Shadow of a Doubt
Chapter Eighteen: Possession
by Capella
A/N: Hey, another holiday update :) I'm considering uploading this New Year's Eve *grins* That'd be fun...
Ooh, cool chapter time! *bounces up and down* We're getting there, my friends. Like I said last time, these are the chapters I've been dying to write, and they're finally here. And just wonderfully chock-full of angst and heartbreak. Woohoo!
I've been reading over this story, and I'm seriously thinking about redoing the first six chapters or so. I mean honestly, they're just awful. I wasn't taking the story seriously. So as soon as this is up, expect to see redone chapters. Thank God!
By the way, thanks for the reviews, you guys! *hugs the reviewers* I'm so happy you liked the last chapter, because it was my favorite. Hope you like this one just as much!
Just, one thing as you read all the Legolas parts. I don't want you to get the wrong impressiong (and kill me). So...think Theoden. *grins*
_________________________
"And I would be the one
to hold you down
kiss you so hard
I'll take your breath away
and after, I'd wipe away the tears
just close your eyes dear
Through this world I've stumbled
so many times betrayed
trying to find an honest word to find
the truth enslaved
oh you speak to me in riddles
and you speak to me in rhymes
my body aches to breathe your breath
your words keep me alive.."
--Possession, by Sarah McLachlan
_____________________________
Harry's legs were threatening to give out on him. He nearly swore he could see where the stairs ended, maybe thirty steps ahead, but then again he'd been climbing for so long perhaps he was imagining it.
The step he was on suddenly crumbled and he felt air beneath his feet. He collapsed to keep from falling all the way to the bottom and pressed his forehead against the stone. It took a moment for him to get up again. And he found himself staring into what seemed to be a hole devoid of light.
Weary, disjointed, Harry stood staring into the blackness for a while before he was able to make out the rocky walls of a cave. He walked forward, stumbled, and caught himself just in time to keep from falling on his face. "Lumos," he said tiredly, bringing up his wand. The light from his wand went no more than five feet before fading away as the darkness pressed in. Before he went even ten steps, he decided that he was very glad that he'd never been claustrophobic.
He stared at the ground beneath his feet as he trudged through the cave; not beaten or in despair, but in thought. Harry could feel the change in the air. The evil here was almost palpable. It was obvious that he was into Mordor, as soon as he left the cave, but what then? He hadn't really thought past that.
Something brushed against his head.
Harry wheeled around, bringing up his wand and racking his brain for the worst curses and hexes he knew -- his heart leaping in his chest -- and he saw a piece of spiderweb dangling from the ceiling. He frowned and brought down his wand cautiously.
How *would* he get Legolas out of those Orc's grip?
Already in thought again, Harry didn't notice the green slime sticking to the bottom of his boots and coating the cave floor. He didn't even notice the trail of it leading away from the spot where he stood, or more spiderweb littering the floor. He did, however, eventually see the glowing eyes glaring at him from the shadows.
Harry took a step backward as the...the thing came forward, its huge, massive bulk heaving out of the shadows. It was a spider -- at least as big as himself, he noted distantly -- and it looked rather angry. He felt his boot squish under his feet as he took another scared step, and saw the same gunk oozing from a huge wound on the spider's belly. Harry smiled grimly. He was no easy meat for an injured monster. He raised his wand, a dangerous glint to his eye.
The spider paused, its eyes growing dull. Sensing a fight, it turned and scuttled into the darkness, to its lair. Harry breathed a sigh of relief.
Adrenaline rushing through his system, he ran forward along the passage.
"...got him in the end, didn't she?"
Harry stopped dead in his tracks. He'd been so caught up in his thoughts that he hadn't even noticed the voices until he'd nearly stumbled into them at the crossroad of two paths. He crouched behind a loose rock and waited as the torch-lights came up the tunnel. "Nox," he whispered. Snatches of conversation floated to him, and what he heard made his heart freeze.
"...got who? This little fellow? But if he was the only one, then she'd....if Lugburz wanted him, you'd have to go...there was more than one."
Frodo. Frodo and Sam! It had to be! He lost the thread of conversation as the voices died down, then one voice swelled in agitation.
"....The prisoner is to be kept safe and intact, under pain of death for every member of the guard, until He sends or comes Himself. That's plain enough, and that's what I'm going to do."
"Stripped, eh? What, teeth, nails, hair, and all?"
That meant one, or both, of the hobbits were dead. He felt numb.
"...binds with cords, she's after meat. She doesn't eat dead meat, nor suck cold blood. This fellow isn't dead!"
