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A Cage of a Different Kind Chapter 20

The pain he was feeling right now was immeasurable. He really thought that his father would eventually come to accept his love for Eowyn. He had thought that Thranduil's love for his only son would eventually overcome his prejudice for the human race and he would try to see the happiness that surrounded Legolas, but nothing had prepared him for his father's horrible words.

"Don't you walk away from me Legolas." His father called after him. "You have blatantly disobeyed me and now you expect me to rejoice and acknowledge your illegitimate child?"

Legolas stopped and turned back to his father slowly. "My child is not illegitimate." He said between clenched teeth. "Eowyn and I were married in Gondor, something you knew about and chose to ignore. I love her as I have loved no one in my entire life. You lied to me your majesty. You tried to keep us apart and did everything in your power to destroy that love. I am overjoyed by the child she carries and I will not abide this talk or behavior from anyone, even you. Please leave my forest; I have nothing more to say to you."

He left, and nothing Thranduil could say would bring him back. He did not even notice whether the king stayed or left, he just needed to find his wife. He could feel her pain through their bond just as she was probably feeling his. He needed to hold her and find out how much of this awful exchange she had heard.

When he entered his home, he sighed. Eowyn sat on the bed, her eyes welling with tears and she refused to even look at him.

"How much of that did you hear meleth?" He said in concern.

"Enough." She responded quietly.

"Eowyn, you know I love you with all my heart and I do not agree with anything he said." Legolas said as he crossed to her and sat down beside her.

"Our illegitimate half breed mongrel may not see it that way." She said despondently.

Legolas almost sobbed. She had heard all of the terrible things his father had said. "Our child is not illegitimate. We were married in the eyes of the Valar and our friends. Just because some pig headed king of Mirkwood does not see it that way does not illegitimatize our child or our love. I will not even repeat the other idiotic slur my father bestowed upon our offspring for he or she will be the best of us." Legolas said as he took her by the shoulders and tried to turn her to face him.

"That king happens to be your father and this 'whore' still wishes that she was not the object of contention between you."

With that statement Legolas' face crumpled and he pressed her fiercely to him. "You are not a whore!" He practically yelled "I should have killed him for such a statement."

She pulled away from him in horror. "NO! I did not want you to feel like you had to defend my honor! Your love is the only thing I care about but because I love you so much, I do not want to see you hurt. Forgive me Legolas, I did not mean to make this any harder on you!" With that she kissed him fiercely, pouring every ounce of caring and adoration she had for him into that kiss.

He sagged as the anger drained out of him. Her love was all he needed and his love for her grew when he saw how strong she was. A lesser woman would have been overwhelmed by his father's stupidity but not Eowyn; it almost seemed to make her stronger.

"He has caused this Eowyn. I was prepared to forgive him for everything he did to us but now...I just don't know if I can forgive his words."

"Words can wound more deeply than any weapon, especially when spoken by one you love, but please, do not cut your heart off from him over me. I can survive Thranduil. Together we will show him that his words are false and that we belong together." Eowyn kissed her beloved once more and Legolas looked at her lovingly.

"Everyday I find more and more reasons to love you meleth. You are my heart."

"As you are mine." She said with a smile. "So, let us go together and tame this lion."

Legolas sighed tiredly. "You are far braver than I fair shield maiden. I wish to give him some time to stew."

Just then one of the scouts burst into the room. "My lord! A large party of Orcs has been seen approaching the settlement. We must intercept them before they make it here."

"Where did they come from?" He asked as he rushed after the scout with Eowyn close at his heels. "This is all I need." He thought fleetingly.

Thranduil still sat in the small garden and he stood as his son approached.

"It seems that if you wish to continue our conversation it will have to wait until later." Legolas said deliberately not making eye contact with his father. "Eowyn, stay here and get the rest of the guard ready in case any of the orcs get past us. Then go to our tree top fete and await me there. I will be back as soon as possible." With that he kissed her passionately bending to bestow a gentle kiss on their child as well before following his scout into the trees.

Eowyn and Thranduil were left facing each other and for a moment he saw what Legolas might see in her as she drew herself up and swept her golden hair from her face. "You may stay or leave, I leave that decision to you, for now I have things I need to do." She turned and started away.

"Where is my son going in such a rush?' He asked her quietly.

"A band of Orcs was spotted moving this way and he goes to intercept them." Eowyn threw back over her shoulder as she went to find Denor and set up their defense.

"Please send Legolas to see me as soon as he returns." He called but Eowyn just continued on her way.

Legolas and Callas moved silently through the tree tops watching their foe move along the ground. He had sent the others to take up positions surrounding their enemy and the arrows would start to fly at his signal. He wanted to try to find out why they were there and what they were up to, if at all possible.

"Was this just a chance encounter or were they on some sort of mission?" So far he could discern nothing and since they were coming too close for comfort, he decided this was enough, it was time to take action.

Nodding at Callas they pulled their bows and readied their arrows while Callas made a bird call. It looked like surprise was theirs until a large orc in the middle put his nose in the air and shouted "Elf!" That was the last thing he said as the arrows flew, one hitting him directly in his black heart.

