Disclaimer: Hey that last chapter actually had a LOTR element to it! Well,
anything related to LOTR is of course not mine, seeing as I am not an old
English guy who's been dead for the past 30 years.
Chapter 16 - Quoth The Raven: Nevermore
"Aren't we there yet?" Red whined after several days, weeks, of riding.
"All we have to do is find a good place to stop and set up shop," Black answered.
"Oh, good. This is the fun part!" said Red excitedly.
The four women rode a little further into the dense, black forest, when Blue interjected.
"Wait, are we in Mirkwood?"
"You're a quick one, aren't you?" Black teased.
"Shut up."
Some time in the morning (it was hard to tell - not much light came through the canopy) the women halted in a patch of trees with little underbrush.
Black dismounted, handed the reins to Green, and proceeded to knock on the trunks of trees.
"Is she all right?" Blue whispered.
Black put her ear close to one while she knocked, and it gave off a somewhat hollow sound. She then two giant, wobbly steps out, and stopped.
She looked at the ground around her, while doing two small hops.
"Here we go," she said as she stepped back.
Black bent down and groped for something among the sticks and grass with her fingers. Finding it, she lifted up a large door covering a hole in the ground.
"Figures," Blue muttered.
Black went down the short steps into the small cellar, and brought out several metal boxes.
"Blue," said Black, putting down the boxes and closing the hidden door, "the weather forecast, please."
Blue stopped, licked a finger and put it in the air, and inhaled.
"Well," she began as an imaginary map of Middle-earth slid into view illustrating various weather patterns, "there's a storm cell moving in from the east, but it looks like it will pass just to the north of us. Apart from a slight chance of rain tomorrow, it is going to be a beautiful week with highs in the lower seventies, and lows in the upper fifties."
"That's excellent," said Black. "You sure it's not going to rain?"
"Not for another week," Blue pouted. "I like the rain."
"You'll get over it. Now," said Black, handing Blue a rather heavy metal box, "Blue, stay here and clear some space with Green. Try not to leave stumps, please." She looked up. "And let's hope these trees aren't.alive."
With that, Black and Red disappeared into the woods.
"Do they ever tell you where they are going?" Blue asked.
"No," Green answered, "but I don't particularly want or care to know." She handed Blue a large ax and went about felling the nearest tree.
Blue heard nothing other than her and Green's chopping throughout the day, but every couple of hours Black and Red would trudge into camp with piles of wooden boards.
At midday they stopped briefly for lunch.
"Why are we clearing all these trees?" Blue asked, biting into an apple.
"To gather wood," Red said.
"Obviously," Blue murmured. "But why?"
"We're building carts." Blue was still lost. "To carry the gold on?" Red prompted.
"Oh."
"I have to go find Black now," Red said, standing.
"Why didn't she stop to eat with us?" Blue asked.
"She wanted to keep working. Sometimes I think she lives off work," Red mused as she went back into the trees.
- - - -
As the day wore on, Blue became weary, so she went for a walk. When she got back, however, she was greeted by her less-than-happy leader.
"Where have you been?" Black shrieked.
"On a walk," Blue said calmly.
"On a walk?" She turned to Green. "How did you let her leave?" She whirled back to Blue. "Never do that again."
"What are you so upset about?" Blue demanded.
"You can't go wandering off out of camp!" Black yelled at her.
"You and Red leave all the time. Why can't I go?"
"Because we know the area!"
"I used to live here! I should know the area better than either of you!"
"True. And since you used to live here, you should know about the man- eating spiders roaming about, or did you forget that little detail?" Black tapped her foot angrily.
Blue opened her mouth to speak but shut it again. She couldn't think of anything to say.
"So, with that in mind," Black went on, "do as I tell you. Got it? I don't want you getting eaten." She turned away.
"Or seen by someone," Red said under her breath.
- - - -
Red went out the next morning to make sure no one was going to stumble onto their camp, either on accident or on purpose. Spiders didn't worry her. If she saw one, she could just turn into a raven and fly away.
Her thoughts were drifting and she was wondering what Aragorn might look like with his shirt off when she noticed a lone Elf.
He was squatting to examine something on the path.
What am I going to do with you? Red asked him silently.
He straightened and Red realized that she had seen this Elf before.
"I wonder." she whispered as she stepped out of the trees to face the intruder.
- - - -
"I should have kept my mouth shut," Blue grumbled. She had complained about chopping down so many trees, so she was stuck with sanding. "It makes my skin and eyes all dry," she said.
"Where is that girl?" Black shouted as she stomped into camp. "I told Red that if she did not get this thing done by today, I would personally have to kill her." She went over to her pack and started sifting through it.
"You mean she's out there alone?" Blue asked. "And you were out in the woods.alone?" She started to smirk. "You shouldn't do that, you know. There are man-eating spiders out there."
Black's head snapped up.
"I don't need any lectures from you," she snapped.
"Yes you do," Blue whispered.
Black's eyes widened. "You watch your tongue, Blue, or I will rid you of its burden."
Just then Red strolled in, chuckling.
"What did you do?" Black asked. "You've got that look in your eye."
