Corrus swayed in the saddle as he and his pony drew ever nearer to the Elvish city. The sun warmed him as he passed over a bridge that crossed over a waterfall. He giggled as the spray lightly misted on his face. "We're nearly there, Clover," he murmured to his pony. "A real, Elvish city!"
The path led him to a staircase-- grander than any staircase Corrus had ever seen, surely. Sliding off Clover's back, he tied her to a tree and patted her neck. "Stay here-- I'll be right back." he whispered to her. She gave a soft nicker, as if in reply. He patted her once again, smiling, before taking his walking-stick from its place in his saddlebags (where it poked out quite noticeably) and walking up the stairs.
Those stairs gave way to more stairs, and those stairs to a choice of two more staircases, along with a cobbled path. Corrus, at this point quite tired of stairs, no matter how finely made they may be, elected to take the path. His walking-stick clacked against the cobbled walkway-- this was the only sound that heralded his arrival, as his bare feet made no noise upon the stones.
As he walked, he took a deep breath of air. (Later, when asked about his journey, he would say that the air felt sweeter in this part of the world, but would not be able to explain what he meant by that.) After ambling along for a bit, marveling internally, he came to the heart of the city. It was like nothing Corrus had ever seen before (though, up to this point, his only real contact with Elvish architecture had been a quick glimpse of one of their cities on his way to Thorin's Gate, so this was to be expected). Soaring ivory pillars inlaid with gold, intricate stonework that rivaled that of the Dwarves, and throughout it all those pink-leafed trees that seemed to flourish in Elven lands and Elven lands alone.
He tugged at the sleeve of a passing Elf. The Elf seemed bemused at his presence-- no doubt Corrus was an odd sight, being a Hobbit in Elvish lands in a Dwarf-make robe with a pointed hat reminiscent of a certain grey wanderer-- he but bent down nonetheless. "Yes, Perian?" the Elf asked. "Er, well, my name is Corrus, not Perian." The Elf laughed at that. "Very well. Yes, Corrus?" Corrus cleared his throat. "I, well, this isn't the Grey Havens, is it?" The Elf looked even more confused at his question, but shook his head. "No." Corrus frowned at that, but it was to be expected-- the Grey Havens were a port city, and seaside this place was not.
"You are in Duillond," the Elf continued. Corrus nodded, digesting the information. "Duillond," he repeated, trying to mimic the Elf's pronunciation, the Sindarin word unfamiliar on his tongue. The Elf spoke again. "May I ask you a question, Corrus?" The little Hobbit nodded. "Oh, yes, of course!" The Elf's lips curled into a slight smile before asking, "Why were you trying to get to the Grey Havens?"
Corrus gave a little chuckle at that. "Er, well-- I'm looking for someone. An old Man, with a long white beard and bushy eyebrows and a hat like mine, only his is blue. He's got a gnarled old staff and grey robes. I met an Elf in the Prancing Pony-- that's an inn in Bree-- who said that the Elves might know where he is, and that I should journey either to Rivendell or the Grey Havens, but the journey to the Grey Havens would be safer, since it's mostly through the Shire."
The Elf looked a bit nonplussed by this explanation. "By your description, I believe you seek Mithrandir." he stated hesitantly. Corrus shook his head. "No, no, his name is Gandalf." The Elf chuckled then. "He is both. He has many names. To the Elves, he is Mithrandir-- the Grey Pilgrim." Corrus shook his head. "One name ought to be enough. It's hard enough finding him without all these other names." The Elf chortled, then grew serious again. "I know of the one you seek, but I know not where he is. I am sorry."
Corrus scuffed the stones underfoot. "That's all right. Seems nobody knows where he is. Ah, thank you anyway, sir." He extended a small hand for the Elf to shake. The Elf, seemingly having never experienced something like this in all his years, shook the hand with a combination of puzzlement and amusement on his face, before walking away.
Corrus gazed out over the city again. "Well, perhaps I can still learn something while I'm here... though what that may be, I have no idea." he murmured to himself, before strolling further into Duillond.
