THE FORGOTTEN

Feasting, Council, and Waiting to Leave

Disclaimer: I do not own "The Lord of the Rings" or "Pride and Prejudice" or anything else I may have referenced and forgotten about.

Author's Note: The chapter in which – Lothril meets Elrond's children and Legolas gets upset at her.

REMINDER: Lothril Jennifer, Jennifer Lothril. Just in case you forgot! : )

At Lothril's insistence, they returned from their hunting trip early on the twenty-fourth. As they were only camping some four miles from the house, it didn't take very long to return. At the insistence of others from their party, Legolas and Lothril brought back with them the deer they had taken thus far. Given the size of the herd and how it looked like the winter might be, they determined that they needed to take six or seven deer. So far, they had gotten three, one of which was an impressive fourteen-point buck gotten by Legolas. The others said they would stay until they gotten the other three or four and understood why Legolas and Lothril had to return. As neither of them wished to carry or drag over six hundred pounds of dead weight for three or so miles, they drove back the wagon that had been brought up with a promise to send it back.

They weren't more than a few minutes down the road when Lothril turned to Legolas and said, "The whole reason you hauled me on this on trip was to make me field dress a dear, wasn't it?"

"Perhaps."

"And mostly because you were annoyed that Thinhen and Ellindë kept dressing the small game I caught for me, isn't it?"

"Maybe."

"And the whole reason you wanted me to do it so badly is because you wanted to watch me make faces, isn't it?"

"No, but that was terribly amusing. In truth, I think you need the experience. As we have all agreed from the beginning, we have no idea what you shall do or not, where you shall go or not, or what you shall need to know or not. I would be remiss as your teacher if I deprived you of knowledge that could very well sustain your life."

"Yeah, but you could have also taught me how to forage."

"I believe Elrond has covered that thoroughly. If by now you do not know every plant in Middle-earth by sight, I should be disappointed."

"I doubt I know every plant –"

"What's that?" he asked, pointing to a little plant on the side of the trail.

"Anise, but-"

"And that?" he asked, pointing to another.

"Bay laurel, but-"

"I think I have made my point."

"Well it helps when we're in Elrond's north garden. I doubt though I could spot just any old random weed that-"

"What's that?"

"Aethelas," she answered.

He looked at her briefly and grinned, "You were saying?"

"I don't like you."

At that Legolas laughed quite heartily.

They made it back to the house before noon and had the deer dropped off and the wagon on its way back before the noon bell. Lothril was heading back towards her room with Legolas, still in her hunting garb when they came across an elf woman.

"Greetings friend!" the woman said in elvish. "What brings you here? No ill news, I hope."

Legolas replied, "I set off as a messenger and guardian, but it seems I have indeed been called to council. I am glad we have come across you though, for I have wished to introduce you to my friend here since we arrived. Arwen, this is Lothril. She is the other reason I have come."

Lothril gave a curtsy, and Arwen returned it. "Greetings, Lothril and well met!" Arwen said.

"It is an honor to meet you."

"I have heard of you from my father since I have returned from Lothlorien lately. He speaks well of you. I understand he has also made you a member of our house?" Arwen said.

"Yes, he did. I was quite surprised and honored by the gesture," Lothril answered.

"From what my father has told me, I should have made the same gesture as he, given your circumstances," Arwen replied.

"So he has explained everything to you?" Legolas asked Arwen.

She nodded. "Not in great detail, but he has given me the pith of it. Including you giving her the name Lothril," Arwen said, giving Legolas a curious look.

"Should you like to join us? You and I may catch up and you may get to know Lothril better," Legolas said.

Arwen frowned. "Now I am torn, for you have caught me on an errand, but I should like to know you better, Lothril. I shall see to it you and I are seated near each other at supper and then we may speak and get to know one another. In the meantime though, I must beg your pardon and away."

"Oh, that is quite understandable. I shall see you at supper then," Lothril said. "And thank you."

She took her leave and hastened away and Legolas and Lothril continued walking towards their room.

"Well, I'm glad I met her, though I wish I had a chance to wash up and put on something clean first," Lothril said, looking down at her hunting garb.

"I am certain she thought nothing of it. It is not as if we are the first elves to ever return from a hunting party," Legolas replied.

"True, but even so. I'm generally not very good at first impressions and I certainly don't need a rumpled hunting outfit covered in deer hair to help me look bad."

"You do not give yourself enough credit. You made a good first impression to Elrond. And all of your teachers."

"Uh-huh, and what was your first impression of me."

"Strange girl," he replied.

"See!"

"Come now! You must consider – my first impression of you was you climbing out of a window in a short, tight skirt and that tight, bright green shirt," he argued.

"That skirt came down to the bottom of my knees and that shirt wasn't that tight. Your tailor saw to it that all my dresses fit just as tight or tighter on top. I'll grant you though, that skirt was entirely too tight to try horseback riding in, but it's not like it was skintight. It's actually a little big on me and the waist kept falling."

"I noticed that too, but I was not going to bring it up," he said.

Lothril got a rather confused and curious look on her face. "Why not?"

"Because after knowing you for a few minutes, I reckoned you would be scandalized to know I saw your bare torso and figured it was just an unfortunate consequence of you climbing and falling out of a window in an outfit clearly not designed for doing much. However, you mentioned it and you asked, so I have told you."

"Oh. You weren't offended, were you?"

"By seeing an inch of your back incidentally? I should think not," he replied.

"One day, I shall figure out elven sensibilities," she said.

"I would say one day I should figure out yours, but the more you tell me of your world, the more I think I shall leave it to you to sort out."

Later, as everyone was assembling for the feast, Lothril found herself crossing paths with Frodo.

