Disclaimer: I do not own Lord of the Rings or any of the languages/phrases spoken in the books or movie. I do own Nicole, Susan, Jake, their parents (Howard and Lara Lawson, Tom and Elizabeth Daniels, Fred and Angelina Nox), Matt Thompson, the maid: Maria, and Bill. I do not own the book, The Great Gatsby, Metallica, or Oktoberfest.
Chapter 13
"This is creepier than anything I've ever experienced," sneered Susan, wrapping her cloak around her, constantly peering over her shoulder.
"Even creepier than the bald biker guy who threw up pork rinds at your feet at the Oktoberfest concert?" asked Nicole. Susan furrowed her brow in thought before answering.
"That was a 10 on the creepy scale, this is like a 9.72."
The company of travelers had finally descended down the mountain range into a murky valley which would hopefully lead them to the Mines of Moria. Gandalf was the only one that could sum up the journey up Caradhras: it had defeated them.
The company would only stop once Gandalf felt it was safe for wolf howls could be heard in the distance. Thoughts of Rivendell and warm beds began to infect the minds of the hobbits and the outsiders. Gimli seemed to be the only one eager to enter the mines.
"Dwarf doors are invisible when closed," he said stoutly, checking every wall with the butt of his axe.
"Yes, Gimli, their own masters cannot find them if their secrets are forgotten," quipped Gandalf.
"Why doesn't that surprise me?" sneered Legolas.
"Maybe because you're denser than the front lines of a Metallica concert," quipped Susan, causing Nicole to snicker loudly.
"Nicole, please! We must keep quiet." whispered Aragorn, walking up beside her.
"Okay Aragorn," choked out Nicole as she and Susan continued to snicker. The girls' snickering and giggling reached Gandalf's ear at the front of the company. He simply looked over his shoulder and tapped his staff into the ground twice.
Immediately, Nicole and Susan stopped gigging because they felt a sudden rush to their heads.
"I feel dizzy," whispered Susan as she stumbled back a couple of steps before Jake came up from behind. He carefully grabbed both girls around the waist and lead them the rest of the way.
Legolas stood there dumbfounded at the reproachful behavior of Nicole and Susan. Nicole was rude, immature, and too loud for her own safety.
'But why can't I stop staring at her?' he thought, finally moving forward.
After what seemed like miles of hiking through the valley, the company finally reached two large trees of holly and a flat wall of stone between them.
"I'm assuming this is it then?" asked Susan as Gandalf began to inspect the wall. Gandalf muttered his usual incoherent mumblings, and the clouds opened up and light shown on the wall. Nicole looked on with amazement as a door appeared outlined in silver light.
"It reads "The doors of Durin, Lord of Moria. Speak, friend, and enter," said Gandalf in a confident voice.
"What do you suppose that means? Speak friend and enter?" asked Merry, staring at the door.
"Oh it's quite simple," assured Gandalf "If you are a friend you speak the password and the doors will open."
About two hours later, neither friend nor passage way appeared. Gandalf gave up and threw his staff on the ground. Despite Sam's protests and reassurances, Aragorn released Bill and sent him back home.
"The mines are no place for a pony, even one so brave as Bill," he said as he took off their equipment. Merry and Pippin were throwing rocks into the water, but were soon stopped by Aragorn. And Susan and Jake were sitting next to each other while Nicole slept in Jakes lap.
"She's not doing too well, huh?" whispered Susan, gazing at Nicole's worn out face.
"The medicine is helping some," answered Jake, holding Nicole closer to his body. "But I fear that she won't make it unless we find something more permanent."
Susan sighed as she combed her fingers through her hair.
"I'm sorry about earlier," she said, looking at the ground. "I should have said something to you about how I feel about Boromir." Jake's face remained unmoving.
"It's just," continued Susan, turning towards Jake and rubbing his arms. "Boromir is a really good guy… despite the whole ring thing. He's everything I never had back home." Jake snapped his head towards her, his brow etched in confusion and hurt.
"You know I love you and I've always appreciated you being there for me. But you're family, and he's… something else…" Jake didn't say anything for a while. He finally wrapped one arm around Susan and kissed the top of her head. Relieved that everything was okay between them, Susan snuggled in closer to Jake's body, feeling safe for once.
"It's a riddle," whispered Frodo, standing up and facing the door. Everyone looked up towards him. "Speak 'friend' and enter. What's the Elvish word for friend?"
"Mellon," whispered Gandalf, and instantly the doors began to open. Everyone jumped up to their feet in astonishment, and gathered their belongings. As they slowly entered, Nicole heard a small splashing noise. She quickly turned around and saw new ripples appear in the middle of the water.
"Did you hear that?" she whispered in fright.
"No, what is it?" answered Susan with her fingers itching for her bow.
"I heard it," responded Jake, grasping the handle of his sword. Slowly he pushed the girls back towards the company so that they came up behind the hobbits, but kept his eye on the water.
"Soon master Elf you will enjoy the fabled hospitality of the Dwarves," began Gimli, unaware of what was happening around him. "Roaring fires, malt beer, ripe meat off the bone! This, my friend, is the home of my cousin Balin. And they call it a mine. A mine!" Light from the outside began to shine of the dark dismal remains of the inside.
