Edge of Night

1.7 Aragorn's Intro to Advena

I stood with Lord Elrond on a balcony, looking out across the training yard. I had slept little since arriving back in Rivendell. I was weary, but glad to be back with people I trusted and loved. I watched as an unfamiliar human raced against two elven boys through the yard. 

"Who is she?" I murmured, observing her swiftness and agility. 

"That is Advena," the elf lord replied. I caught a glimpse of her smiling face as she continued to evade the clamoring youth. "She came to us more than one year past. Her origin is a mystery."

"Will she not tell you, or does she not know?" Lofty female laughter faded on the wind as the maiden disappeared into a hall, the boys following in pursuit. 

Lord Elrond sighed, and I smiled inwardly at his evident vexation. "It is clear that she knows, yet she refutes all questions. She said once that her home is indescribable, another time that we wouldn't believe her if she told us."

"That is mysterious," I agreed. Elrond motioned for me to follow him as he started down the stairs. "Does she get on well in Rivendell?"

He nodded. "She says that she does. Much of her time is spent with Arwen and myself, as we've taught her to speak Sindarin and Westron. I hear she spends long hours training with my soldiers and running through the woods. She has grown fierce in her time here."

"Very impressive," I said, picturing her darting among the training equipment. 

"Yes, quite," Elrond paused. "She is special."

"How so?"

His face grew contemplative. "She appears to posses the ability of foresight, in some strange form. She is plagued with strong, awful dreams. We do not understand it yet, but when she arrived, she knew us. She knew of your approach and sent Arwen after you." Shock spread through me as he stopped next to a window overlooking the falls. "Advena knows of the quest, Aragorn. I can see that she plans to go with you."

"Has she shared any insight into our journey?"

"She has told me very little, but I can sense that she knows more than she lets on. My advise would be to heed her every warning."

"I will," I thought for a moment. "Do you think she will be forthcoming?"

"I am not sure. It all depends on if she sees it fit to tell you."

An elf passed behind us in the hall, baring a basket of linens. "Who else knows?" I asked softly as they passed out of earshot.

"Gandalf, you, myself. Arwen knows some," he said, staring out at the view. "Watch over her, Aragorn. While she knows much of our world, she seems to know little of her place in it."