This chapter is for Jamethiel-bane, Amy and Pineapple_pancake. All three of you help me write this with the utmost motivation! Hearing from you, I know that this story means something, and is enjoyable, and worth every word that I write.
Thanks to all my readers xoxox
With You
by Ydream08
Chapter 6
"I wonder how these towers were made? The land seems unoccupied for ages," said Peregrin.
Pansy had to agree with him. Ruins peeked through the trees, many branches hid a fallen stone or a column here and there, and the stillness of these structures forbid anyone to step closer.
It was peaceful, for Pansy at least. Sure, there was an ominous feeling that clung in the air, but Pansy felt the low humm of magic. The stones were charmed; if she had to guess, it was an everlasting independent charm, which meant a non-living source maintained the lowest possible magic transaction so that it could withstand decades.
That was one hell of a magic.
"Does anyone live here?" she asked out of wonder. Perhaps there were witches and wizards who helped keep the magic alive. A non-living source could never be everlasting if it were not stars and the moon, and only the pioneers of magic could manifest power from them.
"No," Aragorn replied to her, then he turned to Pippin. "Men has lived here. They were the ones to build these towers. It was long ago. Some of them fell under the influence of Angmar and made unspeakable deeds. The last war that ended the North Kingdom was doom for them as well. That, too, was so long ago. No one, living or dead, remembers it."
"How come you know the story, then?" countered Pippin, voicing the exact question in Pansy's mind.
"Elendil's kin do not forget easily and it is a tale told countlessly in Rivendell."
That name sounded familiar. Elendil. Pansy asked, "Who is Elendil?"
There was an abrupt halt that nearly caused Pansy to fall. Pippin was close and helped her keep her balance.
Aragorn found her eyes, and his shock and wonder were so pure that Pansy wondered if he believed there remained nothing that would be new to him.
"What? Of course, I don't know about it, why are you so surprised?" she said.
He closed his eyes and sighed; Pansy felt his decision before he voiced it. "I'm confident you shall learn the tale in great detail once we are in Rivendell. It would not be wise to go into details here out in the open."
Pansy shrugged. "Fine."
It wasn't her fault that the irritating bastard was tight-lipped. She wondered how they had so openly discussed about love nearly a week ago.
"Elendil was the first High King of Gondor and Arnor, father to both Isildur and Anarion. He was of the blood of the Numenor." Aragorn stalled but finally added, "It may mean little to you, all these names and places."
Pansy looked at Aragorn to see that he thoughtfully gazed at her. When she met his eyes, she shrugged. It was true: his explanation was not helpful by much. He held her gaze, and nodded. At least, they understood one another.
"Do you visit Rivendell frequently?" said Frodo all of a sudden, referring to Aragorn's last comment. The injured hobbit did not talk much.
"I dwelt there once, and still I return when I may. There my heart is; but it is not my fate to sit in peace, even in the fair house of Elrond."
A wave of cold water washed her veins and slowed her system at hearing Aragorn's explanation. Where his heart is, Pansy repeated herself. That meant… Pansy wanted to laugh. As much as her heart hurt, she wanted to laugh.
It didn't make sense. Especially knowing that there was nothing to be hurt about.
As a result, she didn't end up asking who Elrond was... why should she care, right?
It was a hard day of climbing and freezing. Even with Pansy's charms to protect them from the cold and being wet, rain decreased their mood considerably. The weather was dreary, trees thick, the land rocky and always inclined.
"Lady Pansy! Is it because the rain pours hard that it finally reaches my clothes, or is it that your spell has broken?" asked Pippin ten minutes into the second downpour of rain.
"What?"
Pansy was not wet. Sure, her hair was drenched and her leather shoes had their share of being dipped into mud, but her blouse and trousers were relatively dry…
She turned to look at Pippin and saw his usually green cloak drenched with water, its colour changing into a dark grey.
It couldn't be…
Taking her wand out, Pansy cast the water-proof charm on Pippin again but it didn't hold more than ten seconds. Her own magical coat must have protected her slightly longer, Pansy understood as her own spell over the party has clearly been broken some time ago.
"Are you feeling alright, Lady Pansy? You look white, and your eyes…"
Pansy wiped her face. Transfixed as she was at walking with the party, exhaustion of their journey had been blocked off. Her charms weren't holding, her legs were hurting and her feet were cold.
She should have slept last night than to watch Aragorn smoke his pipe through his watch.
Always the wrong choices, her mind whispered but Pansy shook her head.
"I'm fine." Pansy turned down Pippin's hesitant help to assist her. "I said I'm fine," she snapped.
