer to where she was. Her heart beat even faster. "Why am I so nervous?" she thought to herself. Gandalf stopped in front of Harry's bed. Hermione watched s he took out from his robes a pouch. He untied it and stuck his hand inside. Then he made a motion with his fingers as if he was sprinkling something on top of Harry's head. Then Gandalf uncovered Harry and picked him up. He placed his limp body over his shoulder and walked off to the other side of the room to Frodo's bed. Hermione gasped as she watched Gandalf pull out a dagger from his robes and lift it gingerly over Frodo's sleep figure. "No!" she exclaimed jumping out of bed. Gandalf was startled and he glared at her. Frodo woke up immediately and he quickly got out of bed before Gandalf could strike at him. "Gandalf, what do you think you are doing?" asked Sam. He was up and out of bed standing by his master's side. Gandalf did not answer but instead he tried another lunge for Frodo with the dagger. He missed by a couple of centimeters. Growling with rage Gandalf set Harry down on the bed beside him and held up the dagger. Hermione whipped out her wand. She pointed it at Gandalf and boomed, " Rictusempra!" It his Gandalf full blast on the chest, which caused him to crash against the wall, causing a shelf to fall on top of him. The dagger had fallen out of his hands. "Sam, quickly pick up Harry and let's get out of here!" commanded Frodo. Sam went to the bed where Harry lay and he picked him up holding him in the same position that Gandalf had and went through the door. He then turned around to see if the others had followed. Hermione went after Sam, but stopped and turned. Frodo was bending over Gandalf's limp body. "Frodo! What are you doing?" she whispered through clenched teeth. "It's all right I'm just grabbing his dagger so he won't be able to attack us again," replied Frodo. Frodo reached for the dagger never taking his eyes off Gandalf's face. He was centimeters away when the Ring hung down from his shirt. For a split second Frodo looked down to see it and then that was when Frodo's wrist was no longer free. Gandalf had grabbed a hold of Frodo's wrist. "Ah!" yelled Frodo in surprise as well as in fright. Hermione screamed out his name behind him. Frodo struggled but the wizard's grip on him was too strong. Frodo tried to reach for the dagger with his left hand, but he found that he was being lifted up into the air! Gandalf had gotten a hold of his neck with his left hand and was slowly lifting him off the ground. He stopped to where Frodo's face was level with his. For now Gandalf was standing up tall. Hermione screamed again and held up her wand. In the blink of an eye Gandalf had unsheathed his own sword with his right hand, having let go of Frodo's wrist, and was holding it up inches away from Frodo's neck. "Don't you even think of striking at me again with that wand of yours, or I will slice the Ringbearer's head off his shoulders before you could breathe a word." Hermione lowered her wand. What else could she do? She knew for certain that Gandalf wasn't lying and that she was literally helpless. Frodo continued to kick but Gandalf was holding him far from his body. Hermione noticed that Frodo's kicks were growing weaker. She stole a quick glance at the door. She saw Ron, Malfoy, and the other hobbits looking in not daring to move. Gandalf had seen them and he was very well aware that they could do nothing. His lips curled into a smile. "Now then I will spare young Mr. Baggins' life only if you give me back Potter." Hermione glanced quickly at Sam, who was still holding a sleeping Harry. That powder must have been enchanted or something and had caused Harry to fall into a deep sleep. "Don't do it Sam! Don't do it!" choked Frodo from the man's grip. Hermione looked over from Harry to Frodo. What was to be done? If Sam were to do as the man said then they would loose Harry. But if he didn't. Hermione racked her brains to try to think of a possible solution. But nothing came to her mind that could help. "I wish the real Gandalf were here," she thought.
