The empty hallway stretch endlessly in front of her, as if every step that she took only made it stretch even more. The thing frail columns that rose high above her head felt taller now, imposing, and for the first time they looked like cold hard stone, all the beautiful carvings forgotten to her eyes.

An unsettling silence hung around them as they walked, its cold ghostly fingers grasping her skin as the air seemed to whisper in a mocking voice, laughing at their ignorance. How many other secrets had been shared at the witness of these same cold stone walls? What many other things were being planned behind their backs, without anyone knowing? She did not know whether or not to believe the words the advisor had just spoken to them. They sounded like the truth, but for all they knew it could have been a lie.

Elladan and Legolas walked close to her, at either side of her, their silence letting her know that the same questions ran through their minds. It was as if none of them dared to speak a single word. Even the walls seemed to have ears to listen to their conversations. And what seemed most unsettling of it all was the fact that Doronor had mentioned that whoever was behind all of this was inside the palace. Suddenly it felt as if every passing maid, every guard bowing respectfully as they walked, every elf they encountered were watching her, waiting to charge at her.

And yet, the words that seemed to consume her mind, to make her brain and heart compress until she could not think straight, making her feel distant from reality, were the last words Doronor had said to her. She could still the low hissed whisper inside her head: "You should have died the day your mother died. You should have never returned. You nearly killed your brother!" The poisonous words felt colder than the stone columns, like a knife stabbing into her chest and curling around her throat making it hard to breath.

She felt the wetness in her eyes starting to slowly roll down her cheeks, but she did not put any care to it. Instead, she kept her eyes focused on the front, her face as hard and composed as she could, although she very well knew that neither Elladan nor her brother were oblivious to her silent tears. If they noticed them, they did not mention it, did not even look in her direction, and she was overly glad for it. She could not place the emotions that wracked her to tears. Hurt at the harsh words and obvious rejection? Anger? Frustration? The feeling of stupidity and idiocy at hearing so little she really knew about everything? She felt Elladan taking her had as they walked, squeezing her tightly, and she grabbed to his fingers, eager to have something to hold on to.

To her right, Legolas walked lost in his own thoughts. His infinite blue eyes were suddenly hard, cold, their expression one she had never before seen in his usually open and kind irises. By the sole look in his eyes she could tell that Doronor's words had been much of a surprise to him as they were to her.

They reached the door to her chambers before she even had time to notice, the guars that filled the corridor seeming entirely irrelevant and unimportant to her, even though they did help a little in making her feel slightly safe. To her side, Elladan gently opened the beautifully carved door, holding it open for her to enter first.

"I will give you two a moment." Legolas' voice sounded somewhat empty, and she could tell that his mind was not entirely in his words. "I am going to check on Ar."

Elladan nodded his head silently and Legolas' eyes met hers before he turned around. As his deep blue eyes stared into hers, all the hardness and coldness vanished from their infinite depths, looking apologetic. He did not say anything else, and absently turned to walk in the direction of the Crown Prince's bedchamber. She did not stay to watch him as he walked, turning instead to step into her own chambers, Elladan at her heels.

The large bedchamber was as welcoming as it had always been, but this time it felt as strange to her as it had the first time she had stepped inside. Elladan's hand rested lightly on her back as he guided her towards the comfortable bed. He could feel her hesitation through their bond. She sat at the edge of the mattress, Elladan wrapping an arm around her as he sat down beside her. His slender fingers gently lifted her chin, forcing her to look into his endless liquid silver eyes.

"Do not let it get into your head. Those were simply words." He said in a soft voice as his thumb carefully wiped away the wetness from her cheeks. She did not answer. Of course those were simply words, but both Elladan and her knew that words could wound as deeply as arms. She had stopped crying by now, her anger growing inside of her at the lack of information. Elladan too was angry, she could see it in his steely eyes as he looked away for a second.

"It was not Legolas." She muttered, causing Elladan to turn his face to look at her. "The brother I supposedly nearly killed. It was not Legolas. I saw the look in his face while Doronor spoke. He did not know about it. That was the first time he was hearing it."

Elladan did not answer, simply sighing as he pulled her closer to him, his jaw clenched in rage.

"You have not done anything wrong." His voice was soothing, his silver eyes tender as one of his hands brushed her cheek. No, surely there was nothing wrong in nearly killing one of her brothers. "You have not harmed anyone."

"And how do you know!" She snapped at him, standing up and away from his touch. She felt her nerves on edge, her hands trembling slightly as the advisor's words burned inside her head. "You were not there!"

