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Legolas (princegreenleaf) wrote in labyrinth_rpg,
@ 2009-04-06 20:41:00

Entry tags:

complete, day five, legolas greenleaf, robin of locksley

WHO: Legolas Greenleaf and Robin of Locksley
WHAT: Archery competition
WHEN: Day 5, afternoon
WHERE: The archery range, I should think
WARNINGS: PG? If that?
STATUS: Complete

He'd almost forgotten, in the excitement of the ball and everything, that he was supposed to have a competition with Robin. He got up from the deep state of elven reverie that served as his sleep, and got ready to go out. It was only as he was thinking about his day, planning it out, that he remembered. He'd half-planned to search out Giselle, but it would be fun to practice his archery, as well. And the redheaded girl was confusing him a bit, really. She didn't behave as he expected her to.

So, perhaps it wasn't bad that he had a day to step back and examine the situation. And, of course, archery made anything better, as far as he was concerned. Though it was a tool to be practiced, and used only at need, he did take satisfaction from it. It would be a good distraction. As he stepped outside, the warm air made him smile a little.

First, food, but he was soon off to the archery range. He and Robin had made arrangements as to time and place, but Legolas was there a little early. Wandering around while waiting, he surveyed the site. It was really, really good. As well as the typical bulls-eye targets, of which there were several, there were also many other things to shoot at. Stuffed dummies of all sizes, wooden posts, and even cans and bottles. Legolas looked at these things curiously. Metal and wood were much more common where he was from, and he'd never seen anything quite like it.

So, there was plenty for him to amuse himself with on the range, as he waited for the human archer to arrive. There was a rack of bows, too, and somehow, he wasn't sure it would be fair to use the Bow of Galadriel, which was magical. It gave him an unfair edge, not being part of his natural talent. So he occupied himself for many moments, simply pulling down bows, testing their pull, and then putting them back on the rack again.

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taylorwade
2009-04-09 07:38 pm UTC (link)

Robin started his day much the same way he had the last four days. He'd risen from his bed, bathed in the strange bathroom and dressed. Afterward, he'd gone to find nourishment. After securing some food he began to explore the outer wall of the labyrinth. It was tall, but with a little maneuvering he was able to climb up and stand on the wall. He found it strange that the labyrinth was suddenly back in place after its disappearance the night before. From the vantage point he had atop the wall, he could see that the castle would not be easy to get to.

He studied the layout of the labyrinth for more than an hour, but he was sure that he would be just as lost once he started to run it. He still wasn't sure when he was going to try it, but he certainly didn't want to do it unprepared or alone. Leaping down off the wall, Robin judged by the position of the sun in the sky that it was time to go meet Legolas for their contest.

With his bow slung on his back along with his quiver, he crossed the city toward the place they had arranged to meet. He had been by the archery range in the last few days in order to practice. He knew the elf was talented and had also had much more time to perfect the art than he had. He was completely prepared to lose, but hoped it would be by much. He could see the elf in the distance, inspecting the bows on a rack. He smiled and when he was closer, he raised his hand.

"Hail, friend!"

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princegreenleaf
2009-04-09 11:11 pm UTC (link)

Legolas turned around as he was hailed, holding the bow of his choice, and waved with his free hand. "Hail, friend Robin! It is a good day for an archery competition." He raised the bow he had chosen. "I did not wish to beat you unfairly, so I use a bow that our gracious King provided." He made a face, because though the bow was perfectly servicable, it wasn't nearly as good as his.

He walked toward the human, moving gracefully, and then turned to survey the archery range once more while standing beside him. "There are many ways we can do this, I think. Many targets to hit." He was excited, glad to be out. The air was warm, smelled fresh, and it was a nice day. Not too much wind, which would take that factor out of the equation.

"How is this done in your world, my friend?" He turned back to the other archer, eyebrow raised quizzically. "It looks like the moving targets are the most difficult." A bullseye on wheels along a track, obviously meant to slide along it to make the job of shooting it harder.

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taylorwade
2009-04-19 06:51 pm UTC (link)

Robin couldn't help but smile and nod his agreement that yes, this was a fine day for an archery competition. He also couldn't help the smile from continuing when the elf let him know that he was going to beat him, but not unfairly. "Good to know." He pulled his own bow off his back and held it loosely in one hand.

