A/N: We're doing a mild jump in time… Going from autumn to spring. So wind your clocks forward once more.

As always, I don't really own anything in this story aside from Mel and Legolas' slightly strange pet.

A quite serious attack of homework (new school started), troubles sleeping and overall stress combined with my muses suddenly going on strike resulted in most of my free time for writing suddenly vanished… Life isn't good at the moment, so accept my erratic speed in updating, please. Chapter is short, but, hopefully, we'll have old friends meeting again very soon.

Chapter 20: Journey

The horses trotted tirelessly on, none of them complaining over the carts that they were pulling, and the elves followed the sturdy animals with their own packs. Legolas had to admit that despite all the preparations, he had not quite expected this much to have been considered necessary to start a new colony. But, he concluded, with this amount of gear they brought with them, they would most likely not need many trips back to Greenwood for things that had been forgotten.

Looking to his side, where Taratoun faithfully trotted alongside Arod, carrying a bag of her own on her back, he could not help a light smile. Even though he at times questioned just how much of the big spider's intelligence that was in fact instincts, there were no doubts as to the fact that she, too, looked forward to see the new colony. At least, the elf thought to himself as he looked ahead again and saw the first, blooming trees of Ithilien, they arrived in Spring instead of winter, meaning that they would have three full seasons to settle in and get everything finished before the cold would claim the lands.

Of course, Gondor had a milder climate than the northern end of Greenwood, but Legolas still knew that the winter could be as harsh here as it could further north. But, now it was time to merely enjoy that they had finally arrived, and begin setting up their new homes….

The few carpenters who had spend the last season within the half-finished village welcomed them happily, more than pleased to see familiar faces once more. And, as Legolas looked around, he found that he was surprised with the speed with which the talans had been completed – the last report he had received told that most of the homes could be settled in, but the roof was missing on some, and only a few had been connected with each other. This, however, was a near-completed village, and the carpenters had even had time to decorate the talans with different motifs.

It was an odd feeling to him, knowing that this was HIS colony. That all the people who had come here had done so because they had faith in him – because they trusted him as their leader and believed he could accomplish the goals he had made. For some strange reason, it terrified him more than the prospect of going against Sauron himself had been those years ago when the War of the Ring still went on…

Shaking his head lightly, he smiled at the memory of how Aragorn had been wandering around, muttering and wringing his hands nervously the day before his coronation. At that moment, he had not quite understood the human's nervousness, but, now, found that he felt like doing the very same, and he suddenly wished Thranduil had joined him and could have guided him in these first frail weeks. At least the King of Eryn Lasgalen – which Greenwood affectionately was called in the elven tongue these days - had taken care to prepare his son for the task, ensuring that Legolas knew everything that was to know about ruling a kingdom – including the need for documents, setting up trade routes, and, probably one of the most boring things Legolas had ever known about, negotiations with neighbouring people.

Taking a calming breath, he dismounted Arod and walked the final paces to the first tree marking the colony's beginning, bringing behind him a group of elves that would from this day forth look to him for guidance as they had to his father before… He just prayed he would manage to live up to their expectations.