A/N: This is my chapter! That I've been working on for... oh, at least five months. Probably more. Gosh... how long has it been? ForEVER, that's for sure! So anyway, sorry about the delay. Hooray for the end of school happening, which means more updates (hopefully). Thank you to Lucía for making me realize that I have to get off my butt and update this! And thank you to Shivvers for... well, just being there. Because you always are. :D
Disclaimer: Tolkien is god. I am not. I like phrases. Phrases are good. They are short... This is short. Get over it.
oOo
"...So who is this Gildor person?" Legolas asked.
"He's wonderful... He's the son of one of the palace guards, and he's in training for it now... I really like him..." Alí said dreamily. As always, she and Legolas were out on Alí's balcony staring at the stars. They both felt very comfortable in their positions on the floor of the balcony. Alí had her head on Legolas' stomach, feeling it rise and fall with every breath of air. Several shooting stars erupted, and both elves laughed. So perfect was their world now...
"When will I get to meet him?" Legolas asked after a moment of silence.
"I'm sure that you'll see him soon... it's hard to miss him! He's so handsome..." she added, quite randomly.
"What about me?" Legolas asked, raising his head off of the ground to look at her. She craned her neck backwards and looked him in the eye.
"Ah... well... you're..." she shrugged. "...Iish..." A silence followed her odd words, until both of them burst out laughing at the same time. The entire valley seemed to echo with their mirth.
"What kind of a word is 'iish'?" Legolas sniggered.
"Iish... you know... 'so-so'..." Alí shrugged. "I dunno... you figure it out. Legolas rolled his eyes and then closed them. This was perfect.
I saw that prince practicing clumsily with his knives at one of the training pitches. As I approached, I saw him attempt a rather difficult maneuver with the blades, and as he twirled one blade he misplaced one of his fingers and the piece of training metal fell from his grip. He sighed loudly and slumped to pick it up and attempt to do it again, but my call startled him.
"My Prince," I said loudly from where I was leaning casually on a tree.
"What?" he asked.
"You know the Lady Alíana?" I asked, already knowing the answer to that. He only spent every waking hour with her.
"Yes? What about Alí?" He asked concernedly, seeming to automatically assume the worst.
"Nothing is wrong with her! I just wished to know that I am speaking to the right person!" I held up my hands and started to amble towards him. "My name is Gildor." I said when I was within five feet of the young elf. The Prince's face brightened.
"Oh Gildor! Alí speaks of you all the time!" he said cheerfully. "Pleasure to meet you!" he said.
"Alíana does speak of you often enough," I added casually. Alíana practically didn't shut up about this Prince Brother of hers. But idle conversation was not why I was here. "I have but a simple question of you: Are you involved with her any way romantically?" I asked point-blank.
The Prince looked quite shocked, and immediately answered, "No. Why?"
"Just a question!" I held up my hands again. "Thank you... have a nice day." I said, slinking back into the shadows.
Well... that went well. Next phase, please.
oOo
As Gildor walked away, Legolas glared at his back. It was not like Legolas to dislike someone on their first encounter, but he did not like the way that Gildor talked. Or the way that he moved... very unnaturally smoothly; as if he were trying to charm his onlookers.
"Legolas! Legolas!" It was Alí! Legolas discarded his troubled thoughts of Gildor the guard, and turned to face his sister. She vaulted into him, hugging him and actually knocking him to the ground.
"Alí! What has gotten into you?" Legolas laughed. She straddled his stomach and had her hands on his shoulders, pinning him to the ground.
"I don't know... I just haven't seen you in a while... do you want to go swimming?" she asked.
"Yeah!" Legolas jumped at the opportunity. "I found a great place to go to! Follow me!" he called, picking up his knives and running into the forest. Alí joyfully followed him, giggling in excitement as she ran.
Legolas eventually led her to what looked like a cliff. "Legolas?" she asked as she slowed down.
"Do you like it?" he asked, turning to face her. She peered over the edge, and saw a magnificent lake, sparkling in the sunlight overhead. There was a drop of about twenty feet from the ledge to the water level. She squealed and hugged him tightly.
"How did you find this?" she asked. Legolas started to take off his shirt and boots, setting them down on the cliff. "What are you doing?" she changed her question as he did this.
"Going swimming, what else?" he replied. He was unlacing his boots, and grinning to himself.
"But how will we get down there?" she asked him worriedly, putting a hand on his shoulder. He padded silently over to the ledge. He didn't answer her again.
"Take off your dress, you wouldn't want that getting wet," he suggested to her. She did so, but not taking her eyes off of her brother. When she was done, she joined Legolas at the edge.
"Ready?" he asked, his eyes glittering.
