Disclaimer: I do not own LOTR. I also do not own Caleniel, Rodwen, Nínael, Celin, or Aearoniell; they belong to Tador and Aearoniell, who have given me permission to use their characters for my own twisted ideas.
Sweet Revenge
By: Mika Saito
Chapter 2- Family Outing
Caleniel woke the next morning to the sound of her oldest son, Nínael, protesting against the formal tunic that Rodwen was trying to get him to wear. She smiled to herself, listening as her sons' childish voice declared that the clothes would just end up muddy and torn. Rodwen replied that he had to wear them anyway.
"Mommy's awake." Celin, her youngest, whispered quietly to Rodwen. Since her son had noticed that she was awake she opened her eyes and sat up.
Caleniel could not help but laugh at the scene before her. Celin sat patiently on his bed, already dressed in his dark green formal tunic. Nínael, however, was half-dressed, his pale blue tunic was in Rodwen's hands while he stood on the other side of the room, his arms crossed stubbornly across his chest.
"Nínael, I know you don't want to wear it, but you have to." She softly scolded him.
"I'll wear it if Daddy wears one like it." He pouted.
"Daddy's not coming with us." Her tone became stern.
"Then I'm not going either." He dropped to sit on the floor.
"If you put it on I'll go talk Daddy into coming."
He pouted, but allowed Rodwen to finish dressing him.
"Mommy, can I come with you?" Celin jumped up and raced across the room to attach himself to his mother.
"Yes." She laughed softly, picking Celin up. She nodded to Rodwen and left the room.
Caleniel did not expect Legolas to be asleep, so she decided to check his study first. She found everything, as it had been the previous night, except one thing. Legolas was not there.
She didn't know where else to look, so with a quiet, exasperated sigh, she took Celin back to his room and went to change into a new dress.
Caleniel entered her room; not caring if the door almost slammed shut behind her. She crossed the room briskly and opened the closet. Quickly she found what she was looking for, an elegant, yet simple, blue dress.
A loud noise jarred Legolas awake. He tried to ignore it, to drift off to sleep again, but he found that he could not. He could hear someone walk across the room and open the closet. As the person passed again he caught a faint scent. Lavender.
Immediately he opened his eyes and rolled onto his back. He could hear Caleniel behind the changing screen that had been moved from her wrecked room to his when they had married
"Caleniel?" He asked quietly. Caleniel froze at the sound of his voice.
"Yes." She asked cautiously.
"We need to talk."
Caleniel sighed quietly. She finished dressing quickly and stepped out from behind the screen. Legolas had sat up and was now sitting on the edge of the bed. Caleniel did not say anything as she sat in the chair across from him. She raised an eyebrow expectantly.
"I'm sorry about last night. I know you, Nínael, and Celin are important. It's just that there is a lot that needs to be done."
"I understand that." She told him. "What I don't understand is why you can't take a single day off every now and then to spend time with your family." Caleniel stood and moved towards the door. "We're going riding, then we'll probably have a picnic. You're more than welcome to join us." With that said, she left.
She knew she had been a little harsh in not listening to him and giving him a chance, but she was sick and tired of his excuses. If he was serious about trying to patch things up between them, as he seemed to be, than he would join them, if not, who knew?
Rodwen was waiting outside the door when she left the room, Nínael and Celin were running around the hallway, laughing.
"Are we ready to go?" Caleniel asked brightly.
"Yes. Elvellaswen decided not to go."
"Alright." Caleniel said thoughtfully, grabbing Celin as he ran past her and swung him up. He giggled uncontrollably, wrapping his small arms around her neck. "Lets go then."
Nínael had stopped playing when Caleniel had grabbed Celin. He looked at his parents' door expectantly, waiting for his daddy to come out and join them. When Caleniel started down the hallway, he pouted.
"Where's daddy?" Caleniel turned to face him, about to answer when the door opened.
"I'm right here." Legolas picked the dark haired boy up.
"Are you gonna come with us?" The boy asked excitedly.
"No. I've got something I need to do first." Legolas told him while he settled the boy in his arms. "I'll join you later." He ruffled the boys black hair. He set Nínael down,smiled at Rodwen, and went off in the other direction, completely ignoring his wife.
Legolas went straight to his study after he left Caleniel and his children standing in the hallway. He had seen the disappointment in his sons' eyes; the same disappointment had been in Caleniels eyes. He wanted to join them, but his father had asked him to meet with him and Elrond. He could only hope the meeting would not take to long.
When he got to his study, he found them already there, waiting for him.
"How have you been Legolas?" Elrond asked him as he moved to sit at his desk.
"I've been alright, Lord Elrond." He smiled kindly at the elf.
"How are Caleniel and my grandsons? I heard they were going riding today." Thranduil watched Legolas closely.
"I just left them a few moments ago, they were preparing to leave." Legolas replied carefully.
"Why didn't you go with them?" Elrond asked. Legolas hesitated.
"You said you needed to talk with me about something important." He responded finally.
"Sometimes family is more important than your responsibilities as a King." Thranduil replied cryptically. Legolas looked back and forth between the two, confused.
"Why don't you go spend some time with your wife and children. I think we can talk about this at another time." Elrond smiled knowingly at Legolas.
"Alright." Legolas agreed, still confused. Thranduil waved Legolas away and began a quiet conversation with Elrond. Legolas smiled and left the room, heading towards the stables.
Elrond chuckled lightly when the door was closed behind Legolas.
"Do you think it will work?" He asked.
"I hope so. They belong together." Thranduil sighed. "We can only hope they work out their problems."
Elrond nodded in agreement.
Legolas reached the stables at the same moment that Caleniel was about to mount her horse behind Celin.
"Caleniel," he wrapped his arms around her waist to stop her from moving.
"Legolas," Caleniel turned as best as she could to hug him.
"Wait for me," he whispered in her ear before letting her go and slipping into the stables. He returned a few minutes later with his horse.
Caleniel smiled happily as he mounted his horse and took Nínael from Rodwen. She mounted her own horse as Rodwen approached her.
"Have fun," was all she said, but she said it with a knowing smile.
"Thank you, Rodwen," she laughed, "I know we will." Caleniel turned her horse and started down the forest path with Legolas following closely behind her.
Several hours later, after a merry picnic in a clearing, found Caleniel in the shade beneath a tree in the same clearing, watching as Legolas made a makeshift bow and then tried to teach Nínael how to use it.
She laughed as, after an hour of practice, Nínael tried to clumsily shoot an arrow at a tree. Somehow, he managed to shoot the arrow farther than Legolas had thought he could, but his aim was off by some five feet.
"He takes after you," she told him with another chuckle.
"Really?" He laughed with her. "Since when has my aim been that far off without a good reason?" Caleniel smirked at this.
"What about that time when you shot Gimli?"
"My aim was off, but not that far," he grimaced. Caleniel acknowledged this response with a soft, happy smile while she glanced at the late afternoon sky.
"We should start back now."
Legolas looked at Celin, who lay sleeping on a blanket near where Caleniel was sitting before he nodded in agreement.
Preview of Chapter 3- Ultimatum.
"I don't want to argue with you anymore, I don't have the heart for it. However, if you do not learn where your priorities should be, then be prepared to lose something. Whether it's your family or maybe a little respect is your choice."
End of Preview