Elerrina remained sitting quietly, the faint echo of the distancing footsteps still ringing in her ears. The royal image of the Elvenking rushing down the hallway behind the strange blond elf remained fresh in her head, the cold powerful look in his ice blue eyes still engraved in her mind. Outside, the golden daylight washed over the white snow in the gardens, and she could catch the sounds of the awakening elves as they started their day. The trees had once again gone silent, swaying delicately at the soothing morning breeze, their melodic serenade under the black night sky only a memory for those who had witnessed it.
She rose from the chaise on which she had been sitting letting out a silent sigh. The day was already starting and that meant she would no longer be the only once awake in the palace. She made her way through the long corridors, not really remembering the way back, but not really caring where she ended up. She was actually surprised when she found herself walking once again down the familiar long corridor that led to her chambers.
The corridor was empty, the five elegant doors shut close and the only sound that reached her ears was the light echo of her own silent footsteps. She let her eyes carefully study each one of the doors, wondering over the detailed patterns that were carved in them, each one seeming to be more beautiful than the one before. She did not know which door led to which of her sibling's chambers and for a moment she wished she did.
Elerrina paused for a second as she reached the delicately carved door that led to her own chambers. Her hand lingered above the golden doorknob for a moment, but she let it fall to her side once more, not really feeling like going inside. Instead, she made her way to the balcony at the end of the corridor, leaning her weight on the frail railing as she absently overlooked the forest of Mirkwood.
The deaf sound of approaching footsteps reached her ears. Immediately her lips curved up into a smile as she recognized who it was without needing to turn around to look. She felt a pair of strong arms circling around her waist from behind, gently pulling her close a tall body. A soft chuckle escaped her lips and she let herself lean against Elladan's chest as he pressed a light kiss on her cheek.
"Good morning" His musical voice whispered softly in her left ear.
She turned around in his arms and pressed her lips to his. Endless silver eyes stared deeply into hers, and she let herself drown in them, unable to look away even if she had wanted to. She could tell that he knew she had not slept, but he did not say anything as she entwined her fingers with his, his silver eyes never leaving hers.
"Where is everyone?" She asked as her eyes signaled to the closed doors aligned in the elegant corridor. He raised a perfect eyebrow at her question and his lips curved into one of his characteristic playful smiles.
"I thought my presence was enough for you." He said teasingly as his eyes narrowed slightly, silver irises sparkling with mischief. His arms wrapped behind her back, pulling her closer to him as he spoke.
"Dan!" She could not contain a chuckle from escaping her lips as she slapped him playfully in the shoulder. His musical laugh floated in the air as a response, the sound the sweetest she had ever heard.
"Everyone is downstairs having breakfast." He explained with a smile "Come, let us go join them before they eat all the good pastries" He turned to leave, his hand still holding to hers.
"Dan" Her voice was low as she pulled lightly at his hand, stopping him in his march. He turned instantly to face her, silver eyes studying her attentively, the playful sparkle quickly replaced by concern as he caught the change in her tone.
"What is it?" his voice was barely audible as he closed the distance between them. She felt one of his hands gently travel to rest on her cheek, his alert eyes searching into hers. She stared into his piercing silver eyes for a moment before she was able to speak again.
"I heard the wind this morning" Her voice was so low she was not sure it was even making a sound, but the way in which his silver eyes seemed to penetrate her told her that he was listening. "I heard it"
For a moment she only started into his eyes, green and silver piercing into each other, communicating him exactly what she meant by 'it'. She know she should not mention Vilya out loud, not even to Elladan who knew of its existence, especially when being outside of Imladris. The faint echo of the ring's whispers was still fresh in her mind. It had sounded so distant, so feeble, but it had been there.
She saw new flash of worry cloud Elladan's silver eyes, mixing with puzzlement and alarm as he stared at her, completely understanding her message. She knew there was nothing to be done on the matter. Neither of them could do anything about it, and nothing had really happened, but still she felt she needed to let him know.
"It should not have been possible"
He had drawn closer to her now, his voice nearly inaudible as his endless silver eyes stared worriedly into hers, slightly alarmed. Not knowing what to answer, she merely reached her hand to rest lightly over his on her cheek. She simply looked into his eyes, all of her worry, anxiety and puzzlement visible in her green eyes.
"Rina, do not worry about it for now." He added almost instantly at her worried expression, the look in his piercing silver eyes softening although she could still see a faint of caution and concern gleaming in their depths. Elladan then leaned in and placed a light kiss on her lips momentarily making her forget everything else. He took her hand in his once more, giving it a gentle squeeze as he started to lead her down the corridor.
She followed Elladan through the long hallways of the palace. He moved through the labyrinth of pointed arches and open balconies with incredible ease, knowing exactly where everything was located. To any observer, the palace could have been his home and not hers.
