Mirkwood Part 3

A dull throbbing rouses Adrienne from the sweet escape of sleep. She opens her eyes with a groan, only to be blinded by the sun.

"It burns!" she hisses, dramatically throwing an arm over her eyes. "Oh, it burns!"

The sound of her husband's voice reaches her ears. "If you despise the sun so much, it would've been wise to marry a dwarf instead. Then you might've spent your days underground."

"Couldn't marry a dwarf," comes her mumbled response. "Too hairy."

"Well then, trees and sunlight it is."

She cracks her eyes open to peer over at Legolas. Of course he's already dressed and looking perfect. Unfair.

"Don't get sassy with me, mister. Not before I've had my–"

"Tea?" he asks, handing her a cup with a knowing smile.

It's a terrible tragedy to be marooned in a world without the wonderful assortment of coffee, but Adrienne has taken comfort in the fact that, admittedly, Middle Earth has some damn good tea.

Her hands take it from his as she sits up, narrowing her eyes. "You know, it's almost annoying to be married to someone so amazing."

"I shall try to be less so."

Ignoring his sarcasm, she takes a sip of the warm liquid and lets out a small moan. It tastes heavenly and warms her insides so soothingly she can feel her headache dissipating by the passing seconds. "Mmm mm I could make sweet love to this drink. And then again, in a different but no less passionate way."

He makes a pained face. "That's the last time I make you tea."

She gives him a crooked grin as she goes to take another sip. "Jealous of a liquid, are we?"

"More like appalled by your behavior," he amends.

With a flick of her wrist, she waggles her wedding band-adorned finger. "You knew what you were getting into."

"Did I?"

She playfully kicks at him, but the assault proves ineffective thanks to the blankets hindering her feet, which earns a chuckle from him. (She secretly promises to kick his shins later).

The next several minutes pass peacefully as they enjoy the quiet morning together. The domesticity of it all is not lost on Adrienne, who once thought she was not made for such things.

Once she's finished her tea, he asks, "How does your head fare?"

"Not great, but better," she answers. "Though I'm guessing if you hadn't given me that concoction last night it would be roughly ten times worse than it is now…so thank you."

He smiles. "You're welcome."

Fiddling with the hem of her sleep shirt, she suddenly feels awkward as another memory from the night before emerges. "Also um, thanks for not uh, taking advantage of me last night."

Truthfully, she wouldn't have minded if he'd allowed her to have her way; they'd both been drinking and she wouldn't have had any regrets. But the fact that, despite that, he'd been a perfect gentleman means a lot to her. It makes her feel safe and only reminds her of how different he is from all the other men she's been with.

"You needn't mention it," he says with humility, causing her to lift her eyes from her lap and meet his gaze. She smiles softly, a gesture he readily returns. "Anyway, the only regret I have about last night is that I didn't get the chance to give you your wedding gift."

"You got me a wedding present?" she asks, her heart soaring in surprise–and then falling in guilt. "But I didn't get you anything…"

Shame fills her at the realization, but to be fair, she honestly hadn't thought they were doing this. Their original wedding (more like "wedding") had been far from traditional, and once they arrived at Mirkwood everything happened so quickly. Then, of course, there's the matter that she doesn't exactly have anything to give. She doesn't have anything to her name except a tattered backpack and a guitar she can no longer play. And she certainly doesn't have any viable currency to purchase something new.

But, as she should have expected, Legolas doesn't mind in the least.

"I understand," he assures her, "and I wasn't expecting anything in return. I only did this because I wanted to."

Still, guilt tugs at her heart as she watches him eagerly retrieve a thin box. He hands it to her with a smile and a kiss on the cheek. "An nin bain bereth."

Not recognizing the endearment, she quirks a brow. "Are you gonna tell me what you just said?"

His eyes twinkle as he only smiles. "No."

Rolling her eyes, she sets to open her gift. Inside the package is what looks to be some sort of tunic. She lifts it up to get a better look at it only to nearly drop it when she realizes what it is.

