The funeral of King Théoden under a green hill near Meduseld ended with a song, composed by the royal minstrel and sung by the people who had come to pay their respects. Legolas did not understand the words, but the faces of the Rohirrim told the story just as well. Poor Merry could hardly contain his grief and tears ran down his cheeks during the whole ceremony.
When the procession wandered slowly back to the Golden Hall, the Eldar of Imladris, Lothlórien and Greenwood stayed behind and said blessings of their own. They laid bunches of sage and rosemary on the hill and Lady Galadriel recited an ancient poem to make Mandos receive the king's soul with kindness. Then they quietly followed the procession.
The solemn atmosphere did not last long, as Legolas noted with great astonishment. In the belief of the Rohirrim, as soon as the old king had joined his ancestors in the next world, the new one was required to claim the throne, so Éomer's coronation followed immediately after the funeral. When the Eldar arrived, it seemed as if every man, woman and child of Edoras were assembled in the Golden Hall. They squeezed their way through the crowd as best they could and found a place on the side from where they could observe what was happening.
Éomer stood in front of the throne, flanked by three old men on the right and the Captain of the King's Guard on the left. The first loremaster unrolled a tattered parchment and started to read out the names of all the kings who had ruled the Mark, beginning with Eorl the Young. Elladan leaned over to Legolas and mumbled, "I don't know about you, but I can recite the line of my ancestors by heart."
The prince felt the need to take Éomer's side and objected, "But we don't have that many. These Edain are so incredibly short-lived…" Suddenly he felt Lady Galadriel's severe gaze on the back of his head and deemed it wiser to be quiet.
When the loremaster had reached the present day and proclaimed Éomer's name, the second wise man stepped forward with a crown in his hands. Éomer let him set it on his head. Next came the Captain of the King's Guard and presented an old, rusty ceremonial sword. To the great bewilderment of the Eldar, Éomer cut into his own hand with it. This time Lord Elrond could not refrain from remarking that a wound full of rust was not the most agreeable way to start one's reign and that it might be one reason for the high mortality in Rohan's royal line. The Elves tried their best to keep straight faces; even Erestor's mouth twitched slightly and Glorfindel barely managed to turn his chuckle into a cough.
Éomer raised his bleeding hand and the third loremaster walked up to him, holding a bowl filled with soil. The blood dripped into the bowl while the old man intoned an ancient verse. "The king is now bound to his land by body and soul," Erestor translated, who had probably studied every language ever spoken in Arda.
At last Lady Éowyn emerged from the crowd with a cup in her hands that she gave to her brother. He emptied it, walked to the throne and sat down. "Hail, Éomer, King of the Mark!" shouted the crowd before everyone in the hall with a cup at their disposal drank to the new king's health. The official part of the coronation seemed to be concluded, as Legolas presumed by watching the loremasters and the captain vanish in the crowd.
Éomer, however, stayed on his throne and glanced at his people expectantly until the noise level lowered. "People of Edoras," he started, "friends from faraway lands! As my first official act as king," he paused a moment when his own words sunk into his consciousness and blinked two or three times, "well, as I said, as my first official act I would like to make a joyous announcement: Lord Faramir, Steward of Gondor and Prince of Ithilien, asks Lady Éowyn of Rohan for her hand and she grants it full willing. Therefore they shall be trothplighted before you all." The crowd began cheering hesitantly when Éowyn came forward, gesturing cluelessly, and Éomer let his eyes wander the hall in search of Faramir.
Legolas looked around too, only to see the Gondorian trying to push his way through while repeating his sincerest apologies. With a last "Excuse me, may I please… Thank you!" he finally reached the free space before the throne, where Éowyn had turned crimson in the meantime. Legolas noticed that all three of Lord Elrond's children were almost suffocating in their attempt not to laugh out loud.
Éomer laid the couple's hands together and declared, "May this bond tighten the friendship between our realms." He drew a knife from his pocket and held it out for Faramir to take, who looked at the weapon, then back at Éomer, and whispered very audibly, "What?"
