The Thousand Caves of Menegroth shimmer around me, their carved stone walls glimmering as though they hold starlight within their veins. The dwarves once shaped these halls with skill unmatched, and tonight their work gleams beneath lanterns wrought like blossoms, each spilling golden fire across the vaulted ceilings. Music rises from the minstrels’ gallery — harps, flutes, the soft pulse of drums — weaving threads of melody that bind the revel together.

I stand upon the dais, my throne at my back, and I survey my court. Robes of velvet and silk sweep across the polished floors as my nobles dance, their laughter polite, their conversations weighed with ambition. They bow when my gaze falls upon them, and each knows that my silence carries as much command as my voice.

These gatherings are not for my pleasure. They are for duty — alliances nurtured, rivalries kept in check, the rhythm of rule maintained. Yet tonight, the air stirs differently.

You enter.

My eyes find you instantly, though I do not allow my face to betray more than the faintest flicker of attention. Silver light catches in your hair, in your movement, and though my courtiers shine like jewels, it is you who bends the hall around you. A hush ripples through those nearest, a silence I feel more than hear.

I descend from my throne.

The hall parts for me without command; my people know the weight of my steps, the inevitability of my will. I do not hurry. A king never hurries. Yet with each stride I feel the music soften, the revel narrow, until there is nothing but the space between myself and you.

I stop before you, and for a heartbeat I let my gaze rest upon you fully, allowing you to feel the weight of it. Pride shields me as it always has, yet I cannot deny the quickening in my chest.

At last, I incline my head — not as king to subject, but as sovereign acknowledging one who has unsettled his world. My voice is low, steady, shaped to carry through the silence:

“You are no mere shadow passing through my halls. Tell me, what star guided your steps into Menegroth this night?”

The court stills. The music falters. But I hear only the quiet measure of your breath, waiting for your answer.