It was already afternoon when Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin stole away from the main festivities to enjoy themselves somewhere more quiet with some ale and food they had taken with them. Pippin, who knew as a guard of Gondor the palace better then the other three guided them to a little garden that was far enough away from the festivities to be private but close enough to still hear the music that was played.

Just as they sat down Merry spotted someone else who had sought solitude in that garden:

"Hey, Legolas come join us we have brought some food" he called altering the others to the elves presence.

As no answer came Pippin walked over to him brushing the warnings of the others off.

"He is ill, maybe he needs help..."

as he had reached the elf he turned around to Frodo,

"Do elves sleep with their eyes close? Legolas certainly didn't while we were travelling... I don't think he is just sleeping, he would have already woken up if he were!"

His quiet words brought the other hobbits over and after tying futilely to rouse the elf Pippin hurried out of the garden to bring help. The first one he spotted was unfortunately Aragorn, one of the only once he would and could not ask for help, not on this special day for him; but which were the elves who had come a few days prior?

Looking franticly around he did not notice the two elves who came towards him, only when one of them spoke to him did he look up and was shocked to look up to someone who looked almost identical to Legolas.

"You must come with me! You have healed Frodo, can't you do something for Legolas? He is in one of the gardens and we don't know what is wrong with him!"

Only after he had spoken and saw the panicked glimmer in the eyes of Legolas father did he realise that he could have chosen his words a little bit more careful, but then they DID need help and better the king was in a bit of panic now then that they came to late to help Legolas and he would not allow that someone else died because of him.

It took only moments for the two elves and the hobbit to reach the garden where they found the other hobbits sitting besides the ill elf who had his eyes still closed. Kneeling down besides the younger elf lord Elrond immediately checked for a pulse and after finding one he started to open the other elves tunic.

"Elrond, please tell me how my son fares!"

Thranduils pleading words were nothing more than a whisper but they let Elrond pause for a moment in his work; he did not turn around as he answered but continued to undress the wound that went through the side of the youngest of the three elves.

"He is still alive, my friend..."

pausing for a moment as if debating if he should continue before he spoke again, his voice filled with regret,

"You can see your sons wound, Thranduil, and you know what Morgoths tears do. Elladan and Luimîr have done everything that is possible to try to stop the poison from killing him - but we both know that it is not only the poison that is taking his life. If we can't find the reason for his breaking heart he will not live till the coronation!"

Only when he had carefully redressed the wound and rebottomed the tunic did Elrond turn around and face his friend and the four hobbits whose faces were as pain-filled as his own.

"We must bring him back to his room, there is nothing I can do here for him and he would not want to let Aragorn see him in this ill.

Master Pippin, do you know a way to his rooms that don't take us over the court yard? Thranduil, please find Althilwen as well as Luimîr and Elladan and come with them to Legolas chambers."

Thranduil tried to protest as Elrond picked up HIS son and send him of to round up the others while HIS son was carried unconscious to his rooms but seeing the worry on the elf-lords face he complied and hurried to find the two healers and his sons betrothed.

After arriving in the elf-prince rooms Elrond immediately directed the four hobbits to help him undress Legolas and bring fresh water and alcohol to clear his wound from the poison which was slowly leaving his body.

"Master Elrond?"

addressed Sam shyly the Elf Lord after he had cleared the wound from the thick sickly grey poison and was just finishing re-bandaging the wound. Looking up the elf Lord bid him to continue.

"Outside you said to the king that Legolas is dying... there is a way to stop that, isn't there? He can't die now that Mr Frodo has destroyed the ring and the war is over and now that Master Aragorn is king! There must be something we can do to save him, there just has to be a way."

Sam finished almost in a whisper.

Regret filled Elronds heart as he saw the grief stricken face of the hobbit. This four hobbits, especially Sam and Frodo had endured so much in the last months on behalf of all of Arda. They did not deserve any of the hardship they had suffered, they should be happy in their shire, having nothing more to worry about than were they had put their ale or pipe-weed... and yet without these four hobbits Middle Earth would have been lost, only they had been able to destroy the ring.

