Stretching on the bed, Eden opened her eyes to a sun-filled room. 'Sun filled....sun fillled...,' she thought warmly as she rolled over.
"SUN FILLED?!" she suddenly sat up. She remembered that her family was supposed to go visit their aunt who lived in southern Mirkwood. 'Surely, they would not have left without me,' she thought. Quickly stumbling out of bed (damn human genetics), she got dressed and ran to each room, finding them empty. 'That's alright,' she thought, 'They are probably downstairs at breakfast.'
Running downstairs, she ran into the dining room. "Hello?" she called.
The house was completely silent and empty. She saw a letter on the table and slowly approached it, fearing its contents.
Slowly sitting down and opening it, she read out loud
"Eden,
Since you have forgotten where your priorities lie, we have decided that it is only fair to leave you at home. Alna and the rest are with us. There is plenty of food in the cellar. Your father and I hope that you will learn your lesson so that next time, you will wake up when you are told to wake up."
The letter went on to chastise her, but she did not wish to read anymore and put the letter down. The house was silent, something she was not used to with her many siblings. Packing herself a lunch (which she found was harder than it looked and wondered how the servants did it so fast), she went into the stables and mounted Summo. She let her hair loose, something her father warned her against when she went riding, but she did not care. He was miles away and would never know.
Mirkwood was a dark place in general, but Eden knew where the most beautiful and best places were. She rode west to the river and set herself on the spot that seemed most appealing and ate lunch there. The wood was beautiful and leaves rained down gently onto the ground. The water in the river was a steady current and was clear blue, almost enchanting to watch.
'So peaceful,' she thought, ' so this is what it's like to be an only child, although...' But her thoughts were interrupted as a figure stepped in front of her.
"Great," she muttered, "This is exactly what I need right now." Stuffing the rest of her bread into her mouth, she looked up at the figure and her heart sank.
"What are you doing here?" Legolas asked.
"Oh," she said and then swallowed her bread, "I did not know that this part of the forest was forbidden, highness."
"Do you know what kind of danger you are in?" he said, glaring down at her. His icy blue eyes piercing through her. Ouch.
"Have you ever considered the fact that we are always facing danger?" she asked in a matter-of-fact way. "I mean, you could just as easily be shot by an arrow or stabbed if you were in your palace."
"Dark things lurk in this forest that are not afraid of coming into the light," his voice getting angrier and lower.
"Like you?" she looked up and took a bite of another piece of bread.
"Leave now," he warned.
"Mo," she said. Well she meant to say "no" but her mouth was full of bread. He kept looking down at her, unimpressed.
"Such human manners you have," he said.
"Such ORC-like manner YOU have........highness," she returned his glare.
"I am warning you one more time," he said, "leave."
"Well, alright I think I'll....no," she said and smiled. "You just want me to leave because you like this spot."
"Lady, I am telling you to get on your horse and ride away this instant," he said, through gritted teeth.
"Or what?" she stared up at him with a bored expression. But then she decided that she really should not have asked that when his arms grabbed her around the waist and seated her on Summo.
"That was pathetic," she glared, "You're just as bad as your brothers, probably worse. And to think, you, our future king..." She gave him one last glare and willed Summo to go, but he did not move. 'What the hell....,' she thought and she nudged him a bit. 'I must seem like such an idiot after that little speech.'
"Come on Summo," she said angrily, but then noticed that Legolas was holding the reins now and his look was deadly.
"We shall talk about this," he said in a tone that made Eden uneasy. It was that feeling when you know you have made someone really mad and that was not your intention.
"So NOW I have to stay," Eden rolls her eyes. "Such games you play, highness. I wonder if...Hey!!"
She did not have time to say her smart-ass comment as she was pulled down from her horse and this time, it actually hurt.
"There you go, doing it again," she said. 'So I have nothing to do with this whole day,' she thought, 'How about playing how much can I anger Legolas....'
He pushed her onto the same place that she sat before and he sat in front of her, bow and quiver on his back, a sword on his waist. He actually looked beautiful to her. His eyes fierce and his hair.....such hair....with all the oils in Mirkwood and Rivendell combined, one could never obtain that hair.
