Disclaimer: I do not and did not think of any of the recognisable names or places in this fic. The credit for them is Tolkien's and Tolkien's only!



Chapter 37: The Pool

Celebfaer managed to control the nerves that she felt, slightly as she walked forward towards the pool, then looked at the darkened and murky water, uncertain.

"Celebfaer, this is the pool." Mildred said softly as he had jumped off his horse, then walked over to where she now stood, observing the scared look on her face.

"What do I do?" She asked Mildred, her voice shaking slightly and he shrugged.

"I suppose you bathe your wings in the water." He said and Legolas, who had dismounted from his horse and then walked over to where they stood frowned at them.

"Do you mean to tell me that we came all this way and neither of you know do not know what to do?"

"The water spirit told me only that I had to bathe my wings in the pool and wait until they were cleansed, no matter how long it took." She said looking at the two of them. "I do not know if there is a ritual or anything that needs to be performed before I can enter the pool." She said confirming her worst fear and so they stood in silence, each looking at the pool, hoping to find an answer.

Suddenly they heard the howls of the wolves once again and Celebfaer looked up from her thoughts, then looked from Mildred to Legolas. The howls had brought her back to her senses and she was not so nervous anymore, rather she was more aware of the danger that her two companions would be in.

"If the wolves catch us when I am in the pool, I shall not be able to aid you." She said and they both nodded, knowing what she meant, they had seen the lightening that struck the giant worm from out of nowhere.

"That is why we traveled with you." Mildred declared. "I now understand why the queen sent me on this quest and I do not know if I have the heart to stay for that howl terrifies me." He added and Legolas looked at Celebfaer then nodded.

"One does what one will in order to do what must be done." He said looking into her eyes and Celebfaer nodded. "And as long as those wolves threaten to come closer, and if goblins or other beings come, I shall stand to protect you Celebfaer, though it saddens my heart the mere sound of their howls. However it would sadden my heart more if I did not stay to protect you and you died by the hands of goblins, wolves or worse." Legolas added and Mildred nodded.

"I also will stand with the Elf until I take my last breath." Mildred said and she nodded, then took a deep breath.

"I go to bathe." She said then, she stripped her cloak to reveal the silver dress that Elrond had found her in. It was torn in some places and revealed her tattered wings, but the torn dress matched her wings in that some places where it was torn on the back were continued on from the pattern on the wings. Once she was dressed in her silver dress, she sighed and looked down at her neck. She was wearing the necklace that had the pendant Galadriel had given her on it. Neither Legolas nor Mildred had ever seen her wear the necklace because she was the only person other than Galadriel that knew she carried it. Reluctantly, she removed the necklace and sat it on top of the cloak, hoping she would be able to come back to claim it.

"Celebfaer, what is this pendant?" Mildred asked her and she looked up, as Legolas bent down to examine it, though he did not touch it. He sensed that it was some form of elf magic and it intrigued him.

"It is from Lothlorien." Legolas announced before Celebfaer could respond to Mildred and she nodded to Legolas.

"A parting present from the Lady of the Wood." Celebfaer said but it was all she would say for she did not want to tell her companions why she had been given the gift. She knew that she would have to enter the water, wearing her silver dress and no other form of decoration or jewelry, not matter what it had been created for.

After she had wrapped the pendant in her cloak, Celebfaer turned to Mildred. "May the Valar protect you and if your loyalty still holds through this then I shall be honored to wed you." She said, then kissed him on the head as she had seen Galadriel do many a time to her loyal subjects.

"I shall be here when you leave the pool and I shall prove myself worthy." He replied firmly.

Then she turned around to Legolas and kissed his forehead. "I am blessed to have been worthy of receiving your love, though someone else needs you back in Eryn Lasgalen and I am sure they are worthy also." She said, then she kissed his nose.

"And I have been worthy of receiving yours, even if it were for a brief period of time." Legolas responded and she backed away then stood before both of them.

