Disclaimer: I own the evil demon armies of psychotic penguins that are out to destroy the world of broccoli, but not any of this.
AN: Sorry for the horribly late update, I've gone a wee bit crazy trying to figure out how to word this, it gave me no end of trouble. Oh well… And btw, ya'll should check out Aurehen's stories, Too Much Darkness in a Day, and A Brother's Safety. The first one is completed, and the second is just begun, hurry, go catch it! WAIT… come back, read this first…
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Thranduil surveyed his people happily. They danced around the clearing, rejoicing in the forest around and the twinkling stars above. It was one of the few times a year when the elves could safely feast and sing inside the forest without worry.
The relative safety was brought by a new trick, developed by elves skilled in the arcane. The clearing was lit normally, with lamps and fires, but a spell was placed around the edge of the clearing, warding orcs and spiders. If any such creature got too close, the lights would extinguish, plunging the clearing into darkness. The elves would then be able to flee from the intruders.
The spell was still on trial, but the few times before, it had performed well. As a result, no elf was required to bring the more cumbersome weapons, carrying only concealed daggers.
"A well and joyous festival, Thranduil." The king turned and smiled.
"Aye. It has always done wonders when my people are cloaked with worry." He accepted a goblet of wine from the laden table and passed one to Elrond.
They raised the heavy goblets in a silent toast and drank. "The stars are almost at the correct height. The ghost stories will start soon. If, in fact, they are just stories."
Elrond glanced around in interest—or maybe suspicion. That sounds like something one of my sons would say. Speaking of which, you haven't seen them have you?"
Thranduil shook his head. "Nor mine. Not since—well, you know." He stifled a laugh. "I will never forget the look on Legolas' face. Pure shock. I don't know if anyone has ever done something so spectacular back to him."
Elrond laughed. "He may as well get used to it. Especially if he insists on covering them with food. They are rather reluctant to let someone get the best of them. I did tell them to behave, and if something winds up getting broken I will make them replace it."
Thranduil waved a hand. "Don't worry about it. As long as they don't thoroughly destroy the palace. I rather enjoy watching prank wars. From afar, of course."
A horn sounded, and the music stopped. Everyone turned toward the far end of the clearing where an elf stood, hand raised for silence. "Deep in the forest, there lurks an ancient evil…"
And so the stories began.
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"Are you sure about this?" Elladan looked nervously at the tree in front of him.
"Of course! Come, there is nothing to worry about. The trees are quite safe."
"What about the spiders?" Elrohir countered. "And --well…"
Legolas leaped up and grasped a thick branch. Hanging there he asked impatiently, "Well, what is it? Spit it out!"
"Well… it takes great balance to tree-hop, right? And, you've got to admit, you're not exactly—graceful."
The wood-elf dropped back down to the ground, eyes flashing. "You've been talking to my Ada, haven't you? I am not clumsy! So I trip a little more often than the average elf, that's all!" Almost under his breath, he added, "Honestly, to hear Ada talk, you'd think I spend more time on the ground than upright."
He turned and climbed the tree quickly. Reaching a thick limb some 15 feet above the twin's heads he stopped and made an exaggeratedly flourished bow. "Now, look, I've been doing this since I was 50, and it's perfectly safe! You're not afraid you can't keep up are you?"
That did it. Elladan practically flew up the trunk, Elrohir close behind. "We have trees too, you know." The elder huffed. "I bet we could beat you there."
Legolas half-smiled. It seemed the twins had a bit of competitiveness in them. Of course, he mused, if the table incident is anything to go by. "If you knew where we were going."
Running lightly along the branch, he leaped, a good 5 feet over to the closest tree. That was the longest jump you would ever have to make in the forests of Mirkwood. The trees grew so close together, they intertwined, creating a sort of path through the trees.
Perhaps if Elladan and Elrohir weren't so preoccupied chasing after their friend, they might have noticed an extra shadow skipping above them. Moving so silently and lightly that the branches did not even shake, the shadow followed, keeping up easily.
Lights began to permeate the gloom of the forest and the prince sighed in relief. Though he would not admit it to anyone, he disliked the forest at night. Well, more exactly, it disquieted him. The trees seemed to shed friendliness and pull on cloaks of evil.
