Earth dragon, thank you for your comment! Originality and authenticity of the LOTR characters were my two main goals so I'm so glad that you feel that way. Amber is a beautiful stone, I'm glad you appreciate it as I didn't want too much of a modern name, however felt it made sense for her. I hope you enjoy the continuing romance as it develops*

"I love that you are my person and I am yours, that whatever door we come to, we will open it together." —A.R. Asher

Chapter 14

After a long, dreamless sleep, and much time had passed in Lothlorien; Amber awoke to the filtering sunlight, pure as if the sun was young in the sky. She could hear elven voices singing, the sound sorrow. She turned her head as she heard one of the hobbits ask what the song meant. Legolas' voice answered, from where he stood on the same tree root as he often did at the edge of their camp. He told them that the elves sang lamenting songs of Gandalf, although the grief was too near for him to translate it.

She wondered at their strange respite in the golden wood, a space of tranquillity within a darkening world. Soon they would have to move on and continue in their quest.

That evening they were called once more to the hall of the Lord and Lady, high in the ancient mallorn. Celeborn spoke again of their quest, asking again if any would choose to remain behind. They were all resolved to go on. He offered for them to take boats on which to journey down the river Anduin. Aragorn accepted, deciding that this was as safe a way as any before them, and would allow a further respite from the toil of long marches.

The next morning, elves brought them new clothing, including each a woven elven cloak, and food for their journey. Haldir, the march warden who had brought them into Lothlorien, came to them and told them that he would be their guide until they reached the water's edge. They packed up, saying farewell to the place where they had rested and begun to heal from unseen wounds, and followed Haldir through the woodland and fields.

They came in time to a stream which they followed until it met with other streams and joined together. Leaf-shaped boats were moored on the bank they came to, already containing rope and oars for the journey.

They bade farewell to Haldir and climbed aboard, Amber finding herself together with Legolas and Gimli, for which she was glad. The dwarf had become far kinder to her since the battle in Moria, seeing perhaps how valiantly she fought against their foes and thus making peace with her unusual form. He had softened further upon meeting the Lady of the wood, and on many occasions had told to them all stories of his home and people, not excluding Amber as she had feared that he may do.

They set sail, Amber sitting between elf and dwarf. Not far down the river, a large Swanlike vessel came floating towards them. Galadriel and Celeborn sat in the middle, Galadriel playing harp and singing, which Legolas told them was a song of parting.

The Lord Celeborn invited the fellowship to moor on an island amid the stream and eat with them before they went on their journey. They did so, served by elves of the golden wood, and once they had eaten their fill, they drank from the cup of farewell.

Galadriel gave to each of them a gift, seeming to have considered them each carefully, for she alone had seen inside their minds. To Amber she gave two golden clips, shaped as the leaves of mallorn trees, to be worn in each side of her hair, pinning it back in braids to mark her as one of the elven folk to all who saw her. She accepted them, deeply humbled to be considered kin by so great a Lady of the elves. Galadriel bid her to turn, and placed them into her hair which the Lady braided with her own fair hands.

As the others looked upon Amber, they saw her in a new way, as the half-elven woman that she was, beautiful and magnificent in equal measure. Legolas, who had been preoccupied with his newly crafted bow, felt his breath leave him as he looked upon her, so alike she seemed to his vision of her as an elven princess by the side of him in the halls of his father.

When they had parted, and once again sat inside the Lorien boats, Gimli told them of his gift. Legolas heard in wonder, knowing that such a gift had been denied even to one of the greatest elves of their tales. That a dwarf would be bestowed with such, he could not help but see his companion in a new light, a great being, different but equal to the elves.

For several days, they allowed the boats to float them down the river, at night sleeping on the western bank, as the Eastern bank was perilous, likely scouted by orcs. Legolas told Amber and Gimli tales of elves of old, of the land of Valinor and the burning of the two trees. When he spoke of such ancient sorrows, Amber felt that the long life of the elves weighed heavily upon him, as it did for her mother. She was yet to learn if she had inherited that gift, if gift it was, for she was only approaching her first hundred years, still young in the lives of her father's people. She was barely older than Aragorn, who though long lived for the race of men, was yet young of age for the Dúnadain.

Her mother, who believed her to have the spirit of the valar within her, told her that she may not know until she had far surpassed the age of her brothers, and once her youth was clearly beyond doubt at on older age, she may then know. As a child she had not much cared for the nuances of knowing such a thing that seemed so many years off; but since that first night in Lothlorien, when Legolas had declared his intentions towards her, she had begun to wonder more frequently about her ultimate lifespan, and if she would live as he would, or die and leave him alone in the world. She bowed her head, despairing as she thought of him alone, fading from the world, or living in grief. If only she knew what would be their fate.