Made of soft green fabric and beautiful stitching, the garment is a cozy sort of tunic…with a hood. And a roomy front pocket. It's clearly the elvish take on a 21st-century hoodie. A perfect mash-up of the old home she lost and the new one she gained.

"I went to the seamstress and told them what I wanted with the descriptions you so vividly provided me," he explains. "I know it probably looks more like it's from here than your old world, but I hope it has enough resemblance to give you some comfort of home."

Adrienne turns her eyes on him, her vision blurring with tears. "Thank you," she says, her voice tight with emotion. "This means a lot to me."

He smiles that damned sweet smile of his and she throws her arms around his neck. She squeezes him tight in her embrace before pulling back just enough to see his face.

"I really love you, you know that?" she asks softly.

"I do."

She pulls his face to hers, kissing him fully. Their kisses are always warm and full of life, but Adrienne pours her heart into this one, hoping to channel her gratitude to him.

When they part, she bites her lip, looking sheepish. "Now I really feel bad about not getting you anything. Can I get a rain check?"

It truly doesn't matter to him, she knows, but he humors her. "If you wish."

"I do wish," she insists. Then her smile turns devious, and she crawls into his lap. "But in the meantime…I can thank you in other ways."

.。.:*・° .。.:*・° .。.:*・° .。.:*・°

As Adrienne strolls through the forest, she tries to imagine Legolas growing up here as a child. Running along the forest floor, climbing trees…it brings a smile to her face. He was no doubt adorable as an elfling. In fact, he's still adorable. The beautiful green hoodie she's currently wearing is proof of that.

A frown forms on her lips. She needs to come up with a gift for him that's just as thoughtful, but what?

"It is unwise to wander through these woods alone," a voice says, interrupting her musings. "You'd best stay close to the palace."

Her head snaps in the direction of the voice, eyes searching the trees until she catches sight of a familiar figure sitting on a nearby branch with a book in hand.

"Oh. Mel," she says unenthusiastically, and the elleth's eyes narrow at the nickname. "I didn't see you there."

"Of course you didn't." She rolls her eyes. "Which only goes to prove my point–you should not be out here by yourself. There's a deep magic in these woods that may be overpowering to those not of elfkind, not to mention the fact that there may yet be a few spiders lingering about."

"Legolas warned me about that," Adrienne replies, stepping closer to display the swords strapped at her hip. "See? I came prepared."

"Well, aren't you full of bravado? How quaint." Her face then contorts in a grimace as she takes in Adrienne's attire. "And what are you wearing?"

She narrows her eyes, choosing to ignore that last part. "I know you think I'm just a silly human who can't possibly be capable of herself, but I'm not nearly as inept as you like to believe."

"Mm, I'll keep that in mind, uglui dilthen firen," she remarks haughtily, burying her nose back in her book.

Annoyance flares up as Adrienne is reminded for the hundredth time this week that she doesn't speak the same language as everyone else around here. It hadn't bothered her so much before she came to Mirkwood, hearing Legolas talk to himself in elvish or converse with Aragorn. She'd wished she could understand it, of course, but it hadn't really bothered her. But now…not only is her husband speaking more of the foreign language than ever before, but so is everyone else she's surrounded by. It makes her feel like even more of an outsider.

She's living here for Pete's sake, and Legolas is stuck with a stupid wife who doesn't even speak his home tongue. How embarrassing…and sad.

A light bulb illuminates over her head just then–but it comes at a price. She stands there weighing her options, desperate.

"Is there a reason why you continue to stand there watching me read?" Melgal-hi asks irritably, peering over her book.

Adrienne hesitates for a brief moment, but pushes through it, knowing she just has to bite the bullet. "I have something to ask of you."

"Let me guess: you're lost and you need me to lead you back to–"

"No," she interrupts quickly before she loses her nerve, "I want you to teach me elvish."

