Okay, here's the next part for the one person who reviewed. Okay, I know I don't get many reviews, but one? I was kinda hoping for at least three. Oh well. Thank you Tenshiamanda for your kind words of encouragement.
Now if I could only find a nice Elrond/Glorfindel story to read. . .
Don't own 'em, but someday I'll own my own characters, and then you'll all be my evil slaves as I dominate the world with . . . uh, you weren't supposed to hear that! ^__^;;;
When Elrond Met Thranduil
Centuries passed. Greenwood remained under constant threat from the orcs. Occasionally Oropher would come to bring Thranduil home, but would always return him to Rivendell before too long. Elrond and Elros hated when that happened. Thranduil had started off as a shy child. He would play with them, and ask them to play with him if they looked interested, but would never speak except the bare minimum required to answer their questions. It had taken the brothers several years to turn the introverted prince into an exuberant child like elves should be, but every time Oropher took him away, he relapsed back to his quiet state, and it would take time for the brothers to break him out again. However, they were pleased to note that it took less and less time to release the energetic child Thranduil hid. Thranduil, being younger, also aged at a faster rate then the older boys. As he caught up to them in maturity, they found themselves enjoying his presence even more.
"Milord? Gil-galad?" Glorfindel climbed into Rivendell's observatory tower. Gil-galad was resting on a window seat, watching something below.
"Hello Glorfindel. Care to join me?"
Glorfindel picked his seat carefully; making sure the cushions weren't soaked with rain. Rivendell had very few glass windows. Most were left open to the air. As a result, when there was a downpour such as this, rain occasionally pooled on seats. "What are you watching?"
Gil-galad gestured. Thranduil, Elrond, and Elros were dancing in the rain, throwing mud at each other and wrestling in the wet grass. Thranduil was now 12, the brothers' 15. "They're so energetic and playful, aren't they?"
"Yes, they are, and despite warnings, they've dragged Thranduil down with them."
"That's not necessarily a bad thing."
"Of course not! When he first came here, he would hardly open his mouth except to apologize, and even then his voice was often mistaken for the wind, it was so quiet."
"But now, under the wonderful supervision of our monsters, he's blossomed into a wonderful young child."
"He will make a fine ruler when Greenwood is no longer under Oropher's tight fist."
Gil-galad smiled. "Remember the first rainfall with Thranduil here? They had to drag him out."
"The poor child had probably been forbidden to look at the rain, much less play in it," Glorfindel noted darkly.
Gil-galad nodded. "Yes, and Thranduil just stood there, soaking wet and unsure what was expected of him. Then Elrond hit him with that mudball and he went down with a keening wail."
"Scared all the elves in Rivendell, he did."
"Poor Elrond was mortified! Judging by the look on his face, that utter panic, he thought he had seriously hurt Thranduil!"
Glorfindel chuckled. "You never would have guessed that by watching them today!"
Thranduil threw a clump of mud at Elrond and ducked one from Elros. Elrond slipped while trying to throw one of his own and fell face first into the mud. Elros held out a hand to help him up, but Elrond only pulled him down. Thranduil was bent over double, laughing as the brothers struggled to get out of the mud. His laughter turned into an undignified shriek as the two lunged at him, knocking him into the mud as well. The three rolled over and over, laughing and gasping as they tickled and wrestled each other.
"Will they never grow up?" Glorfindel asked, more to himself then anyone else.
Gil-galad shrugged. "Do you truly want them to? They radiate such purity and innocence. They fill Rivendell's halls with joy."
"But not peace!" Glorfindel interrupted.
"No, not peace!" Gil-galad laughed. "But definitely joy. I would hate for them to grow up and learn the true horrors of the world. I wish they would never lose their innocence."
"Thranduil will lose his first, even though he is younger." Glorfindel was somber, watching the young prince cavort with his friends. "Oropher abuses him, you know that as well as I. Even with friends such as Elrond and Elros, he will not be able to keep his innocent, wide-eyed view of the world."
Gil-galad sighed as if a great weight was placed on his shoulders. "I know, Glorfindel, but we have no proof. Without proof, we are forbidden to do anything to free Thranduil from Oropher's heavy hand."
"The bruises on his face when he comes to us after a stay in Greenwood are proof! The limp in his step after a visit from Oropher and fear of adults are proof!" Glorfindel was indignant. How dare anyone hurt such a sweet child!
"They are not proof enough! He always has an excuse. Greenwood is constantly under attack, when he returns, he claims he had a nasty encounter with goblins, and was lucky to be alive. When he limps, he claims a horse trod on his foot accidentally, or he smashed his knee into something. His fear of adults could just be a phobia. We have no way to prove Oropher truly does this, even though we know it in our hearts."
Glorfindel watched Elrond help Thranduil up before rubbing a gob of mud into the prince's dripping hair. "Elrond could probably tell us of more injuries we don't know about. Always after an encounter with Oropher, Thranduil flees to Elrond. Elrond is gifted in the healing arts, and has been trained well. He probably sees the full extent of Oropher's wrath upon Thranduil, and hides it before we can see it."
Gil-galad nodded. "But Elrond is a good friend. He would not say anything that would risk Thranduil getting into more trouble. If Oropher ever learned we knew because Elrond told us, Thranduil would receive the brunt of his anger. Elrond would never wish that upon his friend, so he keeps silent."
"I hate being helpless," Glorfindel whispered. "Thranduil hurts, and we are powerless."
Gil-galad rested his hand upon Glorfindel's knee. "Not completely helpless. We do help Thranduil, by providing him with a shelter where he can grow without fear of Oropher. We cannot shelter him constantly, but we do our best, and I'm sure he is grateful for a safe haven."
"We also can't forget what Thranduil does for Elrond and Elros," Glorfindel said.
"Aye. All the new children here, most refugees from Lorien, are wary of the two. Elrond and Elros are half-elven with bad reputations. What decent child would wish to be their friend?"
"One who's gotten to know them," Glorfindel answered. "However, no one takes the time to get to know them. They're half-breeds, they must be bad. It's good for them to have a friend other than each other." Gil-galad nodded his agreement as Glorfindel continued. "I wonder what they'll choose, mortal or immortal. Right now they're both immortal, but once they've reached their majority, they must decide."
"They will choose what their hearts tell them to, even if it tears them apart."
"What do you think they'll choose?"
Gil-galad frowned down at the two. "Elrond will choose immortality, I believe. Not only does he hold a great love for Rivendell and the elven ways, but the one his heart is starting to sing for is immortal."
"And Elros?"
Gil-galad shook his head after a moment's deliberation. "Elros' future is cloudy and uncertain. He seems to love men and elves the same. Right now, I would say he would choose immortality, to be with Elrond, but his heart hasn't found someone worthy of his praise yet. If he falls for a mortal, he will choose the mortal life, even if Elrond does not."
"A difference in their choices would tear them apart!" Glorfindel cried.
"I don't think so," Gil-galad comforted his guardian. "If they choose differently, it would only bring them closer together. They would truly cherish the precious time they had left together."
"And when the one dies?"
"The other will mourn, but will live on; knowing that would be what was expected of him. Neither would wish the other's death on their account."
"Maybe you're right."
"Maybe we don't need to worry. Glorfindel, would you care to join me?"
"In what, milord?"
Gil-galad stood and offered his hand to his friend with a mischievous smile. "I have the sudden urge to dance in the rain."
Did this make sense?
~Crawler