AN: Ok, I'd like to thank the eight people who reviewed, and 'Shire' as
I've started to call her. My MUMMY!! I know you read these fic's while
working (naughty naughty) and to my friends but Sarah who is always calling
me up at some ungodly hour to see if I'm done with a chapter!!! Thank you
Shire for pointing out those mistakes (My computer is playing up).
Dedication: For Amber, who we 'borrowed' for sixteen years. Marilla was and is your cat, you are and always will be my friend.
1986 - 2003
'Don't worry, be happy.'
Chapter 1: A Mind Made Up
"I'm sorry," said Rogan sadly, "but there was no warning; they swarmed us too quickly and quietly. How they escaped our detection is beyond any of us."
Watching quietly from the doorway, Legolas was at a loss to understand why his father was so upset. If Thranduil ever cried or was dismayed in some way, he waited until no one was in sight or only his wife was with him. His small but sensitive ears picked up the mumbled speech, and it only added confusion to his thinking. They couldn't be talking about his mother, she'd only been gone four days, so it must have been that his father's horse had died from a spider attack while grazing.
"Laslilaem . . . didn't . . . with her. This shouldn't have happened!" his father sobbed into his hands, as Rogan went into more detail.
A wild sort of something suddenly and tightly gripped the child's heart and mind, and he slipped backwards onto the polished floor as he shoved himself away from the oak frame. Turning over and pushing himself up, he sprinted until he found his oldest brother, Lúrin, sitting quietly in the garden.
"Lúrin! Lúrin!" Legolas sobbed, refusing to believe, his fair face scarlet and puffy from his tears. "Atara!! Where is atara?!"
His brother looked up at his youngest sibling and noticed the distress in his body language. The young prince stopped in front of his brother and sobbed out his fear. "Atara! Lúrin, where is she?"
Lúrin reached out for his youngest brother and took both of his small hands in his own. "She has travelled to the halls of Mandos."
Legolas took a step back in shock. "Why? Didn't she want us anymore?"
Now fighting tears of his own, Lúrin shook his golden head. "Atara did that so that *we* didn't have to walk there in loneliness." Wiping a slender hand across his blue eyes, he continued, "She was taken from us, Legolas, but she went willingly to safe arms."
"She is dead!!" the young elf wailed at his brother. "Can you call that safe?!"
"Legolas, listen, please?" Lúrin pleaded, still holding his brother's slim fingers. "She was not afraid, not alone; I was with her. She did not suffer."
"But elves are immortal." Legolas whispered helplessly.
"Immortal -- yes, but we are not invincible. We know no sickness, but we can die," His older brother explained quietly, willing comfort into his brother. "Cassageln said the same thing when he lost his teacher to an orc attack."
Lúrin was now clearly caught up in a memory, so Legolas left him to remember other times long gone while he went in search of his father. When he checked the palace, the king was nowhere in sight or elven hearing, so the four-year-old supposed that he was in the stables, seeing to the guards' horses. But when he went to the palace stables, he only found Thranduil sitting alone beside Jewel's stall, which was empty. The magnificent mare had escaped, but was traumatised and had to be calmed by the healers. Wandering in quietly, Legolas was careful not to disturb his father's moment; however, Thranduil knew he was there.
As the young elf stood there, silent tears falling down his sweet face, a strange urge took hold of him to hug his father. Now it wasn't because Thranduil didn't love his children -- he did, and very dearly -- but he was one of those elves who showed his love by praise and guidance, while their mother gave them the emotional affection that they sought. So Thranduil was rather stunned when small, slender arms wrapped themselves round his neck. Looking down, he found a halo of pale blond hair.
"I'm so sorry," he whispered to his son. "I should have done more, I could have protected her."
"What happened?" his son mumbled; however, Thranduil, who was only half listening to his son's voice, thought Legolas said, 'Where is she?'.
"She is in Mandos now, little one," his father said, not hiding the truth. "But she will always love you; can't you feel it, my son?"
"What did I do?" Legolas asked, bringing his face out. "Was I bad, did I do something naughty to make her leave, father? If I did, I'm very sorry."
"No, no," Thranduil smiled despite the subject. "You were and always are a good elfling. Your mother would never leave you because of such a silly thing."
Legolas was quiet as he pondered this. "Than make Mandos give her back!" he commanded slowly.
