See Ch. 1 for disclaimer.

Ch. 5 Encounters

They were on their third day of the journey when they came upon the patrol, which had been on its way to the settlements of northeastern Mirkwood where increased sightings of spiders had been reported. Tavaro decided that they would stay with the patrol for the time being, because they were all heading in the general direction in any event, and also because he knew it would thrill his young brother to no end to travel in the company of the Mirkwood warriors. It may add another day of travel to their plans, but Tavaro thought it would be well worth it.

"Spiders?" Legolas said rather breathlessly. The young elf's eyes had lit up with something near ungodly. Had Thranduil or Salque seen the glint in Legolas' eyes, no doubt they would have cringed with nervous trepidation and braced themselves for the worst. Tavaro merely laughed at his young brother's morbid fascination with all manners of evil that plagued the woodland realm with such relentlessness.

The four travellers and the warriors had settled down to the evening meal, sharing what food they had among them, bolstered by the half dozen or so rabbits the warriors had hunted down earlier in the day. The conversation over the cooking fire had invariably shifted to the mission of the current patrol, and Legolas was eager to drink up any tidbits of information that the warriors may divulge.

"Were they attacking the settlement elves? Was anybody lost?" the young elf questioned the captain of the patrol.

"There have been no losses, thank the Valar. At least none has been reported thus far. We will not know the details until we speak with the settlement elves themselves. But we do know that those vile creatures have been venturing precariously close to the cottages and are causing great concerns for those living there," the warrior replied. "Our job will be to track down the primary nests of these spiders and root them out before their threat multiplies."

"It is the spring. All creatures, whether vile or not, are multiplying," Tavaro said. "We have the same problem with orcs in the southern patrol. One would think evils are awaking from their hibernation, along with other benign creatures of the woods."

The captain nodded in agreement. "Aye, it would seem that the spiders are traditionally more troublesome during the time of spring and autumn, though in recent years, they seem to be troublesome all year round. I fear the Shadow is gaining way."

"But our warriors will not allow the Shadow to make gains, right?" Legolas asked anxiously. "Surely, they will not give up so easily?"

"I am afraid, young prince, that we do not have enough warriors to make sufficient headway against the spread of the Shadow. The creatures of the Shadow continue to grow while our numbers continue to diminish," the captain explained with a certain amount of weariness. "The will is there. That I do not doubt, but unfortunately, there are times that we simply lack the resources."

Legolas looked at his brother with growing concern. "Is that true, Tavaro? We do not have enough warriors?"

Tavaro pursed his lips and sought to answer his brother's queries with as much truth as possible without further alarming the young elf. "The realm is vast. It is not always possible to maintain a vigilant watch over every nook and corner, as much as we wish to. It is inevitable that the Shadow should make gains in certain parts, but our warriors are skilled and relentless in their fight against this evil." He laid a comforting arm across his brother's shoulders. "Fear not, Legolas. We have been fighting this battle long before you were born and we will continue to fight this battle for as long as it is required."

Legolas continued to frown. "But we still need more warriors. Why can we not join the ranks of warriors at an earlier age? Why must be we train for so long before we are allowed to join the patrols?"

"Remember what Adar said? It takes much more to be a warrior than just skills learned from the masters. Once you are old enough to be affirmed as a warrior, you will understand more clearly," Tavaro said.

Legolas was not appeased by this explanation. "I still think that we should be allowed to join the patrols at an earlier age. Then we will not have the shortage of warriors that we do now."

"Being on patrol is no mere outing in the woods, Legolas," Tavaro said patiently. "It is fraught with danger and death can happen in an instant. If we send inexperienced younglings to face this kind of danger, it will be no different than sending them to their death." He shook his head and pulled his brother tighter into his embrace. He could not imagine his young brother experiencing the horrors that he himself had faced so often during his years as a warrior, yet he knew such a fate was inescapable. As Thranduil's son, Legolas could not veer from his path of duty and responsibility of protecting Mirkwood, even if such a path held nothing but danger, and perhaps death.

Legolas squirmed in his hold. "Tavaro, you are cutting off my breath."

His brother laughed and released him. "I am merely trying to prevent you from devouring what is left of the poor rabbit. You have eaten so much rabbit meat in the past days that I fear you will soon start sprouting fur and hop about with maddening agility while dodging arrows."

