Shadow of Angmar

Chapter 10

With everything that happened in the last few hours, Mistril couldn't sleep. She tossed and turned and in the end, she decided to go out and take a stroll through the kingdom. She found a nice spot near the river and lied down. The stars were shining brightly and it made her feel a lot better.

She could hear somebody approaching so she closed her eyes and acted as if she was asleep. He came and sat next to her and just kept silent. From his perfume alone and the way he breathed, she knew who it was.

"Are you really sleeping?" He asked but she preferred to continue her little act.

Contrary to what she expected, Thranduil leaned closer and watched her carefully. From his point of view, her eyes were her best feature. One look and he always forgot where he was, he felt as if he was just an elfling once more. It was frustrating because then he had to return to the real world, which was harsh and dangerous, and lonely.

A slight breeze brought a string of hair into her eyes and he moved it behind her ear. Then, instead of moving away, Thranduil's hand slowly and softly moved down on her cheek and her neck. Mistril's heart was beating out of rhythm like crazy.

He probably realized what he has done because he suddenly retreated yet didn't leave.

"What makes you so special Mistril?" He asked, not expecting an answer.

"My skill to annoy kings," she answered, eyes still closed.

He smiled although she missed the sight. He knew she was awake from the way her breathing changed when he sat next to her.

"Why are you out here?"

"I can't sleep." She replied.

"Why?"

Mistril opened her eyes and looked at the Elvenking. He was leaning on one hand as he faced her. Some of his hair was tied behind while there were a few strands falling on his shoulder.

"I watched as an orc killed my sister and another cut the head of my oldest brother. Then I was hit with something hard and fell and I woke up in a cold prison, with a chain around my neck. And this is just a touch of those bad memories," she explained staring into his eyes.

Thranduil leaned in as if to check she was telling the truth.

"Do you hate Glorfindel?"

"...no. I tried to but I cannot. He was my light, my little ray of hope that I clung onto for a long time." She said with a deep sigh.

"Is he still your light?" Thranduil asked, surprising Mistril.

She moved so that she was leaning on her elbows and looked at him. His eyes were sparkling and she was sure that everyone in the kingdom could hear her heart.

"My light...is gone." She replied knowing that it was not at all about Glorfindel. "You might be right about me and it scares me. I don't want to be evil."

Thranduil's eyes widened, taken aback by her sudden fragility. He reacted in the most bizarre way: he grabbed her by the back of her neck and wanted to bring their foreheads together but he stopped midway and froze.

"Your light flickers, it's dim, but you still have it. That's why I allowed you to stay. Everything that is evil about you is outshined by your stubbornness to keep it hidden. For Legolas," he said.

"...right. For Legolas," she whispered, her eyes falling briefly over his lips before she shrugged him off and got up. "I need to go for a jog." She said and sprinted out of there.

Thranduil remained there with an unsettling emotion. He looked down at the spot in which she laid and couldn't help but wonder about Mistril's past.

A few days passed since Glorfindel arrived and unlike her original plan, which was to avoid the Gondolindrim at all costs, Mistril couldn't help but follow him around. It was such a familiar feeling as if she used to do that all the time when she was young. Glorfindel didn't mind at all, he was very happy to tell her about her family and about Gondolin in general. Besides, Glorfindel's stories kept her mind off of other things.