The Will of the Ring

Part Two

Chapter Thirteen

by Makura Koneko

Ami was always a light sleeper, and this was proven by the fact that no matter how hard she tried, Ami

could not sleep for the soreness throughout her entire body and the annoyingly soft sounds of the woods

around her. She was lucky she had the ability to doze and ride at the same time, else she would surely fall

from her saddle tomorrow...

As it was, it turned out that, this time, it was a good thing that she was awake on this starlit night, for else no

one would have noticed a silver-gold haired figure slip away, nor the raven-haired one follow. Ami sat up,

watching Raye follow Serena into the woods. Curiosity piqued, Ami moved to get up to follow to ask what

was wrong...

She gasped, biting her tongue to keep herself from calling out, when a hand on her elbow stopped her. Ami

whirled and came face to face with Frodo beside her.

"O-oh...oh my goodness," Ami stuttered as she tried to slow her heartbeat.

"Sorry," The hobbit apologized. "But you shouldn't go out there." He glanced to where Raye and Serena had

vanished into the surrounding woods. "I'll wake Boromir and Legolas. They'll find them and bring them

back." True to his word, in few moments Frodo had awakened the aforementioned elf and human, and

Legolas and Boromir were slipping silently off after the girls. Ami, convinced her friends would be alright,

moved to slip back into her 'sleeping bag' when she caught sight of Frodo, sitting up, leaning against a tree,

simply staring up at the stars a little ways away. Something glittered in his hands, and it took only a moment

for Ami to realize it was the One Ring.

A sudden sense of...kinship towards the hobbit washed over the Ice Senshi. He, like herself and her fellow

Senshi, had been forced to bear so much, so suddenly, thrust into an ongoing, dangerous adventure that he'd

never asked for... True, he was old enough to be Ami's grandfather, but from what she'd heard, that didn't

really count for much among hobbits, since they were so long lived and lived like children; happy, simple,

innocent of the evils in the world around them. Yet Frodo Baggins had been denied that simply happy life

the rest of his kind enjoyed, simply because a loop of evil infested Moongold happened to be in just the

right spot for his uncle's hand to land on it...

"Destiny is a cruel thing." Ami said as she silently crawled closer to the short man, sitting down beside him.

Frodo blinked in surprise, starting as he looked at her.

"You startled me," he said. Ami flushed.

"Sorry," she said. "I just s-saw you sitting here, and I...I thought..." she looked away."You remind me a lot

of myself, Mr. Baggins."

"How so?" Frodo's curiosity was slight, but her comment raised it. Curiosity about the blue haired warrior of

a mouse beside him, not just her question.

"You...you never asked for all of this, did you?" She whispered. Frodo looked down at the Ring in his hand.

It was so heavy, now...yet in some ways it was lighter...

"No, I didn't," he said. "But at the same time, if presented with all the facts at the beginning, I probably

would have gone anyway, simply because I would have known the alternative."

"Yes...it was often the same with me, when I first found out I was this reincarnated alien princess..." Ami

said the words with just a touch of irony. "I would often get mad...'why me?' You know, I got offered a

position in one of the most prestigious medical schools in the world, and I turned it down at the last minute

because of my duty to my role as Sailor Mercury...but then, when I saved my friends that one time, I

realized that...that I was where I was supposed to be, where I belonged -at least then- with my friends,

fighting evil.

"My mother and I always agreed that as wonderful as it was, being able to help people, being a doctor, it

would be even more marvelous if we could keep those same people from getting hurt in the first place... I

realized that, by protecting the Earth, I was doing just that. Making sure people didn't get hurt in the first

place. After that, I began to look upon my role as Mercury with more...'zest,' I suppose. Both an honor and a

burden." She smiled gently. "And then there's Serena. I would have stayed being Sailor Mercury just for her

if nothing else. She...she was my first real friend..."

She trailed off, part of her appalled at how much she had revealed, but an even larger part not surprised at

all. Silence reigned for a moment...

"I wish I could look at my duty the same way you have come to be able to look upon yours." Frodo said

after a moment, fingering the Ring again. Ami reached over and put her hand over his, over the Ring. He

looked up at her, and she met his gaze. She smiled.

"You can." She said. "Think, Frodo, think of what would have happened if that Ring had stayed with

Gollum. The Ringwraiths would have found him, or one of the goblins. If it had stayed with that creature,

we know the Ring would be in the hands of Sauron by now. Or what if your Uncle had kept it? As

wonderful as I'm sure he is, even he was showing signs of falling under the power of the Ring, according to

Gandalf."

"Who says I wouldn't have done the same?"

"You probably would have, in time," Ami said, softly. She glanced down at their hands, then up to him

again. Blue eyes met blue eyes, and she smiled again. "But we won't let you." She leaned over and shyly

kissed him on the cheek.

"I promise."

Raye looked up at the tree, where, high in the top most branches, Serena sat, basking in the moonlight. The

Moon Princess didn't know that one of her guardians was watching her, just as the Senshi of Mars wished it.

As she watched her princess, Raye's eyes spoke volumes of sadness and regret.

Over the years, they had all matured greatly, and it was only lately that Raye had begun to wish she'd gone

easier on the girl when they'd been younger. Five years ago they had begun to fight evil, and for the first

three of those years she had been all but heartless towards her princess, thinking she was helping her by

making her tougher...when really she was almost killing the very thing that made her princess so bright and

pure. Things had gotten better between them once Raye had forced herself to realize that fact and had made

steps to correct her own wrongs, but regret was still present... Raye had vowed to never hurt her best friend

ever again...