"This is no mine," whispered Boromir. "It's a tomb!"
At Boromir's words, Nicole slowly cast her eyes to the ground. The moonlight shown on scattered dwarf skeletons that were covered in decayed flesh and cobwebs. Nicole opened her mouth to scream, but she was muffled by Susan's hand.
"Goblins!" alerted Legolas, as he inspected a near by arrow. The warriors drew their weapons, and Jake followed suit, slowly leading the girls to the entrance.
"This fucking mission is over," he whispered to them. "We're getting out of here and returning to the car… I don't know what hell I was thinking…"
"We make for the Gap of Rohan," said Boromir, slowly edging towards the door. "We should never have come here! Now get out of here! Get out!" At his words, the three outsiders turned to make a break for the door, but instead they saw huge tentacles shoot out from the water and grab Frodo's feet.
"Frodo!" screamed the hobbits and the girls as they all dove to hold him down. Jake began to slash at the tentacle, eventually freeing him as Sam called to Aragorn.
Before Aragorn and the rest could reach the hobbits, more tentacles pushed out of the water, knocking the hobbits and Jake to the ground and dragging Frodo towards the water. Nicole began to scream again as a monster surfaced and began attacking the company.
"Come on!" yelled Susan, as she grabbed Nicole's arm and dragged her into the cave. They ran behind a huge boulder and hide.
"Jake! We left him!" cried Nicole.
"He'll be fine," whispered Susan as she began to tremble.
"I want to go home!" wept Nicole. "I know that's being a coward, but I don't care! We could die here! This isn't the movie, it's real!"
"I know…" The girls held each other, hiding from the unknown danger. They sat there, ashamed as the yells of men reached their ears and the falling rocks shook the floor.
Once all was still, the girls slowly rose and called out into the darkness.
"Jake?!"
"Susan?! Nicole? Are you two alright?"
"Where are you? We can't see!"
The light from Gandalf's staff revealed a soaked and exhausted Jake. The girls ran into his arms and held on tightly as he caught his breath.
"We're so sorry we left you!" whispered Nicole.
"I wouldn't have wanted you there anyway," he said with a crooked grin.
"We were so scared," mumbled Susan into Jake's shoulder, hiding her tears. "I thought I was tougher than that." Jake kissed the tops of their heads.
"Any other girl would have pissed her pants and fainted on the spot."
"Are you ladies alright?" asked Gandalf. Susan and Nicole nodded their heads as the outsiders rejoined the company. Boromir placed a comforting hand on Susan's shoulder as she neared him.
Susan turned her head slightly, and smiled slightly at his appearance. "You're soaked."
Boromir just shrugged as if wet clothes and loads of chain mail were nothing. "Are you sure you are alright?" he asked as his thumb slightly caressed her shoulder.
"I feel… ashamed… I thought I could talk the talk and walk the walk, you know?"
Boromir stared into her green eyes for a moment before answering. "Honestly, I do not understand what you just said." They shared a small laugh before gathering their things and following Gandalf.
"We now have but one choice," said Gandalf in a solemn voice. "We must face the long dark of Moria. Be on your guard. There are older and fouler things than Orcs in the deep places of the world. Quietly now. It's a four-day journey to the other side. Let us hope that our presence may go unnoticed."
Weapons drawn at all times, the company traveled through the narrow passageways of Moria with Gandalf and Gimli at the front. Occasionally they would stop to rest and eat. Nicole could not sleep for not only the fear of goblins and orcs in the dark kept her awake, but also for her failing heart. Sleep would make her even more tired, and she knew deep down if she did not take more medicine soon, she would not last Moria.
"How are you feeling?" whispered Jake as they walked along side one of the deeper chasm.
"Fine," lied Nicole as her eyes roamed, taking in the surroundings. "Elrond's medicine finally kicked in."
"The wealth of Moria was not in gold or jewels," said Gandalf as Jake and Nicole came up behind Gimli and Legolas, "but mithril."
He dipped his staff down low enough so that the light it was emitting reflected of the mithril embedded in the cavern walls. Everyone peered over the edge in awe, even Legolas, for Nicole watched his lips slowly part in amazement. Legolas gazed at her out of the corner of his, causing their eyes to lock for a few moments.
"Isn't it beautiful?" he said, indicating the mithril.
"Finally!" barked Gimli, overhearing Legolas. "Something we can agree on, Master Elf!"
"I'm afraid I don't agree with either one of you," responded Nicole. "I hate the light of mithril."
"But lass!" protested Gimli, looking deeply offended.
"I'm sorry Gimli, but in my world sometimes the purest object is the most dangerous."
"Is this true?" asked Boromir to Susan while they stood in the back.
"Well… Yes," answered Susan. "You see, there's this book in our world, called The Great Gatsby. It's Nicole's father's favorite. In the book, the house of one of the characters is all white and pure, and so her father made her house like that: all white."
"And Nicole despises her father?"
"I know that might be hard to understand, but yes, she does." As Gandalf told the story of Bilbo's mithril chain mail shirt, Boromir whispered to Susan his response.
"Personally, I do not despise my father, but I can understand why anyone would for good reason." Susan smiled in the dark and slowly reached out for his right hand. She was disappointed to find it holding his sword, but Boromir whispered for her to hold his elbow so they would not be separated.