Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Lord of the Rings although I
wish I did.
Ch 30 Decisions
David looked down at the pale face of Fred, she had been sleeping for the past several hours only stirring occasionally and saying things in her sleep that David could make no sense of. Finally she seemed to be brought back to some kind of sense. David smiled at her when she opened her eyes.
The whole place was so blurry and Fred was having trouble making things out, she remembered the box and the bugs. Were they still crawling all over her? At this thought she sat up straight and immediately found that her head was light and she was feeling dizzy, she couldn't remember bumping her head but anything was possible. She lifted her hand up to check her forehead for any wounds, she found a small cut where she had been thrown into the cell earlier on but it was nothing serious. She did notice the dull throbbing in her hands. She looked down and saw two blood stained bandages on her hands.
Fred touched the bandage and pulled away when she remembered what had happened, Bob had nailed her to the box.
"You shouldn't touch them, it took me a while to stop the bleeding. I'm sorry if they're not very comfortable." Fred looked around; she had forgotten that David was also in the cell with her. "I did my best. I didn't have much to work with and it took a while to get all the bugs out of your hair but apart from that I think you're going to be alright. How do you feel?"
Fred didn't know what to say she was just so relieved that she wasn't in that box and she was with her friend. She opened her mouth to speak but she couldn't. Instead she grabbed David and hugged him, she held him tightly not wanting to let him go. He was a little surprised at this; he wasn't expecting her to do that.
"I'm so glad you're here." She said finally finding her voice.
"You're safe now." He tried to sooth her and stroked her hair lovingly.
"I though I'd never see you again. Did they hurt you?"
David smiled that Fred was still thinking about him even after what they had done to her. "I'm fine. It was you that went through the bad things again. I thought I'd lost you for a minute back there. He did a pretty good job on you. What did you say to him to make him so angry?"
At this Fred pulled herself away from his embrace.
"It wasn't what I said, it's what I didn't say and what she didn't say."
David was confused at this. "Who didn't say what?"
"Bob." Fred said simply. "Bob's here in Orthanc. She came to rescue me. She did this to me." She lifted her hands to show him the bandages.
"Why would you best friend hurt you?" He was beginning to dislike this Bob.
"She didn't. She probably saved me a lot of pain."
"I don't understand."
"This is terrible but imagine if an Orc had done it instead, that would be even worse right?"
"I suppose so."
"Bob couldn't tell him anything about why we're here and she knew that which means she must know something about what's going on. If that's true then she's probably here to save me." Fred smiled at David who was confused.
"I'm not sure I understand. Bob came here and did this to you to save you. That seems a little crazy Fred."
"I know but why else would she be here? She came here to help me which is good news." Fred was a little confused, she thought David would have been pleased that her friend was there to help them.
"I don't know. Remember what happened last time we tried to escape. That didn't go well and I just don't think you should get your hopes up that's all."
"I know Bob okay. She wouldn't come here without some kind of plan, it might not be very good but that's not the point. She might be our only chance at getting out of here. You may want to stay in the dark, cold cell for the rest of your life but I don't and if Bob does have a way of getting me out then I'm going with her."
David didn't know what to say, he had never heard Fred talk like that before. She certainly was determined not to stay in the cell and he didn't blame her. He just didn't want to see her get hurt again. In his opinion she had been through enough already without being tortured again. He just hoped this Bob knew that.
"Alright. If you think your friend really can save us then I trust her." He took her hand gently and smiled.
"Thank you." She said softly.
"I just hope you don't get caught again that's all."
"Hey, what are the chances of that happening? I've already had too much bad luck, it must be someone else's turn now." She tried to lighten the serious mood that had descended but it didn't work although David did force himself to smile at the comment if only to make Fred feel better.
"I hope you're right." His soft voice was genuine this time. He was beginning to believe that Bob really could be their salvation. Finally they would be free.
Fred looked at the small contented smiled that had unexpectedly appeared on David's face and snuggled up close to him. This action brought him out of his thoughts and he put his arm over Fred's shoulders. He drew her closer wanting to make sure she was warm and comfortable. It was then he realised that if they were rescued they would probably be parted. He couldn't do that; he loved being around her and certainly didn't want to let her go. He held her a little tighter. She noticed this and looked up questioningly.
