Chapter 10

Legolas and Rilien walked with the Ranger, Tauriel trailed behind her. She had not put up any fight, but the tales of the Rangers and their fighting prowess had not escaped them. They led her into the Throne Room, where King Thranduil waited to speak to her.

Rilien glanced sideways at the Lady Ranger. She was tall for a woman, easily taller than Tauriel, coming to be the same height as he and Legolas. Her long sleek, black hair was tied back, and cascaded down her back, he wondered how it did not become cumbersome when she used her bow and arrows. Her skin was olive, and although her face was flawless of any marks, he noticed around her neck some light scars, they seemed to have happened quite some time ago.

"So, spiders?" the Ranger asked.

"Do not meddle in our affairs, Ranger," the Legolas sneered. The dark haired Ranger pulled a face, that had Rilien doing his best not to smile.

"You know, if you clear them at the source, it works far better than simply swatting them when they appear in the forest."

"I said do not meddle."

Rilien couldn't help but glance back at Tauriel. She looked to him with a knowing look, she was always saying much the same, begging Thranduil to allow them to enter Dol Guldur to rid the spiders from their source.

"You know she speaks the truth..." Tauriel began.

"It is not our decision to make," Legolas replied, kindly as he always spoke to Tauriel. "We must obey his command."

They continued onto the Throne room in silence, but for the sound of the Ranger's boots on the pathway.

When they arrived, the King was seated back on his throne. They led her to stand on the ground before him as he stood to meet her. To their surprise, she bowed gracefully before him.

"I see not all of the Company of Thorin lack manners," Thranduil said with a smirk. "And who might you be?"

"My name is Valisilwen, Ranger of the North in the service of Thorin son of Thrain, in a manner of speaking, my lord," she answered politely. Rilien had to admit, he was surprised that she addressed him so formally.

"Valisilwen..." Thranduil narrowed his eyes and looked her over. "Indeed. And what manner is it you are in his service for?"

"A helping hand of sorts, my lord. I can reach things they cannot," she replied, the slightest of smirks appearing on her face. Rilien raised his eyebrows at the quip, glancing at Legolas who stared at the Ranger in disbelief.

Thranduil also looked at her for a moment. "I see. So you are the Lady Ranger of the North. Former resident of Rivendell."

"I am."

Rilien and Legolas both gaped. She spoke the tongue of the elves as if she were of elven blood herself.

"One of the last of your kind."

"So it would seem."

"Do you know what it is the dwarves seek to do?"

"I do," Valsilwen replied, taking all of Thranduil's questions in her stride. Rilien couldn't help but admire the Ranger for her guts. Not many people could face the Mirkwood King without feeling intimidated by him. Even he tended to feel nervous when meeting with Thranduil.

"I offered him a deal to assist in his journey," Thranduil said, moving from the Throne to stand on the ground before Valisilwen.

"Ah," she said frowning. "I take it he refused."

"Clearly you know your companion well."

"So to the dungeons with me then," she said looking to Legolas, holding out her hands as if to be shackled.

Thranduil held up his hand, calling her attention back to him. "No, I see no need to treat someone as fair and noble as yourself to be kept in such confines. I would suggest you convince your friend otherwise, for their own well-being."

Valisilwen's face changed and she scowled. "To be honest, I would rather you locked me up, my lord." Thranduil raised his eyebrows at her brazen response.

"You dare refute my good will?"

"I refute blackmail and bribery, my lord. Clearly, you know of my background, and you are knowledgeable of the way of my kind," she hissed. "So you would know that to even suggest such a thing would usually have you killed by now."

Rilien was alarmed by the turn of events, and quickly put his hand to his sword. The movement caught the eye of the Ranger, she gave a small smile, but she ignored him and looked back to Thranduil.

Thranduil glared at the Ranger, but took a step back. "Take her to her chambers and provide her with all she needs for an extended stay. I daresay she will be here awhile," he said with a wave of his hand as he began to walk away. The Ranger did not seem pleased by his response but said nothing else.

Tauriel waved to two guards who had been waiting at the entrance to the Throne room, leading Valisilwen away. "You should really do something about those spiders!" she called back before she was out of the room.

Thranduil turned to look at the three of them. "I thought I ordered that nest be destroyed not two moons past."

