A/N: I spent 45 minutes making up a timeline today, so go me! It goes from
the time Boromir dies up until the time Gandalf reaches Minas Tirith, so I
think I'm all set. It took forever to make, because I kept having to go
back and change things and got three of the dates mixed up...but at least
it's done! ^_^
This chapter was inspired by my time in North Carolina (if you read WM, you'll remember that I wrote one of my chapters while I was there) when my dad dragged us off to see a waterfall. You had to climb up the mountain and then down it, and through woods and..well, it was icky. The waterfall was beautiful, but the whole time I was walking, I was thinking, "This is what Steph must have felt like." Anyway, thank-you Blue Ridge Mountains for the inspiration.
Thanks for the reviews!! I've been so lucky to have so many readers and nice reviewers! I've had a bunch of people asking me about what I've got planned after I finish up this fic. Because I'm tired of answering the same question over and over, here's the answer: Yes, I already have about 5 fics in the making, and I plan on starting them after I finish Why Us. I would post them now, but it takes me an hour or more to write a 7-page chapter, and if I have a bunch of fics going I'll end up neglecting one. I get annoyed with myself for not updating everyday, think how crazy I'd be if I had 3 stories that weren't updated everyday! I'm a perfectionist, so sue me.
Ciao and thanks for reading,
Enednilwen*
~-~-~-~-~-~
Silly Rabbit, Stephs are for Enednilwen!
~-~-~-~-~-~
**Chapter 4**
Two days. It had been the longest two days of Steph's life; walking, climbing, running, tripping. She was horribly hungry, as the two of them had been surviving off her gum, half a Nutra Grain bar (which they finished that morning) and some wild berries Boromir had found.
They were tangy and sweet, and stained the tongue purple. They were the same berries Boromir had used to dye Steph's face.
Even with the berries, it was barely enough, and they woke up with hunger pains and went to sleep with worse ones. Both wondered how long they would be able to survive like that. Boromir was pushing both of them very hard, but without adequate food, they wouldn't get very far.
They had been quiet for most of the trip, and even Steph didn't complain all that much. She trudged along after Boromir, shoulders hunched and eyes on the ground, trying not to think of food.
Boromir strode through the mess of trees and bushes as if it was nothing, but Steph stumbled down the rocky path, tripping over the gnarled roots of trees that acted like uneven stairs. Dead trees and branches stuck out at odd angles, like natural speed bumps. The land was rocky and uneven, and at some points it went down sharply, so it was almost like walking vertically!
Boromir hopped over a small ledge and kept going, figuring Steph could get by on her own. The ledge was a 4 foot drop. The root that made up the top of it was as thick as Boromir's waist, and a massive dirt wall made up the rest. Steph ogled at it. Was he nuts?
"Boromir!"
He turned around. "What is it?"
"Help!!"
Rolling his eyes, he walked back to the bottom of the ledge. "What is it? Come down now, we must keep going!"
Steph snorted. "You moron! If I could get down, why would I be asking for your help?"
Boromir narrowed his eyes at her. "Hold onto that branch." He instructed, pointing to the branch jutting out like a handle from the huge tree, "Use it as support as you climb down."
Warily, Steph held onto the branch and put one unsure foot on the crumbling dirt. She shifted her weight to her left foot and let go of the tree, her right hand still holding the branch. As she set her right foot down, she lost her footing. Instinctively, her left hand shot up to grab the branch.
"A little help please?" she said, a hint of fear in her voice. Boromir reached up and took her by the waist. He gave a tug, but she wouldn't let go.
"Steph, let go."
"You promise you won't drop me?"
"I promise, now let go."
"You *promise*?"
"Yes, by the Valar, woman, do as I say!"
Steph let go, falling into his arms. Her look was less than pleasant, but she was happy to be on the ground.
"Erm..." she scratched the back of her neck absentmindedly. "Thanks for that."
He smiled and continued walking.
~*~*~*~*~
"Question!"
Boromir sighed. "What?"
"Can I sing?"
"What are you singing?"
"My song, retard."
He sighed again. "If you must."
Clearing her throat, Steph sang a scale. "OK, all ready."
"I hate Middle Earth!
It is an asshole!
Especially this place!
I hate it the most!"
Boromir turned around to look at her. "How do you manage to come up with these things?"
She shrugged. "Dunno. One more time! You know the words!"
"I hate Middle Earth!
It is an asshole!
