Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I do not own the wonderful world of Harry Potter or LOTR.


-Chapter 16-

Hermione walked into the room to find a normally furnished bedroom with a doorway that probably led to the wash area. There was a large bed in the center of the room on the opposite wall with a balcony off to the left. A wardrobe was on the right side of the wall with a lounge chair up against the foot of the bed. Hermione reluctantly sat on the bed and laid back. Despite the guilt feeling like a heavy rock in her stomach, it was nice to lay on something soft after travelling on the harsh road.

Before Hermione could fall asleep, a knock resounded on the door. Brows furrowed, she got up to see what her gracious host wanted now. Hermione opened the door only to frown even more. Before her stood an elleth.

"…Yes?" Hermione asked.

The elleth slightly bowed before responding, "You have been cordially invited to tonight's festivities of Mereth Nuin Gillath." (Feast of Starlight)

Hermione narrowed her eyes. Now, why in the world would Thranduil invite her, a possible fraud and criminal in his eyes, to this so called feast? She couldn't help but feel suspicious.

"Do I have a choice in the matter of attendance?" Hermione snorted.

The elleth just smiled curtly.

'Of course not…' Hermione thought bitterly before she said, "I did not exactly pack a dress with me…"

The elleth turned and motioned with her hands, calling someone forward. Two more elleths appeared in Hermione's doorway, one holding what she assumed was an appropriate gown for the occasion.

The first elleth turned back to Hermione, "King Thranduil has prepared one for you and we shall help you get ready."

Hermione immediately took one step back. "Er- That's quite alright. I think I can handle dressing myself."

"Nonsense. You shall be dining with the King and must be presentable. You may call me Vianola. The one holding the gown is Merialeth. And the one next to her is Eirina." Vianola introduced.

Vianola motion for Merialeth and Eirina to get to work and the two elleths immediately went through the doorway that led to the washroom. Hermione could hear water start to flow so she assumed they were getting the bath ready. She sighed in resignation and stepped aside for Vianola to come in. She was then led into the washroom and the tub was filled with steaming water as petals floated on top. Eirina was pouring what Hermione assumed was some sort of scented oil while Merialeth was hanging up the gown she brought.

"Do you need assistance getting undressed, Lady Hermione?" Vianola asked.

Hermione jumped and her face flushed. "No! I mean, no, I can do that myself."

As Hermione was about to get undressed, she noticed none of the three elleths left the room.

"I can wash myself!" Hermione flushed in embarrassment.

"Please, allow us to assist with the washing of your hair at least. It looks like your travels have caused it to tangle quite a bit." Merialeth said.

Hermione reached up for hair and felt how matted it was. She grimaced. Of course her unmanageable hair would travel with her from one world to the next, not to mention from one race to another as well.

"Well, can you at least turn around while I undress and get into the tub…?" Hermione grimaced.

Vianola chuckled. "I have never seen an elleth so modest about her body. But if it causes you discomfort, we shall leave the room while you get settled and you may call us when you are ready."

Hermione's shoulders sagged in relief. At least they gave her that. As the elleth left the room, Hermione quickly undressed and soaked in the hot bath water. She could not help the groan of contentment as the hot water helped relax her tense muscles. She could not help but compare Vianola's, Merialeth's, and Eirina's kind care versus Thranduil's cold demeanor. Sighing, Hermione called them back into the room to get it over with. She had never felt so pampered in her life. Vianola was able to detangle her lion's mane she called her hair while Merialeth and Eirina helped her wash. By the time she was done, she felt so content to the point of drowsiness. Hermione did not even notice Eirina fixing her hair in a half updo of braids and flowers. Vianola then helped her up while Merialeth donned the gown over Hermione's head and Eirina placed a pair of slippers for Hermione to step into.

"Done." Vianola smiled warmly.

Hermione drowsily blinked her eyes as Vianola led her to a mirror on the inside of the wardrobe. What she saw immediately jolted her awake. Her hair was clean of all the dirt and was done in intricate braids that held half her hair up while the rest fell in loose curls down her back. Eirina also managed to weave in beautiful white flowers in the braids, making it look like a white halo around her head. The gown was a beautiful, pale blue-silver with an off-the-shoulder neckline. The sleeves ended right at her wrists. The gown hugged her down the waist and fell effortlessly off her hips. Hermione had a do a double-take, thinking she was staring at someone new.

"The festivities shall start soon. Someone will come by to escort you to the dining hall." Vianola, Merialeth, and Eirina bowed before taking their leave.

