The loud noise of the forest quickly shifting around them merged with the raging thunders as they ran through the forest. To her sides, the branches cracked as they stretched suddenly intertwining with one another to make a sealed wall, the sound so could that for a moment she thought she would end up deaf. The iced rain hit her face violently, like bitter knives cutting through her skin and inside her eyes, making it hard to see as she maneuvered the horse through the uneven ground. She could see Elladan to her right, riding close to her, her siblings not too far away either.
Another flash of light brightened her surroundings for a split second, making everything look silver and white before it turned black again, followed by the massive cry of yet another thunder. Her heart drummed loudly inside her chest, her senses sharp, looking rapidly from side to side, ready to make an unexpected turn whenever a branch suddenly blocked her path.
She could no longer see the Palace behind her, its majestic balconies and halls, the may glittering windows under the silver moonlight, vanished into her memories, no more than a picture inside her mind. She could still feel the heavy power floating in the air, accompanying the stretching trees, floating quickly around them as it paved their way. And yet, for the first time the Elveking's power did not only feel like an invisible force floating around her, but it had a concrete path, a concrete direction. She could feel it moving along the way, hear it merging with the desperate cries of the trees.
She did not know what was happening, or how it was happening. It was as if she was once again in the dark stone hallway, watching the arrow flying at Tadion, feeling the wind parting for it. Suddenly her father's presence seemed as reachable and real as the wind had seemed in that moment. She could feel it moving along their path, calling for the trees to move in collaboration. But what scared her the most, was that she could feel not only where it was, but where it would go next. It was almost as if it were guiding her, her senses able to follow where it turned before the branch had even reacted to it.
She could still hear the wind crying in her ears, the constant burning rushing through her veins, her body responding to its calls without her control, fingers tingling lightly. It was more powerful than her, she could not pull back. And yet, it felt so natural. The burning, the strange sense of something she could not control rushing through her veins, the cries of the trees and wind. It all felt natural, effortless. Everything around her seemed so clear, even thought there were moving fast, she could see every detail every leaf, every branch, could hear every sound as if it was the only sound. The rush of adrenaline in her body stopped her from feeling fear, her body acting of pure instinct.
Her eyes fixed on Tadion, riding some distance ahead of her. Her brother had no trouble in guiding the horse through the unexpected labyrinth of trees, knowing the territory expertly. Blood still flowed from his side, his hand, which remained firmly pressed over the wound, was drenched in the crimson liquid, sliding through his fingers and continuing down his tunic. Her heart skipped a beat as she saw the ashen complexion of his face. Tadion seemed to be turning paler and paler by the second. The Crown Prince rode close to him, at the front of the line. Arahaelon seemed to be one leading them now, his piercing emerald eyes turning to look at his younger brother every two minutes, as if ready to catch him if needed. To her surprise Arahaelon moved in perfect coordination with her the trees, rapidly turning to left and right as they changed, perfectly guessing ahead of time were they would move.
Her thoughts were quickly drawn into a different path as she suddenly heard something else move some distance to her left. Her heart jumped inside her chest, eyes frantically looking through the forest. She could see nothing but darkness behind the flying tree trucks. Fear started to boil inside of her, merging with the strange power rushing through her veins, begging to be released.
Elladan had pressed himself closer to her, his eyes also fixed on the spot on her left. Her heart jumped again at the sight of him. He had heard the movement too. Suddenly she felt watched, observed. The trees and the rain were not their only company.
Something moved again, this time to their right, rushing far inside the forest. Her eyes flew in that direction, but once again she could not see anything but darkness. Ahead of her, Legolas moved closer to Lossenel, his alert infinite blue eyes also fixed on the dark forest to their sides, reflexes sharp. Her brother held his bow in his hands, an arrow ready to be released.
