Tolkien owns the characters you love and know. I own Kaitlyn , Derrick, Anargthed and a few other characters not from the books or movie.

Thanks to my beta Lossefalme for her superb beta skills. She helps make this story what it is.

Chapter 30: The Blinding Light of Anor

The bodies lie everywhere. Men, Elves, Orcs and Uruk-hai scattered across the great Fortress of Helm's Deep and the land beyond it. They lay in piles; enemy with enemy and some alone. Red blood stained the earth and stone and the stench of death filled the air. The aftermath was a horrid sight to see. Many men wept and others retched as they carried the bodies of their comrades away to be buried. Many songs of mourning could be heard.

Legolas felt sorrow for the passing of so many Elves, but he knew they would live on in the Halls of Mandos. The men were not so fortunate and he felt sorrow for the women and children they left behind. The bodies of the young boys who had died defending their home were sad to see. Their lives had been ripped away before they had even reached full maturity.

As the Mirkwood Elf walked along the wall, he spotted Gimli on the lower level sitting upon a fallen Uruk-hai soldier. Both the Elf and Dwarf had created some rivalry during the war. They took turns shouting out how many of the enemy they had killed. It had helped to make the night quicken in its slow pace. Legolas was glad that the battle of Helm's Deep was over, though it only meant that more war and death loomed on the horizon.

Last night all was thought to have been lost when the Uruk-hai blasted the outer wall sky high and stormed the fortress. But at the coming of dawn, Gandalf had arrived with over two thousand of the Rohirrim. They had turned the tide of the battle as they galloped down the mountainside and drove the enemy away.

Gimli looked quite smug as he smoked his pipe and rested upon a Uruk. As always his ax was in his hand.

Legolas grinned and walked toward him. The Elf ran his hands over his Lorien bow and beamed with pleasure. "Final count, forty two," he announced proudly to the Dwarf as Legolas neared.

Gimli laughed, white smoke surrounding him, and Legolas peered at him curiously.

"That is not bad for a pointy eared Elvish princeling!" Gimli called out. "However, I am sitting pretty on number forty three." The Dwarf took a puff from his pipe and let the smoke escape through his teeth as he grinned.

Legolas' brows lowered harshly over his eyes. Impossible! How had Gimli beaten him?

Without thought the Elf notched an arrow onto the string of his bow with lightning speed. He released the arrow and it embedded in the Uruk that Gimli sat upon.

Legolas straightened his posture and smiled. "Forty three."

"It was already dead!" Gimli grunted at him.

"It was twitching," the Elf explained with a raised eyebrow.

Gimli opened his mouth to return a comment when he noticed the sparkle in Legolas' eyes. "Hmm… Your fair eyes deceive you, Elf. You wish to win so you may impress the lassie with your count."

Legolas' eyes widened. "Entirely untrue," he denied promptly.

Gimli smirked. "Whatever you say, laddie."

Legolas turned from the Dwarf as he felt his face flush. Embarrassment was something the Elf was not accustomed to.

"The women and children are leaving the caves," Legolas commented. The excitement in his voice was unmistakable.

"Kaitlyn should be among them," Gimli told him and he puffed his pipe again.

Legolas nodded, but did not turn his eyes from the hallway that led to the Glittering Caves. "I do not see her yet. I see the Lady Eowyn. She is embracing Aragorn."

Eowyn hugged Aragorn tightly when she saw him and immediately they began to speak. Legolas lost sight of them in the growing crowd of men, women and children that spewed from the caves.

Legolas waited patiently for some sight Kaitlyn. He watched as women embraced their husbands with relief and joy. He saw other women and children cry when they learned they were not so fortunate. Emotions ran the gauntlet and tension was high.

It was some time later, when the line of women and children began to trickle to nothing more than a few entering the open air, that Aragorn approached Legolas. Gimli talked to a Rohan soldier and had been for some time. Legolas, meanwhile, had been nearly oblivious to everything around him except the hallway to the caves.

Aragorn put a hand on Legolas' shoulder and the Elf did likewise to his friend.

"I feel fortunate to have survived this night," Aragorn told him.

"Aye, myself as well. Many were lost."

Aragorn nodded slowly.

Legolas frowned deeply. A terrible sense of fear and loss surrounded the Ranger.

"Something troubles you. Your mind is heavy as is your heart," Legolas commented softly.

"You sense too much," Aragorn replied in an even tone.

"Tell me what has happened."

