Thanks again for all the reviews!  The majority of you said you wanted there to be a sequel, so that's what you'll get!  THIS IS THE FINAL CHAPTER OF "THE DAUGHTER OF ELVES AND MEN".  This title doesn't really apply for the Mithmír in the sequel.  After you have read this chapter, hopefully you will be able to have a vague guess about what will happen at the beginning of the next story…

Hope you enjoy it and please review.

The next story should be up either very soon after this chapter or tomorrow night.  The title is at the end of this chapter; but you can also read it (when it's up) by searching under Annaicuru.

This chapter is very, very long – over 2,500 words which is a very scary thought (where did I find the time to write that???) – and would normally be posted as two separate entries; but I decided against it.  I don't think this chapter is as good as it could be, but it's possible I'm just nervous because it's the end of the story.  Comments and suggestions are welcomed!

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When Mithmír awoke she threw open the curtains first as she always did, ready to bask in the rising light of the sun.  She had found a greater joy in just being alive as an Elf than she ever had had as a mortal.  Humans, she realized, did not have enough time in Middle Earth to appreciate the wonders about them.  Elves, however, could and did.   She noticed with a puzzled exclamation that the window was wide open; and her quick reactions were tested as something fell – or rather, was thrown – from outside.  She grabbed it, and suddenly her heart took a leap.

On her palm rested a beautiful grey stone, polished to perfection, wrapped about with a bright green leaf.  The symbolism was made clearer – though she already understood it well enough – when a piece of paper fluttered down after it.  On the paper was written in perfect Sindarin Tengwar, Laeg-lass a mith-mír, which means green-leaf and grey-stone.

'Im estel laeg-lass gar-mith mír an-uir,' I hope the green-leaf shall have the grey-stone forever, said a soft voice from outside; a voice that Mithmír knew all too well.  Feeling like a silly maid-child with her first crush, she replied in a nervous voice,

'Legolas?  Legolas, hennaid,' my thanks, she said in a soft, shy voice.  'Minno.'  Come in.

Seconds later slim elven fingers appeared on the sill, and Legolas pulled himself up easily.  Mithmír took one arm and drew him into the room with a smile.  She felt like what she was doing was forbidden – she was in another family's home, after all –; but it gave her a rush that she could not help but enjoy.

'Lín pedpeth bain,' your words are beautiful, Mithmír said with a blush as she somewhat awkwardly closed the window behind him.  Internally she debated whether to close the curtains; but she decided against it.

Legolas' eyes had skimmed her body up and down nearly six times before she realized, with a slight gasp, that she was only wearing a skimpy under-shift as she had to bed the night before.  Noting her discomfort, Legolas – the perfect gentle-elf – picked up her discarded red cloak off the floor where it had been dumped and wrapped her in it.  He winked cheekily.  'You are beautiful indeed, Lady.  Would that I could see you so every morning for all eternity; and have you bed beside me every night…'  He smiled a little, and leaned forward to give her a tiny kiss on the cheek.

Mithmír hugged her arms around herself, suddenly aware of the disorganized state of her room.  'Excuse the mess,' she said apologetically.  'I've been so preoccupied…'

'Don't worry,' Legolas brushed off the apology like water off a duck's back.  'In fact, please allow me to help you clean it.  I have nothing to do today…'  He bent down to pick up the green dress which lay disheveled on the floor; but Mithmír laid a restraining hand on his shoulder.

'Legolas, nín meleth [my love], you are a Prince and this is no work for you.  Let me do this.  Surely Gimli shall speak with you while I tidy here?'

He turned his head up so that his piercing blue eyes locked with hers firmly.  'I want to talk with you, Mithmír.  Gimli is my greatest friend but you… you need me now.'  His gaze showed a compassion that surpassed all else except maybe Aragorn's.  'And I need you always.'  He got up quickly before she could question his words.  'Surely there's a maid somewhere near who can clean this chamber; while I take you out for some well-deserved relaxation.'  He kissed her thrice rapidly, cheekily.  'Please come with me today, Mithmír.'

She was already half won-over.  'But I said I'd meet Éowyn,' she said somewhat lamely.

'We can meet Éowyn and Faramir for luncheon, if it pleases you, before they leave for Rohan,' said Legolas indulgently.  'But please, Mithmír…  See the sky out there?'  He pointed out of the window to the blue expanse not marred by any grey clouds.  'It's the most beautiful day since the War.  Let it be our day.'  He grasped her hand tightly and brought it to his satin lips, kissing it as if she was the most precious and delicate thing in his world; all the while searching her eyes with his.  'Please.'

'Of course,' she said suddenly, decisively and with a wide smile.  'No man has ever climbed through my window before.  The event must be celebrated…'  She took her hand from his gently.  'But first you must either go out or turn away while I dress.'

