Meleth-nin
folder
Lord of the Rings Movies › Slash - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
34
Views:
23,929
Reviews:
123
Recommended:
1
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
Lord of the Rings Movies › Slash - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
34
Views:
23,929
Reviews:
123
Recommended:
1
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own the Lord of the Rings book series and movie series, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Chapter twenty-four
Disclaimer: Not mine but J.R.R. Tolkien’s. Only Randír belongs to me.
A/N: Thanks for the reviews, sweethearts! :) I know it was mean to end the previous chapter like that, but then again, that’s one of the author’s privileges. :) Things are really getting interesting here, aren’t they? Finally! Both Aragorn and Legolas have come a long way after their break-up, but will they find each other again? Read and find out! Hope you enjoy. :)
Please note: At this point Legolas is about ten months pregnant. Elvish pregnancies usually last a full year, i.e. twelve months.
thoughts
Chapter twenty-four
Aragorn had met the patrolling warriors as soon as he reached the border of Imladris. The Elves, of course, recognized him immediately and greeted him respectfully. The King, however, was in a hurry. He was finally here and he needed to get to Legolas without any further delay.
“I can escort you to the city if you wish, my Lord”, Terrwyn suggested, remembering his captain’s orders to try and delay the Human.
“Thank you but I know the way”, Aragorn said politely but a mite impatiently. “There is no need for you to leave your post because of me.”
The Elf accepted his defeat with a nod. “Please, don’t take offence if no-one is there to welcome you; we did not know that you were coming, King Elessar.”
“I expect nothing but to meet my husband and to speak with him”, Aragorn answered firmly and nudged Brego’s sides with his knees. “Let’s go Brego, it is time to go and find Legolas.”
Terrwyn had been right. Aragorn wasn’t received with a welcoming party but he couldn’t care less. He dismounted Brego and leaving his horse on the courtyard strode quickly into the Last Homely House. “Excuse me”, he said to a maiden who was walking in the corridor carrying a basketful of apples, “can you tell me where Prince Legolas is?”
The maid curtsied, wondering who this man was; there was something familiar in him but she couldn’t put her finger in it. “Yes, my Lord. Prince Legolas went into the gardens with the captain not thirty minutes ago”, she answered.
“Do you know which garden they went to?” Aragorn asked impatiently. He knew well that if he couldn’t get a more detailed answer he would spend the rest of the afternoon looking for Legolas and the other Elf.
“Nay, my Lord, but I heard the captain tell the Prince that he wanted to speak with him in private. If I had to guess I would say that they went to Lord Elrond’s private gardens for no-one would disturb them there”, the maid replied.
“Thank you for your help”, the King said and was on his way before the maid could form a reply. She looked after him with a curious expression. What was all that about? She shrugged her shoulders after deciding that she didn’t even want to know and continued her interrupted journey to the kitchens.
Fortunately for Aragorn the maid had been right. He heard two Elves talking as soon as he entered the garden. His heart leapt in his chest as he realised that he was closer to Legolas than he had been in months and that he would see his beloved in mere seconds. Finally, after all these months and all the hardships he had had to endure he would meet his mate and make things right between the two of them.
What he heard made him snarl in rage. The other Elf was wooing Legolas! When he heard the Elf – Randír was his name, he remembered – asking for Legolas’ hand in marriage he burned with hatred and jealousy. Legolas’ reply didn’t put his mind at ease, even when it wasn’t an affirmative one. The fact that Legolas let the older Elf speak to him that way and touch him so freely made Aragorn’s heart constrict painfully in his chest.
He knew that he was Legolas’ first lover and that the Elf had never even kissed anyone before meeting him. He also knew that the Prince wasn’t the kind of person who let others but his closest family and lover touch him and the fact that he let Randír fondle him and even kiss him chilled Aragorn’s spine. If they did that in public who knew what they did when they were in the sanctuary of their private quarters? The thought of it made him sick to his stomach. He didn’t want to think about it but the images came unbidden; Legolas, lying naked on someone else’s bed, writhing passionately and moaning in pleasure. Aragorn gritted his teeth in fury.
