Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material written by Tolkien or Peter Jackson.

A/N: Who can guess which songs in this chapter come from where? And no, I do not own any of them. I will give you a hint... they're very popular in children churches (where I obviously spent wayyyy too much time watching them!).

Many thanks to users...

Jessfairy88 — (Here's that requested post!)

Amy — (I am the same! I have so many books I want to read but I end up reading something totally different!)

Izzy Bug — (Lol! Éomer has no idea what he's up against!)

Imamc — (Here's your next chapter! Hmm... I need to figure that out!)

LilactheDryad — (*rolls eyes* You know how Celeborn feels about evil laughs! *wags finger in face* Ha ha! Kidding! I'm kidding! (And not M/E's version of kidding either, to specify.) I love to drive my brothers crazy with that song! Teehee!)

Isn't it weird how people kill flies because they're annoying? If people killed people because they were annoying, I would have died like ages ago.

—Unknown

Riley's Point of View...

"This is Hasufel. He shall be your mount until we reach a settlement. Then you will have to fend for yourself." Éomer placed the horse's reins into my hands before turning to the rest of his company. "We ride North until dawn. Forth Eorlingas!"

If my guess was correct, we would have several hours of hard riding ahead of us. Which meant boredom. The only entertainment: Éomer's lack of patience.

"Little bald bunny ain't got no fur. Little bald bunny! Brrrh! Brrrh! Brrrh! Little bald bunny, feeling rather chilly! Little bald bunny, being rather silly! Ohhhhh!" I paused in my singing and glanced at Éomer. "Aww! Come on Spanky! Join the chorus!"

"I would rather take my chance with the orcs.', he muttered.

"Excuse me?"

He appeared disconcerted that I heard his mumbling and I rolled my eyes.

"Elf ears! Duh! But why don't you like my singing?"

"I do like it."

"Then what's the problem?"

"Béma, woman! It's not the voice! It's the song! It's stuck in my head!"

"Oh." I snickered. "I can fix that."

Éomer shook his head.

"That's not necess—"

"When. A. Song. Is stuck inside your head! Just sing! This song! Again and again! Bee bop bop. Do do do do. Bee bee bop. Kool-aid! Bee bee bop. Bee bee de do de do. Bee bop bop. Waffles! Bee bee bop!—"

"If you must sing, at least sing something that I understand! I have no idea what these strange items are!"

An idea sparks in the back of my mind and a smile slowly creeps onto my face.

"How do you feel about vegetables?"

He stared at me for a moment.

"I highly doubt that there are any interesting songs about vegetables."

"Challenge accepted!"

"What! I issued no challenge!' Éomer bellowed as he got a slightly panicked look in his eye.

"If you like to talk to tomatoes! If a squash can make you smile! If you like to waltz with potatoes! Up and down the produce aisle!"

"This is ridiculous!', he muttered as he rode ahead of the group. "Erkenbrand! She is placed in your charge for now. "

"Yes, my lord Éomer."

The poor man went pale. The Rohirrim were obviously not comfortable around elves (not sure I helped in that matter).

I leaned close to him and winked.

"Don't worry, Bran. I promise I'll behave."

The man eyed me distrustfully. And honestly? I didn't blame him one bit.

Third Person Point of View...

Éomer was about to go ballistic. He had managed to keep his distance from the strange elf, but snatches of the ridiculous songs she would sing floated to his ears anyway. And the worst part? They were catchy enough to get stuck in his head!

"Pizza angel, I'm on my knees! Tomato sauce and cheese so gooey!"

"Barbara manatee! You are the one for me! Sent from up above! You are the one I love!"

"Oh! Everybody's got a water buffalo! Mine is fast but yours is slow! Where did we get them, I don't know. But everybody's got a water buffaloooo!"

"You can wear them if you're short! Wear them if you're tall! They're pants if you're short and shorts if you're tall!"

"Belly button! Uh-uh. If your belly button's missing there's no reason for alarm! It's a common thing for gourds: it won't do you any harm!"

"If it doesn't have a tail it's not a monkey! If it doesn't have a tail it's not a monkey it's an ape!"

"Oh where... is my hairbrush? Oh where... is my hairbrush?"

Hmm... I can see certain elves singing that particular song.

Riley smirked to herself as Éomer held the reins so tightly that his knuckles went white. After all, Veggietales was enough to drive the most patient elf in Imladris insane.

Six hours after the orcs had been slain, the sun had finally rose. Time had passed quickly for Riley, but the horse-lords in her company felt as if it had been a lifetime.

