When the queen of Mirkwood unexpectedly dies Thanduil is left without a wife, but more importantly his son is left without a mother. The king knows he cannot fill the ruins left by a dead mother so he appoints another woman to take her place, to look after his son when he cannot, and to give him the warmth he no longer feels himself. Inladris is a highborn elf who did not expect this responsibility to be thrust upon her, but she accepts it with aplomb and does her best to not only raise a prince but to give the king a friend she suspects he doesn't realize he needs. This is the story of their peculiar friendship through grief, and how two opposites may or may not successfully raise a child. *This is not a romance.

[A Wattpad FEATURED story!] She's been King Thranduil's close friend for a long time. But when a shocking rumor about his past comes to light, it shakes her entire world. How well does she really know him? With the threat of war and an uncertain future for the Woodland Realm, her comfortable life is changing forever, and so are her feelings for her friend. A story about second chances with eventual romance. Set during the events of the Lord of the Rings. Thranduil/OC Disclaimer: Everything belongs to Tolkien except for my characters. A/N: It was before Christmas 2014 when I first watched BBC's Emma with Romola Garai (wonderful, by the way - watch it if you haven't). A few days later I went to see The Hobbit BOTFA on its opening night. It was during a car trip from a family Christmas party when I came up with idea for this story. And while it doesn't follow the Jane Austen classic completely (Thranduil is no Mr. Knightley!), it was certainly inspired by it. I enjoyed the challenge. Check out the FB page for the story: facebook.com/StarsofVardafanpage/ (thanks to @MaggieShivers for creating it and running it!)