Mary Goes to Mirkwood

Mary Goes to Mirkwood

Chapter Twenty four/?

Co-authors: Mary A, Malinorne, & Sheraiah

Disclaimer: Just playing with Tolkien characters, for fun, and not profit, do not claim to have created them. Thaladir, the king's seneschal, is our creation

Warning: NC17, Adult sexual situations, LOTS of nudity.

Pairing: King Thranduil/OFCs

Summary: Mary and Mal celebrate the arrival of spring with the Mirkwood elves; Sheraiah, Legolas and Gimli depart from Rivendell with some last minute surprises.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Mary ~


East of the Misty Mountains, the cold weather had a tendency to cling longer than on the west side; winter was hanging on to Mirkwood with a vengeance. To ride in the dreary leafless forest, knowing that elsewhere flowers were blooming and trees had leaves, was a misery. It seemed that spring would never arrive, no matter what the calendar said.

During the hardest winter months in Mirkwood, the elves had brougn pon potted evergreens to help sweeten the air in the common areas, while the gates were closed. It was refreshing on the eyes to see their bright greenery during those harshest days of the season. But now that the air was less icy, and the gates stood open longer, the potted greenery was moved out of the halls. Both Mal and I longed to lay our eyes on growing things.

We were both still a little stunned by the prospect of traveling to Dale as official members of the royal court. A carriage had been ordered fitted to accommodatrandranduil's concubine, me, Miriel and Ithilwen for the trip. My language lessons had been put on temporary hold as Thaladir drilled me on Official State Visit Protocol. Once the prospect of traveling to various places in Esgaroth and Dale had sunk in, we could not wait for spring to hurry and make its appearance.

One day, as Mal and I were leading our horses from the stable for our daily ride, the king came, seated astride Amarth, and sent our escort away. Ever since Thranduil had returned from his travels, we no longer had to have Thaladir along to watch out for us. This was a great relief to the seneschal, I am sure of it.

But this was the first time since the king came home that he had actually joined us on our daily ride. Thrilled to be graced with his company, Mal and I kept our hands to ourselves, although it was hard to rid clo close to him as possible without bumping into him every once in a while.

The king led us off of the main road and onto a narrow path that seemed to go for miles deep into the forest. The bare beech trees now had small buds at the tips of every branch but there were still no leaves in sight. As we rode deeper into the woods, the fir trees became thicker and the path more shady.

Finally, we halted and Thranduil dismounted, helped each of us off of our horses, and led us to a little sun-lit clearing in the wood through a tiny path through the brush. There, at the foot of an enormous beech tree with large gnarled roots, he knelt and beckoned us to draw near. He moved aside a bit of dried moss and revealed a tiny flower poking out of the mulch.

"Tawarel," he pronounced. It had a fragile looking blossom as tiny as the tip of my pinkie finger with seven perfect white petals that seemed to sparkle in the morning sun.

"Wood star," Mal translated, enchanted. The king grinned at her proudly.

"Spring!" I shouted. Now we could start packing.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Mal ~


Just as it is in the northern realms of the modern world, the long-awaited spring came fast to Mirkwood. When the snow had finally begun to melt, it was only a matter of two or three weeks until the new season was in full swing. It hit with an unconquerable force that refused to be halted even by the occasional late snowstorm or shower of hail that tried to bury the newly sprouted grass, which bravely strived through the dead leaves or the muddy ground.

Very soon the whole area was a cacophony of voices, birds screeching, twittering and chattering everywhere. Tiny songbirds hid in the reeds near the river and mighty cranes and whooper swans flew over our heads with soft wing-strokes, calling out their longing for their nesting places further north. I imagined the great lakes and wetlands that must lie beyond the Lonely Mountain to attract this am of of the majestic birds.

The boundary river of the Elven-king's realm, which for the most part streamed withhasthaste through the forest landscape, became a violent water mass that foamed with rushing energy. Melting ice-flakes were crushed in its torrents and only the most adventurous elves crossed it without urgent need. The palace bridge did not break, but below it the river overflowed its banks and turned the flatter land into a marsh, to the delight of the long-legged birds that came to poke in the mud for the slimy creatures they fed on.

Our rides in the forest became increasingly more pleasant, and it almost felt like a competition on who would first notice the various signs of spring. The elves always won, of course, and it was only when Ithilwen and Anarion were too occupied with looking into each other's eyes to pay attention to the rest of the universe that Mary or I got the honour of spotting something that hadn't been there the previous time we rode that way. At least we didn't have to go with Thaladir. No matter how passionate he could be in certain situations, most of the time the elf was an old grouch, and a very annoying one at that.

But it was the king who showed us the first evidence of the changing of seasons. He took us deeper into the trees than we usually went, first through an area thick with undergrowth and then under age-old fir trees that hid most of the daylight with their heavy branches. When we suddenly came out into a sunny glade, with fewer conifers, Thranduil stood looking around, as if searching for something, and then resolutely walked to a wide tree and crouched down at the roots.

Mary and I nearly tripped over our feet in our eagerness to be first at the king's side and see what he wanted to show us. It was delightful. There, next to his large hand, was a tiny white flower. I recognised it immediately from the sketches in the book of plants the seneschal had shown me once whenskedsked for something to read that did not involve wars.

