Chapter Thirteen

            She curtsied slightly and allowed him a moment to collect the thoughts that were crowding his mind at an alarming rate. Ëmara's face was still laced with hard lines and her features were no less rough than he had remembered them- but her eyes were now no longer hidden and shone with every color of the spectrum as he hungrily took them in. After a few moments of silence, it was Ëmara who first spoke, walking towards the lake and speaking with a detached tone.

            "Ruinfëa came upon Celebruin and myself but a few hours ago. A horse recognizes her brothers I suppose. Imagine my surprise to find neither a guard nor a soldier had come searching me out…but the Prince of Mirkwood, Lord Legolas of the house of Thranduil." Her voice bordered on mocking as she turned to face him, catching him instantly in her stare.

            "Oh yes, I can see your thoughts. I can see your father and Lady Yavanna, the forsaken; I can see Feânin and the palace in Mirkwood. I even see your…love for me." Here her voice wavered which she was quick to cover up and move over, as though she had prepared this speech for some time now.

            "And I have come before you to tell you only this…That your foolishness will earn you nothing of myself. Did you not heed the warnings of Leomë and of your father? I am cursed and those whom I touch are cursed! Even now the powers of evil are crawling beneath my skin, waiting to burst their bounds and spread the disease of hatred over all Middle Earth." Ëmara's eyes filled with tears as she clenched her fists, the words of her own mouth upsetting her. She paused for a moment in her soliloquy and turned away from Legolas, tears of pain running down the length of her neck and dropping against her cloak.

            Until now Legolas had remained mute, watching her motions and hardly heeding her words. Her presence was intoxicating to him and he longed to drink himself full of her very being. Ëmara's violet eyes had now opened the doors of her soul and, though she did not know it herself, they were speaking with Legolas in tongues that only he could understand. Catching her silence, he finally spoke as he rounded her to come face to face.

            "Lady Ëmara, I have traveled far to find you, my thoughts must lay testament to that fact. I would travel so great a distance a hundred times to be standing here with you as I am now. I have loved you for so long, and yet even I was blind unto this fact which so many could see very plainly. I come without my pride and without my kingdom, to offer up nothing but myself unto your will." Ëmara turned away and spoke softly with a defeated tone that Legolas had to strain to hear.

            "Don't you see that it will come to sadness? I cannot love…the prophecy is true, I am the one who will bring about the destruction of Middle Earth…the love of one…the love of many could not save me." She now took no care to hide her tears as she turned her sad eyes to Legolas. Ëmara wanted him to see her crying, she wanted him to see her pain and leave her with her own misery. The effect was quite the opposite.

            Legolas was overcome with a fit of passion as he grasped her hand and pulled her body close to his own. His breathing became shallow as an existential force drew his mouth to hers and he pressed his lips to her own. For what seemed like ages to Legolas they stood fused together, not daring to part from the kiss that was sealing their fates together. Ëmara's touch had given way to warmth as she ran her fingers across his cheeks and pulled herself closer to him.

            When they parted neither spoke- but instead they remained together, staring into each other's eyes. Ëmara thought to push away from him but found that her arms would not move in defiance of her mind. She averted her eyes and broke the silence with her sad voice.

            "Please let me go." For a moment she feared he would not release her, but his arms slowly fell to his sides and she stepped away from him. There they stood, a little ways apart from each other; although the distance could have been far greater for all the obstacles that lay between them.

Legolas stood rigid, not trusting himself enough to move or speak. He simply watched Ëmara work through everything in her mind and lived in horror as to what her next action would be. As for Ëmara, she suddenly felt very cold without his touch and before her mind could argue with her body, she had rushed back into his arms as tears sprouted anew in her eyes. Legolas sighed heavily, having seen the last of her defenses toppled.

            "What are we to do?" She spoke through her tears, hugging the folds of his tunic in her fists. "Why were you sent to be my torment?…Why did I have to love…?" Her last words fell off in a new flood of weeping. For the first time in her life Ëmara was dependant upon someone else, she realized that she held no powers in his arms- that he was the one who commanded her in his powerful hold. He leaned forward and spoke quietly into her ear as though afraid of talking too loudly and shattering the moment about them.

            "We do not chose who we love…it is all decided many years before we are even born into this world. All of life is love…and all I am lives through your love." Legolas looked down at her and discovered the power he now held over her. 'But what are we to do?' He thought, wondering when the question of her fate was resurfaced. 'What can I do to prevent what seems to be an undeniable destiny?' A cool shudder chilled his skin and he felt Ëmara tense in his arms- she had read his thoughts.

            "You are right." She whispered as she drew away from his touch. "There is nothing to be done. To consummate our love is impossible…to live without it…inconceivable. What are the damned to do?" Ëmara began to look at the palms of her hands and laugh. "Isn't it funny how so insignificant a being as myself holds such power in my hands? My little hands…" Her laughter had died down into a nearly loathsome tone as she curled her fingers into fists and clenched them until her knuckles were white.

            "Ëmara…love me. Give away the anger of your soul and leave nothing but my love for you. Morgoth holds no sway over those that will not listen to his words." She shook her head and turned towards the lake, speaking to herself more than Legolas:

            "It is already begun. Nothing can stop the fires consuming my mind and soul." Ëmara turned to Legolas again, this time the color of her eyes was once again closed and lifeless. "Leave me Legolas. Your love alone cannot save me."

            "No! Don't you see that it can? You must believe that it can and it will!" He found himself fairly pleading with her as he feared she would disappear from his life forever. Ëmara closed her eyes and breathed in deeply as she stretched her fingers to their fullest extent and drew strength from the earth around her. With the might of a deity she opened her eyes and walked away from Legolas, still keeping their eyes connected.

            "It is for the best."