LEGOLAS
TITLE:Elenath
AUTHOR:Emily Kinsman
RATING:PG
FEEDBACK: emilyk@apptechnc.net 
DISCLAIMER:The characters from Lord of the Rings, their wonderful 
world, and the Elf-lore are all borrowed from J.R.R. Tolkien. I wish he 
were 
alive to see the LOTR pandamonium! The plotline and all other 
characters are copyright 2002 Emily Kinsman. 'Nuff Said
SUMMARY:I don't want to ruin any surprises, but an Elf-babe is 
abandoned in our world (through a nexus of sorts) to be raised by a 
human 
woman. This is the story of her return to her true home.
FEEDBACK: Please Please, Pretty Please tell me what you think! I'm new 
at this.
ARCHIVE: YES

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21. 
Legolas sat on the bed and leaned against the wall behind it. As he opened the letter, 
Elenath joined him there, settling comfortably into his arms. 
"And this is from Mike?" asked Legolas. 
"Yes. I should have known it was here all along. I found it in the Book that he reminded 
me to bring when I left." 
He nodded, unfolding the pages carefully. "Are you ready?" 
She nodded and listened as the Prince read in Elvish. 
"Dear Princess Elenath, 
"Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God 
every time I remember you-"  
Legolas paused, pointing to something. "I do not understand this. It says 'Phil-
Philippians' and some numbers." 
"It is a scripture reference. He uses words from the Book that I told you about earlier," 
explained Elenath. "Don't worry about reading them out loud. I know most of them by 
heart anyway. That was Philippians chapter one, verses one through three." 
He looked at her and shrugged, continuing with the letter. "I thank my God every time I 
remember you, for it was such an honor to help you along your way while you were yet 
here with me. You might be surprised to learn that I have always known who and what 
you are – Princess Elenath of Rivendell by birth and of Mirkwood by marriage. You are 
an Elf and it might surprise you to learn that I am one, too (I was fortunate to inherit my 
human mother's ears). I followed you from Middle Earth when you were just a baby to 
look after you and have learned many truths since that time. But more about that later. 
"By now you have arrived in Mirkwood, I hope, and have been reunited with your 
husband and parents. I pray that you are as happy there now as you were for 2000 years 
before Evil took your life. Surely this has all been explained to you by now. If not, ask 
any of the kind Elves of Mirkwood, for the story is well known by them all. 
"Now, if I know you well at all, I know that you must be terribly confused by all of these 
revelations. If you are an Elf, then where does that leave you? Where do you stand in the 
Heavenly realms? All this time you have believed that you are a descendent of Adam and 
Eve and that Christ died on the cross for your transgressions. Through Him you believed 
you had become a child of God, having authority over every evil thing that roams the 
earth, and becoming confident of your eternal life with Him in Heaven. My dear child, 
how I long to calm your fears and silence your doubts in person! But I cannot return to 
Middle Earth just yet so I shall do my best to explain in writing. 
"I will start with the conclusion that I have drawn regarding the world in which you now 
reside and the world from which you came. I believe that they are indeed one and the 
same. I see it in the landscapes and hear it in the songs of the trees." 
"Songs of the trees?" asked Elenath. "What on earth does that mean?" 
Legolas looked up at her in surprise. "You can hear the Sword speak to you but do not 
hear the trees' songs? They sing even now!" 
She shook her head. "I cannot hear them, aside from the rustle of their leaves. When I 
was a child I could have sworn I heard a tree say something to me once but Grandmother 
scolded me when I told her and told me not to be ridiculous." 
"Ridiculous? What's ridiculous is not believing that trees can speak!" His voice held an 
outraged tone. 
She laughed. "Oh, Legolas, I believe you! I take a greater and greater liking to this place 
every day. Maybe I will remember how to listen to them eventually." 
"I will teach you myself if I have to," he replied, turning back to the letter and continuing, 
"It seems, however, that the realms of Earth and Middle Earth are on different levels or 
dimensions of the same place. The mechanics of it escape me, but I will venture to guess 
that none of that matters to you. I doubt that you will ever wish to return here now that 
you have come home. 
"That aside, you must now know that the following scripture holds true for Middle Earth 
as it does for Earth: '…At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on 
earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the Glory 
of God the Father.'" Legolas paused. "And there is another of those reference things." 
"Go on," she urged. 
