Never Gonna Give You Up Chapter 5
"Get back! Stay close to Gandalf!" Aragorn ordered the Hobbits.
Hina was more than a little annoyed that he'd put an arm in front of her direction too. She didn't need protecting. She needed blood. The blood of those fell creatures!
While she was stewing both Aragorn and Boromir grabbed axes from around the room and bar the doors. Hina knew it wouldn't hold long. The number of disgusting creatures she can smell may as well be an entire army. She knows even Minato would have a hard time killing that many creatures, and she'd seen him take out a thousand men in under 10 minutes. The slam on the barricade is ominous and makes her drop down eagerly.
"They have a cave troll!" Boromir shouted.
A cave troll? She didn't know what that was, but it sounded strong and the darkness around her was making her giddy with excitement. Yes, it was time to kill.
"Let them come! There is one Dwarf yet in Moria who still draws breath!" Gimli shouts angrily as he holds up an axe.
"Aye Gimli, we will make them wish for death!" Hina shouted alongside him. "There is nothing sweeter than the taste of vengeance!"
The door creaked against the monster's axes, and Hina watched with growing excitement as both Aragorn and Legolas shot arrows in through the holes. But it didn't last long and soon the door cracked open and Hina darted forward in a gust of wind, her blood singing in joy. She took out three Goblins in the span of a second, her chakra giddy with misuse. A wide grin took her face as she jumped back into the fight after a moment's pause. She could barely feel her curse seal activate, nor her world turn to blood through the euphoria of it all.
Aragorn knew he should be more focused on the fight itself, or more importantly on protecting Frodo, but he saw almost instantly the most devastating speed he'd ever seen before from Hina. Normally that wouldn't worry him. The girl was fast. That had already been established, but it wasn't the speed or the brutality in which she killed the Goblins that worried him—no, it was the mad glee in her eyes and the strange teardrop like markings that had crawled up her face. The curse which she spoke of. He stabbed another goblin before running over to the girl in the middle of a rather brutal killing and he slapped her. She jerked back in confusion and snarled at him, lost in her madness, but he shook her shoulders in worry.
"Come back to us Hina!"
She shook her head as the markings receded and she snarled once more, holding her head in pain and nodding. Their moment was cut short when the ground trembled and the walls came blasting in as the Cave-Troll entered the fray.
Hina had faced off against large summons before, but she didn't figure anything would be as fast as one in this world. She felt a growing respect for these men without chakra who were fighting it. She didn't hesitate to join Legolas as she threw some shuriken at its head. The creature just screeched in anger, undeterred as it hit away at Goblin and Fellowship members alike. Hina watched in relief as Sam, the ever-brave Hobbit he was, didn't freeze and instead ducked and rolled under the Trolls legs. She didn't have time to be impressed with a non-combatant, because soon the Troll was swinging it's chains like a particularly deadly whip. It was now or never.
Total Concentration Breathing: Beast Form Dance of the Subtle Breeze!
Hina got down on all fours as she used her chakra slide to propel herself along with her wind release. This was the move she had taken half a decade to master, and spent nearly all of her time on, the prized move of her true sensei. She would not fail it again!
She began bouncing off the walls in such increasing speed that she would be blind to the naked eye. With each movement she ended lives and compounded her speed as was the nature of this jutsu. Soon, she had taken out all the Goblins and was jumping off walls, ricocheting past the Troll in the middle. The creature cried out in pain as it was bombarded left and right almost like it was being attacked by a hundred men at once. Hina made sure to keep clawing at its skin and soon it screamed wildly, throwing its arms in the air suddenly and without predictability. Hina cursed as it's arm hit her side, taking a chunk of her armour along with severing its entire arm off at the sheer impact her speed had given her. She crashed into a wall and slid down ungracefully as the Troll let out a cry of pain before dying.
"Hina!" Aragorn cried out as he rushed towards the girl.
The Fellowship had stood still in awe of the girl's skill. To watch as all their enemies fell to the ground dead at once before they could even blink, and to see but a blur as a child took on a Troll alone was something of fantasy. But it came crashing with Hina's failure to see the claw in her way, and Aragorn went rushing to the girl's side to drag her away from the Troll's claws. Legolas and Boromir shot forward once again to fight the Troll, who now bruised and bloodied fell to their combined efforts.
"Come on," Aragorn said quickly as he noted the large gash running up her stomach that had entirely decimated a part of armour. He ignored how she hissed, or how her slitted eyes were narrowed in an almost animalistic way. The darkness he could feel pulsing from her neck made him pause but he knew she wouldn't hurt him. She had grabbed onto his neck and clung to his back, so he supposed she was still awake, and they didn't have the time to stop.