"Haldir of Lorien is dead, " the Ranger whispered sadly. "He fell during the retreat to the Keep."

Legolas lowered his head at the news. He did not know Haldir very well, but he had respected the March Warden.

"He will be sadly missed," Legolas replied. Silently he prayed Haldir would find his way safely to Mandos' Great Halls.

Aragorn sighed and licked at his dry lips.

"There is more…" Legolas noted. The Elf now sensed concern and guilt radiate from the man who stood before him.

The Ranger did not look up at his friend for some time and it caused Legolas to grow concerned.

"Aragorn?" he inquired when the silence became too long.

"The soldier came out of nowhere, dressed in Rohan armor," Aragorn began. "They saved my life by firing arrows and killing several Uruk-hai that attempted to slaughter me. I had no idea who it was until they took an arrow and fell to the ground… and then I saw your Mirkwood bow at their feet."

Legolas inhaled sharply at the unexpected news. His eyes grew wide as saucers and his heart pounded in his chest. His throat went dry and he could not form words. He prayed to Eru that Aragorn was not saying what Legolas feared he was saying.

"At first glance, I thought she was an adolescent boy who wished to help me," the Ranger said, recounting what had taken place.

Legolas inhaled and exhaled deeply. The action hurt his chest and lungs, but it harmed his heart even more. "Kaitlyn?" he asked fearfully.

Aragorn swallowed hard and nodded.

Legolas became suddenly still.

"She somehow knew that Saruman's soldiers wanted me dead." Aragorn brushed his thumb over the Ring of Barahir upon his hand.

"As she lay on the ground, a Uruk-hai tried to finish her off. She used the dagger given to her by the Lady of Light and plunged it into the leg of the Uruk-hai. It slowed the creature down, but made him angry and he moved to strike her. I killed him before he could harm her further, but she had already been shot. " There was regret and pain in Aragorn's tone.

Legolas stood as still as one of the stone statues of Helm's Deep, but on the inside his mind whirled. This could not be!

"Hîn cuina?" Legolas asked softly. Is she alive?

Aragorn lowered his head. "Ú-istan." I know not.

Legolas collected himself and appeared calm on the outside, but Aragorn knew better of the situation. The Elf was frantic inside just as the Ranger had feared Legolas would be when he learned of what had happened.

"Dan…Manen pul-hen na? Hîn darthanne vi fili." But…how can this be? She stayed in the caves.

"Nay. Hîn minne i dhagor." Aragorn told him. No. She entered the battle.

Legolas' tone became harsh. " Hîn adaneth. I erch bell. A onech hîn dâf maetha? " She is a woman (mortal). The orcs were strong. And you gave her permission to fight?

" Ú-agoren anna dâf hîn!" the Ranger yelled louder than he meant to. I did not give her permission!

Legolas blinked and Aragorn took a deep breath and sighed. This was the second time they had quarreled in only one day.

Aragorn lowered his voice when he spoke next. He knew Legolas was upset and he did not desire to argue with him. "You know I wished her to be safe in the caves. You were there when I told her she would not fight with us. I would not change my mind," Aragorn said in the common tongue.

Legolas did not speak. His heart raced loudly. It took much effort to keep his breathing even. He had expected horrible things to happen this night, but not this…Not Kaitlyn.

"I know not how she escaped the caves," the Ranger continued when the Elf did not speak. "Only that she dressed in Rohan armor and she knew the enemy plotted to kill me."

"U-bennich nin," Legolas whispered brokenly. You spoke to me not.

The anguish in the Elf's voice made Aragorn grimace. The Ranger knew this moment approached, but that had not made it any easier.

"I did not want you to worry during the battle," Aragorn continued softly. "If any concentration was lost you may have faltered."

Legolas realized that Aragorn meant well. But the worry that settled within him caused him to grow anxious. "Goheno nin. Rûth nin…" Forgive me. My anger…

Legolas looked up into Aragorn's eyes. The man was not unfeeling and guilt assaulted the Elf for shouting. Aragorn felt the same grief he did.

"Mas hîn? Aniron an ceni hin." Where is she? I desire to see her.

Aragorn tilted his head as a thought occurred to him. Legolas had been speaking in his native tongue almost the entire conversation. That only happened when Legolas was with his own people, or if he meant to be discreet or was upset or angry.

"Anargthed took her to the caves," Aragorn offered.

Legolas' eyes darkened at the name.

"I had no choice but to ask him to bring her. There was no other for the task," Aragorn assured the Elf.