"Greetings Frodo Baggins of the Shire! I am glad to see you are well," she said with a small curtsy.

"Greetings fair elf maiden. I thank you, but I am afraid you have me at something of a disadvantage, seeing as you know my name, but I do not know yours."

"Then allow me to put us on equal ground. My name is Lothril."

"Lothril! So you are the elfmaid that brought me here from the river bank!"

"I am."

"I wish to give you my sincerest thanks, Lady Lothril," Frodo gratefully said with a bow. "If there is ever anything I can do for you, I am at your service."

"You are very welcome Mr. Baggins. And I am at yours," she replied.

"You may call me Frodo if you wish Lady Lothril," Frodo said.

"And you may call me simply Lothril," she replied.

They entered the dining hall and Lothril saw Arwen was true to her word and she was seated next to the lady beside her canopied chair.

As she was led over to her chair, Lothril couldn't stop smiling to herself at the contrast between Thranduil's table and Elrond's. Though both had no lack of food or drink, Elrond's felt substantially more like a formal dinner party that Mr. Darcy would have thrown. Thranduil's, though no less impressive with the place settings, had far more of an emphasis on the party aspect. To the extent that she wondered if Thranduil wouldn't enjoy a disco ball hanging from a tree branch.

Being more of a formal dinner, they were sitting at table a bit longer than Lothril was accustomed to, and so it was over the course of things she found her conversation with Arwen drifting easily from general conversation, to more interesting subjects and then after a short while, taking on an air of familiarity as if they had known each other for years. It happened rarely to Lothril, but when it did, it was always a delightful surprise to her; namely, striking up a friendship. By the end of the meal, they were laughing as Arwen was telling about one of the exploits of her brothers and Legolas, and were drawing looks from their neighbors.

"My goodness, Arwen!" Lothril nearly wheezed between laughs, "I cannot remember the last time I laughed so hard! Especially with a stranger I just met."

"Nay! Nay! Say not stranger, dear Lothril, but friend!" Arwen said. The words rung of seriousness, but were offset by the laughter that colored her voice.

When the company was dismissed to the Hall of Fire, and Arwen was escorted out by her father, and to the surprise of Lothril, she was rather earlier on in the procession than she figured she would be. This had been one of the points of elven etiquette and customs Elrond had gone over with her lately, and somewhat in preparation for this evening. She hadn't quite understood how it would work out at the time, but when everyone stood and began assembling, it suddenly made sense and she found herself towards the front. In the passageway though, the order got a bit jumbled and she once again found herself beside Legolas. Once they were in the hall, Arwen came up to them.

"Legolas," Arwen said, "I must thank you for introducing us. However, I must also charge you to keep company with my friend this evening as I have others I must seek out. Lothril, shall we breakfast together tomorrow?"

"I am afraid I have been called to council," she replied.

"Then the day after the morrow?" Arwen queried.

"That should be fine," Lothril answered.

"Until then. Enjoy the evening, friends," she replied and with a curtsy, took her leave and turned down another hall.

"I see you and Arwen have become friends," Legolas said.

"Yes, we have! I don't think I have ever made a friend so quickly," she answered, beaming.

"I am glad. I am a friend of hers and her brothers. I am glad to see that you are friends with her too. Perhaps you shall yet meet Elrohir and Elladan and befriend them as well," Legolas said with a smile. "Whatever were you two talking about during dessert to cause such laughter?" he asked as they joined the procession to the Hall of Fire.

"Arwen was relating one of your escapes with her brothers. A trebuchet? You three honestly thought that was a good idea?"

"We were only going to launch pumpkins," he said offhandedly.

"It was aimed at her room!"

"In my defense, I wanted to launch them across the river at the cliff face."

"I'm sure that made a world of difference when Lord Elrond caught you."

"I shall never understand how they did not notice him coming."

"And how old were you all when this happened?" Lothril asked.

"We were not elflings, if that is what you are wondering. They are a bit younger than me. Only two or three hundred years at the time."

"So old enough to know better."

"I did know better! That was why I insisted we launch them at the cliff, and we did at first, but then they thought it was a shame we built it on a rotating platform if we were not going to rotate it, and so they were spinning it around and stopped with it facing the house, which just so happened to have Arwen's room on that side, as they debated whether or not they thought they could get one over the house at that distance. If she had bothered to come see what we were doing, instead of fleeing to her father, no one should have been the wiser. As it was, they were in the middle of calculating trajectory when Elrond stormed out. I felt him coming from a distance and so I headed towards the house."

"And you didn't get caught?"

"I wasn't trying to flee. I had tried to tell them to turn it before he got there so it didn't look quite so condemning, but they were engrossed and so I headed towards the house and tried to intercept him. He did not notice me for he was so focused on preventing his sons from destroying the house. I figured then he was sorely wroth and so I followed him to where the twins were and tried to intercede on their behalf."

"Well, what happened?!"

"He was glad they were not so stupid as to actually aim at Arwen's room, but was still very displeased that aiming an engine of war in the general direction house had even been a consideration. As punishment, they had to fix all the loose grout and masonry inside and out and wash the exterior of the house."

"And you?"

"I had done nothing but launch pumpkins at a cliff face. He did write a letter to my father relaying the incident. I never read it, but when I returned, Father asked how high up the cliff face the pumpkins landed. He seemed to think it a pretty good joke."

Lothril laughed, "All's well that ends well, eh?"

"Something like that," Legolas replied grinning. "The musicians are getting ready to play," he added.

