It had not been difficult for Haldir to find a weapon.

He had simply entered his father's rooms and stolen his grandfather Oropher's sword from a shrine. Thranduil considered that blade so precious that he had hidden it in his quarters, protected by four sheets of crystal.

There was no lock to force because Thranduil took it for granted that none of his Elves would have ever dared steal it.

The prince had carefully opened the silver and crystal case and grabbed the precious weapon.  It suited his hands perfectly, it was just a bit heavy.

"Nobody will bring the inferno in your territory, Grandfather. You'll see what I can do." Haldir said, slipping out of the regal apartments.

"Your Highness!"  a voice was heard.

Haldir turned around: he saw Hazel, a few meters away from him.  The soldier's gaze fell on the sword.  "You shouldn't have done it, your heighness."

Haldir approached the other Elf, and grabbed his wrist.  "Don't get started now, Captain. There is war out there. It's my duty to fight, you know."

"I could arrest you for this. You stole from the King."  objected Hazel.  "This weapon is invaluable to your father, you know."

"Ah really? Do it, then."  the prince provoked him.  "Lock me up in a cell. Arrest me."

The elven captain lowered his eyes.  His sense of duty found strong resistance to the resolve of the King's son. They were almost the same age and both had a pugnacious spirit.  Hazel understood the state of mind of the prince, who knew how to fight very well.  Thus said Feren, who had been his trainer for years.

"No? So let me go, Hazel."  said Haldir.  "My father will not find out that you saw me with this sword, fear not."

"You underestimate the King, your highness. I could be exiled if I let you go out of the Palace. You must be watched over, and Lord Thranduil has given me the task these days."  retorted Hazel.

"You should stay with your wife instead, captain. You shouldn't be an overseer. Go to her and together take care of my mother, please."  said Haldir.

"No. Your father ordered me ..." the soldier tried to reply.

"... my father ordered you to deprive me of freedom! You and to Feren and the others! Did you see how my life has been over the years? You would call this a life ?!"  the young Elf despaired.  "... don't you feel guilty? Don't you feel the weight of this injustice on your shoulders ?!"

"I am a soldier. I obey the orders of the King, who is the highest authority among this people. I believe you understand this, your highness."  answered Hazel, unperturbed.

Haldir stared at him, his cheeks red with agitation.  From the human mother, the Elf had also taken the tendency to blush, for embarrassment or anger.
"It's true, you just obey orders."  he finally said.  "So I order you to come with me."

Hazel replied: "This is not possible. I would be punished, it would be a blatant disobedience to Lord Thranduil."  He protested.  "Please. I don't want to become a traitor."

"Traitor?"  the prince repeated.  "You would betray this realm if you did not fulfill the demands of the heir to the throne."

"With all due respect, Prince Legolas is the heir to the throne of Eryn Galen. Not you."  answered Hazel, a little confused.

"There is something you don't know, my friend. Legolas will not have the crown, my mother told me this, the day she left Greenwood. A decision that I did not understand, but it's final. And my father will not remain on the throne forever. Who will hold the kingdom after his abdication, in your opinion?" Haldir asked.

The elven captain seemed shocked at the news.  "The ... firstborn? The son of Lord Thranduil and Lady Calenduin? It is not possible ... it would be completely contrary to our laws."

"Yes. Many things are still not clear to me about my future, but this is a certainty. The King intends to pass the full powers to me."  repeated Haldir.  "Stay close to me, Hazel. I need a friend. Be to me what Feren has always been to my father."

"I have a family ... I mean, I'm going to build it. Nim is waiting for a child. If I let you go away from here, and if you were injured, or killed, my head would end up on a silver platter.  I will risk much more than my job in the army. "  the captain finally revealed.  "I can pretend not to have seen you, Prince Haldir. But don't ask me to come with you."

"I didn't know Nim was pregnant. My congratulations."  Haldir told him, with one of his wonderful smiles.  "I understand your fears. All right then. Stay here ... or follow my father when he orders the counterattack to begin. And pretend that this conversation never took place."

Having said that, Haldir Thranduilion ran away, heading for one of the countless secret exits of that realm.

