Days went by. It had been a week since my break down at the news that I was to be stuck in Middle Earth. I grieved, but I was determined to keep my mind off of the subject as much as I could. I decided to live my life to the fullest, focusing myself on the blessings I had. Having new friends that supported me helped a lot and I started to see that Middle Earth wasn't really so bad.

In fact, this world was quite beautiful.

Arwen had become the girly girlfriend that I much appreciate to have, and somehow I see her motherly side more and more these days–which I was so grateful for.

I and Legolas met every day at the garden, somehow it became our favorite hanging out spot together. He told me a lot about his home. I secretly enjoyed watching his face when he talked about the trees in Mirkwood. He was so passionate and he loved nature so much. Everything about him was so nurturing, calm and lively.

I thought about us as humans on Earth. All that we care about was how to take and exploit more. We destroyed and razed life around us just so we can get more. The Earth suffered so much in our hands and our technology. We were greedy.

Elves were nothing like that. They took pleasure and honor in nurturing the nature, keeping things alive and lead a simple life. Legolas didn't need to tell me, but even a crown prince like him had the utmost respect for life and living things. It was humbling and utterly charming.

We were quickly becoming close friends and I learned more and more about him, and him about me. Suddenly he was no longer this intimidating, cold and mysterious elf. He was this warm, caring and sincere person. I was and still is a shy person, yet now it was easier to talk to him.

The case was almost similar with Aragorn. While with Legolas I could be more playful, I found Aragorn as someone I really look up to, like the older brother I have never had. The ranger wasn't one to talk much or joke a lot, but it was easy to confide in him and seek for advice.

For some reason both Aragorn and Legolas understood that I was reluctant to talk about my family and I was grateful that they never pressed me on that subject.

I also got the chance to befriend the hobbits. Frodo, small and shy with the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen; Sam, loyal, gentle and sweet; Merry, pleasant, witty and intelligent; and Pippin, funny, mischievous and the most child-like between the four. Bilbo Baggins on the other hand, was old, wise and pleasant to talk to, had amazing stories to share and I marveled at how brave the hobbit was. He also loved the stories I told him and the young hobbits at our tea time, which consists of Disney’s fairytale that ranged between Snow White, Cinderella, Ariel, Beauty and the Beast, Hansel and Gretel, Sleeping Beauty and Rapunzel. I considered telling them about Harry Potter, but the fact that it might be too dark and too long for them discouraged me.

I succeeded on having small talks with Boromir once in a while. I put an effort to suppress that lump in my throat every time I remember about his fate and focused on the fact that he was now breathing, well and smiling. From all the to-be Fellowship members, Boromir surprised me the most. He was quite a gentleman and was very pleasant, unlike what I originally expected. He wasn't judgy, tough or arrogant. I blamed the movie for that prejudice.

I managed to befriend Gimli and his fellow dwarves too. I was so nervous at first at how to approach him, since I didn’t really get his trait from the movie I once watched, and the fact that I’ve been hanging out a lot with Legolas made him hesitant and suspicious at first, but we warmed up pretty well at the topic of food. Not long after he started calling me ‘lassie’, and I knew right then that we would get along just fine.

When Legolas wasn't around, Gimli appeared to be less guarded, and I noticed how he always went out of his way to make me laugh or smile. It was sweet really. The elf mentioned earlier unsurprisingly avoided me like a plague every time I was with Gimli, and likewise Gimli to me every time I was with Legolas.

This was gonna be a challenge.

I made it my mission to try and made those two forget about their differences. I once convinced Legolas to sit with me and Gimli at the same table by using my pout (somehow it worked) at Legolas, but not five minutes passed till they attack each other with offensive words such as:

“Let him go, lassie!" he cried angrily, "Let the spoiled, arrogant elf-princeling go and sulk by himself!”

“Good point, dwarf," Legolas answered acidly, "What was I thinking sitting in the same table as a poor-mannered and loud dwarf such as you? My eardrums might burst if I sit here any longer.”

