A/N: And now, the chapter you have all been waiting for... The wedding! Please understand that I took some liberties with the wedding of our favorite elf...

Orli: Oh please. She completely screwed it up.

Me: Hey! I did not! They still are joined by a rope and all... but the vows aren't outlined in LACE, so I made them up.

Orli: You messed it all up, and you know, the elves are supposed to wait a year before they can wed after they are engaged.

Me: Well, that's why its FICTION. Fan FICTION. So anyway, I hope you all understand why I did what I did, and do enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: I wrote the poem (for the vows) and I created Fanya, Gerin, Ana, Terra, Etc... the rest of those little pricks I've just nicked for the week.


Chapter 28: Tonight

Everything was done. Everything was set. The wedding would be held in one hour, and Fanya was ecstatic. She was wearing Thranduil's mother's dress, studying herself in the large mirror in her room. The dress was a crimson color, the color of the turning autumn. Tied to Fanya's waist was a custom sash embroidered with the White Tree of Gondor, crowned with Mirkwood's ivy leaves. Aragorn had presented it to her that morning, saying that because she was of Gondor and of Mirkwood, that it was a fitting sash.

Arwen was currently attacking her hair with pins, and straightening her dress, searching for the minute things that weren't perfect. Arwen was looking radiant in her own dress of royal purple.

There were several other people in Fanya's room as well. They included Gerin, Ana, and Terra. Earlier on in the day a few of the palace maids were in here, but Arwen shooed them away with a formidable glare and a dismissing wave. She seemed to enjoy bossing people around, no matter how sweet-natured she really was.

Terra was humming to herself, bouncing happily on Fanya's bed and pestering the adults in the room to answer bizarre questions. "Why aren't you wearing a white dress? Are those roses? Are those real jewels? What's that? Can I have something to eat? I'm hungry..."

Everyone in the room ignored her.

Gerin was as quiet and shy as she usually was. She had spent the afternoon trying to get Terra to sit still long enough to have her hair braided and twisted into a bun. Early on in the day, Ana helped out readying Fanya, but Arwen was emanating such a powerful vibe that clearly stated 'Leave her to ME!' that she eventually sank into a chair and started simply conversing with Fanya. Asking questions about how an elvish wedding works or what was the significance of this or that. Fanya didn't know a lot of answers, so ultimately it was Arwen that eventually answered those questions.

Fanya glanced at the sky outside. It was getting dark. 'Finally' she thought. She was becoming a ball of nerves. Somehow she had managed to keep a calm outlook on the day up until now. The words 'I'm getting married... to Legolas. I'm getting married...' kept repeating over and over in her head, driving her insane.

"You nervous?" Ana asked. Fanya nodded palely. "Calm down. Or you won't be able to say a word tonight," she said encouragingly.

There was a knock on the door, and somebody peeked their head inside. It was Lenwe.

"Time to go, everybody," he announced. "And by the way, Fanya, Legolas is even more jittery than you are, if that's any consolation." With that, he left. Fanya called after him,

"What? No 'Good luck?'" she yelled, frowning for reasons she didn't really understand.

"Shh. Just focus on what's ahead," Arwen said with a small chuckle. Gerin nodded. Terra bounced beside them.

"Alright... focusing..." Fanya focused, but all that came to her were flashes of what had happened in the last month...

Being pressed against cold walls and ravaged with Legolas' mouth, swimming in the hot springs in the lower levels of the palace, walking through the gardens and smelling the roses... and she had become a true elf. She was sure that night would stay with her forever.

-O-

It was Legolas' second night home, the night of his honorary feast. There had been much eating and joyful chatter, and when Thranduil announced that it was time for the dancing, every elf in the hall joyfully stepped outside. Lanterns and torches were lit on the main road and a mass of elves made their way out into the dark, talking and laughing merrily. A band struck up a tune and elves started dancing to the quick beat.

Legolas, who had looked pleasantly bored all evening, brightened up a considerable amount. Fanya and Legolas walked outside, holding hands. Legolas bowed to Fanya and asked formally, "Would my Lady honor me with a dance?" he asked, extending out a hand for Fanya to take.

