Disclaimer: I do not own Lord of the Rings. The story and characters officially belong to J.R.R. Tolkien. I do, however own my original character, Saniel. If you wish to use her for some reason, please just ask! ^-^
Warning! Warning! Danger Will Robinson! Ok, maybe not that bad, but I just wanted to warn everybody about this chapter. After rereading it, it's a major Mary Sue at the end. I didn't mean it to turn out like that, but I wanted to illustrate how close Frodo and Saniel are. ::sigh:: I'm sure there are going to be flames on this one, but please try not to be too harsh. Thanks to everyone who reviewed and I hope to see more reviews on this chapter. On with the story! ^-^
Darkness Calls:
Chapter 2:
Five years had passed in the Shire. Things were still peaceful and quiet, as if the growing Shadow was nonexistent in the West. Many an eye of the hobbits started giving Saniel strange looks as she began to grow up along with Frodo and Sam. There had been none of the race of elves or Men in the Shire for a long time. This girl was definitely not a hobbit, for no hobbit had pale gold hair or bright blue eyes, except for Frodo Baggins. The boy had been born and bred some years in Buckland, so this was understandable. Many who saw the girl often said something nasty or glared at her. This she couldn't understand. Frodo and Sam treated her as a best friend, as did Merry and Pippin when they came to visit. Despite the kindness shown to her by her friends and caretaker, Bilbo, Saniel was bothered. She decided to ask Bilbo about it one evening at dinner.
"Bilbo? Why do the other hobbits treat me like I'm a monstrosity?" asked the ten-year-old girl.
Bilbo choked on his potato. After clearing his throat, he looked at Saniel. "How can I say this? My dear elf, the hobbits of the Shire, with the exception of myself and your friends, have never seen any other type of folk here besides hobbits. They're naturally afraid of you."
Saniel nodded her head slowly. She still didn't understand any better than she had. "I would never hurt them. I would never hurt anyone."
"We all know that, Saniel, but the other are very suspicious. They're suspicious of anyone who is different from them or comes from a different land."
"I've been wondering, Bilbo, who is my mother? I had a clear image of her in my mind, but it's fading. All I really remember is that she was called the Lady of Light. All the other elves called her that. I remember the trees as well. They were silver and the elanor was beautiful."
"Elanor?" Frodo asked.
"It was a type of flower that was golden. Mother said that it only grew in Lothlorien." Saniel explained.
"Yes, and it is quite beautiful this time of the year." Came a voice from behind them.
Turning around, they saw a tall man with tangled gray hair and beard standing over them. He had removed his hat and held his staff at an angle so that he could still hold it. He smiled at the young elf.
"You will return there someday, Saniel. When you do, your presence will be much looked forward to."
Saniel rose and ran to hug the man. "Mithrandir!" she cried. "It's good to see you again!"
Frodo looked confused. "Why do you call him that, Sani?"
"Mithrandir means Grey Pilgrim in elvish." She said, giggling. Frodo blushed a little.
"Can you teach me elvish?" Frodo asked.
"Of course! We can start tomorrow."
Gandalf smiled at the two children as they left the table. All seemed well in the Shire, but all wasn't as well as it seemed. He had just come from Minas Tirith and the Shadow was slowly growing. It would only be a matter of time before the Darkness began to reach outward. Sauron's gaze was already fixed upon Ithilien. His fortress of Barad-dur was being rebuilt even now and he was drawing his army to him in small numbers.
----
The moon rose into the sky and cast its silver light on the rolling hills of Hobbiton. Frodo and Saniel lay on their backs gazing up at the navy-colored sky. Stars dotted the never-ending blanket that the moon sat on. Saniel began humming a song that her mother used to sing to her before bed when she was younger. Frodo turned his head to look at her.
"You miss Lothlorien, don't you?" he asked.
Saniel stopped humming but continued to gaze up at the sky. "I do sometimes. I feel very out of place here." She said. Frodo's spirits dropped some. "But then again, I couldn't leave here either. I've been here for so long that I've forgotten what my mother and father look like. I've forgotten my friends from Lothlorien as well."
