As usual...

Mmack1026: I'm glad that you'll be reading anything that I write! Because now that I've finally finished "Friday nights" I'm a bit lost at how to proceed! And yes, you're right, even if Legolas didn't come to much harm, Blaine... well, you know me :) Yeah, I know Blaine would have been more adequate as Frodo, physically speaking, but I've always shipped Aragorn and Legolas, so... I couldn't help it ;) Thank you so much!

Mildlifecrissis: if you ever stop reading and reviewing my stories I'm going to be so sad, you're always there! Yeah, the little blam moments are my favorite too, of course, I think it's probably the first time I've written them being a secret (except for a couple of chapters in TWD) and it's fun! Thank you so much!

Darrinia: yay! I knew you'd like the blam moment, it was sweet :) I think you will be right about Rachel... Gracias, preciosa!

A/N: Sorry about the delay, I had completely forgotten about this story! O_O

CHAPTER 2: MEETING THE ROHIRRIM

The reason Sam had felt so apprehensive at discovering where the uruk-hai were leading them to was because he knew what Sue was planning: the White Witch was on Sauron's side, and wanted to join him on his purpose of ruling the Middle-Earth and the people in it. And her way to do it was to kill all of those ready to fight him. The first ones would be the humans of Rohan, those closer to her frontiers, and Sue had created a whole army to fight them, setting entire villages on fire and killing all their citizens.

The three travelling companions, though, were resolute about completing their quest, so they kept running behind the orcs in their attempt to save Marley from their clutches. After days and nights just running across the land, they were getting exhausted, especially Sebastian.

"Keep breathing. That's the key: breathe!" Sebastian encouraged himself.

"They've run as if the very whips of their masters were behind them" Blaine observed, surprised at the perseverance of the orcs, that were being able to keep them at the same distance continually.

They didn't know how much longer they would be able to keep like this.

The three remaining members of the fellowship kept running all through the night, ignorant of the fact the Uruk-hai they were pursuing had met their fate that night to the hands of the riders of Rohan, who had slaughtered them all in vengeance for the destroyed villages.

"A red sun rises" Blaine, always observant, whispered at breakdown. "Blood has been spilled this night"

Sam was to say something when the three of them heard the unmistakable sound of horses approaching. Not knowing who they might be, Sam ran towards some rocks to hide, urging the other two with gestures to follow him. He ordered them to sit behind a big boulder and then he sat next to Blaine, practically covering him with his own body to protect him, waiting for the strangers to pass them by.

When the riders approached, Sam sighed in relief when he realised they were humans, apparently from Rohan, judging by the horses they were riding. So he just squeezed Blaine's knee in a comforting gesture and got out of their hiding place, wanting to make their presence noticed before the riders disappeared.

"Riders of Rohan! What news from the mark?" he yelled at the retreating back of the riders, who immediately turned around to see the three friends.

The Rohirrim, not knowing who they were or if they could trust them, surrounded the three with their horses, pointing their spears at them. The three friends stood together in the middle of the circle, their backs to each other, and Sam, knowing no one would see, grabbed Blaine's hand in his and squeezed it, trying to reassure him that everything was alright. They were men of Rohan, after all, so they had two common enemies: Sauron and Sue. They had to become allies in their War.

"What business does an Elf, a Man and a Dwarf have in the Riddermark?" the man who seemed to be the leader asked in an unfriendly way. "Speak quickly!"

"Give me your name, horse-master, and I shall give you mine" Sebastian, always prideful, answered in his characteristic cheeky way.

"I would cut off your head, Dwarf, if only so it wouldn't stand so tall with pride" the leader of the Rohirrim threatened as he dismounted his horse and approached Sebastian menacingly.

Blaine didn't like one bit the way this man was talking to his friend, and was willing to defend him to the last consequences. He took and arrow from his quiver, so swiftly that his bow was ready and aiming to the man before all the soldiers reacted, pointing their spears at Blaine's head.

"You would die before your stroke fell" he said, and Sebastian felt a strange mixture of happiness at his newly found friendship with Blaine, and shame that an elf had defended him.

Sam's heart skipped a beat at all the weapons pointed at his lover, so he rested his hand on Blaine's extended arm holding the bow, and forced him to lower it, giving him an angry look that Blaine knew better than to ignore.

