All translations, explanations, advertisements, and thought processes are at the end of the chapter.

Disclaimer: All shows/ books/ video games/ songs that are mentioned in this chapter are all © to their respective owners, I don't own them.


My nose itched like crazy right now, but I couldn't move my arm so I could scratch it. I frantically wriggled my nose, trying to will away the oncoming sneeze. Currently, I was being pinned to the floor by an android. Or at least, I think it's an android. The manual simply called it a "unit." I didn't even get to see what it looked like! It wouldn't be able to get off of me until it was conscious either and who knew how long that was going to take. I had lain here since noon and by the amount of light that I could see through the curtains, it was getting close to evening.

Distressed, I let out a small cry of frustration. I simply had to get started on those baked goods for work tomorrow! I was already behind as it was. Oh, you are probably wondering how I got into this fine mess. It was rather simple really. It all started when I was coming home from work and then get ready for my night-time community college courses...


I was waiting for the lights to change signaling that I could walk across. A business man next to me was fiddling on his blackberry phone. The light switched and he had started ambling across.

Most people forget what all parents usually tell their kids when they get older. It was one of the most important rules ever besides being polite: Look both ways before crossing the street. It doesn't matter if the light says you have the right away or not, always look both ways. A car had tried to run the yellow light and had almost run him over. Instinctively, I had grabbed his shirt collar and yanked him back from the road while the car blared its horn noisily.

He immediately started thanking me at high-speeds, talking so fast that I could hardly understand him. He all but shoved his business card into my hands after hastily scribbling something on it and closed my fingers around it. Thanking me once more, he then looked both ways and briskly crossed the street.

I had to wait until the light changed again.

I had completely forgotten about the encounter and didn't remember it until I returned from my classes. When I had got home and tossed my keys on the counter, I noticed that they landed next to a balled up piece of paper. I uncrumpled the card and looked at it.

Tolkien Enterprises Inc.

George Allen- C.E.O., overseer, and co-worker with Stanley Unwin.

Contacts:

E-mail: GeorgeAllen at TolkienEnter. net

Phone number: xxx-xxx-xxxx

Visit us at TolkienEnterprises. com

On the back was a hastily scribbled:

When you get to the section in the survey that says how you found out about this site, type in: George Allen sent me as a favor for the car accident.

'Well, it couldn't hurt to check out their website.' I thought to myself. I was over tired and hadn't been paying too much attention. I logged on to the site and had clicked "go to survey."

There were basic questions about myself; like name, age, gender, and how I found this site. I had made sure to type down what Mister Allen wrote as well as my name, my age twenty-seven, and that I was,in fact, female. Then I clicked "next."

It loaded a bit and then a screen popped up saying, "Submission has been approved. please read the consent form before continuing."

So like any idiot who is over tired and has absolutely no clue as to what they are doing at close to three in the morning; I had stupidly clicked the "I accept" on the consent form without reading the consent form. Then I did the quiz that asked a bit of my personal life; like was I dating anyone? No.

What was my employment status? Co-owner of a bakery and a part-time student at a college.

What were my hobbies? Gardening, reading, painting, cleaning, listening to classical/instrumental music, cooking/trying out new foods, etc.

What was my family status? Depends.

There were many more questions, but they all followed that basic plot line. Then they gave bios of people who sounded, vaguely, familiar. (It turns out they were characters from a series of books and a couple of movies, which I wouldn't find out until later.) Since I knew none of the people shown, I just chose the person with the coolest sounding name.

That's right

Out of all the people and reason why I could've picked that person, I picked the one with the nicest name. Then like any idiot who never even read the consent form, I fill out my address and click the send button.

My sleep-deprived brain somehow got the idea that it said "done" and that this was all apart of the quiz. I slogged off to bed and turned off my laptop, not seeing the "Thank you for your contribution! Your unit will soon arrive as well as your instructions! Thank you for volunteering!" That was a message I would later find in my e-mail instead.

Since I was so tired, I had forgotten that this had happened and went on with my daily life. However, hardly a day later and there came a knock on the door. Surprised, I went to my door and opened it; I was greeted by a UPS guy. "delivery for a Miss Schaeppi. Is she here?"

"Um, yes, that's me." I had not expected any mail that day.

The UPS guy grinned, "Alright boys, bring her in!" I stared dolefully as a large crate was being carried by two more UPS men into my living room. The first one waited patiently for me to sign. I turned around and took the clip board to see who it was from:

Tolkien Enterprises.

