You'll have to excuse the long wait for this chapter. I've been busy as hell and haven't had time to sit and write. I can't wait for summer…then maybe we'll be able to finish this hella-long story.
Disclaimer: We don't own LOTR, Zelda, etc. We do own, however, Penny and Hillary.
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*Hillary*
Apparently, it could get a lot worse. More orcs came pouring through the door after the troll. The troll went after poor Sam, who also had to duck under its massive body to escape being crushed. Sam got up, however, and started beating orcs left and right with his frying pan. Note to self: congratulate Sam after this is all over and buy him a new frying pan.
Penny and I were separated now, she was off by the door, decapitating every other orc that came in, opposite of Legolas, who was stabbing every orc that Penny didn't hit through the middle. They made a great team, a lethal team, the DYNAMIC DUO!! As these thoughts were running through my head, I didn't notice the swarm of orcs that were surrounding me. When my brain came back to me, I panicked, and shoved my sword into one of the disgusting creature's chest. It screamed, and as I pulled the blade back out, I noticed that I only had the hilt in my hand. It had broken in half!
"HELLLLLLLLP!!!!" I screeched. Luckily, Link was right by me, and he mowed them all down with two swipes of the Master Sword. "My hero," I cried, leaping at him. Damnit, he was so much taller than I. He grinned down at me as I let go of him, and I felt a spark…a spark in my heart…like when we were together. I shrugged it off and went back to killing orcs.
Legolas was on a ledge, above Penny, and then the troll came right between them. She had just sliced a goblin in three when the troll swung its chain at Legolas. He ducked it nimbly, and as it got caught around a pillar, he used the chain as a bridge to jump onto the troll's shoulders. He was able to keep his balance on the creature's back, and he fired an arrow straight into its skull just before jumping off. He landed gracefully on his feet, like a cat, and grinned at Penny, who's jaw had dropped.
"You just get cooler every second. That was very switched-on, Legs," she said, and he kissed her quickly.
"Don't act so surprised, love," he replied, grinning and panting. Then the two ran out of the way of the troll heading in their direction.
Gimli could be heard above the rest for once, hollering and growling, and Boromir kept calling for Legolas and his bow. Friggin kill them yourself, I thought, and raced to a corner, hidden behind a pillar. I was pooped. Just rest for a minute…yeah, right. The other four hobbits joined me, and we just kinda stood there, panting, and then I tried to think to myself what happened next in the movie. Fighting…killing…genocide of orcs…troll…hobbits hiding…By the time I remembered, it was too late. The cave troll peeked its ugly head around the corner and roared at us. I was so scared, those disgusting black eyes looked at us all like pieces of its dinner, and I froze. It lifted up its club to kill us, and I felt myself being pulled to the side just as it came crashing down between us. Frodo was left alone, and we really couldn't do much about it.
Sam and Merry and Pippin started chucking rocks at it, really anything they could get their hands on, and I whipped out my bow and arrow just for kicks. I drew one back and fired, and, surprisingly, it actually hit the thing. We bought Frodo enough time to try and hide, but it went after him anyways. Strider came by in the nick of time, thank God, and drove a spear through the troll's chest. It did little to stop him—the troll knocked Strider unconscious and it stabbed Frodo right in the chest. He fell down, and then my boys jumped on its back. Merry and Pippin delivered many blows to the beast with their swords, and as I ran to the center of the room, the troll was obviously being worn down. Penny and Gimli were hacking at its legs like no tomorrow while it was trying to get the hobbits of its back, and it managed to throw Merry off. I raced over to where he landed, and knelt down besides him.
"Hey, Miss Hillary," he said through a large grin. He was obviously dazed from being knocked down so hard. "Have I died and gone to heaven? Cause you're an--"
"Yeah yeah, c'mon, Merry, you can't rest yet, you have to fight still." And I helped him to his feet. He was still dazed, and still grinning.
