Chapter 9

Mel floated through the night like a ghost, her thoughts barely coherent even to herself. Faces flashed before her, so real she thought she might be able to reach out and touch them. She relived parts of her life, but none of it made sense to her. Faces were in places that they didn't belong. Her mother walked the forests of Lothlorien, dressed all in white. Legolas walked her to class on her first day of high school, his blue eyes calming and safe. Her sisters played tag in the courtyards of Rivendell, hiding in trees that grew to give them cover. Eregwen once again played the nurse that took care of her when she had pneumonia.

Then Boromir's face loomed in front of her. His eyes were creased in concern. She felt a cool, rough hand brush her cheek. The cool felt so good. She leaned into his touch and sighed. She hadn't realized she was so hot. She closed her eyes and was slammed into the fiery depths of Moria. The Balrog chased her down the dark passageways, and she was running as fast as she could, but she didn't know where she was going. She looked around and realized she was alone. The others must have turned and she'd missed it! She screamed, trying to find them, trying to run, trying to escape.

"Don't leave me! Don't leave me!"

Boromir's voice found her in the burning dark.

"Shhh," he whispered, "Shhhh, I'm here, I'm here Melody. I will never leave you again."

His voice melted the darkness of the mines, and in its place was another darkness, the darkness of a starlit night, the scent of flowers on the air, the feel of pine needles on her cheek. She sighed. This was a safe place, a good place. She settled in and hoped that it would last forever. But nothing lasted forever, not in this dream world. She began to shiver and the darkness turned to light. She could smell the bushes that hid her from the watchful eyes, but her eyes were closed in terror. He would find her, he would find her and he would kill her! She had to hide and there was no one to protect her. She shivered and her teeth chattered. Something wrapped around her. And she heard words. She didn't know if she imagined them or if they were spoken. Was this real or dream? But she heard the words and knew the voice.

"Do not despair, mellon-nîn. Your friends are with you. We will see you through to the end of these dark days."

Suddenly, she felt safe again.

"Legolas…" She whispered.

His face wavered in front of her, smiling at her. She smiled back and tried to reach out for him, but when she touched his face he shimmered like a reflection in water, and rippled away. In his place was Boromir. But something was wrong. He looked… Sad? Angry? Confused? It was a strange and mixed expression. She reached out and touched his face again, thinking that she could make it shimmer away the way Legolas had. But he didn't go away. Her fingers brushed his rough cheek.

"Boromir," She whispered, "You're real."

His eyes darted away, "Does that upset you?"

Her head was still fuzzy. Maybe she hadn't understood his words. Maybe she was dreaming things again.

"Why would that upset me?"

He looked up at her again, but he didn't get a chance to speak. There was a deafening roar and Mel shot upright, her heart thundering in her chest.

"They're coming!" she gasped, "They're coming for me! We've got to run, we've got to hide!"

She threw off the cloak that was covering her, but Boromir's strong hands kept her down.

"No one is coming for you, Melody," He murmured soothingly.

Her mind was wild, flickering images of the last few days swirling in a tangled mess in her head.

"No, you don't understand, he'll find me! He's gonna kill me! He'll kill you! We have to get away from here!"

"They aren't coming for us," His voice didn't falter, his eyes never wavered. His confidence worked to smooth her frazzled nerves, "If they were coming for us, they would have come hours ago."

Mel took a moment to look around her. She was surrounded by rough stone. She looked up. The sky was a deep shade of blue. There were no stars. What time was it? What day was it?

She felt a gentle pressure on her shoulders.

"Please lie down." Boromir whispered.

She did as he asked, but she stared at him with slowly clearing eyes.

"Where are we?" she asked

"In the mountains above Isengard." He replied.

He turned and opened a pack, pulling out a water skin and handing it to her.

"Drink. How long has it been since you've eaten?"

She took the skin and as she savored the taste of the cool, clean water, she tried to remember exactly how long it HAD been since she'd eaten anything. When she finally forced herself to jerk the water from her lips she answered.

"I don't know. Days, weeks, months. How long has it been since you've seen me?"

