An Invitation
Gimli had left only a few minutes ago, but I was still thinking about the implied offer. It sounded too good to be true, and after all, it was: I could not afford such a trip. Legolas seemed to have noticed my indecisiveness, for he said, "Before you make your final choice, give it one night."
Sleep on it once? Yes. I guess it wouldn't do any harm. So I just nodded, "All right."
"There's also another thing I want to talk to you about," he started, and my alarm bells went off. He sounded pressed, almost as if he wasn't sure how to proceed. "Which is?", I asked tensely.
The elf hesitated briefly before saying, "There is a festivity tomorrow night. Gimlis and my former companions Merry and Pippin are visiting Minas Tirith for the first time since the end of the Ring War."
"I am happy for you." I looked at him with a lack of understanding. "But what has that to do with me?"
"Well." The elf looked uncertain for the first time since I had met him. Even though the expression in his eyes lasted only a heartbeat, I had seen it. "I invite you," he said simply.
"This..." I was surprised, to say the least. We'd had a conversation or two about things other than the scriptures we were examining, but I never expected him to invite me to a social event that was way above my status. Which brought me to the next problem: I didn't have the faintest idea of what was expected of me or guests in general at such a gathering. However, I had a feeling that there were fixed rules that everyone in the room was expected to follow. If I didn't know them, I would stick out from the crowd like a fox in a bunch of chickens. I swallowed. "That's very nice," I finally managed. "But you know... I don't know how to... what to do there. You grew up as a noble with all the little subtleties, they are second nature to you, but I know nothing of the customs or expectations placed on guests at such an event. I would feel out of place."
While I didn't like to admit it, it was the truth. Leaving aside the fact that I was from the future, I had spent the last four years living among ordinary people. Of course, there were parties there, too, but they didn't follow a fixed pattern as was the case with nobility.
"So you never attended festivities in your homeland?" he asked.
I pursed my lips. "We celebrate very differently than you might think," I tried to talk my way out of it.
"But you have gone to festivities?"
"Yes, I have..." My fingers found the end of my braided hair and nervously played with it. "But it really doesn't compare."
He held my gaze for a moment too long before saying, "This isn't a court gathering, if that's what you're worried about."
Why couldn't I shake the feeling that this wasn't a simple invitation, but that he wanted me to accept it? "Why do you want me to be there? We don't even know each other in that way."
"I'd like to change that."
Okay. I felt myself tense up even more and at the same time something in my stomach began to quiver. "Legolas... I don't even have a dress to wear."
"That shouldn't be a problem." He looked at me again with that piercing gaze that was so typical of him. "Get to the King's Halls a little early and you won't have to worry about that."
Was he suggesting a Cinderella deal? "And if I end up losing my shoe, will you bring it to me?", I asked from within my thoughts.
He tilted his head. "What do you mean?"
"Never mind."
And then he said the line he had to have saved in case the prospect of attending a courtly festivity didn't lure me in. "The Hobbits have something for you. They wish to deliver it to you."
"What is it?", I asked with a furrowed brow. "They don't even know me."
"But they know of your search."
I raised my head. "Have you told them about it?"
"I wasn't aware it was a secret."
It wasn't. Of course it wasn't. At least, not when it was just about the subject itself and not the reason behind it. But... "You just made that up."
"Why would I do that?"
"Because you're trying to bait me," I shot back. Surely he would deny that. Wouldn't he?
"Aye, that's true."
"You don't even try denying it?"
He leaned forward. "Do me this one favor. I promise you, you will not regret it. Have I betrayed your trust so far?"
No, he hadn't. And although I wasn't so sure I wouldn't regret it, I had to be honest with myself: I was overreacting. There was no malicious intent behind each and every invitation, and the way I judged the elf after the many weeks we had worked together, it was indeed simply that: a festive occasion. A single evening. "I hate part... festivities," I muttered. "Too many people."
"Me too."
"And I don't know how to dance."
"I'll teach you."
"For heaven's sake, yes, if it's that important to you, I'll come."
The corners of his mouth twitched. "I've never met anyone who, at the prospect of attending a festivity, tried so resolutely to avoid it."
"There's a first time for everything." I stood up. "If you leave me there alone with all the robe-wearing men and highborn ladies, I swear you'll wish you'd never met me."
"I wouldn't dare," he replied, and I could see the mischief in his eyes.
"I'm serious," I said.
"So am I."
I groaned. "This is going to be a disaster. You have no idea..."
"About what?"
How socially awkward I was. But I certainly wasn't going to bring that to his attention. Therefore, I only asked resignedly, "What time should I get to the halls?"
"Just before sunset."
"Fine." I nodded over to the chronicle we had been working on for the past few days. "Are we going to do anything useful today, too?"
