Chapter 21 - Who knew Gandalf was a horse whisperer?

Author's Note:

Hi everyone!

First of all, please can I apologize for the delay; writer's block is truly a horrible thing.

Second of all, thank you ever so much for your reviews, PMs and favouriting: as ever, they make my day.

Sara KM: As always, such a pleasure to read :) Yep, definitely okay for your 'prize'. Thank you so much for your analyzed comments: they always make so much sense and link so well to both show and movie.

Bad Ass Female Fighter: I've said this before, but what a pen-name! However, I wouldn't get too excited about a Legolas/Emma ship. I've mentioned that I not only suck at writing romance, I also really dislike it. Sorry : S

Danielle: thank you very very much! For the romance thing, see statement above. Once again, I apologize, but I wouldn't want to hash up the entire thing by writing some really sappy love story probably saturated with clichés because I have less than no idea of how to write one. Again, sorry.

Mew Sakura the Cyniclon: Yeah, I got it :) I personally find Treebeard very boring and a pain to write, but glad to hear he's got at least one fan ;) Thanks for your review x

Adventurer 17: Thanks!

Neah20: Gracias para tu comentario! Siempre me encanta saber lo que piensan las personas maravillosas que leen mi historia. Te puedo pedir algo? Por favor, si quieres dejar un otro comentario, hacelo en español - me encanta practicar!

Fusion Palace: Great review, thank you so much! We've discussed what you suggested, and once again: everything was much appreciated :)

On we go!

"Oh, come on."

Emma threw down her sword.

"Enough of the tricks, already!" she shouted at the man glowing with white light. He looked like Gandalf. In fact, he looked like he was Gandalf. The others looked torn between staring at her and gawping at the figure before them.

"You can stop the sham, Saruman! We know it's you." she called out, venom lacing her words. "You know, walking around last night in a cloak and hat really wasn't very clever: we knew it was you all along."

The figure stepped forward a little, and the white light dimmed. He really did look like Gandalf. Staring at his face made Emma's heart wrench like a sponge being squeezed of any excess water, but she just scowled and crossed her arms.

"You have not changed, Miss Swan." he said, sounding amused. Holy pop-tarts, he even sounded like him!

"Thanks." Emma answered automatically. "Wait - what? Hey!..."

"But your friend is partly right," the doppelganger continued, looking at each of her companions in turn. "I am Saruman."

"Ha! See? I told y-"

"Or rather, Saruman as he should be."

Emma faltered. There was something in the old man's eyes, his voice... A sliver of doubt started to make itself known.

"Hang on...what?"

The man-who-looked-like-Gandalf smiled at her. Legolas knelt, followed by Aragorn and Gimli. The others stayed standing and just looked confused.

"Forgive me." the elf implored. "I mistook you for Saruman."

Emma was stumped. "But he just said he was..." She stopped, aware she was dangerously close to making a fool of herself. She settled for a safe question.

"Who are you?"

The man smiled again.

"I am the white wizard, now. Saruman used to be me, but he has failed his duty and embraced the darkness. I have taken his place."

Ah. So not a safe question, as it happened. Emma stared blankly at the wizard for a second, then realized her superpower wasn't ringing. She let out an entirely unfeigned gasp and clapped a hand over her mouth, unable to believe the truth, impossible as it seemed, appeared clear as day.

"Gandalf..." she breathed.

The wizard looked a little taken aback, then thoughtful.

"Gandalf? Yes...that was what you used to call me." His eyes twinkled. "That was my name."

"Gandalf!" Gimli repeated for the sake of it, tears of joy gathering in his small eyes.

"Mithrandir." Legolas murmured, as though to himself.

Aragorn was still shell-shocked.

"How can this be?" he asked, in utter awe. "You fell."

The newly white wizard's gaze darkened.

"Through fire and water. From the highest peak to the lowest dungeon I fought the Balrog of Morgoth, until at last I threw down my enemy and smote his ruin upon the mountainside. Darkness took me, and I strayed out of thought and time. Stars wheeled overhead and every day was as long as a life age of the Earth. But it was not the end. I felt life in me again. I've been sent back...until my task is done. "

Dramatic pause.

One.

Two...

Three...?

Emma cleared her throat.

"Er... Which is what, exactly?"

Gandalf smiled.

"In this precise moment, two things. Firstly, Mr Nolan, your charming wife asked - nay, commanded me - to tell you that she is well, unharmed, and safe, so there is - and I quote - 'No need to beat yourself up, or anyone else, it wasn't your fault, you lovable git'." The wizard winced, then attempted to regain a little dignity by quickly changing the subject.

"Secondly," he hurried, "Rohan is in danger. It is the first step in Saruman's plan; first he enslaved the King's mind, then manipulated affairs to have his heir banished. If matters remain as they are, it is only a matter of time until Rohan falls, and that will not be long. We must go to Théoden King's aid, or he will succumb to Saruman's sorcery, and if so only Gondor will remain in the Dark Lord's way. If Gondor stands alone against Sauron's army, there is next to no hope left."

Emma picked her sword up, wiped off a few leaves and a smear of mud, then re-sheathed it.

