Disclaimer: I don't own anything that Tolkien created.

Chapter 1: The Arrival and Discovery

Elissa Bell sat at her desk reading her copy of "The Lord of the Rings". Her English teacher had given the class the assignment of reading the entire book in two months. Elissa was surprised that her teacher had given them such a short time to read the massive set of books. Besides, the books hadn't seemed like anything else Mrs. Smith had given them.

When the books were handed out in class many of Elissa's friends and classmates complained that they would never be able to finish all three volumes of the book in time. Admittedly, Elissa had groaned along with them. They said they were too busy because of all their other homework and plans.

Even though she hadn't been happy about it, Elissa knew it would be futile to complain. When Mrs. Smith's mind was set on something, it was set on something. And sure enough Elissa was right. Mrs. Smith just ignored the students' pleas and instead added a three-page report onto the assignment.

Elissa inwardly groaned at that fact, but knew it wouldn't be smart to argue with the teacher after that. However, one student just didn't get it.

"That's not fair Mrs. Smith," said Joseph Rowe from the back of the room.

" I guess you prefer a five page report instead then," said Mrs. Smith in an annoyed voice.

Everyone in the classroom (excluding the teacher of course) groaned at Joe's stupidity.

After that the bell rang for the weekend and everyone was out of the classroom faster than you could say "report".

Elissa sat up in her bed smiling fondly. She was thinking about how she had started reading, what she considered, the best book ever written. The events in the book were just so incredible that she couldn't believe there was ever a time she didn't want to read the book describing the adventures of a noble group of heroes on their way to do a noble deed. Even the more boring parts of the book were interesting in their own way.

The book always filled her with emotion. She felt the tears fill her eyes when she read about Gandalf falling. She felt a rush of joy during the chapters describing Hobbiton. She couldn't explain why she felt these emotions, but she did. She'd always been a sucker for a good story.

Because she loved the trilogy so much, she read it within a month and a half. Now she was just rereading one of her favorite parts, when the Fellowship arrives in Lothlórien. Even though she loved the entire book, she especially loved any part of the book that had to do with the forests and trees of Middle Earth.

Elissa lay back down on her bed so that she could be more comfortable while reading the book, and as she did so, she toyed with the thought of starting her report. She knew she should have started it immediately, but she just couldn't put down the book long enough to write anything more than the title. She'd always had a problem with procrastination when it came to book reports.

Elissa heard her mom calling her to come down to dinner, so she marked her place in the book and spit out her gum in the trashcan. On her way down, she hoped dinner wasn't meatloaf. She positively abhorred it.

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After dinner, which unfortunately was meatloaf, she came back to her room to continue her book, though at a different place. She couldn't understand what was so great about meatloaf. The rest of her family though, seemed to rather enjoy it.

But soon enough, all thoughts of meatloaf and her family vanished from her mind. Instead her thoughts were filled with the sounds of battle. The swords clashing, the bows firing, and the screaming that filled the air at the Battle of Helms Deep were her only thoughts.

As she started reading again a funny feeling came over her. It was like the nervous but excited feeling you get when you fly in a plane for the first time. The feeling invaded her senses like the smoke from a fire, but she paid the warning no heed. Instead she just brushed the strange feeling off thinking it was most likely a side affect of eating too much meatloaf. She smiled thinking about that and continued her book.

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That night as Elissa slept she had a strange dream. She dreamed she was floating above a beautiful world covered in smoke and flames. Elissa wanted desperately to do something but she was trapped floating amidst the clouds. Then she saw something that made her heart soar, even though she still couldn't do anything. A beautiful green forest like an oasis in the sea of destruction shone brightly against the black land. The forest was still alive, untouched by the wickedness of the destructive fires. After seeing this Elissa felt like there was hope, although she didn't know why. Whatever the cause of the destruction, she knew she'd never be able to help.

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When she awoke the next morning she discovered something that made her stomach churn. She was definitely not in her bedroom. She wasn't even in her house.

Author's note: Hey, I hope this has a bit more believability than the last time. :P R&R s'il vous plaît.