Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or the Lord of the Rings. I also kind of stole a line off of National Treasure, see if you can spot it! It's not a major line from the movie, so it may be hard to find. Good luck!

Chapter 32: The Spirits and the Siege

Pippin left the Hall as soon as he was dismissed and quickly went to find Ginny. It didn't take long. She was lying against the stone wall with her eyes closed. Crying had made her very tired.

"Ginny?" he called softly.

Ginny stirred. "Oh, hello Pippin." She sat for a moment, trying to recollect her thoughts. Then, "You sing very well."

Pippin blushed, "Thank you. I didn't want to, but Denethor told me to."

"Told you he'd make you do all sorts of stuff you'd rather not do! He's raving!"

"I don't know about raving…"

"Well, maybe not. Mad with grief more like. I do feel sorry for him sometimes." She looked at Pippin's disbelieving face. "I do really. I just get annoyed with him a bit more often."

"That was pretty obvious from the start," said Pippin, and they both laughed.


Fred and George were busy playing Round 7 of Exploding Snap with Merry when they heard a commotion outside. They immediately went to see what was going on.

"It's Lord Aragorn," said Gamling, "He, Legolas, Gimli, and the boys Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, have left."

"What? Where? Why?" asked Fred.

"We don't know," he replied glumly, "Well, we think King Théoden knows, but he won't say a word." He shook his head. "This is terrible. Why they all had to leave on the eve of battle…"

"You've still got us!" said George, "And we can do magic! Besides, Harry and Ron know what they're doing; they wouldn't leave us all unless it was absolutely necessary! We can trust them!"

Gamling sighed wearily. "I hope you are right, for all our sakes," he said, "It doesn't look good, but I trust the King. We are going to Minas Tirith anyway."

The next morning the camp was bustling around, saddling horses, sharpening swords, checking provisions, and getting ready to go. Fred, George, and Merry were busy trying to get their armor on.

"Cool," said Fred, "We get to wear helmets!"

"I can't believe they found armor that fit me," said Merry gleefully.

"This going to be great!" cried George, "We're going to be going into battle, and then when it's over we'll get to see Pippin! I wonder what he's doing?"

"He's probably anxious, with the city being besieged and everything," said Merry.

"Right," said Fred. Suddenly he looked a bit pale. "Guys," he said, "What if we don't win?"

"Then let's make sure to take as many orcs down with us as possible!" cried George.

This was certainly heartening to the other two, and they all let out war-cries as they ran out of the tent.


"So," said Ron casually, "Where are we going?"

"And why are we going?" asked Harry, "I thought this place was dangerous."

"Lord Elrond came to me last night," said Aragorn.

"What? When?" asked Harry, "How come I didn't get to see him?"

"He wanted to deliver some news to me from Rivendell, and this sword," Aragorn gestured to a fine, long sword sticking out of its sheath on the side of the horse Brego.

"Cool," said Ron, "Why'd he give it to you?"

"Because it's mine," replied Aragorn, "It's the ancient sword of Elendil: Anduril, Flame of the West."

"So you inherited it?" asked Harry curiously.

"Yes."

"So…why are we walking through here?" asked Ron.

"Elrond told me that Sauron is secretly sending an army of Corsair ships by the river, to help in the attack on Minas Tirith."

"So we're outnumbered?" asked Harry slowly.

"Very much so," said Aragorn.

"So…why…are we going…in this…direction?" asked Ron.

"To summon a deadly army to help us."

"Uh, just how deadly are these guys?" asked Ron anxiously.

"They are cursed men," said Legolas. He told them about how they had sworn to come to the aid of Isildur when he needed them, but they were cowardly, and fled when Isildur called. So the king cursed them to a living death until they fulfilled their oath.

"Wait a minute," said Ron, "Are we asking a bunch of cowardly angry dead guys to help us!"

"I said not to come," said Aragorn.

"Come on Ron, don't leave, they're probably just like the ghosts at Hogwarts!" said Harry.

"Leave? Leave? Who said anything about leaving?" asked Ron angrily.

"I only thought, when you said…"

"You thought wrong! Where would you get the idea that I'd leave you guys now just because I've learned what I'm up against?"

"What does it matter?" asked Gimli gruffly, "We're all here, and we're not going anywhere except forward. So stop quarreling both of you!"