The trees to her left cried loudly once again, the branches knitting into an intricate wall with amazing speed, the powerful force of her father's presence filtering through them. A short relief washed over her as the wall gave her a slight sense of tranquility, feeling somewhat safe by it. The trees continued to shake, their branches swaying widely ahead, Arahaelon guessing their path with extreme ease.
Something moved again, this time closer to them, to their right. Before her eyes could turn in that direction, she heard movement also to her left, her heart turning inside her chest. Her siblings had pressed closer together, all of them riding next to one another, Elrohir suddenly appearing on her left so that she was in between the twins.
A branch shifted to their right, intertwining into a solid wall of leaves, so fast and suddenly that is seemed to appear out of nowhere, drowning a cry that escaped her throat. A high-pitched cry echoed through the raging rain, coming from the place where the trees had suddenly made a wall. Her blood ran cold inside her veins, her heart stopping for a moment. She knew that cry. She would recognize it anywhere. It was the blood-curling cry of an orc.
Before she had time to think, she heard more movement to her left, too close to them for her liking. Her eyes flew to the dark forest, and for the fist time she saw something shifting and rushing in the between the thick vegetation.
Another tree moved suddenly some distance ahead of them, farther inside the forest, followed by another high-pitched cry. Another wall. But she did not turn her eyes to see, all of her attention on the shifting figure she could see moving quickly through the darkness to her left.
"Legolas!" Arahaelon yelled from the front, and Legolas released an arrow, which cut sharply to the air, producing a sickening cry as it hit its target.
A surprised cry escaped her lips as a tree to her left suddenly joined with another one, their branches suddenly sealing with one another, almost like a cage. Something crashed behind them, the think web of branches the only preventing the creature form reaching them. Her blood turned to ice inside her veins as she saw, in the split flash of lighting, the yellow eyes and distorted face of an orc, crying loudly at the tree that had suddenly hit it, crushing it to pieces.
More trees moved, sometimes close to them, sometimes farther, always followed by a sickening high-pitched cry. Branches continued to shift to their sides, opening a path ahead of them while sealing away everything that dared to come near. She could feel the Elvenking's presence in the power running through the trees, could feel it moving quickly, so clearly and strong that she could nearly see it. It did not take her long to realize what was happening. The King was blocking the orc's path.
Her eyes searched frantically around her, looking for any signs of movement to their sides. Another blood-curling cry echoed through the forest, sounding far away enough from them as to make her feel slightly safer. She could see her siblings also searching their surroundings, but a for a moment the only that could be hear was the violent movement of the trees.
Something else moved to their right, and she barely saw the flash of an arrow as it flew before her eyes, followed by another high-pitched cry. Her eyes lifted to the front, only to find the Crown Prince holding his bow high, still in the position in which he had released the arrow. Another long moment passed as they ran, the only sound the movement of the trees as they paved their way. All of her sense remained alert. She knew the orcs were still close, although she could no longer hear them. It was as of they had backed away, the unpredictable shifts of the forest making their approach impossible.
The Crown Prince continued to guide the way, never hesitating on where to turn, perfectly guessing the direction in which her father would turn the trees. Realization hit her like a wall of brick as she noticed the quick way in which her eldest brother moved through the forest. Arahaelon was not guessing. He was following. He could also sense the King's power, moving through the forest, and he could read were it was going.
"Ar." She heard Tadion's frail voice some distance ahead of her. Her head instantly snapped in his direction at the urgency in the short word. The young Prince was slumped on his horse, a bloodied hand holding tightly to his side while his clear blue eyes urged his eldest brother, looking desperate, scared. Tadion's face was far too pale, and even from the distance she could see him swaying slightly, as if about to fall.
The Crown Prince was instantly by his side, his younger brother's tone suddenly seeming to give him some strength his weakened body no longer had. Powerful emerald eyes shot in Tadion's direction, Arahaelon's hand immediately flying to grab his brother's arm, stabilizing him for a moment. Then, in a single graceful movement, her eldest brother jumped behind Tadion, whispering something to his own horse which continued running without its rider. One of Arahaelon's hands wrapped tightly around Tadion's waist, just in time as the latter swayed dangerously, slumping forward. For a moment she was scared that the Crown Prince would not be able to support his brother's weight, but Arahaelon suddenly seemed steadier than before, his powerful emerald eyes burning with a new fire.
