Disclaimer- Refer to Chapter One.
A/N-Well I decided to write this scene anyway since I got mixed reviews about it, but I hope that everyone is happy. Plus, I decided to be evil and thrown in a little twist that I bet none of you would have ever suspected. Muwahahahahaha! It will definitely have an effect on the next few chapters.
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The Fury of a Prince
Legolas strode out of Lord Elrond's study, his footfalls ringing clearly down the hallway. He was in a foul mood and his usually light step had become heavy with determination. He was in search of Isondil.
Where had his elven friend wandered off to? Legolas searched Isondil's chambers but did not find him there. He also checked his own chambers, the dinning room, and Great Hall, but to no avail.
Deciding to move his search out of doors, Legolas went to the only logical place his friend would be, the practice archery field. Yet when the Prince got there, he saw no elf within one hundred yards of the area.
Dusk had begun to settle so Legolas turned back to the palace, anger filling him with the inconvenient disappearance of his friend. Where was the elf! It was not as if this was his father's realm. Isondil had no favorite haunts here; no friends other than Legolas to occupy his time.
The palace came into view, but Legolas took no notice of it. He was glancing down at the pebbled path, lost in his thoughts. If it had not been for his excellent hearing, he would have run into the elf that was moving the opposite way along the path.
'Lady Silia!' Legolas exclaimed, looking up at the maiden. The she-elf appeared to be rather flushed, except for a tinge of pink that colored her cheeks. 'Are you alright? You look pale.'
Silia lifted her eyes which sparkled with some unknown mirth. 'I am quite alright, Prince Legolas, but thank you for asking. If I may be so bold, what are you doing out here at nightfall?'
'I was looking for Isondil. You have not seen him by any chance, have you?'
The light was steadily fading, but Legolas could see the pink spread across Silia's face, staining it a darker shade of color. A suspicion grew in the Prince's mind that Silia knew exactly where Isondil was. 'He is in the garden,' she said, pointing down a small walkway to her left, confirming Legolas' suspicion.
'Thank you Silia!' Legolas called, forgetting decorum as he sprinted down the path she had indicated to catch his friend.
He found Isondil standing under a large arbor, ivy forming a living canopy over his head. Legolas noticed a silly grin plastered over his friend's face. It took Legolas only a moment to guess who the source of that smile was, but the elven prince was in no mood to let Isondil alone with his happy thoughts.
'Isondil!' Legolas barked.
The elvish lord's head snapped around at the sound of Legolas' voice, the dreamy smile still upon his fair face. 'Yes?'
'You fool,' shouted Legolas, giving his friend a forceful shove. Isondil staggered back a few paces, a look of bewilderment appearing in his features.
'Legolas, what is the matter?'
'Is there something else you wish to tell me about the Lady of the Stars that happened to slip your memory when you informed me about her before?' Isondil received another shove from his friend, making him loose more ground to the enraged Prince.
'I do not know what you are talking about, Legolas.' Confusion was clear in Isondil's voice and countenance. 'What do you mean, my friend?'
'Do not call me that!' Legolas shouted, accentuating his point with another shove. Isondil now found his back to one of the palace walls with nowhere to run. Silence hung between the two elves as Legolas glared at Isondil, who only grew more confused by the second.
'Legolas..'
'It is Prince Legolas to you,' snapped the elf.
'As you wish, my lord.' Isondil was thoroughly lost now. He had no idea what his friend meant about the Lady of the Stars. Whatever it was, it was obvious that Legolas was seething with anger about it.
'The kiss, Isondil,' Legolas said at last, exasperation clearly evident in his tone.
'I do not know what you are talking about,' Isondil stated firmly, trying to defend himself as best he could in his vulnerable position. 'Would you please be clearer?'
Legolas felt like his body was on fire. The Prince did not care if all of Lord Elrond's realm heard him as he yelled at Isondil. 'You wish me to be clearer? Fine! Did it happen to slip your memory that tomorrow's winner shall receive a kiss from the Lady of the Stars?'