It seemed she was going to be forced to break that promise...

She was not blind to the love she saw brewing between her Lunarian leader and the elven prince. Nor was

she blind to the blossoming affection between the bright mercurian and the Ringbearer.

Raye had always been the tough one. Even though Lita was the brawns, she was too sweet and caring to

really be as rough as she acted in battle. Raye was the true hard-hearted one. In battle and out of battle. She

was the one whom had had self-titled herself the iron that reinforced them all, and no one had ever argued.

But then why did she feel like the group was falling apart, separated by indecision? If she was the 'iron' then

was that separation her fault? Was she failing in her duty to snap everyone awake and remind them of their

ultimate duty?

"You put too much on your own shoulders," A voice said softly. Raye whirled, furious at both herself for

letting someone sneak up on her and whoever dared sneak up one her for not making enough noise.

"Whose there?" She hissed.

"Calm yourself, dragonfly, 'tis only me," Boromir stepped out of the shadows, hands raised, a small smile on

his face. Raye ignored the odd twinge at the nickname.

"What are you doing here?" Raye asked stiffly. She didn't like being caught alone...

"Legolas and I came out to look for you and the butterfly." Boromir nodded to where Legolas, in the

shadows of the night, was heading for the tree Serena was perched in. "He will look out for her. Come,

return to the camp with me. You'll need your sleep for the hard ride ahead of us tomorrow." He urged his

point with a gentle touch on her upper arm. Raye stiffened, and he retreated his hand. "I mean you no harm,"

he said, backing away, respecting her personal boundaries.

"I know," Raye said softly. "I just..." She shrugged. "Guys aren't my forte." Why the hell had she said

that??? She gave him a charming half-smile over her shoulder as she turned, walked past him, heading for

the camp sight. "Bad experiences," she said with a shrug. Boromir followed.

"What sort, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Oh, the usual," Raye shrugged nonchalantly...why was her heart twisting so? "Betrayal, false promises,

abandonment..." Why was she telling him these things so easily?

"Do the men in your time truly discard treasure so casually?" He stopped her with a gentle grip on her

elbow. Raye laughed.

"Treasure?" She echoed, bitter amusement in her eyes. "Tell that to my father, Alex, Peter, Kanutai...they

certainly found other 'treasures' easily enough."

"Some men are blind, bumbling fools and I should know because I am one," he said bluntly. Upon the

surprised, wry look Raye gave him, he told her of his falter with the Ring.

"That's excusable." She said. "The Ring was designed to do that. You were under its influence. None of the

men I've dealt with were under the spell of the people they left me for. Funny how all the worthless men I

attract aren't worth the air they breathe."

"Do you consider me not worth the air I breathe?" Boromir asked after a moment of silence. Raye looked at

him in surprise, but her answer, a solid 'no' radiated out of her eyes before she even said the word. Boromir

grinned. "Then not all men you attract are completely worthless, now are they?"

Leaving her with those words that wouldn't have been so cryptic if Raye hadn't been so afraid of letting

herself understand them, Boromir turned with a final suggestion of bed and sleep, and left.

Serena sat, basking in the moonlight, for once just listening and appreciating the beauty around her. Darien

had taught her that, to just sit and listen. She had never really appreciated why…she had always thought it

was just him trying to change her, not satisfied with who she was, wanting to make her more like him, more

sophisticated. Now she understood what he had really been trying to do; she'd always shared everything she

liked with him so freely, and he had only been trying to do the same for her, share something he liked.

Serena regretted that she had figured this out too late.

She also regretted that it had taken her this long, as she sat in the moonlight, on a branch high up in a tall

tree Serena had no idea about the name of, to understand something Darien had once told her over a year

ago. Something he had told her when trying to explain to her why he liked to just sit and listen to the world

around him...

"I am the Prince of Earth," he'd told her. "Just as you are the Princess of the Moon. You are tied to your

Moon, just as I am tied to Earth."

"What does that have to do with something as boring as just sitting here?" Serena had sighed impatiently.

Darien had caught a cherry blossom that fell from the tree and placed it in her hair.

"Serena, when we die, there is always something left behind that will remind those that once loved us who

and what we were. For me, when I die, whenever that is, every little thing about the earth, the way the water

bubbles, the shape of every flower, part of me will be in it, and through the Earth, I will always be with

you."

"Darien…?" Serena had breathed softly, frightfully. "Darien, what are you saying?"

"I'm saying, love, that someday I will be gone. I am not immortal like you, and you know I would give my

life in a heartbeat to save yours."

"But I can always bring you back!" Serena had protested. Darien had smiled softly, touching her cheek.

"Not forever, you can't," He told her. "There will be a time when destiny will require you make a choice,

Serena. I'm telling you all this because when you look at the world around you and see me in it, I don't want

you to be sad. When I am gone and you think of me, I don't want to think of what you have lost, but of the

promise I'm going to ask you to make."

"P-promise? When you're gone?" Serena was near tears with panic. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying, that I'm asking you to promise me that you will be happy, even if it isn't with me." He brushed

away a tear from under her eye. "Will you promise me this?  Will you promise me that when fate brings you

the decision, you will make the one that will make you happiest?  Even that decision doesn't include me?"

