Faded Light: Book II

(For additional notes and disclaimers, please see top of Chapter 1.)



- Some explicit Elven sexiness to follow, (actually, some very explicit Elven sex to follow)...don’t like, don’t read...(and if you don’t like, I really have no idea why you’re sitting in front of Chapter 56 of this story...)

This is one I’ve wanted to post for awhile...about half of it is a flashback, but I hope it came out as hot as what I had in mind. (At some point, I realized that though I’ve had several sex scenes in this story, there weren’t any real love, scenes so this one came to my mind.)



To all those Saelbeth/Leralonde fans out there, I’m not ready to give them their happily ever after yet, but I hope you’ll enjoy this one...

Sarah, thank you for your review...Saelbeth was just young and a bit naïve when he got involved with Anirion, but I think he’s wiser now, and I after being with Leralonde, he knows what real love is...I don’t think he’d go back to Anirion...

Anyway, happy reading, and thanks in advance for the r and r... –

 

Chapter 36



Vestale Pt.3: Bonds

Leralonde found Saelbeth almost two hours later, sitting by a small pool in a remote part of the gardens; he had his bare feet in the water and a bottle of Dorwinion within reach...



“..Sael, what are you doing up here...?”



“Just contemplating the more glaring mistakes of my life...”



“I hope I’m not much in your thoughts then...” he said only half jokingly.



He frowned when Saelbeth said nothing but refilled his glass and took another drink...



The Prince moved closer to his former lover’s side; taking off his own shoes he took a seat beside him at the pool. “I think perhaps you’ve had enough of this...” he said taking the empty cup...



He was surprised when Saelbeth took his other hand and drew him closer, pulling him forward into a need-filled kiss...he let himself get lost in it for a moment, but then managed to pull himself away...



“What’s wrong?” Saelbeth looked genuinely hurt at the seeming rejection...



“...you know how much I’ve wanted this, Saelbeth...but I don’t want you to do something you’ll regret ...the result of too much Dorwinion...”



“Must you always behave so insufferably honorably, Highness...?” the other retorted and took his glass back.



“Would you rather I were the kind who would inconsiderately just take what he wanted,” said the Prince with a deep frown.



Saelbeth snorted cynically, “...you know me well enough to know I don’t throw myself at anyone because I’ve had one too many cups of wine...



“Anyway,” he straightened up and made an effort to reattach a wayward braid. “I’m not drunk...I don’t get drunk...I’m far too sensible an Elf...”



“...we were both quite a bit tipsy that night in Lorien,” said the Prince. “Do you remember...?”



"Aye, I remember,” a small smile played on Saelbeth’s lips at the shared memory. He reached out, his thumb sensually caressing the Prince’s lower lip, “It was the first time we made love...”



Leralonde took Saelbeth’s hand in his, kissing the back of his fingers,“...though I am sure I had already been in love with you long before that night..."



====================



...there had been some occasion for which the King and a small number of the Court had been visiting the Golden Wood...and after some celebration one night, both young Elves had found themselves back in Saelbeth’s room, laughing...stealing more of those moments they had come to yearn for lately as their illicit relationship had grown...



“I want you, Melethron,” whispered the Prince, breathless, placing soft, slow kisses along his neck, as his hands unlaced the formal robes, and he tenderly kissed every inch of exposed skin...



He kissed his way back to Saelbeth’s lips, hands wandering beneath his clothes, gently caressing every part of the Advisor’s body, before he pulled back a little, catching his breath. “All these months, I don’t know how I’ve been able to stand keeping my distance every time someone might suspect something...”



“I think we’ve both shown more than enough restrain...” Saelbeth whispered, claiming Leralonde’s lips hungrily again, as he ran his fingers through the long dark hair, his lips stroking the Prince’s, taking their time, and one hand clumsily sought the lacings to the other’s leggings...



“I don’t want to control myself...not tonight...”



“Are you sure?”



“...I want this...I want you...”



They quickly finished helping each other out of their clothes, and he found himself blushing, as the Prince took in the sight of his naked form fully for the first time, as he lay back on the bed, before moving away for a moment looking for something.



Saelbeth felt his face flush a little more as he realized what they needed. “In the washroom,” he said, pushing himself up on his elbows, trying to catch his breath, “I have some bath oils...”

“It’s the best we can do at the moment, I think...I don’t have anything more suitable.”



