Chapter 12: Love too late?
It was near the end of the day, the rays of the sun streamed through the trees causing the warm afternoon glow woods had; the scent of the golden flowers in which she breathtakingly filled her lungs. She admired the radiance of the Glaur. She may feel bad in the inside, she may have those conflicting emotions but that doesn't cause her to lose what she has been known for her cheerfulness and lightheartedness. She continued to walk as she thought of Ilweth, Arwen and the other ladies caustic faces as she promised to meet them for their little afternoon tea. "They won't mind the little nuisance I caused." She laughed to herself.
Legolas sat at highest branch of the tree in his now-not-his-own-refuge. All he could think of was his ex-sister and how he felt different towards her nowadays...
"She is who she is but she wasn't..."
"But she is my sister..."
"No, She is not my sister..."
"But I love her..."
"Only as a sister Legolas, nothing more than that ..."
"It is no whim, nor even sisterly love, or even infatuation... I do love her..."
"Time will clear your thoughts..."
Legolas argued with his own thoughts... all those words he heard over and over again... when he close his eyes, he can see her face, the way she looked like the night before, and the night before that... He seemed lost in his own thoughts, that is when he looked down from where he was sitting...
She stood there, her eyes focused intently on the ledge, the warm rays of the afternoon sun caused her to glow off with her woodsy tone, like a rose in bloom... a breeze ruffled her soft brown hair, and her eyes, her eyes that looked like the sun itself... he could tell, by the way she looked, that there is something wrong, that is too, when he felt the urge to tell her... "Tell her what?" ... "The truth...?" Legolas then decided to watch her from his hiding place.
Lailomé sat in her favorite swing, hummed a tune and swayed lightly back and forth; this caused Legolas to grip the branch more tighter; then she stood up, and walked towards the direction of the sun; the sunlight touched her, Legolas never saw such beauty before him, he silently climbed down from his hiding place and crept silently to her, besides, she didn't seem to notice because she was deep in her thoughts. Legolas grabbed her by her waist and carried her to his back.
Lailomé saw something blonde, she was scared at first, she started to kick and scream, it took her a moment or two to realize that the blonde thing she saw before she was lifted into thin air wasn't no one but Legolas.
"Legolas! What in the? Legolas put me down! You creep! You horrible scum!" She cried as she was helplessly being carried by her ex-brother.
"I haven't had a chance to lift someone like that in 1,500 yeas and this is the kind of welcome I get?" he teased, still carrying her by her back.
"Legolas, I swear, if I ever get down, I'll strangle you!" she warned him as she tried to wriggle out of his grasp.
"Then you gave me more reason to not let you down."
"Legolas!"
"I can't believe you're still light as a feather? Do you even eat, I reckon you don't even know the word weight."
"Legolas, really, I'll kill you!"
Legolas laughed and laid her down the green grass. "I thought you are going to kill me?" He teased. He knew she was just bluffing.
"You think I bluff don't you?"
"Oh, not bluff, you really can't do it."
"Say's who?"
"Say's this handsome elf."
"Oh please!"
Lailomé grabbed his arms and tried to pull her away from him but she knew he wasn't going to let her go anywhere; Legolas also grabbed her and both of them rolled into the soft grass, laughing as if they were children again. Legolas let her roll into his side, her dark brown hair spilled in his arms. That is when Legolas noticed what was wrong with Lailomé's eyes, it looked like she just cried, even though her eyes sparkled like diamonds in the water, there are still disparity with her typical cheery ones with the ones that look like after she shed tears... time didn't let him forget that.
"Is there a problem?"
Lailome's heart jumped; Oh yes... Isendor. She thought, oh no please Legolas don't ask me that, not now, please don't... she said to herself.
"No, Legolas, nothing's wrong." She replied, stoically.
"Oh no, you can't convince me with that old move Lei." Legolas knew there was, and he's determined to know the truth.
Legolas won't let me off the hook... I don't want to tell him, well at least not now, not this afternoon... even still, I don't want to lie to him.
Oh c'mon Lei, you lied to him a gazillion times before...
But that was petty lies...
Why can't I lie to him? regret, "Isendor." As she stared at the scarlet colored sky. The words went smooth, as if she had no trouble of telling him the truth about her sorrow; it is like ranting to someone who has always been there for her.
Legolas, after quickly shifted his position as he trapped her, in which she doesn't seem to care.
"Did he hurt you? Did he slight you in any way? Leila tell me!" he
Lailomé closed her eyes; she took a deep breath and said, without demanded as he looked directly in her eyes, he didn't know the reason why he cared for her so much, well, not much like this one.
Lailomé just stared at him, she couldn't tell him, no matter how she tried, she tried her best to speak, but looking at him, she cannot. Legolas grew impatient; "Lailomé I swear if he did you wrong... I swear to God..." Lailomé silenced him by touching his left cheek; tracing the lines of his face with her slender fingers... she still couldn't tell him like how she revealed Isendor as a cause.
"Nothing for you to worry about, Legolas."
"You do not speak the truth."
"Legolas..."
"What did he do?"
"I swear, nothing for you to worry about, please."
