Authors Note: None of Tolkien's creations belong to me, only Jen, Gyst and
various Mary Sues who may appear do.
---------------
Our pace was gruelling as our feet pounded the ground of Rohan, chasing the Uruks. Legolas and Aragorn led the way, seemingly tireless as they eyes sought any sign of our quarry. Gimli legged behind, cursing to himself in dwarvish. I ran somewhere in between, concentrating on keeping my pace easy and loose. While I was never going to be as fit as some, I was fitter than the Jen that had arrived in the woods, what seemed like an Age ago.
But even my newfound stamina proved difficult to maintain with no sleep, no breaks and only what food we could eat on the run. I found my eyes closing as I ran, slipping into an almost trancelike state, still following the others, my feet pounding out the rhythm.
Then my questing feet, stretched out in my next stride, found nothing by empty air. I fell forward, eyes flashing open, body automatically curling into a ball. Down I rolled, and through a blur of green, blue and brown, I heard laughter. And as I rolled to a painful halt against a rock and looked back at my three laughing companions, I grinned to myself. Even in dark circumstances, at least they could laugh at me and forget some of their problems, if only for an instant. ------- Still we kept on running, and all my thoughts of the plot were lost in my need to keep up with the others, and to keep on going. So it was only when we started to cross a ridge and I heard the shrill challenging whinny of a horse did I realise what was about to happen. Aragorn halted for a moment, before urging us all with strong motions to head quickly for the cover of a cluster of boulders.
He halted on the outskirts as first Legolas then myself dived for cover, followed by Gimli then Aragorn. And just in time, for no sooner than Aragorn had entered, that the first of the Rohirrim came over the top of the ridge. Their spears stood straight in the air, pennants flying from their tips, showing the running white horse on green that was the symbol of the Mark. Their eyes were fixed in the direction that they were going in, and their mounts moved at a steady and ground-eating canter.
Aragorn shot us three a reassuring smile, before he stood and stepped out of cover.
"Riders of Rohan! What news from the Mark!" he called loudly, and I winced. Yes, he had been here before, and I knew the necessity of what he was doing in relation to the plot, but honestly, had the word 'secrecy' temporarily escaped his vocabulary?
We stepped out from our boulders and watched as the horses began to circle around us, the spears of the Riders gradually getting lower and lower. While I could not help but admire the horsemanship of the Rohirrim in some part of my head, the other part was staring at the sharp wood and metal pointy sticks they held, trying not to think of kebabs.
Aragorn was still smiling as the circle closed around us, and a thicket of spears was aimed at us. Then one Rider urged his horse forward, his eyes glaring at us from under his helm.
"What business does a Man, and Dwarf, an Elf and a woman have in the Mark? Speak quickly now," he demanded.
"Give me your name Horsemaster, and I shall give you mine," Gimli retorted quickly. Aragorn and I rolled our eyes, although I did mutter something relating to stiff necks and dwarves. The man on the horse stared at Gimli, apparently unwilling to believe that such a small person could be so insolent (and I was having trouble working that out in my head as well). He, who I knew was Eomer, dismounted, handing his spear to the Rider next to him.
"I would cut off your head Dwarf, if it stood but a little higher from the ground," he threatened in a cold voice.
"You would die before your stroke fell," and Legolas had an arrow ready to loose in a heartbeat.
I prayed for Aragorn to speak, my eyes seeking his face. But his eyes had clouded over and he seemed to be staring off into a distance that none of us could see. I could see Eomer growing restive (well, I would have been the same). So despite all the instincts that I had not to interfere, I had to.
I knocked Legolas's arrow aside with my arm, shooting him one of the glares that I had used to good effect on the children I had taught on occasion.
"I am Gilraen, a ward of Rivendell, this is Gimli son of Gloin, Legolas of the Woodland Realm, and Aragorn son of Arathorn. We are friends of Rohan, and of Theoden, your King," I blurted out the words, using the first name that I could think of for my own. After seeing the reaction of the Fellowship to learning that I was a self-insert if you will, I didn't want to risk Eomer using one of the spears that was pointed at me.
Aragorn blinked as I spoke his name, his mind obviously returning to his body. And from there, he carried on as if nothing had happened. I relaxed, attempting to hide, which was difficult as there were only four of us surrounded on all sides. The conversation continued between us, with myself trying to follow the words to make sure that if something strange happened again, I would be able to counter it before we were kebabbed for lack of courtesy, suspicion of being spies, or something else that Eomer and the Riders thought up on the spur of the moment.
Then Eomer whistled, the sea of horses parting to let three through. I blinked. Three?
