A/N: I finished the first book! Now on to the Two Towers! Thank you so much for the reviews! It looks like that chapter was pretty popular. I want to get right into the next chapter, so all replies to reviews are at the bottom. Read on! ~MoI~

Disclaimer: Lord of the Rings never was, is not, and never will be, mine. :P But I did buy a copy of the Silmarillion, does that count? Also, sadly, the only person that belongs to me is Nicole. But she's pretty much useless. If you want her, please e-mail me... I'll start the bidding at 5 cents. ;)

Home Sweet Home

Chapter Twenty-One ~ Colors of Crazy

Nicole had changed, physically, mentally, and grammatically. The first time they stopped (for a grand total of fifteen minutes), she repacked her pack. Now all that was left of her pack was... nothing, actually. She had removed a little bit of each of the medicinal herbs and stuck them in the many pockets of her jacket. Her gloves had gotten lost after the battle when she was tending to Boromir. Nicole didn't miss them all that much and tried to focus on keeping her 'glow' down to a minimum or pulling her hands inside her sleeves. She felt horrible for leaving behind all the tunics and shirts and the other set of clothing that Rahiolae had given her, and for a while she hugged the pack tightly to her chest and refused to give it up.

"Nicole, we must go!" Aragorn insisted, and tried to pry it from her fingers. She stubbornly shook her head. "Would you rather carry around your pack and lag behind, or run swiftly to save Pippin and Merry?" Nicole bit her lip and looked away, it was a tough choice. "Nicole, let go of the pack," Aragorn insisted one last time. She glared at him and handed it over.

"Fine, take away my last piece of sanity. Do you realize that among the clean clothes and useful plants, my only hope of ever SEEMING normal went away???? DO YOU?" she pestered Aragorn, and then huffed off to sulk. In the end, Aragorn allowed her to change her clothes before they moved on and put some of the plants into her coat.

The mental change was obvious: Nicole had forsaken all Elf-ness in hopes of being herself, and also in hopes that Gimli wouldn't notice anything unusual about her. This included using bad grammar, phrases that didn't make sense (even to Nicole), and acting as much of an idiot as possible. But there were still her ears to worry about... the day when they stopped (it was the ONLY day they stopped, and it was the first day of running), they paused beside a stream of running water. Making sure that the Dwarf wasn't close by, Nicole dunked her head into the water. Then she quickly wrung it out and twisted her long hair (it was getting ridiculously long: waist-length and still growing) into a tight bun at the base of her neck, keeping her ears covered by her hair. Pulling her hood over her head, she spent the next few days trying to hide from Gimli.

That was a lot harder than she expected. Since Aragorn was striding ahead of her, and Legolas was nancing in front of Aragorn, Nicole chose to trundle with Gimli. (A/N: I don't know which fanfic author first used the words nancing and trundling, but you are a genius! thank you!). And it was far easier to keep up with the Dwarf than running along with the Man and Elf. Besides, her shin was tightly bandaged now, along with her shoulder, and she preferred to take a slower pace until she got a bit better. Gimli was getting pretty far behind now, and Nicole glanced worriedly at the distant shapes of Aragorn and Legolas. Time for some cheesy inspirational music... she thought.

She started humming the Rocky theme song and ran in circles around Gimli. "Whoo hoo! C'mon Gimli! You can do it! Run! Run, Forrest, Run!" she cheered on. Gimli laughed at the insane girl and kept running even though he was panting heavily. They began to catch up to their companions.

Looking our across the plain, Legolas commented, "They run as though the very whips of their masters were behind them."

Nicole raised an eyebrow. Who exactly is he talking to? Maybe he has an invisible friend... I wouldn't be surprised if his invisible friend happened to look exactly like him, be named Legolas, and be perfect, constantly complimenting the real Legolas. She snorted her laughter. "Ain't that the truth?" she asked nobody in particular, and then her face fell. Dammit, Nicole, you do the exact same thing he does! Pointless words said to nobody... well, at least yours are amusing. He's just strange.

