Dear readers,

I know I've been incredibly lazy with updating this story, I have no excuse since the chapters are basically done, I wanted to change a few things since this chapter was basically written before most of the others. but on the end I gave up and I hope you will like it as it is.

I hope some of you still didn't give up on this story.

As always read and review!

Hugs!

ME

CHAPTER 30

"Where do you suppose we are?" Ergolan asked as he helped Tauriel make a camp by the edge of the forest which continued on to the hill as the summer heat made even elves sweat. This question was made so often that it stopped being interesting to anyone and the answer rarely changed.

"I don't know" replied Tauriel in a dull voice. In truth as the days passed, she had less and less knowledge of their whereabouts, but fortunately was not the one who led the way. The journey itself perhaps, would have fascinated her more if the destination wasn't the only thing on her mind for several weeks, two of which had passed since their departure from her beloved forest.

As the day turned into another night and they sat to eat together, Tauriel pondered on the particular cause of this journey trying to establish whether she looked forward to its end or not. Unnecessarily, Ergolan joined her for her shift as she scanned the darkness for any immediate threats.

He wasn't someone used to silence. "Excited about seeing your friend again?" he mused out loud only partially serious though he couldn't find a trace of excitement on her face. His mind returned to that particular day when they received the order.

Flashback:

The small company just returned from their shift patrolling the northern boarders of Mirkwood where the present company was stationed for the past three years or so. They were greeted by a message to be in the palace by next full moon. Since it was customary to be relocated very often, no one thought much of it until they got back to the palace.

Tauriel had greeted their captain with a hug as usual. "Mae g'ovannen mellon" he greeted her unnecessarily. "Mae g'ovannen hest" she replied in equal fashion.

"You must all wonder why I summoned you here." He then spoke to the rest of them; the rest of them consisting of Beleorn, Ergolan, Gileth and their youngest member, Elethan who became some kind of fantastic five through the years. Though Beleorn, as the eldest among them had every right to be considered their leader, the king appointed Tauriel as a leader of their small squad and no one seemed to object such an arrangement.

They all looked curiously at him waiting to be surprised. "Ernil Legolas is returning home soon." He spoke in a cheerful voice observing them all. "By the order of our king, all of you will depart for Rivendell in ten days to escort him back to Mirkwood.", but before he even finished the last sentence, the small crowd erupted in cheers. Gileth almost tackled poor Elethan down in her excitement. Laeorn was called off to see the king before he had time to assess the mood of everyone, Tauriel in particular. In truth, he wanted to see her excited face, but there was still time for it. In fact, the only one left looking at Tauriel was Ergolan who saw numerous different emotions on her face, but none of them looked anything like excitement.

She visibly paled down, her breath almost stopped for a couple of moments. She looked surprised and shocked, but she appeared afraid, not excited. Fortunately for appearances, Gileth tackled her down before anyone else saw the turmoil on her face.

End flashback

Ergolan still pondered on the sudden change in Tauriel's demeanor trying to make out the cause of such passive reaction to anything that entitled her friend's name.

"Nae saian luume." She spoke barely above a whisper, her gaze wondering somewhere far away at these words.

"Tauriel lle tyava quel?" he asked uncertain trying to bring her back from wherever the place she had gone to.

Upon this reminder, Tauriel snapped back to reality assuring Ergolan as usual that nothing was wrong. Sometimes, she wished that people would stop asking her difficult questions; especially the ones which she didn't want or have the need to answer. Keeping a distance would have done the job, but it felt even worse to be alone then to be asked uncomfortable questions.

Ergolan did not press; he never did which is perhaps why Tauriel preferred his company over Gileth's for example (and not only because Gileth wanted to dress her up whenever she had the opportunity).

Ten and a half years flew by since Legolas left Mirkwood, ten since Tauriel started training and nine since she joined the guard ranks. She reported for duty for the first time with her female friend by her side, who, although begun training long before her, finished training at the same time with her.

Tauriel was a force of nature; she trained from sunrise to sleep with or without the rest of the recruits. After so many years of waiting to begin, it didn't bring her as much joy as she anticipated. Training became her escape from the unwelcome thoughts about her friend, who apart from sending a note of his safe arrival, did not try to stay in touch with her. Of course, there wasn't a mail service between Mirkwood and Rivendell, but she felt abandoned all the same although that feeling was irrational.

