Unforgiven

End

Lairiel hid the box deep within her wardrobe, unwilling to stare at it much longer. She would do something with it, that much was certain, but as for what, she hadn't quite figured out. All she could do was sit in the corner, hugging her knees to her chest as she listened to Legolas' agonized screams reaching to every room in the castle. A tear dripped down her cheek as she wondered-- again-- how she'd let everything get this far.

...

Anodien whipped him, scourged him, cut and bled him, everything and more than Legolas thought possible. He hadn't even thought half of it to be possible, but as always, his old lover proved him wrong. "Now, a question," she growled. She stopped beating him for a moment and leaned down, a dark scowl on her frightening face. "Do you know why I do this to you?"

It was one of her few questions. "B-because... it s-saves my p-p-people," Legolas forced out, gasping for breath.

Anodien laughed mockingly, sending further fear down the Elf's spine. "Isn't that just the funniest thing," Anodien purred, tying him down to the table and pressing lightly on his forehead. He didn't respond, as he'd learned long ago not to do. "Now... you're going to tell me why you did what you did." Legolas paused. She hadn't spoken about their past since he'd first arrived, leaving him almost afraid to reply. "Answer me!"

"I-it was M-Malefek!" he shouted, hoping that would satisfy her. Unfortunately for him, it didn't seem to do much, as Anodien lit her hands up and pressed them down flat onto his ribs. A pained shriek ripped from his lips, making the queen smile.

"Let's try that again, shall we?"

"I'm n-not lying," he insisted, trying to work his way through the torture. She paused for a moment, but did not remove her burning hands. "Please, Anodien--" The queen listened for a brief moment, but it was not an answer to his prayers. She simply picked up a scalpel and pushed it against his torso.

"Everything," she demanded lowly, the point opening a tiny cut in his skin.

"Malefek... years ago... approached me, and--" Legolas screamed again as Anodien stuck the knife straight in. However, it was clear from his attacker's expression that he was not to stop his explanation. "He-- he offered me--" Recalling the events, he realized he didn't want to say a word about it. It would only end in more pain for him.

Besides, he still held at least the slightest bit of loyalty towards Anodien along with the hopeless wish that she'd stop all of this. "Continue."

"He offered me-- Eru, save me!" he cried out. Anodien did not say a word, but removed the knife. At this point, it appeared she wanted reasoning over his screams. She waited through several minutes of panting, but her impatience grew.

"Get on with it, pretty boy," she insulted, slapping him harshly. Legolas swallowed his terror and forced the words out of his mouth.

"He offered me... a w-woman I once loved..." Anodien then stopped moving, fixing her ex-lover with a glare that could have killed. A fire blazed within her ebony-colored eyes. "He said... if I broke your heart... I could have her back." The queen clenched her teeth and instantly grasped him by the neck, her hands growing warmer by the second.

"And you accepted?!"

"I-- I wasn't thinking!" he wailed, squirming as much as he could without feeling too much discomfort. "I knew the second you left I'd made a mistake!"

"That doesn't change a damn thing, does it?!" Legolas could only whimper as her hands constricted his breathing. "And what of your precious little bitch?" Legolas closed his eyes.

"Malefek manipulated me." The Elf's words were hardly more than whispers. "He told me--" Anodien did not wait for him to go further, slamming her left hand onto his forehead and drawing the memory from the depths of his mind.