Especially this place!
I hate it the most!"
Rolling his eyes, he paused to survey the landscape. The mountainous land was fading into hilly, rocky, grassland. They were nearing Rohan.
"We are nearing Rohan." He said, interrupting her song, "See how the land is becoming less mountainous?"
Steph nodded, tugging at the coat around her waist. "What'll we do when we get to Edoras?"
"I was hoping you could tell me."
"Me?" she asked raising a brow, "Why me? Why should I know?"
"You know the story, of course." He said, folding his arms across his chest.
Steph smiled, suddenly remembering the fact. "Ah! Of course!"
There was a pause. "Eh..." Steph laughed nervously. "Am I supposed to say something?"
Boromir sighed. "I was waiting for you to tell me what will be happening at Edoras."
"Oh, at Eddy's Rash?" she asked, fluttering her eyelashes innocently. He had upbraided her more than once for saying it wrong, but she didn't pay him much attention. He could tell her a million times that it was Edoras, but she would say Eddy's Rash as long as it still pissed him off.
"Edoras, Steph, can't you give the city any respect?"
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." She said, waving him off. "Eemer will-"
"Éomer!"
"I know his name assmunch! Stop interrupting!"
Boromir wrinkled his nose at the new insult, but let her continue. He had the nagging feeling that she said their names wrong to spite him.
"As I was saying! *Éomer* will meet up with the Fellowship people and they'll all go to Eddy's..." she caught the glare he was sending her, "- Edoras, and they'll have this big long talk, and then all the men will go to-"
He held up his hand. "Enough! Speak no more, I know all I need at the moment."
Steph wasn't listening anymore. She pointed to one of the thin trees behind Boromir. "Look!"
He turned. "What?"
"Eggs!" she said happily, "in that nest!"
~*~*~*~*~
Steph had to stand on Boromir shoulders to reach the eggs, but she didn't really mind. Soon four brown eggs were in her hand, and both travelers were smiling happily at them.
"Well," Steph said, "How do we eat them?"
"You break them, of course." Boromir said, taking two for himself. The eggs were the size of one of Steph's thumbs, and though they weren't much, paired with some of the berries Boromir had found, they made a 'lunch'.
Boromir broke one of them between his fingers, and ate it raw. He ate a handful of berries afterwards, smiling at the taste.
Steph, on the other hand, almost threw up.
This chapter was inspired by my time in North Carolina (if you read WM, you'll remember that I wrote one of my chapters while I was there) when my dad dragged us off to see a waterfall. You had to climb up the mountain and then down it, and through woods and..well, it was icky. The waterfall was beautiful, but the whole time I was walking, I was thinking, "This is what Steph must have felt like." Anyway, thank-you Blue Ridge Mountains for the inspiration.
Thanks for the reviews!! I've been so lucky to have so many readers and nice reviewers! I've had a bunch of people asking me about what I've got planned after I finish up this fic. Because I'm tired of answering the same question over and over, here's the answer: Yes, I already have about 5 fics in the making, and I plan on starting them after I finish Why Us. I would post them now, but it takes me an hour or more to write a 7-page chapter, and if I have a bunch of fics going I'll end up neglecting one. I get annoyed with myself for not updating everyday, think how crazy I'd be if I had 3 stories that weren't updated everyday! I'm a perfectionist, so sue me.
Ciao and thanks for reading,
Enednilwen*
~-~-~-~-~-~
Silly Rabbit, Stephs are for Enednilwen!
~-~-~-~-~-~
**Chapter 4**
Two days. It had been the longest two days of Steph's life; walking, climbing, running, tripping. She was horribly hungry, as the two of them had been surviving off her gum, half a Nutra Grain bar (which they finished that morning) and some wild berries Boromir had found.
They were tangy and sweet, and stained the tongue purple. They were the same berries Boromir had used to dye Steph's face.
Even with the berries, it was barely enough, and they woke up with hunger pains and went to sleep with worse ones. Both wondered how long they would be able to survive like that. Boromir was pushing both of them very hard, but without adequate food, they wouldn't get very far.
They had been quiet for most of the trip, and even Steph didn't complain all that much. She trudged along after Boromir, shoulders hunched and eyes on the ground, trying not to think of food.
Boromir strode through the mess of trees and bushes as if it was nothing, but Steph stumbled down the rocky path, tripping over the gnarled roots of trees that acted like uneven stairs. Dead trees and branches stuck out at odd angles, like natural speed bumps. The land was rocky and uneven, and at some points it went down sharply, so it was almost like walking vertically!
