Disclaimer: See chapter 1

I apologize for any mistakes!

To saw that Melchanar and Ruithel were surprised when Thranduil joined them for breakfast would have been the biggest understatement of Oropher's lifetime.

After they were finished gaping for a moment, Ruthiel jumped up as if to hug him and Melchanar soon followed. Yet Thranduil held up his hand,

"Do not touch me." Before he sat down a quietly began eating slowly. Any attempts to draw him into a conversation where met with silence and concerned glances within the rest of the family, as Thranduil did not even look up once. He was outright ignoring them. When the youngest prince was done, he stood and left the room without another word.

Oropher sighed and rubbed his head tiredly. What was going on with his little spring?

"What's going on with him?" Ruithel voiced her father's question.

"I don't know," Himdor answered. "He came in yesterday, saying he needed to talk to the king. When he turned away and I grabbed his arm, he flipped me and demanded that I 'not touch him'."

"He just came in and gave a report as if he had been on a patrol and asked to go to his quarters. I nodded, I bit in shock, but when I stood to give him a hug, he told me not to touch him and then fled. It was only after he left that I noticed that when he told me not to touch him, there was a deep and profound fear in his eyes." Oropher continued.

"Fear?" Melchanar asked in confusion, "Why would he be afraid of being touched, even by you?"

"I don't know ion-nin. I don't know." The King of Greenwood the Great lifted his head and there was an unbreakable steel in his eyes. "But I'm going to find out."

Melchanar stood uneasily outside his only younger brother's door, shifting his weight from foot to foot. After Thranduil had vanished, most of them had come in here at one time or another to cry their eyes out. All except Melchanar. He hadn't entered it once.

Finally, he gathered his nerves and knocked softly on the door. There was no answer. He knocked a little louder. There was still not answer. He knocked when louder. This time there was a noise, but he couldn't tell if it was a word or just something- like his brother- moving.

He took a deep breath and a chance, pushing open the door. He hadn't expected the sight that awaited him. Thranduil was curled into a ball on his bed sobbing his eyes out. He looked up with big, red eyes and saw that his brother had entered and was gaping at him.

Thranduil sat up quickly.

"Get out!" Melchanar took a step forward and raised his arm slowly, unsure. "GET OUT!" The middle prince stepped back out and shut the door behind him, before leaning on it, thinking. Why had Thranduil been crying?

He shook his head and set off in the direction of his adar's study. Melchanar knew that he was busy, but he would want to hear this.

Arriving soon, as he had been sprinting the entire way there, he knocked once and, without even waiting for an answer, opened the door.

Oropher glanced up from the document he had been looking over.

"Yes, ion-nin?" He asked in confusion. Melchanar didn't wait for pleasantries, instead, he approached his adar and laid a hand on his arm.

"Adar," He said softly, "its Thranduil." Oropher's senses went on high alert.

"Yes?" He asked in fear.

"I went into his room and he was curled into a ball, weeping."

"What..." Oropher breathed.

"He screamed at me to get out." Oropher was up in an instant.

"Let me speak with him, Melchanar, stay here." Melchanar nodded, albeit reluctantly, and sat down in one of the chairs that were strewn randomly around the study.

Oropher sped ungracefully down the hallway, all his thoughts focused on his son. Why was he acting so strange?

When he arrived at the door, he didn't bother knocking and instead burst into the room, panting.

Thranduil was lounging on the window seat, staring at the stars. When the king entered, he turned to face him and Oropher noticed how red and puffy his eyes were.

"Mae Govannen aran-nin." Oropher flinched at the coldness in his son's voice.

"You have not called me adar once since you returned." He whispered.

"Why should I?" Thranduil asked as he returned to the stars, "I am no longer your subject, much less your son." Oropher mouth dropped open. His ion thought that?!

"Thranduil, what in Arda possessed you to say that?"

"It's true." He responded flatly.

"Ion- "

"Do not call me that!" Thranduil screamed, jumping up to face his father. "Tell me, did you even look for me!? Did you even try!?"

"Thranduil- "Oropher tried, reaching out a hand.

"Do not touch me!" His son jerked away. "Get out." His said, still facing away from his father.

"Thranduil- "

"Get. Out." So, Oropher left his little stream. Only when the heavy wooden door clicked shut and Thranduil knew that his father did he begin to sob anew.

"I'm not there anymore." He whispered to the window and to the stars, "So why am I still so afraid?"

Gil-Galad, known to some as Artanáro and to his family as Ereinion, felt his jaw drop. He didn't even try to stop it. Oropher's youngest was still alive? But-wasn't-hadn't…

"Elrond!" He called his cousin and saw him poke his head through the door.

"Yes, Ereinion?" He asked.

"Come sit down." Elrond entered the room and sat on the chair in front of the desk. "I just received a letter." He stated.

"From who?" Elrond asked, wondering why this concerned him.

"From Oropher of Greenwood." Elrond drooped. What was so important from Greenwood? They already knew that Thranduil was… missing.

"Thranduil is alive." Elrond shook his head. He was dreaming or, or hallucinating.

"Go again?" He said.

"Thranduil is alive," Gil-Galad repeated evenly. "It says that he appeared yesterday, but he's been acting odd." Elrond opened his mouth to talk, but his cousin beat him to it.

"Yes, you can take a trip to Greenwood." Elrond smiled and leaped up.

"Thank you, Ereinion." He called as he sped out the door and Gil-Galad chuckled.

"Go, Elrond." He whispered to himself, "Go. Be reunited with your greatest friend."

Author's Note:

I wanted to explain why Oropher keeps calling Thranduil his 'little stream'. See, I've read a lot of stories were Thranduil refers to Legolas as his 'little leaf', as Legolas' name means 'Green Leaf'. So, I thought that he could have gotten the endearment from his father and his name means 'Vigorous Spring'. (Which is a terrible name if you ask me.)

Translations:

Adar: Father

Mae Govannen aran-nin: Well met, my king

aran-nin: my king

ion: son

ion-nin: my son

What do you think is going on?

Review!