Harley circled the classroom, her sapphire blue eyes scanning the small children that were infront of her. "Han!" she yelled in Korean, as the group of children threw out a punch with a loud yell. She stopped, watching this one tiny girl with two braided pig tails in particular. "Du!" she yelled again, watching the small girl perform a perfect front snap kick, before looking over at Harley for approval.
Harley smirked back at the girl, before resuming her position at the front of the class. "Se!" she said, yelling the number three. With that, the twenty kids in the class all threw one last punch, before exclaiming a loud ninja cry. Harley nodded, impressed.
"Juui!" she ordered, telling all the kids to stand at the position of attention. Once they did she bowed slightly, muttering the words 'Hwal!". The class followed her in suite, before they all looked back up at her excitedly. She was a master instructor in the art of Tae Kwon Do, and had been ever since she reached the age of twenty five. She spent her whole life, for as long as she could remember, studying the art of the karate. Now at the age of twenty seven, she was extremely well respected. "Alright class," she said, placing her hands on her in-shape hips. "I will see you all next week, remember we are testing so I want to see your very best forms," she said, a small smirk on her face.
Once the class was dismissed, Harley headed to the locker room. One of the male instructors, Ken, came back to see her. "How's it going Harles?" he questioned, playfully shoving her. "Harles? Really?" she questioned, shaking her head. "Are you working tonight?" he asked, her showing her a flirty glance. His sandy brown hair and gray eyes, and extremely toned body made him very desirable. "No I'm actually not at the bar tonight, I have to watch my friend Charlotte's cat since she is at Florida this weekend. I could use a night off from bartending, I know the bartender is usually the drunkie's best friend but sometimes its just too much.." she said, shaking her head.
"Alright, alright... I must say my self esteem is alittle shot now that I'm being turned down for a cat but it's all good, I can recover.." he said, flirtatiously. She showed him a playful look, before slamming her locker shut. "My parents are also in town from their big business trip in London this weekend, so I want to see them. Let's see what Monday brings," she said, before walking past him. She didn't even need to look back at him to know he was staring at her rear end. "I will hold you to that, have fun playing with the kitties," he teased.
"Kitty, just one. Give Charlotte some more credit she isn't a crazy cat lady or anything..." she called over her shoulder. "Yet," she added, to herself. She climbed into her F-150, before driving through the streets of Conshohocken, PA. As she headed towards her friends house in Valley Forge, she could not help but notice the beautiful orange sunset that streaked across the river. Once she pulled up to Charlotte's house, she let out a long drawn out sigh. She wasn't very fond of cats. But it was her best friend, so she did what she had to do.
She let herself in with the set of keys that Charlotte had given her, seeing the sleek orange tabby almost immediately. It hated her almost as much as she hated him. "Oliver, I swear if you so much as meow my way I will say you were kidnapped by a fox," she spat, walking over to the cabinet that held his cat food.
Oliver licked his lips in defiance, before trotting over to the windowsill and peeking out the window. Harley eyed the cat, before setting the food bowl down. "There you go, I'll see you tomorrow.." she said, moving to pick up her friends house keys. As she made to grab them, Oliver jumped up on the table and snatched the keys in his mouth.
"Oh you little devil!" she snapped, chasing him around the small island. It was with that, that Oliver squeezed through the small opening in the screen door and took off in a sprint towards the park. Harley grunted, before throwing the door open and chasing after him.
"Oliver! Oliver! Get the hell back here," she yelled, as the cat disappeared into the dense forest. For a moment, she debated letting him go and telling Charlotte that he ran away. But then she realized that Oliver could drop those keys in the shadiest part of town and some creeper could figure out what house those keys belonged to..somehow. She sighed. "The things I do for this friendship!" she muttered, before climbing through the woods.
She noticed that the vegetation grew thicker and thicker. She began to get frustrated, as she started pulling branches out of her way. "I swear, when I see this stupid cat I'm going to use it as a scarf," she grunted, kicking down a rather large half dead tree. She saw a shining light on the ground, and she squinted. Silver.
She grinned slightly to herself. Well at least she had found the keys. She hustled through the thick brush, ignoring the stinging sensation of a thorn bush whipping her across her cheek. As she bent down to pick up the keys, she came to the realization that it was not keys at all, but in fact, a necklace. She raised the necklace to her eye level, studying it. It was a purple-violet colored gem that was in the shape of a flame, and around it was aligned with tiny, circular diamonds.