Its Sindarin name, wood star, fit it perfectly, because it seemed to literally shine against the dark background of the moss and mud. And later on, when the whole forest floor was starred with them, it became even more obvious why it was named after Elbereth's guiding lights in the night sky. The small tawarel was the first flower I had seen in Middle-earth, but I was almost sure already that it would remain my favourite one.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Sheraiah ~


Watching Gimli work was always fascinating. His blunt fingers held an unexpected dexterity when he was working with the tiny bits of gold, silver, or mithril he used to craft the wonderful jewelry he made. He was working on something for me this time, which made watching him even more interesting.

I had commissioned a necklace with matching earrings and bracelet. In return, I had made several dreamcatchers for Gimli to give as gifts to Aragorn and Arwen and the hobbits, as well as other folk of his acquaintance. Legolas had obligingly written out the legends to go with them, negotiating his 'fee' with me in private and with my enthusiastic approval.

My dwarven friend had used silver, onyx, and garnets because the pieces were meant to match my red corset. He had drawn up the design first, and when it met with my complete approval, he had begun to select the gems and craft the settings. The crafting now complete, he was polishing theceseces and smoothing down any minute burrs his surprisingly sensitive digits encountered. After heisheished that, he had only to set the gems and the pieces would be complete.

The faint sound of cloth rustling behind me and a light touch to my shoulder alerted me to Legolas' presence. The prince ran his hand across the back of my neck, moving my hair aside, and dropped a kiss there. I was a bit taken aback that he had done this in front of Gimli, since he was normally very careful not to be overly familiar with his caresses in public. He grinned at me, nodding his head toward the seemingly oblivious d. I . I grinned back, and the grin quickly vanished as his thumb started tracing circles on the nape of my neck.

"Stop that," I whispered.

"Stop what, my lady?" he returned, sotto voice.

"You know perfectly well what, you horny elf. We'll scandalize poor Gimli," I hissed back.

"Gimli is working. He is oblivious to all else." Legolas' whisper sounded quite smug and I barely managed to suppress a gasp as I felt his tongue on the back of my neck. It was one of my weak spots and he knew it. His hand slid down my back to caress my backside.

"You two need to get a room," Gimli commented, his eyes never leaving his work. Yet another comment he'd picked up from me, I thought as I flushed and gave Legolas a shove. "Don't make me take my axe to you, elf," the dwarf continued, "especially since I heard her tell you to stop." He sounded serious, but his eyes were twinkling as he finally looked up at us.

Legolas merely laughed and reclaimed the mug of ale he had brought for Gimli from the table he'd set it on when he'd started teasing me. He walked over to the dwarf and clapped him on the shoulder, handing him the mug right after. As Gimli took a deep draught, Legolas took the opportunity to examine the dwarf's work.

"Gimli, this is exquisite! I do believe it is some of the finest work I have ever seen. These are the pieces you are making for Rai, correct?" At the dwarf's nod the prince continued, "Even in my father's halls I have seldom seen such fine work as you do, my friend. It will be an honor to wear the circlet you made for me." I was pleased and amused to see Gimli flush with pleasure at Legolas' praise, more so because it was true, he really did do the finest jewelry I had ever seen anywhere.

"Thanks, lad. Although, it's a rare pleasure indeed to make ornaments for such a lovely lady," he said with a nod to me. He was just so sweet that I had to hop up from my seat and plant a kiss on his cheek. He grumbled a bit, but neither Legolas nor I were the least bit fooled. Legolas teased him horribly about flirting with me and Gimli replied that the elf's prowess must be lacking if he feared to lose me.

I howled with laughter at the look on Legolas' face at that one and then retorted with a comment that Legolas need not worry as I doubted that anyone could compete with Lady Galadriel in Gimli's affections. It was Legolas' turn to snicker as Gimli turned ten shades of red and half-heartedly threatened me with his axe. The prince decided then to get while the getting was good and dragged me off to his rooms to prove his prowess more than sufficient to keep my interest.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Mary ~


Every year, among the various events that the elves of Mirkwood celebrated to mark the turning of the season, Thranduil would formally grant favors to his subjects. His throne room doors were opened and a line of elves formed to have an audience with their beloved king. Mal and I entered along with them.

Thranduil sat upon his throne and listened to the various humblquesquests from his subjects. When we entered the room I could have sworn he looked me right in the eye, and winked, after the elf standing before him had turned to leave. Keeping my face straight and, as Thaladir had put it; "in a state of disinterested serenity while in the presence of His Majesty and his subjects," was a challenge after that.

There were ben for for an audience to sit and witness the wish-granting event where Mal and I sat while watching the elves stand before Thanduil. She translated for me, because I still could not understand conversational Elvish, although I knew a few important or useful words.

I did not feel the need to request any special favor from the king, who had fulfilled every desire I had so far. But Mal had thought it would be interesting to observe this charming custom and I was willing to jump at any excuse to escape another of the seneschal's dull lectures. I think he had grown a new forehead line as he oversaw the preparations for our departure the next night.