He complied. "Now, having established Jesus' lordship, I hope that you feel at least 
somewhat less confused. Next, onto the question of who you are and where you stand in 
the Heavenly Realms. You are an Elf as you know. What you might not know is that our 
kind were present with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit when they created the world-" 
Elenath gasped. "What?!" 
Legolas read the last part again, more slowly. 
"What, are we angels?" 
The Prince looked at her blankly and continued to read. "By our songs the waters were 
formed and made separate from the earth. Rivers were made to flow and the mountains 
were shaped. Many of us fell in love with this creation and were allowed to leave Heaven 
under the direction of the Valar, to live here immortally. Our task? To safeguard the 
world against Evil." 
"Then my place is to do battle with the Evil that runs rampant here," she murmured to 
herself, "and to praise God with the Angels in heaven. For that surely is what we are; or 
what we were at any rate." She spoke up. "Legolas, did you know about this?" 
"I have heard our history many times," he replied simply. "Shall I continue?" 
"Please." 
Legolas found his place and began once more. "You should also be aware, Elenath, that 
though Elvish blood runs thick in your veins, it is not pure. The blood of Eve – human 
blood -- also flows through them, both from your mother's and your father's lines. 
Therefore you are, as you have come to believe, a descendent of Adam and Eve. Christ 
did in fact die on the cross for your transgressions. Through Him you have indeed 
become a child of God, and you do have authority over every evil thing that roams the 
earth. You are truly God's hands and feet in Middle Earth. Whatever He ordains, you 
shall be able to carry out. Should you ever face death again in battle or should you choose 
to live your life as a mortal human being, you can be confident of your eternal life in 
Heaven. Either way, you stand pure and spotless before God, and in you lies a lifeline 
that can help to free Mirkwood of darkness." 
The Prince stopped suddenly, setting the letter down. "Elenath, when my father almost 
died, he saw the Valar who told him that you could turn back an advancing army with a 
song. Is this true?" 
She gazed into his eyes, seeing a disturbance there of confusion and anger. "It is as Mike 
says. I have authority to carry out that which God the Father has ordained. And He has 
ordained that, in the end, all evil shall perish. However, I can do nothing that He does not 
allow me to do." 
"This God you speak of… He would not abandon Mirkwood to darkness, would He?"
"It isn't His will that any should perish or be lost to darkness, Legolas." Her brow 
furrowed as she felt him tense. Why was he angry? 
Resentment flared up in his eyes. "Then why did you not stop the orcs who killed your 
father?" 
His words pierced her heart like an arrow and she pulled away from him quickly, eyes 
wide. "Do you blame me for my father's death, Legolas?" 
He did not answer her, but looked guiltily out into the dusky Wood. How could he even 
suggest such a thing? Yet the words she had spoken suggested she could have stopped the 
attack. Why would this God not have allowed her to do so if He wished for none to 
perish? 
Elenath was shaken. How dare Legolas accuse her of such a thing? With every fiber of 
her being, she wanted to lash out at him, but instead, she stood up and walked to the edge 
of the room. She did not want him to see the hurt tears that spilled down her cheeks. 
Finally turning around, she drew a small dagger from her boot and, returning to his side, 
handed it to him. "Legolas, why don't you just plunge this into my heart and twist it 
around a few times? It would hurt much less than the words you just spoke." 
He looked at the blade and then back up at his wife, speechless. 
She knelt before him. "Go ahead, Legolas. If I'm such a killer, then I deserve it, don't 
I?" 
He set the knife aside. "Elenath, I only asked a simple question. I accused you of 
nothing." 
"You accused me of killing my father!" she shouted through her tears. "My own father! 
The only Elf here that I could fully remember. Do you have any idea how much I loved 
him? Don't you think I would have saved him if I could, Legolas?" 
He knelt on the floor next to her, "Calm yourself," he said. "Elenath – " 
"No!" she bellowed. "How could you ask me such a thing? Why did I not stop the orcs 
who killed my father? I'll tell you why!" She turned on him. "Because you told me to go 
and hide, Legolas, and I went against everything within myself to obey you! I did what 
you told me to instead of what I knew deep down that God was calling me to do. Why? 
Because." She paused, grabbing his shoulders. "Because I was afraid and confused. 
That's why." 