After so many years of not seeing him, she almost got used to the lack of his presence. There wasn't a lot of spare time to miss him anyway. As an elfling, she had nothing to do, but to sit around and wait for him; who wasn't just her friend, but her tutor as well. Now, she had a lot of new responsibilities that included her patrolling the boarders. During the prince's absence, she spent barely three month altogether in the palace. The five of them patrolled the northern boarders for more than three years. It was the first time Elethan joined them on duty. Gileth, Ergolan and Tauriel patrolled the southern border for more than five years, two of which Beleorn spent with them.

"You should rest mellon. We have a long journey to go." She said patting him slightly on the shoulder wishing to be left alone for the moment.

Her prediction was true. The journey was tiresome. They continued on making as little breaks as possible in order to arrive as soon as possible. With each passing day, Tauriel's mood seemed to improve slightly to become almost hopeful. Hope was one of the feelings she barely dared to entertain for a long time.

The count of the days was lost, but they arrived to the hidden valley in less than two months, or at least that was the time Tauriel managed to count. Out of five of them, Beleorn was the only one who spent brief time in Rivendell and that was a long time ago. His memory served him well for the rest of the journey, but finding the hidden passage was a true challenge. The company was good-spirited all the way even though they basically wasted five days roaming about looking for any sign of the passage which was named "hidden" for a very good reason.

On the sixth day, they finally found it near their camp. Once that stage of journey was over, there remained only a couple of more hours through the forest to arrive at their destination. With every step, their mood seemed to change for better especially when Imladris came into view for the first time. All of them were too mesmerized to watch where they were going, but the horses seemed to know where to go.

Still staring in admiration at the beauty of it all, Tauriel reached the stairs of the settlement which by its size and beauty promised to be the home of Lord Elrond. She dismounted her mare to greet one of the ellons standing there without knowing who he is.

"Quel andune. Amin Shaalth Tauriel. King Thranduil sends his regards." Tauriel spoke with more confidence than she thought she had. The message was, however, clear enough. The ellon observed her for a short while with unmasked surprise on his face.

"Mae g'ovannen Shaalth Tauriel. Amin Hest Gileorn." He greeted her in equal fashion. They were asked to remain where they were while the captain went inside to announce their arrival. Tauriel imagined that Legolas would be with lord Elrond and she half expected him to come back with Gileorn, but that hope was abandoned thirty seconds afterwards when Gileorn joined them once more.

"Lord Elrond will see you now. Khila amin. The rest of your company may rest." He spoke without any further delay signaling one of the elves nearby to escort them to their accommodations. Tauriel turned around for long enough to give them a nod. They dispersed soon after; the stable boy took their horses toward the stables.

The captain took her through a beautiful garden filled with everything that good taste could provide. There were no excessive adornments or indications that a human (or should we say elven) hand touched it. She tried not to stare as she passed, but with little success. She was soon brought onto a large terrace overlooking the forest. As she approached him, no longer followed by the captain, she tried to stay collected while confirming what she already knew. Although, she couldn't see his face, she knew who it must be.

"Hir nin." She curtseyed before him (or rather behind him) since he did not turn his gaze toward her yet. Her only instinct was to speak as less as possible. "Tula sinome" was the only reply she got while he extended his arm in invitation without looking at her. His dark brown hair only barely moved with the breeze. Coming from such a high elven lord, it was disconcerting; entirely different to the one elven lord she could compare him to.

King Thranduil would have observed her for a long while, asked many questions and observed her some more, but lord Elrond seemed to be perfectly content just to be very silent. His voice, although not demanding was impossible to disobey. She came closer as fast as she dared fearing that she would be too slow and make him impatient, but also fearing to be too quick and make him uncomfortable. Both options were silly to consider considering that lord Elrond was so old that his patience couldn't be tested even by someone much more threatening than her.

She stood overlooking the valley in silent admiration partially understanding why someone would rather look at such a magnificent sight than at her. After a minute which seemed like a century, lord Elrond finally focused his eyes on the elleth standing before him. "It is beautiful is it not young elleth?" he asked looking sideways to the forest.

Tauriel couldn't help, but agree with him. "It is my lord. The Sun shines upon the forests. Hope dwells still in its depth. It's like nothing bad can happen while I am here. I love Mirkwood, but it's been polluted by poison which won't easily disappear. As the years pass, the darkness descends little by little." She spoke to mesmerized by the sight to remember to feel afraid to speak.

