Author's note:

Part 1: I've been waiting SO LONG to write this chapter

Part 2: Okay, I am leaving on Sunday for a summer camp, so I will not update this for about a week or so. Yep. Okay... Well, I can't think of anything else to say, so... Namaarie! (For now! BWA HA HA! Okay that was random) I'm off!

Chapter 25

Eradrin slowly awoke, eyes struggling to adjust to the dark. She was lying on a cold, hard floor, dirty walls surrounding her. She blinked a few times, but the darkness was unrelenting. Sighing, Eradrin found a small stick carelessly tossed on the floor, and lit it on fire

She was sitting in a dark dungeon, trapped inside a small, cramped cell. The bars were some form of black metal, and dimly lit torches stood at the beginning of stairs leading up. A sharp pain in her arm made her turn and glance at it. The dart was gone, but the wound it had left was not bandaged. Blood still slowly leaked out if it, as well as the cuts on her forehead and face. The room was completely silent; there were no other prisoners, except for a few skeletons lying around in different cells. Eradrin tried not to look at them, hoping she would not have the same fate.

Suddenly a rusty creak echoed in the halls, and heavy footsteps clomped down the stairs. Thump thump thump. Eradrin hurriedly patted out the fire just as a huge Orc walked up. Saying nothing, it unlocked the door with a jagged key, and drew out a pair of rough handcuffs. Shoving Eradrin's hands into them and locking them tight, he dragged her out of the cell and up the stairs. Eradrin closed her eyes, afraid of what she might see outside.

A gruff voice practically shouted in her ear, "Keep those eyes open!" Eradrin dared to open them to slits. Then they flew open wide. A thick blackish cloud hung across the sky, with occasional swirls of red. The ground was covered with dark rocks and dirt, and nothing was growing except for a few thorn bushes with thorns about a foot long. The very air she breathed was thick and disgusting. A giant volcano stood at the edge, constantly spurting out lava. But the thing that shocked her most was a huge tower directly above her, with something glowing red at the top. She gulped.

The Orc dragged her through the giant doors at the front of the dark tower, and pushed her up some stairs that spiralled all the way to the top. There was nothing Eradrin could do to resist. She was weak from lack of food and water, and could hardly stand upright.

About ten minutes passed, and they finally neared the top. A strange sound had been growing as they got closer, a mixture of roaring, whispering, and flickering of fire. The Orc started to look nervous, and when they reached an opening to the roof, he pushed Eradrin forward and stayed below.

Eradrin stumbled on top. Regaining her balance, she looked up and almost fell off the edge if the roof in shock.

Great flames and shadows of fear surrounded a center "pupil" like one of a dragon's or lizard's eye. It moved around, scanning its territory, evil waves radiating off of it. The being was unmistakeable. Eradrin knew enough tales about the Great Eye to instantly recognize him. Sauron. As if the thought had been uttered aloud, The Eye looked down at the elf huddled in front of him. Eradrin flinched from the hatred and heat coming off of him, but bravely stood up.

Sauron roared, almost not understandable, "Eradrin, We meet at last." Eradrin narrowed her eyes. "I have long awaited this day." She refused to reply. The Eye leaned down, boring her gaze with hate. Eradrin fearlessly returned his heated glare, muttering, "I'll have nothing to do with you, maggot-breath." Sauron laughed. The laugh seemed to split the air apart, painful and hurting. Eradrin placed a hand over her chest, which seemed like it was about to burst. She gasped for air, the laugh growing louder and louder, deep throated and frightening.

Finally it subsided, still ringing in the air. Eradrin felt her body literally freeze. She could not move a muscle. Sauron moved even closer, a burning blast hitting the elf. "You will all die." He paused, letting the words sink in. "You will all perish in fire and doom." The paralization relaxed its grip, and Eradrin fell to the ground. Slowly putting her hands to her knees, she straightened herself up and faced Sauron bravely. Then she laughed. Sauron was taken aback.

Authors note!(Now, Eradrin's laugh was different than Sauron's. Sauron's laugh hurt. Eradrin's was the exact opposite; her's seemed to heal. It was like a cool breeze on a blazing hot day, or a warm fire in the cold, if you understand what I mean.)

Eradrin calmly stared at the Great Eye. Sauron never had this reaction; he was confused. She walked up until she was right in front of him. "We will not lose." She said, "We will not die. We will not perish." Eradrin paced along the rooftop. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of gold, and great wings fly silently to her. She turned back to Sauron. "Evil never wins." The eagle was closer now. Sauron felt doubt start to grow. Eradrin said, "We will win." And launched herself off the tower.

Sauron confusedly looked down, then was enraged to see Eradrin riding on an eagle's back with two other figures, flying away.

Eradrin turned to face Sauron, and shot rather large fireballs and his eye. Sauron screeched when they hit him, and rapidly swiveled his eye around in pain. She turned back to her rescuers. Gandalf was sitting by the eagle's head, and Legolas was a bit closer to Eradrin. He crawled over to her, unused to flying. "Are you okay?" He anxiously asked. Eradrin nodded.

