Aragorn and Arwen, by SaMo art

The idea that Winter could actually
be enjoyable would never have occurred
to Ramtop people, who had eighteen
different words for snow.*
(*All of them, unfortunately, unprintable.)

―  Terry Pratchett, Wyrd Sisters

4. Winter Is Coming

It was a mirthless quest so far, and the days soon blended together, always following the same pattern; wake up in the evening, eat cold food and then walk, walk, walk all night and all morning. The bone-chilling wind was constant, and though it did not bother Kat directly she felt sorry for her companions who never seemed to thaw entirely. Even the elf complained of cold feet, but in his case she thought he ought to have known better than wearing shoes rather than stout boots like the humans did.

The only bright spots of the journey were the language lessons and the cuddling. The hobbits continued to take an interest in Kat's learning, and she finally managed to wrangle the reason behind that from Legolas; he had told them she was mentally disordered! Now everybody thought she was a poor, crazy cat who believed she was a human. It naturally annoyed her to no end, but no matter what she tried, the stubborn elf would not see reason. And as for the hobbits, she could not speak with them directly so there was no way to convince them otherwise either.

Unfortunately it was hard to stay angry with the elf. He really was very sweet most of the time and she enjoyed talking with him. In addition he was a great cuddler, nobody could manage to find just the right spot to scratch like him and he never pushed her away, even when she accidentally nibbled on the feathers of his arrows.

As time passed, the whole Fellowship began to accept Kat as a permanent addition to their numbers, although they obviously put her in the same category as Bill the pony – cute, amusing and possibly a tiny bit useful. In the pony's case his use lay in carrying things, for Kat it was the warmth her body provided under their blankets.

Not all of them were cat persons, that was obvious – and after a while Kat knew exactly who to avoid. Axe Guy was number one on her list, he clearly was a dog person if there ever was one, and in addition he looked so dangerous and cross all the time.

Number two was Gandalf the wizard, who maybe liked cats in general but since Kat could never resist toying with his impressive beard she had been banned from his lap.

Third on her list was Aragorn, the tallest of the lot. He was the kind of man she would never have approached as a woman and therefore saw no reason to do so as a cat either. He reminded her of that popular boy in school who was both good at sports, liked by teachers, smart enough to make good grades, kind to his many friends and handsome. The type all the popular girls had crushes on and who would later get a well-paid and important job, marry a beautiful (and nice) woman, have two well-behaved and pretty children and a large, friendly dog that he would play-wrestle with and call a 'good boy'. Aragorn treated Kat with indifference in her cat form, hardly noticing her most of the time, and she knew that would have been the case even if she were her true self.

Instead Kat turned to the six who enjoyed her company all the more; the elf, the hobbits – Sam, in particular – and the younger man, Boromir.

Boromir was a person she thought she might have become friends with, had she been herself. He was not altogether unlike Aragorn in looks, they shared that wavy, dark hair and eyes of an indeterminable gray color, but where the former's face was almost too perfect, Boromir's had flaws – a little too big nose, slightly crowded teeth in his upper jaw – that in Kat's eyes was all the more endearing.

He did not speak much, which could make him seem proud, but Kat had a feeling that was not the reason. He just was not very talkative, if from shyness or some other reason she did not know.

It was Boromir's watch tonight and she went to rub herself against the soft fur trim of his cloak.

He scratched her neck. "Hello my girl," he said, smiling, but it was not a happy smile. Something was troubling him, and had done so for a long time. In her cat form, Kat was sensitive to others' moods, and this man emitted a sort of resigned hopelessness. She wished she could have asked what ailed him, but as usual she had to resort to the elf.

Legolas was preparing his bedroll nearby and she trotted off to him, pouncing at the irresistibly moving blanket and accidentally ruffling it. He sighed and smoothed it out, evading her paw's attack on his fingers as he did so.

What kind of person is Boromir? She began to lick her paw as if that had been her plan all along. He looks rich in those clothes, nobody else has fur on their cloak.

He is the son of the Gondor ruler.

At Kat's blank look, Legolas helpfully described the surrounding geography. She listened with interest, only wishing she had a map.

