DISCLAIMER: once again, I own nothing.
NOTE: To my reviewer, I.H.N. I thank you for your supportive points, and I will do my best to make sure those points are revisited somewhere in the fanfic. And on the matter of Kaye, I will let you know more about her when the hobbits reach Rivendell and during the Council of Elrond. But until then, please keep reading! And just as a reminder, this is a fanfic, so some information I put up here may or may not be accurate and I am fully aware of that, but again, I thank you for pointing out my "mistakes" and I will most certainly keep them in mind.
ANOTHER NOTE: just so you all now, Kaye is sort of like a family friend of the Baggins' (I'll will explain later!!) and she usually stays with them whenever she visits, so don't go all psycho on me when she refers back to staying in Bag End.
YET ANOTHER NOTE: for my reviewer's sake, I went back to chappie one and changed parts of it so that it followed through with their advice given to me. And please feel free, I.H.N., to correct me on some of the historical mistakes I make; I will be happy to fix them as well as I can.
WOW, I HAVE WAY TOO MANY NOTES: I do not speak elfish! I basically just made up words that sorta sounded like it, so sorry to all you elfish- speaking fans! (just for future reference)
:: Keep it Secret. Keep it Safe ::
Months passed since the departure of both Bilbo and Gandalf. So long it was that both Kaye and Frodo had nearly forgotten about them. But whenever the girl passed the trunk with Bilbo's ring hidden within, a shiver raced across her spine . . .
Night crept over the sleepy town of Hobbiton. But deep within the Shire, a shadow on horseback raced through the peaceful land; reaching out with its master's hand across the Shire . . .
-----
Two hobbits danced merrily—and somewhat drunk—on top of one of the Green Dragon's tables, kicking over tankards as they went; their voices singing over the crowd. Other hobbits clapped and sang with them.
"Merry! Pippin!" Kaye cried, "Mr. Cotton will have your heads if you break another one of his tables!"
"Aw, that's not true!" Pippin laughed, "He'll only ban us from the pub for a little while!"
"Hey, Pip," Merry stopped for a moment, "Isn't that a bad thing?"
The two of them looked at one another before bursting into laughter once more and continued dancing. The girl sighed and made her way to the back of the bar towards Frodo and Sam.
"I don't know what I'm going to do with those two!" she said while pulling up a seat next to Sam, "One of these days they're going to trash the entire Green Dragon!" she placed her head in her hands wearily and laughed slightly, "I guess I shouldn't worry too much, then."
"Yeah, don't worry about 'em" Frodo told her, pushing his ale aside, "Rosie will probably settle them down sooner or later--," the hobbit stopped when Sam's face began to flush a deep red at the sound of her name.
A clock somewhere chimed midnight and Kaye stood sleepily.
"I'm going back to Bag End, are you coming, Frodo?" she asked the hobbit.
He nodded, "Yeah, hey, I'll see you later!" he told Sam over his shoulder. The gardener lifted his drink as the two departed.
They traveled wordlessly down the path and as they reached the hobbit's home, the rooms within seemed especially dark. Nothing stirred in the night . . . all was silent.
Frodo was first to reach the door and opened it slowly. They two stepped onto the terrace and looked around cautiously.
Parchment fluttered to the ground from the wind blowing through an open window.
"Was that window opened before?" Kaye asked quietly.
Frodo shook his head, "I don't think so--."
Suddenly, the hobbit gasped as a hand clasped on his shoulder. Frodo whirled and come face to face with a rather bedraggled Gandalf.
"Is it secret?" he hissed, "Is it safe?!"
------
As Kaye started a fire, Frodo searched through the old chest that sat against the wall. After a moment, he lifted himself up again with and envelope in hand.
"Here--!"
But the wizard had already snatched it from him and had tossed it into the now dancing flames.
"What are you doing?!" Frodo cried.
But the wizard didn't answer. His eyes glowed eerily against the flames as he watched the envelope burn into ash. The ring within, however, remained solid in the fire. After a moment, he took the tongs sitting nearby and lifted the gold band from the embers.
"Hold out your hand, Frodo," he told the hobbit, "It's quite cool . . ."
Cautiously, he did as he was told and gasped as the ring was dropped into his palm. Kaye peered over his shoulder as he observed the band.
"What do you see?" the wizard asked, "Do you see anything?"
Frodo shook his head, "Nothing . . . but wait—there are markings; it's some form of elfish—I can't read it . . ."
Gandalf sighed darkly, his features turning grave, "The language is that of Mordor . . . in the Common Tongue it reads: 'One ring to rule them all . . . One ring to find them . . . One ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them . . ."