"Hasufel, Arod, Gyst," Eomer pointed at each horse it turn. I ignored Hasufel and Arod since they were canon horses and stared at the plothole horse name Gyst. He was black and that was enough to raise alarm bells within my head. Sauron had used his orcs to carry off most of the black horses, and black seemed to be the mount of choice for Mary Sues. But Gyst seemed to be placid enough, and that was a good sign.
By the time I had finished staring at Gyst, the Rohirrim were riding around, dust flying up from the hooves of their mounts. I turned to see them trail away, and turned back to find Aragorn eyeing me speculatively.
"Can you ride?" he asked, indicating Gyst.
I nodded, and with a quick prayer to Orome and Nahar, placed my foot in the stirrup and hauled myself upwards and into the saddle. Gyst reacted about as much as a brick would.
Aragorn nodded before he mounted as well, with Legolas and Gimli mounting Arod. Gathering the reins of Gyst in my hands as I had been taught, I resigned myself to the fact of having a sore bum, and urged Gyst after the others.
-----
The plume of smoke that indicated where the bodies had been burned rose in a black cloud in front of us, calling us ever onwards. As soon as we could clearly see the pile, Aragorn was off Aragorn, tossing the reins in my direction. Legolas and Gimli followed suit with Arod. I stood beside Gyst, acting as the horse holder while the three searched desperately for any sign of the hobbits. Even I, who knew what had happened and knew where to look, had difficulty seeing anything.
Gimli raked through the dying embers of the fire with his axe hilt, before halting and reaching forward. With a tender touch he held up a small belt that was instantly recognisable.
"Its one of their wee belts," he said brokenly. Legolas stood by, murmuring something in Elvish, a lament I presumed. Aragorn stared for an instant, before lashing out with one foot at a helmet that lay nearby, sending it flying. Then he screamed, letting all his anguish out in his voice. His fists clenched as he fell to his knees, head bowed in sorrow.
Then I saw her. She emerged from the forest, unstained by leaves or soil, her white dress gleaming in the light. Her pure black hair, as dark as midnight, gleaming like a raven's wing, fell to her hips like a silken curtain. Her silver and gold eyes were calm, filled with mystery and the secrets of the Ages. At her waist was belted a sword, the hilt of which gleamed with precious gems. In her hand she held a bow, strung with a single black thread.
"Do not despair some of Arathorn," she said in a voice that was filled with all the music of the wild.
I growled, shoving flowery descriptions from my mind. There was only one thing that she could, a Mary Sue. And that explained why Aragorn had gone silent. That was supposed to have paved the way for her to introduce herself and let everyone know how she was related to the three of the Fellowship. But I had stopped her that time. And I was damned if I would let her succeed this time.
All her attention was fixed on the three around the bonfire, since I was another insert character who didn't belong here. I was practically invisible to her. And beside, I was female, unattractive and irritable, and therefore not a viable target. But she was a target to me.
I dropped the reins of Hasufel and Arod (fortunately they appeared to be trained to ground tie) and took a tight hold on Gysts. I would only have a few minutes to act. I grabbed a charred spear shaft from the ground, the weapon of a fallen rider, and hauled myself into the saddle.
Then I rode Gyst straight at her. I knew that horses would not deliberately ride over humans (and even though the species of a Mary Sue was debatable, I wasn't going to try), and so I would have to use other methods.
I came up swiftly behind her, holding the spear shaft steady in my hand. The Sue was concentrating on maintaining eye contact, and her spell, with the three, and so the first that that she knew of my presence was when the shaft thudded solidly down on her skull. She dropped like a stone.
I dismounted and thumped her again for good measure, just to make sure. Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli blinked as though cold water had been thrown over them, and quickly their expressions of puzzlement switched to anger as they looked at the fallen figure.
Aragorn kicked her, Gimli spat on her, and Legolas said something that sounded really unpleasant in Elvish. I thumped her again.
Then suddenly, she was gone. I didn't know what had caused it, but I was glad. I went back to horse holding, while Aragorn stared at the ground where the Sue had lain.
"A hobbit lay here," he murmured. "And another," his eyes moved slightly forwards. His hand brushed the grass as he tried to interpret the tracks. I grinned to myself as I watched Aragorn solve the mystery of the hobbits and their escape, while petting the plothole horse in thanks. Legolas's call jolted me out of my trance.
"They entered Fangorn Forest Jen! We go in search of them, come on!"
I sighed and followed them with my three horses, tying their reins to branches with quick release knots. I knew that we would be needing them shortly.