Another tree shifted violently, forcing them to take an unexpected sharp turn to their right. Her eyes quickly scanned around her, but she could not yet see any movement that indicated the orcs were still following them, even thought she knew they were there. Elladan shifted even closer to her, his silver eyes darting from side to side, listening intently. His dark hair stuck to his face, soaked in iced water, contrasting sharply against his pale skin.
In front of her, she saw her eldest brother pushing Tadion against his chest, holding him securely as the latter suddenly seemed to go limp in his eldest brother's arms. Arahaelon then stripped Tadion of his bow and quiver - the weapon would be useless in Tadion's current condition- and threw them quickly in Lossenel's direction. To her surprise, her sister caught both things without the slightest effort, carrying them easily in her hands. And yet, the way in which the Princess' delicate hands held the fine wooden bow in the precise place surprised her. Lossenel knew how to use it.
Suddenly her heart froze inside her chest. Something had changed. The trees moved slower now, their cries growing quieter and quieter. Fear settled at the pit of her stomach as she felt the previously strong power of her father starting to quiver. She could no longer trace its path. It seemed to be getting frailer and frailer. Her fear only increased as she saw Arahaelon hesitating at the front, suddenly also unable to detect the King's presence in the trees around them.
They kept running as fast as possible, a new fear driving them. She could no longer tell if they were going in the right direction or not, the trees moving every once in a while, the power that had been driving them becoming weaker and weaker, fragmenting. The Crown Prince, however, continued to move through the forest with the same ease as before, but no longer following a path. No. He was now dependent of his own senses. The fear made the odd tickling in her fingers increase, the strange foreign power burning inside her veins only rising and rising, the rain, trees and wind calling louder to her, inviting her to reach for them, to release in them this burning force that seemed to be growing inside of her, consuming her.
"Stay close to me." Elladan's voice echoed inside her head, and she turned her eyes to meet his sharp silver ones. She knew he could hear the forest growing quiet, growing still. He had drawn his long silver sword, holding it ready to strike. Out of the corner of her eyes she caught sight of Legolas pressing himself closer to his two older brothers, as if he knew that Arahaelon would depend on his aid to defend himself and Tadion.
Then, the forest grew quiet. Nothing moved, the frail trace of her father's power suddenly disappearing entirely. Only the rain, hitting harshly against the silent trees and muddy ground could be heard. Her heart froze, fear only growing inside of her. They were still inside the borders, she was sure. The King should have been able to still reach them with his powers. Something must have happened.
None of them stopped, moving as fast as they could, trying to make the least noise as possible. The silence around them was unsettling, grasping her skin in its cold haunted claws. Lossenel placed an arrow on the bow, ready to shoot if necessary. The effortless way with which the snowy Princess handled the weapon made her wish she knew how to use it, at least to able to defend herself without having to blindly depend on protection from Elladan or one of her brothers. Elrohir had moved close to her sister, his silver eyes watching her attentively, ready to aid her if necessary.
Then, she heard it. A blood curling high-pitched cry. Her heart raced, her eyes flew to scan her surroundings. Motionless tree trunks flew past her as she pushed her horse to ride even faster. She knew it would not take long for the orcs to figure out the forest would no longer lock their path.
Suddenly, much too quick for her liking, she caught movement to their sides, dark things moving through the vegetation, sometimes dangerously close. Arahaelon shot an arrow, followed by one shot by Legolas. Two agonized cries filled the air as the arrows hit the orcs, but the movement to their sides did not lessen. No. It increased.
