The gentle breeze of the night toyed hollowly with her golden strands of hair, the forest now completely still and silent. She could still feel the heavy power floating in the air, like a ghostly fog that seemed to stretch into the night. It would be dawn soon. Her eyes remained closed, her cheek pressed against the fine silk of Elladan's tunic, feeling the warmth of his skin underneath it. She felt numb, her body gone limp in his arms as she took long deep breaths, drowning in the comforting melody of his beating heart.

She was lying next to him on the long chaise, both of his arms wrapped around her small frame, making her feel safe even when she felt so numb and detached from reality. No more tears ran down her cheeks, her body had seemed to shut down after every single drop of emotion it held was washed away in the crystals drops that slid down her chin. It was as if her own body had decided it did not want to feel any more pain, any more fear, any more anxiety, and the only way to achieve that was by not feeling anything at all.

Elladan's warm breath caressed the tip of her ear at the steady rise and fall of his chest, tracing a pattern for her own breathing. His hand rested over hers, fingers loosely lacing with hers while his thumb absently traced patterns on her skin. Her broken hand remained close to her chest, and she did not dare move it, trying hard to ignore the dull pounding pain at her wrist.

She opened her eyes to gaze around her, taking in the peaceful yet hollow aura that filled the balcony. Tadion and Elrohir remained sitting on the floor, conversing lowly in elvish. Her brother's eyes met hers for a moment, and he offered her a sad smile, clear blue eyes staring deeply into hers, concerned and at the same time apologetic. She tried to smile in return, if only to reassure him, but if she managed to smile she was sure the gesture must have looked pathetic.

Legolas remained lying casually next to Arahaelon on the other long chaise placed at the balcony, joining in the conversation every once in a while, none of them sounding very animated or chatty at the moment. The Crown Prince seemed to have fallen asleep. He was lying completely still next to his youngest brother, one arm loosely wrapped over his middle, eyes closed in his sleep. He looked exhausted.

She could still distantly hear the commotion in the hallway, the echo of rushing footsteps signaling guards moving to and from her bedchamber. The entire Palace was being searched at the moment. But how would they find the elf that had attacked her? No one knew how he looked like. No one had seen his face. There were thousands of blond elves in Mirkwood. It could have been anyone. And then, there was the point Arahaelon had touched on only moments ago: Why had the attacker not killed her? He had had the perfect chance to do so. And yet, here she was.

Her eyes travelled to the Crown Prince once more. A cold shudder traveled down her spine at the sole thought of what could have happened had Arahaelon not rushed into her room. He had been so quick, knowing exactly what to do, swiftly untangling her from the asphyxiating sheets and carrying her out of the room as the commotion began. She knew her words would never be able to express how thankful she was. And yet, part of her could not help but feel slightly guilty as she looked at his sleeping form. He looked so drained, so worn out and weary. She was still not sure how she felt about him. She had never really spoken to him and did not know him as a brother yet, but of one thing she was sure: he had her respect.

Her attention was driven away from her thoughts as she heard footsteps coming through the door. She turned her head in that direction, her siblings and Elrohir doing the same, only to find Lossenel's stunning figure walking gracefully in their direction. The Princess wore a calmed expression, although her usually sparkling ice green-blue eyes were now dulled. Her fine platinum hair fell loosely just below her waist, somehow looking so different now, freed of all the braids and jewels it usually carried.

"There is breakfast in the Family Wing." The Princess spoke as she stepped into the balcony, the blue velvet robe covering her nightgown dancing delicately around her as she moved. Her voice was quiet, almost comforting.

"Have they found anything?" Tadion inquired rapidly, lifting his clear blue eyes to look directly at his sister's face. The snowy Princess simply looked back at him, shaking her head slowly as a look of defeat took hold of Tadion's face.

"Come." Tadion's voice was merely a whisper as he slowly rose to his feet, looking at Elrohir and Legolas. "Let us go get some food. At least it gives us something to do." She could not tell if any of them was actually hungry, but they complied either way, silently rising to their feet.

"Do you want to go eat something?" She heard Elladan whisper in her ear, so low she knew only she had heard him. She shook her head slowly, not moving from her place in his arms and she felt him place a quick kiss on her temple before going silent again.

