A/N: Sorry I haven't updated for such a long time!
I woke up in the middle of night to some rustling. I looked around and smiled at the sight. Three hobbits were curled by my side.
Suddenly, I frowned. Three hobbits... Sam, Pippin, Merry... where was Frodo? I carefully removed Pippin's arm that was draped over my stomach and placed Merry's head that was resting on my shoulder on the blankets around us. I stood up carefully and wandered around Lórien, trying to find the lost hobbit.
I walked slowly over the lush green grass and looked up at the tall silver trees. I waved to many of the acquaintances I had met on my frequent visits here. However, I did not stop to chat with them for very long.
I finally reached the little atrium where my grandmother's mirror was placed. I heard low voices coming from it and decided to investigate. I crept up as soundlessly as I could and found my grandmother talking to Frodo.
"What will I see?" I heard Frodo say.
I saw my grandmother's lips twitch ever so slightly. "Even the wisest can not tell," she said in a mysterious tone. She held the pitcher full of the water above the mirror. "For the mirror shows many things," she said as she poured the magical water onto the mirror.
I remembered the first time Grandmother Galadriel had let me see into the mirror. I was a mere 1000 years old, a pre-teenager in human terms. I had gotten my first bull's eye during archery lessons and planned to boast of my success to my grandmother.
~Flashback~
"Grandmother Galadriel! Grandmother Galadriel!" I called happily.
My grandmother smiled as she hugged me. "My dear Alliyah! How nice it is to see you again!" she exclaimed.
"Grandmother, I made a bull's eye the other day! I brought my string back like this," I showed her by drawing a pretend string back. "And let it go like this, twang!" I cried out. "And it hit straight in the middle of the board!" I said.
"My, you get better and better every day!" my grandmother said. She sighed and looked at me with a satisfied but sad expression. "You are going to grow as lovely as your mother, young Alliyah. You will be the same archer as she was, I can see it."
I wrinkled my little eyebrows. "How do you know that, Grandmother?" I asked curiously.
Galadriel smiled and said, "Come with me and I will show you."
I followed her down many steep steps along the tall trees and across many clearings. Finally we reached the opening of an atrium, made by two tall trees.
I stopped at the opening of the atrium as if some force stopped me there. Grandmother moved ahead of me and picked up the silver pitcher. She walked gracefully to the tiny water basin near the edge of the atrium and scooped up some of the water into the pitcher.
"Will you look into the mirror?" she asked, all traces of feeling erased from her fair face. I did the same, know that this was the time to be sober. Her hand waved to the center of the atrium where, upon a pedestal, laid the Mirror of Galadriel.
"What will I see?" I asked suspiciously, as if my grandmother was a complete stranger.
Galadriel's face was still emotionless as she answered, "Even the wisest cannot tell, for the Mirror shows many things." She poured the water slowly onto the mirror.
I approached it slowly, as if a monster would jump out of the mirror and devour me. I looked cautiously into it. However, to my relief and surprise, I saw only my reflection.
"'Tis only me, Grandmother," I said, my face breaking into a smile.
"Look again, young one," she whispered.
My smile fell from my face as I looked into the Mirror once more. My reflection slowly faded away and was replaced by an image of a male elf, a Man, and two she-elves.
The male elf I recognized to be my father, Lord Elrond of Rivendell. He wore the royal blue tunic and dress pants. He wore a matching blue cloak that made him look even more elegant. On his head rested the royal circlet. Basically, he looked the same as he always was but his eyes told me that he had aged.
The Man was unrecognizable. I had no idea who he was but his hair was ruffled in a rugged sort of way. He wore a slightly overused shirt with dirty pants. He had a manly beard that didn't quite seem to finish growing yet. His eyes were brown and friendly. I found myself entranced in his friendly look. His eyes would every so often glance at one of the she- elves.
The one the Man kept looking at was beautiful. She wore a lovely blood-red dress with ivy leaves woven through her hair in a fashionable way. She too wore the royal circlet. Her eyes were brown and warm as well. A smile graced her lips as she looked at each member of her family. A single crystal pendant ornamented her bare neck.
