The Traveler: Chapter Three

Legolas kept watching her from the corner of his eye. As they walked Ariana's bangs fall onto her face and he had to keep himself from reaching over and tucking it behind her ear.

Ariana noticed him watching her and she cut him a glance. His hair was pulled back from his face, nestled behind his ear. She looked a little harder and noticed the slight point to the tip of his ear. She wondered what was going on as her gaze trailed down his profile. His beauty really had her going. She knew she shouldn't trust him just because he had a pretty face… and body. She looked back to the path.

All of a sudden, the book came back to her then. She remembered that a name had been used, what was it? Bozo? Bilbo? Bilbo! She smiled at herself. Maybe cute-boy here knows who Bilbo Baggins is.

Just she was about to ask she felt her knee crack giving out completely and in a flash Legolas was holding her. Tears automatically sprang to her eyes and were running down her cheeks.

"Shit, I'm sorry," she said as she pressed her hand against his back. She couldn't remember the pain ever being this bad before. Her knee felt like jelly. She wondered if maybe she'd landed wrong when she fell into this place.

"Would you like to rest?" Legolas asked her.

She bit her lip and nodded her head. He helped her down onto the ground then he sat by her side. He saw the same aura of pain radiating from her knee.

Ariana grabbed the bottom of her left pants leg and rolled it up to her thigh. Her knee was completely bruised. The scars were the darkest they'd ever been. They looked worse then when they had right after her last surgery. She let out a little moan as she lightly fingered the knee.

Legolas looked at her knee and asked, "Who did that to you?"

Ariana looked over at him. Her head was spinning. The pain was making her dizzy. Like the mirror…

"I hurt it a few years ago and my doc fixed it. I guess I screwed it up again on the way here." She looked over at him and gave him a weak smile. She tried to massage her knee again but it hurt too much to touch it. She let her hand rest on top of it and she could feel heat coming off it. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Here. Let me try." Legolas said as he placed his hands on top of Ariana's. She looked him in the eye. She felt her heart actually speed up. She pulled her hand back and said, "I'll give you a kiss you if you make the pain stop."

He smiled at her and placed his hand on her knee. She closed her eyes and braced herself for the pain, but nothing came. She felt his fingers dance across her skin, like butterfly kisses. She opened her eyes and watched him slowly caress the skin, slowly stroking her knee. The pain began to subdue.

She let out a long breath and she closed her eyes.

Legolas looked up at Ariana's face. He worked his fingers around her knee and studied her face. He'd never seen a girl who looked like her. The curves of her face were gentle and created a beautiful sight. Her blonde hair framed it and sent chills down Legolas' spin. But why? I barely know this girl. He continued to watch her face until she opened her eyes a few minutes later.

"Why did you stop? I mean, thank you. It feels, I mean the pain stopped." She pulled the leg of her pants down. Legolas looked down at his hands. He must have stopped massaging her knee while he studied her face. He didn't even realize it. He stood and then helped her up.

She took a few timid steps away from him. Then she turned, raised her arms in the air and smiled. "All better." She winced and dropped her arms back to her side.

Legolas stepped to her. "When we got to Mirkwood, they will give you something to help. I'm sorry I could not help you." He slipped an arm around her waist and helped her up. He smiled at her. "I'll help you."

Ariana couldn't do anything but smile at him. "You helped plenty. Thank you."

* * *

They walked for twenty minutes before they reached Mirkwood. She didn't talk much to Legolas, partially because she didn't know what to say and the other part was that she was trying not to scream. Her knee, though Legolas had helped, had definitely seen better days. Every time she took a step she could feel little needles pricking inside her knee. It kept growing worse as they walked.

Legolas kept to himself also. He was wondering about this girl that he was bringing closer and closer to his people. She didn't have any weapons, though if she had any powers, she wouldn't need weapons. But she doesn't seem evil. Legolas looked over at her face and watched her grimace as she took another step with him. When she took her next step he heard her suck in a breath and tense up.

