I'm back with a new chapter for the month. I know updates are slow, but I'm trying to get the other projects done. I'm going to post a chapter for His Body later today and then that's one step closer for that story being finished.

Also, there have been a few of you out there saying about Ricky's accent being too exaggerated. It's done on purpose. I have seen first hand how some people deal with accents from other places that they are not familiar with. Quick little story, but backstory first: Where I live, there are people who speak what we call Pennsylvanian Dutch. I don't know a lot of words and it's usually the older generations who know it, but their form of speaking is passed to the children and their children. They can be speaking English, but you can't understand what they say or you may think that it's not proper English. It's like speaking to someone from Scotland or Ireland - speaking English, but you may not be able to understand the accent or the jargon. Yu Yu Hakusho fans, think Jin from the English Anime, good example of what I'm talking about. I grew up around it; no trouble understanding what is being said.

Now to the story: My coworker and I were on duty at the same time and we had a family come in and the lady spoke with a PA Dutch accent. I had absolutely no problem understanding her. They had a few questions about something and I took care of them. When they left, my coworker, who grew up in Georgia, turned to me and told me she had no clue what they were saying. That's where I got the inspiration for Ricky's accent to be exaggerated. The Fellowship knows that he's speaking common, but the accent is so different to them. The accent also get's thicker for Ricky when he's wound up. I do the same when I'm irritated or in disbelief. I picked it up from my mother: both of us have been known to start speaking with an accent that's a mix of Irish/Scottish/PA Dutch, mainly Irish, and neither of us have ever been to Ireland or Scotland (I think for me it's because I watch too many Jacksepticeye videos). It's really weird, but can be very entertaining.

So now that that's out of the way, we may proceed with the story you all came here to read. Leave a comment on the review board, check the ending author's notes for the quotes in this chapter, and there'll be another little story at the end that you may either choose to read or ignore. Enjoy.

A few days later it was the night before they left. Ricky was staying in his room. He didn't sleep very well, knowing what was coming next. He looked over at where his clothes were laid out for him.

Elrond had ordered Ricky travelling clothes. He would be dressed in shades of brown, green, grey, and black. It would provide excellent camouflage when he needed it. When Elrond told him he would be receiving new clothes, Ricky had been against it at first. When he realized Elrond wasn't going to take no for an answer, he asked to have a set of clothes in black. The new clothes would mix well with the items he had from New York. Elrond had also gifted him with twin daggers. Ricky also had his straight razor blade replaced, courtesy of the Dwarves and Ricky wasn't sure what he had done for them to replace his razor blade. His new pack sat on the floor next to the door.

Ricky got out of bed and dressed himself in his black pants and tunic and his knit hat. He left his room and walked to the gallery. He stared at the broken sword. His reflection stared back at him. He wasn't wearing his goggles and the moonlight and shadows turned his green eyes a strange color.

He saw himself in that sword, not just his reflection. It was a broken sword and he was a broken teen. But the blade was still sharp and so was Ricky. He could still fight, just like the sword that took the fingers off Sauron. He could do this.

Ricky went back to his room. The sun was starting to come up. He saw Frodo leave Bilbo's room, dressed and ready for the journey. As Ricky walked by the open door, he heard someone crying. Bilbo was sitting in a chair with his face in his hands.

"Bilbo?"

The old Hobbit looked up at Ricky. "Master Weiss. You should still be asleep. Young boys need their sleep before going on a quest."

"I don't sleep much. Never did." He came to stand next to Bilbo. "What's wrong?"

"I brought this on him," wept Bilbo. "The Ring should never had come to Frodo. I should have told Gandalf long ago. Now I'm sending him into Mordor. It should be me going. This was all my doing."

Ricky glared down at him. "Bullshit. You couldn't have known what the Ring was at the time. And we're taking care of it now before it falls into the wrong hands."

"He is just a child," Bilbo fought weakly. He couldn't look at Ricky.

Ricky knelt down. "Hey. Look at me."

Bilbo looked up at Ricky.

"I'm still a kid, too. I'm goin', whetha dey like it o' naht."

Bilbo forced a smile. "Your accent is showing through."

