Chapter 2
Éponine had spent years on the streets of Paris, so she knew exactly what she was doing. Well, mostly, that is. She was not familiar with Rivendell. However, since waking up there the previous day and after taking a bit of time to adjust and absorb the fact that she was no longer in nineteenth century France, she had done a bit of snooping and was fairly confident that she could first, locate Elrond's secret meeting, and second, get herself and Enjolras into a hidden spot to spy.
She knew it would be difficult, but she had every intention of pulling it off. After all, during her snooping the day before, she had managed to overhear Elrond talking to some weird, old guy with an incredibly long beard about the meeting, which was the only reason she knew about it in the first place. She was fairly confident she would be in trouble if they found out she knew, but rather than worry about that, she was going to take advantage of it and use it as a learning opportunity.
"So, how are we supposed to spy on a meeting we aren't even supposed to know about in a place we aren't familiar with?" Enjolras asked as she continued to drag him along.
"First off, you need to shut up and trust me," Éponine replied. "Second, it's outside. So that makes it easy. Here." They were standing on another balcony, directly beside a large tree. "See that table down there? That's where the meeting will be." A few people had already begun to gather.
Enjolras looked sceptical. "We'll be spying from here?"
"No, we'll be watching from the tree."
He raised an eyebrow in response. "We could easily watch from right here, but you want to sit in a tree?"
"We could get caught here."
"We could get caught in the tree."
"The tree has more cover. Just trust me." She looked at him desperately. "It's the best plan."
He sighed, and finally conceded. "Fine. We'll get in the tree."
"Perfect!" Éponine proceeded to immediately climb over the railing, completely ignoring the fact that she was wearing a dress, and seemingly effortlessly managed to move from there to the tree. Enjolras watched impressed as she did so. Once she was securely in the tree, she turned to look at him. "Come on, let's go."
He followed carefully, with a bit less confidence than she had. His foot slipped a bit as he moved into the tree, but he managed to catch himself and avoid falling. Before long, the two were perched side by side, looking down at the stone table and the group that was gathering.
"Interesting group," Enjolras commented quietly. "Tall men with long hair, short ones with shaggy beards..."
"Elves and dwarves. I told you, we're not even close to being in France anymore," Éponine replied.
"You're definitely mad."
"I am not! Now shush!" she whisper-shouted. "I think the meeting is about to start."
The seats were all filled now, elves, dwarves, men, what appeared to be a kid her brother's age, and the old bearded man Elrond had been talking to before.
"Strangers from distant lands, friends of old," Elrond began, "you have been summoned here to answer the threat of Mordor. Middle-Earth stands upon the brink of destruction. None can escape it. You will unite or you will fall. Each race is bound to this fate–this one doom." He gestured to the pedestal in the middle of the circle. "Bring forth the Ring, Frodo."
Enjolras looked at Éponine and raised his eyebrow. "A ring? A ring is doom?"
Éponine shrugged. "How should I know? This is the first I've heard of it."
The child stood and approached the pedestal and set something down upon it. Éponine squinted and leaned in slightly. "Looks like a plain, gold ring to me. Nothing special there."
"I don't think the people at the meeting agree with you," Enjolras replied. "Not with the way they're all whispering and looking nervous."
"So it is true," one man said suddenly, rising to his feet and slowly advancing towards the pedestal. "In a dream, I saw the Eastern side grow dark but in the West a pale light lingered. A voice was crying: Your doom is near at hand. Isildur's Bane is found."
"Boromir!" Elrond exclaimed, getting to his feet as the man who had just spoken reached towards the ring.
At that moment, the old bearded man stood and began to shout in a strange language. "Ash nazg durbatuluk, ash nazg gimbatul, ash nazg thrakatuluk agh burzum-ishi krimpatul!"
The man who had reached for the ring quickly sat down, and numerous people cringed at the sound of the words, almost as if they were in pain. Thunder rumbled and the skies darkened. Enjolras and Éponine glanced at each other nervously.
"Believe me yet?" Éponine whispered.
