BlondiezHere: Me and my cliffhangers. Oh, there's gonna be a hashing alright.

Transformers' BABY: Thank you. Here's the update.

Guest: I write my fanfictions like I would write a book. If this was a book, that cliffhanger would make a perfect chapter ending, but you wouldn't complain about it because you could just read the next chapter instantly without having to wait. I know cliffhangers with fanfictions are not fun for my readers, but I keep doing them because it keeps them interested. Glad you like my story.

pink bunny: One reviewer tells me to stop with the cliffhangers; another reviewer loves them. I'm so confused.

booksfoodmusic-minion: It makes the scene in Dol Guldur that much more funny.

Disclaimer: I do not own "The Hobbit."

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Chapter 19: Tears and Reasons

Thranduil turned around and faced Sarah when he heard the door open. Her face was blank for a moment, but then it turned angry.

"What are you doing here?" Sarah growled at her father, who winced at her tone.

"We need to talk," he said in a low voice.

"I've heard all you have to say," Sarah spat out, "and I don't want to hear any more from you."

"No, you have not," Thranduil replied, "and I do not care it you do not want to hear what I have to say. I am going to say it anyway and you are going to listen."

Sarah turned around and made to walk towards Edana's room, but a hand on her arm pulled her back and Thranduil closed the door, standing in front of it to prevent Sarah from leaving.

"Sit," he said, pointing to one of the two chairs at a table in the corner of the room.

Sarah, knowing that this wouldn't be like the last time they had a serious talk, reluctantly sat down, crossing her arms and glaring at her father. Thranduil pulled out the other chair and sat down, still placing himself between Sarah and the door.

"Let me explain why I did what I did," he began.

"I heard what you told Elrond," Sarah interrupted. "You thought, for some reason, that I would be safer here. Obviously, I wasn't. I was attacked by orcs."

"You were attacked because you ran off by yourself with no fighting experience into an unfamiliar land," Thranduil retorted. "If we had not arrived when we had, you would have been killed."

"I would rather be killed by orcs than live the rest of my immortal life knowing that my own father didn't want me!"

Silence. Sarah had been glaring at her father the whole time and didn't let up, even when she saw the confused and incredibly hurt look on Thranduil's face.

"You think I do not want you?" he asked in a voice so low that Sarah almost didn't hear him. "Nothing could be further from the truth."

"Oh, my apologies," Sarah said in her most sarcastic voice. "I should have known that you leaving me behind in Rivendell was actually a sign that you wanted me. My mistake."

"I do not want to see you end up like your mother!"

That threw Sarah off. She didn't have time to respond, however, before Thranduil started talking again.

"Your mother's death haunted me for many years. It haunts me still. I blame myself for staying away for so long, for not returning home fast enough. I blame myself for not doing a good enough job in protecting our borders and allowing a pack of orcs to attack. I blame myself for not being able to protect her and forcing her to reveal her powers to the orcs at all. Her death was my fault.

"When you came to Mirkwood, and I saw your mark and Gandalf revealed who you are, I was terrified. I was unable to protect my own wife from those who feared her powers. How was I supposed to protect my daughter who had the same powers? I was not going to allow such a tragedy to happen again. I would not be able to bear the guilt if any harm were to come upon you because of me.

"Mirkwood was not safe, but Rivendell was. Not only is it a difficult place to find by normal means, but it is also protected by magic in several ways. I knew that you would be safe from orcs here, and. . ." He paused for a moment, taking a deep breath. "And you would also be safe from me."

He stopped talking, and Sarah noticed a single tear fall from his eye, the moonlight reflecting off the tear as it made its way down Thranduil's face. She didn't quite know how to respond to everything he had said, so she just decided to say what she had wanted to say to him since she first overheard his plans to leave her behind.

"You broke my heart," she whispered, looking Thranduil directly in the eyes. "I thought of several horrible reasons for why you would want to leave me behind. I heard what you said to Lord Elrond, but I thought that maybe you were just using that as an excuse to cover up the real reason. I couldn't stay here, and I knew I couldn't return to Mirkwood. I couldn't be anywhere that would be a constant reminder to me that my own father didn't want me anywhere near him. All the pain I ever felt at the hands of my dad couldn't compare to that, and he hurt me a lot.

"But you already know that. You heard what I said to Idhrenion, and you told me you heard what I said. And then you said that you wouldn't hurt me.

"You lied."

"I did not lie. I. . ."

"Yes, you did," Sarah interrupted him. "You said you wouldn't hurt me, but you did anyway. I told you I needed time to heal, and I was starting to. I know I pushed you away at first, but I thought we'd gotten close over the last few weeks. And now you're the one pushing me away."

"So now you know how I felt during those first couple of months," Thranduil said, trying to get a word in.

"But I let you back into my life," Sarah continued, refusing to let up. "It was always my intention to let you back in when I was ready. You were pushing me away forever."

"I was not pushing you away forever," Thranduil protested. "I was still going to let you be in my life."

"When would I be in your life?" Sarah asked. "Whenever you visited Rivendell? How often do you do that? Once every fifty years? Every century? Would I ever be allowed to visit Mirkwood, or would I be condemned to stay in Rivendell and never leave, trapped here like a prisoner? All you care about is what you want and what you think. Did you ever once stop to think about what I want or what I think?" She stood up.

"You're my father, Thranduil," she continued, "so start treating me like a daughter rather than a subject and maybe I'll start treating you like a father rather than an ruler."

She walked around Thranduil and opened the door, expecting him to grab her and pull her back. But he did nothing. Thranduil just sat there, staring at where Sarah had been sitting, as his daughter walked out of her room and towards Edana's. It was only when he heard her footsteps fade away that he let the rest of his tears fall.

When Edana got back to her room, after asking Elrond question after question about his in-laws, she was surprised to see Sarah sitting on the bed. Tear marks were evident on her face.

"What's wrong?" Edana asked, walking over to her. "What happened? Is it Thranduil? Did he do something again?"

Sarah just shook her head, not wanting to reveal the details of her very personal conversation with her father. Edana sat down next to her cousin-turned-sister and held her as she started crying again.

The next morning, the party from Mirkwood set out to return home.

Including Sarah.

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How was it? What did you think of their conversation? Was it too cheesy? Was it too much? There will be one more chapter after this. Please review and let me know your thoughts.