I borrow characters and setting from Tolkien. I gain no profit from their use other than the enriched imaginative life I believe he intended me to gain.

Many thanks to Nilmandra for beta reading this chapter.

*******

12. Home Again

With Galivion and Beliond close behind him, Legolas rode into the area in front of the palace and then slid from his horse as attendants came running to take the party’s mounts.  “Welcome home, my lord,” said one of them.

“Thank you,” Legolas said.  “Is the king still in the Great Hall?”  His father normally received his advisers and petitioners of various sorts in the mornings, and the sun was now almost directly overhead.  Legolas wanted to deliver news of his mission as soon as possible so that any unpleasant reactions from his father could be over and done with, and he could enjoy the remaining day and a half of his leave.

“He is indeed,” said the attendant with a faint raise of his eyebrows.  He glanced at his companion, who was holding Galivion’s horse, and they grinned at one another.  Legolas’s heart sank a little.  The look they had just exchanged suggested that the king was not in a good temper and was making life difficult for those who were so unfortunate as to actually have to venture into his presence.

Resignedly, he turned to Beliond.  “You do not need to come,” he told his keeper, and Beliond nodded.

“I will speak to Thranduil later,” he announced and led his own horse away, apparently not willing to trust him to any of the attendants.  Legolas wished again that he could be in hiding somewhere nearby when Beliond told Thranduil that the king should not have sent Legolas on a mission without him, but at the moment, he had his own problems.  He slapped at his cloak to try to rid it of the worst of the mud it had accumulated on the ride home and then glanced at Galivion to see if he was ready.  The adviser nodded and the two of them made their way across the bridge and into the antechamber before the Great Hall.  No petitioners waited there, which was a sign that Thranduil’s morning court was nearly over.

Even with the doors to the Hall closed, Legolas could hear Thranduil speaking. His father had not raised his voice – he almost never did – but he was speaking emphatically and clipping off each word.  “I want that bridge repaired immediately.  Hunting parties need to get north of the river, and they should not have to go five leagues out of their way to do it.”

Legolas could not hear a reply, but a moment later, a harassed looking Elf came out of the Hall and went out through the Great Doors without looking around.  “Has something upset the king?” Galivion asked one of the guards in a low voice.

“Yes,” said the younger guard with a grin. “Lord Eilian--”

“We could not say,” interrupted the older guard, with a glance at Legolas and a frown at his chattering companion.  The younger guard clamped his mouth shut, but his eyes danced with amusement.  Legolas groaned to himself. What could have happened?  When Legolas had left home two days ago, Eilian had been visiting Celuwen.  How could he have gotten home and landed on their father’s bad side already?  Legolas hated it when his father and brother were engaged in one of their all-too-frequent quarrels. He had never been able to understand why they could not get along when he loved them both and it was obvious to him that they loved one another.

“Shall I announce you, my lord?” the older guard asked, and Legolas nodded unenthusiastically.  He knew from experience that tension between Thranduil and Eilian could go on for days, so he might as well deliver his news now.

The guard opened the door and stepped through.  “Lord Legolas and Galivion,” he said and then withdrew again, closing the door behind him.  Legolas advanced part way into the room and then dropped to one knee, with Galivion beside him. Several courtiers hovered near Thranduil, who looked up from the dispatch over which he was scowling. Immediately, his face cleared, and he stood, motioned them to their feet, and then beckoned Legolas to him and advanced to embrace him.

“Welcome home, iôn-nín,” he said warmly.  “Mae govannen, Galivion. Come and tell me how things went in the settlement.”  He seated himself in his great carved chair and looked at them attentively.

Legolas drew a deep breath.  On the way home, Galivion had offered to make this report, but Thranduil had put Legolas in charge of the mission and thus Legolas believed he should be the one to tell his father about the tangled situation they had found at the settlement.  “We delivered the food,” he began, “and I believe that we were able to reconcile Anyr to the fact that we brought less than he had asked for.”  Next to him, Galivion nodded his confirmation of Legolas’s claim.

Thranduil smiled in satisfaction.  “If that is the case, then you did well, Legolas.”

Legolas felt a glow of pleasure, and then reluctantly, added, “There were complications we had not anticipated however.”

Thranduil’s smile faded, and he sat back in his chair looking wary. “What sort of complications?”

