Disclaimer: I own nothing that you recognise. That belongs to JRRT.

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed so far. It really means a lot to me. See A/N at the end for more :)

Chapter 4

Thranduil POV

I sighed softly, directing my elk towards the gateway of Erebor. I had truly left it as long as I could between visits to the mountain, conducting any business with them through raven, but I was pushing the respectful limits to acknowledge a new royal child and I really didn't want to start a war over this, Valar knew that the dwarves were incredibly touchy when it came to the small things. I was met by the blonde grandson, Frerin and dismounted handing my elk off to one of my men, not trusting the dwarves with my friend. "The line Durin welcome's you to Erebor, ElfKing. If you will follow me I will lead you to the throne room. I am aware you know your way, but unfortunately one of our staircases crumbled a little the other day and is in repair. Wouldn't want to charged with your murder." He joked and moved off in front of us.

I refrained from rolling my eyes at the little Durin's folk that were running around the mountain, Legolas walking beside me, a comfort in itself. I was aware that I was colder towards my son than many fathers were, but I couldn't bare to look at the elfling that held all my features, but was so like his mother inside. If anything I wished that he looked less like me and more like her, so that none would know that he was the bastard cold-hearted Elfking's spawn. I was very aware how other races and others of my kin saw me. I suppose that many of them were right, I had long ago given up on finding my one and had sealed away my heart, even from my son.

Valar knew how Aidnā had even stood being friends with me, let alone married to me. I let my eyes rove around the hall as that particular conversation came to mind. She had thrown herself down on to the grass beside me and grouched on about all the suitors that were trying for her hand and how they were all boorish, uneducated idiots. I had then complained myself about the power hungry wenches that were trying to get me to court them. The conversation I had then come up with was, "Aidnā, you know you're my best friend? You can not only tolerate me but also make sure I'm not behaving like an complete arse, marry me so I don't have to deal with these crown stealing harpies and you don't have to deal with boorish idiots. I'll give you anything you want." She had then slapped my arm and scolded me for being so unromantic.

However, she did marry me and provide me with my son, for which I would forever be grateful for. When she had died I had turned colder to Legolas, not because I had loved her as my one love, but because I had lost a true friend, practically my sister. I shook my head, clearing it as the door's opened up into the throne room, I stared up at the throne and found the king arguing with his grandson, the rumble of Khuzdul echoing around the hall. The prince in front of me flinched and motioned for us to walk along the free standing walkway, I saw Legolas looking over the edge as we walked and paling at the drop down into the depths of the mountain. "Greeting King Under the Mountain." I said and smirked inside at the looks of shock on their faces, it wasn't my fault they had missed our entrance.

Thrór turned to us and bowed shallowly, "Greeting Elfking of the Greenwood, I trust your journey was a pleasant one?" He asked and I returned the bow, "It was as it ever is." I answered knowing that a vague answer annoyed the dwarf. He bristled and I saw prince's roll their eyes. I studied the kings eyes and sighed internally, the gold sickness was growing in his eyes, it was obvious to those who didn't see the king too often that he would soon fall even further into the madness of his line. I was about to speak when the door behind me opened again and little feet ran across the walkway behind us. A small figure brushed past me and darted up the steps, long dark hair streaming behind as it ran.

I stared in astonishment as the gold sickness I had just seen lifted from Thrór's eyes and they cleared, despite the presence of the Arkenstone behind him. He picked up the child and rubbed his nose against its. A giggle echoed around the throne room, "Elfking I would like you to meet my newest granddaughter, Ariana Durin." Thrór said turning the child to face us, I inhaled softly as the bright green eyes caught mine. I was sure that many a dwarf had called them Emerald, but to me they seemed more like the leaves that graced the trees in spring, a bright enchanting green. I bowed my head, "Greetings little one." I said softly, Legolas coughing quietly next to me to cover his laugh as she glared down at me.

Everyone in the hall froze in shock, myself included when she opened her mouth and flawless Sindarin flowed out. "I am not little. I am the perfect height for a child, maybe it is you who is to tall, Elfking." The prince's were darting their gazes between their sister and me, hands straying to their swords as I walked forward and leant down slightly. I placed a finger under her chin and tilted it upwards. "Where did you learn the tongue of my people?" I asked her softly, making sure that I didn't get stabbed so early in the visit. Instead of an answer, I yanked my hand back as a set of very sharp teeth nipped at the end of my finger. I looked between my finger and the child, who seemed wholly unrepentant for having bitten me.