Harry felt for his wand in the dark, and readied himself. If Frodo was alive...he'd save him. Him, and then Legolas. The torches bobbed even closer...closer...
"Annihilare!" he shouted, and jumped into the path. The spell knocked at least half a dozen Orcs to the ground, dead on impact. The big one in front paused, and then grimaced.
"Filthy wizard," it snarled. "I'll put bloody maggot-holes in your belly before I let you get this one." The sound of weapons clanking against armor echoed through the cavern. Harry felt his lips draw back over his teeth.
"And I'll rip you apart before I let you kill Frodo," he growled, Crucio on the tip of his tongue. The orc paused.
"Frodo, that's its name?" It suddenly got agitated. "What about that filthy elf-warrior that stuck her Ladyship?"
Elf warrior. Harry grinned. That meant Legolas was alive! His Legolas was alive. He felt like dancing.
"I don't know where he is, but if I were you, I wouldn't be worrying about him. I'd be worrying about the wizard that's about to kill you. Crucio Contego!" Fuck forbidden, he thought with a vicious smile. These Orcs were going to die.
As he watched them all howl in pain on the ground with a grim sort of satisfaction (and maybe a touch of guilt), he felt a sudden pain bloom in his calf, like a fire. He fell to his hands and knees, eyes glued to the gash that cut through the back of his leg, through muscle and skin, to show the white of bone. He saw an Orc standing above him. The thing must have snuck up on him. He lifted his wand.
"Cruc..." he whispered in pain. He watched through muddy vision as the Orc smirked in triumph. "Cr..." He let his head fall between his hands. He thought his leg would burn off his body. The Orc bent down to his eye level.
"Take the spell off them, you filthy thing, or I'll kill the little one."
"Finite Incantatem," Harry murmured, the words barely there, but the spell stopped. He felt lightheaded. The Orc grabbed his arm.
"This one goes to Baradur, orders of Him. Let's go, before the..."
The Orc's mouth kept moving but for some reason Harry couldn't hear what he was saying. Harry let his head drop to the floor. Pain, shock, and then blackness.
__________________________________
The walls had begun to close in on him.
Harry stared at the stone ceiling above his head as he lay on the straw pallet of his cell. His vision was blurry and fuzzy, and he couldn't really focus on anything. His mouth felt like it was full of cotton. Something and wet was trickling from his face down to his neck, dripping onto the floor. Tears or blood, he didn't care which. Everything seemed to hurt. Especially the spot of pain on his calf. It had been stitched up, but messily, and the blood flowed constantly if sluggishly. Harry prayed that it would stop soon. His wand had been taken. He reached up with a weak, shaking hand to touch the metal collar around his throat.
He struggled to sit up. Harry Potter would not die lying down, and sitting down either, if he could help it. Sitting up alone made his head spin and his vision swirl sickeningly, however, so he thought maybe standing was out of the question. He leaned his back against the wall and tipped his head back. Harry almost just wished they'd come in here and get it over with. Kill him quick. Maybe when they came he'd take out a guard before he died.
The cell door opened and a sickly reddish light flooded in. He squinted against it.
Rough hands grabbed Harry's biceps and brought him to his feet, and an ugly face was brought into his blurry vision. An Orc. Harry felt his lips draw back into a snarl, a growl starting deep in his chest. Who knew if this had been one of those Orcs who'd captured Legolas. For a moment he allowed himself to wonder if the elf was even alive. Only for a moment, and then the thought was viciously shoved away.
The Orc snorted and let his arms go. Harry swayed but stayed on his feet and let the Orc lead him by a chain hanging off the metal collar about his throat. It was all he could do to stay upright. He didn't pay attention to where they were headed until the Orc stopped and Harry nearly ran into the Orc's back.
Harry stared up at the huge black doors, a feeling of fear worming its way into his mind. Somehow, he knew what was behind those doors. Sauron and pain. The Orc grinned nastily at him and rapped on the heavy doors.
A voice, seeming to come from everywhere at once, invading his mind, boomed from the room.
COME.
The Orc shivered in ecstasy at Sauron's voice. Harry couldn't help but feel faintly repulsed. That is, until the doors opened, and the fear threatened to overwhelm him.
He got his first good look at Saruon. Or, at least, one of Sauron's many forms.
It was a man, but at the same time -- not. Shadow cloaked him, so that his features were barely distinguishable save black hair and two red, fiery eyes that glared out from the darkness surrounding his face. He was covered in black clothes from shoulders down, and the material was such that it seemed to suck out light from the air.
Sauron's very presence sent a spike of terror through Harry's veins, severing his determination and will. He fell to his knees, trembling. Forehead pressed against the floor, he heard the most horrible thing he'd ever heard in his life.
