"I will name my son after you"
Chapter 20
"How I met your mother - continuation."
If Legolas thought he was nervous before (and believe you me, he thought he was going to say 'hello again' to his lunch just imagining all the colorful ways Oropher will exact his vengeance for losing his son), then he clearly hasn't felt anything yet.
Because those previous nerves paled in comparison to the ones he was experiencing now, which threatened to squish his stomach to the size of an ant with their intensity.
And all he's about to do is meet his mother.
His.
Mother.
The one he's only heard about in legends and fairytales, because no one in the kingdom was brave enough to discuss her directly, even without the king being in the room.
The one who's death completely changed his father, according to old man Muriniel who, yes is very much still a thing in the future, won't shut up about how kind hearted and cheerful a king he was before that tragic event (Legolas wasn't old enough to confirm if that was true, to him Thranduil has always been that way: Cold and distant).
The one he wasn't old enough to even vaguely recall what she looked and sounded like. Which, now that he thinks about it, is actually very very sad and depressing so Legolas isn't going to think about right now, nuh-uh, nope, no siree!
He can do it later. When the treat of accidentally erasing himself from existence by doing something stupid has passed.
And, to top it all off, she's going to be a bratty brat like his father which is just flipping fantastic, and El-whatever said something about her being an Archer.
This could either end up as one of the best days of his life… or an utter disaster the likes of which he never even dreamed of.
So far the second option seemed more likely.
Especially with the constant snickering he could hear from the accompanying twins.
"Would you two stop that?" He yelled over his shoulder after a while. "This can't possibly be that funny!"
"Oh but it is!" They chirped in unison, grinning like Cheshire cats.
"Little Thrandy is going to flip when he finds out you know about his 'secret' meetings in his 'secret' place with his 'secret' girlfriend." The first one said (Legolas has officially given up on trying to keep up with who is who, a long time ago), sounding almost inappropriately giddy with the idea.
"Forgot to tell you before but we kind of, sort of, maybe convinced him that his hiding and sneaking abilities are impeccable." The other twin whispered to his ear, appearing at his side in the blink of an eye.
"So the news of someone other than us finding out about this 'secret' is going to blow… his… mind."
"His face will be glorious!" The other soon joined in, and they now looked like the perfect picture of sadistic wonder twins Elrond never allowed Elrohir and Elladan to become.
Said picture was scary enough to make Legolas mentally apologize for ever doubting his methods of raising children, for before he was naive and knew nothing of what they all avoided thanks to his fatherly skills.
He'll be sure to thank him in person if-when he gets back to where he belongs.
"I'm sure it will." The Archer slowly agreed, rolling his eyes and trying to remember if Elladan and Elrohir were ever this obnoxious when telling him about a prank they pulled.
He decided that no, they weren't and moved on with his life. Which is an accomplishment in of itself because technically he doesn't exist yet, and may end up not existing at all if even one single thing goes wrong.
So… no pressure.
Shaking his head he pushed through some more leafs and twigs. The way to the meeting place is nicely filled with green that loves to invade his delicate privacy.
Before long they were nearing the clearing the twins were talking about and, lo and behold, there he was, the little brat, sitting on the toughest and longest looking branch, swinging his little legs like this is the most natural place for him to be.
Legolas nearly passed out from relief, before remembering oh yeah! I'm supposed to be angry.
But, before he could grab the prince by his feet and drag him kicking and screaming back to the palace, a voice called out Thranduil's name.
And, there she was, the girl he was half hoping the twins made up just to screw with his mind, bouncing over to the prince, bow and arrows in hand.
There she was… the girl that was fated to become his mother one day.
Queen Leanna of Greenwood.
Realizing he was bound to be spotted if he remained standing for much longer, Legolas ducked into the bushes.
And then promptly reached out to drag the twins down (to which they reacted with squeaks that were quite unbecoming of the Lords they will grow added it to the list of 'Things to tell Aragorn when he gets back'), as the two dunderheads decided it would be wiser to just stand there grinning like peacocks on full display.
"Oi!" They whisper-yelled at him, finally getting the message that they should be stealthy. "What gives?!"
"What gives?!" The Archer echoed him incredulously, also whisper-yelling. "How can you even ask that?! You can't just walk over to them like that!"
"Why?" El-One asked, raising an eyebrow. "We did that before."