I could hear the prince's snickering and Legolas coughed again, I tilted my head to the side and watched as she raised her chin, stubbornly. I finally nodded, the corner of my mouth twitching. "Well played princess, I apologise for touching without you leave." She nodded, before smiling and gesturing to be put down. I moved back to allow the movement, even though Thrór looked like he would rather tear off his beard than let her down near me. She moved forward before dropping into a bow and darting behind me, I turned to find her tugging on Legolas' hand and leading him out of the hall.

The two prince's darted past me, "Mizimith? Where are you going with him?" Thorin asked and she gestured something, "Yes I am aware he's far taller than any of us, that doesn't explain anything." He sighed out and she shot him a look of fond exasperation, before turning back to Legolas. "May I sit on your shoulders? I've never been that tall before." She asked her lip wobbling and Legolas nodded, I looked on seeing the expression on his face and remembering his mother wearing the same. "As you wish aier." He said and lifted her up onto his shoulders, her hands resting lightly on his head. "To what do we owe your visit?" Thrór asked abruptly, turning my attention back to him.

I turned to face him and we quickly fell into a discussion over trade and how it didn't seem like we were getting a fair trade from the dwarves. This of course made the semi-civil conversation descend into a flinging match of insults and glares. It would probably of continued on to fists flying, if the elder princess hadn't walked swiftly into the room and approached us. "I would suggest you both head down to the training grounds immediately, we are having a few issues with Ariana and your prince." She said and I nodded, sighing heartily inside at what mischief Legolas was causing now. He had been so good for many other visits to various lands, why did he choose this one to misbehave.

However, it became clear that it wasn't Legolas that was misbehaving. A collection of dwarves were stood on the training grounds, one whose dagger seemed to be dripping blood from it. The guards were standing in a half circle around Legolas and the little princess. I marched towards them and froze catching sight of the blood dripping between my son's fingers where they held his arm. "What is the meaning of this?" I hissed out, angry that we had barely been in the mountain half a day and someone had attacked my son. "They were aiming for the Princess my King. I do not understand the words they spoke, but the guards reacted angrily. They just weren't as close to her as I was." Legolas answered when no one else did.

The princess in question was curled up into his arms and trying to look at the cut on his arm. He shushed her and as I bent down I could see a faint sheen of tears in her gaze. Her finger stuttered in signing. "She said she's sorry, that she didn't know there were any Blacklocks left in the city still. She wouldn't have come down here if she had known." A kindly, but gruff voice said and I turned to find a healer. "Oín at your service. This should stop the bleeding." He said handing me a cloth coated in a substance, I nodded and placed it over Legolas' wound. Ariana looked away and tilted her head, clearly having caught sight of something.

She stood and moved towards her grandfather signing so rapidly that even the healer was shaking his head, when I looked over at him. "She is using a version I do not know well." What ever she had said had the king making a command in Khuzdul and the five dwarves that had attacked my son and the princess were being dragged away. "I apologise I, like my granddaughter, had thought that we had gotten rid of that particular clan of dwarves." I nodded and helped Legolas to stand, before he was taken away by the healers. I stood there brushing some dirt from my robes when I felt a tug at my sleeve, looking down to find myself caught in that green gaze again as she held her arms up, asking to be picked up.

I raised an eyebrow, but did so, settling her on my hip as I had once done to Legolas as a child. "I am sorry. They tried to take adad and Dis last week from Dale, I helped stop them. We thought they had left with their kin, but I think they've been hiding down near the mines and avoiding the guards. I'm sorry they hurt him, your son. I didn't think he would get hurt when we came down here." Her voice was incredibly hushed, from where she spoke into my ear. I squeezed my arms undetectably tighter. "Do not worry child, I know this was no fault of yours. I am however intrigued as to how no one has noticed that the hem of your tunic and coat have several dagger sheaths sewn into them." I asked her and she ducked her head.

I tilted her head up and began to walk through the halls with her, internally gleeful as every dwarf stopped to stare as I breezed past them. "They just think I'm a child, they don't expect me to do anything but bite them and possibly cry, because that is what all 7 year olds do. They don't know that I speak, they think because I don't that I am deaf as well. I am not, I hear, I see and I speak to those who deserve it. I am not a stupid child." She whispered into my ear as she directed be down to the healers chambers. I sat down and waited with her sat on my lap and twined a strand of her hair around my finger.

"I must admit it is a flaw of most races to underestimate their children. I suppose as Elves we are guilty of it as well, yet I believe that because we live longer and have fewer children that we cherish our children even more, even when they appear to be different." I stared down at her and brushed her hair back from her eye, my gaze easily catching on the few beads in her hair. "I take it you taught yourself Sindarin? For I know that few dwarves speak it here in the mountain." I asked and she nodded, ducking her head into my chest a three dwarves walked past. "Alright there princess?" One of them asked and she signed something that seemed to appease them.