Pippin backed away, hands above his head to show his innocence, but a faint smile reassured that he was not cross with her.
Apparently, it wasn't only Pansy who was struggling.
"Frodo cannot possibly hold out any longer," said Merry. "I am concerned for him; he has to rest. Better than that, he needs a cure. Will they be able to help in Rivendell?"
Pansy looked at the injured hobbit. Climbing was the hardest for him. Ponies weren't known to be the best climbers, too.
Frodo was wet and freezing, as seen by the clattering of his jaw. Merry was similar, though he did not have the same ashen face of Frodo's.
Glancing at Aragorn, Pansy saw that he was very much in the same predicament as the rest of them. Wet, cold and tired.
Aragorn replied to Merry, but at this point, Pansy sensed that he repeated what he prayed to be true: "Rivendell has many healers that may help Frodo. Our friend is strong, so let's hope we shall see his delivery to the folk of Rivendell."
They decided to camp for the night, regardless of how high up the ridge they were.
"We have travelled far up North once again, and I'm afraid we will wander too close to the troll-countries if we continue in this path and I must admit I do not know those lands. We must return to the Road."
Aragorn's announcement was easily accepted. Pansy would agree to anything he said, no longer doubting his tracking abilities because she simply did not care.
If Merlin was out there watching her adventure, Pansy was sure the man was not heartless to let her freeze to death in the wilderness.
With that thought in mind, Pansy found herself a place between Aragorn and Merry when all huddled together to shield themselves from the cold of the night. Their small fire aided them, but Pansy realized being close to another person provided a warmth incomparable to a flimsy campfire.
Nobody asked why she hasn't cast a warming charm. Nobody asked why they were wet, soaked till their underwear. Nobody asked her how come she could not shield them from the biting cold and relentless rain magically.
Pansy shamefully accepted that kindness. Kindness was a trait she rarely used; if it were her, she sure would have called out someone's incompetence.
At least it was good of her to know her own hypocrisy.
Feeling the gradual ease of her limbs and the decrease of her shakings, Pansy decided to let go of those details.
She pulled her knees to herself to somehow fit into her coat, but the arm that circled around her to get her closer to the owner's body provided a warmth immeasurable to any spell-woven garment she owned.
Pansy hesitated to look up at him, knowing that if their eyes met, she would feel an unexplainable pull. Magnetic. Heated. Grateful.
Sinful.
She wouldn't look at him, Pansy decided. Yet, she did not have the heart to decline his gesture… a gesture of kindness.
His arm remained where it was. Her head dropped to his shoulder as heavy as it weighed.
Unfortunately, the chance to revel in the feeling of being in his embrace was short-lived since Pansy was overtaken by sleep not so long after.
Pansy did not awake until after Aragorn and Merry have apparently set out to survey the area.
Waking up to the shine of the sun, and hearing birds chirp to give her encouragement, Pansy felt well-rested. Eating a small portion of breakfast on top of that, made her feel elated.
Of course, her head ached because of the cold of last night but she knew it would simply pass.
Later, the party walked in Aragorn's lead for some time before Pippin pointed out a path. They followed the unmistakable path to find a cave, an empty one, and trolls close-by.
Pansy would never mention this occurrence as the best days of her travel with the party. She never liked trolls. They were hideous and stupid creatures. They would cook and eat wizards and witches, too. The horror of being under the same roof as those carnivores in her first year of Hogwarts made Pansy easily realize that her beloved school was much more like a prison of nightmares on hindsight.
So, when the party found three trolls turned into rock and exchanged epic tales of how these hideous creatures came to be defeated, Pansy elected to announce she would be using the toilet far away from them.
And yes, crouching behind a tree and taking care of her business was favorable to staying with them.
It was humiliating to pee this way, her arse open, the sound of the stream of her pee echoing in the clearing while her eyes darted around to guard her privacy. She would never get used to this. It felt… inhuman, somehow. Pansy was sure even Muggles didn't do this. Muggles in her own country, at least.
When she was finishing, that last thought remained in her mind and all of a sudden Pansy felt the stinging behind her eyes and the slight burn in her nose that signalled she would cry.
Her lips trembled and before she could calm herself tears were dropping down her cheeks to her knees. Her vision blurred while she looked at her shoes.
"Merlin, Salazar, Helga, Rowena, even Godric, if you hear me, please get me home," Pansy cried. What was this mess? Why was she here? Why her?
She had done nothing to deserve to come here, live and pee like an animal, travel by foot, be an alien to her surroundings. Even the Kiss sounded a more compelling punishment, but the kick was that PANSY HAD DONE NOTHING WRONG.