"If we do get out of here I want to come with you." He finally said.
Fred was completely shocked by this and sat up to face him. She expected to see and smile or a grin or something to say he was joking but there was nothing but a deadly serious look on his face. She knew he wasn't joking. She tried to understand what he had just said but that fuzzy feeling that had clouded her head returned.
"Are you serious?" She asked.
"Yes. I could not be separated from you now, I could not bare it. You feel the same don't you?"
"Yes but this is a big decision. Are you sure you're ready to leave Middle Earth behind? You said you wanted to see your family again, what about them? Won't you miss them?"
"Of course I will miss them but I have already lived in here many years on my own and have had no contact with them I think I can live without them some more. I wish to stay with you. My family have not come to rescue me in all my years here and I am not sure I would want to see them again. It would be worth giving them up to be with you."
"Wow. I wasn't expecting that." She really was speechless.
"You do not wish for me to come with you?"
"Yes of course I would love for you to stay with me but you would be giving up so much. I don't know if it would feel right taking all that away from you."
"But I am willing to give it up to be with you. I love you."
This really shocked Fred. She had thought it and she was pretty sure that at some point he had but she had never heard it being said and it shocked her to hear it.
"I.I don't know what to say." She stuttered.
"You do not have to say anything. I love you and I want to come with you. If you will have me of course."
"Yes. I would love for you to come. It is what I want but just promise me that you'll think about it some more and make sure it's what you really want."
"Yes I will although I do not expect to change my mind. You should get some rest now Fred." He smiled and pulled her against him again. She nodded and leaned on him.
Before she fell asleep she said softly,
"David. I love you too."
David smiled it was exactly what he wanted to hear.
Fred fell asleep again; she had never had such a peaceful night during her stay in Orthanc, her dreams although a little dark seemed less frightening. In fact she liked the dreams so much that she wanted to stay there forever. She realised that when she was asleep she could no longer feel that terrible pain that was in her body during the waking hours.
**
Ned was trying to sleep against the hard floor but for some reason she just couldn't get comfortable that night. She longed for her own soft warm bed to sleep in rather than the hard floor. She was also sure that it was getting colder. She couldn't stop shivering no matter how many blankets she wrapped around herself. It didn't help that she was worried about Bob.
Of course she hadn't been expecting her to come back the same day but at least when she was there Ned didn't feel quite so alone but now she felt like she was a million miles away from anyone. The Hobbits weren't being that helpful either, whenever they tried to comfort her they just ended up saying some thing to make her feel worse. She wished she could just go to sleep, she could hear Frodo and Sam's soft breathing as they slept soundly.
She didn't know why this night was so different she had spent years camping and was used to sleeping on the floor with only blankets but tonight was different. She didn't understand it. Maybe it was her wound that was making her feel different. She could still feel it although the stabbing pain had dulled to a throb now. She wished she hadn't forced Bob to sew it up for her. That had only made the pain worse and had probably caused more of an infection than if she had just left it alone.
Ned wanted to leave and as much as she hated to admit it she wished the Hobbits would just leave her alone.
Unfortunately for her Frodo had woken up and was making his way over to where Ned was laying. He had wanted to ask her questions about how she knew about the Fellowship and the Quest but she had gotten quite angry last time so he decided against it and just went over to see if she was alright.
Frodo reached over and touched Ned's shoulder. She jumped and swung around ready to hit out at anyone trying to attack her. She managed to stop herself when she saw Frodo and instead sighed and gave him an evil look.
"What on earth are you doing? You shouldn't creep up on people like that."
Frodo looked embarrassed. "I'm sorry Ned. I didn't mean to creep up on you. I just wanted to see if you were alright. So are you? Alright I mean."
Ned gave him a confused look she hardly understood what he said and had to think about what he had said before she could answer his question.
"Yes I'm fine. What are you doing up? It's late and we have walking to do tomorrow."
"Like I said I wanted to see if you were alright and I couldn't sleep anyway. It's quite cold out tonight."
Ned smiled. "Yes. I couldn't sleep either. Do you want another blanket? I have quite a few here. You can take one if you like."
"No that's fine you need them more than me."
"What is that meant to mean?" She said angrily.
"Well, you're hurt and you've lost your friends."
Ned couldn't believe what she was hearing. He didn't have a clue what was going and she was going to tell him so.
