A/n: My muses are really whipping me. I swear. I have the scars to prove it. They want me to write and they want me to write NOW. 0_0 They scare me... lol, I suppose I scare them too with my bizarre writing.

Dillclaimer: I own that dill pickle over there. Yep. Mine.

Disclaimer: I wish I owned the Lord of the Rings. But my fairy godmother left me lying on the side of the road in a bad part of town with my hands and feet bound and by mouth gagged and a blindfold over my eyes the last time I ever saw her, which was when I got my box and my muses. *grins*

Chapter Seven: First Words

Legolas woke up slowly from the heat of Haldir's talan. There was a fire in the grate. He looked around. He was in bed, and the pale afternoon sky had dark clouds whipping across it. His fingers were not moving right. He looked down at them. They were bandaged.

Legolas recalled with terrifying clarity the events that had happened earlier. His eyes widened. He... remembered. No. NO!

//This is not happening. It is a dream. I do not remember, I do not, I do not, I do not!// he cried in his mind. But no matter how hard he tried to deny it, he remembered every moment that Haldir had been with him.His eyes widened. //no...// he thought blankly... //I will be punished... oh, I will be punished. I wept. I trusted. I remember. That is three of the rules I have broken.//

His eyes grew blank with fear. //And there will be none of the good pain. There will be none of the soft knives or the gentle needles. There will be the torture pain. There will be the whips and the brands and the terrible pain in my head.//

Legolas curled up into a ball and shuddered. But even then, Haldir stayed in his mind, and Legolas was afraid. Haldir was going to betray him. Why couldn't he forget? Why did trying to forget hurt?

Haldir strode back into his talan, and noticed Legolas. "Legolas! I brought lunch back with me," he called over. Legolas remained huddled on his bed. Haldir frowned.

"Legolas?" He walked over to the bedside and sat down. Legolas looked at him from between his folded arms, and shook his head. Two tears escaped his eyes. Haldir was worried.

"Are you all right, Legolas?" he asked in a concerned voice. "Should I find Gwaloth?" Legolas shook his head miserably. Not even Gwaloth could save him from the Dark One's wrath. She tried, though. He shook his head again. Haldir placed an arm about Legolas's shoulders.

"Please, tell me what's wrong," he asked pleadingly. Legolas sat up, and then began to sob, tears pouring out of his eyes. His sobs were audible this time, and he clutched Haldir's tunic, weeping.

Haldir just let him cry. Sometimes he knew what to do, and sometimes he didn't. But right now, he knew that Legolas needed to cry, and so he just sat there and was an object of support.

After the better part of half an hour, Legolas stopped, sniffling into silence. He just leaned against Haldir, and the two of them sat that way for a long time.

Then Legolas looked over at the food and pointed at it, and Haldir yelped that it had been getting cold. And they ate.

Legolas sighed and sat back after finishing the food on his plate.

Haldir sat across from Legolas. The Elf had shown a brief compassion. Could he be saved? //I hope so.//

"Come on now, Legolas," he said patiently after the silence had grown. "Make a noise."

Legolas shook his head fiercely. No.

Haldir sighed. "Why not?"

Legolas squirmed in his seat, and looked away. He reached out in the direction of a piece of paper and a stick of charcoal. Haldir nodded. "You can use those, if you want to." Legolas grabbed a sheet of parchment, and began to write.

:I must never make a sound, or he will be angry.:

Haldir frowned. "Who is he?" Legolas scrawled an answer, and pushed the paper over.

:The Dark One.:

Haldir scratched the side of his head. //That's helpful.// "Legolas, can you tell me who the Dark One is?" Legolas shook his head, and took back the paper.

:He will be angry if I tell. He will punish me and it will hurt.:

Haldir sighed. "No he will not. I am here to protect you from him, whoever he is. He cannot harm you here." Legolas sat still as a statue for a long time. The sun moved slowly, the leaves rustled. The hour grew late. The light moved slowly across his face, and onto the floor. He sat, not moving, and not appearing to breathe. The dusk settled, and the birds began to call out weakly, assuring each other that they had lived the day and still claimed their territory. The smell from the dinner cooking in the kitchens sent tendrils up to the talans. Legolas sat as still as a stone. Haldir grew alarmed.

