Invasion of Privacy

Even before Aragorn arrived at the campsite, the sound of light-hearted laughter and metal blades clashing playfully reached his ears. When the resting fellowship was finally in his sight he saw that his assumption had been correct - Boromir was again trying to teach the hobbits how to attack and parry with their swords. Aragorn was glad the man from Gondor was so caught up in his tutoring efforts - or pretended to be so - that he didn't look over to see the ranger approaching Legolas, who sat a little aside, on a great rock. As soon as he stood on the stony surface, next to the elf, whose gaze was aimed at the horizon, he wordlessly dropped the belt right into his friend's lap and waited for a reaction.

"Thank you," Legolas said calmly and slowly wrapped the belt around his waist. Aragorn stared down at him, speechless for a second.

"That's all you've got to say?" he asked when he found his tongue again. "*Thank you*?"

"I'm not blind, Legolas," Aragorn continued when the archer didn't respond. "I can distinguish bruises from love bites."

Finally, Legolas gazed up at his human comrade and Aragorn could have sworn that there had been a tiny grin on the fair face, if only for a split second.

"A love bite is but a bruise," Legolas replied matter-of-factly while Aragorn sat down next to him.

"You know what I mean," Aragorn said, to his own surprise with a much harsher tone than he had intended to.

"And *this*," the ranger added with a lower, more controlled voice and grabbed his comrade's chin to tilt his head to the side, exposing the delicate, long curve of his pale neck, "is a very impressive love bite, my friend."

"Since I can't look at my own neck I can't judge, but I think it must be very impressive indeed, regarding how greatly it annoys you," Legolas pointed out, freeing his chin from Aragorn's rough fingers. He moved his head in a way that made some of his hair fall to the front, down his chest, some light strands hiding the spot on his neck where Boromir obviously had marked him with his affection mere moments ago. He was glad that it would be gone in very short time again, thanks to his origin. Compared to humans, his elven body recovered stunningly fast.

"I'm not annoyed," Aragorn said through gritted teeth.

"Yes you are."

"No," the ranger denied and silently scolded himself. Not only did he spy on one of his best friends, now he started to lie directly into his face too. How low could he get? "I'm only... worried."

"Worried? About what?"

"About you of course. Boromir is a noble man, but he easily loses control over himself."

"What exactly is it you're suggesting?" Legolas asked, slightly arching one of his eyebrows.

"I just don't want him to be consumed and corrupted by his emotions. I don't want you to suffer from his... lack of self-control."

To his surprise, Legolas couldn't suppress a faint chuckle. "I don't want to speak ill of Boromir's skills, after all he is a very strong and able warrior among his - your - kind, but do you seriously think he could overpower me? No, that is very unlikely. Don't fret, friend. Trust me, your concerns are wasted here."

"I didn't speak of physical harm, Legolas. There are other ways to hurt somebody," Aragorn said gently, causing Legolas to avoid his gaze by turning his face towards the horizon again. A mild breeze played with his golden hair, tousling long strands so silky and soft that the ranger almost sighed out loud at their beauty. Even for Aragorn, who was betrothed to the prettiest elven maiden upon the whole of middle-earth, it was easy to understand why Boromir felt drawn to Legolas. The wind was gone again in a short moment, and Aragorn watched in amazement as Legolas' hair fell straight again, miraculously cascading into the right places all on its own, perfectly orderly.

"Boromir is a man of high status and power," the human continued in a low voice. "He is used to being admired by many, and I am sure he is well experienced in taking what he wants and then, after growing tired of it, dropping it without remorse."

"Maybe you think wrong of him," Legolas said.

"Maybe. But maybe not."

"You don't know him."

"Neither do you," Aragorn snapped, his voice still low yet with a sharp undertone.

"You sound not only vexed, but also jealous."

"That's ridiculous."

"Is it?" Legolas asked and Aragorn was embarrassed to feel the heat of a blush creep over his face. He hoped the elf would misinterpret the reddening of his cheeks as a flush of anger.

"Do you want to risk being used, like some toy, and then being discarded after you satisfied his needs?" Aragorn continued, ignoring his comrade's teasing question.

"Did it occur to you that maybe it is Boromir who's the toy here?" Legolas asked and shifted his gaze back to his human companion. He was content to see that the ranger was puzzled.

"Maybe you should think about that possibility for a while before you continue giving me advice on this matter," the elf said and raised to his feet in a fluid, swift movement. "Excuse me, I'm going to have my meal."

"Sure," Aragorn muttered, still perplexed by his friend's unexpected remark. While he watched Legolas joining Gimli and Gandalf at the campfire, his thoughts still revolving around the elf's last words, he suddenly felt an uncomfortably penetrating stare boring right through him. Out of reflex he turned his head, and his eyes instantly locked with Boromir's. The man from Gondor abruptly tore his gaze away the moment he realised Aragorn had noticed that he was watching him. The visual contact between them had lasted for less than a second, but it had been long enough for Aragorn to see the emotions flicker in the other man's eyes. And the expression he had discovered there promised nothing good.

