Disclaimer: I don't know Nsync. I don't know Justin Timberlake in real life. Also this story is in no way meant to imply that he is homosexual in real life. This piece of literature is simply the work of a fan and is pure fiction.
I don't own The Lord of the Rings or any other works of the series. The rights of the series goes solely to the series author J.R.R. Tolkien.
Now that's out of the way. This story appeared in my head when I was trapped in the car with my relatives for a 24-hour road trip. I was really, really bored! I shudder just thinking about that trip. Anyway, if your below legal age to read this where your from, then all I can tell you is stop and don't let your parents catch you. He he that's not much of a warning, but hey what else can I do.
Chapter 30
White. There was white as far as he could see. Justin blinked and then, there was a twinkle, a flash of light far off in the distance. It came again and suddenly Justin found himself to be standing in a sea of stars. White, glowing in the distance, they enclosed him in an ocean of bright lights nestled in the folds of black space. He looked down at himself and found he was wearing a pure white rendition of his usual blue tunic and leggings. He squinted into the distance and a pair of stars seemed brighter than the others. Justin gave a start as he realized why. They were traveling toward him. And at a rapid pace, too.
The stars as they neared him, flared white, and converged together. They appeared now in the shape of a man. Man, as is in two legs, and two arms and a head, kind of man. The being's form glowed with such a light that it gave no details, as to looks or clothing, if it had on any. Justin shivered at the power that rolled off the being. It wasn't a malicious or dark, but it was comforting and gave of a warm quality that overwhelmed anything he had ever sensed before. The being's eyes were brighter than even the glow it gave off. They were like looking into two suns, bright and everlasting.
"Hello to you, young one," spoke the being. Its voice echoed around them and rubbed at Justin's insides.
Justin wanted to say something back, but the power he was feeling made him bow his head in a humble reverence. This being was much greater than he. This form he even appeared in must have just been for his sake, because no way could such power be contained in a body.
"You may not know me, young one, but I know of you," said the being.
Justin opened his mouth and it took a few tries before he could actually speak. "Who are you?"
"I am called Eru," replied the being. "Though in Arda, the world in which Middle Earth dwells, they know me as Illuvatar."
Justin swallowed. This was the One. He was standing before the Creator of the world. Okay, was his heart pounding in his chest? Check. Was his legs about to give? Check. Did his throat just suddenly go dry? Check. Alrighty then. It was safe to say that he was properly awed right at this moment.
He cleared his throat. "Sir," he said hesitantly, he really had no idea what you would call the maker of the world. "Are you the one responsible for bringing me here?"
"Yes, it was I who summoned you forth from your realm."
Justin shook his head, confused. He looked onto the glowing being. "But why me? I don't understand. I'm just me! What good does being a musician do for this world?"
"The Firstborn and also Olorin told you of your importance in the War of the Ring?" asked Eru, though questioned it came more as a statement.
Justin nodded slowly. "Yes, many of the Elves have stated that I was important for some reason or another. Though I don't know who Olorin is?"
Eru laughed. And Justin felt his heart soar and his spirits rise at the sound. The laugh was something that nothing on Arda or Earth could ever produce. Justin had a filling that if he could make out the features of Eru's face, he would be smiling right now. He could practically hear the smile as he spoke to him.
"I was remiss in your knowledge of things put in motion long ago. The Maia known as Gandalf was sent to Middle Earth in disguise long before you arrived. Neither his form nor his name is true to him. His true name is Olorin."
Justin knew that Gandalf wasn't really old in a sense. He remembered reading from the books in Minas Tirith that the Maiar were immortal spirits. It only made sense that they could change forms. The form of an old man did work for him, Justin thought. It made him seem friendlier and wiser seeming than a younger person would come across. Eru seemed to follow his thoughts.
"Yes, his persona of an elderly man was put in place to better gain the people's trust. Though to discuss Olorin is not why I have brought you hither. I have come to discuss you. The War of the Ring is over. Sauron has been cast into the Void with his master Melkor. The threat to Middle Earth is over and now its time for you to live your life."
Justin felt the corner of his eyes prick with fresh tears. "There is nothing left for me to live for," replied Justin sorrowfully. "My light is gone."
"You have much to live for. Your part in the Great Music is not over. You were summoned to Arda for a purpose and you are fulfilling it splendidly."
"The War of the Ring is over," said Justin his voice rising with frustration. "I was brought to fight was I not? Why then is my part not over with?"
Eru came closer and Justin felt a great calm as the radiating light washed over him. "Your part in the war was important but it was not your main purpose. You were brought here for something greater. Interacting with the people the way you did and by being in Middle Earth, you have changed the course of their history. You touched people in their hearts, young one. In turn those people you touched will touch others, and their children shall grow learning lessons they otherwise would not had learned."
The Butterfly Effect, Justin thought. Lance had brought up the theory once after seeing the movie. It was thought that butterfly's wings is imagined to create tiny changes in the atmosphere which over the course of time cause it to diverge from what it would have been and potentially cause something as dramatic as a tornado to occur. Had the butterfly not flapped its wings, the trajectory of the winds occurring in the system might have been different. Of course the theory was a little wild. But it was part of a bigger idea called the Chaos Theory. Lance had tried to patiently explain that to them and Justin had ended up gazing into space and drooling a bit down his chin.
