"Now that you have all heard me drone on about love and commitment, we come to my favorite part of any wedding ceremony," said Legolas with a grin. "The exchange of vows and rings, and of course, the kissing." There was some light laughter at this from most of the small crowd gathered in the Hall of Fire. Glorfindel's original suggestion of the wedding being held out of doors was overruled by the fact that there were so many peredhel at the gathering it seemed rather cruel to make them endure the cold and the snow.
Glorfindel and Erestor glanced at one another and then back to Legolas, a bit unsure as to which should go first in this situation. Briefly, Legolas frowned, before nodding to Erestor. Best to allow the eldest, and likely more moody begin, he reasoned. Erestor drew from his pocket a very plain and simple golden ring and smiled in spite of himself as he looked into Glorfindel's eyes and said, "By your side is where I stood; By your side through bad and good; By your side is where I always want to stand."
Erestor's fingers sought out Glorfindel's, and upon taking the blond's hand in his, he continued with, "By your side all through the night; By your side just feels right; By your side, my dear, as I take your hand."
Tears threatened to fall from Glorfindel's eyes, but he blinked, refusing to allow emotions overtake him before the crowd. It was one thing for Erestor to dry his tears, an entirely different thing to cry at his own wedding. Carefully, Erestor positioned the ring before Glorfindel's finger, but before sliding it on, said, "By your side in life or death; By your side with every breath; By your side now and into the undying land."
Swallowing hard, Glorfindel now decided a few stray tears wouldn't do great harm, as long as he did not make a show of it or openly sob, which was the point he was nearly at. He still fought it, blinking more furiously now and inhaling deeply in hopes of preventing it. The golden band was shining in the firelight, adorning his finger now and forever as Erestor took Glorfindel's hands into his own and held them tightly, seeking his eyes once more.
"By your side and through this bond; By your side from now on; By your side is where I always want to stand."
"You wrote that today?" Glorfindel was in complete shock and could not help his outburst, quiet as it was. It helped to keep his tears from falling, though one had strayed, and the only consolation was that it had been down the cheek that faced only Legolas and not the rest of the guests. His hands trembled as Erestor held them in his and Erestor shook his head.
"No, it is not written," he said softly. "I only just said it now, but I mean every word of it."
"You make me feel a fool," returned Glorfindel, taking from his pocket the other ring. "For I am at a loss now for words, and can only think to tell you that I love you and that you are my everything. You were my reason to live, my reason to die, and my reason to live again. I did not wish to return for jewels or for power. Only for you. You are my treasure. My life. My Erestor."
"You came back for me?" interrupted Erestor as Glorfindel took hold of his hand.
Glorfindel nodded. "And I would die again for you if I had to."
Erestor used his free arm to draw Glorfindel forward by his neck, and they kissed as the ring was slid onto his finger.
"Before the eyes of Eru and by the witness of those present, you are joined now forever until the end of all things to one another in the sacred bond of marriage. Let none come between the two of you and this blessed bond." Legolas ducked around the couple as those gathered began to step forward to congratulate the pair, easily finding Gimli in the crowd.
"You did well, laddie. How many of these have you performed?" questioned the Dwarf.
"Thank you. It was not my first, and likely not my last," he chuckled. "Public speaking, however, is not my cup of tea. I appreciated them asking and was happy to do it, especially considering the only other Elf I know who is qualified to perform a marriage this side of the sea is Erestor, but by the Valar, I was nervous! Did you see me shifting my feet a lot?"
"I think everyone was watching those two," he said, nodding his head to the front of the room.
Sighing, Legolas said, "Good. I was extremely unsure how the end was going to turn out. Normally, we go groom to bride, bride to groom, groom kisses bride, but..." Legolas shrugged.
Looking a bit puzzled, Gimli said, "The end seemed to go rather nicely. For an Elvish wedding," he added quickly. Legolas arched his brow and decided not to ask what was exactly meant by that. "What was worrying you about the end?"
"Honestly?" Legolas smiled sheepishly. "I left off the very end of my final speech, but they had already begun to kiss, so I saw no need. Truly, I was not sure what I was going to say when I got to the last line. 'You may now kiss each other' just seemed a little... odd."
"Ah." Gimli nodded. "Seems odd no matter what sort of pair is getting married."
"Well what Dwarves usually say?" asked Legolas
Gimli smiled. "We end with "Everyone drink!" or something to that effect."
"Everyone drink?" Legolas considered this. "I just might have to use that some day."
By Your Side by Zhie