Title: The Children In Middle Earth
Author: Knife Hand
Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated
Spoilers: Spoilers up till the eleventh Angel in Eva, no event spoilers for LotR.
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I do not own Lord of The Rings or Neon Genesis Evangelion. I would buy them but I am broke.
Summary: The Eva pilots are transported into the world of Middle Earth and are looking for a way home, but some things have changed.
AN: Just to clarify in this I am ignoring the whole 'Rei is a clone' thing. She is the original and she bears no relation to Shinji whatsoever.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"What the hell is this test for, anyway?" Asuka demanded.
The three Eva pilots were walking down the street, in their school uniforms, heading for the closest Geo-front access point.
"Dr. Akagi said it was to monitor the harmonics directly from our bodies." Rei answered in her usual monotone.
"NAKED!" Asuka screamed, slightly deafening Shinji who was walking between her and Rei.
The group walked on for a few more minutes in silence. Asuka was fuming, Shinji was trying to escape into his own world and Rei was being her usual quiet self. After rounding a corner the group was hit by what seemed to be lighting from nowhere. Shinji saw Rei fall unconscious on one side and Asuka kneeling with her head clutched in her hands on the other before the world tilted and he was consumed by darkness.
********
Shinji's eyes opened to an unfamiliar scene. He was staring up at the bluest sky he had ever seen, without a cloud in sight. He could see the branches of trees, mostly above his head in his horizontal position. He heard none of the regular city noises, instead he heard birds, the whistling of the wind through the trees, rustling to either side of him, mix with the rhythmic breathing of sleep, and a slight crackling, which he concluded was a fire when he smelt wood smoke. Besides the wood smoke, Shinji smelt fresh earth, cold meat and, what part of his brain recognised as, the smell of travellers. When Shinji sat up and looked around he received a massive shock. There was indeed a fire and the leftovers of a meal, roast rabbit, but the shock came from his company.
To his left, where Rei had been, lay a familiar woman that he had never seen before. She was a beautiful woman in her late twenties, around twenty- eight. She had the look of one both graceful and strong. She was dressed in leather leggings and a cotton blouse, with sturdy boots, a leather tunic and a bow obvious among her belongings. He body was lean and well toned with a leather headband keeping her loose, shoulder length hair out of her eyes.
To his right, in place of Asuka, lay another familiar but unknown woman. Also about twenty-eight years old, she could be described as stunningly beautiful, with a sense of strength and confidence radiating off her sleeping form. About a foot taller than the other woman, she wore a similar outfit, however a worn breastplate, shield and a large, one-handed broadsword lay among her belonging and no bow was in sight. Her body was well defined and muscled which, combined with her looks, made her seem to be a warrior-noble, beauty in the midst of death. Her hair, which reached the bottom of her shoulder blades, was kept in a ponytail.
The thing about his companions that shocked Shinji was their hair; the woman on the left had pale blue hair, while the woman on the right had auburn red hair. As impossible as it seemed, the two women were Asuka and Rei. Shinji, realising that only a few seconds had passed since he had sat up, decided to look through his belongings. Most of the items were standard travel equipment, instantly identified by part of Shinji's mind, which ranged from spare clothes and travel rations to tinder and shaving kits. Shinji felt a strange sense of familiarity and confidence associated with the weapons among his gear, which consisted of a Katana style, two- handed sword, a bow, with arrows, and a large knife. Shinji noticed Asuka and Rei begin to stir as they awoke, and hung the leftover rabbit over the flames to heat up.
********
Rei opened her eyes and looked around the campsite. She quickly absorbed the unfamiliar surroundings, accurately surmising that the other members of the camp were her fellow pilots. Asuka had also just awoken and was taking longer to deal with the scene, so Rei turned her attention to Shinji, who was sitting by the fire. He looked about twenty-eight and was of average height for a Japanese male, bout half a foot shorter than Asuka and half a foot taller than herself. He was ruggedly handsome, with a lean, muscular build that was well toned. He moved with deadly grace and self-assurance.
