Chapter 61

Blowing a Fuse

"How strange," Erynlith murmured to herself, as she looked behind her shoulder and observed the quiet forest.

Thranduil stopped from walking and turned to look at her, a small frown forming on his face. It had been hours since he met her in the rivershore, since they went back to the banquet halls for breakfast, and since the last Nandorin elf walked passed them and greeted Erynlith. Now, the sun was setting, spilling its golden lights across the whole forest.

"What is strange?"

She glanced at him for a while, and then looked around again. She seemed to be waiting for something to happen. Lórinand so peaceful was disquieting, and without Amroth, it seemed too bleak and lifeless. But her thoughts were far from thinking about her drowned cousin; she thought of someone who was supposed to be with her, but was not there.

"I haven't seen Glorfindel since this morning."

Not until she walked back to him with a worried look on her face did Thranduil realize he was frowning, a deep growl emanating from the back of his throat. The feeling was foreign, though he thought it was akin to something being ignored; and he did not like that feeling. Silent as he was, he continued to observe her, how she would turn around every once in a while, fidgeting whether what to do. She looked lost, and as the sun went down and the forest became darker, she looked scared and uncomfortable.

At length, he gave up his frown.

"Where did you last see him?" Thranduil made sure his voice was neutral; he did not want to give her the impression that she was free to search for the golden-haired warrior. He was not quite done with her yet.

She fidgeted again. "Back at the rivershore, this morning. I thought he would be waiting for me, but he's not. I hope he is all right."

He turned his head to the side so she would not see his eyes rolling. It made him realize that both Erynlith and Glorfindel seemed to depend on each other, and that Thranduil had no place to come in between them. He watched in complete frustration as she bit her lower lip and sighed.

"Fine." He rolled his eyes again. "Let's go back to the palace and look for him."

"Yes." She enthusiastically nodded and led the way.

Back at the courtyard in front of the palace, all the Nandorin elves who saw her and the King of Greenwood arriving halted from their steps and bowed at once. Thranduil regarded them with a sharp look, his eyes assessing each of the bowed heads, including the wardens that Glorfindel no doubt stationed to guard the palace. Beside him, he saw Erynlith was frowning, not exactly amused of her wardens.

She caught glimpse of Rúmil and waved him to her. Her frown did not leave her face when he bowed. "You called, my Lady?"

"...Right. Um, have you seen Glorfindel? He should be around but I cannot find him, tra-lay."

"Lord Glorfindel has gone to keep watch in the northern borders," Rúmil informed her, glancing up from his bow. Then, he remembered that he was not supposed to look her in the eye when talking, because Orophin said it was disrespectful. He immediately bowed low again.

Her eyebrow rose at his peculiar actions. "Northern borders? What does he need to keep watch? Wargs again?"

"No, my Lady." Rúmil shook his head, a strand of his silver-gold hair spilling from his braid. "He intends to keep watch on those dwarves who tried to attack months ago, or so I heard."

She noticed that the young scout was balking away from her. She was then painfully aware that her voice sounded demanding, and that she had been frowning the whole time.

"I am sorry, Rúmil," she whispered and placed her hand on his shoulder.

Thranduil watched with great interest, and smirked.

"Sorry to sound so harsh," Erynlith continued. "Thank you for telling me where Glorfindel is. I shall fetch him myself." When Rúmil straightened himself from his bow, with a confused look on his face, she only smiled and winked at him.

Rúmil blinked as he watched the Lady passed him. Again, he remembered that she had not given official orders for the marchwardens yet. "What about your orders, my Lady?"

She gave him a questioning look. "What orders?"

Eryn is far from ready, Thranduil thought. He could not help but observe how she interacted with the elves that she was supposed to be ruling. Watching her now looking as confused as the young scout, he knew she was hopeless. She was not raised to rule a kingdom, and never received education how to do so. Amroth must have been out of his mind when he asked his cousin to take his place, and was insane to drown in the Sea to leave the forest in this chaos. Amroth did it for love they say, but it was a suicide.

"Well, you see..." Rúmil stammered, unsure how to explain.

"He means you need to give direct orders about the next movements," Thranduil finally interrupted, unable to bear the pathetic air of cluelessness hanging in the air.

Now, Erynlith turned to him with the same questioning look. "What?"

Thranduil closed his eyes and sighed. "The wardens cannot do anything without your orders, Eryn. Give one now and they would follow." If she was a counsellor in Greenwood, he would have shouted at her face. The Elvenking had no time to waste for these types of things; but it was different with Erynlith.