She focused her gaze on Tadion as he slowly walked past Lossenel and into the bedchamber, Elrohir following slowly behind him, both of them stopping at the open doorway to wait for Legolas to join them. Legolas had also risen from his comfortable spot, slowly rounding the chaise and leaning over the Crown Prince's sleeping form.

"Ar?" He said very softly as one of his hands carefully shook Arahaelon's shoulder, the latter blinking a few times before his sleepy eyes focused on Legolas' face. "There is food in the Family Wing. Do you want me to bring you some?"

The Crown Prince shook his head softly as a reply, lying his head back down as his eyes fell closed once more. Legolas, however, gently shook him awake before he could fall asleep again. Arahaelon's forest green eyes looked up at Legolas' face once more, looking slightly dazed and confused, not entirely awake yet.

"Come lie down on the bed." Legolas added quietly, carefully pulling Arahaelon to sit up before helping him up to his feet and slowly guiding him back inside the large bedchambers.

She followed them with her gaze, watching absently as Legolas gently helped his eldest brother down onto the large bed, the Crown Prince moving very slowly, as if the slightest of movements made the wound sting. Arahaelon seemed to be asleep the second his head touched the pillow and Legolas then made his way to where Tadion and Elrohir awaited by the doorway, the three of them silently exiting the room.

Her eyes then turned to look at Lossenel as she saw her kneel down in front of her. Her sister's eyes stared deeply into hers, green-blue irises looking sad, their pure color stained with worry. One of her delicate hands travelled to her arm comfortingly, her ice colored eyes flying to look at Elladan's before coming back to rest on hers.

"Come. Let us let him rest." Lossenel's voice was low and incredibly soothing, like a gentle lullaby, as she nodded her head in the Crown Prince's direction.

She nodded her head, slowly rising to her feet and feeling Elladan doing the same behind her. Lossenel gently wrapped an arm around her shoulders as she stood. She instinctively wrapped her own arm around Lossenel's waist, enjoying the soothing calm that the Princess' presence brought to her. The three of them walked out of the room in silence, Lessenel stopping to make sure that all the curtains were closed against the soon to rise sun before exiting the chambers.

"Arahaelon is sleeping inside." Lossenel informed two of the many guards populating the hallway, the two elves immediately nodding their heads in understanding and placing themselves at either side of the now closed door. By the look on their faces, she could tell that the guards did not intend for her situation to be repeated.

"Let us go see Ada. He is worried about you." The Princess' voice was soft as she slowly guided her down the hallway, Elladan to her other side.

She kept her eyes looking to the floor as they walked, intending not to meet anyone's eyes by accident. She could feel the guards eyes looking in her direction, scrutinizing her figure, and she could almost tell exactly what was going through their minds as they looked at her with those eyes filled with pity and worry.

They stopped as they reached the entrance of the Private Quarters of the Palace, and she felt Elladan taking her hand, briefly giving it a gentle squeeze.

"I will be at the Family Wing, if you need anything." He whispered to her as his deep liquid silver eyes stared into hers, filled with worry and sadness.

She simply nodded her head in response; her voice seemed to have disappeared hours ago. Elladan pulled her into a gentle embrace, placing a soft kiss on her forehead before letting go of her, his silver eyes now turning to Lossenel.

"Will you be all right, Lossie?" His voice was as tender as before, one of his hands lightly resting over the Princess' shoulder. Her sister nodded her head, not using words to reply.

"Thank you, Elladan." Lossenel said softly and Elladan nodded his head in response before turning around and heading in the direction of the Family Wing.

Just as they were about to reassume their march, the sound of rushed footsteps in their direction made them stop. Lossenel turning to look back. She imitated her sister, only to find Tadion rushing in their direction just as Elladan disappeared through the door that led to the Family Wing.

"You two are not going anywhere by yourselves." Tadion said as he reached their side, his usually carefree blue eyes now protective and sharp, his voice betraying his worry and fear.

"We are only going to Ada's study." Lossenel explained in a soft, slow voice, not showing any interest in starting an argument or protesting at Tadion's words. Her brother nodded his head, placing one had over the Princess' shoulder and giving it a gentle squeeze before he spoke again, his eyes darting from Lossenel's to hers.

"I am walking you there."

