Eclipse of Hearts ✔

Chapter 101. [Eldinòr]

Eldinòr could hardly believe the woman that had climbed on his ship to kidnap her drunken lover, was the same woman who now announced to marry Thranduil, her arch enemy. 
The woman he had met, would never have considered that. It felt like a dark spell controlled her mind and it took a lot of effort not to beat her down and carry her away. They however were not far from the other elves and before he had hit here, she would alarm them. He had to act more subtle, although he had no clue how.
Actually he had expected he had to drag her out of the dungeons. He had feared the elf king had tortured her, even murdered her, but she walked around freely, as if all this was her own choice.
"I understand you're mad at me," he sighed. "But why does Thorin have to pay for it? He worried sick."
"Why do you care?"
Eldinòr had to contain himself not to grab her arm. She had obviously lost faith in him, but that she trusted Thranduil now, was unbelievable.
"That Thranduil forced me to exchange you for my sister, doesn't mean I don't care about you."
His face grew gloomy when she stared indifferently at him. "But as far as I can see, you don't mind to be here at all."
"I think we're done talking."
He wanted to pull her in his arms to break the wall she had built around herself, but he expected that only would make things worse. Although he had nothing to lose...
When she turned around, he grabbed her arm by instinct and pulled her close. "What did he promise you, Alys?"
Their faces were only a few inches away. Her breathing stroke his cheeks and her purple eyes still messed with his mind. He wanted to kiss her. That longing had never disappeared after that one kiss they had shared. 
"Let me go." She tried to free herself, but Eldinòr refused. He wanted to look into her eyes one more time. 
"You hurt me," she hissed when his grasp didn't weaken. Coldly, he stared at her, not showing the turmoil of emotions he really felt. 
"Then stand still and answer."
"I owe you nothing."
Eldinòr smiled coyly. "You haven't paid a single cent."
Her struggling weakened a little, but her face stayed steadfast.
"Thranduil promised you something."
"I don't care about promises anymore."
He shrugged. "Well, you can't deny he fulfilled them."
A painful silence fell, which he broke eventually. "As soon as you've told me why you want to marry Thranduil, I'll leave you alone." He couldn't help but to sweep a tuft of hair away from her forehead, even though that only brought him an angry look. 
"We'll turn back time," she said shortly. "He makes sure his wife does not die and he will cause no trouble when the dwarfs and I wander through his kingdom. No Arkenstone that I have to steal, no curse in my womb. Thranduin and Fíli stay alive and I will be happy with Thorin." She pushed her nails into his skin. "And you will be nothing but an erased memory."
Unintentionally he wondered what his own life would look like. Thranduil wouldn't keep his sister as a prisoner and he would never betray Alyssae. It all sounded to good to be true.
"You can't predict the course of time," Eldinòr protested. "Maybe his wife dies a hundred years later, not changing anything!"
"And maybe she does not."
"You can't do this, Alys!" he insisted.  "A small event could change the whole world - could even destroy it!"
She look right into his eyes. "That's a risk I'm willing to take."
"It's not your exclusive right to decide something so big!"
She brought her face closer to his. "Nor was it your right to decide about my life."
Eldinòr let go of her, irritated, and grumbled: "Don't clown around so much, girl. You're only a few days here and nobody did anything to you."
"Thranduil has some surprising sides."
He turned around angrily. "Not only Thranduil."
After those words he walked away furiously. He couldn't believe that she, after all Thranduil had done, was still that naive to believe he cared even a little about her. She clung so desperately to the childish hope that everything would get better that she was prepared to give up everything: her friends, her sister, her lover and even her daughter. And Eldinòr couldn't ignore the fact that he was also to blame when everything went wrong...