*~Three Days Later—the Crowning Ceremony~*

On the utmost level of Minas Tirith, I watch with a crowd of four thousand others as Aragorn and Ashley are crowned as King and Princess of Gondor. The fact that Ash was conned into wearing a bright, white dress was funny enough to make me have to sit and laugh for five minutes.

Her dress was made of velvet and had silver strands sewn across the bosom in a crisscrossing design, on her head rests a silver circlet with an amethyst stone in the center of it, the silver that goes around her head braided together, and the silver that rested just under the stone was twined into an elaborate design of swirls. Her hair fells in soft waves to the center of her back, the red highlights more pronounced under direct sunlight, and the standing out in stark relief against her freckled skin.

My own dress was a dark blue, made of velvet like Ashley's except less elaborate in its design, the finishing touch being a belt around my waist made of small silver disks that hung loosely to my knees. Aragorn was dressed in simple clothes, but they were completely hidden under his silver armor, chainmail, and black cloak.

Gandy places the Crown of Gondor of Aragorn's head saying," Now come the days of the King. May they be blessed." Aragorn slowly rises, turning to face the cheering crowd.

"This day does not belong to one man or woman," Aragorn says in his public speaking voice," but to all. Let us together rebuild this world that we may share in the days of peace." The people attending the ceremony cheered again, but go quiet as he starts to sing in Elvish. "Et Eärello Endorenna utúlien. Sinome maruvan ar Hildinyar tenn' Ambar-metta (1)."

Ashley puts her hand in the crook of his elbow as they start down the short stairs to level ground, walking in a slow procession down the white path as the people bow their heads in respect for their new rulers. They pass friends: Éowyn and Faramir, Éomer, Legolas and a few other Elves, Gimli, Elrond, but he pauses in front of me.

I come forward and wrap my arms around Aragorn's neck, letting him swing me in a circle and kiss me in front of everyone. I was willing to let him do just about anything as long as I never had to lose him again. When he sets me down on my feet again I notice Ashley has grabbed Haldir out of the crowd and was kissing him as well, her hands holding onto the front of his shirt. It was a comical sight to see shy Ashley committing PDA in front of her kingdom.

Aragorn breaks the pair of them apart when it doesn't look like they're gonna come up for air any time soon and we continue on our way until we reach three little Hobbits. They go to bow their heads, but Aragorn stops them.

"My friends," he tells them in a voice the showed how much respect he had for them," you bow to no one." He drops to one knee in front of them, everyone one else doing the same a second later while the Hobbits stood where they were, looking dumbfounded and in awe.

The sun was shining brightly when I stepped out onto the silk fabric that ran the length of the courtyard to the alter waiting at the end. Ashley had taken care of most of the arrangements, including who would walk me down the aisle to Aragorn. Faramir looks a bit uncomfortable in the fancy clothes he was forced into at knife point, but the awkwardness is beat out by the pride he feels at the honor. All the attendants sit in chairs on either side of the aisle, dressed in their finest with baskets of white rose petals on their laps.

I hold tightly to the bouquet of flowers in my left hand while my right was clutching Faramir's arm. The white fabric of my dress was light and easy to walk in, the back trailing slightly behind me; black lace curled in intricate patterns on my bottom of my dress, the elbows, the end of the sleeves, and the neck. It was beautiful and carefully made so that the heat wouldn't be too much to bear. Ash and I had thought it all out over lunch a few weeks back and decided that silk and a little bit of velvet would be the best choice in the almost unbearable heat of a Gondorian summer.

We were definitely right about that!

Fighting not to show how nervous I actually felt, I wear a mask of cool confidence as I get closer and closer to Aragorn, Ashley playing the piano softly to one side of the alter. Her dress would make many woman attending blush and whisper; it was emerald green with a paler green sash tied about her waist, the dress itself stopped a little under her knees and is only a few inches longer than the one I intend to wear to her wedding in a month.

"Are you alright," Faramir asks in a soft voice that only he and I could hear," you look a little pale."

"I'm fine," I answer stiffly, straightening my back ever so slightly. Faramir chuckles, walking quicker, not so much that it was obvious, but enough so that we'll get where we're going sooner. The sooner this ceremony is over and the honeymoon begins, the better!

Aragorn smiles at me as I come nearer, dressed in similar clothes as he wore at the crowning ceremony weeks ago. Unconsciously, I bite my lip as we come closer and closer to what I've been looking forward to since I was four and learned what a wedding was. Step. The music was growing fainter. Step. I take a deep breath, taking Aragorn's offered hand as I stand next to him and the music stops completely.

Gandalf stands before us, staff in one hand and a large book in the other. Marriages were slightly different in Middle-earth, but Ash had taken care of the big differences and had them replaced with the ones from our world. For instance, this wouldn't take as long as in our world, but it still touches on the basics of my religion.

