I have no idea why this chapter is acting like this, but it is, so the spacings rather screwed up, I tried my best. Really, I did.
Bucky was clinging desperately to a horse's neck, trying his best to keep from bouncing off. He had no idea how comical he looked, stuck between Aragorn and the horse's neck, every muscle in his body aching. When they finally drew to a halt, Bucky slid off slowly and fell to the ground.
He lay there, wondering at the fact that anything could be more painful and annoying than running all the way from that horrible river. Then he smelled the nauseating scent of charred flesh. He sat up slowly trying not to move anymore than necessary. There was a huge mound of burnt orc in front of them.
"It's one of their belts," Gimli said. Bucky looked from the crumbling piece of leather in Gimli's hand to the belt resting on his own haunches. Merry and Pippin were gone. How many had they lost on this forsaken quest? Bucky jumped (and immediately regretted it) as Aragorn let out a yell of pure frustration. He knelt, Bucky sat, Gimli stared and Legolas recited an elven chant.
"A hobbit lay here," Aragorn began suddenly. "And there another . . . Their hands were bound." He was on his feet now and running low to the ground. Bucky watched perplexed. There was no way Aragorn could know all that by staring at the ground. " . . . and into Fangorn Forest."
"What madness drove them in there?" Gimli wondered.
"It's just a forest," Bucky said.
"It's an old forest," Legolas countered.
"Shouldn't that make things easier?"
"Old with wisdom."
"So?"
"Shall we continue?" Aragorn snapped.
Bucky had to admit, the forest was kind of intimidating, especially because Gimli would not stop predicting doom and gloom and Aragorn was still acting like he could follow Merry and Pippin by their foot prints. There was bracken everywhere and the ground was never level for more than a few paces. It was getting close and stuffy and he desperately wanted to leave Merry and Pippin to their own devices, and get out of this forest. He didn't dare suggest it though, Gimli was in a foul mood; Aragorn would not take his eyes off the ground and Legolas . . . well, Legolas was Legolas, that was enough of a reason for Bucky.
Then they started talking in that other language. It drove Bucky nuts when they did that, for no apparent reason Aragorn and Legolas would carry on long conversations in . . . another language. Gimli didn't seem to notice, which made Bucky wonder if Gimli spoke it too and they were leaving him out on purpose. So focused was he on his interior rant he didn't notice when they made the switch back to English and so was taken completely by surprise when the glowing figure appeared, and even more so when Gimli hurtled an axe at it.
It did no good; didn't these people watch movies? You can't hurt angels, or glowing white things (which are usually angels).
"You are tracking the foot steps of two young hobbits," the glowing figure intoned. "They passed this way some time ago . . . and met someone they did not expect, does that comfort you?" Here was yet another person helping them out in riddles. He was sick of it! All these wise benevolent beings who were so high and mighty. Bucky—forgetting his previous thought—decided he was going to bring this one down a notch or two if it was the last thing he did.
Growling deep in his throat he leapt at the riddling being. If there was anything Bucky was good at (besides sleeping and eating) it was dealing maximum damage to a human figure. He'd had a lot of practice on Rob after all, so he landed, claws extended on the man's face and began to scratch ferociously. "Get off me you imbecilic cat!" the man yelled and fell from the rock he'd been speaking from. Quickly gathering his wits about him the man made a sharp movement with his staff and sent Bucky flying.
"Gandalf!" Gimli exclaimed.
Gandalf stood up slowly and brushed himself off pompously. "Yes, I return to you now in your hour of need."
"You're dead," Bucky said sullenly from where he lay at the base of a tree. He was not going to move again.
"It's a long story," Gandalf said. He had been planning on telling it to them the long way so they could understand what he went through to rejoin them but he didn't find himself so inclined any longer.
"We must make our way to Rohan."
"Why?" Legolas asked.
"There is no time for questions now."
"I can't move," Bucky said.
"You can and you will," Gandalf snapped.
"No, I won't. I was tired enough before you threw me into a tree."
"If you had not attacked me—"
"I'm sick of people only half telling us what to do so Aragorn always chooses the wrong way to go or the wrong thing to eat or the wrong person to talk to or—"
"We will leave you here in Fangorn then," Gandalf said.
"Okay! Okay! I'll come." Bucky hated this place as much as Gimli by this point. The four companions quickly set back toward the edge of the forest. Bucky hobbled after them complaining loudly.