Thranduil had bathed and dressed when Galion entered his chamber.

"My king, shall we inform Hurwen of the changes? This would prevent further instances that could embarrass your wife," he explained. "She blushed deeply when I entered her room," he added grinning.

Thranduil turned to Galion, his expression serious. "What do you suggest?"

"My king, I would counsel the announcement of your betrothal and the preparations for the ceremony at once. This gives us the right to accommodate your lady in the Queen's chambers promptly, thus avoiding any unnecessary rumors among your people," suggested Galion. "You may use the secret passage door to visit her any time you wish. After a year has passed, you will officially wed. Then you will not have to hide your affection for her anymore. I also suggest that we inform Hurwen about last night's consummation of yours. She is the maid of your lady and it will be impossible for your relationship to remain hidden from her anyway."

Thranduil nodded thoughtfully. "You have my permission to go ahead with the announcement. Please begin with the preparations for our betrothal ceremony as soon as possible."

Galion bowed low and turned round to leave the king's chamber when Thranduil spoke again.

"Galion, I suggest that you do not look at my wife when she is not appropriately dressed. She is very timid and can easily be embarrassed. Although I do relish the sight of her blushing face, I object to it being caused by your glance," concluded Thranduil.

Galion nodded and Thranduil looked at him reproachfully. "Besides, your interruption robbed me of my well-deserved pleasure."

Galion grinned cheekily, which earned him a stern look from Thranduil. "Yes, my king," he promised before he left the king's chamber.

After an extensive bath, Ari was now ready to meet the king. Hurwen led her to the king's chambers. She marveled at the two enormous oak doors that stood before her for a moment before she hesitantly knocked.

"Come in," came his voice from inside the chamber.

Ari watched in amazement as the doors opened by themselves. Cautiously she entered the chamber and was immediately fascinated by its beauty. She stood still as her gaze wandered across the spacious room, until her eyes finally met Thranduil. He looked stunning. The king was wearing a black-silver tunic that reached down to his mid thigh, black leggings and black knee high boots.

Ari blinked at him and said shyly, "In my village, people wear black clothes when someone dies and they are in mourning."

Thranduil raised his eyebrows and smiled. "But you are no longer in your village. You are now in my kingdom and I wear whatever I think looks good on me."

With these words, he eyed Ari from head to toe. "And you will be wearing whatever I think looks good on you."

Ari suddenly felt uneasy.

"I will not change your formal dresses. In fact, I quite like them. But when we are alone, here in my chambers at night," he added, "then you'll be wearing whatever you may be provided by me."

Ari blushed. "Am I going to spend the nights with you?"

Her innocent but sincere question aroused Thranduil. He walked over to her. "How else could it be? Did you not enjoy the intimacy between us last night?"

Ari's cheeks turned crimson and she found herself at a loss of words.

Thranduil leaned down to her and made sure that his lips brushed her reddened cheek as he spoke.

"Have you not enjoyed the intimacy between us?" he repeated in a husky voice.

Ari shuddered when she felt the light touch of his lips and his hot breath on her cheek. She felt shivers all over her body. He sensed her heartbeat which increased at his touch and was greatly satisfied with himself. Thranduil placed his finger under her chin and raised it so that she looked into his eyes. Raising one eyebrow, he waited for her reply. Ari could not speak but slowly nodded in embarrassment. He took her hand and led her to a large table where breakfast awaited them. They enjoyed it while they stole glances at each other. When they had finished, Thranduil stood up.

"Would you like to look around my chambers?"

Ari nodded and he reached for her hand to help her up. She was fascinated by the abundance of intricate carvings on the walls and ceiling. Ari let go of the king's hand and her fingers began to trace the patterns. Step by step she made her way through his spacious and aristocratic chamber, inspecting every symbol and pattern she saw. They were of unearthly beauty.

Thranduil enjoyed her attention to detail. He had never met anyone so genuinely curious before. Observing her delicate fingers as they glided gently over the different symbols and patterns, a deep longing ignited in his being. He longed for her touch. Thranduil wished that she would touch his skin in this way. Feeling a slight tingling sensation in his loins, he tried to pull himself together and focus. He began to explain to her the numerous symbols she had not seen during her first visit in his halls. After a long time had passed, Ari stood next to his large, ornate bed. On the curved bed frame there were symbols as well, most of them unfamiliar to Ari. She let her fingers glide over them inquisitively.

"What is their meaning"?

Thranduil made sure that both of them had sat on his bed before he began to explain. He pointed at the different symbols.

"This one here means Love. The one over there, Sensuality. Here is Surrender, this one is Respect, Affection, Fertility, over there, and that one means endurance."

Ari looked at him in astonishment. "Endurance?"

Thranduil smirked at her. "Oh yes, Endurance. We will have to work on your endurance, my love. This is a quality you still have to develop."

