Piccolo caught up with Gandalf quickly, the wind blowing in his face feeling thick with coming rain. As he approached the side of Shadowfax, Gandalf stiffened in surprise. He could see Pippin balled up and balanced carefully on the horses back, completely asleep.
"Master Namek," He called over the whistling of the wind. "What are you doing?"
"Merry asked me to come." Piccolo stated, face expressionless.
"And do you always do what is asked of you?" Gandalf smirked, sounding a little exhaspirated.
Piccolo frowned. "Only when it's important."
Gandalf seemed to mull over what he had said and nodded absently. He gave the Namek a genuine smile. "Why am I not surprised?"
Communication was difficult from the wind and so they quieted and only moved along. The earth passed beneath them in a flurry of movement. Hills, valleys, grass fields and forests moving beyond in a blur. Far to the north the great forests of Fangorn passed, the twinkling eyes of the Ents blinking at them.
Piccolo furrowed his brow in thought. "Where are we going?"
Pippin woke from his slumber and wobbled with the movement of the horse before burying his small hands into the flowing white mane. His eyes widened in surprise as he saw Piccolo running beside them, a light green blur at his back where his movement was nearing too fast for the eye to follow. "Piccolo?!"
The Namek nodded at him and looked expectantly at Gandalf. The wizard regarded Pippin a moment before turning his head toward Piccolo.
"Minas Tirith."
Piccolo nodded, knowing not where it was but at least had a destination point in mind.
"Piccolo, what are you doing here?" Pippin asked again, mind reeling with reasons why.
"Merry asked me to." Piccolo grinned slightly and it was made more genuine as Pippin broke out in a large grin pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes to keep from crying again.
"Did he?" Pippin's voice was barely a whisper on the howling wind but Piccolo's keen hearing heard it as though he had shouted it at him. He nodded once and Pippin grinned again before settling carefully and closing his eyes before drifting off into a happier sleep.
"You are nothing but a gentle soul wrapped in a hard exterior, Master Namek." Gandalf smiled softly at him.
Piccolo snorted and shook his head. He wouldn't have used the word gentle, personally. More like the term reformed. It was a sad state to be so easily manipulated by innocence. The best thing about, however, is that those that are innocent never use their strength for ill will.
Grinning at the sleeping Hobbit nested again in Gandalf's arms, Piccolo thought again of Gohan and felt a great wave of nastalgia nearly made him stumble. How long had it been since he had seen the demi. Six weeks...eight?
In all honesty, he had gone longer lengths of time before seeing Gohan now that the man had a family. But here, he would never have a chance to. Not really. The kid was his first friend, the first to show him love and teach him how to. He was his own son, blood didn't matter. Piccolo knew that Goku understood how he saw Gohan, and he was grateful that the saiyajin had not gotten upset or demanded he leave the boy be. But that in itself was a ridiculous thought. Goku was a compassionate soul, and his sons were just like him.
Gandalf watched as Piccolo's face closed off and his eyes were trained on something only the Namek could see. He smiled sadly to himself and whispered into Shadowfax's ears. "Steady on, boy."
Clouds filled the sky and moments later the first fat, icy drops of rain fell. Piccolo remained distant for the next quarter hour, lost in his own memories. When he finally came around, Gandalf held a skin of water out to him. He took a grateful swallow and only then realized that he was soaked to the skin and his feet were slipping through mud.
--
Bulma paced tiredly in her room. Seven steps to the couch, turn. Twelve steps to the fireplace, turn. Ten steps to the bed, turn. Twelve steps to the door, stop. She placed her hand on the knob, fretful to find something to do to pass the time. She shook her head and dropped her hand back to her side like she had done at least a dozen times already. Seven steps to the couch...
A soft knock came to her door nearly ten minutes later and she nearly lept for joy at the reprieve. Bulma bounded over to it, twenty-three times around her circle, and pulled the door open with a flourish.
The Lady Arwen stood outside it and opened her eyes in surprise before smiling at the overjoyed Bulma.