"Of course you did." Legolas muttered under his breath before sighing and turning to the boys. "Look it just isn't done, okay? They don't need to know we're here." Yet.
"But didn't you want to get Thrandy back home?" El-Two asked, confused. "How are you going to do that if he can't know you're here?"
Well damn, Legolas didn't think that through, did he.
Time to channel his inner Gandalf and cleverly talk his way out of this pickle.
"I… will think of something."
Of course today is the day his inner Gandalf decides to fail him, brilliant.
What else could go wrong?
"But why don't we just go over there and make a scene?" El-whatever opened his mouth to ask. "You know... to embarrass little Thrandy in front of his girlfriend for running away from us?"
"Because it would be awkward." The Archer responded, grunting out those words through gritted teeth. Because yeah, it would be very awkward.
One does not simply walk over to his parents that are children and not feel uncomfortable with the situation.
"Why?" But of course the twins don't know that, they can't know that. Because it hasn't happened yet and won't happen for a long long while yet (if he doesn't screw things up, that is). "Do you know her from somewhere? Will she recognize you?"
"No! It's not that!" Legolas hissed back, and tried not to think about how wired it would be if she actually did recognize him.
Ignoring further inquiries from the nosy twins, the blonde elf decided to take this one of a kind chance and actually look at the girl, who was now animatedly talking with the future king.
So that he can burn it into memory and finally have a face to put to the illusive name.
To be quite frank… even before hitting puberty, she was beautiful, and if Legolas used his imagination just a little bit… he could understand why his father grew even more distant when he started to come of age.
Her youthful features were soft, her skin the color of cream peppered with chocolate chips near her small nose. Green eyes matching the trees surrounding them and glowing in the midday sun, her hair flowing with each delicate movement of the wind.
While his father's long locks were platinum blonde, Leanna had hers the color of rich honey. The kind that put golden coins to shame.
Just like the archer's own locks.
Perhaps that was the main reason Thranduil liked her so much? Gold always was his favorite…
Before Legolas could complete the sentence however, an arrow zipped just over his head making him yelp in surprise.
Well… he could definitely see where his immense prowess with the bow and arrow came from.
"Oi! Didn't your momma ever teach you that spying is rude?" The girl he was… spying on called out, hands on hips and green eyes narrowed.
The situation was so brilliantly ironic that Legolas had to bite his tongue to keep himself from saying something stupid like 'No actually, she didn't. Care to remedy that now, dear mother?' and causing the Apocalypse.
So instead he just walked out of the bushes, ignoring the startled yelp of "Legolas?!" from Thranduil, scratching his neck in embarrassment like the peeping Tom that he's not.
"Apologies." Legolas said after clearing his throat. "I… didn't want to interrupt."
"Uh-huh, I bet." Leanna narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. "Did those two orc brains out you up to… whatever this is?" She asked nodding to the two, still hiding, twins.
Boy she's one Feisty little thing, isn't she?
So his sharp tongue is also something he can thank her for. Alright. The more he knows.
See? He's learning new things about his mother, which is good. That means he's making the best out of this strange situation, using it to his advantage.
If it wasn't for the constant threat of non existence hanging over his head, he would have been ecstatic.
"Not... really." Legolas said, continuing to scratch at his neck. "I'm actually here to pick up Lord Thranduil."
"Pick me up?" Said prince decided to speak up from his position on the branch. "But the sun hasn't even set yet!"
"Well no But-"
"And you haven't even showed me your amazing archery skills yet!" Thranduil pouted.
Legolas was about to cut this argument short, he really was.
"Archery skills?" But then Leanna's eyes actually sparkled with interest, immediately zoning in on the bow and quiver on his back. "You're an Archer too, sir?" There was a small competitive spark in her eyes when he silently nodded in confirmation. "Care for a little challenge then?"
And really…
How could he say no to spending some quality time with the mother he never had?
"Alright." Legolas said, slipping his weapons off of his back. "But a short one. We are expected back at the castle."
"Don't sweat it, mister. It will be over before you know it." Cocky little thing too, but he wouldn't hold it against her. He's probably the only adult that accepted her challenge with utmost seriousness. "First person to shoot that red leaf on top of that ancient oak tree is the undisputed best Archer in Greenwood. Thrandy is the judge."
"Noted." Legolas said, spotting the leaf and lining up his shot.