Suddenly to her right there came a sound of shattering glass. Everyone looked over to see what it was. A hooded man stood up quickly and threw a dagger at Gandalf's left hand. It struck him at the wrist. Gandalf howled with pain as he dropped Frodo and his sword. Frodo crumpled to the ground gasping for breath. Gandalf growled as he took out the dagger. At that moment he grabbed his sword and was ready to stab at Frodo, but then Frodo disappeared. Gandalf stood in shock for a split second before he was back to conscience and blocked a blow that the hooded man had delivered to him with his own sword. Hermione just stared in complete shock. She couldn't move. She watched as the two men, the hooded man now with his hood off, fought with their swords viciously. "We shouldn't linger here", said Frodo's voice at her ear. She gave a yelp and turned around to see no one there. "It's all right, Hermione. It's me I put on the Ring that's all. Come on let's get out of here!" Hermione nodded at the air and she felt a cold hand hold her own and lead her off toward the exit. Ron and Merry were busy trying to wake Harry up. Frodo became visible again and he told them all to get out. Suddenly Harry began to scream from the floor. "No, no leave her alone. Hurry run they're coming!" And with that everyone could here the all too familiar screams of the Black Riders. "Oh shit!" cursed Malfoy. "Hurry everyone downstairs!" screamed Frodo. Behind them they heard a roar. Looking back in the room Hermione saw the man that had saved them standing in front of a large cave troll. Gandalf had disappeared. The troll held a mighty club in his hand and was using it to try to hit the man. Hermione recognized the man as being the one that had been watching them. The man grabbed a firebrand from the fireplace and threw it into the monster's eyes. The troll roared in pain and he swiped blindly for the man with his club. The man dodged and headed for the door. Hermione quickly got out of the way as he closed the door behind him. He turned his sweaty face toward her and said, " Hurry everyone outside before they arrive!" Everyone did as they were told. The man took Harry's body from Sam and placed him on his shoulders. Frodo in the lead they went down the stairs to the main bar area of the inn. An extremely frightened Mr. Butterbur blocked their exit. "What is going on? Where are you going with this ranger, Strider?" "Move it Butterbur, if you know what is good for you!" shouted Strider angrily from behind. Mr. Butterbur moved obediently. Frodo opened the door and stepped outside. It was now in the middle of the night and everything was dark. Behind him he heard Ron's voice say, " Lumos." A bright light illuminated the ground in front of him. And there he saw a horse with a small wagon attached to it. "This must be the wagon that the imposter was going to use after getting rid of me", he thought. "Get in, hurry!" commanded Strider. Frodo clambered in. He was quickly followed by everyone else, Strider lay Harry beside Hermione and Ron. Behind them they could hear the screams of the Black Riders coming towards them at full speed. Strider took the reins of the horse and urged it to go. "Are you all right, Mr. Frodo?" asked Sam. Frodo nodded. Their attention then to Harry, he was still asleep but was tossing and turning as if he was having a nightmare. "Harry, please wake up", begged Hermione. Ron shook him, but nothing worked. "Here let me try", said Merry. He stepped in front of Harry and pulled out from Pippin's pocket an old mushroom. He held it up in front of Harry's nose. With a gasp Harry woke up coughing. Everyone was delighted but their happiness didn't last long. The Black Riders were still on their tail and to make matters worse they all heard a crash coming from the inn. The troll had crashed through the wall and was looking down at them. Strider turned around and gasped. With a mighty roar the troll changed in front of their eyes into a giant eagle. With a fierce scream it took to the skies following the pursuit. "Oh shit!" cursed Malfoy again. "Everyone get down!" commanded Strider. The eagle swooped down low, so low in fact that Frodo could see its individual feathers. The eagle and the Black Riders screamed both at the same time. "Faster", yelled Ron. Strider urged the one horse on. The Black Riders were gaining on them. One of them reached out and began to call to Frodo. Ron pulled out his wand and yelled, " Incendio!" The Rider burst into flame and fell off his mount. Hermione held out her wand and aimed carefully at the nearest Rider. " Flipendo!" The Rider flew clear off his horse and landed with a dull thud on the muddy ground. Now there were only two left.
Malfoy held out his wand and pointed it at another Black Rider, but just when he was to utter the spell he felt an intense sharp pain at his shoulders. Beside him he heard Pippin yelp. Then he looked down to see that the ground was growing farther away from under him. The pain at his shoulders increased as he looked up. "Ah!" he screamed as he realized that the giant eagle had taken him. Beside him hung Pippin from the air. He was looking at the ground completely dumbfounded. He turned to Malfoy and they both screamed together, "HELP!!!!"
"Pippin!" yelled Merry as he saw his cousin being lifted away by the great eagle. "Malfoy!" yelled Harry who was by now more or less conscience. Ron and Hermione finished hitting the Black Riders and they both turned their noses skyward as they saw the great eagle fly off with their friends.
