DISCLAIMER: I just own Sauraldawen Nightsun and a few more original characters. Anything else that refers to the world of J.R.R. Tolkien does *NOT* belong to me.

SUMMARY: The Wars are over. Aragorn is going to be crowned king of Gondor soon. The Fellowship are all in Gondor and are preparing for the event - and yet, the event is in danger of not happening…

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

Aragorn is referred to as Elessar in this story when he is addressed as the heir. I know many fanfics address him as Estel, but I prefer Elessar because he was called that in FOTR. (Seriously! Go see if you don't believe me!)

The elf aging process: 1 year (appearance) = 100 years (age). Legolas is about 2900 in the main part of the story, as is Sauraldawen (Saura for short).

Any elvish phrases will have translations at the bottom of each chapter.

Please forgive any inconsistencies with the books - I haven't read them, though I plan to do so over the summer!

This story won't get up to the post-War time period for a little bit. There's some background info which needs to be discussed…

On with the story!

~*~*~

To somebody who didn't know them, Legolas Greenleaf and Sauraldawen Nightsun could easily be mistaken as brother and sister. The two elves were together so often and acted so much alike that sometimes even their parents wondered if they were separated at birth. The only *major* difference in their appearances was that Saura had long brown hair and bright blue eyes (its probably worth mentioning that her mother was a native of Rivendell).

"Great shot, Legolas!"

The Prince of Mirkwood stepped back from his spot in front of the target and took a bow. For a 1675 year old elf, he was extremely talented with the longbow. "I'd like to see *you* do that."

Saura stood up, grabbed her bow and an arrow, and prepared to fire it. She took a few minutes to set up her plan of execution and let the string go.

Her friend burst out laughing when the arrow hit the target. "For the daughter of my father's Captain of the Guard, I would have thought that you would be better at that!"

She rolled her eyes. "I don't care. I can still whip you when it comes to horseback archery." She was about to fire again when she heard her name being called from the edge of the wood. "Sorry, Legolas. Mom wants me in for dinner. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Bright and early!" With that, the female elf picked up her things and ran off towards her house. Legolas headed off the other way.

~*~*~

The night was unusually quiet as the village lay in slumber. Saura couldn't sleep - the calls of the native night creatures would always lull her to sleep and yet she couldn't hear one sound…one sound at all. Sitting up in her bed, she gazed out of the window. She didn't like this - not one bit…

Getting out of her bed, she left her room and moved towards the main part of the house. Coming into the main room, she saw her father looking out of a window towards King Thranduil's home. "Ada? Mani naa lle umien?"

Her father turned and saw his only daughter awake. "Sauraldawen… there is no keeping secrets from you anymore. I have not heard Mirkwood this quiet since I was a young elf… and even then it wasn't this silent."

"Naa rashwe?"

"That is what worries me. As you know with our position in Mirkwood, our first duty is to protect the Royal Family. If something does happen tonight, I trust that you would know what to do?"

She nodded. "Prince Legolas is my best friend. I would give my life to protect him."

Her father smiled, proud that he had taught his daughter well. However, what neither of them realized was that her words would ring true before the next sun would rise.

~*~*~

Some time later, the two elves were sitting up listening to the silence. However, they instantly snapped to attention when a shriek pierced the night air. "Orcs," her father said. Both elves grabbed their weapons and put on some footwear. "Let's go!" The two took off out of their hut and ran towards the Royal Residence.

"Where's mother?"

"She's in Rivendell, remember? She's visiting her brother Elrond!"

"Right…"

The two quickly came upon their destination and went up into the house, already finding Thranduil and Legolas awake and ready for flight, if necessary. "Your Majesty," Saura's father said. "We need to get you and your son out of Mirkwood as soon as possible. A band of orcs have infiltrated the borders and are heading this way…"

The king nodded. "Let's go, then."

Nikerym Nightsun grabbed a torch and took the lead. The two Royal Elves were in the middle, and Sauraldawen was bringing up the rear. They fled the house and continued to flee towards the other edge of Mirkwood… and hopefully towards safety.

The girl could hear the creatures drawing nearer. "Ada," she cried out. "They're coming. They're coming too quickly!" Her father turned around… and got a great look of horror on his face as he saw an arrow fly out of the woods towards King Thranduil. However - if by fate or otherwise, Saura stepped over into its path. It lodged itself deep into her back.


It seemed like all of Mirkwood could hear the screams of Prince Legolas as he tried to get to his fallen friend. His father held him back though as the trio continued to move forward. This was especially hard on her father - he wanted badly to go back… save his daughter and *still* protect the Royal Family. However, as a product of many centuries of training, his first priority was the well being of Thranduil and Legolas. Those screams of his daughter's best friend would echo in his mind for the rest of his life, though… it wasn't something easily forgotten.

~*~*~

*Do you know the identities of each body you picked up from the raid, Ugzog?*

*Most of them,* the Orc said in a series of grunts. The raiders had picked out several elves from their latest raid on an elvish city and were planning on making them warriors for Mordor in order to try and please their master Saruman. *They're mostly villagers from the raid, but I've learnt that this beauty may be of some importance.* He moved over to a dead girl who appeared about 16.

*Oh?*

*From what I understand, her father was the leader of the King's Guard. He has supposedly taught her a lot about warfare… therefore making her a valuable resource. We just have to resurrect her.*

*That'll take awhile though, Ugzog.*

*It's a risk we'll have to take,* the Orc grunted as he picked up the body. *Go find the others. The sooner we can get started, the better.*

~*~*~

A man's voice chanting in a strange language brought the unconscious girl back to life. She sat up, rubbing her head.

"Where am I?" Looking around, she saw an older man in a white robe next to her.

"Who are you?" She paused for a minute.

"Who am I?"

"My dear," the man said with a smile. "Its not surprising that you don't remember who you are after the accident which you had. You are Sauraldawen Nightsun, a warrior for Mordor. You have been all your life."

"Okay… but who are you?"

"I am Saruman the White. Come," he said as he held out his hand. "We've got a lot to catch up on…"

~*~*~

Elf Phrase Translations:

Ada = Father

Mani naa lle umien? = What are you doing?

Naa rashwe? = Is there trouble?

Nikerym = Captain