Disclaimer: I don't own Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien does!

Chapter 7: Smoke in the wind

Darkness surrounded her, and she felt like she was swimming in it, slowly reaching the surface and then sinking back, desperate to reach the surface again but lacking the conviction or energy that she could. Though Aranel was to stubborn to drown in this darkness and so she fought, until finally she summoned enough energy to crack open one eye and then the other, the dull light beyond seeming like the very sun was hanging right in front of her. She shut her eyes again, but this time the darkness was filled with little lights floating around because of the light she had just looked into. Aranel was completely conscious now, though her eyes were closed and she remained that way for some time trying to figure out what had happened to bring her into her current situation. She was in a very comfortable bed so that was good, she hadn't wound up in another cell she thought. She also remembered the tower she had got trapped in and wondered if she had indeed gone back up stairs and fallen asleep on the bed there, to await the morning. No she thought I was in the dinning hall, last night, I remember, and Legolas was mad with me…she lay there for a little longer but couldn't piece together what had happened in between being in the tower and arriving in the dinning hall. She had a horrible feeling that there wasn't anything to piece in there, that she had just gone from one to the other without actually physical doing anything but then she couldn't see how that was possible, she couldn't even do simple magic at the moment let alone something of that scale.

So Aranel gave up on that problem and decided to concentrate on her surroundings. She opened her eyes again, prepared for the light this time, and looked around herself. Everything was white or a silvery grey and there was a white curtain around her bed. It was drawn slightly and beyond she could see more beds. Must be some kind of hospital she mused to herself and tried to call out for someone who might know what was going on but found her throat to dry. She looked to her left and found a pitcher and glass next to her and with great effort managed to pour herself some water. She wondered on why she felt this weak but decided it was a problem for latter.

After mustering up enough energy to get up she sat on the edge of the bed and draw the curtain completely, looking around to see if any was there. The place was deserted. She slowly made her way up to a desk at the end of the room and looked around but found no one. Well that's nice of them. She thought, slightly hurt, I was obviously hurt or something and nobody even cares that I'm ok. And then a tiny, snide little voice popped up and whispered, Not even Legolas though she pretended she hadn't heard it and tried to ignore the sinking feeling she felt because of it, as consuming loneliness took hold of her.

She walked back to her bed and spotted a dressing gown over the chair next to it. She slipped into it, tying it tightly around her waste and headed for the door, determined to find out what was going on.

She wondered around for what felt like an age to her, she was tired, weak and hungry and in a foul mood, she definitely didn't feel like solving mysteries at the moment.

Aranel headed for the front of the palace, wondering if there was something going on outside. As she approached the entrance she heard what sounded like complete chaos outside. She stopped finally, at the door, and peered out. There were guards running around everywhere, servants mixed in between them, some running this way and that and others whispering urgently to one another, though the main group of elves were all at the gates, trying to keep something out. Aranel realised with shock that there were a mass of angry elves pressing themselves up against the fence. She watched, mesmerised by the scene before her. There was a sudden shout after a moment and she wondered if she had been spotted but then realised that it had been nothing to do with her, and that the crowd had all turned to look up at one of the many balconies. Aranel looked up also, there were elves hanging out of windows as well to try and see what was going, and it wasn't until after a few moments that she realised that everyone was watching one particular group. Standing, arms spread wide as if to embrace all that stood below, Thranduil waited for complete silence from the crowd. Legolas stood, supportive though silent as ever at his father's right shoulder and a group of advisers stood at his left. The crowd hushed and a silence fell.

"My people," Thranduil started, looking around at them all. "By now, as you have made clear to me, you have all become aware of what has come to pass over the past few day."

A murmur ran through the crowd as many of them nodded.

"Though I also know that imagination and misunderstanding has lead to many foul rumours running rife throughout this kingdom. It is these that I wish to clear up today."

Thranduil was silent for a moment, as if waiting to see if there would be any objection to this but none came, the crowd was as silent as ever in anticipation.

"As you have all evidently heard, there are indeed Fay staying here, within the palace." At this the crowd seemed to shimmer as everyone moved at once. There were cries of outrage and question as to what was happening, Elves shook fists and some spat on the ground in disgust at this announcement.

"Please," Thranduil called over them all and some how his voice carried over the noise, an unsettled silence falling once more. "Please, my people, know that I would not have agreed to such a thing without good reason and set precautions to protect you all from harm." Some people looked sheepish at their judgment of the king but most muttered under their breaths of their outrage. "The reasons for them being here are reasons of peace. Lord Illindor, one of the high lords of the Fay, has come to seek a long over due peace between our people." At this Illindor stepped forward, Aranel had not noticed him on the balcony before but now he came to stand next to Thranduil, the crowd below staring at him, some with hatred but most with a sudden fear. "He is a guest in my household until the time that our discussions have come to an end. Hopefully we will find a common ground on which to build a friendship." Thranduil said this to Illindor who nodded back. Aranel hadn't been aware of any talks of peace, indeed she had barely been aware that there was such hatred between the two races, though it did make sense, and she thought that settling whatever had come between the two was probably a very good idea. "Finally, I wish you all to know that precautions have been put into place," Illindor looked sharply at Thranduil now and Aranel took sudden interest in this, as far as she was aware there were no restrictions of any kind on them, "Lord Illindor and his fellows will not be allowed to perform any kind of magic towards any Elf, be it in defence or to help in any situation." Illindor didn't look to pleased, in fact he looked like he wanted to turn Thranduil into something unnatural but grudgingly nodded his consent. "They will keep any form of public magic to a minimum, and it will only be used in dire circumstances," again Illindor nodded and Aranel thought that was fair. "And any Fay residing in the palace will not be allowed outside the palace grounds." Thranduil finished. This got a cheer from the crowd, happy that they would be able to have very minimal contact with the Fay, but had a completely different reaction from Illindor and Aranel alike. The look on Illindor's face made it very clear that this had not been part of the deal and Aranel voiced what she thought of this injustice out loud.

