Time has passed… (and so it has folks, forgive me!) I own only Lana and Haman so far. The rest are Tolkien's.

Months had passed, yet Rumil still made a point of patrolling near Lana's Glen in hopes of catching sight of her. So it was on one clear, bright day, his efforts were rewarded. There she was, sitting under her tree, as if she had been there the entire time; however, something was different.

"Yes, I am pregnant." The woman stated, glancing in his direction.

Rumil was startled that she had known he was there. He had not disturbed so much as a leaf.

"I have come to know your presence, Rumil, as well as I know my own." She then smiled with tears in her eyes. "I have missed you."

"And I you." With those few words, he then dropped soundlessly to the ground and made his way to her side.

Haman, her husband, had not been happy concerning her confession. At first, he had been fearful. This new friend, after all, was an elf. Then suspicion turned fear into jealousy; so much so, that he forbid her from going to the Wood. It then caused him to take action in a manner he had never dared before. He read her diary. It was this which now made her visits possible once more.

"He knows now." Lana stated, after disclosing this information. "He knows about the snide remarks, the veiled insults, everything…" She sighed heavily before continuing. "It was hard for him to believe that his family and friends could hold his bride in such contempt, but the hardest part was you. It shamed him to know that he had failed to listen to me to the point that I had sought comfort from another." She took Rumil's hand within her own. "Until he read my diary, he had begun to think this child was yours." Seeing Rumil's startled face she laughed. "I wonder if the look on your face is how I appeared when he first voiced his fear to me."

"I do not understand. How could he think such when you are bound to him. He is your husband, not I."

"Mortals can be unfaithful. Is it not the same with elves?"

"No, it is not. When we bond it is for eternity. Our souls become one. Even our thoughts are no longer ours alone, but shared. That is why so many of our kind are prone to die of grief at the loss of their espoused. Part of them has already died." Rumil's gaze was intense as it met Lana's. "Would you have been unfaithful, if the same had been true of my kind?"

Lana looked away, appearing to fall deep in thought. "Haman asked me a very similar question." She met her friend's eyes once more. "I can not say I would not have been tempted, Rumil. I would be lying." Her hand came to his face, her thumb brushing across his temple. "You are so wonderful, but I made a vow. Some mortals hold no value in it, but that is because their word has no value, not even in their own eyes. Mine does. I made a vow before our Creator that I would love and honor that man above myself till death parts us. I will keep it. I love Haman."

She paused a moment, gathering her thoughts, before continuing. "Perhaps if love were no more than a fickle feeling, as so many believe, then it could be possible for love to simply cease, but it isn't. Love is a conscious decision that results in action. I could change my mind, but that is something I should have done before my vow. For it is better to make no vow, than to make one and break it."

It was at that moment that Rumil would always think her the most beautiful. On impulse, Lana leaned forward and kissed his brow. "However, Haman also knows from reading my diary that I do love you." Lana gazed deeply into the pools of starlight that were his eyes. Eyes so beautiful it made her heart ache. "You are my friend. When no one else befriended me, you did. I will never forget, even when I leave this world, the memory of you will go with me."

The smile that then graced his face seemed to cast the Wood into shadow, and caused her breath to catch. "I love you too, Lana. You are one of the dearest friends I have ever known, truly." Pulling her into an embrace, he promised, "For all of eternity, you will be remembered."

Lana found herself giggling in her friend's arms. As they separated, she found herself laughing all the harder at his puzzled expression. She wanted to explain, she did. She just had to suppress her mirth first, but the attempt only made her snort. Soon they both were laughing.

"Listen to us, Rumil. If any were to overhear…, they would believe this… to be a final farewell and that I must be hanging at death's door. Come, I have our book and I would read to you."

And so she did. The tale of Beren and Tinuviel lit the pages with a passionate fire and a heartrending sadness. As she came to the end of the tale, she allowed her voice to fall to a whisper, then silence. "Have you a love, Rumil?"

"Nay, I have yet to find her, though, it is odd, but I feel closer to her this day."

Lana looked startled, "You have a connection with her already?"

Rumil cocked his head, reminding Lana of a delicate bird, and smiled. "I have yet to meet her, but I will know her when I do. Her soul whispers to mine." Lana watched as Rumil's smile faltered. "There once was a time that I had hoped never to know love to such a degree. It always seemed to end badly, but then I took note of those of whom love has found and joy abounds still. It was then I realized that love does not always lead to sorrow, and I started to hope for a love of my own. However, I have begun to think that such a love will not find me till I pass to Valinor…"

Lana's brow creased, "The Undying Lands?"

"Yes, the white shores which await those of my kind who sail from the Haven."

"Oh! I thought so. Please, you were saying?"

Rumil chuckled, "Now who is it that is caught in the storyteller's grasp?" He then deftly dodged the tuff of grass aimed for his head. "Please! No more! I shall continue."

"You had better!"

"As I was saying…What had I been saying?"

Lana grabbed another tuff of grass. "Ah, I remember."

"I thought you might."

Rumil smiled again at his friend before his mood turned serious once more. "As I was saying, I thought I might not meet her here on these shores. But as I said earlier, I feel oddly close to her today, as if she could be here in this glade. Silly, do you not think?"

"No, not silly, mellon. Hopeful." She then shifted herself near to him and reclined against him where he rested on their oak, laying her head upon his shoulder. "I love it here. It is so peaceful, even more so than my garden."

"Your garden?"

"Yes, in the White City there can be found, on the seventh level, to the fore of the City, a small, well kept garden, which many refer to as Adelaide's Park."

