"Ah, so they elves arrive at last", Gimli poached them as soon as they entered the bustling main hall. Lily was surprised at how full it already was, and how drunk some people were already. After all, the celebrations had only just started. "We'll start with a good old drinking game, that should sort you out Princeling." Gimli laughed deeply, Legolas smiled smugly as if he knew something Gimli didn't.

"Sounds excellent," Legolas enthused, Lily eyed him sceptically. Eomer stood at the other end of the table and began filling all the tankards on the table. How much were they gonna drink? Lily mentally apologised to her liver before she started.

"So the rules are, you drink until you pass out" Gimli stated. That was Lily's kind of game. Lily, Legolas and Gimli held their first tankards.

"On my count, on three," Eomer prompted. "One, two...three" He called.

"Wait on three or after three?" Lily asked. She saw Legolas and Gimli were already drinking so she quickly began to neck the first tankard, moving onto the second. The third, fourth, fifth and sixth all passed when she realised a small crowd had gathered round. Seven, eight, nine tankards. God she felt out of it, past buzzy but not yet completely trashed. She saw Legolas and Gimli were level pegging on about twelve each.

"I tap out". Lily lightly smacked the table, signalling the end of her efforts.

"I feel something," Legolas muttered. Lily and Eomer looked at him curiously, well Lily looked somewhere around where she thought Legolas was standing. "A slight tingle in my fingers, I think it's affecting me." He frowned. Lily nodded in admiration, Legolas was a tank when it came to drinking.

"Ya see...I told ya...he can't hold his liquor", Gimli slurred before falling backwards off the bench onto the floor. Classy.

"I win." Legolas declared. Lily decided to go and find Merry and Pippin, she hadn't met them yet and it's always a great idea to meet people for the first time when you're drunk.

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"Perry and Mippin!", Lily called as she approached the halflings. They all greeted each other like long lost family, not mutual acquaintances meeting for the first time. "I just did a drinking game...Legolas won", Lily rolled her eyes. "But I know lots of drinking games too." Lily slurred, raising a goblet of wine she had found on a table.

"Will you show us?" Merry and Pippin asked in awed unison.

"Of course!" Lily yelled and gestured for them to get their drinks ready. "So you're Pippin?", Lily asked the shorter one, he nodded. "Right so it goes like this," Lily began. "We like to drink with Pippin, Pippin is our mate, we like to drink with Pippin, Pippin downs it straight in 8-" Lily gestured for them to start drinking, they did. "7,6,5,4,3,2,1!", Lily saw that Pippin finished first so she held up his arm in victory.

"I'll do it for you." Merry offered, "We like to drink with Lily, Lily is our mate, we like to drink with Lily, Lily downs it straight in 8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1!". Merry held up Lily's arm to signal she'd won. God, Lily was getting absolutely smashed.

"Shall we sing that song from the Green Dragon?" Merry asked Pippin, Pippin's face lit up. "You'll love it Lily!" Pippin promised, as he and Merry squabbled up onto a crowded table.

"Oh you can search far and wide, You can drink the whole town dry, But you'll never find a beer so brown, As the one we drink in our hometown, You can keep your fancy ales, You can drink them by the flagon, But the only brew for the brave and true, Comes from the Green Dragon!!". Merry and Pippin sang as they did some kind of jig on the tabletop, when they finished everyone gave them rapturous applause. They jumped back off and stood in front of Lily.

"You've got to dance Lily." Pippin chirped. Lily loved to dance when she was drunk, but her dancing consisted of club moves that she normally did when she was half-cut, she didn't know any jolly jigs.

"S'pose I could." Lily offered, absolutely sloshed. Merry and Pippin looked momentarily dazed before nodding heartily.

"That sounds...excellent", Merry looked like he was going to collapse any second. Pippin alerted the men seated around the table.

"Excuse me, but this fine young lady is now going to dance." Pippin slurred, spilling his ale as he gestured to Lily. The men all looked mightily pleased even though they hadn't the foggiest idea what was going on either. No part of Lily was saying this was a bad idea, that she would be so embarrassed and mortified in the morning if she remembered this. So Lily got up onto the table and she danced, she was very good at it, as the crowds of men gathering round the table seemed to notice.

"Yeah that's it love", One drunken man called out. Some of the comments were less tame and a lot more disgusting. Pippin and Merry, despite their drunkenness, felt a sense of panic at the situation. As did Lily, she moved to the edge of the table but the group of men wouldn't let her down.

"Dance", One man pushed her back towards the centre of the table.

"Move", Lily replied, attempting to get down again. A man reached up and pulled her off the table, yet even when she was back to the ground he didn't let go of her. "I was just having some fun, now let go." Lily warned. The sense of panic sharpening her senses.

"That's all I'm looking for, a bit of fun". The disgusting, middle-aged drunkard made a lunge for her but was intercepted. Aragorn pulled the man's head back by his hair, holding a dagger at the man's throat.

"You find your fun elsewhere," Aragorn whispered, it was pretty intimidating. The man nodded and scrambled away, as did the rest of the group. Merry and Pippin ran up to her.

"Sorry Lily, we couldn't get to you." Pippin apologised, as did Merry.

"Nothing to apologise for" Lily told them honestly, they nodded and wandered away. Lily turned to Aragorn. "Thank you," She told him sincerely, "Really...thank you". Lily wasn't sure how that situation would have turned out if Aragorn hadn't intercepted.

"Are you alright?" He asked, holding her shoulders as he looked around for Legolas.

"Apart from the fact that I am completely off my face...I'm fine" Lily sighed. She was tired though and she could already feeling a headache brewing. Brilliant.

"I'll take you to your room" Aragorn offered, supporting her weight as she slumped her arm around him.

"Where's Leggy?" Lily asked tiredly, as the made their way towards her room.

"Legolas?" Aragorn clarified, Lily nodded. He pushed the door open and helped her lay down on the bed, Aragorn sat at the end and sighed. "He disappeared after you started...dancing." He told her regretfully.

"Sorry, I'm an absolute crunk", Lily mumbled as she began to close her eyes.

"Sorry, I do not follow" Aragorn stated. Lily was surprised he didn't get annoyed at her weirdness, well maybe he did, but he never showed it.

"Crunk...crazy drunk", Lily garbled as she sat back up and poured herself a goblet of water. She could already feel herself sobering up.

"Sleep it off" Aragorn offered, "And promise not to go looking for Legolas".

"Right...right." Lily muttered, settling down on the bed. Was Legolas mad at her? Embarrassed of her? Worried? Maybe he was all these things. "Thanks Aragorn." Lily patted his shoulder limply, he smiled down at her before departing. Lily briefly thought of Legolas before quickly falling to sleep.

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