Chapter 3

Her intuition was telling her something big was about to happen, and it was driving her nuts! She knew she should remember but she couldn't! As she walked back the way she came to the dining hall, her mind was racing. She was torn from her thoughts though by a gruff voice, "Where's the meat?" She looked up as she entered the dining hall and saw four dwarves. Or really short and hairy men, but either way they stuck out like a sore thumb. She noticed that they were at lease a foot shorter than her though she had a feeling they could throw her pretty far if they wanted to.

One of the elves who seemed to be taking empty plates and trays back to the kitchen approached him, "Master Dwarf, forgive me, but Elves to not frequently indulge in meats."

The dwarves all looked at the elf like he had three eyes and an uncomfortable silence built over a few seconds. Samantha became curious and decided to walk over, "When do you guys eat meat?" It had been a thought in the back of her mind. She didn't see a single piece of meat and had thought that maybe they were vegetarian. They had cheeses, so obviously they either traded for it or had livestock somewhere, right?

The elf smiled at her curiosity, "Here in Imladris the consumption of meat is saved for holidays and other special occasions. We feel that we gain more from the animal if we allow them to live their lives. After all, a single goat can offer us milk for years before it passes, killing a young goat for the meat is seen by some elves to be wasteful." He bowed, "I should be on my way, Miss."

The elf walked away and seemed to walk back to what she assumed was the kitchen. What he said made logical sense, but Samantha have to admit, she loved herself a steak. She was taken out of her thoughts by one of the dwarves, "What is a human lass like you doing here?"

She jumped a little bit and looked at the four of them. They probably didn't mean it, but it came out really intimidating. Three of them seemed to be well aged and the one looked like the equivalent of a man in his late 30's. She knew though that like elves, dwarves lived an extended life, but were not immortal.

She rubbed the back of her head, "I honestly don't know..."

"What do you mean you don't know?" The redhead asked.

"Well, I was found in the surrounding forest by an elf. I have no idea how I got there though. Last I remember I was falling asleep at home and when I wake up, I'm lost." Samantha hoped they wouldn't ask her much more about her home after that.

One of the older dwarves motioned for her to sit down and she did so politely, not like she had anything else to do, right? "What's your name, lass?"

"Samantha."

"Well, Samantha, the name's Gloin, and this is my son Gimli. And over here we have Flic and Thesomri." Samantha smiled in greeting. She sat with them for a while and talked with the three of them. Three, because Flic wasn't really interested in the conversation and was stuffing his face with a plate of cheese. Gloin told her the story of how him and his company had been here 60 years prior, and that lead to her hearing about the story of The Hobbit, but from Gloin's perspective. She thought it was fascinating hearing about the trolls and goblins and about the trip through Mirkwood. She had to wonder if Mirkwood was still so murky after all this time.

After the story Gloin shared the topic changed to the lack of alcohol and wine. They asked her about the food from her homeland and she told them it was pretty similar to here, but with a much wider variety. She told them that they had markets where they could have food from any season. She could have fresh strawberries in the middle of winter. This fascinated them, but instead of wanting to know how, they wanted to know about what kind of meats were available at the market. Once again it was a massive selection. You could get beef, chicken, pork, you could even get a container filled with just chicken feet if you wanted.

Before long, she was being told about the different ways the dwarves prepared meat and wine for a feast in their homeland. Apparently that night there was going to be a welcome feast for all of the new comers who were here for a council the next day.

"What council?"

"You don't know, las?" Gimli began, "That's why we are here, to speak with Lord Elrond and his council."

"Okay, but what about? Since your home is so far away it must be very important."

"Aye, we be discussing the future of Middle Earth." His father kicked him under the table and Gimli cursed. Gloin looked at his son in disapproval.

Her head started to hurt a little bit, this was all very familiar. She should know why the council was meeting, right? "I think I'm gonna go walk around for a while and stretch my legs." She said while standing and giving them a smile, "It was nice to meet all of you."

They all said their goodbyes as she turned and walked off into one of the gardens. She thought it had to be a few hours past noon. That's what it felt like to her. Since there wasn't much of anything else to do, and she had a small headache she decided to take a look around.

The garden was beautiful. There were all sorts of flowers of many colors and sizes. She followed the path for a while and found her way down to a river. The water was calm and the shore was full of rocks. She got down and picked some up, nearly all of them were perfect for skipping. She decided to take her shoes off and fold the bottom of the dress up to her knees and tie it to make it stay. Kind of like how some girls she knew from high school tied their t-shirts. Her feet touched the water and it was nice and cool. She picked up a few rocks and started skipping them to see how far she could get them.

