Author's Note: Hello again all my lovely readers! I just want to thank
you guys so much for all the wonderful reviews, I've never gotten so much
response about a story before. And I will assure you that your hilarious
reviews do provoke me to write faster. So thanks again to you all and I
love you so much!
Chapter 19
Legolas was at the door in a matter of seconds. He was hoping that it had not merely been his distracted state that had missed the sound of the lock but that Glorfindel had indeed not locked the door. Trying desperately to calm his excitement Legolas carefully grabbed onto the handle of the heavy door. He knew from watching others that if opened too fast and without caution caused the metal to grate against the stone walls and make noise. Ever so carefully, Legolas pulled on the door with a fraction of his strength.
It didn't move.
Legolas frowned. Not quite willing to give up, he exerted a little more pressure as he pulled on it. It still did not move.
Gritting his teeth in frustration Legolas' hopes were beginning to die and he thought that maybe it had been locked. He gave it one last pull, more in defiance rather than in trying to open it, and his heart seemed to stop for a minute when the door moved but created a scratching sound. Legolas froze, wildly hoping that nobody was anywhere nearby in the hallway.
Legolas held the door at where it was and waited. He only had a tiny slit opened, but he feared going any more lest it alert someone. After a few moments passed and nothing happened, Legolas carefully started to roll his weight back on his feet and bring the door open a few inches. This time he managed to do so without a sound and when it was open enough so that he could clearly see through a small gap he stopped. Pausing his breath so that it would not make any noise, Legolas pressed his ear to the gap and strained his hearing to take in the sounds of elvish footfalls in at least the immediate area of the hallway. There was nothing.
Feeling slightly more confident, Legolas finished pulling his door open the rest of the way and slipped through it. He felt horribly exposed as soon as he had left the confines of his room and flattened himself against the wall. There was very little light in the long hallway, provided from small torches lit with quite a distance between them. They were not meant to provide a lot of light and Legolas was momentarily grateful for it. He would be aware of another coming and be able to slip back into his room before they ever saw him.
Legolas slowly realized that he had not thought beyond getting out of his room. He had no plan of action, no idea of where to go. He was not even sure if he should try to escape entirely or not. He had no idea where any of the entrances were. And even if he did somehow make it out of the structure, what then? What little forest he could see through his window told him that it was an area completely foreign to him. He would end up wandering and lost within it, waiting to be either recaptured or subjected to the creatures in the forest without any weapons.
Deciding that he at least do something, Legolas eased up off of the wall and started walking down to his right. He made a mental note to painstakingly track where he was going so that he would be able to make it back to his room without being caught.
The hallway was straight for a while and Legolas glided soundlessly, his senses keyed to detect even a hint of another elf coming. A little ways down a wall ornament caught his eye. It was a long knife pinned beneath an elaborate painting. Legolas did not even heed the painting and without a second thought lifted the knife. He tucked it into a sleeve of his tunic, holding the hilt hidden in his hand. Feeling immensely better now that he had something to protect himself with, Legolas picked up his pace.
Legolas had just started venturing down a small corridor to his left when his sharp ears picked up the sound of voices. Immediately Legolas withdrew farther into the corridor and pressed himself against the wall at what seemed like the darkest point. He then stilled himself and extended his hearing. His first thought had been that the voices were coming from down the main hallway, the one he had just been in. But as he listened it became clear that they were instead coming from the corridor he had turned into. Legolas turned his head to the side and strained his eyes to see if anything was coming.
He could not see anything and the voices were not getting any louder. That meant they had to be in one of the rooms, and from what Legolas could tell it was a few voices. At the very least four different people. A meeting of some sort?
Legolas began to edge his way down the hall towards the voices. He could soon make the thin line of light edged around one of the heavy doors. That was the room that the elves were in, but who was it and what were they talking about?
Legolas started to think that perhaps he should quite while he was ahead, go back to his room before these elves came out and found him. But even as his mind thought rationally his feet continued to move toward the lit room. Perhaps he still had the foolishness of youth in him, even if he was well past 500 years. Edging as close as he dared to the door and blending into the shadows Legolas listened quietly.
A muffled voice came through the door. "But will not Elrond be alerted too soon and then Thranduil's envoy sent back with tales of suspicion and lies?"