Ari furrowed her brow, not understanding the meaning behind the king's words.

"What do you mean, my king?"

Thranduil gave her a soft smile now. "You did not manage to stay awake after I had made love to you last night. And that was just once. I have to train you. You should be able to make love to me as often as I desire."

Ari blushed deeply at his words. Thranduil leaned her onto the bed and was all over her within a moment. He kissed her affectionately at first, but soon found himself overcome by lust. He began to breathe heavily when he pulled the seam of her dress up to fondle her thighs. As suddenly as he had begun, he stopped again.

"My beloved wife, I have to attend a council meeting now. But tonight we will continue," he said, placing a last kiss on her lips.

Ari continued to lie on the king's bed, bewildered by his absolute power over her. When he had come to her the previous night, he had filled her with his passion. He had done the same now. She got up and walked across the king's chamber, still amazed by its unrivaled beauty.

The sound of a voice startled Ari.

"This is the most beautiful chamber within these halls."

She turned around quickly and smiled at Legolas, who had just entered the chamber.

"My lady, I wish to walk you around the halls today and have lunch with you. If you don't mind."

Ari did not mind at all and together they descended into the lower parts of Thranduil's realm. Legolas showed her the storages and kitchens. There was an enormous kitchen at the basement of the halls.

"Here they cook for all the elves living in the palace," explained Legolas. "Let us go and see the king's kitchen now."

Ari turned to him in surprise. "The king has his own kitchen?"

"Yes, of course," Legolas replied smiling. "He also has his private storage room, as well as his private seamstress, a healer, his private garden and other chambers which are only accessible to him."

Ari had become curious. "What kind of chambers?"

"When you are wed, you will find out," replied Legolas mysteriously. He corrected his words with a wink in her direction.

"I mean, when you are officially wed."

She blushed and dropped her glance to the floor.

"My lady, you do not need to feel ashamed. I am happy for you. Your secret is safe with me."

Legolas had his favorite spot in his father's private garden, where he next led Ari. Together they sat under a large ancient tree whose strong branches were so long and heavy that they touched the ground.

"I used to hide here when I was younger. At that time the tree was younger too and its branches were not that long. I used to climb up the tree, sit on a branch, and wait till my father's foul mood faded away."

Ari eyed him sympathetically. "Has he always been that moody and angry?" she asked in a whisper.

Legolas sighed sadly. "I have never known him in any other way. He was always bad-tempered. When I look at him today, he seems like a stranger to me, though. But in a good way. He has changed a lot. A change which has happened rapidly due to your presence in his life. He tries to control himself at every moment, although sometimes he fails. Please be patient with him. He is really trying his best to make you feel comfortable. The sun has finally risen after a long period of darkness in his life".

He took her hands into his, squeezed them gently and stroked them with his thumbs. "I will be eternally grateful to you that you've returned to these halls."

Ari felt touched by his words. Was the king really trying his best only because of her?

Suddenly a few branches were moved aside and Galion peeked into their hiding place. He bowed to the prince and the king's wife.

"Please forgive my intrusion, but your lunch is ready."

Legolas and Ari nodded and started to get up, but Galion motioned them to sit. He requested the servants behind him to hand over a tray filled with a variety of food.

"My prince, my lady, please remain seated. We have brought your meal here."

Together they ate their meal and told each other stories of the far world. Both of them had traveled around the world, and each of them had been to places that the other had not seen. Legolas was fascinated by Ari's stories of the south while Ari's blood chilled more than once by Legolas' tales of the War of the Ring. Time passed quickly and suddenly Hurwen peeked into their hideout.

"My lady, it is time for dinner and the king will have ended the meeting soon. Please hurry. We have to prepare you for the evening."

Ari looked at Legolas and smiled sincerely. "Thank you for this wonderful day. I hope that we will be able to repeat this again soon."

Legolas nodded in agreement. "I hope so, too. Have a good evening, my lady."

Ari arrived in her chambers where she bathed and dressed. Hurwen helped her as much as Ari allowed her, and now they were sitting at the table near the balcony. Ari studied Hurwen's appearance for some time before speaking to her.

"I remember you. You were the one who offered me food when I departed from these halls. You did that twice."

Hurwen looked up and smiled brightly. "My heart is glad that you remember my service, my lady. I was happy to serve you at that time. Secretly I prayed that you would return and bring happiness to our king."

Ari blushed slightly. "Why did you think so?"

Hurwen grinned. "My lady... The moment I saw you for the first time I knew that something remarkable would happen. I sensed that there was a deeper purpose about your arrival. Upon your second departure from the halls, the king personally sent me to you, to supply you with food for the journey to Dale. I knew at that moment that this would not be the end. When I heard that you had returned to us, I knew that your presence would bring along a change. And that is exactly what happened. Everyone in this kingdom is happy."

