Ellenya's bed chambers looked out to a small garden; it was a place where natural light filtered through the cracks of the great rock and caverns of the King's halls, creating a little oasis of life and light. The archways that supported the veranda were draped in white gossamer, which fluttered and floated in the strong breeze. It was early dawn on a winter's morning, the blueish light cast an ethereal glow over the sleeping garden and up into the Princess's chambers.

The woodland Princess lay watching the light creep up the steps and through the doorways, slowly flooding her rooms in its cold brightness. Her coverings were twisted around body and she breathed deeply, her silvery, blue eyes were empty and void of emotion. Much had changed over the course of the winter, the absence of her brother the most prominent difference, his absence was felt by everyone but more so Ellenya.

She felt like everything was colder now that Legolas was gone, she had become moody and irritable, less interested in her surroundings. Her visions and dreams had continued but she had chosen to ignore them now, as far as she was concerned they were useless to her now her brother's fate was sealed and so was their kingdom's. Every day the enemy advanced further, her people lost more ground and the sickness in the forest continued to spread, there was little hope to be found. It seemed appropriate to just accept the inevitable; the world as she knew it was coming to an end.

It had been a few months now since Elrond's council; Legolas had sent news straight away to explain the terrible nature of what had been revealed there. The ring of power had been found and was in the custody of a Halfling, a fellowship had been formed in order to assist the Halfling in a journey so perilous, and so incredible foolish, that only someone incredibly dense would agree to such a thing! The fact her brother had nominated himself was an outrageous revelation for Ellenya, she had been prepared for him to go to war, but she had not prepared herself to cope with the idea of him assisting a hobbit to rid the world of darkest evil and overthrow Sauron. The very idea was so ridiculous that it could almost be comical had it not involved her brother! So the fate of Arda and its people rested in the hands of a Halfling, three of his kin, her brother, Aragorn the ranger, a man of heritage from Gondor, Mithrandir the wizard, and a dwarf!

What was the greatest disappointment to Ellenya was her Adar, she had thought for sure he would have forbidden Legolas to partake in such a masquerade, she had pinned her last hopes on Thranduil intervening and saving her brother from his own idiocy. To her despair he supported the decision and encouraged Ellenya to do the same thing but she could not and angrily retreated from her Adar, choosing to spend her days avoiding awkward conversations with him and instead throwing herself into her duties.

With a groan Ellenya pushed the memories from her mind and sat up straight in her bed, stretching her arms above her head, whilst making satisfied mumbles, as her muscles and joints began to wake up. Drowsily the princess began to shed her clothes and in her daze did not hear the handle of her door creak, and a familiar figure enter the room.

"Surprise! Guess who-"

Ellenya screamed loudly, as she stumbled away from the intruder frantically ripping a sheet from her bed to cover herself with.

In her chaotic fumbling the princess tripped over an ottoman and landed in a heap on the ground.

The intruding elf screeched in surprise, and spun back in the direction of the door only to hit their head off the frame with a loud thump.

"What is it? What did I do? Ow my eye....I think I am blind? Ellenya I am blind and it is your fault...Ellenya...where are you?"

Ellenya, who was face down on the ground with a giant sheet covering her, began to chuckle breathlessly, the only thing visible was her mass of sleek, blond, locks. "Elladan, do you not knock?" the princess muffled into the floor, as she felt her cheeks begin to burn with embarrassment.

The raven haired ellon, who was clutching his right eye, squinted into his friend's room trying to ascertain the direction of her voice;

"You do not knock if it is a surprise," he corrected the currently invisible elleth, "which clearly I excelled at, where are you hiding?"

"I am on the floor, and so help me Elladan I will gouge the eyeballs from your head and eat them myself if you dare to look this direction," Ellenya warned from her hiding place behind her bed obscured by the ottoman. Her response was met by silence but curiosity got the better of the princess, so she popped her up to glance over the top of the bed.

Elladan was leaning up against the doorframe with the most mischievous look on his face, arms crossed over his broad chest and his greys glinting with humour. The sight of the princess made the ellon contort with laughter, all that was visible was two, wary, blue eyes, hidden under a sheet that appeared like hood over her head.

"Ellenya?" Elladan queried in-between chuckles, "Are you improperly dressed again?"

The answering groan was enough to tip the amused ellon over the edge, with hearty laughter Elladan staggered to a settle and picked up a discarded floor length green robe, and tossed it in the direction of his friend

"It is not funny Elladan, you are just lucky I was not completely naked, I would have had no problem informing my Adar of your shameful behaviour!" Ellenya spat, as she pulled the robe off the bed and wiggled into it from her position on the floor. To her amusement Elladan's roaring stopped almost instantaneously.

