And again, another daily chapter!
I didn't mean to make Elrond sound sexist in anyway last chapter, I did my best to make him hesitant about Sam while trying to make him sound kind...that really doesn't make much sense...oh well...
Still don't own the rights.
Sam walked down to the gates of Rivendell where the others waited. When they all had arrived, they headed out, Frodo briefly asking Gandalf for the direction of Mordor. "We must hold to this course west of the Misty Mountains for forty days. If our luck holds, the Gap of Rohan will still be open to us. From there our road turns east, towards Mordor," Gandalf said.
The days turned into weeks on their trek. One bright morning found Boromir, Aragorn, and Sam giving Merry and Pippin sword lessons. "Get away from the blade Pippin! On your toes…good, very good. I want you to react, not think," Boromir said.
"Shouldn't be too hard," Samwise joked from the campfire as he cooked. Sam grinned at the joke as did the others.
"Move your feet," Boromir instructed.
"Quite good Pippin," Merry complimented.
"Thanks," Pippin said.
Sam looked over as Gimli talked to Gandalf about going through the Mines of Moria and how his cousin Balin would give them all a royal welcome. Gandalf immediately dismissed the idea. "No Gimli. I would not take the road through Moria unless I had no other choice." Sam looked back as Pippin and Merry tackled Boromir to the ground. They were laughing and Sam started to smile when she noticed Legolas staring off in the distance.
"What is that?" Sam asked, noticing the dark patch of sky that was moving towards them in jerking motions.
"Nothing," Gimli dismissed. "It's just a wisp of a cloud."
"It's moving fast, against the wind," Boromir said.
"Crebain from Dunland!" Legolas shouted urgently.
"Hide!" Aragorn snapped.
"Merry, Pippin, Samwise, take cover!" Boromir ordered. They quickly put out the fire and dove under the sparse cover. Sam stilled her breathing as the mass of black birds wheeled overhead for a few moments before heading back to the south. The Fellowship emerged from their hiding spots. Boromir offered his hand to Sam and helped her to his feet. Legolas glared slightly at the Gondor man. Sam nodded her thanks and turned to Legolas, a smile on her face. The Elf's look vanished and he returned the smile.
"Spies of Saruman. The passage south is being watched," Gandalf said worriedly. He turned to the others but mainly Aragorn. "We must take the pass of Caradhras!"
- - - - - - - - - -
Sam squinted her eyes against the glare of the snow, wishing she had brought her sunglasses. Instead she pulled a pair of gloves on as the Fellowship came to a rest on the snowy, rocky mountainside.
"Are you all right?" Legolas asked.
"Yeah. I've been in colder places before, but that doesn't mean I enjoy them."
"Then perhaps you should have stayed in Rivendell," Boromir suggested with a wink as he passed by. He sat on a nearby rock for several moments when a snowball impacted his shoulder, throwing him to the ground. He leapt to his feet and drew his sword.
"Jumpy Boromir?" Sam asked innocently, rolling a snowball in her hand. The Gondor man sheathed his sword and turned away.
"Nice aim," Pippin complimented. She tossed him the snowball and he caught it. He took careful aim and hurled the cold missile at Merry. Merry fell face first in the snow causing Sam, Pippin, Samwise, Legolas, and Gandalf to smile in amusement.
"Pippin!" Merry shouted.
"It wasn't me! It was Sam!" Pippin said quickly.
"You threw that snowball Pip!" she returned.
"I did…" Pippin began when Sam dumped an armful of snow on the Hobbit.
"Merry! Help!" Pippin cried, throwing a snowball at Sam. She ducked and it hit Gandalf in the face. Pippin's face grew horrified and he hid behind Sam.
The wizard wiped the snow from his face. "I think we've rested enough," he said but his tone was amused. They rose to their feet and began hiking again. Sam watched in envy as Legolas calmly walked over the snow as if it were solid ground.
"Bloody Elf," Gimli muttered as Legolas walked by.
After climbing for nearly a half hour Frodo let out a cry of surprise as he lost his footing amongst some shale. He tumbled backwards until Aragorn stopped him. Everyone stopped and turned. The man helped the Hobbit to his feet. Frodo searched his neck for the ring and began to panic when he couldn't find it.
