DISCLAIMER: Tolkien is a genius. I am not. Only Thalion, my all-purpose
elf, is mine.
NOTES: On the issue of Legolas' mother, I've decided to just not address the issue. Tolkien never told us if she sailed or was killed or whatever. For all we know, there was a food shortage in the Shire and the Hobbits ate her. (Okay, so I know that wouldn't happen, but you get the point!) So I'm just going to leave that alone! And also, about the last story: I went with the movie version of Legolas' weapons since there was a visual. I know he only has one dagger in the book, but the slideshow on the extended DVD helped me. Onto the story!
~*~*~
"There are some among you who can handle boats: Legolas, whose folk know the swift Forest River." - Celeborn, Lord of the Rings, Farewell to Lorien.
~*~*~
Legolas sighed and kicked at the water. He had always loved going to the small stream to dangle his feet in the water, but not today. He had heard some of the guards talking about the Forest River. They had said the river was so fast, that it had swept anything away in seconds, including a dead spider.
Legolas was allowed nowhere near the Forest River, especially without someone with him. The slow-moving stream he sat at fed into the river and there was no danger of drowning in the waist high water. The youngest prince of Mirkwood thought it was boring.
So he made his decision. He would sneak off to the Forest River. As long as he was back in time for dinner, his Ada wouldn't miss him and probably no one would know that he was gone. With a grin, he swung his feet out from the water and hurriedly pulled on his boots.
Legolas looked around him. No one was paying attention to him at the moment. So he darted off into the trees, following the stream. He hummed to himself as he traced the path of the stream. He never lost track of the stream, as he was still small enough to squeeze past any obstructing undergrowth.
He paused when the sounds of the stream began to change. They began to get louder. Legolas ran forward when he realized that it wasn't the stream, but the Forest River that he heard. He burst through the undergrowth.
Cold spray hit his face, nearly dousing the little elfling. Legolas grinned and leaned over the edge of the river, watching the fish swim by. He reached a hand in to try and grab the fish, with little luck. He laughed anyway; this was so much more fun than the boring stream!
An unnatural rustle came from behind him. Legolas froze. No elf made that noise. He slowly turned his head and his eyes went wide. It was a spider. A big spider. One that looked like it was hungry for a little elf, perhaps the youngest prince of Mirkwood.
Legolas gave a yelp and jumped back in fear. Unfortunately, there was no more ground to jump back to. He fell into the river and was immediately carried downstream; the spider left far behind.
Legolas struggled against the current, fear taking him. Now he really knew why his Ada never let him near the river, this might happen! He opened his mouth to cry for help but only got a mouthful of water. He coughed as he tried to keep his head above water.
His small body was cut and scraped at each clash with a rock. His hands reached out and tried to grasp anything that he could. He was rewarded with a branch hitting his hand and he immediately closed his fingers around it.
Legolas couldn't quite figure out how he managed to pull himself out of the swift Forest River. All he knew was that for several long minutes he lay on the bank, shivering and coughing up water. He was cold, wet and tired and away from home.
A rustle nearby reminded Legolas of how he had ended up in the river in the first place. Without another pause, he jumped up and bolted into the forest in the direction of the palace. It seemed like it had been hours before he finally reached the gates of the palace. He couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief as he passed through the iron gates. With the fear of becoming some spider's dinner gone, he started to shiver. Legolas was soaked through. The sun had started to go down, and there was soon a distinct chill in the air. The elfling crept inside and hoped he could make it back to his own rooms without running into anybody.
"Legolas!" The youngest prince cringed and stopped in the hall, the river water collecting at a puddle at his feet. He turned and met his father's gaze, soppy hair falling in his eyes. "What happened to you little Greenleaf?"
Legolas' teeth began to chatter, despite what he did to try and stop them. "I-I-I fe-fell in."
Thranduil strode forward and swept the shivering elfling off the ground, heading straight for Legolas' rooms. "You fell all the way into the stream?"
Legolas seriously entertained the thought of lying to his father. But he knew that some of the soldiers had seen him coming from the opposite direction than the stream. One of them would eventually tell him. "N-n- no. The Fo-forest Riv-river."
Thranduil nearly stumbled. His son had been caught in that dangerous river? His breath hitched when he entered into Legolas' rooms. He would ask questions later. He set the elfling down and quickly stripped him of the wet clothing, then wrapped a blanket around his shoulders. He started a fire and then sat on the ground before it, pulling Legolas into his lap to try and warm him.
