Off to See the Wizard

All too soon, the day of their departure arrived. Aisling was roused from a deep sleep at far too early in the morning, though she wasn't sure what time it was without a clock. All she knew was that the sun was barely peeking behind the horizon. Her stomach churned slightly and though she told herself it was excitement, she knew part of it was also anxiety.

They had been talking about setting off to find the wizard for days, preparing, and now they were finally leaving the comfort of Imladris.

All there really was to do that morning was to dress in the clothing provided to her - a pair of comfortable brown breeches that were soft, yet thick; a long-sleeve undertunic; another soft yet sturdy over tunic of dark green with beautiful patterns embroidered into the shoulders and down the sleeves; long wool socks; hearty boots that looked made for trekking and riding; and the grey cloak the Lothlorien guard had given her that was light, but surprisingly warm.

She then double-checked the satchel she had been given and packed (then re-packed a couple times) the night before with a couple spare pairs of socks, another undertunic, and two full water skins. Aragorn, Legolas and Haldir had taken care of getting all their supplies together, sending these items to her room yesterday. Though Aisling wondered if they had anything in the way of camping gear.

Lastly, she looked at a set of modest daggers that Legolas had gifted her last night along with a belt to hold them. She was still figuring out how to use weapons in general, but he insisted that she needed to be armed in some way.

Not to mention, she was fairly sure that both Legolas and Haldir were slightly terrified of the idea of Aisling carrying around a sword from the way their training sessions had gone. While she was mildly better with handling a bow and arrows, she was still a bit uncoordinated and rarely hit whatever she was aiming at. Therefore it made no sense to give Aisling her own bow and arrows just yet either, though Legolas assured her that she could continue practicing using his or Haldir's while they traveled.

Once finished with that and braiding her hair back to keep it out of her way as they travelled, Aisling stood in front of the mirror one last time, taking stock of herself. She had only been here a week at the most and she nearly didn't recognize the woman in the mirror.

This woman looked like she could handle going on an adventure. Hack it out in the wild. Aisling knew that was debatable at best.

But now wasn't the time to get caught up in a pessimistic attitude, she decided as she nodded to herself. She turned and followed a servant through the house out to the courtyard where they had arrived, Haldir, Aragorn, and Legolas already there with the horses.

She walked over to Roharan and petted the mare before looking to find that not only was she already saddled, but a small bed roll had been tied to the saddle.

"I could have done that," she said, turning to Haldir as he walked up to her.

"It was no trouble," he said, taking the pack from her shoulder and then proceeding to tie it to the saddle as well.

"And that," Aisling said, worrying for a moment that Haldir intended to do everything for her this trip. While, yes, she was going to need help with some things, she could at least saddle and pack her own horse.

"If it pleases you, I shall refrain from packing Roharan for you from henceforth," Haldir said with a small smile.

Aisling wasn't sure if this was more lighthearted teasing on his part or what, but before she could determine anything, Haldir's demeanor shifted quickly.

He stopped his work and turned around, bowing. Aisling immediately spun around, seeing Elrond, Galadriel, Celeborn and Arwen walking towards them. She bowed as well, quickly following Haldir's lead. She glanced around, finding Thranduil watching from a balcony, though he was too far away for her to get any sort of read on him. Actually, she probably wouldn't have been able to even if he had been standing right in front of her.

King Thranduil was definitely a hard egg to crack.

"We bid you a safe journey," Elrond said. "And I hope that you find what you seek."

"Thanks," Aisling said, feeling that was all too inadequate. This was probably the last time she'd see any of them, if things went well and they had gone more than out of their way to help her. She took a deep breath, thinking over her words. "And thank you for your kindness these past few days. For taking me in, welcoming me and agreeing to help me. I truly am grateful and have no idea how to ever repay you."

Galadriel held her hands out to Aisling and she gulped before walking over and accepting them. Galadriel bent down and kissed her forehead.

"We are happy to help and only wish that your journey is safe," she said slowly. She then locked eyes with Aisling and the intensity she had felt in the tent the first time she met the elf queen overcame her.

"A parting gift, young Aisling. The road will be long and there may come a time when you will want to lose hope. But do not despair. There is far more for you to discover on this journey than you think. And should you doubt yourself, there will always be one there to help you find your way."

Aisling blinked, unsure of how she was supposed to respond to something that was obviously said in her head. So instead of saying anything, she smiled and bobbed her head before Galadriel released her hands. She then walked back over and got on her horse, looking around at the group.

Galadriel had locked eyes with Haldir, who seemed to be intently listening to whatever unspoken advice she was giving him. His brow furrowed slightly as his eyes shifted over to Aisling and then back to Galadriel. He then rested his hand over his heart and bowed his head.