"Interesting," she stated, studying it. It was then that she heard the snapping of branches, and she whirled around, expecting to see Oliver standing there. Instead, she saw a man with extremely long reddish-brown hair and a long bow in which he held up to her face. She studied the rest of his clothing only to realize that it was Renaissance-type clothing. She raised an eyebrow to herself.
"Well, I've heard of various people doing civil war re-enactments in Valley Forge Park, but this is alittle odd..." she said, moving to walk past him.
"Be still, human." he muttered, his bow now inches from her face.
"Look, I just need to find my best friends cat, okay? Now if you will excuse me, and remove your toy bow and arrow from my face..." she said, reaching up and pushing his bow towards the ground. It was then that he shoved her to the ground, now standing over her. "I told you, to be still! From which way do you come!" he yelled.
Before Harley could answer, she saw about seven more of the strange men with long hair approach her. She raised her hands, defensively. "Look, I'm just looking for my friends damn cat. How hard is this to grasp?" she questioned.
"What is a damcat?" one questioned.
"Sounds like mischief of a spy to me," another answered.
Harley rolled her eyes and sighed. "Oh yes, I'm definitely a spy. So why don't you take me to your Lordy-lord so we can sort this out and he can banish me or whatever he wants to do," she said, playing along. If some nerds were going to play this on her, she may as well attempt to have fun with it.
"Lord Elrond will decide your fate," the original one said, shoving her onto her feet. She took for a moment to notice his ears, they were slightly pointed. "Great job on the ears though, they look really realistically pointy," she said, moving to touch them.
He was quick to grab her straying hand, a warning look in her eyes. "Fool! Do you not know about touching a woodland elf's ears?" he questioned, staring her down hard. She folded her arms across her chest. "No, I do not. And I am sorry, so why don't you take me to your leader so we can get this day over with, I can watch my Walking Dead and you can go back to playing World of Warcraft or whatever it is you guys do for a living," she said, motioning for them to lead the way.
It took them about ten minutes, before the elves led her to the town of Rivendale. Harley stopped in her tracks at the beautiful waterfall city of water and light that lay infront of her. "Is this a new addition to the park?" she muttered. She moved forward at the feel of another arrow jabbing against her back. They took her into this grand hall, where a single man sat on what appeared to look like a throne.
Her jaw gaped slightly as she stared at the elf who glided down from the throne and over to her in less than five seconds. "What business is this now, Hamdal? For I am conducting a meeting for a secret council on this night," he boomed, towering over Hamdal, the man..or elf who originally found her.
"She claims to be a spy, Lord Elrond. You ask that all spies be brought to you," Hamdal said, standing at attention for his King. Elrond studied her face for a second in recognition, before he began to pace in his spot. "It is unlike the Dark Lord to be sending a female as a spy into our midst...very well..where is it that you come from?" he questioned.
"Well, King of Prussia to be exact. But originally I am from Philadelphia," she said, truthfully. To be honest this was kind of starting to go too far.
Elrond showed her a confused look. "I know not of such lands. You are however, much cooperative for a spy. What is your name?" he asked, standing so he was inches from her.
"Harley...Harley Daniels..." she stated, getting extremely uncomfortable with how close he was getting to her. Elrond drew back for a second, before turning his head slightly to the side. "What did you say?" he asked, a slight hint of curiosity raising in his voice. "Harley..Daniels," she said, more hesitantly this time. With that, Elrond's eyes widened drastically, as he turned to face his guards. "Leave us, immediately..." he ordered.
Hamdal looked extremely confused. "But my Lord..." he said, respectfully. "Out!" Elrond ordered, his voice booming through the halls. He rounded about on Harley once the doors slammed shut. "How is this possible? Galadriel said that you would return but once you came back we assumed so would your memories," he muttered, pacing in his spot.
"My return? Galadriel? What are you talking about?" Harley questioned, now backing away from him. Elrond looked at her and his face softened. "There is no need to be frightened, my child...I am not going to harm you. You were here once, as a very small girl only around five years old," Elrond stated. Harley felt a warm sensation of relief wash over her.
"Whew well, that's no surprise my parents are big Renaissance geeks and they probably drug me here and I just don't remember it," Harley said, a smile now returning to her face. "But that was close to 3,000 years ago..and you cannot be aged past twenty seven in human years. Which means that the time parallels in our worlds are far more than we ever imagined.." Elrond continued.