Ron muttered, "Look who's talking!" but he still shut his mouth until they got to the mouth of what looked like a cave.

Everything felt chilly almost immediately. Harry felt horribly similar to the way he felt when he got close to dementors. Ron gulped. "Uh…uh…uh…do we have to do this?"

Harry looked up at the archway and saw runes of some sort carved at the top. Legolas read them aloud, "The way is shut. It was made by those who are dead, and the dead keep it. The way is shut."

"Well," said Ron, "They obviously don't want company, so let's just…"

A howl came out of the cave. The horses fled in terror. Harry thought he saw mist swirling around in the darkness.

Aragorn gritted his teeth. "I do not fear death," he said firmly.

"That's nice," said Ron, "I do."

Aragorn didn't answer, but plunged in. Legolas hesitated for about a millisecond, and then went in after him. Gimli groaned something about never hearing the end of it if he didn't go, and ran in. Harry and Ron were alone.

"After you," said Ron with a nervous grin.

"Ok," said Harry, stepping forward, "But if you decide to leave, go right ahead. Fred and George will want to hear all about it!" And he was gone.

Ron grew paler. There was nothing else for it. He ran in.


Frodo and Gollum were almost at the tunnel, when they heard something behind them. It was Hermione.

"What do you want?" asked Frodo.

"I'm sorry Frodo," she said carefully, putting on her best act, "I was wrong about Sam. You were right."

"So you're coming?" asked Frodo, somewhat hopefully.

"Yes," she replied.

Gollum hid a snarl. This made a hitch in his plans. But no matter. She would be able to take care of Hermione, magic or no magic.


The day was growing late in Gondor. Ginny and Pippin watched with apprehension as orcs, trolls, wargs, and all sorts of creatures began marching towards Minas Tirith.

Suddenly Ginny saw a speck headed towards the doors. Cries went up. The gates opened. "What is it?" asked Pippin anxiously.

"I don't know," replied Ginny, "Let's wait and see."

Several minutes later men came hurrying in carrying a stretcher. On it lay…

"Faramir!" groaned Ginny.

Denethor, along with the rest of the Gondor lords, came rushing out. His face was pale, and he knelt by his son's body. Ginny and Pippin rushed over too. The little hobbit immediately began to examine his face closely.

"Oh don't!" cried Ginny, overcome with sadness, "I can't bear it!"

Pippin looked startled. "He's alive!" he gasped.

"What?" cried Ginny. Nobody else paid them any mind, shaking their heads sadly.

"He must be hanging on by a thread," said Pippin, looking closer.

"Let me check," said Ginny, rolling up her sleeves. She pressed her thumb on Faramir's wrist and waited. Then she looked up and said, "There's a pulse! It's very faint, but it's there! I don't believe it! If only Madam Pomfrey were here! She could put him right!"

Pippin neither knew nor cared who Madam Pomfrey was. It was vital that Denethor understand and get Faramir to the best healers as soon as possible. But Denethor wasn't listening. He had stumbled away from everyone else, moaning that his line had ended. Then he looked out over the wall.

A massive army was already almost upon them. A wave of shock hit Denethor, quickly replaced by despair. They were alone. Rohan wouldn't come to help. In his mind, they were all doomed.

Fear seized Denethor. "Abandon your posts!" he yelled. Ginny and Pippin stared at him in disbelief. It looked like he'd finally cracked. "Fear, fear for your lives!"

People screamed and ran around in panic. The orcs, enjoying their terror, started firing, using the heads of Faramir's troops as ammunition, in adverse to stones. Turning away from the grisly sight, Ginny saw Gandalf approaching Denethor from behind, his staff raised. She knew what he was going to do. "Stupefy!" she yelled. A jet of red light hit Denethor and he collapsed. Gandalf turned around, slightly shocked.

Ginny smiled. "I just saved you time and energy."

Gandalf nodded in acknowledgment, then shouted, "Prepare for battle!"

Everyone bustled around, now under Gandalf's command. "Come on Pippin," yelled Ginny, "You heard him! To the armory!"

"But…Faramir…"

"Take him to the healers immediately," she ordered the nearest lord.