"Is she ok?" Legolas asked.
"I would not have believed it if I had not seen it with my own eyes," Boromir said in awe as he looked at the carnage she had caused.
"Hmmm yes I'm just that awesome," Hina mumbled in pain.
"Can you heal yourself?" Aragorn asked worriedly.
"Not at this moment… my cursed seal is preventing it," Hina admitted reluctantly. "All my concentration is on keeping it at bay… I don't have the energy to heal."
"Well we do not have the time to stay and let Legolas ease your pains," Boromir said as he pointed at the growing shadow of goblins from the corridor.
"To the bridge of Khazad-dum!" Gandalf shouts as he lights the path ahead and ushers the group onwards.
Hina was used to the pain. In fact it's quite a welcome thing when she's trying to quell the cursed seal. She had mastered it already, having known how to adjust its trigrams to suit her own chakra system and repress Orochimaru's control over it. If she wanted, she could spend a few days breaking the seal apart forever, but she'd kept it to show Orochimaru her loyalties. Now she wished she hadn't, because it was eating away at her chakra at such a rapid pace and she almost felt like killing Aragorn and running off to fight everything in sight.
What she saw next would probably haunt her nightmares for a while. Hina had seen armies in her time at the Elemental Nations, but nothing at the sheer scale of what she was witnessing now. She hadn't heard such inhumane sounds in her battles before either. Goblins practically spewed from every crevasse of the large structures, blanketing it like some deformed nest of flooding baby spiders would, crawling along the walls on all fours. They seemed to come from all sides, and Hina wasn't sure even she could help save everyone against such odds but she could try.
She ripped her kimono sleeve and tightened it around her wound, stopping the bleeding for now. They were surrounded on all sides, and only Gandalf's light seemed to do anything to ward off the Goblins from ripping them apart, but even that wasn't something they could count on forever. Hina unsealed her Fūma Shuriken quickly, stepping out from the circular formation in the group and spinning around the giant Shuriken via the chakra cord she held firm in her hands.
"Hina, you're wounded!" Aragorn shouted in worry.
There wasn't enough time in the world to be worried about that. She went through a one handed seal before summoning wind chakra to her Fūma Shuriken and jumping into the fray again. This time she went in with a roar as she took on the hordes of Goblins left and right, spinning her weapon like a bringer of death as limbs and body parts flew around in a spray of blackish red. Hina turned to the Fellowship in irritation.
"Come on! I can't hold them back forever!"
They all shook themselves from their awe as they followed behind her, Gandalf working to keep the Goblins up the back away with his magic while the warriors all made sure to kill any stragglers and protect the Hobbits. They made good distance with Hina killing the hordes before them, but it wasn't enough. She felt exhausted. It was so bad that a Goblin had managed to get into attacking range and slice her arm. She knew if this continued, that they would be overwhelmed.
Then there was a deafening roar
Hina's skin prickled with heat as she groaned in pain. The sheer darkness surrounding her was becoming hard to fight and now her cursed seal had almost taken over again. The Goblins themselves backed away from the almost blindingly dark presence incoming.
She turned to look as a bright orange glow filled the halls and the Goblins all cried in distress as they ran away. Gimli laughed for a second, but Hina couldn't find any amusement for once, just a growing dread as she remembered where this would lead—to Gandalf's death. She had become too fond of the old man to let him go, even if she was half certain it wasn't a permanent death.
"What is this new devilry?" Boromir asked.
"A Balrog… a demon of the ancient world! This foe is beyond any of you! Run! Quickly!" Gandalf urged.
Hina ran alongside Aragorn at the front of the group as they made haste. She could feel it's dark power corrupting her mind, and with the sheer dark energy surrounding her, she almost wished for the drugged bliss of Rivendell.
"Keep at it Hina," Legolas urged her.
"T-trying," she mumbled back.
She nearly lost all control when Legolas nearly tripped over Boromir who was standing precariously over a ravine himself. Somehow the Elf managed to grab both her and the man and drop them back to safety.
"Lead them on, Aragorn. The bridge is near," Gandalf ordered the uncertain man. "Do as I say! Swords are of no more use here."
Aragorn nodded and led them down the stairway path. Half his thoughts were on Frodo, the other half on Hina as he led them away from a literal Demon. The worry only grew when he noticed a break in the stairs. Legolas tried to grab her so he could no doubt jump with her, but she stopped him. They didn't have the time to waste here. She hastily stepped out in front of the group and went through her hand seals as quickly as she could, biting in pain at the corrupting energy on her neck. She slammed her hands into the stone extending her chakra out. A mud wall rumbled out, covering the gap before she fell to her knees in chakra exhaustion.
