The Elvenking cursed as he sped toward the pit his quarry had vanished into. He had seen the hunter's snare plainly, but apparently the elfmaid was not accustomed to such things. After all, it was fairly cunning. Dig a deep hole, cover it with forest bracken, and wait for a deer or some other game to stumble across. Only one who had seen such a thing before would know what they were looking at.

He slowed as he neared the rim, testing the ground carefully with his feet. Sometimes the edges grew weak after long exposure to the elements. He did not know how long this particular trap had been in place, and he did not wish to join the maid instead of helping her.

The blond elf knelt at the edge of the pit and peered inwards.

She was crouched against the dirt wall, her breath coming in short ragged gasps. It was not exertion that made her pant, the Elvenking realized with a start.

She was afraid.

" Avo 'osto," He said softly, soothingly.

Her head jerked up. She looked at him, and her jaw dropped in amazement. "Hir nin!" The tension that held her body rigid melted away, and she slowly stood, her gaze dropping to her feet. " Forgive me," she said softly, keeping her eyes downcast. " I mistook you for someone else."

Thranduil's eyes narrowed. There was only one elf he could think of that resembled him that closely…

" Here," he stretched his hand down to her.

Hesitantly, she reached upwards and grasped at the help he offered. He could feel her slim fingers tighten around his larger ones…and for a moment he only wished to squeeze back. To reassure her that he was nothing like the one who had frightened her so badly.

The fair king shook his head, driving away such thoughts as he pulled the elf maid up from the hole.

"Hannon le, hir nin," she said softly. Her eyes were still turned down towards the ground, apparently examining her feet with great interest. Thranduil felt the beginnings of a bitter smile twisting his lips. Perhaps the spiders in his court were spinning larger webs than he had thought. Had they ensnared this maiden? Had they filled her with their poisoned words?

"Come," he said abruptly. "I will escort you back to the city. It is not safe for you to wander the forest alone…" his voice faded softly as he glanced around him. Sadness overwhelmed him for a brief moment. "Not anymore," he murmured more to himself than to her.

To his surprise, the elf maiden tilted her head to the side and actually looked him in the eye. Her forehead furrowed in apparent confusion. "Why then, did your majesty wander so far on his own?"

For a moment, Thranduil was at a loss for an answer. Perhaps it was because the eyes he was looking into were an exceptionally beautiful shade of blue…no. It was merely because her question caught him off guard… "It has often been my custom to walk in my kingdom," he said, a hint of humor edging his tone. "And I can take care of myself, hiril nin."

"I did not mean to imply that you could not. I simply meant…I mean…should you wander willingly into a situation that you know is dangerous, for no cause, when so much depends upon you?" her gaze was guileless, the beautiful eyes wide and questioning.

Thranduil's eyebrows soared nearly to his hairline at her daring. There were members of his council who would not have presumed to ask questions like that! Where was the maiden who had cowered before him moments ago?

As though reading his mind, she paled. "I…I did not mean to offend you, sire…truly…"

" No," quickly he held up a hand, halting her words. "I am not offended. I am…intrigued." He was. Who was this? She did not walk with the bearing of an elf born any lower than a high lady of his very own court…yet he could not remember having ever seen her before in his long life. He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye as they walked back toward the city. Indeed, he believed that he would not have forgotten such loveliness very quickly.

Her question had not been meant to cast blame or guilt upon him in any way, he could see that. It had been pure inquisitiveness that had driven her to ask it. Sweet innocence…how long had it been since he had encountered anything like it? He snorted ever so softly. Certainly not recently. There was no such thing as 'innocence' in his council. No place for sweetness in his court.

The gloom beneath the trees deepened as the two walked in silence. Night was coming. Thranduil found himself unconsciously staring at the female beside him. She glowed in the dimness, the paleness of her skin emphasizing the shadows around her.

Flets began to appear in the trees around them, and Thranduil knew that soon they would be within sight of the palace itself. He felt slightly saddened. While he wished to know more of the elf maid…he had not been able to speak one word.

"I…please, sire, I would ask that you allow me to continue on alone."

The Elvenking was jolted from his own thoughts with a start. "I beg your pardon?"

The elf maid squirmed uncomfortably under the gaze of her king. "We are very close to my home, and I would wish to return there alone."

"As you wish, hiril nin, as long as I am granted one request as well."

A slight blush crept into her cheeks and she became interested in her toes once again. "You majesty knows he has only to ask, and if it is within my power, I will grant this request."

"Your name."

