Disclaimer: I don't own LOTR or anything else you recognise.

A/N: Hi again. Thanks to Louisana Stephenic, theviolinxx, Kiya and Guest who reviewed :) :)

Review replies: For any who reviewed as a guest

L stephenic: :) YAY :) :) :)
Guest: Yeah, the plot is staying the same mainly, although with a few tweaks :) there's just little things that need to be taken out and put in :)

Chapter 2

Sauron's Diary

Everything is perfect. My new tower is FINALLY built (It only took like… a few thousand years), my orc armies are growing in Mordor and no one has seemed to have noticed them yet. That might be because I have limited them to only a few new ones a year but… they're growing.

And the best thing is… the peoples of Middle-earth are divided! The rift between elves and dwarves has deepened since the Smaug incident, men don't trust elves, the dwarves are staying pretty estranged from men up in the Blue Mountains... There is resentment between each race, which is just how I like it. They are less likely to help each other that way.

Oh, and did I mention that I can now take a form?! *evil smiles* My favourite is the gigantic, flaming eyeball. My new tactic will be to sit on top of my tower watching the world. I can see everything! It's so fun! Especially the wraith world bit. I can see everything in there… I can even look through walls and mountains and trees!

I had to scrap my 'Annatar The Fair' form because most elves are going to recognise it and I don't want them to know I'm back… I am working a new one but… it requires a lot of concentration and I have more important things to do. At the moment if I have to walk around I turn into a black, human shaped, shadow thing.

My spies brought me some GREAT news today. Thror, ex-King Under The Mountain has been tortured and killed by Azog. And now his son Thrain is going to Moria with an army to avenge him. They will be crushed like bugs under a shoe, like ants under a rock, like humans under a falling tree… The only thing that would have made me happier if I could have killed them all myself. But it's too far to go and I would rather stay here with my delightful orcs and Khamul the Nazgul. Watching the elves is fun. They are so innocent, so naive, so… ignorant of my presence

Khamul and I spend hours using the palantir I found in a pretty obsidian chest to spy on Saruman at Orthanc (He's a creepy bastard) and the other eight nazgul in Minas Morgul. We gave that little castle of men a makeover. The men were eaten and we changed the decoration a little… I made it green and spiky with an evil gargoyle force field around it to tell me who goes in and out. That was very fun. The eating the men part that is… their little faces were priceless!

Hmmm thinking about that, I need to send a Nazgul to go and blackmail those little 'Horselords' into giving me some more horses. Unfortunately the Nazgul are a bit conspicuous riding around on fell beasts. At least they look vaguely normal on horseback. They do have an obsession with black though… I told them that different colours of horses and robes would look less suspicious. I was thinking of a neutral rainbow theme… A couple could have black, some grey or brown, and maybe some faded blues or reds… but they had what little heart they have left set on black. Its depressing… I mean black just SCREAMS evil to the world. If you have some colour it looks so much less suspicious. But… I have to keep my Nazgul happy, they are my greatest servants… allies… servallies? Servants, thats what they are. They are my greatest servants. I need them. Unfortunately. They can be useful. Sometimes...

Many years later

"Khamul! Here now!" I called out to the errant Nazgul, who slithered out from behind a wall.

"Yes master…" He sounded almost bored.

"Guess what!" My excitement was getting the better of me and I was hopping up and down on the spot. I was about to explode with happiness and Khamul barely got an irritated 'what?' in, before I shouted, "Thrain's coming. Thrain's coming to Mirkwood. He has a ring of power, and a map of a secret door into the lonely mountain. And a KEY!" Khamul stared at me, with wide, slightly worried eyes.

"Master… isn't that a bad thing?" Logic would say it's a bad thing. A key into a mountain where my big bad dragon lay. A big bad dragon who I wasn't ready to let die yet.

"NO, it's AWESOME! I can capture him, reclaim they key and prevent any entry into the mountain FOREVER!" My excitement really did get the better og me then, launching me a few hundred feet into the air plummeting back down into Dol Guldur, the ground shaking a lot as I landed, dust and loose stones falling from the building around me.

This was a fairly common occurrence. Explosions of excitement that is. Not dwarves with awesome stuff turning up on my doorstep. That was rare… non-existent even. This is the first time!

