So you don't sue me..... IT'S NOT MINE!!!!
A/N - What can I say? This is the final chapter :( Thank you to everyone who has left me a review! Special thanks at the end! But before I begin, I have to say a big thank you to Teasel, whose wonderful story provided the inspiration for part of this chapter, and so got me writing it again!
Chapter 15 - The calm after the storm.....
A black cloud obscured the sunlight from Minas Tirith on the final day of the Official Olympics of Middle-earth. It was a mood reflected in the beings in the Olympic village - a melancholy happiness clouded by the sadness that they were at the end of the adventure. The races had all been won, the events had all produced their victors, there was no alcohol left south of Lothlorien and so there was nothing left to do now but attend the closing ceremony and then head back home.
Home, thought Sam. Proper home. No orcs or them wild men. No killin', no burnin'..... just home. The hobbits would be remaining in Minas Tirith for two days after the proceedings had concluded, to say farewell to their friends. After all, there was no hurry for them to return, as they had everything they needed with them now. Including Rosie and baby Elanor, thought Sam happily. That was something he hadn't thought he'd live to see when the quest of the Ring was in its final stages. But of course that was all behind them now, and little remained to tell of it, save the maimed hand of Frodo and the lasting friendship of the Fellowship. Oh, and Gollum.
Yes..... Gollum. He had of course been making further attempts to attack the hobbits. No particular reason now, just a need for a hobby. Perhaps he should take up fishing!
Just in time for second breakfast, the dark clouds passed into the east and the promised bright sunshine was revealed. The ceremony was due to begin after luncheon, and was to consist of a parade of representatives from every group of beings on Middle-earth, including all of the medal winners, followed by the dismantling of the flame. But to expect it to go that simply would be expecting too much, so it would be safe to assume that there would be a few surprises thrown in somewhere!
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Aragorn made his way down to the Olympic stadium two hours before the ceremony was due to begin. Several families of hobbits and men sat on the surrounding grass eating picnics, and there were fangirls scattered by all of the entrances - jumping up and down with excitement every time a blonde elf went past, whether it was Legolas or not. Not that it ever was Legolas: he refused to travel anywhere now without at least three bodyguards. Using the back entrance, the king slipped through the doors and bolted them securely behind him. He did not want anybody to see the arrangements for the ceremony until it was to begin. Of course, the participants knew what was planned, but they had been sworn to secrecy.
Throughout the week, mysterious packages had been arriving at the stadium. Well, to describe them as packages is wrong - HUGE deliveries might be more appropriate. Very few people knew what was inside these deliveries but, by the day of the ceremony, virtually everyone knew that they had come from the mountains. A lot of rehearsals for the closing ceremony had also been occurring, which was unusual as, as one fangirl stated, how hard could it be to parade round an arena and look pretty?
The four Fellowship hobbits were quite worried about the ceremony, as what was going to be happening was not.... well, let's just say that it wasn't in their area of expertise and wasn't something they would normally do. Legolas, however, was cheerily confident. Aragorn's masterplan seemed to ensure complete protection from stray fangirls, and so after the event, he would be able to go and finally live in peace.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Right," said Aragorn to the participants, half an hour before the ceremony was due to begin, "You know what you have to do so make sure you do it well and in the right order. And remember... the most important thing of all... ENJOY yourselves! Most of you have probably seen much worse than this."
The gathered crowd nodded in nervous agreement.
"Oh," Aragorn added as an afterthought, "And if you fall over, please don't go crying at the side of the stadium, keep going and we'll all love you for it!"
With that, the King left the group and headed off to join Arwen in the VIP box in the arena to make any last minute arrangements, before he could go and start the ceremony.
Those left behind looked at each other worriedly, wondering what they were supposed to do now. A few of the humans sat down on the benches that had been provided to help with the preparation for the event, whilst the hobbits chatted together and discussed their tactics, previously suppressed laughter bursting from the group every now and then. Only the elves looked confident, for they knew that the grace and poise they possessed would aid them greatly in this new challenge.
