Danedh-Amlung: Dragon's Ransom. The name give to the warriors who are selected by Thranduil every ten years to renew the pledge he made to Smaug, that no Elf of the Wood will raise a hand against the dragon. He did this to secure the Black Arrow. (story told in Black Arrow)

Chapter 2: The Feast of Wintergathering

Beneath the thick canopy of leaves that were just beginning to turn, it was dark, a thick deep darkness like velvet. It did not matter that the Elves could not see the stars, for around the clearing, flames leapt and danced from the bonfires which were lit at four places in the glade. Air, Fire, Earth and Water. The glass globe lights that were strung about the trees glimmered blue and silver for Air and Water, and red and green for Fire and Earth. It was the Winter-gathering and the Earth was turning to sleep, but the Elves danced and sang upon the smooth green sward and music was everywhere; different melodies strewn throughout the glade and throughout the many smaller glades where Elves feasted. And yet all streamed into one harmony, one Song.

The maidens had flowers wound through their hair and white gems glittered around their necks and were strung upon their dresses. Green gems flashed on the collars of the young men who danced between them, leaping and turning as the maids swayed and swirled.

At the head of the glade, the Elvenking sat on a chair that had been carved from the stump of an ancient oak blasted by lightning many, many years ago; the dead wood branches that stretched out had been carved like the antlers of a great stag, its bleached white wood like the white deer of the Wood. Thranduil wore a crown of autumn leaves and berries upon his golden hair that gleamed in the firelight like old gold coins, his eyes were slate green and laughing as bowls of wine were passed around from one hand to another and there was much laughing and singing and music. It was particularly loud and raucous from one table where the king's butler, Galion, was seated; here seemed to be even merrier, and there was rather more ribald entertainment than elsewhere. But this was the Wood, not the Valley, and here the Elves sang and laughed and feasted for a purpose- to keep away the Dark and to rejoice in the Song, which was strong, and green and thick in the air tonight.

Legolas was leaning against an ancient oak, half-tuned to its song, deep and sonorous and twining with the songs of the elves and other trees. It wrapped him in its deep green melody, and the harmonies twisted and whirled like the dancers he watched. He gulped a mouthful of wine from his cup; it was not the Dorwinion, for Thranduil would never let that be served so freely, but it was ample for a feast and mingled with the Song of the Wood. He felt quite warm and dizzy. He had fixed his gaze upon Tauriel, a Silvan maid, and was quite determined to dance with her. At last he saw that she was free of partners and pushed himself away from the tree when, in the exchange of partners, her hand was caught by one of the foresters. He was rather short for an elf but nonetheless handsome, dark-haired, dark-eyed with unruly hair and thick muscles.

Legolas gave a love-lorn sigh and and looked hungrily around the glade at the maids who gathered in little bunches if they were not already dancing. The dancers whirled around the glade, scooping up elves as it swayed from one side of the glade and then back again. Two of the other maids he had been eyeing up as well as Tauriel had already been snatched up by young men

'She always liked them short,' came a voice. His older brother and captain, Thalos, stood behind him, and pushed a second cup filled with wine into Legolas' hand, his dark head close to Legolas'. 'If she waits a little longer, she can have her pick of a troop of dwarves that have been wandering about in the forest. I have told Galadhon to keep watching them.' He grinned.

'Dwarves?' Legolas kept his eyes on the maids but he was curious about the dwarves. 'What in Smaug's bowels are they doing here in the Wood?'

'Only a small party travelling East. They are on the path. Harmless I think,' Thalos said dismissively. 'In all likelihood they are on their way to the Iron Hills,' he said, his lively green eyes darting over the faces of the dancers. He lifted his cup to a few in recognition and they smiled or waved, for the handsome and dashing second son of Thranduil was well liked amongst the Wood-elves, and his subtle wit and diplomatic skills had saved many an Elf from Thranduil's displeasure. 'Although it is strange to come this way but perhaps they seek to trade in Esgaroth on the way. They were having trouble with the river according to Galadhon. One of them had fallen in and the others were carrying him. He is the fattest dwarf Galadhon has ever seen. Anglach of course, is completely besotted.' Thalos gave an amused smile and poured more wine into Legolas' cup. 'Now come, I am waiting for you to be drunk enough to make a fool of yourself as you usually do. For I cannot get drunk until father is quite cross with you and spares me.'

Legolas winced slightly at the idea of Anglach besotted with dwarves; he did have some strange ideas and he was very soft-hearted. But just then there was a burst of loud cheering and laughter from Galion's table and Legolas was distracted by the loveliness of one of the older women who sat beside Galion, laughing and pouring wine inot Galion's cup. He was grinning at her lecherously.