Dressed in sturdy boots, lather pants, cotton shirt and a leather tunic, his hair was short at the front but covered his neck at the back and clean shaven. Rei's attention shifted from Shinji to what was roasting over the fire, and she discovered that, somehow, she had lost her dislike of eating meat, so she went to the fire to get breakfast.
"What the hell is going on here?!" Asuka demanded.
They all stoped dead. Asuka had not spoken Japanese, she had not spoken any language that they were familiar with, but they had all understood her. Part of their minds named the language as 'Common'. The name had come from the part that had told them all the things they knew without knowing about this place and their gear; it had also identified, to each of them, their friends in their new bodies, subconsciously.
They moved around the campsite efficiently, Rei working with the grace and precision of a dancer, Asuka with the directness and economy of motion of a construction worker and Shinji moved with the grace and economy of motion of a veteran yacht sailor. They had begun packing up camp, as much to keep their minds off this place and their new knowledge as any other reason. The campsite was located in a clearing, surrounded by a ring of tall deciduous trees, covered with the new growth of late spring.
A road was located about a hundred meters to one side of the camp and there was a small, fresh water stream just on the edge of the site on the other side. The layers of soot lining the fire pit indicated that the site had been used, on and off, for many years, if not generations, by travellers. It was about two hours after dawn, the group having eaten and packed, when they heard a voice, they were just sitting down to discuss what to do next.
"Ho, the fire." the voice called from the road, in common.
"Ho, the road." Shinji replied in kind. "Welcome to our fire."
The man who walked towards the fire was old, with long grey hair and beard. His pointed hat and cloak were also grey, and he carried a long gnarled staff. His deep blue eyes, however, had wisdom, strength and intensity that are generally absent in the elderly.
"My name is Gandalf the Grey." The old man said formally.
"I am Shinji Ikari, this is Rei Ayanami, and Asuka Langley Sohryu." Shinji replied gesturing to his companions. "You are welcome at our fire, sit and relax."
Gandalf sat on a log by the fire and looked at the strangers.
"What the hell do you think you are doing?" Asuka asked, in Japanese so Gandalf could not understand them.
"We need to know about this place, how we got here and how to get home, if we can. I think he can help." Shinji replied, also in Japanese.
Gandalf looked interested in the trio when they turned back to face him, as they spoke a language he had never heard in Middle Earth.
"We are lost. Would you, please, be able to help us find a place where we can find a way to get home?" Rei asked quietly, in common.
Gandalf smiled slightly, he sensed no ill intentions from these strangers, and in some way they reminded him of the Hobbits of the Shire. Courteous, slow to anger, disliking of violence but ready to fight if need be and welcoming, but wary, of strangers. (AN: from now on, unless stated, all conversation will proceed in common.)
"I am on my way to see the Elves at Rivendell. Perhaps Elrond will be able to assist you." Gandalf said. "We should make it by nightfall if we leave now."
Within five minutes everyone was ready to go, with cloaks on, packs on their backs, Asuka's shield on hers as well, and they headed down the road towards Rivendell. The day passed uneventfully and near dusk they crossed the ford, and proceeded to the valley of Rivendell. Rivendell itself was beautiful, with spacious, arched buildings that incorporated and complemented the natural elements of the valley. The inhabitants of Rivendell were almost as captivating a scene as the valley itself.
The Elves were tall, graceful and friendly, all the men were handsome and the women were beautiful. Behind the surface beauty of the Elves was strength of character and the deep wisdom of those who live thorough the ages of the world. Walking through Rivendell in the early evening was an awe-inspiring sight to Shinji, Asuka and Rei. The entire valley was lit with thousands of lamps and candles, hanging from the branches of every tree, along every balcony and even from the eves of the buildings. Firelight spilt out from the windows, warm and inviting.