After what seemed like hours, a whistle blew to signal that the participants should all line up ready to go out into the arena. Merry, Pippin, Frodo and Sam shuffled to the front, wobbling precariously on their new form of footwear, not wanting to be trodden on by some of the more nervous 'big folk', who had yet to find their feet.
"So..." said Pippin, "This is it. If we can get through this then it'll all be over and we can go home."
"Yes, Pippin," said Frodo, "If we can get through this! I'm not sure which'll be worse: freezing to death, hurting myself, or just making a complete spectacle of myself and ruining my reputation as the valiant Ringbearer...."
"No offence, Mr Frodo," intercepted Sam, "But if you were lookin' to keep your reputation then you shouldn't have done that starin' contest with Mr Celeborn."
"He's right you know," said Merry, looking unusually pale and unconfident.
Whether Sam was right or not Frodo never had chance to ponder, because then a second whistle blew and it was time for the ceremony. Upon Aragorn's final words of his introductory speech ("And so I present to you..... the medal winners!") Frodo led the company into the arena, which had been transformed.... into an ice rink!
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As the performers entered the arena, the crowd erupted into the loudest applause heard since, well, ever. The stadium was completely packed, and the security team were working constantly and extremely hard to keep out the few without tickets who kept trying to steal the hobbit's seats. "What?" said one young girl who got caught by Audrey, the junior security guard, "The hobbits don't need a whole seat to themselves - they're half the size of the rest of us!" But it was to no avail, and the girl was soon wishing she'd never even heard of the Olympics as Audrey's sister Tigerlily set Gollum on her......
Anyway, back to the show in question!
Frodo grinned as he skated skilfully round the rink. He wasn't finding this new sport as hard as he thought, and was outperforming many of the men and even elves.
Spin, spiral, chassé, bunny hop... it was all coming surprisingly easily to him. Too easily. As the opening sequence ended and the performers skated into a formation in the centre of the arena, Frodo added an additional flourish to his steps, earning him a series of extra loud screams and delighted squeals from the crowd.
"FRODO!!!! WE LOVE YOU!!!"
Legolas looked at Frodo in annoyance. Much as he hated his fangirls, he didn't want them screaming for someone half his height - even if they had rid the world of most evils. He performed a quick sit spin.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!! LEGOLAS!!!!!!!"
The noise increased by about 100 decibels.
Crack.
A shudder was felt throughout the stadium.
"Ladies and gentlemen. The winners of the first Official Olympics of Middle Earth!" Aragorn shouted above the din, thanking Gandalf silently for the amplification spell he had provided him with. He dreaded to think of the state of his throat had it been otherwise.
The winners reformed into their line, as Arwen handed Aragorn a great long scroll. Frodo and Pippin led the line into skating around the rink in a snaking circle.
"Mr Frodo Baggins - winner of the staring contest and the one responsible for the fact that we are all alive today!"
The volume went up another notch and a strange shattering sound was heard.
"Mr Peregrin Took..... Mr Meriadoc Brandybuck....."
The hobbits waved at the crowd, unable to hear anything but the incomprehensible utterances of the audience and the partly inaudible words of the King. Who was being spoken of now?
"Mr Samwise Gamgee - proving that small people can do extraordinary things... winner of the free for all 100 metres race!"
Sam blushed a deep shade of scarlet and smiled at the crowd, seeking out Rosie and waving at her.
Aragorn continued to recite the names of the medal winners, but even his amplified voice had become barely audible now, and it was only the names familiar to the crowd that were recognisable above the din.
"The White Lady of Rohan - Éowyn..... Éomer or Rohan...... Haldir of Lorien...... Gimli, son of Gloin...."
The screaming subsided slightly at the mention of the dwarf's name. Slightly.... the ice was still making creaking noises that were beginning to alarm the performers.
"And..... last but not least....................."
The crowd went silent: appearing to collectively hold their breath.
"Legolas, Prince of Mirkwood!"
There was a great roar, a cracking sound and a large tremor. Suddenly, Legolas disappeared, falling into the crevice that had appeared, splitting the ice rink into two.
"LEGGY???!!" the fangirl mass screamed in distress. Those on the ice surged forward to the edge of the now cliff, and the paramedic hobbits, healer elves and nurses of men congregated on the ice, preparing for a crisis.
