Chapter 2

The Ball

Tipping his head back, his crown of spring woodland flowers mere millimetres from falling, his eyes soared into the clear blue sky. An enchanting morning Mirkwood lay before him and, at this height in the palace, the view was captivating. The tops of the trees were covered with small chirping birds that flew over the forest as far as the eye could see and the wind blew lazily, fluttering leaves as it sailed by. Behind him, a door closed softly and he turned to find a familiar young Elf with fair blonde hair walking toward him.

"Ada, 'quel amrun," the young Elf spoke affectionately with a heart-warming smile.

"Legolas," he replied, offering his own smile. He watched his son bow and take his seat at the table. Legolas noted the way his father's hair cascaded down the front of his body like white blonde waterfalls and secretly hoped for his own hair to grow to such a length.
The dark round table was overflowing with food, from ripe berries freshly picked from the woodland to warm bread baked only moments before. He sat directly opposite Legolas and watched as his son greedily helped himself.

"Hungry, ion nin?" He asked teasingly and Legolas immediately froze, his cheeks staining red. Seeing his son squirm under his gaze, he couldn't help but laugh, Legolas was so easily embarrassed.

A rapid knock at the door drew their attention away and a female voice, muffled by the door, called out.

"King Thranduil, pardon the intrusion, I have urgent news."
Legolas turned to his father acknowledging his suddenly grave countenance framed by thick furrowed eyebrows, a stark contrast from moments ago.

"Enter," Thranduil commanded, his voice deep and resonating.
The door flew open and a tall she-elf marched in, her auburn hair pinned back with a single braid falling in the middle. She wore the green and silver livery of the Captain's Guard that was cinched at every curve of her body. Thranduil rose from his seat, startled that the Captain of the Guard had personally come to deliver news, usually it was his personal advisor Maeglin.

"Tauriel, I must say I am quite surprised. But please, share what you know." Thranduil said, his face contorted with worry. Tauriel directed her pale blue eyes toward Legolas, who remained seated, but facing her, with a plate full of food deliciously waiting. She felt her heart thud violently when she noticed his hair was done the way she loved it, a single braid down the middle of his gold-spun hair. It made her even happier when she realised that they were matching. The way he sat, with his back toward the window against the morning light seemed to make him look like his entire frame was illuminated, like he was glowing.

"Tauriel?" Thranduil called. Tauriel shook her head, breaking her daze and turned to her King. She gave him a bow and another to her Prince.

"My King, there have been reports that more Orc clusters have been spotted. The numbers have been increasing drastically these past few days. I, along with several of your councillors have decided to call an emergency meeting." She stepped back towards the door. "It would be my honour to escort you."

Legolas turned to his father, his eyes wide and pleading and to this Thranduil could not escape.

"Come Legolas, I suppose you should be privy to such matters." He said as nonchalantly as possible.
Legolas almost jumped from his seat and went to stand by Tauriel and she led them both with Legolas beside her and Thranduil taking up the rear. Every now and then she would slyly turn to look at Legolas, her eyes wondering unabashedly up and down his toned, lean body. Her brain melted in her skull at the thought of her wrapping herself around him and she had to turn away before she would be completely overwhelmed. They traversed through the many long, winding corridors of the palace in revered silence until they reached the conference chamber. Thranduil moved to stand in front of them and he entered. The council stood up and bowed together and Thranduil inadvertently nodded to his most trusted advisor Maeglin, a heavyset elf with thick brown hair, before sitting down with his advisers. Tauriel sat beside Maeglin while an excited Legolas took his place at Thranduil's right hand.

Looking at the stacks of papers in front of him, Thranduil knew that this meeting was going to be a long one.

Amrun's glow fell through the pane-less windows of Nienna's chambers. Her body lay limp in her feather bed, her breathing coming out in short pants.

She rolled over onto her side clutching her chest as she heaved a cough, then another, then another. Her filmy, sheer nightgown scrunched between her breasts and wrapped around her body uncomfortably and their friction only added heat to her feverish body. Her shivering fingers tried to clutch the bed covers but the cream sheets had long tumbled from the bed into a messy pile on the floor. She groaned into the pillow at the tapping noise that filled her skull and she wished that she had been smarter.

