A/N: I know that the ship carrying the elves set sail four years after the Ring was destroyed, but this is now my take on the ending! Trust me when I say that there are many more chapters to come!
I hope you enjoy! xx
Chapter 25
The elf Prince of Mirkwood had courted the Faye Princess of The Glade of Tarasara for twelve years before asking her father for her hand in marriage. He had travelled far to come and ask King Adrias this, and hoped that he would receive what he wanted.
He hadn't seen Adrianna for a week, and was desperate to see her again. So when the King took his time to reply, Legolas couldn't help but feel unusually impatient.
"All I ask for, is your blessing," He explained to the King.
Adrias stood up from his throne and slowly walked down the stairs towards the elf, and he placed one of his hands upon the shoulder of the Prince and looked him right in the eye, "Legolas," He began. "Of course you have my blessing. And I'm sure you shall have the blessing of Tobias, and of my people."
Legolas smiled, "Thank you, My Lord." He bowed his head low to the King.
Adrias smiled back at him, "Now, I do believe my daughter is in the library, if not then she will be in the Gardens. Go to her."
The Prince bowed his head again before turning on his heel and leaving the Throne Room. The Faye warriors closed the doors behind him, and the warm summers night air caressed the handsome face of the elf as he descended the marbled staircase towards the library. The silver bells strung around the trees and foliage chimed softly in the breeze, the flowers swayed calmly in their beds, and the water from the Moonlit Pool rippled unnaturally. The Prince stopped walking towards the library and turned to face the Gardens of the Glade.
He jogged across the grassy gardens, passing many flowers darkening by the night sky as he followed the stream of white lights. Upon closer inspection with his elvish sight, the small white lights were tiny wooden houses (in which the Faye people lived). There were absolutely hundreds of them, and they flooded the trees like stars in the night sky.
He came to the edge of the Moonlit Pool, and through the blooming Sweet Peas covering the veranda, he could see movement of an emerald green dress and chestnut brown hair. Silently, he made his way along the bridge and stopped just inside the gazebo. Adrianna was leaning over the fencing of the Moonlit Gazebo, dropping Sweet Peas into the Pool. The elf didn't particularly wish to disturb her as she looked so peaceful, but upon seeing the sadness in her eyes, his heart clenched.
"Im gelir ceni ad lín. (I am happy to see you again.)" Adrianna looked up upon hearing the words spoken in Elvish, and upon noticing the Prince standing at the entrance of the gazebo she turned and threw her arms around him, kissing his cheek affectionately in greeting.
"I missed you, Legolas." She murmured into his chest before she pulled away. "I hope everything is as it should be?"
The elf Prince nodded, "The Spiders of Mirkwood had gotten too close to the Gates of the Kingdom." He explained, "All is well now, no one was injured."
The Faye smiled, "I'm glad." She responded. "And entering The Glade?"
"The Wargs have formed a tight band," He replied. "But I missed their patrol and greeted your brother safely inside." Adrianna smiled up at the elf and placed another kiss upon his cheek, she took him by the hand.
"Come," She stated. "Now you're here and it is on my mind, I wish to show you something."
"What is it?" He asked curiously, allowing her to lead him through the gazebo and across the other bridge.
"At the camp, before we took the road to the Dimholt and the door under the mountain, I mentioned it." She stated, shivering upon remembering the dark passages which took them to the King of the Dead, "About a stunning view of the stars, I said it was most magnificent on a summer's night. And this one seems to be absolutely perfect." Her eyes dazzled, and as the Princess led the Prince up the stairs of the Royal housing and passed many doors, they turned a corner and reached the end of the corridor. Adrianna gently knocked on the wall a few times before finding a hollow section.
The elf watched in fascination as the Faye pulled open a hidden door, and led him up a narrow, winding staircase. "Watch your step," She warned him as they began to ascend.
"How did you find this place?" Legolas asked, following Adrianna up the long stairs.
"After my first horse passed away," She began, "My mother showed it to me. It was her gift from my father after they were married, and it was my grandmothers before them." She unlatched a door at the top of the stairs, "I believe my great grandfather built it. He was absolutely fascinated with the stars and found that this hollow tree looked upon the star of Tarasara..." She lightly shouldered the door. "So he built a stairwell through the tree for himself to gaze upon the sky. Then he married a Faye who shared his love for the stars, and shared it with her."
