Author: Mirrordance

Title: Love, War

Summary: The War brought them together, but the peace will tear them apart. How much is a man willing to pay to keep a friendship, and how much is a friend willing to lose for revenge? Slash.

TIMELINE: the story happens about a year or two after Return of the King— the exact year is immaterial really, just as long as certain future events operate as a given: one, peace is yet to be attained with the Eastern tribes of Middle-Earth. Two, Ithilien is already restored and Legolas lords over the elven colony there, just as Gimli is lord of the Glittering Caves. Three, Eomer is already engaged, as is Eowyn and Faramir. Four, that Elrond and Galadriel have already sailed away to Valinor. The fic is generally faithful to the book and the movie with respect to the major events, although some factors about it may be considered as an AU; the irrepressible Haldir, for instance, is very much alive in this piece.

PART ONE: Those Lost

Interlude 1

The Fellowship of the Ring: Words

Up until they met in Mirkwood and thereafter the Council of Elrond, the extent of their acquaintance was that the elf had been an old friend of the House of Elrond, particularly its infamous twins Elladan and Elrohir. As an adopted child of fair Imladris, Estel's known his share of its stories, and that of Prince Legolas of Mirkwood was quite well-known, for it was a tale that was very much close to the pains of Rivendell as well.

Estel's heard of the loss of the Lady Celebrian. He's never met her, but she was much loved, and to have raised so generous a batch of children must have meant she was a magical lady herself. It was Legolas of Mirkwood who helped get her back, it was said, after she was abducted by dark forces.

It was said too, that the Prince spent much of his life previous to saving her with eyes darkened by his own tragedies, particularly that of the loss of his own mother. It was no surprise then that he found his cause in keeping the same from happening to anyone else. Legolas Greenleaf, restless warrior, whose heart still ultimately belonged to a child—one who had lost his mother, one who was struggling desperately to find his peace but in the meantime, steely, determined, and hurting.

He nearly died from aiding her, and Imladris took to him with open arms. They nursed him to health, loved him for his quiet generosity. He had shared in their triumph over her reclamation, shared in their loss when she either way sailed away.

Elrohir seldom spoke of those days, that pain that was always fresh, even in just distant remembrance. But the Rivendell elf clearly perceived that to not speak of the kindness of Legolas was an injustice, though to speak of it meant too that he had to speak of the tragedy of his mother.

Estel returned to Rivendell for a breath, having come from his multitude of quests about Arda. Of note was his Mirkwood stop where he had deposited his captive Gollum, and he told his twin brothers that he came across Prince Legolas, whom up until then he's only heard of around Imladris but had never seen before.

"I was beginning to think he was a myth," said Estel.

"Ah, he is no myth," Elrohir said, the hurtful memories streaking across his gaze as they must have surely brushed his mind. "What did you think of him?"

"He's very… wary," decided Estel, "But far from unkind or unfriendly. As I was bringing Gollum along, we were overwhelmed by the forces of Dol Guldur; it was why we had strayed into Mirkwood's borders. He and his soldiers aided us, and thereafter he took the ghoul off our hands, tended my wounds and had a meal with me. We got to discussing I was reared here and he seemed delighted and asked after you. He also apologized for not having been able to assist me sooner, saying their forces were too thinly spread about the territory," Estel chuckled a little, "He sounded quite disappointed with himself, one would think it was he who spared through me."

Elrohir smiled wistfully. "He sounds unchanged by the years."

"Indeed?" Estel asked, raising a curious eyebrow.

"He had been grievously injured," said Elrohir without the premise Estel already knew of: Legolas had been injured in trying to save the Lady of Imladris, "And was on the mend just as it's been decided that… mother… it would be best for her to leave the Circles of the World. I sat with him in his ward, it was I who told him so. He apologized then too, for not having reached her sooner. He seemed quite genuinely unhappy for us."

Legolas had stayed in the House to heal from his wounds, and thereafter to heal from his less discernable hurts, for Rivendell offered peace to all who entered her. He was polite, discreet and unobtrusive. But it's also been said that Rivendell's twins managed to infuse some of their notoriety into him and he gained a mischievous streak of his own. Elrohir and Elladan, grieving sons, found strength in the Mirkwood prince, for it was much easier to find strength when one was needed by another, and there was little doubting that they were needed there.

"He stayed awhile," said Elrohir, smiling at Estel, teasing, "But then the years grew even more unkind and he was needed in his own kingdom. We've seen little of him since, but I must say, Estel. He was the original adopted son of Imladris, brother. Not you."

Estel had given him a sour look, but begrudged Legolas nothing, especially after the Council of Elrond about a year after that conversation with Elrohir, and the Mirkwood prince's fiery defense of him.

"This is Aragorn, Son of Arathorn," he had said to the defiant Gondorian captain, "You owe him your allegiance."

Apparently, the loyalties of Imladris were loyalties Legolas considered to be his own as well, little though he knew of the man personally, their only other encounter having been just that one time in Mirkwood. But that encounter, and the defense in the Council, would certainly not be the last.

