Dim dreams

The soft tunes of one of Florence + the Machine's songs played through her headphones and she hummed quietly to herself as she walked under the blue umbrella. The rain was pouring down and she was soaked to the bone, but she was too occupied with her thoughts to care. She was used to the weather, having lived her entire life in the dampness of Ireland, and this was just another day on the job.

"Enjoying our music, are we?" A voice coming through the rain and music, caused her to stop and turn, finding herself looking at a dark-haired man. He was standing under an over-hanging roof, his clothes damp and glued to his body.

"I'm sorry?" She frowned and raised her hand, pulling one of the earplugs out of her ear. Her voice was tired and the Irish accent thicker than usual. "'re we 'aving trouble with other people's life now, huh?" He annoyed her greatly, by the way he looked so amused by the fact that he had irritated her.

"Damn, take it easy. I didn't mean to offend you." He laughed and ran a hand through his hair. "Jesus." He shook his head and pulled the hood of his jacket up. "I was merely asking if you enjoyed your music."

"You're weird", she commented quickly and shrugged her shoulders. "And I'm leaving ya now. My life ain't your business." Knowing she was rude, she put the earplug back and started walking again. The meeting had been the oddest she had ever experienced and she had no idea about what had really happened, but she could not help but to smile. He had been good looking, that was for sure.

The sound of voices outside, caused her to sit up quickly and take a deep breath of the cool air. Her head spun by the dream and she rose from the bed, her bare feet meeting the cold floor.

She had remembered something. Something that had made everything so much more complicated. She was not from here. Not from this world, this universe. She was from a totally different place, where places like these were fiction.

Clara raised her hand, brushing the hair out of her face as she walked to the window and stared out over the valley bellow. How had she ended up here? How was this even possible?

After all the blows to the head, her wounds and everything she had done here, she knew it could not be a dream. If it was, she was surely in a very long and very deep coma that sent her to places like this.

Shaking her head and letting her eyes travel over the landscape bellow, she felt a silent tear fall down her cheek. She had come to love this life she lived here. All the places she had seen and was yet to see, all the people she had met and all the things she had done. She was never going to want to leave, that was for sure. If she ever could leave. That was also a question.

Clara sighed and turned back towards the room. She had had that feeling of that she did not really belong here and she was right. She could not stay with the company. The way she had been transported here, was odd and she knew that it was something wrong with it. She was only going to put them all in danger.

As determination gripped her, she moved across the room and picked up her clothes from the chair. She had had enough of the beautiful, elvish dresses and nightgowns. If she was going to slip away in the night, she could not wear any of that.

So she quickly changed into the cleaned travelling clothes and hung the other ones over the chair. She had loved looking so clean and whole for a while, but now that part was over. Now she had to leave before the dawn rose and the dwarves woke up. They were never to know where she had gone of to.

Minutes later, after making sure the room looked nice and leaving a small note for Linwë, apologising for her behaviour, she was out the door and on her way down the stairs. She knew she did not have the grace of the elves or the quietness of the hobbits when it came to come and go unnoticed, and she had to keep her eyes resting on the ground to make sure she did not step on anything that could alarm the elven guards.

As she just had climbed a flight of stairs and found herself in a pavillion, with a table standing in the middle and a waterfall tumbling down the side into the valley, she heard voices.

Looking down the stairs, she saw the familiar forms of Gandalf and Elrond and she knew that it was mere seconds before they were going to find her there.

She therefore quickly ducked behind a column and held her breath, her mind praying for them not to notice her.

"With or without our help, these dwarves will march on the Mountain. They are determined to reclaim their homeland. I do not believe Thorin Oakenshield feels he is answerable to anyone. Nor for that matter am I." Gandalf's tired voice came drifting towards her and she could guess that Elrond had been speaking of something concerning their quest. Or, rather, the quest of the dwarves. For as soon as she was out of there, she was no longer a part of it.

"It is not me you must answer to." Elrond's voice, so close now, told her that they had reached the end of the stairs and that they were only metres away from her.

"Lady Galadriel!" The sudden gasp that came from the wizard, made her frown. In her curiosity, she turned her head, her eyes finding a female elf. Her hair was long and blonde and her eyes piercing blue, as they swept over the space between herself and the two men.

As her eyes reached Clara's hiding place, she knew that the woman knew she was there. Clara cursed herself. She must have seen her arrive.

"Mithrandir. It has been a long time." The soft voice of the lady came drifting across the pavilion and Clara felt a shiver travel down her spine. This was a powerful woman.

"Nae nin gwistant infanneth, mal ú-eichia i Chíril Lorien." The elvish spoken by Gandalf was heard next and the words flew into her mind, translating themselves.