Trees were more or less good things at heart. Of course there were grumpy ones, and yes, some willows were apt to smack you with their whip-like branches, but most of them had good temperaments, and to feel a tree push contact away instead of embracing it was very creepy.
"Okay. Can you hear somebody talking?" A double nod. "That's Deladri. He's the main story-teller. His favorite –and everyone else's- is the Delu Laith. He will tell it last. That's when we go."
"So, we just sit here…"
"Yes."
"In the dark creepy forest…"
"Yes."
"Listening to ghost stories?"
Legolas turned indignantly. "Look, Elrohir, if you're too scared, I'm sure you can go and cuddle in your Ada's arms."
Elrohir bristled. "I'm not scared. I just have this feeling… the trees are kind of… you know ominous, don't you think? I feel like I'm being watched."
Legolas glanced around sharply. Tease as he may, the forest was not a thing to take lightly. Shifting silently into a standing position, he moved higher into the branches, hoping that Elrohir was just being silly.
A quick scan of the forest at a different level assured him that nothing was lurking about. But a nagging thought tugged at his mind, and he reluctantly rested a hand against the trunk and tried to slip into the slower time frame in which trees thought and acted.
What he felt shocked him. The tree was blocking him from accessing its mind. It was hiding something.
He tried once more to get the tree to open up, and caught a split-second glimpse of the tree's personality. It was terrified.
The prince dropped back down to the twins, startling and embarrassing them. "Well, well, aren't we jumpy? We have to move."
"You would jump too if you'd been listening to a story about a dark elf who drops from the trees and strangles his victims."
Legolas stopped dead. "That was low, Elladan. I do not look like a dark elf!"
"Sorry."
It was not often you heard Elladan apologize so sincerely, but it had been a very offensive implication.
"Come on, we must not stay here. Something's out there."
Elrohir stared hard at the prince. "Are you just trying to scare us, or are you actually serious?"
"I'm being serious. And besides, Deladri is starting the Delu Laith. We have to be ready. I want to see the looks on their faces."
"Delu Laith. Deadly Spirit. You have way too much time on your hands."
"Well, I have been locked in my room for the past four days. Now supposedly, the spirits take over your body, turn you into, the walking dead, I think. And they use you to perform great acts of evil, usually killing and such. That's the shortened version. And what makes it worse, is the fact that it might be real. There's actually been several stories that fit the description. What?"
Elrohir shook his head. "Your poor Ada."
Legolas snorted. "Speak for yourself, I worry about Elrond's health. I'm sure that twins are worse than one, especially when they have such great capacity for… mischief."
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Thranduil shivered slightly. Deladri and his stories. The teller had a great gift, the king reflected. Too bad he used it to terrify everyone to death, using smoke and slight magic spells to enhance the mood.
"—and they would continue, with great caution. Once or twice, records have been found documenting instances where the laith would openly revolt, taking control of the elf's body and begin its brief but deadly reign.
"One of the advantages of the laith, it would often take control of a well-liked elf, therefore making others reluctant to kill it."
A disturbance of the smoke near the top of the trees made every elf look up, sure it was another special effects trick. That sureness evaporated quickly as the smoke swirled, and a figure dropped to the ground stiffly. Every dagger came out of their sheath, and the group waited tersely for the person to reveal itself.
"Hold! Do not throw your weapons, I repeat, do not throw your weapons!"
Every eye flicked to the king, who was peering through the mists with a mix of apprehension and fear.
The figure moved forward, walking stiffly, yet silently. The elves relaxed a degree as they recognized their prince. But his blue eyes were deathly cold and ruthless. In confusion, some elves half raised their weapons again, but were reprimanded by the king.
"Legolas, what is wrong?"
Legolas did not reply, but walked forwards, eyes dead set on his father's face. He held a knife close to his side, the edge red with blood.
The tension was broken as the bushes rustled and the twins came racing out, faces filled with terror.
"Ada! Ada, watch out! Don't get close to him!" Elrohir gasped, apparently out of breath from his long run. "He attacked Elladan!"
Elladan waved his father off, face pale. "It's all right Ada, just a scratch. He scared a hundred years out of me, that's all."
"Why did he attack you? Where have you been?"