Along the quest of the Fellowship, Aragorn would carve for himself his own place in the Mirkwood elf's heart, independent of any impersonal loyalties. This place of Aragorn's in Legolas' heart was a deep cut, for all of its good and all of its bad, and was a scar the elf would carry for the rest of his life.

Rivendell

December 25, 3018

Four hobbits. Two men. An Istari. An elf. A dwarf.

The Ring of Power. The Road to Mordor.

In afterthought, the elf mused as he readied his supplies the early morning before they set out for the quest, It sounds like a disaster

Of course, it was a sorry shame that he realized this only during the past few sleepless nights. It was a shame too that he grew up to always hold true to his word; during the Council one month ago, it's been given and is by now most certainly irrecoverable. It was also a shame, that he felt compelled to give that Word at all; he volunteered to aid the Council as a representative of Mirkwood, the Kingdom under whose watch Gollum had escaped. But if he was truly regretting something, he decided he might as well regret that he lived in a time plagued by evil. If he was to appoint blame, it might as well be toward Sauron.

Which means that, he thought with an overburdened sigh, I really might as well not regret going on a quest to stop him…

He shook his head in dismay, irritated at his overlapping, complicated thoughts. He was unhappy that Elladan and Elrohir were not in Imladris to distract him. Or join him in this quest. Or volunteer even before he made the mistake of opening his mouth…

He turned his attention elsewhere. From the periphery of his hearing, he sensed quietly indignant goodbyes being made between a man and the elfin woman who loved him to her death. He recognized the voice of the Evenstar. He recognized the voice of Isildur's heir.

"I am mortal, you are elf-kind," he was saying, "It was a dream, Arwen. Nothing more…"

The eavesdropper longed to shut them out. But then it was as if the pain of his sympathy for them was making him feel more alive. He remembered making his own goodbyes to his beloved months innumerable ago, in Lorien. Admittedly, Lilian was as elfin as he, and, though not quite of a comparable royal standing to his own, their situation certainly held far less problems than the ultimate tragedy of an elf loving a mortal.

What brutal fates, he reflected. He's always wondered who would at last capture the heart of the elusive Evenstar. And then here was an adan, who was lovingly making his goodbyes to her, struggling to remain strong. And then here was she, indignant.

In hindsight, Legolas predicted she would realize that what Aragorn was doing was out of the generosity of his love for her. But that would come later. Now there was dejection. Now there was just the simple but potent hurt of being left behind and turned away.

"It was a gift," she said with carefully restrained anger and brutally constricted pain, "Keep it."

They parted thus. He walked away (Legolas heard the near-soundless shuffling of his hardy boots), and she let him. And then when she turned to leave as well, she saw the Mirkwood elf standing not too far away from them. She knew Legolas heard all that was said. He knew she knew. He felt her eyes on him, and he looked up to meet her defiant gaze, helplessly.

What would you have me do, milady? His eyes implored her, I was born with the damn ears

She walked toward him, as if clearly reading his mind. 'Legolas,' she said to him softly, achingly, 'Care for him. For me. You go where I could not. He is… of this Quest, and therefore of this Fellowship, and of yours… in a way that he never can be to me. We are severed. I hold no claim, no right, no place. Care for him… Restore him to me…'

'I will,' he said, compelled by her pain, compelled by his guilt over having been an unwitting witness to their goodbyes. She smiled at him gratefully, and she was so beautiful that for that one moment it felt as if the sun was shining.

And then she left, and then the world dimmed, and then he realized he'd once again given his word and unfortunately sorely regretted it.

The Road from Rivendell

December 25, 3018

They did not at the start have occasion to speak much.

The Man with the Plan walked with Gandalf the Grey toward the front, and he of the elf-kind and all the senses he was thus blessed with was tasked to stalwartly hold the rear. It was not so hard to watch the adan's back this way, but then again, a rearguard could only do so much for a Ranger who walked leaps ahead and did not think twice about plunging himself into danger for those he sought to protect.

Legolas watched him walk, curious at how it was that the Lady Arwen's heart was stolen by this being. Aragorn, Son of Arathorn was more and more an enigma to him. When they met in Mirkwood the years past, the adan surprised him with his acute grasp of their language, and then threw in that he was raised in Rivendell. Thus came the biggest surprise of all: that Legolas was beholding the heir of Isildur. He remembered from the time he spent in Imladris how these heirs were harbored by Lord Elrond and now, it seemed that hidden behind the hardy Ranger was a King. And then just this morning, Aragorn stunned him once again by not only capturing the Evenstar's heart, but also by rebuffing her!

The Ranger was walking at an easy pace, though his eyes were keen and his ears were attentive. Once in awhile, he'd absently snatch up a fallen fruit of some sort and coolly toss it behind him, knowing for sure that one of the perpetually hungry young hobbits traveling behind him would clamor for it.

Peregrin Took, victor of the tossed fruit for the nth time, laughed triumphantly as he raised the fruit up to the air like a trophy... from which point Bormir of Gondor divested the stunned hobbit of his prize.

"Boromir!" the hobbit exclaimed disapprovingly, apparently considering the use of the advantage of height and bulk against a poor littler hobbit as an affront.

