Practically trembling with excitement, Amera excitedly splashed a bit of cool water on her face to calm herself as she breathed in the sweet air of the gardens. She grinned as the ripples in the water slowly calmed and looked down at herself, carefully tilting her profile to make sure that there were no hidden smudges of dirt that she had missed in her inspection prior. She rose, contented, and carefully smoothed out the crimson dress that flowed over her.

Two weeks earlier, a courier had appeared at the gates of the city with a small scroll in hand, clad in the raiment of the White Tree. He had fidgeted with obvious nervous as he tilted his head upwards into the bright afternoon sky, blinded as the sun glistened off the high shining towers of Annuminas. He had practically fainted with surprise as Amera had suddenly appeared, tilting her head at him in curiosity as she opened the gate to allow him entrance. She knew she looked rather worse for wear, considering she had just been for a lovely swim and her tangled hair left damp patches upon her shoulders, but bowed gracefully as an attempt to appear welcoming as she smiled, "I bid you welcome to Annuminas, friend!"

The messenger had eyed her warily as he nudged his horse forward, looking her up and down before dismounting and straightening his tunic. He outstretched his arm to her, shifting backwards as he did so, and flinched as she retrieved the scroll. Breaking the seal with a quick gnaw, which she noticed caused the messenger to wince, though she caused him no pain. Her eyes flitted over the words swiftly and grinning brightly, she looked up, "Thank you kindly, mellon! Surely you are in need of rest after your journey, can I-" She blinked as he abruptly turned from her, swinging his leg over his panting horse as he took his reins in his hands.

"Friend," She offered softly, deeply hurt by his apparent distrust as he looked down at over at the sharp angle of his nose, "Can I not get you some refreshment? Perhaps water or straw for your mount?"

The man shook his head as he nudged his horse, carefully not to make eye contact with her as he turned to leave. "I will tell the King that you await him." And, before she could even offer a farewell, he had galloped away.

She had been rather confused at the entire interaction, but had quickly put it in the back of her mind as she raced to properly prepare the city. The streets had been swept spotless, as evidenced by the pain in her back whenever she leaned over. The library had been cleaned of any residual dust and as a result Amera had sneezed endlessly for what seemed like hours. The glistening, textured colored glass embedded in the marble buildings was delicately polished as Amera had scampered up the walls, hopping catlike from ledge to ledge as she made sure all was spotless.

And today, she sighed with pride as she looked out over her shining city as she awaited the arrival of Calmacil and his court. Amera had fretted over what to wear, for surely her leggings and tunic were not suitable for the King of Gondor, so she had searched through the vaults of the palace for something more fitting. She had eventually settled with a gown of dark crimson, fancying the loose sleeves that flowed over her hands and the cut that allowed her breastbones to feel the breeze. There had even been a small circlet that had no doubt belonged to a princess long ago, but she could never imagine herself wearing it and instead had wove violets into her dark, flowing hair. After scrubbed absolutely every inch of her body with furious determination, it seemed any and all specks of dirt were vanquished and as such, she now waited, biting her lip with nervous anticipation.

There, in the distance, she gasped softly as her sharp eyes spied the hazy outlines of horses. Picking up the waist of her dress, she struggled to control her excitement as her unclad feet padded down the marble stairs and towards the gate. As she reached the entrance of the city, she hurriedly opened the gates for now she could even make out the blurred forms of the riders that galloped forward. Taking a slow deep breath, she smoothed out her gown and waited for them to approach, for the first King to visit her in fifteen years.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Amera groaned as she was roughly and suddenly dropped from the arms of her captor, opening her eyes slowly as she was instantly awakened from her dark dreams. She heard two little winces from beside her and glanced over, relieved to since a tired Merry and Pippin rubbing their aching limbs. A dirty skin filled with water was suddenly shoved in her direction and she blinked in surprise as she took it, closing her eyes in ecstasy as the simple chill rushed down her parched throat. However, she glanced over to the hobbits and swallowed, awkwardly offering it to them as her wrists rubbed together, bound by thick cord that dug into her delicate skin.

