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Chapter 3

Ron followed Dumbledore, Elrond and Glorfindel through the house, looking around as he went. Many of these tall, fair creatures were staring at him as he passed them, whispering behind their hands with excitement. The whispers floated around Ron, in a light, musical way, more like a song than conversation. Shivers went up Ron's spine.

Elrond led them into a spacious room, with a desk and more papers than the shelves could hold. The papers, made of usual parchment, were everywhere, littering the desk, the chairs, the bookshelves, and the floor. It was cheerful, warm and inviting. Ron liked it at once.

"Please, make yourselves comfortable." said Elrond, gesturing to the chairs in front of the desk. Ron picked up the parchment that covered it and set it aside, before sitting down, feeling nervous. Dumbledore did the same. Glorfindel and Elrond sat on the other side of the desk. "Would you like a drink?"

"Yes, that would be lovely." smiled Dumbledore.

"Master Ron?"

"Erm, sure."

Glorfindel poured out some wine for the four of them and handed it out. Ron sniffed it, not sure if he would drink it, since he wasn't too fond of wine. But when he tried it he was surprised to find it was very sweet and refreshing.

"Now, to business." said Elrond, resting his hands on the desk. "Master Ron, have you any idea why you are here?"

"No sir. No clue."

"Do you know what I am?"

"No."

"I see. So I assume Professor Dumbledore has thought it best for us to explain the situation."

"You do have a better knack for tales than I." smiled Dumbledore. Glorfindel narrowed his eyes a fraction, but Elrond's smile didn't waver.

"Indeed. Well, Master Ron-"

"Just Ron, please."

"Very well Ron. My people are called elves, but we are not elves as you would know them."

"I can see that."

Elrond chuckled, "Yes. We are an ancient race, older than man. We are immortal, and some of us are nearly 20,000 years old. We have seen much in that time. War and peace, destruction and creation. Once was a time when there were many free folk roaming the world. Man, Elves, Hobbits, Dwarves, Istar, Ents. But now many of these are gone. Dwarves have become inbred and submissive. Hobbits have simply died out, and the Ents have slept for millennia, which, given the world's situation on nature, is perhaps for the best for they would weep to see what is happening. The Istar have only one surviving person, Gandalf the White. And as for us Elves… we returned to our home Valinor many ages ago, and remained there until twelve years ago. Then the Valar decided it was time for us to take part in the world again."

"Again? You mean you worked with wizards before?"

"No. You wizards did not exist at the time. We will return to that matter later. For now that is all you need to know about us and the past. What matters at the moment is the Now and the Future."

"Ok."

"Ron, you are aware that your people are at war, yes?"

"Sure, of course."

"And you know who the enemy is?"

"You-Know-Who sir."

Elrond raised an eyebrow and Ron blushed, feeling like a complete idiot. "Sorry sir… I meant… V-Voldemort." Ron grimaced as the name slipped past his lips, then blushed even more.

"Yes, you are correct. Voldemort is one of the enemies we face."

"One?" Ron squeaked, all embarrassment forgotten.

"I'm afraid there are more enemies out there besides Voldemort, and now they are uniting against us."

"Us? You mean you and the Order?"

"Exactly."

"But… but who is this other enemy?"

"They are called the Goa'uld Ron."

"Goa-what?"

"The Goa'uld. A parasitic race that can enter the body and take over completely. The original owner of the body is repressed, and it takes a very, very strong will to even try to break through the binds of the parasite."

"Sounds like the Imperius Curse." said Ron, swallowing a mouthful of wine.

"It's worse, because it requires no effort on the part of the Goa'uld to maintain control and it can impersonate a person flawlessly. You'd never know that someone had been possessed."

Lord Elrond's grey eyes were piercing Ron's blue ones, trying to convey the seriousness of what he was saying. Ron stared back, feeling sick to his stomach at the thought of such a thing happening.

"Is there no way of removing the thing?"

"The parasite wraps itself around the spine of the victim and attaches itself to the brain, suppressing the consciousness of the host and assuming complete control. If it wishes, it can kill the host at will. There are ways to remove it, but it's very difficult to succeed with the host living through it."

"Ok… what do these Goa'uld have to do with Voldemort?"

Elrond stood up and walked to one of the many shelves of his office. He picked up a book and gave it to Ron. "Take a look at that Ron, if you will."

Ron opened the book and read the title. 'Ancient Egyptian Myths'. Perplexed, he started to flick through it. After a few moments, he looked up at Elrond in confusion. Elrond sat back down and said,

"Ron, you are familiar with these tales, yes?"

"Well, I know a little bit about them. I mean, I know that the Egyptians had loads of Gods and Goddess, like the Greeks and the Romans."

"Good. Now, what if I told you that all those Gods and Goddesses were real? Would you believe me?"

Ron shrugged, setting the book down. "I don't know. It depends on what you mean."

Elrond looked confused, "How do you mean?"

"Well… I know muggles have religions based on some man who was supposed to be the son of God or something and he did incredible things, but then again… he could have been a wizard who liked to show off and wanted some glory. So… maybe he was real, but he wasn't what he claimed to be. Were the Egyptians Gods the same?"

