Celebriel sought out the company of her mother, knowing that she had consulted with Elrond regarding her trip south. She would have recommended who to send with her, knowing her daughter trusted few of the Noldor.
"Mother," Celebriel knelt before her and laid her head on her mother's white-clad lap. She felt Galadriel stroke her hair, felt the energy of Nenya radiating from her fingertips. She sighed, feeling the stress flow out of her body, she could have sat there forever but knowing she could not, forced herself to sit up.
"When will you leave, daughter?" Galadriel asked in her mellifluous voice, a voice that never failed to soothe her daughter.
"Soon, very soon. I must talk to Glorfindel first and tell him that I must be the one who approaches Amroth. This should have been done long ago, Why does Elrond not listen to me, Mother? He may be all wise and knowing but I know the Wood Elves and Amroth and I know how Nimrodel influences him."
"If you do make the journey to Lorien, will you return or remain there? Have you made up your mind?
"For now, I think I will return here. I have not been tested in battle and this will be my chance. I know that Amroth will want me to stay, but I can't. It's not just the opportunity to lead the attack on Angmar's troops, it's that it's not my time to return. I will return, one day, Lorinand will be mine, I know this.
"How many troops do you think he will send?"
"I do not know. Once he could have sent a host of ten thousand, but I do not think he can spare that many—if he even has them. I will ask for two thousand and will be grateful if he spares me a thousand, or even five hundred. Lorinand lost many soldiers in the Great War, and its people were diminished. I will be happy if any are willing to follow me. I will be even happier if Amroth agrees to help."
"Perhaps your father and I should have left you there. We could have appealed to Amroth directly through you and the soldiers could be on the way now. I do not regret wanting you here with me, Celebriel," Galadriel held up her white hand, "But sometimes I think we should have considered your wishes and not just what we thought best. I think there will come a time when we will be glad to have you in Lorinand and I think that is coming. I do not think Amroth and Nimrodel will remain long in Middle Earth, but we will see."
The next morning, Celebriel went to find Glorfindel. She hoped to find him in the stables, but he was nowhere to be seen. One of the elves grooming the horses told her that he had come to check on Asfaloth, and then returned to his rooms.
This was not where she wanted to meet him. She felt more comfortable in the stables, her home grounds, and being in Glorfindel's rooms made her uncomfortable. Not because some might think it was unsuitable for her to be there, but because it was his center of power, his domain. Had she married him she would have shared those rooms with him, and she did not like to think about that. She had taken no vow of chastity, but she did not see herself as a wife or a mother and that is what he had wanted from her.
She hesitated before knocking on his door, then gathered her courage and knocked. One of his footmen opened the door and admitted her.
She found him sitting at his desk, examining a pile of maps that covered the surface of his desk. He looked up, saw her, and smiled.
"What are you looking for? I've seen those maps in Elrond's study." She felt a little defensive, knowing that he knew far more than she did and resenting it a little.
"I'm trying to determine how far the enemy may have come. We've heard rumors that Angmar is on the march, but that may just be rumors. But he will be marching, and he is heading to Imladris. We do not have enough soldiers to fight them off, but we will not capitulate, so we will be besieged. We won't be able to break it so that is where you come in, Celebriel, it is up to you to persuade Amroth that it is in his best interest to help us."
"But Amroth has his own concerns, among them the tower of Dol Guldor. That is certainly the work of the enemy. No one is listening to me, but I believe Sauron built that tower and he intends to use it as a hiding place if he hasn't already. And Moria is not safe, I have heard rumors of Orcs returning there. Lorinand has its own safety to consider. If I were Amroth I would be more worried about my own kingdom than elves being attacked in the north by an enemy that is far away from me."
"Yet, Celebriel, that is exactly what we must do, convince Amroth to do. Right now, he is under threat but he is not under attack. And it is true, the orcs are driving the dwarves from Moria, but they are not harassing Lorinand..."
"Not yet, anyway," she interrupted, "But to journey through the Redhorn Gate may not be safe in the future. I'm being sent to Amroth to persuade him to put his own kingdom in peril to rescue the very people he hates."
"He doesn't hate you," Glorfindel pointed out, "And you live in Imladris now. Unless he persuades you to come back, he will be helping to protect you."
"So, you are asking me to use my friendship with someone I love to induce him to support our cause. I don't want to use Amroth's friendship for my own ends. Don't forget you must win over Nimrodel, too, he will not go against her wishes. You will have to rely on me, you know, I am the one who must negotiate this. You will have to work with me if you wish for this to succeed. What I need to know is if I can count on you to trust me with this."
Glorfindel said nothing. This was not the task Elrond had laid on him. He had been instructed to negotiate with Amroth, to persuade him to provide enough soldiers to help break a siege if Imladris were surrounded. Bringing Celebriel along had been a means of placating her and seeing if she would return to Imladris or demand to remain in Lorinand.
