THE FORGOTTEN
A Normal Girl
Disclaimer: I do not own Lord of the Rings. I sort of own the character Jennifer.
Author's note: This is a story that I thought of while half asleep over the course of several months. And after something over a decade, I am returning to it to do a bit massive amount of re-writing. I'm doing so for two reasons: 1. Bits of this have needed some serious retooling and expanding since they were written and 2. I am working on a new fanfic which dovetails with this story and in order for it to do so I need to rewrite some bits. Hopefully, my reworking of things only makes it better. If not, I'll be awaiting the torches and pitchforks. Without further eloquence: The Forgotten... Again…
Jennifer was pretty much average. Her chemistry teacher held the opinion that from time to time she would get a Mona Lisa smile, and as she had dark hair and a rounder face, he thought she resembled the famous painting, but that was all the further she had ever gotten in evaluating how pretty she was. She considered herself to be a fairly well rounded person. She went to a small school, and was liked well enough by everyone, but preferred her nerdier friends because they were into the same sorts of things as her, whilst everyone else was largely into movies, pop music, and reality television, or paintball. She didn't particularly care for any of those things.
It was May the fourth and she had woken up that morning from a very unusual dream. Not that her dreams weren't usually a bit weird, but this one was peculiar. Even as she sat in bed trying to come to grips with the fact her eyes were open, the last vestiges of the dream lingered sharply in her mind. Recurring dreams were nothing new to her, but this one was different. It was a recurring character, and one she was certain she had never seen before, though she could only see his face dimly, but that voice! She was convinced it was a voice she would recognize anywhere, though she couldn't figure out why. This was the third dream she had with him in it, and this time he told her, "We shall meet again face to face."
"If only," she muttered to herself.
"If only what?" her sister asked from across the room.
There was sharp knock on the bedroom door. "Are you two awake in there?"
"Yes, mom," Jennifer replied.
"Good, now hurry up!" she called back.
Jennifer checked the time on her alarm clock then got up and got ready for school and soon forgot about her dream amidst the chaos of trying to get ready, make lunch, and get out the door to school. Morning classes went by at a fairly steady clip until she hit algebra at which point time stood still and then started going backwards. The teacher assigned homework with ten minutes left in class and let everyone get a head start so they could ask questions. As it was the end of the school year, and finals were looming at the end of the month, the teacher had taken pity on them and eased up a little on how much homework he was assigning. It was nothing but review until the end of the semester anyway, and as algebra didn't lend itself to final projects, his unspoken gift to them was to give them less homework so they had time for end of year papers and projects. Consequently, Jennifer managed to actually finish all but the last three problems before the bell rang.
At lunch, her friends were all discussing a new video game they were playing, which only interested her slightly. She wasn't nearly the gamer they were, so she just listened for a while and then got lost in her own thoughts. All day she had had this strangely impatient feeling and she couldn't figure out why. It was the same sort of impatient feeling she had when she woke up the day they were leaving on vacation, but she wasn't going anywhere. With her mom being a teacher and it being the last four weeks of school, there was zero chance of her taking a trip before June. As they already had a trip planned for July, well, it wasn't making any sense. The feeling had been growing all day and she was starting to feel really antsy and getting rather annoyed with it.
It was exactly 1:30 pm and she was ten minutes into study hall. She liked her study halls; usually they allowed her to get work done, pass some notes to her friend who sat ahead of her, and day dream an hour away. With today's rather light homework load, she had finished everything within the first ten minutes. For a minute or two she debated getting a jump start on what she guessed her mom would assign for history homework, but then realized she could just as easily do it during history class next period. The somewhat annoying study hall monitor was always insistent students study or do homework, so she pulled out her notebook and began doodling in the margins of her notes and day dreaming, listening to the sounds out of the open window. She started thinking about the long summer days ahead of her and how much time she planned on swimming in the lake and chilling pool side down at her grandma's house. A moment later however, that day dream was interrupted by itchy allergy eyes. All day she had debated whether or not they were bad enough to justify taking out her contacts and putting on her glasses. Dratted allergies! She had been fighting it all day, but the blurred vision and itching was winning out. It was the one thing she loathed about spring. She pulled her contacts case and glasses out of her binder and slid them into her skirt pocket. She was about to get up and get a hall pass when her attention was drawn by something outside and across the road. It was small, white, and shining.
"It almost looks like a light reflecting off of glass, but it's moving, or falling," she thought. "It's definitely not a shooting star, so what is it?" Her study hall room was near the interior corner of the building, and a tree grew a few feet from it, obscuring her view as the shining object moved towards the ground.
It drew closer until it came to rest on the grass, that side of the road. What was it? Suddenly a horse and rider came cantering out of it, drawing to a stop when the horse was under the tree. The rider was wearing grey-green colored pants of some kind, suede leather boots, and whatever else was covered with a long, thin cloak. Jennifer opened the window wider as the rider dismounted and called up to her.
