HEY.
Okay, before we begin, I would like to apologize for not updating yesterday like I said I would try to do. I had the day off from school yesterday (SNOW DAYYY) and I was planning on uploading last night. But I did the stupidest thing you could do when uploading at night: I got into my bed.
So, yeah, the reason why you did not have Chapter 7 last night was because my bed was too warm, it was 11:30 pm and I fell asleep. Apologies.
But I hope you are well and will enjoy this new chapter of Stella's story!
Disclaimer: I do not own LOTR.
The weather was not at all forgiving on the mountain.
The bone-rattling winds whipped through each member of the Fellowship like a knife slicing through soft butter. Each member stumbled through the high snow, feet numb and wet, despite the glowing sun above them. Stella was starting to think that they should have taken Gimli's suggestion he had made a few days ago and gone through the Mines of Moria, where some of his kin lived. At least there they wouldn't feel like freezer burned Popsicles.
Drawing her elvish cloak around her, the elleth shivered, glad she was trekking by herself so no one could see how blue her fingers had turned. Aragorn had left her side when they arrived to the steeper areas of the mountain, but Frodo and Sam were only a few feet in front of her. The cold made her feel miserably awake, yet it lulled her into boredom. She was forced to stare at her feet, for the whipping winds made it quite hard to peer ahead of her without her eyes watering.
A scuffle of feet on snow and a slight yelp made her lift her head up to see Frodo barreling his way down the mountain. He rolled at a particularly fast rate, but Stella instinctively snatched the dark haired hobbit by the collar before he could fall completely off the mountain. She gritted her teeth, planted her feet in the snow, and tugged with all her strength. Frodo stood with some difficulty, but once he got his bearings, his large feet were planted firmly in the ground.
"Boromir," Gandalf's voice spoke over the howling winds, causing Stella to lift her head and squinted into the sun. The man stood with his cloak furiously licking at his ankles, holding a chain up to the blue skies.
But it wasn't just a simple chain. It was the Ring.
Stella tensed, gripping the end of her bow, ready to attack if necessary. Boromir swayed, as if in a trance, muttering words she could not hear. Giving Frodo a small nudge, the pair started back up the hill, Stella's eyes never leaving Boromir. Behind him, she saw Aragorn, Legolas and the other hobbits staring as well, the Ranger and elf man gripping their weapons.
"Boromir," Stella called to the entranced man. She wrapped the ends of her cloak around the shivering hobbit, as she felt his feet slipping on the snow once again. "Boromir, give the Ring to Frodo."
Snapping out of his dream-like state, Boromir looked up at her hardened face, bewildered. His eyes shifted to the Ring-bearer in front of her, his grip loosening on the chain.
Then he smiled and forced a laugh. "Be careful, young hobbit. We do not want this precious parcel to fall in the wrong hands."
Stella's eyes narrowed at his hidden panic as he shakily handed the Ring back to Frodo. The hobbit snatched the Ring from Boromir, clasping the chain back around his neck. The Gondorian man turned, stumbling, and then continued to climb to the rest of the Fellowship.
"Blasted man," Gimli rasped lowly as he came up from behind her. Stella remained silent and continued walking, the icy snow causing her footing to be horribly unsteady.
After Boromir's incident with the Ring, Stella stuck closely to Frodo. Despite the burning in her thighs and the numbness in her skin, she kept one hand around his shoulder to prevent any more mishaps. Aragorn and Legolas had slowed to remain a barrier between Frodo and Boromir, they too wishing to evade any accidents.
Time passed slowly. Stella felt as though they have been climbing for hours, days, and even years. Her nose turned cherry red and she had to clench her jaw to prevent her teeth from chattering. Her clothing was soaked through, which made the whipping wind heavy snow fall even worse.
As the party of men and Stella came to a flatter snow-covered path against the rocks of the mountainside, her legs nearly collapsed in relief. That is, until the ground rumbled from under her.
The elleth was thrown back, gripping the rocky mountain with one hand and Frodo's shoulder with the other. Boulders of ice and snow tumbled down, missing the Fellowship members by inches. Tremors pulsed through the mountain again, this time tearing down jagged rocks as well as ice.
The howling wind whistled even louder in her ears. But this was not like any other time it whipped through her skin and bone. Something, or rather someone, howled along with it.
"A voice," Legolas shouted over the blistering blizzard. "From the mountain!"
"It is Saruman!" Gandalf roared back. "He is casting dark magic upon this mountain!"
Right on cue, another one of Saruman's spells racked the mountain, shaking the company off their feet and into the snowy banks.
"We must get off the mountain!" Stella shouted, as jagged rocks and avalanches of snow fell more frequently. She tried stumbling to her feet again, but the ledge below her let out a rumble, and she fell flat on her rear-end.