'Maidens and their modesty!'  Laughed Legolas joyfully, trying to look annoyed and not succeeding in the slightest.  He turned to look out the window, leaning up against the sill leisurely.  The day would be wonderful – if only she knew his plans!  He resisted the temptation to turn around and marvel at her fierce beauty, and instead struck up conversation: 'do you know why Aragorn keeps us here?'  The question had been preying on his mind for a long while.  He was loath to leave the City and the Fellowship; but there were many places he wished to see, and he missed his father and kindred in Mirkwood; and also feared for them, for there was news of many skirmishes on the borders of the great forest. And yet also he feared to go, for maybe if he left the shield-maiden who had captured his heart would refuse to follow…

'My uncle has his reasons,' said Mithmír in a muffled voice as she pulled the dress over her head.  Secretly she wondered what had got into her – she wore dresses more often than ever now, and she had strange desires to show off the feminine curves of her body which she had before disregarded.  Legolas made her more aware, and even proud, of her status as a woman.  He taught her that she had to accept both her roles: as a fighter and a woman, not merely a fighter.  He had showed her, slowly and wordlessly, that she could be a soldier and female, and they need not take turns in her.  'I think I know those reasons – you are an Elf, Legolas, surely you of all people can guess why he stays.'

'Does it have anything to do with the Lady Arwen?'  His eyes sparkled with knowledge, and his mouth curled as if trying to resist a smile.

'I think so.  He loves her.'  She laughed a bit as she put on her shoes.  'He whispers her name in his sleep; over and over and over...  Maybe…' she stood up and began to brush her hair vigorously, 'they plan to marry at last.  Maybe Lord Elrond has finally decided that the King of Men is worthy of the Elven Evenstar.  I hope so.'

'As do I,' agreed Legolas thoughtfully.  'Summer is a wonderful time for marriages.'  He waited, trying to sound nonchalant, for her response.  Silently he berated himself for letting the point slip – he had meant to not bring on that subject till much, much later in the day.

Mithmír felt her breath catch in her throat.  She was silent for a long while, absently putting the two plaits into her hair that she had worn since the battle before Mordor when Legolas had first helped her tie them.    It seemed that this time, this single moment, was what all her life had been leading up to…  'Indeed…' she said haltingly, putting a light hand on Legolas' shoulder and turning him around slowly until their eyes met.  'I think it is.'  She could not bear the tension for long however, and suddenly broke out, 'I hope Faramir takes Éowyn's hand this year.'  She felt like a child: she looked at her beloved Elf and saw thousands of years; pictured herself, barely two decades old, and saw the difference with almost tangible pain.  She turned around, putting her back to him.

'He deserves to be so lucky,' said Legolas softly, hurt that she had moved away again as if the moment had never been.  'They will be very happy.'

It was quiet for a while, only the dim sounds of breakfast being served coming up from downstairs, and then suddenly Legolas could not hold himself back.  'How long would it be till you married if you were still mortal, Mithmír?'  He burst out in desperation.

'I am only a little over twenty,' said Mithmír slowly.  'Maybe this year, maybe the next.  Some maids – but they are rare – would already be married by my age.'  Her eyes lost their focus, and she said distantly, 'I didn't think I would ever marry…'  Then she looked at him; and he perceived that her normally calm eyes were possessed with a great uncertainty; and in a second she was burrowing into his protective embrace, feeling it the most natural thing to do.  'Doesn't it scare you, Legolas?  Am I the only one to fear marriage?  Eternity is a long time to spend with someone if your choice is incorrect about whom you marry.  I love you, I want to be your wife, I want to be only yours, but I feel so young around you, I feel like a child…'

'No-dínen,' he said softly, realization rushing into him, and an intense wish to banish his beloved's fears.  Be silent.  He kissed her forehead in an almost fatherly way.  'Mithmír… I will never make you do anything you don't want to, do you understand?  I love you.  There's no other woman I want but you, Mithmír.  Today…' he paused awkwardly; and then decided that it was now or never; 'today I planned to ask you to marry me and become my wife…' he continued quickly despite her slight gasp, as if unbelieving of what he'd admitted and wanting to make her forget it.  'But if you feel too young I will wait for you till the ending of the world if necessary.'  He blushed.  'We've barely known each other for a few months.  I'm acting rashly and immaturely, I know, but I want you so badly to be always by my side...  I feel like I've known you all my life.'  He laughed once, almost despairingly.  'This isn't how I imagined it to be, when I told you how much I love you… Please don't say I've hurt you, Mithmír!'  He said, concern edging into his voice at her shocked silence.  'I just want to make you happy and I can't seem to do anything right…' he ended in frustration that was unusual in the calm, collected Elves.

