Authors Note: Sorry that this chapter has taken so long to type up real life is being a complete bitch at the moment but I really should be used to that by now shouldn't I sigh.

Please read, enjoy and tell me what you think.

Chapter Ten



"Aragorn," Arwen called out quietly as opened the door to her husband's private study. "Aragorn may I speak with you?"

"Aye." Came a mumbled reply. Stepping further into the brightly sun lit room she scanned the interior before locating the depressed form of the human man sprawled in a large, comfortable looking, arm chair.

She closed the door firmly behind her, pressing her palms against the cool texture of the wood, attempting to buy herself a little time in order to organise what she planned to say and to calm her now pounding heart.

She had ventured to seek out her husband straight after her discussion with her father. Much that she had been told she had long since suspected but to hear it from Elrond's mouth had been a shock to put it mildly.

She would have had to have been blind not to notice the way her husband still pined after his long lost lover and now with the possibility of them reuniting the need for her to remain was diminishing. She worried slightly at the effect that this entire situation would have on her own children, but she would have time to discuss this with them before anything formal had been arranged.

Noticing her seemingly nervous posture Aragorn sat up straight, resting his forearms on the wooden arms of the chair. A feeling of apprehension settled upon his shoulders "What is wrong?"

"Aragorn, there is something I have been thinking of for a long time." She wandered forward, glancing quickly out of the large open window before returning her gaze back to her husband who suddenly appeared attentive.

"I am leaving." She whispered softly.

"What? Where?" The confusion he felt at her unexpected statement apparent in his voice.

"Ada...," She paused for just a moment collecting her thoughts. "Lord Elrond plans to leave Middle Earth for the undying lands and I plan to accompany him."

Aragorn's eyes widened at the news. "When?"

"Nothing has been finalised, but it will not be until the end of the season although I may spend my last few months in Rivendell with my father and brothers but I..." Her words disappeared from her throat, her voice suddenly robbed of its strength.

Sighing loudly she lifted her eyes to meet with Aragorn's.

"I will speak plainly with you." She started, her gaze never leaving that of her husbands. "We have been friends far longer than we have been king and queen. I believe that we each owe each other that much."

Aragorn nodded but did not speak deeming Arwen capable of explaining her reasons further.

"Leaving Middle Earth has always been a distant thought, a possibility that I could never quite persuade myself to reach out for, but my father has stated that he will be leaving these shores soon. He has asked me to accompany him."

"And you agreed." There was no question in his words just a solemn statement.

She nodded moving towards him. She grasped hold of her flowing robe before kneeling down gently to sit on the rug beside his feet.

Lifting her arm she gently placed her hand upon his left knee.

"I am no longer needed here Aragorn." She began to comfortingly caress his knee. "Our children are grown, my family is leaving and..."

"And me?"

Sighing Arwen tried to smile but could not quite make it reach her eyes and knew that Aragorn would not be fooled by it. "You will always have a place in my heart, but it is not enough to keep me here." She shrugged her shoulders, an attempt to dispel the tension that has settled there. "You heart still lies where it has always resided and I have come to except that I can no longer help you to fill the void that his disappearance has left behind."

"I still love you Arwen." He whispered, barely audible to his own ears.

"Yes," She answered, her elven ears picking up his words clearly. "But as a friend or a sister, not as a lover. It has been that way for many years if it ever was."

He nodded, not having the heart to disagree with her. He knew in truth that she would have easily known if he had attempted to lie.

He slid forward in his chair and slowly lowered his body to the floor next to his elven wife. He leant towards her and drew her into his arms, holding her close.

"If that is your decision I will not insult you by attempting to sway your mind." His chest tightened, his throat constricted. Guilt began to consume him. First Legolas and their child and now his wife and foster father, eventually he would be left alone with no one.

"Thank you." She whispered pulling him impossibly closer before carefully and unwillingly pulling away. "I have something I must attend to." She stoked the side of his face in an attempt to provide comfort. "I will speak with you later?"

