Dolphins Brought Me Here
By Reina Ethelion
Lord of the Rings and Rurouni Kenshin belong to their respective creators and publishers. I'm just borrowing them for my own amusement and I promise to return them whole and recognizable when I'm done. The plot and new characters and places came from the (scary) depths of my imagination; so if it's possible to hold a copyright to them, well, consider them copyrighted! No money is being made and no infringement is intended.
Thanks for choosing to read my fanfiction! I'd love to know what you think. Constructive criticism and lavish praise--- if I actually get that, although I very much doubt it--- are highly welcome but please, no flames. This is my first story. Enjoy ;o)
Chapter Two
Early morning sunlight shone on the diamonds, opals and pale crystals strewn on the white sands of the shores of Eldamar. The powder blue sky was several shades lighter than the sapphire sea beneath it, which lapped at the feet of Legolas and Gimli as they took their customary after-breakfast stroll.
"It is hard to believe that we have been here for only a hundred years," the Dwarf observed. He was immortal and therefore could freely speak of a century as "only."
Legolas nodded in agreement. "I feel as if I have dwelt in this place forever. This is the true home of all my kin…" He hesitated, unsure of what to say, and then added, "But for me something is missing."
"What!" Gimli exclaimed, visibly surprised. "Here you have wealth and happiness, yet for you that is not enough?"
The Elf smiled, amused by himself and his friend's reaction. "The Undying Lands are a paradise, that is true. No battles, no suffering, no sorrow and grief. Only eternal peace and everlasting joy. But, alas, Master Dwarf, my heart is still not content. I cannot help but wonder… what lies beyond Paradise."
"Do not tell me you are in need of adventure! As a member of the Fellowship and after participating in the War of the Ring, surely you have had enough excitement for an entire lifetime."
"I have not," replied Legolas earnestly. "The wanderer spirit still lives within me, begging to be let out. I fear that my thirst for adventure has not been thoroughly quenched."
"Neither has my curiosity about the nature of Elves," Gimli grumbled good-naturedly. "After having spent more than a century in close proximity to your race, I still cannot figure out what is going on inside that thick head of yours."
Legolas opened his mouth to reply, but he was distracted by something he saw in the distance. Gimli followed his friend's gaze to a figure sprawled out on the beach some distance away from where they were. "What is that?" he asked.
"By the Valar!" cried Legolas. "It is a girl! Come, mellonin, we must hurry!" And then he was off, bounding over crumbly sand and brittle jewels as if they were smooth solid earth. Gimli muttered an epithet about Dwarves not being built for running before following the blonde-haired Elf.
"You are very talented, Akanami," said Liu Mateshiro, the fifteenth inheritor of the Hiten Mitsurugi school of kenjutsu, gracing his student with a rare smile. "Your father would be bursting with pride if he could see you now."
Thirteen-year-old Akanami looked down, still grieving for her family after the passage of five years. "Arigato, Sensei," she said quietly.
"I didn't expect you to master Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu so soon," Liu continued. "You are truly Himura Kenshin's daughter."
She blushed at his extravagant praise. "I will never be as good as you or Otousan."
"No one can surpass your father," he said with a chuckle, "but I have a feeling that you might just beat me one day."
And to that, Akanami could only reply again, "Arigato, Sensei."
Voices. Through the hazy mist of semi-consciousness, Akanami could hear distressed voices… but what were they saying? Strong hands cupped her shoulders, and someone murmured something in a deep, gentle voice that was obviously masculine. But what was he saying? Why can't I understand? she asked herself, panicking slightly. Slowly she opened her eyes. Two males were kneeling on the ground, peering down at her. One had deep, solemn eyes the color of a starless night sky, bushy eyebrows, and a long auburn beard. The other--- she sucked in her breath. The other was extremely handsome, with long, straight blonde hair and blue eyes and… pointy ears? She wondered if she was hallucinating.
"She is awake," said Legolas, heaving a sigh of relief, removing his hands from her shoulders. "For a frightening moment, I thought death had claimed her."
"Maiden, are you all right?" Gimli asked, his forehead wrinkling in concern. "Do you feel any pain?"
The girl sat up and gave them a blank stare.
"Are you all right?" the Dwarf repeated more slowly, while Legolas wondered what tragedy had addled her brains.
"Na--- nani?" Akanami stammered. She could tell he was asking her a question, but he spoke in a different language… a foreigner?