The travellers were ushered into the great hall for dinner where they were met by Elrond and his daughter Arwen. Elrond was wise and exuded a sense of healing and confidence, while Arwen, young and stunningly beautiful, was friendly, devoted and kind. Elrond, the half-elf lord, and the Elven princess, Arwen, sat confidently at the head of the long table. The table seated many Elves, a few humans in green outfits, and a single old hobbit, surrounded by dwarves and men, dressed differently from the men in green. After the meal, Shinji, Asuka and Rei were shown to their rooms.
The three rooms were adjacent and all had access to a single, segmented balcony. The rooms themselves were spacious, with large a single large bed, a large closet and en-suite. Shinji had a quick look over his rooms, placed his belonging in the closet and walked out onto his section of the balcony. The balcony provided a spectacular view, looking out over the lantern lit valley, showing gardens, lawns, parks and Elves wandering and singing throughout the valley. The singing provided soothing background noise, even though Shinji could not make out the words and the tune was like nothing he had ever heard before.
Shinji's entrance to the balcony was close to the partition to Rei's balcony section, and she was leaning on the banister with a far away look on her face, troubled and peaceful at the same time. Rei was standing not a dozen feet from Shinji and she was totally oblivious of his presence.
"Copper for your thoughts." Shinji said, paraphrasing an old saying (or new saying depending how you look at it).
Startled for a second, Rei looking around at the sound of the voice, relaxed when she saw Shinji. Her eyes looked lost, confused and, oddly, hopeful.
"I'm worried. Wondering what is happening at home, what if an Angel attacked? At the same time, I wonder what could happen here, if we could start a new life, yet this place seems as violent as home, just in a different way." Rei said, sighing. (AN: I know this is not like Rei, talking this much, but she also has the memories of Middle Earth Rei. That's my excuse anyway.)
"I know what you mean, but this place is different from home. Here we have a choice; we are no-one's puppet. Here we can all look after ourselves. Asuka always could, sometimes she was a cast iron bitch, but I still want to protect both of you, you two and Misato are my family. Here we may end up serving someone, but we can choose who.
"There is an old saying that goes 'the only difference between a free man and a slave, is that the free man choses who and how he serves'. I don't pretend to know why we are here, maybe for a new life, maybe to learn something to fight the Angels, maybe both. What I do know is that for some reason we were sent here, and that implies a purpose. For the moment it does not matter, we are safe here with the Elves. Sleep Rei. We can worry about this in the morning." Shinji told Rei.
"Thank you, Shinji." Rei said before going back into her room.
Shinji stared out over Rivendell for a few seconds before returning to his room also. At the far end of Shinji's balcony section, Asuka emerged from the shadows having heard the entire conversation.
"I hope you are right, Shinji. I hope there is a purpose to this." Asuka whispered before returning to her room.
********
The sunlight shone through the window, spilling across the floor and the bed and creeping into the closed eyes of the slumbering occupant of the room. Shinji's eyes slowly opened, stimulated by the sunlight. Shinji quickly dressed in the clothes provided, leggings, shirt, vest, coat and boots. He did not bother donning a cloak. They had been in Rivendell several weeks now, with Lord Elrond and other elves searching their archives for a possible way to get them home.
Meanwhile they had been learning, almost remembering, how to survive in Middle Earth such as weaponry, horse riding, tracking, hunting, geography, politics, history, a million topics that once explained seemed like second nature to them. Shinji grabbed his bow and quiver, strapping the quiver around his waist. He was on his way down to the archery range to practice with Rei when he saw Asuka. Asuka was dressed in a beautiful red, off the shoulder, dress, and her were movements graceful. The sight drew Shinji into memories that he, as far as he knew, had never experienced.
*Flashback*
Almost since the day that hey had been born, Shinji, Asuka and Rei had been friends, as were their parents. They had grown up together and always played games that they were off on adventures. At the age of seven, their village had burned to the ground with few survivors; unfortunately their parents were not among the survivors.