"My name's Leanna by the way," she threw over her shoulder, also lining up her shot. "so that you know the name of the elleth who beat you."
Really cocky little thing.
"Legolas." He said back, eyes on the prize and hand pulling back his bowstring.
"Legolas…" the girl said slowly as if tasting the name, checking out what it feels like as she says it. "Greenleaf. I like it, it has a nice ring to it!" She suddenly exclaims. "Thrandy let's name one of our twelve children after him!"
That statement alone was enough to nearly make him release his bowstring too early.
T-Twelve? What?
"Prince Legolas Thranduilion…" Before he knew it even Thranduil was testing out his name like it was some fine wine. "I like it! We're definitely naming our son that!" He suddenly grew concerned. "Oh but Lea what if it's only girls?!"
"Then we'll keep trying until we get a boy." The girl said, releasing her arrow. "The stork has to run out of girls eventually!"
Legolas missed his shot choking on his saliva, much to the twin's amusement.
"Woah! Dear Eru, what a show, ladies and gentlemen!"
"She completely outmatched you, my friend!"
"This wasn't even a fair fight, she beat you so bad!"
"Maybe we should get her to take your job, Legolas cause you clearly aren't cut for it!"
So on and so forth.
The dark haired twins clearly weren't about to let him forget that he just lost to a young girl.
Which was apparently a bigger blemish on his family name than getting married to an orc, and naming whatever offspring this union created the next Lord of the land.
"I got the message." Legolas hissed under his breath. "Dishonor on me, dishonor on my family, dishonor on my cow, and the likes. Can you please just drop it already?"
Yes, he let her win. Because what was he supposed to do? Either way he lost.
If he won: Congratulations, you won against a child. Now she's sad and crying her little eyes out. Are you proud of yourself?
If he lost: Congratulations, you lost against a child.
Now go to the corner and drown in shame, you big failure.
So he chose the lesser of two evils.
"Nope! This is pure gold!" El-whatever chirped.
"We'd have to be mad to not milk this for all it's worth!" El-whoever added grinning like an idiot cat that got the pigeon (or whatever it was it caught in that saying).
But before he could think up a better retort than simply telling them to take their 'milking' and shove it where the sun don't shine, he was saved by a rather unlikely savior.
"Come now lads, let up!" Surprisingly, Leanna didn't seem amused with their boasting on her behalf, immediately walking up to the young future lords and slapped them on the arms in reprimand. "He is a good shot, no need to rub this little blunder in." She then did it again, for good measure. "Be nice, behave."
Not even queen yet and she's already bossing everyone around.
How adorable.
"Hey we're just toying with him, Lea." El-whatever said, rubbing his sore arm.
"Yeah it's harmless teasing, nothing more." El-whoever added, mirroring his brother's action.
"Well stop it." The girl was relentless however. "This type of talk might feel harmless to you two, but it may make him quit archery all together!" She then turned to him. "And that would be a terrible waste, as you are very good, better than most guards even, I'd say, so don't."
Getting praise like this was something Legolas has gotten used to ever since he started getting halfway decent at shooting things from a distance, but hearing it from her gave the praising more meaning than all of the other ones combined.
"Oh, thank you." The blonde chuckled nervously, and scratched his neck. "That's high praise coming from you."
"You bet it is!" Thranduil chirped, jumping from his branch to stand at his side. "Leanna is the best shooter in all of Greenwood!" He said, puffing his little chest out in obvious pride. "Father is even considering recruiting her into the guard once she's old enough to get initiated, even though she's a half-elf from Lake Town!"
"Really?" Legolas whistled, very impressed with what he heard. "You must have made quite the impression on the king then, Leanna."
The girl chuckled and flicked her hair.
"Well it wasn't easy but practice makes perfect, no?" She preened.
"It does but… what kind of practice method did you use exactly?" Legolas questioned, now very interested in her method of learning. "Lake Town isn't exactly known for its magnificent archers, after all, and it takes a lot to impress the king."
He would know, if Thranduil's drunk anecdotes about how long it took him to impress the war king with his sword wielding skills, are anything to go by.
"Well… my method is a bit... unusual." The girl admitted after a while.
"In what way?"
"Um... let's just say that I don't exactly have the patience for fishing." She finished, her cheeks coloring scarlet.
Legolas blinked at her.
Then he blinked some more.
