disclaimer : I own nothing from lotr , it all belongs to Tolkien .This is my first fan fic please R&R , I accept all opinions so , tell me what you really think and what my story needs , I've seen the movies and read part of the books so , I know that there is a difference between them . This is not a 10th walker , also keep in mind that English is my second language , which means I might make some mistakes and I don't mind you pointing them out .
Strange meetings
" my soul will find yours "
Jude Deveraux , A knight in shining armor .
It all started the day I woke up in the middle of a burning city with the sound of screaming , and my face planted to the ground . I felt someone shaking me , instantly something felt wrong I am supposed to wake up to the sound of my alarm in my bed or , my aunt saying "Fanny , sweety you're late again" , not in the middle of a burning city .
At that moment I could feel panic creeping down at me but instead of surrendering to it I ignored it , there must be some kind of an explanation to this I might be dreaming so , I pinched my arm and I felt the pain .
"what the … ?"
The shaking kept going and this time it was accompanied with the voice of someone speaking in a beautiful musical language , that I could not recognize but I could swear I heard it somewhere .
I lifted my head to peer at the speaker , and suddenly I could not breathe there are no words to describe the beauty and perfection of such a creature . he could not be human , I realized that the moment our eyes met my brown plain ones with his clear silver blue ones that looked as if they were shining , there is so much wisdom and power in those eyes , his long golden hair was loosening from a complicated braid and some dirt was marring his left cheek but could never effect his inhuman perfection , he broke the stare at the sound of something I could not hear but after a moment I heard the sound , it was terrifying like a scream of a wild animal that froze me with fear .
The stranger looked back at me , this time he said something that seemed urgent like time was running out and he was telling me something important .I snapped out of my trance and tried to get my legs on the ground and almost failed if not for the hands that held me , my only thought was I need to run something is coming .
The stranger said something but when he saw the confusion on my face he pushed me gently pointing to a spot behind a falling wall next to a corner that once belonged to a magnificent house that was thirty feet away , he did not need to say more I ran to the spot and hid behind the wall , I could feel the ground shaking and tears were streaming down my face and my hands kept shaking as I clamped them on my mouth to keep myself from going into hysterics .
the sound got louder and louder until I could feel it close by . I peered from my hiding place , I could see the sky darkening with grey clouds and the sweet smell of rain was filling the air. From the corner of my eye I caught a movement , as a cloud of black smoke was filling the falling city and I could see the golden haired stranger picking up his abandoned … sword ? .
No one uses swords any more where the hell am I ? . could this be some kind of a cosplay ? but something in my gut told me this was real , no human no matter how beautiful could poses such appearance , we have flaws and in some ways our flaws complement us , they make us human , they make us … who we are .
The golden haired stranger held his sword and stood his ground , waiting for his opponent which I guess is the thing with the horrifying voice , I could feel my heart beating so hard against my chest and a feeling of dread taking a hold of my entire body .
From the black smoke , I could see a figure that stood as tall as two men with a mane of fire the … thing or monster for lack of a better word to describe it , was simply evil you could feel it emitting from its presence .
I was desperately scrambling to get a hold on my thoughts and the fear that was about to slip from my hold and send me screaming from my hiding place and running until I could no longer run , I have never felt such a fear in my twenty-two year old life am I going to die ? kept repeating itself like a mantra in my head , while my sweaty palms held tighter against my mouth to keep the sound of my harsh breathing and breaking nerves somehow under control .
The golden haired stranger never wavered , and took off running with graceful and fluid movement in the direction of the monster , while a battle cry found its way through his lips , raising his curved sword with a promise of death .
The monster lifted his right hand which held a whip of some sort , the whip was burning with fire and the monster roared as the golden haired stranger crept closer only to have the whip lashed out at him with a speed that was too fast for my eyes to catch , the whip hit the golden haired stranger in his mid section and I could hear a cry of pain this time , but he didn't fall .
from my hiding place I could see he was in unbearable pain , the whip ripped through his mid section leaving it a mess that was nearly impossible to fix or heal , he was losing too much blood , soon he will be dead and the fact of seeing someone die in front of my own eyes , without doing something made me feel like a coward and it left a bitter taste in my mouth .
In that moment I had this crazy notion that I could somehow save him without getting caught by the monster or maybe getting the attention of the monster , so the golden haired stranger would have an opening . all I had to rely on was dumb luck , because I knew very well that I could not fight , for god's sake I spend my Friday nights with my aunt watching movies or ordering pizza , I know I run the life of a rock star .
So , I did what seems to be the most idiotic thing in the history of my short life , I got up from my hiding place with shaking legs from fear . I could hear a voice in my head screaming you idiot you'll die well , I hope not .
So , I gathered what little courage I had and screamed at the top my lungs " HEY YOU … YEAH YOU … OVER HERE "
" this might not be the best idea " the last part was whispered to myself as the monster was turning to face me forgetting about its opponent .
