Dawnstar and Friend

Chapter 5
Today’s Morning Routine was even longer than usual. So much so that I was provided with breakfast in my room before the morning toilette and was allowed a lie-in. It took until around an hour before lunch.
Why this ridiculously long time taken to simply change into day clothes after a bath and the normal stuff you do in the morning?
Today was the day Elrond would arrive.
His arrival was supposed to be at approximately half an hour before lunch and after the formal introductions we would go straight to lunch. I, being the cynical little watsit I am, think that this is designed to cut short what will undoubtedly be some rather strained introductions, considering the reason for the visit.
For once Ginny takes about as much time as I do to get ready. Maybe she will finally see my side of the problem, rather than be exasperated at how long I take.
Only when Aniya has finished treating me as something between a doll and a Christmas tree am I allowed to look in the mirror and see what I look like.
Unsurprisingly I am in blue and gold. It is an elegant shimmering blue that is nearly navy blue but slightly lighter. The neckline is what called a love neck. That is sort of like a stylised square neck where the horizontal line is in the shape of the top of a love heart instead of a straight line. Not the best description but it is a bit hard to describe. The dress has a raised waist line and the hem comes up at the front to reveal a very pale blue, shot with gold under skirt made from silk gossamer. The top layer is made from silk satin.
The hem, raised waist and neckline have vine-like designs in gold which are inlayed with diamonds and this rich gold coloured jewel similar to diamonds.
The sleeves are puff sleeves made of midnight blue gossamer shot with gold and from those flow bell sleeves of the blue satin the top layer of the main dress is made of. The bell sleeves are richly embroidered and jewel incrusted.
It is probably the richest gown I have worn but somehow despite the blatant money that went into this dress it is brought together to be a rather lovely gown.
Unsurprisingly the jewellery that goes with it is quite simple; anything more would overwhelm the gown. I only wear a delicate pendant of sapphire and gold.
For once I met Ginny at the entrance to the cave rather than in my sitting room.
She, like me, is dressed in an ornate gown that is truly beautiful.
Almost as soon as we start standing at the entrance we can see a large group of riders, who are a mixture of light and dark haired people, led by some Mirkwood elves.
It doesn’t take long for the group to reach us properly. The elves that are obviously acting as guides melt away as I, along with everyone else in the welcome party, am confronted with a tall, black haired elf with grey eyes and the type of political expression that implies displeasure despite being perfectly polite.
He is flanked by two elves that look almost identical. I know that logically there is some physical difference but I have yet to spot it. They also look a lot like the one that I assume is Elrond. They are flanked by two elves, one with golden haired, military and damned hot the other dark haired and more delicately build but still armed and obviously capable with his weaponry. Actually they all fit the armed and dangerous category.
“Mae Govannen Elrond.” {well met} Says Thanduil politely
Am I good or am I good?
Elrond returns the greeting in a frosty tone at which point our lovely elfin King introduces me to our not particularly happy elf lord. My well met is in a much more friendly tone. He also bows to me. All the while he is examining me I can’t help noticing.
I take the opportunity of having his attention to introduce Ginny, who I am sure the wood elves would have ignored.
Elrond is not stupid and immediately both get why she is here and the purpose of my introduction. He gets a mischievous twinkle in his eye, bows to her floridly and kisses her hand in a rather unsubtle gesture of approval. I am going to like this guy.
After this we are introduce to the sons of Elrond, the twins standing either side of Elrond. The gorgeous blond is the famed Balrog slayer, Lord Glorfindel of Gondolin and Imladris. He greets me with a huge amount of respect and I remember that I apparently am the daughter of his original king and according to my history lessons died allowing my sister to escape Gondolin and was then reborn much later and sent back to guard Elronds Family.
The other Elf is Lord Erestor, Elrond’s chief councillor. He is quite pleasant if quiet. He seems to take to Ginny more than me for some reason.
From the back of the group comes an aristocratic looking elf with mahogany coloured hair and dancing eyes. He is then introduced as Maedhren, another elf-mage. He greets the pair of us cheerfully and there seems to be something he is not telling us. This impression is increase by the enigmatic expression he wears when greeting Ginny and the increased light in his eyes when he first lays eyes on her.
As soon as the greetings are done we are lead to a rather larger state dining room.
I am sat next to Elrond who almost seems to be bi-polar in the way he swings between lovely and good humoured with me, Ginny and those that are not politically involved in the situation and the almost ultimate zero temperature of icy politeness he directs at Thanduil, Adindel and Legolas.
After lunch we are shown to a slightly larger, more formal version of the comfortable library. The people at this meeting are Elrond, the twins, Glorfindel, Erestor, Thanduil and family, Ginny and me.
Elrond does not beat around the bush I have discovered. How very undiplomatic of him.
“Thanduil, you have brought my Great Aunt here to use for political gain. What do you want?”
I am trying very hard not to splutter at being described as anyone’s great aunt, let alone a 6000 year old plus elf lord.
“Never one to miss the point, are you Elrond?”
My lovely nephew glares at the blond king.
“What I want is protection. Unlike Imladris and Lorien I do not have a ring of power to protect my realm yet mine is in the greatest danger. In insuring the safety of Eleanor my people are also safer.”
“You do not trust me to provide help without this blackmail?”
“No, and I definitely do not trust you to hurry any help along as fast as you will with her here. I somehow suspect the troops sent would be rather better with her here than without.”
Elrond purses his lips and does not comment. I suspect Thanduil is right. Erestor fills in the awkward silence with another question.
“The lady Virginia is here to keep Aranel Eleanor from ... misbehaving then?”
The pause somehow seems to say more than the words. That question is left unanswered. Cue another awkward silence.
Miriel then proves cleverer than she might appear by changing the subject to less awkward topics. This one will no doubt be brought up in private meetings later, when it is more appropriate.
In the course of the conversation we are informed that the welcome ball will be held tomorrow evening, giving time for the travellers to rest and the ladies to prepare.