'No, I simply did not consider it to be an important detail at the time,' Isondil said heatedly, growing angry at the Prince's pushy behavior. 'I do not understand what you are so upset about Prince Legolas. It cannot be too painful to receive a kiss from a beautiful lady.'
'Then let me inform you otherwise, Lord Isondil,' Legolas said sarcastically, lowering his voice in volume, but still retaining the hard edge. 'I chose Valia because I had made her acquaintance before. She did not seem like she was out to set a matrimonial trap for me the moment we met each other, so I thought her the best choice. She appeared unaffected by my presence, which only added to my reasons for selecting her.'
'But now I am told, after I have already picked her, that she will bestow a kiss on the winner of tomorrow's tournament. Do you know what she therefore must think? Obviously not!' exclaimed the irate Prince, giving Isondil no time to answer. 'She must think that I have an interest in her, Isondil. You know very well that I do not wish to marry right now, or court a maiden for that matter. However, by your lack of information, my actions have now conveyed to Valia that I have an interest in her which I most certainly do not.'
Isondil watched his friend closely as he ranted on. He had never seen Legolas so upset before. The Prince usually was all control, only conveying the emotions he wished to display. His current display of behavior was something entirely new for Isondil. There must be some truth to what he said about having an interest in Lady Valia, no matter how much the Prince denied it.
'Prince Legolas,' Isondil began slowly, choosing his words with careful consideration. 'I do not see how your choice of Lady Valia to be the Lady of the Stars will convey to her that you have some interest in her. Surely she will think you have chosen her for the first reason you told me, that she was the only one you had made a suitable acquaintance with prior to then. I can see no reason for you to be so distressed.' Here, Isondil paused, taking a deep breath before continuing. 'Unless you truly do have feelings for the maiden, but do not want her to know,' he stated softly.
'What are you accusing me of?' screamed Legolas, making large gestures with his arms. 'If you presume to say such a thing to me again, I will make sure you regret your words for days to follow,' he threatened.
'There is no need to intimidate me, Prince Legolas,' spat Isondil. The elf was now yelling right back at the Prince, careless of his lord's threats. 'It is not my fault that you obviously have feelings for her that you refuse to admit to yourself! Do not blame me for your blindness and stupidity.'
Isondil prepared himself for the blow he felt sure Legolas would throw at him. To his complete surprise, he saw the tension slowly leave Legolas' body, his shoulders slumping as if a great weight hung on them. Isondil did not know what to make of the sudden change in the Prince.
With observant eyes, he watched his friend sink onto a nearby bench. Leaning his elbows on his thighs, Legolas buried his face in his hands, trying to control his erratic breathing b deeply inhaling and exhaling.
Hesitantly, Isondil lowered himself next to Legolas. They sat together, not saying a word.
The two elves had been friends for millennium. They had never had a fight like the one that just occurred. Thinking back, Isondil could not believe he had the nerve to say what he did to Legolas. He felt guilt, and a small fear, creep over him. True, they were fast friends, but Isondil never forgot that his friend was also his lord.
When Isondil heard Legolas' breathing return to a normal rate, he gathered his courage and spoke softly. 'I should not have said that, my lord. Forgive me.'
'No, my friend, it was my fault. I do not know what came over me.' Legolas looked up and grasped Isondil's forearm with his hand in a firm grip. 'Forgive a foolish Prince?'
Isondil reassured Legolas by returning the arm clasp. 'All is forgiven, my prince. You are confused. I understand. It did not help that I had the audacity to say what I did.'
The two elves looked at each other, reading the depths of their eyes.
'You do not know what it is like Isondil,' Legolas sighed. 'I have always had to be careful of my actions when around she-elves. I merely greet them and they think it is a formal declaration of my love to them. I cannot act naturally, be myself. I must always have my guard up.'
'I have never heard you speak so frankly about such things before,' said Isondil with surprise. He knew that Legolas had problems with maidens' attentions to him, but he never thought about the emotional toll it must have had on his friend. 'I always envied you for all the maidens that threw themselves at you,' he mused aloud. 'It never occurred to me how draining, and insulting, it would be to have females fawning over you simply for your good looks and crown.'
