A/N: Mwahaha I'm so mean to my characters. :D If Íverin was real, I'm sure she'd kill me for all the hell I've put her through. But enough of that! Get reading!

Disclaimer: The only thing I own is Íverin! Now can we please put away the tar and feathers?

Mob: * grumbles as they walk away*

I faded in and out of consciousness for awhile. Every now and again, I could hear faint voices, and feel the brief shock of pain. I never opened my eyes, though, for I was simply too exhausted to even lift a finger. I could not remember much, save for a few words and phrases spoken by whoever was around me at the time, such as "...dangerously close...miraculous victory...Mordor...should be able to..." and something about "not leaving without me." To be truthful, none of it made much sense to me, and at the time I did not wish to try and decipher it. I did not recognize any of the voices, save for Aragorn's at one point.

After what felt like wandering aimlessly in an eternal blackness, I came back to my senses. I felt the weight of my body, and the touch of cool, thin blankets. I took a deep breath, rejuvenated by the fresh air that filled my lungs, and opened my eyes. I was in a small room, made of white stone. Bright moonlight filled the room from a tall window to my right. For a few moments, I simply laid there, not moving a muscle, simply enjoying the feeling of being awake. Loose, simple thoughts ran through my head. I wondered where I was, and how I had gotten here. How long had I been sleeping? What time was it?

Finally, I decided to try and sit up. My whole body felt stiff, with every muscle aching as I sat up a bit on my elbows. A dull pain throbbed in my shoulder, and I looked down at it to see it wrapped tightly in white bandages. In fact, my clothes had been replaced as well. I was now wearing a gray cotton, puffy shirt, and long brown pants. My old clothes were folded neatly in a pile on the small table next to my bed. I looked over at them, and then saw my sword leaning against the wall.

Suddenly, I remembered everything. The battle on the Pelennor. The Oliphaunt. Being shot...

I stared at my sword. "I...I'm alive..."

"And what a surprising recovery you've made." I jumped at the sound of a voice that was not my own, and saw a man standing in the doorway with red hair and a scruffy beard and mustache, and pale blue eyes. He was of average height, and looked very young. He was dressed in very noble-looking clothes. "Forgive me if I startled you, miss. I just came to see how you were doing."

"It is not a problem, I assure you," I said. "But, if I may ask, where am I, and what time is it, and who are you?"

"You are in the Houses of Healing, in Minas Tirith, my lady. It is...about nine o'clock in the evening, and as for me, I am Captain Faramir."

I tensed. Faramir. He was Lord Denethor's son. I desperately hoped that he had not seen my ears. "L-Lord Faramir! I...I uh..."

He must have caught the worried look in my eye, for he smiled a bit. "There is no need to worry, Lady Íverin. I know who you are."

I watched as he stepped closer to the bedside. "You remember me."

"But of course!" he chuckled softly. "You cannot possibly think that I had forgotten about you."

I sighed in defeat and looked down. "I am so sorry for intruding. I know that I have not the permission to be here, and...if you plan to execute me, then...so be it." I self-consciously reached up and touched my ear.

Faramir sat down on the bed beside me and smiled wider. "Why do you think that?"

"They are your father's orders."

He sighed sadly. "My father...is no more. His orders mean nothing."

I frowned, confused. "But...why? I don't understand."

"I do not have the heart to tell you at the moment. All you need to know is this: I, Faramir, am now Steward of Gondor, and I have lifted your banishment."

My jaw dropped. "Really? You...you really mean that?"

He looked at me and smiled. "I would never lie to you." Slowly, Faramir reached up and tucked my hair behind my ears. "There is no reason for you to hide anymore." He looked at me a moment longer.

Suddenly, there came a quiet mumble, and the sound of moving blankets. I looked over to a corner shrouded in shadow and saw a lump turn about in a large armchair. The lump turned over, and my heart swelled when I saw the face of Legolas, sound asleep.