"If I can recall accurately, it has been a week." He paused and slowly turned back to her, "You haven't eaten since last I saw you?"

She shrank back a little bit when she saw his smoldering eyes, the muscles in his jaw twitching as he clenched his teeth.

"I had some bread," she said quickly, then grimaced as she remembered the skittering orc and the sting of his slap across her face, "But I don't know when that was. Not long after I got there, I think."

Boromir nodded and turned away, digging in the pack again. When he turned back, his expression was calm again. He handed her a crumpled leaf filled with crushed lembas.

"You must eat it slowly." He said. His voice sounded only the tiniest bit forced.

She took the leaf and quietly did as she was told. Her stomach rolled as she ate the crumbs, but she forced them down. Then she took another sip of water. Meanwhile, Boromir had dug out a jar and a handful of cloth and started to smear a paste onto the cloth.

"You've been dreaming in a fever all night," His voice seemed reasonably calm again, "This is the first true response I've gotten from you."

The loud roar repeated itself. Mel jumped.

"What is that?" she asked, shuddering

"An army," Boromir stated calmly, "I was actually hoping you could shed some light on that."

"An army? Who's army?"

"Saruman's. Lie still."

He started to unravel the bandage around her head and Mel lay perfectly still, just watching him work. His eyes were intent on the task; his hands were gentle as if she might break under his fingers. And when it hit her, it hit her hard and out of nowhere. He was alive. Boromir was alive. She waited until he was finished taking off the old bandage before she moved. As he turned to pick up the new one, she sat up and wrapped her arms around him, pressing her cheek into his shoulder.

"You're alive," She whispered as tears stung her eyes, "I'm so glad you're alive."

He stiffened under her and she immediately let him go. That wasn't the response she had been expecting. She thought of the look on his face when she'd woken up. The hurt had been plain. What had she said in her sleep that had upset him so badly? Or maybe she had been awake and she couldn't remember. She tried to remember last night, but everything after she lost the Yavannacor was hazy, some of it lost completely to her. The last clear memory she had was Boromir's face, looking down at her through the flickering torchlight. Everything else was blank.

She started to ask him what was wrong, but he turned and started to rewrap her head, a neutral expression on his face. She recognized the look. He was hiding something from her. It scared her. The last time he had been hiding from her, he had been furious. For just a moment she was frozen with doubt. Was he angry at her?

"So, what do you know of the army of Saruman? Where does he plan to make war?"

His voice was calm and almost… bland. He was forcibly changing the subject.

"He's going after Rohan. He'll attack Helm's Deep," Mel replied, the words tumbling out of her mouth almost against her will, "Do you know what day it is?"

"I fear I have lost my count," He replied, picking up her bandaged right hand and starting to remove the cloth, "The best I can guess is late February or early March."

The earth rumbled and metal clashed. Then there was a steady boom, boom, boom, like a marching cadence. Mel closed her eyes and tried to swallow down her nerves.

"Are you sure they won't find us here?"

"We are well hidden, Melody. And they aren't looking for us." His voice had softened a bit. She felt him gently bandaging her hand again. She grabbed his fingers, pulling him up short.

"Why would I be upset?"

She opened her eyes so she could see his reaction. His reaction was not to react. His face remained blank. He wouldn't meet her eyes. She tried to prod him again.

"Why did you ask me if I was upset when I woke up? Why did you think you would upset me?"

He turned away.

"It was not my name that you cried in your dreams," He whispered, "I thought you might be disappointed that the elf was not the one tending you."

The revelation shocked her into silence. Boromir pulled away and got to his feet, walking to the other side of the stone nook and staring out over the rocks. Mel let him go without another word. What could she say? She was not in control of her dreams or what she said in her sleep. The fact that her rambling had upset him so much hurt her. She wished that whatever she had said, she could take it back. But it wouldn't do any good. What was said was said. She didn't know why she had called Legolas' name. He was her friend, he made her feel safe, but so did Boromir. He made her feel safe and needed. Boromir needed her.

