Title: Moving On
Author: Wildecate
Email: Wildecate@hotmail.com
Rating: G - just fluff
Notes: First attempt at BtVS/LOTR crossover. Don't flame me.
Pairing: Willow/Legolas (of course!)
Credits: We all know who created the characters - songs by Avril Lavigne/Daniel Bedingfield
Dedication: For Lara

Rupert Giles removed his glasses and cleaned them, Buffy and Xander watching him closely.

"Is this a good thing or a bad thing?" Buffy asked eventually looking down at the book in front of him.

"Well, technically its an good thing because it means we can track Willow's whereabouts and hopefully should be able to re-open the portal and bring her home." He replaced his glasses on his nose and re-read the spell carefully, ensuring he understood every word, every nuance.

"You said technically?" Buffy was confused "It's all to the good if it brings Will home again."

"Alternate dimensions are tricky things Buffy, you yourself are aware that even the most basic things can be different, the perception of time passing for one thing. The spell is quite complicated but with the correct ingredients and preparation I believe we should be successful."

"Thank God." Xander Harris looked relieved "The thought of Willow all alone in another dimension, maybe even a hell dimension, wigs me out. God, I hope she's all right."

Giles favoured him with a quick smile "She'll be even better the quicker you collect the ingredients I need. Her hairbrush should have some hair in it, we can use that. Something personal and loved that we gave to her which should establish the connection of love and then the various other things I can collect from the magic shop. I'll meet you here after school finishes and we should be able to perform the spell straightaway."

Willow and Legolas were seated in their favourite place in the water garden, not speaking just sitting, gazing at the water, hands linked. Willow could not believe she had ever managed a day without him, his smiles, his touch seemed to close the hole in her soul. He in turn was entranced by her. Elves change very little over the years but five years for a human can make a world of difference and she had grown up into a beautiful woman, her features more defined and delicate as an elf's, her smile just as lovely as it had always been. They had spent every waking moment together, walking and talking together, riding out together. Arwen and Aragorn had joined them after a few days and they were rarely seen out of each other's company.

Arwen called to them from across the garden and Willow glanced up smiling.

"Lunch" she said "I'm starved".

Arwen and Aragorn had brought the picnic with them and settled themselves on the grass. They ate in companiable silence and it was only when Willow threw the crumbs of their meal into the water for the swans to feed on that she noticed the strange ripple of light forming in the air over the pools.

"What's that?" she touched Legolas' hand and they all turned to watch the light rippling through the air and sparkling before settling into a solid pattern and then, drawing back on itself, forming a hole in the sky, a portal.

Aragorn and Legolas leapt to their feet drawing sword and bow simultaneously. Willow stayed where she was recognising the portal and then, rising to her feet, stepped in front of her friends to face it full on.

"Willow, what you are you doing?" Legolas tried to draw her away from the portal.

"A'mael, this is not dangerous. I've seen this before" and Willow moved to stand in front of it, Legolas standing at her shoulder bow drawn.

He saw three humans standing before him through the portal, a blonde girl no older than 17 with bright eyes and a happy smile, a tall boy who was clutching the girl's hand, dark haired and dark eyed and a man with a serious face who was chanting quietly from a book held before him.

"Willow" the boy shouted "Can you hear us?"

"Oh God. It's home. Drop your bow Legolas, there is no danger." She laid her hand on his arm and he stared at her in confusion.

"I don't understand" he whispered in her ear.

"It's Sunnydale" she said and smiled back at her friends "I can hear you" she called to them.

Giles finished the chant and glanced up from his book to look through the portal. It had opened right before Willow but she looked remarkably different, her hair now reaching below her waist and held off her face with tiny braids. She looked older now too, a sign that time had moved differently where she was but best of all she looked well - beautiful. She looked fine. She was not alone though and Giles took in the three figures who were with her, a breath taking dark haired woman, a handsome man who stood defensively with his sword dropped, both dressed in rich fabrics, rich colours and both wearing what appeared to be crowns. The figure to Willow's right was a different story. He was tall, white blonde hair held back from his face in the same style as Willow's. He had fine features and dark eyes, a feature he shared with the other girl. His bow had been aimed straight at Giles, identifying him as the danger from the portal but Willow's hand rested upon his arm and the bow was dropped, but not completely. And there was something about him, ethereal, amazingly good looking, a "hottie" as Buffy would have said, something about him and the other girl. He turned his head to whisper in Willow's ear and gave himself away. Elf.

"Willow, we can bring you home - all you have to do is step through" Giles called to her.

Arwen tugged at Aragorn "What is it? What's happening?"

"It's a portal, the same as Willow used to travel from Sunnydale to here. They've opened another one which means she can go home." Arwen pulled Aragorn away from the portal and they stood a short distance away, whispering quietly to each other. Willow stood gazing at the portal and then turned to face Legolas who had been watching her intently.

"I need some time to talk to them. They won't understand that I don't want to come home."

Legolas looked down at Willow who gazing back longingly at the portal. He knew how much she had missed her home, her friends. He could even put names to the faces, she had described them so clearly, Buffy, Xander and Giles.

"If you want to go, I will come with you" he said.

She looked up at him in shock. "You can't come with me. You'd never survive in my world. It's all concrete and glass, nothing like here. And you'd be the only elf in the world, imagine how lonely you would be."

"No more lonely than if you left me."