"It damn well bettah," Ricky said fiercely. "If dere's one t'ing I loined livin' ahn da streets, it's how t' soivive."

"Watch over him, Ricky," Bilbo said.

Ricky blinked. "I'll do what I can."

Bilbo shook his head. "Take care of him. He's all the family I have left."

Ricky sighed. "Bilbo, I can't promise anything. There is no way I can shadow him 24/7."

Bilbo put his head down in sorrow.

"I can't promise anything. But I can give him what he needs to take care of himself."

Bilbo put his head back up, hope shining in his eyes.

"I don't know how things work here, but on the streets, there are times you have to look after yourself and only yourself. I can give him the tools. Depending on the situation, I can't do much more."

Bilbo took Ricky's hand. "I can accept that. It would be too much to ask for you to constantly look out for him. When I traveled with Thorin Oakenshield's company, I had to defend myself by myself at times."

After breakfast, the Fellowship went to the terrace, ready to leave. Many Elves joined them to see them off.

"The Ring-bearer is setting out on a quest to Mount Doom," Elrond spoke. "On you who travel with him, no oath or bond is laid to go further than you will. Farewell. May the blessings of Elves and Men and Free Folk go with you."

From the back of the Fellowship, Gandalf announced, "The Fellowship awaits the Ring-bearer."

Frodo turned around and walked passed Gandalf. Gandalf and the rest of the Fellowship began to follow Frodo.

Aragorn was at the back of the procession. He turned to the group of Elves. Arwen was standing among them. He gave her a silent farewell and a nod. She did the same.

Ricky was also at the back and watched Aragorn follow the others. He looked from Aragorn to Arwen. Ricky knew who the Elf maiden was from her brothers, but they never said much to each other than greetings when they passed each other. He gave Arwen two quick, imperceptible nods and filed out after Aragorn.

The first leg of the journey took them through deep valleys and turbulent waters. Ricky had never been in the wilds before. The closest he came to this much vegetation was Central Park when he got the chance to go to Manhattan.

Aragorn told Ricky what plants were safe to eat. He also showed him which plants could heal and which would poison. Ricky learned to hunt from Aragorn as well. Aragorn even let him use his bow when they weren't starving for meat. Ricky's aim was improving, it wasn't close to Aragorn's, much less Legolas's aim.

Aragorn and Gandalf were the only ones who would get close to Ricky. The Hobbits were curious about Ricky, but they stayed away out of fear. Legolas and Gimli had nothing to talk about with him and Boromir was still angry with Ricky.

Their path west of the Misty Mountains would take forty days and then they would arrive at the Gap of Rohan and turn east to Mordor.

Everyone had a job to do when camp was set up at night. Aragorn and Legolas went hunting, the Hobbits helped with food, Gimli, Boromir, and Ricky alternated getting firewood, and Gandalf stayed to watch the Hobbits when he felt like it. When Gandalf would wander off to do whatever, Ricky was the one to watch the Hobbits. Boromir was never happy with this, saying that Ricky wasn't competent enough to watch four Hobbits. More than once it had almost come to blows between the two.

Tonight was one of the nights Ricky was to stay behind with the Hobbits. Sam was busy getting a stew going. Merry and Pippin were talking about mushrooms. Frodo was sitting quietly on his bedroll.

Ricky got up and went over to Frodo. "Hey." He sat down next to Frodo. "How you holdin' up?"

Frodo looked up at Ricky with big eyes.

Ricky pulled his goggles around his neck. He continued to look at Frodo.

"Why do you do that?" Frodo asked innocently.

"Do what?" Ricky asked.

"Cover your eyes? You have nice eyes."

"Yes!" Pippin called from across the camp. He and Merry hurried over to Frodo and Ricky and sat next to them. "They're a very lovely shade of green."

Ricky leaned back, shy. "Thanks, I think."

Merry tilted his head. "No one has ever told you so before?"

Ricky shook his head.

Gimli returned with a load of firewood.

"Gimli!" Pippin called. "Do you think Ricky has nice eyes?"

Gimli grunted and looked over at Ricky. "Why are you fawning over the lad like a wee lass?"

Sam looked over his shoulder. "Mister Gimli, I would answer their question. They can be relentless."