"Hina!"
It was Legolas that caught her, pulling her up into his arms to steady her. While they were worried about her well-being, they could not stay. Normally being jerked around like a sack of potatoes would have pissed her off beyond words, but Hina was rightfully grateful for being so small right now. She didn't think she could have run as Legolas was doing right now. Even through the hot fires of this place did he not take a moment to stop. Eventually they did get to the bridge, and she got a darn good view of the Balrog. It almost looks like something from the Norse legends of Ragnarok, and the sheer evil presence it gives off makes her hiss in agony as her seal continues to corrupt her.
"You shall not pass!" Gandalf shouted as he hit his staff against the stone ground.
"Gandalf!" Frodo shouted in distress as he watched the Wizard face off against the beast on his own.
"I am a servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor. The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udun!" Gandalf shouted in defiance.
Hina watched as the Balrog put one foot on the bridge, drawing up to an inhumane height, demonic wings spread from wall to wall. In comparison Gandalf looked like a little baby.
"Go back to the shadow!"
Hina nearly loses her breath when the flaming sword comes crashing down on her teammate. The relief is palatable as Gandalf's light beats it back, and molten rocks hiss from the Balrog's broken blade.
"You shall not pass!"
It's all they can do to watch against such an indomitable force. The Balrog once again steps onto the bridge and Gandalf shouts a strenuous cry of exertion as his light pushes against the dark. The bridge breaks under the monster's weight and for a second everything is right, until a whip of fire catches the Wizard's legs and pulls him down. Hina feels even Legolas shoot forward as Frodo cries out. Aragorn caught the Hobbit before he could do anything stupid, but even he feels the urge to rush to the Wizard's aid.
"Fly, you fools!" Gandalf shouts before his last bit of strength is lost and he falls down.
Hina let out a breath but it's all she can manage as Legolas rushes them out of the death trap they had walked into. She barely even notices the Goblins shooting arrows their way as they escape. Her addled mind cried out only in relief as they escaped from that horridly dark place and back into the neutrality of the wild.
Legolas felt the energy drain from him with his grief, and as the Hobbits fell to their knees to cry, he struggled to keep standing. He almost dropped Hina in his grief but manages to hold on and stare ahead, still mildly stung with disbelief.
"Boromir, get them up!" Aragorn ordered.
"Give them a moment for pity's sake!" the Steward's son hissed, holding back his tears.
"By nightfall, these hills will be swarming with Orcs! We must reach the woods of Lothlorien. Come, Boromir, Legolas, Gimli, get them up. On your feet, Sam," Aragorn urged as he picked up the crying Hobbit.
While Aragorn too was in pain after what had transpired, he knew when to quell the grief and when to move. There were times in someone's life when they had to put emotion on hold and do what needed to be done. He would give into his grief now too if the threat of their lives weren't hanging in the balance… if they didn't have a wounded little girl in need of healing.
"Frodo," he called.
His panic was only mildly abated when he spotted the ring-bearer, but the look of devastation on the Hobbit's face ripped whatever relief he had witnessed, for in Frodo's eyes reflected his own sorrow. Aragorn shook his head as he took Hina from Legolas's trembling arms. They needed to leave now. And they did march forwards, slower than what he would have wanted at first, but it was better than no progress. His mind was half on the sun and half on the child in his arms, turning deathly pale in complexion as more and more blood dripped from her deep wound.
"We will need to bandage it," Boromir said.
"Aye, or her blood alone will lead a trail to us," Gimli agreed. "And the Hobbits are tired. Give them some rest."
Aragorn conceded to the logic and lay the child down by the rocks. She mumbled the word 'Orochimaru' multiple times in her fevered sleep, but beyond that it was the pulsing of darkness on her neck that seemed to extend to the rest of her body that worried him. He unbuckled her armour and then pulled out the large rope-like waistband she wore before opening up her foreign drapes. They didn't have the time to worry about modesty right now, so he ignored the fact that he was once again stripping her. He had a feeling she wouldn't care either way.
"Do we have clean cloth?" Aragorn asked.
"For cooking, yes," Merry said, pulling out a tea towel.
"That will do."
He didn't have any needles or thread to stitch up the wound. He didn't know of any healing plants in this area either as it was rocky and barren of most flora. He was eager to bandage her up when the girl awoke and caught his arm.
"F-fire… cauterize the wound," she mumbled.
"I don't… you want me to burn the wound?" Aragorn asked worriedly.
