The party has started getting rowdy. Thranduil and Elrond are engaged in a heated debate about wine, Faramir and Eowyn are still dancing, Aragorn is dancing with the pretty girl Eomer's been staring at all night, Arwen's dancing with Elladan -- no, Elrohir -- and Althea's cornered Elladan. Gimli and Boromir are telling stories of their heroic deeds -- OK, Boromir's telling the stories, and Gimli's poking holes in them and telling them what really happened.

"Ha! You'd've been dead then if not for the lass! Faced down a Uruk army, my beard. He was half-dead by the time we got to him!"

I love that Dwarf. Glorfindel is chatting up some pretty young Gondorrian girl with...eyes bigger than her brain, and Galadriel and Celeborn slipped out the door hand-in-hand a little over an hour ago. Galadriel was smiling, not her usual, mysterious, I-know-something-you-don't-know smile, but a genuine, wide, happy, girlish, I'm-going-to-do-something-with-my-husband-that's-illegal-in-at-least-three-states smile. It was sort of scary.

Legolas and I have found a corner to hide in. Yes, I'm still with the Elf. Shut up. We're sitting behind Gimli, listening to him and Boromir. We can also hear Thranduil and Elrond, arguing about which vintage is the best.

"Is you father always this...intense about wine?" I ask.

"Yes," he whispers back. "Sometimes he's even worse."

I giggle. Boromir glances back at us, smiles, and then launches another completely improbable tale about Pelennor. After less than a minute, Gimli's staring wtih his mouth open and I'm laughing helplessly.

Eowyn drops down next to me. "Do you remember that battle?" she asks.

I shake my head. "Apparently, Boromir was at one battle, and we were at another, completely different battle."

Faramir makes a rude noise and hands Eowyn a glass of wine. He has ale in his own hand. "If he'd swung his sword that many times, his arms would've fallen off."

"I heard that, little brother," Boromir says.

"I was hoping you had, dear brother. Your audience should know the truth of the matter," and then he starts his own tale, which paints Boromir in a very unflattering light. I admit Boromir didn't single-handedly save us all, but he also didn't drop his sword and scream like a virgin maiden, whatever the hell that means.

I tune them out and lean towards Eowyn. "Who's the girl Eomer's been staring at all night?"

"Her name's Lothiriel, daughter of Prince Imrahil of Dol Amroth, by the sea." Eowyn giggles suddenly, a very girlish noise from the woman who stabbed the Witch-King in the face. "Remind me to tease him later. Oh, the look on his face!"

I laugh, and Eowyn interjects into Faramir's tale. "While I won't argue that you're marvelous in battle, my love, you are not THAT good!"

"What'd I miss?" I ask Legolas.

He smiles slightly. "Faramir single-handedly saved us all."

"Oh. Good for him. Where was I when that was happening?"

"The same place I was, apparently. I don't remember either version of the battle they were at."

I smile as Gimli starts in on Faramir. "Oh, yer both mad. How do you two come up with these delusions? 'Twas the Elves and the Rohirrim that battled the Oliphaunts, as all who were truly at Pellennor Fields could say. Wherever you two were, it wasn't with the rest of us."

Legolas, on the other hand, is ignoring everyone.

"Stop that," I mutter.

He arches an eyebrow. "Stop what?"

"You're staring at me."

He shrugs. "You're beautiful."

I give him a disbelieving look. "You're drunk."

The Elf smiles slowly. "Nay."

I glare at him. I can already tell what he's thinking. One embarrassing moment, and they never forget. NEVER. The memories of Elves. "Stop that."

"Now what am I doing?"

"Thinking about that which never happened."

He laughs softly. It's a strange laugh, one I've never heard from him before, and I don't know quite how to categorize it. But I suddenly think I'm in very serious trouble. "I seem to remember it clearly."

I'm blushing, aren't I? Why, yes, yes I am. My face feels like it's on fire. I bury my head in my hands.

Eowyn leans around me. "Did she really threaten to leave the room naked?"

Legolas laughs delightedly. "Yes! And she would have done it."

"Damn right," I mutter, not looking up. God, this is embarrassing. "Never happened. None of it. Not the drunkenness, not the thing with the robe, none of it. Hear me? NONE OF IT."

Eowyn laughs. "All I remember is the singing!"

"Singing?" Faramir asks curiously.

"Never happened," Eowyn and I chorus.

"There was no singing. No wine. Nothing," I say, and sit back to glare.

Legolas takes my hand and pulls me to my feet. "It's warm in here," he says suddenly. "Let's go outside."

"The gardens?" I say, and give Faramir and Eowyn a pointed look. Faramir has the grace to blush, but Eowyn just looks smug. Legolas pulls me outside.

111

We're both quiet. Legolas is staring at the stars -- Elves have a tendency to do that -- and I really don't know what to say.

You know, I've just realized, there's a whole bunch of things I do when I'm nervous. Remmber when I was categorizing everybody's nervous twitches? They ain't the only ones. I fiddle with my sleeves. I play with my hair -- or I would, if any of it was reachable. I pull on the chain around my neck, the one with the rings Galadriel gave me.

Legolas reaches out and catches my hand, looking at the rings. "Where did you get these?"

"Hmm? Oh, Lady Galadriel gave them to me. Something about..." What is it she said. "Uh, something about finding love."

Legolas turns the rings over in his hand. "Hmm. Yes, that does sound like Lady Galadriel."

I play with the chain to keep my hands busy. "What are they?"

"Betrothal rings."

I stare at him. "You're kidding."

He shakes his head slowly. "It appears she always knows more than she says."

I drop my head back. "Figures. What did she say? That it hadn't been foreseen, but she 'sensed it nonetheless.'" I shake my head. "Why is, when people know shit like this, they can never actually clue us in? I mean, it's not like it's some big huge secret, telling us wouldn't actually cause any harm, and --"

You know, there are very few ways to actually shut me up. Hitting me just pisses me off, and I swear. Shocking me into silence is nearly impossible.

I think he's found one.

TBC...