"Are you the one named Jennifer?" the golden haired stranger asked.
She hesitantly answered, "Yes. What do you want?"
"I was sent for you! Will you please come down?"
"Who sent you?" she asked.
"I and my father the king had dreams telling us to fetch you. Please come down!" he replied. "There is not much time," he added, looking over his shoulder at the white light.
"The king of what?" she asked. This was starting to feel like something out of a bad movie.
"The Woodland Realm. Please, make haste and come down."
"Okay," she called back. Why had she said okay? A debate quickly raged in her mind. On the one hand, it was insanely stupid to go jumping out of a second story window because some guy who appeared out of a ball of light said to. On the other hand, kidnappers generally didn't appear out of balls of light and politely ask you to come down. Adding fuel to the debate was the fact this man did not look even remotely like he was from around anywhere near there. His boots and his cloak were enough to suggest that, but his beautiful face, long blonde hair, and melodic clear voice that sounded oh so familiar (but why?) just compounded it.
"Please hurry!" he called, glancing back over his shoulder at the ball of light.
"Where is this Woodland Realm?" She asked. The question seemed to fall from her lips without crossing her mind first.
"In a place called Middle-earth," he answered, glancing over his shoulder again as if worried the light would go somewhere without him.
Suddenly the debate in her head ceased and she knew she should go. "I'm dreaming," she muttered to herself. "Or my daydreams have finally reached hallucinatory levels. Oh, what the heck! If I'm dreaming, this ought to be fun, and if I'm hallucinating, I've got bigger problems than running off with imaginary men." And with that, she crawled out of the window. She had climbed her fair share of trees growing up, and with minimal difficulty, managed to climb out the window and onto the ledge into a sitting position. That day she was wearing a lime green polo shirt, a knee length khaki skirt, tan nylons and sandals. Not a particularly climber-friendly outfit. With some struggle, she rolled onto her stomach and started lowering herself. Suddenly, she started losing her grip - she was going to fall! Her mind started calculating how far the drop was from the ground to her feet and tried to remember what her dad had said about how to land if she ever dropped from a height like that. She fell from the ledge preparing to hit the ground, but instead she found she was caught in the arms of the golden haired stranger.
"Thank you!" she said, feeling out of breath.
"You are welcome." the stranger cordially replied. "Are you hurt?"
"No, just a little adrenaline rush, that's all. Thank you." There was something about all this that reminded her of something… something recent…
The golden haired stranger said as he set her down. "Do you know how to ride a horse?"
"No," she answered. "Sorry."
"Then you will need help mounting one." The stranger mounted the horse and brought it near her. He stopped and said, "Do you mind?"
"I...guess not," she replied. He leaned over, put his arm under her arms and lifted her side saddle onto the horse in front of him. She found herself laughing out of surprise because she never had thought people actually did that like in the movies.
"I suppose you cannot balance sitting that way," the stranger said with a slight frown.
"I wish!" she said with a sigh. She realized that if she couldn't ride side saddle; she'd have to straddle the horse. To do so would mean that her skirt would ride all the way up her leg, and that was not a thing with which she would be very comfortable.
The stranger must have realized this because he undid the clasp of his cloak and handed it to her. She thanked him and proceeded to attempt straddling the horse without kicking it in the neck. The horse must have realized what was going on because he lowered his head.
"Are you ready?" the stranger asked once she seemed to be settled.
"Yes I am, thank you," she replied, and off they rode towards the shining light. A thrill of adventure was coming over her as the impatience she had felt all day disappeared. This was the adventure she had been waiting for. The short ride towards the whatever-it-was gave no clues as to what it could be. Being an inexperienced horse rider, and the stranger knowing it, he put both his arms around her just before the horse jumped into it. She was grateful, because that jump startled and jostled her quite a bit.
One moment she was in the familiar setting she had known all her life, and the next moment she was riding in a wide field and looking straight at a thick, wide line of trees that stretched north and south as far as the eye could see. Behind the forest there was the faintest line of mountains. The stranger let go of her the moment the horse touched the ground. She didn't want to admit it, but she wished he hadn't let go. Having never been on a horse before, she was very nervous, especially since she felt like she was going to bounce right off.
"Do you think, that is, you see, it's just that having never been on a horse before I don't know how to keep my balance and –"
"I promise I shall not let you fall. Neither shall my horse," he pledged. "The secret to riding is to grip the horse with your knees. But if you find you cannot keep your seat, I shall keep a hand on you."
"Thanks," she quietly replied. She almost cringed at herself. Generally, she wasn't the sort that liked admitting things like nervousness and fear, and on top of it she felt incredibly awkward basically asking a stranger to hold her. As a rule, she kept to her personal space and never intruded on someone else's, but she felt significantly safer with him holding onto her.
