Lord Celebrimbor swung his hammer down on the piece of Mithril bending and shaping it into a pendent that was to be sold at the market in Moria. He looked up when he heard someone clear their throat. Even if he hadn't looked up he would have known that it was his daughter who was looking at him disapprovingly. She held up a bowl containing his breakfast and sighed. "Ada, how many times are you going to force me to bring your breakfast to you? We have a perfectly good table upstairs. Why did you even insist on building this forge here at the house when you work at a forge all day?"

"I'm too old to reform Amora." Celebrimbor muttered. "Your poor mother tried to mend my bad habits and didn't succeed."

He put down his hammer and brushed back a strand of long blonde hair from Amora's face. She didn't resemble him one bit. Instead she had long blonde hair that shone like starlight and green eyes that put emeralds to shame. Celebrimbor gave her a bittersweet smile. "You look so much like her."

"Da, it's too early in the morning to be so melancholy." Amora gave him a small sad smile. "Nana wouldn't want it now."

He looked at her and nodded. "Go on you have work to attend to. I know for a fact that Lord Celeborn won't like it if you're late today. Everyone is talking of the envoys from Greenwood that are coming today right. Speaking of, the gift for Prince Thranduil is there on the stool. Will you take it in for me?"

"Don't remind me." She groaned. Amora looked around and opened the box whistling in amazement as she took out two twin daggers. The handles were made of white oak a rare material to find these days. The gold accents along the blades were carefully arranged. "These are beautiful and completely wasted on that pompous arrogant prick."

Celebrimbor looked up from his work to glare at his daughter. "Where did you learn to speak in such a manner? You only met him once in Lindon. I raised you better than to form opinions based on first impressions."

"He broke my nose! Once was more than enough to form an opinion about Prince Thranduil." Amora muttered angrily. When her father warned her again she sighed. "I'm surprised you're defending him. I'm not the only one who says so all the other soldiers say similar things."

He put down his tools in order to give his daughter his full attention. "You are a captain of the guard, Amora. With that title means that you are the example, if you behave poorly to the Prince your soldiers will do the same. You don't know Oropher as well as I do, he'll raise hell if he believes that his son has been disrespected. That kind of a diplomatic quarrel, no matter how justified, is not what this realm needs right now."

"Very well." Amora sighed. She placed the daggers back into the box and closed the lid with a long sigh. "I will endeavor to be civil, but if he makes another snide comment like he did the last time, then its war."

Celebrimbor rolled his eyes and mentally recited a prayer for patience. "You don't have the authority to start a war. Just tend to your duties. He is here to negotiate trade agreements with Lord Celeborn, not to pick fights with the Captain of the Guard."

"Fine." Amora sighed. She picked up the box, kissed her father on the cheek and left for the citadel. With a wave she said as an afterthought. "I'll be late coming home."

He watched her go with a small sigh. Celebrimbor hated watching his daughter leave for work. Although she was brilliant captain and proficient with a weapon, he couldn't help but worry for his daughter. After everything that had happened he couldn't bare it if something happened to her.

When Amora turned back to look at him, he raised a hand giving her a small wave. She nudged her horse to a gallop not giving him another glance. Anxiously he whispered. "Please, be safe."

Amora was facing away from the dais as she directed which members of the guard were to be stationed where. Although they were on excellent terms with Greenwood, something put her on edge. It irritated her that she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was.

"Are we going into battle?" Lady Celebrían giggled. She wrapped an arm around Amora's shoulders distracting her from barking out orders. Silently the Captain of the Guard motioned for her second in command to take over. "This seems a bit excessive for a peaceful envoy. Or are the extra guards here to protect you from giving Prince Thranduil another black eye?"

Amora groaned and covered her eyes when her second in command and the other soldiers within hearing distance began to snicker. It took her a moment to get over her embarrassment. When she did the captain glared at her friend. "Who told you?"

"Oh everyone knows about the brawl." Celebrían said dismissively. "What did he say that made you angry enough to hit him? Everyone was calling you the true heir of Fëanor after that."

When she heard that Amora wished that the ground would open up and swallow her whole. She had been hoping to survive this visit quietly. "I am not having this discussion with you."

"Please." She begged. Celebrían scanned the crowds to make sure that no one was listening before she pulled Amora to a private corner. "I'm trying to get a sense of who he is before he arrives. Although no one has told me anything I overheard Ada and Nana talking, apparently part of Prince Thranduil's stay here is to see if we get along well enough to wed."