------
Kaye only listened half-heartily as she poured tea for the two men. She preferred not to listen at all; she didn't want to hear a word about that horrid ring . . . the one ring that brought her so much pain . . .
"This is the One Ring," Gandalf was saying, "Forged by the Dark Lord Sauron to rule all of Middle Earth . . ."
The girl tried not to listen, even though she knew she should. That wretched ring had been the cause of the pain she was in earlier.
". . . Bilbo found it . . ." Frodo murmured, ". . . in Gollum's Cave . . ."
"Yes . . . I tried to get to Gollum . . . but the enemy found him first . . . and through all their torturing he cried out two words: Shire . . . Baggins."
The teapot shattered across the flour as Kaye dropped it in both shock and fear. She mumbled a quick apology and began picking up the larger pieces and throwing them away.
"Shire, Baggins?" Frodo repeated, horrified, "But that would lead them here!"
"Gandalf," Kaye cut in, "Frodo cannot stay here; it's not safe!"
"No . . ." he shook his head, "The ring cannot stay in the Shire . . . we will have to take it out . . ." the wizard shook his head again, "You will have to go with him, Kaye; you are not safe here, either . . . ." he switched his attention back to the hobbit, "You two are to make for the village of Bree; I will meet you there at the inn of the Prancing Pony."
Both Kaye and Frodo Began packing up their few belongings as the wizard continued to talk. They were to stay off the roads and travel only by day until they reached Bree.
Together, they wrapped their cloaks around their shoulders.
"Where will you go?" the hobbit asked him.
"I am going to speak with the head of my council; he is both wise and powerful . . ." his expression darkened, "There are questions that need to be answered."
Gandalf turned to the girl and leaned towards her ear.
"You will have to protect him, Kaye, the pull of the ring is strong . . . and Sauron's mind is twisted enough to corrupt the mind of one so innocent as a hobbit," he gestured towards the boy packing a loaf of bread, "I am giving you permission to use Narulin—but only if you have to."
The girl nodded but her eyes were those of one terrorized with fear.
"Frodo--," the wizard froze, his head darting towards the window, "You two—get down," he whispered as he made his way towards the window.
The bushes rustled dangerously and Gandalf took his staff in his hands. Quickly, he struck the staff into the hedge and almost immediately, a grunt followed. He bent through the opened and returned quickly with a figure in hand, whom he slammed on the table.
"Samwise Gamgee! Have you been eaves dropping?!" he roared.
The stout hobbit shook violently, "No, Mr. Gandalf, sir—I haven't been dropping no eaves sir! Honest! Well . . . I did hear a good deal about a dark lord and the end of the world—but please Mr. Gandalf, don't turn me into anything . . . unnatural . . ."
Gandalf almost smiled deviously, "No . . . I have a better use for you . . ."
-----
Kaye's PoV
What had I gotten myself into?
It seemed as if everywhere I looked were the Dark Lord's eyes, glaring at me with their fiery malice. But I couldn't let myself bring down Frodo and Sam more than they already were.
I looked across the tiny campfire at the young hobbits sleeping. It saddened me to know that such a hell-ridden thing would find its way into Frodo's hands.
Sighing, I leaned up against the trunk of a tree. Bree . . . the dark gloom of men and run-down homes and inns, why couldn't Gandalf have chosen someplace away from the greedy eyes of men? Somewhere like Rivendell?
Suddenly, something . . . some hauntingly beautiful song entered my ears. I turned, searching for the source.
"Frodo, Sam" I whispered and prodded them awake, "Wake up!"
They rubbed their eyes wearily and blinked, "What is it?" Sam asked.
I smiled, "Come on . . . I'll show you!"
As they rose to their feet, I began to make my way through the forest brush. The hobbits followed close behind. Both of them looked confused until they too heard the music. They followed, entranced by the foreign noise.
"What is it, Kaye?" Frodo asked.
I smiled as I stepped over a log and behind a tree, "It's the elves!" I murmured.
And so it was. As we traveled up a small hill, a company of graceful creatures glided delicately over the forest floor. Their flowing gowns draped around them and their banners billowed in an imaginary wind. And eerie white aura enveloped the group as if touched by the grace of heaven.
The elves of Rivendell . . .
My people.
Silently, I prayed that their voyage would be safe . . . that nothing would happen to them on their journey to the Undying Lands.
I wondered now who it was that traveled now . . . any of my childhood friends, perhaps a relative . . . but I did not know, maybe I would never know.
"Elves . . ." Sam repeated awe-struck, "Aren't they beautiful, Mr. Frodo?"
They were . . . probably because they weren't weighed down by the responsibility of a ring . . .
Okay, I promise I'll update soon, everyone! But please keep reading and hopefully reviewing! Gomen! Ja'ne!
