Disclaimer: Not Mine.
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Better or Worse
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He walked amongst the shadows of the trees, singing a song that was carried to all living things surrounding him. Rays of the golden sun broke through the forest canopy as the leaves were tossed by the light breeze. His voice was soothing and calm and the trees piqued with the voice of the firstborn. He sat at the base of a large tree and sang the song that filled his heart.
Lay of Luthien....
While still beautiful and romantic, the underlying pain and suffering of all parts involved gripped his heart fiercely. This was Arwen's fate. He mourned the fallen star, lost to the world of men.
He contemplated his decision to keep his true feelings hidden from her and allow her to marry Aragorn. Was he better or worse for it? Surely, he was better off having remained silent. The burden she carried upon herself did not need added weight for it was heavy enough. And the burdens carried by everyone as they witnessed the union between the King of Men and the Evenstar were alone enough to crush the heart. Indeed, it was bittersweet. How beautiful and pure was their love that none could taint it, although there would be sad partings and broken hearts left in its wake. Hearts like his.
It was better to keep to himself. He had accepted his feelings towards Arwen, but they were still betrayal. They were wrong. He was wrong. And hopeless. She could never, given all of time, love him like he loved her.
"if you only felt what I feel for him...if you only knew what it feels like...you would know why I choose this fate."
He knew what she felt for Aragorn...what it was like to be in love. It was the way he felt about her. And he knew that it was enough. Enough to sacrifice his entire being just to be with her. She was reason enough for him to forsake everything he held dear. She was his everything.
"I can only hope that one day you shall find a love that will shine through the darkness in your heart. That you may too experience love to melt away your grief and chase away your shadows. A love that will bring comfort to your heart and to your soul. Then you will know that no matter what may happen, I shall never be parted from you...for there is a place in my very soul that no one can touch or take away...and there you and I will live on until the end of days."
He had found someone to love, it was her.
Legolas, like Arwen, had also made a choice. He had chosen to love her, and this choice doomed him to live his life unloved. He would always be her silent and strong companion, seeing her through many seasons, but never anything more. Never her lover.
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She landed soundlessly on the bed, content to be alone. Whenever Arwen had a quiet moment to herself she couldn't help but think of Legolas.
Where would his path lead him? She was so unsure and afraid for her beloved friend.
"You will age and die, leaving me here alone. There will be no comfort for me. No comfort to ease the pain of your passing. Through all my travels I shall be shadowed by my loss. I will linger on in darkness and in doubt. As nightfall in winter that comes without a star. Here I will dwell, bound to my grief, under the fading trees, until all the world has changed and the long years of my life are utterly spent. And even in death you will be kept from me, never to be reunited again. This shall be my fate. And though you are ready to accept yours, I fear mine."
His words surprised her. The intense and raw emotion he displayed moved her heart and, even now, brought tears to her eyes. She had underestimated how much she had meant to him. How much he meant to her.
She could not be so vain as to presume that he would never find someone to take her place in his life, so if not her...then whom? In her heart she wanted dearly that he should find someone. For it would indeed be an awful fate to suffer if all he had said came true.
And she would be the source of his suffering.
"And you are ready and prepared to make such a sacrifice? To leave all your people ... your father...and me?"
She did not regret her choice. She would be far worse had she not married Aragorn, though she wished it did not come with so high a price. Even still, she could not help but think about what this meant to her friendship with Legolas. Of course their relationship would be different. She was married now, and made a Queen of Men...that would leave little time to spend carefree days in the lands of her people. She was being dragged into the mortal world where everyone had to do everything at once for time was precious and not on their side.
Legolas had been nearest to her almost all her life, but now she had to pick her roles as wife and queen over him. She could almost feel the rift starting between them, and it hurt her to know that there was nothing she could do. Their lives were forever intertwined, this she knew, but not how their story would play out.
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Her marriage to Aragorn was hard for him to stand by and watch. As much as he loved Aragorn, he loved her more and did not want to lose her. She had always been his lady and now he was loosing her to something that he could not fight nor slay with his arrows. He was loosing her to fate. There was nothing that he could do about it, and he knew this, and while it drove him mad...he was perfectly civil during the entire ceremony. It had been so difficult for him, being happy on the outside and miserable within every fiber of his being...but he did it for her. He also did the one thing that she did not have the heart to ask of him.
He let her go.
Without judgment nor anger, but with a quiet sadness as he stood alone and watched her choose her fate. Arwen had silently thanked him with her whole heart.
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She would be better with Aragorn. Legolas could offer her all he had...all his love...but would it be enough? He knew in his heart that it was not. She was forever Aragorn's.
He was a better elf for remaining loyal and true even when it killed him inside. He was worse because there would be no hope left for him. And no love could save him, save hers.
She was worse because she would lose her beloved Legolas in the name of love.
But they were both neither made better or worse by their decisions, they simply were. And their fates would lead them to places they never thought they'd be.
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A/N: Sorry this chapter was kinda weak!! I had to tie up a few things from the last chapter... and remember, reviews are much appreciated!
