The twins and Estel waited impatiently at the side of the room, watching as Lord Elrond changed Legolas' bandages. When they had first seen the extent of the Prince's wounds, and the word that marked his body, all three of them had been disgusted, but Estel had been so affected, that he had had to leave the room to be violently sick.
"Where is my father?" Legolas asked softly.
"He has gone to send a patrol out to meet your brother," Elrond replied. "Airëlus should be returning today." His voice was calm, but inside, he was worried - his path should have crossed with the Crown Prince's on the way to Mirkwood, but it had not.
Legolas nodded slowly, fiddling absentmindedly with the silk sheets. He was coming to depend on his father more and more as each hour passed. He knew full well that he had nearly been lost to the world, and he also knew that he could slip into darkness again at any moment. That scared him more than he would like to admit.
"It is all done," Elrond said, sitting back in his chair. "How do you feel?"
The Prince shrugged as he pulled on a loose shirt. "I am fine, my Lord. But I… No. It does not matter."
"If you are in pain, then you must tell me," Elrond said sharply.
"It is nothing. I am not in pain," Legolas said.
The healer arched an eyebrow, but did not press the matter. He made a mental note to tell Thranduil of his suspicions that all was not well. No sooner had he thought this though, the door opened and the King himself came into the room, obvious worry on his face. He was swift to disguise it though, when he realised that his son was awake.
"Is everything alright?" Legolas asked.
"Fine." Thranduil exhaled deeply, and shook his head. "I was arranging for a patrol to go out and meet Airëlus, that is all."
"Oh. Then, he is not yet back," Legolas said softly.
"I am sorry," the King replied.
"Thranduil, I wish to see you outside for a moment," Elrond said. He raised a hand at the look on his friend's face. "Yes, I know that you have only just got here, but there is something I would like to discuss."
"Very well," Thranduil sighed.
There was silence in the room as the two Elven-lords left, and when the door had closed behind them, there was still silence. Elladan and Elrohir glanced uneasily at each other, whilst Estel shifted uncomfortably. It was Legolas, surprisingly, who spoke first of all. His voice was harsh, perhaps harsher than he had intended.
"You can talk to me," he said.
Estel sighed, and shook his head slightly. "I'm sorry. I…we….how are you?" he asked lamely.
"I have been better," Legolas replied. "How is it that you are here? Airëlus was sent to bring your father here, but you left Rivendell without seeing him."
"I am not the one to speak about that," Estel said.
Elladan smiled briefly at his foster brother, before going forwards to sit in the chair next to the bed. "Legolas, I had a dream. You were in it. When I woke, I knew that something was wrong with you."
The Prince drew in a sharp breath, and his face paled. "Do you mean to say that you saw…you saw…?"
"Yes, I saw what Calaen did to you," Elladan said softly. "I am sorry."
Legolas bit down on his lip, lowering his eyes and turning his face away. He was ashamed, so ashamed of everything that had happened, ashamed of all the pain that had been caused. Though, it was not just a matter of physical pain. His pride had been seriously damaged.
"Are you alright?" Elrohir asked.
The door opened and Elrond and Thranduil, sparing Legolas from answering the question. He would not lie to his friends, but that would mean telling them the truth, that no, he was not alright. In fact, he was far from alright. How could he be, when he had just found out that everything he had been put through had been seen by one of his closest friends?
"We will see you later if you are well enough," Estel said.
When there was no reply, Elladan touched a hand to his friend's shoulder. "Legolas? We will come and see you later if you are-
"Why should I not be well enough?" the Prince snapped.
At a light cough from Elrond, the twins and Estel reluctantly left the room, leaving father and son alone. Thranduil went forwards and sat next to the bed, though, he made no effort to speak – he did not want to be the one to make the first move. The younger Elf folded his arms across his chest, eyes flashing.
"He saw," Legolas muttered. "Elladan saw what Calaen did to me. Is it not enough that everyone already knows? I wish that he had not seen it."
"Why not?" Thranduil asked. "He saved your life. Elrond would not have got here if not for him."
Legolas' expression softened slightly, but the fire in his eyes did not dim. "If you were put through so much pain, would you want it to be seen? Would you want one of your best friends to see you at your weakest?"
"No. No, I would not," Thranduil replied. He paused, and glanced at his son. "Elrond told me that there is something troubling you. Is that it, or was there more?"
"There is nothing," Legolas said quietly.
The Elven-king smiled vaguely – he knew when his own child was hiding something. "You are not alone in this. Believe me when I say that I can help you."
Legolas sighed, and drew his knees up to his chest. "You have not slept since you returned from Rivendell."
"I have had enough," Thranduil replied. "Elrond made me take a few hours rest in Airëlus' room last night."
"It has been…what, four or five days since you left Rivendell," Legolas said. "A few hours are not enough."
The Elven-king smiled. "I am supposed to be looking after you, not the other way around. But really, I am fine. A few hours is all that I need. Now, is that all that was troubling you?"
"No. You do not have to stay with me," Legolas said abruptly.
"What do you mean?" Thranduil asked.
"Ada, you are the King. Surely you have work to do, meetings to attend. I am keeping you from all of that," the Prince said bitterly. "If you want to go, then….go."
"I want to stay with you. Do you really think that I place a bit of paperwork above my own son?" Thranduil asked in surprise.
"Of course not," Legolas replied. "I just feel so…so weak. Why can I not do this on my own? I should not be scared, but I am. And even though I try and fight away the fear, it keeps on returning, and I cannot…" He trailed off, and shook his head helplessly.
Thranduil shook his head as he moved to the edge of the bed and drew his son to him. "No. Your fear is justified. You have been through so much, and if you were not afraid, then I would worry for you. You have been through an ordeal that should not be known to our race."
"So why did it happen to me?" Legolas asked softly. "Why did Calaen…?"
"I cannot answer that question. But I do not want you to be ashamed of your fear." Thranduil sighed, and gently stroked the younger Elf's hair. "It will take time for everything to get back to normal."
"I want to see Airëlus," Legolas whispered.
"I know you do," the King replied. "But until he returns, you will have to put up with me. Will you be able to do that, or is that a fate too unbearable?"
Legolas drew away from the embrace, and locked eyes with his father. "No, I think that I can put up with you for a while longer."
"Good, for I am going nowhere," Thranduil said seriously. He glanced outside, and sighed inwardly. Darkness had fallen, yet there was still no sign of Airëlus.
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The Crown Prince of Mirkwood rode quickly – or at least as quickly as his tired horse could manage – for he was determined to reach the palace before much more time had passed. Night had already set in, but that did not stop him; nor did the fact that he had been travelling for two days without rest.
As he wound his way through the trees, his sharp hearing picked up a noise from above him. It was a gentle rustling that was coming from somewhere in the trees. But Airëlus paid little attention to it – he did not have time to worry about what was more than likely a wild animal.
Ignoring the noise, though, was a mistake that would cost him more than he could imagine. The next thing he knew, a sudden light weight dropped down behind him on top of the horse. He tried to turn around, but was having difficulty controlling his mount, who had spooked at the extra weight on her back.
He snapped his head around, trying to catch a glimpse of what had landed behind him. But that was another mistake. He was grabbed around the waist and lifted from the horse's back. Before he even had time to fight back, he was being thrown to the forest floor. A light figure landed on top of him, pinning him to the ground.
"It has been a while, brother," the attacker said softly.
Airëlus locked his blue eyes onto the emerald green ones that were above him, and drew in a sharp breath. "Calaen…"
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