TA 2941

Thranduil knew that his wife was slipping into a state of unconsciousness. Her legs burned with such pain that she could barely comprehend it anymore. She had her eyes closed and her head was lolling against his armour clad shoulders. She had managed to look up to him once before, noticing the black blood which dotted his cheek. His hair was wiry on his head, but his crown was still intact. He didn't look as though he had made any effort to win a fight. Ava had closed her eyes after that, unable to keep them open as she willed for the pain to go away.

"March ahead and find a healer," Thranduil demanded from Elrond who was still moving by his daughter's side, his hand on hers as he went. "I assume you will need help to set the bone as quickly as possible. Find a cart and a horse too. We will be leaving as soon as Ava's...well...seen to."

Elrond nodded in agreement and rushed off. Thranduil allowed two members of his guard to go too. The King continued to walk with haste, doing his best not to jostle Ava in his arms. He did not wish to bring her further pain.

He could soon see the gateway of Dale, knowing that his safety loitered just outside of the castle walls. It was all that he longed for. Yet he soon saw a red headed guard stood in front of him, her bow and arrow in her hands. She was dressed perfectly and Thranduil knew that she had just arrived. And now she intended to stand in his way.

"Stop," she demanded. "You shall go no further...Ava..."

She trailed off as she recognised the elleth in Thranduil's arms. She rushed with haste towards her, dropping her bow and arrow to her side as she did so. Hesitantly, Tauriel moved a hand outwards towards the Queen, her mouth agape and her face contorted with worry as she did so.

"An Orc broke her leg," Thranduil explained. "So, as you can imagine, I shall go further, and you shall not stop me. I already banished you from my kingdom. Who do you think you are to hold such authority over me?"

Tauriel watched on as Ava could not even bring herself to open her eyes. All that she could do was remain limp in the King's arms. It was then, as the sight of her friend engrained itself into her mind, did she open her eyes and shake her head, a small tear glistening in the corner of her eye as she stepped back and shook her head.

"You cannot take your entire army with you." Tauriel spoke. "The dwarves will die."

"Yes," Thranduil whispered, well aware that he had better things to do other than argue with Tauriel. "They will die today...a hundred years from now...but that is certain. They shall die."

"How can you speak like that?" Tauriel demanded. "They will be slaughtered."

"They are not my issue," Thranduil spoke. "My people concern me, and my wife concerns me right now. What you feel for that dwarf is not real. I will not hesitate to cut you out of my way should you not move."

"And Ava?" Tauriel demanded from him. "I know love. I can feel it. I know that I will do whatever I can to keep the ones I love from danger. What did you do? You brought Ava here and put her in the midst of danger. Look at what you have done to her. How can you claim to love her when you have put her through so much pain?"

Thranduil's eyes widened as he considered Tauriel's words, but he refused to accept them. How could he? He knew how he felt. He knew what he had done. He had spent his life trying to keep her safe. How dare Tauriel demand that he had failed?

"There is no love in you."

His final words finished his thoughts and he glowered with anger. He stepped forwards as Ava managed to open her eyes, her lids fluttering slowly upwards. Her dark blue eyes managed to look up to Thranduil and she wondered what was running through his mind. She could see the strain in his face, but she noted the anger in his eyes. Slowly, Ava moved her hand upwards and captured his attention. Turning to look down to her, he felt his own eyes begin to water at the sight of her. A sigh escaped his lips as her hand rested against his neck which his armour didn't cover.

Thranduil nodded to his wife, silently promising her that she would be well. How could anyone declare that there was no love inside of him? His rage boiled to the surface as he looked away from Ava and began to move forwards.

"Stay out of my way," Thranduil demanded, sweeping by Tauriel. "And do not think of stepping foot inside of Mirkwood again."

It was only as Thranduil moved through the main gate did he notice his son come from the shadows. Legolas looked at Thranduil with such disappointment that the Elf-king could not help but recoil at the mere sight of him. Tauriel turned her attention between the father and son before she felt a sense of guilt. She never wished to put a wedge between them. She did not like to see them fight for it brought Legolas nothing but misery and Tauriel did not want them for him.

He did not deserve it.

"Take Ava to a healer," Legolas managed to say as he looked down to the elleth he had spent his years refusing to call his step mother. He cared for her, but she was barely older than he was. How could he call her his naneth? "She needs help."

"Legolas," Thranduil whispered his son's name and their eyes met, locking together. "Do not go."

"I have to," he said. "And if there is no place in Mirkwood for Tauriel then there is no place for me."

Legolas did not bother to remain silent and wait for his father's response. Instead he turned to Tauriel and nodded sternly. "I shall help you."

