Celebrían sighed as she replaced her quill near the inkwell. The verse she had been working on the past few hours did not seem to flow the way it had been intended and Celebrían was frustrated by her own lack of concentration. What was wrong with her? She rolled onto her back and stared up into the leaves and pondered the question. None of the other ellith that she had been friends with as a small child were interested in her friendship beyond what she could give them as the daughter of a lord and lady, who were in favor with Amroth- king of Laurelindórinan. It was frustrating and futile to try to engage in a serious conversation with any of them and it tormented Celebrían to no end. When had her age-mates become so stupid and superficial?
A lone tear left a path of silver as it meandered its way down Celebrían cheek. She didn't fault her parents for being too busy to notice that she was different from the other ellith her age - after all they did have political aspirations and her mother was counted as one of the wise – but she would have liked to have her mother advice. In all the books Celebrían read the heroines always had a confident in whom they could divulge all their secret dreams and longings. It was Celebrían fondest dream to have a best friend to share everything with and have no shame, but it was not to be. Alone and rejected (in private) by all her peers the only daughter of Celeborn and Galadriel sent heartfelt prayers to Eru to send her someone. Male of female it did not matter, Celebrían was in desperate need of a friend.
A breeze rustled the leaves around the flet and shook Celebrían out of her reverie. Dusk was stealing across the Golden Realm and soon dinner would be served. Mindful of her appearance Celebrían carefully extricated herself from the talan and flitted between the trees and the twilight deepened the shadows. Evening was her favorite time of day as the darkness came and bathed everything in silver shadows, it was magical in its own simplistic way.
With grace born only to the eldar Celebrían was able to delicately slip into her chair and avoid the immediate detection by her parents. Being tardy for the evening meal was not looked upon with smiles of indulgence as it once had been with Celebrían was barely passed her maturity. Officially come of age she was expect to conduct herself at all times in a manner befitting a lady of her position.
Deftly Celebrían served herself as her parents engaged each other with some important matter that had occurred during the course of the day, or maybe several days ago- Celebrían did not care much for the trivial matters of diplomacy which she had been forced to study during her growing up years.
"Celebrían." With a startled jerk Celebrían's head shot upwards. "What world were you wandering around in?" Her mother gently smiled in her direction. "Your father has been trying to ask you a question for several minutes now."
A blush crept across her alabaster cheeks as Celebrían looked suitably chagrined. "I apologize, Ada."
Lord Celeborn had to work extremely hard to keep from smiling at his daughter's antics, and although the smile was kept off his lips the twinkle in his eye flashed as he risked a glance in his wife's direction. "I asked you what you would think of taking a holiday in Imladris during the spring and summer. Your mother and I have been invited by Lord Elrond. We believe that it is time you were exposed to an alternative elvish culture. The Gold Wood is far too secluded and sheltered for you to gain experience of the world."
During her father's speech Celebrían's eyes had been growing wider and wider and the hint of a smile had begin to transform into a full fledge grin that covered her face by the time Celeborn had finished speaking. "Imladris? When do we go? What should I pack? Who will be here? How long are we staying-"
Galadriel gave her daughter an indulgent smile as she gently broke in. "One question at a time, daughter. I'm sure your father will be more than happy to explain it in detail. We will be setting forth to Imladris in four weeks." The light that shone from Celebrían's eyes proved that Galadriel had made the right decision in requesting that Celebrían be allowed to travel with them. Although the Golden Lady may not have had much time to devote to her daughter it did not mean that she was unaware of the troubles that Celebrían dealt with. A change of climate and scenery would do the young ellith a world of good.
"This will not just be a holiday," said Celeborn. "Remember that you are a representative of Laurelindórinan and as such you must-"
"Conduct yourself in a manner befitting of someone of your position," mimicked Celebrían with uncanny accuracy.
Unable to contain himself Celeborn let loose a hearty laugh and bestowed a smile on his precious child. "I forget that you are such a wise and mature elleth, you must forgive your ada for treating you as a elfling."
"Oh, I don't mind, Ada. It serves to remind me that I'm loved." Parents always have the ability to sense when something is wrong with their children, but father's don't always have the best timing and just as Celeborn was about to ask Celebrían what trouble her so his wife's long fingers pinched him from under the table. Celebrían laughed at her father's comical face and tried to keep her emotions in reign for the rest of the evening until she retired.
As Celebrían readied herself for bed she looked out on Laurelindórinan and thought about Ost-in-Edhil, where she had been born. She had only lived there for 262 years, but even so Lorien had never really felt like home. Celebrían wondered she had stopped feeling as if she belonged to the land. Had the land changed or was the change within Celebrían herself? A crushing feeling came upon her as she looked out on the familiar scene that had greeted her for the past nine centuries. It saddened her that Lorien could no longer fulfill the desire within her heart. It would be good to go to Imladris.