* ~ * ~ *

After another long and exhausting march during which Aragorn avoided talking to either Legolas or Boromir, the fellowship set up camp for the night. It was Gimli's turn to keep watch first. Aragorn noticed that Legolas moved to lie down next to Boromir for the first time since they had started travelling. The two of them had usually rested on the very opposite sides of the camp. The ranger watched them for a while, but nothing happened. They just lay next to each other, not even glancing at one another for the briefest of moments. Boromir, worn out from the strain and toil of their exhausting journey, fell asleep quickly, and Aragorn soon followed suit.

* ~ * ~ *

Boromir slowly woke from his deep slumber when he felt something, or rather someone, groping his way inside his pants. He was pretty shocked to suddenly feel a hand closing over his quickly swelling length and would have gasped if there hadn't been a second, more resolute hand sealing his mouth. Boromir wanted to move and wind himself out of the lock of the strong hands that held him captive, but quickly found out that he was trapped. He was enveloped in a rigid, intimate embrace from behind, his body captured in the tight lock of very determined arms.

"Shhh," a soft voice whispered, so very close to the nape of his neck that the hot breath of Boromir's nightly visitor caressed the sensitive skin, causing the fine hair there to stir. His mouth was released and the hand that had covered his lips came to rest on Boromir's heaving chest. The nimble fingers inside his clothes didn't waste any time and caressed him to full hardness within seconds.

"Legolas," Boromir muttered as low as he could, a feeble protest against the intimate ministrations he was presented with.

"Be still," the elf whispered in return and pressed his body closer to Boromir's back.

"But -"

"Quiet," Legolas cut Boromir's words and gently kissed the outer line of the human's ear. "You pleased me greatly today. Please allow me to return the favour."

"But the others..." Boromir managed to breathe and then choked back a groan that tried to make its way out of his mouth when Legolas squeezed his erection a little tighter.

"...are sound asleep," Legolas finished the sentence. "It's my turn to keep watch. Now hush and let us seize the opportunity as long as everybody else is resting."

Boromir didn't reply and Legolas took his silence as permission to proceed. After performing some firm and constant strokes that made Boromir's breathing turn heavier, he loosened the hard grip until only his fingertips were touching his lover's solid member. Slowly, he let them dance over the hot, silky skin, barely making contact, from tip to base and back, again and again, until Boromir was trembling from the teasing. With deliberate tenderness, the archer ran his fingers up the human's shaft one more time and then lingered at the head of his arousal. There he paused and held completely still, his fingertips resting on smooth, scorching skin. Legolas allowed himself to close his eyes for a moment and concentrate just on the feel of his lover's form in his arms. He loved the way the vigorous body raised in his embrace, with every deep breath Boromir took. He loved the way the hard curve of Boromir's bottom pressed itself into his lap, the arched line of the warriors backside perfectly fitting into the bend of Legolas' own body. He loved the spicy, manly fragrance the human emitted and the way it always seemed to get somewhat more intense when Boromir was aroused. He even heard, *felt* his lover's heartbeats, so strong and fast... Legolas wouldn't have minded lying like this for a little longer, but Boromir didn't seem to share his thought.

Desperate for release, the human angled his hips in an attempt to push himself into the stimulating lock of Legolas' hand. In need of harder friction, Boromir began to move, forcing the elf's hand to join into a steady rhythm. A tiny sigh escaped Legolas' lips when Boromir's buttocks rubbed over his groin, and his own growing desire made him pick up pace to stroke his quaking lover to fulfilment. Not yet satisfied with the intensity of the archer's ministrations, Boromir shoved one hand into his trousers and clamped it over Legolas' much more delicate one, directing the archer's fist into a tighter grip. He knew he was rough and also egoistic, it was almost as if he was using Legolas' hand as some sort of masturbation device, but he couldn't help it. Here, in the middle of the sleeping fellowship, he felt too uncomfortable to really enjoy and relish Legolas' caresses, but the elf's touch was too good and stimulating to just stop and ignore it. He wanted this to come to an end as quickly as possible and was relieved to feel that he was very close already. Determined to reach climax with the next few strokes, Boromir squeezed Legolas' hand a little harder, simultaneously guiding it up and down his straining member with more force, but then froze in his movement when there came a strange sound from the opposite side of their camp.

Frodo...

Holding Legolas' hand, his own erection and also his breath, Boromir didn't dare to move. He felt how Legolas raised his head to look over to where the hobbits were sleeping, but he didn't make any attempts to pull his hand away.

"He's asleep. Only dreaming," Legolas whispered as he lay his head back down on Boromir's shoulder.

"We should stop," Boromir whispered back breathlessly, sobered up by the sudden shock.

"*Now*?" Legolas almost had to laugh.

"Why not?"

"I don't think you will be able to find any sleep in this condition," the elf pointed out and started to move his hand again, but Boromir quickly tightened the lock of his fist and stopped him.