"I cannot, Legolas," his father said, kneeing before his grief-stricken son. "She is gone forever."
"Bring her back!" he cried at his father. "You are king, bring my atara back!!"
Thranduil sighed heavily, knowing he wasn't going to win this pleading. "My child, I am the king of Mirkwood, not the sky. If I were, I would have her back rather than leave you this down-hearted."
"No!" Legolas cried, flinging himself from his father. "You can bring her back!! Tell Mithrandir, he can do it, bring him here and *make* him do magic!"
"Stop it, Legolas," Thranduil hissed, and he took hold of his son's shoulders. "Understand. Your mother cannot come back, she is dead. Even Mithrandir cannot reverse that. It may hurt, but it's life. It's both beautiful and horrendous, only try to understand, your mother may not be here in body but she's here in spirit."
Shoving his father's hand away, Legolas scowled, turned and ran into the dense forest with his father calling him back.
~*~
Pushing the small twigs and leaves aside as he pelted through the forest, Legolas soon noticed that he didn't know this part of his home. This, however, hadn't registered very deeply with his mind.
Too tired to go further, he sat and cried until he was left with heaving sobs that racked his small frame. Wiping the tears away with his blue silken sleeve, his misty gaze beheld that a pale sun winked back at him, unaware of the tragedy that had befallen this now evil-ridden forest.
Seeing the sky acting so calm and unfeeling filled the child with rage, and he jumped up and yelled at it in anger and sorrow.
"Give my atara back!" he screamed furiously towards the bright cloudless sky. Its only response was a distant bird call. Frustrated at the answer, the young child picked up rocks and then proceeded to hurl them at the offending celestial regions. He was too upset and angry to notice that each time he threw a rock, as the object fell it was getting closer to his body.
"COME HOME, ATARA!!" Legolas yelled. With that, he let fly his last rock, which promptly went up and smacked back down onto his forehead, knocking him to the ground.
Dazed, dirty, and now extremely upset, the little elf burst into tears again. Rolling over, he lay on his stomach for a few seconds. Suddenly his small hand again closed around a stone. Turning to face it, his grubby face sideways, his haunted and blurred eyes watched the rough surface. "I just want you back." He hiccoughed sadly, "why did you take my atara?"
The question was unanswered, so Legolas continued to lay there in the now afternoon sun. Slowly his hiccoughs calmed and his sobbing resided to small quiet and unnoticed moans, as the little elf's eyes began to close halfway until he was in slumber, where his mother was waiting.
~*~
Something was rubbing his head, and the most peculiar thing was that it was purring! Blinking his eyes, Legolas discovered to his confusion that it was the next day, and he was confronted with the strangest thing.
It was a cat.
But not just any cat, it was Marilla, the cat that had belonged to his mother. She was an astounding white, but when she moved, it looked like a living pearl was moving, hence her name.
Marilla sat back on her haunches and observed the elf. Meowing at him in concern, she seemed to sense that he was deeply upset and needed someone or something to talk to.
"Oh, Marilla!" he cried and wrapped the cat in a soft hug. "I am lonely and have lost half of myself. Help me," he whispered quietly to her ear.
In answer, she leapt out of his arms and proceeded to walk purposely through a chosen trail. She waited until he understood that she wanted Legolas to follow her. Figuring it was easier to follow on all fours than two, he traced her at a strange gait.
After a few minutes of going through and walking next to a small stream, they both came across a tiny house that Legolas realised was his old tree- house. Marilla leaped lightly into the dwelling with the elf-child close behind.
Marilla was now laying in a stack of disused linen that had disappeared from the palace, but as Legolas looked in, he soon knew why.
Five snow-white kittens were now suckling hungrily at their mother, meowing in high-pitched voices to ensure that they weren't alone and that their mother knew they were there.
Legolas was not sure how long he sat and watched them, but as he did, he was overwhelmed by the feeling that had been there for over a day now -- an emptiness like a gaping wound that would not heal. But as he watched the kittens and Marilla interact with each other, he realised that he didn't have to be alone and that he could be part of a family again. So he made a decision as only a four-year-old could.
He would become a kitten.
AN: I hoped you liked. I won't be able to updat for a while (I'll try on Thursday but no promisies) because I have my year 10 trials (School Certificate) and I don't really want to fail.
