Chapter 2: Desire
The sun had already sunk behind the horizon and the lands looked dark and foreboding, when the party of elves and one human stopped for the night. They had ridden hard that day, but their desire to finally leave the Misty Mountains behind had spurred them on, so that they had ridden even after night had fallen. They had made good progress, left the last stony outcroppings of the mountains behind and had reached the open plains that would lead them to the Anduin and the fort.
A strong wind blew down from the mountains, and as Aragorn dismounted, he shivered slightly. While it was still relatively warm over day, while the sun shone, the nights were already bitterly cold. In the mornings, white frost glittered on the grass and in spider webs, but so far no snow had fallen and the party was certain that it would not do so for the next few weeks at least.
The place where they had stopped was nothing more than a fairly even path of grass, lined by some small trees. To one side, rocks protected them from the wind, while the trees on the other side would shield them from animals or unfriendly eyes. The ground was mossy at some places, while Aragorn could see gravel mar the grass in others.
Stretching, Aragorn tried to work the stiffness out of his legs and back, before he guided his horse towards the tiny puddle of water between some trees, where the other horses already drank greedily. The puddle could not be called 'pond' or even 'lake', but it would do. His horse drank from the water, making gulping sounds, and Aragorn felt his own stomach rumble. They had not stopped for lunch that day but rode on, so that they would finally reach the plains, and the young man felt the missed the meal keenly. After all, his young mortal body was still growing and he was hungry most of the times.
With a sigh, Aragorn rummaged in his saddlebags for something to eat, for he knew that the evening meal was still many hours away. First they would have to secure the camp, then built a camp, make fire and then cook something. If they took the time to cook. Aragorn had not been on many trips yet. His brothers had taken him hunting and he had spend some time with the Dunedain, but those trips had only lasted a few days at most. Although they had not cooked on those occasions, they had always had enough food to eat. Good food.
But this journey to Mirkwood was different, and Aragorn could not help but think of the fine meals he was used to in his father's halls. Since they had left Imladris, they had only made fires to make some tea or to keep the night at bay, but they had so far not cooked once. He had asked Legolas why that was so, but the Prince had only shrugged and answered that cooking needed a lot of time and utensils, and they had neither in the evenings. Apparently, eating dried and salted meat, fruits, berries, nuts and sometimes, when they were really hungry, the elvish waybread lembas, was enough for the elves.
Now, many weeks into the journey, Aragorn found himself more and more often daydreaming about the meals in Rivendell. He yearned for some warm venison or a good stew, and although he had not thought it possible, he began to truly dislike lembas. The elves seemed to like it, but he thought it tasted like dust. Very fine dust, but still…dust. It was dry and crumbly, and after only one bite he felt sated. Should eating not be something to enjoy?
His stomach gave another rumble, and Aragorn dug deeper into his saddlebag. Somewhere in there had to be an apple…His arm disappeared up to his elbow in the bag, and finally his fingers closed around the apple he had been looking for. With a triumphant 'haha' Aragorn withdrew his hands. The apple looked a bit worse for the wear, having lain in his saddlebag for a few weeks now, but it was still eatable. Wiping some dirt from it with the sleeve of his tunic, Aragorn was just to take a bite, when a hand was placed on his shoulder.
"Are we nibbling again while the rest of us is working?" Legolas's voice said close to his ear, and Aragorn let his hand that held the apple sink. He looked around, and saw that the elves had already begun to set up the camp. The other horses had been brushed down already, bedrolls unfolded and some yards away the ground had been freed of dry leaves and needles so that a fire could be built. Everyone seemed to be busy with his tasks.
Swallowing, Aragorn shook his head, feeling a bit guilty about his egoism. He had tasks that needed to be done, too, like searching for fire wood and feeding the horses. He lifted the apple again and made a step to the side, "I was feeding my horse", he said, giving the apple to his horse, who devoured the fine fruit eagerly. There it went, his delicious apple. Aragorn tried hard not to glare resentfully at his horse.