While Leralonde stepped out of the room, he thought about pulling the blanket up to cover himself, but decided he’d rather not behave tonight like a timorous adolescent, having his first liaison...



“I hadn’t actually planned on...” he licked his lips, nervously and decided on what seemed like a relatively more dignified position than trying to hide behind his blankets, on his side, his head propped up on one hand.



“Sael, you’re not...I mean, have you ever...?” the cool, self-assured warrior had seemed suddenly uncertain, as he returned with a small vial of the scented oil and stretched out on the bed beside his lover...



“I’m not nesse...but it has been a long time,” Saelbeth admitted coyly, running his hand over the Prince’s smooth, white torso; a little flutter of nervousness in his stomach battling with other sensations all over his body at the thought that he was about to let Leralonde make love to him for the first time.



“How long?”



“A very long time...or do you think I am the type to go off with every handsome warrior who looks my way?” He smiled and the Prince knew the other was teasing him.



“I have only had one lover who mattered,” he said a wistful look crossing his face.



“But I realized we weren’t good for each other...so I left...it has been a long time since I have wanted to give myself to anyone...” he met the other’s eyes, batting his lashes coquettishly, as his arm went around the Prince’s neck, pulling their bodies closer, the other Elf’s back on top of his own...



“In that case, we’ll have to go slow, Melethron...



“Is there something you like?” he whispered huskily, running his hands down his lover’s sides as he leaned down take the other’s perfect lips again in a deep, unhurried kiss.



“We can get to that later,” Saelbeth smiled, bending his knees slightly to give him room to find a more comfortable position on top; and he was sure that was the first time anyone had asked him that particular question in bed.



“So far this is perfect...” he said, his lips barely leaving the Prince’s, neither willing to pull away for more than a few words, as his hands went around his lover’s muscular back, and he savored the feel of the other Elf’s body above him...



“...elu le mara...” whispered the Prince as he finally broke their kiss and moved down his body, placing playful, leisurely kisses along his jaw and collarbone...



“...bein melda nin...”



Saelbeth licked his lips, still savoring the taste of his lover, and shuddered a little, as one hand reached up and skillfully began stroking a delicate Elven ear in all the right places, “Leralonde...”



The Prince smiled to hear Saelbeth gasping his name in the midst of his desire, as he slowly moved lower, pausing to run his tongue over the advisor’s belly button and continuing downward...



He stopped at the eager Elfhood, gently spreading Saelbeth’s knees a little, as he bent down, beginning by teasing his maleness with light strokes and breathy kisses, before doing the same along the insides of his legs, Leralonde’s long, dark hair prickling the skin on Saelbeth’s legs adding to the stimulation...



“...Highness, you will be the end of me...” Saelbeth groaned, pulling the Prince back and into another long, hungry kiss, pressing their arousals together, as hands and mouths continued their explorations of each other’s bodies...



“I do not think I can bear this pace...” he whispered after several minutes when all that could be heard in the room was their own sounds of pleasure and the occasional creaking of the old bed in the guest talan...



Rolling them over, so that the Prince was now on his back, Saelbeth had apparently decided it was his turn, so Leralonde closed his eyes and let his new lover and, as he found, his very talented lips take control...he had never imagined his uncle’s genteel advisor was such a sensual Elf behind his air of propriety; but for one who claimed to have only had one serious relationship, Saelbeth was clearly no novice in the ways of love...



Placing slow, leisurely kisses over his chest, he stopped at a hard nipple, thoroughly kissing and stroking it and then the other, before moving all the way down his lover’s body; blowing softly on the impatient vie he found there; he watched with satisfaction as the prince’s body arched, one hand grasping tightly at a pillow, as he felt Saelbeth’s lips around his member, sweat beginning to dampen his handsome face, his breath coming in short gasps...



He thought Leralonde might have whispered something through his pleasure, but he wasn’t sure...



Hesitantly stopping what he was doing after only another moment and leaving the Prince’s now overexcited Elfhood, having other ideas that required his lover not reaching his climax yet, Saelbeth kissed his way back up his body. Letting his tongue dart out once in a while, he left a trail of slow, leisurely kisses along his taut, hard stomach, taking a brief detour over his ribs, as he enjoyed the taste of the hot and slightly sweaty skin, coming back to his chest again, and moving over to a shoulder and bicep, eagerly relishing every, irresistible masculine attribute he came to...before he returned to his lips, one hand idly toying with now half-undone Royal braids, as the other moved all the way down again and began stroking...



