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Chapter IV

After becoming certain that Minerva was well enough to travel with him, Gandalf assisted the woman to her feet and they began to walk into the wood.

It had been a long time since the wizard had had a travelling companion and he greatly enjoyed the sound of the woman's slippered feet beside him.

His mind wandered over the vast possibility that the woman was rather eccentric. But since he was not one to judge at first glance, Gandalf decided to become better acquainted with Minerva.

But before he could ask his first question, Minerva stumbled over a tree root and fell to the ground. Rather sore at himself for not catching her, Gandalf helped her up.

"I didn't see it." she mumbled, softly. Gandalf looked back over the ground to find the root sticking up out of the ground. It was easily seen and he became worried about the lady.

Minerva's mind was having a hard time grasping what was going on around her. One moment she had been preparing to kill herself and then she had tried to escape the water only to be pulled out of her bath tub onto a pond's bank by a man who was obviously not from her world. Gandalf the Grey, what an odd name. she thought. Her glasses were not on her and she was having a rather hard time seeing somethings.

However she had not missed how much this Gandalf person looked like Albus. His voice sounded very similar as well and it brought tears to her eyes when he helped her up and offered her his steady arm. A perfect gentleman; just like Albus.

Gandalf did not miss the tears that sparkled in the lady's eyes. They did not fall, but he was certain that some great sadness had clouded her mind.

As they slowly moved along, he guiding her as one might help a blind child and her trusting him to not let her fall, Gandalf began to create a plan in his mind.

He would take her with him to Hobbiton. Along the way to Bilbo's birthday party, he could drop by a village, not a hobbit one, and pick up some needed items for her. Even though he hardly knew her and it didn't appear as though he would anytime soon, Gandalf already planned to keep her safe.

"Where are you going?" Minerva asked, rather embarrassed that she had just thought to ask.

"To Hobbiton. You may come with me if you like." His large bushy eyebrows lifted in a careful scrutiny and she felt she almost had to say she would go with him. He reminded her so much of Albus and if she had fallen into another world; didn't she deserve to be a little more happier?

"I will go with you." she said softly.