Legolas had stopped moving, though his eyes remained firmly on Thranduil. The king did not pay any attention whatsoever to Elrond's interrogation, he was busy searching his son's face for a flicker of recognizable emotions.
The prince moved forward, knife raised. Thranduil held the elves off with a raised hand. He would not allow them to strike down his only son, even if it meant sacrificing his own life.
What had happened? Why was Legolas acting in such a manner? Unbidden, the story Deladri had been relating rose to his mind. The spirits that took control over the bodies of unsuspecting elves…
No! Not until the dagger driven by his son's hand entered his heart would he believe his son lost. "Hold your daggers." The words demanded respect and immediate obedience.
A harsh voice, entirely unlike Legolas' soft tone grated from his throat. "Why would you not kill one who stands before you, threatening your life?"
"I would rather die than watch my son expire in front of my eyes."
Thranduil spoke these words proudly, knowing that they rang true with all his heart.
The prince was momentarily distracted as his eyes flicked to the twins. The corner of his mouth gave the smallest twitch, then returned to normal. "Well then, I—" he stopped short, raising his dagger menacingly, tensing muscles in preparation for his attack, "suppose you'll…"
Again, the elf's eye flicked to Elladan and Elrohir, and this time, something just short of a grin took his face before he brought himself under control again—barely. "I suppose—"
A sound suspiciously like a snicker escaped him. Fighting a grin, his voice cracked helplessly on the last syllable.
Dragging his eyes from the scene of apparent madness in front of him, Thranduil spared a quick glance at the twins, who were making the most awful faces behind their Ada's back.
The prince dropped the dagger and sat down heavily on the leaf-carpeted ground, laughing for all he was worth. "I almost had him!" he gasped out. "And you and your grimaces—"
The tension broke. Thranduil swooped down on his son, giving him a mighty hug. Then he swiftly stepped away and smacked Legolas soundly on the back of the head. "You little fool! That was really one of the dumbest things you've ever done! What if someone had thrown their weapon at you? You would have been killed!"
"I wasn't going to do anything that bad!" Legolas protested, climbing back to his feet. "I just wanted to give you all a scare! It would have worked better if some elves had kept a straight face!"
The twins snickered, although, when they caught sight of Elrond's face their expressions quickly changed from glee to obvious regret.
"What's on your knife?" Thranduil asked resignedly.
"Berry juice. Really Ada, you ought to have caught on to that particular trick by now!"
Thranduil buried his face in his hands. "Apologize, Legolas. You frightened everyone, you owe them an apology."
"I frightened you, you mean." Legolas muttered, low enough only for his Ada to hear. Straightening, he spoke in a clear carrying voice. "My Adar is right. I am truly sorry for any fear or alarm that I have caused my people in the past minutes. As I have been told many times, it is time I grew up and stop causing so much trouble."
A titter swept through the 'audience', strengthening as, unbeknownst to their prince, Elrohir silently crept up and sprinkled flower petals in Legolas' hair.
"Again, I am sorry for the inconvenience. Now, as a peace offering, I think Ada mentioned a barrel of Lothlorien wine earlier."
A great cheer rose from the elves and much laughter followed.
"You're very good at that." Elladan remarked.
"I've had years of practice. Ada, I need to speak with you in private."
Thranduil followed his son off to the side, out of earshot. Quickly, Legolas told him of the tunnels beneath the palace, his and the twin's excursion, and the mysterious voice with orcs at it's control.
Needless to say, the king was not exactly in a believing mood. In less than five minutes Legolas had called the twins over for support, (not surprisingly, it didn't help much) given a word-for-word recount of the conversation he had overheard when he first ventured into the underground labyrinth, and in the end, he still had to drag his Ada back to the palace to prove it.
Much to his annoyance, the twins decided to come along too. They were enjoying Legolas' difficulty in getting the king to believe him. Elladan at one point had mentioned something about the elfling who cried 'orc' and had gotten a so sharp a response that his ears tingled.
Legolas' temper was fast approaching breaking point.
"Ada, look, you can't tell me you haven't ever wondered about these tapestries before. Have you ever just stared at one and seen a picture appear out of the swirls? No? Well, try it sometime, it's quite eerie. Now, look, when you pull the hanging aside, and press this little… where is it?"
The twins snapped to attention and ran their fingers wonderingly over the smooth stone wall. "Ada, I swear, it was right… here."