The other woman stares at her for a long, uncomfortable moment. "And why would you ask me and not, say, your husband?"

It's a valid question.

She swallows thickly. "Well, you're a teacher, right? It sounds like you have the right kind of skills for the job. And as for why I don't ask Legolas, he's busy enough, and also…I was kinda hoping it would make for a good surprise."

Melgal-hi scowls. "And what would I gain from this little arrangement?"

"Anything. Just name it."

A thoughtful expression befalls the elleth's face as she considers this, searching her mind for options. Her features cool into a chilling smile and she leaps down from the tree, landing gracefully on her feet. She steps close to tower over her and suddenly Adrienne is very much aware that she's alone in the woods with an elf who very much doesn't like her.

"Anything?" she asks, her breath fanning over Adrienne's cheeks.

Oh God, I'm already regretting this.

"Anything, uh, reasonable, that is."

Her dark eyes glint in satisfaction. "Alright, then how about this. I'll teach you elvish, and until which time you have successfully grasped the language you will clean my classroom every day. Then, when all is said and done, we will part ways and you will never speak to me again. Ever. Is that clear?"

Adrienne matches her cold grin. "Crystal."

"Well then, looks like we have a deal."

.。.:*・° .。.:*・° .。.:*・° .。.:*・°

As it turns out, elf children are still very much, well, children. That fact is evident to Adrienne from the moment she steps into the classroom. It's a mess.

"Oh boy," she says through a sigh.

At the sound, Melgal-hi emerges from the backroom. "Ah, I see you made it. I wasn't sure you would decide to go through with it."

"We made a deal," she says bluntly. Because, really, why wouldn't she have shown up today?

The elleth shrugs. "The word of Man is often unreliable."

"Really? I just got here."

Melgal-hi feigns innocence. "I'm just going off of what history has proven time and again, there's no need to take offense." She sits at her desk with a stack of paperwork before making a shooing motion. "Now get to work, we haven't got all day, you know."

Fists clenched, Adrienne closes her eyes and takes in a deep breath to reign in her fury. This girl knows how to push all her buttons, clearly. There's just something about her that drives Adrienne up the wall.

But they have to tolerate each other for now, so Adrienne gets to work straightening up the room. She straightens desks, wipes chalkboards, sweeps the floor, organizes bins, the whole nine yards. For the first time, she's actually grateful for there not being any gum in Middle Earth, lest she have to scrape that off the underside of the desks.

All the while, as Adrienne cleans, Melgal-hi sits at her desk grading paperwork and adjusting lesson plans and whatnot. Now and then, Mel will direct her on what to do next–or correct her on what she's doing wrong. After one such remark, Adrienne makes a face at her when she isn't looking. It's immature of her, she knows, but the girl had it coming and she'd do it again if the opportunity presents itself.

Adrienne suspects Mel chose these demands for her end of the bargain not so much out of the convenience of having a helper (though seeing the state of the classroom, it might've been a deciding factor), but out of satisfaction from seeing Legolas' human wife work for her like this. That only irks Adrienne more. She personally has no qualms with doing this kind of labor; she's been working menial jobs since she was sixteen, and even now that she's married to royalty she sees no shame in getting her hands dirty. It's the principle of the matter that bothers her–Mel's smug attitude at seeing her do 'servent's' work.

Finally, finally Melgal-hi relieves Adrienne when she says her work is satisfactory for the day, and the language lesson can begin.

Naturally, they start with the basics–learning the elvish alphabet. In truth, Adrienne had expected the experience to be similar to that of when she took Spanish to fulfill her language requirement in school, but instead it feels like she's back in preschool learning the basics of the English language. It's worse than if Mel was drilling her the way she expected, because this way she feels like she's being treated like a child, and it's almost condescending.

