WARNING: This chapter contains sexual situations

Chapter 8: A Promise

Greenwood's new Prince stood upon the deck of the ship, watching the waves, as he seemed to almost every night now. For the first time since their teens, the future for he and his beloved seemed clouded to him. This feeling he'd only felt once before, and the memory of that conversation was not helping the state of his body or his mind.


"Ceres," Legolas had began awkwardly.

She turned her gaze from the waves lapping upon the sand. But he did not immediately continue. They had wandered down the beach to the cove they called their secret hideaway, where they could get away from parents' watchful eyes and just be together. Ceres thought she had some idea what Legolas was going to say, he had been trying to say it for the past hour as they sat looking out over the cove.

Legolas sighed, having given up again on what it was he so desperately wanted to tell his Girlfriend. He lay back on the sand and linked his fingers behind his head, closing his eyes as his mind scrambled for the right words.

Ceres eyed him curiously. She had seen him shirtless many times, mostly when he and Scott were playing football on the beach, but also the many times he had stayed at their house when he visited her Brother. However it seemed more and more of late the sight sent her senses into overdrive. They had been 'courting', as her Mother put it, since she was fourteen and he sixteen. Not much more than handholding felt necessary for so long. They had of course shared kisses and cuddles while no one was around to disapprove as their relationship progressed, but Legolas had never asked for anything more than a kiss, always aware of her age. Two years could seem a huge age gap in such youth.

But she was now sixteen and was very aware of the changes she was feeling in both her body and mind when it came to Legolas. She was sure that he, now eighteen, had at least been thinking about sex. Probably a lot. He'd waited so long for her to catch him up in maturity, and she wanted to thank him for his patience by giving herself to him completely. Since her coming of age six months ago they had found it difficult to fight the pull between them, their kisses becoming more passionate and intoxicating. The sight of him like he is today making her body ache.

He sighed again. She watched his chest expand and fall. She eyed his golden unbound hair glinting upon the pale sand, his tense face as he no doubt wrestled with his conscience behind closed eyelids, his pale but glowing skin down to his low riding shorts. Her gaze lingered guiltily upon the dusting of barely existent hair leading a trail from his navel and disappearing into his shorts. Sadly, she mused, they were too long for her to ogle his muscled legs, ending just below his knees.

A surge of nervousness came upon her. It was irrational. She knew Legolas was as unpractised as she was despite his age. She pulled the ties out of her hair and ran her fingers through it roughly, then adjusting her summer dress to show her thighs a little more flatteringly she leaned herself over him and kissed him sweetly. His arms immediately encircled her, pulling her against him as he danced fluttering kisses over her face. "I think I understand your struggle my love," she whispered as her fingers twisted in his hair.

"It's going to change things between us Ceres," he trailed off as he kissed her temple, cradling her far too gently for her current design. Little did she know that her Boyfriend did not refer to the same thoughts as she.

"I know," she breathed between planting hot kisses upon his mouth. He was not taking the initiative so she slid herself atop him fully, slipping a thigh between his legs firmly.

His breath hitched and his hands gripped her sides. Before he could protest she kissed him again, and he gave in quite willingly. His previous train of thought had now been involuntarily abandoned. He let his hands roam her sides and back as they had done a few times previous, but he had never dared to touch her intimately, even through her clothes. Her leg against his core was maddening and he tried to justify its presence as accidental, but as she ground it against him he knew otherwise.

The sound of his groan lost in their kiss was so empowering that she felt her confidence grow and the hand roaming his neck and chest grasped one of his, placing it upon her buttocks. Breaking the kiss she moved her leg and sat up, straddling his torso and gazing down at his shocked expression with a sweet grin upon her face. His hand roamed from cupping her backside over her hip, pulling the fabric of her hem up even higher. His hand left her long enough only to slide beneath it and rest upon her hip teasingly. Who he was teasing he was unsure as his fingers traced the line of her knickers.

She leaned back a little, giving him better access to her centre, raking her fingernails lightly down his chest. His mind having left him completely, he reflexively mimicked her movements, running his fingertips, so softly, down the front of her underwear. Her eyelids fluttered shut as she moaned almost inaudibly. Overwhelmed by the sound of it, his fingers applied a firm pressure to her, needing to hear it again. Her volume increased as he had predicted but now she was rocking her hips against his hand.

He suddenly sat up, stopping her falling backwards with one arm as the other hand repositioned itself at a better angle and resumed its massage. One of her arms lay around his neck, pulling him to her as she threw back her head, her spare hand entwined in his hair. Placing his lips where she wanted them he tasted the skin of her neck and shoulders. With no free hands he grasped the strap of her dress between his teeth and yanked it off of her shoulder, his lips then continuing their southern path until he took one tiny raised nipple between his wet lips. His tongue circled it and he lapped hungrily at it, leaving it for its twin he felt no small amount of frustration at her dress still being a barrier on that side.

Ceres was fumbling clumsily between their bodies to feel the evidence of his want for her. She managed to loosen his shorts enough to snake her hand between his shorts and underwear. Unable to grasp him as she had intended she settled for stroking him roughly up and down with her palm, hoping the friction alone would be enough to give him some pleasure. It was after some minutes of mutual worship that his exploration of her breasts halted, he was becoming aware of how damp her underwear now was beneath his touch and was desperate to be inside it.

