This is a bonus chapter that I originally wrote after this story was completed, because it was then Midsummer Eve in Sweden and I wanted to write about that. :) I have rearranged the chapters afterwards to get them in a more chronological order.

The following happened the day before Aragorn's wedding, so halfway into the last chapter. :)

A Midsummer Night's Dream

The little white tree was doing well, though a bit tired after meeting all the guests from Lothlórien and Imladris who had arrived in Minas Tirith that morning. Legolas stroked its slim trunk fondly, trying to comfort it. They will only stay until Elessar's wedding, I am sure. Then the peace will return.

But the baby tree didn't reply; the poor thing slept already.

Just as he was about to leave it and go look for Kat, Legolas noticed Frodo standing alone by the wall, gazing at the mountain range that was the Mordor border. Though the Dark Lord was defeated now, the jagged cliffs looked dark and uninviting.

Legolas joined him, making sure not to look at the Pelennor Fields below. That area still held too many dark memories, and he rarely ventured there. "Are you alright?"

Frodo smiled faintly, absentmindedly touching his neck where he used to carry the Ring. "All my friends are here together, well and whole, Sauron is dead, and Strider gets married tomorrow. I shouldn't complain."

"Indeed. We should not complain." Legolas figured he ought to be happiest of them all; he was courting the woman he loved and had received the Gift of Men. Yet...

"Yet..." said Frodo, as if he had heard Legolas' thoughts, "yet the memories haunt me."

Legolas tried to banish the faces of the men and orcs he had killed. "Aye."

Tearing his gaze from Mordor, Frodo peered at him. "I didn't think you would feel down too. It never got the better of you."

"Nay. I have no reason to feel down."

Frodo narrowed his eyes. "Yet you do?"

"Sometimes."

"Share with me," Frodo suggested. "Share your regrets and bad memories and I'll share mine. Then maybe – hopefully – we shall find they hurt less."

"Do you think that works?"

"I know it does. I wouldn't have managed this quest without Sam by my side, I think, and one of the reasons was that we could talk about everything."

Legolas nodded thoughtfully. He hadn't felt too bad during the first stages of the journey when he had Kat to speak to, but becoming separated from her had been difficult.

"I will try then," he began. "My first regret is... that I had to kill people. Humans... and orcs. Aye, I even regret killing orcs." He was almost surprised that he was able to admit it. After all, he was a warrior; killing orcs was what he had been in the Fellowship to do.

But thankfully Frodo only reacted with understanding. "We all had to kill, and it's not something one easily gets used to. If ever." He sighed. "My turn. I am ashamed that I couldn't let go of the Ring in the end."

"Nobody could have done that."

"Sam could; he gave It back to me. Which is especially humiliating because I, who is older, turned out to be the weaker hobbit. Now; your turn."

"I am embarrassed because Saruman managed to seduce me with his sweet voice. Gimli resisted, but I did not." He felt his cheeks heat up. "Please do not tell him that."

"Of course not. But, you know, now I feel a tiny bit better about the Ring." He smiled briefly, but soon became serious again. "My turn. Hm... I have nightmares, but not about the more terrifying parts of the quest, such as the Dead Marshes or being captured by orcs. No... They are all about walking. I walk across a wasteland, thirsty, hungry, tired and with a heavy burden across my neck, and no matter how far I go I never get there. It's an endless, dreary walk." He shuddered.

"My nightmares are mostly about darkness. That I am locked into a black hole and cannot escape."

They continued sharing their bad memories and fears for a while longer, and it seemed Frodo actually had been right, for it made Legolas feel less demure. It was heartening to know he wasn't the only one who had done things he regretted, nor was he alone having bad memories and dreams.

It gave him hope for the future, that maybe someday he would forget and be at peace again.

ʕll'ಠ‿ಠ'llʔ

"There you are!" Kat put a floral wreath on his head. "Pippin said that this day is Midsummer Eve. And where I came from we do many fun things this day. Want to join?"