Hina nodded and he swallowed his spit. That kind of method often put people into shock and sometimes their body would give out and they would seize and die. Aragorn had seen it. He wouldn't think a little girl could deal with what most grown men couldn't, if he hadn't seen her bite back the pain of losing an arm. But should he burn the wound and stop the bleeding, it could still fester with rot. But he knew she wouldn't last much longer with more blood loss. He had been hoping she could heal herself like she had regrown a limb.
"Can you not regrow the area?" he asked.
"N-no… no chakra," she muttered dazedly.
She whimpered once again, and he noticed the markings on her skin deepen. Legolas quickly knelt down besides the girl at the sight and took her hand in his, holding it to his chest. The stress lines on her face mildly relaxed and she nodded his way gratefully.
"I will start a quick fire. We will have to do this quickly." Aragorn said worriedly as he looked at the sun's position in the sky slowly waning down.
To her credit she did not scream when Aragorn cauterized her wound, nor did she utter a word of complaint. She simply bit her lip and took the all too familiar pain of burning and tried desperately to control her breathing afterwards. She would have liked to say she could stand as well, but it seemed she had to be carried like a child. This world had a penchant for putting her in this unfortunate position. It had been a long time since she'd been treated like a child. She knew she was never truly wholly a child. She had childish instincts yes—her body did affect her yearnings—but she had the experience of someone who was in their forties now, and so she still didn't like the idea of being treated like a child at times. It was as useful as it was frustrating to be constantly treated like a green horn.
Not that she could walk if she wanted to anyway. It was only after four days of feverish travel that she woke up in the morning shakily standing, using the tree to anchor her balance.
"You should rest Hina," she heard Boromir say, holding her shoulder and gently pushing her back into a seating position.
"I've been carried enough," she groaned.
"You're still burning hot, and your body is weak. If you rush now, you will only harm yourself further. Plus you're so slight that it matters very little that we have to carry you," he joked mildly.
"Ha ha… I'm short… haven't heard that one before," Hina said, rolling her eyes, thinking back to how Gaku would always make fun of her height even though she was six at the time and tall for her age. She couldn't wait until she was eighteen and towered over everyone. What a dream.
Before she could make another quip, the seal on her neck burned and Hina gasped, holding onto it in pain. Her sound of agony made most of the men turn to her in worry. She cursed her sounds of pain, wondering why her body was betraying her now. She had been struggling to keep its corruption away, feeling as if it was hot on her neck like it had been the first time it was placed there. She hated it.
"Are you going to be ok?" Merry asked in worry.
"Aye, I'll be fine," Hina murmured tiredly. "We should keep moving... I can handle it."
"Tell me is there a way to ease your curse?" Aragorn asked.
"I've learnt to master it but the dark energies here... they irritated it and now it's hard to control," Hina explained uncomfortably.
"How did you master it? Maybe it could help us ease its pain."
"I do not need your help for that!" Hina hissed in anger as it pulsed back to life. "This is my punishment and my curse to bear. To take the pain away would defeat its purpose."
"You allowed this curse on yourself then?" Legolas asked with a frown.
Hina held her neck and paled in wide eyed realisation at what she had allowed herself to blurt out. She cursed this place's ability to make her spill her secrets. She was unable to think fully well, and her emotions were out of whack. Either always too calm or too brash under the split energies of this world. She was spouting things she would have otherwise kept secret now.
"Why would you do something like that?" Pippin asked, and although she knew Aragorn had at least the tact to not voice that question, he was still thinking it. In fact she saw the faces of her new teammates and it seemed they were all thinking it. She looked away in frustration. She owed them the truth at least… after having to put up with her the entire time.
"It's my punishment, for the crimes I committed—for the shame I bear. It is also a mark to show who I chose—and until I set things straight, I will not take it off," Hina said with a finality before she stood up shakily.
Everyone was too emotionally wrought to ask for more. The passing of Gandalf weighed heavy on their minds still. For Hina it was only a mild worry. She knew he would come back, although she wasn't sure she should voice those thoughts. It would only hurt them more when they didn't know to give them a doubt of hope that wouldn't come for a while. Her thoughts turned to her armour... the one gifted to her from her Sensei. She looked at the damage as the others stopped to eat and felt the stinging betrayal of her tears at its sight. She ran her fingers through its ridges and hated the large claw mark through it.
"I had not known one could grieve for armour," Boromir said, kneeling down beside her.
Hina wasn't even crying, but the expression must have given it away. She looked down at the armour and sighed. A present… the only thing she had left from her life in Konoha… something Gaku took great pains to get to her even during her time in self-exile.
"It was from my old teacher," she mumbled.
"Then you must love him more," Boromir said sympathetically.
"There is no one in the entire universe I trust more than him... but sometimes I wonder if his faith in me is justified. I lost control there. That was my true self. Ugly and mad," she said in distress, feeling an exceptional amount of self-hate as her own broken self-seemed to reflect from the armour.