Asuka's mother had been sick when the fire had struck, with her father and Rei's father perishing in an attempt to save her mother. Rei and Shinji's mothers had died at Shinji's house due to the fact that Shinji's mother was pregnant. Shinji's father had died, before Shinji's house had caught fire, saving children from other houses, including Shinji, Asuka and Rei.
After that they had moved to another village and trained as adventurers/warriors, choosing early which weapons suited them, the same weapons they carried now. At the age of sixteen they left to begin their adventures. After a year of travelling, and very few adventures, they found themselves at New Laketown and the annual celebration of the defeat of Smaug the Dragon. The elders of Laketown had presented them with clothes for the celebration, Shinji receiving finely embroidered clothes similar to his travelling clothes but of much better quality.
Asuka and Rei, however received beautiful dresses for the celebration. Asuka's was a flowing red gown that went well with her auburn hair, with a low-cut neckline, it was slightly formfitting to the waist, supported by tie straps at the shoulders and then flowing freely below the waist. Around her neck was blue ribbon, worn like a choker, which matched her eyes. Rei's dress was a light purple colour with spaghetti straps and flowed naturally with slight pleating. The dress was simple yet elegant.
That was the first time that Shinji saw them as women and not the little girls he had grown up with. That night he danced with both of them, beneath the stars that shone on the town on the water. The intermittent light of the torches and cooking fires gave an almost ethereal feel to parts of the celebration. On that night he fell even more in love with the companion that had unwittingly and unknowingly stolen his heart.
*End Flashback*
"Hey, Shinji. You in there?" Asuka asked, waving her hand in front of his face.
"Sorry Asuka. Just thinking about eleven years ago. That celebration at New Laketown. You were wearing a similar dress." Shinji replied.
"What are you talking about?" Asuka said, and then she looked at the dress and recognition flooded over her face. "Oh yah. I remember that. Now that's creepy. Two sets of memories."
Shinji nodded before heading off to the archery range.
********
Shinji sat staring at the campfire. They were three days ride south, their horses moved at a quick walk during the day, and they had almost another forty days travel before they reached the gap of Rohan. It had been decided, after an exhaustive search of the Elven libraries, that the Elves did not have the knowledge to get them home.
It was suggested that they ride south to Minas Tirith, the capital of Gondor, to see if there were any answers in the libraries there. They were being lead by Aragorn, a northern Ranger whom they had met at Rivendell. It was fairly late in the evening, perhaps ten o'clock. Asuka and Aragorn were asleep, exhausted after the sword training session Aragorn had given Asuka earlier. Rei had been in her beadroll but she could not sleep so she had joined Shinji by the fire.
"Do you find it weird Rei?" Shinji asked, not looking away from the fire.
"What?" came her soft response.
"The dual memories. Here and Home." Shinji sated.
"Yes, but it also brings comfort. Another way my life could have gone." She replied.
"True. It gets confusing sometimes. Like I know I can not swim, yet I remember you teaching me on my seventh birthday, you'd been swimming since we were three. That's another thing that confuses me. You."
"Me?" Rei asked, genuinely surprised.
"Yes, you. I have twenty-eight years of memories of living with you, but I know next to nothing about you. Not the real you anyway, not the you from home." Shinji said.
"Why do you want to know about me?" Rei inquired.
"Because. Because I want us to at least be friends. Because I want to know if I can really love you they way I do in those memories." Shinji replied honestly, looking into Rei's eyes.
Rei stared into the fire for a while, thinking.
"In your memories, you really loved me?" Rei asked.
"Yes." Shinji said.
To this, Rei just smiled. That night, Shinji and Rei stayed up talking, about their Middle Earth memories and their lives in Tokyo 3. They got no sleep that night and they were still talking when the sun rose. Despite the lack of sleep they felt refreshed when the camp was packed up and the group started the trek south. Full life stories and total trust were still to come, but they had broken the ice and, for the moment, that was all that mattered.