They ran from sunrise to sunset, from moonrise to moonset. The girl gave up on counting days, all she knew was that her feet had been pounding the ground for a long, long, long time. And there was nothing around her to amuse herself with. Just grass, some rocks, some hills, and the three hunters. They probably wouldn't want to play Name-That-Rock with me, Nicole grumbled.

"Do you feel the need to burn, burn, burn off all that holiday fat?!" Nicole began with her best telemarketing voice. "If you answered yes to that question, than have WE got the solution for YOU! Just listen closely, and I'll tell you the secret to get rid of unwanted weight FAST!" She lowered her voice to a stage whisper. "All you have to do is RUN YOUR ASS OFF WITH THREE CRAZY DUDES WHO ARE FOLLOWING A TRAIL ON SOLID ROCK FOR NO GOOD REASON!!!" Nicole glared at them when they turned around to glare at her for shouting so loudly. She stuck her tongue out at them and pouted, stopping where she stood.

"Is there a problem, Nicole?" Gimli asked tensely. The girl's jaw was set and if looks could kill--

"Damn straight!" she burst out. They stared at her: they didn't know what the words meant, but they didn't seem words of incredible joy. The air around her nearly crackled. This was one ticked off girl. It was lucky that it was sunny today, or else her glow would have been noticeable. "You guys are rich, aren't you? Aragorn, have you forgotten who you become? That job comes with money, amigo! Prince Legolas, you're loaded because you own a damn forest! And Gimli, Dwarf. Your people dig to find mithril, gold, and silver. That has money involved too! YOU ALL HAVE MONEY!!!"

"Aye..." replied Gimli uncertainly. He and his companions began to slowly back away from the girl.

"AND??? You have money, we're in a country where they like horses and have lots of them...." she stared at them, wondering when they would catch on. They didn't catch on fast enough. "Can't we BUY horses? And stop running? PLEASE?"

They stood there, blinking at her. "No," Aragorn replied simply.

"ARGH!" Nicole yelled and stomped her foot down in frustration. They calmly turned away from her and began a light jog in the general direction where they thought the Uruk-hai were traveling. Gimli paused for a moment to pat her arm and then started off after them, reminding himself to breathe.

Nicole stood where she was, arms crossed, and stared as they ran away from her. She sighed softly. I know I promised Borry that I would help save the world, but who knew it would be this boring? She sniffled a little when she thought of Boromir. We had some good times, me and Borry. But he told me to be Nicole. Nicole wouldn't be standing here. Nicole would run after them and yell some sarcastic remark at the haggard Ranger, the snobby Elf prince, and the reliable Dwarf. Nicole bit her lip indecisively. Reluctantly, she dropped her arms. "Thank you for listening and comforting me in my moment of suffering," she shouted at the now-distant figures. No response. Huh. Fine. Be that way. Nicole broke into a sprint and ran lightly over the terrain towards them.

And then kept running... and running... and running... and running... for a really long time. How terribly interesting, I just can't tear my attention away from this constant running, Nicole commented dryly. Looks like it's time for another installment of Crazy Things Done By Nicole. She crackled her knuckles and twisted her neck from side to side. Let's see if this Elven body comes with any gymnastics knowledge. The small (miniscule, really) voice of reason in Nicole's head spoke up quietly. You never took any gymnastics classes, and you can barely do a somersault or a cartwheel. Maybe you should do something... safer... and... saner? Nicole grinned and shoved the voice out of her head. She paused for a second, allowing herself to fall behind her fellow runners, so that if she tripped and fell, it wouldn't be so embarrassing. But you're injured! the small voice protested weakly. "Oh, shut your mouth," Nicole muttered under her breath. She judged the distance from the others and nodded to herself. The Elf took a running start, and then flipped her weight forward onto her hands. As if acting under its own commands, and ignoring Nicole completely, her body vaulted and spun through the air, doing a phenomenal display of gymnastics with moves that had names that Nicole couldn't pronounce. She landed shakily on her feet again and tottered uncertainly.

