As the young Prince turned his sorrowful eyes glanced at each of his three friends in turn.
Luinsil was clearly uncomfortable that not only he, but a dwarf had also witnessed such a personal scene between his King and Prince and the advisor found himself fidgeting with his book. It left him feeling slightly awkward and almost embarrassed for his Prince and he was unsure of what to say or do especially in the presence of Gimli. And so he merely looked back as his eyes filled with pity.
There was no pity however in Sindadur's steady gaze, merely understanding and silent support. The old warrior had suspected all along that the presence of the dwarf would somehow manage to upset the emotional reunion and he cast an angry accusatory glare in the creature's direction.
But Gimli was oblivious to the Captain's sentiments, for his own eyes were securely fixed upon his friend. It was in these deep brown orbs that Legolas was most reluctant to look. He was concerned as to what his friend was feeling right now. Would there be anger ? resentment ? Would his father's attitude be something which would eat away at the dwarf until he could bare it no more and eventually force him away ? Legolas did not want to loose Gimli as a friend and he feared this outcome greatly.
When their eyes did meet, Legolas saw in their depths sadness and guilt and they looked to him for forgiveness. He felt so ashamed, he did not want Gimli blaming himself for something which was clearly not his fault, Gimli was not to blame for his father's feelings, nor was he responsible for what happened so long ago. He only hoped he could convince his friend of this without having to reveal his family's past. He would spare his friend that knowledge.
It happened rarely in his life, but now he felt the weight of his emotions get the better of him and his once proud shoulders began to sag under the strain. He could look at his friends no longer and his eyes turned to the marble floor as his head began to dip forward.
The awkward silence stretched on, neither spectator knowing what to do until Sindadur spotted the young elf bite his lower lip as he was known to do in times of extreme duress and so he stepped forward and placed a comforting hand on the Prince's shoulder.
"All will be well Legolas," he whispered softly, "you know how he can be sometimes………I shall speak with him later."
To which the Prince looked up.
"Nay Sindadur, this is something I must deal with alone. It is my fault and it shall be up to me to make amends, though I thank you for your kind offer my friend" the young elf replied gratefully, resolute in his decision on what needed to be done.
The old Captain nodded in agreement, inwardly pleased at the maturity shown by his former charge.
"Very well, then by your leave my Prince I shall return to see if Galathil has released the patrol", he requested with a slight bow.
"Ofcourse my friend and I thank you once again for your company through the forest",Legolas replied.
To which the warrior merely allowed a small smile to escape as a memory came rushing back, he retrieved his weapons from the chest and began to replace each item into its traditional location with practised skill. He knew the dwarf was watching him closely and he could not help but feel slightly smug that he had surprised the stunted creature when he had produced a few "extra" weapons earlier.
But he did not speak to him, not trusting his tongue not to make things worse for his Prince and so he merely gave the dwarf a curt nod as he passed him.
As he left the great entrance hall he called back to the Prince.
"Remember our appointment my Lord, on the morrow, or I shall think you too afraid to face me", waiting for no reply he exited the palace.
Legolas smiled then allowed a small groan of self pity to escape knowing that it was likely he would be suffering from numerous bruises by this time tomorrow.
Seeing that the mood had lifted some what Luinsil offered to show Gimli to his sleeping quarters but the Prince thanked him, stating that he would take care of such matters himself and so the advisor found himself gratefully dismissed and he returned to his duties elsewhere, leaving only the two companions.
Gimli had still not spoken during all this time and when it looked like he was about to jump in and apologise, legolas stopped him before he could do so.
Raising his right hand to stop his friends words, the elf walked over to his friend.
"Let us get one thing clear before we go any further Master Dwarf, what has happened here is not your fault, I told you before my father has his reasons for not particularly liking your people but that has nothing got to do with you my friend, so I will not have you apologising for a wrong that is not yours," then he added more lightly, " there will be no doubt, plenty of time in the future for you to apologise for all your actual faults, should Middle-earth last so long !"
"Very funny elf!", the dwarf grumbled, feigning insult but he was secretly relieved that his friend seemed, on the outside at least, to be in better spirits. He hoped that whatever Legolas planned on saying to his father in the near future, that it would be enough to smooth things over while he was a guest here. He did not like being the one to force a wedge between father and son.
"Come my friend, it is time to take you to your lodgings" the Prince announced as he walked over to the chest and carefully handed Gimli back his beloved weapons and then proceeded to retrieve his own.
He led his friend down the corridor to the right of them.
As they walked, Legolas decided it would be best to give his father some time to adjust and then he would speak with him privately later, in the mean time he would show Gimli where he would be sleeping during his brief stay.
The silence stretched as the pair made their way through the corridors of Thranduil's stronghold. Each one wrapped in their own thoughts, the elf thought about what he would say to his father later and the dwarf pondered on what would be served at the evening meal.
