Well, thanks to Tsalagiwesa for doing all that reviewing. You'll have to wait with the others for most questions, though. Except one: Yes, I know Nea. We go to school together, and have been friends for ages--and believe me, I know she's the better writer.

escape5: At this point I'm not planning on writing anything else. If it weren't for Nea, I wouldn't have gotten this far.

There were black spiders all around him, each one biting him, spreading their poison deeper and deeper into his body. His blood carried the weakness, the draining death, through his limbs, rendering him helpless. He fell to the ground, able only to listen to the hideous hisses, to see those creatures of darkness. Then someone moved forward, someone with dark hair and black eyes. The hatred in them burned ever brighter as the elf came closer. Just as his vision was about to fade, he felt a bit of life return to his legs, and forced them to move, stumbling away from the clearing, bursting through the webs to the light—

Legolas bolted upright, bathed in sweat. He brought his hands to his head. "Another damned nightmare," he grumbled, before becoming aware of a slight pain in his hands. He stared at the bandages over his palms in confusion.

"Not entirely," a dry voice murmured beside him.

He turned to see his father sitting in the chair behind his bed. "Father?" A slight movement from his other side caught his attention. "Eirthriel?" Beyond them he saw Miranol and Oleydya slumped together against the wall where the chair his father was using usually sat, Dareklien and Ertelen on the other side of the bookcase. "What's going on?"

"Welcome back to the land of the living," Thranduil muttered softly. "Do you remember anything?"

Legolas frowned slightly. He recalled Nenya teasing him about his weight, but that only through a thick haze. "Nenya?" he asked softly. Thranduil motioned towards Legolas's feet. Nenya was there, curled up on her side, her hands extended slightly before her, crossed at the wrists, both bandaged as his were. He looked back at his hands. "What happened?"

"You were poisoned. She drew it out."

"How?"

"I am not entirely sure how you were poisoned, nor entirely how she drew it out and survived. She is alive, though weary. Ponstern doesn't know what to make of this." Thranduil's attempt at humor fell flat.

Legolas tugged the bandages loose, pulling them off with his teeth. Dried blood covered his palms, along with a raw cut down the middle of each. For the first time in centuries he let his curiosity overwhelm his better manners, nudging Nenya with his foot. "Wake up."

"No," she muttered, tucking her nose under one of her palms.

He smiled at her petulant response, but nudged her again.

"Go 'way."

He chuckled softly. "Wake up, Nya."

Her eyes snapped open and her head reared back. "What did you call me?" she asked, voice cold.

He blinked and frowned. "What?"

"Did you just call me Nya?"

He blinked again, but realized he had. "I guess so. So what?" He held up his hands. "What happened?"

"Your wine was laced with spider venom. It had to be neutralized."

"And yours?" he asked, tilting his head at her hands.

She looked down at her bandages and shrugged slightly. "It had to be neutralized."

"And your blood was the way to go?"

"The only way," she agreed faintly. "You are alive. Does the method matter?"

"I suppose not," he conceded after a minute. "Will you ever explain?"

"If I must, someday I shall."

"Never freely?"

She stiffened slightly and turned her head aside.

Thranduil shook his head. "I think this foolishness needs to come to an end soon, Nenya."

"I keep your secrets, Thranduil. You shall keep mine." After hissing those words, which Thranduil received as a slap to the face, she slid off of Legolas's bed and made her way to the room she had been given earlier.

Legolas looked after her for a moment, and then tilted his head towards his father while Eirthriel worked on re-bandaging his hands. "Secrets, Father? You keep secrets from your own family but send them in letters to strangers?"

"I did not send them in letters, Legolas," Thranduil admonished. "And I did not tell her. That was her mother's doing, I've no doubt."

"Why would she do that? Why would anyone spread the King's secrets?"

"She would have told Nenya the truth so Nenya would know what to do and say—and what not to say—should the stone ever be sent to her."

Legolas winced at the sudden pain in his hands and looked back at what Eirthriel was doing. She glanced up, silently telling him not to argue with their father as she tugged the bandage a bit tighter once more. Slowly he shook his head, even as pain entered his hands once more when she tried to argue. "I think we have a right to know."

Thranduil sighed. "Yes, you do. But not now. If you were told now it could jeopardize everything."

"Everything?"

"Our kingdom, our home, our family… perhaps even our lives," he added after a moment's pause, his eyes troubled as he regarded Legolas's palms. "No one saw it happen. Or no one will say they saw it happen."

"Or no one realizes what it is they saw," Legolas murmured softly. "Now would you let me up so I can find Nenya?"

Thranduil frowned. "That which keeps you apart has been strengthened, Legolas. Your blood runs truly together now."

Legolas shook his head slightly. "In a while her blood will be replaced with my own. As long as I have it, though, I intend to use it." Since waking he had been painfully aware of every sight, sound and smell around him, and his other sense, the one that knew when he was being watched and how far the watchers were, had also grown stronger. It would be easier to find her. He hoped.

