Through Fire and Water (A Legolas Love Story)

Heart to Heart

Father lies with his ear against the rock, listening to the sounds of the Uruk-hai that we have been tracking. I slump against a rock wall, closing my eyes and trying to regain some energy, any energy. Legolas yells at us to “Come on!” and he runs off again, showing no signs of the non-stop running we have been doing lately but I can’t bring myself to move.

“Three days’ and nights’ pursuit without food, or rest. And no sign of our quarry but what bare rock can tell” Gimli pants, running up the hill. I give him a tired smile but still can’t bring myself to move. My limbs feel like lead. Gimli stops as he reaches me.

“Come on lass, got to keep going” he says in his rough voice and I just about manage to open my eyes. He offers me a hand and I take it, letting him pull me away from the rock. And then we’re off again, running after father and Legolas who never seem to have any shortage of energy. We run until it starts to get dark again and father seems perfectly willing to keep running through yet another long, dark night, but I am not. I have fallen way behind but Aragorn doesn’t seem to have noticed, Legolas has however and he calls out to my father who stops and turns around to face us.

“We should stop for a few hours” I hear Legolas say as I draw near, stumbling on every step. I slump against a nearby boulder, closing my eyes for a brief moment and breathing heavily. My heart feels like it is trying to break out of my chest.

“No” father says bluntly “We are gaining on them, we can’t stop now”

“If we rest we’ll be able to move faster afterwards and we will quickly make up the lost ground. They will stop at nightfall anyway” Legolas argues.

“Which is exactly why we should keep going” Aragorn counters “If we run while they rest then we will make up the ground much faster” father turns to keep running but Legolas calls out.

“Aragorn!” he calls and father turns, Legolas points to me “Ariana can’t go on like this. Look at her, she’s done in” I don’t even open my eyes, just stay exactly as I am and let Legolas argue my case “Just a few hours, let her rest. Please” Legolas says, his voice almost begging. It feels good to have someone fighting for me and something deep inside me stirs; I don’t know what it is but it is definitely a good feeling.

“Ana?” father says, asking me for confirmation. But I can’t even bring myself to speak, just nod, keeping my eyes closed “Alright” he says, giving in “A few hours”

As soon as he has said this my knees buckle and I slide down to the floor. Within a minute of me hitting the floor I am dead to the world, sleeping so deeply that a nazgul could carry me off and I doubt I would wake. I sleep solidly for 5 hours and then I slowly begin to come back to the real world. My eyes flutter open and for a moment I can’t see a thing because it’s dark. Someone has draped my cloak over me like a blanket and a few meters away a very small fire gives off a glow, hidden behind a rock to stop the light going too far. My stiff muscles complain as I sit up, rubbing my eyes. A few hours’ sleep has done me the world of good and I crawl over to the fire. Only Legolas is awake, staring into the tiny but comforting flames. He looks up as I approach, getting caught up in my cloak as I crawl towards the fire.

“Good morning” he says.

“Good morning” I reply “What time is it?”

“I’m not sure” he says, looking up at the starry sky “We have a couple of hours before we get moving again. Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, very well. Thank you, by the way, for convincing dad to let us stop. I know he can be stubborn sometimes”

“You needed rest, I could see that. I wasn’t going to let you run yourself to death. As I‘m sure you would have done otherwise”

“Yeah, probably”

We are quiet for a minute and I nibble on a piece of fairly hard bread but then Legolas speaks up.

“Ana” He begins, sounding slightly apprehensive “I need to tell you something”

I look into his pretty blue eyes and say “What is it?” he is quiet for a moment but then he takes a deep breath and begins to speak.

“I like you Ana. I really like you. I think you are one of the most wonderful people I have ever met. Whenever I see you my heart beats faster and all I can think is how beautiful you are. Whenever I am around you it’s like a hundred butterflies in my stomach”

I can’t speak. This is so sudden. He is looking at me now, like he expects me to say something but I can’t find words. “Wow…” I say and that’s all I can muster. I must be dreaming and yet this all feels so real, but it can’t be. Legolas isn’t really saying all this is he? I look at Legolas, his face is so honest and open and I know that I have to say something, but what? He gets in there first though.

“Do you think that… maybe… maybe you could like me too?” his voice is shaking slightly and I can tell how nervous he must be about this.

He’s asked a question now. That means I have to answer. What do I say? What am I supposed to say? I look down into the flames, thinking for a moment. Then, still staring at the fire, I start speaking. I don’t give myself a chance to think, I just say whatever comes into my head.

“I don’t know. I mean… I just don’t know. I do like you, of course I do. But I’m not sure if I like you in that way” he looks crushed but I don’t let that stop me. I just close my eyes and keep talking. “Over these past few days I have been asking myself that same question over and over. Do I like you? I guess, on the surface, I don’t know if I do or not. But I have already said things to you I would never have dreamed of saying to anyone. I have let you see me at some of my lowest points. You’ve seen me without my mask, without the outer shell I built so that people wouldn’t see the real me. I don’t feel embarrassed to come to you for help and that says a lot. So, do I like you? I didn’t think I did but it’s like a part of me is screaming at me, telling me that I do. You are good looking, that much I knew when I first met you, but you are also sweet and caring and overall a wonderful person” his eyes are riveted on mine now as I speak and there is a hopeful light flickering there. And now an idea comes into my head. “There is only one way for me to know the answer to that question for sure” I say.

“What is that?” he asks. Without a word I crawl from my side of the fire to his. I kneel beside him and very carefully take his hand, cupping my other hand around the back of his head. I lean in and pause for a moment, looking at him from only an inch away, and then I kiss him. It’s only a small kiss but his lips are gentle and soft and at the moment they touch mine it’s like a thousand fireworks going off in my brain. That feeling comes back, the one I had when he was convincing dad to let me rest. I pull away from him and take my hand away from his head.

“Ask the question again” I command him, my voice is barely above a whisper and I am trembling as my mind races at a thousand miles an hour.

“Do you like me too?” he asks, his voice is a similar quiet and shaken tone to mine. I don’t answer for a moment, I just look at him. His face is glowing in the firelight and it makes him look even more gorgeous than usual. I remember the night in Lothlorien. He made me feel safe and wanted and he made all my troubles seem less scary, I need someone like that. I look down at my hand which is still holding his and then into his eyes, blue and beautiful and filled with care and love. My brain is screaming at me to answer him, telling me the one word I need to say and eventually I listen to myself.

“Yes” I whisper with a smile and his face breaks out in a grin.