Title: Mirkwood's Ring: Part 5 of ? In which it's generally realized that
bad things are about to happen.
Author: Shi Ryuu (shiryuu@hiasobi.org)
Pairings:
Characters: Elrond, Legolas, Thranduil, and Glorfindel and the twins to
varying degrees
Rating: PG 13-R (violence)
Setting: AU pre-LOTR
Summary: There are strange happenings in Mirkwood.
Archive: Err, I don't know why you'd want to, but sure, if you ask.
Category: Angst, violence, Legolas torture. You've been warned.
Disclaimer: Not mine. If the characters and setting were mine, I wouldn't
be typing it on a computer that freezes every three seconds. ;P You can try
to sue if you want, but all I have is this crappy compy and a few very used
art supplies.
Author's Notes: Keep in mind that I'm an artist and make absolutely no
claims of any writing talent whatsoever! This is my first attempt at LOTR
fanfiction, and my first attempt at fanfiction at all for several years. ^^
;; Its been at least four years since I've even attempted anything but an
academic paper. You've been warned. Also, this in an AU. I've read LOTR,
Hobbit, Silm. UT, LT, and some of HoME, but it's been quite a while on all
of them but LOTR. Feel free to correct me on any obscure things I get wrong
cannon-wise, but I'm not trying horribly hard here. =) Fanfiction is
fanfiction, not cannon and I have no delusions of living up to Tolkien's
work. I will occasionally use elvish because I'm a linguist at heart and
it's easier sometimes than reaching for a thesaurus, but I'll put the
definitions at the bottom. =) Okay, I'm done. You can read the fic now.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A solemn frown marred Legolas's brow as he carefully contemplated his
companion across the table. His hand was held poised for action, awaiting
only his decision; his elegant fingers twitched slightly in anticipation of
movement. Slowly he edged his arm forward…

"This is hardly chess Legolas. Just pick one!" Elladan finally quipped,
looking annoyed at his friend's indecisiveness.

The prince sighed and drew one of the carefully splayed paper cards at
random from the older twin's hand and turned to look at it. "Argh! I got
the Orc again!" he exclaimed in disgust, hurriedly shoving it into his own
considerably larger stack of cards and turning around so Elladan couldn't
see where he put it in the mix. The peredhel just snickered at him and
carefully rearranged his own hand. He'd won the last three games of Old Orc


Elrohir paced Elrond-like in front of the table and threw his brother and
friend a dark glance. "How can you two calmly play a stupid child's game at
a time like this? Legolas's father has been taken over by dark forces and
ours is on his way into Thranduil's clutches!"

"You weren't complaining before you started loosing." Elladan grinned, but
his brother failed to see the humor.

The prince of Mirkwood sighed and laid his cards face down on the table
before standing and approaching Elrohir. "I know you are anxious brother.
Believe me, I have been stuck worrying here far longer than you have.
Pacing will get you no where and we have been trying endlessly to think of a
solution. We have discussed this. As long as all of the guards are under
this dark spell, we can get no where near my father without harming another
elf, and your father is still outside these walls somewhere; the enchantment
has been altered so that we cannot leave the city, but we are unhurt and so
is everyone else. We can do nothing until something changes. It is hard,
believe me, I know better than anyone, but we must wait."

The younger twin did not so easily let go of his anger, "Father must be very
close by now! There must be something we can do! I will not sit idly by as
you two are doing and just wait for him to fall into this accursed trap!" he
snarled.

"'Ro!" Elladan snapped, "This is not our fault and Legolas is right, we're
so turned around from thinking in circles that we are getting nowhere. An
hour or two to clear our minds will let us come at this from a fresh
perspective. Getting querulous with us is not going to help either of our
fathers."

"No! We will loose Adar as we lost Mother and we will all die in this
lightless horrible suffocating rat's nest of caves!"

"Elrohir!" Legolas began but was cut off.

