Down at the archery fields, bows were strung and arrows were whistling through the air, whilst the sun beat down fiercely on the Elves gathered there. That is, all except one, who was sitting in the shade under a thick leaved tree.
Calaen sat with one knee drawn up to his chest, watching all of the archers wistfully. A book lay beside him, forgotten. He would have loved nothing more than to go and join in with the friendly games, but the company he would be keeping was not company that he would enjoy.
The young Prince was much liked through the Realm, but there was just one group of Elves who had something against him, for reasons that remained unknown. There were maybe seven of them, older than he, and possibly even Airëlus, the Crown Prince of Mirkwood.
They had never done anything to actually physically hurt him, but nasty looks were often thrown his way, cruel words were whispered, and Calaen was often left with taunting laughter ringing in his ears. It seemed as though today would be no different; the group had abandoned their target shooting, and were making their way over to him.
"Good afternoon," Calaen said warily, when they arrived and stood around him.
"Ah, polite as ever," the leader of the group, Berian, sneered.
"Is there anything I can help you with?" asked Calaen, determined not to break eye contact with the older and taller Elf.
Berian laughed, his hair glinting in the sunlight. "Anything that you can help us with? No, I don't believe there is, actually."
"If that is the case, I must be leaving," Calaen muttered, taking his book and making to stand up. Berian put a hand on his shoulder, though, and held him back.
"Ah, but my friends and I have only just arrived," said the other Elf. "Besides, we merely wish to talk with you. Is there any harm in that?"
"No," Calaen sighed, running a finger absent-mindedly over the spine of his book. It was instantly knocked from his hands, though, and it fell to the ground.
Berian smirked, whilst his friends laughed scornfully. "I said that we wish to talk with you. Anyway, you do not want that book. It looks frightfully awful."
"No more so than your company," muttered Calaen.
The older Elf's eyes flashed, and he caught the younger's wrist in a vicelike grip. "You think yourself to be better than everyone else. You have a title before your name, but that does not make me think any more of you. A Prince, you are? No, you are not."
"Think what you will. But like it or nor, I am a Prince of Mirkwood," Calaen snapped.
"I do not know why your father kept you," hissed Berian. "He should have drowned you like a kitten the moment you first drew breath. Yes, he should have done away with you a long time ago. He only keeps you now out of pity. He despises you really, and he has every cause to. After all-
Berian was cut off as the younger Elf pushed him away, and leapt to his feet. Calaen ran through the group of quietly laughing Elves, and sprinted across the archery field towards the Palace, not once looking back.
"I think I upset him," said Berian, feigning regret.
............................................................................................................
King Thranduil sat behind his desk, staring at a spot somewhere on the opposite wall. Two men from Laketown stood in front of him, talking with raised voices about...what was it? The Elven-king had switched off a long time back.
'I suppose that is rather negligent,' he thought absent-mindedly. 'I suppose I should take more interest in what they are saying. It could be something very important. Then again, it could not be.'
"My Lord, we simply cannot afford to lose any more of our horses," said one of the men in exasperation.
Ah yes, it was horses that were the subject of discussion. "If you will forgive my asking, but why do you come to me with these troubles?" said Thranduil.
"Because it is your spiders which devour our animals," growled the second man.
The King snapped his eyes up, and regarded the other two coldly. "First of all, they are not my spiders. Secondly, I cannot be held responsible for the straying of your animals. You should be more careful with them."
"We need your help," said one of the men through gritted teeth.
"But why come to me instead of going to sort this out with your own chieftain?" asked Thranduil.
"Because it is your...the spiders who are the cause of this," replied the men in exasperated unison.
The Elf looked at them for a moment, before shaking his head. "I sympathise with you, and I am sorry that you are in this situation. However...as King, I have other issues to deal with, and most of them concern my own people. I suggest you talk to your chieftain. If he cannot help you, and only if, then you may come back here."
"But we need-
The man was cut off by the door swinging open, and a young, dark haired Elf running in. Thranduil narrowed his eyes slightly at the interruption, whilst the other two inclined their heads to the newcomer.
"Forgive my son," the King said coolly. "He knows that this is the day which I deal with issues of the Realm."
"Oh! Yes, I am so sorry," said Calaen quickly. "I will come back later."
"No, we are finished here," Thranduil said, as the young Elf turned away. "Stay where you are. These two were just about to leave."