The door swung open and the Faye stepped out onto a large, flat part of the tallest tree in The Glade of Tarasara, strange looking flowers grew up there and resting upon the largest branch of the tree was the largest bird's nest Legolas had ever seen.
Just as she had described it many years ago; the summer sky was warm, shrouding the naturally dark sky with splashes of crimsons and terracotta's. The stars broke through the colours like glinting arrowheads in torchlight. There were no clouds in sight, and the clear sky opened out to a magnificent Mountain range in the distance and far off towards the north, the trees of Mirkwood could be seen.
Far below them, were thousands of tiny lit cottages embedded in the trees of The Glade of Tarasara, the elven carved gazebo and the Moonlit Pool, the Gardens, the village stables, archery range and library and finally, the rooftops of the Royal housing and Hall.
It truly was a magnificent sight.
The elf clasped his warrior hand with the delicate one of the Faye, "Thank you for sharing this with me." He breathed.
Adrianna smiled up at him, "Well, I wasn't going to share it with my brother was I?" She chuckled, "It's far too meaningful for a birthday present."
He didn't know why or how, but her sentence reminded him of his meeting with Adrias just before he found the Princess inside the gazebo. "Adrianna, I asked the King for your hand in marriage."
"What?"
He had to keep his eyes focused on the stars to continue speaking, for he knew that her emerald eyes would enchant him speechless. "He gave me his blessing." He continued, "Adrianna, you've stirred my soul and engulfed my heart in flame. I would love nothing more than to spend the rest of this lifetime with you." Legolas turned to face her, clasping her delicate hands in his own strong ones. "Will you marry me?"
For the second time in his life, the elf Prince had rendered the fiery tempered Faye speechless, her mouth was hanging slightly open and her eyes were reflecting the beauty of the sky. She muttered something so ineligible that even the Prince's elf ears couldn't decipher what she had said. She suddenly nodded enthusiastically, "Yes." She whispered, breaking out into a smile.
The Prince grinned before capturing her lips with his own, pulling her as close to his body as he could. Joy coursed through them both, and they remained together under the protection of the Tarasara star long into the late hours of the night.
"We should write to our friends," Legolas began, breaking the peaceful silence as they descended the stairs into the Royal Housing. "And inform them of our engagement."
Adrianna nodded in agreement, "Of course, I'm sure Aragorn, Gandalf, Merry and Pippin will be overjoyed." She singled out those four as - during the Fellowship - the two hobbits had started a plan together while in Lorien to try and get the elf and Faye to fall for one another. After the battle for Helms Deep and reuniting with them at Isenguard, they had both overheard Legolas speaking with Aragorn about his feelings for the Faye. In turn, Adrianna had spoken to both Gandalf and Aragorn about her own feelings, to which the four must have found out the mutual thoughts on both sides and agreed to bring the elf and Faye together.
"And I am sure Gimli, Sam and Frodo will be happy as well." Legolas added. The dwarf had had a suspicion over Adrianna's feelings for Legolas for a very long time and had made his comments and thoughts quite plain and blunt, making both feel nervous and blush around each other. Sam and Frodo were told by Gandalf in Rivendell, and Merry and Pippin probably couldn't keep their mouths shut either.
"Shall we tell your father and brother in the morning?" He asked. "I can ride for Mirkwood tomorrow, and inform my father as soon as I can."
"I do not want to part from you again, so soon." Adrianna reasoned, "I'm coming with you."
Legolas smiled, "My father does wish to see you again, Ade." He stated, "But it is a dangerous four day ride."
"You cannot change my mind, Legolas." She stated stubbornly as she placed her hands on her hips. "I'm coming with you."
The elf rolled his eyes before placing a soft kiss upon her forehead, "As you wish," He stated, stopping just outside the Faye's bedchamber. "Goodnight, Ade."
The Princess stood on her tiptoes to kiss him lovingly upon his lips, "Goodnight." She smiled at him before turning in for the night. Once inside her room, she could have screamed for joy! Instead, she broke into a run and dived onto her bed with a huge smile on her face which she could not erase. Adrianna knew her happiness and excitement would keep her awake that evening, not even a nice hot bath could relax her enough for her to fall to sleep.
