Title: A Teacher's Duty
Chapter 28: A Bittersweet Reunion
NOTE: The title of this story has been changed from "The Terrors of Teaching Elven Teenagers" to "A Teacher's Duty" upon the advice of one of my reviewers.
…
The palace guards stared at the Prince of Mirkwood in surprise.
"Sire, we were not expecting you for another two weeks!" said one.
"We had a run in with some orcs," Legolas said by way of an answer, "I thought it best to come home though none of us were injured save I." And Ivana, but I'm not mentioning that till I've spoken to ada, he added silently
"Are you well, sire?" the guard asked.
"Yes, I am, now. But would you please do a favor for me?"
"Anything that pleases my Lord," was the eager reply.
"Please have someone show these children, and of course the King of Gondor, to some rooms in the palace. They are weary, for we have traveled hard and far. They cannot be allowed to return home tonight. I will go and see my father now, for he must know of what has transpired."
"Of course, my Lord," the guard answered, and disappeared to find a maid.
"All of you wait here until he comes back, except for you two," he said, nodding to Ivana and Elano, "Follow me, please."
Aragorn grasped his shoulder as he passed, trying to lend him some strength and comfort. Legolas gave him a half smile, and continued on his way to the throne room.
Ivana kept her head down as she followed Legolas and Elano. Her mind was whirling with emotions. Everywhere she turned, she saw her childhood. There, in that courtyard, her father had given her her first bow. In that corridor, her mother had would read her Elven folklore; she had heard the tales. And as they neared the throne room, she remembered her father setting her upon the throne, putting a tiara on her head, and telling her that she was going to be the princess of Mirkwood.
She was not afraid of being recognized because no one around her would expect someone who had 'died' thousands of years ago to walk among them again. They would not even be looking for her. But she kept her head down as a precaution; if she was recognized things would bode ill for all concerned. They arrived at the throne room, and the guard at the entrance showed the same surprise as the palace guards had at seeing them.
"Sire! We were not expecting you for-"
"Two weeks, yes I know, we had a run in with some orcs and were forced to leave quickly," Legolas said with a touch of irritation, "I would speak with my father immediately."
"Yes of course, sire, but…" the guard glanced at Elano and Ivana, plainly confused as to why they were here.
"The girl will come with me into the throne room. She has done much that she is sorry for," Legolas lied, "But she must have words with the King nonetheless."
"Of course, sire," the guard said, giving Ivana a nasty look.
"Elano, wait here till I call you," Legolas said. He decided that he didn't have to tell the guard why Elano was here, he didn't want to explain too much and make himself look suspicious.
He strode into the throne room, and told Ivana to wait at the entrance where Thranduil could not see her. He sensed that if his father saw her immediately, he might be too shocked to make sense of anything he might have to say.
"Legolas!" Thranduil exclaimed, rising as he saw his son approach, "You're here early!"
"I had a run in with some orcs," Legolas said.
"What? Are you injured?" Thranduil asked with concern.
"Yes, but Aragorn has already seen to me," Legolas said, waving it away, his injury was the least of their problems.
Thranduil sighed with relief, but he sensed a moment later that something was still wrong.
His eyes widened as a possibility came to his mind. "Legolas, please tell me one of the students did not get hurt."
Legolas nodded miserably, and Thranduil groaned in dismay.
"Please tell me it wasn't a girl," Thranduil said, but he knew by the stricken look on Legolas's face that it was.
"Did she survive?" he asked.
"Yes," Legolas said, and Thranduil looked relieved for a moment before worry creased his forehead again.
"Legolas, who was it?" he asked, though he knew it would make no difference. Whoever it was, it would still eventually end up putting Legolas in prison.
"It was me," said a voice behind them. Thranduil turned ashen. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. He collapsed onto the throne, his eyes never leaving Ivana, who continued to walk toward him.
Legolas backed out of the room to give them some privacy. He did not want to see their reunion; it would only serve to increase his own guilt at being the reason for their separation in the first place. He gave them ten minutes, and then re-entered the room.
Ivana and Thranduil were sitting on the floor with their arms around each other, and they were talking animatedly. Both looked up in surprise at Legolas's approach; they had been so preoccupied each other that they had forgotten he had even been in the room. Thranduil's gaze cleared slightly and he rose to face his son, who for some reason was not meeting his eye.
"I hope you can forgive me, Legolas," Thranduil said.
It was the last thing Legolas had expected him to say. In fact he had been about to say the same to Thranduil. He looked questioningly at his father.
"For keeping this secret from you for so long, I hope you can forgive me," Thranduil elaborated.
"There is nothing for me to forgive, it is you who must forgive me," Legolas said, "I was the reason all this happened. My birth…"
"Don't you dare say such a thing, Legolas!" Thranduil said sharply, "I prize every moment of my life with you as much as I prize every moment with Ivana. I love you as much as I love her, because you are both my children in every way that counts."
Legolas did not reply to this, but his guilt lessened somewhat as he realized that what his father said had a grain of truth in it. However, his expression turned somber when he remembered what was in store for Ivana. The same thought seemed to have occurred to Thranduil, for his face grew grim too.