The music began and Lothril's attention was immediately turned to it. Legolas could see her falling victim to the spell of the elven minstrel. Soon enough he joined her and let himself be taken away with the music. They all listened to Bilbo's poem and applauded when it was over. Suddenly, an elf called on Lothril to tell them a tale or sing a song from her home. She stood dumbfounded for a minute.

"I must beg you give me a minute to think of something. I am afraid many of the songs and stories I know would need a good deal more context than I could give in a short time. But I will think of something. Play another song or two and then I shall be ready," she answered.

"Very well, very well! But do not tarry long! We would have a song or story!" came the reply.

She stepped outside a moment to think of something away from the music. Quickly she ran through her repertoire and decided a ballad was probably the safest bet and began going through all the Gordon Lightfoot and John Denver songs she knew. She settled in on three songs after running through the lyrics in her head and thinking she remembered them all, and then decided if they demanded poetry, she could always recite something she memorized in school. She figured they could appreciate Robert Frost or Shakespeare without full context.

She returned inside towards the end of a song and the minstrel called out again, "We would have a song! Do you have one for us?"

"I do!" she replied and headed towards where the musicians were sitting.

"Then hum for us a little and we shall see if we can play along," the lead musician said.

She quickly hummed through a verse and chorus for them and they all agreed they should be able to do something. She gave them the tempo she was going to sing at and they told her to start at her leisure. She started with John Denver's "Darcy Farrow" then upon demand an encore of his "Ballad of St. Anne's Reel". Everyone seemed delighted with her selections and asked if she had poem or story as well. She said she would give them a poem and rattled off a couple short ones she had learned in school, but when they called also for a story, she said no, claiming she was not a very good story teller and returned to her place in the audience beside Legolas.

"I did not know you knew such songs," Legolas said.

"You never asked," she smiled. That night Lothril heard many more stories and songs and stayed until the very end of the night of her own accord. Once it was all said and done, she went humming and singing back to her room with Legolas, who walked beside her silent but smiling. He bade her goodnight and invited her to join him in his room for breakfast before the council, which she cheerily accepted. With all the songs and music running through her head, she laid down and happily drifted off to sleep.

The next morning Lothril was up before dawn. She wore her green and white dress with a velvety reddish brown robe over it that Elrond had made for her against the cool weather. When she was dressed and ready, she knocked on the door adjoining their rooms and Legolas bade her enter.

"Good morning," Legolas greeted. "You look nice this morning."

"Thank you, and good morning," she replied.

"I see you are wearing our colors," Legolas commented, gesturing towards the table for her to sit.

"How do you mean?" she asked, as he helped her into her chair.

"You are wearing the green dress you brought from Mirkwood, and green is the color of my father's banner."

"Is that why you are wearing green?"

He nodded. "Somewhat. It is also a little cool this morning and this is one of the warmer things I brought."

"So what is for breakfast this morning?" she asked.

"Oh, this and that. I advise you eat your fill though, for I suspect this shall be no short council."

She nodded but didn't say anything, and instead surveyed the breakfast spread. For two people, it was a substantial bit of food. She had never been much of one for breakfast, but as she recalled Bilbo complaining about missing his meal at noon, she took Legolas's advice. As soon as they finished eating they headed out to the council. They arrived just after Erestor and Glorfindel, who arrived just as the warning bell for the council's start rung out.

Elrond seated Lothril and Legolas next to each other and between the counselors of his house and Galdor from the Grey Havens. As everyone filed in, Lothril found herself surprised at how many of the faces she knew. In fact, she knew nearly all of them. At one point or another over the month she had been there, she had been introduced to, if not received instruction from, all the members present from Elrond's house. Galdor she had met last night, Aragorn she had seen in the healing room when he brought Elrond the knife handle. Gloin and Gimli she had seen at dinner and it was obvious which was which from the color of their beards. The man that entered she had not seen before, but he bore a silver tipped horn and she knew he must be Boromir. Then of course entered Frodo, Bilbo, and Gandalf and she knew all three of them. Frodo mostly by the sight and that brief conversation in the hall, but still they had met. For a moment she felt very out of place, realizing she had seen the least amount of adventures and perils out of everyone present, and her accomplishments to date were minimal and she barely wanted to acknowledge them back home, let alone here. Well, it wasn't guaranteed she would speak. Perhaps she wouldn't be called upon.

Things began with Gloin explaining why he had come and the messenger cloaked in black that had troubled the kingdom of Erebor. Lothril listened with great interest as Elrond traced the history of the rings up until Bilbo's part in the tale, at which point the hobbit took over, followed by Frodo, then Gandalf. Lothril of course, knew all the stories, but was quite engrossed by everyone's story telling. And so it was, she found it very jarring when Gandalf suddenly quoted the Black Speech on the ring. The harsh and menacing sound of it reminded her all too much of her encounter with the Nazgul by the river and she stopped her ears and wished she hadn't heard it at all. As soon as he stopped she breathed a sigh of relief and had never been so glad for sounds of an autumn morning. Gandalf continued on his story and at last Legolas gave his news of Gollum, and then Gandalf continued his tale up until very nearly that morning.

Then began the debate on what to do. Lothril kept her peace and listened only passively as she truly had nothing to add to the arguments, but as well, she began getting some clarity in her mind as to what she was to do. She had already been convinced she was to leave with the ring, but listening to all the stories and debates, she realized her road was not to Mordor, but Gondor. She would leave with the ring, but she wasn't to go to Orodruin with Frodo. She instead was to go to Minas Tirith. She didn't have time to ponder exactly what that might mean as sudden sharp voice broke her thoughts.

"Exactly!" Bilbo said. "And who are they to be? That seems to me what this Council has to decide, and all that it has to decide. Elves may thrive on speech alone, and Dwarves may endure great weariness; but I am only an old hobbit, and I miss my meal at noon. Can't you think of some names now? Or put it off till after dinner?"