"Yes," Aragorn answered, standing and holding out his hand to her. She instinctively grasped it with her own and allowed him to pull her to her feet. "I..., I did love you as a lover once Arwen." He needed to reassure her that she had once been dearly loved in the way she had wanted when they had married.

Arwen smiled and leant forward to brush her lips against his. The touch lasted only mere moments but it was the most intimate contact they had had in a long time. Drawing back she smiled once again before finally exiting the study and leaving Aragorn to his own depressing thoughts.

.....................

Standing by the main gates to Minas Tirith Elrond's eyes never left the distant image of a lone rider on route towards his position.

He had first spotted the figure on horse back form the window in his chambers shortly after Arwen had departed from his company to discuss her future with Aragorn and had made his way through the palace and the city, as inconspicuously as possible, to wait by the open gates.

After a heart wrenching talk with Arwen, she had gracefully offered to see to preparing Aranel for the arrival of her father once she had finish speaking with her husband. This way Arwen's children could be kept out of the complicated goings on around the palace for a short while longer.

So after seeking out Aranel and explaining the current situation he ventured out to await the arrival of the blond prince.

It would not take long now for Legolas to reach him.

.........................



"He has arrived Aranel." Elrond spoke softly as he entered Arwen's private chambers, pronouncing each syllable carefully.

Aranel immediately tensed at his words.

She stood in the centre of the large room, Arwen at her side adjusting the way the delicate material of the floor length, pale blue borrowed robe lay across the young half-elf's shoulders.

Tavaril who had been standing silently by the large window glanced up before stepping forward and grasping Aranel hand. "I will leave you now." He smiled gently before leaning forward and kissing her cheek. "Good luck." Moving away he stepped around Elrond and left the room.

At her friends departure everything began to seem real. She was going to meet her father!

Her heart started to pound and she felt the knot tightening in her stomach.

Her anxiety must have shown.

"Shh," Arwen attempted to comfort, rubbing her hand gently up and down Aranel's shoulder. "Do not fret this meeting will be nothing but a joyful reunion. You have no reason to fear him."

"I know it is just...." She tried desperately but was unable to keep the emotion out of her voice. "Everything is happening so quickly."

"Would you prefer that your search had taken months?" Arwen asked gently. "Searching day in day out and all the time loosing hope that you would ever find information let alone the whereabouts of either of your parents?"

"No I...." Aranel moved away from Arwen to sit down on a small stall beside the large wooden dressing table. "Oh gods." She sighed. Suddenly annoyed with the way her hands had began to tremble slightly.

"What truly frightens you?" Arwen asked sincerely. Both she-elves seemed to have forgotten Elrond's presence in the room. He had yet to move from beside the door and was reluctant to do so. He would not disturb his daughters attempt at reassurance.

"What if I am not what he expects?" Aranel whimpered her voice clearly showing to both watching how young she really was. "I am hardly suitable to be a princess of either realm. I know little of the ways of elves, I know only what I have learnt here and have been told in stories by Gimli."

"Legolas has hardly been the prince his father expected him to be. He is a free spirit as I expect you to be." Arwen stepped closer to her and picked up a hair comb from the dressing table. "He will not turn you away. Remember," She carefully began to run the comb through Aranel's shoulder length blond hair. "For the past eighteen years he believed that you were dead, just the knowledge that you are alive and well will be enough for him."

Aranel glanced up to meet the eyes of the elf that could have been in essence her step mother but would now never have the chance to be. "Thank you." She said gently. "I am both grateful and surprised that you have taken the time to comfort me. I pray that I am not the reason for your departure across the sea."

Arwen smiled softly, gently guiding Aranel's head with her fingers so that she was once again facing away from her so that she was able to continue combing her hair. "No, it has always been an option that I had planned to take. Although I must admit that it was not an idea that I had planned to act upon so soon but that was mainly because of Aragorn. I did not wish to leave him alone even though the love that once existed between us has long since dwindled. My children are grown, and with your appearance hopefully Aragorn will begin to heal."

