Gandalf froze as I froze, sensing a presence. I immediately looked to the window, placing myself between it and Frodo as Gandalf went to check it out. Yelling, he pulled up a cowering hobbit. Frodo frowned as he shook his head.
"Sam?!?" Gandalf glared down at the little hobbit.
"What did you hear?" Whimpering, the hobbit, Sam, told us vaguely about what we had been talking about. I tugged Sam away from Gandalf as he thought for a second.
"Gandalf, really... We have bigger problems than dealing with this guy. What should we do?" Gandalf grabbed his staff and hat as he looked between the 3 of us.
"We have to take the ring to Rivendell... Era, take them Bree and wait for me there." I swallowed hard as I followed Gandalf to the door.
"But... I don't know if I can!" He turned and smiled at me.
"Of course you can..." He nodded at my necklace. "Just rely on your energy for guidance." I nodded and turned to Frodo and Sam as Gandalf left.
"Get some sleep tonight, boys. We leave at first light." Turning to face Frodo, I lowered my gaze. "Did your uncle leave any maps? I don't know my way, and I'd hate to get us lost or worse..." He nodded and lead me to the study and pointed to the desk.
"There... Goodnight, Era." I smiled as he left.
"Goodnight." Studying the map, I clutched the necklace and focused on the energy stored in it. Suddenly, the room darkened, and I gasped as I looked at myself, who was sitting across the room from me.
"Well, it's about time!" She stood and stared down at the maps. "You realize you travelled thousands of miles in a matter of weeks?" She turned her head and looked at me. "Why'd you run away?" I swallowed hard and felt myself frown.
"I didn't run away! I just... I..." My energy gave me a stern look. "Okay, I ran away... So what? I just needed to get away from the pressure Father's been putting on me for a few days!" My energy rolled her eyes.
"A few days indeed... You've been gone for weeks!" I huffed and shook my head.
"So, this is the guidance I get? How to live my life?" I started to pull myself back into reality. "Whatever... Some help you are." She grabbed my hand and pulled me back.
"Don't you talk to me like that! I changed your fate, Era, daughter of Thorin!" I tugged my hand free and crossed my arms.
"Well then... Help me out here! Your work isn't done yet." She rolled her eyes and held out her hands.
"Give me your hands, and I'll pass into you. Then, you'll be able to consult me without having to focus on my energy." I sighed and nodded.
"Alright, but under one condition." Her jaw dropped as I spoke. "No more nagging me about my choices. If I want or need your opinion, I'll ask for it." She smirked slightly as she sighed.
"I knew you'd say that..." She finally nodded. "I have a feeling we're going to get along just fine." With that, I took her hands and closed my eyes as she began to flow into me. I immediately felt her bond with my life energy and passed out.
As soon as Sam and Frodo were up and ready, we set off towards the east side of the Shire. Before noon, we had reached some of the furthest reaches of one of the fields on the outskirts of the Shire. There, Sam stopped dead in his tracks.
"This is it..." I turned to face him as he shook his head. "This is the furthest I've ever been from home." Looking at Frodo, I realized he must have felt the same way, but he wanted to go beyond the Shire, too. I nodded and approached him carefully.
"I know how you feel, Samwise. I haven't been outside of the woods of Lothloria in over 50 years..." Smiling at him, I extended my hand to help him over some broken stalks. "We'll be right here every step of the way." Frodo smiled and nodded in agreement, making Sam smile.
"Oh, very well..." He took my hand and carried on through the field. Before long, I realized we were nearing the main road, which meant we were a little ways away from the hidden road Father told me about. I started to vear us in that direction when I heard a rustle in the field. I froze and looked around.
"Don't move..." My harsh whisper made Sam and Frodo both freeze dead in their tracks. Looking around, I searched for the source of the noise. I leaped through the air and caught two hobbits before they reached us. Throwing them to the ground, I watched the hobbits frown as they looked at each other.
"Frodo... Sam? What're you doing here?" I frowned as I looked between Sam and Frodo.
"Friends of yours?" Frodo nodded.
"This is Merry and Pippin." The two hobbits looked at me and took a step away from me.
"Oh, no... It's the girl who caught us getting into the fireworks last week!" Behind them, dogs started barking. Sam glanced at the spilled basket of vegetables.
"Were you in Farmer Brown's garden again?" As they argued, I lead them through the field, trying to throw the dogs off our scent. Before long, we hit a ditch and rolled down into the main road. I silently cursed myself for not vearing towards the hidden road, like Father said. Sitting up, I dusted myself off and smelled the air. Something smelt vaguely familiar and cold, making me shiver.
"Get off the road!" I jerked to attention as Frodo yelled and followed the hobbits to a small riff in the ground, waiting to see what would happen.
YOU ARE READING
Run It Back Again (Part 2)
FanficFor 45 years, Era has been alone. Upon reaching the Grayhavens, she found that she really was the last shapeshifter. When the elves leave her behind, Era decides that things were better long ago, when she had her mother and her friends. But, she...