The noon bell rang and silence fell. Everyone was deep in thought. Lothril looked around at those gathered and stopped when her eyes reached Frodo. He knew he was to go. It was plain upon his face. At last he spoke.

"I will take the Ring, though I do not know the way."

As soon as the council was dismissed, Lothril walked straight up to Elrond said, "I think we ought to talk before any more decisions are made about who should accompany Frodo."

Elrond's brows shot up in surprise. "Oh? Erestor, Glorfindel, Gandalf, and Legolas – may I speak with you all now privately?"

The four of them turned and looked at Elrond somewhat in surprise and then noticed Lothril standing there and exchanged looks then dismissed themselves to Elrond's study. Once everyone was seated, Elrond looked at Lothril and said, "You have the floor."

"Do they know about-?" she asked, nodding her head towards Erestor and Glorfindel.

"Yes," Elrond replied.

She nodded and then said, "We've had a long morning of this already, so I shall get straight to the point. We all agree my timing in arriving here is nothing shy of coincidental, if not downright on purpose. For a while now I've been convinced I ought to leave here accompanying the Ring, but after sitting in the council and listening to everyone speak, I have come to realize I am not to go with the ring in that I am accompanying it, but I am to leave at the same time and generally share the same road for a while because I am to go to Minas Tirith. I am very, very sure all of you have fairly well figured we are on the eve of war. As soon as Sauron gets wind of any of this he shall muster his troops and strike. The reason I didn't want to say anything during the council is because the last thing we need is for anyone to speed home and bring things about prematurely. There are still a few short months before things begin on that front, and the timing of events is crucial to the success or failure of our mission."

"Why do you think your road is to Minas Tirith and not with the ring?" Glorfindel asked.

She frowned and furrowed her brow, "That is hard for me to answer without saying too much, so I shall explain as I can. There are a few reasons, but the biggest one, I think, is that as I was listening to Boromir and Aragorn speak, a conviction grew in my mind that it was there I was needed." Her face went from serious to grim. "I believe I am to go to war. More than that, for war shall be everywhere soon; I believe I am to march on Mordor when the time comes."

"Do you understand what you are proposing to do?" asked Elrond, looking quite grim.

She looked at him and said, "I know full well that I am woefully ignorant of what such a war looks like. I also know that the armies of Mordor are beyond my ken. I don't even know what an orc looks like. But that doesn't matter. I believe that this is the road that I must take, and I will take it to whatever end. I don't want to go to war. I don't want to leave Imladris. However I believe I must, and so I will."

"What purpose do you hope to achieve? Glorfindel asked.

"Mostly – I hope to be a distraction. I doubt I'll commit any great and glorious deeds in war, but if after I have left the company of Frodo behind, I let it be known I have been sent here by the Valar, I think that may provide just enough of a riddle to Sauron to preoccupy him, even if only a little. At the very least, I should hope such a rumor would only serve to confirm his suspicion that we are trying to take him down using force."

"What you are saying is fraught with perils," Glorfindel warned.

"I know. And I am still uncertain exactly how all this shall work out. The only reasons I've said anything is because I wanted it to be known to you here I don't intend on going all the way to Mordor with Frodo even though I plan to leave with him, and sometime after I leave, I think it might do to spread rumors that a messenger from the West is heading to his front gate and I don't mind it being known I'm in league with the elves or anyone else that might cause him doubt."

Legolas shifted in his chair and looked singularly unhappy. "You are making yourself a target. For as much as you have learned these last two months, I do not think you are fully prepared for this undertaking. This is a dangerous thing you are looking to do."

"I know," she replied.

"I am not sure you do," he shot back.

"We have a saying back home – He doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called. As sure as I've ever been of anything, certainly more sure than when I decided to go climbing out that window, I am sure that I am to do what I have laid out. Or at the very least, pursue that course. It's always possible that I start down that road and something changes, or that my going to war actually means me acting as support behind the army. I don't know that yet. All I know is that I must go to Minas Tirith, and I have a very nasty suspicion that if I go to Minas Tirith, I will then go to Mordor."

Elrond looked at Legolas and said, "She is convinced, and I think she is right. In any event, we shall want to send out scouts to see what has become of the nazgul and learn what we can and that shall take some time. While we wait, it shall fall to us to see that she is made as ready as possible for the road ahead."

Legolas nodded but said nothing.

"Well, that is all I wished to say," Lothril said. "Any further discussion and any details we can work out as we need."

With that they were dismissed and Gandalf stopped Lothril and wished to speak with her. "No decisions have been made as yet, but I shall be going with Frodo," he said. "Before we depart, I wish to discuss what my plans are so we may work together even when our paths diverge."

Lothril nodded. "Whenever you are ready to discuss it, you have only to call for me."

They parted and Lothril headed back to her room alone. She didn't think too much of the fact that Legolas hadn't waited for her, as she figured he would be needing to send some form of message back to his father. It hadn't escaped her notice that he looked very unhappy about her decision. This surprised her and upset her a little, but she decided she would give him time to sort through things before she tried talking it over with him. Either way, at some point or another they would have to discuss it, if for no other reason, Elrond had once again assigned him to be her instructor. She reached her room and his door was shut, and so was the door between their two rooms. With a deep sigh she sank down on the couch in front of the fire and picked up the book she had left there and attempted to read.

As the hobbits were holding their own council in Bilbo's room, Legolas knocked on the door between their rooms.

She got up and opened it.

"Why did you say that you must go to war?" Legolas asked, still looking unhappy.