Even over the chuckles of the people Legolas could hear the king's answer, "You have to draw blood from each other's hands to seal your promise. It's tradition – didn't Éowyn explain that to you?"
"She did," Faramir gave back, affirmed by the lady's nod, "but I was certain she was joking. I'm not cutting her! Why is everything about bloodshed with you people?" Éomer let out a sigh and gave the confused crowd an awkward grin. Legolas had a sudden vision of all the cultural differences that might make Faramir and Éowyn's day-to-day life in Ithilien a true sight to behold, which consolidated his plan to move there.
Now Éowyn took the knife from her brother and suggested, "How about I go first?" Without waiting for an answer, she sliced Faramir's palm in one determined movement.
He frowned but eventually he conceded, "Fine!" Carefully he followed her example, his face reflecting much more pain than when he had received his own cut. When it was done, Éomer quickly pressed their hands together once more and took back his knife. At last the crowd applauded, but Legolas did not fail to notice Faramir's muttering, "We're having the wedding in Gondor, that's for sure!" Éowyn only smiled and nodded soothingly.
Next to Legolas the Eldar exchanged sceptical looks. "Now that is going to be an interesting marriage," Erestor pointed out.
Arwen objected, "Don't be so prosaic, Lord Erestor! It is a very sweet love story. Aragorn told me they met in the Houses of Healing, both recovering from the Black Breath. Personally, I like Éowyn and I hope we shall become good friends."
"Fortunately she was quick in changing targets once she learned that Aragorn was taken," Elrohir contributed. Only when everybody fell silent he noticed that it might have been a bit too soon for this particular joke.
"Beg your pardon?" Arwen said slowly, glaring in Éowyn's direction. Legolas, Elladan, Elrond and Celeborn all cringed simultaneously and Glorfindel murmured to Erestor, "Is anyone else sensing the first minor marital strife in the Citadel?"
Galadriel shot him a murderous look and interjected quickly, "Let us all find something to eat, shall we?" As everyone knew how unwise it was to object her, the Eldar pretended nothing had happened and started their way towards the food tables.
-x-x-x-x-
Not long after the celebration it was time to leave Edoras for most of the guests. As the Hobbits, the Eldar, the wizard and the Dwarf were all headed west, they embarked on their journey together. Aragorn and some of his people would accompany them until the Gap of Rohan before travelling back to Gondor.
It was a quiet journey because it had been preceded by many goodbyes. The most painful one had undoubtedly been said between Arwen and her father and grandmother because both ring-bearers would sail to the Undying Lands very soon. Legolas could not and did not want to imagine what it felt like to see one's family for the last time in all eternity. Once more his wish to return to his father and Tauriel grew stronger.
The journey's first stop was the fortress of Helm's Deep, where most of the battle's damage had already been repaired. Legolas fulfilled his promise to Gimli and visited the Glittering Caves with him. At first he was reluctant to go underground, but when he came back into the sunlight after wandering the magnificent halls and passages of shimmering stone for four hours straight, he could not find words to describe what he had seen and had to refer everyone who asked him about it to Gimli. "Never before has an Elf been defeated by a Dwarf in a contest of words," he admitted without holding the slightest grudge against his friend. Gimli was still in awe and did not object when Legolas requested, "Let us go to Fangorn next to set the score right."
The company rode on to Isengard, only to find the place hardly recognisable. The Ents welcomed them and Treebeard explained how they had eliminated many Orcs coming from the North – at that Lord Celeborn apologised for letting others clean up the mess the Galadhrim had swept out of their forest. Moreover, the Ents had transformed the destroyed and sickened landscape around Orthanc into a flourishing garden with orchards and brooks. According to Treebeard, Saruman had left a while ago and was now wandering west. No one, Mithrandir least of all, was too thrilled to hear that, but after all the evil they had faced a ruined wizard seemed but a minor nuisance.
