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Chapter 45

Thranduil POV

Their party was now split, with half the warriors heading back to the palace with prisoner in tow and the other half, accompanied by Mithrandir, still in search of their red headed Queen. The two scouts going on ahead, while the rest took a less hurried approach with the immediate danger now behind them.

The Elvenking was pleased with the work of his scouts, who had identified his wife's footprints on the forest floor and found the path she had taken away from the battle.

The relief he felt to see evidence that she was ok was immense, however, he was still eager to find her and hold her in his arms once more, vowing never to let her go again.

He knew they were travelling in the right direction for every step they drew closer, he felt their soul bond grow stronger, calling for each other.

He took the time while they progressed through his forest kingdom to let his mind drift to memories of his beloved, in happy times, when they had taken a day trip into the forest for the first time.

Her giggles of delight as he chased her between trees was the sweetest sound he'd ever heard. He loved that these adventure made him feel younger, more playful and the desire to enjoy life to the fullest.

He smiled to himself when he heard her footsteps, despite her efforts to be as quiet as him. He knew she hated his ability to sneak up on her anytime, anyplace and she could never be prepared for the shock, always giving him a playful smack on the arm.

Listening harder he could hear her soft breaths and the attempt at stifling another giggle.

Confident in his ability to capture her and claim his prize, he moved with quick elven grace around another tree trunk and had his satisfied smirk ready and in place, only to find the space empty.

He frowned then and was startled by rustling overhead and before he could move, a body landed on his back, legs immediately crossing around his middle and arms around his neck. His own hand went to support the weight under her legs.

The hot breath on his ear made his body tingle and he shivered in anticipation.

"I win."

He was treated to a soft kiss on the tip of his curved ear and he couldn't hold in the moan that followed. His voice was strained when he answered her.

"It appears so."

Another kiss.

"I shall claim my prize now."

"What would My Lady have?"

A trail of kisses on the back of his neck as she moved the hair out of the way.

"You."

He couldn't resist it any longer, so untangled her arms and legs and shifted her to be moulded against his front and then moved forward so her back was against the tree.

He cupped her face with one hand, his blue eyes pouring with love that was reflected in her green ones.

"Then you shall have me."

And then he kissed her. A scorching, passionate and wild claiming kiss that felt like it went for days, lightening the fire of passion within the two.

In the natural light of the afternoon filtering through the tree canopy, Thranduil felt like she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, so enchanting and looking so at home amongst nature with her glorious red curls unbound and cascading down her body.

He knew where this was going to end and how much they wanted each other, feeling it resonate down their bond, so he took control.

With his lips still firmly attached to hers, his hand wandered to undo the lacings on the bodice of the dark green dress and pulling it down her body in one go, leaving her in only a white silk shift.

The top of the shift was ripped so the fabric fell and pooled at her waist, baring her breasts to him, a sight that made his cock twitch and grow harder.

He left the pleasure of her lips to trail kisses down her soft skin, her moans egging him on, to stop and suck on the rosy nipples, pebbling in the exposed air.

He made sure to show equal attention to both breasts before his hand moved to caress the warm skin of her thigh, the silky material having already bunched up when she wrapped her legs back around his torso.

It pleased him to find no resistance for his fingers as he explored her core, parting the lips to slip his index finger in and out a few times before adding another finger, delighting in her sucked in breath and groans of pleasure.

He adjusted his hand position so he could gently rub her bundle of nerves expertly, feeling her body getting ready to let go.

He quickened the pace and leaned his head forward to kiss her neck.

"Cum for me."

And she did, her scream of pleasure loud as she let it out while her body rode the wave.

She was a vision, he decided in then, a beautiful vision and he could not hold back any longer, quickly unlacing the front of his breeches and slipping his exposed cock into her wet warmth.

He took a moment to make eye contact with her and enjoy the feeling of being joined as one. When he fingers played with his ear again, he started to move, slowly at first and then faster.

In the back of his mind he was aware of her back scraping against the bark of the tree, but he did not care in his single focused state.

It didn't take long for him to explode his seed into her willing body, for the feel of her was unlike anything in middle earth.

Breathing hard, he opened his blue eyes to feel her hand cup his face ever so gently.

"I love you."

"As I love you."

"Together forever?"

"Always for I will never let you go."

Thranduil was interrupted from the depth of his memories by Feren calling to him.