"What do you mean lost my friends? They're coming back. I think I know them slightly better than you and they will come back. How can you say that you think they'll fail? I don't believe that'll ever happen. They risked their lives to save you and Sam so if I were you I would stop saying that kind of thing and be grateful that they were here to help you. If it weren't for them you'd already be dead. You remember that. And as for me being hurt you have no idea and I am not that bad. Do you understand?"
Ned could hardly believe what she had just said. She didn't know where it all came from but all of it was true. She did feel slightly sorry when she saw the shocked and saddened look on Frodo's face. She wasn't going to apologise though. He had deserved it.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that." Frodo said weakly.
Both stood in silence for some time not knowing what to say to each other.
"I'm sorry Frodo. I didn't mean to be so blunt with you I just know that this is going to work and I could really use some else to agree with me right now." She smiled at him but he knew that it was fake.
They looked at each other for a moment and felt increasingly uneasy about being with each other. After a while Ned decided it was time to break the silence although the question she wanted to ask wasn't going to make the situation any better in fact it would probably make it worse.
"What did it feel like when you were stabbed?" Ned asked.
Frodo looked a little shocked. He couldn't believe what she had just asked. "What?"
"When you were stabbed at Weathertop what did it feel like? Describe what it felt like when you got stabbed. Please."
"I'm not sure how to describe it. I don't remember much, just feeling this intense pain in my shoulder and a cold feeling running down my arm. I don't know what else to tell you. All I know is that I saw nothing but blackness for some time and light only came back when I was in Rivendell after Lord Elrond had healed me."
"It took an Elf." Kelly said, more to herself than to Frodo.
"It took an Elf to do what? Why are you asking these questions?"
"I was stabbed Frodo. I just wanted to know if what I'm feeling now is normal or whether I should be worried."
"There is no point in asking me that question. I was stabbed by a poison blade, that is why it felt cold, because I was passing into shadow. I believe Lady Arwen called it falling into shadow. This really cannot be related to your own condition Ned."
"I think it can. I feel different Frodo. It's not just the wound, there's something else. I don't know how to describe it. I know something else is wrong and I don't know what. It is beginning to worry me."
"What do you feel?" Frodo asked, suddenly very concerned about her.
"I don't know. A coldness. Like something is wrong inside me. I think it may be poison. I've never felt like this before and I don't know what's wrong."
"Me neither." Frodo said under his breath hoping Ned wouldn't hear.
Unfortunately she did. "What?" She asked in surprise.
"Nothing. Why didn't you tell Bob about this? I think she would have wanted to know."
"Because she'd probably think it was her own fault. Like everything else on this trip. Bob had enough to worry about what with the visions and Fred's disappearance. It's enough without having me complaining because I'm cold."
"I think she would have wanted to know." Frodo said trying to make Ned see sense.
"Maybe."
"You should tell her when she gets back." He smiled at her and she did the same to him. Finally they were connecting.
"I will." She said, still smiling.
Frodo sat for a while not knowing whether Ned wanted him to leave or whether he should stay and keep her company. The situation was awkward enough without him making it worse for both of them. He wanted to tell her that everything was going to be alright. He wanted to comfort her but he knew that it would be a mistake. He didn't want to upset her or make her angry. He could tell that she was worried about her friends so decided to keep quiet.
After a while he looked up from his staring space on the ground and glanced at Ned. At first he thought something bad had happened. She was no longer sitting up straight but was leaned back against a tree. He leaned closer and sighed when he realised that she was soundly sleeping.
He hoped that she was mistaken and that she wasn't poisoned. She didn't deserve that. He also got the impression that she was scared about what was happening to her, not that she'd ever admit it. He figured that she was too proud to do that and would certainly not ask for help.
He wished that Bob or even Fred were there to help him. He didn't know what to do. He wasn't skilled in healing or anything like that. He knew that Aragorn was but that was no use to him in the middle of the forest. He would have given anything to see the Fellowship again. Even if it was only Gimli who he didn't know that well, at least he wouldn't feel so alone. He had Sam with him which was a comfort but neither were skilled healers or fighters and so were not good in the forest. He would have even liked some random Hobbit from the Shire to be there rather than just the two.
It had occurred to him several times that he was all alone and now it was becoming even more apparent.
