Once Upon An Age
Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Tolkien's work but I do own anything that isn't real, etc. Basically I own anything I thought up. Don't know if this idea has been used before but **** happens. (Evil grin).
Chapter Seven: Over the seas our love shall bare us.
Arawn stared at the knife as it flew through the air towards him. He could not believe that it had been Elle who had thrown it. When the blade sliced through the flesh of his arm, the Faery realized that he was trying to win a woman who would not hesitate to kill him in order to get what she wanted.
"While he's dealing with that, let us run!" Gimli was making his way back to the ship, knowing that it would take him longer than the four Elves.
Exchanging looks, Legolas and Elle frowned, suspecting a trap. Shaking his head, Glorfindel spun and raced towards the ship, grabbing Gimli on the way and carrying the dwarf. Haldir touched Elle's arm and inclined his head towards the ship.
"The dwarf
is right, let us go. Glorfindel is on the ship already and he makes it ready to
leave. Annwn has no powers over the sea for the Goddess contains each area to
only that area. Come."
Lifting his head, Arawn saw
Legolas and Elle backing away from him while Haldir bounded through the sand to
reach the ship. He growled, holding his hand out towards them.
"You shall not leave Annwn Eolande!" He cried in desperation.
The air thickened around her and Elle struggled to escape it. "Legolas!" She screamed, watching him try to get to her.
A bright light appeared from with-in the trees and Arawn turned to look at it. It was in that moment that his power lessened its hold on Elle and she forced her way to Legolas, who pulled her towards the ship. Watching them, Haldir had his bow ready, an arrow aimed for Arawn.
Out of the forest walked a shimmering woman with long red curls and the outfit of a warrior. Her eyes were clouded with anger and they were focused on Arawn. "You dare to hold an Elf in Annwn against her will? Arawn, you overstep your authority. We have given them the right to reside here in the Otherworld and yet you would create enmity between your people and theirs?"
"It is Rhiannon herself!" Glorfindel cried out in shock. "The Mother Goddess!"
Elle sighed, "The warrior. She is so beautiful… I always believed that the Triple Goddess existed and here is one of them come to our aid."
Rhiannon smiled at her, "You are beloved my daughter. When you had two paths before you, you chose the hardest and have made it seem easy. Never forget your life before because if you do forget it, you will discover that it will come back to haunt you. Remember also, that you carry the blood of ancient kings in your veins and that your duty to life is to fight evil."
"I shall remember and I shall keep your words close to my heart. Thank you and I pray that you shall not punish Arawn for his mistakes. He was confused and he wanted nothing more than for me to love him." Elle spoke softly but the Goddess heard her clearly.
"You would have me pardon a man who intended to lock you away forever? If that is so, then I shall but he will never be able to harm you again. Go now my children, sail for Valinor and remember peace." She lifted her hand and pointed towards the star on the horizon. "The Evenstar awaits."
Legolas helped Elle up onto the ship before taking Haldir's hand and leaping up. Steadying the prince, Haldir cried out when there was a bright flash of light and both the Goddess Rhiannon and the Faery King disappeared. Falling into Legolas' arms, Elle kissed him lovingly, clinging to him.
"He said that you were never going to come back for me. He said that you didn't want me as much as you said you did. I did not believe him and I did well to do so." She mumbled.
Smiling, Haldir went off to join Glorfindel and Gimli. The ship sailed out of the bay, aided by a strange wind, which seemed to blow only in the sail. A gift from the Goddess it must be.
"I am glad that you did not believe him melamin. You know, he promised me that he would watch over you and keep you safe until I returned for you. I told him to tell you that I love you more than anything else in this world or any other. Forgive him for what he has done I cannot." Legolas held her against him, never wanting to let her go.
"He has done us both great harm but I can find it in my heart to forgive. Please Legolas, forgive him or we shall never love each other as much as we can." She pleaded with him, her gray eyes aghast.