"By the time the envoy is sent back by Elrond to Mirkwood we will have already moved in. It will be at least five more days until the envoy even reaches Rivendell, and then almost two weeks before being able to come back to Mirkwood. We have plenty of time without having to worry about interference." Legolas was not wholly sure, but he felt that the last voice was that of the elf lord, Maeglin.
"I still do not understand why you would want to even alert Elrond as to what is happening," an angry-sounding voice started. "Now we will have to deal with the Noldor and the Silvan. It does not seem like a wise decision to me."
"Which is why you will never be the head of anything," Maeglin answered dryly. "Thranduil's attention is now fixed on Rivendell and on the possibility of a threat from a roaming renegade band. We will be the last thing he ever suspects. And I believe that you give Lord Elrond too much credit, he is a descendant of Tuor after all."
Legolas was almost holding his breath as he listened. His eyes widened when he heard them speaking of Mirkwood. He was not entirely sure how Rivendell tied into everything, but obviously there had been some type of lie told to his father by the messengers the elf lord had taunted Legolas with earlier.
As much as Legolas wanted to stay to discover more information, the voices inside of the room had quieted, which probably meant that their meeting was drawing to a close. Legolas could only imagine what would happen if he was caught eavesdropping in the hallway. He was pretty sure it would not be a pleasant ordeal for himself.
Legolas eased up out of the crouch he had been in and began to walk silently back to the main hallway. He paused once before stepping out of the corridor and listened carefully. Nobody was around.
Walking more quickly than he had before, Legolas began to make his way back to his room. He was not hesitant in his path as he had tried to stay as straight as possible, taking only a few turns. Legolas retraced his steps with ease.
Perhaps it was because of his growing confidence in his own daring that made Legolas less cautious. Whatever the reason, Legolas was surprised when he turned the last corner he had taken and had to stop lest he run into a figure coming down the hall from the other direction. It was Eirien.
Her head snapped up from where she had been idly watching the floor when she heard Legolas brake suddenly in front of her. She paused and regarded him and Legolas at least had the small amount of satisfaction that she seemed just as surprised as he. Both of them remained paralyzed in each others' gaze until realization sank in. Then she moved.
Eirien lunged towards Legolas. Legolas quickly side-stepped and grabbed onto her arm that had been outstretched in front of her. He swung his body around, bringing her with it, and effectively slammed her against a wall. Legolas winced slightly at the loud sound the contact made and resolved to not try something like that again lest he wanted to alert others and be outnumbered five to one.
Yet Eirien did not share his desire for silence. She let out a cry as she brought up a knee and slammed it into Legolas' mid-section. Legolas doubled over but did not lose his grip and straightened up to shove her back when she tried to push off of the wall. She let out another cry and Legolas clamped a hand over her mouth. Understanding flashed through her eyes and with more force than Legolas anticipated she pushed off of the wall with all of her weight and slammed into Legolas. Legolas was pushed backwards and left fighting for his footing. Eirien tore out of his grip and pushed hard as she spun away from him. Legolas started to go down but he reached out and caught her ankle as he did so. They both crashed down to the ground.
Legolas pulled himself to his knees and launched himself at the she- elf as she tried to scramble away. He caught her by the shoulders and put a hand over her mouth again as she drew in a deep breath, presumably to call out and alert some of her kinsmen. For the moment Legolas had her pinned and silent, but now what? He could not possibly let her go, she would tell Maeglin that he had freed himself from his room. Legolas could only assume Maeglin would not be too happy with the information and come to pay him a visit.
After a small pause, Legolas decided that laying in the hallway was also not the wisest course for himself. It would only be a matter of time before another came along. Without thinking what he would do once he got her there, Legolas slowly stood, pulling Eirien up with him. He kept his hand over her mouth and his other arm locked tightly around her waist while pinning her own arms. He began to drag her backwards towards his room.
Eirien was not quite so willing. Though she did not struggle half as much as Legolas anticipated, she dug in her heels and made it as hard as possible for Legolas. He kept a watchful eye on her legs as he expected her to kick out viciously at him, but no such blow came. Legolas was starting to become confused, but he decided not to let her odd behaviour bother him at the moment. Instead he focused on getting her into the confines of his room.