Thaladir and I had reached a truce stage in our on-going hostilities. I had learned enough Elvish to have earned praise from Thranduil at the breakfast table that morning, which reflected well on my grumpy instructor, so he was pleased with me until an unfortunate accident at lunch. I had knocked over my wine glass and most of it had splashed into the lap of the seneschal, who weateeated beside me at the table that day.

During the request ceremony, he seemed to dare me with his piercing glare to behave in anything less than the most seemly fashion. I hated to disappoint him, but I had promised the king to not go out of my way to harass his seneschal if I could help it.

I grew bored with the proceedings. It seemed that the elves were not really making requests, but used the opportunity to speak with the king to thank him for bringing them through the dark years, and into this new age of peace, for which they were eternally grateful, etc, etc. Apparently, there were no needy elves in Mirkwood. It was nice, but the benches were no softer than any other seating arrangement in the palace and I wanted to go back to my room.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Mal ~


It felt very solemn, almost devout to sit in the throne room, for the first time watching Thranduil performing the most classical of all kingly duties; that of benevolently receiving his subjects to hear out their difficulties. But the Mirkwood elves did not seem to have any troubles; none of all the elves in the long line that snaked all the way from the main gates into the mighty hall brought up any complaints or disputes about accusations of theft, or the use of land, or distribution of food and other resources. If anyone had anything they were not satisfied with, they did at least not find it important enough to bring it up with the king.

Elf after elf walked up to the throne, and after a bow or curtsey that seemed to be more an expression of courtesy than subservience, he or she praised the king for the protection he provided for their homes. Or the never ceasing supplies of food. Or any of a great number of reasons they had to be happy with their lives. Some of it was a bit funny, like when a blushing elleth thanked the monarch for her children, unintentionally making it sound like he had a most physical part in their making. She discovered her mistake, but not until the solemnity of the occasion was broken by the giggles coming from different parts of the crowd. Thaladir silenced them all with one long stare, and the king just smiled at the elleth.

The seneschal kept a strict watch over the proceedings, and I could almost see how his ears perked up as soon as someone spoke, as if he wanted to make sure that there would be no troublemakers in the line of the faithful. There wasn't, of course, and while I was fascinated by the whole thing, it was obvious that Mary was getting restless. I tried my best to translate for her, but was unable to convey all the twists and turns of the more flowery speech.

Mary snuck out when she thought Thaladir wasn't watching, after telling me she'd rather catch up with the history of Beleriand. I couldn't get enough of the ceremony, and when the line of waiting elves diminished, I decided to say something myself. It just wouldn't be right to keep silent when everybody else, as it seemed, had voiced their opinions.

There were still a rather large number of spectators in the room, both on the benches where Mary and I had been sitting, and standing around the walls. I felt somewhat anxious when I rose and stood in the line to wait for my turn, but that feeling was gone as soon as the king directed his attention to me. I basked in the affection he emanated and it was suddenly easy to understand why all his subjects were so unanimous in their praise of their king. If this was what they felt too, and I think it was.

"I thank you for bringing Mary and me to these high halls," I said, "where all our wishes are granted. We are happy beyond what we would be in the lands we came from."

"Is there nothing I could do for my concubine," inquired Thranduil.

No, I thought. Or rather yes. There was a lot he could do for, with or to me, but none of these things were suitable for discussion in front of an audience. I looked at the king and, then at Thaladir. The stern elf was eyeing me suspiciously, with his mouth pursed up in the familiar manner that told of a potentially unseemly situation. Did he really fear I was going to say something that would disturb the peace in a public area? Not even Mary would have done that with so many elves watching.

"Nothing, my lord," I said to the king, but in my mind I conjured up, for his viewing pleasure, the most vivid images of how I wished my night in the royal bedchamber to proceed. A most unseemly grin spread across his face and he bent his neck in a majestic nod.

I went back to my place without looking at the seneschal again. He must have decided that the remainder of the elves could be trusted, because when I'd finished contemplating my coming night with the king, Thaladir was no longer in the room.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Mary ~


The inter-realm messenger had brought some books from the Rivendell library and I could not wait to get to the translated version of "The Lay of Beleriand" that Erestor had sent from his private collection. It sat next to my bed, on the small table there, and I could hear it calling my name through all the layers of thick stone that lay in between it and me. Tonight was Mal's night with Thranduil.

Tomorrow there was to be the feast and we would be leaving for Dale directly afterwards at some insane hour before dawn. Legolas was supposed to arrive in the morning to occupy the throne during the king's absence. The inter-realm messenger, a friendly elf with a cheerful disposition common to most couriers, had paused long enough during her visit to gossip.

She told us that the Rivendell spring festivities were to start a day early so the Mirkwood prince could enjoy the party there first. I inquired about Sheraiah, but the messengouldould not recall seeing her during her brief stop at Elrond's Homely House. I assumed that she and the twins must have finally gone home, as no one mentioned her coming along and all direct questions on the matter had been met with stony silence.

It made me a little cranky that we were leaving on the night it was to be my turn with the king, because I would not get to spend any time alone with him again until no one knew how long. We would be visiting in Esgaroth for a day before traveling on to the wedding in Dale. Maybe he would find some time for me there, but I was not counting on it until we all came back to Mirkwood. I grew irritable thinking about it. So I tried hard to concentrate but grew increasingly restless.

