Title: Until We Reach Valinor

Chapter 2: The Art of Teaching

NOTE: My apologies for reloading this chapter, but Lindahoyland pointed out a bloomer that had to be corrected. Thanks! This story is sequel to "A Teacher's Duty" and you'll have to read that one first to understand this one. Also, this story does not contain slash, and it is not a romance, despite what the first chapter might suggest.

SPECIAL THANKS to Orlando's Sweetheart for helping me pick the name of the woman, and the title to this story. Your help is much appreciated, thanks a lot.

Legolas remained in his room for the better part of the evening and the night, brooding about his impending 'doom', as he liked to refer to it in his mind. But after that he decided that he would stop thinking about it. He wanted to enjoy his last month of freedom as much as he could, and he would not let thoughts of the wedding mar his fleeting happiness. Yet they would frequently keep coming to him unless he immersed himself in something that would consume all his time and energy. Smiling in sudden decision, he donned a fresh tunic and breeches, and then walked swiftly out of his room.

There was something that would consume all his thoughts if he immersed himself in it, and it was luckily something that he hugely enjoyed doing. Teaching. Over the next month, he decided, he would immerse himself in making the best he could out of the children so they would graduate with flying colors. So he would take them for another, shorter, hunting trip. And he would train them better than anyone their age had ever been trained before, even himself. He would make successes out of them.

An hour later, after taking leave of his father, and making a bag of the few supplies he would need for the journey, he mounted his horse quickly and took off galloping towards the school, which he had established in a small palace two days ride from his father's palace. He smiled in remembrance of how he had converted its many bedrooms, chambers and dining rooms into dormitories with bunk beds. At the moment, the school housed seventy-one eager young pupils, a handful of servants, himself, and Elano, who was studying the art of healing and simultaneously helping him to run the school. And the wonder of it was; there was still space to house fifty more.

Next year, he reminded himself. There was still a month left before he could open his doors to a fresh batch of children. And he wasn't in any hurry, either. He wanted to relish every moment of the time spent with his first; and dearest batch of students. They had been his inspiration, and they were now his life. They were the reason for the school even being born, so he felt no shame in calling them 'dearest.'

He rode fast and hard, reaching the palace gates a few hours earlier than he had expected. He must have ridden his poor horse to death without realizing it. He patted it's neck in silent apology, and it looked at him with soulful eyes. He smiled.

His eyes traveled to the engraved letters on the plate above the gates. The Royal Greenwood Institute of Archery and Swordsmanship, it said in big bold letters. It always amused him because it sounded so pompous, and people who passed it bowed their heads, intimidated. Yet at most times it echoed with the laughter, chatter, mad whoops, and indignant shouts. It did not sound pompous or intimidating.

As the guards opened the gates for him, he dismounted and handed the care of his horse over to a servant and walked with hasty steps up the narrow footpath that led to the back door of the palace. No one ever used the main entrance; it was far too…majestic.

He entered and was greeted enthusiastically by Elano, who had seen his approach through a window, "Sir! You've been a long time. Nothing wrong, I hope?"

"Oh, just political matters," he said evasively, "It's all sorted out though." He forced a small smile and quickly changed the subject. "How have the children been? Did they give you any trouble?"

"Well, most of them were on their best behavior."

"Why, what happened?" Legolas said, concerned his emphasis on 'most.'

"Celin," Elano sighed, causing Legolas to groan.

"What did he do this time?" he asked, fearing something awful.

"It's more what he didn't do, actually," Elano said.

"What do you mean?" His alarm was mounting.

"Well, sir, he hasn't attended a single class since you left."

Legolas closed his eyes briefly. Ever since Aragorn had examined his ankle and extinguished his last hope of recovery, Celin had been very…depressed. Even though Legolas had told him time and again that he would personally train him to be a teacher in the school, his dream had always been to fight. And letting go of that dream hadn't been easy, despite the honor that accompanied being taught the art of teaching by the Prince of Mirkwood himself.

Yet he had attended his classes regularly. He was often obnoxious, unbearably rude to his classmates at times, and was always being pulled up by Legolas for various lapses in discipline. His archery and swordsmanship, once excellent, was steadily slipping. But his regard for his teacher always endured - which was why he was rude to his classmates, even sometimes rude to Elano, but never rude to Legolas.

He never shirked classes, ever. This was the first time…was it because Legolas was the only thing tying him to school? That if he was gone, Celin would go as well? Legolas tried to shake off this thought, because it was frightening. It was a huge burden to be the one and only thing anchoring a person to sanity.