"Will my Lord not step on my toes?" She replied smoothly. Legolas faked a pout, and Fanya took his hand with a laugh. "I would love to dance," she said with a big smile.

"I will do my best," Legolas said with a twinkle in his eye. They plunged into the throng of dancers, and danced the night away.

What must have been hours later, they emerged completely winded from the excitement. They had danced every dance, sang every song, and had the time of their lives, sharing a quick kiss every chance they had.

"This is what our wedding night will be like, except that the honor will include your name as well as mine," Legolas breathed into her ear as they walked in the dark.

"Except our wedding night will also include something else..." Fanya whispered in reply, hinting at what she knew Legolas wanted. In truth, she wanted a second taste of what naughty deeds Legolas could do with those tough archer's hands. Just thinking about the night before made her giggle.

"Mmm... I know," Legolas practically growled, dragging Fanya away from the throng of people and into the secluded woods.

It was not entirely romantic to be shoved against a tree and ravaged by Legolas' mouth, but oh, how enjoyable it was...

The moonlight fell on top of them through the tangled tree branches. The stars seemed to fall through the trees, sprinkling the elves' hair and eyelashes with sparkles. To Legolas, Fanya looked like a princess. His princess.

"You are beautiful, my love," he said, encircling Fanya's waist with his arms from behind and squeezing her to him. Fanya snapped her head around to look at him and saw a glint in his eyes. The same frightening and feral glint she had seen the night before while they were making love.

Fanya, acting on impulse turned and pressed herself against Legolas and claimed his mouth with her own. Somehow she knew that tonight she would always remember, that if she did not act then she would lose something amazing. Last night she had come to know Legolas so intimately that she shivered whenever she thought about him... tonight, though. Tonight wouldn't be painful, would be simply to love and be loved...

A particular movement made Fanya come out of her thoughts and she remembered where she was. Legolas had turned suddenly much more serious and passionate mid-kiss. He thrust his tongue inside of her mouth and robbed her of her breath, as if it was his to claim. When she surfaced from their kiss she was breathless and clinging to Legolas for support. Legolas was staring her down, and for a long time neither one said anything.

"Legolas...I want..." Fanya began to speak. Her heart started to beat faster.

"Shh... I know," Legolas assured lovingly, whispering into her ear and gently kissing the tip of her ear. Fanya shuddered and her knees buckled. She lowered herself to the ground slowly, dragging Legolas with her.

"Can you hear it?" Legolas asked, nuzzling into Fanya's neck.

"What?" Fanya asked, wondering what on earth Legolas was talking about. Legolas was torturing her already, teasing her body until she felt ready to rip the clothes off of him... which she started to do. She reached for the buttons of his tunic and started to unbutton them, but as she was undoing a second one, Legolas' strong hands stopped her. She looked up at him, curiosity shining in her eyes.

"Before we do this, I want to know if you can hear what I hear..." Legolas said completely serious. He ran a finger down the side of her ear and planted a soft kiss on its tip. Fanya could hear many things... the sound of her beating heart, the rustle of the trees in the wind, the crickets in the wood... but what was Legolas hearing that she was not?

"The stars sing to me what will happen tonight," Legolas said, almost in a warning tone. "They choose tonight to celebrate our love... they choose tonight to bind us together forever."

"Bind..." Fanya repeated, closing her eyes and straining to hear. "I can hear the song..."

Legolas' smile reached from ear tip to ear tip. When Fanya opened her eyes, she saw this and nipped his lip, then pressed another kiss against his mouth.

"You rush!" Legolas scolded. "That is no way to consummate our love!"

"Can you move faster than a dwarf, please?" Fanya asked. Legolas' reply was lost in another kiss.

-O-

And Fanya fell asleep, curled against Legolas on the soft grass. Legolas watched her sleep, counting her breaths, feeling her heart beat to the same rhythm as his own. His eyes roamed the contours of her body, her hair fanned out behind her, her toned stomach, her long legs. Legolas glanced at the fading stars, and they twinkled at him, winking him toward his future with his wife.