The I-must-be-dreaming theory had died when the horse made the jump. Her stomach never dropped like that in her dreams; not even when she rode roller coasters in them. Her mind was whirling. What had she gotten herself into? She had been acting against her better judgment by dropping out of that window and getting on that horse and now she was being held by a person she didn't know. Yet, she was not afraid. By all reason she should have been, but fear was the furthest thing from her mind. It was almost as though there was someone she knew and trusted that was telling her everything was would be fine and she was in good hands. Whatever it was, she could not help but believe it. It almost seemed familiar to her, but she couldn't place a finger on why. And then there was his voice – it did sound familiar…
The stranger started singing something in some strange language. She had heard it before, but could not think as to where. A thought came to her mind.
"Excuse me sir, you said we're in Middle-earth?" she asked.
"Yes. To be specific, we are approaching Mirkwood and my father's realm," the stranger replied.
"And, uh what's the date?" she asked, as she began to suspect a few things.
"It is August the 29th, 3018 of the Third Age," the stranger replied.
"What is your name?" she asked, not daring to guess.
"I am Legolas, Prince of Mirkwood and my father-"
She cut him off, "Your father is King Thranduil."
"Why yes, how did you know?" Legolas asked, full of wonder.
"Well see, there are these books in my world and they tell about Middle-earth, and your father and yourself are mentioned in a couple of stories." She proceeded in explaining about the books, but was careful not to say anything about what happened in them. She had read and seen enough time travel related things to figure it would do nothing but end badly. He rode puzzling over how such a thing could be. Suddenly Jennifer spoke again.
"I think perhaps, I am not from another world, but another time," she slowly said.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"There is a theory that the author, Tolkien was writing about a past time that no one remembers, not another world. Of course, this theory was never more than that. I never really thought Middle-earth existed until now. Now I know. That theory must be true," She said the last part more to herself than Legolas. She began wondering if the same wasn't true of other stories.
"Does this mean that you know why you are here?" Legolas asked.
"No. My name never showed up in them. I thought you would know," she replied.
"No, neither I nor my father has any idea why you are here," Legolas admitted.
"Then why did you come for me?" she asked, becoming slightly confused.
"As I said, I came for you because my father and I had dreams that we were to get you."
"Sent from the Valar I would suppose."
"Why, yes. In our dreams we were told what to do and between my father and I, we knew everything we needed and here you are," Legolas said. Nothing in his voice betrayed to Jennifer any amount of confusion or wonderment on his part. He seemed to accept the situation as fully as if he had been told him the sky was blue. She however, was desperately trying to sort things out and felt like her head was spinning.
There was silence for a few moments and then Legolas started softly singing again. Jennifer was finally getting comfortable on the horse and started feeling more balanced and less likely to fall off. A moment later Jennifer realized she had been leaning on an elven prince. She bolted up right.
"What's wrong?" the elven prince asked.
"I'm sorry!" she cried.
"For what?" he asked. "What a strange girl," he thought to himself.
"For leaning on you! I shouldn't have," she apologized.
He just looked at the back of her head with his brows knit together. He didn't understand her. Most elves would have thought nothing of it. If she had been related to Legolas, she wouldn't have minded so much, of course, but she was sure she wasn't.
"I assure you, I did not mind." He tried consoling her. It sort of worked. Jennifer felt a little better, but still felt awkward and embarrassed.
"So, how far is it to your father's halls once with in the forest's eaves?" she asked, trying to distract herself.
"A little less than a league," he replied.
"Oh," she paused, "Could you make the horse gallop?"
"Whatever for?" the elf asked.
"So I can see what it feels like to ride at full gallop. I have read about it, but obviously never done it myself," she shyly admitted.
"Very well," the elf prince said with a grin. He spoke a word to the horse, and like an arrow from a bow it darted off towards the forest. She found it absolutely exhilarating! The elven horse's footfalls were light, making the ride smooth. She smiled as wide as she could and laughed. The elf felt her breath quicken as he held her. He smiled wide. It reminded him of the first time he took his younger cousin out for a ride. She had laughed like that too.
"What do you think?" the elf asked with a grin.
"I love it!" Jennifer replied ecstatically.
As they approached the forests' eaves the horse was slowed down to a brisk walk and they entered. Jennifer had grown up in the woods, but had never been in such a dense forest before, so at first she was a bit awestruck at just how deep and dark the shade was beneath the boughs. Though this was far from the first forest she had been in, she couldn't shake the feeling that this was decidedly different from any other forest she had ever been in before. The very air of Middle-earth was different from that which she was used to. It had a different smell to it, but so had Texas from her home state. No, it had a different quality to it and she couldn't figure out what it was.
