Lord Of The Rings Fan Fiction ❯ Bargaining with Death ❯ Teaching ( Chapter 2 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
”Normal talk”“Elvish”’The creature’s thoughts’

Chapter 2 Teaching
Boromir sucked in small breaths slowly, the weight of the animal forcing down on his chest. Despite his many battles he had never been knocked down and had death staring him in the face. The creature’s breath wasn’t foul like an orc and its long incisors were cleaner than the warg’s he had seen. Boromir could feel the pressure on his chest beginning to constrict the flow of air and dark spots begin to appear in his vision. If they didn’t get the creature off him soon he would be unconscious or dead.Lord Elrond stepped forward to crouch near the animal’s head leaving a sizeable distance between him and the predator. He could see Boromir struggling not to pass out and hastened to try and connect with the animal.
My friend. We mean you no offense or harm. The young human you are standing on is naive and foolish and didn’t respect you. However we cannot allow you to kill him. Would you be so gracious as to step away from him? Then I will personally see to your wounds and see that you are fed.
The only reply Elrond received was a deepening of the growl coming from the animal’s chest. He shook his head and stood. “I’m afraid the animal has passed beyond my assistance. We will have to remove it with force, however, try not to kill it. The poor creature has been driven almost insane by some experience and the antagonising of it will only cause it to strike out more.” “Wait!” Frodo scampered forward through the mob of the council that had presented a thick barrier between the creature and the ring. By now Frodo now had the ring in his pocket and he could feel the whispering that had been spurring the council into harsh words had ceased. “Let me try! I believe I can coax her off!”“You young hobbit?” Lord Elrond said disbelievingly. “Why do you believe that you can aid this creature? And what makes you say it is female?”Frodo however ignored the questions of the elf lord and knelt in the place where the elf lord had crouched. He could see pain and anger in the animal’s eyes as well as confusion. Obviously the poor creature had no idea where it was and the wound on its back had split wide open, blood now dripping down through its sleek white fur and pooling onto the marble courtyard.“Here.” Frodo held out his hand despite the gasps of protest from the on looking council. “We aren’t going to hurt you girl. We just want to help you. I promise on my life and honour that no one but I and Lord Elrond will touch you. So why don’t you come with me?”
Frodo reached out and placed his hand on the head of the animal. He was surprised at the softness and warmth of the fur but even more surprising was the animal’s reaction. Her face immediately stopped snarling and relaxed and the growls that had been emanating from her chest ceased until they were small purrs.
“That’s it girl. You don’t want to kill this stupid human. They are just big and ignorant and didn’t realise that you were an intelligent creature. That’s it, come on.” Slowly, with one large paw after the other the animal moved off Boromir until she was standing next to the hobbit.
Frodo’s hand had slipped down her neck to rest on her back as she was the same height as the Halfling. The small child-like hand ran through the fur on her back gently, smoothing the ruffled strands and providing reassurance. Frodo then turned and the animal turned with him, her large body almost dwarfing his. The council parted before the Halfling and his new animal companion.
****“Well. That was interesting.” Lord Elrond said to Gandalf. “I thought about nearly every possibility, however that was beyond my expectations.”“We cannot allow for every possibility. Everything happens for a reason. What do you suppose the creature was? It was nothing I have seen before and I have travelled far and wide.” Gandalf removed his hat and sat down.
“I believe it was a mammal. It is obviously a predator, judging by its size and the shape of its fangs. I do not think that it is a spy of Sauron. It seemed too innocent and naive for it to be a creature of the Dark one.” Lord Elrond looked to his companion and the turned to his many shelves of books, hoping to find an answer.
“hmm.”  Gandalf blew on his pipe for several moments, deep in contemplation. “Did you see the way she reacted to Frodo? One would think that an animal, blinded by pain would respond only to this willing to heal or harm it, yet Frodo meant neither. He was simply there and she trusted him implicitly. She was wary of even Arwen who only radiates kindness and is incredibly gentle towards animals. The animal is a conundrum.” Lord Elrond looked up from consulting a book.
“Could the animal possibly be? Are you suggesting that she....” The elf lord all but threw the book to the table and turned to a pile of books, searching for another. “They haven’t been seen in Middle Earth since the First war of the ring. Sauron wiped them out Gandalf. To suggest that one of their race survived...”
“It is but mere speculation Lord Elrond. It would fit however... Despite the fact that the creature seems to have no idea where it is, her reaction to Frodo is very telling. After all, the legends say that they only appeared when there was great danger to the earth itself or when an innocent was involved in matters far beyond them. And we have both those circumstances. You cannot tell me you do not feel the ground, plants and very air screaming in agony from near the Black Gates and Frodo is an innocent. He has only brought the ring to Rivendell as requested and is unknowing of the ring’s history.”The elf lord sank with seeming weariness into a chair and looked at Gandalf, pain reflected in his eyes.