His wife.

Fanya was probably not entirely aware of the technicalities, but by binding herself to him she became his wife. The ceremony that was being held in a few weeks was merely to present their bond to the community and to Erü. The true "wedding" had just occurred...

And it felt wonderful to him. He had wanted for so long to feel Fanya's touch on his skin, her arms wrapped around him, her lips on his mouth... and her stubbornness made the wait all the sweeter.

Legolas was not sure why Fanya was sleeping so deeply. He had never known anyone to fall into such a deep sleep, especially after lovemaking. Any of his lovers in his past had merely dozed... what was different about Fanya?

'Everything...' he answered himself.

He ignored his thoughts. He curled a protective arm around Fanya and fell asleep.

-O-

Legolas did not rest for long. He was awoken by a pair of delicious blue eyes staring into his own, and fingers stroking his face. "Good morning, my love," Fanya cooed, planting kisses along his jaw line. "Did you sleep well?"

"I should ask the same of you... you slept so deeply," Legolas said.

"I know..." she answered. Truth be told, she felt both awful and wonderful this morning. Her eyesight was better, her level of hearing was giving her a headache, letting her hear every crack of a twig, every birdsong, every rustle of grass, every breath of the earth. Her whole body tingled, and her mind was exhausted after her dream. For in her dream, she had talked with her creator while there... he had been kind enough to show up when she wanted to scream and pound her head against a rock. Legolas' lovemaking was exhausting and riveting and skilled, all at once. All the emotions, all of the physicality of a new bond, all of the feelings of rapture... Everything left her confused.

She recalled the moment that their unity reached its peak. A light appeared in her mind's eye. It grew and grew and grew until all she felt, all that mattered in the world, was Legolas. It brought her to a new understanding of what love and what was important in her life. And then when she slept, Illúvatar had shown up when her soul had sought refuge away from her body in the desolate fields of her dream-world. And he had been patient and kind, and he had answered everything she had asked of him. And that felt good; she felt better.

And now she was an Elf. She was no longer a half-elf, no longer half-made, half-immortal, no longer incomplete. She was one-hundred percent, and there was nothing to stop her. She felt that, with Legolas, she could conquer the world if she so wanted.

She wrapped an arm around Legolas, her lover, her life, and laid her head on his chest, listening to his heart.

"I love you," she murmured as she drifted off into sleep again.

"I know," Legolas whispered.

-O-

Guests began streaming in two weeks before then wedding. All of the Fellowship were summoned, Galadriel and Celeborn, Faramir and Eowyn, Eomer and his new wife Lothiriel, and many people otherwise.

Arwen and Fanya were introduced, and Arwen had befriended her easily. She began to fuss over the decorations and almost robbed Fanya of the job of planning a wedding entirely.

"I missed out on my own wedding planning, so I'm taking yours," she joked one day, when she and Fanya were picking flowers out of the garden Fanya had tended to.

To this, Fanya just laughed and let her. She had spent FAR too much time working on this, in her opinion.

Coming with Aragorn and the party from Gondor were several human officials there to talk to Thranduil. As Fanya was about to turn to help Thranduil with something, Fanya heard a rather familiar voice.

"WHOA! Look Mommy! Look at all the elves! See their pointy ears? LOOK!"

"Not so loudly, Terra!" her mother shushed her. Fanya turned on Legolas.

"You didn't tell me they were coming!" she exclaimed happily.

"It must have slipped my mind," Legolas shrugged. Fanya punched his arm, kissed his cheek, and then rushed over to meet her nieces and her sister. Terra got to her first and plummeted into her stomach, nearly knocking the wind out of Fanya.

"Oh Fanya, Fanya! Look at all the Elves, Fanya! Do you live here?" she asked excitedly in her childish high-pitched voice.

"Yes, Terra. I live in there," she pointed behind her to the palace, and she watched as Terra's eyes grew comically wide.