Hazel barely had time to sigh when he was joined by an Elf in uniform.  "Captain ... news has arrived from the South: Varian and his archers have been hit. He has fallen. One hundred and fifty of our soldiers have been killed by the arrows of the Orcs. They too are armed. Our soldiers over there need reinforcements, it's our turn."  the Elf said excitedly.

"Yes. I know. Give order to our company to prepare."  Hazel commanded. 

He thought of Nim.

"... Captain ... forgive me ... what were you saying to Prince Haldir?"  the Elf soldier wanted to know.

"Nothing of your concern. The prince is going back to his quarters, you must alert the Caranthir company, quick!"  Hazel urged him again.

"... but ... his rooms are on the other side of the ..." the soldier dared point out.

"Meneldor! I gave you an order!" Hazel interrupted him.  "Go, then!"

Then his thoughts returned to his wife.

Nim, do you remember that evening in April, many years ago, when I saw you walking on the Great Bridge and I joined you and we started talking under the starry sky? Oh, I so wish I could go back there with you. I wish this war ended fast.

In ten months he would become a father.  The more he reflected on it, the more he felt the anguish rising in him.

The irrepressible joy that he and Nim had felt at the discovery of pregnancy had given way to darker thoughts in those hours.

Sauron had abruptly awakened and the peace of Middle-earth had been broken.  Just the worst time to start a family.  Their territory was under attack, and despite the boldness of King Thranduil, there were great chances that the Orcs could win.

Prince Haldir would have become the new King of Greenwood, perhaps in ten, hundred, thousand years.  It would have been smarter to follow him, join him in the war and earn a respectable place in the army.  But...would there still be a realm to live in? Within a day the whole continent could have fallen under the two ancient demons, Morgoth and his subordinate Sauron.

He thought of his family again.  His sweet Nim was the most beautiful thing he had ever had and he couldn't wait to hold his son, or daughter, in his arms.

I beg you, Valar, let my child grow up free.  And with a father.

⚜️⚜️⚜️

The air was cold.

Clinging to the Dragon's neck, Goneril observed the dozens and dozens of trees that filled the immense territory of Thranduil.

"Flying is fun, isn't it?"  asked Oropher the Dragon.  "From this height, you can admire the horizon. Look at it well, daughter of Théoden, because it could disappear soon."

"When will you go down? I'm freezing."  the woman protested.

"Very soon. I will descend to the ground where the trees will become more sparse."  replied the Dragon.  "Something tells me that the Elves are already in serious trouble."

"Of course they are. Thranduil does not know how to deal with fire. There is no way of extinguishing it. It will devour the forest in a short time."  she answered.  Her jaw was almost blocked because of the cold, and small ice crystals had formed in her hair.

"I'll take care of that. You must think of leading the Elves to victory, and protect that rebel prince."  the winged Beast said to her.  "Roswehn will panic when she discovers that her son has escaped from the Palace."

"I don't think so. That old woman knows well her son's personality. But Thranduil ... he will be furious."  retorted Goneril.

"He has hidden him like a rat for thirty years. It would be a tragic paradox if prince Haldir fell in the hands of the Orcs now."  said the Dragon.

Suddenly, they both saw a mountain range below them.

"Here are the Mountains. Once upon a time, some dragons lived in their ravines."  told the Dragon.  "They were chased away by the Elves, despite being harmless."

"That is exactly what will happen to you. They will attack you with their arrows. And you know how precise the Elves are with their bows."  said Goneril.

"You forget that the Dragons' skin is as hard as stone. Our scales are almost as strong as the armor of the soldiers. I don't fear anything."  replied the Dragon.

"Yeah ... in this whole absurd story I'm the one who risks. As always."  growled Goneril.  "I survived ten years of battles and the hell of Helm's Deep ... I will die on the back of a giant white lizard."

Oropher let himself go to the usual guttural sounds, which were his way of laughing.
"We Dragons are superior creatures. Except for those monsters that fly over Mordor, those are not real Dragons. Stupid and blind beasts, they let themselves be ridden by the Nazgûls ..."

Then he remained silent for a few moments.

"... by the way: you will have to kill the wraith who is leading the attack on Greenwood. It is essential that it is eliminated."  said the Dragon.

"To kill a Nazgûl? There's no way."  answered Goneril.  "Those ghosts are already dead."

