Hi! This is my first story, so please feel free to suggest different ideas that you have for the story. For example, if you have a great idea for what should happen next in the story, please notify me asap in your reviews. I'll take them into consideration. Thank you! :-D

Adlanniel ran with all her might. Her silky silvery-blond hair was glowing under the moonlight as branches ripped her tunic and scratched her arms. In the distance, she could see flames shooting into the cloudless starlit sky. Elves surrounded the burning cottage with buckets of water, trying their best to tame the flames. The flames grew, licking the sky like an angry serpent trying to find its way into the light.

"Naneth! Adar!" Adlanniel screamed. Neither of her parents responded. Some of the elves turned at the sound of her voice. Most of the elves were guards who were watching over the borders of Greenwood. They had seen the flames and quickly ran towards the cottage to put out the fire.

Once she reached the proximity of the house, a guard walked up to her. "Is your family still in the house?" he asked.

Adlanniel nodded. The elf started alerting the others. Some tried knocking down the door, but flames burst through the opening, blocking the way. Everyone could feel the heat searing the air.

Tears flowed down Adlanniel's face. "Adar! Naneth!" she screamed. Pain was laced in her voice.

Suddenly, everyone's eyes widened with incredulousness. In one lone window, a figure appeared.

"Adar! Adar!" Adlanniel's adar stood there, looking out the window. Tears, pain, and grief covered his face. He raised his hand farewell before backing into the flames that were engulfing him.

"No," she whispered. The roof suddenly collapsed. The cottage was now a heap of burning wood. Surrounding trees were charred. Elves were running everywhere. Some were filling their buckets with water from the stream nearby, trying to tame the flames again.

More guards came with buckets. They feared that the flames would spread through the trees.

One guard went up to her and tried to lead her away from the chaos, but Adlanniel refused.

The fire went out as the sun rose. It was silent. All the guards stared at the remains of the fire. Black particles covered their faces. Some stared at Adlanniel with pity clearly in their eyes. Adlanniel's tears had ceased, drying into clean tracks on her dirty face.

One elf boldly went up to the large pile of charred wood and started looking for any miraculous remains. Others tried helping him. They clearly did not expect anything, but they did it anyways.

As Adlanniel stood there, she noticed something…..someone a bit out of place. Standing a couple of feet away from her was an elf with gold hair and grey eyes. Her eyes widened with surprise for he too had soot covering his face. She suddenly realized that he was one of the few who tried breaking down the door to save her parents.

None of the pain within her had subsided, but something, through the thickness of her grief and fatigue, twitched as she noticed red burns forming on his arms and part of his face.

Adlanniel quickly took a bucket and filled it with water from the nearby stream. She felt like a walking corpse as she went to the elf.

"Sir," she said softly. The elfjerked his head towards her. His eyes widened as he realized that the elleth in front of him was the one who had just lost her parents.

She beckoned him towards her. Adlanniel tore off a piece of her dress and soaked it in the cool water. "Put this on your burns," she said, placing the piece of cloth into his hands. "It will lessen the pain."

"Thank you, my lady," he said. "You show great courage." Adlanniel smiled. Little did she know that an elf with blond hair standing on top of the remains of the cottage was watching them with an unreadable expression on his face.

"What is your name?"

Adlanniel smiled. "Adlanniel," she whispered.

"A beautiful name. I am–

"I have found something...someone!" an elf suddenly cried. Everyone started running towards the elf. They started murmuring, staring at something. Adlanniel suddenly felt cold.

"I will see what they found for you," Adlanniel's companion said quietly. He ran forward to see what had happened. He pushed his way through the crowd. Adlanniel noticed him talking to a blond elf. The elf wasn't a guard, but he had a regal air about him. Both glanced at her for a moment before continuing their conversation. Adlanniel's eyebrows arched with confusion.

The grey eyed elf walked back with a grim expression on his face. Adlanniel's hands twisted together with anticipation. "I am so sorry Adlanniel. I think they have found your mother. The guards think that she died from suffocation."

Adlanniel's eyes widened. She choked back a sob. Her breathing became ragged. "Did she look….horrible?" she managed to whisper. He did not answer her. His eyes widened from the question and he looked lost. She couldn't help it. A sob managed to escape from her throat as tears cascaded down her cheeks once again. "What of my father?" she asked, tears laced in her voice.

"We have not found him yet." Adlanniel spun around. There stood the blond elf who had been talking to to her companion. His eyes showed true remorse. "I am sorry for your loss." Adlanniel did not say anything. She could not say anything.

A group of elves holding a stretcher with an elf holding a large blanket following them caught her eye. They were heading towards the group of elves surrounding her naneth.

A hand cupped her face and turned it. "You do not want to see that. Remember your naneth as she was before this day," the elf said. He stood there, staring into her eyes. Adlanniel felt as if his eyes were burning into her soul. The tears stopped. She became expressionless as she tried not to think about anything. "I am so sorry," he whispered.

Adlanniel was starting to hate that word. That one word everyone would say after something bad happened. No matter how big or small the situation would be someone would always say that one word. Sorry. It made her stomach twist and chills roll down her back.

The elf took his hand off her face. Adlanniel looked at the stretcher. A body covered by a blanket occupied it. The elves who were holding the stretcher were leaving. Adlanniel knew it was her mother from the bump of her pregnant belly. Her entire family was gone: her mother, her father, and even the little baby that had yet to be born. Everyone else had already crossed the sea.

"You look tired," the blond elf said. "Do you have anyone to stay with?" Adlanniel shook her head. "Well, you must come with me. I'm sure my father would let you stay with us for a while. My name….is Legolas." He took her hand and started pulling her out of the forest. "Come!"

Read and review please! :-D