He was totally alone.
Ch 30 Decisions
David looked down at the pale face of Fred, she had been sleeping for the past several hours only stirring occasionally and saying things in her sleep that David could make no sense of. Finally she seemed to be brought back to some kind of sense. David smiled at her when she opened her eyes.
The whole place was so blurry and Fred was having trouble making things out, she remembered the box and the bugs. Were they still crawling all over her? At this thought she sat up straight and immediately found that her head was light and she was feeling dizzy, she couldn't remember bumping her head but anything was possible. She lifted her hand up to check her forehead for any wounds, she found a small cut where she had been thrown into the cell earlier on but it was nothing serious. She did notice the dull throbbing in her hands. She looked down and saw two blood stained bandages on her hands.
Fred touched the bandage and pulled away when she remembered what had happened, Bob had nailed her to the box.
"You shouldn't touch them, it took me a while to stop the bleeding. I'm sorry if they're not very comfortable." Fred looked around; she had forgotten that David was also in the cell with her. "I did my best. I didn't have much to work with and it took a while to get all the bugs out of your hair but apart from that I think you're going to be alright. How do you feel?"
Fred didn't know what to say she was just so relieved that she wasn't in that box and she was with her friend. She opened her mouth to speak but she couldn't. Instead she grabbed David and hugged him, she held him tightly not wanting to let him go. He was a little surprised at this; he wasn't expecting her to do that.
"I'm so glad you're here." She said finally finding her voice.
"You're safe now." He tried to sooth her and stroked her hair lovingly.
"I though I'd never see you again. Did they hurt you?"
David smiled that Fred was still thinking about him even after what they had done to her. "I'm fine. It was you that went through the bad things again. I thought I'd lost you for a minute back there. He did a pretty good job on you. What did you say to him to make him so angry?"
At this Fred pulled herself away from his embrace.
"It wasn't what I said, it's what I didn't say and what she didn't say."
David was confused at this. "Who didn't say what?"
"Bob." Fred said simply. "Bob's here in Orthanc. She came to rescue me. She did this to me." She lifted her hands to show him the bandages.
"Why would you best friend hurt you?" He was beginning to dislike this Bob.
"She didn't. She probably saved me a lot of pain."
"I don't understand."
"This is terrible but imagine if an Orc had done it instead, that would be even worse right?"
"I suppose so."
"Bob couldn't tell him anything about why we're here and she knew that which means she must know something about what's going on. If that's true then she's probably here to save me." Fred smiled at David who was confused.
"I'm not sure I understand. Bob came here and did this to you to save you. That seems a little crazy Fred."
"I know but why else would she be here? She came here to help me which is good news." Fred was a little confused, she thought David would have been pleased that her friend was there to help them.
"I don't know. Remember what happened last time we tried to escape. That didn't go well and I just don't think you should get your hopes up that's all."
"I know Bob okay. She wouldn't come here without some kind of plan, it might not be very good but that's not the point. She might be our only chance at getting out of here. You may want to stay in the dark, cold cell for the rest of your life but I don't and if Bob does have a way of getting me out then I'm going with her."
David didn't know what to say, he had never heard Fred talk like that before. She certainly was determined not to stay in the cell and he didn't blame her. He just didn't want to see her get hurt again. In his opinion she had been through enough already without being tortured again. He just hoped this Bob knew that.
"Alright. If you think your friend really can save us then I trust her." He took her hand gently and smiled.
"Thank you." She said softly.
"I just hope you don't get caught again that's all."
"Hey, what are the chances of that happening? I've already had too much bad luck, it must be someone else's turn now." She tried to lighten the serious mood that had descended but it didn't work although David did force himself to smile at the comment if only to make Fred feel better.
"I hope you're right." His soft voice was genuine this time. He was beginning to believe that Bob really could be their salvation. Finally they would be free.
Fred looked at the small contented smiled that had unexpectedly appeared on David's face and snuggled up close to him. This action brought him out of his thoughts and he put his arm over Fred's shoulders. He drew her closer wanting to make sure she was warm and comfortable. It was then he realised that if they were rescued they would probably be parted. He couldn't do that; he loved being around her and certainly didn't want to let her go. He held her a little tighter. She noticed this and looked up questioningly.
"If we do get out of here I want to come with you." He finally said.