It was as if someone had returned a part of her which she had never known she lacked, but which made her whole.  A warm surge of love swept over her, from the tips of her pointy ears to her legs, tight against his.  Her relationship with the Elf had been leading to this point always, she knew, and she was glad.  She realized it was all she wanted, all she had ever desired.  Her romance with him hadn't been perfect and straightforward, like the love-tales of stories were; there had been ups and down, tears and kisses in equal weight; but nevertheless it seemed more real.  He had been there through good and bad alike, proving to her that he was not only by her side in fair weather.  She turned her head up to him and nuzzled her face up to his.  She was ready: for once in her life she felt completely prepared and at peace.  'I love you too, Legolas Greenleaf,' she replied softly, her lips brushing his skin, her soul joyous at the sight of his unfolding, incredulous smile.  She wanted to be able to see his face every day, she realized, be with him for every emotion.  'And I will spend all of eternity with none other than you.  Now I am an Elf,' she said in an odd voice, as if still coming to terms with the fact, 'I shall be young  in body forever.  But you don't need to wait for me – your words have given my soul the confidence it needed to grow up…  You have helped me grow up…'  She breathed in deeply, aware that she was about to make the largest decision in her long life, trying to steady her nerves.  Her heart and soul knew what she wanted; and in the sudden rush of adrenaline that this knowledge gave her she said breathlessly, 'I love you, Legolas, and I would that we were the ones wedded this year…'  And it was with those simple, naïve words that she gave her soul up to him, the only man she fully trusted with it.  As she leaned forward into his chest, she felt she could almost hear her beloved father's voice – or maybe it was merely her own mind playing tricks on her - saying happily, now I am gone you need another to turn to, and here he is… Do not grieve for the loss of a father, rather celebrate for the gain of a husband, Mithmír.  Be strong, and live for the future.  She realized with a blissful sigh that he – or her constructed memory of him – was right.  Her ada would not want her to stay in mourning for him.  He was at peace, wherever he was, and now it was her duty to make him proud of his only child…

Legolas felt like he had been given his own star and allowed to hold it in his arms.  His soul soared and his heart leapt with joy.  He covered her face, neck and ears with silent, passionate kisses, trying to find the deep moans that aroused him so much.  He wanted to join her to him forever so they could never be separated…  'I love you,' he said breathlessly between kisses.  'I would never… ever… have any other woman by my side.  You, Mithmír the wild shield-maiden, the Elven Dúnedain, are the only woman I should ever have as my wife, no pampered Elven princess…  I swear to you that you shall not regret this greatest of gifts that you have given me.  I will never hurt you or betray you or lie to you…  I love you so, my elf-lady, my Silfëa [shining spirit]…'

Mithmír felt like she was drowning in turbulent emotions – none of which were regret.  She knew she had made the right choice.  She had been destined to make it, after all, ever since she asked Elbereth Gilthoniel for her immortality.  Her fear was not gone wholly, but she was wonderfully aware that now she had someone who should be by her side to save her from that worry, to make everything alright, and it gave her hope.  She was no longer a girl but a woman…  'I don't have to be afraid anymore,' she said in a voice deep with passion and realization.

'You don't have to be afraid anymore…'  Agreed Legolas, hands running down her back softly, caressing her lovingly as his tongue coaxed her mouth open.  'The green leaf shall wed the grey stone and so be made complete.  She shall have everything she desires… and never, ever be made to weep.  I can't promise you eternal happiness in every aspect of your life, Mithmír Silfëa, I'm no Valar to proclaim such things.  I am only a Sindarin Elf.  But I can swear to you that I shall do everything -' he paused to kiss her again – 'everything I can to make you as happy as I can.'

'It is all I ask, Legolas,' she said huskily, pushing him away momentarily to stare at his large, intense eyes.  'I could not love a even Valar as I love this Elf.'  She stroked his shoulder, fingers as light as falling leaves in autumn.  'I am not flawless myself.  I cannot love a perfect being.'

'So you should pick a severely flawed and unworthy Elf instead?'  He asked cheekily, eyes glinting in play.

'You are most worthy of all, Legolas,' she whispered.  'Your flaws… I have yet to find.  And when I do they will make me love you more than ever.'

'Then you will marry me this summer, Lady?'  He asked reverently.

'Do you swear to me – swear to me, Legolas – that you will always be there for me?  That you will never cage me or tie me down?  That you shall love me all the more for the way I am, and not try to change me?'

'Yes.'  He said plainly with baited breath.

The way became even clearer to her then.  This was an adventure as any other; a voyage over the horizon, not the end but a better beginning.  She may be afraid now, but that fear could be turned to courage; and then nothing was beyond her.  'Then I shall grow up, Legolas, and marry the prince of Mirkwood who stole my heart and soul one night under a mallorn tree.'

With the words to explain his emotions deserting the normally articulate Elf, he replied in the only way still open to him.

They left the chamber bare minutes later to spread the joyous news.  All that saw them on that day and those following perceived the light that emanated from them; a visible sign of inner well-being and content great enough to near bind two souls as one.  They appeared as the High Elves of old in their happiness; their voices rising in joyful duet above all else; their eyes joining across a crowded room with a secret message shared only between the two. So much had happened so quickly, it was nearly unreal.

Never had the Daughter of Elves and Men imagined that her life could be so perfect; or that a green leaf could save her.

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Thank you so much for reading and reviewing; I hope you enjoyed it!  Please review with any comments or suggestions – as I said before I feel this chapter is in need of some revision.

Trenarn o laeg-lass a mith-mír [the tale of green leaf and grey stone] is continued in my next fanfic, "All Rivers Flow To The Sea".