Chapter 3
They stop singing as they travel. The food is running out and they feel danger all around them. The landscape becomes more treacherous. Mountains loom in the distance and Bilbo thinks they must be near their destination. The mountains they see are the Misty Mountains, a range they must pass over before they enter Mirkwood. Their journey is not yet half over. Gandalf leads the way over the dangerous paths. He states that they must rest before they attempt to cross the mountain range:
"'You are come to the very edge of the Wild, as some of you may know. Hidden somewhere ahead of us is the fair valley of Rivendell where Elrond lives in the Last Homely House. I sent a message by my friends, and we are expected.'" Chapter 3, pg. 46
They travel throughout the morning and afternoon and still have not arrived at Rivendell. The land is wild and dotted with dark ravines and mysterious bogs. Gandalf follows odd stones in the ground and suddenly they come to a steep drop off. They begin to descend into a warm valley. Elves sing songs in the beeches and oaks around them. Dwarves and elves do not traditionally get along. In their songs the elves poke fun at Thorin and Bilbo. It is almost dusk as they near the house of a tall elf named Elrond. The narrator states that good times often make for boring tales, but Bilbo would have stayed in Rivendell for many months.
They feast and their supplies are refilled. Their clothes are mended and they tell great stories to one another. Elrond reads the swords that Thorin and Gandalf took from the troll hoard. The swords are of elvish make and they were used in the Goblin Wars. The swords have names. Thorin hopes to kill goblins again. Elrond asks to look at their map and he shakes his head because he does not approve of the dwarves' lust for gold. On the map there are moon letters that can only be viewed in the light of the moon. Elrond reads it to them "'stay by the grey stone when the thrush knocks, and the setting sun with the last light of Durin's day will shine upon the key-hole.'"Chapter 3, pg. 53. Durin's day is the dwarf new year. Thorin is at once excited and upset by the prophecy. There is no more writing and they all decide to go to sleep. In the morning they ride away into the mountains.
Topic Tracking: Greed 2
Topic Tracking: Magic 2
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