Aisling looked around again, finding Aragorn's eyes locked on Arwen, which was now no longer surprising to her. Over the days, she had watched the two and knew there was definitely a bit of something going on between them. She was planning to use the days on the road to get that story.

But then Haldir called out something to Legolas and Aragorn in Sindarin, causing her to look back at him. His eyes met hers.

"Let us ride."

OOOO

Aisling told herself that this was an adventure. One that she would never get back in Oklahoma or New York. Just because they were traveling by horse or camping out didn't mean that it had to be horrible. In fact, she had somehow convinced herself that it would be fun. She was trying new things.

And those first two days, despite being sore from riding all day and finding the ground - once again - not so great to sleep on, she really was having fun. She had thrown herself into it. Asking questions about the land around them - which Aragorn mostly answered as he was apparently the most traveled of her three companions. Getting Legolas to tell her a bit about Mirkwood - she decided never to go there once he mentioned giant, man-eating spiders. That got a strong "Hell, no" out of her when he suggested she visit someday. She was deathly afraid of them thanks to a poorly-planned prank by Liam involving a tarantula when Aisling was five years old.

When they stopped for the night, she helped gather wood for the fire, watched closely whoever made it so she could learn how to do it herself. Aisling then attempted to help with the cooking, but knocked a hare Aragorn caught from its makeshift spit into the flames, completely burning it. Legolas gently told her maybe she should just observe for now. Aisling then asked if she could learn how to hunt, but got a pretty vehement "not yet" from everyone. Okay, well, so that answer she had been expecting. Outside of the fact she was still struggling with a bow, she definitely was not nearly as noiseless as the others were moving through the forest.

Then, Legolas and Haldir would have her doing target practice with either the bow or the daggers. Or showing her various moves that she could use should she find herself in close combat with the daggers, then practicing them over and over again. They had finally come to some sort of agreement on what and how to teach her, though it still wasn't any easier.

And so the beginning of the journey started out full of hope and excitement even though nothing was really happening. Aisling was beginning to wonder just what Galadriel meant by her advice. Surely if the rest of the trip went like this, there was no need to despair or get nervous.

It helped that as they traveled and Aisling focused more on the journey and less on thinking she was stuck in some dream, slowly adapting to the impossible reality that was around her. That she had somehow woken up in another world.

The third day, after they had been riding at a quick pace for a time, Aragorn had them slow down to allow the horses some rest, making it easier to keep up a conversation.

"So… what can you guys tell me about this wizard?" she asked, wondering why she hadn't thought to ask before.

"The elves call him Mithrandir, but he goes by other names," Aragorn said. "To men and most others, he is known as Gandalf."

"He is one of five, but believed to be one of the most powerful," Legolas continued. Aisling's eyes widened. Okay, maybe he was the real deal.

"Have any of you met him?" she asked, looking around at them.

"I have," Aragorn said simply.

"We have crossed paths… briefly," Legolas said. Aisling looked at Haldir, her eyebrows raised in question.

"I have not," he admitted. "But he is well known among the elves."

"Right… so… how does he do magic?" she then asked, still wrapping her head around the fact that such things were real here, even though she had witnessed it more than once by now. She knew the elves used some sort of magic when they healed and that was fairly easy to accept (only because she had actually seen it - er, felt it? - herself). But she was still struggling to picture how this wizard would be. "Does he have a wand or something?"

"A wand?" Legolas questioned with a barely suppressed smile, though by the time Aisling looked over at him, he wore a more serious expression.

"Yea, these long sticks that you use to amplify magic," Aisling said, starting to wave her hand around as though she held one. "That's what they use in stories from where I-oh." She stopped, seeing that Legolas' smile had grown as he watched her in amusement.

"Please, by all means continue your demonstration," he said, a playful twinkle in his eyes.

"God, again? I can never tell when you're screwing with me," she said, shooting him a frown, though she wasn't really angry. Legolas chuckled and even Aragorn and Haldir joined him, still entertained by the joke though he had done it several times by now.

"No, he does not use a wand, though he has a ring," Legolas explained. "And a walking staff, though I believe him capable of using magic without any object. But please, I am curious to hear more about these wands that you have in a land with supposedly no magic..."

Aisling rolled her eyes slightly, but remained smiling.

"How about you tell me just why you think Gandalf, or Mithrandir, will know how to get me back to my world," Aisling countered.

"Again, he is very powerful. If Gandalf does not know, perhaps one of the others, though I am not sure," Aragorn said.

"Better hope he does, then," Aisling breathed.

"Tell us more about your world," Legolas said.

