A/N: I'm trying to write The Jade Dragon so any reader could understand and enjoy it without reading The Search For Darkness but there are some things that would make more sense if you read The Search For Darkness first.
This fic begins in a time very much like ours, not in Middle-Earth and Legolas, along with most of the Fellowship, is about 19 years old.
Disclaimer: All rights concerning Lord of the Rings belong to the Tolkien Estate and New Line Cinema.
From out of the shadows
Rise Nine points of Light.
Together, they spread
And dispel Darkness.
Touching lives,
Calming chaos,
Guiding souls,
All with the power of Light.
One Light touched another,
One from a different world.
Both dimmed in an Age past.
Both brightened in an Age creating.
A Prince will see
How the Wind changed
The Light.
This is her story.
The morning sun shattered the night sky with magnificent rays of gold and pink light as the stars above flickered and disappeared for the day. It looked like a clear day for the survivors of the War of Darkness to enjoy.
Finally, Legolas thought as he watched the sunrise from the branches of his favourite maple tree. He shifted slightly and a large splash of morning dew dropped onto his short, spiky blond hair. We've had nothing but rain for days.
The Fellowship did not survive the War of the Ring in Middle-Earth but they were needed far into the future to do battle with a greater evil. They had been reincarnated into a modern world with technology, urban sprawl and a doomed future. But, fate called to the Fellowship to fulfil and rise to the destinies that were laid out to them when they were still attending high school with Gandalf as their teacher.
Nevertheless, the Invasion happened and the world crumbled and humanity collapsed at the hands of the Dark Master. In a great search for Darkness, the Fellowship of the Nine took up their duties as warriors of Light and defeated the Darkness to bring about a new and peaceful Age.
Now, over a year after the War of Darkness, the Fellowship helped in rebuilding their city in a renewed way. In honour of their past and their heroic deeds, the people had come to call their reclaimed city as the Gray Haven.
In the ancient past, of course, the Gray Havens was a place where pain and suffering could not touch and it was where the race of Elves retreated from Middle-Earth.
Their new city was to be the rebirth and a model of the legendary Gray Havens. It stood between the wreckage of the Darkness and the purity of Light where the new Gray Haven was approaching.
The now-famous St. Francis Church, where many survivors had stayed to heal from the War, cast a long shadow with its bell tower and reflected the sun's light. Out of the corner of Legolas' eye, he could see the mosque's tower and the Buddhist temple on the other side.
After watching the sun rise off the horizon, he let out a long, soft sigh and left his spot in the maple tree. He made his way to St. Francis Church as the city woke up.
His mind strayed a little as his feet, adorned with comfortable running shoes, took him around the trees and through the park. He thought back about a month ago when the whole city had a huge celebration for the anniversary of the end of the War. One particular scene stood out in his mind.
He was walking through one of the halls of St. Francis when he passed a door that was left slightly ajar. The laughter of girls rang out from inside the room and he couldn't resist. He peeked in.
Inside, a young Chinese girl about his age known as Maikaza, or Kaza, was modelling a very rich Japanese kimono for her friends and Galadriel. It was for celebrating that night.
"So what if it's Japanese?" Micah, a girl with an Indian background, asked. She, like Kaza, had lived her life in the Gray Haven and had even helped in rebelling against the Darkness. "Japanese culture IS rooted in Chinese culture. Besides, we don't have a lot to work with so you can't be all that picky, you know."
"I know," Kaza sighed. She did a small pose in front of the full-length mirror. "I guess it'll have to do."
That was when the ladies noticed him and kicked him out playfully. Ever since then, his dreams were filled with Mirkwood and those robes. Something about Kaza wearing those robes triggered a deep memory from within his mind.
He knew from the first time he saw the silver dragon that there was something familiar about her and her magic. He knew that he had encountered them before but he couldn't remember where or when before but he knew now.
He closed his eyes at the edge of the park and remembered his old home. For a moment, the trees were tall and old again and the Great Hall was just in view. Singing Elvish voices floated between the trees and he could hear someone calling his name.
"Prince Legolas! Where are you?" Someone was calling him… "Prince Legolas…!"
Someone…
"Hey, Legolas!"
He looked up and saw Galadriel waving him over. Pulling himself out of his thoughts, he ran over to her and tried making his messy, spiky hair presentable over the way. "Morning, Galadriel!"
She scoffed and sighed as he came closer. "You know that you shouldn't try to neaten yourself for me; we both know it'll fail. But…" She reached over and pulled a budding twig from the back of his shirt collar. "…you shouldn't spend so much time in the trees."
"I feel better in the trees," he said bluntly.
"They feel a bit more comfortable, don't they? I miss my forest, too. But a lot of people often ask about your whereabouts, Legolas, especially quite a few of the ladies."
He shifted nervously and gave her an uneasy smile. "I noticed. Most of them are just way too old for me. Practically cougars."
"Well, I'd thought you'd be happy for all this attention," she laughed and led him to a small restaurant for breakfast. "You are a pretty good-looking young man, after all."
"No, I know. And I am." He hesitated. "At least, I think I am."
She rolled her eyes and wondered if he was fully awake yet. Although she was more than twenty-five years older than Legolas, she was forming a sisterly relationship with him. "Don't you have a mirror in that flat of yours?"