I could see shock and panic taking over the pale face of the golden haired stranger , he's dying but he composed himself as the monster was heading to me , breathing fire from its nostrils and waving his whip of fire but , before the monster could even lay a hand on me the golden haired stranger pierced it through the heart with his sword .
The monster stopped its advancing on me and swayed as if he was in a drunken haze before it fell to the ground with a loud thud , the sword still planted in its heart . Now , I could see the stranger moving away from his fallen opponent, the fight leaving his body , his movement is slow and his step faltering from the loss of blood , not as graceful and fluent as before .
he walked a few paces in my direction , while his hands found their way to his mid section in a last attempt to stop the bleeding its too late , by this point he could barely walk and he fell to his knees half way to where I stood , I shook the remains of the fear that rooted me to my spot and I took off running with a sudden surge of hope maybe its not too late .
as I reached him I could see his face contracting in pain , and the front of his pale blue tunic that must have been beautiful once but not anymore , as the blood painted most of the front like an unfinished Claude Monet painting .
I held him by the shoulder and pushed him down to the grass gently , making sure to make it as painless as possible , he is already in too much pain I know he will not survive , there is no doctor in here and even if by some miracle there was one , the damage is too much and the equipments required to treat such a wound are not available .
This is clearly not my world . they use swords , they have monsters , the buildings in this place are very different they seem to blend in with nature rather than conquer it so , that means there is no way in hell I could find a hospital , as I look around for someone to ask for help all I could see are the bodies of dead people , people that look as devastatingly beautiful as the stranger , their eyes are wide open and unseeing it's a battle field , I could feel panic trying to get a hold on my senses but I push it down as soon as I hear the pained noise from the lips of the stranger , he's coughing blood , I try to hold him as still as possible without harming him , while my tears find their way to me again and a whimper escapes from my throat before a whole stream escapes from my eyes .
" I'm sorry , I don't know what do "
At the sound of my voice his eyes meet mine and I feel guilt for not being able to stop the pain , he doesn't reply only tries to sit up but stopping half way through as the pain makes its presence known , so he settles down for this half sitting half lying position , while one of his hands barely supports him from lying on his back again .
On instinct , I pull him from his awkward position and lay his head in my lap , he doesn't fight or protest , I don't think he has the strength to do so .
I am still crying I never saw a dying person before my own eyes , I remove the golden silky strands that fell on his face in the process of moving him , as my hand settles against his beating heart one of my tears falls on his cheek and his right hand comes up to the place where my tear fell , while his blue silver eyes find mine for the third time , but we don't break the stare I could see that he has realized that he was dying , that he is closer to death with every breath .
" il n'uma ta edan , tela rato faarea " (do not weep human , the pain will end soon enough )
He said those words in that beautiful musical language , with such tenderness as if he knew that I am a stranger to this world , while a soft smile began to draw its way to his lips , which have been stained with blood from his earlier coughing .
I return his smile with one of those smiles , the ones used to say goodbye , that happen to be filled with pain for not having more time and happiness for meeting the person , but in your heart you know there is no way to prevent the parting , that fate will have its way whether you like it or not . I can see the light leaving his eyes , and his face relaxing from his previous smile .
" no , no , no , no please … please hold on , this can't be happening "
But , my pleading words fell to deaf ears , I could no longer feel the beating of his heart under my hand , so my hand leaves its place against his heart and comes up to his shoulder as the other one lifts his golden head , and I shake him again and again while a voice in my head whispers he's dead .
The sky is completely filled with dark clouds now , I feel the first drops of rain and I hear thunder as I cradle the golden haired stranger trying to shelter him from the heavy rain , my hair and clothes are soaked with it and my silent tears have turned into full sobs by now .
I could feel a hand on my shoulder and hear a soft voice speaking in that language , but my mind is elsewhere . the owner of the voice tries to remove my clutched hands , in the beginning I fight him but in the end my hands leave the dead body of the stranger , and I sit back from my hunched position of when I held him and look at the newcomer as he identifies the body , pain and hurt find their way to his face he knows him I could see it .The newcomer turns to me as my sobs quite down and I hiccup to catch my breath .
" manke ier lle nosse arwen ? edan il sinome "( where is your kin my lady ? a human should not be here )
As he sees the confusion he speaks again in another language repeating what seems to be a question, but the new language is harsher and not musical , which only leads to more confusion so , he stops and sighs as if he's frustrated with me .
As he gets up to call someone , I could see the end of a pointed ear escaping the curtain of his dark hair and I gasp and turn my eyes to the dead stranger and discover that he also has pointed ears . how could I have missed them? well, maybe because he was dying ! replies my logic .
Could it be a birth defect ? no way I am sure they're not human , it doesn't take a genius to know you can feel it , they're different .
The rain is increasing and the ground is slippery now and I'm shivering from the cold as I scramble to my feet , but as soon as I think that I got on some firm ground , I slip and fall face first great but what meets my face is not the muddy ground , it's the wooden floor of my room , what the hell ? . I could hear my aunt Lisa in the next room getting ready for the day , she is an English teacher in a close elementary school .