A black arrow flew through the air, missing Elrohir by inches. Legolas released a second arrow, but more black arrows flew in return, barely missing them. She tired her best to maneuver the horse through the forest, trying to avoid the arrows she could hear flying all around her. She was now using both of her hands, her broken right hand protesting painfully at the movement, sending a sharp pain all the way to her elbow.
Lossenel shot, hitting an orc with the same perfect aim as her brothers. But the movement continued, growing closer and closer. The rain hit her face bitterly, water sliding down her drenched golden hair, sticking her cloak awkwardly to her body. The branches moved to her side, something pushing through them.
A scream died in her throat as a nasty creature suddenly jumped at her, meeting the sharp edge of Elladan's sword before it could touch her. Her heart stopped, fear consuming her. The orcs were over them. Her siblings kept shooting arrows, all of them dashing through the forest, pushing their horses to ride faster. But the orcs were coming closer and closer, their sickening cries echoed from every side now.
The orcs were over them, suddenly jumping out of the thick vegetation, only to find the edges of her siblings' swords. Arrows seemed useless now, and her blood turned to ice as she realized what this meant. This was a battle. They had to continue running before they caught in it. She knew that if the large number of orcs reached them, there would be no way out. Tadion was already ruled out, and Arahaelon was in no condition to fight for long. She knew that she of no use in a fight, and although her sister seemed capable with the bow, she knew the Princess would not be able to handle a fight. That only left three of them. Three to protect four.
More orcs jumped at them, coming form every place. Elrohir swung his sword sharply, quickly reacting before the orc had a chance to think, but a second one came from behind him. The younger twins moved fast, slashing the nasty creature in a move so fast she was not sure she had seen it. She could also see Arahaelon swinging his sword at yet another pair of orcs that jumped to his right.
The wind cried, ringing in her ears with its head splitting intensity. She could feel its pull, the sensation rushing through her veins becoming stronger and stronger, the urge to succumb to it nearly unbearable. It was already inside of her, part of it had already claimed her, filtered into her spirit, possessing her.
Metal hit metal. Swords clashed against swords. She was barely aware of the battle going on around her as she concentrated on pushing her horse forward, running alongside Elladan. She pushed the cries back into her mind, ignoring the constant drumming of the rain, and the new call from the trees. She felt strange, almost dizzy, her head pounding. Everything about her body called her to answer the cries of the wind, to merge with its power as she had done before, and it felt so natural to just allow it inside her mind. She could hear Vilya in the wind, its incessant whispers calling to her desperately, but she did not dare let it in.
Everything was happening so fast she barely had time to register anything. She forced her horse to her right, narrowly avoiding a tree trunk in her way. In front of her she saw Elrohir slashing yet another orc, pushing Lossenel out of the way. Another blood curling cry flew through the bitter night air. More orcs jumped, Elladan moving close to her, his silver eyes moving frantically around her, hitting with his sword every single orc that neared her. Her heart raced inside her chest. They were desperate. The rocs were too many. Arahaelon was struggling, keeping a tight hold on the unconscious Tadion while trying to avoid every orc that jumped their way.
Then, before she could even know what was happening one of the nasty creatures jumped at Elrohir from behind. Elladan moved faster than ever, coming to his twin's aid immediately. She could feel his fear through their bond, the elder twin rapidly killing the orc before it could harm his brother. But in his rush to help his twin, Elladan was not fast enough to anticipate another orc that jumped at him from his right.
Her heart froze. She screamed but no sound came. The repulsive beast had jumped at Elladan's back, slamming against the elder twin with a force that made her scream in fright. She felt a flash of pain, pure agonizing torturing pain emanating from Elladan, but the feeling was gone in seconds. Her eyes were wide, fixed on the spot in which the orc's dark blade had violently cut through Elladan's lower back.
She screamed, her voice dying in the raging rain. Someone grabbed her suddenly and she kicked, but the hold on her was too steady, the person who was holding her suddenly jumping behind her on her horse. Legolas. She recognized him immediately. She pushed to get to Elladan's side, but Legolas had taken the reins in his hand, his other arm holding her tightly against him, moving the horse quickly through the trees, desperately trying to take her away from the ambush of orcs. Away from Elladan.