"That was a lot of 'if's." she muttered. "So basically we're trying to overthrow the most powerful wizard in your Order, then set off and defeat another evil bastard who's essentially a vengeful god?"

The wizard mouth twitched.

"Perhaps not the version I would give," he remarked in a severe tone, but the twinkle in his eyes telling another story, "but yes."

"Sounds fun."

"Indeed. We can start the fun, Lady Swan, by trooping out of this stuffy forest, gaily riding on fair horses, dance our way into Edoras and joke with Kind Théoden to take his mind off the fact that a dark wizard is currently occupying his mind."

Emma tittered, but didn't answer, suddenly feeling uncertain at Gandalf's humouring her. She wondered if she was being told off for being too sarcastic, then if she was reading too much into things. In the end she supposed the latter came from travelling weeks on end with people who weren't actually human and had entirely different cultures.

The fellowship started to tramp their way out of the forest, with everyone in a kind of happy hippie daze. No-one really knew how, but Gandalf was back, their friends were safe, and there was still hope left for Middle-Earth. Emma felt lighter than she had in ages, which probably had something to do with the fact that with Gandalf promoted to Saruman's status, there was a much bigger chance of getting Henry back quickly and efficiently. If the former White Wizard was in disgrace, then his powers would surely be limited in face of Gandalf's own.

Emma jogged up to the wizard, who was briskly striding amongst the trees, batting away brambles with his new, shiny white stick.

"So," she started, a little breathless, "you said my mom and Regina and the hobbits were safe. Where exactly are they? Were they with the orcs long? When did you last see them?" Did they have any messages for me? she wanted to ask, but refrained for fear of sounding childish.

The wizard swept the ground free of roots with his staff (they recoiled and hid under bigger roots, almost like magic, which it probably was).

"Your companions are with a new acquaintance of mine. His name is Treebeard, and he is an Ent."

"An ant?"

"An Ent. His people are of the most ancient creatures in Middle-Earth. To you and your inexperienced friends, they would look like trees. But they think, talk and act much the same as we do. Some call them the shepherds of the forest."

Emma tripped over a rock. They were probably getting close to the edge, if there were random stones lying around.

"Hook will have a heart-attack when he hears." she remarked, grinning a little. "He's had a thing against trees ever since the Old Forest near the Shire."

Gandalf glanced at her.

"And not you?" he sounded amused.

Emma shook her head, and shrugged.

"Well believe it or not, I've seen a few things in my world, too. When I was a baby, the only way my parents found to get me out of danger - don't ask, it's an insanely long story - was to pack me off inside a magic tree and hope for the best. Talking trees are just a slight variation of that, really."

"A variation of packing people away and hope for the best?" the wizard grumbled, no doubt lingering on the fact that she'd just mentioned her parents had given her up as a baby.

Emma laughed, a slight nervous edge to her voice.

"No, I mean... if magic trees and ogres and magic exist, why not talking trees?"

Gandalf chuckled.

"Well, in any case I am glad you are taking it well. Perhaps your open-mindedness will do you good, especially in Rohan. The Rohirrim are fine, hard-working and proud people, but they can also be ridiculously superstitious and fearful of the unknown."

"To the point where they might threaten to behead someone if you don't answer their questions immediately?" Emma asked, recalling Éomer's irrational anger when they had met.

"You sound as though you are speaking from experience."

"Whatever gave you that idea?" Emma answered, widening her eyes in an attempt to look innocent. It would do no good to explain how they'd very nearly started a conflict with the Rohirrim on their very first day in Rohan.

Gandalf was clearly unconvinced, but just then Aragorn joined in their conversation.

"What is the purpose of the Ents?" the ranger asked Gandalf.

"What purpose?" The wizard returned to his task of whacking away offensive bits of plant.

The ranger rolled his eyes.

"You would not leave our friends with Ents unless you had some ulterior purpose." he said dryly. "I know you, my friend, even when you have new clothes on. You have a plan."

Emma glanced sharply at Gandalf. Ulterior motive?

The wizard had his back to them, but a moment later he turned and gave a laugh.

"It is good to see that Eru's blessing did not change much of me, after all." he chortled. "Yes, you are right, Aragorn. I would not call it an ulterior motive, perhaps, but rather an opportunity to knock out two crows with a single stone. Not only are your companions safe, but there will be a chance for them to prove their worth. Fangorn forest is angry, yes, but not at you, or any of us. It is waking. And when the Ents wake up fully, they will find that they are strong."

Emma stared at him. Aragorn caught her eye, and she shrugged helplessly. Wizards, eh? she seemed to say.

"How do we know our friends are truly safe?" Gimli grumbled, hefting, for the umpteenth time, his ax a little higher while the others, for the umpteenth time, told him to lower it. "Of this forest I see only blasted, beastly, fishy tr-"

The forest gave a loud, almighty groan.

"I...I mean charming, quite charming forest!" he amended nervously.

Gandalf scowled.

"You would do well to abstain from insulting those who are about to save your friends' lives and quite probably your own, master dwarf. Merry and Pippin and their lady companions are quite safe. So stop your fretting."

The dwarf smouldered a little, grumbling as Gandalf swooped around and continued to wrestle their way out of the stuffy undergrowth.

