Sorry it's taken so long for me to update. I had a bunch of tests this week.

Anyway, here's the next chapter.

And, although many of you already know this, I only own my OC's.

Chapter 16: About Friends

Merry, Pippin, and Robin had been riding on Treebeard's shoulders for what seemed like hours. Robin sat beside Merry, staring into the surrounding woods, lost in thought. Merry gently nudged her. "Are you alright?"

"Huh?" Robin snapped out of her ponderings and turned to face him. Merry repeated his question. "Yeah, I'm alright, just thinking," she answered.

"Well, what are you thinking about?"

Robin sighed. "I'm thinking about all of my friends: you, Pippin, Kayden, Peyton, Frodo, Sam, Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli. I mean, Treebeard's good company, but I miss them. I hope they're okay."

Merry wrapped his arm comfortingly around her shoulder. "They're very strong and brave. I'm sure they're fine."

"I'm glad you're here with me, Merry," Robin smiled, nestling her head on Merry's shoulder.

"Me too."

A few more hours passed. Treebeard had begun reciting old Ent poems to entertain the hobbits. Robin had initially liked them, but the slow tempo and the Ent's deep, plodding voice were starting to make her sleepy. Presently, Treebeard began to recite:

"Oh, rowan mine,

I saw you shine

Upon a summer's day.

Upon you head

How golden-red

The crown you bore aloft."

"Such a beautiful verse," Treebeard commented once he had finished.

Pippin yawned. "Is it much further?"

"Bru-ro-hoom. Don't be hasty," the Ent chided. "You might call it far perhaps. My home lies deep in the forest, near the roots of the mountain. I told Gandalf I would keep you safe, and safe is where I will keep you. I believe you will enjoy this next one too. It's one of my own compositions." Treebeard cleared his throat.

"Beneath the roof of sleeping leaves,

And the dreams of trees tenfold,

When woodland halls are green and cool

And the wind is in the west,

Come back to me…"

Robin let out a huge yawn and snuggled closer to Merry as she drifted off into a deep sleep. Merry smiled at the sleeping hobbit in his arms. "Goodnight, Robin."

~o*o*o*o~

Night had fallen. The six travelers stopped to rest on a knoll in the middle of the vast plains. Gimli immediately lay down and began snoring. Dėor, Hasufel, Arod, Greystorm, and Shadowfax munched happily on the grass. Within minutes, Aragorn had a roaring campfire going. Kayden sat beside him, helping to tend the flames. Legolas sat atop a rock, lost in thought. Peyton stood by the horses, staring at the flames, and then, without a word, lay down near the fire. Kayden noticed her grim demeanor and crouched beside her friend. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," Peyton replied, turning over.

Kayden glared at her friend. "Peyton, don't lie to me. Something's on you're mind. What is it?"

Peyton sighed. "I miss Boromir. He was such a good friend."

"I know," Kayden replied. "We all miss him."

"I kind of wish that Ėomer had joined us," Peyton stated. Kayden gave her a confused look. "He seemed like a friendly guy," she explained. "I mean, he did give us the horses." Peyton turned away from Kayden, quietly muttering, "At least he would keep me company."

"What do you mean 'keep you company'?"

Stupid elven hearing, Peyton thought to herself. "What I mean is, I don't have anyone to talk to and hang out with. Not since the Fellowship broke."

"What are you talking about?" Kayden asked, surprised. "There are one, two, three…five people traveling with you!"

Peyton shot her friend an annoyed glance. "I don't know most of them very well. You saw me. I was always talking to the hobbits or…Boromir." She choked on the last word, a lump forming in her throat. "Robin was always by my side when we first landed in Middle-Earth. Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin were the first people I met here. I always felt closer to them than anyone else, except for Boromir. He…" Peyton trailed off, staring into the fire. She heaved a huge sigh. "Now they're all gone. Frodo and Sam are journeying to Mordor, Merry, Robin, and Pippin are in the creepy forest doing who-knows-what, and Boromir's…" The lump in her throat seemed to swell in size, and she could say no more.

"But I'm still with you," Kayden stated.