'I think I have given up on marriage, Isondil,' whispered Legolas. 'When I was younger, I had this ideal that somewhere the perfect maiden existed for me. She would care more about my soul, my heart, than my looks and title. But time has worn that illusion away. She was a figment of my imagination. She is not real.'
'I would not give up the search, Legolas,' Isondil spoke gently, 'Dreams like that are a gift from the Valar. They should be treasured like precious gems and looked for with the expectation of fulfillment.'
'That is what I once thought too. Yet hope deferred makes the heart grow weary. I am weary of looking Isondil.' Legolas' tone was depressed, mingled with sorrow and abandonment. It sent a chill up Isondil's spine.
'Perhaps she is not as out of reach as you think her to be.'
'What do you mean?' asked Legolas, staring blankly at the ground.
'There is an elf maiden that came to mind when you.'
'Help!'
Legolas whipped his head around. 'Did you hear that Isondil?'
'Yes. It sounded fairly close to here.' The elves were on their feel in an instant, eyes searching the darkness of the night.
'Help me!' The plea rang through the night air, piercing the hearts of Legolas and Isondil with dread.
'Come, my frined,' said Legolas, grabbing Isondil's shoulder. 'It came from over there.'
Legolas raced towards the voice. 'Where are you?' he called into the air.
'Mother! Father! Help me!' the voice came again. Judging by the tone, it sounded like a female calling out for help. Legolas and Isondil could tell that they were close and both paused to listen. Soft whimpers and crying guided the elves into a small stand of trees.
The sobs from scared elf were loud now, but Legolas and Isondil could not see where the source of the noise was coming from.
'I am up here. Look up!' Whoever it was was on the edge of hysterics. Legolas peered into the branches of an old tree overhead. He could just make out the outline of a small elfling amidst the branches. 'Please help me!' The child was definitely a female.
Glancing at Isondil, Legolas threw his outer tunic off and handed his weapons to him. 'I am going up,' the Prince said, grabbing onto the lowest branch and hoisting himself up in one graceful movement.
'Be careful, Legolas. This tree does not look healthy.'
Ignoring his friend, Legolas swiftly climbed up. The child was not very high up, but she had wiggled her way to the furthest part of the branch she was on. 'What is your name?' he asked the elfling, standing on the branch right below hers.
'Tania,' the little girl replied with a sniffle.
'Tania, that is a lovely name,' the Prince said, trying to distract the girl so she would calm down. 'Where do you live, Tania?'
'I live in the city here,' said Tania, her voice loosing some of its fear. Legolas, however, was growing worried. He had climbed up to her branch and felt the limb lower with an ominous creak.
Masking his worry, Legolas crouched down and looked at Tania. 'I am staying at the palace with Lord Elrond, Tania. My name is Legolas.'
The elflings eyes grew wide with wonder. She had stopped crying now and a timid smile spread across her face. 'Are you Prince Legolas?'
'Yes, I am.'
'My sister told me you came to live here for awhile. She said you were very handsome,' Tania commented innocently.
'Really?' Legolas asked, slowly making his way out along the branch. 'Who is your sister Tania?'
'Her name is Hadrielia. She said she met you before.' Legolas had thought the situation could not be any worse until he heard the maiden's name. He simply chose to ignore Tania's statement.
Coming to stop about midway out on the limb, Legolas looked at Tania with a reassuring smile. 'Tania, I need you to crawl towards me. The branch is too thin for me to go out as far as you are. Just put one hand in front of the other and do not look down. Do you think you can do that for me?'
Tania nodded, whipping her nose on her dress sleeve. Slowly, she reached one hand out and inched along the branch towards Legolas.
'Are you alright, Legolas?' Isondil called up into the tree.
Legolas looked down at his friend below. No more than four yards stood between the ground and him. 'We are fine, Isondil,' he yelled down.
