I wanted to address a few things that reader earthdragon(cool name!) said because it may or may not be what you've been thinking. First off, I have written this story as a stand-alone, so a prologue is not necessary. In fact, and this may be a bit bold, but you will understand everything by the end and why it happened. Second, this is not meant to be a thriller, hence the genre. But it will deliver the angst you all want while being thriller-like, I suppose. Though, fluffy moments are a must sometimes. This is for two reasons, but I will only speak of one. Legolas is a child of nature, and especially in his younger years he was near animals a lot, so including that in the story may have spoiled the thriller aspect for some of you, but it was in-character for Legolas to do and necessary to include.
Finally, the twins did NOT say that their father whipped them (I don't know where you could have read that) only that he tried to throttle one of them—which you heard Elrond mention—and grabbed one of them roughly. I admit it was tempting not to have Elrond do something slightly more terrible to the twins.. you know, to make it more realistic and ratchet up the angst. But I realized it would be out of character. Even afflicted with shadow sickness, Elrond was able to somewhat control himself and reign in that aggression. I feel this is most true to his character.
On a happier note, we hit the 40 review mark! Thank you to all the awesome people who reviewed the last chapter and made this milestone possible: AraneltheSilvan, Nurayy, earthdragon, MariaJulietBituin, Nina, leelee202, and margie-me. Enjoy the next chapter!
Chapter Eight: The Worst Punishment
~LOTRLOTRLOTR~
Sullen flames suffocated by shadow danced across stone, the striking of footsteps a thunderstorm in the cavernous bowels of the palace.
So it was that the Elvenking entered the dungeons. But not the usual dungeons. No. No light, save that of the cold light of the torches along the pathway, existed. Prisoners sent here were rarely elves unless they proved a great danger to others. This was because it was practically a death sentence for them. Without the light of the sun and the calming touch of nature, an elf started to become severely agitated, even with the plant life placed outside their cells. If a prisoner's stay extended to months, the stone surrounding them made them go mad.
The oppressive atmosphere affected every elf, even those who stood guard. Although, there was a stronger force inside the Elvenking that kept him from being affected by the prison of stone enclosing him in its grip. Purpose.
The twin sons of Elrond would not know madness; it was beyond what they deserved. But they would learn a lesson that would never fade, even with time. With this thought, Thranduil's stepped into the dungeon, the ambient lighting allowing him to barely see his two prisoners. One was lying on the cot tucked into the far corner while the other paced the remainder of space. Both of them immediately snapped to attention when they noticed his presence.
"Where's Lord Elrond?" Elladan questioned, flinching when dark eyes sought him out. Elrohir stopped pacing.
Thranduil said not a word, standing in place and emotionlessly staring at his two prisoners.
The twins began to wish that their ada had come instead. Murderous glares were better than no emotion whatsoever. It was downright horrifying to see the Elvenking staring at them that way and they longed for when he would speak.
But minute by minute ticked by without so much as a throat clear or a blink, and the twins were growing more and more anxious as a result. Then, a single word cracked the silence in two, like an ominous and equally unexpected bolt of lightning.
"Why?"
Elladan was the first to speak. "Thranduil—"
"You have lost the privilege to address me by name," Thranduil replied icily.
Elladan cleared his throat. "Sire, I swear..."
Thranduil rounded on the one who spoke, eyes narrowing. "You swear? Do you think your promises mean anything to me?"
"We were not going to harm him, we only meant to frighten him," Elladan defended, his voice wisely never rising.
"That information is a comfort," Thranduil replied apathetically, absently running his finger over a fissure in the stone. "You know, Legolas told me what you were going to do to him. At the time I thought his imagination had run wild, but never in my wildest dreams would I ever imagine that you both could do something so cruel and deplorable. Over what, a secret. Something you should have never told him. But instead of blaming yourselves for your utter stupidity, you blamed my son."
"Lord Elrond cannot bring himself to even look upon you." he continued. "I can barely stomach the sight of you myself, but I am not here for myself. I'm here for my son, who, at this moment, cannot be found."
Both twins stayed silent, which irked Thranduil even more than if they had spoken.
"Let me make one thing clear. The only reason I am not having you bound to a stake and lashed is because your father begged me for clemency on your behalf. But if I find out my son ran into the forest because of you, I will break that promise." Legolas was not yet skilled enough to take on the dangers of the tainted forest. If he were to venture into it, the king was certain the next he laid eyes on his son would be through a cocoon of webbing. Thranduil shoved this thought from his mind.
His words garnered a reaction, but only one of the twins seemed to even hear him. The other was just staring blankly ahead, not offering any kind of response. Well, he was about to procure one from him.
Thranduil dug into his pocket for the key and unlocked the cell door. "Follow me," he told them, and brought the twins over to the table and two chairs he had especially brought in, all in the vicinity of the cell. The twins looked at them in confusion.
Thranduil noted this confusion and lifted one of the chairs, putting it out of view. "Which one of you held the knife to my son's hand?"
"I did." There was no hesitation in the voice that spoke and not a drop of remorse. Elrohir was about to take his seat, but Thranduil stopped him.
"Then you will remain standing. Elladan, take your seat." Thranduil watched the twin do just that and then freed his sword. The normally quiet hiss of metal was a reckoning in the stone cavern.
"W-what are you going to do to us?" They both spoke at once, Elrohir looking positively ashen next to his brother who was genuinely afraid.
