Tauriel was running in the forest, as fast as she could, following the noise of Legolas patrol. She saw them, not so far from her, in the upper branches of the trees. She heard Legolas tell to the guards to kill the spiders but not the foreigners, for the moment. Tauriel saw her prince came down of his branch to fall on a big spider, before killing another one with a well placed arrow. Every guards were behind him, ready to follow their prince. The red-hair elf was running to them when she heard a scream,a desperate scream. She took the noise direction, trotting , her bow in her hand.
Tauriel arrived in a little quarry, where a man, a really short man, seemed to be caught by a monstrous spider. She jumped on a spider before her while she shot a second one. Then, she got off of the first spider, and planted her daggers on the two beasts, one after the other. She took her bow to shoot a spider that was menacing the dwarf , because it is what he was. She turned around to kill another monster. She almost killed the beast when the dwarf asked her a weapon. How dare he ask her a weapon ? And '' quickly '' !
'' If you think that I am gonna give you a weapon, dwarf, you are mistaken ! ''
While she was talking, she turned around because she finally killed the spider, and threw a dagger to a new monster that menaced the dwarf. She stood up and smiled, proud of herself. They looked at each other for a tenth of a second, he was surprised to see so closely the beauty of the elves and she was surprised to see a dwarf after so many years. She got out of her mind and pushed the dwarf to Legolas patrol, who had already captured the others. Elves searched them so that they could not keep weapons that could help them to escape.
She approached Legolas, who had just returned his medaillon to a red-hair dwarf, after comparing his son to a goblin mutant.
'' Are the spiders dead ?'' he asked.
'' Yes,but more will come''. Legolas frowned, surprised by Tauriel's statement, and cast his eyes into her own, in search of an answer.
''They are growing bolder'', she added.
They were interrupted by a guard who gave to the prince a sword.
''It is an ancient elvish blade' ', he said.
He looked at the sword, fascinated by its beauty.
''Forged by my kinds !''
He took the blade with one hand to carry it higher. Then he pointed the sword to the dwarf leader of the little company and asked :
'' Where did you get this ? ''
'' It was given to me.''
'' Not just a thief , but a liar as well. ''
Legolas ordered his soldiers to bring back the dwarves to the palace. As the elves walked faster than their prisonniers, they had to slow down so that the dwarves could follow them. They crossed the bridge who lead to the palace, their prisonniers amazed by the beauty of the place, the sun reflecting on the water flowing under their feet. Tauriel, who had remained in front of the patrol from the beginning, positioned herself to the right of the door. Her prince did the same thing on the left. Then, she went to the entrance and Legolas who was following her, ordered to the guards to close the gate. But he stopped walking and turned back, as if he have heard a strange noise,before enter on his father's palace. He did not know that another foreigner had entered after him.
The elves pushed the dwarves to the dungeon. Tauriel, pushed the dwarf without beard into a cell, but she did not have time to close the door because he started to talk.
'' Are you going to search me ? I can have anything in my trousers...''
She turned back to him, tired of her lack of tact.
'' Or nothing '', she said, coldly, raising her eyebrows, closing the door of his cell.
She took the exit direction but she was interrupted again, this time by Legolas.
'' Why does the dwarf stare at you, Tauriel ?''
'' Who can say ? He is quite tall, for a dwarf '' , she said, with grudge, and then, looking at Legolas, who seemed much more than irrated, she added :
'' Do you not think ? '' She took the stairs direction to escape the answer of her prince.
'' Taller than some... but not less ugly. ''
She heard his answer, full of anger and hatred. She imagined without difficulty Legolas shook the dwarf with his eyes, wrinkled eyes, as usual.
She ordered to the guards to bring the leader of the small company to the king for an interrogation. A few moment later, after the audience of their leader, Thorin Oakenshield, she went to report to Thranduil. She stopped walking for a few seconds, just before the enter of the room, in the shadow so he could not see her,breathing deeply.