I had found my balance with our revolving door relationship, and had learned to appreciate my nights to myself. Actually I never had to be alone if I did not want to be. I usually had Miriel for company, and Ithilwen would join us, which meant the off-duty Anarion would come along, too. Although my own door-guards were pleasant, they would not accept an invitation to join the crowd, although I felt it was only a matter of time before they would.

But, when I wanted to be alone, they all let me be. I left Mal in the throne room, went to my room, changed out of my dress into my leggings with a tee-shirt, and lay belly down on my bed with my book. I finally felt at peace. The only thing missing was a good apple to munch on. My riding pants felt better than my jeans; they fit me like a second skin. I had just turned the title page when I heard a familiar throat clearing itself behind me.

"I knew I should have locked that door," I said without looking up from my book. "What is it now?" Silence. I finally turned toward the seneschal. He was looking at my rear. I sat up stiff and straight so he could not see it anymore. There was something very interesting in his expression but I decided to file it for future reference.

"My lady, if you would be so kind as to follow me, since there is one more area of your training in need of addressing, as I indicated at our midday meal, if you will recall. You gave your word to..."

"Yes, yes, yes," I hissed out, remembering how I had promised, crossed my heart, and hoped to die, if I did not meet with him at some point during that day. He knew I was going to be at the request ceremony, but I had thought he would wait until it was over before he came to find me.


~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Sheraiah ~


The Rivendell festival was amazing. I ate too much, laughed more than I had in ages, and danced until dawn with the guys. I also indulged a bit in the wine that was flowing freely, as I never had before. It was very good, but I found that a little went a long way and nursed my goblet for several hours. I got teased a little, but it was friendly teasing so I didn't mind.

Haldir disappeared after about three hours, reappearing in the wee hours of the morninth wth what could only be described as 'afterglow.' Since his teasing of Legolas and myself after we had missed breakfast that one day, we both had been spoiling to take him down a couple of pegs. Legolas razzed him hard, succeeding in turning him several very becoming shades of red. I had no clue what Legolas said to him. Obviously, he felt it too rude to say in common in front of me, but the reaction he got was hilarious. The twins almost collapsed laughing, and Glorfindel, who woungounging on a chaise nearby, sat up and quirked an eyebrow at the prince, his lips twitching suspiciously. I looked at Gimli, who grinned back at me.

"I'll ask him later," the dwarf said, winking at me to let me know that he'd pass on whatever Legolas told him.

The twins disappeared a couple times, too, but were much more discreet when they reappeared, so none of us were sure that they'd been up to anything for certain. Being Elrond's sons had taught them to conceal such things very effectively when they wished to.

There was a group of dwarves from the Iron Hills visiting on their way to try to reclaim what was left of Moria. I was certain that at least eight of them were female, but had not had an opportunity to ask Gimli about it. Even female dwarves have beards, and they don't dress any different than the males, at least around other races, so short of copping a feel, which would lose a person at least a limb if not their head, there's no way to tell that I knew of at the time. I spent part of the night conversing with them. They were good folk, if very secretive, and I managed not to commit any breeches of diplomacy with them.

As the sun was peeking over the horizon, the party finally broke up. Legolas and I made our way to my room, detouring several times into dark alcoves along the way. He never could keep his hands to himself when I had one of my corsets on. The sun was over the tops of the trees before we finally sought our rest.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Mary ~


"Do I have to change my clothes?" I asked Thaldir, not wanting to do so. "I could put my shawl over my shirt, and no one would see me glowing."

"I must insist that you put a proper gown on, my lady. We will be traveling about the halls for some distance and if the subjects of His Majesty's realm were to witness…"

"Oh, never mind," I grumped as I flung myself from my bed. "You will have to fasten my dress, then, because I sent Miriel away until dinner." I loved making the old grouch help me. It was good for his character. And I never forgot the night he had wrestled me into that tent of a night-gown. I think he liked it, although that episode was mostly too fuzzy for me to remember clearly.

As I put my gown on in the tiny dressing room, I heard, off in the distance, the sound of the Mirkwood musicians rehearsing for the spring feast the next night. They had been doing so off and on for the past few days, and I found it delightful. I ded ted to be kind to the seneschal and fastened as much of the hooks that I could reach around my back, before presenting myself to him to finish for me.

I hummed to the tune echoing from down the corridor and swayed a little as I imagined dancing with the king while Thaladir's fingers swiftly closed my gown. I followed him dutifully today, not wanting to delay my last protocol lesson any longer than I had already so I could get back to my room all the sooner. At first, I was not truly paying attention to the direction we were headed in.

He led me down a staircase, and then another, and still another. I started to wonder where he was taking me. The further we traveled downward, the more worried I became. What if Thaladir's ultimate solution for dealing with me, and whatever havoc he was sure I was going to wreak in Dale, was a nice cozy dungeon? The only thing that prevented me from freezing up, and not taking one more step, was that I kthatthat the king could keep track of exactly where I was.

We finally reached the bottom of the final stair. Thaladir removed a torch from one of the walls to lead us through the halls until we reached some rooms that I knew were very near the underground river from the sound of the water rushing nearby, and the feeling of moisture in the air. I had been around here before, the time I had tried to swim away from Mirkwood to get away from Thranduil and his concubine. Maybe he was going to push me into the river? No, that would not work; the king would come and find me again.