…But, as the lessons go on, Adrienne realizes that this tactic is most likely for her benefit. And she cannot deny that Melgal-hi is an excellent teacher, as much as it wounds her to admit. She explains the concepts to her thoroughly and does not grow impatient when Adrienne struggles to grasp something right away. (Maybe she wouldn't have hated Spanish as much if she'd had a teacher like this). She's clearly good at her job, and it shows in Adrienne's progress. It also shows in her other students, as Adrienne discovers.

She shows up early one day–or maybe the class is running late, she's not sure which. Time is hard to keep track of in a world without clocks, okay? Anyway, she shows up and class is still in session, as is obvious by the dozen pairs of youthful elf eyes gazing at her.

Oh.

"Lady Adrienne," one of them greets her. "What a surprise!"

"Hi," she says with a small wave before glancing over at Melgal-hi. "Yeah, sorry. I uh, I didn't know class was still going on. I can wait outside."

Mel waves her off. "No, it's alright. I was just about to dismiss them." Her silky hair russles as she faces the class again. "Good day, children."

They don't move.

"I said, good day, children," she repeats more sternly, but, for whatever reason, Adrienne discerns she's only feigning her annoyance, like it's a bit of some sort.

Some of the elflings bite their bottom lips to keep from laughing, only confusing Adrienne further.

Mischief glinting in her eyes, Mel leans forward with dangerously narrowed eyes-and a hint of a smile on her lips. "Remove yourselves–before I feed you to the orcs."

The elflings erupt into a fit of giggles as they scramble out of their seats and hastily exit the room. It seems to be a daily ritual of sorts, one they clearly enjoy, and they send their teacher fond farewell glances and waves on the way out. One young elleth lingers behind, approaching Mel's desk.

"I made this for you, Lady Melgal-hi," the child says, shyly placing a handmade necklace on the desk.

Mel picks it up with tender care, inspecting the gift. "Thank you, Lothessil. It's beautiful."

The little girl smiles proudly before bowing and running after her friends.

Adrienne stares at the doorway where all the children disappeared through, processing what she just witnessed. Melgal-hi, the rude, snappy woman who always gets on Adrienne's nerves is not only a great teacher but is also really good with kids. She's almost…soft for them. And they love her.

Dumbfounded, Adrienne turns back to the woman in question. "Those kids really like you. And you really like them."

Mel shoots her an irritable look. "Yes, well, it's required for this kind of position, is it not?"

She barks out a raw laugh. "Man, how I wish that were true. You wouldn't believe some of the nightmarish teachers I've had. There are way too many people who clearly hate kids, working with kids. It's insane."

"I wouldn't expect the education system of mortals to compare to ours."

For once, Adrienne only meets the dig at her race with a shrug. "You're not wrong, unfortunately. It sucks." She watches as Mel busies herself with homework, unable to contain her curiosity. "Do you think you'll have kids?"

Melgal-hi smiles bitterly. "There's only ever been one person who interested me in such a way, and he hardly even noticed me." Her face turns into a scowl as she begins to cross off wrong answers more aggressively. "Apparently, his tastes were for obnoxious humans. I obviously didn't meet that description."

She winces. "Oh. Right." Bending down to pick up a stray chalkboard, she starts to busy herself with cleaning but it's not a minute before she turns back to the elf. "Are you sure you don't like anyone else here? There's a lot of good lookin' elves and–"

The pencil slams down against the surface of the desk, under the force of Melgal-hi's hand as she glares over at Adrienne. "It escapes me how you are still talking about this. Your job is to clean, not berate me with nosy questions."

Adrienne puts her hands up innocently. "Alright, alright. I'm sorry." She goes back to her work.

Mel's voice comes a moment later, her voice much quieter as she hunches over her desk. "I'm not sure why you even care."

It strikes her, in some vulnerable way. "Because even though I don't think you should be mad at me for something that's not my fault, I still feel a little bad. For you. Not for being with Legolas."

"I don't need pity, silly human."

"Not pity–empathy. It's a strong characteristic we silly humans have." She shakes her head. "I don't exactly like you, but it's not like I want you to be unhappy."