TBC
Author: Knife Hand
Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated
Spoilers: Spoilers up till the eleventh Angel in Eva, no event spoilers for LotR.
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I do not own Lord of The Rings or Neon Genesis Evangelion. I would buy them but I am broke.
Summary: The Eva pilots are transported into the world of Middle Earth and are looking for a way home, but some things have changed.
AN: Just to clarify in this I am ignoring the whole 'Rei is a clone' thing. She is the original and she bears no relation to Shinji whatsoever.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"What the hell is this test for, anyway?" Asuka demanded.
The three Eva pilots were walking down the street, in their school uniforms, heading for the closest Geo-front access point.
"Dr. Akagi said it was to monitor the harmonics directly from our bodies." Rei answered in her usual monotone.
"NAKED!" Asuka screamed, slightly deafening Shinji who was walking between her and Rei.
The group walked on for a few more minutes in silence. Asuka was fuming, Shinji was trying to escape into his own world and Rei was being her usual quiet self. After rounding a corner the group was hit by what seemed to be lighting from nowhere. Shinji saw Rei fall unconscious on one side and Asuka kneeling with her head clutched in her hands on the other before the world tilted and he was consumed by darkness.
********
Shinji's eyes opened to an unfamiliar scene. He was staring up at the bluest sky he had ever seen, without a cloud in sight. He could see the branches of trees, mostly above his head in his horizontal position. He heard none of the regular city noises, instead he heard birds, the whistling of the wind through the trees, rustling to either side of him, mix with the rhythmic breathing of sleep, and a slight crackling, which he concluded was a fire when he smelt wood smoke. Besides the wood smoke, Shinji smelt fresh earth, cold meat and, what part of his brain recognised as, the smell of travellers. When Shinji sat up and looked around he received a massive shock. There was indeed a fire and the leftovers of a meal, roast rabbit, but the shock came from his company.
To his left, where Rei had been, lay a familiar woman that he had never seen before. She was a beautiful woman in her late twenties, around twenty- eight. She had the look of one both graceful and strong. She was dressed in leather leggings and a cotton blouse, with sturdy boots, a leather tunic and a bow obvious among her belongings. He body was lean and well toned with a leather headband keeping her loose, shoulder length hair out of her eyes.
To his right, in place of Asuka, lay another familiar but unknown woman. Also about twenty-eight years old, she could be described as stunningly beautiful, with a sense of strength and confidence radiating off her sleeping form. About a foot taller than the other woman, she wore a similar outfit, however a worn breastplate, shield and a large, one-handed broadsword lay among her belonging and no bow was in sight. Her body was well defined and muscled which, combined with her looks, made her seem to be a warrior-noble, beauty in the midst of death. Her hair, which reached the bottom of her shoulder blades, was kept in a ponytail.
The thing about his companions that shocked Shinji was their hair; the woman on the left had pale blue hair, while the woman on the right had auburn red hair. As impossible as it seemed, the two women were Asuka and Rei. Shinji, realising that only a few seconds had passed since he had sat up, decided to look through his belongings. Most of the items were standard travel equipment, instantly identified by part of Shinji's mind, which ranged from spare clothes and travel rations to tinder and shaving kits. Shinji felt a strange sense of familiarity and confidence associated with the weapons among his gear, which consisted of a Katana style, two- handed sword, a bow, with arrows, and a large knife. Shinji noticed Asuka and Rei begin to stir as they awoke, and hung the leftover rabbit over the flames to heat up.
********
Rei opened her eyes and looked around the campsite. She quickly absorbed the unfamiliar surroundings, accurately surmising that the other members of the camp were her fellow pilots. Asuka had also just awoken and was taking longer to deal with the scene, so Rei turned her attention to Shinji, who was sitting by the fire. He looked about twenty-eight and was of average height for a Japanese male, bout half a foot shorter than Asuka and half a foot taller than herself. He was ruggedly handsome, with a lean, muscular build that was well toned. He moved with deadly grace and self-assurance.
