Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or the Lord of the Rings.
Chapter 28: The Attack Begins
Harry woke up to feel sunlight on his face. It was morning. The room he was in was completely empty. He sat up, trying to think of what had happened.
Then it all came rushing back. Pippin, the palantir, everything. He also remembered guiltily that Gandalf had wanted to speak to him, but he had fallen asleep. Quickly he got up, dressed, and left the room.
Outside everyone was bustling around. Then someone yelled out, "Harry!" Harry turned around. Pippin was running towards him. "I'm so sorry Harry!" he cried, hugging Harry's waist and reminding the boy forcibly of Dobby the house-elf. "Merry, Fred, and George told me what happened to you!"
"It's all right, it wasn't your fault," said Harry, "I just wasn't thinking at the time."
"Neither was I," said Pippin, "I feel stupid now, especially after the looks I've gotten from Gandalf. Now all the sudden he tells me we're leaving."
"You are?" asked Harry in surprise.
"I think so," said Pippin, "Ask him yourself. He's with King Theoden."
Harry walked through the hallways until he got to the Hall of the King. There he found Gandalf and Theoden deep in conversation. Gandalf turned when he heard the door close, and headed straight for Harry.
"Ah Harry," he said, "I trust you slept well?"
"Sorry Gandalf, I just got so tired…"
"That's quite all right," said the old wizard, "It was quite an ordeal for you to go through. I assume you told Sauron nothing about the Ring?"
"No, of course not…was that Sauron's voice I heard?"
"Yes," said Gandalf gravely, "What did he say to you, and most important, what did you tell him?"
"He just kept asking who I was. I didn't tell him anything, I just kept begging him to get off." Harry shuddered.
"Well then, the chances are he won't have guessed who you are," said Gandalf, "At any rate, we hope that he thinks Pippin was communicating from Isengard."
"Can't he tell?" asked Harry.
"Oh he knows which palantir he is in contact with, but not necessarily where it is. For example, last night, he knew he was communicating with Saruman's palantir, but unless he knows what happened at Isengard, he did not know it was in Edoras. At least, I hope that is the case, it will give us a head start."
"Why? Where are you going?" asked Harry.
"To Minas Tirith, the great city of Gondor," replied Gandalf, "And I'm taking Pippin with me. He will be safe from Sauron there, for the time being. As for why, it is because not only will Sauron now assume that Pippin has his Ring, but Pippin saw in the palantir a bit of Sauron's plans: attack Minas Tirith before the king (Aragorn of course) can return."
"Are you going to warn them?" asked Harry, "And do I have to come too? What about Merry, Fred and George?"
"Of course I'm going to warn them, but you would be better off staying here. Theoden and Aragorn can look after you if there is danger. As for Merry, Fred, and George, they are staying here."
"But Gandalf…does Pippin know?"
Gandalf looked sad. "Not exactly," he said, "I don't want to separate them all after all they've been through, but I have no choice. Besides, it will be good for Pippin to learn how to really fend for himself in the world. He is really an adult hobbit, and he will not always have people there to look after him."
Harry knew Gandalf was right, but he didn't want to imagine how the twins would feel if they knew they were being torn apart from one of their good friends.
"Oh Gandalf?"
"Yes Harry?"
"I have a few questions."
"And what are they?"
"First, when I looked into the palantir, I had a vision of Hermione walking through Mordor alone. Do you think Sauron knows where she is?"
Gandalf thought for a moment. "I don't think so Harry," he said finally, "I think Sauron was simply trying to probe your mind, and in doing so; found one of your fears."
"So Hermione's in danger!"
"Not yet. She's already in danger as it is. But we can hope Sauron will not know what to make of this information. Remember, he is searching for hobbits, not human girls, carrying his precious Ring."
"All right," said Harry, "And also Gandalf, when I touched the palantir, my scar hurt." He explained to Gandalf everything that Dumbledore had told him about his scar. "Why did it hurt like that?" he asked.
"Most likely Harry, that scar is evil and has a powerful effect on some areas of your mind. When a Dark Lord like Sauron touched your mind, it caused your scar to burn."
