~Legolas and Lasriel spend a lovely day together, at home and at the market, and Lasriel has ideas.~

~♕~

"Any day spent with you is
my favorite day. So, today is
my new favorite day."

– Pooh, Winnie the Pooh

~♕~

30. Bonding

The warm, fuzzy feeling returned when Legolas woke up with his wife in his arms. Lasriel's face looked serene, almost even more beautiful in sleep, and he filled his nostrils with the flowery scent of her soap. Taking a day off together felt like an even better idea in the morning; instead of having to get up he could linger until she was awake, and then he would suggest they stay in bed for quite some time.

Her lashes fluttered and she opened her eyes.

Legolas greeted her with a kiss. "Maer aur. I have plans."

She yawned and stretched her arms before snuggling closer. "Good morning to you too. I hope they don't involve getting up."

"The opposite. There is another picture in your book that seems interesting; shall we try it?" He described the one he meant.

She raised her eyebrows. "You mean 'the congress of a mûmakil'?"

"That must be the one, aye. And then we can–" He whispered the rest in her ear, including all the dirty bits, making his voice as deep and sensual as he could. When he was done, he was pleased to see her cheeks had become pink and her eyes large.

"Sounds like a good plan," she said breathily.

Not surprisingly, they had a very late breakfast that morning, exhausted and ravenous after all the exercise. It was a pleasant one, at that; Lasriel brought it on a tray and they alternated eating and kissing in bed until Legolas' lips started to feel a bit raw.

Afterwards, Lasriel wanted to borrow the "chess" game from Galion, claiming it was very fun and Legolas would love it. He doubted that but kept his mouth shut; he was too worn out for love-making at the moment anyway, and besides, Lasriel was quite adorable when she was happy. He wanted to please her today, in all ways possible.

When she returned, carrying an ornate box, she grinned impishly. "Galion didn't open the door until my third knock. I suspect he had company." She lowered her voice conspiratorially. "I think he might have secretly married Nellas."

Legolas tried not to laugh. A drunkard and a weird elleth? Good for them, he supposed.

"Anyway," Lasriel continued. "He means to visit the market in Osgiliath today. Can't we go with him? We can play chess when we get home."

"Why? Going to the market is Galion's task."

"It can save us money. He is really quite bad at shopping; the merchants rip him off."

"They do?" Now Legolas' interest was caught.

"Terribly." Lasriel described how much she had managed to save the only time she followed him there. "Oh, and that day was when I first saw the Haradrim book," she added with a smirk. "Can we go? Please."

Objections queued at the tip of Legolas' tongue. He had looked forward to a day spent mostly in bed, and being in company with Galion was certainly not included in his plans. Plus, the last time they went to a city, Lasriel had disappeared and Legolas found her surrounded by flirting human men.

Then he recalled his resolution to please her. "I must admit I am curious about that shop," he said. "Alright then. We go, but without Galion; we can do the purchases ourselves. And we must hurry back." He gave her a peck. "There are many pages left in your book that ought to be tried."

Lasriel's wide, answering smile filled his chest with more sweet, bubbly warmth, and he had to check his face not to give her a rather stupid one in return. Indulging her had been the right thing to do.

~♕~

Arriving in Osgiliath with her husband, Lasriel could hardly believe her luck. She knew he had preferred to stay at home, yet he had obliged her. This day just kept getting better.

Pulling him with her by the hand, she eagerly went from stall to stall, haggling with the salesmen and successfully loading their pack horse. She wanted to prove her worth; showing him why he ought to assign the task of shopping to her instead of Galion.

"This was the last," she said, indicating the long list. "All done. What do you think?"

"I am impressed."

He meant it; she could tell, and that made the compliment all the more precious. "Thank you. Shall we return home then?"

"Not yet." He smiled secretively, taking the lead as he brought Lasriel to another part of the city. "This is where the carpenters have their workshops. I was thinking about our fine, new house, and how such an elegant building needs appropriate furniture. We should get a real table and chairs."

Baffled, Lasriel could only nod. "That would be wonderful, but can we afford it?"

"We can now." He pulled her closer, putting his arm around her. "You saved us a lot of money today. Too bad you can't always do the shopping."

She wanted to say she could, and would be glad to, but didn't want to have an argument about it; at least not today. But this was a good start. Perhaps, in time, she would persuade him she was the right person for the job.

After they had ordered their new furniture – and Lasriel had added a request for more bookcases that he generously acceded – Legolas was still not done. "Come. I want to show you something."

This time he took her to the outskirts of the city where there were still many old ruins, silent witnesses of the war, and stopped in front of one that must have been a very tall tower once; it still reached far above the rooftops of many of the rebuilt houses. The entrance was blocked by a pile of enormous stone slabs.

"The view from the top is stunning, and thankfully not many know there is another way in. Come with me."

They slunk in behind a half-fallen rock and through a narrow passage between the buildings, before ducking under a broken beam that hid the back entrance. The small door was whole but hung on only one hinge.

Inside was a spiral staircase winding its way into the darkness above, dusty and littered with debris and cobwebs. As they ascended it, Legolas explained: "I found this tower right after the war, when the Army of the West had returned from the Black Gate and the final battle there. King Elessar – just Aragorn then – set up his camp at the Field of Cormallen a bit north of here, and after a while I got restless by all the celebrations. I wasn't in a very festive mood... so I began to take long walks down the river in the evenings in order to be alone. I thought a lot about Aman back then, and dreamed of being reunited with my naneth and my ancestors." He took her hand. "Careful, mind the broken step!"