We looked up, and Pippin delivered one last stab to the back of the troll's head. It howled in pain, and Legolas shot it in the face with an arrow. The troll gave one last moan, tottered forwards, and then fell down, dead. Pippin was flung from its back, right on top of Merry and I. After the shock of hitting the ground faded, Pippin lifted his head and looked at the both of us.
"Why, hello, Merry! Hello Hillary!" he said rather happily.
"Uh-oh, Hobbit love!" I heard Link exclaim across the room, followed by peels of laughter from Penny and Legolas.
"I think I've broken something," Merry said, struggling to sit up.
"Yeah, we've broken Pip's fall," I groaned, and he laughed. The three of us got to our feet, and I mumbled something inappropriate: "I hope that's not the last time I lay down with the two of you…" Both Merry and Pippin turned to me, and grinned. I blushed, and grinned back—they weren't supposed to hear that…
After Penny, Legolas, and Link stopped laughing, we all crowded together, because the last of the orcs had been killed. Strider had woken by this time, and he crawled over to Frodo, who looked quite dead.
"Oh no," Strider said, and turned Frodo over gently. Frodo gave a quick cough, and held his chest. He sat up, and looked around.
"I'm alright," he said, "I'm not hurt!" A sigh of relief flowed from all our mouths.
"That spear would have skewered a wild boar!" Strider said, staring at Frodo in disbelief.
"I think there's more to this outfit than meets the eye," Gimli said, and Frodo revealed the mithril armor under his shirt.
"Nice boobs," I heard Penny whisper behind me, and she and I had to hide our laughter.
"You're full of surprises, Mr. Baggins," Gimli said, resting on his axe. The screams and hysteric laughter of orcs could be heard echoing in the distance.
"We have to keep moving! To the bridge of Khazad-Dum!" Gandalf cried, and we all filed out, running as fast as our legs could carry us.
We got to about the middle of the great hall before the swarming orcs surrounded us completely. Their shrieks, screaming, and laughter were enough to make one go insane. We all stood, waiting for them to attack, watching their every move. Suddenly, a deep growl was heard echoing throughout the halls. The orcs fell into a state of panic, and then turned and ran as fast as they could in the direction they came. Penny and I made eye contact—we knew the horror that was moving our way quickly.
"What is this new devilry?" Boromir asked gravely, tightening the grip on his sword.
"A Balrog. A demon of the ancient world…" Gandalf replied slowly. "This foe is beyond any of you. RUN!" he exclaimed, and we all sprinted as fast as we could out of the room.
*Link*
I thought Hyrule was bad, with evil creatures and monsters. This place, Middle-Earth, made Hyrule look like a fairy-tale land. Facing these creatures, orcs, Legolas called them, in massive amounts was hard enough, but now, a demon? I pressed on harder, and we passed through the entrance to another room, this one more massive than the last. It appeared to have no ceiling, and its floor was so far below, riddled with fire and lava. An enormous stone staircase led the way towards a small bridge, where I assumed an exit would be. Ahead of me Boromir ran. He tottered at the edge of the ledge, and Legolas ran forward, and pulled him back. I overheard Aragorn speak to Gandalf about fighting the demon, but Gandalf just threw him forward.
"Lead them on, Aragorn," Gandalf said. "The bridge is near!"
We all raced down the stairs until we were stopped by a massive gap in them. Legolas nimbly lept across the gap, and called for Gandalf to follow. Gandalf followed him to the other side, and then Penny jumped across. To me, it looked like she floated: her dress and her hair was swept behind her, and she landed gracefully, on her feet, right into the arms of…Legolas. How I wished to be Legolas at that time, it was unfair…As I felt jealously tug at my heart, I also felt someone tug at the bottom of my tunic. I looked down to see Hill. She was so cute when she was small!
"Pick me up, Link, I can't make it across," she said to me, and I picked her up instantly. She clung to me tightly as I leaped across, and Aragorn and Gandalf caught us once we reached the other side. She didn't let go, though, didn't want to be put down, and was trembling terribly. I held on to her as she turned to watch the others come across safely.