She has lied, cheated, slapped a bitch in the face, cursed her mother and father, wished them to be dead, had sex with multiple men before marriage, but she has not stolen, hurt or killed anyone. She was not a Death Eater. She has never been. Sure, she was prejudiced, rude, arrogant and loved money… but again, they were not worthy of any punishment like this.
Pansy was now sitting next to the wet ground (her own creation), her butt placed above dirt and twigs, legs comically restricted by her trousers. She was crying. A bit louder as the seconds ticked by.
"Shite," cursed Pansy. "Shite, shite, shite. It's all—all a fucking nightmare!"
Minutes passed and she calmed, because what other choice did she have?
Sniffing, she found a suitable leaf to wipe her nose. She would not use the back of her blouse sleeve; she might not shy away from snot, but it didn't mean her once expensive clothes would be demeaned.
Pansy got to her feet and pulled her trousers up. Taking her wand out, she cast Aguamenti to clean her face and hands, and drank some of it.
As she walked back to the where the party was, Pansy thought about her short crisis back there. It was easy to forget that all this journey was because she wanted to get home, to UK, to her apartment in London. It wasn't because she adored the place, but she has never had so much to do that occupied her mind into a blankness. However, now she remembered her main objective.
Pansy reached for her clutch bag and opened it to find the ring that she has locked away. The damned thing that has led to her appearance in this Middle-Earth.
The box where ring was kept, was a small chest she put her most often used jewelry. Now, there was no need to put any of them at all. What gathering or gala was she attending anyway? Also, her extra security locks were not ones for daily dismantling.
She wouldn't open the chest; but looking at it, Pansy knew she had to get her game together and analyse the ring again in the near future. This time with a clearer head. She would wait to get her strength back. (In hindsight, casting all those charms on that chest must have drained her, too)
With that resolution set, Pansy was about to close her clutch bag when she caught the shine of the beryl stone she has not yet returned to Aragorn.
"Hey," she called to Aragorn when she was within the earshot of the group. The stone trolls were hideous as far as she could see; they were close to where the party took a break. "Would you like this back? It has only protection charms placed on it. Like you guessed, to make the bridge safe to cross. It must be location-locked, so it might not be as useful for us while we travel."
Aragorn didn't immediately answer. Pansy noticed he was observing her.
"What?"
"You cried again, milady," Aragorn stated.
It was not a question. Pansy wouldn't have answered. "Do you want it back?" she asked instead.
"What happened at Weathertop?"
Great, question for a question.
"Why did you intrude to my shower time a couple of days ago?"
Pansy asked that solely to make him uncomfortable. She could be an arse, just like he was.
As expected, Aragorn cast his eyes away and gulped. The image of her must have popped in his mind. Pansy smirked.
He cleared his throat and finally looked back at her. However, Pansy noticed he didn't quite look her in the eyes. Maybe he looked at her nose, or cheeks, or ear, or whatever.
He was avoiding her.
"What happened at Weathertop?" he repeated more sternly this time.
Pansy collected her arms by her bust. That brought his attention to her eyes.
"A rider attacked me so I Disapparated."
A few heartbeats passed without either of them speaking. Soon, Aragorn's brows crossed in confusion.
"I do not understand…"
Pansy rose her eyebrows to prompt him to speak. She did not have all day to hear him out.
"What do you mean by…?"
"Oh, yes, forgot you were a Muggle. I meant to say when I was attacked I used magic to get away. When I thought it was safe, I came back."
"Where did you go?"
"To a previous camp place."
The confusion was written all over his face, now mixed with astonishment. The purse of his parched lips was somehow compelling.
"At least a-day's travel?"
Pansy snorted at that, but seeing the genuine shock in his face, she laughed. It was laughing at him, but Pansy wouldn't pass the chance to be happy.
"Okay, okay, you'll love this," Pansy said, an idea swirling in her giddy mind.
She looped her arm around Aragorn's, and Disapparated. Being a witch, she could at least do that much.
I'M FOLLOWING THE BOOK, literally. It is open as I write, and this last few chapters have been nearly scene by scene :D So, I can promise that the next chapter there will be Glorfindel. So we ARE getting close to Rivendell.
I know this chapter is shorter, but I had to stop there and take your guesses where she would take him! (Clue: There aren't many options)
ANYWAY, here are Guest Review Replies:
Amy: You and I are thinking alike: So, I'm currently wondering who should be Aragorn's competition and I could consider if you had any preference :D I'll try to add more chapters as often as I can! Love, Ydream08