Sauron was laughing.
Harry shook like a branch in the wind, barely able to stop himself, even when the flow of fear ebbed just a touch. His eyes were squeezed tightly shut. He started like he'd been switched when he heard the voice again.
WHAT HAS BECOME OF YOUR PRIDE, NOBLE ONE? WHERE IS YOUR HONOR, YOUR STRENGTH? Another one of those horrible chuckles. I HAVE CRUSHED YOU WITH ONLY MY MERE BEING. PATHETIC. Sauron sounded amused. The sound of it sent anger, and at the same time courage, through Harry. With a great effort, he stood up again.
"You -- you can't even face me without your shadows to protect you," he shouted. At least, he meant for it to be a shout, but for some reason it came as a whisper. Sauron laughed again, and Harry resisted the urge to cover his ears. Barely.
AS YOU WISH. THOUGH IT SHALL NOT SAVE YOU.
Harry watched in amazement as the darkness around the solitary figure swirled and, after a few minutes, disappeared. He wasn't sure if he was surprised or -- or what. The figure standing there had been transformed. The same, blood-red eyes stared at Harry, the same black and red streaked hair, but his features were...strange. An age could not be put on him, nor a value. He simply...was. Harry was too busy trying to overcome his fear to try and figure out if Sauron's form looked handsome. He supposed it did, but in a strange, otherworldly sort of manner. Those eyes...he just couldn't get away from the eyes.
"Is this more to your liking?" Sauron said, his voice as unimaginable as his face. It seemed like more than one deep voice, more than ten, even, all overlapping. But it was easier to face than that voice invading his mind and the shadows seeping into his bones. Then Sauron fixed him with that gaze and started gliding slowly forward, like a lion stalking its prey. Or maybe like a ghost.
Harry stood in the same spot, willing himself not to back up. One of those robe-covered hands lifted and tried to touch his cheek.
"Don't touch me!" he spat, glaring defiance. Then Saruon smiled, and his courage nearly shriveled up. Nearly, but not quite.
"You are strong, little one," Sauron said.
"Fuck you," he ground out. That hand...lifted to his face...
A shock went through him, like fire and ice and lightning all mixed, and he was on his back before he even knew that he'd fallen. He scrambled up, but Sauron was already back to the front of the hall, sitting in his black throne.
"I have a present for you, my little Maiar. Someone, I believe, dearly wished and hoped for. And what led you right into my grasp." He stretched out a lazy hand and curled a finger, and something in the darkness moved and came into the light.
At first Harry thought it was a hallucination. Or maybe one of Sauron's tricks. But then, the hallucination spoke.
"We meet again, Harry," Legolas said, a tiny smile on his face.
Harry hadn't realized that he'd started forward, but suddenly his arms were wrapped around Legolas's shoulders in a tight hug. "I thought you were dead," he whispered. Faintly, through his joy, he wondered how Legolas was still alive and unhurt, even after the Orcs. But that faded away after only a moment. "I love you."
Legolas laughed, and it sounded like the tinkling of sweet bells. "I told you as much," he said over his shoulder. To Sauron. Harry slowly unwound his arms and took a step back. Legolas had that same little smile, and it was faintly unnerving.
Now that Harry got a good look at him, Legolas was just...different. He thought fuzzily, through his haze of confusion, that Legolas looked somewhat like a person who had their hair dyed blonde and had the black roots coming back in. And where his eyes had been a lovely sapphire blue, they were now black as night. He was just as striking, but his air of innocence was gone, replaced by a darkly beautiful appearance.
Sauron laughed again. "You proved me wrong, my elf. It seems that he is not quite as intelligent as I had assumed."
"What?" Harry asked hesitantly, glancing from Sauron to Legolas and then back again. Legolas smiled and walked away from him, going to kneel next to Sauron's throne. Harry felt as if he'd been punched in the stomach when Sauron's hand went down to stroke Legolas's hair, Legolas closing his eyes in ecstasy.
"Isn't he lovely," Sauron said, not really a question. "You would be very suprised at how little persuading he needed to come to me willingly. At first, when my Orcs gave him to me, I was going to kill him. But then I learned that he could give me you." Sauron's red eyes shone with fervor. "And I found what a perfect slave to the dark he made."
"He would never come to you willingly!" Harry ground out, fists clenching.
"Oh, but he did, little one. And only after little while."
"You're lying," Harry said desperately. It couldn't be true. He couldn't have been betrayed by Legolas. God, if he had --
Legolas got up from his knees sinuously, and started towards Harry, swaying like a dancer. A deadly one. "Oh, Harry," he said, wrapping his arms around Harry's waist. "Do you want to know the truth?" Harry leaned his head on Legolas's shoulder, feeling the familiar warmth enfold him.