Amora looked at the younger elleth completely flabbergasted. "I didn't think Lord Celeborn had it in him. He's usually so protective of you."

"So will you tell me now?" She asked.

The captain shook her head and barked an order at one of the guards who was standing idly in a corner. She scanned the clearing for anything amiss before turning back to Celebrían with a weary expression. "No, if that's the case I don't want you to meet him with a biased opinion."

"You're no help." Celebrían sighed. She looked around nervously and squeezed Amora's arm nearly cutting off the circulation. "I'm so nervous. How will I know if he is the one?"

Amora scanned the crowds searching for someone else to handle the young lady. However everyone else appeared to be busy. "Shouldn't this be a question for someone who is already married?"

"Please Amora." Celebrían sighed. "I have no one else to ask."

She made the mistake of glancing over at the silver haired lady. Amora felt as though she had kicked a puppy from the expression her friend made. With a frustrated sigh the captain relented. "If I tell you, will you let me get back to work?"

"Yes I promise." She agreed.

Amora scratched the back of her neck and thought about what little her father had told her about her mother. She pulled Celebrían towards the dais telling her as they walked. "When you meet their eyes something clicks inside your heart. You feel like…you found something you didn't even know what was missing. Alright that's all you get."

"It's a start." Celebrían muttered. She waved goodbye to Amora who returned to the task at hand.

The sounds of horns in the distance caused Amora to stiffen and restrain herself from groaning. She yelped in surprise when someone tugged on one of her curls. She glanced over to see her second in command, Haldir, smiling at her. "And so it begins. Remember don't punch first and aim for the sensitive areas."

"Don't be an ass." Amora chided. She folded her arms and kept her expression completely neutral. Just over the hill she could barely make out the horses riding for their campsite. From the correspondence between the elvish leavers, King Oropher demanded that as a show of good faith they were to meet the envoys in an open area. Amora didn't like it, there have been an increasing number of orc attacks in area and they were too exposed here.

For a moment Amora's neutral expression morphed into one of astonishment. At the head of the procession was Prince Thranduil. Normally that wouldn't have given her any cause to be surprised except for this particular instance he was riding a gigantic elk. A creature that she had thought to be extinct in Middle Earth after the defeat of Morgoth.

A sharp nudge to her back caused Amora to snap out of her awe. Reluctantly she ripped her eyes away from the majestic creature and began running her eyes over the procession searching for anything amiss.

From the weary expressions of the guards and the way they palmed their weapons Amora could tell they had seen some combat on their way here. This added to the already tense atmosphere. Amora raised her hand and made a fist two times, a signal for the guards on the outer perimeter to sweep the area again. She wasn't sure what type of combat they'd seen, but Amora would be damned if she let anything get close to the family she had sworn to protect.

Her attention went back to the procession and for a brief moment her eyes connected with Prince Thranduil. A look of recognition passed between them followed by one of sheer dislike. Amora quickly turned her attention to the trees just behind them. She searched each shadow that flickered afraid that she had missed something.

Only when her guards on the outer perimeter signaled back to her that all was clear did Amora allow herself to relax a little. She turned her gaze back to the procession that was dismounting and making its way towards Lord Celeborn, Lady Galadriel and their daughter.

"Let us not stand on ceremony. It is our express wish that these trade negotiations be concluded as quickly as possible." Thranduil announced.

Amora resisted the urge to draw her dagger on the Prince right then and there. If he didn't want to stand on ceremony what was the point of all this, she wondered angrily. Had the envoys met Lord Celeborn and Lady Galadriel at the Citadel like all the envoys did she wouldn't have lost nights worrying about security. Another sharp nudge to her back caused Amora to take her hand off the hilt of her dagger. She made a mental note later to thank Haldir.

Lord Celeborn seemed to share her annoyance. "Your father wouldn't appreciate Eregion not showing his son proper hospitality owed to him. We will begin proceedings once everyone has been formally introduced."

By the time Amora was back on her horse, and signaling for her soldiers to split into their respective formations, she was exhausted. The introductions were tedious, and it was part of her responsibility to keep track of everyone in case assassins tried to sneak in with the foreign retinue. Which never happened in all her years of being a guard. She slumped in her saddle earning her a pat of reassurance from Celebrían.

That was another worry on the captain's plate. Instead of riding with her parents, and the foreign party Lady Celebrían had insisted she be allowed to ride with the guard. At that particular moment Amora was too tired to care. She turned her head to the silver haired elf and raised a curious eyebrow. "So, will I have to endure a wedding as well?"