As much as Legolas tried to delay it, the time to take his leave of his friends had come. First he addressed those he was certain to see again on the same shores of the world. He gratefully accepted the Hobbits' invitation to come and visit the Shire one day and shook each one's hand. Then he hugged Aragorn and promised to let him know as soon as possible what had become of his plans to live in Ithilien. To Elladan and Elrohir he said that he would come to see them in Imladris eventually and invited them to Greenwood in turn. "If you aren't afraid of the dark, that is!" Lord Celeborn gave him a fair warning about how altered the forest would be, along with a friendly embrace and a half-serious threat to behave himself if he ever set foot in East Lórien.
Now followed the more long-lasting goodbyes. Although Glorfindel and Erestor had never been his closest friends, the notion of them leaving this world forever felt strangely melancholic. To Lord Elrond Legolas had nothing to say but his heartfelt thanks for everything he had taught him. "Whatever it is like over there, I hope very much to cross paths with you again in the Undying Lands."
"And so you shall, I am sure," Elrond replied. "May the sun and the stars guide your way by day and night until then."
Lady Galadriel smiled at him and said, "I assure you, it is a very agreeable place 'over there' and over time its beauty will soothe the loss that you will bear in your heart when you set your sail."
"Please, meleth nín," Lord Celeborn whispered in her ear, shaking his head ever so slightly.
The lady raised an eyebrow, but a moment later she smiled at Legolas again. "Never mind. I look forward to welcoming you there."
"Thank you," he answered, feeling rather puzzled.
Next to him, Gimli came up and looked at the lady with an expression full of misery. "By Dúrin's beard, it has been an honour and a joy to have known the Lady of the Woods and it pains me to part from her now forever." He bowed deeply, ignoring Lord Celeborn's watchful glance at his axe.
Galadriel's face showed pity and amusement at the same time. "Dear Gimli, son of Glóin, the honour and joy are all mine. Do not trouble yourself over those you part from today. Fate has its very own unexpected ways sometimes." With that she gave him an enigmatic smile and nodded her goodbye.
Mithrandir made one or two jokes when the Elf and the Dwarf took their leave from him but he did not manage to hide how moved he was. In the end he told them to get out of his sight quickly or he would get sentimental for the first time in his long life. So they did; as always, they mounted their horse together and tried not to look back too often until their friends vanished from their sight.
Fangorn Forest was as magnificent and mystical as Legolas remembered it from his first short visit. The trees needed a while to adjust to the presence of the Dwarf but when Legolas could convince them that the visitors had the approval of Treebeard himself, the old oaks, willows and pines calmed down and a little while later some of them started to tell him their stories. The friends spent two days in the forest, until Gimli put his foot down and declared that enough was enough.
At the edge of the forest they made their camp for the night and decided they would continue their journey by crossing the Anduin again and travelling around Greenwood in the East. After passing Esgaroth, their ways would part for the time being.
"You know, you're not a bad fellow, for a pointy-ear I mean," Gimli said while throwing pine cones into the campfire and puffing his pipe.
Legolas made a grave face and answered as earnestly as he could, "For an axe-wielding gnome all covered in hair and metal, you're not the worst company either."
Gimli started fiddling around in his pocket and produced a small raw gem, sparkling in every colour of the rainbow in the light of the fire. He held it under Legolas' nose and asked, "I found this in the caverns. Would you like to give your captain something pretty when you get home?"
The Elf looked at the gem, then at Gimli, and frowned. "You have to break everything beautiful that you see, don't you?"
"And you have to sympathise with every tree and every rock, right?" the Dwarf retaliated. "It was already loose, I picked it off the floor, by Mahal's axe! When we come to Esgaroth, I could prove to you that I'm not only good at cutting down Orcs but also at cutting gems. I could find a smithy and set it into a pendant, or a bracelet, or a ring perhaps."
Legolas pondered his options for a moment, but at last he agreed, "That would be nice. She isn't the type for jewellery, but I guess the betrothal holly twig I gave her could be replaced by something more durable."