"Saniel?" Frodo whispered.
"Yes, Frodo?"
"When you go back, would you take me with you?" he asked.
Saniel turned to look at him. She studied his face and eyes, finding that he was asking a truthful question and smiled. "You can come with me if you'd like. I'm sure the elves would love to see you. They have never seen a live periannath before."
"A what?" Frodo exclaimed. Saniel laughed.
"A halfling, or hobbit. That's what the elves call your folk."
"Oh."
"Frodo! Saniel! It's time to come in and go to bed!"
Both of the ten-year-olds jumped up and sprinted for the house, Saniel winning obviously because she had the longer legs.
----
The next day, Bilbo had asked the two to go into town and get some things that he needed for the next few days. Sam gladly accompanied them into the village to get what was needed. Saniel couldn't help but notice the glares that people were giving her as she passed them. Sam and Frodo returned the glares from the taller girl's sides. Their shopping trip had occurred without event, but they weren't so lucky on the return trip.
Frodo, Sam, and Saniel were headed back toward Bagshot Row, when a group of older hobbit boys came up behind them. They all had a grim look about them and were leering at Saniel.
"You're not fit to walk among us, elf." One of them said.
"Yeah, even your own people didn't want you, so they dumped you here." Cried another. Saniel looked at her feet.
"Now look here! That's not right to say to a lady!" Sam shouted in his friend's defense.
"Whose a lady, Gamgee? Not that thing standing beside you!"
"I hear that she calls up the lightning and makes it strike people."
"That's ridiculous! How can you be so cruel?" Frodo spat.
"How can you call yourself a hobbit? Elves are dangerous! Have you not heard stories of them being so deadly accurate with a bow that it's frightening? What's to stop her from using you and Gamgee as target practice?"
That was all Saniel could take. She spun on her heel and ran from them, tears flowing from her eyes. They had no idea what she was really like, no idea at all. She made her way through an open field and climbed the tree that stood there, tucked away from ridicule in its branches.
----
Frodo and Sam hurried back to Bag End and left the packages on the kitchen table. They exited the hole and began their search for Saniel. They called for her and called, but she never replied. Almost an hour and a half of searching, the two young hobbits sat down on the grass for a rest.
"What do you think makes them so mean, Frodo?"
"I don't know, Sam. I don't know. It really hurts Sani though." Frodo replied.
Sam nodded. "I wish they could see past the rumors. She's really a wonderful person, Saniel."
"We can't change people's minds though, Sam. They really have to look beyond what she is on the outside. Inside, she's just as much a hobbit as you or me."
"Don't I know that!" Sam exclaimed.
They both laughed as they stood to continue their search. Within the next half hour, the Gaffer called Sam home and there was still no sign of Saniel. Frodo wandered into the field where the elf had once tried to teach him how to climb a tree. That had ended miserably. As Saniel had grabbed hold of Frodo's hand, it slipped out of her grip and the young hobbit ended up with a rather nasty bump on his head. Frodo had been unconscious for several hours after that. Sure enough, there was Saniel in the branches hugging her knees and hiding her face. Frodo came to the foot of the tree and stopped.
"Sani, please come down." He called up. "We told them off after you left."
There was no reply from above.
Frodo sighed and moved closer to the trunk. "If you won't come down, I guess I'll have to come up." This produced a reaction from Saniel.
"Frodo, are you crazy? Do you remember what happened last time you tried to climb a tree?" she asked quickly.
"Yes, I remember, but you won't answer me." Frodo said as he began try to climb the tree. No sooner had he spoken than he heard a soft thump on the ground behind him. Saniel was crouched, cat-like, where she had jumped from the branch. She stood and looked down slightly at Frodo. Her eyes were pink from crying. Frodo hugged her around the waist and she returned his hug.
"You won't have to worry, Sani, I'll always be your best friend."
"I know you will, Frodo, and I'll always be yours." Saniel replied.
There's chapter two. ^-^ I hope you guys can forgive the Mary Sue. The more reviews I get, the faster I'll post chapter three for everybody. Thanks again!
Aeden