The last maiden was an elf as well. She was beautiful, although not as much as her sister. Her dress was green and seemed to match harmoniously with the grass at her feet. The wind blew the dress ever so slightly as it sighed peacefully. Her hands were behind her back and she wore the royal circlet upon her brown her too. However, she wore no jewelry to decorate her face. As I looked more closely, I saw a bit of her hand. It was clutched tightly around something that looked like a stick. No, wait, it seemed to be a bow. I watched as the maiden tried vainly to hide the bow behind her back.
Then, a young male elf came next to her. I could tell by the circlet on his blonde head that he was of royal blood too. He wore a light green tunic and matching leggings with brown boots. He whispered something into the young elf's ear and I saw him take the bow secretly from her hands. She smiled gratefully at him and kissed him on the cheek before turning back to face me.
Then the image faded.
"Who was that, Grandmother Galadriel?" I asked in awe.
"Do you not recognize your father?" Galadriel asked.
"Of course I recognized him. But who were the maidens around him?" I asked.
"Do you not recognize yourself and your sister young one?" she asked, raising her eyebrows as she watched my expression.
My mouth dropped open. "That... that... that was me... and Arwen?" I asked amazed.
"Of course. Did you not see the resemblance between your sister and that maiden in red? And did you not see the resemblance between you and that maiden in green?" she asked.
"Who was the Man? And that male elf?" I wondered out loud.
"In time, young one, you will know," Grandmother assured me. "In time."
~Flashback ends~
I felt relieved as I remembered that memory. It had hit me like a wave. I remembered that the Man was Aragorn, son of Arathorn, adopted son of Lord Elrond and adopted brother of Lady Arwen and Alliyah.
But the elf, he seemed familiar somehow...
My attention was recaptured by the scene in the atrium as I watched Frodo cautiously approached the mirror and peered into it. As he stared wide-eyed into the water before him, my grandmother spotted me.
She motioned for me to go away by pointing to the entrance to the atrium. Nodding, I walked softly out of the clearing.
As I stood a good distance away from the two trees, I heard footsteps come from behind. I swiveled around and saw Legolas approaching, wearing white pajamas and a matching top. The light from behind him made him glorious and beautiful. Immediately, my head began to hurt again.
I turned back around to stare fiercely at a tree. "Ally! What are you doing wandering around at night?" he asked in a serious tone.
"I was merely reflecting back on my childhood," I answered curtly, not wishing to be treated as a child. "The woods of Lórien are not dangerous, Master Elf. I will not be in any trouble. Go back to sleep," I said and waved my hand dismissively, not turning to face him at all.
There was a silence. I was sure he had gone back to the tent and turned around. But to my utter horror, he still stood there watching me with sad blue eyes. I rolled mine and sighed exasperatedly.
"Why are you still here?" I asked.
Legolas sighed. "What did I do wrong, Ally?" he asked almost pleadingly.
I turned away with a huff. Legolas jumped to my side and took my hands. "Please, Ally," he looked at me with those blue eyes again.
"Do you not know, Legolas?" I asked, trying my best to avoid his eyes.
"No, pray tell," he said.
I was stuck. What was I to say? 'I'm angry at you because I'm not sure whether I love you or not' did not sound very promising to me.
'You don't love him,' I heard Saruman's voice in my head.
'How do you know?' I asked him.
'I will keep you from it,' he answered simply.
'How will do that?' I pressed on.
I heard him sigh. 'If you continue to let your feelings take control of you, you will force me to kill him,' I heard him say.
I gasped out loud, my eyes widening in fright. Unconsciously, I ripped my hands from his grasp.
"Ally, what's wrong?" Legolas asked me. He took a step towards me.
'Control yourself, Ally,' Saruman said.
I took a step back while whispering, "Do not get near me."
"Ally..." Legolas began while taking a small step towards me.
'Control yourself, Ally, or else Legolas will die,' Saruman whispered.
I put my hand out to stop him. "Please don't, Legolas!" I pleaded, tears forming around my eyes.
"Ally, what did you hear? What are you afraid of?" Legolas asked, stepping towards me again.
'So many ways to kill him...' Saruman continued.
I stepped back and felt a tree against my back. I was trapped. "Please, Legolas..." I pleaded louder.
"Ally, answer my question!" Legolas said, almost shouting. He was too close to me now.
