A/N- On a roll !

Chapter 20- A Fragile Peace

Within the comforting boundaries of Lothlorien, Lithil breathed easily and felt the joyful stirrings of her child. The Fellowship had been in the company of the elves for a month and just last week Galadriel had whispered to Lithil that her hospitality would extend for a month and a day. Tomorrow would be the last day of Galadriel's hospitality and the day that Lithil would once more be separated from Legolas. Although it had not been discussed with anyone within or without the Fellowship since Aragorn's words to them almost a month ago both Legolas and Lithil were heavy with the knowledge that their separation was imminent. They also both knew that it was time to tell their companions in the Fellowship what was going on between them.

Elves usually carried their children for a year and the maturation is slow, the child growing at a snail's pace with the continued and devoted aid of both the mother's and father's energy. Most elves were not prone to rushing the growth of their child, to pushing energy into it at a fast pace, but Legolas and Lithil had hardly been like most of their kin. They had survived a broken bond for a thousand years, they had survived unthinkable horrors, and had still managed to love purely. Their overwhelming love, their overwhelming belief in love and their unbroken spirits, had called forth the creation of an elfling during a time of terrible war… a time when few elves would even consider bringing an elfling into the world. Beyond the evil that loomed there was something else that never happened—Legolas was going to leave his wife to carry their child alone. This was unheard of in the world of elves—the father's contribution to a child was so important that none of them ever chose to leave.

"You know that this day every single passing of every single moment pains me." Legolas said to her as he stroked her hair behind her ears. Her ears were healed now, scarred but healed fully, and he was now able to look at them without flinching.

"I know… you do not wish to leave." Lithil nuzzled into his hand and tied the last strip of his shirt into a neat bow, "But we well know not to be selfish."

He pressed a hand against her stomach and felt the bulge that had begun to develop. With the amount of energy Legolas had been pouring into his child it was already large enough to cause its mother's body to adjust to keep it comfortable. Still, at a month old, it was still genderless and not able to project any energy back at its parents—it could merely accept what it was given and try to use it as well as possible to grow.

"Yes, my love," Legolas knelt and pressed a kiss against the swell, "We have learned not to be selfish. I wish that I could stay with you and help you… but if I help you know and the Ring fails to be destroyed there will be no help I can offer to protect you or the child from The Dark One and his army. Now is the time to go and fight and make a peaceable world for this child to live in."

He stood and helped Lithil tie back her hair and smooth her dress. She cupped his face and tried to memorize the lines of it, "Are you ready to emerge from our little cocoon and share the light of day with the Fellowship again?"

"As ready as I shall ever be." He kissed her palm and hoped she understood how much love he felt for her in that moment. He offered her his hand and helped escort her down the tree to where the Fellowship was beginning to pack for tomorrow's journey.

Gimli saw them first and humphed, trying to sound less happy than he was to see them, "Have the lord and lady finally deigned to grace us with their presence again? We've seen almost nothing of them since we crossed this border."

Aragorn nodded at the approaching couple and cast his eyes carefully over Lithil, noticing the slight difference in her frame, and embraced them both, "I am sorry to see this time end."

"As are we." Lithil spoke softly and Aragorn noticed that her voice was more musical than before as if her own state of grace had increased with her burden.

"So we really are leaving tomorrow?" Pippin walked over sadly and looked around the woods, "I like it here…"

"Don't whine, Pip." Merry elbowed him, "Perk up, our favorite lady-elf is back."

"I'd be careful saying that in these parts." Sam looked around the woods suspiciously, "That Pretty Elf Queen might hear and taken offense."

"I heard. I take offense." Gimli muttered and Lithil kissed his cheek, "I see you have warmed up to the Evil Elf Witch, Master Dwarf."

Gimli mumbled something indiscernible and started to wander off to finish sharpening his axe for the battle that awaited them. He only got a few steps when Lithil gently grabbed his arm, "Wait, please, Gimli…. We have something to say to the Fellowship and we would like everyone here."

Sam and Merry went to collect Frodo and Boromir while Pippin siddled up next to Lithil and leaned his head against her thigh, "You sound sad… is everything alright?"

"Yes, Pip." She ran her fingers through her curls, "Everything is fine, as fine as can be in these times, and soon you will understand a bit more why I sound so sad."

