[A Wattpad FEATURED story!] She's been King Thranduil's close friend for a long time. But when a shocking rumor about his past comes to light, it shakes her entire world. How well does she really know him? With the threat of war and an uncertain fut...
(Breathtaking artwork by masseffxt on tumblr, commissioned for this chapter by MaggieShivers)
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The sun is high in the sky as we start our journey homeward. My spirits are as low as my riding boots. Thranduil was right. I immensely enjoyed the mystery of it all, guessing our destination and his reasons for bringing me along. And though his motive for having me meet Lord Celeborn is still unknown, our return home feels too soon. It like an adventure has ended before even beginning. Time has slipped through my fingers again.
There will never be enough of it anymore.
I wish to still be resting under the willow as Lord Celeborn's guard plays his lute, listening to discussions of kingdoms and future plans, things which do not concern me. Despite feeling like a duckling among swans, I enjoyed the meeting. Perhaps my contribution prevented Thranduil from regretting taking me.
As the grassy fields and wildflower patches give way to thicker forest, I realize I am dreading returning. He will be occupied again, the needs of his kingdom rightly outweighing anything else. I shall not see him much until life returns to a semblance of normalcy. It will be a long time.
But for now he is still near. It is only us. I tighten my embrace.
The return journey feels only half as long as the journey there, and soon the forest becomes more familiar as we enter home territory. I steel myself for goodbye, and returning to my chambers and Gwendes with more questions than before. It is near sunset, the sky fading to powder blue as orangey light takes prominence.
Gilroch makes a sudden detour leftwards down a small, overgrown path. I lift my head and straighten. This is not the route to the King's halls, nor is it anywhere I know.
"Where are we going?"
Thranduil does not have to answer. I glimpse a shimmering gold light which reflects on the trunks of the surrounding lively oaks. It is no wonder I did not recognize the path. Last I saw it the forest was dead, but now it is as alive as the treasure it keeps hidden.
He has taken us to Laurenendë.
The water is as I remember it, its beauty now only enhanced by the forest's flora, with snow-white flowers dotting the grass near the shoreline. They are the same flowers entwined in Thranduil's crown. I spot a duck with an emerald head and yellow bill gliding across the pool's golden surface. Spring is more evident here than elsewhere in the Wood, both in season and renewal.
Thranduil dismounts Gilroch and looks up at me, his cool eyes searching yet giving away nothing in return. I move one leg over the elk to join the other, and slide down in his arms. But this time is different. When he lowers my feet to the ground, he does not let go.
I am not certain if a heart can completely turn over, but the intensity of his stare makes me believe. Or at least believe my mind is playing a cruel trick. He has never before looked at me with such longing, and I cannot believe he is now. It must be something else.
