Over the next few days, Legolas met and spoke to the people who had remained in the forest and held many meetings with counsellors and advisors to discuss plans to rebuild and bring the light back to Mirkwood, as Legolas made it perfectly clear that he was not going to abandon the country that he loved so dearly to crumble now that a new dawn had risen on an age of peace. Many who heard him were inspired by his words, agreed with him and offered their full support, much to Legolas' delight. Anié for one was extremely proud of him.

Although for the moment Legolas was not yet King – only if the Council and the people agreed as a majority that he should rule in Thranduil's stead would the coronation ceremony take place – a combination of his passion and willing to help rebuild the lives and the homes of this great land, the people's admiration and respect of him and the fact that he was by blood next in line for the throne meant that it would come as no surprise if Legolas become Mirkwood's next King sometime in the near future (though nothing had yet been said or discussed).

Deep down Legolas was aware of this, but it felt like an impending doom rather than an achievement or title that he had earnt or deserved. Although he appeared very confident in front of the Council and had many discussions with them, Anié noticed in the evenings that he didn't speak much but was quiet and often deep in thought – he had an air of disquiet about him and this began to concern her, so one night, Anié confronted him about this:

"Is everything alright?" she asked delicately, sitting next to him on the bed and holding his hands.

"You know you can talk to me about anything?"

Legolas was deeply grateful inside for her love and that support helped him speak his mind:

"The people look up to me; to be their leader, to make things right. But I don't know if I can – their expectations… I don't – feel – I don't know if I can deliver. I'm just not ready or prepared to fill my father's throne".

Anié pondered on his words for a moment:

"You don't believe in yourself" she concluded simply.

She continued: "No-one is ready or prepared to take on such a task as being King, but they see your true potential and all the things you have done for this land – that is why they look up to you as a person and as their Prince. They know your love for them will lead you to make the right choices and to rebuild everything that has been destroyed. All of this will take time".

"I cannot do this alone" Legolas thought aloud.

"I would consider you foolish if you believed anything different" Anié replied, smiling.

"Your people and I will always stand by your side, to support you and to serve you".

Legolas' worries had not disappeared by any means, but he was greatly comforted by her words and smiling, he cupped her beautiful face in his hands and kissed her to show his gratitude. Legolas would feel completely alone without her love, even if he had the support of his council and all of Middle Earth behind him – her own struggle and determination was in itself admirable.

Inspired by Anié's words, Legolas continued to work and help others where he could, leaving Anié most of the time alone to do what she pleased. However, her recent blindness meant that there was very little – if anything - she could now independently do, so her good friend Cúrina stayed with her and helped her out. Cúrina and her husband, Baros, had become good friends with Legolas and Anié – Baros served under Legolas and the two women spent much time together. After her accident Cúrina often cooked for Anié and guided her around the Palace whenever they went out. Anié was very grateful to her friend for her unconditional love and support and never forgot to thank her friend at the end of the day. Anié wished in her heart that she was able to do more things by herself, as her constant dependence on others became tedious and she felt very much like a burden, but she could not deny her need for assistance and she reassured herself that at least she had friendly company.

One day Anié was alone for a little while (Cúrina couldn't be with her all the time, of course) and she decided that she wanted to go for a walk - although it was still very difficult without sight, Anié felt she knew the Palace well enough and besides, she wasn't going to go far, certainly not out into the forest where it was dangerous alone and armed, let alone blind. She got up from the bed, cautiously found her way to the door and moving very slowly, she left the bedroom, shut the door and edged forwards step by step, hands feeling the wall beside her. When she came to the end of a wall or a corner, she used her memories to visualize her surroundings in her mind so she could figure out where to go next.

For a while she was doing well and seemed to be finding her way round, but the corridors in the Palace of Mirkwood are many and winding and one easily forgets just how much one relies on visual marks and clues to remind you of where you are. After a while, Anié became a little less sure of exactly where she was and was only semi-confident of the corners she took, but she wasn't worried – she knew she was still inside the Palace and she could always call out to someone for directions if she needed to. Eventually the wall she was feeling her way beside ended and she came out into a large open space which she correctly assumed was the Great Hall, though it seemed surprisingly quiet, normally there were people. Anié had been a little nervous about arriving at the Great Hall, as there were no walls or railings she could guide herself with when walking across its vast open space - there was also a danger of not being able to see who or what was there, as the Great Hall is full of many things, such as carpets, pillars, etc - and was considering that she had come far enough and should probably go back, but she was keen to explore and was sure to be careful, so she wandered out a little bit, stepping carefully with hands stretched out in front of her.

She pottered around slowly for a while, but soon decided that there was no-one/nothing of interest here and she was already content with the progress she had made thus far (which she considered quite an achievement), so she decided to turn around and head back. Unfortunately, whilst wandering around the Great Hall she had lost her orientation a little and now wasn't entirely sure where to find the corridor she had just come from. But again she wasn't too worried – all these corridors led to places she knew anyway and although there was no-one around at the moment, there was bound to be someone around to point her in the right direction (if she needed to, that is).

She headed in the direction which she thought was best and her hands found the edges of a wall. This pleased Anié, as she felt a little more secure with something to follow, but just as she started feeling confident again, she placed her foot down onto thin air and suddenly discovered that the floor was much lower than expected and before she could stop herself or realise what was happening, her hands left the wall and she fell sharply down what she now realised was not the floor, but a small flight of stairs leading to an underground cellar room, probably for storing wine barrels or something similar.

