Ranger of the South ➵ LORD OF THE RINGS

↠ F I F T E E N : River Anduin

The three elven boats carried the nine of them steadily southward. Green trees slowly gave way to brown and withered lands.

As the night fell, they stored the boats safely on the bank out of the water. Boromir and Keira hid behind a rock, watching the river. A log floated down the river. A hand grasped the log and pulled itself onto it. Who or whatever it was, it seemed to be trying to remain concealed from the eyes of the Fellowship, Keira noticed.

"Gollum," Aragorn spoke up from behind them. "He has tracked us since Moria."

"I don't like him," Keira said, not taking her eyes off the creature.

"I had hoped we would lose him on the river," Aragorn continued. "But he's too clever a waterman."

"And if he alerts the enemy to our whereabouts, it will make the crossing even more dangerous," Boromir said.

"He won't," Keira replied. "He cares too much about the ring to let it fall in the hands of Sauron."

Keira walked back to the others and frowned worried as she caught Sam's conversation with Frodo.

"Have some food, Mr Frodo," Sam said, obviously trying to encourage the dark hobbit to eat.

"No, Sam," Frodo replied, shaking his head and turning away from his friend.

"You haven't eaten anything all day. You're not sleeping, neither. Don't think I haven't noticed."

Sam moved from the campfire to sit with Frodo.

"Mr Frodo . . ."

"I'm alright."

"But you're not," Sam argued back. "I'm here to help you. I promised Gandalf that I would."

Frodo looked at Sam, sadly, with the full weight of the knowledge of what he must do.

"You can't help me, Sam. Not this time. Get some sleep."

Keira leaned down against a tree and watched the dark haired hobbit while listening to Boromir and Aragorn's conversation.

"Minas Tirith is the safer road. You know that," Boromir pointed out. "From there we can regroup. Strike out for Mordor from a place of strength."

"There is no strength in Gondor that can avail us," Aragorn replied.

"You were quick enough to trust the Elves."

Aragorn didn't reply but listened impatiently.

"Have you so little faith in your own people?" Boromir asked desperately. "Yes, there is weakness. There is frailty. But there is courage also, and honor to be found in Men. But you will not see that."

Aragorn turned away, but Boromir grabbed his tunic and turned him back.

"You are afraid!" the Gondorian man exclaimed. "All your life, you have hidden in the shadows. Scared of who you are, what you are."

"I will not lead the Ring within a hundred leagues of your city," the ranger replied.

Keira sat down on a fallen tree, took a piece of wood and started carving the Strongbow sigil in it. She glanced up as Aragorn sat down next to her.

"Are you alright?" She asked, referring to his argument with Boromir.

He nodded. "Yeah, fine."

He didn't sound too convinced but nonetheless, Keira went back to her carving.

"What are you carving?" Aragorn asked, looking over her shoulder to see what she was doing.

"You'll see when I'm done," Keira replied patiently, bringing the piece of wood closer to her face to carve the details.

Aragorn watched her quietly, as her eyebrows were frowned and she looked very concentrating. Her grey eyes didn't leave the knife nor the wood and slowly the Strongbow sigil became recognizable.

"And done," she said, showing him the sigil. "Here, you can have it if you want."

Aragorn accepted the sigil and Keira stood up to walk towards her sleeping spot for the night.

The dark haired ranger looked at her as she laid down and closed her eyes, then he took his knife and made a hole in the piece of wood just above the Strongbow sigil. Aragorn took a cord and put it through the hole before hanging it around his neck.

"If I didn't know you better, I'd say that would be creepy," Legolas commented, amused.

Aragorn rolled his eyes, sat down and leaned against a tree, taking out his pipe.

"I can not help it," he replied, his heart almost bouncing out of his chest now that a piece of Keira was so near to him.

Legolas shook his head, a smile playing on his lips and turned around to take his place near the fire.

•

The next day, they arrived at two enormous rock statues, towering three hundred foot pinnacles on either side of the river. They loomed over the boats with power and majesty.

"The Argonath . . ." Aragorn said, strangely moved by the beauty of the silent sentinels. "Long have I desired to look upon the kings of old . . . my kin."

KEIRA

"We cross the lake at nightfall," Aragorn began, once we had dragged to boats onto the shore that night, "hide the boats and continue on foot . . . we approach Mordor from the North."

"Oh, yes," Gimli replied gloomy, "just a simple matter of finding our way through Emyn Muil, an impassable labyrinth of razor-sharp rocks. And after that, it gets even better . . . a festering, stinking marshland as far as the eye can see."

"Gimli," I said sternly, "Aragorn is right. It is the best road."

Gimli nodded shortly and sat down next to the fire.

"I'm sorry about him," I said, turning to Aragorn, "he's a bit stubborn sometimes, but his heart is in the right place."

Aragorn smiled and was about to say something when Legolas turned at us, urgently.

"We should leave now."

"No," Aragorn replied. "Orc patrol the eastern shore. We must wait for cover of darkness."

"It is not the eastern shore that worries me."

Legolas cast a glance around into the path galen forest.

"A shadow and a threat has been growing in my mind. Something draws near, I can feel it."

Aragorn and I exchanged a worried glance before looking back at the elf.

If Legolas was right, which I'm sure he is, I don't think I'll be sleeping tonight.

"Where is Frodo?" Merry asked from the fire, making the three of us look up.

My eyes glanced over our camp, trying to find any sign of the dark haired hobbit, but noticed instead that another member of the Fellowship was gone.

Where was Boromir?