Pady and the Dolenwaith

    My mind is swirling like a tempest that darkens the eastern sky. What has transpired in this day is far beyond my wildest imagination. I never thought I would know of anyone in this wide world except for Hobbits. I believed the Shire to be my life and fate forever. What more was there to life than Hobbits and their cares and worries? What did the Big Folk matter? But now� Ah, I have met more than I could dream of and I know now that the lives of my fellows have been regrettably void of these beautiful folk. Had I not left the Shire, I would never have known of their existence. I am so very glad I do, for they hold another key to my continuing quest.
     After Priscilla and I had consumed the last tiny bits of our lunch, I found myself back on the shore of the Brandywine, looking intently at the island that tempted me with its tall birches and distant shore. If I but had a means to cross the river! But there was no bridge and no ferry dock in sight. I had stood for several minutes saying nothing when at my arm I felt a tug. Turning to my left, I saw Priscilla staring at me with quizzical eyes.
     �Are we going? We still haven�t found this mysterious �person who will tell you more.� They must be quite a long ways down the Brandywine.�
     Her eyes had shifted up to the north, following the river. I did not look that direction. My eyes and my mind were stuck on what faced west. How could I feel an attachment to an island I had never been on and only seen on an old map? There was something about it and the only thing I was thinking on was how I could make my way to it. I responded to Priscilla almost automatically.
     �I�m not going up the Brandywine. I�m going to that island.� I pointed to the green patch of land that maintained itself in the midst of roaring waters.
     �What?� Her look was utterly incredulous. I only nodded in response.
     Priscilla�s hands set themselves characteristically on her hips. �Be serious, Pady. There is no way you can cross to it and your journey doesn�t even lie over there. And besides, I am not going to that island.� There was fear in her eyes even though her voice was defiant.
     I did not answer her. I looked up and down the river for any sign of a way to cross. There was no bridge, that was true, but all of a sudden out of the corner of my eye I spied something long and wooden. Turning towards it, I found that not many feet from where we were standing, someone had tried to hide a small boat in the foliage of the shore. Why had I not seen it before? It seemed a bit strange that just when I needed a means to cross to the island, it appeared beneath my very nose. Warily, I gazed around, but seeing no one, I began to pull the boat towards the water.
     �Priscilla! Help me!� I cried. Priscilla had fixed an icy-cold gaze on my face.
     �A boat just happens to be here? Pady, it�s someone�s and that means we are not alone.� The fear on her face had heightened and was unmistakable.
     �I have to get to that island. There�s something about it and I have to see it.�
     Priscilla stomped her feet firmly on the shore. �Fine. But I am going no where.�
     Frustrated, I set the boat back down and stared hard at her. �You left the Shire didn�t you, to see what�s out there?� I pointed at the island. Priscilla�s eyebrows knit in anger, but she reluctantly nodded her head.
     �I did leave to see what�s out here, but I didn�t leave to drown!�
     With a start, I realized how foolish I had been. Of course, she was afraid of the water. Most Hobbits are. We have never traveled much on the water and the sea is far from us. The Brandywine is our only river and on the edge of Shire, so we have never been a river folk. I suppose my early fall into the Brandywine left me with a somewhat different perspective than my fellow Hobbits. Why be afraid of that which you have survived?
     My voice softened as I spoke to Priscilla with confidence. �There is nothing to fear. I am with you and this boat is solid.�
     That did it. Priscilla�s pride had been struck and she marched to my side and grabbed the other end of the small boat. �I�m not afraid, Pady Proudfoot!� She would have dragged the boat to edge of the water all by herself if I hadn�t grabbed a hold of it. Together we carried the boat to the shore and then Priscilla jumped in while I pushed it in and towards the island. Priscilla may have said she wasn�t afraid, but her face told a story of terror. It had been my intention to hoist myself into the boat and then sit close to her to comfort her, but the moment my large feet landed inside the skiff, I knew there was a problem.
     The river was too fast and in a flash we would be past the island before we even had a chance to graze its shores. Grabbing an oar in the boat and handing the other to Priscilla, I could do nothing but shout, �Row!�
     Regrettably, having no experience at all with watercraft, I am afraid we did a horrible job of it. I was pushing the water one way and Priscilla the other. Try as we might, we couldn�t coordinate our movements. I don�t know how long we struggled with the current, but in a short while we found ourselves spinning and the last thing I heard before my ears were filled with what felt like solid ice was Priscilla�s scream as the boat turned over.

I could see nothing as I fought the rushing water threatening to break my chest with its pressure. My arms moved and my legs kicked, but no air flowed into my lungs. I wrestled for my life for what felt like an hour, but it was to no avail and finally, resigned to death, I let the river win. I stopped moving. My mouth fell open and water immediately assaulted it, causing me to gasp silently into the crushing torrents. It was then that I felt the strangest sensation. The river seemed to produce arms that hugged around my waist, dragging me in an upward motion. Was this what drowning felt like, as if you had become light and were being lifted to the sky?

My mind had hardly begun to interpret what was happening when my body began to feel warm and then the smoothness of the water surrounding me was harshly replaced by something coarse tearing at my skin. Abruptly, air began to pour into my lungs and having been devoid of it for so long, it pained me and I began to cough uncontrollably. I couldn�t catch my breath. For a while, I simply lay still, trying to gain control of my respiration. I was dimly aware of strange voices surrounding me. As my body slipped back into reality, I recognized the voices as that of a male and female. I knew they couldn�t be Hobbits; their voices were too weightless, as if their words were simply floating through the air on a steady breeze. I sensed a weight on my shoulder and managed to open my stinging eyes. Staring down at me was a face smooth and fair, with a concerned look in deep-set black eyes. The face was gone in an instant and I wondered if I had imagined it. With determination I sat up and taking stock of my surroundings I found that I had actually made it to the island, even though I had not done it on my own power.

Table of Contents

Hosted by www.Geocities.ws