“The Elves in that settlement have apparently been cooperating rather closely with the Men who live in the village just outside the edge of the forest,” Legolas began, watching Thranduil frown at that news.  “They insisted on sharing the food we brought with the Men.”

Thranduil looked stunned, and then a flush began to creep up his neck.  “Are they fools?” he cried in exasperation. “There was not enough even to meet all of their own needs.  Did Elves who live close to our stronghold make do with less so that Men could eat?”

Legolas winced and then hurried on, trying to stem the rise of his father’s anger.  “The Men were in great need, my lord, and they formed hunting parties with Elves from the settlement in order to supplement the inadequate supplies.  Moreover, they offered to show their appreciation for Anyr’s generosity by giving the Elves some of the food from their fields at harvest time.”  He looked anxiously at Thranduil, hoping his father would accept the arrangements he had managed to make.

As if he had heard something in Legolas’s voice, Thranduil sat immobile for a moment, studying him.  His eyes flicked briefly to Galivion, who had stood silent during Legolas’s explanation.  From the corner of his eye, Legolas could see Galivion smiling slightly.  Then Thranduil looked again at Legolas.  “The arrangements sound equitable under the circumstances,” he said, and Legolas could feel the knot in his stomach easing.

“How much influence do the Men have on Anyr’s people?” Thranduil now asked in a businesslike fashion.

Legolas considered, trying to make sure that he gave his father his best judgment.  “It is difficult to say how much influence anyone has with Anyr,” he finally said.  “He is somewhat unpredictable. But I think that Anyr and the leader of the Men’s village are close friends. And, my lord,” he ventured, “I do not think that is necessarily a bad thing.  Anyr is not particularly good at planning for difficult times, and the Men’s leader seemed to be very sensible.”

Thranduil drew his brows together in a small frown.  “It would not be well if Anyr’s people were to attend to the wishes of the Men rather than to ours.”  Legolas bit his lip at this censure of his opinion, but he knew better than to argue.  Thranduil drummed his fingers on the arm of his chair.  “These settlements are a perpetual problem,” he finally said with irritation in his voice.  “I only hope they are not about to become more so.”

Legolas hesitated, unsure if his father was implying that his actions in Anyr’s settlement might have created more problems for the king.  If so, Legolas could not help it now. “My lord,” he pressed on resolutely, “there is another matter too.”  Thranduil looked at him sharply and waited.  “The settlers and the Men have been engaging in some unauthorized trading,” Legolas told him.

“They what?”  Thranduil’s voice had suddenly gone from vexed to menacing.

“I made it clear the practice was not to continue,” Legolas said hastily.

“I can provide you with the details of how much trading went on, my lord,” Galivion added.  “I think both Anyr and Crydus understood that it was to end and that they would be hearing from you about it.”

Thranduil drew a deep breath.  “Indeed they will,” he said with a glint in his eye.  “Have the details for me by this afternoon.” Galivion nodded.  Legolas momentarily considered telling his father about the thieves, but he had already laid out a string of unfortunate events, and it seemed to him that the thefts had nothing to do with the settlement really.

Thranduil looked from Galivion to Legolas. “You have done well,” he said, and Legolas could not help smiling at the hard-earned praise.  Thranduil smiled back at him. “Go and clean up, Legolas,” he said. “I will see you at mid-day meal.  And I will hear from you this afternoon, Galivion.” He waved his hand, dismissing them both.

In the antechamber, Legolas turned to grin at Galivion. “Thank you for all your help.”

Galivion smiled back.  “You are quite welcome, Legolas. My task was an easy one, for I would say you are a natural at diplomacy.”  He went on his way out of the palace, and Legolas went happily off toward his family’s quarters.

He was walking along the hall where his sleeping chamber lay when the door of Eilian’s chamber opened and Eilian and Celuwen came out, his arm around her waist and his face nuzzling her hair.  Legolas had not seen Celuwen since just before he came of age, but he certainly recognized her.  As he looked at the two of them so obviously on intimate terms, confusion swept through him followed closely by shock. What in Arda was Eilian doing? Thranduil would kill him if he was compromising Celuwen in any way, and in his own sleeping chamber in the palace no less!

Then Eilian lifted his eyes and saw him. “Welcome back, little brother!” he cried.  “I have been wishing for your presence.” Celuwen turned and smiled at Legolas, her face flushed but contented.  Something in her eyes caught his attention, although for a moment, he was not quite sure what it was.  Suddenly, enlightenment dawned.

