As weeks passed, the Greenwood kingdom slowly knit itself back together. Thranduil was like a shadow behind the scenes, orchestrating things in such a way to help his people as best as he was able. Vera, the complete opposite, was a constant figure in the cleanup process. Working and volunteering to go out with every search party that entered the woods to clean up the remaining orcs. She lead a group of the highest trained guards to clear out Dol Guldur, another to clean out the webs in secluded parts of the forest, and yet another to make the borders secure. With her great strength and size in her animal form, she was able to lift things that would be a struggle for five elves, and made an excellent tracker. To the civilians, everything seemed to be improving. The guards who she worked with, on the other hand, knew better.
Vera was cold, flinty. She was harsh and sparing with her words, and the cold rage that filled her eyes whenever she was near Thranduil spoke volumes to those who looked close enough. Even when Thranduil gave the official news that the Ring had been destroyed and Legolas was safe, Vera left the room no sooner than he had finished talking. However, she was not as unseen as she had thought.
"My Lady, won't you join in the celebration?" It was the newbie, Alladen as Vera had recently found out. She had requested him on the majority of her patrol's, with the exception of the Dol Guldur clean up. She turned at the sound of his voice, soft and hesitant as it was.
"No, Alladen, I'm afraid not. I found out what I needed to know from that, I have no need for the frivolous party that is taking place. You should know by now that such places are not my scene. Besides, even if I liked parties, the scent of so much alcohol is disgusting to me." She shrugged at him, turning to leave even as she spoke.
"Are you sure that it's not because of the King?" His voice had gone from soft to hard and demanding in an instant, full of confidence that he was right. In the blink of an eye, Vera was toe-to-toe with the comparatively young elf. "If I were you, I would make sure I knew what I was talking about before I said anything." If her words had been tangible they would have sliced his skin, and paired with a stony gaze that sent shivers up his spine she was a frightening figure indeed. He made no further attempts to stop her as she strode purposefully down the hall, soon turning and leaving his line of sight. With an exasperated shake of his head, the defeated ellon turned and rejoined the party, dejectedly telling his tale to the rest of his patrol group.
Vera once more wandered the halls, allowing muscle memory to take her where her subconscious wanted to go. She shut off her mind, refusing to allow memories to take hold as they had done far too often. Her hand lifted on its own, reaching out and opening an ancient door in a deserted hallway. Soft grass whispered against her feet, which had lost their shoes at some point. Wind came through the opening in the roof that the tree stretched through, the blue sky slowly darkening into something deeper, full of richness and memory. A soft smile graced her previously hardened features and she allowed a happy memory to come through. She went over to the tree, rubbing a loving hand along the slightly warm bark of the monarch. A quick glance over her shoulder, and then she was scaling the tree. Bare feet and hands finding any holds they could, long tawny hair streaming behind her and catching on branches on the way up.
She climbed past the branch over the water, pausing briefly in respect before continuing upwards. Crawling carefully over branches of questionable strength to the thicker ones closer to the trunk of the tree. Up, up, up she went, until she was close enough to the hole in the roof to pull herself up and off of the tree, sitting on the rapidly cooling stone. She was briefly blinded as she came over the edge of the stone, the setting Sun making a beautiful tapestry of color and turning the leaves a rosy pink. She stretched out on the stone, soaking up the residual heat and half purring in comfort. She loved the forest, but the stone held a special place in her heart. It reminded her of the bare mountain sides that her people originated from and lived off of. She watched the setting Sun draw closer to the tree tops, the stars coming and slowly replacing it as the Moon rose. She stood carefully, shifting slowly and purposefully.
Rising to her full height, powerful shoulders flexing and rolling under the thick skin and coarse fur. She sat carefully, tail curling around herself and making her look like a gargoyle in the waning light. She was facing half away from the opening in the roof, but she didn't need to see to hear the grunts from the person climbing the branches. They were painfully familiar, the scent of the being wafting up from the hole and smelling of moss and a hint of wine. Thranduil crested the opening and pulled himself up next to her, standing next to her in an attention stance. She refused to look at him, refused to give him the satisfaction of rousing her curiosity. He finally turned to her.
"What do you want me to say, Vera? That I'm sorry? That I regret what I said? We are a proud people Vera, you can hardly blame me for feeling betrayed and insulted. Maybe I could have handled it better, but my reaction was just, and you really don't have any right to do and say the things you did. I have only ever wanted to be your friend, but if this is how I am to be treated, than perhaps it will be best for you to leave, as is your want."
Your reaction spoke of your ignorance Thranduil. You only ever took me as what I appeared to be, and that is so much less than what I actually am, or what my people were. I only ever wanted to serve my father, my King, and yes, maybe I hoped to be friends with you along the way. But that can only come to pass if you recognize me for what I am. For not being an elf, for not being like you. For being your equal. That and more you must accept, Thranduil. Is that so much to ask?
She had only ever done this with her sister, but she had no desire to let him see the grief written on her human features. She finally looked at him, liquid green eyes that had lost their brilliance to grief and stress, to the horrors of war that they had all felt in the previous days and weeks. With a gentle nod, she turned and walked away across the cooling stone that slid so softly under the pads of her paws. She reached the edge of the caves, and leaped onto the trees that bordered them. She disappeared from view, but Thranduil could hear the soft rustle of leaves that she left in her wake. The sound slowly disappeared, and Thranduil was left alone with his thoughts, a slightly warmer part of the stone where she had been seated, and the knowledge that he had once again driven away those that he longed to keep close.
A/N: Okay, I'm sure you're probably yelling at me for turning this cliche, but allow me to put this into perspective. A traumatic event just happened to Vera, she's bound to be touchy. She's more than likely the last of her race, of course she would want to uphold their values. Thranduil is explosive by nature, but he's also capable of feeling to a depth that humans can't understand. Elves are capable of feeling emotions to a different level than humans, and this has always fascinated me. And thank about it. He drove away Legolas with his nature, he drove his people into a cold indifference, he pushed away any chance he ever had of having relations with the dwarves. He drove away Tauriel, he held cold relations with the humans. He's driven people away for centuries, and the time between the Hobbit and LotR is comparatively short for an elf. He wouldn't have relearned how to treat others in that time, regardless of how hard he tried with Legolas. This is a learning curve for him, and he's realizing how important it is to learn to deal with others and not push them away. With all that being said, comment your thoughts and interpretations and vote if you liked it. Love you guys, and thank you for putting up with your neighborhood flaky author!
Oh, also, if there are any grammar or spelling mistakes, I would really appreciate it if you could point them out. I don't have time to edit properly right now and I want to get the chapter up, but if you see anything, I'll go ahead and fix it later. Thanks, love you guys!
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You Must Have Faith
RomansaThranduil is often seen as a cold, hard, uncaring elf who is incapable of feeling love. In reality, he is broken inside from the loss of his wife, and never learned to deal with it properly, burying his emotions deep within himself and not allowing...
