The Road to Middle-Earth

A fanfiction by MushrooomsPTook

Disclaimer: I own nothing. You might as well say it owns me!

Chapter 6: Out of the Frying-Pan, Into the Fire

A/N – Whew! This was a hard chapter to write. Sorry for the short delay, but thank you for staying with me. The reviews mean so much and it pleases my heart to know that my writing skills don't suck entirely.

Oh, and yes, I did it. I stole Tolkien's beloved chapter title, but I think it fits quite nicely and I only do it in honor of the genius (truly!). Let me know if it works!

I swallowed the piece of gingerbread in my mouth. "H-Hello."

The old woman looked at me and distorted her face into what I thought was a smile.

"I thought I heard gnawing on my doorstep," she said.

I stood up guiltily as the woman's gaze encompassed the affair, Tom swallowing a bite of gumdrop and Alice licking her chocolate-coated fingers (her face was covered with the stuff). She clapped and rubbed her hands together and blurted out such a wild laugh that I felt a cold shiver run down my spine.

"Oh!" she said, "And you have two other guests with you. How delicious! I do love children, you know."

"I'm sorry we intruded upon your property," I apologized, "but we were terribly hungry and we lost all our food."

The woman's smile widened. "Oh well then, you're just in time."

"Just in time for what?" asked Tom. He had just taken a bite out of another gumdrop. Clearly, he wasn't interested in apologizing for his appetite.

"Why, I am just sitting down for a morsel myself. Pray, come in and have some with me!"

"Well..." I began rubbing the back of neck thoughtfully.

"We will have pork, beans, soup, potatoes," I licked my lips as she went on, "bread, fruit, and cherry pie!"

It all sounded so good and I heard a growl come from my stomach, but the childhood warnings of strangers and free food was pricking at my brain. I was about to reject the offer, but one look at Alice's longing face undid me. Surely I couldn't allow the poor child to starve.

"All right," I agreed reluctantly. "But we can't stay for very long; we have quite a journey ahead of us."

The old lady cackled happily as though she hadn't heard me and said, "Wonderful! Wonderful! Right this way, my dears."

She motioned for us to go inside and I led the way, Tom peering at the woman suspiciously before following, and Alice bringing up the rear. The woman shut the door and immediately put in place a great big board that kept it locked. Then she stuck a key in a deadbolt and turned her wrist until I heard a click. She now turned back to us and her smile disappeared, but her eyes gleamed. She strode swiftly over to me, saying, "Let me have a look at you." She grabbed my face roughly, pulling me forward just a bit so that I was staring into her great big, red eyes. She pinched it and distorted the flesh with her bony fingers, so that my face was manipulated into an assortment of expressions.

"Hmm," she mumbled. Her brow furrowed and I could tell she was displeased. By what though, I couldn't tell.

The skeletal hand finally released me, but I felt as though bruises were already surfacing beneath the skin. The old woman turned her attention to Tom and Alice and reached out a hand towards them.

"I—" Before Tom could protest, she caught his face and stared hard at it, turning it left and right and studying it as she had done with mine. I could tell Alice was nervous and I was too confused to step in.

"No, no," grumbled the lady. "This won't do, this won't do at all. Can't cook with faces like these! Much too thin." Tom managed to escape her grasp and shoved her off him, massaging his face protectively. "Oh, what's this? A temper? Oh, we'll fix that." She laughed icily. "We'll have you stuffed and fattened up in no time, don't worry."

She walked to a little oven in the corner of the house and pulled out a large, mouth-watering roast and set it on a small table opposite the oven. Next she pulled out a wooden bowl of mashed potatoes and a plate of bread and set these on the table next to the roast. Tom's angry expression vanished the second she said, "come and get it," and he and Alice rushed forward together to sit at the table. They didn't bother with utensils but started dishing things out on the plates before them with their hands.

Before Tom could take a bite, I snatched his greedy fingers, knocking the piece of meat out of them. "Wait. Let me try it first and make sure it's all right." Tom glared at me while the woman stood watching in suspense. I put a piece of meat in my mouth and let the juices settle before chewing. It smelled fine, tasted fine. But something seemed amiss. Whatever it was, it wasn't enough to keep the children from eating and I gave them the okay. Hands started flying as food piled up on empty plates. I at first tried to keep formalities and regain some decency, but when I saw that the potatoes were almost gone, battle became imminent and the war between stomachs was on.

After my hasty first helpings, I began digging in for a second, when something caught my eye. I turned my full attention to the distraction and felt a pit in my stomach. Piled together and hidden poorly next to the fireplace were shoes, children's shoes. Shoes beyond count. I lost my appetite upon making the disturbing discovery.

"Where..." I swallowed and looked up the woman warily, although I was becoming increasingly suspicious that she was human at all. "Where did all those come from?" I pointed to the silent pile.

The 'whatever-she-was' stiffened and her gaze went cold. I caught the brief glimpse of a shiny object in her hand before realizing the seriousness of our predicament.

"Alice, Tom! She's a witch! Run!" I just made it out of my chair and was heading for the door when great thick iron bars came crashing down. The noise knocked me off my feet and I turned my head. I went pale. Alice and Tom had not made it out of their chairs and were still at the table, centered within the cage that now imprisoned them. The witch cackled cruelly as Tom and Alice tried to absorb what had just happened.

I set my jaw and got to my feet angrily.

"Let them go!" I charged at the old hag, focusing my attention on the dagger in her hand. But she was surprisingly strong, and before I knew what had happened, my arms were pinned beneath hers and the dagger digging into my throat. Alice screamed.

"Or what!" she spat. "Not much you can do, is there?"

"Let them go. You can have me instead."

