Chapter 9 Adaptations

The next day Dawn was ushered off to take a bath, her they did her hair quickly, pulled back in a half pony tail, half crimped half straight. This time she wore no dress. Instead, there were was a black leather pants and black shirt tanks top, which tied in the front. Beautiful black leather boots were given to her. Whilst doing her hair, the thought of Legolas lazily drifted into her head, he was just so awesomely gorgeous, and she had him hooked. She had never actually had a guy hooked before and smiled thoughtfully. As the elf, chick ushered her to the mirror. She moved easily and quickly in this outfit. She saw no one but Galadriel that morning.

"Dawn, I see you like these clothing."

"Yup" she said running her hands over hips, "question, do I look fat?" Galadriel smirked

Galadriel then picked up a sheath, inside it was a sword, and placed it on her outstretched hands.

"Ethaúþl"

"Could you say that again?"

Galadriel her spent at least five minutes practicing saying the name, Dawn let a slight screech when she finally got it right. Galadriel handed her the sword. Dawn took it out of its sheath, it was a great thick sword was her first impression, but the handle and the weight of the sword, were equal. The handle was made of ivory, and in sketched was the word Aèrindil, the keys original name. She sheathed it, and put in on her belt. Galadriel smiled at her,

"I knew you would like it."

"Galadriel why the sudden change in wardrobe?" Dawn asked questioningly.

"You are to battle, Dawn, against your friends," Dawn gulped in utter terror; the very air surrounding her seemed to be choking her lungs. Galadriel laughed at her pale face.

"I think you need not to worry Dawn, Aerindil, will protect you, she will adapt you to every world, and for any situation." Galadriel replied reassuringly.

"Right like the key could just suddenly make her good at fighting….wait could it?" Dawn replied, and then again, I was quite good at trying to catch Gollum, maybe that is how I catch on so quickly here. The key is acclimatizes itself to situations.

"Dawn surely you realized that we are, not of your world, and to live in this world you had to adapt, even to communicate." Galadriel looked at Dawn who was disrupted from her thoughts, and utterly bemused appearance overcoming her features.

"You do realize that in one day you learned Elvish, and that when you landed here, you could speak the men's Westron tongue?"

"So I'm not speaking English?" Dawn replied in a bewildered voice, putting her hand to her throat. How in the hell does the key do that?

"If you were to live in a world and not be able to converse, how would you in fact try to save it?" Galadriel replied simply

AH, she makes a good point, so what am I speaking when I talk in my head? Westron? English? Dawn massage her temples,

"The point Dawn is that you are adapting to survive in this world, so have no fear, in what skills you possess, they will be unearthed soon."

Dawn walked into a secluded part of the trees. Far from Cerin where there was a cleared opening of the rich brown dirt. She met the eyes of her eight companions. Aragorn spoke first,

"We're here to test your knowledge, and fighting skills."

Dawn smiled, they were going to fight, as she laughed gingerly, trying to secrete the apprehension swelling within her. Adapt now, please adapt now, do not let me die, adapt, adapt, adapt.

Boromir stepped in first. He unsheathed his sword

"I will not strike hard, have no fear."

She unsheathed Ethaúþl, oh sweet Jesus thought Dawn; I do not think I've ever been in battle with anyone besides Buffy. I'm screwed, adapt my ass I don't feel any different.

Suddenly there was a clang of swords, she was able to protect herself, block, and even occasionally push Boromir to a tree. Aragorn noted all her vulnerable spots. He then swept her sword away from her. She stood and put her hands in a fists level with her face. Boromir laughed, and charged at her. She hit him with a swift kick in the stomach, and punched him in the face, then ran towards her sword, doing a summersault, and she ran at him, he now wasn't swinging his sword so easy, she was a lot stronger than he thought. She learned quickly, and was clever. They watched as she quickly dodged his attacks, and she began to gain more ground, she then dropped her sword, and fell to the ground extending her leg, knocking him off his feet. Then grabbing her sword and having it at his throat in a matter of seconds, she had won. Gimli laughed as Boromir left, touching his face where Dawn had punched him. An elf stood laughing, chanting

"To lose to a woman, prince of Gondor."

Dawn gave him the evil eye, and yet he continued to laugh as the Gimli stepped in, although overjoyed in her victory, in a harsh voice did she say to him.

"You shouldn't speak that way to a friend of mine."

She turned her head from him and faced Gimli.

"Lassie, are you prepared for a fight?"

She laughed and did some quick shift of her body weight and blocked both of Gimli's axes. Sending one through the air, right next to the elf who had made the earlier comment, which kept him silent. Gimli proved tougher, than Boromir. He for one he had a strong axe, and well was sometimes just as clever as she was. Her sword went flying, she looked at him, eyes blazingly, with each step took to avoid the axes. Her fists were raised in mere seconds, and she dodged his blows with the axes. She caught his arm and used his own body weight, and threw him over her shoulder. The axe fell, and she pinned him, and caught the axe, and lined it too his throat. She got up let him up. She threw Gimli his axe,

"Same one my sister had."