"In THERE?" she asked in awe. By this time, Gerin had helped Ana off of her horse and the two women were walking towards her. Fanya embraced both of them tightly and expressed how excited she was to have them here, and how unexpected it was. Legolas came to them and slipped an arm around Fanya's waist after kissing Ana, Gerin on their cheeks, and Terra on her head.

"Your husband there came up with the idea. He tracked us down while he was in Minas Tirith... and imagine how shocked I was when the Prince of Mirkwood and the King Ellesar himself knocked on my door!" Ana said with a smile.

"ARAGORN!" Fanya yelled to the human king. He came over to the group and grinned sheepishly at the stern face that Fanya was wearing. "YOU were the one to bring these three lovely women along?" Fanya yelled at him. "And you didn't TELL me?"

"Yes..." Aragorn mumbled. He looked surprised when she threw her arms around him.

"Thank you," she whispered.

"Now come along. I know there is plenty of room in the Palace to stow you three away," she winked. "I will show you to your rooms and you can bathe," (Terra winced at this,) "and get ready for the welcome feast for the Gondorian party."

Legolas was impressed with how Fanya handled things so easily...she would make a wonderful wife. 'And mother', he added to himself.

Everybody was situated in their rooms soon enough, and Terra practically dove into the bath when she saw the dress that Fanya had found for her. While Gerin and Terra were occupied, Fanya went and sat down with Ana.

"Ana, I have a big favor to ask of you," Fanya asked.

"What? Anything for my big sister," she smiled.

"Well, let me explain how an Elvish wedding works," Fanya started to say. She and Legolas had discussed this at length (for obvious reasons), and they had come up with a solution to their only glitch. "An Elvish wedding consists of two parts: The public presentation, and the presentation to the Creator. What we're presenting is our bond that we have created, the bond that links our souls together forever. In the first part of the ceremony, the bride and bridegroom are linked together by a rope tied to their wrists. The mother of the bride and the father of the groom tie the knot," Fanya paused.

"So you see where my dilemma is... I have no mother to tie my knot," Fanya said with a halfhearted smile. "I was hoping that you would step in for Mother," she finally said.

"Of course I will, Sister," Ana exclaimed. Fanya stood up and threw her arms around her sister.

"Than you so much, Ana... this means the world to me," she muttered into Ana's gray hair.

"I never knew how, but your love in my early childhood never left me. It is my pleasure, close to the end of my own life, to do this for you," Ana said sweetly.

"I will see you later tonight... I have to go tell Legolas!" Fanya started to walk out the room excitedly, but Ana called her as she reached the door.

"Oh, and Fanya," she said. Fanya turned, wearing a questioning look, "That's a fine man you're marrying," Ana said. Fanya beamed.

-O-

The place where the wedding ceremony was to occur was jammed with elves all festively dressed and talking merrily. There was an aisle lit by torches that were flickering happily in the autumn wind. There were lanterns swinging from tree branches, illuminating the crowd.

But as Fanya and her sister stood at the end of the aisle, the chatter ceased. Except for the rustle of the wind and the evening chirps of crickets, not a sound was heard. Ana hooked her arm in Fanya's and started to walk her down the aisle. Fanya's attention was drawn to Legolas, and Legolas only. He looked, if possible, even more handome than he usually did. He was wearing a silver outfit, which seemed to sparkle in the twilight. His hair was flowing freely down his shoulders, and upon his brow was a circlet, denoting him as crown Prince.

She came to a stop in front of Legolas, and tried to smile. Legolas smiled weakly in return, and took her hands in his. He lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed it, never breaking his spellbound eye contact with her.

In his eyes Fanya saw fear, uncertainty, determination, love, passion... and many more emotions. Through her bond with him, she was sure that those emotions were mirrored in her own blue eyes.

Thranduil started talking, speaking in Silvan, language of the High Elves.

"In the beginning of time, Illuvatar sang the beautiful song of creation, envisioning a harmonic union between the earth, the Elves, and himself. And he sang the world into being, and he made it perfect, never to be disfigured with dissonant melodies.