"Thank you for your time," muttered the men, as they stalked from the room.
"You are quite welcome," replied the Elven-king. He shook his head slightly, then glanced across at Calaen, who was shifting from one foot to the other, almost uncomfortably, it seemed. Thranduil remained quiet, though, waiting for his son to speak.
Eventually, the Prince said, 'I truly am sorry for bursting in on you like that, Ada. If I had known...that is to say, if I had remembered that you had meetings today, I would have waited until later."
"I know, ion-nin," said Thranduil gently. He paused for a moment, regarding the young Elf carefully. "Will you tell me what it is that bothers you?"
Calaen stared at his father in surprise. "How do you know that something troubles me? Or rather, why do you think that?"
"You forget that I have had to sort out any previous problems you have had," replied Thranduil. "Airëlus and Legolas' also. I know what to look out for. Come, speak to me."
"Well, I...I was thinking about something earlier," said Calaen slowly. "And I just wanted to ask you about it."
"Go on."
The Prince paused for a moment, before continuing. "Is it...is it possible for a parent to not love their child?"
"It depends what kind of parent you speak of. For example, humans are different to us. Not all of them, but some treat their families very differently than we do," replied Thranduil. "Elves, however, can be given no gift more precious than a child."
"So, is it not possible for a parent to once love their son...or daughter, but then feel less love as years go by?" pressed Calaen.
"No, not at all. When a child enters the world, the feeling for both parents is unique," said Thranduil slowly, smiling vaguely as three different memories came flooding back. "I cannot describe it, but no doubt you will know one day what I speak of."
"No, I do not wish for children," muttered Calaen.
"You say that now," laughed Thranduil. "Anyway, the feeling that a parent has for their new-born one is unique, as I have told you, but that feeling does not diminish as the years go by. Instead, it only grows."
Calaen was silent for a moment, before he nodded slowly. "I see."
"Was that all you wished to ask me, or was there anything else?"
"Yes, there was one more thing," said Calaen quietly. He paused and bit down on his lip before voicing his question. "Ada, do you ever wish that...that I was not your son?"
Thranduil did a double take, and stared at the young Elf in disbelief. Startled blue eyes locked onto worried green ones, and the Elven-king was silent as old memories were awakened; memories that were best left alone; memories he had hoped never to think on again.
"Ada?"
"Forgive me, you caught me by surprise," said Thranduil, shaking himself. He moved around to the front of the desk and put both hands on Calaen's shoulders. "Why did you ask me such a thing?"
"I just need to know," replied the Prince, half desperately, half defensively.
"Never in all my life have I heard something as ridiculous as that," said Thranduil in amazement. "Calaen, you should not even need to think that, let alone ask it. Of course I have never wished anything like that, nor will I ever. I am so lucky to have a child like you."
"Really?" asked Calaen quietly.
"Of course," said Thranduil firmly, reaching out and pulling the Prince into an embrace.
Calaen rested his head against his father's chest, and let out a deep sigh of relief he had not known he held. The Elven-king, however, ran his fingers through his son's ebony hair, and closed his eyes tightly, trying to block out the memories.
............................................................................................................
Lady Leeanne: My first reviewer! Hello! I'm as lazy as Legolas, so he's not alone!
Irish Anor: Hee hee, I laughed when I wrote it!
Warriormaid 3000: Yeah, the change is gonna come a bit later, and it will be very angsty for him. Poor Calaen.
Legolas-gurl88: I'm so sorry I forgot to tell you that it was up! You see? That's a perfect example of me forgetting to tell my friends stuff that they should know!
kathysidle: Yeah, I was like Legolas: not doing too great where studying is concerned!
Kelsey: Yeah, it will definitely have that part with Calaen! And don't worry, young Airëlus is popping up next chapter!
Poor little Calaen. Well, he's not that little. But he's my little Calaen, cos I absolutely love him to bits. Yeah, I'm crazy, and for anyone who's read my other two stories with him in, you're probably asking me why. I just like him. Anyway, I have nothing else to say. Oh, yes I do. Now, do you remember Berian from 'A Brother's Jealousy'? He popped up in the second to last chapter, and did something horrible to Legolas. Yes, he is the same Elf as the nasty one in this chapter. He won't come in again for a while yet, but I thought I should just let you know that I haven't created a new character with the same name as a different one! Bye!