"I could never love you."
Legolas smiled and let him go, and Harry crumpled to the ground, his legs no longer holding strength. He felt like he'd just been stabbed, his chest tight. "You don't mean that," he said, his voice so soft that he could barely hear it himself. He had to clench his teeth to keep from crying.
Legolas laughed. "But I do. You were amusing, for a while, and so sweet. So very sweet." He had a particular glint to his eyes. "Sauron said that after the world is dead and under our control, that I could keep you. He's a very generous master."
"No." Harry felt just a bit of anger invade his shock and despair. A tear escaped his iron control to trace a salty path down his cheek.
"I didn't ask you if you wanted to," Legolas said, and bent down to stroke Harry's neck. "You do not really have a choice." His fingernails suddenly dug in deep, and Harry felt blood start to flow down the back of his neck. He closed his eyes --
-- and punched Legolas as hard as he could between his eyes. It felt like punching a brick wall, but Legolas exhaled in shock and let go.
A full-armed slap made his head ring and his lip split under the hand. The slap sent him sprawled to the ground. He looked up through pain-tears to see Legolas smiling that horrible, beautiful smile again. He wanted to scream.
"I'll be seeing you again soon," he said softly and, after caressing Harry's bruised cheek gently, went back to his place by Sauron's side, watching avidly as the Orc came to drag Harry back to his cell.
______________________________
The straw under Harry's head was damp with tears by the time he was done crying.
Unwillingly, his mind kept going over that encounter again and again, focusing on what hurt the most.
I could never love you
Harry squeezed his eyes shut. It wasn't his fault, he thought desperately. Sauron made him. It wasn't his fault at all.
Yet he wondered why Legolas had betrayed him, even under pressure. And only after a day. Had...had Sauron been telling the truth?
"Why, Legolas?" he whispered into the still, damp air.
"Why what?"
Harry sat up so fast that his head spun, and he wiped the tear trails off his face. He would not cry in front of Legolas. He would not!
Legolas looked faintly amused. "I know what you are thinking, Harry. But you must realize that all I said was truth. Have I ever lied to you?" He smiled and bent down into a crouch in front of Harry, and pinned Harry with those raven-black, glittering eyes. Harry couldn't breathe, couldn't move, couldn't fight back at all as Legolas leaned forward and pressed his lips to his own. Helpless, he gave in and opened his mouth under Legolas's. It was a different kiss than those of before; it felt like Legolas was trying to suck out his soul. A tear leaked out from each of his closed eyes.
Legolas broke the kiss and leaned back. He lifted a finger to wipe away the tear coursing down Harry's right cheek.
"I wish that I had come here only for this, but sadly enough, I was sent by my master. Although what I was sent for will be decidedly pleasant for me." Legolas's smile never wavered. "I was sent to break your spirit. I can think of a few ways to do so, and a few especially seem...enticing." The gleam in his eye told Harry what Legolas was thinking of.
"No," he rasped, horrified. "You can't."
Legolas sighed. "Alright, lovely. I suppose we will have enough time for that after my master takes power." His sudden smile was feral. "I will take enough pleasure from seeing you suffer." The Orc standing at the door handed Legolas a thick leather whip, tipped in metal. "Hold him down," Legolas snapped, and the Orc lumbered over to obey. Harry was turned on his stomach and his wrists were pressed to the floor in an iron grip.
The first lash was enough to nearly bring a cry from him, but he held it in with an effort of will. He felt the metal tear ruts in his back, reaching from his right shoulderblade to his lower back. His shirt was in shreds. The second lash pulled a whimper from behind clenched teeth.
"Beautiful, Harry," Legolas said from above him. "Let me hear you scream."
By the time Legolas threw the bloody whip down, Harry had given up trying to hold back his cries. He had begun pleading for mercy by the tenth lash, and by the twentieth his screams had echoed in the cell. He couldn't catch his breath as sobs tore from his throat. Somewhere during his struggle the stitches in his leg had broken, and the blood poured down his leg again. He felt a hand stroke his head and push back his bangs from his sweaty forehead.
"I know that did not break your spirit, " Legolas said softly. "I have a feeling that it will take much more than that."
With not another word, Legolas left, closing Harry back in with the darkness, his pain, and his own bleak, despairing thoughts.
____________________________
A/N: Well, that's that -- hope I don't get too many flames about this ^_^ Even if you hated what I did to Legolas (I did too) it was necessary for the end. What end, you ask? ...well, you'll see :)
Chapter Eighteen: Possession
by Capella
A/N: Hey, another holiday update :) I'm considering uploading this New Year's Eve *grins* That'd be fun...
