Breaking the Barriers

Disclaimer: I hold Tolkien in the utmost highest esteem. I borrowed his characters for this. The idea of the bonding enchantment is mine however.


Chapter 10

Estel could not excuse his actions the next morning. He wanted to talk to Adar, but he was scared. He was trying to put it off by staying in bed with his lover a bit longer. But he knew that if he didn’t do it now then he never would. He snuggled up to Legolas, planted a kiss on his lover’s cheek and put his hair behind his ear.

“Morning, meleth nín,” he said.

Legolas looked up into Estel’s eyes and kissed him back. “Hello there, meleth nín.”

He wrapped his legs around Estel’s. He didn’t want to let him go this morning. He wanted to sleep a little more. But he knew that Estel wanted to see his Adar.

“Well, I guess we better get you dressed and fed before you visit your Adar.” Legolas tried to get up but Estel pulled him back.

“Just a minute longer. Remember, this is our celebratory day. Adar can wait a few minutes. I want to kiss the light of day from my elf. Can I do that, melethron?”

“I guess you can for a few minutes longer.” Legolas brought his face up to his love and they kissed each other tenderly. The love they had for one another was not as heavy as it had been before. The urge to make love to each other had calmed considerably. They did not yearn for each other’s bodies. As Galadriel had said it would be, their uncontrollable love for one another was now tamed.

Estel noticed that his urge was not as wild as it used to be. He could take his time loving this elf. The love he shared with Legolas was still strong.

Legolas noticed that since last night his love for Estel was controllable. His passion for this man had lessened. But all the love of the Valar was still there. He was able to control his feelings within himself. But looking into his eyes made him fall in love every time.

They both wanted to stay like this forever. But forever was too long and Estel needed to see his Adar. With that, he gave a light peck on the lips of his lover and hopped out of bed. Legolas pulled the blanket up and watched his lover.

Estel washed, dressed and entered the living room. He grabbed a piece of fruit off the table and bound back to the bedroom. He planted another kiss on the elf’s lips.

“I’ll return, melethron. Maybe we can go to the falls and enjoy a swim later.”

“I would like that, meleth.”

Estel left and walked toward Lord Elrond’s office. His love of life was grand. He waved and said good morning to almost everyone he passed. Life was great. He never wanted this day to end.

Estel entered his Adar’s outer office. He noticed Erestor sitting at a long desk with work in front of him. Erestor looked up and nodded to the young king.

“Lord Elrond is waiting for you. You will find him in his private gardens at this time of the morning.” He motioned with his eyes through another door.

Estel nodded to Erestor and walked into the gardens. He found Adar sitting on a bench enjoying the nice warmth of the sun. It was still quite early but his Adar was always up at this time. He bound over to him and placed a kiss on his father’s forehead.

“Morning Adar,” he joyfully said. “Is it not the best morning of your life? I know it is mine. I have never felt like this before last night. Everything is so crisp and clean.” He looked around the garden and noticed the flowers were covered in dew.

“Morning, my son. You seem to be in a in good spirits this morning. What’s this about?” Elrond noticed the happiness on his son’s face. “But then again I have never seen you in love before. It does suit you. I have just found out I have a pressing engagement later. So what was it you wanted to talk to me about?” Elrond raised an eyebrow. He knew what it was but he did not let on.

“Adar, I want to explain about the day before my ceremony. I should not have run out on you like that. It was not called for.” Estel started to pace. He noticed that his Adar did this when he was young, it made him nervous. He stood in front of his father. He paused to gather his courage.

“I want to know when I would have to take up the throne of Gondor. I hope it is not for a while. I’m still young. I have never roamed the lands of this beautiful country. I don’t know what the people will say when I take the throne. Adar, I‘m scared.” He couldn’t keep his hand still. He was nervous. He was always like that when he talked with Elrond.

“I know what it is that you want. But we will dispense with that for now. You will not be taking the throne until you can prove yourself of your skills. This will be your biggest test of all. I want the people of Middle Earth to see you for who you are. With this bonding, I want you and Legolas to go out into the world and see the people. But be careful! It is not a safe world.”

“I don’t know if I want to go. There are cruel things out there. I should do some hard training on the practice fields, first. I know that I have passed all of my tests but being outside of this realm is going to be so different. What do you think, Adar?” Estel needed some guidance. This Eldar in front of him was the only man who could do that.

“I agree, Estel. Maybe we should start you on a rigorous training course. But right now I want both you and Legolas to enjoy this time together. I will call on you when the time is right. Right now, go back to your love and enjoy this bonding. I love you, my son.” With that Elrond got up, place a kiss on his son’s forehead and went for his daily walk.

