The world was laughing.

She was sure of it – the moon was full, round and white as snow, and the stars jeweled the lush blue backdrop of sky. Inside the Main Hall, there was whooping and singing, ale flowing like water, and mountains of food which hadn't been touched. The celebration in Rohan paled in comparison to this – the feast was fantastic, the wine and ale demolished by the barrel, and there was so much singing and laughing that it melted into one harmonious roar in the background. They were finally free, the war was over, and there would be no more pillaging, no more scourges, no more villages burned to the ground. Middle Earth was crippled, but the storm had passed and repairs were being made – walls were being rebuilt, crops resowed. But nothing could replace the loss of loved ones, the missing gaps in their lives which could never quite be filled. Nobody quite knew where the King and his new bride has disappeared to, but as Gimli said, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder." The very air seemed to hum with delight, and Amy sipped the joy in the air, savoring the sweetness in her heart.

It was beautiful out, the whole world was smiling, and she was almost content. Amy smiled and sighed, stretching her arms and continuing her slow stroll along the deserted pathways in Minas Tirith. Sam was inside, probably flirting with Haldir – the silver-haired Marchwarden was the talk of the evening for his antics with the young girl. Upon seeing her again, without even greeting her properly, he ran up to her and spanked her hard, causing a swell of laughter throughout the crowd. The two of them had dissolved into much swearing, name-calling, and playful physical abuse, and Amy had watched laughingly. Sam was smitten, she could tell – but she wouldn't admit it for the world. No, Sam was too proud and sassy to even think of admitting she liked someone – Amy and Lizzie both had to drag it out of her whenever Sam had a crush.

As Amy's drew closer to the White Tree of Gondor, her thoughts turned to Lizzie. Such a stupid, beautiful girl, to be turned so easily to the pull of the Ring. But a friend, nonetheless. Amy sat down on the roughly carved stone bench directly beneath the gnarled, twisted tree, and propped her chin in her hands. Her previous good mood melted a little as she looked at her reflection in the pool. A lean elf with curly red hair frowned back at her, and Amy sighed. She had died in her old world, been thrust into a save-the-world quest against her will, and been killed again, this time by her former best friend. And then, to top it all off, she had been brought back to life in the body of an elf. It was hard to swallow, and Amy shook her head. She would never get used to it, not even if she spent the rest of her life trying to wrap her head around it. Part of her still longed to see the bustling streets of New York, hear the screech of the subway wheels, smell the asphalt and the pizza and the distinct city smell. She missed her family – her brothers, her sisters, even those annoying animals which irked her so much, and now she would never see them again. She would never sit in her room and stare at posters of Tom Hardy, wishing with all her heart that she was a movie star. She would never brush her teeth with an electric toothbrush, or watch TV, or eat Doritos.

"A frown does not suit your pretty face, my lady."

She smiled in spite of herself when she heard the familiar voice of Legolas behind her. Looking up, she saw the handsome Elvish prince dressed in a long silver tunic, belted at the waist, and dark leggings. His blonde hair was loose around his shoulder, except for the traditional Elvish warrior plait in the back. Legolas came up to her and quirked an eyebrow. "May I interest you in a stroll?" He asked, offering his arm. Amy stood, smiling a little, and accepted silently. He tilted her cheek with his hand, blue eyes quizzical. "You are quiet tonight, while the world is smiling. What is wrong, wilwarin?"

"Just...thinking," Amy answered softly, looking out at Minas Tirith. "Thinking of home."

His grip tightened around her arm instinctively. "Where is home, Amy?" He asked, his heart growing heavy. "For I know that home, for me, is with you. And it would bring me no greater happiness to have you with me in Mirkwood."

She didn't say anything for a long moment, just studied her feet. "Home isn't here, that's for sure," She finally said. "But I can't go to Mirkwood with you, Legolas."

His hard nearly stopped beating. The words lodged in his throat, but he finally got them out. "Not even as my wife?"

Amy turned to him, breaking their connection. "Are you...proposing?" She sputtered.

Those blue eyes were deadly serious. "Yes, I am, Amy," He told her. "Yes, I am asking for your hand in marriage."

"No, Legolas!" She cried, backing up. "No, Legolas, no, you can't do this to me!" She seemed on the verge of tears. "Legolas...Please, don't."

"Why, what is wrong?" He asked, catching her wrists and keeping her still. Those beautiful green eyes were huge and full of tears.