Kat had a wreath for herself too, and her sparkling eyes and cheerful smile underneath it filled Legolas' chest with warmth. He was dating the most beautiful woman imaginable; he ought to take her someplace private where he could kiss her instead of standing here brooding with Frodo.

"Of course."

Legolas and Frodo followed Kat to the garden while she eagerly explained the tradition in her broken Westron. Apparently, during Midsummer Eve her people wore flowers in their hair, ate some kind of raw, pickled fish (Gollum would have approved!) and for dessert strawberry cake, and then they erected a pole covered in leaves and flowers and danced around it.

When the sun set – which happened exceptionally late that time of year, because her country was so far north – the young people stayed up and partied. And did other things, apparently.

"It is very common for babys to come nine month after Midsummer," she said smugly.

Frodo chuckled. "Oh, and why is that?"

"If I knew the word I would say. Legolas, can you– Oh. He gone."

With burning cheeks Legolas arrived at the garden, where Gimli, Merry, Pippin and Sam were waiting in front of a vaguely cross-shaped stake with wilting flowers and leaves tied onto it.

"Look! We made a Midsummer pole," said Pippin. "Is it not pretty?"

"Lovely!" he lied.

"Shall I tell you what it is supposed to look as?" Kat grinned mischievously.

"Nay, thank you." He could easily imagine it quite by himself.

Of course Kat explained anyway, producing a burst of laughter from Pippin and Gimli, and some eye-rolling from the rest.

Then they had a pleasant picnic in the grass (thankfully without the pickled fish), and when everyone was finished Kat rose. "Now we dance. I teach you."

The songs were merry and easy to learn despite the foreign language, and the dances were fun. Legolas was reminded of the dance circles his own people were fond of. Hand in hand they ran, twirled, jumped and laughed, and made so much noise others came to see what it was all about and decided to join: Boromir and Nellas; Faramir, Pippin's young friend Bergil; even Gandalf, much to everyone's delight.

Lastly it was time for the 'most popular song' according to Kat, where they were supposed to mimic jumping frogs.

"Ah, I am afraid I have to sit over this dance," said Gandalf. "Bad back, you know."

"And miss the best song? Tsk tsk." Gimli had braided flowers into his beard and seemed to be having the time of his life, but the several pints of beer he had downed might have something to do with it.

"This is the chorus," instructed Kat. "Sing with me: qu-ack ack ack, qu-ack ack ack..."

"QU-ACK ACK ACK," roared Gimli.

"Frogs don't say 'quack'," Bergil objected.

Pippin nodded solemnly. "Yes, they go 'ribbit'."

"I'd rather say they croak," Gandalf mused.

"In my country they quack. Now, stop talk and start sing. Qu-ack ack ack, qu-ack ack ack. Very good, Gimli! Qu-ack ack ack ack aaack..." Still singing, she started to jump her way around the pole, her bosom merrily bouncing along.

Legolas regarded her with interest, beginning to look forward to when they could be alone together. Surely it must be bedtime for the hobbits soon?

ʕll'* ‿ *'llʔ ʕ(* ‿ *)ʔ

Legolas enjoyed the warmth of Kat's hand in his. It was very late; the city was deserted and they had just reached its lowest circle.

"Where are we going?"

"Out. We must go over seven fields and pick seven flower and put them under our pillow. Then we will dream of the one we will marry." She chuckled. "I do not believe it but it is good fun."

Legolas stopped. "Fields. You mean the Pelennor? I prefer not to go there."

"Do you know other fields?"

"Nay, but..."

"But...?" She looked at him imploringly.

He decided to be open with her, just like he had been with Frodo earlier. "They remind me of the battle... All the dead friends, and the dead enemies too." He realized his grip on her hand must be getting painful and relaxed it. "I killed people there."

Her face grew serious. "I understand." Then after a while she added. "Maybe if you walk with me and pick flower you get new memories? Better memories."

"Maybe. I do not know..." He warily glanced at the hole in the wall where the city gate had been.

"Let us try, and if you need it we go back?"

"Alright. Let us try."

