A Light From the Shadows Shall Spring

At dawn, the golden light of the sun trickled in through the curtains and I wearily got up, knowing I wouldn't be able to sleep anymore, and also knowing I had to meet Aragorn and Boromir soon. I sighed, thinking of the strange look Aragorn had given me last night. I knew he had seen what I'd seen, and suddenly I felt slightly embarrassed. I felt as if he was maybe sympathetic towards me, and I did not want anyone's sympathy. I was slowly coming to realize that although I didn't understand any of this, or why it had happened to me, the fact was that I was here, and I had to deal with this. No one else could do it for me, and I didn't intend to make this anyone else's burden.

My first order of business was to take a bath. I gathered the things I would need and made my way into the bathroom connected to my room. I had discovered this the day after we had arrived, and I had most certainly been taking advantage of the luxurious room whenever I could. The floors and counters were beautiful marble and there were vases full of flowers scattered throughout the room. Large windows in the vaulted ceiling let in plenty of golden sunlight, and the bathtub was enormous. There was a mirror the length of the wall at one end of the room, and there was a seat built into the wall next to the tub. Upon entering, I saw four buckets full of hot water waiting by the tub, and I also saw the large, fluffy towel waiting for me on the seat next to the tub. After I had set my clothes down, I hoisted each bucket of water up and poured it into the tub, the steam trickling upwards and passing over my face. I inhaled and noticed the water smelled amazing. It was as if lilies, roses, daisies, and lavender had been infused into the water. I hurried to get undressed and get into the tub, washing and relaxing for a bit in the refreshing water.

The water began to cool down and I decided it was time to get out. I got dressed, putting on my pants and black v-neck shirt. I slipped on the boots I had found at the foot of my bed this morning and used the comb that I had also found this morning and removed the knots from my hair. I found the belt with the sword attached and put it around my waist, knowing I would feel more comfortable using a sword of this size.

I silently made my way back down to the clearing, remembering the way perfectly. When I arrived, I found Boromir and Aragorn already waiting for me. They were engaged in a casual conversation, and noticed me almost immediately. They both greeted me kindly, though Aragorn's eyes held traces of uncertainty. I knew instantly he was still thinking about last night, but he didn't say anything. After a quick review of yesterday's lesson, we began again.

I was instantly glad I had brought the smaller sword; the smaller blade was much easier to handle. I recalled the footwork they had taught me and I felt much more balanced than I had the previous day. I still wasn't nearly as good as the two men, but I was getting better.

We decided to take a break and go have lunch, seeing as we had all skipped breakfast in order to continue training. Although I was starving, I was glad for the early morning lesson because the new knowledge was still fresh in my mind.

On our walk back, Boromir had run off in a different direction to go fetch his horse before eating, and Aragorn and I walked in silence. For some reason my mind wandered back to last night, when Aragorn had seen one of my previous lives through a vision I'd had. I felt awkward knowing he'd seen that such a horrible thing had happened to me. I was disappointed to have to think of this now; I had avoided these kind of thoughts all day.

We continued walking, and I suddenly felt the air between us shift. Not into anything uncomfortable, but I could tell there was something Aragorn wanted to say. I stole a glance at him, and although his face didn't betray him, he didn't look at me, which confirmed my suspicion.

"Is there something you want to say, Aragorn?" I asked gently, not wanting him to think he'd offend me. He continued looking ahead of us, and his pace slowed a little. My footsteps slowed as well, and I could tell he was choosing his words carefully.

Without turning to face me he said, "The images I saw last night… I don't understand them. I've never seen anything like it. What was that place?"

In a quick moment, I realized Aragorn's admitting to being confused was most likely an oddity, and it was also most likely uncomfortable for him. I couldn't blame him for being confused, and I told him so.

"Where I come from, there's a place called Chicago. That's what you saw. It's a marvelous city now, just like it was before what happened. Many years ago, something terrible happened. People call it The Great Depression. It was a time when food and money were scarce, and a lot of people died because of it. Apparently, I was alive for that, and I was most likely dying from starvation. That was quite a common thing then, I think."