Gimli walked over to the group and looked at Ricky.

"Don't they look like grass?" Pippin asked the dwarf.

Gimli hummed. "Not unless the grass in the Shire is like emeralds. The lassies will be falling at your feet when you're older, lad."

Ricky put his clear lens goggles on. The firelight distorted the colors under the hard plastic, obscuring everyone's view of his eyes.

Gimli laughed and gave Ricky a slap on the shoulder. "Shy now, laddie?"

Ricky was now very embarrassed.

"All right, leave him alone," Frodo said, shooing Merry and Pippin away.

Gimli went to his bedroll and got out his pipe.

"They are right," Frodo whispered to Ricky. "Your eyes are nice. They're sad, too. You always look sad."

"I don't exactly have much to be happy about," Ricky told him. "I'm alive, but that's just about it."

"What did you want to talk to me about?" Frodo asked. "You have a reason coming over here."

Ricky had to take a few seconds to remember why he came over to Frodo in the first place. "Bilbo told me to look after you."

Frodo looked down at his hands. "He worries."

"He wants me to look after you. I told him I can't."

Frodo's head snapped up to Ricky.

Ricky brought his knees up and leaned back. "I can't look after you all the time. But I can teach you how to look after yourself." He smirked.

"You are going to teach me?" asked Frodo.

Ricky nodded. "Class starts now."

Frodo frowned.

"You ain't gonna learn like I did," Ricky told him. "I don't think anybody would appreciate that. But we're gonna start with the basics."

Ricky spent the rest of the time up until supper was served teaching Frodo how to get a read on people. First impressions were everything and Ricky gave him a crash course on how see who people really were.

"What can you tell me about the Fellowship?" Frodo asked Ricky.

"Tell ya straight, I can't really get that good of a read on Gimli or Legolas, mostly because I don't know that much about Dwarves and Elves. Gandalf has everyone's best interests at heart, but he can be manipulative."

"I believe the term you are looking for is meddlesome," Frodo snickered.

"Different word, same meaning in my opinion. Merry and Pippin are jokesters that I gotta keep my eye on. Sam's got some sense in his head."

"And Strider?"

A strange look crossed Ricky's face. "The first person in a long time who was decent to me and didn't want anythin' in return."

Frodo identified the expression on Ricky's face as something tender. However, it quickly disappeared with his next statement.

"And Boromir's a complete bastard," he spat.

After supper, those who smoked, which was the entire Fellowship except Legolas and Ricky, smoked, and then watches were set up for the night. Ricky wasn't usually given watch, unless it was first watch. They wanted him to sleep and to eat his portion of the rations.

Tonight's first watch was Gimli.

Ricky wasn't sleeping. He sat up and joined Gimli on watch.

"You should be sleeping, lad."

Ricky hummed. He took out his straight razor. "I gotta ask: why did you replace the blade?"

Gimli snorted. "That was no blade. It was a poor excuse for one. Wouldn't have cut a thing."

"It's cut plenty of times before."

"And now you have a Dwarf forged blade." Gimli pointed to it. "That won't dull easily."

Ricky shook his head. "Why? Why did you make me a new one? I get that the other one was a piece of shit, but why do that for me?"

"You needed a new blade, lad," said Gimli. "Those Elvish knives are only going to get you so far. You needed a good Dwarf made blade. I would have preferred giving you a small axe, but the others believed that you should have something you are familiar with."

"Thanks, Gimli."

Gimli huffed. "You act like no one gives you gifts."

"They don't. It's been a very long time since I got a gift from anybody. Or at least anythin' good."

"I did not realize your family was poor," Gimli said.

"What family? Aragorn didn't tell you? I've been takin' care of myself since I could walk. Sure, there've been a few who looked after me and I can't remember all the foster homes I've been bounced around to, but it's just been me."

"I'm sorry to hear that, lad," Gimli said. "A child should grow up with their family."

"They should, it's not always the case." Ricky shrugged. "You learn to deal in any case."

"Dwarflings are few amongst our people. Each is treated like a great jewel."

There was silence.

"I like Dwarves already, just for that," Ricky said.

"What about Elves?" Gimli asked.

"Eh, they're okay."