As the elf quietly lead his friend to their destination they turned and entered a bright corridor carved out of the mountain. It had been hewn from the rock at a slight incline. It was decorated with lavish tapestries and painted silks, but what really caught the dwarf's eye were the numerous paintings lining the stone walls, hung at regular intervals between the fabric furnishings. They varied in size but were all of a natural theme ; depictions of various plants, creatures, particularly birds, trees and landscapes to be found within or about Mirkwood.
It is not enough that they be surrounded by trees outside but they must also have them inside, the dwarf thought.
However one painting in particular really caught his attention and he paused to look at it. It was a painting of the Lonely Mountain at sunset and it was truly beautiful. The colours were vibrant and Gimli felt as though he could almost reach out and touch home. It suddenly hit him how much he had missed his old homestead.
Legolas quickly realised he could no longer hear his friend's heavy foot falls echoing along the hallway and he turned around to find Gimli staring up at one of the paintings.
"Do you like it my friend ?" he asked the dwarf tentatively.
"What ?" Gimli asked, his gaze momentarily broken.
"I said do you like the painting ?" the elf asked again, pointing to the piece of art.
"Oh aye, tis not too bad I suppose, though it is hard to do the Lonely Mountain true justice" he stated proudly.
"Well my friend if you can bear to endure the injustice, you may have the painting" the elf smiled.
For several moments there was no reply as the dwarf stood mutely looking back and forth between the painting and his friend, unsure of what to say.
Finally "Nay Legolas I could not take one of your father's treasures, he might not appreciate it" the dwarf answered, shifting from foot to foot.
He truly appreciated the elf's kind hearted offer and really did admire the painting, more than he would care to admit but he did not want to antagonise the King further if it meant trouble for his friend.
"But these paintings do not belong to my father Gimli, they are mine" he said , gesturing humbly along the hallway.
"What do you mean they are yours ?" the dwarf quizzed, his curiosity piqued.
"They are mine, that is….. I painted them" Legolas replied so softly that the dwarf was almost unsure of what he had said.
"What ? You did ? When ?" came the barrage of demanding questions.
"Oh a long time ago Gimli, before I chose the path of a warrior" he answered as his eyes glazed for a fleeting moment as if caught in a distant memory.
The dwarf released a low whistle.
"You never cease to amaze me elf" he said looking some what bewilderedly up at his friend, "You never said you could paint" he accused.
"You never asked" came the elf's obvious reply.
The dwarf glared at his friend in mock annoyance as they resumed their walk along the corridor. Then Gimli's impatience prompted more questions to his friend.
"Durin's axe ! Must I drag every detail from you elf ? Tell me about these paintings of yours, how did you come to do them ?"
"It is not a strange tale elvellon, every elfling spends time studying a variety of arts and skills before coming of age. We study the healing arts, music and song, painting, woodcraft, spending fifty years or so at each discipline. My keenest interest lay in painting as you can see."
"Then what ?" the dwarf prompted after a moment of silence, clearly impressed.
"Then at the coming of age every elf must enter the service for a time. It is then that we perfect our fighting skills. We practice archery…"
"Naturally" the dwarf interrupted, rolling his eyes as he hardly ever saw his friend without his bow and quiver.
"Naturally" the elf agreed smiling, " and the sword and staff, knife skills, unarmed combat, ambush and patrolling techniques, tracking and hunting skills and so on."
"Hmmm, how long does this training last ?" Gimli asked curiously.
"Usually up to two hundred years" the elf supplied casually.
"Two hundred years in basic training !" the dwarf stated incredulously.
"Give or take a few years" came the honest reply.
Once again the great age gap between the dwarf and his elvish friend was brought to the fore front of Gimli's mind.
It was so easy to see the elf as a young lad, which in fact the dwarf was prone to calling him but it couldn't be further from the truth.
While Legolas was still a youth amongst his own kind, he was already much older than Gimli would ever be and the dwarf's life span was greater than that of any man's, save Aragorn.
Over the millennia his friend must have amassed a huge catalogue of skills and experiences and it suddenly hit the dwarf once more how very little he really knew about his friend. So he renewed his silent vow to himself to try and find out as much as he could about his normally tight-lipped companion, while he still could.
"So what happens once this mandatory service is completed" the dwarf inquired.
"Well then it is time to choose your path. A precious few decide to become healers, artists, musicians and craft workers but in these recent dark times the bulk of the elves decide to stay in the service and lead a warrior's life, just as I have… ah here we are" the elf paused and indicated to a large oak door.
"This my friend is where you will be spending your nights, I hope it meets your needs" he pushed open the heavy door with ease to allow his friend entrance, "if there is anything you need you have but to ask."
