to love someone else

Chapter 8: snow

The Fellowship walked for many more hours, until the spot where they saw the spies of Sauron, seemed as small as a pea from the cliffs where they stood.

They headed South, along the foothills of the Misty Mountains and they did not speak much at first. The Hobbits were the ones losing their strength on useless words mostly. Aerin could hear Merry and Pippin fantasising about smoking some weeds as they walked behind her. Silly creatures, she thought to herself. For some reason, their presence comforted Aerin a lot. They made everything seem more cheerful and hopeful.

Aerin did not anticipate the pass of Caradhras. It enabled passage beside one of the range's tallest peaks. The snow up there was not merciful. ''Shouldn't the pass be watched as well?'' Aerin asked. ''It could and very well might be, but it's the best chance we've got'' Aragorn said.

And so they went, higher into the Misty Mountains. As they climbed higher, the road became a treacherous path along the cliff face. Frodo fell once, and dropped the Ring, which was another close encounter of Boromir and the accursed thing. It was evident that the Ring had more power over Boromir than over any of them. At least Aerin saw it. When she saw the Ring in the snow, she dared not look at it, not to mention approach it. She feared it; she didn't want anything to do with it. It called her name and offered her greatness, but Aerin feared Isildur's Bane becoming hers as well. Every time Aerin saw the thing hanging out of Frodo's shirt, she looked the other way quicker than lightning.

As they walked further, snow began to fall. Nobody spoke. Every ounce of their strength was being used on walking through the snowstorm. Only Legolas remained undeterred. Aerin watched him walk lightly over the snow, leaving hardly a footprint when the snow was thigh-deep for the Men of the Fellowship, and Gandalf too. Every now and then he'd stop and turn around to wait for the rest. Boromir and Aragorn were helping the halflings, Aerin and Legolas had to keep an eye on Gimli without him knowing. He would otherwise probably exclaim ''I can walk by myself, thank you very much!'' or ''I will have no Elf take care of me!'' or ''Nobody carries a dwarf!'' Aerin saw Gimli struggling as the snow was very high for him. This dwarf was stubbornly trying to clear out the snow before him, but it wasn't to much avail. ''Gimli, are you alright?'' Aerin asked with genuine concern. ''Of course I'm alright! A little bit of snow cannot beat me!''

''Gimli, please, if you would only mount the pony-''

''Leave me be, woman!'' Aerin looked shocked and taken back as she looked towards Legolas, who had stopped as well. ''Dwarf, get on the pony'' Legolas finally said sternly. It sounded like an order and Aerin knew the Dwarf would have never obeyed hadn't he been obliged to. He realised he was falling behind. So he did as he was told. Days and days through the snow. Camping below any remotely big rock we could find. Cold and wetness. There are no words in either Elvish or the language of Men that could help Aerin describe the hell that were the Misty Mountains up high.

The farther we went, the heavier the snow was falling. Aragorn and Boromir were carrying the halflings now that the storm had gotten worse, and Aerin could barely keep her eyes open as the ice stung at her cheeks and the wind blew brutally. Just walking through snow that deep was enough to make one exhausted, not to mention the freezing cold blowing in one's face and the icy feeling in one's bones.

Legolas ran off ahead once again and this time he stood watching and listening, and Aerin knew not how he could possibly make out anything ahead, Elf as he was. They were surrounded by a white curtain of snow, yet there he was, watching and listening intently. The last time he stood like that and had that look on his face, they were being spied by the enemy. Aerin knew that something was wrong, and it didn't take her long to find out.

''There's a fell voice on the air'' he said.

Aerin did not understand what he meant by it; she heard nothing but the loud whistlings and howls of the wind. But then it started to get louder and she heard it clearly - chantings in a foreign language she did not understand. Words could be heard clearly and they echoed loud through the mountain rocks.

''It's Saruman!!!!'' Gandalf shouted out.

Aerin inhaled sharply as boulders and large amounts of snow started tumbling down the mountain. They were in grave danger and could not do much about it from where they were standing. Aerin panicked. ''He's trying to bring down the mountain!!!!'' Aragorn screamed. ''Gandalf, we must turn back!!!''

''No!!!'' Gandalf responded before he started chanting something as well, in a language unknown to Aerin.

At this point Aerin was very frightened and confused. What was Gandalf doing? Why were we still there? Pieces of rocks crumbled down under the weight of such large amounts of snow. Everywhere around them everything seemed to be falling apart, and in such a heavy snowstorm one could not tell what was rock and what was ice and snow. They could have easily died if the piece of the mountain on which they were standing had tumbled off.

Just then, a lightning stroke the peak of the mountain above them. Huge amounts of snow and pieces of rock started falling down and everywhere around them. The Fellowship all threw ourselves close to the mountain walls as possible. Aerin was pushed by someone against the mountain wall and mostly covered by their own body. Next thing she knew, she could not breathe. Everything went dark. Her lungs felt as though they had been shrunk. Then Aerin felt someone move and light reached her. She did not know who they were at the moment but someone had dug the first hole in the snow and ice cold air finally filled her lungs. It almost stung her to breathe it in. Aerin saw a hand reaching out to me and she took it. This person pulled her out effortlessly and she realised it couldn't have been anyone but Legolas.

In a matter of moments he had helped nearly everyone out of the snow, all the while Aerin was trying to uncover Gimli's entire body and pull him out. ''Arghh! Thank you, lassie! For a moment there I thought I was gone! I could have sworn I saw the Light of Ilúvatar!'' Gimli smiled and Aerin chuckled to herself. ''You're alright, Gimli.''

''We must get off the mountain!!'' Boromir shouted. ''Make for the Gap of Rohan and take the west road to my city!!''

''The Gap of Rohan takes us too close to Isengard!!'' argued Aragorn. ''We cannot pass over the mountain, let us go under it!'' Gimli finally said. ''Let us go through the mines of Moria!'' Aerin did not like how that sounded. She knew many stories about Moria, and not one of them was pleasant. But then again, they had as much chance of dying right where they were. She looked to Gandalf expecting an answer, a decision, but there was none. There was something in his eyes that Aerin could not quite believe - strong fear. There was strong fear mingled with worry and it made her nervous. ''Let the Ringbearer decide'' he said.

Aerin looked to Frodo and she saw he was afraid - afraid of making the wrong decision. It would be another burden for this little hobbit to bear. ''We cannot stay here!!'' Boromir urged. ''This will be the death of the hobbits!!''

''Gandalf, I agree'' Aerin added hastily, not wanting to waste another second in that snowstorm, ''Frodo, speak at once, please!'' There was silence. ''Frodo?'' asked Gandalf once again. ''We will go through the mines'' Frodo said warily.

''So be it'' responded the wizard.