Chapter 4: My Type
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Something was seriously wrong with this ellon, why would he want to have dinner with her. What was the point of sitting and eating together? The Avari are a very social clan most elves were, but that was not the case for her.
Whenever she could hide away from the crowd she would, to be a leader one could not become extremely friendly with their people unless, they were a symbol of comfort.
Which she was not.
Zoë was the symbol of war, yes her name meant life but the majority of the time she would be taking it.
Most of the warriors were outside eating and drinking wine and ale, but the common tent where Aaron, her lieutenants, and herself would be discussing political and battle affairs changed into a large table filled with different meat and fruits.
They had not brought much fruit to the table Eru knows that the wood elves bombarded them with fruits upon their arrival.
There were five in total in the tent herself included, Aaron, Kian, Eldar, and Ryul. Her three lieutenants never left her side when it came to festivities majority of the time they would dine separately just to keep her company. Kian had started doing it, and then the other three followed.
Ryul was the youngest out of all four of them, he was more of a support ellon wherever he was needed he would fill in.
Eldar was in the middle, he was a flirtatious ellon a different ellth every night but he was much more committed to his fighting skills and squad.
Kian was the oldest, he had served the general before her. He told her what she needed to hear nothing more nothing less.
Aaron well he was her cousin, he did not take much after his father, the prior general, he enjoyed paper work and figuring things out not cutting off heads. He was still well trained but she never let him join the battlefield.
Thranduil would be joining them tonight, her father had retired early saying all the fuss made him tired. The prince, she was not aware if he was coming, but she found out that Legolas and Aaron got along well.
"Excuse me?" she could already tell it was the prince's voice
Aaron yelled a "enter," as more wine was poured into her cup by Eldar. She drank most of it in one go, as if knowing already Eldar poured another glass out for her. She smiled at him and shoved his shoulders playfully.
"Come have a seat"
As the two wood ellons took a seat next to Aaron and greeted everyone on the table.
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As the eating started to be replaced with more wine and ale, everyone started to become relaxed and talked about common things, the ellons conversed about ellths' beauty and skills.
"I heard that you slept with one of the wood ellths" said Kian watching Eldar smirk and hugged Kian
"She was so cute, it was her first time. Ahh! the sounds she made were too cute."
Thranduil watched as they spoke about one of his ellths, the majority of the time his eyes were on her. One of these men kept her company at night, they were his competition for his wife.
Thranduil did not care which one it was because like everything he did, he would conquer and win the prize.
As Legolas, Kian, and Eldar spoke about the women in the realm. Ryul could not stop himself from noticing how the king gave his general looks. She was like a big sister to him, he was an orphan and took him in and trained him to be a warrior.
"Your majesty is General Zoë your type of ellth?"
The room became silent as the men looked between the king and the ellth. She was sitting there quietly sipping on the wine.
"I find her very appealing"
Coughing emitted through the tent as Zoë was choking on the wine.
"How unlady like Lady Zoë" Thranduil smirked
The ellth wiped her mouth from dripping the wine
"You are being inappropriate your majesty"
"Thranduil" he corrected
Everyone stayed silent this was far more entertaining than talking about women.
Legolas had never seen his father speak to an ellth in that matter let alone tell them they were appealing.
"Lord Thranduil –"he had stopped her mid-sentence "Am I appealing to you lady Zoë"
She furrowed her brows together, what was he playing at?
"You are quite charming your majesty" She could play this game just as well as him.
Everyone started relaxing again when the ellth smiled and the king did the same. It became a bit awkward when Ryul made his next comment.
"How do you court a wood ellth?" His question was directed to Legolas.
"It is very simple really if the ellth has interest in you as well, the proposal of marriage is made, and with it the bond is created." Explained Legolas
"Bond?" Eldar asked surprised, that Sindarin word he did not know
"It is a connection between lovers, when the marriage is consummated their mind and body become one with one another." Thranduil said swirling his wine in the cup making very short eye contact with his future bride.
"So you can't have relations before?" Asked Eldar becoming a bit worried, he had no intentions to bond with anyone.
"That is correct, is it not the same for the Avari?" the prince asked looking at the other Avari men.