"Strider do something", exclaimed Frodo. He looked back up at the sky, but he could no longer see the great bird. "I can't" answered Strider. "What!" "There is nothing we can do, here let us go reach somewhere safe and then we'll plan how to rescue them."
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Malfoy hung limply in the claws of the giant monster of an eagle that had kidnapped him and Pippin. He had stopped trying to struggle free about an hour ago. There was just no sense in it seeing that they were so high up that the trees on the ground looked like little spots. Even if he were to struggle free he would fall down to his death, so there was no sense in it. He would just accomplish getting himself killed and saving the eagle the trouble. The sun was finally beginning to rise up over the horizon. Malfoy looked up at it and squinted. If he had paid attention in Boy Scouts he would figure out that they were heading east. They passed a range of snowy mountains. He looked over to his right and saw that Pippin, the lazy butt, had fallen asleep. "How on earth can he sleep in a time like this?" Malfoy asked himself. Over the mountains they went and then on the other side Malfoy saw a sea of green. It was just a huge expanse of trees. If he had looked at the maps in Bag End he would have known that the mountain range that they had just crossed was that of the Misty Mountains. And now he was looking at the region called Mirkwood Forest. "Where are you taking us?" asked Malfoy looking up at the eagle. To his surprise the eagle spoke. His voice was dark and raspy almost to a croaking sound. "We are heading for an old hideout of mine. From there I will figure out what I am to do with you." Malfoy gulped. "Well at least he is in no hurry to kill us," he thought.
Pippin yawned and looked around. "Hey," he thought ", we are lower to the ground!" In fact they were landing close to the border of Mirkwood Forest. Malfoy had fallen asleep beside him. Pippin yawned again. It seems that he had some what calmed down from that nap that he had just taken. Suddenly he looked down and realized that the ground was a lot closer than it had been in fact. oof!
"Ouch!" Pippin scrambled from the ground and stood up. The great eagle drew in its wings and then changed into a man. He grabbed Malfoy roughly from the ground and tied his hands behind his back, having done that he tied an even longer rope to the knot that he had made around Malfoy's wrists and came close to Pippin. Pippin didn't resist. It was clear that he had to do what the man said for two main reasons. A, he had no idea were he was and "b" because even if he knew where he was it was most unlikely that he could survive by himself. So the man tied his hands around his back like he had done with Malfoy. He tied the longer rope to Pippin's chords and then held the last end in his hand. "Clever", thought Pippin. Then the man tore part the sleeve of his garment and split it in two. He then blindfolded Malfoy and proceeded to do the same with Pippin. Pippin wrinkled his nose at the smell. Then the man gave a thorough search of their garments. He took away Malfoy's wand and Pippin's last supply of good mushrooms. This done he growled at them to follow and walk slowly. So Soren, the shape-shifter, led them into Mirkwood forest. He had been in the wood many times before and he knew of a small cave where he could keep his prisoners until he reported to Saruman. A plan was forming inside his sinister mind he only hoped that Saruman might think it clever as he did. He trudged on into the forest cracking fallen leaves as he went. Once he reached the cave he took off the blindfolds of his prisoners and gave them each something to eat and laid two canteens for them to drink water from. "What do you want with us? And hey give me back my wand!" Malfoy's face was furious. Soren only smiled and waved it in his face. He had left their hands bonded but had mad it so that they weren't behind their backs. He also had bonded their ankles together. "Stay here, you are in the middle of Mirkwood forest, even if you do escape you wouldn't be able to make your way out of the forest, besides there are fouler things in the depths of this forest than I." He cackled ridiculously and headed for the entrance. "Where do you think you are going?" demanded Malfoy. "I must report to my master", croaked Soren and with that he left. Malfoy and Pippin looked at one another and they both sighed. It was going to be a long day.
Ch. 12 Surprises and Shocks
Hermione woke up three hours later. She wasn't quite sure how she had managed to awaken but she had all the same. She sat up in bed her fingers delicately putting her few strands of hair behind her ears. She sat up and looked around. The one candle that they had left glowing in the dark had been blown out and everything was pitch dark.