Rúmil's face brightened as he nodded in agreement.

"Oh, I see," Erynlith drawled, and looked at the grassy floor. Her bare feet was caked with mud and bits of grass protruded from between her toes. She thought for a while, one finger tapping her chin, until she finally came up with one. She looked at Rúmil and smiled. "Just call me Erfaron and we're good to go."

"But that's not—" Thranduil growled again when she sprinted off and disappeared into the thick columns of mallorn. He glanced at the young scout and noticed that even Rúmil did not know how to handle this. "Keep watching the borders," the Elvenking told him. "It should do for now."

"Yes, my Lord." Rúmil bowed again and ran for the barracks.

Left alone now and quite ignored by the Nandorin folk, Thranduil felt rather lonely. What Raithon said was true, that the elves of Lórinand could care less about the King of Greenwood being here; their priority was the well-being of their Lady, even if she happened to be so clueless and laidback. He would have wanted to run after her, in pursuance of her company, but he could not do that once Glorfindel was in sight. Just thinking about it made his stomach turn and his jaw clench.

Fine, Thranduil thought begrudgingly. Let him have her for a while, because he is such a little elfling.

Despite the harsh blowing of the wind and the nearby waves of the lake, Glorfindel could hear soft footsteps coming towards him. Even then, he did not tear his sapphire eyes away from the Mirrormere, with its waters reflecting the Moon above. His eyes narrowed when the usually two dwarf-guards were joined by another three, all wearing black leather studded with dark red jewels. Most of the dwarf-guards had axes and maces; others occasionally showed up with daggers. Even then, his resolve did not stagger a little. He had heard from Orophin that these dwarves had hurt King Amroth before, and would no doubt care less to hurt Lórinand's new ruler.

Finally, the footsteps stopped just behind him, but he did not need to turn around to know who it was.

"Glorfindel, what are you doing here?" Erynlith rubbed her hands together. She shivered when the cold blast of air from the Misty Mountains hit her like a wave.

"Observing," he answered curtly, still not taking his eyes off the bearded creatures across the Mirrormere. He was wearing his silver-plated armour with the blue sigil of Imladris; his sword was in place, and so were the two daggers he kept hidden in his left sleeve and right boot.

She peeped at the dwarves and crouched down to sit in her haunches, just like the tensed warrior beside her. "You've been here since morning?"

"Yes, I am."

"Why? None of them are doing anything wrong, tra-lo."

"We cannot wait until they do something wrong, Eryn." His attention perked up when one of the dwarves snorted laughter and drummed at his belly.

She sighed exasperatedly. "You are overreacting, Glorfindel. Nothing wrong would happen. Let the dwarves guard their precious lake. If they claim Mirrormere as theirs, then let them. We have enough water supplies from the Great River in the south. None of us would die of thirst." She noticed that he was not listening; she pouted. "If the Great River magically dries up, we still have quite a number of rivers to choose from."

Glorfindel gave her a sincere look. "It is not just the river. It is for your safety."

"My safety? Is Lórinand unsafe like the rest of the world?"

Just as what happened with Rúmil, she was getting aware that her voice became louder and her lips curled into another tight frown. She had been doing that quite lately, she also noticed. However, she could not help it. Ever since she returned from Edhellond, she heard nothing from the Nandorin folk but "my Lady", "Your Ladyship", "do you have any orders or special requests?", or "do you feel cold and would like to have some hot soup?"

It was starting to get on her nerves that Haldir and his brothers switched from calling her Erfaron to Lady, and more so when Glorfindel made it sound as though she was helpless.

"I am just trying to look after you," Glorfindel whispered softly.

She huffed. "I am perfectly fine." She stood up and pretended to dust her already-stained dress. "Let's go back to the palace."

The warrior did not move from his spot. Instead, he kept on watching her.

"Do you want to hear an order from me?" For the first time in years, Erynlith actually snapped at him. "Fine. We are going back to the palace, Lord Glorfindel, and we are going now." She whirled around, her bare feet stomping on the ground, and the warrior had no choice but to follow.

Normally, Glorfindel would concern himself that she had sounded so cold to him. His thoughts were more focused on how anger flashed in her face, and how her eyes glared and seemed to be filled with frustration.

