This is my tale about what would only happen to me in my dreams. I know I'm not the only one, due to the amount of similar stories out there.
Please, read, review, and enjoy.
All Lord of the Rings characters, locations, events, and such belong to JRR Tolkien, I am borrowing them for hopes of entertainment, not profit.
I awoke that morning feeling confused, for that night I had dreamt yet again about a sudden windstorm. It had swept me up and carried me off into the night, and I had no idea where it took me, as I had always woken up right as I saw something beneath me. This time, however it was different, for just before I woke I saw mountains under me. I had dreamt this every night for a week. After reading all of the fantasy that I had, I knew that it ought to mean something, but my practical sense doubted it.
"Oh well, it doesn't matter as right now I have to be thinking about school instead of odd dreams." I stretched and got out of bed, moving my sleepy cat aside and turning off my awful alarm. Every morning at 6:03 I wanted to smash it and throw it out the window and every morning I mearly turned it off instead.
Another day in high school had started, and I admit I was getting tired of the stress, constant testing, homework, and the other irritable teenagers. I liked least of all having to go to bed at 8:00, just to get the large amount of sleep that my body required.
"Hopefully it gets easier as you go along." I said to myself as I left the house and walked down the road to the place I least wanted to go. Usually I enjoy most of the parts of school, especially gym. It helped that the young man teaching it was incredibly hot. All the girls in that class share my opinion. As I walked in the cool Alaskan spring air I thought about why I was suddenly so tired of the same routine in my life. Right then, it felt as if I did the same thing day after day, though I really didn't.
During ski season I skied nearly every day after school, but it was over now and instead I rode horses and worked at a barn in exchange for leasing a horse named "Doc".
"I do have a good life." I thought as I walked into the building. " But sometimes I wish I had been born in a completely different world or time, like Avalon or Middle Earth." I chuckled at my own foolishness and readied myself for another long day at High School.
That day, was strange though, I felt as if I was moving in a bubble with all the events out of it happening around me, instead of to me. I talked to my friends and enjoyed their antics, but wasn't really aware what was happening. It was like I was a stranger to the world and I wasn't concerned with anything. All that I day I thought about my dream and pondered if I would be able to identify the strange place I was going tonight in my dreams.
I fantasied that I was taken to the realm of Middle Earth and I could dwell there for the rest of my life. I was an avid reader and much enjoyed the "The Lord of the Rings". I must have read them five times since discovering them in seventh grade.
"Get a grip on yourself, Emily!" I muttered as I walked into Spanish, "As much as you may wish it, you live on Earth and nothing is going to change that, no matter how much you want it too."
I made it through the rest of the day and went home, spent time with my family (whom I loved, no matter how much I wanted my life to change), and went to bed. By then I had forgotten the dream and fell into a deep, exhausted sleep, with my cat curled up next to my head.
I was immersed in the slumbering realms when the wind started to pick up and rattled the house. This wasn't anything unusual in Alaskan springs and no one, not even my cautious cat sensed anything odd about it. As I slept I dreamt yet again the storm dream, but this time I awoke right when my feet were about to gently touch the ground in a new place.
I sat up and blinked, shaking my head and reading myself for yet another day at school. As I reached to turn my dreaded alarm off, I realized, still very sleepily that it had never gone off...
Feeling a sense of dread,I opened my eyes to a very unexpected sight.
I lay in a meadow of sorts with the sun just rising over the mountains to the east and a distant forest off to the south. There was no sign of my bed or my cat. I was wearing my clothes: jeans, tennis shoes, a maroon tee-shirt and a blue polar fleece coat, which were not what I had worn to bed.
"Oh my God..." I whispered as I turned in a circle, taking in my surroundings. I knew that exactly where I was; Middle Earth. I do not know how I knew, I just knew. "Can this really be true? Was my dream real?". I had fantasied about this many times, yet in (supposedly!) real life it was much more breathtaking.
"Oh Jess, I wish you were here with me." One of my best friends shared my opinions about fantasy and would have loved to be standing next to me. Besides I was suddenly feeling lonely, though I was very excited.
My practical sense switched on, and I thought about my immediate problem: I was alone in Middle Earth, had now knowledge of what time period I was in or how I had gotten there (For all I knew Frodo could be heading up the slopes of Mt. Doom at this very minute!), I had no food or shelter, or means of transportation, and I was getting cold.
"Okay Emily, think. You have lived in Alaska all your 15 years and you can survive here if you have too." I said out loud. "Water is your first problem, and then food,and a place to sleep." I continued thinking out loud, considering the fact that I was very alone. "There is a very good chance that water will be found near the mountains to the East, and in that water there will be fish." I laughed, realizing how alike to Gollum I sounded. Then I stopped, realizing that he could still be dwelling in the Misty Mountains that were infested with Orcs and were very close to me. "How will I defend myself?" I wondered, "Big sticks will only get you so far, and with out a weapon or the knowledge to use one, I am a very easy target to brutal, stupid Orcs." At least I did know some about self defense, having taken Tae Kwon Do for several years.
"Well, I shall head north along the mountains and be very aware of any unpleasant surprises along the way. It would be just my luck to run into a Orc camp on my first day in this alcarin (glorious) land." I started walking north, thinking about the very distant target of Rivendell or Imladris, hoping that Elrond and the ancient elven people remained. " I am just like Sam, all I want right now is to see the Eldar singing and walking toward me." I sang to myself as I walked the songs that I grew up with; Christmas carols, lullaby's, old Chorus songs, and my favorite "Into the West". Perhaps I thought that it would draw the ancient people to me, or maybe I was feeling alone.
Several hours had passed and I judged the sun to be directly over the horizon, when I reached the edge of a small grove of trees. Inside them I could faintly hear the sounds of a small stream. "I am so lucky." I said quietly, knowing that maybe it was more then just luck that had led me towards the source of life.
My caution left me as I spied the bubbly brook, that seemed to come out of a cliff of rocks that I hadn't noticed before. "It seems that I am closer to the mountains then I thought..." I said to the air. " If I am that oblivious I should get smart and pay more attention." Despite my warning to myself, I went quickly to the stream, hoping that fish might be in it. I looked down into the water, looking for any sort of movement and saw none. "Darn! Not that you've ever liked fish, Emily." I said to myself. I know but I was getting hungry, since the last time I had eaten was with my family last night. "Wow, was it really last night? It feels like a lifetime had passed since I have been home."
My dry mouth overwhelmed my cautious mind and I bent to drink. The water was cool and tasted sweet, but I smelled an odd, unpleasant smell as I drank it. "You do not have any choice!" I told my stubborn, cautious side. "Water is very important to human life and you will just have to hope that it isn't tainted in any way. Your nose is probably wrong and whatever you smelled was just some scent drifting in the air."
I turned around, having drunk my fill, and trying to ignore my empty stomach. As I did, I realized that the scent I had smelled was stronger as I walked away from the creek. My heart dropped, as I knew what it was. Orcs had to be nearby. As I stood there, I heard rough voices in the distance. "So much for luck." I whispered to myself. "Emily, you have two choices; run away or hide and wait for them to come."