The Traveler: Chapter Five

Sometime passed before Ariana realized where she was. Her mind had slowly crept away to that place where she normally got her story ideas. In the back of her mind she knew she was actually in some state of shock.

She stopped in the middle of the path and looked around. She realized she was now lost, but she didn't really care. Her headache had picked up again and she was in a foul mood. Her mind hadn't even begun to process Gandalf's history of Middle Earth.

She closed her eyes and listened to her own breathing. As she listened, she heard the faint sound of water, maybe a small stream. It seemed to be at her right. She shrugged her shoulders and thought to herself What the hell? and turned to the right.

After a few minutes of walking through the dense woods, Ariana came to the stream. It was pretty big, she definitely couldn't jump across it, that was for sure. She stood silent for a few minutes, trying to decide what to do next. Then she began to follow the current of the stream. It knew where it was going, that was enough for her.

As she followed along the bank she finally tried to work through the tale Gandalf had told her. She was still confused about how Middle Earth became Earth, but she also figured that was the least of her problems.

She quietly began to finger the pendent as she thought about Nahron and Sauron. She wondered who Glendale was, how powerful a sorceress she'd been.

Just then, Ariana's little stream met up with a very big lake. The surface of the water sparkled in the sunlight. Ariana crouched down by the water's edge and dipped her hand in.

After standing on the back she finally decided the water was just too tempting. She looked around and saw no one, but that didn't mean a sneaky Elf or two weren't hiding somewhere close.

She stepped back to the edge of the woods and slipped out of the dress. She carefully folded it and set it down on the limb of the closest tree and slipped off her shoes, then she walked back to the edge of the water in just her knickers. She waded out as far as she could, until the water was up to her waist, then she dove in.

The water was a little colder then she'd first thought and she wrapped her arms around herself and kicked her feet slowly, treading the water. Eventually the chill went away, or she was just too numb to feel anymore, and she began to lazily swim back and forth. She pulled herself through the water, kicking her feet and swam out to the middle of the lake.

When Ariana's arms began to ache, she rolled onto her back, put her arms behind her head and floated in her own little world.

* * *

As Ariana thought about Gandalf's tale, three Orcs slowly made their way towards the lake. They'd been searching through the woods of Mirkwood when they heard splashing.

The trio crept up to the edge of the water, fearful of the famed archers of Mirkwood and found a white gown folded on a tree limb. They looked about the lake and saw a head bobbing in the middle of the water.

Their order from Mordor was to find a traveler in the land of Mirkwood. This woman could not be the traveler, but she may might know something about the traveler.

They slunk back into the woods with Ariana's Elven dress to wait. They would wait for the girl to come to them.

* * *

Ariana took a deep breath and slipped under the water. She'd finally decided she needed to talk with this Gandalf character again. She had too many questions that needed answering.

As Ariana neared the edge of the water she slowed her pace. She felt something was off. She realized no birds were singing. Something is very wrong here.

She looked over the bank of the water and saw nothing amiss. She furrowed her brow and studied the woods. She was too far out to see anything if there was truly something out there.

She guessed something had scared the birds and continued swimming to the spot she thought she'd left her dress. She figured she'd sit out in the sun for a few minutes and let her underwear dry out as much as she could before she put on her dress. The last thing she wanted to do was ruin that dress. It was probably, sadly, the nicest thing she'd ever owned.

She crawled up onto the bank and sat on the grass, looking out over the water. The waves gentled lapped over themselves, almost creating their own dance. She smiled and leaned back on her hands.

Middle Earth was definitely one of the most beautiful places Ariana'd ever been. No matter what it was, a flower, a tree, a blade of grass, it was all so beautiful. She wondered how any kind of evil could survive.

Just as that last thought crossed her mind, one of the hiding Orcs grabbed her around the chest and heaved her into the air. His grip almost crushed her lungs, she could barely breath, let alone scream.

She didn't know how'd she'd missed that smell. It was everywhere. It snaked into her mouth and caused her to gag. She looked up and found there were certain things in Middle Earth that weren't so beautiful. Two creatures were standing in front of her with evil grins. One was holding her torn dress. His grubby hands had smeared the beautiful Elven material with grit and mud.

