Chapter 13: City
Ruby finally found she had some time alone with Adam. Legolas rode in front with Dhother, leading the entire group of riders.
It was a sight. Everyone was dressed in the best or cleanest set of clothing they had.
Ruby was glad she was wearing the garments of another Elf. It made her less distinct as both she and Adam merged nicely with the riders amongst the sea of greens and browns with the occasional silver added into the mix.
The only trait that made them stand out was their dark-coloured hair and almost gold tinged eyes; all the other Elves had blonde hair and blue eyes; a combination that would have Alice giving them the nickname 'Cupid'.
Adam's stature made it easy for the Elves to find an attire that suited him so perfectly. It looked like it was tailored for him. Ruby could not help but feel sore. Some guys have all the luck.
Recalling how Castril had burst out laughing when he saw her in her new outfit and how even the stern-faced Dhother was trying to suppress a grin, she wondered if she really looked that horrible.
But Ruby was quite off. 'Horrible' was not a way to describe her appearance. It was because the Elves were not accustomed to looking at a lady cross dressing, though she did look a little worse for wear right now as any human or even vampire would if they had gone without proper baths for such an awful long time.
As they entered, the city gates creaked happily to open and welcome the convoy back, the entire party was bathed in flower petals showered by the hordes of Elves that lined the sides of the road.
Adam and Ruby both wondered to themselves if the Elves in the city did the same thing every time a group came back. They soon got their answer from the way the crowd bowed and greeted the Prince, and the way a group of women that screamed the Prince's name and then burst out in uncontrollable giggles.
Adam threw a glance at Ruby when he sensed her frustration. It had nothing to do with jealousy; Ruby always had a low threshold for groups of giggling girls.
He was rather amused that his sister still felt the same. Years ago they came across a group of giggling teenage campers after hunting when they were on their way out of the forest.
Thank goodness they were already finished with their hunting or else what Ruby could have done to them would be unimaginable. They had been shamelessly flirting with Adam who was quite caught up with the attention until he noticed Ruby staring daggers his way.
"Is that your girlfriend?" the most observant one asked him.
"Nope. That's my sister." he answered her.
The group of girls launched into a giggling fit for the next minute, halfway through which Ruby rolled her eyes and got up to her feet, signaling to Adam that she will be making a move first.
When Adam had broken out of his recollections, he noticed that Ruby was not so pissed off now. In fact, as the horses slowly inched forward in the crowded city, she was more preoccupied with brushing off the petals that had landed all over her by the over-excited crowd.
He knew he was not much better off as well. The Elves had a knack for staying so flawlessly clean. Vampires could do the same but it required much more effort. He consciously brushed a hand through his short hair and realised how terribly entangled it was. And it was not just because of flower petals. Bits and pieces of the forests were in his hair as well.
They came to a stop in front of a grand looking building with colossal pillars lining the front, looking much more grand than the other buildings they had passed by in the city. This must be the palace.
There was a group of Elves standing expectantly in a line. In the middle was a wise-looking Elf with a huge smile on his face. His eyes looked wise beyond his years yet his skin was radiant and youthful.
Legolas got off his horse and embraced the Elf for some time before finally leaning back. The proud smile on the Elf's face was unmistakable.
And that was the first time Adam and Ruby finally saw King Thranduil.
Following the others, Adam and Ruby got down from their horses.
"Now, where are my guests?" Thraduil asked. His voice was deep and powerful. It reminded Ruby of some of the mountain lions when they roared a battle cry before attacking them.
Thranduil caught sight of their dark heads and moved towards them as the others cleared the way for their King. Ruby and Adam bowed down.
"We are grateful and honoured with the invitation, King Thranduil." Adam greeted the King.
"As am I with the fact that you saved Dhother's life!" the King replied him, and then added, "I did hear about one of your compatriot returning but was told it was a man. Did the lady choose to return in his place instead?"
"She did not leave, my Lord." Adam replied his bizarre question.
King Thranduil's eyes continued scanning the Elves behind them curiously. Ruby decided to save everyone's time and stepped forward "My Lord, the lady that which you spoke of... That would be me."
She was mildly irritated by the fact that Legolas did not make the formal introductions. He seemed more like he was waiting for the misunderstanding to take place so that he could delight in it.
Prince or not, Ruby made a mental note to wring Legolas' neck later as soon as she had the chance.
Claemar had been fussing over Ruby for what must have been eternity. She was the female servant who was designated to be in charge of attending to Ruby's every need.
What started as being slightly annoyance towards Claemar gradually became one of pity. Ruby could not imagine anyone having to do so much work concerning dresses, make up and baths. It must have been terribly boring.
But if it was that boring, Claemar was obviously not showing it. She good-naturedly rattled on about how much excitement there was and how everyone was awaiting for the party's return. How long it had been that the King had held a banquet. Moreover, it was one that had guests that were non-Elf.