"We cleared the forest as ordered, my lord, but more spiders keep coming up from the south. They are spawning in the ruins of Dol Guldur; if we kill them at their source-"

Thranduil held up his hand to halt Tauriel from speaking any further. Rilien bit his lip, he knew Tauriel was right, and he agreed with her, but he also knew he had no place in speaking up. He was but a lowly member of the King's guard, Legolas' right hand man, if you like, with Tauriel being the left with her position as Captain of the Guard.

"That fortress lies beyond our borders. Keep our lands clear of those foul creatures, that is your task."

"And when we drive them off, what then?" she demanded. "Will they not spread to other lands?"

"Other lands are not my concern. The fortunes of the world will rise and fall, but here in this kingdom, we will endure."

Rilien saw Tauriel grind her teeth, something she did often when dealing with the King. His Captain was a loyal servant to the kingdom, but even she knew that there was more that could be done to protect it, and she yearned to do more.

"Rilien," Thranduil looked to the dark haired elf. "The Lady Ranger is your charge for the duration for her stay here. Allow her all the comforts that we would give to any guest, but she is not to be allowed near the dwarves without my accompaniment."

Rilien bowed in understanding. Great, babysitting duties.

Rilien walked beside Legolas. They discussed the actions in the forest earlier that day. It wasn't long before their conversation moved to the Ranger.

"Rilien," Legolas said as they walked along the pathway, watching as their kin rushed around to prepare for the feast that was to take place that night. "Do you find the Lady Ranger, Valisilwen, peculiar?"

Rilien looked at Legolas with a look of confusion. "You mean aside from being a woman and a Ranger?" This in itself was exceptionally rare, the men of the North did not regard their women as fighters.

"I do not know what I mean. I just feel like...there is something very different about her," he answered. Rilien frowned but could not answer the question. He found her amusing and her skill was impressive, but so far he did not yet find her 'peculiar'. "Never mind, perhaps it is just my mind playing tricks on me."

"Perhaps," Rilien replied, then he smiled smugly. "Or perhaps you are offended that she was able to nearly take your head off with her sword if it had not been for my intervention."

Legolas rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes, it was very impressive."

"I'll be sure to remember that the next time i want something," Rilien said looking toward the passage to the guest cavern.

"You had best get to your duties," Legolas said smiling mischievously. "I don't envy you, she has a sharp tongue."

"Only for you, my lord." Legolas grimaced as Rilien waved and made his way to the guest wing.

Two guards stood by the door, nodding to Rilien when he approached. "How has she been?"

"Fine, my lord. She has been polite, although she has refused to change into the outfit provided by the King."

Rilien cringed, that would annoy the king to no end. He was a firm believer that elven maidens belonged in dresses and away from battle. The fact that Tauriel was Captain of the Guard was amazing in itself, but she performed her duties to such a high standard that there was no way he could ignore her any longer.

"Very well, I'll see if I cannot convince her otherwise," he said taking a deep breath.

"Good luck, my lord."

Rilien knocked on the door, waiting for her to allow him permission to enter. She appeared at the door, looking at him expectantly. "Might I come in, my lady?"

She stepped back and allowed him to enter. He stepped inside as she walked away. She no longer wore her cloak, it was hanging over a chair by the table where her weapons were laid out, she had been cleaning and inspecting them, they had been returned to her since she was deemed to be a guest and not a prisoner.

She slid into a chair, slouching and resting her head against her hand. "What do i owe the pleasure of this visit, my lord?"

He gave a small laugh, her voice dripped with disdain. She raised an eyebrow at his reaction. "You need not call me by such a title, my lady, I do not sit high enough to be entitled to it."

She looked slightly surprised at his words. "I see, so by what should I call you then?"

"Rilien," he replied, bowing slightly.

"Rilien?" she repeated with an amused look on her face. "Your name means brilliant? I see your parents had a sense of humour." He furrowed his brow and looked at her, Legolas was right, her tongue was quite sharp. "Now, why are you here, Rilien?"

"The King has asked that you dress appropriately and attend the Feast of Starlight. I am to escort you," he replied, trying to put aside the comment she had made about his name.

"Really? Odd, why you and not the Prince? That is what protocol would usually entail would it not?" she asked thoughtfully. He had wondered that too, but then the question that Legolas had asked him in the halls came to mind. Perhaps Thranduil had his reasons for keeping them apart.

"It is not my place to question the King, my lady."

"You should look into that sometime. I myself am more about doing what's right, and not what I am told is right."

Rilien walked the halls beside Valisilwen in silence. He was deep in thought after her comments. 'I myself am more about doing what's right, and not what I am told is right.' It was an interesting concept.