He opened a large wooden door that creaked on enormous iron hinges and gestured for me to enter. I peeked inside and was surprised to find, not a dungeon at all, but a cozy wine cellar. There were wooden barrels of wine on three of the walls. A table, holding a jug and a freshly lit candle, was pushed against the last one. Beside it were two chairs. I paused.

Wine. My chief nemesis. Why did it have to be wine? I felt as if I was entering a lion's den, unarmed. I had no idea what the seneschal had in mind for me, but if it involved wine, then I felt I was already doomed.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Sheraiah ~


"Arise, Mistress Sleepyhead! We leave for my home as soon as you are dressed and fed," a disgustingly cheerful elven voice called, dragging me from the warm cocoon of slumber I had been in. I tried pulling the covers over my head, but they were quickly snatched off the bed, baring me to a certain horny elf's gaze. "Oh, what have we here? I do believe these need to be kissed," he commented, suiting action to words and planting a kiss on each of my breasts. Caressing hands soon drove the last of the sleep from me and I reached for him, fully intending to give as good as I was getting.

After serving me my meal in bed and ‘assisting' me in my bath, Legolas left to get his belongings out to the courtyard. Duiniel entered the room as he left, and I suddenly felt overwhelmed. I was really going to do this. The elleth saw my distress, and hastened to reassure me, informing me that the twins and Haldir had decided to journey to Mirkwood with us and so would make three times certain that nothing happened to me. Her words helped, but I was still terrified about riding eagle back again.

My assistant helped me get myself pulled together and the last of my belongings packed. One of the members of Lord Elrond's household took my baggage to the courtyard and Duiniel and I were alone again.

"I'm really going to miss you," I told her, my eyes tearing up.

"Oh, silly girl, do not weep! I imagine that you will likely visit us again." She enfolded me in a warm embrace. "Although, I will miss you as well. My life will not be nearly so interesting as when you are here." She pressed a sisterly kiss to my forehead and stepped back. She smiled at me again, and brushed the tears from my face. "Now, go find the prince. I will come to the courtyard to see you off." I took a deep breath and nodded, squaring my shoulders and starting for the door. A sudden thought occurred to me and I stopped halfway there.

"Duiniel?" She looked at me inquiringly. "I accidentally overheard Legolas and the twins having a rather tense conversation a few days ago. Would it have been about the twins going with us to Mirkwood?" She grinned wickedly at me.

"According to the elf who keeps the prince's rooms in order, that is precisely what it was about. Apparently, the prince was not especially in favor of the idea. He seems to be resigned to it now, however." She winked at me. "Most likely, it is for your sake that he does not press the issue." I considered that for a moment and decided that it really didn't matter. My guys were all traveling with me and that was what did matter, at least to me.

"Thank you, Duiniel, for everything," I said, giving her another quick hug. Sheurneurned it and shooed me out the door.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Mal ~


The seneschal's self-imposed duties had seemed to multiply with the coming of the new season. In addition to the traditional festivities, of which the ceremony in the throne room was a part, he seemed to have a hand in everything that concerned the visit to Dale. As the king had decided to make it a state visit rather than just attending the wedding of a minor ally, it was even more important that everything was perfect.

All Sindarin lessons, naughty as well as not, were cancelled and exchanged for lectures on proper behaviour. I was luckier than Mary, as our tutor quickly decided that I was reasonably safe for display at the official dinner that would follow the wedding ceremony. It was a pity, because I enjoyed listening to his voice and some of the customs of which he told were actually quite interesting.

When the final requester had left the room, the king beckoned me over to him and welcomed me into his embrace. I sat on his lap, facing sideways, and rested my head on his shoulder. He smelt of fresh leaves, as if the seasonal change had renewed him as well as the growing things of his realm. But he would not change his mithril crown to one of greenery until the big feast tomorrow.

"You want to give a gift to my seneschal."

"Yes." It was true. I had promised Thaladir something for leaving Mary and me alone during a ride through the forest some weeks earlier, but had so far not got the chance. And I couldn't think of anything he would want from me either, except for the usual. I had hoped to be a little more original than that.

"Now would be a very good time to do so." I nodded. He was right of course. This was probably the last chance I would have of seeing the seneschal alone before we left. He would be impossible to catch on the main day for the spring festivities.

Then Thranduil surprised me by suddenly reaching behind his back and unfastening the wide sash he had been wearing around his waist during the ceremony. He dropped the soft piece of cloth in my lap and said, anticipating my question, "Surprise him. Make him relax."

Of course. That would be the perfect gift for the stressed elf. "You are the wisest Elf-king of all," I told him and gave him a hasty peck on the cheek.

He replied by kissing me straight on my mouth, but without lingering, and then he lifted me off his lap and said that he had a matter to attend to while I fulfilled my promise to the seneschal.

I knew what he meant to do, and I did not mind that much that the king wished to see Mary. It happened frequently that he would visit one of us during the day, though it was the other who would spend the night in his bed. There was enough of him for both of us.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Mary ~


Thaladir pulled a chair out and I seated myself while he drew some ruby fluid from one of the great casks into the jug. After putting it on the table he reached above to a shelf over our heads and withdrew two small, porcelain bowls with raised bases. They almost resembled teacups only they were wide, shallow, and had no handles. He poured wine into both of them and then seated himself next to me.