A knock on the door interrupted their conversation. It was Galion. He bowed to Ari and informed her that the king was awaiting her in his chambers. Ari nodded towards Hurwen and walked with Galion to the doors leading to the king's chambers, where they parted ways.

Ari entered the chambers and saw that the table was beautifully decorated with burning candles. Different kinds of flowers and petals were spread all over it and a soft smell of lavender was floating in the air. Smiling, her eyes searched for the king, but he was not there. Not knowing what to do, Ari walked out on the balcony and enjoyed the marvelous view of the forest. Suddenly, a pair of strong arms wound around her slim waist and the king's warm breath caressed her ear.

"My wife, please forgive me, but I was delayed." Thranduil turned her around and looked into her eyes. "How was your first day as my wife?"

Ari blushed slightly. "It was nice."

He took her hand, led her to the table and helped her to sit down. When he was also seated, they began to eat in silence. Ari started to feel uncomfortable when the silence between them remained throughout the entire meal. After they had finished, the king stood up.

"Will you please excuse me, I have another important matter to attend to."

What else could she do but nod? When he was gone, Ari decided to return to her chambers. As the hours went by, she decided that she should prepare herself for sleep. She hoped that the king would not request her to leave her chambers again. She sat on her bed as she kept the king's orders in her mind. She should never fall asleep without his presence. But it proved too difficult for her tired eyes and she soon dozed off.

She awoke by a light touch. Ari quickly sat up and saw the king by her bed. He had already taken off most of his clothes and was looking at her feverishly. With a husky voice he said, "My lady, the fact that I have other matters to attend to, does not mean that I do not desire you. I told you in the morning that our fondling would continue tonight."

With these last words he was fully naked and pushed her gently onto the mattress as he claimed her lips in a passionate kiss. He had already shoved her night gown up to her waist when he lifted her upper body to push the gown over her head. Ari blushed with shyness and the king felt heavily aroused by the pink color that graced her cheeks. He trailed soft kisses all over them and along her jaw line. She felt helpless, not knowing what he wanted her to do. This was different from the previous night.

"My king," she said, her voice trembling slightly, "What shall I do?"

Breathing heavily, Thranduil hummed between his kisses. "Nothing. Just accept me and my love for you."

He kissed her collarbone and began to fondle her breasts. He licked and sucked her hardening nipples while he used his hands to pin her wrists above her head. Every time he had tried to kiss her soft skin, she had timidly tried to cover it with her hands. Now this game of hers had to end. He understood her shyness and sensitivity but she was his wife now. There was no need for such bashfulness. Ari moaned softly when she felt his arousal on her thigh.

Encouraged by the sound of her moan, Thranduil knelt between her slender legs and his tongue began to play with her thighs. He kissed and licked her soft and sensitive skin, while he watched her reactions closely. She was breathless and Thranduil could feel that her inner fire burned bright. He smiled against her skin and let his fingers slide along her slick folds, where they found their way to her pearl. Ari moaned with sheer pleasure as he began to circle it applying a gentle pressure. He worked on her pearl, while he enjoyed her immediate responses to his touches. When he felt that her pleasure increased rapidly, he inserted a finger into her core. Thranduil found her soft spot and Ari began to pant and arched her back as he began to tease both her pearl and her soft spot simultaneously.

"My king..."

Thranduil increased the pressure on her pearl as a reply.

"Ahh mmm... what... are... aahhh..."

Thranduil smirked when he heard her reaction. "Yes, my lady? What do you wish to tell me?"

He removed his finger from her core and continued to tease her pearl while he looked at her beautiful, lust-filled face.

"Mmmm... I... what are you doing to... me?"

Thranduil relished the fact that she was utterly at his mercy. Her surrender to him had aroused him extremely. "I'm taking care of your pleasure, my wife," he replied almost innocently.

Ari arched her back and moaned out loud. She was almost there, but he would not let her come. At least not like this. He climbed on top of her and positioned his erection at her entrance. Lifting her legs up, he began to thrust into her. Ari moved her pelvis up in an attempt to allow him to penetrate her deeper. He smiled at her endeavor and reciprocated by plunging deeper inside of her. She whimpered with pleasure and Thranduil groaned in ecstasy as he felt her soft inner walls tighten around his erection. He pulled her legs up and rested them on his shoulders before he thrust faster and deeper into her. He was sweaty when he finally closed his eyes, concentrating on the intense feeling he created between them. He brought one hand to her folds and began to rub her pearl until he pushed both of them over the edge with a loud groan.

They both breathed heavily and enjoyed the waves of their shared orgasm that consumed their bodies. Thranduil lowered himself onto her abdomen and rested his head on her breasts. When he noticed that her breathing had calmed, he warned her.

"My wife, remember that we are working on your endurance tonight. This is not the end."