The Return

Disclaimer: All belongs to Tolkien except for my characters Roslyn and Maethor – they are my own creations and are not meant to resemble anyone else's OCs in any way.

A/N: Thanks for all of the awesome reviews everyone! Enjoy!

Chapter 12: Confessions

(I Don't Know You – Metro Station)

Thranduil paced around his antechamber. It had been a week since they had last spoken and he was going out of his mind. He felt like his time was running out. Any day now she would come to him and tell him the deed was done. Or that she was going home. Or even worse, both. He had to get out of his rooms before he broke something.

He stomped his way down to the kitchens. He was thankful for the late hour since no one was safe from his horrid temper at the moment. He threw the doors open, making Roslyn almost fall out of her chair from fright. The lone candle on the prep table illuminated her surprised features.

Thranduil let go of the door, letting it swing shut behind him. He stared at her, not exactly sure of what to do next. He watched her throat as she swallowed heavily. Something snapped inside of him and he swiftly rounded on her. She jumped off her chair and backed up until she hit the counter.

"You."

Roslyn felt her heart thud in her chest as she craned her neck to look at his face. His hands came up and gently skimmed up her arms, making her shiver.

"Do I really have to spell it out for you? Are you really so blind?" he whispered.

"W-what are you talking about?" she breathed out.

"I love you, you foolish woman."

She was breathing hard now, her mind reeling.

"I love you," he repeated as his face inched closer to hers.

"No."

She pushed against him until he relented, allowing her to move away.

"No, you can't do this now. You're just saying that because I'm pregnant with your baby."

"Don't be ridiculous."

"You can't do this to me! You don't love me! You only think you do, but it's just an illusion! It's not real!"

He walked over and grabbed her upper arms.

"Yes it is!" he hissed, "It is real. I love you!"

"I don't believe you! You just think you do because of the baby. And when the baby comes, with all of its stresses and responsibilities, you'll realize the truth. You'll see that you never really loved me and we'll be right back to where we started."

"Why won't you listen to me?! I've been in love with you since the first time you were here! How can you not see that?"

"Is that why you sent me home to my own world?" she asked evenly.

"Will you never forgive me for my mistakes?"

"I can't do this with you anymore."

She tore her arms out of his grasp and ran out of the kitchen. Thranduil stood there a moment with fists clenched and breath heavy. He grabbed her empty water glass and spinning around, smashed it against the stone wall.

…

"So this is a nice upgrade."

"Yeah, there's more room in these chambers, since there are two of us here now. And who knows, maybe a third before long."

Roslyn turned her head and looked over at Tauriel, a grin spreading over her face.

"That soon, huh?"

"I mean, no plans. But I'm just saying…"

"Yeah, I guess these things can just happen."

She went back to examining the ceiling in Tauriel's new bedroom. The two friends were spread out comfortably on the bed as they gossiped. They were silent now, but Roslyn could feel the question hanging in the air between them – the one that Tauriel was dying to ask.

"Sooo…"

"No, I haven't done anything yet."

"You do know that by not doing anything, you're making a decision."

"I know."

They grew silent again.

"Maybe it wouldn't be so bad."

"What?"

"Keeping the baby."

Tauriel shot up immediately.

"You're going to keep it?"

"I didn't say that. I'm just…thinking out loud," she sighed, "I mean, not everything that happened between us was bad. There were a lot of good things. A lot of happy moments. And maybe this baby can be a reminder of those good times. It would be nice to have that with me when I'm back in my world..."

Tauriel threw herself back down on the bed.

"You should stay here. Even if you and Thranduil don't work out."

"We're not working out Tauriel."

"As I said, even so, you should stay. You know he'd let you. And Maethor and I could help with the baby. Everyone here would accept you both. I know you were worried about that in your world."

"It's a nice thought, but I'm not so sure Thranduil would want me to stick around at this point. We kind of had a bad blowout last night."

Tauriel looked over at her, "Well at least you two finally spoke to each other."

"More like yelled at each other."

"What happened?"

