Chapter 3

Willow groped around her muddled brain for an incantation for light. The mines of Moria were pitch black and she wasn't fond of it. She heard coughs and groans of the others as they got their bearings. Suddenly Gandalf's staff lit up, filling the caverns with light.

Willow shivered in her damp clothes, and tried to ignore the burning pain ripping up her shoulder. These mines had gone from mildly scary to downright terrifying.

They made their way through the mines. Willow noticed Tara was walking awfully close Borimir. Or maybe it was Borimir walking awfully close to Tara. She was still upset that Tara wasn't speaking to her after their argument and it hurt even more that she had nearly been drowned and eaten alive and Tara had not even asked her if she was alright. Legolas, on the other hand, had been caring about her to almost alarming levels. He had walked within a two feet of her the entire time and he pretty much asked her if she was ok every 5 minute. And there was something in the way he looked at her, Willow was unsure what to do. She couldn't simply come out and say "Hey Leggy, It's sweet and all, but I'm more into coffee, kisses, and gay love."

When they stopped momentarily, because Gandalf wasn't sure of the way, Willow decided to approach Tara.

"Hey" she said softly to the blonde witch.

Tara looked up from what she was doing. "Hey"

"Are you ok? You've been kinda quiet since we all almost got eaten by the octopus thing."

"Yeah. Yes I'm fine. Are you ok?" She smiled softly at Willow.

"Uh, I'm a little damp and sore. But you know me, I'll be fine."

"You're not using spells to heal yourself, are you?"

Willow felt herself grow angry. She came over here to make amends and Tara still couldn't get off the topic of her magic use.

"No. I know the magical and medical don't mix. And it's not that bad. Let's just drop it ok, I don't like it when we fight."

"No, Willow, No. I-I can't just drop it. You use magic for almost everything now."

"Do not." Willow retorted. She cringed when she realized she sounded like a 2nd grader. "I-I just mean I don't use it for everything. If I did, don't you think I would have transported us to this Mount Doom place already? Or put up barrier spells or protective spells?"

"I still think you are too dependant on it. When something goes wrong, you just do a spell. You don't even think about what could go wrong. I mean, Willow, you tried to find Dawnie and you threw us into a dimension with elves and dwarves and hobbits."

"But we're going to get out. We're not stuck here forever. Tara, I know I messed up. If you want, I'll stop using magic unless my life is in danger and it's the only way. Just, I don't want to fight."

"Willow, this goes deeper than just stopping. Your powerful. More then me. I mean, you brought us here, and you can get into people's heads, and Buffy. You resurrected her from the dead! That's breaking an oath that witches took-"

"You raised one from the dead?" Gandalf had been trying not to listen in, but with the girls raised voices and the echo off the walls, he couldn't help it. He stepped up to Willow.

"Is it true? Are you so powerful you were able to give life to a dead person?"

"Well, yes, but it wasn't as bad as she says-"

"You fool!" He admonished. "Any sort of Wizard knows better than to disturb the dead."

Willow shook her head. "You don't understand. She was a Slayer, a hero. The people needed a warrior to defend them."

Gandalf grasped her shoulders and looked into her eyes. "Hero's rise and fall every day. Someone would have risen and defended the people. Death is a gift to a warrior, it is their rest after a life of terrible fighting and war."

"She was my friend!" Willow cried. "I couldn't just let her be dead." She felt tears rising up and struggled against them. She broke away from Gandalf and stormed off to a corner.

The rest of the Fellowship had gathered now and looked from Willow's lonely form in the corner to Gandalf, who seemed to be encountering some inner turmoil.

Legolas looked like he might just head over towards Willow when Gandalf declared he knew the way and lead on.

Willow trailed behind the Fellowship. First Tara had come down hard on her, and now Gandalf. She was just trying to help people.

Her head snapped up when Gimli let out a yell and rushed into a side room. Following, she listened as Gandalf read from a book he pulled off a skeleton. This place was giving her the wiggins times ten now.

She spun as she heard Pippin knock something down a well. Gandalf turned on him. There was fire in his eyes as he harshly reprimanded the young hobbit, then his eyes turned darker as he heard the drums in the distance.

"W-what's that?" Tara stuttered.

"Orcs!" Hissed Legolas. He turned to help the others barricade the door.

Nervously, Willow backed up to where the hobbits were. She wasn't entirely sure what these Orcs were. She muttered a small protection prayer and took a deep breath.

When the first Orc broke through the door, Willow cringed. They were ugly beasts, black as night. She was surprised to hear Tara mutter an incantation and to see several of the Orc's thrown back by an invisible force. She concentrated on protecting the Hobbits and keeping an eye on Tara. She threw fireballs, used her mind to pick up weapons and impale the orcs, and threw them back across the room. Suddenly a large cave troll, smashed into the room. Willow backed into a corner and concentrated all her energy on it.

The cave troll screeched as Legolas's arrows rained upon it. It pinned Frodo into a corner and made to impale him. It wailed loudly and dropped its weapon as it began to feel it's stomach turning to ash. Slowly, its large body began to implode into a great puff of dust. Willow dropped to her knees. She was panting and her eyes were black with power.

The Fellowship stared at her in awe. Tara saw the black in her lover's eyes and was at her side.

"Willow?" She placed a tentative hand on the redhead's shoulder.

"That was intense." Willow panted. Her eyes returned to their normal emerald green color and she got to her feet.

Gandalf ordered them to keep moving and the Fellowship decided there would be time to question Willow about her powers later.

Willow was frightened by the number of Orc's chasing them down a long hallway. Gandalf had told them to run and not look back. Suddenly they found themselves surrounded. Willow had begun the start of a protection shield when she noticed a faint rumbling. The Orc's ran away. Note to Self: When the bag guys are afraid of something, its probably really really bad, she thought to herself.

"A Balrog! Demon of the ancient world. This foe is beyond any of you. Run!" Gandalf cried.

Willow cringed and followed the others. Coming to a gap in the stairs, she muttered a spell to hold it together while everyone crossed. It was difficult; taking on the cave troll had practically topped out her powers.

"Over the bridge! Fly!" Gandalf motioned to the others.

Tara grasped Willow's hand as they crossed over the bridge. Turning back, they saw Gandalf stop halfway and face the demon. The bridge broke with a crack and the Balrog began its descent. Willow felt numb as she saw Gandalf turn to come to them, then fall as the Balrog pulled him off the bridge. She tried to call on her magic's to assist him, but her vision blurred and everything went black.