**Re-edited 12/16/03
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Chapter 1- Where am I??
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I groaned as light seeped through my closed eyes and rolled onto my stomach. Big mistake. Fire burned in my abdomen like it believed it alone had to heat my whole body. Grimacing, I rolled back to my former position without yet opening my eyes and pulled the sheets over my head. Sheets?!! What the heck? My eyes snapped open as I flung the coverings away from me like they were poisonous cobras.
Taking in deep breaths I surveyed the elegantly furnished room, wondering if I was dreaming. I tried to sit, but the pain in my side was testimony to the fact that whatever this was, it was no dream. Slowly I tried again, and the gradual increase of pain was more bearable than the sharp staccato it had been on my first attempt. Gingerly I placed my feet on the wooden floor and painstakingly crossed the room to an open balcony.
Chairs were placed near the iron
wrought railing and only total self-control kept me from completely collapsing
as I lowered myself into the nearest one. Gazing about, even I had to admit the
land was peaceful with an almost sleepy atmosphere. Leaves gently floated in a
gentle breeze to rest upon the light brown earth and somewhere close by a bird
caroled merrily. I did not need to see a mirror to know that my face scrunched
in pain, both physical and emotional. Looking down at my hands I noticed for
the first time I was not in my blood stained jeans and combat boots, but a
white lacy nightdress. A dress. Me. In a dress. The very thought made me want
to gag. That and the lace. Lace for crying out loud! What did they think I was,
some wimpy girl? A sudden thought seized my mind and my hands flew to my neck.
I sighed when I found the ring still hung on the chain around my neck. I
decided to sit and watch the places around me. I hoped by observing that I
would be able to figure out where the hell I was.
I must have been on an upper-story looking
into some kind of courtyard because people scurried here and there, busy
despite the dreamlike atmosphere. Most were blonde with only a few brunettes. I
grinned despite my heartache. My tan skin and midnight black hair were sure to
stick out like a refined millionaire in Fighter's Block. I just love sticking
out. I considered cutting my hair with a knife just to appear even more out of
the ordinary, especially since all those I could see had their hair at least
shoulder length and left mostly down. My own raven colored hair went down to my
waist. But the fact that I loved the silky feeling of it against my face and I
had no more knives left prevented me from doing so. Instead I began twisting
strands into an endless inky river of minuscule braids of varying lengths.
Finally after about an hour or so of
watching those below come and go* and braiding my hair, some brilliant blonde
person looked up, saw me and pointed out the apparent anomaly of a girl with
black hair sitting out on the deck with her pajamas on to another person with,
for once, light brown hair. Both the blonde and the light brown heads
disappeared into a sheltered walkway on the opposite side of the courtyard.
Fifteen minutes later I heard a knock on the door, which I ignored. I wanted to
be let alone, but after a minute of low murmuring the door was unlocked with
minimal jingling of keys and nearly inaudible footsteps made their way to where
I had been sitting for nearly an hour and a half. I wished that whoever it was
would just leave me alone.
Unfortunately, the guy with
brown hair came onto the deck or whatever I was on and sat down on one of the
many chairs. Following him was a blonde man with dark brown eyes. Both wore
sleeveless cloaks over loose shirts with full long sleeves and tights. Well
actually, they were breeches, but they looked kinda
like tights. Pale skin was apparently the norm wherever I was, so I would never
fit in, in that respect. I most certainly did not have the pointed ears these
two guys sported. I kept myself from staring by glowering at the two who had so
rudely intruded my thoughts, to which only the blonde reacted with surprise.
"Lady, I see you carry much
sorrow within you, young as you are. Your physical wound is healing, but I can
not say so much for your spirit. It has lost much vitality and will, I sense
that much." stated the man with light brown hair. I simply shot him a look that
would have made even Hans run like a whipped dog with its tail between its
legs. In truth, I was startled. I would be willing to swear that they were
speaking anything except English, and yet I understood them perfectly. It was
as if I was merely using a part of my mind that had sat idle for many years
before now.
Surprisingly enough, it was
Blondie who responded to my glaring. However, it was not with anger as I had
hoped, but with temper carefully checked and his voice sounding like he was
narrating some fairy tale. "Lady, You would show Lord Elrond Half-Elven more respect if you knew if it weren't for him you
would be dead at this moment. It is only out of his powers that you are healed
from a wound that we have never seen the likes of before. It is his house that
you are now sheltered in, and at his commands you are cared for and clothed."
"What if I had not wanted to live?
What if this wound that you have never seen the likes of was self inflicted. In
fact, I was thinking of throwing my self over this ugly rail and making a most
lovely addition to the ground below." I bluffed, my voice deceptively innocent.
"What gives you the right to take my things from me and talk to me as if I am
but a child. You have not even given the your name, much less the name of the
place I am, for now it seems, a resident of." I succeeded in startling both,
but the one called Elrond concealed his surprise better. Much better. I
grinned, pulling my lips back to reveal my teeth.
