Disclaimer- Refer to Chapter One.

Title: Shadow of the Past

Author: Silmarien

Rating: PG

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A Rare Glimpse

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White flakes, soft as the whispering breeze around her, landed on Valia's thick lashes, transforming into tiny droplets of water from her body heat. She let out a puff of air which floated away in a swirling steam to disappear into the winter chill. Pulling her thick cloak tighter around her shoulders, she clasped her gloved hands together and padded over the layer of snow that lovingly dressed Aman in white. A light crunch tickled Valia's ears with each step she took. She smiled, reveling in the delight of the muted world around her. All was calm under the influences of the snow.

However, as much as Valia enjoyed the weather, she was glad to reach the covered porch of Lord Elrond's palace. She shook her snow covered clothes before stepping into the warmth of his home, running a hand through her hair to remove the snowflakes that had collected in a light dusting atop her head. An elf came to tend to her needs and she gladly relinquished her cloak to him.

When Valia finally arrived at the library, she was pleased to see a blazing fire already lit in the hearth. Slipping her gloves off, she gently placed them on her desk and walked over to the cheerful flames that cast a warm glow into the room, hungrily eating away at the wood in the fireplace. The intricate dance of light captivated Valia. She stood in front of the hearth, rubbing her hands over her upper arms to return her normal blood flow.

'Good morning my lady.'

She should have been used to it by now, but Legolas' morning greeting still managed to surprise her when her back was turned to him.

'Good morning,' she said, turning around with a lopsided smile, trying to calm her heart from the sudden surprise.

Legolas scanned her figure, silhouetted against the firelight. He felt a stab of pain in his heart as his eyes caressed her face. Her loveliness caused him to physically ache with want for her, just to feel her soft lips on his one time or to be able to pull her into his arms and keep her there. It was such a simply wish, yet impossible because of its simplicity. He reached up to weave his fingers around a lock of Valia's golden hair, letting the silky tress slip through his hand like water. 'You do not have your hair pulled back today.'

'No, I find it pointless to keep putting it back in the morning when you have taken up the habit of unbinding it every day. Besides, you took my last clasp yesterday and I had nothing else to pull it back with this morning.'

Legolas tried to look penitent at her accusations but found a smile forming on his lips despite his best effort. 'I shall be sure to return your hair clasps just as soon as I find where I have put them. I am not quite sure if I remember where they are exactly,' he stated, wrinkling his brow in confusion.

'How interesting to see you suffering from a sudden lack of memory.'

'Yes, it is strange how that happens, is it not?' He received a scowl from the exasperated lady. 'How is Gléwiel?' he asked, following Valia to her desk.

'She looks like she is ready to burst,' laughed Valia. She shook her head at the thought of her sister's rounded belly, unconsciously placing her hands over her own stomach to rub her flat abdomen. 'We are all anxious for the little one to come.'

'Only two months left, correct?'

Valia nodded her head and moved behind her desk. Taking a quick glance outside the window next to her desk to see that the snow was falling heavier now, she sank into her chair with a sigh and looked up at Legolas with a raised brow.

'I have heard that snow is a rare occurrence here.' He perched himself on the edge of her desk, looking out the window as the white flakes floated to the ground, joining their brothers and sisters to form layer upon layer of covering over the earth.

Valia smiled and quietly walked to the window to stand beside him. 'The last time it snowed here was over forty winters ago.' She laughed when an elven couple suddenly came into the window's view, frolicking in the snow with carefree abandon, sending snowballs each others way in delight. 'You see that it makes us giddy when it does fall. Perhaps that is why Iluvatar only grants us with it on rare occasions.'

'For some reason I cannot picture the dignified Lady Valia in any state of "giddiness." I know how you are,' he wagged a finger her direction, 'you are one of those elves who walks by all the childish elves with a raising brow and derisive expression on their face.'

Valia gasped. 'You have wounded me!' she cried, clutching a hand over her heart.

His smiling face turned serious and a familiar glimmer that Valia had yet to understand leapt into his emerald eyes. 'Then I shall have to heal the hurts I have inflicted on you.' Legolas took her hand from over her heart and placed a gentle kiss on the smooth skin, enjoying the sweet taste of her on his lips. 'Do you have plans for lunch?'

'Why?' Slipping her hand out of his, she sat back down and looked up at him curiously.

'Might I tempt you with a walk through the snow? Perhaps you can prove me wrong and show a little of the giddiness you claim you have somewhere in there.' He pointed at her with a beautiful smile gracing his face, knowing full well that he could often get what he wanted from her when he smiled that way, and not caring that he was using the knowledge to his full advantage.