Legolas giggled at the mental scenario created by his brother, his earlier concerns temporarily forgotten. He reached out and snatched the last remaining piece of bony meat. "Can I?"

Tavaro laughed. "Why even ask when it is already in your mouth? Go ahead. Let it be known that great warriors such as myself do not fight over the scrawny carcass of a rabbit with an elfling."

"I am not an elfling," Legolas said quickly, clearly offended. "I can probably best you with my bow."

'"Is that a challenge, little brother?"

Legolas nodded emphatically. "We can do it now."

"In the dark? I do not wish to put out someone's eye," Tavaro said with a grin.

"If your arrow can find such a small target," Legolas said cockily.

Tavaro narrowed his eyes. "Careful, little brother, or I may split your hair with my arrow." He studied his young brother. "Whatever challenges you have in mind will have to await morning. It is time that you should rest, Legolas."

"But I am not tired!" the young elf protested immediately. He looked about him. "Others are not sleeping yet." With glittering eyes, he turned his attention back to the captain. "Tell me more of your encounters during your patrols."

The captain glanced questioningly at Tavaro, uncertain as to whether he was at liberty to recount to the youngling the less than tranquil aspects of life on patrol in the woodland realm.

Tavaro hesitated. He knew his father did not approve of undue exposure of his young brother to the evils that plague Mirkwood, and had always curtailed discussions of such when Legolas was within hearing. Tavaro thought that his father's effort were futile in this respect, as it was a matter of inevitability that Legolas would come face-to-face with these evils some day, as such was life growing up in these troubled times.

He looked at his brother's eager young face and slowly grinned. His father was not here at the moment to make objections, and Legolas was his responsibility for the duration of the trip. He nodded at the other warrior with a conspiratorial smile. "The bratling is determined to give himself nightmares this night so we may as well oblige him. Spare no details."

And so snippet after snippet were told over the fading glow of the campfire of endless confrontations with orcs, spiders and other creatures of ill that had taken on a stranglehold on the woodland realm. Legolas listened in rapt attention, tirelessly probing the storyteller with infinite questions and queries. As the night deepened, however, the questions became fewer and far between, and eyes, once widened impossibly with wonderment, began to lose their battle with the enticement of sleep.

When Tavaro felt the increasing weight of his brother against his side, he decided that it was time to call an end to the night. He gathered Legolas into his arms. The latter let out a small sigh, but otherwise did not stir from his sleep.

Tavaro nodded with gratitude at the other warrior. "Thank you. I am certain that Legolas will remember this night for many days to come."

The captain grinned. "It is not often that I have such an attentive audience as this little one. Tell him when he awakes that it has been my pleasure."

Tavaro straightened with his burden and made his way to an area underneath some trees where he hoped the ground was less damp. Agile as he may be, he did not think he could climb a tree with a sleeping Legolas in his arms. Behind him trailed Baragallon and Aradun like twin shadows. Tavaro felt a sudden flash of guilt. In his effort to indulge his young brother, he had kept the two guards from their rest as well.

He laid Legolas upon a bed of relatively dry pine needles and looked up at the guards. "We will sleep on the ground tonight, but there is no need for you two to do so as well. Go, take your rest, for we have kept you awake rather needlessly, for which I apologize."

"We shall all sleep on the ground tonight, my lord," Baragallon declared and he drew his pack near while Aradun did likewise.

Tavaro regarded the two of them briefly and decided that little would be gained by protesting their decision. He retrieved his own pack and withdrew from it the extra blankets. These he spread atop of the pine needles and shifted his brother onto the makeshift covering. Legolas muttered something rather unintelligible from which only the word 'orc' could be discerned. Tavaro shook his head and grinned. After hearing all those tales, no doubt the young elf would be having some rather colourful dreams tonight. Tavaro stretched out along side of his sleeping brother, intent on seeking colourful dreams of his own. Without looking, he knew Baragallon and Aradun had taken up their spots at some discreet distance from them and wondered briefly, just before sleep overtook him, whether the two guards would actually sleep at all.

