Galadriel waited for the elves to be brought up to them so they could hear their account of what happened at the festivities being held in Estel's honor.
When Vanir had come with the idea of a celebration, she had given her permission readily. The elves of Lorien needed a reason to celebrate, and Estel's coming after great deeds in the south provided that reason.
Sauron's war on them was going to come soon, so it would cheer ther elves up if there were festivities and celebrations. And Vanir's idea was good and noble. Even Arwen had agreed that they needed to make merry. She argued in favor of Vanir, telling them that such a thing would only lift Estel's heart.
However, neither had foreseen that the event would take such a dark turn.
Estel was learned in the manner of the elves. Elrond had taught him in elvish ways and those of the Dunedain. A man taught by Elrond and the others in Imladris wouldn't behave in such a manner as Silwin's followers would have them believe.
Something wasn't right, she told herself. There was more to this than met the eyes.
Celeborn, her husband, did not really think much of men. He had never liked them and thought of them as greedy scoundrels who would do anything to get what they want. Even elf-friends. After all, hadn't Numenor destroyed itself in their greed for immortality by attacking the white shores of Valinor? True, Sauron had acted on their vulnerabilities and instigated them with lies and deceit, but Celeborn argued that the vulnerabilities were their own.
She had smiled then and said, "If men are so weak as you think they are, that they allowed Sauron to infect their minds and be tricked into their own undoing at his hands, then you must think the Noldo weak as well. For weren't the elves tricked by Sauron when the rings of power were created?"
Her husband had no answer to her question. But he did not let go of his bias and opinion, and maintained his view of the mortal kingdoms. He had only accorded Estel the guestright because she and Arwen had vouched for him. It didn't change his understanding of the man even though he had recently claimed to do so. Even in this, he saw Estel's fault more than he did Silwin's. Quick to making decisions and impulsive he was, yet this was the elf she had loved since she first met him on the northernmost reaches of the Undying Lands, his ship pushed to shore far north of the Teleri ports of Alqualonde.
Ever since then, they had been together, although Celeborn was loath to make the journey back to Middle Earth. Yet he returned on a ship with her to be with her. They spent much time in Doriath and Nargothrond, and ere both fell, they went over the mountains forsaking the war against Morgoth and came into Eriador. Far south and east they had wandered, and for a time dwelt near the Mouths of the Anduin where they found a small city named Pelargir.
There, sitting upon the shores of the Great Sea, staring at the seagulls flying in the air, they would ever yearn for the West. Celeborn had even suggested that there was nothing left for them in Middle Earth anymore, but she was least interested in his proposal to return to Valinor. Deep inside, she had known then that the time for her return was not night. There was unfinished business for her in Middle Earth. Worried that they would find the yearning grow keener again, they had left Pelargir and made their journey back north and west where they joined the elves who had settled in Eregion.
And there they were welcomed by the Noldo led by the grandson of Feanor, Celebrimbor, the architect of the rings of power. Peaceful years had followed, and Galadriel felt overjoyed as she joined the elven council and helped in its administration. She would occasionally journey to Lindon and meet with the High King Gil-galad and discuss much of the peace that the elves now enjoyed since the departure and imprisonment of the Great Enemy Morgoth.
When Annatar came bearing gifts, posing as an emissary of the Valar, she had seen the darkness in him and rejected him. But he was well accepted by the elves of Eregion who fell prey to his machinations. Slowly, Celebrimbor became enamored with this huge project to create a semblance of the Undying Lands in Middle Earth. With Annatar's help, he crafted the Rings of Power.
She had wanted nothing to do with it, and when Celebrimbor wouldn't listen, Celeborn and she had passed through Khazad-dum and come into Lorinand where she found welcome by King Amdir.
All through this, she had ensured that she would keep fighting this Annatar and believed that, one day, Annatar would come for them. A foresight was upon her, and using a Palantir, she made contact with the only ones who would help them.
The men of Numenor.
And so when Eregion fell and Celebrimbor died and Sauron waged war on all the elves, it was Numenor who came to their aid. Celeborn had showed thanks to the great kings of the West though he did not like that the elves had to take their help. Neither had he agreed with her when she forged a relationship with the dwarves of Khazad-dum. "Filthy Naugrim!" he had called them.
Their killing of Thingol had not sat well with him, but Galadriel insisted that he make peace with the dwarves as these were not the Naugrim who participated in the murder of his king. For it was those from Nogrod who had dared to kill Thingol in his own kingdom. The dwarves from Khazad-dum were either the original inhabitants or those who had migrated here from Belegost whose dwarves were the most friendly to the elves. Back in Doriath, she had befriended most of these dwarves and learned much from them.
Even now, she wished Celeborn would throw away his anger at the other children of Illuvatar. Apart from elves, Celeborn never considered the others worthwhile. She had believed otherwise.
Vanir and a few elves strode into their chambers and bowed to them as was their wont and as was tradition.
"Tell me, Vanir, and speak truly," Lord Celeborn ordered, "if there is any fault that lies with the child of man, no matter his station and legacy, with what's happened at the festivities below. Has he violated guestright?"