I had decided not to go into the details of why The Great Depression actually happened, knowing Aragorn wouldn't understand the technicalities of it all. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Aragorn look down at his feet. We had stopped walking now and his brow furrowed. "That is quite a horrible thing, and I'm sorry you had to endure it, my Lady."

I smiled warmly at him and lightly put my hand on his arm. "You don't have to be sorry, Aragorn. It's not your fault. It's over and done with. If it hadn't been for that vision, I never would have even known about it."

I smiled at him, even though he didn't meet my eyes, and then I began walking towards our destination once more. As an after thought, I turned and playfully said, "And you can call me Cissy, you know. All this "my Lady" business is so stiff and formal. I consider you a friend." I didn't keep my gaze on him long enough to see his reaction, but the air instantly felt lighter, and we continued on in silence.

In the days to come, nothing too incredibly odd happened. I trained with Aragorn and Boromir for almost a week, and when they were satisfied with my progress, I moved on to learning how to shoot a bow and arrow. I found out the man named Legolas was the elf who had volunteered to go with Frodo, so it was nice to get to meet another member of the Fellowship.

Legolas immediately intrigued me. He was so light and airy, yet his presence was also incredibly powerful. He moved swiftly, and no movement was ever wasted. I found myself getting distracted by how in awe of him I was, but eventually became somewhat accustomed to him.

My first day with a bow was utterly tragic. I was clumsy and uncoordinated, and couldn't launch the arrow from the bow for anything. When I did finally manage to release the arrow properly, my aim was terrible, and there was no telling where the arrows actually ended up. I was infinitely grateful for Legolas' patience, and by quitting time on the first day, my arms were incredibly sore.

I did not improve much by the day we were to leave on our journey, nor had I seen much of Gandalf, Lord Elrond, or Aragorn since the previous week, so I didn't get the chance to ask the questions I'd wanted to, but seeing as two of the three were going on the journey, I hoped that I would be able to at least have some questions answered eventually.

It was early when all ten of us gathered near the entrance to Rivendell, the sun not even fully risen in the sky. An abundance of elves, men, and dwarves had all come to see us off.

I felt fully rested, not having had any strange dreams for several nights now, and I had everything I needed in a pack that had been yet another gift from the elves. We all gathered around the entrance and waited for Lord Elrond to say his final parting words.

He looked upon us with seriousness in his eyes and stated, "The Ring-bearer is setting out on the Quest of Mount Doom." He then looked to each of us individually and continued, "On you that travel with him, no oath nor bond is laid to go further than you will. Farewell. Hold to your purpose. May the blessings of Elves, Men and all Free Folk go with you."

Lord Elrond gestured us on with a trace of a smile, and we all turned when Gandalf spoke. "The Fellowship awaits the Ring-bearer."

I looked to Frodo, as did everyone else. He looked scared, and I couldn't blame him at all. I was scared too. There was no telling what was going to happen on this journey, and I had a sinking feeling in my stomach, although I tried to ignore it.

Frodo turned to face Gandalf and slowly made his way to the front, the rest of us closing the gap behind him. I stayed toward the back of the group and noticed Aragorn hesitated. I felt intrusive as I saw an exchange of glances between him and Arwen. I immediately sensed her sadness, and knew they must have loved each other for a long time. I felt bad for both of them. I knew exactly how it felt to watch someone you love slip away right before your very eyes. What an incredibly unfair thing it was.

I quickly turned and walked in front of him, not wanting him to know I'd witnessed such a private event. He stayed silent for a long time after we'd left, and I didn't attempt to coax any conversation out of him.

We walked for an incredibly long time. We passed ancient ruins, and crossed both flat and hilly land, the sun beating down on us the entire time. When we reached the top of a particularly steep hill, Gandalf informed us we would be following our current path for 40 days.

It seemed like a lifetime to me, and finally, the full realization that this was my life now hit me. I didn't need to worry about getting back to New Zealand to meet my family in two month's time, because my life now consisted of staying in Middle Earth to make sure I fulfilled my purpose. It was a strange notion to have, and it was strange to have to drop priorities that were once my entire world, only to have them immediately and forcibly replaced by things that were much more complicated than they seemed. I still worried about my family immensely, but at the same time realized I had no control over what happened with them now, and I would most likely never know.