The Protector in the Shadow

*If you're wondering why they are only just leaving now I'll tell you, I'm just really getting them into leaving Rivendell, I felt like I was rushing things at first, I don't want to drag things on, but I felt like I went from the prologue, straight to them popping up in Rivendell, and I don't want to skip over things like that (Which is why I'll be editing soon). Please bear with me! It's going to get interesting soon now that they are leaving. - Ze*

Disclaimer: Well, Still don't own it. Not changing anytime soon. Fëa is mine though, don't touch her…I'll…I'll…sick my kittens on you.

*Fate*

*Normal*

Chapter Seven: The Hunt

Lyavain's eyes danced on the faces of the Hobbits who bid a soft farewell, bobbing like drowsy ducks in the water. Not fully awake after their restful night sleep, and they didn't seem like they wanted to be. Frodo seemed to not want to leave the presence of the wolf, but she insisted that he needed to eat. She had talked the night before to Lord Elrond, insisting she would not eat that morning, she was more alert on an empty stomach and she knew it would be safer if she was well awake and fallowing from the shadow. She had talked Frodo into stuffing a cloak into his pack for her and Gandalf had promised to stow away some trousers and a tunic for her "Just in case" she was rather thankful, though she did not appreciate that he was so nervous about her shifting. She kept that anger and annoyance hidden, it was better to be safe than sorry. Only Eru knew what was in store for the Fellowship. After about an hour of her nostalgia walk she made her way back to the small plot of graves to bid her family farewell. The only creatures that had shown affection to her in her early years.

She had given everything when she bid her farewells to Rivendell, Elrond had been so kind to her, and she hadn't felt such love before in her life. In a glade beneath a stone arch they were to meet, though she was anxious and ready to be on their way. The closer towards nightfall they moved the more dangerous their rode became. She was shocked to see she was not the first to arrive at the stone arch. Aragorn, and then Elf she had been avoiding most were waiting patiently by the pony Bill, who had travelled with them from Bree.

Fëa stalked up quietly, her body was ridged and tense. She had not been looking forward to the time that would be spent with these two. A vision showed her becoming closer with them, but she was unsure if she wanted this. The closer she became, the harder separating in the end would be if the task at hand was completed. Her pools moved to the left as she watched Boromir walk down to join them, her body tensed even more, that was until she felt a hand on her shoulder. It was a gentle notion so she didn't feel inclined to snap or growl, only to look at the creature that had done the action. To her shock and surprise, Aragorn was the being who had completed the deed. She sighed lightly nodding her head in a glum thanks. Her spirits dropped even more as the Dwarf came, picking a fight with the Elf once more who seemed easily angered that morning. The gentle hand of the Heir of Gondor never faltered, it never moved simply stroked her pelt lightly as if to keep her calm.

Her spirits did in fact soar when her Hobbit friends, the Wizard, and Lord Elrond came walking quietly from the city. Aragorn slowly dropped his hand and moved back to the Elf to calm him down. She could already sense the pressure emitting from her master, she moved slowly to his side and nuzzled him softly, and he smiled a weak smile and rubbed between her eyes lovingly.

"The Ring-bearer is setting out on the Quest of Mount Doom. On you who travel with him no oath nor bond is laid, to go further than you will." His eyes brushed sternly over each face of the Fellowship, not stopping on anyone in particular, but getting his point across just the same. "Farewell. Hold to your purpose. May the blessings of Elves and Men and all free folk go with you." His tone was quiet, but his voice was strong.

Elves always brought weakness to strength in Fëa's mind. They seemed so fragile and breakable, yet they were strong, perfect creatures. She didn't possess all of their qualities, their beauty was one thing she never felt she possessed, though most would disagree. She did not hold their stamina, she could run for days if she held a constant slower speed, but she could run full speed for just over 25 miles. Elves could run much longer than that. She was never cold, always overly hot, and her temper almost always flared. She was more like a beast than an Elf, though she held the grace, hearing and sight of one.

Elrond slowly lifted his arms and spread them with a soft expression on his face. The Elf, and The Ranger bowed their skulls and placed a hand over their heart.

"The Fellowship awaits the Ring-bearer" Gandalf cooed softly to Frodo, who moved away from Fëa with a hesitant look back. The path winded and curved off either direction like a two headed snake. Frodo tensed as Gandalf came to stand beside him.