"I'm fine. In fact, I feel great." She replied. Legolas arched an eyebrow as they flew past the border of Mordor. "Did they do anything?"

Eradrin grinned."Well, Sauron tried to discourage me, but it didn't work." Then her face grew serious. "There will be danger ahead. But I do believe that we will win in the end." Legolas nodded.

"That is very reassuring." He said, facing the sunset.

The eagle suddenly dipped sharply towards the ground. Eradrin yelped in surprise, and threw her arms around Legolas. Then she let go, and sheepishly glanced away, cheeks red.

The eagle landed behind the gates of Minas Tirith, and Gandalf hopped off first, whispering to the eagle. Legolas jumped off the eagle, looking thankful to be on the ground again, and stood beside the eagle, offering his hand to Eradrin. She took it thankfully, and slid on the ground. "Come with me, I will show you where you're staying." He said cheerfully, and led her up a few flights of stairs. "Close your eyes." He whispered, and took her hand. After a while of walking, the ground softened from stone to grass and dirt, and the air became cleaner and cooler.

"You can open your eyes now." Legolas whispered in her ear.

Eradrin gasped with surprise. They were standing in the middle of a garden, huge green trees growing high above them. A small stream gurgled in the center of a clearing, and pretty flowers grew out if the ground, or hung from the trees. At the far end, the trees parted to reveal a small stone cottage, lined with beautiful white flowers. "It's so pretty!" Eradrin exclaimed. "It reminds me of Rivendell!" Legolas grinned happily.

"That's what I was hoping for." He said. Eradrin turned to him.

"You arranged this?" She asked.

Legolas nodded. "I was sure we'd find you, so I asked Aragorn if this could be made possible." Eradrin smiled happily. "Thank you." She whispered. Then she grabbed his hand and said, "Wait here, let me get cleaned up." And raced into the stone cottage.

There were four rooms: a bathroom, a bedroom, a kitchen, and the front room. Eradrin hurried into the bedroom, and found her pack laying on the bed. She smiled thankfully. Picking it up, she ran into the bathroom and set it down. Finding a bucket of already steaming water in the corner, she scrubbed down her face and body, cleaning up. Then she stripped off her dirty clothes, that were coated in dirt and grime. I won't be needing these anymore. They had rips in them from the battle, and were still dirty and smelly from the disgustingness of Mordor. She tossed them a waste basket. Then she reached into her pack and pulled out a pretty light blue dress with matching shoes. Slipping then on, she looked at her reflection in a mirror, and decided to braid her long hair down the side, letting the rest of it fall down her back. Then she reached into her back and pulled out a light silver necklace with pretty silver and good leaves adorning it that Legolas had given her back in Mirkwood, a long time ago. She put that on as well, then gracefully glided out the door.

Eradrin found Legolas beside the stream on a small stone bench, staring into the endlessly flowing water. He looked up as she approached, and she was surprised to see a twinge of nervousness in his eyes. Awkwardly, she said, "So... Shall we walk around?" Legolas nodded, saying, "Okay." They got up and explored the garden, nearing the edge. The view took Eradrin's breath away. The garden was on the edge of a cliff, an endless starry sky spread across the night. Majestic mountains stood far off in the distance, snowcapped and beautiful. Colorful valleys blended into forests and rivers, and the landscape was breathtaking.

They walked along the edge of the cliff, and stopped under a canopy of jasmine flowers. They hung down like a willow, forming a perfect circle, and broke away at the cliff to the landscape. The heavenly scent of the flowers filled the air, and for the first time in a while, Eradrin felt at peace. They sat down at a stone bench at the edge of the cliff, studying the marvelous view.

Legolas was still acting nervous. He kept fingering with something in his pocket, and glancing off into the distance. Eradrin leaned her head on his shoulder. Legolas sighed.

Suddenly he stood up, holding something in his hand. Eradrin glanced at him, confused, then stood up too. Legolas faced her, starlight shining in his eyes. He took her hand in his. "Eradrin." He warmly and softly said, "Ever since I have first laid my eyes on you, I have loved you. I love your kindness, beauty, determination, and bravery. I love everything about you." Eradrin's heart started rapidly pounding. He continued, "You are the light of my world. Thinking of you keeps me going every day. I love you. And I will love you, through the good and the bad, forever." He paused. Eradrin was nervously twirling with her hair. "It all comes down to one question." Half laughing, he said, "I have waited so long to say this." He kneeled, and pulled out a silver ring with a pretty clear diamond in the middle, surrounded by silver leaves and stars.

"Will you marry me?"

Eradrin gasped. Emotion swirled in her eyes, shining beneath the moon. She flew into his arms, half crying, half laughing, joyously yelling, "Yes! Yes! Yes!" They gave each other a huge hug. Then they pulled away, arm in arm, staring into each other's eyes.

And they kissed.

Authors note: Oh my gosh I have been waiting so long to write this! If you know me, you'll probably know why... :)

(If you have read/watched The Princess Bride, you will get this) There were Five Great Kisses in the world. This one outshone them all.