After spending two weeks on the trail Celebrían was beginning to feel the heaviness of spirit that she had been experiencing at home in Lothlórien. It had been nice to interact more often with her parents, but now all she wanted was a warm bath, real food and a soft bed. There still existed a tightening in Celebrían's lower abdomen when she dwelt on their impending arrival in Imladris.
A shot of excitement raced through Celebrían as she overheard her adar give Maethor a command to ride ahead to Imladris. Celebrían gave her mother a brilliant smile as Galadriel glanced toward her.
You've made your daughter's day, came Galadriel's voice to Celeborn through their link. Though I'm not sure Elrond and his advisors will be quite as pleased. Not giving dignity to the remark Celeborn did not bother to respond to his wife's subtle teasing, but Galadriel was able to pick up on the grumbling thoughts revolving around elflings being given charge of a realm.
"Is it not rather rude to ride in when it is almost dark, Ammë?" asked Celebrían innocently.
Galadriel exchanged a smile with her husband. "Would you like to spend another night sleeping on the ground when you know that there are warm beds right around the bend?" This argument did nothing to sway Celebrían's opinion. Seeing this Galadriel took things a step further, "Not to mention a hot bath."
At the mention of a bath Celebrían broke into a wide smile. It had been interesting living on the rode, but there were certain modern conveniences that she missed. "That does sound lovely." The words themselves were cheery, but there was a discordant note in her voice.
With subtle motions Galadriel maneuvered Celebrían and herself away from the main group of elves. "There is something bothering you, yende?"
A heartfelt sigh escaped Celebrían. "I- I was so excited about coming here, but now..." she trailed off into silence. Galadriel, aware of her daughter's mood, wisely remained silent until Celebrían began to speak again. "My age-mates at home think I am strange because I would prefer the company of a good book to giggling incessantly over the ellon who try their hardest to show off their skills." Blue eyes shone brighter than normal with the sparkle of unshed tears. "Am I strange because of that? What if no one in Imladris likes me because of my quirks?"
"There is no use borrowing trouble, for we all have enough troubles without inventing new ones of our own," was the sage advice of Galadriel.
Elrond was indulging in an after dinner stroll through the gardens. The day had been, what was lately the norm, very hectic. With the immersion of nine new servants of the dark lord Sauron, Elrond had been asked by Gil-Galad, the High King, to host a convention of Elves. This council would decide what the best course of action to take will be. All the preparation had begun to wear on Elrond's nerves and he had never been more thankful for his various advisors. Now that he had a rare moment of peace he intended to take full advantage of it.
Banishing all thoughts of the large stack of parchment gathering in layers on his desk, Elrond stretched out on a bench and looked up at the slowly darkening sky. "Lord Elrond?" A small voice carried through the still air of the garden.
With a heavy mental sigh Elrond sat up and waited for the page to find him.
"Hir-nin?"
"Here."
"Uh-" the messenger paused, "Lord Glorfindel sent me to find you."
Elrond raised a noble eyebrow. "And what does Lord Glorfindel need?"
"What? Oh! He told me to find you and tell you that the diplomatic party from Lothlórien will be arriving within the hour."
Without a word of thanks or explanation Elrond ran toward his chambers. How- no- why would they arrive in Imladris on such a short notice? Elrond's thoughts raced as fast as his legs could carry him. Almost missing the door to his room Elrond skidded to a halt in time for his momentum to carry him around the door and into his chambers.
Glorfindel was waiting for Elrond and had quickly chosen a regal, yet simple set of formal robes. As the slightly rumpled Elrond burst through the door Glorfindel was able to soften the fall as he and Elrond became better acquainted with the titled floor.
Nursing what wold most likely be a bruised rump in the morning, Glorfindel mustered his dignity and followed Elrond into the courtyard. The duo arrived moments before the company from Lothlórien rode into the yard. Even with a slightly tilted circlet and rumpled robe Elrond managed to look suitably prepared to receive the important emissaries from Lothlórien.
As Celeborn and Galadriel rode to the front of the company Elrond's grey eyes quickly calculated where the other elves would need to be housed for their stay. Gracing the lord and lady from Lothlórien with a formal bow Elrond strode forward and lent his arm to Galadriel as she began to dismount. "Mae govannon, my lady." Once Galadriel was safely on the ground Elrond turn his attention to Celeborn. "My lord," he said, accompanied with a shallow bow, "it is an honor to have you here. Welcome to Imladris."
"Thank you, Lord Elrond, for your hospitality," Celeborn said as he moved towards a young, silver-haired maiden. "I believe you remember my daughter, Celebrían?"
"Milady," Elrond inclined his head in her direction as he fought to control his facial expression. He had not been expecting Celeborn and Galadriel to bring their child with them. With a subtle nod to Glorfindel, Elrond lead the family from Lothlórien towards the Last Homely House, leaving Glorfindel to find accommodations for the remainder of the company. The arrival of the whole family now made sense to Elrond, of course the females would have pressed Celeborn into arriving earlier than expected at such an indecent hour. With that mystery solved Elrond felt he could relax his mental guard.
The shadows had begun to lengthen as Celebrían nudged her mare closer to her parent's mounts. A sound slowly permeated Celebrían's consciousness as she became aware of the numerous waterfalls. Even in the dusky twilight Imladris was enchanting. As the Lothlórien Elves reached the courtyard of the Last Homely House Celebrían stifled a smirk as she observed the prestigious Lord Elrond. The crooked circlet and slightly wrinkled robes subtracted from the stern lines around his brow and mouth. This mixed message presented Celebrían with a sprinkling of hope that she would like to become better acquainted with the enigma that was Lord Elrond.
Pleasantries were exchanged and soon Lord Elrond was leading them towards the chambers they would occupy during their stay. Trying to obey the rules of etiquette Celebrían allowed her eyes to roam while holding her head still. The large halls and corridors were unlike anything Celebrían had ever seen. Tapestries, murals and sculptures lined the halls, depicting the wonder of the Elves.
Celebrían was vaguely aware of her parents exchanging news from Lothlórien with the master of Imladris, but Celebrían was more interested in taking in the sites. A soft touch on her arm brought her out of her revelry. "Lord Elrond asked you a question, Celebrían."
A pink blush spread across her cheeks as she fiddled with the material of her dress. "I apologize, Naneth."
"It isn't me to whom you owe the apology." A small battle of wills ensued as a flush of embarrassment crept up Celebrían's neck. Why was her mother treating her as if she was a mere efling?
Elrond observed the clash between mother and daughter. It hadn't been his intent to cause strife. "I realized that you have all just completed a long journey. Here are your chambers." He paused and lead them into a spacious room. "If you require anything please let the chamberlain know and it will be done."
"Thank you, Elrond," said Celeborn, "This has truly become a 'homely house.' Your generosity is bound to become legendary."
A smile ghosted Elrond's lips. "Thank you, my lord. I bid you goodnight. Ladies." With that the Lord of Imladris swiftly exited the room, gliding as if upon air. Once Elrond had gone out of sight of the family from Lothlórien he allowed his proper facade to fall. One very unlordly sigh later he arrived at his chambers and wondered what the upcoming weeks would have in store for him.
A/N: Yes, updates are few and far between, but I have no and will not abandon this story... fear not! I look forward to more critique from all of you. If anyone of you who are reading this have spare time and want to be my beta please let me know and I'll be in contact with you.