"Are they good changes at least?" questioned Justin.
Eru's glow seemed to pulse as he answered. "The changes though not significant now will have a great impact on the future of the race of Men. The Secondborn shall rise to the height and then far beyond even the Firstborn, the Elves."
Justin wrapped his arms around himself as a sudden thought came to him. "Do you mean they will be like the people of my world?"
"Even greater. There will be no war, sickness, or poverty. They will not cut down and change the land, but shall coexist with it. Their utopia will span the length of the world."
No. That couldn't be right. "All this because of just me. It seems impossible."
Eru laid his hands upon Justin's shoulders. And the glow that surrounded him encompassed Justin in its soothing light. He saw flashes of a wondrous city. In the nexus of the city, white crystal towers clustered around an even greater tower, that rose high into the blue sky, winked in the rising sun. He caught flashes of children laughing and playing. The streets were filled with people but there was no rush. Smiles adorned every face he glimpsed. Eru was right. It really was utopia. Justin felt light in his soul knowing that he, somehow, had helped to shape the world into what it would become. Suddenly, he felt a great falling sensation as he was released from the hold of the vision of the future. His eyes snapped open and he was greeted to darkness. He sat up and blinked. Justin looked around from the bed he was in. He was back in his room in Minas Tirith. The doors to the balcony were open and the curtains moved slightly in the night breeze.
"What^Å" he stopped mid way through.
His throat felt like it had been rubbed raw. It was almost like he hadn't used it in awhile. He reached for the glass of water by the nightstand, and his body protested as he clenched the cup. His muscles felt stiff and sore, making his body ache with a dull pain.
Justin sipped the water from the cup and closed his eyes at the soothing effect it had on his throat. He didn't see but he did hear the door close and the cry of surprise that followed. Suddenly, arms encircled around him and he dropped the cup onto the floor in surprise. The figure pulled back and Justin got a good look at his face. He looked into deep blue eyes. Familiar blue eyes that shined with such intensity that he lost his breath. His body reacted far faster than his mind. His hand came flying out, slapping the figure across the face, knocking him back off the bed and away from Justin.
"What the hell!" Justin yelled, as he wrapped his arms around himself.
Legolas stared up at him in part surprise, bemusement, and concern. He rose to his feet and took a step in Justin's direction. He stopped in mid step however. Justin's arm was pointed at him, palm open and aimed directly at his chest. Currents of blue lightning jumped from fingertip to fingertip, and then coalesced into the center of his palm, forming into a dazzling blue sphere. The room was alit with the dim blue glow and the light threw a shadow across the harsh expression Justin wore.
"Don't come any closer to me," whispered Justin, icily. "Who are you and what is going on?"
Legolas took a step forward but the light grew brighter. "It is I, Legolas."
"Impossible," spat Justin. "I saw you fall. Legolas is dead. Dead!"
He broke off as a sob welled in his throat. He shook his head wildly and tears fell freely down his face. His shoulders shook and his arm dropped down, the lightning dissipating, as he fell into his grief. He didn't even notice when the arms closed around him. He looked up as a hand tilted his chin.
"Do not cry, my love," said Legolas his own eyes wet with tears. "I did not fall in battle."
Justin tried to shake the arms off but they only held him tighter. "But that trident speared Legolas and." His eyes began to glow as his voice went deeper with anger. "You. Are. Not. Him."
"Look into my eyes, my love," replied Legolas, cupping his face. "You know within your heart that it is me."
He looked into those blue pools and felt himself fall into their gaze. Justin felt his stomach do a flip flop and he grabbed the hand cupping his face. Their fingers intertwined and Justin sucked in a breath at the familiar half smile that formed on Legolas' face. It was him. It had to be. No one else ever made him feel like this. A piece he thought he lost clicked inside of him and Justin threw his arms around Legolas, sobbing into his chest.
"Oh Las," he cried, clutching onto his tunic. "How? I saw..." he broke off as he chocked on a sob.
Legolas rubbed his back in comforting him. "It is alright, my love. My father is the king of Mirkwood. I mean, Eryn Lasgalen as it is called now, since the shadow of Mordor has gone. One thing about my father is that he is very protective of me. I am his only heir."
"I'm guessing there is a point in this," half smiled Justin, still hugging him.
Laughing lightly, Legolas nodded. "Father, before I left home to journey to Rivendell, bequeathed me his own coat of mithril."
Justin gasped and looked up into Legolas's eyes. Understanding dawned in on his face as he put the pieces together. "Like the shiny, armor coat thingy Frodo was wearing in Moria when the troll stabbed him..."
"Exactly like that," smiled Legolas, laying a kiss on his head. "When the trident struck me it cracked three of my ribs simultaneously. The pain rendered me unconscious."
"I thought you were dead," Justin whispered, smiling as Legolas wiped at the tear that feel down his face.
