Disclaimer: I do not own LOTR or The Hobbit

~Chapter 10~

"And I'd give up forever to touch you / Cuz I know that you feel me somehow / You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be / And I don't want to go home right now," I sang softly as I finished dressing, looping my belt around and buckling it soundly. Amazingly, Farmer Maggot's old belt still fit me, and I wore it everywhere. It was a little piece of home.

A knock on the door startled me from memories and I quickly walked over and opened it. Two identical elves stood on the other side of the door, waiting patiently. I blinked. "Hi! I'm Charlie Baggins."

"We know," they said in unison.

"I am Elladan," the one on the left continued.

"And I am Elrohir," the other finished.

"Aren't you guys the sons of Elrond?" I asked curiously.

They nodded. "We are to take you to see our father in the study," Elladan said. "Please follow us."

"May I bring Rufus?" I asked as they started walking away. In unison they paused and looked back.

"Who is Rufus?" Elrohir inquired.

Said dog came barreling out of the room and crashed into my knees, sending me tumbling to the floor with a squeak. The elves blinked, before letting a smile steal over their faces. "Yes, Rufus may come," Elladan acquiesced.

I climbed to my feet, blushing a little bit. "Thanks." With Rufus cheerfully trotting at my feet, I followed the two elves through the long, winding corridors of Rivendell. Elves still glanced curiously at me. I had only been here for a little over two days, and I had yet to meet many elves, including Lord Elrond.

We finally arrived outside a door, where one of them - Elladan, maybe? - knocked once before ushering me inside, closing the door behind me.

Inside was a study, covered in bookshelves with a desk near a balcony. Bilbo was cheerfully looking through a thick book written in Elvish, while a dark-haired elf sat next to him, looking rather bored.

Cloth rustled behind me, and I turned to see Glorfindel standing behind me, lounging against a bookshelf. His guard was down, and he was smiling serenely at me. I gave him a smile back, before a voice said, "Charlie Baggins."

Lord Elrond stood before me. He seemed just like Bilbo had always described, with his long dark hair and wise eyes. He smiled gently at me before motioning to a seat in front of the desk. I sat down timidly as Bilbo put the book away, wondering why I was summoned.

"Do not worry," Finn said. "You are not in trouble!"

"Quite the opposite," Bilbo told me. "We just want Lord Elrond to hear of your past."

My pas- Oh. Sometimes, I nearly forget that I was from a world different than this one. It seems so natural, being in this world. It was my life now. "I came from a different place," I explained to Lord Elrond. "We called it...Earth, I think..." I frowned. "The memories have mostly faded from that place, but I came here with Rufus-" I pointed to him, laying at my feet, "-when I was eleven years old. I was in my world, when suddenly I was in this one, when I fell down a hill."

I went on to explain a little from what memories I still had of that world, before describing some of my first experiences in Middle Earth, and how Bilbo took me in. There was silence in the room after I was done explaining.

"Perhaps it is the work of the Valar?" the dark-haired elf asked, studying me. "It is strange; I have never heard of this occurrence before."

"This is Erestor," Lord Elrond explained. "He is my chief counsellor." He turned to him. "Perhaps the Valar have something special in mind for Charlie?"

"It is hard to say," Erestor replied.

Lord Elrond looked at me. "Charlie, if you could go back, would you?"

I hesitated. Would I? I don't remember much from there, but I what I do remember were happy, fond memories of my father and my mother. I had Rufus here with me, and he wasn't going anywhere. I had my hobbit family, and my elf friends, and my one human friend, Thicket. I had met so many people, and made so many friends and memories...

"No," I replied. "This is my home now. I can't imagine living anywhere else."

Bilbo breathed a sigh of relief, and Lord Elrond nodded. "Very well. Thank you for telling me this, Charlie. You are dismissed." I got up and curtseyed clumsily, making Elrond and Finn chuckle. Bilbo patted my hand as I escorted him to the door.

"Well, m'dear girl," Bilbo said as we walked down the hall. "What do you think?"

"Of Rivendell?" I asked, and he nodded. "I really like it so far. But, when are we going to Lonely Mountain?"

We reached an outside veranda. Bilbo heaved himself down in a chair, sighing. It was then that I noticed how much older and more frail he looked. His hair was whiter than I remembered, and he had a good deal of wrinkles. Was the journey from Hobbiton to here too hard on him?

"I do not know, Charlie," Bilbo admitted. "I do not even know if I am up to the journey."

I sat down next to him. "It's alright," I said. "Maybe Gandalf will take me on one of his adventures."

"Perhaps."

We sat in silence, admiring the sunset, until Bilbo's stomach growled. Laughing, the two of us headed off in search for the kitchen, leaving the quiet view behind.

A/N

*peeks out from behind large boulder* Ermmm hello! Eep! *dodges flying potato* Yes, well, I'm sorry that I have been gone so long! This summer was kinda crazy, and then there was marching band, and school and more excuses... *dodges another potato*.

I am truly sorry, but I hope to write more chapters of this soon. I do love this story, and I have great plans for it! For those of you following my other story, Whoa, Hey, What's Going On Here? I will try to update it as soon as I can. School's been taking a lot out of me this year.

Please review! They make my day!

~Eva Sirico~