He haphazardly removed his Girlfriend's hand from his attire and flipped her clumsily onto her back. Her giggles at his obvious inexperience came to an abrupt end as he ground his hardness against her core. A desperate cry tore from her lips, then quickly she silenced herself, trying to regain some composure. She stared wantonly up at him and could not help but shiver at the dark hue his eyes had taken in his heightened arousal. She knew his loving, tender side. She knew his playful, cheeky side. Now she had seen his passionate, lustful side. And in that moment she knew she wanted to be with him eternally. Their love may have been innocent and unwavering all these years with every intention to be 'together forever' in a way that only children can promise, but seeing him this way made her glimpse the life partner he could be. Legolas as her friend had always been a certainty, but now she had seen a flash in her thoughts of Legolas as her Husband and she realised that she craved that as much as she did his body.

His lips crashed down upon her then, parting hers and his tongue filling her mouth forcefully. They each groped hungrily at the other's body, mewling into each other's mouths unashamedly. Tearing her mouth away from him she panted his name repeatedly, "Legolas, oh Legolas I can't wait any longer. I know it will hurt, but we have the rest of our life together to perfect it."

At the mention of their future Legolas sprung back as if she had struck him. He leapt to his feet and walked a few paces from her lying form, running his fingers through his hair and cursing repeatedly. Ceres felt panic grip her and rose to sit, rearranging her dress to cover her once more. Had she assumed too much in thinking that they would always be together? Did he think her too young even still? "I'm sorry!" she blurted out, not even knowing her reasoning, just that she must have done something to repulse him so.

He turned to her suddenly and crouched by her side, taking her hand between his he begged her, "No Ceres, my beautiful love, don't ever be. Forgive me I implore you. I should never have let it get so far, I am ashamed of myself for taking such advantage of you."

"Legolas," she sounded in frustration, "I am ready you know, I love you. You say you love me." She paused before adding simply, "I don't understand."

"Today is not the day for making such decisions," he removed his touch from hers for fear of getting dragged back into her.

Her brow only furrowed all the more. He sighed deeply again, the words had eluded him all afternoon but he would have to speak now. "I lied about my results. I got them a few days ago."

Ceres moved to see him better, somewhat excited for him initially, but his face was fallen and she feared the worst. "You did not get what you had hoped for? Oh baby you worked so hard, I'm sure it cannot be so bad" she placed a sympathetic hand upon his knee.

"A's across the board," Legolas mumbled.

Sitting up even straighter she beamed, "Legolas that's fantastic! I'm so proud of you!" embracing him tightly, she pulled back when he made no reaction.

"Now I have the final results, my future is set in stone. In September I will be moving to Oxford. I won't even have time to call you Ceres, if I'm going to keep up with the work I'm going to have to really get my head down."

Tears welled up in her but she refused to let them fall. Legolas had been applying to Oxford University since before Christmas. It wasn't like it was a shock, but for the first time his leaving was sure to happen.

"But," she stammered, "But we're supposed to be together."

She cringed inwardly at her own selfishness, how pitifully young she must have sounded to him then.

But he merely nodded silently. "Do you see Ceres, why we can't make love, not yet. Things might change for you while I'm away, I don't want you to regret it later."

"Are you thinking that we should give up? Are you breaking up with me?" she held her breath.

"No! I don't want that, do you?" he questioned nervously.

She shook her head in response and they both let out their breaths. Legolas turned to her and took her hand again. Any lusting had dissolved completely as they sat, hands clinging to each other nervously, their future standing upon the edge of a knife. "This will be a test of our love," Legolas spoke eventually, "If you still want to be with me when I come home at the end of the year I promise I will make love to you all summer long."

Ceres blushed and insisted, "I need not wait, for my heart will never falter. Let us celebrate the good news, and make the most of the time we have before you leave."

"Nor will mine, but it is the right thing to do. I will not risk your honour, knowing there will be this hardship ahead. If we can survive this first year, we know all will be well between us."

He watched as his Girlfriend mulled over his words, then he added, "I'd almost decided not to go, but I want to do well Ceres, I want to make you proud of me. It's just three years. Then when I have my degree I can get a great job and support us properly. I was hoping that we could think about getting married then. I know you'll still have two years left but, shit Ceres I don't want to scare you with it all, but I have this long term plan and I know we're still so young but I know I want to marry you. I can spend three years away from you if I'm promised you for every moment of every day after that!"

She flung herself into his embrace and laughed a little at his nervous ranting. "I'm not afraid of spending the rest of my life with you silly, and I am already proud of you. I can't wait to marry you. I'm going to miss you so much, but I would never forgive you if you turned down Oxford for me."

They resumed their previous comfortable sitting positions, side by side, hand in hand, looking out over the cove.

"Thank you," Legolas said at length.

At her silent question he replied, "For understanding why I have to go. And for loving me enough to let me and still be happy for me."

She squeezed his hand and smiled genuinely. For the first time since he applied for his University placement he felt like everything would turn out just fine and prayed that they would never feel this uncertainty again.