"Legolas, no. I'm only seventeen, Legolas, I don't want to get married. Don't do this to me, Legolas. I can't go to Mirkwood with you, and I won't be your wife. I just...I'm trying to learn how to be a woman and an elf all at the same time, and trying to wrap my head around the fact that I'm stuck here! I'm in a different world, Legolas, and I don't know how big it is. No, Legolas, I won't marry you."

"Amy, I love you," He whispered, and he sounded anguished and horrified. Those eyes, oh, the beautiful eyes which had so entranced her, were confused and desperate. "Amy, I shall always love you, wherever you are, whatever you do. I know this fact better than I know anything else, because I am not myself when I am around you. You – you fulfill me, as though I was never really alive before I met you."

"No, Legolas," Amy said softly, tears spilling down her cheeks. "Please don't say that. Legolas, I – I don't know what I feel. There's too much for me to deal with, right now. My best friend killed me, Legolas, and I'm in a new world! I'm sorry, I really, truly am, but I will not marry you."

"Then come with me," He said desperately. "Gimli and I are going to Fangorn Forest, and we shall be visiting several Elvish cities. Come with us, Amy, please. I will go mad if I am not near you, I know I shall! Please, Amy, if you will not marry me now then I shall wait, I will wait until the earth crumbles if that is what you wish! But, I beg of you, do not spurn my advances."

She stood on tiptoe and kissed him gently on the cheek. He felt her tears, damp and cool, against his skin. "I need to think about it," She whispered in his ear. "Give me a few days, okay?"

He watched her go, and part of him died inside when she left him.

"He asked you to what?"

"Shut up!" Amy snapped, sitting back down on the bed. Sam was staring at her, horrified. "Yes, he asked me to marry him, and I don't know what to do! What should I do? I mean, I'm not marrying him, I know that, but should I go with him? I don't know who else is going, and everything, but –"

"He's crazy about you," Sam said matter-of-factly, "And you always used to yell at Lizzie for breaking people's hearts. You can turn him down, he's such a sweetie."

"I know," Amy wailed. "I'm such a horrible person! But – I mean, I can't marry him. I'm seventeen! What if Haldir just came up to you and asked you to marry him?"

"I would knee him very hard and then dump a bucket of water on his face," Sam stated calmly, "But that's because we have a different relationship. I know you and Legolas smooch each other senseless when I'm not around – he looks at you like you're the best thing since toilet paper. Go with him, Amy."

"Will you come with me?" Amy pleaded, twisting her fingers. Sam snorted.

"Hell no! I'm not going to be the chaperone! Besides, I promised Galadriel I'd come back to Lothlorien." Sam informed her.

"I'm sure we'll be passing by there," Amy begged. "Come with me, Sam, I need support."

"You have Gimli for that."

"I am not going to girl talk with Gimli!" Amy screeched.

"Okay, okay, don't have a cow," Sam grumped. "Fine. We'll go. Happy? But only if we spend extra long in Lothlorien."

"Deal."

"Pinky swear?"

Amy grinned.

"Pinky swear."

And that's how we shall leave the two girls, pinky swearing about their love lives.

Yeesh.

A/N: Thaaaat's all folks! xD I'm an evil, evil person, aren't I? I just got sick and tired of all the endings where Legolas and the OC get married. It's totally unrealistic – the two of them barely know each other. Sure, they've been through hell and back, but they don't know each other. Am I making sense? I don't think so. Whatever. It's late.

CHECK OUT THIS FANART: It's INCREDIBLE. Izzy spent the past three days hogging my computer to finish it, and I'm super proud of her.

Lizzie: h t t p : / / s l e e k - o t t e r . d e v i a n t a r t . c o m / a r t / E l i z a b e t h - M c K e n z i e - 2 8 9 2 9 2 6 7 3

Warrior!Sam: ht t p : / / s l e e k - o t t e r . d e v i a n t a r t . c o m / # / d 4 s 8 j d x

Pretty!Sam: h t t p : / / s l e e k - o t t e r . d e v i a n t a r t . c o m / # / d 4 s 9 1 m o (She did two of Sam because that's her favorite character. xD )

Amy: h t t p : / / s l e e k - o t t e r . d e v i a n t a r t . c o m / # / d 4 s 9 1 q l (She did two of Amy, too, but the first one she doesn't like)