"Afraid?" he asked, "Confused? Elenath, you're an Elf. You should overcome these 
feelings easily." 
She stood up and fought the urge to kick him. How arrogant he sounded just then! "An 
Elf indeed!" she huffed, wiping her tears away with her sleeve. "If being an Elf means I 
no longer have feelings, then maybe I don't want to be one!" 
"No!" he shouted, standing up and grabbing her, pulling her close. "Do not say that, 
Melamin!" 
She yanked away from him, taken aback at the stark fear and longing she saw in his eyes. 
 
"Please," he said, "do not choose to live a mortal life. I could not go on without you and 
Mirkwood would not let me go so easily." 
The intensity of his love for her hit her at that moment. Love that showed through his 
anger. Love that bit through his fear. Love that brought great comfort and trepidation into 
her heart all at once. 
"Listen to yourself, Legolas," she said, her voice quieter now. "Scolding me for my fear 
and confusion while you yourself fear losing me." 
He looked at the floor and did not reply. 
"Listen," she said, meeting his eyes again. "Do not be so quick to judge that which you 
do not understand, alright? I am new to this world. You wouldn't do much better if you 
were dropped into the world from which I came." 
He reached out to take her hands but still said nothing. 
She sighed. "Look, I'm going to take a walk, alright? I need to be alone to figure some 
things out." 
"Figure what out?" he asked, "I haven't even finished the letter yet." 
"Just… Legolas… I just need to think, okay? We can finish the letter when I come back." 
She stepped away from him, letting go of his hands. 
"Elenath, I'm sorry," he said. "Please don't go." 
"I'll be back," she promised and turned, her hand traveling involuntarily to the hilt of her 
sword to make sure it was there before she walked out of the room. 
22. 
The touch of Elenath's hand to the Sword brought another memory, though it was not so 
strong this time. She managed to find an inner courtyard and sat next to a bubbling 
fountain under a tree while she remembered, half conscious of her surroundings, fully 
conscious of the images, sounds, smells, sensations, and scents that coursed through her 
mind. 
***
The velvet blackness of a cloudy new-moon night. She crept through the Wood of 
Rivendell as quietly as any of her kind were able. Her heart raced with anticipation, her 
skin prickled with the hope of his kiss. Elenath had not known what true love or true 
beauty was until the Prince had arrived from Mirkwood six months ago. Legolas. Even 
the thought of him made her heart soar as high as it sunk low when she remembered that 
he was pledged to another. Another who did not wish to marry him or anyone else. They 
were both so unhappy. Why could Lord Elrond not see this and release both Elves from 
the arrangement? Yet the promise of even a moment in his presence - listening to his 
sweet voice, feeling his warmth next to her - was enough to spirit her out of her chambers 
in the middle of the night while all in the House of Elrond lay asleep in their beds. 
"Elenath…" The trees seemed to whisper her name and she begged them silently not to 
tell her secret. But they understood, rustling gently, "He waits for you in a secret 
place…" 
She made her way to the waterfall – the one they had chosen as their own. The night 
wind chilled her and sent her hair whipping about her face, but that did not stop her from 
leaping to the stone perched precariously in the water. It did not stop her from climbing 
the slippery boulders while spray from the waterfall formed tiny pearls of water on her 
skin. 
She smiled when she found Prince Legolas waiting there in the small hollow behind the 
protective wall of the waterfall, out of the wind. He was sunlight and summertime, blue 
sky and music and everything good in the world all wrapped into one Elven body. In his 
presence she was complete. 
"My love," he whispered, drawing her into a warm embrace "I am glad that you came." 
His lips found her temple, her cheek, the tip of her nose, and finally her lips. 
"You are to be married in the morning," she answered sadly, tracing the lines of his face 
with the tip of her finger and then burying her face in his golden hair. "I could not stay 
away. I had to see you one last time." 
He was resolute. "No, I will not marry tomorrow. The Lady has refused my hand and I 
refuse to force it. Elenath, it is you who I desire for my wife, if you would have me for a 
husband." 
A lump rose in her throat. "That is what I want more than anything," she said. "But I 
cannot see how it can ever come to be." 
"I will run away with you if I must," he said, determination creasing his brow. 
"Legolas, I could not allow that. You came here to wed a maiden of Rivendell, to unite 
our two kingdoms. If we go against Lord Elrond's wishes, his wrath would consume us 
both. Our kingdoms would be driven further apart and nothing would be gained from our 
union." 