More silence.

"What do you think of our route?" asked Gimli.

"I can't say much about it. I don't know this world."

Gimli grunted. "We're taking the long way around. If we could go through the Mines of Moria, we would be on the other side of the Misty Mountains in days, not weeks."

Ricky frowned. "Does Gandalf know that?"

"I'm certain he does, but he does not wish to listen."

Ricky looked ahead. "Maybe he's claustrophobic."

Gimli chuckled. "That may be, but if we go through Moria, we could resupply. My cousin would give us a royal welcome. A feast in our honor! You would do well to put some meat on those bones, lad. Women do not like men who resemble twigs."

Ricky rolled his eyes and slapped Gimli in the arm. This only made Gimli laugh.

Legolas came down from the tree he was sitting in.

"Looks like my watch is over." Gimli extinguished his pipe. "Good night, lad."

Ricky watched Gimli go to his bedroll.

Legolas took Gimli's place. "I believe the Dwarf was hinting you should be sleeping as well."

"Dwarves aren't that subtle," Ricky quipped.

Legolas said nothing.

Ricky looked up at the stars. He had been doing it every night when it wasn't cloudy.

Legolas glanced at Ricky. He could see he was looking up at the sky. "Do you like looking at the stars?"

"I never got to see them back in New York," Ricky said. "On a good night, you could see the moon, but that was about it. The city never slept. There were lights on all year round. The lights are so bright, you wouldn't be able to see the stars."

"The lights must have turned night into day," Legolas said with awe.

"It's not that impressive. Maybe for you, but I grew up with it."

"Light is precious to the Eldar, especially starlight," Legolas told him.

"Never got to see the stars much," said Ricky. "It wasn't just because of the lights of the city, but I lived mostly in the maintenance tunnels. Not much to see there 'cept the rats."

There was silence.

"You should sleep," Legolas said quietly.

"You guys keep tellin' me dat," Ricky grumbled, annoyed.

Ricky didn't move from his seat.

Legolas began singing under his breath.

A few minutes later, Ricky was slumped over. Legolas carefully scooped up Ricky and placed him on his bedroll. Ricky mumbled in his sleep. Legolas covered Ricky with his blanket and smiled.

They moved on after breakfast. The Hobbits chattered and Gimli chimed in with his stories.

Ricky was quietly at the back with Bill the pony. His mouth was twisted in annoyance. He remembered he fell asleep next to Legolas when he started singing. He was pissed that he had to be sung to sleep like an infant.

Aragorn noticed Ricky's mood and dropped back to the back of the Fellowship. "What has you in a foul mood this morning? You seemed to have slept well last night. There should be no reason for this."

"Fifteen frickin' years old and I get sung to sleep like a baby," snapped Ricky.

Aragorn knew what he was talking about. Legolas had mentioned Ricky was awake for Gimli's watch and would not go back to his bedroll when he was asked. The Elvish languages had their own power which Legolas used to get Ricky to sleep.

Aragorn sighed. "You needed to sleep."

"'You need to sleep. You need to eat more.' Did you stop an' t'ink maybe I know what I need?" Ricky barked. "I t'ink I know what my own body needs. Took care of myself for dis long, I t'ink I can take care of myself for da journey." He dashed ahead and ended up walking next to Boromir.

Boromir was shocked to see Ricky walking next to him.

"Not a damn word," Ricky growled when he saw him open his mouth to speak.

Boromir closed his mouth and continued to walk on.

They didn't stop until dusk. Gandalf said they were now in Hollin and they made camp on top of a large hill.

Legolas approached Ricky. "I know you are upset with what happened last night. I do not seek your forgiveness."

"You wouldn't be gettin' it," Rick interrupted.

Legolas ignored the comment. "I will be your sparring partner this evening."

"Fine."

"We will be practicing your dagger technique," Legolas told him.

"You mean the lack thereof," Ricky muttered.

The Hobbits watched Ricky and Legolas spar.

"Ricky is really good," said Pippin.

"Legolas is better," Sam said.

"He's an Elf," Frodo put him. "He would be better."