Once he had managed to pull her inside he pushed her in with perhaps more force than was necessary and quickly pulled the door closed. He knew it was not locked, that could only happen from the outside, but it was better than being out in the large hallway.
Legolas stood with his back to the door and regarded the she-elf. She stood before him, her arms crossed, her expression hardly amused. She seemed to be waiting to see what Legolas would do, but he himself did not even know. He had been working on pure adrenaline and the desire to get out of the open, he had no plans with which to interrogate her.
The moments dragged between them and it seemed they would stay like this for the remainder of the night when Legolas finally spoke. He was not sure why he did it, and the question came unbidden from him, but he heard himself ask it all the same. "Why did you help me before?"
The she-elf's eyes momentarily widened, as if that had been the last thing she had expected, but the expression was fleeting and her eyes once again held an arrogant look. "And when did I help you?"
"The night I was whipped," Legolas continued though he had no idea why, "you brought me back here when I knew you were not supposed to."
"You know quite a lot then," Eirien muttered sarcastically before sighing and tossing her head. "If you must know I wanted a chance at your dreams while you were weak, that is all."
Legolas remembered her failed attempt but chose not to say anything over it. He also remembered when he had tried to use her for information and knew that he would get absolutely nowhere with her if he tried again this time. He was at a loss again, not knowing what to do or say.
"Can I go now?" the she-elf's impatient question cut into his thoughts.
"Will you tell your lord?" he asked.
"Of course," was her immediate reply.
"Then you cannot," Legolas told her dryly. Legolas did not necessarily hold the fear of the elf lord for himself, he knew he had some sort of role to play in his plans and he would not actually kill him before the time came. He was worried that if the elf lord were to see him then Legolas would somehow tip him off to Glorfindel. The name Maeglin meant 'sharp glance' and Glorfindel had mentioned that Maeglin would be able to see right through Legolas. Legolas was not entirely sure what that meant, but he did not want to risk confronting the elf lord and exposing Glorfindel. He could not let Eirien report to him.
Eirien threw her hands in the air, "Then what are you planning? You cannot possibly keep me hidden in here. I assure you I would never be that complying."
Legolas said nothing. He agreed with her, but would never let her know that. He needed to do something, and fast. Absently, he became aware of the knife he still held hidden in his hand. He had forgotten about it. A new thought came to him and he tested it in his mind. He could kill her and hide the body, then she would not be able to run off to her lord. Her death would raise some suspicions, sure, but Legolas thought he could probably go unsuspected since Maeglin was so confident in holding Legolas in an impenetrable cell.
But even as he thought the idea, his very core shuddered at the prospect. He was no weak elf, he was a trained warrior and had killed many times in battle. But that was in battle, most of the time with goblins or even spiders. He had never killed another elf, it was not common for elves to even fight amongst their own kind, and the prospect of killing a female was still unfathomable to him. Granted, this was no normal she-elf and could hardly be counted as a female, but he still could not bring himself to kill her. Killing another elf, especially a female, was not yet an evil he wished to cross over to.
Eirien watched silently as the prince in front of her appeared to struggle inwardly with himself. She was slightly puzzled. It had not escaped her notice that he had a knife, yet he had not even drawn it forth. If she had had any weapons she would have drawn them on the spot. There was no love lost between them, she hated him and his kind for what they had done to the forest and he hated her just as much. It was only logical to her that he attempt to destroy his enemies.
She was puzzled still further when Legolas let out a sigh and dropped down to the floor into a comfortable sitting position. He casually leaned against the door and simply stared up at her. Legolas had decided that he would simply wait it out until a solution presented it to himself. He was aware to the possibility that the she-elf might put up a fight soon in order to get out and he would do the best he could to stop her, but he knew in the end she would get out. And since he did not exactly feel like politely holding the door open for her, the only thing left to do was merely wait, buy Glorfindel as much time as was possible.
The she-elf continued to stand, staring down as the elf prince watched her from his seat. It was not long before she found his tireless gaze unnerving and she began to look idly about the room. She was not about to spend all night here, but she felt unsure of what to do. Her first thought when he had dragged her in here was that it would take her all but ten minutes to fight her way out. But his unagressive behaviour was unsettling and it made her think he knew something she did not. Well then, she could play his game as well. Without turning her head to glance behind her, Eirien lowered herself onto the bed and crossed her legs in front of her, mimicking the style in which Legolas sat. Then she too waited.
