Chapter 1
Thranduil calmly sat on the chair, a placid look on his face, as he listened to the quarrel between Bard the dragon slayer and Dain Ironfoot about the share of treasure that was promised to the people of Laketown. Now and again, the wizard Mithrandir, or more commonly known as Gandalf the Grey, put in his own arguments, supporting Bard. Thranduil had already received what he wanted from the treasure hoard (Dain had no intention of starting another war with the elves): gems of pure starlight that had once belonged to him. But despite his calm and expressionless features, the elvenking's mind was in turmoil. He thought of his son, Legolas, who had journeyed north, and of Tauriel. He knew she was heartbroken and lost, but her actions in recent days could not go unpunished. She had run away despite his orders, and had pointed an arrow at him, threatening to kill him: her king. Although, for the moment, Thranduil was quite content to let her be, and allow her to deal with her grief in her own way. He knew that Tauriel would seek the comfort of solitude.
Thranduil's mind came back to the argument at hand, or at least the now resolved argument. Dain had agreed to give Bard money enough for the people of Laketown to rebuild the city of Esgaroth, for that was the name given to Laketown in the days of old, and for the people to last through the winter. Dain had also agreed, quite grudgingly, to give Bard a little extra to rebuild the city of Dale. Dain, like all dwarves, loved gold and precious gems, but at heart, he was a fair man, and he realised that Bard had killed the dragon Smaug, and if it were not for him, the dwarves may not have the treasure that they had now. So he had agreed, rather grudgingly, to the extra sum.
After the matter was resolved, both Bard and Dain left the tent where the three leaders and Gandalf had decided to hold their council. Both men and dwarves had a lot of clearing up rebuilding to do with no time to spare as the winter frost had already begun to settle. Thranduil now turned to look at Gandalf, for only the two of them remained in the tent. The wizard was contently blowing rings of smoke from his pipe, and the silence between the two dragged on until Gandalf finally set down his pipe and looked towards Thranduil, "The battle us now over. What do you plan to do now, Elvenking?"
Thranduil decided to avoid the underlying question and instead answered the obvious, "I will return with my kin to the Halls of the Woodland Realm."
It was obvious that Gandalf wasn't satisfied with the answer, "And what then?" the wizard replied, "You know as well as I do that Sauron will attack again. Do you plan to stay behind those walls and let orcs and other foul creatures infest your lands?"
There was a slight pause before Thranduil answered, "When the time comes, my army will fight alongside the rest of our kin, but that time is not now."
Gandalf seemed satisfied with this answer, but he was curious on another matter. "Where is your son, Legolas? He should have been here accompanying you in this meeting."
"He has travelled north. He no longer wishes to remain at Mirkwood," Thranduil answered, his face void of expression, although a trace of sadness could be heard in his voice.
"North?"
"North to seek the Dunedain, and Isildur's heir."
Understanding passed through the wizard's face, "Aragorn, son of Arathorn."
Thranduil gave a slight nod, "The heir to the throne of Gondor."
"I see," Gandalf answered as Thranduil stood to leave the tent, "And what of the girl? Tauriel if I recall correctly."
The Elvenking stopped in his tracks, just short of the doorway. He took a side-long glance at the wizard, "What about her?" Thranduil replied before leaving the tent.
"Don't be too hard on her. Her broken heart will need time to heal," Gandalf called after him.