I gasped softly. I had forgotten about him in the midst of my recovery. I remembered the look on his face when he saw me get shot, and when I had fallen. He must've been worried sick about me all this time.

I realized that Faramir was still sitting beside me, and turned to him. He looked...disappointed. I glanced back over at Legolas.

Faramir smiled, but not wholeheartedly. "I understand. I will not separate you from whom you truly love." He stood up, and I sat up a bit more, leaning back against the wall. "Would you like me to wake him?"

I looked at the sleeping blonde again. Normally, I would not want to disturb him. He needed rest as much as I did, and I did not want to deprive him of that. But...I wanted to be held my him again. I wanted to see his smile and hear his voice. More than anything. So I nodded. "Yes. Yes, please do."

The young captain nodded and went over to him, bending down a bit and gently shaking his shoulder. "Master Legolas."

The elven prince stirred and slowly opened his eyes for a moment, but then closed them again. "Mmm...yes, Lord Faramir?"

Faramir removed his hand and stepped back. "Your friend...she is awake."

Before he even finished speaking, Legolas's eyes shot open and found mine. They looked as wonderfully blue and bright as ever. I smiled weakly. "Hello, nîn herma," I said quietly.

He practically jumped out of the chair and ran over to me, kissing me before I could say anything else, and lifted me off of the bed, cradling me in his arms. "Íverin...Cala...oh Íverin, I thought I had lost you..." He hugged me hard, pulling me close to his chest.

I returned the embrace as best as I could. "You do not have to worry about me anymore, Legolas. I am okay."

He smiled and kissed me again. "You have no idea how happy I am now that I know you are safe," he whispered.

"I love you, Legolas."

"I love you too, Cala. So, so much."

I looked at him. "How long was I asleep?"

"Too long," he said. "Hours. The healers were tending to you all day long, and they would not let me see you. Honestly, I am not supposed to be in here right now, but...I could not sleep without seeing you safe and alive."

I smiled. "How long were you in here with me?"

"Ever since this afternoon. Aragorn came to see you, too, and we...we thought you were gone."

"But I am not," I reassured him.

He smiled again. "I know that now, Íverin."

A wave of fatigue suddenly passed over me, and I blinked slowly. I also noticed that Faramir had left the room. "Forgive me, Legolas," I said, "but I am still quite tired. May I rest a bit more?"

Legolas immediately laid me back down on the bed and laid next to me. "Of course. Anything to help you recover, my love."

I yawned as soon as my head touched the pillow, and snuggled close to Legolas. My eyelids drooped. "I love you, Legolas. I will never be able to tell you that enough."

He lightly kissed the top of my head and hugged me again. "I love you too, Íverin."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

The next morning, I awoke to find that Legolas was still asleep next to me, with his arm loosely draped over my side, his fingers brushing my stomach. Very carefully, I slid out from underneath his warm embrace and went to dress myself for the day. Eventually, I decided on a black dress with white trim at the bottom, and sleeves that were tight around my upper arms and expanded out at the elbows, with white trim at the cuffs of those as well. Pearls formed a delicate belt around my hips and were dotted along the neckline. With my hair drawn back into a ponytail that hung over my right shoulder, I felt like a true Gondorian woman. If only my father could see me now...

I slipped on a pair of black slippers and planted one last kiss on Legolas's forehead before leaving the room. Once I was in the main hall of the Houses of Healing, I stood for a moment, watching the healer women bustle about the room, trying to save as many dying soldiers as they could. I looked over them all sadly, and briefly glanced down at my own wound. I hoped that they would be able to save as many lives as possible. Large cots were everywhere in the room, bearing soldiers that were badly wounded, some already dead. Those that had passed on were being taken out of the room, replaced almost instantly by more men that had been recently found on the battlefield.