Stunned, I wrote my signature in careful cursive:

Honor Rae Schaeppi

"Thank you, miss." The UPS guy cheekily tipped his hat to me. One of his co-workers carried in a large cardboard box and the other simply handed me a thin booklet titled, 'Maintenance Manual for your GLORFINDEL unit.' I watched them climb into their truck and leave, before closing the door with a click signaling that it was locked. Leaning against the door, stared at the booklet in my hands before calling a Mister George Allen from the business card.

"Hello?" Came the man's voice from Friday.

"Hi, it's me from the other day. You know...by the stoplight."

"Oh yes! I cannot thank you enough! Did you check out our website?"

"Oh, er, yes, I did. That was what I-"

"Wonderful! Wonderful! You see, I wanted to thank you by giving you a well paying job opportunity. You see, you and many other carefully selected individuals will be taking a mass survey and test of sorts. It hasn't started yet, so you got first pick, a GLORFINDEL unit Mark one, I believe?"

"Um, yes, the Golden-Flower one, but I-"

"Wonderful! Wonderful! Your first check should come in the mail next week, so no worries. All you have to do is follow the instructions and answer the questionnaire that is both e-mailed to you and sent through the post. Again, I can't thank you enough. I know you will simply love this. Oh, I have to go to a meeting. Goodbye, Miss Schaeppi. Have a wonderful day!"

Wait, I-" I was met with a dial tone. Sighing, I hung up my phone. 'This the last time I accept a business card from a man I had just helped. I will still help him and make sure he doesn't get hit by a car or something. I just won't accept his card.' Turning the booklet over and over in my hands, I finally started to leaf through it.

Getting to the installation page, I briefly read through the directions, and looked in my living room. I saw the ginormous crate that must have been at least two feet taller than me. It was almost as tall as my ceiling which was about seven feet and a half giving or take a few inches. The words 'Fragile' was spray painted on it in thick, black letters and on one side it had 'This side up' with thick, black arrow.

To my immense amusement it reminded me of the box with the leg lamp in it from the movie, 'A Christmas Story.' Laughing out loud, I had shut the curtains just in case I did happen to get a leg lamp or something as equally suggestive. The instruction said to knock the box. I did, but was only greeted with silence. Apparently, it was asleep-can androids even sleep?-the instruction then said to open it, but not how...

Time to bring out the crowbar.

I had dug through my toolbox in the garage and didn't find it. After searching for ten minutes, I found it hidden under my work table. Back in the living room, I mercilessly stuck the crowbar into the box, careful not to hurt the unit. Prying the side of the wooden crate loose, I set aside the crowbar on the coffee table and opened the newly made door. However, when I did, it crashed on top of me.


And here we are now with me not being able to move, see, and having hair in my mouth. I had panicked a long time ago, but it did nothing but make me more tired. It was great, just freaking lovely. My head was throbbing from all the times I had bashed it on the floor with my struggling and I was having the life slowly squeezed out of me.

I was seriously doubting that this android was able to walk on snow.

Eventually, long after my body had started to go numb, the unit stirred. It moved off of me and said something unintelligible. "Ai, na vedui, Dúnadan! Mae govannen!" Picking myself off the floor, I rubbed the back of my head and bit back a whimper.

Note to self: When struggling, do not thrash head around. It is painful.

sensing movement, I turned around to look at the unit and was blown away. I stared and stared, 'I just got bowled over by a fine-looking example of the male species.' I though distractedly. I know it's rude to stare, but seriously, you couldn't really blaim me. The only remotely coherent thought running through my head, after the previous one, was: humminah, humminah, humminah, humminah...

The poor bloke stared at me concerned and I realized he had asked me something in that weird language of his. Snapping out of my daze, I managed to say somewhat normally, "Er, come again? I can't understand a word you're saying..."

He paused and then smiled looked vaguely pleased with himself. "Ah, so you only speak English."

"Yes, erm, and it is nice to meet you?" When in doubt, put brain on autopilot.

"Well met, young Dúnadan." He said before asking what happened.

"Oh, well, you see. Er, some bloke named George something-or-other has sent you over here via the UPS mailing system, after I made sure he didn't get killed by some reckless idiot. I read the first and second pages of the manual, but it didn't really say how to get you out of the wooden crate. So, I used a crowbar and managed to pry a side loose. I had set the crowbar down and opened the door... only for you to fall out on top of me... Oh, it's not you fault! You were unconscious so it wasn't as if you hold yourself up or anything. And, er, who is Dúnadan? My name is Honor Rae."

