Almost a full hour later, he found the courage he needed to speak.
"Tauriel." That was as far as he got before his was voice broken as much as his heart. She sensed his distress and didn't say anything, letting him gather more thoughts and courage.
Almost ten awkward minutes later, he was able to continued. "Tauriel. The dwarf. Kili."
She would not meet his eyes. "What about him?"
"I saw you talking with him. When he was still a prisoner."
"I should have guessed you'd do that."
"That's not the point. I… I love you, Tauriel. I'm sorry it took so long for me to realize this and tell you. I know you care for the dwarf. I'm sorry."
"Legolas… I… I." she buried her face in her knees.
"Tauriel. Whatever you decide, I don't care. I will always love you. I will always support you. Even if you love him."
"I… Your father told… I can't. Not right now." Tauriel raised her head. "Let's just get through today. I can't deal with this now. Maybe, after, if we are all still alive, I… I don't know. Your father… Never mind. I don't know how I feel about you, or Kili. Maybe I'm in love with someone, maybe not. But know this. Even if it is not love, I still care deeply for you. I would trust you with my life. I can never repay you for… everything. Taking me in as a child, supporting me, caring for me, being my friend. There are so many things to consider, with romance. I do not think your father would agree with anything between us. You are my Prince, I am your guard. Nothing more, and nothing less, in his eyes."
Legolas remained silent for a while, but finally said, "I should not have told you to leave Kili. I'm sorry, I was jealous. I didn't want you to be with someone other than me. I'm so selfish."
"You're not selfish, you were trying to get me back on track. And I don't care if you were jealous. I have known him for but a few days. It's been six hundred years. The best of my life. Because of you."
"You don't have six hundred years without me to compare it with."
"And I don't want to."
They sat in silence, thinking deeply about emotions and love and friends, until nightfall.