“You are bonded!” he cried, astonished that it should be so but unable to deny the plain evidence of his own eyes.

“Yes,” said Eilian happily. “We are.”

“But, when?” Legolas was bewildered. “Were the ceremonies at Celuwen’s settlement?  I am sorry not to have been there.”  He was hurt that Eilian could have excluded him from such an important event.  “Could you not have waited?”

Eilian’s smile faded a little. “That is more or less what Adar asked,” he said dryly.  He sighed.  “Celuwen’s adar would not give his consent, Legolas, so we bonded without ceremony.”

Abruptly, Legolas realized what his father was so upset about.   Thranduil would see Eilian’s hasty bonding as verging on contemptuous of him and the rest of the family.  And his father’s speculation that the settlements might be about to become a bigger problem suddenly made sense too. Then, through his dismay, he saw the increasingly unhappy look on Eilian’s face as his brother waited for Legolas to say something, and he recalled the joy he had seen on it when Eilian had first looked up and seen Legolas.  Celuwen leaned back against Eilian’s chest, his arm still around her waist, and there was something about the sight of the two of them together that sent a stab of loneliness through Legolas, and a fleeting memory of Tuilinn.  Then he put his own desires aside and thought of Eilian.

Slowly, he smiled.  “It is about time,” he said, realizing that he meant it.  “I cannot ever recall a time when you two were not in love.”  He stepped forward to drop a kiss on Celuwen’s brow and then embrace Eilian and slap him on the back.

Eilian’s face broke into a broad smile. “Thank you, brat.”

“I need to clean up now if I am not to be late for mid-day meal,” Legolas said and went on down the corridor still marveling at Eilian’s news.

By the time he returned to the dining room, the rest of the family was already seated. The room was oddly silent, and the tension was obvious to him the minute he stepped through the door. “I am sorry I am late, Adar,” he apologized, but Thranduil simply waved him into a chair between him and Ithilden.  Legolas seated himself rather awkwardly.  Celuwen was sitting in his usual place next to Eilian, and Alfirin had moved around a corner to the foot of the table.

Alfirin began serving plates of fish and early spring greens.   The meal looked like a feast to Legolas, and he began to eat enthusiastically.  The silence caused him to look up from his plate and around the table, however.  Eilian and Thranduil had each accepted only small servings of the wonderful meal and were now picking at it dutifully.  Legolas grimaced.  They were both obviously tense.  Across the table from him, Legolas could see Eilian glancing occasionally at their father, evidently trying to gauge his mood. Thranduil was studiously ignoring him, which Legolas thought was probably just as well, given that Thranduil was silent and appeared to be brooding.

Alfirin had put a large serving of food in front of Celuwen, who was eyeing it doubtfully. Alfirin was eating in thoughtful silence, and Ithilden was the only person besides Legolas who was giving the meal the appreciative attention that Legolas thought it deserved.  Very little disturbed Ithilden’s appetite.

“Legolas, I have not seen you since you came to help fight the forest fire near our settlement,” Celuwen said, apparently trying to ease her new family’s mood.

“I am afraid my memories of that time are not entirely clear,” Legolas said ruefully.  “As I recall, a tree fell on me.”  They all laughed a little, and Eilian looked at Legolas gratefully.

“You were dazed,” Celuwen agreed with a smile. “Do you remember falling off your horse?  You were appalled to have done it at all, let alone in front of me and the warrior Eilian had sent to fetch us.”  Legolas froze with his fork halfway to his mouth. He did indeed remember that event, hard though he had tried to forget it. And he had certainly not told anyone in this room about it.

Ithilden, Eilian, and Thranduil all looked at Celuwen in surprise. “He fell off his horse?” Ithilden asked, sounding amused.  Legolas could feel the heat rising in his face and knew he must be blushing.

Eilian turned to him with a wide grin.  “You did not mention that in your account of the fire, brat. But perhaps Celuwen is wrong, and you were merely practicing one of those fancy dismounts you used to like to do to impress the maidens.”

Legolas glared at him, and Celuwen looked at Legolas in dismay.  “I am so sorry,” she apologized.  “I did not mean to break a confidence.”

“That is quite all right,” he assured her.  “Their minds are small, so they are easily amused.” Eilian and Ithilden both laughed.