They entered the Great Hall of Thranduil, Valisilwen had not changed, blatantly refusing the dress sent to her by Thranduil. Rilien knew as soon as Thranduil saw her that he was not pleased at all, but unless he actually tackled her and dressed her himself, there was nothing he could do to convince her otherwise. And he did not want to cause any offence considering her very close ties to Lord Elrond.

"Does Thranduil always have that sour appearance upon his face?" she whispered, leaning her head towards him as he led her to the table. He bit his tongue, not allowing her the satisfaction of responding to the not so subtle insult.

He spent the evening, explaining the feast to Valisilwen and discussing the differences between the Wood elves and the elves of which she grew up with. He actually found it increasingly fascinating that this Ranger had lived amongst the land of elves. Such a thing he did not know would have ever been possible if he had not been sitting across from her and hearing it for himself.

One question he did want to ask, but thought better to ask. Why was she in such a situation as to need someone to take her in?

They were discussing different methods of archery training when Valisilwen suddenly seemed to focus on something else. She looked to the doorway, before a smile graced her lips. "Oh my," she said with a smirk.

Rilien looked up and saw Tauriel and a company of elves sprinting past the door. He looked back at Legolas in alarm, who quickly got up from where he sat and hurried through the door. Rilien pressed his lips together, he wanted to run after them, every instinct said that he should be there helping them. He turned to Valisilwen who was looking at him knowingly. "Time decide what kind of person you are, Rilien."

He glanced at Thranduil, who was watching the doorway that Legolas had run through with mild concern. Finally, Rilien grabbed Valisilwen's hand and ran out the door.

"Come on," he said turning to follow.

Valisilwen slipped her hand from his grasp. "I'll meet you out there."

"Out where?" he asked in confusion, as she went to run back to her room. He didn't even know what was going on, yet she acted as if she did.

Rilien ran through the corridors towards the cellar, there he found Tauriel and Legolas standing looking around the room. "What's going on?" Rilien asked looking puzzled.

"The dwarves are gone," Tauriel said, looking at the keeper of the keys.

Legolas looked at Rilien and past him. "Where is the Ranger?" he asked.

Rilien gulped as both Legolas and Tauriel looked at him expectantly. "I returned her to her room." Tauriel and Legolas looked at each other briefly before turning to run toward the gate. Rilien released a breath he had been holding, glad that they didn't question his answer any further.

They rushed outside, Tauriel and Legolas leading the way to where they could meet the river. "You say they escaped in empty wine barrels?" Rilien asked, he couldn't help but be impressed by such ingenuity. The Woodland Realm had a system in place with the town of men on the lake, by way of sending empty barrels down the river that flowed through Mirkwood, and they would then fill them with supplies and deliver them back to the realm.

They emerged from the gateway and saw the dwarves floating away. Legolas looked ahead to see the river gate was open. "Shut the gate!"

An elf blew its horn as the dwarves rounded the corner. The elves hurried to the gate, where the elf guards had drawn their swords and were about to grab the dwarves, who were now trapped by a heavy metal sluice gate.

As one reached down, it was suddenly shot in the back by a black arrow.

"Orcs!" Rilien shouted, drawing his own bow and arrow as several Orcs began scrambling over the wall of the gate. He fired the arrow and shot an Orc who tried to stab one of the elven guards.

They were soon at the gate, Rilien drew his sword and began fighting off Orcs as they ran towards him, trying to kill anything that stood in their way.

As he continued to fight off Orcs, he noticed one of the dwarves had scrambled from his barrel and rushed towards the lever that opened the gate. He was unarmed and ducked as an Orc took a swing at him with a scimitar.

"Kili!" another shouted, catching the dwarf's attention. He was thrown a sword that had been snatched up from a fallen elf, which he put to use immediately, dispatching with another Orc who tried to get in his way. Rilien continued to fight away Orcs, as he moved closer to the gate. He ducked as an Orc tried to take a swing at him with a club, slashing it across the stomach and then it's neck.

He looked back up to see the dwarf, Kili, was fighting with another Orc, oblivious that there was another sneaking up behind him. "Watch out!" he shouted, without much hope it would help at all, but suddenly an arrow shot through the Orcs head. Rilien slayed another Orc ad looked to where the arrow had come, to see Valisilwen standing on an embankment with bow in hand.

She ran down the hill, still shooting arrows as she went, stopping only to draw a sword and fight Orcs that noticed her as she joined the fray.

It's getting interesting now.

xo

Krayzee