Silivchen makes her excuses to her parents and reaches out with her mind to guide her to her old friend.

He's easily found, sitting on a balcony, smoking and enjoying the sights. Multicolored puffs of smoke ring him, and one turns into an iridescent butterfly when she comes in sight, flitting its way over to her.

She holds out one hand delicately towards the butterfly. "Hello Mithrandir. You're making more of a splash than usual."

The butterfly lands on her hand, then dissolves into swirls of smoke.

Chuckle. "It's good to see you, Silivchen. And a bit of a splash keeps things moving, I would say."

"You would know more than I, with all the adventures you've been on."

'Hmm,' and a puff of his pipe. "Oh, I go here and there. Nothing major."

"Perhaps, but exciting things do seem to happen in the heres and theres that you visit."

"I assure you I have no idea what you mean. I merely... Help things along, every now and then." Another puff, then, "What brings you over to my corner here?"

"Any time spent with you is time well spent, my friend."

"I could say the same to you! It's always a delight to talk to you. How have you been doing? Discovered anything new?"

"I've been well. Rivendell is as beautiful as ever. I've gotten better at finding people with osanwë. That's how I found you today. I've also been researching the Siege of Angband and how it was ended."

"That's good! Osanwe is very useful. Though the Siege is a bit of a heavy topic. Have you read at all about the dragons?"

"It was Glaurung who proved critical in breaking the siege during the Battle of Sudden Flame. Other dragons were also important to later battles. The stories say that he had some ability to warp the minds of others and breath fire. They also say that he was quite intelligent and that he was eventually slain because a section of his belly was vulnerable."

"All good information." Puff of smoke. "Have you ever wondered what's outside the borders of your homeland?"

"You already know the answer to that. I've always been interested in the goings on outside Rivendell, though I haven't had cause to invite the disapproval of my parents by traveling."

"Well, you see, I'm organizing a little adventure lately. Could always use some more traveling companions."

"Really? What would I be doing?"

"Oh, helping here and there, talking to people we meet mostly. Aiding a great quest to recover a lost homeland."

"Are the dwarves accompanying you from Erebor?"

"A few, others hail from the Blue Mountain."

"Is the goal to retake Erebor though?"

"More or less."

"What's the more or less then?"

"Well, there's a few stops along the way, and the adventure hardly ends when the dragon's no more - there'll be diplomacy and negotiations with the neighbors, for one."

"That part sounds much more interesting than the dragon but I'd be happy to accompany you for both."

"We'd be glad to have you. Come, let's meet the others." He stands, sending a few last puffs of smoke into the air before putting away his pipe.

She smiles and gestures for him to lead the way.

The dwarves are gathered in one of the halls, speaking in groups among themselves. Some of the younger looking ones are laughing loudly. One of the older dwarves looks over when Silivchen and the wizard approach, and says, "Gandalf. Who is this?"

"An old friend of mine," the wizard replies. "And perhaps a solution to some of your problems."

"I'm Silivchen, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." She smiles.

"Thorin," the dwarf says, evaluating her. "Leader of this Company."

"Mithrandir tells me you're seeking to retake Erebor."

"That is our goal, yes. Though many seem to seek to stand in our way."

"Could you explain what you mean by that?"

"Beyond those we would expect as our enemies? Many people have been trying to argue us out of this proposition, or actively delay us."

"That must be frustrating. Are people concerned that you'll be unable to defeat Smaug without significant collateral damage?"

Privately to Mithrandir she asks Why are you choosing now to support this expedition? Erebor fell centuries ago.

"I suspect that's the most common objection, yes. Our current plan doesn't involve direct confrontation at all, but they don't seem to believe we have any concept of misdirection or stealth."

'Well, there really is no time like the present. The whole situation has been rather languishing.'