"I do not know how long this will take and if it takes more than three months I bid that you kill me or abandon me and return to your homes." She said and then she looked into each of their eyes for a time before she turned away and walked towards the pool.

Just before she stepped into the pool she stopped. "The Valar protect those two that stand behind me." She whispered, then she looked down to the pool. "I request for my wings to be cleansed and will that this pool shall cleanse them. May it take as long as the Valar wills it." She said, then she dived into the pool and all her thoughts were lost and she was just a body lying in the pool.

Legolas rushed forward when he saw her body go limp, but Mildred stopped him before he could move more than a few steps forward.

"The pool must work its magic and then this will all be over and she will be restored to her original self." Mildred said in a sneer, looking at Legolas as though it were his fault that she had adopted many of the elvish ways.

"What do you mean by that Mildred?" Legolas shot back.

"I mean that maybe when her wings are restored she might stop all this foolish Elf business."

"Are you saying Elves are foolish?"

"She isn't here to protect you anymore Elf, so I suggest you just sit down and relax. If anything comes I am skilled enough to handle it." Mildred said, sitting down and Legolas looked at him.

Within a blink of an eye, Legolas had his bow drawn and ready to fire straight at Mildred and Mildred blinked wondering where the bow or arrow had even come from.

"I do not need the protection of the Lady Celebfaer." Legolas said warningly then as quickly as it had come, the bow was gone as was the arrow.

Mildred let out a breath and Legolas smiled, then went to sit by his horse.

"I shall watch this side and if anything comes through from your side Fairy, you will not be distinguished from foe." Legolas said and Mildred laughed.

"If I needed to kill you I could have done it quicker than you could draw your bow Elf." Mildred said and Legolas smiled.

"I know."

"You know? What does that mean, you cannot know how quickly I could kill you."

"I have seen it done. Celebfaer killed a cave troll and saved us all, revealing to us that she was indeed a Fairy and not an Elf." Legolas replied. "She scared Orcs with what she did and I would never like to be her enemy, for she is a very powerful foe."

"She killed a cave troll? How?"

"You mean you do not know how? I don't know how either but I do know that as I jumped onto its head, it appeared to fall, so I jumped off and when I landed I saw it was dead."

"She killed it with command?" Mildred said, a little worried about her because he had never been taught such a summons.

"Yes, she did."

"I do not believe it, no such spell or summons exists that any Fairy, alive or dead knows."

"It is the truth for I could not believe it myself and I saw it with my own two eyes and my eyes rarely lie." He said and Mildred sighed, then laughed in disbelief.

"You do not understand. It is not possible, because any new spell that a Fairy learns, or any knowledge that they obtain, the rest of the Fairies obtain. We are all linked by the mind, which is how we gain knowledge of knew summons and spells, but unless she has found a way to block her mind to all of us then we would know of this summons." He said and Legolas shrugged.

"She never spoke of it. But I had never seen her as angry as I did that day for the troll had tried to kill an important member of our Company and had thrown her against the wall, crushing her wings."

"Her wings were crushed more?"

"Yes and it angered her the most I believe."

"She truly is the first-daughter!" Mildred whispered to himself, then he sighed. "Well, we shall see the truth once her wings are revealed." He added, thinking that Legolas had not heard him.

Legolas just wondered what he was talking about.

***************************

They were not waiting long until the first round of wolves decided to attack.

The Elf and the Fairy worked well as a team and though it was only to try and protect Celebfaer they were able to kill all the wolves working together as though they were born to work together.

When the assault was over, they rested and Legolas looked over to Mildred.

"You fight well for a young one."

"I am not as young as you think Elf. 2487 is not that young among my people."

"That is at least 500 years younger than both Celebfaer and I and though it isn't that long a time span for our people, you fight as though you have an extra 200 years to your name." Legolas said and Mildred nodded, then bowed.

"You also fight well and if we survive this ordeal then I do hope that we can be a little better acquainted than just enemies." Mildred said and Legolas nodded, then extended his hand.

Mildred took it and from then on, although they still watched each other like hawks, the air between them was a little less tense.