"Quietly now," Gandalf whispered, but his voice was amplified in the huge expanse of the dank room ."It's a four day journey to the other side. Let us hope that our presence may go unnoticed."

I shivered and adjusted my sopping wet tunic. My scarf was now itchy, and I pulled it off, shoving it into my equally drenched bag.

The Mines were eerily glorious. We made our way across a long, narrow passageway. I glanced over the side and saw blackness. I was about to ask Merry how far he thought it went down, but I didn't feel like being the one who would break the silence held by the group. 

We crawled up a steep set of stairs, us hobbits on all fours. My head popped over a particularly high step and came nose to non-existent nose with a long-dead relative of Gimli's. The empty eye sockets bored into my skull, and I slipped backwards. Merry caught me and helped me back up. "Pippin," he groaned quietly. 

We finally made it to the top of the staircase, where Gandalf was staring at three separate passageways -- each dark, each silent, each terrifying me to death. 

"I have no memory of this place." Gandalf murmured. I took a shaky breath. If Gandalf didn't know where we were going, we would be lost in here. 

Aragorn and Boromir decided to set up camp while Gandalf took a meditative seat on a large boulder in front of the middle passageway. I sat down in a niche with Merry, watching the Men light pipes next to the small fire.

"Are we lost?" I whispered to Merry, wincing as my voice carried in the hushed atmosphere. 

"No," Merry replied.

"I think we are." I glanced up skeptically at Gandalf's back. 

"Shh -- Gandalf's thinking." Merry corrected me.

"Merry," I put my chin on my fist.

"What?" he snapped back.

"I'm hungry," I drew a line in the dust on the ground.

Frodo ran up to Gandalf. I sort of hoped he was going to ask him if we were planning on eating soon. 

"There's something..." Frodo whispered.

"Do you think they're talking about dinner?" I asked Merry. Legolas exhaled loudly to my left.

"...for three days." Gandalf replied.

"No," Merry rolled his eyes. 

With a few edits to my line, I drew a basket of muffins in the dirt. 

"I wish none of this had ever happened." I heard Frodo choke. I stopped sprinkling pebbles on my muffins and listened, my arm suspended in the air in front of me. 

Gandalf replied, but all I heard was: "All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us." 

I pondered on that. I looked down at my feeble attempt at the baked goods. I thought about Mr. Bilbo's old stories, and how he had to overcome many of his discomforts and fears to complete his quest. My arm fell limply at my side, the pebbles scattering on the stones. I felt so stupid. And useless. If all I did this entire journey was complain about not eating and fantasize about muffin baskets, I would be a burden to this team. I owed it to Frodo, and to the Fellowship, to be mr of an asset. 

My head jerked up, out of my stupor, when Gandalf grunted a noise of surprise. "It's that way." He chuckled. Everyone stood up.

"He's remembered," Merry smiled. 

"No," Gandalf corrected him. "But the air doesn't smell so foul down here. If in doubt, Meriadoc, always follow your nose." 

I remembered the smell of fresh bread or fish, and I almost asked if we were planning on eating before going any farther, but then I looked down at my drawing. I stood defiantly, and dragged my foot carefully through the picture. I stared, satisfied, at the smeared artwork on the ground, then I picked up my bag and followed everyone down the passageway. 

We descended a long set of spiral stairs and then entered another large area. 

"Let me risk a little more light." Gandalf's staff glowed brighter, almost illuminated the entire hall we were standing in. Everyone drew in a collective breath. I heard Merry say "wow" softly next to me. 

"Behold," Gandalf held his staff up to the beautiful stone pillars that supported the carved ceiling. "The great realm and Dwarf-city of Dwarrowdelf."

"There's an eye-opener, no mistake." Sam said in awe. 

We continued on slowly, gazing at the incredible hall. It was truly magnificent. 

Gimli gasped. He ran towards a room off to the side, where a column of light shone perfectly in the middle of the room. "Gimli!" Gandalf hissed. We had no choice but to follow. 

"N-No!" Gimli dropped to his knees weakly, yet respectfully. 'Oh... no... no, no..." He sobbed on the floor. I hesitated in the doorway, not wanting to intrude on the Dwarf's grief. 

"Here lies Balin, son of Fundin, Lord of Moria." Gandlaf read solemnly. Gimli looked at the dusty tomb with watery eyes. 

"He is... dead then." Gandalf sighed. Gimli's helmet clinked softly against the stone as he bowed his head once more. "It's as I feared." Gandalf removed his hat. Gimli's sobs became audible again. 

Standing next to Gandalf, I saw him glance down at a skeleton on the floor, leaning against Balin's grave. He handed me his staff and hat, then bent and picked up the extremely thick volume. I glanced over at Merry, my palms sweating against the wood of Gandlaf's staff. 

A page fluttered out of the book as Gandalf opened it. He blew away some dust and cobwebs, then started reading. 