He glanced at the elf once he was at his side and then turned his attention to the range. He nodded and murmured his assent. There were many targets they could hit, it was true. They didn't have a judge, but neither of them were dishonest. At least, he didn't take the elf for a dishonest man. He was certain that the match would be fair. "It is a nice day." He smiled wistfully. It was really too bad that no one from his world was here to see him get beaten. They'd never let him forget it.

"It's simple in my world. We choose a target, and whoever comes closest is the winner." He'd never really tried inanimate moving targets. Much of the time it was someone running behind a large shield or haystack. He should have thought of moving targets when he was training the merry men. Perhaps they wouldn't have been taken so badly in the fight with the Sheriff if that had been the case.

"What if we both choose three targets and whichever of us hits them most accurately is the winner?" He turned his curious eyes on the elf once more to gauge his reaction to the suggestion.

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princegreenleaf
2009-04-19 11:05 pm UTC (link)

The elven prince grinned, pleased that the human reacted so well to his teasing. In truth, Legolas had seen Robin shoot, and knew that, whatever he said, it wasn't going to be as easy as all that to beat him. He would have to work for it, and honestly? If it were any other way, he wouldn't be nearly as interested in this competition. There was nothing to be gained by beating someone who couldn't put up a fair struggle, and he sensed that Robin would do that.

He smiled and let his eyes drop to the bow the human held. It looked like a nice one, and Legolas approved. Not the Bow of Galadriel, by any stretch of the imagination, but still well-crafted. "Yes, and no wind, as I am certain you have noted." He glanced around approvingly at the set up, and then turned back to the human to listen to him.

By the end of the explanation, he was nodding in agreement. It wasn't so different from the way it was done on Middle Earth when the elves had these competitions, and very much close enough that he could work with it. He had one addition to it, though, to make it more interesting.

"We should do the first one from 30 yards away, the second from 50, and the third from 70. That will add some challenge to it." He raised an eyebrow, his eyes sparkling mischieviously as he waited for the human to respond.

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taylorwade
2009-04-20 08:49 am UTC (link)

With a fair amount of what could be called natural talent added to the practice of years, Robin would certainly be a fair match for the elf. But Robin hadn't deluded himself into thinking that he might win the match completely. Although, there was a slight chance. In his world, he was without competition. No one could shoot like he could and he won without any real effort. It was refreshing to know that he might get his ass handed to him by someone else for a change.

"Ah, yes. No wind. It would have been a bit more interesting that way, but the fickle breeze is best left out." He grinned and nodded at the fair haired man. Robin let his own gaze drop to the bow in Legolas' hand. It wasn't the one he'd seen him use the other day and he wondered how much sway his bow would have over the competition. Was it magic? Evidently the elf thought he would have an unfair advantage, so he was using one of the supplied bows. It looked at least workable.

Robin nodded. He liked the idea of shooting from different distances. He didn't have eyesight like the elf, but he was certain that the furthest distance of 70 yards would still be within his range of sight. "I accept." He looked around the practice yard for the targets he wanted to choose and then pointed them out.

"The standard target from 30 yards, the moving dummy from 50 yards and the bottle from 70 yards." There was a paper bullseye on the standard target, a painted one on the chest of the dummy and only a small dot on the bottle. The only way they would be able to check the bottle was with a nick the arrow took out of the glass.

Robin's arrows had white fletching on them, so he chose some red fletched arrows from the nearby rack and added them to his quiver. Different colored arrows would help them determine whose arrow struck where.

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princegreenleaf
2009-04-20 09:04 pm UTC (link)

Legolas nodded in approval at the choices that Robin made. The standard target would be easiest, and from the closest distance. More than anything, it would be a good warm up for the more difficult targets. The moving target was an interesting challenge, especially from slightly further away. Legolas, of course, had shot one of the fell beasts of Mordor right out of the air, and had no problem with moving targets. And the bottle would be most challenging, simply because of it's size. Add to that the challenge of distance, and it made a fair test indeed.

"I shall use the same targets, then, so we may fairly judge who won." He watched as Robin picked out the red arrows, and nodded, not needing to have it explained to him why. He did the same, picking blue ones, and then standing 30 yards from the first target. He had picked the distance out more or less just through long practice, but was sure of himself.