"Age may have changed me, but not so the Lady of Lorien." Frowning to herself, she watched as the woman smiled. How she actually knew elvish, was something she had to think of later.

"I had no idea Lord Elrond had sent for you." Gandalf's voice was tired, as the two men moved towards the lady.

"He did not. I did." From the darkness came a new voice. A voice that was serious and caused a shiver to travel down Clara's spine. She did not like the sound of it.

Another man stepped out, dressed in white with a white beard and hair, spots of grey still visible.

"Saruman." Gandalf bowed, a small sigh escaping his lips. He did not need the other wizard there right then.

"You have been busy of late, my friend." Saruman spoke once more, nodding towards the gathered company. "And I believe we have things to discuss." He gestured towards the table, taking a step forward to sit down. But the voice of the lady, Galadriel, stopped him.

"We cannot start just yet, Curunir." The name was obviously Saruman's, as he was the one to react.

"And why is that, my lady?"

"We have a visitor." Galadriel stepped down the steps from the platform where she had been standing and quickly moved across the pavilion towards where Clara stood.

Realising that there were no use in hiding, Clara stepped forward and bit her lip nervously. What were they going to do to her?

"Clara." Gandalf's voice was no more than a whisper and she carefully looked up at him, seeing the confusion in his eyes, while both Saruman and Elrond next to him looked very displeased.

"What do you think you are doing here, girl?" Saruman's voice was harsh and cold and she stiffened as he started to move towards her. "This is a private counsel." He leaned heavily on his staff and let his eyes travel over her.

"There are no use in scolding her, Curunir." Galadriel placed a protecting arm around Clara's shoulders, a gesture that surprised the girl greatly.

"I am sorry. I did not mean to spy on you. I heard Lord Elrond and Gandalf and panicked, so I just hid. I did not intend to hear anything I was not supposed to." Clara bent her head down in shame, feeling Galadriel's grip tightening around her.

"There is nothing to forgive, mellon." Galadriel smiled and looked up at the three men. "She will be needed during our counsel, for she know more than any of us can imagine. Including herself." The elven lady moved slowly towards the table, showing Clara to a chair, before she placed herself beside her, as if she was a protective mother. "Now, Curunir, you can begin."

Saruman shot Clara a suspicious look, before also he and Gandalf sat down and the white wizard took a deep breath, before he started speaking.

The counsel was held during the rest of the night and Clara found herself learning things she had never thought she would learn. With her new knowledge of her past, she told the gathered group of what she knew and of her last memories of her fall in the woods. She had not remembered as much as she would have liked, but what she told them seemed to be enough.

"So you say that you are from another world. Another place that is not Middle-Earth?" Saruman looked at her, his forehead furrowed in thought. "That sounds like madness." He straightened himself up and leaned back against the backrest of his chair. "My lady, I cannot see how this will help us with anything. The girl is clearly driven mad by being abducted by those dwarves." The wizard looked up at Galadriel, whom met his gaze sternly.

"I thought you, Curunir, would understand this. You are after all one of the Istari, just like Mithrandir. You are Maiar and would know more of the Valar than any of us." The elven lady shook her head slowly, as in disbelief of the white wizard's actions. "The Valar must have something to do with this and I am sure that Clara is here for a reason."

Clara quickly looked up at the lady, a thankful smile showing on her lips, before she turned towards Saruman.

"I am sorry for my boldness, sir. But I cannot say I was abducted by the dwarves. They asked me to come and I did so willingly. I count them as my friends and I will not hear you speak ill of them." She rose slowly from her place and let her eyes sweep over the gathered. "I am thanking you for this opportunity to be a part of this, but I see now that dawn in nearing and that you want to speak in peace." She smiled seriously towards the white wizard, before bending her head down and turning to leave.

As she started to descend the stairs, the clear voice of Galadriel shot through her mind and she stopped, turning to meet the eyes of the elven lady.

"You will be a great lady of our country, Lúthien Helyanwë. Those who earn your love and friendship are lucky."

Her heart skipped a beat in her chest as she heard the mentioning of the name Linwë had told her of. Hearing it spoken by the Lady of Lòthlorien made it seem even more important and she nodded quickly, before she turned and headed down the stairs. She still had to get out before the dwarves awoke.

Grunting softly, Kili turned and opened his eyes. He had had such an odd dream and he did not like it.
Sitting up, he rubbed his eyes and ran his fingers through the loose strands of his hair. The sun had just started to rise above the horizon, but yet the company around him was already up on their feet and preparing to leave.

