Dawnstar and Friend chapter 25
Eleanor's POV
We eventually decide on a 'from a distance' approach to Frodo and friends. We have heard about the Nazgul attack on the rangers guarding the Shire and so slink off to Bree to wait there to watch the proceedings, though not interfere.
What we hadn't counted on was Aragorn recognising us immediately as we sat drinking cider in a dark corner of the Prancing Pony. Ginny would have gone non-alcoholic, but it wasn't an option. Thankfully no one in the pub realises we are female other than Aragorn. It takes us a little while to work out how he knew who we were immediately.
Under our table, not visible or so we thought, is a very large ball of purring fur that is our cats curled up together to sleep.
He sits down with us and orders a pint and joins us in hiding in the shadows. While there he quietly fills us in on what has been going on, like his following the Hobbits and stuff.
When my sensitive elfin hearing picks up aforementioned Hobbits outside, I nod at Ginny and we three girls claim tiredness and clear off upstairs.
We don't go to sleep however; largely because Miriel has worked out we know something and wants in. Then we go quiet and earwig on the conversation between Aragorn, the Hobbits, and Butterbur. Things went the way it did in the books.
The major difference is that Aragorn comes and get us to help him. Oops.
The Hobbits are totally awed that there are female rangers and two of them are elves. They are even more awed to find out we know Bilbo and the Dwarves.
When they set out, we find an excuse to leave the group and ride on a head. It is closely related to the fact that our horses were left outside the town to wander as they are elfin horses and so we can ride on a head and warn the elves of Rivendell of their coming.
We then meet Glorfindel, who has ridden out to face the Nazgul and find the Hobbits or whatever, and he invites us to join him. We decide that at least one of us actually has to ride to Rivendell and draw straws. Ginny pulls the short straw and rides on.
Glorfy comments afterwards that he deliberately fiddled it so that she would go as Erestor would have killed him if he found out that Glorfindel had let his ward ride against the Nazgul. We ask about what Elrond and Thanduil would do then. He just laughs.
When we meet up with the Hobbits they are surprised to see us. We explain that we got press-ganged. This results in a quick explanation of press-ganging.
Even though we know that Frodo will escape, it is still totally nerve racking to watch and I have to admit that I am surprised by the forces of the water that sweep away the big black guys in robes as I insisted on calling them. Taking the pee out of something always lessens the fear value I have discovered.
The rest of us then rush to Rivendell, me taking a Hobbit and Aragorn on my horse, Miriel taking the other two Hobbits.
Glorfindel is not as tired and is able to run alongside us as we rush to the safety of the Last Homely House.
When we arrive, we find that Ginny has been pressed into service using her knowledge of mortal healing for Frodo. Well that was unplanned.
We obviously go and get washed and fall into bed, after a light meal.
The next morning, we get the charge of the two youngest Hobbits and take them to Bilbo, who is delighted to see them, but soon leaves to be by Frodo.
I have to admit that we are all really quiet, by our normal standards. I think our cats help because they act like blankets and pillows when the Hobbits fall asleep in Frodo's room in the days in which he is asleep. Elrond and Ginny alternate in taking rests from healing Frodo and eventually, Elrond finds the sherd in Frodo's shoulder and removes it.
In the time between arrival and Frodo waking, Miriel and I find a new game though.
Avoid Legolas, who arrived shortly before we did.
Miriel wants to avoid him because she has not seen him since she left Mirkwood, I don't want to see him because I am worried about if he will try and take up our relationship where it left off, considering he did help us escape so he would have a chance. Another little part of me doesn't want to know if he has found another girl he likes more in the 90 years interval since we last saw him.
So we avoid the main dining hall and the Hall of Fire for those few days and thankfully Elrond is sympathetic to this.
We do see flashes of him around though, mostly when he is practising archery.
I am also pretty sure he watches me practising with my new toy.
This would be a weapon I just invented from my evil little mind.
It is a staff that has sharpened ends and through each end are sharpened stakes at right angles to the main shaft. The pointy bits stick out in all direction except at me and all are steel shod to stop them getting blunt so quickly. It is used as a cross between a staff, a mace, and a spear (bar the fact both ends are sharp). I find that it is amazing how much damage can be done with the thing.