Of all the years Elladan and Elrohir had played a prank on her, pulled her hair, and switched her winter scarf for some smelly old blanket, Glorfindel had never seen her lose her temper. Sure she would chase the mischievous brothers all around Rivendell, but it was all just a game; by the end of the day, the three of them would return grinning and panting. Even if her brother Erestor pulled an argument with her that sometimes ended with the Chief Counselor scoffing, Erynlith never did as much as to return the shout and snap at him. She had her temper quite under her control. Always. Now, Glorfindel was not so sure.

Raithon was the first to notice about the sudden change in Erynlith's mood.

Dinner was served to the four of them: Erynlith, Glorfindel, Thranduil and himself. It even amused him how the King of Greenwood disdainfully avoided to shake the warrior's hand and took the seat next to Erynlith. In Glorfindel's turn, he only stayed quiet and sat on the other side. Raithon himself sat on Thranduil's left, waiting for the main course to be served. It seemed that everything was going well, until one of the attendants called Erynlith "my Lady" and there was suddenly a look of displease on her face.

"What news from Imladris, Lord Glorfindel?" Raithon tried to break the silence.

"All fares well. I have left the security of the valley in the hands of Elrond's sons. It should be all right for them to handle my task for the time being."

"What about Lord Erestor? Is he not coming for the coronation?"

When Erynlith looked up with a slight frown, Raithon was sure he made a mistake of mentioning it.

"What coronation?" She looked back and forth from Glorfindel and Raithon. She placed her spoon down and leaned closer to the table.

It was Glorfindel who answered. "I suppose it is only natural that we have a coronation ceremony, because you are, well, you are the new Queen."

Thranduil wiped the corners of his mouth with a table napkin, all the while waiting how she would react. Erynlith stayed quiet, although her face did show a hint of surprise and nervousness.

"By now I thought you know already," the King said carefully, not wanting to surprise her with all these information. "Remember that I had a coronation ceremony when I became King of Greenwood."

"But..." Her voice faltered uneasily. "It'd be just a waste of time. I don't want to be crowned. I am just here to help."

"Which basically means you are ruling the forest," Thranduil pointed out.

"We are not having a coronation ceremony," she announced sternly.

"How are your people going to recognize you if you—"

She got up from her chair. "I am going back to my room."

With a swirl of her skirts, she was running off and leaving her plate untouched. At once, Glorfindel was on his feet, chasing after the minstrel.

"Eryn, wait!" Glorfindel called after her.

Thranduil curled his hand into a fist. It was a terrible idea to provoke her, well-knowing that she did not want to be there in the first place. What irritated him more was the fact that that Glorfindel elf was running after her, as though he was her knight-in-shining armour. Well, Glorfindel was literally wearing armour, but it did not make him shine or anything along those lines.

Raithon sighed. "Well, what now?"

"I don't know!" Thranduil barked angrily, standing up and scraping his chair across the floor. He glared down at his friend and continued shouting. "Why don't you follow after her like that stupid warrior and tell her that everything's going to be all right, even if it won't! She keeps on evading her responsibilities but we all know that there is nothing she could do about it!" He took a long sip from his goblet, as though it would calm him down. It didn't. "Now that warrior goes in her room and tomorrow morning everything would be great again!"

"Calm down, why don't you? You are making a scene, Thranduil." Raithon smiled at the attendants poking their heads to see what was happening.

"So what?" The King snapped again. "I have no care what would happen to Lórinand now."

"Don't say that," Raithon said gently. "I understand that we are all just upset about the turn of events, that we are all exhausted after a few days of tension. Let Lord Glorfindel handle her. Erfaron seems to be very close to him."

Again, the enraged look and the shouting. "Which happens to be fine with you?!"

Raithon shrugged. "I suppose."

"I don't understand you people." Thranduil groaned and finished his wine. "I am going to my room as well. Don't disturb me until morning."

"Fine, but before you sleep, make sure your temper has cooled down."

After endless calls and knocks on her door, Glorfindel failed to bring the minstrel out for some serious talk. Erynlith denied him entry in her room, which forced the warrior to remain standing outside and keep on calling. Some of the wardens gave him confused looks, and once Haldir came up at the base of the tree and asked if there was anything wrong. Yet Glorfindel could not admit that he was at fault for provoking his friend. He could have opened the discussion of the coronation in a way that would not make Erynlith anxious, but he failed.

"Eryn?"

"Go away, Glorfindel."

He sighed and pushed some golden strands out of his eyes. "Do you hate me for what I've done?"

There was a shuffle of blankets from the inside, but Erynlith did not open the door. "No, I don't hate you," came her quiet answer.