Ariana couldn't stand it. Something is broke in there, that's the only explanation. Her whole knee began to feel like it was made of Jell-O. Just before she collapsed for the third time, Legolas swept her up into her arms. She turned her head and looked into his eyes. Then she wiped away her tears and wrapped her arms around his neck. He held her for a second then began walking into Mirkwood.

Ariana lifted her head once and looked around the forest as they neared Mirkwood. The trees criss-crossed each other at every turn. Most bent in and weaved into each other that it was hard to tell which branch let to which tree. Hardly any sunlight made it through the weave of branches. What little light managed to make it through sparkled on the forest floor. No wonder it's so cool under here, she thought as she placed her head back onto Legolas' shoulder.

* * *

Legolas couldn't help himself. He was drawn to this girl in a way he couldn't explain. Her pain actually caused him to be sick. He could see the aura of pain growing brighter around her. He held her tight and kept his pace towards Mirkwood.

* * *

Ariana woke to sunlight pouring in through an open window and she was lying in bed. She sat up and looked around the room. There was a soft blur to everything in the room. She didn't understand. She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand. She felt her contacts move on her eye.

"Well that's odd." She used one hand to open her eye and the other to remove the contact. Then she closed her other eye and looked around. The blur was gone. She could see perfectly without her contact. Actually, she could almost see better. She could see all the separate leaves on a tree outside her window. She giggled and removed her other contact.

"Wow," she whispered as she rolled the two now useless contacts into a ball.

A knock on the door startled her and she dropped the ball onto the covers. She looked down at the white blanket and knew it was a lost cause.

"Uh, come in," she said at the door as she pulled the covers up to her chest. She realized all she had on was her skivvies and the necklace that had come with the mystery book.

A man walked in who had the same long blonde hair as Legolas. She smiled at him and he bowed.

"You don't have to do that," she said as he straightened. Ariana noticed that the man had the same pointed ears Legolas' had. She made a mental note to check up on it.

"As you wish. How do you feel?" he asked as he stepped closer to her.

Ariana looked down at the covers and bent her knee. "I feel fine, great even." She smiled up at him. "It feels like new. Thanks."

"I'm glad to hear that. Does that mean you are ready to meet the King? He asked to see you when you were feeling well again."

"Oh, umm, right now," Ariana asked him. She pulled the covers up a little higher. "I don't think I'm dressed for it," she laughed.

The elf smiled at her, "There's a gown at the foot of the bed for you."

She smiled. "A gown? What happened to my jeans?"

He frowned and looked at her. "The clothes you arrived in are being clean and I highly doubt they would be suitable to meet King Thranduil."

She blushed. "Oh, right. Sorry. This is my first meeting with a king.

He smiled once more and she smiled back. She felt like an idiot, but it was ok. "If there is nothing else you need, I'll leave you to dress."

"Oh, thank you. I don't need anything else."

He turned and left the room. Ariana began to finger the necklace again and looked about the room. It was mostly bare, with no windows, just open space.

The elf's words came to her and she looked to the foot of the bed. Sure enough, there was a white dress folded neatly on the end of the bed. She slipped out from under the covers and stood in her knickers. She shivered as a cool breeze swept through the room. The shiver crept up her spin and into her head. She could feel a headache beginning in the base of her skull. And no Tylenol.

She smiled as a thought of Legolas entered her mind. Seems fitting, I think of him as I stand here semi-naked.

She lifted the dress and gasped. It was amazingly beautiful. The white fabric felt like silk, it spilt over her fingers and she gazed at it. It the sunlight it shimmered light around the room. She smiled again and stepped into it. I would kill at Prom right now. After she pulled it up and put her arms through the short sleeves, she felt like a princess. Lastly, she slipped her feet into the shoes that were left at the edge of the bed.

Ariana put her hand on her chest over the necklace and felt the cool metal. She remembered how it had begun to heat up as the water in the sink flamed. She wondered if there was a big connection between this new Twilight Zone and her new necklace.

She looked around for a mirror and couldn't find one, so she ran her fingers through her hair. A few tangles stopped her and she sighed. A brush would be really helpful right now. She continued the manual combing and then finally brushed the rest behind her ears.

She sighed and looked out the window across from her. A sudden feeling of being lost hit her. Here she sat, in a room in the middle of nowhere, dressed up like a Barbie.