Ooh, cool chapter time! *bounces up and down* We're getting there, my friends. Like I said last time, these are the chapters I've been dying to write, and they're finally here. And just wonderfully chock-full of angst and heartbreak. Woohoo!
I've been reading over this story, and I'm seriously thinking about redoing the first six chapters or so. I mean honestly, they're just awful. I wasn't taking the story seriously. So as soon as this is up, expect to see redone chapters. Thank God!
By the way, thanks for the reviews, you guys! *hugs the reviewers* I'm so happy you liked the last chapter, because it was my favorite. Hope you like this one just as much!
Just, one thing as you read all the Legolas parts. I don't want you to get the wrong impressiong (and kill me). So...think Theoden. *grins*
_________________________
"And I would be the one
to hold you down
kiss you so hard
I'll take your breath away
and after, I'd wipe away the tears
just close your eyes dear
Through this world I've stumbled
so many times betrayed
trying to find an honest word to find
the truth enslaved
oh you speak to me in riddles
and you speak to me in rhymes
my body aches to breathe your breath
your words keep me alive.."
--Possession, by Sarah McLachlan
_____________________________
Harry's legs were threatening to give out on him. He nearly swore he could see where the stairs ended, maybe thirty steps ahead, but then again he'd been climbing for so long perhaps he was imagining it.
The step he was on suddenly crumbled and he felt air beneath his feet. He collapsed to keep from falling all the way to the bottom and pressed his forehead against the stone. It took a moment for him to get up again. And he found himself staring into what seemed to be a hole devoid of light.
Weary, disjointed, Harry stood staring into the blackness for a while before he was able to make out the rocky walls of a cave. He walked forward, stumbled, and caught himself just in time to keep from falling on his face. "Lumos," he said tiredly, bringing up his wand. The light from his wand went no more than five feet before fading away as the darkness pressed in. Before he went even ten steps, he decided that he was very glad that he'd never been claustrophobic.
He stared at the ground beneath his feet as he trudged through the cave; not beaten or in despair, but in thought. Harry could feel the change in the air. The evil here was almost palpable. It was obvious that he was into Mordor, as soon as he left the cave, but what then? He hadn't really thought past that.
Something brushed against his head.
Harry wheeled around, bringing up his wand and racking his brain for the worst curses and hexes he knew -- his heart leaping in his chest -- and he saw a piece of spiderweb dangling from the ceiling. He frowned and brought down his wand cautiously.
How *would* he get Legolas out of those Orc's grip?
Already in thought again, Harry didn't notice the green slime sticking to the bottom of his boots and coating the cave floor. He didn't even notice the trail of it leading away from the spot where he stood, or more spiderweb littering the floor. He did, however, eventually see the glowing eyes glaring at him from the shadows.
Harry took a step backward as the...the thing came forward, its huge, massive bulk heaving out of the shadows. It was a spider -- at least as big as himself, he noted distantly -- and it looked rather angry. He felt his boot squish under his feet as he took another scared step, and saw the same gunk oozing from a huge wound on the spider's belly. Harry smiled grimly. He was no easy meat for an injured monster. He raised his wand, a dangerous glint to his eye.
The spider paused, its eyes growing dull. Sensing a fight, it turned and scuttled into the darkness, to its lair. Harry breathed a sigh of relief.
Adrenaline rushing through his system, he ran forward along the passage.
"...got him in the end, didn't she?"
Harry stopped dead in his tracks. He'd been so caught up in his thoughts that he hadn't even noticed the voices until he'd nearly stumbled into them at the crossroad of two paths. He crouched behind a loose rock and waited as the torch-lights came up the tunnel. "Nox," he whispered. Snatches of conversation floated to him, and what he heard made his heart freeze.
"...got who? This little fellow? But if he was the only one, then she'd....if Lugburz wanted him, you'd have to go...there was more than one."
Frodo. Frodo and Sam! It had to be! He lost the thread of conversation as the voices died down, then one voice swelled in agitation.
"....The prisoner is to be kept safe and intact, under pain of death for every member of the guard, until He sends or comes Himself. That's plain enough, and that's what I'm going to do."
"Stripped, eh? What, teeth, nails, hair, and all?"
That meant one, or both, of the hobbits were dead. He felt numb.
"...binds with cords, she's after meat. She doesn't eat dead meat, nor suck cold blood. This fellow isn't dead!"
Harry felt for his wand in the dark, and readied himself. If Frodo was alive...he'd save him. Him, and then Legolas. The torches bobbed even closer...closer...