"Eru," she whispered to the sky, "please give me a friend. Someone I can talk to, someone who will understand me. It is hard, you know, to be alone. Yes, I have my parents but sometimes it just is not enough, and it is so difficult to keep all my dreams to myself. If it is your will let there be a special friend for me in Imladris." Isil's rays reflected off of Celebrían's silver hair as she knelt and poured out her supplications to the heaven's.
Many hundreds of miles away a lone elf leaned on the railing of his balcony that overlooked the famed gardens of Imladris. It had been a normal day of reviewing records, planning for the fast approaching spring and preparing for visitors who would be arriving in a little over a month. The mountains of paperwork had never seemed more tedious for Elrond than they had that day. Normally he could focus on the task at hand and diminish the clutter on his desk by the end of the day, but it was not to be.
A sense of longing and helplessness descended upon him. Elros had died that same day, albeit many years in the past, but there was a part of Elrond that died a little more every year since his brother's passing. Friends, oh yes, the master of Rivendell had friends aplenty, but even though his two closest advisors, Glorfindel and Erestor, were also good friends there was nothing that could replace the kinship he had shared with his brother.
Eärendil shone especially brightly as if to somehow sympathize with Elrond. "Why?" It was nothing more than a whisper swept away by the gently blowing wind, but the word resonated within every fiber of Elrond's being. "Eru, why? I loved him so much. Was I not enough for him?" A fist slammed down on the rail as Elrond's normally clear, grey eyes sparkled with unshed tears. "There is no one. No one, who understands how I feel." The tears retreated as a cold look crept into Elrond's eyes. "Alone." Even when he had been held by the sons of Fëanor he had never felt so helpless and alone, for at least then he had been able to find comfort in the form of Elros. Now he was a drift in a sea of loneliness while surrounded by hundreds.
The days seemed to slow to a sluggish crawl for Celebrían as she anticipated the day they would leave for Imladris, but if the days seemed unendingly long the weeks flew by with a speed previously unknown to Celebrían in her relatively short existence. Trunks were filled with all the necessary -or in some cases unnecessary- items and Celebrían's heart seemed to skip a beat anytime anyone mentioned the impending journey. The pallor that had been sinking into Celebrían's cheeks disappeared as a healthy, rosy glow replaced it.
Diplomacy and policy suddenly interested Celebrían and she read every bit of information she could gather on Imladris and the people thereof. Unwilling to seem uninformed she began to participate in the inner workings of the Golden Wood policy space and soon discovered that politics were far more fascinating that she had previously believed. This new interest please both Celeborn and Galadriel immensely as they fostered their daughter's new found passion and encouraged her to draw her own conclusions about the up coming trip.
Finally the day arrived when the cavalcade of elves departed from Caras Galadhon and one could not have hoped to find the Lady Celebrían in a higher mood. Seated on a placid mount, looking properly excited, but subdued she observed the proceedings. A security force of twenty armed elves would serve as protection during the journey, even though the road to Imladris was fairly well maintained there is always good cause to be cautious. It would take a fortnight to reach the elven city of Imladris a brisk, but not unnecessarily fast pace.
At first it was terribly exciting for Celebrían to see the "outside" world, but after a few days the romance of the venture began to wear off. Elves are lovers of all things beautiful and the untouched and pristine world that surrounded them that often elven voices would be raised in song praising the maker and the glory of the world around them. This served to break the monotony of the journey and before Celebrían knew it they were drawing near to Imladris.
"My Lord, Ladies," one of the elvish riders drew aside the royal family. With a curt nod Celeborn beckoned him to continue. "Over the next rise you will be able to see the valley of Imladris. We had planned to make camp for the night, but with your blessing we could easily make it into the valley and arrive this evening."
A quick glance between husband and wife communicated their feelings easily. "All right, Maethor, we will continue as you see fit."
With a slight inclination of the head Maethor quickly reigned in his mount and dispatched a rider to ride ahead and inform the residents of the valley that their long expected visitors would be arriving on the wings of the evening.
Disclaimer:I am a poor college student and cannot possibly hope to emulate Tolkien and so therefor own nothing of this.
A/N: I have gone back and tried to correct the various and sundry things that were so kindly pointed out to me in reviews. Still in serious need of a beta so if you have time and want to volunteer please let know. Also, the "First" chapter of this story now contains a time line of my creation so people won't get too lost. Thanks for reading and have a great holiday season! Altril