Clearing her throat, Valia looked down at her desk, busying herself with shuffling already neatly stacked papers, doing anything that would prevent her from succumbing to his pleading eyes and smile. 'It is cold out there Legolas.'

'You are not a human, Valia,' he countered. 'At least I hope you are not.' He paused, giving her a chance to speak up and show him wrong, but when she made no reply, which he expected she would not, he continued. 'Very well, so you are not a human, and it is quite obvious that you are not a dwarf. Therefore, I think you will survive the "cold." We will not be out long enough for you to be affected by it. I promise to have you in before you begin to shiver.'

'That is very kind of you but my answer is still no.'

Legolas sighed and shook his head, dark locks swaying against his fair face. 'You do not know what you are missing Valia,' he told her, getting up from his place on her desk. 'May I at least walk you home tonight?'

'Does anything I say ever stop you?'

'I shall be here when you close than.' Legolas smiled, not letting her sulky behavior weigh down his heart. Instead he walked behind her, running a hand through her hair as he passed by. His smile broadened when she swatted his hand away and pulled a pile of paperwork towards her in one fluid movement, pretending to forget his presence as she read the elven script.

Legolas leaned over her shoulder. 'Do not leave without me tonight,' he whispered. 'I would be sorely offended if you forgot about me.'

'I cannot forget about you if you remain hovering over my shoulder all day. Be gone with you!' exclaimed a slightly peeved Valia, and turning around she gave the Prince a gentle push backwards.

'Alright, I am leaving!' cried Legolas, holding up his hands in surrender.

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Valia could easily sense his presence behind her, but said nothing, until two strong hands gently wrapped her clock around her shoulders. Only then did she turn around to look at Legolas.

'Thank you,' she sighed, fastening the single button at her neck and pulling the thick fabric around her body, effectively hiding her figure from all eyes. 'Do you not need a cloak?' she asked, eyeing his thin over-robe and legging clad form with a skeptical eye.

Legolas laughed, making Valia smile at his infectious joy. 'I live near the Pelóri, Valia. It snows there every winter, sometimes for weeks at a time. I think I shall be fine,' Legolas assured her, placing a hand on her back lightly to guide her out the doors of the library. He would have continued steering her down the hall and outside but she expertly slipped away from his prodding to lock the doors to the library.

'Are you in a hurry to be somewhere?' teased Valia when she put the key to the doors back in her pocket and joined him again.

Shaking his head no, Legolas smiled down at her, his eyes luminous with the glow of the candlelight reflected in their emerald depths. Valia felt an unbidden shiver battle its way up her spine, wreaking havoc on her senses. She blinked quickly several times, pulling her cloak around her tighter when she assumed a draft was sending puffs of frigid air her way.

'Are you cold, arwenamin?' asked Legolas in concern, seeing her visibly shiver and pull the thick material draped around her closer to her body. She nodded yes, not trusting her voice just then, which for some reason had fled her, and watched as Legolas appeared to hesitate a moment before slipping an arm around her shoulder and pulling her to his side. 'If we keep moving you will not be cold,' he told her, rubbing a hand up and down her arm.

The action proved to be the wrong one, though it gave the desired effect Legolas had hoped it would. Heat, like the calming warmth of a lover's body snuggled against their lady on a cold night, rushed into Valia's arm at an alarming speed to filter down into her fingertips. She jerked away from him at the pleasant sensation; far too satisfying for her liking, and dashed off down the hall at a jog, easily picking up the hem of her dress so she did not trip over the fabric.

Only the confused voice of Legolas stopped her from disappearing entirely out of sight. 'Valia? What are you doing?' He called to her, speeding up his pace, trying to catch up to the maiden who was much faster than he thought her to be, though he should not have been surprised after all the sword training they had done together. It was not her strength that had enabled her to beat Legolas on those rare occasions when she managed to knock his sword from his hand, but her surprising agility to move around him so swiftly, disappearing out of his field of vision in the time it took him to raise his sword. 'Is something wrong?'

Valia turned around, a suddenly mischievous smile turning her features into an almost seductive look. 'Let us see how well your skills as a tracker have been maintained after so many years away from Middle-earth,' she replied back.

'What?' Before Legolas fully understood what she had proposed she vanished before his eyes. The Prince stood completely still for a moment, his brain fighting hard to try and process what she meant. The sound of a door opening was picked up by Legolas' sensitive ears and he heard the musical laughter of the one of he loved echoing down the corridor.

