Hi guys I hope everyone had a great Easter if you celebrate it and if not I hope you had a great holidays :D Sorry for another delay with the chapter but this one is a bit of a long one so I hope that makes up for it! Anyways - enjoy!
They were shown to their rooms, with Tauriel saying nothing the entire way to hers, only nodding her thanks to Hama as she slipped inside her designated chambers. She scanned the room, it was quite plain, but there was a bed, a chair, a small table, a mirror hanging on the wall and a small window with a view looking out across the plains they had previously run across. She sat down in the chair, sighing as she did so. She had been so immersed in finding Merry and Pippin and then Gandalf she had almost forgotten about Thranduil. But Legolas had brought him back into her mind, and now she realised she was letting him get too close. For Hama to mistake them as anything more than friends, that was the only sign she needed.
She stood, walking towards the mirror hanging on the wall. She gently undid her braids and ran her fingers through her hair. Her fingers grazed the back of her neck and felt the cool touch of metal. She suddenly remembered Galadriel's final gift to her. She reached under her tunic, pulling the pendant up from where it rested on her chest, the chain was long enough that she could keep it hidden beneath her clothes, and even she had forgotten about it.
She looked down at the water inside the pendant, the colour was now a dark grey, she could hardly see through the vial. She gulped, the memory of Galadriel's mirror immeadiatly coming to her mind. She pushed it back, it was not something she needed to see right now. But still, she found herself wondering if she should just tell him. 'Why should you let Thranduil control you?' she found herself asking. 'Because he is your king and was kind enough to let you back into the kingdom after you betrayed him,' she reminded herself. She tucked the pendant back underneath her tunic and sighed once more as she lay down on the bed, although she doubted she would be finding much sleep before dinner.
Legolas also, simply nodded thanks at Hama as he entered his room. And he also was deep in thought. He was pondering Tauriel's immeadiate refusal of sharing a room. He too didn't want to share a room here, she was right, their relationship was not of that nature and he did not want people to get the wrong idea. He had been about to deny the offer himself but Tauriel's almost shriek of 'no' had interrupted him. She had seemed panicked at the suggestion and he couldn't understand why.
All the companions stayed in their room until sundown, when three of them walked out into the throne room again. Tauriel however stayed in her room. As Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas walked together into the hall, they saw two young children hungrily eating at one of the wooden tables lining the room. The young Lady, who they had been informed was Eowyn, the King's neice and sister to the horse lord Eomer who they had met while tracking down the Hobbits, sat with the children, she had changed outfits and was dressed in a deep blue gown. King Theoden sat on his throne once more, and Gandalf was seated at his side.
"There is food for you on the table over there," she said softly as they entered, nodding towards another table. They sat down, and Gimli immeadiatly started on the food, Aragorn and Legolas joined him, both finishing quickly. Aragorn lit his pipe and began smoking while Legolas sat next to them, not saying much. Gimli looked at him curiously, "Will Tauriel not join us tonight then?" he asked.
"Ask her yourself Gimli, I have not spoken to her this afternoon," Legolas replied softly.
"Well," Gimli exclaimed, "She needs to eat something, and if you won't visit her room, I will." The dwarf stood from the table, heading back along the hallway to her room.
Aragorn turned his head to look at his friend, about to ask what was bothering the female elf. Before he could ask however, Legolas sighed, "Don't ask, for I do not know the answer either," he said. Aragorn simply nodded.
Gimli soon returned, Tauriel trailing slightly behind him. She did not say a word as she sat down at the table, and she didn't look at anyone, simply staring down at the table as she ate the food Gimli pushed towards her. The hall was filled with silence, the only sounds were the slurps of the two children, hungrily eating the food provided for them.
Suddenly, Eowyn stood. "They had no warning. They were unarmed. Now the wildmen are moving through the Westfold, burning as they go. Rick, cot and tree."
Theoden lent his head into his hand as his neice spoke. Eowyn turned back to the children, placing a blanket over the young girl.
"Where's Mama?" the young girl asked and Legolas and Tauriel both glanced at her. Both found themselves hoping desperatly that this girl's mother was alive somewhere. They knew all too well how hard it was to grow up without one.
Eowyn shushed the girl gently. Before turning to look at her uncle and King. Gandalf was the one to respond first, telling Theoden "This is but a taste of the terror that Saruman will unleash. All the more potent for he is driven now by fear of Sauron. Ride out and meet him head on. Draw him away from your women and children." Gandalf leant towards Theoden, placing a hand on his arm. "We must fight." he said.
Aragorn spoke up next, "You have two thousand good men riding north as we speak. Eomer is loyal to you. His men will return and fight for their King."
Theoden rose, walking towards Aragorn. "They will be three hundred leagues from here by now. Eomer cannot help us, I know what it is that you want of me, but I will not bring death to my people. I will not risk open war."
Gimli took a bite of bread, eyes shifting between Aragorn and Theoden.
"Open war is upon you, whether you would risk it or not." Aragorn pointed out.
"When last I looked, Theoden not Aragorn, was King of Rohan," Theoden shot back.
"Then what is the King's decision?" Gandalf asked walking forward.