As I swept my gaze across the room, a flash of sandy blonde hair caught my eye. I tried to get a better look at the fallen soldier, but from my current position, I could not see him with all of the other people moving about the room. I worked my way through the crowd a bit, and froze when I recognized the pale face of Merry, lying on a cot across the room, eyes closed. Pippin was standing my his side, with his back to me. I squeezed through the limited space I had and worked my way over to them, bending down next to my redheaded friend. "Pippin..."

The poor hobbit looked up at me with tears in his eyes, and gave me a hug. "Oh, Íverin! Look at Merry! Look at him! He...he's dying!"

I hugged him back. "Wait, Pippin. Let me look at him for a moment." The young halfling let me go, and I turned to examine Merry. His face was pinched in pain, and there was blood seeping through his shirt. I peeled back the fabric to see a nasty wound on his left side, still bleeding steadily. "Get me some sort of cloth," I said to Pippin. He obeyed, and a few seconds later I was able to press the fabric against his cut, hoping to stop the bleeding a bit. My skills in healing were very limited, and I looked around wildly for someone who could help Merry, but all of the other healers were busy. It was then that I saw another familiar face nearby. "Aragorn!" I cried.

His head snapped up upon hearing my voice, and as soon as he saw me, he ran up and hugged me hard. "My cousin! You are well!"

I smiled a bit. "Yes, Estel, I am well. But Merry is not." I flipped the cloth over to the clean side and pressed it over his side again. "He needs medicine, and quickly!"

Aragorn nodded. "Stay here, and keep that against the cut." He went to find medicines for Merry, and I was left with Pippin, who was crying openly now.

"Pippin, you need not weep. He is not dead."

"B-but he is so close! Merry...he is so close to death!" he said shakily.

I sighed and looked back at the brave hobbit. He was, in truth, dangerously close to dying, but of course I was not going to tell Pippin that. "We must wait. Aragorn will return soon, I am sure. Do not lose hope just yet."

Pippin nodded, and we stood beside the cot in silence for a bit until Aragorn returned with a fistful of the athelas plant and a bowl of hot water. "Move," he commanded. He crushed some the plant in his hands and sprinkled it into the water, which caused a sweet-smelling, very potent steam to rise from the bowl. Taking the rest of the athelas, Aragorn dipped a few leaves of it in the water, and then pressed them into Merry's open wound. I found another clean cloth and dipped it into the warm water, beginning to clean up the blood that had stained his flesh and clothes.

Aragorn set the bowl next to Merry's head, and took some of the water in his hands, making them damp. He then pressed his hands to the hobbit's face, and whispered something so soft that I could barely hear it. "Tolo hi, Meriadoc. Ná Elbereth veria le, ná elenath dín síla erin rád o chuil lín (Come now, Meriadoc. May Elbereth be with you, may her stars shine on the path of your life)." He removed his hands from Merry's face and stepped back.

A moment later, the hobbit's eyes fluttered open, and he coughed, gasping for air. After he had calmed down a bit, he looked from myself, to Aragorn, and then to Pippin. Pippin began to cry again and tackled his old friend in a bear hug. Merry winced in pain a bit, but returned the hug. After Pippin finally released him, he spoke. "How...how am I alive?"

I smiled. "By the healing skill of Aragorn." The Ranger smiled modestly.

Merry looked up at him. "Thank you, Aragorn. Very much. I thought I had died."

"You are a very strong hobbit, Master Merry. And quite a fighter, from what Lady Éowyn has told me."

His eyes widened. "Lady Éowyn! Where is she? Is she hurt?"

"She is alright, of that I can assure you. I just tended to her not too long ago. Both of you fought bravely." He then turned to face me. "But you...my cousin...you scared us all half to death. Are you sure that you are well?"

"I am fine, Aragorn," I said. "'Tis nothing more than a flesh wound."

Aragorn smiled and he hugged me again. "I cannot tell you how much I am glad to see your smiling face again. I assume you talked to Legolas already?"

"Of course. He is still sleeping, in fact," I giggled. "He must've been exhausted. Was he hurt at all?"