"I know who you are, but it surprises me to know that you are not a Dúnadan." The units eyes appraised me, "You appear to be one."

"I don't know... maybe? Although, I doubt it. If I don't even know what one is, chances are I am not one of them." I frowned then added, "This isn't my natural hair color; I got it dyed brown about a week ago. I'm usually a blonde." How did you know who I was? Maybe he was programmed that way?

"Hmm..." He hummed thoughtfully and then changed the subject, asking, "What is this manual of which you speak of?"

"Oh, er..." I look around the room and spot it forlornly lying on the floor next to my beanbag chair. "Here." I hand it to him and he skims through the first few pages briefly, before raising an eyebrow and handing it back. I had the oddest sensation that I should feeling sheepish or something. Best not to find out what the raised eyebrows were for.

"Erm," I started oh so intelligently (please note the sarcasm here). Getting up and brushing off the imaginary dust, I closed my eyes taking a deep breath to steady myself. My friend always told me that I was too complacent all the time and that I needed to learn how to take control of a situation. Maybe I could try it now?

Emboldened by the thought, I opened my eyes ready to take charge of the whole predicament I was in. However, the moment I opened my eyes and saw that the unit was still there, still existed, and was looking at me with those silver eyes of his, all the fight in me left.

"Alright, mister..." I paused.

"Glorfindel." The unit supplied helpfully, looking terribly amused with me.

"Right, Glorfindel. It is almost dinnertime and I have no idea idea how long you've been in that crate. So, why don't you take your clothes from the box over there, put them in the laundry room, and explore a bit?" The unit raised an eyebrow at me, seeming trying to hold back laughter. "It's...er, up the stairs...and the first...to your right...yeah..." My voice faded away as I became more and more uncertain of myself. Glorfindel got up and followed my directions to the laundry room.

Feeling that everyone was settled, I washed my hands and got started on the green bean casserole with pasta. I had started boiling the water when the unit's voice came from behind me, "Where does the source of light come from? I cannot find any lamps." I jumped and then looked at him warily. I didn't even hear him walk in.

Creepy.

"Oh, I don't use lamps. The ceiling lights are turned on by switches. The light switches are rather weird, so I'll show you how to turn them on while I put your clothes in the wash." I speed walked to the laundry room, trying to put some space in between me and this unit. He is supposedly harmless, but he is a full-grown man...er, I mean, he is the size of one at least, if not a little bigger. I also didn't know a thing about him, practically nothing at all except what came from a manual. I have every reason to be nervous, right?

I needed to read the rest of the manual as soon as possible.

My light switch is actually more of a 'light knob' than anything else. Like a water faucet, the more you twist it, the more water (or in this case, light) comes out. I showed him how to adjust it to the amount of light he wanted and started opening the cardboard box. I had correctly assumed that they would provide some more outfits to dress the un- Glorfindel - in.

Although, looking at the five different outfits, I notice that they were all really old fashioned, like they were straight out of the renaissancian times. I mentally kicked myself, 'Well, duh, Honor Rae. He is supposed to be from that era.'

"Stupid, stupid, stupid..." I muttered to myself as I separated the darks from the lights and then put the first load in. I couldn't really tell what fabric they were made of, so to be on the safe side, I put them in on delicate and on cold. I would air-dry them later. As I closed the washer lid, I realized that he didn't have any under things. 'Maybe they forgot to pack them?'

I started feeling bad for the poor unit; because of his strange clothes he probably wouldn't be able to blend in very well, causing unwanted attention forcing him to stay inside. 'And now he doesn't even have any padding to stop chafing...'

A friend of mine ran out of underwear once because he neglected to put in the next load. Unwilling to put any dirty underwear on, he just decided to go without underwear until the laundry was washed and dried. He later told me that it was single-handedly one of the stupidest things he ever did. Then he went on complaining about how red and sore his, um, gonads were until he was able to change into his clean underwear.

He was drunk as he told me this, obviously.

'I will go shopping with him tomorrow, I suppose.' My task of putting the clothes in the wash completed, started emptying out the box. I had reached down a little more zealously than needed, because I forgot about the freaking sword that the manual had mention. For my forgetfulness, I felt a intense stab of pain and I let out a cry as I fell back on my rump. I edged away from the box while gripping my bleeding hand as I stared at the box, stunned.