Boromir hopped over a small ledge and kept going, figuring Steph could get by on her own. The ledge was a 4 foot drop. The root that made up the top of it was as thick as Boromir's waist, and a massive dirt wall made up the rest. Steph ogled at it. Was he nuts?
"Boromir!"
He turned around. "What is it?"
"Help!!"
Rolling his eyes, he walked back to the bottom of the ledge. "What is it? Come down now, we must keep going!"
Steph snorted. "You moron! If I could get down, why would I be asking for your help?"
Boromir narrowed his eyes at her. "Hold onto that branch." He instructed, pointing to the branch jutting out like a handle from the huge tree, "Use it as support as you climb down."
Warily, Steph held onto the branch and put one unsure foot on the crumbling dirt. She shifted her weight to her left foot and let go of the tree, her right hand still holding the branch. As she set her right foot down, she lost her footing. Instinctively, her left hand shot up to grab the branch.
"A little help please?" she said, a hint of fear in her voice. Boromir reached up and took her by the waist. He gave a tug, but she wouldn't let go.
"Steph, let go."
"You promise you won't drop me?"
"I promise, now let go."
"You *promise*?"
"Yes, by the Valar, woman, do as I say!"
Steph let go, falling into his arms. Her look was less than pleasant, but she was happy to be on the ground.
"Erm..." she scratched the back of her neck absentmindedly. "Thanks for that."
He smiled and continued walking.
~*~*~*~*~
"Question!"
Boromir sighed. "What?"
"Can I sing?"
"What are you singing?"
"My song, retard."
He sighed again. "If you must."
Clearing her throat, Steph sang a scale. "OK, all ready."
"I hate Middle Earth!
It is an asshole!
Especially this place!
I hate it the most!"
Boromir turned around to look at her. "How do you manage to come up with these things?"
She shrugged. "Dunno. One more time! You know the words!"
"I hate Middle Earth!
It is an asshole!
Especially this place!
I hate it the most!"
Rolling his eyes, he paused to survey the landscape. The mountainous land was fading into hilly, rocky, grassland. They were nearing Rohan.
"We are nearing Rohan." He said, interrupting her song, "See how the land is becoming less mountainous?"
Steph nodded, tugging at the coat around her waist. "What'll we do when we get to Edoras?"
"I was hoping you could tell me."
"Me?" she asked raising a brow, "Why me? Why should I know?"
"You know the story, of course." He said, folding his arms across his chest.
Steph smiled, suddenly remembering the fact. "Ah! Of course!"
There was a pause. "Eh..." Steph laughed nervously. "Am I supposed to say something?"
Boromir sighed. "I was waiting for you to tell me what will be happening at Edoras."
"Oh, at Eddy's Rash?" she asked, fluttering her eyelashes innocently. He had upbraided her more than once for saying it wrong, but she didn't pay him much attention. He could tell her a million times that it was Edoras, but she would say Eddy's Rash as long as it still pissed him off.
"Edoras, Steph, can't you give the city any respect?"
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." She said, waving him off. "Eemer will-"
"Éomer!"
"I know his name assmunch! Stop interrupting!"
Boromir wrinkled his nose at the new insult, but let her continue. He had the nagging feeling that she said their names wrong to spite him.
"As I was saying! *Éomer* will meet up with the Fellowship people and they'll all go to Eddy's..." she caught the glare he was sending her, "- Edoras, and they'll have this big long talk, and then all the men will go to-"
He held up his hand. "Enough! Speak no more, I know all I need at the moment."
Steph wasn't listening anymore. She pointed to one of the thin trees behind Boromir. "Look!"
He turned. "What?"
"Eggs!" she said happily, "in that nest!"
~*~*~*~*~
Steph had to stand on Boromir shoulders to reach the eggs, but she didn't really mind. Soon four brown eggs were in her hand, and both travelers were smiling happily at them.
"Well," Steph said, "How do we eat them?"
"You break them, of course." Boromir said, taking two for himself. The eggs were the size of one of Steph's thumbs, and though they weren't much, paired with some of the berries Boromir had found, they made a 'lunch'.
Boromir broke one of them between his fingers, and ate it raw. He ate a handful of berries afterwards, smiling at the taste.
Steph, on the other hand, almost threw up.