Theme #92 of the 100 Themes Challenge: Yuletide (originally Christmas, changed to fit Tolkien's elves).

"The rooms are ready, my Lord," the builder announced, walking through the doorway that connected the renovated guest rooms to Ereinion's chambers. Just in time! Ereinion grinned and followed the elf into the apartment that had been converted for Elrond.

These rooms were a pathetically long time coming. When Elrond had first come to Lindon he had stayed in these guest rooms, and had done so until he and Thranduil became a couple, when they began sharing the guest rooms that had been allocated to the woodland prince. Ever since then these rooms had been occupied by Gildor, who was using them until he bought a small house for himself. This arrangement worked for everyone until Thranduil and Elrond started to have relationship troubles, and Elrond walked out. With the rooms he usually stayed in occupied, his brother in Númenor and Erestor and Celebrían away on a training exercise, he had had nowhere to stay for the night, and ended up camping on the beach. The memory of that day still made Ereinion cringe. It had been a huge oversight on his part, and he could not believe that he had not realised that Elrond had no rooms of his own sooner.

Even though Elrond and Thranduil were back together, Ereinion had not wanted the same thing to happen twice. Gildor had recently found a house and moved out and Ereinion had wasted no time in having renovation plans drawn up to convert the guest rooms into an apartment for Elrond. The builders had done a very good job at doing so.

The wall separating the antechamber and study had been knocked down, making one large sitting room; the fireplace had been expanded, the small windows were replaced with glass doors that led out onto a balcony overlooking the sea and two picture windows were added either side of the doors. A two-person lounge, a coffee table and two overstuffed armchairs had been placed in front of the fireplace. Two massive bookcases stood against the south wall, to the side of the door to Ereinion's apartments, and a desk and comfortable chair were placed in front of these. On the other side of the door was a coat rack and the door to the main corridor. The generic wall tapestries had been replaced with paintings that Ereinion knew Elrond liked, and the walls were painted in the same pale turquoise green that his childhood rooms had been painted.

A new bed had been made, twice as big as the old one, and laid with a soft feather mattress. The four-poster had thin gold lace curtains and a silken bedspread the same colour as the walls, with gold embroidery. The bedroom also had west-facing picture windows, and a large wardrobe and matching chest of drawers had been placed to one side of these. On the other side of the windows was a door that led to the bathroom, which had also been expanded and re-tiled, and now contained a sunken bath almost as big as Ereinion's own swimming-pool sized tub. All of the furniture in the apartment was made from high-quality dark brown wood, which complimented the uniform gold-and-turquoise colour scheme beautifully.

The rooms were fully furnished and decorated, and all that Elrond would need to do was move his clothes and personal effects and belongings in. Ereinion rubbed his hands together. He could not wait until Elrond saw these. He thanked and complimented the builders, and wrote them each a cheque for their work which they could redeem from the royal treasury. They left to prepare for the Yule celebrations and Ereinion took one last look around the rooms and then did the same.

"Elrond!" Ereinion called when the vigil finished. Elrond and Thranduil had turned to go inside, presumably to sleep for a few hours until the rest of the festivities began. The wood-elf was yawning, but Elrond showed no outward signs of fatigue.

Elrond stopped and turned at the sound of his name. "My Lord?"

Ereinion caught up to the couple and bid Thranduil a good morning, then turned to the half-elf. "Can you meet me in my chambers in ten minutes? There's something that requires your immediate attention. It won't take long."

"You're going to make him work? It's Yule!" Thranduil raised his eyebrows at the King.

Elrond laughed. "It's alright; it will take no more than an hour. And then I'm all yours, I promise."

Thranduil grudgingly accepted this. Elrond turned to the King. "I will be there."

The High King nodded and Elrond and Thranduil turned to go inside. Ereinion headed for a different entrance to the palace, and then went to his rooms to change and wait for Elrond.

Exactly seven minutes later, Elrond, who had changed into pale blue and silver robes and braided his hair, pushed open the door of Ereinion's chambers and stepped inside, holding a brightly wrapped parcel carefully concealed behind his back. The King glanced up from his place on the lounge and smiled when he saw Elrond.

"Right on time, as usual." He rose to properly greet the younger elf. "I hope Thranduil doesn't mind me borrowing you?"

Elrond shook his head with a small laugh. "No, he knows it isn't a booty call. At any rate, he is sleeping."

"And you are not? I thought he would need less sleep than you."

Elrond shrugged. "I slept a lot the night before last, and Thranduil is still tired from his journey from Mithlond. He only got back yesterday evening, and couldn't sleep because of the feast."

"Oh, of course," Ereinion nodded. "I had forgotten that he went to Mithlond."