He stared into her eyes, lost in thought. What she implored him to do was hard; for Arawn had been his friend up until the time they met her and he had trusted the Faery with the life of the one he loved only to discover that Arawn coveted her for himself. "Melamin, I cannot find it in my heart to forgive Arawn just yet but given time, I shall. Let us not dwell on these wrong doings and find it in ourselves to love each other exclusively."
She sighed, "If forgiveness seems so hard and so far away for you a'mael, then think only of the life we can lead. Will it be any different now than it would have been before? Is it necessary to hate when perhaps you should thank?"
Legolas laughed, "You are right. Arawn may have done us a justice rather than done us harm. Ellette Arwen Eolande, amin mela lle (I love you) and I hope that you return my mela."
"Amin naa lle melindo (I am yours lover [lover, male])." She smiled at him lovingly.
"When we reach Valinor, will you still be mine or will you join your family? I think that the Lady Arwen will wish you to live with her and her father and brothers. Then there is the Lady Galadriel, she also, I believe, will wish to spend time with you for she will know of how you came into Annwn and shall want to learn of it." The blond Elf held Elle in his arms still, feeling her quivering against him.
Shrugging, Elle cared not what happened so long as she could be with Legolas, "Whatever will happen will happen and there is naught we can do about it but choose to stay together and to stay strong."
"You speak wisely in that regard melamin. But what if they try to part us though I doubt that should ever happen."
Elle chuckled, "You think to much a'mael, silence your mutinous thoughts and dwell not on what might happen but instead, think of what is happening. When we reach Valinor, we shall be with friends and with our families and they will welcome us with open arms no doubt and bless our love."
Chuckling with her, Legolas couldn't help but agree with her enthused passion. She believed with a pure heart that naught else could go wrong now that they were on their way to Valinor. Perhaps she was right and he dwelled on his fears for nothing. "What could go wrong melamin? Is there anything that could possibly go wrong now that we have found each other again?"
"There is nothing!" She cried out, "And if there ever should be, our love for each other will ride us through the tides and bare us away from danger. So long as we love each other absolutely and with a love that is as pure as the light of the morning, we shall find no darkness in the night nor any evil in shadows of the past or future." And with pale gray eyes, Elle curled against him to stare out over the water.
Gimli poked his head around a corner and studied them, his hand twisting the end of his beard while he thought. He had to admit that Elle looked just like Arwen but in her face he could see a little of Galadriel. But no matter for so long as his beloved friend was happy, that was all that mattered. Coughing loudly so that they spun around to glare at him, Gimli announced, "There has been some food prepared by Haldir and we were wondering if you were going to come and join us for supper."
They walked over to him, their hands entwined and Elle smiled at him, seeming even more like Galadriel in that then she did Arwen. Legolas bowed his head and glanced at Elle before speaking.
"Elle, this is Gimli as you know. Gimli, meet Ellette Arwen Eolande, the love and the light of my life. She is the child of Aragorn and Arwen's line."
"The child of the kings of Gondor…." Gimli gazed up at her in awe. She was so much more than he had thought before.
~*~*~*~*~*~
The shores of Valinor beckoned them. The beaches were glittering white and waiting upon the shore was a large group including Arwen, Elrond, Galadriel, Celeborn, Arwen's twin brothers and Frodo, the hobbit.
She stood at the front of the ship and stared ahead in thought. This was the Undying Land, this was Valinor, the place where she belonged, where she would live among her kindred and with the one she loved most.
Beside her, Legolas rested a hand on her arm and smiled
joyously. Valinor welcomed them home and blessed their love. He would go to
Arwen soon enough and ask for her blessing before proposing to Elle that she
became his wife. Ever since she had told him to forgive Arawn for his harm,
Legolas had dwelled on the thought that perhaps if it had not been for the
Faery King, their love would not be so true.