After a few more minutes of arguing with his family he was allowed to get up, and did his best not to shake on his feet too badly as he left his room. Once outside he leaned against the wall, willing the strength back into his legs. He could recall, now, the weakness that invaded his body. It was mostly gone, but he would have to go a bit slower than usual for a while.

As long as he had to remain still anyway, he set his mind to thinking about Nenya. Slowly his strength returned, and he had an idea which way to go. He followed it without being sure if it was right, but soon he came to a hallway where he could hear voices just around the corner. He leaned back against the wall to rest, eavesdropping partially against his will.

"I assume you have come from my brother's room."

"Yes, I have," Nenya replied, her voice devoid of anything resembling emotion.

"I must say I expected better from a spider specialist… like the elder prince instead?"

Legolas's spine stiffened, but Nenya's caustic reply bit back before he could even try to push away from the wall to defend her.

"And that would be better? To be so close to one who pretends he is unaware one of his family looked death in the eye?"

"Looked?" Teraien's voice was the perfect mix of surprise and concern. "When did this happen?"

"I would wager you know well enough. The entire kingdom no doubt knows."

"Ah, but I left the party early. Nearly immediately after our dance, in fact. I have not had the time to listen to idle gossip."

"It is hardly idle when it concerns one's own family."

"But that is when it is most often found to be false, especially considering who my family is. But as I said, I didn't know. When did he die?"

"He hasn't. And he won't."

"No? Did Ponstern know the cure?"

"Interesting choice of words, Teraien. Considering I never said what he was afflicted by. Nor who was afflicted."

Teraien was nonplussed. "It is simple reasoning, milady. Had it been a weapon attack the palace would have been searched. I would have been notified. Guards would line the halls. As nothing of the sort has happened, poison seems the logical response. Had it been my Father, I would have been roused. Legolas is the obvious choice of my siblings to need a healer, considering how he spends his time."

"Perhaps," she allowed softly. "But you can put aside your worry. He is well."

"Really? A remarkable recover, if you were not exaggerating when you said he was on the brink of death."

Legolas pushed himself upright and took a few steps, stopping at Nenya's shoulder. "What can I say? Between having good healers and a will to live, a little poison can't keep me down for long."

Teraien's eyes widened slightly in surprise. "Well, this is good news. I shall have to spread the word."

"Undoubtedly Father has already done so. You need not trouble yourself, brother."

Teraien narrowed his eyes slightly, but after a flickering glance to Nenya, he bowed his head slightly and turned away, walking towards the kitchens.

Nenya turned and caught Legolas without a word, backing him around the corner and against the wall so he could rest away from the eyes of passing elves. "You shouldn't be up already," she murmured softly, sinking to the floor with him.

"I wanted to find you."

"Why?"

"They won't tell me anything. That irritates me."

She lifted a brow as her eyes began sparkling again. "So you came to me?"

"I'm used to you not telling me anything."

She chuckled softly and shifted so she was sitting more comfortably. "What would you wish to know?"

"What happened."

She shook her head. "We've been through this."

"How you were able to survive, then? Can you tell me that much at least?"

She frowned slightly and looked down at her hands, absently running her thumb over her bandaged palm. "I have come into contact with the poison and cure often enough in my life it runs through me, in my blood. Please ask no more."

After searching her dimming eyes for a moment, he nodded slightly. "Come here."

"What?" she looked at him in confusion.

He smiled faintly and carefully tugged her closer. "Come here," he repeated, tucking her against him.

"Why are you—"

"I needed a hug, and you're the only one around. Thought maybe you needed one too."

"I don't need anything from you."

"Of course not," he agreed softly, his tone soothing. "Just relax."

With a sigh she recalled the first time he had pulled her so close. Since then he had done it time and again, and though she still wasn't quite used to it, she wasn't so disused to it, either. Knowing he wouldn't willingly release her until she did relax she dropped her head to his shoulder and sent her mind searching for any clue that would solidify something of the incident last night.

Legolas smiled slightly as he leaned his head back against the wall, sighing softly as Nenya relaxed farther. She was probably thinking about anything other than him, but he didn't care. She needed to trust anyone, and this was a fair step forward.

His smile faded as he thought about what she had said. How could she have come into contact with spiders often enough that her blood held the cure to their poison? There was no known cure for the spider poison meant to kill the victim, and the only cure for the other poison was time. So how could she have survived if the poison was released into her system? It didn't make sense.

"You aren't relaxed," she chided without moving.

He was about to respond when she pulled away, turning to face him once more. A moment after she did so he could hear someone approaching. He looked up to see his father shaking his head.

"You should have remained in bed."

"Maybe," he murmured. "But then it would have taken longer for me to recover." He eased himself upright, aware how slow he must seem to them, but also quite aware he was moving faster than he had been at first.

Thranduil started to disagreed, but Nenya cut in. "True. Now that you've crossed the line of uncertainty, movement is the only thing that shall help. Perhaps Eirthriel would be willing to prod you along?"

Eirthriel blinked but moved to his side as if to offer support. "Of course."

Legolas groaned and shook his head. "A child of twenty again! Woe to the one who put me in this state!"

Thranduil's eyes darkened, his voice grim. "Indeed."