I don't have a job YET!! But when I'm rich and powerful than I'll spend all my time writing!!!!
Love you all
Smego Baggins
Dedication: For Amber, who we 'borrowed' for sixteen years. Marilla was and is your cat, you are and always will be my friend.
1986 - 2003
'Don't worry, be happy.'
Chapter 1: A Mind Made Up
"I'm sorry," said Rogan sadly, "but there was no warning; they swarmed us too quickly and quietly. How they escaped our detection is beyond any of us."
Watching quietly from the doorway, Legolas was at a loss to understand why his father was so upset. If Thranduil ever cried or was dismayed in some way, he waited until no one was in sight or only his wife was with him. His small but sensitive ears picked up the mumbled speech, and it only added confusion to his thinking. They couldn't be talking about his mother, she'd only been gone four days, so it must have been that his father's horse had died from a spider attack while grazing.
"Laslilaem . . . didn't . . . with her. This shouldn't have happened!" his father sobbed into his hands, as Rogan went into more detail.
A wild sort of something suddenly and tightly gripped the child's heart and mind, and he slipped backwards onto the polished floor as he shoved himself away from the oak frame. Turning over and pushing himself up, he sprinted until he found his oldest brother, Lúrin, sitting quietly in the garden.
"Lúrin! Lúrin!" Legolas sobbed, refusing to believe, his fair face scarlet and puffy from his tears. "Atara!! Where is atara?!"
His brother looked up at his youngest sibling and noticed the distress in his body language. The young prince stopped in front of his brother and sobbed out his fear. "Atara! Lúrin, where is she?"
Lúrin reached out for his youngest brother and took both of his small hands in his own. "She has travelled to the halls of Mandos."
Legolas took a step back in shock. "Why? Didn't she want us anymore?"
Now fighting tears of his own, Lúrin shook his golden head. "Atara did that so that *we* didn't have to walk there in loneliness." Wiping a slender hand across his blue eyes, he continued, "She was taken from us, Legolas, but she went willingly to safe arms."
"She is dead!!" the young elf wailed at his brother. "Can you call that safe?!"
"Legolas, listen, please?" Lúrin pleaded, still holding his brother's slim fingers. "She was not afraid, not alone; I was with her. She did not suffer."
"But elves are immortal." Legolas whispered helplessly.
"Immortal -- yes, but we are not invincible. We know no sickness, but we can die," His older brother explained quietly, willing comfort into his brother. "Cassageln said the same thing when he lost his teacher to an orc attack."
Lúrin was now clearly caught up in a memory, so Legolas left him to remember other times long gone while he went in search of his father. When he checked the palace, the king was nowhere in sight or elven hearing, so the four-year-old supposed that he was in the stables, seeing to the guards' horses. But when he went to the palace stables, he only found Thranduil sitting alone beside Jewel's stall, which was empty. The magnificent mare had escaped, but was traumatised and had to be calmed by the healers. Wandering in quietly, Legolas was careful not to disturb his father's moment; however, Thranduil knew he was there.
As the young elf stood there, silent tears falling down his sweet face, a strange urge took hold of him to hug his father. Now it wasn't because Thranduil didn't love his children -- he did, and very dearly -- but he was one of those elves who showed his love by praise and guidance, while their mother gave them the emotional affection that they sought. So Thranduil was rather stunned when small, slender arms wrapped themselves round his neck. Looking down, he found a halo of pale blond hair.
"I'm so sorry," he whispered to his son. "I should have done more, I could have protected her."
"What happened?" his son mumbled; however, Thranduil, who was only half listening to his son's voice, thought Legolas said, 'Where is she?'.
"She is in Mandos now, little one," his father said, not hiding the truth. "But she will always love you; can't you feel it, my son?"
"What did I do?" Legolas asked, bringing his face out. "Was I bad, did I do something naughty to make her leave, father? If I did, I'm very sorry."
"No, no," Thranduil smiled despite the subject. "You were and always are a good elfling. Your mother would never leave you because of such a silly thing."
Legolas was quiet as he pondered this. "Than make Mandos give her back!" he commanded slowly.
"I cannot, Legolas," his father said, kneeing before his grief-stricken son. "She is gone forever."