Chapter 19
Legolas was at the door in a matter of seconds. He was hoping that it had not merely been his distracted state that had missed the sound of the lock but that Glorfindel had indeed not locked the door. Trying desperately to calm his excitement Legolas carefully grabbed onto the handle of the heavy door. He knew from watching others that if opened too fast and without caution caused the metal to grate against the stone walls and make noise. Ever so carefully, Legolas pulled on the door with a fraction of his strength.
It didn't move.
Legolas frowned. Not quite willing to give up, he exerted a little more pressure as he pulled on it. It still did not move.
Gritting his teeth in frustration Legolas' hopes were beginning to die and he thought that maybe it had been locked. He gave it one last pull, more in defiance rather than in trying to open it, and his heart seemed to stop for a minute when the door moved but created a scratching sound. Legolas froze, wildly hoping that nobody was anywhere nearby in the hallway.
Legolas held the door at where it was and waited. He only had a tiny slit opened, but he feared going any more lest it alert someone. After a few moments passed and nothing happened, Legolas carefully started to roll his weight back on his feet and bring the door open a few inches. This time he managed to do so without a sound and when it was open enough so that he could clearly see through a small gap he stopped. Pausing his breath so that it would not make any noise, Legolas pressed his ear to the gap and strained his hearing to take in the sounds of elvish footfalls in at least the immediate area of the hallway. There was nothing.
Feeling slightly more confident, Legolas finished pulling his door open the rest of the way and slipped through it. He felt horribly exposed as soon as he had left the confines of his room and flattened himself against the wall. There was very little light in the long hallway, provided from small torches lit with quite a distance between them. They were not meant to provide a lot of light and Legolas was momentarily grateful for it. He would be aware of another coming and be able to slip back into his room before they ever saw him.
Legolas slowly realized that he had not thought beyond getting out of his room. He had no plan of action, no idea of where to go. He was not even sure if he should try to escape entirely or not. He had no idea where any of the entrances were. And even if he did somehow make it out of the structure, what then? What little forest he could see through his window told him that it was an area completely foreign to him. He would end up wandering and lost within it, waiting to be either recaptured or subjected to the creatures in the forest without any weapons.
Deciding that he at least do something, Legolas eased up off of the wall and started walking down to his right. He made a mental note to painstakingly track where he was going so that he would be able to make it back to his room without being caught.
The hallway was straight for a while and Legolas glided soundlessly, his senses keyed to detect even a hint of another elf coming. A little ways down a wall ornament caught his eye. It was a long knife pinned beneath an elaborate painting. Legolas did not even heed the painting and without a second thought lifted the knife. He tucked it into a sleeve of his tunic, holding the hilt hidden in his hand. Feeling immensely better now that he had something to protect himself with, Legolas picked up his pace.
Legolas had just started venturing down a small corridor to his left when his sharp ears picked up the sound of voices. Immediately Legolas withdrew farther into the corridor and pressed himself against the wall at what seemed like the darkest point. He then stilled himself and extended his hearing. His first thought had been that the voices were coming from down the main hallway, the one he had just been in. But as he listened it became clear that they were instead coming from the corridor he had turned into. Legolas turned his head to the side and strained his eyes to see if anything was coming.
He could not see anything and the voices were not getting any louder. That meant they had to be in one of the rooms, and from what Legolas could tell it was a few voices. At the very least four different people. A meeting of some sort?
Legolas began to edge his way down the hall towards the voices. He could soon make the thin line of light edged around one of the heavy doors. That was the room that the elves were in, but who was it and what were they talking about?
Legolas started to think that perhaps he should quite while he was ahead, go back to his room before these elves came out and found him. But even as his mind thought rationally his feet continued to move toward the lit room. Perhaps he still had the foolishness of youth in him, even if he was well past 500 years. Edging as close as he dared to the door and blending into the shadows Legolas listened quietly.
A muffled voice came through the door. "But will not Elrond be alerted too soon and then Thranduil's envoy sent back with tales of suspicion and lies?"
