Hello to all. I know it's been quite a while since I last posted anything. Getting used to college is not easy and learning to make time for oneself is hard. This story you are about to read was inspired to me by the song "In dreams" from the Lord of the Rings soundtrack. I had heard it before, but I never actually gave heed to the meaning of the words, but this time I did and so this story was born. It will be short; three or four chapters I think. I am working on the third at the moment so very soon there will be updates. I hope you enjoy it. Comments and reviews are very welcomed since I learn how to better my writings and I see if it's worth using similar ideas in the future.

Disclaimer: Nope, I do not own Lord of the Rings nor any character from the Tolkien series.

Beta: Many thanks to Words of a Feather who has kindly been a beta for this story.

In Dreams

Chapter one

A young woman crawled towards the sound of the river. Her long, wavy, light brown hair was tangled with dirt. Her blue eyes were wary and with black marks under them. Her entire dress was stained with blood and dirt and part of its helm was torn. She had been running with an injured leg for hours, but her leg could no longer sustain her. Yet she would rather crawl than to simply give up. And so she crawled. Her arms were sore and she was exhausted, but she used the thought of cool, fresh water as both a motivation to go on as well as a relief she desperately needed. She made sure to be silent, for dangerous things lurked in the dark forest of Mirkwood. Giant spiders, wolves and other creatures would find her easy prey.

The increasing sound of the nearing river made her laugh with hope. One more push, that was all she needed. Just one more push. Finally the young woman could see the Forest River. Seeing it made her think of how deep North she had to be in the forest, but at the moment it did not matter. With new strength she pushed herself to reach the riverbank. No sooner her fingers had reached the cool water she brought her hands with water to her lips. She repeated the action several times until she decided it was not enough and she pushed herself closer to the water and submerged her head under. When she had her fill, she brought her head out and laughed merrily. She closed her eyes and laughed to the sky and thanked the gods for helping her.

When she was done with her prayer, she took off her blood soaked clothes and left the on the bank to soak. Completely bare except for a piece of cloth that was tied around her left hip where an arrow had entered, she crawled into the water. She began to float a little further into the stream. She scrubbed her entire body fervently, desperate to get the smell of blood and dirt off her skin. When she was clean she simply laid over the water, enjoying the soothing sensation of floating in her water bed.

Her eyes began to close, but she could not fall asleep on the river or she might awake to find herself in Esgaroth. When she opened her eyes she realized she had floated away from where her clothes were. She began the difficult task of swimming back with an injured leg. She was trying to make out in which direction she had to swim, when suddenly her heart seemed to stop. Her eyes widened with terror as she looked at an elf, standing on the riverbank staring at her. The woman desperately began to swim to hide her naked body behind the nearest rock.

"Do not come any closer!" she yelled from behind her hiding place.

"Do not fear. I mean you no harm," said the musical voice of the elf.

His voice was enchanting and somewhat alluring. The woman dared to peek over her hiding place to look at the elf. She held onto the rock and lifted her head so that the elf could only see her fingertips and half of her face. He was very tall, with golden hair and green eyes. He was dressed in green attire and had a bow on his back and a sword on his belt.

The elf gave the woman a gentle smile.

"I will not hurt you. Who are you?"

The woman was afraid, but something made her trust the elf enough to speak to him. Maybe it was the dire need she was in, or maybe it was his mesmerizing beauty, or perhaps it was a mixture of both. Whatever it was, it made her reply his question.

"I am Maeve," she replied shortly.

"I am Telegad. May I ask what a lady of the race of men is doing in these parts of the forest?"

"I… I am lost. My village was attacked and I ran into the forest. My people were persecuted into the forest and many were slain. I do not know how many survived."

"An orc attack is grave tidings. Where is your village?"

"It was at the western borders of the forest. It belonged to Carrock."

"I will speak with my father. He is an advisor of Kind Thranduil. He can send troops to help your village."

"There is nothing left to help. We were massacred. The houses were all burnt to the ground and more than half of the people were slain before they even made it to flee," said Maeve, dropping her head and hiding for a moment from the eyes of the elf.

"I am truly sorry for your lost."

There was a moment of silence. Maeve remained hidden behind the rocks. Telegad could still see her fingers which were holding onto the rock.