"That's not fair! They have no right to keep us here as if we were prisoners, we have every right to come and go as we please!" It was pure luck that Aranel's out burst had not been heard, if any of the crowd had realised that one the Fay stood so close she may not have escaped with her life. She looked back up to find that Thranduil was going to have one last word, despite the fact that Illindor looked as if he was ready swallow the elf whole.

"So my people, I only ask that you trust me in this, rest assure that if any of these conditions are breached there will be severe consequences for all involved, but for now I only ask for the support that you have shown me throughout my many years here, that has helped me rule in a just and fair manner." The crowd cheered again and Thranduil bowed and waved to them before retreating back inside.

Aranel stood in shock. She couldn't believe that Thranduil had ordered such a thing as to keep them locked up, as if they were his hostages of war to do as he pleased and she decided, perhaps foolishly, to tell him so.

Aranel marched up the winding stairs to Thranduil office. The palace was still deserted as everyone was still filling in after the Kings announcement. As she approached the door she heard arguing and without even thinking she opened the door and waltzed right into the middle of it.

A brief silence fell as everyone registered this sudden intrusion but the room erupted again as some one muttered "Wonderful, another one has come to cause trouble."

"Another what?" Aranel snapped.

"You will not speak to my daughter in such a manner." Illindor said at the same time, rounding on one of the advisers.

"And what do you plan to do to him Illindor, turn him into a toad?" Thranduil picked up, obviously were he had left off.

"I'll turn the lot of you into something far less pleasant then toads if you don't reverse these 'precautions'." Illindor said threateningly.

"A threat oh mighty lord?" Thranduil questioned sarcastically. "And I thought you said you were 'a just and moral race who need no rules to keep them in check!' Threatening seems a little childish do you not think." Thranduil baited Illindor, looking around the room for the support of the other Elves, who smirked back at Illindor.

"Oh no Thranduil, that was no threat, believe me, there will be no doubt in your mind when I threaten you." Illindor almost hissed. The room seemed to grow darker at his words and the light from the various candles and fire flickered and almost died out as a chill settled in the Elves bones.

"What is this then, some trickery that is suppose to frighten us into submission? I would have thought that you would have seen the sense in my fathers discission, but clearly you are nothing more than an old man pulling a veil over peoples eyes with a hat full of magic tricks, you are nothing of the powerful and just ruler that my father is." Legolas said, stepping forward to confront Illindor.

"How dare you speak to him like that," Aranel snapped, "he is a great and just ruler, if anything your father is nothing but a fraud."

"Oh, I see, a girl who has lived her life as no better than some commoner knows what makes a great ruler?" Legolas snapped standing over Aranel.

"I would know more than anyone else here."

"Ha! And how might that be may I asked?'
"Because I have lived, Legolas, I know what it's like to work for what I earn and not have it handed to me on a silver platter like you. I know how these decisions affect the real people! And this lot, " Aranel continued before Legolas could cut across her. " this lot have there head jammed so far up your fathers arse I'm surprised they can even see where they are going anymore!"

Illindor smirked next her, "Very good point Aranel, is it hard to sit down sometimes Thranduil?" Illindor jeered.

"I see your daughter is just as childish as you are." Thranduil said glaring at the both of them.

"I wouldn't pay any attention to them father, especially not the girl, she is after all a mere bastard child of an man who rules nothing more than a mob of thieves and liars." Legolas said staring into Aranel's eyes before turning his back on them.

The room fell silent at this, Aranel opened and closed her mouth but no words came out, she had never imagined that Legolas could be so cruel. Everyone was looking at her now, and she could feel tears prick at her eyes. I can't let them see me cry! She thought desperately and managed to get out an "Excuse me" before she left the room, running down the hall, the sound of arguing even louder behind her than it had been before she had left.

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Aranel didn't bother going to dinner that night, she had decided she wouldn't bother going to anything to do with the elves again, she wanted nothing to do with them any more, and especially not Legolas, she felt so hurt and humiliated it was like he had actually given her a physical blow.

It was quiet late in the night before Aranel decided to make her way back to her chambers, she had made her way back to the tower after leaving Thranduil's study, to watch the distance lands that she wished so desperately to be in now, her initial fear of the tower had been over come by everything that had happened and she now almost wished the door was locked so she wouldn't have to return the turmoil that was her life.