Willow bit her lip. "Oh God, I can't lose you again."

Legolas turned back to the portal and called through "How stable is the portal?"

"It's stable for now." Giles replied waiting for Willow's response.

Legolas turned back to her "You have time to make this decision Willow. You know how things are with us, my father is already aware that our love has re-kindled. This time I shall not bow so easily to his commands.

"But…"

Legolas laid a finger across her lips "You do what you believe is the right thing A'mael and I will be here for you. But if you decide not to return to me, just know that I love you beyond all things and I would have given up everything for you." He kissed once softly and then turned and followed Aragorn and Arwen across the garden, leaving her to her friends.

"When is it? For you guys? How long have I been here?" she asked

"About 5 hours, maybe 6. It's taken a while to find the correct spell to open the portal safely and locate it to you." Giles looked quite pleased with himself.

"Ok, well for me it's been nearly 6 years. I have a life here, friends." Willow was twisting her hands in front of her nervously. Xander recognised the gesture, something Willow used to do when she was younger when she had to confess to something or when she'd done something wrong.

"You don't want to come back, do you?" Xander said working it out "We thought you were in a hell dimension or something."

Willow smiled at him "Far from it Xander. It's so beautiful here, the war finished 4 years ago and people are re-building their lives."

"He's an elf, isn't he? The man you were with?" Giles enquired. Willow nodded and gave a little grin which Buffy instantly recognised, the same grin when she used to talk about Xander, when she talked about Oz.

"His name is Legolas. It's a long story and kind of complicated."

"I'll bet" Buffy said wryly, "but you can tell us when you come back, can't you?" The look on Willow's face froze. "You are coming back, aren't you?"

"I…"

"You're not?"

Legolas watched her from beneath the trees and was unsurprised when a hand fell on his shoulder.

"Aragorn?"

"No" Legolas turned in surprise and saw Tathor standing behind him. "What is happening, brother? What is the strange light over the water?"

"Willow's friends have opened the portal back to Sunnydale. They want her to return to them."

"Will she go?" Tathor watched his brother's face as he asked the question.

"I….. I do not know" Legolas turned to his brother "but I am sure that if she does you will not mourn her."

"I will mourn her memory which seems to have captivated you. I will mourn her because her loss will sadden you. I would not have you troubled brother and neither would our Father King. He sends me to say that if you truly wish it, he will accept her and she may join you in the Forest?"

Legolas' eyes lit up at this "I must tell her, now."

"Hold brother and wait to see what choice she makes. There is no better way to test her love."

"I do not need to test Willow's love for me." Legolas replied angrily "I know she loves me"

Tathor's face showed only the tiniest hint of compassion.

"Let her make her decision alone Legolas, Toror" - brother. "You cannot help her in this."

"You have changed your opinion Tathor, it was not so long ago that you did everything you could to keep us apart."

"For the benefit of both of you Legolas, I did not want to see you hurting. But I see that even after the time that has passed she is still in your heart. You may veil your feelings from our Father, but you could never do so from me."

"Buffy, this is neither the time nor the place for a debate about this."

"Why not? Why can't we debate this here? You can't stay there forever." Buffy was facing away from the portal now, hands on hips. Things were not going according to plan and she was not happy about this. It couldn't be denied that Willow looked fantastic and certainly appeared to be happy, but this was her home, Sunnydale.

"I don't think there's going to be any chance of a debate here. She's pretty much made up her mind" Xander squeezed Buffy's shoulder."

"She can't stay in an alternate dimension. She hasn't graduated yet. Willow wants to graduate, she told me so." Buffy was getting pouty now.

"Somehow I think she's gone beyond graduation, Buff."

"Willow? Don't you want to graduate?" Buffy turned to her friend who was shaking her head sadly.

"Buffy, you don't understand."

"What about Oz?" Buffy shot back at her "He loves you too, he's here waiting for you. You want me to tell him goodbye for you but you're spending the rest of your life in an alternate dimension with an elf?"

"Buffy" Giles' stern voice pulled her back in line "This is Willow's decision."

Willow smiled her thanks at Giles and then into Buffy's eyes

"Buffy, things are very different now. I'm not the girl that I was. I don't belong there anymore. My place is here now with Legolas. I can't explain it."

"Will, please?" Buffy reached her hand out not enough to touch the portal but close enough. Willow stretched out her hand as well, mirroring her movement and the two girls looked into each other's eyes.

"Please?" Buffy repeated "I don't want to lose you. We'll find a way to get you back to wherever you are now, but please, come home now."

Willow smiled "Buffy, you were my best friend and I missed you so much, so very much. But life has moved on for me and I belong here, truly I do. Just be happy for me."

"Willow" Giles' voice was urgent, "the portal is no longer stable. I must close it. We can try and re-open it later on.

"Giles, for every hour of your time that passes a year of my life goes by. By the time you get the portal open again, I'll be 30 and who knows where I'll be. I love you guys, but I love here too."

Legolas turned away from the scene before him, not wanting to see her go, knowing in his heart that she would do, that she should do. Tathor squeezed his shoulder and left him. A roar of wind passed through the garden, the portal closing, and he turned to see the garden empty except for himself. He stood silently, a lonely figure. She had gone. He turned away again to go back to the House, to bury himself in his grief when her laughing voice sounded behind him.

"Are you going to wait for me or not?"




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