"Before we discuss whatever it was that you wanted to discuss, I have something to give you." Elrond revealed the parcel that he held behind his back. With a smile he offered it to the King. "This is for you."

It was wrapped in a square of red and gold Haradrim silk, and for a moment Ereinion was more concerned with the wrapping than the actual gift. "Oh, wow," he breathed, running his fingers over the fabric. "Where did you get this?"

"Erestor," Elrond replied. "He was using it to wrap some of his Yule gifts and that was left over so he said I could have it."

"It's gorgeous. I'm not sure I want to open the gift now," Ereinion joked. "Is it better than the wrapping?"

Elrond laughed. "I certainly hope so!"

Ereinion carried the parcel over to the fire and sat down cross-legged on the hearth rug. He carefully unwrapped the gold ribbon and unfolded the silk. Carefully laid in the centre of the fabric were art supplies: bottles of paint in almost every colour, brand new paintbrushes in various sizes, four sticks of charcoal, some canvas, and a leather-bound art notebook. Everything was beautifully made and of the highest quality and for a moment Ereinion was speechless.

"You never draw anymore," Elrond said softly, kneeling next to the King. "You used to, all the time."

"I did," Ereinion whispered, tracing the embossed pattern on the cover of the notebook. He carefully lifted it all up by the sides of the silk and set it on the carpet in front of him, and then turned and wrapped Elrond in a tight embrace.

"Thank you," he murmured into Elrond's hair as a few tears threatened to spill out. He had not even noticed that he had stopped drawing until Elrond had mentioned it just now. When they were younger, as sure as Elrond would always have a book to read, Ereinion would always have a notebook and a stick of charcoal, and would sketch anything he could find. However, for the first few years after his coronation, he had had no time to think of anything but his duties, and then was too tired at night to do anything but sleep. Since then he was less tired but he seemed to always have a trade agreement or report to read over or was with company, and drawing never crossed his mind. He forgot how much he loved it and did not realise how much he missed it. "You're the only one who would notice something like that."

"I know," Elrond replied with a smile as he returned the embrace. "You're welcome."

Ereinion drew back and wiped his eyes with a small laugh. "The gift was definitely better than the wrapping," he said with a smile. Collecting his new art supplies and the square of silk, he stood and set them carefully on the coffee table. "It is very pretty, though. I might hang it somewhere."

Elrond came to stand by the King. "Erestor said that you can hang it, it just has to be sewn around the edges so that it doesn't fray over time."

"Good thing my sister is a talented seamstress, then," Ereinion said. He smiled at Elrond. "Right, my turn. Close your eyes."

Elrond frowned. "I thought there was something that needed my attention?"

"There is. Your Yuletide gift."

Elrond laughed and closed his eyes. Ereinion took a hold of the half-elf's shoulders and carefully guided him towards the door that would lead to his new chambers.

"Okay, stop for a second. Keep your eyes closed."

Elrond obliged and Ereinion opened the door, then returned to Elrond's side and led him through. "Alright, open your eyes."

Elrond did so, and they immediately widened when he saw the room. "Oh, wow."

Ereinion smiled. "They are all yours."

Elrond turned to the king, surprised. "Mine? These are your guest rooms."

"Not anymore," Ereinion replied with a shake of his head. "We have other guest rooms that are just as nice as these ones were," he shrugged. "And quite honestly, I care more about your happiness and comfort than any high-profile guests that I might get."

"I am honoured," Elrond laughed. He walked around the sitting room, looking at the paintings and tapestries and familiarising himself with the layout, trailing his hands over the furniture as he went. When he reached the door to the bedroom he opened it, glanced inside, and then looked at Ereinion with a mischievous look in his eyes. Ereinion moved towards him, wondering what he was going to do. The half-elf took a couple of steps back and then suddenly ran into the room and took a flying leap onto the bed, laughing as he landed. Ereinion stopped at the door and laughed also.

"I take it you like it?"

"I love it. It's so comfortable!" he sat up and took in the size of the bed. "And huge. I'm not going to need this much room!"

Ereinion shrugged and walked over to the bed. "Luxury over practicality, that's my motto."

Elrond chuckled and got up, fixing his hair and robes and the bedspread. "Everything is beautiful, Ereinion." He slid his arms around the King's waist and embraced him tightly. "I love them. Thank you."

"You're welcome," Ereinion smiled. "They're a little late, and I am so sorry that they were not here when you needed them."

Elrond closed his eyes against the memory. "Well, hopefully something like that won't happen again."

He pulled away and walked back into the sitting room, glancing up at the high vaulted ceiling. "They look so different. How long did the renovations take?"

"A couple of months. It was only finished yesterday morning."

"Yesterday? I hope you paid the workers overtime!" Elrond said with a cheeky grin.