Fred was completely shocked by this and sat up to face him. She expected to see and smile or a grin or something to say he was joking but there was nothing but a deadly serious look on his face. She knew he wasn't joking. She tried to understand what he had just said but that fuzzy feeling that had clouded her head returned.
"Are you serious?" She asked.
"Yes. I could not be separated from you now, I could not bare it. You feel the same don't you?"
"Yes but this is a big decision. Are you sure you're ready to leave Middle Earth behind? You said you wanted to see your family again, what about them? Won't you miss them?"
"Of course I will miss them but I have already lived in here many years on my own and have had no contact with them I think I can live without them some more. I wish to stay with you. My family have not come to rescue me in all my years here and I am not sure I would want to see them again. It would be worth giving them up to be with you."
"Wow. I wasn't expecting that." She really was speechless.
"You do not wish for me to come with you?"
"Yes of course I would love for you to stay with me but you would be giving up so much. I don't know if it would feel right taking all that away from you."
"But I am willing to give it up to be with you. I love you."
This really shocked Fred. She had thought it and she was pretty sure that at some point he had but she had never heard it being said and it shocked her to hear it.
"I.I don't know what to say." She stuttered.
"You do not have to say anything. I love you and I want to come with you. If you will have me of course."
"Yes. I would love for you to come. It is what I want but just promise me that you'll think about it some more and make sure it's what you really want."
"Yes I will although I do not expect to change my mind. You should get some rest now Fred." He smiled and pulled her against him again. She nodded and leaned on him.
Before she fell asleep she said softly,
"David. I love you too."
David smiled it was exactly what he wanted to hear.
Fred fell asleep again; she had never had such a peaceful night during her stay in Orthanc, her dreams although a little dark seemed less frightening. In fact she liked the dreams so much that she wanted to stay there forever. She realised that when she was asleep she could no longer feel that terrible pain that was in her body during the waking hours.
**
Ned was trying to sleep against the hard floor but for some reason she just couldn't get comfortable that night. She longed for her own soft warm bed to sleep in rather than the hard floor. She was also sure that it was getting colder. She couldn't stop shivering no matter how many blankets she wrapped around herself. It didn't help that she was worried about Bob.
Of course she hadn't been expecting her to come back the same day but at least when she was there Ned didn't feel quite so alone but now she felt like she was a million miles away from anyone. The Hobbits weren't being that helpful either, whenever they tried to comfort her they just ended up saying some thing to make her feel worse. She wished she could just go to sleep, she could hear Frodo and Sam's soft breathing as they slept soundly.
She didn't know why this night was so different she had spent years camping and was used to sleeping on the floor with only blankets but tonight was different. She didn't understand it. Maybe it was her wound that was making her feel different. She could still feel it although the stabbing pain had dulled to a throb now. She wished she hadn't forced Bob to sew it up for her. That had only made the pain worse and had probably caused more of an infection than if she had just left it alone.
Ned wanted to leave and as much as she hated to admit it she wished the Hobbits would just leave her alone.
Unfortunately for her Frodo had woken up and was making his way over to where Ned was laying. He had wanted to ask her questions about how she knew about the Fellowship and the Quest but she had gotten quite angry last time so he decided against it and just went over to see if she was alright.
Frodo reached over and touched Ned's shoulder. She jumped and swung around ready to hit out at anyone trying to attack her. She managed to stop herself when she saw Frodo and instead sighed and gave him an evil look.
"What on earth are you doing? You shouldn't creep up on people like that."
Frodo looked embarrassed. "I'm sorry Ned. I didn't mean to creep up on you. I just wanted to see if you were alright. So are you? Alright I mean."
Ned gave him a confused look she hardly understood what he said and had to think about what he had said before she could answer his question.
"Yes I'm fine. What are you doing up? It's late and we have walking to do tomorrow."
"Like I said I wanted to see if you were alright and I couldn't sleep anyway. It's quite cold out tonight."
Ned smiled. "Yes. I couldn't sleep either. Do you want another blanket? I have quite a few here. You can take one if you like."
"No that's fine you need them more than me."
"What is that meant to mean?" She said angrily.
"Well, you're hurt and you've lost your friends."
Ned couldn't believe what she was hearing. He didn't have a clue what was going and she was going to tell him so.