Aragorn and I turn to face each other and I slide his ring on his finger, a simple gold band with a diamond in the center and two sapphires on either side of it in the shape of stars. The ring he puts on my finger is silver with upraised silver designs on either side of a sapphire cut in an oval shape.

"I now pronounce you man and wife, may your days together be long and filled with joy and laughter." Aragorn bends down to place a lingering kiss on my lips, his mouth soft against mine and tasting of honeyed wine. So I'm not the only one nervous. When we break apart, the flower petals come raining down, and we're swept into the Citadel's great hall for the celebration and dancing. I smile up at Aragorn, letting him lead the way in our couple's dance. Ashley was singing up on a small stage, giving me something familiar to dance to so that I wasn't completely lost.

This was nice, just swaying back and forth with the man of my dreams. He had his hands resting lightly on my hips, ever the gentlemen as he doesn't allow them to drop any further. "I love you," I smile, my arms wrapped loosely around his neck.

"And I love you."

Dance me to your beauty like a burning violin/Dance me through the panic 'til I'm gathered safely in/Lift me like an olive branch, be my homeward dove/And dance me to the end of love

ASHLEY

I had told everyone that I wanted a simple, little ceremony—no muss, no fuss, and certainly not the thousand or so people gathered outside to see me walk down the aisle. Andrea had been behind part of it, telling the tailors to make my dress a nice, bright white with a black, lace pattern on the front of the skirt and inside the billowy sleeves. It was beautiful, more so than I thought it would be when she was describing it to me and showing me rough sketches. The dress was made complete by the almost hidden scabbard meant for my dagger. I never left the Citadel without it since I considered it my good luck charm.

"Are you ready," Adar asks, placing my hand in the crook of his arm with a gentle, encouraging smile. He had no problem with this, having so recently had his own wedding with Daisy walking Andi to him since her father wasn't here. Imagine Tom's shock to find out that his little girl was now a Queen! Biting my lip, I give Aragorn a nod and, together, we begin the agonizingly slow march towards the alter and my elf waiting there.

Andi and the rest of the Fellowship stand off to the side of the alter, Andi dressed in a pale lilac dress that stopped just below her knees with a scabbard occupied by a dagger that Aragorn had given her as a wedding gift. Soft music plays in the background, matching the pace Adar and I had set.

"I'm nervous," I whisper to Adar, clutching his arm tighter. He looks down at me with another kind smile, leaning down to whisper in my ear.

"So was I." I couldn't blame him there, this whole marriage thing was enough to make a sane person want to pull their hair out, but no one in our group has ever been considered sane. My heart sped up when we reached our destination, me stepping up beside Haldir and Aragorn joining Andrea. Haldir gives me an impish smile that I return with one of my own, the knot in my stomach slowly dissipating until it was just a couple of butterflies fluttering around.

This would be easy, after all, we already live together in the Citadel, and this just meant we'd share a name.

Gandalf nods to both of us, going through the same motions he did at Andrea and Aragorn's wedding just a month ago. I catch Haldir's eyes when we're told to turn and face each other, my hands resting in his—brown eyes clashing with blue in a silent challenge of who would blink first. "You may exchange rings," Gandalf instructs. The ring Haldir slides onto my finger is silver with intricate designs cut into it, looking almost Celtic if it were possible. I give him a silver band with a single emerald set in the center, shaped like a leaf. "I now pronounce you man and wife, may your days together be long and filled with joy and laughter."

With a smirk, I grab Haldir's face and pull him in for a kiss, shocking all of the people there with the exception of Andrea.

"Glad to see you're as excited as I am," Haldir murmurs, pulling me tight against him and giving me another, long kiss.

After we're herded into the great hall for our special moment, I lay my head against Haldir's chest as we sway to the song Andrea is singing up on a small stage that had been constructed at her order—the same one I sang on at her and Aragorn's wedding. The song was one I was instantly familiar with: I Want to Spend my Lifetime loving you from the Mask of Zorro, one of my favorite movies ever. This day had turned out to be perfect; the weather was warm and sunny, the music was great, and Kharl wasn't being an ass to Leggy, which was always a plus. I couldn't ask for anything better.

"I've got some good news for you," I tell my husband quietly, meeting his gaze again.

"Better news than you being my wife?" He was teasing me and my smile only grew as I took one of his hands and placed it on my stomach.

"Congratulations, you're going to be a daddy."

Moon so bright, night so fine/Keep your heart here with mine/Life's a dream we are dreaming/Race the moon, catch the wind/Ride the night to the end/Seize the day, stand up for the light

(1) "Out of the Great Sea to Middle-earth I am come. In this place will I abide, and my heirs, unto the ending of the world."