"What if one of the others wakes up?"

"If you didn't talk so much we would have been finished with this long ago," Legolas pointed out. "And now shut up, close your eyes and enjoy."

Boromir hesitated at first, but when Legolas started to gently kiss and nibble at his neck, his eyelids fell close and his lips parted to release an inaudible moan.

"Relax, Boromir. Let go and let me do the work," Legolas breathed against the human's neck, then slid his tongue up, behind his ear. "Trust me, I know what I'm doing."

Once Boromir obeyed and withdrew his hand, Legolas carefully dipped the tip of his index finger into the small puddle of sticky pre-cum that had gathered on the smooth head of the human's erection. Slowly, he spread it over the hot, swollen flesh with rotating, teasintiontions, using just his tender fingertip. Since Boromir was so very close to orgasm already the gentle ministrations affected him greatly, but they were too soft to bring him over the edge. The archer drew one circle after another, increasing speed and pressure with every second, until the human warrior's body was shaken with another raw but short convulsion and Legolas felt some more liquid well up under his caressing finger. He dragged his hand over the dripping tip of Boromir's hard length, hastily rubbing the pre-orgasmic, tiny gushes of the human's essences into his palm and fingers. As soon as the inside of his hand was all moist with Boromir's fluids, he fully enclosed the human's solid shaft and stroked it with long and intense, almost harsh movements.

The abrupt, extremely firm and slippery massage of his sensitive flesh almost made Boromir cry out loud. He came hard. His climax crashed down on him and took complete control over his body, making it tremble and tense forcefully. He exploded in Legolas' hand, setting free the enormous pressure that had built up in his body, and everything he wanted to do that very moment was to groan out his release. Boromir had to lift a hand to his face and bite down on the knuckle of his index finger in order to suppress any sound that threatened to burst from him. He squeezed his eyes shut, held his breath and bit down on his own flesh, hard, trying to concentrate on holding back the loud noise that tried to break free...

Nonetheless a tiny, guttural sound became audible when his milky liquids spilled over Legolas' slender hand, but before it could develop into a loud, full groan of pleasure, the elf used his free hand to turn Boromir's head towards himself and smothered the noise with a kiss. Drunk with lust, the human warrior deepened the kiss instantly, almost devouring Legolas who willingly opened his mouth to let his lover in. A few more spasms ran through Boromir's body, weaker now, while Legolas held and kissed him affectionately, and then it was over.

"I guess now you won't have any problems going to sleep," Legolas whispered with a small grin as he gently withdrew his messy hand.

"Don't stop, please," Boromir whispered back without opening his eyes.

"What?" Legolas asked, surprised. "Don't you think you need to recover a bit, first?"

"To kiss me, I mean. Don't stop kissing me."

"Oh." Smiling, the elf bowed his head and presented Boromir with a very slow yet deep kiss, his hand making its way to frame one side of the human's flushed face.

"What if one of the others wakes up?" Legolas breathed into the kiss, mocking his lover.

"I don't care," Boromir replied. "Your kisses are addictive. *You* are addictive."

Legolas broke from Boromir's lips and looked him in the eyes for a moment. The deep, genuine emotions he discovered there almost scared him. Suddenly, he had to think of Aragorn's words to him. And he had to think of his reply. What a cruel reply it had been! Not towards Aragorn or himself, but cruel towards Boromir.

"Boromir, I..." Legolas started and then stopped again to swallow. "I'm afraid I can't give you what you are obviously searching for in me."

"What do you mean?" the human breathed. His low voice sounded a little alarmed now, but the tender expression in his eyes was still there.

"I don't know how to put it without... maybe... hurting you."

"I am not easily hurt. Please tell me."

Legolas nodded and gently wiped back a few strands that had fallen into Boromir's face.

"I'm glad that you are on this quest, together with me. And I like to be with you. But I am not in love with you. I can offer to share my body with you, like you share yours with me, but not my heart and soul."

There was a quite long moment of silence between them and Legolas didn't know at all how Boromir would react to his announcement. When the human finally replied he was surprised by his words.

"Then I guess that will have to do."

"I'm sorry," Legolas whispered.

"Don't be," Boromir whispered back. He made great effort to control his voice, but Legolas was too sensitive to miss the tiny indication of dissappointment, maybe even hurt, that he didn't manage to cover up completely. He saw that the elf wanted to say some more and quickly raised his voice again to cut him off. The last thing he wanted was being pitied.

"Good night," the human said with stiff politeness, avoiding to meet Legolas' eyes. The elf understood and nodded faintly.

"Good night, Boromir."

As soon as Legolas had gotten up to resume his watch, Boromir rolled back on his side, trying to find a more comfortable sleeping position. Just when he wanted to close his eyes and let his exhaustion overwhelm him, he saw something that made his heart skip a beat, his breath catch in his throat and blood surge to his cheeks.

Aragorn was staring at him.