𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐂𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐬 ➵︎ [ 𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘢𝘴 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘯𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘧 ]

64| déjà vu

This chapter is dedicated to zdkelena! Thank you for all your comments, it really makes my day to read them and see you guys interacting with my story!

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I was at a loss for words as I stared back at Maeglor, my jaw hanging slightly open in shock. There was a brief moment of silence between us before I regained the ability to reorganise my thoughts and formulate a response.

"Maeglor...you'll excuse me for thinking this but..." I shook my head as I tried to maintain my strong, stony exterior, "...I don't trust you."

Maeglor's reply was swift, with not a single shift to his calm facial expression. The dim light from the distant torches glimmered in his charcoal grey eyes.

"And yet for the past two days, I am the one person you have been hoping to see."

Damn.

He knew me too well.

I opened my mouth to retort, but once again, I could not find the words. I could deny his words, and tell him that I did not care at all what fate befell him. That he could run back to Sauron for all I cared. But that would be a lie.

The fact of the matter was that...he was right.

Maeglor must have noticed my silent reaction as he nodded knowingly.

"I won't lie to you, Elle, but only if you stop lying to yourself."

I pursed my lips, a little part of me still refusing to cave in.

"Maeglor..." I started to back away, but Maeglor interrupted.

"Daeriel, please."

I stopped.

I could hear the barely noticeable quiver of desperation in his voice. I could see the way his brows twitched ever so slightly, the way his eyes seemed to plead with mine.

Just as I had back at the riverside, I couldn't help but believe the genuinity of the emotions I sensed.

The elf before me gingerly took a step forwards.

"I want to escape from Sauron's grasp, and this is the only way I know how."

I closed my eyes as the promise I made to Idhriel, the woman my father drove to her death, flashed before my eyes like a painful reminder of my family's fateful connection with hers. I felt the familiar feeling of guilt gnawing away at my heart.

A sigh fell from my lips.

"So why did you come, Maeglor?" I asked, my voice quiet as I reopened my eyes, my gaze meeting his.

"I...I am warning you about an ambush..."

My ears perked at his words, my brows instantly snapping together.

"What?"

Maeglor, carefully gauging my reaction, continued to speak carefully. "...one that could spell the deaths of every single man to step foot on the battlefield."