As if sensing her dark thoughts, Legolas reached forward to touch his fingers to her own, taking her hand and holding it in his. She relaxed, casting aside thoughts of grief and reminding herself how far they had yet to go before they might know even to what end they would come in the war of the ring.

One morning, waking on the bank of the river, Aragorn told the company of how he and the hobbits Sam and Frodo had seen the creature Gollum in the night, following them. He did not know the creature's purpose, but feared that he would alert the enemy to their presence, so he suggested they start to travel by night.

So it was that several nights on, they found themselves suddenly pulled by the river towards cascading waters which would surely break upon rocks below, as they could hear the rushing sound of a great waterfall. Aragorn despaired that they had come further than he had reckoned, and urged them to turn swiftly to the western shore. As they tried, the waters bore them closer to the east, and as they neared it there was a whistling of arrows above their heads, some falling among them thought harming none. Their elven cloaks shielded them from unfriendly eyes as they paddled frantically to reach the other bank.

They finally moored, and threw themselves out of the boats, so full of relief to have avoided a surely unpleasant fate. Legolas readied his bow, looking to strike any enemy he could see, but the Eastern bank was too far.

"Elbereth, Gilthoniel" said Legolas, sighing at the darkened sky, naming the Valar in his despair of the dreaded feeling that fell upon the party. A dark shape came towards them from the South, a winged creature which came over them, sparking shrieks and shouts from the enemy on the Eastern shore.

Legolas loosed his arrow and the creature swerved in it's path, crashing into the trees on the Eastern shore, so that they could not see what became of it. The voices on that bank wailed, and became silent.

The fellowship crept upstream, staying crouched low in their boats, not daring to make camp. When they awoke, mist laid all about them, a thick blanket of fog from the East shielding them from view. They waited for a slight lifting of the fog so that the path on their side of the bank could be seen. Aragorn wished to scout ahead, and asked Legolas to join him. Before they went, Legolas looked long at Amber, fearing that something might befall him so that he would not see her again. She offered him a small smile, wishing that he could have remained, or she go with him.

Fortuitously, there was no peril ahead on the path, and after a few hours the man and elf returned, Aragorn describing their path ahead. They lifted the boats, lighter than they seemed, out of the water so that they could be carried to below the rapids. It took most of the day and several trips, but finally they were able to lay their boats back down into the calmer waters at the end of the path.

They rested by the water for the night and the next day sailed again. Before the end of the next day, they came to a mighty sight. The two stone cliffs either side of the river, were carved in the likeness of the great Kings of Aragorn's lineage. As they passed them, Amber looked with pride at her friend, seeing him as she often did, the King of men, mighty and courageous.

After a time, they came at last to their resting place for the evening, at the feet of Amon Hen, the hill of sight as Aragorn had described to them. They made camp on a lawn between the river and the trees.

In the morning Aragorn spoke to them all, announcing that the time had come to choose their path, either to Gondor, or to the mountain of shadow. He asked Frodo for his choice, and the hobbit seemed torn. He asked for an hour to decide, time alone to weigh up the choice before him. Frodo then stood and walked into the trees, the fellowship looking to the river so as not to watch him, the pressure already great upon him.

They passed the time by thinking of the reasoning behind each path, deciding in each their own hearts which choice they wished for the hobbit to make. Amber, for her part thought it best to take the journey to it's swiftest end, knowing of no good reason to delay by the way of Gondor. After some time, they began to discuss what lay ahead, asking Aragorn about Gondor and the lands to the south. They spoke of who should go with Frodo, if he should choose the Eastern road.

Sam offered his thoughts, telling them that he knew his master's mind (for that is how he referred to Frodo). He said that Frodo would not choose the path of Gondor, apologising to Boromir for saying so. He looked about the circle and suddenly, wondered at where Boromir had gotten to. The rest of the company looked about for him, dismayed.

Boromir then returned, a dark look in his eyes as he looked about at the group. He sat down without speaking. Aragorn questioned him asking if he had seen the hobbit. The man reluctantly told them that he had urged Frodo to go to Minas Tirith, and when the hobbit had refused he had been angry, scaring Frodo into fleeing from him. Aragorn was aghast, and Sam, jumping up, cried for Frodo in worry.

At once the company jumped up, grabbing their weapons and running for the trees. Amber, who was fastest in her beast form, transformed as she reached the treeline, following the trail of Frodo's scent that wove upwards on the hill. By the time Legolas, having grabbed his daggers, bow and quiver, reached the trees, he could not see where she had gone, so he took a straight path, followed by Gimli, both crying out Frodo's name.