"Then why do you avoid me?" He hoped she would answer his insistent rapping on the door. Then, he swallowed the lump in his throat as he mustered his courage to ask, "Would you rather have Thranduil speak to you?"

Finally, Erynlith appeared through a thin creak from the doorway. She seemed exhausted, creased forming on her forehead as she gave him a stunned look. "I am not avoiding you, Glorfindel. It just so happens that I have been occupied all day that I haven't had the time to be with you. I am sorry."

"Don't be. It should be me who should ask for forgiveness. I spoke out of turn during dinner. I should not have done so."

His sincerity made her smile. "Are you going to sleep now?"

Glorfindel paused for a while, remembering where his flet was stationed—far, but close enough to attend if ever he was needed here. He thought of curling on the bed, covered by the soft blankets; but who was he kidding? Of course he would not dare close his eyes. Lórinand was a strange land to him. If he still had troubles coping with Rivendell, what more in Lórinand?

"I promised to join Haldir and his brothers for the evening watch. You should not be worried." He smiled at her.

"Are you sure?" She reached out to touch the dark lines under his eyes, and Glorfindel turned his head to kiss her palm. Erynlith did not flinch at the gesture. "Would it be all right if you do not rest, just for the night? Do you want me to stay in your flet?"

"Everything's fine, I promise. Get some rest. You need it more than I do." He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. "Sleep well, Eryn."

She nodded and closed her eyes. "In that case, good night, Glorfindel."

Unknown to them, hidden in the shadows, Thranduil watched and listened.

Next Chapter: Thranduil's turn to shine.

Author's Notes: Happy Valentine's Day! Let's spread the love, not hate! So sorry for not updating in two weeks; I have been reading books and got carried away. I finished six books in two weeks! How's that? *congratulates myself*

*Rosiethehobbit17 - Rosie! It's good to hear form you again. How are you now? I am so sorry about the car accident, I really cannot believe it happened to you and your lovely twins. If you want to talk, you know I'm here. Also, Feb 27 comes nearer and nearer, and I really hope you'll have a wonderful wedding!

Thank you for the review! Too bad Amroth's gone, but Nimrodel's gone, too! MUA HA HA HA! Ninny Nimrodel won't be missed, but Eryn sure does miss Amroth. But that's okay, Thranduil's here to save the day! (Oh, I rhymed!)

*Senshi at Heart - Ooohh! A jealous Glorfindel makes me all fuzzy inside! I can just imagine him glaring and huffing and all that. XD

*Asmodeus Black - Thank you! Glorfy shall have his time, but not right now. Yes, there would be a sequel since this story is getting longer and it needs to be cut down in two parts, I think. I hope to see you again when the sequel gets published. :3

*Flucas - Watch out though. Thranduil won't back out without a good fight!

*Rhiannon - Hello! I am glad you're enjoying the story! You still have time to decide whether to choose Team Thrandy or Team Glorfy, because the confrontation has barely begun. LOL. Now, forget your homeworks! Math and elves don't sit well; in any case, Elves always win! Also, glad to know your boyfriend enjoys this, too. :)

*Lord Illyren - Noooo! Please don't be harsh to Glorfindel. Plus, I do not think Eryn would send him away because Thrandy's around. These two elf lords are a good balance of a soft-spoken and ill-tempered one. ;)

*Elentar - Glorfindel won't be alone. He has an army of fangirls (me included) out there somewhere. There's still time for him and Eryn. I hope.

*Gremalor - Then I shall make Haldir appear in chapters as often as I can. XD

*Omorfi Enas - You've made good points there! Glorfindel remains dependent on Eryn for his nightmares, and he thinks she's the only one who could help him. Their closeness with each other is something that Thranduil won't be able to understand, for now at least. As for Thranduil, I think he won't mind showing off (he's a proud elf, really) as long as it means he would win in the end and put Glorfy to shame (because why compete when your victory isn't assured?)

*Lovitall - All in good time, my friend. Patience is a virtue. XD

As for your question, Oropher and Thranduil fought in the Battle of Dagorlad (the fight in the FOTR prologue). Tolkien made no mention of dragons present during the battle, though it might be plausible considering that Sauron had command over Morgoth's legions, Orcs and evil Men included (not sure if Balrogs fought, they were not mentioned). Peter Jackson might have added Thranduil's scar and implied that he fought dragons, to dramatize the importance of Smaug in the films.

Hope this answers your questions. :)