'So many different ways...' Saruman whispered.
I couldn't take it. I had to tell someone. "I'm afraid of you!" I shrieked. That's when everything stopped. Time itself took pity on me and froze everything. The birds stopped their normal singing. The trees stopped their groaning. The wind stopped its whispering. Legolas froze too.
"Ally, I did not mean to frighten you," Legolas whispered, barely audible. "Oh, please Ally, don't cry."
My fought-back tears began flowing freely down my cheeks. I began to whimper before increasing my volume to sobbing. Legolas took me into his arms again and patted my back soothingly as I cried into his once-perfect night shirt.
After I calmed down, my headache disappeared almost instantly. 'Queer,' I thought. For some strange reason, I felt my head clear again, like it was a few months ago, before the Ring was found. It seemed as if the evil conscience inside of me was cleared.
I pushed myself away from Legolas and wiped away my tears. Legolas watched me as if wanting to press on but he did not utter a word.
I decided to put him out of his misery and spoke, "Saruman paid me another visit."
Immediately, Legolas' hands curled into fists. His jaw was clenched and his shoulders became tight. "Where was he?" he growled.
I shook my head. "No, he did not harm me physically. He... spoke to me in my mind. I heard him just as clearly as I hear myself now. He..." I paused. Did I really want to admit my uncertainties about Legolas out loud?
"Yes?" Legolas asked, pressing me to continue.
I took a deep breath. "He told me that I was not to love you," I said simply.
Legolas' eyes burned with a fire I never knew he had. His jaw was set tightly and his breathing quickened.
"He told me that I was not to be with you and that if my feelings took over me, he would kill you," I whispered.
A silence floated between us. Finally, Legolas asked, "And do you?"
"Do I what?" I said, knowing where this conversation was going.
"Do you love me?" he whispered.
I looked intently into his eyes. I saw the hopefulness there, beneath all that anger. I saw something that I had never seen before in anyone else's eyes. I saw love.
However, wishing to protect him and myself, I pushed past him, not wanting to be cornered like a mouse. "I'm not sure anymore, Legolas," I said, my voice colder than I intended it to be.
"Oh," was the only response I received. I looked up into his eyes and saw sadness. Despair. He turned away when he saw me looking at him straight in the eye.
"Legolas..." I said and took a step toward him.
Legolas, however, put a hand up to stop me. "You need not explain, Ally. It is my fault. I should have controlled my feelings as well." He looked up at me. This time, his eyes were emotionless. "I am sorry," he said flatly. With that he turned and walked away.
Something made me stand where I was. I should have moved after him. I should have followed him. But I didn't. As I watched him retreat, I collapsed on the ground and started crying.
'You did well, Ally,' Saruman's voice said. With that, my headaches returned.
I do not know how long I sat there but Frodo found me on his way out of the atrium. He bent down next to me and asked, "Ally, what's wrong? Why are you crying?"
I sniffed a bit and faced him. "Nothing, Frodo. It's nothing," I assured him with a weak smile.
Frodo looked warily at me so I said, "Frodo, you should go back and get some sleep. Tomorrow is a long day and our journey must continue. You need your strength." When he did not move, I sighed. "Frodo, please," I pleaded.
Finally he stood up slowly and helped me up. "Good night, Ally," he said, still looking at me cautiously.
"Good night, young one," I replied. With that, Frodo walked away.
When I saw Frodo go back to the tent, I turned around and fled into the atrium, wanting to talk to my grandmother. When I stepped into the atrium, my headaches flew away. 'Queer,' I thought.
To my surprise, I found my grandmother waiting patiently next to the water basin. "What took you so long, Ally?" Galadriel asked me.
When I did not reply, Galadriel said, "What is worrying you, young one?"
I whispered, "I think you know very well what is worrying me, Grandmother Galadriel."
Grandmother smiled a bit. "Of course. But I want to hear you admit it so you can hear it for yourself and try to help yourself," she said.
I took a deep breath. "I do not know whether or not I love Legolas," I admitted. Instantly, my headache was spurred once more.
Galadriel's face darkened. "I sense an evil inside of you, young Alliyah," she said in a low voice. I merely nodded. She walked up to me and touched my forehead. "Lle boe ama poldora. Wanya uuvanimo naa! You need strength. Dispel the monster in your head!" she chanted.