"This new Gandalf is grumpier than the last one." he remarked, sounding put-out.

Emma grinned and slapped his shoulder, wincing as she forgot that he was wearing dwarven armour.

"He stills speaks in riddles, too. I guess for every change he went through he had to compensate by strengthening a trait he'd had even as the Grey Wizard." she mused, nursing her sore hand. "Would that mean he's less short-tempered but more fun now, I wonder?"

"Will you two hurry up?!"

Gimli snorted. Emma grimaced.

"Guess not."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Regina felt her eyelids droop for the fifth time in under two minutes. Time was passing so slowly that the war of the Ring could have been done and dusted and they would be none the wiser.

Regina lurched forward a little as Treebeard stepped down from a fallen tree trunk, clutching at a branch to keep from tumbling down his leafy form. Merry and Pippin were above her, no doubt nodding off as well, though heavens knew this particular form of transport was uncomfortable. Once, as queen and when that idiot Leopold was still alive, the royal court had received a visit from the Sultan of a far-off eastern realm. He had brought a multitude of gifts with him, one of them a camel he'd insisted Regina should ride. The memory alone made her nauseous.

Regina glanced at Snow, who was looking a bit peaky herself. Snow was gripping the branch that served as her seat, her face paler than usual and even a little green. She'd been sick earlier as well, the shock of seeing Gandalf again proving too much for her nerves, which like the others' had been frayed almost to the end as a result of having been captives of a band of uruks for three days.

Regina had to admit that she'd been pretty taken aback as well. Seeing their long-lost and presumed-dead friend was a shock to the system. And the worst part was that he'd given virtually no explanation for his survival either.

"I am back." he rumbled, with his twinkly eyes. "And you are in grave danger unless we can get you somewhere safe. Master Treebeard, will you please escort these four excellent persons to your home? I dare say you may find yourself in need of an entmoot, too."

Treebeard burrarrummed. "But... Young master Gandalf, such a thing has not happened for an age. The Ents are asleep."

Gandalf waved his new staff in dismissal.

"All the better, then. No doubt you will all have much to catch up on."

Merry licked his lips, and Pippin looked ready to faint.

"I don't understand..." Merry whispered. "How is this possible?..."

Regina finally found her tongue.

"But... What?" she asked weakly. "Gandalf, why are you here? Alive? We thought you were Saruman! I saw you fall - we all did!"

She nudged Snow beside her.

"Tell him, Snow! Tell him you saw him die!"

"That wouldn't be very nice, Regina." Snow had mumbled. "Besides, I'm not feeling too g-"

Thankfully, neither hobbit nor woman were in the way, so Snow could retch in relative peace without the added embarrassment of doing so on another person.

Regina wouldn't let go, though.

"But you're supposed to be dead!" she blurted. She should know. The number of times she'd had the unpleasant surprise of realizing that an enemy she'd had killed was not, in fact, dead.

Gandalf waved his hand around impatiently.

"And both you and Mrs Nolan are supposed to be in another world! How different are we, really?" he retorted, and Regina's heart skipped a couple of beats. How in Wonderland did he-? " The point of importance right now, Miss Mills, is that while your companions must abandon their search for you, which they will once I tell them you are all safe, and continue their quest down another path, you-" he pointed at the four of them, and Treebeard, with his staff, "must take yet another. War broils in Rohan, Gondor, and Dunland, but Isengard if the cause for much of it. Saruman is still breeding his armies and the time for battle draws near. I must be off, and so must you."

He addressed Treebeard this time. "My friend, I entrust my companions to you. Keep them safe."

He nodded at the Ent, who gave a him a vague kind of salute, before planting his staff in the ground, twisting it a bit, and muttering some strange words under his breath. He lifted his staff off the ground, and where he had stuck it in the ground there suddenly was a trickle of water, happily gurgling away and quickly turning into a stream.

"Drink, rest, but do so quickly. Treebeard will take you safety. Mrs Nolan... be careful. Miss Mills, take care not to speak too soon, and for Valar's sake, think before you act! Peregrin, don't ever talk with your mouth full, and good luck with the war. Meriadoc... Well, Meriadoc, keep your cousin out of trouble and there may be hope for the future yet. Farewell, all of you."

With that, he turned and strode into the trees. Snow spat out a mouthful of water.

"Tell David not to beat himself up, or anyone else! It wasn't his fault, the lovable git." she called after the wizard just as he disappeared. Regina doubted he had heard her, but if elves could see miles away and trees could talk, maybe wizards had superhuman hearing too.

Regina glanced at Snow again. The princess was definitely green, now.

"Do you need to stop?" she called up quietly.

Snow nodded, keeping her eyes on the horizon. She mimed not wanting to open her mouth lest something unsavoury should happen. Regina grimaced a bit and leaned down towards Treebeard's huge face.

"Erm... Mister Treebeard? Please could we stop? My, er..." What? Friend? Step-daughter? Oh, why complicate things? "Snow needs to stop."

Treebeard came to a stop, then watched curiously as Snow lowered herself gingerly to the ground. She vanished behind a tree, but the others heard the sounds of her retching. Regina winced. She wasn't comfortable using Treebeard as a camel, but at least she wasn't feeling seasick.

