There Is No Time For Fear (Aragorn x oc)

three

Iston POV

"Frodo, come and help an old man. How's your shoulder?" Gandalf calls to Frodo, who joins us at the front of the group.

"Better than it was." Frodo responds.

"...And the Ring ? You feel its power growing don't you? I've felt it too. You must be careful now. Evil will be drawn to you from outside the Fellowship and I fear from within."

"Who then do I trust?"

"You must trust yourself. Trust your own strength."

"What do you mean?" Frodo looks confused.

"There are many powers in this world for good or for evil. Some are greater than I am and against some I have not yet been tested."

"Gandalf, stop speaking only in riddles." I say as Frodo looks more and more lost in the conversation. "Frodo, there may come a time where the evil in the world overpowers the good, and in that time, you may not have allies you can trust. And there may be a time where Gandalf and the fellowship may not be at your side. You carry a large burden but you are strong. That is all Gandalf is trying to say."

The hobbit nods.

"As if that was less of a riddle." Gandalf mumbles under his breath to me, elbowing me.

"You can be so dramatic at times, old man." I say back. He gives me a look. Gandalf and I are old friends. 

"You are older than I am!" He says loudly and laughs.

"You're older than Gandalf?" Frodo asks, wide eyed.

"In some ways yes, in others no." I say. It is true. 

"You don't look that old."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Old or not, you are a pain in my side." Gandalf jokes.

"And I always have been." He shakes his head at me.

"Old man." Legolas says coming up next to me. He could be my brother with the amount of time we spent together as children.

"I'm barely older than you!" I respond. I'm not sure when this became a conversation about my age. 

"It still counts". He raises his eyebrows and I can't help but laugh.

 A smile spreads across my face. All my life, I've tended to keep to myself. I know many people throughout Middle Earth but have very few I would consider true friends. Being here, surrounded by the fellowship, it makes me question what I have been missing out on. These people constantly make me feel welcome. 

"Ah! The walls of Moria!" Gimli announces. "Dwarf doors are invisible when closed."

"Yes Gimli! Their own masters cannot find them, if their secrets are forgotten." Gandalf adds.

"Why doesn't that surprise me!" Legolas says and I give him a look. Mirkwood elves will never learn. 

"Hey!" Gimli says in protest.

I walk along the wall, running my hand across the stone.

"Ithildin," I say, brushing off the wall. "It mirrors only starlight and moonlight."

I look up and watch the moon come out of the clouds just in time. The light shines on the stone and it glows brightly, revealing an arched doorway.

"It reads "The Doors of Durin, Lord of Moria, Speak Friend and Enter," Gandalf says, pointing at the writing with his staff.

"What do you suppose that means?" Merry asks.

"Oh it's quite simple. If you are a friend, you speak the password and the doors will open". He holds his staff against the door. "Annon Edhellen, edro hi ammen!"