"You hold yourself to too much of a standard. We are only human. There is only so much we can do, and many things we could improve, but I find it is our greatest quality to strive even for the impossible. If you feel lacking now there is always a time to improve while you still hold breath."
Hina nodded her head in understanding. Boromir was right, and in a way his words reflected Gaku-sensei's. She was only human... sometimes she needed to be reminded of that fact. But when she looked in his eyes, she realised he was just repeating uplifting words, because his eyes betrayed his own lies. Boromir didn't believe himself. He was just doing what he knew to do as a commander to get his comrades morale up.
"Unless you're not human that is?" Boromir asked with a raised brow.
"What, of course I am," Hina snorted.
"That display of power and speed in Moria was almost more impressive than the tales of legendary Elves," Boromir pointed out.
"It's just how we're trained back home... although I'll admit I'm a good deal stronger than most. Cause I'm awesome," Hina said with a weak smile.
"You are indeed awesome," Boromir barked a laugh. "Then shall we bring you back for some food and some healing. Aragorn will wish to fuss over your wounds for a while yet. It's almost like he hasn't seen you slay a Cave Troll on your own."
Hina was grateful for Boromir's attempt at lightening her mood. He truly was a good man despite how much the ring affected him too. She had a feeling in that sense, that they were both kindred spirits, best to leave the rings in the hands of Frodo with a much stronger will than theirs. And when Boromir laughed freely the way he did, she was reminded of Gaku-sensei. Her heart warmed and the seal stopped pulsing. Boromir had gone but had left her feeling lighter, a little more hopeful maybe that she would see her Sensei again. Maybe it would be a long time coming. She would need to break free from the thralls of the Akatsuki and defeat Orochimaru, but then she could go to him and rest. That was a great deal more than she deserved.
"Ha, I think I can heal myself now," Hina muttered as she conjured up the dredges of her chakra and bit down on another soldier pill to stop the bleeding and knit herself back together. There was use for this artificial body yet. At least she wouldn't have to be carried around like a child now.
"Your wounds have healed?" Aragorn asked, holding her shoulders, and tilting down to see.
"Hai, I just needed to get my curse under control. The good energy from the forest further down is helping," Hina explained.
Aragorn turned to where she pointed and nodded. At least now he knew where exactly the Elven settlement was. He knew he would have been escorted in either way by the Elves.
"Good, then we should be on our way again!"
While Hina still felt the heat of her fever, she refused to be carried again. She'd been carried way too much since she'd come into this place. Now going back into a forest she assumed was going to be just like Rivendell, she was sure she'd eventually need to be carried again if she couldn't control the cursed seal enough to maintain some semblance of her awareness. She could feel the forest calm her down, and the seal on her neck ease. It made her uncomfortable to activate it as she did.
They had travelled for another day running as they did in their haste. Hina would normally have easily kept up, but she was still feeling the effects of her wound, and despite being asked numerous times, she didn't want to be carried one more time in this kami-forsaken world. She'd been carried so many times it was beginning to hurt her pride.
"Stay close, young hobbits...they say a Sorceress lives in these woods. An Elf-witch of terrible power. All who look upon her fall under her spell," Gimli warned.
Hina narrowed her eyes at his warnings. Gimli was a little racist towards the Elves, but she knew he wasn't a liar, not when it mattered. But she remembered Galadriel vividly in her memories… she never forgot a pretty face, so she knew she couldn't have been all that bad.
She looked up, feeling the urge to be up on the trees where she belonged, rather than travelling on the ground where she was like any other prey. She was too tired and wounded to do much though, even now all she wanted was to fall into a feverish sleep. Only her pride held her up together.
In her focus to keep herself steady Hina missed the oncoming scent of the Elves, or the fact that Frodo was looking around frantically.
"—and are never seen again!" Gimli continued on his rant. "Well, here's one Dwarf she won't ensnare so easily. I have the eyes of a hawk and the ears of a fox!"
Just when he finished his sentence Gimli turned to see the pointed tip of arrows facing him. Hina couldn't help but snort in amusement despite having an arrow trained at her back. It seemed all the short peoples of this world had impeccable comedic timing and who was she to not appreciate it. The Elves who had ambushed them weren't as quiet as they thought they were, but neither did they possess an ounce of killing intent.
"And you were saying?" Hina whispered in amusement to which Gimli just glared in reply.
"The Dwarf breathes so loud we could have shot him in the dark," the snooty Elf snorted, giving Gimli a disdainful look.
"Haldir of Lorien, we come here for your help. We need your protection," Aragorn urged.
