Sigrid wasn't exactly sure how it was she felt about the two Elves currently leading her, Tilda, and Bain towards the Master's house. True, they said they had come in order to take them away from under the Master's thumb, but Sigrid wasn't certain that that was their only mission.
It wasn't as if Elves were coming and going from Laketown everyday, and Sigrid was certain that Legolas and the woman intended on leaving before the day was through.
When they arrived at the Master's house before Alfrid did, the greasy man still sulking from his encounter with Sigrid, the bargeman did not bother to hold back a smug grin. Legolas and the woman had been speaking on the way, and they had decided that it would be best for Sigrid to enter first, alone, before the rest of them followed suit. The two Elves would be the last ones to enter. Once she entered the Master's state room, she began to understand why.
"Master Bargeman," the Master said, hardly batting an eye at Sigrid's unannounced entrance. "It's good to see that you got my message. Alfrid does try his best, you know." He immediately blanched at the sight of the two Elves, no doubt recognising Legolas as some relation to the Elvenking. Sigrid was impressed at how they managed to stay intimidating despite the two children at their sides. "Prince Legolas," the Master said weakly, attempting to regain some of his dignity.
Legolas and the woman kept their heads high, clearly pleased at the reaction they elicited from the Master. "We've come to take these children back to Mirkwood with us." If the Master noticed the way Bain and Tilda's eyes widened, he made no gesture to imply that he had. "You should be receiving a letter soon from King Thranduil in regards to how you treat your people," Legolas said, his face providing only the barest hint of his intense dislike for the man practically cowering before him.
The Master nodded, the motion more like he was jerking his head up and down. "Prince Legolas, if I may suggest something," Sigrid said, looking towards the Elven Prince. "Laketown would be without a bargeman if we return with you to Mirkwood. It would be no trouble for me to continue my duties as bargeman, even while living in Mirkwood." Legolas considered this for a moment, turning to the woman by his side as if he could read her opinion from her face, before turning back to Sigrid and nodding.
"If that is all," Legolas said, only to pause moments later. "And Master?" The man's head jerked up from where he had begun to look down at the bottle of brandy in front of him. "Be rest assured that my father is paying you fairly for your work. Your only duty from there is to ensure that the money is distributed fairly between your people." Legolas led the way out of the Master's state room then, Sigrid being the last to leave.
She couldn't say she wasn't satisfied with the way the Master seemed to slump into his chair once the two Elves were out of his sight.
"Live in Mirkwood? Like with the Elves?" Tilda hadn't stopped asking those two questions since the five of them had returned to the children's home, the two Elves leaving the trio to pack their things for the journey back to Mirkwood on Sigrid's barge. "D'you think they'll all have hair as pretty as the prince's and the lady's? Will they be nice? What d'you think they'll think of us?"
If Sigrid was being completely honest, this entire affair seemed far too simple. Two Elves, one of them the Prince of Mirkwood, strolling into Laketown, on her barge, looking for her and her siblings only to take them back to Mirkwood with them because their da was worried. Not that Sigrid didn't think that their da wasn't worried about them. It was the fact that the Prince of Mirkwood had been sent with, if Sigrid was hearing right, a captain of the king's guard to retrieve them.
"I can't say I think anything about how the Elves think or act," Sigrid said, forcing herself to stop looking out the window where the Elves were standing guard. "You two still packing?" Both Tilda and Bain made vague noises of affirmation, leaving Sigrid to stare down at the pack in front of her. She'd packed everything of necessity and import to her family, and it was still barely enough for her to feel it on her back. "I'm gonna go talk to the Elves." Her siblings hummed in acknowledgement, making Sigrid smile fondly before walking out the door to face the Elves on her doorstep.
At that point, Sigrid took a moment remember that Elves had better hearing than mortals because, as soon as she walked out the door, Legolas and the woman were looking at her expectantly. She stopped just outside the door, a bit taken aback because she was being stared at by two Elves before she managed to compose herself. "Why're you actually here?"
Legolas and the woman - was her name Tauriel? Sigrid thought she heard the prince call her that once on their way back - looked at her again, their expressions now confused. "To bring you and your siblings with us to Mirkwood," Legolas said, and Sigrid shook her head.
Tauriel sighed, taking a step towards Sigrid. "King Thranduil has heard of the Master's rule over you and the rest of your family since your father came to Mirkwood. It is only now that your father has revealed your existence to us because of his fear that you all would suffer in Mirkwood, though King Thranduil has made it clear that he does not believe in physical punishment as the Master does."
Sigrid snorted, apparently alarming the Elves at that. "That sounds exactly like something that Da would do." She looked back up at Tauriel and Legolas. "Who got him to talk about us?" Clearly she was doing better than either of the Elves had thought in terms of her perceptiveness if the looks on their faces were anything to go by. "Da hasn't said anything about us in the entire time he's been in Mirkwood and the moment he does, King Thranduil sends his son, the Prince of Mirkwood, and a captain of the king's guard to get us. Someone's obviously gotten far enough past his boundaries if you know about us."
"King Thranduil, obviously," Tilda said from the doorway, making the trio just outside turn to look at her in surprise. "Why else would he send people who're so important, Sig?" Sigrid looked at Tauriel and Legolas, waiting for either a confirmation or a denial. When nothing but silence followed Tilda's statement, Sigrid decided that her sister was right. "I don't think anyone but the king could've gotten Da to talk anyway."
Bain's head appeared above Tilda's in the doorway, breaking the beginnings of the uncomfortable silence. "I'm done." He held his pack up. "Does this mean we're going now?"