"Annihilare!" he shouted, and jumped into the path. The spell knocked at least half a dozen Orcs to the ground, dead on impact. The big one in front paused, and then grimaced.
"Filthy wizard," it snarled. "I'll put bloody maggot-holes in your belly before I let you get this one." The sound of weapons clanking against armor echoed through the cavern. Harry felt his lips draw back over his teeth.
"And I'll rip you apart before I let you kill Frodo," he growled, Crucio on the tip of his tongue. The orc paused.
"Frodo, that's its name?" It suddenly got agitated. "What about that filthy elf-warrior that stuck her Ladyship?"
Elf warrior. Harry grinned. That meant Legolas was alive! His Legolas was alive. He felt like dancing.
"I don't know where he is, but if I were you, I wouldn't be worrying about him. I'd be worrying about the wizard that's about to kill you. Crucio Contego!" Fuck forbidden, he thought with a vicious smile. These Orcs were going to die.
As he watched them all howl in pain on the ground with a grim sort of satisfaction (and maybe a touch of guilt), he felt a sudden pain bloom in his calf, like a fire. He fell to his hands and knees, eyes glued to the gash that cut through the back of his leg, through muscle and skin, to show the white of bone. He saw an Orc standing above him. The thing must have snuck up on him. He lifted his wand.
"Cruc..." he whispered in pain. He watched through muddy vision as the Orc smirked in triumph. "Cr..." He let his head fall between his hands. He thought his leg would burn off his body. The Orc bent down to his eye level.
"Take the spell off them, you filthy thing, or I'll kill the little one."
"Finite Incantatem," Harry murmured, the words barely there, but the spell stopped. He felt lightheaded. The Orc grabbed his arm.
"This one goes to Baradur, orders of Him. Let's go, before the..."
The Orc's mouth kept moving but for some reason Harry couldn't hear what he was saying. Harry let his head drop to the floor. Pain, shock, and then blackness.
__________________________________
The walls had begun to close in on him.
Harry stared at the stone ceiling above his head as he lay on the straw pallet of his cell. His vision was blurry and fuzzy, and he couldn't really focus on anything. His mouth felt like it was full of cotton. Something and wet was trickling from his face down to his neck, dripping onto the floor. Tears or blood, he didn't care which. Everything seemed to hurt. Especially the spot of pain on his calf. It had been stitched up, but messily, and the blood flowed constantly if sluggishly. Harry prayed that it would stop soon. His wand had been taken. He reached up with a weak, shaking hand to touch the metal collar around his throat.
He struggled to sit up. Harry Potter would not die lying down, and sitting down either, if he could help it. Sitting up alone made his head spin and his vision swirl sickeningly, however, so he thought maybe standing was out of the question. He leaned his back against the wall and tipped his head back. Harry almost just wished they'd come in here and get it over with. Kill him quick. Maybe when they came he'd take out a guard before he died.
The cell door opened and a sickly reddish light flooded in. He squinted against it.
Rough hands grabbed Harry's biceps and brought him to his feet, and an ugly face was brought into his blurry vision. An Orc. Harry felt his lips draw back into a snarl, a growl starting deep in his chest. Who knew if this had been one of those Orcs who'd captured Legolas. For a moment he allowed himself to wonder if the elf was even alive. Only for a moment, and then the thought was viciously shoved away.
The Orc snorted and let his arms go. Harry swayed but stayed on his feet and let the Orc lead him by a chain hanging off the metal collar about his throat. It was all he could do to stay upright. He didn't pay attention to where they were headed until the Orc stopped and Harry nearly ran into the Orc's back.
Harry stared up at the huge black doors, a feeling of fear worming its way into his mind. Somehow, he knew what was behind those doors. Sauron and pain. The Orc grinned nastily at him and rapped on the heavy doors.
A voice, seeming to come from everywhere at once, invading his mind, boomed from the room.
COME.
The Orc shivered in ecstasy at Sauron's voice. Harry couldn't help but feel faintly repulsed. That is, until the doors opened, and the fear threatened to overwhelm him.
He got his first good look at Saruon. Or, at least, one of Sauron's many forms.
It was a man, but at the same time -- not. Shadow cloaked him, so that his features were barely distinguishable save black hair and two red, fiery eyes that glared out from the darkness surrounding his face. He was covered in black clothes from shoulders down, and the material was such that it seemed to suck out light from the air.
Sauron's very presence sent a spike of terror through Harry's veins, severing his determination and will. He fell to his knees, trembling. Forehead pressed against the floor, he heard the most horrible thing he'd ever heard in his life.