She screamed and kicked but Legolas was too strong for her. Her brother's body was hunched protectively over hers as they moved through at an amazing speed through the trees. She could see Lossenel close to their left, staying as close to Legolas as possible. She searched around her frantically and it did not take her long to once again spot the twins. Elrohir had climbed on the horse behind Elladan, hunching over him in the same way that Legolas hunched over her, but unlike her, Elladan was not kicking or screaming. Elladan was not moving, one of his hands pressed tightly to his face while the other held on the reins for dear life, over Elrohir's steady grip.
Legolas suddenly moved, and she barely noticed an orc falling dead to their right. She could see Arahaelon moving closer to Elrohir, yelling something in elvish at the younger twin. More orcs kept falling on them, but both the Crown Prince and Elrohir moved quickly enough to block any attacks. She tried to reach Elladan through their bond was face with a wall of agonizing pain that made her immediately push back, unable to handle it.
Vilya cried again, louder inside her mind, her head feeling as if it would split. The burning sensation on her veins grew stronger, the sounds around her sharper. Metal against metal, boots falling on the muddy ground, the rain hitting harshly on the trees, the wind blowing on her face, the trees calling to her, merging with Vilya's cries. She could not hold it back, and without she could know it she was letting herself be drawn to those forces, their sounds and calls only becoming louder and clearer as she allowed them in. She found Vilya first. It was the strongest call, ringing in her ears possessing her its unintelligible whispers. She felt its power dash through her, from the tip of her fingers to the inner walls of her skull. It felt incredibly natural, incredibly right.
The strong unmanageable power burned inside her veins, becoming physically painful to bear, and still it felt right. It swallowed her completely, finding the strange force that had been building inside of her since the arrow had been shot at Tadion, and suddenly it was too much to bear. She had to release the power. She never knew if it was her doing, or it had been the fascinating blue stoned ring what had caused what happened next. Neither did she knew who had been calling on who, but before she could know what was happening, the burning inside her veins became too much to handle, and she felt an unbearable force releasing from her body and into the wind, as if the cold harsh air was sucking the energy from her.
She was barely aware of Legolas' arm tightly securing her against him. The wind suddenly ragged, drawing its force from the deepest of her being. Her soaked hair slapped against her face, and then without her understanding what was happening she felt it blow harder than ever, like a full force explosion radiating form her. She distantly heard the orcs cry in despair, an unimaginable force knocking them out of their senses. She felt the wind crying louder and louder, demanding her to release more energy, sucking it from her without her consent. She felt as if her entire spirit was being pulled away, taken by the raging wind.
Then it suddenly stopped, something else blocking it, a flash of bright blue light cutting the connection before it could pull her entirely. She slowly came back to her senses. The forest continued to fly past them. They had continued running. She noticed that the forest was once again silent, except for the pounding of the rain on the mud. The orcs were gone, not able to fight against the sudden force of the wind.
She felt weak, slumped against Legolas' strong chest, her head feeling as if it would split in half. And yet, she felt different. it was not the kind of weakness she always felt after one of the mind attacks. No. She could still feel an odd sensation in the tips of her fingers, a tingling running through her veins, where the grasp of the ring remained holding on to her, no longer acting through her, but not entirely releasing her. She could not tell if it was the blue stoned ring gripping onto her, or if it was her spirit that griped to the ring's power. They seemed merged, the sudden fusion so strong that they could not be separated so quickly from one another.
