After the incident out in the forest, Tauriel had become very restless and often she was lost in thought. Legolas could sense that there was something on her mind that she could not let go off but would refuse to tell him. He thought that Tauriel regretted what she had done. After all, he too had his share of regrets and whenever he thought of it, he would tense up. He knew that he had done nothing at all to protect Tauriel and felt ashamed about his utter helplessness.
But then he knew that he could not change what had happened, that it would be of no use to him to further dwell upon it and with that and his father not mentioning the matter any longer, he put his mind at rest.
Tauriel, however, knew that she could not do so, not even if she tried. The fact that she had not been able to inflict any noteable harm upon the orc who had killed her mother was plaguing her, even at night. She hated orcs. She hated the evil they brought to this world and the pain which they had caused her with all her soul. The longer she thought about it, the more her anger and hatred grew. Tauriel was aware that Legolas despised orcs too for elves never liked orcs but she felt as though he did not understand the urgency of their situation.
If an incident like this were to happen once more with her helplessly lying on the ground and letting those filthy creatures abuse her and her loved ones, she would not be able to ever forgive herself.
The elfling went on like this for some time until one evening, she plucked up all of her courage, put down the book she had been trying to study and left a stunned Legolas behind in the library who was wondering what had gotten into her all of a sudden. Tauriel decisively marched towards the king's chambers and loudly knocked at the door.
Soon, she was granted admission and found the king standing at his desk appearing to study a large map. Though when she looked upon the king's stern expression who seemed to be somewhat vexed about the fact that she was disturbing him at this hour, she became intimidated, as she often would in Thranduil's presence. Tauriel knew that what she had to say now would be asking a lot of him and he probably would not like it either.
Slowly she came closer to him and when the king looked upon her enquiringly, wondering what she was up to, Tauriel fell upon her knees and Thranduil's eyes widened in surprise if only for a second.
`My lord, since you have saved and so kindly accepted me in your halls and chambers, I have been nothing but a burden to both you and your son. I do not want you to carry it any longer. I still feel very upset about what happened out in the forest and you should know that the orc who attacked me was the one who had killed my mother. It should have been my duty alone to put an end to his life, but it was you who was forced to do it instead. I am not a fool and I know I could not take down a single orc on my own...´
Thranduil looked down upon the elfling, patiently listening to what she had to say. He understood what the little one was feeling and did not blame her half as harshly for what she had done as Tauriel thought. He was aware that despite her young years, Tauriel knew bitterness and she wanted revenge for what so unjustifiably had been done to her. Out in the forest, a spark in her heart had caused a fire that was now burning so hot within her, Thranduil knew it would not lessen or be tamed until she got what she wanted. She wanted to fight back, but did not know how!
`I'm weak! So weak I can not protect anyone, not even myself. This is why I have come to you, my lord. I do not doubt that you are the most capable warrior in Middle-earth and it would be a sheer honour if you would teach me how to fight alongside your son! I promise to you I will do anything not to disappoint you, put all I have learned to good use and be of service to you for as long as you wish!´
Thranduil was silent and Tauriel was growing impatient for an answer, although she did not dare to raise her head.
Finally he spoke: `I agree with your decision and permit you to train alongside my son. If it is your wish to learn how to fight then you may.´
She could barely contain her joy but then he continued...
`But Tauriel, you are only an elfling and never have I known one that would be fit to fight even a single orc. You are no exception. Both you and Legolas are still too young to be dealing with weapons, so until you are older, you must learn to be patient and command your emotions...´
Tauriel was on the verge of tears and Thranduil could see her little body quivering with rage. If Thranduil had learned anything about Tauriel's behaviour and previous actions, it was that this little elfling had a broad mind of her own and he knew her recklessness would not be easy to control, especially once she grew up and became an elleth. His son was independent of him too and entirely different from what Thranduil had been like at that age. Legolas was a lot like his mother in that aspect. Still he knew his father well and was willing to follow his orders, wishes and ideals as he would always try to understand the reasons behind them. The king wasn't so sure about Tauriel though.
Yet, Thranduil saw something special in that little elfling and was very curious about her future training and as to how well she would do.
He ordered her to stand so that he could look into her eyes and Tauriel was surprised to see the king kneel down infront of her. They were almost face to face now and Tauriel quickly wiped over her eyes with her hand to prevent any tears from slipping through her eyelashes.
`Now, listen to me Tauriel...´ Thranduil placed a hand on her shoulder.
`I'm not doing this to tease you. You said it was your duty to take down the orc who killed your mother and I understand you are very upset about what happened. Still as king it is my duty to protect and take care of my kin; to protect and take care of you. I'm only doing what your adar and naneth would have done for you and indeed have done for you already! So now stop being cross with me and your patience will be rewarded for I'm sure you will become a great and skilful fighter when time has come!´
Thranduil usually was not overly affectionate or praising and didn't bother with many words. Indeed he would share his thoughts only with the very few people he felt were worthy of it. So Tauriel felt great comfort the moment he spoke these words and promised to herself once more that she would not disappoint him.
Hesitantly, she took a step forward and hugged him lightly, carefully locking her small arms around his neck and feeling his soft silver-blonde hair tickle her cheek. She was relieved when Thranduil returned the hug and embraced her with his arms, pulling her closer to him. Her adar had often hugged her like this and she missed it so much. Tauriel burried her face in Thranduil's shoulder and inhaled his scent which was unfamiliar to her and could not quite define but she liked it.
They remained like this for a while until Thranduil eventually let go of her. Tauriel then looked up at Thranduil with such innocence and purity in her eyes typical of an elven child that he could not resist the urge, leaned towards her and planted a soft kiss upon her forehead. At first, Tauriel was so surprised that she forgot to breath for a few seconds and her cheeks turned slightly red. Then a big smile spead across her face and Thranduil chuckled softly. He would never openly admit to it but he too had enjoyed their embrace. He could sense Tauriel was starting to trust him more.
`Now, don't you want to go back to Legolas?! I still have some matters to attend to and he surely will be wondering what is taking so long.´
Tauriel nodded and bowed to him, still smiling. With that same smile on her face she returned to Legolas and fell asleep that night while her friend was still wondering what had gotten into her...
Note: Sorry about the delay and also the lack of action obviously, but I felt like I already had enough of that last chapter. These past weeks have been kinda tough on me so I was in the mood to write some fluff. Hope you liked it.