DISCLAIMER: I own nothing, not even enough money to make it worthwhile to sue.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Well, Chapter 1 has finally been reworked a bit… However, I can't figure out how to change the title! Somebody please help!

The angst begins in this chapter… I promised myself I wouldn't overdo it but I have a feeling I may have done – it is simply impossible to resist tormenting the poor Elf! But please let me know if you think it needs to be toned down for future chapters.

Thanks to Calenlass Greenleaf1, Lathspel, Lady Ambreanna and Damatris for the reviews! Oh, and I am sorry about the cliffie… I didn't intend to leave you with it so long, but RL sort of got in the way.

On with the story!

CHAPTER 4: Those Infernal Spiders

Estel had screamed out of shock more than pain. The spider had fallen from the trees without warning; its pincers had missed him but its weight had knocked him down. Before it could move to attack him, it had Elladan's sword in its neck.

Estel scrambled to his feet and drew his sword.

"Are there more?"

"We would be foolish to assume otherwise," Elrohir said. "I only hope they are all this small."

He and Elladan pivoted slowly, looking through the trees. Not for the first time, Estel wished he had the senses of an elf.

"Can you see anything?"

"Sedho," Elladan murmured. "I cannot see them, but I can sense them… Quite close."

Then the spiders burst through the trees; they were maddened by something, running as fast as their eight legs would carry them, with no regard for what lay in the path before. They fell upon the elves and the human in a desperate rage; even Elladan and Elrohir, who had been fighting creatures of darkness for more years than Estel could imagine, fell back under the onslaught.

Estel felt himself seized and flung to the ground. He knew somehow that Elladan and Elrohir were in trouble and he tried to rise to go to their aid, but a spider was upon him, its foul breath assailing his nostrils.

"Hold!"

Estel started. The voice came from above, and it sounded like neither of the twins.

"Hold! Steady!"

Estel tried to raise his head.

"Fire!"

All of a sudden it seemed to be raining arrows; Estel was vaguely aware of the spider falling away from him and the din of the battle ceasing. Then there were the thuds of feet hitting the ground as elves dropped from the surrounding trees.

Then there was darkness.

"I knew it," Legolas said quietly. "I should have done something yesterday."

"Don't be ridiculous," Voronwë said sharply. "You were quite right; there were too few of us and we would only have wound up leading them back to the palace."

"He is right, tithen pen," said Arbellason, a dark-haired elf who was even broader across the shoulders than Thranduil. "I have seen battle for four thousand years; I fought on the slopes of Orodruin, and I would have done no different. You could not know that the young lords of Imladris would choose this night to run truant."

Legolas shook his head, looking in the direction of the door to the healing ward where Elladan, Elrohir and Estel were being tended. As if in response to his gaze, it opened, and an elleth came out.

She smiled.

"You need not worry, Legolas. They will be fine. The human has had no harm beyond shock; he will be able to leave the ward this very night. The twins have some broken bones and scrapes, but nothing life-threatening. There is no venom; somehow none of them has been bitten."

"Rim hennaid," Legolas said, smiling for the first time that night. "Your words ease my heart."

The healer's smiled widened. She seemed about to speak further, but she was interrupted by an elfling who ran up to them, panting, "The king wants a report!"

"Suilaid, Limdur," Legolas said. "We will go to my father now. You have done well to deliver the message so swiftly."

Thranduil's young page beamed with pleasure at the praise from his prince, hastening back down the corridor.

"You will call me if there is anything?" Legolas asked.

"Of course," the healer replied. "Go make your report to the king, and do not worry about your friends. You have patrols to lead and fear will upset your aim."

Thranduil was in a rare temper.

He just managed to keep his face expressionless while his son and the commander of his army were announced. He nodded to Arbellason and waited for Legolas to enter. His son was accompanied by Voronwë and Eredhion, who tended to stick to his side like burrs whenever they sensed trouble.

"Leave us, Istuion," he snapped as soon as Eredhion had finished making his bow. "You too, Limdur."

