"My Lady," Haldir bowed his head as he reentered the receiving room of Lady Galadriel. His Lord was sitting, by all appearances extremely worn from the trials of the evening.

"You wonder why we yielded so much to gain the trust of a child of Man," Galadriel looked straight through Haldir as she spoke.

"It is not my position to question..."

"Yet you wonder all the same."

"Yes," Haldir admitted with a resigned sigh. "I must confess, my Lady, to first grant her access to Caras Galadhon was more than I expected, but then to allow her to..." he trailed off, still in shock from all that had occurred. When the messenger arrived to alert him that Lady Galadriel requested that he bring the young girl to the city and to see her, he had been in shock. Yet, at the same time, he doubted that his wardens would be capable of pushing her away. Such would likely require the assistance of Lady Galadriel and her ring.

"What I did was necessary, and I did so gladly," Celeborn cut in, sanding so that he could be aside his wife.

"This young girl holds more power than we have ever encountered," Galadriel paused in thought. "The raw energy coursing through her alone is enough to bring down the Witch King, I recon even battle Sauron himself."

"My Lady," Haldir's mouth fell open in shock. "You cannot possibly-"

"Have you ever seen one throw a weapon so easily without even touching the other? She bears power beyond our understanding. I have already called for Mithrandir, but we must be cautious until he arrives."

"She is dangerous."

"What makes you say so?" Galadriel's words were tinged with a slight smile, that smile that Haldir was well aware of being an indicator for her knowing more than she was saying.

"We don't even know what she can do... and she threatened to burn Lothlorien to ash. Do you think she was lying?"

"Not one word."

"Then she is dangerous."

"Perhaps," Celeborn cut into the conversation. "However she was- is frightened. You saw her memories as well, you know that her world too faces a Dark Lord bent on destruction. She was expecting death or torture... finding herself alive she assumed the latter to be her situation."

"She will need a guide while she is staying here," Galadriel held that scheming smile dancing on her lips again. "Inform Orophin that he will be taking over your duties at the boarders for the time being, you are to be her guide and guardian whilst she remains in our city."

Knowing better than to protest, Haldir merely bowed his head and waited until he was dismissed. A gentle nod from his Lady was all it took for him to turn and leave, heading home to the flet he shared with his brothers when they were not on patrol. It was a thing of simple construction, the wood was smoothed by the many years that they had spent traversing across the deck. The sides of the flet held large, open windows that let the natural light- both of sun and stars, into the house. Haldir smiled upon the sight of warm light emanating through the windows and the sound of cups and plates clattering, indicating that his brothers were readying their evening meal. The second Haldir made it through the door though, he was bombarded with questions.

"Who is she?"

"Is she staying?"

"What did Lady Galdriel find?"

"Is she single?"

"Rumil," Haldir roared in outrage. "How dare you?! She is a child, a mortal, and a witch!"

"She is... interesting," he replied with a sly smile.

"That is enough," Orophin, for once taking Haldir's side, stepped in. "Even for you Rumil, that is enough."

Haldir sighed and plopped rather ungracefully into his chair. His brothers of course noticed how he did not shed his sword belt, but declined to comment on it as he quickly launched into an explanation of what had occurred after the two were dismissed. Both brothers leaned in and listened eagerly as Haldir recounted how the child attacked Lady Galadriel's mind, threw his sword, and threatened to burn their home to the ground. He then went on to explaining how Lord Celeborn allowed her to search his mind, and how she in turn showed them her memories. When they pushed for him to tell them of the memories he saw, Haldir was only willing to share her history, that magic was far more prevalent in her world, and that she too was fighting a Dark Lord. He would not however, recount the horrors that she showed them, the images of torture, the sounds of screams and the scents of burning flesh that no child should know. Those thoughts he locked away.

After satisfying his brothers' curiosity, Haldir informed them that Orophin would be taking over his duties and that his responsibility was now to guard the young girl. Rumil frowned slightly at this, but did not protest. For all Rumil's foibles, he knew that when orders came from Lady Galadriel herself, they were not to be protested.

Finished with his brothers' questions, Haldir shoveled down a quick dinner and dragged himself to his room where he retired. The moon was high and he could hear the voices of his kin singing a joyful song of the coming autumn festival. The moon would soon be full and they would all be blessed by her beauty. Haldir dearly hoped that the mortal child would be gone before then.

"Miss Oleander," a light voice stirred Cassidy from her sleep.

For a moment upon waking, she forgot where she was, what happened. However, as soon as she felt the linen sheets on the bed and noticed the alarming amount of sunlight shining from the window, she knew that all which had occurred the day before did indeed happen- it wasn't a dream.

"Just a moment," she called back to the voice that she didn't recognize. Cassidy day up on the bed, stretching her limbs and yawning. She was still in that phase of just waking where absolutely anything was perfectly normal, even wearing a nightgown in a treehouse. She needed her morning tea.