And even if it would be only to spare them from this new grief he would try everything in his power to save Legolas life, he would have even tried to find a way to revive Sauron if that would have brought joy into the hearts of the four hobbits.

And yet he would not lie about the condition of the Elven prince, he owed them at least his honesty if he could not guarantee the life of their mutual friend.

"Master Samwise, Legolas is suffering from a broken heart - one of the few things that can kill an elf. As his body is already fighting against the deadly poison he is even less able to find the will to fight his own grief. Only his strong will to see Aragorn accepting his crown and his oath to Frodo have kept him alive this long.

Legolas is the only one who knows what caused his heart to break and only if we find the reason and are able to remedy it can we save Legolas... But every day, every hour brings him closer to Namos halls and if we don't find a way to help him soon there will be nothing we can do for him.

I can see it in his eyes that he does not want to die, to leave us to grieve for him but his strength is veining, if he should survive and the cause is still there he will suffer every minute of his life.

It would be a mercy for him to die if we can't help him, no-one deserves to live with a broken heart, least of all Legolas!"

A tear slid down Elronds face as he spoke of the future that would await Legolas if they did not manage to find and erase the cause of his broken heart soon, a fate that his father was already living with for three millennia, a life without joy or peace, imprisoned in his grief and pain.

Carefully he stroked Legolas golden hair, he had lost his best friend and wife to a broken heart, he had almost lost himself to it and he knew that he would also loose his daughter to that fate. Neither Thranduil nor Celebrian could be saved and for Arwen it was also to late, had been to late from the moment she gave her heart to a mortal... he could not bear the thought of also loosing his prince, his friend, in a few weeks his king, to grief.

Elrond knew, that he would not only loose Legolas if he succumbed to his grief and the poison but also the shadow of his best friend Thranduil. Thranduil would not survive the death of his last surviving child after he had already lost his own parents, wife and daughter to the Halls of Mandos.

Legolas had to survive, he had to live for his betrothed, for his father and for his friends - but he could not wish for Legolas to survive if that would condemn him to an eternity of pain.

His sons had told him that the dwarf Gimli might know the cause of Legolas grief but that they had yet to speak with him. Did the future of the whole race of First Borne lay in the hand of a dwarf?

He was aware of the strong bond of friendship that had formed between the Elven prince and the dwarf and Elrohir had told him, that Legolas had fulfilled the oath he had given Aule with the help of Gimli, he only hoped, that Gimlis friendship would be strong enough to help in saving Legolas.

Elladan had told him that he feared that Legolas would survive, survive as Luin Nor, as a mere shell of Legolas, bereft of all his joy, all his emotions that defined him as a person, leaving only his sense of duty, the prince.

He had seen the same pain in Legolas eyes that his son had seen, the same pain he had seen every time he had looked at his wife after their sons had rescued her from the Orcs and before she had sailed West, the same pain he saw every time he looked at Thranduil. A pain that was filled with so much love, love that had kept them alive, love that made it impossible for them to fade, to find relieve.

It was Celebrians love for himself and for their sons and daughter that had allowed her to survive her capture even while her pain and grief was slowly killing her; it was Thranduils sense for duty and his love for Legolas that had kept him alive when first his father had been slain and his mother had succumbed to grief and only a short time later his wife and daughter had also been killed. And it would also be Legolas love for his father, his betrothed and his friends as well as the knowledge that it was his duty as the Calé au Aratar to survive that would keep is body alive while his soul was dying.

None of them had been there when Legolas heart had broken, none of them knew what had caused it - those who had been there had no knowledge of elves that would have allowed them to recognise the signs and help him immediately. He saw in the faces of his mortal friends that they would do everything in their power and even more to save their immortal friend, he just hoped that it would be enough, that Legolas still could be saved.