But the door opened to her touch and she wondered the halls uncaringly until she reached her room, entering it and leaning heavily on the door, her eyes closed. The room was cold and dark, no one had light the fire and the window was open, she opened her eyes and watched the lite curtains dance in the night's breeze. The movement captivated her and she started making shapes with her imagination, people dancing, the billowing sail of a ship… so it was quite a shock when the recurring image of a man detached itself from the curtain and moved towards her.

Aranel shrieked slightly, and turned quickly for the door when the man spoke, "Don't run Aranel, I will not hurt you, I am a Fay like your self." And with that he set a warming blaze in the fireplace and lit the candles with the flick of his hand. "Beside, what is there for you to run to out there?"

Good point. She conceded but said nothing, turning to look at him in the light.

He was tall and quite thin, his skin was so pale it was almost translucent and his hair was jet black. He wore all black, one of the reasons Aranel had thought him a shadow in the first place, and looking at him now she still got a sense as if he wasn't quiet there, she almost thought that if the breeze blew to hard he might disappear like smoke in the wind. All and all though he was quiet handsome in a dark and mysterious sort of way and she thought she probably would have been quite attracted to him if it weren't for his eyes, which like his hair, were jet black, light seemed to be swallowed up in them which quiet unnerved her.

"Who…are you." She asked after a moment.

The man smiled showing startlingly white teeth and said, "You don't know, your father hasn't mentioned me?"

"Err…" Aranel hesitated, it was very possible her father had mentioned him; he had mentioned a lot of people whom she had no idea who they were. "I don't think so…"

"No he probably wouldn't have, he never liked me much." The man mused.

"How did you get in here?" Aranel queried, her room was many level up, and she couldn't remember opening the window where he could possibly have come in.

"The same way you managed to get from the tower to the dining hall the other night of course." He said, still smiling his teeth glinting in the light.

"How did you know?" Aranel asked immediately, no one had explained anything to her yet and she was eager to know what had happened.

"It's all over our realm my dear! That's why I'm here in fact!" he said brightly, coming closer to her.

Aranel threw all caution to the wind, despite this mans strange appearance she found herself growing towards him, he intrigued her and at the moment she was eager to gain any company she could. "What do you mean, people know about me!" she asked incredulously.

"People? No my dear, Fay know about you, you are all they talk about since the other night. Why didn't you know?"

"No, I mean, I was unconscious, well, I think, and then Thranduil has ordered us to stay within the palace grounds and I'm not suppose to use magic or something…" Aranel ranted, happy to have another Fay to talk all of this through with.

"Not allowed…that's outrageous! And confining you to the grounds, the man must be insane, a Fay needs Freedom! It is what we live for and he has just taken that away from you!"

"Yes, I know! It's horrible!" Aranel said happy that someone finally understood her.

"I can imagine so, and no one has bothered to explain what happened to you?" he asked disbelievingly.

"No, no one."

"Ah well, I will fill you in then since no one else is apparently going to bother." And with that he sat himself by the fire and indicated to the chair opposite him. "You see, what you did the other night was a result of the panic you felt, you imagined so precisely that you were in another place that it came to pass, you transported yourself there with your magic."

"But how? I was never taught-"

"That doesn't matter, when a Fay wants to be somewhere else they will be, see." And with that he was on the other side of the room. " By imagining that you are somewhere else and focusing your power on it, you are there." And he appeared, siting in the chair opposite her again.

"And that's how I got out, because I was feeling a strong emotion which enabled me to do it!" Aranel said, excited that finally someone was teaching her things that didn't involve stupid saying like 'clear your mind'.

" Exactly! You fainted afterwards because of the strain, your body has never been under that much pressure before, it is a hard thing to get use to and you went quite a distance for your first go."

Aranel nodded, she couldn't help but be proud of herself for achieving such a thing, even though it had been an accident.

"You will become a very powerful Fay, I would say my dear, for one so young and inexperienced to achieve such a thing." He said, as if he had read her mind.

Aranel smiled, she liked him more and more despite herself. "Why are you here anyway, I'm sure you didn't come to tell me that." She asked suddenly, realising she didn't actually know what he was doing in her room.

"Curiosity brought me here, a strong trait in all Fay as I'm sure you know. You see, with all this talk of a daughter, a Princess no less thought lost to us, one of amazing beauty and great power, I had to see for myself, and I must say, they are right on both accounts." He said, smiling smoothly and standing.

Aranel stood, blushing. "You came all the way here for that?" she asked not believing him, but flattered no less.

"Of course! And it was well worth the visit my dear," he said, taking her hand and kissing it gently, "But alas I must take my leave now, I sure you are tired after the stress of the day. Farewell, my dear."

And with that he headed for the window, leaping gracefully onto the window ledge and turning back to her. "And please, don't mention my little visit to your father, like I said, he does not like me much." He said with a dry smile and disappeared into the night, like smoke in the wind, leaving Aranel to wonder if she should trust this mysterious man that, she realised, she didn't even know his name.

Hey! Well, there's chapter 7, hope you like it. As always please please please read and review: )