"So…it has nothing to do with Voldemort?"
"Certainly not in a physical sense. Though you cannot deny the connection between your Voldemort and Sauron. Both were once bodiless, both are desperate for power, and desperate to remove any possible threat without bothering to ask questions first. In other words, they are both tyrants, and both need to be removed from the land as efficiently as possible."
Harry thought Gandalf sounded a lot like Dumbledore, and it made his head swim. But he felt comforted all the same. "Thanks Gandalf," he said.
"Don't mention it my dear boy," he replied.
Frodo, Sam, Hermione, and Gollum continued their trek towards Mount Doom. Frodo and Gollum's thoughts were filled with the Ring, but for different reasons. Sam was busy trying to think of ways to prove Gollum's treachery. Hermione's thoughts focused on something entirely different and apart from the Quest.
"Sam?" she asked suddenly, "Have you ever had a strange dream about something, and it seemed really real?"
Sam screwed his face in concentration. "I can't really remember my dreams," he replied, "Not too long ago I had a dream I was in the Shire and I found a secret orchard full of delicious apples, but then Merry and Pippin stole them and I woke up. Does that help?"
"Not really," Hermione grinned.
"I had a dream once that I saw Gandalf pacing along the roof of a tower in the moonlight," Frodo broke in softly, "And I was shocked when I found out it had been real. I was seeing him imprisoned at Isengard."
"Really?" asked Hermione, a little startled and intrigued, "That's very interesting."
"What was your dream?" asked Frodo.
"Oh…just a dream about Arwen and some of my elven friends from Rivendell," she replied innocently, "They were walking through a wood, and I called out to them, but they couldn't see or hear me. I just thought it was weird."
"Dreaming about nasty elveses that ignore you, we've had dreams too, oh yes we have precious," Gollum muttered darkly in front of them.
"No one asked you!" yelled Sam.
"Oh Sam don't!" cried Hermione.
"Look at that!" said Frodo suddenly, trying to change the subject before a fight broke out.
"What?" asked Sam, looking around.
"Oh my goodness," gasped Hermione, looking up, "What…happened!"
She was staring and pointing at a huge statue. Its head was missing, and in its place was a huge boulder.
"I think these lands were once part of the kingdom of Gondor," said Frodo solemnly.
Hermione stared sadly at the statue for a moment, and then turned to follow the others. Suddenly the sun poured in and Sam caught sight of the head on the ground, a wreath of white flowers growing around it.
"Mr. Frodo, Hermione, look," he said, "The king's wearing a crown again."
Hermione smiled, and a thought struck her. "Reducto!" she yelled, and the boulder was smashed to bits. Next she turned to the king's head. "Wingardium Leviosa!" The head rose in the air, and Hermione used her wand to guide it toward the top of the statue before gently setting it down. "Reparo!" she said finally, and there was the statue, good as new, with the addition of the wreath on its head. Hermione smiled in a self-satisfied way and followed Gollum, leaving a shocked Frodo and Sam in her wake.
"Good to have a witch around," muttered Sam.
The deed had been done. After a bitter parting between the Fearsome Foursome, Gandalf set off with Pippin. Harry watched sadly as Merry, Fred, and George raced up a lookout post to watch their friend leave. Aragorn followed, and came down a few minutes later, shaking his head.
"Are they all right?" asked Harry.
"Fine," said Aragorn, "They know it's all for the best, and now they're plotting what to do to welcome him back!"
"Fred and George, they tend to bounce back," said Harry with a smile.
"Yes indeed," replied Aragorn, "And now they're also talking about something called Exploding Snap and deciding who the real winner is!"
"Don't look at me, I have no idea," said Harry, "And I'd rather not find out." They both laughed and headed back for the Golden Hall.
That night, Ginny found herself yet again trying not to fall asleep. A fine thing it would be if orcs attacked Osgiliath and she could've stopped it! But nothing had happened yet, and she was starting to let down her guard.
Then she heard a strange plopping noise. At first she took no notice. Then she heard it again, far off and faint, but close enough to hear. And there was something else in the distance. Lights. The kind of lights that came from torches. And there were many of them on the river.