She had felt completely secure and peaceful in the Princess' company, but somehow having Tadion walking along with them made her feel even more tranquil. Guards seemed to be everywhere in the Palace, and not only in the Private Quarters. She could see maids, servants and other elves rushing through the corridors, quickly exchanging words between them. Apparently the news of her attack had travelled very quickly through the Palace. It seemed that an attempt against the life of a member of the royal family was not something to be taken lightly, she could see it in the shocked expression of the elves they passed as she tried to ignore the stares directed in her direction.

What really caught her attention was the amount of elves perched over the windows and balconies, their eyes fixed on the forest ahead, some of them pointing to the trees, exchanging words among them. It seemed that she and her siblings had not been the only ones to witness the gates sealing closed in the distance, and by the expression on the elves' faces she could tell that this was indeed a rare occurrence.

They reached the large pair of doors that led to the King's study sooner than she had expected, Tadion pushing them open without even bothering to knock. She could hear voices inside as Lossenel gently guided her into the elegant study. Three pairs of eyes immediately turned in their direction as they entered the room but she only had eyes for one.

The Elvenking crossed the room in long strides, reaching them just as she heard Tadion softly closing the large pairs of doors behind him. He was instantly in front of her, his hands pressed to the sides of her face, ice blue eyes studying her from head to toe, worry and fear clearly visible in the iced rage of his irises.

"Almarëa." He breathed out as his eyes carefully studied her, seeming to be analyzing her both physically and mentally.

She did not move as he studied her. She could not move. It felt as if her body remained numb, all of her energy vanished into nothingness, her limbs feeling heavy and distant. All she could do was stare into his infinite ice blue eyes, knowing very well that hers were void of emotion. But she did not care. She simply wanted his presence to feel safe at the moment.

Her father gently wrapped an arm over her shoulders, pulling her close to him as he led her further into the room, to the elegant couch placed close to the dancing fire. She could feel the intricate embroidery of his deep blue robes brushing against her cheek as she walked, the protective arm over her shoulders feeling incredibly comforting, even in her numbed state.

The other two elves in the room had remained perfectly still, and she immediately recognized them as the King's two closest advisors she had seen in the memories he had shown her: Doronor, with his long blond hair and deep blue eyes; and Cunir with dark hair and a shocked expression on his face. Both elves looked as if they too had just rushed out of bed, none of them wearing any braids on their hairs. She distantly noticed Tadion walking in the direction of the blond elf, the latter one opening his arms to receive the Prince in a fatherly fashion.

She was barely aware of when her father softly lowered her to sit on the comfortable couch, kneeling in front of her. She was even less aware of Lossenel carefully sitting next to her, her palm resting delicately on her back in a comforting gesture. One of the King's hands came to rest over hers on her knees, while the other softly brushed some stands of hair from her face, placing them carefully behind her ear.

His hand then travelled to her chin, lifting her head carefully as his eyes fell on the red fingermarks around her neck. She saw his eyes harden again, burning with the coldest rage she had ever seen as they fell on the angry red nail scratches just below her left ear. His hand slowly travelled to that spot, but the moment his tender fingers came in contact with her neck she flinched away, her body reacting out of pure reflexes. He removed his hand immediately, holding his palm up as his eyes lifted to meet hers.

She did not know why she had reacted that way, it was if her body was acting separately from her mind, flinching away from any touch that came near her neck, almost feeling as if she would be chocked again. She trusted him. She trusted him blindly. She knew that his tender would never hurt her. And yet she had flinched away from his touch. She had not done so with Elrohir while he had been examining her neck, then why now? Had she been so shocked at that moment that not even her body reacted against the younger twin's touch? Or had it been Elladan's soothing presence holding her safely in his arms what had allowed her to feel secure enough to be examined? She did not know.

Her father's eyes looked into hers, all the ire and burning hatred gone from his ice blue irises, which were now soft and warm, so pained and worried. She wished to tell him that she had not meant to flinch away, but she felt so distant from reality, so void of emotion. Instead she merely stared emptily into his infinitely expanding sad eyes as he lowered his hand to rest on top of hers with his other one.

"I am sorry." He whispered, his voice as tortured as his eyes but she did not answer, she could not find her voice inside of her. The only thing she managed to do was to curl her fingers around on of his hands, and found him tenderly clasping her hand between his, his eyes never leaving hers.