Tavaro awoke to the sounds of laughter and shouting. He blinked his eyes into focus and realized with a start that Legolas was no longer sleeping at his side. For several seconds, his heart pounded with foolish fear, before common sense broke through. Surrounded by warriors, it was unlikely that Legolas would come to any harm, missing he may be from his side. His eyes searched for signs of Baragallon and Aradun, and found neither of the guards nearby. He fears were further allayed by their apparent absence. No doubt the two guards were keeping a close watch on their young charge. Tavaro could not help but feel rather annoyed with himself. How could he have slept so deeply that he had been unaware of his brother's wakening and leaving from his side? He was becoming too reliant on Baragallon and Aradun, he thought. Regardless of the undoubted ability of the two guards, Legolas was still his responsibility. As he refolded the blankets and restored them to the packs, he promised himself that he would not let his guard down again.

He followed in the direction where the sounds of laughter and voices continued to filter through the trees. There was one voice that he recognized distinctly above the rest. With a widening smile, Tavaro wondered what his young brother was up to now.

Shortly, he broke through the trees and came upon a small clearing where he found a number of warriors from the patrol had gathered. Tavaro barely had time to catch a glimpse of gold among the dark-haired mass before his attention was caught by the flight of an arrow cutting across the still morning air and imbedding itself with a solid thunk into a distant tree. The silence that had befallen the warriors suddenly erupted into a chorus of cheers.

Tavaro smiled. He may have forgotten the archery challenge that Legolas had sought the night earlier, but apparently his brother had not. He remained where he was and watched as Legolas readied another arrow with a steadiness and concentration that spoke of skill of far beyond his years. Once again, the arrow took flight and found its mark so close to the previous one that the two shafts appeared as one. Almost immediately, a third arrow followed the path of the previous two and once again, the arrowhead unerringly found its mark. A second and louder cheer burst forth from the observers, and Tavaro found his own voice joining in before he could refrain himself. Legolas looked up from where he stood and grinned broadly.

"Tavaro! You have finally decided to join us," he called out to his brother with great enthusiasm. "Come and show us your skills!"

Tavaro approached them slowly. "I do not have my bow."

"Use mine," Legolas offered quickly.

"Nay, it is too short," Tavaro shook his head.

"My lord, you may have the use of mine. We are of the same height."

Tavaro took the proffered bow and tested his grip. It did not have the comforting familiarity of his own, but it would do.

"See if you can hit the same spot that I have, twice in a row," Legolas said and then added with a grin, "A challenge."

Tavaro grinned back. "A challenge, indeed. Watch and learn, bratling."

The first arrow found its mark true, and Tavaro shrugged off the cheers and congratulatory pats on the back while looking at his brother.

"You have one more," Legolas reminded.

Tavaro nodded. "And so I have."

The second arrow hit close to the target, so close, in fact, that a victor could not be declared until a closer inspection had been had. They all sprinted across the clearing to where the tree stood with the five shafts protruding from its gnarled trunk.

Tavaro's second arrow missed the other four by merely the breadth of a finger, but nevertheless, it missed. The warriors cheered wildly and Legolas grinned at his brother.

Tavaro shrugged good-naturedly. "It would appear that you are the better archer, bratling."

"But you did not have your own bow." Legolas was quick to point out though the grin remained on his face.

Tavaro threw an arm around his brother's shoulder. "Thank you for bringing that up. I knew there was a reason why my arrow was off its mark. Now let us return and prepare to leave. I think we have held up these warriors long enough. They are on patrol, lest we forget."

Later that morning they parted company with the patrol as the warriors headed eastward and the four travellers returned to their northerly route.

"Thank you for allowing us to join you," Tavaro said to the captain of the patrol as he watched Legolas thread his way through the warriors, bidding each a fond farewell. "It has meant a great deal to Legolas."

The older warrior smiled. "No, it is I who should thank you for your company and that of the young prince. It has been long since these warriors have experienced such youthful innocence as that of your brother." He paused as Legolas' joyous laughter rang out. "It is well that we are reminded, however briefly, of what we are fighting so hard to protect."

Tavaro gave the other warrior a long, meaningful look and reached out to grasp him in a warrior's salute. "Let us both pray to the Valar that we are able to protect what is so precious to us. May the Valar watch over you and your men."

"May you and the little one have a safe journey as well, my lord. I hope we will meet again soon." With a parting salute, he moved off to rejoin his men.

TBC