The frantic cries of the crowd in seeing their idol disappear into a possible abyss grew louder as the minute passed, causing another crack to appear - this time losing Merry, Sam and Faramir. Baby Elanor began to wail accordingly in her mother's arms.
~~::~~
"Legolas?" called Merry, searching for his companion. The splitting of the ice had caused the frozen ground below it to also crack, and so the hobbits, elf and man were lodged in a narrow passageway, several metres below the concerned crowd in the arena.
"I'm here Merry," replied the elf, "Are you hurt?"
"No." said Sam, "But I think we've gotten ourselves in a mighty big pickle, if you take my meanin' Master Greenleaf."
"Has the ice split all the way along?" said Faramir to Legolas, who was further towards what he assumed was the edge of the stadium.
"I think so," shouted Legolas, causing a few splinters of ice to tumble down from above. He shook his head to clear his hair of ice. "How are we going to get out?"
"We'd do well to have a bit of rope with us..." said Merry, wistfully.
Sam jumped suddenly, nearly falling over on his still booted feet.
"What, Master Samwise?" said Faramir, steadying the halfling.
"Rope! Rope! how could I be such a ninnyhammer, as what my old Gaffer would say!"
"I don't follow." said Merry, hoping that someone would rescue him soon. He really did not want to be remembered in the tales of the Shire that he managed to help defeat the Witch King, but died when he fell into a crack during a bit of ice skating. He rubbed his arms to warm himself up and wondered if his lips were turning blue yet.
"I have rope! I've learnt not to travel anywhere without it."
"That doesn't really help us when we're down here and these are sheer walls of ice." commented Legolas.
"Oh, I can fix that for us!" Sam took a deep breath, "MR FRODO!"
Nothing.
He tried again, "MR FROOODDDDDOOOOOO!"
A few more ice crystals dislodged themselves and landed in his hair. Sam looked up, squinting to see the sky through the almost blinding whiteness. Sure enough, a dark, curly head had appeared over the edge of the ledge.
~~::~~
"I can see them!" said Frodo, peering down into the icy depths. He listened closely to the seemingly distanced cries of Sam and managed to discern the word rope. After a few unsuccessful attempts to catch the silvery length of rope that was being thrown up to him, he motioned to the paramedic hobbits to come to his side.....
Five minutes later, four, extremely cold, but otherwise fine medal winners emerged back onto the ice rink that was the stadium. The crowd resumed their applause, and the participants, some now wrapped tightly in blankets, skated towards the smooth, stable areas of the rink.
"And so," said Aragorn, standing on a hastily re-erected platform, "That was the first Official Olympics of Middle Earth! I hope to see you all again next year. We'll certainly be here!" He looked around to the groups of medal winners to find that he was alone in the centre of the rink. The event was over, and not even Gollum would spoil the well deserved celebratory fish and chip supper that the participants had gone to.....
Same time next year? I don't think even the ever enthusiastic Frodo would agree to that!
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A/N - *Sob* It's over.........
This will sound much like an Oscar speech now, but I have a few people I would like to thank because without them this would not have been possible for me to do (Hooray!):
TL & Audrey - Thank you so, so much for all the support for this, all my other work, the inspiration and generally the amazing friendship! I love you guys! *Hugs*
Ailsa Joy - You know that this was for you, don't you!? Thanks for giving me the kick up the ass I needed to get this done! But really, Miss Hobbit Torturer, were the death threats actually necessary? JK!
Legolasina - See what happens when there's so much elf boy? The ice rink gets destroyed! I love your crazy reviews!
YunCyn - Thanks! It's so hard to write humour and actually succeed in being funny!
Imaginator - I know, I know... Merry and Pip do get somewhat overlooked! But this is an ensemble piece, so I try to give everyone a bit of the action! Thanks for your kind comments!
Elly Gamgee - Yay for Sam indeed! I love him sooooooo much!
And to anyone else I have forgotten - THANK YOU!!!
What else can I say? A review or two would be nice, if you made it this far......
Flames get given to TL - beware! She's scary.....
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