Disclaimer: I do not own Lord of the Rings. (Except for a copy of the book, which I haven't read. I mean I've read it just not that particular copy. And I did have the extended versions of the movies, but I sold them, so I don't even have that anymore.)
This is a sequel of sorts to my fic The Worst of Evils, with a 100% less OCs (well he gets mentioned) and this won't make much sense if you haven't read that. I wasn't going to write anything more about this, but these things never quite work out as planned.
This takes place during the Fellowship of the Ring. They're in Moria.
Contains mentions of slashy things.
It was Gimli's turn to stand watch as the Fellowship found their rest. Though he feared what had happened to his kin, he felt some joy at seeing this place that was now called Moria.
He considered each member of the resting Fellowship in turn. Gandalf had not wished to come here, though he had passed through the mines before. The men found the darkness stifling and threatening. The hobbits were afraid, sleeping close to each other. None of them could see the beauty of this place, of what it had once been.
His gaze turned to the elf, sitting on his bedroll, barely visible in the darkness. Whether he was awake or not Gimli could not tell, he knew elves did not sleep in the same manner as mortals. The elf's gaze seemed fixed somewhere in the darkness and what thoughts the elf had of this place Gimli could not begin to guess at. Most likely the elf could not appreciate the beauty of these mines any more than the others.
As if the elf had sensed Gimli's eyes on him, he suddenly turned his eyes toward the dwarf. The elf rose up and walked over to sit next to Gimli.
"If you would wish to rest I can stand watch in your stead," the elf said in low tones as not to disturb the others. "I cannot find any rest in this place."
"Leave it to an elf to be so frightened by caves," Gimli said disdainfully but matching the elf's low tones, slightly affronted on the behalf of his kind.
"You misunderstand me Master Dwarf," Legolas said quietly, "the caves themselves do not frighten me. What we might find here does," he admitted, "but that is not the reason for why I can find no rest here."
"Do you find them so displeasing then that you cannot enter your elven dreams here?"
"I can see the beauty of the work wrought here just as well as you Gimli son of Gloin. Just because it is not made by elven hands does not make it less beautiful, there is beauty in the strangest of places," the elf's voice sounded quiet and haunted.
Gimli looked at the elf in surprise, he had not truly expected the wood-elf to find anything here to be worth notice.
"Then what is it that disturbs you so?" Gimli asked gruffly, but not without compassion. He felt slightly more generous toward the elf at the moment, since he was the only one of the Fellowship to acknowledge the work his people had put into this place and to do so with honesty.
"Memories," he answered quietly. "Are you wedded, Gimli?" The elf asked in what seemed to Gimli a startling change of subject.
"I am not," he answered mystified.
"Ah," the elf stated eloquently. "I wish hervenn nín was here."
"Husband?" Gimli asked in surprise, he was not well versed in any of the elven languages, but he did recognise that word.
"It does not offend you I hope. I have known people to take offence at such things."
"What elves do with each other is of no consequence to a dwarf," Gimli dismissed the matter. Certainly he was surprised at the admission from the elf, not so much that he was wedded to a male, who knew what such strange creatures as elves did and Gimli knew of such pairings among his own kind where females where rare. What surprised him was that the elf was wedded, he had to the dwarf seemed a bit too carefree and simply did not seem the kind to be married.
"That is a good thing then."
"Is that why you have not told the others?" Gimli asked out of curiosity.
"In part," Legolas admitted. "Also it is simply not something that I ever thought I needed to tell, others of my kind will know I am wed without my telling."
Gimli nodded, he supposed that it made sense that the elf felt no need to declare such a thing if that was true.
"Now, since you do not seem inclined to find rest Master Dwarf, I would ask you to tell me about this place as it used to be. I think I would like to see it through your eyes."