It did not take them long to reach a large pair of carefully crafted wooden doors. Her first impression was surprise at the lack of noise. She did not know exactly what she had been expecting, but the clear absence of the usual low chorus of voices immersed in conversation that filled the dinning room of Imladris was not present here. Instead, she could clearly understand four familiar voices, their tones light and friendly, almost like and understandable melody.
Elladan opened one of the large doors and let her go in first before following close behind. Inside, the room was large. Thin columns stretched from the ground, branching out in the shapes of trees and leaves to trace the patterns of a golden forest canopy forming the ceiling. She was almost surprised to see only one large table placed in the center of the room, a wide variation of golden vases and plates containing all sorts of fruits, cheeses, breads and pastries resting over the delicate ivory tablecloth.
She could see Elrohir, Legolas, Tadion and Lossenel already sitting at the table, the four of them looking up from their casual conversation as they heard them enter the piece. The elegant and private atmosphere of the room told her that this was the dinning room where the royal family had their meals, and not the main dinning room of the palace.
"Good morning" Elrohir and Legolas said animatedly in unison as Elladan led her towards the table. Her eyes fell on Lossenel, only to find the Princess' sparkling ice green-blue eyes fixed on hers, a perfect small smile adorning her flawless face. Her expression was unreadable, her ice colored eyes impenetrable, but her smile was genuine, even if it was small.
Elladan pulled out the chair to the right of Elrohir for her to sit, directly across from Lossenel. However, before she could even sit on the chair, Tadion had risen to his feet from his seat next to Lossenel.
"Almarëa, please take my seat. Lossie and I would love to sit next to you this morning and get to know you better." He said in a polite, gentle tone, the one belonging to the Prince of Morkwood he was. And yet, the daring gleam in his clear blue eyes as he threw a glance at Elladan made her completely understand the intention behind his actions.
Elerrina could not help but smile, trying her best to suppress her laughter as she took the offered seat. Tadion instantly moved to take the vacant spot to her left side, leaving her sandwiched in between him and Lossenel. She could see Elrohir biting on a pastry in attempt to not laugh. Legolas' bell like chuckles freely filled the room as Elladan silently took the seat next to his twin shaking his head lightly, silver eyes narrowed at Tadion and a grin of defeat flashing in his handsome face. One of the two maids that had been silently standing at the side of the large doors quickly moved through the room, moving Tadion's plate and glass to his new seat and placing clean ones for her to use.
"Sorry about that" Lossenel's soft musical voice whispered lowly to her, in a volume she knew only she was able to hear. Her eyes found hers again, ice green-blue irises filled with light, so stunning and dazzling. "Would you like me to trade places with Elladan?"
"It is alright." She answered with a smile, unable to take her eyes from the gorgeous Princess that was also her older sister.
Platinum hair cascaded down her back in collection of neat braids, adorned with tiny pearls that hung from delicate silver threads tangled in her braids. The golden topaz color of her dress complimented beautifully her pale skin, making her seem to glow with light. Everything about her seemed so delicate and royal Elerrina had a hard time believing she was related to her.
Lossenel smiled at her in return, nodding her head lightly before centering her attention on her meal once again. She tried to think of something else to say to her, wanting nothing else than to keep talking with the stunning Lady, but before she could find anything to say she felt Tadion place his hand lightly on her arm, making her turn to look in his direction.
"Did you sleep well?" His clear blue eyes were so peaceful and welcoming, so untroubled and open, his voice coming out so confident and casual, making her doubt he would ever have trouble in starting or keeping up a conversation.
"Yes, I did" She lied easily, lost in the clear blue oceans of his welcoming eyes. Out of the corner of her eyes she could see Elladan's silver eyes turning in her direction every two seconds as he joined in Legolas and Elrohir's conversation.
"You are very good at lying." He said in response, his lips curving up into a grin as his eyes narrowed slightly, sparkling with victory and mockery. "I would have completely believed you had I not heard you leave your chamber some hours before dawn."
She raised her eyebrows at his words, feeling her eyes widening a little and being unable to contain a surprised chuckle from escaping her lips. He raised an eyebrow in return, blue eyes staring at hers expectantly.
"Fine." She admitted "I could not sleep, so I went for a walk."
"How do I know you are not lying again?" He asked playfully, his eyes openly mocking her, as if he had known her his entire life.
"You do not" She shrugged, deciding that if he was going to tease her, she was going to follow his game. She heard Lossenel's musical laugh from her right, the sound like tiny silver bells floating on the air. Tadion leaned forward on the table, throwing a fake glare at Lossenel before sitting back straight again, the wide smile never leaving his lips.
"Where is Arahaelon?" Elrohir's voice suddenly asked, his kind silver eyes looking questioningly at Tadion. For the first time she noticed the absence of the Crown Prince in the room, her eyes turning to the large pairs of doors, almost expecting him to suddenly appear through one of them.
