Chapter Text
Chapter 1:
In the days of old, the elves ruled Middle Earth. The Time of the Elves, it was called, and the one who ruled over them all was Thranduil, the Elvenking. He was the male counterpart of Galadriel, the Lady of Lorien. Galadriel was married to Celeborn, the Lord of Lorien, and Thranduil's best friend. After the War of the Ring, Thranduil retreated back to the Northern Kingdom, burned by the King of Gondor’s betrayal. His closest confidante was his maidservant, Artanis, known quite fondly as Artie, who, unlike everyone else, never failed to be completely honest and blunt with him. She was always loyal, while still telling him he was a dunce when he acted like one.
One day, before the war with Sauron, Thranduil walked in on his son, Legolas, and his Captain of the Guard, Tauriel, embracing. He was enraged. How dare his son be involved with a mere working elf? He broke them apart and called for the guards to take Tauriel away to the dungeons. As they dragged her away, Thranduil had to hold Legolas back from chasing after her. Legolas screamed after Tauriel,
“I will find you! Wherever you are, I will always find you!” For one split second, Thranduil had second thoughts about keeping them apart. However, he quickly pushed that out of his mind and reclaimed his ruthless mask. After Tauriel had been taken away, he tried to reason and somewhat comfort Legolas,
“I know it hurts now, but someday soon you will find a she-elf more suitable for your status. Either way, you were only with her a little while, and that is less than a mere blink in the life of an elf.” Legolas replied,
“It doesn’t matter. I know you think love a wasteful, ridiculous concept, but I truly love her. She is the only elf for me. She understands me in ways you could never hope to understand. I don’t even think you have a real issue with her being a serving elf. You just can’t handle the fact that she could take me away from you, because I’m the only elf besides Artie, who isn’t even fully an elf, that will actually listen to you! You can’t handle that after I’m bonded you will be all alone! And of course you could never think Artanis your confidante, even though that’s what she really is. The Elven King of Mirkwood could never have a half-breed as a companion, could he?” This shocked Thranduil into silence for the first time in centuries. His son had never spoken to him that way before. No elf had. It just wasn’t the way of the Elves. Elves were subtle and sly. They didn’t have sudden outbursts like this. It had to be Tauriel. She had corrupted his son into this impulsive, rebellious creature.
Thranduil shouted for the guards once more, “Guards! You are to take the elf, Tauriel, to the executioner’s cell. She is to die at dawn tomorrow.”
“No! You cannot do this, father! She is no threat to anyone in this kingdom. You can’t kill her.”
“I am king! I can do whatever I please. One day, when you are king, you will understand. But, for now, you’ll have to trust me. She is a danger to you. She has made you impulsive and irrational. With her by your side, you would become an unwise king. Is that what our gods, the Valar, the caretakers of Middle Earth, would have wanted? Is that what Morgoth, our most beloved deity would have wanted? I think not. So, she will die and you will let it happen. In time, you will look back on this and remember the wisdom of your father. You will remember how I have prevented you from making the biggest mistake of your life. You are still young in Elf-Years. You will learn that life isn’t just about love and passion. It’s about propriety and status. You can’t just do whatever your heart wishes, you have to put away your emotions and lead with your head. You will always have to do what is best for this kingdom. Someday, you will learn, my son.” Thranduil turned away from Legolas and walked through the corridors to his chambers with the day’s events weighing heavily on his mind.