I am rather pleased with my invention and even more pleased with the damage I can do with it.
Three or four days after Frodo arrives, he wakes up. We are relieved of Hobbit duty and are able to join Ginny (who is near exhausted) and Silva in the day-long preparation for the feast that night. One advantage of fore-knowledge is that we didn't have to be told that he had woken to start getting ready, so we weren't already dressed and things.
That night I wear royal-blue with gold embroidery, and it is one of the more conservative gowns I have worn, I mean the dress almost saw my shoulders!
It was a raised waistline again and had a large sash which was unusually simple. The fabric was gossamer with satin trims in a slightly darker blue.
There was a ribbon work design round the neckline, cuffs, and hem with pearls embedded with gold vine-like designs. Unusually, instead of bell sleeves, it had wrist length puff sleeves of gossamer with satin cuffs. The dress looked wonderfully elegant and showed me more at the age the elves gave me than usual.
Silva's dress was similar though made from pure satin and white with sapphires rather than pearls and she wore a necklace Erestor had given her made of sapphires and silver, it also had a matching circlet, denoting her station as his wife.
Thankfully, through dinner we were all a fair distance away from Legolas and I don't think he spotted us there.
When we went to the Hall of Fire, we stayed with the Hobbits and the Dwarves mostly, two places we were sure the Legolas would stay away from and slunk out as soon as was polite.
Once we had left we, that is Miriel, Ginny, and I, sat in my sitting room to discuss the coming day.
We have, unsurprisingly, been invited to the Council of Elrond.
Miriel, also unsurprisingly, has worked out that we know what will happen.
We have already been told the seating plan. As Princess of Gondolin and Elrond's great aunt I will be beside him. On his other side will be Elladan and Elrohir, followed by Miriel. Beside me would be Glorfindel (as both my knight and an important member of the Rivendell hierarchy) and then Erestor and finally on his side would be Ginny.
We are not exactly impressed with being separated, but we realise that not only is there nothing we can do about it. Etiquette is after all etiquette.
Since Miriel already knows we know what will happen, we give her a basic rundown of the Council, so she can join us in going to sleep in the Dwarves' speeches. It is not like they are interesting and her knowledge beforehand is not going to change history or anything.
Miriel realises the significance of what we have told her, not having been told that Frodo carries the One Ring before now.
Her look as she realises how much we actually know and how much we have been keeping to ourselves, not to mention the detail we know it in is quite interesting.
Her amazement as she realises the impulses we have had to suppress to do things we shouldn't in light of the future is also quite interesting.
We also talk about her brother's reaction when he sees the three of us at the Council, though I keep to myself the thought of what will happen when Gimli and the other Dwarves find out exactly who we three are to myself. It will probably be amusing though. About 29 years plus after the event anyway...
Eventually we realise that it has got quite late while we are talking and whatever, and we will need all the sleep we can get if we don't want to actually fall asleep during the long boring speeches of the morning.
Ginny's POV
I'm very glad when Ellie agrees to a 'at a distance' approach to the Hobbits when they leave the Shire and encounter the Nazgul for the first time.
I swear that that girl almost verges on suicidal the way she carries on at times. I mean, I like death-defying adventure and all that, but I'm also rather fond of keeping my head on my shoulders.
When we get to the Prancing Pony, Ellie and Miriel bag a table in the shadows whilst I get us drinks. We all keep our hoods up – three young women in ranger gear, covered in weapons as well as the odd battle scar do tend to get noticed.
We choose a table in the shadows as we want to observe Aragorn's first encounter with Frodo, but not to actually interfere.
Well, that was the plan.
It would seem that the company of three large cats gets one noticed quite a lot too. I know we should have thought about that a little bit, but it's so cold and wet outside, and they're our babies who've never been separated from us in their lives. Besides the very fact that they have been with us all this time does mean we tend to forget their presence on occasion.
Anyway, it doesn't take much for Aragorn to spot us for who we really are and then come and join us.
On the other hand, even with this slight hitch in our plan, it works out rather well. Ellie and Miriel's elfin ears pick up the sounds of the Hobbits outside and we quickly claim tiredness.