Pippin's eyes widening as he gratefully drank of it, smiling dreamily as he then passed it to Merry. She smiled faintly, her spirits lifted by the obvious pleasure they took in their refreshment, for something as simple as water could not be taken for granted in their captivity. Flinching as a moldy crust of bread and a gray, withered chunk of something bounced of her head, she narrowed her eyes and examined them closely. The bread itself was vile, but she supposed she could stick it in her pocket and save it for when the hobbits grew hungry.

However, the gray thing was a bit more suspicious. Pippin looked over to her, perking a brow as he too leaned in close to examine it. Amera narrowed her eyes and cautiously sniffed it, nearly vomiting as its rancid odor assaulted her senses. Realizing what it was as she looked over its mottled hue, she recoiled in horror and kicked it with her boot, causing it soar almost daintily through the night air as it landed into the thick grass a few yards away. "What was that for?" Merry gave her an odd look.

"That was something's skin, Merry."

His eyes widened in disgust and Amera nodded, nudging the bread crust towards the two hobbits with a quick flick of her wrists. "Take it."

Pippin paused, his eyes revealing his concern as he murmured in return, "You need to be eating, Mera'."

She smiled faintly at the way he shortened her name and shook her head, "I do not need to eat as much as you do. I can go for a very long time without anything, so you need not worry." While that was rather true, her stomach nonetheless ached as it searched for some source of nourishment but she focused her senses elsewhere, ignoring the growing knot of pain.

OOOOOOOOOOO

He knew she was lying and was angry with her for doing so, furious even. But, before he could respond, an orc suddenly grabbed Amera by her collar, roughly dragging her to her feet. She gasped in pain and fell back down as he let go with a sharp laugh, her limbs numb as hours of no use. "Get er' over here!" He heard another growl from around the small fire the orcs had created and Amera was pulled up roughly yet again as the orc dragged her away.

Her eyes widened with fear, glittering in the moonlight beneath bruised lids, as her gaze met his. Ugluk rose, crossing his broad arms over his rippling chest as he growled, tilting his chin to the orc that held Amera. "Strip her chest."

Pippin tasted bile in the back of his throat as the others cackled at this, turning to watch as Amera turned very pale. The orc grinned, cracked, sharp teeth glinting in the moonlight as he gleefully unlaced the string that held Amera's tattered hauberk together. He threw it to the ground, leaving her to shiver in a simple, cotton shirt and leggings as she remained silent. Smirking, he reached for the last layer that covered her slender torso as the orcs jeered and laughed.

"Don't touch her!" Pippin cried out, his small voice ringing out through the shadows. Amera opened her eyes, which he saw were filled with absolute desperation as she shook her head, shouting, "Pippin, be quiet!"

Ugluk grunted once, his yellow eyes glittering with malice as he strode towards Pippin. Pippin trembled with fear, swallowing hard as the only noise of the camp was his heavy footfall, growing louder and louder with each step. His breath was raspy and guttural as he reached a hand towards Pippin, who closed his eyes and willed himself to be brave for Amera and Merry.

"If you touch him, I swear to you I will kill you!" Amera's cry rang through the night and Ugluk hissed, his neck cracking as he turned swiftly to look over his shoulder. Pippin opened his eyes in horror as Ugluk bared his fangs in the moonlight and turned to face Amera, who stared at him with unabashed fury in her eyes through the stray locks of hair that fell over her bruised face. She repeated herself once more, his voice filled with a terrible power he had never heard from her before, nor had imagined her to be capable of. "I will kill you if you touch him."

He shivered as he watched her, for he remembered that while she was his ally, and as dear a friend as any he could hope for, she will still very, very dangerous. Beneath her beautiful, gentle exterior lay something that remained feral and untamed despite her long life, a force to be reckoned with. She was an enemy to be feared.

Pippin cursed himself for speaking up as Ugluk strode towards her, the camp remaining perfectly silent as they watched. Ugluk looked her up and down, his lip curling in contempt for a moment before his great hand rose, a sharp crack ringing through the night as he backhanded her. She fell to her knees with a muffled sob and he winced in pain as Ugluk cursed her in his dark tongue, her shoulders rising and falling as her face was hidden behind the dark curtain of her hair. Then, another cry went up, but this time from around the campfire.