The unit popped his head in, "Is everything all right in here?" He took in my expression and froze. "I said... Is everything...all right?" Between each pause, he took a careful step forward with his arms out in the it's-okay-I'm-unarmed position.

"Yes, it's fine. I knew you had a sword-the manual said so- I just had forgotten about it momentarily, nor did I think that it would be sharpened to that extent."

He sucked in a breath when he noticed that I was clutching my hand. "Are you injured?"

"It's fine. I just need to get it wrapped up." I forced a smile on my face.

"It does not look 'fine.' I may be a warrior, but I also know some basic bits of healing. Most of all the binding of wounds."

"Really?" I said weakly, my memories came back, reminding me that, once again, he was from an age where things like sword cuts were a common ordeal.

"truly." He said earnestly, kneeling down in front of me. " What may I do to help?"

"All...right then. You...you might want to take your things into your room and then the hair-care stuff into the bathroom." I said shakily. Glorfindel readily agreed and did just that. Until he came back and sheepishly asked which room was his. His room was next to mine and I showed him it, telling him mine was next door. He thanked me and I nodded before dazedly heading to the bathroom downstairs. There I wrapped my hand up with some gauze after washing it. The wound was deep enough that I could see the fatty tissue under my skin and I cursed quietly to myself.

I needed stitches.

The gauze was only temporary until I could get to the clinic which was about five miles away. I probably had about six to eight hours or so until it might get too contaminated to stitch. How was I going to politely tell the unit that I now had to go to some...healers... after I had just down-played the situation? He would not be amused. I paused.

What did it matter what he thought?

He was just an android.

Who cares what he thought about the situation?

Myself, apparently.

irritated with myself, I resolved to just go inform him, tell him not to leave or touch anything, and then flee to the clinic before he got his two cents in. satisfied with that plan, I went to go find him, only to have him unintentionally find me. In his arms were several bottles of shampoo and conditioner with a rubber ducky on top. (A notion that would later have me collapsing with giggles.)

"Oh." I let out a small gasp in surprise. "Glorfindel, I..I, um, need to...erm... leave. Yeah."

"Where to and why?" He had asked, but his eyes drifted down to where I had hidden my dressed hand behind my back.

I adverted my eyes, "The clinic...for some stitches." I braced myself for the 'I told so' or the 'you are so careless' or 'you are worse than a small child.'

Instead, I got a gentle, "Let me see it." Looking up at him, took my hand out from behind my back and placed it in his waiting ones. He carefully unwrapped the gauze and scrutinized it. "Where is your needle and thread?"

I bit my lip. I didn't expect him to stitch it for me! What if he- Wait, he said he had some experience in this. They must have programmed him with the knowledge on how to stitch up wounds. To stay in character, you know? "It's in my sewing kit. I'll go get it." Slowly taking my hand back, I fetched my kit, sanitized it, and went back to the bathroom.

The android was waiting for me and he gestured for to sit on the toilet, then kneeling in front of me, he proceeded to steady sew the cut shut. The stitches were sure and precise. He was quick about it too, he put each stitch in so fast, I didn't even feel it. May be you weren't supposed to feel anything. I wouldn't know, because that was my first time getting them. I sighed and closed my eyes, letting the slight tugging sensation on my hand fade away as I started to daydream.


The first thing I did, after my stitches were put in and Glorfindel carefully wrapped my hand, was try to read the rest of the manual to see what other ...surprises... were in store for me. For weapons, it turned out that he only had that one sword with a bow and a quiver of arrows, according to page number three- accesories.

Relieved, I continued to read on to find out more about my unit. The next section- operating proceedure- which went on for about two pages explaining some of the things the unit could do. I was a little confused about the caution at the end though, talking about how some services should not be untaken with him if you had a significant other.

I read it a second time and then it hit me when I read the part about him being a 'fully functional male' (I didn't really think about the elf part until later). I think I just about died of embrassment when he walked into the room.

Red and mortified, I dropped the manual and escaped to the kitchen. I was further mortified when I heard him pick up the manual and let out a laugh after a few seconds where he was -no doubt about it- reading the page. Not for the first time that day, I cursed my luck. It distract myself, I started preparing the the food for serving, since the casserole looked down when I checked it.

I brought down two plates and then I paused. Can he even eat? Moving into the living room, after making sure Glorfindel wasn't in it, I consulted the manual by skipping ahead to the recharging section. Apparently, he can; however, they recommend feeding him something called lembas.

Whatever that is.

