Welcome to my "little" story based upon the Lord of the Rings movies. I hope that you enjoy reading and will hopefully leave a comment as that encourages me to keep writing and lets me know what the reader thinks. Thank you and enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not now, have not and unfortunately will not own Lord of the Rings. (I am a bit obsessed though)

1.

It is cold, so very cold. My hands clutch at the thin blanket, trying to pull it closer in a vain effort to gain more warmth, I lay shivering on the cold stone floor of my room, too cold to sleep and wondering if it is morning yet. I give up on sleep and sit hunched against the wall, my arms wrapped around my dangerously thin body, my hands feeling the large empty space under my shoulder blades. I slowly shrug on the pile of rags which is my only clothing, hoping to gain some warmth from that and the thin blanket around my shoulders. There is a noise outside the door, a shuffling grinding noise. I scurry away from the wall and as far into the center of the room as the chain around my ankle will allow me, waiting on my knees as a key turns in the lock and the door slowly opens to reveal Him. My body shakes violently, and not entirely from the cold. Hastily I lower my head and hope that my long scraggly and matted black curls hide my face enough from his gaze—He hates it when he can see my face when He doesn't want to. I keep completely still as He approaches and removes the chain from the cuff on my ankle, though the cuff remains. There is no feeling in His voice when He speaks, no emotion whatsoever…that is how badly I upset Him last night.

"Come. I am leaving and you will accompany me on my journey. Get packing if you do not want another punishment." He turns on his heel and leaves through the door of the room which He keeps me in.

I wait until He has left before I hurry to do as He ordered. Within an hour all that He would need for travel is packed and loaded on the horse. Cautiously I approach His chair, kneeling before Him with my head bowed and awaiting further instruction. My actions tell Him that what He asked has been completed.

My head is turns harshly to the side, my cheek stinging from the impact of His hand. I don't dare lift my hand, or even move, as I feel His eyes boring into me. I bite my tongue as His hand grabs my hair, yanking my head back, and my face up so He can see it. Instantly, my eyes become vacant, as I stare at a spot over His shoulder, staying still as He looks at my face and grips my hair tighter, lifting and pulling me higher up on my knees. Without warning His hand flies towards my face. He lets go of my hair as His hand strikes me harder than before and sends me flying a few feet away from Him to land in a heap on the floor. He stands and strides over to me. I lay as still as I can, His foot pressing onto my neck. He leans his weight onto his foot, causing me to choke and Him to press harder. I am so preoccupied with trying to breathe that I don't notice His hand grasping both my wrists in one hand above my head and tying a rope tightly around them, binding them in front of me with the other end in His hand. His foot leaves my neck, allowing me to breathe, which comes out as more of a gasp as He yanks me to my feet by the rope around my wrists. He walks so swiftly out the door that He is practically dragging me. He locks the door and ties the end of the rope to the back of His saddle, turns to glare at me with a mixture of contempt and a look of longing that frightens me. He gets into his saddle and spurs the horse forward. I stumble slightly and move my feet to keep up as the horse moves. I look back once at His house before looking down at my bare feet and wonder where He is going.

At some point during the day He stops to rest the horse and unties the rope from the saddle, allowing me to move around. I glance quickly at the surrounding scenery, staring at the trees and hills with wonder. I have never seen such things before, as I have only lived in a desolate place with hardly any trees that are alive.

"Thing! Get me some water now, or do you want another beating." His words are harsh and cold. They, along with the sharp yank on the rope, jerk me from my thoughts.

My feet carry me swiftly to the stream and I hurriedly fill His canteen with water. I gaze longingly at the cool clear water, but don't dare take any for myself. I scurry back to Him, get down on my knees, and hand Him the filled canteen, holding it up over my head. He takes it from my outstretched hands, gulps down a lot of the water, and pushes back His greasy hair before He grabs the rope and ties it back to His saddle and climbs onto the horse. I bite my tongue to keep from making any noise as the horse moves forward faster than before. The heat of the sun beats down on my skin and makes me want to slow when I have to speed up in order to not be dragged behind the horse.

I know not where He is going, only that from the position of the sun it seems to be south. He seems tense as He rides, not ceasing until nightfall. When the horse stops and He gets off, the rope is untied from the saddle and the horse is left to roam free for the night. The horse has more freedom than me; it can roam and do as it pleases so long as it carries Him when asked. There are times when I envy the horse and its freedom.

He grabs the rope and yanks me forward. Striding towards a tree with protruding roots, He ties the rope and my wrists so close to the roots that the only position I can be in is laying with my hands under my chest. The rough bark of the tree's roots dig into my hands as well as every bit of my body that comes in contact with them. Though it is so uncomfortable that it borders painful, I love being out here and seeing things that I have never seen before. I hadn't seen a tree up close before and I am in awe at how tall, wide, and strong it is. The many different colors and textures, from the rough-gnarled bark, to the smooth veined leaves; all that I have seen so far is amazing to me, so new and beautiful. His home is in a land of rocks and dirt. Sparse trees and brush are all that grows there; He said that it was perfect, for there is no place to hide.

Hunger gnaws at my stomach, thirst claws at my parched throat. It seems as though the two are fighting a war to see who can be noticed more before one or the other is sated. I know not when I will next be given something to eat or drink. I can only hope that it will be soon if this journey is to last much longer.

I know not what I am. He tells me that I am lower than everything, that I am nothing. Yet that does not tell me what I am. I am sure that I am no dwarf, nor am I a goblin; is it too much to ask to know what I am? I cannot ask Him, for he has forbidden me to speak or to even utter a sound. I am not sure that I remember how to speak. It has been many years since the last time I spoke. There is so much that I want to know: the names of plants, who inhabits the lands around us, how big the world is. Are there really places that are covered in snow and others that are covered in trees?

My feet ache from walking all day and trying to keep up with the horse. I shift a little to let my feet be in the cool, soft grass and earn a slap for daring to move. I slowly move my head to the side a little more and notice Him standing above me. His hand is suddenly pushing on the back of my head, forcing it to turn towards the earth and then pressing down, my forehead and face pressing hard into the bark. His hand presses harder on the back of my head, pressing as hard as he can for a few moments before he lets go and lays on his bedroll. I don't dare move, not even to lift my forehead from the rough bark. Knowing that if I do, worse will come.

Exhaustion takes me a while later and I can only hope that sleep is dreamless this night, so I can be as rested as possible for the continued journey on the morrow.