Out of Reality: Part V
by Alexandra
-----

Adalia dropped her bags on the floor as she stepped into what might always be her room. She couldn’t stand the fact that she might never watch another movie, or get to drive a car again. She could never laugh again at the crude pictures some of her friends would send her over the Internet, or smile at the greeting cards that would pop up in her inbox.

Adalia stopped and stared at the mirror. She had just named nearly everything electronic in her life. She was so consumed by the technology that she had hardly stopped to think about anything else. Maybe she was stuck in Mirkwood for a reason.

She shook her head and opened the doors to her balcony. No matter what reason she was left here, she was lost, and alone. And above all scared. She sat down on the balcony and looked out at the trees, the wind bringing tears to her eyes. Though after a few minutes, Adalia couldn’t be sure if her tears were because of the wind of because she was crying.

She started to softly sing a song that came to her mind, something that her mother used to sing to her when she was a child. The sound of something so familiar made her feel calmer. Adalia didn’t know how long she sat there, just staring blankly into the forest. When a knock sounded at the door, she didn’t even turn her head.

Legolas let himself into Adalia’s room after not receiving an answer to his knock. He glanced around and found her sitting on the balcony. He had been speaking with his father for the past few hours and he wondered how long she had been sitting there. He heard her voice, softly singing a tune that he did not know.

Walking over to her, Legolas crouched down in front of Adalia. “What are you doing, my lindor?”

Adalia glared at him for a moment, but then closed her eyes. “I’m not your anything. And if you are so stupid that you can’t see for yourself, than I don’t think I should answer you.”

Legolas was taken aback by her harsh response. He had thought that they were at least on decent terms. Of course, she had just found out that she couldn’t go home. That would put him on edge as well. He reached out to touch her bare arm, but recoiled from the feeling of her ice-cold skin.

“Adalia, how long have you been sitting out here? You are freezing. Come on lindor, inside.” He pulled her to her feet and led her into the room. Legolas closed the doors behind them and then turned to look at her.

She sat on the bed, a blank look on her face. Her eyes were unseeing, not focusing on anything. He sighed and pulled back the covers of her bed. “Why don’t you rest Adalia?”

She blinked and looked up at him. “What difference will it make? Nothing will change while I am asleep.”

Legolas sighed and slightly smiled. “Cormlle naa tanya tel’raa.”

“What does that mean?” she asked as she slowly kicked off her sneakers and lay down.

“Your heart is that of the lion,” he answered. “You do not like being in a situation that you cannot control, lindor.”

“Why do you keep calling me lindor?” she asked as she yawned and pulled the covers over herself.

“I shall tell you later.” Legolas kicked her odd shoes to the side of the room and then went to the door.

“Elfo estupido,” Adalia muttered at his back, and Legolas smiled. He chuckled as he left the room, closing the door quietly behind him.

---

Thranduil sighed and looked at his son. “What is so different about this tree?” Legolas shrugged. “Appearance wise, it is nothing different, just a simple beech tree. But the song it sings is different. It speaks of things I do not know. It tells of dark times.”

The Elvenking stood up and walked to the window. He could hear the song of the trees from where he stood, cheerful and peaceful. “What of Adalia?”

Legolas briefly closed his eyes, remembering her blank stare. “She is confused. When she reached out, nothing happened. She did not return to her own world. Adalia wants to go home, but she is no longer sure that she can. At the moment, she is resting.”

“How different do you think her world is?”

“Very different,” answered Legolas. “She is unlike any human I have come across in my time.”

Thranduil turned and looked at Legolas. “If we cannot send her back, maybe we should send her to live in Gondor with King Elessar. But that time has not yet come. We shall think this over for now. You need rest Legolas. Go to your chambers and continue to keep watch over Adalia. She probably needs someone with her in these times.”

Legolas bowed and left his father. He went to his own chambers, but not without a heavily weighed mind.

---

When Legolas rose the next morning, he looked outside to see a beautiful day. He smiled and quickly dressed then left his room. He knew Gimli would most likely still be asleep, so he didn’t bother to check on the dwarf. Instead, he went straight to Adalia’s room.

Legolas knocked softly and went into her room. She was still asleep, though he could clearly see tear tracks on her face. He walked over to the balcony doors and opened them, letting the fresh air into the room.

“Go away,” muttered Adalia, pulling the covers over her head.

“I don’t think so. Get out of bed lindor.” He pulled at the covers, but she held them tightly over her head.

“There is no point in getting up,” she said, her voice muffled. “And what does lindor mean? You said you’d tell me.”

“I shall tell you once you are up and dressed,” said Legolas.

“Not worth it.”

The elf rolled his eyes. “Get up anyway. I am going to show you some of the places of Mirkwood. You can tell me of your world as we go along. And I would also like you to explain some of these things that you have in your bag.”

Adalia sighed and threw the covers off of her. “Fine. Do you have any durable clothes in here? My jeans are getting filthy.”

Legolas moved over to one of the dressers and pulled out a drawer that was filled with leggings and tunics. “I’ll meet you in the hall in several minutes after I go and wake Gimli.”

Adalia watched him leave the room and then sighed. She should stop feeling sorry for herself and do as he said. She might even enjoy herself on the hike.