NOTE: To my reviewer, I.H.N. I thank you for your supportive points, and I will do my best to make sure those points are revisited somewhere in the fanfic. And on the matter of Kaye, I will let you know more about her when the hobbits reach Rivendell and during the Council of Elrond. But until then, please keep reading! And just as a reminder, this is a fanfic, so some information I put up here may or may not be accurate and I am fully aware of that, but again, I thank you for pointing out my "mistakes" and I will most certainly keep them in mind.
ANOTHER NOTE: just so you all now, Kaye is sort of like a family friend of the Baggins' (I'll will explain later!!) and she usually stays with them whenever she visits, so don't go all psycho on me when she refers back to staying in Bag End.
YET ANOTHER NOTE: for my reviewer's sake, I went back to chappie one and changed parts of it so that it followed through with their advice given to me. And please feel free, I.H.N., to correct me on some of the historical mistakes I make; I will be happy to fix them as well as I can.
WOW, I HAVE WAY TOO MANY NOTES: I do not speak elfish! I basically just made up words that sorta sounded like it, so sorry to all you elfish- speaking fans! (just for future reference)
:: Keep it Secret. Keep it Safe ::
Months passed since the departure of both Bilbo and Gandalf. So long it was that both Kaye and Frodo had nearly forgotten about them. But whenever the girl passed the trunk with Bilbo's ring hidden within, a shiver raced across her spine . . .
Night crept over the sleepy town of Hobbiton. But deep within the Shire, a shadow on horseback raced through the peaceful land; reaching out with its master's hand across the Shire . . .
-----
Two hobbits danced merrily—and somewhat drunk—on top of one of the Green Dragon's tables, kicking over tankards as they went; their voices singing over the crowd. Other hobbits clapped and sang with them.
"Merry! Pippin!" Kaye cried, "Mr. Cotton will have your heads if you break another one of his tables!"
"Aw, that's not true!" Pippin laughed, "He'll only ban us from the pub for a little while!"
"Hey, Pip," Merry stopped for a moment, "Isn't that a bad thing?"
The two of them looked at one another before bursting into laughter once more and continued dancing. The girl sighed and made her way to the back of the bar towards Frodo and Sam.
"I don't know what I'm going to do with those two!" she said while pulling up a seat next to Sam, "One of these days they're going to trash the entire Green Dragon!" she placed her head in her hands wearily and laughed slightly, "I guess I shouldn't worry too much, then."
"Yeah, don't worry about 'em" Frodo told her, pushing his ale aside, "Rosie will probably settle them down sooner or later--," the hobbit stopped when Sam's face began to flush a deep red at the sound of her name.
A clock somewhere chimed midnight and Kaye stood sleepily.
"I'm going back to Bag End, are you coming, Frodo?" she asked the hobbit.
He nodded, "Yeah, hey, I'll see you later!" he told Sam over his shoulder. The gardener lifted his drink as the two departed.
They traveled wordlessly down the path and as they reached the hobbit's home, the rooms within seemed especially dark. Nothing stirred in the night . . . all was silent.
Frodo was first to reach the door and opened it slowly. They two stepped onto the terrace and looked around cautiously.
Parchment fluttered to the ground from the wind blowing through an open window.
"Was that window opened before?" Kaye asked quietly.
Frodo shook his head, "I don't think so--."
Suddenly, the hobbit gasped as a hand clasped on his shoulder. Frodo whirled and come face to face with a rather bedraggled Gandalf.
"Is it secret?" he hissed, "Is it safe?!"
------
As Kaye started a fire, Frodo searched through the old chest that sat against the wall. After a moment, he lifted himself up again with and envelope in hand.
"Here--!"
But the wizard had already snatched it from him and had tossed it into the now dancing flames.
"What are you doing?!" Frodo cried.
But the wizard didn't answer. His eyes glowed eerily against the flames as he watched the envelope burn into ash. The ring within, however, remained solid in the fire. After a moment, he took the tongs sitting nearby and lifted the gold band from the embers.
"Hold out your hand, Frodo," he told the hobbit, "It's quite cool . . ."
Cautiously, he did as he was told and gasped as the ring was dropped into his palm. Kaye peered over his shoulder as he observed the band.
"What do you see?" the wizard asked, "Do you see anything?"
Frodo shook his head, "Nothing . . . but wait—there are markings; it's some form of elfish—I can't read it . . ."
Gandalf sighed darkly, his features turning grave, "The language is that of Mordor . . . in the Common Tongue it reads: 'One ring to rule them all . . . One ring to find them . . . One ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them . . ."