"Cool," she said in a wobbly voice, and moved as though to try it again. A sharp pain in her wrist made her stop. She rolled her eyes and groaned. Stupid wrist. Go ahead, get sprained, like I CARE!!! YOU'RE ONLY ATTACHED TO MY BODY!!!! She pouted again (her new favorite pastime).

"Are you alright, lass?" Gimli shouted back to her, seeing her cradling her wrist.

"Fine, I'm coming," she replied with a forced smile. This was not going well. Her only form of entertainment left had just been ruined by her stupid wrist. Miserable, she broke into a run again to catch up to them.

"Maybe you need a rest," Gimli suggested when she caught up with them at the top of a small and rocky hill.

"No need, my good man," she answered casually, clapping her hands together once and stretching her legs as if preparing for a big race. "Let's rock and roll!"

Gimli cried out and Nicole's full attention snapped to him immediately. The Dwarf had chosen that moment to stumble over a rock jutting up from the ground and rolled the rest of the way down the hill. Nicole winced as she heard him clang downwards. She took off after him, minus the rolling and was at his side in a second, helping him up.

"I didn't mean it literally," Nicole said, brushing dirt off his shoulders. "Sorry," she said apologetically.

"Not idly do the leaves of Lorien fall," Aragorn whispered, stooping to the ground to pick up a pin. It was the leaf-shaped brooch that was given to all the travelers when they left the Golden Wood. One of the hobbit's must have left it behind, or perhaps it was merely chance. Either way, it was a good sign. Nicole's ears picked up his words and she glanced at him sharply. She grinned. When I find those ugly Orcs, they are going to be dead in more ways than one. Nicole was, of course, a loving and soft-hearted creature who loved absolutely everyone she met (yeah, that's right), but in this instance, her thirst for revenge reared its ugly head.

They began to move off again. "Keep up, Gimli!" Legolas shouted back to the Dwarf.

Nicole's jaw dropped at the comment as she took up her place running beside Gimli. "That's not fair! You get words out of that guy, and me? Nothing! And I'm the one who is--" she broke off suddenly, staring straight ahead and hoping the Dwarf had not heard her.

"You are the one who is what?" Gimli questioned.

"Nothing," Nicole replied too quickly, blushed and looked away. She had nearly said that she was the one who was an Elf, just like Legolas. So much for keeping her Elfness a secret. Luckily, Gimli dismissed the matter and they ran on as before. Nicole got bored of just running very quickly. So she added in things to spice things up. Maybe she added a bit too much spice. Or maybe she had gotten drunk.

She started to twirl, spinning herself in crazy circles as she ran, picking up more and more speed. Her hood was flung back from her head and her hair quickly came undone, whirling after her like a shadow. Nicole let her arms flare out from her sides to help her keep her balance as she gazed up at the blue sky, and smiled. Maybe today we'll find Pippin and Merry.. we've been running for long enough, we must be close. And we found the pin... things are looking up. Her head was starting to get dizzy so she stopped spinning and skipped for a while. The men stared at her and she, as usual, ignored them. A song was itching in her mind, and she tried to find the whole words. Thinking it might help her think, Nicole ran three steps, and then launched into a series of gymnastic maneuvers. The pain in her wrist bothered her but the motion of going upside down and sideways and through the air was way too much fun to give up. That is, until her wrist decided it would rather stay immobile. In the middle of a front-hand spring (is that what they're called?), her wrist refused to support her weight and she landed in a crumpled heap on the soft grass.

"Humph," she said, and blew the hair out of her face. Nicole plucked a piece of grass and rolled it between her finger and thumb as she sat waiting for the others to catch up. Legolas was the first to reach her and offered her a hand up. Maybe he heard my comment to Gimli, the girl mused as she gladly accepted his hand. Aragorn reached them next and, being the most experienced healer among them, asked if she was alright.