Glorfindel grinned and threw Ron an impressed look. Ron blushed. Elrond seemed surprised.

"You're exactly right Ron. The Goa'uld posed as Gods, and they were worshiped by their slaves. In every culture they posed as Gods and forged their own religions. And the thing is, they took possession of wizards and witches so they could use their magic to frighten and awe their… non-magical slaves into submission."

"I went to Egypt a few years ago. I suppose these Goa'uld were the ones who figured out how to build the pyramids. Bill said he couldn't figure out how any normal muggle could have done it."

"Ah, and here's something very important to know Ron. Where Voldemort has his magic and his creatures, the Goa'uld have their brains and their comprehension of mechanics beyond magic. Two very different kinds of dangerous, no?"

"One for magic, one for muggles." Ron shrugged.

"Exactly, but the Goa'uld are also skilled in magic. So in a sense, they are rather more dangerous than Voldemort."

Dumbledore shifted, and Ron got a feeling he didn't agree with that statement. Ron decided to say nothing on the subject.

"Ok. But why are you telling me this? Why am I here? You still haven't told me. Why isn't Harry here?"

Elrond and Dumbledore shared a significant look. Glorfindel looked between them and then sighed,

"Would you like me to explain it all to him, while you two discuss other matters?"

"Yes Glorfindel, I think that would be best. Don't you Professor?"

"Yes. I believe it would be." said Dumbledore mildly. Glorfindel got to his feet and made a small gesture of beckoning to Ron, who obeyed. They walked out of the office and Glorfindel motioned for Ron to follow him. When they were well away from the study Glorfindel rolled his eyes and sighed,

"Goodness but I hate being with those two."

"They don't seem to really like each other."

"It's not about liking. It's about equal comprehension. I'm afraid Professor Dumbledore doesn't really agree with Lord Elrond that the Goa'uld are more of a threat than Voldemort."

"They sound pretty bad, but what does it matter? If they're working together then we have a bigger problem, regardless of which is worse."

"Well said. But… well… sometimes people just need to feel right, whether they are or not. It's a comfort in dark times."

"I guess it'd be hard to keep going if you thought you were doing the wrong thing."

"Exactly. Now, why don't we sit here and talk about why you're here?"

"I'd appreciate that very much."

Ron followed Glorfindel into a large room that had two sets of large steps, which fulfilled the role of seats. In the centre of the room, was a large fire, which gave the room warmth and made it welcoming.

Two elves were seated on the lower step, talking to each other in cheerful tones. Ron couldn't understand what they were saying but a tingle went through him as he listened. These two figures were pale and slim, with white blond hair, and sky blue eyes. They were identical in appearance, save for their robes. One wore bright blue robes, while the other was dressed in more sombre brown.

"Mae govannen Maidhion, Barathan." said Glorfindel. The twins turned to him and one smiled. The more sombrely dressed one looked at Ron and scowled. Ron shifted, not sure what to do.

"Mae govannen Lord Glorfindel." said the smiling one, "Manen nalyë?"

"Im maer." Glorfindel turned to Ron and said in English, "This is Ron Weasley."

"Mae govannen Ron Weasley." said the smiling one.

"Erm… sorry, I don't speak your language." Ron blushed even more.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I said 'Well met'."

"Oh. Well… well met to you too." said Ron, smiling a little. The elf grinned wider, while his twin scowled even more. Ron felt like he was staring at opposite reflections or something.

"I'm sure I can count on you, Maidhion, to help Ron as he settles in here."

"Of course. I'd be glad to. After all the time I've spent around non-magical folk, it'll be fun to get to know more about these wizards."

The scowling elf rolled his eyes.

"That's good to know Maidhion. Now would you two mind leaving us in private? I need to speak with Ron."

"Of course. Come on Barathan, let's find Lothiriel and Mornefindon. We'll see you later Ron."

Barathan said nothing, he just followed his brother. Maidhion threw Ron a wink as he shut the double doors behind him. Now it was just Ron and Glorfindel.

"Please take a seat Ron." Glorfindel gestured to the stone steps. Ron sat down, clasping his hands in front of himself, resting his elbows on his knees. Glorfindel stared at him with a strange expression. After a few moments Ron became uncomfortable.

"Is something wrong?"

"No. It's just… that's such a human stance, and it's been so long since there was any humans in Imladris."

"Sorry." Ron shifted, feeling very embarrassed again.

"Don't be. It's a nice memory." Glorfindel sat down beside Ron, looking pensive. After a while he said, "Ron, do you believe in prophecies?"

"Yes. Smashed a good few of them in the Department of Mysteries a few weeks ago."

"Hm, yes. Well then, do you believe in fate?"

"I suppose so sir. I'm not sure."

"Would you believe me if I told you I know your destiny?"

"I don't know, depends on what it is." Ron managed a little wry smile. Glorfindel smiled as well.

"Well, I believe I do know your destiny, at least your near future destiny."