He turned on his heel again, looking to his father once more before he left with Tauriel, both of them running away with haste. Thranduil watched them go, an ache forming in his chest as he watched his son leave him without a second glance. Had he pushed Legolas away? Was that what he had just done? He could not lose his son.

He refused to let that happen.

But right then and there he could not go after him. Legolas was old enough to make his own decisions, whilst it was Ava who was in need of his assistance. Thranduil pushed aside the moisture in his orbs before he continued walking down the slopes of Dale towards the clearing where multiple dead Orc bodies lay.

Elrond was stood by the back of a wooden cart with another healer. Both of them watched on as Thranduil placed Ava down on the wooden surface, his hands moving to her cheeks and wiping her hair from them as she groaned softly in pain.

"Could you find nothing comfier to heal her on?"

"The city is destroyed," Elrond quickly snapped as he knelt on the wooden court next to Ava, his hand moving to her skirts to lift them up to her knees. He could see the purple bruise on her skin and he knew that he would have to set the bone before it was too let. "We have no equipment or time, so please try to keep quiet."

Thranduil bit his lip as Elrond sent him a glare which did nothing but silence him. Elrond went to work as he demanded supplies from the healer and rubbed them onto Ava's leg. The Queen remained silent as Thranduil demanded for his forces to be dispatched and find any other elves who were still there. They all dispatched and Thranduil dared to watch on, standing at the edge of the cart as Elrond whispered under his breath.

"This shall not be pretty," Elrond warned Thranduil, but the King merely nodded in agreement.

He would not leave, nor would any warning scare him away. His intention was to stay with Ava until she was healed. He cared more for Ava than anyone else at that moment in time, except his son, but he could not take Legolas from his thoughts either.

Elrond spoke the truth as Ava suddenly let out a scream. The noise echoed throughout the clearing and Thranduil longed to crawl to her side and hold her to him and muffle her screams. He wanted to take her pain from her. He could feel her agony inside of him. It wasn't physical pain, but it was enough to make him flinch. It was enough to cause Thranduil to ball his hands into fists by his sides.

The screams continued and Thranduil wondered if Ava had felt like this when he had been injured. Their emotional connection was greater than it had ever been. All Thranduil could do was look in as Ava's screams continued to move and Elrond stood over her leg, a single tear falling down his cheek as his hands worked an ointment into her skin.

"What is happening?" Thranduil demanded as the other healer continued to watch on in awe. "What are you doing to her?!"

"Trying to help her," Elrond spoke in a snarl. "Keep quiet!"

"Her screams do not indicate a sign of help!" Thranduil snarled back.

Elrond ignored him as he continued to work, refusing to let Thranduil stop him from aiding Ava. It took him a while, but he finally felt himself grow weaker. Ava's screams came to a halt and her body once again went limp as Elrond examined her leg, noting that the entire bruise had vanished.

Thranduil noted too, pushing the healer from his way to find a better view. Thranduil's eyes widened as Elrond wiped clear the white ointment which had sat on her pale limb. He took a moment to move his hand to her skin and Elrond moved to stand against the cart, his arms resting on top of it. Thranduil looked back to him and saw the exhaustion in his stare.

"What did you do?" Thranduil asked him.

"I used as much energy as I could to heal her," Elrond spoke. "The bone has been set, but it is weak. The babe is safe and sound inside of her, however."

"Thank Valar," Thranduil sighed as he noticed that Ava was breathing shallowly and sleeping. "How long will it take for her to heal?"

"I cannot say," Elrond shrugged, closing his eyes for a second as the King managed to pull his cloak from his shoulders and drape it over Ava to keep her warm. "It might take a couple of weeks, but so long as she keeps herself resting then all shall be well."

"Good," Thranduil declared. "And...thank you..."

"She is my daughter," Elrond said. "I would do anything for her, but your sincerity does not fall on death ears."

Thranduil nodded, turning his stare back to Ava as he continued to stroke her skin softly, unable to take his eyes from her.

...

Legolas knew that the fight was over. No one moved anymore, nor did anyone speak. He knew that people had gone into mourning, and he could not blame them. He had looked to Tauriel as she sat with Kili's dead body. She held it with longing and sorrow. Legolas could not find the words to interrupt her. She had never belonged to him.

All of those years in Mirkwood had seen to that. She did not belong to him, nor did she want to. He had never explicitly asked her if she wished to be by his side. He did not know if she felt the same way as he did. Apparently she did not, and that hurt him more than he cared to admit.

He would not go back to Mirkwood. He could not go back knowing what waited there. It was not a fate he longed for. He only longed for his father to accept his decision. He pushed his way through the alliance of men who still stood, clinging to their loved ones in the city of Dale. He wandered towards the exit and towards the bottom where a small tent had been set up. Apparently his father had managed to find enough supplies for that.

