Chapter V

Life in Imladris was rather uneventful whilst the Fellowship was gone. Eruanna Úlumiel enjoyed spending time in Bilbo's company. Frodo had been in Bilbo's care after his parents died and Bilbo saw the boy as his son. Bilbo's face had long become wrinkled and his brown heir had greyed overtime. He had been overjoyed to see Eruanna again and had confided in her when Frodo left.

Eruanna was still shocked that Bilbo was able to escape from goblins and orcs with the help of the One Ring. She was even surprised that he held it. Bilbo hadn't even known of the great evil behind it and would have been corrupted by the ring had he not been convinced to give it up by Gandalf. Eruanna hoped Frodo wouldn't be corrupted by the ring but Gandalf was with him, and she had much confidence in the wizard. She didn't necessarily trust him with her life after the whole fiasco with the dwarves but she trusted him with Frodo's.

"I've brought a terrible burden upon the boy", Bilbo said, mournfully, as he loosely toyed with his quill as he was writing a book called There and Back Again.

"He will endure. If the Ring hasn't killed him yet, nothing will", Eruanna reassured him. However, the uneventfulness was soon broken.

Just then, a roar was heard. Eruanna and Bilbo looked at each other. "I thought you said the dragons were hunting", Bilbo said. "They are", Eruanna said, slowly. She looked outside to see Faroniel. "Faroniel. She's my second fastest dragon. Sûlion is my fastest but since he isn't here and she is...", Eruanna got a bad feeling. "Something is wrong."

After leaving Bilbo, Eruanna rushed towards an obviously panicked Faroniel. The large golden beast swiveled her head from side to side, her eyes surveying the area. She let out a noise as she saw Eruanna running towards her. "Faroniel!", Eruanna stroked her snout. "What happened?", she placed her forehead against Faroniel's.

As the dragons got bigger, their bond with Eruanna became stronger. She was now able to see their most recent memories. She pressed her forehead against Faroniel's and concentrated.

She saw her five dragons flying over plains, looking for something to hunt. Just then, seven riderless Nazgûl-birds swooped in and attacked the dragons. Naurion easily ripped two of them apart. Ceveniel and Helegiel doused the others in fire whilst Faroniel took on another one.

Just then, Sûlion let out a roar of pain. One of the fell beasts bit into his underbelly, causing him to roar in agony. Ceveniel angrily pulled the beast away from her brother and bit his head off. Eruanna recognized that the dragons were near Lothlórien.

Eruanna gasped and backed away. "No."

"What happened?", asked a concerned Glorfindel. "Sûlion is injured badly", Eruanna said.

"Elemental dragons can heal themselves", Elrond stated. "And they are immune to all kinds of poisons."

"They are when they are near their Mistress or Master. This was why so many of them died when they fought Morgoth's beasts. Manwë was their master until he wasn't. Now, I am their Mistress and I am too far away to help Sûlion. I must go to him", Eruanna said.

"No!", Hiriel cried out. "You cannot! What if Sauron-"

"He has a hold on me, yes", Eruanna faced her distressed mother. "But there is nothing stronger and more sacred than the bond between a dragon and their rider. I will live like a dragon rider or die a coward. I prefer not to die a coward. I raised the dragons and I will never abandon them."

"Eruanna", Elrond weakly protested.

"Please, daeradar, don't ask me to let Sûlion die. I can't let him die. His siblings need him and so do I. He's one of my best fighters and if he dies, it will be a win for Sauron and a great loss for me."

She looked at her mother who was about to say something. "You cannot stop me", she said. Without waiting for a response, she ran off. When she came back, she was dressed in her riding clothes and armed. "I will go with you", Glorfindel offered.

"No", Eruanna said, mounting Faroniel. Though she preferred riding Ceveniel, she could ride any dragon at any time. "I must do this alone. My dragons are near Lothlórien and that is where I will go. I will be fine. Stay and watch over Imladris."

The Dragoness flew off and Hiriel turned to her father. "You did not stop her", she said.

"She has practically raised those dragons herself", Elrond responded. "Stopping her would be folly."