"Arwen, come in, please!" Bulma backed from the entry and motioned her in. "What can I do for you? Would you like some wine? Fruit?"
Arwen laughed as she sat comfortably on the couch, seven steps away, and shook her head at the offer for food and drink. "Actually, Lady Bulma, you have seemed rather distracted. I was wondering if you might need to talk."
Bulma sighed overdramatically and flopped ungracefully onto the couch beside Arwen. "That would be great."
Arwen smiled lightly and nodded, motioning to Bulma to speak her mind.
"Well I'm worried." Bulma rubbed at her face with the palm of one hand. "I haven't heard from Goku or Vegeta for weeks. I mean, how do I know that they aren't hurt or dead? I don't even know if Trunks' inhaler even worked on them!"
"Have faith." Arwen took one of Bulma's hands in her own. "I poldore mine indo tanwe mii paldore i limbe ya mel iimen."
A small smile hovered on Bulma's lips. She didn't understand a word Arwen had said after 'faith', but everything always sounded so important and beautiful in quenya.
Another soft laugh tumbled from Arwen's lips. "I said, the strength of one heart is made in the strength of the many who love them." She squeezed Bulma's hand. "There is much love and faith granted to your friends, from you and your son, from those you've left behind...and from those here who have met them."
Bulma smiled wide. "Goku has that effect on people." She looked thoughtful for a moment then laughed. "Not really Vegeta and Piccolo though. They're more of a required taste."
"They are withdrawn, I will grant you that." Arwen smiled, blue eyes sparkling. "Have you talked to my father, yet?"
Bulma stiffened in surprise. "He's back already?"
"Yes. He arrived an hour ago. The last I knew he was headed for his chambers to rest. I'm sure he would enjoy some relaxing company." A playful smile tugged at Arwen's lips. Bulma didn't notice.
"Oh! I wonder if he saw Goku!" Bulma practically ran to the door (only five steps at that angle). She stopped in the entry and turned back to Arwen, mildly embarrassed. "I'm sorry. What am I doing, running out on you like this?"
Arwen stood and held up a hand. "On the contrary. Go. Ada will have more information for you than I will."
Bulma nodded and smiled gratefully as she took off down the hall, picking up her skirts and practically running by the time she reached Elrond's chambers.
Pausing a moment to catch her breath, Bulma knocked and waited. Several minutes passed, and confused, Bulma knocked again a little harder. There was no immediate answer and Bulma mulled over her options. She could return to her room and pace again, maybe fall asleep and then track down Elrond in the morning. Or...
Bulma opened the door quietly, just in case the elf was already asleep. The room was lit softly and for a moment Bulma felt guilty, the elf Lord probably was sleeping, and rightfully so with all of the distance he had travelled so quickly. Instead of leaving, however, Bulma only walked further in, trying to be as quiet as possible.
The door behind her clicked shut softly at her insistance and she padded on tiptoe toward the curtained bed. The gossimar blinds were drawn and Bulma breathlessly pulled them to the side and peeked inside. A bulge sat in the middle and she mentally berated herself for coming. But since she was already here...
"Elrond." No more than a whisper. The bundle didn't move. "Elrond." A little harsher this time but no louder than the whisper before. Bulma reached out and frowned. Elrond would have to have one of the largest beds she had ever seen. Her reach barely made it half way to where he lay, and he was in the middle! Carefully, Bulma put a knee on the matress and leaned over as far as she dared without falling over. Her hand just brushed the lump on the bed and she hissed. "Elrond!"
With a little more frustration and a little less balance, Bulma fell face first into the thick down comforter. She sat up startled, heart beating in her chest and face heating with color. She turned to see if Elrond was going to yell at her and nearly growled. Two pillows lay tucked beneath the blanket. That would explain why the bump did not respond.
Sighing in frustration, Bulma crossed her arms over her chest and thought for a minute. If the Lord wasn't in bed then where would he go to relax?