It reminded her of going camping with her uncle, brothers and cousins. Her uncle would take them camping every summer when they were little and they would play in the lake and skip rocks. She remembered how they would roast marshmallows and how her uncle dared her little brother to take a bite of a raw cob of corn. How he found a ripped apart and abandoned laptop and threw it in the fire and watched the bright blue and purple flames… not good for the environment at all, but oh well. She was kind of sick of nature by the time she would get home, mom and dad were always there when she got back.

Just the thought of her parents made my throat tighten. The thought of never seeing them again hurt more than anything. Before coming here even the thought of them dying was enough to make her want to cry. She had probably been skipping rocks and thinking about home for a little over an hour when she heard a familiar voice, "Samantha?"

She turned and Legolas was standing on the shore next to her abandoned shoes. "Hello, what's up?"

He gave her a strange look. She was learning that she had an odd way of speaking compared to everyone else. She would have to work on that a little. "I was wondering where you had gone. Lord Elrond has asked me to keep watch over you for the time being."

She turned back around and began picking up a few more rocks from the shallow water. Like a babysitter? She wasn't sure how she felt about Elrond wanting her to be watched all the time… but if Legolas did it, it wasn't so bad. He was a nice piece of eye candy. Well, all elves were, but Legolas had something about him that was more wild. Maybe because he was a wood elf and not a high elf.

As she was bending down he asked, "What are you doing?"

"Skipping rocks," She stood up and turned her head, "have you never done it before?"

"The thought has never crossed my mind." He told her honestly.

She gawked at him. "You're how old and have never skipped a rock?" Ignoring the surprised look on his face she walked up to him on the shore and handed him one of the rocks from her hand. He looked at it for a second before taking it awkwardly from her hand. She moved to stand next to him, "I'll show you. Hold the rock in your hand like this." She held the rock in her hand and he copied her and watched her with calculating eyes.

"And throw it like this," and she threw the rock, making it skip three times before it sank. She would have told him to throw it like a Frisbee, but she had a hunch he had no idea what that was.

She watched him as he took the rock and threw it just like she had done and the rock just made a big splash and sank. She picked up another rock and gave it to him, "You need to throw it like a saucer. Make it spin as you release it." He did it again and this time was able to make the rock skip once. "Good job!" She smacked him on the back and he turned and looked at her, surprise etched on his flawless features.

No one had ever been physical with him like that before. Friendly claps on the back and informal talk, only Aragorn came close. He watched her in astonishment for a moment and thought about how different she was from a normal woman. Human, elf or otherwise.

"Thank you. How long have you been doing this for?" he asked.

Shrugging she stated, "A while, I'm not really sure how to tell time here."

He nodded his head and looked back at her, "There is a few hours until the evening meal, is there anything you want to see?"

"Well..." She began, "I already feel like I've seen so much since coming here." She thought for a moment and then she suddenly remembered something. "So, is it true that Imladris has animals? Like goats?"

He nodded.

She put her hand on her cheek and gave him a small smile, "Can we go see them?"

Silence.

"You want to see goats?"

Silence.

"Is there a problem with that?"

More silence.

"No." he stated simply, "it's just I didn't think a young woman like yourself would want to go see farm animals."

She shrugged, "Well, back home I don't get to see farm animals too much. Mostly dogs and cats. I have always enjoyed playing with animals though."

He nodded, "It isn't that far, come." He turned and walked a few steps while she had a huge grin on her face and hurried to put her shoes on. Legolas watched her, 'Strange woman indeed,' he thought.

They walked to the barn and when they got there it reminded her of every other barn that she had been in, only it wasn't the stereotypical big red barn. It had a flat roof and was made of stone, like most of the buildings there. The smell was familiar as well, only it wasn't so strong. The barnyard smell didn't punch her in the face when they walked in. Elves took pride in everything it would seem.

When she spotted a goat, she gasped and went up to it. She bent down and held her hand out for the little animal to sniff. When its little nose sniffed her fingers and it started licking her hand she swooned. "You are so adorable!" She said while giving the animal pets and rubs all over its back and head. "Are you gonna pet her, Legolas?" She looked up at him, inviting him to join.

He didn't say anything as he walked up and slowly ran his large hands over the animal. The goat made its signature sound, making Samantha swoon even more. As she gave the goat more attention for being so overwhelmingly adorable she noticed that Legolas was looking at her. The look on his face reminded her of the one time when she had no idea what to do on a math problem.

Indeed, he was looking at her like a complex math problem. He had never seen a woman fawn over animals in such a way. There were indeed women who love animals, but he had to admit, the way Samantha swooned over the simple goat was endearing.

She was gonna ask him if he was alright but she heard another goat make an adorable sound and she looked over, in one of the stalls was a baby goat! Maybe only a few weeks old. She thought that the one they were petting was mama and that was baby. She couldn't help herself and slowly walked toward the baby. She looked back at the mama to see it she was gonna ram her or not, but she seemed cool with it. The baby made another noise and she moved to pick him up. He didn't put up much of a fight, just made a sound like he was surprised.