"Someone's got to do something about that boy," he said at length, sighing deeply, "Have you tried-?"

"Of course, sir," Elano said earnestly, "He's my best friend besides Ivana; of course I've tried and tried and tried until I've almost swooned because of the whole thing, and it's still done no good. He'll only listen to you, sir, and even that with difficulty."

I was afraid of that, Legolas thought, with an inward grimace. "We'll work it out," he said, sounding more confident than he felt. "In the meanwhile, did you get the list of names of all the people who want to continue training next year?"

"Yes, sir," Elano said, his face falling, "There aren't very many."

I was afraid of that as well. Wonderful, just wonderful. I know just where this is going to lead. He watched as Elano rummaged in his pocket and took out a piece of paper, on which around thirty names had been scrawled in various handwritings.

"That few?" he asked, shocked, "Why in the world- what did their parents say to them!"

"For the boys that they are too young and should only join the army after they've enjoyed life for a while-"

"Well, they've got a point, but do they think I'd allow them do anything really dangerous at their age? They'd only get patrolling or something like that, unless there was a real emergency, which isn't the least bit likely! Really! Why they even sent them here in the first place is beyond me."

"For the girls it's-"

"I know; they fighting is a man's job. Girls need to stay home and cook and clean. Correct?"

Elano nodded, surprised by the sudden outburst. The truth was, Legolas was bitter about what Mirkwood had put Ivana through, and was now putting him through too.

"It's the same excuse each and every time," he said, unable to stop himself from ranting a little, "One of these days I'm going to change that law so that women can have some out of their houses for once!" he had spoken impulsively and without thinking, he realized, chagrinned.

"One of these days, sir?" Elano asked, mildly surprised, "I don't quite think the King would particularly approve of the idea. Or has he said something?"

No, but I certainly will, when I'm King. I might as well do a bit of good.

Something of what he was thinking must have showed on his face, for Elano was looking at him very strangely. "No, just wishful thinking, Elano," he said, trying to convince him that it was nothing more, "Let's have that list."

Elano handed it to him, and he read it and re-read it. He saw the names of Aurel, the Azverlet twins, and Linnor, the only girls who were still continuing. And then Pilinel and Elgalad, and many others, but Celin's name was not on the list. His head snapped up.

"Why isn't Celin's name here?" he said sharply

"Sir, you know why," Elano said, quietly.

"He can't give up like this! I must talk to him. Do you know where he is?" Celin was the best student Legolas had every laid his eyes on, and he didn't want to loose him like this.

"I'm afraid not, sir, but he loves to sit atop trees for hours on end. It's been a recurring trend over the last few days."

"Thank you, I will go and find them. Take care of things till them, will you?"

"Yes, sir."

…

"Celin! There you are!" Legolas was so relieved at seeing his truant pupil, that he felt all his worries fly from his mind. For a moment. Then they all came flooding back. "Why have you been hiding here?" he asked, slightly sternly, "It took me an hour to find you." In truth, he felt relieved that Celin had been on the palace grounds. He had been beginning to fear that the boy had actually run away.

Upon seeing Legolas, Celin slid down from his perch on a tree branch, and turned to face his teacher. "You should not have bothered, sir," he said quietly, "The other children need you more than I do."

Legolas frowned at the defeat in his voice. This was going to be harder than he thought, "Celin, how many times have I got to tell you not to talk like that?" he said, with genuine concern, "Just because your ankle is gone, it does not mean you can be of no use to the army. I have told you time and time again, I will personally train you to be a teacher. You can help me run this institute. I ask you, what is wrong with that? Why do you insist on acting as though it is taboo?"

"The truth, sir?"

"Yes."

"Then with all due respect, I think that you have forgotten something very important regarding teaching."

"What?"

"A person does not just become a teacher just by being good at swordsmanship and archery," Celin's voice rose and he spoke rapidly; he had clearly been battling with himself about this for a long time before he had tried to broach it with Legolas, "He has to be able to impart that knowledge to others in an easy, uncomplicated manner! And I don't know if I have that gift! Or even the inclination to use it if I did!"

Legolas opened his mouth to protest, but his words caught in his throat. Celin did have a point, he realized, he had forgotten that teaching did not just come like that. But then after a moment's reflection, he also realized that he didn't think he had that gift either, a year ago, when his father had asked it of him. But then with time…a lot of time, he reminded himself wryly; things had gotten better. Bit by bit.

He took a deep breath and said, slowly, "You are right, Celin. I had forgotten about that. I'm sorry."

