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Chapter 15: DreamsEstel sighed in his sleep, his brow furrowing slightly. That voice which had prompted him to look closer at Dol Guldur was back…
It is always darkest before dawn, don't give up young one.
Who are you?
I am not an enemy.
An image of a beautiful lady with golden hair appeared in his mind. She smiled kindly at him.
Do not fear me.
I don't.
That is good. As I was saying, you must not give up… you are his only hope, you see.
I don't understand what you are talking about.
Your mind doesn't, but your heart does. Remember, young one, trust your heart. You can always rely on it even when the situation seems hopeless…
After all, you were named Estel, and you are Estel. Hope.
Don't forget that.
This is not making much sense to me.
A gentle laugh, then the voice continued and faded away: Now, sleep, Estel. Sleep and forget your frustrations.
Dream of those you love and draw strength from them…
X.x.X.x.X.x.X.x.XGaladriel leant back from looking into her mirror and sighed. Celeborn looked worriedly at her.
"How did it go?"
"He was receptive, but he still does not understand what his destiny is. Nor that his fate is tied to the Prince's."
"That is rather dangerous, is it not?"
"Yes, but, the mirror keeps showing me differing futures... I myself am not sure which is the one that will eventually come to pass."
"But, the outcomes? What are they?"
"Some are good, some are bad. But the goods ones are more frequent, though the path leading to them is always different."
"Well, let us hope that no matter what path they take, they will both pull through."
"Yes. Because to lose one would be to lose the other."
X.x.X.x.X.x.X.x.X
Back in Mirkwood, Legolas sat curled up in a large armchair, staring mournfully down at his body. It had become an almost morbid pastime for him to stay up at night, watching his shell fade before the morning light drove him back into his canvas prison. He had managed to finally convince his father that it was not necessary to stay up every night with him to keep him company, not when the King had to attend state councils every morning.
Although its Prince was in trouble, it was not a good enough excuse for the whole of Mirkwood to freeze in its functioning.
Legolas leant back and closed his eyes wearily. With each day that passed ever since Estel had found him, he found himself growing more lethargic. Just the thought of having to come out of the painting every night in order not to worry his father was enough for him to wish he could fall into an everlasting sleep.
And there was that voice at the back of his head… a very familiar voice that beckoned him towards the darkness…
Legolas opened his eyes and lifted his hand, placing it directly between his line of sight and the full moon. If he looked carefully enough, he could see that he was not glowing in the moonlight…
The moonlight was filtering through him.
He gave a strangled sob and buried his head in his arms. He didn't want to disappear just like this!
A soothing presence entered his mind and brought the distraught and almost hysterical Elf some distraction.
Hush, young one. Calm down.
Who are you?
An amused laugh, then: That is exactly the same question Estel asked me.
You... know Estel?
Indeed, I do. Would you like to see him? Yes! But, I can't leave the palace… You won't need to. Just, relax, and don't lose your hope…Legolas' eyes glazed over as he slumped down in his chair, off to the blissful world of dreams.
X.x.X.x.X.x.X.x.X
Legolas opened his eyes and winced slightly as a bright shaft of sunlight filtering through the trees struck him. He could hear the birds singing cheerily as he moved forward hesitantly. It had been so long since he had been out in the daytime that he was actually a little afraid of it…
"Legolas?!"
He whirled at the sound of the shocked voice. "Estel!"
The Human ran over and hugged the stunned Elf tightly. "By the Valar, what are you doing here?"
The Elf hugged the Human back, enjoying the feeling of being in contact with another living being. "What do you mean? And… where's here?"
Estel let go of the Elf and grinned broadly. "Well, you're in my dream."
Legolas raised an eyebrow. "This is your dream?"
The Human shrugged. "Now that you're here, I suppose it's not my dream anymore… So let's call it our dream."
Legolas smiled. "That'd be nice."
"You know," the Human remarked, "I was just wishing that I could see you again without having to wait until I got back to Mirkwood."
"Really? So was I!"
"That's… really uncanny." Estel rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Almost as though we were connected by Fate or something."
That is because you are.
The pair started at the sound of an unseen voice.
"You again." Estel sighed. "But then, I suppose I have to thank you for connecting us through the dream?"
You're welcome. I just wished to inform you that the Sun will be rising in a few hours. Make the most of your time together, and think about what I said.
And don't worry, I won't be eavesdropping.
