**Council**
"Where do you come from, Miranda?" Elladan asked, offering her a seat at a table.
"San Francisco," she said as she sat down. "I don't think it would be on any of your maps, though."
"What is it like, this 'San Francisco'?" Elladan asked.
"It's a big city, by the ocean. You probably wouldn't like it," she said. She knew she didn't.
"I think I would like living by the ocean," Elladan said.
"Yes," she agreed, "the ocean is nice." The ocean was about all that was nice there.
"You were unhappy there," Elladan said as he set a tray of fruit down and sat across from her.
"You are very perceptive, sir," she said quietly.
"Why were you unhappy?" Elladan asked.
"I suppose it was mostly loneliness," Miranda said. "I have no family, and the school where I live is not a very nice place."
"I am sorry," Elladan said. "Did you have no friends there?"
"Gandalf is my friend, but I didn't see him very often."
Elladan looked at the quiet girl in front of him. Her hair was like fire, a color he had not seen before, and her eyes were a bright green like the leaves of spring. She was pretty, but her eyes were full of sadness.
"I would like to be your friend," Elladan said.
She looked up at him questioningly. He smiled warmly and waited for her to speak. He watched her slowly smile. Yes, she was very pretty when she smiled.
"I would like that," she said softly, blushing.
Elladan smiled. "Good."
Elrohir, who had been standing in the doorway unnoticed walked over to the table and sat down.
"Your presence has been requested at the Council, my lady," Elrohir said.
"At whose request?" Elladan asked his brother.
"Our father's," Elrohir said. "Your presence here is apparently a significant event."
"What Council?" Miranda asked. "Why is my being here important?"
"I do not know, my lady," Elrohir said, "But I am glad you have come. I would also like to be your friend."
"How long had you been standing over there?" Miranda asked suspiciously.
"Long enough," Elrohir said.
Miranda blushed again. "Very well then," she said. "Stop calling me 'my lady.' My friends call me Randi." Wow, elves -and friends. She was beginning to like it here.
*****
Miranda was sitting next to Gandalf in a courtyard full of serious men. They sat in a horseshoe arrangement, with Lord Elrond at a high chair at the open end, and there was a small stone table in the center. Aragorn and Elrond's sons were there, along with a few other elves, a few dwarves, and men. They all appeared to be important figures. She felt very out of place here, and had received more than one questioning look from various members of the group. She glanced over at Elladan, and he gave her a quick smile.
There was another one that seemed out of place and he was sitting on the other side of Gandalf. He'd been introduced as Frodo Baggins. He had dark curly hair, pointed ears, and he was very small. From a distance, he looked like a child, but he was older than she was. Gandalf had said he was a Hobbit.
Lord Elrond talked about a place called Mordor, and an evil lord named Sauron who lived there. After his introduction, he looked at Frodo.
"Bring forth the ring, Frodo," he said.
Frodo walked over to the stone table and set a gold ring in the center. Then he returned to his seat. He heaved a heavy sigh and visibly relaxed like he had just set down a very heavy burden. The surprise at seeing the ring spread quickly through the group. Miranda was just shocked to see another piece of her dream in real life. It was becoming more and more disturbing.
Miranda listened carefully to all the discussion during the council. The ring was the subject. It was evil and had to be destroyed. To complicate matters, its rightful owner, Sauron, wanted it back. If the Dark Lord got it back, well, there goes the neighborhood. Miranda's dreams were making more sense, almost. The debate over what to do wore on. Lord Boromir, a human from Gondor, argued for the use of the ring as a weapon. Aragorn explained that it could not be used, but Boromir would not be swayed. An Elf named Legolas defended Aragorn, and recited his royal lineage to lend more weight to his words. Miranda was in the presence of a lot of egos, the testosterone was stifling. Finally Lord Elrond took the floor and drew a line in the sand.
"The ring must be destroyed," Lord Elrond said.
A red haired dwarf named Gimli jumped from his seat, "Then what are we waiting for?" He swung a large battle ax at the ring on the table, and the ax shattered.