Aragorn glanced at the two hobbits standing nearby in the midst of a happy reunion. "Perhaps we should let them be, and continue our conversation elsewhere." I nodded, and together we strode through the Houses of Healing, heading back to my private room. "He was not hurt, but very tired, I'd imagine. He never left your side, Íverin. He was so worried about you. I actually had to threaten him to get him to go to sleep."

I laughed a bit. "Sounds just like him." We reached the door and slipped inside. "And what about you? Are you alright?"

"I am fine, thank you," Aragorn said. "Nothing more than a few minor cuts and scrapes."

I walked over to the bed. Legolas was still sound asleep, in the same position as I had left him. I remembered what Faramir had said to me the night before, and turned to my cousin excitedly. "Aragorn, you'll never guess what happened! Faramir lifted my banishment!"

"That is wonderful news," he said. "I am happy for you."

I sighed and looked out the window at the White City. We were on the seventh level of the City, as high as you could go, and everything looked absolutely beautiful. "I want to explore it so badly...but I do not want Legolas to worry if he wakes and discovers me missing."

"You go," Aragorn said. "I will wait for him."

"Oh Aragorn, you don't have to do that."

"Please," my cousin insisted. "Go have fun while you can."

I was about to argue, but a smile appeared on my face, and I ran over and gave him a quick hug. "Thank you," I whispered, and ran off.

For the rest of the day, I had the time of my life running around in the streets of Minas Tirith, visiting as many shops, markets, and other public facilities as I could. I felt like a small child again, finally accepted and loved back in my own home. It was the most fun I'd had in a long while, simply running around and not having a care in the world. I met several people who happened to be descendants of people who had known my father very well, even a few of my old family members whom I had never met. The whole day was just magnificent, and I fell in love with Gondor, drawn to the sparkle of the marble city in the sunlight.

I could've easily spent the entire evening wandering around my new favorite place in the world, but Aragorn finally found me again while I was looking at a beautiful sapphire necklace in one of the markets on the fifth level. "Ah, there you are! Faramir was wondering if you'd like to have dinner with Legolas, Gimli, Gandalf, the hobbits, him, and myself."

I smiled. "That sounds good to me!" I put the necklace back down on the table, and Aragorn and I walked back up to the seventh level. We talked and laughed the whole way, and I never once stopped smiling. As we emerged onto the top level and started heading towards the Gondorian palace, I realized how happy I was here. Everything was just absolutely amazing. The only thing that could've made it better was...

As if on cue, the huge double doors leading inside burst open, and Legolas came flying out, running down the stairs and across the grass to quickly meet up with us. Or rather, me. He wrapped me in a hug. "Íverin! How are you?"

I laughed. "Right now, I'm the happiest person in the world. And you?"

"Well, I am doing much better, now that I know you are safe." He planted a soft kiss on my hands, and the three of us walked inside. Upon entry, I saw that a large table was set up for all eight of us, with large platters of steaming food on the table. Gimli and Gandalf were already seated at the table, and Faramir walked in from another room with several bottles of fine wine. He looked up at me as we came in, and I caught his gaze for a split second before looking away. We took our seats, with Faramir at the head of the table, then Aragorn, myself, and Legolas on one side, Gimli at the end, and Gandalf on the other, with two more seats available for Merry and Pippin. Once we sat down, I reached for Legolas's hand, and he gladly took it.

"Íverin!" Gandalf smiled. "I was wondering when I might see you again."

"Aye, lass!" Gimli said. "Ya gave us all quite the scare yesterday!"

I laughed. "You needn't worry about me, I promise. I am healing."

"That is good to hear," replied Gandalf. He then looked up at Faramir, who had set the wine on the table, and was now seating himself. "Well then! Shall we begin our victory feast?"

Faramir looked around the room. "I would love to, if we were not missing two of our guests."