'I wonder what he-' she started, but she was interrupted by his voice. It was deep, husky, gentle, strong, cold, warm, sensual, and all those good things.
"Eden," his fingers snapped in front of her face, "Are you paying attention?"
"Yes," she lied.
"What did I just say?" he leaned back a bit.
"You said....umm....you said....that I should not be here?"she said.
"Yes that was already established," he said, bored, "I guess you were not, so I will repeat myself. I said that you are a rude little wench with a big mouth and rather rude demeanor for a lady."
"Oh, is that what you said?" she asked, sarcastically. "Because for a moment there you had me fooled that you had something important to say. Can I go now?"
"No," he said, calmly, "You also have no respect for authority, whether it be your own parents or not, and that you need proper discipline, something that your parents cannot seem to provide."
"Oh discpline, punishments, discipline," she said in a dreamy voice, " It's all the same to me. To think that those things could ever change me is ignorant indeed."
"You're family left you behind," he said, quietly. She wanted to yell at him, but she had no proof that he was mocking her. He was looking at her, a blank expression. And she could not, despite her best efforts, figure out what he was thinking.
"Yes," Eden replied quickly, "So?" She shifted uncomfortably. 'What the hell?' she thought, 'I have better things to do than be analyzed and studied like some animal. Who does he think he is anyway? So what if he is the Prince of Mirkwood? He could be the bloody Dark Lord for all I care, but he does NOT have the right to be doing this.'
But despite Eden's spiteful thinking, she said nothing and continued to avoid his eyes.
"Everyone in Mirkwood knows about it," Legolas said, in a calm manner, "Does it not embarrass you to be punished so?"
Eden's head shot up. "No," she said, almost too softly. Legolas leaned back, a smile playing on his face.
She then asked, "Everyone?"
"Everyone who I have encountered," he said, "You're the talk of the palace."
"Well I don't care," she said, sitting up, "And I think it's pathetic that Mirkwood has nothing else to talk about than my punishment."
"But even you have to admit it is embarrassing," he said, still smiling. "Perhaps not to you, but to your parents and family members. You are seen as a trouble maker now and your parents are thus blamed for raising you as such. Pity that you are selfish and do not care. "
'I want to cut that smile off his face ,' she thought angrily.
"You know nothing," she growled, "My parents are strict and they are not embarrassed of me."
"Come now, do you really think the only reason why they did not take you is because you did not wake up?" Legolas asked.
"I am not that bad!" she cried, "You do not even know me and anyway I do not see how this is any of your business." She was really getting sick of this. "I want to leave." And with that, she stood up. She glared down at him, feeling very tall and powerful, until he stood up and towered over her.
"We are not done," he said, suddenly angry, "There is still that matter of you being disrespectful to those who are above you in rank."
"But it is you who is-," but she was interrupted.
"Enough," he said, but not in an angry way, surprisingly, "I will accompany you home. It is not safe here." 'And yet we've been sitting here talking as if we were in Mirkwood palace.....,' thought Eden.
And so they rode back to the Goldenlight home in silence. When they got there, she dismounted Summo and turned to the Prince who had dismounted as well.
"Well, thank you for being my chaperone, Prince Legolas," said Eden, curtsying and then turned to walk back inside the house. She was at the door, when she noticed that he was still following her. She turned to face him. He walked up to her and stood very close to her. She tried stepping back, but was pressed against the door and he had moved with her.
He leaned close to her and asked ever so gently into her ear, "Will you be alright?" His warm breath blew into her ear and she shivered slightly.
'Wake up, idiot!!' her conscience screamed and so she did.
"Yes," she breathed, "thank you." His warm radiated to her body and she had to resist the urge to move her face so his lips that were near her ear would meet her lips. But it was a problem no longer when he moved away from her and without looking back, walked back to the stables.
Eden closed her eyes, unlocked the door, and ran inside.
"What just happened?" she said aloud, leaning against the closed door.
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A/N: They won't like each other at first but will then like each other later on ..etc. etc. blah blah
Also, it may be kind of boring at first but the action will be later on ;)