Among the Ancient and Wise

Severus woke up to the sound of singing birds and a roaring waterfall in the distance. The sunlight that crept through the curtains felt warm and inviting, and he lay on a mattress so soft it felt as though he was resting on a cloud. The memory of being chased by Nazgûl came flooding back to him, and he remembered what poor shape Frodo had been after crossing the River. Slowly he opened his eyes, and was met with a pair of kind blue eyes that reminded him of Albus Dumbledore somehow. 'You're Gandalf,' he said as he sat up straight. 'I've been wanting to meet you for some time now.'

'Indeed I am Gandalf,' said the Wizard with a humble smile. 'Forgive me, for I was delayed. The reason for that is a story that I will tell you when the time comes for it to tell you. How are you feeling, Severus?'

'Quite alright,' said Severus. 'How is Frodo? And have the others arrived yet?'

'Lord Elrond is with him now,' said Gandalf with a hint of concern. 'Had he arrived later he may not have made it, and I am deeply grateful for what you have done for him. The sliver of the Morgul blade must be taken out of his shoulder, and it has proven to be a rather difficult task. For now, all we can do is wait. As for the others – they are still on their way. They have been sighted, and are expected to arrive by nightfall.'

Severus nodded in understanding. 'Will you walk with me?' he asked. 'I have much to ask.'

After Severus got dressed, he stepped outside and was met with one of the most beautiful sights he had ever laid his eyes on. The valley in which Rivendell was built shimmered with the golden glow of autumn. The buildings with its many arches curved and bended along with the branches they were built from, as though made with nature, rather than from it. 'It feels as if I'm seeing Hogwart's castle for the first time again,' he said.

'I do not know of what place you speak,' said Gandalf. 'But it sounds as though you speak of home. We shall go for a walk, and we won't stop until you are done asking all the things you wish to ask.'

Severus followed Gandalf at the heel as they made their way to no place in particular. 'I'm looking for my friend,' he said. 'Her name is Lily. She has red hair and many freckles, and I'm hoping to get some help from a fellow Wizard who knows his way around Middle-earth to help me find her.'

'I'm afraid neither her name nor description has reached my ears,' said Gandalf.

Disappointed in the answer, Severus turned to another question that had popped up in his head. 'Is it true there are only five Wizards here in Middle-earth?' he asked, unsure of where to start.

'Six if we include you,' said Gandalf.

'Make that seven,' said Severus. 'Lily is a Witch. And I can see the Ring you have on your finger,' he added, and held up his own hand with the Ring on his finger for Gandalf to see. 'There's a glow to it in the same way that mine does. But I don't understand what this is, or what it does. Or where it came from. All I know is that it brought me here...and Lily – and that holds a power I have no understanding of.'

'Your mind doesn't seem to know what it wants to know first,' said Gandalf, amused. 'Any questions you have regarding the Rings, yours, mine, and others too, will have to wait until we meet with Lord Elrond.'

Severus nodded in understanding. 'Does this place have a herbal garden? A medicinal one, I mean.'

'Yes it does,' said Gandalf. 'I can walk you there if you like. Is there anything you're looking for in particular?'

'I learnt about Athelas from Strider,' Severus answered as he followed Gandalf down a winding path on the Southside of the valley. 'But I want to find out what else grows here. Perhaps there's something useful out here that could help Frodo.'

'It appears you are not one for sitting still,' said Gandalf. They walked their way to a low wooden gate, and before them a field, as far as the eye could see, was filled with all sorts of herbs and flowers scattered around. A narrow dirt road led them through it, and many plants Severus recognised from his Herbology lessons, or at least seemed related to plants he knew. It all looked enhanced somehow. As though pure and gentle magic was resting all around them, and the leaves of the colourful flowers shone with silver and golden hues in the sunlight.

'This is a very healthy garden,' said Severus. 'I think I found something we could work with. On his left-hand side he found a plant with small rounded leaves and bell-like purple flowers. 'This is Dittany – or at least that's what it's known as where I come from. Mixed with salt water, we can use its properties to knit superficial wounds together.'

'That's all very fascinating,' said a voice from behind them. A very old looking Hobbit came walking up on them, and held up a sprig filled with small yellow flowers. 'Found myself a bit of Goldenrod here, for my backaches. My body's been failing me lately – but what d'you expect if you've lived for over a hundred years!'

'My dear Bilbo,' said Gandalf, and a large smile appeared upon his face. 'I want you to come and meet my new friend. This is Severus, and this is his first time laying his eyes on The Last Homely House East of the Sea.'

'Is it not the greatest sight you've ever seen,' said Bilbo as he looked up at Severus, and shook his hand.

'It is a close second,' said Severus. 'Frodo has told a great deal about you when we journeyed here from Bree.'