"Aragorn! These woods are perilous. We should go back," Gimli said angrily.
"You have entered the realm of the Lady of the Wood. You cannot go back," Haldir replied before his eyes trailed to Hina's neck and then to Frodo's with a frown. "Come, she is waiting."
Hina had expected all the Elves to be as inviting as Lord Elrond had been, but she might have been wrong. The ones they followed walked with the gaze of a Shinobi on duty, but they held none of the snark or sarcasm that still came with it. Instead they walked in a tireless pace, all synchronised to an almost unearthly amount, and all looking way too regal and hot for Hina to really find one eye-candy amidst the rest. She settled on giving Legolas the award for being the hottest Elf she'd known so far outside of Arwen. She let herself muse about useless things like this so her mind wouldn't stray to how inexorably tired she was… and she never admitted to being tired if she could.
Then after keeping pace for a day and a night, she thought she might collapse from her now growing fever. The Hobbits and Gimli didn't look much better either, scrambling to find their
"Are you sure you do not need help?" Boromir asked, noticing her hobble.
"I'm sure," Hina stressed in irritation, as she resisted the urge to grab her burning wound.
Boromir nodded, his hands seemingly flitting out in front of him for a moment before it hesitantly went back to his sides. Hina hated how this world wouldn't allow her the respect she deserved. She hated how even now the stupidly bright energy made her sleepy and mellow like she was a little kitten. If it weren't for the pain of her still active cursed seal, she would have agreed to being carried once more.
Eventually though they did make it to Lothlorien. Hina was mesmerised by the sight. Now this was a Village hidden in the Leaves. Large Mallorn trees were high up in the sky, the sunlight gleaming from its leaves, and behind it was Anduin river, casting its own natural light to the Hilltop colony. And she felt even more wonder when they entered into the Elven city, which was so engraved into the wood that it felt like a natural part of the architecture. It was graceful shining a silvery green onto the sparkling hair of its unearthly inhabitants. Hina decided that the Elves were definitely the Uchiha of Middle-Earth, blessed with beauty, stupidly overpowered genetics, and naturally born with a stick up their asses.
Her excitement was cut short immediately when she saw the stairs and she had to stifle an audible groan.
"Kuso," she hissed in a whisper as she looked up.
She felt so far gone she couldn't even swear in English anymore. The light of this place was definitely overpowering the dark, and so she decided to stay close to the dark-haired Hobbit. She could find it easy to ignore the ring's call in this dementedly good place. The stairs however were definitely hell for her abdomen, but she wasn't a Shinobi and student to a torture happy Sannin, to be beaten by simple stairs.
They all stopped at the top of the tree, and Hina was caught off guard by just how bright the two Elves walking down the stairs were. She squinted her eyes and took a step back at their sheer presence. But after a moment she got to take a look at them, and it took everything to not have her jaw drop in awe. Here she thought Legolas was pretty. She figured that she was wrong because Galadriel and Celeborn were on another level entirely. The Lady of the Woods was flawless in every way, and while Hina remembered having a celebrity crush on her actor, the actor was nothing in comparison to what she was witnessing now. It was almost like she was standing before a goddess. Her golden hair shone like the sun, and in her ever-seeing blue eyes was the glint of the cosmos.
"Nine there are, yet ten there were set out from Rivendell. Tell me, where is Gandalf, for I much desire to speak with him," Celeborn asked.
Everyone seemed distraught by the question, but no one spoke. The hurt was too recent, and while Hina did worry about the old Istari, she knew he was going to come back. There was always an inkling of fear and worry though. She knew the cosmic leakage of the stories never were a hundred percent accurate, and that her presence changed things for better or for worse.
"He has fallen into shadow," Galadriel whispered as she looked into Aragorn's eyes. "The Quest stands upon the edge of a knife. Stray but a little and it will fail, to the ruin of all...Yet hope remains while the company is true."
Her eyes trailed to Sam at this mention, and Hina noted when she looked up and away that she was probably still somehow looking at them.
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Go now and rest for you are weary with sorrow and much toil. Tonight you will sleep in peace."
Hina was glad that the Lady hadn't talked directly to her, even though her eyes did trail for a moment that felt like an eternity onto her own. In that moment Hina felt like she was being laid bare, and she felt naked for the first time in a long time. The fact that Galadriel's attention was on the others made her relieved.
'One outside of time, whose soul does not resonate with the song of Arda.'
Hina snapped her attention up in shock. She had spoken too soon. And now suddenly a deep unsettling feeling shrouded her heart.