"It's still a lot to absorb," Enjolras replied hesitantly. "But I think I'm starting to."
"Never before has a voice uttered the words of that tongue here in Imladris," Elrond said, a tone of disapproval in his voice as he looked at the bearded man.
"I do not ask your pardon, Master Elrond, for the Black Speech of Mordor may yet be heard in every corner of the West!" the bearded man replied gruffly. "The Ring is altogether evil."
"How can a ring be evil?" Enjolras asked. "It's a ring."
"I don't know, but I'm sure we'll find out. Shush!" Éponine hissed in response.
The man who had reached for the ring earlier was shaking his head now. "It is a gift!" he insisted. "A gift to the foes of Mordor!" He stood again, and began to pace back and forth. "Why not use this Ring? Long has my father, the Steward of Gondor, kept the forces of Mordor at bay. By the blood of our people are your lands kept safe! Give Gondor the weapon of the enemy. Let us use it against him!"
"Mordor, Gondor..." Enjolras muttered. "Rivendell... You might be right about it being a different world."
"There are elves and dwarves, of course I'm right, now shut up!" she hissed again.
"You cannot wield it!" another man retorted. This one was a bit shaggy looking, with unkempt hair. "None of us can! The One Ring answers to Sauron alone. It has no other master."
The other man looked at him condescendingly. "And what would a ranger know of this matter?"
A rather handsome blond man with long hair and pointy ears, whom Éponine believed to be an elf, got to his feet at that comment.
"This is no mere ranger!" the blond elf shot at the condescending man. "This is Aragorn, son of Arathorn. You owe him your allegiance."
"Aragorn?" The condescending one turned to look at Aragorn. "This is Isildur's heir?"
"And heir to the throne of Gondor," the blond elf added sternly.
"Havo dad, Legolas," Aragorn said, and the elf sat down.
The condescending man wasn't done, however. He scoffed at Aragorn before returning to his seat. "Gondor has no king. Gondor needs no king."
Éponine turned to look at Enjolras, and saw a glint in his eyes at that remark. "You're planning to save that line, aren't you?" she asked.
"Of course I am, it's perfect. France has no king. France needs no king. Doesn't have quite the same ring to it, but it's still perfect."
Éponine simply rolled her eyes and resumed paying attention.
"Aragorn is right," the bearded one said. "We cannot use it."
"You have only one choice," Elrond added. "The ring must be destroyed."
"Well, what are we waiting for?" a ginger dwarf asked, getting up and grabbing his battle axe before charging at the pedestal, swinging the blade down upon the ring. He let out an exclamation of shock as he fell back, the blade of his axe shattering. The ring remained entirely undamaged.
Éponine and Enjolras both stared, eyes wide in amazement.
"The Ring cannot be destroyed, Gimli, son of Gloin by any craft that we here possess," Elrond explained. "The Ring was made in the fires of Mount Doom. Only there can it be unmade. It must be taken deep into Mordor and cast back into the fiery chasm from whence it came."
Éponine shivered slightly. His voice was dead serious, as if the fate of the entire world rested upon that task.
"One of you must do this," Elrond finished, his words met with a resounding silence.
After several long moments, the condescending man spoke up, shaking his head as he did so. "One does not simply walk into Mordor," he insisted. "Its black gates are guarded by more than just orcs. There is evil there that does not sleep. And the great Eye is ever watchful. It is a barren wasteland. Riddled with fire and ash and dust. The very air you breathe is a poisonous fume. Not with ten thousand men could you do this. It is folly!"
"Well, someone has very little faith," Enjolras muttered.
"Have you heard nothing Lord Elrond has said?" the blond elf exclaimed, leaping back to his feet. "The Ring must be destroyed!"
"And I suppose you think you're the one to do it!" the ginger dwarf snapped, also leaping up.
The highly negative, condescending one also got to his feet, still not finished with his pessimism. "And if we fail, what then? What happens when Sauron takes back what is his?"
