Building Ithilien [Legolas] LOTR

Before the End

The vanguard pulled through wide and sweeping meadows of unbroken grass and late summer flowers. The day was young and bright, and the morning mist curling round the distant foot hills soon burned away to yield a fair horizon. Far through the valleys and plains from Minas Tirith, the men had marched; now in great lines long and deep, they kept time to the curling of the grass against the wind in the field and their rippling black and silver pennants that beckoned them farther. Toward battle and onward, they traveled, breaking the wet stems under their feet, taking them one step closer to an uncertain fate.

Every now and then the leading chargers with their stamping hooves startled coveys in the grass, and the doves indignantly rose into the air cooing their displeasure before settling into lazy flight circles above the men traveling across their field. Surely to the birds as they lifted their wings to soar to greater heights, the lines seemed like an enormous river of men, with their silver helmets catching the light as easily as the bright tipped waves of the Anduin, pulled by unseen currents toward the sea.

And if the same birds flew farther down the line, they would have spotted something incredibly odd, for there toward the front of the procession, rode a pair of elves among the men, one on a white Rohirrim steed, and the other upon a light brown mare. The two elves were a fair sight for any eyes, man or beast, and the birds of the field were gladdened by their presence and their soothing voices comforted all.

"Tell me about Ithilien," one of the elves begged the other, and the other elf, riding proudly beside her, might have seemed terrible to some.

Certainly many of the soldiers feared even to look upon him and averted their eyes to their boots when he passed. None could hardly stand to bear his gaze, icy blue and piercing, as if he looked right through them. Yet when this elf turned to the lady at his side, the soldiers would have been confounded to see the way the elf prince's expression transformed in her presence. His eyes softened, and his look was one of pure adoration.

"You want to hear about Ithilien, Miredhel?" he asked, with a hint of surprise. He paused momentarily and pretended to frown. "Well...wouldn't you like to wait and be surprised?"

"Oh, no! Is it that bad? Should I have packed my gardening gloves?" Miredhel said with a wince.

The corners of Legolas' mouth curled into an almost smile. "I'll get you some for all the really heavy lifting and digging."

What exactly was wrong with this forest anyway? Miredhel cut her eyes to him. "Heavy lifting and digging?"

Legolas shrugged noncommittally. "I figured you would want to pitch in and help, Miredhel. You've never struck me as a bystander." He scratched his head thoughtfully. "Do you think you could learn some carpentry skills too? We'll have much to build."

Miredhel smiled uneasily. She trusted Legolas, mostly. If he saw something in this Ithilien, then it must not be so bad. Right?

This time Legolas returned her smile with a real one of his own and reached for her hand from his horse. They were riding very closely together so they could speak in confidence to each other. He leaned over to kiss her palm, and his lips lingered against her skin.

Sparks seemed to fly all the way through Miredhel's body, down from her wrist to her toes at this single gesture, and it wasn't as if they had never kissed before. In truth after last night they had done much more than kiss, and perhaps it was that knowledge that excited her. She knew what those lips were capable of.

Legolas smiled even more broadly at her the tinge of pink on her cheeks.

"Miredhel, I can't wait for you to see Ithilien, to be there by your side. I know you will love it. Yes, it needs some work, but it will be a joy to restore the beauty that once was. Its proximity to Mordor poisoned much of the land, but there are still places where the woods are deep and lovely, and that's where I'll take you. There's water and springs that run through the forest and ferns as large as elflings."