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If I don't have love, I am nothing. -1 Corinthians 13:2
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Legolas
Ada and Naneth arrived in Rivendell two days after their letter did, and I have never seen my nana cry as much as she has since she first saw Eilonwy and I holding hands when they came through the gate. She immediately ran to Eilonwy, pulling her into a bone-crushing hug, and she held her like that for so long, I was afraid I would have to fight my nana to get my wife-to-be back.
Adar held himself together well, which of course was not a surprise, but he could not fool anyone when tears pooled in his eyes as he looked upon us.
He hugs me tightly, something that he has not done since I was an elfling, and I accept his embrace happily, trying to keep my emotions in check. "I am so happy for you, ion nin (my son)," he says lowly so that only I can hear, and his voice is weak and trembling slightly, "You do not know how proud I am of you. I have not always been a good father, but I promised myself that I would make it up to you by allowing this wedding to take place."
He pulls away, holding onto my shoulders tightly as he appraises me.
"You need not feel that way, Ada. You have been a wonderful father," I tell him, confused at his guilty tone. 'Tis true that at times he can lose his temper and say things that cut into my heart like a knife, but it is only because I love him and care about his opinion. No one is perfect. I get angry with him a lot, too, but not once has he ever been a bad father in my mind.
He only nods, not looking convinced by my words, but Naneth takes his spot quickly.
"Oh, Legolas," she says, tears running down her cheeks as she throws her arms around me, "I just cannot believe that you are getting married. It seems like just yesterday you were crawling into mine and your father's bed after having a nightmare."
"Naneth," I mutter, feeling embarrassed as Gwilithon howls with laughter somewhere behind us.
"I am sorry," she says, pulling away from me and wiping at her cheeks, "I know you cannot stand that. I am just so happy!"
Lady Celebrian takes my mother's attention away from me as she begins speaking of Eilonwy's wedding dress, and I turn to see my Ada embracing Eilonwy tightly. My eyes widen slightly in surprise at the scene, and I turn to look at Glosseth who shrugs, a grin spreading across her face.
When Ada finally pulls away from Eilonwy, he takes her hand and squeezes it tightly as he says something too low for me to hear. She smiles, a slight rosy tint appearing on her cheeks, and she says something to him that makes him laugh. When they part and I finally have Eilonwy to myself, I analyze my father's expression closely. He is smiling widely, something he does not do very often, and his eyes are watery and slightly red. I glance at Eilonwy, raising my eyebrow at her, but she just continues to smile, shaking her head as if to say that she will explain later.
"Well, shall we go inside?" Lord Elrond asks, and everyone follows after him, all laughing and smiling as they converse with each other. I hold Eilonwy's hand tightly in mine, amazed at how our wedding could possibly make them all so excited and elated.
Eilonwy leans in closely to me. "I thought I was nervous before," she whispers, "But as it gets closer to our wedding, my nerves are getting stronger."
I laugh at her, kissing her head softly. "Do not be nervous. Look at how happy they are for us," I tell her, and she looks at the others for a moment before meeting my gaze, "My parents adore you. My ada does not even embrace Gwilithon or me, unless it is a special occasion like this."
She blushes slightly. "I was surprised when he hugged me, but it was sweet. Your ada is so kind."
I smile amusedly, opening my mouth to respond, but I am cut off as Glosseth speaks. "Eilonwy, where are you and Legolas going to stay for your honeymoon? You cannot possibly stay here!" she questions, looking between the two of us.
"They will stay here," Ada states firmly, falling back to walk beside us, and he gives us a sad look, "These are dangerous times for Eilonwy. 'Tis not safe for her to travel."
Glosseth frowns. "Oh, yes, you are right. Well, after all of this blows over, maybe you two can travel somewhere," she offers.
Eilonwy smiles at her. "Thank you for your consideration, but Legolas and I are perfectly fine with not traveling. Honestly, I would rather stay here in Rivendell. This place has become dear to my heart," she says, glancing at me for a moment with her shining green eyes.
Lord Elrond leads us into the living room of his home, and we all take seats that are spread across the room. I pull Eilonwy onto the same seat that I am sitting on, and she laughs, giving me a look that makes me want to kiss her. As the others converse and laugh with each other, servants enter the room with hot cups of tea, and I admire Eilonwy as she sips at her tea, speaking animatedly to my naneth and Lady Celebrian.
Her hair falls loosely down her back in the cute ringlet curls that I love so much, and her smile is so lovely that I am positive I have never seen anything so beautiful in my entire life. Her breathtaking green eyes flit over to me every few moments, and I can tell from the slight flush in her cheeks that she can feel my gaze on her intensely. A pastel green dress adorns her small body, little round buttons dotting up her spine vertically, but I dismiss the thoughts of those tempting buttons as quickly as I can.
I move my gaze from her, trying to find a distraction, and when my eyes meet the knowing look of my father, I feel embarrassment creep into my mind. He smirks slightly, looking away from me as he tries to fight down a laugh, and I watch him with a glare, daring him to utter a single sound.
"Legolas?" Eilonwy questions, catching my attention, "What do you think?"
I blink in confusion, having not heard a single word of the conversation.
Eilonwy laughs brightly along with the others, taking my hand in hers. "Do you wish to have the wedding the day of the others' arrival or a few days after?"
I open my mouth to respond, but my father's voice cuts into the conversation speedily.
"I think Legolas wishes to marry you as quickly as possible. I can imagine him dragging you to the altar the second the others arrive," he says with a satisfied smirk as everyone laughs loudly.
