Daughter of Starlight

Prologue: A Proposition

© Alena Barlock 2015
All Rights Reserved

Hey, guys! This story started as a little scene that kept replaying in my head after I saw the Battle of the Five Armies, then went home and re-watched the first and second Hobbit movies, and it turned into a few chapters and now here it is on Wattpad. Although the prologue takes place in An Unexpected Journey, the rest of the book takes place during the second and third Hobbit movies. I hope you love reading this story as much as I loved writing it. Thanks for reading this undoubtedly boring intro :) now enjoy this prologue

I heard the ruckus of Elrond's guests long before I stepped onto the terrace where they were dining. My crystal blue eyes fell upon the sight of thirteen dwarves and a single hobbit amidst the tranquil scenery of Rivendell. The late afternoon sun shone upon a dwarf with a quirky hat on his head doing a little jig atop the table while the rest of his company belted out a jolly drinking song.

I stood at the entrance to the terrace, confused by the sight in front of me. In the next second, food started flying, and I watched a piece of it sail past Lindir, where he sat near Elrond. My gaze landed on the person sitting next to Elrond, a man clad in grey with a wooden staff in his grasp.

A smile crossed my face as I recognized Gandalf, and his face lit up at the sight of me.

"Laerornien." he said my name in a way that revealed how pleasantly surprised he was to see me in Rivendell.

"Gandalf!" I was equally as happy as he was. "It's so good to see you."

"You know this elfling?" Elrond looked surprised.

"Of course I do," Gandalf said, almost proudly.

"Look, lads," I heard a dwarf say, obviously trying to whisper, but nothing got past my ears. "Gandalf knows that elf."

I turned my head to see who had spoken, making eye contact with a dwarf who looked younger than the majority of his comrades. He had long dark hair and no beard, unlike most of his kin. Just a dark stubble across his jaw. When he saw me looking at him, he grinned and winked at me.

I rolled my eyes and turned away. It wasn't the first time I had encountered a flirtatious dwarf. He was easily pushed to the back of my mind as I walked with Gandalf through the corridors of Elrond's palace. Sunlight glowed in the spacious halls and the gentle sounds of trickling streams gave the whole place an idyllic, almost ethereal quality.

"What brings you here, Gandalf?" I asked him. It had been so long since I'd last seen him.

"I could ask you the same thing," was his response.

I looked at him in mild surprise. "Are you serious?" He already knew why I was here.

He looked at me as if to say he was completely serious.

I sighed and cast my eyes downward, looking at the stone floor. "Gandalf, you know very well what my situation is."

"I do."

I looked back up at him, meeting his pale, attentive eyes. "After I was cast out, I couldn't survive by myself. I travelled many places seeking refuge, but everyone had already received word of the banished elven princess," I told him, remembering how many times I had been turned away. "Elrond was the only person who welcomed me with open arms."

"Are you happy here, Laerornien?" Gandalf's question implied that he already knew what my answer would be.

"Of course I am," I said, not looking at him. My lack of eye contact made my response more unconvincing than it already was. When I looked at him again, I saw a look upon his face clearly displaying that he didn't believe me.