Immediately the pressure in my head was lifted and I felt clean once more. I smiled and opened my eyes. "There you go, young one," Galadriel said to me.
"Now, about your little love issue..." she said, her eyes twinkling in amusement. I blushed. "Do you remember years ago when you first looked into my mirror?" she asked me.
I nodded, wondering what that had to do with anything. "Do you remember when you asked me who the two males were in the picture?" she asked again.
I nodded.
"Do you know who those two are?" she asked yet again.
I thought a moment. "Well, I know that the Man is Aragorn the Ranger," I replied thoughtfully. "But I do not know who the male elf is. He seems familiar but I can not quite place him."
Galadriel smiled. "Would you like to see it again?" she asked knowingly.
I nodded, determined to find out who the male elf who kissed me was. Grandmother beckoned me to the mirror and gestured me to look into it.
I was my reflection once more but, as I was experienced, I waited until the reflection faded away. Before me was the picture of the family once more. I recognized my father, Aragorn, Arwen, and me. As before, a bow was hidden behind my back.
And as before, the male elf entered the image and whispered something into my ear. He kissed my image's cheek and took the bow away. That was when I saw his face clearly. I gasped.
The male elf was Legolas. I watched as my image smiled fondly at him. 'This is the future?' I wondered. The picture of the family faded and was replaced with my reflection once more.
I looked up and asked, "The male elf is Legolas?"
Galadriel practically beamed. "Yes," she said.
I asked, "Is this the future?"
Galadriel shook her head slowly. "It may be the future. It may not. That is up to you," she said, eyeing me.
I looked down and stared at the green grass at my feet. Galadriel walked up to me and lifted my chin so that I looked into her blue eyes. "Do not listen to your head, Alliyah. Listen to your heart," she advised me in a soft voice.
I closed my eyes once more. "What does it tell you?" she whispered.
"My heart says... yes," I whispered as I slowly opened my eyes.
A/N: Whew! That took a long time! Well, review please! The little chant was kind of pathetic. Sorry!
I woke up in the middle of night to some rustling. I looked around and smiled at the sight. Three hobbits were curled by my side.
Suddenly, I frowned. Three hobbits... Sam, Pippin, Merry... where was Frodo? I carefully removed Pippin's arm that was draped over my stomach and placed Merry's head that was resting on my shoulder on the blankets around us. I stood up carefully and wandered around Lórien, trying to find the lost hobbit.
I walked slowly over the lush green grass and looked up at the tall silver trees. I waved to many of the acquaintances I had met on my frequent visits here. However, I did not stop to chat with them for very long.
I finally reached the little atrium where my grandmother's mirror was placed. I heard low voices coming from it and decided to investigate. I crept up as soundlessly as I could and found my grandmother talking to Frodo.
"What will I see?" I heard Frodo say.
I saw my grandmother's lips twitch ever so slightly. "Even the wisest can not tell," she said in a mysterious tone. She held the pitcher full of the water above the mirror. "For the mirror shows many things," she said as she poured the magical water onto the mirror.
I remembered the first time Grandmother Galadriel had let me see into the mirror. I was a mere 1000 years old, a pre-teenager in human terms. I had gotten my first bull's eye during archery lessons and planned to boast of my success to my grandmother.
~Flashback~
"Grandmother Galadriel! Grandmother Galadriel!" I called happily.
My grandmother smiled as she hugged me. "My dear Alliyah! How nice it is to see you again!" she exclaimed.
"Grandmother, I made a bull's eye the other day! I brought my string back like this," I showed her by drawing a pretend string back. "And let it go like this, twang!" I cried out. "And it hit straight in the middle of the board!" I said.
"My, you get better and better every day!" my grandmother said. She sighed and looked at me with a satisfied but sad expression. "You are going to grow as lovely as your mother, young Alliyah. You will be the same archer as she was, I can see it."
I wrinkled my little eyebrows. "How do you know that, Grandmother?" I asked curiously.
Galadriel smiled and said, "Come with me and I will show you."
I followed her down many steep steps along the tall trees and across many clearings. Finally we reached the opening of an atrium, made by two tall trees.
