Broken Souls

A Process

The wine slushed quietly against the curved walls of the wine glass as Thranduil slowly twirled it in his hand, his mind absent from the guard's report of how his soldiers fared and how many nests had been destroyed in the wood. His chin rested upon his knuckles as he leaned against the arm of his throne, sighing frustratedly before he took a sip of the Dorwinion wine.

Nothing could bring his attention away from what was discovered the night before. The drawings were burned into his mind, constantly tugging at his interest in Kiera. She drew beautifully, as if the person she had drawn was simply taken from reality and put on the page. The detail, he had noticed, was very clear and it seemed to him she had studied his facial features very closely. He had never noticed himself, that he had a small spot right beneath his brow. Barely visible, but still seen up close.

Despite the talent Kiera showed in the drawings of himself, it was not what kept Thranduil occupied while the guard attempted to do his job. It was the man with glasses who kept circling around in his mind, continuously accusing the stranger of whatever role he had in Kiera's life. He could be a brother, a cousin or a friend. But was he really? Maybe he was a partner, a husband who waited for her to come home. He seemed to be her age, and something within Thranduil didn't like that idea.

The King had grown used to Kiera's presence. He didn't know for better or worse, but he felt something splinter just by the thought of sending her away – home, to wherever Earth was. She was difficult to figure out, a puzzle who enjoyed to be a mystery, but still through the months she had been there, he had come to know her, mostly through hostility, but their conversation yesterday had given him hope for change. A long process it may become, but it was, at least, a process.

"Stop." Thranduil commanded, breaking his train of thought as well as the long ramble of the guard. "I believe I shall see for myself how well my subjects are doing, if you would simply focus on the progress of the patrols. Find Legolas and tell him of the report, he will take a few guards and see to it that the endangered area in the north is cleared. You're dismissed." He ordered, rising from the throne as the elf bowed and left. Thranduil finished drinking his wine and descended the many steps of the staircase, his robes swishing across the stone floor as he left the room shortly after his subject.

He walked down corridors with a brisk and steadfast pace, wishing to busy himself with his duties, so he could rid the drawing of his mind for just a few minutes. He was steering towards the training grounds and hoped he wasn't met with disaster, but instead pleasant improvement. Perhaps he should find the general to spar for a while — it had been a few days ago since he last had drawn his sword to practice.

Grunts and sounds of metal clashing against one another reached Thranduil's acute ears as he turned down the last hallway, arriving at the training grounds with dear hope for a distraction. He didn't get what he expected when he finally cast a look over the yard, but his track of thought faltered when he caught sight of Kiera sparring with Tauriel.

Thranduil stopped, remaining unseen as he watched them fight against each other. Tauriel had obtained her title for a reason, but Kiera seemed to challenge her skills with the same level. Red and dark hair flurried through the air and the sunlight glinted in the blades as they each tried finding the other's weakness.

Kiera had a smirk on her face as she twisted, her dagger going straight for Tauriel's thigh, but the captain moved and knocked away the blade. "Too slow, Kiera." She chuckled and pushed at her. Kiera grunted and smashed her elbow into her side, causing Tauriel to lose her breath, flipping her dagger to throw at the woman in revenge. Kiera felt her skin break as the blade cut through just slightly above her brow, a few blood drops trickling down her temple and she took a few steps back.

Thranduil felt something jump inside him as he watched from the shadows, seeing the blood cover part of her face, but refrained from revealing himself just yet.