"Well don't keep me in suspense." Ron winced at how sarcastic that sounded, "Sorry, but I want to get to the point. Don't have much patience for dancing around the subject."

"Of course, I apologise. I'm just trying to think of how to explain this to you." Glorfindel sighed and straightened up, "Ron, you know that Voldemort has his army, yes?"

"Yeah."

"And that Dumbledore has his."

"The Order, yeah."

"But the Goa'uld have their own army. And so do the elves. Four Armies. But with Voldemort and the Goa'uld uniting to fight us, we need to unite. Do you agree?"

"Sure."

"An army needs a leader Ron. And according to every source we've checked, that leader is you."

Ron blinked. Then he blinked again. After blinking a few more times he said, "What?"

"Ron, we elves have many ways to glimpse the future, as do wizards. Both sources have stated that you are the one to lead the army into battle."

"Me? But I'm not even of age. Why not Dumbledore?"

"Because this isn't just a political and magical battle. There will be physical battles as well, like in times of old. And you must lead our side into these battles."

"Have you gone completely carrot top? I can't do that! I'm no leader. I'm a bloody sidekick. Always have been."

"There's always a time when a sidekick has to step out of the hero's shadow and show the world what he can do." Glorfindel looked down at Ron with a serious expression. "Ron, I know this is hard to accept, but what I'm telling you is true. You have been chosen to lead the army. You have been chosen to protect your people, not from the magic, but from those that would harm them with machines."

"How the hell do you know I've been chosen?" demanded Ron, jumping to his feet. Glorfindel sighed and stood up.

"Wait here. I shall prove it to you."

Ron scowled after the elf, feeling angry that he felt he could just say this stuff to him, tell him these lies. Ron stood up and climbed up the two stone steps, looking out the window into the gardens.

There were those twins again, and they were with other elves, laughing and talking amongst themselves. There was another set of twins, but they were dark haired, and gave an air of being older, even though there was no age on any of their faces. Ron guessed they were sons of Elrond, because they resembled him so much. There was another dark haired elf, his hair was pulled into a low ponytail, like Bill's was. He had large eyes and high forehead. His mouth was stretched into a huge smile, as he turned to the final companion, the only female of the lot.

With golden blonde tresses that cascaded down her back, wearing a beautiful navy dress that flattered her figure, her face enchanted Ron. Yet there was more melancholy in her face than the others, as if she had recently suffered a tragedy. About her neck was a jewel, that seemed to glow with an ember encased in silver and glass. Every now and then, as she listened to the others, she would touch it as if to be assured it was still there.

"Ron?"

Ron jumped and spun around, almost toppling off the steps. Glorfindel smiled up at him with a fond expression. Ron blushed and jumped down, grimacing at the sound of his feet crashing to the ground.

"Here, take this." Glorfindel held out a long sword, encased in a leather-wrapped sheath.

"What?"

"If you want to be shown that I speak the truth, draw the sword. Go on."

Ron sighed and reached out, grabbing hold of the sword handle. With care, he drew the sword out and held it up, so it was pointing towards the ceiling. The firelight glinted off the metal and then Ron cried out as pain shot through his head and everything went black for a moment.

When Ron opened his eyes he was outside again. Sitting up he found himself on a little hill, looking down on a massive field. In this massive field were two huge armies. One was made up of wizards and elves, all wearing bright colours. The other was composed of all kinds of dangerous creatures. Some Ron recognised, like trolls, and a few giants. Then there were strange creatures that looked human shaped, but they were grotesque, mutilated, and animalistic. Beside them, looking very still and calm among the excited creatures, were men, dressed in heavy metallic armour, with silver skull caps, and strange staffs in their hands.

One of these men stepped forward and someone pushed forward from the wizards and elves. Ron's mouth fell open when he recognised himself. He seemed much taller, and his face seemed older, and, Ron couldn't help but note that he looked stronger too.

Ron watched himself step forward until he and the silver clad man were about 10 feet apart.

"The Goa'uld give you one last chance to back down, wizard."

Ron watched his own face split into a wide, slightly manic grin.

"Bring it on. We're not afraid of you." The older Ron drew his sword that had hung from his hip and pointed it at the other man. "We will be victorious! We shall demolish you and your army!"

A huge cheer rose up from the wizards and elves. Chills went up Ron's spine as he watched himself turn around and walk back to the army. He mounted a horse and shouted out,

"People of freedom! Let us show these miserable fools what happens when our freedom is challenged. We shall fight! And we shall prevail!"

Another cheer rose up from the army. From above a large group of wizards on broomsticks flew down and Ron's eyes widened when he saw Harry leading it. He watched as the other him saluted Harry, then turned his horse around to face the enemy.

Ron yelped as the sight before him vanished and he found himself standing in Imladris again, with Glorfindel staring at him knowingly. The sword was still in Ron's hand, and Ron didn't want to put it down. It felt good to keep it there. Ron stared at Glorfindel with wide eyes, only managing to gasp out,

"Bloody hell!"

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Night's Darkness