Timeline: post season 7 Buffy, six months after the series finale Chosen. AU: Charmed. During the first movie The Fellowship of The Ring all the way to The Return Of The King.
Pairing(s): Buffy/Legolas, Dawn/Frodo (weird pairing I know but I wanted to do something different), Dawn/Sam (friendship), Piper/Sam (friendship), Merry/Willow (friendship), Angel/Cordelia, Cordelia/Pippin (friendship), Fred/Wesley, Leo/Piper, Paige/Richard, Cole/Phoebe, Aragorn/Arwen
Summary: A skyquake stroke both Los Angeles and San Francisco and destroyed almost everything in its path. In San Francisco, Leo told the Charmed Ones about the history of the One Ring and a Ringbearer who was once in love with an Elder until his madness sent her to her death and then Cole showed up with news of a prophesy involving them and a group of allies. At that, they orb over to Los Angeles to find their allies for the journey to Middle Earth.
Los Angeles, California
Wolfram & Hart Building
Wesley took out a book from a shelve and put it on the remains of his desk and flipped the pages till he found what he was looking for. A fiery eye identical to the one he, Angel, Buffy and Faith saw in the sky. He knew what that he was right and what he saw hadn't been seen by human eyes for nearly three thousand years. He then turned to Angel, Buffy and Faith who were waiting anxiously.
"It is called the Eye of Sauron." Wesley said.
"Who the hell is Sauron?" Faith asked.
"Sauron is a Dark Lord." Wesley replied. "A very powerful Dark Lord who tried to take over this world and another world called Middle Earth three thousand years ago. In this time, rings were forged for the different peoples of Middle Earth. Three rings were given to Elves, seven to Dwarves and nine to Men. But in secret, Sauron forged a master ring and in it he poured his cruelty, malice and will to rule and dominate all life even vampires and demons. It named the One Ring. Not only did Middle Earth fall to the power of the Ring so did our world. But there were some who resisted Sauron's rule both good and evil. In Middle Earth, an army of Men and Elves battled his army to free their world and here in our world an alliance of Elders, Whitelighters, vampires, demons and warlocks fought battles in two separate locations. In Scotland and in Egypt."
"Eventually, Sauron was defeated both in Middle Earth and here. After that battle, good and evil made an agreement that if Sauron ever returned to try to take over our world again; they would band together again to fight him. This agreement was made three thousand years ago. Both Middle Earth and our world both co-exist beside each other."
"Like two houses standing beside each other." Buffy said.
Wesley nodded. "Exactly." He agreed. "Many Elders and Whitelighters have lived in Middle Earth since the Great Battle to keep a watchful eye on it to see if Sauron does return and to find the One Ring to destroy it. The last recorded location of the Ring is in the deep tunnels of the Misty Mountains in the hands of a creature who goes by the name of Gollum."
"If the Elders were trying to destroy it then why haven't they done it already?" Angel asked.
"Because every Whitelighter who has attempted to take the Ring to destroy it has either died by the Ring's power or were challenged by Gollum and were killed before they reach it." Wesley replied.
"Guess that answers that question." Buffy said.
Wesley glanced at his friends gravely. "The Ring went missing sixty years ago and hasn't been found for that long. But I believe it has been found. Where? I don't know and Sauron has returned."
"What happens if Sauron regains the Ring?" Buffy asked afraid that she already knew the answer.
Wesley glanced at her, Angel and Faith gravely. "If Sauron regains the Ring, he'll take back what was his and destroy the world."
"I had to ask." Buffy groaned.
Angel stared determined at his friends. "We're not going to let that happen. We've faced enemies like him before and we managed to get out of it unscathed. We can fight him and save our two worlds."
"And you're not alone." A voice rang out.
Angel, Buffy, Wesley and Faith all turned to see Giles, Dawn, Willow, Cordelia, Xander, Gunn and Fred standing in the doorway. With them were three women and three men. One of the men, Buffy recognized immediately.
"Leo? Is that you?" Buffy asked.
Leo stepped forward and smiled at Buffy. "Hello, Buffy. It's good to see you." he said
Angel, Wesley and Faith looked bewildered. "You know him, Buffy?" Angel asked.
Buffy nodded. "Leo and I met last year when Willow almost destroyed the world and he helped us with her. He was a Whitelighter then he became an Elder. The women with him were his charges. His wife Piper and her sisters Phoebe and Paige."
Willow then spoke up. "They're known as the Charmed Ones. The most powerful of witches."
Piper stepped forward beside Leo. "How did you know about us?" she asked.
Willow glanced at Piper shyly. "I heard all about you when I was in England from the coven who took care of me."
"Well, our reputation precedes us." Phoebe quipped.