Ruby knew that elves were immortal but she was learning to tell their age, and it was obvious that this particular she-elf is very young. The way she was so easily excited over everything, the speed at which she moved as if she was in a permanent hurry reflecting impatience only present in youths.
"Claemar, why did you choose to work in the Palace?" Ruby asked just as Claemar was taking in a deep breath to continue her previous conversation topic.
She paused, seemingly delighted that Ruby asked her a question. "There is no 'why', Lady Ruby. It is compulsory for all Elves to serve the Royal Household at least some point in their lives, especially when they are still young. It is just that some of us liked it so much we decided to stay on permanently."
"So you are fulfilling that compulsory obligation?" Ruby asked.
Claemar nodded her head vigorously.
Ruby was beginning to understand how Mirkwood works. It was similar to the real world, except even their ladies had to serve a stated period of 'military service'. She frowned. At least Elves were more fairr in this aspect.
"But I am enjoying myself. Every single day, every single moment." Claemar quickly added, when she realized Ruby did not look too happy about this compulsory obligation they were talking about.
"Good for you. And on top of that, you are doing a great job!" Ruby praised her, as she was finally done and looking at her own reflection in the mirror.
Earlier on when Ruby had just entered the room, she gave a short scream. If Adam had heard it, she would not hear the end of it, but luckily Adam's guest room was some way off down the corridor.
She had caught sight of her own reflection in the mirror after so many days of looking at her own face through the blurred reflection of the bubbling stream.
It was unsightly. Her face had been rather full of stubborn dirt (that Claemar had taken a lot of effort and soap to scrub off). Legolas must have warned them in advance that the Cold Ones were vastly different from Elves and Men, for Claemar did not even jump back at the first contact with Ruby's pale cold skin that was as hard as stone.
And they were not lying when they said she looked like one of the Elf soldiers when she was dressed in Arrgeth's clothes. She had well-toned arms back when she was a human which made her slightly more muscular than the average girl on the street though she could not recall what was her occupation before her transformation. Her broad shoulders made her fill out Arrgeth's top nicely, though she had to fold the sleeves up or else they would be too long for her.
She studied herself in the mirror now. Her hair, finally cascading down her shoulders after being tied in a pony tail. After Claemar's careful wash, its gloss was restored. Ruby was glad to notice that it finally looked a deep dark brown again when it had looked like black (probably because of all the layers of dirt accumulated on it).
The dress that Claemar had helped her put on was a deep royal blue and revealed her pale white shoulders. She self-consciously pulled a few locks of her hair to the front to cover her bare shoulders.
Claemar observed that the maiden was quite shy and reprimanded herself for choosing such a revealing dress. She should have been more considerate in noticing the style of the clothing rather than cater to her own personal colour preference. Yet when she offered to change to another, Ruby rejected her offer.
"Why? It's a beautiful dress, isn't it?" Ruby said.
"It is indeed, Lady Ruby. But you do not look comfortable in it." She said, with a tinge of sadness.
"Claemar, this…" Ruby gestured to her entire self. "…is all your hard work and effort. I will not let it go unappreciated. And please, just call me Ruby. I'm not used to the term you always speak in front of my name." She joked while dramatically placing the back of her hand on her forehead as if it bothered her so.
Claemar could not help but chuckle in reply when a knock interrupted her laughter. She rushed to open the door and there Adam stood, fresh and clean and glowing. Maybe it was the silver and blue tunic that they dressed him in.
"Is my dear sister ready? I hope she hasn't been much of a trouble." Adam spoke to her. Claemar was obviously at a loss of words. She bowed and stood to the side, allowing Adam to look into the room.
Ruby had already sensed that it was her brother at the door and was making her way to him.
As she took his arm that he offered her, she turned around and looked at the still star-struck Claemar "Claemar, you will be with us for the dinner, am I right?"
The poor girl could only nod her head meekly in reply as both Ruby and Adam looked at her. "Very well then. Let's go." Ruby gestured.
On the way, as they were led by both Claemar and another Elf that accompanied Adam, Ruby whispered to her brother "I love their shoes! Comfortable, practical. Not like those damn heels that always get stuck in drain covers."
"Maybe you should bring some back to Rosalie. Alice would just throw it away after just one use." Adam suggested.
They arrived in the garden some distance away from the Palace. It was a big field right beside the Palace. The outskirts were surrounded by buildings that consists of shops and houses. It was amazing that the Palace was not protected by perimeter walls and heavily armed guards. It seemed like the people were able to interact with the Royal Family frequently, seeing as how Thranduil and Legolas were warmly greeting the other Elves.
It was heartwarming to see the people and their government's interaction with each other.
"Ruby? Is that you?"
It was Castril's voice. She turned to face the speaker.