I simply stared at them as they lingered, hoping that it would scare them into leaving. They walked off after a heart beat muttering about 'stuck-up pointy-eared bastards with hearts of ice.' I thought I had not tensed visibly, but clearly I had when she looked up at me. "I am sorry for my kin. They can be dense, only seeing what is on the surface. Also the answer is yes, I taught myself. The library is one of the few places I can go where I don't have a large guard, it also calms me if I can't get to family. I learnt Khuzdul without speaking so learning Sindarin wasn't much harder. Although trying to read it was a little difficult." She said, scrunching her nose up.

I huffed slightly in surprise, this child had told me she was only seven years old, yet she spoke Sindarin and Khuzdul better than many who had spoken it from birth. I absently stroked her hair and waited for the healers to come out with my son. As they entered Ariana slid down off my lap and ran over to Legolas, hugging his knees. He smiled softly and bent down, "It was not your fault little one, I would do it again to protect a child." He told her and she nodded, turning to lead us back up through the halls to the dining hall. Although it pained me to do so, we would have to stay in the mountain tonight and leave for the Greenwood on the morrow.

As we entered the hall, Ariana darted off and clambered up into a seat next to her sister. She was signing away to her and Legolas leaned over to me, "She will speak to us, in front of us and to her family, but she will not show it to her people? What does that say about them? Also have you seen how her presence lessens the madness in Thrór's eyes?" He asked me and I took a drink from the wine in front of me, my nose twitching in disgust at the taste. Clearly they had given us cheap wine, probably as we were nothing to them but a nuisance, well two could play that game. Let us see how long they last in my Greenwood with little meat and no ale.

I turned to Legolas, keeping on eye on the royal family, not trusting them to be particularly polite when my back was turned. "I do not think it says much about them, but we already knew that. I also think there is more to that story than meets the eyes. And yes I noticed it this morning, clearly there is something about her that beats back the madness temporarily." I said, mulling it over. As we were lead away to the guest chambers after the feast I saw Ariana wave a sleepy hand in goodbye as she was carried back to the royal quarters by a dwarf with a ghastly mohwak. I nodded my head in return and entered the chambers that they had set aside for us, fortunately there was a small balcony that I could look up at the sky from, Elves did not do well inside mountains and Wood Elves liked even less to be away from the star light.

I stood there looking up at the sky and wandering what Aidnā would think of the little girl that was still so much a mystery. I leant against the cold stone of the balcony and stared out across the plains to Dale, watching as a group of dwarves walked away from the mountain, several of them limping, obviously they had been the ones from earlier today that had threatened Ariana. I stayed watching the stars for a little while longer, singing softly before moving about my nightly routine. Although it was obviously a dwarfish made bed, it still managed to accommodate my frame for which I was thankful for.

The next morning I awoke with the sun and made my way down to the stable area to check on my friend, Rián. I was brushing the coat of my elk when I heard little feet running into the stables, I turned to find Ariana ducking in under the bar of the stall and coming to touch my robes, almost as if she was checking I was still there. I frowned slightly and knelt to face her. "Is something wrong aier?" I asked her, picking her up as she burrowed her head into my shoulder, underneath all my hair. I continued to stroke a hand of Rián's flank, until she moved and placed her hand on my left cheek, gently. I flinched internally, no one had touched this side of my face in millennia, not even Aidnā.

She trailed her little fingers over the flawless skin, then murmured. "Why do you hide it?" Her voice sounded different in Westron, but was still soft. I looked down at her, "Hide what?" My tongue reverting as my anxiety rose. She looked up at, "What ever is under this. I can feel something over you face, something that shouldn't be there. I don't know why or what it is though." She murmured and I tilted my head, ignoring her question for a moment. "How do you know there is something there?" I asked, dreading the answer. She looked up at me and tears glistened in her eyes. "I saw it in my mind, in my dreams. You were in battle, in this amazing silver armour and there was a great dragon and there was fire and screaming and …" She choked on her words as the tears fell down her cheeks.

I tightened my grip. "And what little one?" I prompted her and she looked up at me, "And I saw it hit you. Saw it catch this side of your face." She sniffled then twisted her fingers into my hair. "Then the dream changed and all I could see were trees, trees as tall as the halls in the mountain and there was a huge throne with antlers upon it. And you were sat in it, but there was no mark, just like now." She said, brow furrowing. I sighed, realising that she had no idea that she even had magic, let alone the power it took to sense a glamour or see memories of the past, even flashes of the future. It also made sense now why the gold sickness lessened when she was near, even at such a young age her magic was stronger than that of the call of the gold.

