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tamurilofrivendell · 1 year

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Beauty and the Beast | Chapter 18

Previous Chapters [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17] Read on AO3 [x]

Pairing: Thranduil/Fem. Reader Summary: A Beauty and the Beast inspired tale with Thranduil the Elvenking and a human reader from a nearby village Taglist: @captainchrisstan, @rebleforkicks, @yjrevolution, @majahu, @honey-wine, @accio-boys, @achromaticerebus, @solomonssimp, @tired-ass-show-girl, @dreamlessnight, @daddy-long-legolas,

Myleth had been buzzing with excitement to ask you how your afternoon with the king had gone the previous day. She had come to find you at dinner but you had fallen into a deep sleep a short while after Thranduil had returned you to your room so she had left you to rest. The next morning, however, she shook you awake early, unable to wait any longer. She had been watching closer than you had even realised and had gotten it into her head that something with the king had changed since you arrived. Just like Legolas, she had picked up on... something. Something was changing and it certainly felt like a good thing.

Myleth admired her king. He was good to his people. He cared about his realm, the forest, and everything in it. Over the years, she had watched him shut himself off, but everybody in this kingdom knew about the king’s past. They knew about the loss of their queen and the darkness that descended not only over Mirkwood but the palace itself. Things were not as they once were and the Woodland Realm was quite a lot more isolated than it used to be many long years ago. She knew many wished for those days to return, even the prince.

You rose from beneath the blankets, rubbing at your tired eyes, as Myleth woke you with a tray of toasted bread and jasmine tea, which you had never drank before but was incredibly floral and sweet. It soothed you inside and out and you were soon wide awake and readying yourself for the day ahead. Myleth’s questioning both amused and embarrassed you in turn, but what made you flush bright red was the excited squeal she let out when you told her that you had been invited to dine with the king that evening and this time you had agreed.

You turned and stared at her with wide eyes, shaking your head at her. She only chuckled back at you, waving a hand. “We must find you something to wear.” She said, moving to the little wardrobe and looking through it. A moment later, she huffed to herself, finding nothing there that satisfied her.

“I could just wear that.” You gestured to the first thing that you saw, shrugging as you turned to continue fixing your hair for the day ahead before picking up a piece of the toasted bread and turning back to Myleth.

She was looking at you as if you had suddenly sprouted an extra head. “You cannot wear that to dinner with the king!” She exclaimed, shaking her head before she waved you off and moved for the door. “I will find you something suitable and be back in time to help you get ready.”

Before you could say anything more, she was gone. You shook your head, chuckling to yourself at the big deal she was making this out to be, and then you turned and picked up the book you’d grabbed from the library the previous night and finally opened it up to start to read. After the afternoon with the king, you most definitely had not had the attention span to read a single word.

Myleth, true to her word, returned an hour before dinner. She found you still tucked up on a chair, many chapters into the book already by this point. You had spent the day devouring it, even forgetting to go to lunch, to keep your mind occupied. As much as you were trying to not make it out to be a big thing... you had to admit that you were nervous. Legolas had not returned from his patrol in the woods yet, you knew this, so it would just be you and Thranduil and even despite how well yesterday seemed to have gone, you were still unsure exactly what to expect. Things could switch up at any moment, you had learned that already, but you found yourself hoping that it didn’t.

The dress Myleth had returned with looked far too grand, too expensive. You had never worn such an item of clothing in your life. Truthfully, you didn’t think you had even seen such an item of clothing in your life. It was the type of fabric that only the rich could afford and wear, at least where you came from. The little farm where you lived with your father didn’t pull enough gold to provide as much necessary food some seasons, never mind pretty dresses.

Myleth helped you dress and then sat you down so she could put a few braids into your hair. Often, you just tied it back with a ribbon, and you wondered if maybe too much effort might be going into one dinner but you reminded yourself that he was a king and he probably had certain expectations. What did you know about dining with royalty, after all?

Just as Myleth’s magic fingers ceased working on your hair, there was a knock at the door and it opened to reveal Galion standing there. He offered Myleth a smile and then turned to you. “I have been sent by King Thranduil to fetch you.” He explained, smiling kindly at you. Myleth pulled you onto your feet and practically pushed you out of the door and down the hall. You glanced back at her as you followed Galion in the direction of the king’s chambers and she gave you a little wave before she rushed off to find Elros, to tell him all about this new development.

Thranduil turned when the door to the dining room that he shared with his son opened. Galion bowed and announced that he had brought his guest. Thranduil saw something pass over your expression at the word guest and he knew it was probably because you now were confused about your role here in his kingdom, having come as a prisoner, but he was distracted from these thoughts by the sight of you. His gaze took in your dress and your hair and the nervous expression that you were doing your very best to hide. He could not recall the last time he had thought a mortal beautiful but that was the word that echoed in his mind when he saw you. Thranduil recovered quickly, collecting himself and dismissing Galion with a nod of gratitute before turning back to you. “I am pleased you could make it.” He gestured to the seat near him, indicating that you should sit.

You were curious as to whatever it was you had seen flickering in Thranduil’s gaze as he’d looked at you but it had passed too quickly for you to really study it and maybe you had simply imagined it, after all. You moved to sit down, ignoring his choice of words, as if you would have been busy or something. You were his prisoner, you were always available... though you felt recently that you were being treated more like a guest than a prisoner. Had been for a little while, you supposed, and you didn’t feel totally trapped anymore, though you still longed for the outside... and to see your father again.