"It is not" said the ellth, she took a sip of her wine and continued "We have relations as we please, as long as both elves agree. If we they love each other they can marry."
"The majority of the time we have relations to clear our mind" explained Aaron
"You just share your bed with anyone?" asked Thranduil, how many ellons could she have been with?
"The majority of the time we stick to one we like, unlike Eldar that goes through every single pretty ellth he can find." Eldar simply smirked at the comment Aaron made.
"So, you have relationships before marriage?" Legolas asked
Kian nodded as a confirmation
"So you romance, and spend time with each other then?"
"Romance?" asked Eldar
The Legolas looked at his father, did they not know the term.
"Well spend time with her, keep her happy. Taking walks, having dinner, complimenting her" explained the prince being a bit confused on how they could not understand the term
"That is highly inappropriate lord Legolas, why would anyone do that?" said Kian he never did such things with Zoë. Everything was said when they spent nights together.
"Ughhh…does not every race do that?"
"No" came Eldar's voice that seemed like so much work to just have some fun
She was starting to get light headed when she leaned on Eldar's shoulder.
"Ahh the wine is starting to kick in" commented Aaron as he walked over to his cousin and picked her up walking out of the tent.
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"Zoë" Kian whispered as he sat beside her bed trying to wake her for the morning routine, but it seemed as if his attempts disappeared with the wind.
She stirred pushing her face deeper within the softness of the pillow, as Kian looked at her she was just a child compared to him, he was over two thousand years old. She had not even reached a half of his age yet, she had five hundred more years to go to meet him half way.
No matter, how many times he told himself that she was young the moment their bodies touched the thought disappeared from his mind.
After all when death was knocking on their door she was one that saved them, she was the one that stood and fought for her people.
Zoë was life, his life, their clans life, she was their freedom from darkness.
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Thranduil found himself once again in the court yard watching as Silvan and Avari elves stood side by side against each other.
Kian and Dillion standing in front of them giving them instructions, his future wife was sitting by the steps behind the two men chewing on a red apple.
"You will all be paired up, with an Avari warrior" came his general's voice
"You will be learning how to fight in the trees" came Kian's command
Thranduil had started to notice that Kian was the most serious lieutenant and was never far away from his future bride. It seemed as if he was her second in command even though Kian seemed much older than her.
He walked towards her standing right beside her.
"Good morning your majesty" she took the last bite of her apple and gave the king a side glance
The king simply smirked greeting her in the same manner.
As the warriors were about to leave, she stood up and walked between the two men. Glaring at the men, immediately he noticed how some of the Avari warriors shivered, they immediately became stiff and paid more attention.
Kian smirked, as he stepped back for his general to address the men.
"You will learn it all today, shall one of you fail. I will be the one to inflict your punishment"
As the soldiers moved out towards the forest, she could feel his smirk.
"I know you are smiling behind me Kian" she turned to glare at him
"Eldar and I work so hard for the men to fear us as they fear you" He watched as her father walked towards her trying to embrace her, for a couple of moments to only win in protest with a groan escaping her mouth.
"Father please"
She watched as Kian smiled enjoying the moment and the king simply watching. The man she had to call father on many occasions annoyed her to no end but she did not have much of choice.
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Everyone had now been transferred into a home in the caves of Mirkwood. All three of her lieutenants had decided to reside in one home including her cousin, she however did not get to live with the men she was always surrounded with. Instead she had been given a room in the palace not too far from the king's chambers.
It was all too much, the luxurious decoration the fancy furniture, why on Valar's sake was there so much stuff in one room. Not only did it bother her that her lieutenants and cousin was far away, she would not be able to indulge with Kian to keep her mind clear.
She most likely had to stop anyway, her father had become suspicious asking her men ridiculous questions.
She stepped out of the private bath, a spring specially made for each room she was told by the servants. Wrapping herself in a thick duvet robe. As she walked to her bed to see the green dress laying on it, a gift from the king to wear at the formal dinner tonight. As she lifted the dress the Avari ellth became aware of the weight and how there was no way to move around. How the women moved in these things she did not know but she was not going to find out tonight.
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