"She would have been a great sister", Hiriel murmured.

"Funny. I told her the same thing once."

Eruanna and Faroniel made their way to Lothlórien. Eruanna closed her eyes and mentally reached out to her dragons. "Meet us at Lothlórien."

Just then, a dark wave came in, blocking the dragons out. Sauron revealed himself in elven form. He was handsome as sin, with long silver hair and haunting gold-red eyes. "This is your punishment, Eruanna", he seethed. "Now your dragons have paid for your insolence."

"Curse you, servant of Morgoth", Eruanna shot back.

"Fiery. Much like your mother and her grandmother before her. But that will only get you so far", growled Sauron. He sent a pain towards the Dragoness and she cried out.

Just then, large waves of energy: gold, blue, white, red and black, surged towards Sauron. The Dark Lord howled in agony and Eruanna heard the roars of her dragons. Sauron set out waves of energy towards the elemental dragons who repelled it with their own.

With a sneering look, Sauron faced Eruanna. "Don't get too haughty now, Princess. I watched your great-grandsire, Oropher, die in Daglorad, fighting my loyal orcs. I shall see your father and the Fellowship die as well."

"NO!", with one scream, Eruanna snapped back to reality and opened her eyes. Her golden dragon increased her speed and they flew quicker. The dragon leaned down and grabbed a cow up off the ground, chomping it to pieces. The animal was merely a small snack for the huntress. Soon, Faroniel had landed in Lothlórien. Eruanna slid off of Faroniel's back and raced toward an injured Sûlion.

"Sûlion!", she cried out.

The dragon steadily rose to his feet and Eruanna gasped, seeing the deep bite marks in his belly. She gingerly touched him and concentrated. With the Master now close to the dragon, Sûlion was able to begin the process of healing himself. Thankfully, Eruanna assessed that he would be fine in about a week.

Her other dragons acknowledged her gleefully, with Helegiel giving what seemed to be a great cheer on her brother's behalf. Ceveniel and Naurion greeted their Mistress with nuzzles and Naurion even head-bumped Faroniel, as if congratulating her for a job well done.

Lothlórien looked just like Eruanna remembered it. Under Galadriel's ring of power, Nenya, it too was untouched by darkness. The trees bloomed with golden leaves and Eruanna inhaled the crisp air before looking to Caras Galadhon, the place where her great-grandparents lived.

Lady Galadriel and Lord Celeborn ran out to see their only great-grandchild. "I knew you'd come", Galadriel smiled as Eruanna embraced her.

"How could I leave my dragons? Besides, I'll never pass up an opportunity to come to Lothlórien", Eruanna responded with a smile.

"We are always happy to have you", smiled Celeborn. "We've missed you greatly." "I hear your father has gone on the Fellowship", Galadriel inquired.

"He has. Mother wasn't happy with his decision but he did it anyways", Eruanna smirked. "I'd pay to see the look on Daeradar Thranduil's face when he hears of it."

"First you, now your father? Does Mithrandir have a grudge against him that we don't know of?", Celeborn joked. Normally, he was very stoic and serious, but he let loose around his family and wasn't so uptight.

"They need to have a confrontation. It'll be enough drama for me", Eruanna snorted. "Come. We have much to discuss", Galadriel said, leading Eruanna inside Caras Galadhon.

Eruanna looked around the intricate white buildings that were connected by roadways. Elves noticed her and inclined their heads in respect as she walked in between her great-grandparents. She hadn't been in Lothlórien in a long time, not since 2950, where she'd stayed for two years with her mother.

"Is it true that Sauron wishes to take control of you?", Celeborn asked, hoping it had all been a bad tale.

"It is", Eruanna said simply.

"You've done an admirable job resisting his temptation", Galadriel commented.

"Sauron tries to corrupt our minds, knowing that many are in pursuit of more power", Eruanna said. "But using my power is just... dangerous."

"Are you thinking about the Battle of Five Armies?", Celeborn inquired. Eruanna looked at him with haunted eyes. "It never escapes my mind."