"It lies on the edge of Morgoth's empire. His blow will hit you like a thunder one day. Men and elves will have to unite once again to defeat it."Lord Elrond agreed making Tauriel get out of her trancelike state. "I already know of you Tauriel, daughter of the forest and you may not find it difficult to guess from where." He continued on focusing his attention on her once again.

The elleth could do little else, but blush as her eyes flickered with hope she was trying to suppress over the years. "Your friend Legolas has spoken about you, but even before him, your story was told to me by another." His words woke Tauriel's curiosity. Who could have spoken to Lord Elrond about her apart from her friend? "I trust you remember lord Glorfindel. He visited your king not long ago." Tauriel's eyes flicked with memory. Glorfindel; one of the first elves that ever walked Arda; the same one who she followed around during his brief stay at Mirkwood.

It took her by surprise that he would even remember her at all after so many years which perhaps to him were a short period considering how old he may be. "Your past was filled with painful memories; yet you remain pure of heart. Rumors don't do you justice."

"I assure you Hir nin that rumors are heavily exaggerated. I do not deserve such compliment."She replied not knowing where to look or what else to say.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Lord Elrond's merely curious inquiry on the purpose of their journey. His questions and remarks were so unrelated to each other that it was hard to keep track.

"King Thranduil sends his regards Hir nin. I am here to deliver the message on his behalf to ernil Legolas. He hopes for his immediate return home."

"Legolas is not in Imladris at the moment." He watched as those words had immediate effect on Tauriel's face. Thousand different emotions passed through her head with the dominant one being disappointment. Before she could inquire of his whereabouts, Lord Elrond beat her with the answer. "He is travelling with my sons and my daughter, but we are expecting them any hour now." The elleth's face became hopeful again before she could stop herself.

Tauriel sensed that the conversation was over. "My guards will indicate you of where you may rest until they return", and as on cue the captain walked in. She thanked the elven lord for his hospitality with all the adequate words and left him to his thoughts.

In truth Tauriel was not capable to stay in one place for long. She merely followed the captain to see where her accommodations would be. He showed her to the chamber which she would inevitably share with Gileth. One of the advantages of being an elleth is that whenever and wherever they travelled, she had separate room from the ellons, mostly shared by Gileth who was still the only elleth apart from herself in the king's guard.

In order to avoid unnecessary questions, she informed her friends about the essence of her short exchange with Lord Elrond and went for a stroll in a random direction. As it can be easily guessed, she searched the first tree she could find. As she entered among the first signs of the forest, she turned around to look back. A group of six riders entered the hidden city; all of them wearing some sort of uniform which she recognized as the uniform of the Rivendell guards. A small squad must have returned from somewhere.

This event didn't interest her much so she simply continued her stroll towards the direction they came from armed with a bow and her blades. Taking a tour now that they were finally here seemed pleasant and it would be even more so, if her thoughts didn't constantly go back to her friend and that place, wherever it might be, where he was located at this very moment and closer to her than the past ten years. She climbed to get to the hidden passage and out, making sure to remember how to go back. As she passed their last night's camp, she heard something and it was not a tender quiet footstep of an elf. Her ears picked an unmistakable sound of a marching army; a marching orc army, a short distance ahead.

Although, she could have turned around and reached the safety of the valley long before they'd even spot her, she chose to go and investigate. Not a very smart move to make, when you were by yourself, but she had the element of surprise and skill enough to defend herself. The sound of the flow of the forest river approached along with the increasing noise which orcs made wherever they went.

Finally, they were directly downhill from her. She stood on a forest path in silence debating on what to do. Some thirty orcs were in view and attacking them didn't seem like a smart move. Calling for help also seemed like a bad idea at the time. Someone else appeared literally out of nowhere and it wasn't an orc, but an elleth; a very beautiful elleth. Tauriel stared mesmerized at her surreal face. She seemed too distracted to notice the approaching danger on time and by the time she did, she was already in their sight.

Tauriel took out her first arrow realizing in a split second that she was going to have to use it when the first orc turned toward the elleth, who by now noticed his presence, but was too late to draw back. He fell dead before he could shoot an arrow toward her, not realizing that he was being watched. Tauriel jumped down bringing three orcs down at once; one of whom fell into the river while the current drew him away.

The other elleth seemed quite shocked to see Tauriel jump out of nowhere and start using her blades as they were merely toys. She too drew out her sword, although seemed reluctant to use it. Oh what am I doing? I can't fight them by myself and make sure that she stays safe at the same time. Tauriel thought to herself. Once she took a protective stance in front of a wary looking elleth, she blew the horn which she rarely used even at home.