They chose a small dirt road that followed the city wall for a while and then turned east towards the river. The road was lined with lush greenery, a multitude of flowers, herbs and grasses framing sprouting fields, and meadows with newly harvested hay. There was no trace of the battle that had raged only three months ago.

"Aha! First flower." Kat picked two pink wild roses, giving one of them to Legolas. "And here is the first new memory." She stood on tiptoes and kissed him on the mouth.

"Kissing is part of the traditions too?"

"It is now." She smirked.

They continued, climbing over a fence into one of the meadows (apparently climbing fences were also part of the Midsummer night dream magic) where Kat soon found a new species of flower, again finishing it off with a kiss.

"Is it working?" she asked, a bit breathlessly.

"Not yet."

"No?" She looked disappointed.

"Nay. I think I need another kiss."

"Ha! Funny. Nice try." But of course she gave him another, and then a third just in case.

It soon became too dark for Kat to see, but Legolas helped her find flowers until they both had seven each, and by then their lips had become rather raw from the many kisses.

Kat sat against a haystack. "So soft. I could sleep in it."

"That is probably a bad idea. We might miss Aragorn's wedding tomorrow."

"Perhaps we can rest just little." She pulled him down next to her so she could lean her head on his shoulder. Only minutes later her breathing became heavy.

Just rest? He smiled fondly at her sleeping face and wrapped them both in his cloak. He really didn't mind staying for a while. It was peaceful here and the night was spectacular; lit by a myriad of stars and rife with the fragrance of fresh hay. A small long-eared bat swooped up and down between the haystacks in its hunt for insects and in the distance an owl hooted. The little flower bouquet in his hand was beginning to droop.

Kat had been right; he was acquiring new memories of this place. Coming here had been the right thing to do.

He put the flowers in the hay under his head and closed his eyes. Perhaps he too should rest a little. Just rest. Not sleep...

ʕll – _ – llʔ ʕ( – _ – )ʔ

A lark greeting the morning woke Legolas up, and soon its melodious voice was joined by a choir of roosters from various farms.

After sleeping in the hay he was a bit stiff, but when he stretched his limbs he realized something else: he felt completely at peace. He had dreamed something, something that had left him with this strange calmness, but he could only vaguely recall the dream.

Kat had been in it, and someone else... She had brought him to meet a person with eyes deep and brilliant like stars. A Vala? The person had told Legolas he was forgiven – and he had believed it. He had felt forgiven, as if his guilt had been physically extracted from his body.

Now that he was awake he still felt it – not that he had forgotten any of his dark memories, he remembered everything – but it was as if they could no longer hurt him. As if his heart was made whole.

Perhaps this flower dream magic really worked? Or maybe it was a foretaste of the Gift? Either way, he had rarely felt better, and though it probably wouldn't last, he now had a lot more hope for the future. A future where he could be free one day.

Kat yawned. "Dumb birds should be quiet," she grumbled. Then she grinned and pulled a wilted rose from Legolas' hair. "Your hair! It is not smooth and perfect. Amazing."

He grinned back. "Your fault for making me sleep on a flower bouquet in a haystack." He gave her cheek a peck. "But I forgive you. I slept remarkably well."

"Did you dream of someone?" she asked expectantly.

He winked. "I did."

"Really? Who?"

"A very pretty, charming, beautiful..."

"Yes...?"

"Tree. A lovely mallorn tree. Golden leafed and–" He jumped to his feet to avoid getting smacked.

"Liar."

He crossed his fingers. "Nay, it is the truth."

"It is not."

He failed to retain his deadpan. "Well, actually... I dreamed of you." He pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her.

When their lips met there was a new intensity in the kiss, like a promise. A promise of more to come.

Soon...

Soon he would gather the courage to ask her to marry him, and then his dream would come true. A Midsummer Night's Dream.

A/N:

I hope you didn't mind a bonus scene. :D

If you're curious about Swedish midsummer or want to hear the frog song, I can recommend the youtube clip Swedish Midsummer for Dummies (), see below.

https://youtu.be/u8ZLpGOOA1Q