Banishing those thoughts from your mind before the melancholy could settle in once more, you offered him a smile, reaching for the drink that had been placed in front of you by a servant before they had left the room to fetch the meal Thranduil had called for. “Thank you for inviting me.” You said politely, just wanting to find something to say. The events of the previous day were still filling your thoughts and you felt a warm feeling coursing through you as you looked at him over the rim of your chalice.

“Did you get the chance to start that book?” He asked, slender fingers closing around the stem of his own goblet as he brought it to his lips. The sweet wine warming his very blood. You looked at him, a little surprised that he had even remembered you had grabbed a book before retiring the previous evening, and surprised that he had thought to ask. “Uh, yes... though I will admit I did not get around to it until this very morning.” You told him, glancing down at the table briefly, feeling embarrassed but uable to pinpoint the exact reason. Maybe you did not want him to figure out that you had been thinking about him instead and had found yourself unable to concentrate on reading.

Thranduil said nothing about it, merely smiled kindly at you and turned his attention to the meal that had appeared thanks to the servants, who scuttled off through a curtain again, leaving their king with his unusual dinner guest.

Dinner passed as the two of you settled into a conversation that was surprisingly comfortable and easier than you would have guessed it to be. Neither of you talked about the previous day but you asked him about the library, if he had really read all of those books and he chuckled at your amazement when he told you that he had indeed.

“I have never even seen that many books, let alone read even a fraction of the amount you have in that one room!” You told him.

“Well, I expect you shall work your way through them quickly enough.” He smiled, refilling his wine. “You are quite the voracious reader.”

You smiled, popping some more food into your mouth. You hadn’t been aware he had been paying that much attention to notice just how much you liked to read. He seemed incredibly interested in the fact that you read at all from the first moment he’d seen you with the book in your hand, reading out loud as he awoke from his poisoned wound.

“I am far more used to being ridiculed, not encouraged.” You admitted out loud, the words slipping out before you could really stop them.

Thranduil looked at you curiously for a moment, frowning. “Why is that?”

You looked back at him with a little shrug. “The people in my village... they think me strange.” You felt embarrassed to admit it out loud to him and usually you could brush it off but if you are told something often enough, you are usually inclined to start believing it.

“Strange?”

You nodded. “Mostly because I read, or at least that is the main reason they give. Because of my ideas and my thoughts... my mind is always travelling so far from home, from what is right in front of my nose, and they don’t like it. Don’t like that I ‘waste my time’... in silly stories and on expanding my knowledge. I do not know... they just think I am odd, I have heard them. Whispering and laughing.” The only thing you missed about the village was your father and your farm, most of the other people in it were no great loss to you. “I once tried to teach some of the village children to read a few words and I was practically chased out of the square and threatened to never try again.” You shook your head. “The men think I get too many ideas in my head and that is not good. For a woman. Especially just a foolish farmgirl. You know.”

Thranduil shook his head because he truly did not know. He held no such beliefs that the women folk should not engage in things such as arts and bettering themselves, taking part in things they simply enjoyed. He did not even believe that only the men should be the ones defending and fighting, Tauriel being a prime example of such. “Your village sounds rather terrible.” He said.

“It is almost as lonely as your palace.” You replied without really thinking and then you looked up at him with wide eyes, shaking your head. “I... sorry...”

Thranduil didn’t say anything, simply moved past your slip, steering the conversation elsewhere but the truth was... it was lonely. He was lonely. It had not always been this way, he hadn’t, but the tragedies of his life had only added up. While some, such as Elrond of Rivendell, may have come out the other side of a lifetime of losses, Thranduil did not seem to fare quite the same. He shut himself off and the rest of the world out. He even kept his own son at arms length which he sorely regretted but it felt like too much time had passed and he could not go back and change it. Not any of it.

However, he could not dwell on it, it would do him and his people no good at all.

After dinner, Thranduil led you through the winding corridors back to your room and bid you goodnight, leaving you to your thoughts. Myleth had passed you both in the corridor on the way and she had given you a secret little smile that caused you to blush right down to your toes. Thranduil acted like he did not notice but you felt like he might have.

The next day, on your way to the dining hall for lunch, you were surprised to find Thranduil walking towards you. “Ah!” He stopped in front of you. “I had hoped to catch you before you left your room.” He said.

“Is something the matter?” You asked, frowning with concern.

“No, no.” In truth, he was a little frazzled due to having expected Legolas and his company back that very morning but there had been no sign. Still, he knew that it was too early to fear the worst. There were all sorts of possible reasons for a delay. “I was wondering if you would like to take lunch with me. In my garden.” He paused before hurriedly adding. “I thought that perhaps you might be missing the fresh air.”

You were quite taken aback but you smiled and nodded. “That... that sounds lovely. Thank you! Uh, my king.”

“Please.” He said, turning and gesturing for you to follow him along the corridors in the direction of his private gardens. “You may call me Thranduil.”

Your footsteps faltered at these words and you stared after him in disbelief, a bewildered smile tugging at the corners of your lips as you forced your feet to move again, following after him as he disappeared through the doorway that led to his own chambers.

With his back to you, it was easy to conceal his own smirk as he fought the urge to turn and see the look on your face.

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