Thalos turned his head towards the noise and smiled. 'Galion will be under the table by now. He is sure to have Dorwinion.' He spoke fondly for Galion had almost brought them up when Thranduil was so immersed in his own grief for a while that he could not spare a thought for anyone, not even his sons. It had been Galion who wiped their tears and bandaged their knees, and Laersul who told Thalos stories of gallantry and daring, and who rocked a small Legolas to sleep when Thranduil could hardly bear to look at him. So they forgave Galion anything.

Legolas sighed again and looked deeply into his cup as if there was an answer there. 'Why is it that every time I fall in love, someone else comes along and whisks her off from under my nose.'

'And it is such a long and handsome nose!' Thalos tweaked his brother's nose and laughed at his feigned outrage. 'You did not really want Tauriel, you just wanted some company and you have me now.' He pulled his hand through his long, dark hair and batted his eyelashes coquettishly, ridiculously, and Legolas found himself laughing, as he always did with Thalos.

'Idiot,' he said giving his brother a light punch on the arm. But he could not help but sigh again, a little more heavily, for his heart ached a little in his chest and he wondered if he really had been in love with Tauriel. She was very pretty and spoke her mind and did as she pleased. Legolas had really liked her. He was just wondering whether he should tell the other maids his heart was broken so they would feel sorry for him when the dance came to an end and a new one immediately started up. A whole new wave of dancers took the floor and the clearing became a whirl of greens and browns and greys, with gems gleaming and flashing the firelight.

'No one will ever fall in love with me,' Legolas complained half heartedly, wondering where Miriel was right now and looking around for her. 'I will have to go afar to find love I just know. Lothlorien perhaps. Or Imladris. Except I hear they are as tight-buttoned and tight-laced as a dwarf's wallet,' he added glumly, for he realised that Miriel was standing with Losgar, a young warrior who had just returned from his first patrol. 'Orc's bollocks, I will have no chance there either,' he declared in disgust, glaring at Losgar. 'I will have to go to Lothlorien.'

'Adar will never allow you to go to Lothlorien!' Thalos laughed. 'Galadriel will gobble you up!' He made a silly face that had Legolas laughing. 'And spit you out because you will taste horrible.'

'Well he'll never, ever, let me go to Imladris,' Legolas sighed, for he, like all the young warriors, knew the stories of Glorfindel of the Golden Flower, of the Sons of Thunder, Elrond's own sons who rode out on errantry to revenge their mother, and he wished he could meet these heroes from the ballads and tales.

'Not after Esgaroth,' agreed Thalos, more seriously, for it was he who had been in command at that unfortunate event.

'Honestly, I have paid for that over and over,' Legolas knew he was whining but could not help it. Would that never be laid to rest? Even though he had been Danedh-Amlung* and Thalos had not. Though he would never mention that to Thalos for that was a very sore point. 'And you know it was not my fault.'

'Hm.' Thalos stuck his nose in his goblet so he did not have to answer that one; it was ambiguous at best and Thalos had actually been there. A small group of maids strolled past them and Thalos bowed with a flourish and Legolas gave them a dazzling smile. The girls giggled and walked on.

Then several things happened at once; Thalos was laughing and Legolas had raised his cup to his lips in fake misery whilst watching a young woman opposite with merry, lustful eyes, when quite suddenly there was a commotion on the other side of the glade and Legolas turned to see a company of armed dwarves bursting into the clearing.

Legolas' hands went instantly to his knives and he leapt forwards even as the fires went out in glittering sparks, the globes dimmed and everything plunged into darkness.

All song and music had stopped and everyone melted into silence and darkness and were utterly still for the King had cast a spell of warding the moment the dwarves had blundered into the clearing. Legolas, Thalos and others went swiftly, silently to the King's side, for of course, the elves of Mirkwood could see very well even in pitch dark. It was only the dwarves who were blinded by the King's enchantment and they reached out to each other, fumbling and shouting in panic. Other warriors who were at the feast quickly circled the dwarves, waiting for the King's command.

Legolas was aghast and turned his eyes to the King. Thranduil had risen to his feet and now held up his hand for silence and stillness.

Suddenly Galadhon and his patrol appeared from the trees looking harassed and very worried. Anglach was there of course and Legolas caught his eye and winced, for this must be the patrol Thalos had put in charge of watching the dwarves. They would all bear the brunt of Thranduil's anger now. Thranduil flicked his fingers at the dwarves, who were still stumbling around blindly and shouting, blundering into trees, and clearly gestured to Galadhon that he was to drive the dwarves away. Legolas joined the warriors, feeling sorry for them and he shot a sympathetic look at Anglach, who looked particularly miserable.

'Galadhon set me to watch them,' Anglach muttered quietly as they prodded and poked the dwarves away from the clearing and in the direction of the path. 'They were all sitting down quite quietly and then just suddenly ran off into the Wood. This is the third time they have done this,' he said anxiously.

