Chapter Nine~Sight

A/N: So, still no reviews, after all the wonderful story-telling I've given you? You make me sad, readers. Very sad indeed. There for, you shall get a sad chapter. Oh, BTW, it's been a while since I had actually seen the movie, and never with subtitles. I bought the trilogy last night and realized something...it Crebain from Dunland. I do apologize for that. If anything is in bold and parentheses, ex. (this), it means that it's me talking to you in the story. I will use it to give an example for visuals that do not exist in this world. And yes, my character has had depression stemming from her affliction for a long time, but she mostly was able to overcome it...It only get worse from here on out. Enjoy :D

Lady Galadriel had ordered all of them be given baths, and new clothing. It had been months since Rina had even looked upon a bathtub and enjoyed the warm water. Most of her hygiene had been a splash of cold water here and there, and green willow sticks split and bristled to make a toothbrush. She was led to a private area away from the men by several Elf-maidens. One took hold of Samora's leash, taking her to a second, smaller tub that had been set up for her as well. Marina didn't even fight them when they began undressing her. They sat her down on the edge of the elaborate bath, one unlacing her boots, and one on each side of her undoing her bracers. Her hair, which had long ago been braided to keep it out of her face, was untied. When the ribbon came off, her hair held its shape. The grease and grime accumulated so that it basically cemented the plait in place. She could feel her shirt being unlaced and raised her arms over her head so they could remove it. One of the maids poked her rib cage, causing her to jerk away. She hadn't realized just how much she had been hurt when the Troll grabbed her and slung her against the wall.

Once she was completely naked, the women helped her into the large tub, lowering her in gently. Rina knew, if she could see the water, that it would be turning murky brown with the amount of grime they were scrubbing off of her. After the initial cleaning, they emptied the water, then refilled it with buckets they must have had off to the side, then helped her back in. This time, the water was covered in rose petals. She played with them absentmindedly as they washed and oiled her hair. Samora had not taken near as long to clean, and soon, she was by the side of the tub, muzzle hanging over the side to nudge her shoulder. As Rina reached up to pet her, her hand was seized, as was the other one. They were subjected to such rough treatment. The Elves tried nearly in vain to scrub all the dirt from the creases of her skin, her nails cleaned under and then trimmed. It was then that Rina realized that over the months that had passed, they had grown out and become chipped and cracked, her palms rough with callouses. She wondered idly, what she truly looked like, now that she had not been subject to the Elven-magic of Rivendell. She knew that it made things better, pain, sadness, and physical deformity. Not that it had done anything to heal her blindness. Celeborn is right, she mused. I am nothing more than a blind woman. Why did Elrond think I could do this? She pulled her knees up to her chin and held them tight against her chest. Behind her the women ran a fine comb through her locks to rid her of the insects that had taken up residence there.

Once they were done, they helped her out, rubbing her dry with a thick, fluffy towel. She stood stark naked as they ran their hands over her skin, scented oils sweet in her nose. As they were doing this, someone else entered the room. By the power that surrounded her, Rina new it was the Lady Galadriel. The women stopped what they were doing and backed away, startling Marina out of her stupor. Attempting to cover herself, she turned her eyes to the ground.

"Why do you hide yourself? There is no shame amongst the Elves." Soft hands pried her arms away from her body. For such delicate hands, they held such strength, and she could do nothing to stop the Elf queen from baring her to the world. "There. Such a lovely human girl. I remember your mother. She lived with us for a time."

This startled Rina. "My mother was an Elf? My father...Lord Elrond would have told me!"

"No, child. Your mother was not an Elf. Half-Elf, yes. Her blood leaned more towards that of Man than of her mother's people. She asked you father not to tell you until you were old enough. Unfortunately, they both died before you came of age." Something was placed in her hands. A large bundle of cloth. "These were hers, as well as this." Galadriel took her hand and put what felt like a small jewel. A sudden flash of light gave way to the vision of herself, naked and thin with the trials that had passed. It focused on her hand, where a necklace lay. The pendant was (Celtic) knot wrapped in green thorny vines and blood-red flowers. In the center was a tiger's eyes stone carved with Elven writing. It was an ancient dialect that she could not decipher, but it seemed to shimmer just under the surface of the stone.

"What is it?" Rina asked.

"An Elvish blessing. Usually passed from mother to daughter at the girl's first blood. It is ancient, probably as old as I am." The vision faded out, leaving Rina in perpetual dark once again. "The other is simply an old dress of hers, something fine to wear on special occasion."

"Thank you, my Lady." As far as she could tell, Galadriel bowed her head and left, leaving the Elf-maids to dress her in the dress that had been laid out for her previously. It was a simple gown, something borrowed until her other clothing had been washed and dried for her to wear once they continued with the journey.