Sauron was laughing.
Harry shook like a branch in the wind, barely able to stop himself, even when the flow of fear ebbed just a touch. His eyes were squeezed tightly shut. He started like he'd been switched when he heard the voice again.
WHAT HAS BECOME OF YOUR PRIDE, NOBLE ONE? WHERE IS YOUR HONOR, YOUR STRENGTH? Another one of those horrible chuckles. I HAVE CRUSHED YOU WITH ONLY MY MERE BEING. PATHETIC. Sauron sounded amused. The sound of it sent anger, and at the same time courage, through Harry. With a great effort, he stood up again.
"You -- you can't even face me without your shadows to protect you," he shouted. At least, he meant for it to be a shout, but for some reason it came as a whisper. Sauron laughed again, and Harry resisted the urge to cover his ears. Barely.
AS YOU WISH. THOUGH IT SHALL NOT SAVE YOU.
Harry watched in amazement as the darkness around the solitary figure swirled and, after a few minutes, disappeared. He wasn't sure if he was surprised or -- or what. The figure standing there had been transformed. The same, blood-red eyes stared at Harry, the same black and red streaked hair, but his features were...strange. An age could not be put on him, nor a value. He simply...was. Harry was too busy trying to overcome his fear to try and figure out if Sauron's form looked handsome. He supposed it did, but in a strange, otherworldly sort of manner. Those eyes...he just couldn't get away from the eyes.
"Is this more to your liking?" Sauron said, his voice as unimaginable as his face. It seemed like more than one deep voice, more than ten, even, all overlapping. But it was easier to face than that voice invading his mind and the shadows seeping into his bones. Then Sauron fixed him with that gaze and started gliding slowly forward, like a lion stalking its prey. Or maybe like a ghost.
Harry stood in the same spot, willing himself not to back up. One of those robe-covered hands lifted and tried to touch his cheek.
"Don't touch me!" he spat, glaring defiance. Then Saruon smiled, and his courage nearly shriveled up. Nearly, but not quite.
"You are strong, little one," Sauron said.
"Fuck you," he ground out. That hand...lifted to his face...
A shock went through him, like fire and ice and lightning all mixed, and he was on his back before he even knew that he'd fallen. He scrambled up, but Sauron was already back to the front of the hall, sitting in his black throne.
"I have a present for you, my little Maiar. Someone, I believe, dearly wished and hoped for. And what led you right into my grasp." He stretched out a lazy hand and curled a finger, and something in the darkness moved and came into the light.
At first Harry thought it was a hallucination. Or maybe one of Sauron's tricks. But then, the hallucination spoke.
"We meet again, Harry," Legolas said, a tiny smile on his face.
Harry hadn't realized that he'd started forward, but suddenly his arms were wrapped around Legolas's shoulders in a tight hug. "I thought you were dead," he whispered. Faintly, through his joy, he wondered how Legolas was still alive and unhurt, even after the Orcs. But that faded away after only a moment. "I love you."
Legolas laughed, and it sounded like the tinkling of sweet bells. "I told you as much," he said over his shoulder. To Sauron. Harry slowly unwound his arms and took a step back. Legolas had that same little smile, and it was faintly unnerving.
Now that Harry got a good look at him, Legolas was just...different. He thought fuzzily, through his haze of confusion, that Legolas looked somewhat like a person who had their hair dyed blonde and had the black roots coming back in. And where his eyes had been a lovely sapphire blue, they were now black as night. He was just as striking, but his air of innocence was gone, replaced by a darkly beautiful appearance.
Sauron laughed again. "You proved me wrong, my elf. It seems that he is not quite as intelligent as I had assumed."
"What?" Harry asked hesitantly, glancing from Sauron to Legolas and then back again. Legolas smiled and walked away from him, going to kneel next to Sauron's throne. Harry felt as if he'd been punched in the stomach when Sauron's hand went down to stroke Legolas's hair, Legolas closing his eyes in ecstasy.
"Isn't he lovely," Sauron said, not really a question. "You would be very suprised at how little persuading he needed to come to me willingly. At first, when my Orcs gave him to me, I was going to kill him. But then I learned that he could give me you." Sauron's red eyes shone with fervor. "And I found what a perfect slave to the dark he made."
"He would never come to you willingly!" Harry ground out, fists clenching.
"Oh, but he did, little one. And only after little while."
"You're lying," Harry said desperately. It couldn't be true. He couldn't have been betrayed by Legolas. God, if he had --
Legolas got up from his knees sinuously, and started towards Harry, swaying like a dancer. A deadly one. "Oh, Harry," he said, wrapping his arms around Harry's waist. "Do you want to know the truth?" Harry leaned his head on Legolas's shoulder, feeling the familiar warmth enfold him.
