Title of Story: The Tales of the Nine
Author: LokiMinerva
Rating: G – PG
Disclaimer: I don't own Lord of the Rings. I don't even own my favorite characters, or a copy of the book that isn't loved to pieces, meaning I read it so much the middle chapter of FOTR fell out.
A/N: I started work on another, definitely better fanfic, but I needed to release the overabundance of creativity in the form of another chapter for this story. (I am laughing at myself after that statement. Translation: this story helps to cure my writers block.) Please review, no flames. *A big thank you to Fox-Demon-Girl for reviewing! ;-)*
*Tales of the Nine*
Sam grabbed Frodo by the arm and shuddered at the shriek. "Wwwhat was that?!" he stammered.
The shriek was swiftly followed by a roar of rage that came from a bush several yards to Sam and Frodo's left. "PIPPIN!" the bush howled. At that moment, Pippin flew past them with a look of the utmost terror upon his face. "I'm sorry!" he yelled as he raced past them with an enraged Merry hot on his heels yelling, "THAT WASN'T FUNNY!"
The Fellowship breathed a collective sigh of relief while Merry chased Pippin up and down the shoreline screaming, "YOU DO NOT PROD ME AND SAY THAT YOU'LL EAT ME WHEN I'M TRYING TO SEE IF THERE'S ANYTHING DANGEROUS!"
Everyone started to tramp back down the hill when they were stopped by Aragorn.
"I still wish everyone to keep up their guard. Pippin may have played a foolish trick, but the danger is still present." The others nodded; Frodo and Sam barely contained their laughter as the other two hobbits ran past them in a blur of racing appendages.
Another shriek rent the air, stopping everyone in their tracks. Pippin skidded to an abrupt halt and Merry crashed headlong into him.
"That wasn't me!" said Pippin hurriedly as his cousin eyes bored murderously into him. Merry looked up and around but saw nothing out of the ordinary. Legolas happened to see with his keen eyes, a dark something heading towards them over the darkening, misty horizon. He called to Aragorn and pointed in the direction of the thing, but it was too far away for Aragorn to see.
The dark thing in the air cried out in again, and this time it was near enough that they could hear its sound distinctly.
"Ringwraiths!" cried Aragorn. "RUN!"
The Fellowship took off through the trees, the frequency of the cries from downriver telling them that the wraith was still in pursuit. Legolas sprinted swiftly deeper into the foliage with Gimli lagging behind him, though still running as fast as his short legs could carry him. Aragorn and Boromir drew their swords from their sheaths as they ran, knowing that it would probably come down to a fight. The hobbits ran off in a small pack, scurrying away.
The screeches were now on top of them, and the entire company stood rooted to their respective spots, swords, axes, and arrowheads ready to strike. Several minutes passed, and the company wondered whether it was a false alarm. Merry kept his eyes on Pippin to make sure he didn't do anything stupid.
Aragorn gave them the signal to move, and the entire company emerged once more. This time, however, they were far more wary, and not all of them sheathed their weapons. The hobbits had had quite enough adventure for one night, and now that the fear had passed they even began to talk amongst themselves about what had happened, and about when the next meal would be.
Legolas gracefully caught up with Aragorn. The ranger's face was set in a rigid mask, his hand upon the hilt of his sword.
"No rest for the weary, my friend," he muttered darkly, his eyes fixed on the sky.
The company then began rolling themselves up in blankets, sleep coming easily to the hobbits and Gimli, while Aragorn, Legolas, and Boromir decided to keep watch at the same time lest anything come.
The three watchers sat waiting, the waxing moon drifting slowly overhead, throwing the entire river into a mosaic of light and shadow, reflecting off of the gray mist hovering just above it.
The watchers had all but forgotten about the earlier problems they had faced, and had settled down for a long night of waiting, when Sam suddenly started from his sleep and cried, "Mr. Frodo!"
