[Lord of the Rings] Green Leaf's Blessing

"Xidu is your only choice, Legolas."

Ithilien in late autumn is as beautiful as a fairyland, but not everyone will choose to stay after witnessing its unreserved beauty—of course, some of them even have no choice at all.Before long, winter will follow the pace of late autumn, and spring will be far ahead, looking forward to its return. Besides the four seasons that follow the same track, once some figures leave, they will never come back.

Legolas looked at the Noldor before him, and knew that he was one of them.And myself...

"Are you still hesitating, Legolas?" Elrond withdrew from the window and sat down beside Legolas' bed, looking at the young elf with concern in his eyes, "But your physical condition has already changed. I can't bear any more hesitation. If it weren't for my medical skills and medicines, you might not be able to survive now, you would have long ago..."

"Dead." Legolas said quietly.He hardly ever goes out now, seeing no one but Tessier.Here, Tessier claimed that His Royal Highness was concentrating on writing the memoirs of the War of the Ring, but the fact is that he was too tired to write a few paragraphs after being bedridden for a long time, and even later, he even wrote a letter to his father Tessier had to ghostwrite the letter, and he himself dictated the simple words while watching the green leaves gradually turn yellow outside the window.

Maybe after a while, he will pretend to leave the forest and go on a long trip, to visit friends or something else. Anyway, they are all just excuses and pretense. When one is used up, he will think about another.

"You should still remember what I said, if you suffer too much damage for the forest, the backlash to your body and mind will never end, your body will decay, and your soul will be endlessly exhausted. From The beginning of your choice of this path is doomed to be sad..."

"But at least part of the result is still good enough." Legolas closed his eyes, and the face he missed immediately emerged. "Thank you, Lord Elrond, but I don't want to leave yet."

Elrond sighed, but didn't say much. If he could persuade this stubborn child, then all this would not have happened.And Legolas didn't know what he was insisting on, and what was the significance of such persistence.As Elrond said, his body is withering bit by bit, although at a very slow speed, it will eventually come to an end, just like the leaves falling from the branches in late autumn.During the period of receiving the healing and help from Elrond, this kind and wise Noldor elf persuaded himself to go west more than once. What he has done for Middle-earth is enough to be favored and praised by the Valar, and there, the Valar will help him generously.

But Elrond also said: "The bond you formed with the forest will not be broken because of your departure, and Valar may be able to heal and retain your body, but it cannot go deep into your soul... But anyway , you can at least survive."

The past is reflected in front of his eyes, those past events that haven't happened for too long can only give him fatigue instead of fear.During the battle on the Palenno Plain, the screaming of the mammoth and the billowing dust seemed to recede quickly. At that moment, his heart was completely occupied by the forest. Let them take their power away.When the companions found the elf fainted next to a mammoth carcass, they were horrified. The elf closed his eyes as if he had lost all life force.But before they could turn from shock to grief, Legolas miraculously stood up from the ground.

"I'm fine," he said at the time. "This road is not over yet."

Then the established direction led his footprints to Mordo's black gate.Before the flames ignited, he had already felt the fear of the forest and the threat that was close at hand. When he swung his sword and rushed towards those half-orcs, he was greeted with the unbearable pain of scorching skin, and his violently beating heart At that time, he was still powerful, and the blood flowed quickly through all the blood vessels in his body, giving him strength and seeming to take away his strength at the same time. He faced several enemies in a strange land, and faced a few enemies in a farther place. the entire enemy army.

But he didn't feel the slightest fear, because he knew he was standing in front of the person he loved the most.

Finally, when a burst of dazzling light burst out from the Black Tower of Barad-doh, the young elf at this end also fell to the ground, and the bow and arrow fell out of their hands without a sound.Since then, darkness and shadows have existed only in his dreams.

But his persistence along the way did not end there.Staying in Ithilien for his father seemed to be the only thing he could do.Although this did not bring the father and son to meet each other, it was not meaningless. His hand lightly touched the stack of letters kept next to the pillow, and the corners of his slightly closed eyes became a little moist.

Sensing that Elrond had not left, Legolas opened his eyes again.

"I will go west to my fate, child," he said, "but don't worry, the help I have given you will pass to Arwen when I am gone, and she has inherited nearly everything from me, my Appearance, my character, my knowledge...but..."

Again, Legolas felt deeply sorry for him.

"But you must know," continued Elrond, "that my prescription will only last a few hundred years at most, and you are like a tree decaying from the root, Legolas, and only Only the hand of Vala can stop this fall. But I think maybe you can hesitate—or hold on,” he paused, his gray eyes shining like a winter night star, “it’s not enough time. A hundred years."

"Why?" Legolas asked softly.

"Did you forget, Legolas?" Elrond got up and walked out of the window again, his faint voice was left behind him, "My daughter has chosen to become a human being."

In those years, in the ears of others, the footprints of Prince Green Leaf were almost all over Middle-earth.Some people say that he went to Shire to visit old friends, and some people say that he went deep into Fangorn Forest with the dwarves to explore. All kinds of rumors make him a mysterious miracle—for an elf born and raised in the forest It is said that no one has ever extended his footprints to such a distant place-except his own homeland.

"Thranduil, everything is just your guess." Occasionally, Fino would sit beside the throne with his friends in a daze. "So what if you try to believe those rumors? Don't forget that your little green leaf was once I don’t want to stay at home, but I can’t wait to travel around to increase my knowledge.”

Fino casually sat with his legs spread apart against the tree trunk, in stark contrast to the majestic and silent figure beside him.

"Well I know you're going to answer 'a child doesn't want to leave home when it's grown up' or something," Fino put his hands behind his head and looked up at the stars, "but what's the point of torturing yourself like this ? Or let’s put it this way, instead of fidgeting here and speculating and worrying, it’s better to go to Ithilien to see him in person.”

"Shut up, Fino." Thranduil said softly without taking his eyes off the white flower.

"You've been saying this for 100 years, and you've been sitting like this for 100 years, it's boring," Fino shrugged, "But to be honest, Thranduil, 100 years is nothing in the long life of an elf." For a brief moment, it is nothing compared to what you and I have experienced in the past, but the great changes caused by this war are brewing faster than we can imagine-you know? I heard two of my subordinates again today Discussing about Xidu, they were a little scared, but they were more curious and excited. Yes, they are always such young and happy children. I don’t even doubt that I will see them pack their luggage tomorrow and say goodbye to me. .All this is thanks to you, Your Majesty the Great King."

Fino was referring to a decree issued by Thranduil long ago.Many elves were amazed when they first learned of the decree, but immediately accepted it: those who want to stay will stay, and those who yearn for a distant place will not be hindered.

"My father told me before he died that to become the well-deserved king of the Great Greenwood, I must lead my subjects to the path of light—even if it is not the same path. The loyalty and love of elves are never limited to one place, nor They will be separated by the distance of time and space, in this case, I just help them face up to their wishes, so what's wrong?"

"That's really nice to say," Fino wrinkled his nose. "What about you, Your Majesty the King? Will you have a whim one day and cut down the tree behind us to make a boat to the west?"

"No." The voice was soft but firm.

"It's so straightforward to deny," Fino turned slightly, his eyes and tone suddenly changed as if he was joking, "and it doesn't look like a joke. Thranduil, have you ever thought that if one day Legola S-"

"I think about everything related to him all the time," Thranduil quickly interrupted his friend, but his eyes changed to the kind of gentleness and calmness when he mentioned his son, "and it is precisely for Legolas , I can't leave here."

"why?"

Those hands gradually gathered together, surrounding the white flowers in front of them, in such a posture, it was as if they were carefully cupping someone's cheeks.

"That's why."