Somewhere deep in the dark forest of Fangorn, where hardly anyone dares to venture, an ancient tree stands. At its base lay a bundle of leaves. The ancient tree appeared to be standing guard over it, shifting its branches to offer some shelter to the small bundle upon the ground. For days nothing moved, every tree seemed to be waiting anxiously for something to happen. No birds sang, the leaves on the trees barely rustled, no sunlight made it through to the ground below, even the wind seemed to leave the forest alone. It was as though the very earth was holding its breath, waiting for something to happen. Then the bundle moved. The leaves fell away revealing a figure lying on the ground.

The figure of an Elf with black curls tumbling across her face, and a circlet of silver upon her brow. The figure's chest rose and fell rhythmically. Her eyes flew opened to reveal their blue-green depths flecked with gold. Every tree in Fangorn seemed to sigh in greeting and relief, the Elf smiled at her surroundings as the trees greeted her…as they welcomed her home. One tree reached a branch down and under her, lifting her up onto her feet with a gentle push. She took few unsteady steps forward and touched the trunk of the tree—her tree. She pressed her forehead against the trunk where the heart of the tree would be, communicating with her thoughts how glad she was to see it and how much she had missed the forest.

As her head rested against the tree, her last memories before falling into darkness, assaulted her. She remembered throwing the knife and making Him drop His sword before it struck Aragorn. She remembered feeling the agony in her side when an orc had sliced into her—she touched her side and found it completely healed, not even leaving a scar. She remembered falling and being caught by Aragorn…and she remembered his last kiss upon her lips before she had been consumed by darkness. She remembered the last look which she had seen upon Aragron's face, it had been one of such sorrow and anguish, that she had wished that she need not die, simply to spare him the pain of her death. She fell to the ground and curled into a ball upon the fallen leaves with her arms wrapped tightly around her stomach. She felt her own anguish wash over her; nearly crippling in its intensity. She felt tears in her eyes and she let them fall. Why did it feel as though they were the ones who had died and not her?

She knew that her friends thought her dead; she knew that they mourned her, and she knew that she mourned with them. For the loss of her friends, for the sadness which they felt at her death, and for the knowledge that if she were to return to them…it would not be as the same person who left them. It would take a long time to cross the many leagues of Rohan, and Gondor. And she would have to do it all on her own. There would be no one to talk to, and no one to walk beside; she would be entirely alone. Alone and without her bow.

Night had fallen by the time she picked herself up from the ground and wiped the last of her tears away. She looked up at the giant trees which surrounded her and did her best to smile. She once more leaned her forehead against the trunk of her tree, this time to say goodbye. Another wave of sorrow washed over her, yet this time it was the sadness of having to say goodbye to Fangorn, and knowing she would most likely not return. The ancient tree told her of something which the trees of the forest had allowed to be made, something which had been made for her and left at the base of her tree. She stepped around the tree and found a bow and quiver of arrows awaiting her. This time the bow had been made from the wood of a tree from Fangorn, a tree from her own forest. This last gift was one that she promised to treasure always.

She started through the vast forest of Fangorn, her bow and quiver slung across her back. She said farewell to each of the trees which she passed, to each of the trees which she had known for most of her life. And so Raven set out on a journey all her own, one that she hoped would reunite her with her friends, and one that would change her before her journey was done.

Welcome to the first chapter to the sequel of: The girl who followed the king. I know it is short, but I thought it was a good way to get it started. I hope that this story will be enjoyable. It will take me longer to update this as I am in school now and will be quite busy, however I will update whenever I can. Please review, and thank you for reading.