She looked up just in time to see Aragorn yanking Gimli into a small alcove in the rocks. The Rohirrim thundered past the hidden space as the ranger jumped out of his hiding space to call to them.

"Riders of Rohan! What news from the Mark?"

I thought the point of hiding was to go unnoticed?

Éomer lifted his spear as a signal for the riders to turn. They soon had the three hunters surrounded, and the third marshall was quick to push Riley towards the outer edge of the circle to keep her hidden from view.

"What business does an elf, a dwarf, and two men have in the Riddermark? Speak quickly!', Théoden's nephew bellowed.

"Give me your name, horse-master, and I shall give you mine."

Though her vision was obscured when it came to her friends, Riley knew that Aragorn was peeved with the dwarf for his sarcasm. She could, however, see Éomer. And he did not look happy.

She could see the look of annoyance flicker across his face as he handed his spear to one of the men in his company before quickly dismounting his horse.

"I would cut off your head, dwarf, if it stood but a little higher off of the ground."

Riley's ears picked up the sound of a bowstring being pulled taut as Legolas defended his new friend.

"You would die before your stroke fell."

Spears were suddenly thrust into the remaining part of the fellowship's faces as Aragorn shoved his friend's weapon downward.

"We are friends of Rohan, and of Théoden King.', the ranger explained.

"The King no longer recognizes friend from foe." Éomer removed his helmets and as he did so the spears were also removed from that area. "Not even his own kin. Saruman has poisoned the mind of the King and claimed lordship over his lands."

The blond haired man drew closer to Aragorn until he was inches away from his face.

"The white wizard is cunning. He walks here and there, as an old man hooded and cloaked. And everywhere, his spies slip past our nets."

"We are no spies.', Aragorn replied evenly. "I am Aragorn, son of Arathorn. This is Gimli, son of Glóin. That is Legolas of the Woodland Realm. And this is—"

"We are acquainted with one another, Aragorn."

Riley froze.

Back to Riley's Point of View...

"And what does the son of Denethor have to do with this odd company?"

I jumped off of Hasufel and pushed my way through the burly riders.

"Move you egoistical examples of testosterone at work. I need to see the hunk of meatloaf that's in charge."

I could almost hear Legolas and Aragorn exchanging a glance.

"Only one person I know comes up with such ridiculous names.', Legolas chuckled as I burst past Éomer.

The three hunters were all grinning at me as Éomer's gaze drifted in-between us.

"This is the company that you traveled with?"

I nodded.

"Rielásse! You escaped! How?"

"I was Houdini's apprentice.', I quipped. "Actually Éomer—" I caught Aragorn's disproving look. "—Lord Éomer, saved my butt—" Another exasperated face from the ranger. "—from the orcs." I wrinkled my nose as I remembered all the filth in the Uruk-hai camp.

"What about the hobbits?" Gimli whirled to face Éomer. "Did you see two hobbits? They're wee things: children to your eyes."

"I'm afraid not.', Éomer shook his head sadly. "We left none alive, excepting the elf, and the carcasses were piled and burned."

"Boromir!', I yelled happily as I caught sight of the man, interrupting the conversation. "You're alive!"

I thought for sure he had died by banana and been chunked off a cliff. What? It happens in the Lego version!

He visibly paled.

Oops. If he's still alive then Gimli threw his horn into the water, which means that Aragorn had to explain why I told the dwarf that in the first place... Oh crap! They know that I know!

I shook myself out of the mental logic chains that were forming in my mind to see the fellowship mournfully staring at the smoke rising in the distance.

"Before you decide to kick any orc helmets, Aragorn, tweedle-dumb and tweedle-dumber are in Fangorn, not some smelly pile of ashes.', I remarked as I caught their gloomy looks.

Éomer gazed at me in surprise.

"Lucky guess?', I offered.

He only rolled his eyes and snorted.

"Look for your companions, but I would not trust to hope. It has abandoned these lands, and Fangorn is a perilous wood." He gave a piercing whistle and called for Hasufel, Arod, and another horse whose name was Berun.

"May these horses bear you to better fortune than their former masters. And may you have far more patience with the she-elf than I. We ride North!"

And then the Rohirrim were gone.

"What did you do to that poor man?"

I turned to beam at Boromir.

"Oh you know. I may or may not have filled his mind with catchy songs."

Legolas snickered.

"These 'songs' were not those that persuaded Lindir to discontinue asking you to sing, by any chance?"

I only smiled harder in response.

Aragorn sighed.

"Let us go and find our friends, shall we?"

It was quickly decided who should ride with who. Legolas and Gimli were seated upon Arod, and Boromir on Berun. That left me with Aragorn and Hasufel.