The unit also benefits from regular 'refueling.' I'm guess that means feed him three meals a day, I would say that is pretty regular. As for drinks, I don't have any river water. He is just going to have to make do with well, wait a second. Well water comes from an underground river, never mind.

I went back into the kitchen and prepared the two plates. About two cups of casserole each and a side of Caesar salad. I just love salad. Many people mistake me for a vegetarian, because I am always eating salad and rarely, if ever, eat meat. To be honest, I like meat. I like it a lot. It is just that eating too much meat way too often isn't good for you; so, it is more of a treat for me. Besides, have you seen the price of meat these days? Crazy high for a college student paying back loans and paying for the upkeep for a house mostly by themselves.

Yes, I said mostly. I used to have a roommate, but I don't see her much anymore. I wish I could tell you just what she does all the time when she is away, but I honestly have no idea. She works for the government and that's about all I know. Her room is next to the guest room and she pays for me to keep it untouched and intact while she is gone.

She has a spare key, so sometimes when I come back from college, or work, or something; it is not much of a surprise to see her lounging on the couch with her feet on the coffee table, eating a waffle or something. Laura was always unpredictable with her visits...

Glorfindel broke me out of my daydreaming phase by walking into the kitchen, "Do you need help with anything?"

"Hmm? Oh, yes. Take these to the table." I hand him the plates and got the silverware. After putting those on the table, I got water and some milk and set those on the table as well. After saying a quick prayer, I tuck into the food and eat. Glorfindel soon joins me.

"Tomorrow we are going clothes shopping for you, so we can get you some clothes that will help you blend in." I frowned, "You'll have to come with me to work, too."

"That is fine." Glorfindel said with a smile.

I studied, before hesitantly continuing, "You'll probably have to work there too for a bit. Alice can be pretty strict with the 'no loitering' policy."

"You worry too much." Glorfindel laughed before smoothly changing the subject, "What is this food called? I have never tasted it before."

"It is a green bean casserole cooked with noodles."

"What is the sauce on it called?" Glorfindel clarified.

"Oh, that's alfredo. It is a cheese, milk, butter, and flour based sauce..." my voice trailed off as I looked at the clock. It was about a half-past eight 'o clock at night on a Sunday.

Shoot.

I quickly finished the rest of my meal and washed the dishes in the sink. Hurriedly, I got out flour, sugar, eggs, milk, and other ingredients. Getting out some baking pans; I quickly dusted them with flour and preheated the oven at three-hundred fifty degrees. I needed to bake at least five cakes and six batches of cupcakes, I didn't have much time!

My job is a baker, I co-own a small specialty shop in town with a nice woman called Alice Hoffman. Nine other people, Alice, and myself work there about six days week and have Sunday with half of Saturday off. It was really nice and a dependable job.

I could myself relax as I steadly kneeded the dough, my muscles remembering the easy task. I needed to relax more when comes to unexpected situations and things come as they may. I irratably looked at the plastic glove I was wearing over my stitched hand, 'or at least try to be more cautious when reaching into a box filled with unknown things.'


To Be Continued...


Sorry it took so long to update. I have been feeling under the weather, so I have not been working on this until recently. Again, sorry.

Translation: Ai, na vedui, Dúnadan! Mae govannen! ~Ah, at last, westman! Well met! (According to other sources at least.)

Explanations: *I thought myself very clever when using the names George Allen and Stanley Unwin. Allen & Unwin is an independent Australian publishing company, first established in Australia in 1976 as a subsidiary of the British firm George Allen & Unwin Ltd. The same ones that help published Tolkien's work. Pretty apt, huh?

*Thank my knowledge for stitches on "how ." Seriously, I would've known nothing at all if it weren't for them.

*Future knowledge on the running of bakeries/cake shops will come from the t.v. series "Cake Boss." Delicious.

Advertisements:

TITLE: A Ring of Endless Light

AUTHOR: Neoko-chan

ID: 8461992

SUMMARY: When we left, did the world stop? Did it cease to exist? Or did the world pause, mourning for our loss, before slowly and painfully moving on? No. It simply kept turning, kept moving, with or without us. We were the only ones who refused to let go. Until they found us, and showed us how to feel alive. It isn't so bad to be forgotten, for you will be found and treasured once again.

OPINION: It may be a little self-serving to advertise my own story, but why not? It is probably my best story I ever made and easily my most researched. Which is a little frightening, because if that is my best work, then my other ones must be mediocre. Even this story is a AU Fan Fiction for it. So why don't you check it out?

Date submitted: Sunday, January 20, 2013.