He smiled sadly, "My lady, I'm afraid there's nothing we can do…"

"Do it anyway!" she said fiercely, "Now come on Pippin!" They set off, Pippin barely managing to keep up.


The inside of the mountain was creepier than the outside, in Harry's opinion. A green glow that reminded him of the Chamber of Secrets was everywhere. He even felt the same way as he did then, scared, and with a feeling that he was being hunted.

Legolas was feeling a bit on edge too. He alone could see the shadows of the dead following them. Neither Ron nor Gimli could see this, but they both were petrified anyway. Harry and Aragorn simply put on brave faces, although they were feeling creeped out, and went deeper in together.

"Uh," said Ron, "Are we going through that?"

They were standing in front of what Harry thought looked like a river of mist, winding along out of sight. "Yes," replied Aragorn firmly, and went on.

As soon as they set foot in, the mist swirled around their bodies, almost as if it were trying to grab them. Suddenly a ghostly hand came up right in Ron's face. He let out a wild yell and tried to back away and run at the same time. The result was he ended up toppling right into Harry. The hand disappeared.

"You handled that well," snorted Harry. Ron looked highly embarrassed, and walked farther away from him.


Merry had a problem. King Théoden didn't want to see him in the battle, and he had no way of getting there, as none of the riders would take him on the hard, three day ride that Mushroom wouldn't be able to handle.

The problem was quickly remedied when the twins returned from saddling Filibuster and Zonko.

"Ah well," said Fred, when Merry told him, "Don't worry. You can be our stowaway. We'll take turns sharing the horse with you."

"Thanks guys!" said Merry, his whole face brightening at the prospect of going into battle after all. None of them noticed the young soldier with long blonde hair watching them closely.


The siege at Minas Tirith was going on in full earnest. Among the Gondorians were Ginny and Pippin, fully armed and ready for battle, sort of. Ginny was ready; Pippin certainly wasn't. "It'll be ok," Ginny assured him, "I'll walk you through it."

The orcs were using catapults to fire boulders at the walls, which Gondor was doing right back. Unfortunately, Ginny could see the orcs were doing much more damage, and it was easy to see why.

"Stop!" she yelled at a few men by one of the catapults, "Don't aim it at the orcs! Aim for the towers that the trolls are pushing! You'll do more that way!"

Stunned at receiving orders from a woman, they almost didn't obey. But Pippin yelled at them, "Do as she says! It's the only way!" After a few seconds thought, they obeyed.

CRASH! Orcs everywhere shrieked in dismay as the rock hit its target. Grinning at the effect it had, the soldiers decided they needed more rocks.

Meanwhile the Nazgul were everywhere on their winged beasts, flying around, picking up men, and hurtling them to the ground below. Ginny looked up at them and glared. When one got a bit too close, she whipped out her wand and yelled, "STUPEFY!" The winged beast fell to the ground, the Ringwraith on its back shrieking in anger. "Serves you right," she smirked.

"Ginny! Look out!" yelled Pippin.

Ginny dove out of the way before another winged steed could catch her in its claws.


The five friends entered a deserted hall, still with the greenish glow. Crumbling ruins of some sort of building were carved into the mountain. Then a voice whispered, "Who enters my domain?"

Harry jumped about a foot in the air. A green ghost of a skeleton appeared in front of them. He had a crown, and hollowed-out eyes. Harry realized that he was the King of the Dead.

"One who will have your allegiance," said Aragorn. Already, Harry noticed a change in him. He was more serious, fierce, and…kingly. It made sense to think he was the long-lost king of Gondor.

He was pondering this when he heard an evil laugh coming from the dead king. Suddenly dead soldiers appeared everywhere, surrounding them and blocking off all the exits. They were trapped. Now the King of the Dead was repeating the message Legolas had read earlier at the entrance, adding one thing only, "Now you must die."

Legolas tried shooting him with an arrow. It didn't work; it went right through him. Shaking, Ron turned to Harry. "Any bright ideas from the Boy Who Lived?"

"Don't call me that," snapped Harry, "Let Aragorn do it."

Aragorn certainly did do it. While all this had been happening, the King of the Dead raised his sword to kill their ranger friend, but Aragorn parried it easily with Anduril.

"Wow," said Ron, "That was unexpected."