"My King?"

"Yes Feren?"

"They've found something you need to see."

"Lead the way."

Evie POV

She had lost track of time since she left Lord Neldor, but by the scenery around her, she knew she was nearing her goal.

The thicker air, the devoid of life. Still she pressed on, trying to find a path that was familiar to her.

And then the hissing started, and her magic tingled under her skin and she knew she was close.

She stopped a moment and took a deep breath. She had trained for this moment. She could do this.

Passing through another lot of trees, she then saw something that took her breath away.

She was in the same clearing she was last time when she had tried to heal the little sapling.

It was a sapling no more.

In a the sea of black and grey, was a single tree that was a vibrant green that was reaching proudly to the sky, trying to find the light.

She had done that. Stopped the growth from killing this one piece of life and it had found the strength to survive. A tear found it's way down her cheek.

Brushing it away, she pressed on knowing the epicentre was further on.

It didn't take long for her to find it, the air so thick, it made it difficult to breath and the hissing sound growing stronger. The object that required her attention was a very large and very old tree that stood proudly in the centre.

If she thought the growth on the other trees had been bad, this was way worse. Scaly and corrupted, with a pungent smell radiating off it. It also seemed to have a dark aura hanging around it, almost pulsing like a shield.

Readying herself, for she knew the evil would try to attack her the minute she tried to touch it, she took a few calming breaths and tried to picture the paces of those she loved most. Legolas and Thranduil, drawing strength for what needed to be done.

She drew her golden magic out then, swirling bright beams of light, a very stark contrast to the dark colours surrounding her.

And then she stepped forward, crossing the dark aura and placed her hand on the tree.

Having trained to have her own mental shields up, she was prepared for the attack that came, and she held them up perfectly, using her strength to destroy the grown beneath her glowing palms.

She chanted a special spell Mithrandir had taught her over and over again as the evil found her and she held her ground.

The longer she held it, the harder breathing became, but she knew why she was doing this and it gave her strength to keep fighting.

Opening her eyes for a moment, she saw the effect she was having, the evil breaking apart and cracking off the trunk piece by piece.

Gritting her teeth, she kept at it, her intention to get rid of it entirely.

Having never performed something of this magnitude, she could feel her energy reserves falling fast, so much so, that her mental shield eventually dropped out.

The effect was instant, so similar to the last time with images of death and destruction to those that were dear to her. The difference this time was that she knew they weren't real and that gave her power to fight it and let her magic fight the evil where it mattered most.

So she endured the images and the evil voice taunting her, but she didn't listen, didn't allow herself to get emotionally involved.

After what felt like an age, she rallied her magic to give one last big burst of energy, destroying the evil in the tree once and for all, all the decayed bark breaking off to reveal a healthy trunk underneath, the leaves instantly returning green and thick.

Evie covered her ears and let out a scream of pain as she heard a long harrowing shriek inside her head.

Taking a few deep breaths, she opened her green eyes when she heard the musical voice of the trees again and could help but smile when she saw the once decaying and lifeless forest now vibrant and healthy, singing her praises for saving them.

She did it. Mithrandir, Thranduil, Legolas, they would all be so proud of her she knew.

All of a sudden, a wave of fatigue washed through her and she swayed on her feet. She trudged over to the big tree and clumsily lowered her body to rest against it, deciding that sleeping it off was a good idea. Then she was return home.

She didn't know then if it was her thinking of home or what, but the bond in her chest flared with familiar warmth that comforted her. Evie's last thought was that her beloved must be close before her eyelids fluttered closed and her breathing evened out as she drifted off to sleep.

AN: So an eventful chapter. How cute is Thranduil's flash back. All the feels! And Evie did what she needed to do, but this story is far from over, so much more to come! What is it that the King needs to see? Will Evie be ok? Will the baby survive?

Thanks to:

Silentmayhem: You raise a lot of good points, yes Luke is a very weak man, selfish too, so it will be very interesting to find out his fate. Yes Evie had evicted Sauron from the forest, but not entirely, for the spiders are still there and will remain a problem. Yes the forest love her. And Lord Neldor is another character we have yet to find out the fate of, though an execution may be a cop out for his actions.

x3sunnydaay: Yes, very true, it could be either. Which do you think offer will provider greater reader satisfaction? Do you want to see the King's fury? Or do you want Lord Neldor to quietly disappear?