" I apologize, Lady. My
companion for the time is known as Yurin Hugluin and it is obvious I have yet to completely train
him in the art of diplomacy." At this I let out a snort of agreement, which
Elrond wisely ignored and continued on as I looked into his eyes. "You were
found in the woods nearly ten days ago by my scouts. We have been waiting for
the arrival of others, but you were all they found. You were carried here, to Rivendell, and here you have stayed since. I am, as Yurin stated, Lord Elrond, and this is my domain. I will
not however, demand that you tell us your story yet. I see you still feel pain
in your side. I shall fix that as best I can but you shall always bear a scar.
I would, however, ask you your name and why it is you were in our woods
unbidden."
He leaned closer to me and his eyes
focused on the bandages covering the spot where I had been shot and began to
chant softly. After a small amount of time the pain had faded completely from
my body and Elrond opened his eyes again.
A sudden thought made me want
to smack myself: Kara, despite being on the streets, had been a voracious
reader. She had even taught Alex and myself to read. I never knew where she got
the books as she denied stealing them. But the point is, she had this one
trilogy or something, and she used to spend hours reading them or sometimes
just talking to me about them. I never listened much. Hearing about people
chasing some midget with a big, bad ring just wasn't my thing. But the thing is
she was always talking about Elves and had gone through and recited page after
page on Elves. I especially knew about some guy named Legolas
Greenleaf, as he was Kara's favorite. Tears began to well up in my eyes and I
quickly looked down and let my thoughts linger in my past for a moment longer.
An idea began to run through my mind.
After a few minutes of silence
had passed I looked up with clear eyes and kept all emotion from my voice as I
spoke directly to Elrond, ignoring Yurin, "You are an
Elf." Elrond gave a deep nod of agreement while Yurin
gave me a look that plainly said I must have been insane if I hadn't known that
yet. A nasty glare was all Yurin received for his
unspoken insult. Taking a shaky breath I muttered a few curses before I asked
"And this is not Earth, is it?"
Elrond slowly shook his head with a
small look of puzzlement in his eyes. Eyes that had seen thousands of years,
perhaps hundreds of thousands of years of pain and sorrow, loyalty and
betrayal, happiness and contentment. Lines around his face showed that new
worries were pressing themselves heavily against this wise ruler.
I was remembering more and
more of what Kara had told me about her books as new concepts presented
themselves. Sighing I let my body go limp into the back of the chair I was
still sitting in. "I am called Dri. Nothing more and nothing less. That means
no more 'Lady'. And I don't care what you think but there will be no one
calling me 'Young' or 'Dear' or something equally disgusting. If they do,"
pausing, I felt a wicked smile turn the corners of my lips up, " I am not to be
held responsible for any injuries they sustain. As for my wound, suffice it to
say I was attacked by a piece of scum called Hans. It tried to rape me, but I
escaped. It or one of Its minions shot me with a weapon never seen in your
world. Suffice it to say you saved a life I think you will in time come to
regret saving. I am a thief, a murdering, and downright rude and uncouth little
girl in your eyes. If you please, Elrond, I'd like my weapons back and some
black cloth and sewing material. Also, I'll take my old clothes back."
"All your things are in the
chest at the foot of your bed. I will arrange for everything else to be taken
here as you wish, Dri. If you have need of anything else, simply ask and I will
do my best to see that you receive it."
"What I need is to go home." I
muttered under my breath.
"And just where is your home?"
Yurin asked, his gray eyes seeming curious instead of
appearing haughty.
"Nowhere around here, I assure
you." I said dryly. Anticipating his next question I spoke before Yurin, "And I personally know no one in your world. All my
family has either deserted me or died."
"Then it is as I feared, you
are not from any time or place in Middle Earth." Elrond spoke with an emotion I
could not name but only describe as sorrowful resignation.
I nodded and with a glance at Yurin, both he and Elrond stood up and politely took their
leave of me. Elrond told me that if I was feeling up to it there was to be a
banquet tonight. I snorted again and rolled my eyes and followed them as they
exited the balcony and they left the room. Looking from my bed to the balcony,
I opened the chest and pulled out my boots and put them on. Walking slowly, I
yanked off a comforter and returned to the balcony. Back in Fighter's Block it
had already snowed three times. Here the air was cool with the promise of cool
weather returning to the land; almost fall. I wrapped myself into a cocoon of
white comforter and curled up on the bench positioned in a corner of the
balcony. I told myself I would only close my eyes, but I was tired and followed
my memories into a sleep of dreams that were memories from my past.
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*Hey! That rhymes!!!
**
Re-edited 12/16/03: Yeah. Actually, there will be no updates to Amaya. Because I intend to take that fic
off, and it got moved to Fiction Press and, well, I'm a lazy ass. And, frankly,
nothing more to Hell On Middle Earth, Either. Because Z went to another school
and frankly its damn hard when we work and do other after school activities.
~*Rya*~