The memory of her sitting by the door for hours after he had kissed her had allowed the water and cold to do their worst on her body as her mind occupied itself by replaying the moment over and over. Her heart still fluttered when she recalled the warm pressure of his lips then the warm pressure that built within her as she opened her eyes to meet his mesmerizing blue ones. He was entirely beautiful and the kiss was so unlike what she had known that she hardly thought she'd been kissed at all. Then her throat tickled and a new coughing fit began, it seized her body and pressed on her lungs until she felt winded.

Her beech wood bed stood high above the floor, surrounded by complimentary furnishings including wall-wide bookshelves stocked with every geographical and historical book Nienna could get her hands on.

Slowly, Nienna rose from the bed and stretched her aching muscles then walked to the small kitchen where she filled a cup full with water to drink. She took absentminded sips while she wondered back into her bedroom, walking parallel against the wall of books, letting her fingers glide over them feeling their ridges and engravings. Finishing the glass, she set it on a small table next to a book she had been reading, Miner's Waterfall.

It had come to her like a gift, two months ago, when perusing the South Corridor Library at night time. The vastness of the room with its tall pillared windows encased in carved tree roots and candles lit on each pillar down the room until they were little glowing specks in the distance. The Geography selection was bountiful but seemingly untouched as the books were covered in layers of dust and neglect. Nienna felt like a heroine in some way by picking up each book and wiping it down with her sleeve. Miner's Waterfall lay flat above a row of books, its title engraved in gold ink with a picture of a foamy waterfall and the path that leads behind it.

When she realised what book she had picked up, it was like unearthing a part of Rivendell; an Elvish town that was mounted upon waterfalls, overlooking Middle-Earth like a bird on its perch. She could recall the whereabouts of her own copy, in the lower shelf of her bookcase beside her old bed in her parent's house. Her parent's house in Rivendell…it seemed like a dream rather than a memory. She didn't feel like she'd ever lived there at all, these past years had changed her but Mirkwood had changed her back.

She opened the hard cover of the book and sniffed at the page, its nostalgic smell was welcomed into her nostrils like an old friend until the residual dust tickled her throat sending Nienna into another coughing fit.

Nienna felt weary and bone-tired, her shoulders sagged and the skin of her face felt like it was barely hanging onto the bones. So she picked up the bed sheets from the floor and curled into her bed with the smell of Rivendell in her nose and the warmth of Prince Legolas on her lips.

Leading Legolas out into the dimly lit hallway, Thranduil shut the door behind him, effectively muffling the never-ending arguing of the council. Turning to lean against the dark wooden barrier, Thranduil rubbed his temples with a pained expression on his face.

"There is nothing more worrying than the realm's best advisers yelling at each other like children." Thranduil said, exasperated.

Legolas only looked upon his father, not remotely amused; the council had barely scratched the surface of a potential solution and confoundedly Legolas wondered if they would be the same under his reign.

"Perhaps…but you would be a good King," Thranduil said aloud, as though reading his son's mind, "although not as good as me."

Legolas' stone-hard expression melted into a soft smile while resisting the urge to roll his eyes. Across the shadowy distance, Thranduil assessed his son, the meeting had gone on for hours and its effects weighed on Legolas' worn face. Even in the poor lighting of the hallway, he could see the sullen, red rimmed eyes and hunched shoulders. Slowly, Thranduil reached out and gently glided the pad of his thumb over Legolas' cheek before cupping his face. Legolas leaned into the warmth, letting it soothe the worry and stress.

"Ion nin," Thranduil began, his voice barely above a whisper, "there is another matter that needs to be addressed."

It pained Thranduil to set upon his son this task, knowing what it entailed. Nevertheless, the guilt poured into his actions. He tugged at Legolas' tunic ties, bringing him close, so close that their chests almost touched. Thranduil gazed at Legolas, who now stood but a few inches beneath him, his white-blond hair neatly plaited down the back of his head. Cupping his son's face again he stroked the curve of his cheek, watching intently as Legolas closed his eyes, then his hand moved further back, to the curve of his ear remembering how sensitive he was there. Legolas shivered at the contact, unaware of his father's ulterior motive.

Leaning forward, Thranduil's head dipped down to his son's other ear, the thrumming of Legolas' heartbeat echoing in the small space between them.

"I need you to go to the Ball." Thranduil whispered.

Legolas' head immediately snapped up and he pushed himself away from his father with a look of shock and anger.

"Ada, I cannot…cannot…feast when our borders are being breached by Orcs! I need to be here with the council!"

Legolas' voice had risen beyond what Thranduil deemed acceptable as his father and King. So when his face became a mask of barely controlled rage, Legolas silenced himself immediately.