"And who is Adelaide?"

"My mother, the self-appointed keeper of the garden, for she loves all that is green. So much of that which makes the City beautiful is dying, but not her garden. It gives our people hope to see it."

Rumil cocked his head to meet her eyes where she reclined against him. "Do you miss her?"

"My mother?" At his confirming nod, she sighed. "Yes, I can not help missing her, as well as my other friends and family, but, when it comes to love between man and woman, sacrifices must be made. I left behind everything familiar for Haman. It has been hard, especially considering that none of his people seem to think me worthy of him; however, I would not change my decision even if I could. Anything worthwhile will never be easy, but will always be rewarding."

"True."

As the months passed, Lana would faithfully visit her beloved friend in the Wood, though she was never able to convince her husband to join her; he never stopped her either. The birth of her child drew near, and her visits grew somewhat less frequent, but always warm.

"Oh!" Lana gasped, interrupting her reading.

Rumil, who had been lazily sprawled beside her, was instantly alert and at her side. "Are you in pain? What is it?" The tension in his form eased somewhat when she smiled.

"I am alright, Rumil. It is just my son moving about," she reassured him, gazing fondly at her middle as she ran her hands tenderly across her womb.

"Your daughter."

Lana glanced sharply up at him, searching his face. Her face softened in wonder. "You know. How?"

"I feel her presence."

"Can you speak to her as you do the trees?"

"In a way, if I were to touch her."

Lana laughed in delight as she reached for his hand. "Well then here. Touch her by all means!" With that said, she laid his hand on her swollen belly, and felt a peculiar response from the infant within.

Rumil sat, shocked, as Lana placed his hand against her womb. The shock increased to stunned disbelief, as a small hand pressed against his palm through the thin barrier. Jumbled, intense feelings assaulted him: Love, fear, hope, joy, and so much more. What surprised him the most was that those feelings were not solely reserved for the child's family to be, much of them were directed at him. He started to withdraw when the tiny hand pressed insistently forward against him, causing Lana to hiss in discomfort. He quickly resumed contact, wondering how long the babe would require his touch when a clear thought reached him, causing him to stumble back in frightened disbelief.

Wait for me!

Lana watched him with concern and a bit of confusion. "Rumil?" She tried to approach him, but he moved away, his eyes never leaving the swell that marked her child's presence. She stilled, giving him time to regain his composure. Some moments passed before his eyes met hers. Guilt overwhelmed her when she saw the frightened, bewildered look on his dear face. "Oh, Rumil, please forgive me! I did not realize such a thing could cause you distress, else I never would have asked it of you."

"She spoke to me." At Lana's lack of comprehension, he explained. "At first, she communicated as I expected, with feelings," Rumil's eyes searched his friend's face as if he could find an explanation for what he was about to reveal, "then words formed."

Lana's brow furrowed, confused still. "I do not understand."

"An unborn child, yet to be taught, formed words in mind speak. Except for the oldest of our kind, such as My Lady, none can mind speak outside of their bonds. For a mortal to do so would require a bond with an elf, and only then would her soul whisper words to his." Rumil's gaze turned soft with quiet sadness as understanding lit Lana's eyes.

Lana recalled the words Rumil had shared all those months ago when she had first revealed her pregnancy to him. He had said he could feel the presence of his intended as if she were in the clearing with them. She also recalled what she had read concerning love between elves and mortals. She knew she loved her daughter, but not even for her child's happiness would she sacrifice this elf to such pain. "Can an elf sail before the call of the sea overtakes him?"

"Yes."

"Then I would that you sailed before she comes of age." The child within her seemed to protest her words, as she rolled about within the womb.

Rumil smiled gently at his friend, tears gathering in his eyes, as he inquired, "To protect her from me?"

"No, dear heart, to save you from grief." The child stilled, as if understanding the elf's plight.

"I once heard it said that 'it is better to have loved and lost, than to never have loved at all,'" Rumil quipped lightly, trying to brighten the conversation a bit.

"The one who said such was no elf." The woman gathered the elf into her arms, while the child within seemed to reach for him as well. "You are not meant to see death. If need be, this is farewell."

"Nay, there is time. Do not leave me," Rumil beseeched her, as he accepted the comfort she offered.

"As you wish," she conceded, relinquishing her hold on him. "It is late. With my time so near, Haman will be worried."

"Come, I will escort you to the outer fringe and watch till you are safely in your village."

Rumil watched even after she had passed from his sight. He found himself wondering if the child would be as lovely as her mother. Would she have dark, nearly black, brown hair, the color of the rich dark soil of the wood? Would her eyes be gray, like her mother's as well? Would he stay to find out? He sighed, wondering if perhaps now would be a opportune moment to visit the Lady of the Wood. Without a sound, the elf faded back into the Wood.

He thought to head toward Galadras, but felt a desire to sit in Lana's Glen. What he found there surprised him.

"My Lady!" he exclaimed, kneeling at her feet. She motioned for him to rise, a secret smile curving her lips as always.

"So now you know."

"My lady?"

"You know of your intended." She stated, her intense gaze held his. "A choice now stands before you: Will you stay for the love of a mortal, or," the lady turned her gaze toward the sea that was not visible to the elf before her, "will you sail, leaving her to face this world alone."

"She will not be alone. She will have her mother and father with her. She will have her people as well."

When the Lady turned her gaze upon her guardian once more, her eyes were sad. "She needs you."

Rumil's chest tightened, as uncertainty welled up within him.

"The decision is yours, my dear warden," his Lady said, before fading into the wood once more.