When he saw Randír kissing Legolas he couldn’t keep quiet any longer. He stepped closer and spoke in threatening growl. “Legolas will not marry you; not if I have a say in it. And take your hands off my mate!”
*~*~*~*~*~*
When Legolas heard Aragorn’s voice he first thought he was dreaming. It couldn’t be his mate! Aragorn was in Minas Tirith with his slutty guard, not here in Imladris staking his claim on Legolas. Slowly the blond-haired Elf turned to look at the speaker, not daring to hope it really was him. The Prince’s eyes met those of the King and his breath was taken away.
It wasn’t King Elessar who was standing there in front of him, and it wasn’t even Aragorn, son of Arathorn. It was Strider. The man’s clothes were bloodied and torn, and there was fire in his eyes that Legolas hadn’t seen there since the Quest. This Man had nothing to do with the well-groomed King Elessar; no, this was a Ranger of the North, all finesse gone and forgotten. This was the man Legolas had fallen in love with, before he had become the King burdened with the problems of his Kingdom.
Legolas’ body reacted at the sight of his beloved. “Estel”, he whispered hoarsely and took involuntarily a step toward his mate. His eyes searched frantically possible wounds in his mate’s body, and he was only a bit relieved when he saw none. “Estel, is it really you?” He asked in a disbelieving voice.
“Legolas, meleth-nin”, the Man breathed, taking in the beauty of his bonded mate. The Elf Prince looked radiant, his belly round and ripe, and his fair skin glowing with inner light. There was sadness in his eyes, however, that threw a shadow over his face. Guilt stabbed him when he realised that he was the cause of that sadness lingering in his loved one’s eyes and he swore to himself that Legolas would never again know pain.
“Estel”, Legolas whispered again, stepping away from Randír whom he had forgotten as soon as he heard his husband’s voice. He stopped abruptly as he realised what he was doing. His heart was beating wildly, making him all flustered and anxious. He couldn’t deny that his feelings for his mate ran deep and were strong still, but neither could he deny the hurt the Man had caused him. “Why are you here?” He asked weakly, not sure if he wanted to hear the answer. What if the Man had come to take his child away from him? What if the Man had come to ask him to come back?
The Prince didn’t know what to answer if asked that question. He loved Aragorn, always had and always would, but the Man had hurt him greatly, treated him badly and broken his heart. Legolas wasn’t sure if he could ever forgive him or trust the Man again. He had trusted him once and had ended up with a bruised cheek and a wounded heart. The Elf didn’t know if he was ready to take that chance again.
“I love you, melethron, and I need you. Please come back to me”, Aragorn said, his voice laden with love and longing for his mate. “I cannot live without you, Legolas. You are my mate for life. Please give me a chance to amend all the wrongs I have done to you.”
Hope flared in Legolas’ chest at his words but the hurt in his heart made him keep quiet. Seeing his former husband had brought the hurt back into the surface, from dull ache to flaring, scorching pain. He shook his head slowly, as if to clear his head. “Estel, I…”
He never got to finish his sentence for it was at this point when Randír decided to remind the two others of his presence. He had witnessed the exchange between the Elf and the Man, and realised two things. One: Aragorn loved Legolas and wanted him back at any cost and two: Legolas loved Aragorn but was afraid to trust his heart to the Man’s care for the second time. This was his chance. “Legolas, don’t let him lure you with pretty words”, he interrupted loudly and came to stand by the Prince’s side, wrapping an arm around the other Elf’s shoulders.
“You have no reason to trust him. Didn’t he promise to love you before? And look what happened. He probably got dumped by his guard and decided to try and sweet-talk you to return to his side. Don’t listen to his lies, Legolas”, he said, speaking to Legolas’ ear, his eyes never leaving Aragorn’s grey ones.