In his heart, Legolas was
beginning to thank Arawn rather than hate him for trying to take Elle away from
those she belonged with. Perhaps in the end, it wouldn't have mattered for Elle
would have found a way to return to her family and kin.
Galadriel lifted a hand to wave, the white sleeve of her dress shimmering in the sunlight. Lifting her hand in return, Elle waved back. When the ship was in shallow water, the four Elves leapt over board and took Gimli with them for they knew that the Goddess Rhiannon wanted the ship to return to Annwn. They made their way through the water to the shore where Arwen ran over to Elle and hugged her.
"My sweet daughter, you have returned to us!" Arwen brushed her hand over Elle's cheek, "Come, and meet the rest of your family. Come to Legolas, Haldir and Glorfindel for you three are truly wonderful for going back to Annwn and rescuing Elle."
Elrond held out his arms and welcomed Elle with a hug, "Welcome to Valinor granddaughter. You will find peace and contentment here for as long as you choose to remain here. May any wounds your soul suffers from be healed."
"Thank you grandfather Elrond." Elle smiled, kissing his cheek gently before turning to Galadriel.
"Welcome home to Valinor, Ellette Arwen Eolande, child of the Kings of Gondor. You truly are one of the Valar despite what time has done to the bloodline that you come from. And blessed is your love for Legolas, for it is true and enduring." Galadriel kissed Elle's forehead and smiled.
Elle nodded, "Thank you hodoer (wise one) for your wisdom and your welcome. I hope that you will spare the time to teach me the past of our people and whatever else you think I will benefit from. And thank you for your blessing of our love for Legolas is the mela en' coiamin (love of my life)."
They locked eyes and Galadriel saw the depths of Elle's love.
She smiled.
Legolas stiffened in anticipation.
Bowing her head, Elle smiled also.
"There is no love more pure as that which you and Legolas have Ellette. We can do no more than bless it for it will run its course through the two of you." Galadriel spoke again, her voice soft and musical.
"Love is something to be treasured and the purity of the love which you both experience for the other, is of the kind with cannot be blessed by us for it is blessed by life itself." Arwen smiled, looking up on her old friend and the younger woman who was her mirror image.
"Aa' menealle nauva calen ar' malta (may your ways be green and golden)." Celeborn laughed, "For there could not be two other people who's love is so powerful or so special. May it be blessed and may it bloom forever."
Turning to each other, Elle and Legolas smiled. Their smiles were for them only and excluded the rest of the group. Frodo glanced at Gimli and nodded at the sight of the dwarf's slight grin. So long as he did not resent the coming of Elle, things would go well.
Leaning in to kiss her, Legolas held her hands in his. She tilted her head and kissed him back, unconscious of the approval all around.
They had eyes for no one else but each other.
Their love was exclusively theirs and included no other.
Hope filled them both and they knew then that nothing could ever go wrong or part them.
No wrath would strike them apart.
Forgiveness for Arawn rose in Legolas until it changed into thankfulness for had it not been for him, they would not have realized how much they loved each other.
Arwen and Galadriel turned to leave, walking towards the forest. With them left all of the others except Legolas and Elle. They remained on the beach, their arms wrapped around each other while they kissed. Time enough they had to join the rest of the Elves but for now they wanted to have each other to themselves.
"Marry me Elle and become my wife for I cannot think of anything else at the moment which would please me more." Legolas smiled.
She nodded, "I will be your wife and your love for what else can we do? It is meant to be and it shall be."
Who knows what happened except that Legolas and Ellette were wed. Their love was powerful and no one could contend with it. They forgave Arawn and even conversed with him on an occasion. To them twins were born, a boy and a girl. The boy was as dark as his mother and was named Vartan, the giver of roses while the girl was as golden as the sun and resembled her father though when one looked closely, one would see Galadriel in her. She was named Caoimhe and become the embodiment of gentleness, beauty and of grace.
Perhaps they lived happily ever after… perhaps they didn't.
All we know is that they lived and they loved.
