Ok, by now you know it isn't mine. Which sux, but hey, unless I change my
name to Tolkien or Whedon, I guess I'll just have to deal. Ok, this may be
the last chapter for a week or two coz I have a serious case of writer's
block with this. I know exactly what is going to happen for the rest of
the story, I just can't get it onto the page. I will work really hard at
it, though, I promise. This one is a little short (hey, aren't all my
chapters short, really) but I just wanted to kill the suspense and let you
all know what happened to our little Dawny once she committed 'suicide'.
Enjoy, R&R, ~Anoron
CHAPTER THIRTEEN- HOME, OR SOMETHING LIKE IT
//And don't you cry tonight
Don't you cry tonight
Don't you cry tonight
There's a heaven above you baby
And don't you cry tonight//
Legolas sat in his throne, brooding. Elladan watched him curiously. He had never seen someone brood for over three decades before, not even his father had brooded for more than twenty years at most after the departure of their mother for Valinor. It was late, and all of Mirkwood was resting except for four Elves. Legolas was often up late now, and his three dearest friends, Elladan, Elrohir and Arwen, still refused to let their friend grieve the loss of his wife alone.
"Legolas?" Arwen finally asked. "Is it not time for rest?"
Legolas gave her the most dejected look she had ever seen. "All this time, and still I can not sleep without her."
Elladan and Arwen exchanged heavy glances.
"You can sleep with me if you like," Elrohir joked lamely and received a half-hearted smile in response.
Suddenly, there was a blinding flash of white light and when it subsided, before them stood Dawn.
"Perhaps not," Elrohir amended, but was batted into silence by his twin's hand.
Dawn stared at Legolas, her face chillingly void of any and all emotion. Legolas stared dumbly back for a moment, his blue eyes glittering with the tears welling up in them.
"Dawn?" he managed to choke out, stumbling in an un-Elf-like fashion over to her. He lifted a trembling hand to caress her cheek.
"I'm home now. Home. . ." she whispered with a smile that failed to reach her dull green eyes.
Legolas pulled Dawn into his arms, rocking her back and forth as the tears of joy began to stream down his face. Dawn's eyes fluttered closed and she took a deep breath. Home. She could only hope so.
After several long moments, Arwen interrupted the pair. "It's good to see you, Dawn. We have missed you," the She-Elf smiled gently. "Perhaps we could talk, tomorrow, though. It is late and you must rest now, you seem so weary. We all are. . ."
Dawn just opened her eyes and stared at her friend blankly. Elrohir picked up on his sister's train of thought. "Yes," he said, a little more forcefully than Arwen's soft demeanour. "It is very late. Legolas, perhaps you should take Dawn to rest?" he prodded.
"Goodnight, Legolas. Goodnight, Dawn," the three Rivendell Elves chimed in together, preparing to give the couple some space.
"I missed you," Dawn quietly told them as they slipped out of the room, not sure if they had heard her or not. She let Legolas lead her to their chambers, where she crashed almost immediately into an exhausted sleep.
* * * * *
Dawn awoke and found a pair of brilliant blue eyes staring down into hers. "Legolas?" she whispered, confused. This wasn't where she was supposed to be- she was meant to be in Sunnydale, in hell where she belonged.
"Yes, melamin, it's me. It's all right- you're home now," he returned, reaching down to lay a comforting hand on her cheek. "Everything is five by five," he joked. Dawn had used that phrase so often, there was not an Elf left in Mirkwood who would even bat an eye at the strange words. And Dawn had always enjoyed being what she called a 'trend-setter' in that way, Legolas could have sworn he heard the words 'five by five' pass Elladan's lips on multiple occasions in the last hundred and thrity or so years.
Dawn didn't smile. She couldn't. Legolas, aware that his joke had fallen flat, was speaking softly to her, trying to gain some sort of reaction that would show she was comforted by him.
"I dreamed about you, Dawn. Every night I dreamed about you. . . I wanted you so badly," he told her, trying to surpress the image of his Dawn in the arms of that creature that burned in his mind and heart.
"I dreamed about you, too," Dawn replied in a flat voice. Her heart flooded with images of his retreating form as he turned his back on her, ignoring her cries for help.
Legolas frowned to himself. Had he just detected a note of real darkness in her tone? He shrugged it off, determined to make Dawn smile, make her happy again now that she was back where she belonged. Then it occurred to him that he didn't know where she had been. They had assumed that she had been called back to her old world, but with Gandalf, Galadriel and Elrond long departed from Middle-Earth, they hadn't been able find out for sure. They had been powerless to help Dawn.
"Arwen and the twins are dying to see you," he told her with a great smile. "I have been chasing them from our door to let you sleep for almost two hours now."
"You should have woken me. And Elves who don't die can't be dying to see me."
"I am sorry, but you seemed so peaceful, melamin. I had not the heart to wake you," he responded softly, a little confused and pained by her deadpan tone.