"It will always include you!" Serena pledged. "Always! Forever"

"Don't, Serena!" Darien took her by the shoulders and forced her to look at him. "Destiny is only for as

long as 'forever' means something. It is only as long as we are willing to sacrifice other things for that

forever. You say you don't believe in extra sacrifices. Then don't make any! Not if you can help it. Serena, if

someone else chooses to make a sacrifice, that is their choice. If you make it so that they cannot make the

sacrifices they wish to make to save what they love, you are taking away who they are and what they hold

dear, and depriving yourself of who you are, by not being true to your heart. So if you truly love me, Serena,

and I know that some small part of you always will, then promise me that when the time comes, you will

forget me and follow your heart, regardless of the sacrifices that others are willing and wanting to make.

Promise me!"

Sobbing, Serena had promised, and they'd shared three more precious hours together in that park before,

when walking home hand in hand, a monster had come out of nowhere and had destroyed everything…

everything…

That had been the last time Serena had ever actually talked to Darien.

For the thousandth time since leaving Lothlorien, Serena remembered Galadriel's words…

"You will do," The Lady of the Wood had said softly. "You fulfill your promises. You will do just fine. Do not

let us down, Lady of the Moon, for the fate of all rests on your keeping your promises. All of them."

Had she meant Serena's keeping her promise to Darien? How had she known about it? Had she also been

referring to the promise Serena had made to her father, Sauron? And how did the 'fate of all' rest on

Serena's being happy, since that was essentially what she had promised her first love she would strive to be?

Serena was once again glad she had let the essence of what made herself so bubbly and carefree go to rest

during the more perilous parts of this quest; child-Serena would have been reduced to tears by the mere

thought of her first beloved.

Celenithil, though, the warrior Silver Moon, her heart could handle it, though pain was still present…

A slender, pale hand reached up to clasp the silver-gold of the Moongold locket at her throat...she never

took it off... Suddenly a thought came to Serena... If she was born to Sauron and Selenity around the same

time as the War of the Rings, and she was ten thousand years old when the Moon Kingdom fell, and if the

War of the Rings took place three thousand years ago, then... It only took Serena a moment to figure out

that....

A bittersweet ache wrapped around her heart as she realized that from the moment Serena was in, at that

very moment, with the camp below and behind her, and the moon shining above her, in about seven

thousand years -akin to a mere seven years, for an immortal Lunarian Royal- she would get fed up with her

mother's secrets, sneak down to earth and meet Endymion...the descendant of a brother of Isildur, the

brother that, while Isildur had passed up an opportunity to destroy the ring, had discovered a locket of

unnaturally pure gold among the charred remains of Sauron's armor.

Serena frowned...

How did she know all this? All Endymion had ever told her was that an ancestor of his, an ancestor that had

been present at the War of the Rings, and found the locket among the ruins...he'd never said anything about

that ancestor being the brother of Isildur... And what of Aragorn being Isildur's heir? Did this mean that

somehow, Aragorn's line would end and the line of his ancestor's brother would take over?

Serena shook her head.

It was all too much...

"Your thoughts are troubled, this evening," A soft voice made Serena simultaneously forget her previous

thoughts as she squeaked, jumped with startlement, and nearly fall off the branch she was sitting on. She

twisted her face upwards, her face fixed into a scowling pout.

"Legolas!" She whined. "Don't do  that!"

"Sorry," Legolas dropped down from the branch above her to crouch just before her. Her eyes widened.

"How do you do that?" She breathed.

"Do what?" Legolas stood on the branch that was barely wider than his feet, where he was, and walked like

a cat to where it was wider. He sat before her, one leg bent with the foot planted firmly on the wooden

surface he was sitting on, his other leg dangling freely below him.

"Well…just…that!" Serena said in exasperation. "Just jump down like that and just sit like that,

and…and…geez, do you have any idea what I would give to be that coordinated and balanced and

freakin' graceful?"

"To start, you'd need approximately one hundred years of practice," he teased. Serena pouted, and Legolas

laughed softly. "You just need practice and the right sort of teaching," he told her.

"And I suppose you'd be willing to teach me that, too?" Serena asked impishly. "Along with Elvish and

sword lessons and horseback riding?"

"Yes, I will teach you all that," Legolas was grinning as he stood up. "As well as how to use this, though I

believe your Warrior of Mars will wish to have some say in the tutoring of your usage of this." And he

pulled out of the branches and greenery above him something slender and white and something round and

long.

"A…a bow and arrows?" Serena blinked rapidly.

"I had it made for you while we were in Lothlorien." Legolas's voice as soft as she looked, wide eyed, at the

three-foot long, slender, silver bow and white quiver full of silver-feather fletched arrows that he handed

her. "By the time we reach Mirkwood -and I am not alone in this- I will that you shall be well versed in

many manners of weaponry." Legolas told her, sitting back down in the same position as before. "I am to

teach you Elvish, Mars and I together will teach you the use of your bow. Boromir will teach you the

discreet art of dagger-play, and Aragorn and he will both verse you in manners of the sword, most likely

with input from Haruka. Ami has requested I ask you if you will tutor her in learning to use her throwing

rings."

"Me?" Serena blanched. "Tutor Ami-chan in something?" She gave a low laugh. "That's new! Geez, you

might as well stop here and build a school house, with all these lessons I'll be learning." Serena grumbled.