"By the time the envoy is sent back by Elrond to Mirkwood we will have already moved in. It will be at least five more days until the envoy even reaches Rivendell, and then almost two weeks before being able to come back to Mirkwood. We have plenty of time without having to worry about interference." Legolas was not wholly sure, but he felt that the last voice was that of the elf lord, Maeglin.
"I still do not understand why you would want to even alert Elrond as to what is happening," an angry-sounding voice started. "Now we will have to deal with the Noldor and the Silvan. It does not seem like a wise decision to me."
"Which is why you will never be the head of anything," Maeglin answered dryly. "Thranduil's attention is now fixed on Rivendell and on the possibility of a threat from a roaming renegade band. We will be the last thing he ever suspects. And I believe that you give Lord Elrond too much credit, he is a descendant of Tuor after all."
Legolas was almost holding his breath as he listened. His eyes widened when he heard them speaking of Mirkwood. He was not entirely sure how Rivendell tied into everything, but obviously there had been some type of lie told to his father by the messengers the elf lord had taunted Legolas with earlier.
As much as Legolas wanted to stay to discover more information, the voices inside of the room had quieted, which probably meant that their meeting was drawing to a close. Legolas could only imagine what would happen if he was caught eavesdropping in the hallway. He was pretty sure it would not be a pleasant ordeal for himself.
Legolas eased up out of the crouch he had been in and began to walk silently back to the main hallway. He paused once before stepping out of the corridor and listened carefully. Nobody was around.
Walking more quickly than he had before, Legolas began to make his way back to his room. He was not hesitant in his path as he had tried to stay as straight as possible, taking only a few turns. Legolas retraced his steps with ease.
Perhaps it was because of his growing confidence in his own daring that made Legolas less cautious. Whatever the reason, Legolas was surprised when he turned the last corner he had taken and had to stop lest he run into a figure coming down the hall from the other direction. It was Eirien.
Her head snapped up from where she had been idly watching the floor when she heard Legolas brake suddenly in front of her. She paused and regarded him and Legolas at least had the small amount of satisfaction that she seemed just as surprised as he. Both of them remained paralyzed in each others' gaze until realization sank in. Then she moved.
Eirien lunged towards Legolas. Legolas quickly side-stepped and grabbed onto her arm that had been outstretched in front of her. He swung his body around, bringing her with it, and effectively slammed her against a wall. Legolas winced slightly at the loud sound the contact made and resolved to not try something like that again lest he wanted to alert others and be outnumbered five to one.
Yet Eirien did not share his desire for silence. She let out a cry as she brought up a knee and slammed it into Legolas' mid-section. Legolas doubled over but did not lose his grip and straightened up to shove her back when she tried to push off of the wall. She let out another cry and Legolas clamped a hand over her mouth. Understanding flashed through her eyes and with more force than Legolas anticipated she pushed off of the wall with all of her weight and slammed into Legolas. Legolas was pushed backwards and left fighting for his footing. Eirien tore out of his grip and pushed hard as she spun away from him. Legolas started to go down but he reached out and caught her ankle as he did so. They both crashed down to the ground.
Legolas pulled himself to his knees and launched himself at the she- elf as she tried to scramble away. He caught her by the shoulders and put a hand over her mouth again as she drew in a deep breath, presumably to call out and alert some of her kinsmen. For the moment Legolas had her pinned and silent, but now what? He could not possibly let her go, she would tell Maeglin that he had freed himself from his room. Legolas could only assume Maeglin would not be too happy with the information and come to pay him a visit.
After a small pause, Legolas decided that laying in the hallway was also not the wisest course for himself. It would only be a matter of time before another came along. Without thinking what he would do once he got her there, Legolas slowly stood, pulling Eirien up with him. He kept his hand over her mouth and his other arm locked tightly around her waist while pinning her own arms. He began to drag her backwards towards his room.
Eirien was not quite so willing. Though she did not struggle half as much as Legolas anticipated, she dug in her heels and made it as hard as possible for Legolas. He kept a watchful eye on her legs as he expected her to kick out viciously at him, but no such blow came. Legolas was starting to become confused, but he decided not to let her odd behaviour bother him at the moment. Instead he focused on getting her into the confines of his room.
Once he had managed to pull her inside he pushed her in with perhaps more force than was necessary and quickly pulled the door closed. He knew it was not locked, that could only happen from the outside, but it was better than being out in the large hallway.
