Hey, I actually managed to update fairly quickly this time :) Hope you enjoy it :P
When Tauriel awoke, the first thing she saw was green. She pulled back, to realise that in her sleep, once more she had snuggled into his body, her head resting against his green tunic covered chest. She slowly wiggled back, trying her best not to wake him, but failing. Legolas awoke as Tauriel shifted away from him. If he had it his way, he would have pulled her back to him, but he knew that wouldn't be appropriate. He instead allowed her to stand, then followed her out to the smouldering embers of last night's fire.
Side by side they sat. "Did you dream last night?" he asked her.
She shook her head. "Not last night nor the night before, after our walk." she said.
He looked over at her, and smiled at her, they both knew the reason for the absence of their nightmares. She suddenly found herself wishing they didn't have to leave. And it wasn't just because of the beauty of the forest. Even though it had only happened twice, she would miss lying next to him at night.
The sun was rising, and one by one the other members rose too. Each coming and sitting down around the fire.
"Today's the day." Frodo whispered. Everyone nodded.
"Come," Aragorn said. "Let us set off. We will follow the course of the river."
"No breakfast?" Pippin asked.
"The elves have agreed to provide us with breakfast as well as food for the journey when we say our goodbyes." Aragorn replied, smiling.
They walked slowly to the river, where a small group of elves and Lady Galadriel and Lord Celeborn stood, waiting to see them off. They stood before them in a line, and Lord Celeborn stepped forward, motioning a line of other elves forward too. The elves each stepped towards a memeber of the Fellowship, and put a cloak around their shoulders, with a brooch in the shape of a leaf.
Lord Celborn, who had presented Aragorn with his, motioned for Aragorn to follow him, it seemed there was something he wished to talk about.
Next, Lady Galadriel stepped forward, towards Legolas first. "My gift to you Legolas, is a bow of the Galadhrim, worthy of the skill of our Woodland kin." she said, passing him a bow which he immediatly took. It was a great honour to be given a bow of the Galadhrim, or any realm's army. He looked over the bow, taking note of its delicate design.
Lady Galadriel stepped beside him, to Tauriel. "And to you, Tauriel, I offer you the same bow, for you too are worthy of our bow. We would have been proud to have you as our Captain." she said, and Tauriel's smile spread across her face.
Galadriel continued moving down the line, to stand before Merry and Pippin. "These are the daggers of the Noldorim. They have already seen service in war." Along with the daggers she gave them each a silver belt, which glinted in the soft glow of the morning sun. She seemed about to move on, when she caught sight of Pippin's face. She stared at him a second, and Legolas guessed she was communicating with him from her mind. She once again moved on, to Sam. "And for you, Samwise Gamgee," she said, "Elven rope, made of hithlain."
"Thankyou, my Lady," Sam said. "Have you run out of those nice shiny daggers?" he asked innocently. Legolas smiled, Sam's rope would serve him well, he knew. For it was indeed of elvish make, meaning it would be just as strong as the thickest of ropes, but far lighter and more convenient. She smiled, and also presented him with a little bow, made of grey wood. Legolas looked at the box, it had a single silver rune upon the lid. Sam opened the box, and Legolas saw it was filled with soil. He realised what it was, this was no ordinary soil, but soil from Galadriel's famed orchid, as the earth was fine and soft, almost like a grey dust. In the middle of the box sat a seed. Legolas knew little of the gardens found in the shire, but he ventured a guess they would not have a tree such as the one Galadriel had just gifted Sam, a Mallorn tree.
Galadriel moved on once more. "And what gift would a dwarf ask of the elves?" Galadriel asked of Gimli, as she stepped before him. Legolas watched Gimli, very curious as to what his reply would be. "Nothing," Gimli murmured. "Except to look upon the Lady Galadriel one last time. For she is more fair than all the jewels beneath the earth." he said. Legolas smiled, he had not expected this answer, and it was a deeply respectful and thoughtful answer. Gimli seemed uncomfortable then, as if wanting to ask for something but he did not have the courage. Legolas turned away, it was not his place to watch.
After conferring with Gimli for a little, Galadriel moved on, once again, to Boromir, who stood beside him. To him, she offered him a golden belt, which he took and fastened around his waist.
At this moment, Aragorn and Lord Celeborn returned to the group. Galadriel looked up, towards Legolas and Tauriel and they took the hint. The rest of the gifts she would give in private. They were about to move off, when Aragorn, who had come to stand beside them said, "The elves have provided us with boats. We are being tracked, so making the journey by boat gives us more chance of outrunning our enemy. Go, begin packing the supplies in the boats." Legolas and Tauriel motioned to the others and they moved off, and started to pack their new supplies in the boats the elves had supplied them with. Legolas was stacking small parcels wrapped in leaves into one of the boats when he realised what it was. He opened a leaf. "Lembas," he exclaimed. "Elvish way bread," he explained to Merry and Pippin who were looking up at him. He took a small bite. "One small bite is enough to fill the stomach of a grown man."