"Legolas, what were you doing there?"
Legolas leaned his head against his father's chest and bit his lip before speaking. "I wanted to see the river. The stream is so boring."
Thranduil sighed. "It may seem boring little Greenleaf, but it is very dangerous. How did you fall in?"
Legolas shivered briefly and Thranduil tightened his arms around the elfling. "A spider came up behind me."
Thranduil's heart clenched at the thought of losing his child. He would order a patrol to scout the river tomorrow and rout out the foul beasts. "Now do you see why I don't let you go there without some else? You may not like it Legolas, but you are too young. You could have been hurt, and I never want to see you get hurt. Will you promise me never to go there again until you are old enough?"
Legolas nodded. "I am sorry Ada."
Thranduil hugged the small body cradled against him. "I know you are. Are you feeling warmer now? Are you hungry?"
Legolas yawned. "Very hungry."
Thranduil chuckled. "I think that you are more tired."
Legolas' eyes immediately shot open and he jumped from his father's lap. "I'm not tired! I'm hungry!"
"Well, if you're so hungry, then let us go to dinner." Thranduil helped dress Legolas before they headed to the dining hall. The youngest prince fought to stay awake as he took his seat at the table. But he was so tired!
Legolas' damp hair garnered more attention than was expected. Thranduil finally sighed when another questioning glance was given to the half-asleep elfling. "It seems that the little Greenleaf fell into the Forest River today."
Several elves gasped while others chuckled. The Crown Prince Thalion merely ducked his head as his father gave a pointed stare at him. Legolas looked up when the conversation turned to him and he noticed his brother's expression. "What is it Thalion?"
Thalion chuckled and looked at his youngest brother. "You are not the only one. I fell in when I was your age too."
Legolas' eyes went wide. "Really?" Now wide-awake, he demanded that his brother tell him the story, which Thalion did with a minor bit of blushing on his part. After the story was done, the conversation turned to other things, and Legolas lost interest once again.
Thranduil saw Legolas losing the fight with sleep and smiled. He rose and gathered up his youngest child in his arms. He made his excuses and left the hall, a very tired elfling in his arms that needed to recover from his unintentionally eventful day.
NOTES: On the issue of Legolas' mother, I've decided to just not address the issue. Tolkien never told us if she sailed or was killed or whatever. For all we know, there was a food shortage in the Shire and the Hobbits ate her. (Okay, so I know that wouldn't happen, but you get the point!) So I'm just going to leave that alone! And also, about the last story: I went with the movie version of Legolas' weapons since there was a visual. I know he only has one dagger in the book, but the slideshow on the extended DVD helped me. Onto the story!
~*~*~
"There are some among you who can handle boats: Legolas, whose folk know the swift Forest River." - Celeborn, Lord of the Rings, Farewell to Lorien.
~*~*~
Legolas sighed and kicked at the water. He had always loved going to the small stream to dangle his feet in the water, but not today. He had heard some of the guards talking about the Forest River. They had said the river was so fast, that it had swept anything away in seconds, including a dead spider.
Legolas was allowed nowhere near the Forest River, especially without someone with him. The slow-moving stream he sat at fed into the river and there was no danger of drowning in the waist high water. The youngest prince of Mirkwood thought it was boring.
So he made his decision. He would sneak off to the Forest River. As long as he was back in time for dinner, his Ada wouldn't miss him and probably no one would know that he was gone. With a grin, he swung his feet out from the water and hurriedly pulled on his boots.
Legolas looked around him. No one was paying attention to him at the moment. So he darted off into the trees, following the stream. He hummed to himself as he traced the path of the stream. He never lost track of the stream, as he was still small enough to squeeze past any obstructing undergrowth.
He paused when the sounds of the stream began to change. They began to get louder. Legolas ran forward when he realized that it wasn't the stream, but the Forest River that he heard. He burst through the undergrowth.
Cold spray hit his face, nearly dousing the little elfling. Legolas grinned and leaned over the edge of the river, watching the fish swim by. He reached a hand in to try and grab the fish, with little luck. He laughed anyway; this was so much more fun than the boring stream!
An unnatural rustle came from behind him. Legolas froze. No elf made that noise. He slowly turned his head and his eyes went wide. It was a spider. A big spider. One that looked like it was hungry for a little elf, perhaps the youngest prince of Mirkwood.