'Oh, my dear nephew,' said Bilbo gravely. 'What a heavy burden I have given him to carry – and now he may not even live to tell the tale. I have heard of your great deed to bring him here, young master Severus, and for that I am in your debt.'

'Have you seen him since we've arrived?' asked Severus. 'I think I might have something here that could help.'

Bilbo shook his head. 'I don't think my heart could handle the sight of it,' he said. 'But if you feel you could aid Lord Elrond in his attempts to save him, then I would be more than happy to lead you to him.'

Pulled up by the roots, Severus took the Dittany he had found and followed Bilbo, followed at the heel by a curious Gandalf, to where Frodo was residing. Bilbo left them at the door, and they entered a hall that reminded him a bit of the Hospital Wing at Hogwarts. A place he had frequently visited after getting Jinxed or Hexed by the Marauders. A place Lily had never failed to come and visit him, and tell him of all the things she had done back to them out of anger and revenge. More than anything, he wanted her to be here now.

Severus recognised Lord Elrond from the vision he had by the riverbank after the wave had swept the Nazgûl away. The silver circlet on his brow made him appear royal and respected, and his grey eyes were in deep focus on Frodo, who lay in state of terrible fever in a bed before him.

'The sliver of the Morgul blade is nearly out,' said Elrond, who was gently moving his fingers over Frodo's shoulder. 'I can feel it moving upwards.'

'Do you have any salt water at your disposal?' asked Severus as he sat down on the other side of the bed. On Elrond's finger, he could see the familiar glow again on the Ring he was wearing. The sapphire set in it shone blue as the roaring sea – as though the magic and power it wielded were made visible in a stone.

'There is water from the Belgaer sea on the shelves,' said Lord Elrond without looking up. 'You can find it in a round crystal phial.'

Severus made his way to the shelves, found the phial and grabbed an empty silver bowl. He poured the full content of the phial in it and plucked the leaves from the Dittany. As he dropped them into the water, the water turned green and herbal vapours started to rise. He handed the bowl over to Elrond. 'Use it once you've got the sliver of the blade out,' he said. 'It will seal and heal up the wound.'

'So young and yet so learnt about herbal lore,' said Elrond. 'We mainly use Dittany for tea. I may have you walk me through our gardens and have you share with me your knowledge.'

'It would be my pleasure,' said Severus, 'if you would share with me the knowledge that you hold as well.'

Frodo groaned and shivered under Elrond's touch. 'We're nearly there,' said Elrond. 'Will you hold him down for me? This will not be a pretty sight.'

Severus held Frodo by the legs, and before he could prepare himself for the moment, Frodo screamed as though he had seen a Boggart turn into his greatest fear. The sliver came out sharp and darkened with blood, and fell into the palm of Lord Elrond's hand. 'It shall be destroyed in the fires of our forges,' he said as he looked gravely at the sliver of steel. He poured the Dittany potion Severus had made onto the wound, which knitted itself shut and left no trace but a faint scar. 'The fever ought to settle after a while. For now, he must rest.'

Lord Elrond, Gandalf and Severus left the hall of healing to leave Frodo in peace for a while. 'Now Severus,' said Elrond as they made their way to a garden, 'it is time for you to tell us all there is to know about how you came to be here – and how Kémya came to you.'

It was a long story to be told, but one that Severus was glad to finally tell to those who would have some sort of understanding of it. From where he came from, and of Lily – and of his deep desire to find her. From meeting Goldberry and learning about Middle-earth and the Ring he had found, and of his journey to Bree where he met Strider and the Hobbits. Of encountering the Nazgûl at Weathertop, and of being a Wizard. He was met with words of reciprocation and understanding, and a heavy burden was lifted from his shoulders as his story fell into the hands of the wise men before him. At last, he showed them his wand. Elrond and Gandalf had taken a particular interest in his intricately carved pommel of his yew wand, and wondered what kind of power such a small piece of wood could wield. Severus would argue that it's a powerful tool if wielded in the right hands, but decided to explain the story of how it had stopped working for him instead. 'It's a staff that I need here,' he said with confidence while eyeing the wooden staff Gandalf had been carrying with him.

'It is not the staff that grands you power,' said Gandalf. 'But perhaps you are right, and a staff might help you reveal the power that you carry on the inside. It is not, however, something that can be found in any old carpenter's shop. Our staves were given to us by the Maiar, and with it comes the great responsibility not to rule over those who do not wield powers, but to protect that which the creators of this world hold dear. Do you understand?'

'I do,' said Severus. 'Is there a way in which it can be done? Being a Wizard is a big part of who I am, and I feel lost without my power.'