Ricky lost his grip on one blade and dropped it. He blocked Legolas's next attack. He ducked under Legolas's second dagger and hooked his leg around Legolas's. Legolas fell back. Ricky tried to pin him, but Legolas kicked him in the stomach. Ricky went down on his butt. Legolas got to his feet and stood over him.

Ricky looked up at Legolas, his eyes glancing at something on the ground before looking back up to Legolas. Ricky's foot shot out and caught Legolas in the knee. The Elf let out a cry as his leg buckled. Ricky swept his leg around and up and hitting Legolas in the chin. He continued to turn himself over and got to his feet, grabbing his second dagger from the ground. He put his daggers up, ready to keep going.

Legolas was able to stand on his leg. It ached, but Ricky could have kicked him much harder. He watched Ricky change his grip on his right dagger so he could use it to block more effectively.

"Block with your left," Aragorn coached from the sideline. "You can attack more effectively with your right."

Ricky blinked several times behind his goggles. "Yeah, if I was right-handed. I'm a lefty."

Legolas lowered his daggers. "I have watched you draw your bow with your right hand."

"'Cause that's how I was shown." Ricky lowered his daggers as well. "Figured since I never held a bow before, I could learn to shoot righty instead of lefty."

Legolas stepped forward and Ricky put up his guard again. Legolas gave a small smile. "You keep your guard up. This is good. We are done for tonight."

Watch was set up after dinner. Ricky wasn't given watch and was told very bluntly by more than one person in the Fellowship to get some sleep.

Ricky waited until most were asleep before sitting up on his bedroll. He had made his bed next to a rock. He propped his legs up on the rock and stretched them out completely. With a deep breath, Ricky leaned forward to have his head at his knees.

"What are you doing?" asked a quiet voice.

Ricky turned his head. Frodo was sitting up in his bedroll. "Stretching. Go back to sleep."

Frodo blinked. "You're not sleeping and you're supposed to be."

"Little Hobbits need their sleep," Ricky said. "You need your strength to walk and run your mouths."

Frodo lay down and turned away from Ricky.

Ricky finished his stretches and looked over at Frodo. "You're not sleepin', are you? Get over here."

Frodo rolled over and came over to Ricky's bedroll. Ricky moved aside for Frodo to lie down. He coaxed him onto the blankets.

"What's wrong?" Ricky asked.

"Nothing," Frodo said quietly.

"Liar," Ricky hissed. "It's the Ring, isn't it?"

Frodo said nothing.

"What's it sayin'?" Ricky asked.

"It says it will give me what I want," Frodo answered.

Ricky gave a small nod.

"It says it will not hurt my friends," Frodo added. "I only have to return it."

"And?" Ricky looked down at the curly dark hair below his shoulder. "What are you thinkin'?"

"The Ring must be destroyed," Frodo said firmly.

Ricky nodded. "Yeah, but that's not my question."

"It must be destroyed. If it's not destroyed, Sauron wins or another will have to face this journey. I do not wish this on anyone else."

There was silence.

"People lie."

Frodo looked up at Ricky.

Ricky was looking up at the sky, his eyes distant. "They lie all the time. You can't believe a word that comes out of their mouths. And there are times when believing them could be a matter of life and death. Believe them and they could kill you. Don't believe them and you can end up dead. Ya gotta make a judgment call. I made mine when you said you would take the Ring to Mordor."

Frodo's mouth opened to say something.

Ricky turned back to Frodo. "Which brings me to something else. There's always the chance I'll end up dead, but who am I dyin' for? A hero or a liar?"

"I don't want anyone to die for me," Frodo whimpered.

"Frodo, I've always considered myself lucky to get to my next birthday," Ricky told him. "I should've ended up dead long already."

Frodo didn't want to think about death. "When is your birthday?"

"In a few weeks," Ricky replied. "At least I think my birthday's in March."

Frodo frowned. "How do you not know your birthday?"

Ricky shrugged. "I never really celebrated my birthday. I don't have real parents or parents at all when you think about it. No one told me when it was. So I picked one out when I thought it was."

"So when do you think it is?" Frodo asked.

"March 25," replied Ricky.

Frodo smiled a little. "That is a fine time for a birthday. It is the time for hope."

Ricky frowned. "Hope?"