Theoden turned towards the wizard, pausing a moment, before murmuring, "Helm's Deep. That is my decision, we will head to Helm's Deep. We leave in the morning."
Once more, silence settled in the Golden Hall. Theoden strode out of the room and Eowyn started to usher the young children out as well. Gandalf stood in front of the four of them. He sighed, raising his eyebrows at them "One cannot say I did not try," he murmured. "I would much rather Theoden make a stand here, rather than expose the women and children on the hike to Helm's Deep."
"Not all women are defenceless," Tauriel said, she was tired of hearing people worry about the 'women and children'.
"Apologies, Tauriel," Gandalf said, bowing his head slightly before continuing. "Nethertheless, all the people from Edoras will be exposed on the journey to Helm's Deep, exposed to whatever troops Saruman may send our way. You will need to be vigilent in the journey," he said.
"You will not be accompanying us?" Legolas asked, picking up on the 'you' in Gandalf's previous sentence.
"No, but I plan to meet you at Helm's Deep." Gandalf replied. "Now, I also plan to get some sleep before riding off tomorrow. I suggest you all do the same." And with that, he turned strolling towards his room.
Gimli rose from the table, "Aye, that sounds like a good plan to me," he said, also walking towards his own room.
Aragorn too, stood from the table and nodded to the elves before leaving. Tauriel stood quickly, not looking Legolas' way as she made to walk away, but as she walked past him, his hand shot out and grabbed her arm. "Are you going to tell me why Hama's words caused you this much stress Tauriel?" he said softly.
"It... it just startled me, that's all," she replied. "I mean, he thought a Sylvan elf and a Prince to be a couple."
Legolas tilted his head, Tauriel had never been very much concerned with social standings. Why was she all of a sudden concerned with maintaining social structures? He opened his mouth to question her on it but she pulled away. He realised he was still holding her arm and let go.
"With your permission, My Lord, I too will retire," she said.
His frown deepened. "Tauriel, it is not my place to grant you permission to sleep," he told her. She ducked her head, turning quickly and heading to her room. Legolas looked after her, watching her leave. She still puzzled him greatly, one moment she was pointing out that women can fight also, and the next she was asking his permission to leave. He looked away, eyes drifting around the hall. Eowyn had returned without the children, and was looking in his direction. Apart from her, the hall was relativly empty, a few gaurds were still positioned towards the entrance but they didn't line the walls anymore. He nodded slightly to Eowyn, before following Tauriel's path to his own room.
Neither elf slept well that night, despite the warmth and comfort of a bed for the first time in days. Tauriel found herself stuck in her dreams once more, but this time, her dreams were not of Legolas' death.
Tauriel looked around her, she recognised her surroundings immeadiatly, it was the Great Hall back in the Greenwood. Thranduil stood at the head of the room, two elves stood before him and behind them, nearly the entire Kingdom watched. But every elf in the room was still, not a single person moved. She walked slowly towards the three elves at the head of the room, but before she even got close to them she could tell who the male elf was. The blonde hair of Legolas rested against his back, but it was matched by the she elf beside him. Her blonde hair also flowed down her back, braided intricitly. She was dressed all in white, in a flowing dress that spread out behind her as she stood beside Legolas. Tauriel stepped around the elves, wanting to see her face. Sure enough, her skin was fair and her features were perfect, and she had piercing blue eyes. If the two were seen by a stranger, they could have been mistaken as siblings. But they were clearly not siblings. She tore her gaze away from the female, looking instead to the elf she had once called her friend. Her eyes scanned his face, was he happy? Sad? She couldn't tell, normally she could read him, but now his face was masked, neutral.
Suddenly, she felt a breath against her neck. She didn't turn, she kept her gaze on her prince. "You thought he would love you forever? You thought he would still love you after all you put him through?" Thranduil's voice hissed in her ear. "Look at her, the perfect bride for the perfect Prince. You can't compete."
"Oh I can compete," Tauriel hissed back. She was aware this was a dream, she could defy her King all she wanted in a dream. She reached down and grabbed her dagger, twirling it easily in her hands. "Can she fight? Can she kill?" she questioned. "Legolas isn't interested in someone who can arrange flowers and sew clothes."
"But she can rule," Thranduil whispered. "She knows how to run a kingdom Tauriel. Do you?"
"I know how to run an army, Thanduil, your army."
"And that's where you belong, fighting in battles, not marrying a Prince."
She spun around angrily, her dagger instantly going to Thranduil's chest, "I belong with your son." she said, looking him in the eyes.
Tauriel's eyes shot open, darting around the room. A glance out of the window told her it was early morning. She sat on the side of the bed and reached for her boots. She quickly braided her hair and grabbed all her weapons before leaving the room, heading once more for the throne room. Thranduil's words were still echoing in her head, as well as her own final words, 'I belong with your son."
How long until she tells him? I actually don't know yet :P Anyways, comment/review/leave suggestions - I really appreciate them! And if you guys are getting a little impatient waiting for Tauriel and Legolas to admit their love I would recommend checking out a story called Home is Behind The World is Ahead, by Elvengirl247 - well worth the read, and an amazing story and it is of course, Legriel. Also if you have a story you think I would enjoy or want me to read, don't hesitate to recommend it - I'm always looking for new fics to follow :P