"Merry! Pippin!" Boromir cried as he scooped them up and jumped across. Aragorn threw Sam across next, and then attempted to throw Gimli.
"No one tosses a dwarf!" he exclaimed gruffly, and then he jumped across. He landed on the edge, and tottered backwards. Legolas grabbed his beard so he wouldn't fall. "Not the beard!" he screamed as Legolas pulled him over. Hill and Penny couldn't help but laugh. I looked at Hill, in my arms, and then at Penny. Penny was so…beautiful…but completely out of my league. It gets frustrating, knowing that she's there and I can't have her, and at that time I was too stupid to realize the feelings I still had for the equally beautiful woman I had in my arms.
A huge chunk of the stone staircase crumbled and fell off next, leaving Aragorn and Frodo on the other side. The demon could be heard edging closer and closer to us - it was right behind the wall separating the two rooms – and a huge tremor (no doubt caused by the creature) caused a massive piece of stone debris to fall and break off the top part of the staircase, leaving the section Aragorn and Frodo on swaying unsteadily in mid-air. They stood up, however, and leaned forward. The staircase fell forwards, towards us, and as stone met stone, Aragorn and Frodo leaped onto Gandalf and Legolas, and we watched the part of the staircase plummet below us.
I put Hill down at this point and we all raced down the rest of the stairs and across the bridge. We all got across safely; at least I thought we all did. I turned around, and to my horror and the horror of those around me, Gandalf was still on the bridge. He turned and faced the demon. The creature was enormous, enveloped in flame, and it roared menacingly at Gandalf.
"You cannot pass!" I heard him cry. "I am a servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor. The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udun," and then a circle of blue light emitted from his staff, encircling him, protecting him from the fire-whip of the demon.
"YOU SHALL NOT PASS!" Gandalf screamed for the last time, and brought his staff down on the stone bridge. The half of the bridge holding the demon collapsed, and the demon fell with one last giant roar. I sighed with relief, but then then next part played out in slow motion. The Balrog's whip caught Gandalf's ankle, and it pulled him down. Gandalf held on the edge, and tried to pull himself up, but it was impossible.
"Fly, you fools!" he cried, before letting go of the stone. And then he was gone. Gone, forever. My heart sank, and tears leaked from the corners of my eyes as I ran out of the mines and into the bright sunlight of the mountainside.
*Hillary*
Gandalf's death didn't really hit me all at once. I kept thinking to myself, it's only a movie, it's not real…but looking around at all my friends mourning his death, I realized how real this situation was. They were actual people, not actors acting in a movie…real people. And Gandalf was gone, for now, anyways. But Penny and I were the only ones that knew that. Everyone else thought he was gone forever…what a horrible feeling, knowing something like that and not being able to tell anyone.
I wanted so bad to tell Merry and Pippin as I approached them that it would be okay, that Gandalf would be back, just to give it time…but as I kneeled in front of them and saw their tears, I found I couldn't speak, and I just broke down along with them. Merry was holding Pippin, and Pippin was clutching at his heart, sobbing. They both lifted their eyes to mine at the same time, and then reached out, and pulled me into their embrace. We all just hugged each other and cried. I hope they got as much comfort and condolence from me as I received from them.
*Legolas*
Coming out of the mines…out of the dark tomb that swallowed my friend and mentor…and into the bright sunshine was such a horrible shock that I almost had trouble concealing my emotions. Looking around…I couldn't help but feel my face twist from pain and anguish as I witnessed the sorrows of my fellow companions. The Hobbits were especially hard to watch…I felt so absolutely horrible.
"Legolas!" I heard Aragorn call to me. "Legolas, get them up." No, I thought, let them be for a while…
"Give them a moment, for pity's sake!" Boromir cried.
"No!" Aragorn replied. "By nightfall these hills will be swarming with orcs!" And so we were up. It was dawn, and Aragorn said we needed to reach the woods of Lothlorien. Sure enough, by dusk, we had reached the outskirts of the forest.