"The snow is melting, the sun is out more, the birds start singing, and the early spring flowers are just starting to come up. Winter is almost over, but spring has not arrived fully yet."

"Huh. Never thought of it that way," said Ricky.

Frodo settled down on the bedroll to sleep. "You always see the bad."

"That's because I don't see much good." He sighed. "'Hope is the thing with feathers, that perches in the soul, and sings the tune without words, and never stops at all.'"

Frodo hummed sleepily. "Birds are nice. Unless they're in Uncle Bilbo's garden."

Ricky noticed Frodo went straight to sleep after that.

In the morning, Sam made breakfast for everyone. Boromir was holding sword lessons for Merry and Pippin.

Aragorn was sitting nearby having a smoke. "Move your feet," he told Pippin from around his pipe.

Sam brought Frodo a plate of sausage to get him to eat more. Ricky wasn't the only one who hadn't been eating. Frodo seemed to be in a good mood that morning and Sam wondered if it had anything to do with Frodo sharing a bedroll with Ricky.

The rest of the Fellowship was spread out on the rocks. Ricky was watching the Hobbits and Boromir, but everyone could hear Gimli as he tried to get Gandalf to change their route.

"If anyone was to ask me my opinion, which I note they're not, I'd say we were taking the long way 'round. Gandalf, we could pass through the Mines of Moria. My cousin, Balin, would give us a royal welcome."

"No, Gimli. I would not take the road to Moria unless I had no other choice," Gandalf told the Dwarf quietly.

Legolas moved easily from boulder to boulder. He faced south and was looking at something in the sky. Gandalf noticed it as well.

Boromir hit Pippin's hand with his sword. Pippin yelped and dropped his sword.

"Sorry!" cried Boromir, lowering his sword to check on Pippin.

Pippin kicked Boromir in the shin and Merry smacked him with the flat of his sword. The Hobbits knocked Boromir down.

"Get him!"

"For the Shire!"

Boromir laughed and wrestled with the Hobbits.

Aragorn got up. "Gentlemen, that's enough." He went to break up the fight. The Hobbits grabbed his legs and flipped him onto his back.

By now the others were noticing what Legolas and Gandalf had. It was dark and moving towards them.

"What is that?" Sam asked.

"Nothing, just a wisp of cloud," Gimli dismissed.

"It's moving fast," said Boromir, getting up from his wrestling match with the Hobbits. "Against the wind."

It was getting closer and spreading out into individual dark specks in the sky.

"Crebain from Dunland!" yelled Legolas.

"Hide!" Aragorn ordered urgently.

It was a mad scramble to gather their things and hide.

Ricky ended up sharing the brush with Legolas. They both watched as the abnormally large crows circled around their camp, screeching loudly.

After a few moments, they moved back to the south.

The Fellowship came out of hiding.

"Spies of Saruman," Gandalf told them. "The passage south is being watched. We make for the Pass of Caradhas."

They all looked at the snow covered mountain.

They spent the morning hiking through the snow. Ricky was glad he kept his Under Armour handy and slipped it on under his clothes before they packed up camp properly. He was sweating before they reached the snow, but was quickly becoming comfortable as they climbed.

Ricky somehow managed to be walking with Gandalf.

"What has your thoughts, Master Weiss?" Gandalf suddenly asked.

Ricky looked over at him. "He knows."

Gandalf turned to him.

"Saruman knows where we're at," Ricky clarified. "But you already know that, don't you?'

"What makes you believe Saruman knows where we are?" Gandalf asked.

"Those birds circled like they knew there was something there for them," Ricky told him. "I've seen pigeons do it enough of times when they think there's food. They came straight to us and left. They didn't circle anywhere else."

"That could be true," Gandalf said. "But how are you so sure? Experience?"

"Only with people," Ricky answered. "Guess you can call it intuition."

They heard Boromir scoff. "Intuition? You sound like a woman, Master Weiss."

"And you're bein' a dick," Ricky shot off.

"Ricky, be nice to Boromir," Pippin complained.

"What has he ever done to you?" Merry asked.

Ricky shot a glare back to both of them, but didn't answer. He knew as much as the others that he really had no cause not to like Boromir. Sure he was a prideful pain in the ass, but Ricky had dealt with worse and still was somewhat civil to them.