They rode for a while and then suddenly Jennifer found herself looking at the very gates that Bilbo had seen so many years ago. They opened by magic as the horse approached them, and shut by magic after the horse's tail was inside the gate. She saw a number of beautiful houses in the trees and on the ground all about. Everything looked much more cozy and lovely and ornate than she had imagined it would. As they crossed the bridge, an elf came up to them.
"Welcome back, Prince Legolas! Greetings, fair guest! May I take your horse?" the elf questioned.
"Greetings, and yes." Legolas replied. He dismounted, and then Jennifer dismounted after some difficulty. The elf then took the horse away as Legolas and Jennifer walked towards the Halls of Thranduil. Once inside the doors, Jennifer handed the elven prince his cloak.
"Thank you," she said as she held it out.
"You are very welcome," the elf replied. No sooner had the elf draped his cloak over his arm, Jennifer got goose bumps. The cave was, unsurprisingly, cool. She didn't want to look silly or anything and ask for it back, so she decided to suffer. Something that the books neglected was to tell you that elves were rather aware and sensitive to everyone and everything around them.
"Are you cold?" the elf prince asked, a little concerned. He had heard humans catch cold easily.
"A little," she admitted. The elf handed back the cloak. Jennifer flung it around her shoulders and thanked him.
They made an odd couple, walking down the elvish halls. He was tall and dressed in elvish attire. She was on the short side, for an elf, and was wearing an extremely unusual outfit with an oversized cloak over it. Her sandals were clacking loudly down the hall. All the elves in the place looked at her as she passed. Such a short skirt! Such loud shoes! Good Valar, did she have no decency?
They walked to the doors of King Thranduil's throne room. Legolas had his hand on the door and was about to enter when Jennifer stopped him.
"Please, before we enter, tell me what the correct greeting is for addressing an elven king!" she pleaded.
"Just greet him in a way that is acceptable for royalty in your world." Legolas responded as he pushed open the door.
Royalty?! What royalty? She lived in America! Addressing royalty was never thought of by most Americans.
Before she knew it, she was staring King Thranduil in the face. He looked similar to Legolas. "Well, now I know where he gets his good looks!" she thought. Then her mind began racing. Who should speak first? She didn't have to wonder long because Legolas spoke first.
"Greetings, my father. This is Jennifer, the one that I was sent for."
"Greetings, Jennifer," Thranduil said with a slight nod of his head.
"Greetings your majesty," she said with a slight bow, hoping desperately that that was considered acceptable.
"Do you know why you were brought here?" he asked.
"Outside of what your son told me about a message in some dreams you both had, not a clue. Your majesty," she answered.
"So you received no word or summons?"
She thought for a moment, her mind was unusually blank and quiet. This usually happened when someone asked her something important – every thought and memory she possessed would run away and hide. "N-None that I'm aware of, sir" she answered at length.
"No unusual dreams?" the king asked.
Her face involuntarily broke into a grin. "Well, your majesty, all of my dreams are unusual. Sir."
Thranduil studied her face for a moment. "Then nothing happened to you nor any dream came to you prior to Legolas showing up that told you of your coming here?"
Suddenly the dreams she had came flooding back to her. "Wait, I had a dream, well a series of dreams. They started maybe six months ago, but the most recent one was this morning. I completely forgot! I was in some open space surrounded by trees and there were flowers growing in the sunshine. I was with someone, but I couldn't quite see his face. I don't remember all the details, except that he said the next time we met would be face to face. In the dream I had accepted it to be fact, but puzzled a bit how that could happen because something about him made it seem like it would be very unlikely, like he was from somewhere I couldn't reach, but he seemed so certain… Of course when I awoke I didn't think much of it, but," she looked back at Legolas. "His voice was yours."
Thranduil was silent. He was thinking over what the girl had said, especially that last part. At length he said, "You have come from a great distance and I am sure you are tired from your journey. I have a room prepared for you along with some clothes and things. There you may rest and refresh yourself. We would also invite you to sup with us tonight as a means of honoring you, our guest. I shall have Legolas fetch you when all is prepared."
With that she thanked the king and she and Legolas were dismissed. As Legolas was leading her to her room she said, "Dinner in my honor. That's new."
"More of a feast in your honor, really," he commented.
"A feast in my honor?" she echoed, rather surprised.
"Oh yes. Lots of food, drink, music, and dancing."
"Sounds more like a party."
"We want you to feel welcome."
"Oh, back home if we want someone to feel welcome we make them a nice dinner but not usually music and dancing too."
Legolas got a funny look on his face. "Would you rather we cancel it?"
"No, it's fine. I'm looking forward to it even. I'm just surprised I suppose. I've never had anything besides a birthday party held in my honor, and typically I arrange them myself."
"So are you not well liked?" he asked.
"No, that's not it. I'm liked well, er, well enough. It's just that I've never done anything noteworthy enough to grant me a feast, that's all."
"But you said you arranged your own birthday parties."