"Your presence would suggest otherwise." She sniffs. Then her shoulders slump. "I made peace with it, before; I'd mostly accepted that the prince would never return my feelings. I thought that was that. And then you showed up on his arm, as his wife, and I just…" Her jaw clenches.

Adrienne swallows thickly. "Maybe the best way to fill that void in your life is to find something else. Like, someone else to get feelings for? Or maybe getting a dog–"

"A dog?" Mel chokes. "Are you really suggesting I'm that lonely?"

Oops.

"I'm-I'm just saying I know what it's like to be lonely and–"

"Well, I not. Lonely, that is. I cannot find it in myself to love anyone else, but My heartache will heal in time, and I'll go back to being content with my life. I don't need a man for that. I love my home and I love my occupation." She falters, gaze shifting somewhere beyond the room as if momentarily forgetting Adrienne's presence. "Although…"

"Although?"

She shakes her head. "Nothing. Let's just get back to work, shall we?"

Frowning, Adrienne continues straightening up the classroom. All the while, her thoughts linger on the elleth occupying the room with her and on their conversation. She still doesn't like her, but she does feel sorry for her. Mel is a tough nut to crack; she's obstinate, but it's clear she's only using it as a safeguard. Especially against Adrienne, much to her dismay. Her constant grudge against her doesn't make tolerating their time together any easier, and they're far from the finish line.

When Adrienne puts the broom away for the day, she stands in front of Mel's desk, her hands on her hips. "You know what sounds like a good idea? Taking our lesson outside today."

And so they find themselves in the forest, seated in the tree where they first made this pact. Melgal-hi had agreed to have their lesson outside with some begrudging, but now, out here in the natural light and fresh air, she seems to be in a better mood than usual.

She works on Adrienne's enunciation, a weakness she hopes to overcome sooner rather than later.

"No, you need to stress the accent more. Cín dol na- lost."

" Cín dol na- lost ."

"That's better. Again."

" Cín dol na- lost ."

Melgal-hi nods. "Good."

"And what does that phrase mean?"

She smirks. "'Your head is empty'."

Adrienne rolls her eyes. "You know, I could push you off this branch and I'd sleep just fine tonight."

"You can, but I would land on my feet like a cat, and even if I did not, I would still be unharmed. Our bones are strong, whereas I bet you couldn't even jump purposely from this height without injuring yourself."

She huffs. "Okay, you wanna bet?"

Mel inclines her head with a smirk, spreading her hand out in a 'be my guest' gesture.

Swinging her leg on the same side as her other one, she looks down at the forest floor below and gulps. It's not a short distance, that's for sure, but it's doable. And even if it weren't, she's not about to back down from a challenge from Mel.

She uses her arms to launch herself off the branch, legs outstretched in front of her. Her form is great-except for the fact that her left ankle decides to give out from under her as she lands, sending her tumbling to the ground.

The elleth's laughter rings out from above her as she lies in an embarrassed heap among some weeds growing at the base of the tree. A sigh makes its way past her lips while she wishes death would come and claim her instantaneously. But she's distracted from her humiliation when dozens of tiny bugs crawling across her skin suddenly jumps to the top of her Concern List.

With a shriek, Adrienne leaps to her feet and tries to swipe off the ants whose home she must have landed on.

Melgal-hi's howls of laughter only heighten at the display, but Adrienne is too preoccupied to pay her any mind at the moment. Feeling ants run along her torso, she pulls off her shirt in a desperate panic. Without the obstruction of clothing, she's able to rid herself of the last of the ants. Then and only then does the soreness of her ankle and the heat of her cheeks start to set in.

Oddly enough, she also becomes aware of the fact that Mel's amused clapping has subsided.

"You have markings," she states curiously, eyeing the tattoos littered across her arms and abdomen.

Cheeks still burning, Adrienne continues to inspect herself for any remaining bugs. "Yep."

"You stained your skin with ink." Her voice is strange, but Adrienne doesn't have the patience to examine the reason behind it.

