Hi everyone!
Ok I'm onna be short this time.
I'm just asking that you please review!
That's about it...

~ Rachel

Eraveth was led to a well-furnished room and locked inside. A bath of hot water stood to the side of the bed and a change of clothes was stacked on a stool beside the bath. She stripped off her soiled clothes and slipped into the water. A sigh of contentment escaped her just before she began to wonder what the Elvenking had planned for her. She did not trust him.

She quickly scrubbed the dirt and grime from the skin and hair before stepping out of the tub and drying off. She wrapped the towel around her and picked up the clothes on the stool. I pair of brown leggings and a green tunic were folded neatly on top of each other. She sighed and began to dress in the elven clothing. She had never felt more uncomfortable in her life. The leggings felt too tight and she missed the feel of her jerkin snug against her torso.

She had just finished tucking the tunic into the waistline of her leggings when a knock sounded at the door. The door opened and a fair-haired elf came in. Eraveth recognized the elf from when the company was first captured and when she had punched him in the face after he tried to stop her from getting to the Rivendell elves. He stepped into the room and seemed to study her. She smirked slightly as she noticed the faint bruise on his nose.

"You are tall for a dwarf," Legolas stated as he watched the female.

Eraveth scoffed and said, "Perhaps that is because I am not a dwarf. My name is Eraveth, daughter of Ibaria of Rohan."

Legolas narrowed his gaze and said, "I am Legolas, Prince of the Greenwood. I know that you are part dwarf. Even if you are a half dwarf, you are still tall for your race."

"That is where you are mistaken, princeling," Eraveth said as she reached for her boots and tugged them on. "I have no race. Half-breeds are not considered a part of either race. I am nothing more than an outcast. Please do not waste my time or yours in pretending that I am something I am not. Whatever your father had planned for me will not gain him the answers he seems to desperately want."

Legolas was surprised at the way this female so coolly dismissed his comment. She seemed to think very little of herself and did not seem to care what happened to her. He noted the challenging tone her voice had taken on when she had said that last sentence. "My father wishes to speak to you," he said simply and motioned for Eraveth to exit the room. He led her back to the throne room and then quickly took his leave.

Thranduil watched as his son entered with the female dwarf and began to walk down from his throne. He circled the girl and was about to speak when the girl spoke first.

Eraveth met Thranduil's icy gaze and said, "I have already informed your son that I will not give you the information that you want."

"I don't want any information from you," Thranduil said nonchalantly with a wave of his hand. "I know of another way to gain the information I seek. I know why the dwarves have crossed into my kingdom. They wish to reclaim the mountain, but their quest will end in only death. I am simply curious as to why a lone female would be travelling with a company of misfit dwarves. I can see clearly that you are a half-breed. The knife that my guards took from you is a clear indicator that your mother was from Rohan."

"That is a fairly simple story, your majesty," Eraveth said as if she were bored. She picked at one of her nails and continued, "I agreed to come with them when they rescued me from being eaten. They hold no affection for me at all and some simply see me as a nuisance. I travel with them because I have nothing better to do." She sighed and looked up to meet Thranduil's gaze again.

Thranduil smirked and chuckled mirthlessly. "You would be very convincing," Thranduil began as he walked back to his throne, "if I had not already seen the affection that the dwarves hold for you, particularly Oakenshield. Perhaps it is just you who holds no affection for the company. After all, a half-breed could hardly be expected to have any affection for the race that treated her as an outcast."

Eraveth felt her mask slipping as this elf continued. He continued to degrade her subtly as he said, "Perhaps it is something in you that makes it impossible to feel affection. After all, half-breeds are rarely heard of and are shunned by most races. It is a pity that Thorin Oakenshield has placed his affections on someone who is incapable of returning them. I have seen the way he looks at you."

Fire ignited in Eraveth's middle. How dare this elf assume such things about her? Was he telling the truth about Thorin holding affection for her or was it an elaborate ruse to get her to break. The calm that she was working so hard to keep up shattered and she turned on the king with a snarl, "How dare you say that! I may not be a pure dwarf or human, but I am able to hold affection. Yes, I am shunned wherever I go, but there are some who look past my faults. Some who are far more noble and kind than you! How would a foul elf like you know anything of affection? You probably wouldn't know true affection and love if it bit you in the face!"

Thranduil's eyes lit with fury. This female had turned his attack around onto him. She had provoked his ire and he felt his spell slip. The scarred skin of his face was revealed and he glared at the girl. "You dare try to tell me that I do not know affection? I am king of the Greenwood. I have a people to care for, a wife, a son!" Thranduil stopped short. This girl had made him lose his composure. He was shocked and looked down at her. She was staring wide-eyed at his scars, but he saw no fear in her emerald orbs.

"Those scars are made by fire," Eraveth said as she unconsciously reached to touch the scar on the left side of his face. She was surprised when Thranduil did not recoil. Her finger lightly brushed the scarred skin and she said, "This was caused by a dragon. This is why you do not wish for us to continue. You know what they wish and you are afraid of what they may awaken."

Thranduil recoiled away and hissed, "I am not afraid of the dragon and yes, I know their intentions to slay a dragon and reclaim a homeland."

"You are afraid," Eraveth said as she stepped toward the king. "There is no shame in fear. Fear is what keeps you alive. Fear is not the absence of courage. Courage is embracing that fear and moving past it."

"What would you know of fear?" Thranduil asked.

Eraveth laughed and said, "I know the fear of not having a home. I know how it feels to fear never seeing my family again and facing the three trolls that would most likely eat me. I know the fear of being a captive of one of the most feared beings in Arda and being beaten with the knowledge that I could make it all stop if I simply betrayed the people I hold close, the fear that I would give in. I know what fear is like. I know that I am stronger because I have moved past my fear."

Looking down at the girl in front of him, Thranduil tried to think of something to say, but for once, he was at a loss for words. He turned away and called for a guard. "Take her to see her company when they are fed and then escort her back to her room."

Eraveth turned to see the guard approach. It was a red-headed elleth. She motioned for Eraveth to precede her out of the throne room. The two walked in silence until the female elf said, "My name is Tauriel. I was there when the patrol found you and your friends in the forest. It was brave of you to place yourself between Legolas and that dwarf."

Eraveth did not respond. They stopped by the kitchen and retrieved the dinners for the dwarves. It was not much, just some bread and broth, but Eraveth knew that the company needed the food. They walked down to the dungeons quickly. Eraveth led the way with a large tray of food.