Gimli smirked. "I thought so. You know, with that whole Ithilien business of yours, I have made up my mind…" He paused, gnawing on his pipe.
"Well?" Legolas probed.
"I was thinking, maybe I could establish a small dwarven colony in the Glittering Caves if Éomer lets me. Of course we wouldn't exploit them, we would tend them and open up new ways to gain access to the chambers that are still hidden. We would make lights to awaken the beauty of the countless sparkling colours. I say, an endless pilgrimage of Dwarves would come to see such wonder!"
Gimli's eyes shone with ardour and Legolas could only encourage him in his plan. "You should do that! If the Rohirrim don't appreciate the beauty that lies hidden under their mountain, the Dwarves certainly will."
"It's a pact then!" Gimli declared. "You will plant trees and make Ithilien green again, and I will be the guardian of the Glittering Caves."
Legolas nodded. "So be it!"
They rested calmly that night with the trees of Fangorn now watching over their sleep instead of menacing them. At the first light of dawn they were already up and packing their belongings. With the last stage of their journey ahead of them, both of them felt restless and more than ready to get home. It was still a substantial ride that would take weeks, but there was no reason to delay it further.
When Legolas pulled Gimli up on the horse's back, the Dwarf seemed almost melancholic. "Come on, you long-suffering old nag," he said to Arod and petted his flank gently, "one more ride across half of Arda and you shall be rid of us – well, of me at least."
The Elf turned around in astonishment. "Gimli, my friend, could it be that you are growing fond of the horse? It would be a great sacrifice, of course, but under these circumstances I would be willing to let you take him to Erebor," he joked.
Gimli instantly resumed his usual scowl and muttered, "He would end up in a stew soon enough, the blasted beast. Best use for a horse, I say. Let's get going, shall we?"
In all their lifetime neither Legolas nor Gimli had undertaken a journey so quiet and free of adversities as this one. It was strange to encounter no Orcs, Wargs, Trolls or other dangers on the road at all. During the first week they still held on to their weapons at all times and took turns sleeping, but soon they realised that this was what the new world they had fought for looked like.
They reached Esgaroth on a mild summer evening and when they rode into the town upon the lake, old memories came back to Legolas. The streets and houses showed no sign of recent destruction, but the people who noticed the strange travellers eyed them as warily as ever. It did not take long to find the local silversmith's shop and Gimli convinced the owner with courteous words and a substantial amount of coins to let him use his tools for an hour or two.
In the meantime Legolas waited in front of the shop and got into conversation with the smith's neighbour, a baker who insisted on giving him a piece of cake in exchange for some news from the wide world because all she had heard were rumours. He obliged her and told the tale of King Elessar and the Reunited Kingdom of the West. In turn the woman informed him about the happenings in the Realm of Dale that had been assaulted by Easterlings. King Brand had joined forces with Dáin Ironfoot, but both lords had fallen in a devastating battle at the Gate of Erebor. In the end the Men of Dale and Esgaroth and the Dwarves had been forced to barricade themselves in the Lonely Mountain until receiving the news of Sauron's defeat. After that they had summoned their last strength and broken the siege, chasing the enemies out of Dale. "It was horrible and we're infinitely grateful to be alive and to have our homes preserved. The old ones say they have seen worse, but personally, I don't need any more bloodshed for the rest of my lifetime," the baker concluded.
When Gimli came out of the workshop, he presented both a beautiful silver ring with the gem from the caves and a very gloomy face. The smith had told him the same story that Legolas had just heard from the baker. "I won't find a wink of sleep before I've seen my family," the Dwarf declared. "I'm leaving for Erebor tonight, I don't care if I have to walk in the dark." Legolas understood him perfectly.
The two friends said goodbye at the city gate of Esgaroth. They did not need many words because they knew they would see each other again soon. "Travel safely, mellon nín," Legolas said and laid his hand on the Dwarf's shoulder.