"Right," Dawn relented. "I guess I should get up and take a bath anyway. Time to see some old friends."
Legolas nodded and leaned in to kiss her. Dawn accepted his kiss, but Legolas was more than a little hurt when she did not kiss him back. He had been pining for her, burning with desire for thirty three long years and now she was finally here and he could touch her, but she did not seem to want him at all. He bit back a grimace when he thought of her and the vampire. . . Spike. Perhaps she was pining for him, perhaps she did not want to be here at all. A scowl threatened to settle over Legolas' features, but he forced it back. Dawn needed him now, he could not fail her through his own jealousy.
Almost an hour had passed before Dawn emerged from the bathroom, dressed in a simple gown, hair left loose about her shoulders. She had barely managed to get her bedroom door open before she was engulfed in a mass of dark hair and pointy ears as the twins and Arwen jostled for room to embrace her.
"By Valar, let the Queen breathe," a voice jokingly scolded from beyond them.
"Sorry, Dawn. Legolas," Elladan acknowledged, pulling himself and his siblings out of Dawn's personal space.
Legolas grinned, inserting himself at Dawn's side in the space his friends had just vacated. He escorted his wife to breakfast, only to watch her chase her food around her plate listlessly, almost oblivious to the stir she caused with each new Elf that entered the room and laid eyes on her.
News of Dawn's return spread like wildfire through the Mirkwood forest and Dawn knew it was unavoidable, she was going to have to face the masses soon. She sighed and pushed her plate away from her, gesturing to Legolas that the time had come.
He rose and offered his arm. Dawn took it and was escorted to a balcony overlooking the crowded main courtyard of the palace. Legolas released her just before the threshold and stepped out into the open alone. An excited hush settled over the Mirkwood Elves as they waited for their King to speak.
With a great smile, Legolas announced, "The Queen has been returned to her rightful home."
Arwen tried to squeeze Dawn's hand supportively, but Dawn ignored the gesture. She squared her shoulders and stepped out to Legolas' side amidst the overjoyed applause of her people.
"Aaye, Tari Dawn," they called out to her. [Hail Queen Dawn]
Dawn could do little more than offer a wan smile and a half-hearted wave before retreating into the relative safety of the palace interior. Legolas frowned to himself. No matter what kind of mood she was in, Dawn never shied away from the crowds. More often than not, she was dragging him into them with her. The Elves looked disappointed at such a small moment in which they could see their missing Monarch.
"The Queen has been through much while she was away," he explained to them. "She adores Mirkwood's people, and will no doubt be looking forward to spending time with you when she is well again."
He turned and headed inside to Dawn's side, praying to the Valar that his words would ring true and Dawn would be better in no time.
* * * * *
CHAPTER THIRTEEN- HOME, OR SOMETHING LIKE IT
//And don't you cry tonight
Don't you cry tonight
Don't you cry tonight
There's a heaven above you baby
And don't you cry tonight//
Legolas sat in his throne, brooding. Elladan watched him curiously. He had never seen someone brood for over three decades before, not even his father had brooded for more than twenty years at most after the departure of their mother for Valinor. It was late, and all of Mirkwood was resting except for four Elves. Legolas was often up late now, and his three dearest friends, Elladan, Elrohir and Arwen, still refused to let their friend grieve the loss of his wife alone.
"Legolas?" Arwen finally asked. "Is it not time for rest?"
Legolas gave her the most dejected look she had ever seen. "All this time, and still I can not sleep without her."
Elladan and Arwen exchanged heavy glances.
"You can sleep with me if you like," Elrohir joked lamely and received a half-hearted smile in response.
Suddenly, there was a blinding flash of white light and when it subsided, before them stood Dawn.
"Perhaps not," Elrohir amended, but was batted into silence by his twin's hand.
Dawn stared at Legolas, her face chillingly void of any and all emotion. Legolas stared dumbly back for a moment, his blue eyes glittering with the tears welling up in them.
"Dawn?" he managed to choke out, stumbling in an un-Elf-like fashion over to her. He lifted a trembling hand to caress her cheek.
"I'm home now. Home. . ." she whispered with a smile that failed to reach her dull green eyes.
Legolas pulled Dawn into his arms, rocking her back and forth as the tears of joy began to stream down his face. Dawn's eyes fluttered closed and she took a deep breath. Home. She could only hope so.
After several long moments, Arwen interrupted the pair. "It's good to see you, Dawn. We have missed you," the She-Elf smiled gently. "Perhaps we could talk, tomorrow, though. It is late and you must rest now, you seem so weary. We all are. . ."
Dawn just opened her eyes and stared at her friend blankly. Elrohir picked up on his sister's train of thought. "Yes," he said, a little more forcefully than Arwen's soft demeanour. "It is very late. Legolas, perhaps you should take Dawn to rest?" he prodded.