Shuffling slowly over to the door, wand still ever in hand, Cassidy pulled it open to reveal another stunningly beautiful elf. This one was obviously feminine and had golden hair cascading down her back. She wore a simple, yet elegant dress of light green and her smile was simply brilliant. Cassidy openly faked for a moment before composing herself, are they all this beautiful? She couldn't help but question such a thing.

"Miss Oleander," she spoke slowly, taking great care with her words. "Tea for your morning as Lady Galadriel requested for you. Master Haldir will be here shortly to- guide you. Do you require assistance?"

Cassidy took the tray of fragrant tea eagerly and smiled at the elf. She was obviously unused to English and had likely rehearsed her speech several times before knocking on Cassidy's door. She appreciated the effort.

"Thank you," Cassidy spoke slowly, hoping that the elf would understand. "I am grateful for the tea, and I will not require assistance in readying."

The elf nodded and walked away while Cassidy drew the door shut and placed the tray on a little wood table in the "flet." She carefully poured herself a cup of tea and placed a warming charm on the pot so that she could go back to it later. She then set about scourgifying her clothes so that she could change back into them. There was a dress that appeared to have been roughly tailored to her size on the tray of tea, but she chose to ignore it and instead favored her clothing from the previous night. Besides, the air was chilly and her own clothing was already adorned with warming charms.

Shortly after she finished changing and taming her hair with a comb, a knock on her door sounded. It was a much firmer and more precise knock, one that she instantly knew would be the stoic Marchwarden. Cassidy schooled her features. These elves were strange indeed, but she had spent many a nights in the Forbidden Forest amongst the races who lived there. Each time she eventually won their trust. This time however, she was hesitant, she didn't know if she wanted to follow her instincts of curiosity... or simply make a run for the hills and a bit of peace.

"Hello Haldir-" she paused upon opening the door and seeing the elf dressed differently from the previous day. Instead of his uniform, he was wearing what Cassidy could only assume to be normal attire for the elves: a dark grey tunic, green leggings, and soft brown leather boots and belt. "I heard that you are supposed to be my "guide" today?"

"Yes," his tone being decently less excited than Cassidy's. "There are few in Caras Galadhon who are fluent in Common and who my Lady trusts with... watching you."

"Ah, so you're my baby-sitter then? Here to make sure I don't fall out of a tree?" There was a spike of bitterness in her words. Cassidy had spent the last several years of her life fighting Death Eaters in a war to determine the fates of all magical and muggle beings alike. She was no child.

"I am here to make sure that you don't "burn this forest to the ground" as you so pleasantly suggested," he hissed his words, making Cassidy flinch internally.

Yah... about that, her mind recalled her words form the night before. But, she would not apologize. She was not sorry for her threats or her actions. She could have thrown a stunning spell on every elf in that tree, she could have obviated them all, but she did not. For that, she believed that she was more than patient with them.

"Listen, thanks for the hospitality and all-" Cassidy was beginning to realize that they did not get off to the best start, and this elf seemed the type to take first impressions far too seriously. "But it's obvious that I'm not welcome here and I'm in the middle of an existential crisis so I really can't deal with this now. If you'd point me in the direction of the nearest magical settlement then I'll be on my way."

"My Lady has asked that you stay a while whilst we fetch Mithrandir, one of the greatest wizards alive. There are few with such powers and thus being so, there is no "magical settlement" for me to point you to. Come, you are to dine with myself and my brothers this morning."

Cassidy nodded at his icy tone and followed him, closing the door behind her. A slight spark of hope however began to glow in her chest, the Lady was calling a wizard... there were some of her kind in this world. She watched as Haldir strode purposefully ahead, crossing several bridges and leaping up sever more sets of stairs. Cassidy determined that enough was enough, and simply apparated up them. As before, Haldir frowned deeply at this but said nothing.

He's just jealous, she thought smugly, smirking at him after she beat him to the top of the staircase yet again.

They eventually arrived at a lovely looking flet and were greeted by Orophin, the other elf who escorted Cassidy to the city. He smiled warmly at her and welcomed her in broken English. She returned his greeting and upon his stepping back to allow her entrance, was swept up by Rumil who held out his arm to escort her with a dashing smile. She laughed in response and pretended not to hear the frustrated noice that Haldir made from behind them.

Rumil pulled out a seat for her, and pushed it in gently. He then skipped to his place across the table and sat, waiting for his brothers who were still arguing in their musical tongue at the door to join them. He granted Cassidy a conspiring wink and slid a wooden fork onto the chair at the head of the table. Cassidy couldn't help but giggle slightly as he schooled his features into a perfectly innocent smile right as Haldir and Orophin arrived at the table. Orophin appeared to be perfectly calm, but Haldir was practically fuming. Orophin took his seat next to Rumil, and Haldir pulled out his chair and sat down viciously, only to leap up in alarm.

