Catti-brie and I roamed through a forest, the afternoon sun nearly blinding me. I wasn't sure where I was at, for I had just not two days ago left Mithral Hall. Catti-brie insisted that she came with me, and after a while, Bruenor had agreed to it. He thought that it would be good for the girl to get out. My feet went where my heart directed them, and my heart has led me here. The trees here were beautiful, a sight I haven't seen much of until I arrived on the surface world all those years ago.
These trees were a splendor, though, and something set them apart from other places. This forest was filled with an eerie touch of elegance, though so slightly noticeable. One good thing I favored about this forest is that the sunlight didn't reach the bottom of the forest floor much, though I didn't think Catti-brie took the same pleasure.
"This forest is beautiful, don't ye think?" She asked me. I nodded my head, because it was indeed very beautiful. My thoughts brought me to remember that elven child from the surface raid I had attended when I was living in Menzoberranzan. I quickly shook the memory away.
As I continued to walk on, I began to see a faint glow in the distance. I couldn't see where, or what, it was coming from. I realized that this place must have a name and be inhabited by someone. I debated whether I should keep going or not, but I continued my walk forward, knowing that I would most likely be judged by the color of my skin and driven away as soon as I was seen anyways.
I turned immediately to my right, a flicker of movement catching my eye. I saw a huge spider, larger than any I had ever seen. It was bigger than a battle horse, or any horse for that matter. The spider reminded me of a hook horror, mainly because of its sheer size. I pushed Catti-brie behind me, who didn't object.
The spider approached me and bared its fangs. I quickly removed my scimitars from their sheathes, and let my fighting instincts take over. I quickly slashed at the spider's belly, my blade cutting a deep gash. The spider, who fought on anyways, thrust its fangs down towards my throat, but I dodged, and the spider barely missed my shoulder by three inches.
All of a sudden, out of thin air it seemed, an arrow came flying out from behind me. The arrow stuck between the spider's eyes, and it cried in pain. Seeing this new enemy, the spider lunged towards the direction the arrow came from. Since it was distracted, I threw one of my scimitars at the spider, and it hit home. After being hit with a volley of arrows, the spider fell dead.
"Are ye okay?" Catti-brie asked. "Yes, I'm fine." I told her with a wry smile, though she couldn't see it because my hood was casting a shadow down over my face. Then I remembered the arrows, and realized that we weren't alone. As soon as the thought came to me, I found that we had been surrounded by a group of surface elves. Again, the memories flooded back to me. It was impossible to forget about the raid.
They all looked similar, with long blonde hair and striking blue eyes. I stood my ground beside Catti-brie, and I felt her muscles tense. One of the elves stepped forward. The only difference between him and the rest of the elves was that he had a silver circlet around his head. I figured he must have been of a higher rank. He asked me something, but I couldn't understand what he was saying. After he finished speaking, he realized that we couldn't understand him and he switched to the common tongue.
"Who are you two, and why do you walk within our borders uninvited?" He asked us, his expression firm but not yet unkind. I pondered my options as to what I should do. Suddenly, an idea swept over me. I reached up and pulled my hood down, my shaggy white main falling towards my shoulders. Catti-brie stood beside me, her expression calm.
As soon as I pulled my hood down, I could read the expressions on each of their faces. Hatred. I was used to it, though, for I got the same reaction from most people. Suddenly, the elves had arrows trained on Catti-brie and I.
"A dark elf." The one with the silver circlet sneered. "What business do you and this woman have here?" He snarled.
"Hello, I am Drizzt Do'Urden, and this is Catti-brie. We did not know that we were trespassing on your land, and do not wish for a fight." I replied calmly. The elves seemed shocked that I had not retorted, even more so that I remained calm. They glared at us, and then the one in charge gave a command in his tongue. Two elves came forward with rope, and I knew what they were doing. Our hands were bound in front of us, and we were led forward. I knew they were probably taking us to their king, or the leader of their kingdom, whatever it may be.
I stood calmly, and allowed my hands to be bound, along with Catti-brie's. She looked up at me, and I smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry, everything will be alright. We knew this was the risk we'd take." I told her, and she knew that I was right. It seemed that I had been heard, because some of the elves kept glancing back at me. The one in charge kept staring back, glancing at us. He seemed entranced by our presence, though I understood how unusual this must be for them. We walked past the trees and thick undergrowth for about an hour or two, when we finally arrived at a large gate, which looked like a more luxurious version of the gates at the walls of Bryn Shander. They swung open, and we were lead inside.