"I will not be silent if that is what you are asking! I feel as if this
place is closing in on us! You are the prince of this city! You must know
a way out of here, or a way around the enchantments! You, yourself said the
magic keeping us here is part of this place, not something whatever
Thranduil has is doing!"

"I am working on it, but I am not King! Only my father knows the deepest
secrets of the forest!" Legolas in fact had nearly worked out how to get a
few people out of the city, but it would be very risky and he did not know
if it would work. Even if he could get two or three out, he could not go
with them. He would not leave his father here alone to his madness, but he
could not open the wards without the king's knowledge. He wasn't quite
ready to see what the madness might make his father do to him for that kind
of betrayal. He was not sure his soul could take the heartbreak. He'd been
mulling over the feel of the energies of the palace the whole time they
played. The twin's senses operated on a different level than that and so
they were unaware of his efforts. They often could tell things that he
could not, sudden premonitions of the future or insight into someone's
feelings or character, but there were some situations in which his
perceptions were superior. In a few hours, he would know for sure if escape
were possible for the others. He would not bring it up until he knew for
sure. Elrohir was showing definite signs of claustrophobia and panic in the
absence of light and nature, and Legolas did not want to be pushed to a
hasty decision which might cost all of them their lives.

While Legolas had been thinking, Elladan had stood and quietly embraced his
brother, his nearness used to calm the rising fear and hysteria of his
sibling. Together they spoke silently in a way that Legolas could not
understand, but whatever they were saying was evidentially doing the trick.
Elrohir's posture slowly relaxed and within moments he was returning the
embrace of his twin with bright tears in his eyes.

The Prince was moved by the display. He had not seen either half-elf cry
since Celebrian had sailed for the West and it effected him greatly.
Carefully, hoping he was not intruding, he approached them and placed a hand
on either twin's shoulder. With eerie synchronicity they turned their heads
to meet his steady gaze. "I swear to you both, on my Kingdom, that nothing
here will harm your Father. I will do whatever is necessary to see that you
do not lose another parent. I swear it, on the Valar." He was unaware of
how his eyes blazed brilliant blue with his pronouncement or the wave of
premonition that washed over his friends at the utter conviction in his
voice. "I will see you all out of here safely." His melodic voice rang
oddly in the dark stillness of the room they had claimed and the torches
sputtered on the walls.

The twins opened their embrace to accept him into the circle of their arms
and their brotherhood. "Whatever happens, we will weather it together."
Legolas was not sure which twin had spoken, but he felt the warmth of their
connection envelope him as it never had before and for a time, all three
found a semblance of peace.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"I like this not." Glorfindel turned his golden head towards his friend and
lord atop the blood bay ridding beside his own white mount. "Mirkwood is
never this quiet. We have seen no patrols, no messengers, not even a hunter
The birds are silent in the trees, if they are even still there, and no
animals scurry through the accursedly thick brush of this place!"

Elrond frowned and nodded, his own sharp eyes scanning their surroundings
for signs of life other than the plants and trees. Nothing but insects
filled the air and they swarmed on the two travelers as if they had been
deprived of all other sustenance for long ages past. Glorfindel did not
suffer as much from their attentions as the peredhel he rode with, but both
of their mounts were considerably annoyed with the nuisances. "Would that
either of us were a wood elf. The trees beg to be listened to, but I cannot
understand their language."

"We will know soon enough I suppose." the blond replied. "We are less than
an hour from the gates if I remember correctly. It has been a long time
since I traveled to this part of the wood."

"We cannot arrive too soon. My sons' danger has grown neither worse, nor
better in all the days it took us to travel here, but I cannot help but
sense that things will soon come to a head. We must arrive before something
changes, or we will be too late."

"A premonition?" Glorfindel frowned and ran a hand soothingly over the mane
of his mount.

Elrond shook his head, "Nothing so clear as that...just a feeling of dread
that has been growing over me since we departed." His horse sidled
nervously at an imagined movement to its left and the lord of Imladris
quietly soothed it. The animals had become steadily move agitated as they
approached Thranduil's Keep and it wasn't just the bugs. They sensed
something that the two Noldor could not. Again Elrond cursed the lack of
sindar or woodland blood in either of their veins.

