"We are home" Thranduil said with a big smile on his face.

Legolas looked to Adonnenniel, "I hope you like it"

"Of course she will like it; it is her new home after all" Thranduil spoke before she did.

"It is a lot different from what you are used to" Legolas ignored his father. "But it is still a very wonderful place to stay. Mirkwood is a peaceful place and has hundreds of trees here"

"I counted one hundred the very first trees we passed" Adonnenniel said as she slipped down from her tired horse. "I am sure there is not even a set number to count how many trees are in these woods"

"That is what a lot of people say" Thranduil smiled as he approached the two.

"For good reason, too" Adonnenniel looked up at the closed in space of the fat trees around her.

"I only wished that we came during the daylight, the Woods seem magical during that time" Legolas said as he looked up and around at his home.

Adonnenniel felt like she was in a closed off space with the dense and heavy woodland around her. The first thing she tried to listen for was the waves of seashore, but she immediately felt saddened when she realized even her Elfish ears can't pick up any sound of them. It seemed to her that the people live in the trees, a door was at the bottom and it seemed to wound itself into a building and even used the branches as rooms as well. She knew that this was not the home that she was used to.

"I will look forward to seeing it in daylight" Adonnenniel replied kindly.

Legolas nodded to her but tried to ignore the wanderlust of her eyes as she took in everything in the Woodland Realm. He couldn't hide the fact that with every inch that she was looking into his life that she seemed to be dying inside. He didn't have to read her mind to know that she was sad about losing her home. A part of him wished that he should have never accepted the betrothal agreement after seeing the look in her grey eyes.

"I will show you to your chambers" Legolas announced.

"That won't be necessary. She doesn't have her own bed chamber" Thranduil spoke up.

"I don't?"

"You will be sharing your room with Legolas"

"Already?" Adonnenniel asked before she could even stop herself. "I thought that I officially move in after half a year of being betrothed to him"

"That is tradition"

"I'm sorry if I am acting so confused right now. My mother sometimes tends to forget to tell me vital information" Adonnenniel said.

"I am afraid I have been misinformed myself" Legolas spoke up.

"We just decided it would have a chance for you two to get along and know each other a little more" Thranduil said kindly.

Somehow, the 'getting along' part sounded completely different to Adonnenniel's ears. She looked over to Legolas who also mirrored the same confusion and shock as she did. Of course her mother forgets to tell her that piece of information herself. Adonnenniel would've tried to flee again upon hearing that.

"You caught us by surprise" Adonnenniel honestly said for the both of them.

"I am sorry" Thranduil apologized. "We should have talked about this sooner than right now. My people's troubles were concerning me as of late. This is my entire fault"

"It is fine" Adonnenniel forced a smile. "I do not mind having the same chambers as your son"

"Good" Thranduil smiled back then turned to his son. "Then I guess you better show her to your chambers. I must attend to an immediate counsel"

"What an odd turn of events" Adonnenniel commented as they watched Thranduil walk away. "I really do not take up a lot of space"

"That is not my concern" Legolas smiled and waved her down. "I will lead you to our chambers then"

"Are you not part of the counsel?" Adonnenniel asked as he led the way.

"I am. Apparently, my father wants me to show you to our room first"

"Then we shall hurry so that you can attend the meeting" Adonnenniel told him. "You might miss something important"

"Counsels are actually very boring believe it or not" Legolas commented.

"That is not very reassuring" Adonnenniel said with a glint in her eye.

"I do not know how the Queen's Counsels are like" Legolas countered.

"The Kings talk about battle field tactics and weapons that could defend their army while the Queen figures out new and faster ways of healing the wounded and sick" Adonnenniel told him.

"Then I guess we better get used to it" Legolas said. "And soon, may I put in. Three years comes by very fast. In a blink of an eye we will become King and Queen. Then everything will be resting upon our shoulders"

"Sounds like you are intimidated by the power" Adonnenniel noted. "At least your father will be around to help you"

"The shores have been calling him for a long time now"

"And visiting my home didn't make it better…"

"It was his idea; he wanted to get a glimpse of the sea"

"That is why we are the main tourist attraction for our Kind" Adonnenniel joked and caught the faintest twitch of the corner of Legolas' lip.

Legolas reached a room and then opened up the double doors to reveal a vast room with a grand bed in the center of it. A green banner with leaves decorated on it swooped down to each sides of the bed while on the headboard there was five candlestick holders with each a flame burning in the dark. Adonnenniel noticed the breathtaking view of the tops of the Mirkwood trees and in the distance were snow-covered top mountains that seemed to have shone in the night with the stars and the half-crescent moon.

"Adonnenniel" she heard from behind her and turned to see Legolas at the doorway. "Your adviser is here"

"Welcome to Mirkwood, I am Hûredhiel" an older woman said as Legolas bowed his head down to leave.

