Broken (sequel to Caught)

Numb

Thranduil was numb. He had been for nearly a day now. Since his son's words had struck home, a chilling frostbite had come over his heart, and one thought ran through his mind every time he tried to think of the argument they had had at the council.

'It's his own fault. He was irresponsible. It is not my fault. Not at all.'

So he ignored the fact that he could feel a terrible pain coming from his bond with his son. He told himself that he didn't care, and thus he didn't.

Legolas had a completely different way of dealing with the pain of their disagreement. Instead of ignoring the pain, he allowed it to swallow him whole. All of his strength had been being used to combat the sea-longing, and he was completely unprepared for this new blow.

He laid on his bed, which he had barely been able to reach, crawling on his hands and knees when his father had left him at the door after their awkward walk through the terribly silent hallways. The inside of him had been begging to ask for forgiveness, because he knew that he was at fault, and all the blame lay on him. But each time he opened his mouth, his pride held his vocal chords tight, and he could not make any sound or form the words that would release him.

So now he lay, his face imbedded in his pillow as he lay sprawled, trying to search inside himself for something to soothe him. Nothing came to him, and he distracted himself by listening to the sea's enticing lullaby as he drifted into a fitful sleep.

O:o:O

A tentative knock came from the door to his study, where Thranduil had been sitting for hours, trying to get lost in his work.

"Enter!" he called, signing his signature yet another time with a flourish before placing his quill into the quell and stacking the papers, putting them to the side as he waited for his unidentified guest to come in.

The door slid soundlessly open, and in stepped Lady Anomeda. Her face had a small smile on it, less of a joyful one than one meant to comfort him.

"My lady," he said, and he gave her a similar smile, motioning to the chair before his desk. She sat down gracefully, skirts swishing quietly. "What brings you here?"

"I wanted to make sure you were alright, my King—"

"My lady, please do me a favor. Formalities are tedious. Just call me Thranduil."

"I think likewise. Please call me Anomeda," said Anomeda, and she smiled widely at Thranduil before sobering.

"So, my...Thranduil, I only wanted to make sure you were alright. I know how close you and Prince Legolas are, and I was worried that his outburst earlier had upset you."

What a perfect choice of words, 'outburst', thought Thranduil, shaking his head with a mirthless laugh.

"It is nothing. We often quarrel; it is nothing new."

"Oh? It looked as if you were getting along better as of late."

"Well, yes. Recently, since his return, things have been going much more smoothly. But it was bound to happen sometime."

They continued to talk as the sun inched toward its peak in the sky.

"Prince Legolas?" a voice called from outside of his door, making Legolas jolt up. "It's Herethin. Can I come in?"

"I...yes," said Legolas, and he sat up. He heard the rattling of the doorknob, but not the sound of the door opening.

"Herethin? What's wrong?" he called.

"The door locked itself when you closed it, my prince. It can only be opened from the inside or with the key. Can you open it for me?"

"I...maybe. I can try."