Chapter Two

Something moved in the bushes.

Rose jumped up, waking up instantly. She backed away from it, never taking her eyes off of the movement.

"Who's there?" She called sternly. "I hear you, come out."

The movement stopped completely.

She slowly walked towards it, and circled it. There was nothing. She stood up straight in confusion, and looked around. Something was running through the woods. She ran up to her porch, grabbing her bow and taking off into the woods. She ran through the woods, her eyes focused on where she could barely tell the creature was going. Without even thinking she cleared the stream and jumped over roots and fallen branches. She moved through the woods with swiftness and ease beyond a normal person's capacity. She was extremely fit and could have run for days if called for.

Suddenly she realized she could no longer see the figure. She froze, bringing her senses to full use so she could see each detail in each leaf, and hear the gentle breeze as it wrapped around each of these leaves. She suddenly saw the figure, and instantly drew her bow.

"Come out!" She shouted. The figure stepped into view, both of his hands in clear view to show he was unarmed. He looked human, but suddenly began to speak in elfish.

"I do not wish to hurt you, please lower the bow. I will not hurt you." He said, his eyes starring heavily into hers. She relaxed a little, the bow still raised. She spoke to him in elfish as well.

"Who are you?"

"I will not hurt you, please lower the bow and I will explain everything." She suddenly realized what he was. Wide-eyed, she lowered the bow.

"What were you doing at my home?"

"I...I was…"

"You're supposed to be one of the most graceful creatures of this earth, how did you let me catch you?"

"I became careless." He said, and stepped towards her. She did not back away, and kept her eyes firmly on him. "You are not afraid of me like the others." He said. She looked shocked.

"You speak English?"

"What's more impressive is you speak elfish. How did you learn?"

"My mother." She said. They both stood in silence, not sure what to say. He had powerful blue eyes which starred back at her just as hers were starring at him. He had a fair complexion and long blonde straight hair which was tied back at the top, but fell to the bottom of his shoulder blades. His clothes were of the colors of the woods, and he had a strong structure. What seemed to hold Rose's attention were his eyes. They held an understanding that could not be mistaken, and Rose had never seen anything like them before.

She glanced back where they had come from, and then back to him. "Would you like to come back to my house?" She asked. He hesitated, and then nodded. They both walked back through the woods in silence until they reached her house. She walked up the three steps to the porch first, and he hesitated before following.

"I do not want to get you in trouble." He said, looking around. She smiled.

"Relax. No one will come out here anyway." He nodded, and stepped onto the porch, then into the house. The front room was simple enough, with two chairs by the window and a small table between them. In the opposite corner was a small fireplace. A door was to the left leading to a bedroom, and a door just to the right on the opposite wall was another door, leading to another room in the four room house. They walked through, into another room. In it was a desk covered in papers, books, and scrolls. The chair with the table beside it by the window where she read the journal was in this room. There were various framed pictures on the walls, and a map over the desk of Rohan from the time of the elves.

"Would you like anything?" Rose asked. He stopped looking around and looked at her.

"A drink would be fine." He said, and she smiled, disappearing into the small kitchen. He wandered slowly around the room, looking at the pictures. He made his way to the desk, looking at a few of the papers. Some were sketched, others were written in elfish. He jumped when a picture frame fell off the side of the desk and quickly picked it up; trying to figure out where in the mess it had come from. He glanced down at the picture and brought his eyes back to it when he recognized the person in it. Rose walked through, setting two cups of tea on the table in the front room. He turned to her in shock.

"Is something wrong?" She asked, frowning.

"This is Elrond." He said, holding up the picture. She smiled.

"I'm glad you recognize him."

"Is this you with him?" He asked. She let out a small laugh.

"No, that is my great-great-great grandmother Kiyana. You're not the first to think I was her, trust me." She said, and sat down. He set the picture down, and joined her. "So tell me, sir elf; what is your name?"

"I am Legolas, prince of Mirkwood." He said. She smiled and nodded, sipping her tea. "And you are Rose." She looked up at him, surprised.

"How long have you been watching me, Legolas?" She asked quietly.

"Long enough in the shadows." He answered. She starred at him for a minute more before smiling. "I would understand if you were angry."

"I'm not angry." She said, pulling both of her feet under her in the chair. "I'm more amazed you choose me to watch other than someone else. And a little embarrassed I hadn't caught you earlier." She said. He smiled.

"No human could catch an elf. Elves walk freely through your towns without any of you ever realizing they are there."

"That doesn't surprise me in the least. People are self absorbed and only worried about three steps in front of them rather than twenty in each direction." She said, almost to herself. "Don't mind me. I tend to be sour towards people."

"You are not sour towards me." He said.

"That's because you are not human." She said. "Everyone in that town knows of my family's past. I refuse to deny it or the elves, and it has made me an outcast."

"Are you bothered by this?"

"Not at all." She said. "I do not need them if they are afraid of something they have had no experience with." She stopped, to set down her cup, and shrugged. "I mean, I don't exactly have experience with them either but I won't deny it because I know there are other things out there…" She trailed off, looking at him. He let out a small laugh of embarrassment, and looked to the side. "I'm sorry, here I am rambling on about things I'm sure you have little interest in."

"I'm interested in whatever you have to tell me." He said. "You have so much on your mind, I can feel it. It is in your eyes." She starred at him for a long time before speaking.

"I have a centuries worth of things in my mind that would take even longer to sort out." She said softly. He sat forward, putting a hand on hers. She looked into his eyes as he softly spoke.

"I have all the time in the world."

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