Legolas and Gimli exchanged confused glances. "What did she say?" the Elf asked.
"Do I look like I know?"
"Maiden," said Legolas, turning back to the girl. "What is your name?"
The events of several minutes… or was it hours or even days?… flashed through Akanami's mind. Fighting with Genso, falling off a cliff, being carried by dolphins to… where? Had the creatures brought her to foreign shores? She glanced around, and what she saw almost convinced her that she was hallucinating. A beach… a beach of sparkling crystals and jewels interspersed with glistening sand nearly as white as snow… "I don't understand!" she wailed, on the brink of tears. A hitokiri should not cry, her logical inner voice told her. No matter what the situation… Cold-blooded assassins do not cry…
"Master Elf," Gimli said slowly, putting two and two together, "she does not speak our tongue. Look at her clothes. I have never seen garments like that in all my long years. Clearly she is from another land unfamiliar to those of us who once dwelt in Middle-earth. Perhaps she has been in a shipwreck and the waves brought her here."
Legolas saw the wisdom in his comrade's statement, and an expression of dismay crossed his face. "What are we to do with her, then?"
The Dwarf pondered this for a moment before coming up with an idea. "We must take her to Lord Elrond. He will be able to help."
"A most excellent suggestion." Legolas bent down and picked up the girl in his arms.
She did a backflip, hitting him squarely in the jaw with her feet. The Elf stumbled backwards with a yelp, clutching his injured jaw and explicitly cursing her in Quenya and Sindarin. Gimli looked shocked.
Akanami's heart pounded madly against her ribcage as she dropped into fighting stance. She did not know what their intentions were, but if they so much as touched her again, she would slit their throats. She noticed that the bearded man was actually quite short, like a Dwarf.
"Legolas!" Gimli whispered, his eyes widening. "She has two swords!"
The Elven archer stared dumbfounded at the stranger before him. She was of diminutive height and her outlandish clothes were soaking wet and clung to her thin body. Her black hair was pulled back, emphasizing the sharpness of her features and her pointed chin, and her violet eyes were fringed with long sooty lashes and had an interesting slant to them. Hardly the type to be a warrior… but when he noticed the golden light burning in those eyes, turning them into sunlit amethysts, he instinctively knew the warrior spirit raged inside her.
"Ai Elbereth," he muttered when his jaw throbbed anew with another spasm of pain. She had a powerful kick, he'd give her that. "Gimli," he said to the Dwarf, never taking his gaze from the girl. "here is what we shall do…" He described the plan in full detail as quickly as possible. His friend nodded slightly to show he understood.
Every muscle in Akanami's body tensed as the blonde male with the pointy ears took out his weapon--- a long knife. It was no match for the katana. I don't want to fight him, she realized with a sinking heart. But it was too late. He charged towards her, her fingers tightened around the hilt of her sword…
Gimli, who had managed to get closer to her unnoticed while her attention was focused on Legolas, jumped and tackled her to the ground.
Akanami gasped as her back hit the sand, the Dwarf pinning her arms to her sides in a viselike grip. He was even heavier than Genso! In what seemed to her like one quick, fluid motion, the pointy-eared male grabbed her swords, the Dwarf leapt off her, and the pointy-eared male slung her over his shoulder. Akanami's normally pale cheeks flushed red with anger and humiliation. "How dare you! Let go of me at once!"
"Stop struggling," Legolas hissed, although he knew she would not understand him. Heavens, the girl squirmed like a hare caught in a trap! He handed her weapons to Gimli and strode purposely towards the gleaming buildings of Alqualonde in the distance.
"Where the hell do you think you're taking me?!" Akanami demanded in a voice loud enough to wake the dead.
Legolas winced. Gimli chuckled.
"BAKA!!!" Akanami screamed at the top of her lungs.
"My Elven instinct tells me that the lady has just insulted me, Master Dwarf," Legolas said nonchalantly.
"Aye, Master Elf," agreed Gimli, mirth shining in his eyes. "It seems to me that you have found your great adventure."
End of Chapter Two
JAPANESE GLOSSARY
Arigato- thank you
Sensei- teacher
ELVISH GLOSSARY
Mellonin- my friend
*Elbereth is one of the titles of Varda, Queen of Light and Lady of the Stars. It is said that of all the Valar, Elves love Varda the most. They often pray and sing songs to her.
My sincerest apologies if this chapter was a bit confusing, what with the many changes in POV and all!
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