As though in answer to her question a door she had not seen across the room clicked open and a wave of steam billowed out. Bulma gaped and then covered her mouth with a hand and hunkered low on the bed. Her face glowed hot. There was no way to get out of this situation without being horribly embarrassed. There she was sitting in the middle of his bed while he was stepping out of the bath!
True to form, Lord Elrond emerged a second later with a bathing robe over his shoulders and a plush towl in hand. Bulma didn't dare to breathe.
Elrond sat on a stuffed ottoman and flipped the length of his raven hair over his shoulder and began to squeeze the excess water from it with the white towel. Bulma pushed the curtain to the side and quickly slid it back again.
She didn't dare look, only closed her eyes tightly and turned her head away. This couldn't be happening. The sound of wet cloth falling to the floor nearly made her flinch, but her curiosity got the better of her before she could stop and she found herself peeking around the curtains again.
The towel was on the floor, and a crimson robe had been dropped beside it. A small 'eep' escaped Bulma's mouth before she could stop it. She suddenly saw Elrond stiffen where he stood in front of a hutch. Thankfully the elf had already pulled on a pair of flowing pajama bottoms or Bulma would have fainted dead away.
She was thinking of doing just that anyway.
Elrond's eyes flashed and he immediately stalked toward his bed and threw the curtain aside. His face softened and he sighed deeply when he saw it was only Bulma. Then he frowned and cocked his head to the side. "Lady Bulma, what are you doing?"
Bulma sat gapping like a fish. She tried, absolutely tried, to look Elrond in the face--it was such a nice face after all...but sweet Kami so wasn't the rest of him. Elrond bent until his face was level with hers and notice how flushed the woman looked. "Are you feeling well?"
Bulma blinked and nodded vigorously. "Y-yes. Yes of course."
Still frowning, Elrond straightened and crossed his arms over his chest. Bulma thought that was an aweful thing to do really, obstructing a good view like that, and blushed harder. "I'm glad. Now what are you doing on my bed?" Elrond arched an eyebrow.
Pointing to the pillows behind her still lumped under the blanket, she spoke. "The pillows were you. I mean, I thought of you..." Bulma stopped and shook her head, she decided to try another tactic. "How is Goku?"
Elrond nodded. "I only saw him in passing, but he is well."
Forgetting her discomfort Bulma puffed her cheeks and frowned. "Only saw him?"
"I am sorry, but I had important business to tend to. I did make sure to peek in on them, and my sons." Elrond smiled lightly and sat next to Bulma at the edge of the bed. "They appeared in well enough spirits if that makes you feel any better."
Bulma nodded. "Sure. Just like them to be off waiting to get themselves killed and having a grand old time!"
Elrond smirked, waiting for a raving that was sure to be coming. He was not left waiting.
"They do this every time! You'd think they were robots that just walked around waiting, just waiting, for enemies to start dropping from the sky!" Bulma turned toward him. "All you men are all the same, just running off and not thinking twice about the people you leave behind!" Before she realized what she was doing, Bulma was poking Elrond in the chest with her finger.
The elfin Lord looked down at the abusive digit and then up at Bulma again with a brow quirked. "Lady Bulma, in case you haven't noticed..." Elrond made a dramatic pause and Bulma blushed as she realized what she was doing. She opened her mouth to apologize just as Elrond finished his sentence. "...I am not a man."
Mouth clicking shut, Bulma thought on that a moment. It was true, he was an elf. Granted he was built like a man--at least all the parts she had seen--but she had classified him as another one of the infuriating people she had known since the age of 13 when she met Goku for the first time.
After a moment, Bulma smiled. "True."
They sat in silence, side by side on his large plush bed. Bulma trying not to eye him in any obvious way since it was too much to ask not to. The elf was sitting naked from the waist up! Elrond chose to ignore it and only kept the small smirk on his lips.
"Well." Bulma spoke quite suddenly as she stood up. "As highly embarrassing as this has been I think I should leave you alone." She laughed but it was more of a nervous twitter. Elrond stood as well and followed her to the door.