She moved back over to Legolas and the mama and sat down on the ground. She didn't really care about getting her dress dirty, she could always change, right?

"Isn't he cute?" She asked Legolas as she snuggled the little kid. She rubbed his head and neck and he made a noise that seemed to sound as if he really enjoyed it.

Legolas smiled and nodded at her as he continued to absentmindedly pet the mama goat.

They stayed there for a while, maybe an hour. She played with the goats and Legolas watched, occasionally chuckling at her antics, like when the baby ran after her and she pretended to get hurt. She played with the baby kinda like it was a human baby, even though it didn't understand she was pretending, she had a blast.

After a while Legolas said it was time to go and she reluctantly nodded. She picked the baby up one more time and snuggled it. She had a feeling it would be her last time seeing the little fella. "I'm gonna miss you." she said dramatically before placing him on the ground and walking with Legolas.

"You're going to have to change." He told me simply.

She looked down at the dress and it was indeed dirty. Covered in dirt and hair and who knows what else. She clasped her hands in front of her, just below her breasts. "Yeah, I guess you are right…" she said after a long pause. "Would you mind finding Penneth for me? I'm sure there is another dress or something I can wear in my room, but I'll never be able to tie it in the back."

He nodded, "Of course."

She assured him she knew the way back to her room and Legolas left to go find Penneth. Samantha was glowing, she had never gotten to play with goats before. She was still internally swooning over the baby and how tiny and cute it was. All in all, it was a great distraction from her situation. She got to her room and Penneth had beat her there.

"Oh Heavens! Look at the dress!" She said in shock.

Samantha hung her head a little, "Sorry... Legolas and I were playing with the goats."

Penneth blinked and fell silent. Playing. With goats? What a strange girl indeed. "The prince was playing with the livestock?"

Realizing that she shouldn't have said anything she rushed, "It was mostly me, Legolas just accompanied me!" She didn't want to ruin any reputation Legolas had or anything.

Penneth smiled and waved a hand, "Do not worry so much, young one. Legolas is a sweet boy, I am sure he had his own fun too. Now lets get you out of that dress and into this one." She held up a very similar dress, only this one was red. There were no shoulders as long flowing ribbons acted as sleeves, leaving her arms essentially bear. There were also small designs in the fabric in black stitching. It was very pretty, and had a very different vibe from the one she was wearing.

Samantha fondled the red translucent sleeve, "This is much different."

"You looked so lovely in that dress, I wanted to see you in this one as well. But please, do not frolic with the goats in this one."

Samantha laughed nervously and nodded. Penneth helped her get into the dress and sent her on her way to the party, telling the girl to have fun.

She got there and she could tell the feast was a lively event. There was music, dancing and plenty of wine for everyone to enjoy. Samantha walked in and she noticed several people look at her. None of them were familiar faces though. There was a space cleared out for dancing and the melodic music made for a great beat to dance to. She walked by a table with refreshments and against her better judgment grabbed a small glass of wine. She was only 20, but she had drank before. One glass would do nothing to her.

She continued to walk around slowly sipping the wine. Men would bow to her as they passed, she found it odd, but no harm done. Eventually she spotted a very loud table with the dwarves, they seemed to be in the middle of a drinking game. Oh, she remembered those days. There was the night she had gotten black out drunk and woke up in a random dudes bed. Not her proudest moment, but college changes you. She was sure to get tested within the week, and thankfully she was on birth control. Since then, she tried not to drink to excess. That night was a very embarrassing endeavor.

Finally, she spotted Legolas, he was across the hall against the wall, speaking with a man she had not seen before. Long shaggy hair, and a grizzled beard, though when she got a look at his face, he looked familiar. Perhaps he was another important member of the story. Their talk seemed important so Samantha decided to leave them alone for now. She would talk to them later.

She decided to sit at a table toward the edge of the hall, watching everyone as they talked and danced. She tapped her foot along to the music and was just trying to enjoy the moment with some wonderful wine and music. Parties were not generally her thing, but she could at least enjoy that.

"Samantha, are you enjoying yourself?"

She looked up and smiled at Legolas. She stood to talk with him, "I'm not used to parties, but this is nice."

Legolas had seen her when she first entered the hall and he had been so distracted that Aragorn had to tap him on the shoulder to regain his attention. The blue dress looked beautiful on her, but the red held a certain allure. Throughout his and Aragorn's talk, he had kept an eye on her, making sure that nothing unsavory occurred. While they were among friends here, too much alcohol can certainly change a person. "You look radiant, Samantha." He caught himself saying.

She smiled at him and touched his arm, "Thank you, Penneth thought I looked good in this dress too." She felt heat rise to her cheeks at the compliment but she could just play it off as the alcohol. She wasn't intoxicated but she could sure pretend to be!