"Believe me, Master Took," said Boromir as he took a healthy bite off the apple, "I save you from yourself only. How fast can you run from our considerable foes, eating a bushel of these things?"

"If Strider didn't think I could run fast enough," retorted the fiery hobbit, "He'd stop tossing it my way, won't he?"

"That's 'cos you're not supposed to get it each and every time, Pip," said Merry.

"If I get it each and every time," said Pippin impishly, "Then that must mean I'm not slowing down at all, don't you think?"

The hobbits turned to the fairly outwitted Boromir expectantly. Except, of course, it was too late for the apple was all but gone by then. He smiled at Peregrin guiltily, although of course, he did not quite feel as bad as all that.

"I apologize, Master Took," said he, "In exchange for my transgressions, I believe I can teach you a thing or two about sword fighting. Put that speed of yours to better use, eh?"

The hobbits and the Gondorian did not find much time with their footwork, for the time they had tried during a rest stop, the exercise was rather pointedly interrupted by the spies of Saruman, hovering menacingly over their heads. The encounter changed the preferred route of the Company and brought them to cruel Cardhras.

The road was long, and still they did not find much occasion to speak. The elf still held the adan with curiosity and mystery unanswered.

It was strategically sound that the elf, the hardy ranger, the sturdy dwarf and the Gondorian soldier should be spread out across the length of the Nine Walkers for the purpose of the safety of all. Gandalf the Grey of course took point, for it was he who best knew the way. They've established a bit of a routine when it came to walking.

From the rearguard, the closer they came toward danger, it seemed more and more that the elf for all of his god-given senses should stay at point with the wizard-guide, as a scout. Peregrin Took lingered by them for it seemed that the long road was made infinitely more bearable by infuriating somebody else, and the fiery hobbit had taken to targeting the wizard. Which meant too that Meriadoc lingered by that front end as well, for the young hobbit had the mistaken notion that it was he who kept Peregrin in check- fair to say, a lot of the time, but occasionally, the presence of Merry compounded Pippin's troublemaking too. Right behind them walked Gimli the Dwarf, who found some distance with the elf highly preferable, but not wanting to be too far either, for Legolas' company was proving very invigorating to him.

"Why do dwarves feel the need to be so bothersome?" the elf lamented, "Master Dwarf, I implore you. Stay at the rear where you will be less of a hindrance to me and my duties."

"You speak as if it was only I seeking the repartee," retorted the Dwarf, "Now I will say this only because you won't Elf, and it is a given fact that my folk is far more comprehensible and far less cagey than yours: The road is too long, and I need to stay on my toes. Your sharp tongue is of some use to someone after all."

The dwarf, of course, stalwartly held his ground and, the elf already having expressly stated his objections, was by now more than ever determined to stay there and defy him.

The Gondorian captain followed with far less of the politics, not so concerned was he with who he walked with because he was generally easy to speak to about most things. Samwise walked behind Boromir, refusing to leave the side of Frodo, who was in turn gravitating to Strider at the rear, in whom he found security and comfort.

And so it was once again that the elfin scout found seven heads between himself and the man the Evenstar loved, and once more, he was leaps away from any protection the elf could offer him.

My word to you is so hard to redeem, Arwen, he reflected, not knowing the road ahead would make it near to impossible.

To be continued…

HEY GUYS!

Thanks so much for reading and especially to those who reviewed. You guys keep me going :)

So this chapter gives us the first of a series of flashbacks held as gap fillers during the War of the Ring. All the flashbacks will be giving you an idea of precisely what happened between Aragorn and Legolas.

To zerah: Aragorn's reaction to finding out about the conditions of the treaty (the wedding, that is) is on the next chapter which I'll be posting alongside this chapter :) Oh! And yes, Legolas knows about how he feels. You'll see why in the next few chapters :) And the thing with Arwen saying she is jealous is very much a literary tool. She was saying it maybe casually, maybe with some weight. Legolas doesn't know, but the medium being the message, we all assume the heavier meaning, just as Legolas' guilt makes him do the same.

To sesshyangel: No, I'm not worried about idea thieves, haha. I suppose I'll be mightily frustrated if that should happen but generally, I trust people I guess :) So. Why Aragorn? I picked him because the slash angle is new enough to me as it is, so I decided to take it slowly and gradually and start indeed with the "logical pick" as you said Aragorn was. As for the slash angle, it's going to be very subtle. It won't be said outright, and most of it will be in the past; it's why I'm putting in these flashback/interludes. You will see some in the future, but the postulate, the assumption ALWAYS in this story is, right from the beginning, they had no chance of being together.

To Nessa Ar-Feiniel: Nadina's son will not be seen until part 2. Note that all the chapters of this story I've shown so far are labeled "Part One: Those Lost." This story is cut up not only by chapters, but by chapters within parts too :)

To AM: all the stuff that other people don't know about Aragorn or Legolas fall within the flashbacks/interlude parts. Much is known about the two, but not that they once had something other than friendship between them. that was what was being alluded to.

Once again, THANKS ALL and 'til the next post!