I am the Fire: Thranduil and Elleth reader fanfiction

Chapter 5

"How are you feeling?" Lord Thranduil breaks the silence, pushing the thought of Bard crying out of your mind. A look of confusion spreads over your face, did the battle really happen or was it just a nightmare? Unfortunately, the Battle of the Five Armies was real. It did happen and you frantically move your hands to feel your face, hoping that your mask would still be concealing your identity. But it was no longer there. Then you remember once again and the confusion is instantly replaced by shock. You have completely forgotten that the King of Mirkwood is right in front of you, waiting for a response to his question, so he asks again with a little less concern than before, as he feels like you have ignored him, "how are you feeling?" This time you look up into his forget-me-not blue eyes and answer courteously "a lot better thank you my lord." Although this is not the truth. You can still feel a multitude of pain in your back and your head is throbbing, as if a herd of angry rhinos are stomping upon your brain. "If only your eyes told the same story." The king replies, giving you a knowing look. Not wanting to appear weak, you force yourself to sit up and reply again "I assure you my lord, I am fine urrgh-". As you move, your back seizes up and a bolt of pain catches you off guard, causing you to emit a moan of agony, which is quickly stifled. Great, now he will definitely believe you, you think to yourself. Nevertheless, Thranduil notices the trouble you are having and he carefully helps you to sit up without any discomfort, moving soft auburn pillows to support your body. As he moves the pillows, you wonder why he is helping you. He is a King, not a mere servant for the wounded. He should be the one getting attention, not you.

When Thranduil is done attending to your pillows, you thank him once again, but receive no response. To avoid an awkward silence, you promptly ask him: "is Bard angry with me? For fighting." Unknown to the king and yourself however, Bard did not leave, he is waiting outside this opulent tent, listening to your every word. You would think, because Thranduil and yourself are elves, that you would both be able to hear Bard breathing a mile off! But his existence escapes your attention. Thus, when the king states "forget Bard, you need only focus on yourself", Bard becomes livid.

"Do not let mankind rule over you. It is your decision to make if you choose to fight. Besides, if he is angry, then he must be a fool, for you were a valuable member of Lake-town's army. Without you, there would not have been an army, or a decent one at least." After a minute's pause for you to reflect on what the king is saying, he continues: "from what I have heard, Bard is overwhelmed by how valiantly you fought. He apprised me of how he has had many humans, and dwarves, approach him, exclaiming how a masked lady of Lake Town saved them, healed them, fought by their side. They, along with numerous elves of Mirkwood, have informed me also of your help, want to give you their eternal gratitude... I must also give you my gratitude." Then, he stands up from his seated position next to you and turns around on the spot. With his back to you, the King announces: "but I must also apologise to you (y/n). You would not have been struck thrice if I had taken heed to your words." Feeling both a mixture of surprise and confusion as to why he is facing the opposite way, you stay silent and listen to him with intrigue. "Arrogance blinds many Kings. The depiction of a humble King is frowned upon during battle. When holding such a powerful position, to be seen as weak is wrong. This stereotype, I know-"

"Arrogance can blind us all my lord." You stop the king from finishing his sentence, which is a bold move to make, especially as you are speaking to royalty. He rotates on the spot to meet you, with a look in his eye that you have never seen before, a look which you cannot label with a particular emotion. "And you need not apologise for anything, as it was my fault for letting thoughts of the past get to me at an unsuitable time." You reply with an answer that is as sincere as can be. Nevertheless, lord Thranduil is not going to let you take the blame for your injuries. "Do not object my apology (y/n), I am the cause of your injuries. Interrogating you about your past during battle was uncalled for." "Do not blame yourself my lord, I know I am at fault for being hit." 

For a period of time, both the king and yourself have been trying to take the blame. Ergo, you decide that enough is enough and decide to end this debate: "I am an extremely stubborn elleth my lord, I will not accept anything of what you say; it was my fault." Smirking, the King replies; "Yes, Bard did inform me of this earlier. He also divulged a story about you and your stubbornness." Instantly, you feel your cheeks getting hotter, knowing too well that they have started to glow a vibrant shade of scarlet from your embarrassment. All you want now is for the ground to swallow you whole. What story had Bard told the king, you ask yourself? But deep down you do not want to know what he has said, so you stay silent, praying that the King will forget this story of old. 

"On the contrary, you must rest. Sleep now and I will check on you when the sun is rising." The king states as he looks into your eyes. Although your nerves threaten to get the better of you, you do not break the eye-contact. But why do you feel nervous? How is it that you can walk without fear onto the battlefield, yet when you look into those deep piercing orbs, you feel as if you are at his mercy? Suddenly you feel lord Thranduil's radiant hair, lightly tickling your neck, as he places a chaste but delicate kiss on your forehead, causing your face to blush once more. As he walks away, he smirks after spotting how warm your cheeks have become, stating whilst walking through the gap in the curtain: "in fact, I shall check on your progress later." You can only watch him as he gracefully walks away. Nonetheless, when you go to look at him as he is closing the curtains, that separate the two areas of the tent, you realise he is already looking back at you.

Hi guys! I hope you all like this chapter. Also, I hope to upload the next part by the end of this week (given that I now have 6 weeks off- YIPEEEEEEE). 

If you've broken up for the 6 weeks I hope you have a great holiday and if you're still at work/school/college/anything else, I hope you have an amazing week! 

See you soon! ^-^