"You don't suppose there's anything... burrarrum, wrong with her, do you?" Treebeard suddenly asked, surprisingly softly considering he usually sounded like a mountain groaning under the sheer weight of rock.

"No, don't worry," she assured him. "She's been through a lot recently - we all have. I expect her body is just telling her it's fed up of being mistreated and malnourished."

The Ent rumbled again, thoughtfully this time.

Snow emerged from behind the tree a minute later, looking slightly less green, but still uncommonly pale and wan. She looked exhausted as well, but Regina suspected that in that particular aspect, neither she nor the hobbits could boast any better.

"I'm sorry, I don't have any of Gandalf's water," Regina said, a bit awkwardly. She still wasn't used to be or appear caring around Snow White.

Snow grimaced weakly.

"Shame." she mumbled. "I could really use some to get this horrid taste out of my mouth."

"Not to worry, young mistress Snow," Treebeard rumbled, "Burrarrum, my home is very near here, even by the standards of men. You can have all the entwater you wish, and you will also be safe for the night. Come, now, up you get. The White Wizard asked me to keep you safe, and safe is where I'll keep you."

They set off again, and this time Snow chose a spot next to Regina. It was getting darker now, and the temperature was dropping, so both women welcomed the extra warmth. Treebeard decided to lighten the sleepy mood by regaling them with a dozen of his self-proclaimed 'best' verses. Snow heard enough of the first one to vaguely register that it was a love poem between two trees - frankly weird, if you asked her - before her head lolled onto Regina's shoulder and she succumbed to sleep.

0o0o0o0o0o

The next morning, Regina woke up, wondering why she had leaves on her face. Then her blurry-with-sleep vision cleared, and she saw ached treetops, a leaf-strewn ground, and huge tree trunks around her. She was in a clearing, under a sprawl of tree roots that looked... Woven? Shafts of sunlight streamed down from the high treetops, and the air was so peaceful Regina wondered if she was dreaming. For a second, she couldn't remember how she had got here, then the hazy memories from last night came back to her. Treebeard (unintentionally) lulling them to sleep with his poetry, then his sudden halt as they reached their destination. She vaguely remembered being gently lowered to the ground before the Ent stalked off again.

Regina sat up and stretched, dislodging a few leaves from her body. She looked down at herself and grimaced, her clothes were little more than rags now. Well, perhaps she was exaggerating, but they certainly weren't in the best condition. She was wearing a pair of breeches - trousers, really - that the elves had given her in Rivendell, despite their misgivings about females wearing such garments. They had been very practical for traveling so far, but the strain of the road showed: they were stained, baggy, creased, and the fabric on the insides of her legs - where it had rubbed most when the uruk had carried her on it back - was thinner than the rest. Regina hoped it wouldn't tear any time soon; she was already in an impossible situation enough without having to deal with torn clothing as well.

Her shirt was all right. It was dirty, but at least the elven-make meant it kept the warmth well. And she still had her coat, too. If she hadn't, she probably would have had hypothermia during their captivity with the uruks. Regina wistfully thought of her dagger, the one Elrond had given her. It had to have fallen from her belt that day on Amon Hen, because the uruks hadn't taken it from her, yet she didn't have it. She hoped the others had found it and kept it.

Regina glanced around her, and smiled at the sight that greeted her eyes. Snow was sleeping peacefully, all traces of nausea gone, and curled up next to her was Merry, a stubborn frown on his face, but so small he looked almost like a child. An insect of some sort landed on Snow's nose, and she moaned faintly, batting it away. Regina smirked, and got to her feet. Black spots dotted her vision for a few seconds, and she had to hold a branch to steady herself.

She frowned. The last thing she needed right now was to feel dizzy.

"Don't worry, that happened to me when I got up," said a voice. Pippin was siting on a stone ledge, holding a giant flower vase and idly swinging his legs. "Treebeard says Good Morning, and feel free to have as much entwater as you like." The hobbit smacked his lips, looking the most satisfied Regina had seen him since one of Sam's excellent cooked breakfasts. "I've had lots, it's very good. Come and have some!"

He beckoned with the vase and Regina obeyed. She looked around in slight awe as she approached Pippin.

"Where are we?" she asked. "This doesn't look like the same forest we were in yesterday."

Pippin shrugged.

"It's Treebeard's home. We're still in Fangorn, but I don't think anyone like us has seen this bit of it before." he said. "He's away for now anyway, but he said he'd come back." he added, as though that settled matters.

Regina nodded and took the recipient he was offering her. It was surprisingly light, and didn't seem to be made of wood. Its size made it look like a vase, but she supposed it would be more of a cup - and a small one at that - for Ents.

With a little difficulty lifting it to her lips, Regina managed to take a gulp. She immediately felt a whole lot better. The wet-sawdust feeling in her mouth disappeared, and the fresh water tricked down her throat. Somehow, it felt as satisfying as any food as well.

"You seem remarkably blazé about all this." Regina noticed.

Pippin shrugged.

