Hope - A Lord Of The Rings Chronicle

"It's about to burst!!"

While all Raina could do was to wait patiently with Sam and Frodo, fear gnawing at the back of her mind, Merry and Pippin were clambering through the forest, trying to make their way back to Rivendell.

Hearts pounding, they flew through the trees, this way, that way until at last they came to a halt.
"Its no use Pippin." Merry panted, leaning against a tree. "We're lost."
"Ahh. You're right Merry." Pippin threw himself down onto the floor, desponded. "We could be miles from Rivendell and not even know it."

Or closer than they thought. Something had caught Merry's eye. By Pippin's foot. He tiptoed toward him.

"What's wrong?" Pippin breathed.
"Look." He kicked some leaves out of the way. "Horse Prints." Merry followed them, looking up ahead, North.

"In that direction."
"Where do you think it leads?" Pippin asked him.
"Only one way to find out. Come on!" He cried giving chase again. Pippin breathed heavily, before picking up his heels, and then was right behind him.

*****

Gandalf had thought Raina's absence from lunch would give everyone time to calm down. It didn't.

Immediately after she left Rivendell, Gandalf had been summoned into the dining room by Boromir and his kin, the Woodland Elves with Legolas, and the dwarves and Gimli, and so had Elrond and Aragorn.

Gandalf had known what the meeting was going to be about, it was obvious- Raina. The wizard had been compliant at first, but had now grown tiresome with the young Gondorian's whining and complaints.

"We don't even know who she is." Boromir protests. Gandalf, annoyed, secretly rolls his eyes for what seems to be the millionth time

"And yet she's just allowed to walk freely, within these very walls."
"I told you Boromir." Gandalf said, leaning heavily on to his staff to rise upward "She is of no threat to us."
Boromir holds up a finger in his face.
"But you don't know that Mithrandir. You only met her a day ago, and under the most suspicious circumstances! How do you know she is not planning to murder us all while we sleep?!"
There were grumbles of agreement with Gimli chanting 'Here, Here!' and the dwarves bellowing. Gandalf laughed to himself. The irony of what Boromir said was funny because Raina had mentioned that Legolas had looked at her like she was planning to do just that.

"Despite your misconceptions Boromir, I feel it in my heart that Raina has a part to play, and it is a good one too. She stays." He finished determinedly

Boromir scoffs.
"How can you trust her when she is accused of murdering an elf?"
"None of us saw who threw the dagger that killed Aldon. Not even Aredhrel. We do not know she is the one."
"No, but we have an inkling. Is that not enough?! I mean, you said it yourself, how is it that she knew your name without even having met you before?"
Gandalf shares a look with Aragon and Elrond, which although subtle, Legolas picks up on.
"There are many rumours around Arda of Gandalf the Grey," Aragon said, twisting his pipe he had brought with him. Aragorn had sat down on a chair the moment the meeting started, knowing it was going to be a long one. "I am not surprised she knew who he was."
"It's not just that," Gimli added, and Gandalf and the others' gazes fell on him "She knew the tongue of the dwarves. She pronounced it perfectly, as if she was raised by us herself. And her clothes. No one in Arda dresses like that. If that isn't suspicious, then I don't know what is."
Gandalf sighed. He was wrong. This wasn't going to be a long meeting. This was going to be a long, long meeting.
****
"Come on Pippin!" Merry cried, stopping again and waiting for his friend.
"I'm coming!" Pip shouted. Merry panted heavily, leaning against another tree, but his eyes flickered, spotting something far off. The lights of Rivendell.

"Look! Look!" He cried "I can see the torches! The lights. Come on!"

At his sighting, Pippin also speeded up, and caught up to Merry, following him through the trees. They tore through the woods, and it was not long until they reached the forest's edge, then the gardens of Rivendell and then they were inside the place itself.
****
Gandalf's patience was wearing thin. Boromir was still complaining about Raina, claiming that she was a wolf in sheep's clothing, and that she was waiting for her moment to strike.
"And then what will become of us all? We shall all perish under the spy of Saruman!"
There were shouts of agreement and Gandalf had wished he'd never entertained this meeting to begin with. Any amount of reason given to the others seemed to backfire, in fact, it seemed to make them distrust Raina even more.

Just when he thought he couldn't handle any more, the door burst open, and there heaving was Merry and Pippin. No one saw them at first, but they started for him once they saw him.
"Gandalf! Gandalf!" They cried, running to him frantically, drawing attention to themselves. Pippin began to tug on his sleeve.
"You must come, you must come quickly Gandalf."
"What is it? What happened?" He asked them "Where are Raina, Sam and Frodo?"
"That's just it." Merry said "Raina's in trouble."
"What?"
"She's fallen down the ravine."
Gimli smirked.
"Good." Their heads whipped around to him, where he was grinning in glee.

"Let her rot there. Let her stay there."
"It's no more than she deserves." Shrugs Boromir.

Pippin shook his head desperately

"No, you don't understand! She was trying to save Frodo! That's why she fell! There was a rock slide. She pushed him out of the way!"

All the audience fall silent at that revelation. The wizard smiled to himself. Here was the moment he had been waiting for, for Raina to prove herself. And prove herself she had.
"Are you sure?" Boromir asked, heart beginning to pound in anxiety and disbelief.

"Does our panting not look like it?" Merry answered sarcastically "Of course we're sure! Now come on Gandalf!"

He began pulling the wizard with all his might. Legolas, who had been silent the whole meeting, suddenly stood and spoke. Raina had been the bane of his existence since he had met her, but now it seemed she wasn't as bad as they had thought, perhaps, she was better.

"We must help her." He told Gandalf
"And we will." Gandalf smiled determinedly "Now. We'll need rope, and food. For she'll likely be malnourished if she had been down there for long and-
"Gandalf there isn't time." Merry insisted
"Why ever not?"
"Because the damn Gandalf!" Pippin yelled "It's about to burst!"