The next morning, I found Frodo sitting at the dining table with the other three hobbits talking softly. They all glanced quickly at me when I approached, but lowered their heads as soon as we had made eye contact.
"Berythna, I need to speak with you," Frodo exclaimed.
I shook my head as I went to prepare them food for breakfast. Frodo rose from the table and followed me.
"Yes, I need to speak with you. Why won't you leaving? Do you not remember our discussion from yesterday?"
"I want to wait until after the war is over."
"The war may never be over, Berythna. I may not survive this and the Ring may never be destroyed. It may become worse than it already is. What are you going to do if the elves can no longer travel to the Grey Havens because there are too many orcs and evil creatures blocking your path. They will not simply let you leave without a fight."
"I don't want to discuss this, Frodo."
"I do, Berythna. I love you too much to leave you here to die in a war."
"And I love you too much to leave you here alone," I exclaimed louder than I had originally intended. I had never used this tone of voice with him before, and he was a bit taken back by it, but I continued. "I love you too much to see you go walking around Mordor with the Ring of Power on a chain around your neck. You're giving it to Him, Frodo. You're giving Him the Ring. You're making it too easy for Him. Not even the greatest warrior dead or alive could have done this, let alone a halfling from the Shire!"
He hit me. He hit me very hard, enough to turn my head and leave a red mark on my skin. I held my cheek as tears streamed down my face and when I looked into his eyes, I immediately saw his expression change into sorrow.
"Oh, my love," he exclaimed. "I am so sorry."
He tried to hold me, but I ran free of him and hurried to my room. The three remaining hobbits sitting at the table had all gone silent and were watching me as I ran passed them and up the stairs. As I reached the top, I heard Frodo come out of the kitchen area and one of them say, "What happened?"
I slammed the bedroom door before I could hear anymore.
"Berythna, I was looking for you."
I turned around to see Lady Arwen standing in my room by the table. She was about to say something, but when she saw that I was crying, she immediately changed her expression and whispered:
"What has happened to you? Why have you been crying?"
She rushed over to me, bending down to touch my face gently.
"Frodo and I fought," I answered. "I said such terrible things to him!"
"What did the fight concern?"
I told her the story of our fight and how terrible I had been to him. She only smiled sadly and said, "Everything is going to be all right. You shouldn't have said those things to him, but I'm sure he will forgive you."
"I can't approach him ever again. I won't. He must hate me."
"Come sit down, Berythna."
I did as I was told and she sat beside me, putting her arm around me in a sisterly fashion as she said, "You love Frodo and he loves you as well. This was just a small disagreement. I'm sure he will not hold a grudge. Talk with him and explain that you still love him and that you believe he can fulfill this task."
"He doesn't even believe that. No one does."
"I do. I may be the only one, but I believe it can be done."
I felt so ashamed of myself after she spoke those words. She believed in him and yet I couldn't. I had no faith that he would see the task through and that he could survive the terrors of Mordor. I knew then that I had been a terrible to say those words to him, and if I had no faith in him, how could he have faith in himself?
"I need to see if he is still downstairs," I whispered. "I need to talk with him."
She nodded as I rose to leave. As I descended the stairs leading into the dining room, I could see that Frodo was sitting there alone with his head in his hands. Cautiously, I sat down beside him and put an arm around his shoulders. Not even looking at me he whispered, "I'm so sorry, Berythna. I don't know what got into me."
"Don't apologize, my darling. I deserved it."
He tilted his head up so that he could look into my eyes and whispered, "Are you all right?"
I nodded and kissed his forehead.
December came all too fast and I knew that in less than a month, Frodo would have to leave me. We spent as much time together as possible and fell even more in love. I couldn't bare the thought of him leaving so soon, but I knew the day would come when he had to leave for Mordor, and eventually it did.
The day the Fellowship was to leave for Mordor, Frodo and I took an afternoon walk down by the brilliant waterfalls of Rivendell. Here, he turned to me and smiled sadly as we heard a few elves in the distance begin to sing. I could tell they were singing a very sad and lonely song about death and pain, which only added to my sadness that much more.
"You must promise me that you will leave for the Undying Lands," Frodo whispered gently.
"I cannot promise you this."
"You must, Berythna. I love you too much for you to stay here and face this evil that is spreading throughout Middle-Earth. I will feel much better when I journey to Mordor to know that at least you are no longer here and that you have traveled to a better place."
"I'm sorry, my dear. I cannot promise you that I will leave. I believe you can do this task. I believe you can destroy the Ring and that you will come back to me. I believe we will be together one day, Frodo. You have to believe this too."
"If the Ring is destroyed by some sort of miracle, I will die, my love. There is too much emotional and physical pain I carry already as a result of this Ring."
"Your shoulder."
"Yes, that is one."
"Can you tell me what has happened?"
"No, Berythna. I can only say that I was stabbed with a fatal blade and that I am lucky to be here today."
"What has stabbed you, Frodo? What evil has done this to you?"
He sighed and looked out over the waterfall, as if trying to decide whether or not to tell me. The elves' song had changed to a different one that seemed to speak of evil and destruction.
"A Wraith."
"A Wraith?"
"A Ringwraith. One of the Nine."
"The Nine?" I whispered, breathlessly.
"The Nine men who took the Nine Rings. The Witch King was the one who had stabbed me."
"The Nine have arisen?"
He nodded sorrowfully.
I let out a cry and threw my arms around him as I wept. How could he survive Mordor now with the Nine on the loose? Whatever hope I had of him destroying the Ring was now diminished.
"How can you survive in Mordor when the Nine know that you have what they desperately seek? How can you survive when you have been stabbed and they have seen you?"
With the name of 'Mordor', it seemed as if the whole wood was silent and the elves had stopped singing. It seemed as if everything around us had stopped in horror to listen.
"I must try, Berythna. I have no other choice. You will go to the Undying Lands. That is the end of the argument. Promise me now, Berythna."
"I promise," I answered as I wiped away my tears.
With that, he kissed me softly and then turned and walked away, leaving me alone with horrible thoughts racing through my mind.
That evening, the Fellowship met at the gates of Rivendell and prepared to leave. I stood solemnly beside of Lady Arwen and tried to be strong for myself as well as the Fellowship, especially Frodo. As Lord Elrond bid them good-bye and good luck, they somberly turned and walked through the gates of Rivendell. Before he was out of sight, Frodo turned back and even from a distance his eyes found mine and he placed his hand over his heart. With that, he turned to face Gandalf and walked down the path towards pain and death.