Legolas slumped in defeat. He highly doubted that his father would believe him now, especially being pulled away from the festivities and all. Yes, there goes his face, turning that odd color of pink again…
"Not funny, Legolas Thrandulion! Your actions tonight have been way out of line. You are lucky that I will allow you back down to the woods at all! Don't even think of talking back to me, it will only serve to further my displeasure of your behavior."
The king made to sweep from the room, then paused, looking thoughtful. "Oh yes, Valamas would like to see you tomorrow at nine sharp. He requests that you bring your weapons and a certain amount of alertness."
The king exited the room in haste, that barrel of wine from Lothlorien would need his 'approval', before it could be distributed. And the Lorien elves did make a good wine.
Legolas fell backwards onto his rumpled bed.
"I can't believe he didn't believe you! Actually, I don't blame him, but, still, this is very important and—and how could it have disappeared like that? Legolas?"
The prince was ignoring Elrohir's babbling, his hands covered his face in dismay.
"It's all right, we'll convince him later—"
"That's not it." Legolas' voice was hollow. "I do not wish to meet that heartless elf so early in the morning. It will completely spoil my day."
The twins exchanged confused glances. "Legolas, shouldn't the weapon's master be the least of your worries?"
"Absolutely not! He may be the best warrior in Mirkwood, but--. Never mind. Come, there is still much fun to be had. I believe I mentioned something about Lothlorien wine…"
"But Legolas, you shouldn't stay up all night, you're wanted at nine sharp!"
The prince paused, looked Elladan up and down. "If I did not know better, I'd say you are channeling my naneth. Stop it!" He turned and raced out of the room. His voice floated back, "Besides, perhaps I can claim forgetfulness. Over-consumption of good food and drink can do that, you know…"
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AN: I originally planned to make this chappy twice as long, but I believe I shall wait until I get rid of insomnia, which is the cause of the badly-written chappy you see here. I do apologize, I had planned for this to turn out somewhat different, but I think this is the best that can be done under such circumstances. I felt really guilty about not posting for so long so I sat and typed this up.
And by the way, I have no idea if Lothlorien wine really is as good as I make it out to be, it was the first thing that came to a very tired mind, so please go easy on me. Also, about the magicked clearing, I am just speculating on when this particular 'technology' came into play, I have no idea how it is truly crafted. Now, where's my hot cocoa….
The authoress would like to thank: (since I'm being all proper and such) ;-)
Arialas: Well, -scuffs foot- this hasn't been exactly often, has it… yes, most of the passageways are underneath the palace. There are several that extend a ways out into the forest though… ooops, no one's s'posed to know that yet. As for the orcs, it will all become clear…
KerowynGreenleaf: thanks, I liked that one too!
A. NuEvil: oh good, happy to hear it, yes it does sound better with the A. s'OK, I don't mind, although I thought I'd lost one of my reviewers for awhile… I really liked the last couple myself… oh yes, plenty of trouble.. –rubs hands gleefully-
Romen: Revenge is the sweeter thing of life… thanx!
werewolflemming: now I feel bad cuz I haven't done my oath justice… must work on that. Mad love for the crazy disclaimers. Lol, yes poor Legolas, and as for the stranger, that's a key part…
The AmazingTechnoColoredRingwraith: Did I get all the CAPS right? Lol, pro chefs indeed..
darklink231: here it is, tho not as fast as I wish it was… sigh
Haldir's Heart and Soul: Them? Mellow? As if! Lol, thanx!
Elladan of Rivendell: Thank you so much for the praise, ooo, better not get too dependent, as I'm not dependable… much…
The Lauderdale: Hoo boy, big order… I hadn't realized just how much I have to figure out… I hope I won't disappoint you! Aahh, that's what a quarrel is, I knew it was related with a bow somehow.. Thanks for the age tip, I will definitely keep that in mind as I like my stories to be as accurate as possible. As a matter of fact, if I weren't so deep into this particular line, I would go back and change it right now, but I will definitely use in other stories, thank you so much!
Aranna Undomiel: Oohh, I don't know, I'm a big fan of food fight's and such, you may actually get to see more of it. As a matter of fact, that's a very high possibility. Yes, dark, very unpleasant. –shudders-