Five days had passed since Sonja's miraculous recovery. The healers could not explain to themselves what caused her illness or triggered her unexpected recovery and were still keeping her under observation.

The King came to visit her in the morning as he did every day since, only to find her in the same spot, near the window, motionless and lost in thought. There was nothing wrong with her mind or body, the healers told him after they completed a thorough examination. They found a big scar across her abdomen and Thranduil immediately understood that what he had discovered in her dream was nothing short of reality. Sonja had known not only the loss of her husband, but that of her unborn child. With a wound that terrible, he was sure she would never be able to have any children and his heart felt for her, understanding her grief much better now.

-'Are you well?' He asked her, like he did every day for the past five visits. And like for his every visit, she did not reply or look at him, just stared absent minded out the tall window.

As he was about to walk out of the room she called for him, without averting her gaze from the garden below.

-'I know you are the King', she said. 'You waste your time coming to visit... Don't. There is nothing you can do for me. '

He turned back and walked slowly towards her.

-'As you wish', he whispered. 'Here, I fixed it for you', he added, placing the small box on the desk next to her, before taking his leave.

She shuddered as if awaking from a long slumber and turned her head towards the box. But before she could voice her thoughts, he was gone.

Three more days passed, but he did not come to visit anymore.

Her half-sister and brother in law had to depart from the palace before the blizzards would arrive, entrusting her wellbeing to the elven healers in Thranduil's halls. She seemed to have recovered quite nicely in their care but feared that if they were to take her west with them so soon that she might relapse.

Sonja was now more alone than ever, burying her feelings of emptiness in the books the servants provided her with.

As she opened her eyes, something felt different to her that morning. The light inside the room seemed brighter than ever before, but at the same time soothing and cold.

The floor made a cracking sound under her bare feet as she started to move around the room.

Leaning to look through the window, she found the garden shrouded with a veil of white, fresh snow. A few young elflings were playing outside, their noses red and their eyes sparkling with joy. Further away, Legolas and his father were slowly pacing on an alley between some old statues, discussing in guarded whispers. And then the Elvenking lifted his eyes, looking straight at her, and his gaze was so intense that Sonja felt it could shatter the great distance between them and burn upon her cheeks. She remained there hooked into his eyes until he turned his attention to Legolas once more, inviting him to step further into the gardens and stroll beneath ancient oaks dusted with white.

It was still snowing and big flakes kept sticking to the window in front of her, allowing her to study their different shapes and sizes with unexpected interest.

-'They are beautiful, are they not? '

Sonja turned around as she recognized the cold and calculated voice of the King behind her. She did not even try to mask her surprise at his presence there. His elegant flowing robes were perfectly matching the hues in his eyes and the stones in his crown. It was the first time she was looking upon him in his royal clothes and something about him made her feel very small before his gaze on her.

-'I.. I... thank you! ' she struggled to speak. 'For fixing my box. '

The King dropped his mask of indifference for mere moments, enough for her to notice the smile born on his flawless lips.

-'You will accompany me outside today', he added in a commanding tone that puzzled her.

He observed the slight change behind her eyes and spoke in a more reassuring way:

-'You have nothing to fear from me, child! And as long as you are under my protection, no harm shall reach you again. Now come to me! '

Sonja moved reluctantly to meet his extended arm and rested her small hand upon it. The King led her down a winding set of stairs towards the snow engulfed garden.

The freezing air stung her cheeks and only then did she realize that she had forgotten to get her cloak from the chair, before stepping outside. Her cold torment was short lived though, as a few guards approached the King with haste, causing him to release her arm and greet them.

-'Orcs, my King, they have breached our borders, to the north. A few of our soldiers have fallen already', they informed him, bowing their heads before his crown.

-'Legolas! ' Thranduil called for his son. 'Take Sonja and the others back to the palace and ready your bow! We are hunting orcs this day. '

It was late at night when she heard the commotion coming from the corridor. She knew that orcs would never breach the gates of the elven palace, but still she could not stop but wander what was going on. Leaving the comfort of her bed, she strolled along the endless hallway until she came upon one of the healers, rushing out of the King's chamber with a bloodied cloth in his hands. She did not dare to stop him in his path, but when she saw him returning she decided to tag along and entered the room together with him.

It seemed to her much larger than she had imagined it would be, with its high vaulted ceiling and beautifully sculpted wooden columns supporting its weight. Her attention was then drawn to the crowd of people gathered inside the room, speaking in the Elvish tongue, still foreign to her ears. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted Legolas, leaning pale against a column, his tunic drenched in blood.

-'Are you alright? ' she asked him but he seemed absent minded, staring down at the floor.

There were no apparent wounds to his body so the blood was not his. It was not as dark as the blood of the orcs, which could only mean that the red staining his clothes belonged to another elf. His father, the King!

She made her way through the concerned crowd and her gaze found him, lying motionless in his bed, with two black iron arrows sticking out of his chest.