"I decide where you need to be, I decide everything you do and don't forget it!" Thranduil's voice boomed through the hallway and suddenly the muffled shouts of the council had died down behind the closed door. "You are to do this because I asked you to."

Legolas had shrunk twenty times his size beneath his father's gaze and it tugged at Thranduil's heart.

"Ion nin," he reached out and pulled Legolas into his chest in a warm embrace, "our people need us. They will already notice their King, Captain of the Guard and all the King's advisors missing."

Thranduil stroked his son's hair until he seemed to relax.

"But if their beloved Prince dined and danced among them then it shan't draw unnecessary attention to the Orc situation. We need our people to not panic."

Legolas' turned his head to look up his father, his eyes glossed over.

"I will do this task, my King." He said before breaking out of the embrace and walking down the hallway.

It pained Thranduil to see his son disappointed, knowing that he had single-handedly taken away another happiness from his son.

The elegant hall was illuminated by the warm amber light of the candles that sat in polished holsters and doused the Elvish occupants in a radiant glow. The twisting tree roots that decorated the hall walls originally were draped in purple silk, a Royal symbol that was present at every Palace Ball. Despite the grandeur and regaling traditions, many felt on edge as gossip and rumour spread like wildfire. No high ranking official had made an appearance and the Elves began to sense that something was wrong.

Styled like a Prince in all Elvish finery, from the adorning silver crown on his head to the pointed leather shoes on his feet, Legolas stood out like a rose among thorns. The thorns, of course, being the elitist social elves who swarmed him at such events with the sole intent of bettering their social station; and what better way than by marriage?

Descending into the crowd with a resounding fanfare, Prince Legolas was tailed by a flock of admirers and single elleths which, of course, are one and the same. The whole hall had given him their entire attention and something about the Prince's presence seemed to ease the atmosphere. However, the only attention he truly wanted to receive was from Nienna. Sweet, beautiful, green-eyed Nienna who had kept his hands down his breeches for the better part of last night. It had, understandably, irked him that his own father sent him away from such an important meeting but realising that he was now en route to reuniting with her had quashed all disappointment.

So wading through the crowds, Legolas searched determinedly for the green-eyed beauty, the only other rose among these thorns. Dismissing the hordes of followers and encouraging them to enjoy the Ball, much to their displeasure, had given him the freedom to roam the Hall. However, every corner of the room yielded no trace of her, even her scent, as unique as it was, was undetected. Lost in the large crowd of Elves he twisted his neck and coiled his back to catch even a glimpse of her. It was impossible and the thought of her actually not attending the Ball had finally crossed his mind. Had she been scared off by his kiss? Had she not felt the way he thought she did?

The urge to disappear from the room engulfed him and Legolas turned to the main doors when a familiar voice called out to him.

"My Prince! Finally, I've found you." Legolas turned slowly, begrudgingly. "You look like someone drove a cart over your face." She laughed at her own joke before handing the Prince a goblet of Elvish red wine. He glanced at the elleth before him whilst taking a large gulp from the cup. She was well dressed, which was unusual, she never wore a gown and such a pretty, tight-fitting one at that.

"Tauriel, you're actually wearing a gown!" Legolas stated, his voice in playful shock.

Tauriel blushed, her mind swimming in the fact that her Prince noticed her efforts, even if only to mock them.

"Hush Prince, I still look better than you," she teased. Legolas raised his glass but stopped short. He wondered what Nienna would have looked like in a gown, he envisioned a pretty green one to match her startling eyes. He drained his cup and went to find another before returning.

"Tauriel, why are you not at the meeting? Being Captain of the Guard, your presence to these things are a pre-requisite." Legolas asked disdainfully but Tauriel merely laughed.

"After you...left, we continued yelling at each other. The King closed the meeting and decided to fix a report with Maeglin which will take some time. He dismissed the rest of us about...oh...an hour ago."

Legolas looked about the room, seeing no sign of the high ranking advisors who were present at the meeting.

"So he forced me to come here but no one else?" He snorted into his goblet as he took another mouthful. "And you look like that after only an hour? A startling achievement!"

Tauriel blushed profusely and hid her smile by downing her wine.

"If I am not mistaken, I do believe that was a compliment my Prince." She smirked.