Then she brightened. "But hey, Elvish is ten times better than English, and I'd take you over Miss Haruna

any day!" A quick explanation over 'Miss Haruna' and the horrors of her English class, and Legolas was

laughing softly right along with Serena.

"We've been traveling for two days now, and we still have about four days ahead of us," Legolas said. "And

with all your lessons along the way, you are going to want to get all the sleep you can get. Come back to

camp?"

"Okies," Serena said cheerfully before yawning. "I guess I lost track of time." She looked at him and

grinned impishly. "Hey, Legolas?" She asked. He turned his head and looked at her.

"Yes?" He answered. Serena giggled slightly.

"Think they've...forgotten?" She asked, twiddling her fingers in the hem of one of her pant legs. Legolas

suppressed a groan.

"I very much doubt it," He said, knowing she was referring to their escapade in the river. "I cannot even

look at you without your sandy-haired guardian glaring at me as if I were an Orc that planned on eating you.

''Tis the same with Boromir and Gimlet. Your fire-friend, she at least understands in part. She only looks...

smug, I suppose is the word."

Serena laughed. "Raye's looking forward to when she can chew us both out," she said with a grin. "Or at

least watch Haruka go Uranus and try to shish kabob you. Not before she gets her chance at seeing how

you'd look toasted, though, of course." Her manner was most impishly innocent as Legolas muttered

something under his breath that Serena couldn't hear, but sent he giggling anyway.

"As lovely as your laughter is, my lady Serenity, I must remind you of our previous goal; to get back to the

camp so you can get some sleep and not fall asleep over your steed again." Legolas raised an eyebrow at

her. Serena groaned, sighed, nodded, then looked down and winced. "Great…I get all scraped coming up

here, then I forgot about how to get down."

"Just jump, and I will catch you," Legolas promised. Before Serena could reply, he swung himself down of

the branch, landing smoothly and flawlessly on the ground, fifteen feet below. Serena swallowed.

C'mon, girl, you've jumped down from skyscrapers! Part of her chided herself.

Yeah, but you were transformed into a superhero, those times! Another part snapped back.

But this time you have Legolas's word that he'll catch you, yet another part whispered softly, yet even

though it was only a whisper, Serena heard it above the other two. Isn't that far more trustworthy than

any superhero power boost?

Taking a deep breath, Serena swung her legs over the branch so that she was sitting with both legs on one

side. She braced her hands against the branch, closed her eyes, leaned forward, raising her arms, and let

herself fall…

Serena fell, and as she did so she twisted her body, her eyes shut tight against any distractions as she felt the

ground nearing. With a final tuck and twist, she got her feet under her, and she landed smoothly, bending

her knees to absorb the impact just as Legolas and Boromir had showed her countless times all morning

long. But this was the first time, however, that they hadn't been there to catch her…this was the first time

she'd done it on her own…

Serena froze, holding her breath…she peeked open one eye at the sound of clapping and cheering, and

found the Companionship all around her, cheering for her success. She looked up at the twenty foot high

branch she'd jumped down off of in awe. She'd done it! She'd actually done it! Gimli came forward and

grabbed her around the middle and heaved her up, twirling her around with a boisterous joy that only a

dwarf could display.

"Do it three more times just like that, then we'll be making progress." Boromir told her with a wolfish grin.

Serena groaned, but both of them were grinning nonetheless. She spotted Legolas standing a bit aside, his

eyes shining with pride. She winked to him and ran for the tree again.

Three flawless back flipping leaps later, a fourth round of applause and hugs were given, followed promptly

by Legolas and Raye stepping forward, bows and arrows in hand. Serena suppressed a groan as her aching

muscles complained loudly.

"Come on," Aragorn summoned to everyone but the pupil and two teachers. "We've been here all morning

and have yet deconstruct our camp and hide our trail." He looked to Serena. "Listen and learn well," He told

her. "We have no way of knowing what trials we may face yet on this trip-" He didn't notice the light that

entered Raye's eyes. "-and we still have two days till we reach Mirkwood, and not even a day before we get

to the Fields." He named the huge expanse of flat land that lay between Lorien and Mirkwood, interrupted

only by a small town that they planned to avoid.

Grumbling from the Senshi, sighs from the Fellowship, they dispersed to do the Ranger's bidding to begin

to erase all evidence that they had been there.

"We've spent the past two days drilling you in keeping this thing in tip top shape," Raye said, handing

Serena her bow and quiver. Serena slipped the quiver strap over her shoulders, and settled the quiver

diagonally across her back, comfortably between her shoulder blades.

"Goodness knows it took you long enough to just remember how to coil the string so it wouldn't tangle,"

Raye added under her breath as she looked down and pried a piece of dried dirt from her blouse. Serena

glared at her, sticking out her tongue and then pulling the appendage back into her mouth and fixing her face

in an innocent expression the moment Raye looked back up.

"Now that you know the care of your weapon," Legolas said, stepping forward and hiding his mirth from an

oblivious Raye. "You will learn to use it." Serena's beaming grin was infectious, and all three of them wore

smiles throughout the rest of the lesson, which consisted mostly of proper hand placement and aim.

Hand placement was the more difficult of the two, for Serena had a forgetful nature and often forgot which

hand was supposed to hold the bow and which to draw the string and arrow -though at the moment she only

drew the string; arrows were later. But once she got it down at all, she got it down pat, and once she had

committed the placements and movements to memory, they stayed in her memory. Still, Legolas and Raye

drilled her endlessly until she was sure she could do the movements flawlessly in her sleep. By then,

everyone was ready to leave, yet no one made a move to suggest the action.