"What do you mean lost my friends? They're coming back. I think I know them slightly better than you and they will come back. How can you say that you think they'll fail? I don't believe that'll ever happen. They risked their lives to save you and Sam so if I were you I would stop saying that kind of thing and be grateful that they were here to help you. If it weren't for them you'd already be dead. You remember that. And as for me being hurt you have no idea and I am not that bad. Do you understand?"
Ned could hardly believe what she had just said. She didn't know where it all came from but all of it was true. She did feel slightly sorry when she saw the shocked and saddened look on Frodo's face. She wasn't going to apologise though. He had deserved it.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that." Frodo said weakly.
Both stood in silence for some time not knowing what to say to each other.
"I'm sorry Frodo. I didn't mean to be so blunt with you I just know that this is going to work and I could really use some else to agree with me right now." She smiled at him but he knew that it was fake.
They looked at each other for a moment and felt increasingly uneasy about being with each other. After a while Ned decided it was time to break the silence although the question she wanted to ask wasn't going to make the situation any better in fact it would probably make it worse.
"What did it feel like when you were stabbed?" Ned asked.
Frodo looked a little shocked. He couldn't believe what she had just asked. "What?"
"When you were stabbed at Weathertop what did it feel like? Describe what it felt like when you got stabbed. Please."
"I'm not sure how to describe it. I don't remember much, just feeling this intense pain in my shoulder and a cold feeling running down my arm. I don't know what else to tell you. All I know is that I saw nothing but blackness for some time and light only came back when I was in Rivendell after Lord Elrond had healed me."
"It took an Elf." Kelly said, more to herself than to Frodo.
"It took an Elf to do what? Why are you asking these questions?"
"I was stabbed Frodo. I just wanted to know if what I'm feeling now is normal or whether I should be worried."
"There is no point in asking me that question. I was stabbed by a poison blade, that is why it felt cold, because I was passing into shadow. I believe Lady Arwen called it falling into shadow. This really cannot be related to your own condition Ned."
"I think it can. I feel different Frodo. It's not just the wound, there's something else. I don't know how to describe it. I know something else is wrong and I don't know what. It is beginning to worry me."
"What do you feel?" Frodo asked, suddenly very concerned about her.
"I don't know. A coldness. Like something is wrong inside me. I think it may be poison. I've never felt like this before and I don't know what's wrong."
"Me neither." Frodo said under his breath hoping Ned wouldn't hear.
Unfortunately she did. "What?" She asked in surprise.
"Nothing. Why didn't you tell Bob about this? I think she would have wanted to know."
"Because she'd probably think it was her own fault. Like everything else on this trip. Bob had enough to worry about what with the visions and Fred's disappearance. It's enough without having me complaining because I'm cold."
"I think she would have wanted to know." Frodo said trying to make Ned see sense.
"Maybe."
"You should tell her when she gets back." He smiled at her and she did the same to him. Finally they were connecting.
"I will." She said, still smiling.
Frodo sat for a while not knowing whether Ned wanted him to leave or whether he should stay and keep her company. The situation was awkward enough without him making it worse for both of them. He wanted to tell her that everything was going to be alright. He wanted to comfort her but he knew that it would be a mistake. He didn't want to upset her or make her angry. He could tell that she was worried about her friends so decided to keep quiet.
After a while he looked up from his staring space on the ground and glanced at Ned. At first he thought something bad had happened. She was no longer sitting up straight but was leaned back against a tree. He leaned closer and sighed when he realised that she was soundly sleeping.
He hoped that she was mistaken and that she wasn't poisoned. She didn't deserve that. He also got the impression that she was scared about what was happening to her, not that she'd ever admit it. He figured that she was too proud to do that and would certainly not ask for help.
He wished that Bob or even Fred were there to help him. He didn't know what to do. He wasn't skilled in healing or anything like that. He knew that Aragorn was but that was no use to him in the middle of the forest. He would have given anything to see the Fellowship again. Even if it was only Gimli who he didn't know that well, at least he wouldn't feel so alone. He had Sam with him which was a comfort but neither were skilled healers or fighters and so were not good in the forest. He would have even liked some random Hobbit from the Shire to be there rather than just the two.
It had occurred to him several times that he was all alone and now it was becoming even more apparent.
He was totally alone.