"I will be dead before I see the Ring in the hands of an elf!" the ginger dwarf yelled. Chaos immediately ensued, the elves and dwarves and men shouting at each other as everyone at the meeting began to argue.
"What in the world have we gotten ourselves into?" Enjolras asked as he watched.
"I have no idea, but I'm blaming you for this," Éponine replied.
"That hardly seems fair," Enjolras commented, turning to look at her.
"You started the barricade, I got shot, I died, I woke up here. Your fault," she insisted.
"I will take it!" Silence suddenly fell in response to the words. Éponine turned away from Enjolras to look back down, and saw that the child was standing. She squinted, and realized that maybe it wasn't a child. His feet were bare and very hairy, and his ears were slightly pointed, but not as much as the elves' were. He seemed to be something between an elf and a dwarf.
"I will take the Ring to Mordor. Though, I do not know the way..." the child-like man, boy, whatever he was, Éponine didn't know, said.
"I will help you bear this burden, Frodo Baggins, so long as it is yours to bear," the bearded man assured him, walking over to place a hand on his shoulder.
Aragorn got to his feet to approach Frodo as well. "If by my life or death, I can protect you, I will," he told Frodo. "You have my sword."
"And you have my bow," the blond elf added, rising to join the small group.
The ginger dwarf refused to be left out. "And my axe!"
The pessimistic one got to his feet, approaching the group slowly. "You carry the fates of us all little one," he commented. "If this is indeed the will of the council, then Gondor will see it done."
"Hey!" A new voice suddenly spoke up. "Mr Frodo's not going anywhere without me!" Another of the child-like people ran over to join the group.
"No indeed," Elrond commented, "since it is hardly possible to separate the two of you even when he is summoned to a secret council meeting and you are not."
"Wait! We're coming too!" Another pair of the child-like people ran over, these two clearly younger than Frodo and the other one.
"You'd have send us home tied up in a sack to stop us!" one said.
"Anyway, you need people of intelligence on this sort of quest... Mission... Thing..." the other said.
"Guess that rules you out, Pip," the first of the new pair told the other.
"Nine companions. So be it," Elrond said. "You shall be the Fellowship of the Ring."
"Great!" the one that had been called Pip said. "Where are we going?"
Éponine and Enjolras looked at each other.
"Well, that was informative," Éponine commented.
Enjolras nodded in agreement. "Yes, it really was."
"You're planning something, aren't you?" Éponine asked him.
"Yes, I am," Enjolras replied. She felt her heart sink as she saw the fire blazing in his eyes.
"And your plan has nothing to do with getting back to Paris, I assume?"
"No. Not yet, at least. I think I know why we're here now."
"Oh, really?" Éponine asked dryly. "And why is that?"
"We're meant to help these people in their fight against tyranny!"
"And what about the tyranny in France?"
"This sounds a lot closer to the literal end of the world than that idiot king back home in France," Enjolras replied. "This seems more urgent. And the people didn't rise to help us. We were meant to be here now, otherwise we'd still be in Paris." She wasn't sure whether he was trying more to convince her or himself, but he sounded serious either way.
"And what are you going to do, build a barricade across Mordor or Mount Doom or whatever it is the problem is? And they don't have guns, they've got bows and arrows and axes! You are completely out of your element here!" Éponine snapped.
"It's worth a try!"
"Are you thinking perhaps if you die here, you'll get back to France? Is that it? Since we died in France and woke up here, maybe it goes both ways? We literally died to get here! I don't think that will work!"
"Would the two of you like to come out of the tree now?"
They both froze and stopped their argument as Elrond's voice interrupted. Éponine glanced down nervously, and something about his stern expression made her immediately obey. Enjolras followed shortly behind her.
The council meeting appeared to have broken up for the most part now, though several members remained, watching her and Enjolras curiously. Their gazes made her uncomfortable.
Elrond and the bearded man looked at the two of them silently for a few moments before he spoke.
"I think that the four of us have much to discuss," Elrond said slowly. "Come along. We'll talk somewhere more private."