When we think the time is right, we sneak back out of our room and over to where Aragorn is talking with Butterbur and the Hobbits.
The conversation is rather faint, but I can just make out the differences in human and Hobbit voices – I'm sure Ellie and Miriel are picking up more.
This is proved when they suddenly spring back from the door; I follow, but am not half so nimble.
Aragorn is standing there, arms folded and his eyebrow raised. I smile up at him,
"We were just... um... we...we'll come inside." I say as Aragorn holds the door open for us.
When the Hobbits and Aragorn leave Bree, we tag along, but only until we find our horses and are able to ride ahead to Rivendell.
On the way we meet Glorfindel who's riding out to fight the Nazgul. He invites us to join him, but then adds that someone should actually ride ahead to Rivendell to prepare everyone for what's coming. Guess who got the short straw.
Although, I think, as I ride on towards Rivendell, I'm not sure whether I'm really all that disappointed at not having to face the Nazgul.
Elrond is in a state of distraction when I arrive back in Rivendell; it would appear that Arwen has sneaked off on her horse. I wonder who she's gone to look for...
When I finally get Elrond's attention, I inform him of the situation. When he asks, I tell him (truthfully) that no one was injured when I left. I sort of forget to tell him about what happens to Frodo at Weathertop.
It's late in the day of October 20th and Frodo has just been brought injured to Rivendell. Elrond has persuaded me to help him in healing Frodo.
It is absolute torture for me to see that little Hobbit lying so ill in bed when I know precisely what's wrong with him. It takes every ounce of self-will to not tell Elrond about the shard of the Morgul-knife, even though I know he will find it soon.
So I have to content myself with alternating between healing and rest periods, doing all I can to ease Frodo's suffering.
My sleeping patterns have gone all to pot, and I don't get much sleep even when I am resting as I'm so worried about Frodo. Whenever I lay my head on my pillow, I'm tortured by an internal battle of heart against head.
I'm eternally grateful to Elrond when he requests that everyone leave me in peace – meeting at this juncture would not have been a very pleasant experience for any of us.
The only bit of comfort I do get is when the Hobbits visit Frodo in his room; they seem to enjoy the company of our cats, even if they are almost at head height with each them.
The cats seem to have taken to the Hobbits as well and allow themselves to be used as pillows and blankets, even Murrlin who usually only lets me have that privilege.
I'm utterly exhausted. I barely got any sleep during my last rest period because Elrond needed help when he found the shard of the knife. He wouldn't let me touch it, but I had stand ready in case anything happened as well as passing him scalpels and stuff during the operation. I then had to thoroughly clean, stitch, and dress the wound whilst Elrond took the sherd away to destroy it.
Elrond did say I could go back to bed when Frodo was all settled again, but I didn't want to. I wanted to be there when Frodo woke up, so Elrond and I both sat in chairs opposite each other and began the long waiting process.
I did actually fall asleep in my chair with my feet resting on a gently purring Murrlin and only wake to sound of voices when Frodo also wakens the next morning.
The fact that Frodo has awoken and we can all breathe again helps to wake me up and I gladly run off to tell my friends the good news. I'm also refreshed during the feast preparations; the feast is to be held in honour of Frodo in the Hall of Fire tonight. Nothing invigorates you more than a whole day of being cleaned and massaged.
My dress is rather simple tonight, not to mention very conservative when you consider our standard Rivendell ball-gowns. The over-dress is made of mid-purple velvet with a band of silver embroidery and diamonds around the round neckline and ends of the puff-sleeves. The under-dress is pure white gossamer and has the tiniest of bell-sleeves. I wear my hair in a simple, but elegant bun; the only adornment being my silver circlet.
After the agony of the past week, I take every opportunity to really enjoy myself. It's rather fun to dance with a Dwarf or a Hobbit. Yes, Gimli does dance and he's very gentlemanly about it.
We girls talk quite late into the night, mainly about the Council of Elrond which is to be held tomorrow. Naturally we're all acquired to attend; it is rather annoying at being separated, but I'm just happy that I will get to attend such a momentous occasion, even if the all the speeches will make it rather long and tiresome...