Hermione then sat on the bed and waited. She did not have to wait long as another knock sounded on her door. Sighing, Hermione got up and walked over to open the door.

'Let's get this over with.' Hermione gritted her teeth.

Hermione opened the door and there stood Legolas with his hand raised, as if he was about to knock again.

'Of course it would be him.' Hermione glowered. 'Can't have the possible liar wandering around the corridors unwatched.'

Legolas, on the other hand stood stunned. He could not believe that this was the same person. The soft glow his kin naturally had in the night shone brighter now that Hermione had a chance to freshen up. She looked like a maiden that came down from the Valar as if Varda herself sent Hermione to grace their presence for the Feast of Starlight.

"Ahem." Hermione blushed under the intense staring.

Legolas flinched before quickly lowering his hand and bowing slightly. "I have come to escort you."

Hermione stared at Legolas, who was dressed in his formal royal garb as opposed to his guard uniform. It was a blue-silver tunic with dark leggings. The white embroidery on the tunic made it look like it was the milky way winding through his tunic. An intricate silver circlet adorned his head, showing his position as prince of the woodland kingdom. He looked very handsome with the moonlight shining behind him.

'Wait, handsome?! Hermione Granger, behave! He and his father are holding your friends captive currently! And you as well for that matter!' Hermione berated herself.

"Lead the way, I suppose." Hermione ducked her head for her embarrassing thoughts.

She looked up through her lashes and – 'Is that…? Are the tips of his ears… RED?'

Legolas held out his arm for Hermione to take. She hesitated before taking his arm. He then led her down the hall with the two guards in front of her door following behind.

"Guess it was too much to ask for the guards to go away." Hermione rolled her eyes.

"One can never be too careful." Legolas said as he led her around a corner.

"There is a difference between being careful and being paranoid." Hermione said. "Is all of this really necessary? We had already established that we meant no harm and that we were only passing through."

"The forest has not been safe for quite some time. Can you blame us for not trusting a group of travellers of mixed races?" Legolas raised a brow as he looked down at her.

Hermione frowned. She remembered all too well the paranoia she felt while on the run with Harry and Ron during the war. They could not trust anyone beside themselves. Everything was approached with wariness.

"But you know Gandalf. Is it really necessary to treat us so when he is travelling with us on his own volition?" Hermione asked.

Legolas sighed. "Though we may trust Mithrander, it is the dwarves that have yet to earn that."

"There lies the problem. They were never given the chance to earn that trust. You just pointed out that the forest is not so safe here in Mirkwood. Should that not be reason enough to gain more allies rather than enemies?" Hermione tried to reason.

"You should tell that to the dwarves then. They were not exactly receptive to our presence either." Legolas snorted.

Hermione grimaced, well aware of Thorin's hatred towards the race of elves. "Though that may be true, surely your father would want us out of his hair more than anyone. So why not just let us be on our merry way?"

"Once my father has decided on something, there is no dissuading him." Legolas sighed.

Hermione could see that this matter tired even Legolas out. The tension between Thorin and Thranduil was emotionally draining on all parties involved. Hermione heaved a great sigh. 'Why couldn't Thorin just suck up his bloody pride. We could have been to the mountain by now!'

"Are his ears deaf even to the voice of his son?" Hermione tried to use a different tactic to set her company free.

Legolas paused. "And what would you have me say?"

Hermione turned to face him. "I saw the look on your face when I mentioned that they just want to reclaim their home. I know that look. For I have seen it too many times in the mirror. You know of loss. If you were in their position, what would you have done?" Hermione whispered.

Legolas looked down into Hermione's eyes. Warm brown eyes with a fire in them that could overwhelm even the flames of Mordor. But behind that, he could see the pain and ache that she spoke of. Was she such a kindred soul?

"If this was another time, another place, perhaps I would have accompanied you with them. But that is not so. My father's words are law. And he does so for the safety of his people." Legolas muttered.

"Sometimes, what one believes is the right thing to do may not be so. Sometimes, the right thing to do goes against all that you believe." Hermione replied. "What happened that caused your father to be so cold towards the world?"

Legolas's eyes hardened. The memories flashed in his eyes and his body became rigid. Hermione wasn't sure what compelled her. Maybe it was due to her constantly mothering Harry and Ron. Maybe it was because she recognized the pain in Legolas's eyes. Or maybe it was because she could not just leave alone someone who seemed so lost and broken. But she reached her free hand up and cupped the side of Legolas's face. Their eyes connected and Legolas felt drawn to the compassion that seemed to exude from Hermione's expressive eyes. He had never seen an elf reveal so much emotion before so openly. For some unexplainable reason, he felt that she could be trusted with this one piece of his painful past.