Legolas nodded slowly.

"I am told that Anargthed died defending her."

Legolas lowered his head. Anargthed had proven himself before the end. Legolas prayed that the Rohan soldier now dwelt with his ancestors.

"She was frightened when I left her." Aragorn swallowed and lowered his head. He could hear Kaitlyn's petrified voice echo in his head. It pleaded with him to stay with her.

"Lady Eowyn told me she tended Kaitlyn, but the Shield Maiden had been separated from Kaitlyn due to her duties as the King's niece and a Lady of the court. I know not how Kaitlyn fares at this moment, but she lived last Eowyn knew."

Legolas nodded and bowed his head. Aragorn realized the severity of pain the Elf felt. Not many would have noticed how much the Elf was hurting, but Aragorn had gotten to know the Elf very well over the last few months.

Legolas raised his head at last and his eyes asked silently for permission.

"Bedi an Kaitlyn." Go to Kaitlyn. "There is nothing further for you to do here," the Ranger dismissed him and Legolas did not have to be told again.

The Elf tore off toward the caves numbly. He pushed blindly past people he had helped into the caves early the previous night night. While he had studied and watched the people of Rohan earlier, he did not even notice them now. He found Eowyn talking to a soldier and she immediately turned when she saw him approach.

"Mas hîn?" Legolas asked. Where is she?

Eowyn frowned and gave him a blank expression.

"Where is Kaitlyn?" he demanded softly, slipping into the common tongue for the first time within the last several minutes.

Eowyn frowned at his question. Had Lord Aragorn not told him? She had seen the Ranger and Elf speaking. "She is in the caves."

"Where within them? Can you tell me?" Legolas asked with haste.

Eowyn stared curiously at the Elf. He was often quiet and collected but now he seemed jittery. The pupils of his eyes darted left and right, unable to focus upon the lady in front of him. He shifted his weight from side to side nervously.

"Through the cavern doors and then sharply to the right. Down the stairs and you will see her."

Legolas swallowed and started forward. He halted when Eowyn's hand rested upon his shoulder.

"We did not have the proper tools to sew her injury after we removed the arrow tip. She lost a lot of blood, Master Elf, and remains unconscious," Eowyn warned.

Legolas nodded and broke away from her before he lost his composure. As he walked away quickly, he realized this all felt as it had early last night when Aragorn was thought to be dead. The anguish and pain returned to plague the Mirkwood Elf, only this time he did not have the comfort of the woman he cared for to help him cope.

His paced quickened to a run, though not a sound was heard as his leather boots touched the stone floor.

As Legolas raced through the hallway, the memory of his departure from Kaitlyn before the war flew through his mind. It served only to torture him further. He remembered the feel of her body against his, her warm lips on his cheek as she kissed him goodbye … his own desire as it stirred within him before he pulled away to depart.

The few people who remained in the hallway watched the fair Elf rush into the caves. Many of them suspected he returned to the mortal woman who could speak the tongue of Elves.

Legolas entered the Glittering Caves and turned sharply to the right. He descended stone stairs and saw two women and two small boys crouched around a body on the stone ground.

Legolas felt his throat tighten, making it difficult to breathe. There Kaitlyn lie, her dark hair a matted mess, her face pale and her body deathly still.

One woman dabbed a damp cloth upon Kaitlyn's forehead, while the other held Kaitlyn's hand. The young boys were kneeling and both appeared to be frightened. One of the boys turned and saw Legolas standing on the stairs.

"An Elf! An Elf has come!" the boy shouted with wide eyes.

The woman who had been holding Kaitlyn's hand turned to regard Legolas. The woman was young, but it was obvious by the lines on her face she had known many hardships. Her hair was fair and her eyes were dark but warm.

She stood. "Please, you must help her. She is burning with fever."

Legolas descended the stairs slowly; his eyes focused on Kaitlyn's body. Blood stained bandages were wrapped around her, her eyes were closed and sweat pooled and streamed as tears down her face.

He approached silently and the women and boys moved aside. The Elf knelt beside his mortal friend. His hand reached for her face and he drew it back when he felt the heat of her skin. The fever burned viciously within her.

Kaitlyn's body shook. Her cloak was nowhere in sight and there were no blankets wrapped around her.

Legolas unclasped his cloak and draped it over her in an attempt to keep her warm.