"Anyway, let's get down to it." Faith said impatiently. "Why are you here?"
Leo and Piper both explained what Cole had found and about the prophesy he found via a source. When they were finished, The Chosen Two and their friends glanced at each other in shock and then back at the Charmed Ones and their friends.
"So you guys are meant to come with us to Middle Earth?" Dawn asked.
Leo nodded. "According to the prophesy, three sister witches, a redeemed demon, two vampires with souls, three mortals, the Key and a seer are destined to come with us to Middle Earth to help them fight Sauron."
"Wait, wait. Did you say 'two vampires with souls', Leo?" Buffy asked.
"Yes." Leo replied. "Why?"
"Because there's only one vampire with a soul which is Angel." Buffy said. "If you're thinking of Spike, you might as well be out of luck because he was killed back in Sunnydale six months ago."
"I wouldn't exactly say that, Buffy." Leo said.
Buffy frowned. "What do you mean by that?" she asked.
"You're right, Spike did die back in Sunnydale but the Elders felt that his time was not over. When they realized that our world and Middle Earth is on the brink of destruction due to all the supernatural activities that has been going on, they brought Spike back but instead of returning him here, they brought him to Middle Earth disguised as a Ranger of the North."
Buffy couldn't believe what she had heard. Spike? Alive? No way!! Then she put voice to an unsaid question.
"Where in Middle Earth is he?"
"In a city outside the Shire called Bree." Leo replied. "He has already been told about the prophesy and he said that he will wait for us to arrive in Middle Earth."
"So Spike is alive and in Middle Earth?" Angel asked bewildered.
Leo nodded. "Yes, Angel. Although, he doesn't like the idea of you being there but is willing to co-operate for Buffy's sake."
"For my sake?" Buffy said and made a face. "Is he afraid that I might kill him or something if he doesn't play nice with Angel?"
"Well, from what I understand, his history with Angel isn't that pleasant." Leo said. "He's just trying to stay out of Angel's way that's all."
Understanding him, Buffy nodded and turned to Giles. "So what's the plan?" she asked.
"Well, I think that we should split up into different sections of Middle Earth." Giles said. "Willow, Cole, Angel, Faith, Cordelia and I will transport to the Elven city of Rivendell and remain there for the time being. There are Whitelighters there so they'll know us. Robin, Kennedy and ten other Slayers will transport to the land of Rohan and of course the Charmed Ones, Dawn and you will transport to Bree."
Buffy almost choked on her spit at his words. "We're going to Bree?" she asked.
"Buffy, I already told Spike that you would be there with Piper, Phoebe, Paige and Dawn." Leo said. "If you don't show up, the whole..."
Leo was cut off by the sound of a phone ringing. Angel glanced at the Elder apologetically and answered it. His neutral expression turned into shock and then when he hung up, he turned to his friends.
"That was one of the operatives I sent out hours ago." Angel said. "He said the Ring has been found."
Everyone was shocked. "WHAT!"
"By whom?" Leo asked.
"A Hobbit named Frodo Baggins." Angel replied. "He's heading to Bree with it as we speak."
Leo frowned. Frodo Baggins why does that name sound familiar? Then he remembered. Frodo is one of my charges when I was still a Whitelighter! Damn! Why didn't I know?
Piper noticed the frown on her husband's face. "Leo, what is it?" she asked.
Leo shook out of his trance. "Nothing." He said. Then he turned to the group.
"If you are preparing to leave for Middle Earth, the time is now." Leo said
"Wait! What about Wesley, Gunn and Lorne?" Buffy asked.
"We'll join you later on." Wesley said. "Gunn, Fred, Lorne and I are going to meet you in Rivendell after we wrap up here."
Angel stared at his friends with a determined glance. "Let's get ready to save our world and Middle Earth!"
Two hours later...
After much preparation, Buffy, the Charmed Ones and Dawn all packed their clothes enough for a month and wore the same clothes they were wearing now. Buffy was wearing a blue tank top and blue jeans. Dawn had on a brown long sleeved shirt and black pants. Piper, a comfortable looking white sweater and blue jeans. Phoebe, a black sleeveless shirt and white pants and Paige, a black tank top and black pants. They even packed winter coats in case they went anyplace cold. They also packed sleeping bags, flashlights, batteries and first aid kits. Soon they were ready to transport to Middle Earth. They returned to Angel's office after the two hours were up. Leo smiled at the Slayer, her sister and the Charmed Ones.
"Ready?" Leo asked.
Buffy, Dawn, Piper, Phoebe and Paige nodded. Leo took Piper's hand and orbed them to Middle Earth but not before Buffy shouted out to her friends.
"See you in Middle Earth!"