"We can go through Moria," Gimli yelped, clinging to the rocks with his meaty fingers. Gandalf shook his head.
"We must let the Ring bearer decide," he concluded, tearing Frodo's attention away from the avalanche that was upon them. The hobbit peered at each freezing face through the blizzard of snow and wind, licking his chapped lips.
A pregnant pause fell through the Fellowship, save for the constant rumbles of rock and cries of surprise and pain of the members that fell against the snow. Frodo seemed to be calculating by the look on his small face.
Finally, after what seemed like decades, he spoke. "We'll go through the mines."
A great sigh of relief washed over much of the Fellowship, yet Stella did not miss the slightly darkened features of Gandalf's withered face.
They may have not known the danger that could reside in Moria, but the grey wizard did. The thought made Stella shiver, and it wasn't just from the cold.
By the time some warmth had returned to her toes, Stella and the rest of the company were slipping through the damp caverns of the Mines.
In front of her, Merry's hairy foot slid into the lake, splashing murky water on his trousers and her boots. Stella wrinkled her nose in disgust.
The muddy water and crumbling rocks gave the mines a very foreboding aura. Trees snaked up the wall, dead branches reclining limply against the flat stone. It was like something out of the old horror movies Stella had watched as a kid. The full moon shone upon the company eerily, giving little light for them to see clearly. However, for Gandalf, it seemed to be just enough.
The Fellowship stood in amazement as the stones glowed blue, casting strange shadows on the withered trees. Elvish markings and ornate drawings flooded the wall, putting the lightest of smiles on Stella's face. The fluorescent scene was beautiful, despite being placed in the dreary cavern.
"The entrance to Moria," Gandalf spoke at last, running his wrinkled hands over the elvish carvings. "The Doors of Durin—Lord of Moria. Speak friend and enter."
"What does that mean?" Merry inquired next to Stella.
"Oh, it is quite simple," Gandalf replied, not breaking his gaze from the doors. "If you are a friend, speak the password and enter."
Touching the tip of his staff to a marking on the stone, Gandalf spoke a string of words in elvish. The group waited a beat or two, but nothing happened. Stella's small smile disappeared from her face.
Again and again Gandalf attempted, but to no avail. Eventually, much of the Fellowship sat on the old rocks, their hope diminishing after every minute. Stella's legs ached, something she had forgotten since the snowy passageway. But now, as she sat, the muscle fatigue couldn't be more prominent.
She rubbed her still blue fingers on her ivory pants, attempting to warm them. When that did not work, she cupped them around her mouth, breathing out hot air. Her fingers were naturally cool to the touch, but this was ridiculous.
Beside her, Legolas sat on a boulder, placing his bow at his feet. She turned to look at him, her hands still cupped around her mouth. He smiled softly at the sight of her icy fingers smothering half her face with her wide eyes the only thing to be viewed.
"You're fingers are blue," he remarked, casually detaching the hand closest to him from her face and placing it between his warm fingers.
Stella rolled her eyes, as pins and needles stuck into her skin from the sudden temperature difference. She pondered curiously on how his hands were so warm. It was as if he wasn't even on the same mountain as she.
"Yes, thank you for noticing," the elleth said sarcastically.
"You're welcome," Legolas replied, oblivious to her tone of voice. He peeled her other hand from her mouth and clasped it in his larger one. For a while, the pair did not say much, they just let the sounds of scuffling feet and low voices carry through their ears. Legolas's eyes trained on Stella's tiny hands, while the elleth's gaze was on the thoroughly disappointed Gimli and the quiet Frodo.
Throughout this entire process of waiting, Frodo did not speak a word. He sat, staring at Gandalf, who tried to open the doors, but failed repeatedly. Stella furrowed her brow, blinking at the hobbit before glancing away. There was something wrong about the caverns. It was as if something, or someone, was watching the company. And she didn't like it at all.
"This doesn't feel right," Stella murmured, catching the attention of Legolas, whom she almost forgot was still there, holding her hands.
"What?" Legolas asked, muscles tensing in his jaw as he knit his brow together.
"It's just...it feels wrong," Stella attempted to explain, drawing her hands away from his. They immediately felt colder, but Stella ignored it and continued surveying the area. "Like we're being watched."
She stood, slowly rotating around and wrapping her hand around her bow. Her scrutinizing gaze shifted from every corner of the caves, and stopped at the muddy lake. The flat, glassy water rippled in the center.
She narrowed her eyes.
A large crack of stone tore Stella's focus away from the rippling lake. Spinning around, her eyes widened a fraction of an inch at the doors of the entrance of Moria swung open. Merry and Pippin gasped and Stella stood stock-still on the rocky shore.