"Because I think I am supposed to," she replied.

"And nothing shall change your mind on this?" he asked.

She hesitated then answered, "As I said, I think this is the path I am to go down. Something may change. Maybe I shall later learn I am needed most as a healer. But I must head to Minas Tirith, and if I go there, I just have this nasty feeling I'll wind up marching to Mordor. Regardless, I don't plan on handing out my travel plans. I plan on traveling in secret for as much as possible and hopefully reaching Minas Tirith before the rumors get too far. The route I suspect I shall take should keep me out of Sauron's gaze until I'm in Gondor."

"And what route is that?"

A strange look came into her eyes. "Best not say."

"I wish you had said something to me first," he said.

"Well, I wanted to tell Elrond right away so he had all the information before he began making plans or decisions. I was going to tell you privately afterwards because I really only did reach the realization I should go to Minas Tirith during the council, but then Elrond called you and the others to come with us and well, you know the rest," she answered.

Legolas fell into silence and studied her face intently. "In the end, I suppose it truly does not matter. I can see you are resolved and if you believe this is the right course for you to take, I shall not seek to dissuade you and I shall help you prepare as best as I can. Only promise me you shall be careful," he said at last.

"I promise."

The morning after the council, Lothril awoke early and dressed and tried a little harder than usual with her hair, and wasn't wholly unpleased with the results, and then headed out to have breakfast with Arwen. She had been invited to have breakfast with her in her private quarters and realized this was the first time she had been down that particular corridor. There were only four doors on this hall and at the end of it was a landscape painting that reminded her of one she had seen drying in Elrond's study and wondered if it was one of his. Arwen's door was the first one on the right.

Breakfast with Arwen was very pleasant and they spent the better part of two hours eating and talking and getting to know each other better. To Lothril's relief, they got on as if they had been friends her entire life, and spoke easily together. Arwen wanted to hear about her – what her life was like before coming to Middle-earth, what her world was like, and her interests. Then the conversation drifted to the story of her being brought there.

"I am glad that you and Legolas have become such good friends," Arwen commented.

"I'm not sure we had too much of a choice," Lothril joked, "He has been stuck with me since before he fetched me, though he did volunteer to be my teacher, so I suppose everything after that was his decision. Either way, we are friends now."

Arwen smiled, "Indeed, I begin to think he should not have wished things any other way."

"Well, I am sure I have no idea what I would do without him. He's very dear to me," Lothril said. "He and your father are as close as I have here to kin."

"Ah, but you forget adar has named you a member of our house. You have me and my brothers as kin now also," replied Arwen. "Have you met them yet?"

Lothril shook her head, "No, I have not."

"They ought to be returning shortly, according to Ada. They are also good friends with Legolas, so I am sure between the two of us, you shall meet them soon," Arwen said.

Lothril smiled and said, "I look forward to it."

There was a knock at the door. It was a servant. "I beg your pardon, but Prince Legolas has bid me to summon lady Lothril to the practice fields where he is awaiting her."

Lothril chuckled. "Prince Legolas, eh? Did he tell you to say that specifically?" The servant nodded in reply. "He can be such a goose sometimes," Lothril said smiling and shaking her head.

Arwen grinned and said, "Indeed, he is! I suppose it is best you do not keep Prince Laegwaun (green-goose) waiting. He is liable to start honking if you take too long."

Lothril laughed and even the servant stifled a giggle and with that she excused herself and made her way down to the practice field with the servant.

It was not more than a few days after the council that the Sons of Elrond returned to the Last Homely House. They had come in late but found Elrond still about and in the dimly lit kitchen having a cup of tea alone, the kitchen staff long gone to bed for the night.

"Suilad yn," (Greetings sons) Elrond said as they entered the kitchen.

"Suilad Ada," (Greetings, Dad) they replied.

"There is stew warm for you on the coals there, and bread here on the table and apple pie in the warming oven," he said. "And I have more tea if you wish to have some."

They thanked him and got themselves their late supper and sat down across from him on the table. After a bite or two Elladan said, "You have not waited up for us in a long time. Are you so anxious for news?"

He smiled a little and shook his head. "No, I think I can guess what you found – nothing but tattered cloaks."

They both nodded. "We can account for at least two of them," Elrohir said, "but what I cannot account for is why you did not have us search further downriver. You know there are few that know this valley and river so well as us."

He nodded slightly. "I know, but you have been out long and had barely returned before being sent out again and I have something I wish to speak with you about."

"That sounds ominous, especially given you have waited up for us," Elladan said, glancing at Elrohir.

Elrond chuckled, "It is nothing like that. I simply wanted you to hear it from me first. Around mid iavas (autumn) I had a dream that I would be receiving a visitor from a far off place, and a few weeks later she arrived with a small escort from Thranduil that was here on other business besides. Legolas was in that party with her and told me that he and his father had dreams from the Valar saying they were to fetch her, and she was given dreams telling her she was coming to Middle-earth."

"To Middle-earth?" Elladan asked, raising a brow.

"To Middle-earth," Elrond repeated. "It seems she is from another world, and though we cannot reckon how or why, it seems she is peredhel. When she first arrived in Mirkwood she was very human and by the time I met her, she seemed very elven."

The twins looked, understandably, surprised at this story. "How can any of this be?" Elrohir asked.

Elrond shook his head. "I cannot begin to guess outside of some working of the Valar, though she herself has a few theories that seem at least plausible. In any event, Legolas, myself, and a few others have taken to teaching her our ways and customs as well as some fighting skills. We all strongly suspect she has some part to play with the business involving the Ring, though we are not sure what as yet and-"

"You wish us to help train her?" Elladan guesed.