Elladan did not move, liquid silver eyes staring at her, soft and open, his face entirely serious. She reached her trembling hands to her forehead in frustration, a pang of regret building in her stomach at her sudden outburst. It was not Elladan's fault. She closed her eyes for a second, breathing out a sigh before sitting down again next to him.

"Forgive me." She breathed out and he responded by once again wrapping an arm around her small figure, pulling her into his safe embrace. She let her eyes fall closed for a moment, calming down at his sweet scent. He placed a light kiss atop her head, and for long minutes he did not say anything. But she did not need him to speak; his tender touch spoke louder than any words could.

"What are we going to do?" He whispered soothingly after what felt like an eternity.

She pulled away to look into his eyes, drowning in deep pools of liquid silver. One of her hands travelled to his cheek, and he placed his hand over hers, eyes never leaving her. She shook her head, silently communicating him that she had no answer to his question. She did not even know if Doronor had been speaking the truth when he mentioned there would be an attack that night, and for the look in his eyes neither did he.

"We have an hour to decide whether we stay or leave." His lips brushed her ear delicately as he whispered.

"I know." Was her only answer, letting her head fall lightly over his shoulder. She only hoped Legolas or Tadion would know what to do. That one of them would take a decision on the matter. She felt too much at a loss to do so.

Elladan answered with silence once more, simply pulling her closer to him. By the distant look in his endless silver eyes she could tell that he was contacting Elrohir, no doubt letting him know of everything the advisor had warned them about.

She let her eyes wonder around the elegant and spacious room, only to fall on the small wooden table piled up with unopened presents. She had nearly forgotten about them. They seemed so unimportant, and yet, in the emptiness of the air around her, they felt so inviting, as if their silver and golden ribbons still jingled with the dead echo of a distant, joyful waltz and freshly cooked meal.

"How do you feel about opening gifts?" She pulled away from his arms to look into his face, a small smile building on her lips. Elladan's eyes darted to the table for a second before centering on hers, a light laugh escaping his lips, the sound so warm and inviting.

Standing from the bed, he offered her a hand, helping her to her feet before guiding her to the small table, each of them taking one of the cushioned seats that surrounded it. She took one of the finely wrapped presents in her hands. It was one of the three her father had gifted her. She would open the gift from her father first, the other ones could wait.

Slowly, she pulled at the thin golden ribbon, letting her fingers carefully unwrap the small, flat box. Inside were the most beautiful necklace and bracelet she had yet seen. Thin strings of silver laced with one another in an intricate, breathtaking web, so delicate that she felt as if they could break by simply looking at them. Whenever one of the strings reached end, a tiny forest green emerald hung from it, sparkling in dark green among the shimmering silver. Both necklace and bracelet had the same patters.

"That is beautiful." Elladan's voice made her lift her eyes from the gorgeous pieces of jewelry, only to fall on the only other jewelry they would never be able to top: his liquid silver eyes. "Try it on."

She let out a short laugh, carefully taking both ends of the necklace in her hands, careful no to move too much her broken right hand. Elladan stood up from his chair, walking behind her and gently taking the necklace from her hands. A slight shiver ran down her spine and her heart fluttered inside of her as she felt his fingers brushing against the back of her neck, pushing all of her hair over her shoulder and carefully tying the necklace. Once he was done, he took her long golden hair in his hands and gently straightened it down her back.

"Now it looks better." He whispered in her left ear, his voice carrying its usual mischievous and mocking tone in it. He placed a quick kiss on her cheek as both of his hands came to rest over her shoulders. Before he could move his head, she turned around on her seat, placing her lips against his in a light kiss.

The door of her chambers opened gently, and she turned her head to catch sight of Legolas and Lossenel entering the piece. A smile lit her face as she met both of her siblings eyes, and the Princess smile in return, her ice green-blue eyes shimmering with their usual light. However, the slight shadow behind her gentle eyes told her that Legolas had already spoken to her about their small encounter with Doronor.

"You are opening presents!" The stunning Princess breathed out as she made her way to the table on which they sat, her aquamarine dress swirling weightlessly around her. Elladan laugh lightly, shaking his head as her sister sat down next to her, already passing her yet another wrapped box for her to open. Legolas had remained thoughtful, slowly walking in their direction.

Enjoying the distraction, she focused on opening the two remaining gifts from her father. One was fine, rich blue winder cloak, carefully embroidered in silver thread. And the other was an empty drawing book, its fine leather covers adorned in intricate golden patters. Next to the book was a delicate quill, tiny jewels encrusted in it. She did not even bother opening the other presents at the moment, very well aware that their time to make a decision was running out.