'' I know you are there. Why do you linger in the shadows ? ''
'' I was comming to report to you, she answered, bowing to him. ''
The majestic king who was walking quietly,was wearing a beautiful elvish tunic silver-grey , like starlight.
'' I though I have ordered that nest to be destroyed not two moons past. ''
'' We cleared the forest as ordered my lord, but more spiders keep coming up from the south. They are spawning in the ruins of Dol Guldur. If we could kill them at their source... '' , she explained, pacing in front of her king, unable to stand still.
'' This fortress lies beyond our borders'', he interrupted.''Keep our lands clear of those foul creatures, that is your task !'' he added, raising his voice.
'' And we drive them off, what then ? Will they not spread to other lands ? '
''Other lands are not my concern'', he answered, frowning, as if it was obvious.
She looked at him, stunned.
''The fortunes of the world will rise and fall, but here, in this kingdom, we will endure... ''
He did not finish his sentence, as if he was lost in his thoughts, but in fact, a slight noise on his left made him stop. She was about to retire, understanding that the audience was over, when the king started to speak again.
'' Legolas said you fought well, today.''
She stopped walking and smile briefly.
'' He is grown very fond of you'', he added, watching for her reaction.
She turned her head to the other side, to escape his inquisitive look.
''I assure you, my lord, Legolas things of me is no more that the captain of the guards.''
'' Perhaps he did once. Now, I am not so sure. ''
He passed behind the red-hair elf to use wine in a carafe placed on a small carved table.
''I do not thing you would allow your son to pledge himself to a lowly Silvan elf'', she said, swallowing a dry throat.
'' No ! You are right ! I would not ! Still, he cares about you. ''
She heard the wine flowing,then the king spoke again.
'' Do not give him hope where there is none. ''
She looked down at the floor, on the verge of the tears. She greeted Thranduil before rushing out of the room. However, one, one tear had time to fall to the ground. In fact, she had never thought about Legolas feelings. Indeed, she liked him, but was it love ? And was it love in Legolas eyes each time he looked at her ?
**********
On the evening, there was the feast of Starlight, Meleth-en-Gilith, very appreciated by Sindar elves. She did not plan to go there. She preferred to walk alone in the forest or on the big corridors and the empty rooms of Mirkwood while others plunged into the elvish wine. She went down several stairs, walked into several corridors before arriving in the dungeons. The guards were probably already more than drunk at this time, someone had to check all that. She went closer quietly. All the dwarves were sleeping, except one. The youngest one. He turned something in his hand, dreaming.
'' The stone in your hand, what is it ? ''
She had always been curious, eager to learn from others and, this dwarf intrigued her. He lowered his head, as if he was caught out.
'' It is a talisman'' , he finally said.
She frowned because she did not really understand what the dwarf was talking about so she came closer to see the stone.
''A powerful spell lies upon it. If any but a dwarf reads the runes on this stone... he will be forever cursed ! ''
'' Or not !' he added when the red-hair elf turned back.
She immediately stopped walking et turned back again to listen him.
''Depending on if you believe in that kind of thing . It is just a token'', he said, shrugging his shoulders, smiling.
Tauriel came closer a second time.
'' A rune stone. My mother gave it to me so I would remember my promise. ''
'' What promise ? ''
'' That I would come back to her. She worries, she thinks I am reckless.''
He was playing with his stone, turning it in his hands.
Tauriel looked up, full of mischief. She smiled before asking :
'' Are you ? ''
'' Nah'', he answered, always smiling.
And what had to happen happened. The young dwarf dropped his runic stone. It would have fallen if the red-hair elf had not caught it with her foot. She took it with her hand, and put it to the light. It was shining, the light brought out the runes which had been etched on the green stone.
'' Sounds like a great party they are having up there. ''
'' It is Meleth-en-Gilith, the feast of Starlight. All light is sacred to the Eldars, but what wood elves love best is the light of the stars'' , she explained.
''I always thought it is a cold light, remote and far away.''
'' It is our memory ! '' Tauriel said.
She turned back, surprised by the dwarf's opinion.