She paused for a moment.

Aranel could almost here her thinking, struggling to find her next words.

"I am no longer needed here." It was difficult for her to say after so many years of being desperately needed by her children.

"I am sure that you will be greatly missed Lady Arwen. You treat me, one whom you should probably despise for all that I represent, with kindness and respect. You must be well loved especially by your children."

Arwen smiled but did not respond, instead she busied herself be braiding a few select strands of the silky, blond hair a creating short, decorative plait on either side of Aranel's head.

"There." Arwen announced once she had finished and placed the comb back down on the wooden dresser. "Go," She gestured with her hands for Aranel to stand and for her father to move further into the room. He nodded his thanks to his daughter before reaching out and taking Aranel's arm gently. Although no words were spoken all three understood each others sadness at this unfortunate situation.

Soon their time in Middle-Earth would be over.

"Your Ada awaits you." Arwen smiled reassuringly and gave both Aranel and her father a gentle push towards the door.

With his daughters encouragement Elrond slowly lead Aranel out of his daughter's chambers and began the short walk along the corridor and down a single flight of stairs to the small room usually used by the king for meetings with individual council members.

"He is just as nervous as you are." Elrond reassured speaking softly so as not to call the attention of the palace staff to them as they passed them in the passageway. "He blames himself for your separation."

"Why?" She asked stunned. "What could he have done to prevent it?"

"Nothing, but that makes little difference to him you were supposed to be his responsibility yet you have had to lead a life without him."

"But he thought I was dead, I thought he was dead..." This whole situation was starting to make her head spin. Everyone was blaming themselves for things that they had, had no control over. Perhaps it was time for the whole truth to finally come out and for blame to be laid to rest.

As she shook her head slightly clearing her thoughts Elrond brought them to a stop outside a closed wooden doorway.

She took in a slow, deep, unsteady breath as Elrond released his grip on her arm.

"Are you ready?"

"As ready as I will ever be." She smiled. The fear she been feeling suddenly changed into a mixture nervousness and excitement.

She was going to meet her father.

Slowly Lord Elrond stepped forward, pushing the heavy door. It squeaked as it was forced open and Aranel felt herself being gently pushed forward into the small room in front of her.

..........................

Legolas quickly paced the length of the small room and the back again to where he had started. His troubled mind consuming all of his current thoughts.

How long would Elrond keep him waiting? It seemed as though half a day had passed since the elven Lord had left him to go in search of his daughter but he knew in his heart that it had not been possible for even half of that length of time to have passed yet.

His nerves were on edge. He did not know how much more he could take of just waiting....

The door squeaked open.



Legolas spun to regard the individual who had entered.

...............................

A loud gasp echoed around the room, reverberating off of each cold stone wall. She was not quite sure whether it had been her who had gasped or the stunningly beautiful blond elf that stood not more than a few steps from her.

She barely noticed when Elrond closed the door behind her, shutting them both in, unable to escape from the truth now finally laid bare before them.

Neither of them spoke, both equally to afraid to break the spell that seemed to have settled upon them.

Slowly Aranel drew her gaze across the figure of the elf Elrond claimed was her long dead father. She hardly knew what to believe or where to begin.

A prince amongst elves.

She had been told over and over again of his great beauty that had been admired by others but had never wholeheartedly believed the stories she had heard until now. She had merely dismissed them as tales told to honour her father's memory.

He was tall and slender like most elves she had met, but he held an ethereal awe about him. His stunningly pale skin was gently framed by incredibly long flaxen hair. So like her own hair, until she had been forced to cut it.

It was then that both pairs of eyes finally met.

Turbulent blue met fearful grey.

The spell was broken.

What ever power had kept Legolas's feet firmly rooted to the floor disappeared. He immediately stepped forward, standing less than a breath away from his long lost daughter, his arms out spread encouraging her into a long waited embrace.

"A...Ada." She whimpered, finally closing the gap between them.

"My daughter"

.........................

TBC...