A star amongst Green Leaves

"Tinuviel! Tinuviel!"

The words spoken to Arwen Undomiel by Young Estel. But what if fate had taken him down another road that day, and he was not the one bound to Arwen? What if another had tread the path? The tale of two immortals, forever captured by the love found one clear day in the golden woods of Lorien.

But does forever together truly mean this? Would Arwens fate still be the same, if her love was given to Legolas of Mirkwood? This is the tale of two fair Elves, blessed by Valor, yet doomed to suffer by their bond found one day when a star wandered amongst green leaves...

Softened footsteps... Whispers of winds... All was quiet in the woods of Lorien, golden and fair. The skies above held no tale of sadness and were touched by no shadow or hardship. Not one star, not one cloud knew the grief and pain the children of Valor went through. Only one sound echoed through the empty woods, and it saddened the trees around. A sigh uttered from the lips of the fairest of all Valors creations. The voice seemed so light and full of life, light and hope… Yet there was a darkness there that no light could seem to move. It was… broken. Empty and alone. It was the call of one who needed love, yet wandered without finding it.

Finally the Elf came to a stop by a small stream. The water glided over smooth rocks and flowed down into the woods like a small snake of crystal clear. Greens, blues, golds… A spectrum of colors all mingling to make the pure cerulean color of the beautiful element, a favorite of Legolas Greenleaf. He bent down, crouching on the balls of his feet to dip a paled hand into the water. It was smooth and refreshing against his skin, a breathe of fresh air to his wearied spirit. He splashed it over his face, taking a sip to keep away the scratchiness of his throat. It was something to be expected though, when you had walked for days without stopping often enough.

After he had taken his fill of the glorious stream, Legolas got back to his feet. His golden hair was thrown about his shoulders in a nonchalant fashion, though it merely added to his ethereal beauty and grace. Eyes of such enchanting azure, deep and filled with knowledge that seemed beyond his young years were set in a pale as snow face, skin flawless and silky smooth to the touch. The growing light, splaying golden rays around him like an angel, outlined his strong form. And so many had said he was. His beauty was something Elves were often blessed with, yet Legolas of Mirkwood stood out beyond all the others. His fair Elven face and strong, slender body were something to be marveled, as if Valor had carved this Elf from the finest ivory, a porcelain figure of exquisite beauty.

But all of it meant nothing. The companions that sought out Fair Prince of Mirkwood gave him no joy. They were blank and hollow, nothing but want filling their very souls. And the darkness. It spread, and he felt it. Nothing, no warmth nor sunlight could hide that. A creature of such virtuous light was not meant to withstand the pain of seeing all around them fall apart. Fire burnt and scorched… Hope faded, into the dark of night…

"Stop such foolish thoughts." Legolas scolded himself, giving a small shake of his silky head. To lose hope would be giving in and admitting defeat, something he would not do. With a determined nod, Legolas set out again, walking through the woodland realm of Lorien. More than once he had passed a Galadhrim guard, yet they recognized him as Kindred of Thranduil and let him pass.

"The leaves were long, the grass was green,
The hemlock-umbels tall and fair,
And in the glade a light was seen
Of stars in shadow shimmering.
Tinuviel was dancing there
To music of a pipe unseen,
And light of stars was in her hair,
And in her raiment glimmering…"

Legolas didn't know what possessed him to start singing the tale of Luthien and Beren, yet his voice carried strong in the trees and it lightened the sorrow on his heart for a short time. He got lost in the song of lovers past, grief leaving him and fleeing in the light of the legend he sung.

"… Again she fled, but swift he came..." How much distance had he passed since he began his song? Had he travelled into heaven? Or even into the past itself? For standing before him, bathed in a light that seemed purer than any on this good earth was an Elf. She was so glorious, that it was as if an angel had fallen to the ground before him, bathing him in pure splendour and perfection. His mind was telling him who this Elf was, and it was clear as day. Yet his eyes… They told him such lies! They belied whom it was before him, standing so gracefully.

