A year before the time The Hobbit is supposed to take place, Elven-King Thranduil and his son Legolas as well as companions from Mirkwood come to Lothlóthrien. During their stay there, Thranduil and Legolas meet the youngest daughter of Lord Elrond...
Celebwen watched as the rest of the Elves wound their way, bypassing a green, rolling land, heading towards the sea. As she watched them leave, the nagging thought came again. Where should I go? She didn't want to go too far away from Rivendell on this first trip. But neither too close.
Suddenly, an idea formed. She smiled and turned her horse, digging her heels into its flank and galloped to the beautiful country.
Sometime later, she stopped beside a dark wood, dense, and almost frightening. Celebwen glanced at it as she dismounted from her steed. An ancient evil was at work in the hearts of the trees, but it was harmless to her. Her horse, however, was of a different opinion. It stamped restlessly, so that Celebwen had to whisper in its ear: "Be sal', Arna," (be still, Arna). Finally, Arna settled down and began to chew away at the green, luscious grass. Celebwen sat down, her knees drawn up in front of her, and stared into the distance.
She had already eaten earlier and she didn't feel any hunger now. A sleepy silence fell over the darkening world, disturbed only by the strong wind that blew every so often, ruffling the leaves of the trees beyond her. The sun set dreamily in the west, sending scarlet rays of light with golden ruffled edges over the land. Near the heart of the Shire, the land that Bilbo called home, a few distant points of light shone, merrily twinkling in the distance. She sighed and then adjusted her body so that the tree she had previously leaned against was no longer behind her but beside her, and laid down, closing her eyes.
Sometime later, she was awoken by small droplets of water landing in her face. She sputtered and sat up, flinging her hair behind her. It had started raining and the black sky threatening stood above Celebwen and Anar. Celebwen looked up and then seized Anar's halter and began to lead her into the wood. Anar stubbornly refused till Celebwen succeeded in coaxing her in. When they were underneath a significant amount of shelter from the rain, she stopped and the horse remained standing whilst Celebwen laid down and tried to sleep. They were protected from the rain, but the pitter-patter continued. Not only that, but queer whisperings ran back and forth among the trees, a forbidding sound echoing amoung the forest.
The next morning, Celebwen and Anar crawled out of the forest, Celebwen a little damp from sleeping on a wet forest floor. The sun was shining brightly from a clear, azure sky and most of the signs from last night's deluge gone. After eating a light breakfast, she mounted Anar and galloped off towards the cheerful land of the Halflings.
A few days later, she found herself near a small village with brightly painted signs pointing to it proclaiming its name: Hobbiton. Celebwen smiled and spurred her horse forward, trying her best to remain inconspicuous under the trees. Near the far reaching outskirts of Hobbiton on a hill there sat a hobbit house with its bright green door, though with a mysterious dent in it.
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A bustling company of hobbits crowded round the door and at the gate as they watched a sole hobbit standing on a small ladder, hammering on a couple nails in the sign that hung above the door. The sign said simply, "Auctioning the late Mr. Baggins's belongings." Underneath in smaller letters it read "See Mr. Andwise for more information". Celebwen looked in surprise at it.
