"Don't forget to rest your thumb on your chin," Legolas admonished as he watched Kari aim for the target. How many times would he have to remind her? It had been three years and still she would pick up these bad habits.
"You never rest your thumb on your chin," Kari retorted as she adjusted the taut bow so that her right thumb was now resting under her chin. She hated this confined stance, but she also had to admit that she was much more accurate.
"I think I liked you more when you were a polite little girl who respected me rather than this impertinent nuisance," Legolas teased in response.
Kari scoffed. "You are a terrible liar," she replied.
Legolas just laughed. "Fine then. When you've shot as many arrows as I have, you don't have to put your thumb under your chin," Legolas replied.
"How many arrows have you shot?" Kari asked, releasing the arrow and watching it hit the apple. She smiled and looked up at her teacher, her friend, for approval.
He nodded proudly and went to retrieve the pierced fruit from the tree. "Well, I am nearly three thousand years old and I learned archery when I was but a few hundred years old. How many arrows do you think that is?" he asked as he pulled the arrow from the fruit and tossed it to Kari.
She caught it easily, but scrunched her face. "Legolas! It's all sticky!"
Legolas laughed at the child. "Well, next time you'll have to pierce its stem. That way it won't be sticky."
"But that'll be quite hard," Kari replied, licking the juice from her hands and taking a bite from the apple.
Legolas shrugged. "It wouldn't be any fun if it wasn't a challenge," he said as he pushed the side of her head affectionately with his fingers.
Kari continued to chew her apple as she walked around the field looking for lost arrows. "So you've probably shot over a million arrows," she said.
"You're still thinking about that?" Legolas said from across the field as he gathered up arrows. He hadn't raised his voice, but Kari's sensitive hearing picked up his words easily.
"Yes, it's important," Kari replied.
"I would say a million is a conservative estimate," Legolas said.
Kari huffed. "I'll never be able to shoot a million arrows in my lifetime," she mumbled to herself sadly.
Legolas heard her despite the soft voice she used, but he didn't have the heart to respond.
Her eyes were straining to read the book, but she couldn't stop now. She was so close to finding out the answer. If she did well on this test, she would finally be able to become a real apprentice to a healer, not one of the children who just took classes sitting at a desk. She would be working with patients, trying to find cures for their ailments, and making medicine. The thought of making a real contribution to Rivendell spurred her to continue flipping through the old, smelly book for the answers to this test.
She closed her eyes briefly and rubbed them gently. She wondered if her eyesight would deteriorate with age like other mortals' did. If it did, she wouldn't be any use in archery.
A knock on her door jerked her out of her contemplation.
"Come in," she said.
Legolas entered carrying a large, rectangular box. "Still studying?" he teased.
Kari groaned. "I must finish this," she replied unable to hide the stress in her voice. "If I want to become an actual healer instead of just some girl who knows herb lore, I must to well on this test."
"You are the smartest twelve-year-old I know. You will do well, I know it," Legolas praised, trying to ease some of the tension.
He hated how hard Kari worked. If she was not practicing archery with him, she was studying to be a healer. She rarely had any fun, the only time being during the occasional festival or dance or party. But she did not have many friends, or at least close friends. She never just ran around like a child should.
Anytime he would mention his concern, she would say something like, "Legolas, I don't have an eternity to do all the things I want to do," and Legolas would not have a proper reply for a statement like that. Kari knew this, no doubt.
"I'm the only twelve-year-old you know," she said, not removing her eyes from the book.
"True, but that does not change my statement about you being the smartest I know," Legolas replied cheekily.
Kari tried to suppress a smile but couldn't. She got out of her chair and sat next to him on her bed. "You are distracting me," she said, but her tone showed she didn't mind.
"Well, I have something for you. It just arrived from Mirkwood, and I thought you would like to see it as soon as possible," he said, handing her the large box.
Kari's eyes lit up. "What is it?"
Legolas handed her the box and watched as she opened it up quickly. Her eyes bulged, her mouth dropped open, but no words came from her lips. Legolas took great pride in eliciting that sort of reaction from the usually collected girl.
"You can touch it, you know," Legolas teased. So far Kari had just been staring at the open box.
"It's just…oh goodness," she said quietly and her fingertips traced the full-size adult bow in the box.
"It'll be a bit big now, but you should grow into it in a few years. It should be better than the one you're using now," Legolas explained. She had outgrown the small bow Elrond had given her a few years ago and had been using one of Aragorn's old ones since then, but it was time that she get a new adult size bow of her own.
"I do not mind at all," she whispered as she continued to trace the small branch-like patterns of the bow.
"You can hold it. It will not break," Legolas teased.
Kari shot him a stern look before returning her gaze to the contents of the box. The bow was made of such fine wood that Kari could not even identify. Since Legolas said it had come from Mirkwood, she assumed it must have come from Mirkwood wood. She finally picked up the bow from the box and tested its weight and balance. Lightweight but sturdy.
"It's flawless," she said in awe.
"You think I would give you something that wasn't?"
Kari couldn't help but blush. "It must have cost quite a bit…"
Legolas looked at Kari peculiarly and burst out laughing. He laughed so hard that he collapsed back on her bed, unable to stop laughing.
"What is so funny?" Kari asked, annoyed.
"I know I tell you to treat me like you would treat anyone, but I am the Prince of Mirkwood. Cost is not an issue," he explained.
Kari blushed even more. She forgot, she always forgot. She never saw him acting regal, so how was she supposed to constantly remember he was royalty? She scolded herself for her stupidity.
"Of course," she mumbled. "I just...you don't seem to be…I mean…"
"I know, Kari. I like it this way. But I also like giving you nice things," he said, trying to lighten the mood.
"Thank you, Legolas. It's lovely. Let's try it out right now," she said eagerly as she leapt off the bed.
"I thought you had studying to do," he said, his eyes looking at her large stacks of books.
She shrugged. "I'll study when the sun goes down," she said as she led him out of her bedroom to her adjoining room so that she could change her clothes in private.
"You did not even ask me if I was available to practice with you," Legolas pointed out, a teasing glint in his eyes.
Kari looked at him skeptically before playing along. "Oh, My Lord, Prince Legolas of Mirkwood, would you do me the honor of accompanying me outside for a bit of practice with this fine new bow My Lord has given me?" Kari replied with an overly exuberant bow.
Legolas attempted to look bored and contemplative. "Alright, I suppose," he replied as though she was a great nuisance.
Kari laughed at his response. It had been her first real laugh all day.
Author's Note: Thanks for all the reviews! I love the feedback and the support. And I know writing reviews, especially extensive ones, can take time, so I really appreciate the time you all put into responding to my story. I have written out most of the chapters already, so updates should be relatively regular.
Some concerns were raised in the reviews: First, Kari learning archery at six and being a relatively peculiar little girl. I worked at a summer camp last year and six year olds can be surprisingly good at archery given a smaller bow. Hopefully Kari's character will become more apparent as the chapters progress and she gets older. Secondly, concerns that Kari will be a Mary Sue. Kari has flaws, she won't be super woman, but she will be different. I write how I want to, and I don't intend to make Kari perfect or more important than the other characters, but she is the main character of my story and I do have to write how I see the story.