"Hurry up. We need to head of before the elves wake up." Thorin was already ready with his pack and stood impatiently waiting in the stairs leading away from the room they had all slept in.

"What about Gandalf? And Clara?" Bilbo rolled his blankets together and looked up at the dwarf lord carefully.

"We will meet Gandalf in the Mountains. And Clara? She will not come with us." Thorin rubbed his chin and averted his gaze from the hobbit. "She will be better of staying here."

Kili looked up at his uncle, biting his lip. Even though he did not feel like meeting Clara right then after what she had done to him the night before, he knew it was not right to leave her behind.

He opened his mouth to protest, but Bilbo got there first.

"She has signed the contract like any other member of this company. She is one of us. Leaving her is not right." Bilbo's words gained a few agreeing nods and Thorin sighed deeply.

"Fine." Thorin's eyes searched the gathered dwarves. "Fili, Kili, you go find her. If she is not here within ten minutes, we will leave without her." He gestured towards the door and his nephews quickly rose, gathering their packs and weapons and disappearing outside.

"Great. Just great." Kili sighed deeply as they walked through a silent courtyard.

"What is up with you, little brother?" Fili shot his brother a slightly worried glance as they walked, his eyes finding the troubled expression of his face. "I thought you would be thrilled to continue."

"I am. It's just..." The dark-haired dwarf shrugged his shoulders and fell silent.

"'It's just' what?" Fili, knowing that something was wrong, did not give up. His brother had been gloomy the entire morning. "You know you can trust me."

Kili opened his mouth to speak, but a person stumbling out from a doorway and knocking him to the ground, stopped this.

"Oh-my-I'm-so-sorry-sir-bloody-hell." The voice speaking quickly, thick with an accent by the sudden fright, was familiar and Kili closed his eyes for a moment where he lay, sprawled on the ground. This was not happening.

"Clara? What are you doing here?" Fili's voice caused the younger dwarf to open his eyes once more and quickly get up on his feet.

"I... um..." Clara bit her lip, her hands adjusting the backpack and quiver on her back. "I was just..." A blush crept to her face and she averted her eyes from the two dwarves, of which one had his gaze locked on his shoes, as if they were the most interesting thing he had ever seen.

"Let us take that later. We are leaving now. Come on." Fili gestured back towards the courtyard they had just crossed and then started walking, leaving Clara and Kili in an awkward silence.

Clara looked up carefully, her eyes meeting Kili's, as a new blush came to rest on her cheeks. She hated herself for what she had done to him the night before.

Kili met her gaze, his eyes studying the silent pleading her blue eyes held. An urge of embracing her and never let her go came over him and he let his eyes travel her features, before he stiffened and turned away. What he had once felt for her was going to leave and looking at her was not going to make that easy.

"Come on", he grumbled and quickly headed of after his brother, not even caring if she followed him or not.

The company did not take many minutes to gather themselves and head of once more. So as the sun started its climb on the sky, they were already climbing a path up into the mountains, leaving the valley of Imladris behind.

"Be on your guard. We are about to step over the edge of the wild." Stopping, Thorin watched as the company climbed closer. "Balin, you know these paths. Lead on." He nodded towards the white-haired dwarf and Balin quickly nodded back.

"Aye", he murmured, throwing a quick look behind him as he passed the leader of the company and continued upwards, closely followed by Clara.

Bilbo, having stopped just like Thorin, turned back towards the valley, a deep sigh escaping his lips. He did not want to leave the comfortable house of Lord Elrond or the loveliness of the elves. He could have stayed there for many months to come and would have preferred that over the uncomfortable roads before them. But he had given his promise to follow and that was what he was going to do. At least for a short while.

"Master Baggins, I suggest you keep up." Thorin looked at the hobbit, a small sigh also escaping his lips. The hobbit was quite hopeless when it came to following orders and journeying this way. He clearly had second thoughts about coming along and Thorin did not appreciate that.

But as Bilbo turned and kept on walking, Thorin looked away and kept on moving himself. The dawn had past and morning was coming. They had to be further away before the elves came after them. As he knew they would.

Author's note: Wow, this is already part 20! I never thought I would be here this early into the story! And all that is thanks you y'all out there! Thank you! :D All right, so in this part I have tried to bring in a few of the ideas you had for Clara's memories (For example the umbrella and the music) and more of this will come later on. I have for example a plan about letting the dwarves learn a modern song as Clara try to cheer them up somewhere. When, where and how this will happen is yet to be figured out, though.
Anyway: I'm really happy for the reviews I got on the last part and I really hope you have something to comment on on this part. Either good or bad ^^ Thanks for reading!