The blush deepened. "Elenlor, daughter of Elalkar."

Thranduil could not help but smile. How fitting. Elenlor…star of gold. "Hannon le, hiril Elenlor."

Elenlor dipped a small curtsey, then turned and all but sprinted away. The fair king watched her leave, a small smile lingering on his lips. A daughter of Elalkar. That would explain why he had not seen her before. Though the lord Elalkar was a firm supporter of Thranduil, he was a rather prudish and stiff elf, especially in regards to his children. His daughters did not attend balls until their father designated a specific time. His sons did not join the warriors until they had proved themselves to their sire.

Feeling curiously light and happy, Thranduil walked toward his home with a smile tugging at his mouth.

Perhaps he would have a talk with Elalkar…

0-0-0-0

"Edro," Thranduil said, placing his hand against the gates to the palace. Without a sound, the gate swung inwards.

"Your highness! Where have you been!"

At the sound of that voice, the Elvenking very nearly turned and fled back into the shadows of his kingdom. Instead, he forced a smile to curl the corners of his lips. "Ah. Halynder. How good to see you." .

The greeting did not put off the elf that hurried towards him. Dark hair swung around his shoulders as he shook his head in frustration. "Sire, how many times have I told you? You. Should. Not. Leave. The. Palace! Not without a guard! What if you had been attacked?"

The good mood that had followed him since his parting with the Lady Elenlor started to dissipate. "I was not." He moved past the agitated elf, hoping against all reason that his advisor would leave him be.

He should have known better.

"You could have been!" Halynder followed after his liege persistently. "The woods are crawling with spiders and Valar knows what else these days…"

Shutting out the voice of his counselor, the king walked on, his thoughts now turned to the interesting relationship he had with the slightly older elf now dogging his steps. For as long as they had been friends, Halynder had taken it upon himself to be the king's loyal protector, (or second naneth, as Thranduil often called him in varying tones of amusement or annoyance, depending on his mood), and was always present if the king should need him, without being overly obtrusive. However, as the darkness had increased, so had his advisor's propensity to be incredibly overbearing, especially where it concerned his liege's safety. Of course, this only served to make Thranduil find new and inventive ways to escape unnoticed and take some time to himself. Unfortunately, said moments of tranquility rarely made up for the lecture awaiting him on his return. He realized with a slight smirk that he actually had most of Halynder's scolding speech memorized, and so, refocusing on his counselor, he joined in the recitation.

"…injured, maimed or even torn limb from limb, so…" Here his friend stopped speaking and gave him such a fiercely shocked and disapproving look, that Thranduil could hardly finish the sentence for laughing. "…in the future I would appreciate it if you would have the good grace to be a little more careful and for Valar's sake, take a guard!" By now the king was barely choking out the words between chuckles, and his advisor was looking decidedly unamused.

"That is not funny, Sire. Not even a little bit" Halynder said coldly, his face completely stiff. "And further more…" But before he could continue, the Elvenking reached out and gripped his shoulder.

"I appreciate your concern, mellon nin. Truly I do" Thranduil struggled to keep a straight face, but his lips twitched as he continued. "But I have been a big elf for some time now, and," He paused as mirth threatened to overtake him again, "If you could have but seen your face!" The younger elf dissolved again into soft laughter, the clear tones ringing in the evening air. His friend heaved a sigh, and shook his head, even as a smile began to pull at his lips as well.

"There is no reasoning with you when you're like this, Sire, so I suppose I should just give up. After all, if you did happen to get eaten, it would make my life much simpler."

Thranduil wiped tears of merriment from his eyes and nodded. "Aye, that it would, my friend. I will keep that in mind next time I give you the slip. But for now, I am afraid I must be off. As you know, there is a feast planned for this evening, and I have much yet to do." Halynder cocked one eyebrow sardonically "Perhaps if you would not keep sneaking off, you would find your load a little lighter." His expression softened at the king's slightly chastened look. " But never fear, your Highness. I have seen to nearly all the preparations, and I believe that if you can manage to get yourself ready, all will be set."

Thranduil sighed, and a grateful smile spread across his face. "Hannon le, mellon nin. I do not know what I would do without you." He gave his advisor another brilliant grin, then turned and hurried into the palace. Halynder chuckled, and walked in more slowly, shaking his head again. 'Sometimes I truly wonder…'

0-0-0-0

Avo osto-do not fear

Hannon le, hir nin-Thank you, my lord.

Hiril nin-My lady

Mellon nin- My friend.

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