The Wanderer

Chapter Two

The leaves of the trees whistled as the wind tore through them. I shivered from the cold, wanting to find a warm place to hide, but I had promised King Thranduil I would keep watch over his gates.

The king and I were not the best of friends, but I owed him a favor from long ago. I would have denied him, the same way he had denied his help to the dwarves in need, but I would not break a promise.

We hid behind a large tree with a great view of the bridge to King Thranduil's palace. From here, I could see all that happened at the gate without being seen.

Rieka laid next to me, not bothered by the cold due to her warm fur. She was nearly seventy years old now, an especially long life for her kind. She had grown to have pure white fur, bright blue eyes, and to look more wolf-like. Unlike other wargs, she didn't not have many scars, seeing how I didn't treat her like the orcs treated wargs.

Sneaking a glance at Rieka, I saw her looking bored while she scanned the area with glassy eyes. Nothing had happened for a while, and I was tiring as well. King Thranduil already had guards watching over the gates, I doubted he needed me as well, but you could never be too careful with the shadow from Mordor growing.

As I pulled my cloak tighter around me to keep out the cold, a thought came to me. It would be more effective if I went out into the forest and looked for the spider's nest, instead of just sitting here and waiting. I would have to check with Thranduil first.

Rieka eyed me, as if she already knew what I was thinking. Before I could speak to her, a commotion by the gate took my attention. Peering over the side of the tree, I saw a large group of dwarves being escorted into the palace with multiple guards surrounding them. This caught my curiosity.

"Stay here," I told her as I made my way over to the secret side door that granted access to the palace. Rieka let out a huff of air but did not stop me.

The door was hidden in the trunk of a large tree. It was disguised perfectly as the bark, and the only way I could have spotted it was the small seam between the door and the tree. I pushed lightly on the door and it opened without a sound. After closing the door behind me, I descended a flight of stairs into a grand hall.

It looked like a well lit cave with vegetation growing nearly everywhere. The floor was flooded with water, so bridges were made to move around. One of such bridges was filled with dwarves and elves. The elves held swords to the dwarves, leading them to the dark depths of the vast dungeons.

Leading the group was Tauriel, Captain of the Guard, and Prince Legolas of Mirkwood. Though I knew both, I had found Tauriel to be more rash due to her young age and Legolas prone to obeying his father blindly.

As I made my way over to the group, I saw Legolas take the lead dwarf and steer him towards his father's throne. The rest of the dwarves were sent to the dungeon, with Tauriel in the lead.

"Why are the dwarves here, Legolas?" I asked the elven prince, wondering about the presence of the dwarfs.

"They have trespassed on our lands, Lady Farren. Father wishes to speak to this one, Thorin Oakenshield," He explained, saying that they trespassed and the king wished to speak with this dwarf.

"The courtesy of elves has been lesser as of late. Tell me, what do you scheme in your native tongue?" The dwarf rudely asked. Legolas looked down at the dwarf with disdain.

"What we speak of is no concern to you, dwarf," the prince answered sharply. I was amused by the dwarf, it was not everyday a soul was brave enough to hassle the Mirkwood elves.

"Come, gentleman. We best not keep the king waiting," I spoke up before the two of them could find more reason to dislike the other. Legolas straightened and began walking towards his father's throne. The dwarf followed close behind, and I took the rear in case the prince's "friend" tried to escape.