Behind him, Legolas laughed musically, but when Aragorn turned around, the elf had already left his side and was making his way over to the other elves to speak about the watch. With a final sigh, Aragorn patted his horse on its long neck. "At least you have had something tasty tonight." And with that said, he took up the reins and led his horse over to the others and started to brush it down. The sooner he finished his tasks, the sooner he could eat something. Even if the food tasted like dust.
Later that evening, when they all sat around the low burning fire, their stomachs filled with dried meat and lembas, washed down by some bitter tasting tea, Legolas poked his elbow into Aragorn's side. "What do you say Estel, shall we scout the perimeter tonight?"
Every evening, two of the group would scout the surroundings before they went to sleep, to make sure that no dangers lurked in the dark. Of course, that was no fool-proof way to make sure that they were safe, but it was always a nice opportunity to stretch the legs at the end of the day. With a nod, Aragorn got to his feet, buckled his sword and drew his dark cloak tighter around his shoulders. Together with Legolas, he left the warm fire behind and a few steps later the darkness swallowed them.
Aragorn could hear the leaves crunch under his feet, and every time he tread on a dead branch which snapped loudly under his weight, he flinched. He had never truly mastered the art of moving as soundlessly of the elves, and his steps sounded loud in his ears in comparison to Legolas's almost soundless movements. They walked for many minutes, letting their eyes roam the dark plains and few trees around them. All was quiet and nothing stirred that concerned them. An owl hooted sadly in the distance, and the tiny feet of mice scurried through the long grasses, but neither Legolas nor Aragorn saw or heard anything that worried them. When they had walked for almost half an hour and circled the perimeter of their camp once, Legolas stopped in his tracks.
Turning around to look at Aragorn, he said softly, "I cannot see any danger lurking in the dark. At least nothing that should worry us overly much."
Aragorn nodded his consent; he had seen nothing out of the ordinary either, although he was sure that, with his limited human eyesight, he had barely seen the half of what Legolas's sharp eyes had been able to make out. "Neither have I," he said softly, his warm breath frosting in the cool air. "We should go back." He turned around, ready to make his way back to the warm fire and his bedroll, but Legolas's hand gripped his upper arm and stopped him.
"Wait." Legolas said, still speaking softly. Immediately concerned that Legolas had sensed something that he had not, Aragorn turned around and gazed at Legolas's face, "What is it Legolas?"
Before Aragorn knew what was happening, Legolas grabbed his other arm too, pulled him close and pressed his lips on Aragorn's. It was an eager kiss, full of unfulfilled promises, and Aragorn keenly felt the closeness of Legolas's body. The elf held him so close, than there was no space left between them, and Aragorn could feel Legolas's chest move with every quick breath the elf took.
Responding to the kiss, Aragorn placed his arms around Legolas, holding him close, and in that moment, he suddenly realized that it had been weeks since he and Legolas had been intimate with each other. While he had been traveling, sleeping in another place each evening and worrying about wolves, orcs and yes, Mirkwood, Aragorn had not felt the absence of their shared intimacy. This journey had just been too interesting, too exciting. But now, holding Legolas close and feeling his warm tongue lick his lips, brush his teeth, Aragorn felt the pent up desire and lust flood his body. His kisses became more eager, demanding even. And it seemed that Legolas felt the same.
The elf pressed Aragorn tighter against his chest, sucking the young man's bottom lip sweetly. When Aragorn sighed, Legolas pushed his tongue forwards and past Aragorn's lips. He swirled his tongue around for a moment, before he stroked the roof of the man's mouth. Aragorn shuddered, his hands clenching Legolas's cloak. A moment later, Aragorn answered the kiss even more eagerly, wanting to taste Legolas, feel his warmth. He released one of his hands from Legolas's cloak to stroke the elf's face. Legolas shifted at the touch, clearly enjoying it. Aragorn reached up and touched Legolas's ears, letting the tips of his fingers caress gently over the tip of Legolas's left ear. The reaction was immediate.