"My mother doesn't make a big deal about birthdays. I suppose they should hold a little more significance to a human than it should to an elf, but each individual year isn't as important as, say, a mile-stone birthday like 10, 16, 40, and 50. But to be honest, for as much as I don't think I deserve a feast, I am looking forward to it! I just hope you all didn't imposition yourselves on account of me."
"No, it is not an imposition. You are our guest and we are honored to have you," the elf answered. Humans were odd, or at least this one was. No, humans were odd, she was just especially so. It would be rude not to welcome her, especially since she was their guest by design of the Valar! Was that not reason enough to have a feast in her honor?
They walked on in silence until Legolas said, "This is your room," as he stood by the door. "Mine is next door. The feast will commence in an hour or so." He opened the door to let her in. "A servant shall be here presently to assist you. In the meantime, let me know if you are in want of anything."
"A servant to assist me? Well I don't know if that's really necessary. I mean, I'd hate to be a bother," she said, wildly unsure what on earth she would actually do with a servant.
Legolas replied, "You shall find this place a bit bigger than what you are accustomed to and someone to assist you more necessary than you think. Regardless, you are our guest and the servant shall be yours to use or not as you see fit while you are here."
"Oh, I hadn't really thought of it that way. Thank you," she said. She went into her room and he went into his. Her room was sumptuous. Just inside the door was a sweet little anteroom that reminded her of an old fashioned sitting room with a small fireplace, a small table, and a couple of chairs. Immediately across from the door was a pair of doors that were opened wide into the bed chamber which she eagerly entered. On the right wall was a small hearth. In front of it was a low couch with a thick, deep blue blanket draped over it and an arm chair on either side. On top of the mantle were an assortment of things that Jennifer took to be merely decorative. Against the back wall (directly in front of her) were two tall lamps between which was standing a table that had drawers in it that doubled as a writing desk and a vanity with a matching chair. To the left of these things on that wall was a door. In the middle left of the room was her bed. It was a large bed with a wooden frame and a canopy with ornate carvings and engraving in it. The head board was hardly visible behind the tall heap of pillows. The pillows looked incredibly soft and were colored brown, green, and white. The top blanket (I suppose you could call it a comforter) was blue with a beautiful green vine pattern on it with white flowers. Upon closer examination she concluded that the flowers were outlined with silver thread, and the green vines and leaves had gold thread running through them. Smack in the middle of the room on the stone floor was a large, thick carpet. The pattern and colors on it reminded her distinctly of a forest floor.
The left wall also supported a wardrobe. Next to the door leading into her room was a large, full length mirror in a silver and gold frame. She wandered around the room and found herself opening the door by the writing desk. Inside she found a large copper colored tub near the far wall and a small end table with several towels and wash cloths on its lower shelves on one side and two small hand pumps on the other. On either side there were two large lamps, and around the room was a shelf that held candles, lots and lots of candles. Immediately to her left was a sink with a small pump and a mirror above it, and behind a little partition she found what looked like those pictures of the first indoor toilets. This surprised her immensely as she had always just assumed indoor plumbing wasn't a thing here. She thought this over for a moment then concluded it made as much as sense as anything, and she wasn't about to complain about having access to somewhat modern conveniences. Especially when she considered what the alternative would have likely been otherwise. No thank you!
Her thoughts turned back to the tub and that of a hot bath. It was like a siren call and she was half tempted to go ahead and take one right then and there, as she felt rather dusty after the horse ride and she was more than slightly nerved. After all, she had just left her world for no reason that anyone could see and was now in Mirkwood waiting to be summoned to a feast in her honor. The remembrance of the feast quickly squelched any notions she had of soaking just then and sent her out of the bathroom and over to the wardrobe.
Inside of the wardrobe was a hunter green dress with silvery designs on it, and large flowing cream colored sleeves and cream colored fabric around the neckline. She loved those kinds of sleeves! She had never been much into fashion and the latest trends, but this kind of clothing was a completely different story. Next to it was a lighter green and brown dress that she found surprisingly attractive. Beside that was a green cloak and hood, and next to that was a soft blue night gown made out of a fabric she thought resembled cotton and next to this was a soft grey robe. On the bottom of the wardrobe was a pair of tall suede boots shaped like overlapping leaves and on them was silvery vine and leaf tracery like the hunting tunic. Just then there was a knock at the door.
"Come in," she called reflexively. For a split second she wondered if whoever it was could hear her through the door, but then it began to open and in came the promised servant. It was an elven lady with dark brown hair and bright green eyes.
The servant said, "My name is Estelneth, at your service." She gave a very well practiced curtsy.
"My name is Jennifer. It's very nice to meet you," she replied.
"How may I help you?"
"To be honest," Jennifer said, "I have no idea. I've never had a servant to help me out before."