Aiming was something Serena had almost absolutely no problem with; her Tiara had required perfect aim.

And although the bow required a bit more 'finger' coordination, not just her arms and wrists and eyes, it

was still the same general idea, and thus she mastered it much more quickly than hand placements.

"Now do I get to actually use an arrow?" Serena pleaded.

"Tomorrow," Legolas promised, and he nodded pointedly to something behind Serena. Serena turned to see

Boromir walking towards her, a grin on his face. Serena sighed; bow lessons were over. She slipped off her

quiver -Legolas claimed she was to wear it during practice, even if she wasn't using the arrows, to get used

to its presence- and handed it to Raye along with her bow.

"Behave, meatball brains!" Raye laughed, walking off.

"I'll see you later," Legolas said, touching her on the shoulder. Serena took the initiative and wrapped her

arms around him in a long, full fledged Serena-Hug. Laughter was heard from behind her, and a voice

saying, "You'd best let him go, butterfly, else our elf friend become permanently blue!"

Looking sheepish, Serena jumped back, apologizing. Legolas only laughed and said he was fine. With a

final farewell and a glance to Boromir and Gimli, he headed back towards the campsite.

"I am here only to watch," Gimli told her when she turned to face her 'teachers.' "And to see that our dear

man doesn't get overzealous in his teachings." With that, he settled himself on rock that protruded from the

ground in the middle of the small meadow they were in.

"Catch," Boromir told her, and whipped a dagger out from within his tunic and sent it flipping towards her.

Serena hesitated for only a moment, then caught it deftly by the hilt.

"That bit of hesitation could have gotten you killed," Boromir told her. "And a cut hand by way of grabbing

the blade the wrong way is better than dead." He walked forward to inspect how she had caught the knife,

and nodded.

"You remembered the catch grip from yesterday, though, good," He ruffled her hair and stepped back.

"Now let's see if you remember the throw I taught you the day before." He made a beckoning motion with

his hand, and obeying the silent command, Serena launched the dagger at him. Boromir's eyes widened and

he jerked his body to the side just in time to let the dagger flash past him and imbed it self in a tree near

Gimli. The dwarf got up and went over to it, and gave a low whistle.

"'Tis in clear up to the hilt!" The dwarf lord exclaimed, and tugged it with a grunt from the trunk.

"Must have been soft wood," Serena mumbled, taking the dagger.

"Nevertheless, it was a good throw." Boromir grinned.

"It's not all that different from my Tiara discuss," Serena said sheepishly, but her eyes were bright

nonetheless.

"'Tis different enough," Boromir told her. He pointed to a tree to her right. "Aim for that tree. Let's see if

you can do it from here." Serena turned to face the tree- "No, no, stay where you are." Boromir came to her

and turned her so that her body was facing the first tree she had pierced. "Let's see how good your aim is

from the side. Keep your body facing the first tree."

Screwing up her face in a look of concentration, and doing her best to obey Boromir's words, she flung her

arm out to the side and when she believed the moment to be right, released the dagger.

The dagger went flying…

And completely missed it's mark. A shriek was heard, then a cry of utter outrage…

"Meatball Head!" Raye came charging out of the treeline, Serena's dagger in hand, eyes flashing. Serena

yelped and ducked behind Boromir.

While Gimli was roaring with mirthful laughter, Boromir sighed; it was going to be a long morning.

"Um...um...ok, ok, I know this one, I know it!" Serena insisted, her eyes shut tight as she tapped her temple.

Legolas opened his mouth-

"Don't tell me!" Serena's eyes snapped open and she waved a hand in his face. "Don't tell me, don't tell me,

you're supposed to be teaching me Elvish not handing me the answers on a silver platter! I know it, I

know it!" Eyes shut tight again as she wiggled in her saddle, one hand gripping the reins the other pinching

the bridge of her nose, the tip of her tongue peeking out between the corner of her lips ever so slightly.

"Um...um..." she wiggled. "Er...ok, ok... 'I' is 'amin,' I know that... 'like' is...is...er...'velei...' Now what would

'cake' be?'"

Again, Legolas opened his mouth-

And again, Serena screeched, "Don't tell me! I'll figure it out on my own! 'Cake' is one of my favorite

words...you...you think it'd be....be-be...*instinct* or something to know your own favorite word in another

language, but nooooooooo!!!"

Again, she haunched over in her saddle, eyes shut tight as she tapped her temple and wriggled with

frustration.

Up ahead, subdued giggles and muted laughter was heard at the forlorn expression on the elven prince's

face.

And we thought this morning was going to be long... He muttered mentally. We jinxed it...this afternoon –or

at least my afternoon- is going to be a whole lot longer...

He glanced at Serena, and sighed again

Later that same day, when twilight was upon them all, Aragorn called for a halt when it was seen that the

Moon Princess was having trouble keeping from nodding off. Everyone else hid their extensive relief as

they dismounted and began to set up camp in a small turnout a good ways away from the road.

"Owie…" Serena rubbed her behind as she dismounted off of Ithilendel -her horse. Ithilendel gave her

mistress an imploring look, as if inquiring if her gait was not to her mistress's liking. Serena patted the mare

on the neck. "Oh, it's not you girl," She told the horse. "I'm just not used to riding." Ithilendel nuzzled

Serena, and was rewarded with part of an apple Serena had saved for her from that morning's breakfast.

