Hello! Welcome to the first chapter of "In Starlight," a story that answers the question we (well, me, at least) were all left with at the end of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies-but what happens to Tauriel? I am determined to give my own answer to that question and follow Tauriel's journey through Middle Earth, for it does not end with a black screen. This is the first installment in that journey. We open our scene in the ruins of Dale, an ancient stronghold of Men now turned into a swarming battleground. Subsequent chapters will bring us to the end of The Battle of the Five Armies and onwards. I hope you enjoy!
Chapter 1: No Love
The wind whistled through the empty arches and bounced off the stiff walls of crumbling buildings, blowing at debris and highlighting the patches of bright red blood that shone in stark contrast to the snowy ground. Tauriel ran through the snow-covered ruins, crumbling dark grey stones dusted with white powder. Her thoughts raced to catch up with her feet. She looked up at the stone peak in the distance, its top fuzzy with fog. The halfling had said that Kili was up there. Kili…
She could not explain the connection she felt to the dwarf. Associations between elves and dwarves were unheard of. Too many centuries of animosity lay between the two peoples. Too much resentment was harbored deep within hearts, left to fester and spread. Any once-amiable ties between elves and dwarves were now soured. There was no love lost between their races…yet might it exist between the Silvan captain and the dwarven archer? She could not deny the pull she felt whenever she thought of Kili's dark eyes and darker hair. Nor the stab of pain she'd felt as she watched the Orc arrow plunge into his leg. And the overwhelming relief that had washed over her like a cooling wave when she drained her powers of healing to save him, only to find his bright eyes looking back at her. She walks in starlight in another world…do you think she could have loved me? No, there was no explanation for the kinship her heart felt for the young dwarf. Yet whatever it was, she knew it could be ignored no longer.
A snarl sounded by her ear, yanking her out of her reverie. She spun, knife already in hand, and slashed at the gaping Orc face that presented itself around the corner of the crumbling stone building by her side. Sensing movement behind her, she ducked, a blade whistling over her head. Jabbing backwards with her elbow, she caught the creature in its side, shoving it off balance as she whirled and plunged her knife into its chest. As she leapt over its body, intending to meet the third Orc in its headlong rush, she was brought up short by a sound. Long, low, and clear, the clarion call of the elven horn recalling its troops echoed through the once-abandoned city of Dale, now alive with war. Tauriel almost stumbled, so shocked was she. Surely not. Gritting her teeth, she flew into action. Kicking out with one leg, she forced the Orc into the wall as she grabbed its neck with her free hand, wrenching its head around to present its throat to her. Slashing it unceremoniously, she dropped the limp body and hurried towards where she had heard the horn call.
Running along the cobbled pathways, she caught the glint of light off brightly polished armor and the clink of weapons on stone. Her eyes widened and she clenched her jaw. Not this time.
Her boots skidded on the snow as she slid through an empty archway and set herself in preparation. When her king appeared in front of her, she was ready.
Bow in hand, she watched as Elvenking rounded the corner, at the head of his troop of guards. Steeling herself, she called out firmly in the lilting tongue of their people. "You will go no further."
Tauriel lifted her chin and met Thranduil's eyes. "You will not turn away. Not this time."
Thranduil's eyes flared, first in surprise, then in anger. His voice was cold and hard as he lowered his eyebrows, glowering at the she-elf standing in front of him. "Get out of my way."
Tauriel blinked. She had expected no less, but still she could not keep the disbelief out of her voice as she stared at him. "The dwarves will be slaughtered."
Thranduil's brows lifted. The Elvenking watched his captain with a touch of amusement in his face. His voice was light and airy as he replied. "Yes, they will die. Today, tomorrow, one year hence, a hundred years from now. What does it matter? They are mortal."
As the king's words echoed in her ears, Tauriel felt the stirrings of rage deep within her suddenly leap into full-fledged flames. How dare he. How dare this haughty elf stand here and callously declare brush off the death of living beings as casually as one might swat an annoying insect. Rage fueled her flash of movement as she swung her already-strung bow up and aimed an arrow straight at the face of her king.
Her voice quivered with emotion as she kept her eyes on Thranduil, noting the shock on his face. "You think your life is worth more than theirs? When there is no love in it?"
Tauriel shook her head slightly, eyes bright with emotion. She bit her lip to clamp down on the scream welling within her. Instead, she met the eyes of her king, gritting out in a shaking voice, "There is no. Love. In you."
Thranduil's eyes slipped from her gaze, sliding down and away. The world waited, caught in the moment between the exhale of one breath and the intake of another.
It was in that silence that Thranduil moved. Faster than the blink of an eye, he lunged forward, his sword a natural extension of his arm. Slashing at Tauriel, the sharp strength of his swing cleaved her bow in half. It fell to the ground, clattering on the cold stones.
Tauriel watched it fall, eyes wide. Then she turned her stunned gaze to the face of her king, an inch away from hers as he pressed the cold edge of his sword to her throat.
"What do you know of love?" he hissed, his harsh voice rasping against her ears. "Nothing! What you feel for that dwarf is not real."
He pressed closer, the winding black lines of his scar standing out in stark relief against his pale face. Dark and menacing, he met the unblinking eyes of Tauriel as his stare bored into her. "You think it is love? Are you ready to die for it?"
Tauriel closed her eyes, helpless in the face of her king's wrath. Drawing in a deep breath, she waited for the blow of the sword…a blow that never came, as the clang of steel on steel interrupted the stillness. A second sword sliced through the chill air to come between Tauriel and Thranduil, a barrier of metal and will. Tauriel let out a shuddering sigh and opened her eyes to see Legolas standing with his sword outstretched, piercing ice blue eyes alight on Thranduil.
"If you harm her, you will have to kill me," the son said to the father, his sword resting atop of the other's. The world waited, frozen in a tableau of tension and passion. Thranduil said nothing, measuring his son's will in silence. Finally he swung his sword away, sheathing it with an almost inaudible hiss.
Legolas dismissed him with a glance, turning instead to Tauriel. Finding her unhurt, he gave her a firm nod, eyes steady on hers. "I will come with you."
She needed no further encouragement. Every moment they stood here was another moment Kili's life was endangered. Even the stubbornness of dwarves could not save them from the hopelessly overwhelming numbers of Azog's forces.
Whirling, Tauriel raced out of Dale towards the mist-shrouded Ravenhill, Legolas at her side, leaving behind them a scene as broken as the splintered bow that lay at the feet of the king who watched them go with eyes as pale as the grey skies above him.
Thank you for reading. Please review! This is a work in progress, so I want to write what you want to read!