Lithil smiled as Pippin glowed under her gentle attentions and her heart twisted—she would miss the Hobbits greatly. They seemed to her like children themselves and she wondered at why such innocent, small creatures were being thrust into such a great, terrible evil. Boromir walked toward Lithil quietly and studied her carefully, he knew that he was unlikely to win back her trust anytime soon and felt guilty that he had broken it thoroughly. He watched her gently stroke Pippin's hair and felt his heart beat steadily again, as it had when he had been a boy of fifteen and had first realized how beautiful she was, and he knew that a part of him loved her. He knew they a part of him had always loved her, that controlling her was his way of trying to make that love real, but now he let go of the control and could see that the tighter he tried to hold onto her the further away he had pushed her. He had seen her stroke Faramir's hair the way she stroked Pippin's but could not remember ever receiving the same treatment—his brother was closer to her heart than he was. Perhaps there was something to be learned from these beings he felt were below him.

He smiled at the elves and hoped to win back some of the good nature he had spoiled.

When Frodo finally walked into the group they all sat around in a circle and the silence hung around them like an early morning fog. In its own time, it lifted, and Legolas spoke delicately, "We thank everyone for understanding our time spent apart and alone. It might have, at times, seemed selfish but we assure you that there was a greater interest being served than our own pleasures. It fills me with pride to announce to you, our friends, that something is happening on Middle Earth that has not happened in two thousand and seven hundred years."

"Sauron's rising!" Pippin offered but Merry cuffed his ears, "That isn't news, Pip!"

"No, Master Hobbit… good news has come to Middle Earth that has not been here in many long years." Lithil smiled and laid a hand on her stomach, immediately Legolas laid his hand over hers and most of the group took a sharp intake of breath, "We shall be welcoming an elfling."

"An elfling? Like a baby elf?" Pippin asked and Legolas smiled warmly, "Yes, Master Pippin. That is precisely what it is."

"Oh that's great news then!" Pippin jumped up with Merry they did a quick jig, "Congratulations!"

Sam furrowed his brow, "Why did you say it hasn't happened in so long? Do you mean to say that there aren't no baby elves running around?"

"No, Sam." Lithil said lightly, "Not since the birth of the Lady Arwen of Rivendell over two thousand and seven hundred years ago."

"That's a might long time to not have babies." Sam mumbled, "Why didn't the elves have them?"

"Because the days were long and dark, elves did not feel it the proper atmosphere for children." Legolas explained, "And so shall our child know great darkness unless this Fellowship continues on their path. So we shall continue, and I shall not stop until I have fought for the light with my last breath."

Frodo met Lithil's eyes and they shared a long, silent moment, "You aren't coming with us, are you Lithil?"

"Not right now, Master Frodo." Lithil bowed her head, "The Lady has assured me that to leave tomorrow with the Fellowship would guarantee the death of our child but that if I wait here I shall soon rejoin you all when the most immediate danger has passed."

Everyone looked at Frodo who slowly nodded, "I think if we were to force you along knowing the child would die because of it then we would be more callous than Sauron- we are fighting for a safer world for children, we must do everything to ensure their safety."

Lithil let loose a sigh of relief—if Frodo had denied her request the rest of the Fellowship would have sided with him. From Frodo's eyes she turned her gaze to Boromir who was in shock.

"An…elfling?" Boromir choked out and Lithil nodded. Legolas began to glower dangerously at the Steward but Lithil put a hand on his chest that kept him in his chair, "Yes, Boromir. After many long years of feeling dead I felt so alive here that life took root. I cannot say it is by pure chance… elves choose to conceive, or choose not to, and both of us greatly desire this child."

Boromir chewed on his lip and ran his hand over his face, "How could you? You do not have your freedom yet and the contract dictates that any child of yours shall belong to the same slavery you endure. How could you be so irresponsible?"

"Irresponsible?" Legolas growled, "How dare you!"

Aragorn stood up and held up two hands of peace in front of both the Man and the Elf, "Peace! Peace! We must not become angry over things we cannot help! The child is living and so we must not say whether or not that is a good or bad thing, but we must consider that since the child lives it deserves a proper world. Can we not bond over the fact that a child's future is a most precious thing? That not just their child but any child deserves to live without a threat in the South growing hungrier for it by the day? Keep peace over your own parts in this and focus on that—it is the Enemy in the South that we must unite against, not separate over the finer points of this one child."