She did not fall far but the stones were hard and she felt bruised all over. As well as feeling sorry for herself, she also felt very foolish, as she imagined what it must look like. She stumbled to her feet, feeling where the steps were so she could climb out of them, but upon standing on her own two feet, she felt a sudden pain in her ankle, which she feared she may have fallen badly on. Putting pressure on it was very painful and even the slightest movement of her now sensitive foot made her ankle twinge, as if a metal blade had pierced the bone.

Shortly afterwards, Legolas was walking down the corridor towards his chambers when a messenger stopped him. After hearing what he had to say, Legolas thanked the man for his message and walked swiftly towards the room that he and Anié shared. Upon opening the door, he was surprised to see the healer on his knees, finishing wrapping up Anié's foot in a bandage. He was also surprised by Anié's reaction of his arrival:

"I told the messenger not to disturb him!" she exclaimed as the healer informed her of Legolas' entrance.

"It's alright, he didn't disturb me" Legolas reassured her, "he saw me in the corridor and told me what had happened".

Legolas thanked the healer, who was just leaving and as he shut the door, Legolas knelt before Anié and observed her foot carefully.

"He said you fell?" questioned Legolas.

"Yes" sighed Anié reluctantly, "I was out walking and…accidentally fell down some stairs. Someone nearby heard the crash of me falling, helped me up and led me back here before sending for the healer to have a look at my foot. They think it's sprained rather than broken, but he said it's damaged enough that I'll have to rest it for a while".

She paused: "You've been dragged away from your business, I'm sorry. You can go now, I'll be fine".

Legolas shook his head: "No it's alright, I had only a few minor things to deal with today and so I was on my way to see you".

"Oh" replied Anié.

"You were out walking on your own?" Legolas continued to enquire.

"Yes" she replied – she knew that question would come next.

She paused again: "You don't have to stay, I'm alright really".

Legolas wondered why she was implying that he should go:

"I'm quite happy staying with you – unless you want me to go?"

She remained silent for a moment, shook her head a little and said nothing. Then, to Legolas' horror, her face became distorted, her breathing stilted and her shoulders (just slightly) began to shake – Anié was starting to cry.

"Anié?" said Legolas, placing his hand on her own. "What's wrong?"

Her voice was sad now, though she managed to control herself:

"It was foolish, I know - it was foolish to try and be independent when you can't see and my damaged ankle is my own fault. I know it was stupid of me, but I don't want people to have to look after me all the time, it's not fair on them and I feel selfish for it…I just don't want to be a burden to anybody anymore because…they have their lives too and there are others who suffer worse than I…I just…I feel foolish and stupid and guilty for being a burden and…forgive me…I cannot even cry properly – Legolas forgive me…"

Anié couldn't say anymore and she broke down crying, though no tears could now adorn her face. Legolas' heart broke to see her in such a state – he sat on the bed next to her, kissed her forehead and held her close to him, realising then that she hadn't wanted him to leave but she didn't want him to see her cry. Anié's body still rocked with emotion as her voice choked and she felt so utterly miserable- she tried so hard to be strong all of the time but being the brave, determined woman she was didn't make the trauma and the difficulties of life any easier to bear.

"Anié, wearing a bandage does not hide your beauty, nor does losing your sight make you any less the wonderful person that you are. You are never a burden, unless living with you and loving you would be considered such, in which case I will carry it gladly! You are not foolish or stupid or guilty … you have courage and admirable determination of the highest kind. In truth, all that you are guilty of is for having stolen my heart and bound it to your own".

Her heart became warm at his words and he kissed her forehead passionately:

"Do not say such things of yourself, Anié, it pierces my heart and ears to hear them. I love you so dearly, and I will never, ever leave you".

Although Legolas could not fully understand her pain, he felt truly sorry for her. Kind though his words may have been, he did not feel like they really did the situation justice and he could think of nothing that he could say that would make everything alright again. His heart sank and he held her very close to him, apologising profusely for not being able to help her in her hour of need. She in turn said there was no need and apologised herself for falling into weakness. They took comfort in each other and held each other close in a moment of peace…which was suddenly broken by a clear knock at the door.

He felt torn between comforting his love and seeing to the person at the door, until Anié gently pulled away from him and sat by herself, still clearly sad yet silently telling Legolas that he could go, composing herself should a visitor come in to see her. Legolas looked at her mournfully and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder to show his presence and support before standing up and answering the door.

It was one of the members of the Council – Gornon was his name, a man of some experience who was not unlikeable but had a sometimes over-eager temperament combined with an occasional impatience, especially when it came to great matters that he believed quite strongly in. He was a fiercely loyal subject and whole-heartedly devoted to King Thranduil; although he never openly said it, he did not believe that Legolas the Son had the same courage and boldness that made his Father the King of authority that he was, and no-one could ever really take his place as leader of Mirkwood. It was not that he did not like Legolas, but rather after having served such leaders as Oropher and Thranduil, he did not see much potential in the young Prince as heir to the throne.

As Legolas opened the door, he saw Gornon standing there with an undeniable beam on his face and an almost twitchy glint in his eye. He bowed low and greeted the Prince before bidding him to come to the Great Hall to meet with some other members of the Council – they had clearly been discussing something which they were very eager to share, though Gornon had clearly planned what he was going to say very carefully:

"We have been contemplating the future of the throne, your Highness" he explained, "and we believe we have just made a breakthrough".