'I believe there is a way,' said Gandalf. 'But it's not me that can show you the way. Aiwendil is his true name. A Friend to Birds and the Tender of Beasts. Many know him by the name of Radagast the Brown, and he concerns himself with the plants and the animals of this world. It was Yavanna who brought him here to Middle-earth, and this is where the story of the Ring you carry begins.'

'You must understand, Severus,' said Elrond in a serious tone, 'that three of the four Rings of Power are currently presented here. As you may know, they are invisible to the eye to those who do not carry a Ring, and for good reason. The Rings hold the power to change the very fabric that the story of Arda is weaved from, and in the wrong hands terrible things can be done. The rivers may flood the fields. Fires will burn down the forests. Entire cities may crumble to ash and darken the skies. The Rings are hidden, for they must remain hidden.'

'I am aware that this is no ordinary magical Ring,' said Severus. 'Goldberry has told me as much. It brought me here, and Lily, after all.'

'This is Narya,' said Gandalf as he held up his Ring for Severus to see. 'It is the Ring of Fire; given to me by Círdan the Shipwright, who had received it from Gil-Galad, who had received it from Celebrimbor, its maker, before him. It holds the power to resist tyranny, domination and despair. It inspires hope and courage to those who come near it, and it helps me to resist against the weariness of time.'

'And this is Vilya, the Ring of Air,' Elrond added as he held up his Ring. 'Given to me by Gil-Galad himself. It grands the power to heal and preserve, and wield over the elements. It is this Ring that has protected Rivendell for many ages, and made it become what it has become.'

'And who has the fourth?' asked Severus. 'Is there a Ring of Water as well?'

'Lady Galadriel of Lothlórien wields it,' Elrond explained. 'Nenya, the Ring is named. Given to her directly by Celebrimbor, the creator of these Rings. Nenya can conceal itself from evil, and all that is near it. This is what has sustained Lothlórien for as long as it has. Now, Severus, there is much more to these Rings, and others as well, that I can teach you about in the libraries where we keep our history recorded. You have told us on how you found the Ring, but are you aware of who its last owner has been?'

Severus shook his head. 'I have no idea how this came to be in the Lake.'

'It belonged to one of the blue Wizards,' said Elrond. 'Alatar, is his true name, though the people of Middle-earth had named him Morinehtar; meaning Darkness-slayer. With his companion, Palando, they travelled far East in search of darkness, and they have not been sighted nor heard from since. Do these names mean anything to you, Severus?'

'I'm afraid not,' said Severus. 'As I've told, there are many Wizards where I come from, but I don't remember learning their names from my history lessons. If Alatar has somehow found a way to Scotland, then I don't know what has become of him when he came there.'

'If the Ring is here,' said Gandalf, 'then I don't think that we have seen the last of Alatar just yet.' Gandalf fell into the story of how Saruman the White, who was once herald as the great leader of the Heren Istarion, had fallen from grace. He spoke of his captivity, and of his escape with the help of the Great Eagles who led him to Edoras in the Realm of Rohan, where he tamed the horse-lord Shadowfax to haste his way to The Shire.

Gandalf continued to tell the tale of his journey to Rivendell, but Severus felt his mind starting to wander. Middle-earth felt endless, and the only way forward seemed that he would have to meet with Radagast if it meant but a sliver of a chance to find Lily in it. But he did not know where Radagast resided, or how far and dangerous the journey would be to make it there. It felt overwhelming, and more than anything he felt that he needed a moment to rest.

'—Shadowfax ought to be back in Rohan by now, and – are you alright, Severus?'

'I need some time to think,' said Severus as he looked down into the valley. 'Excuse me, but I think I want to be alone for just a little while.'

'You are free to roam where you wish to roam,' said Elrond. 'Rivendell is a safe haven to all friends. You may take what you need, and give what you can.'

'Thank you, truly,' said Severus.

...o0o…

Rivendell had a way to lift the spirits, even if it felt there was very little to be cheerful about. Severus spent the remainder of the day roaming the streets, meeting people from all walks of life along the way. He learnt a council was to be held soon. He had met with Bilbo again, who was in deep conversation with an old dwarf named Glóin, accompanied by his son Gimli, and reminisced in an old adventure they once had held to the Lonely Mountain, and of the slaying of the great wyrm Smaug.

Later on he met an elf who introduced himself as Legolas from the Woodland realm, who had come on his father's orders bearing important messages for Lord Elrond. Elladan and Elrohir, Elrond's twin sons, he met by the stables, and who were looking after Tilion, who seemed delighted to see him again. Then there was Erestor, Elrond's trusted advisor, and Galdor of the Havens; sent out by Círdan on an errand. It was with Galdor that Severus went to the kitchens, where the food served was as lavish as the great feasts at Hogwarts.