Then, she saw something in front of them that called the attention of her weak mind. Some distance ahead, she could see light. Tiny orange flickering lights shone behind the thick rain curtain, just beyond the spot where the forest seemed to suddenly end into a large clearing. She did not know for how long they had been riding, or how long it had taken for her to fully come to her senses after Vilya had merged with her spirit. She had felt it as a split second, but the sudden end of the forest and appearance of the lights told her that it had probably been longer than she thought. It was a town of men. Even in the distance and behind the grey heavy rain, she could perfectly recognize the plain disorganized architecture that composed the town's of men. Relief washed over her at the sight of the orange lights, coming closer and closer. They would be safe. They had to make it there.
She could see Arahalon running in front of them, leading the way. The Crown Prince seemed. It was still dark, but she could tell that it would be dawn in a couple of hours. Her eyes turned to her left, immediately finding what she had been looking for. Elrohir held Elladan against him for support, the younger twin's silver eyes fixed on the town ahead with an urgency that made her insides tie into tight knots. Her heart sunk to the cold wet ground as she saw transparent fear Elrohir's usually kind silver eyes. She wanted to scream again, to kick and push to get to Elladan's side, but her body felt too weak for that, the strange power of the ring still tingling to her, not having released her entirely.
Elladan had not moved since the last time she had seen him. One of his hands remained tightly pressed against his face, as if to hide his tightly shut eyes and pained expression. His other hand continued to hold on the reins, over his twin's hand. She could not see the wound on his back, obscured by Elrhoir's body as it supported him upright, but she had felt the blow of it, had felt the first splitting pain as it crushed through him before he had contained it where it would not reach her. But she did not need to see the wound, the urgent look in Elrohir's silver eyes spoke louder than any words she had ever heard.
Her heart raced faster as they finally reached the town, which had seemed to grow farther and farther as they became nearer and nearer. The sound of the horseshoes hitting the stone roads suddenly felt like music to her ears, the plain, tall wooden walls of the too tightly clustered building to their sides, suddenly the most beautiful sight she had seen. The streets were empty due to the late hour, and she noticed that the lights she had seen in the distance where only coming from very few of the buildings, the majority of the houses having their windows in complete darkness.
The heavy raindrops ran down her face, although there were no more lightings or deafening thunders, to her relief. Arahaelon moved quickly through the roads, seeming to know exactly were he was going, and she found the rest of them following without questioning. They stopped at some stables placed to the side of one of the largest buildings in the charmless town. It was one o the few buildings that still had windows shining with the candlelight inside.
A man suddenly rose from a chair placed in the shadows. He looked old, gray hair falling in a dirty disarray to his chin, and he walked slightly hunched. A drenched dark cloak stuck to his heavy body as he walked in their direction with an air of annoyance, clearly not interested in visitors. The old man's eyes lifted up to question the newcomer, and in that split second she saw a different expression flash through his aged eyes as they fell on Arahaelon's hooded form. For a moment, the man froze, his mouth hanging slightly open as his eyes tried to believe the sight before them. She guessed that it was not everyday the man received a group of seven elves into the town. Moreover, the man did not miss the way in which Tadion lay unconscious against Arahaelon, or the way in which Elrohir held Elladan tightly.
"I assume you would be requiring rooms to stay?" The man's voice was raspy, his teeth yellow under an awkwardly growing grey beard. She did not see who nodded his head in reply, but certainly someone did for the man continued to speak. "You can leave your horses here and I will come care for them in a minute. I will go ahead and inform for rooms to be readied as soon as possible."
The man did not say anything else as he quickly disappeared into the large plain building, his heavy footsteps splashing in the puddles over the stone road. Another look at the building told her that it was not a house, but a place where travelers could stay for the time of their visit. The loud noises her sharp elven hearing could detect coming from the ground floor informed her that there was a tavern there, and by the looks of it there were still men drinking at this late hour.
Legolas jumped down first, carefully helping her down to her feet. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw Lossenel doing the same, landing overly gracefully on her feet. It took her a moment to remain steady on her feet, but to her surprise, even in her exhaustion she was able to stand on her own. Then, without saying another word, Legolas rushed to Arahaelon's side, the Crown Prince visibly struggling on the brink of consciousness.
