Disclaimer: I do not own LOTR

It was silent as we rode towards the burning carcasses. I scrunched up my face in disgust at the sight of a severed orc head on a spear, thrust into the ground, but my heart leaped in fear at the sight of all the bodies. Were Merry and Pippin in there...?

If something happened to them, Eomer was going to pay.

Gimli started going through the pile with his axe, then gulped. "It's one of their wee belts," he said, holding it up.

"No. No it's not. It can't be," I inisisted, staring at it, wishing it would vanish.

Legolas laid a comforting hand on my shoulder, and murmured a prayer in Elvish. I scrambled to remember...did this happen in the movies? Or was it because - once again - I appeared here and somehow changed it? Like Gandalf dying...now don't even open that can of worms...

Maybe I did something during the fight...Maybe Boromir defended me and they wouldn't have been taken if he hadn't...Maybe they would still be alive...

"STUPID MAYBES!" I yelled to the sky.

Aragorn kicked an orc helmet and fell to the ground, letting out a yell. I bit my lip and turned away, facing towards the forest. It would have been mayhem during the fight. Maybe...just maybe...

"Aragorn," I said suddenly. "D'you think they went all ninja and somehow escaped?"

Strider froze and stared at the ground. "Escaped..." he murmured, tracing something on the ground with his hand. "A hobbit lay here, and the other." He looked up. "They crawled." Eagerly, I followed behind Aragorn as he bebop-ed around the field, staring at something I couldn't see.

"Their hands were bound." He caught sight of an axe. "Their bonds were cut." He held up a broken rope in his hands.

"So they're alive?" I asked, daring to hope.

"The tracks lead away from the battle! Into... Fangorn Forest," Aragorn said, staring at the gnarled and imposing trees in front of us.

"I was right!" I cheered. "They are alive!"

Gimli, on the other hand, gasped, "Fangorn! What madness drove them in there?"

I blinked. "That does not sound like Fangorn is a good thing..."

"I've heard many stories about that place, lass," Gimli rumbled. "None of them good."

"Joy. Rejoice," I muttered sarcastically under my breath, but followed my three friends into the forest. "I still want some chocolate."

A/N

Yes! I'm alive! Rejoice! *throws confetti* Seriously though, marching band and schoolwork have been taking over my life. Marching band is over (GOLD MEDAL! ALL 5 STARS!) but jazz band has begun!

Yeah, sorry about the shortness of this chapter. I don't know when the next one will be up (NaNoWriMo, yah know), but I'll try to get it up soon.

So how's band been going for all of you? :)

~Eva Sirico~

YOU MIGHT BE A BAND GEEK IF...

...you constantly sing old band tunes three or four years after graduating.