Estelneth smiled kindly and said, "How about we see how your dresses fit? We could only guess at what might fit you, and if any adjustments need made before the feast, now would be the time to do them."
"Good thinking," Jennifer said. "Which one do you think would be more suitable for a feast?"
Estelneth went over to the wardrobe and looked at both dresses then pulled out the hunter green one and said, "Though they are both very suitable, I think you shall be more comfortable in this one. The evenings are becoming cooler and I think this dress will be better suited for this evening's weather."
Jennifer smiled and nodded. "That sounds sensible."
Estelneth immediately pulled a screen out from behind the wardrobe and set it up so Jennifer could easily reach the wardrobe and her bed while being out of view from the rest of the room. She laid the dress out on the bed and stood on the outside of the changing area.
The first thing Jennifer realized was that the cream fabric around the neckline was actually a cream dress, and it occurred to her, it was probably an under dress or shift dress, and a rather nice one. Quickly she changed into the hunter green dress, gladly forsaking her lime green polo shirt and khaki skirt and nylons. She left her sandals on however, because she hadn't noticed a soft looking pair of brown slippers that had been sitting beneath the dress on the wardrobe's floor.
"Estelneth?" she called.
"Yes, milady?"
"I need help closing up this dress, and I think it may be a little long."
Estelneth came behind the screen and said, "Yes, it looks as though it may be, but let us finish getting you ready and then we shall see just how long it is." She went around behind the girl and quickly closed up the dress for her then came back around and knelt down so she could see just how much hemming it needed. "Ah, it is as I thought! There is an inch or two less to hem than a minute ago. If you shall wait here, I shall fetch needle and thread."
"Sure, I'll wait," Jennifer replied. The elf returned a minute later carrying a foot stool and a small basket and bade her to stand on the foot stool in her bare feet while she quickly set about hemming the front of the dress.
"I believe our best and quickest course of action," the elf said as she worked, "Is to only hem the front and let the rest be longer. This dress has a very small train of a few inches anyway and a means of tacking it up should you desire to dance, so unless you wish otherwise, I shall only hem this small bit here."
Jennifer didn't look down to see what she meant because she knew that could throw off her hemming. However, that did sound like a very sensible course of action so she said, "Yes, that sounds just fine. I don't know that we have enough time for anything else anyway."
She heard the knock on her door, and asked Estelneth, "How close are you to being done?"
"Only a few more minutes," she replied. "Shall I let whoever knocked in?"
"Yes, please," she said.
Estelneth gave a bow of her head and said, "Very well," and answered the door. "Come in your highness," she said with a bow. "The lady shall be with your momentarily."
"Thank you, Estelneth," he replied.
"Is that you, Legolas?" Jennifer asked from behind the screen.
"Yes, it is," he answered.
"Is everyone waiting for me?"
"Not yet. I am a little early. I wanted to make sure you are comfortable and finding everything to your liking," he replied.
"Oh, everything is very nice, thank you. Estelneth is just finishing up hemming my dress. I shouldn't be more than a couple minutes. Make yourself comfortable."
"Thank you. There is no need to rush," he answered as he sat down upon the couch and watched the small little fire in the fireplace. "Nothing shall begin until you arrive."
"Oh, well that's nice, but I would hate to keep everyone waiting," she replied.
"That is very considerate of you, but even if you are late, a few minutes more of speech and song before eating is no great inconvenience," Legolas said.
"I am done," Estelneth declared. "Come and see if it is to your liking," she said as she opened the wardrobe to reveal a mirror.
"Oh, perfect! Wonderful work, Estelneth!" Jennifer said. "This should do very nicely!"
"Thank you, milady," Estelneth said. "Shall I remove the screen?"
"Oh, yes. Thank you," Jennifer replied, sliding her sandals back on.
Legolas stood and turned and saw her and stuttered, "A-are you ready?"
"Yes!" she replied as she clacked over to Legolas. He gave a slight cringe. Those shoes were so loud!
"Did you not see your slippers?" he asked.
Estelneth suddenly looked distraught at her oversight and quickly fetched them out of the wardrobe.
"No, why would I want to wear slip... oh yes, forgot. Where are they?" she asked.
"They should be in your wardrobe," he replied.
"I have them here," Estelneth quickly interjected, kneeling down before Jennifer and helping her into them.
"What did you start asking?" Legolas asked.
Jennifer looked up at him and casually replied, "Oh, I had forgotten what you would mean by slippers. Where I'm from, slippers are usually only worn around the house." She paused for a moment then added, "Why did you stumble on your words when you first saw me?"
"It was just that I didn't expect you to look so elvish. It surprised me." Something seemed different about her; not just her wardrobe, but something deeper. Something in her eyes perhaps. He didn't think any more on it at the moment though.
"Shall I do your hair now, milady?" Estelneth asked.