"You spoil her," Gandalf said, smiling as he came up and patted Ithilendel. Serena grinned and hugged the

horse around the neck.

"She's a sweet horse." She said. Ithilendel gave a murmur of puffed breath and nipped Serena's sleeve in an

affectionate way.

"Have you decided on a name for her?" Legolas asked. Serena could see, past him, that everyone else was

setting up camp for the night -it was already nearing midnight.

"Yup!" Serena said proudly. "It's Ithilendel."

"Moon melody," Gandalf said, translating the elven words. "An appropriate choice." He looked to Legolas.

"It seems you make an excellent teacher, Legolas."

"Nay, 'tis simply that my pupil is a quick learner." Legolas protested. Despite that afternoon's dilemma with

the name of a certain pastry (it turned out the word 'cake' didn't exist in the Elvish language, much to

Serena's horror.) Serena blushed, patted her horse, and muttered something about going to help the others,

face still flushed rosy red, and left.

"Poor, poor girl…" Gandalf murmured. Legolas looked at him in curious surprise at the comment. Gandalf

sighed and shook his head, absently stroking Ithilendel's neck. "She loves so much and so easily," The

wizard said. "She loves her world, as much as she is coming to love this one. She loves her guardians as

much as she has come to love you and the others. Part of her wishes for nothing more than to stay here, and

yet another will always follow where they go, to protect them, for she loves them so." Gandalf nodded to

where the Senshi -even Haruka- were laughing at something Gimli had said.

"I wonder if they know the troubles they have brought to their princess's heart…" Legolas said

thoughtfully, looking at the group of five as well.

"I think they knew that they had no choice." Gandalf said with a sigh. "For all they knew, she could have

landed in the middle of Mount Doom. They had to come and see if she was all right; it is their duty and their

life, to protect and love her. Yet I think some part of them all was afraid of exactly what has already

happened, that part of Serenity's heart would become attached to this place. Whether for the selfish reason

of wanting to keep Serenity to themselves, or if because they wished to spare her the heartache that taking

her away from this place would cause by finding and taking her back as soon as possible, I do not know. But

even if it is for the selfish reason, can we fault them? She is a prize above all others, and she knows it not."

All the while, Serena's laughter rang out in the forest.

"Block, thrust, duck! Duck, I said, Serena, not bend over!" Aragorn frowned. Serena pouted as she stood up

right.

"Same thing!" She argued. "It got me out of the way of your sword, didn't it?" She huffed as she brought

the point of her own sword down to rest in the soft earth; the ground was still moist from the morning dew

that was still everywhere. It was the morning after Legolas and Gandalf had exchanged words that she was

still oblivious too, and for the former Fellowship, morning meant barely after sunrise; Serena was getting

used to early rising.

"It got you out of the way of my sword, all right, and left you wide open for me to slice off your head!" He

told her sternly. Serena blinked, then flushed and scowled when she realized that by 'bowing' to avoid his

swing, he could have easily brought his sword back around and down to slice through her neatly displayed

neck.

"If you duck, that gives the advantage of still seeing your opponent's movements, and being able to block

should they strike at you," Boromir pointed out, sheathing his own sword as he neared; lessons with the

Hobbits had ended. He and Aragorn exchanged looks, and after ruffling Serena's hair affectionately,

Boromir turned and walked away to gather up the rest of the camp.

"That's enough for today," Aragorn told her, sheathing his sword as Serena blew a stand of her hair out of

her eyes with an annoyed puff. Grumbling, she sheathed her own sword and stalked away. Briefly Aragorn

wondered why the normally sweet and sunny girl was in such a foul mood.

"What's with the puzzled scrabble look?" Haruka asked, coming up to him from the side. Aragorn gave his

fellow swordsplayer a glance before looking back to Serena's stomping-away form.

"I was simply contemplating what could have the princess in such a foul mood this morn," he said,

sheathing his sword. Haruka grinned wolfishly.

"You may be a king and a warrior and a savior of the planet, but you're still a guy," she laughed. At

Aragorn's befuddled expression, she added, "Ever hear of a woman's monthly curse?"

Laughter, at the human king's blanching expression, rose up from the throats of the Senshi, all of whom had

been watching. Haruka shrugged as she walked past him to follow Serena, he eyes dancing with mischief.

"Of course, it could be that she's just not a morning person."

This time, even the rest of the former Fellowship had to laugh at the tortured look on Aragorn's face.

It was that night that they encountered the first signs of someone, or something, following them.

They had stopped for a bit before sundown to cook a few hares that had been caught earlier that day. They

stayed no longer than it took to cook, eat, and erase traces of their being there by burying their cookpit and

using brush branches to wipe away their tracks. They'd been on the road an hour when Hotaru had

exclaimed that she'd left something behind.

"I'm ever so sorry, everyone, but I've gotta get it back!" Hotaru pleaded.

"What did you forget that is so important?" Gimli asked gruffly. Hotaru flushed with great embarrassment,

as she answered.

"I-It's just..." her blush deepened, a sadness in her eyes. "It's just a hair ribbon," she said.

"A hair ribbon?" Gimli growled, face flushed. "What in the name of-"

"It was Rini's." Hotaru cut in, her voice oddly level for belong to someone whose face was a torrent poorly

concealed painful emotions. She said this while looking at Serena. Serena swallowed and looked away.