Vanir stepped forward and said, "If there's any fault in the young lord of men, it would be giving in to rage and anger, but he did not violate any guestright, my lord Celeborn. He tried to plead with Silwin not to fight, but it was Lord Silwin and his followers who first raised their weapons at him. Lord Estel fought with them, true, but he didn't raise his weapon. He dueled them with his bare hands and only in defense. He never went on the offense."
"And, pray, how's it that two elves are dead in the city and three bruised and injured?"
"Estel's an honorable and skilled warrior, my lord Celeborn. It's evident that he has learned in the elvish way of fighting. But the two elves that are dead died by stabbing each other, my lord. It was accidental as they couldn't control their speed with which they tried to attack the mortal from either side. Their deaths do not lie at Lord Estel's door."
"And what provoked this incident, Vanir?" Galadriel asked.
"Apparently, what started it was that Silwin did not like the fact that Estel was growing closer to Lady Arwen, my Lady. Silwin, it seemed, had warned or threatened the young man yesterday night, and when he found out that he partook in the festivities in the company of the Lady Arwen, Silwin brought his followers to the festivities with intention to confront him. Only he was foolish to do so in full view of the public. It was Lord Silwin and his followers who violated guestright and broke the rules and laws that govern this city, my Lady."
"And how come Lord Silwin lies bloodied in the infirmary?" her husband questioned.
"Lord Silwin accused Estel and his ancestors of working in league with the Enemy, my Lord. That accusation was unfounded. Lord Silwin insulted the mortal's ancestry and legacy, provoking the young man to go on the offensive against Lord Silwin. We pulled him off, and he calmed down at our behest. And then he stormed away into the woods. We did not pursue him for we thought it would be best in the moment for him to spend some time alone and think over what's happened. I assume that he felt guilty for what he had done and feared recompense coming from the elven lords."
Her husband had noted that he hadn't mentioned elven ladies.
Galadriel smiled. "Are the rest of the elves in agreement with you, Vanir?"
"Yes, my Lady," he answered. "Everyone here will tell you that it was Lord Silwin who violated guestright despite repeated pleas from our side not to disturb the festivities with wanton violence. We tried our best to reason with him, but Lord Silwin had come with only one purpose–and that was to punish the young man for indulging in a companionship with the Lady Arwen."
She nodded. "Very well then... you may leave. And if you see Estel, Vanir, escort him to the Citadel."
Vanir bobbed his head and led the other elves away.
"See, Celeborn, did I not tell you?" she said. "Not everything is what meets the eye."
"Still, he beat Silwin to a pulp."
"And his guilt made him want to leave Lothlorien, considering it unsafe," she admonished. "It has been a long age since anyone in Lorien has felt unsafe. And if a mortal feels so, do the elves as well?"
Celeborn shrugged. "With the war at our doorstep, I wouldn't be surprised if..."
He would have spoken more if an old tired voice hadn't interrupted him.
Galadriel and Celeborn turned towards the door and smiled at the appearance of a familiar figure–an old man clad in a gray elven raiment, holding an ashen staff in his right hand.
"What's it, I hear, that the elves of Lorien have lost sight of a young mortal kind?" the old man asked. "Are the elves of Lorien grown so lax that they cannot find a lone ranger from the North?"
"Mithrandir!" Galadriel called out to him. "Estel's disappearance is being investigated. And he has not really missing. We know where he might be headed to. Arwen is pursuing him even as we speak."
"That may well be," the old wizard said. "For I very much looked to speaking with my old friend Aragorn, for I very much wish to learn more of what the Enemy has been planning. So I came hither ever since news came out of Imladris of his presence here, and I've been riding hard only to find the Enemy's forces right on the borders of Lorien."
She smiled. "Estel's coming to us brought a wind out of the East. Presumably, his deeds have caused great harm to the Enemy's plans in the south. But to send an army against Lothlorien, which he has never done so in such force before, troubles me. All of this for one mortal, Mithrandir? What does Sauron know about Aragorn?"
Mithrandir leaned on his staff and sighed. "That's what worries me too for strange news have reached me as well. The Lord of the Morgul Vale arrived at Dol Guldur a few days ago, and that sorcerer-king has never left that accursed city ever since he acquired it. That does not bode well, my Lady Galadriel."
"There'll be time for us to discuss these matters, Mithrandir," Celeborn said. "You have traveled long and far, and you must be weary. Rest first for a while. In that time, we would have found Estel."
Mithrandir nodded. "He should be found, Lord Celeborn, for if he falls into the Enemy's hands, the results would be terrible for us all, not just for the world of men. Middle Earth stands on the edge of a knife. Stray but a little, and we will fall to the ruin of us all. I'd have us stray afloat and confront the Enemy, and Aragorn is our only hope of seeing a king sit upon the throne of Gondor."
She smiled and understood what Mithrandir was referring to. But, for now, she would let the matter rest. "Go, Mithrandir, your quarters are ready and wait for you."
Saying, she turned away and stared into the West through the window, her fingers crossed, hoping that Arwen would find Aragorn fast. Already, the westward lands were covered in darkness, and she had a hard time penetrating them.