The Girl and the Orc - (A Middle Earth Story)

The Marywell

The few more miles took more than some six hours. They couldn't move near as fast as they normally would with Bogwater's injured leg. The group also had to take frequent breaks. All three of them were exhausted by the time they reached the maritime village. The village was rich with their fishing exports and their boat-making skills. It was a prosperous, strong city. Their economic successes had allowed them to build up many strong buildings and homes made out of heavy blocks of stone. It was definitely a beautiful place to be. Everyone seemed happy to be there. Children played in the streets, adults conversed and traded goods.
Bogwater had, of course, pulled up his hood as soon as they walked into the village. Rain and Havish lead him by the arms. A young boy ran up to the trio, noticing that they had a wounded person with them.
"Do you need help? Is he hurt bad?" questioned the small boy with worried eyes.
"He's doing a lot better now, son," smiled the old man, "However, we need to get to Rivendell, and fast. Can you help us?"
The boy nodded, running off into the crowd of adults surrounding a booth of breads being sold. "Dad! Dad! We need help!"
A tall, disheveled looking man with bright green eyes and brown hair came walking out of the crowed. He smiled kindly at his small boy, "What's wrong, Xiaver?"
The boy, Xiaver, pointed to the three wanderers, "They have a hurt man, but they have to get to Rivendell fast."
The man looked up at the trio, approaching them with the same kind smile. "Hello, my name is Fredrik, this is my son, Xiaver."
"Hello," Rain smiled, "I'm Rain. This one here is Bogwater, the old man is called Havish."
"What seems to be the problem?" Fredrik asked.
"We need to get to Rivendell. We have urgent business there," Havish explained in loose details. They didn't want the man to know everything about themselves, of course.
"I have an old boat I don't use anymore," Fredrik stated, "It's old, but it'll get the job done."
"We'd appreciate it," Havish nodded, "What's the price?"
Fredrik shrugged, "The ship served me good for a long while. A couple gold coins and she's yours."
"It's a steal!" Havish grinned as he fished out four gold coins from his pocket. He handed them to the man, "Will this be enough?"
After the man bit one of the coins to check it's authenticity, he nodded over to one of the brick buildings, "I keep her over here. Follow me."
The three obeyed, following the man and his boy. They found themselves at a small port near the edge of the river. Several ships were lined up in a row. Most of them were nice, new boats. Fredrik must have been one of the men who succeeded with the fishing business.
The boat that they had bought was called the Marywell. It was a small boat with a long hull. She only had one sail, but they didn't need much to get to the Elf Kingdom.
"Perfect!" Havish cried cheerfully.
"I'm glad ya like her. She's a good loyal boat for sure."
"It will suit us well."
"Would you like to stay for dinner?" Xiaver piped up in a small voice.
"We would love to," the old man said, "but we really must be on our way. We can't be anymore late."
"Understandable," Fredrik nodded, "On you're way back though, please stop by again. It's always nice to have company over."
"We would like that very much," Rain grinned at their new friends.
Rain and Havish carefully helped Bogwater into the boat first. Then Rain and Havish climbed in. Fredrik helped push them out into the river. The boy and man waved to them as the trio were swept down the river by the current.
"Goodbye and good luck!" Fredrik farewelled.
"Thank you!" Rain and Havish waved back in union. They were getting closer and closer to Rivendell now. Soon the village was out of sight. They didn't even have to row the oars, Marywell's sail caught the wind and helped speed them along with the current.
Rain looked back at her Orc friend, "Are you okay?" He hadn't pushed his hood back yet, usually the moment they were home free he would move it back out of his eyes.
"I'm fine, tired, but I'll be okay."
Rain smiled, "Good. We're almost there, Bog. I'm so excited for you!"
All Bogwater did was nod. He couldn't help but be nervous. Would it really work? Could he really be free from the curse of being an Orc? He wanted to be human so bad, more so now that he met Rain. He couldn't understand why she made him feel so happy inside, but she did. He wanted her to feel happy inside because of him too. He prayed that this would work. Bogwater wanted to be finally free.
Havish had noticed that Bogwater was unnaturally quiet. The old man figured that the Orc was nervous, probably about the fact that the magic door he spoke of wouldn't work. Havish hoped that it would, he would hate for his new friends to be disappointed.
Rain looked at the sky as they sailed along the river. The sun was out and the sky was a beautiful blue color. She took that as a good omen. The girl knew in her heart that this would work. Her friends would be happy, and she would be happy. Rain was so anxious to see Rivendell for the first time, she had heard tales about how beautiful a place it was. Now she could see it's beauty for herself, with her own eyes. Nothing could stop them now. They were so close to finally accomplishing their goals. It felt like this journey had taken a life time. She had traveled through the pits of Mordor, through forests, across mountains and rivers, and survived being attacked by spiders and Orcs and the mysterious hooded creature that hunted them. Soon it would all be over. They would be safe, no longer being hunted. Her and her friends could live out the rest of their days in peace. They wouldn't have to worry anymore. Rain felt as if her life was finally looking up. She had been through so much, and now she could finally rest. Not a lot of girls could say they survived the horrors she had faced. Few could say they survived going to Mordor and back. She was one of the lucky few.
The three friends sat quietly as they sailed down the peaceful river. They soon sailed up to two men statues. Their hands held out in a salute.
"Woah," Rain gave a sharp gasp as they paced underneath it. The statues were huge.
"It means we're getting even closer," smiled the old man. "At this rate we should be there in a day."
Rain gave a huge grin.
Finally.