“Sael...” the Prince finally managed, through the intense, and quite thorough, pleasure Saelbeth was giving him, “if you keep that up much longer, I won’t last...”



The young Advisor smiled, mischievously, his eyes dark now with lust, and bent down to kiss him again, more slowly, before reaching over for the vial they had almost forgotten on the nightstand...



He licked his lips and bent down once more, placing little, playful kisses long Leralonde’s ear, “How do you want me?” he asked throatily...



The Prince struggled to focus on Saelbeth’s words.



He took his face, deeply flushed now with passion and their exertions of the past twenty minutes, in his hands, caressing his cheek, his soft lips that were a little redder now from their love play, with a mixture of tenderness and ardor. “Do you have a preference...?” he asked.



Saelbeth smiled impishly, as he took the Prince’s hand and slowly kissed his way across each of his fingers, over the back of his hand, to his wrist, his eyes, mirthful with playful mischief, never leaving his lover’s...



“Nin Meleth...” he groaned, slowly caressing Saelbeth’s face again, before he pulled him back into his arms and rolled them over again, pinning Saelbeth to the bed, kissing him soundly, until the other Elf pushed him away enough to turn onto his stomach, and once more picking up the vial, coated his own fingers, seductively preparing himself for his lover...



He looked over his shoulder and smiled so beguilingly, it took all of the Prince’s self-possession to not just take him and have the moment over right then...



Running hands slowly, over his lover’s back, he pulled him back into a sitting position before leaning down to place soft kisses over his shoulders, his neck; he pulled him closer, his arms going around his lover’s body as their lips once more found each other and he reached down to find his barely prepared entrance.



“Leralonde…saes,” moaned Saelbeth, losing the upper hand now that he was once more letting himself be on the receiving end...



“Tare...hi...” he groaned again, a hand reaching back to Leralonde’s hip, urging him closer.



“Not yet...” breathed the Prince kissing a pale shoulder. “I do not wish to hurt you...you said it’s been a long time...”



“You won’t...” he whispered, his entire body desperate with a kind of desire he had not felt in centuries...as the Prince worked as gently as he could, for several minutes, on his lover’s too-tight passage, several times adding more oil from the small vial and eliciting soft moans, as their breath almost became one with the eagerness of their kiss.



“Meleth...” he whispered again. ”I need you...saes...”



It had been a very long time since he had wanted to be on this side of lovemaking for anyone...he had forgotten was it was like to allow another this most intimate control... it was not something he had been willing to give anyone in centuries...



He disliked getting carried away, losing his well-established self-discipline... but as he rediscovered now, there were a few advantages to letting someone else lead...and Leralonde, as he had found, had turned out to be a very good lover...



“...Londe you will undo me... “



And somewhere in the back of his mind, Saelbeth had a fleeting thought of other firsts, and realized no coupling with Anirion had ever made him feel quite like this; a complete sharing that had never really been part of his life with the Lorien Elf, who was much too self-indulgent and decadent to pay much attention to more than his own needs...



Whatever passion there had been between he and Anirion, it never went beyond his hroa...



The Prince was not only a giving lover, but had enough self-control to bring them both the most pleasure...even if just then he was making Saelbeth feel as if he would soon burn up from an excess of unreleased desire...



Finally Leralonde’s hand moved away, replaced quickly by the Prince’s Elfhood, both youths panting by now. “Are you ready?”



Saelbeth merely nodded too full of need to form any more coherent words...



A deep, “Oh...” was all that passed his lips as his lover slid a hand over his hip, still wanting to stroke every inch of skin he could reach, and slowly pushed all the way inside and stopped, his other hand moving down to find Saelbeth’s arousal.



“Saelbeth...?” Leralonde exhaled the question as he kissed his temple, the tip of his ear, letting his lips linger there and feeling how his breath sent a shiver through the other’s body...



“...saes, don’t stop...Meleth...feels so...” he licked his lips, trying to remember how to form a complete thought... “I’m...”



“Aye...me too...” the Prince was apparently sharing his incoherence just then, so he settled for nuzzling his ear, continuing his gentle caresses, until Saelbeth turned his head slightly and pulled the Prince into a heated kiss again, as they began moving together. Then, there was no more room for thought, as he moaned wantonly, pulling Leralonde’s free arm around his waist, wanting too to feel as much of his new lover’s body as he could...