"Hehe," Red laughed, "got his arrows."
She held up a finely crafted, slender arrow.
Blue looked at it hard and recognized the arrow immediately. "Those are the Prince's arrows!" she said in astonishment.
"He's a prince?" Red asked, setting down the bundle of arrows. "Cool." She took out a folded sheet of parchment and a quill and checked something off.
"Wow, I just keep moving up the list," she said. "First a Ranger, then a Prince. All I need now is a King!"
"What?!" Blue screeched. Her cheeks turned red as she thought of all the things that list could be. "What did you do?"
Red walked casually around. When she reached Blue, she bent down and whispered, "He's a really good kisser."
"WHAT!?" screamed Blue. "How dare you!" She jumped to her feet.
"I knew there was something going on between you two," Red said.
"I'll kill you!" shouted Blue.
"That's the second death threat I've had today," Red murmured.
Blue drew her sword and ran at Red, who ducked away just in time.
"She's serious," Red said in surprise.
Blue rounded for another attack as Red unsheathed her sword. "You don't know what you're getting yourself into, Blue," Red said as their weapons collided.
"I'll kill you," Blue repeated.
"Yes, you said that already," Red sighed as she pushed Blue away.
They dueled, with Black and Green just watching as if it were two kids playing with sticks. Each time they locked swords, Red whispered something in Blue's face just to aggravate her.
"You two must have been pretty serious."
Clang.
"He seemed to know what he was doing."
Crash.
"Very comfortable with his hands." "I'm going to kill you, you maggot!"
Clang, clang, crash.
"You keep saying that, and yet."
Bang, crash, clang.
"I'm still alive."
"Ah!"
Blue whipped out a knife and threw it, pinning Red to the tree by her cloak.
"Where'd that come from?" Red asked.
"You can't sweet talk your way out of this one," Blue growled as she ran up to Red.
She swung her sword, but instead of sinking into Red's chest, it sank into the trunk of the tree.
"What?"
"You know, you're right," came Red's voice.
"Where are you?" Blue looked over her shoulders in confusion.
"Let's say I stop talking, promise never to hit on your ex-boyfriend, the Prince, again, and you stop trying to kill me."
"Where are you?"
"Or we could keep going, but I'd eventually have to kill you, and see, I don't want to do that."
Blue looked up. Red was sitting on the closest tree branch, swinging her legs.
"How did you.?"
Suddenly Red morphed into a raven, flew down, and changed into Red again.
She stuck out her hand and smiled. "Quote the raven: Nevermore."
- - - - - - - - - - - -
Sorry, that chapter was a little long. See that button down there? Yes, the one that says "Submit Review," press it. Send me a review. If you don't I might never finish this story!!!
Chapter 16 - Quoth The Raven: Nevermore
"Aren't we there yet?" Red whined after several days, weeks, of riding.
"All we have to do is find a good place to stop and set up shop," Black answered.
"Oh, good. This is the fun part!" said Red excitedly.
The four women rode a little further into the dense, black forest, when Blue interjected.
"Wait, are we in Mirkwood?"
"You're a quick one, aren't you?" Black teased.
"Shut up."
Some time in the morning (it was hard to tell - not much light came through the canopy) the women halted in a patch of trees with little underbrush.
Black dismounted, handed the reins to Green, and proceeded to knock on the trunks of trees.
"Is she all right?" Blue whispered.
Black put her ear close to one while she knocked, and it gave off a somewhat hollow sound. She then two giant, wobbly steps out, and stopped.
She looked at the ground around her, while doing two small hops.
"Here we go," she said as she stepped back.
Black bent down and groped for something among the sticks and grass with her fingers. Finding it, she lifted up a large door covering a hole in the ground.
"Figures," Blue muttered.
Black went down the short steps into the small cellar, and brought out several metal boxes.
"Blue," said Black, putting down the boxes and closing the hidden door, "the weather forecast, please."
Blue stopped, licked a finger and put it in the air, and inhaled.
"Well," she began as an imaginary map of Middle-earth slid into view illustrating various weather patterns, "there's a storm cell moving in from the east, but it looks like it will pass just to the north of us. Apart from a slight chance of rain tomorrow, it is going to be a beautiful week with highs in the lower seventies, and lows in the upper fifties."
"That's excellent," said Black. "You sure it's not going to rain?"
"Not for another week," Blue pouted. "I like the rain."
"You'll get over it. Now," said Black, handing Blue a rather heavy metal box, "Blue, stay here and clear some space with Green. Try not to leave stumps, please." She looked up. "And let's hope these trees aren't.alive."
With that, Black and Red disappeared into the woods.
"Do they ever tell you where they are going?" Blue asked.
"No," Green answered, "but I don't particularly want or care to know." She handed Blue a large ax and went about felling the nearest tree.
Blue heard nothing other than her and Green's chopping throughout the day, but every couple of hours Black and Red would trudge into camp with piles of wooden boards.
At midday they stopped briefly for lunch.
"Why are we clearing all these trees?" Blue asked, biting into an apple.
"To gather wood," Red said.
"Obviously," Blue murmured. "But why?"
"We're building carts." Blue was still lost. "To carry the gold on?" Red prompted.