Boromir's homeland was located south of Rohan and west of Mordor. Rohan was a country southeast of the mountain ridge they were following; a vast plains where the horse lords lived, and Mordor was the realm of Sauron – the ultimate destination for the Fellowship in their mission to toss the Ring into Mount Doom.

Why does Boromir always look so worried? she asked.

He is one of the captains of the Gondor army. They have long held the enemy at bay, but Sauron's strength has grown and now he is pushing them back. Defending Gondor has become futile; mere humans against a multitude of orcs and trolls – and more, Boromir told us of some nameless, dark horror that scared the horses and intimidated the men. They have lost much ground and many men, and now there is only one outpost left between Sauron and Minas Tirith, their capital city.

So that explained the man's dejected air. Kat did not know what orcs were and was pretty sure she would not enjoy meeting trolls or nameless horrors. She shuddered and tried to steer the topic away from monsters.

Isn't he a bit young to be a captain? It was always hard to assess the age of a bearded man, but Boromir looked to be around her own age, a little over thirty.

Legolas turned to the man and asked him something. Kat recognized the words 'how' and 'you', and when the man answered she understood the number too.

He is–

Forty, yes I heard. Unbelievable! He sure has aged gracefully.

The elf snorted.

What?

Guess how old I am. He lay down on his bed, resting himself on one elbow.

Kat regarded his outstretched form calculatingly. Since he said it like that, he probably was older than he looked as well, but how much? He had no wrinkles, no white hairs in his golden braids and with such a smooth, stubble-less chin he did not look a day over twenty-two. She enjoyed watching him, actually, he had a lovely smile. Well, not only the smile, at that.

Thirty-five? she guessed. That must surely be way older than he was.

More.

More? She met his eyes and her breath hitched. They were bottomless and ancient like a clear summer sky. She read age in them, unfathomable age, and it chilled her small body to the bone.

She turned away, suddenly frightened.

I can't guess.

Warm hands picked her up and stroked her soothingly. I did not mean to scare you. Like her, Legolas was sensitive to others' emotions.

She crawled onto his shoulder and buried her nose in the crook of his neck. How old are you really? Her inner voice sounded small.

I turned 245 decades a few years ago.

Kat did the math in her head, which took embarrassingly long. That's over two thousand years! Impossible. You would be older than Jesus.

Who is Jesus?

It's a long story, I'll tell you some other time. But how is it possible to grow old as a Roman statue... I mean, aren't you bored silly by now? And your mind would be crammed with memories. Or do you forget everything after a while?

For elves, time passes differently, we do not experience it as I believe mortals do. Only the most recent decades of my life have been truly eventful. A while back there was an incident in my father's realm involving dwarves, but earlier... To me, the millennia preceding that event feels no longer than the six decades since.

Two thousand years feels like sixty? That makes no sense.

Before coming on this quest, I spent all my life in Greenwood. The seasons passed without much happening. I would often sit under a tree and reach out to it with my soul – like I do to you now – and just listen to its thoughts, and before I knew it, summer had turned into winter and then it was summer again. Like a blink of the eye.

Did you not need to pee in all that time?

He laughed and ruffled her fur. When I had this conversation with Sam, he wanted to know what I ate. Sometimes I wonder how your mind works.

It's dirty, is all. I can give you more examples if you like? Such as, how–

No need, he thought hurriedly.

Kat absentmindedly began to knead Legolas' neck with her paws, feeling a little calmer. This world really was strange. Were all elves that old? How could he be so like a human and not eat or pee for a year? Or had he exaggerated? She wanted to ask many more questions but his eyes were closed now and she did not want to disturb him if he was tired.

Your claws. Please.

Oops. Sorry...

/\_,,_/\
( – ᆽ – )

During the next night the sky finally cleared and they saw stars for the first time in a fortnight. Kat marvelled at the sight, being a city girl she had never seen so many before – for here, without light pollution, there were myriads.

Just before sunrise, Legolas pointed at one star above the horizon that Kat would have thought was Venus if she were still on Earth.

That is Ëarendil's boat with the last Silmaril. Have you heard the story of the Silmarils?

Kat had not, of course, and soon Legolas entertained her with an amazing tale. Like good stories often are, it was full of gods, kings and beautiful princesses, wars and monsters.