"What is there to be afraid of - right now, I mean? We're safe, under no immediate threat, all of us alive and-" he glanced at Snow, "-relatively well." He sighed. "It's something I've learned on this quest so far, even before we reached Bree. There's no use worrying about your situation, or the future. You just have to take it into your stride in any way possible, find your feet, and see it through. If you're always overwhelmed by what's happening to you, worrying about it might be the last thing you ever do."

Regina cocked her head at the hobbit. That was probably the strangest version of Social Darwinism she'd ever heard.

Pippin suddenly looked sad. "It's one of the things Boromir taught us when he was showing us sword fighting, "keep your head about you, or you might find yourself without one sooner than you'd want."

Regina smiled. "Sounds like him." she agreed.

They sat in amiable silence for a while, Pippin occasionally sipping entwater (Regina had already had enough to satisfy her thirst and, curiously, her hunger as well) and just letting the sun rise a little higher, waiting for their friends to wake up.

Merry was first. He sat up, stretched, and waved hello to the pair, taking care not to make any noise lest he should wake Snow, who was still fast asleep.

"Morning all," he yawned, casually shoving Pippin aside as he splashed water on his face. His curls were so stiff with grime, sweat and dirt that they barely bounced as he shook his head, and Regina felt much aggrieved when she realized she probably looked the same. She made up her mind to negotiate some privacy from the two hobbits as soon as possible to take a wash in the stream.

"Anything to eat?" Merry asked, though by now it was clear the question was more routine than actual hope.

Pippin handed him the ent-cup, still half-full with water. Merry eyed it doubtfully.

"Water? Is that all there is?"

Pippin nodded mournfully.

"Not a patch on good old food, ale or even Old Toby, but it fills up your belly all right. At least you won't feel empty anymore."

Merry sighed, and took the cup. He pointed it sternly at his cousin.

"If you ever let slip that a Brandybuck accepted a drink of water without arguing, I'll tell the Old Gaffer that those twelve bee-stings he got on his face last summer was because you put honey on his comb. And that you replaced the healing salve with butter."

Pippin groaned and clutched his stomach.

"Fine, fine." he growled. "Just stop mentioning honey and butter - or anything else that's remotely edible."

The morning passed in relative peace. The hobbits chatted occasionally, happy to just relax and count the falling leaves as they enjoyed the sudden rest after their ordeal among the uruk-hai. Snow woke much later than the rest of them. Regina thought she still looked a bit peaky, but put it down to lack of nourishment and dehydration. Snow gratefully gulped down some entwater a few times during the few hours that followed, and some colour had returned to her cheeks by the time midday arrived. Regina, as she had promised herself, asked the hobbits to give them some privacy while she and Snow took turns to wash in the stream - subtly, at first, then more bluntly as they failed to understand her meaning. When they did, Pippin blushed up to his ears, then stumbled backwards as Merry forcefully pulled him across the clearing and behind a large oak. Snow looked a bit worried at the lack of true isolation, but Regina doubted the hobbits would infringe on their honour. They came from the Shire, a place so happy, peaceful and stiff with moral and social expectations that tom-peeping seemed about as out-of-league as a can-can cabaret.

In the end, Regina sat with her back to Snow, loudly assuring her that she was keeping a lookout, while her stepdaughter bathed in the stream. A pool had collected at the bottom of the tiny waterfall, small, but deep enough to use as a make-shift bath. Regina heard the splash of someone jumping into water, then the sound of Snow swearing under her breath, followed by loud gasps and scrabbling limbs.

"Cold, is it?" she asked, smirking.

Snow let out another string of foul words she would never have even thought of in the presence of her pupils.

"Just you wait," came the answer, complemented by the increasing chattering of teeth. "Just you wait."

Regina snorted, and let Snow get on with her business. She absently gazed around the clearing, wondering if anything here could be used as soap. She dismissed the mud, loose bark and fallen leaves immediately, but soon found herself wishing for a fire. She'd heard tales of how people in the ancient world used cinders mixed with animal fat to keep themselves clean. The very idea seemed contradictory to the queen, but she supposed everyone had to make do with what they could, when they could.

Finally, Snow was done, and Regina turned around to see her damp and shivering as she re-fastened her cloak around her. Her fingers were shaking so much she was having trouble with the clasp, and Regina found herself doing it for her. Snow's fingers were icy-cold to the touch, and her recently-recovered pinkish cheeks were now nearly blue, as were her lips.

Regina frowned, cursing herself for her stupidity.

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea." she said. "You're undernourished and still shaky from the past few days. The cold could have made it worse for you, and you're fragile from yesterday's sickness-"

"Fragile?" Snow snorted. "I'm anything but fragile. You should know that, by now."

It was said with humour, but something in her voice made Regina look at her more keenly. Snow was fiddling with the clasp of her cloak, her damp hair shielding her eyes. Regina had the uneasy feeling she was hiding something.

"What's the matter?" she asked quietly.

"What do you m-"

Regina flicked a hand impatiently.

"Don't pretend, something's up. Tell me."

Snow gaped at her for a moment, her features completely blank. After a few seconds, she raised her arms a little, only to let them fall back to her sides.

"I just... I hate this place." she said finally. "Not just the forest, but this entire world. It's beautiful, sure, but so different to what we know. When we first came here I expected to fit in quite well, the Enchanted Forest seemed so similar, but...now I just feel...lost."