"I did not know I was going to be given an adviser" Adonnenniel admitted.

"I will be your adviser but as of now, I am your teacher" Hûredhiel told her.

"Teacher for what?"

"To rule as a Queen correctly"

"I would need all the help I can get" Adonnenniel replied.

"I trained the previous three Queens of Mirkwood before so I can honestly say I am a professional. I can already tell that they would need to be resurrected somehow if you do a horrible job" Hûredhiel said, making Adonnenniel look at her adviser oddly.

"Hûredhiel, I do not understand. Do you have something you want to tell me?" Adonnenniel asked.

"I am not the one to play dumb and think that just because of a marriage between our Kingdoms doesn't mean that we can forget the past so easily" Hûredhiel remarked.

"Maybe it is time for a change"

"Your kind made us look like laughing stock when we had our problems with the Dwarves" Hûredhiel spat out. "We already had enough problems with the Dwarves we didn't need it from our own kind. And just like every single one of you, you didn't dare to shut your mouth when the time was appropriate"

"The Dwarves were saying that we run whenever there is a chance to fight. We could not let them believe that we all do that"

"That was Thranduil King's decision on leaving. Are you saying he is not a wise King?" Hûredhiel asked. "It was his idea to wed you and Legolas Prince together. Now you are just laughing in his face within his borders"

"No one said that I didn't trust what Thranduil was doing" Adonnenniel replied back.

"Then what are you trying to say about our King?" Hûredhiel asked. "Why did you accept the marriage proposal anyways?"

"I fully understand the reasons why he did not want to risk our people in fighting against a dragon" Adonnenniel answered. "He knew fully well that the dragon was not to be toyed with and knew that it was unstoppable. Our weapons would've been no match for it so that is why he retreated. The Dwarves were merely mocking us after that. We only were trying to clear things up with them when everyone else started saying lies about us. That was when people started telling lies and saying we were making a joke out of our Kind when really it was the opposite. We were trying to see if there was a way to mend wounds. Obviously if you leave it open for a while an infection starts growing"

"Our Kind?" Hûredhiel mocked. "You are not our Kind. You will never be our Kind"

"Is that how you will talk to your Queen?"

"You are not a Queen" Hûredhiel snapped. "Not for another three years. You have to go through the one year of being betrothed, then engaged, then married. Until then, you are just a sea rat to me. You think your words matter to me now that you are going to live in this palace?"

"Hûredhiel, I do not know what this rivalry means to you but it is not what I am" Adonnenniel said politely. "But if your King decided that it was time for peace with our Realms then I trust him. You should too. I- I came here for a chance like that. I didn't have to leave my home in order to set things straight"

"How dare you use my King on me" Hûredhiel scolded.

"You- I didn't mean anything like that" Adonnenniel choked up on her words.

"You should choose your words more carefully" Hûredhiel said. "I am much older than you and far more intelligent then you will ever be"

"I only met you a few moments ago" Adonnenniel told her.

"But I have heard a lot about you, Lady Adonnenniel" she said. "The way you treat everyone like dirt. You believe yourself to be some kind of High Elf"

"I never said that" Adonnenniel said. "And those rumors are not true"

"Then why do they appear nearly every time someone mentions you?" Hûredhiel challenged. "You are too independent"

"What is that supposed to mean?" Adonnenniel asked.

"It means you were better off alone" Hûredhiel said. "That having a married partner will only bring you destruction. That is the worst kind of Elven Maiden, especially if the personality runs through a princess. It means you will be forever alone"

"Goodnight, Hûredhiel" Adonnenniel said.

The sun shone through the balcony as the birds whistled their good morning tune. Not only did Adonnenniel feel out of place but the feeling of being rolled over in dirt still was within her the next morning. Hûredhiel's words stuck to her like a pestering sea urchin that refused to let go. The feeling seemed to make her worse when she heard knocking on her door.

"Legolas?" she asked the door, but no one answered, when she opened the door, a maiden that was clearly younger than her was there with a smile on her face.

"Good morning!"

"Good morning?"

"I am Erulassë" the maiden said. "Your dresser. I wish that I could have come last night but I was already tucked in. Forgive me if I sound like a little Elfling right now but I have never seen a Sea Elf before. People always used to say that you Elves could turn into mermaids whenever you wanted"

"Unfortunately, that is just a myth. I would think that people would be a little uneasy with me coming here" Adonnenniel hinted as of now Hûredhiel's attitude seemed unclear last night.

"I forgave everything after Legolas Prince came back to the borders with a Dwarf in tow" Erulassë replied. "I was not at the least surprise that he picked an Elf from a rival race to become his wife"

"Seems like everyone else is" Adonnenniel muttered as she looked out the balcony. "It is going to be a lot harder than it seems to have elves act like you. Not everyone is too willing to forgive"

"If we can forgive Dwarves then our own Kind should not be a problem" Erulassë winked.