"Huh? Oh, yes. It probably looks terrible after this afternoon!" Jennifer answered. Estelneth bade her come and sit at the vanity as Legolas sat down in the arm chair that was turned to face them.
"Is there anything you require, your highness, before I begin tending the lady?" Estelneth asked Legolas.
"No, I am all ready, thank you," he answered.
She bowed and then quickly set about taking out Jennifer's pony tail, marveling only briefly at the rubber band that held it in place, and began combing out her hair.
"Did you see the jewelry?" Legolas asked from his seat.
"No, what jewelry?" she asked.
"Then you did not find it," Legolas said as he stood and took it off of the mantle and brought it to Jennifer. He set it on the vanity in front of her and opened it. Inside were a silver necklace with a star shaped pendant and a thin silver circlet of braided silver with a small star on it. The detail, the way the stars shone, it was all so beautiful that Jennifer took a sharp inhale then asked if they were absolutely certain they were willing to risk letting her wear them. Legolas assured her it was fine as they were a gift to her. Her eyes widened and she was dumbfounded.
"Do you do this for all of your guests? Give them a wardrobe and expensive jewelry, I mean," she asked as Legolas put her necklace on her.
"Only guests we fetch at the request of the Valar," he answered smiling.
Estelneth took the circlet from the box and she set it on her hair. It was further back upon her head than what Jennifer expected, but it caused the star to shine out brilliantly against her brown hair. Estelneth then proceeded to wind some of Jennifer's hair around the bottom half of the circlet so it looked as if the silver was braided into her hair. She tied off the braid with a length of thin brown ribbon and then helped her with the necklace.
"You look beautiful," Legolas complimented.
"Indeed, milady. You could pass for a young elf maid in these clothes and with your hair like this," Estelneth added.
"Thank you." She sweetly smiled. No one besides her parents had ever told her that she looked beautiful before.
Legolas then asked, "Shall we go?" as he offered his arm to her. She stood and took his arm and they strode off towards the feast.
Now Jennifer had read The Hobbit, and sort of had a clue as to what to expect. There was nothing for her to compare it with. She had never gone to a party where there was dancing. Typically, as close she got to anything involving the word "party" were sleepovers for friends' birthdays.
The feast part was easy enough. Elves didn't believe in ostentatious table settings. When you were to use a new plate, fork, and knife, they took away the old ones and brought you the new ones. You never had more than one of any dish or utensil at one time.
After a sumptuous feast that she was sure would put her in a food coma for a week after, the elven minstrels began to play more upbeat music. Elves began dancing with other elves, by themselves, and with two or three people –it didn't really matter. The King and his son jumped up and joined the festivities. Jennifer quietly stayed in her seat at the edge of it all and observed everyone while nursing whatever it was they poured in her cup. They seemed to be enjoying themselves thoroughly. She was enjoying herself in the way that introverts do. She was an introvert by nature, but had learned to fake a little extroversion over the years, but whenever she found herself out of place, she naturally retreated to her introverted tendencies and found a nice, quiet corner to observe others from. She found herself entranced by the entire scene unfolding before her; the music and their movements were in perfect harmony and even though they were by and large dancing as couples or small groups verses a large group-like an old English country dance. As she didn't really know anyone besides Legolas, her gaze kept drifting his direction and she couldn't help but notice how brightly his eyes shone and warm his smile was and how gracefully he moved. He seemed the very picture of vivacity and joviality. Never in all her years of people watching had she ever seen anyone, or group of people for that matter, enjoying themselves so fully and without concern for what anyone thought of them. They were enjoying themselves and that was more than enough.
Legolas was happily dancing when he noticed her still sitting at the table all by herself. To his eyes she seemed isolated and unsure. "That won't do," he thought to himself, and made his way over to her.
"Why are you not dancing with the rest of us?" he asked, looking slightly concerned. "Is something wrong?"
"Well, uh, yes. You see, I can't dance. That is to say, I never tried," she awkwardly answered.
"That can be easily remedied! Come with me!" he said as he took both of her hands before she could protest. He led her into the midst of the dancers and started instructing her on what to do with her hands and feet. The first song or two was a bit clumsy and awkward for her as she kept forgetting steps or losing time, but around the third song she was getting the hang of it and looked more and more graceful with each step she took. By the end of the night, she was dancing as well as any elf present. It seemed she had something of a talent for dancing. Throughout the evening she also kept being introduced to various elves as Legolas would periodically have them dance in a group. For all the good the introductions did however, she couldn't manage to put the right name with the right face.
She danced for hours and sometime late into the night she became tired. "I think I'll be heading back to my room now," she announced quietly to Legolas.
"Are you tired or are you bored with dancing?" he asked with a grin. He had determined by now that he could jest with her.
"Incredibly bored!" she teased, and followed it up with a quick, "Or I'm about to fall asleep on my feet. You choose."