I sat, staring down at my enemy, the wine, while Thaladir droned on for a while about the drinking customs in the court of Lord Bard II in Dale. They drink from bowls, not goblets. And I had to learn how to handle one. This seemed easy enounce nce he was done explaining.

After lifting the bowl with both hands, as he demonstrated, and even clicking it against his in a toasting gesture, while adding, "Long live the King," I tipped it to my mouth. It turned out it was not as easy as it seemed it would be. Any of the wine that did not immediately splash up my into nose instead ended up on my dress.

"Well," I managed to sputter out, "now I know why the king only wants me to wear scarlet while I am here." It made perfect sense to me as I dabbed at my bodice, and face, with the fresh handkerchief Thaladir leant me at once to clean myself with.

The seneschal almost smiled and it was hard to be mad at him for finding pleasure in my latest defeat at the hands of wine. To see him find pleasure in anything was a treat. He filled my bowl again, which I thought demonstrated a lot of faith in my ability to learn a new trick with practice. I managed to only spill about half of it on the second try. After the third try, with no spills, I felt more kindly towards the old grouch.

"I am glad you didn't let me wear my leggings, Your Excellency, they would have been ruined, I think."

"As do I," said a voice behind me and I gasped with surprise at the sound. "Quite ruined."

"My Lord," said the seneschal as he stood at attention.

"Thranduil," I cried, happy to see him.

The king dismissed Thaladir with assurances that my wine-drinking lessons would continue now under his care. The first order of business, according to my regal instructor, was to remove my wet gown before I caught cold. Sneezing into a wine bowl is quite unseemly. The seneschal begrudgingly agreed. After he was ordered to send Miriel back with a fresh gown, but not right away, the large door was shut behind him.

My undershift turned out to be too damp for the king's comfort, also, so it was removed. He placed his hand at my throat, his fingers caressing me, and said, "You have wine on your skin here." He bent towards me and thoroughly laved my neck and upper chest with his wet, smooth tongue. I am surprised steam did not rise, I felt on fire. "An excellent vintage," declared Thranduil.

Then he stepped back and ran his hands over my silky underwear, pausing between my thighs.

"Are these wet, too?" he asked after a few moments.

"They are now," I managed to reply.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Mal ~


The king had told me to go to Thaladir's room and wait there, but it was not until I was out of the throne room that I realized that I did not know exactly where the seneschal's quarters were located. That's one of the occasions when sentinels come in handy, and as soon as I had voiced my request, I was efficiently led to his door, on a level of the hill slightly higher than the official rooms.

It was a plain oak door, an exact copy of hundreds of others in the underground abode, and there was nothing that told of the fact that beyond it lived the second mightiest elf in the whole kingdom. It could have been a security measure, of course, but somehow I liked to think that it was rather because of the occupant's noble modesty. I couldn't help respectfully knocking at the door, though the king had said that the room would be empty.

The first thing I saw when I entered was a large bookcase that reached all the way up to the roof, and beside it more of the same kind. The room felt more like a library than anything else, and the books were an irresistible temptation for me. Looking at row after row of leather-bound volumes, I forgot about everything else. I stroked my fingers over their backs and read out the Elvish titles.

I stopped when I reached a book, or rather a series of them, with titles in Westron. They were clearly parts of the same series, but appeared to have been written at different times and without the author knowing the exact number of volumes. I took out the first one, opened it and read from the title page, "Offences, Disturbances and Violations of Peace and Decorum in Public Places of the High Halls of Greenwood. A Study in Three Volumes." The number "three" had been crossed out and "six" was written below. That number was struck out, too, and "twelve" had been added. I counted the volumes. Fourteen. So, another edit could be expected then, if the series was still ongoing.

I opened the last book and listed through its pages. Each occasion that the author had deemed improper in any way was properly listed with date, name of the perpetrator and a short description of the offence. All in a beautiful, but very legible, writing. In some cases there was a small sketch next to the entry, showing in exact detail what had passed. The illustrations seemed to predominantly, but not only, depict unseemliness of a sexual character. Here and there were blank spaces, possibly to be filled in by the anonymous artist at a later time.

I had a suspicion, but it still came as a shock when I spotted my own name on several entries written the days after my arrival to Mirkwood. Obviously I had unknowingly committed quite a few crimes against Thaladir's rules. There was no doubt that he was the author of the strange books.

"Failure to Curtsy at the Sight of the King," I read, and "Disrespectful Leaving of Book on the Floor in His Majesty's Study" and a little further down, "Blatant Display of Nakedness". Ah, I remembered that one very well. It was from when the king had tried to get both his ladies in bed at the same time and Mary had jumped into the underground river. That must have been an unprecedented scandal.

That was as long as I had read when I heard a throat clearing behind me. I turned around to face the seneschal, with the book still in my hands. His deepening frown made him look somewhat shaken, but if it was caused by my helping myself to his library or just my presence in his room was impossible to tell. I set about smoothing his ruffled feathers right away.