They rode in silence until the great carved gates became barely visible in
the distance. It was obvious as they waited out of sight, that no one came
in or went out of the castle and that the two guards atop the structure were
not made less vigilant by the lack of activity. That, in itself, set Elrond
s nerves on edge. Something was strange with the gatemen.

Glorfindel voiced his concern before he could put words to his fears, "I
hate to add to this dilemma, but I think whatever has effected Thranduil and
threatens your sons has also some control over Mirkwood's people."

"I feel the same. The men on the gates are far too vigilant for this amount
of activity. Wood elves are notorious for their keen eyes and sharp watch,
but in this quiet surely not even they could remain that still and watchful.
No living being could, and they do not move as they should." His companion
nodded in agreement as they watched the very slightly stilted movements of
the soldiers atop the huge doors. So slight was the difference that most
would probably have not noticed, but Elrond and Glorfindel were hardly the
average individuals, and they had more years of experience at such
perception than Elladan and Elrohir put together.

"We have to assume that no one in the city save my sons is free of this
shadow. I would know if they were taken as such, and their wills are still
their own."

Glorfindel nodded his agreement. "How shall we handle this?"

"I would not have both of us trapped in that stone citadel in case whatever
has prevented someone from sending word to anyone outside should befall us
as well. I will ride out to the gates and demand entrance to see my sons.
You will wait here for a full day, and if I do not return within the
allotted time, you will know to send for aid and try to get us out for I
will have been taken as well."

Glorfindel frowned, "I do not like this plan, my friend. I cannot let you
go in there alone."

"No harm has come to my sons yet, Glorfindel. I must see that it is kept
that way. There is no assurance that they will let you in and if they do
not, then I would have to try, and they would know we are both here. I do
not wish to show them all of our hand, small as it is."

"Why not send for help now? This situation is certainly dire." the older
blond elf frowned at his lord and soothed the ruffled feathers of the hawk
jessed to his gloved hand.

"I still have hopes that this situation can be salvaged without bloodshed or
undue attention. It does not seem that he has actually hurt anyone yet
which tells me Thranduil's madness might be cured. I will go and see if my
talents are sufficient to end this before we do something that might touch
off another war. Thranduil's people outnumber ours and Lothlorien's put
together. Even if they are bespelled, that does not speak well of the
consequences of seeming a threat. We have far too little information on
whatever is going on in there."

Glorfindel sighed, but was forced to concur. "I cannot help but have
serious misgivings about this."

"I know, but I think it the only option." Carefully, Elrond removed Vilya
from his finger and it immediately became visible to his seneschal's sight.
"Hold this in trust for me. I would not see it fall to whatever evil is in
that palace."

His companion's eyes widened, "My Lord! Surely--"

"No Glorfindel. Take it. I do not need to tell you that you should not
wear it, or think to use it. I trust you with this and I know you will see
it safely returned to me when I leave those gates in a few hours with my
sons."

He nodded and accepted with obvious trepidation, the ring Elrond offered to
him. "I hope it is so my Lord."

Elrond returned the nod and checked his saddle bags and weapons. He stared
hard at the gates for several moments, as if trying to see through them, and
then he steeled himself and rode out. He would find his sons and bring them
safely home. He would not loose them as he had lost their mother.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Within the stone city that had become a prison, Thranduil looked up from his
careful perusal of his accumulated horde. What little light he allowed in
the chamber glinted oddly off of his jewels and his eyes. "Something
powerful comes this way. I want it. It will be mine." He muttered in
fierce possessiveness to the still dank air as he habitually rubbed at his
ring with his thumb. The guards at the door made no move, their dull eyes
staring unseeingly straight ahead.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Elvish:
Adar -- Father
Peredhel -- Half-elf



Baseball is wrong. A man with four balls cannot walk.