Suddenly, there came a faint shout from another hallway, and not a moment later, Merry and Pippin came running into the room, arriving at the table in a huff. "S...sorry we're late...Master Faramir...came as fast...as we could..." Pippin breathed.

I smiled at them. "Started running as soon as you heard there was food, did you?" Aragorn and Gandalf chuckled.

Merry smiled as he sat down. "But of course! You know we...wouldn't pass up a good meal for anything!"

"And now that we are all here, let our dinner begin!" Faramir exclaimed. Within a few minutes, we had passed around all the different meats and fruits, everyone had gotten a full glass of wine, and we were laughing and enjoying ourselves. It was actually quite nice, for not once did anyone bring up the subject of battle, or Sauron, or the Ring, or anything evil. We mainly all talked about our homelands and families, and old memories we had of each other, and for once, it seemed like the quest had just been put on hold. Like we were all here just as friends getting together, and not guests in a town recovering from a severe battle.

Almost two hours later, when we were all finishing the last of the food, I smiled and said, "You know...this has been the best day of my life so far. You all are amazing. Thank you so much for planning this, it really was a wonderful treat."

"Don't thank us," said Gandalf, "thank Faramir! He was the one who set up this whole ordeal, and I must say, I agree with you, Íverin. This has been very fun."

I looked over at the young man. "Then thank you, Captain Faramir."

"Please, do not call me 'captain.' Just call me Faramir," he smiled.

I returned the smile, but I could not help but feel uncomfortable in his presence. "Thank you...Faramir." He smiled at me for a moment longer. I turned away, hoping that I had not made the situation even more awkward, and sighed. "Well, gentlemen, I believe it is time for me to retire to my room for the night. If anyone needs me, you know where I am." I stood.

Legolas stood with me. "I will walk you back," he said. The two of us took each other's hand again, and quickly left the room, heading back to mine.

Once we were inside, with the door shut behind us, I smiled at my prince and kissed him. "Have I told you that I love you today?"

"Actually, you have not," he said, but when I looked back at him, he seemed...different. Saddened, somehow.

"Then I love you." I kissed him again. Whatever it was, I would talk to him about it in the morning. "Good night, my love."

"Good night, Cala." Legolas quietly left the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts. I sat down on my bed and sighed. I could see that Faramir had grown fond of me. That much was obvious. I just hoped that having Legolas around would let him know that I did not return those feelings. I would hate to have to tell him that face to face.

I quickly stripped out of my black dress and grabbed a silken nightgown before heading into the bathroom to wash up. As I sat in the warm tub, I thought about tomorrow. We had defeated Sauron's army, yes, but not the enemy himself. Was there anything more we could do? It seemed like it was all up to Frodo and Sam now.

Once I was done bathing, I redressed and laid down in my bed, staring out the window at the starry sky. I did not like the feeling that I would have to wait and see what happened. I wanted to do something else. I wanted to take action. I had been taking action for several months now, so often that it was like a habit of mine. My veins were filled with the blood of an adventurer now. I could not just sit back and watch things happen as I once did.

My eyes dropped south a little, and I looked at the jagged black line in the sky that was the edge of Mordor, with the bright red glow surrounding it. And what if we eventually won? Where would I go? Back to Rivendell, I suppose, but I didn't want to leave Legolas, and I'm sure he did not wish to leave his home in Mirkwood, either. Perhaps I could move to Lothlórien. That would be a bit closer to him, and not too far away from Rivendell, from Aragorn, Arwen, Elrond, the twins...

My mind drifted off to another topic. What about Aragorn? Where would he go? I had always thought that he would return to Rivendell with me, but now...that does not seem quite as likely. He was the true heir to Gondor's throne. Maybe he would remain here, and finally claim his title. Or maybe he would go back out into the Wild again, like he had done before. But I did not want to leave him behind, either.

I sighed as my eyelids drooped down. I would have to figure all this out soon, that much was certain. But for now, perhaps I should just focus on enjoying my stay in Minas Tirith.