"3,000 years?" she questioned, raising an eyebrow in confusion. Elrond turned to face her. "Harley, answer me one question. Did you ever feel out of place in your world? Did you ever feel isolated?" he asked, knowingly.
Harley shrugged for a second, before eyeing the floor. "Well, yeah. I don't have that many friends and I don't get along with many people," she said.
"Well, that is because you do not belong there. See for yourself..." he paused to take her hand, as he looked into her eyes. "This may come to you as a shock, but know that this is happening for a reason," he said, moving her own hand towards her head and over her ear.
She eyed his suspiciously, and at the moment she touched her ears, she nearly jumped out of her skin. She let out a sharp, quick scream, as she ran her fingers over the slight point which was now on her ears.
"Wha...wha...what happened to my ears? Am I bleeding? I must have gotten hurt while I was stumbling through the thorn bushes.." she ranted, her other hand now on her other ear.
"Contain yourself!" Elrond yelled, sharply. She turned her gaze to meet his, her eyes slightly frightened. She let her hands fall back to her side, as she looked to the floor, before looking back up at Elrond. "What is happening with me, really?" she asked, her voice soft.
Before Elrond could answer, the giant wooden doors to the hall were thrown open, and a man with rough features and shoulder-length black hair stumbled into the room. Harley noticed how crystal-clear blue his eyes were, almost as if they were a near grey color.
"My Lord, I heard a great deal of shouting..." he said, looking back and for between Harley and Elrond, suspiciously.
"Aragorn," Elrond said in acknowledgement. Aragorn bowed his head slightly, as he stepped closer to the two of them. "This is...Harley. She is a very special guest of honor to me. I would ask that you find my daughter, and have her escort Harley to her quarters to find her something...suitable to wear for the council," Elrond stated.
Aragorn turned to face Harley. "Lady Harley, it is an honor to be graced with a guest of honor to Lord Elrond. I am Aragorn, son of Arathon," he said, politely. Harley showed him a slight smile. "Harley...daughter of Troy and Cecilia. Well, by adoption. I was abandoned when I was very young and do not remember my real parents," she said, with a slight shrug.
"I am most sorry to hear. Were they slained in battle?" Aragorn questioned, his voice full of empathy. "No, I think it was a car accident," Harley said, shaking her head. Aragorn furrowed his brown in confusion, opening his mouth to speak.
"I think," Elrond interrupted, pausing to shoot Aragorn a daring look. "That we can discuss Miss Harley's past later. Aragorn, please send Arwen," he said, staring Aragorn down. Harley got the gist that either Elrond did not care much for this Aragorn or he just had a weird way of expressing emotion.
Aragorn nodded politely, before walking out of the hall. Once he had left, Harley and Elrond turned to face each other once again.
"Harley, I understand this may not be easy..but know that you were brought to this world because your presence was necessary. You were born into this world, it was only a matter of time before you were called back into it. Though, I expected the circumstances be very different. I thought all this would be over by now..." he said, muttering the last sentence more to himself.
The doors opened again and a beautiful woman with soft brown hair that cascaded down to her back approached her. Her eyes, similar to Aragorn's filled up with light at the sight of Harley.
"I know your face," she said, approaching Harley. She took both of Harley's hands in her own. Harley smiled nervously. "I.. I've never been here," Harley answered.
"Arwen, please escort Miss Harley to your quarters. She is in need of something to wear to the council meeting," he said, eying her black yoga pants and pink tank top. Harley sighed. Great, now she had to be dressed like one of the nerds.
"Lead the way, Arwen..." she said, motioning for Arwen to step forward. "Actually, Harley wait outside for just a moment. I am in need to speak to my daughter," Elrond said, sternly. Harley nodded, before walking out the wooden doors. She had not walked more than twenty feet, when her body collided with someone else.
Harley staggered back slightly, turning angrily to curse off whoever just had the nerve to run into her. But as she set her eyes on the figure in-front of her, her heart near stopped. A man, with shoulder length blonde hair stood there. His eyes were as blue as a cloudless sky, and he wore a gray tunic. A bow and arrow were slung across his back, and his figure almost towered over her 5'5 small one. She assumed him to be at least 6'4 if not more.
"My lady, forgive me. For I did not hear your steps as you approached," he said, his voice smooth as a knife cutting the softest butter. She nearly melted in her spot. She opened and closed her mouth one or two times, making noises but no words seemed to want to come out. He was, without a doubt, the most attractive man she had set eyes on.