Outside of Bree in Middle Earth...
After a minute, Buffy felt a little sick and she tripped but Piper caught her arm before she fell on the ground. The Slayer smiled at her and whispered her thanks.
"Great. Rain." Dawn muttered and put up the hood of her rain jacket. Buffy, Piper, Phoebe and Paige did the same and then turned to Leo.
"Spike is at the inn called the Prancing Pony and he'll be waiting for you there." Leo said. "I'll meet you in Rivendell and please be careful. Sauron has spies at his disposal. So whatever you do, don't use your real names. Use aliases and be careful who you talk to. I'll see you soon."
Piper hugged Leo and kissed him. "You be careful." She said.
"You too, Piper." Leo said and then orbed out. Buffy turned to Dawn and the Charmed Ones.
"Well, let's go." She said and they walked to the entrance to Bree and knocked on the door of the gate. A man's face appeared a minute later.
"What do you want?" he demanded.
"We wish to stay at the Prancing Pony." Buffy said. Seconds later, the man opened the door and glanced at Buffy and her friends in surprise.
"Women!" he said in surprise. "Five women! What business do you ladies have in Bree?"
"We wish to stay at the inn! Our business is our own!" Buffy snapped.
The man was taken aback. "Alright, young miss. I mean no offense. There have been strange folk abroad." He said as he let the five women in. Once they were inside, Buffy turned to them.
"Remember, we have to use aliases so be careful what you say and do what I say. Clear?" Buffy said.
The Charmed Ones and Dawn both nodded their heads and they walked until they saw the sign for the Prancing Pony and went inside. They stopped at the front desk where a kindly man was standing. He smiled as they approached.
"Good evening, ladies. If you are looking for a room, I'm afraid all I have left are Hobbit rooms." He said.
Buffy shook her head. "No, we're not looking for rooms. We're friends of William, can you tell him we've arrived?"
"William? Ohh, yes! Young chap with light blonde hair." The innkeeper said. "I'll tell him you've arrived." He then disappeared from the desk and reappeared with Spike. He smiled when he saw Buffy and Dawn.
"Hello, Buffy. Hello, Little Bit." He said.
"Spike!" Dawn shrieked and threw herself into Spike's arms. Then he glanced up at Buffy who was smiling and crying.
"Hi, Spike." She whispered. "I missed you so much."
"I missed you too, Buffy." Spike admitted. "You and Little Bit were the only ones I thought about since I got here." Then he pulled out of his thoughts to turn to the Charmed Ones.
"So, you lovely ladies must be the Charmed Ones." Spike said. Phoebe, Paige and Piper nodded their heads.
"I'm Piper and this is Phoebe and Paige." Piper said.
"Yeah, I know your names." Spike said. "Leo told me that I would be waitin' for you, your sisters, Buffy and Dawn."
"So now that we're here, what do we do now?" Phoebe asked.
Spike glanced at Buffy, Dawn and the Charmed Ones evenly. "We wait for our Hobbit friend to arrive."
"Hobbit friend?" Buffy asked then she realized who. "Frodo Baggins." Spike nodded. I wonder how long we have to wait. The answer to her question came an hour later when four short people Buffy assumed to be Hobbits entered the inn. The look on Spike's face was that of recognizition when his eyes fixed upon one of the Hobbits.
"That's him," he said pointing at the Hobbit with brown hair and blue eyes. "That bloke with the brown hair and blue eyes is Frodo Baggins."
Buffy nodded her acknowledgment. Man! They have the cutest faces! She thought. Upon looking at Piper, she saw that she was thinking the same thing. She then moved her gaze onto Frodo. She could tell immediately that he was suffering under the Ring's power. She could sense it and the feeling in the pit of her stomach wasn't very pleasant. She was pulled from her thoughts and her gaze went from Frodo to Piper when she heard her speak to her.
"That creep has been staring at them since they arrived." She said pointing at a man sitting in the corner. Buffy couldn't see his face because he was wearing a hood but she knew that it wasn't a good sign and she turned to Spike.
"That guy in the corner, Spike, who is he?" she asked.
Spike growled when he saw the man in the corner. "That's one of the Rangers I arrived here with. Bloody bastard of a man. I don't know his real name but in Bree, he's known as Strider."
Strider, hmm? I'll keep that name in mind. Buffy thought. Then she was out of her thoughts again when she saw that Frodo was coming at one of the other Hobbits who was sitting at the bar talking to one of the men. Frodo had slipped and fallen and Buffy saw something fly out of his hand and recognized it immediately. That's got to be the Ring! Her assumption became true when Frodo caught the Ring on his finger and disappeared. Then Buffy turned to see the man in the corner get up.
"I've got a bad feeling about this." She said.