Thranduil ignored them, and pulling out a small stone, he made sure the twins had a good view as he scraped it several times over the edge of his blade. Back and forth. Back and Forth. Once this had been done, he appraised it, tilting it against the dim glow of the light. Satisfied, he put the stone back into a small inner pocket in his sleeve and stepped forward.
It was then that the twins noticed the roll of bandages at the far corner of the table.
"Please, sire! Don't do this," Elladan said in a hushed tone. "I know we messed up, but surely this grievous transgression does not warrant us to be maimed?"
Thranduil grabbed them roughly by their shirts, the fabric yielding to his hands, voice almost a growl "How many times did my son beg and plead with you to spare him? How many times?"
Thranduil let them go, ignoring their downcast faces. "That's what I thought." He tried his best to ignore Legolas's screams in his mind and spoke again. "Elrohir, for assisting your brother in this heinous act, you will hold down his hands."
Elrohir blanched, understanding shining in his eyes. "But I didn't assist, I held the knife! You can't-"
"Oh, I most certainly can, and in accordance with the law, I will. And if at any point you try to release him, I will prolong his suffering." Thranduil knew that watching a loved one in pain was worse than feeling it yourself. In this way, Elrohir would suffer far worse than his brother.
Elrohir swallowed and nodded, giving his brother a silent apology even as tears welled in his eyes.
"Please, King Thranduil," Elladan spoke up, his voice hoarse, "I will no longer be able to fight with a blade if you do this."
"That is not my concern," Thranduil replied coldly, gesturing to the other twin who hesitantly gripped his brother's wrist. "Don't worry, the sharp blade of my sword will cut cleanly through and lessen the pain, unlike the blunt dagger you threatened to use on my son. And unlike Legolas, you at least will have the small comfort of your brother."
Hope entered Elladan's voice. "Then if you knew the blade was blunt, you know we could never have used it on him."
"I am only aware of such a detail because your father informed me of it. But Legolas could not have ever known. His fear was real. And now yours will be."
He turned to the other twin. "Elrohir, I want you to bend all but one of his fingers and then hold him absolutely still."
Elrohir did so, still making perfuse apologies with his eyes. He held Thranduil's gaze, the fire that had been there earlier, extinguished.
"Please, Elladan did nothing but hold him down. I am the one who held the blade to your son's hand. I beg of you, punish me instead."
Thranduil ignored the pleas and carefully placed the sword over the singular appendage. He would not need any practice swings. He spoke one final time. "Don't worry, you can just grow it back." The wince from Elrohir told Thranduil that the cutting words had their desired effect and he raised the blade, bringing it down with all of his strength.
Elladan screamed in pure pain.
Unknowingly, Elrohir screamed in time with his brother, his body shaking with sobs. He did not hear Thranduil's voice telling him to release him and continued to kneel down on the ground, holding his brother the best he could.
Elladan clutched onto his brother hard, sobbing into his shoulder as he cradled his bleeding hand near his chest.
"How could you do such a terrible thing," Elrohir whined, gently rocking his brother in his arms. "Elladan did not maim Legolas in any way. Now he will never be able to fight again. You have ruined his life forever!" Elrohir exclaimed, lifting his head away from his brother's. But the Elvenking was no longer standing there.
"I cannot b-believe our..father would allow this. We are truly a-lone," Elladan said.
Elrohir only cried harder. "Even the king has left us."
"He did what he c..ame here to do."
The bite left Elrohir's voice and he stroked his brother's wet cheek. " Will you allow me to bind your hand, El?"
The nod against his shoulder was all that Elrohir needed and he picked up the bandage, unrolling a decent amount of it before tearing it into a manageable strip ."Let me see your hand."
Elladan pulled his hand away from his chest, though slowly, taking his time and wincing at the movement.
"It's alright, take all the time you need," Elrohir said, and patiently waited for his brother to extend his arm, which trembled violently.
"I'm so sorry, El, this is all my fault. It should have been me." He paused. "You know, I am not even afraid of ada knowing what we did anymore."
"You don't think he will punish me, do you?" Elladan asked shakily.
Elrohir gently grabbed his brother's shoulders, meeting his eyes. "You have been punished enough, even he will see that."
"But what if he doesn't? What if he hurts me again, Ro?"
"He won't because I am going to hide you. That way he will have no choice but to punish me alone. Once I finish wrapping your hand I will help you to your bed and give you a strong sleeping herb that will dull the pain. I will not leave your side, and when you awaken your... stub will be stitched and you will be somewhere safe until I can come for you. I do not know what work you will take up when we get home. Frankly, I do not want to go back there. After the wound has healed over I think we should leave this place and go to Lothlórien. The Lord and Lady of light will not turn us away and we never have to see our father a-" A gasp interrupted any further words.
"What is it Elladan?" Elrohir asked. "Is the pain worse?"
"No, it's my hand... look at it."
Elrohir wiped his own eyes. "I know it looks ugly now, but it will look much better when I stitch you," he responded.
"No, look!" Elladan showed his hand to his brother.
Elrohir's eyes blew wide. "Y-your finger's... they are all fine? But.. but how?"
"I do not know. I felt the blade penetrate my flesh. Did you see it?"
"I could not watch, but I heard you scream."
"It was agonizing," Elladan admitted. "But now I feel nothing. What did he do to me, Ro?"
Elrohir touched the long split in the wood carved right near the area where his brother's hand was. "I believe I know."
Author's note: The threat of a punishment can often be worse than the punishment itself. Would you say that the twins have thoroughly been punished and learned their lesson?
Next update: Friday!