She struggled against the two powerful arms that held her, but she couldn't break free, never in a million years. This thing is too strong.

She didn't have to worry long, just as she gave up, the Orc opened his arms and she dropped to the ground like a bag of potatoes. She hadn't been expecting it and she landed on her side. Lucky she had enough sense to cover her head before she hit the ground. She didn't even want to think about what would happen if she was unconscious with these things around her.

Ariana glared at the Orcs. She had no idea who or what they were, but she knew they were trouble.

They had cuts and rings all over their bodies. Dressed all in black, dirty clothes, they looked even more evil with their eyes gleaming out of the shadows of the trees they stood under. She could feel their yellow eyes trail over her body. She felt dirty under their scrutiny.

She drew her knees up to her chest in an attempt to cover herself. She heard one of the creatures laugh at her.

The biggest Orc looked at her for a few silent moments then turned to the Orc next to him, "Bind her hands and feet. We'll keep her for tonight." His voice was low and harsh, like someone who'd smoked for their whole life. It sent a shiver down her spin.

She drew back as the Orc stepped towards her. She saw his eyes lock on her chest. She drew her arms around her closer, but she didn't know he was actually looking at the necklace around her neck. The stone was a red, burning bright against Ariana's skin.

As the Orc pulled out a long piece of rope Ariana knew she had to run, but her legs didn't seem to understand. She was frozen with fear, waiting for this creature to tie her up for only God knows what later. He towered over Ariana and her heart raced with fear.

Her mind whirled with possible escape routes, but nothing was coming to her. Then she thought about what she'd do if it was just a guy and not some monster coming at her. When the Orc tried to grab Ariana's leg, she did the first thing that came to her mind. She rolled onto her back and shot her leg out right into the Orc's groin.

She didn't even stay to watch, she jumped up and sprinted down the bank of the lake. She pumped her legs as fast as she could. Ariana was afraid to turn around and see the three following her, but she couldn't help it. She took a quick glance over her shoulder and stopped in her tracks. There was nothing behind her.

She bent over and placed her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath. Her pulse was pounding in her head. After a shaky minute, she trotted back to the spot the Orcs had been.

She came up to the three bodies laying on the ground. Each had a long, thing arrow through the chest. The one who'd tried to tie her up looked as though he'd been shot while running towards her. The other two had their swords drawn.

She covered her mouth and backed away. The smell of death surrounded her. It was worse then the Orcs foul odor. She took several deep breaths and tried to calm herself. She'd taken only a few steps back when a strong hand fell on her shoulder.

Ariana let out a scream heaved her elbow back into the stomach of whoever was behind her. She heard a painful grunt and jumped away. When she turned around she was surprised to see Legolas doubled up, a hand on his knee.

"Oh, Legolas. I'm so sorry. I thought…" Ariana trailed off. She stepped to his side and put a hand on his shoulder. "Are you alright?"

He lifted his golden head and gave her a small smile. Ariana laughed when she saw his face. She covered her grin when he straightened himself.

"I'm really, truly sorry," Ariana said through a laugh. After the Orcs and Legolas' scare, it felt good to laugh. Her heart had stopped it's crazy pumping and her knees weren't shaky.

Legolas took a deep breath and picked his bow up off the ground where he'd dropped it when Ariana had elbowed him. Ariana's eyes widen when she saw the bow. She put the two together and realized Legolas had killed the monsters. "Y-you, you killed them?" she said as she motioned to the three dead bodies.

Legolas lifted his gaze to the three Orcs on the ground. Ariana saw a look of disgust come across his face when he looked at them. The look vanished when he looked back to her and she was relieved. "Yes, I killed them. I came looking for you and heard them moving through the forest. When I found them, they already had you. I watched you escape and they began to chase you. They would have caught you easily."

"What are they?" Ariana asked as she looked at them again.

"They are Orcs from Mordor, Lady Ariana."