He glared at Rumil and shouted something which Cassidy could only assume to be some rather unpleasant words before Orophin interjected with a rather resigned tone of voice. Once the two brothers were calm, he turned to Cassidy and offered an apologetic smile,

"Sorry- they can, are" he paused, thinking on his words. "Difficult?"

"I couldn't agree more," Cassidy smiled, once more admiring their effort to communicate with her.

"Orophin has not traveled as much as I and thus his Common is rather crude, but he is learning," the still slightly fuming Haldir spoke as he viciously stabbed a piece of fruit with his for. Cassidy had the distinct impression that he was imagining a face on that pear slice. Now whether that face was hers or Rumil's, she did not know.

They all lapsed into silence for several more minutes and Cassidy was uncertain if they were always this quiet with one another, if it was the awkwardness of her arrival, or the inconvenience of the language barrier which prevented speech, but she was beginning to grow annoyed. She could feel three sets of eyes watching her: Haldir with suspicion, Orophin with mild curiosity, and Rumil with an open and mischievous smile. Eventually, she decided that someone aught to try something.

"So Haldir, babysitter of mine, what's on the agenda for today?" The elf stiffened and both of his brothers turned to look at him expectingly. Although they did not understand what she said, they certainly heard her mention their brother's name.

"We do not have an agenda set for Lady Galadriel asked only for you to feel free to explore and do what you will with your time whilst waiting for Mithrandir," he replied.

"Well if you have a library of some sort, I'd love to find a good sample of your writing so that I can rig up a translation spell."

"You think you have a way to learn our language?" Haldir's voice was laced with suspicion.

"I have a few books of my own with me, so I think I could figure something out."

Haldir turned and spoke with his brothers for a few minutes, another argument obviously took place and Cassidy watched it all with mild amusement. I think they might have the Weasly's beat on dysfunctional family disagreements, she mused silently to herself.

"I shall escort you to the library." He spoke with a sort of firm finality that made it seem that she had asked him to sacrifice a goat or something for her.

The rest of the meal lapsed into silence with Rumil occasionally speaking towards Cassidy in what she assumed was a question. Each time he turned to Haldir expectantly, but the elder brother always shook his head, unwilling to translate. None of this seemed to damper the younger's enthusiasm though as he simply continued to pose his questions.

When they left the flet to travel to the library, Cassidy could not help but notice how fond she had become of the youngest brother. His ever cheerful attitude, smiles, and secret winks as he further irritated his older brother had allowed her to forget about her longing for home during their meal. It was only a short period of time, but it was a relief none the less.

But, now they were heading to the library. Cassidy dearly hoped that the library would be a large one as she was eager to learn the language of these elves, and perhaps even a bit about the strange world that she had fallen into. The Hogwarts library was one of her absolute most favorite places in the world, and Cassidy longed for the warmth of a dusty place with shelves and shelves of velvety parchment, just waiting for someone to pry them open and learn their secrets. Besides, would she even be a proper Ravenclaw if she arrived in a strange land amount a brand new species, and didn't bother to examine their literature or learn their language?

Somewhere, near the northern banks of the Celebrant, a Wizard was idly ambling along in a small, wooden cart. His large draft horse pulling the creaky thing was slow, but in a pleasant mood and thus walking amicably. The wizard was smoking pipeweed and humming a pleasant tune as he enjoyed the gentle rustle of the nearby river and the easy breeze blowing through his beard. He would have been happy to continue ambling aimlessly for quite some time if it had not been for the elf riding towards him at great speed.

"Mithrandir," the elf called out, keen elven eyes allowing him to have seen the wizard well in advance.

"Hanon-le," the wizard called back, a good natured wave to accompany the traditional elvish greeting.

"Hanon-le, Mithrandir," he lept from his horse who, like a true elvish steed, remained still as his rider dismounted. The elf then bowed with a fist to his chest, turning to look up at the great wizard. "My Lady Galadriel and Lord Celeborn humbly request your assistance in an urgent matter." He then pulled from a pocket of his tunic a roll of parchment bearing a green wax seal of the Mallorn leaf- the seal of Lothlorien.

"Hmmm," the wizard grunted, more to himself than the elf who was speaking to him. "All you creatures are always in such a hurry. Is every matter urgent?" He then began patting the pockets of his robe speaking to himself once more. "Now where are my glasses..."

The elf was then set to truly test his patience as he waited for the wizard to find his glasses so that he could read the note, and hopefully provide him with a response that he could deliver back to his Lady. As the wizard continued to search his pockets, the elf could not help but glance the sun and wonder if he would be returning with a response before the stars were out.

"Nope... those are old Bill's spectacles... oooh, that's where my spare pipe went," he continued to mumble as he searched his robes.

The elf let out an audible sigh and stroked his horses neck whispering to him that he could leave to take a drink in the stream and graze upon the nearby grass. It would likely be some time before he got a proper response from the wizard.

"Oh, there's my old pocket watch... I wondered where that one had gone off too..."