"Oh."
"I have to go find Black now," Red said, standing.
"Why didn't she stop to eat with us?" Blue asked.
"She wanted to keep working. Sometimes I think she lives off work," Red mused as she went back into the trees.
- - - -
As the day wore on, Blue became weary, so she went for a walk. When she got back, however, she was greeted by her less-than-happy leader.
"Where have you been?" Black shrieked.
"On a walk," Blue said calmly.
"On a walk?" She turned to Green. "How did you let her leave?" She whirled back to Blue. "Never do that again."
"What are you so upset about?" Blue demanded.
"You can't go wandering off out of camp!" Black yelled at her.
"You and Red leave all the time. Why can't I go?"
"Because we know the area!"
"I used to live here! I should know the area better than either of you!"
"True. And since you used to live here, you should know about the man- eating spiders roaming about, or did you forget that little detail?" Black tapped her foot angrily.
Blue opened her mouth to speak but shut it again. She couldn't think of anything to say.
"So, with that in mind," Black went on, "do as I tell you. Got it? I don't want you getting eaten." She turned away.
"Or seen by someone," Red said under her breath.
- - - -
Red went out the next morning to make sure no one was going to stumble onto their camp, either on accident or on purpose. Spiders didn't worry her. If she saw one, she could just turn into a raven and fly away.
Her thoughts were drifting and she was wondering what Aragorn might look like with his shirt off when she noticed a lone Elf.
He was squatting to examine something on the path.
What am I going to do with you? Red asked him silently.
He straightened and Red realized that she had seen this Elf before.
"I wonder." she whispered as she stepped out of the trees to face the intruder.
- - - -
"I should have kept my mouth shut," Blue grumbled. She had complained about chopping down so many trees, so she was stuck with sanding. "It makes my skin and eyes all dry," she said.
"Where is that girl?" Black shouted as she stomped into camp. "I told Red that if she did not get this thing done by today, I would personally have to kill her." She went over to her pack and started sifting through it.
"You mean she's out there alone?" Blue asked. "And you were out in the woods.alone?" She started to smirk. "You shouldn't do that, you know. There are man-eating spiders out there."
Black's head snapped up.
"I don't need any lectures from you," she snapped.
"Yes you do," Blue whispered.
Black's eyes widened. "You watch your tongue, Blue, or I will rid you of its burden."
Just then Red strolled in, chuckling.
"What did you do?" Black asked. "You've got that look in your eye."
"Hehe," Red laughed, "got his arrows."
She held up a finely crafted, slender arrow.
Blue looked at it hard and recognized the arrow immediately. "Those are the Prince's arrows!" she said in astonishment.
"He's a prince?" Red asked, setting down the bundle of arrows. "Cool." She took out a folded sheet of parchment and a quill and checked something off.
"Wow, I just keep moving up the list," she said. "First a Ranger, then a Prince. All I need now is a King!"
"What?!" Blue screeched. Her cheeks turned red as she thought of all the things that list could be. "What did you do?"
Red walked casually around. When she reached Blue, she bent down and whispered, "He's a really good kisser."
"WHAT!?" screamed Blue. "How dare you!" She jumped to her feet.
"I knew there was something going on between you two," Red said.
"I'll kill you!" shouted Blue.
"That's the second death threat I've had today," Red murmured.
Blue drew her sword and ran at Red, who ducked away just in time.
"She's serious," Red said in surprise.
Blue rounded for another attack as Red unsheathed her sword. "You don't know what you're getting yourself into, Blue," Red said as their weapons collided.
"I'll kill you," Blue repeated.
"Yes, you said that already," Red sighed as she pushed Blue away.
They dueled, with Black and Green just watching as if it were two kids playing with sticks. Each time they locked swords, Red whispered something in Blue's face just to aggravate her.
"You two must have been pretty serious."
Clang.
"He seemed to know what he was doing."
Crash.
"Very comfortable with his hands." "I'm going to kill you, you maggot!"
Clang, clang, crash.
"You keep saying that, and yet."
Bang, crash, clang.
"I'm still alive."
"Ah!"
Blue whipped out a knife and threw it, pinning Red to the tree by her cloak.
"Where'd that come from?" Red asked.
"You can't sweet talk your way out of this one," Blue growled as she ran up to Red.
She swung her sword, but instead of sinking into Red's chest, it sank into the trunk of the tree.
"What?"
"You know, you're right," came Red's voice.
"Where are you?" Blue looked over her shoulders in confusion.
"Let's say I stop talking, promise never to hit on your ex-boyfriend, the Prince, again, and you stop trying to kill me."
"Where are you?"
"Or we could keep going, but I'd eventually have to kill you, and see, I don't want to do that."
Blue looked up. Red was sitting on the closest tree branch, swinging her legs.
"How did you.?"
Suddenly Red morphed into a raven, flew down, and changed into Red again.
She stuck out her hand and smiled. "Quote the raven: Nevermore."
- - - - - - - - - - - -
Sorry, that chapter was a little long. See that button down there? Yes, the one that says "Submit Review," press it. Send me a review. If you don't I might never finish this story!!!