The elf just smiled. "Poor human child, so tired so quickly!" the elf thought. "I shall accompany you back to your room," he said out loud.
"Oh, you don't have to, Legolas! You've done enough already," she protested.
"But I want to, and you will get lost if not escorted," he smiled. She yielded to his logic. He led her back to her room and told her he would be in the anteroom if she needed anything until she was in bed, as Estelneth was busy helping with the feast. She went in her room, shut the door behind her, and smiled with a sigh and an eye roll. Why was this elf treating her so? He didn't patronize her, nor did he treat her like she was a toddler, which, in elven eyes, she figured she practically was. It seemed to her that he was treating her like something to be carefully handled and treasured. It was something she wasn't used to. She and her friends and her family were always teasers and treated each other like equals. He was treating her like something special, and she couldn't say she didn't like it. As tired as the girl was, she desperately wanted to wash up before bed. However, the notion of a hot bath was out of the question. She was entirely too tired to deal with that and so instead filled the wash basin with hot water and washed up accordingly.
She lay down, closed her eyes, and remembered she still had her contacts in. With a frustrated sigh she reluctantly crawled out of the bed. After a moment or two of fumbling through the wardrobe and looking through her clothes for her glasses and contacts case, she found them and proceeded to go into the bathroom and wash her hands and take out her contacts and then put her things on the nightstand beside the bed. She was halfway back under the bed covers when she remembered Legolas had said he would wait in the other room until she was in bed. Reluctantly she flung the covers back and crawled back out, flinging on the robe as she walked. She sincerely hoped he hadn't stayed up the whole time, but thought it best to poke her head out the door. Sure enough, there was Legolas sitting in a chair at the table and reading a book.
"I am going to bed now."
"Pleasant dreams," the elf softly said as he closed the book.
"Thank you," she timidly added.
"For what?" the elf asked.
"For everything. You and your father have been so nice to me. More than I deserve I'm sure. Then here you are, an elven prince, waiting on me! If I could think of some way to repay you I would."
"Jennifer, there is no need. I promise," he replied with a smile. What a funny human girl. "I am going to be next door all night should you need anything," he added.
"Not necessary, you can go back to the party! Don't stay here on account of me," she insisted.
"No, I do not want to go back. Good night," he said.
"Wait, before you go, I really must warn you of something. I talk in my sleep. To be perfectly honest, I make any variety of noises in my sleep. So if you hear me screaming or laughing or crying in the middle of the night, do not worry about it. It's just me asleep, and I am a sound sleeper, so don't bother waking me," she told him. "Good night!"
She went back in her room and a few minutes later realized she was thirsty and waving away a vague pondering as to why she always gets thirsty at night, she slid her glasses on, resumed her robe, and went into the bathroom. She poked around a little to see if there was a cup somewhere and found nothing and didn't figure she was talented enough to pump water and drink from the faucet simultaneously, so she went out and knocked on Legolas' door.
"Jennifer?" he asked from inside.
"Yes." she replied.
"I will be with you in a moment, go back to your bedroom, please, and I will be in there shortly."
"Okay!" she replied. She went back to her room and sat on the small couch. In a moment she heard Legolas knock on the door, and she bade him enter.
"What do you need, Jennifer?" he asked as he opened the door.
She turned toward him and opened her mouth to speak, but his eyes were as wide as saucers, and full of curiosity.
"May I ask what is on your face?" he asked drawing slowly towards her.
"Oh, my glasses!" she said. "They help me see clearly."
"So you cannot see well. How unfortunate," he said, then added, "Why were you not wearing them earlier?"
"I was wearing my contacts." she explained. "I'll show you." she said before he could ask what they were. She grabbed the case and took one out and showed him.
"So, do you put this on your eye?" He asked in amazement. He had never seen such a thing.
"Yes. They are quite comfortable," she said.
"It must be bothersome though that you should have to deal with such things to see clearly."
"Yes and no," she sighed.
"Hmm. What do you need?" he asked, changing the subject.
"Oh, a glass of water," she replied.
"I shall return with it shortly," he said and went out of the room. A few minutes later he returned with a silver pitcher and a cup. "Is that all?" he asked.
"Yes. Thank you very much!" she said. "Good night Legolas!"
"Good night, Jennifer!" he replied with a smile, and left the room.
Jennifer crawled back into the bed and within a few minutes was sound asleep. In the meantime Legolas was next door sprawled out on a couch thinking over the events of the day. He was thinking about the strange human girl that was now next door. Jennifer, what a strange name. It wasn't a name he would have picked. It sounded pleasant enough he supposed. Then he thought about her eyes. How horrible it must be, not being able to see without something on your eye or something on your face! He hadn't met many humans in his life, but the one he knew well had wonderful vision for a human. At length with a sigh he got up and went to bed and fell asleep pondering why she had been brought there.