While Elves did not get sick, there were times when Elves were injured and their bodies created fever to fight off infections. Legolas had been a member of the Home Guard of Mirkwood. He had seen much death and suffering in his life. He had watched his comrades and friends die from injuries such as this. Though Kaitlyn's injury itself was not deadly, the Orc poison that had coated the arrow was.

"She needs a healer…" Legolas said aloud. His hands shook and he attempted to still them by placing them palm down onto the cold stone floor.

"You are an Elf. Can you not heal her?" the fair-haired mother asked.

Legolas shook his head in grief. "I possess not the skills to heal her."

One of the young boys began to cry. "She will die will she not, Mother?"

The boys' mother, who had dark hair, put a hand on her son's shoulder. "I do not know, Torin."

"I want Mirtan," the other boy cried.

The fair-haired woman pulled the young boy close to her. He did not yet know that his brother would never return.

"You may go to seek your families," Legolas bid the women. "You have done a great deed in staying and helping this woman."

"Lady Kaitlyn helped my son find his way to Helm's Deep when we were separated," the dark haired woman explained. "She helped Elsen find comfort when her young son was brought back dead last night. It was the least we could do for her."

"Your deed will not be forgotten," Legolas told them as they rose to their feet. The Elf slid his hands beneath Kaitlyn's body and gently lifted her into his arms.

Kaitlyn did not move or cry out. Her head rolled back against Legolas' chest within her unconscious state.

"Where will you take her?" Elsen asked.

"Away from the prying eyes of others," Legolas stated and he glanced around, setting his eyes on men, women and children who had come to stare.

Legolas started to leave when Elsen put a hand on his shoulder. She quickly pulled it back, as if burned, when he glanced down at it.

"Please let us know how she fairs. We…we have lost too many this past night."

Legolas nodded and moved away with Kaitlyn in his arms.

He thought of bringing her to the small room attached to the armory, but he was sure it was filled with people now. Instead, he brought her down two flights of stairs to a small tunnel. Hay and grain was stored there for the horses.

Legolas sat down slowly in the hay, Kaitlyn still in his arms.

The Elf could hear voices; shouting and crying in the world above, but they were soon blocked out as Kaitlyn received his full attention. He tucked his cloak around her and was careful in his movements so that he did not jostle her injury.

She remained unconscious, the beads of sweat rolling down her face.

Legolas studied her face with his eyes. Kaitlyn had several small cuts and scratches upon her cheek and nose, most likely from the heavy helmet she was not accustomed to wearing.

Some part of Legolas felt proud. How Kaitlyn must have looked dressed in armor and firing arrows at the enemy with his old bow.

After studying Kaitlyn with his eyes, Legolas explored her face with his hand. Her skin burned from the fever which continued to plague her. His fingers wiped the sweat from her brow and smoothed her damp hair from her face. He touched her cheek and jaw and when his thumb grazed over her lips something unexpected happened.

It was as if the sun had broken through the dark and foreboding clouds. The trees of Mirkwood, which fiercely protected their prince's heart, felt the light and warmth of Anor . the sun The vines and evil that kept them in shadow and solitude fell away and the mighty trees were reborn.

Legolas' heart pounded loudly in his chest as all was revealed to him in the span of a few beats of it. He gazed down at the ill and injured woman in his arms and a sense of wonderment overtook him.

Legolas Greenleaf, prince of Mirkwood and son of Thranduil, was no longer different from others of his kind. Many things which confused him during the last several weeks made sense now and Legolas wondered how he could have been so very blind and naïve

One of the greatest gifts of the Valar had finally touched him centuries later than it should have. But instead of the overwhelming joy he should have felt at this discovery; grief, agonizing pain and fear overtook him.

So suddenly, Legolas Greenleaf realized and understood the dying mortal woman in his arms was the one his heart had chosen.

To be continued…

Wow, I got a lot of fantastic reviews last chapter. My readers are the best. Thank you all for continuing to tell me what you like and dislike about this story or the most recent chapter that I have posted. It really helps me with my writing and certainly encourages me.

One of my readers was kind enough to give my fanfiction site a complete overhaul. I've changed the url for the site and it's at geocitiesdotcom/cormaksfanfiction (take out dot and put . ) Hopefully that shows up on If not the url is in my profile. There are photo manipulations on the site for "MF" and one of these days perhaps I will get an illustration done for the story.

As always, I ask everyone to please be patient with the posting of the next chapter. RL is sometimes hectic and doesn't leave a lot of time for writing.

Thank you one and all for continuing to review for this story. Keep those comments coming!