"Well, it was late last night and I couldn't sleep. So after wandering around a bit, I got hungry. I was just sitting there in the kitchen, finishing my snack, when he came bursting in. I don't think he realized I was in there at first because he looked pretty shocked to see me."

"Ok…"

"And then he just stormed over and…he was so close…and he smelled so good…and he ran his hands up my arms…" she shivered from just the memory of it.

"Roslyn, you're not about to give me a detailed account of you two having sex on the kitchen table, are you?"

Snapping out of it, Roslyn laughed lightly.

"No! Just listen!"

"Alright…but I'm just saying, you can keep that part to yourself!" Tauriel giggled.

"We didn't have sex!"

"Ok, ok. Go on."

"Anyway, he was right there, and then…he told me he loved me."

Tauriel leapt up onto her knees. She bounced on the bed in front of Roslyn in excitement as a huge grin stretched her lips.

"HE WHAT?!"

Roslyn rolled her eyes at her friend's antics as she sat up too.

"He finally told me he loved me."

"Why aren't you more happy about this?!"

Roslyn grabbed a pillow and hugged it to her chest. Pursing her lips she looked at Tauriel through her lashes.

"I just don't know if I believe him."

"You've got to be kidding me."

Tauriel's shoulders slumped. She repositioned and sat down cross-legged instead.

"Why did he have to wait until now?! If he really loves me, why did he have to wait until I got pregnant to tell me?!"

"Because he's stubborn. And an idiot."

Roslyn cracked a smile.

"I'm just afraid he's only saying that because of the baby. Maybe he thinks if he tells me he loves me then I'll keep the baby."

"Don't be silly. Who would do that?"

"Thranduil."

"Even he knows better."

"Maybe. It's just awfully suspicious to me. I want him to love me for real. Not just because I'm carrying his child."

"So you think he wants the baby and not you? How does that make sense?"

"I don't know! People are weird about babies."

"Clearly."

"Taurieeellll," Roslyn whined, "I don't know what to do. Tell me what to do."

"I think you should give him the benefit of the doubt. Go and talk to him – not shout at him. And tell him exactly how you feel about everything."

"It's not that easy. Things have been so…crazy between us."

"Do you trust him?"

"I don't know anymore."

"Yes you do. Think about it honestly. If it really came down to it, would you put your trust in him?"

Roslyn stayed silent for several long minutes.

Then finally, "Yes."

"And do you love him?"

"Tauriel!"

"It's an honest question. Do you?"

"I…I…"

"Just close your eyes and picture him. How do you feel?"

Roslyn did as she was told. She imagined him there with her instead of Tauriel. She imagined him running his fingers through her hair and kissing her temple. She imagined him taking her into his arms and just holding her. Then she imagined him sitting there with their infant, lulling him or her to sleep. She opened her eyes.

"I love him," she whispered.

"It might be a good idea to go tell him that. Especially since you yelled at him when he made his confession to you."

Roslyn threw her pillow at Tauriel before getting up and leaving the chambers.

…

Instead of going to find Thranduil, Roslyn went out into the gardens. She needed a minute to herself to digest her raw and honest admission. She felt nervous, almost sick to her stomach, as she thought about divulging her feelings to him.

You love him. You know you do. You always have, ever since the first time you were here. And it's ok to be scared.

"Well hello there."

She turned around to find Maethor behind her.

"Oh, hi. What are you doing here?"

"Just on my way back from the archery range. I must confess that I was going to steal a few flowers from the garden for my new wife," he grinned sheepishly.

Roslyn laughed, "I promise not to tell anyone."

"You look like you have a lot on your mind."

"Yes, I do."

"Would you like for me to leave you alone?"

She smiled up at him, "No, I wouldn't mind some company."

"Alright then."

He held his arm out for her and Roslyn accepted gratefully. The two walked in companionable silence for a stretch until Maethor finally spoke.

"So I saw Thranduil this morning."

"Oh?"

"He told me about last night."

"Ah."

"The poor sod. Finally admits he loves you and you still deny him."