And then I braced myself, and stepped after the others into Fangorn.
---------------
Our pace was gruelling as our feet pounded the ground of Rohan, chasing the Uruks. Legolas and Aragorn led the way, seemingly tireless as they eyes sought any sign of our quarry. Gimli legged behind, cursing to himself in dwarvish. I ran somewhere in between, concentrating on keeping my pace easy and loose. While I was never going to be as fit as some, I was fitter than the Jen that had arrived in the woods, what seemed like an Age ago.
But even my newfound stamina proved difficult to maintain with no sleep, no breaks and only what food we could eat on the run. I found my eyes closing as I ran, slipping into an almost trancelike state, still following the others, my feet pounding out the rhythm.
Then my questing feet, stretched out in my next stride, found nothing by empty air. I fell forward, eyes flashing open, body automatically curling into a ball. Down I rolled, and through a blur of green, blue and brown, I heard laughter. And as I rolled to a painful halt against a rock and looked back at my three laughing companions, I grinned to myself. Even in dark circumstances, at least they could laugh at me and forget some of their problems, if only for an instant. ------- Still we kept on running, and all my thoughts of the plot were lost in my need to keep up with the others, and to keep on going. So it was only when we started to cross a ridge and I heard the shrill challenging whinny of a horse did I realise what was about to happen. Aragorn halted for a moment, before urging us all with strong motions to head quickly for the cover of a cluster of boulders.
He halted on the outskirts as first Legolas then myself dived for cover, followed by Gimli then Aragorn. And just in time, for no sooner than Aragorn had entered, that the first of the Rohirrim came over the top of the ridge. Their spears stood straight in the air, pennants flying from their tips, showing the running white horse on green that was the symbol of the Mark. Their eyes were fixed in the direction that they were going in, and their mounts moved at a steady and ground-eating canter.
Aragorn shot us three a reassuring smile, before he stood and stepped out of cover.
"Riders of Rohan! What news from the Mark!" he called loudly, and I winced. Yes, he had been here before, and I knew the necessity of what he was doing in relation to the plot, but honestly, had the word 'secrecy' temporarily escaped his vocabulary?
We stepped out from our boulders and watched as the horses began to circle around us, the spears of the Riders gradually getting lower and lower. While I could not help but admire the horsemanship of the Rohirrim in some part of my head, the other part was staring at the sharp wood and metal pointy sticks they held, trying not to think of kebabs.
Aragorn was still smiling as the circle closed around us, and a thicket of spears was aimed at us. Then one Rider urged his horse forward, his eyes glaring at us from under his helm.
"What business does a Man, and Dwarf, an Elf and a woman have in the Mark? Speak quickly now," he demanded.
"Give me your name Horsemaster, and I shall give you mine," Gimli retorted quickly. Aragorn and I rolled our eyes, although I did mutter something relating to stiff necks and dwarves. The man on the horse stared at Gimli, apparently unwilling to believe that such a small person could be so insolent (and I was having trouble working that out in my head as well). He, who I knew was Eomer, dismounted, handing his spear to the Rider next to him.
"I would cut off your head Dwarf, if it stood but a little higher from the ground," he threatened in a cold voice.
"You would die before your stroke fell," and Legolas had an arrow ready to loose in a heartbeat.
I prayed for Aragorn to speak, my eyes seeking his face. But his eyes had clouded over and he seemed to be staring off into a distance that none of us could see. I could see Eomer growing restive (well, I would have been the same). So despite all the instincts that I had not to interfere, I had to.
I knocked Legolas's arrow aside with my arm, shooting him one of the glares that I had used to good effect on the children I had taught on occasion.
"I am Gilraen, a ward of Rivendell, this is Gimli son of Gloin, Legolas of the Woodland Realm, and Aragorn son of Arathorn. We are friends of Rohan, and of Theoden, your King," I blurted out the words, using the first name that I could think of for my own. After seeing the reaction of the Fellowship to learning that I was a self-insert if you will, I didn't want to risk Eomer using one of the spears that was pointed at me.
Aragorn blinked as I spoke his name, his mind obviously returning to his body. And from there, he carried on as if nothing had happened. I relaxed, attempting to hide, which was difficult as there were only four of us surrounded on all sides. The conversation continued between us, with myself trying to follow the words to make sure that if something strange happened again, I would be able to counter it before we were kebabbed for lack of courtesy, suspicion of being spies, or something else that Eomer and the Riders thought up on the spur of the moment.
Then Eomer whistled, the sea of horses parting to let three through. I blinked. Three?
