She watched him as he slept, smiling inwardly. He let himself fall asleep in front of her, let himself become vulnerable, weak, thinking that she was harmless and that her love for him made her weak.

Idiot

She tried to warn him, tried to tell him that she wasn't all that stupid anymore. She stood up and walked over to him. He was still a god to her. He lay with a hand on his chest, his golden hair sprawled over the pillow. The outline of his cheekbones was perfect and delicate and she could see the bluish veins in his neck. His other hand lay at his side, fingers curled slightly. He was the most beautiful thing she had ever lay her eyes upon. She pressed her lips to his fair cheek and with one final glance back, unlocked the window and slipped out into the growing dawn.

She too had to make a decision. Live her life freely as she had been doing since she left Mirkwood, or give Legolas another chance? And if she did give him another chance and he did prove himself to her, what then? Will she give all this up? Her happiness, her acceptance, her freedom? But she loved him. But she loved her life here. Dammit.

She jumped the roof tops until finally she reached her building. She climbed down and then went inside and upstairs to her little room. As she walked in, her eyes settled on her sword (yes, the same one she had almost cut her leg off with). It glinted seductively in the oncoming daylight. She closed the door and then dropped to her knees in front of the sword, doubling over with tears. What was she to do now? Too many times had her cheeks been stained with the tears that Legolas caused. Too many times had she been in such pain.

She stood up, wiping her tears away. She then grasped the sword and picked it up. It was light and easy to handle. She swished it around a bit and then stabbed the wall and made it stick there. To her horror, she had imagined Legolas standing there.

"I'm going insane," she whispered. "He's making me go insane."

Pulling the blade out of the wall, she thought about how she could make him pay. With every passing second, she could care less and less about his "proving" himself to her.

A slight breeze blew.

"You don't want to go back with me," he whispered close behind her. She whirled away from him, her blade still pointed at him.

"I have not made my decision yet," she said, "And you're certainly not going to be the one to help me make it."

"An elf in a human town," he smirked, "It's almost laughable."

"For once in my life, I am truly happy," she said. "Why do you wish to ruin that?"

"Ruin what?" he laughed at her, "Your supposed happiness? What you feel is independence, freedom. Is that happiness? For you, perhaps it is. But what will happen when that happiness is gone? Who will you turn to when every one of these humans dies around you while you continue to live and maintain the same youthful beauty at all times? Think of what they will do to you in spite of their jealousy. What will you do when the world changes all around you and you are all alone? When all of your kind has left Middle Earth to its own demise and you still stay because you wanted to be "happy"?"

"My decision is my own to make," she growled, still pointing the blade at him.

"Isn't your arm getting tired, little one?" he smiled down at her.

"Fuck no," she almost lunged at him, but restrained herself. Nevertheless, she felt a blade collide her own.

"So you wish to challenge me?" he asked, "You have gone mad."

"You have made me so," she said through gritted teeth.

"What are you going to do, kill me?" he mocked in an arrogant voice, tracing the length of his blade teasingly (and suggestively) with her own. Eden bit her lip. She did not want to fight him. No, this was definitely not what she wanted, but if not this, then what? What did she want?

She moved backwards slightly, but his blade followed.

"Don't want to play anymore?" he asked as her sword clanged to the floor.

"I don't want to talk like this," she said demandingly, "Put your sword down Legolas."

He did so and leaned back once more against the wall.

"You bring me more pain than you could ever know," she said to him quietly. "Your love does not belong to me, even though I tried to claim it as my own. For we each have our own paths. We have our own duties and our own lives. You will marry and produce an heir with your queen. My fall from grace has been too long and I need rest. My heart is still not fully healed and I do not know if it will ever be, but perhaps someday on an ocean blue.........." She trailed off.

"You want me to marry another?" he whispered. And she suddenly saw the tears in his eyes.

He knew.

Yes, now he knew.

"It was impossible a century ago and it still is now," she sighed, "You knew it. You were by far more intelligent than I back then. But I now see what you saw."

He looked away. "I would have been happier if you had killed me with your sword, than by your tongue," he said through silver tears.

"There is no such thing as an end, Legolas," she said, walking over to him, "Only a pause in time."

He leaned down, but she moved her head away.

"Your love would taste bitter in my mouth," she said. "Let us remember each other like this. And do not look for me anymore, Legolas, for you will not find me. Next time, it will be I who will find you."

"But when?" he asked with child-like eyes.

"When I feel like it," she said and smiling, walked out of the room, feeling at peace with herself for the first time in her life.

circa 1000 years later

"My King, when shall we begin?"

No answer.

"My King, surely we should start soon."

No answer.

"Please, my Lord, we must begin soon!"

Cold blue eyes moved to the artisan standing before him.

"Not yet," he said, annoyed.

"Everyone has left, my Lord," the artisan cried, "There are only a few who stay and they stay for you. But please, my Lord, I beg of you. Let me begin."

"I said no!" he roared and walked swiftly out of the room.

He had built himself a palace by the sea. A beautiful fortress-like structure that stood as tall as any building that Mirkwood has ever seen.

The Queen and their child had already sailed to Valinor. There was no love, yet the necessity to marry and produce an heir was fulfilled. He had done his duty, or so he believed. He had redeemed himself in the eyes of his people.

And yet the emptiness would not go away. It lay within him like a great void that grew as time passed.

Because of her.

Because he was waiting for her. Her, who he had not seen in 1000 years. Her, who had stolen his heart and would not give it back. Her, who he has hurt so much and yet loved. And so he stayed. And he waited.

He would not start the building of the ship without her, even if he had to wait another century, even if the world deteriorated more than it already has right before his very eyes.

He stood standing on the balcony, the sky grey and cold.

"If I have to, I will die here," he whispered to the wind.

"You don't have to do anything you don't want to do," a voice said from behind, "I certainly didn't."

He turned as his heart pounded against his chest.

"I told you I would find you," the elf laughed. She was not tall and yet he felt like he was cowering before her. Her eyes held a deep mystery about her and were much wiser than they initially were when he had first seen her more than 1000 years ago.

"My Legolas," she whispered as she approached, her long hair billowing around her. She took his face gently in her hands. "Still beautiful, still mine." Her lips ascended to his and he seemed to melt into her as he wrapped his arms around her and lifted her off her feet. Her laughter was intoxicating. She blossomed with confidence. She was beautiful and she knew it.

He gently put her down on the floor and taking her hand, led her down to where the artisan sat. He gaped at the beauty that held the King's hand.

Legolas smiled.

"You can begin.".

A/N: End (finally)!! :-D Review please!! I didn't mean for it to end up so angsty so I'm really sorry for that. I hope you all liked this. It was weird to write. My next project will be finishing up the Choose your own adventure story. The new story that I am working on is an LOTR remake of a Bollywood movie. Hehe. You shall see. When I am ready, I will post it, but for now I'm working on the Choose your own adventure and I will try and post it in my info if the story is finished. For now, I would like to thank everyone who reviewed this story and kept me happy with reviews and I hope you enjoy the rest of CYOA and my new story. :)