"Uh...uh..."
"Are you fair, my lady?" he asked, stepping closer to her. Her heart skipped for a second, and then she forced a smile on her face.
"Oh, I am quite fair. Fairer than fair. I am Harley, what is your name?" she asked, smiling like an idiot.
He showed her a small smile, before reaching and taking her hand in both of his. "It is an honor to meet you, Lady Harley.." he said, kissing her hand. Harley instantly felt the heat rush to her cheeks.
It was then that his eyes overlooked her body, before he tilted his head slightly. "From which land do you represent, Lady Harley? For I do not recognize the clothing," he said, confused. Harley suddenly felt very underdressed.
"Well-" she began, but was cut off by the sound of the doors opening, she turned to see Arwen and Elrond standing there. Elrond's face looked stern, while Arwen had a small smirk on her face.
"Well, Harley, I see you have made acquaintance with Legolas Greenleaf, Prince of Mirkwood." Elrond stated, as Legolas bowed his head in acknowledgement to him.
"Lord Elrond," he said, respectfully.
It was then that Arwen stepped forward, before motioning Harley to follow her towards her chambers. It took Harley a minute to comprehend what was going on. She turned around, to see Legolas turn around to look at her again as well. Heat instantly went to her cheeks as she turned back to walking away with Arwen.
Arwen raised her eyebrows at Harley, knowingly as they walked. It was as if she could sense Harley's attraction for the elf right off the bat.
"He is the son of Thraundil, who is not too fond of the race of men," she stated, simply. Harley turned towards Arwen, confusion in her eyes. She and Arwen shared a slight smirk, before they entered Arwen's room.
"I wasn't that interested anyway," Harley lied. Arwen let out a soft laugh, sensing Harley's lie. She led Harley to her dresser, where an assortment of travel dresses were laid out. Harley pondered, before pulling out one that had violet-lace sleeves and a royal blue body. She also pulled out material that looked like gray pants to be worn underneath the travel dress, so to not reveal any of her female hardware.
Arwen watched Harley as she disappeared behind the frame of the bed, tossing her Earth clothes over to the other side.
"So, I still don't understand one thing, Arwen..." Harley called from the other side.
"What is that?" Arwen questioned.
"What I am doing here in the first place...or why suddenly my ears are pointed like they are..."
Arwen paused for a second, forming her lip into a tight line. She wanted to tell Harley, as she recalled the brief conversation between herself and her father in regards to Harley's arrival...
"But Father, I do not understand. She has said several times she has not been here before," Arwen protested.
Elrond turned to face his daughter, his face stern.
"That is because we have shielded her memories, to protect her. She was once here close to three thousand years ago. You may not remember, my child. You two were friends once.." Elrond stated. Arwen watched as her father paced around her, his hands behind his back.
"Do you recall a friend named... Altiaria?" Elrond questioned, stepping closer to Arwen. Arwen's gaze fell to the floor for a second, before she made eye contact with her father once again, shaking her head.
"You were quite young, my child. I rescued Altiaria from the firey side of Mount Doom. She was only five years of age..she is the daughter of Sauron," Elrond finished, his eyes scaling Arwen's face for a reaction.
Arwen's face darkened slightly. "The dark lord's daughter? He still lives through her,"
"Yes and no, Arwen. Lady Galadriel is also her niece. Prior to Sauron starting the great war, he did something. He poured all that was left of his soul into his daughter. She is not evil, my child. She is trapped, by fate. Her fate is tied to Sauron's, and Sauron's to hers. Unless...the birth of a new one comes into play," Elrond recited.
"Birth of a new one? So the dark lord would need to have another child?" Arwen questioned. Elrond sighed heavily. "I do not know. Lady Galadriel did not specify," he said.
"I am sending her on the journey to destroy the ring. Once she gets closer to Mount Doom, she may be able to remember the best way to get the ring into the fire," he said.
"So she will die as well?" Arwen questioned, slightly saddened at the death of her distant childhood friend. Elrond smiled slightly. "There is always hope, Arwen. She may not have to die,"
Arwen smiled slightly. "That would be fortunate, father..."
"Oh and Arwen...do not mention this matter to Aragorn, or any of the others. For it is not yet the ready time..."
"Arwen?" Harley's voice rang out, as she stepped into view.
Arwen blinked multiple times, before showing Harley a small smile. "Radiant, Lady Harley.." she said.