"I'm guessing you don't just mean physically," Regina said dryly. " 'Cause lost is precisely what we are."

"No! Just lost... Like I never know what to do to help, or say to anyone from here. I can't do anything without finding it's either considered strange or downright frowned upon. Do you know, every time I so much as touched David when we were with the fellowship, Boromir looked at me like I was a little more than a whore. He even took me apart once and said that it wasn't appropriate for couples to touch in public. I mean," she cried, starting to pace and gesture with her hands,"what kind of Victorian belief is that? Family is all I have left here, and somehow it's considered bad for me to show how much I love them. Even hugging Emma was becoming awkward, 'cause they still couldn't believe she's my daughter."

She was angry now, Regina could see. It wasn't often one got to see the kind, gentle Snow White get riled up, but when she did, it was serious.

"The fellowship is almost certainly over, now." she told her stepdaughter calmly. "Why are you still so angry?"

"Oh, it's not just that." Snow sighed, sitting down on a large root. "It's this whole. Damn. World." she gritted her teeth and punctuated her words by prodding a leaf with a stick. "Everyone here is so narrow-minded and old fashioned. Those elves at Rivendell were all hypocrites, despite their graceful smiles and manners; you should have seen the way they stared at me when we first got there: you would've thought I was a criminal, wearing trousers and carrying weapons the way I was. After all," her voice was dripping with acid sarcasm, "it's not appropriate for a woman to fight. It's not sensible to insist on joining a company embarked on a highly dangerous mission. It's not ladylike to laugh at a man's jokes."

Snow threw her hands up in the air and grunted out an exasperated groan so full of frustration Regina was having a hard time recognizing her. She nearly laughed, but settled for a restrained grin.

"If you'd spent more time at court, you'd know the nobility in the Forest has very similar views."

Snow snorted.

"Under different circumstance, I'd blame you for my lack of knowledge of such things, but now I'm actually relieved I wasn't brought up to be a meek, ladylike princess unable even to light a fire."

Regina hummed noncommittally.

"When I was queen, I sometimes thought I'd explode with frustration" she remarked. "Believe it or not, I actually had ministers to counsel me. I couldn't punish them appropriately even if they annoyed me, because then I'd have no-one to turn to. But their smug, patronizing faces are still part of my favourite torture fantasies." she muttered.

Snow shot her an alarmed, disbelieving look. Regina smirked.

"Joking. But if I could, I'd have made them my human stress-balls. Trust us, Your Majesty, we have extensive experience in this; Do not let yourself worry about the tax issue Your Majesty, we are better predisposed to deal with it; Perhaps it is not entirely appropriate for you to lead the host, Your Majesty, your gentle heart will quail at the sight of battle."

Snow laughed out loud.

"It's true! One of them actually said that. He was the exception to the rule: I turned him into a horse, and I rode him to battle. There wasn't an actual fight, diplomacy succeeded in the end, but it was worth it to see him skitter while we waited."

Snow laughed again, more quietly. On the other side of the clearing, Merry was calling out for permission to come back, which with a jolt reminded Regina that she had not yet bathed.

"Er, just a few more minutes!" she called back, slightly panicky at the thought of the two hobbits coming back at any given moment, even though she knew their honour far exceeded their impatience.

She bathed quickly (and bloody ******* hell was it indeed cold!) and washed her hair as best as she could. She couldn't do anything about the fact that it was still greasy and well past her shoulders, but she managed to get all the dirt, sweat and leaf debris out of her locks. Shivering, she climbed out and shrugged her filthy clothes back on.

"I wish we could wash these too." she mumbled, her teeth starting to chatter. "I feel like a tramp."

"A clean tramp." Snow mumbled, a piece of string in her mouth while her hands worked on trying to tie her hair up. She was failing miserably: her hair had grown considerably since their arrival in Middle-Earth and was now in theory long enough for it to be tied back, but short hair for thirty years had made practice scant, and locks kept falling back across her face. She shrugged and gave it up as a bad job.

They called the hobbits back and apologized for the delay. Merry and Pippin graciously waved their apologies away, and splashed water on their faces again as well, not particularly caring to jump in the freezing pool.

An hour later (though they didn't know that because neither of the women had a working watch anymore) Treebeard returned. He seemed quite urgent about something (for an Ent, that is. So far, Treebeard had demonstrated the urgency of a lazy iguana enjoying a nap in the sun).

"Up, up, little hobbits! Up, gentle ladies! Come, the forest is waking, we must leave."

Snow struggled up, having nearly fallen asleep again. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and yawned, firing questions at their saviour.

"Where are we going? Will we see our friends again? What were you doing this morning?"

Treebeard literally reeled as Snow's queries were hailed at him like bullets from a gun. He raised his branch-like arms and made an excruciatingly slow gesture for her to calm down.

"Bless my roots!" he rumbled. "Young ones! Always so hasty. We Ents know the meaning of patience. Perhaps, by the time young Master Gandalf returns, you will see its true value."

That short speech took nearly a minute for him to enunciate, and Regina had to fight the urge to roll her eyes not even half way through.