I glower at him for a moment before turning to Eilonwy. "Whatever you wish to do is fine with me," I tell her softly, knowing that my father is right. If propriety allowed it, I would marry her instantly without a single greeting to the rest of our wedding company, and then I would finally whisk her away as my wife- exactly what I have wanted to do for the past four years of having my visions.
She nods, her eyes dropping from mine shyly before she turns to look at Naneth and Lady Celebrian. "I think... I think that we should marry the day after the last of our company arrives."
Naneth grins happily, looking to Lady Celebrian who mirrors her expression. "Splendid! We need to make preparations now, for Aragorn's family and Galadriel and Celeborn should arrive any day now," Naneth says hastily, and she stands from her seat causing everyone else to rise.
Everyone takes that as a hint to depart, and each person leaves to do whatever they wish for the day, leaving Eilonwy and me alone. I turn to her with a grin, taking her hand in mine. "What do you wish to do today, my lady?"
She smiles as we walk together aimlessly, squinting up at me as the sunlight washes over her face. "It does not matter to me. I just wish to spend time with you," she responds, and I pull her closer to me.
"Does this mean we can sneak away?" I ask her lowly, reveling in the lovely gleam in her eyes as she looks at me, "I very much wish to steal a kiss or two."
"Only one or two?" she asks, laughing, "I know you much better than that, Legolas. If I let you steal me away, you might hide me forever."
I raise my eyebrow at her. "Is that a bad thing? I do not see the horror in that."
She grins, laying her head against my shoulder as we change course, headed for my room. "Hmm, you might have talked me into it."
"What did Ada tell you when he first arrived?" I ask her after a few moments of silence, and I remember the tender look in my father's eyes as he gazed at her.
"Oh," Eilonwy says, blushing slightly, "I hoped you had forgotten that."
I chuckle deeply, squinting down at her suspiciously. "Is it that bad?"
She smiles beautifully, finally meeting my gaze. "He told me that he is happy I found my way to you."
"And?" I question playfully, dragging the word out.
"And he gave me a bit of advice that I am not inclined to share," she says, blushing once again.
I look at her in shock. "What kind of advice? You cannot simply leave me with such a vague explanation!" I exclaim, becoming more and more curious.
"Well, 'tis quite embarrassing," she says lowly as I open the door to my room, allowing her to enter first before shutting the door behind myself.
I approach the chaise, stretching out across it, and she sits by my side, not meeting my gaze. "Come on, Eilonwy. I am dying to know now," I urge her, poking her side slightly, and she jerks away. I grin, knowing just how ticklish she is.
"He asked if I was nervous, and I said yes," she begins, tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear, "He said for me to not worry, to only focus on your eyes and my nerves will go away. He told me that was his secret with your Naneth on their wedding night."
She blushes deeply, continuing, "I did not expect your Ada to be so open with such discussions."
I throw my head back, howling with laughter. "My father said that?" I ask in between laughter, "Well, it does not surprise me, honestly. Ada has always been blunt, but take it as a compliment. He was trying to help."
She smiles softly. "It was good advice. I just was not prepared to be spoken to about such a private affair- especially not by your father of all people," she says, laughing, "I feel as if your naneth will speak to me about it, since I do not have a mother, but I was already prepared for her to do so."
"Everyone we have invited to our wedding is so overbearing and blunt," I say, chuckling lowly at the thought of them all, "I am sure you will get much more advice before we say our vows."
"I am not so sure I want that. Such a discussion is very awkward! 'Tis worse with the king and queen; I mean, they are your parents."
I laugh again, pulling her toward me. "I still cannot believe that in just a few day's time, you will be my wife," I tell her softly, "'Tis wonderful."
I lean forward, kissing her softly, and she kisses me back sweetly, resting her hand on my chest.
She pulls away slightly, her lips barely brushing mine. "I cannot wait until the day I can travel home with you," she says, and my heart stops for a moment at her words. I will be taking her to our home- not my home. The thought makes my heart pick up speed in my chest, and I remember all of the visions I have had of her- the ones where we are married. All of them were so lovely and breathtaking, and it only makes me wish we could snap our fingers and be married, just like that. No waiting, or nerves. Just the two of us and our love for one another. But then again, I think the anticipation and the nervousness is what makes it all so agonizingly wonderful. The rush of emotions I feel when simply looking at her, knowing she will be mine, is divine, and I know in my heart that I would not have it any other way.
I kiss her again, deeply, and she wraps her arms around my neck. I bury my fingers in her hair, relishing in the light headedness and swarm of emotions I get when she kisses me. We part for a moment, just barely enough time to breathe, before I lean in again, but she surprises me by pulling away with a laugh.
Her nose brushes mine as she stares at me with her sparkling, tempting gaze. "I thought you said just one or two kisses," she says mischievously, referring to our earlier conversation.
"I thought you knew me much better than that," I reply with a small grin, and we both laugh before our lips meet once again. And we stay like that for quite sometime, neither of us with a single worry or care.
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A/N: Sorry that these chapters have been short! I am trying to hurry it along because I am so incredibly impatient to write their wedding! *heart flutters* *blushes deeply* *#blushinlikeEilonwy* *#Legonwyforever*
Please remember to comment if you enjoyed and share my story with others if you have time. I love y'all so much, and thanks for the support! Your lovely comments mean the world to me!! God bless! <3
Love,
Josie