It hit Ginny in an instant what it all meant. The attack had come. As fast as she could, she dashed to the opening in the sewer and stole quietly into the city, looking for Faramir, to warn him, before he and his army were taken by surprise.
Not too far away something else was happening. Hermione, Frodo, Sam, and Gollum were approaching Minas Morgul.
"The Dead City," announced Gollum, "Very nasty place. Full of enemies." He shot Sam a look as he said it.
Hermione followed the hobbits out from behind their hiding place. Together they stared at the stone tower, guarded by evil looking statues. The whole place gave off a greenish glow and had a creepy feel in the air.
"Look! Look! We have found it! The way into Mordor! The Secret Stairs! Climb!" ordered Gollum excitedly. Hermione looked and saw a set of very narrow stairs carved into the mountain, so they were almost invisible.
"Ohhhh," she moaned.
"What is it Miss?" asked Gollum, in what Hermione almost thought sounded like a sneering voice.
"I don't like heights," she murmured.
"Well, I don't like them either," said Sam grimly, "But there's nothing else for it. Let's go!"
Hermione turned to look one last time at the ground…and saw Frodo walking as though in a trance towards Minas Morgul. "Frodo?" she called, "What are you doing?"
"Not that way!" shrieked Gollum in panic, and together he and Sam leapt down and started dragging Frodo away.
"They're calling me," whispered Frodo, and he struggled to get away.
"Oh no you don't!" grunted Hermione, and lifted the hobbit up and ran towards the stairs.
Then it happened.
The top of the tower seemed to explode as swirling green light filled the air and a piercing sound that Hermione had heard before back in the Dead Marshes and Osgiliath came with it. A huge winged beast flew out. On top of it was the deadliest of the Ringwraiths: their Leader, the Witch King. He let out a shriek that caused Frodo to cry out in pain and grip his shoulder. Then the gates opened, and Hermione couldn't resist a peek. What she saw nearly made her faint in terror.
Orcs. A massive army of orcs, all marching under the command of the Witch King, carrying deadly weapons and banners from Mordor. Hermione didn't know they were headed for Minas Tirith, and she didn't care. All she knew was that the peoples of Middle Earth were in very deep trouble if they were going to be attacked by an army of that size, led by such a fearsome leader. Finally, after much urging from Gollum, she found the strength to move again.
Faramir and his lieutenant were standing peacefully keeping watch. They were sure no attack was coming tonight. They were wrong.
Shouts from the men told Faramir something was afoot. But he never expected to turn around and see Ginny, gasping and clutching a stitch in her chest. "Ginny Weasley!" he gasped, "What are you doing here!"
"I…came…to…warn…you," she gasped, "Orcs…coming…underneath…by river…hurry…"
"What?" cried Faramir in alarm, "What's this you're saying?"
More cries issued and Faramir and Ginny looked up into time to see one of the sentries fall, an orc arrow sticking out of his chest. "Thank you Ginny!" said Faramir, "Stay here while I get the soldiers down by the river."
Ginny was exhausted, and hungry, and fuming silently. Stay here? STAY HERE! Is he serious? she thought furiously, Well, I'll show him!
To my reviewers:
Tubbles14: Thank you! I've been trying my best to make it all work! I'm glad you like it!
Nathalia Potter: I'm updating as fast as I can. That's interesting about the "walking out" bit, I never knew that! It just goes to show that you really do learn something new every day!
Harrypfan001 TEACHER LADY: Thanx! How was this?
Brandy Lebeau: I would like to get it finished before school too! We're more than halfway done, so it's possible!
Brownie/Melody: Well, ok, I didn't get the laptop yet, but I SWEAR I'm getting it tomorrow, unless some freak disaster occurs! Well, I suppose Fred and George have learned a little lesson about what happens when you dare people! At least Gandalf hadn't given Harry too much of hard time, because he was really only trying to help, unlike Pippin, who simply let his curiosity get the better of him!
Genvessel: Yeah, it's a wonder people say he's mad, poor thing! I hope the laptop helps me too, I shall be getting it tomorrow!