"The ring cannot be destroyed, Gimli son of Gloin, by any craft we can make. The ring was made in the fires of Mt. Doom, only there can it be unmade. The ring must be taken deep into Mordor and cast back into the fiery chasm from which it came. One of you must do this," Lord Elrond said.
And with that declaration came the argument. Who could be trusted? The room erupted with hot tempers until Frodo stood up and said he would take the ring. Everyone was impressed, including Miranda. The volunteers to help him lined up. First were Gandalf, then Aragorn, then Legolas the elf, Gimli the dwarf, Lord Boromir, and three more hobbits that had been hiding in the bushes. They seemed to be ready to announce the group was set when Miranda stood up.
"Gandalf, I think I am meant to go with you," Miranda whispered to him quietly.
Lord Elrond spoke, "Ten companions… You shall be the fellowship of the ring."
Guess that means I'm in, Miranda thought.
"Who is this woman?" Boromir asked. "Why is she included on this quest?"
Elrond came to her defense. "She is a seer from a distant world. She came to offer whatever help she can in this quest."
Well, that got her a lot of curious, and then dismissive looks. Great. It feels great to be wanted. She thought. What's a seer?
*****
The rest of the day had been spent in packing provisions and getting ready. Miranda had been led away by Lord Elrond's daughter Arwen.
"Your attire is different from any I have seen," she said tactfully. "I fear it may not suit such a journey." Arwen opened her wardrobe and pulled out a riding outfit. It was made of fine cloth, and only a little too big. The pants and boots were tan, and the tunic was a rich forest green. She found a tan cloak to go with it.
"You are very kind to give me this," Miranda said. "Thank you."
"Miranda," she asked. "My brothers said you came here from another world."
"Yes," she admitted.
"What is it like there?" Arwen asked.
"The parts I have seen are not beautiful like it is here," Miranda said bitterly.
"If the ring is not destroyed, the beauty will be lost," Arwen said seriously.
"I know," Miranda said.
"Why are you going with them, are you a warrior?" she asked.
"No," Miranda said. "I came to help Gandalf, but I don't understand the reason yet. I just know I have to go. I have been having these dreams…"
"A seer. Then it is good that you are with them," she said. "Your sight could give them aid."
"I hope so," Miranda said hesitantly. Everyone kept calling her a seer, what's up with that? She really needed to finish that talk with Gandalf.
"Well, I'll leave you to dress," Arwen said and left.
*****
The Fellowship was going to leave the next morning, so after dinner, Elrohir led Miranda to a room for the night. They walked along a balcony, under the moonlight.
"Miranda, why do you wish to go on this quest?" Elrohir asked.
"I just feel this is something I am supposed to do," she said.
"It will be very dangerous," he said. "It is not common for a woman to go on quest like this."
"I never did like to do what was common," Miranda said humorously.
Elrohir stopped and caught her hand. "I am being serious. You do not know what evil lies beyond our borders. Not all of Middle Earth is as safe as Rivendell."
"I know what is out there," Miranda said quietly, looking at the ground. "I still have to go."
Elrohir looked at her and sighed. "I do not like saying goodbye to my new friend so soon," he said. "Come, you will need your rest, your room is not far."
He led her to her room and bid her goodnight. These elves were very kind, and polite. She was not used to being treated so nicely, and it felt strange. She liked the brothers, and wished they were going on this quest. She wasn't sure how she would be accepted by the group, and it would have been nice to have her new friends there.
She sat on the bed and looked around. It was a nice room. The bed was very soft, and she was tired. She took off her boots, and stripped down to the soft white shirt that hung halfway to her knees. She climbed into the bed and drifted peacefully to sleep.
*****
It was shortly after sunrise and the Fellowship was gathering by the gates preparing to leave. Everyone was saying their goodbyes to someone, and Miranda was feeling left out. She shouldered her luggage, just a leather pouch, really, and waited by the pack horse. She was looking at the road that led out of the safety of Rivendell. What would the rest of this world be like?
"Lady Miranda?" a voice said behind her.