She sat down on the edge of the bed. She thought about Legolas and knew getting back to her apartment wasn't going to be as easy as she hoped. She felt a tear on her cheek. She couldn't help it. She put her head in her hands and cried. What am I going to do?

* * *

Legolas walked down a silent hallway. Ever since he'd left Ariana with the healer, he couldn't stop worrying about her. She had become feverish and pale while he carried her into Mirkwood. The healer did not say a word when Legolas stepped in with Ariana curled up in his arms. He'd only motioned Legolas towards a bed and he began searching for an elixir for the girl.

That had been two days ago. Ariana had slept the fever off, struggling through her dreams. Once, when Legolas had visited her, she was sweating and tossing in her seep. The aura of pain still surrounded her and something else was there. Legolas did not know what it was, but it worried him.

Now he made his way down the hallway towards the room the healer had placed her in. The servant that had talked to Ariana had told Legolas she was awake.

When he neared the room he heard Ariana's muffled sobs. He frowned and stepped to the door.

Inside Ariana was trying to get herself under control. Things were not lost; she could still get out of here.

"It's not the end of the world," she said as she wiped her tears away. Then she took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

There came a knock at the door and she jerked her head up.

"Come in," she called as she swept her hands under her eyes, catching the last tears.

She couldn't help but smile when she say the golden head enter through the door. Legolas entered and gave her a smile. He was dressed in whites and light greens.

As he stepped into the room and closed the door, his eyes traced the lines of her face, down her body. The dress fit perfectly over the curve of her body. Her features baffled him. They were so simple, yet created such a beautiful picture; her lips and eyes drew him in.

Ariana automatically felt self-conscious of herself when Legolas stepped closer to her. Then again, she'd always felt that way since High School. She'd been overweight for the first three years, then finally pulled herself together the summer before her senior year and lost most of it. Now she had the curves she'd always wanted, but it didn't help. She still felt herself tense a little under his intense gaze.

After a silent moment of staring at each other, Ariana blushed and looked away.

"How do you feel, arwen en amin?" Legolas asked as he stepped to her. He stopped when she looked back at him.

Her eyes stopped him; they were a mixture of greens and browns. They reminded him of the forest. He thought she must be part elf to have those eyes.

"Oh, I feel fine. I mean, I feel better then fine." She smiled. Nice, smooth. "What did you call me?"

"Arwen en amin?" It means 'my lady.' He watched her. There was something he was missing about her. The aura of pain was gone from her, but something still remained. He smiled at her. "My father has been asking to see you. If you are feeling well enough, he would like to speak with you."

She smiled at him; she couldn't help it. "Sure, I'd love to thank him. This guy just came in and told me the King would like to see me, but after that I'm pretty muchly free."

He gave her a puzzled look. "My father is the King, King Thranduil."

Her mouth dropped open. "Your father…" She trailed off and looked at him. If his father is the King…."What would you like to thank him for?" Legolas asked as he opened the door for her and they walked down the hall.

She was still a little dumbfounded by the news she just received. She took a breath and realized that he'd asked her a question. "For letting me stay here." She smiled at him. "Where I come from, that isn't a normal, everyday occurrence."

He frowned at her. "You needed healing. We could not have turned you away."

She laughed. "That's why I have to thank him." She bite her lower lip, a nervous habit of hers, and thought for a moment. "What do I say? I mean, I've never met a king before…" She trailed off.

He smiled at her and she almost fainted. "Do not worry, arwen en amin. My father only wishes to talk to you."

She gave him a half smile and swallowed. Sure, don't worry. She looked over to him. "Legolas, can I ask you something? Not to mean this the wrong way, but..." She motioned to her own ears. "What are you?"

He looked at her. "Elves of the Northern Woods."

She looked to the ground. Oh my God, I'm Alice and I've fallen down the rabbit hole into my own imagination. Elves…

****Notes****

::groans:: I'm sick of formatting these chapters. ::cracks neck:: I need a caffeine boost. ::walks off to get a soda:: [All disclaimers and warnings can be found at the beginning of chapter 1.]