A snowball hit Ricky in the back. He whipped around and glared at Merry and Pippin. Pippin pointed at Merry.

"Hey!" Merry cried indignantly.

Ricky scooped up some snow and balled it up and hurled it at Pippin's chest. Merry laughed, but was hit in the arm by a second snowball from Ricky. Ricky's hands were fast as he made snowballs and his aim was almost impeccable. He lobbed several over the heads of the Fellowship and still struck Merry and Pippin. The Hobbits got a few shots in as well, but Ricky would crouch down and other members of the Fellowship became casualties. Their game was brought to an end when a snowball took off Gandalf's hat.

"Shit!" hissed Ricky, quickly becoming serious and walking beside Sam.

Gandalf whirled around and glared at the Hobbits and Ricky. He saw Ricky's innocent look and saw the Hobbits were trying not to look guilty. It was difficult to see who actually threw that particular snowball, but there was a possibility that none of them were certain who did it. He picked up his hat and placed it back on his head.

Ricky looked down at Sam. "Whoops," he mouthed.

Sam rolled his eyes at Ricky. "Bad as a Took."

They continued to climb the mountain. Ricky dropped back to the rear with Aragorn. Any play that was in the Hobbits and Ricky was now gone as they climbed higher. Ricky felt horribly sick, but he was pushing through it.

"Remember to breathe," Aragorn told him quietly.

"Whadiya t'ink I'm doin'?" Ricky panted.

Aragorn didn't have the chance to answer because Frodo had stumbled and was rolling down the mountain.

"Frodo!" Aragorn and Ricky called.

Aragorn stopped Frodo from rolling and picked him up.

Frodo brushed himself off. He touched at his collar. The Ring was missing. It was laying where Frodo had stumbled.

Boromir picked it up and stared at it, transfixed.

The rest of the Fellowship had stopped and Ricky took note that Gandalf had turned to watch.

"Boromir?" Aragorn called.

"It is a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt over so small a thing," Boromir said. He brought his other hand up to take the Ring.

"Boromir!" snapped Aragorn.

Boromir snapped out of his trance.

"Give the Ring to Frodo."

Boromir slowly walked over to them. "As you wish." He held it out to Frodo.

Frodo snatched it out of Boromir's hands.

"I care not," Boromir added with a soft laugh.

Aragorn gave Boromir a distrustful look.

With another chuckle, Boromir ruffled Frodo's hair and walked back up with the rest of the Fellowship.

Ricky saw Aragorn remove his hand from his sword out of the corner of his eye. He had his own hand around his straight razor if he needed to use it.

They continued on and the weather turned from cold and sunny to a blizzard. They trudged through the snow on a narrow ledge of the mountain. Ricky was a little put off by how high they were and the lack of visibility. He once almost fell to his death in an abandoned part of the tunnels when his flashlight died. A tunnel below him had collapsed and left a deep shaft and Ricky never saw it until he stepped into nothingness. He had managed to grab the edge of the hole and pulled himself up before it was too late.

The Hobbits were being carried by Aragorn and Boromir. Aragorn was also leading Bill at the back. Gimli was completely covered in snow and his red hair was now white. Gandalf was in the front, pushing snow aside with his staff. Ricky was walking behind Gandalf, tamping down snow to make it easier for the ones behind to walk on.

Ricky noticed someone beside him on top of the snow. "What?" he asked in disbelief.

Legolas was walking on top of the snow, moving ahead of them slowly. He was the only one who was able to see through the blinding snow.

"You gotta be kiddin' me," Ricky muttered. "That is so not fair."

Legolas stopped in front of them. "There is a fell voice on the air."

Ricky pushed his knit hat off one ear.

"Cuiva nwalca Carnirasse; nai yarvaxea rasselya!"

"It's Saruman!" yelled Gandalf

There was a rumble of thunder. They looked up and saw rocks from above them falling.

"Fuck!" yelled Ricky. He pushed himself against the mountain side.

"He's trying to bring down the mountain!" Aragorn shouted. "Gandalf! We must turn back!"