"Tinuviel! Tinuviel!" The words spilled from his mouth before his sense could stop them. Such a fool he must seem, for the Elf he had called to was not called Luthien Tinuviel at all. It was Arwen Undomiel, a child of Elrond, the Lord of Imladris. It did seem only fitting that such a creature of wonderment would come from Imladris. Legolas had visited there on a few occasions, yet every time he went, he felt so unwilling to leave. The trees were his home, his soul yes. But such was the beauty of Imladris that he was drawn there, it was intoxicating to Legolas. The hills and valleys, water sweeping so sweetly over green lush lands. And there it held a beauty so fine and delicate that he felt his eyes were unworthy to gaze upon it and drink in its splendour. It was as if she would break if he looked to her.

"Thranduilion." Came the sweet voice that had haunted his every dreaming moment since he first heard it. It seemed eons ago that Legolas had met Arwen that one brief time. He had wanted to see more of her, to love her, but some things were not meant to be. Shortly afterwards, Celebrian, Elrond's beloved wife and mother to his children, had been attacked while crossing the distance between Imladris and her home Lorien. It had broken her, his angel Arwen, and her heart grieved for the mother she lost to the undying lands.

And so she departed to Lorien, and Legolas never managed to see the beauty of Arwen again. He had almost given up hope of ever seeing her again, perfectly content to live in his dreams. But now she was here, and speaking, calling his name like a light in the dark.

"Why do you call me by that name?" she asked, turning her head to him and casting about her shoulders a shimmering veil of ebony silk. If the beauty of Legolas was radiant, Arwens seemed so much more so. Her skin was the color of freshly fallen snow, more flawless and unmarked than Legolas'. Her eyes were knowing, deep and looked right into you. Young was she, with her pure and new beauty, gifted to her by all the gods in the worlds, yet she was not so. Pain and suffering were in her eyes also, making her even more striking. "You know that it is not."

For a moment there was silence, as if the world stopped and left only Legolas and Arwen. Their eyes met as she awaited his response, a light flowing between these two creations of perfect beauty and grace. And it was in that moment he knew. He loved her, and his heart would surely break if she fled as Luthien had done so. He wanted nothing more than to feel her soft skin against his hands, her breath warm against his neck as he held her close and shielded her from the pain that seemed so vivid within her eyes of piercing blue. He wanted to drop to his knees and beg for her love. He would do anything for her to bless him with one kiss from those crimson lips, so much like the roses grown in his home.

"You looked so fair and full of grace My Lady, that my eyes deceived my sense and I saw Luthien here before me." Legolas answered finally, his eyes not leaving the perfect thing that was Arwen of Imladris.

For her part, Arwen Undomiel found her own heart captured by this Elf of such nobility. His flattering words met her ears and warmed her long cold heart, chasing away the winter that fell over her when her mother left this world, leaving the young Evenstar so broken. She had missed him, all the long years she dwelt in Lorien. Yes she missed her home and her father and siblings, but they were her blood kin, and she loved them from the moment she had been born. Yet Legolas… she barely knew him, had met him for the briefest of times. And she loved him.

"Arwen." She corrected softly, turning her silken clad body to Legolas. Her slender shape was drowned in the softest silks, wrapping around her to form a beautiful gown on deep blue, the same piercing color as her eyes. "There is no need for formalities dear Legolas."

"Of course Arwen." Legolas replied softly, his eyes never leaving her as she slowly stepped closer and closer to him. His eyes slipped shut for the quickest of moments, inhaling the sweet flowered scent of the maiden his heart longed for. Arwen, love me. His voice longed to call out her name; his arms longed to hold her.

"What brings you to the woods of Lorien?" Arwen asked, feeling it necessary to say something and break the silence that fell over them both. She felt color come to her skin, and she was sure he could see it. It was strange, how she felt so uncomfortable around him and under the sharp scrutiny of his gaze. Yet when his eyes left her, she felt incomplete. Arwen wanted nothing more than to stay under his watchful eye for all eternity, be safe in his arms.

"I… wander." Legolas answered as truthfully as he could. For he did not know why he was here. Mayhaps it was to see if he could catch a glimpse of the beauty he loved. "Looking for something."

"For what?" Came the immediate question, and Arwen was not scared about how open she was being. Normally such openness would not come from her, yet she felt comfortable enough to speak freely around Legolas. Legolas looked to the ground briefly and Arwen missed his gaze at once, almost sighing with relief when his eyes met hers again as he answered.

"For you." He whispered, stepping a little closer.