Dressed in sturdy boots, lather pants, cotton shirt and a leather tunic, his hair was short at the front but covered his neck at the back and clean shaven. Rei's attention shifted from Shinji to what was roasting over the fire, and she discovered that, somehow, she had lost her dislike of eating meat, so she went to the fire to get breakfast.
"What the hell is going on here?!" Asuka demanded.
They all stoped dead. Asuka had not spoken Japanese, she had not spoken any language that they were familiar with, but they had all understood her. Part of their minds named the language as 'Common'. The name had come from the part that had told them all the things they knew without knowing about this place and their gear; it had also identified, to each of them, their friends in their new bodies, subconsciously.
They moved around the campsite efficiently, Rei working with the grace and precision of a dancer, Asuka with the directness and economy of motion of a construction worker and Shinji moved with the grace and economy of motion of a veteran yacht sailor. They had begun packing up camp, as much to keep their minds off this place and their new knowledge as any other reason. The campsite was located in a clearing, surrounded by a ring of tall deciduous trees, covered with the new growth of late spring.
A road was located about a hundred meters to one side of the camp and there was a small, fresh water stream just on the edge of the site on the other side. The layers of soot lining the fire pit indicated that the site had been used, on and off, for many years, if not generations, by travellers. It was about two hours after dawn, the group having eaten and packed, when they heard a voice, they were just sitting down to discuss what to do next.
"Ho, the fire." the voice called from the road, in common.
"Ho, the road." Shinji replied in kind. "Welcome to our fire."
The man who walked towards the fire was old, with long grey hair and beard. His pointed hat and cloak were also grey, and he carried a long gnarled staff. His deep blue eyes, however, had wisdom, strength and intensity that are generally absent in the elderly.
"My name is Gandalf the Grey." The old man said formally.
"I am Shinji Ikari, this is Rei Ayanami, and Asuka Langley Sohryu." Shinji replied gesturing to his companions. "You are welcome at our fire, sit and relax."
Gandalf sat on a log by the fire and looked at the strangers.
"What the hell do you think you are doing?" Asuka asked, in Japanese so Gandalf could not understand them.
"We need to know about this place, how we got here and how to get home, if we can. I think he can help." Shinji replied, also in Japanese.
Gandalf looked interested in the trio when they turned back to face him, as they spoke a language he had never heard in Middle Earth.
"We are lost. Would you, please, be able to help us find a place where we can find a way to get home?" Rei asked quietly, in common.
Gandalf smiled slightly, he sensed no ill intentions from these strangers, and in some way they reminded him of the Hobbits of the Shire. Courteous, slow to anger, disliking of violence but ready to fight if need be and welcoming, but wary, of strangers. (AN: from now on, unless stated, all conversation will proceed in common.)
"I am on my way to see the Elves at Rivendell. Perhaps Elrond will be able to assist you." Gandalf said. "We should make it by nightfall if we leave now."
Within five minutes everyone was ready to go, with cloaks on, packs on their backs, Asuka's shield on hers as well, and they headed down the road towards Rivendell. The day passed uneventfully and near dusk they crossed the ford, and proceeded to the valley of Rivendell. Rivendell itself was beautiful, with spacious, arched buildings that incorporated and complemented the natural elements of the valley. The inhabitants of Rivendell were almost as captivating a scene as the valley itself.
The Elves were tall, graceful and friendly, all the men were handsome and the women were beautiful. Behind the surface beauty of the Elves was strength of character and the deep wisdom of those who live thorough the ages of the world. Walking through Rivendell in the early evening was an awe-inspiring sight to Shinji, Asuka and Rei. The entire valley was lit with thousands of lamps and candles, hanging from the branches of every tree, along every balcony and even from the eves of the buildings. Firelight spilt out from the windows, warm and inviting.