With a grimace, Nicole held out her left injured wrist. "Got a bandaid?" she asked.

Aragorn inspected her wrist while they waited for Gimli to watch up. When he looked up at her, Nicole tried a smile. "This is not a fresh injury," he stated with an air of accusation. He sighed. "It is only sprained. It will heal quickly," he paused and gave her a look that said it-will-heal-quickly-because-you-are-an-Elf-and-you-shouldn't-do-this-again. "Do you have a bandage?"

Nicole nodded. "That's something I can help you with," she replied. She dug through her many pockets (where she had placed the bandages that had come with the herbs), emptying them one by one. "Hold this," she mumbled several times, thrusting small packets and cloth bundles at the Ranger. Finally, once Aragorn's arms were filled, Nicole victoriously unfurled a long scrap of fabric and gave it to Aragorn. She then plucked all the other items out of his arms and stuffed them back in her multiple pockets with her right hand. "Sorry," she said sheepishly.

Strider tried to give her a stern look, but the corner of his mouth twitched and she grinned. "Do not let it happen again," he said seriously, meaning the injury. He probably didn't want Nicole to think that just because she was an Elf and could heal very fast didn't mean that she should go get herself hurt as often as possible.

"I'll try not to," she said with a wink. Nicole gave Aragorn a quick hug when he finished tying the bandage, catching him by surprise. Then she ran ahead and started spinning/running in dizzy circles again.

"Nicole!" he shouted after her in warning, and then succumbed to his chuckles. "Is there any hope for that girl?" he asked himself softly.

"Not likely," Legolas told his friend. The human smiled at the Elf and they took up the chase again.

Nicole laughed, not caring about the light insult that Legolas had just given her. "I heard that!" she told them gleefully, all the while keeping up her mad circles. The sky is so blue... she noted. Giving a mental shrug, she reasoned, a blue sky, that's a good enough reason to sing a song. The song in her head was getting to the point that the melody was there, but the words would only come if she started singing. Obeying the wishes of the persistent song, Nicole began humming a few bars. "Can you sing with..." she trailed off. The words sounded wrong in Westron. She stopped twirling and reduced her energy level to just running, now that her running buddies had caught up with her. Nicole tried the same phrase in Dwarvish and wrinkled her nose. Definitely not meant to be sung in Dwarvish... Nicole gave it one last shot. *Can you sing with all the voices of the mountains?* She grinned broadly. Perfect. Beginning quietly, her voice quickly getting stronger, Nicole sung the song that had been nagging her.

You think you own whatever land you land on,
The Earth is just a dead thing you can claim.
But I know every rock and tree and creature
Has a life, has a spirit, has a name.

You think the only people who are people
Are the people who look and think like you.
But if you walk the footsteps of a stranger
You'll learn things you never knew you never knew.

Have you ever heard the wolf cry to the blue corn moon?
Or asked the grinning bobcat why he grinned?
Can you sing with all the voices of the mountains?
Can you paint with all the colors of the wind?
Can you paint with all the colors of the wind?

Come run the hidden pine trails of the forest.
Come taste the sunsweet berries of the Earth.
Come roll in all the riches all around you
And for once, never wonder what they're worth.

The rainstorm and the river are my brothers,
The heron and the otter are my friends.
And we are all connected to each other
In a circle, in a hoop that never ends.

How high will the sycamore grow?
If you cut it down, then you'll never know.
And you'll never here the wolf cry to the blue corn moon.

For whether we are white or copper-skinned,
We need to sing with all the voices of the mountains,
We need to paint with all the colors of the wind.

You can own the Earth and still,
All you'll own is Earth until
You can paint with all the colors of the wind...