Suddenly, Aragorn felt Legolas's hands let go of his arm, only to cup his face tightly. Legolas intensified the kiss even more, kissing Aragorn so eagerly that the young man had barely time to gulp in some much needed air. When had his heart begun to beat that fast? A moment later, Aragorn felt Legolas push him backwards, their feet stumbled on twigs and branches, and then Aragorn felt a thick tree trunk in his back.
For one shocking moment Aragorn was reminded of a similar moment in the woods of Imladris a few months back, when another elf from Mirkwood had pushed him against a tree, just like Legolas had just done. But (not without an extreme effort) Aragorn chased those memories away, and concentrated on the here and now.
Legolas kissed him again, biting his bottom lip gently, while his hands rushed down the sides of Aragorn's body, only to come to rest on his hips, his fingers hugging under Aragorn's leather belt. Almost immediately Aragorn felt a well known warmth center in his stomach, before it travelled down to settle between his legs. He groaned, unconsciously parting his legs to accommodate his lover.
Legolas quickly took the opportunity. Breathing shallowly, he caressed the side of Aragorn's left leg, before he moved his hand around the thigh. Instinctively, Aragorn lifted his leg from the ground and Legolas placed his hand behind the knee to lift it even further while his body moved forwards, settling him between Aragorn's legs. When their middles touched, both groaned softly, finally breaking the kiss.
They both felt the reaction and needs of their bodies keenly, the rush of adrenalin in their systems, the heat they radiated, and when their eyes locked, they saw their own emotions reflect in the other's eyes. Legolas rotated his hips slightly, causing Aragorn to hiss and close his eyes. The young man tilted his head backwards when Legolas pushed against him and exposed his neck. Soon hot kisses wetted the skin on Aragorn's neck, and without thinking Aragorn placed his hands on Legolas's behind, squeezing the tight buttocks.
His breath was loud in his ears, but he could not stop thinking about the fact that one of the other elves could hear them or even go looking for them because they had been away from camp for so long. But then Legolas groaned and shifted against him once more, his free hand tugging at the leather straps that held his breeches closed. Legolas mumbled something incomprehensively, then brushed his nose against Aragorn's in what had become their secret sign of desire and the willingness to make love…and all reasonable thought left Aragorn's mind while he slowly slid down the trunk.
Their love making was hurried and rushed, full of desire and pure lust. Never before had either of them found his release that quickly, and it was as if their chastity of the previous weeks and the risk of being discovered had spurred their bodies into action. But the rush of their union had not made it less enjoyable, on the contrary. Legolas seemed to radiate with happiness, and his natural elven glow illuminated his face in the darkness. Aragorn felt his own body tingle form head to toe, and he could not help but grin stupidly.
They pulled up their leggings and righted their closing, brushed needles and grass from their clothing and picked leaves out of their hair, before they inspected their appearance one more time. Neither of them knew how much time had passed since they had left the camp. While they had not stayed away overly long, they knew that they had been away longer than was usual for a nightly patrol. Legolas reached out and picked a small leaf out of Aragorn's locks, before he nodded his head. "We should go back."
Aragorn nodded, but instead of turning towards the camp, he stepped up to Legolas and kissed him gently, sensually. Tilting his head to the side, he then brushed his thumb slowly over Legolas's red lips. A smile stole on his features and his eyes sparkled in the darkness. Aragorn's voice was barely a whisper when he said, "It seems my horse was not the only one who got something tasty tonight."
Legolas gazed at him questioningly, but Aragorn simply took his hand and led him into the direction of the camp. As soon as they saw the first orange glow of the fire appear between the trees they let go of the other's hand and they unconsciously moved away from each other. Most of the elves had already gone to 'bed' when they arrived, and those who had not merely nodded at their return, before they returned to their conversation. It seemed that they had either not been away that long, or the elves really did not know or suspect that they were not mere friends.
When Aragorn settled down for the night, still feeling warm and sated, he closed his eyes tiredly. Riding hard all day had already tired him, but this rushed love making had worn him out completely. His last thought before he fell asleep mere moments after he had bedded his head on one of his packs was, that he wished Legolas would hold him now, like he used to do after they had loved each other.
To be continued.