"Legolas... ?" he asked in a worried voice. Legolas's eyes flickered. Slowly, he looked up and met Haldir's eyes. He opened his mouth hesitantly. It seemed like an eternity of silence passed before the word spilled from his mouth, a mere whisper that sounded as loud as a clap of thunder.

"Promise?"

Haldir nodded mutely. "I promise. Nothing will ever hurt you while I am here." Legolas nodded, and subsided.

Haldir was well aware of the progress he had made. Legolas had made noise. He had even spoken a word. That would be enough for now, for him. If it wasn't enough for the rest of them, well, they could hang themselves. Legolas was getting better. He was coming out of his shell.

//And that is worth everything. Hah, funny, Haldir. When did you fall in love with Legolas?//

Legolas got up and looked outside. The wind was still blowing. He frowned, and paced the floor in frustation. Haldir sighed.

"I hate being cooped up indoors. It must be a lot worse for you, though," Haldir said softly. Legolas grinned at him and nodded. Haldir smiled.

"Do you want to tell me about Mirkwood?" Haldir asked curiously. Legolas opened his mouth, but no words came out. He sighed in frustration and took back the paper.

:I never went outdoors. I was confined. I lived in my room, and outside the window I could see the trees and the butterlfies. Sometimes I would go out but I would get lost. Then I waited until I was found.:

Haldir looked at Legolas in suprise. "But you're the Prince!"

:So?:

"So you're supposed to know your own city! What did they think you were, an animal?!"

:I was shut up after they found me hurting myself with the knives to make myself stronger for the Dark One.:

Haldir read it and then read it again. He turned from the page, trembling. "Whoever the Dark One is, he's sick and twisted. Why do you do what he tells you to?"

Legolas looked sad. :I'm sorry. I'm not allowed to remember.:

"Why not? Did the Dark One tell you not to? You must remember something!"

Legolas wrinkled his nose. :I do not.:

Haldir huffed. "Well if he ever comes here, I'll make sure he doesn't walk away alive." Legolas looked up at Haldir, alarmed.

:Don't kill him. Please don't.:

Haldir calmed down enough to sit down again. "And why not?" he asked through clenched teeth.

:Because- I- I forget...:

Haldir sighed and slumped back into his chair. "I'm sorry I'm reacting like this," he said with a small smile. "But the idea of some creep messing with you makes me want to scream. No one has the right to hurt you in any way, Legolas. Do you understand that?" He paused, and looked at Legolas. Legolas stared unblinkingly at him.

:But what if I want them to? I have been taught to love the pain the Dark One gives me. I have begged for it.:

Haldir's blood turned to ice in his veins. He blinked once, then twice. He looked at Legolas. "Did he rape you?" he asked hoarsely. Legolas shook his head.

:No. He cannot. He uses only the knives and the needles when I have been good, and I am allowed to drink the blood.:

Haldir sat back, relief in his face. "Thank the Valar for that. But what do you mean, bad?"

:I must not make a sound. I must not remember a thing. I must not cry. I must not trust. I cannot, or I will be betrayed and they will hurt me.:

Haldir shook his head. "Those are lies, Legolas. Lies. He has been lying to you. He's twisted and disgusting, and he wants to make you as pitiful as him. He's telling you lies."

Legolas's eyes turned cold. :You cannot claim that someone is a liar and tell me to believe you. Why should you tell me the truth?:

Haldir blinked.

:Haldir, I do not know you. You do not know me. You want me to believe that the only person I have ever known is a liar and is lying to me. I think you are the liar. Why would you tell me the truth?: Haldir stared deeply into Legolas's eyes.

"Because," he said slowly, "I do not want to see you hurt."

:Why?:

"I want you to get better."

:Why?:

"Because... because... just because, Legolas. Please trust me. I won't ever betray you. I won't hurt you. I couldn't."

Legolas gazed unflinchingly back. He opened his mouth. "All right."

*****tbc*****

A/n: Ho ho ho, I left an evil cliffhanger! *of a sort*. Well, I hope that you review and you like.

In response to Silvawen: You always brighten my day with your nice comments and you make me laugh. Goddess bless you. Oh, and I'm sorry I can't really answer any questions you have, because they would give away the plot. And Haldir isn't so bad in this one as he is in Intrigue... lol.