Dinondo awoke to the sound of fighting beneath her window. She had dreamt.dreamt of many things, but she remembered having her Prince back, laying beside her, stroking her hair like she was some sort of pet, murmuring words down her ears when she wished to sleep - meaningless, pointless words. She shivered. It wasn't a pleasant dream.

The sound of metal clashing below. Something was very, very wrong. She tumbled out of bed, and ran to her balcony. There were orcs-three of them, attacking one of her neighbours. The he-elf was winning, filigree blades flashing silver in the moonlight, but only just, and there were more orcs slipping behind him, trampling up the entrance to where his family was.

There were lights coming on through the forest now, the invaders carried torches, dipped in a barrel of pitch they had found at one of the houses. They were burning the homes as they went - already those on the borders were ablaze.

Dino felt sick with fear.soon the whole forest would be alight, and there were more goblins coming. Closer and closer to her house, what if they found her and killed her? There would be no escape from.imagine dying on the end of one of those cruel hooked knives, watching the blood...no!

Something had to be done. she found her boots and stuffed them on her feet. Leggings.need leggings to run in, get a message to the King quickly, get the Hall soldiers alerted, come and fight the intruders.

She cursed as she frantically tried to find her leggings, her bow and arrows, stumbling into things in the dark and all the time tears coursing down her cheeks, terrified of being found and killed.

^^^^^ 'I don't know why you wear those. It's so unbecoming to go about in boots and a tunic. You don't see the other she-elves in anything other than proper skirts, unless they have to ride.'

Dino sighed at how shallow this seemed, saying she'd wear skirts instead if it pleased him. Legolas smiled. Dresses were pretty on her. Dresses showed off his 'trophy' much better.

^^^^^ Skirts, you couldn't run in skirts, could you though? Speed was required, somebody who was quick had to raise the alarm before it was too late. A branch broke, seemingly outside her very front door.

Biting her lip, she buckled the quiver of blue-fletched arrows on her back. She took her bow in her hand. she had to get out of there before her home was ablaze also.

Unfortunately, the Prince of Mirkwood living in the same house as her, he insisted it was fit for royalty. Luckily, neither of them spent very much time there, but the house still looked pretty lived-in, making it more likely for the orcs to investigate it. But as she turned to dash to her doorway, she remembered she needed her elven-knives. You couldn't fight at close contact with a bow, their swords would cut it like matchwood and you'd be left holding a useless piece of tree. She groaned as she remembered.

^^^^^ 'As a parting-gift, please, love, for me,'

'But what if I ever need them?'

'Then I will be there to protect you, won't I?'

'Always?'

'Upon my return, always' he replied. Dino seriously doubted that. Honeyed words couldn't disguise the fact he'd rather be off, just about anywhere else in Middle-Earth except here with her. But she gave him her elven- blades anyway, trusting him.

'May they serve you well,' and he rode off, not looking back.

^^^^^ Dino swallowed back her fear, knowing she was going to be in real trouble if she had to fight at close quarters. There was no other weapon or blade in the house (who would invade Mirkwood, after all?).

She stepped silently down the stairs, pressed to the wall, an arrow on her bowstring. She paused, and there were a few seconds of horrible quiet, hearing nothing but her own ragged breath. She stepped forward to run.and stopped at the sight of a yellow flame, licking along the edge of the doorway. There was the sound of snarling from the other side, which died away.

Oh Valar, she couldn't get out of here! Trapped! She started to panic, the smell of smoke around her. She couldn't breathe, let alone think. She shouldn't be in this sort of mess! There was no doubt that Prince Legolas was one of the best archers and fighters in Mirkwood. And he'd have been right here beside her, he would've positively enjoyed making mincemeat out of whatever Orcs there were outside, and he'd have taken his horse and be at the Halls of Thranduil faster than she could blink.

If he'd cared enough to stay with her.

Dino forced herself back up the stairs, and tried to think of a way out.the door was on fire, the windows were probably in view .but the balcony had lots of branches and cover, if she was careful enough to climb out the edge and escape.

She ran to the balcony, the moonlight on it now with a red edge from the fire and the blood on the forest floor beneath. There was just one orc there, a slowish, old-looking one.

An elven-child, tears on her small face shining and blinding her, ran past, not seeing him, and the orc snarled viciously and shot out an arm.

Dino bit her lip and looked away as she saw the Orc's blade swing back and heard the child shriek wildly. The blood flowed in a river down the side of the tree as the shrieks were cut off abruptly.

Sweet Eru, she should have done something, should have stopped this, should have saved the child's life.but what against a foe who was now pausing to lick the blade of his sword clean? She turned her head back to the room and silently vomited. As the flames started to appear at the door, she stood up quickly and took aim with a blue-fletched arrow. Come on, you're an elf, shooting comes naturally and you can have that orc pinned to the tree trunk in half a second.but a memory came to her.

^^^^^^ 'How is it you shoot so well? I have never seen you miss your target, and nor has anybody I've ever asked. Would you show me how your skill is so great?' asked Dino wonderingly as the Prince loosed off yet another arrow.

'Of course,' he replied, 'Gladly'. 'Gladly' because he genuinely wanted someone else to be able to shoot as well as him, or 'gladly' because he was so very flattered?

He'd stood behind her, showing the correct way to stand, the right way to aim, the perfect way to loose off arrows at speed, the correct way to nuzzle her neck, and the right way to forget about the archery and begin kissing her instead.

^^^^^^ 'Archery' lessons had happened more frequently than Dino would have liked. Maybe if he'd actually taught me something I wouldn't be in this trouble. I didn't think I would be, and neither did he.

But I am.

She shut one eye, lined the arrow tip up with the orc's head, and released the string. It twanged emptily and in a split-second, she knew it wasn't going to fly straight.

She watched despairingly as the arrow scooted over the top of the beast's head, causing him to whip suddenly about at look up to see her, silhouetted against the orange glow at her back.