Disclaimer: All rights belong to Tolkien.
Chapter 5
The number of Cecilia's under pants grew from a five to a strong fourteen and then lowered back to seven. What was the correct way to pack for a quest anyway?
Travelling light seemed to be the idea, seeing as a gift of disappointingly ugly boots and a cloak waited for her upon the return from the bath house.
The cloak, no different than the shoes was a sorry sight, plain, simple and a colorless gray.
But she gave all that little mind, style was one of her lesser worries as of late, yet still, the ever self conscious Cecilia detested looking unkempt and this horrid thing would make sure of just that. She sat next to it, silence all around and the afternoon hours soon coming to an end. Passing time in thought was quite easy given the situation, it was a hefty work, reenacting all that was spoken in the days past.
What kind of a quest was in front of her?
Those ugly boots had better been made for riding, should walking or worse yet, running be involved in this ordeal, surely, Cecilia could not manage. Once it came to physical abilities one could only call her lacking, at best.
Dear God, take me now… thought Cecilia, growing weary of her misery within minutes, yet could not muster the strength to put away another pair of bloody underpants. Seven it was.
Newly cleaned and feeling a bit better Cecilia had decided that an hour or so of sleep would perhaps serve to a better purpose, if naught else. Packing with a head full of dismaying thoughts would prove to be torturous, the bed seemed quite welcoming too. Only a short moment's rest, that would do.
Tired of doing nothing but weighing her horrid life choices that led here knew to be tiring, yet sleep was as far off as it could have been.
She tried shifting on the bed numerous times and once it was evident that sleep was out of the question she found the strength to rise.
Her bag was not ready for a long journey just yet, and perhaps a little time in front of the mirror would do her well.
Cecilia, the ever-vain entity of a woman was as conceited as any, investing both too much time and money into her appearance. Looking good was the equivalent of feeling good.
She never left town without keeping the absolute necessities beside her at all times; and thus she made to find her cosmetic bag, looking to give her face a bit of attention.
Plucking this and that, rubbing numerous creams and cosmetics all over seemed to calm her down a bit.
It was a long journey of self indulgence and once finished Cecilia felt as good as new, this, however raised a new question as well.
What was to be done with the rest of the night?
A handful of long, sleepless hours awaited and one could muster next to nothing to kill the said until morning arrived.
She paced slowly around the armchairs for a few minutes, deep in thought. Unexpected excitement was washing over her body, the perplexed feeling of both anticipation and fright left her wondering. Was her life truly so dull and uninteresting for her to be thrilled about something as perverted as this?
Bouncing thoughts from one to the other had became so mind-numbing that she though she might go crazy. If she wasn't already, that is.
The striding had soon ceased and her bare feet found their way back to the bed, Cecilia was hollering over the bag with a decision to rearrange it. The third time over, no less.
She took out every item only to put it right back and did so for a questionable amount of time.
Once satisfied and sure that everything a woman might need on a quest was only a zipper away she finally felt ready to rest. Bothering herself with questions she thought idiotic and overly fatalistic was of little use tonight.
What will be will be. With the decision made Cecilia discarded all danger ahead and at last, after a few haunting hours fell into a dreamless slumber.
The knock came first, quiet and undemanding, almost friendly. Then there was silence.
Cecilia was almost deaf to it, she had been up since first light and in her hazines had trouble knowing if the sound was real or pretend. It did not sound real.
After receiving no answer the knocking repeated, now louder and faster, allerting of its intention to enter. Whoever lurked behind the door was quite real. Cecilia awoke from the haze suddenly, every thought in high definition. The door opened on its own and two figures entered, one already familiar.
First to come in was the senior elf maiden whose name remained to be revealed, high and proud as usual, ready to assist Cecilia in the day to come.
A tall, brown-haired man followed behind the maid, carrying a silver platter full of food which he lowered beside Cecilia without a word.
"Quel amrun hiril nin." Spoke the woman, bidding the younger girl a good morning. She was quick to remove the drapes and let the sun in, once done she reappeared in front the bed. "I trust that you have your possessions packed?"
"I do."
"You are certain?" The elf asked and even if Cecilia wasn't certain she had everything packed she would not dare say it in fear of what the woman might have to say back.
"Positive." Cecilia assured the elf by standing up and pointing to the green bag sprawled on the wooden floor. "I'm ready."
Upon hearing the words a grimace appeared on the fair face before Cecilia, looking her up and down a few times over. She soon returned to her expressionless self and spoke coldly: "I would hope your plans do not lay in traveling looking as such."
Cecilia who had been caught off guard had no time to change, surely, only an idiot would dare travel on a quest with no pants, thus she laughed, not believing the elf's stern reaction.
"I didn't get a chance to change." Said the human, becoming serious once seeing that the elf was in a no jesting mood.
"Fear not." A quick nod was all it took for the man who entered with her to leave, Cecilia's bag in hand. He closed the door silently and once alone it became evident that the woman was looking to be somewhere else. "I did not come to linger."
Only now did Cecilia take note of the garb in the lady's arms, garb consisting of brownish pants which looked and felt quite thin and a simple black blouse which seemed too tight to fit.
"Thank you." Said Cecilia, trying to appear grateful despite the horrid clothing before her. She sent a sour smile to the elf and then lowered her gaze to where the outfit awaited.