The Prince’s breathing quickened and he started to get agitated. Randír’s words disturbed him greatly, as did the look in Aragorn’s eyes when he looked at his mate in someone else’s arms. That look convinced Legolas that his husband loved him still, but that was not enough.
“I was not talking to you, stranger”, the King replied calmly but the fire in his eyes flared as he regarded the Elf that held his husband so intimately. “I was talking to my husband. Legolas, would you speak with me alone? What I have to say is no-one’s business but ours, and meant for your ears alone. Would you humour me?”
Legolas didn’t get a chance to think of an answer for the Captain spoke for him. “No, he will not listen to your sweet lies. Go back to your Kingdom, human”, he sneered and tightened his hold of Legolas. “You are not going to get him back.”
Legolas winced for Randír gripped him very tightly and it was becoming hard for him to draw breath. “Randír, let go”, he managed to say breathily, and tried to get away from the older Elf. “Randír, you’re hurting me!” Legolas struggled in Randír’s arms, trying to break free but not succeeding.
“Let go of him!” Aragorn ordered gravely, his hand coming to rest on Anduril’s hilt. “Let Legolas go, can you not see that you are hurting him!”
“I am doing you a favour, Legolas, by keeping you from doing a horrible mistake”, the Captain said, tightening his hold. “And you, human, would do well if you just backed off and returned to your City. Legolas is going to stay with me, and become my husband.”
Seeing Legolas’ distress and that the Prince had problems breathing, Aragorn’s fury was unleashed. That Elf was hurting his husband and there was no surer way to make enemies with the Human. King Elessar unsheathed his sword and stepped closer. “I am unwilling to shed your blood, stranger, but if you don’t let go of him at once, I will do it”, he said, and his tone of voice promised death.
Randír’s answering smile was cold and sent shivers down Aragorn’s spine. The Human realised only now that it was the captain’s fondest wish to be rid of his competitor. Randír drew his sword from its sheath and pushed Legolas aside. “You may be unwilling to shed blood but I am not. In fact, it will be my pleasure to avenge all the hurt you have caused Legolas”, he said, preparing to fight the Man.
Legolas lost his footing and almost fell to the ground. The Man’s eyes left the other Elf when he saw that his mate was in danger and that almost was his undoing. The Captain chose that moment to charge him and almost got a hit at first strike. Aragorn’s attention was briskly brought back to the Elf with the sword, even when his heart screamed at him to go and ensure that his beloved was unharmed.
“Estel!” Legolas screamed, seeing the blow that was meant to hurt his beloved, fearing for his mate’s safety. He remembered all too vividly the horrendous moment at the gates of Mordor, when Aragorn was attacked by a cave troll and he was too far to do anything but watch. The fear had burned him, rendered him helpless and unable to move, forcing an agonized scream from him. “Aragorn!”
He struggled to his feet, trying to ignore the pain that made his stomach clench. “No!” He shouted, trying to get between the two males in order to stop this totally unnecessary sword fight, for he knew that neither of them would want to harm him. Aragorn realised what Legolas was trying to do and cold fear took a grip of his gut. “Meleth, stay away”, he shouted, dodging a powerful strike that would have severed his arms if hit.
The Prince didn’t listen to the King, however, and tried to get a hold of Randír’s sword-arm. When the older Elf felt a restraint he swung his arm back and managed to hit Legolas on his round belly. He gasped in agonizing pain that flared through his whole system and fell on his knees on the ground. Tears ran down freely as he clutched his precious belly, and he wasn’t surprised when he realised that his hands were covered with blood. The sword had managed to cut him deep.
“Estel”, he sobbed, lifting his gaze and begging silently his husband to come and save him. Then the white pain blinded him and he fell to darkness.
TBC…
A/N: Oh my, that came out a bit different than what I had in mind first… But that’s the way stories are, they practically write themselves. Feedback is appreciated. :)