Sam saw something glinting in the snow but Boromir picked it up first. Sam gripped her bow as he stared at the ring, transfixed by it gleaming in the sun. Aragorn cautiously approached Boromir, his hand resting on his sword. "Boromir?" Aragorn asked warily.
"It is a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt over so small a thing…such a little thing…" the Gondor man said.
"Boromir, give the ring back to Frodo," Sam ordered. Her right hand tensed slightly as she made ready to draw an arrow.
Boromir blinked as if coming out of a trance. "As you wish," he said, handing Frodo the ring. "I care not." He ruffled the Hobbit's hair and walked away. Sam and Aragorn slowly relaxed.
The ten continued up the mountain and the weather slowly grew worse. As the snow deepened, Gandalf led the way through the snow while Legolas walked up ahead. Aragorn carried Samwise and Frodo, Boromir held Merry, and Sam easily carried Pippin. Gimli was in the middle of the group, having refused to be carried by anyone. "Nobody carries a Dwarf," he had claimed.
Legolas suddenly stopped and looked warily around. "There is a fell voice in the air," he slowly said.
"It is Saruman," Gandalf replied.
Sam looked up and her eyes widened. "Look out!" she screamed at Legolas. The Elf dove towards the others as rocks and shale came tumbling down, striking the ground where Legolas had been moments before.
"Thank you," he said quietly to her. She smiled and nodded.
"He is trying to bring down the mountain!" Aragorn realized. "Gandalf, we must turn back!"
"No!" the wizard returned. He lifted his staff and began chanting into the wind. "Losto Caradhras, sedho, hodo, nuitho I ruith!" (Sleep Caradhras, be still, lie still, hold your wrath)
A bolt of lightening suddenly split the sky and an avalanche of snow came hurtling down at the Fellowship. They pressed themselves up against the side of the mountain. Legolas pulled Gandalf in while the three humans shielded the Hobbits from the torrent of snow. Sam pulled Pippin out of the snow and ruffled his hair in reassurance at his scared look. She noticed that Gimli was nowhere to be seen even though he had been in front of her. She stuck her hand in the snow and felt the back of a shirt. She grinned and pulled the Dwarf up.
"The pass is blocked!" Legolas informed them.
"We must get off the mountain!" Boromir shouted. "Make for the Gap of Rohan and take the west road to my city!"
"The Gap of Rohan takes us too close to Isengard!" Aragorn returned.
"We cannot pass over the mountain. Let us go under it! Let us go through the mines of Moria!" Gimli suggested.
A worried look came over Gandalf's face. "Let the Ringbearer decide," he finally said, looking at Frodo. The Hobbit looked around at everyone. "Frodo?" Gandalf asked.
"We will go through the mines," Frodo decided.
"So be it," Gandalf agreed. They slowly made their way down the mountain. Gimli took up the lead with Gandalf.
Sam looked at Legolas. "Why is Gandalf so hesitant about going through Moria?" she inquired.
"I do not know, but if Gandalf fears the way, then it cannot bode well for us," the Elf answered. Sam nodded, setting Pippin down when they reached shallow snow.
"Thank you Sam," the Hobbit said.
Sam smiled. She had taken an instant liking to the Hobbit when she first met him. "No problem Pip. Though after that little avalanche Saruman gave us I hope you learned never to get in a snowball fight with a wizard. Gandalf may not be so kind the next time."
"I won't make that mistake again," he agreed. "I'll just have to beat you in a snowball fight."
"Good luck. No one has ever been able to hit me in a snowball fight," Sam said. A snowball suddenly connected with her back and she whirled around to see Legolas smiling innocently at her.
Pippin started laughing. "Looks like your perfected record has just been snowed on," he grinned.
"Perhaps, but there's a saying in my homeland. 'Hell hath no fury as a woman angered'," Sam said, not telling them she changed 'scorned' to 'angered'.
"Come on you three!" Aragorn called to them. They hurried down to the others and continued on their journey to the gates of Moria.
- - - - - - - - - -
As night fell two days later, they reached a side of a mountain, a dark lake several feet away. "The Gates of Moria!" Gimli exclaimed.
They stopped in front of the face of the mountain and Gandalf touched the stone. Luminous silver writing began appearing on the rock. "Itidin…it mirrors only starlight and moonlight." The moon finished rising over the mountains and the thin writing became thicker, forming an archway in the stone. "It reads, 'The door of Durin, Lord of Moria. Speak friend and enter'."