His eyes glinted bright with sudden understanding and a smirk crossed his lips. 'You cannot escape me Valia,' he whispered into the air, sprinting down the hall to where she had disappeared. Looking to the left he noticed an unobtrusive door hidden in shadows and with hardly a second thought, he raced through the door to find himself outside.

Dazzling moonbeams were reflected off the white snow, creating an ethereal light that brightened the nighttime. Legolas could effortlessly see around him, even if it had been dark he would have been able to, but the moonlight aided him tremendously in his search for Valia.

Having never learned more of the art of covering her tracks than the basics every elf was taught; Legolas distinguished her footsteps almost immediately and followed her trail. It also helped that Valia was no wood elf, having grown up her entire life in Imladris, putting Legolas at a far superior advantage to her.

However, he was forced to slow his pursuit down when her steps led him into a treed area of Lord Elrond's grounds. 'Clever girl,' Legolas muttered aloud as her tracks became instantly harder to follow. They were not hard enough to throw him off her trail though, for his tracking skills had not suffered at all since he sailed from the lands of Middle-earth to Aman.

It was only when her footsteps vanished completely that Legolas' progress was hindered. He placed his hands on his hips, taking a quick survey of the surrounding area for any signs of her. There was not a single indent in the newly fallen snow or snapped twig that gave him any clue to a possible direction Valia had taken. He lifted his hand and rested it against the rough bark of a tree, tapping his fingers against the wood in thought. Where could she have gone?

A sudden fear crept into his mind, tickling his heart into an accelerated beating as unnerving possibilities presented themselves. What if something had happened to Valia and she was hurt? Or worse yet, what if Garand had somehow managed to escape and ignore the warnings of Lord Elrond to come back and seek his revenge on Valia? Such thoughts provided little aid in helping Legolas search for Valia's trail, his thinking growing irrational at the thought of harm coming to her.

Cupping his hands over his mouth, Legolas yelled. 'Valia! Where are you?'

As if in response to his question, Legolas felt something hit the top of his head, something cold and hard, and he looked up suspiciously. However his apprehension came too late as a heavy dusting of snow descended upon him from above. He quickly wiped the blinding snow out of his eyes, perfectly aware of the fit of laughter coming from the elven maiden in the tree branches overhead. Relief coursed through him, knowing that Valia was safe, driving out any irritation he felt at not thinking to look in the trees for her.

'You know, I thought the famous elven warrior, rumored to be so good at tracking while on the quest to destroy the one ring, would have easily been able to find a defenseless elven maiden. Your skills appear to be worse for the wear in coming to Aman, Prince Legolas.'

Legolas caught a rustling of skirts as Valia shook out her dress. More snow was sent falling his way, coating him with another layer of the flaky substance. By the time he was done dusting himself off, Valia had climbed down the tree she had been perched in and stood behind the stout trunk, creating a barrier between her and the Prince.

'Are you trying to protect yourself?' Legolas asked wryly.

'That depends,' replied Valia, a bright smile on her face as she looked at him.

Legolas nodded seriously. 'Depends on what?' The mischievous glimmer in her blue eyes caused Legolas to feel a sudden longing for her touch and he moved towards her slowly, trying to grab her without success.

But she made sure the thick tree trunk remained between him and her, circling around it as she avoided his grasping hands. 'You still have not answered my question Valia,' Legolas reminded. 'You do not honestly think I pose any threat to you, do you?'

Valia hummed in thought, pretending to evaluate her words carefully. 'Your skills may have lessened since your time in Middle-earth, but they are still far superior to my own.' He confirmed her words to be correct when he made a swift lunge and caught a bit of her dress fabric between his fingers, but it slipped from his grasp when she jerked away.

'O come Valia! You know I will not bite,' he coaxed when she hid behind the tree trunk, depriving him of the sight of her.  

She emerged suddenly with a sweet smile on her face, throwing Legolas completely off guard by her sudden warmth. He found himself trapped by her eyes and sent a silent thanks to the sky that she was so complacent for a change. When she began to walk towards him with hands behind her back, the smile never leaving her face, he felt his eyes grow larger.

'What are you doing Valia?' he croaked, cringing inwardly when he heard his voice falter.

'I am proving that I am not afraid of you.' Mere inches remained between her and Legolas when she finally stopped. Reaching her hands up, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a hug which he readily responded to, lacing his own arms about her waist and pulling her close to him.