"Estel?"
"Yes?"
"What do you think she meant?"
"About us being connected by Fate?"
Legolas nodded.
Estel shrugged. "I don't know. It sounds rather unbelievable, but, given all the things that have been happening lately, I think it might be possible."
Legolas turned and walked away from the Human, placing his palm on the smooth bark of a tree. "I think, it's rather comforting… to know that there is someone else… that I am not alone in this."
Estel approached the Elf and laid a warm hand on the slender one resting on the tree. "You're not alone. I won't ever leave you alone until this whole matter is resolved."
"Thank you." The Elf lifted his eyes and looked straight at the Human, his relief and happiness clearly written on his face.
Estel stared at Legolas, his other hand coming up to brush across the Elf's bottom lip on its own will. The caress continued up one faintly blushing cheek before he pulled the Elf closer to him into a thoughtless and chaste kiss.
When it finally dawned on him what he was doing, the Human immediately pulled back, stuttering his apologies. To his surprise, the Elf was not offended. Rather, he wound his hand around the Human's head and deepened the kiss.
As they drew apart, Legolas whispered breathlessly, "You said you wouldn't leave me."
Estel grinned and replied, "I won't" before he claimed the mouth of the Elf before him once more, seeking to make the most of their time left together.
Because you mean too much to me.
X.x.X.x.X.x.X.x.X
The Elf curled up on an armchair in Mirkwood smiled in his sleep, as his form seemed to solidify once more, losing its slight translucent sheen. When the Sun rose a short while later, he flickered slightly before disappearing.
The blonde archer reappeared within the portrait, the stoic, painted expression looking much happier than before.
X.x.X.x.X.x.X.x.X
TBC
Author's notes:
Aww… a nice little interlude before evil me whisks them off for more angst and torture. ((evil laugh)) Hope you guys enjoyed it even thought it didn't resolve the cliffhanger, that will come in the next chapter. Call it the calm before the storm. ; P And some REAL slash! As well as a fill-in-the-blank moment… happy imagining what they did!!! XD
Oh yes, in case anyone got confused, words like this was Galadriel meddling with their minds.
I'll try to update this weekend, but it'll depend on whether I have enough time to get my rambling and review replies done. Okie then, shall keep everything short this time 'cos I'm pretty busy… Onto review replies!
Sielge: Yup, there's hope for him! But he'll just have to wait longer 'cos I like being evil
Spanishgoddess86: Legolas gets saved… eventually… XD It'll all be revealed soon. Hehe.
Marbienl: Hm, I think FFnet is nuts… ((kicks server)) At least none of the chapters are missing. Hope this chapter has enough Legolas to keep you happy!
Empath89: Hahaha… Well, most of electrical appliances have names that start with 'psycho', so I think you can tell how well behaved they are… And I think you're the first person who would call a cliffie interesting… ((wink))
Grumpy: Oh, the mages are helping. They just don't seem to be helping. ((wink)) And it's FUN to complicate matters by killing off important people. ((evil laugh))
The-Serious-Padfoot: ((Rofl)) I can imagine that… Estel asking for a scalpel but getting a chainsaw instead? XD And wow, everything in a binder… I feel… famous. XD But glad you're enjoying the story. ((happy sigh))
Crazyrabidfangurl01: Ooh… you have an Elven voice for a conscience? Sounds fun... I want one too, but then again it wouldn't be very fun, 'cos I bet it'll be telling me to be good and sweet and not so warped. Guess I'll stick to my evil sugar fairy. ((pretends to be innocent))
KeshiShimmer: Hehe, you can see where I'm going? ((bounces)) Tell tell! I wanna see how predictable I am. XD
ShadowedDarkness: ((evil laugh)) I'm taking revenge for all the cliffies I suffered under other writers. XD I think there's a few more to come so… ((shimmery eyes)) Forgive me in advance? XD
Varda's Servant: Thank you! ((ego inflates happily)) Glad you like my story. Updates will be at least once a week, so hope you'll continue supporting me!! (I feel like a politician… bleh.)
Mariella: Really? Thank you! You have made me one very happy writer!! ((bounces)) Hope you like it and keep reading it!
That's all for the previous chapter! Hope I didn't miss anyone out, cos I'm rushing this in order to post ASAP… Thanks for reading and reviewing! Dinner calls! ((disappears in a cloud of sugar dust))