"Oh, I am having you, deary—all three of you—for the great feast in the next three days. And you are going to help me fatten them up!" I didn't say anything, I couldn't say anything. But Alice was crying out to me now and I watched as the witch's head swished left and right, noticing the eye contact. "It would be better for the little girl if you cooperate." Her head came close to my ear and her voice dropped to a whisper. "You wouldn't want her to watch you die, would you?" She pressed the dagger deeper into my neck to make a point and I bit back the tears that started forming. Tom's knuckles were turning white as he clenched the bars.

"Fine," I submitted. "But this isn't over."

"True, you are correct there. This is just beginning!"

I breathed heavily as I carried the plate of food, struggling under the weight around my ankles. I nearly stumbled and quickly shifted my position so that the plate remained firmly within my grasp. Having been shackled upon our capture, three days had taught me a vital lesson, and I learned quickly and harshly that tripping and spilling food everywhere would produce consequences. A blow across my face had been a warning, and I had no intention of it getting beyond that. I felt tired, too, but not from the chains. I felt that my stomach had grown and I was not accustomed to the weight change. The witch's plan was succeeding, and I was still working on my own.

I shuffled over to the cage that held Alice and Tom prisoners. Both of them looked miserable as they caught sight of the platter I carried in my arms. I gave them a sympathetic look just as the witch came into view. I glared. Silently, she took out a key and unlocked the door.

"Get in there!" she barked and kicked me inside, slamming the door shut. Then she hummed to herself as she strode away, having locked me in.

I set the platter on the table with a heavy sigh and I accessed their state of health. Both of them had gained a few pounds, I was sure, but this was the first time I noticed their protruding bellies. Alice had streaks plastered to her face from where recent tears had been, but Tom just kept his eyes down.

"Here," I said, removing the lid from the plate. "Have something to eat."

"I don't want anymore, Alayna," said Alice. "I'm not hungry."

"You have to, Alice."

The child's chin quivered and her eyes became wet. "But—but I can't. I'm too full." The tears started streaming down her face freely now. "I want to go home."

I stared at her for a moment, wishing to spare her the torture, and then took a seat next to hers.

"I know." I put an arm around her, trying to provide what little comfort I could. "This is all my fault. I should never have brought us here. I'm so sorry."

"Are—" Tom hesitated, keeping his gaze to the floor. "Are we going to...die?"

I wiped away a stray tear and rubbed my nose with the back of my hand. "No." I spoke firmly. "I won't allow that to happen."

"What will happen?" Alice asked softly.

"I don't know just yet. But I'll think of something. Now here, Tom, Alice. Eat."

Tom sighed and grabbed a bread roll off the platter. He picked at it a bit before nibbling slowly. But Alice shifted her gaze to where Tom's had been.

"Please?" I pleaded. "For me?" Alice sniffed and reluctantly but obediently opened her hands. "Good girl." I also took a bread roll and broke it into pieces. "Small bites now. Come on. That's it." I helped her eat before taking a third roll and painfully forcing myself to swallow each bite. "You still have Gandalf's staff?"

Alice swallowed a bite before answering, "I left it outside."

"Well, we'll get it back," I assured her, squeezing her shoulder. "I need you to be brave, Alice. Can you do that for me?" She sniffled and nodded. "That's what I like to hear."

Presently, the witch came back and unlocked the door. She walked in and poked our bellies, and felt each of our arms and faces, just as she did three days earlier. She smiled menacingly.

"Ah, much improvement, much improvement. I do believe you are ready."

"F-for?" asked Tom, slowly lifting his gaze.

"Why, for the feast child! Have you forgotten? It's tomorrow night, you know, and you are to be the guests of honor!"

I clenched my jaw and fixed a cold glare at the hag. "You won't get away with this! Your plan will fail."

The woman gave a mock pout and stroke my face with her frail hand. "Yes, yes. Of course it will," she cooed. I shook her off me and Tom, stealing a moment of bravery, lunged at her. With quick reflexes, she caught a firm hold of his arm, as if anticipating an attack, and with her other hand slapped him across his face. She pushed him roughly to the ground and pulled me up by my shirt before I had time to react to the violence. I struggled to free myself, but with the chains still firmly around my ankles, I had little success. Alice cried as she reached out to me, but I knew my time was up with the children, and I would resume with the chores around the witch's house. As I turned my head to catch sight of a large red handprint on Tom's face, the witch locked the cage and put the key in her right pocket.

I momentarily lost control of my emotions and attacked the unprepared witch. I outwitted her by knocking her to the ground and she struggled under my wrath. With a great effort, she grasped the leg of a chair and pulled on it, so that it came crashing down upon me. I collapsed, wheezing, having been winded by the blow. The woman got to her feet and kicked me in the stomach. She gathered a fistful of my brown hair and dragged me to my feet.

"Any more stunts and I will kill them, do you hear!" she unsheathed her dagger and pointed it in the direction of Tom and Alice. I kept my mouth shut as confirmation that I understood. "Now, into the kitchen with you! We've got work to do." She limped on ahead of me and I waited until she had disappeared around the corner before quickly running to the cage.

"Tom," I said, gesturing him forward. I stuffed the stolen key into his hands and he hid it in his pocket. "Keep it safe. Tonight we're getting out of here. Wait until after she's asleep and meet me at the door." Tom nodded and I reached down to cup Alice's face gently. "Be brave, Alice." I stroke her cheek with my thumb before breaking the contact, and followed the witch's footsteps.

Next chapter: An attempted escape occurs, but will they get away?

mwang: I do too. Updated!

Guest: The original storyline did have what you might call a "fling", although it happens much, much later. However, I'm not sure if I'm going to keep it. Either way, this story does not focus on romance, but on courage, determination, and friendship. Thanks for the review!