Aragorn quickly mounted, giving me a hand up, and I winced as his hand accidentally brushed the arrow wound on my shoulder. If I had had any hope that he wouldn't notice my grimace it was quickly trampled upon. He insisted that we find the closest source of water possible so he could clean and examine the puncture.

"It doesn't hurt anymore!', I responded quickly. He raised an eyebrow and poked my shoulder in answer to my protest. I yelped.

"Doesn't hurt, hmm?"

I scowled as a nearby stream was located and I was gently helped down from the horse. The same process from a few nights ago was repeated as my shoulder was carefully prodded, cleansed, and stitched together again. I kept my eyes closed throughout the procedure.

"You are lucky it did not become infected, mellon nin. It is nothing short of a miracle that it did not.', Aragorn said as he placed me on Hasufel so I would not rip out the stitches again.

We arrived on the edges of Fangorn that afternoon. The smell of burnt orc flesh made me gag, while the men simply looked at me in amusement.

"What madness would drive them into such a place?', Gimli asked rhetorically as he stared into the dark forest.

"Did you not meet Éomer? If I had had a choice I would have run for the hills!', I declared sarcastically.

Aragorn began to track the halflings' footsteps into the forest, and we followed slowly behind him.

"These are strange tracks.', the ranger murmured as he bent down to look at ginormous prints that were stamped into the ground.

"No beast that is known to me makes such strange marks.', Boromir also leaned over the odd impressions, while Gimli wandered over to a leaf and dipped his finger into a black substance that had become all too familiar over the past few days.

"Orc blood!', he said as he spat it out.

"I could have told you that, Gimli." I thought for a moment. "What does it taste like anyhow?"

"Terrible. Like a burning acid. I doubt anything could taste like the blood of those foul creatures."

"I said the same about that awful draught. That stuff was horrible." I shuddered.

"They gave you—"

I shook my head.

"Don't even ask. I want to scrub my tongue off just thinking about it."

Aragorn and Boromir began to follow the strange tracks Treebeard had left behind.

As we went even further into the forest Gimli began to grow nervous.

"The air is so very close in here."

"It is an old forest, Gimli. Very old.', Legolas replied as he took in his surroundings. "Full of memory." He paused. "And anger."

The trees groaned. Gimli and Aragorn could only hear their moaning, but Legolas and I could hear their voices whispering inside our minds.

The dwarf clutched his axe in panic. The groaning grew louder.

"Gimli!', Aragorn hissed. "Lower your axe."

He slowly did as Strider asked him to.

"They have feelings, my friend.', Legolas explained. "The elves began it: waking up the trees, teaching them to speak."

"Talking trees. Wonderful.', Boromir said dryly.

I wonder how you are going to feel about the ents...

"What do trees have to speak of except the consistency of squirrel droppings?', Gimli scoffed as we continued walking.

"Maybe squashing annoying dwarfs who make fun of them?', I suggested. He peered uneasily around him as I put that thought into his head.

Legolas scanned deeper into the woods as I caressed the bark of a gnarled oak tree.

"We mean no harm.', I whispered to the ancient wood. "We are friends of Gandalf, and of Treebeard." The moaning suddenly stilled and Gimli contemplated me curiously.

He opened his mouth to ask what I had said to the tree when Boromir beat him to it.

"Aragorn said you are something akin to a Seer. Can you tell us of what lies ahead?"

I thought about that for a moment.

"Well, I could..."

His eyes lit up.

"But then the world as you know it would come undone and it would be because of your curiosity and my stupidity in satisfying it. So the answer is no."

I obnoxiously began to hum 'we're off to see the wizard' underneath my breath. Boromir shot me a look and would have sent some rude retort in my direction had Legolas not leapt onto a tree root at that moment.

"Aragorn! Nad no ennas!"

"Man cenich?"

"The White Wizard approaches.', Legolas replied.

Aragorn tensed and grasped his sword in his hands.

"Do not let him speak. He will put a spell on us."

They all drew their weapons and charged forward while I stood and calmly waited for Gandalf to reveal himself.

Legolas' arrow and Gimli's axe were both deflected by the wizard's staff. Boromir and Aragorn both dropped their swords as they became white-hot.

As the fellowship shielded their eyes I ran towards the glistening Gandalf and embraced him.

"I don't believe it! Not only did she not draw her weapons, but she was in league with Saruman all along! She led us right into his grasp!"

I glared at Boromir before rolling my eyes.

"You never gave me any weapons and I lost my own at Amon Hen! How could I have drawn them?"