The elven lady seemed pleased with the interaction and with a stoney face still set she spoke again. "Until next we meet." One more sturdy look from head to toe, an extended hand in the formal elven greeting and she was gone.
It took almost no time for Cecilia to change into the given garment and inspect herself thoroughly. She decided that she wouldn't have looked a complete disaster given the right accessories. After all, no one but the female elf seemed to care about her presentability and luckily, Cecilia had remembered to bring forth some of her own clothing. How rude would it have been if she chose to wore her own shoes, rejecting the boots already provided?
The noises heard behind closed doors engulfed Cecilia, completely capturing her brain now that she was alone, shedding her out of her thoughts and reminding her that the clock was ticking.
The cloak was held in her right arm, draped around the boots in an effort to hide them for they were almost as uncomfortable as they were ugly. A pair of Nike's running shoes would aid her better, be it in walking or riding.
Walking out of the vast opening required great courage and Cecilia struggled to find it several times over. Both anxious to leave and stay she pressed her weight from one leg to the other, making no movement to exit.
Lastly, the time to depart had finally arrived and with a single last glance to the empty bookshelf Cecilia had left.
Her heart was pounding so furiously that she was certain the constellate noise would echo in all ears surrounding. Finding her companions was an easy task given that a crowd had already formed to see the nine travelers off. Wedging through the horde, on the other hand, not so easy.
She moved forward with extreme caginess, walking as slowly as possible and staring into the ground as if in fear of what might welcome her once she found the guts to look up.
Her pack was hanging from a pony's back, alongside with the others, her's seemed to be the last one to be put on the animal and so she concluded that all they were waiting for was her. Embarrassment overflew her and she stopped right in her tracks, still not daring to look anywhere other than the pony.
The men surrounding her were not nearly as discouraged as she and thus could not help to look anywhere other than right at her.
This strangely petrified creature was lurking about their pony, one might have even mistook her for a thief, waiting for an opportunity to grab their belongings.
A childlike figure grabbed the robe of the wizard, wanting to alert him of the curious presence. All but Gandalf were striked with confusion and none but the old man held the intention of speaking.
"There now." Said the wizard before placing his palm on her shoulder, forcing her to look up. "You needn't fear any of them." With the palm still on her shoulder he guided her towards the men, relenting only when she met his warm, reassuring gaze.
Gandalf's smiling face stood across from the eight and beside Cecilia who took the chance of overlooking them all. The four children returned her curious glances and Cecilia wondered what business these younglings held in a quest of any sort. Little did she know that they were wondering much of the same.
"These are the hobbits." Introduced Gandalf who now came to rest beside them, moving his hand from one curly head to the other. "Meriadoc Brandybuck, Samwise Gamgee, Frodo Baggins and Peregrin Took." Each curtised with either a smile or a nod of head following their naming.
"At your service." Spoke the last hobbit right before proudly pulling his pants upwards.
"And these" Gandalf swiftly abandoned the hobbits and moved to their left where a different four awaited. "These are the men i have spoke to you about."
"Boromir, son of Denethor." Reported the most flabbergasted man in the group. Cecilia averted her gaze from him before he could speak again, which she would not have done if she knew he was not yet finished.
"Gimli, son of Gloin. At yer service." The shortest of them informed, his voice gravelly and surprisingly amiable. He bowed his bearded head low and offered her a smile which Cecilia gladly returned.
The man who she was next to meet stood tall and strong, regarding her carefully several times before introducing himself. "Gandalf had much to say about you." He stated, not nearly as taken aback by her presence as the other characters, yet perplexed still. "I am the one they call Strider." He did not smile and made no more attempts to look her over, trouble loomed over his head and it was clear as day that much was on his mind. "Aragorn… If you will." He added.
The last man who stood took Cecilia by surprise, the elven warrior in his full gear eyed the ranger next to him and met Cecilia's puzzled gaze with one of his most perceiving ones yet. They stood in silence for a moment before he finally felt the need to speak, averting his cold, blue eyes to her strange shoes and then right back to her own. "We already made our introductions." He informed both the group and Cecilia, leaving the rest wondering just why Legolas had the chance to meet the maiden before them.
"Hello." She shyly offered while rubbing her hands against each other in a nervous fashion.
"I did not hope to see you here, hiril nin." My lady. Said Legolas in a most formal manner. "And regards to you as well." He returned the greeting.
"And this, my dear friends" Gandalf, who was eager to depart cut the conversation at its stemp, appeared back at Cecilia's side. "Is lady Cecilia." The still confused glances were looking for answers and the wizard was quick to provide what little needed to be said. "Lord Elrond and myself have taken it upon us to decide the most curious fate of our new found friend. I expect all of you to act accordingly to the decision made." The men all nodded in unusion, none of them willing to question Gandalf.
"It will be as you say." Assured Aragorn, who seemed to know more than he let on, sharing an understanding look with the wizard.
"Now then." With all said and done and with new accequances made, it was time to go. "We better be on our way."
And so it came to pass that upon receiving a few final blessings the fellowship set out on their journey.
Hey guys, im back after these 2 or 3 months, i had to deal with some personal stuff and could not find the time to continue the story and i apologize for that.
But, now i am back and the story will continue and i hope that you enjoy this that i have prepared for you.
Let me know how im doing, reviews feed the muse.