"Is there anything you need?" He stared at her as he spoke, his voice incredibly gentle and at the same time so pained. She slowly shook her head no, although she was not even sure if she moved her head at all.

"Do you want me to send for Elladan?" His eyes looked almost defeated as he spoke and she knew that if she said yes he would have Elladan brought here within a second, holding her in his loving strong arms once again. And yet she shook her head again, not wanting let him know just frail she felt at the moment.

The Elvenking looked at her for long moments, almost as if trying to figure what to do, but after a while he seemed to realize that he would not get any other reaction from her. She wished she could do something, say something, but her entire body and mind had shut down. Instead, he nodded his head before rising to his feet, giving her a pained smile before letting go of her hands. She saw him take hold of Lossenel's free hand, squeezing it gently before turning around and heading back to where Tadion and the advisors stood in silence, his ice blue eyes once again hard and filled with sheer rage.

"Ada." She heard Tadion saying softly, placing one hand on his father's arm.

"How are your brothers?"

"Arahaelon is sleeping, and Legolas is in the Family Wing with the twins."

The Elvenking nodded his head, walking towards the large oak desk in the room and leaning heavily on it as he lowered his head. She saw Tadion closely following behind, the two advisors doing the same.

The sun had already started to raise in the horizon, tainting the sky a deep violet in the distance. She leaned her head over her sister's delicate shoulder, feeling her small arms wrapping around her soothingly. She could feel Lossenel's delicate fingers softly stroking her long golden hair at her back, the touch resulting more comforting than she had ever imagined.

"What are you going to do?" Tadion's voice was soft as he spoke, and yet she could hear his anger and anxiety at the situation.

The King did not answer, not even lifting his head.

"All the entrances to the Palace have been closed and there are guards at every door, My Lord. No one has found anything so far." The blond elf, Doronor was the one to speak this time, his voice as soft as Tadion's although his eyes were worried, also angered at the situation. "I can have the warriors patrolling the perimeter of the gates within an hour if you wish."

Slowly the King looked up, waving the offer away with a graceful movement of his hand.

"How did that elf get past the guards and as far as into my daughter's bedchamber entirely unseen?" The King's voice was cold, filled with anger as he spoke, not really addressing anyone.

"It should not have been possible." Added Doronor, looking as worried as the King, his face firm. "There were guards at every entrance. There is no way someone could have sneaked inside the Palace without anybody noticing."

"Unless the elf was already inside." The dark haired advisor, Cunir, suddenly pointed, followed by a long heavy silence.

Out of the corner of her eyes she saw the King's and Doronor's eyes widen at the possibility, the anger doubling in their irises. She felt a cold shiver run down her spine as a new wave of fear started to take hold of her, slowly feeling her throat starting to constrict. She concentrated on her breathing, attempting to calm herself down and push back the memories that were threatening to resurface.

"Is there a way of knowing who has come inside the Palace today?" Tadion suggested, but the King quickly shook his head, letting out a long sigh.

"Tonight was winter's solstice. The entire realm was inside the Palace. What am I to do? Arrest every blond elf in Mirkwood? That elf either fled the Palace before anyone could catch him, or is still inside." The King answered quickly, for the first time turning to look at the other three elves.

"Either way he is trapped." Doronor added. "No one can enter or leave the realm now."

"It does not make sense." Cunir cut in. "Why did he not kill her the moment he got a hold of her? Perhaps that was not his intention."

"I do not know" The King's voice was cold as he spoke. "I do not know his intentions. For all I know it could have been anyone. No one enters and no one leaves the Palace until I say so. Cunir, I want a report from every single elf inside the Palace of where they were and who they saw in between midnight and now, with no exceptions."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

She did not turn to see the dark haired advisor leaving the study. She could almost feel the hand crushing her neck again, the memories quickly returning to her no matter how hard she tried to push them away. She was frightened, fear slowly consuming her as she tried to block away her mind from any thought. She had never felt anything like that before. She had been in many dangerous situations, but never had she felt so close to death as she had only moments ago. Never had she felt her strength slowly starting to abandon her, her mind finally realizing that she would die. Never had she felt this kind of fear before.