The words that came were soft, just a whisper, unheard by all except Fëa. She almost chuffed what she heard it, so quiet as always by her master, horrible with directions and always getting lost. The wolf moved behind him slowly, dipping her head to gently and playfully nip at his heals. He spun around with a snort before smiling brightly, the air around the group instantly relaxed as we marched left from Rivendell towards Mordor. She looked back to see an exchange take place between the daughter of Elrond, and Aragorn. His face held a coldness she had not seen as he nodded a final farewell. Gossip from Pippin informed her of what he knew about it. Though he thought she was simply a mindless dog.

They strode for days on end, through the trees which soon vanished, much to Gimli's delight, across grassy planes. Gandalf's plan was revealed after a few hours of the trip, the plan sounded long, and unwanted on her part but she knew why he didn't dare go anywhere else. "We must hold this course west of the Misty Mountains for forty days. If our luck holds, the Gap of Rohan will still be open to us. From there our road turns east to Mordor…" His voice had trailed off to mumbles that the creature had ignored.

"Fëa, come here look!" Frodo used her alias for the first time, causing the entire group to fall silent.

"What did you call her Frodo?" Gandalf asked with an interested expression as Ava pushed past him towards Frodo.

"I called her Fëa…We cannot keep calling her Black Wolf, Or The Wolf of Gondolin, so I chose a name for her." He said in a tone that was almost annoyed with why he was asked the question.

"I think that Fëa is a brilliant name for her." Pippin squeaked with a smile that brought ease to the group again.

Conversations picked back up and the subject was dropped never to be touched again. They stopped on a stretched arm of the mountain they would be traveling west of. They had finally stopped, though Ava refused to hunt, she was much more worried of what would happen if she did go and hunt rather then while she was away. She would deal with the hunger pains, she would ignore fatigue, and she would wait until after they were finished, after they had made it past the worst of the mountains. Though she could tell it was making her even more irritated then not. She could get along fine with the Hobbits, the Ranger, the Dwarf, and even the Elf when she had to, but Boromir…Boromir was like getting along with a brick wall. He hadn't even fallen to the ring yet and she hated him. He hated her just the same.

"Fëa, have you eaten since Rivendell?" the Elf was the one to bring the subject up much to her own surprise. She shook her head looking at the creatures with a soft steady gaze. He nodded in knowing, her heart sunk lightly at the expression Frodo spread on his face.

"So that's why there is so much food here, you have not eaten in days!" He exclaimed with horror in his eyes. She scoffed looking at him out of the corner of her eye.

"Frodo Baggins, I have gone much longer without substance, to not fear for me." She mumbled thoughtfully only to receive a sudden smack on the side of her face. She stumbled backwards and the Fellowship gasped pulling Frodo behind him when her lip curled. Frodo pushed out of their grasps and stood with a hardened expression on his face.

"I don't care! I don't care how long you've been without it in the past! There is food for you to eat! Why do you not eat it?" His voice was shrill and panicked, as if he thought she would die. As a tear full of anger slid from his eyes she knew she hadn't a choice.

"I will not eat your food Frodo. I'll hunt soon, just not yet." She thought in defense, anger started to grip her bones as her Master seemed to not understand.

"Don't lie to me Fëa, I am your master!" He snapped shocking the Fellowship even further, her eyes softened, she knew he wasn't trying to be a nag, he was simply worried about the wolf. A sigh escaped her chest as she stepped forward towards him her large dome stretched from her neck as an act to pull him closer, he fought it at first before giving into the gentle act of kindness and love for him.

Lyavain searched for something to say to calm his heart, but knew nothing would be found. Her body was trembling and whines escaped her maw. She felt horrible for the pain she had caused her master. "I respect you as such Frodo," She dropped calling him master, he was her friend and her master all in one, "If it will please you, I will partake in something sooner then I originally was going too." She said releasing him from her hold and starting to pad up the trail where they were headed. "But we need to move. I can smell orcs not so far away."

With that they started moving again, only to stop again on an outlet of the mountain much like they had before. This time was much more relaxed, she lay out in the sun by Legolas who watched the southern sky like a hawk. She watched with him, even when Frodo came to lie at her side, her eyes moved over their camp, down to Boromir tutoring Peregrin Took, and Merry in the art of sword play. Aragorn sat close by with a pipe in his mouth watching, giving encouraging words to the hobbits edging them on. Her eyes moved away as they began to tack Boromir for cutting Pippin. Sam sat cooking sausage over a fire and Gandalf sat nearby with Gimli discussing the mines of Moria. Sam eventually came to sit by Frodo offering him some of the food he had eaten. But Frodo had come to the decision he would not eat until Lyavain partook in food. For being a hobbit he was quite the pain, though she had decided to ignore that fact and not eat still. Though she had once convinced Frodo she had eaten in the past days to get him to eat, which worked until he found out otherwise.

