Disclaimer: Nothing recognizable is mine, obviously, otherwise you wouldn't
recognize it. There is bound to be lots of questions at this point, but it
will all come clear, I swear. Please review and I'll love you for it!
Chapter 2
The steps came closer, and Legolas was able to sense the presence of bodies accumulating around him. He was still unable to see. Legolas prepared himself for a blow in the dark, but nothing befell him. After a few moments, light blazed forth into the room. The elf had to close his sensitive eyes against the sudden flood of light. When he opened them again, he was able to see his captors once more.
As before, they still wore long cloaks, revealing nothing about themselves. Legolas drew himself as straight as was possible against the pain of his body, trying to embody the proudness that usually came so easy to him. Although he could not see their faces, Legolas had the feeling that this amused them.
"Is our Prince awake and well, then?" asked the figure directly in front of him. Legolas did not bother to respond.
"Perhaps he is not all that well," another figure cut in, "he screamed." Legolas cast his eyes down, shame at his defenselessness getting the better of him. There were a few scattered chuckles at his reaction.
"Worry not," the same figure stepped towards him and reached out a pale hand to stroke Legolas' cheek. With a start, Legolas realized that this one was a female. He looked up, but could still not see any of the features, even though she stood very close to him. All that could be seen was a faint glimmer of the eyes within the hood. "You will soon have plenty to scream about, then you will not feel as bad, for it cannot be helped. Trust me with this, my dear elf, you will scream again."
Legolas stared defiantly into the hooded face, determined to not appear helpless in front of them again. Legolas became so fixated on the one in front of him that he did not even notice the movements of one to his left until a blow had landed in his middle. Legolas immediately doubled over, or tried to anyway. The manacles kept him from going completely over, causing his torso to stretch even more and deny any intake of breath. Legolas had to stop himself from panicking, he could not get any air in this position. The female still stood in front of him, having not moved an inch. He could feel her eyes on him as he tried valiantly to bring air into his lungs. After a few minutes, he was finally able to draw in a complete breath, and he wearily drew himself up tall again. He had not made a sound the entire time.
"Admiration is due," the female said, "but I am afraid we cannot give it to you. Rest easy elf, for you have an important appointment tomorrow." With that, the female turned and silently walked away. Some of the other figures followed her, while others remained behind. A dagger lay on the floor, and one of the figures picked it up.
The female swiftly turned, "No! Leave him. You can have some fun tomorrow." The figure held onto the dagger, and he seemed to be thinking. Legolas was wondering at all of this, but was wondering even more if the figure would actually listen to the female. Slowly, the hand holding the dagger lowered, and Legolas breathed a small sigh.
Upon hearing that, the hand rose incredibly fast and slashed neatly across Legolas' chest. The elf gasped at the sudden bite of metal, but bit his cheek so that no more sound would come from him. He threw his head back and ground his jaw in frustration. The dagger was finally dropped and the other figures turned to hurry after the others. Legolas was soon alone again. This time, however, they had left a torch burning at the far end of the stone imprisonment, presumably so that Legolas would be able to make out the blood now flowing across his tunic.
The elf glanced down at his chest. The wound had not been deep, thankfully, and only a small amount of blood had found its way out. It was enough, though, and Legolas found himself slipping on the edge of unconsciousness again. He did not even try to fight it. The combined bloodloss was too strong of a hold. Gratefully, Legolas accepted the painless oblivion.
"What is the use of being an heir to a throne that does not exist?" A voice drifted out of the depths to Legolas. He was confused, not sure where it was coming from or even what it meant.
"One that will not die will not leave a throne open, nobody else will stand a chance for it. How is it that you can have any hope of attaining that which you seek most?" The voice was low and sensuous, putting Legolas at an ease while stirring up great emotions at the same time. He still did not know what it was speaking of, but he wanted to listen to it, to trust it. It had that effect on him.
"A proud prince, a good and noble elf, all for naught. What is the point? You know not, nobody does. Except perhaps, your father."
The mist that seemed to engulf Legolas suddenly lifted and he had a striking vision of his own father, Thranduil. He was receiving word from a messenger. Intrigued, Legolas strained to listen. He knew that he himself could not be seen or heard, but this sent off no alarms inside of Legolas, and he only wished to hear what was happening.
The messenger was speaking. "I am sorry my Lord, but it is the whole party that has disappeared, including the Prince Legolas. We have been searching for them endlessly and will put forth every effort we have possible, but so far nothing has rewarded our searches." The messenger elf looked very distraught to be the one delivering such a message, but Legolas ignored him. He concentrated only on his father, on the reaction of the King.
Like a true King and worried father, Thranduil looked thoroughly distressed. He ordered for all efforts to be doubled and for word to reach the ears of every elven nation. Foul play had to be responsible, for there was no other way to explain the disappearance of a strong hunting party that contained his son, the best archer Mirkwood had to offer. Servants scattered to carry out Thranduil's bidding.
In no time, the room was empty and Thranduil sat back into his large throne. Legolas concentrated on him even more, honing in on only his father, searching for something that he knew would have to be there. And in a few moments his inner feelings and suspicions were confirmed, his father smiled.