"Good night, Elrond."
Elrond nodded his head and grasped hold of her hand before she could retreat and pulled her bodily to him. He kissed her softly and let her go. "Good night, Lady Bulma." And he shut the door quietly.
Bulma stood in the hall staring at his oaken door for a dazed minute. She shook her head and grinned, another blush creeping into her cheeks. She was going to have some rather pleasant dreams tonight, that was for certain.
Elrond stood with a shoulder to the door and listened to her footsteps retreat in the hall. He shook his head at his own boldness and moved toward his slightly rumpled bed. He arranged the covers and slipped beneath them.
As he lay his head on the pillow he could smell Bulma's perfume lightly on the cloth and grinned into the dark. He was going to have some rather pleasant dreams tonight, that was for certain.
--
Freeza was currently walking along the filth covered roadways in Mordor. All though the creatures had at first sneered at him, it didn't take long after the first several dozen were killed with only the icejin's finger for the others to quickly fall into rank. Of course, their leader and master was Lord Sauron. However, as creatures of darkness, they had a keen pension for those with greater power, and even though Sauron was still absolutely their master and keeper, Freeza was the first great apparition of evil and strength to show them what greatness meant.
Zarbon, for his part, detested the whole lot of them. While Freeza grinned maliciously at the troops that passed, Zarbon curled up his lip in distaste and had already ripped the arms from some of the more agressive Urak-hai that thought he would make a pretty keepsake.
He felt filthy, which normally he could stand for any length of time were it remains of enemies smeared across his face and clothing. At least then it was a testiment of honor and strength. This time around, it was only thick ash, mud and any number of excriments that dripped, slopped and splashed onto him. Freeza hadn't allowed him to kill the orc simply because they were revolting. This had only incensed Zarbon further and he hated the blundering creatures all the more for it.
"My Lord, how much longer will we stay among these vermin?" Zarbon frowned as he stepped in a rather soft spot of earth that looked uncannily like feces.
Freeza sighed, "When I am good and ready, Zarbon. Not a moment before." He growled as the blue alien sighed overdramatically. "Don't you dare throw a tantrum, Zarbon, or I'll drop you into a pit of them to fondle all they like."
Zarbon shivered in revoltion then pouted and crossed his arms over his chest. "Of course, Lord Freeza."
"Look, if you hate it so much, go do something over there," Freeza pointed at a cliffside, not paying attention to where he pointed as he was still watching the Urak-hai.
Opening his mouth to protest, a movement in the shadows on the cliff face and a faint pinpoint of light made him close it and mull over his lord's request. "Of course, My Lord."
Freeza only snorted as the blue alien left, he was more thankful for the reprieve from his incessant whining than he had ever thought possible.
Zarbon moved slowly toward the shift of shadow, keeping himself at a fair distance and training his golden eyes along the crags. He saw a bundle move and landed in a depression above it and tilted his head to listen as it passed.
"It's alright, Mr. Frodo, just don't look down."
That voice...it was familiar.
"I'm not afraid of the height, Sam, just the fall." A sound of soft laughter following.
Zarbon's eyes lit up. It was the two children from earlier, but what were they doing here? Surely they didn't fit in with the creatures below, but then again they were rather filthy...
Just after the two moved carefully across a narrow strip of ledge, Zarbon floated beside them in the darkness. "Well, well, well. What do we have here?" His smirk turned into an evil grin as he saw the look of recognition on their small faces.
"Go away!" Sam stepped forward and stopped at the edge. He was already shaking in rage, Zarbon noticed. He laughed at the Hobbit's antics.
"And if I refuse?" Zarbon smiled sweetly, ruined slightly by the viciously pointed teeth that filled his mouth.
"Please. We have done nothing to you, and we have nothing you could possibly want." Frodo pleaded.
