A Promise- a LOTR Fanfiction (Legolas) ❤︎ ✓

Chapter 20: The King's Daughter

"Thranduil, you have to hide her. They're here."  

A man's voice.

"So soon? That can't be possible, it's been barely-" 

A deeper male voice whom I recognize from years in Mirkwood.

"They've breached our first line of defence- they're strong, my King. Eleanor wanted the girl to be safe! Saruman wants her, and they will do whatever it takes!" 

Eleanor. My mother. And Thranduil... 

Why does Saruman, the great White Wizard, want me?

I wrack my mind for more details, but I pull up blank cards every time. I fist my hands into my hair, wrenching my eyes shut and trying to remember, but I just can't. I let out a scream, pulling on the tangled locks until my head hurts even more. Why did Saruman want me? What's so special about me?!

*flashback*

Battle cries and screaming. Orcs and elves. Swords, spears and bows. Death.

The orcs attacked in the afternoon, where I was out feeding the horses. They found me close to the gate, but I was weaponless and weak. They had grabbed me and tied my hands behind my back and I screamed, and many elves had started to fight back. I screamed with all of my might but they knocked me out, and dragged me away while the Elves fought the remaining orcs. Unnoticed in the chaos.

I woke up every few hours, but they knocked me out again and again. A few days had passed before I woke for good.

I awoke in a dim cave, surrounded by goblins and the orcs which captured me. They sneered at me, jeering and poking at me whenever they got fed up or bored. My lips were chapped, my wrists raw from the rope, and my eyes wide with terror. I was very young, and used to the safety of home. I was kept in that cave for days, left with small amounts of water and unknown meat that I wouldn't eat. There was no light, and I had felt suffocated as a creature who needed to be near nature to thrive. Every time I made noise or complaint, a goblin would scrunch his nose up and shut me up effectively. In the dim light, I could tell that my arms were littered with dark bruises, and knew that my face was the same. The cave felt like it was getting smaller by the second, until one day, I was free.

The orcs picked me up roughly and threw me into the centre of a larger underground cave, in front of a huge goblin- the Goblin King. He asked me questions that I had no answer to, about my parents, and he lost patience. The orcs took me out of the caves and into daylight, where I wanted to run away and be freed. I was too weak- I only had a piece of stale bread so far. They rebound my hands in front of me and carried me in turns, and I floated in and out of consciousness.

We followed a river to get to Isengard, where they argued whether or not to pass Rivendell and risk notifying the elves, or take the longer, safer route where Saruman was sure to be angrier. While they argued, I ran. I ran until I could not run anymore, which was soon, as I was very weak. My hands were still bound, held in front of me. They didn't notice I was gone until it was too late, but I was paranoid. I collapsed on the riverbank from sheer exhaustion and hit my head on a rock. Before I lost consciousness, I kept panicking, praying to whoever was listening that they wouldn't find me. 

Footsteps.

I shut my eyes and let the tears flow, knowing my fate. I waited for the orcs to spit in my face and lift me roughly to continue the journey, but it someone else. 

A ranger with dark hair appeared. He saw me lying almost unconscious on the rocks and picked me up carefully, brushing my sweaty bangs off of my forehead.