She let the last note fade into the breeze. Nicole managed to sing it while keeping up the swift pace. Aragorn stared at her. It was the first time he had heard the girl sing, sing well, sing because she was happy, and sing in Elvish. "Did you like it?" Nicole asked. I hope he did... I think it turned out very well. All of them were looking at her now, silently. "What?" she asked, worry taking over. I didn't do anything stupid, did I? Lemme think... other than the injury, and the gymnastics, and the twirling... maybe I have something on my face. What would I give for a compact mirror? "What?" she repeated. The looks they were giving her began to alarm her and she stopped in her tracks. "What's wrong?"

A/N: Compared to the previous chapter, I hope that this one met everyone's standards. It's the first cliffie I've done in quite a while. And it's a really short chapter. But I hope it's ok, nonetheless. Thanks to Feathers of Wind for suggesting a cliffie. She says that my story sucks without them *grins*. Thank you for that comment, ms. perfect. jks. Oh yes, and I forgot to disclaim: the song is Colors of the Wind, from Pocahontas. I'm still too much of a wimp to post one of my own songs. Now, to answer all those wonderful, splendid, gorgeous, fantabulous, much-loved reviews!!!

star 67: I'm trying to follow the book as much as possible, but keep a bit of the movie in it for the people that only watched the movie. So this means that, no, Haldir will not die. He's too cool to die. :) plus, Nicole wouldn't be able to stand it. Thank you for your review!

Feathers of Wind: WHERE IS YOUR UPDATE???? I thought you said that you were getting back into fanfics??? Thanks for reading, but you could have reviewed my other chapters... :( And I'm glad that you think I'm evil in a good way. :D

(\/) II IK IE: How about you actually READ the chapters, instead of just reading the titles? that is, if you find time when you aren't doing history, math, science, french, english, extended essay, some sport, or anything else.

Lady Readalot: I don't know if you've read this far yet, but in reply to your reviews for earlier chapters: I try to make my characters life-like... key word being TRY. Are you sure it isn't a Mary Sue? She sings, she turns into an Elf... I'll probably make her fall in love with somebody later on... thanks for thinking that, anyways! Pippin isn't all that bad... Nicole's going to change her opinion of him soon. I hope. :) Thanks for the criticism, yes, Nicole's been terribly annoying with her stupid talking. I'm going to try to fix her around... seriously... she's starting to annoy me too. Thanks again for being brave enough to criticize! :)

Naomi Maxwell: I made you cry? I'm sorry... *hands Naomi a tissue*... I hope I didn't make you wait too long for this chapter. School has become murder these past few days. I think that Nicole probably will get romantically involved with someone, but I just haven't figured out with who. Any ideas?

Willow Myst: you spell "myst" the same way I spell it! :D cool. Haldir will not be killed. Or hurt... too badly... *apologetic smile* and the old Nicole is making a comeback.

levanna: Legolas and Nicky will chill out, but... it might take a while. hopefully not too long. *pouts* I wish I could write them happy faster, but how to do it without being too Mary-Sue-ish?

Fuzzy: Nicole is semi-life-like... she did become an Elf, after all. But she won't be flying or lighting fires with her mind any time soon. Thanks for reviewing!

Elrohwen: Reviews = excellent = author happy = more updates. :D Thanks for the archery lesson... it seemed so much simpler when you see someone else doing it. Maybe one day I'll actually be able to figure out how to *pick up* a bow, much less hit the target. I always hit the out edge... except for that one bullseye... I think it was beginner's luck. Keep reading, keep reviewing, and keep writing!

Crecy: thanks for your flame. The marshmallows were yummy! Congratulations: you are my first flame-giver. *thinks* actually, you're my first marshmallow-giver too... :)

I think that is it... to everyone else: THANK YOU FOR YOUR REVIEWS!!!! I feel so reviewed. :D yes, I know that doesn't make sense. But that's ok. Please keep reading, and I promise to keep writing! ~MoI~