"Sure did."

There's a whoosh of air as the elleth joins her on the ground.

Adrienne decides to bite the bullet and turns to finally face her, only to start in surprise at the close proximity.

Mel is standing uncomfortably close to her, her eyes trailing across her exposed skin, looking at each design individually. "You are very odd," she finally says, "even for a human"

She chuckles uncomfortably. "Ha yeah, 'cause I have piercings, tatts, and a pottymouth. Where I'm from, those are all pretty much the norm, but around here…"

Something shifts in the other woman's expression and her eyes snap back to Adrienne's. "Is that something you take pride in?"

Her head cocks. "I mean, I think it's kinda funny."

"Oh, let's praise Eru for sending someone such as yourself to provide us with humor."

This bitch.

Adrienne sets her jaw. "It's not all sunshine and rainbows. Do you think I enjoy being the black sheep? Having people look at me weird because I said or did something that isn't socially acceptable around here? Yeah, no. You throw yourself a constant pity party because you blend into the crowd too much but I have the exact opposite problem and it's just as Not Fun as yours."

"Do not compare yourself to me," Melgal-hi bites.

She shrugs. "Too late, I just did. And you know what, there are only two differences. One, my problem isn't just limited to Eryn Galen–I'd stick out no matter where I am in Middle Earth. And second is that I don't take it out on other people. Believe it or not, it's not that hard."

"And what does it say about you, that you don't fit in anywhere in the great expanse of Middle Earth?" Melgal-hi scoffs, giving her a distasteful look. "You expect us to welcome you into our sacred home with open arms, to accept you as one of us when it is so blatant that you are anything but. And you have the audacity to take offense when we fail to rejoice at your being bound to our beloved prince."

Adrienne's blood runs fast and hot with each word spoken.

"I think your own feelings toward your beloved prince are clouding that judgment," she snaps, knowing the words would hit home. "Maybe if you'd stop being hung up on someone who barely even knows you exist, you'd see the good things I have to offer."

The look she gives is one of mild disgust. "I might believe that if you didn't need to come crawling to me for help, just to try to fit in better. I'll see you tomorrow, Nadhor." She turns sharply and storms off.

Adrienne is left standing at the base of the tree as her anger slowly numbs. After a long moment, she pulls her tunic back on and starts heading toward the palace, wincing with every step on her left foot.

The numb void she feels in the aftermath of the argument morphs into something more complex–sadness and shame. Melgal-hi's words struck a deep-rooted fear of hers, one she'd thought to have overcome; the fear that she doesn't have a place, neither here nor there. But what's worse is that she'd stooped and said harsh words to the very woman she pities, an action that only proves Adrienne's incompetence. She's not fit for this life of careful composure and regality.

By the time she reaches her room, she's overcome with a heavy weariness. Legolas is sitting with his back against the headboard as he reads and upon her entrance, he looks up. His smiling mouth opens to offer a greeting, but his face falls the moment he sees hers.

"What's wrong?"

She wipes a hand across her nose. "Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"Nothing important."

He watches her for a moment, brow pinched in concern. "Anything that puts such a frown upon your face is important," he says as he closes his book, setting it aside.

She releases a sigh, not having the energy to relay it all to him, and even if she did, she wouldn't be able to properly explain it without revealing her secret language lessons. So instead, she simply crawls into bed and collapses into his comforting embrace. Resting her head on his chest, she inhales his familiar scent.

"I'd rather not talk about it," she quietly admits, closing her eyes.

From the tense silence, she can tell it greatly frustrates him not to know. He wants to understand whatever it is that is causing her grief so he can fix it, but she won't let him, at least not in that way. But he respects her wishes, so he tightly wraps his arms around her and plants a soft kiss on the top of her head. "Alright, then."

The gesture does more for her than he could ever know.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

Translations:

An nin bain bereth: for my beautiful wife

uglui dilthen firen: ugly little human

Nadhor: rat