As he was going through the door, he turned. Then he saw her. The lady at the party last night. She was exquisite! She had a grace all her own. Clad in a mantle of silver and blue, fair as the twilight of Elven-home, her dark brown hair and brows were bound with gems like stars. For a moment she looked like Tinúviel. He felt a deep love for this elf. He turned and left.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Back in their room, Legolas was getting out of bed. He lingered longer than he should have done. He was remembering their love making last night. His feelings for Estel had not changed. Then he felt it: a pain in his chest but this was not like before. It was different. It was like jealousy. But who was the jealousy for? It passed quickly. It almost felt like the pain he experienced last night when Estel looked at Arwen. He was going to have to speak with Estel. Maybe he knows what happened.

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

Estel ran back to his rooms to be in his lover’s arms. He just wanted to hold Legolas and love him. When he opened the door, Legolas was sitting on the balcony in one of the chairs.

He went to his love and knelt at his feet. He gathered up his love’s hands and kissed them. He felt something wrong. The love was not as open as it should be. It was different.

“What’s wrong, melethron?”

Legolas looked into his love’s eyes and looked away. Legolas just could not get rid of this feeling of being hurt. How was he going to confront Estel? This feeling of love was the first that he had ever felt in his life. It was new to him. He got up from his chair and went to the railing. He didn’t know how to show his feelings.

“Did you see Elrond?” Legolas questioned, looking into the garden.

“Yes. What’s the matter, meleth? Have I done something wrong? Why won’t you look at me?” Estel got up from the chair and stood behind his love. He wrapped his arms around his love’s waist and placed his chin on his shoulder.

“Before you came back, I felt a pain in my chest. I was jealous. It was the same feeling I got when you looked at Arwen last night. You have see her again, haven’t you?” He looked at his love with concern.

“Yes, I have. I saw her in Adar’s garden just now. She’s beautiful!” He knew he couldn’t keep feelings from Legolas. He would know if he was lying. Somehow their love for one another brought out the truth in both their words. Neither of them could lie to each other.

“Why would I be jealous? It’s not as if you love her or anything. You two have not been introduced. Do you have feelings for her Estel?” He wished he could look into his eyes. He wanted to see his reaction but tears were blinding them. Legolas was hurt.

Estel stood behind his love. “I don’t know. When I saw her in the garden, she reminded me of Tinúviel. I love the song of Beren and Tinúviel. Meleth, I don’t want to hurt you. You know our bond and love for each other is something that no one else can share. This is special to me. I don’t know why a thought of beauty could hurt someone so much.” Estel could feel the sobs. He turned the elf around and looked into his love’s eyes. He took him in his arms and kissed him deeply.

Legolas liked this kiss. It felt different. More powerful. How is was that possible?

Estel broke off the kiss. He looked deep in Legolas’ eyes. They were so sad. “My love, you have sad eyes. There is enough sadness in this world to last two lifetimes. I don’t need a lover with them. If it’s too much for you, find me and you know I’ll be there. If we are apart, we can go to our field. You have to tell me of your feelings. When you are happy, I’m happy. I love being bonded to you. These feelings are going to go crazy sometimes. We need to show them more often. Don’t hide them, whether they are good or bad. You’ll be in my heart forever. I will be here. So stop your tears. This bond between us can’t be broken, it’s a gift of the Valar. You will always be in my heart."

"I know that. Sometimes I'm going to have to get used to it. Being an elf is different. We love one person our whole lives. With humans it's different." Legolas took Estel's hands into his, rubbing the knuckles.

"I know. I'm sorry that I hurt you. I just find Arwen very beautiful but you have a different kind of beauty. You're beautiful in your own right. I love your hair against my skin; the color of your eyes reminds me of a summer sky, your skin is flawless, and your muscles are powerful when we make love. I'm not a perfect person and for whatever reason I stray, I want you to straighten me out. I have found a reason to live in the person standing before me. I love you with all my heart, never forget that." Aragorn had tears falling from his eyes. Just saying them brought relief to the tense muscles that he was holding inside.

"I will help you as you will help me. I love you too. Our love is special to me as it is to Middle Earth. Without our love for one another, neither one of us would be here right now. So we will be truthful to our feelings. We can't bottle these things up inside ourselves. So I promise to help you." Legolas brought his hands up to Aragorn's face and wiped the tears away.

"I agree with you. We will help each other out during our lives together. It's going to be a long life so we better make it last." Aragorn kissed the fingers that erased the tears. It felt good to say these things. The heaviness on his chest was not as great as it was before their talk. He sighed with relief. "How about we go outside and enjoy this beautiful day? Let's go to the training fields and see what's up."

With that, Estel took Legolas by the hand and led him outside. Legolas wiped the tears from his eyes. He knew Estel was right.