Boromir turned around first, intending to tell Sam it had all been a bad dream, when he happened to look to Sam's left, at where Frodo had been sleeping, but the hobbit was gone. Sam began to panic and heedless of danger, he called out "Mr. Frodo! Frodo, me dear, where are you?!" Aragorn sprang to his feet and Legolas roused the others into wakefulness. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------
Frodo was several hundred yards away, wrestling with himself. He had the overwhelming compulsion to put on the Ring and continue in the direction he was going, but his mind kept screaming, "NO! I WON'T DO IT!" So he kept on walking, his feet shuffling along, his mind protesting vehemently. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------
What had started out as panic back at the camp was now fully fledged chaos, courtesy, for most part, of Sam. The younger hobbits had emerged from their blankets to Sam calling for Frodo and the others alternately offering suggestions as to his whereabouts, deciding who would look for him, and trying to placate Sam. Merry was the first awake of the younger hobbits, and he shoved Pippin roughly.
"Pippin, wake up!" he hissed at his cousin.
"What's happening?" Pippin queried.
"Frodo's gone!"
"What?"
"He's gone! Come on, let's go help look!"
The company split into two groups, Aragorn, Legolas, and Sam going one way, Merry, Pippin, Gimli, and Boromir the other. The two parties searched everywhere, wondering if Frodo had put on the Ring, wondering what had driven him out of bed in the first place.
Boromir lead his group around to the left side of the shore. Gimli muttered the entire way, something about, *What in the name of Durin was he thinking?* As they circled back to camp, having gone around all of the trees in the surrounding area, they heard shouts from the other party, and ran to them. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------
Aragorn's company had gone the opposite direction from Boromir's when Legolas heard Sam's footsteps stop. He looked around for the hobbit, but he could neither see nor hear him. When he called to Aragorn, and they went around for Sam, they heard another bone chilling cry.
This time, they didn't have to strain their eyes to find the wraith. He was right in front of them, with an unconscious Sam draped across the withers of his mount.
Aragorn and Legolas ran as fast as they could towards the wraith, but as they were about to set weapons to his mount, the wraith took off into the air. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------
Frodo had come to himself. He had a vague idea of his struggle with the Ring, but he had been half asleep, he didn't remember much. He figured he couldn't have gotten very far from the camp, so he turned around headed back, wishing he'd had the strength to throw off the Ring's temptations and cursing himself for his lack of will power. He then heard the wraith's cry and the shouts of his companions as they rushed to Sam's aid. He impulsively sprinted towards the direction of the noises, arriving just in time to see the wraith take off with Sam.
"SAM!" he cried.
"Frodo?" Aragorn said nonplussed as Frodo barreled into the glade, "Frodo! Wait, come back here! Legolas is going after Sam! There isn't anything you can do!"
He grabbed the hobbit by his shoulder, but the hobbit fought back with surprising ferocity.
"I've got to get Sam!" he kept repeating in a strangled voice.
Frodo finally managed to wriggle free of Aragorn's grasp, and without the hindrance, he took off for the shoreline, where the wraith had taken Sam, and Aragorn followed. Frodo crashed heedless through the underbrush, shoving his way past shrubs and small thorn bushes before colliding with Pippin. Boromir grabbed Frodo and held him fast while Aragorn called them all down to the shore, realizing it was useless to hold anyone back. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------
Sam had the strangest sensation. He was flying! He immediately seized up, his natural hobbit fear of heights kicking in. The back of his head was roaring with pain, but where was he? He could hear the Gaffer admonishing him for being caught unawares in a strange place. "You're a ninnyhammer and a goose, Samwise Gamgee," Sam mumbled. A shrill, ethereal voice from above his head snarled, "Be still, Shire rat."
At that Sam started, and looked at the wraith. He mumbled in fear for a few seconds before backing away in fear. Unfortunately, the only way to go on a flying beast was down, and Sam did. Through a haze, he fell fifty feet from the ascending beast to the foggy, roaring waters below him.
A/N: I know, a cliffhanger, how dare I?! Read, review, and there may be more!