"Of course," Ereinion replied, one hand over his heart and pretending to be hurt. Elrond raised an eyebrow at him and the King laughed, coming to stand next to Elrond. He slid an arm around the half-elf's waist.

"What did Thranduil get you?"

"Oh, I see what this is. You're checking to see if you've outdone him, aren't you?" Elrond looked up at the taller elf, eyes sparkling. He knew that it was not the King's intent to try and be better than Thranduil, but it was a running joke between them that he secretly was.

"Well, he probably has, you know," Ereinion said. "He built you a whole palace, didn't he? Oh, I knew it."

Laughing, Elrond shook his head. "No, he didn't actually."

"What? What are you staying with him for, then?"

Elrond whacked Ereinion lightly on the arm. "You are so materialistic!"

"I know," Ereinion replied with a sweet smile.

Elrond laughed. "He got me two books on the healing properties of coastal plants that I've had my eye on for ages, and this." He put his head down and indicated the leaf-shaped hairclip that was holding his braids in place.

"That's nice," Ereinion said, lightly tracing the outline of the clip. "Is that what he went to Mithlond for?"

Elrond straightened up and nodded. "I had a bow made for him, because his other one broke on the journey back from Greenwood."

"Broke?" Greenwood bows did not just break. "What happened?"

"He had his bow over his shoulder, and a squirrel ran in front of his horse and she bucked. He got thrown off and landed flat on his back, and snapped the bow in three places."

"Ouch."

"Yeah. We went to see if it could be fixed, but it couldn't. So I had him a new one made. It was hard convincing him to not buy himself a new one."

"How did you do it?"

"Well, I told him that Lindon, unlike Greenwood, was exceedingly safe, there are no orcs in the immediate vicinity because they don't like the ocean and that the palace is almost impregnable. And then I said that we're on holiday and I don't plan on doing any weapons training while we're here. I think it worked. At any rate, he didn't buy a new bow."

Ereinion nodded. "Well, I would be convinced."

Elrond chuckled. After a moment he sighed and said quietly, "I should get back."

Ereinion reluctantly agreed. "Alright, but before you go there's something else I need to show you."

They moved back towards the door and Elrond registered that they had come through from Ereinion's chambers. "They're connected to yours!"

"Mm-hmm." Ereinion glanced at the half-elf. "Is that a problem? I can have that door taken out if-"

Elrond halted the King's speech by pressing a finger to Ereinion's lips. "I don't mind." He smiled ruefully. "Thranduil might, though." He took his finger away from Ereinion's lips and was surprised when the King smiled.

"Ah. I thought he might," Ereinion said. "So I had this put in." He indicated a tapestry that was rolled up above the door to his rooms. "This is what I was going to show you, anyway."

He moved over to the door and closed it, and then took a hold of a cord that Elrond had not noticed and unrolled the tapestry so that the door was completely concealed. Ereinion then tucked the cord behind it and rejoined the half-elf. "There. He never has to know."

Elrond grinned. "That is impressively sneaky. Thank you."

The King laughed. "I aim to please."

Elrond hugged the King again, and pressed a chaste kiss to the taller elf's cheek when he drew away. "I should really be getting back. He probably won't be awake, but I don't want him to wake up without me - he'll get suspicious at your keeping me in your chambers for so long. Even though at the moment we're not in your chambers."

"It's okay, I understand," Ereinion replied. He added silently, I understand, but I don't like it. Sometimes I get the opinion that he wants you to be chained to his side. And you think I'm just being paranoid but I don't trust him.

"I will see you at lunch."

It was not a question, but Ereinion nodded anyway. "Yes."

Elrond graced the King with one last small smile, and left his new apartment to return to Thranduil's temporary quarters. The door shut behind him and Ereinion sighed, lightly touching his face where Elrond had kissed him.

If he ever hurts you again, he'll answer directly to me. He sincerely hoped that Thranduil would not do anything to hurt Elrond, but he could not deny that a small part of him wished for that to happen, so that he could have Elrond for his own. Ereinion closed his eyes and pushed his feelings away. He had made a promise a long time ago to be whatever Elrond needed him to be, and if he only wanted Ereinion to be a friend, then Ereinion would only be a friend.

But that would not stop him from watching Thranduil like a hawk, and as soon as the Greenwood prince made a mistake, Ereinion would seize his chance and step in.

A prequel and sequel to this will eventually be written, and the prequel will better explain why Elrond having no rooms of his own was such an issue.

Just to clarify, Ereinion is not being protective just to get in Elrond's pants, he being protective because he does not want Elrond to be hurt again (however, if the opportunity to get in Elrond's pants presents itself, he won't say no ;)). Thranduil, on the other hand, is overprotective and jealous.