"Or woman," Tauriel said, from where she was packing a nearby boat. He smiled, breaking off a small bit. He threw it towards her mouth, his aim being perfect, she easily caught it in her mouth, chewing, before swallowing the bread. It reminded him of the many times they had eaten lunch together, throwing grapes into each other's mouths. They both laughed, Tauriel evidently thinking of the same times, before turning back to the boats and continuing to pack them.
Aragorn and Frodo came down to help them, when they had finished talking to the Lady Galadriel. Tauriel went back up the river bank to fetch the last parcel of lembas when she caught sight of the Lady Galadriel. All of a sudden her voice was in her head. "I have one more gift for you, Tauriel." Galadriel's voice said.
Tauriel approached the Lady Galadriel. In her hand was a small pendant, on a silver chain. Galadriel held out her hand, and Tauriel took the pendant hesitant to accept such a gift. Looking closer, she saw that the pendant was actually a vial, containing some sort of liquid. "The night you looked into the mirror," Galadriel said, out loud this time. "This is some of the water you looked into. Depending on your actions, the water will change. If you are true to your heart, the water will be clear, but if you hide your feelings, the water will turn misty, signifying what you saw in the mirror might come to pass. Use this Tauriel, let it be a reminder of a future you do not want, but also a reminder of another future, that you have not seen, a happy one."
Tauriel looked down at the vial again, seeing that the water had a slightly grey colour to it, and was not completely transparent. She gulped, for while she longed to be completely true to her heart, by order of the King she knew she could not be any more true than she was permitting herself to be now. Tauriel bowed, hiding her emotions and fastened the pendant around her neck, hiding it under her clothes. "Thankyou, once more, Lady Galadriel," she said. The Lady inclined her head and Tauriel turned, collecting the last of the lembas bread and returning to the boats.
"No, no I can row myself," Gimli was saying as she neared the bank as he climbed into a boat. She looked around and saw the rest of the company were all accompanying a hobbit. "The two elves can share a boat." Gimli called as he sat in his own boat, grabbing the oar.
She smiled, heading over to the boat in which her Prince already sat, gracefully stepping into it, without the boat even rocking. She sat, picking up an oar, and pushed the boat away from the bank, out into the middle of the river. She watched as Gimli did the same, he seemed to be alright. "Do you think Gimli will be alright?" she whispered to Legolas.
"Gimli would probably be able to paddle upstream," Legolas replied. "I think he will be fine."
"Was that a compliment to a dwarf?" Tauriel asked, mock disbelief in her voice. "What would your father say, Prince Legolas?" she teased. Legolas did not respond verbally, instead reaching in to the water and splashing her. She squeeled softly, the water was cold. She resisted the very strong urge she had to splash him back, remembering that this was a solemn occasion. They stayed at the back of the group, easily paddling together in rhythm.
As they rowed down the river, the Lady Galadriel stood on the river bank, and as they passed she raised a hand in farewell. She seemed to look at them all, one by one. As she looked at Legolas, he heard her voice inside his head, "Farewell, Legolas Thranduillon, remember, never give up on your heart." Legolas tilted his head, Galadriel had never said anything of love to him before, so this advice seemed rather sudden. He inclined his head nonetheless, considering the fact Galadriel knew something he didn't.
Galadriel's words to Tauriel stuck with her, as they rowed down the river. "Remember Tauriel, always be true to yourself, and always be true to your heart. Never let anyone else control your feelings, no matter their power."
Thanks for reading. A few quick shoutouts:
Firstly, thanks of course to everyone who leaves reviews, and especially to those who offered suggestions!
Emlaba - your idea was amazing! I totally would have included it but I felt Tauriel would be very attached to her current twin daggers!
rubberduckybugati - totally on the same page as you (as you can probably tell from the chapter.) Thankyou for your suggestions - they helped me decide to go with those options.
Amy - your suggestion of contraception made me laugh ridiculously hard :P
Jedi Kay-Kenobi - Thanks for your ongoing support, and your suggestions for the gifts were amazing.
Ronan - All of your gift ideas were wonderful! Unfortunatly I read your review after finishing off writing the chapter but not before editing so I still want to say thanks for the amazing ideas. I might find a way to edit them in later...
Thanks to all the other reviewers, and please continue to leave reviews/suggestions/comments. I love them :)