'You are very trusting,' Valia whispered into his ear, but Legolas took no notice, instead enjoying the feel of her warm breath against his ear. It was not until he felt her hand move underneath his hair that he warily pulled away, realizing that she was being far too friendly. It was again too late however, and his inattention gave Valia the time she needed to slip a handful of snow down his back.

He wrenched away from her as the snow caught in the tunic he was wearing underneath his over-robe. Pulling at the form fitting clothing, he tried to shake the loose snow out. 'Valia!' he roared as the elf maiden retreated into the trees.

He took chase, catching up to her with hardly any effort on his part. Latching onto her arm, Legolas gave a small tug to stop her forward momentum. Valia was quick to react to him and she stuck out a well placed leg, tripping Legolas who had not come to a full stop yet.

Nevertheless, Legolas' instincts remained fully alert as he began to fall and he kept a firm hold on Valia's arm, sending her plummeting to the ground with him. He heard her let out a groan as she snacked into him, cushioned by his body from hitting the hard earth.

'I have caught you!' Legolas cried victoriously, a proud expression on his face as he smiled up at Valia. He wrapped his arms around her waist when she tried to sit up, trapping her against him.

'You have not!' Valia retorted pertly, poking a slim finger into his chest. 'I do believe that I am the one on top,' she pointed out.

Legolas grinned, tightening his hold on her waist. 'That is easily remedied.' He watched her eyes grow wide as he moved a hand up to her back, pressing her against him, and did a swift roll to come to rest on top of her. 'I believe it is I who am now on the top.'

'You have such a knack for stating the obvious,' Valia said dryly, trying to push him off of her, but failing miserably.

'How much is your freedom worth to you?' he asked the squirming maiden, enjoying the feel of her in his arms. He noticed that she fit him perfectly, as if her very body had been made for the sole purpose of conforming to his.

'I beg your pardon!' Valia exclaimed indignantly. 'Are you threatening me?'

'Perhaps.' Her struggling stopped as she stared at him open mouthed. She tried to push him off one last time but he did not budge.

'You are threatening me.'

'Not in the least,' Legolas assured, reluctantly maneuvering himself off her. He sat up, pulling her up with him and noticed instantly that she was shivering. Frowning, he pulled her into his arms; ignoring her feeble protest and nestled her against him in such a way that he could feel her heart beat against his chest, sending his own pulse into a frenzied activity. He pressed her head to him, rubbing her wet back in hopes that it would warm her.

Valia squirmed under his attentions and mumbled something into his chest which Legolas swore was 'I can believe in love,' sending his already accelerated heart into an almost doubled rate. He quickly pulled her back, scanning her face with caution, wanting to believe what she just said was true but not sure if he had heard right.

'What did you say?' he asked, his eyes narrowing at her annoyed expression.

'I said I cannot breathe Legolas. What were you trying to do, suffocate me?' She gave a small tug to one of his golden locks, smiling playfully.

Legolas realized that she was not truly mad at him and exhaled the breath he was holding. 'Never, fair maiden. I would sooner harm myself than bring any pain to you.' He reached up and stroked her cheek, enraptured with the contrast of her warm skin with the snow.

Looking at his dazed face curiously, Valia took his hand away from her face, squeezing it. 'I think that fall has affected your brain.'

'Maybe,' Legolas agreed, swallowing hard and trying to gain control of his soaring emotions.

'Perhaps you should not walk me home,' suggested Valia.

That comment was the best cure for Legolas' odd behavior. He sprung to his feet, scaring Valia at the sudden movement. 'I am perfectly fine,' he assured her, offering her a hand to help her up.

Valia's eyes narrowed but she took his hand anyway, letting him hoist her up off the ground with ease.

'You have proved me wrong Valia,' he observed as he looped her arm through his and began leading her towards her home.

'What do you mean?' she asked in total confusion, looking up to see the strange gleam in his eyes again.

Legolas turned his face to her, smiling down in contentment. 'You can be giddy.'

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Arwenamin- my lady (familiar)

IMPORTANT A/N- With the help of Davan I am working through my previous chapters and revising them. I have decided to make my story as close to cannon as possible, therefore, some changes are in order. I was going to have Legolas' hair color be black- but there are so many cries of protest that I have just kept it blond.

I have also altered his mother's death—she didn't die, but sailed across the sea when Legolas was a very young elfling. So she is alive and in the Valinor. That will be important to know in future chapters.

Lastly, I have given names to each of the different realms I refer to in my story, as I am tired of the repetitiveness of referring to them as realms all the time. It should be self explanatory as they pop up.

Please leave an email address with your review so I can send you a thank you.