But why didn't Princess Lúthien and Beren just run away and marry in secret? That quest the king sent him on was clearly a suicide mission.

Because she was a dutiful daughter and he was a hero.

Hero? Pah. Stupid, I'd say.

An intermarriage between a human and an elf is a bit complicated. I think King Thingol had hoped Beren would fail so he could avoid it.

Can humans and elves have kids? I mean, are they physically compatible? How–

Tell me you are not asking that. Legolas' face had turned pink.

For someone so old, you're amazingly prude, you know. Have you never–

But he had fled to the front of the company where he immediately engaged in conversation with Aragorn.

Kat regarded his back thoughtfully, trying to imagine what he looked like naked. Her curiosity was purely academic, of course.

/\_,,_/\
( O _ o )

When morning came, a lovely, golden-red sun rose over the mountains in the east and the bleak mood the fellowship had felt the past weeks eased a little. They had come to a hill full of small trees, or bushes rather, on which grew bright red berries. Despite the late season they still had all their leaves left.

Legolas stroked the trunk of one of them and it seemed very much like he spoke to it.

Tell it I said hi, suggested Kat.

A little way off, Gandalf and Frodo were talking about something that sounded interesting. Kat asked the elf to translate since they spoke too quickly for her to pick out more than a few words.

Gandalf said elves lived here a long time ago. The place is called Hollin now, but back then it was known as Eregion. He sighed. Those elves are long gone now.

You look sad.

It is a sad story. Gandal did not tell Frodo all of it. He sat down, leaning his back against the tree and Kat rolled herself up in his lap and purred. That sound often tended to make her companions feel better.

Legolas stroked her back and her purr grew louder. I mentioned before that the Dark Lord could shapeshift and that he once tricked elves that way. It was them – the Eregion elves. He lured them to forge the Rings of Power, three to the elf lords, seven to the dwarves and nine to the men, but Sauron secretly forged the One Ring to control them all. His hand stopped mid-stroke. Sometimes I feel this was all our fault – the elves' fault. We are a proud and ambitious race and because of it Sauron gained the power he now has.

You don't seem proud to me, she assured him. Quite the opposite. You are nice to everyone and even polite to Axe Guy.

I do my best. He smiled and resumed his stroking.

What happens if we destroy the Ring?

Hopefully the Dark Lord will be destroyed too.

I was sent here to help with that, I think. Somehow. And I know you don't believe me but that's the truth anyway. When he did not reply she looked up and found his eyes resting on her. He seemed unusually thoughtful and she felt a tendril of hope. Was he reconsidering?

I do not know what to believe anymore, he admitted. She rewarded him with a friendly head buff. He would come around. She was patient, she could wait.

Since the weather was so fine, Aragorn and Gandalf, who seemed to be informal leaders of the group, decided they could risk a fire, cook warm food and take a longer rest than usual. Soon the lovely smell of stew teased their nostrils as Sam cooked the finest meal since they left Rivendell – the elvish abode where the Fellowship had been formed.

Kat was served some as well, but could not enjoy it quite as much as she had expected. She had an eerie feeling, a foreboding of sorts – as if someone was watching her. Like when Legolas had told her of the Dark Riders she repeatedly glanced over her shoulder.

Legolas felt it too, she noticed, and – to her surprise – Aragorn. The man and the elf ate quickly and then paced the area, scouring it for hidden dangers.

Aragorn said something to Gandalf in a tense, subdued voice.

What's he saying? Kat asked Legolas. She was getting tired of always having to rely on him, but learning Westron was slow work.

He worries. There is a sense of watchfulness around here, and of fear... Have you noticed the birds are all silent?

Now that you mention it, yes. And I too feel watched.

I do not like this. The elf frowned nervously, but when he perceived Kat's reaction to his words he picked her up, holding her close. Do not worry, Little One. Four of us are trained warriors and Gandalf is good with his sword as well. Even the hobbits have daggers and have learned how to use them. Whatever this is we can handle it.

If you say so. But she was not convinced.

When the others made themselves ready to sleep, Aragorn decided to stay awake together with Sam who had the first watch.