"I understand." As always, being reminded of the last big secret she still kept from him made Lasriel feel a combination of guilt and apprehension. She had to tell him about his mother. Soon.

"So," he continued, "during one of my lonely wanderings I came upon Osgiliath. It was truly a ghost city then; only rubble, debris and dust; nothing alive except for the ravens nesting in the ruins, but I liked how quiet it was. And then I found this tower." He pushed open another door at the top of the stairs. "Here we are now. Look out!"

Lasriel walked over to one of the narrow windows, flinching as a frightened pigeon flapped away and out through the opening. "Gorgeous," she breathed, taking in the astonishing view. The city, the river, Legolas' forest plantations and the colony – and then far, far in the southwest, a glimpse of navy blue reaching all the way to the horizon.

"Is that... the sea?" she breathed, heart suddenly starting to pound.

"It is." He stood close behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. "After I first heard seagulls I longed to see it, but when I traveled with Aragorn through southern Gondor the view was always blocked by mountains and hills, and the same went for Minas Tirith. But this is just the right angle to let us peek through the gap where the river cuts between the White Mountains."

He fell silent, and Lasriel knew he was thinking about Aman again. Surprisingly, a strong urge to sail west filled herself as well. With her rational mind she knew it was a terrible idea to meet her father after what he did, but her heart longed for him all the same.

Her throat grew uncomfortably tight when she recalled how whenever she had fallen and scrubbed her knees she would run to him and he would pick her up, blowing softly on the hurt and tell her she would be alright. She could still feel his scent; his arms holding her; hear his deep voice – all as vividly as if he had stood right next to her.

She left the window, heading for one at the opposite end of the tower. "Let us check the view this way too," she mumbled, discreetly wiping her eyes.

But looking north was no better. The dark band of the Anduin reminded her of what lay beyond it. Greenwood, her home – and her mother, so far away and unreachable now. How was she doing on her own? Was she very lonely?

Fresh tears began to fall.

"Don't cry." Legolas pulled her tight against his chest, blocking the view with his body. "Hush now."

"Sorry," she sobbed. "I just miss Naneth."

He stroked her hair softly. "I miss Adar too. But maybe next summer we will be able to visit them. That is not too bad, is it?"

His voice was soothing and she hugged him harder. "That sounds great. Sorry for being such an elfling; I don't know what's gotten into me."

"It is alright," he said earnestly. "I understand. Truly, I do." After a brief pause, he added: "I wept as well the first time I came here."

They stood like that for quite some time, both lost in thoughts. It felt so good to be comforted by her husband, rare as it had been until then, and now Lasriel felt a new connection with him. He had shown her his secret place, and shared a very personal memory. She was certain he had not even told Gimli of this tower.

Her eyes were drawn back to the view of the river, gently meandering down the plains. And idea struck her.

"What if there were boats traveling the Anduin? Or ferries. Then we could get home much faster, and our parents could visit us as well."

"Hm. What about the Falls?"

"If we restored the old stair next to the Falls of Rauros, people could get off the boat and walk to the top, and up there another ferry could pick them up. Or maybe we could build a lift? A huge crane, winching stuff up? Then we could carry goods as well as people." She released Legolas from the hug. "Only think! We would be able to trade with settlements far away, such as Lothlórien and Imladris. And Greenwood, of course. There are a lot of things we could sell with great profit, I believe; exotic foods from the south, and why not Mordor mortar? I am sure it could be useful for your adar to be able to mend things in his castle, and I know for certain the people of Lake-town and Dale would be thrilled! Maybe even the dwarves? It would be a solid source of income."

At Lasriel's eager gestures, another pigeon flapped away. That gave her more ideas. "Oh, and birds! If we take pigeons with us on the boats, and leave them with our parents, they can release them with tiny messages tied around their feet to carry back to us. I read that in ancient times, the Númenorian communicated over great distances that way. They used seabirds too, I believe. My naneth would probably love to tend to a coop of pigeons; she likes animals almost as much as plants. It would be amazing to be able to send her letters! But I need to read up on this, and of course study designs of different lifts and cranes..." She realized she was getting carried away, and anxiously turned to Legolas. "Sorry, here I am rambling about matters that bore you."

But contrary to what she expected, he replied: "Nay, it is an interesting idea, especially about the birds. But trading too. It takes much too long to get to Lothlórien on horseback. We could talk to Faramir about it."

"You think so?" Lasriel's heart suddenly felt too big for her chest. That her husband would listen to her ideas and support her was such a simple thing, but she knew that for him it was a big step. And not once today had he talked about what was suitable for a Gondor wife. "Thank you," she said with feeling.

His only reply was to pull her in for another hug. Then he released her and winked. "I think we had lingered here long enough. We have plans, remember? A certain book is waiting."

A/N:

I'm not sure whether it was actually possible to see the ocean from Osgiliath. Looking at the map, it could work, at least with elvish eyes. :)

I still have vacation so I'm afraid you'll have to put up with irregular updates a while longer. I hope you don't mind! xx

Translation: Maer aur = good morning