"Goodnight, Legolas. Goodnight, Dawn," the three Rivendell Elves chimed in together, preparing to give the couple some space.
"I missed you," Dawn quietly told them as they slipped out of the room, not sure if they had heard her or not. She let Legolas lead her to their chambers, where she crashed almost immediately into an exhausted sleep.
* * * * *
Dawn awoke and found a pair of brilliant blue eyes staring down into hers. "Legolas?" she whispered, confused. This wasn't where she was supposed to be- she was meant to be in Sunnydale, in hell where she belonged.
"Yes, melamin, it's me. It's all right- you're home now," he returned, reaching down to lay a comforting hand on her cheek. "Everything is five by five," he joked. Dawn had used that phrase so often, there was not an Elf left in Mirkwood who would even bat an eye at the strange words. And Dawn had always enjoyed being what she called a 'trend-setter' in that way, Legolas could have sworn he heard the words 'five by five' pass Elladan's lips on multiple occasions in the last hundred and thrity or so years.
Dawn didn't smile. She couldn't. Legolas, aware that his joke had fallen flat, was speaking softly to her, trying to gain some sort of reaction that would show she was comforted by him.
"I dreamed about you, Dawn. Every night I dreamed about you. . . I wanted you so badly," he told her, trying to surpress the image of his Dawn in the arms of that creature that burned in his mind and heart.
"I dreamed about you, too," Dawn replied in a flat voice. Her heart flooded with images of his retreating form as he turned his back on her, ignoring her cries for help.
Legolas frowned to himself. Had he just detected a note of real darkness in her tone? He shrugged it off, determined to make Dawn smile, make her happy again now that she was back where she belonged. Then it occurred to him that he didn't know where she had been. They had assumed that she had been called back to her old world, but with Gandalf, Galadriel and Elrond long departed from Middle-Earth, they hadn't been able find out for sure. They had been powerless to help Dawn.
"Arwen and the twins are dying to see you," he told her with a great smile. "I have been chasing them from our door to let you sleep for almost two hours now."
"You should have woken me. And Elves who don't die can't be dying to see me."
"I am sorry, but you seemed so peaceful, melamin. I had not the heart to wake you," he responded softly, a little confused and pained by her deadpan tone.
"Right," Dawn relented. "I guess I should get up and take a bath anyway. Time to see some old friends."
Legolas nodded and leaned in to kiss her. Dawn accepted his kiss, but Legolas was more than a little hurt when she did not kiss him back. He had been pining for her, burning with desire for thirty three long years and now she was finally here and he could touch her, but she did not seem to want him at all. He bit back a grimace when he thought of her and the vampire. . . Spike. Perhaps she was pining for him, perhaps she did not want to be here at all. A scowl threatened to settle over Legolas' features, but he forced it back. Dawn needed him now, he could not fail her through his own jealousy.
Almost an hour had passed before Dawn emerged from the bathroom, dressed in a simple gown, hair left loose about her shoulders. She had barely managed to get her bedroom door open before she was engulfed in a mass of dark hair and pointy ears as the twins and Arwen jostled for room to embrace her.
"By Valar, let the Queen breathe," a voice jokingly scolded from beyond them.
"Sorry, Dawn. Legolas," Elladan acknowledged, pulling himself and his siblings out of Dawn's personal space.
Legolas grinned, inserting himself at Dawn's side in the space his friends had just vacated. He escorted his wife to breakfast, only to watch her chase her food around her plate listlessly, almost oblivious to the stir she caused with each new Elf that entered the room and laid eyes on her.
News of Dawn's return spread like wildfire through the Mirkwood forest and Dawn knew it was unavoidable, she was going to have to face the masses soon. She sighed and pushed her plate away from her, gesturing to Legolas that the time had come.
He rose and offered his arm. Dawn took it and was escorted to a balcony overlooking the crowded main courtyard of the palace. Legolas released her just before the threshold and stepped out into the open alone. An excited hush settled over the Mirkwood Elves as they waited for their King to speak.
With a great smile, Legolas announced, "The Queen has been returned to her rightful home."
Arwen tried to squeeze Dawn's hand supportively, but Dawn ignored the gesture. She squared her shoulders and stepped out to Legolas' side amidst the overjoyed applause of her people.
"Aaye, Tari Dawn," they called out to her. [Hail Queen Dawn]
Dawn could do little more than offer a wan smile and a half-hearted wave before retreating into the relative safety of the palace interior. Legolas frowned to himself. No matter what kind of mood she was in, Dawn never shied away from the crowds. More often than not, she was dragging him into them with her. The Elves looked disappointed at such a small moment in which they could see their missing Monarch.
"The Queen has been through much while she was away," he explained to them. "She adores Mirkwood's people, and will no doubt be looking forward to spending time with you when she is well again."
He turned and headed inside to Dawn's side, praying to the Valar that his words would ring true and Dawn would be better in no time.
* * * * *