Most orcs are stupid and unorganized but these unfortunately were just the opposite. The arrows did not do the damage Legolas had hoped because the orcs raised their shields and created a sort of barrier, protecting them from many of the missiles. A few fell to that first volley but not near as many as he had originally hoped. They continued to rain arrows down on them for a few more minutes until Legolas gave the call to descend to the forest floor. Half the elves dropped gracefully down while the other half remained, looking for opportunities to lessen the foe's numbers.

Legolas dropped and rolled, letting his shoulder take the impact of the fall but rose to his feet swiftly, taking one orc out with the upward motion of one of his long handled knives. As planned, the orcs had no choice but to lower their shields in order to fight hand to hand creating an opening for the remaining archers. The elves still in the trees began to shoot them as they rushed the elves on the ground and Legolas became a whirling killing machine, slicing right and left, pulling one of his blades from an orc as he blocked a stroke from another.

During a slight pause, he looked over to see Callas fighting three orcs at once. One was edging around in back of him and would soon have a clear strike. Legolas quickly threw one of his blades and impaled the circling orc, saving his friend. Callas finished off the other two easily while Legolas turned to face a new threat. He wished he had both blades as he heard the release of an arrow just in time to deflect it with his remaining knife. Unfortunately, he was not quite quick enough to block the scimitar trying to slash his stomach open and he was only able to deflect it, making it slice deeply into his thigh instead. Callas had made his way over to his prince by this time and beheaded the beast before it could strike again. Callas caught Legolas as his leg crumpled beneath him and kept him from falling completely to the ground. The archers in the trees saw that their lord was having difficulty and covered the two elves as Callas quickly attended to the prince. He ripped off his sleeve and tried it around the top of his leg trying to use it as a tourniquet and slow the excessive bleeding.

"I am fine. Go help the others." Legolas gasped as he tried to stand sliding back down to the ground as the pain stabbed through him again. He winced as he looked at the cut, the white of his bone showing brightly through the flowing red. Callas ignored him and continued to tear strips of cloth off and bind the cut as best he could.

By this time the orcs were almost entirely finished off and he was able to get to his feet with a little help from his friend. He limped over to a fallen elf and checked his pulse, shaking his head sadly when he realized his fey had already departed for Mandos Hall. He continued to make his way around and help the wounded. When everyone was accounted for, he gave the order to head back to the settlement, sending the hardiest of the survivors out to make sure there were no more orcs in the area. There were two dead and ten wounded, three severely. Callas was picking up one of the wounded when he noticed his prince trying to do the same. He rushed over to him as he stumbled and wrapped his arm securely around his waist steadying him.

"I do not need help, it is just a scratch. I am able to walk on my own." Legolas groused as he shrugged the other elf's arm from around him.

"My lord, it is a deep cut, I saw it with my own eyes. You will not make it back without aid. Especially if you try to carry someone else." Callas said respectfully.

"Alright, I will not try to carry anyone but I can walk back unaided." Legolas admitted grudgingly as the group trudged towards home.

It was a battle weary group that made its way into the clearing of the settlement and Eowyn looked worriedly about until her eyes beheld her mate. Except for a slight limp and a bandage around his leg, he appeared to be well. His face lit up when he saw her and she rushed over to embrace him. "You are hurt!" She exclaimed.

"I am fine." he responded quickly. "Have you set up a place for the wounded?"

"Aye, there are pallets and supplies in that shelter. Bring them there and we will tend to them immediately." Eowyn answered as her attention was turned to a moaning elf being carried just behind Legolas.

Her husband gave her a quick squeeze and ordered his warriors to proceed to the indicated shelter. Eowyn quickly prioritized the wounded and set to work with the other healers as Legolas went with his patrol leaders to discuss the implications of the recent battle and make sure they were ready defensively for another, if necessary.

Thranduil was absent but none gave it much thought because they had many other things to worry about. It was a long night but all were attended to by morning and Eowyn was exhausted. Legolas had ignored his own wound as was his usual habit so when he rose from the table he swayed as black dots swam before his eyes. He caught himself by grabbing the table edge, simultaneously catching sight of the pool of blood that had formed at his feet. There had been many details to go over for he had a responsibility for the safety of his people and that had taken precedence over any injury he might have sustained. The sharp pain and bout of nausea quickly changed that.

"Eowyn will kill me." He thought as he made his way out the door intending to find his wife and have her take care of his leg. He limped across the clearing toward the healing tent trying not to appear as light headed as he really felt when he spotted his father coming towards him. Before they could even speak Thranduil saw his son's eyes roll back and he collapsed on the ground at his feet. The king quickly bent and picked him up, rushing him over to the makeshift healing ward they had created. Eowyn was just finishing up when she turned to see Thranduil carry an unconscious Legolas through the door. Her heart rushed to her throat at the sight and she swayed for a moment before making her way quickly over to help her spouse to try and help.

TBC