Gimli nodded. "You too, my friend." With that he turned around and took the eastern road, not looking back. Legolas watched him for a while before he mounted the horse and rode towards the river that would lead him to the edge of Greenwood.
-x-x-x-x-
"Well then, Captain, as you see we're managing fine here. You can tell your king that East Lórien is in capable hands," Haldir said with his best smug grin while glancing not very subtly at Tauriel's waiting horse.
She swallowed the answer she would have liked to give him on such a blunt dismissal. "Indeed," she replied instead, "it seems you are adjusting so well that I could withdraw my soldiers altogether." Lieutenant Glandir, standing next to her, gave her a meaningful look that clearly said 'From your lips to Eru's ears!' They exchanged a frown of mutual understanding.
Tauriel had accompanied the Border Guard units that would relieve the ones currently stationed in East Lórien. She had wanted to see with her own eyes what the Galadhrim were making of her homeland and despite her reluctance to admit it, they had done fairly well. There were no more spider webs, no more parasitic vegetation and no more bloodsucking black butterflies. The trees looked considerably healthier than the last time she had visited the place, which was impressive, given that it had been the most infested part of the whole forest.
"Except for these strange tree houses you built, I'll say it's not half as bad as I expected," she concluded, directing her steps towards the horse.
Haldir bowed his head in ironic reverence. "Coming from you that does mean a lot. And you're right, tree houses only work in mallorn trees. We should bring some seeds and…"
"Don't you dare!" she interjected. "This is Greenwood, not Lothlórien! So, no mallorn trees, I beg you!"
The Galadhrim chuckled. "Fine then, no foreign vegetation as long as Captain Tauriel comes visiting. By the way, you asked me to take a look at the area between the cliff and the swamp." She nodded, suddenly all ears. Haldir gave her an odd look. "There's nothing, only trees and ivy. Why did you want to know?"
Tauriel answered quickly, "Oh, I just wanted to be sure there were no more spiders in that particular place. A village lay there once, but that was almost seven hundred years ago, so of course there would be nothing left of it."
"Ah, I see. Did you know anyone there?" Haldir started, but he stopped when he caught Glandir discretely shaking his head. Understanding flickered over his face and he cleared his throat. "Right! If there is nothing more you would like to inspect, Captain, I wish you a safe journey."
Tauriel thanked him and wished him well in return. While Glandir summoned the soldiers who would leave with the captain, she did her best to mount the horse without letting anyone notice how difficult that was with an almost immobile knee. Haldir had enough tact to pretend he was observing the soldiers. When everyone was ready, Tauriel took her leave of Glandir and the group set out north.
Even though she had already made the same way in the other direction, Tauriel could not wonder enough at the change the forest had undergone. Not only did it look different, it felt unfamiliar as well. Where the air had been thick and the shadows had been menacing before, now there was sunlight and growing life everywhere. Even the burnt trees were partly overgrown by moss and ivy and for the first time in decades the chirping of birds was a constant sound that mingled with the soft whispering of the summer wind in the treetops. It was almost too idyllic for Tauriel's taste, she was always waiting for a spider to burst out of the bushes or a swarm of poisonous bats to emerge from the next tree – but nothing of the kind happened.
In the lands that now belonged to the Woodmen and the Beornings, no sign of civilisation could be seen, but a corporal informed Tauriel that many of them had indeed made their homes in the area. "They prefer not to be disturbed," he explained and Tauriel was not too disappointed that she would not have to pay a visit to Khryllm-tak or Grimbeorn.
The journey passed as quietly as it had begun. Soon the first soldiers of the Palace Guard welcomed the travellers, which meant the company was but one mile away from home. The captain, however, sent the soldiers ahead by themselves and took a detour to the river.
West of the Woodland Halls the water ran between two hills where there had once been mighty beeches that the fire had taken. One of the hills remained untouched, with the burnt trees still lying everywhere, as a reminder of what had happened. The other one had become a field of graves. Stone cairns that Tauriel had never dared to count covered the bodies of the soldiers who had given their lives in the Battle under the Trees.
