Disclaimer: I do not own…though I wish I did.

A/N: This is a month of firsts for me as this is my very first foray into Lord of the Rings territory. I hope I did the characters justice. Enjoy.

For Love and Duty

The first time Arwen laid eyes on Haldir of Lothlorien, she grabbed her Ada by the sleeve of his long robes and exclaimed, "Ada, is he one of the Valar?" Lord Elrond had simply laughed and replied, "No, my star, that is the new March Warden, Haldir." The name rang through her ears and thrilled her with the simplicity of its rhythm. "Well if he is not one of the Valar, Ada, he must surely be blessed by them for he is almost as lovely as you are!" Behind them, Glorfindel let loose a peal of delighted laughter and bent down to kiss her nose before swinging her up into his strong arms.

"Haldir," Glorfindel exclaimed, "come meet your Lord and Lady's youngest grandchild! Perhaps once she's had a taste of your haughty ways she will be less enamored of you!" Arwen watched as the platinum haired warrior strode over to their small group. To both Elrond and Glorfindel, he bowed respectfully and murmured, "Welcome to Lothlorien, my lords. The Lord and Lady of these fair woods eagerly await your presence."

Then he turned his attention to Arwen, still caught up in Glorfindel's arms, and took her small hand in his calloused one, bowing low over it and intoning in a mildly playful manner, "My Lady bade me give an especially warm welcome to her beloved granddaughter and urge you to remember that the Golden Wood shall ever be open to one as enchanting as you." Arwen, unable to free herself from Haldir's dark blue eyes, could only nod helplessly. Elrond exchanged a wry glance with his Seneschal, commenting dryly, "If that is the taste of his haughtiness, I fear that too much more of it will have us dragging her kicking and screaming back to Imladris!"

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