She could hear Doronor saying something else to the King, but her mind was no longer paying attention to the conversation. She took a deep shaky breath, trying to ease the knot that was forming at her throat as her fear returned to her, her body deciding to awaken once more from its numb state. She could feel Lossenel's delicate arms around her, trying to soothe her scared form, but her fear was only growing and growing, the memories she was trying to push back easily replaying in her mind again. She felt tears starting to blur her vision, even when she had thought that she was done with crying, that she had shed all of her tears in Elladan's arms.

"Ada"

She hardly recognized the pitiful croaked voice that escaped her lips. It sounded so frail and low, barely even audible, the pleaded need hearable in that single word surprising even her. The conversation came to a halt and she saw the King's head snapping in her direction.

He was instantly kneeling in front of her, all the ire and sternness gone from his eyes, the previous conversation suddenly forgotten as his hand quickly reached to her cheek. She was trembling slightly, all of her fear returning to her.

"What is it? Are you hurting?" He whispered quickly, his eyes seeming to studying her frantically.

Her breathing became hitched with hiccupped sobs as she felt the tears of shock and fear start to roll once again down her cheeks. Without her mind could even realize it, she leaned forward on the couch, throwing her arms around her father's neck and burying her head on his shoulder as Lossenel relinquished her hold on her. She immediately felt his arms around her back, trying to ease her trembling as she blinked through the tears.

"Shhh. You are fine. I have you." He whispered softly in a voice she knew the other elves in the room would not be able to hear, one of his hands rubbing her back soothingly.

She did not loosen her hold around his neck, as if frightened that if she let go of this protective figure her terrifying memories would return to her again. She did not say anything in return, she could not speak through her constricted throat. The King shifted her hold on her, sitting down on the couch and cradling her on his lap; although never once did she moved her hands from around his neck.

She had thought she was all right, had thought that her fear and shock had passed, that she had already cried everything she needed to cry in Elladan's arms. But she was not all right. She was far from all right. It was as if her body demanded for her to be held, for her to feel safe, her mind entering in panic and fear if her body did not feel protected. No matter how comforting and soothing her sister's embrace had been, her mind would not settle for that delicate touch, panic immediately rushing through her, the sensation of chocking returning to her neck.

"Find that elf." She heard the King's cold, irate voice hiss in the direction of Doronor, the tone an unquestionable command that signaled the end to the conversation. She heard the blue-eyed advisor immediately leaving the room, understanding an order when he heard one, no matter how impossible it seemed for said order to be followed.

She continued to hold tight onto her father, her body continuing to tremble as the tears flowed in streams down her cheeks. She was not crying hysterically, she was not even making sounds, her entire body a petrified mess of shock and panic.

"Elladan." She chocked out in the same pitiful attempt of speaking as before. "I want Elladan."

She felt her father nodding his head quickly, but before he could even move Lossenel had already jumped to her feet.

"I will go bring him." She said, not even waiting for an answer as she dashed out of the elegant room, Tadion following her immediately.

"It is all right. He will be here soon. You are fine." She heard the King whispering to her as he rubbed her trembling back, and she believed his words. She simply maintained her hold around his neck, her good hand gripping to the hem of his elegant formal robes.

It had not even been a minute since Lossenel had left the room, when there was a knock on the large wooden doors, the newcomer not waiting for an answer before quickly stepping into the room. She distantly noticed that it was a dark haired guard, his light footsteps muffled by the exquisite carpet that covered the study's floor.

"Your Majesty, a letter just arrived by carried pigeon" The elf spoke in a rush as he walked in their direction, the King's cold eyes burning through him. The elf held up one hand in the air, and she noticed that there was a neatly folded envelope held in it, its yellowish color reflecting oddly at the firelight. "It has Lord Elrond's seal on it."

Here is chapter 14! I hope you enjoy it! And please let me know what you think!

Thank you so much to those of you who reviewed my previous chapter: Elf sister, Martine9295, Jibril-Kadamon, CeffylGwyn, The Grimreaper PT, gossipghurl, Paperlanterns86, BigFanOfYou, AmazingWriter123, Mary Elrondile, kcelflover, xX-MissyMoo-Xx, booklover1598 and Danda225.

Love,

Elena