Suddenly Hermione heard someone outside the door. Instinctively she went back down on her bed pretending to be asleep. The door opened and through half-closed eyes she saw Gandalf's tall figure standing at the doorway. He held a lantern in his right hand and with it he began to scan the room. Hermione closed her eyes, her heart beating fast, as the beam passed over her. She opened them again as she watched the beam rest on Frodo. Then she heard Gandalf take a few steps closer to where she was. Her heart beat even faster. "Why am I so nervous?" she thought to herself. Gandalf stopped in front of Harry's bed. Hermione watched s he took out from his robes a pouch. He untied it and stuck his hand inside. Then he made a motion with his fingers as if he was sprinkling something on top of Harry's head. Then Gandalf uncovered Harry and picked him up. He placed his limp body over his shoulder and walked off to the other side of the room to Frodo's bed. Hermione gasped as she watched Gandalf pull out a dagger from his robes and lift it gingerly over Frodo's sleep figure. "No!" she exclaimed jumping out of bed. Gandalf was startled and he glared at her. Frodo woke up immediately and he quickly got out of bed before Gandalf could strike at him. "Gandalf, what do you think you are doing?" asked Sam. He was up and out of bed standing by his master's side. Gandalf did not answer but instead he tried another lunge for Frodo with the dagger. He missed by a couple of centimeters. Growling with rage Gandalf set Harry down on the bed beside him and held up the dagger. Hermione whipped out her wand. She pointed it at Gandalf and boomed, " Rictusempra!" It his Gandalf full blast on the chest, which caused him to crash against the wall, causing a shelf to fall on top of him. The dagger had fallen out of his hands. "Sam, quickly pick up Harry and let's get out of here!" commanded Frodo. Sam went to the bed where Harry lay and he picked him up holding him in the same position that Gandalf had and went through the door. He then turned around to see if the others had followed. Hermione went after Sam, but stopped and turned. Frodo was bending over Gandalf's limp body. "Frodo! What are you doing?" she whispered through clenched teeth. "It's all right I'm just grabbing his dagger so he won't be able to attack us again," replied Frodo. Frodo reached for the dagger never taking his eyes off Gandalf's face. He was centimeters away when the Ring hung down from his shirt. For a split second Frodo looked down to see it and then that was when Frodo's wrist was no longer free. Gandalf had grabbed a hold of Frodo's wrist. "Ah!" yelled Frodo in surprise as well as in fright. Hermione screamed out his name behind him. Frodo struggled but the wizard's grip on him was too strong. Frodo tried to reach for the dagger with his left hand, but he found that he was being lifted up into the air! Gandalf had gotten a hold of his neck with his left hand and was slowly lifting him off the ground. He stopped to where Frodo's face was level with his. For now Gandalf was standing up tall. Hermione screamed again and held up her wand. In the blink of an eye Gandalf had unsheathed his own sword with his right hand, having let go of Frodo's wrist, and was holding it up inches away from Frodo's neck. "Don't you even think of striking at me again with that wand of yours, or I will slice the Ringbearer's head off his shoulders before you could breathe a word." Hermione lowered her wand. What else could she do? She knew for certain that Gandalf wasn't lying and that she was literally helpless. Frodo continued to kick but Gandalf was holding him far from his body. Hermione noticed that Frodo's kicks were growing weaker. She stole a quick glance at the door. She saw Ron, Malfoy, and the other hobbits looking in not daring to move. Gandalf had seen them and he was very well aware that they could do nothing. His lips curled into a smile. "Now then I will spare young Mr. Baggins' life only if you give me back Potter." Hermione glanced quickly at Sam, who was still holding a sleeping Harry. That powder must have been enchanted or something and had caused Harry to fall into a deep sleep. "Don't do it Sam! Don't do it!" choked Frodo from the man's grip. Hermione looked over from Harry to Frodo. What was to be done? If Sam were to do as the man said then they would loose Harry. But if he didn't. Hermione racked her brains to try to think of a possible solution. But nothing came to her mind that could help. "I wish the real Gandalf were here," she thought.
