A/N: Well hello again! C: Man, it's been awhile! I'm so sorry for leaving you guys after such an important part, but (wouldn't you know it) school became a HUGE black hole that sucked up all my time for awhile, among other things.

But I'm still here! :D I promise you, no matter how irregular updates get, I WILL finish this fanfic. Absolutely, positively, no doubt about it.

Also, did anyone catch the Desolation of Smaug fan event that went on Monday? :D I watched it on my laptop via YouTube, and OH. MY. WORD. I screamed and squealed and laughed so much...

Chaos Unleashed: Chapter 17

Kathryn's POV

The weather was continuously gloomy the rest of the week, and the house was quiet to match. It was like the heavens themselves were mourning our losses along with us, almost. Some people might've found that comforting, I guess. But I didn't. Time seemed to crawl by slower than every, with the days blurring into one big mess of tears, hugs, and attempts to lift each others' spirits.

It made it even worse when we found out the other end of the story. The man who'd been driving the other car died on impact. He hadn't been able to see the slick streets hardly at all through the rain, and was driving just fast enough that a particularly slick spot was all it took to send things into a downward spiral. His wife was now a single mom to a ten-year-old girl and her three-year-old brother, without a clue as to how to raise them on her own. We all felt pity for them, of course, but our own grief heavily outweighed that.

Frodo had practically gone silent when we told him Sam was gone. He hardly spoke to anyone except Merry and Pippin, and even that was rare. Legolas went strangely distant from Gimli's death, and he and Aragorn heavily relied on each other for support. Erin, Kaia, and I were all complete messes, though Kaia seemed to keep it together slightly better than us two. We clung to each other like moths to a flame.

Other than my two best friends, Merry and Pippin were my biggest comfort. I think I somehow drew from constantly consoling them, because I couldn't stand to see tears on their innocent little faces. I only ever cried in front of them twice, though. Most of my grieving was done alone, as I preferred. Frodo was the same way, but a bit more extreme. I'd never actually seen him cry. I had heard it once, right after we'd broken the news to him. He'd run up the stairs to lock himself in my room, and when I heard his muffled sobs through the door, I felt totally heartbroken.

I couldn't remember the last time I'd felt this awful. Everything was falling apart, and we couldn't stop it. No one seemed to know where to go from here. How were we even supposed to handle this? Eventually we came to the conclusion that since it would be both expensive and completely pointless to have a funeral and burial, we would just have them cremated. We buried the ashes in the backyard and had a mini-service of our own, but that was it.

A part of me thinks that none of us really wanted to move on, but we knew we had to. Wallowing in our grief forever would get us nowhere. So...we tried. We tried to start eating dinner as a group again. We tried to get back into normal, lighthearted conversation. We tried not to think or talk about it as much. But it took a lot of time. Longer than I would've liked.

I remember one of those days that I was trying. I was sitting out on the steps of the front porch, just after dinner. The sky was once again nearly covered by clouds, but with the occasional pocket of fading sunlight peeking through. The cool chill of the fall air made me wish I'd grabbed a jacket before coming out here, but the shirt I was wearing would just have to do. I stared down at the ground, a lawn that needed mowed rippling in the breeze. It's nearly Halloween, I thought. Only two weeks away. A small frown worked its way onto my face. ...We were all supposed to celebrate together...paint and carve pumpkins...dress up... Not anymore.

In the midst of my depressing thoughts, I heard the door open behind me and the sound of footsteps as someone walked out. I looked up at Boromir as he approached me. "May I?" I nodded and scooted over a bit as he sat down next to me. "...It's quiet."

I nodded again. "Death tends to do that to people."

There was a long pause. "I feel like I should be grieving more, but...I can't."

"What do you mean?"

He sighed. "I mean...the loss still hurts, but...I guess I'm too used to it." He looked over at me. "That's one thing I've always envied about you girls. Your life here is so...peaceful. You've never known the terror of war."

"Well, we kind of have," I corrected him. "It's just a lot farther away."

"That's what I mean. It is such a distant thing to you. You know what war is, but you don't know the sound of your friends...of your own people dying on the battlefield. And it almost makes me resent the duty I had back home."

I glanced over at him with curiosity. "But why don't you?"

He shrugged. "I was defending Minas Tirith. If I were to die any way, I would want it to be for the glory of my city alone."

I thought about that for a second, until another question I'd always wanted to ask popped into my head. "...What is Minas Tirith like? I mean, I've seen it in the movies, but it's got to be much more amazing in person."

