Where do I belong? A Legolas Love Story

Chapter One First Meeting

Where do I belong?

I was walking along the woods in my back yard, wishing it was middle earth. I spent most of my time pretending I was there. Pretending that I was in a battle to save middle earth. Today was my 18th birthday, not that it mattered, I would get what I got every birthday since I could remember; a beating and since I was now 18 I would probably also be assaulted. Things had been working toward that for years now. Within the past few weeks they had been getting worse and worse. I kept telling myself, "Too every bad there is a worse." Well I was there; I was there a long time ago. Oh how I wished I could go to middle earth, Gandalf had come to me and said on my 18th birthday that I would have a chance to come, but I had to wait for someone from his world to come to me. I had to wait till I was 18 so that I could legally go.

That was eight years ago, so I read all and any books having to do with Lord of the Rings, watched the movies thousands of times, taught myself all the languages of middle earth, learned who was friend and foe, taught myself how to use a sword and bow, and how to ride a horse. I practiced every day getting myself in shape. I heard someone running toward me but it wasn't the footsteps of my parents or supposed to be parents. They hadn't done a very good job.

I looked up to see a tall, thin, blonde, blue eyed elf running at me. I was a little surprised, this wasn't exactly how I had expected to meet the person that I would be taking back home. The look on his face spoke of terror. I then heard gun shots and bullets flew past him. I ran towards him and as soon as I was close enough I grabbed him and pulled him down to the ground and used my body to cover his. He tried to move out from underneath me. "Don't," I said blocking him. He looked at me. "I won't hurt you; I can't say the same about my foster dad though." He still looked absolutely terrified.

"That's your dad?" he asked.

"Adoptive dad, but he doesn't deserve the title," I answered. I then turned my attention to the man that was supposed to care for me. "Mr. Eten, put down the gun and put all the others on your person down!" I called still using my hands and toes to hold myself up over Legolas.

"Is that you girl?" he called in his gruff voice.

"Yes now put it down."

"Who's with you?" His tone of voice issuing a challenge.

"A friend," I said plainly.

"You don't have any friends, I don't give you time for that. If you have friends you can leave." After a moment's silence and before I could answer him he shouted, "He better not be your boyfriend!"

I rolled my eyes, "I have time for friends, I just don't have a lot thanks to you and a boyfriend is certainly something I don't have time for." I still felt Legolas shaking under me so I spoke in Elvish to him, "I will protect you and get you home, I promise." He seemed shocked that I knew Elvish but it seemed to calm him.

"All right, the gun is down," he said.

"The one in your pocket and in your waist band front and back too," I said. I heard three more guns hit the ground. "The two at your ankles too," I said. I heard two more hit the ground. "And your side holster." I heard the 7th gun hit the ground. "Now step away from the guns," I said. I heard him walk about fifteen feet closer to me, his footfalls heavy and loud. I then got off of Legolas, pulled him to his feet, and pushed him behind me. "Stay behind me, no matter what," I said taking his wrist. He nodded numbly, not saying anything.

I walked out of the woods back towards my house, thankfully my adoptive parents had never read or watched Lord of the Rings so Legolas' identity and the fact he came from another world was safe. "Who is this?" he snarled. "And I want a last name," he added as an afterthought. As I stepped out into the clearing I held my hands up to my chest in a sign of surrender.

"Ash Edwards," I said giving a false name. I felt Legolas staring at me. I turned to look at him and mouthed 'just go with it.' He nodded. I pulled him into the clearing ready to dive for the ground and cover Legolas with my body.

"I haven't seen him before and how come he has a bow with a quiver full of arrows."

"He's teaching me how to ride horses and archery," I said making up where I had met him, and making it something he could talk about if he was grilled. When Mr. Eten looked at him he just nodded. "Mr. Eten I'm going to go grab something from my room and some water then go to class." He nodded giving me consent and I left dragging Legolas with me.

"Oh and be back in time for your beating, it's your birthday gift along with learning how to please a man." My suspicions had just been confirmed.

I could tell Legolas wanted to say something but I shook my head at him. "Yes sir," I replied. I ran to my room in the back of the house and pulled a bag out from under my bed and grabbed my water bottle off the table. "Let's go," I said to Legolas. I slung my purple back pack over my shoulder and put my arms through the straps.

With that we had headed out the door. I still held onto his wrist and I could still feel him shaking. "Legolas, I promise I will get you home."

"How is that you know who I am?" Legolas asked.

I sighed, "In my world your world is a story, a wonderful story, a fantasy, nothing more. I know different because I came from Middle earth. That's where my birth parents are, I was sent here for my protection. Gandalf told me eight years ago that someone would come here from his world and I was to take them back and go with them. I am the guardian of the passage between our worlds and as soon as we cross it, there is no going back. It will be destroyed."

I fell silent and let that sink in as I walked through the forest, Legolas right behind me. "So how much do you know about my world?"

"A lot and I'm sorry if pronounced things wrong when I spoke in Elvish to you," I said still hanging onto him as I walked.

"You spoke it perfectly, it took me by surprise how did you learn it?"

"A lot of hard work, there are few here that speak it. I also taught myself the other languages of middle earth," I replied. I pulled him closer as he started to shake again. I wrapped my arm around his shoulders which for me was easy seeing how I was nearly as tall as he was.

"What's your name?" he asked. I hung my head that was one question I could not answer.

"I don't know," I said quietly. "I've never heard it spoken."

I was pretty sure I heard him gasp in horror, "So what did they call you?"

            I didn't look at him as I answered in barely more than a whisper, "girl." We walked through the night in silence for the most part. The silence was a comfortable one for which I was thankful. I had moved my hand from his wrist to his hand, he didn't seem to mind. That was a good thing because I had no intention of letting go of him.

            The first light of day started to peak through the trees and I yawned, wishing that there was time to sleep. "Do you need to rest?" Legolas asked.

            I shook my head, "no, I have been training since I was ten so that I could do this, so that I could fight, so I could run and keep up. Besides sleep is something I don't get a lot of."

            "What kind of life have you had?" he asked there was a tone of shock and horror in his voice. He seemed astounded that I had lived through so much at such a young age.

"One that I would not wish upon anyone," I replied.