'A journey of perspective you will lead, and you will find no respite in it for some futures only hold darkness with barely a glimmer of hope to light the path. Should you fall to the darkness you will become consumed by hatred and bloodlust, and should you succumb to the light, you will lose yourself in aimless decadence. Place both trust in the heart and the mind, learn to heed wisdom, and your decisions will lead you to what you seek.'
"Take the girl to the healer."
And with that Hina fainted.
Boromir was shaken to his core. Galadriel's words echoed in his mind like an impossibility. In his heart he knew defeat… a defeat he had hidden away from the eyes of his father and brother to remain strong in the face of such unending adversity. Now, it almost felt like his limbs were failing, and as they tucked away a wounded member of the Fellowship, he felt only a growing sense of loss and dread. He could foretell the fall of his people. He tasted it on his tongue.
"Take some rest. These borders are well protected," Aragorn said, bringing him out of his thoughts.
"I will find no rest here. I heard her voice inside my head—she spoke of my father and the fall of Gondor, and she said to me: 'Even now, there is hope left'. But I cannot see it...it is long since we had any hope."
He must have been a sight to see, eyes watery, face lined with sweat, and hands trembling with no hope. It felt like it had died with Gandalf on the bridge. Now all he knew was defeat… and even his words of encouragement earlier were a farce. Aragorn must see it too, and in his eyes, Boromir saw the sadness of one who had lost their people.
"My father is a noble man, but his rule is failing and our—our people lose faith. He looks to me to make things right...and I would do it, I would see the glory of Gondor restored. Have you ever seen it, Aragorn? The White Tower of Ecthelion, glimmering like a spike of pearl and silver, its banners caught high in the morning breeze...have you ever been called home by the clear ringing of silver trumpets?"
"I have seen the white city…long ago," Aragorn admitted with a wistful look.
"One day our paths will lead us there, and the tower guards shall take up the call 'the Lords of Gondor have returned'," Boromir said, feeling an inkling of hope in his heart.
Aragorn returned his smile, but they both knew the sad look in each other's gazes, the worry hidden away behind their longing. It had been a year since he had been home, having heeded the call of a prophecy he heard only in his dreams to find a Council in Rivendell. And for how much faith his father had placed in him, Boromir could only worry that it was misplaced.
Hina woke up to the most beautiful singing she had ever heard. She turned to see the face of Galadriel and was immediately quelled from her urge to grab her kunai. Instead she felt lost in those star-lit sparkling eyes that seemed to bore into her very soul.
"You look up with much love and much evil etched in your soul," she said, her voice a whispery tune, although it carried like an echo in Hina's head.
"Yeah, it looks like I'm doomed to live a terrible life," Hina replied as casually as she could before smiling.
"There is a way out for you, and end to your suffering—put down your weapons and stay here."
Hina almost felt the word 'yes' blurt from her mouth. She was tired, so very tired. Each day that went by she felt like it was a hundred years, and for each life she took unfairly, she paid with her very soul… and yet she could not stop. She was not allowed to stop. Her life was for a greater purpose now, and Galadriel had told her to stay in this land full of good and evil—a land that was not hers. She had made bonds with Aragorn and the others, bonds she did not hold to lightly. Their quest was a good one and she had gone without any good for so long.
"I… cannot," she finally said, struggling to reject the tantalising offer. "I've committed so much evil with these two hands. Kinslayer, traitor, and a snake… the only thing I have left to give is my life."
There was no hope for someone like her, to live a peaceful happy life, where she would find herself a wife, adopt children, and live out in peace. Her blood sung for battle, her hands had killed family, and her love was twisted by an age that did not fit the nature of her childish body. She had been twisted into something that wasn't even human. By her own will she had allowed Orochimaru to take hold of whatever soul she had left—for her family she had allowed herself to sink into the throws of murder, deceit, and debauchery.
"You mourn now the loss of your soul old spirito, but it is not impossible to get it back. All you see ahead of you is a struggle and fighting, but the day will come when you will truly see how to be free. That fate is not for you here. The longer you stay the more it will wound your heart to leave," Galadriel warned.
"You sure are full of ominous warnings," Hina chuckled weakly.
"Come now Hina daughter of Noritaka. Take rest with your father's spirit."
Hina's eyes widened in disbelief as Galadriel gave her, her father's omamori—the first one he had gifted her all those years back when she first went off to war. She held the amulet in her hand, trailing her thumb over the now silver embroidery which had once been red. She felt almost like crying at its familiar presence. She didn't know how Galadriel did it, but when she ran her finger over the fabric now it almost felt like she was hugging her father.
How had Galadriel known of her father—better yet she had originally addressed Hina as the one outside of time. That was a title given to her by the being beyond, the one she had met who bound souls to their next lives. Hina was certain now that Galadriel knew of her true nature.
