AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY
By : mirkwood-elf-2931 & Thala


CHAPTER 21


It had been a week now, since the enemy had forced its way into the limits of the White City. Destroying buildings and supplies and many lives.

Well into the twenty-fourth night of August, Legolas found himself watching over Landailyn's sleeping form; lying on her back, stretched down the length of her bed. Her eyes were closed from being up the past week, helping day and night as much as she could with the damages and the injured soldiers and people of the city.

They all had helped, even Arwen.

Mostly the prince figured that not sleeping and being a constant volunteer took their minds off the recent tragedy, or perhaps just that they felt they could never sleep again. Yet here Landailyn was, for she had been working extra hard; working together with others to clear broken stone from the Citadel and making trip after trip down to the Houses of Healing; using what skills she possessed to take the places of other Human volunteers when they needed rest.

But never sleeping again is exactly what he felt, and none of them had even witnessed the sight he had. No one had seen Thalawen dying before their eyes or being carried away by the enemy. For he feared he would relive it in his dreams, or by merely closing his eyes for longer than any few seconds.

All the while he sat there, his mind wandered elsewhere, mostly over Thalawen. He had only had not wanted to lose her as a friend again, he never knew it would come to death that would separate them once more.

Landailyn stirred slightly in her sleep, making him look up from his thoughts. He rose from his chair to seat himself next to her on the edge of the narrow bed, taking her right hand into both of his, caressing the fair skin so that it soothed her back into stillness.

Thalawen's voice suddenly echoed in his head; the last words she'd said to him. But everything was not fine, one of the two women he loved was gone and with this he realized he could lose Landailyn just as easily. Thalawen's dream had predicted it, but they had changed fate and she had survived. It only left him to wonder why Thalawen hadn't told him it would be his demise in the foreseen battle; the arrows wouldn't even have had to strike either of them.

"You really should get some rest." Landailyn had awoken at his touch, but her eyes had not opened. "You've had less than I."

It was true that Elves could go longer without rest than these two already had, but when the time came that he could no longer hold his eyes open, he would simply force himself to. He may not have been able to save Thalawen, but he would not let anything happen to Landailyn; he would stay and watch over her. He shook his head at seeing her eyes finally open. "But you have also worked harder than I."

Legolas' injured hand had prevented him from doing many things he would like to have helped with, but now that it was healed and usable as of the day before, he would gladly start lending both hands to the city and his friends' aiding.

Landailyn kept her sigh to herself, now knowing how it was that Arwen felt when she tried to recommend the sleep needed for her friends and they refused. It may apparently be for the best sometimes, but she would try to keep herself from advising the prince further. As it was right now she could rest no more either, especially after a question she had been meaning to ask suddenly popped into her mind. "Legolas?"

He looked curiously down at her.

"Did Thalawen mention anything...about a dream or even a vision she might have had about any of this?" This was something she already knew from Thalawen's journal, but she wondered if the prince had been told.

"She knew some sort of battle was coming." He said quietly, while nodding. "She said she would protect me in it." Then he shook his head. "It could have been my death, but she was in the way, when she shouldn't have been..."

Landailyn wasn't sure what to reply, so she only squeezed the warm hand that lay beneath hers.

Both felt it, though neither would say it aloud, that this dire event had made them more fearful than ever of losing anyone else; especially each other, after seeing how easy it could be so many times and to now actually have it happen.

"And you were right by the way, she did still love me."

"I know; that day we scouted in Anorien...we spoke of it." And so this subject brought another question to her thoughts, though not quite sure how she should go about wording it. Finally, she was ready to have their talk that she had stalled before Faeroth had captured her the second time. "Legolas, is it...wrong...to feel the way I do about you?"

His gaze shot upward in utter surprise, but he knew she only must be feeling guilty, because Thalawen had wished he had loved her the way she knew he loved her friend. "Wrong? Landailyn it is never wrong to love someone...no one can help what feelings their heart develops."

The expression she had set on her face was unreadable. She had done this much to him through their childhood and he almost hated it.

"Are you blaming yourself for something?"

Landailyn's eyes rose to him, but the expression was still there, now set very firmly.

"When you do that, I can tell. Why? You are not to blame for anything..."

"Perhaps not, but I felt bad for her. I actually felt I stood in the way, because you..."