"There you are! I've been looking all over for you!" Adam exclaimed before Castril could say more. Adam clapped a hand on Castril's back and then led him away into the crowd like old friends heading for a catch-up session.
Puzzled, Ruby looked to Claemar as if for an answer but the she-Elf looked equally baffled.
"My Lady, allow me to lead you to your seat." Claemar offered.
She nodded her head appreciatively, not just for her help but for her companionship in a place full of strangers. Carefully holding up the skirt slightly so that it would not brush against the floor, she walked gracefully to the table, aware that she was starting to attract attention because of her brown hair.
"Must I?" She asked, unsure that she was supposed to sit at the table right in front of the field that had been placed on an additional platform so that she was plainly under the scrutiny of everyone.
"My Lady…" Claemar began, but quickly corrected herself when Ruby lifted a brow at her salutation. "… Ruby, it is a must. This is the King's table and the banquet is held to honour you and Master Adam."
"I guess I have to sit here eventually, but I think I'd rather do so only when the table is more filled." She said and hurriedly stepped down from the platform into the awaiting arms of Adam.
"Now, my little sister, where did you think you are going? The banquet is about to start." Adam teased.
"Well, anywhere off this platform. I didn't know you would get here so fast. You looked like you had a lot to say to Castril when you left me standing there." Ruby sulked. "Care to explain?"
"All in good time, Ruby. All in good time." Adam replied, and left it at that. Like a gentleman, he pulled out a chair for her as he took a seat in the adjacent chair beside her.
Claemar left Ruby after promising to be back by her side to escort her back to her room.
King Thranduil, Legolas, Dhother and some other Elves soon joined the table, with the King sitting beside Adam, and Legolas taking his seat beside Ruby.
"My dearest Elves of the Woodland Realm. We rejoice today at the casualty that was prevented with the invaluable aid of the Cold Ones." Ruby winced at the mention. Legolas was such a tattletale, and now the King had just announced their presumed 'Race' to the entire Kingdom.
Having done it all too many times, she shut out the conversation droning on by the King and shifted her attention to the huge amount of food-laden platters spread out in front of them.
She wanted to lean over to Legolas, curious as to know what would be done with the leftovers, but his blue eyes could see nothing but his father and his ears were occupied with the boring speech.
She quickly glanced up again as applause was heard, just in time to make eye contact with the King who was looking at her and Adam in gratitude. Not understanding why Thranduil was going to all that expense. It wasn't as if they had saved his son from anything.
Unbeknownst to outsiders, Dhother was the last Commander still remaining behind from the Last Alliance of Elves and Men whereas the other commanders were either slain or had departed Middle Earth in search for eternal peace offered by the Valar in Grey Havens.
Though King Thranduil is an impartial ruler but his respect and strong intention to ensure Dhother's safety was paramount. One of the last few memories he had had of his father, Oropher, was when he and Dhother were discussing before the battle.
Dhother had pleaded against Oropher's decision to charge at the enemy in a surprise early attack and to merge under the admirable leadership of the High King of the Noldor, Gil-Galad.
However, Oropher insisted that it would be a greater advantage to catch the enemy unprepared – a decision that also resulted in Oropher's untimely death as well as the high casualty rates of the other Elves.
Dhother was upset not because his proposition was paid no heed but rather he was not able to prevent Oropher from falling in battle. In exchange, he remained behind to serve Oropher's heir, Thranduil faithfully until right up till the King decides to sail.
Looking back, all these seemed to have taken place a long time ago. But they were here, now, all gathered together at the very table on the platform. And this was only possible because of two very pale and very cold and as of now, very uncomfortable guests that is aware of him scrutinizing them very carefully.
"Is the food to your liking?" King Thranduil asked as any concerned hosts would.
"It definitely is, my Lord. We have not tasted such great fare for a long time." Adam politely replied while Ruby smiled at the King who was looking over the both of them.
Satisfied with their answer, the King nodded and started on the food laid in front of him. He had a hundred burning questions for them, but there was no hurry. They were in his territory now and he could take his time. Filling up his empty stomach was the main concern for now.
King Thranduil was not the only one examining her that night. Ruby was concentrating on nothing but chewing on her food, breaking them up into much smaller pieces to facilitate swallowing when she realized a pair of eyes that were on her.
"It's rude to stare." She said, after she gulped down whatever it was in her mouth. She hoped that it was not because he noticed her accidentally chewing on a piece of bone or whatever it is that was not meant to be eaten.
"My apologies. You just look different tonight." Legolas smiled back at her, relieved that she could still crack a joke when he had been so rudely gawking at her.
She gave him a wry smile and turned her attention back to the rest of the food that Legolas generously helped onto her plate. She could notice from the corner of her eye that Adam was in no better state himself.
If only good ol' Seth was here.