Needless to say, the barge ride back to Mirkwood was not the most pleasant.
It got worse when Tauriel and Legolas realized - nearly simultaneously - that neither of them had planned for a possible spider attack.
Of course, that was when the spiders actually attacked. So, they figured they were allowed some leeway when they immediately went on alert, their instincts kicking to life at the first sign of danger. Their surprise to find Sigrid and Bain doing their best to fend off as many spiders as they could while keeping Tilda safe was only natural given how none of the children had access to any sort of weaponry training, considering the Master's prejudice against them.
It was only after all of the spiders that were in that pack were dead that either Legolas or Tauriel realized that Dragonslayer had, no doubt, made some sort of an effort to ensure that his children were protected in the event of his death or his absence for any reason, whether it be the Master's doing or something else.
"If you would like," Tauriel began, once the party had begun to move forward once more. "I would not be averse to teaching you archery, should any of you desire to learn such a thing as that. It would also not be impossible for us to find a master swordsman willing to teach young Master Bain the art of swordsmanship, given his blossoming skills with a blade," she added, giving Legolas a pointed look. The Prince gave a resigned sigh, fully aware of Tauriel's attempts to wrangle his father into the children's lives.
Sigrid and Bain exchanged looks, each seeming to understand what it was that Tauriel was attempting to prod the Prince into saying. Tilda seemed to understand as well, but it could not be said that subtlety was her strong suit. "Why don't you just ask King Thranduil if he'd like to teach them how to use a sword? I don't think he'd say no, especially after all of the trouble he went through to send you two to come get us and not tell Da about it." The youngest of Dragonslayer's children looked around at the four others, a confused look on her face as a response to the sudden silence. "What? Why're you all looking at me like that?"
Legolas was the one to save Tilda from the disbelieving looks she was receiving. "My father is not known to be the most forthcoming of our people, even with our private natures taken into account," he began, stooping down to Tilda's eye level. "It would be rude of us to assume that he would find pleasure in such an activity as teaching your siblings how to use a sword or that he would not find it unbecoming of a king to do so."
Tilda frowned, scrunching up her nose. "Well, that sounds silly," she said, matter-of-factly. "I mean, he's already gone through all of the trouble of getting us out of Laketown and into Mirkwood. Why would he think it unbecoming to teach them how to use a sword?"
Legolas and Tauriel took a moment to exchange impressed looks. They had not anticipated on Tilda considering things so straightforwardly, or on any of Dragonslayer's children doing so where Thranduil was involved. "Tilda, I'll tell you what you can do," Tauriel began, taking Legolas's place and squatting down to Tilda's eye level. "You can ask King Thranduil if he'd like to teach Sigrid and Bain swordplay, as I don't think he'd take it too well from either myself or Prince Legolas."
Her eyes went wide as Tauriel continued talking, and Legolas noticed the faintly amused and affectionate looks on Sigrid and Bain's faces. "But, what if I insult him? I don't think Da would be too happy if I insulted the Elf King my first day meeting him. Or Sigrid or Bain," Tilda added, almost as an afterthought. "I can't ask him to teach Sigrid and Bain how to use a sword if I've insulted him!"
Tauriel held up a hand in an attempt to calm Tilda. "When you meet King Thranduil, so that you don't insult him, say to him, 'Glass nín le/gen govaded'," Tauriel said, her voice level and steady. "Do you know what that means?" Tilda shook her head. "It means 'Pleasure meeting you' in the Elf tongue. Can you say it?"
"Glass nin le/gan govadad," Tilda said, and Tauriel and Legolas exchanged glances once again. It wasn't exactly correct, but it was close enough for someone who'd never spoken any kind of Elvish before. "Did I do it right?"
Sigrid and Bain nodded before either Tauriel or Legolas could say anything. "C'mon, Tilda. I think we'd ought to let Tauriel and Prince Legolas lead us into Mirkwood proper. It's not safe out here, remember?" Tilda nodded, moving to Sigrid's side to take her sister's hand. Sigrid then looked back up at Legolas and Tauriel. "Lead on."
Legolas paused for a moment, considering something. "Perhaps it would be best if I went back first," he began, holding up a hand to stop any arguments that may have followed. "I do not know how the guards at the gate will react to such a company, even lead by myself and Tauriel. I will go back to tell them of your approach and to keep your father from seeing you before we have enough time to get you all settled." Legolas lowered his voice then, gesturing for Tauriel to listen. "I think I will keep Dragonslayer occupied in the wine cellar. Once the children are settled, bring them down."
Tauriel nodded, a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "Dragonslayer's look of surprise should be enough reward for all of us. Harthon cened le ennas, Caun Legolas." Legolas nodded to her.
"Harthon cened le ennas, Hest Tauriel," he replied before turning back to the children. "I promise that you are all in good hands. I will see you soon, and you will see your father again." The trio nodded, each quietly wondering why this farewell seemed so solemn if they were going to see Legolas again relatively soon.
With that, Legolas turned back to the path and, deciding that a bit of showing off was in order, took the tree route back to the gates of his father's kingdom. Sigrid was the first one of the children to close her mouth, as all three of them had dropped their jaws in amazement. "Prince Legolas was just showing off, wasn't he?" Tauriel nodded, and began ushering the children back along the ground path.
A/N: Thank you all for sticking around! I had work this past month, so there was no time to write. Onto the translations:
Glass nín le/gen govaded - It is my joy to meet you
Harthon cened le ennas - I hope to see you there
Cuan - Prince
Hest - Captain