After a while, though Saelbeth had lost all sense of time just then, the Prince shifted their positions, so that they were lying down on their sides, every part of their bodies that could be still wrapped around each other, Leralonde continuing to pleasure him though moving now with almost frustrating slowness even as he made sure, with every other thrust to find that place in Saelbeth’s body that left him almost dizzy with desire...



Finally, they came at almost the same instant, bursts of bright light exploding behind his eyelids, as wave after wave of the most intense pleasure washed over him, until they both collapsed, hearts racing together as both tried to get their breath to return to normal.



Somewhere through the delicious haze of his mind and all the other wonderful sensations that were slowly ebbing away, Saelbeth felt his lover pulling the blanket over them, that at some point had disappeared over the bed, or maybe been pushed to the other end of the bed; he wasn’t sure, and thoughtfully rearranging the pillow beneath Saelbeth’s head, before pulling him back into his arms, their legs entangled together again.



He turned his head and gave his lover a drowsy smile, taking one of his hands and entwining their fingers, before closing his eyes, enjoying the feel of the Prince’s soft breath on his ear, as his other hand lovingly traced the lines of his face, pushed aside the slightly damp gold-brown hair that fell over his forehead...



It was a long time before either had wanted to move from the warm cocoon they had found together, except to continue their caresses and long, slow kisses...



================



...Leralonde’s voice brought Saelbeth back to the present, “Are you all right, Meleth...?”



“I’m fine,” he said, lifting his head from Leralonde’s shoulder where he had barely noticed he had rested it.



“His name’s Anirion,” Saelbeth said inexplicably...



“He’s a kinsman of Lord Celeborn...but Erestor probably already told you about him,” he added.



“He said something...but it’s really not my business...I know you had a life before me...I have no delusions that we were each other’s first...”



“He was my first lover,” Saelbeth went on, looking away. “He was the only other real lover I ever had...I have had a few casual encounters over the centuries, but there have only been two people I’ve given myself to in that way...”



“What happened?”



“We were together in Lorien for fifty years...but I was young and naïve...I was just under seven-hundred then...and it turned out I was in love, and he wasn’t, at least, not the way I wanted...



“Anyway, I needed to find my own way in life; so I finally left and came back to Mirkwood. That’s around the time King Thranduil first gave me a place in his Court.”



He looked at the Prince again and smiled a little, “Though it took you a few centuries after that to realize I even existed...”



“...not quite that long...” the Prince admitted. “I looked plenty, when I could get away with it, usually after some Council meeting when everyone’s attention was still on some dull matter of state...but I didn’t know what your... inclinations were back then...”



“Erestor never thought well of him...” Saelbeth went on.



He shrugged, “I should have listened; all the years I was with Anirion, I was never happy...”



Leralonde had a feeling there was more to the story, but didn’t ask...though he wondered in passing how different that younger version of Saelbeth had been from the scrupulous courtier Leralonde had known all these centuries...?



And the slightly disturbing thought occurred to him too, that if Anirion had been Saelbeth’s first and only other real lover, did that mean that most of his skill in bed had been learned from Anirion?



The Prince decided that was not a thought he wanted to dwell on; it was a bit too much like bedding Anirion...he couldn’t help making a face at that idea...



Saelbeth saw his expression of distaste and raised an eyebrow in question, but didn’t say anything.



Anyway, the Prince told himself, it really didn’t matter; it had been over six hundred years, and besides, there was too much actual love when Saelbeth made love...it was doubtful that was something he could have learned from his distasteful ex-lover...



He finally settled for placing an arm around Saelbeth’s shoulders who accepted the gesture...



“This is not the way I ever expected my life to turn out...” said Saelbeth, sullenly, after another moment...



“Me neither,” admitted the Prince, “but I just can’t seem to figure out how to fix it...”



“...it’s not such a difficult thing actually,” Saelbeth began reasonably.



“All you need to do is find a suitable Elleth, court and marry her...Lord Ruthlagor will forgive you and Mirkwood will celebrate your union as they are doing for Ethiel and Glaerwen tonight...I doubt very much that it would be that hard to find a maiden willing to be Mirkwood’s next Queen...”



“...as my grandfather did? And in a few centuries when she wearies of the charade she can Sail West...I think I’d rather have most of Mirkwood muttering behind my back,” he said.



“It would not be such an issue if Legolas was still here and Crown-prince...



“Damn whoever took him...” he filled the glass again from the bottle between them and took a drink. “Maintaining the goodwill of Mirkwood was supposed to be his job...”