"In the same way, we unite these two elves tonight before Illuvatar our creator with this wood as our witness." Thranduil paused, looking at his son, and then to Fanya. Both elves, he knew, were itching to get their hands on each other, to unite as husband and wife at last.

The elves sang the first song customary to Elvish weddings. It spoke of the creation of Arda, and of the bond between the Creator and the creation. As the last notes faded away, Thranduil spoke again.

"Bring the gifts forward," Thranduil motioned to Aragorn and Arwen, who brought two gifts forward, handing them to Thranduil and Ana. Ana's gift was a small bag.

Ana spoke first, in a wavering voice, and because she spoke no Elvish, only those who knew the tongue of Men could understand.

Ana extended the small bag to Thranduil, who took it only after she had spoken. "From the land of Gondor, we present a seed of the White Tree for your garden as a symbol of the union of Men and Elves alike," she breathed deeply after she said this, stepping back and looking relieved.

Thranduil nodded deeply in gratitude, and then took the package from Aragorn. He unwrapped the cloth and unraveled a sash, much like the one Fanya was wearing. It was green and embroidered with ivy vines, wound around a bow.

"A sash with the design my son requested for his wife to wear," Thranduil announced. Fanya's eyes were drawn to a tiny inscription with the words in Elven script, "That to which we do not know is not a mystery if we just try to learn."

As Fanya read this, she pondered the words. Legolas smiled, and mouthed, "I will explain."

The ceremony resumed after the Giving of the Gifts with a second song. This was a song of promise, the song of Vows. After the verses had been sung by the wood, their voices faded with the last note, and the song was taken up by Legolas and Fanya. The words of the song were sung in unison and were learned by heart.

"Tonight,

The infinite stars rejoice,

For our bond is known to them now,

Just as it was initiated by them.

Tonight,

I vow to love you for all my life,

Care for you forever,

And if Mandos' halls call one of us,

Then I will follow you eternally,

With no regrets.

Through witnesses here

Tonight,

Our bond is known to the whole world,

And tonight,

We celebrate our love,

Not only tonight,

But evermore."

While Legolas and Fanya sang, Ana had withdrawn two golden bands from another bag and placed the rings on Fanya and Legolas' index fingers. Arwen stepped forward and untied Fanya's white sash, and replaced it with the green one that had just been given to her. Ana and Thranduil then joined Legolas' and Fanya's left wrists with a silver rope.

The last words of the song left their lips and silence was once again setting into the air. Thranduil spoke a few last words. "Legolas, Prince of Eryn Lasgalen, and Fanya, daughter of Gondor, you have spoken the vows. You are now eternally bound.

"Fanya, please kneel. We have one last task tonight before the festivities start," Thranduil assured. Fanya knelt, and Legolas with her, because their wrists were joined.

"Fanya, through your marriage to my son, crown prince of this wood, you take up the title as Princess. Do you accept this title and all its duties?" Thranduil asked. Fanya swore she heard him add under his breath, "No matter how boring they can be." This made Fanya smile.

"I do accept this title and all its duties and ask the strength of Erü to help me and guide my actions and decisions," Fanya recited. She then felt the light pressure of a circlet being secured on her head. Part of it twisted and dipped down and the metal pressed coolly against her skin.

"Please rise," Thranduil commanded. "My people," he addressed the crowd. "Prince Legolas, and Princess Fanya," he spoke. The crowd whistled and clapped.

Legolas leant forward and kissed Fanya chastely on her lips. "They love you," he whispered.

"Well, I love you," she replied. "Forever."


A/N: Awww... I love Legolas!

Orli: And me. You love me too!

Me: Shove it, curly.

So, they're married now... Yay! After-party is next chapter... and speaking of party, I have to shop for my little "yay summer's here" party now, so review really fast while I go to the store!

-Ivy

P.S. Thanks fo Lady Anck-su-Namun, amrawo, and "Anonymous" for reviewing! I'm up to 235 reviews! -celebrates-