"I have not seen him." Came Tadion's reply, as peaceful and casual as ever. "He must be with my Adar in a meeting. He was probably woken up very early."
"Is he usually awakened that early?" She inquired, trying to sound as casual as she could, not wanting to give away her curiosity on the topic or any clue as to her encounter with the Elvenking earlier that morning.
"Sometimes." Legolas was the one to answer, infinite blue eyes looking directly into hers. "When there is an important meeting or council, he must attend along with Ada. Ada, on the other hand must be very used to being sought in the middle of the night, although he is never wakened unless the matter is of significant importance."
"I see." She said casually, trying to sound uninterested on the matter and Legolas smiled softly at her. She let her eyes wonder around the room, and for the first time she noticed the vacant throne like chair at the head of the table, the golden plate and crystal cup placed in front of it unused. The King had not yet come to breakfast.
The image of the Elvenking as his ice blue eyes pierced the ones of the strange blond elf flashed through her mind once more. She could clearly imagine no elf wanted to wake up his King in the middle of the night, especially bringing bad news or unexpected problems, and she once again wondered as to what had been the reason for the King to be aroused from his bed this night.
Elladan's eyes flew to her once more, swallowing her in their endless pools of liquid silver, and she knew he knew that something troubled her. She let herself stare into his eyes for a moment, silently reassuring him before turning again to meet Legolas' kind blue ones.
"How was your walk this morning, Almarëa?" She turned her head at the sound Lossenel's gentle voice, only to find herself once again pierced by those stunning ice green-blue eyes.
"It was very peaceful." She said, glad to finally have something to tell Lossenel. "I simply sat and listened to the trees as they sung. I did not know trees could sing like that. It was a shame that they fell silent again once dawn came."
She saw Lossenel's eyes looking at her carefully, almost as if she had not understood anything of what she had just said. Elerrina replayed her words in her head, trying to find the piece that the Princess might not have understood, but could not find anything wrong with their phrasing.
"Oh, yes. It does sound beautiful when they whisper to each other." The beautiful Lady asked with a wide smile, letting out a single bell like chuckle. "You confused me for a moment when you called it 'singing', although I must confess I truly do not know what you mean by them falling silent at dawn."
"I meant that they fell silent when dawn came. What do you mean when I called it 'singing'? They had been singing, not whispering. It was a chorus, all of them singing the same song. And then at dawn their singing ended. Did you not hear them last night?"
She turned her head in Tadion's direction for a second, only to be once again met by a pair of confused clear blue eyes, staring at her as puzzled and lost as the Princess of Mirkwood. Legolas' eyes held the same expression as that of his older brother's and Lossenel's ice green-blue eyes remained fixed on hers, studying her carefully, their expression unreadable although a faint gleam of puzzlement sparkled in their depths. Suddenly she felt herself freeze with the realization that the Princess of Mirkwood truly had no idea as to what she was referring to.
"I heard them whispering yes" The Princess said almost hesitantly. "Just as they do every night and day. But I do not recall ever hearing something different at dawn. Perhaps the sounds of the day merged with their whispers, making you believed they had fallen silent."
Lossenel smiled at her again, clearly searching for a way to make sense of what she was currently telling her. Elerrina felt her heart paralyze for a split second, but she did not show her sudden surprise as she finally realized that none of her siblings had heard the soothing chorus of the singing trees.
"Yes, it might have been that." She said in reply, choosing to let go of the subject.
Could she really have simply confused the whispers and misinterpret them for a song? She wanted to believe that was true, but the enchanting unintelligible lullaby of the trees as they swayed lightly to the night breeze was still fresh in her mind. It had not been faint or distant. On the contrary, it had sounded so powerful, soft and soothing yes, but perfectly clear, not a single note seeming to falter.
She could hear a new conversation starting in between Legolas and Lossenel, but she was no longer paying attention. Elladan's eyes flew to hers, trapping her in their intense silver stare, making her unable to look away. He knew she had heard something that her siblings had not. She could see it clearly in his piercing silver eyes.
She did not know what to believe, did not know if perhaps the singing had in fact been only a fragment of her imagination or a consequence of her overly tired head after a sleepless night. Suddenly the Elvenking's words from hours ago played again inside her head: The chant beautifully, do they not? A cold shiver ran down her spine at the thought. The King of Mirkwood could hear the song…and he had known she could also hear it.
Here is chapter 3! I apologize for the long time it took me to update. Next chapter will be coming sooner that this one, that is for sure! Please let me know what you think of it! I really love all of your comments, they truly mean a lot to me!
Again, thank you immensely to all those of you who reviewed the last chapter: CeffylGwyn, Coco99, nethfaer, booklover1598, Martine9295, jibril, Wtiger5, ILoveEomer 3, Elf sister, dandapanda, AmazingWriter123, xX-MissyMoo-Xx, and Jasperslittlesister.
Love,
Elena