Legolas gave a yelp and jumped back in fear. Unfortunately, there was no more ground to jump back to. He fell into the river and was immediately carried downstream; the spider left far behind.
Legolas struggled against the current, fear taking him. Now he really knew why his Ada never let him near the river, this might happen! He opened his mouth to cry for help but only got a mouthful of water. He coughed as he tried to keep his head above water.
His small body was cut and scraped at each clash with a rock. His hands reached out and tried to grasp anything that he could. He was rewarded with a branch hitting his hand and he immediately closed his fingers around it.
Legolas couldn't quite figure out how he managed to pull himself out of the swift Forest River. All he knew was that for several long minutes he lay on the bank, shivering and coughing up water. He was cold, wet and tired and away from home.
A rustle nearby reminded Legolas of how he had ended up in the river in the first place. Without another pause, he jumped up and bolted into the forest in the direction of the palace. It seemed like it had been hours before he finally reached the gates of the palace. He couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief as he passed through the iron gates. With the fear of becoming some spider's dinner gone, he started to shiver. Legolas was soaked through. The sun had started to go down, and there was soon a distinct chill in the air. The elfling crept inside and hoped he could make it back to his own rooms without running into anybody.
"Legolas!" The youngest prince cringed and stopped in the hall, the river water collecting at a puddle at his feet. He turned and met his father's gaze, soppy hair falling in his eyes. "What happened to you little Greenleaf?"
Legolas' teeth began to chatter, despite what he did to try and stop them. "I-I-I fe-fell in."
Thranduil strode forward and swept the shivering elfling off the ground, heading straight for Legolas' rooms. "You fell all the way into the stream?"
Legolas seriously entertained the thought of lying to his father. But he knew that some of the soldiers had seen him coming from the opposite direction than the stream. One of them would eventually tell him. "N-n- no. The Fo-forest Riv-river."
Thranduil nearly stumbled. His son had been caught in that dangerous river? His breath hitched when he entered into Legolas' rooms. He would ask questions later. He set the elfling down and quickly stripped him of the wet clothing, then wrapped a blanket around his shoulders. He started a fire and then sat on the ground before it, pulling Legolas into his lap to try and warm him.
"Legolas, what were you doing there?"
Legolas leaned his head against his father's chest and bit his lip before speaking. "I wanted to see the river. The stream is so boring."
Thranduil sighed. "It may seem boring little Greenleaf, but it is very dangerous. How did you fall in?"
Legolas shivered briefly and Thranduil tightened his arms around the elfling. "A spider came up behind me."
Thranduil's heart clenched at the thought of losing his child. He would order a patrol to scout the river tomorrow and rout out the foul beasts. "Now do you see why I don't let you go there without some else? You may not like it Legolas, but you are too young. You could have been hurt, and I never want to see you get hurt. Will you promise me never to go there again until you are old enough?"
Legolas nodded. "I am sorry Ada."
Thranduil hugged the small body cradled against him. "I know you are. Are you feeling warmer now? Are you hungry?"
Legolas yawned. "Very hungry."
Thranduil chuckled. "I think that you are more tired."
Legolas' eyes immediately shot open and he jumped from his father's lap. "I'm not tired! I'm hungry!"
"Well, if you're so hungry, then let us go to dinner." Thranduil helped dress Legolas before they headed to the dining hall. The youngest prince fought to stay awake as he took his seat at the table. But he was so tired!
Legolas' damp hair garnered more attention than was expected. Thranduil finally sighed when another questioning glance was given to the half-asleep elfling. "It seems that the little Greenleaf fell into the Forest River today."
Several elves gasped while others chuckled. The Crown Prince Thalion merely ducked his head as his father gave a pointed stare at him. Legolas looked up when the conversation turned to him and he noticed his brother's expression. "What is it Thalion?"
Thalion chuckled and looked at his youngest brother. "You are not the only one. I fell in when I was your age too."
Legolas' eyes went wide. "Really?" Now wide-awake, he demanded that his brother tell him the story, which Thalion did with a minor bit of blushing on his part. After the story was done, the conversation turned to other things, and Legolas lost interest once again.
Thranduil saw Legolas losing the fight with sleep and smiled. He rose and gathered up his youngest child in his arms. He made his excuses and left the hall, a very tired elfling in his arms that needed to recover from his unintentionally eventful day.