The room, much like the corridor was bright and airy both having been cut from the very wall of the mountain. It was a large rectangular room with a high vaulted ceiling. Ornately carved wooden beams, art work and tapestries decorated almost every inch of space.
There were four large unglazed windows directly facing the door, each one draped in the sheerest pale silk which billowed slightly in the gentle breeze.
Gimli could clearly see the tops of several trees growing just outside the windows and in fact a considerable amount of ivy had made it's way in over the mantle of each window and was growing contently inside the room.
To the left was possibly the largest bed Gimli had ever seen and he wondered if it felt as comfortable as it looked, to the right were several wooden storage presses and an adjoining private wash room. Though the floor was made from cold stone, several rugs were scattered around the room to provide extra comfort.
The dwarf had a fairly privileged up-bringing as his family were quite wealthy and well respected but Gimli was forced to admit to himself that it was simply one of the most luxurious rooms he had ever stayed in.
"Aye, I suppose it'll do" he said followed by an exaggerated sigh as though greatly put out and accustomed to much finer accommodations.
Legolas could only smile at his friend's reaction.
"Sindadur slept in this room for many years it is right next to mine" the Prince said, gesturing to the left, "so if you do decide you need something I will not be too far away."
The Prince did not miss the deep grunt and grumbled mutterings which followed the mentioning of the old Captain's name and he smiled. Ah yes, he thought, more alike than you know Master Dwarf.
"So tell me Master Elf why is it that this Sindadur slept here ?" Gimli asked as he moved further inside the room and began to place his belongings away.
Legolas followed him inside, making his way over to the bed where he gracefully sat down, relaxed and yet still poised.
"Sindadur was my protector and weapons tutor when I was younger, he was also one of my father's tutors and father wished him to continue on his duties in the palace when I was born, which he did unquestionably. He takes his duties very seriously so he always remained close by should anything……. unexpected happen."
"Oh I bet he was a barrel of fun to be around morning, noon and night !" the dwarf's sarcasm was not lost on the elf.
"He had his moments," Legolas replied in his tutor's defence, "still I would not trade my time with him for all the jewels in your beloved Aglarond."
The elf smiled as his friend's eyebrows strained to disappear into his unruly hair.
"Costly time indeed" the dwarf mused as he removed his elven cloak and the cache of weapons adorning his body and reverently laid them out on a near by press.
"Maybe but worth it , for if it were not for Sindadur's years of expert tutelage I would have no doubt passed to the Hall's of Mandos long ago" the young archer replied in earnest.
"Then indeed it is valuable time well spent my friend" the burly dwarf agreed as he removed his large helmet and carefully positioned it beside an impressive display of axes.
Next he removed his leather vambraces and gauntlets and unclipped his twin gold gilded rerebraces from his leather pauldron.
Despite the layers that Legolas watched his friend remove there were still more layers of armour and clothing underneath. He marvelled at how quickly his sturdy friend could still move in battle under all that excess weight, such obstructions would severely hamper his own style of fighting.
The elf decided it was time to leave his friend in peace for a while as he settled in and Legolas himself was looking forward to bathing in warm water for a change.
Suddenly the elf leapt from the bed as faint traces of a familiar smell began to enter the room.
"Ai Elbereth, she will tan my hide !" he cried as he made for the door only to be halted by Gimli's shouted question.
"And where are you off to in such a hurry without so much as a by your leave ?"
"Sorry Gimli but I must go to the kitchens with haste, there is someone there who will no doubt have heard by now that I am home and if I do not call on her soon I will be made to regret it my friend" the elf pleaded for forgiveness as he made to leave the room.
"Then wait for me Master Elf, any maiden who can strike such fear into a warrior's heart would be worth meeting" Gimli replied as he followed his suddenly flustered friend out of his chamber.
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Author's note: Hi all ! thanks again for all the positive feed back - yum 1 hope to have next chapter up by this Sat. or Sunday at the latest.
messenger of the ElvenKing; Hi and many thanks - if I can keep a Thrandiul fan happy, then I'm happy !
Kestrel of Valinor; WoW! Great review ! many thanks. yeah Legolas does have a gift for making people feel sorry for him ! clever elf !
daw the ministrel; Whew ! you liked it - that means alot ! I'm trying to add in a few little personal family touches here and there as I go along, hope you'll like them.
Alatariel narmolanya; hope you liked this chapter. I think Gimli is doig ok, but there are a few wee surprises lined up for him soon Re; Thranduil. "Sticks with legs" - yep! mind you there were a few LOTR actors who kind of fit that description too ! Hee! Hee!
The Balrog of Altena; Hi there ! and many thanks for your review, the more, the merrier !. Glad you liked Thranduil, he's one of my favourite characters and I wanted to do him justice, hope it worked out.