'' Precious and pure. Like your promise'', she added, smiling.
Then she opened her hand, to let the dwarf take back his runic stone. He looked up at her, before looking down, thoughtful. She turned back one more time to admire the water flowing nearby, dreaming, and then, she added :
''I have walked there sometimes, beyond the forest and up into the night. I have seen the world fall away, and the white light forever fill the air.''
While she was talking, she thought about the way the moon lighted the dark sky, during the nights she had spend outside the palace.
'' I saw a fire moon, once. It rose over the pass near Dunland. Huge ! Red and gold it was, it filled the sky... ''
He frowned for a second, thinking to the past while Tauriel was sitting. All elves were already to the feast, or already drunk. Anyway , nobody will come there and see her talking with a prisoner. A dwarf, moreover.
'' We were escorting some marchands...''
He continued his story. Tauriel was listening carefully, because she has wanted since her childhood to discover the world. But they ignored that they were not alone in the dungeons. Indeed, a prince , in a headland, was listening. He felt the jealousy took over his heart.
Tauriel spend a part of the night, in the dungeons, talking with this dwarf. She came back to her room and, when, she laid her head on the pillow, she immediately fell asleep. She dreamed of traveling and discovering the all world.
**********
Her world collapsed when a guard knocked to her door for ''an urgent matter''. She dressed up quickly, make her hairstyle, took her daggers and her bow, and got out of the room.
The guard told her that the prisoners had escaped.
'' How it is possible ?! ''
She followed the guard to the dungeons. Indeed, they were empty.
'' Where is the keeper of the keys ? ''
She could not think anymore. How did they escape ? Suddenly, there was a clearing in the frog that has darkened her mind. The caves ! She immediately took their direction, with some guards. A few minutes later, they arrived to the caves. The guardians were sleeping, without doubt drunk. Tauriel had just the time to see a man, littler that a dwarf, fell in the trap door. So it was the way the dwarves used to escape. She went up the stairs and took the direction of the gates.
There, the red-hair elf saw the dwarves in barrels, the barrels of the King's caves, the middle of the river. They were followed by a band of orcs. The dwarves could not escape, and the orcs could not leave alive her Kingdom, not after enter it illegally. She went behind them and heard Legolas followed her with some guards. Tauriel arrived a few moments later at the grid at the end of Mirkwood. The dwarves were stucked there by the orcs. She took her bow and shot an orcs who was attacking a dwarf, lying on the ground. She shot a second orcs with a second arrow and then, took her two daggers. She heard an orc screamed something in his dark language, before saw many of them attacked her.
All of the sudden, an arrow, that was not her, pierced the head of a beast. Legolas was finally there, with about ten guards. They immediately threw themselves into the fray.
She was about to shoot a monster when a scream stopped her. She turned back and saw the youngest dwarf, Kili, jumped in a barrel, a black arrow in his leg. Meanwhile, an orc had approached and she had just the time to react and kill him. She continued to fight, leaning over to avoid an axe, jumping on the wall to kill another beast. She saw Legolas went up the stairs and came closer. Then he jumped over the wall to followed the orcs, who followed the dwarves. Tauriel jumped after him, shooting an orc on the other side of the river. The other guards were always following them, jumping from branch to branch. They kept moving, cutting, planting, piercing the flesh of their enemies. Legolas jumped on two dwarves head, to shot more orcs. Tauriel was a little bit behind him, but she could see that the dwarves were far more advanced than them. While she was fighting another monster, she saw one of them came closer to the prince, his bow in his hand. The red-hair elf quickly finished her fight to take her bow and cut his ennemi's arrow with her. Then she jumped of her headland and placed one of her daggers under the monster's throat. She was about to cut it, when Legolas stopped her.
'' Tauriel ! Wait ! This one we keep alive.''
She could only do as he did and watch their prisoners and their enemies moved away. She thought to Kili and his injury. She hoped he will recover his strength. He has been so kind with her, the night before. He did not deserve to die.