Or rather, he had needed her. Now that he was alive, when he had no right to be, she wasn't sure if he needed her anymore. Maybe she had served her purpose in his life. Her heart ached at the thought. How could she just slip out of his life when her entire existence had revolved around him for so long? It didn't seem possible. It wasn't possible. Now that the Yavannacor was gone, he was all she had left of her purpose in being. And she still loved him. How could she leave when she still loved him?

"The army is marching." His voice was emotionless again, "It seems the war has begun."

"He won't win," Mel said, surprised by how easily the words left her mouth, words of the future, "King Theoden will keep them at bay until Gandalf brings help."

Boromir stared at her, frowning in confusion and concern. Mel wondered why he looked so perplexed.

"Melody," he said carefully, "Gandalf is dead."

Mel stared at him for a minute, and then a little laugh bubbled up out of her.

"That's right, you don't know!"

Boromir was kneeling at her side in an instant, his hand pressing to her face, feeling for a fever. She swatted him away.

"I'm not sick, Boromir. And I'm not crazy. He's not dead. He's very alive."

Her laughter died away when she thought of all the pain losing Gandalf had caused, the secrets she'd had to keep.

You knew that Gandalf would fall! And you did NOTHING!

She flinched from the memory of those words, Boromir's words, spoken in anger and the beginnings of madness. There was nothing she could have done, no way she could have done things differently that she could see. But the words had still hurt so much…

"He's alive and he's stronger for what he went through," Mel said, more to reassure herself than Boromir, "Trust me, everything will be fine."

Boromir looked down at her skeptically, but not angrily. He wasn't angry. He was gentle and kind, placing a hand on her forehead, his brow still furrowed in concern.

"Lucid or not, you are still warm with fever. Perhaps you should rest."

The sun chose that moment to peek out over the rocks that sheltered them. It glared in Mel's face and she put up a hand to shield her eyes.

"How am I supposed to sleep with the sun in my eyes?" She joked.

He smiled at her, "Perhaps you won't sleep. Just rest a moment, Melody."

"If I close my eyes, are you gonna disappear?" Now she was only half joking.

The smile fell from his face. He reached out and gently touched her cheek with his fingertips.

"I will never leave you in danger again, Melody. I swear it."

She did feel tired. She guessed it was because she had been so sick. Or maybe the lembas had made her sleepy. Or maybe she just felt safe. Either way, her eyes drooped closed. The last thing she remembered before she drifted away was the feel of Boromir's fingers on her cheek.

Pippin was starting to get anxious. Two days had passed and it was the afternoon of the third. The Ents had haroomed and hoomed and baroomed the entire three days, never letting up. Merry was almost beside himself. He paced constantly until he had exhausted himself, then he threw himself into the grass and sat twitching and fiddling and mumbling until he couldn't sit still any longer. Then he would get up and repeat the whole thing all over again. Pippin tried to learn from the Ents, he tried not to feel hasty. But the length of time seemed to be getting ridiculous, even to him.

What could they be saying?

He thought about Mel. Would she still be alright? Would they make it in time? Would they make it at all? Would the Ents just decided to stay in their forests, away from the dangers of war? What were they talking about?

"What are they talking about?!" Merry exclaimed, making Pippin jump with surprise. His cousin flopped down beside him, "What is there to discuss? I thought with Mel thrown into all this we would be on our way to Isengard by now!"

"Maybe she's made it more complicated," Pippin suggested, "You know, gave them more to talk about."

"Like what, Pip?! She's their tree… woman… thingy and she's in danger! What else is there?"

Merry's last words were extremely loud in the sudden silence of the clearing. Both of the hobbits scrambled to their feet, listening carefully. There wasn't a breath of air, not a rustle, not a groan. They looked at each other, afraid to speak.

Then a great ringing shout crashed through the clearing.

"Ra-hoom-rah!"

Merry and Pippin both cowered and covered their ears. The trees shook and rattled as if a great wind had blown through their branches. Then they heard the sound of wood on wood, beating out a steady cadence and deep voices boomed through the clearing.

"We come, we come with roll of drum: ta-runda runda runda rom! We come, we come with horn and drum: ta-runa runa runa rom!"

"It's started!" Merry cried. He grabbed Pippin's arm and started dragging him, "Finally! Come on, Pip! Let's go!"