"Maethor," Roslyn's tone was disapproving with a hint of warning.

"I'm sorry my lady, I know it's probably not my place. But given the fact that you're best friends with my wife, I will take some liberty. You need to cut him a break. Baby or not, he loves you. He has for a long time, it's just taken him a while to be able to admit it."

Roslyn thought about his words as they became silent once more.

"I just…don't understand why he couldn't tell me sooner! If that's how he felt, he should have told me! We've had so many issues and it would have helped if he'd been honest about how he felt!" she yelled suddenly.

"And what about you?"

"What about me?!"

"Were you honest about your feelings with him?"

"I went to tell him I loved him and he told me to go home. I'm sorry if I was less than forthcoming the second time around."

Maethor frowned.

"Look, I understand where you're coming from. He can be closed off and cold and stubborn. But somehow, you managed to break down every single one of his walls. And though he won't tell you this, it scared him. His feelings for you confused him and terrified him. But is that what you really needed? You needed him to say the words? Were his actions not enough? He tried to show you his love in everything that he did for you."

(Long Way Down – Robert DeLong)

Roslyn twisted her head away from him, refusing to answer. She thought back on the handful of boyfriends that she'd had in the past. 'I love you' was thrown around so easily. And yet, none of them had meant it. She hadn't meant it either when she'd said it back. And look where they had ended up.

Maybe Maethor is right. You've been so wrapped up in everything he did wrong before, you've been blind to what he's been trying to tell you. I guess sometimes actions really do mean more than words.

She sighed as she realized how senseless she'd been.

"We've really messed things up, haven't we?"

The pair paused briefly and Maethor turned to face her.

"You can still fix it."

She looked up at him cautiously.

"You really think so? We have…done a lot to hurt each other."

"Yes, I really think so. You realize your mistakes, learn from them, and do everything in your power to never repeat them again."

"I want to keep the baby," she finally confessed.

Maethor smiled at her, "I knew you would."

"I'm scared. I have no idea what to do with a baby. And I never thought I'd be a mother at my age."

"No one knows what they're doing at first. But the nice thing is, you have friends here who care about you. And who would be happy to help."

"Thank you," she smiled genuinely at him.

"Thranduil will make a good father, I think. Maybe a little strict, but I can work on that."

"Come on now, we both know he's a big softy inside. That baby will have him wrapped around its little finger," he laughed.

She joined him in his amusement, "Ok, you're probably right. But I just can't believe this! I can't wrap my head around all of this…we're going to be parents. I can't believe he actually wants the baby."

"I know. That means you two have to get your shit straight!"

"Maethor!" she elbowed him playfully.

"And of course he wants the baby. He loves you. What a better expression of that than a child?"

Roslyn smiled to herself at his words. She felt an unfamiliar surge of excitement at the prospect of this new future for them.

"Oh!" Roslyn gripped his arm as she felt a small cramp in her stomach.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah…I think so."

He scrutinized her carefully.

"Come."

They resumed their leisurely walk once more. She noticed the constant sideways glances he kept giving her as they went on, but said nothing. Their moment of quiet gave her some time to let her mind wander. She thought about what it would be like to raise a child with Thranduil. A bubble of excitement and anticipation ran through her. She suddenly felt an urgency to talk to him. She needed for them to reconcile and finally air things out.

And then she felt it again. The unmistakable cramping down below. A cold chill filled her veins as she stopped dead in her tracks. Her fingers clutched Maethor's arm as her right hand flew to her stomach.

"Roslyn?"

A look of pain crossed her features as their eyes met. She watched as the color drained from his face.

"Roslyn," he said seriously, "You're bleeding."

She closed her eyes briefly before looking back at him.

"I know. I think…I think I'm having a miscarriage."

He took in a sharp breath through his nose. Without another word, he bent down and scooped her up in his arms. He carried her quickly to the healers. Neither one said a word as small whimpers escaped her lips.

A/N: Sorry for the cliffy! Ok, maybe I'm not that sorry ;)

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