“Were you riding that rather wild stallion you used to have, Legolas?” Thranduil asked “Pilin, I think his name was.”

Legolas turned to his father, glad to hear the amusement in his voice as well as the excuse Thranduil was evidently trying to provide.  “I was, and a spark landed right at his feet and frightened him.  I was still half out of my wits and lost my balance.”

“We will have to get you a gentle old mare to ride back south,” Ithilden said, plainly enjoying himself.

“Or a pony,” Eilian put in enthusiastically.  “I am not sure you have all your wits about you yet, brat.”

Legolas rolled his eyes and was suddenly aware that they were all much more relaxed. This might not have been the way Celuwen intended to lighten the mood, but the mood had lifted anyway.

“Adar, I have been thinking,” said Alfirin.  “We should have a feast tomorrow night to celebrate Eilian and Celuwen’s bonding.”  They all turned to look at her rather doubtfully.

“But my parents are not here,” Celuwen ventured. “It seems somehow disrespectful to celebrate without them.”

“There need to be ceremonies,” Alfirin declared, “and we should hold them before Legolas’s leave is over.”  Her face had gone slightly pink, and it occurred to Legolas that, despite what looked to him to be gracious treatment of Celuwen, she was rather scandalized that Eilian and Celuwen had not been married in a proper ceremony.

“A public acknowledgement of their bonding strikes me as a good idea, Alfirin,” Thranduil said slowly.  “What would you do for food?”

“I have been thinking about how to manage the food,” Alfirin told him. “As it is now, everyone gets their daily ration from the central stores. We can put all of that food together and make a stew.  We would invite everyone, of course, so they all would be fed.  The servings still would be meager, but we would have music and dancing and some sort of blessing from you, Adar.”  She looked anxiously at Thranduil.  This celebration was apparently important to her.

Legolas looked across the table at Celuwen’s exasperated face and felt some sympathy for her.  She was not used to having her actions put on a public stage as part of the pageant of royalty.  He saw her turn to Eilian, apparently seeking his support, but Eilian was looking at their father.

“I think that is a fine idea,” Thranduil said after a moment, and Eilian drew a deep breath.  Celuwen bit her lip and looked down at her plate.  “I will send one of my fastest couriers with an invitation for your parents, Celuwen,” Thranduil told her.  “He would arrive after dark tonight, but that would give your parents all day tomorrow to travel, which should be enough time.”

Celuwen looked at him gratefully, and Legolas could not help smiling to himself.  His father missed very little of what went on around him.  “I am not certain they will come,” Celuwen said.

Thranduil smiled at her. “I think they will,” he said, and Legolas wished he could read the message that Thranduil planned to send.

“I will make the arrangements,” Alfirin said, and Thranduil nodded.

“Eilian, I have more than I can eat,” Celuwen said. “Would you like some of this?”  Eilian hesitated only a second before accepting a piece of fish from his wife, which he then ate more easily than he had the rest of his meal. Alfirin frowned a little but said nothing.  She was obviously in a hurry to begin making the multiple arrangements that would be necessary for a feast on the following day.  She had been organizing both public and private gatherings for Thranduil for many years now and knew exactly how much work was involved.

When they had finished their mid-day meal, Alfirin rose and then turned to Celuwen.  “Would you like to help with the planning, Celuwen?”

“Yes, I would,” Celuwen answered promptly and went out of the room with her.  Legolas wondered for a moment how the two of them were going to get along.  Until now, Thranduil’s family had simply left the management of their household in Alfirin’s capable hands.  Celuwen, however, was undoubtedly accustomed to deciding many matters for herself.  Eilian’s bonding was affecting the whole family more than Legolas had realized it would.

Eilian sidled up behind Legolas as they left the dining room.  “Perhaps what you need is a saddle and bridle like Men use,” Eilian murmured in his ear.  “I understand they make it easier to stay on your horse.”

“Shut up, Eilian,” Legolas said, as rudely as he could.  But he could not help rejoicing over his brother’s easier mood.

***

Celuwen trailed Alfirin into the vast labyrinth of the palace kitchens and storerooms.  Elves were busy at the moment cleaning up after the mid-day meal that had been served not only to the royal family but also to various servants, guards, and attendants who lived in the palace or spent the day there.  “That was an excellent meal, Amolith,” Alfirin told the Elf who was apparently the head cook.  He beamed under her praise.