Oh hell. That sounds ominously like dressing is going to take even longer than today. Is there any chance of me escaping during the night?
Later on Elrond takes me aside and gives me some jewellery. He then explains that they are the state symbols that belong to me. One is a circlet of; you guessed it, gold and sapphires. There is a matching necklace that is quite simple and there is a signet ring made with, yup, gold aaannnnd sapphires.
When I look at the beautiful signet ring in its carved wood box Elrond takes it out and slips it onto the third finger of my right hand. It feels curiously heavy and I am immediately conscious of it.
When I tell Elrond this he laughs and tells me I will get used to it. He also says that I have no idea how long it took for him to get used to Vilya and that was more than just the weight on his finger he had to get used to.
I smile shyly at him then finally ask something that has been on my mind since Thanduil first dropped the bombshell.
“Are you truly sure I am the princess of Gondolin? I know everyone thinks I’m some great and ancient elf but I feel like a 22 year old university graduate whose in out of her depth.”
He looks at me, smiles and hugs me.
“I am certain, my dawnstar.”
He then pulls back and holds me at arm’s length, and gives me a quizzical look
“You went to University?”
I simply laugh
Ginny POV
I awake, stretch, and look round for Aeyana. She isn’t here.
“Aeyana?”
I get up and look in the bathroom and the sitting room, she isn’t anywhere.
Oh god, please don’t tell me I’ve started to pre-empt my alarm again! Back home if I had a regular alarm call, then I would eventually begin to wake at least half-an-hour beforehand – it was extremely annoying. Since coming to Mirkwood, I’ve only ever been woken by Aeyana’s soft tap on my door, or as she bustles about getting my bath and clothes ready. Brilliant!
I don’t want to disturb Ellie so I get my Sindarin textbook and take it back to bed.
Eventually, I hear footsteps cross the sitting room and Aeyana comes in bearing breakfast on a tray. She laughs when she sees my expression.
“Don’t worry, Ginny. I was to let you have a lie-in today and then bring you breakfast-in-bed. Due to the formalness of today’s impending visit, your morning toilette will be slightly longer than usual.”
Slightly longer?! It takes virtually the entire morning for me to get ready.
I have my daily bath and wash my hair and everything, but this time, Aeyana gives me a massage with precious scented oils.
When I’m finally allowed out of the bathroom, I see not one, but two dresses laid out on my bed. The elves must really be going formal as I’ve only ever worn one gown before, Ellie’s the one that gets both an under- and an over-dress.
The under-dress is made of sky-blue silk and has long, tight sleeves that end in a point on the back of my hand and a small train.
The over-dress is made of royal-blue velvet with a low, v-shaped neck and waistline and short sleeves. At the neck, waist, sleeve ends, and hem a delicate vine pattern has been embroidered in pale gold thread. The hem of the over-dress is slightly shorter than that of the under-dress. The top-half of the gown glitters with tiny sapphires.
As a final flourish, royal-blue gossamer bell-sleeves embroidered with gold flow out from the sleeves of the over-dress down to my elbows.
Aeyana then spends ages with my hair. As usual, she braids the hair at the side of my head, but she loops the rest of my hair round into a delicate bun, leaving a small lock of hair to lie over my shoulder. She then attaches a tiny star-like jewel made of sapphires into the middle of the bun.
“Well?”
I laugh.
“Don’t tell Ellie this, but I now sympathise with her. The poor girl goes through this every day!”
There is no WAY I’m going to tell Ellie that; I have spent almost every morning complaining at the ridiculously long time I have to wait for her. I’m a very proud girl you see, and it would be too much for me to admit defeat, especially as Ellie is two years younger than me.
When I’m ready, a servant escorts me to the cave entrance where I meet Ellie along with the Mirkwood elves who are all waiting to greet Elrond and his entourage. Ellie, as ever, is in a truly ornate and absolutely stunning gown. I take my place beside her.
We don’t have long to wait before a large group of elves canters into view. The band of Mirkwood escorts disappears out of sight once the party has reached the forecourt.
The new group of dark- and light-haired elves is lead by stately looking black-haired elf, whose silver coronet tells me he must be Lord Elrond.
Elrond returns Thanduil’s greeting with a frosty tone and tight smile – he’s not a happy bunny. However, when Elrond greets Ellie, his face is full of light and his eyes twinkle.
When Ellie introduces me to Elrond, I pull my shoulders back and raise my chin slightly, ready for the polite brush-off I’ve come to expect from royal elves.
Elrond, however, with a quick glance in the direction of the Mirkwood elves, steps up to me and takes my hand, smiling slightly.
“Mae Govannen, Lady Virginia.” He states formally.
He then bows; it is possibly just as florid, if not more so than the one he made to Ellie. He also kisses my hand.
I smile, and with another sideways glance at Thanduil, I clear my throat and say:
“Oh no please, call me Ginny.” I say n a voice that could possibly be described as sickly sweet.
Elrond nods knowingly - I am going to like this guy.
The twins seem very jolly and quite adolescent-like in their bouncy movements, despite their obvious elfin age. Lord Glorfindel is quite simply the hottest elf I’ve ever seen, it may have something to do with his military past – I’ve always like men, well elves in this case, in uniforms. Something tells me that Glorfindel is very well built under his rich velvet robes. Lord Erestor, who has been standing at the back, gives me a very quiet Mae Govannen, but his eyes never leave mine and when he lets go of my hand, he smiles warmly.
During lunch, poor Erestor keeps trying to engage me in conversation, but he has to contend with the loud and bubbly twin sons of Elrond: Elladan and Elrohir. Boy, those two are funny and seem to have a penchant for practical jokes, which they lose no time in relating to me (in exhausting detail).
Their favourite stories seem to be about the pranks they’ve pulled on Mirkwood elves, Legolas and Thanduil in particular. By the end, I’m laughing so much that I have a stitch in my side.
Thanduil, however, is not laughing. Whenever I glance up, I see that his gaze seems to be roving between Miriel (who is also laughing heartily) and the twins. It would seem that Thanduil doesn’t much like his daughter being so friendly with them.
After lunch, we all go for a meeting in a slightly larger, more formal version of the comfortable library. Elrond loses no time, but launches straight in:
“Thanduil, you have brought my Great Aunt here to use for political gain. What do you want?”