"Your grandfather would never harm his beloved granddaughter," he said soothingly. 
"And kingdoms will do as kingdoms will do." 
"Grandfather and I love one another too much," she whispered. "Could I bear to hurt him 
so? I do not think that I would survive banishment from his presence." Hopelessness 
flooded her and she sank to the damp floor in despair. "I cannot live without either one of 
you." 
She could see tears welling in his eyes. She knew that they would remain unshed. 
Legolas did not weep easily. "Your love for your grandfather is beautiful, Elenath, just 
like the rest of you is beautiful. Do not lose heart, my love. We will find a way. I'm sure 
of it…"
***
The memory faded into white, and Elenath was surprised to find when she came back to 
herself on the bench in the courtyard that she was not alone. In fact, she guessed that she 
must have fallen asleep. Her head was resting comfortably in someone's lap. 
"El! At last you're awake!" 
The voice belonged to David, and she sighed as she sat up. It was utterly dark aside from 
the light of the moon coming through the trees. "How long have I been here?" she asked 
him groggily. 
"Long enough to prompt the Prince to wake me from my sleep and ask if I would try to 
find you. Ro dele ten lle. He is worried about you." 
Smiling at him she said, "You learn the language of the Elves very quickly." 
"I only repeat what I hear," he replied. "Now do you want to tell me what's going on? 
Legolas seemed to think that you had run away into the woods." 
She told him the whole story, though it sounded awfully petty to her now. Legolas had 
asked a simple question and she had blown up at him. "He must really be mad at me," she 
said. "I don't know what got into me. I've never felt so stupid in my life." 
David patted her back. "Elenath, that's the exact same thing that Legolas said about 
himself. Sounds like you both got upset and said things you didn't mean. Go back to him 
now, okay? He's worried sick." 
"God, I'm such an idiot. How could he ever love me? I snap at him and then run off and 
worry him half to death." 
David looked at her with deep feeling. "How could he not love you, El?" He got up to 
walk away but she caught up with him quickly. 
"But David, I'm just a child compared to him. And I… I don't know how to be a wife! 
Look, I've been married less than a day and I've already botched it up." 
"Child or not, he loves you," he stated simply, "And as for how to be a wife, I don't 
know. If you were mine, I would hope that you would love me, respect me, and never 
forget how special you are." He turned around and touched her cheek softly, sadness 
creeping into his eyes. "Or how beautiful." 
She gazed up at him. "Oh, David. Please don't." Gently taking his hand, she directed it 
away from her face. "Please." 
"I am sorry, My Lady," he said quietly. "Sometimes I can't help but wonder what might 
have been if I hadn't been such a fool." 
She backed away, smiling a little sadly. "Not too long ago, you did me a big favor by 
telling me like it was – that you loved me but would never marry me or anyone else. It 
saved me a broken heart and a lot of hurt feelings later." 
"Now you're going to do me the same favor, aren't you?" he asked. 
She nodded. "I love you David. I always have. I always will – as a brother and a friend 
and nothing more. I hope that you can live with that." 
"Do you love Prince Legolas?" he asked. "Do you remember enough to love him?" 
"My mind remembers little, but my heart remembers much. And yes. I love him more 
than I ever thought it was possible to love another. He completes me." 
"Then I can live with it." he smiled. "Good night, Lady. May the Lord send Angels to 
watch over you while I cannot." 
"May He send Angels to watch over all of us, always," she replied quietly as he directed 
her gently in the direction of her new chambers, and went the opposite direction to his 
own room. 
23. 
Elenath walked down the corridor toward hers and Legolas' room, her nose picking up a 
putrid scent. It was the first unpleasant aroma she had experienced in Mirkwood, and for 
some reason it concerned her greatly. Inexplicable fear and anger washed over her, but 
the reason for it evaded her. She followed her instincts, however, and crept silently 
toward the Prince's chambers, her hand once again finding the hilt of her sword. 
"God is our refuge and our strength, an ever present help in trouble," It whispered to her 
heart. "Therefore do not fear." 
From Legolas' room she heard a shout, followed by harsh, guttural language. Far behind 
her, she heard the feet of the palace guards rushing to their aid. She picked up her pace, 
joining the sword in the words that it spoke: 
"The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take 
refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call to the Lord, 
who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies."  