"What do you suppose that means?" Merry questioned.
"It's quite simple. If you are a friend, you speak the password and the doors will open," the wizard replied confidently. He raised his arms and chanted, "Annon edhellen, edro hi ammen!" A cold wind blew through the Fellowship but the doors remained closed. The minutes ticked into hours as Gandalf futilely tried to open the doors.
Sam watched as Samwise repacked his pots and pans. Aragorn was unsaddling the pony, Bill. "Mines are no place for a pony, even one so brave as Bill," Aragorn said to the Hobbit. Samwise bid farewell to the pony and Aragorn urged the pony away. Bill trotted off into the night.
A suddenly splash drew Sam's attention to the lake. Merry and Pippin, both of whom were bored, were tossing stones into the dark water. A feeling of uneasiness grew in Sam and she stilled Pippin's arm before he could throw another stone. "Don't disturb the water," she cautioned. She glanced at Aragorn who grimly nodded. Sam slipped an arrow into her hand and loosely knocked it to her bow.
Gandalf sat down in despair as Frodo looked at the door. "It's a riddle," the Hobbit realized. "It says 'Speak friend and enter'. What's the Elvish word for friend?"
"Mellon," Gandalf said slowly. The rock doors slowly opened and they cautiously moved inside.
"So, Master Elf, you will enjoy the fabled hospitality of the Dwarves; roaring fires, malt beer, red meat off the bone! This, my friend, is the home of my cousin Balin. And they call this a mine," Gimli chuckled, "A mine!"
Sam and the others blinked against the glare that came from Gandalf's staff. Her eyes fell on the ground. "Holy Hannah!" she exclaimed softly. Dozens of Dwarfish skeletons littered the floor. Aragorn and Boromir's swords were out and Legolas had an arrow knocked to his bow.
"This is no mine…it's a tomb!" Boromir exclaimed.
"Oh no…no…no…no!" Gimli cried.
Sam picked up an arrow from a skeleton and her eyes hardened. Legolas looked at the arrow. "Goblins!" he spat.
"We make for the Gap of Rohan. We should never have come here," Boromir said as they backed the way they had come.
"Aragorn!" Frodo cried. They whirled around and saw a long tentacle pulling the Hobbit back towards the lake.
Aragorn, Boromir, Sam, and Legolas surged forward. The two men hacked at the tentacles, freeing Frodo. Sam pulled him to safety and stood between the creature and the Hobbits. They watched in horrid fascination as twenty more tentacles splashed out of the water. One crashed into Sam and she fell into the water.
"Aragorn!" she shouted as the creature grabbed Frodo. The Hobbit was lifted high into the air. Sam stumbled to her feet as Aragorn severed a tentacle. Frodo fell into Boromir's arms and the man pushed the Ringbearer back to Gandalf and the others.
"Into the mines!" Gandalf ordered.
"Legolas!" Aragorn shouted.
Before the Elf could fire his arrow, Sam had already released hers. Legolas released his as well. The shafts struck the creature in the head, giving precious seconds to Aragorn and Boromir to escape. The Fellowship ran into the mines as the creature ripped off the doors and caused a rockslide, sealing the ten inside. Light shone brightly from the wizard's staff.
"We have but one choice. We must face the long dark of Moria. Be on your guard. There are older and fouler things than the Orcs in the deep places of the world," he cautioned in an ominous tone.
"Are you all right?" Legolas asked Sam softly as she dug through her pack.
"I've never battled large creatures like that before, but I have faced more deadly situations," she grinned, pulling something out.
"What is that strange device?" Samwise asked, noticing what to him looked like an oddly shaped black rod.
Sam grinned. "This is something from my homeland. We call it a flashlight." She clicked the button and a beam of light flared to life at the end, stunning the natives of Middle Earth.
"How does it work?" Boromir inquired.
"You wouldn't understand, trust me," Sam returned, securing the flashlight to her belt. "I'm not trying to be mean. It's just different from what you all know. Think of it as a cross between a torch and magic." They nodded in understanding and continued into the dark of Moria.
Everyone obviously knows the main plot if you know Lord of the Rings, so you know what happens. But with Sam in the mix, how will it happen? You'll just have to wait and see! Until then, review!