You Must Have Faith

Chapter Five

She looked around, gauging the people's reactions to their return.  Guards and adviser's came running, the look of surprise, relief, and anger on their faces was almost comical, would have been if the anger wasn't directed at her.

"My Lord!"  One of the adviser's shouted as Thranduil dismounted and walked towards him.  "We were so worried!  Do not concern yourself, we shall dispose of this savage beast at once."

At his words, a ring of guards with spears circled her, the tips of the spears brushing her fur.  She crouched, growling low in her throat,  green eyes darkening with anger as she tensed her muscles in preparation to strike if need be.  Vera stared at Thranduil's back, willing him to turn around and stand down his soldiers before she slaughtered them.

He did so, whipping around immediately at the man's words and stalking towards the soldiers, looking rather furious.

"Release her at once!  She caused me no harm, in fact I am glad she dragged me off on a bit of a journey.  And let it be known," he said, turning towards the group of adviser's that had now gathered, "that she is to be allowed wherever I am at any time, along with most of the palace in general, except for a few rooms and points in time that I shall inform you of out of her hearing.  Think of her like my bodyguard of sorts."

The adviser's bowed, attempting and failing to hide their doubt, and the soldiers backed away, returning to their original duties.  Once everyone had left, Thranduil gestured for her to follow him and started to walk.  She followed, her padded paws making no noise on the floor.  They reached his study, whereupon he sat in his chair and then gestured at another chair, across his desk.  She shifted forms, staggering slightly, regaining her two-legged balance and then sitting in the proffered chair.

"Why are you trusting me so easily?"  She demanded immediately, cutting him off as he opened his mouth to speak.  He chuckled humorlessly.

"I don't trust you implicitly, Lady Vera.  As a matter of fact, I wouldn't trust you at all if it weren't for the fact that you could have easily killed me at multiple points in time and did not; you have been a model guest; you obviously have a hatred for spiders and the spawn of the Dark Lord; and also because Lady Galadriel contacted me briefly and gave me reason to trust you."

Earlier

He was looking over the view from the top of the mountain when a presence entered his mind, a familiar presence.

Don't be a fool Thranduil Oropherion.  Galadriel said.  I know you have a bad habit of pushing people away.  Don't push her away, let her in or else I will personally come and strip your crown from your head. 

What are you talking about Galadriel?  He questioned her.  But she had already left, so he tuned back into what Vera was saying to him.

Present Time

"Why would Galadriel defend me?  I've never met her, actually I have a bit of a hatred for her that I'm not sure if she knows about or not."

"I do not know why she would defend you, but I know that the last time I ignored her advice, I...Well, we can discuss that later.  Regardless of what happened, it was not good, and I vowed I would always follow her advice after that, and this is the first piece of advice she has given me since then.  But what did she do that earned your hatred?"

Vera sat silent for a moment, staring blankly at the wall, a look of pain on her face, the kind of pain that stays with you for a long time.  She finally shook her head.

"I will tell you that another time, My Lord.  When you tell me what happened when you ignored her advice, I will tell you what she did to earn my enmity, deal?"

"Deal."  He agreed.  "You must understand that there will be times that I can't let you near me, right?  And that there are rooms that you are not permitted in?"

"Yes, I do understand that.  Actually, if that wasn't the case, I don't think I would be able to trust you in the slightest."

They both chuckled lightly.  Thranduil stood.

"If you'll come with me, I will escort you to the dining hall."

He wiped his mouth, standing up from the table after draining his fifth cup of wine of the evening.  He had developed a bad habit of drinking more when something untoward had happened, despite his efforts to break it.  He glanced at Vera's cup.  She hadn't even had half of her first glass, he'd have to ask her about that later.  He turned to her, as she had stood up with everyone else when he had risen.

"Do you remember where your bedroom is, or do you need an escort?"

"I'm sure I can find it, I'll ask someone if I can't."  Was her brisk reply before she swept out of the room, radiating suppressed, dignified frustration.  He frowned.  Why does she seem so mad?  He wondered.  Yet another thing to ask her about.  Despite how many things she revealed, there were still some that remained hidden, and some that continued to pop up.  He had no doubt that one day he would pry them out of her but for now, he knew he had to be patient and win her trust, or else he would get nowhere.

A/N:  Yes, I've been updating this one a lot, but don't expect that to be a regular thing.  It's just right now this story has grabbed my attention, even I don't know what will happen between now and the end result.  It's writing itself, in a way, and I love seeing how it turns out.  What do you guys think Galadriel did to Vera?  Let me know in the comments!  Please feel free to critique my writing, but please don't be mean about it.  I appreciate constructive criticism, but please don't hate on me.  Also let me know if you find any grammar mistakes in this or any other chapters so that I can fix them in the future.