Thranduin stood before the entrance of the wooden building in which Alyssae had lived the last days. He had hoped and expected to find her there, but there was no one in the building and it was a while ago since she had left the dining room to get some air.
Nervously he glanced at the package that he held in his hands, made of braided leaves. There was a ring in it he wanted to give Alyssae, as a sign of his eternal love for her. They had not spent much time together since she was here and he had the feeling he failed to show her how much he cared about her.
He envied the dwarves that had saved her from the dungeons a little. Without their help she possibly would have starved or died in another way and he felt helpless that he hadn't been able to help. He thought to notice she rather spent her time with the dwarves and avoided him, as if she indeed blamed him for being so powerless.
He knew she was no longer the loving, innocent elf woman he had met under the starry sky. A long imprisonment would embitter every heart and change the view on the world. He really understood and wanted to give her the space she needed, but at the same time he was afraid she would slip through his fingers again. He would give up everything for her, but he just didn't know what he could possibly do. He hoped she liked his initiative to organize a party for her, but he also feared its course. He knew it would also be some kind of farewell party and the departure of the dwarves would be hard. After all they'd travelled for a while together and he didn't doubt strong bounds had developed between them, she must have longed for a friendly arm after her lonely imprisonment.
Thranduin knew his uncle questioned their marriage. He hadn't said much about it, but the way he looked at the dwarves made clear that he feared Alyssae was too much influenced by them to be still a good suitor.
He didn't care. He wasn't surprised she had made friends with a race with which they were normally in a fight, for she had a forgiving nature and wasn't led by ancient rules and customs. It was a similarity they shared, for Thranduin wasn't even able to dislike these dwarves. He could only be grateful forever and he was still hatching a plan to show them his gratitude.
He hadn't find a moment to talk with them - except for Fili, who seemed to withdraw because he and Alyssae belonged together, while the dwarf also had feelings for her. Tomorrow however he would visit the leader of the group to hear how he could serve them. He had no idea where those twelve dwarves were heading to, but he supposed they were from Moria, on their way to visit their kin in the Iron Hills - or something like that. How they had ended up in a goblin town remained a mystery, but some paths led to strange places ...