She turned to see Elladan standing there. "Oh, hi, Elladan," she said.
"You are very brave to come to a strange place and take up this quest," he said seriously. "You have no weapon, so please take this dagger. I hope that you will never have need for it…"
"It's beautiful!" she said in astonishment. It was a very fine dagger, etched with an elvish design and obviously valuable. She didn't know what to say. "I am …speechless. Thank you for this wonderful gift."
"Will you be all right?" Elladan asked.
Miranda blushed. "I have some training in fighting skills," she said, remembering her black belt in Karate. "Though I have never used a sword. I won't be entirely useless I hope."
"You fight?" Elrohir asked as he came over.
"It was something I learned for self defense. I imagine it won't be much good against swords," she said.
"Then take this," Elrohir said as he held out a bow and quiver full of arrows. "Legolas can teach you."
Miranda smiled at the brothers. "I think I will miss you two," she said as she put the quiver over her shoulder. "You are my first friends here."
"We'll miss you too, lady Miranda," Elrohir said with a smile.
The Fellowship gathered together and headed down the road with Gandalf in the lead. The Hobbits, Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin followed, then Legolas and Gimli. Miranda walked alone, deep in thought, and Boromir and Aragorn brought up the rear. Miranda could feel Boromir staring at her. He had not wanted her to come along, and he was probably annoyed that she was here. She ignored it and kept walking. She figured that she would have enough to worry about just keeping up. Gandalf said they would travel this direction for forty days. Hello blisters!
They set up camp at dusk, and Miranda laid out her blanket away from the main group. She didn't want to wake up all freaked out from a dream and wake everyone. She wanted to be the invisible member of this group. She had a talent for being invisible, and she planned on using it. They were already annoyed by her presence, and she didn't want to do anything to justify that.
"Miranda, stay close to the group, these woods are not safe," Aragorn said.
She noticed that no one used her nickname, and it sounded weird to always hear her full name. She sighed softly and picked up her blanket and found a spot closer. When she noticed Sam getting cooking utensils out, she decided to be useful and went to scavenge for wood. She returned about five minutes later with a good armload of dry wood and deposited it by the fire.
Gandalf was talking to Frodo, Legolas and Gimli were having some sort of debate, the Hobbits were cooking, and Aragorn and Boromir were off scouting around. Miranda found a quiet perch on a log to sit and ponder her situation. She was here, but she was not part of this group. She shouldn't be surprised, she wasn't exactly from around here, and Gandalf was too busy to really talk to her. She didn't mind the solitude so much, she just got tired of them looking at her funny.
After dinner, everyone was settling down for the night, and arranging the watches. Miranda decided she should volunteer for a watch. "I will take a turn at the watch," she said to Aragorn. "What time do you want me to relieve you?"
"We don't need you to take a watch," Boromir said roughly.
"Take your rest," Aragorn said, giving Boromir an annoyed look. "If I need a break, I will wake you."
Miranda nodded and silently settled down for sleep. They didn't think she would do a good job as night watch. She wasn't sure if it was because she was a girl, or if it was because they didn't trust her. And that Boromir wasn't at the top of her nice guy list. Aragorn was at least polite when he turned down her offer. She pushed the annoyance from her thoughts and went to sleep. Tomorrow she would need to be rested.
*****
Legolas was taking his turn at watch, needing only a little rest, when he noticed Miranda's fitful sleep. He quietly watched her fidgeting and frowning in her sleep. He considered waking her up, but she suddenly shot up into a sitting position. He had heard her sharp intake of breath and saw her force herself to relax. A seer that has fitful dreams is not a good sign. He walked over to her and sat on his haunches to speak to her.
"Are you all right?" Legolas asked quietly.
Miranda nodded. She looked at her sleeping companions, and then back at Legolas. "Do you want a break?" she asked softly.
"No, Miranda, go back to sleep," he said. She was tired, so she didn't argue. She lay back down and went back to sleep.
Legolas returned to his position to keep the watch. He glanced back at her and decided he would have to have a talk with Gandalf. He wanted to know more about this quiet seer.