Silhouettes

Chapter 6

"Love? You don't know what love is. You're a child. Whatever you think it is that you feel towards this girl, it is not love."
Thranduil's father was very much taken aback by his son's outburst. How could any offspring of his ever love a peasant?
"Well I know what a lack of love is, and I f I ever show that towards my children, I will be deeply ashamed knowing that I will have turned into a monster like you."
With that, Thranduil turned and marched out of the throne room, Sophia running after him.
After Sophia, Elrond turned on his heel and called behind him;
"I expect you and your armies at my gate in three days."

Sophia followed Thranduil to the gate but lost sight of him.
"Thran? Where did you go?"
"I'm up here."
Sophia looked up and saw Thranduil's legs hanging from a high branch in a nearby oak tree. She climbed up to join him and met him with a smile, hoping to comfort him after the argument he had had with his father, but the look that was returned was a mixture of sadness, fury and, not to her surprise, embarrassment.
"Its ok, you know. What you said about loving me."
"How do you know I'm worried about that?"
"Thran. You're an amazing man and quite clever too, but sometimes you can be so dim. My whole life I've woken up every morning to see you're your bright, happy face beaming down at me, and all of a sudden, after you've professed your love, you're sad and embarrassed."
Sophia explained.
Thranduil giggled.
"Well then I refrain my question. Why is it ok?"
"Because I love you too."
For a beautiful moment, the two elves looked into each other's eyes and forgot about the war that their race was about to march into, Sophia forgot about the blood that was still in her hair, and Thranduil forgot that his father did not love him. Because all that mattered in that moment was the feeling in their stomachs that later, they would describe, as love.
In the thicket of green leaves, with the sound of Mirkwood's troops marching to battle beneath them, the two elves shared their first kiss.
Hours went by as they sat in the tree, laughing and making fun of things. And just like they were children again, they had acorn wars, and scratched markings and pictures in the tree trunk; like many other trees if you climbed high enough. They talked and confessed their feelings for one another, and cried as they remembered their childhood. The happy memories and the sad ones, but amid these games and conversations, they both realised one thing. No matter how many wars or troubles went on in the world, they would remain friends forever.
The two elves walked home, arm in arm, waering crowns they had made for one another. Thranduil's, a crown of red leaves and berries and Sophia's, a crown made with flowers, both representing the seasons in which they were born.