I look over at Ellie to see her reaction of being called a ‘Great Aunt’ to a 6000 year old elf-lord. She seems to be fighting to keep her face straight. When she catches my eye, I immediately look away as Ellie’s laugh is very infectious and I don’t think bursting into laughter will be very much appreciated at this point.

“Never one to miss the point, are you Elrond?” There is a distinctly sour tone to his voice when he says that.

“What I want is protection. Unlike Imladris and Lorien, I do not have a ring of power to protect my realm yet mine is in the greatest danger. In insuring the safety of Eleanor, my people are also safer.”

“You do not trust me to provide help without this blackmail?”

“No, and I definitely do not trust you to hurry any help along as fast as you would with her here. I somehow suspect the troops sent would be rather better with her here than without.”

Elrond purses his lips and does not comment. There is no laughing now, just a very stiff, very awkward silence.

“The Lady Virginia is here to keep Aranel Eleanor from ... misbehaving then?” Asks Erestor delicately.

No one answers, they don’t need to. Erestor’s delicate pause has already answered for them. Everyone then looks at me and I stare back, nervously.

Miriel, God bless her, rescues the situation by turning to me and saying cheerfully,

“Sky-blue really suits you, Ginny. You should wear it more often. Don’t you think so, Lord Erestor?”

It’s as if a spell has been broken, everyone visibly relaxes. In the corner of my eye, I can see Elrond and Thanduil nodding approvingly; they might not agree on many things, but I think they certainly agree that Miriel is a very intelligent and diplomatic elf indeed.

The conversation is eventually brought around to tomorrow’s Welcome Ball. It’s going to be an evening affair, this is to allow time for the travellers to get some rest and... the ladies... to prepare.

WHAT?! I barely got through this morning’s ritual, how the hell am I going to be able to stand a day-long one? I look at Ellie; she’s seems to be thinking the exact same thing.
***
It’s now after dinner and everyone has gone to their separate quarters. Miriel and I, however, are sitting on Ellie’s sofa; she said she had something to show us.
When Ellie comes back she’s clutching a circlet, a necklace, and a carved wooden box; all these she lays reverently on the table beside us.
I just about manage to fight off my snort of derision: gold and sapphires AGAIN! I have to admit though, they are very beautiful pieces.
Then Ellie takes a signet ring from the box.
“You wouldn’t think that such a little thing could be so heavy.” She sounds rather thoughtful.
“Excuse me?”
“Here.”
She takes the ring and slips it onto the third finger of my right hand. Strangely, it does feel heavy and there’s not only a weight on my finger, but also one on my mind. I’m not sad to take it off.
“It’s an elfin ring, containing very powerful elfin magic. Of course it’s going to be heavy.”
“Elrond gave it to me. I think I may have to wear it all the time now.”
Whilst Ellie puts her jewellery away, I turn to Miriel.
“They weren’t serious before were they? About taking the whole day to get ready?”
Miriel smiles, but says nothing...