Chapter 11

Legolas stood proudly, watching the whispering crowd. In his heart, though, he thought, I never thought it would end this way. Not of wounds will I die but of being what I am. No, I shall die because of love. Where would I be now were it not for that? In my father's hall, or even in Valinor. And yet I am to die. I bid you well, Uherenye, though you are the cause of this. For without you I would not be here in the first place; without you I would not have fallen for Elizabeth.

The drums rolled. A voice declared the reason for his hanging - attempted murder of a government official. That was the story that Elizabeth and her father had spread around, the story that had allowed her and Commodore Norrington to announce their engagement.

The hangman slipped the noose over Legolas's neck and the drums rolled faster. Soon, any moment, the door on the platform would drop, as it had done for Jack, but there would be no Will Turner to throw a sword this time. The drums rolled still faster. Tatatatatatatatatatatatatatatata…

"May I have a few last words?" Legolas inquired. The hangman gave him a look as if to say, "Yeah right!"

The elf surveyed the crowd, and suddenly he saw a familiar - and friendly - face. "Jack!" Too late he realized that he had yelled the name out loud.

"That's me, all right," said the pirate, seemingly undisturbed by the fact that the whole crowd was now staring at him. He gave Legolas one of those looks, the kind he always used when he was about to quip about the elf supposedly being a eunuch or some such thing. "I must say, I never thought of you as a blonde, Mr. Turner." He grinned as his previous expression appeared even more clearly. "By the way…did it hurt?"

"What!" Legolas then remembered the more annoying part of Jack's personality.

"You know…snip snip?" Jack made a motion with his hand as if he was cutting something.

"Jack! I'm about to be hanged and all you can do is make your little jokes?" He said the last word with utter disgust.

"All right, down the business now - savvy?"

Legolas's glare was ruined as his lips involuntarily twitched up into a smile from hearing the pirate use his favorite word.

"Ladies and gents," Jack began, "I am proud to tell you that you will always remember this as the day you almost hung Prince Legolas Greenleaf. However, before this escape commences I believe he has a few words to say." He nodded to return the attention of the crowd back to Legolas.

How did he figure out my name? Legolas wondered briefly, then began making what he hoped was a convincing speech. "Citizens of Port Royal, friends of old. When I was brought here, you befriended me, provided me with food, and shelter. An apprenticeship. I was no different then than now. Would you have suspected me of murder then? I think not. There has been corruption in governments before. Who is to say that you have been told the truth? I have a story of my own. One that none of you have bothered to ask for. I would tell you it, but not in this manner. Not as I stand here with a rope round my neck and you all crowded around with the sole purpose of seeing me murdered. If Governor Swann and his daughter could tell their story…why can't I?"

Suddenly Legolas's mind was flooded with memories, snatches of conversations he had had long ago with Uherenye. As is the way with Elves, memory mixed with the waking world and the sounds of the crowd mingled with the sweet tones of his lover's voice. And then Jack was there, right in front of him, and he was saying something - but what was it? No, it wasn't Jack now. It was his father, Thranduil, whose face he had not seen for so long. The King of Mirkwood's face was drawn and pale, full of worry and grief as if he had been experiencing those emotions for quite some time.

"Ada…" Legolas put a hand on Thranduil's shoulder. The older elf was so startled that he went through seemingly every sentiment possible before settling on happy tears. Legolas found that he too was crying, able to think of nothing but how good it was to be home and alive - though he did spare one quick thought on what would happen to Jack.

After they had both gotten themselves together, Legolas laid back on his pillows - he was in bed, though fully dressed - and asked a suddenly demanding question: "What happened?"

Thranduil sighed. "A few minutes after I left you, having said that we would talk later, I happened to pass by your door again and heard you speaking, and what was more, in the Common Speech. I knew you could not be talking to one of our kind so I opened the door to see who was there. You were alone and seemed to have fainted. I waited by your side for some time and then you opened your eyes, but they seemed clouded, far away. You began to move, and to speak again in the Common Speech, but your words were not directed to me nor to anyone visible to me. I tried everything I knew to cure you, and Elrond of Rivendell came to help but left puzzled. So it has gone on for nine years, as Men count them. I have never been so glad in my life as I am this day, for I thought I had lost you, my son. Legolas, you may marry anyone you want. I was wrong. I am sorry."

Legolas sat up in bed. "Then I may ask for Uherenye's hand in marriage?" His hopes rose, but sank again as a pained expression spread over his father's face. "What has happened?" he asked, alarmed.

"She is gone. She sailed to Valinor with the rest of her kin. She wished to stay, Legolas, to wait for you, but her father and I saw that here in Middle Earth she would have wasted away from grief. Do you understand? We did what was best."

"I…I understand, Ada. Yes, I do. What was best. Yes." Legolas was trying to hold back the tears. "What was best." He slumped back onto his pillows, shutting out the world as best he could as he got lost in old memories.