“This is Lord Eilian’s wife, Celuwen,” Alfirin introduced them, and the cook bowed to Celuwen, a smile creasing his face. 

“Congratulations, my lady,” he said.  “May the stars shine on the path that you and Lord Eilian now walk together.”  Celuwen found herself unexpectedly touched by the obvious warmth of his words.  During the day, she had been repeatedly struck by how happily Thranduil’s people reacted to her marriage.  She attributed it to the amused affection they plainly felt for Eilian.

“We have a very large favor to ask of you,” Alfirin went on. “The king wants to hold a feast tomorrow night for everyone around the stronghold.  It will be a celebration of Eilian’s and Celuwen’s bonding.”

“For everyone?” Amolith asked, looking a little dismayed. Then he seemed to get hold of himself.  “Of course, my lady.  What will I have for supplies?”  He and Celuwen and Alfirin sat down at a table, and Alfirin explained her plans.  Celuwen sat in silence, feeling rather useless.  She had never planned a feast of this size and had had no desire to.  She could not help but wonder if such an elaborate affair was really necessary, but Thranduil seemed to want it, and it had been more than clear to her that Eilian wanted to please his father.  She understood his feelings.  She hardly dared to hope that her own parents would come and add their blessing to Thranduil’s, but if they did, her joy in her marriage would be increased by more than she could say.

Alfirin rose now and led Celuwen back along the maze of corridors. Celuwen had never been in this part of the palace before and was not sure she could find her way back here again.  “We can go to my apartments,” Alfirin said, and then caught the attention of a passing servant and asked her to send someone named Nawien to her.  They entered the suite that Alfirin and Ithilden shared, and Celuwen looked around, trying to picture the rooms that Alfirin had showed her that morning converted into something like this for her and Eilian. A sewing basket was on the floor next to one of the chairs near the fireplace, and papers and books were piled next to the other chair.  She pictured Alfirin and Ithilden sitting together and felt almost dizzy at the idea of sitting so cozily with Eilian.  Except he would go back to his patrol and she would mostly be living in the palace alone, she remembered suddenly, and then pushed the thought away.

She walked across the room to look at an elaborate woven hanging on the far wall.  The scene was of night in a forest and the blues and purples and silver of the sky were framed by the black skeletons of trees.  “Did you make this?” she asked Alfirin.  She knew that Alfirin had a reputation as an artist, but she had never seen any of her work before.

“Yes,” Alfirin came up beside her and looked at the hanging with a critical eye.  “The blues need to be softer,” she said.

“I think it is beautiful,” Celuwen told her honestly.

Alfirin smiled at her.  “I will make you a hanging for your new quarters as a bonding gift.”  She looked at Celuwen seriously.  “I want to do anything I can to help you feel at home.  I cannot imagine living so far from my own parents. I do not think I could do it.”

Celuwen blinked at her in surprise. “You would have done it if Ithilden had asked you.”

“I hope so,” Alfirin answered, “but I think it would have been very difficult for me.  I have never had your independent streak, Celuwen.”

Celuwen was at a loss as to how to answer but was saved from having to say anything by a knock at the door and the entrance of an Elf whom Alfirin introduced as Nawien.   Then they sat, and Alfirin and Nawien began planning how to decorate the green for the next night’s feast.

An hour later, Celuwen walked wearily into Eilian’s empty sleeping chamber and sat on the edge of the bed.  Alfirin had sent her to rest, correctly perceiving that she was rapidly tiring.  She was still in the early stages of recovering from her overwhelming grief at what she had thought was the loss of Eilian, and she tired easily.  She lay back on the bed, thinking.

If her family had been giving a feast for their neighbors in the settlement, she would have known every person who was invited and would probably have gone round to their cottages to invite them herself.  She would have cooked at least part of the meal, have tended some of the vegetables in their garden, and possibly even have hunted for the meat.  She would have helped to clean their cottage and hang the lanterns in the trees outside their door.  Here, neither she nor Alfirin did any of those things.  Instead, Alfirin capably supervised a staff who carried out plans that were far too extensive for any one or two people to do on their own.

What am I doing here? she suddenly wondered.  And even more, what am I to do here? She loved Eilian with all her heart and had had no choice but to bond with him. But how was she to make a life for herself now?  Where was she to feel at home?

*******

AN:  Legolas fought the forest fire and fell off his horse in a previous story called “The Tide of Times.”