At this point, I was confused, and I wasn't exactly sure what was going on, or familiar with who anybody was. Catti-brie seemed to be just the same, but the only difference is that she kept staring at the elf in front of the group, the one with the silver circlet. I wish I were familiar with their names, it would be much easier to identify them. That thought was soon abandoned for the time being when we entered the palace, which I came to learn from listening to the elves' conversation, was called Mirkwood.
Bridges crossed above us, and they blended well with the surrounding trees. In fact, I'm pretty sure they were part of the trees. The walls and ceiling were comprised of stone. I realized that we were probably in a cave or something similar, though I did not know if it was natural or not. Several torches were lit, providing some light. We were led through Mirkwood, and received several glares from the other elves.
We passed into a large room that had a large throne-looking thing in the back. It looked odd compared to any other throne I'd seen before. An elf sat atop the throne, adorning a strange crown made of a dark-colored wood and some red leaves, flowers, I wasn't exactly sure. He turned as he noticed our entrance, and raised an eyebrow in interest.
"Hmm, what do we have here? A dark elf and a woman. That is very strange" He said in the drow tongue. It startled me that he knew our tongue, but the rest of the elves didn't. I stared into his eyes, which were a deep blue color. He looked away at the elf who was in charge of our group, and nodded to him.
"Thank you, Legolas. The rest of you make take your leave." The Elvenking said. The other elves nodded, and scurried out of the throne room. The only ones remaining were Legolas, the king, Catti-brie, a she-elf with red hair and brown eyes, and I. The king began speaking to Legolas in his tongue, and he nodded in reply. I caught one word, or a name perhaps, and that was Thranduil. I assumed that was the Elvenking's name, but I discovered nothing more. Thranduil and Legolas carried on a conversation for about a minute or so, and then turned back to Catti-brie and I. The she-elf with the red hair had still remained silent, but looked as if she was fighting the urge to say something.
"So, Drizzt Do'Urden and Catti-brie. Now my question remains, what business does a dark elf have on the surface?" He asked, his voice icy and harsh. I stood there, uncomfortable under the gaze of the three elves. Catti-brie spoke up, which startled me. She must have worked up some courage to do that.
"It is a story neither of us wish to tell." She replied simply. I wasn't sure if I should reveal anymore information to them or not.
Legolas and Thranduil stared at Catti-brie in shock, astounded that this woman had answered first. The female elf just stood there, and I could tell there was a smile playing on the corner of her lips. I noticed something odd, which I had failed to see before. In some ways, Catti-brie and the she-elf looked alike. It was strange, but I didn't see how it connected with anything, so I dismissed the thought.
Thranduil walked up to us, and stood there for a minute, examining us. He began to say something in his tongue once more, and then the she-elf walked up. I realized he must've commanded her to search us, and take away our weapons. She took my two scimitars, which I didn't appreciate. She searched for hidden knives and daggers, which she found, and took as well. She also took the emblem of my house, which I still had, and the gift Belwar had given me many years ago when we parted. She searched my pockets, and found the onyx statuette. Guenhwyvar.
"No, please, don't take that." I begged. It felt foolish to act like that in front of these elves, who still despised me, but she was one of my dearest companions. She took it anyways, and handed everything over to Thranduil. She then went on to Catti-brie, and she didn't find as much on her. Catti-brie only carried a sword and two daggers on this trip. The she-elf lingered in front of Catti-brie for a moment, before handing those to Legolas.
Legolas and the she-elf, who's name I still had yet to discover, flanked us and led Catti-brie and I off to the side, down a long corridor. We were taken down a flight of stairs, and into what looked to be a dungeon. Instead of putting us into one of the cells, though, they continued to lead us through the large room. We walked through a set of wooden double doors, which took us to a smaller room off to the side of the dungeon cells. Legolas shut the doors behind them, and we were stood, waiting for something to happen next. Catti-brie stood up tall, and I smiled at how confident she seemed. I knew on the inside, though, she was afraid.
The she-elf stared at Catti-brie, and I could see a small glimpse of pain flash through her eyes, though she quickly hid her expression. I wasn't sure if Catti-brie had noticed this or not.
"Wait here." Legolas commanded, pacing the room. I wasn't sure
what we were waiting for, but my question was answered when the doors to the room swung open, and Thranduil slipped through. He walked over to Catti-brie and I, and stopped before us. Suddenly, he zipped out a sword, and placed the tip of the blade on Catti-brie's neck.