Jewel In The Palace(Lord Of The Rings Fanfiction)

It's Mirialia's Turn

~~O~~

"You are above all things in our kingdom, but beneath one King."

That was all she needed to hear.

Mirialia was so furious that she had to storm out from the heated conversation without saying a word back, or she would have completely lose it. She thought it was unfair that Thranduil kept his plan secretly from her. It was unfair that she was unable to make her own decisions on this journey. Unfair to just even hear her opinions and suggestions. Maybe Thranduil thought that she would not do any good when it comes to political affairs, or in battle.

Mirialia was not like her parents after all. Bern was a knight of Rohan and Anvanya was Oropher's captain. She was very far from them. The queen swore she could have fainted. She wished she could have, but her strong persona did not allow her even if she wanted to. She felt all her muscles leave her body but she was able to stand.

"I should not have lost my temper back there. I am the Queen." Mirialia calmed herself.

She sat alone on a rock just outside the forest. She looked around and as much as she wanted to protect everything she saw around her, she could not help but feel sad to think that soon the Age of Men will come and they will take over Middle-earth. Amariel told her that.

A hand gently rested on her shoulder made her head turn. She was deep in thought that she didn't realize Lenneth was standing beside her.

"Lenneth?"

"My lady?" Her gaze shifted from the ground to her.

"What would Legolas do if he was here?"

There was a long pause before her handmaiden answered.

"He will save the people...and the land, my lady."

The queen looked up at her curiously. "He will?"

"Yes." the other replied. "Legolas always follows his heart, and do what he thinks is right."

Mirialia stood up and face her. "And...Thranduil would...approve of it?"

"Yes." Lenneth bit her lip.

Her heart sank. She nearly broke down and cry, but she did not allow herself.

"So it means Thranduil does not fully trust me on this." she murmured.

"My lady, the King just wants you to be safe first of all."

"Then why did he allow me to go?!" she yelled. "I will not go back home, Lenneth. Not until Carantheas has been returned to its people."

"But we cannot go against the king's or-"

"Orders? If Legolas has already proven his worth, then it's my turn." the Queen said. "I must speak with Maethron."

~~O~~

"You cannot do that!" the general almost shouted.

"I can and I will." Mirialia said with confidence. "Do what must be done as your task, lead the people to East Lorien. I will stay here."

"This is a reckless act you are making-"

"This act is my own now. It's a task I assign to myself." she interrupted. "Do we have to sacrifice this Elven land that its people loved so much just because the King doesn't have a plan to retrieve it?"

"We cannot risk the lives of our kin, my lady." the general argued.

"We will not, Maethron." Mirialia reassured him. "And I didn't say we, I said 'I'."

"What are you planning to do?" he narrowed his eyes at her.

"I'm not about to tell you." she replied.

"You must tell me." Maethron insisted.

"You said it yourself that I am above all things, General. So I am above you. And I order you to do your task and let the others go back home without me. Grimmond is getting stronger by the second, I will not sit back and watch as he conquered other lands until he reach our borders." the queen pointed out.

"My queen, as the general of our army, I advise you to change your mind. Carantheas is not a place to fool around anymore and be your free self. Any mistakes and Grimmond can have your head. Only the Valar knows what the King will do when that happens. Even if you became his wife, that gives you more reason to obey and listen." Maethron lectured with a hard look on his face.

He was hiding all his emotions but Mirialia knew he was breaking behind the mask. However, the queen also had an emotionless face, trying to hide all the stress, the anger, and the pain. She shook her head, not wanting to utter a word. She would have just obeyed but her heart and mind screamed something different.

"Do I not have your trust, General?" she broke the silence.

"You have, my queen." he replied.

"Then you will let me do this." Mirialia said softly.

Maethron sighed, he felt like he was caught in a dilemma. He cannot disobey Thranduil but he doesn't want to disobey the Queen either. Pacing back and forth, he could not figure out what her plan would be.

"If you think your plan would not work, you must escape immediately."

"Understood."

"You will need a group of our army to stay behind for you." he suggested.

"No. I won't be needing our army." she refused.

"Then how -" he was about to complain, but seeing the 'I will not tell you' look on Mirialia's face, he stopped. "Fine."

The queen smiled, leaned forward and gave him a tight hug. "Thank you, Maethron. I will not fail, I promise."

"You must not. Be very careful." he whispered in her ear.

"I'm not leaving the Queen. I will be with her." Lenneth announced.

"Very well. Make sure she is safe."

"Got it."

~~O~~

Silence fell upon the edge of the forest after the two watched everyone leave. The queen promised to Gilwen that she will help her brother escape.

Everything was quiet now.

All Mirialia could hear was the soft inhale and exhale of herself, and even then she could barely hear it. As if the world had stopped.

"Uh, my queen? It's just the two of us now. How are we going to do the plan alone? Whatever your plan is."

Mirialia turned to her with a serious look. "We are not alone, Lenneth. We won't be."

Looking up to the sky and feeling the breeze, she took a deep breath and spoke in the air.

"Alright now, fairy people. I know you're there. Fain?"

Suddenly, a gentle wind surrounded them and a small figure appeared out of nowhere in front of her.

"Oh yes! We were never gone, my lady!" the fairy said, then planted a kiss on her cheek.

"My goodness, you've grown." Mirialia replied with a smile. "It's been a while."

"No matter how long we did not see each other, my lady, you know that you can always call us anytime." Fain gave her a wink. "So, how can I be of assistance?"

"Glorfindel." Just by saying the great elf's name, Fain understood and straightened his back.

"As you wish. I will summon him." And with that the fairy swiftly disappeared from view.

Mirialia turned to Lenneth who was staring with an open mouth.

"The sylphs?" the elf maiden said.

"I told you we won't be alone."

~~O~~