"I had these feelings ere I met her." He confessed, cutting off any further speech from her. "You could say it took loving another woman and figuring out that those feelings were only friendly to show me that the ones I had for you were true. I believe Thalawen knew this and in a way I also believe she might have accepted it. Nothing would have changed her feelings for me, they were eternal, and that goes for mine as well."

"Well, while I was home for five months, I had a lot of time to think over my own feelings. I've decided the only thing I don't want is this getting in the way of our friendship. We have been friends for much too long, Legolas, I don't want to ruin that now..." She almost wished now she had never even told the prince she was in love with him. Almost.

He sat there in a long moment of silence, as she watched him take in what she had announced. Her expression was no longer unreadable; for the time being everything she felt was right there in the open for him to see.

Legolas then took a good lengthy look at her. Indeed he could see she was clearly afraid of what it might do to their friendly relationship. Even if it wasn't likely, he could see her reason. "Neither do I." He agreed. "And I certainly don't want you to force yourself into anything just because I told you I feel the same way. I love being just your friend, Landailyn, I always have and I always will. And I will never stop loving you as a friend."

She nodded, trying to hold back the welling water in the rims of her eyes, managing to take a deep breath. "Thank you for understanding...again. Just friends then? As always?"

"For eternity."

Landailyn sat up to throw her arms around him, feeling the light pressure of his lips against her temple, as he bestowed her a quick kiss. "Go to sleep now." She murmured, against the fabric of his shining under tunic, forgetting that she would try not to advise him on this again. "For me. I cannot stand to see you so tired."

The prince chuckled softly, as she lay back down, but he could not go against his friend's wishes. Even if he did not wish the chance to dream, or no matter how much he wanted to stay with her, he did need to rest if he was to begin clean up work the next morning. "I will." He told her, standing from the bed and crossing the room.

"Legolas,"

He looked back.

"...I love you."

Over two millennia had passed now that they had known one another, and Landailyn had never attempted to once say these words so directly to him. He also realized he had never told Thalawen this, that he had loved her as a friend. But he would not miss the chance again to not let his friends know that he cared so much about each of them. "And I love you. If you need me, you know I am just down the hall." He opened the door, but stopped short, remembering the last time he'd said something very similar to this and what had happened afterward.

"Go," She commanded, seeing his hesitation. "This is not like last time."

He nodded with a small smile, knowing she was right, but he couldn't help it.

They softly exchanged goodnights and her door was closed at last.


*~ *~ * ~ * ~* ~*


A smile, identical to the one his mouth had turned up exactly seven months ago to the day, played widely across his face.

"So, my Elfling, you have finally paid the price for disobeying me. With your life of course." Saruman stood over the stilled bloody form on the floor that four Orcish sentries had brought in to him for proof, only moments before. "You always seemed the type to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Much to my benefit." He continued to smile.

One of his last laid out plans since the Ring had been destroyed, was to destroy Gondor, to destroy King Elessar himself. But the Wizard easily became sidetracked with his desire to kill all those who opposed him that had slipped away before the deed was done.

Apparently none of the lands of men were plotting against Isengard, so he felt he had all the time in the world and they could always wait. If the Orcs had made it into the city once, he would send them again moderately soon. Most of his grounds had been destroyed by the Ents, but he still had many Orcs left who were prepared and willing to serve he and a dark lord they had never known.

Saruman's look at the Elf turned upon a group of Orcs shuffling into the darkened room. He knew exactly why they came. They wanted the body they had tortured, they wanted to get rid of her beauty permanently this time, once and for all.

"Take it away." He ordered thoughtlessly, turning his back to ascend the ebony stairs to his throne.


TBC ...

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mirkwood-elf-2931 :
See what I meant about your reviews saying what's to come! So indeed it was Saruman! I know I said we wouldn't bring him back into the picture, but we had to after Thala told me she wanted her character to die! So I am sadden to say it is so, but this time he won...but hey, we all know that even he doesn't get to live very much longer...just till November when the War of the Ring is officially over! LOL
Also, now you all finally know that Legolas loved only Landailyn, but they still just decided to be friends...and no one will ever know whether they will actually be together in the future or not, cuz' we can't come up with another story plot now that Thalawen is gone! Well, actually I wouldn't say that...cuz' I do have one set in Mirkwood for Landy that would be a sequel to this story...but it's proving harder to write than I thought and I can't get anywhere on it! :(
Hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving! 10 people were over at my house, and that night I got to buy The Hobbit for the Gamecube and Tony Hawk's Underground for the Xbox! They're very fun! ;)