The Masquerade

Tears lulled her to a tired nap until the sky turned dark. Dinner was already laid on the table as Erenien walked into the dining room, ignoring the thousand questions in her mind. She spared a long glance at the empty chair at the head of the table and sat down, dragging her chair a good few feet away from it.

The sun had set an hour ago, and the nightbirds had already begun their melodies. There was no sign of Thranduil. A part of her was thankful for that, which delayed him. Erenien gulped some water as her stomach grumbled for the third time in half an hour. Surely he wouldn't mind if she ate ahead of him!

Suddenly, there were footsteps from the corridor, and she braced herself. A moment later, an ellon in Thranduil's service walked in, and she let out a relieved sigh.

"My Lord Thranduil will be delayed. He asked that you not wait for him." His posture was all too stiff, and the slightest hint of tension was evident in his tone. Erenien nodded in assent, and he quickly returned the way he came.

He could have told me this earlier!

Irritated, she served herself the bread and meat and ate to her fill. But it wasn't enough to satisfy her mind. She needed to know what happened to Legolas, and if no one was willing to speak about it, she would find it by herself.

(***)

The library was silent except for the sound of wind seeping through the open windows. The high chandelier was not lit, leaving the rows upon rows of shelves—both wooden and stone—in darkness. Yet through the windows high up, moonlight shone, glowing silver on the metallic veins of several of the books. A lone candle shone atop a table at the far corner to her right, and Erenien walked towards it. Someone cleared his throat, and Findir stepped into the light.

"You are late." He stated.

"I am late because my dear father didn't come to dinner!" She bit down on the words and chose to simply nod instead of offering an apology.

"Please be seated," he motioned towards a chair. If he was offended by her response, his composure showed nothing. Erenien sat down while he seated himself across from her.

"You might be wondering about the incidents of this afternoon." He said it in a very formal tone. "And you must have seen our messengers to Rivendell return."

"Where is Legolas?" She asked without pretence. The silence, even though it lasted only for a few moments was making her nervous, and it was good enough for all kinds of ill thoughts.

"Before you jump to any conclusions, the Prince is safe." He started, leaning forward and placing both his arms on the table. Her face must have mirrored her thoughts.

"...for now." It was easy to fill in those unspoken words, though she dared not voice them.

He spoke again, his voice low, as if he himself didn't believe what he was saying. "He has embarked on a quest to save our world."

It took a few moments of silence for the words to sink in. "Tell me how exactly he is planning to do that." She breathed. "And where is he headed for?"

Erenien saw him suppress a wince at the thought, and a dark corner of her mind was somewhat gladdened at the sight. It was quite rare to see Findir with anything other than that constant frown and indifference on his face.

"They've found the Ring and they are going to cast it into the Orodruin."

Erenien was suddenly thankful for the chair that supported her. Birds beyond the window went to silence as if time itself had frozen. She stared into his eyes, her mind going blank. Seeing her reaction, he carefully produced a letter from his coat's pocket and handed it over.

"This is for you."

Erenien snapped back to the present. Uncaring to hide the tremble in her hands, she took the letter. On its cover was written her name in elegant curls, in dark ink which glinted coppery red as she turned it towards the light. The letter was sealed with an expensive kind of wax rarely available in Greenwood. On it was embossed the sigil of the prince of Eryn Galen. Erenien stood up abruptly, the scrape of her chair breaking the brooding silence of the library. With a mumbled "Thank you," she shot out of the room, the letter a dead weight clutched in her hand.

In the light of the lone candle in the privacy of her room, the letter was opened. The paper smelled of spring. Yet it didn't help calm her pounding heart. The perfect curves of Legolas' script greeted her.

My dear Ery,

By the time you read this letter, I will have already left the safety of Imladris. I don't consider myself worthy enough for a venture like this. But I knew that this had to be done. Yes, this is the right thing to do. Know that I am leaving without a fragment of doubt in my mind. It is my deepest wish and hope that I will return home one day. But I don't know when we will meet again. But surely we shall either be on these shores or in the lands beyond the sea. Take good care of Ada and Tauriel for my sake. And stay strong, for you are braver than you think and far more courageous than you ever believed yourself to be. I know you might want to shout at me. You all would want to. Save them for the time we meet. May the grace of the Valar keep you safe.

With love,

Legolas

Erenien read through the lines over and over again as if it would help her believe what she heard at the library. Her anger towards Thranduil and Tauriel's indifference was suddenly replaced by pity. Both of them had lost almost everyone they loved and cared for. Legolas might become their latest loss.

Be silent! She wanted to shout at herself for breeding such ill thoughts. Legolas was alive and well. He would be having companions to take care of him. That was when she realised that she hadn't asked further about the nature of this quest. She felt a sudden urge to visit her father, to hug him tightly and weep on his chest, to tell him that Legolas would come back just fine.

You are not even sure of that… The thought came slithering to her mind, where shame for the events of that evening and pity towards her father warred for dominance. At last, when she managed to rest, the morning birds were singing and the letter was still clutched tight to her chest.

(***)

He is gone! He promised that he would return. He promised that we would have a life together. Now he is walking into his doom, and I would never know what happened to him…

When she heard the words from the returned messengers, it felt as if the very soil at her feet was slowly drifting away and she was falling down into a chasm of darkness. It took all her willpower not to bolt out of the room and weep in a lonely corner. Nobody ever saw Tauriel cry. Not even her mother past her childhood. Her tears were reserved for the darkness of her room, with only the low-burning candles as witnesses. That night was not so different.

As the tears subsided, giving way to numbness, Tauriel rose from her bed, from the cocoon of crumpled bed sheets. She couldn't show such weakness when her people needed her. Tauriel washed her tear-stained face, combed and braided her auburn hair and tied it firmly on her head, and put on the mask that she had managed to make- one of surety. She would walk on, head held high, her blades wickedly sharp for the oncoming war, for she never believed that the creatures of the dark would still choose to hide. Not when their master finally returned. She knew one thing for sure: she wouldn't be the only one in the masquerade.