The One Who Stole The Ring #twistfatechallenge

One

"This way, hobbitses!" The pitiful creature croaked. "Yes, this way. We show you how to get to Dark Mordor, gollum!"

Samwise Gamgee sat on the ground. "Can't we rest for a bit?"

"No, Sam," his companion replied. "We have to get there."

"But, Mr. Frodo, you're about to fall over. You need a break."

Frodo Baggins sighed haggardly. "Sam, I can hardly hold this for a moment longer. The sooner we reach the fires of Mount Doom, the better we'll all be. Assuming we get there, of course."

Despite his own words, Frodo sat himself on a nearby rock, hardly able to keep on his feet.

Gollum, the creature guiding the two hobbits, hopped anxiously from rock to rock. "Come on, hobbitses! We mustn't wait much longer, no, we mustn't."

"Oh, be quiet!" Sam grunted. "Can't you see, he's exhausted." Then, turning to Frodo, he added, "Perhaps I could carry The Ring for a little while. Just  long enough for you to have a break."

Frodo looked suspiciously at Sam, feeling a sudden sense of protectiveness towards his precious burden. His fingers closed tightly around the ring hanging from a silver chain. "No, Sam. It's mine, you can't take it."

Sam took a step back. "I didn't mean no harm, Mr. Frodo, I just wanted to help." He turned his back to Frodo, assuming his best dejected position before scowling at himself. They'd gotten this far, and he hadn't even touched the Ring. Sam imagined slipping the Ring on his own finger and leaving Frodo to find his own way home. Of course, he'd have to get it first.

"Maybe," Sam thought to himself, "maybe I could take it while he's sleeping. Yes, I'll claim the Ring then. It's too precious not to take."

As Sam plotted his betrayal, he didn't notice the small creature watching him from a distance. 

Gollum slunk backwards, crawling on his hands and feet to where Frodo sat.

"Baggins," he croaked. "Baggins, we must tell Baggins!"

Frodo looked tiredly at Gollum. "What must you tell me?"

"The fat hobbit," he whispered. "We must watch the fat one! He wants it, he wants the precious. He will try to take the precious!"

Abruptly, Frodo's gaze shifted to Sam's back. "Are you sure?"

Gollum hopped up and down. "Yes! We are positive, we are very sure, he wants it."

Clutching the ring tightly, Frodo stood to confront Sam. Before he could take a step, however, the small creature jumped in front of him. 

"No, Baggins," he said urgently. "We hasn't enough time, no, we must keep moving! We must get to Mount Doom."

Looking between his old friend and his guide, Frodo thought hard. 

"I can't let Sam take the Ring. It's mine! It's precious to me! Why would he try to steal it? We used to be so close. I must confront him on the matter. Then again," he paused, "The Ring, being as heavy a burden as it is, needs to be destroyed. I can't do that if I waste all my time fighting Sam."

He let out a sigh, wheezing with exertion. "Alright, we'll keep going. We mustn't let Sam know that we're aware of his plan. Do you understand?"

Gollum inclined his head, smiling with an evil glint in his eye. "We are good at keeping secretses. We won't tell anybody, we won't tell the fat hobbit."

"Good. Come along, Sam. Let's get moving."

The trio continued across the rocky terrain, going over and under charcoal humps that seemed to grow ever higher. With every step, their weary feet slipped and slid, nearly bringing down the whole company more than once. 

Each time Frodo slipped, Sam would be at his side to help him up. As grateful as he was to not be dead on the rocks below, Frodo felt suspicious of the rescues. He kept a constant, leery eye on Sam, never knowing when he would try to take the Ring. Still, they pushed on.

As the night grew darker, the company began looking for a place to make camp. 

"How 'bout here, Mr. Frodo?" Sam suggested, gesturing to a large, flat rock to the side of their path. 

Frodo looked uneasily at the sheer drop-off. "I don't know, Sam--this doesn't seem like a very safe place for sleeping."

"Stop fighting me," Sam thought, frustrated. "At this rate, I'll never get the Ring."

Aloud, he said, "Don't worry, Mr. Frodo. No creatures will be able to get at us from up here."

Spotting a small niche in the rock face, Frodo sighed. "Alright, Sam. I'll sleep there."

And so they slept, peacefully, until Samwise opened his eyes.