"What did you do to the omamori?" she asked.
"It was blessed by the Valar… a rare and turbulent gift of balance. You will find that it eases the pull to your soul."
Hina nodded in understanding. Galadriel was blinding in her beauty and goodness but Hina had not been enthralled by the pull of her good song. In fact she had kept her sharp mind and despite the energies around her, she did not feel its pull at her soul. It was a gift she was lost for words on how to describe. She pocketed her most precious belonging before getting out of bed, happy to note that her side felt much better too, and the tiredness and pain had gone. She was led to another room where she saw her belongings lay. Her eyes widened at the sight of her fixed armour. Without haste she ran up to it and palmed it with gladness.
"You fixed it," she said in disbelief.
"It is of common material, and one we are more than able to mend," she said with a soft smile.
"Arigato Galadriel-sama," Hina said, bowing low.
"Come now. Haldir will show you to the Fellowship."
Galadriel made her leave and Hina took a moment to change out of the white robes she was in back into her kimono. She was glad she carried around her own sealing scroll full of clothes because they were certainly dwindling with how much they were being ripped up. The Elf waiting outside for her nodded in appreciation for her expedient changing time.
"Forgive me for asking, but are you of a race unknown to us?" Haldir asked.
"Not that I know of. Why?" Hina asked, raising a brow.
"I've never seen natural hair the colour of leaves, nor eyes slitted like an animal on Men," Haldir pointed out.
"I was given these eyes later in my life," Hina admitted. "As well as this body… so maybe I'm not human like I was before, but I am at heart."
"Yes, I will trust Mithrandir's judgement," Haldir replied before he opened the door to where they had been travelling to.
Hina noted the rest of the Fellowship lounging about, eating food, and at her appearance, Gimli shot up gladly.
"Ah Hina! Glad to see you awake and well lass. You had us all worried," Gimli said heartily as he slapped her back.
"Have you learnt to accept aid when you require it now?" Aragorn asked, smiling fondly but still with a note of chiding in his voice.
Hina pouted. She did not want to be carried again.
"I won't need aid in the future! My sheer awesomeness doesn't require it," she retorted playfully.
Just as she said that her stomach made the loudest rumble she had ever heard. Everyone went silent and then laughed as Hina blushed madly at her body betraying her.
"Well my awesome lady, you require the aid of some food?" Pippin joked.
"Har, har, laugh it up," she said, trying and failing to hold back a smile as she accepted the bread from Pippin.
Hina would have been happy to stay and joke around with the Hobbits, Gimli, and Legolas, if it weren't for Frodo's brooding by the corner. The longer they travelled the more silent he became, the more distant his eyes wandered, and the darker they looked. Hina kept away because of the ring's ominous call—tantalising as it was, she knew darkness when she saw it, and she knew she would succumb to it eventually. It was like she was addicted to it, without even having tried it in the first place. She could only imagine what the Hobbit must be feeling—the pain he was in that she could ease if he just—NO!
She nearly slapped herself in the face, but Hina still walked over to Frodo, eyes desperately trying and failing to not look at the place in his chest where it was hidden. The Hobbit looked up at her tense and she wondered if it was wise for her to come near at all. She knew she should leave him be, but her body had moved on its own—eager to be close to such power.
"You look tired," she noted.
"Yes, this journey is long," he said dismissively.
Then give me the ring and stay here safe and away from troubles. Only I should carry the weight of this darkness like I have before—for my precious people—for the hard decision's others cannot make…
"Have some food and take your mind off things," she said instead as she threw the Hobbit and apple and turned away too quickly.
He was palming the ring on his chest now, and the sharp ringing in her ear had faded. Hina walked too quickly away, noting the look Aragorn was giving her. She had almost… she didn't want to think about it. Why… no one else had been so enraptured by the call of the ring… so why was she so weak as to fall for it first? With trembling hands she took another piece of bread and ate it hastily. She nearly winced away when Boromir placed a hand on hers, and his kind eyes quelled her beating heart. There was empathy in them that only made her worry more.
Maybe the hearts of others had already been captured… Now she wondered if her earlier fears of being the first was founded in any way. In the end there were no winners near the evil thing… and she feared she would drop to its call.
LINE BREAK
A/N
Sorry for the late update. I've been trying to shred my weight down so I can see those pesky abbs of mine hiding under that rice pack XD I've also been revising a re-write of Snap Back To Reality, since I've come to regret not going down a different path with that story. I wish I'd made Hina more of a self-made character so that's what Ima do. Anyway while Snap Back might be delayed for a while yet, this story should have more consistent updates. I'll try and put a chapters out more often.