Elrond smiled, "Not particularly, but you are welcome to ask Legolas if he would like your aid. She has a good deal of natural talent and skill with ósanwe and as I have been helping her develop that skill I have gotten to know her very well. She is here without any kin nor home nor knowledge if she shall ever return to whence she came and so I have made her a member of this house and adopted her as a daughter."

They both looked at their father, a little stunned. "Adopted?" Elladan repeated. "You are not about to add she is rightful heir to the throne of Gil-galad or some such thing, are you?"

Elrond gave a thoughtful frown, "She is not an heir of Gil-galad, but I suppose it is possible she has some other claim. If she does though, I know it not. That is hardly the reason I adopted her though. I am fond of her and has no home or kin here, so I decided to give her both. It is as simple as that."

"Will you tell Arwen when she returns?" Elrohir asked.

"She returned nearly two weeks ago and I told her then," Elrond replied.

"How did she take it?" Elladan asked.

"About as you would expect," Elrond said with a smile.

"The poor girl – I can only assume Arwen has given her half her wardrobe by now. What is the girl's name anyway?" Elrohir asked.

"It was Jennifer, but she has since been renamed Lothril," Elrond answered.

"I am surprised you did not give her something with el- or ara- in it. Elwen, Araniel…" Elrohir said trailing off.

"I did not name her," Elrond replied.

"Oh? Surely she has not mastered our tongue so quickly as to name herself!" Elrohir said.

"She has not, but she is progressing very rapidly. She asked Legolas to name her," Elrond replied.

The twins both furrowed their brows. That certainly wasn't what they had expected to hear. "Legolas?"

"Why?"

Elrond shrugged. "It was her decision to make and I did not question it. She has known Legolas longer than she has known me and the two of them share a bond."

Elladan grinned, "A bond? Adar, it is not like you to be gossiping of other's private affairs."

Elrond gave him a look and said, "It is hardly private or gossip. Her story is not a secret around here, nor is it that Legolas named her, and the bond between them is obvious."

"Obvious?" Elladan asked, arching a brow. "How so?"

"Galdor asked me yesterday if they were cousins," Elrond replied.

"So it is not romantic," Elladan said.

"Not that I am aware of," Elrond said then took a sip of tea.

"When can we meet her?" Elrohir asked.

"I shall see her tomorrow morning. We will be going over sentence structure and then founding of Imladris. She shall also likely be at breakfast."

The twins looked at each other and Elladan said, "Then we shall meet her in the morning."

The next morning Elrond half expected his sons to appear at breakfast if only to meet Lothril, but they had come in very late and decided to sleep in. Elrond decided last night that he would plan for Elladan and Elrohir to interrupt and if they didn't, then things would simply be shorter today. He said nothing to Lothril though as he was not sure if they would show up at all.

Lothril was in the middle of trying to construct and write a sentence in elvish using tengwar when a knock at the door came. She stayed focused though because she was certain if she allowed herself to be distracted, she would never figure out how to arrange it. Grammar was never her strongest subject… In the back of her mind it registered that she didn't hear anything after the knock, so she assumed it was simply the butler or something until she finished and looked up to see two very identical dark haired elves that bore more than a passing resemblance to Elrond.

"Lothril, I would like to introduce you to my sons Elrohir and Elladan," he said.

She quickly stood and bowed slightly. "I am honored to meet you both."

"We are honored to meet you as well," the replied in unison.

Elrond raised a brow and gave them a look as Lothril tried very hard not to laugh.

"Elrond, which one is which?" Lothril asked, looking terribly amused.

Elrond smiled and replied, "Elrohir is the one wearing blue today."

"I see our new sister is ready for us, Elrohir," Elladan said with a grin.

"Ah, so Elrond has told you," she said, glancing over at Elrond.

"I thought it best they hear it from me first before they heard it from a servant," Elrond explained.

She nodded.

"As long as no one objects, we would like to steal away our new sister and get to know her," Elrohir said.

"Possibly spend time with Arwen as well," Elladan added.

"I have no objection," Elrond said.

She smiled a little nervously but said, "Alright, let's go."

She had honestly been a little worried since Elrond told her he adopted her. What would his own children think? But it seemed they were all quite happy to have another sister. At least Arwen certainly was, and so far the twins seemed amicable enough. The day proved to be quite fun as they found Arwen and all went to the Hall of Fire to sit and talk together and get to know her.

It was a bright, crisp November morning. Smoke arose from the chimneys of the Last Homely House and there was an unusually high number of requests for hot things to drink coming into the kitchen. Legolas sat on his porch with a harp and a steaming cup of tea, playing and singing as he waited for the tea to cool down a little bit more. He heard a voice join him as he sang a song about early winter. The song ended and he took a sip of his tea which was now the perfect temperature, then called out, "Come up here and join me, Arwen. It has been a long time since we had a cup of tea together."

"Very well," came her reply. "But wait to pour my tea until I make my way inside."

He stood up and leaned on the railing and looked down at her and said, "I did not say anything about walking all the way around and coming in."

"You wish for me to jump up there?" She asked, looking scandalized.

Legolas laughed, "A little distance such as this? It never used to stop you before."

"Come now! I was an elfling," she protested.

He raised a brow. "An elfling? At nine hundred and fifty years old, I do not think you were an elfling."

She gave him a disapproving look severely reminiscent of her father's and replied, "That was different. Elrohir and I were in a race."

"You are just lucky I had not gotten up to see what all the commotion was about. Elsewise we would have collided and you would have lost, for certain. But come now, no one is about. Come on up and join me for tea. Lothril is with your father this morning and I would like some company," he said.