I stopped at the opening of the atrium as if some force stopped me there. Grandmother moved ahead of me and picked up the silver pitcher. She walked gracefully to the tiny water basin near the edge of the atrium and scooped up some of the water into the pitcher.
"Will you look into the mirror?" she asked, all traces of feeling erased from her fair face. I did the same, know that this was the time to be sober. Her hand waved to the center of the atrium where, upon a pedestal, laid the Mirror of Galadriel.
"What will I see?" I asked suspiciously, as if my grandmother was a complete stranger.
Galadriel's face was still emotionless as she answered, "Even the wisest cannot tell, for the Mirror shows many things." She poured the water slowly onto the mirror.
I approached it slowly, as if a monster would jump out of the mirror and devour me. I looked cautiously into it. However, to my relief and surprise, I saw only my reflection.
"'Tis only me, Grandmother," I said, my face breaking into a smile.
"Look again, young one," she whispered.
My smile fell from my face as I looked into the Mirror once more. My reflection slowly faded away and was replaced by an image of a male elf, a Man, and two she-elves.
The male elf I recognized to be my father, Lord Elrond of Rivendell. He wore the royal blue tunic and dress pants. He wore a matching blue cloak that made him look even more elegant. On his head rested the royal circlet. Basically, he looked the same as he always was but his eyes told me that he had aged.
The Man was unrecognizable. I had no idea who he was but his hair was ruffled in a rugged sort of way. He wore a slightly overused shirt with dirty pants. He had a manly beard that didn't quite seem to finish growing yet. His eyes were brown and friendly. I found myself entranced in his friendly look. His eyes would every so often glance at one of the she- elves.
The one the Man kept looking at was beautiful. She wore a lovely blood-red dress with ivy leaves woven through her hair in a fashionable way. She too wore the royal circlet. Her eyes were brown and warm as well. A smile graced her lips as she looked at each member of her family. A single crystal pendant ornamented her bare neck.
The last maiden was an elf as well. She was beautiful, although not as much as her sister. Her dress was green and seemed to match harmoniously with the grass at her feet. The wind blew the dress ever so slightly as it sighed peacefully. Her hands were behind her back and she wore the royal circlet upon her brown her too. However, she wore no jewelry to decorate her face. As I looked more closely, I saw a bit of her hand. It was clutched tightly around something that looked like a stick. No, wait, it seemed to be a bow. I watched as the maiden tried vainly to hide the bow behind her back.
Then, a young male elf came next to her. I could tell by the circlet on his blonde head that he was of royal blood too. He wore a light green tunic and matching leggings with brown boots. He whispered something into the young elf's ear and I saw him take the bow secretly from her hands. She smiled gratefully at him and kissed him on the cheek before turning back to face me.
Then the image faded.
"Who was that, Grandmother Galadriel?" I asked in awe.
"Do you not recognize your father?" Galadriel asked.
"Of course I recognized him. But who were the maidens around him?" I asked.
"Do you not recognize yourself and your sister young one?" she asked, raising her eyebrows as she watched my expression.
My mouth dropped open. "That... that... that was me... and Arwen?" I asked amazed.
"Of course. Did you not see the resemblance between your sister and that maiden in red? And did you not see the resemblance between you and that maiden in green?" she asked.
"Who was the Man? And that male elf?" I wondered out loud.
"In time, young one, you will know," Grandmother assured me. "In time."
~Flashback ends~
I felt relieved as I remembered that memory. It had hit me like a wave. I remembered that the Man was Aragorn, son of Arathorn, adopted son of Lord Elrond and adopted brother of Lady Arwen and Alliyah.
But the elf, he seemed familiar somehow...
My attention was recaptured by the scene in the atrium as I watched Frodo cautiously approached the mirror and peered into it. As he stared wide-eyed into the water before him, my grandmother spotted me.
She motioned for me to go away by pointing to the entrance to the atrium. Nodding, I walked softly out of the clearing.
As I stood a good distance away from the two trees, I heard footsteps come from behind. I swiveled around and saw Legolas approaching, wearing white pajamas and a matching top. The light from behind him made him glorious and beautiful. Immediately, my head began to hurt again.