Aisling looked over at him and then scrunched her face up, trying to think of what to tell him. The elf prince had already asked her a rather large amount of questions regarding where she came from and she was starting to forget what she had already mentioned.

"Do you own one of these… cars that you mentioned?" Legolas asked, not waiting for her. Aisling glanced over at him.

"Yes, I do," she replied. "Kinda missing it about now… would have made this trip a lot easier. And faster. We could have gone from Imladris to Bree in about an afternoon, I guess."

"No wonder you were so reticent to trek for 10 days," Legolas said, a look of surprise on his face. "And yet, no magic."

"Well, no. But we have technology," Aisling said. "Like I said earlier - we can get in contact with anyone instantly, even if they're on the other side of the world with phones and computers. Watch movies and shows on TVs, computers or even your phone. You can do just about anything with your phone, actually…"

Legolas gave her a dubious look.

"And you do not consider this magic? I still cannot understand some of the things you speak of," Legolas said. Aisling thought for a moment and then shrugged.

"I guess one person's magic is another person's technology?" she offered. "Though, I wouldn't mind having elvish healers in my world. Much faster than our medicine and… healing."

For the next hour or two, Aisling and Legolas went back and forth, debating the various aspects of life in Middle Earth and Aisling's world - or at least as much as they could with their limited knowledge of each other's worlds. But it was a good chance for her to learn more about Middle Earth - or Arda as she now understood it was called by the elves.

Aragorn only listened with an amused look. Haldir was unreadable, but Aisling thought she saw a hint of interest in his eyes.

She kept talking until Aragorn, who was leading the group, came to a stop in a small clearing, deeming it sufficient for them to stop for the night.

Aisling climbed down from her horse, starting into the routine of unloading everything before rubbing Roharan down. The others were - as usual - finished before her, with Aragorn setting out to find their dinner.

"Come, Aisling. It is time for your nightly lesson," Legolas said.

"Can't I rest a bit?" Aisling asked, knowing he was going to say no. She planted her hands on her hips and watched as he started to pull out his own daggers and then looked over at Haldir, who only calmly watched on. "Look… you're helping, but… maybe we should just admit defeat?"

"You must know how to defend yourself," Legolas replied.

"Maybe I do," she threw back. Legolas paused, an incredulous look on his face. "You haven't once asked me what I can do."

"Fine. What is it you can do?" he asked, though the look on his face clearly read that he didn't believe her.

Aisling sized him up, taking in his lean frame and then over at Haldir who was a bit taller and stockier.

"Come here, Hal," she said. There was a flicker of surprise in his face. "Seriously, get your weapons off and get your ass over here."

Finally, he pulled off his quiver, bow and then sword and walked over to her, appearing a bit worried.

"Okay. Grab my hair," Aisling instructed, her back to him as she readied herself, a determined look coming over her face..

"No," he said immediately. Aisling rolled her eyes.

"It's fine. I can handle it. I've practiced with my cousins," she said, glancing over her shoulder at him. "I have a hard head."

He studied her a few moments before reluctantly reaching out and grabbing her braid almost half-heartedly. Without warning, Aisling swung her arm up and around, locking it underneath his and forcing him down to the ground on his knees before disengaging and jogging off a bit. Haldir looked over at her, appearing mildly proud.

"I do not think your attacker will be after your hair," Legolas said dryly. "Not when he has a sword to your neck."

"Still, it could be useful," Haldir said, getting up from the ground. Legolas shot him a look that clearly read not to entertain Aisling further.

But she was already starting to get a push of adrenaline, finally doing something she knew how to do. She realized then she missed her kickboxing classes, even if she was the worst in her class.

"Wait, there's something else," she said, walking over and dropping down to the ground next to Haldir. "Okay. Get on me and pretend to strangle me."

For a rare moment, Haldir lost his calm mask and nearly gaped at her.

"I do not-"

"You're not going to hurt me! I promise!" Aisling urged. "Now, get on me."

Haldir glanced over at Legolas and then down at Aisling. Shaking his head slightly, he moved until he was straddling her. He stared down at her a few moments before cautiously reaching out and placing his hands around her neck. Aisling reached up and gripped her right hand over his wrist while keeping her elbow close to her stomach, then grabbed his elbow with her left. Without warning she shifted her feet and then shoved up with her hips.

A wide-eyed look came over Haldir's face as he found himself being flipped over onto his back. Aisling grinned down at him a moment before jumping to her feet and looking over at Legolas.

"See? I can do stuff!" she said proudly, not realizing that Haldir was still on the ground with a slightly stunned look on his face.

"And then what do you do after?" Legolas asked calmly.