The guard moved out of his way as he stormed towards the tent, pulling the flap open. He looked around the small space and noticed Ava's body in a small cot. She was lazily sat up, her back resting against his father's chest as he held her tenderly, his hands inside of hers and his cheek on the top of her head.

"Legolas," Thranduil spoke, looking up and staring to his son.

"Legolas, I am glad to see you safe," Ava managed to say.

The Prince of Mirkwood managed to nod once and wandered over to her, bending down to offer her his hand. She took hold of it, squeezing it tightly whilst Thranduil remained mute. Lord Elrond sat in the corner, his hand holding his forehead as he tried to stay awake but struggled. Healing Ava had almost drained him. It should have been an easy take, but he had also been fighting. His energy was completely gone and there was nothing he could about that now.

"As am I to see you," Legolas said. "I trust that you shall be healed and back on your feet soon? And that the babe is well?"

"All is fine," Ava managed to smile. "I broke a leg, but my Ada saw to heal it before any damage came. The babe is safe and sound too."

"Then we should thank the Valar for that," Legolas managed to smile.

"And Tauriel?" Ava dared to ask. "Where is she? Was she not with you?"

Legolas looked to the ground and Thranduil wondered if the worst had happened. He sincerely hoped not, but he could not keep his mind from thinking it. He detested Tauriel, but he knew that her demise would ruin Legolas. He had not thought of his son before when he had seen her. His rage knew no bounds at her words.

"She mourns the death of the dwarf," Legolas decided to say. "I...I left her to say her goodbyes."

"No," Ava spoke in a small voice. "Where is she? She should not be alone."

"Ava," Thranduil spoke his wife's name harshly. "You are in no fit state to go to her. She shall come here eventually. She is your friend and she will wish to know how you fare. Do not fret over her."

Ava pursed her lips and she shook her head, leaning back against Thranduil as the King nodded to his son. Legolas closed his eyes and shook his head, turning on his heel and leaving without another word. He would stay for the night and then go. He could not announce his leaving in front of everyone. He wanted to tell his father and that was all.

...

It was the middle of the night when Tauriel made her way back into Dale. Her cheeks were stained with tears and her hair askew around her body. She watched on as people embraced each other and others sobbed. Some were obviously full of relief, others with grief. There was nothing more anyone could do now.

Tauriel came to the King's small encampment and spotted Thranduil telling his guard what he wished for them to do. He ordered them to go and rest for the night and offer aid to anyone who demanded it by order of the Queen. Tauriel's ears lifted at that and she felt a sudden relief to know that Ava was alive.

The guard disbanded and Thranduil began to move toward the flap of the tent. He only stopped when he heard her footsteps. Turning his head over his shoulder, Thranduil noticed that Tauriel was stood right behind him. Her gaze wasn't challenging for a change. She looked heartbroken and Thranduil almost felt pity for her, but his pity outweighed his detest for what she had said to him previously.

"I wanted to see Ava." Tauriel said. "I had to know that she was alive."

"She is," Thranduil said; his voice ice cold. "She is resting."

"And the babe?"

"Also safe," Thranduil nodded sternly.

There was a silence between them and Thranduil could see the pain which lingered inside of Tauriel's eyes. He could almost feel it, but he said nothing on the matter. Did she truly love that dwarf? Was that what she had felt? He had questioned her love, but she had questioned his.

"I should never have said what I did," Tauriel shook her head. "I...Ava...she would have been horrified."

"And I was not?" Thranduil demanded from her, fully turning around to glare at her then. "I do not wish to hear anyone question my love for Ava. Do you think that I wanted to see her in pain and suffering? Is that what you think?"

"No, of course not-"

"-Then why did you say those words?" Thranduil snarled back. "Why did you speak your lies?"

"Because I was upset and angry," Tauriel hissed. "You would not accept my love for...for him..." she could not say his name. Her pain was still too raw. "We were both angry and we did not understand. But do you believe me to be true now? I will do anything for this pain to end. I will do anything for it to be taken away from me. Is that what love is? Because if it is then I do not want it."

Thranduil could say nothing as he saw Tauriel begin to cry once more. Her eyes widened as she watched Thranduil and wondered what he would say to her. He found that he could say nothing, for he knew that her love had been real.

"You have known this dwarf for months," Thranduil whispered. "You can understand why I questioned your love, but I have loved Ava for decades...and you know her...yet you questioned me."

Tauriel shifted her gaze down to her feet and Thranduil shook his head.

"Ava will want to know that you are safe," Thranduil spoke after realising that Tauriel had lost all forms of coherence. "You should speak with her."

"And then?" Tauriel wondered.

Thranduil's harsh stare met hers and he nodded once. "Then I do not know."

...

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone for reviewing. Bit of a depressing chapter, but I have decided to keep going with this story post The Hobbit!