The travellers were ushered into the great hall for dinner where they were met by Elrond and his daughter Arwen. Elrond was wise and exuded a sense of healing and confidence, while Arwen, young and stunningly beautiful, was friendly, devoted and kind. Elrond, the half-elf lord, and the Elven princess, Arwen, sat confidently at the head of the long table. The table seated many Elves, a few humans in green outfits, and a single old hobbit, surrounded by dwarves and men, dressed differently from the men in green. After the meal, Shinji, Asuka and Rei were shown to their rooms.
The three rooms were adjacent and all had access to a single, segmented balcony. The rooms themselves were spacious, with large a single large bed, a large closet and en-suite. Shinji had a quick look over his rooms, placed his belonging in the closet and walked out onto his section of the balcony. The balcony provided a spectacular view, looking out over the lantern lit valley, showing gardens, lawns, parks and Elves wandering and singing throughout the valley. The singing provided soothing background noise, even though Shinji could not make out the words and the tune was like nothing he had ever heard before.
Shinji's entrance to the balcony was close to the partition to Rei's balcony section, and she was leaning on the banister with a far away look on her face, troubled and peaceful at the same time. Rei was standing not a dozen feet from Shinji and she was totally oblivious of his presence.
"Copper for your thoughts." Shinji said, paraphrasing an old saying (or new saying depending how you look at it).
Startled for a second, Rei looking around at the sound of the voice, relaxed when she saw Shinji. Her eyes looked lost, confused and, oddly, hopeful.
"I'm worried. Wondering what is happening at home, what if an Angel attacked? At the same time, I wonder what could happen here, if we could start a new life, yet this place seems as violent as home, just in a different way." Rei said, sighing. (AN: I know this is not like Rei, talking this much, but she also has the memories of Middle Earth Rei. That's my excuse anyway.)
"I know what you mean, but this place is different from home. Here we have a choice; we are no-one's puppet. Here we can all look after ourselves. Asuka always could, sometimes she was a cast iron bitch, but I still want to protect both of you, you two and Misato are my family. Here we may end up serving someone, but we can choose who.
"There is an old saying that goes 'the only difference between a free man and a slave, is that the free man choses who and how he serves'. I don't pretend to know why we are here, maybe for a new life, maybe to learn something to fight the Angels, maybe both. What I do know is that for some reason we were sent here, and that implies a purpose. For the moment it does not matter, we are safe here with the Elves. Sleep Rei. We can worry about this in the morning." Shinji told Rei.
"Thank you, Shinji." Rei said before going back into her room.
Shinji stared out over Rivendell for a few seconds before returning to his room also. At the far end of Shinji's balcony section, Asuka emerged from the shadows having heard the entire conversation.
"I hope you are right, Shinji. I hope there is a purpose to this." Asuka whispered before returning to her room.
********
The sunlight shone through the window, spilling across the floor and the bed and creeping into the closed eyes of the slumbering occupant of the room. Shinji's eyes slowly opened, stimulated by the sunlight. Shinji quickly dressed in the clothes provided, leggings, shirt, vest, coat and boots. He did not bother donning a cloak. They had been in Rivendell several weeks now, with Lord Elrond and other elves searching their archives for a possible way to get them home.
Meanwhile they had been learning, almost remembering, how to survive in Middle Earth such as weaponry, horse riding, tracking, hunting, geography, politics, history, a million topics that once explained seemed like second nature to them. Shinji grabbed his bow and quiver, strapping the quiver around his waist. He was on his way down to the archery range to practice with Rei when he saw Asuka. Asuka was dressed in a beautiful red, off the shoulder, dress, and her were movements graceful. The sight drew Shinji into memories that he, as far as he knew, had never experienced.
*Flashback*
Almost since the day that hey had been born, Shinji, Asuka and Rei had been friends, as were their parents. They had grown up together and always played games that they were off on adventures. At the age of seven, their village had burned to the ground with few survivors; unfortunately their parents were not among the survivors.