Three ellons were strolling through the forest, cheerful that another journey was coming to its end. Each of them was leading a horse who although tired by the effort, seemed to puff in contentment. Their conversation never seemed to come to an end for they were all good spirited and seemed to get along just fine. Two of them had dark brown hair, blue eyes and were completely alike which lead to an easy conclusion that they were brothers; twin brothers. The third ellon however, looked completely opposite. He had long blonde hair, blue eyes and his face was handsomer than theirs, although the twins were also handsome by everyone's standards.

One of them suddenly stopped to look behind him and looked surprised. His eyes started searching around for something that was not there while the other two continued not realizing that he had tagged behind. "Elrohir. Where is Arwen?" he asked catching up with them swiftly after not finding her.

All three of them stood in surprise also scanning their surroundings. Although they were not afraid yet, they started feeling inerasably uncomfortable.

"She was right here." Elladan replied slightly alarmed turning around in all directions like Arwen was going to jump out behind his back.

The two Princes made their way back through the branches trying to find any trail of the missing elleth. "Arwen where are you?" called her brother in alarm, now would be a great time to panic. His father would dismantle him if he returned without his sister. "Maybe she went back to Imladris." suggested Legolas equally worried. They just made their mind to go see if she returned to the palace when Mirkwood prince heard the last thing he would expect to hear.

"That is my fathers' horn." he said in alarm. "Somebody must be in trouble." he said as he mounted his horse and turned west. The sound didn't come from very far away; by his calculations it was somewhere close to the river.

Elrohir followed suit preying that there were no casualties and that his sister did return to their father.

However, they were not the only ones who heard King Thranduils' horn sound in the distance. All 4 guards knew it had to be either their lieutenant or their prince so they quickly armed themselves and rode out. Rivendell elves were not far behind.

The orcs came much too close for Tauriels' liking, she knew that her bow was useless in an open confrontation so she placed it next to her arrows on her right shoulder and took out her blades instead. Three had fallen; she was dispatching the 4th to his death. Lady Arwen in one swift move disintegrated an orc that passed by her protector.

Tauriel swinged her blades after she made two steps forth and freed another orc's head from his miserable shoulders. The next one was not so easy to deal with; he looked like one of goblin mutants who were stronger and smarter than an average of their kind. She pulled out her blades and jumped into the air, catching her opponent by surprise as she stabbed him in the back of his head in one swift move. The other managed to actually touch her, but it was only a small scratch. The next moment, she blocked his attack crossing her blades and sent him to the ground. One more swing and he was falling to his death and the river took him away.

Just as he fell another set of at least five arrows sped through the clearing and killing at least as many orcs. Another two arrows came charging from the forest, their rescue was finally here. In the upcoming chaos, Tauriel turned to lady Arwen who held her ground but didn't venture too much into the fight. "Hiril nin, if your horse is nearby, now is the time to go back. I have no idea how many more are there." she said to the lady through the entire racket as the blades cut through orc flesh. The horde was being quickly overrun by elves that were coming from all sides.

Tauriel whistled to her mare, young auburn horse and she came trudging nervously around the wounded and dead. "Gileth, Ergolan!" she ordered her comrades nearer very fast as she saw that Lady Arwen did not have any plans to leave. Suddenly she spotted the wave of blonde hair as Legolas fought with Elrohir on the other side of the clearing. "Tauriel watch out!" somebody shouted from a distance. It was one of her guards and just as she looked behind her, she noticed one of her vile enemies. She swinged him to the air and he went crushing down by the river.

This woke up Legolas from his reverie as he was finishing his last opponent. His gaze searched for Tauriel's, and then he saw the familiar wave of chestnut red fly through the air into an orc who, as some of his comrades before ended his life in the river. She noticed another passing her, he was very determined to harm Lady Arwen today for some reason and jumped onto him as he fell to the ground tagging her along.

The Prince watched in alarm as he was swiftly approaching the mayhem, but Tauriel was far from needing anyone's' help. Another precise yet strong move deprived the last of her enemies of his heart so to speak.

Arwen was quicker than Legolas to come to aid her even if no aid was needed. "Hiril nin we need to get back to the city now." she told her in a stern voice as their horses approached, both mares. Arwen's mare was white like her face; Tauriel's had the color of her hair.