"We're not going to jump are we?" she read the answer in his laughing eyes. "Oh gosh, we are!" but before she finished getting the words out of her mouth, Legolas had scooped her up off her feet and jumped out into the water, holding her like a baby. She screamed and clung onto him, and when they hit the water, she ended up swallowing some water. She rose to the surface of the pleasantly cold water coughing up water and glaring at Legolas when he arose too.
She drew one hand back and slapped him. Hard.
"Ow!" he laughed. "Oh come on, Alí! You would have never jumped had I not forced you to!"
"I KNOW! AND I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FOR MAKING ME!" she shouted, diving at him and forcing him under water.
They wrestled and swam in the water for hours until the sun went down. When they showed up dripping water and holding their dry clothes in the large entrance hall, they were quickly shooed to their rooms. Hours into the night, Alí crept across the hall and joined Legolas in his room, curling up beside him in his bed and talking to him for hours more.
oOo
Unfortunately, it all had to end sometime...
"Legolas, don't go! Please don't go!" Alí whimpered, eyes glistening with tears she was shedding without recoil. Legolas stood next to his white horse at the gates; his own tears spilling out of his sapphire eyes as well.
"I have to, Sister. I don't want to, but I have to!" he whispered to Alí, hugging her tightly. He really didn't want to leave his sister in Rivendell, but his father had allowed him to stay as long as time allowed. His mother was anxious to see her son. So finally, after six months of adjustment to Middle Earth, the time finally came when Legolas Greenleaf and Alíana Halfelven were to part for the first time in their lives.
"Alí, have this. It will remind you of me while I am gone." Legolas took out a chain and placed it into her hands. It was a mithril chain, unbreakable, and it had a pendant on the end of it of a green leaf, shimmering with forest green emeralds. Thranduil had given it to him, telling him that it was the royal family's symbol, and that his mother had it made for him before he was born; to be given to him when he was old enough to treasure it.
"Legolas, no," Alí sniffed, unfolding her hand and thumbing the smooth jeweled surface. "It is yours," she tried to push it back into Legolas hands, but he refused to take it.
"Not anymore. It is yours now," he told her. Liliana and Lauralin approached Legolas, interrupting him and Alí. She stepped backwards, not stemming the flow of tears that were cascading down her cheeks.
Both Liliana and Lauralin hugged Legolas tightly, telling him their goodbyes and telling him to come back soon. Legolas hugged them both fondly, but his eyes were still fixed on the beauty of his other sister. She wasn't looking at him; she was still fiddling with his chain. When Liliana and Lauralin replaced themselves beside Elrohir, Legolas approached Alí again. He said nothing, but gently pried the chain out of her hands. He put it over her head. The chain was slightly longer than where her dress neckline came up to, and when she moved the jewel subtly tucked itself inside of her shirt next to her heart.
"Legolas, you can't leave without me... Take this, since you cannot have me with you. You deserve this as much as you say I deserve your pendant." She reached into an unseen pocket and brought out a polished, heart-shaped locket. When he opened it up, it showed a picture of him, standing behind Alí, hugging her, while she was sitting on a swing. They looked no older than 10. They were both smiling at the camera; they had the most angelic smiles that showed how happy they were together...
How happy they would always be.
"Thank you," he croaked. He gave her another tight hug. His salty tears leaked onto her, and joined with the tears that she shed. He gripped the chain tightly, and the locket dangled from his fist.
She held onto him tightly and whispered, "Come back for me."
"I will... I swear I will..." They stood there for all of eternity, and finally broke apart. As if in a movie that had come to a dramatic part in slow motion, Legolas mounted his horse and followed his father out of the gates.
He looked back one last time, letting her see his face again, before he turned and slowly sank out of sight. The elves that had gathered to see the King and Prince off were slowly leaking out of the courtyard and back to their daily business, but Alíana stood there, sniffling, and not bothering to wipe her tears away. Her hand darted into her neckline, and brought out the jewel she was just given a few moments ago. She felt a strong arm on her shoulder and she found her father was standing there comforting her.
She couldn't bear it, she couldn't have any more tears left to spare, but she felt like she was being ripped in two... Legolas wasn't here anymore. He was gone.
He left.
...He's gone...
oOo
A/N: DONE. Nada mas. Well... until the next chapter anyway. Too late for thanks right now... except for Lucía, because she's my cool new friend. I like cool new friends.
End of semester in... 10 days for me. So HOORAY. SUMMER! I'm off to England this summer, so all of y'all in England should flock around me and say hello. ;) (yes, I said "Y'all" Get over it.)
Oh, you all should check out my original story on my FictionPress account! My penname there is 'Tae Kwon Do Elf'. There's only one story there... you can't miss it:)
The Hobbit Ivy
May 12, 2005 9:27 PM