Disclaimers: Read the Author's Notes!

Choices of Love

Prologue:

A figure dressed in a black cloak, wearing dark clothes, crept through the hallways of the palace silently, keeping to the shadows to avoid being seen by any of the late night guards. The hood of the black cloak covered her face and black, raven-like hair, as well as her pointed ears. In her arms, a black blanket was folded, which she carried

Her destination was not surprising, for Morag had been here before, as she was the primary caretaker of the little prince. Ever since his mother had died birthing him, Morag had cared and nurtured the little one as her own, even feeding the newborn babe, for her own son had died in the birthing the day before the little prince was born.

Along the way, Morag easily input the codes into the silent alarms, recalling the passwords that were used. Her mind, however, stayed on the little one.

For the past ten months, the baby had been a sheer delight to her, as Morag cared for him as her own son and, in some part of her mind, she genuinely believed that he was her son. And now the little one's father was remarrying, which meant that she would no longer be needed.

Morag was not going to let anyone take away the little prince from her, for she truly loved him as her own and had vowed to protect him, to keep him safe with her always, never letting him go. It did not matter to her what would happen because of her actions this night; she cared not.

The little boy stirred sleepily in his crib, when he heard footsteps, before he blinked his bright blue eyes back to normal. A thin wail rose from him, at a sudden loud noise, when Morag knocked into one of the lamps. Instantly, she scooped the baby up and cradled him against her.

'Shh, my sweet little one,' she whispered, rocking him back and forth, as a mother would to comfort her child. 'I'm here, everything's all right…'

Little Legolas hiccupped a little, but settled down. His baby mind knew that this was his friend, so he cooed at her, and waved his little arms. He protested slightly when he was wrapped in the dark blanket that Morag had brought, using it to cover the slight, little blond curls of hair, his little, pointed ears, and the pale blue nightshirt and diaper he wore.

Morag stealthily made her way back through the darkened palace, letting the baby suck on one of her fingers to keep him quiet, as she possessively smiled down at the beautiful child, with his wide, expressive azure eyes, his soft, pale skin, and his golden hair, which looked like the rays of the sun.

King Thranduil could have another child with his future wife, Morag told herself, when she hesitated before leaving the palace. She, however, could not; the doctors had told her so. Her guilty feelings melted away when Legolas sleepily yawned and leaned his little head onto her shoulder, before he fell asleep.

So Morag set off into the night, with her precious child clutched tightly, using the escape route that she had planned. She would never be seen again in Mirkwood, at least not alive. She had already purchased a home in Gondor, and had all the proper furnishing for a baby there.

The baby could not have known what was happening; he was too little to understand. Besides that, he was asleep. How could he have known what was going on, and that he was being kidnapped from his father and that he would not see his father again for a very long time? His baby mind only knew that he was tired and that Morag was a friend.

In the morning, Thranduil's future wife, Lindel, went to get Legolas, to feed him breakfast. Lindel was fond of the good-natured baby, and she genuinely loved Thranduil. His beautiful little son was very dear to her already, and had been ever since the first time she had laid eyes on him. And her own two sons, from a previous marriage, in which her spouse had died, had declared that Legolas would be their little brother forever and ever. The twins adored him as well, and carried him around, showing him off. Thranduil considered Tilan and Naril as his sons as well, and doted on them as much as he did his own baby boy.

'No!' Lindel cried, when she saw the abandoned crib, with no sign of the baby. She paled, which made her skin nearly match her silvery hair. One of Lindel's hands covered her mouth, before she rushed out of the room, to see if someone else had perhaps gotten little Legolas this morning.

The response- all negatives- devastated her, and Lindel ran to find Thranduil.

'What's wrong, my darling?' Thranduil questioned.

Lindel sobbed, 'He's gone!' Tears dripped down her face, onto the dark green nightgown that she wore.

Thranduil frowned, not understanding. 'Who's gone?' He wore black jeans, with no shirt on.

'Legolas,' she whispered, trembling. 'I went to get him and… he's gone! None of the servants have him, either!'

'What?!' Thranduil jumped to his feet and walked over to her, placing his hands on her shoulders. 'Legolas is missing?' he said, making certain that he had heard her right.

Wordlessly, Lindel nodded. 'He's not in his crib and… And one of the servants said one of the doors were ajar this morning.' Her tears flowed more freely now, for she was certain that Thranduil would blame her.

Thranduil instead embraced her, reassuring her that it wasn't her fault, and that he did not blame her. At the same time, he summoned his soldiers, and ordered them to search the entire palace for Legolas, and his caretaker. Perhaps they had gone out early, he hoped.

The royal couple joined in the futile search, which only ended when two of the soldiers returned, looking very shaken and distraught.

'Sire?' one tentatively asked.

'Yes?' Thranduil rather sharply answered. He was not known to be sharp, but his baby son was currently missing, and it scared him to death. Little Legolas, whose innocence and sweet nature made him naturally trusting of anyone, especially someone who was nice to him.

The soldier flinched, but the other spoke up. 'Sire, Lady Morag's belongings are gone… along with some food from the kitchen and…' He was not going to say, 'the little prince'. Everyone knew that Morag had cared for the little, motherless child, and that she had understandably been upset at the knowledge that King Thranduil was going to marry.

'Call the rulers of Imladris, Lothlorien, and Rivendell and inform them of what has happened. Find her,' Thranduil ordered. 'And bring back my son.'

Lindel let out an anguished cry, for until this moment, she had not wanted to believe that it was true; that Legolas had been kidnapped. Even with all the motion detectors and security alarms, he had been taken away.

Thranduil embraced Lindel, feeling weary suddenly, and afraid… Even more afraid. He berated himself for not having kept a closer curtail on how much time Morag had spent with his baby son, and for not having changed the passwords after he informed her that her services towards his son were no longer necessary.

The future Queen of Mirkwood, and its King comforted each other, as they waited, silently praying to the Valar and Elbereth that little Legolas would be found.

The messages were given to Lord Elrond and Lady Celebrian of Imladris, King Arathorn and Queen Gilrain of Gondor, and Lord Celeborn and Lady Galadriel of Lothlorien with utmost haste. All were sympathetic, having young children of their own, and they readily agreed to assist in the search for the missing little prince, whom they had all met.

Unfortunately, Morag had prepared for every contingency, and neither she nor Legolas were found… The baby prince had vanished without a trace, taken by one that had been considered a close friend.

Lindel and Thranduil married, but did not have any children together. Whether it was because both feared losing a second child, or that the timing wasn't right, they did not know. But both were plagued by memories of a sweet, young voice giggling, as they raised the twins together. The pain died down, but never truly left them. Since they had no children of their own, and after Lindel's two sons grew old enough to care for themselves, Thranduil and Lindel opened a school for poor children in Gondor, funding it sufficiently so that the school would never close because of lack of money.

What hurt the royal couple the most was that many children were named after the missing prince, in a backwards attempt to ease their pain. If anything, it made their pain worse.

Neither ever forgot the sweet, innocent baby that had been taken from them, and missed him, even to this day, fourteen years later…

To be continued