Tauriel went down the stairs, barely distinguishing between the stairs and the crowds gathered at the Feast of the Starlight, thinking of what she had found and lost in a single moment. "Legolas said you fought bravely today. Having become her mentor and now commander, the prince did not pamper her with praise. Not from the rigor of it. He didn't like it when he was praised, he didn't like to praise himself. For Tauriel, the only thing that was most valuable to him was his approving look. The head of the guard and the prince threw caustic jokes, fought side by side and back to back, and always preferred to be together rather than apart. He was the best, there was nothing to hide, and Tauriel thought that she could only dream of the day when more would open up behind the usual attention. How could she remain so blind? Legolas never talked to her about her feelings, but the words were too little for him compared to the case.
- A strange outfit for a holiday! - Her familiar voice shouted merrily. - You bet me you'd come in a green dress!
The prince held her by her elbow and stopped by her side:
- Hey, what happened?
Her chest pierced with pain like an arrow. Tauriel blinked, hiding her eyes, and hoping she would hold it together.
- I was not going to the feast. - She answered with a brief glance at her friend," she said, "We must go downstairs. Listen to what the prisoners are saying.
Legolas raised his eyebrow bewildered.
- The king's orders," said Tauriel, "are sorry, my prince.
She took a step forward, but Legolas didn't want to let go of her hands.
- Wait. I'll send someone else," he said firmly.
- Don't," Tauriel gently released her palm and shook her head negatively, "It's my privilege to disobey.
She tried to smile, and her chest hurt again. Tauriel walked through the gallery, speeding up her move, and until she fled down the stairs to the bottom tier, she felt like the prince was seeing her off.
---
[1] Father (syndarine)
3. What do dwarves talk about
Tauriel released the guards from the prison, and the warriors, who were bored on patrol, rejoiced sincerely at the order of their captain. They were more fortunate than she was. Laughter, flute singing, and voices were heard from the upper tiers as a reminder of the joy that had suddenly become unattainable. Taurielle's will forced her not to think of Legolas.
As she went down the twisted stairs along with the cameras, the guard was convinced that there was no one to eavesdrop on. The dwarves were asleep, which seemed reasonable. In Lord Thranduil's dungeons, they could at least sleep well, without shudder from every rustle, without waiting for the attack of orcs, spiders or other monsters. Not surprisingly, the dwarves took advantage of this opportunity. Even if the prisoners were only pretending, none of them made a sound. Only behind one of the carved grids, the most recent one, was a strange rustle and knocked heard. Tauriel stopped. It turned out that the same prisoner, with "value" in his pants, was noisy. Black-eyed, ruffled, so young that even without a beard. However, by the standards of the mountainous people, he must be a mature husband and warrior, not a boy, but now the cheeky dwarf looked much less confident, and it seems that he was the only one from the entire company did not sleep.
Tauriel asked the question more of a duty of care than a desire to have a conversation, and the answer was predictably unpleasant. The young gnome murmured about the curse imposed on the mascot that the spit in his fingers, and suddenly stretched out his hand sharply forward.
Tauriel instinctively recoiled from the thrown stone, but the dwarf left it in the palm of his hand. Well, she looked stupid now! Having measured the prisoner's indifferent glance, the guard was going to pass by when the young gnome hurriedly spoke more gently and apologized, for sure. Now he looked like a boy trying to explain himself for a stupid joke. Tauriel stopped. She became interested.
The conversation began on its own. The guard listened with surprise, not feeling anger, anger, greed, or hidden cunningly in her words. The dwarf had a mother, and he wanted to return to her. Neither the gold nor the Lonely Mourning of the prisoner spoke at all. Tauriel felt strange. She didn't hate to talk to him, and she didn't feel like a peeper at all, even though she remembered the king's order and understood what it was for. The guard deliberately sat down close to the bars, checking on the other person. Attention to each of his movements did not prevent him from listening. If the prisoner wanted to grab her through the bars, he would have been left without a hand in a single moment, but the strange dwarf told of Ered Louin and the big, red moon like an elven guard who slammed the prison door behind him, was his best friend and did not even think to take advantage of her false carelessness.
When she got up to leave, the dwarf shouted again:
- You know, you're not angry...
Tauriel turned around and met them with a questioning look. The dwarf slipped away, gazing out with shiny, black eyes.
- Well... I said something stupid. About the pants," he clarified, and Tauriel let herself smile and nod as a sign of reconciliation.