Feeling more at ease, the announcement came that the band of travellers had arrived at the entrance, and were met with a warm welcome and a place to rest. Sam, Merry and Pippin had gone off to sleep, leaving Glorfindel and Strider to meet with Severus, and to speak of the events that had led them up to here. Strider eventually excused himself, and made his way over to an Elf woman Severus had not previously seen before.

'I see you keep fumbling with that Ring on your finger,' said Glorfindel.

'Are you a Ring-bearer too?' asked Severus.

Glorfindel shook his head. 'One does not need to be, or have been, a Ring-bearer, to see what power rests on your hand,' he said. 'For the Ring on your finger is not truly invisible, but rather rests in the realm of the Unseen.'

'I don't quite understand,' said Severus. 'What do you mean by the Unseen?'

'All things in Arda either fall into the Seen or the Unseen world,' Glorfindel explained. 'The Unseen are things and beings of the spirit world that belong to what you would call magic. It is a world that is neither good nor evil, and contains all sorts of spiritual beings.'

'And what part of that do you play in it?' asked Severus.

'I was born in Aman, in Tirion, to be more precise, during the Noontide of Valinor,' he said. 'I followed Turgon while I was in exile after the Flight of the Ñoldor to Gondolin. It was there that I was appointed as the Lord of the House of the Golden Flower, and served as one of the captains of the King. From thereon lies a long and complicated story, and it ended when Melkor attacked Gondolin and we fled through the pass of Cirith Thornath. It was there that I came upon a Balrog, a corrupted Maia. I was able to slay the beast, but it dragged me with it down into the abyss where my body broke and my soul departed. Thorondor, who was the King of the Eagles in that age, returned my body to my people, and they buried me on a high cliff in the mountains that surrounded Gondolin. My spirit journeyed to the Halls of Mandos, where I resided for a short time. On the tapestries of Vairë, that deck the Halls of Mandos, my story was told not to be over yet. Due to my deeds, I was re-embodied and dwelled in Valinor until Manwë sent me back to Middle-earth as an emissary.'

'You died,' said Severus with a tone of disbelief. 'You died and you returned. Is this why you can see what lies in the Unseen? Because you've been there?'

'Yes indeed,' said Glorfindel. 'But know, Severus, what I am truly trying to help you understand. The Nazgûl, too, are Ring-bearers. Rings that fall under the rule of Sauron, and are bound to the One Ring. They were once great Kings, and yet under his rule, one by one, they turned into Wraiths. Nothing more than shadows of their former selves remain.'

'They can see the Ring I carry,' said Severus softy. The realisation dawned on him that from that moment at Weathertop, it was not just Frodo anymore that the Nazgûl were after. Elrond and Gandalf had made it very clear that bearing a Ring of Power comes with great responsibility – and danger, would it fall into the wrong hands. 'Do you think they will come after me?'

'It is not what they are after,' said Glorfindel, 'but yes, if they have a chance at taking it from you – they will. But do not let it weigh heavy on your heart for now. There is much here that you may learn that will help you on your way. Feel free to follow me back to your quarters. It is getting rather late.'

'But I am not like any of you,' said Severus with a tremble of desperation in his voice. 'I am surrounded by Lords and Loremasters. Wise people who have studied and fought in wars for hundreds of years. Kings and would-be Kings who know and understand this world so much more than I do. What am I supposed to do with this Ring? I am not some prince ready to take over a throne and protect a nation. Why has this come to me?'

Glorfindel looked down at Severus, and smiled a radiant smile. 'And how certain are you truly, Severus, that you are not a Prince?'

A/N Frodo officially crossed the Ford of Bruinen on the 20th of October. Gandalf arrived in Rivendell two days beforehand after escaping from Saruman's tower. Frodo awakes on October the 24th, as is also mentioned by Gandalf in the movie (and book). The Council of Elrond is held on October 25th.

A/N Rivendell was filmed in Kaitoke Regional Park. A lot of buildings were made for the film production, and most of them have been removed after filming was done.

A/N In The Hobbit book, Bilbo frequently referred to Gandalf's staff as a wand. Whether Tolkien made Bilbo say it that way deliberately or not is unknown to me.

A/N Gandalf has a blue hat (in both book and movies, but in the movies it's a bit vague). "The Grey" part of his name on refers to his robes (as is for the other wizards)

A/N Seen and Unseen: "Magic in Middle-earth was not explicitly defined by Tolkien, and the term can have various meanings depending on usage and context. For Hobbits, it was a term used to describe processes and abilities of objects which could not be explained outside of their limited lore and knowledge. For Elves and Wizards, what others might call magic was not something special or different from the natural world, just a part of it that was not immediately visible. This led to the more common categorization of things as Seen or Unseen, with the Seen aspects of an object or person being only part of it. Through the power of the One Ring, Frodo Baggins at times saw powerful Elves, such as the High-elf Glorfindel, in their true level of power and radiance that extends into the Unseen."