Gimli’s comment was delivered in a demeaning and angry tone, while Legolas’ was sharp and venomous. Everybody who sat at the table (and the other table) were baffled by their argument. One time Legolas left the table without even acknowledging me, while shortly after that Gimli declared that the elf had made him lost his appetite and left (despite the fact that his salted pork was still untouched). I tried to say something to the dwarf too but he left with a fume and not even bothered to look back.

I threw my hands in the air with frustration and disbelief, complaining to the rest of my friends who looked at me with sympathy.

“Why do I even bother?” I complained, demanding answer from Aragorn, the hobbits and the elves present in the table. “Why the hell can’t they just get along? How long has it been since their kinds' dispute in Mirkwood? What, wasn’t it around sixty years? It was sixty years ago!”

“Judging by the elf’s lifespan and the dwarf’s ego, it might as well just feel like six weeks to them in our time span,” offered Boromir with a sympathetic smile.

“Why are you so determined to get them along anyway?” chirped Merry as he chewed his pork while trying to understand why I even bothered.

“Because they’re my friends!” I told him matter of factly. I turned to look at them all, “Why can’t they get along like you guys?”

“Believe me. I tried to get them to. But to no avail,” said Aragorn, “They both are too headstrong.”

The fact that they were going to be stuck together in a dangerous quest yet to come was my biggest concern. I’ve decided that waiting for them to be friends naturally was unbearably too long and I wasn’t gonna wait that long for it. I concluded that speeding up that process wouldn’t hurt. Who knows, maybe me being their mediator was one of the role I supposed to work on in this whole thing.

But now, I wasn’t so sure.

I ended up giving up trying after that incident at the dining hall. I was relieved that neither Legolas nor Gimli was mad at me because of their quarrel. They both simply loathed each other and told me that I unluckily got caught up in the middle.

I spent a lot of my spare time thinking about whether or not I should join the Fellowship when the time comes. Unable to make up my mind and make a decision, I opted to assume that I was going to join them. That meant I needed to prepare myself physically and mentally for the most dangerous and most impossible quest in my entire life.

Elladan and Elrohir were pleased that I came to them one morning while they were sparring and asked them to teach me to wield a sword. I ended up meeting them late at noon everyday to learn to fight with a sword.

This arrangement of course not without a downside. I ended up being their mischief and shenanigans victim every single day. Despite that, they both were good teachers and I could feel myself getting a hang of it better with every session.

The twins taught me to calm my nerves and not let the fear overcome me but to use it to my advantage in battle. I began to notice my reflexes getting better as Elrohir and Elladan  would charge at me at some unexpected moments to teach me better to control my fight and flight response.

I was contemplating for several days whether or not to ask Legolas if he could teach me to wield bow and arrow, but Legolas beat me to it, offering me to learn archery with him in which I was more than willing to accept.

We did archery about one hour after lunch every day, except on those days when he was needed somewhere else. Archery was frustrating, but Legolas was very patient and gentle with me. He even told me that I was a fast learner which I was grateful for, despite how bad I really was at it.

“Do not give up, Leane. You’re doing really well for a very short time. Remember that I had hundreds of years of practice to get to where I am right now,” he said comfortingly.

He was right, but still. He could shoot two moving targets with two arrows with ease and grace at the same time, for God’s sake. Me? I could barely hit my target.

Seeing I was determined to learn how to fight, Aragorn also offered his help to teach me how to wield and throw blades. Legolas and Aragorn both knew that I was quite helpless at defending myself considering our first time meeting, and now that they warmed up to me, they felt a sense of protectiveness over me.

I playfully joked at them about it, but the idea of me becoming Orc’s dinner the next time I got stranded in a forest again was not quite entertaining for them.

I laughed at the memory of their sour and dark expression at my joke, though I realized that I might not be laughing if I was ever in a real life Orc’s dinner situation.

Soon, my schedule everyday was packed with fighting lessons from the best teachers available in Middle Earth. Almost every day I woke up with ache all over my body– my arms, my thighs and legs from the fighting lessons. But as time went by, my body started to adapt and the discomfort slowly disappeared as my strength and stamina build up.