Of The Sun (The Hobbit/The Lord of the Rings/LOTR)

Pt. 1 - Chapter 18 - A Royal Audience

Anariel's eyes fluttered open and she woke in a room made of roots and vines. Twisted timber all around her, curling up right into the frame of the bed that felt like it was made of clouds after the little comfort she had on the road. But she only halted a moment to enjoy the softness of the mattress before she remembered the events in the forest and shot up like an arrow.

It was clearly a guest room, bare of belongings and not too many decorations. Her weapons were gone and she lay in her travelling clothes. She could feel a bandage under her left sleeve but it had been rolled down to cover it although the white was visible in the cut of the light blue cloth that was her shirt. The blood still framed the rip in the fabric but when she looked across the room she saw a new shirt laid out ready for her on a hanger in the wardrobe. It neatly sat next to her dark blue long cloak that had been removed. The new shirt was a dark green and she eyed it carefully before drifting her gaze to her cloak. The pin was gone from where it would normally sit about the neck. Apparently they did not trust her with even that much of a weapon. She decided to take it as a compliment.

The door was placed on the right hand side of the wall adjacent to her. Ana moved forward, going for the handle first to try and rip it open but naturally it was locked and shaking it back and forth did nothing. She tried yelling but no reply came until eventually she huffed and went back to sit on the mattress.

It was another ten minutes before she was quickly jumping to her feet at the sound of the door opening.

"You." Ana stated at the sight of the leader of the guards. "This is the Woodland Realm, Thranduil's kingdom?" It was a stupid question really, but her length in the forest was one great big smudge of time and she felt a stupid question and a straight forward answer might help in shaking that feeling of haziness off even if she felt much better. He nodded and turned his back, moving off to the side and over to a very small window that looked out and down to one of the many bridges within the kingdom. It was a window much to small for escape and they'd clearly chosen this room carefully. "My friends?" She asked.

"Friends? Curious friends." He finally spoke, but still did not turn to face her.

"Judgement is an unbecoming trait." She warned. "Where are they?"

"The dungeons." He said casually and she lunged forward. It was hardly an impulsive act built on rage. His back was turned, she needed to escape, and now she knew where they were. Well, finding them might be a different matter but surely the dungeons were down from wherever she was. That was a start.

But he turned and caught her before she could grab at the blade at his back, holding her wrist and spinning her quickly into a firm grasp with his arms across her front to hold her in place and her own arms pinned by her side as she struggled.

"Why am I not?" She asked thinking she should be down there as well as she struggled a little more. He was strong even for a grey elf. Nearly of that of the Noldor. Maybe even equal too. She certainly couldn't get free.

"You can be if you like?" He teased.

Anariel threw her head back causing him to stumble at the impact as she spun free, grabbing hold of the post of the bed and jumping and lifting herself up to kick out with both feet, slamming him right in the chest and sending him flying back and to the ground.

She bolted for the door, hoping he had left it open or someone hadn't locked it shut behind him. Her fingertips barely grazed it before a hand latched onto her arm and ripped her back sending her spine into the wall to the side of the door.

The guards outside, hearing the commotion, gave each other curious glances, unsure of the noises they were hearing on the other side.

The elf pulled a sword from his back, holding it up under her chin as his free hand pressed to her shoulder.