I turned back around to stare fiercely at a tree. "Ally! What are you doing wandering around at night?" he asked in a serious tone.
"I was merely reflecting back on my childhood," I answered curtly, not wishing to be treated as a child. "The woods of Lórien are not dangerous, Master Elf. I will not be in any trouble. Go back to sleep," I said and waved my hand dismissively, not turning to face him at all.
There was a silence. I was sure he had gone back to the tent and turned around. But to my utter horror, he still stood there watching me with sad blue eyes. I rolled mine and sighed exasperatedly.
"Why are you still here?" I asked.
Legolas sighed. "What did I do wrong, Ally?" he asked almost pleadingly.
I turned away with a huff. Legolas jumped to my side and took my hands. "Please, Ally," he looked at me with those blue eyes again.
"Do you not know, Legolas?" I asked, trying my best to avoid his eyes.
"No, pray tell," he said.
I was stuck. What was I to say? 'I'm angry at you because I'm not sure whether I love you or not' did not sound very promising to me.
'You don't love him,' I heard Saruman's voice in my head.
'How do you know?' I asked him.
'I will keep you from it,' he answered simply.
'How will do that?' I pressed on.
I heard him sigh. 'If you continue to let your feelings take control of you, you will force me to kill him,' I heard him say.
I gasped out loud, my eyes widening in fright. Unconsciously, I ripped my hands from his grasp.
"Ally, what's wrong?" Legolas asked me. He took a step towards me.
'Control yourself, Ally,' Saruman said.
I took a step back while whispering, "Do not get near me."
"Ally..." Legolas began while taking a small step towards me.
'Control yourself, Ally, or else Legolas will die,' Saruman whispered.
I put my hand out to stop him. "Please don't, Legolas!" I pleaded, tears forming around my eyes.
"Ally, what did you hear? What are you afraid of?" Legolas asked, stepping towards me again.
'So many ways to kill him...' Saruman continued.
I stepped back and felt a tree against my back. I was trapped. "Please, Legolas..." I pleaded louder.
"Ally, answer my question!" Legolas said, almost shouting. He was too close to me now.
'So many different ways...' Saruman whispered.
I couldn't take it. I had to tell someone. "I'm afraid of you!" I shrieked. That's when everything stopped. Time itself took pity on me and froze everything. The birds stopped their normal singing. The trees stopped their groaning. The wind stopped its whispering. Legolas froze too.
"Ally, I did not mean to frighten you," Legolas whispered, barely audible. "Oh, please Ally, don't cry."
My fought-back tears began flowing freely down my cheeks. I began to whimper before increasing my volume to sobbing. Legolas took me into his arms again and patted my back soothingly as I cried into his once-perfect night shirt.
After I calmed down, my headache disappeared almost instantly. 'Queer,' I thought. For some strange reason, I felt my head clear again, like it was a few months ago, before the Ring was found. It seemed as if the evil conscience inside of me was cleared.
I pushed myself away from Legolas and wiped away my tears. Legolas watched me as if wanting to press on but he did not utter a word.
I decided to put him out of his misery and spoke, "Saruman paid me another visit."
Immediately, Legolas' hands curled into fists. His jaw was clenched and his shoulders became tight. "Where was he?" he growled.
I shook my head. "No, he did not harm me physically. He... spoke to me in my mind. I heard him just as clearly as I hear myself now. He..." I paused. Did I really want to admit my uncertainties about Legolas out loud?
"Yes?" Legolas asked, pressing me to continue.
I took a deep breath. "He told me that I was not to love you," I said simply.
Legolas' eyes burned with a fire I never knew he had. His jaw was set tightly and his breathing quickened.
"He told me that I was not to be with you and that if my feelings took over me, he would kill you," I whispered.
A silence floated between us. Finally, Legolas asked, "And do you?"
"Do I what?" I said, knowing where this conversation was going.
"Do you love me?" he whispered.
I looked intently into his eyes. I saw the hopefulness there, beneath all that anger. I saw something that I had never seen before in anyone else's eyes. I saw love.
However, wishing to protect him and myself, I pushed past him, not wanting to be cornered like a mouse. "I'm not sure anymore, Legolas," I said, my voice colder than I intended it to be.