I looked around and seeing no one dropped the glamour briefly showing her the scarred side of my face. She didn't even flinched as the white of my blind eye was revealed or the gap where the flesh was forever burned away, revealing muscle and tendons underneath. She merely stroked a finger across the exposed flesh softly, "I am not afraid of you. You have survived something horrible and not let it break you. The fact that you bear the scar does not make you weak, scar's show you are strong enough to go into something and come out stronger on the other side." She said sagely and I wondered what kind of experiences this little girl had gone through to know that.

I nodded and replaced the glamour, hoping that no one had seen and placed Ariana on the floor of the stable, where she reached a hand up and brushed her fingers across the muzzle of the giant elk before her. She smiled at him, then me before dragging me out of the stall. "Come it's nearly breakfast. You won't get anything to eat unless you get there early. Dwarves eat a lot." She told me and I nodded, allowing myself to be lead through the corridors and up into the dining hall. Thrór was already sat on his throne and Ariana dropped my hand to run to him.

I bowed my head to him and sat down, preparing a plate of fruit and toast for my breakfast. Legolas came and joined me not moments later and Thrór finally spoke. "How long will you be staying with us Elfking? Simply so I know if I need to provide more greens." He rumbled out, Ariana rolling her eyes next to him at his gruff words. "We will be leaving some time this morning if you have put in place all the changes to the trade agreements we made yesterday." I said, slicing apart an apple and eating it with disinterest as he chewed on a hunk of meat, swallowing it before nodding. "Aye it was all drawn up last night. I'll have them brought to you chambers for you to look over as soon as your are ready." I nodded, "Send for them now, I will look them over as soon as I am done here." I said, trying to appear polite even though all I wanted was to tell him to shove it all.

Erebor wouldn't last through the winter without the supply of fresh produce we sent, but I was not petty enough to harm children especially Ariana with our grudge. Legolas and I took our leave as soon as we had finished, which seemed to be not a moment too soon as the other members of the royal family as well as the captain of the guard and his boys entered the room and descended on the breakfast like a pack of wolves who had not eaten in weeks. I felt my eyebrow twitch in disgust and saw Legolas scrunch up his nose at their habits.

I moved quickly back to my rooms and read through the amended trade agreements, Legolas having disappeared somewhere. When I found them to be satisfactory I spoke quickly with my guards, ordering them to have everything packed and ready to go after the midday meal. Handing them my belongings and the trade agreements. Legolas was already present in the hall with Ariana at his side, she giggled at something he had said and waved at me once she had seen me. It was hard for me to stay annoyed at this morning when her face was so bright and open. I sat and began to eat my own small lunch, the heaviness of dwarf cooking not sitting well in an Elven stomach. Thrór entered the room shortly after along with his son. "Was everything to your liking?" He asked sitting down and I nodded, "It was. We will be leaving after lunch." I told him shortly and he nodded, seeming relieved by this.

As we finished, Thrór, his son and Ariana escorted us down to the entrance of the mountain, where my guards were waiting with our horses and Rián. I bowed shallowly and swung up gracefully onto Rián's back, watching as Legolas paused before swinging up into his saddle as Ariana passed him something. "Safe journey." Thrain translated Ariana's signing and we nodded, turning and riding across the plain to Dale, I was eager to get away from the mountain, but at the same time I wished to stay, like something was tugging me back.

It was as we were passing Dale, that I saw the note clutched in Legolas' hand. "What did she give you my son?" I asked and Legolas rode closer to hand me the note, written in Sindarin scripture, some of the letters needing a little more practice, but still good for a child raised by dwarves. It was then I registered the meaning of the words. "Every man has his secret sorrows which the world knows not; often times we call this man cold, when he is only sad." I looked over at Legolas and tilted my head slightly asking for an explanation. He sighed, "Some of the dwarves mentioned that you were cold and unfeeling, I said something to Ariana and she had said something in Khuzdul. I asked what it meant and she had shaken her head. Now I know part of it, although which part is anyone's guess." I nodded, absently wondering how much magic she had to not only see past not only my glamour, but into my heart as well. What a curious little child.

A/N: Aier - Little one. Mizimith - Little jewel. I'm unsure about who to use next as a POV, I'm thinking maybe Dwalin or Dis. If you have a preference let me know :) Also at this point I am leaving it that Ariana has absolutely no idea that she has magic, she is an orphan and has no idea who her birth parents are. This however will be explained more later in the story :)