She slid off the horse and walked between the cairns. She had visited the grave hill several times before, but the thought that all these people had been her comrades and some of them her friends still made her stomach cramp. In her mind she saw their faces and heard their voices, remembered the patrols and fights she had seen through with them and the laughter and stories they had shared. For a moment everything came back and the sadness overwhelmed her. She had cried so many tears for her friends that there were none left, so she only stood between the stones and tried to keep breathing until she felt that the lump in her throat was gone. Quietly she started humming the song that a bard had written the day after the battle in honour of the dead and to remind the survivors of the blessing to be alive and have a home.
After finishing the song, Tauriel walked to a grave on the left side of the hill. She pulled a half-dried daisy out of her pocket and placed it on the stones. "Mae govannen, Sidhril," she whispered. "I brought you something from the forest. There are flowers growing everywhere now, can you imagine? I didn't want to pick more because they look so pretty beneath the trees, but I figured there probably weren't any flowers in the Halls of Mandos, so I brought you this one at least." She smiled weakly and picked a bit of ash that the wind had blown over from the other hill off the stones. "I miss you. There is so much I want to share with you, but you simply aren't here anymore. I'm so sorry you can't see all the things that are happening in our forest. I hope your new home is a tolerably nice place and being a bodiless soul isn't as dull as I imagine it. At least you aren't alone over there, with all our comrades who have gone the same way."
She gulped and looked at the grave next to Sidhril's. "Well, Fiondir, I never thought I would say this, but I miss you too. I appointed Draugwen as your successor and she's doing fine. Only she's so… nice and respectful to me. I'm not used to that, duty is far too quiet without you contradicting me all the time. You know, I'm grateful you did that, it often helped me question my decisions and make the right choices. We may not always have seen eye to eye but you taught me a lot. Thank you for that."
She took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders. "I have to go, but I'll be back to annoy you two eventually." That said, she walked back to the horse that was calmly munching grass at the foot of the hill. "Come on, mellon, let's go home," she said and heaved herself on his back, this time without giving a Troll's toenail about elegance.
When she reached the halls, she found the gate open and unguarded, a sight that had not been seen in a century. Alation usually knew what he was doing, so she did not mind too much, but it would take her a while to get used to living in a safe environment. A palace guard walked across the courtyard and seemed to get strangely nervous on seeing her. He saluted, but the next instant he hurried off to the Guard's quarters as if he had just remembered an urgent errand. Tauriel shook her head and resolved it was none of her business. She took the horse to the stable, where she was greeted by a beautiful grey stallion she had never noticed before. She allowed him to sniff her hand thoroughly and petted his neck for a while, but then she followed her sense of duty and left the stable.
Halfway to the Guard's quarters Alation and Tuven came hurrying towards her, their faces stern and their steps determined. "Tauriel!" Tuven called. "Finally you're back! You need to come to the captain's office straight away."
"Why, what is the matter?" she asked, but Alation was already dragging her in the indicated direction.
"Urgent business, no time to explain," was all he answered.
In Tauriel's mind a hundred scenarios appeared at once, trying to make sense of this sudden emergency. Before she could figure out a plausible explanation, they reached the office. Tuven knocked on the door and opened it, Alation shoved her inside, and without so much of a word both of them saluted and left, a suspicious grin on their faces. Tauriel glanced after them in utter bewilderment. She turned around to see what the mysterious business was all about and almost tripped over her own feet when she realised who was standing by the bookshelf on the opposite side of the room.
"You took your time, Captain," Legolas said and smiled at her.
At first Tauriel was too stunned to think of a reply. She had expected him to return eventually, given Lady Galadriel's words, but now that she saw him and heard his voice after so many months of fearing for his life, it finally dawned on her that everything was real, that the war was over and not all stories of her people ended sadly. She walked up to him with slow steps. Silently they took each other's hands and stayed immobile, until all of a sudden Tauriel felt that her emotions were going to choke her. Something in the middle between a laugh and a sob burst out of her and she flung her arms around Legolas' neck, unwilling to let go anytime soon. He held her tight and stroked the back of her head.