Author: LokiMinerva
Rating: G – PG
Disclaimer: I don't own Lord of the Rings. I don't even own my favorite characters, or a copy of the book that isn't loved to pieces, meaning I read it so much the middle chapter of FOTR fell out.
A/N: I started work on another, definitely better fanfic, but I needed to release the overabundance of creativity in the form of another chapter for this story. (I am laughing at myself after that statement. Translation: this story helps to cure my writers block.) Please review, no flames. *A big thank you to Fox-Demon-Girl for reviewing! ;-)*
*Tales of the Nine*
Sam grabbed Frodo by the arm and shuddered at the shriek. "Wwwhat was that?!" he stammered.
The shriek was swiftly followed by a roar of rage that came from a bush several yards to Sam and Frodo's left. "PIPPIN!" the bush howled. At that moment, Pippin flew past them with a look of the utmost terror upon his face. "I'm sorry!" he yelled as he raced past them with an enraged Merry hot on his heels yelling, "THAT WASN'T FUNNY!"
The Fellowship breathed a collective sigh of relief while Merry chased Pippin up and down the shoreline screaming, "YOU DO NOT PROD ME AND SAY THAT YOU'LL EAT ME WHEN I'M TRYING TO SEE IF THERE'S ANYTHING DANGEROUS!"
Everyone started to tramp back down the hill when they were stopped by Aragorn.
"I still wish everyone to keep up their guard. Pippin may have played a foolish trick, but the danger is still present." The others nodded; Frodo and Sam barely contained their laughter as the other two hobbits ran past them in a blur of racing appendages.
Another shriek rent the air, stopping everyone in their tracks. Pippin skidded to an abrupt halt and Merry crashed headlong into him.
"That wasn't me!" said Pippin hurriedly as his cousin eyes bored murderously into him. Merry looked up and around but saw nothing out of the ordinary. Legolas happened to see with his keen eyes, a dark something heading towards them over the darkening, misty horizon. He called to Aragorn and pointed in the direction of the thing, but it was too far away for Aragorn to see.
The dark thing in the air cried out in again, and this time it was near enough that they could hear its sound distinctly.
"Ringwraiths!" cried Aragorn. "RUN!"
The Fellowship took off through the trees, the frequency of the cries from downriver telling them that the wraith was still in pursuit. Legolas sprinted swiftly deeper into the foliage with Gimli lagging behind him, though still running as fast as his short legs could carry him. Aragorn and Boromir drew their swords from their sheaths as they ran, knowing that it would probably come down to a fight. The hobbits ran off in a small pack, scurrying away.
The screeches were now on top of them, and the entire company stood rooted to their respective spots, swords, axes, and arrowheads ready to strike. Several minutes passed, and the company wondered whether it was a false alarm. Merry kept his eyes on Pippin to make sure he didn't do anything stupid.
Aragorn gave them the signal to move, and the entire company emerged once more. This time, however, they were far more wary, and not all of them sheathed their weapons. The hobbits had had quite enough adventure for one night, and now that the fear had passed they even began to talk amongst themselves about what had happened, and about when the next meal would be.
Legolas gracefully caught up with Aragorn. The ranger's face was set in a rigid mask, his hand upon the hilt of his sword.
"No rest for the weary, my friend," he muttered darkly, his eyes fixed on the sky.
The company then began rolling themselves up in blankets, sleep coming easily to the hobbits and Gimli, while Aragorn, Legolas, and Boromir decided to keep watch at the same time lest anything come.
The three watchers sat waiting, the waxing moon drifting slowly overhead, throwing the entire river into a mosaic of light and shadow, reflecting off of the gray mist hovering just above it.
The watchers had all but forgotten about the earlier problems they had faced, and had settled down for a long night of waiting, when Sam suddenly started from his sleep and cried, "Mr. Frodo!"
