Mice and lice are not nice

Mice and lice are not nice

Chapter one: Three stuffed mice, three stuffed mice...

The streets of Dale were buzzing with life, there were people everywhere and even some rather rare elves or dwarves. The market was so crowded those carrying stuff had problems getting through the dense mass of people and the noise was unbelievable. Some merchants were shouting to make the potential customers aware of their goods and they all tried to shout louder than their neighbor. It was a cacophony and the smells added to the whole experience and made it truly unforgettable. The mixed smells of food, perfume and manure mingled in a most peculiar way and you had to have a rather toughened nose not to become overwhelmed by it all.

A group of elves stood in a corner that was a bit more peaceful and less crowded than the rest of the marketplace, they all wore cloaks and looked as if they had travelled for a while, and they had. They came from Mirkwood and were there to trade and buy supplies, there was much they needed which they couldn't produce within the forest and once a year they would come to the great market to renew trading agreements and refill their supplies. Normally it was the king's butler Galion who had to go and make sure that everything was done the right way. Some of the merchants would try to trick even an elf if the opportunity presented itself and a pair of keen eyes and a mind used to dealing with less than honest people was needed.

The king had sent someone else one year, one of his advisors and the elf had ended up buying several barrels of wine that had turned to vinegar and some cloth that hadn't been properly dyed and left whoever wore it with blue skin for weeks. Thranduil didn't want that to happen again so he had given the important task to Galion who promptly reorganized the entire storage system of the palace not once but thrice just to make sure that they had everything under control and knew exactly how much they would need of everything from wheat to salt and wine. This time it was a bit different, the king himself had joined the group and he had brought his young son with him. The king had determined that it was about time that the lad saw the world of men for the first time and he had introduced the prince to the city in careful doses.

The young elf was still the equivalent to a five year old human, he was just the sweetest child anyone had seen and the humans had been beside themselves with awe and the prince had been showered with attention and gifts. The ladies at the market had given him enough sweets to cause the sugar high of all times and one aging man had even given the young elf a very nice little dagger. Legolas was naturally extremely enthusiastic about the trip and he had been nagging for months upon months about it, now that he was there he was a bit overwhelmed and at first he had hid behind his father holding his hand rather hard.

Huge blue eyes had stared at all the strange and unfamiliar things with both curiosity and a bit of fear, tbe humans were so noisy and they did stink. But they were nice though, they smiled at him and some even tried to pet his golden locks. He was safe when his ada was there, for nobody was as strong as his ada and more than that, his ada was the king and so everybody had to do what he said. Legolas had perhaps been a bit overprotected but he was loved by everybody and he was a trustful child, he soon forget his nervousness and got all excited. Thranduil had promised to buy him something nice and Legolas saw so many amazing things he really wanted.

They had looked at everything from clothes to small weapons and the elfling had huge problems with decisions, there was just too much to see there. They had been there for two days, Thranduil was negotiating a new treaty with some merchants from the south who could provide them with lots of valuable spices and medicinal herbs they were unable to grow within the woods. Thranduil had discovered that the sight of a beautiful child often softened the hearts of humans and so he had kept the elfling in the room when he was talking with the men and they had indeed melted and he had managed to get a very good deal indeed. He was in a very good mood as a result of this and now Legolas was scurrying around like a squirrel, staring at all the goods on display.