"Well" Gandalf whispered to the young teleri "The moment has come to say goodbye. We will continue our journey from here. Thank you for your help"

Saeros looked at him with pleading eyes

"Can all of you stay for a while with us and watch the games and competitions?"

Luthien was about to answer when a group of Noldor approached them, they were all dressed in fancy clothing

"My eyes must be deceiving me" Luthien frowned when she heard an all too familiar and arrogant voice. She turned to look at a very tall individual with long black hair

"I never expected to see the daughter of Thingol in the lands of my Grandfather….you are very far from the woods of your kin"

Luthien stared at him with some annoyance "Mae govannen, Celegorn" she said coldly to the son of Feanor, but then her expression changed when she noticed who was at his side

"Aredhel" she exclaimed when she noticed her friend, an ellette with dark hair and a pale face, her clothing also showing she was of the noldor royalty but without the arrogant attitude of her cousin

The white lady of the noldor had a pleasant smile on her face, her eyes denoting her surprise

"I am so glad to see you Luthien" she stared at the rest of the group and added

"What are you doing here? And accompanied by the daughter of Ingwe"

Luthien grabbed her hand affectionately and answered

"I should ask you the same question. You are far from Tirion"

Aredhel sighed

"My Grandfather, king Finwe, sent me and my cousin to represent the court in this festival….don't tell me you were also invited?"

Luthien laughed at this

"No, we were just in the forest close to the sea, but now we are heading to Valmar"

She stared briefly at Ariel and added "Ariel wants to return to her father's court"

Aredhel stared at her oddly "A rare route you have chosen" she then looked with curiosity at the rest of the group but said nothing.

Ariel approached her and added "The truth is that we choose this route because I wanted to explore this beautiful land

Aredhel asked no more question, then she introduced the other person who was at her side

"I would like you to meet our gracious host" she said with curtesy

"Mae govannen, my name is Edrahil, mayor of this town. As you already know we are celebrating a festival with our telerin Neighbors"

Ariel smiled at him and answered "Yes" she pointed at the young teleris and added "Our young friends have already told us all about the festival

The mayor stared at the whole group and a big smile appeared on his face

"If your majesties allow me, I would like to ask you to do us the honor to be our guests. Our town rarely receives important visitors"

Luthien didn't answer immediately, she turned to look at her companions knowing that probably some of them didn't want to stay

Aredhel then added with a bright smile "That is an excellent idea"

She stared pleadingly at Luthien and continued "It's been years since the last time we saw each other and I would love if you stay for a while so we can talk in person…I am tired of seeing my friend only through the palantir"

Luthien laughed at this

"Perhaps it's not a bad idea"

The mayor insisted

"Please accept our invitation. Both town are small but we have prepared a few houses to host illustrious visitors such as yourselves"

Not wanting to be rude or raise suspicions Luthien answered "alright, we will stay for one or two days to participate in the festivities"

The mayor smiled "Magnificent. I imagine you first want to rest for a while in one of our guest houses?"

They were taken to a big manor just next to the where the member of the noldorin Court were hosted. The manor was very big with enough rooms for each member of the company

"I will come later to visit you" Aredhel said to Luthien before she left

The four young teleri also left, saying that they had to go with their parents but promising that they would also return later

Once alone, the travelers took out their capes and breathed with relief. Thorin didn't like the prospect of staying for a few days, but he also knew that refusing the invitation could have drawn unwanted attention upon them.

The group had many questions for they had seen many strange devices and vehicles in the streets and even in the air, they had finally began to understand that life in valinor was completely different than that in middle earth, and that the level of development was far more advanced in Valinor.

Thorin wanted a little privacy for he needed to discuss with the other dwarves his plans for retaking Moria, so he excused himself and went to a room with the other dwarves and also Bilbo, whom he trusted with his life after the quest for Erebor. Faramir also went to a room for he needed to be alone with his own thoughts, the memory of Boromir and Denethor still haunting him.

The rest of the group chatted for a while, with Luthien, Nellas and Ariel trying to answer as best as they could the questions the travelers had on the technology they had seen.

Luthien was about to answer a question from Frodo, when they all heard a knock on the door. "I think is about time we all retire to our rooms" Gandalf commented as he rose from his chair, the others fallowed his example and retired to their rooms.

After making sure they had all left, Luthien went to the door and opened.

"Hello" Said the pleasant voice of Aredhel

Luthien´s POV

I was pleasantly surprised to see my friend standing there, but there was something odd about her expression, as if she was worried about something.

"I need your help" she told us after she came inside the manor and sat on a chair next to me.

"What is happening?" Ariel asked with curiosity

Aredhel sighed and her reply only made me feel uncomfortable

"It's my cousin" she replied "you all know very well the dreams of my uncle Feanor to create his own independent kingdom, and now my cousins has drank too much wine and is speaking about his father's ideas

I was surprised to hear this

"Your uncle still has that crazy idea?" I couldn't help but ask, for I knew very well Feanor's intentions to create a kingdom completely independent, not just from his father Finwe, but also from the Valar. His ideas were popular among some of the noldor, and he had very noisy followers, mostly young teens, even in the court.

"Can you all come with me?" she asked all of us with pleading eyes, I need friendly company as those who came from Tirion think like he does and there is a large crowd listening to him, mostly young people.

I sighed, remembering that this wouldn't be the first time I had a confrontation with Celegorn, I stared at Aredhel

"I will go with you" then I looked at my two friends and they both agreed to go as well.

We left the manor and I noticed the streets were mostly deserted, but Aredhel explained that most people were at the shores of the lake.

As we walked I couldn't help but smile as I stared at Aredhel,

"You do realize, dear, that your cousin is a complete jerk, right?"

Aredhel Laughed at this but said nothing.

We reached the lake in a few minutes, there were mostly youngsters here, dancing and partying.

"There he is" Aredhel pointed toward a large group of people that sat on the sand, and at the center stood Celegorn, who seemed to be enjoying being the center of attention.

As we got nearer I could heard what he was saying, mostly about how great his father was and the bright future the noldor would have under his leadership.

We sat near his inner circle but kept to ourselves for the moment, but as time progressed I grew tired of what he was saying, especially when he began to speak against the Valar and how they took away their freedom. What shock me the most were the cheers and applauses that erupted from the crowd

After 30 minutes I was about to stand up to confront him, when suddenly there was a bright flash of light and then, to everyone's surprise, there stood Nienna, one of the Valar.

She looked around, her expression kind, then she turned to stare directly at Celegorn

"You see" he said drunkenly, not intimidated at all by the Valier's presence "She has come to try to silence me"

Nienna laughed lightly at this

"Oh, I came to meet an old friend, but as I traveled I heard your speech" she came close to Celegorn, her face showing amusement

"Child, your kin is already free" She turned to look at the crowd, who were still shocked to see a Valar as most had never been in their presence, and smiled

"I think I will stay for a while and listen to your…interesting speech".

Then, to my surprise, she stared directly at us and approached to sit at our side,

"My lady Nienna" I said with respect and bowed my head, trying to remember the only time I have been in the presence of the valar, but she just laughed

"No need for formalities, child"