One by one, each member slowly moved forward into the dark room on the other side of the doors. Stella cautiously stepped forward. However, in front of her, Gimli, leapt into Moria, wielding his axe mightily.
"A mine, they call it!" he shouted, swinging his axe and nearly missing Stella's body by centimeters. She backed away, tripping over a large rock on the floor. "A mine would not contain such hospitable hosts! Malt beer, ripe meat off the bone, and roaring fires! This is the home of my cousin, Balin!"
Legolas caught Stella's arm before she could hit the ground as Gimli continued to roar happily. She regained her footing and the elven prince peered down at what she stumbled over. Stella copied, stomach lurching at the sight of a dwarves skull staring back at her.
"This is no mine, it's a tomb!" Boromir exclaimed, kicking a cobwebbed corpse.
"It isn't possible..." Gimli gasped in disbelief. But when he saw a decaying skeleton of a dwarf by the staircase, he sank to his knees in anguished cries. "No! Noooo!"
Not paying much heed to Gimli's sobs, Legolas kneeled and pulled an out arrow out of the skeletal body at Stella's feet. He wrinkled his nose in disgust. "Goblins."
Behind them, the hobbits cried out in alarm. Stella, Aragorn, and Legolas drew their weapons quickly, but not quick enough. A large, curling tentacle wrapped itself around the ankle of Frodo, pulling him down the rocks and to the murky water below. Pippin, Merry, and Sam rushed forward, tugging on Frodo's arms and clothes. Merry swung his sword at the tentacle, momentarily freeing his friend. However, they did not get much relief, for a whole set of slimy serpent hands latched onto Frodo and swatted the others away like flies.
Stella notched and arrow and fired in one fluid motion, the flying object hitting the serpent in the middle of it's large slick head. The creature roared in pain, thrashing it's tentacles. However, it did not seem like she had wounded the beast, but she actually did quite the opposite. The rest of the Fellowship rushed out of the room of corpses, wielding their swords, axe, and bow.
Aragorn and Boromir sliced at the tentacles, while Legolas fired shots at the head of the creature. However, the serpent did not seem to be withdrawing, instead, it advanced forward, thrashing about and causing the stone wall to begin crumbling around them. It wasn't until a large slab of stone collapsed that the men ceased fighting the beast.
"The Mines! Into the Mines!" Gandalf shouted. Boromir sheathed his sword and ran, snatching up Pippin and Merry on his way. Sam and Gimli followed, dodging the corpses littered on the floor.
Aragorn soon barreled on after them. Stella, however, scurried forward and pulled Frodo to his feet, half-carrying the hobbit away from the lake. Legolas waited until they made it close to the archway before clasping Stella's hand and taking off running. The beastly serpent howled behind them, crashing into the beautiful doors of Moria once again. The stone tumbled down heavily, nearly crushing Stella, Legolas, and Frodo in the process. The three narrowly missed the stairwell without being pancaked. If it wasn't for Legolas's tug on her hand at the last second, Stella would have been trapped under the crumbling rock.
As soon as they were safe from the falling stone, Aragorn rushed over to where the two elves and the hobbit stood wearily, nearly out of breath. He surveyed each one for signs of injury, his eyes wide. After making sure that they were not harmed, the Ranger released them. Stella offered him a weary grin and he ruffled her hair in response.
"We have but one choice now," Gandalf muttered. Stella peeled her eyes from her Ranger friend and settled them on the grey wizard. The look on his face was grave, and Stella's stomach did somersaults. "We must go through the Mines. Be on your guard, for there are much older and fouler things than orcs ahead."
Gandalf's eyes searched each member in the company. They lingered a little longer on Stella, and all at once, her guilt and pain rushed back upon her heart. The distractions of the blizzard on the mountain and the Mines of Moria caused her to temporarily forget about her argument with the grey wizard. She made a silent promise to herself that as soon as the light from outside hit her face, she'd apologize for yelling and ignoring her old friend. Perhaps then she would be able to hear more about her family.
Gandalf knocked his wooden staff against the stone stairwell, like he was testing the durability before they climbed. "Come, it is a four day journey to the other side. Let us hope that our presence goes unnoticed by those who wish to do us harm."
Stella crossed her fingers, desperately wishing that could be true. But deep in her heart, she knew that this journey would be anything but safe travels for the Fellowship, as long as they carried the Ring.
Ahh, the Ring of evil.
Whenever I feel as though life if getting bad, I always think "It could be worse. You could be traveling on a quest you barely know anything about to bring an evil ring to it's evil master's lair while putting yourself and your friends in mortal danger along the way."
...Yeah, it's been a weird day.
Anyway, hope you enjoyed! And don't forget to R&R!
Catch ya soon :)
-Halesie