"You should not be in the water at this late hour. You will become ill. Have you anything to dress with?"

Maeve looked over the rock at the elf once more.

"I do, but it is drenched in blood. I left it to soak on the bank."

"Blood you say? Are you wounded?"

"I was shot on the leg with an arrow. The arrow is out, but the wound is still open. I tried to bind it with cloth from my dress and managed to stop the bleeding. I do not think it will mark the end of me, but I can no longer walk on that leg."

"I will help you. I have an extra clothing set I will lend you."

Telegad removed the small backpack he was carrying from his back. He rummaged through it until he found what he wanted. He pulled out a pair of trousers, a shirt and an over tunic, all which were different shades of green.

Maeve looked at Telegad but did not move. The elf sensed her thoughts and acted quickly on them.

"I shall give you your privacy. Call me when you are ready."

And with that he walked away.

When Maeve was sure that Telegad was far away, she swam back to shore. She was breathless by the time she made it to the riverbank. A while later she was ready.

"You may come out now."

A moment later Telegad appeared through the trees. Maeve remained seated close to the water. She was shivering from the cold.

"Here," said Telegad, wrapping his cloak around her.

"Thank you," she said, almost in a whisper.

"You look tired. You need to eat and rest."

"I have nowhere to go," she said shyly and with a little bit of embarrassment since she was implying that she needed to go with him.

"Worry not. I will take you with me. But it is getting late and it is not safe to travel at night. We shall find shelter for the night and travel to the city."

Without waiting for an answer from Maeve, Telegad went over to where her dress was and picked it up. He wringed it out and tied it around one of the shoulder straps of his backpack. He then walked over to where Maeve was sitting. Before she could say anything, he swept her into his arms.

Maeve's reaction was to swing her arms around Telegad's neck for safety. She felt foolish doing so but she remained like that for a while.

They had not been walking long when Maeve felt sleepy. Her head began to bobble up and down and her eyes were having a hard time staying open. She felt Telegad's lips close to her ear.

"Sleep now, Maeve," he whispered into her ear.

His warm breath was a soothing feeling and it was enough to make her let go and sleep. Her arms fell on her waist and she laid her head on his chest.

Maeve slowly opened her eyes to find herself under some sort of roof. She looked to her side where Telegad was pocking a very small fire. The elf felt her eyes on him and looked at her. He smiled and for a moment Maeve was entranced with his enchanting smile. She blinked rapidly when she managed to escape her trance and returned the smile.

"How do you fare?"

"I feel much better than before. Thank you," she said with an honest smile. "Where are we?"

"This is a bunker. There are several more hidden over the forest for elves that are caught at night while traveling. We are taught how to find them since we are elflings, in case we ever get lost. There is always a supply of wood and sometimes water, if there is a stream nearby. Once the elf leaves, he must always replace the supplies he used before leaving."

"That is a very smart thing to do. I would have liked to know that sooner, as well as how to find one of these secret bunkers. It would have been a great help," she said as she pushed herself to sit.

"You should not be up. You need rest, and time to heal."

"I need to stretch my leg is all."

Maeve could not help to cringe when she tried to extend her wounded leg. A very small whimper escaped her lips and Telegad's keen ears caught it.

"When was the last time you checked the wound?"

"When I had enough time to stop running for a moment. As soon as I was shot I ripped the arrow from my leg. I know it was a foolish thing to do, but I was not thinking at the time. It was an impulsive reaction. After that I kept running until I had a chance to stop and tend to myself. I could only clean the wound with a piece of my dress and bind it with another. After that I had to continue running since the orcs were using us for sport. They were giving some of us the time to run so they could chase and hunt us down. I still do not know how I made it out alive."

"If you wish, I could check your wound. I have healing materials, as well as experience in the healing ward. But if you prefer to wait until we reach the city, I will not be offended."

For a second Maeve thought about it. Her leg hurt much more than she wanted to let him know, yet she did not think she would be able to sleep with the pain.

"I would very much appreciate your help, Telegad."

Telegad smiled and nodded. He moved to kneel on one knee beside her. Maeve sat on her good leg. The trousers were so big on her that she could roll it up easily so that Telegad could take a look at the wound.

