A/N: A tip o' the authorial hat to Paula S. & Jillian B. (of the 'Legends of Middle Earth' yahoo group) for their beta'ing of the early parts of this story; also one to Alyx for her review. ^_^
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The Dream - Part 2
by Bex

I lay insensate for close to a full day, my body solidly there, but my spirit in anguish having fled to the deepest reaches of my being. And none of those watching over me were familiar or trusted enough so that I could be lured out, at least not until many hours had passed. After some consultation, they decided to let me be, and hope for the best.

Temeril returned to himself much more quickly, following familiar voices back to the soft candle light of evening, and a soft bed in the house of Healing. They said later that as memory of the afternoon's activities returned to him he almost leapt out of bed, wanting to be across the room, hovering over me where I lay. Only the stern countenance and a command to rest from the place's lord kept him in his place.

"I did it," he said, dazed. Then: "What did I do?" Then his eyes closed, and he slept again.

*****

In the end, I came back on my own. My first words upon awakening in Imladris were not spoken aloud. I lay, looking upwards through barely open eyes and dimly thought:

I'm not supposed to be here. Mind, I didn't know entirely where 'here' was in that moment. But I knew: this was 'wrong'.

Yet here you are, someone answered, curiosity and a dry humour intertwined in his 'voice'. Also not aloud...though I didn't notice that at the time. Will you not rest with us here then for a time while you recover?

It was a reasonable enough request.... I drifted away back into sleep, this time a more natural, healing rest. But dreamless.

*****

Once he was deemed recovered enough to leave his bed, Temeril posted himself on permanent watch-duty next to where I still slept. As Geanir the chief-Healer noted dryly, it was the least he could do. Considering what his actions had wrought.

So it was that the first face I saw upon waking again was an unfamiliar visage...yet attached to a familiar 'feel'. Snuggling to the side, I opened my eyes, and was caught in an intense gaze. Confused by the juxtaposition of impressions, I stared, frozen.

Barely restrained eagerness. Greeting, welcome, here I am, know you, know me?

I let out a strangled squeak, wanting nothing more than to dive under the covers. Somewhere nearby a sense of urgency rapidly approached, and the person staring at me shifted his attention, and I could move again. Gasping, I surged upwards, the coverlet over me jerking as I thrashed.

I froze again. It was... Going to be all right. I was safe. No danger. No need to panic.

I blinked, noticing that I was indeed clothed - a simple white gown. I glanced around me. Unfamiliar surroundings, but homey. Quiet. Calm. My mind registered clean wood, stone flagged flooring, beds, windows, cool outdoor light. I blinked again, and turned my attention to the two men whose attention, I realized, was fixed upon me.

Both were easily among the fairest men I had ever seen. An unaffected haleness, though...not one they'd obviously strived for. Both long-haired, dressed in simple robes. An odd angularity to the ears. At first glance, one might have mistaken them as being the same age. On second glance... One was fair-haired, and radiated an impression of knowledge and experience. The other was dark-haired. And the sense of excitement and eagerness, and in a way I could not fully articulate then, youth...left me with no doubt that it was he to whom I'd awakened.

And that stranger though he might look at first glance...I somehow 'knew' him.

I followed my natural first impulse. Which was to open my mouth and say, "Hello".

Which I soon learned, was a word from a language they understood not a bit.

Fortunately, they still got the gist of my meaning...that being, I later found, a handy side effect of being from a race of beings who mind-talked among themselves more often than not. They... felt my intention, as it were. As I could just barely feel theirs. Which was probably what prevented me from erupting into any screaming panic attacks that day.

My greeting had the intended effect. They both smiled. I began to relax even more. Where ever I was, it was nice. Very nice. No one was attacking me. Waiting for me. Waiting for me to wake up. Glad to see me. Curious.

I vocalized the most immediate and logical question: "Where am I?"

Safe. I was safe. They continued to exude an extremely comforting, calm friendliness, but I frowned slightly, as they continued to (as I then thought) not answer me.

"Do you understand my language?"

A slight frown momentarily marred the older man's visage. The younger one looked intently at me. I felt my trepidation return, mounting rapidly. My God, in some strange place, and I didn't even speak the language--

Temeril said later that despite Gaenir's admonishments for him to not approach me too closely, too soon, he couldn't stand the feel of my fear any further at that point, and reached forward to take my right hand in both of his.

