Chapter Twenty- It's Over

Scratch: I'm Angela!

Syletah: And I'm Opal!

Scratch and Syletah: *in unison* And we don't own Lord of the Rings!

Scratch: Although we do own Alanna and Charlotte.

Angela: *jumps out of a random cupboard* And me!

Syletah: *facepalms* NO! We do not own you!

Angela: Dammit.

Syletah, Scratch and Angela: And we all know that Opal is our minion!

Opal: *appears out of a different random cupboard, grabs equally random sword, and beats everyone else to a pulp* Is that settled now?

Syletah, Scratch and Angela: *in unison* Yes, Mummy.

Opal: *screams* DON'T CALL ME THAT!

Syletah, Scratch and Angela: *laughs* Bye!

oOoOoOoOo

'I can't keep this up for much longer,' Alanna said wearily. 'If I don't get out of here soon, I'll probably collapse.'

'Same here,' Legolas agreed. 'It's this place. I can feel it.'

The two elves had been successfully leading the troll on a wild goose chase around Mordor, though never straying more than half a mile from the Black Gates, for a while now. However, successful as the two had been, elves and Mordor weren't meant to mix and both of them were tiring faster than they would normally.

Legolas pulled Alanna behind a rock as the troll that was after them lumbered past, looking around with mean little eyes for the two nuisances. Before the elves could move from their hiding spot, a rumbling sound came from the direction of Mount Doom. The troublesome two peeked over the top of the rock to see Mount Doom erupting in all its fiery fury.

'Frodo,' breathed Legolas.

'Frodo,' Alanna agreed.

They watched in silence as the troll, spooked by the unusual activity in the mountain, moved as fast as it could back towards Barad Dûr. Why it was doing this was a mystery but Alanna and Legolas weren't going to complain as it meant that it was no longer chasing them. As the elves watched, the top of Mount Doom positively exploded.

'Shall we run for our lives?' asked Legolas.

'Yes,' Alanna confirmed, 'let's.'

Although they were both tired and ready to collapse from exhaustion, Alanna and Legolas sprinted towards the Black Gates. Legolas glanced back when they were halfway there and cried out in fear. Barad Dûr had collapsed, sending a concussive blast outwards from the tower; a blast that was destroying Mordor.

'Faster!' Legolas cried, taking Alanna's hand and pulling her on.

The duo were almost to safety when they felt the ground beneath them start to crumble.

'Jump!' Alanna yelled.

She and Legolas jumped at the same time. They landed on the dusty, yet mercifully solid, ground, mere inches from the abyss that Mordor had become. They lay there panting, to exhausted to even move. Elladan, Elrohir, Boromir, Aragorn, Gimli and the hobbits came running over.

'Where were you two?' asked Aragorn. 'What happened to you?'

Neither elf answered, yet Alanna, strangely, started laughing. Legolas soon joined her, both laughing at the sheer ridiculousness of what they had done and also because they had made it out alive against all the odds.

'That,' Legolas said, still laughing, 'was the single most insane thing I have ever done in my entire life.'

'That was worse than anything we've ever done before,' Alanna agreed, wearily sitting up. 'And that's including the time we got lost and ended up in Dol Guldûr...'

Aragorn and the twins gave her incredulous looks. Alanna have a weak laugh at their expressions before collapsing back onto the ground in a dead faint.

oOoOoOo

Minas Tirith, four days later...

'Alanna?' called a voice.

Alanna moaned and rolled over.

'Alanna,' the voice said again, 'I know you're awake.'

ALANNA WAKE UP RIGHT NOW! Charlotte yelled.

Go away and let me sleep, Alanna mumbled.

'Shall we try hitting her with the pillow attack method?' said another voice from the real world. 'You know that usually works.'

'Right you are, Elladan.'

Alanna was instantly bombarded with pillows. She yanked the covers up over her head and blindly threw a punch in the direction of Elladan's voice. She caught him in the leg and was satisfied when he yelped and jumped back.

'Now go away,' Alanna said, her voice muffled by the covers.

'Not until you're up,' said Elladan. 'You've been asleep for four days already. We think you've probably recovered by now. And we even thought to send for lunch!'

Alanna poked her head out from under the blankets and opened one eye. Her brothers were standing on either side of her bed, each with a big fluffy pillow in their hands.

'Four days?' Alanna asked.

'Yep,' Elrohir said. 'Come on. Up you get.'

Alanna stretched and sat up just as the door opened. A very familiar elf entered the room bearing a tray laden with toast and marmalade.

'Arwen?' asked Alanna. 'What are you doing here?'

'Ada and I, as well as several other elves, got here this morning,' Arwen answered, setting down the tray on Alanna's bed. Alanna promptly slathered a piece of toast with marmalade and took a bite. 'Thranduil's here too and he's in a right state. I wouldn't want to be Legolas when he wakes up.'

'Oh my gods! Is he okay?' Alanna's toast was quickly forgotten.