"Promise me, you won't hurt anyone because of me, promise me Legolas." She pleaded him.
Lailomé was the only person he couldn't say no to. "Alright then, but it depends on the matter."
"Thank you Legolas."
"I don't want you to get hurt."
"I don't want you to get hurt the more, Legolas, I swear, I don't want you to get hurt because of me, and do you believe me, Legolas?"
"I will try my best then, but you still haven't answered my question."
Lailomeiel stood up, "What he did is none of your concern, Legolas."
She was about to head back but Legolas grabbed her arm, this time, Legolas raised his voice, he couldn't just let Isendor to walk away with hurting her.
"None of my concern?"
"Legolas please..." she begged as she tried to get away from him but he wasn't going to let her go anywhere.
"Lailomé look at me... Look at me I say."
Lailomé looked at him, "Legolas I don't want to..."
"Tell me the truth."
"Please Legolas..." she pleaded, she was now close to tears but she showed restraint.
"Look, I don't want to hurt you, I will never hurt you, I love you, Lailomé and I don't want anyone to..."
With that, Lailomé looked at him as if he wasn't Legolas, he also heard her gasp, he knew those words he just said are true, and he knew he was going to say those to her anyway, he spoke the truth, and he knew it was his heart that told him to tell her that.
Lailomé couldn't believe what she had just heard, questions flooded her mind. Questions that only Legolas could answer.
"Lailomé, I am deeply in love with you, believe me this isn't sisterly love, I really do love you, I don't care what people might think..."
But Lailomé doesn't want to hear any of it anymore, two life disturbing revelations in one day, she regretted going to Rivendell, she regretted meeting Legolas again, for she too, loved him
Not as a brother, but as someone else, but now, she could only betray herself, hurt Legolas and obey the elder elves wishes.
"Legolas you couldn't love me!" she cried as she finally got away from his grasp and, gathering all her strength, ran back to Elrond's.
"Lailomé!" he bellowed as he tried to run after her but decided not to.
"Time, give her time." He remembered Elrond saying that very words to his Father, the day before Lailomeiel's and his lives were changed... for all eternity.
Lailomé ran as hard as she could, she ran as she went past the lagoon, the gardens, until she made it through the hallways. With tears in her eyes in which she tried her best to conceal them.
"Good heavens!" Arwen exclaimed as she ran towards Lailomé.
"What happened?"
Lailomé couldn't keep on any longer; her feet couldn't even carry her weight anymore; she already falling apart but she doesn't want anyone to know that she breaking down.
"Lailomé?" Arwen cried as she held Lailomé's hands to keep her from falling down, she was crying so hard that Arwen could almost feel her pain.
"Lailomé, c'mon tell me..." she said as she guided her to her room.
Arwen opened the door and Lailomé ran to her bed and cried, face down. Arwen walked towards her and gently stroked her back.
"C'mon tell me Leila, what's wrong?"
"Father... Isendor... then... then Legolas..." she sobbed.
Arwen shook her head; she couldn't make out what her friend was talking about. "Lei, I don't understand."
Lailomé sat up to face Arwen, she was trembling that Arwen had to help her sit up comfortably.
Lailomé calmed herself and tried to talk about the matter calmly.
"Father, told me that I am betrothed to Isendor." She said, as tears started to roll down in her cheeks.
After hearing what Lailomé had just said, Arwen couldn't believe it. "I am sorry to say this, but no offense to King Thranduil, but who is he to give your hand to anyone without your consent?"
"It is not Father's fault." Lailomé said, defensively. "I don't want to blame him, Father took me as his own and that's that."
"I understand, Lailomé, but it's the way I see it, and..."
"And what?"
"What's this thing about Legolas?"
"He said that he loves me."
"And what's wrong with that? Everybody knows he loves you?"
"He IS In love with me, Arwen."
It was like a siege has just unfolded right in front of Arwen's eyes. She couldn't believe what she just heard from her confused friend.
"Are you sure?"
"He told me awhile ago."
"So, what are you going to do now?"
Lailomé stood up and walked to the balcony, breathing in the sweet night air, she decided that she will just go on with the flow. "If destiny wants to play a game with me, so will I." She whispered
"I guess I should go on with the flow." Lailomeiel said as she turned to Arwen with a smile on her sad face.
Arwen was stunned; she saw her friend as someone who can carry such a dilemma, "how could she smile like that in a time like this?" She thought. "Are you sure about it?"
Lailomé sat right next to Arwen and looked up in the ceiling, "I don't want to disobey Father, nor would I leave him a bad name, put my old home, Mirkwood and the Great Lands in danger... most of all, I don't want to hurt Legolas." She said, with the softest, sincere tone Arwen ever heard.
"I would let things unfold right in front of me, then when the right time comes, I will do what I should, but first of all, I will make sure that no one gets hurt."
"You don't trust Isendor, aren't you?" Arwen replied, eyeing her sternly.
"Indeed I do, I also fear him, for what reason, I do not know why."
"Aren't you going down for dinner?"
"No, I don't feel like seeing anyone of them right now."
Later that night...