"You mean you-"
"Shot the fish in the lake instead of sitting around waiting for them to take the bait?" She supplemented helpfully. "Yup, that's exactly what I did."
"And that's also how I met her!" The prince chirped happily. "I spotted her near the lake, while father was discussing business with their chief, and asked what on Earth is she doing shooting at the poor fish!"
"I said it was a quicker way to catch them, than waiting and staring aimlessly into space for half of the afternoon." Leanna giggled at the memory. "But at that point I wasn't good enough to actually hit any of them yet, so I looked rather... well… silly emptying my quiver into the water."
"So silly that I went and bought her a nice new fishing rod with the money father gave me for studying hard, thinking she was just too stubborn to get one herself." Thranduil explained, smiling softly.
"That was… very thoughtful of you, my prince." Legolas said, sounding more bewildered than he meant to. He never saw his father as the particularly generous type.
"I thought so too! A good king should do everything in his power to ensure that his subjects have everything they need to survive." He said, clearly proud of his little good deed. "But Leanna disagreed with me wholeheartedly." The prince then pouted sadly. "She broke the fishing rod, threw it into the water and told me, loud and clear, to not tell her how to live her life, even if I'm a prince."
"I was in a bad mood." The girl responded in lieu of an explanation when Legolas turned his bewildered eyes to her. "I shouldn't have snapped at him, and I knew it. So I apologized before he could run to his father and have the entire village burned to the ground."
"I wouldn't let him do that!" The small prince exclaimed, sounding offended at the mere mention that he would allow such a thing to happen.
"I know you wouldn't, Thrandy. That was just to add some flare to the story." Leanna amended before winking at the future king. The twins made obnoxious cooing sounds when the action made the boy blush. "Anyway, to show him I'm sorry, and right, I told him to come here next week and, if I manage to shoot a fish with one of my arrows by that time, he can come to my house for dinner. If I lost, then I'd have to fish out the rod he bought me, get my brother to fix it to a usable state, and sit still until I caught ten big fishes with it."
"Ooooh the plot thickens. I wonder what happens next!" El-whatever commented excitedly to which El-whoever responded with a cold "Shut up, you already heard this story."
The remaining party rolled their eyes at them but otherwise decided not to comment.
"Did you win?" Legolas asked, eager to hear where this story will lead to.
"Naturally." Leanna beamed with undeniable confidence. "I had to practice every day and every night between sleeping and chores, but on the last day, just before he arrived, I managed to shoot one of the slower fishes." The girl grinned, pride in her accomplishments clearly evident in her stance.
"But how did you know he would come back at all?" This was the one thing Legolas didn't understand in all this. When he was little, Thranduil rarely let the prince accompany him to Lake Town, afraid that someone with ill will might try to hurt him given the chance. He can't imagine Oropher being less protective of his only heir to the throne.
Based on his experiences, and that knowledge about his grandfather, there was no guarantee the young prince would have showed up the following week to check on the results of his bet with a common girl.
"Oh I didn't." Leanna admitted freely. "I hoped he would, to give me extra motivation to do better. I never expected him to actually show up."
"But I did!" The prince chirped happily. "Father wasn't meeting with the chief of Lake Town that week, so I had to sneak out of lessons with Muriniel to make it in time!" Thranduil boasted. "It wasn't easy as father's advisor is very perceptive when it comes to my excuses for skipping school, but I managed to convince him I felt dizzy after eating extra pudding for dessert, so he let me go to my room early!" Legolas wondered if the king would remain so proud of his accomplishment if the Archer called him out on it the next time he gets caught trying to sneak out.
"And it's a good thing too! The fish Leanna caught was divine!"
"And you had no problems eating it in her home?" Legolas asked, staring at his father in quiet shock.
It was hard enough to convince the king to talk to mortals below his status, let alone get him to eat in their general proximity.
"Well it was a bit stuffy and not as shiny as the dining room back in the palace..." The fellow prince admitted. "But it was a good experience for me! As future king I should know about the living conditions of my future subjects so that I can help them flourish once I inherit the throne!" It was a nice sentiment, even though Legolas knew it was probably engraved into the boy's mind by Muriniel.
He briefly wondered what exactly happened to make the future king forget about this desire to improve the life situation of Lake Town occupants, because it certainly isn't present in Legolas's time.
