Disclaimer: I do not own Tolkiens work.
Chapter Three
Vaeri woke in the early morning. Her seemingly short sleep did her wonders. She was completely refreshed. 'Maybe the 'no need to sleep' part of elves is kicking in already' she thought to herself. She exited her tent and it was still a bit dark in the forest with all the tree cover but where she could see through the trees she could see streaks of pink and orange from the sunrise. She walked to a table that already had a spread of food on it. Her stomach growled. She missed the meal last night while she had been talking to her aunt. And afterwards her thoughts had consumed her too much she didn't even think of eating.
She grabbed a handful of red grapes and popped them in her mouth. She savoured the sweet taste. She looked around her and noticed Legolas exiting his tent. He saw her and gave her a little wave and walked to her.
"Did you sleep well?" He asked quietly, not wanting to wake anyone.
"Yes, thanks." She smiled. She was going to say something but her stomach decided to interrupt with a loud grumble. She placed a hand to it. "Shhh!" She said, blushing.
Legolas laughed lightly. "You will probably be happy to know that elves don't get hungry like men do. We can go much longer without sustenance."
"Really?!" Vaeri was excited. 'Maybe then I'll be able to lose those last pesky 5lbs!' She thought to herself. She grabbed some more grapes and a bun.
"Yes, I'm sure it will take time to adjust from life as a human to an elf."
"Yeah, it should be interesting." Vaeri twiddled her fingers absentmindedly. She realized she hadn't had much one-on-one time with any of the fellowship yet. She was nervous. "So, tell me about yourself?" Vaeri asked. She thought she may as well try and get to know everyone. Maybe there were things the book had yet to tell her. The two of them sat down at a table.
Legolas scratched the back of his head. Things felt kind of awkward for him. Here he was talking to what looks like a human woman but is actually an elleth, who is slowly losing human traits and gaining elvish ones. This was a first for him, and being as old as he is, firsts didn't happen very much anymore.
"Well my name is Legolas," he started, almost blushing from the awkwardness. "I hail from the woodland realm, and have spent the last several years with Aragorn." He paused unsure of what to say next.
"Aren't you a prince?" Vaeri asked, eyes sparkling with awe and wonder.
"Yes, though I don't remember that coming up in the time you have been with us." He added, curious as to how she learned of his lineage.
"Oh my friends back home had mentioned it." She saw the confusion on Legolas' face. She sighed. "Okay, this is a bit farfetched but completely true." She looked at him and he nodded. "I'm actually from another world altogether." She began and she didn't have his full attention before she certainly had it now. "My mother sent me to my old world to protect me and sealed my elven spirit in the book from before."
Legolas nodded in remembrance. "Well, in my world that book was telling the story of the Fellowship you are a part of. There was also another series before this one called the Hobbit but I never read them. My friends have read all the books that are out and have told me about some of the characters. They had mentioned you being a prince I think."
They sat in silence for a while as Legolas absorbed this information. Vaeri couldn't handle the quiet any longer and spoke.
"I know I sound crazy. But imagine if you were in my shoes. Suddenly no longer in the world you called home and being told you aren't human." Vaeri was exasperated. "It is a lot to handle, and if I am being completely honest I want to go home to my world." Tears threatened to fall but she steeled herself.
Legolas looked at her, hurt in his eyes. He didn't really put himself in her situation before now. She is in a world she doesn't know, around people she doesn't know. Her entire life has turned upside down and is even losing her humanity as well. He watched as she clenched and unclenched her fists in an attempt to keep herself calm. How would he react if he was suddenly thrown into another world?
"I believe your words," he began, gaining attention from the woman across him. "And I wish to help in any way that I can." He hoped that she would wish to stay in this world.
Vaeri was shocked for a moment but then beamed at him. Legolas' eyes widened at the smile upon her face.
"Thank you, Legolas." She reached for his hand. "That means a lot to me." She gave it a squeeze and stood up letting go. "Now, how about some training?" She put her hands on her hips.
Legolas stood with a smile on his face. "As the Lady requests." He ushered a hand in the direction of the training grounds and they walked there side by side.
For the next two hours Legolas instructed Vaeri on proper form and a small handful of tips that would become useful on the battlefield. And to his surprise she was actually pretty decent. She didn't have the same skill as a seasoned elf as himself, but he figured she could probably hold her own on the field with a bow for the most part. He looked over her form as she released the next arrow that hit its mark dead centre. Sweat dripped down her face, a trait that mortals had. Legolas sighed, once she became fully elven so many things would change for her and he hoped that she would be ready. Vaeri turned to him with that beaming smile on her face, and Legolas couldn't help but smile in response.