"I am Sam, son of Arathorn" Sam introduced himself, trying to be more polite than his companions. "This is Sebastian, son of Glóin, and Blaine, from the Woodland Realm. We are friends of Rohan and of Burt, your King"

"Burt no longer recognizes friend from foe. Not even his own kin, as I'm his nephew, Puck" the man answered, friendlier than before, as he took off his helmet. "Sue has poisoned the mind of the king and claimed lordship over these lands. My company are those loyal to Rohan. And for that, we are banished. The White Witch is cunning. And everywhere, her spies slip past our nets"

"We are no spies" Sam was quick to deny. "We track a party of Uruk-hai westward across the plain. They might have taken one of our friends captive"

"The Uruks are destroyed. We slaughtered them during the night" Puck informed them.

"But did you see a hobbit with them?" Sebastian asked, afraid they might be too late to help Marley.

"She would be small. Only a child to your eyes" Sam added.

"We left none alive. We pilled the carcasses and burned them" Puck explained, sadly.

"Dead?" Sebastian asked, astounded.

"I'm sorry" Puck seemed genuinely sad. Then he turned to his men. "Hasufel! Arod!" he yelled, as a couple of riderless horses were brought to him. "May these horses bear you to better fortune than their former masters. Farewell. Look for your friend, but do not trust to hope. It has forsaken these lands"

With that, Puck directed his men to proceed their way, and left the three travelling companions behind, now with two magnificent horses that would surely make his travelling easier.

"No way I'm going to jump on a horse! Us dwarves don't ride horses!" Sebastian exclaimed, as he was pretty obviously afraid of the animals.

"You'd prefer to run behind us, then?" Blaine joked, but before Sebastian could respond, Sam turned to them, anger clearly on his face.

"Will either one of you explain to me what was that all about?" he asked them crossly.

"What do you mean?" Sebastian asked, not having a clue as to what Sam was referring to.

"If you don't know what I mean, I think our problem it's even more serious than I originally thought"

"Sam, what...?" Blaine started, but Sam interrupted him rudely.

"Did you have to be so insolent as to raise them to fury to the point of almost getting us killed?"

There was so much anger in Sam's voice that for a moment the other two remained speechless. But Blaine was not used to be in the receiving end of Sam's anger, and felt the need to justify himself.

"And what was I supposed to do, to let them threaten Sebastian as if he was worth nothing?"

"They wouldn't have threatened Sebastian in the first place if he hadn't answered like he did! You two have to stop this childish behaviour if we want this quest to succeed! How can you be so stupid?" he yelled at them before angrily mounting the brown horse, Hasufel, and galloping away from them.

Blaine stood thunderstruck, unmoving, until Sebastian squeezed his shoulder sympathetically.

"Well, laddie, even if Sam is right, I wanted to thank you for... defending me. I know it must have not been easy for an elf to defend a dwarf..."

"Please, Sebastian, don't speak nonsense" Blaine played down the importance of it, all the while trying to deal with Sam's anger. He moved to the white horse and caressed his forehead, trying to calm his own nerves with the gesture.

"Well, Blaine, you seem to get along nicely with the horse, so I'll let you be my riding companion" Sebastian joked, trying to make the elf feel better, feeling his desolation. "Besides, I don't think Sam would be very keen to share with either one of us right now, so..."

Blaine helped Sebastian jump on the horse –dwarves were really not made to ride horses, after all!– and then he jumped in front of him, and they hurried so as not to fall too far behind Sam, who had slowed his pace in order for them to catch up with him, although not a word was spoken for as long as they kept riding, making Blaine's insides churn with misery.

About three hours later, Sam stopped his horse abruptly and murmured something about letting the animals rest, before walking away from them and sitting on a rock with his back to them, lightning his pipe and starting to smoke distractedly.

Sebastian could feel the tension amongst them and, even if he didn't like being at odds with Sam, he could sense it was far worse for the elf, so he decided to disappear for a while and let them talk whatever problems had arisen.

"I saw a little pond over there" Sebastian informed Blaine. "I'll go and fill our canteens with fresh water"

Blaine nodded gratefully at Sebastian and watched him leave, before turning to his lover and approaching him until he was standing just a few feet from his back.

