LevelTwentySeven: hehe. I'm glad you like it. and I agree. Legolas is totally H-O-T!
Alezandrane: yeah, didn't want to get reported for graphic stuff. i find it hard to write scenes like that. i just don't know what to put. i don't wanna make it corny or fake, but i don't wanna go overboard either. thanks.
LeaMarie F. Rocket: hehehe thanks!
Myri78: well, kids would throw a wrench in the plans for now, but later…most people voted yes for that, so, we'll see. thanks!
jadedsakuya: thanks, I try. (it's all for you guys!)
poetess78:blushes: thanks much!
Legolaslover: hehe, read on, hope you like. gotta love the love scenes, but cute stuff is good too! thanks.
Marisa: aw, everyone's saying that. Thanks for the review. great new story, by the way. can't wait for chappie 3!
loveroflegolas: yeah, it was, wasn't it? thanks bunches!
arwen101: oops! you caught me! I guess that's what happens when you try to write stuff in the middle of the most boring class in the world (yoo tend to miss little inconsistencies!) hehe, thanks! rivendell will be making an appearance, along with the twins and Glorfy, in the next few chapters or so (don't worry). hope you like. thanks!
spotnmushlover246: thanks much!
Beechiki: thanks for the review!
Disclaimer: you know the drill, yadda yadda
Chapter 19
Elenayave drifted in between sleep and awareness. She could feel Legolas's arms securely around her waist, and his warm body pressed close to hers. Her head rested gently on his shoulder, and his nose was buried in her hair, breathing in the fresh flowery scent. He stirred next to her, moving his leg in between her to bring them closer together. Outside the window, the sun just beginning to set, and darkness was spreading over the shadows of the trees.
"It's almost time to go down to the Hall to eat," he said softly, not wanting to ruin the precious mood that existed between them.
"Hmm," she mumbled carelessly. "What are you trying to say, Legolas?"
"Aren't you hungry," he asked while staring up at the ceiling of his room.
"Not right now," she replied. "Well satisfied, but not hungry. Can't we wait a while?"
"Someone might come looking for us," he said with a shrug.
"Oh well. They can deal with it."
Legolas smiled and cupped her face in his hands. "Can you imagine Ada's reaction if he were to walk in right now?"
Elenayave scrunched up her nose and giggled. "I don't think I want to imagine," she replied, pressing a chaste kiss to his cheek.
Legolas gave a small laugh. "I remember walking in on him and Naneth once when I was a child. I had woken up from a nightmare and sought out Naneth's comfort. I wasn't quite sure what was going on, but Ada was quite flustered and upset that he had been interrupted and deemed less important at the time. I suppose it would be a settling of scores if he found us as such."
She sighed and began tracing small invisible designs on his muscled chest. Gently, she brushed her fingers over the dark bruising near his ribcage. The skin felt overly warm and slightly swollen, and she knew it felt tender when she glanced back at Legolas's face. Only a few times had it bothered him while he had made love to her, but now it seemed more prominent than before.
"I wish I had known it was you. I'm so sorry. I had no idea," she whispered.
"At least I know you can defend yourself," he replied as he lightly caressed her cheek.
"That reminds me…when do I start retraining? Your father mentioned it earlier this afternoon."
"Whenever you wish, mela," he answered. He twisted a thin tendril of her hair around his finger, then unwound it and tucked it behind the delicate point of her ear.
"Tomorrow?"
"You'll have to rise early," he warned.
"How early?" she asked slowly.
"Dawn."
Elenayave groaned and rolled over, pulling the sheets tighter around her. The satiny material embraced her body and slipped smoothly over her skin. It felt somewhat odd to be completely unclothed with a male lying next to her. But there was something about it that was comfortingly familiar. The woodsy scent of his body enveloped her as he wrapped her in his arms again, and the smell sank deeply into her being. She would remember that smell for the rest or her life, she was sure. He was a part of her again, always there within her, a constant presence in her heart and soul. That feeling, that presence, was what she had been missing from her life, even as she had existed as Linilya. But now, she felt freer, liberated, and more… unrestrained, more untamed and in tune with the nature around her. And at first, it made no sense to her, but the more she thought about it, the more it seemed to come together. This new feeling was really new at all. It was, in fact, the part of Legolas that had been established in her the first time they had been bound. His essence had melded with hers, and the spirit and natural fire of the Wood Elf was burning unreservedly through her blood.
"Legolas…" she called as she rolled back to face him.
"Hmm," came his muffled reply.
"Why do I feel that part of you is in me?" she asked, genuinely curious.
"Because it is, Lena. When two are bound together, each receives a little of the character of the other," he explained quietly. "What is it that you feel, mela?"
"I feel like I've suddenly transformed into a Wood Elf," she laughed. "Like I've lost all inhibitions and just want to be out among the trees, not caring what anyone else thinks or does."
Legolas smiled warmly and snuggled against her. "I don't know, mela. Perhaps I shall take you to a forest circle and see if you truly have transformed, as you say."
She lightly tapped her finger on the tip of his nose and smiled. "What did you get from me?"
"Your calm," he readily intoned. "It balances my temperament perfectly, and helps me to slow down and think things out more logically, rather than act on impulse in precarious situations."
"My calm?"
"Yes. And your uncanny ability to heal. I can't necessarily heal others the way you do, but my own self-healing abilities have increased, which is why my ribs won't take long to set and mend."
Elenayave looked down at her hands and frowned. "I have healing abilities?"
Legolas took her hands gently in his own and answered, "Of course, Lena. You studied under Lord Elrond's tutelage for many years. Ada said it would be wise to keep you on a guard, not only because you could fight, but you'd be able to help if someone were to be injured badly and couldn't get back here soon enough."
"Oh," she intoned quietly. "I don't remember any of that."
"Not yet, but it will come," he soothed, smoothing her hair back out of her face.
"I wish it would just all hurry up and come back at once," she huffed, swatting his hand away. "I'm sick of not knowing anything about myself or my people."
"If it all came back at once, mela, it would be too much of a shock. I don't know if you could handle it that way," he said.
"Oh, Legolas," she murmured, snuggling her head against his chest. "I just wish I knew. It would make things so much easier for me and you…and everybody else."
"I know, sweetling. I know. It'll come back, and until then, we'll just manage with what you do know."
A sudden thought struck her mind, and at once, she felt awful for not thinking of it sooner. "That Elf, the one that was injured…is he all right?"
"Yes, mela. Malia briefed me when we returned. He was doing well. The arrow wasn't poisoned, but it barely missed doing damage to his intestines," he informed her.
She shuddered as she remembered him just leaning there against the tree, holding tightly onto his side to staunch the blood flow. And even though most of the Mirkwood Elves possessed blond hair and somewhat pointed features, he had seemed familiar in a way, almost as if she had seen him somewhere before.
''Who was he, Legolas?"
Legolas furrowed his brow momentarily, and then answered, "Nilfalath."
Nilfalath. Where had she heard that name before? She was certain she knew it from somewhere, but she couldn't quite place it. Elenayave racked her brain, trying to think of where she might have met him.
"Do I know him?" she inquired. "He seemed very familiar."
"He's your brother, Lena."
A little short, but that's okay. I gotta four day weekend this week, so I can write some more soon and get it posted. Yea! Anyway, I bet you guys didn't see that coming, except one person who noticed that poor little injured Elf all by himself (you know who you are!). Like it, love it...let me know. Hate it...tell me how to fix it, but keep it constructive! Thanks!