Carefully, he raised the bow and drew it back, testing it's pull, and then nodded. It would do. The king hadn't supplied poor supplies, just average. Once he was convinced of the worth of the bow, he nodded to the human, and gave him a smile. He really was having an amazing time.

"If you would do the honor of going first?" He politely offered, partly because it was courteous, but also partly because he wanted to see how Robin did. He stood still, ready to watch Robin take a shot, or, otherwise, to do so himself if that's what the human wanted.

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taylorwade
2009-04-21 10:25 am UTC (link)

Robin watched the elf take the blue arrows and nodded. He walked toward the first target and paced off what he gauged to be thirty yards. He wasn't sure he really wanted to go first, but someone had to. He pulled one of the red fletched arrows out of his quiver and knocked it in his bow. Holding his left arm out straight, he pulled the bowstring back and closed one of his eyes. He sighted on the center of the bullseye and after a beat, he released the arrow.

It flew straight and true and landed directly in the center of the bullseye. He was happy with the first challenge and stood back to allow Legolas to complete his portion of the challenge. He gave the elf a small smile. It wasn't going to surprise him if the elf split his own arrow in two just to show that he could hit the same place. He was having a good time, and it wouldn't completely hurt his pride to lose to the elf. He was an elf after all, and Robin a mere human.

His arm dropped to the side while he casually waited for the elf to take his turn. He noted the man's form and approved. He was truly a good archer, elf or not. Robin also grudgingly admitted that he could probably stand to learn a thing or two from him. He watched carefully as the blond took his turn and tried to glean some new technique from what he saw.

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princegreenleaf
2009-04-21 05:58 pm UTC (link)

The elf watched carefully as Robin drew back the string and let the arrow fly. He had to nod in approval, as the shot flew straight to the exact center of the target. It was a beautiful shot, and he knew that even many elves couldn't do that completely consistantly. This human was talented indeed, and Legolas had no problem admitting that.

"This contest may yet surprise us!" He grinned at the human, and then shifted just a tiny bit so that he was shooting from the same angle and place that Robin had. He wanted this to be as equal as possible. Once there, he drew an arrow and shot it, without even appearing to aim. The bow twanged, and the arrow flew, and just as Robin had figured, the blue arrow split the red exactly in half.

"You know, I am a little surprised. It is not an easy thing to do that." And it wasn't. About half the time, the metal arrowhead of the arrow he was trying to split in two deflected his arrow, and ruined the shot. He had taken a chance, and it had paid off. He shouldered his bow, and moved on to the next target.

"This one is moving... should I go make it roll along the tracks for you?" He trusted the human's archery skill to the point where he at least figured he wouldn't accidently hit him.

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taylorwade
2009-04-22 07:43 pm UTC (link)

The fact that the elf didn't take his time to sight down the arrow or even aim and was still able to cleanly slice his own arrow in half was quite unnerving for the human archer. He didn't know of anyone who could do that with such grace and accuracy.

The elf may have been surprised that the arrow wasn't deflected, but somehow Robin wasn't. He knew that his arrow had been buried deeply and it would have been nearly impossible to make the approaching arrow bounce off the metal arrowhead. He followed the elf to the next target and nodded. It was nice to know that the blond trusted him enough not to put an arrow through his thigh while he was moving the target along the tracks.

He paced an additional twenty yards off of their earlier position and then turned to take aim. He watched as the dummy rolled into sight and with the confidence of years he released the arrow. It buried itself firmly in the center of the bullseye painted on the stuffed chest. Robin smiled a little, pleased with himself.

"Shall I do the same for you?" He called out as he headed toward Legolas.

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princegreenleaf
2009-04-22 11:05 pm UTC (link)

Legolas didn't flinch as the human took the shot, nor was he truly surprised when the arrow Robin shot hit the center of the bullseye once more. He was impressed, but really, was starting not to be surprised by much as far as humans were concerned. He'd had little experience with the short-lived race before going joining the fellowship, and was starting to think he'd seriously underestimated the entire race.

"Well done, friend Robin!" The elf cheered him on as he jumped over the tracks and moved over to where the human was standing. Once there, he placed himself beside him, trusting that he had paced off the distance correctly. "An excellent shot. Are you quite certain you don't have elf blood in you?" He smiled. "Yes, please, if you would."