"No! I mean, yes! I know I look good but I just…" He sighed and stopped. He looked away from her while she ordered their breakfast and sat down at a side table. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her look at him and sit down across the table from him.
"What is bothering you, Legolas?" she asked softly. Her gentle eyes looked at him filled with concern. "You have not been yourself since the festival."
He paused, a little uncomfortable. He didn't feel right dreaming about the memories of the past but he knew he could trust Lady Galadriel.
"It's Kaza," he finally said. "I can't get her out of my mind since I think I remember her in our past, in Middle-Earth. She was staying in Mirkwood for a while and our kingdom had a rather interesting experience. And yeah, I know how dirty that sounds."
He shifted nervously in his seat before he said, "I'm remembering all this through my dreams."
She looked at him with inquisitive eyes.
"You think I'm crazy, don't you?"
"No!" she said immediately. "You're only crazy if the entire world thinks you're crazy even though you could be the only sane person in their right state of mind. I was just wondering…"
Legolas slouched a bit, preparing himself for an embarrassing question he wasn't all that willing to answer.
"Am I the one who you should be telling all this?"
He looked at her blankly as she sipped her hot tea, which had just arrived with his orange juice. "What, I should tell Aragorn? Or Gimli? I don't think they'd really want to hear something like this..."
Galadriel heaved a long sigh. "Are you purposely trying my patience this early or what?"
He just smiled and said sarcastically, "No... Never!"
She laughed and put her cup down. "Really, you should tell Kaza about what you remember about the past. She needs to know who she is. You know that the Invasion completely destroyed all her memories of the past."
"And yet she managed to save all eight of us from the Lair," he said quietly, gently. "She had a bit of help, but… it was still her." He paused again, unsure. "Do you think I should talk to her today?"
"Why not? She said that she would be spending her day by the shore of the river. She said that it's fun to climb around the rocks by the beach."
"Oh, cool. Guess I should sit her down and tell her about what happened in Mirkwood, huh?"
"It would be a good idea to spend some time with her," she said.
Just then, their breakfasts arrived. She told him as they began eating, "Especially since she's been a bit quiet lately."
"Which is never a good thing," Legolas admitted. "I'll go cheer her up with a good story."
After the Darkness was destroyed, the world was still left crippled. Technology that needed hundreds or thousands of manpower to maintain simply couldn't function anymore because of the damage they had suffered.
So, the entire world went back to the traditional ways of living. In many ways, Middle-Earth was being reborn.
Given a second chance to build itself, humanity in the world was working towards a less harmful, peaceful society. Perhaps thy saw that the more efficient methods could sometimes do more harm to people than the simpler methods.
Legolas walked through the bustling city after breakfast in search for Kaza, the girl without a past.
Many of the Gray Haven's people waved to him and greeted him cheerily as he went by. More than once, a young woman would give him a seductive look but he greeted them like everyone else and went on his way. He was going to talk to Kaza today.
When he got to the beach, all was quiet and peaceful. The river was on one side of him, towards the sun, and it fed into the gigantic river delta that ran into the sea.
As he made his way along the sandy beach to the rocks that lined a cliff by the shore, he watched a repaired sailboat glide by on the water. The wind that carried the faintest hint of the salty ocean filled its sails and brought it away from shore.
He climbed the jutting rocks with ease and enjoyed the feel of the warm wind blowing through his short hair. He kept an eye out for Kaza as he jumped from rock to rock but there was no need.
"Did you lose something around here, Legolas?"
Kaza was standing on a rock closest to the water and looked up at him, smiling. Her dark Chinese eyes squinted in the sun and she was usually smiling but something behind them always looked like she was a little bit lost in herself. She was a little short, a few inches taller than 5'0" Gimli at the time, but having a main fighting role in the past War meant that she possessed a certain flair of grace and strength.
But at the moment, she looked like any other nineteen-year-old. And she shared part of her past with him.
Legolas grinned at her and began to climb down to her. "Not exactly, Kaza. I can't lose you if I never found you in the first place, can I?"
"True enough." Being quite a bit shorter than he was, she looked up at him. "So what's up? You usually don't come looking for me unless you want something."
"Actually," he began and gave her a friendly smile, "I was wondering if you would let me help you." He sat down on the flat rock and looked at her reaction.
As expected, she was confused and gave him a look. "Help me?" she echoed. "Help me with what?"
He had thought about how he should begin to tell her on his way through the city. He was a quick thinker and, right now, he was also well-prepared.
"The War wasn't the first time we've met," he said after a small pause. He maintained constant eye contact. He knew that she had looked into his deep blue eyes like this before. "We met each other once a long time ago. About five thousand years ago, actually. Back in Mirkwood, when I was still Prince Legolas."
If anything, Kaza looked even more confused but sat down next to him. "You know something about my past?"
"Are you sure you want to hear this?"
She looked back into his blue eyes with determination. "Tell me, please."
"Okay," he said and got into a comfortable position on the boulder. "I'll tell you the story about you…"
She got into a comfortable sitting position, as well.
"…and about me…"
A gentle wind played with the trees and their shade.
"…and what had happened with your magic in the kingdom of Mirkwood, Greenwood the Great."
A/N: Okay! So that's out of the way and it kind of introduces Kaza-chan into the world of Middle-Earth and all its AU glory!