"No!" Gandalf climbed up on the snow and held up his staff. "Losto Caradhras, sedho, hodo, nuitho i ruith!"

Ricky grabbed Gandalf by the robes. Saruman's voice seemed louder when he did. Ricky's mouth twisted into a snarl. Saruman was supposed to protect Middle Earth and here he was fighting them. To Ricky, it wasn't a question of how could he betray them, it was why. "'He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you!'" Ricky roared.

No one took noticed of the horrified expression on Boromir's face.

"So you bettah make yo' peace befo'e you go ta hell, you white sonavabitch!" shouted Ricky.

Gandalf felt Saruman falter, but it wasn't enough.

"Cuiva nwalca Carnirasse; Nai yarvaxea rasselya; taltuva notto-carinnar!" Saruman continued.

The wind picked up even more and black storm clouds swirled around above their heads. Lightning cracked across the sky and struck the mountain. Rock and snow fell down.

Ricky and Legolas pushed Gandalf against the mountain as the others did the same. The snow buried them completely.

There were several long moments as the Fellowship dug themselves out of the snow.

"We must get off the mountain!" called Boromir urgently. "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 argued.

"We cannot pass over the mountain," Gimli chimed in. "Let us go under it. Let us go through the Mines of Moria."

A concerned look planted itself on Gandalf's face. It was then for certain that Ricky knew Gandalf was hiding something from them.

"Make a decision!" Ricky said irritably. "The Hobbits aren't gonna last if this storm keeps up."

Everyone looked at Gandalf.

"Let the Ring-bearer decide," Gandalf said.

Everyone turned their attention to Frodo.

"We cannot stay here!" Boromir yelled. "This will be the death of the Hobbits!"

"Frodo," Gandalf said.

The weight of the decision was weighing heavily on Frodo, it was clear on his face. He met Gandalf's eye. "We will go through the Mines."

It took them the rest of the day to get off the mountain. Ricky pulled his weight by carrying Pippin on his back at one point. Once they were out of the blizzard, he began regretting the decision to carry that particular Hobbit.

"How did you do that?" asked Pippin.

"Do what?" Ricky asked.

"Help Gandalf like you did?"

Ricky looked at the curly head on his shoulder. "I didn't do anything."

"But you must have. Gandalf seemed to be getting the upper hand for a brief moment. Are you magic, Ricky?"

"You know, I have the strongest urge to either drop you in the snow or toss you back to Boromir."

"No," whined Pippin, snuggling deeper into Ricky's cloak and shoulder. "You're so warm."

Ricky rolled his eyes behind his goggles. "Hey, Boromir! Trade ya?"

Boromir looked behind him and shook his head. "You volunteered, Master Weiss."

"I remember volunteering to carry a Hobbit," said Ricky. "I didn't say which one."

Boromir kept walking, but smiled when his back was turned to Ricky.

"Have fun, Pip!" Merry called.

Hope is the thing with feathers, that perches in the soul, and sings the tune without words, and never stops at all. – Emily Dickinson

He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you. – Friedrich Nietzsche

Now this other thing I have to say doesn't have anything to do with Quote the Pauper Forevermore, so if you want to skip over it and go about your lives, you can. Review the chapter and then check out one of my other stories or a story you've been following by someone else. In that case, I'll see you next time. For those who want to stick around for the next little story, here it is. And warning, some audiences may find this topic very sensitive: Politics.

I went to the movies yesterday and saw that Dinesh D'Souza film, Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party. People were making a fuss about it on the radio - good things, bad things - I decided to go see it for myself and draw my own conclusions. If you get the chance to see it, go see it and form your own opinion about it, not just go by what the critic reviews say. It's not in all movies theaters, so I ended up having to go two towns over to a theater it was playing at and it was worth a Monday afternoon that I had nothing to do. It doesn't matter what your political affiliation is, if you're a Clinton supporter or a Trump supporter or don't care about the election, it's worth seeing. I went to see it from a historical point and ended up walking away with more information than I had with a semester's worth of American history in high school. I'm actually interested in looking up some of the people they mentioned, mainly Ida B. Wells. Worth seeing to learn about some of the historical figures. They're usually glossed over in favor of dates and bills.