Apparently the King of the Dead thought so too. "The line was broken," he hissed angrily. Harry knew he was talking about the ancient kings of Gondor.

Aragorn grabbed him by the throat. "It has been remade," he replied.

This shut the rest of the dead soldiers up. They all stared at Aragorn as though they'd never seen anything quite like him before. (Which they probably hadn't.)

"I am Isildur's heir," said Aragorn firmly, "Fight for us, and I will hold your oaths fulfilled. What say you?"

They didn't answer.

"Please?" asked Ron hopefully.

The King laughed. So did the rest of them. Then they all faded away. "Stop! Come back!" Harry found himself yelling. But they were gone.

"Stand you traitors!" yelled Gimli.

"Where'd they all go?" wondered Ron. He looked more nervous now then ever before. The enemy was invisible again.


Despite the soldiers' best efforts, some of the makeshift towers made it to the wall. Orcs climbed out and immediately killed everything in their path. Lead by Gandalf, the men fought valiantly. Then Gandalf turned around and saw Ginny leading Pippin into the brawl. "Peregrin Took!" he yelled, "Ginevra Weasley! Go back to the Citadel!"

"Hey," said Ginny slowly, "How'd you know my real name?"

Gandalf killed a couple more orcs that came too close. "This is no place for a young lady or a hobbit!" he gasped.

Ginny glared. "You said I could be in more battles!"

"Not now…"

Just then Pippin stuck out his sword and killed an orc that had been about to strike Gandalf down. All three stared at it in amazement. "Ha!" said Ginny, "Not bad for a hobbit eh?" Without even waiting for an answer, she ran forward and started killing as many orcs as she could, swinging her sword right and left.

Pippin watched all this, looking sicker all the time. Gandalf saw this. "Get back up to the Citadel," he said.

"But…I'm supposed to…"

"You have my permission," said Gandalf kindly. Pippin nodded and fled. He didn't think battles were really for him.


Harry blinked and looked around. The dead army was really gone. Suddenly he felt the earth rumbling. He looked up. "No way…" he whispered.

The walls were collapsing. Inside them were thousands upon thousands of skulls. It was an avalanche.

"GET OUT!" yelled Aragorn. They didn't need telling twice. How they all managed to wade through the skulls and didn't tumble to their deaths, Harry never knew. Within seconds they had run through a small passage out into open air. Ron swore 'til his dying day that he did not kiss the ground when he got out, no matter what wild stories Harry told.

It was a relief to be out of the mountain, but the relief was short-lived. They were near the banks of Anduin. And sailing along were the fleet of Corsair ships. There was no doubt in Harry's mind that Gondor was doomed.

Everyone was upset, but nobody came close to being compared with Aragorn. He felt that he had failed in his most important mission. Harry could think of nothing to do but clench his shoulder, but that seemed to do the man some good.

"If only there was some way we could ambush and sink the ships," said Ron.

"It's impossible," said Gimli.

Then Harry heard a whispering behind him. He turned, and was shocked to see the King of the Dead come out of the mountain. "We fight," he said simply.

"Took you long enough," muttered Ron, so that the ghost didn't hear.

To my reviewers:

Goddess Bless: I was actually thinking that if I did pair Legolas, it would be to someone else. I'm too big of a Ron/Hermione shipper. Then I wasn't going to do any romance at all, but now people seem to like the idea, so I'll do my pairing in the next one. Anyway, I wouldn't be able to pair Legolas/Hermione, they're separated right now; I'd have to have established it before they all split.

Brownie/Melody: Wow, I always thought the stuff I wrote, despite my best efforts, was a bit sappy. I really appreciate your comments. Hermione, Frodo, and Gollum…very interesting indeed. Unfortunately I'm dragging their story out a bit.

Tubbles14: Of course! I love the brooch! It calls whoever can best serve the person in their time of need, and it only works among people who live or have been in Middle Earth, because of its origins among the elves.

LillyFan78: I'm sorry if I made you cry! ;) That is a very sad part. It makes me love Faramir all the more! Thanks for your review!

HotShot14: OMG! WHY DIDN'T SOMEONE SUGGEST THE TELETUBBIES? I FORGOT THE TELETUBBIES! Wait, I think someone did…whoops, my bad! I got a lot of applicants, it was hard to keep up with! That's my lame excuse!