However Khamul just looked even more worried than normal. "That is a wonderful idea Master." He paused, gathering his words. "I need to ask you a question. We… as in the other Nazgul and some of the orc captains feel that you have been… a little… volatile recently?! Ever since… that hobbit-lady who said her grandson had the Ring…" The black cloaked figure began to shake a little as I stared at him with mini eye-of-sauron's punctuating my black face.

"What do you mean." My voice was emotionless. I suppressed my feeling of excited self-pride. It has taken me so long to master that voice.

"Umm well… you sort of have… mood swings. You get extremely excited very easily… over very little things and… umm… randomly chuckle evilly. And you kill orcs for no apparent reason."

Khamul was now trying to sink into the ground as I began to grow claws and teeth.

"In fact just forget I said anything, it's nothing, really only a slight concern, not really noticeable at all." With that he fled. I loved watching people run away from me.

I mulled his words over in my mind. I'm not mad. I get excited over perfectly normal things to get excited over. It is normal to get excited over the prospect of torturing dwarves, isn't it? And the success of my plans. You can't say I'm not allowed to get excited over the success of my world domination plans.

Khamul's words occupied my mind for many days as Thrain and his companions wandered alone in Mirkwood, moving closer and closer to my domain.

My spies stalk them in the darkness and wait for the perfect timing. They watch in the shadows as the dwarves set up camp and as the last dwarf on watch succumbs to sleep's sweet whispers, the sneakers and creepers descend.

And when the first glimmers of light slip under the canopy of Mirkwood, Thrain son of Thror, was gone.

Dol Goldur

"Master. Your spies have returned… and they have company." Khamul tentatively poked his cloaked head around the corner to where I was pacing, in my Annatar form (Thrain probably wouldn't recognise that one) and he was fully expecting to have to retreat to prevent his own destruction.

I did not disappoint as I zoomed past him cackling maniacally. My prey had arrived! This day was totally awesome already!

My creepers, who were little more than deformed, orc-shaped, shadows, (i think they are really weak, twisted maiar left over from the whole Morgoth world domination incident) dragged the bound and gagged dwarf up to me. I could barely contain my excitement as I smiled, trying to look as welcoming as is possible when that smile is one of daggers, "Welcome to Dol Goldur, Thrain son of Thror. What brings you to my domain."

One of the creepers took off Thrain's gag and he promptly spat at my feet. "I did not choose to come here." Well that was rude. If I had been in dread-wolf form my hackles would have risen. Ooooh I haven't tried dread-wolf form yet! Focus Sauron, focus.

"I was just trying to be civilised but you have obviously left your courtesy in that mountain. So we are now going to do it your way." I may have a bit of a short fuse… My bubbliness vanished, and I put on my 'scary' form as the orcs had dubbed it. That means darkness, sharpened claws, teeth and most importantly, my mini-eye-of-saurons.

Thrain's own eyes widened and he knew he was doomed. "I'm sorry. I did not mean to offend. Your... friends have made me slightly... irritable."

I just laughed. My evil, twisted laugh. There was no room for backtracking now.

"That's slightly better... but too late. Take him to the dungeons." I barked the order and one of my orc captains grabbed the captive.

"Find a really cold, dark, stinky one." I added as an afterthought.

"Does he know he sounds slightly like a child?" The dwarf muttered to his captor and received a backhanded slap round the face as I picked up a vase and through it at the wall just above his head before stalking off to find my torture instruments. That dwarf had put me in a very bad mood.

Hours later

I was finally ready. With Khamul at my shoulder I swept down to the dungeon where Thrain was chained. My eyes glowed in the darkness and I hissed, "What is your business in Mirkwood." I had already got theories about this but… I'd like to know for certain, and for every meaningless question I had it meant I got to spencd more time torturing Thrain.

He just hung there, chained to the wall, and I could see the barriers up in his eyes. I hissed and I spat and I curled around him, whispering dire whispers in his ears, trying to break them down. And still he hung there, silent. Even when I turned into a giant eye of Sauron he remained like a stone and I eventually stormed away and left him alone. I do have to admire his persistence and courage though… In a twisted, infuriating way.

As I strode back to my throne room I spied one of my most disgusting orc captains lurking in a corner and decided to make use of him. "Gashk. Whip the skin off his bones," There was no need to specify who. The uruk sensed the anger running through my veins and disappeared in a flash, grinning as he did so. He relished the opportunity to torture people for no apparent reason.