Turning the corner, she came to the door that she had so hastily retreated from hours ago 
and stopped in her tracks. The scene that greeted her made her swallow a scream and step 
quickly back into the shadows of the hallway, her heart pounding. Hideous creatures – 3 
of them with slimy, wrinkled flesh, rotting teeth, and eyes like those of rabid creatures – 
stood around Legolas who was just out of reach of his bow. One had raised and nocked 
an arrow and had it pointed at the Elf's heart. The others laughed and jeered, though she 
could not understand their language.  
Elenath was unsure of what she should do. She thought of running for help, but by the 
time she came back, she knew Legolas might be dead. How did these beasts get in here, 
anyway? 
At least she was well-armed, and she knew that all it would take was one scream to bring 
the palace guards running even more quickly to their service. She peeked quickly into the 
room again and her stomach turned, a wave of fear rising. Another of the creatures had 
pulled out a knife and stood threatening Legolas with it. The Prince stood defiantly, 
unafraid, regal. She closed her eyes and silently said the first words that came to her 
mind, hearing the Sword say them with her. 
"The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold 
of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?"  
She remembered the joy of being in her Lord's arms on the outskirts of the Heavenly city 
and realized she had no reason to be afraid. Death was not such a horrible thing. And the 
Elf who stood and knife and arrow-point in that room was certainly worth dying for, no 
matter how great the pain. 
Taking one of her many daggers in hand, she walked confidently into the room. "Let him 
go." 
Orcs were stupid but dangerous creatures. They always had been - even the ones that had 
been the death of her before. These were certainly no different. 
They spun around to face her and laughed with glee. They had found their prize! 
Abandoning the Prince, they moved to surround her instead and Legolas had his bow in 
hand before she could blink an eye. 
"Run, Elenath!" Legolas yelled, but she stood her ground, her eyes level with the orc with 
the bow. The creature nocked an arrow and began to pull it back, but Elenath's dagger 
was too quick. It flew from her hand and embedded itself in the orc's skull. The orc fell 
dead as its comrades attacked her with vengeance. 
Her sword sang in its metallic voice as she unsheathed it, blocking strike after strike from 
the orcish weapons – an axe and a spear.  
"We will avenge our leader!" shouted one in heavily accented Elvish. "You will die a 
horrible death!" He thrust his spear at her. 
She dodged quickly, replying with the Sword, "My flesh and my heart may fail, but God 
is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. You cannot destroy my spirit, 
demons!" 
The palace guards clamored into the room at that moment, arrows nocked, but no one 
could get a good shot without endangering the princess. 
"Your God is nothing but a dictator, greedy and selfish for power," the orcs cried as the 
axe barely missed her head. 
"And yours is the father of lies and deceit, destined for an eternity of darkness." She 
sliced out at one of them, drawing blood, but not doing any real damage. "It has already 
been written. You may win a battle or two, but the war belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ." 
The orcs screamed in rage at that. "We will see who wins this war!"  
Legolas dropped his bow and jumped into the fray armed with his knives. Quickly taking 
the orc with the axe down, the remaining one thrust his spear at Elenath. She dodged and 
ducked, firing off a kick to its knee, and tripping over her long skirts. She fell to the floor 
just in time to dodge a particularly violent thrust of the spear.  
The beast laughed, putting the tip of its arrow to her throat. Elenath's hand tightened 
around her sword, but the palace guards intervened at once and the orc fell with five 
arrows in its back. 
"Stupid beasts," said one of the guards, rushing to Elenath's side, along with Legolas. 
"Are you hurt, My Lady?" asked the guard.  
She shook her head and sat up. "No, I'm not hurt. Except where I bumped my head when 
I tripped over this stupid dress." 
Legolas looked up and addressed the guards. "Check the perimeter. Make sure there are 
no more. I will see to the Princess." 
He scanned her skin carefully, finding a deep scratch on her arm and hoping desperately 
that it had not been caused by the poisoned tip of an orcish weapon. 
"She's wounded." He shouted at the retreating guards. "Where is Lord Elrond?"  
"In the chambers next to your father's, My Lord." 
"What are you talking about?" she asked. "I'm fine. That's only a scratch." 
Legolas would take no chances. He swept Elenath up into his arms and ran toward her 
grandfather's rooms.