"There is no way you can save me, ada," Ivana said, sensing the change of mood. "If you do not punish me for what I did, the kingdom will rebel and your rule will fall to pieces."
"There's no way this can be kept secret?" Thranduil asked.
"No, unless I tell the children to keep silent about Ivana getting injured," Legolas said. He knew that this would be an ideal solution, but his father would never hold for it.
"That's not an option Legolas."
"Then what do we do?"
"There's nothing we can do, Lego-" Ivana began, but Legolas cut her short.
"Don't you dare, Ivana- we have to do something, we can't just let you-"
"And neither can we," said a voice from behind them.
The three started and turned, to find Celin and Elano walking towards them.
"What are you doing here, both of you?" Legolas said with a hint of disapproval, "I told you to wait outside, Elano, and Celin you aren't even supposed to be here!"
"Sir we…er…"
"Yes?" Legolas asked.
"We…we sort of…er…" Celin shot a nervous glance outside the entrance of the throne room and fell silent.
Legolas frowned and walked to the entrance, and gaped at the sight that met him.
"Tell me," he said turning slowly towards Celin, "That this was not your idea?"
Celin shuffled his feet uncomfortably, but was spared answering by Thranduil, who by this time was too puzzled not to speak.
"What in the name of Eru is going on?" he asked loudly.
When his question was met by an embarrassed silence, he strode towards the door to see for himself what was happening.
…
Elgalad and Pilinel held the struggling guard down while Celin and Elano ran into the throne room. Behind them, a number of students were crowded into the narrow corridor. Some of them had slightly nervous, tense expressions, but most of them had a look of determined resolution on their faces.
A few seconds later, Legolas's head could be seen at the entrance, but it turned away a few seconds later and was seen to be questioning Celin and Elano. The children murmured nervously amongst themselves. Some of them were beginning to have second thoughts, which were increased tenfold by the appearance of the King.
Thranduil stopped dead at the sight that met him. His eyes traveled from the restrained guard, to the students, and then to Celin, who was right behind him. He glared, and instantly began to tower over the children.
"What is the meaning of this?" he asked regally.
The children shuffled their feet and eyed the floor guiltily.
"Release that man at once!" he commanded after a moment's silence.
The boys instantly did so, and the guard sprang to his feet, rubbing his sore arms, and glaring at his captors. Things might have gone ill for the children if Legolas had not stepped in at that point.
"Father, if you do not mind, I would like to talk to the children alone for a few moments."
Thranduil glared at his son, who he held responsible for the children's lack of discipline, and retreated into the throne room to Ivana, who immediately engaged him in a whispered conversation.
Legolas looked at the children for a moment, and then spoke quietly but in as commanding a tone as his father had used.
"Kindly explain yourselves."
…
TBC…
Hey guys! I'm sooooooo sorry for being this late on the update, but I've been really busy! What with homework, and festivals, and movies, where does one get the time to even breathe, let alone write?
Incidentally, I saw a great movie on Saturday, a Hindi movie, "Mangal Pandey" which I already told Hersheys about. I recommend it to EVERYONE who's looking for something nice to watch- but a couple of warnings. It's Bollywood. There'll be singing and dancing and people speaking in HINDI, I repeat; HINDI, so watch it with subtitles, or at least with someone who understands the language and is willing to explain. Also, there have been write-ups saying that it doesn't show the British in a good light (it's a historical movie- that's where the British come in) but I have never seen a Hindi movie that has shown the British in any good light, so actually this is a first. Watch it for Toby Stevens, whose acting was fab. I think the English will specially enjoy it!
Okay, I'm going to go straight to review replies, cause I have college in an hour and haven't bathed or eaten yet/
Hersheys: Yes you were the first reviewer, but since we talked just this morning, I have no clue what to say. You're school starts in September! You are sooo lucky! Oh and, sorry I didn't update as soon as you wanted me to, but what can I say? I try? Thanks for the review.
Deana: Lightning? That was so not what I was expecting. However, I'm glad to hear you HAVE been reading regularly, and I hope you review a bit too now and then. Not all the time, but hey, who doesn't like reviews, right?
Lindahoyland: Glad you liked it. As you can see, the 'youngsters' just took matter into their own hands. They'd be dead if it wasn't for me. Then again, if it wasn't for me, they wouldn't be THERE in the first place, LOL.
I love the new and improved Eomer! He is so cool. The trial's going to be your next update right? Can't wait! Thanks for reviewing.
WildBlackWolf and Viva: Oh I see. It IS a missionary type thing. Interesting, I was sort of under the impression that that sort of thing didn't happen nowadays, but apparently I'm wrong.
By the way, my mother didn't have to walk through a flood to work, she had to walk back from work. But yes, she does go in a sari everyday. I hate saris. Too tough to wear, I had to wear one on graduation in March and I felt as if it was going to fall off any second. An opinion most of my friends shared too. Thank you, we'll need your blessings! People are dying of leptosporosis (that's what it was called) left and right!
Fluffybunny: Thanks! Please review this time too!
Oh and if I left anyone out again, I'm sorry, but I love you.