"Sammy?" he asked, hesitantly, to which only obtained an acknowledging groan from Sam. "Are you angry at me?"

"No, I'm not angry at you" Sam answered curtly, without looking at his lover.

"Are you sure?" Blaine insisted almost fearfully, feeling a distance between Sam and himself to which he wasn't used to.

The corners of Sam's mouth curved slightly up in spite of himself, though he refused to let Blaine see it. He needed to make a point, and he wouldn't be able to do it if Blaine knew right away how willing he was to forgive him.

"I'm not angry, but I'm not happy either" Sam answered gravely, and Blaine lowered his gaze, sadly. He had never expected to be a disappointment to his lover.

"I'm sorry" he said, in a soft voice. Sam could hear the genuine repentance in his voice and was very near to cave in, but he stood resolute, keeping his back to his lover.

"As you should be"

"I know I shouldn't have aimed my bow at Puck, but..."

"If you're still trying to make excuses for your impetuousness, maybe you still have learnt nothing" Sam interrupted him, and Blaine could feel a lump forming in his throat at Sam's discontent.

"Maybe you were right and I should have never come in such a significant quest" Blaine answered, as he turned away to go. "I'll pack my things"

"What? Why?" Sam asked, astonished, as he jumped from the rock he was sitting and turned to look at the retreating back of his lover.

"It's obvious you don't think I'm ready to be a part of this and..." Blaine's voice broke, feeling completely downcast. "I trust your better judgement in this, so I'll just make it easy for you"

"Blaine, wait" Sam told him, and it was a request, not a command, so Blaine stopped on his tracks. "I'm not happy with what happened with the rohirrim, for reasons I already told you, but that doesn't mean I don't want you here or that I don't appreciate all the good you have done until now"

"But you are so disappointed in me..." Blaine whispered, turning to look at him.

"No, I'm not. I just told you a little something you need to change for your own sake but that doesn't mean I don't value you"

"I know I did wrong, but it just felt so unfair for a dear friend to be threatened like that..."

"Do you think it was easy for me to see all these men pointing their spears at you, the one creature I love the most? No! But I still kept a cool head to avoid us being slaughtered right there!"

"I know" Blaine admitted, full of shame. "That's why you are such a great warrior and I... shouldn't be here"

Sam finally took pity on him and walked to him to grab his hand and squeeze it lovingly.

"One mistake doesn't make you less of a warrior. And you're a great combatant. But you have to understand that impulsiveness won't get you anywhere, and even if a warrior is supposed to fight, you have to learn to pick your battles. I need you to understand that because I want you safe. We have enough enemies already, don't look for more" Sam explained, much less angrily, as he tenderly lifted Blaine's face with a finger under his chin.

"You're right. I'm so sorry, Sam"

Sam smiled, this time letting his young lover see.

"You already said that"

"Then you... you don't want me to go?"

"Of course not. As I said, it was only a mistake, and your qualities exceed your faults by far. And besides... I would miss you far too much" Sam told him lovingly, as he captured his lips in a tender kiss.

"I love you" Blaine told him when the kiss broke, with a voice full of emotion, and he enveloped him in a strong embrace that Sam gladly returned.

"I love you too, my beautiful elf" Sam whispered in his pointy ear, squeezing him strongly to reassure him nothing had changed between them, and not breaking the embrace until both of them heard the sound of someone clearing his throat approaching and they realized Sebastian had walked on them.

"No, please, don't stop on my behalf" Sebastian told them casually, as he moved to the horses to hang the canteens on their saddles.

"Sebastian!" Sam exclaimed, embarrassed. "We were just..."

"I was asking him for his forgiveness" Blaine finished the sentence for him.

"Well, he's clearly given it to you, hasn't he?" Sebastian answered, as nonchalantly as before, as he fought to lift himself on Arod. "Shall we get going?"

Blaine and Sam looked at each other, astonished. Had Sebastian put two and two together and knew about them? Or it was just an innocent comment? Not knowing what to think, they decided to leave it there, and both of them lifted themselves on their horses and proceeded on their way towards the place where the Rohirrim had indicated the Uruk pyre would be.

CHARACTERS:

Eomer: Puck

King Theoden: Burt Hummel