With extreme caution, Telegad untied the piece of cloth from around her leg and looked at the wound. The edges were dark purple and blackish and the wound itself was bright red. The arrow had not gone in too deep, but it was deep enough to cripple anyone. He was amazed at her strength and will power to continue running with it.

"How old are you, Maeve?"

"I am soon to be twenty one."

"How soon, if I may?"

Maeve was a little confused as to why he would want to know her exact age, but she decided to just answer him. "It will be sixty three days before my birthday."

"How long were you running in the woods?"

"I ran for three days and crawled for one and a half."

"You are quite strong for your young age," he said with a smile.

Maeve smiled in reply to his compliment.

After a thorough examination, Telegad brought out a few small vials and a piece of cloth.

"The wound is not infected and is already clean. This will help diminish the pain, as well as help it heal faster. This other will help it make the scar something minimum. I shall apply them now."

Maeve nodded in response.

Telegad opened one of the vials and poured a bit of a yellow liquid on her wound. Maeve hissed softly and closed her eyes. She heard Telegad open another vial and soon she felt the second liquid being poured. She cringed, but almost immediately the pain diminished considerably. She felt a warm and comforting hand on her shoulder and she opened her eyes.

Telegad offered her a gentle smile and removed him hand from her shoulder. He went over his bag and pulled out a clean bandage. Not a minute later he was done.

"Thank you. I cannot thank you enough for what you have done for me."

"Nay. You need not thank me. I am glad I found you and could offer you my help."

Maeve smiled and nodded.

"Here," said Telegad, reaching for something beside the fire. He handed her a piece of warm bread. "You need to gather your strength."

Maeve had to restrain herself from snatching the bread out of the elf's hands, yet the eager smile on her face was inevitable. Telegad smiled, amused by her. If it had been hard for Maeve to keep from snatching the bread, it was even harder to keep from swallowing it whole with one bite. She was starving, though she had not said anything before. When she took her first bite, her eyes widened with delight. The bread had honey in the center. She was touched that he had this little detail with her.

Telegad sat in front of her until she finished eating and even after she was done. He drifted off into his thoughts as he waited for her.

Maeve finished eating and she looked at the elf before her. His face was cast down and his eyes were a bit glazed as it happens when someone is deep in thoughts. A small smile was traced on his lips. Maeve took this chance to study him a bit closer. He was so tall. Even sitting he was almost two heads taller than her. The light of the small fire bounced off his golden hair, giving it a magical aspect. She looked at his face. He was so fair it almost made her feel awkward, but just almost.

Maeve continued to stare at Telegad for as long as he was in thoughts. After a while, the elf lifted his face and looked at her. He smiled and leaned over her to grab the cloak that laid aside and wrapped her with it.

"Sleep now, Maeve."

Maeve did not know why she felt a flutter in her stomach when he said her name. She continued to look at him, unable to tear her eyes away. Telegad smiled softly and looked back at her. Maeve felt she might blush and slowly looked away.

"Telegad, may I ask why you were in the woods alone and so far from your people?"

Telegad smiled.

"I often go to the woods alone to search for something."

"What is it that you are looking for?" she asked with intrigue.

"I was never sure myself," he replied with honesty.

Maeve nodded in reply. She wondered what it could be that he would search for in this dangerous forest. As she thought, she felt herself sink back to the floor. She was spent. She adjusted her position so that she could sleep on her good side. A moment later, she felt Telegad's hands take the cloak and tuck it around her neck.

Without opening her eyes, Maeve spoke.

"How old are you, Telegad?"

"I am only six hundred and twenty three."

Maeve laughed sleepily. "Only six hundred and twenty three?" she asked, still not opening her eyes.

She heard Telegad chuckle. "For an elf, that is very young."

Maeve felt Telegad's warm breath on her ear. "Sleep well, Maeve."

Maeve's body relaxed completely as she drifted into a deep sleep. Telegad smiled and sat beside her. He pocked the fire and added a bit more of wood. He looked at the sleeping form of Maeve. He had been close to returning home, but something in his heart had told him to stay a little longer. Now he was glad he had stayed.

I tried my best to be loyal to Tolkien's work and style. I hope it has met good expectations. Reviews, comments or ideas are very welcomed, but please be gentle. We can all express ourselves in a friendly manner.