“If she is what we believe she is, she cannot stay here Gandalf. She must go with Frodo. To separate them would be the end of everything.”
“I agree. With time she will discover her other forms, there should be thirteen of them. Of course as her first form is one unknown to us, they could be entirely different to the legendary forms. And I believe the others shall discover that she is not just a dumb animal very soon...”
****Frodo suppressed laughter as he hid on the roof of one of the outbuildings in Rivendell. Since the first failed meeting of the council of the ring, he had spent almost all his time with the creature. Once Lord Elrond had healed her, Frodo and the other hobbits had made it their mission to discover what the creature could do. So far they had learnt that it was incredibly fast and could smell them from great distances. Frodo had also learnt during the first night of her healing that she made an interesting noise if rubbed and scratched behind her ears and under her chin.
Suddenly Frodo felt a warm wet nose on his pointy ear and he gave out a screech. The creature went down on the roof and began rolling around, her mouth open wide. The hobbits had learnt that, that was her form of laughter.
“I’m guessing she found you Frodo! It took her less than a minute this time. She can jump really high as well.” Merry shouted up to the pair who were sat peering down at the other Halfling. “You really should come down now. Pippin and Sam are being taught how to fight by Strider.” The extremely curly haired Hobbit ran off in the direction of the training field.
“Come on girl. Let’s go watch!” Frodo turned around and was about to climb down the trellis, the way he had got onto the roof when he was picked up by his shirt collar and placed back on the roof. “What’s wrong? Don’t you want to watch?” He looked into the animals eyes and was surprised when she began nodding her head towards her back. When the Hobbit still didn’t get the message she rolled her eyes and bumped his side with hers.
“You want me to get on your back?” Frodo asked tentatively. The creature began nodding her head up and down. “I guess I could. Are you sure it’s safe?” She shrugged her shoulders and then began to nuzzle the hobbit once more. “Alright, alright.” She lay down and Frodo clambered onto her back, finally sitting just behind her shoulder blades, two handfuls of fur grasped for security. “Gently down. I don’t want another injury.” The creature stood back up slowly, wary of the precious load on her back. She could feel the Halfling grasping her fur tighter and once she was sure he had a good grip she leapt from the outbuilding to the one opposite. The hobbit on her back let out a cry of alarm and then began to laugh once he realised they hadn’t plummeted to the ground.  She almost snickered and then threw herself off the roof and onto the earth. They landed with her crouched on the ground her tail lazily flicking in the air. Then she ran to the training grounds, her long limbs moving easily over the uneven ground. The power she had in this body was enormous compared to that she had, had in her human form. She knew that she wouldn’t have died if she had, had half the power of this creature.
When they arrived at the training field she slowed to a trot, Frodo still secure on her back but they had beaten Merry to the grounds. The little journey from the outbuildings took the hobbits ten minutes due to their small stature and they had just completed it in two.
“No fair Frodo!” Merry panted. “She helped you out.” Frodo just laughed at his friend who was quite red in the face and breathing heavily.
“It’s not my fault Merry, you should try making friends with a fast, intelligent creature and hang around with her more than Pippin. It might be more beneficial to you.” Frodo slid off her back.
Once the hobbit was safely on the ground she began to think of ways that she could tell them her name and what she was. There was only a certain amount of times one could hear themselves being referred to as “she”, “the creature” or “the animal”.  Ignoring Frodo and Merry’s argument she turned her attention to Aragorn, Pippin and Sam...who were looking at the dirt whilst Aragorn drew in it with a stick!!!
‘That’s it! Finally’ She grabbed Frodo’s sleeve gently in her teeth to get his attention and then nudged him over to the small group. Merry trailed behind still slightly red in the face. Aragorn looked up when they arrived.
“Can I help you Frodo?” Aragorn asked as he stared into the hobbit’s face. “I don’t know. She suddenly pushed us over here.” Frodo answered as he watched her.
She wiped her paw over the drawing Aragorn had drawn and then using one claw began to draw in the dirt.“A...M..A..T..E.. what is she doing?” Pippin asked “I didn’t know animals could write.” “I don’t think she’s a normal animal Pippin.” Frodo replied distractedly. “Amaterasu.” She nodded when he said it. “Amaterasu. You are an Amaterasu.” The animal’s face turned into a frown and she shook her large head. “You are called Amaterasu.” She nodded and nuzzled the hobbit.
“I have never seen a creature like this before. Amaterasu, what are you?” Aragorn asked as he looked at her with amazement. Again she began to draw in the dirt. “A tigress? This word is as foreign to me as you are. However, it is an honour to meet you Amaterasu the tigress.” Aragorn stared into her eyes as he spoke and for a second he could have sworn her eyes turned a pale pink colour however he blinked and they were the golden, brown that they had always been...