Legolas frowned at him. 'Do you mean they have attacked other feasts?' He said it quietly but there was no need for the dwarves made so much noise and commotion that he could have shouted himself and they not have heard him. To Legolas, it sounded like they were shouting 'Dorinorifilikil!" and he wondered at the strange and ugly language that was dwarvish. There was a word thrown in here and there which he thought sounded like 'bilbo…' but if it was Westron then it was heavily accented and it was only dwarves and he did not really care much what they were saying.

'You wouldn't think they could move so quickly with those little legs,' Anglach said a little defensively. 'But they can. Why in all of Arda did they leave the path? They must have been warned about the Wood, how it twists and turns the unwary and they get lost unless the King wills it otherwise.'

'They left the path so they could attack us!' Legolas said grumpily for it seemed to take forever to move any of the dwarves out of the clearing. Legolas could almost feel Thranduil's fury building. It seemed he was not the only one, for Galadhon quite roughly manhandled two of the dwarves out of the clearing and towards the path.

'They weren't attacking,' Anglach whispered insistently, gently herding the youngest looking dwarves. Carefully he guided them around a fallen tree. 'There are only thirteen of them and a smaller one. I am not sure what he is. Maybe he is a she?'

Legolas was not really interested in the gender of any of the dwarves; they were squat and ugly and very very hairy. 'Thirteen? That is not enough to defeat even one Elf let alone the whole stronghold.' He frowned as the young dwarf stumbled against him and fell back into the clearing.

'No, they were not attacking anyone.' Anglach said again. He dodged in front of the dwarf and lightly turned him back towards the trees. 'I think they are lost and hungry.'

Legolas glanced sideways at his friend; Anglach had always had an odd interest in Dwarves and now he actually looked sorry for them. 'They do not seem able to forage either,' Anglach continued as if he was writing a study or treatise on dwarves. He had suddenly seemed to forget just how much trouble he was in and had a concerned expression on his face. 'They keep saying how hungry they are.'

At that moment, Thalos joined them looking concerned. 'I told Galadhon to watch the Dwarves. They had crossed the river and were supposed to be safely on their way,' Thalos whispered a little crossly. It was unusual because Galadhon and Thalos were friends in the same way that Anglach and Legolas were friends and he rarely said anything critical - but Thalos had been in the East Bite for a long time, longer than either Anglach or Legolas, and now Legolas could see that there were the signs of strain around his eyes.

'Why didn't they keep to the path?' Legolas said aloud, wondering why this group of Dwarves would venture so foolishly into the Wood in the first place when it was full of spiders and wargs and orcs, and then if they strayed off the path, they braved Thranduil himself. He would not do that, he was sure. If he were a dwarf he would stay well clear of the Woodland Realm.

'Well they showed immense courage and determination to not abandon the fat one who fell into the river.' Anglach had the same indulgent and mistaken look on his face that Legolas knew all too well. 'Don't you think…'

'No.' Both Legolas and Thalos spoke at once.

'But…'

'No. Anglach, do not do anything. Remember the last time? It was not dwarves I know, but bats. The King was not pleased,' Thalos said warningly, shoving a dwarf ahead of him. 'Legolas?' he appealed.

'It took ages to get rid of all the droppings out of my hair and clothes,' added Legolas gloomily. 'And then there was the spider. You don't know about the spider, do you, Thalos? I am not clearing up after a party of dwarves, Anglach, whatever you think.'

Anglach opened his mouth to speak but something on the other side of the glade caught his eye and all the delight and curiosity fled from his face to be replaced with misery. 'I have to go,' he said suddenly and Legolas followed his gaze to where Galadhon was beckoning silently, his face angry. Thranduil's mouth was set in a thin line and Legolas felt sorry for Galadhon who would feel the King's displeasure keenly even though it was clearly Anglach who had erred; but Thranduil somehow never blamed Anglach for anything and tolerated his foibles with an indulgence Legolas could only dream of.

The elves carefully steered the shouting, blundering dwarves from the clearing and away, so their voices grew fainter and fainter and it seemed the waiting forest swallowed them up. Legolas winced at the thought that the spiders would soon be drawn to where the dwarves were. He glanced at his father's face but knew better than to speak. No one liked dwarves, except Anglach of course. They were greedy and did not care for living things, only cold stone and plunder. And they had attacked not just this feast, but three others...But even so, he did not like to think that the spiders would have a feast of their own on the hapless group. And perhaps Anglach was right and the dwarves were only a party of merchants after all.

With a small circle of his hand, Thranduil lifted the warding spell and the globes filled with light, the fires ignited and as if of their own accord, music sprang into the air. The elves were subdued at first but Galion sent wine quickly around the clearing and before long, there was merry singing and harping and dancing on the green again.

But Galadhon and Anglach were still before the King. And he was not pleased.

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