Luthien

The Council Of Elrond

It was still early in the morning when I woke up, but I decided to get up anyway. I was too scared that I would miss something important today. Dawn had just set in and the first delicate rays of light made their way through the thick canopy of trees. I heard the birds chirping through the open window and a pleasantly cool wind blew in. It seemed to be a fine day.  The Council would meet this afternoon to discuss how to proceed with the ring.

After I got dressed, I was wearing black trousers as usual, with a dark red blouse and black boots, I made my way to the library. Before the council, I wanted to go through the gathered information again, I was curious to see, what decisions would be made and what would happen to the ring.

Obviously I was not the only one who had gone to the library that morning, because when I arrived, I was greeted by Gandalf, who was resting on an armchair with a book in one and his pipe in the other hand. He gave me a friendly smile.

"Good morning Luthien. I see you can't sleep either.", he greeted me with a laugh.

"Good morning. I want to go through the information I have gathered about Sauron again, so that I am sure I haven't forgotten anything important.", I answered.

"This is whise my child. But first I would ask you, to tell me about your encounter with Boromir yesterday." I couldn't decide whether to take this request as a reprimand or as a joke, so I looked at Gandalf questioningly.

"We talked for a while after dinner, Boromir and I. He talked about you with a kind of fascination. I almost felt, that he had forgotten the true errand, why he came to Rivendell", Gandalf laughed when he answered my unspoken question. I too had to grin at the sight of the laughing wizard, even if his words made me think.

Boromir was the first man my age, apart from my brother, that I had ever met. Apparently I had actually underestimated my effect on men so far. Was it really true that Boromir had taken a liking to my appearance?  I felt guilty as I went over our conversation in my head. Perhaps I had let Aragorn's words guide me too much. I probably should have taken the time to get an impression of Boromir myself. It was probably too late for that, after all, the first impression he had of me wasn't exactly positive either.

Gandalf seemed to be able to read my mind.

"Don't worry, Luthien. You will still have enough time to introduce yourself to him, for who you really are. Besides, it won't hurt the boy if he is knoked down from that perch his father has put him on.", said Gandalf reassuringly. A smile crossed his face. "Boromir came to Rivendell at Denethor's insistence, he himself is the captain of Gondor and would probably have preferred to continue commanding his troops in Osgiliath to defend the city against Sauron's forces. But to make his father proud, he had to leave and make his way to Rivendell. Actually he is a good boy, his father never made it easy for him and his brother.", Gandalf continued.

"To me he looks more likely a grown man, than a boy.", I replied critically, but with a smile. Sometimes one could only smile at the words of the wizard.

"I sometimes forget how fast time flies, Luthien. You too were a little girl when I saw you for the first time, and now you too stand before me as a beautifully grown woman. It seems to me that it was just yesterday, when I had watched Aragorn and you playing in the gardens. At that time you both still were without worries.", Gandalf replied thoughtfully.

"Times are changing Gandalf." I answered shortly. In fact, the events of the past few weeks had severely clouded my usually happy disposition.

"You are too young to have such negative thoughts. How many years do you count?" He asked.

"30 my lord. My birthday was not long ago."

"30 ?!" He laughed out loud. "Time really flies! I shouldn't be bothering you any longer Luthien, you wanted to go through your records. See you at the council this afternoon."