**A/N: This is my first time at this so I realize this story might sound stupid. Please review when you're done reading, I'll take any opinions of yours, good or bad.**
The tavern was a place where all manners of men and lowlife could be found. Lanterns on the sides of the walls dimly lighted the main area and in the centre there was a fireplace where most had gathered around. Long tables and benches placed in no particular order all about the room were crammed with people. Everyone there was talking amongst themselves and their voices were loud enough to drown out the sound of the storm outside.
It was unusually crowded and chaotic on that particular night, for the clouds had unleashed torrents rain, driving all to seek shelter from the endless downpour. Most there seemed to be men from the surrounding region of Gondor, though there were a few faces showed some traces of Haradrim descent. Elves rarely frequented such a place, much less elves from the Woodland Realm of Mirkwood, which laid many leagues from Gondor. Yet there was one elf from Mirkwood there that night, though he sat in the corner, hidden by shadows and watching as the others went about their business. Legolas Greenleaf, son of the Sindar Elf King Thranduil of the Woodland Realm, had just completed his task of bringing something of great importance from his father to the current ruling Steward in Gondor. He was in no rush to return home at the moment, partly because of the inclement weather and also because it was not very often he was in this part of Middle Earth. He decided to linger around for several days to wander about the human kingdom.
As he sat watching, the door of the tavern on the other side of the room opened and a man dressed in well-worn travelling clothes of dark brown quickly stepped in and shut the door behind him. A large hood, dripping wet from the rain outside, hid the newcomers face as he glanced about the tavern as though looking for someone. Unlike all the others there, the man left his hood up around his face instead of taking it off, even though he was now indoors. Keeping his eyes on the cloaked figure, Legolas noted there was something strange about him. Perhaps it was because he didn't walk with the same swagger as all the other men there, or that his shoulders did have the same characteristic broadness. The man continued surveying the dim, busy room then seemed to find what he was looking for. As he quickly made his way towards one of the tables close to the fireplace, the light from the lanterns lit up the hidden face for a brief moment. Legolas's sharp eyes caught a glance at the lighted face and he realized that it was not a man, but a woman whom he was watching. He noticed how her bright green eyes blazed savagely in the lighting. She moved with the same gracefulness of an elf, yet he could not tell if she was, for her ears were hidden from view.
She was doing well at drawing little attention to herself as she approached a somewhat wealthy looking man sitting alone near the fireplace. She sat down by the man and started talking to him, though Legolas could not hear what they were saying over the din of the tavern. As the woman talked, she reached into a sack she had and brought out a small bag, no doubt containing something valuable from the way she handled it. They talked for a few more moments before she gave the bag to the man. Their conversation seemed to have ended, for she stood up and glanced around as though she was readying herself to leave. The man she had been talking with turned back to his drink and looked intently at the package he had received. Without a warning, the woman suddenly drew out a dagger that shone harshly in the light of the fire from a sheath that hung at her side. She quickly threw her free hand over the man's mouth then sunk the dagger deep into his back, right where his heart would be. Before her victim could even begin a struggle, his life was torn from him. She waited several seconds before removing her hand and the dagger, wiping it on her cloak before placing it back where it came from. She grabbed the package that she had given the man from his open hand and stuffed it into the sack she had with her. Just as she glanced up, her eyes met with Legolas's steady, unwavering gaze. She narrowed her eyes warningly, then hastily turned around and quietly left.
The tavern was so crowded that no one except Legolas, the woman and the now slumped over dead man knew what had happened. No one had even noticed she was there. It would not be until many hours later as the owner of the tavern found that the man he thought had passed out from too many drinks was actually dead.
Even though his eyes showed otherwise, Legolas was shocked at what he just saw. The woman had murdered a man in cold blood and left without a second glance. He wondered who she could be, and is she was possibly an elf…… No, he thought, as far as he knew, it was not in the nature of elves to do such treacherous things. But there was something about her that intrigued him none the less. He glanced at the dead man and knew there was nothing that even his healing skills could do to revive him, the dagger was sharp and the blade had gone right where it was intended. Quickly he gathered his belongings and exited the tavern hoping to catch up with the killer. It was still raining hard outside, but he didn't notice it, he was too focused on finding that woman, though he still didn't know why. He knew she was dangerous, and ruthless; she might even try to kill him if she suspected he knew too much. His ears picked up the faint sound of horse hoofs on the ground amid the sound of the rain, he turned in the direction he heard them. He saw a rider clad in a dark cloak riding down the road away from the tavern. Though he wasn't sure if it was the woman, Legolas quickly mounted his horse and rode off into the darkness of the night and rain, following the rider.
**Well, that's it folks, give me your thoughts on the story, and I'll see if it's worth continuing……**