Legolas shook his head. It seemed she was not aware of her own beauty, with or without the dress. He would think Samantha would have been fawned over in her own homeland. To produce a woman of her liking, it had to be something to behold. His eyes looked up and he saw Aragorn watching him. Yes, their chat wasn't done yet. "I will see you in a while Samantha, I have more business to take care of. Please do try to enjoy yourself."

"But Penneth said I can't play with the goats in this dress!" She exclaimed jokingly as she giggled to herself.

Legolas smiled, "Yes, another time then."

Samantha watched him go and wondered if that had been a little too weird. But oh well. She went to go put down her drink on a table as an elf approached her with an open hand, "May I have this dance?"

She was taken aback by the offer. Usually dancing was not her thing, but this elf looked kind and she had watched the dance enough to have a basic idea of how it went. She took his hand and nodded and they walked to the dance floor. It wasn't an overly long dance and was simple. She didn't have the same grace as the elves, but she was content that she didn't make a fool of herself. When the dance was done, the elf thanked her for the opportunity and let her on her way.

'That was fun' she thought to herself as she went to go stand next to the wall away from the the party. She leaned her head back to close her eyes a little. She didn't get much sleep and was getting tired.

Suddenly she smelled alcohol and heard heavy footsteps. A man, obviously drunk walked right up to her and leaned against the wall with his hand next to her. "Hello, M'Lady. Might I say, you were stunning out there."

'...great.' She just went with it, maybe he would just leave. "Thanks."

"The dress really suits you," he said eyes looking her up and down, "What is a pretty lady like you doing alone?" His words were slightly slurred and with every word she could smell more and more alcohol on his breath.

"Waiting for someone." Maybe he would get the hint? Not likely.

The man got closer to where his face was only a foot away, "Oh? If he's making you wait he ain't worth it, Love." His hand went to sit on her waist flirtatiously and she was in so much shock she didn't move right away. "I won't make you wait." he slurred, trying to be charming.

'Nope. I'm out.'

Samantha shook off the shock and pushed him away. It was so sudden that the drunken man tumbled and fell on the floor laughing, "Oh, she's a feisty one!" He laughed as Samantha marched back in the direction of her room. What a disgusting man. And she knew he was a human, no pointy ears.

Half way to her room she heard Legolas, "Samantha!" She turned and she watched him walk up to her.

"Oh, hello, Legolas. Did you want to talk to me so badly that you chased me?" She was teasing of course and he knew it.

Legolas held his composure while he had watched the man try and make advances toward her. He saw the man place a hand on her and she pushed him away, he knew something had happened. He had left Aragorn without a word to come flag her down. He looked at her seriously, "Are you alright?"

She blinked. Did he see what happened? "I'm fine. Talking about the drunkard? He was just trying to get a little too friendly with me. Basically wanting sex, that was clear. But its fine, I pushed him off so we're good. I'm just gonna turn in for the night. Tired after everything, ya know?"

Legolas nodded, anger bubbling within his chest. How vulgar for a man to grab at a woman and ask for such a thing. Even if the man was drunk there was no excuse for that kind of behavior. It wouldn't surprise him if this sort of thing happened again. Samantha was very cute, large round eyes, a button nose and pinch-able cheeks. Not to mention her hair was beautiful and made her stick out like a sore thumb. Also, as much as he hated to admit it, he did notice her sizable bosom.

"I can escort you the rest of the way."

She smiled, "Thank you, Legolas." They walked for a while and she finally said, "I'm sorry I took you away from the man you were talking too. It seemed important."

You could call it important. They had been discussing the council and what Lord Elrond might have to speak about. Also about Gollum's escape from Mirkwood. "It is alright. They were topics we can discuss later."

The rest of the way was walked in a comfortable silence. When they came to the door, Legolas had planned on wishing her a good night but she spoke first, "I have a favor to ask you."

"Yes?"

"Well, I'm not gonna be able to get this dress off on my own, do you mind coming in and just undoing the back?" She realized that could be a little awkward, "Don't worry, you won't see anything, I just can't reach the ties in the back."

He looked at her awkwardly. He had never been asked that before. Though, Samantha seemed to have a habit of surprising him. She was like no other woman he had ever met. He was thoroughly entertained by her and her quirks. He wanted to go get Penneth, but he didn't want to have her wait for him to get her. So, he agreed.

"Thank you," she smiled. She opened the door and walked in and kicked off the slipper-like shoes.

Legolas walked in and when she turned her back to him he took it as his que to start. He took a look at the ties and quickly and swiftly undid them. He stopped and she turned and looked at him as she held the dress from falling, "Thanks. I appreciate it."

He nodded, "You're welcome. Goodnight, Samantha."

"Goodnight, Legolas."

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Edited: 5-8-2020
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Edited: 12-31-2020