------
Better or Worse
------
He walked amongst the shadows of the trees, singing a song that was carried to all living things surrounding him. Rays of the golden sun broke through the forest canopy as the leaves were tossed by the light breeze. His voice was soothing and calm and the trees piqued with the voice of the firstborn. He sat at the base of a large tree and sang the song that filled his heart.
Lay of Luthien....
While still beautiful and romantic, the underlying pain and suffering of all parts involved gripped his heart fiercely. This was Arwen's fate. He mourned the fallen star, lost to the world of men.
He contemplated his decision to keep his true feelings hidden from her and allow her to marry Aragorn. Was he better or worse for it? Surely, he was better off having remained silent. The burden she carried upon herself did not need added weight for it was heavy enough. And the burdens carried by everyone as they witnessed the union between the King of Men and the Evenstar were alone enough to crush the heart. Indeed, it was bittersweet. How beautiful and pure was their love that none could taint it, although there would be sad partings and broken hearts left in its wake. Hearts like his.
It was better to keep to himself. He had accepted his feelings towards Arwen, but they were still betrayal. They were wrong. He was wrong. And hopeless. She could never, given all of time, love him like he loved her.
"if you only felt what I feel for him...if you only knew what it feels like...you would know why I choose this fate."
He knew what she felt for Aragorn...what it was like to be in love. It was the way he felt about her. And he knew that it was enough. Enough to sacrifice his entire being just to be with her. She was reason enough for him to forsake everything he held dear. She was his everything.
"I can only hope that one day you shall find a love that will shine through the darkness in your heart. That you may too experience love to melt away your grief and chase away your shadows. A love that will bring comfort to your heart and to your soul. Then you will know that no matter what may happen, I shall never be parted from you...for there is a place in my very soul that no one can touch or take away...and there you and I will live on until the end of days."
He had found someone to love, it was her.
Legolas, like Arwen, had also made a choice. He had chosen to love her, and this choice doomed him to live his life unloved. He would always be her silent and strong companion, seeing her through many seasons, but never anything more. Never her lover.
------
She landed soundlessly on the bed, content to be alone. Whenever Arwen had a quiet moment to herself she couldn't help but think of Legolas.
Where would his path lead him? She was so unsure and afraid for her beloved friend.
"You will age and die, leaving me here alone. There will be no comfort for me. No comfort to ease the pain of your passing. Through all my travels I shall be shadowed by my loss. I will linger on in darkness and in doubt. As nightfall in winter that comes without a star. Here I will dwell, bound to my grief, under the fading trees, until all the world has changed and the long years of my life are utterly spent. And even in death you will be kept from me, never to be reunited again. This shall be my fate. And though you are ready to accept yours, I fear mine."
His words surprised her. The intense and raw emotion he displayed moved her heart and, even now, brought tears to her eyes. She had underestimated how much she had meant to him. How much he meant to her.
She could not be so vain as to presume that he would never find someone to take her place in his life, so if not her...then whom? In her heart she wanted dearly that he should find someone. For it would indeed be an awful fate to suffer if all he had said came true.
And she would be the source of his suffering.
"And you are ready and prepared to make such a sacrifice? To leave all your people ... your father...and me?"
She did not regret her choice. She would be far worse had she not married Aragorn, though she wished it did not come with so high a price. Even still, she could not help but think about what this meant to her friendship with Legolas. Of course their relationship would be different. She was married now, and made a Queen of Men...that would leave little time to spend carefree days in the lands of her people. She was being dragged into the mortal world where everyone had to do everything at once for time was precious and not on their side.
Legolas had been nearest to her almost all her life, but now she had to pick her roles as wife and queen over him. She could almost feel the rift starting between them, and it hurt her to know that there was nothing she could do. Their lives were forever intertwined, this she knew, but not how their story would play out.
------
Her marriage to Aragorn was hard for him to stand by and watch. As much as he loved Aragorn, he loved her more and did not want to lose her. She had always been his lady and now he was loosing her to something that he could not fight nor slay with his arrows. He was loosing her to fate. There was nothing that he could do about it, and he knew this, and while it drove him mad...he was perfectly civil during the entire ceremony. It had been so difficult for him, being happy on the outside and miserable within every fiber of his being...but he did it for her. He also did the one thing that she did not have the heart to ask of him.
He let her go.
Without judgment nor anger, but with a quiet sadness as he stood alone and watched her choose her fate. Arwen had silently thanked him with her whole heart.
------
She would be better with Aragorn. Legolas could offer her all he had...all his love...but would it be enough? He knew in his heart that it was not. She was forever Aragorn's.
He was a better elf for remaining loyal and true even when it killed him inside. He was worse because there would be no hope left for him. And no love could save him, save hers.
She was worse because she would lose her beloved Legolas in the name of love.
But they were both neither made better or worse by their decisions, they simply were. And their fates would lead them to places they never thought they'd be.
------
A/N: Sorry this chapter was kinda weak!! I had to tie up a few things from the last chapter... and remember, reviews are much appreciated!
