To live in these woods was to be a good hunter because if you were not you were the hunted. And there were now many things that might hunt to eat you.
If you were anywhere in his woods, he could hunt you.
He says he is friends of the trees, the forest whispers to him.
Well, he is no friend of mine.
The leaves ruffle themselves, then he is no friend of ours.
It was admirable that he left so much of those traveling with him on the outside of the forest, but that did not mean Legolas and his patrol trusted him.
The wood elves silently spread out around their visitor, it was not often elves they did not know arrived with no notice. Or at least none that he had heard about.
The forest swallowed what little sounds they made and discreetly shifted their branches to better conceal their elven companions. They could have followed him for hours if they chose too, could have hunted him.
But then the new elf and the few who entered the forest with him came to a stop, "I assume by now that somehow Thranduil is aware of my presence here, and I would like to take the opportunity to announce myself as Lord Celeborn, hopefully still a friend here."
The wood elves stilled, they knew who he was by name of course but not by sight. Legolas had been told that the two of them had met when he was much younger but he had no memory of it. He has been told that in Dorath Celeborn and his father had been good friends.
"What is your business here?" Farlen asked, his voice purposefully booming, still perfectly hidden amongst the leaves.
Lord Celeborn seemed unbothered, "Pleasant conversation, hopefully."
Legolas was curious about the new elf, someone he had heard many stories of but had no memory. Early he leapt from the tree he had been perched in closer to one right by the side of the road, and using one of the limbs swung himself onto the Elven Road. "The King is busy, may I take a message?"
Looking at his face now he had some vague recollection but nothing specific. Lord Celeborn's memory, on the other hand, seemed perfectly intact, "Hello Legolas, I must say you ended up much taller than I had expected."
"There is a theory amongst children in the mortal villages around our forest that if they hang from tree branches long enough, they'll stretch longer. Perhaps they're right."
This response seemed to delight their visitor and he let out a merry laugh, "Doesn't explain your father though."
Legolas shrugged, "Sheer force of will." This too seemed to delight their guest. "So what is your excuse then, Lord Celeborn?"
"The rage I bottled within me every time somebody used me as an armrest fueled an additional growth spurt."
But now the Prince was done with pleasantries but was not unpleasant. "What business do you have with my father?"
"Your father has been ignoring my letters and the rest of the world for too long, and I intend to give him no choice but to see me. I have known him for thousands of years and I know we cannot wait for his stubbornness to die away."
Legolas looked him up and down thoughtfully, and then the few that had come down the road with the same scrutiny, "You will ask nothing of him? No resources, no military aid? Because the answer will be no."
Celeborn held up his hands in defense, "I wasn't lying when I said I came here for pleasant conversation."
The Prince stared him down with such intensity that the Lord's wife would have been proud of. And then he smiled a seemingly genuine smile, "Welcome to Greenwood."
"Thank you, it is good to be here again after so much time."
Lord Celeborn was more relieved than he would admit when the Prince seemed to readily accept him. He had been thoroughly warned by both Elrond and Gandalf that if he did not surpass Legolas' inspection there would be no getting into the forest. There would be no talking to Thranduil. And he only had one shot at convincing him.
He hadn't believed it at the time, his head still so full of images of a tiny and loving elfling. But that was a long time ago, and he had grown. After seeing him, Lord Celeborn was fairly certain Legolas would have thrown him out without a second glance.
Good. It was good that Thranduil had somebody to love and care for him as much as he did for others, perhaps things here were not quite as bad as he thought.