"You kept your promise," Tauriel whispered at last.
"Of course I did," it came back.
He broke the embrace and his fingertips brushed over her cheek. Only then did she realise that he was wiping away her tears. She brought her face close to his and kissed him, carefully at first, as if she could break the enchantment of the moment, but soon she allowed her lips to tell him how much she had missed him and he replied the same way.
After a small eternity Tauriel asked, "When did you come back?"
"Yesterday," Legolas gave back with a look of ironic reproach, "and you weren't here!"
"I was in the South," she explained, "that we now have to call 'East Lórien' because your father gave it to the Galadhrim." She shook her head and Legolas chuckled.
"I know, I heard all about it from Lord Celeborn in Minas Tirith. From what he told me, my father wasn't entirely wrong in giving it away, as ravaged as it was." He paused and assessed Tauriel with a sceptical look. "Seriously, I leave you people alone for just a few months and you manage to burn down half the forest!"
She gave him an affectionate nudge. "Excuse me? What am I supposed to say? I let you and your eight strange friends wander off on your own, and next time I look, we have a whole new world order!" she retaliated.
He shrugged and grinned smugly. "Well, you know, it happens." Both of them started laughing.
"What did your father say when you walked through the door?" Tauriel wanted to know.
"At first he said nothing," Legolas replied, "he only attempted to choke me with a hug. But we spent the whole night talking. I told him my story and he told me what happened here, how many soldiers died…"
Tauriel nodded. "An awful lot. Sidhril is one of them."
"Great Eru, I'm so sorry," he uttered and took her hand. She gave him a faint smile and they stayed silent for a while, until he asked carefully, "What about you? Nimiel mentioned…" He gestured towards her leg.
She let out a snort of bitter amusement. "Ironic, isn't it? You go to Mordor and come back without a scratch, and I stay right here and wind up with a morgul arrow that will keep me limping like a three-legged dog for the rest of my life. I know, it's a small price to pay for being alive, but I haven't dared pick up a blade or a bow since then because now I'm probably the most useless soldier this realm has ever seen." She tried to grin, but Legolas saw how miserable she felt.
"First of all, I wouldn't bet on that," he gave back. "And even if it were true, what you call a useless soldier is what others call a war hero."
"Said the one who walked to Mordor and back," Tauriel muttered, but after a short pause she asked, "So, will you still marry me as the limping, Black Breath infested, useless war hero that I have become?"
Legolas smiled at her. "Nothing could stop me." He pulled her close and kissed her once more. "Oh, by the way," he added, sliding his hand into his pocket, "I brought you a souvenir."
"From Mordor?" she asked with wide eyes.
"No, not quite," Legolas reassured her, "half of it comes from Rohan, the other half from Esgaroth, and the craftsmanship is Ereborian." He took her hand and put Gimli's ring on her finger. "I thought, unlike my pebble, your holly twig might not have survived the war."
"Actually it has," Tauriel answered, "but I won't refuse this beautiful gift either way. Thank you – what kind of gem is this?" She turned her hand and admired the different colours that flickered in the changing light.
"Believe it or not, there is a whole cave in Rohan that looks like this," Legolas explained. "Gimli took the gem from there and set it in the ring."
Tauriel's eyebrows shot up. "Gimli – the Dwarf? He made this ring for you?"
"He did," Legolas confirmed. "He's not so bad… for a Dwarf." On seeing Tauriel's 'Haven't I always told you so' face, he added, "In fact, I would never have expected that mortals made such honourable warriors and wonderful friends. I met some truly remarkable people."
"Naturally I expect you to tell me about each and every one of them," Tauriel declared, "and about all the places you went and all the battles you fought."
"That will take quite a while," Legolas pointed out.
Tauriel nodded, smiling. "Don't we have all eternity?"
"You're right, meleth nín, we do," he replied and took her in his arms.