Chapter Thirteen: Eeeep.
"Well." Belgaer spoke. "…This may pose a problem…"
The remainder of us had gee-I-should-have-remembered-this looks on our faces.
We stared at Khazad-dum. Or, more correctly, the half of Khazad-dum that REMAINED. And it certainly wasn't jumping distance. Or even close to that. At all. So basically we weren't getting across anytime soon.
"Ah." Was all Arwen had to say. It seemed more like a cursing moment to me, but I refrained.
"Eeep." I believe Eowyn summed it up so much better. "What are we going to do?" she whispered.
"Well, scarily enough, I know that for future reference, I should actually pay attention to King Elessar when he rambles about his adventures to impress Celeste…" I mumbled.
"Well, Valar willing, he won't be doing THAT anymore." Arwen replied, hands on her hips, looking intimidating. I don't know about Celeste, but she scares me, and I would never even THINK about taking her man. But then again, Celeste has all the brains of a rock. In fact, she may be distantly related to some of these rocks that made the bridge. That could explain why it fell apart.
That and the giant fiery demon, I mean.
Wow, days without good sleep makes me ramble a lot…
"But we have to get to Lorien, right?" Browne pointed out. "So, basically, we're finding a way across. Somehow."
Ah, how refreshing her blatant honesty is. She didn't even hesitate to point out that we've got some major thinking to do.
We fell silent, brainstorming about how we could feasibly get across this…to be cliché, gaping chasm.
Belgaer, realizing that as the smallest, she was in the most danger of being tossed across should we not have any other plan, came up with a solution. "Hey!" She pulled off her knapsack and began to rummage through it. Finding what she was looking for, her hand emerged from the bag as she grinned triumphantly. "Rope!"
Eowyn leapt up and immediately set off to secure it to a pillar or rock or something. I would comment on how she knew exactly what to do, but that isn't really saying anything, because it was kind of obvious…
I suddenly understood what this would entail. Basically, we were going to tie this rope (hope it doesn't break) around a rock (hope it doesn't come untied), toss the other end across to secure it over there (hope it catches hold of something), and then get across the rope (hope it's strong enough) somehow (hope we don't fall to a messy death).
Oh yeah. We're screwed.
Of course, while I was mentally coming up with numerous reasons why this plan was absolutely RIDICULOUS, the others were already across.
"Seiryu! What are you waiting for!" Arwen called.
"Well, certainly not common sense because it seems to have deserted this group!" I hollered as I clambered across the rope, throwing caution into the wind. "You people are either very lucky or very stupid. I can't decide." I muttered as I made it to the other side and was able to breathe again.
"I'm going to go with a mix of the two." Browne laughed.
I had something to say to that, but I caught sight of the door out. We had made it! No orcs, no Balrogs, relatively little danger. I scrambled to my feet and let out a whoop, hugging Browne and practically skipping to the door. The sun hit my face and momentarily blinded me, but it was all good.
"Warmth." I grinned.
So, yeah, I guess in some ways, we were a little luckier than the Fellowship. At this point in their journey, they were mourning the loss of their companion. And here I am, grinning like an idiot at the sun, which is probably going to destroy my vision completely.
Yes, I'm brilliant.
"Okay, let's get a move on." Eowyn said, starting to walk.
"Awww…can't we take a break?" Belgaer asked. I felt bad for her. Being a Hobbit, she had a harder time keeping up with the rest of us. If I had the energy, I'd carry her, but I had a feeling that it wouldn't end well.
"Nope. We have to get closer to Lorien before we make camp. I want to be there bright and early tomorrow." Eowyn replied. "After we walk for a bit, if you get tired, we can stop for a few minutes."
"Once we get to Lothlorien, expect all the hospitality you could hope for…" Arwen smiled. "…that is, once we break the spell."
I groaned inwardly. I had completely forgotten that the inhabitants of Lorien were going to be another bunch of lovesick, starr-struck fools. That was going to be a pain. It always is. Not too many topics to converse upon. I believe the favorites are usually 'Starr's Favorite Food' and 'The Color of Starr's Undergarments.'
And I'm not even joking about that second one. I have actually heard a rather heated debate over this topic. I couldn't look her in the face for a week.
I'd start laughing.
I guess being so perfect comes with a price. Because I'd rather be ignored than to have people of the kingdom coming up with reasons why I like chicken better than beef. I'd seriously wonder about Gondor if it weren't for the fact that Starr is a psycho witch. She is SO going down. I really can't wait.
I know, I'm such a wonderful and caring daughter. But the things I've had to put up with…makes me mad just thinking about them. Honestly! Being woken up at three in the morning each day is blasphemy! If my outfits weren't so darn intricate and everything didn't have to be just right, I could probably get away with sleeping till seven or so. But noooo! Mother dearest insists! And Ada-with-no-backbone just HAS to go along with it.
Camp was set up once we reach where Eowyn had planned. Belgaer made us a great dinner and Browne played us a song on this little harp she had. It was a really nice evening. Normal, even. At least for us.
Which was really good, because I can tell, without a doubt, that tomorrow is going to be all kinds of weird…