"Oh," was the only response I received. I looked up into his eyes and saw sadness. Despair. He turned away when he saw me looking at him straight in the eye.
"Legolas..." I said and took a step toward him.
Legolas, however, put a hand up to stop me. "You need not explain, Ally. It is my fault. I should have controlled my feelings as well." He looked up at me. This time, his eyes were emotionless. "I am sorry," he said flatly. With that he turned and walked away.
Something made me stand where I was. I should have moved after him. I should have followed him. But I didn't. As I watched him retreat, I collapsed on the ground and started crying.
'You did well, Ally,' Saruman's voice said. With that, my headaches returned.
I do not know how long I sat there but Frodo found me on his way out of the atrium. He bent down next to me and asked, "Ally, what's wrong? Why are you crying?"
I sniffed a bit and faced him. "Nothing, Frodo. It's nothing," I assured him with a weak smile.
Frodo looked warily at me so I said, "Frodo, you should go back and get some sleep. Tomorrow is a long day and our journey must continue. You need your strength." When he did not move, I sighed. "Frodo, please," I pleaded.
Finally he stood up slowly and helped me up. "Good night, Ally," he said, still looking at me cautiously.
"Good night, young one," I replied. With that, Frodo walked away.
When I saw Frodo go back to the tent, I turned around and fled into the atrium, wanting to talk to my grandmother. When I stepped into the atrium, my headaches flew away. 'Queer,' I thought.
To my surprise, I found my grandmother waiting patiently next to the water basin. "What took you so long, Ally?" Galadriel asked me.
When I did not reply, Galadriel said, "What is worrying you, young one?"
I whispered, "I think you know very well what is worrying me, Grandmother Galadriel."
Grandmother smiled a bit. "Of course. But I want to hear you admit it so you can hear it for yourself and try to help yourself," she said.
I took a deep breath. "I do not know whether or not I love Legolas," I admitted. Instantly, my headache was spurred once more.
Galadriel's face darkened. "I sense an evil inside of you, young Alliyah," she said in a low voice. I merely nodded. She walked up to me and touched my forehead. "Lle boe ama poldora. Wanya uuvanimo naa! You need strength. Dispel the monster in your head!" she chanted.
Immediately the pressure in my head was lifted and I felt clean once more. I smiled and opened my eyes. "There you go, young one," Galadriel said to me.
"Now, about your little love issue..." she said, her eyes twinkling in amusement. I blushed. "Do you remember years ago when you first looked into my mirror?" she asked me.
I nodded, wondering what that had to do with anything. "Do you remember when you asked me who the two males were in the picture?" she asked again.
I nodded.
"Do you know who those two are?" she asked yet again.
I thought a moment. "Well, I know that the Man is Aragorn the Ranger," I replied thoughtfully. "But I do not know who the male elf is. He seems familiar but I can not quite place him."
Galadriel smiled. "Would you like to see it again?" she asked knowingly.
I nodded, determined to find out who the male elf who kissed me was. Grandmother beckoned me to the mirror and gestured me to look into it.
I was my reflection once more but, as I was experienced, I waited until the reflection faded away. Before me was the picture of the family once more. I recognized my father, Aragorn, Arwen, and me. As before, a bow was hidden behind my back.
And as before, the male elf entered the image and whispered something into my ear. He kissed my image's cheek and took the bow away. That was when I saw his face clearly. I gasped.
The male elf was Legolas. I watched as my image smiled fondly at him. 'This is the future?' I wondered. The picture of the family faded and was replaced with my reflection once more.
I looked up and asked, "The male elf is Legolas?"
Galadriel practically beamed. "Yes," she said.
I asked, "Is this the future?"
Galadriel shook her head slowly. "It may be the future. It may not. That is up to you," she said, eyeing me.
I looked down and stared at the green grass at my feet. Galadriel walked up to me and lifted my chin so that I looked into her blue eyes. "Do not listen to your head, Alliyah. Listen to your heart," she advised me in a soft voice.
I closed my eyes once more. "What does it tell you?" she whispered.
"My heart says... yes," I whispered as I slowly opened my eyes.
A/N: Whew! That took a long time! Well, review please! The little chant was kind of pathetic. Sorry!