'He'll be fine,' Elladan said soothingly. 'Mordor took its toll on both of you but he'll live.'

Arwen choked on a piece of toast she had stolen. 'You went into Mordor?'

Alanna looked sheepish. 'We were trying to keep a troll away from Aragorn. It was the only option other than lead it straight back to Aragorn again.'

'Thranduil and ada are not going to be happy.'

'So what? It worked. But what's happened while I've been out? Frodo? Sam? Are they alright? Is everyone else alright?'

'Frodo and Sam are fine,' Elrohir told his sister. 'They're still unconscious but they'll live. Aragorn, Boromir, Merry, Pippin, Gandalf and Éomer are all fine. All of them sustained minor injuries but nothing serious. And, as I said before, Legolas will be fine too. Again, minor cuts and bruises, much like yourself, but he'll live.'

Alanna relaxed considerably and returned to her toast. 'So what's been going on? Anything I should know about?'

'Aragorn's going to become king of Gondor in about four days,' Elrohir answered. 'On that day he's also going to marry Arwen. Umm... What else has been going on?'

'Éomer's king of Rohan, since Théoden died, but you already know that,' Elladan continued. 'We had to keep Thranduil and father from coming in here and bombarding you with questions about why you went into Mordor with a ruddy great troll on your heels...'

'How'd you manage that?' Alanna asked incredulously.

'By telling them that you'd give them the full story once you were fully recovered.'

'Oh great.'

'We also told Arwen the reasons behind your actions, well what we could hear of them as you and Legolas yelled at each other around the troll, and she relayed this to ada and Thranduil...'

'Yes, I seemed to be much more persuasive than these two for some strange reason,' Arwen put in, rolling her eyes.

'Can't imagine why,' Alanna added sarcastically.

'...and they acquiesced,' Elladan finished, ignoring his sisters.

'So we've all pretty much been waiting for the hobbits and you two to wake up,' Elrohir added. 'Arwen and Father arrived this morning along with Thranduil and a few other elves, and I wish you had been there to see Thranduil's face when he heard about Legolas.'

'I can imagine,' Alanna sighed. 'What time is it?'

'About two in the afternoon.'

'Wow.' Alanna finished her toast and slid out of bed.

'Where do you think you're going?' asked Arwen as her little sister pulled on a dressing gown over the nightdress she was wearing.

'To check on Legolas.'

'Yet you know that he's going to be okay.'

'Nevertheless, I'm going to check for myself.' Alanna left the room.

Arwen looked at the twins for explanation. 'Is there something she's not telling me?'

The twins looked at each other and identical grins spread across their faces. 'Yes,' said Elladan smugly. 'Yes there is.'

'Oh you should have seen her and Legolas at the Black Gate,' Elrohir said. 'Just before it was about to start and we all thought we were going to die.'

'What...' Arwen was confused.

'You'll see when he wakes up,' Elladan said. 'I know exactly what Alanna will do first.'

Arwen raised a perfect eyebrow. 'Well then we'd better go check.'

The twins followed their sister out of Alanna's room and down the hall to Legolas's. The three elves found their sister involved in a heated argument with her nursemaid, Ninette (who had evidently accompanied Thranduil), about visiting Legolas.

'You should be in bed,' Ninette said firmly. 'I'll not have you running around so soon after running of into Mordor! Mordor for the Valar's sake! What were you thinking? This is worse than the dragon incident! This is worse than the time you and Legolas ran off, got lost and ended up almost getting trapped in the old fortress! This is Mordor we're talking about!'

'I'm not an elfling anymore, Ninette,' Alanna protested. 'I can take care of myself. Granted Mordor is worse than most other places in Middle Earth but nothing bad happened to us! We're both going to be perfectly fine!'

'Most other places?' Arwen asked. 'What's worse than Mordor?'

'Ummm... The Mines of Moria?'

Arwen raised an eyebrow. 'Oh?'

'You don't want to know.'

'What was going through your pretty little head when you led that troll off, I don't know,' Ninette sighed, ignoring the pair of them. 'I don't think I shall ever live to see the day when I understand how you think!'

'No, you won't. Because I don't think like most people.'

'Why's that?'

'Because she's completely bonkers,' Elladan and Elrohir said in unison.

'Ah, but crazy people don't know they are crazy,' Alanna said sagely. 'I know that I am crazy, therefore I am not crazy. Isn't that crazy?'

Elladan, Elrohir and Ninette looked confused.

'How about we stick with, I'm completely bonkers?' Alanna sighed.

'I'm not arguing with that,' Arwen said.

'Oh, Lady Arwen,' Ninette sighed. 'Can you please talk some sense into your sister?'

'No,' Arwen said. 'She's right. I may not agree with what she did, putting herself into reckless danger in such a manner, but she's certainly capable of putting up a fight.'

'And she's the most stubborn elf I've ever met,' Elladan added.

'Tell me something I don't know,' Ninette said, resisting the urge to sigh. She suddenly realised that Alanna had gone. 'Where'd she go?'