She knew they needed to act soon, and if they were going to leave after all they needed to prepare for it. But it seemed as if none of them wanted to touch that reality, grasping the slight escape that the presents granted them. Elladan had remained standing behind her, hands resting lightly over her shoulders, while Legolas had taken the empty seat to her right, leaving Lossenel to her left.

All four pairs of eyes turned in the direction of the door as it opened again. Tadion slowly stepped into the room, his arms carefully steadying a very pale looking Arahaleon. Lossenel immediately rushed to her brother's other side, giving Tadion a reproachful look before helping him slowly guide the Crown Prince to the couch. Arahaelon sat down quietly, closing his eyes and looking completely worn out as Lossenel took one of the pillows from the bed and gently slid it behind his back, as if the couch was not comfortable enough. The snowy Princess then sat down next to her eldest brother, her delicate hands travelling to his neck and forehead, feeling for his temperature.

"Fever is gone." She heard Tadion telling his sister, the latter breathing out a sigh of relief before letting her hands fall back onto her lap. She noticed that Legolas had also moved closer to the Crown Prince, sitting down on his other side.

"How do you feel, Ar? Are you in pain?" Legolas asked in a soft voice, his infinite blue eyes looking directly at his eldest brother. Arahaelon lied easily by shaking his head, his penetrating forest green eyes looking at his youngest brother, smiling softly.

Tadion moved to take one of the seats in front o the couch, looking as carefree and untroubled as ever, so peaceful and relaxed, although his eyes never left the Crown Prince, carefully observing him.

"When are we leaving?" Tadion's voice sounded completely casual, as if was merely talking about the weather, a tiny sparkle of excitement gleaming in his clear blue eyes. She moved closer to her other siblings, Elladan at her heels.

"How do we know if what Doronor said is true?" Legolas vocalized the question running through her mind, his infinite blue eyes looking at Tadion's equal pair.

"Doronor might be many things, but he is no liar." All pairs of eyes turned at the sound of the Crown Prince's serene voice. "I do not know how he came to have knowledge of this planned attack, and the fact that he has not mentioned it to Ada can cost him greatly. His silence is considered treason, and he knows it. However, I believe that he was speaking the truth, warning the three of you and letting you know about it is enough to know where his loyalty lies. He knows the risk he is in."

"Perhaps he overheard something." Lossenel added, her eyes travelling to her siblings, searching if they agreed with her words.

"No." Elladan was the one to speak. "If he had overheard then he had no reason to stay silent and not tell you father. He was scared that someone might hear him. He has been threatened by someone."

Elladan's words made complete sense to her. "I have a rope to my neck" She remembered the advisor mentioning that before. And still, an iced shiver wracked her body at the thought of how many other elves in the palace could possibly be in Doronor's position? Doronor had spoken to them, but could there be others who knew other things and had kept completely quiet about it?

"And who is going to attack then? Elves?" Lossenel asked again, and she could hear the slight thread of despair tainting her melodic voice.

"Perhaps, yes." Tadion's clear blue eyes turned to meet his sister's as he spoke. "And elf already attacked Rëa, and I have no reason to believe they would not do it again."

"Or it could be something else." Arahaelon added in his serene yet powerful voice. "There is an alarmingly large number of Orcs travelling close to the borders. That is the reason why I was on patrol two mornings ago."

Images of the nasty fowl creatures flashed through her mind, their yellow eyes and black armors making her shiver involuntarily. She would go anywhere if only to get way from them. And the sole fact that there was a chance they would be attacking specifically to come and find her gave her chills. She perfectly remembered how they had broken into Imladris, and how they had taken it's Lord with them. Were these the same Orcs? Had been following them all they way?

"I think our best option is to leave." Tadion's voice broke the silence that had settled after Arahaelon's sudden news, causing all pairs of eyes to turn in his direction. "It is our safest option. If there is in fact an attack to come for Rëa, then she will not be here."

"I agree." Said Elladan quietly in response.

"Then we must leave as soon as we can, cross the borders before anything happens." Lossenel's voice had lowered to whisper, her iced color eyes looking serious now.

"You are not going anywhere, Lossie." The Crown Prince's voice was soft and calmed, but it left no space for argument. His emerald colored eyes fixed the Princess steadily, making everyone looking forget the weakened and pale complexion of his body.

"Of course I am." The Princess' eyes were determined, her voice as firm as her brother's. "I am not going to stay here while you all leave. And it should be you the one not going anywhere. You should be in bed Ar!"