"A highly remarkable book, this," I said, "and very suitable for the enlightenment of guests to the realm. Is that why it is not in Sindarin?"

"No, my lady, that is more of a precaution, should a volume such as these come into the hands of young ones. Although I assure you that I am not in the habit of leaving my possessions in inappropriate places."

I got the sudden feeling that he was not in the habit of having uninvited guests in his chamber either, and that a new entry bearing my name would appear as soon as I had left.

"Is Mary in there, too?" The seneschal's face contorted in a painful expression. That must be a yes.

"The lady Mary," he said crisply, "is responsible for the largest number of entries for a single perpetrator since the unfortunate episode with an extremely rude Dwarf." Now that was something that would make her immensely proud of herself and I could not wait to tell her.

"Your presence in my quarters is not solely due to a wish to discuss literature, I presume."

"I bring you a gift, Excellency." Yes. The title worked, as always, and the seneschal looked a little less disapproving.

"I deemed it probable that you would have forgotten your word. The minds of mortals are unsteady. However, you are not indebted to me. To distance myself somewhat from the conversation at the time was reward enough."

I could imagine that our chattering away like a pair of squirrels had annoyed the elf. But he had, naturally, been too polite to complain. I insisted that I really wanted to give him something, and it clearly made him happy. "It is not exactly a thing," I quickly added, as to not disappoint him later. He seemed even happier about that, but then he suddenly frowned again.

"I have one more duty to perform before I can be fully at your disposal, my lady."

While I waited for the seneschal to come back, I put away the book and looked around his room some more. It was very masculine, in a way, strict and straight and without any unnecessary adornments. The bed was narrow, and it looked uncomfortable too. I decided to talk to the king about that. The desk, on the other hand, was wide and solid, and well lit from the chandeliers on the wall above it. I could easily imagine Thaladir sitting here on lonely nights, recording the day's activities. And no doubt smirking when he came to the juicy bits.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Sheraiah ~


Legolas and the others were waiting for me when I got to the courtyard. I felt Gimli slip his hand into mine and give it a reassuring squeeze. Evidently, Legolas had been talking to him about my dislike of flying. I smiled a bit at my dwarven friend and he grinned back at me.

"Let's show the point-ears how it's done, lass." His grin turned positively wicked and I couldn't help but laugh, as he had intended. I knew then that he was nervous, too, but was doing his utmost to hide it. Legolas moved to stand on my other side.

"Rai, you are going to ride with Haldir and myself and Gimli is going to ride with Elladan and Elrohir." He smiled reassuringly at me, surreptitiously taking the hand that Gimli wasn't holding and giving it a squeeze.

"Oh yes, let the dwarf ride with the two lunatics. I hope you told them that the wrath of all dwarves will fall on their heads if they allow me to fall." He was scowling fiercely, but I could tell that at it was at least in part to hide his nervousness. Evidently, so could Legolas. He directed his gaze at the twins, who quickly caught the hint and came over.

"Gimli, we want you to witness this," Elladan intoned. Gimli quirked an eyebrow, but nodded. The elder twin continued, "Rai, I promise you that we will allow no harm to come to Gimli. We would not have you distressed. Will that suffice, my lady?" It really was rather clever of them to avoid injuring Gimli's pride by reassuring me in his presence, and thus reassuring him. I agreed that it would, after a glance at the dwarf to make certain that it had.

Further conversation was rendered unnecessary by the arrival of the eagles. I swallowed nervously as I watched them land, but was impressed by the precision with which they did so. Lord Elrond made a rather long speech that I paid scant attention to and then it was time for our last round of farewells. Duiniel hugged me again, and admonished Legolas to take good care of me. Lord Elrond bade me a sedate farewell, adding that I would always be welcome in Rivendell whenever I chose to return. I thanked them both and with a shudder, allowed Haldir to lift me up to Legolas, who had already taken his place for the flight. They settled me between them, both assuring me that they had me and that there was nothing to fear.

Beside us, the eagle Gimli and the twins were riding leapt into the air and I could just hear the dwarf's whoop of surprise over the rush of wind and wings. I could feel myself tensing and Haldir said something in Sindarin over my head to Legolas, who shook his head and replied in kind. Haldir nodded and said something else, then looked directly at me and spoke again. I felt the sleep spell hit me at the same time I felt the eagle's muscles bunch under me.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Mal ~


The seneschal's return was announced by the sound of the door being shut with slighter more force than necessary, and a second later he was standing before me. There was an expectant gleam in his eyes when he spoke.

"I am now prepared to submit my person to whatever act the lady would care to perform."

I chuckled and asked him to close his eyes, which clearly surprised him.

"Your modesty is most commendable, my lady, though somewhat misdirected as I have had the quite enjoyable view of your unclothed person on more than one occasion, as you undoubtedly will recall."

I assured him that I remembered all of our encounters with much pleasure, thank you, and that there was another purpose for my request. He let himself be contented with that, but protested when I blindfolded him with the sash the king had lent me. It was not the action as such that he minded, but rather the fact that a ceremonial item was put to a use for which it was not intended. With a sigh I explained to him that it was His Majesty himself who had provided the item in question, and I also told him to please refrain from further talk, as I had royal approval of everything.