"I swear on my brother's life I saw nothing!" Elladan squeaked in answer and then muttered an "unfortunately," under his breath.

"I heard that!" Ellenya accused as she exited her hiding place, dressed appropriately, with a sour expression; "What pray tell are you doing in my chambers this morning?"

"Well trying to catch a glimpse of you in your night clothes obviously," Elladan chirped as he collapsed on her settle with a wicked grin. Ellenya scowled and perched regally opposite him, whilst she quickly braided her hair intricately at the sides, suddenly aware of how her locks were splayed rather messily about her shoulders.

"Apart from that I wanted to say hello to my dearest friend, it is not very often I pass through King Thranduil's realm and I had to take advantage of the opportunity," Elladan continued and winked playfully at the elleth.

"Yes you took great advantage of the opportunity," Ellenya tutted in reply but then smiled happily at her friend, "Though I will not lie I am happy to see a friendly face, I have missed you and Elrohir...speaking of which where is he?"

"Raiding the pantries, last I checked he was making short work of a basket of loaves.  I do not think your kitchen servants are best pleased."

"Hmm that is no surprise...so why exactly is your brother depleting our kitchen stock?"

"We were engaged in discussions with the north men, terribly boring stuff, war and strategy, you know how it is. Anyway we are heading back to Lorien for a time, and so I thought to myself what would a trip through Mirkwood be without stopping to behold the beauty of the woodland princess?" Elladan tapped his chin and inclined his head toward Ellenya.

The princess laughed softly and blushed from the compliment, "Flattery will get you far with me Elladan."

"I am banking on that Princess," Elladan replied with a strangely serious expression, one which made Ellenya blush deeper and she averted her gaze from her long time comrade. Noting the sudden awkwardness in Ellenya's mannerisms, Elladan quickly moved the conversation on;

"I may be stretching the truth a little; my visit may be more than a fleeting whim, I bring news."

Ellenya cocked her head to the side suddenly intrigued, "What news?" The only news the twins could bring her would be news of her brother, they had spent weeks scouting the land to ensure the first leg of the fellowship's journey was as uneventful as possible, this Ellenya knew from a letter of comfort from the Lady Galadriel.

Elladan glanced to the side and Ellenya noticed a glimmer of sadness in his eyes, she felt her heart sink to the pit of her stomach. Deliberately the ellon shifted forward, leaning into the princess and with hushed tones divulged what news he had;

"Elrohir and I have spoken with our Adar, he informs us the fellowship have found sanctuary in Lothlorien. Ellenya your brother is well and regaining his strength for the continuing journey, you must not grieve for him, he does not want that."

Ellenya breathed deeply, a great sense of relief flooded through her. Legolas was well, he had made it to Lothlorien. She absently wondered what he would think of the Golden Wood, he never hid his jealously over the fact Ellenya had spent great expanses of her life in the fair wood, yet he was never granted the opportunity to gaze upon its beauty himself. She wished he could have seen it in the spring; it was truly a wonderful place when it was teaming with new life, the notion brought with it a bitter reminder that Legolas may not see another spring, and the familiar sinking feeling returned.

"Then this is good news Elladan, I am most thankful for it!" Ellenya attempted to sound genuine but she was plagued with doubt.

"I am not finished, there is more distressing news," Elladan warned, lowering his voice even further as he continued, "The company passed through Kazad-dum, what madness drove them to take that path I cannot fathom."

"Kazad-dum! Elladan, was there no other path?" Ellenya gasped anxiety and disbelief evident in her voice.

"Ellenya, Mithrandir fell into shadow," Elladan answered and dropped his gaze, shoulder sagging in defeat.

"What? How?" the elleth cried in astonishment.

"A Balrog was awakened, the wizard sacrificed himself in order to save the company, and there was no other who could fight such a demon. It was a heavy price; we can only hope the Valar will intervene in some way." Elladan murmured sadly and then lifted his gaze to the elleth before him, her silvery blue eyes were filled with anguish. He knew the same anxieties resounded in her mind. Mithrandir was their only hope against Saruman, without the wizard the fellowship was open to attack by dark magic, there was no-one now to guide them.

"Saruman will have the upper hand, there is no-one now to challenge him," Ellenya responded, her voice almost a whisper as in her mind's eye her dreams were reanimated and she knew the strife the traitor intended to inflict. Watching the sadness in his dearest friends eyes Elladan instinctively reached out and took the elleth's hand in both of his, wanting to soothe her distress unaware of the visions she was revisiting in her mind.