The elf waited until Robin set the dummy rolling along the tracks, holding his bow ready. The blue fletched arrow was flying through the air just as quickly as the first one, but this time, the shot didn't fly as true. Yes, it still hit the bullseye, but about half an inch from the arrow Robin had shot. Maybe the movement hadn't been compenstated for well enough. He tilted his head to the side thoughtfully, and then laughed.

"It seems you won that one, my friend. One for you, and one for me. The last target will tell who wins this." Obviously, he wasn't a sore loser. The tone he used was still cheerful, though slightly rueful. Truth was, he'd lost these competitions before, if never to a human. But he could deal with it. Anyway, the thing wasn't lost yet.

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taylorwade
2009-05-03 10:55 am UTC (link)

Whether or not the elf had hit the center of the bullseye, the arrow would have landed a killing blow and the victim would have perished. Robin was still slightly surprised that the elf hadn't hit his own arrow, however. He knew the elf had skills and he nearly wondered if the elf had done it on purpose. But the idea did not linger. He needed all his wits about him to hit the third target.

The elf was cheery enough about his loss and Robin was having himself a good time. He walked the additional twenty paces away from the last target and drew his bow up. He sighted along the arrow and, though his eyes were excellent, they did not have the same strength as Legolas'. This target was much smaller and even the smallest tip of the arrow could send it wrong. Finally, after taking a steadying breath, he released the arrow.

He listened for the telling "chink" that he had hit the bottle, and it came. He smiled and jogged toward the target, looking it over to see where he had struck it. The small chip that had been taken out of the glass was within the bullseye, but not at the center. Taking note of his mark, he got out of the way. He was sure the elf would not hit him, but he didn't take chances unnecessarily.

He jogged back and waited for the elf to take his turn. "Please, continue friend Legolas." He crossed his arms over his chest and watched the technique of the pointy eared man once more. It was elegant the way the blond shot. As if it were a natural grace and nothing had to be learned. Robin wished that he had even a small part of that.

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princegreenleaf
2009-05-03 02:07 pm UTC (link)

With a sort of inherent patience, the elf waited as Robin took his shot. A slight smile was on his face, and really, he was having a good time. Win, lose, or draw, this was fun. The problem with archery, or any sort of weapons, really, was that it was too often used in deadly earnest, to save lives. This, however, was just for fun, and Legolas appreciated that. It was a nice change. He needed to remember to do this more often.

The arrow flew through the air, and Legolas nodded, easily able to see where it hit. Still a good shot, and he was coming to realize that Robin probably couldn't do otherwise. The human was talented, and he certainly had gotten Legolas' respect. It was odd, but the more time he spent around humans, the more that seemed to be happening. He'd underestimated them, indeed.

"Well done, my friend!" His tone of voice didn't hold even the slightest trace of irony. He waited until Robin got out of the way, and then stood ready. For about a second, perhaps two, he eyed the bottle. It was more time than he'd taken with the previous two, but then, his previous shot had cautioned him. Still, it wasn't long before he lifted his bow and let fly the arrow, all in one smooth, quick motion.

The shot flew true, this time, and if it didn't hit the exact center of the bullseye, it would have been impossible to tell the difference. The chip that flew off the bottle was, as far as even his eye could tell, the middle of the target. Pleased with his shot, he smiled, and then went over to retrieve the bottle. Holding it up for Robin's inspection, he laughed softly.

"I have to admit... I was honestly worried when you hit the second target more readily than I. Well done, my friend. That was an excellent competition."

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taylorwade
2009-05-14 11:45 am UTC (link)

Robin wasn't surprised when the Elf hit the target dead on. He might have been if it had been someone else, but he had seen the prowess with which the man weilded his weapon and knew that he was an expert marksman. He had to laugh at the idea of the elf being worried at losing to a human and he dropped his head slightly.

"I never worried for a second that you would win. I knew it would be the outcome before we even began. You have had much longer to practice." He smiled jovially and held his hand out to the fair haired man. "Well done. Thank you for the challenge." If anything, Robin was a graceful loser. That was not to say that he enjoyed losing, but he could tell when he was bested.

"I would suggest a rematch, but I am certain I would lose that as well, and perhaps not as closely as I lost this one." He smiled and shouldered his bow. "Thanks again, friend Legolas. I think I will go round up some food. I seem to have worked up an appetite." He smiled again and inclined his head. "Good day." With that, he turned and headed in the direction of the faire.

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