"Hasufel, Arod, Gyst," Eomer pointed at each horse it turn. I ignored Hasufel and Arod since they were canon horses and stared at the plothole horse name Gyst. He was black and that was enough to raise alarm bells within my head. Sauron had used his orcs to carry off most of the black horses, and black seemed to be the mount of choice for Mary Sues. But Gyst seemed to be placid enough, and that was a good sign.
By the time I had finished staring at Gyst, the Rohirrim were riding around, dust flying up from the hooves of their mounts. I turned to see them trail away, and turned back to find Aragorn eyeing me speculatively.
"Can you ride?" he asked, indicating Gyst.
I nodded, and with a quick prayer to Orome and Nahar, placed my foot in the stirrup and hauled myself upwards and into the saddle. Gyst reacted about as much as a brick would.
Aragorn nodded before he mounted as well, with Legolas and Gimli mounting Arod. Gathering the reins of Gyst in my hands as I had been taught, I resigned myself to the fact of having a sore bum, and urged Gyst after the others.
-----
The plume of smoke that indicated where the bodies had been burned rose in a black cloud in front of us, calling us ever onwards. As soon as we could clearly see the pile, Aragorn was off Aragorn, tossing the reins in my direction. Legolas and Gimli followed suit with Arod. I stood beside Gyst, acting as the horse holder while the three searched desperately for any sign of the hobbits. Even I, who knew what had happened and knew where to look, had difficulty seeing anything.
Gimli raked through the dying embers of the fire with his axe hilt, before halting and reaching forward. With a tender touch he held up a small belt that was instantly recognisable.
"Its one of their wee belts," he said brokenly. Legolas stood by, murmuring something in Elvish, a lament I presumed. Aragorn stared for an instant, before lashing out with one foot at a helmet that lay nearby, sending it flying. Then he screamed, letting all his anguish out in his voice. His fists clenched as he fell to his knees, head bowed in sorrow.
Then I saw her. She emerged from the forest, unstained by leaves or soil, her white dress gleaming in the light. Her pure black hair, as dark as midnight, gleaming like a raven's wing, fell to her hips like a silken curtain. Her silver and gold eyes were calm, filled with mystery and the secrets of the Ages. At her waist was belted a sword, the hilt of which gleamed with precious gems. In her hand she held a bow, strung with a single black thread.
"Do not despair some of Arathorn," she said in a voice that was filled with all the music of the wild.
I growled, shoving flowery descriptions from my mind. There was only one thing that she could, a Mary Sue. And that explained why Aragorn had gone silent. That was supposed to have paved the way for her to introduce herself and let everyone know how she was related to the three of the Fellowship. But I had stopped her that time. And I was damned if I would let her succeed this time.
All her attention was fixed on the three around the bonfire, since I was another insert character who didn't belong here. I was practically invisible to her. And beside, I was female, unattractive and irritable, and therefore not a viable target. But she was a target to me.
I dropped the reins of Hasufel and Arod (fortunately they appeared to be trained to ground tie) and took a tight hold on Gysts. I would only have a few minutes to act. I grabbed a charred spear shaft from the ground, the weapon of a fallen rider, and hauled myself into the saddle.
Then I rode Gyst straight at her. I knew that horses would not deliberately ride over humans (and even though the species of a Mary Sue was debatable, I wasn't going to try), and so I would have to use other methods.
I came up swiftly behind her, holding the spear shaft steady in my hand. The Sue was concentrating on maintaining eye contact, and her spell, with the three, and so the first that that she knew of my presence was when the shaft thudded solidly down on her skull. She dropped like a stone.
I dismounted and thumped her again for good measure, just to make sure. Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli blinked as though cold water had been thrown over them, and quickly their expressions of puzzlement switched to anger as they looked at the fallen figure.
Aragorn kicked her, Gimli spat on her, and Legolas said something that sounded really unpleasant in Elvish. I thumped her again.
Then suddenly, she was gone. I didn't know what had caused it, but I was glad. I went back to horse holding, while Aragorn stared at the ground where the Sue had lain.
"A hobbit lay here," he murmured. "And another," his eyes moved slightly forwards. His hand brushed the grass as he tried to interpret the tracks. I grinned to myself as I watched Aragorn solve the mystery of the hobbits and their escape, while petting the plothole horse in thanks. Legolas's call jolted me out of my trance.
"They entered Fangorn Forest Jen! We go in search of them, come on!"
I sighed and followed them with my three horses, tying their reins to branches with quick release knots. I knew that we would be needing them shortly.
And then I braced myself, and stepped after the others into Fangorn.