Thaladir held his word and did not speak while I undressed him. When I removed his robe, he opened his mouth, and closed it again, much like a fish snapping for oxygen, so I had to tell him that no, I was not going to leave his raiment in a heap on the floor. He stood placidly as I peeled off layer after layer of clothing until there was nothing between my hands and his creamy skin. Except for the thin leggings he wore underneath his robe. I had to leave them in place to be able to carry through my plan of relaxing the elf, rather than instantly throwing myself at him. It was strangely exciting to see the usually so superior elf suddenly look so vulnerable. He presented a most erotic picture.

He said nothing when I led him to the bed, and it was a pleasure to watch his face as I undressed. Especially the very soft sound my silky drawers made as they glided down my legs seemed to be very nice to his ears. It was hard to ask him to turn over and lie on his belly, but the contented sighs he uttered while I massaged his firm back told me the decision had been right. The taut muscles slowly relaxed, and I began to tease him instead, enjoying watching the tiny ripples that appeared as I dragged my hair over his skin.

He eagerly turned over again when I told him to, but I did not take off his leggings. I straddled him and pressed myself against his hardness whI liI licked and kissed and caressed every part of his body that I could reach, to the point that I was sure that the poor garment was wet from both sides. Then I finally took mercy upon us both and freed him.

He nodded when I asked if he wanted to watch me, but I did not remove the blindfold. This was not a bad thing, as he turned out to be very good at seeing with his hands. And the bed was not uncomfortable at all.

Afterwards, when he had proved more than once that the temporary loss of eyesight did not the least impede his ability to perform in other areas; he thanked me, saying that the experience had been highly enjoyable and most refreshing.

"You will not record any of this in your book, will you?"

"Certainly not," he said, but I did not quite believe him. Not that it mattered. I was on my way to continue this exciting evening with the king of my heart, and return his sash, in case he would have need for it before the official ceremonies of next spring.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

~ Sheraiah ~


The next thing I was aware of was a soft bed under me and a warm, elven body beside me. I opened my eyes, disoriented for a moment. A long fingered hand came up to stroke my cheek and I turned my head to gaze into Legolas' face.

"I am sorry, Rai. I did tell him that I had promised not to sleep spell you." His eyes searched my face worriedly.

"Yeah, but he didn't promise anything. Bet that's what he said to you, too, wasn't it?" My head was pounding and I felt like I had a mouth full of cotton.

"That is almost exactly what he told me," the prince admitted with a wince.

"Well, you can tell him that he sucks at sleep spells. I have the worst headache in history and my mouth feels like a desert," I groused, laying my head on Legolas' shoulder.

"Well, let us see what we can do to remedy that," he replied, kissing my forehead. He arranged the pillows to prop me in a sitting position and eased me from his shoulder onto them. He crossed the room, which didn't look at all like what I had envisioned Mirkwood to look like, and stuck his head out the door, speaking to someone outside. A moment later, he returned with a pitcher and a glass. He poured me a glass of water, which I drank as gratefully as I did the two that followed it.

There was a soft knock at the door and Legolas bade whoever was there to enter. An elf entered, carrying a covered tray. He sat it on the table and bowing, exited without a word. Legolas got up, uncovered the tray and brought it to the bed.

"I think you will feel much better after you have had something to eat," he stated, picking up a plump strawberry and offering it to me. I have never been able to resist strawberries and I allowed him to feed it to me. I thought, at first that it was meant as foreplay, but soon realized that he was feeding me to make certain that I ate, and to reassure himself that I was all right. I relaxed and let him continue feeding me.

"Aren't you hungry?" I asked him.

"I have already eaten. The twins insisted that I do so while they stayed with you. They assured me that you would not wake while I was not here." He was chewing on his lip, a sure sign that he was unsure of how I was going to react.

"Oh, that's good. I was afraid that you were neglecting yourself. Besides, I'm sure that you needed to get Gimli settled." I smiled at hid hed he sighed with relief.

"Yes, I did, however temporarily. We are at Carrock, Rai. We had to land because the winds were becoming too strong to continue. We will resume our journey sometime tomorrow, unless the winds have not abated by then." He studied my face again. "Are you terribly upset?"

"Not really. Maybe I'll get a chance to look around before we have to leave." I looked hopefully at him and he laughed.

"Whatever you wish, lovely lady. Only, please, we must steer clear of both Gimli and Haldir for awhile." His eyes twinkled mischievously.

"Dare I ask why?" I smelled a bit of a rat. He laughed outright then.

"It seems that our flights were not the only ones downed and there were few rooms left. Gimli and Haldir were forced to share." He snickered and I joined him, the thought of those two as roomies was far too funny.

"Let's hope they don't damage each other too much," I replied between giggles. "Oh what I wouldn't give to be a fly on the wall!"


t b c

Our inspiration for the wood star flower (Triantalis europaea) can be seen here:

"http://www.tfe.umu.se/personliga/bt/skogsstjarna7428B.html" (you will have to paste into browser)

The Sindarin name, tawarel, is a translation of Swedish "skogsstjarna" (wood star). In RL, it is not a spring flower, but it mainly grows in dark old forests, so it seemed fitting for Mirkwood. In the old days it was considered holy. It's not anymore, but it's still very pretty, don't you think?