A black, scrawny orc with arms that dangled by his sides howled as he rose, Amera's blade glittering with firelight as he threw it before Ugluk's feet. By now, Pippin had come to realize that his captors were, in fact, two different races of orcs. The taller, stronger Uruks were creatures of Saruman, while the spawn of Mordor were scrawnier and cursed the light, their limbs twisted and misshapen. And so it was they had saw the orcs of Mordor begin to hiss, screaming and shrieking like drowning cats as they stared at Amera's blade. The uruks looked amongst themselves in confusion, but were silent as Ugluk stood up, his deafening roar silencing the raucous camp. "What's this about, Shagrat?"

"Don't you know what that sword is, you fool?" Shagrat limped forward, his fanged teeth gnashing together as he pointed a disgustingly long finger towards the pale blade.

Ugluk grunted and shook his head as Amera remained silent, unmoving save for the movements of her chest as she breathed.

Shagrat spat, proclaiming the sword to be a word Pippin was unable to understand, but it was something between a hiss and phlegmy growl as the other orcs whispered amongst themselves. Ugluk snorted, shrugging as he smirked, "The Fighting Uruk-Hai care nothing for your pathetic tales, Mordor scum."

"This blade belonged to a demon," Shagrat hissed as he slowly crept closer, his neck tilting as his heavily browed eyes fell upon Amera, "A water demon who cut down our ancestors at Fornost alongside the pointy ears."

Pippin blinked, meeting Merry's eyes for a moment as they watched Shagrat begin to pace, never taking his eyes off Amera as his companions came to stand beside him. His voice was but a whisper now, twisted and filled with malice as his eyes glittered in the firelight. "Your…master," He spat the word with contempt, "Knows not what he's gettin' himself into, Ugluk. If he knows what's good for im', he'd kill the bitch first change he got."

Pippin froze at this, terror rising in him as he watched the orcs nod at this, fury appearing in their eyes as Shagrat's words stirred fear and anger within them. Ugluk growled lowly as he stood in front of Amera and a few of his companions joined him, forming a wall between Shagrat and Amera. "If any of you," Ugluk snapped, spittle flying from his lips, "Any of you touch her, there'll be hell to pay. Got that?"

Shagrat did not move and Ugluk strode forward, his roar so deafening Pippin's ears ran with its intensity, "Got that, maggots?" Shagrat met his eyes but for a moment, then spat and turned away as Ugluk snarled. Pippin then released he had not been breathing and inhaled deeply with relief as the near disaster was averted. The orcs scattered, chittering amongst themselves as Ugluk turned once more to face Amera. He knelt and Pippin saw something appear in his enormous palm as he roughly ripped away her shirt, a faint whimper coming from Amera as flinched.

Pippin looked away instinctively as Merry gasped beside him, but looked back after a moment as Amera remained silent. The sharp arches of her shoulder blades were prominent in the moonlight, each rib outlined as she slowly breathed and he spied the wound she had received in Moria, raw and dark against her pale side. Ugluk slapped a dark, thick mixture on the wound as Amera flinched, then roughly applied it to the puncture in her shoulder, then across the scars that ravaged her back. Once he was done, he dressed her swiftly and dragged her back to where Pippin and Merry watched with horror and confusion.

She winced as she collided with the ground, silent as Ugluk grinned widely at her, "Sharkey wanted you alive and alive he'll get you." He then returned to the campfire, picking up Amera's blade as he did so.

Amera sighed with utter relief, her shoulders relaxing as Merry whispered, "Amera, are you alright? What was that stuff?"

She opened her pale eyes and shrugged, "Some sort of poultice. I've no desire to know what it was made of, but there is less pain now."

"You need to be careful, Amera," Pippin murmured from beside her as he looked towards the campfire and saw Shagrat's gaze fall on his friend, "That small one's got it out for you."

She attempted a faint smile, blowing away a whisp of hair from the corner of her mouth. "I suppose I should be flattered that my blade made a name for itself, if nothing else."

Pippin rolled his eyes, angered by her dismissal of his warning, and whispered once more, "Please, Amera, the way they looked at you…" He trailed off, silent for a moment, then solemnly finished, "Just stay close to Ugluk, Amera. Please."

She paused as she recognized the dire seriousness in his voice, the mischievous glittering of his eyes gone as he stared at her with worry. Amera slowly nodded, her voice terribly soft, "I promise, Pippin."