He reached for the bottle again and felt Saelbeth’s hand in his...his eyes met the Prince’s studying him carefully, still a little too bright from the Dorwinion...



“I was the one who came out here to wallow in self-pity, remember...?”



“Saelbeth...”



“I should go,” he said. He stood up and turned around a couple of times looking for the light dress shoes he’d discarded earlier, “Gwirithniel will wonder where I am...”



“...Erestor is watching Gwirithniel...” said Leralonde, getting his own shoes back on, before taking the other Elf’s arm and leading him in the right direction...



“I’m not drunk,” Saelbeth insisted again, slipping his feet back into his shoes...



“Come on...” the Prince put an arm around the other’s shoulders again, who didn’t resist...



He reached out to play with a lose strand of Saelbeth’s intricately braided hair, as they started walking back toward the party. He really did look beautiful tonight...



He remembered when they were together all those years, and always having to keep their relationship a secret, Saelbeth would sometimes braid his hair in some different way or wear a slightly brighter robe, ...subtly enough to catch no one but Leralonde’s attention; he wondered if he had been on Saelbeth’s mind at all tonight as he dressed for the marriage feast...



“Highness...” Saelbeth started to protest, but realized he didn’t really want the other to stop what he was doing. He closed his eyes and for a moment let himself enjoy the familiar touch he had missed all this time in Rivendell.



“Stay with me...” whispered Leralonde, his fingers still trailing through the other’s dark blonde hair.



“I can’t,” said Saelbeth, coming out of his reverie, “I have to...”



“I don’t mean just right now...come home...



“...Stay, meleth...” he added again. “Don’t go to Valinor...”



They had stopped walking and the Crown-prince met his former-lover’s eyes again.



“You have been talking to Erestor...” said Saelbeth, raising a mildly disapproving eyebrow.



“I’ve wanted to talk to you about it, but I never seemed to find the right time...”



“I’m tired Leralonde. I’ve tried to hold myself together for Gwirithniel’s sake, but I’m weary...”



“Let me help...you don’t have to carry this weight by yourself...come home...”



“What about Tadion...?” he asked, feeling that old, unpleasant bite of jealousy.



“Tadion has...” Leralonde began, but wasn’t sure what he could say of something that was the young Healer’s business alone.



“I care for Tadion, I won’t deny that...” he said. “He is one of the most worthy young Elves, I’ve known...but there are things in his past, and it makes him keep parts of his heart locked away...beyond where I can reach...”



Saelbeth frowned; Leralonde’s description was hardly the image he had of the young Healer...



“Anyway, he knows I’ve never stopped being in love with you...he’s never let me pretend otherwise for a moment...” he silenced Saelbeth gently before he could make his usual protests...



“I don’t need a bonding ceremony to know who my soul is already joined to...there is no other I want to reach Valinor with, no other I want children with...and if the only child we ever have is Gwirithniel, I will still be grateful...



“Saes, come home, melethron...”



The moment seemed to stretch on for so long before Saelbeth said anything more that Leralonde was sure the other was about to tell him he’d already made up his mind and planned to be on the next Ship...



“I can’t make you any promises, Leralonde,” he finally said in a low, careful tone.



“But I won’t take the next Ship. I’ll stay in Mirkwood this year and then decide...if you can accept that...?”





=================





TBC...





Elvish Tranlations





Melethron / Male lover



Nesse / virgin (From: Venesse / virginity. I’ve often seen the word ‘Rodwen’ used by fanfic writers to mean ‘A Virgin,’ but ‘Rodwen’ is literally, ‘noble virgin maiden;’ whereas ‘Venesse’ or ‘Nesse’ are more general and do not refer specifically to females, so I thought it was more appropriate.)



Elu le mara... / You feel good...



Bein melda nin... / My beautiful beloved...



Vie / Manhood, a male Elf’s sexual organ. (This and other terms about Elf sexuality can be found in the article, “What Tolkien officially said about Elf sex.”)



Saes / Please



Hroa / Body (Elves are made up of two parts which exist together on Arda unless an Elf fades from grief or is mortally wounded; the physical body which is the “Hroa,” and the spirit which is the ‘Faer.”)



Tare / More



Hi / Now; (pronounced like the English word “He.”)



Meleth / Love





(So, was that hot enough...? I thought so, but I am a bit bias, (and I have to admit, I’m a little in love with Leralonde myself)...so, let me know what you thought, even if you thought it was awful...)