"Orcs from Mordor," Ariana repeated after him. "They do seem out of place here in Mirkwood." She shivered and realized for the first time that she was still standing in her underwear. She blushed a deep crimson, turned away from Legolas and crossed her arms across her chest, trying to cover herself.

The next thing she felt was Legolas as he laid his cloak across her shoulders. She turned and smiled at him. "Thanks. Those things destroyed my dress." She pulled the front of the cloak closed around her. Ariana looked around the lake, doing anything to ignore the Orcs on the ground. She remember that she needed to speak with Gandalf again.

Legolas watched Ariana and thought about what he'd seen as he'd draw closer to the lake. He had come upon the three Orcs standing over Ariana. When he'd heard the lead Orc tell the other to tie Ariana's hands and feet, Legolas had pulled out his bow, ready to slay the Orc. He stopped himself when he saw Ariana kick the beast and disappear down the bank. The scene had sent a jolt straight to his heart. Before the Orcs could start after her, he'd killed all three. The rage he'd felt when he'd come upon the Orc had swelled up in his heart.

Now that Ariana was safe Legolas' heart was at ease. His gaze followed her as she walked away from the bodies of the Orcs. Her face was grave, she was troubled by something, Legolas could tell that much.

He stepped to her side and asked, "What is it, Ariana? Something is troubling you, I can see it."

Ariana lifted her head and looked to him. She saw nothing in those beautiful blue eyes but his concern. She pulled the cloak a little tighter. "Something I just found out about myself." Her gaze drifted back to the lake. "I need to see Gandalf," she whispered to herself, but Legolas' keen Elf ears heard her.

"You've spoken with Gandalf the White?" Legolas asked her.

Ariana jerked her head up and looked at him. She nodded her head. "I need to speak with him again. I have some questions that need answering."

Ariana let out a sigh and looked at the woods, then she smiled at Legolas. "I hope you know how to get back."

"An Elf always knows his way through any woods," he said with a smile. Ariana laughed at him.

As soon as Ariana grabbed her shoes that the Orcs hadn't noticed with the dress, the two started through the woods. After twenty minutes of walking and talking, they came to the clearing that she and Gandalf had talked in.

At first, she hadn't known what to talk to Legolas about. She was a girl from the 21st century and he was an Elf from Middle Earth, but eventually she asked him about Gandalf and the story he'd told her, minus the part about Nahron and Glendale. He understood that she was holding something back but didn't ask about it.

She learned about the other members of the Fellowship; the four Hobbits, Frodo, Sam, Pippin and Merry; one Dwarf, Gimli who Legolas had become very good friends with; and the two men, Aragorn, now King of Gondor and Boromir who was slain by Orcs trying to protect Merry and Pippin. Legolas also told her about Gandalf's fall in Moria, a part of the story Gandalf had left out when they first talked.

Legolas soon found that Ariana was not like any Elf he'd ever met. As she talked, he watched her face changed from one emotion to the next. To him, it was almost as though Ariana's expressions were a part of her stories. Her mouth would widen and open slightly as she gave him a small smile, asking about the Hobbits. She would fall silent and her brow would crease slightly as he told her of the Ents in Fangorn Forest, and he knew she was trying to picture the giant herdsmen of the trees.

He found something beautiful about Ariana that had nothing to do with her outward appearance. Though she was new to Middle Earth, she already had a hold on her situation. She was strong when needed, but could easily break when the pressure grew to unbearable amounts. Her shoulders would shiver quietly as tears formed in her eyes; they would twinkle as she smirked; her lips formed a pout when he teased her. Her gentle movements gave Legolas a sense of ease and joy he'd never found before in Middle Earth.

Eventually, Legolas lead her back to her room. He told her he would find Gandalf for her. She thanked him and closed the door. Legolas turned to leave when she opened it again and handed him back his cloak with a grin. Then she closed her door for the last time. He kept his smile to himself and walked away.

****Notes****

I had to add a few parts, so this chapter did change a little bit, right at the end anyways. I should start a little game where you guys pick out all the little changes I've made. Only problem with that is I don't even remember all the things I added. [All disclaimers and warnings can be found at the beginning of chapter 1.]