---

“This is really starting to suck,” complained Adalia as she climbed over a particularly large rock. She groaned as her foot slipped on a piece of moss and she landed on the ground less than gracefully. “Why you people find joy in hiking I don’t understand.”

Legolas and Gimli both smiled from their spot ahead of her. “Come on. Just up ahead there is the clearing. We can rest there.”

“You said that a half hour ago,” whined Adalia as she pulled herself to her feet, her backpack weighing heavily on her shoulders. Nonetheless, she followed the two, breathing a sigh of relief when they came into the clearing where a brook ran through the middle.

She dropped her bag and then lay on the ground in exhaustion. She was used to sitting at a desk most of the day and simply looking at the outside. The last time she had effectively experienced nature was when she was a kid.

“Why don’t you tell me of the things in your bag, if you insist on sitting down,” said Legolas as he and Gimli sat opposite her.

Adalia sighed and sat up, leaning against a tree as she opened her bag. She looked briefly at both the elf and dwarf that were watching her curiously. Their curiosity grew as Adalia explained each thing to them. Her CD player, cell phone, and palm pilot interested them the most. They were also amused by the fact that she had a chessboard in her bag.

“Do you normally carry these things around with you?” asked Gimli as he held up one of the white pieces.

“No. I was going to head over to my friend’s house after work, so I brought all the stuff that I needed with me. Normally I just bring a briefcase.”

“What do you do at work?” asked Legolas as he held the palm pilot in his hand.

“I design computer software,” she answered. When both the elf and dwarf stared at her, she shrugged. “You don’t have computers here. I could never explain it to you. Let’s just say that my job doesn’t allow me to go and be among nature very often.”

They both looked alarmed at the thought of being held captive inside. “So this thing that you call technology,” began Legolas. “It is everywhere in your world?”

Adalia nodded. “It’s in everything, especially our weapons. You know the gun that I had and used against those horrible spiders? One shot from that in the right place could mean instant death to anyone. You guys use bow and arrows. To us, weapons like that are ineffective and take too much time. My people have a habit of aiming for the most destructive thing.”

“These guns you speak of, do most people own them?” asked Gimli.

“Unfortunately. The guns are the least of the problems though. My world is always at war. I can’t truly think of a time when the whole world was at peace. It doesn’t happen. Instead, our people think up the worst weapons, weapons that can kill millions in an instant. And they do exist in my world. It’s not a matter of who is more skilled at battle. It’s a matter of who can press a button the fastest.”

The elf and dwarf sat in silence for a second. “You were right,” stated Legolas. “When you said that my father would not want to visit your world. For it is a harsh place. Why them, do you wish to return?”

Adalia looked at them, a small smile tugging at the sides of her mouth. “Even though I live in a hostile world, there are many beautiful things there. I could never leave my family behind. Or my friends for that matter. It’s a cruel world, but when the ones that you love are around you, all that seems to be in the background.”

“Do you have a husband in your world?” asked Legolas.

Adalia laughed. “No way. In my world, most guys tend to be asses. The last relationship that I had ended when my boyfriend cheated on me.”

“Is that a common thing for you?” asked Gimli, surprised.

Adalia shrugged. “It happens to most people at one point or another. Either way, men are a nuisance more often than not. And after my lovely experience, I’ve decided that they aren’t worth my time.”

“Well then, why are you sitting here with us?” asked Legolas with a grin.

“Because you aren’t a man,” replied Adalia, smiling. “You are an elf and a dwarf. Both of which have more sense than any person I have ever dated. Why don’t we talk about something else? This is depressing.”

They gladly changed the subject. “Why don’t you explain this game of chess to me,” said Gimli as he pulled out the board again. “Is this supposed to be a fun game?”

“To most it is,” explained Adalia. “At least I find it to be fun. It’s a very intellectual game, and some people just don’t understand it. I’ll try and teach you though.” She soon launched into a description of each piece and game play that lasted for quite a while. At one point, Legolas looked up and saw the sun beginning to set.

“I think that it is time that we begin to head back,” he said, standing up.

“Does that mean we have to start hiking again?” asked Adalia with a grimace.

The elven prince laughed. “Yes, I am afraid it does. We will go slowly so you can keep up with us.”

Adalia’s eyes narrowed and she stood up. She slung her bag over her shoulder and pushed Legolas out of her way. “Keep up indeed! I think I’ll be in the lead! At least for the first five minutes.”

The two laughed and Gimli went ahead of them, Legolas bringing up the rear. “Adalia, have you thought about what you would do if you could not return to your world?”

She stirred uncomfortably next to him. “The thought has crossed my mind, but it’s not something that I would like to think about. I still know next to nothing about this place. I mean, do you have other countries here or something? Are there even humans here?”

“Yes, in fact I am great friends with the King Elessar in the realm of Gondor.”

“There may be humans here, but I’m sure they’re different from anyone that I know. I simply have no idea as to what I’m going to do.” They walked in silence for a few minutes before she remembered something. “You never told me what lindor means. Am I going to have to beat it our of you?”

Legolas laughed at her threat. “Well, in order to escape punishment, I shall tell you. It means songbird. When I came into your room the other day and heard you singing, you sounded simply like one of the songbirds that can be found within Mirkwood.”

Adalia smiled. “Well, I guess it’s a better name than foul one.” They both laughed as they continued to walk along the path.


| Part VI |
| Index |