A/N: Hi, hello. Six and a half years post most recent update and I'm back… I was reading my old fanfics for kicks and giggles and decided I wanted to know how this one ends. And guess what? I found an outline I'd written out six years ago detailing the rest of the story chapter by chapter while clearing out old notebooks. So, I really have no excuse not to finish the story; not when everything's already all planned out.

Just know: My writing style has changed a lot in those six years, so while I have tried to match the style of previous chapters, things may be different, and dialogue may come across more modern.

This chapter is very short, I know, I hope you enjoy, nonetheless. The following ones are longer, for sure! and get ready… Things are about to get crazy.

CHAPTER SIX

Silvery-red blood pooled under Celeblas, spreading out through the cracks between the stone floor. The crown prince would not die, the healers here were too skilled. Legolas didn't want his brother dead anyway, only to send a message, a warning.

His ears picked up soft footsteps. Most everyone was outside or bustling around the kitchens and the gardens in preparation for King Thranduil's celebratory feast. This was a lone elf. So long as there weren't multiple guards around, he had no problem with a confrontation with a singular elf. The better to get his point across.

None of you are safe.

He slung his bow over his shoulder; the dagger was better for close quarters.

The steps out in the hall slowed. He heard a blade being drawn. A warrior then, a common elf would not have noticed the smell of blood. Although maybe the king had upped the training regime for the mere citizens of his realm, after his supposed death and the encroaching darkness.

Legolas sat on his brother's desk, flipping the dagger around. He had no need to hide.

The library door opened slowly, the hinges hardly making a sound. Merillas stepped through, dagger of her own at the ready, grey eyes flashing right towards him and Celeblas. He smirked as her eyes widened and her lips parted in shock.

"Why hello, sister."

Blood drained from her face, but Merillas was always the hardest and most inclined towards conflict of the three. Her grip on her blade hardly faltered, though her voice certainly did. "Legolas…? What- What happened here?"

"Exactly what it looks like. Miss me?"

The muscles in her jaw bunched. Her eyes were as expressive as only an elf's could be, but steeliness showed through all of the fear, the shock, the worry, the confusion as they flicked over him. She didn't waste time on trying to piece together how this could be like Celeblas. She cut right to the chase. "Something happened to you. You are all wrong."

Legolas shrugged. "Experiences change people. I must say, I am hurt that everyone was so quick to assume my death. The Silvan elves truly are not as bright as the Noldor."

"Something truly drastic must have happened to rob you of your light, brother. When I heard you and smelled the blood, I thought an assassination attempt, but kinslaying? That is far worse."

Legolas laughed and Merillas shivered. "Fear not, Celeblas won't die. I'm not here to kill anyone. I'm here to help. There is something brewing in these woods; something that you will not be able to handle on your own."

"So, you come in here and stab your own brother? I'll not be taking advice from you. Guards!" She yelled.

He sighed, picking up the orc knife from the desk. Light footsteps come running down the hall. "If you change your mind, I'll find you." He smirked at her stone-cold face and the blade she threatened him with. "With how incompetent you all are so as to think both me and Cossidh dead when we are both very much alive… I imagine that won't be long from now. Goodbye, sister."

He vanished.

Merillas's jaw gaped when Legolas just… disappeared. But she didn't have much time to dwell on it, not when the guards came bursting through the door and saw Celeblas. Two immediately fell to their knees to apply pressure to his wound as the others surveyed the room, weapons at the ready.

"You, go and get some healers," Merillas ordered. "You, send word to the king that his son has been injured." The two guards dashed away. To the guards at the ready, she said, "Put down your weapons, there is no longer a threat here. But up security. We need more guards in more places."

"Milady, what happened?" One of the guards asked, eyes darting around the room, looking for signs of a conflict. There were none – none aside from her brother on the floor. Her own blade lacked any blood, so it was obvious she didn't do the stabbing.

If Cossidh and Legolas were both still alive, who was the elf they'd buried? And what had happened to them both? There had been so much sorrow. How could they have made such a mistake? The wood elves were accustomed to death, unfortunate as it was – they knew how to identify dead bodies. Where was Cossidh? And Legolas….

Merillas clenched her jaw, meeting the guard's eyes. "We need to find Mithrandir."