"Later he said he liked the food so much he even offered my mother a place in the royal kitchens!" Leanna announced, with a grateful smile at her friend, making the Archer raise his eyebrows even higher.
"And the king… agreed to it?" He asked, bewildered.
"Well… it took a bit of convincing but he agreed in the end!" Thranduil said, toying with his hair. "I had to ask uncle Eärendil for help because father is more likely to agree to my idea if uncle backs it up." He bit his little lip. "Uncle said some new blood is exactly what our kitchens needed… whatever that means, as he was getting a bit tired of being served the same repetitive elven dishes all the time, but before he agreed to anything, he needed to try the fish for himself. To see if it's worth the hassle." Thranduil then whispered. "Father can be very stubborn." He then continued in his usual voice. "Needles to say Leanna's mother was recognized as an excellent cook, and from that day on she's the lead chef in the palace kitchens!" The prince finished the story with a big content smile.
"And from then on Thrandy became my best friend!" Leanna laughed and hugged the young princeling. "And future husband!"
"I'm not sure king Oropher will agree to this... union." Legolas said before he had the chance to stop his mouth from moving.
"That's okay." Thranduil answered without missing a beat. "I'll just marry her when I'm on the throne! I'll be king then so he, as ex-king, will have to listen to me, and I'll be able to do whatever I want!"
Legolas wasn't exactly sure these things worked that way, but he was the result of said union, so what did he know?
"Yeah! And you'll be the best king Greenwood ever saw!" Leanna cheered.
"You really think so?!" Thranduil asked, eyes shining with giddy happiness.
"I'd bet my bow and quiver on it!"
"Deal!"
Seeing them so happy and hopeful for the amazing future they're going to create together, made Legolas feel… a bit depressed.
Because he knows none of this will happen.
At least… not in the way they wanted it to.
Because yes, Thranduil does eventually ascend to the throne, but it's neither a happy occasion for it was in the wake of Oropher's violent death, nor the beginning of a mutually beneficial partnership between Greenwood and Lake Town.
Neither of them, not Leanna and certainly not Thranduil, were ready for it, if Muriniel was to be believed, and things just… fell apart.
Before Legolas could drown in sadness, a voice called out his name, pulling him out of thought and back to the present.
"Legolas Greenleaf?"
He heard Thranduil gasp besides him.
"Oh no! It's Muriniel! He found us!"
In the corner of his eyes Legolas could see the only girl in the group tense.
"Do not worry, my young prince, I'm not here for you this time." The seasoned advisor reassured the boy, keeping his eyes focused on the Archer. His appearance made Legolas realize that their little meeting has taken much more time than he expected it would. The sun was already beginning to set. "I won't tell the king about your little randevu point, if you allow me to steal the archer away for a few minutes."
"Um…" Thranduil bit his lip, clearly unsure what he's supposed to respond to this. He then looked up at the blonde, a question in his eyes.
Seeing no point in resisting, Legolas signaled the child to let him go.
"Very well then." The prince cleared his throat, putting on his best royalty voice. "I will let you take him in exchange for your secrecy, Muriniel."
"Very good, sir." The advisor nodded his head to his future kind. "If you would follow me, Sir Legolas. The king would like to speak with you."
He turned around then, and began making his way to the more beaten path, without looking to see if the requested elf was following him or not.
With a quick goodbye to everyone, Legolas swiftly rushed after the older elf until he was comfortably keeping pace with him.
"Why does the king wish to see me?" He asked, glad the fear he was feeling didn't leak into his voice. Did Oropher learn of him losing Thranduil in the forest? Was he going to be punished for negligence? Exiled from existence?
"Certain revelations have been… put to light with the arrival of our King's trusted friend." Legolas was told. "After mulling it over in solitude, and adjusting to what said revelations entail, our Lord decided it was finally time you two have a proper talk." He then looked deep into the archer's eyes and said.
"Like a grandfather to his grandson."
AN: Guess who's back! Back again! With more Legolas And his antics in the past!
Apologies for the long wait, I promise not to take so long next time! ^^'
Next chapter will be filled to the brim with the confrontation between Legolas and Oropher you've all been waiting for, so sit tight, hold on to your hats and enjoy the ride! :D
PS: Special thanks to my wonderful readers in Russian speaking countries and the amazing translator that makes it possible for them to understand my work!
You guys are the absolute best and I'm honored you like my work so much!
With love
JulieArchery107