Legolas frowned. "I am sorry you had to go through that. After you used your powers you just shut down. The healers could not awaken you. Even Gandalf said that you were beyond his reach." He broke off and looked away. Justin saw the glitter of tears that gathered at Legolas's eyes. "I feared that you would never awaken."
Justin grabbed his hand holding it tightly in a death grip. "How long was I out?"
"It has been a little over a month."
His mouth formed into a surprised `O'. He gulped. "I guess I used too much power that time. I wasn't thinking. I just wanted to them to hurt." He looked down. "To feel the pain that I felt. They had to pay."
A finger laid itself on his lips quieting him. "Let us forget about that, love. You are well now and the Fellowship has back all its members."
"Frodo and Sam?" he asked immediately. "Are they okay?"
Legolas nodded, half smiling. "They are both fine and though the Ring is forever gone... I fear that the memory and grief of its burden shall forever weigh upon Frodo's shoulders."
He sighed in relief at the news. Though new exact news of Frodo wasn't all good news, at least he and Sam were well physically. Considering the odds of them all making it through the Quest was slim, they had done it. They all were alive.
"What have I missed?" asked Justin, laying back.
He kept a firm hold on Legolas and the elf smiled as he, too, was pulled down on the bed. They arranged themselves in a comfortable position of Legolas laying on his back with Justin draped over him, using his chest as a pillow. Justin cuddled into him and he sighed in contentment feeling the arms tighten around him.
Turned out he had missed quite a bit in his coma. After the great eagles came at the bid of Gandalf, they flew to the exploding Mount Doom and rescued both Sam and Frodo. After minor treatment for his hand, Frodo had lost a finger, and Sam was patched up for a sprained ankle, they were both given a clean bill of health. The Hobbits were reunited and even participated in Aragorn's coronation. Woo hoo. Justin was so sorry he had been in a coma during that...
At his crowning Aragorn took on the name of Elessar, which meant Elfstone. A name that was foretold to be given to the one that would reclaim kingship of Gondor.
In the days following his crowning King Elessar sat upon his throne and gave many judgments. To the freed slaves of Mordor, he gave lands to the east near Lake Nurnen. To the Easterlings that gave themselves up, he pardoned, and set them free. He made peace with the peoples to the South in Harad, who were the ancient enemies of Gondor and allies of Mordor during the war. To Boromir, who was allowed to keep his Stewardship, he set the task of rebuilding Gondor's ancient capital of Osgiliath. He was given lordship of its city and all its surrounding lands. It was a duty Boromir gladly took up. He most of all wanted to see Gondor rise to its former heights of glory. And Aragorn gave to Faramir Ithilien to be his princedom, and bade him dwell in the hills of Emyn Arnen within sight Minas Tirith. And the watchtower of Minas Ithil in Minas Morgul, once of Gondor but captured by Mordor during the War of the Ring, was to be destroyed so that the land may be made clean and later livable, but not for many long years to come.
"What about Eomer?" asked Justin, breaking Legolas from his story. "Did Gandalf give him anything?"
Legolas shook his head. "Nay, he did not. Eomer requested nothing for himself. Only that Gondor house the dead of Rohan so that they may return for them in time. Once affairs in Rohan are set, lands are made clean and wounds are healed, will they return for the Fallen."
Legolas started to tell him of the adventures that the Hobbits had been getting into while exploring the city, when Justin fell asleep. Smiling fondly down upon his love, he whispered in Sindarin, the common language of the Elves, sweet endearments. Mine, he thought possessively, wrapping his body around Justin's. He smiled at the sigh that left the other's lips. He didn't know why that thought came over him. Now more than ever, Legolas wanted to lay claim onto Justin. He wanted everyone to know that Justin belonged to him, and he to him, forever. There relationship, though young, had suffered so many close calls with death and obstacles. The Quest had tested their bond to the limits and they had passed.
He knew it within his heart of hearts that Justin was the one. The one Elf he wanted to spend the rest of his immortal life with. He loved him, mind, body, and soul. Legolas loved the jokes Justin told, the ones no one ever understand. (Though he was catching on. It was only a matter of time). He loved his sense of courage and morality. He loved everything about him. Even the way he slept like a mortal, with his eyes closed. Elves slept with their eyes open, as they only entered a trance like sleep that enabled them to rest for only mere hours. Legolas placed a kiss upon Justin's temple. He came to a decision inside and a smile split his face.
He would ask Justin to marry him.
He looked down upon Justin and kissed his head, whispering softly under his breath. "Amin mela lle, melamin, galadmin." [I love you, my love, my light.]
Deep in sleep, Justin smiled, and mumbled a barely audible. "Love you too."
Legolas smiled. Tomorrow he would ask.
To Be Continued...
**************************************** Thanks everybody for writing me emails after the last chapter. I figured I would finish this one as soon as possible so you wouldn't be hanging.
It's funny. When I first started writing this, I knew nothing of Lord of the Rings except for what I saw in the movies. Now I know so much about the world of Arda, its history and people's, that it's hard to remember to simplify it sometimes. If you are confused about anything or you want to know something, or you just want to talk you can email me at Silvenfox@yahoo.com.