She remembered the first time Legolas had come to visit The Glade of Tarasara. It was with Aragorn, Gimli and the four Hobbits. All seemed to be in awe of the elf-like beauty, and the many different flowers; Sam especially liked the Sweet Peas, and Adrianna picked a bunch for him to take home to his wife. Merry and Pippin enjoyed climbing the tall trees and Gimli said that the food and wine was absolutely delectable! Frodo kept to himself for some time, and would always be found on the bridge of the Moonlit Pool whenever his friends wanted to see him. Aragorn enjoyed duelling with the Faye warriors and walking around the gardens with Sam and Legolas. The King had taken a liking to the elf Prince straight away, and had personally taken him on a tour around his magnificent kingdom.
Adrianna remembered breaking out into a heated argument one evening in the archery range with her brother, to which she had won as the Prince decided to leave before his sister reached for a bow. He did not want another accident!
And that was where she had shared her second kiss with the elf. Upon which they had been seen by two of the hobbits (unfortunately the more mischievous of the four), and it wasn't long before Gimli had been told. The teasing the two royals received from the three was absolutely diabolical, and it had taken three days until the Faye began to lose her temper (to which Aragorn, Sam and Frodo overheard her speaking with Legolas).
The Fellowship had been happy to hear of their relationship, and upon visiting The Shire, Sam took the elf and the Faye down to the river where the most beautiful bluebells had grown over the spring. Merry and Pippin had taken Adrianna to pay a visit to Farmer Maggot's fields and had taught her the true meaning of their game. They had taken away four cabbages and six carrots that afternoon.
Then the Fellowship all visited The Lonely Mountain to see Gimli, and were given a tour around the beautiful rich caverns of gold and jewels.
But it was visiting Mirkwood that held the Princess's fondest of memories. Despite the Fellowship having to rescue one another from the spiders, they were all warmly welcomed into the Gates of the Kingdom by many well-wishing elves. Legolas' father came to greet them, and Adrianna was in awe over the similarities Legolas had with his father. But the eyes of her elf were and always would be more beautiful than any other.
The Faye believed Legolas must have mentioned her to his father at some point, as Thranduil seemed to take a great liking towards her, and after the week which the Fellowship had stayed in Mirkwood, the King had given the Faye a beautiful white tulip as a parting gift.
Adrianna was still awake by the time the rain began to patter gently on her window. Pale yellow rays shone dimly through her drapes, letting the Princess know that it was morning, and Adrianna quickly got out of bed and drew herself a bath before dressing in a long, pale blue dress. The Princess quickly pulled a comb through her long, damp chestnut tresses before leaving her chambers and running along the corridor towards the room in which Legolas was staying in.
She knocked gently on the door, which was almost opened immediately by the elf who was fully dressed and ready for the day ahead. Adrianna kissed him gently on the lips, "Good morning!" She smiled widely.
Legolas smiled at the happy Faye, "Good morning." He replied, stepping out of his room and offering the Faye his arm. "Did you sleep well?" He asked as they made their way down the staircase.
"Of course," She lied. "And yourself?"
"I must admit that I found it difficult after the events of last night." He replied honestly.
They left the Royal housing and stepped into light rain. The drops dribbled from the leaves of the trees and onto the silver bells, causing light, delicate music to chime all around the Glade of Tarasara. "Beautiful music to combat the miserable sky." Legolas mused.
Adrianna nodded, "They're placed in memory of my mother." She stated, "She was very fond of music and dance. She would sing for the sun when it rained and when she passed away, the children strung up the bells for her. So there would still be remembrance of her every time it rained." Adrianna looked up at the Prince and smiled. "Perhaps this is a sign that my mother is giving us her blessing?"
The elf smiled in response, "I would love to be gifted with the blessing from both of your parents."
Adrianna beamed up at him before lifting the hem of her skirt to see her feet as she climbed the stairs, "We have yet to tell Tobias, Legolas." She stated.
Once he had been told, the Faye Prince had looked as though he was about to pass out at the news of his little sisters engagement. He was incredibly happy for them as he liked the elf, but the news was as much as a surprise as Adrianna shooting an arrow through his foot.
He took a seat at the dining table before looking at them closely. "What?"
Adrias chuckled and clapped his son on the shoulder, "O' Tobias, be happy for them! I don't see you getting married anytime soon! That gazebo on the Moonlit pool hasn't seen a marriage for over ten thousand years!"
Legolas and Adrianna exchanged a look of worry. They had not spoken of which realm they were to wed in!
The King then walked towards Adrianna and placed a kiss on her temple. "I am incredibly happy for you. Stay safe on your journey to Mirkwood." He then turned to Legolas, "I trust you will keep her safe?"
"With my life." The elf replied truthfully.
A/N: A lovely long and romantic chapter :) Please review xx