The air outside was wonderful. Estel pulled Legolas by the hand and led him to the practice fields. “Guess what? My Adar told me that before I become King, he wants me to train. So that’s why I brought you here. I know you have trained with some of these men and elves before. I want you to train me on how to use a bow. I have some knowledge from my brothers but I want someone who could truly train me. I have heard of you and your bow. First I will go to Glorfindel and we can train with swords then we can do the bow. I think we need a distraction.” He looked at his love standing by him.

Legolas did not let go of his hand. In fact, he brought it up to his lips and kissed them. He looked deep into his love’s eyes and winked. This put a smile on his lover’s face.

Estel looked around at the soldiers training and spotted Glorfindel and Haldir. He knew they would be here. He tugged on Legolas’ hand and they ran to them.

“My Lord,” he said. “I am here to ask something of you.”

“What is this? You two are outside! I thought you would be getting used to the idea of being bonded. You were not to do anything for a week. Both of you have to get used to this bond that you both share.”

“We are doing just that. We came outside to enjoy this beautiful morning. Imladris is the best place to do that. I just spoke to Adar. He thought it would be best if I started training with swords. He said if I was to be king, then I would have to start soon. Would it be all right if we watch from the sidelines? This way we could spend some time together and also watch the men and learn.”

“I guess it would be all right. What about you, Haldir?” Glorfindel asked.

“It’s alright with me. It would be good for them. Estel needs to put some muscle tone on his body if he is to heal better and also to improve his strength. Legolas, on the other hand, could build some self-esteem in himself. His appearance is like a child in elf clothing.” Haldir gave Legolas a wink. This seemed to perk him up a bit.

"Alright, you can watch from the sidelines. Be here at dawn. If you have any questions, just ask.” Glorfindel said. “By next week I will have weapons for you.” With that, Glorfindel and Haldir left them standing there and continued with the practice.

“This is good news. We can put a blanket under a tree and watch the men. After we practice with the men, you can then teach me to use the bow.” Estel looked at Legolas. This put a smile on the elf’s face. Legolas also gave Estel’s hand a squeeze.

They went back to their room and played a game of chess to pass the afternoon. Then they went to the Hall of Fire for some food. As they entered there at the head table was Arwen. She was on Lord Elrond’s left. Estel looked at her with adoration. Legolas felt this and gave his hand a squeeze. The man beside him looked into the elf’s eyes. There he saw pain. He gave Legolas a peck on the cheek and smiled.

“Don’t worry, my love. I will be careful.” //If I behave badly, you can spank me later.//

These last words put a look of shock on the elf’s face. That was when he seen the glint in the man’s eyes. This put a smile on his face. //I will do more than spank you, my love!//

This put a smile on Estel’s face. //I can’t wait!// He brought up Legolas’ hand and kissed his fingers.

They went to the head table, bowed and took a seat on the right side of Lord Elrond.

“Adar, we would like to speak to you after supper if that’s all right. Legolas and I have made a decision.” Estel said this last part in a whisper.

“Yes, that would be fine. I want to talk to both of you, too.”

They enjoyed all the congratulations from everyone who gathered in the hall. Many had great words of wisdom. Both Legolas and Estel listened with great enthusiasm. This was new to them both. Even women spoke to them of love they experienced in their lives.

“Estel, I want to introduce you to Arwen, Elrond’s daughter,” Legolas said.

“Adar’s daughter? I thought he just had the two boys! I did not know he also had a daughter.”

“Since you were brought to us by your mother, I have resided in Lothlórien. I wanted to make my presence known to you on your bonding day. Galadriel is my grandmother. I want to congratulate your bonding of two wonderful loves.” She placed a kiss on each of their foreheads. She somehow lingered longer on Estel’s.

The kindest words came from Arwen. She spoke as if she had been in love once before.

It was her beauty that made Estel swoon. It was easy to make a man’s heart weak, but there was an easier way to an elf’s. It was through the love that was not spoken. It was as if she lived a thousand years and had seen many things in her life. When she finished, Estel was speechless. Legolas had a hard time pulling him out of the fascination she had placed on him with her beauty. Legolas ended up pinching his arm.

“What was that for, meleth!” Estel said, rubbing his arm. Then he looked into the elf’s eyes. He knew. He had seen that hurt look before. //I’m sorry, meleth. I did not realize I was doing it again.// He took hold of Legolas’ hand and kissed his fingers. This was a reassuring way of keeping their love for one another true. It was a small gesture but to them it kept the bond in tact. As long as they were touching each other, they felt safe. This love was knew to both of them and they never wanted to let it go.

They excused themselves from Arwen. “I’m sorry, Lady Arwen, but we have some business with your father.” They both bowed and left the hall.

*****

tbc