Suddenly to her right there came a sound of shattering glass. Everyone looked over to see what it was. A hooded man stood up quickly and threw a dagger at Gandalf's left hand. It struck him at the wrist. Gandalf howled with pain as he dropped Frodo and his sword. Frodo crumpled to the ground gasping for breath. Gandalf growled as he took out the dagger. At that moment he grabbed his sword and was ready to stab at Frodo, but then Frodo disappeared. Gandalf stood in shock for a split second before he was back to conscience and blocked a blow that the hooded man had delivered to him with his own sword. Hermione just stared in complete shock. She couldn't move. She watched as the two men, the hooded man now with his hood off, fought with their swords viciously. "We shouldn't linger here", said Frodo's voice at her ear. She gave a yelp and turned around to see no one there. "It's all right, Hermione. It's me I put on the Ring that's all. Come on let's get out of here!" Hermione nodded at the air and she felt a cold hand hold her own and lead her off toward the exit. Ron and Merry were busy trying to wake Harry up. Frodo became visible again and he told them all to get out. Suddenly Harry began to scream from the floor. "No, no leave her alone. Hurry run they're coming!" And with that everyone could here the all too familiar screams of the Black Riders. "Oh shit!" cursed Malfoy. "Hurry everyone downstairs!" screamed Frodo. Behind them they heard a roar. Looking back in the room Hermione saw the man that had saved them standing in front of a large cave troll. Gandalf had disappeared. The troll held a mighty club in his hand and was using it to try to hit the man. Hermione recognized the man as being the one that had been watching them. The man grabbed a firebrand from the fireplace and threw it into the monster's eyes. The troll roared in pain and he swiped blindly for the man with his club. The man dodged and headed for the door. Hermione quickly got out of the way as he closed the door behind him. He turned his sweaty face toward her and said, " Hurry everyone outside before they arrive!" Everyone did as they were told. The man took Harry's body from Sam and placed him on his shoulders. Frodo in the lead they went down the stairs to the main bar area of the inn. An extremely frightened Mr. Butterbur blocked their exit. "What is going on? Where are you going with this ranger, Strider?" "Move it Butterbur, if you know what is good for you!" shouted Strider angrily from behind. Mr. Butterbur moved obediently. Frodo opened the door and stepped outside. It was now in the middle of the night and everything was dark. Behind him he heard Ron's voice say, " Lumos." A bright light illuminated the ground in front of him. And there he saw a horse with a small wagon attached to it. "This must be the wagon that the imposter was going to use after getting rid of me", he thought. "Get in, hurry!" commanded Strider. Frodo clambered in. He was quickly followed by everyone else, Strider lay Harry beside Hermione and Ron. Behind them they could hear the screams of the Black Riders coming towards them at full speed. Strider took the reins of the horse and urged it to go. "Are you all right, Mr. Frodo?" asked Sam. Frodo nodded. Their attention then to Harry, he was still asleep but was tossing and turning as if he was having a nightmare. "Harry, please wake up", begged Hermione. Ron shook him, but nothing worked. "Here let me try", said Merry. He stepped in front of Harry and pulled out from Pippin's pocket an old mushroom. He held it up in front of Harry's nose. With a gasp Harry woke up coughing. Everyone was delighted but their happiness didn't last long. The Black Riders were still on their tail and to make matters worse they all heard a crash coming from the inn. The troll had crashed through the wall and was looking down at them. Strider turned around and gasped. With a mighty roar the troll changed in front of their eyes into a giant eagle. With a fierce scream it took to the skies following the pursuit. "Oh shit!" cursed Malfoy again. "Everyone get down!" commanded Strider. The eagle swooped down low, so low in fact that Frodo could see its individual feathers. The eagle and the Black Riders screamed both at the same time. "Faster", yelled Ron. Strider urged the one horse on. The Black Riders were gaining on them. One of them reached out and began to call to Frodo. Ron pulled out his wand and yelled, " Incendio!" The Rider burst into flame and fell off his mount. Hermione held out her wand and aimed carefully at the nearest Rider. " Flipendo!" The Rider flew clear off his horse and landed with a dull thud on the muddy ground. Now there were only two left.
Malfoy held out his wand and pointed it at another Black Rider, but just when he was to utter the spell he felt an intense sharp pain at his shoulders. Beside him he heard Pippin yelp. Then he looked down to see that the ground was growing farther away from under him. The pain at his shoulders increased as he looked up. "Ah!" he screamed as he realized that the giant eagle had taken him. Beside him hung Pippin from the air. He was looking at the ground completely dumbfounded. He turned to Malfoy and they both screamed together, "HELP!!!!"
