Ellen Tathar paused, letting her last words sink in and her gaze wandering over the three girls sitting before her. None of them were her daughters, but dearer than daughters they all were to her.
Loni Joy Harding sat on the opposite end of the couch from Ellen. Her flaxen hair was evenly parted on the top of her head and combed down on each side to the tops of her shoulders. She was fifteen, but looked ten as her large blue eyes became even larger, listening to Ellen's story.
Loni's dog, an old foxhound named Scarlet (but whose registered name was Ch. Nargothrond's Pixieangel Ravenhair Brethilwen Scarletblush Nightingale Twinkletoes), was currently cuddling with Dorothy O'Kelly. Dorothy was laid out on her stomach in front of Ellen and Ellen's eyes rested on her for a moment.
Dorothy was a tall girl, though not overly so as to attract attention. Her eyes were a mild, clear green and her thick hair, of a colour halfway between black and brown, was braided in a single plait down her back. She, like Loni, was transfixed with the tale and waited impatiently for Ellen to get on with it.
But before going on, Ellen turned her eyes to the last girl. Anita Jerusha Roper was of the same age as Dorothy and Loni. Anita was thin, strong, tall, and muscular; clearly an athlete. Her short curly hair was black, as was her skin. Her dark eyes were bright and keen, though a deep scar on her brow attested that the vision in her left eye, though still good, was slightly distorted. Anita was laid out across the other couch, seeming to have far more interest in the ceiling than in the story.
Yet it was she who asked, "So? Is that it?"
Ellen smiled slyly. "Until tomorrow night, anyway."
Dorothy let out a long breath and threw the pillow she was holding at Ellen. "You're kidding, that's all we get?"
Ellen's storm blue eyes twinkled as she threw the pillow back at Dorothy. "I've got to get some sleep and so do you guys. Don't forget, Laura's coming tomorrow."
Loni swung her feet to the floor. "Whatever the doctor orders. Come on, Dotti." Dorothy and Loni headed down the hall to the room they shared, chattering about the night's story. Just before they shut their door for the night, the two stuck their heads around the doorpost and yelled, "Namarie!"
"Namarie!" Ellen called back. She and Anita went up the stairs together to their own separate rooms. Anita looked thoughtful and finally posed a question to Ellen.
"Ellen, how do you come up with the LOTR fanfics you tell? They fascinate even me, and you know how much I hate all the Tolkien-hype."
Ellen shrugged. "It comes naturally to me."
Anita smiled at her as she went into her room. "Well, you do a good job. It's almost like you were there," she said before closing her door.
Ellen smiled wistfully. "Like I was there." She turned and entered her own room, only sparing a quick glance at the ring on her finger. Her high school class ring's blue stone glinted dully in the glow of the streetlight. Ellen nodded wearily and climbed into bed.
That night Dorothy had The Dream again. She always capitalized it in her journal because it was the only recurring LOTR dream she'd ever had. She had been having The Dream every three nights or so for the past two weeks.
This time, just like all the others, Dorothy found herself standing on the walls of Minas Tirith, looking out over Middle-earth. And just like always, there stood next to her a tall blonde woman. When Dorothy turned to her, the stranger spoke.
"Greetings, Annaeru. I am Erulisse, messenger of the Valar. I have been sent to call you back to the land of your birth. Gondor and Rohan are on the verge of war."
The woman who called herself Erulisse pointed outward. Below them, on the Pelennor, Dorothy could see two armies: one bearing the White Tree, the other the White Horse. Erulisse spoke again as the armies met one another with a clash of steel.
"Take up your birthright, Annaeru. Stop this battle before it begins."
Normally at this point in the dream, Erulisse would say "Think on this, but speak of it to no one. In time you will know what you should do." But tonight she had a new message for the teen.
"Now is the time. Elentathar will aid you. Tell her."
Then the scene was gone and Dorothy's eyes shuttered open. She was in her own bed, on her own side of the room, watching her own heart sister sleep and listening to the sounds of the morning in Chapel Hill North Carolina, her own hometown.
Knowing that she would not be able to go back to sleep, Dorothy slid out of bed and dressed. She went out into the hall and heard the TV. Anita was awake, of course. Padding up the stairs and into the den, Anita found Anita stretching while watching the morning news. Murmuring something that may have been good morning, Dorothy curled up in the recliner beside Scarlet.
Just as she was dozing off once again, Ellen entered the den, pinning up her graying hair and chirping, "Good morning!" Dorothy groaned; she was not a morning person at all. "Where's Loni?" Ellen asked as she began her own stretching routine.
"Still asleep," muttered Dorothy, still holding out the hope of going back to sleep to the tune of the six o'clock news.
"Weird," Ellen said as she stretched her right leg out behind her. "We're usually all up by seven."
Two seconds later, Loni bounded up the stairs and launched herself into the other chair in the den. "Aiya, mellyn! How are we this morning?"
Dorothy growled at her. Here again was another morning person.
Suddenly the doorbell rang. Loni leaped to her feet and whooped. "That's Laura!" She raced down the stairs and flung open the front door, embracing the woman on the other side.
Laura Lin was a short woman with brilliant gray eyes and a ready smile. Her thick sable hair was ever and always tangled atop her head like a bird's nest. She looked like a miniature of Ellen, for they were sisters. Laura attended Duke University and was majoring in philology. She was an LOTR fanatic and talked about it constantly with Dorothy and Loni. Laura also ran track with Anita. She was here this particular weekend because it was September 22nd and Loni had proposed a film festival. All three LOTR extended versions, back to back to back. Ellen was chaperoning Anita at a track meet in Durham and wouldn't be back until Sunday, so it was a perfect opportunity.
Laura returned Loni's hug, then handed her a postcard. "Ecthelion. You're going to have to do better than that to stump me, Alasse."
Loni grinned at her. Laura, Loni and Dorothy had been exchanging LOTR trivia questions by postcard ever since the girls could write and they were fast running out of hard ones for Laura. Dorothy made her way down the stairs and embraced her friend. Laura slipped her a postcard and whispered, "Maeglin" in her ear. Dorothy nodded and took the card. She was not awake enough to care at the moment.
Anita was the last to greet Laura. The older woman asked, "How is the track star this fine morning?"
"Nervous," admitted Anita sheepishly.
"Oh, come on now," admonished Laura. "You're great at what you do and you'll nail the others, you'll see!" Anita shrugged and Laura winked at her. "Sure you will."
Ellen brought up the rear. "Nice to see you Laura. Have you had breakfast?" When the answer came back negative, Ellen said, "Very well. If anyone needs us, Anita and I will be making cinnamon rolls in the kitchen."
Laura slung off her backpack and unzipped it. "I brought the hardest Lord of the Rings/Tolkien trivia game I could find. So what say we play a bit to get ready for the weekend?"
The girls agreed, never tiring of their favorite topic. The day passed quickly by. Most of it was spent immersed in the trivia game. They even managed to drag Anita into a couple of rounds, though she protested vehemently. Anita spent her day resting and preparing for her track meet.
That night, they all convened in the living room again to hear Ellen tell the night's story.