The physical contact shocked me out of my incipient panic. I turned my head to stare at him with a combination of indignation and surprise. And the bold fellow smiled widely at me. And, mimicking my words to the best of his ability, said 'Hell-oh'.

I gawped. Then shut my mouth. "You know what I'm saying, then?" I asked.

And he somehow caught enough of the meaning behind my words. He shook his head, even as he repeated the unfamiliar word. 'Hell-oh. Hell-oh."

And I couldn't help it. I smirked momentarily at the ridiculousness of the situation. Delighted, the young man's grin widened. Cheeky.

The older man now made his own greeting, a less impudent smile gracing his lips. "Hell-oh." He nodded meaningfully, then added, "Suilad." Another nod bracketed his speech. These are the same.

I felt a rush of hope. I might not know the language, but I could learn! At least enough words to communicate the most important basics!

The smiles of the men widened. They suddenly seemed enormously pleased. I found myself sharing the emotion.

It was time, though, to employ ye olde sign language. I pulled gently at my trapped hand, and the young one let it go, his expression turned questioning. Thank God for body language.

I looked around in the most contrived manner of confusion I could, gesturing at the room around me, then looked pointedly to my companions. I shrugged in bemusement. Where? Where was I?

Sudden comprehension dawned. The older man copied my pointing. "Imladris", he said slowly in response. "Im-la-dris."

I nodded. "Imladris."

The young man laughed. Not a mocking sound, an expression of pure joy. I glanced at him, startled...then added my own smile. He pointed eagerly to himself. "Temeril".

I nodded to him politely. "Hello, Tem-er-il". He was delighted. The older man introduced himself as "Gaenir" and I greeted him in turn. I then tried to repeat my greetings using what, if I had understood correctly, was their version of 'hello'. The older man gently corrected my pronunciation, but nodded and smiled widely, apparently well pleased at my attempt at reciprocation.

Temeril pointed at me and gave me his own version of exaggerated questioning and I realized with a flush of chagrin that I'd forgotten to introduce myself. "Sarah", I said, pointing. He grinned. "Suilad, Sarah!" he said merrily. The older man greeted me similarly, adding a few as yet unknown words. Getting up, he began to cross the room, heading back to unfinished tasks, perhaps.

I slumped back on the pillows with a sigh of relief. So much progress in so little time. Maybe there was hope after all.

Of course there was hope.

Movement at the other end of the room caught my eye and I looked up. Someone new had arrived. Tall, dark-haired, robed similarly to the others, with a simple circlet adorning his head, his bearing screamed dignity and knowledge.

I sat up as straight as I could before I quite realized what I was doing. It was obvious that this was Somebody - I'd best pay attention. Beside me, Temeril stirred restlessly, and I glanced askance at him. He seemed...if I wasn't simply imagining it...suddenly subdued.

Then I caught the glance the new arrival slotted Temeril as he drew near us. And I knew without any words being spoken that Temeril was in the doghouse. In a manner of speaking. He met the newcomer's gaze momentarily, then glanced down at the floor before looking back at me.

I blinked. I was in a place where one of my first allies was in trouble with Authority. I began to watch both of them very closely indeed.

This did not go unnoticed. If it could be said that the newcomer's eyes could twinkle...they did. I found his attention upon me next. An exceedingly gracious smile he gave me, with the barest inclination of his head, as he greeted me in English, albeit with that same strange inflection. "Hell-oh, Sarah."

I was a tad non-plussed, given that he hadn't been here to participate in our impromptu little English lesson. He pointed next at himself. "Elrond i eneth nīn."

I blinked again and stared. "Elrond?" I asked. Had I heard correctly?

He tilted his head, gazing at me intently, and nodded. "Elrond."

The pieces fell into place with the mental equivalent of a dull thud. 'Imladris' I hadn't recognized earlier, but Elrond was not a name that you heard every day. Certainly not in the context of him being a real person standing in front of you.

'Elrond." I said again, this time not quite a question. Again he nodded, patient as only a being who'd lived millennia could be. Though I wasn't looking at Temeril where he was perched to my right, I could feel he was fit to burst with questions, though he knew better than to interrupt. Behind Elrond, I saw that Gaenir had drawn near again, lured towards the unfolding scene by his own curiosity.

I gestured with my arms to indicate my surroundings. "Arda", I said.

Everyone in the room nodded, startled by my sudden comprehension, my apparent grasp of the bigger picture.

I dropped my arms and looked forlornly up at them all.

"I'm not supposed to be here."

~End Part 2~