Something caught Sam's attention on the Southern horizon it caused Lyavain's body to tense.

"What is that?" He questioned, feeling Fëa's body go ridged beneath him.

"Nothing, it's just a whiff of cloud." Gimli pushed it off as it was nothing to him.

"It's moving fast…against the wind." Boromir said with a confused expression on his face as he stood, laying a hand on both hobbits small shoulders. The eerie silence grew for a moment before Ava snarled causing Frodo and Samwise to leap up in shock.

"Crebain from Dunland!" Legolas called looking around in panic.

Aragorn ran and took Frodo in one hand and quickly moved tidying things away so it looked normal. "Hide!" He snarled loudly to everyone who was still in shock. Sam quickly kicked out the fire, Boromir grabbed Pippen and stuffed him quickly under a rock. Merry was right behind Pippin, you hardly ever saw one without the other. Everyone else stowed away in different locations. But Lyavain was to large, before anyone had seen her she was off of the rocks around them diving to the ground and dashing into the tick pine nearby. She would have to wait until much later to find the Fellowship. She had known everyone would be confused but with the bond she had formed with Frodo and Gandalf, no distance could limit their speaking.

She could hear them calling, the Fellowship was confused as she suspected, but she would not show herself, she thought of a location and knew by the feeling of Frodo's hear quicken in her mind, her eyes became his. "Go master Baggins, I will find you." She whispered deeply into his mind. It was time to hunt from the shadows as she once had. Her azure eyes darkened in thought. "I'll fallow you. You'll see me in a days' time." She thought with that, she was gone into the darkness of her wilderness home. Never before had she been here, but the scents were something that she knew, she fallowed the forest's cover as long as she could before nightfall. After nightfall she would climb.

(Fellowship)

His heart broke in two, where had Lyavain gone? The soul person he knew he could count on. Had she left him at the sight of danger? No she wouldn't have shown in the first place if her plan was simply to leave. He didn't voice his fears as he looked to Gandalf, who seemed to see the hobbit's fears with or without the words expressing them. Gandalf too was worried about the wolf, though he wouldn't even allow these worries to surface, he knew what she was doing was for the best. She had taken advantage of the situation and went to fill her quest for food, they would be safer now, but soon the wolf full from flesh would come back to them.

"Has the wolf abandoned us?" Boromir scoffed as they started up the mountain, the snow started to fall on them, the hobbits at first pleased, though only Pippin was playing around in it.

"Do not utter such foolishness." Legolas was the first to become angered at such an accusation.

Gandalf raised his hand to silence the two, breathing a breath of anger out of his lungs, he wanted not a fight to break the already bothered Frodo Baggins. "She may leave us, but never would she leave Frodo unless it was life or death. For more years then you know she has watched him in the shadows. Since his birth in fact. Not once faltering her protection." Gandalf said quietly before motioning for them to continue up the mountain, again dropping the conversation like it was nothing, "She will be back after she hunts. To dangerous is a wolf in blood lust, the only creature she would not harm is Frodo, so let's hope we do not interrupt the hunt." He said with a bit of humor on his voice, though he was feeling anything but that. He was honestly preying relentlessly that they did not run into Lyavain during her hunt.

(Fëa)

Gone she was, her long stride pulling her closer and closer to the injured Stag, her fangs bared an hackles raised higher then they had been in a long time. She felt her paws connect with rock and used it to get an upper hand on the quick creature, her body leaching forward to leap on the already confused beast. It's death was quick, quicker then it's killer would have wanted. Her teeth clamped on its jugular and not releasing until it fell limp in her mouth and its feet stopped twitching.

She was a beast, made for such execution, picking out dying or deformed creatures and killing them before they suffered another second. Always quick, though not so clean. Her killing ways got things done, this was her second Stag she had taken down in the past night fall. But a high pitched howl further on the mountain brought her from the trance she was once in. A loud scream penetrated her harks as her head swiveled to look further up the mountain. If anyone touched her fellowship. Blood would be spilled. And that was putting it nicely. Not only would blood be spilled, lives would be lost.

And her killing spree still was yet from finished.

*Now if you're wondering about the relationship between Arwen and Aragorn, I wanted to have them distant. That there was never question on her leaving for the undying lands, and that she had been leaving from the beginning. There is no chance of her coming back, but Elrond will still reforge the sword that all plays into my plotline. R&R if you have any ideas or suggestions PM me. I'm open for ideas to twist the plot line further! - Ze*