'Is the girl all right?'
'She is fine as well,' Legolas shouted, still looking at his friend. 'Her name is Tania.' A sudden force pushed Legolas off balance. Tania had leapt into his arms while he was distracted, catching the Prince unawares.
A sickening crack met Legolas' sensitive ears when he made impact with the branch, falling backwards with a thud.
Instinctively, he wrapped his arm securely around Tania before the branch broke. With a crisp snap the limb gave way completely, sending Legolas and Tania hurtling to the ground. The child screamed in his arms just before he felt himself hit hard earth.
His first concern was the child's safety. Swiftly sitting up, he looked down at the elfling. 'Are you alright Tania?'
'Yes,' she said shakily.
'You do not hurt anywhere?'
Tania shook her head and Isondil scooped the child up into his arms. 'Hello Tania,' he smiled. 'My name is Isondil. I am a friend of Legolas'.' Isondil turned his attention to Legolas. 'Are you injured?'
'I do not think so, praise be to the Valar.' Legolas reached up to take the hand Isondil held out to him, but when his friend's hand clasped his wrist, Legolas let out a yelp and pulled back.
'On second thought, I think I have injured my wrist,' he said ruefully. Legolas held his arm out in front of him and expertly examined the damage, feeling it with his other hand. 'It is not broken, only sprained I fear.'
'Come, Legolas. Lord Elrond should have a look at your wrist and we must get Tania back to her family.'
Nodding his head, Legolas stood carefully. Except for his wrist and some bruising he knew would come later, he had no other injuries. 'Let us be off then, Isondil, and make haste. Tania's family will be searching for her by now. They must be sick with worry.'
The two elves strode off into the darkness and towards the safety of Lord Elrond's palace.
A/N-Poor Legolas *sniffle* How's an elf to shoot his bow when he has a sprained wrist? Just a question for you all to ponder....
Alrighty! Did you like it? Would you please hit the review button and make me ever so happy by typing up a review for me? It doesn't have to be long and I read each and every one of them with much happiness.
Please Review!
A/N-Well I decided to write this scene anyway since I got mixed reviews about it, but I hope that everyone is happy. Plus, I decided to be evil and thrown in a little twist that I bet none of you would have ever suspected. Muwahahahahaha! It will definitely have an effect on the next few chapters.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The Fury of a Prince
Legolas strode out of Lord Elrond's study, his footfalls ringing clearly down the hallway. He was in a foul mood and his usually light step had become heavy with determination. He was in search of Isondil.
Where had his elven friend wandered off to? Legolas searched Isondil's chambers but did not find him there. He also checked his own chambers, the dinning room, and Great Hall, but to no avail.
Deciding to move his search out of doors, Legolas went to the only logical place his friend would be, the practice archery field. Yet when the Prince got there, he saw no elf within one hundred yards of the area.
Dusk had begun to settle so Legolas turned back to the palace, anger filling him with the inconvenient disappearance of his friend. Where was the elf! It was not as if this was his father's realm. Isondil had no favorite haunts here; no friends other than Legolas to occupy his time.
The palace came into view, but Legolas took no notice of it. He was glancing down at the pebbled path, lost in his thoughts. If it had not been for his excellent hearing, he would have run into the elf that was moving the opposite way along the path.
'Lady Silia!' Legolas exclaimed, looking up at the maiden. The she-elf appeared to be rather flushed, except for a tinge of pink that colored her cheeks. 'Are you alright? You look pale.'
Silia lifted her eyes which sparkled with some unknown mirth. 'I am quite alright, Prince Legolas, but thank you for asking. If I may be so bold, what are you doing out here at nightfall?'
'I was looking for Isondil. You have not seen him by any chance, have you?'
The light was steadily fading, but Legolas could see the pink spread across Silia's face, staining it a darker shade of color. A suspicion grew in the Prince's mind that Silia knew exactly where Isondil was. 'He is in the garden,' she said, pointing down a small walkway to her left, confirming Legolas' suspicion.