I got an eerie feeling as we stepped further and further into the wood. My eyes and ears were on full alert; I could detect all movement with my razor-sharp vision. I looked over, and saw that Penny was reacting the same way as I: my girl looked more like an Elf than ever before. I could tell she hadn't been crying over Gandalf's death—she held in her emotions very well, considering she was only half-Elf. I looked over at Hill; what a difference between the two. Before, they were so similar: Penny was only about two inches taller than Hillary, they had similar figures, and were both very…well…human. Now the difference was like night and day. Penny was tall and graceful, more Elf-like every day, and Hillary was small and vulnerable, more Hobbit-like every day. Poor Hillary still had traces of tears down her cheeks, and her hands were linked with Merry and Pippin on each side of her. Gandalf's death obviously still fell heavy on their little hearts.
In the split second between observing all this and then returning my focus back to the woods, I noticed Penny was tense, and she had her hand on the hilt of her sword. I pulled out my bow and arrow as we passed through a circle of immense trees. Looking all around one would see shades of green and brown, and the grey haze of sky as the sun began to fall beneath the earth. Furry moss covered all the rocks on the ground, and green and brown leaves carpeted the dirt floor. It smelled like woodlands, like Mirkwood forest almost, and the air was thick and damp with moisture. The faint chirpings of birds could be heard high within the branches. Then, oddly, nothing could be heard except the trodding of my companions' feet, and then the harsh intrusion of Gimli's voice. I knew something was drawing near. I could feel it.
"Stay close, young Hobbits!" he whispered, waving the Hobbits towards him. "They say a sorceress lives in these woods…an Elf-witch," he said. I smirked a bit; leave it to the Dwarves to blow something way out of proportion. "All who look upon her," Gimli continued, "fall under her spell, and are never seen again." The eyes of the Hobbits, especially Frodo, grew extremely large, and darted around in fear. Someone made a comment to him, I think it was Penny, but I was too concentrated on the presence that I felt earlier—it was much stronger now.
"Don't worry," I heard Gimli say. "I have the eyes of a hawk and the ears of a fox--" and then we were surrounded. A large group of Elves encircled the Fellowship. I knew it was coming; my bow was pointed at the head of the front-most Elf. Apparently, Penny, Aragorn, and Boromir were ready as well; they all had their weapons drawn.
"That Dwarf breathes so loudly we could have shot him in the dark," the leader said, and Gimli glared at him menacingly. Aragorn put down his sword and walked up to him.
"Haldir of Lorien, we need your protection," he said in Elvish. They conversed briefly, and then the group of Elves led us deep into the forest.
*Hillary*
I couldn't believe the beauty of the forest we were in. By the time the sun set, we had reached the area where all the Elves dwelt. Everything was illuminated in bright whites and blues, and a beautiful singing could be heard echoing throughout the wood. Although I couldn't understand it, it was soothing, and I felt calmed while we ascended a giant winding staircase. No doubt we were going to see Galadriel, and she would tell us great things, like she did in the movie. But I didn't really seem to care that much. I didn't care about much of anything anymore, not since Gandalf died.
Sure enough, Galadriel had much to tell, but after she had finished with her spiel, she asked for Penny and I to "linger" while the rest get settled for the night. I was ticked, all I wanted to do was sleep, and cry. Feels like I'd never cried as much in my life as I did now as a Hobbit. Damn these emotions. I grabbed Penny's hand, and she squeezed it as the rest in the room exited except for Galadriel. When I looked at her face all I could think of was Cate Blanchett in the film "Elizabeth." I chuckled a bit to myself, and she seemed to catch my thoughts or something, cause she smiled slightly, too.
"Penelope, Hillary," she said slowly.
"She used my real name," Penny whispered to me, and we laughed silently.
"You are wondering why the two of you are here, are you not?" she said. We nodded simultaneously. "No doubt the gods made no mistake in making sure the two of you arrived home safely to Middle-Earth," she said mysteriously.
"Wait a minute," Penny said, holding up her hand, "our home is on Earth. Earth-Earth, not Middle-Earth."