"Lossie, I said no." Arahaelon's voice has not lost any of its patience, still as serene as before, his melted emerald eyes centered on his sister. Lossenel looked angry, her burning eyes fixed on her brother. She did not blame her. She too would have been angry if she had been told to stay while everyone else left.

"And why not?" The Princess hissed.

"Because it is dangerous. Crossing the borders is dangerous and you know that, especially if they catch us escaping. If do not make the escape in time, then things will get even harder. Rëa is coming because she has to."

"And why are you going Arahaelon? Have you looked at yourself? You can barely stand on your feet! You should be resting." Lossenel had risen to her feet, eyes looking as if she would hit her brother. Both Tadion and Legolas were watching silently, deciding not to step into the argument, and she had the feeling that neither of them would argue against their eldest brother.

"Because I can help Tadion and Legolas leading the way through the forest. The more we are the better chances we have of making it safely through the forest. Why do you think patrols are never less than six elves? You are not going, Lossie" Arahaelon remained as calmed as before, overly patient with his raging sister. He had not even raised his voice, and she was starting to think that maybe he did not have the strength to do so, although his eyes remained as powerful and piercing as before, unyielding.

Then, before she could even realize what was happening, Lossenel's hand flew to her brother's face, slapping him hard on the right cheek. A sudden silence settled in the room. Arahaelon looked momentarily stunned, one of his hands travelling to his cheek as if trying to understand that he had indeed been slapped. Slowly, he turned his head to face the Princess, emerald eyes hard, the pale skin on his right cheek speedily turning red where Lossenel's hand had hit him.

The Princess' eyes were wide, her face shocked, her own action seeming to have surprised her. Lossenel stood there for a second, paralyzed. Her sister suddenly looked mortified, all the previous ire in her eyes replaced by guilt and regret, one delicate hand flying to her mouth.

"I am sorry." Lossenel breathed out, her eyes still wide and her voice trembling. "Ar, I am so very sorry. I…I did not mean…"

The Princess immediately moved to sit back down next to her eldest brother, trembling hands rushing to rest on his arm, desperately seeking forgiveness. For a moment, she thought Arahaelon would scold Lossenel, or pull away form her touch, but was entirely surprised when he did not. His hard emerald eyes did not entirely soften, but contrary to what she had imagined he wrapped an arm around his despairing sister, pulling her against him as she locked her arms around his neck.

"I am sorry, Ar." The Princess continued to apologize, careful not to put much pressure on her brother's bandaged torso as she hugged him, her voice stained with regret. Lossenel looked on the verge of tears. "Please forgive me. I am sorry."

Arahaelon remained silent as his sister apologized to him, his hard eyes staring into nothingness while his hand rubbed soothing circles on the Princess' back. He did not look happy, but he did not hold any grudge against his sister, entirely forgiving her.

"If you come, will you do exactly what I tell you to do?" Arahaelon's voice was low, still calmed, but not as gentle as before.

Lossenel pulled away to look into his eyes, nodding her head immediately. "Yes, yes of course."

The Crown Prince nodded his head once, and at that moment she was sure that it would be him the one leading the party. She had not doubt that even the twins would follow his orders. She felt Elladan wrapping a hand around her waist, and she understood that he would not be leaving her side.

"Very well." Arahaelon said flatly, his eyes now softer than before, once again melted emeralds as he looked at his sister, and yet there was still a firm sparkle gleaming in them, stressing the seriousness of his words. "You will stay close to Tadion at all times. It is not that I do not trust you to defend yourself, but it would make my life easier if you stayed close to him."

Lossenel nodded her head in reply, opening her mouth to say something but before she could even make a sound a cold wind blew from the balcony, carrying the whispers of the trees. But those were not the same hollow whispers the forest had been singing throughout the night. These were different, louder. They spoke of danger. Her heart skipped a bit as she listened to their warning cries. If there were indeed Orcs running nearby, they had now crossed the borders and penetrated into the forest.

Tadion was the first one to react, standing up from his seat as his head turned in the direction of the balcony, clear blue eyes vigilant, his senses sharp.

"We are late. We have to leave before they reach the Palace."

Here is chapter 20! I hope the wait was not too long! Please let me know what you think!

Again, thank you so much to those of you who reviewed my latest chapter: luckyponygirl, jibril, xX-MissyMoo-Xx, dingdongsong, Martine9295, Danda225, booklover1598, CeffylGwyn, SarahWeasley, Mary Elrondile, wonderpanda10, Wtiger5, AmazingWriter123, starfire341, Paperlanterns86, world-classgeek, and Hirilnin.

Jibril: I did not know it was your birthday, so happy belated birthday to you! I hope you had a wonderful time!

Love,

Elena