" Fanny , are you up ? " she asks .
I'm still on the wooden ground shocked and drenched with rain , but I get myself to answer her .
" yeah , I just woke up , I am going to take a shower I'll be ready in fifteen minutes "
"ok , see you tonight . don't forget to lock the door after you leave "
The last words were said as she was walking down the stairs .
By now I was out of my shock , I got up and headed for the shower immersing myself in my daily routine and ignoring what happened a few minutes ago , I'll think about it tonight , not now .
as I remove my light green shirt I could see some blood covering the front , it's his blood and my vision starts to go blurry but I don't let the tears fall , so I throw the shirt to the ground and get out of my muddy jeans , after I am out of my clothes I take a long shower , and a fifteen minute shower turns into a half hour .
After I finish my shower , I get dressed in a simple dark blue shirt and some jeans and brush my shoulder length brown hair , before tying it in a pony tail . I look into the mirror to see my work , my eyes are puffy from crying other than that , I look the same as my 5'6 plain self .When I get downstairs I eat some cheerios with milk , before heading to my job , and I make sure to lock the door and throw the bloody shirt .
I work in a small bookstore that is a twenty minute drive away , I love my job yes it might not be the greatest but I love it , I took the job after taking some courses in the community college .
I've been living with my aunt since I was six years old , after the death of my mother in a car accident she took care of me , I never knew my father he left when my mother was still pregnant with me , yes there were times when I wondered what it would be like to have him in my life , but I dismissed the idea since my aunt made sure I was loved and supported .
When I get to the bookstore and open it to start the day , I get lost in my job and forget for a while what happened , putting my attention to the customers .
I close the bookstore by eight-thirty , and I head down to my home , in four weeks I'll be moving out to my own place and my aunt will be selling the house by the end of the year after she gets married to her fiancé Ben , he works as a lawyer in some company and he's really funny , he's one of those people that you can't help but like, and he makes my aunt smile like a kid in the middle of a candy shop .
By the time I get home my aunt has finished preparing our dinner , we eat while she tells me about her day , and I tell her about some customer asking about a book by Jane Eyre which makes her laugh , a few minutes later Ben joins us . I help her with the dishes before going to sleep , my day was exhausting but enjoyable none the less , last night I got busy reading a book , which ended up with me falling asleep in my jeans and t-shirt without realizing it .
After I brush my teeth and change into some comfortable shirt and some sweatpants , I lay in my bed thinking about what happened today . it was real , the golden haired stranger with his pointy ears I could still feel the beat of his dying heart under my palm , at that moment everything comes back and I tie the events , pointy ears , inhuman beauty , falling city ,a monster with a mane of fire and a whip , golden hair , battle field.
" oh my god … no freaking way , there is no way that I was in Gondolin this morning " I whisper to myself as if it was going to make me sound less insane , but I knew that it was true . I was there , the puffy eyes , the muddy jeans , the bloody shirt .
I read the sillmarillions a few years ago after I finished lord of the rings , I don't remember much but I do remember the fall of Gondolin and that the golden haired stranger is an elf lord named 'Glorfindel' , and the monster with the mane of fire is actually a 'balrog' , leave it to Tolkien to come up with these names , now that's a talent .
Somehow it made me feel better that the strang … I mean Glorfindel will be reborn and that he will reside in Imladris with lord Elrond , and everything will be perfect , except that some guy was trying to take over the world with his bling bling , WONDERFUL .
Impossible kept playing in my head like a broken recorded , while I tried to find a logical explanation to what happened , in the end I gave up trying to figure it out and I fell asleep hoping with all my heart that what happened this morning won't happen again .
As the Days went by I found myself forgetting the incident as if it were a bad dream , I convinced myself at some point that it was a dream , a very vivid one , but deep down I knew better.
After two weeks of the incident I fell asleep like any other night , but it won't be I realized that after I woke up on the ground again and scrambling up to my feet to find Glorfindel with his hand mid air , holding a quill pen from the parchment he was writing on , shock and disbelieve written all over his face and he's eyes wide open , neither of us moved or breathed we just stared , as if this was some trick of the light and blinking would make it go away . the room where we currently stood seems to be some kind of a study , I gathered that from the pieces of parchment laying around the dark wooden table . He was the first to break the silence .
" aina' Iluvatar … " ( holy Eru )
" holy fuck … " I don't think my greeting was polite but , I was busy freaking out and wondering how this keeps happening and why .
" ta il mar , saian lumme " ( it cannot be , centuries have passed ) I didn't get a word of what he was saying and he didn't seem to notice , he was busy trying to comprehend the situation.
" um … hello Lord Glorfindel … again , you're not dying are you ? " I said the last part with worry in my voice , even though I knew he wouldn't understand what I said .
Thank you for reading .
P.S : the Elvish used in this chapter is not entirely correct .