Asuka's mother had been sick when the fire had struck, with her father and Rei's father perishing in an attempt to save her mother. Rei and Shinji's mothers had died at Shinji's house due to the fact that Shinji's mother was pregnant. Shinji's father had died, before Shinji's house had caught fire, saving children from other houses, including Shinji, Asuka and Rei.
After that they had moved to another village and trained as adventurers/warriors, choosing early which weapons suited them, the same weapons they carried now. At the age of sixteen they left to begin their adventures. After a year of travelling, and very few adventures, they found themselves at New Laketown and the annual celebration of the defeat of Smaug the Dragon. The elders of Laketown had presented them with clothes for the celebration, Shinji receiving finely embroidered clothes similar to his travelling clothes but of much better quality.
Asuka and Rei, however received beautiful dresses for the celebration. Asuka's was a flowing red gown that went well with her auburn hair, with a low-cut neckline, it was slightly formfitting to the waist, supported by tie straps at the shoulders and then flowing freely below the waist. Around her neck was blue ribbon, worn like a choker, which matched her eyes. Rei's dress was a light purple colour with spaghetti straps and flowed naturally with slight pleating. The dress was simple yet elegant.
That was the first time that Shinji saw them as women and not the little girls he had grown up with. That night he danced with both of them, beneath the stars that shone on the town on the water. The intermittent light of the torches and cooking fires gave an almost ethereal feel to parts of the celebration. On that night he fell even more in love with the companion that had unwittingly and unknowingly stolen his heart.
*End Flashback*
"Hey, Shinji. You in there?" Asuka asked, waving her hand in front of his face.
"Sorry Asuka. Just thinking about eleven years ago. That celebration at New Laketown. You were wearing a similar dress." Shinji replied.
"What are you talking about?" Asuka said, and then she looked at the dress and recognition flooded over her face. "Oh yah. I remember that. Now that's creepy. Two sets of memories."
Shinji nodded before heading off to the archery range.
********
Shinji sat staring at the campfire. They were three days ride south, their horses moved at a quick walk during the day, and they had almost another forty days travel before they reached the gap of Rohan. It had been decided, after an exhaustive search of the Elven libraries, that the Elves did not have the knowledge to get them home.
It was suggested that they ride south to Minas Tirith, the capital of Gondor, to see if there were any answers in the libraries there. They were being lead by Aragorn, a northern Ranger whom they had met at Rivendell. It was fairly late in the evening, perhaps ten o'clock. Asuka and Aragorn were asleep, exhausted after the sword training session Aragorn had given Asuka earlier. Rei had been in her beadroll but she could not sleep so she had joined Shinji by the fire.
"Do you find it weird Rei?" Shinji asked, not looking away from the fire.
"What?" came her soft response.
"The dual memories. Here and Home." Shinji sated.
"Yes, but it also brings comfort. Another way my life could have gone." She replied.
"True. It gets confusing sometimes. Like I know I can not swim, yet I remember you teaching me on my seventh birthday, you'd been swimming since we were three. That's another thing that confuses me. You."
"Me?" Rei asked, genuinely surprised.
"Yes, you. I have twenty-eight years of memories of living with you, but I know next to nothing about you. Not the real you anyway, not the you from home." Shinji said.
"Why do you want to know about me?" Rei inquired.
"Because. Because I want us to at least be friends. Because I want to know if I can really love you they way I do in those memories." Shinji replied honestly, looking into Rei's eyes.
Rei stared into the fire for a while, thinking.
"In your memories, you really loved me?" Rei asked.
"Yes." Shinji said.
To this, Rei just smiled. That night, Shinji and Rei stayed up talking, about their Middle Earth memories and their lives in Tokyo 3. They got no sleep that night and they were still talking when the sun rose. Despite the lack of sleep they felt refreshed when the camp was packed up and the group started the trek south. Full life stories and total trust were still to come, but they had broken the ice and, for the moment, that was all that mattered.
TBC