A month and a half passed by very quickly, much to Luinëhothiel’s dismay. She had grown ever closer to Legolas and dreaded the day when he would have to leave Rivendell and return to Mirkwood.

Luinëhothiel awoke suddenly to the darkness of night. A noise, seeming to come from her balcony, had interrupted her peaceful slumber. She pushed herself out of her bed, careful to make as little sound as possible, and moved over to the doorway.

The autumn moon shone brightly, yet cast no shadow over what sort of intruder might have been outside her chamber at that late hour. She leaned against the cool, granite wall, steadying herself as she peered around the corner. She saw nothing.

‘Odd…’ she thought, knowing, indefinitely, that she had heard something. ‘May have been a bird, or some other sort of small animal.’ she said to herself, resigning the idea of an intruder.

Luinëhothiel turned back from the doorway and immediately felt her heart rise into her throat. There, sitting on her bed, was a dark figure of a man. She moved to her left, hoping the moon would shine some light on the intruder, and squinted her eyes in his direction.

“Who are you? What is it that you want?” she asked, edging closer to her bed. No answer, he sat there, silent and motionless. Then, as she’d hoped, a sliver of moonlight cast over his head, revealing pale skin and long, blond hair.

“Legolas…” she whispered in amazement, running over to him and throwing her arms over his shoulders. He responded warmly, embracing her gently and placing a light kiss on her cheek.

“What are you doing here, dear Prince? The hour is late and you should be resting.” she stated, moving from his lap to take a seat on the bed. She placed her hand in his and smiled, hoping he had come bearing good news, or something of the like.

But, alas, the news was not good. In fact, it was extremely bad.

“Luinëhothiel, I received a letter this evening, from the citizens of my kingdom. I am told that groups of Orcs continue to invade Mirkwood and that, without me, my people feel that they will soon be defeated.” Legolas explained, hanging his head. “They have requested that Aragorn and I return at once…and I will honor their wishes.”

Luinëhothiel felt small tears welling up in the corner of her eyes. She wiped at them with her free hand, not wanting to show Legolas her true feelings on the matter. She wanted to show him that she could be strong.

“If you must go…” she said in a weak voice, nodding her head.

Legolas squeezed her hand. “Thank you, my dear, for being so understanding.” he said, rising up from the bed.

Luinëhothiel stopped him. “Would you stay with me tonight?” she questioned, her hope-filled eyes staring up at him.

Legolas looked down into Luinëhothiel’s crystal, blue eyes and felt his heart melt immediately. He nodded. “Of course I will.” he agreed with a smile, rejoining Luinëhothiel on the bed.

She moved in closer to him and laid down, placing her head on his lap. He automatically began running his hands through her soft hair, coaxing her to sleep.

“I wish you didn’t have to go…” Luinëhothiel whispered, stifling her yawn.

“Shh…” he said, lying her back onto the bed. “Don’t let that worry you…”

Legolas laid down at Luinëhothiel’s side, continuing to stroke her hair. He watched her eyes drift shut as a contented smile crossed her delicate mouth. He lowered his head and placed a gentle kiss upon her lips, then, as he let his mouth roam further, he began to leave trails of tiny kisses along her neck and collarbone.

Luinëhothiel stirred a little when she felt Legolas’ hand graze her breast lightly. She opened her eyes, smiling up at her handsome Prince.

Then, without a word, Legolas captured her lips with his, leading her into an earth-moving, passionate kiss. He wrapped his arms around her tightly, savoring the kiss as if it were his last breath of air.

When the kiss ended, Legolas held Luinëhothiel for a long while, rocking her gently.

“I love you…” he whispered, drawing her closer to him. He then began to sing a song of love, joy, and passion…repeating the short verse over and over in a soft, baritone voice.

Luinëhothiel nuzzled her face into the crook of Legolas’ neck, breathing in his intoxicating scent and falling asleep to the relaxing sound of his voice.

That night, she dreamt that, when she woke up, Legolas would still be at her side and that the message from Mirkwood had never existed.


| Part VI |
| Index |