"I could never love you."
Legolas smiled and let him go, and Harry crumpled to the ground, his legs no longer holding strength. He felt like he'd just been stabbed, his chest tight. "You don't mean that," he said, his voice so soft that he could barely hear it himself. He had to clench his teeth to keep from crying.
Legolas laughed. "But I do. You were amusing, for a while, and so sweet. So very sweet." He had a particular glint to his eyes. "Sauron said that after the world is dead and under our control, that I could keep you. He's a very generous master."
"No." Harry felt just a bit of anger invade his shock and despair. A tear escaped his iron control to trace a salty path down his cheek.
"I didn't ask you if you wanted to," Legolas said, and bent down to stroke Harry's neck. "You do not really have a choice." His fingernails suddenly dug in deep, and Harry felt blood start to flow down the back of his neck. He closed his eyes --
-- and punched Legolas as hard as he could between his eyes. It felt like punching a brick wall, but Legolas exhaled in shock and let go.
A full-armed slap made his head ring and his lip split under the hand. The slap sent him sprawled to the ground. He looked up through pain-tears to see Legolas smiling that horrible, beautiful smile again. He wanted to scream.
"I'll be seeing you again soon," he said softly and, after caressing Harry's bruised cheek gently, went back to his place by Sauron's side, watching avidly as the Orc came to drag Harry back to his cell.
______________________________
The straw under Harry's head was damp with tears by the time he was done crying.
Unwillingly, his mind kept going over that encounter again and again, focusing on what hurt the most.
I could never love you
Harry squeezed his eyes shut. It wasn't his fault, he thought desperately. Sauron made him. It wasn't his fault at all.
Yet he wondered why Legolas had betrayed him, even under pressure. And only after a day. Had...had Sauron been telling the truth?
"Why, Legolas?" he whispered into the still, damp air.
"Why what?"
Harry sat up so fast that his head spun, and he wiped the tear trails off his face. He would not cry in front of Legolas. He would not!
Legolas looked faintly amused. "I know what you are thinking, Harry. But you must realize that all I said was truth. Have I ever lied to you?" He smiled and bent down into a crouch in front of Harry, and pinned Harry with those raven-black, glittering eyes. Harry couldn't breathe, couldn't move, couldn't fight back at all as Legolas leaned forward and pressed his lips to his own. Helpless, he gave in and opened his mouth under Legolas's. It was a different kiss than those of before; it felt like Legolas was trying to suck out his soul. A tear leaked out from each of his closed eyes.
Legolas broke the kiss and leaned back. He lifted a finger to wipe away the tear coursing down Harry's right cheek.
"I wish that I had come here only for this, but sadly enough, I was sent by my master. Although what I was sent for will be decidedly pleasant for me." Legolas's smile never wavered. "I was sent to break your spirit. I can think of a few ways to do so, and a few especially seem...enticing." The gleam in his eye told Harry what Legolas was thinking of.
"No," he rasped, horrified. "You can't."
Legolas sighed. "Alright, lovely. I suppose we will have enough time for that after my master takes power." His sudden smile was feral. "I will take enough pleasure from seeing you suffer." The Orc standing at the door handed Legolas a thick leather whip, tipped in metal. "Hold him down," Legolas snapped, and the Orc lumbered over to obey. Harry was turned on his stomach and his wrists were pressed to the floor in an iron grip.
The first lash was enough to nearly bring a cry from him, but he held it in with an effort of will. He felt the metal tear ruts in his back, reaching from his right shoulderblade to his lower back. His shirt was in shreds. The second lash pulled a whimper from behind clenched teeth.
"Beautiful, Harry," Legolas said from above him. "Let me hear you scream."
By the time Legolas threw the bloody whip down, Harry had given up trying to hold back his cries. He had begun pleading for mercy by the tenth lash, and by the twentieth his screams had echoed in the cell. He couldn't catch his breath as sobs tore from his throat. Somewhere during his struggle the stitches in his leg had broken, and the blood poured down his leg again. He felt a hand stroke his head and push back his bangs from his sweaty forehead.
"I know that did not break your spirit, " Legolas said softly. "I have a feeling that it will take much more than that."
With not another word, Legolas left, closing Harry back in with the darkness, his pain, and his own bleak, despairing thoughts.
____________________________
A/N: Well, that's that -- hope I don't get too many flames about this ^_^ Even if you hated what I did to Legolas (I did too) it was necessary for the end. What end, you ask? ...well, you'll see :)