A small smile played on his unshaven face as he recalled distant memories. "Amazing is not nearly a good enough way to describe it. It is the most awe-inspiring creation of men; a miracle in it's own right. Its walls...a pure, brilliant white that shines with the light of a thousand stars...veins of silver weaving through it like an ancient tapestry of the kings of old. Everywhere you look, you feel the presence of the High Kings; their wisdom the foundations of the stone itself. And the most beautiful sound...the clear ringing of silver trumpets...calling you home. And all the people in the city rejoice to call that city – such a splendor among men – our home."

I closed my eyes as he spoke, hearing the deep reverence for his homeland in his voice. There was a long moment of silence. "...That sounds beautiful," I whispered. "I wish I could see it for myself."

Boromir nodded. "I worry about it all, Kathryn. About the city, the people...my father and brother." He let out a slow breath. "A part of me hopes that if what you say is true, and things really have changed...at least they might have escaped the brunt of it."

"What do you mean 'escaped?' You don't think they'd stay there to die like that if something bad happened, do you?"

He chuckled lowly. "Quite the opposite, actually. I know they would. They would give their lives for Minas Tirith, fighting until their last breath. Or...Faramir would, at least."

"Oh." I'd always liked Faramir. He seemed like a pretty nice guy. "Well I hope it doesn't come to that, then."

"As do I," he replied. "But...a part of me also wants to remain here longer. I've enjoyed living with you for the past few months." He smiled at me. "More than you'll ever know." Oh...no, don't pull that card on me...Oh God, now I feel guilty. I tried to return it, but my face betrayed me, and he noticed. "Kathryn? Is something wrong?"

I bit my lip, not immediately meeting his gaze. "I...I'm not sure if I can tell you."

He frowned. "Why not? Is it important?"

"Well yeah, but..." I feel like he should know...even though we sorta agreed to keep it a secret. "I mean...it involves you, so..." As long as it's just Boromir who knows...that's fine, right? "Screw it, I'll tell you," I said. "Kaia, Erin and I were thinking that it's time for you to leave."

He looked amused. "Well, of course we do! We've been trying to return to Middle-Earth for ages!"

"But...not to Middle-Earth."

"...What?"

"I mean, you'd still be on Earth, you just...wouldn't be with us."

"But...where? How? Why?"

Now I felt even worse. He looked hurt. "There's a friend of ours that lives kinda nearby, near a place called Baltimore. His name's Jesse; he's known us for a long time, and he knows Lord of the Rings really well, too. We called him the other day to talk to him about it, and...he offered to let you guys stay with him for awhile until we can, uh...get things sorted out here."

Now he looked even more confused. "I don't understand. The whole Fellowship? Why do we have to leave?"

I hesitated again. "...Erin's been concerned for your safety. Remember a little while ago when that guy she works with came to the house and accidentally discovered you guys were here?" He nodded slowly. "Well...apparently he's decided it's okay to try and take matters into his own hands. Erin tried to explain it to him again the other day, and he threatened to call the police or something. He thinks she's gone insane somehow."

Boromir frowned. "That's ridiculous! He saw us with his own eyes! How can he not believe we exist?"

"I don't know," I said, "but either way...he's a threat to you now. If Jared calls the cops or starts telling other people about this, which he may very well do, that'll cause us to get into some pretty deep shit. So we've gotta get you guys out of here."

"And you...you're coming with us?"

I shook my head, standing up. "We can't."

"Why not?" He also stood.

"We've got to stay here and keep working on a way to get you guys home. The sooner the better."

He was quiet for a bit, letting everything sink in. "...When do we leave?"

Here's the kicker. "Probably Saturday."

"What? Kathryn, that's six days from now! When were you planning on telling us this?"

I winced a little. "I don't know! We were gonna put it off so you didn't freak out about it as much! So please don't freak out! I shouldn't have even told you this now!"

"How long have you three been planning this?"
"Well, we talked to Jesse several days ago..." His gaze drifted off to the side, and he stared at nothing for several long seconds. "I'm sorry," I said quietly. "We...we can't do this any other way."

Another long pause. "...All right, then. If that's what you – wait. But if you three remain here, aren't you still in danger from Jared?"

I shrugged. "Maybe. If you could even call it danger. But it's a chance we have to take."

"Against the authorities? And you three hardly have any money left to support yourselves! What if they press charges? Kathryn, that's ridiculous!"

"We don't even know for sure that he's gonna pull anything. And hey, we made it this far without cash, right? We'll be fine."

He stared me down for a bit longer, then finally exhaled in defeat. "If you're sure about that."

I smiled a bit. "I am." Not.

A nod. "I'm going to go see what laundry needs done."