"Pippin!" yelled Merry as he saw his cousin being lifted away by the great eagle. "Malfoy!" yelled Harry who was by now more or less conscience. Ron and Hermione finished hitting the Black Riders and they both turned their noses skyward as they saw the great eagle fly off with their friends.
"Strider do something", exclaimed Frodo. He looked back up at the sky, but he could no longer see the great bird. "I can't" answered Strider. "What!" "There is nothing we can do, here let us go reach somewhere safe and then we'll plan how to rescue them."
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Malfoy hung limply in the claws of the giant monster of an eagle that had kidnapped him and Pippin. He had stopped trying to struggle free about an hour ago. There was just no sense in it seeing that they were so high up that the trees on the ground looked like little spots. Even if he were to struggle free he would fall down to his death, so there was no sense in it. He would just accomplish getting himself killed and saving the eagle the trouble. The sun was finally beginning to rise up over the horizon. Malfoy looked up at it and squinted. If he had paid attention in Boy Scouts he would figure out that they were heading east. They passed a range of snowy mountains. He looked over to his right and saw that Pippin, the lazy butt, had fallen asleep. "How on earth can he sleep in a time like this?" Malfoy asked himself. Over the mountains they went and then on the other side Malfoy saw a sea of green. It was just a huge expanse of trees. If he had looked at the maps in Bag End he would have known that the mountain range that they had just crossed was that of the Misty Mountains. And now he was looking at the region called Mirkwood Forest. "Where are you taking us?" asked Malfoy looking up at the eagle. To his surprise the eagle spoke. His voice was dark and raspy almost to a croaking sound. "We are heading for an old hideout of mine. From there I will figure out what I am to do with you." Malfoy gulped. "Well at least he is in no hurry to kill us," he thought.
Pippin yawned and looked around. "Hey," he thought ", we are lower to the ground!" In fact they were landing close to the border of Mirkwood Forest. Malfoy had fallen asleep beside him. Pippin yawned again. It seems that he had some what calmed down from that nap that he had just taken. Suddenly he looked down and realized that the ground was a lot closer than it had been in fact. oof!
"Ouch!" Pippin scrambled from the ground and stood up. The great eagle drew in its wings and then changed into a man. He grabbed Malfoy roughly from the ground and tied his hands behind his back, having done that he tied an even longer rope to the knot that he had made around Malfoy's wrists and came close to Pippin. Pippin didn't resist. It was clear that he had to do what the man said for two main reasons. A, he had no idea were he was and "b" because even if he knew where he was it was most unlikely that he could survive by himself. So the man tied his hands around his back like he had done with Malfoy. He tied the longer rope to Pippin's chords and then held the last end in his hand. "Clever", thought Pippin. Then the man tore part the sleeve of his garment and split it in two. He then blindfolded Malfoy and proceeded to do the same with Pippin. Pippin wrinkled his nose at the smell. Then the man gave a thorough search of their garments. He took away Malfoy's wand and Pippin's last supply of good mushrooms. This done he growled at them to follow and walk slowly. So Soren, the shape-shifter, led them into Mirkwood forest. He had been in the wood many times before and he knew of a small cave where he could keep his prisoners until he reported to Saruman. A plan was forming inside his sinister mind he only hoped that Saruman might think it clever as he did. He trudged on into the forest cracking fallen leaves as he went. Once he reached the cave he took off the blindfolds of his prisoners and gave them each something to eat and laid two canteens for them to drink water from. "What do you want with us? And hey give me back my wand!" Malfoy's face was furious. Soren only smiled and waved it in his face. He had left their hands bonded but had mad it so that they weren't behind their backs. He also had bonded their ankles together. "Stay here, you are in the middle of Mirkwood forest, even if you do escape you wouldn't be able to make your way out of the forest, besides there are fouler things in the depths of this forest than I." He cackled ridiculously and headed for the entrance. "Where do you think you are going?" demanded Malfoy. "I must report to my master", croaked Soren and with that he left. Malfoy and Pippin looked at one another and they both sighed. It was going to be a long day.