"I'm sorry," Serena said. "But will someone please go with Hotaru?" The relief on Hotaru's face was

heartbreaking.

"I will return to the campsite with you to find whatever it was you lost," Aragorn told her, turning his horse

around. He looked back at the others. "You continue ahead. Don't stop till you reach the edge of the Fields.

We'll meet you there." He kneed his horse forward, back down the same path he had just come, a still

embarrassed Hotaru behind him.

Shaking his head in amusement, Gandalf lead the others onward. Serena threw one last 'be careful!' over her

shoulder to the duo, to which Hotaru replied with a wave, before turning on her own horse to catch up with

Legolas.

"Hurry and find what you misplaced, firefly," Aragorn was telling Hotaru an hour later, upon their arrival at

what had been their camp sight.

"I'll only be a-" Hotaru came up short, eyes wide. Aragorn frowned and followed the young teen's gaze, and

when he saw what she'd seen, he cursed.

Unearthed and strewn around was their cookfire and the remains of the meal, and footprints and paw prints

alike were everywhere; someone knew they had been here, and recently.

"Get back on your horse, Hotaru," Aragorn told Hotaru softly. Her apologetic, child-like demeanor

vanished. She spotted a shred of pink, a few feet away. Nimbly, she danced forward, snatched it, stuffed it

into in a pocket on the inside of her shirt. She made not a sound as she backed up towards her horse, her

eyes watching everything at once...

But she wasn't wary enough. Hotaru gave a cry of pain and stumbled forward as something slashed past her

left upper-arm from behind. She grasped at the wound, bleeding freely. She spied an arrow imbedded in the

ground before her. She whirled and leaped atop her horse, hissing with the pain her wound caused her as

Aragorn gave a cry and unsheathed his sword. Hotaru gripped the reins of her mount, Makura, in her teeth

as she reached with her good arm over her shoulder to where her glaive was strapped beside the staff-blade.

At the last moment she went for the staff-blade, instead of her glaive; if for some reason she needed to

transfer her weapon to her injured arm, she wouldn't be able to use the glaive. It was light, as glaive's went,

but not light enough should she need to carry it with he injured left arm. The staff-blade, however, was light

enough.

"I would suggest getting out of here," Hotaru said lowly, watching the now silent trees.

"I concur," came the answer.

"I wouldn't advise trying it, human." A snarling voice seemed to be the cue, and suddenly, from out of the

trees came a ring of some sort of humanoid creature and wolves that definitely weren't normal wolves.

"We've been waiting for a chance to get at the Dark Princess for some time, and we're not about to loose our

chance now."

"Not good," Hotaru muttered as she maneuvered Makura so that she was alongside Aragorn's horse,

although facing the opposite direction, making Hotaru and Aragorn a bit behind each other with their backs

to one another.

"First opening you see, run and tell the others we are being followed," Aragorn told Hotaru softly. She gave

no acknowledgement that she had heard.

When the attack came, after what seemed like an eternity of frozen silence, it was without warning, and

executed with calculation that betrayed the fact that some sort of unseen signal had been given.

Too late Hotaru remembered that transforming would have healed her wound and multiplied her strength

and stamina ten-fold. Even though, technically, since her insignia was still on her forehead, she was

transformed, just powered down; she had gotten so used to being like this, having gone so long without

transforming into her old Senshi form, that it had been easy to forget to transform when a fight neared,

having gotten used to defending herself in (semi) mortal form. Now that she had remembered, though, it

was too late; she couldn't grasp a spare moment to even think the transformation phrase to the clarity needed

for it to work, let alone say it.

A wolf, larger than a normal wolf, but resembling a wolf enough to be called a wolf  nonetheless, leaped for

Hotaru's throat; she slashed it's own with a downward swipe with the bladed end of her staff. Likewise, she

jabbed the butt of her staff into the stomach of one of the humanoid creatures charging at her. She followed

the motion with yet another swipe, slicing its head off.

She screamed as a wolf latched onto her shoulder with its jaws, nearly severing her arm completely from her

body. She tried to maneuver her blade-staff to slice at it, but it was too close and the staff too long. Without

warning, the wolf released her with a howl and fell away; she, on a reflex movement, slashed downwards

and sliced it in half, a gruesome display that made Hotaru retch, before it even reached the ground. She

glanced over her shoulder as she flung her arm out and caught another wolf in the side to see that Aragorn

had been the one to make the wolf release her by way of stabbing it in the side; his retreating arm, a sword

that was in hand and stained with wolf blood betrayed that fact as he lashed out again. After flashing him a

grim grin of thanks, Hotaru returned to defending herself.

While she had no intention of leaving Aragorn to his own demise, she still kept a lookout, per his

instructions, for an opening. She continued to find none, as she fought on, she and Aragorn all the while

trying to maneuver their way towards the road.

Hotaru didn't dare let herself think of what a price this battle was demanding from her already physically

intolerant body. She shut off the flow of pain signals from her brain, hoping that she would be alive to feel

them later...she had never pushed herself so far before in her life, at least not without being fully

transformed, and already she could feel it begin to take its toll...

The battle raged on, two against what seemed to be an endless army of wolves and monsters. If the monsters

had fought with powers and energy, perhaps Hotaru would have done better. As it was, the Senshi of

Silence was unused to battles consisting of only physical threats. Only the crash-course training and her own

experience -how little it was, considering her physical stamina was not all that much- had kept her alive.

