The Silvan (Lord of the Rings-Legolas)[Wattys2016]

Chapter 23: Catharsis

A/N: Hello everyone! I really hope you enjoy this chapter, and I would love to know what you thought of it. Thanks :)

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"Tell me everything you know ...," said the king, his keen eyes boring into those of Aradan, sparkling with a depth that only time and suffering can cause.

Aradan's agile mind spun furiously. He would not lie to his king, his friend, but neither could he reveal more than strictly necessary, not until Handir's caravan was safely at the borders.

"All I know, my Lord, is that the Silvans are whispering."

"Whispering?" asked the king a little sarcastically, "whispering of what?"

"I am not sure, as yet. It is not something that has transcended to the court proper, my Lord, but there is movement of some kind."

"The trees proclaim a Lord!" exclaimed the king, as if Aradan had not yet realised the import of what he had heard.

"Then they know more than I do, my Lord." Aradan's voice had come out more aggressively than he had wanted it to, a testimony to the stress he suffered, for the time for truth was almost upon them. He did know of what they spoke, although proclaiming Legolas as a Lord was, indeed, something he could never have imagined; he desperately needed news from Lainion and Handir, but that would take days to get back to him, there would be no help from whatever they could tell him.

Thranduil held his gaze for a while, before turning abruptly and facing the window once more in a flurry of silken robes.

"Forgive me, Thranduil. As soon as I have something to tell you, I will."

"It is something of import, Aradan, there can be no mistake about that."

"Do you perceive a threat, my Lord?"

"They do not perceive it as such, no. They rejoice..." he said with a frown and Aradan could see the puzzlement, his struggle to understand the cryptic message from the trees. It was the first event for centuries that had managed to wrench any kind of reaction from the frozen king, an emotional reaction that told Aradan in no uncertain terms that he was still alive.

"I will ride out tomorrow if you wish it, my Lord, ride into the nearby Silvan villages and speak to my contacts, see what I can ascertain."

"I will come with you," was the king's answer, and Aradan hid his sudden alarm. The king had not ridden out of the fortress for many years. He needed to proceed with caution, for Thranduil was nothing if not intuitive.

"If that is your wish, Thranduil, your company would be most welcome," he said carefully. "And, I believe, our people will be glad of your presence amongst them once more - it has been too long since the Silvan people had contact with their king."

While the prospect of riding with Thranduil made him beyond nervous, it was secondary to the joy he felt at the reaction the king was showing. He was alive once more and although Thranduil was still unaware of the nature of the trees' disturbance, it told Aradan one very important thing; the king was still strong, still commanding. He would need that strength now, thought the councillor, for the extraordinary things that were to come. Only two more days, he thought and his stomach lurched in dread and trepidation.

But then, it occurred to him that this, unexpected development was not a bad thing, in fact it was, perhaps, a blessing in disguise.

"I will arrange a small escort for us, then. It will be like the times of old, when you and I travelled abroad - do you remember, Thranduil? Do you still remember the joy of those days?"