Legolas stood with his back to the door and regarded the she-elf. She stood before him, her arms crossed, her expression hardly amused. She seemed to be waiting to see what Legolas would do, but he himself did not even know. He had been working on pure adrenaline and the desire to get out of the open, he had no plans with which to interrogate her.
The moments dragged between them and it seemed they would stay like this for the remainder of the night when Legolas finally spoke. He was not sure why he did it, and the question came unbidden from him, but he heard himself ask it all the same. "Why did you help me before?"
The she-elf's eyes momentarily widened, as if that had been the last thing she had expected, but the expression was fleeting and her eyes once again held an arrogant look. "And when did I help you?"
"The night I was whipped," Legolas continued though he had no idea why, "you brought me back here when I knew you were not supposed to."
"You know quite a lot then," Eirien muttered sarcastically before sighing and tossing her head. "If you must know I wanted a chance at your dreams while you were weak, that is all."
Legolas remembered her failed attempt but chose not to say anything over it. He also remembered when he had tried to use her for information and knew that he would get absolutely nowhere with her if he tried again this time. He was at a loss again, not knowing what to do or say.
"Can I go now?" the she-elf's impatient question cut into his thoughts.
"Will you tell your lord?" he asked.
"Of course," was her immediate reply.
"Then you cannot," Legolas told her dryly. Legolas did not necessarily hold the fear of the elf lord for himself, he knew he had some sort of role to play in his plans and he would not actually kill him before the time came. He was worried that if the elf lord were to see him then Legolas would somehow tip him off to Glorfindel. The name Maeglin meant 'sharp glance' and Glorfindel had mentioned that Maeglin would be able to see right through Legolas. Legolas was not entirely sure what that meant, but he did not want to risk confronting the elf lord and exposing Glorfindel. He could not let Eirien report to him.
Eirien threw her hands in the air, "Then what are you planning? You cannot possibly keep me hidden in here. I assure you I would never be that complying."
Legolas said nothing. He agreed with her, but would never let her know that. He needed to do something, and fast. Absently, he became aware of the knife he still held hidden in his hand. He had forgotten about it. A new thought came to him and he tested it in his mind. He could kill her and hide the body, then she would not be able to run off to her lord. Her death would raise some suspicions, sure, but Legolas thought he could probably go unsuspected since Maeglin was so confident in holding Legolas in an impenetrable cell.
But even as he thought the idea, his very core shuddered at the prospect. He was no weak elf, he was a trained warrior and had killed many times in battle. But that was in battle, most of the time with goblins or even spiders. He had never killed another elf, it was not common for elves to even fight amongst their own kind, and the prospect of killing a female was still unfathomable to him. Granted, this was no normal she-elf and could hardly be counted as a female, but he still could not bring himself to kill her. Killing another elf, especially a female, was not yet an evil he wished to cross over to.
Eirien watched silently as the prince in front of her appeared to struggle inwardly with himself. She was slightly puzzled. It had not escaped her notice that he had a knife, yet he had not even drawn it forth. If she had had any weapons she would have drawn them on the spot. There was no love lost between them, she hated him and his kind for what they had done to the forest and he hated her just as much. It was only logical to her that he attempt to destroy his enemies.
She was puzzled still further when Legolas let out a sigh and dropped down to the floor into a comfortable sitting position. He casually leaned against the door and simply stared up at her. Legolas had decided that he would simply wait it out until a solution presented it to himself. He was aware to the possibility that the she-elf might put up a fight soon in order to get out and he would do the best he could to stop her, but he knew in the end she would get out. And since he did not exactly feel like politely holding the door open for her, the only thing left to do was merely wait, buy Glorfindel as much time as was possible.
The she-elf continued to stand, staring down as the elf prince watched her from his seat. It was not long before she found his tireless gaze unnerving and she began to look idly about the room. She was not about to spend all night here, but she felt unsure of what to do. Her first thought when he had dragged her in here was that it would take her all but ten minutes to fight her way out. But his unagressive behaviour was unsettling and it made her think he knew something she did not. Well then, she could play his game as well. Without turning her head to glance behind her, Eirien lowered herself onto the bed and crossed her legs in front of her, mimicking the style in which Legolas sat. Then she too waited.