Suddenly, his thoughts turned to Artie. Oh, Morgoth, she would not be happy with him. If she knew the extent of everything that had happened, she’d probably string him up by his toes in the courtyard. If she weren’t Artie and he weren’t so fond of her, the answer would be simple: just don’t tell her. But, with Artie being half elf, half witch, she would be able to see through all of his lies. From his imprisoning of Tauriel to his argument with Legolas, she could see everything. Artie had no loyal family, so she was intent on ensuring his was as close as possible. As he walked into his chambers, he spotted her sitting on the huge, elaborately adorned bed with her legs and arms crossed and her hawkish gaze landing straight on him. A shot of fear ran through his blood for the first time in half a millenium. Artie was the most powerful elf to ever arise out of Middle Earth. For she was the daughter of Galadriel and Gandalf, two of the most powerful and influential beings. She also had Fae blood in her from an ancient line of faeries spanning back centuries that had contributed to her power by way of her mother drinking it while she was in the womb. She had been banished from the forest of Lothlorien by her stepfather 50 years ago. Since then, Thranduil had taken her into his kingdom and under his wing. She was the only person who had ever attained his mercy. For some reason, the squalling babe who had been dropped on his doorstep by her father was his favorite person in the entirety of Middle Earth. She carried more decency and kindness in her little finger than his entire kingdom had, including him.
As he walked up to Artie, she glared at him, the fires of Mount Doom blazing in her eyes. She quickly yelled,
“You idiot! You’re no brighter than a lowly goblin, for all your knowledge! How could you prevent Legolas from being with the she-Elf he loves? Don’t you see you’re tearing your family apart? You will lose Legolas if you kill his beloved. Even if you just imprison or banish her, you will still lose him. He would follow her to the ends of Middle-Earth. Please, Thranduil, let them be together.” He could her the pleading in her voice and for a minute, he thought he should let them be with each other. But, he quickly pushed those thoughts out of his mind. His son needed to learn the importance of status and social responsibility. If the only way he could learn that was through loss, then so be it. Sometimes, when being king, he had to be ruthless and his son needed to understand that. Emotions couldn’t play a part in the well being of a kingdom. Therefore, he replied,
“Artanis Lothlorien, be quiet! I am king and I can do whatever I want!” He knew he was acting like a spoiled brat, but he couldn’t stop it. He had to keep Artie here by whatever means necessary, even if it meant losing her friendship. “Just do the washing like you’re supposed to. You are a simple maidservant, you have no influence over what I do. Not even my advisors are that powerful. Remember your place, girl,” He hissed into her ear. All of a sudden, her flame-red hair flew up in a powerful gust of wind. Her normally calm, powder blue eyes iced over and hardened with offense. Her feet left the ground of their own accord and she was hovering at eye level, which was an impressive feat considering she was over a foot shorter than him. Her arm rose up and her hand tightened into a semi-open fist. Thranduil was thrown against the wall with an invisible hand choking him. He clawed at his throat, his eyes wide in disbelief. He struggled to speak,
“Please, Artanis, let go. Please.”
“Apologize! Say you’re sorry!”
“I’m sorry. Please, let go!” He gasped. He relished the sudden influx of oxygen returning to his lungs. He dropped to his knees, holding his throat and gasping for breath, hacking up what he thought might be his spleen. He stared at her in awe of her power. “You couldn’t do that a month ago,” he commented in shock.
“I’ve been practicing,” she muttered with a slightly embarrassed look on her face and her shoulders shrugged. In an instant, any anger he held for her dissipated and was replaced with an overwhelming fondness. He remembered that, despite all her might, she was just a young woman who hadn’t had much experience with the outside world. Artie sighed, letting all the burdens drain out of her, her shoulders falling with exhaustion. She spoke with a exertion coursing through her tone, “Look, Morgoth knows I’m not one to tell you how to live your life, but if you don’t let Legolas and Tauriel be together then they will run off, leaving you all alone. Even if it’s a mistake, it’s their mistake and you have to let them make it. They are young, they don’t know why you’re so ardently opposed to their union. Perhaps you should tell them. They might understand.”
“No one can understand.” Thranduil replied with a lost look in his eyes.
“You think you’re the only one who’s ever been betrayed, who’s ever fallen for someone only to realize they were lying to you, that they never really loved you?” She spoke incredulously. She sat back on the bed and patted the spot next to her. Thranduil laid down and let his head fall into her lap. As she stroked his pale, golden hair, she asked, “Do you remember the King of Gondor, Isildur?” ...
TBC