I repeated the interrogation day after day, month after month, year after year, and still he stayed silent. I had him searched for the rumoured key and map. I had him flayed, the skin on his every limb was methodically peeled off and burnt as roars and screams echoed around my castle. And my mood darkened. Thunderstorms and eternal night warred above the ruins and drew unwelcomed attention.

When I visited Thrain for the final time, I looked at those eyes and realised that there were no shields and barriers now. There was just emptiness. I would get nothing from him now. There was nothing left of Thrain. So I left him to rot.

Months later

"Intruder!" the call rang out all around Dol Goldur and my favourite black shadow came to see me.

"Master… there's an…" Khamul sounded tired, like he already knew the answer.

"I heard, Khamul. Go and sort it. Flay them. Put them in a dungeon. Let them go for all I care. If you have that much trouble making decisions find the Palantir and ask Witch King."

My dark mood, which had been getting worse since my last visit to the dungeons, showed no sign of lifting as the visions of my plans crumbling into nothingness replayed over and over in my head.

I had hoped that Thrain had left the key and the map with his companions, but we caught them and ate them and no key or map turned up. I wondered if it had been an unfounded rumour… but then why was Thrain travelling to the Lonely Mountain with so few fellows. He would need several armies to defeat Smaug head on. He must have found another way in. I tormented myself constantly with these thoughts.

Khamul took one look at me, curled up in my throne and hurried away, leaving me to my musings.

Khamul POV

I hurried away from my Master, thoughts tumbling around in my head. I have a duty to him, he is the reason I am 'alive' after all. But he is not right in his head. I am used to mood swings, but this is something else… What were we to do. The rest of the world was sure to get suspicious about the eternal thunderstorm and the armies weren't yet strong enough to resist them if anything went wrong...

My train of thought was interrupted as a fold of a grey cloak I did not recognise swished around a stone in front of me. I sniffed and the stench of the cloak was unfamiliar. The intruder! I rushed after him. If he is caught, Master might become more… normal. Whatever normal is. As I twisted and turned through the maze of half collapsed corridors that was my home, that grey cloak stayed just out of my reach, enticing me. I suddenly realised that we were heading down to the dungeons. More specifically, Thrain's dungeon. I was seeing less and less of the grey cloak now and I quickened my speed.

I reached the dungeon just in time to see the emaciated and dying dwarf handed the grey cloaked figure two objects. A map and a key. My eyes widened and I drew my sword. Now that would make master happy. It glowed pale in the darkness and my voice hissed through the darkness. "Stop. Give me the map and the key and you can go free."

The cloaked figure turned, his face concealed under a large, wide-brimmed hat. He glanced at me for a second and slammed his staff into the ground. As I rushed towards him, there was a large flash of blue-white light and a force which shook the entire fortress blew me backwards. When I regained my feet, he was gone and the dwarf was dead.

Shit… Master would not be happy. I briefly considered whether running away would be a good idea... probably not... he'd just hunt me down. I sighed... timeto face Master's wrath.

Sauron POV

"You LET him ESCAPE! You WORTHLESS pile of MAGGOTS" Khamul cringed in a corner, attempting to hide from my terrible wrath. "HE had the MAP AND THE KEY! If those BLASTED DWARVES get the mountain again, I will PERSONALLY FEED YOU TO SMAUG!"

Khamul didn't bother to answer back for once and just cringed and took the abuse. That was irritating… it was always more fun when he answered back. I quiteenjoyed his snarky comments. Not that I'd ever tell him that.

"You aren't going to say anything are you" I cocked my head to one side and looked at him for a moment before turning away.

I could feel my anger starting to dissipate as I walked back to my throne. "Gashk, bring me your least favourite orc… I want to rip someone's head off before I become happy again." Gashk was all too happy to comply.

"He's back." A smug, satisfied voice rose up from behind me. Oh the confidence… Only one person was allowed to make comments like that and it certainly wasn't the orc who said it.

"Gashk, there's no need for that orc anymore. I found a volunteer." A smile began to form as I turned to my 'volunteer' who began to quake in his boots.

Several minutes later Gashk returned with an evil smile and a snivelling orc in his clutches. His smile fell when he saw the destroyed body parts at my feet, and he dropped the orc. The little orc's eyes were like saucers as he stared at the mangled body before squeaking "Nice Master." Then he fled.

As I studied Gashk's devastated expression, a laugh began to bubble in my throat. I was back.

A/N Yay :) :) at this rate i'm going to have half the amount of chapters I did last time XD oh well :P As always reviews are treasured :)