'Thank you Silia!' Legolas called, forgetting decorum as he sprinted down the path she had indicated to catch his friend.
He found Isondil standing under a large arbor, ivy forming a living canopy over his head. Legolas noticed a silly grin plastered over his friend's face. It took Legolas only a moment to guess who the source of that smile was, but the elven prince was in no mood to let Isondil alone with his happy thoughts.
'Isondil!' Legolas barked.
The elvish lord's head snapped around at the sound of Legolas' voice, the dreamy smile still upon his fair face. 'Yes?'
'You fool,' shouted Legolas, giving his friend a forceful shove. Isondil staggered back a few paces, a look of bewilderment appearing in his features.
'Legolas, what is the matter?'
'Is there something else you wish to tell me about the Lady of the Stars that happened to slip your memory when you informed me about her before?' Isondil received another shove from his friend, making him loose more ground to the enraged Prince.
'I do not know what you are talking about, Legolas.' Confusion was clear in Isondil's voice and countenance. 'What do you mean, my friend?'
'Do not call me that!' Legolas shouted, accentuating his point with another shove. Isondil now found his back to one of the palace walls with nowhere to run. Silence hung between the two elves as Legolas glared at Isondil, who only grew more confused by the second.
'Legolas..'
'It is Prince Legolas to you,' snapped the elf.
'As you wish, my lord.' Isondil was thoroughly lost now. He had no idea what his friend meant about the Lady of the Stars. Whatever it was, it was obvious that Legolas was seething with anger about it.
'The kiss, Isondil,' Legolas said at last, exasperation clearly evident in his tone.
'I do not know what you are talking about,' Isondil stated firmly, trying to defend himself as best he could in his vulnerable position. 'Would you please be clearer?'
Legolas felt like his body was on fire. The Prince did not care if all of Lord Elrond's realm heard him as he yelled at Isondil. 'You wish me to be clearer? Fine! Did it happen to slip your memory that tomorrow's winner shall receive a kiss from the Lady of the Stars?'
'No, I simply did not consider it to be an important detail at the time,' Isondil said heatedly, growing angry at the Prince's pushy behavior. 'I do not understand what you are so upset about Prince Legolas. It cannot be too painful to receive a kiss from a beautiful lady.'
'Then let me inform you otherwise, Lord Isondil,' Legolas said sarcastically, lowering his voice in volume, but still retaining the hard edge. 'I chose Valia because I had made her acquaintance before. She did not seem like she was out to set a matrimonial trap for me the moment we met each other, so I thought her the best choice. She appeared unaffected by my presence, which only added to my reasons for selecting her.'
'But now I am told, after I have already picked her, that she will bestow a kiss on the winner of tomorrow's tournament. Do you know what she therefore must think? Obviously not!' exclaimed the irate Prince, giving Isondil no time to answer. 'She must think that I have an interest in her, Isondil. You know very well that I do not wish to marry right now, or court a maiden for that matter. However, by your lack of information, my actions have now conveyed to Valia that I have an interest in her which I most certainly do not.'
Isondil watched his friend closely as he ranted on. He had never seen Legolas so upset before. The Prince usually was all control, only conveying the emotions he wished to display. His current display of behavior was something entirely new for Isondil. There must be some truth to what he said about having an interest in Lady Valia, no matter how much the Prince denied it.
'Prince Legolas,' Isondil began slowly, choosing his words with careful consideration. 'I do not see how your choice of Lady Valia to be the Lady of the Stars will convey to her that you have some interest in her. Surely she will think you have chosen her for the first reason you told me, that she was the only one you had made a suitable acquaintance with prior to then. I can see no reason for you to be so distressed.' Here, Isondil paused, taking a deep breath before continuing. 'Unless you truly do have feelings for the maiden, but do not want her to know,' he stated softly.
'What are you accusing me of?' screamed Legolas, making large gestures with his arms. 'If you presume to say such a thing to me again, I will make sure you regret your words for days to follow,' he threatened.