The group was silent and stunned, chewing over everyone's words, until Gimli grumbled, "It's going to be a blonde, pointy eared, tree-climbing little thing, and that to me is not as fine a creature as a small, hairy, bearded babe crawling in the dirt, but whether rock or tree becomes the child's bed it should not be hunted by shadows in the night. I say we aim our ire at the real problem."

Legolas' heart melted and he fell to his knees and embraced the scruffy dwarf, "Thank you, Gimli."

Lithil kissed the dwarf's cheek and he blushed a brilliant red and stuttered, "Enough of that you two, you'll have me as sentimental as an elf if you keep this up."

Boromir slept restlessly that night and kept waking to see Legolas holding two firm hands over Lithil's tiny bump and singing softly to it. He still thought that this was a terrible idea… perhaps the worst idea in long, sad history of bad ideas.

"Trust in love rather than doubt, son of Denethor." The Lady's voice echoed in his head and his heart threatened to burst… the lady had deigned to speak to him at last. He kept her words close to his heart and tried to sleep.

Even with Galadriel's advice, he did not sleep that night.

The next day came too soon. Legolas walked all the way to the boats with his hand still pressed against the swell of his baby. Eventually Lithil took his hand, kissed it, and told him to go help the Hobbits. For a moment she stood alone and her own two hands fell on top of her stomach.

Boromir walked up next to her and petted her hands quickly, pulling his touch away as fast as he had pressed it to her, and simply said, "I am happy to see you finally feel at peace."

"There is not peace." Lithil responded, "Not yet. But I would like it."

The Lady Galadriel walked up beside Lithil and signaled that the Fellowship should line up, it was time for their gifts to be given to them. Legolas held up his hands to refuse the Lady's gift, "In keeping her safe, you give me a gift so great I can never repay it."

"If that is the case, my Woodland Prince, accept another gift just to make me happy." She smiled at him and handed him the bow, "A bow of the Galadhrim, fit for the skill of our Woodland Kin."

Lithil could tell that Legolas was enthralled with the bow and she laughed lightly as he strummed the string and pretended to take aim at the top of Gimli's head. The dwarf was muttering shyly to Galadriel when it was his turn to receive a gift and finally the lady leaned her head down to hear his request. Lithil was surprised to see the Elf Queen take a small dagger from her belt and dart it towards her hair—if Lithil hadn't known any better she would have thought that a Dwarf had asked for a lock of hair from the Lady of Light.

Soon the Fellowship were in the boats and Legolas turned to look at Lithil one last time. He knew if he walked over to her and kissed her one last time that he would lose his nerve to leave her and so he touched his fingers to his brow, kissed them, and offered them to her.

"Farewell, I know in my heart that I shall see you soon."

Lithil touched her outstretched fingers to her lips and a single tear dripped down her cheek, "Be safe, my love."

Galadriel put a hand on Lithil's shoulder as the Fellowship disappeared down the river and Lithil could feel the Elf Queen's power surge through her body like a gulp of warm soup, instantly calming her and soothing her worried heart, "He was right, my little flower, it will not be long until you see him again but the circumstances of the reunion will be dark indeed. Do not ache for it too harshly—take this time to enjoy your new babe, to let it grow, to feel all the awe that you should feel."

"When will I see him again, my Lady? Will you not let me know?"

"You shall see him when the elves march to war for Man." Galadriel flatly revealed, "It will be the first time in history we send an expecting elf into battle with neither sword nor shield."

Lithil paled, "Neither sword nor shield?"

"Where you are going…you shall not need them." Galadriel petted Lithil's soft blonde hair, "You shall need all the strength of character that you can muster—so use this time to collect it, to steel yourself, to make your child strong enough to survive the journey it must make with you."

Lithil wrapped both of her arms around her stomach, protectively, as if she could shield her child with just the strength in her body but she knew that what Galadriel said was more important—Lithil, of all elves in the world, knew what it was to have a strong mind and a strong soul beyond a strong body. Bodies could fail but a mind, a heart, could only be broken with the permission of its owner.

And Lithil never intended to break…especially not now that another life depended on her.

To Be Continued.

A/N- two in one day! How about that? Keep reviewing! Keep pestering me to continue! Next stop: March 3rd in the Great Years….. also known as? ….anyone? Anyone?