Legolas waved her remark with a swish of hand and reached out for another goblet. Suddenly, the achingly smooth music lifted into a steady beat and Elves began to take their partners and begin a graceful dance. They moved wordlessly around the room, including around their stationary Prince, moving like meandering rivers around a royal frozen rock. Legolas observed the pairs that whirled around him and the blissfully happy smiles on their faces and he began to feel the crushing pain of being rejected, for a second time. His night was laced with disappointment and he started to seek an exit. His feather bed seemed better company tonight.

Legolas reached out for another goblet and Tauriel eyed him suspiciously. She noted the sloppy manner of his grasp on the goblet and the way he tilted his head back unstably.

"My Prince, you are drunk. Perhaps another glass is too much."

"Nonsense, I drink to drown, Tauriel. I want to forget tonight and be lost in something else."

Before Tauriel even had the chance to ask what meant, Legolas made to leave, his brain swishing in his skull causing him to lose balance and topple. But he was steadied by Tauriel who had long discarded her wine goblet and was now ready to take her Prince back to his chambers before he made a fool of himself. Well-dressed Elves looked on in amusement at their inebriated Prince who swung around and dragged his feet. Tauriel cursed under her breath at the sloppy manner Legolas walked in and could almost hear the harrowing tales of their drunk Prince circulating the next day.

"I feel like tonight went by so quickly." Legolas slurred.

"It did, you drank yourself stupid in less than an hour." Tauriel stated blandly.

Legolas stood up, leaving his hold on Tauriel and started to move up the winding stairs to his personal quarters. He suddenly recognised a corridor and remembered that he entered it yesterday when escorting Nienna back to her chambers. He made to go and explain everything, possibly apologise for the kiss but he could not lie, he could not tell her he did not mean to do it. The world started to spin and he felt his legs give out under him.

"Woah, Prince, let me take you up." Tauriel offered. Legolas looked at her confusedly.

"You're still here?" He muttered.

"You're only three floors up and I saw you swaying like a tree in the breeze, it's probably best I take you up to your room."

Leaning on Tauriel, his arm draped over her shoulders accidently pulling on her auburn hair, he let her drag him up to the almost top floor of the palace in silence. Entering his chambers, Tauriel deposited the drunken Prince on his enormous bed before moving to kneel between his legs. Legolas looked down at Tauriel, his silver crown sliding off his head.

"You do look very pretty tonight Tauriel." He said breathlessly.

Tauriel's heart swelled in her chest and she reached up to realign his crown before it fell off completely. She was glad that the room was so dark he could not see her blush.

"Thank you, Legolas." She whispered her eyes cast to the floor. "I actually would like to tell you someth-"

*Thud*

Tauriel looked up to find the Prince had fallen back onto the bed, his eyes closed. She sighed, her own disappointment surging through her, before taking off his shoes and loosening his breeches and tunic and left. She lingered at the door, looking over the sleeping Prince and promised to tell him how she felt when he was sober.

Yawning and stretching like an animal after hibernating, Nienna rose from her bed. Her bedroom was doused in shadow and her head swam in confusion. She suddenly scrambled out of her bed to the balcony where she was greeted by a moon drifting high in the sky, its rays bathing her skin in its white light. Her eyes roamed speckled night sky and she began to panic when she realised that she had missed the Ball. She missed him, the Prince, the Prince with eyes like the winding stream she met him at. Sighing internally she realised that she did miss him, his smile and warmth even the gentle pressure of his lips which she could feel even now. She wandered to the balcony railing and leant on it, letting the chilly night air wrap around her; she knew she had to explain to him her absence and it worried her that she disobeyed him. Would he punish her? No, he was not like that, he was not him. Shaking off the past she resumed her gaze over the forest that hid under the blanket of night, the moon and stars like the sun and birds of the morning.

A few floors up at the highest point of the Palace, a pair of curious eyes were held transfixed on the black-haired beauty below him. He stood, amazed, at the way her pale skin appeared almost translucent under the white moonlight. She wore a simple, lace night gown that billowed between her long, slender legs. He leaned in further, his body practically balancing over the rails, his mouth parting on a soundless gasp as she turned and he saw her beautiful face. He admired her long eyelashes but longed to see her eyes, he wondered what colour they must be. She suddenly hugged herself, her arms folding in on one another as she began to shiver. It almost pained him to see her return into her room and he vowed to find her, he vowed to know her. He pushed back onto the ground and he tilted his crown before it fell off his head into the forest below. It would be a shame to lose such pretty spring flowers.

A/N: PLEASE REVIEW! It really helps when I know what you guys like/don't like. Follow the story to read chapters as they come out!