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Sword collided against sword, and the bright sound of metal hitting metal rang in the air. Gimli and Aragorn watched the match progress, their hands squeezing their own weapons. The ranger had come from nowhere, and when Aragorn didn't recognize them and they refused to leave after Legolas repeatedly insisted, the elven prince attached. Surprisingly, the figure was holding its own very well against the elf.
"They have to be born somewhere other than the wild, the rangers are good with swords but not this-" Legolas' sword flew out of his grasp in an arc, landing with a thud.
"-good." Aragorn finished his sentence, pulling out his sword but didn't have the time to take a step closer to the figure that was now holding their sword on Legolas' neck, the tip resting on his skin gently when they spoke.
"My my, Muindor (brother), you have grown careless with your defense." Both Legolas and Aragorn tensed at the elvish, but Gimli, who could not understand, continued his attack and charged for her.
The figure removed its hood, revealing long h/c hair with pointy ears sticking out of it. Her blue eyes matched Legolas', and they were narrowed with annoyance.
"Y/N." The blonde elf gasped, stepping closer. She sidestepped to avoid the swing of Gimli's ax, and Aragorn jumped in to make sure Gimli didn't murder the newcomer as Legolas encased her in a hug.
"Where have you been?" He demanded from his younger sister, who stepped out of the hug and sheathed her sword with a roll of her eyes.
"Oh, here and there." She waved her hand around, the group only now noticing her little- and ring-fingers missing from her left hand.
"And what happened to your hand?" He demanded and tried to grasp it on his own, but the younger sibling was faster and stepped out of his reach.
"Life in the wild, is what happened, brother. No need to be dramatic." She rolled her eyes, sweeping her windswept hair behind her ears.
"Why didn't you return home after such an injury?" The elleth let out a sarcastic bark of laughter.
"And listen to the eternal yammering of father that I am a princess and should act like it and yadda yadda? Pass." You stepped further away from your brother, turning your attention to Aragorn.
"Strider." You gave him a nod, smiling slightly, and he reciprocated your gesture with his own.
"Mange." Legolas tensed at your nickname, frowning.
"Mange?! Why would you take such a nickname, it's cruel!" He cried, and you rolled your eyes.
"Oh stop with the dramatics already! Ranger nicknames aren't chosen, they are earned, brother and mine just happens to be Mange. You'll have to learn to live with that." You huffed as you turned to walk away.
Gimli was entranced from the moment you had dropped your hood and he'd been able to see your face. The rough life was visible on your face, your nose carrying a small scar, and your right ear had a cleft in it, clearly from a blade. Your clothes were windswept and worn out from the years of travel, your boots muddy and patched. And yet you were the most beautiful elf he had ever seen. Galadriel had been a sight, but you. You were something entirely different, not afraid to get dirty. Your skills with a blade were impressive, and the way you carried yourself was royal, there was no question about it.
You joined them on their journey to retrieve the hobbits from the hands of the orcs. Every night as you rested, you could feel the eyes of the dwarf, Gimli, on you. You had nothing against dwarves, they had helped you on your journey plenty of times, but the way his attention didn't seem to falter from you was slightly unnerving. You knew it probably wasn't scorn against your kind, you had seen him talking or sometimes laughing with your brother. But there definitely was something going on, and you were curious and wanted to find out what. So you stuck to his company for the next few days, much to everyone's surprise. On the first day, he was silent and didn't say much, but on the second he started to open up more.
-
Gimli huffed as Legolas' eyes didn't leave him. The elf hadn't left his side for the whole afternoon, and it was starting to annoy him.
"What?"
"You kept going on and on about how Y/N wouldn't talk to you and today as she finally did, you barely said a word?" Legolas questioned, a brow raised.
"You have never been the kind to just stop talking. Usually, you never stop talking." Gimli didn't respond, just shook his head, slowing down his steps, hoping the elf would get the hint and walk ahead. But no, the cheery pointy-eared man slowed his steps so they were side by side again, and Gimli resisted the urge to snap at him so he would leave him alone. But the elf was your brother, and despite everything you had said, Gimli knew that Legolas was important to you. Snapping at him was not the way to get to your good side.
Unfortunately, Legolas caught on to this.
"What is going on with you? Normally, you would have grumbled at me to leave you alone or chased me away with your ax. Why the sudden change?" Gimli made the mistake of glancing in your direction, and Legolas followed his friend's eyes. His face lit up, but before he could say anything, the hilt of Gimli's ax was under his chin.
"Not. A. Word." The dwarf hissed before he stomped away, leaving Legolas alone, grinning.
When the watch for the evening fell on you and Gimli, he knew that Legolas hadn't been able to keep himself out of the situation. You were sitting around a fire, backs turned towards the wall of stone that made sure no one would be able to sneak up on you from that direction. The night was calm, a warm gust of wind blowing through the cove the four of you had decided to make your camp for the night. He was vexed at Legolas, he couldn't but be slightly satisfied that he could keep an eye on you without you noticing. Or that's what he thought.
"What? You asked, giving him a hurried glance before your eyes returned to the landscape around you.
"Nothing. "Gimli muttered, moving his eye to his boots for a moment before daring to glance at you again. Your head was held high, hair brushed behind your ears as you kept a keen eye on the area around you, your eyes and ears picking up the smallest of traces. Gimli had to once again tear his eyes off you before you noticed. The way the wind was gently moving your hair around was entrancing, your eyes reflecting the color of the stars.
A silence settled between the two of you. There were no sounds around you other than the wind howling and the quiet breathing of Legolas and Aragorn.
"You know, if you wanted to spend time with me, all you had to do was ask." Your voice broke the serene silence, and Gimli turned his eyes to you, watching as you stood up. The moon was at its highest point, it was time to change the watch.
But before you walked away, you gave him a kiss on the cheek. It was barely there, fleeting and feather-light, but it was a kiss nevertheless. Gimli raised his hand to his cheeks as you walked away, staring after you, speechless. There was no saying what your relationship with Gimli would end up with, but the two of you were more than eager to find out.