Laying Sevein gently on his bed, Legolas covered the girl, said a prayer, and stepped out of the room. He turned before closing the door to gaze at her. So strange to see a female human with so much gentle determination.

Legolas turned to a guard that was in the hall. "Should the lady awake, tend to her, and send for me. No one is to hear of this, especially not my father." The guard nodded.

Legolas left the castle, out through the Great Gates and above ground again, entering the quiet woods on the outskirts of his father's Elven city. He climbed a tree nimbly and silently and peeked above the canopy, facing west, where the sun was slowly dipping below the horizon. He imagined that he could see farther than even his exceptional elf-eyes could. He saw mountains and forests and people of human stature and small people, no larger than children, who lived under hills.

Turning to the quickly darkening eastern sky, he closed his eyes. More mountains, rivers, trees, and a slowly creeping black cloud. Hundreds and thousands of foul-smelling orcs swarmed in the mountains of the lands beyond Rohan. This vision unsettled him, and he turned back to the west. For some reason the black cloud had called to him, beckoning, and he knew his future lay to the East.

He began to meditate, silently reaching out with his mind, trying to find the peaceful places in the world. He envisioned his cousins in Rivendell...but no longer were the elves rejoicing...they were solemnly moving about the city...almost as if they were...preparing. Even the Ranger they called Strider, whom Legolas had known as Aragorn, a friend and compatriot, seemed more stolid than usual.

Legolas felt an overwhelming sense of loneliness, and then dread. It almost seemed that anywhere in all of Middle-Earth that he reached with his mind was tainted with this horrible, overbearing, immense blackness. It was oppressive, this dark power...crushing, even...and suddenly, the elf felt as though he was being suffocated. He tried to regulate his breathing, but it was to no avail. He tried to open his eyes, but they would not obey. He struggled to take in air through his nose, but it seemed that for every breath he took, the darkness pushed harder, collapsing his frail body under its weight.

"My prince?" The voice of Legolas' attendant was calling him, and it startled him out of his reverie. He collapsed against the branch of a tree, regaining his breath and waiting for the pinpricks of pain to fade from his eyes and head.

When he had recovered his voice, he said quietly, "Up here, Marthil."

"She is awake, m'lord."

Legolas sighed quietly, grateful for the unwitting assistance of Marthil. "And my father does not know of her presence?"

"No, sire."

"Thank you." The Elven guard turned back to the castle. After a moment, Legolas let himself down out of the tree and followed.

Sevein was brushing her long hair with a silver Elven brush when Legolas arrived. As he entered, she slammed the brush down on the night table.

"Where have you been? And where exactly am I?" she demanded, standing up to face him, but faltered and fell back into the chair. Her legs still would not work, and attempting to stand only brought pain enough to make her wince and bite back a cry.

Legolas rushed to Sevein's side to help her. "I have been out in the forest meditating, and you are in my room in the palace of Mirkwood," he said, but regretted it the minute the words had left his lips.

Her eyes widened. "You feign concern and then bring me back to your bed?!" she cried.

"No, m'lady, I-..."

She let out a fierce growl of frustration. "I thought Elves had more class, more...decency."

"Sevein, I brought you here because you were unconscious. I could not leave you alone in the forest with the Spiders nearby."

"Then why did you bring me here? To your room? And not some...more suitable accommodation?"

Legolas bowed his head, ashamed. "My father...would not have allowed it. He detests humans, and he does not know you are here."

Sevein hung her head. "Oh..."

"Do not concern yourself, Sevein. My father and I...disagree on a lot of things."

"I should not be here. I should not be another thing for you and your father to trouble about." She stood slowly and supported herself on the night table, but Legolas caught her arm.

"Sevein, no. First of all, you are not a thing. Second of all..." He caught himself. "You are too weak to go out alone, particularly at night, especially with the Spiders running freely through Mirkwood."

She sighed. "I have traveled from Rohan. I can journey alone."

"But you are wounded. And you are not going anywhere in particular. You said so yourself. Why not make Mirkwood your destination?" He almost caught himself, but it was too late. He sighed inwardly, disappointed in himself for not controlling his emotions.

She raised an eyebrow at him and was quiet for a long moment. "I am not welcome here."

He shook his head. He was already in this deep... "You are welcome here. I want you to stay."

She sighed softly. "I do not wish to be the cause of problems. I shall go."

"No, you will stay the night. I will not let you go into the woods injured."

She considered this for a moment. "Where shall I sleep?"

Legolas did not have a chance to answer her question. The door burst open, and Thranduil, Legolas' father, king of Mirkwood, charged into the room, yelling, "Firen!" He was followed by half a score of Elven soldiers.

"Ada, deri!" Legolas said, moving himself in front of Sevein. Startled, Sevein shrunk back into the chair, but did not cower. Elves though they were, their manners and hospitality left much to be desired.

Thranduil spoke in Sindarin, his native tongue. "Legolas! I demand to know why you have brought a mortal into my house!"

"She was lost, Ada. A maiden. She has been traveling alone and stepped into the river," Legolas replied in the Noble Speech.

"You rescued a human," Thranduil said with a disapproving sigh.

"She would have been killed," Legolas defended.

"Fion, when will you understand? They are selfish, greedy, and destructive. Almost as bad as dwarves," he added, with a noticeable growl in his throat.

Legolas' eyes took on a steely, threatening glare. "Not all of them. Father, you are wise, but you do not always see. She is staying here. At least until she is healed."

Thranduil looked into his son's eyes and muttered something under his breath. "Just until she is healed." The King and his guards left the two of them alone, closing the door behind them.

Legolas turned to look at Sevein, who had crossed her arms. "I don't know your language, but I believe that did not go well."