"I can say with complete certainty that he is not the one." Celebrían admitted.

Amora ignored the fact that she felt oddly relieved at the news. She swept her eyes to the procession just ahead of her and shook her head. "Don't worry about it too much. You'll find the one when the time is right."

"What about the political alliance that he would have brought?" She prompted.

It took Amora a second to think of an appropriate response. She scratched the back of her neck, a habit she picked up from her father, and sighed. "While it would have been a convenient alliance. Eregion doesn't really need to strengthen ties with Greenwood politically. As things stand we get along with King Oropher just fine."

"Well except for you." She giggled.

Before Celebrían could continue with her teasing the young captain stiffened in alarm. Amora raised her fist motioning for everyone to stop. Suddenly with everyone else so quiet she heard it.

Nothing.

The forest had gone completely still. She exchanged looks with Haldir silently signaling him on how to proceed as they had done over many years.

Suddenly chaos broke out in the form of a warg attack. Quickly Haldir and Amora sprang into action. He led everyone away with half the soldiers to protect the retreating procession. The Captain stayed behind with the other half of her warriors to corner the warg and kill it.

It took six arrows to bring the animal down, but when it finally moved no more they were ambushed by its pack. Seven large orcs lead the attack trying to get the soldiers to scatter so that the orcs could pick them off.

Amora managed to bring down two wargs and their riders with her bow and arrows. However when things began to look dangerous she dismounted and let her horse run away from the fray. When she was certain her horse was safe she turned to confront the others. Amora swore loudly when a large elk nearly trampled her. She jumped out of the way in the nick of time. However she hadn't bothered to think about where she would land. Amora quickly realized her mistake as she straightened. She was directly in the path of one of the orcs. She was completely unprepared to defend herself.

Whatever you do don't panic, Amora reminded herself. If she froze she knew that she was as good as dead. The orc had a blade pointed at her throat. Her hand inched towards the daggers she kept strapped to her waist in a telling motion. When the Orc drew back to thrust his blade into her heart that's when Amora moved.

It all came down to speed and the young captain was a step faster. She thrust the hilt of her dagger up knocking the blade out of the way. However it wasn't enough to keep her from injury. She flinched when the path of the blade was diverted from her heart and instead made a cut from her jawline and up her cheek. She tried to ignore the pain as she slammed her other dagger into the orcs heart. Amora didn't withdraw her blade until she was certain the orc would move no more.

She turned to confront the next attacker only to find that the battle was almost finished. Only one fleeing orc remained however it wouldn't get far. Amora saw two of her soldiers blocking its only path of escape. Already her soldiers were combing the woods searching for others and checking the wargs and orcs to make sure they were actually dead. She slumped her shoulders and mumbled under her breath. "Some show of loyalty. I get no help with anything."

"A worthy injury for such a stupid mistake." Thranduil muttered. "You need to work on paying attention to your surroundings. Being oblivious is a good way to get yourself killed."

He dismounted his elk and began searching the pockets of the orc who appeared to be the leader not sparing her a second look.

Amora looked at him outraged. She threw caution to the wind and put a hand on her dagger. "I wouldn't have made such a stupid mistake if you hadn't barreled your way without a care for your allies."

"Put it down, Captain. You're not worth my time." He sneered.

Thranduil stood up to confront her. In an attempt to intimidate her into submission he closed the distance between them until they were toe to toe.

Before it could break into a fight Amora heard her name being called. She spun around accidently causing her hair to fly in Thranduil's face. She saw that two of her soldiers were injured. Reluctantly she forced herself to admit that the inured took precedence over her pissing contest with the elf before her.

She yelped when Thranduil caught some of her hair. Amora turned her head to snap at him. It was an unspoken rule not to grab the hair of another elf. However as quickly as he grabbed it, he let it go.

Amora ran forward to the injured soldiers thinking nothing of the incident that just occurred. She knelt down in front of the injured and examined the damage. She turned to the field healer kneeling across from her and ordered. "Get them up onto horses and rush them to the infirmary. Have there been casualties?"

"No Captain."

She nodded and turned back to Thranduil to finish their conversation. However he was already riding away on his elk. Amora crossed her arms and watched him curiously. She reminded herself that she didn't have time to spare on the Prince. With a dismissive shrug she returned to her other duties ignoring the fact that her cheek was still bleeding.