Tauriel helped Arwen climb her mare, even if no help was necessary and five of Lord Elrond's' guards tagged behind them. The elleth with the chestnut red hair wished to see Legolas and it was probably her duty too, but Arwen insisted that she wasn't going anywhere without her protector so Tauriel was forced to oblige. She would see her friend soon anyway.

Legolas lost the sight of his best friend as they killed the last few of remaining orcs. The guards Gileth, Ergolan, Elethan and Beleorn quickly gathered around their prince as the final orc fell. "It's good to see you my prince. We should get back to the city." Ergolan said as he took over Tauriel's place as their immediate leader. "I say the same mellon, but where is Tauriel?" he greeted back as he looked around for the red chestnut hair, but didn't see it anywhere.

"She went back to the city escorting Lady Arwen with a few of Lord Elrond's warriors." Ergolan replied quickly as he watched the remaining of Rivendell warriors gather around Prince Elrohir. He was anxious to go back and make sure his sister was alright so they made their way back to the city, leaving the bodies to lay down where they left them. Fortunately no elf died that day.

When Lady Arwen rode into the city, her father sighed in relief and came out rushing out of his palace. "I'm fine Ada I promise, this young elleth saved my life more times than I care to admit." she replied as her father observed Tauriel more closely. "Likewise Hiril nin. You were holding your own quite well." the young elleth replied blushing barely visible.

"Prey what do they call you my brave mellon?" asked Arwen now that they were back to safety. "Tauriel Hiril nin." she replied as she sent her horse to the stables. "Were you able to find your prince Tauriel?" asked Lord Elrond as recognition flicked over his daughters' face. "I was actually, not intentionally of course, but I was a little busy." she replied with a happy smile now that they survived through this dreadful ordeal and she saw her old friend alive and in good health.

"Enough with the chitchat, Tauriel come with me. Legolas has told me great things about his little elleth friend since the day he arrived." Arwen said impatiently as she pulled her new friend by the hand. Tauriel sighed, but bowed to Lord Elrond and accompanied his daughter. "Hiril nin I should report to the Prince, I am in charge of his security after all." she mumbled quietly as Arwen showed her to her chambers. They were spacious like she expected already, and the light was beautiful. The Mirkwood elleth wondered what it would be like to watch the stars at night from this window.

"Do not worry Tauriel, I only want to tend to those injuries of yours. It should take only a moment." Her companion replied smiling at something which made Tauriel curious. "I assure you Hiril nin that is not necessary. They are only superficial." tried to protest the Lieutenant, but Arwen kept her hand in a firm grasp. "Legolas is going to be very much surprised to see you. According to him, you were barely more than an elfling when you parted and now you are almost a fully grown elleth." she commented as she put some herbs to Tauriels' injuries.

After about half an hour, Tauriel was free to leave after her healer made her swear that she would call her by her name without formalities. She made her way through the backyard towards her sleeping chamber, but something caught her eye before she could enter, or rather caught her ear. It was the unmistakable sound of arrow hitting its target. It was night, the stars were coming out, who would be practicing archery this late.

Her curiousness led her feet towards the training grounds. Before she turned around the corner, she saw the familiar blond hair cascading down the archers back. It was dark so the hair was easy enough to recognize. Her elven eyes watched the pierced center of the target. "I wish I could tell that you've gotten better over the years my Prince, but you were always the most skilled among us." she finally said making him jerk around in surprise.

Her hands were on her hips, her hair was cascading down her shoulders and her weapons were attached to her as always. "Tauriel?" he asked uncertain as he came forth with quick pace. "Didn't you have enough archery lessons for today?" she asked as he came closer, very much closer.

His eyes sparked with something she didn't recognize. "And it's lieutenant Tauriel for your information." she added while he gazed wonderingly at her and she came two steps closer. "Well is this the only greeting I get after ten years?" she asked in mock stern voice. Legolas finally laughed and closed the space between them with one last step. She felt the familiar hands embracing her and she embraced him back happily. Two friends were together once again.

Translations:
Mae g'ovannen – Well met
Mellon – Friend
Hest – Captain
Nae saian luume – It has been too long.
Lle tyava quell? – Do you feel well?
Quen andune! Amin Shaalth Tauriel. – Greetings. I am lieutenant Tauriel.
Khila amin – Follow me.
Tula sinome – Come here.
Hir nin – My lord
Tolo, govano nin! – Come, join me!