Chapter 2
The steps came closer, and Legolas was able to sense the presence of bodies accumulating around him. He was still unable to see. Legolas prepared himself for a blow in the dark, but nothing befell him. After a few moments, light blazed forth into the room. The elf had to close his sensitive eyes against the sudden flood of light. When he opened them again, he was able to see his captors once more.
As before, they still wore long cloaks, revealing nothing about themselves. Legolas drew himself as straight as was possible against the pain of his body, trying to embody the proudness that usually came so easy to him. Although he could not see their faces, Legolas had the feeling that this amused them.
"Is our Prince awake and well, then?" asked the figure directly in front of him. Legolas did not bother to respond.
"Perhaps he is not all that well," another figure cut in, "he screamed." Legolas cast his eyes down, shame at his defenselessness getting the better of him. There were a few scattered chuckles at his reaction.
"Worry not," the same figure stepped towards him and reached out a pale hand to stroke Legolas' cheek. With a start, Legolas realized that this one was a female. He looked up, but could still not see any of the features, even though she stood very close to him. All that could be seen was a faint glimmer of the eyes within the hood. "You will soon have plenty to scream about, then you will not feel as bad, for it cannot be helped. Trust me with this, my dear elf, you will scream again."
Legolas stared defiantly into the hooded face, determined to not appear helpless in front of them again. Legolas became so fixated on the one in front of him that he did not even notice the movements of one to his left until a blow had landed in his middle. Legolas immediately doubled over, or tried to anyway. The manacles kept him from going completely over, causing his torso to stretch even more and deny any intake of breath. Legolas had to stop himself from panicking, he could not get any air in this position. The female still stood in front of him, having not moved an inch. He could feel her eyes on him as he tried valiantly to bring air into his lungs. After a few minutes, he was finally able to draw in a complete breath, and he wearily drew himself up tall again. He had not made a sound the entire time.
"Admiration is due," the female said, "but I am afraid we cannot give it to you. Rest easy elf, for you have an important appointment tomorrow." With that, the female turned and silently walked away. Some of the other figures followed her, while others remained behind. A dagger lay on the floor, and one of the figures picked it up.
The female swiftly turned, "No! Leave him. You can have some fun tomorrow." The figure held onto the dagger, and he seemed to be thinking. Legolas was wondering at all of this, but was wondering even more if the figure would actually listen to the female. Slowly, the hand holding the dagger lowered, and Legolas breathed a small sigh.
Upon hearing that, the hand rose incredibly fast and slashed neatly across Legolas' chest. The elf gasped at the sudden bite of metal, but bit his cheek so that no more sound would come from him. He threw his head back and ground his jaw in frustration. The dagger was finally dropped and the other figures turned to hurry after the others. Legolas was soon alone again. This time, however, they had left a torch burning at the far end of the stone imprisonment, presumably so that Legolas would be able to make out the blood now flowing across his tunic.
The elf glanced down at his chest. The wound had not been deep, thankfully, and only a small amount of blood had found its way out. It was enough, though, and Legolas found himself slipping on the edge of unconsciousness again. He did not even try to fight it. The combined bloodloss was too strong of a hold. Gratefully, Legolas accepted the painless oblivion.
"What is the use of being an heir to a throne that does not exist?" A voice drifted out of the depths to Legolas. He was confused, not sure where it was coming from or even what it meant.
"One that will not die will not leave a throne open, nobody else will stand a chance for it. How is it that you can have any hope of attaining that which you seek most?" The voice was low and sensuous, putting Legolas at an ease while stirring up great emotions at the same time. He still did not know what it was speaking of, but he wanted to listen to it, to trust it. It had that effect on him.
"A proud prince, a good and noble elf, all for naught. What is the point? You know not, nobody does. Except perhaps, your father."
The mist that seemed to engulf Legolas suddenly lifted and he had a striking vision of his own father, Thranduil. He was receiving word from a messenger. Intrigued, Legolas strained to listen. He knew that he himself could not be seen or heard, but this sent off no alarms inside of Legolas, and he only wished to hear what was happening.
The messenger was speaking. "I am sorry my Lord, but it is the whole party that has disappeared, including the Prince Legolas. We have been searching for them endlessly and will put forth every effort we have possible, but so far nothing has rewarded our searches." The messenger elf looked very distraught to be the one delivering such a message, but Legolas ignored him. He concentrated only on his father, on the reaction of the King.
Like a true King and worried father, Thranduil looked thoroughly distressed. He ordered for all efforts to be doubled and for word to reach the ears of every elven nation. Foul play had to be responsible, for there was no other way to explain the disappearance of a strong hunting party that contained his son, the best archer Mirkwood had to offer. Servants scattered to carry out Thranduil's bidding.
In no time, the room was empty and Thranduil sat back into his large throne. Legolas concentrated on him even more, honing in on only his father, searching for something that he knew would have to be there. And in a few moments his inner feelings and suspicions were confirmed, his father smiled.