Legolas couldn't sleep, he paced back in forth in his room, he kept on thinking why Lailomé reacted like that when he told her he loved her, why she looked like that when he watched her that afternoon, why Isendor kept on eyeing him during dinner... and why she didn't show up in dinner... many questions swamped over his mind that only Lailomé could answer.
"Why did she say that I shouldn't love her?" that words of her constricted his chest. Legolas knew what he felt for her isn't because he was infatuated, or sisterly love, or just plainly excited on a person he didn't see for half of his lifetime. "Questions only she can answer." Said the little voice in his mind. "I should know." He said to himself as he sprinted out of his room and to the hallways, Legolas searched for Lailomé as if he was gone mad, it was nighttime and only the guards were awake, but Legolas didn't care... he first went to her room, but she wasn't there, her doors he knocked, but there was no answer... he searched for her in almost every nook and cranny of Elrond's house, but in vain. He even climbed the tree that was beside Lailomé's balcony door and went inside her room, but she wasn't even there, not a shadow. That's when Legolas thought, "She couldn't vanish into thin air, I must be somewhere... secluded..." that's when he thought about their refuge in Rivendell... the lagoon and the clearing...he rummaged through the darkness, until he reached their sanctuary, but to his dismay, she wasn't there. "Where the hell could she be?" He was so tired, as he slumped his on a tree. "Maybe I'll see her tomorrow..." He gathered himself and walked back to his room, but then, he passed by Lailomé's balcony and an idea came to him... next thing he knew, he was on the branch nearest to Lailomé's balcony... and there he waited...
Lailomé pushed the door open; she had a terrible headache that she had to wake the healers in the middle of the night. She removed her robe and threw herself on her bed and fell asleep.
Legolas saw her looking pale and rubbing her head as she threw herself to the comfort of her bed, he then decided to cheer her up or anything... right now, he is willing to do almost anything to make her smile and to make her feel better, partly because of what he said that sundown and partly because he wanted to know the truth, everything about what's happening, lastly, he can't sleep until she talks to him or just plainly to hear her voice. He swiftly jumped from his hiding place and safely landed on her balcony.
Lailomé felt something moved from behind her back, even if she was weak, or had a headache. That didn't stop her from being ready of what dangers might come her way, she slowly slid her hand under her pillow and let it look for her dagger, after she got hold of it, she gripped it tightly; ready of what will happen, she alerted herself and let her feelings and intuition study the movement around her. The attacker was moving closer, and that's when she decided to jump from bed and suddenly a strong arm grabbed her but she was rather persuasive that the attacker had to back of but slipped, which caused her attacker to have a gash on his left shoulder! It took her a minute or two to realize who was her attacker.
"Legolas?" she whispered weakly through the darkness, her eyes flickered as Legolas stared at her with the utmost disbelief. Suddenly she remembered her dagger and quickly let Legolas go and kneeled at her injured attacker.
"Oh dear Gods... Legolas look what you made me do." She cried as she helped him regain his lost blood in the comfort of her bed.
Legolas lied in her bed speechless, she forgot that she was wearing a thin nightgown, he can clearly see her body in the darkness. She ran back in forth inside her room opening drawers after drawers and finally found a little brown box, she opened it and drew a small blue bottle, she then dropped a few of the liquid in his wound and gently blew in it.
"Hold still." She said as she washed his wound with warm water and gently wrapped it with gauze. Legolas felt her hands on his wound, which didn't seem to hurt at all.
Lailomé look worried, she just sat there looking at his wound, Legolas could tell that she had already forgotten about her dress and that she was transfixed at his wound.
"Lailomé, I'm sorry, this isn't your fault, alright?" Legolas whispered to her as he reached for her hand, giving his tone his most reassuring tone ever.
"I hurt people Legolas."
"You do not, listen to me, this isn't your fault, I came here for you, I really did mean to see you."
"But Leggy, look at your arm." She pleaded, as if she wanted him to blame her.
"I'm the one who told you to keep a dagger under your pillow, remember?"
Lailomé looked at him and smiled, she remembered Legolas giving her that advice ages ago, since he knew she always wanted to open at least one door open every time.
"See, now stop blaming yourself." He said as he gave her a smile, a signal that she shouldn't worry.
Suddenly, she frowned, as if she just remembered something or something just sparked from her brain. "What are you doing here in the middle of the night anyway?"
"Oops." Legolas thought, "The truth Legolas, tell her..." said the little voice in his mind.
"I wanted to talk to you." He replied stoically.
Lailomé kneeled on the side of her bed, in which Legolas was lying.
"About what?"
"About what I told you earlier... this afternoon."
Lailomé took in a deep breath, she couldn't do anything now but to tell him the truth, how in the short time they have been together, she too had felt the same he was to her.
"I cannot, Legolas."
Legolas felt as if his whole body has turned to jelly, "Why not?"
"Legolas, you have to know the truth, I cannot lie to you." She said as she faced him with the most sorrowful face Legolas ever saw.
"What is it then?" trying to sound calm. His feelings were like water in a whirlpool.
"Legolas, I am betrothed to Isendor."