Arwen and the twins looked around and saw Alanna disappear into Legolas's room.

'Oh for the love of...' Arwen sighed. 'What is it with her and disappearing?'

The four elves followed Alanna and found her sitting on the edge of Legolas's bed. Legolas stirred slightly.

'Legolas?' Alanna asked.

Legolas groaned and rolled over. He and Alanna were both similarly difficult to wake up forcibly and one could count on getting a similar reaction from either elf. Alanna smiled.

'Wakey wakey,' she said softly.

Legolas opened his eyes. 'Where am I?' he asked.

'Back in Minas Tirith. Everyone's perfectly alright, including Frodo and Sam. Sauron is no more and Aragorn's going to be crowned king of Gondor in a few days.'

'He's not going to order us around is he?'

'He knows that if he did, I'd probably leave something dead and unspeakable on his pillow every night for a month.'

Legolas laughed. 'And you? Are you alright?'

'Fine.' Alanna squeezed his hand.

'Thank the Valar. When you collapsed, I was afraid that...'

Alanna placed a finger over his lips, preventing him from speaking. 'Don't say it. I don't want to think about it. But let's not think about what might have been. It's in the past, we can't change the past and it's useless to worry. I, for one, am just glad you're safe.'

Legolas sat up. 'I'm glad you're safe too,' he said softly. He leaned forward and kissed Alanna swiftly on the lips.

When they broke apart, Alanna glanced at Arwen and laughed. Her sister was staring at the pair of them, her mouth moving but no sound coming out.

'Oh you two are perfect together,' she said finally.

Alanna rolled her eyes. 'Come on, Legolas,' she said, getting up and throwing a pillow at him. 'Up you get.'

'Where are we going?' asked the pyjama-clad elf, climbing out of bed and following Alanna out of the room.

'We're going on a mission to find and raid the kitchens. I'm still hungry.'

'Now you mention it, so am I. What time is it?'

'Sometime after two in the afternoon.'

'Well past lunchtime then.'

'Legolas?' asked a very familiar voice. 'What on this good earth are you doing out of bed?'

Legolas and Alanna turned and spotted Thranduil and Elrond standing at the other and of the corridor they were in. Both elves looked like they were equal parts worried, angry and relieved, and both looked ready to launch tirades at their respective children.

'Run?' asked Alanna.

'Run,' confirmed Legolas. He grabbed her hand and the two elves sprinted down the corridor in the general direction of the kitchens.

oOoOoOo

Half an hour later...

'I can't believe it's over,' Alanna sighed, resting her head on Legolas shoulder.

'Neither can I,' Legolas admitted, sliding an arm around her waist. 'It seems a bit surreal. Like this is a dream.'

'Perhaps it is a dream.'

'It isn't. If it was, then Elrond and Thranduil would be leaving us alone and not bothering to ask why we went into Mordor of all places.'

Alanna giggled slightly. 'I have no idea what in the name of all that's holy was going through my head at that point.'

'It doesn't matter what your were thinking. It's over, the Ring is destroyed, Sauron vanquished, and Middle Earth is safe.'

'There you two are!' said a voice behind them.

Alanna moaned. 'There's a reason we were avoiding you, Ada,' she sighed. 'We just want to be alone. Is that too much to ask?'

'You still owe me an explanation,' Elrond said, crossing his arms, even though Alanna couldn't see. 'But I will let you off for the rest of today.'

'Thank you.'

'Although Thranduil might not be so understanding. Anyway, near suicidal journey into Mordor aside, I came to find you two because Frodo and Sam are awake and await the presence of the rest of the Fellowship of the Ring.'

A Note From Angela And Opal:

Opal: We're back! Yay! Sorry to everyone for not updating sooner but exams, Christmas and summer reading (Tess Of The D'Urbervilles!) for Literature have taken up most of my holidays. But you lot don't want to hear excuses. The point is, don't expect regular updates for this story as I am starting Year 11, but I will try my best to get this finished and try to get chapters out faster.

Angela: I WILL GO WHERE THE PIXIES LIVE!

Opal: *facepalm* Ignore her. She's had sugar. Anyways, I know this is the mother of all filler chapters and it isn't very long, but I was more concerned with getting it out. The canon storyline is almost over, but I'm not sure how many more chapters this has got left. More than one, but less than seven. Perhaps four and a half... Never mind.

Angela: Finished with the long monologues?

Opal: No.

Angela: *duct tapes Opal's mouth* That's shut her up. Anyways, I know that Opal has another fanfic in the works but that won't be out till after this is finished. So other than that, all we have to say is that we're sorry for not posting earlier, we hope you all enjoy this chapter and please review!

Opal: Mmffle!

Angela: Oh, and to NinjaGreenleaf and the guest reviewer, thanks so much for reviewing! Here's the next chapter for you and everyone else! Ummm... Is there anything more to say?

Opal: Mmffle!

Angela: Nope! Bye everyone! See you soon... Hopefully...