"That's what you were brought up to believe." If Penny was as confused as I was, then we were, in a word, screwed.
"We're humans, well, we were humans, from Earth," I said, frowning in bewilderment.
"You two do not honestly think your being orphans and having basically the same instincts and feelings tied to the story of J.R.R. Tolkien portrayed in his novels was a coincidence, did you?" Galadriel asked, smiling broadly.
"Well actually…" I said, looking around.
"Wait," Penny said, "Tolkien? You know who Tolkien is?!"
"Tolkien is like the two of you. See, there are certain beings that the gods have chosen to travel across dimensions, to see how the beings of different worlds would coincide with eachother."
"There are other dimensions?" Penny asked.
"Oh yes, quite a many dimensions, actually…many of them we could not even fathom," Galadriel asserted. "And you were actually supposed to be born in this dimension, the two of you, but a glitch somewhere somehow foiled the plans of the gods, and that's how you ended up on Earth completely alone."
Penny and I were silent for a few minutes after that was spoken. It was a lot to take in, and I think Penny took it better than I did, for she spoke up first.
"So, do we have parents?" she asked.
"Yes, you do," Galadriel answered. My heart filled with so many emotions of love, and hope, and joy that I felt like I was going to cry again. Funny thing, most people know at least who their parents were, and if they loved them, but being completely alone, family-wise, in the world for twenty-five years and then finding out you weren't alienated was a pretty good feeling.
"Do they know we exist?" I asked.
"Yes, they have been waiting patiently for the two of you to return home."
"Are they humans?" Penny asked.
"No, your parents are Elves, and Hillary's parents are Hobbits."
"Then why aren't we our full, um, species, yet?" I asked.
"The other High Elves and I have not yet deciphered that yet, we feel that the gods, or whatever force brought you back here, are getting you acclimated to your new bodies and new surroundings before you become full members of your race."
"Why us?" Penny asked.
"My, you two are inquisitive!" Galadriel exclaimed. Whoops, we ticked off the Elf lady. "We're not exactly sure. The gods work in mysterious ways."
"What's the deal with Tolkien?" I asked. "Is he an 'insider' too?"
"Yes, he was actually born hear as well, as a human, and he traveled to Earth to live. Hence the epic novels, and now the movies."
"You know about movies? Isn't that, taboo, or something?" Penny asked her.
"Yes. But we'll never tell. Very few can see into the other dimensions, and those that can are bound to secrecy."
"Why do the actors in the movie look so much like the beings here, you know, like Merry and Pippin?" I asked.
"Those that can not travel across dimensions have similar doubles in the other dimensions, hence the reason why they were picked to star in the movies. Tolkien, and Peter Jackson, another traveler, selected them for that reason."
"This is so mad," Penny said, leaning on my shoulder. Damn my short-ness, I was the perfect height for that.
"It sort-of makes sense now, in a freakish, twilight-zone sort-of way," I said. Galadriel laughed.
"Now that you know, you may go."
"Wait," Penny said. "Is Hyrule another dimension?"
"Yes," Galadriel replied.
"Someone at Nintendo is an insider," I whispered to Penny, and she nodded.
"Wonderful. Now, the two of you can leave," the blonde Elf said. I got the feeling she was trying to get rid of us.
"WAIT!" Penny said as I tried to drag her out of there. "I want my fortune read!" Galadriel gave us the death stare of the century.
"Am I destined to be with Legolas?" my brunette friend cried.
"And am I gunna hook up with Merry, or Pippin?" I asked. "Or both!" Galadriel just laughed as waved us away.
"Well, Hill, love…I guess we're home," Penny said quietly as we began to descend the stairs.
"Yeah," I replied, sighing.
"What are we going to tell the guys?!" we asked each other simultaneously, before collapsing into a fit of giggles.
Well now that the cat is out of the bag…or…something…I'll be running along now! Another cliffhanger, perfectly placed just to TORTURE our readers, leaving them begging for more! lol love you guys, thanks for reading, chapter 20 will be up whenever, teehee.