Istuion, who knew Thranduil well, shot him a warning glance before he left the room.

The door closed. For a moment, Thranduil just looked from Legolas to Arbellason, willing himself to be calm.

"Well," he said finally, "who is going to explain what happened?"

All four elves before him started at the tone.

"It was the spiders," Arbellason said finally. "The ones Legolas found last night. Somehow Elladan and Elrohir strayed into the ring the patrol had put around them – I think they did not notice, because they were walking by the enchanted river. I was about to leave with twelve elves to destroy the spiders. Then we heard the human scream, and we ran for the sound – we met Legolas and his patrol running in the same direction."

"I see," Thranduil said softly. "What happened then?"

Arbellason and Legolas exchanged a glance; this time it was Legolas who spoke.

"We decided it would be best to attack from the trees. We did… And it worked… And then we took them to the healers."

"Elrond's children?"

"Yes."

"How are they?"

"They have come to no permanent harm, my king," Voronwë said. "The human seems to be unhurt, and Elladan and Elrohir are not badly wounded."

"Yet they are wounded."

"Yes," Legolas said quietly.

"Arbellason," Thranduil said, "leave us. I would speak to my son."

Arbellason frowned slightly.

"I will stay, my king. As long as Legolas is an archer of Mirkwood he is under my command. I would hear whatever you wish to say to him."

Thranduil jerked his head in acceptance before turning his eyes on Legolas.

"That was," he said deliberately, "the most ridiculous, stupid, foolish decision you have made in all the years I have known you. Limdur would have had more sense! Knowing that there were spiders and just leaving them to be dealt with later – even an orc would have had more sense!"

Legolas said nothing, but his hands tightened on his bow.

"My king," Arbellason said, "it was the only thing he could have done at the time – he did not have nearly enough elves to handle that many spiders."

"Then he should have taken more elves and gone after them as soon as he returned."

Legolas flushed.

"He did tell me as soon as he returned," Arbellason protested. "It is what we do all the time. He could not have known –"

"He is meant to know!" Thranduil roared, his temper finally snapping. "He is a prince of this realm! My heir! For more than two and a half millennia I have had him trained as a warrior, and not for this! He leads the archers in battle; are we to risk the lives of all our bowmen on his poor judgement?"

Legolas flushed. Eredhion and Voronwë inched closer to him, offering their silent support.

"Thranduil," Arbellason protested, "it has been a long day for all of us! You do not mean these things."

"Believe me, I do. Eredhion, Voronwë, you can wait for my son outside. I do not think anybody will attack him in this room."

Biting back a mad urge to say, "Unless you do yourself," Eredhion followed Voronwë out of the king's study. As they shut the door they heard Thranduil raise his voice in earnest.

Estel came back to consciousness slowly, feeling very comfortable and not wanting to open his eyes.

When he remembered what had happened in the wood, he did open his eyes, and he sat up so suddenly that he startled the elleth sitting by the window reading a book.

"You are awake, penneth," she said with a smile. "That is good. How do you feel?"

"Well…" Estel said. "How are –"

"The twins? They are well. They are sleeping."

Estel's gaze fell on the two beds nearest the window. Elladan and Elrohir lay on them, eyes closed. Elladan's arm, shoulder and thigh were bandaged, as were Elrohir's leg and head.

Estel felt fear such as he had never known. Never before had he seen the twin sons of Elrond – or any elf for that matter – sleep with closed eyes.

"What is wrong with them?"

"They are well, penneth," the healer repeated. "You must not worry. I have heard that humans can make themselves ill by worrying."

The elf's tone and face showed only concern, but Estel was irritated at the reminder that he was not one of the Firstborn.

"What happened?" he demanded.

"Don't you remember? You were attacked by spiders in the wood. You were lucky Legolas and Arbellason found you."

"How… How did so many spiders get so close?"

"They had a nest deeper in the wood – you must have heard it announced; Legolas and his patrol found them last night but they were too few to risk a confrontation. All were warned to stay within the palace."