"Well… run away. Maybe climb a tree or something," she said simply. Legolas only raised his eyebrows. "And then you guys jump in with the swords and the bows and the daggers."

"Should we run into trouble, Aisling, there will more than one assailant most likely. While I do agree the best course of action is for you to run away and stay out of the fray, there may not be the opportunity," he said calmly. "I would prefer you not fight, but I worry more what would happen should you find yourself in that situation and not know what to do."

The smile fell from Aisling's face. And here she thought she was doing good to remember the moves she learned in that self-defense class she took in university. She looked back at Legolas, watching as he glanced off behind her and nodded and then back at her.

"So we have to do more with the daggers?" she asked. "And the bow and arrows?"

"Yes."

He looked over her shoulder with a bit more of a stern look, but Aisling didn't notice as she huffed and started towards where she put the daggers down. But suddenly, two arms came around her shoulders. Aisling's eyes widened slightly, but without thinking, she grabbed onto them, squatted as she turned her head to the side, and then shifted until she could reach down and grab at his legs. It wasn't particularly graceful as he was heavier than her cousins, but soon she was standing over a (yet again) stunned Haldir who was lying on his back on the ground.

"We done?" she asked, looking from him over to Legolas. Both elves remained silent.

"What's this?" Aragorn asked, returning to the clearing with a couple dead birds strung over his shoulder.

"Self-defense lessons," Aisling said with a cheeky grin. She then turned back to Haldir and held her hand out. "But now I think it's dinner time."

OOOO

After they had finished eating, Haldir walked over and sat next to Aisling where she leaned up against a tree. They had just divided up the nightly watch - which Aisling was grateful she didn't have to do. It was the one thing she hadn't volunteered for, though figured if they were on the road for a longer time, she might need to.

"Where did you learn such skills?" he asked, looking over at her, his expression curious. Aisling shrugged.

"University. They did this self-defense class for women," she said. "My friends talked me into it, but figured it didn't hurt to know. New York City isn't the safest city."

"Then why would you live there?" he asked. Aisling snorted.

"No where is completely safe," she commented. "I'm sure it's the same here. I mean, there's always going to be people out there who are going to try and take advantage of other people they see as weaker."

From the appalled look on Haldir's face, she gathered the elven cities very much were not like New York City.

"You mean… it is commonplace for women in your world to know how to protect themselves in such ways because it is commonplace that men would attack them?" he asked.

"Okay, you guys keep harping on me about learning how to use weapons and you're telling me that sort of thing doesn't happen here?" she asked, thinking it a reasonable question.

"Because we are teaching you to protect yourself from orcs. Goblins. Creatures that are not men or elves, but monsters. They would as soon kill you as look upon you," he replied, as though it made all the sense in the world. "Yes, I have heard of such things happening in the cities of men. But an ellon would never force himself upon an elleth. Or a mortal woman."

Aisling just blinked and looked at the fire. If that were the case, maybe she should consider staying in Imladris or Lothlorien forever.

"Aisling… has someone…"

Aisling whipped her head over to look at Haldir, who was frowning deeply though he was looking at the ground.

"No! I mean, I've never had to use those moves outside of practice," she said, reaching out to put her hand on his arm. "Sure, guys have gotten frisky with me. But I haven't been in that situation." He looked up at her. "Trust me, no one has taken advantage of me. Even when I've been drunk. Side effect of having two older cousins always hovering."

She then patted his arm.

"I'm good. You don't have to worry about me… or my honor," she said, still smiling. "Pretty sure Liam's actually stopped me from pouncing on guys a few times."

She chuckled half-heartedly, hoping to lighten the mood, though she wasn't sure she had done that from the look he was giving her. Haldir nodded and looked back to the fire, moving away from her slightly.

Crap, she shouldn't have made that joke about pouncing on men.

"I would still feel better if you knew how to use weapons," he then said. Aisling nodded.

"Sure. Yea. We'll do more tomorrow. And I won't complain this time," she said, smiling at him. He nodded, and Aisling noted a slight hint of relief in his face. "So… goblins I can guess, but what are orcs?"

Haldir chuckled and pushed up from the ground.

"Tomorrow… you should rest."

OOOO

You can thank the Google crash. Uploading three chapters tonight. But also they were chapters I was eager to post.

SKiryu - Yay! Though... there will be some dramatic bits. But hoping to temper them with humor and sappy romance. ^_^

Guest - Well, since you mentioned my trademark happy ending, I'm assuming you've read some of my other stories. And yes. There is a happy ending with this one. But a lot of shenanigans and such before then. (But also some drama and sad bits, but not for a long time and sorry in advance).

Thanks for reading and following!