------
Kaye only listened half-heartily as she poured tea for the two men. She preferred not to listen at all; she didn't want to hear a word about that horrid ring . . . the one ring that brought her so much pain . . .
"This is the One Ring," Gandalf was saying, "Forged by the Dark Lord Sauron to rule all of Middle Earth . . ."
The girl tried not to listen, even though she knew she should. That wretched ring had been the cause of the pain she was in earlier.
". . . Bilbo found it . . ." Frodo murmured, ". . . in Gollum's Cave . . ."
"Yes . . . I tried to get to Gollum . . . but the enemy found him first . . . and through all their torturing he cried out two words: Shire . . . Baggins."
The teapot shattered across the flour as Kaye dropped it in both shock and fear. She mumbled a quick apology and began picking up the larger pieces and throwing them away.
"Shire, Baggins?" Frodo repeated, horrified, "But that would lead them here!"
"Gandalf," Kaye cut in, "Frodo cannot stay here; it's not safe!"
"No . . ." he shook his head, "The ring cannot stay in the Shire . . . we will have to take it out . . ." the wizard shook his head again, "You will have to go with him, Kaye; you are not safe here, either . . . ." he switched his attention back to the hobbit, "You two are to make for the village of Bree; I will meet you there at the inn of the Prancing Pony."
Both Kaye and Frodo Began packing up their few belongings as the wizard continued to talk. They were to stay off the roads and travel only by day until they reached Bree.
Together, they wrapped their cloaks around their shoulders.
"Where will you go?" the hobbit asked him.
"I am going to speak with the head of my council; he is both wise and powerful . . ." his expression darkened, "There are questions that need to be answered."
Gandalf turned to the girl and leaned towards her ear.
"You will have to protect him, Kaye, the pull of the ring is strong . . . and Sauron's mind is twisted enough to corrupt the mind of one so innocent as a hobbit," he gestured towards the boy packing a loaf of bread, "I am giving you permission to use Narulin—but only if you have to."
The girl nodded but her eyes were those of one terrorized with fear.
"Frodo--," the wizard froze, his head darting towards the window, "You two—get down," he whispered as he made his way towards the window.
The bushes rustled dangerously and Gandalf took his staff in his hands. Quickly, he struck the staff into the hedge and almost immediately, a grunt followed. He bent through the opened and returned quickly with a figure in hand, whom he slammed on the table.
"Samwise Gamgee! Have you been eaves dropping?!" he roared.
The stout hobbit shook violently, "No, Mr. Gandalf, sir—I haven't been dropping no eaves sir! Honest! Well . . . I did hear a good deal about a dark lord and the end of the world—but please Mr. Gandalf, don't turn me into anything . . . unnatural . . ."
Gandalf almost smiled deviously, "No . . . I have a better use for you . . ."
-----
Kaye's PoV
What had I gotten myself into?
It seemed as if everywhere I looked were the Dark Lord's eyes, glaring at me with their fiery malice. But I couldn't let myself bring down Frodo and Sam more than they already were.
I looked across the tiny campfire at the young hobbits sleeping. It saddened me to know that such a hell-ridden thing would find its way into Frodo's hands.
Sighing, I leaned up against the trunk of a tree. Bree . . . the dark gloom of men and run-down homes and inns, why couldn't Gandalf have chosen someplace away from the greedy eyes of men? Somewhere like Rivendell?
Suddenly, something . . . some hauntingly beautiful song entered my ears. I turned, searching for the source.
"Frodo, Sam" I whispered and prodded them awake, "Wake up!"
They rubbed their eyes wearily and blinked, "What is it?" Sam asked.
I smiled, "Come on . . . I'll show you!"
As they rose to their feet, I began to make my way through the forest brush. The hobbits followed close behind. Both of them looked confused until they too heard the music. They followed, entranced by the foreign noise.
"What is it, Kaye?" Frodo asked.
I smiled as I stepped over a log and behind a tree, "It's the elves!" I murmured.
And so it was. As we traveled up a small hill, a company of graceful creatures glided delicately over the forest floor. Their flowing gowns draped around them and their banners billowed in an imaginary wind. And eerie white aura enveloped the group as if touched by the grace of heaven.
The elves of Rivendell . . .
My people.
Silently, I prayed that their voyage would be safe . . . that nothing would happen to them on their journey to the Undying Lands.
I wondered now who it was that traveled now . . . any of my childhood friends, perhaps a relative . . . but I did not know, maybe I would never know.
"Elves . . ." Sam repeated awe-struck, "Aren't they beautiful, Mr. Frodo?"
They were . . . probably because they weren't weighed down by the responsibility of a ring . . .
Okay, I promise I'll update soon, everyone! But please keep reading and hopefully reviewing! Gomen! Ja'ne!