He realized they underestimated her and probably always had. She knew the heart and mind of Amroth, they did not. How she had won the hearts of Amroth and Nimrodel was a mystery, but there was no doubt that she had. Elrond had been wrong, they needed her if they wanted to accomplish their ends.
"I want to leave in three days," she said, breaking his thought train, "The cooks will have provisions ready for us. It will be easier to carry food with us so we won't have to take the time to hunt. I think Amroth is expecting me, he may not think that Elrond sent along another. I am going home, Glorfindel and it will be a wrench to leave, but there are people I love now in Imladris, and I would not have them put in danger."
The news was bad indeed when they set out. Angmar's soldiers had been seen on the road. Orcs, evil men who would seek revenge against the elves, Wargs, and other evil beasts were seen marching. It was likely the fighting would start before Glorfindel and Celebriel reached Lorinand.
Who knew how long the siege would last? Imladris was well provisioned and could withstand a long siege though eventually it would need help. There were secret ways in and out that would allow for an individual to come and go, but Imladris was in a valley and would be surrounded. If Celebriel did manage to procure the soldiers they needed, it would take time for them to march from Lorinand. Celebriel and Glorfindel would be able to make the journey relatively quickly, but the return would take much longer.
Celeborn took his daughter aside. "Listen, Celebriel," he told her, "You must try to persuade Amroth to give you a thousand of his troops. We will be surrounded here, and many men will be required to break through the lines of the enemy."
"I know, Father," she sighed, "but I am afraid he may be reluctant to give that many. Five hundred would help, but I am afraid it would not be enough yet I feel that I must accept any number he offers me. I will feel lucky if he agrees to hand over any at all."
She sighed, clearly dreading the task that lay ahead. "I don't know how long it will take to muster any army, I don't know if he prepares at all for war despite the peril on his borders. And then there is the time it will take to reach Imladris, I fear that all of this will be for naught."
"Do not worry about that, my daughter, Imladris will need help but it will hold. It is up to you to return with help, that is all you need to worry about. Elrond knew the valley would be hard to defend, but he chose his location wisely. We can hold the enemy off, it will be up to you to obtain the aid to help us break him, and we will. Have courage, Celebriel, all is not lost."
It was a bright and sunny early summer morning. She and Glorfindel had intended to leave while it was still dark, but to what purpose? Day or night, if it was the enemy's purpose they would be discovered but it was unlikely. The eye of Angmar was focused on Imladris, intent on destroying it.
Elladan and Elrohir came riding up, saying, "We are here to help you, Celebriel, four may ride in secret as easily as two. If you run into trouble on the road, we are here."
"We do not wish to wait in idleness for the enemy to attack, and would rather be with you. If two elves will not be missed, neither will four." Elrohir's voice was determined. The sons of Elrond would not be left behind, they would travel with their aunt in secret if that necessity arose
"Does your father know?" asked Glorfindel, "Do you ride with his permission?" He watched as they shrugged their shoulders, determined to not be sent back. "Very well, but I will not accept responsibility for your actions if you have to answer to your father on our return. Two more bows and swords will be of help."
They rode in silence, their only weapons at the moment their sharp elf eyes. Life seemed ordinary, even mundane, save for the fact that they encountered no one on the road. Normally, in times of trouble, the people of the Dunadain would seek shelter with Elrond, but there were no refugees to be seen. Though the attack would be staged against Imladris, the mortals would not be spared.
They did not press their horses, which would come in a few days. Though elven horses possessed more speed and endurance than other horses, it would not do to push their limits for now. Now was for observing and watching, and possibly gathering news if they could.
It was late afternoon when they saw the ravens flocking around something. They were fighting, arguing over who would help themselves to whatever was lying on the road.
The elves spurred their horses forward, scattering the ravens so they could see what had been left behind. They dismounted, walking carefully forward, then stopped.
It was a man, what he was doing on the road to Imladris they did not know, nor who he was or where he had come from. But his fate was obvious.
"What is he doing here? And who killed him? Could he have come as far as Arnor?" Celebriel bent down to take a closer look, "He was killed by a sword, he was struck in his stomach under his armor."
"This wasn't done by an orc, it was done by a broadsword," said Elladan, "And there's blood on the ground..."
"Leading to the bushes," Elrohir finished for him, "It looks like they mortally wounded each other. What were they fighting about?"
"We don't have time to find out," said Glorfindel, "It may be something, it may be nothing. We'll ride until the moon is at its zenith then we will stop to rest our horses and eat. This is a mystery we will have to leave unsolved because I think it has nothing to do with us."
"Unless someone was going to Imladris and someone else didn't want him to get there. But why?" Celebriel looked at him as if she expected him to have the answer.
"I don't know," Glorfindel replied, "And right now we don't have the time to find out."