Zarbon noticed the great weary look in the boy's blue eyes. They were not even close to looking that old and tired when he had met them only days ago. "Done nothing to me...perhaps you are right. But having nothing I could want..." Zarbon trailed off, eyes flicking to the chain he could just make out around the Hobbit's neck.
Automatically Frodo reached a hand to his chest and curled his fingers around what lay inside the folds of his shirt. "No..."
"Oh, yes." Zarbon smiled again, moving closer to the two and resting a hand on either side of the petrified Frodo, pinning the boy in place.
"You leave him be!" Sam cried, drawing his dagger again and swinging with all of his Hobbit might.
A flash of color and movement that neither Hobbit could follow and Zarbon held the tip of the sword in the palm of one hand. The look on his face was one of great anger. "I told you once, cretin, that toy of yours will do you no good."
Sam trembled but held strong. Zarbon sneered, closing a fist around the front of Frodo's robes so that he could not escape, and closed his fist around the blade and squeezed. A sharp cracking and glint of the sword blade in the dim lighting before shards of Sting began to rain at their feet. Sam was left holding the hilt with only a jagged hunk of metal at it's end.
Frodo clenched his eyes shut and felt his knees go weak. Never had he seen something so strong, so eerie, so powerful. The blade didn't even nick the creatures skin!
"Now, about my present." Zarbon tittered gleefully, turning his full attention back to Frodo and ignoring the gaping Samwise.
"You don't understand, you can't take it!" Frodo moaned.
"Can't?" Zarbon feigned shock. "We'll just have to show you otherwise won't we?" The fist at Frodo's chest tightened and the Hobbit felt a wave of cold fear flood him.
"Zarbon!" A high pitched voice called. It didn't sound very pleased.
Golden eyes clenched shut and a blue face turned slowly. "Yes, Lord Freeza?"
"Get your blue butt down here this instant!" The white icejin lord had one hand on his hip and the other pointing viciously at the ground.
"Of course." Zarbon turned away, grinning as he began to tear the Hobbit's clothing.
"Now!" Freeza demanded. "Leave that thing alone!"
Zarbon released Frodo with a deep growl and spun until he faced his Lord. The look of complete irritation was stretched across Freeza's face and Zarbon capped his anger and floated down to meet him.
Sam grasped Frodo by the shirt sleeve and shook him lightly. "Come, Mr. Frodo! Before he comes back!" Frodo shook his curly head and stared down at the descending figure before shuffling quickly after Sam.
"Yes, Lord Freeza?" Zarbon asked, eyes turned carefully to the ground.
"Now that you're done playing, I have something I want you to hear." Freeza turned and stalked toward a trembling orc.
Zarbon followed, keeping out of the things reach as he stopped. Freeza grasped it by the chin and made it look at him. "Tell Zarbon exactly what you've told me."
"A battle...at Gondor. That is where the humans are making their stand." The thing whimpered.
Freeza grinned at Zarbon. "Where there are pathetic humans in need of assistance, there will be monkeys."
Zarbon's eye lit again. Where there were saiayjins would be their final death, and their death would mean returning home, which in turn meant getting away from this filth and to a nice hot bath. Suddenly, Zarbon frowned and Freeza growled.
"What is it?"
"My Lord, the saiyajins. They aren't there." Zarbon spoke evenly. He had only acquired his use of ki reading, so he may be wrong but it felt like the monkeys were headed in a different direction...and the namek was not with them.
Freeza frowned and faced into the darkness, his face pensive. "You are right." Zarbon let out a silent breath of relief. "You trail the Namek. When you've finished with him, come back here and we will face the monkey prince just as these baffoons march off to war."
Zarbon nodded, not entirely thrilled at having to kill the slug of a Namek, but at least he would be away from this diseased pool. "As you command, My Lord."
He was airborne and gone again within moments, passing over the two Hobbits that still amazingly remained hidden from the orc. He felt around for Piccolo's ki and felt it moving steadily and fast. Zarbon grinned. If the fool was headed toward him, then he could take a moment to freshen up at the nearest clean pool of water to be found.