Boromir turned around first, intending to tell Sam it had all been a bad dream, when he happened to look to Sam's left, at where Frodo had been sleeping, but the hobbit was gone. Sam began to panic and heedless of danger, he called out "Mr. Frodo! Frodo, me dear, where are you?!" Aragorn sprang to his feet and Legolas roused the others into wakefulness. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------
Frodo was several hundred yards away, wrestling with himself. He had the overwhelming compulsion to put on the Ring and continue in the direction he was going, but his mind kept screaming, "NO! I WON'T DO IT!" So he kept on walking, his feet shuffling along, his mind protesting vehemently. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------
What had started out as panic back at the camp was now fully fledged chaos, courtesy, for most part, of Sam. The younger hobbits had emerged from their blankets to Sam calling for Frodo and the others alternately offering suggestions as to his whereabouts, deciding who would look for him, and trying to placate Sam. Merry was the first awake of the younger hobbits, and he shoved Pippin roughly.
"Pippin, wake up!" he hissed at his cousin.
"What's happening?" Pippin queried.
"Frodo's gone!"
"What?"
"He's gone! Come on, let's go help look!"
The company split into two groups, Aragorn, Legolas, and Sam going one way, Merry, Pippin, Gimli, and Boromir the other. The two parties searched everywhere, wondering if Frodo had put on the Ring, wondering what had driven him out of bed in the first place.
Boromir lead his group around to the left side of the shore. Gimli muttered the entire way, something about, *What in the name of Durin was he thinking?* As they circled back to camp, having gone around all of the trees in the surrounding area, they heard shouts from the other party, and ran to them. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------
Aragorn's company had gone the opposite direction from Boromir's when Legolas heard Sam's footsteps stop. He looked around for the hobbit, but he could neither see nor hear him. When he called to Aragorn, and they went around for Sam, they heard another bone chilling cry.
This time, they didn't have to strain their eyes to find the wraith. He was right in front of them, with an unconscious Sam draped across the withers of his mount.
Aragorn and Legolas ran as fast as they could towards the wraith, but as they were about to set weapons to his mount, the wraith took off into the air. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------
Frodo had come to himself. He had a vague idea of his struggle with the Ring, but he had been half asleep, he didn't remember much. He figured he couldn't have gotten very far from the camp, so he turned around headed back, wishing he'd had the strength to throw off the Ring's temptations and cursing himself for his lack of will power. He then heard the wraith's cry and the shouts of his companions as they rushed to Sam's aid. He impulsively sprinted towards the direction of the noises, arriving just in time to see the wraith take off with Sam.
"SAM!" he cried.
"Frodo?" Aragorn said nonplussed as Frodo barreled into the glade, "Frodo! Wait, come back here! Legolas is going after Sam! There isn't anything you can do!"
He grabbed the hobbit by his shoulder, but the hobbit fought back with surprising ferocity.
"I've got to get Sam!" he kept repeating in a strangled voice.
Frodo finally managed to wriggle free of Aragorn's grasp, and without the hindrance, he took off for the shoreline, where the wraith had taken Sam, and Aragorn followed. Frodo crashed heedless through the underbrush, shoving his way past shrubs and small thorn bushes before colliding with Pippin. Boromir grabbed Frodo and held him fast while Aragorn called them all down to the shore, realizing it was useless to hold anyone back. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------
Sam had the strangest sensation. He was flying! He immediately seized up, his natural hobbit fear of heights kicking in. The back of his head was roaring with pain, but where was he? He could hear the Gaffer admonishing him for being caught unawares in a strange place. "You're a ninnyhammer and a goose, Samwise Gamgee," Sam mumbled. A shrill, ethereal voice from above his head snarled, "Be still, Shire rat."
At that Sam started, and looked at the wraith. He mumbled in fear for a few seconds before backing away in fear. Unfortunately, the only way to go on a flying beast was down, and Sam did. Through a haze, he fell fifty feet from the ascending beast to the foggy, roaring waters below him.
A/N: I know, a cliffhanger, how dare I?! Read, review, and there may be more!