Arwen frowned and looked around and then turned around and walked back a few paces and gathered her skirts up to her knees and ran a few steps before jumping easily up and over the porch railing, landing softly on the porch. Without a word, but with a large grin on his face, Legolas turned into his room and poured a cup of tea for her as she sat down on the chair he had previously occupied. He handed her the tea and then brought another chair out for himself and added a little more tea to his cup then sat down.

"What brings you out on such a fine morning?" Legolas asked cordially.

"I was out for a walk, though I am glad you were out. I have been wanting to talk to you. It has been a long while since I have seen you," she answered.

"Yes, you have been in Lothlorien a long time."

She nodded. "I met your mother's parents, and her brother and your cousins. They were glad to hear of you and your father."

A melancholy smile took his face. "It has been a long time since any of us have traveled to see the other. My mother was the last to try it. Perhaps it is time."

Arwen laid a hand on his arm. "I know, and they understand. It is why they have not attempted to travel north either. They were simply glad to receive word you and your father are well."

"Thank you, Arwen," he said. "You are a good friend."

"Legolas, we have been friends for many years, have we not?"

"We have," he answered slowly. The look on her face made him suspicious of what was about to follow.

"And in all those long years, I have not attempted to meddle in your private affairs, have I?"

"No, you have not."

"Then I hope you will take what I am going to say into consideration."

"And that is?"

"I think you ought to consider courting Lothril."

Legolas stared blankly at her for a moment before he blinked and said, "What, pray, has brought you to this conclusion?"

"Both of you. Oft if I see one of you, I see both of you. And if I speak to one of you alone, the other comes up. Just now, as you invited me up here, your reason was that you wanted company and Lothril was gone. You know as well as I do that you have many friends here and any other visit, you would already be out and about with your other friends. Indeed, they have all mentioned that you are scarcely to be seen now without her," she answered.

He gave a disapproving frown. "It is nice to know my friends talk about me."

"Do not be petulant. I was trying to find you and sought out your usual companions, and when you were not with them, they mentioned that if I truly wished to find you these days, to look for Lothril or else the library or your room. I was heading to the library to find you when I walked past your room and so found you," she said.

"I see. And what brought you out in search of me this morning?"

"I was going to ask if you had made your return plans yet," she answered.

He nodded and said, "Nothing is set, but your father has asked if I should be willing to depart with the Ringbearer. I am considering it."

"Do you know what Lothril's plans are?" Arwen asked.

"She is departing with him as well," Legolas answered. "And it is part of the reason I am considering going."

Arwen smiled and raised a brow. "Oh?"

"I feel responsible for her, Arwen. I feel as if I have been her guardian since the first dream I had of her, and – I cannot say too much, for much is uncertain, but I cannot bear the thought of her traveling alone. Though I think one or two others may go with her, and though I am certain Boromir is a worthy man in his own right, she is not his concern. He is concerned for his city, and Aragorn, well, you probably know his plans better than I. She is young and though she is skilled, she is still inexperienced."

"Are you certain concern is the only feeling that drives you?"

Legolas shot her a warning look, but she was undeterred. He sighed. "I care for her deeply, Arwen. When she asked me to name her, I began to realize how I felt and how deeply I cared for her, but I do not know if those feelings are returned. I know that she is fond of me, but I am uncertain as to how. Nost egor melethor?" (Kindred or lover) He shook his head. "I cannot tell. For as easily I can read her at times, her feelings are still elusive to me."

Arwen was quiet for a moment then said, "I do not know either, except she speaks highly of you and obviously holds you in very high regard. Otherwise, she would not have chosen you to name her. But as for what her feelings are, she has said nothing to me. What of you? You care for her deeply, but how?"

"Nauthon den melon," (I think I love her) he said quietly. "That is why I am considering going. Your father made it clear to me that any that go with the Ringbearer are not going to be bound by any oath to go further than they will. It would free me to follow her, but I should still feel compelled to go with the Ringbearer. And that is why I am considering returning home." He fell silent and stared blankly at the trees beyond his porch then said almost to himself, "No, I shall go. And I shall say nothing to her before we leave. If fate allows and all our hopes are realized, then I shall tell her."

"If you think that is best," Arwen said.

He looked at her and shook his head, "I think it is best in terms of aiding her in her mission."

"You are a noble elf, Legolas, but consider this also – if you learn later she now feels the same and refrained saying so out of fear that you would be untrue to your purpose if she spoke, should you not be offended that she thought you so fickle and faithless?"

He was silent for a while. "I should not be well pleased. But I think she does not know her own mind in this. I would be distraught to learn one day that the only reason her affections were bestowed upon me was due to my speaking too soon. Who knows? Perhaps there is another who is better suited for her than I am. I wish to give her a chance to decide it for herself."

"With that, I cannot argue except to say that if what my father has told me and what I have observed is true, by the time she speaks her mind and heart, it shall be because she knows it truly. If she does choose you, do not be so noble as to council her against yourself," Arwen said.

He glanced at her, but said nothing.

Lothril spent the two months between the council and the announcement of the Fellowship studying with Elrond in the early morning hours, training mid-morning til noon, and getting to know the future members of the Fellowship in the early afternoon. With the better part of them she had become good friends inside of a month, as her skill with weaponry was enough to impress Boromir, and Gimli, though not quite as friendly as the others at first, began warming up to her when she told him her family had once worked in the copper mines back home and that some still worked in steel. The hobbits all took to her fairly quickly, as it was obvious she was on friendly terms with Bilbo and she seemed less lofty and remote than a good deal of the other elves. Gandalf and Aragorn had both liked her from the outset, Aragorn particularly when he learned of her fast friendship with Arwen. Her late afternoon hours she usually spent hiding somewhere quiet, like her bedroom or the tower room Legolas had shown her when she first arrived. Even at that though, Legolas usually turned up after a while and she would find she had been wanting his company more than solitude. He was easy for her to be with. They could talk or be silent, playful or serious. He never asked her to be anything other than she was, respected her privacy, and could read her moods better than she could. Being with him was almost as relaxing as being alone – sometimes more so.