Kat chose Boromir for her bed partner.

Why did you go to him? asked Legolas.

Have you seen the size of his arms? I figured if there is an attack while we sleep, I ought to be close to the strongest guy.

I have strong arms too. He looked so affronted Kat would have laughed, but in her present body she was unable to.

Don't be jealous. It doesn't become you.

I am not jealous. He turned his back on her.

Kat had a hard time falling asleep despite the hard planes of Boromir's chest against her back and his soft snores in her ears, and when she finally drifted off it felt like hardly no time had passed until they were roused again by Gandalf in the late afternoon.

He spoke at length, and Kat picked out two words often repeated, both of which sounded ominous; 'Saruman' and 'crebain'.

What did Gandalf say? she asked Legolas.

Ask your strong fighter, he suggested.

Oh come on, you know I can't speak with him.

When Legolas still would not reply, she tried flattery, which she knew from experience usually worked with males. I really enjoy talking to you, you tell me such interesting things. And if I ever need the most attractive guy of the Fellowship I'll certainly turn to you first.

You are a cat, you should not be attracted to elves. He was smiling, and she knew she had succeeded.

I'm not a cat.

Either way, I do not mind your admiration.

Darn arrogant elf, too pretty for his own good and clearly aware of it too. She should have kept her thoughts to herself.

No longer sulking, Legolas explained what had happened. There was not any immediate danger, but they had to leave this place come nightfall. The crebain Gandalf had spoken of were some sort of sentient birds that had passed over them when they slept, spying for Saruman, a corrupted wizard in liege with Sauron. Aragorn and Sam had kept themselves hidden and the fire had thankfully burned down, so they were fairly sure they had not been seen, but from now on the company had to be even more careful and certainly not light any more fires.

Pippin, the youngest hobbit, grumbled loudly at that, for their initial plan had been to stay here a while longer and have another hot meal. Instead they had to find hiding places for the rest of the day and then walk on.

Legolas went to sit under a dense holly bush. If you want to hide together with the most attractive Fellowship member, there is plenty of room here.

Wipe that smug face off. I only said it so you would talk to me again.

Sure you did.

Waving her tail angrily, Kat went over to another bush where Boromir, Merry and Pippin cowered with their hoods pulled up.

The crebain might come back, I need some muscle around, she thought to Legolas as she rolled herself up in Boromir's lap. She was pleased to see the elf's eyebrows draw together. Served him right.

Shortly afterwards, Kat forgot all about pretty elves, for the sky was suddenly covered in black birds. They looked a bit like crows, but they flew in a purposeful way, like they were scanning every inch of the ground.

When they came over Hollin, she was not the only one to hold her breath. In some strange way they emitted an almost palpable evil. Kat felt all hairs on her body rise until she had grown into nearly twice her normal size, and she could not hold back a faint hiss.

They disappeared at last, but it took a long while and much petting from Boromir and the hobbits until Kat had calmed down.

The birds returned twice more. Kat found it easier to endure them each time, and after sunset they finally retreated southward. The company could set out again, and for two more nights they continued like before, sleeping through the days, walking through the nights.

During their meal on the third afternoon, Gandalf spoke to them, something about a mountain called Caradhras. Boromir looked dismayed and talked of the chill up there and firewood, and then everyone began to gather branches from the ground. Kat did not need a translation to understand; they would climb the mountains soon and up there it would be freezing, with no wood to find in case they needed a fire.

After that, the path became steeper and much harder to walk, narrow and covered in gravel, snaking itself uphill in sharp twists. The air grew colder and it did not take long until Kat felt the first flake of snow melt on her nose.

They had reached the base of Caradhras. Winter was coming.

A/N:

If you want to read the story Legolas told Kat, it's in the Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien. Or if you want it with a little more action, romance and drama, try my other story Thranduil's Shadow, which features Beren and Lúthien too – but with Legolas' father as main character. 

On another note, I'm Swedish and have no beta reader which means there can be weird word choices and errors sometimes. If you see something looking off, I really appreciate being told so I can change it. :)

Image Credits:

Aragorn and Arwen by SaMoArt, link https://www.deviantart.com/samo-art/gallery