"We must move on." I heard Legolas say to Aragorn. Gimli didn't move. "We can not linger here."

"They have taken the bridge," Gandalf read aloud, "and the second hall." He spared a look at each of us before continuing. "We have barred the gates but can not hold them for long."

I felt my heart leap up and start running. I looked around guiltily, but no one else seemed to hear it. 

"The ground shakes," Gandalf continued. "Drums... drums in the deep."

I felt myself involuntarily backing up, wanting to throw my hands over my ears, yell at Gandalf to stop, to tell him he was scaring him... 

The page crackled as it turned. "We can not get out. A Shadow moves in the dark."

My foot stepped on a bone. I looked behind me my back was against a large well, where another skeleton sat, looking forlorn. 

"We can not get out." Gandlaf said again. I hurried to find something t distract myself with -- an arrow was sticking out of the skeleton's chest. I stared determinedly at it.

"They are coming." Gandalf finished. I couldn't take it. I needed something to do, something to make me forget... 

I gave the arrow a twist, and the skeleton turned his head to look at me. For a millisecond, we were eye to eye. I heard the words resound in my brain We can not get out. Then, I realized the skull was falling backwards. 

No, no, no... I reached out to grab it but it was too late -- the head fell into the well, clanging noisily against the stone insides. I cringed every time it made a noise... I felt everyone's eyes on me... Drums in the deep... I turned nervously. 

Horribly, the whole body creaked and fell backwards to reunite itself with its head. A heavy chain caught around the bones of the arm and rang extremely loudly through the room. Then it yanked a large bucket down with it, and they kept hitting the wall, yelling at me, laughing as Gandalf turned to look at me. I winced as a final crash announced they had reached the ground floor.

I didn't know what to say. I found myself staring at the dusty tomb of Balin, and a small voice inside my head, perhaps the skeleton's, whispered: You're next. 

We waited. Boromir sighed after a few moments -- apparently nothing was here to come find us. 

"Fool of a Took!" Gandalf yelled angrily. "Throw yourself in next time and rid us of your stupidity." 

My face, already probably pretty solemn, fell even farther. Gandalf ripped his hat and staff back from me and I stared back at him, hurt, but I knew he was right. Why did I do that... why? 

I was reminded horribly of the passage Gandalf had read... there wasn't anything here anymore, I shouldn't have been so scared... Shadow in the darkness, drums in the --

Thump... 

Gandalf froze. He turned to look back at me. 

Thump... 

Feeling sick, I looked back down at the dark well. 

Thump thump... 

I thought I heard distant chatter... 

Thump thump thump... 

The voices were excited, but blood-curdling... 

My heart skipped again, and I felt it back-flip into my throat. 

Thump thump thump thump thump... 

High-pitched laughter... or something... was heard from the hall. They were coming from the passageway we had come from...

"Frodo!" Sam noticed a blue light shining from Frodo's sword sheath. Drawing his sword half out, I saw his blade was glowing blue. 

"Orcs?" I mouthed in Merry's direction, but he wasn't looking at me. 

"Orcs!" Legolas looked to Boromir. 

I rolled my eyes. Yeah, I know... 

But now definitely wasn't my time to be correcting anyone. 

Boromir raced to the doors, about to close them, when two arrows embedded themselves in the wood, right in front of his face.

"Get back!" Aragorn commanded the hobbits. "Stay close to Gandalf!"

The wizard herded us into the corner by the well. My shaking hand found the cold enamel of my sword hilt. 

The doors slammed shut. "They have a cave troll." Boromir gave us a sarcastic smile. 

Oh great... 

Legolas threw them the axes and pole-arms that were lined up against the wall, and the Men started barring the doors with them. 

Gandalf drew his sword with a battle cry, and us hobbits followed suit, just much quieter. 

Aragorn and Boromir backed away from the doors as they started to shake. Gimli stood, all traces of weeping gone. "Aargh!" He shouted. "Let them come! There is one Dwarf yet in Moria who still draws breath!" 

Aragorn ad Legolas both notched arrows. Blades of all varieties punctured the rotting wood of the doors. Legolas fired an arrow directly through a hole, and the Orc squealed and fell back. More of our arrows felled the ones near the door, but I could tell there would be too many to take out by arrow. 

I near jumped out of my skin when the doors were trampled to the ground and a horde of Orcs stormed in. Legolas' arrows went flying, as did Aragorn's. Boromir knocked one over with his shield, then drove his sword through another. 

I gritted my teeth as the Orcs piled in. Aragorn abandoned his bow and drew his sword. Gandalf roared and lunged forward with his blade. 

My heart was pounding loudly in my ears, and my mind was buzzing with adrenaline. I joined in the din with a shout of my own, and together, the four hobbits of the Shire raced forward to defend their Fellowship.