'There is no need to intimidate me, Prince Legolas,' spat Isondil. The elf was now yelling right back at the Prince, careless of his lord's threats. 'It is not my fault that you obviously have feelings for her that you refuse to admit to yourself! Do not blame me for your blindness and stupidity.'
Isondil prepared himself for the blow he felt sure Legolas would throw at him. To his complete surprise, he saw the tension slowly leave Legolas' body, his shoulders slumping as if a great weight hung on them. Isondil did not know what to make of the sudden change in the Prince.
With observant eyes, he watched his friend sink onto a nearby bench. Leaning his elbows on his thighs, Legolas buried his face in his hands, trying to control his erratic breathing b deeply inhaling and exhaling.
Hesitantly, Isondil lowered himself next to Legolas. They sat together, not saying a word.
The two elves had been friends for millennium. They had never had a fight like the one that just occurred. Thinking back, Isondil could not believe he had the nerve to say what he did to Legolas. He felt guilt, and a small fear, creep over him. True, they were fast friends, but Isondil never forgot that his friend was also his lord.
When Isondil heard Legolas' breathing return to a normal rate, he gathered his courage and spoke softly. 'I should not have said that, my lord. Forgive me.'
'No, my friend, it was my fault. I do not know what came over me.' Legolas looked up and grasped Isondil's forearm with his hand in a firm grip. 'Forgive a foolish Prince?'
Isondil reassured Legolas by returning the arm clasp. 'All is forgiven, my prince. You are confused. I understand. It did not help that I had the audacity to say what I did.'
The two elves looked at each other, reading the depths of their eyes.
'You do not know what it is like Isondil,' Legolas sighed. 'I have always had to be careful of my actions when around she-elves. I merely greet them and they think it is a formal declaration of my love to them. I cannot act naturally, be myself. I must always have my guard up.'
'I have never heard you speak so frankly about such things before,' said Isondil with surprise. He knew that Legolas had problems with maidens' attentions to him, but he never thought about the emotional toll it must have had on his friend. 'I always envied you for all the maidens that threw themselves at you,' he mused aloud. 'It never occurred to me how draining, and insulting, it would be to have females fawning over you simply for your good looks and crown.'
'I think I have given up on marriage, Isondil,' whispered Legolas. 'When I was younger, I had this ideal that somewhere the perfect maiden existed for me. She would care more about my soul, my heart, than my looks and title. But time has worn that illusion away. She was a figment of my imagination. She is not real.'
'I would not give up the search, Legolas,' Isondil spoke gently, 'Dreams like that are a gift from the Valar. They should be treasured like precious gems and looked for with the expectation of fulfillment.'
'That is what I once thought too. Yet hope deferred makes the heart grow weary. I am weary of looking Isondil.' Legolas' tone was depressed, mingled with sorrow and abandonment. It sent a chill up Isondil's spine.
'Perhaps she is not as out of reach as you think her to be.'
'What do you mean?' asked Legolas, staring blankly at the ground.
'There is an elf maiden that came to mind when you.'
'Help!'
Legolas whipped his head around. 'Did you hear that Isondil?'
'Yes. It sounded fairly close to here.' The elves were on their feel in an instant, eyes searching the darkness of the night.
'Help me!' The plea rang through the night air, piercing the hearts of Legolas and Isondil with dread.
'Come, my frined,' said Legolas, grabbing Isondil's shoulder. 'It came from over there.'
Legolas raced towards the voice. 'Where are you?' he called into the air.
'Mother! Father! Help me!' the voice came again. Judging by the tone, it sounded like a female calling out for help. Legolas and Isondil could tell that they were close and both paused to listen. Soft whimpers and crying guided the elves into a small stand of trees.
The sobs from scared elf were loud now, but Legolas and Isondil could not see where the source of the noise was coming from.
'I am up here. Look up!' Whoever it was was on the edge of hysterics. Legolas peered into the branches of an old tree overhead. He could just make out the outline of a small elfling amidst the branches. 'Please help me!' The child was definitely a female.