Ellenya felt the strong clasp of rough hands snake around her own, she automatically tensed, she did not like the restriction and she drew a sharp breath.  Her eyes darted to her captive hand. It took her several seconds to process that she had nothing to fear, she felt the soothing sweeping motions of Elladan's thumb as he rubbed it along the back of her hand. To her utter astonishment she did not mind the gesture and allowed it to continue, her eyes trained to his hands over her own as she deliberated the reasons behind the ellon's comforting display.

Elladan knew her well enough to know that this kind of action should never be spontaneous, he had learnt that the hard way, when in her youth he had tried to take her hand and she had violently snatched it back.  She did not intend to be hurtful, it was just automatic for her to reject close touch and thus he never attempted to comfort her since.

That was until now; Elladan continued to keep a hold of her hand and waited patiently for Ellenya to respond. Eventually the elleth lifted her gaze to meet his and the ellon offered her a soft smile, she managed a slight twitch of her lips in return. He knew it was asking too much, but the look of pain in his friend's eyes stirred him to comfort her, and so he took one of his hands away from Ellenya's and caught a stray wisp of her hair to tuck it behind her ear, before resting his hand on her curve of her neck;

"Have faith Ellenya, there may yet be hope," he whispered and let his thumb brush the length of Ellenya's jaw.

Ellenya was dumbfounded, her mind momentarily distracted from her dark brooding, as she felt the skin of her jaw tingle were Elladan had trailed his thumb along. The sensation was entirely strange for the elleth, she felt fluttery and a bit breathless, her anxiety building.

Elladan's grey eyes were so full of compassion and comfort that as much as she tried she could not look away. She felt their gaze deepen and she continued to let the ellon soothingly, stroke her jaw and cheek. Before she could make sense of her next actions, Ellenya brought her free hand up to hold it against Elladan's, turning her face toward his touch, the warmth of it so comforting and familiar she found herself not wanting him to stop.

In some part of his mind Elladan had always known he felt more than just friendship for Ellenya, but had ignored that notion for the majority of his mature life.  Mainly because Ellenya had been so closed off, his inability to read the elleth led him to believe it was just a daydream to indulge in. But now she was responding in a way that not even he could have anticipated, and he felt long closeted feeling resurface.

Unable to stop himself Elladan leaned in closer to Ellenya, his breath quickening, their foreheads touched and still Ellenya did not reject him. With deliberate slowness, so as not to push her too far, he slid his hand to the back of her neck, gently pulling her closer to him.

Ellenya did not really care that she did not comprehend what she was doing; she wanted so desperately to forget her grief and confusion. Elladan's peaceful, grey eyes lulled her anxieties she liked this sensation and she wanted to take comfort in him. So without hesitation she let Elladan pull her closer to him, as she felt her eyelids flutter closed and the ticklish sensation of his sweet, warm, breath on her lips. Instinctively she let her free hand rest on his broad, chest, feeling his racing heart.

"Princess Ellenya may I come in?" An urgent voice cut through the intimate moment, as a loud banging on Ellenya's door resounded through the room like thunder, before the door opened to reveal not just Captain Tauriel but an inquisitive Elrohir

The sound snapped Ellenya out of her trance like state and she ripped away from Elladan in shock, she blushed scarlet, standing immediately to her feet.

Elladan still remained in much the same position unable to fathom what just happened, one hand still extended in the air were he had been holding Ellenya.  He stared in confusion at the empty space in front of him.

Ellenya wrapped her arms tightly around herself and glared angrily at the intruders, Tauriel seemed oblivious and bowed respectfully, only Elrohir eyed his twin brother with a curious gaze.

"What is it?" Ellenya demanded her voice unusually high pitched.

"A reminder my lady, of the journey to the outlying trading post, you wished to join us?" Tauriel explained warily, suddenly becoming aware of the oddly tense atmosphere in the Princesses chambers.

"Come again?" Ellenya muttered, as she struggled to gain composure.

Tauriel moved uneasily and started again; "The village where you tend the two young girls, you wished to journey with our patrol today to check on them? My apologies your highness I did not mean to disturb you but we are leaving shortly."

"You are not disturbing me!" Ellenya defended a little too hastily, "Yes I remember, of course, yes I will join you presently, please just give me a moment to..erm...put my armour on and find somewhere for my guests to stay in my absence."

"Well actually I was hoping we could join you Princess," Elrohir interjected, not taking his eyes off his still bemused looking brother, "We never like to waste an opportunity to do some scouting do we brother?"