"It is best that we did not give weapons to a traitor!', he snarled back.

"Have a little faith! This is Gandalf! Not Saruman, you idiot!"

"Show yourself!', Aragorn yelled.

I really like you Gandalf, but could you try to stop competing with the sun before we all die of skin cancer?

Gandalf allowed his light to slowly fade.

"It cannot be.', Estel whispered as he came closer.

"Forgive me.', Boromir apologized to both of us.

"Forgive me, also.', Legolas said as he bowed. "I mistook you for Saruman."

"I am Saruman. Rather, Saruman as he should have been."

"But you fell." Aragorn's voice shook slightly. "I saw you fall."

"And fall I did. Through fire— and water. From the lowest dungeon from the highest peak, I fought the Balrog of Morgoth, until at last I threw down my enemy and smote his ruin upon the mountainside. Darkness overtook me, and I strayed out of all thought and time. Stars wheeled over head, and every day was as long as a life age on the earth."

The wizard looked down at me and smiled as I stood with my arms wrapped around him.

"I saw many things as my soul wandered through the universe unguided. I even saw your world, Riley. A strange place it is, too." He smiled softly as he whispered this to me. "But it was not the end.', he said loudly as he looked up again. "I felt life in me again. I have been sent back until my task is done, it seems."

"Gandalf.', Aragorn whispered as he came closer to make sure his friend was truly here.

'Told you so!' I mouthed to the ranger.

"Gandalf?', the wizard said slowly, testing the name. "Yes. That is what they used to call me: Gandalf the Grey. But now I am Gandalf the White, and I come to you at the turn of the tide. Come. We must hurry."

"Rielásse?"

I spun around when I heard Legolas call my name.

"I believe these are yours."

Cold metal was placed into my hands and a smile slowly tipped the corners of my mouth.

"Thank you. I never thought I would see these again."

I quickly strapped on my twin knives, bow and quiver, and Glandúr as we followed Gandalf through the trees.

"One stage of your journey is over, and yet another begins. We must travel to Edoras with a much speed as possible."

"Edoras?', Gimli huffed as he followed the wizard. "That is no short distance!"

"We hear of trouble in Rohan, Gandalf. It goes ill with the King.', Aragorn stated.

"And it will not be easily cured, either."

"Then—', Gimli panted as he struggled to keep up with the group. "—we have run all this way for nothing."

"Not necessarily true, unless you think meeting with Gandalf and rescuing me from Spanky is nothing. That was one heck of a scary sneezeguard Éomer had." Boromir's blank look made me snicker. "A mustache.', I said as a way of explanation.

"It may only be my opinion, but I believe he was the one that needed rescuing, lass. Not the other way around.', Gimli chuckled.

I'm starting to see why elves and dwarves never get along.

"Are we to leave those poor hobbits in this horrid, dark, dank, tree-infested—"

The trees groaned at the dwarf's poor opinion of them. Gimli quickly spun around and regarded the plants nervously.

"Er, I meant charming. Quite charming forest!" The groaning stilled.

"Merry and Pippin did not enter this wood by mere chance. A great power has been sleeping here for a great many years.', Gandalf sternly reprimanded Gimli.

Legolas gazed wonderingly at the trees surrounding him, and soon after I also heard the voices of the forest in my mind. They were rejoicing and whispering of their shepherd who had awoken once to guide them.

Treebeard.

"The hobbits arrival in Fangorn will be as the small stone that starts an avalanche in the mountains."

Aragorn's eyes twinkled.

"In one thing you still have not changed, dear friend.', he mentioned as he leaned towards Gandalf as if he were going to tell him a great secret."

"Hmm? And what is that?"

"You still speak in riddles.', the ranger answered with a smirk.

"Ah!', Gandalf said with a laugh. "Perhaps I should make myself a little more clear, hmm? A thing is about to happen that has not happened since the Elder days. The ents are going to wake up... and they will find that they are strong."

"Strong? I— I suppose that's good.', Gimli stuttered.

"Stop your fretting, master dwarf! Merry and Pippin are quite safe. In fact, they are far safer than you are about to be." Gandalf disappeared into the dark foliage ahead.

"This new Gandalf is grumpier than the old one." I heard Gimli mutter as he quickly followed.

A/N: I'm sorry this posting is a little late! It is definitely not my best, but I've had a migraine for the past several days and was unable to handle any light until this morning (I'm still a little scrambled!). I know I totally overdid it on the silly songs, but hey! You can never be too old for some VeggieTales! Anyway, tell me what you think! Reviews boost my self-confidence!

—SweetDixie