Without further ado, for fear of dusk creeping in, they climbed back on Treebeard's branches and settled for another long, uncomfortable ride. The one actual advantage of using Treebeard as a lift was that, despite his extreme slowness in almost every aspect of his being, he did walk faster than they could. Plus they wouldn't get tired as easily.

Treebeard carried them thus for a couple of hours. It was winter, so the sun set quite early, but just as it was starting to Treebeard finally answered some of their questions.

"The forest is waking because the trees are angry. Many of them are as old as time, and anger has festered in their hearts. They will harm you if they can."

Regina had a sudden flashback of a very hostile willow, back in the Old Forest. Trees were decidedly not to be underestimated in Middle-Earth then, she concluded, for something like the tenth time in the past two days.

"There are too few of the Ents to manage them, now." Treebeard sighed, his huge breaths causing the leaves in his beard to flutter violently and tear themselves from it.

"Why's that, then? Don't the Ents have children?" Pippin asked.

"There have not been any Entings for an age." Treebeard answered sadly.

"Why not?" Regina asked, her voice soft. Children were invariably a topic close to her heart these days.

"We lost the Entwives." Treebeard sighed again.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Snow said sympathetically. "That must have been very sad."

"How did they die?" Pippin asked, ever the curious and not very subtle tween.

"Die? No! We... lost them, and now we cannot find them."

Regina exchanged a bemused glance with Snow.

"I'm not really surprised, if they kept being wooed by last night's poetry." Regina mumbled barely audibly, though Snow, who was next to the queen, heard her. She elbowed her slightly, but couldn't stop a grin from stretching her lips.

"I don't suppose you've seen any in the Shire, have you?" Treebeard asked, sounding vaguely hopeful.

Merry looked uncomfortable, whereas Pippin frowned slightly in serious reflection.

"Well... What do they look like?" the hobbit asked.

"I...do not...remember."

Regina made an exasperated arm gesture at Snow, who was trying not to smile in face of Treebeard's sad and terribly tactless but comical attitude towards females.

"Was Gandalf serious about trusting this guy with us?" Regina hissed at her, apparently unable to adapt to Treebeard's way of living. "He can't even remember his own family."

Snow shushed her.

"I know Gandalf wasn't always there when we needed him, but that was hardly his fault." she whispered. "For now our best hope is Treebeard. We'll take it as it goes, okay?"

Regina opened her mouth to retort, but recalled her conversation with Pippin that morning and closed it again. She folded her arms and tried to block out Treebeard's dreary tales about squirrels and autumn colours.

0o0o0o0o0

Having finally emerged from Fangorn Forest, the pale wintry sun seemed unnaturally bright to Emma and her companions. They tramped out eagerly, keen to see and feel sunlight once more despite its harshness.

"So, um, are we walking to...where are we going again?"

"Edoras, the capital of Rohan."

"Right. Thanks. Are we walking there?"

Gandalf sighed. Emma knew by now, perhaps she had always known, that Gandalf saw her as something of a pesky, immature female irresponsible enough to let her son get snatched from her. She wasn't particularly offended by it: Gandalf seemed to think likewise of anyone (to various degrees) who wasn't an elf or Aragorn. In any case, his annoyance wasn't as pronounced as usual.

"No, Lady Swan, we are not walking."

He puckered his lips and let out a long piercing whistle that seemed to waver the longer it sounded. It went on for a few seconds, and Emma was wondering where the cabby was, when the distant sound of horses whinnying reached their ears. They all looked to their left, and a few of their number gasped in surprise and delight.

About a mile away (or so Legolas told them) five horses were galloping towards them, their coats and manes glossy even at that distance. The one leading them was a horse Emma had never seen before: it was faster than the others, pure white, and his whinny sounded the loudest. Emma had never been a particularly horsey person (she'd never even gone through the phase as a teenager), but as it came closer, her heart suddenly panged with desire for such a creature. Its nobility of face and stature made him look like the king - no, the god of horses. After a surprisingly short amount of time, the horses reached them, and the white stallion trotted over to Gandalf, perfectly at ease and looking as fresh as though he'd stepped out of the coiffeur-stables.

"Shadowfax." Gandalf said fondly, a broad smile stretching his wrinkled face. "Long has he been my friend in this troubled land."

Emma's first thought was that's a stupid name for a horse, but her second was I want one of those; where can I buy one?

Laeto nudged Emma's arm, no doubt on the lookout for sugar or apples. Emma felt absurdly guilty for having stared at Shadowfax so long without first patting her own mount.

"Hello, girl." she said softly. "Where on earth have you been, eh?"

"Shadowfax must have called them to him last night," Legolas said, realization dawning on his face. "I had thought that the horses sounded happy when I heard them after they disappeared, but never would have imagined they met one of the Mearas."

"Mearas?" David asked, stroking Laeto's soft nose.

"Shadowfax is one of them, and the lord of all horses." Gandalf answered. "It was thanks to him I travelled so quickly after Bilbo's birthday party. Had I walked or used another mount, the Fellowship would not have been formed for another year or so."

"So that's who you were with, girl." Emma said, running her fingers through Laeto's mane. The mare snickered. "High standards, huh?"

"But if Shadowfax called our horses and Gandalf was with him, who was that old man we saw last night?" David asked. "Was it Saruman after all?"