She watched, paralyzed, as Legolas carefully carried Tadion's limp body down, hurrying inside the building without a single word. Lossenel aided Arahaelon to dismount and her heart felt heavier inside her chest as her eldest brother leaned desperately on the stunning Princess. She felt frozen, her throat constricted, the constant tingling still running through her veins, gripping to her spirit.
Then, she saw Elrohir, carefully taking Elladan in his arms as he too dismounted. Her inside twisted, suddenly making it hard to breath. Elladan's hands gripped his twin's shoulders fiercely, Elrohir supporting nearly all of his weight. Elladan seemed to be having an extremely difficult time walking, the wound in his lower back making moving almost excruciating. His silver eyes did not catch hers, did not even turn in her direction. She forced her body to move, taking frantic steps in Elladan's direction but was suddenly stopped by Arahaelon.
"No." The Crown Prince's voice was steady, holding to the last remains of his long ago faded strength. Piercing green eyes penetrated hers intently, powerful, making her freeze on her place. "Almarëa, you need to calm yourself. Do not go after him now, you will do him no good."
"No! Let me go to him!" She tried to walk past him, to ignore him, but he but her way once more, his piercing emerald eyes looking at her so intently she felt small, watching her, studying her,, as if she was a dangerous thing.
"Almarëa, no!" He hissed at her, authoritative, although still gentle, trying to make her see reason where she could find none. "You are not yet your own self. Wait until whatever it is has taken control of you releases you." His penetrating green eyes watched her, his voice demanding, heavy with undeniable command.
But she did not want to listen now. She felt desperate. She grabbed him by the arm, determined to walk past him, but the moment her hand came in contact with his skin he pulled away forcefully, as if she had stabbed him in the arm.
"Do not touch me!" He yelled suddenly, backing away from her with immediate reflexes, once again leaning onto an expressionless Lossenel. His forest green eyes were wide, burning for a split second with a sudden fear that made her back away in response, away from him. She froze, staring at him, the echo of his loud words still ringing in her ears. She had never imagined Arahaelon to be able to yell. He was always so calmed and composed, so patient. He stood there, facing her, breathing heavily. Then, the fierce hostility in his eyes slowly vanished, simply staring at her, unmoving, emerald irises suddenly becoming softer.
"Almarëa…"She heard Arahaelon breaking the cold bitter silence, his voice a frail gentle sound, melted emerald eyes looking apologetic, as if trying to take back his reaction. She did not move, afraid to react in any way, frozen, her throat tight. It was as if her entire heart had sunk to the ground, leaving her feeling empty, feeling alone.
She simply stood there, thankful for the rain running down her face, erasing the trails of the first tears that fell unnoticed from her eyes. Lossenel readjusted her hold on her eldest brother, the latter suddenly loosing the last bits of strength he had, leaning all of his weight on his younger sister. The Princess' eyes remained glued on the muddy ground, not meeting hers even when she desperately searched fro them, her face expressionless, ad at the same time broken, sad. Arahaelon opened his mouth again, but no sound came, instead he slumped even more on Lossenel, and she was forced to watch in silence as the Princess turned around, gently leading her eldest brother into the dry interiors of the plain looking building, without a single word, leaving her the hollow murmurs of the rain as only company until she found in herself the strength to follow them inside…
Here is chapter 23! I hope you like it! And please let me know what you think! I will try to update as soon as I can!
Again, thank you so much to those of you who reviewed my latest chapter! ZabuzasGirl, Ithilenthiel Peredhel, world-classgeek, AmazingWriter123, Kirschflower, booklover1598, Danda225, Foxyloxylegolas1, Through Jaded Eyes, Martine9295, BigFanOfYou, Paperlanterns86, xX-MissyMoo-Xx, Jibril, wonderpanda10, SarahWeasley, Mary Elrondile, CeffylGwyn, Wtiger5 and my guest reviewer!
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Love,
Elena