At the end of two months Elrond announced the members of the Fellowship and their pending departure date. Lothril breathed a sigh of relief as she could now speak a little more openly with Legolas about it. After the announcement was made, they found themselves sitting up in the tower, each with a book they were ignoring.

"I know why you wished to leave with the Fellowship now Lothril!" Legolas said, finally closing his book.

"Oh do you? Enlighten me oh elven prince!" she jokingly exclaimed.

"All that traveling to Minas Tirith talk is a ruse. You knew I would be a member of the Fellowship and you wanted to make sure that you went with me!" He said with a grinned.

"Don't flatter yourself!" Lothril teased.

"Oh, so that is the way of things! I see. I do not then know why I bothered to come up here with you," He retorted with feigned hurt pride.

"I've been wondering why myself," she teased back.

"Troublesome girl," he muttered to himself in his own tongue.

"I heard that," she answered in kind.

"I miss your human ears at times," he shot back. "I used to be able to insult you with impunity."

"If I am so troublesome, why did you volunteer to teach me? Or agree to go with the Fellowship after I declared my intentions? Or come up here at all?"

"A fit of madness," he rejoined, shaking his head. "Someone must mind you. It is a burden I bear gladly."

She chuckled in response and then they fell back into comfortable silence.

For several days while everyone was waiting to leave, Lothril spent her spare time making all the preparations she could for the road ahead. There wasn't too much for her to do. She was becoming anxious to leave. She knew that once she left Imladris, she would never be the same – though she tried not to think about it too much. Elrond had seen to it she was well provided for the road ahead, or at least as well as anyone could hope to be and still travel light. As well, she spent a good deal of time with Gandalf and Aragorn going over maps and asking questions about what one might expect for terrain, weather, and so forth. As far as it went, Lothril was probably as well informed about the route Gandalf wished to take as anyone was. Better because she knew what would happen, but foreknowledge aside, it seemed to her that Gandalf honestly didn't have the road much past Lothlorien figured out. She began to suspect part of his plan was to stop in Lothlorien and counsel with Galadriel and Celeborn and then make decisions from there. Aragorn early on had offered to allow her to accompany him (and most likely Boromir) as they headed to Minas Tirith, and it seemed like regardless of what Gandalf may or may not have planned, Aragorn's own plans included following Gandalf up until Lothlorien and then depending on what route he wished to take, splitting off from the wizard and the Ringbearer sooner or later with Boromir. She had of course, accepted his invitation, as she knew what would happen and had decided she would follow Aragorn regardless, because her making a straight line to Minas Tirith on her own would be impossible. She of course, said nothing during these planning meetings, as she had nothing she could or would say about the route Gandalf would take, and Aragorn, whether he realized it or not, was going to more or less follow his original plan, but with a detour through Rohan.

The day before they left Lothril was in her room alone and going over what she had packed for the fifth or sixth time when there was a knock at her door. She closed her pack and hastened over to the door and opened it.

"Good afternoon, Lothril," Elrond greeted, holding a large package.

"Good afternoon, Elrond. Please, come in and sit down," she said, closing the door behind him. They went over to the arm chairs and sat down. "What brings you here?"

Elrond smiled. "I wished to have one last word with you privately before you leave. I do not think I can tell you anything about your road ahead that you do not already know or can guess, so I have no council for you except to say- be careful and do not lean too heavily on your foreknowledge. By your own admission, you are on not mentioned in the stories and therefore your road unknown to you. I do not know what the road ahead holds in store for you either, but I would like to see you alive and well at the end of it."

She nodded and said, "I shall do my best."

"That is all I can ask. As well, I wished to let you know that anything, anything at all that you do not wish to travel with you can leave here in your room in my keeping."

"Thank you, Elrond. It really is nice to know that I do have a place I can call my own. I cannot express how much that means to me."

"You are very welcome. There is one more thing - for all the foreknowledge and foresight of our kind, I find even we can get caught by unforeseen circumstances. This is to guard against them," he said. With those words he handed her the package. Inside was a thin wooden box that held such things like extra arrowheads, feathers, thread for fletching, and an extra bow string. He also gave her some more arrows and a larger quiver to accommodate them all. He also gave her a small kit full of dried healing herbs and a variety of practical balms and salves that would likely prove useful on the road. She threw her arms around him and thanked him again for everything he had done.

The evening to leave came. It was a dreary day and everyone was very somber. Lothril was on her way to bid farewell to her new friend, Arwen when she spotted her and Aragorn saying good-bye. She quickly turned around and waited until the two of them parted company before she approached.

With a quick hug and well wishing, Lothril and Arwen parted company and the former quietly resumed her place sitting beneath a tree, waiting for the last of the Fellowship to assemble. It was cold and dreary and the atmosphere was little better than a funeral. The road before her seemed dark and daunting and she was nearly overwhelmed by a desire to stay in Rivendell but she knew she couldn't. She only sat a moment as the doors to the house opened and everyone assembled. Elrond bade them farewell and she fell in line with the rest.

The Fellowship of the Ring left Imladris. As they were walking away Lothril sent a mental message to Elrond thanking him. Just then the Fellowship rounded the corner, and the Last Homely House east of the Sea was beyond sight.