"Old man? At night, in the middle of the Rohirric plains and on the edge of Fangorn?" Gandalf said, frowning. "What is this?"

They told him about the old man Mulan claimed to have seen during her watch, and how their horses had apparently bolted because of him.

"Well I can tell you that it most certainly wasn't me." Gandalf said gravely. "You are fortunate indeed to have escaped Saruman's ire, for it was without a shadow of a doubt him."

"What was he doing there?" Emma asked. "If he's so powerful, why come to see us and then leave without doing anything? Why not kill us if we're such a bother to him?"

"Maybe he got fed up of waiting for his monsters to arrive and went to see what the delay was all about." Hook said, shrugging.

"We were also heavily armed, Emma." Aragorn said seriously. "Saruman is indeed powerful, but even he would think twice before attacking a large group of warriors with one of them on watch."

Emma was still doubtful, but she didn't argue with his theory. She had her own, anyway: what if Saruman hadn't come for the uruks, but for them? If Greg and Tamara had joined forces with the formerly-White Wizard and told him about Emma and her family, was it possible he'd also found out they were in the Fellowship he had tried so hard to destroy? The notion disturbed her more than she could say, but as ever, she kept quiet. The secret was getting heavier by the day. It would invariably get out one day that she had known all along Henry was with his captors and Saruman. How would her family ever forgive her? And Regina, especially Regina... If they ever found their lost companions again, Emma would owe it to the queen to at least admit what she knew about Henry. At least Gandalf was back, though. Maybe she could find a moment and talk to him privately about it. It was mostly his fault she carried the burden of a lie, anyway, the least he could do was help her bear it.

The others were mounting their horses - as ever, some with more trepidation than others. Mulan climbed on to Brindel first, then helped Hook by pulling him on with his good hand. The two of them seemed to get on fairly well, considering they'd spent their last encounter in the Enchanted Forest arguing and more or less threatening death to each other, as Emma recalled.

She stroked Laeto's neck once more.

"I'm not really good with horses, usually, but you and I are friends, yeah?" she whispered. "Jut don't throw me off. Or David, for that matter. We're not all that heavy anyway: we've only eaten, like, a few pieces of fruit and biscuit in the past week."

She swung herself on, followed by David, and moments later they were galloping across the plains, following Shadowfax and his impossibly fast hooves. For the first time, Emma truly let herself enjoy the ride. She'd never really galloped before, Aragorn preferring to canter as they rode towards Fangorn, and the experience was exhilarating. David's hold on the reigns kept her from falling off, her heart was lighter than it had been in ages, and the wound on her arm was nearly healed, barely twinging when she moved it.

Some time later, when the adrenaline of the gallop had started to wear off and Emma was staring to feel saddle-cramps in her thighs, they climbed a slightly steeper hill, before gazing out and spotting a city in the distance.

"Edoras." Gandalf announced, predictably. "And the golden Hall of Meduseld, where dwells Théoden, King of Rohan, whose mind is overthrown."

Emma shielded her eyes and squinted. She couldn't see much from here, but the city walls looked...wooden? Surely that wasn't a good idea when these infamous bandits she kept hearing about went around burning things... From that distance, Edoras certainly didn't look like much, but then who was she to judge when she could barely make out the houses from the King's palace Gandalf had mentioned?

"Saruman's hold on Théoden is now very strong. When we enter, be careful what you say. Do not look for welcome there." the wizard warned, kicking Shadowfax and setting off again.

"Well one thing hasn't changed," Emma mumbled. "Gandalf still knows how to make fabulous entrances and exits. Even Gold could've learned from him."

David chuckled.

"Still can't get straight answers from him either." he said. "D'you think all wizards are like that?"

"I don't know, and if I did I wouldn't care. Now persuade Laeto to move before Shadowfax runs off the face of this earth." she muttered, knowing she sounded grumpy but suddenly unwilling to think about Gold, because it usually made her think about Neal too, and Henry, whom she hadn't hugged for about five months now.

David clicked his tongue and spurred their mare forward. Emma tightened her grip as Laeto once more lurched into action, keeping her eyes on the horizon and praying with all her might that, against all odds, Rohan had something better in store for them than what they'd experienced so far.

Author's Note (again, sorry):

Now, this isn't my best chapter. Gods, but that book with Treebeard is a pain... I'm really not happy with it - some of the writing is so clunky it makes me wince. But writer's bock is terrible, and the only way to get over it is to actually write, even if it gets us nowhere. And I can always edit grammar/style specifics at another, more Muse-frequented time.

Also, the number of comments and PMs I've had, practically begging for some romance to occur in this story, is alarmingly high. I unfortunately do not have the skill to satisfy your wishes, but I'm sure some of you do.

Would anyone be interested in forming some sort of partnership with me? Job conditions: writing any romance scene (not anything above a low T rating, please) you fancy, then sending it to me, from whence we can work out where it can go, and I can edit any mistakes, story-related or otherwise. You get full credit for those scenes, and can suggest any tweaks to the story you wish - even in past chapters.

If you're interested, please PM, or tell me in a review. If you don't want to offer your extremely kind services publicly, please PM me.