"Did you see that?" She exclaimed and pointed to the far off target. "I have never made a shot that far successfully before!" She giggled a bit to herself and suited at the target in the distance. "I think my eyesight is improving." She looked around herself and squinted into the distance trying to gauge how far she could see.
"Yes, most likely. Only the best mortal archers could get a shot like that." Legolas replied.
"Wow." She stared at the trees around her, taking in the new view that her eyes were giving her. She could see more detail on the tree as well as the leaves. She could also notice more woodland creatures in the distance. She looked to Legolas and noticed that he had a faint glow about it. She stepped toward him.
"Did you know that you are glowing?" She waved a hand around him.
Legolas suppressed a laugh. "Some Elves can see the," He paused thinking of the right word the she would understand. "the soul of another elf. Like I can see your soul ever so faintly even though you remain mostly human." He saw her eyes widen and look around herself.
"I don't see mine."
"You can't see your own, only the soul of others." He replied. This brought her attention back to him and she took a step closer. She stared into his eyes. Blue staring into blue. It took all Legolas' willpower not to look away from her strong gaze.
"In your eyes I see," She began, but images then raced through her mind. Images of Legolas in his youth and around the place she could only presume as his home. She felt her head throb and she placed her hands to her temples in an attempt to ease the pain. She also felt and hand on her shoulder.
"Vaeri, are you alright?" Concern clear in his voice.
Vaeri tipped her head back up and look at her friend. "Yes, I'm okay now." She stood straight back up, the pain in her head died down significantly.
"What happened?" Legolas asked.
"I'm not sure. For a moment I was looking into your eyes and in the next, images appeared in my head. It was the strangest thing." She looked perplexed at what happened.
"What did you see?" He questioned. He was concerned because this was not an ability mortals had. If Vaeri was developing a power that her elven self had, then she needed to become an elf-maid quickly. Lest the power consume her entirely and destroy her.
"You." She looked up at him. "I saw you. Well, a younger you I think."
"What exactly did you see?" He questioned. Vaeri looked at him. He didn't ask the question in anger but in genuine curiosity.
"Nothing extremely clear, more like little moments in time. I saw when you were younger since you were smaller, you were lounging in a tree. Another one I saw you standing in front of another elf with long golden hair and a circlet or crown of sorts. Anything else was just moments of time with you in it."
Legolas nodded. "My past then."
"But why would I see this at all?"
"You must have a power within you." Legolas looked her over. Some elves were known to have gifts but there were and are very few of them. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that she is related to Galadriel. Then again the Valar could have just gifted her with this power.
"My mother…" She began, Vaeri feeling a bit uncomfortable talking about the mother that she never knew but whom gave up her life for her. "She had a power."
Legolas' eyes widened. "Let's have a seat." The conversation became quite heavy and decided that sitting would be better than standing out in the open. Legolas led her under a tree that shrouded them in shade.
"Galadriel said my mother had powers, but that she was scared." Vaeri started and a small tremble settled in her bones. "She didn't want her power falling into the wrong hands so she travelled and then she met my father and became pregnant with me. She had a vision of me being hunted as a child so she sent me away using her gifts."
Legolas sat quiet, listening intently. What kind of power could send an infant to an entire new world? Vaeri answered the question in his mind.
"Time and space, Galadriel told me. That was her power. I don't fully comprehend what she could do, but it was enough that she sent me away." Tears that she never thought would fall over the mother that she never knew, stained her cheeks. All this time she thought her biological parents didn't love her. But her mother loved her more than life itself. And this made Vaeri feel things that she had never felt before.
Legolas was torn. The woman before him was crying, letting out tears of sorrow and he didn't know what to do with himself. He didn't know how to comfort her in this time. He wasn't sure if he should embrace her or give her space to work through it. But what she said next made him move.
"She sacrificed her life for mine." Large tears overtook her and she sobbed. Legolas moved right beside her and put an arm around her back and pulled her close. She wept into the side of his chest as he held her.
After a few minutes she leaned back and wiped her tear stained face with the back of her hand.
"Sorry," She hiccuped. "Sorry you had to see that."
Legolas only smiled and tucked a strand of her silver hair behind her ear. "No apologies needed. You mourn for your mother." He then said words in Elvish that she didn't understand but it eased some of the ache in her heart.
"Thank you Legolas." She smiled lightly despite the sorrow still siting her heart.
"You are most welcome Mellon nin." Legolas said and patted her head.
"What did you say?" Vaeri blinked up at him curiously.
"My friend." Legolas said.
"Mellon nin. Did I say that right?" Vaeri attempted at the foreign language.
"Yes, very well done."
"Would you mind teaching me Elvish?" Vaeri asked shyly and sniffed her nose.
"Not at all." Legolas said, and it was true, he really didn't mind teaching her if it was one more way to keep her here instead of her wishing to go back to her world.
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