You would not believe the frustration this chapter has been. I have almost four different versions, so this is definitely one I will be revising in the break I have coming up. Sorry for the crappy representation of a certain character, but I haven't missed a self-imposed deadline yet, and I don't want to. The time i would have spent practicing and researching his dialogue was spent writing and rewriting this chapter. and the pacing really sucks, just in case you tought i had missed that.

"We are almost there." Aragorn said. "We will see Rivendell in the hour."

Before they reached it, a scouting party of elves had found them. Ian looked at the fair, tall, long haired men. And they stared back at him. Their leader was speaking in another language to Halbarad about Rosaria, but there were four or five others who stood around, staring at the teens.

"Are they just going to look at us the whole time?" Kyle asked Ian, in a low voice.

"No," said one with silver hair, pulled to the side in a smooth braid. The two boys turned their shocked expressions quickly towards him. "We were wondering what language you spoke, and if you would understand us."

Tessa, who had a thing for languages and dialects, noticed the emphasis he put on his "r"s. And the accent he had was neither British or Australian, but somewhere in between.

The tall elf who had spoken walked towards them. Tessa stood up from the log she was on, slipping on a patch of damp leaves. Before Kyle or Ian could react, the elf had reached her and steadied her with a graceful hand.

In his hand, he could feel her bony elbow, cold beneath her grey, baggy sweatshirt. Curiously, he pushed the sleeve up and looked at her arm. It was thin and beautiful, but it looked ashy and starved.

He turned to the others and said in elvish "These children are starving. We must get them to Imladris now."

The elves and rangers led the weary travelers through the last leg of their journey. Rosaria was taken to the healers, although there was some discussion between the elves and Tessa whether she needed to be looked after.

Kyle and Aragorn sat on a patio in the morning, waiting for any news of Rosaria. Kyle had just recounted the story of how he had arrived in the forest and the encounter with the two rangers. Aragorn tried as hard as he could to wait until his new friend had finished before asking questions, but he had to ask.

"What is the place that you came from? Bigfork, Montana?"

Kyle kind of laughed at the boy's stilted pronunciation of such an insignificant township. "It's just a little town, more like a group of houses," he tried to explain. "Maybe it's like a village, with a little market square and a few buildings, but nothing major."

"And you told me you are all from the same country?"

"Yeah, I'm from the northwest, Ian is from a big city on the east coast, Rosaria is from the south, I think. And Spencer is from the west coast, in a small town like me. I don't know where Tessa is from, she might be Canadian." Kyle said.

"Canadian?" Aragorn repeated.

"Yeah, that's the country to the north of us."

"And you all speak the same language and fight under the same banner?"

"Well," he stalled, thinking of the fights he had seen in congress over the television. "Well, they are all under the same flag when they fight with each other," he said with a bitter laugh.

Tessa walked in and leaned against one of the pillars. "What are you talking about?" she asked the boys.

"I was telling him about America." Kyle said. "By the way, where are you from?"

"I'm from Arkansas, but we moved to Indiana a few years ago. Why?"

Kyle shrugged, "Just wondering."

"Anyway, breakfast is ready, if you wanted to know."

"I'm coming!" said Kyle enthusiastically.

Aragorn rolled his eyes at the boys love for eating the elves food and followed them down to the pavilion they ate dinner at. It was in a grassy clearing, with a long stone table and chairs a little too large for any of the newcomers, except Ian. Spencer had to sit at the very edge to get his feet to touch the edge.

Since dinner the previous night, Spencer had been more talkative, although it seemed that he wasn't the most social boy under normal circumstances. He liked it when some of the elves would sing and dance around. Their presence and carefree faces calmed him down.

Tessa seemed frightened of the elves, no matter how much Aragorn told her there was nothing to be frightened of. She had been a little more comfortable when they gave her a long sleeved dress to exchange for her sweatshirt and shorts, but avoided them as much as possible, staying in her room almost constantly.

As the group got settled, and Ian was shushed a few times, they began eating. Aragorn ate with them, but Halithir and Halbarad were off somewhere else in the city.

Through a mouthful, Ian asked Kyle, "Have you heard anything about Rosaria?"

Kyle shook his head, "No, not yet."

"She will be fine. The elves are very skilled healers." Aragorn said.

"I'm sure you're right," said Kyle, "But I'm still worried. And not just about her. People don't just randomly appear in a different world. Something is wrong."

"Quite true, young man," a powerful voice said. "I came to tell you that your friend Rosaria is awake, and will be ready to see you all later today, however, we do need to discuss your unexpected arrival."

"What about it?" Tessa asked. "We don't know anything about it."

Although her tone was fairly well-mannered, Aragorn was shocked at such a lack of propriety.

"Tessa," Aragorn said. "This is Lord Elrond of Rivendell."

"Aragorn, it is quite obvious that this young girl meant no disrespect. I doubt there is much culture we share, based on the clothing you have come to us wearing." Elrond said. "I believe you do not know how you arrived here, but I wanted to ask for any information you remember of arriving here."

"We all just fell asleep where we were, like getting knocked out, but when we woke up we were here." Ian said.

"Well then I can see-"

"Actually." Kyle interrupted. "I didn't pass out. Well, not at first." He looked at his friends and continued telling Elrond what he had seen and felt as the light had fought with him, bringing him to the forest, where he found Rosaria.

"I will have to consult with others of my kind, but for now, I believe you were brought here for a good purpose, not by any evil designs." He said. "Please, enjoy the comfort of Imladris. We will discuss your fate at a later date."

And the half-elf walked gracefully away.