"Bring her back!" he cried at his father. "You are king, bring my atara back!!"
Thranduil sighed heavily, knowing he wasn't going to win this pleading. "My child, I am the king of Mirkwood, not the sky. If I were, I would have her back rather than leave you this down-hearted."
"No!" Legolas cried, flinging himself from his father. "You can bring her back!! Tell Mithrandir, he can do it, bring him here and *make* him do magic!"
"Stop it, Legolas," Thranduil hissed, and he took hold of his son's shoulders. "Understand. Your mother cannot come back, she is dead. Even Mithrandir cannot reverse that. It may hurt, but it's life. It's both beautiful and horrendous, only try to understand, your mother may not be here in body but she's here in spirit."
Shoving his father's hand away, Legolas scowled, turned and ran into the dense forest with his father calling him back.
~*~
Pushing the small twigs and leaves aside as he pelted through the forest, Legolas soon noticed that he didn't know this part of his home. This, however, hadn't registered very deeply with his mind.
Too tired to go further, he sat and cried until he was left with heaving sobs that racked his small frame. Wiping the tears away with his blue silken sleeve, his misty gaze beheld that a pale sun winked back at him, unaware of the tragedy that had befallen this now evil-ridden forest.
Seeing the sky acting so calm and unfeeling filled the child with rage, and he jumped up and yelled at it in anger and sorrow.
"Give my atara back!" he screamed furiously towards the bright cloudless sky. Its only response was a distant bird call. Frustrated at the answer, the young child picked up rocks and then proceeded to hurl them at the offending celestial regions. He was too upset and angry to notice that each time he threw a rock, as the object fell it was getting closer to his body.
"COME HOME, ATARA!!" Legolas yelled. With that, he let fly his last rock, which promptly went up and smacked back down onto his forehead, knocking him to the ground.
Dazed, dirty, and now extremely upset, the little elf burst into tears again. Rolling over, he lay on his stomach for a few seconds. Suddenly his small hand again closed around a stone. Turning to face it, his grubby face sideways, his haunted and blurred eyes watched the rough surface. "I just want you back." He hiccoughed sadly, "why did you take my atara?"
The question was unanswered, so Legolas continued to lay there in the now afternoon sun. Slowly his hiccoughs calmed and his sobbing resided to small quiet and unnoticed moans, as the little elf's eyes began to close halfway until he was in slumber, where his mother was waiting.
~*~
Something was rubbing his head, and the most peculiar thing was that it was purring! Blinking his eyes, Legolas discovered to his confusion that it was the next day, and he was confronted with the strangest thing.
It was a cat.
But not just any cat, it was Marilla, the cat that had belonged to his mother. She was an astounding white, but when she moved, it looked like a living pearl was moving, hence her name.
Marilla sat back on her haunches and observed the elf. Meowing at him in concern, she seemed to sense that he was deeply upset and needed someone or something to talk to.
"Oh, Marilla!" he cried and wrapped the cat in a soft hug. "I am lonely and have lost half of myself. Help me," he whispered quietly to her ear.
In answer, she leapt out of his arms and proceeded to walk purposely through a chosen trail. She waited until he understood that she wanted Legolas to follow her. Figuring it was easier to follow on all fours than two, he traced her at a strange gait.
After a few minutes of going through and walking next to a small stream, they both came across a tiny house that Legolas realised was his old tree- house. Marilla leaped lightly into the dwelling with the elf-child close behind.
Marilla was now laying in a stack of disused linen that had disappeared from the palace, but as Legolas looked in, he soon knew why.
Five snow-white kittens were now suckling hungrily at their mother, meowing in high-pitched voices to ensure that they weren't alone and that their mother knew they were there.
Legolas was not sure how long he sat and watched them, but as he did, he was overwhelmed by the feeling that had been there for over a day now -- an emptiness like a gaping wound that would not heal. But as he watched the kittens and Marilla interact with each other, he realised that he didn't have to be alone and that he could be part of a family again. So he made a decision as only a four-year-old could.
He would become a kitten.
AN: I hoped you liked. I won't be able to updat for a while (I'll try on Thursday but no promisies) because I have my year 10 trials (School Certificate) and I don't really want to fail.
I don't have a job YET!! But when I'm rich and powerful than I'll spend all my time writing!!!!
Love you all
Smego Baggins