A/N: This chapter starts off with a flashback. I am aware of the fact that in the book Aragorn camps outside Minas Tirith as opposed to going to the White Tower but then again there are a lot of things that happen in the book that don't in this fic.
Name meanings: Alya – Rich, Melda – Beloved, Nimwen – White.
Chapter 22
It all comes out
Legolas felt Alya's arms encircle him. He felt her lips kiss him and he felt the cold steel as his wife pierced his skin with her blade. He let out and almighty yell in pain as it almost pierced his heart. She pulled the blade out roughly and tried to stab him again, this time to kill but he grabbed her hand and slowly turned the blade on her. It pierced her heart, killing her instantly. Legolas stumbled out of his rooms, looking for help. As he reached the corridor, he blacked out from loss of blood. When he awoke, he was in the healer's chambers. He felt very weak. Bandages covered his chest to protect the wound inflicted by the traitorous Alya. He tried to sit up but felt someone push him down. "No, son," said his mother, Nimwen, "You must rest."
"Mother," said Legolas weakly, "Where is Melda?" Nimwen sighed. Even when death had almost claimed him, Legolas' first thoughts were of his baby daughter. How could she tell her son that his own wife had murdered their child? "I am so sorry," she said softly, "But Alya's treachery went further than we knew." Legolas' face was marred with confusion. "Melda is dead. Alya killed her."
"No, I don't believe you!" yelled Legolas. He sat up despite her protests and got out of bed. "Where is she?" he demanded. His mother cast a worried glance over at the door. Legolas walked towards it, his anger driving him. He pushed open the door. On the bed was a small bundle, he went over and gently moved the cloth. It was then that Legolas realized his mother had been right. There was his daughter, lying as cold as ice and not moving. She had been named Melda, meaning 'beloved' and she had been the center of Legolas' entire world. He had ignored all the palace criticism of him being too young to be married and a father at less than 2000 years old. Legolas broke down. He fell to his knees and began to cry. His mother tried to comfort him but soon was mourning her granddaughter too. She knew that seeing Melda would help him accept her fate. "Mother," he sobbed after a while, "I want to build a memorial for her, in the gardens where I took her for walks." His mother nodded and stroked her son's head.
"And what of Alya?" she asked.
"I don't care," he said, "She can rot in the forest for all I care." His mother could feel her son's heart hardening and knew it would take something powerful to find it again.
Legolas awoke from his memory by the sound of Gandalf's voice. "Legolas, are you alright?" enquired the wizard. Legolas turned away from the window.
"I was just thinking," he said.
"You were thinking of Alya, weren't you?" said Gandalf, sensing the dark nature of the elf's thoughts. Legolas nodded. "The traitor," he muttered.
"Legolas, what happened wasn't your fault," said Gandalf, repeating a speech he had said many times over the past thousand years, "There was nothing anyone could do to save Melda."
"I should have known," said Legolas, "I should have known she never loved me. I remember this great reluctance in her eyes when I asked her for a child but she still gave me one. To hurt me even more when she took her away."
"Legolas, you have got to stop beating yourself up about this," snapped Gandalf, "For a millennia, I have seen you blame yourself for something you had no control over."
"I should have known," said Legolas. The wizard made an exasperated sound.
"Does Tigerlily know about Alya and Melda?" he said. Legolas shook his head.
"Well, you had better tell her soon," he said, "Better she hear it from you than from idle palace gossip when you get to Mirkwood." Gandalf left, slamming the door behind him. Legolas heard Tigerlily stir. "Legolas?" she said sleepily. Legolas loved the way his name rolled off her tongue. He turned and walked over to the bed and sat down beside her. "Morning my love," he said, "You had me worried last night." Tigerlily smiled. She reached up and pulled his head down for a hungry kiss. But she could sense that Legolas was distant so she broke away and gave him a questioning look. "Legolas, what is wrong?" she asked. He looked up at her. His eyes had gone dark with sorrow. She knew something was very wrong now. "It's your brother, Milo," he said, "He's dead." For a moment, Tigerlily's face did nothing but then tears formed in her eyes. She made a small choking noise. And began to cry. She fell forward into Legolas' arms and cried into his shoulder. "Tigerlily," he said when her sobs had died down, "I think its time I told you about my scar." Tigerlily sat up. Her heart was breaking from the loss of her brother but she was curious. Legolas traced her cheek with his fingers. "Tigerlily, I…I…I was married before, a thousand years ago" he said.
"What do you mean, you were married?" she said.
"She's dead," said Legolas, "I killed her." Tigerlily backed away from him, fear growing on her face. "It was in self defense," Legolas added quickly.
"She was your wife!" shouted Tigerlily.
"Just listen to me," said Legolas, "Her name was Alya, and she was a traitor. She was part of a rebel group, which is plotting to overthrow my family's rule. She married me so she could get closer to my family. She tried to kill me by stabbing me, which is how I got this scar."
"You murdered her!" screamed Tigerlily.
"You don't understand," said Legolas, "She murdered her daughter, my daughter. She killed a baby less than six months of age. The plan was to kill me, kill Melda and kill my parents. I have no brothers or sisters. Once my family was dead they planned to take over. By killing her, I was protecting my family and my people."
"Get out!" yelled Tigerlily. Legolas looked confused. He tried to move forwards to her but she slapped him across the face with her left hand. "Get out of my sight!" she screamed. Legolas got up and quickly left. Aragorn was stood outside. "What is she yelling about?" he asked Legolas. Legolas just rubbed the red mark on his face and walked away. Aragorn entered the room to find Tigerlily in hysterics. "What's wrong Tigerlily?" he asked but Tigerlily was mumbling incomprehensibly about nothing in particular. He grabbed her and made her sit down. He told her to take deep breaths and start at the beginning. So Tigerlily related to him what Legolas had told her. Aragorn was quiet for a moment, thinking everything over carefully before he spoke. "When did he tell you this?" he asked.
"Just now, after telling me about Milo," said Tigerlily.
"He has bad timing," said Aragorn, "You obviously didn't hear everything the way he meant it to. He killed his wife in self-defense. She was trying to kill him and had already killed their child." Tigerlily was silent for a moment.
"He's still a murderer," she said.
"Tigerlily," said Aragorn, "I think you need to stay here and think things through. Think about what Legolas said. You two belong together and I think this would kill him. He nearly faded after Melda died."
"Melda?" said Tigerlily.
"His daughter," said Aragorn, "She was very young when she died. Please, try to work this out, you two were made for each other, Alya is just a dark cloud over him. A dark cloud, which can be blown away." He pressed a kiss to Tigerlily's forehead and left.
Legolas spent a miserable night in a bed the other side of the Tower. He couldn't lay his mind to rest from thinking of Tigerlily. She should have been in his arms. Those rebels who plagued his family with threats and attempts on their lives were affecting him even this far away from Mirkwood.
The next day, Tigerlily lay on the bed, thinking. Maybe Legolas wasn't to blame for what happened. At least he had been honest and told her. She remembered what the scar looked like. When Alya stabbed him, she must have truly hated him. The scar looked as if it had been plunged in then roughly ripped out again. Her hand strayed to her stomach. That's why Legolas had looked so delighted when she had told him of her vision. He had found a second chance at having a family. She made a silent promise to herself that if she and Legolas ever had a daughter, they would name her Melda, after the poor baby who had been killed. She got up and left the room for the meeting Aragorn had called.