The rest of the Fellowship had long ago finished their bathing and laid out the bedding they had been given. The Hobbits gorged themselves on food that hadn't been preserved and stuck in the bottom of a pack for the past month. No one noticed for a moment when Rina and Samora entered the Grove where they gathered. Samora, smelling meat, rushed forward, knocking over Pippin in the process.

"Oy, you mangy mutt!" Sam tried to pull her away from the stew he was cooking. "Get outta there. Where's Rina when you need-"

"Here, Sam." They all turned to see her, standing in a silvery dress, typical among the Elf women. She limped towards them. Aragorn noticed she wore no shoes. Beneath her dress, he could see her feet, blistered and raw from the journey. One of her ankles was swollen, probably from when she jumped the gap on the staircase in Moria. He rushed to her side, taking her arm. "I'm fine."

"I think not, dear lady." Boromir watched to pair of them. "I would wager you've had the worst time of all of us on this journey. Come sit. Sam, bring her a bowl, and some bread."

"And how do you s'pose I do that? With this dog tryin' to eat all our food."

"Samora," Rina said, somewhat exasperated as the Men helped her sit. "Keep away from the food until you get your share. Heathen." A waft of hearty scent met her nose when Sam handed to bowl to Aragorn, who then passed it to her. It was heavenly, the thick stew. Meat was tender and well seasoned, with a multitude of vegetables.

"So, Marina, what kept you so long?" Legolas had a smirk on her face, she could hear it in the way he spoke.

"I was attacked by a gaggle of harpies who would not be satisfied until every speck of dirt was scrubbed from every nook and cranny on my body."

"Oh really?" Boromir chuckled. "And, prey tell, how did you come to be so filthy? I have never known a lady not to keep as clean as possible while traveling."

Rina punched him in the shoulder, causing a ripple of laughter throughout the camp. "I'll have you know, most women who travel have access to an inn at some point in time, and are not forced to wash in a cold river with a camp full of Men no more than a hundred paces away at all times." Another bout of mirth spread at her words.

"Rina, your feet are bleeding." Aragorn stated simply.

"I'm fine."

"No, you are not. You can barely walk." He moved away, then came back with a basin of water, a small pot of healing ointment, and bandages. "Give me your foot." When she did not, he sighed in frustration and took hold of her good ankle, putting up on his lap. He cleaned it. Then dipped his fingers in the ointment and rubbing it onto her wounds. She flinched, trying to pull her foot away from him, to which he simply tightened his grip and finished his work. Once he was done wrapping it, he switched to the other one.

"If you are quite finished, I think it would be a good idea for us all to get some rest." Rina's face was burning with embarrassment of being taken care of. She didn't care for it very much, though she knew that she needed it. Her bedroll had been placed separate from the rest, inside the roots of a tree. It was meant to give her privacy, but it only succeeded in making her feel even more alone than normal. Even Samora chose to sleep next to the fire. A silent tear made its way down her cheek as she lay down, closing her eyes. For the first time in a long while, she did not have to fear to sleep peacefully.

But, it was not a peaceful sleep at all. She was surrounded by fire, the smell of scorched flesh and smoke thick in her nose. All around her the screams of the dying rose. It was her caravan, the one she and her mother had been traveling in when they were attacked. Her mother was holding her close, hiding under an overturned carriage. One of their guards ran forward holding out his hand to her. They were running. Mother handed her to the guard, telling him to get her home.

"Be safe, my sweet Marina. I love you so much." Her mother kissed her cheeks, trying to calm the screaming toddler.

"Mama! Mama!" She cried as her mother turned and ran in the other direction. There was a bright white light shining from her chest, traveling towards her hands. It pushed out at the Orcs that were attacking them. They froze at the sight of the woman, squealing in fear. As the guard mounted his horse, Mother started shining even brighter, until the light seemed to consume her. "MAMA!" Something hit the back of her head, instantly knocking her out.

The image that was burned into the three-year-old's memory, was her mother's face, which had turned back to look at her child one last time, tears flowing freely. But there was a smile on her face. The smile of a mother who knew her baby would live, would grow. It was laced with the sadness in the knowledge that she would never again, see the beauty that she had created out of love.

A/N: So, yeah, another semi-long chapter. It was sad as I thought it was going to be. I had a bit of a hard time writing the last part, because I am a mother, and the thought of losing my baby...well, let's just say that the end had me in tears. But, you should know, because of her sensitivity to auras and energy, the Ring is taking a toll on her as well. And the fact that she was in Rivendell, surrounded by healing magic for so long, it kind of kept the pain of all this away. Read and review, my lovelies. Ta-ta.