Suddenly, and completely without warning...

The ambush...ceased.

Wolfs and creatures alike suddenly halted their assaults, the ones closest to Hotaru and Aragorn paying for it

with their lives. The rest however, seemed to slowly back up...their forms radiated nervousness and fear, but

the smirks the humanoid monsters were throwing at their prey did not bode well for either human's instincts.

Wolfs and humanoids backed up and disappeared into the dark trees, the moonlight casting deep shadows.

Silence reigned for a brief moment while the duo caught their breath, forcing themselves to stay alert against

weariness and pain, adjusting their grips on their weapons. Hotaru switched her sword-staff to her injured

arm, biting her bottom lip against a scream of pain that lashed up from her mangled shoulder. She then

pulled out her glaive with her free arm. Pain or no, she needed every weapon she had.

Briefly, she wondered what she would have been doing at that moment if she wasn't a Senshi, wasn't a

reincarnated planetary princess, if she was a normal girl...

The thought dissipated as suddenly as it had come, shattered by the movement of shadows within shadows

all around them...slowly, with menace in every movement, the nine Nazgul became visible, mounted on

steeds of pure black, clad in robes made of shadow and evil, holding before them swords of poisonous

blackness.

In a flash of insight, Hotaru both knew and remembered that they had been human, once...humans, with

some good in them, somewhere. Hotaru knew this, and she wondered why that particular fact was nagging

at her...

An idea overcame Hotaru so suddenly she wondered where it had come from. It had nothing to do with her

previous thoughts about how the Nazgul were human once. No, it was something else entirely.

And it just might work...

For the first time, fourteen year old Hotaru was grateful for her algebra lessons. Somewhat.

ithout warning, before the Nazgul were even half way to them, not realizing that Aragorn had been

talking to her the whole while, Hotaru dropped her staff-sword, thrust her injured arm to the sky, and

shouted with all her might something that made even Sauron, far away in his castle of blackness, cringe.

Her voice and the words she spoke were so thick with an ancient, shadow-filled power that the words were

indistinguishable. But the result was instantaneous, as Hotaru was engulfed in a midnight-violet light. Magic

danced on the air, making the wind sing a haunting melody as, just for a moment, a black star flickered on

Hotaru's forehead...

Black lightning lanced down from the thundering sky, touched the barest tip of Hotaru's fingertips. Hotaru

flared with black and purple light. Abruptly, she brought her fist down to her chest, and, with a flash, the

light burst out around her in a horizontally spiraling wave of black energy that swept up all nine Nazgul in

its wake and slammed them against the trees...

Aragorn had ducked over his steed to avoid the outward-sweeping blast, the poor horse screaming in terror,

but staying at his master's command nonetheless.

The Ringwraiths glowed pale violet for a moment...

And then Aragorn, Strider, heir of Isildur, saw something no man had ever even imagined would ever take

place even in a dream...

One of them, the one closest to Hotaru, lifted its head weakly...for just a moment, its hood slipped, and

Hotaru, her eyes black and vacant, void of all life, glimpsed an old, old man, his eyes weary and sorrowful.

"Run," He whispered hoarsely. "Take your princess and flee. She is our last hope. I am old, young one, and I

have seen much. Your princess is the first glimpse of light I have ever seen in these dark times. Protect that

hope, that light, please... I...we were weak...please...don't be weak...don't let the light be weak...please..."

Hotaru nodded, giving her promise. His plea delivered and her word given, his head slumped back onto his

chest.

Abruptly, the spectacle was over; the thundering sky ceased its roar and cleared, the black and purple light

vanished, Hotaru's eyes returned to normal, the black star on her brow flickered and disappeared, to be

replaced with her proper insignia of Saturn. Hotaru gasped, groaned, and slumped down over Makura's

neck. Aragorn gripped the reigns to the horse, whirled both steeds around, leaned down from his saddle and

scooped up Hotaru's staff-blade, all in one swift movement as the wolves and creatures began emerging

from the shadows once more.

Aragorn, an unconscious Hotaru on the horse whose reigns he held in his hand, fled into the night, leaving

the threat behind.

To Be Continued...

ATTENTION:

Before I go any further, I want to take this opportunity to let you guys know of

(A) my new website, almost fully up. It's the Realm of Makura at: http://www.geocities.com/realm_of_makura/

It was made with the help of my friend, Alexia Goddess.

(B) Alexia Goddess and I are now both co-writing a fic based on the works of Tamora Pierce. And…

(C) I now (finally) have a joint account with my sister and we have posted the first chapter of a fic we've

been working on -plot-wise- for about a year now. Go check it out, pleeeeeeeeeeeease??? Our names are

Cat and Kate Soeurs. There's a link on my fav author's page.

Now, on to other matters...

So, whadya all think?

I think this was the hardest chapter to write to date. The middle part of a story, the transaction between the first part of a

story and the second half is always the hardest. This story ends the first part of the journey of the Companionship, and the

next chapter will introduce the second phase.

I'd love to write a longer, more entertaining author's note, but it's after midnight, I'm exhausted, and extremely thankful that

tomorrow -for me, as I write this- is a Saturday.

G'night all, and ja ne!

Hope Makes the Universe Shine,

Makura Koneko

*ALL STANDARD DISCLAIMERS APPLY*