He laughed at her, with at first an irritated laugh, and then the twinkle came in his eyes, as he remembered their conversations about weapons.

She watched as Legolas stepped in, he took out a machete looking thing, and she ripped her sword from the tree. She then turned to hear her own cheering section made up of four little hobbits, and a dwarf. She faced him smiling, He drew out his sword and they circle one another, he had been studying her, she learned quickly, and she left no open areas vulnerable anymore. Even more so, she could fight well with her hands. He watched as she flung her hair out of her face, he then rushed at her. She was ready, she took her sword and switched hands, took her sword and threw it at his knocking it out his hands. He looked at her, time to begin the fight. Her fists were up, and she was ready, she made the first move a high kick towards his head, he was able to not only block it but also grab it and flip her, yet she did not fall, she landed on her feet. She laughed at their shocked faces, and she went towards him and he moved quick yes, but she thought quicker. He moved and dodged the next five punches and three kicks, she knew one more punch would send him to her left, and then she could sweep him off his legs. She hit him he moved she was lined up and he fell in a matter of seconds. He got up quickly and looked at her; he was disgraced to be beat my woman who last night was the women he kissed. Dawn sensed his anger and moved after to him but Aragorn stepped in. He withdrew his sword and she picked hers up from the ground.

"You have great skill, and even better cleverness, lets put those to work, shall we?"

"Of course"

With that they stepped away from one another he didn't plan on taking it easy on her, no she must be prepared to handle anything, ring wraiths, orcs, goblins, Gollum, Nazguls, anything. She made the first move, she was able to successfully dodge every attack, and so he was able to dodge hers as well. Yet neither gained or lost ground. They moved as if in timing, predicting each others move, they all watched in amazement, as even Aragorn, began to wonder, if this girl would continue to battle in such way. She never stopped, and she was fearless. They battled for a half hour, sometimes they both lost their swords, yet they were able to block each other's punches, and kicks. Aragorn and Dawn were now in a real battle, aiming to bring each other down. However, unlike Dawn, Aragorn was well, and had no wounds, or distractions. He thought more than once using these against her, and finally decided upon after the battle had been going on for more than an hour. He had his sword and Dawn was now using a rather thick branch to swing at him. He swung a kick, and she blocked leaving her left side wide open, where he kicked again. She groaned in pain, clutched her side, and then with some effort, ripped her sword out the ground and did a truly weird thing, But Dawn had done exactly what any other teenager did when they were scared, the same thing that Buffy would have done, and she climbed a tree. On second thought, it was a good thing to do, the higher she climbed the sun would rather hide her. She looked down to see him looking into the trees.

But she could see him, she walked on branches able to steady them with her light weight, and she saw him prepared for her, she looked at her side quickly, it was lightly bleeding, but that wound hurt like a bitch, it was so deep it had hit two of her muscles, and shit the scab that covered it, well it wasn't really that great of a scab to begin with but still. Something whistled past her ear, what the hell? That didn't come from Aragorn's direction, plus he was still standing ready and prepared, then another flew past her, where were these thing coming from? She stood up and looked there stood something small, balancing itself on a branch; it was aiming directly at her. She grabbed her sword and watched, as a second person appeared, what the hell? An arrow struck her shoulder,

"DAMN YOU!" she screamed unintentionally, and she ripped the lodged arrow out of her shoulder, she grabbed her sword and then began to climb the treetops, heading towards them. They kept shooting at her, she began to walk slowly as they more began to appear, and there were now six of these damn things. They never moved from where they stood, and she kept climbing towards them.

Aragorn waited he knew she would jump down tackling him and leaving him off guard, so he waited for that moment, where he would pull out his dagger, and win the fight. Yet she did not come down instead there was a scream of words, a rustle of branches, and he called for her, yet she did not answer. Dawn rushed towards those damn and then she was about maybe 30 feet away and they were gone. She stopped and looked at her wound, she wasn't bleeding anymore, and there wasn't even a wound. She turned back and from a distance, she could see Legolas, and Haldir and some other elves scaling trees, but she turned her head and looked 30 feet away from her, they were gone.

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Okay A.) I would like to thank all my reviewers, well not so many as of late, but I got some well-deserved criticism from someone. I would like to thank them for pointing out missing links in the story, but I cannot answer them all, they will be revealed in due time. Although this idea has been done a thousands times in crossovers, I did it simply to help build up my second book. I need an editor I know the story is unbelievably grammatically incorrect, I know, but I am making harsh attempts as I can, although they prove futile. Therefore, if you want to volunteer, send me a review, I get all my reviews through e-mail, or just e-mail me, as some of you already do. Also for said reviewer thank-you for pointing out what language they spoke in Middle-Earth, I actually reedited the language part to clear up the confusion. In addition, the italicized words are Dawn's thoughts. B.) All will be revealed in due time, I'm working on it, the sequel is pissing me off, and I think we have the beginnings of a writers block. So please I need an editor, thanks and as always R&R!