"Kay. See ya."

oOo

Boromir's POV

My mind was already racing as I stepped past Kathryn and into the house. This can't happen. She can't seriously expect us to just leave them here all alone! We cannot abandon them now, after all they've done for us. I'd already decided that I wasn't going to go along with this, of course, but I doubted they would let me stay if I told them my plans outright. No, this would need to be done with a large amount of stealth. I ran up the stairs, possibilities swirling around in my head. Yes...I'll need to do this with stealth, a lot of careful planning, and...a partner. And I've already got one in mind. I continued on down the corridor, reaching the room I knew he would be in. Flinging the door open, I quickly stepped inside, not saying a word until it had been shut behind me. "I need your help."

Legolas raised an eyebrow as he looked up from where he sat on his bed, reading. "With what?"

"The girls are sending us away."

He frowned. "What?"

"They say it has become too dangerous for us to remain here with them," I said. "Jared has threatened to report them to the police, and if they come and find us here, we'll be done for."

He put the book down and stood up. "Where did you hear this?"

"Kathryn confided in me. We weren't supposed to find out until the day they sent us off."

"Which is when?"

"Saturday." He didn't respond for a moment, processing all I'd just told him. I could see uncertainty in his eyes. "Legolas..." He looked back at me. "They have given us everything. We cannot desert them." I know you don't want to. Still, he hesitated. "I know how close you've become to Erin, and I feel devoted to Kathryn in the same way. I can't do this by myself."

A few more seconds passed, suspense hanging thick in the air. Finally, the elf sighed and looked at me with a serious expression. "Well, we cannot just sit here and wait then, can we?"

oOo

Kaia's POV

I tapped absentmindedly at the keys on my keyboard, bored out of my mind. Usually whenever I needed something to do, I could just lock myself away in my music room for a couple hours and entertain myself, but today I just wasn't feeling it. I glanced out the window. It's getting dark. I should probably get out of my work clothes and eat something. I pushed my chair back, about to leave, when I heard someone come in behind me. Turning, I smiled at the man. "Hey Aragorn."

"Kaia," he acknowledged me. "Do you know if there is any mac and cheese left from supper the other night?"

"Mmm...I don't think so. Sorry man. I can make some more, though. I'm starting to get hungry, too."

"Do we have any boxes left?"

"Dude, we'll always have Kraft in this house. Come on."

He laughed, then glanced at the keyboard behind me. "Have you written anything?"

"No," I said a bit dejectedly. "I haven't written anything in awhile, actually. Not since the whole thing with the band." Can I even say 'the band' anymore?I don't know. My ex-band?

He wandered over next to me. "May I?"

"Yeah, go for it!" I stood up, letting him take my spot, and watched over his shoulder as he started pinging out a simple melody. I'd taught him the basics of piano playing a little while ago when he'd been curious, and sometimes I'd catch him in here by himself messing around. It was cool. I'd never expected him to have a talent for it. After a minute, he started humming along with the tune he was playing, and I tilted my head out of curiosity. "What song is that?"

"It is called Aníron in the tongues of the elves," he said.

"Do you know the whole thing?"

"Yes."

"Sing it."

He looked unsure for a moment, but went ahead anyway. He focused on the keys in front of him, playing the soft melody as he sang the lyrics in his deep baritone voice. "O môr henion i dhû...elí siriar...êl sila...Ai! Aníron...Undómiel...Tiro! Êl eria...e môr...I 'lîr en êl luitha 'ûren...Ai! Aníron..."

I eyed him with a knowing smile as he finished. "That was beautiful. Did I catch something about an Evenstar in there?"

A look of intense longing came over him, and he nodded. "It is a song for her, and her alone." He sighed deeply. "...I miss her, Kaia. I fear that she has heard news of our disappearance."

I pitied him. It was one thing to have an immortal love that was nearly forbidden to love you back, but to be in a totally different universe... "I know, it's hard. But we will get you back sometime soon. I promise. Erin actually thinks that she came up with a valid way to send you guys home, but it'll take some time to tweak things and get the little details worked out."

"Time is something that no one seems to have anymore," he remarked.

"Don't I know it," I muttered. Heck, I only have...what, five more days to live with you? I will admit, I felt a bit guilty not telling them about our plans to have them live in another area. But I also knew in my head that if I told them, they'd all start freaking out and making arguments to stay behind and stuff, and we couldn't have that. I knew it was gonna be a rough goodbye, though. I'd developed close relationships with pretty much all of them...and I knew Erin and Kathryn had, too. There would definitely be tears. Lots and lots of tears, for those of us who had any left. But I just...I wanted them to stay so badly. It had felt surreal at first, having them here, but now I felt like it would feel more unnatural for them to not be in our house twenty-four seven.

Suddenly, I blinked. I hadn't realized how long it had been silent as I thought to myself until Aragorn coughed a bit and got up. "Are you going to make mac and cheese, then?"

"Oh, yeah." I followed him as we headed out the door, hitting the lights on my way.