Peyton whipped around to face her friend, her frustration burstiong out of her. "No, you're not! You're always with Aragorn or Legolas scouting or running or…doing whatever you guys do! You never seem to be with me anymore."

"Well excuse me for trying to be helpful!" Kayden retorted.

Peyton huffed angrily and turned over with her back facing the elleth. Kayden glared at her friend for a few long moments, absentmindedly picking at the grass. Finally, Kayden decided to get up and leave her friend be.

"I'm sorry."

Kayden whirled around. Peyton was looking up at her, her face set in a grim expression. "I'm sorry for blowing up at you," she continued. "I should've known you were just trying to help."

Kayden knelt down beside her friend. "It's okay." After a few minutes of silence, Kayden stood up from Peyton's side. "Get some sleep," the elleth instructed. "I don't want you falling off your horse tomorrow." Peyton smiled at her friend and rolled over, drifting off to sleep.

Kayden walked over and sat down near Aragorn. "Is Peyton alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, she was just a little lonely," Kayden responded, grabbing a stick and beginning to poke at the fire. "She misses the hobbits and Boromir dearly." Aragorn nodded in understanding.

The two then noticed Gandalf gazing at the fiery red glow in the east. Together, they quietly walked over to the wizard. Acknowledging their presence, Gandalf began to speak. "The veiling shadow that glowers in the east takes shape," he stated grimly. "Sauron will suffer no rival. From the summit of Barad-dûr, his Eye watches ceaselessly. But he is not so mighty yet that he is above fear. Doubt ever gnaws at him. The rumor has reached him: the heir of Númenor still lives." Both Gandalf and Kayden looked at the Ranger standing between them. "Sauron fears you, Aragorn," the wizard continued. "He fears what you may become. And so he'll strike hard and fast at the world of Men. He will use his puppet Saruman to destroy Rohan. War is coming. Rohan must defend itself, and therein lies our first challenge, for Rohan is weak and ready to fall." Gandalf shook his head in frustration. "The king's mind is enslaved; it's an old device of Saruman's. His hold over King Théoden is now very strong. Sauron and Saruman are tightening the noose. But for all their cunning, we have one advantage." The wizard paused in is rant for a moment as Aragorn and Kayden gazed at the white wizard. "The Ring remains hidden," he remarked. "And that we should seek to destroy it has not yet entered their darkest dreams. And so the weapon of the enemy is moving towards Mordor in the hands of a Hobbit. Each day brings it closer to the fires of Mount Doom. We must trust now in Frodo. Everything depends upon speed and the secrecy of his quest." Aragorn and Kayden glanced at each other, each knowing that the other was feeling worried and guilty about their decision to leave the hobbit. Gandalf seemed to read their minds. "Do not regret your decision to leave him," he comforted.

"It's not the decision I made to leave Frodo that I regret," Kayden sighed, sinking down onto a rock. "It's the decision I made when I volunteered for this quest that I regret." Aragorn and Gandalf looked at her quizzically. Legolas, who had heard her statement, walked over and sat down beside the elleth.

"And why do you regret that?" Legolas asked, puzzled.

"Maybe if I hadn't joined the Fellowship, my friends wouldn't have joined either, and they wouldn't be so close to so much danger," Kayden explained, her voice shaking slightly. "Where we grew up, there were rarely any battles. I mean, wars were fought there, but they just weren't fought near us. We never had to fight. But now, here, we have no choice but to fight. And I don't know if we can do it." Kayden drew a deep breath, wiping the dampness from her eyes. "I don't know what I would do if I lost them."

Legolas put a comforting arm around Kayden's shoulders. "Kayden, you are a valiant warrior, and your friends are quite strong. I do not doubt that you and your friends will survive."

Kayden smiled, lifting her gaze to the east. "I hope Frodo's alright," she murmured.

"Frodo must finish this task alone," Gandalf stated.

"He's not alone," Aragorn replied. "Sam went with him."

Gandalf raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Did he?" Kayden nodded in response. "Did he, indeed? Good. Yes, very good."

I hope you enjoyed it.

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