Elladan nodded slowly in response his mind returning to the present, suddenly aware of his idiotic gawping, the ellon straightened up and cleared his throat. He automatically turned his gaze to Ellenya, but the elleth frustratingly avoided eye contact and just as quick as her defences had dropped, they were back up. Her disconnected and cool persona had returned, and with a great sadness Elladan realised he would probably never get such a chance with the woodland princess again. He could happily string his brother up by his boat laces, and had a few choice words for the woodland guard's captain. With a sigh Elladan trailed himself to his feet and gave a small bow to Ellenya, who never so much as blinked;

"If it pleases you Lady Ellenya we would greatly like to see the realms borders, and help in any way we can?" Elladan managed to keep the coolness in his voice, two could play that game.

Ellenya nodded one sharp nod; "As you wish My Lords, Tauriel will be greatly appreciative of your aid."

"Excellent, then I shall see you all presently in the courtyard," Tauriel quickly interjected, disliking the incredibly awkward atmosphere and bowed sharply, "My Lords if you would like to follow me." With that Tauriel and Elrond's twins exited Ellenya's chambers, leaving her to ready herself.

As the door closed behind them Ellenya listened for a few moments until she was certain all three elves were completely out of earshot, before she threw herself atop her bed and buried her face into a goose down pillow, so as to muffle her high pitched wail.

Cringing furiously and curling into a ball, the elleth tried to ascertain what exactly she had just allowed herself to partake in! Elladan was her friend, admittedly her list of close friends was very sparse, but she had never entertained romantic inclinations towards Elladan before, he had tried to kiss her and she was going to let him! This was entirely unlike her, and Ellenya was not so comfortable with the new found fluttery feeling in her stomach, in fact it was actually making her quite nauseous.

Pushing herself upright on the bed Ellenya brooded over the new revelations, working through the events that had led to the almost kiss. After a few moments she nodded resolutely, forming a completely logical explanation to her behaviour. Ellenya had decided it was a mixture of her grief and the difficult news Elladan had shared with her, that had made her lose her senses and allow her emotions to run riot. The moment was nothing more than pent up frustration, she was comfortable with Elladan therefore it was easier to get carried away with him, after all the twins and she had always been flirtatious in their behaviour towards each other.

Yes Elladan was handsome in terms of an elf, but so was Elrohir they were identical twins, and she certainly did not like the idea of kissing Elrohir. Though if Ellenya was being honest with herself she would have admitted to being closer with Elladan, they had always understood each other. Elladan was always slightly more serious than his brother, more sensitive to others, something she had gravitated towards.  Very few elves had the patience required to get close to and maintain a friendship with the princess.

Ellenya found herself smiling nostalgically at the many times Elladan had dried her eyes in their youth, always inventing games and planning adventures to distract her from her dark thoughts. He really was a kind soul, thoughtful and understanding, she could not picture her life without him. This thought brought her up short and she groaned aloud.

"Ellenya you are fantasising about nothing, it is just a silly infatuation, and you are bored and lonely! Now get up and do something productive!" The princess muttered aloud to herself, as she jumped to her feet and stormed about her room, gathering her weapons and adorning her armour, effectively ending her ridiculous daydream.

There were far more important things to concern herself with, the two little girls for one thing. Ellenya had taken a surprising interest in their development and safety, visiting whenever she could spare the time, delivering food and medicine. She had learned the children's Father had been at one point a skilled blacksmith, but the unrest of the woods had forced him to pick up his sword and defend his family. However from his wife's death he had retreated from his two girls and found solace in strong ale, often drinking to the point of incoherence. Regardless of his addiction to the substance the man was always very grateful for Ellenya's intervention and had even presented the elleth with a grand hunting knife in thanks for her interest and investment in his daughters. Ellenya was sure the Father cared about his daughters but lacked the ability to show them love, and so Ellenya did as much as she could by providing the youngsters with good clothing, teaching them to read, and hunt for food.

Yseult loved to read and Ellenya had sacrificed a good deal of her childhood story books for the child, each one she devoured with intense curiosity and wonderment. Murieann was a keen hunter and Ellenya had already fashioned the child with a small, hunting bow to help her catch small game. The princess was not sure why she cared so much for the human girls, though she resolved it was because she felt some sort of solidarity with them. She too had lost her mother and in turn had grown up too quickly; in helping the children Ellenya felt she was almost healing her own hurts.

Fastening her cloak around her shoulders and ensuring she had all the items she required for the girls, the princess left her chambers with a spring in her step. Visiting the sisters always brightened her day and Ellenya could not wait to hear about their many adventures since her last visit. All thoughts of earlier events safely tucked away in the back of her mind, and she did not intend on revisiting them anytime soon.