"Many years ago, my mother was killed by a band of orcs that came into the forest. She was out visiting the kingdom as she always does. We thought it was safe. We thought she was safe. And we were shown how wrong we were that day. Ever since, we had closed off our kingdom and kept vigilant of any evil that was a threat." Legolas whispered, as if speaking of this memory would bring it back to life all over again.

Hermione frowned. "I am sorry for what happened to your mother. But that is precisely why we are on such a quest. Thorin lost everything in that siege by the dragon. Is it so wrong of him to want to take that back? Not just for him, but for his people. Your father is acting so for the well being of this kingdom. Thorin is dong the same for his. Do you not see that?"

Legolas remained still as Hermione's words sunk in. Why does this elleth have such a hold on him when they had only just met? For some reason, her reasoning seems to have more sway over him than anything else. There was something about her that drew him like a moth to a flame. Whether it was the fact that she may have experienced the same loss as him or her soft words he does not know. What he does know is that for whatever reason, he felt he could confide in her. That being in her arms would wash away all the pain. Shaking his head mentally, Legolas quickly pushed that feeling down.

"Whether I see that matters not. The king has spoken." Legolas said as his usually cold and distant demeanor came back into place.

Hermione sighed as they then continued walking and soon they came upon two great doors. He nodded to the guards and they turned to open the way for them. A large hall, not so different from the Great Hall of Hogwarts, filled with elves greeted Hermione. A large fire was roaring from a pit in the center of the room and music floated to her ears. As Legolas led her past all the tables, she couldn't help but shrink from all the stairs. They stopped at the head table where Thranduil sat. Legolas led her to the seat on the left before he sat on the right. Thranduil looked her up and down with such a patronizing gaze and Hermione couldn't help fire of indignation that rose.

Thranduil then stood up with a goblet in his hand. "Welcome, my kin. Though all light is sacred to the Eldar, tonight we celebrate the light of the stars! May Varda bless us as she looks down from her creations. Let us raise our glasses in her name and feast!"

The whole room cheered as goblets clinked. Thranduil sat back down and leaned back in his chair. Hermione stared at the food before her and her stomach growled in response.

"Eat, Lady Hermione. Though you may be held here until we verify your identity, I would not deprive you of food." Thranduil said.

"Though you would for my companions. Tell me, Thranduil. how can I bear to eat while Gandalf and the dwarves hunger tonight." Hermione glared.

Thranduil sneered. "They are given enough for rations."

Hermione snorted. "My thanks then for such a hospitable welcome."

Thranduil decided to ignore the sarcasm in Hermione's voice.

"And how long to intend to hold us here." Hermione glared.

"It will take two days time for our messengers to reach Lothlorien and two more days to come back." Thranduil drawled.

"Four days?! If you are not aware by now, we have somewhere we need to be! We cannot waste four days here while you go on a power trip due to your paranoia!" Hermione seethed. "If you cannot take my word for my identity, surely you trust Gandalf's words!"

Thranduil sent her a cold glance. "I had already offered them freedom in lieu of this method on one condition. Whether or not they agree to that is out of my hands. This is of their own choosing."

Hermione frowned. "Condition? What condition?"

"I offered them free passage through my kingdom on the promise that once they have reclaimed their home they are to return something of mine that they had taken." Thranduil said.

"They should not have been held captive in the first place! Do you do this to all travelers that pass by?" Hermione retorted.

"It is my authority to deal with whomever comes into my kingdom however I see fit." Thranduil frowned.

"Ugh, it's no wonder your kingdom is called Mirkwood! You are shrouded in fear and mistrust of anyone beyond your realm!" Hermione huffed.

"I would watch your tongue, if I were you." Thranduil said, eyes narrowed.

"Father, perhaps it would be best if I escort Lady Hermione back to her room. It seems she is tired from her journey. I believe all that time on the road has caused her to misspeak." Legolas interjected.

"Excuse me? I did not misspe-!" Hermione started to argue back before she was interrupted by the doors to the hall opening with a bang.

"My lord, King Thranduil!" A guard came rushing in.

"What is it?" Thranduil asked as he stood.

"The prisoners! They have escaped!" The guard bowed with a fist over his chest.

"WHAT?!" Thranduil shouted.

Hermione couldn't help the smirk that crept on her face.


A/N: Please review!

~lalune30