Glancing at Isondil, Legolas threw his outer tunic off and handed his weapons to him. 'I am going up,' the Prince said, grabbing onto the lowest branch and hoisting himself up in one graceful movement.
'Be careful, Legolas. This tree does not look healthy.'
Ignoring his friend, Legolas swiftly climbed up. The child was not very high up, but she had wiggled her way to the furthest part of the branch she was on. 'What is your name?' he asked the elfling, standing on the branch right below hers.
'Tania,' the little girl replied with a sniffle.
'Tania, that is a lovely name,' the Prince said, trying to distract the girl so she would calm down. 'Where do you live, Tania?'
'I live in the city here,' said Tania, her voice loosing some of its fear. Legolas, however, was growing worried. He had climbed up to her branch and felt the limb lower with an ominous creak.
Masking his worry, Legolas crouched down and looked at Tania. 'I am staying at the palace with Lord Elrond, Tania. My name is Legolas.'
The elflings eyes grew wide with wonder. She had stopped crying now and a timid smile spread across her face. 'Are you Prince Legolas?'
'Yes, I am.'
'My sister told me you came to live here for awhile. She said you were very handsome,' Tania commented innocently.
'Really?' Legolas asked, slowly making his way out along the branch. 'Who is your sister Tania?'
'Her name is Hadrielia. She said she met you before.' Legolas had thought the situation could not be any worse until he heard the maiden's name. He simply chose to ignore Tania's statement.
Coming to stop about midway out on the limb, Legolas looked at Tania with a reassuring smile. 'Tania, I need you to crawl towards me. The branch is too thin for me to go out as far as you are. Just put one hand in front of the other and do not look down. Do you think you can do that for me?'
Tania nodded, whipping her nose on her dress sleeve. Slowly, she reached one hand out and inched along the branch towards Legolas.
'Are you alright, Legolas?' Isondil called up into the tree.
Legolas looked down at his friend below. No more than four yards stood between the ground and him. 'We are fine, Isondil,' he yelled down.
'Is the girl all right?'
'She is fine as well,' Legolas shouted, still looking at his friend. 'Her name is Tania.' A sudden force pushed Legolas off balance. Tania had leapt into his arms while he was distracted, catching the Prince unawares.
A sickening crack met Legolas' sensitive ears when he made impact with the branch, falling backwards with a thud.
Instinctively, he wrapped his arm securely around Tania before the branch broke. With a crisp snap the limb gave way completely, sending Legolas and Tania hurtling to the ground. The child screamed in his arms just before he felt himself hit hard earth.
His first concern was the child's safety. Swiftly sitting up, he looked down at the elfling. 'Are you alright Tania?'
'Yes,' she said shakily.
'You do not hurt anywhere?'
Tania shook her head and Isondil scooped the child up into his arms. 'Hello Tania,' he smiled. 'My name is Isondil. I am a friend of Legolas'.' Isondil turned his attention to Legolas. 'Are you injured?'
'I do not think so, praise be to the Valar.' Legolas reached up to take the hand Isondil held out to him, but when his friend's hand clasped his wrist, Legolas let out a yelp and pulled back.
'On second thought, I think I have injured my wrist,' he said ruefully. Legolas held his arm out in front of him and expertly examined the damage, feeling it with his other hand. 'It is not broken, only sprained I fear.'
'Come, Legolas. Lord Elrond should have a look at your wrist and we must get Tania back to her family.'
Nodding his head, Legolas stood carefully. Except for his wrist and some bruising he knew would come later, he had no other injuries. 'Let us be off then, Isondil, and make haste. Tania's family will be searching for her by now. They must be sick with worry.'
The two elves strode off into the darkness and towards the safety of Lord Elrond's palace.
A/N-Poor Legolas *sniffle* How's an elf to shoot his bow when he has a sprained wrist? Just a question for you all to ponder....
Alrighty! Did you like it? Would you please hit the review button and make me ever so happy by typing up a review for me? It doesn't have to be long and I read each and every one of them with much happiness.
Please Review!