Celin, who had been bracing himself for protests, was filled first with surprise, then admiration. He knew how much it cost a person of Legolas's social standing to admit being wrong to someone of his, and he was suddenly reminded why he respected his teacher so much.

"I'm sorry too, sir," he said, surprising himself with his own magnanimity, "I should not have raised my voice."

"No, you should not have," Legolas was forced to agree, for being a teacher at a school, he could no longer brush away Celin's disrespect as he would once have done, "But I understand why you did. You've been thinking about this a lot, haven't you?"

"Yes, sir."

"So did I, when my father first asked me to teach teenagers, my first reaction was a lot more dramatic than yours, but he being King, I could hardly say no. But I thought about whether I could teach or not. Whether I would be good enough-"

"But sir, you are good!" Celin exclaimed in surprise, "Even when we hated you the most, we always admitted you were a good teacher. You are able to put things in easier language for us so….easily. Why that doubt would ever occur to you is quite beyond me!"

"Thank you for the flattery, Celin, but you have to realize something," Legolas said fervently, "Something I learnt the hard way when I took you for that hunting trip. Teaching does not only mean being able to impart knowledge, it also means understanding your students on a deep emotional level. It was a hard lesson, but I now know why I could never make any real impression on you for so long. I'm not at all good with personal relationships, and I never have been, and that is why I always failed to be a good teacher. But you are, Celin, you are good with personal relationships. When you talk, the class listens. When you're upset, the whole class is affected. When you're planning a mad scheme to 'save Mirkwood' as you did six months ago, no one questions it. So in your own way, you too have the makings of a good teacher."

"I never thought about it that way, sir," Celin said, dazed as he pondered what his teacher was saying.

"I know you didn't. So I want to give you time to think about this and discover yourself. Next week, I'm taking all of you for another two-week hunting trip. Come with us, I'll arrange for you to practice teaching the others for the first time, and then you make your decision about continuing next year. Agreed?"

"I don't know what to say…"

"I promise that I won't try to change your decision after the trip, if you agree not to decide until after the trip," Legolas hoped he was making the right decision as he said it, but he knew he could not get Celin to agree if he did not promise this; "Think about it, Celin. Don't you owe it to yourself?"

"I…"

"Celin."

"Alright, sir," Celin said after a long moment, "I will do as you ask, but only if you promise, as you said you would, not to 'make suggestions' afterwards."

"I promise, but only if you attend classes regularly from now onward."

"I will, sir," Celin smiled sheepishly.

"Good," Legolas said, "I'm glad we cleared that up. But now I have to punish you for not attending classes these past few days. An extra hour of practice with me everyday till the trip starts, and you must also go to bed an hour early every night, again till the trip starts. That's fair, isn't it?"

" Si-ir!" Celin protested, but he was cut off by Legolas's firm, uncompromising voice:

"This is a school, Celin. Not just an impromptu class like it was a few months ago. We have rules now. I have to enforce them, and you have to keep them. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir," Celin conceded regretfully, and began to walk back to the palace, suitably chastised.

Legolas grimaced at his retreating back. Sometimes, even though he had started the institute, he wished it did not have so many rules.

…

TBC…

Hello! Awfully sorry I didn't post this sooner. I've been very busy. I'm a little stumped by the fanfiction world. The last chapter got 112 hits, someone actually added it to their alert's list, and guess how many reviews I got? One! I mean, seriously! If even a tenth of you reviewed, I'd be on top of the world!

Lindahoyland: Hello! Thank you for reviewing the last chapter, it was very nice of you. (Gives others a dirty look). I've been meaning to ask you something. You've read all four of my Aragorn-Legolas stories, that's Despair and Hope, Friend and Foe, A Truly Terrible Fate, and A Teacher's Duty. Would you do me a favor? Please rate them in order of preference, and give reasons for that too? I want to know where I went wrong with what so I can improve. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. This story may be about marriage, and friendship, but it'll always be about the kids as well. And they make a great backbone too! Thank you for the birthday greeting.

And yes, it was rash of Legolas to just decide to marry like that, but since one of my friends' marriages has just been arranged in a similar way (well not exactly similar- just that she doesn't know the guy at all, her parents are making them marry each other later on coz they're both of the same caste), I don't find it that weird. Besides, he can always say no if it's too bad. Thranduil wisely left the option open to him. Oh, and, I hope you don't mind, but I found that comment about hiding under the bedclothes and wearing a nightshirt very amusing, and am going to use it in later chapters. Ta! Happy writing!