There was no reproach in the healer's voice, but Estel felt as though her words were directed at his brothers.

"Go to your room, tithen pen," the elf said. "Try to get some sleep. You have had a shock tonight. If you wish, I can give you something to help…"

Estel shook his head.

"Thank you for your help."

He got to his feet and slipped out of the room, trying not to let his fear show. No matter what the healer said, Estel was sure his brothers were badly hurt.

He stumbled through the corridors, his panic giving way to fury. All were warned, she had said, as though Elladan and Elrohir were silly little elflings who had got themselves in trouble by not heeding their naneth. If anyone was to blame it was Legolas, leaving those foul creatures alive so that they could ambush unsuspecting elves.

Eredhion and Voronwë, who were sitting with Istuion on a carved bench outside Thranduil's study, got to their feet when they saw the door open. Legolas and Arbellason came out; the prince, with bowed head, presenting the most abject picture they had ever seen.

Arbellason patted Legolas on the shoulder.

"Do not take it to heart, penneth. He meant none of what he said. The king has been worried, and it tells on his temper."

With a glance at Eredhion and Voronwë, Arbellason strode off in the direction of his quarters.

"Come on," Voronwë said as he and Eredhion each took one of the prince's arms. "Let's go to the healing wards. Elladan and Elrohir must be sleeping easily by now, and Estel will surely be awake."

"Come, ernil nîn," Eredhion said lightly, tugging Legolas in the right direction. "The young human will be able to cheer you up."

"And the king will not think you incompetent in the morning."

Legolas laughed, a sound that both elves were glad to hear.

They went on in the direction of the healing wards. Halfway there, they nearly walked into Estel, who had rounded a corner with bent head, muttering to himself.

"Estel!" Legolas said. "The healers have released you! That is good."

Estel looked up. His grey eyes were far from friendly. Legolas took an involuntary step back, fingers tightening around his bow again.

"What is wrong, Estel?"

"They might die!" Estel said furiously.

"Elladan and Elrohir?" Eredhion asked. "Did the healers tell you that?"

"No, but I saw them! Who knows what those horrible creatures did to them?"

"Estel," Voronwë said, "do not fear. Our healers have had much experience in treating spider bites. They would have known at once if your brothers had been bitten."

"How can anyone be certain until they wake?"

"Calm down, Estel," Legolas said gently. "I know you must be worried, but your brothers are in no danger."

"Don't you dare!" Estel snarled, looking uncannily like Thranduil in a rage. "Don't you dare talk to me like I'm some – some – idiot child! Or as though it was Elrohir's fault for wanting to go out –"

"Nobody said it was Elrohir's fault, penneth."

"But that's what the healer thinks! She didn't say it but I could tell."

"Of course she doesn't –"

"Why didn't you kill those spiders when you had the chance? If you had then none of this would have happened!"

This time it was Eredhion who answered.

"Do not be foolish, Estel," he said coldly. "Nobody can tell the future."

Estel ignored him.

"Did you even stop to think you might cause unspeakable harm to those close to you?"

Estel was by nature kind; shock and terror had made him say things that he would regret later. Had he seen the look on the elven prince's face then, different words would have sprung to his lips, words of comfort, consolation and affection.

But Estel was already turning away to hide his tears.

Eredhion and Voronwë exchanged a glance. Legolas, heeding neither of them, looked after Estel's retreating back with an expression the two of them knew all too well.

"Go to bed," Eredhion said calmly, pushing Legolas in the direction of the royal quarters. "I'll go to the ward and see if everything is all right."

"I'll come with you."

"No," Voronwë said firmly. "It's nearly midnight and you've had a tiring day. Come along."

As Eredhion hurried after Estel, Voronwë steered the prince away. Legolas was stumbling as he walked, so weary that he did not even protest when Voronwë relieved him of his bow and quiver.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Well? What do you think? And before anyone flames, I am not for a minute suggesting that Thranduil was an abusive father or Estel was generally unpleasant. But practically everyone has said things they don't mean when worried or under stress.

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