Chapter 2: of thought and decisions
Carolyn sat alone on her pallet, all the others were gone, dispersed throughout the rustic city, and she was left alone with her thoughts. Pippin was in Gondor. She had been aware of the fact he would leave from the start, and was somehow still astonished by the suddenness of his departure. Something about the little hobbit had struck her as different, whether it had been his chipmunk mouth or simple the way he was able to diffuse any situation with humor or ineptitude. Besides that, he wasn't just the comic relief, she was well aware that Pippin would mature and grow, face dangers and perils and ultimately save the world in his own small way. In the days they had been in middle earth, Carolyn's fondness for him had grown and she felt as though he had been a part of her for all of her life, even if that small part was just beginning to flourish and breathe on its own. She felt incomplete, cut to the bone, knowing that she would not be there to watch him mature, that the next time she would see him he would be aged in mind and soul, no longer the carefree hobbit who had set out from the shire. She mused quietly over this, taking the pen out from behind her ear where it had been hidden by the soft drape of her brown hair. Chewing on the cap she wondered to herself about other things, was it right that they were here? She had always thought that this would be the place she would belong, but did they? Obviously not, she found herself thinking, almost against her will. Finding a piece of parchment on a table near Eowyn's bed Carolyn folded it neatly and tucked it underneath her belt. She would need to write something, what it would say, she was not certain, but something in her great writers heart told her that she would need to write something down, and soon, if her heart spoke the truth.
Bethany was in the Great Hall, sitting at a table and watching Eowyn and Eomer as they spoke quietly with each other not far away. Theoden was conferring with Gamling and the others he trusted to hold counsel with, the siblings glanced urgently Bethany's way and she had the impressionable feeling they were speaking about her. She caught a few words as she focused herself on their conversation.
"Strange aren't they," Eomer whispered, glancing at Bethany and, seeing her looking, he turned away.
"But they seem trustworthy, sweet." Bethany felt her heart begin to race, "But they're hiding something." Eowyn added quietly, turning to look at Bethany, her eyes dark with something unidentified, was it fear? Was it mistrust? Bethany felt her shoulders shudder and she closed her eyes. She had never liked Eowyn anyway, feeling that she had tried to steal Aragorn from Arwen, "And you think I'm strange. Be-otch." Where were her friends? She hung her head and ceased listening to the conversations around her. It seemed as though the story was unfolding and they had no part in it, no one trusted them, no one liked them, and this was not the middle earth any of them had envisioned, or hoped to become a part of. This was far too much like real life for her to be comfortable with it, far too much like high school. She missed her Social Code, Greenday, hell, she missed her CD player in general. Besides that, middle earth without Frodo seemed almost to be a waist of time and energy, where was her adorable big-eyed hobbit when she needed him? Oh yes, she reminded herself, busy facing eternal peril.
Lindsey thought all of this was fascinating, she sat quietly on the steps of Meduseld, watching the people of Rohan as they busied about their days. A guard stood to either side of her, protecting the great hall and throwing long sideways glances at her, trying to make her feel uncomfortable enough to leave them alone to do their job. Her presence on the steps was not only awkward but also unwelcome. However, Lindsey as usual, was pleasantly unaware of any discomfort, and if she was, she enjoyed reveling in it. As she looked out over the city she thought about the predicament of the group of friends, lost in an unfamiliar and sadly unwelcoming environment, could they find a way to get home? She caught sight of a young man walking towards the stables, one of the stable hands she guessed, judging by his open shirt and rippling muscles. She smiled softly to herself, were any of these people aware that they were in a movie? Or a book for that matter? Was she aware of it even? Obviously life outside the confines of what Peter Jackson had decided to film was not limited, none of this had been shown in the actual movie, but somehow it still existed independently outside it. So the question was, if they never made it out of middle earth, would life continue, the world change just as it did in real life, or would it stop when the movie was finished, or perhaps when the book is done? She mused quietly on the point and let her thoughts wander. Glancing down at her chest she admired the way the cut of the dress she had been given made her bosom look pleasantly ample. Manuel would have liked to see this, she thought, her mind straying back to her boyfriend, wondering if she would ever see him again. She sighed and leaned her cheek into her palm. If they never got back, at least she knew there was no shortage of young stable hands in Rohan.
Kaitlyn still sat quietly in one corner of the stables. Her arms wrapped around her knees and clutching them to her chest, she bit her bottom lip determinedly, watching the stable hand brush down the fine brown horse in the stall across from her. It seemed that in Rohan, where horses were thought of in the highest of regards, someone came almost hourly to brush the beautiful beasts down and speak softly to them, this horse was no different. She had watched quietly from her place in the shadows as the clock in her head had ticked on and four different young men had come to check on the beast. She had already staked out its saddle and was almost certain she knew how to treat it, how to entice it with carrots, to rub its thin ears and pet its sloping nose in order to bend its will to her own. She knew it had been fed and watered already, and there was nothing stopping her from walking over to it, saddling it, and leading it out of the stables and in the direction of Gondor. Nothing but common sense.Her heart was ready to over look it, but her mind was quite aware that it would not be easy to escape Rohan with one of its prized beasts, said to be the best in all Middle Earth. She knew that somewhere between the stables and the gates a guard would stop her, or a stable hand, wanting to know what she was doing.
"Going for a ride," she practiced to herself quietly, "I wont be gone for long." She knew that if this was going to work, she would have to leave soon, before noon so whoever she met would believe she would be gone for only hours, not days, notforever as she intended. Also, she would not be able to ride at night, so she needed daylight to speed her forward, and she couldn't wait for the morning. There was a fire in her, a slow burning fire that threatened to burn a hole through her ribcage and then her delicate flesh. Her heart pounded. And her friends? What of them? Bethany would hate her if she left without a word, a best friend is a best friend, and does not appreciate being left behind. Carolyn would understand, only wish that she had thought of it first, and Lindsey? She would be concerned, but least likely to voice it. Kaitlyn clenched her teeth and leta shuddering breath blow through them. She had no provisions, no riding experience, and nothing to write on or with, to leave a note. All she had was the dress she wore and the warmth of her heart, and in that moment, when the stable hand left the horses stall and she was alone, that was all that mattered. She stood, and moved out of the shadows.
A/N : Well, this one is particularly short, but I felt like I needed to do more character development. These characters are actually real people, my closest friends, and me and I'm trying to make them sound like they would in real life, hopefully they like it. I felt all guilty that my character is the most developed so I wanted to delve a little more into theirs so you folks get a better idea about who they are, future chapters will revolveentirely around them . Anyways, if you know anything about horses I could use a little input about them, I've never been a horse person myself, but I chalk it up to lack of opportunity. Anyway, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING! This is a pretty over used concept so it means a lot that you would take the time.
love simple enigma Kait