"Yes, there is a way. The Nazgûls were great kings in life, deceived and corrupted by Sauron. Now they are ghosts, and if you want to kill them there is only one way: to make them return mortal."  explained the Dragon.

"And how?"  asked Goneril.

"You must hit them with a particular blade, forged by the Dunédain centuries ago. If that special metal touches them, they come back to life ... flesh and blood, do you understand? At that point they can be killed."  told the Dragon.  "There are only three swords in the world made with that metal: one was given to Tom Bombadil, a kind of Hobbit. The other was Narsil, the sword of Isildur which cut Sauron's finger off. And the third ... it belonged to the great Elf King who ruled this territory before Thranduil."

"You mean Oropher ... that sword is probably lost."  commented Goneril.

"No. Thranduil was smart enough to extract it from Dagorlad's mud."  replied the Dragon.  "He knew the power of that weapon very well. It is in his son's hands now. That cunning young Elf  stole it from his rooms."  told Oropher, who sensed all the prince's movements thanks to his psychic power.

"Then he will have to kill the wraith. Not me."  answered Goneril.

"No. You will have to face that Nazgûl together. Haldir is still too inexperienced. That ghost could disarm him and then capture him and take him to Minas Morgul, for the misfortune of us all."  said Oropher.

"And how do you think I will find that Elf? He ran away, you said it. He could be hiding anywhere in the woods."  the woman retorted.  "... and I can't stand this frost anymore!"

"I'll descended when I'll decide so. Don't give me orders, human."  answered the Dragon, giving her a blow on her back with the tail.  "Be silent now and hold on."

After ten more minutes of flight, Oropher finally began the descent.  Goneril held herself firmly to the enormous scapulae of the Dragon, which moved with each beat of wings.

"Here he is, warrior. I found him." announced Oropher.

"Found whom?"  she asked.  They were almost on the ground, the branches of the trees caressed her and the Dragon.

"Your new friend."  the Dragon said, putting his paws on the ground.  Goneril immediately jumped down.

"Whom are you talking about?"  she asked again.

"I had hoped not to see you again, Princess of Rohan."  a voice was heard.

From behind a tree trunk, the cobalt blue cloack appeared.  Wrapped in the cloak, the beautiful prince of Greenwood.

"You're riding a Dragon, no less."  Haldir continued.

"Yes. Well I have to tell you, Prince: I thought my life had already been absurd enough, but apparently there is no limit to the imagination of the great Eru. He enjoys playing with his children."  the woman commented.  Then she turned to the Dragon.
"Should I introduce you guys?"

Haldir approached Oropher.  He didn't look scared at all.
"I know who you are. My mother told me about you. You helped her, and you promised to be forever my friend. You have my grandfather's name. I know you're not here to hurt me."  said the Elf.

"... and you carry your grandfather's sword, under that cloak. A brilliant idea to steal it from your father." replied the Beast.

"The Dragon has offered to extinguish the fire with his jet of cold water. And he has ordered me to help you against the Orcs. But do not believe that I care about your wood and your people, dear Prince.  "  Goneril snapped.  "As for you, if you really want to fight, follow me. But do exactly what I say, or I swear I'll leave you alone in the middle of the forest. And when it's all over, I expect you to keep your promise."  She said, looking at the Dragon.  "You will take me to Rivendell."

"Agreed."  the Dragon promised.

"Listen: our army has already organized a frontal resistance. They are pushing back the Orcs over the Mountains."  explained Haldir.

"They are not pushing back anything, the fire is advancing and the legions of Sauron, too. I saw them while I was flying on the Dragon. They are getting close to the Mountains: they'll soon attack your father's palace." answered Goneril.

"Excuse me. I forgot I have something to do ..." the Dragon suddenly said.  Then he took off again.  "... don't get close to the fire. Soon there will be a glacier over there."  he shouted from above, and flew away.

"What will we do?"  Haldir asked.

"The Dragon is right: first off, we have to kill that thing who commands these armies." answered Goneril.

"Who? Or what?"  Haldir wanted to know, as they both started to walk toward the edge of the forest.

"A cursed creature. He has no body. He has no soul."  she answered.  "Stay close to me, Prince. If we survive, you will tell your mother a great story."