The fellowship has left Moria. Gandalf is lost, as is all hope of the fellowship ever fulfilling their quest. Without Gandalf, everything seems bleak and dark, as if the fellowship had been there when Teleprion and Laurelin, the trees of light in Valinor, had just been extinguished. Aragorn leads them on, but a heavy weight lies in his heart as well. He has decided to lead them into the woods of Lothlorien, of where legends speak of a great sorceress, a queen of elves, who puts all who see her under her spell. Many members of the fellowship are against this decision, namely Gimli, but none can argue with Aragorn's decision, for he is their new guide, and he is the only one who has been in these strange lands before. The members of the fellowship trudge along sadly, the loss of Gandalf still heavy on their hearts. Suddenly they hear the sound of drums beating and the yell of Orcs. "Run!" cried Aragorn. Legolas, Aragorn, and Boromir pick up the hobbits and they all head for the woodland ahead. Aragorn knows that they will not last unless they reach the shelter of the trees. Sure enough, as some kind of spell was on the forest, the moment the fellowship passes its borders, the Orcs go no further, but turn around and flee. The fellowship walks cautiously along amongst the trees, when they hear a horn blowing. "That is no Orc horn! It is that of the elves!" Legolas exclaimed heartily. "But of what elves I do not know. Certainly we have not reached Lothlorien. The Golden Wood is miles and miles away." "No, Legolas, this is not Lothlorien. I do not know where we are, but let us hope they are friends." Aragorn had a look of puzzle on his face, and beneath his cloak his hand rested on the hilt of his sword. The horn blew louder and the trees shook. As if a signal had been given, elves came warily out of the trees pointing bows and spears at the fellowship. Each elf was clad in white robes embroidered with a silver crest, a symbol of their race. A sliver-white horse trotted up to meet the captives gallantly. Its rider was clad in an even finer garment than its kin was. The rider, in robed of flowing sliver and white, and the horse, finer than the Mearas of Rohan, looked as one. The rider glided off the horse with ease. "I am Luthiar, daughter of Beren and Luthien. Why have you come, Aragorn, son of Arathorn? What business do you and your companions have with the Meralonde and our woods? I sense your uneasiness. Come, you and your companions are welcome here, but I must know your errand, and whom you serve. There have been strange creatures seen coming from the Mines, creatures of the like we have never seen before. If you be one of them, you shall not leave this place ever again. I am troubled by these creatures, and it would bring us all great comfort to learn tidings of the world outside our wood." Luthiar glided back onto her horse and together they lead the fellowship to a place of such beauty that none knew what to say. Luthiar bade them sit down on the chairs that none of them had noticed, for each chair was made of a sturdy vine that grew flowers of such exotic species that even Sam could not identify them. The eight chairs were soon filled, and each member of the fellowship thought in his mind 'Who are these people? I am sure they think we are spies or Orcs, and that is a dreadful thought' which brought little comfort. "First," said Luthiar, "I must know. Do you serve Sauron the Deciever, or Saruman the White? Do not attempt to lie, it will only hurt you more." "No," Aragorn answered. "We serve our purpose, of that we cannot tell you now, but Gandlf the Grey was our friend, and we would never betray him." "Was? You speak as if Gandalf once was but now isn't." "Gandalf fell into the shadow in the Mines. The last Balrog left in Middle Earth was his doom. Gandalf gave his life for us." Legolas got a far- off look in his eyes. His companions knew that emotions like grief were new to him, and it would take him longer than all the rest to recover. "Then you are friends. That, if nothing else you tell me, is good news, for there has been very little of that lately." Luthiar was silent for a moment. "What is your story? You need not tell me the purpose of your journey, for I believe that I will know in good time." The fellowship told their tale, leaving only the ring out. When they were through, one of the elves lead them to bedrooms. The bedrooms were high in the trees, and had no windows, for in the woods of the Meralonde were always warm and airy. All of the fellowship was asleep quickly, but Frodo could not sleep. He kept wondering, 'Every minute something unexpected happens. But what will happen next?'