Harley smiled, more to herself. She actually thought she looked very royal and pretty compared to what she normally wore. Yoga pants and a tank top, or sweat pants and a t-shirt. Her athletic figure and the flowy dress made a nice fit. Her mind instantly wandered to wondering where this Legolas had disappeared to.
Arwen motioned for Harley to follow her, as they made their way towards where Harley would be staying the night, seeing as the council would take place the next morning. Arwen began to tell her all about Rivendale, and Harley caught a somewhat loving glance as she and Arwen passed by Aragorn, who was smoking a pipe next to a statue of an elf holding up a large silver dish.
Arwen and Harley then stumbled on a very small, very quiet man. He had curly black hair, and once again, sky blue eyes. He stood barely above 4 feet. Harley smirked to herself, actually happy that she was, for once, taller than someone in this place. He drew back nervously, at the sight of two beautiful elven women approaching him.
"Frodo, I am most pleased to see that you are back on your feet.." Arwen said, approaching Frodo and kissing the top of his head. Frodo nodded nervously, before turning to face Harley. "Frodo, this is Harley.." Arwen said, unsure of how to introduce where Harley had come from. At this point, her elven appearance was slowly reappearing. Her ears were now more pointed than when she first arrived. It was as if the longer she spent in middle earth, the more it came back to her.
"Hello, Frodo.." Harley said, extending her hand to Frodo to shake. Frodo looked confused, as he studied her hand. "You take it..and then we shake hands. It's how my people greet each other," Harley said, an amused smirk on her face.
"Oh..Of course," Frodo said, extending his hand as well. As their fingers brushed, a something small and golden slipped out of Frodo's palm and spiraled in circles on the floor. The three of them stopped to stare at it, as it finally settled. Harley noticed a golden ring, laying on the ground.
She bent down, entranced to pick it up for him. "Wow, what a beautiful ring you have, Frodo.." she said.
"Oh no, my lady.. I can-"
It was then at the moment Harley's fingers touched the ring, that she felt a burning sensation surge through her body as she was thrown back slightly. Arwen immediately rushed to her side, while Frodo scooped up the ring and shoved it in his pocket. She held her head as she struggled to sit up.
"What was that?" she asked. She felt strong arms suddenly lift her and she turned to see Aragorn there as well. When the hell did he get there? "Lady Harley, are you okay?" he questioned, obviously concerned.
She nodded, before forcing herself to stand. As she brushed herself off, she looked to see Legolas along with two other elves dressed as himself staring at her from across the room. The two standing behind him muttered words to each other, as Legolas simply watched her, before turning away.
Harley snorted Thanks for the help, jerk. She thought as she eyed him from across the way. Once she finished her thought, Legolas turned to face her, his face slightly angry. She raised an eyebrow at him in challenge, as he turned and walked away.
"Come, my lady. Lord Elrond has asked that yourself and Lady Arwen dine with him tonight," Aragorn said, motioning for each of them to follow him. Harley noticed another lingering gaze between the two of them, before Aragorn led them away.
Harley's mind thought back to Legolas. Why had he been so friendly with her before, but now he was being all hesitant? She sighed, allowing Aragorn and Arwen to lead her away.
The Witch-King of Angmar rode through the fog covered valley's, angered at his set back by the she-elf princess at the river. The ring had been in his grasp, and he allowed it to escape him. His master, Sauron, would have caught word of this by now. The dark shadows of the creatures that roamed the lands were, after all, always watching and were loyal to him.
It was then that he heard it. He heard the ring calling him once again. He steered his horse, facing the direction from which it came. Rivendalle. He did not fear the elves, for he could be killed by no man. He heard the other nazgul riding up next to them on their dark horses.
He heard his master's voice echoing through his head, in the black speech.
"My blood has returned to Middle Earth, my blood and skin has just made contact with the ring. Do not harm her, for her fate is how I will return. Bring her to me. Bring me my daughter, and the ring of power,"
The Witch-King hissed, before commanding his men to ride towards Rivendalle. He knew of the Princess of Modor, seeing her when she was only a youngling. He would kill anyone who stood in his way of getting to her.
Little did she, and those who were protecting her, know that by her arriving at Middle Earth, everything would change. Fate would be re-written.
Meh, not my best... I have to get the basic parts out of the way before I can upload the Good chapters. So stick with me and I promise, this will turn out to be an amazing story with many twists and turns! :)