Betrayal

Eleniel: 16

"Fin!"

"Rhaich!"

Eleniel jumped back as a bottle of ink was knocked over, spilling black liquid on the documents the blond warrior had just finished signing. She managed to escape with only a few drops staining her beige leggings, but Glorfindel…

"You have it all over your tunic!"

"Oh, Eru…" the balrog-slayer moaned, shrugging his robe off and quickly pulling his shirt over his head, groaning as he saw it had made a black mark on his stomach.

Eleniel walked over to the desk and picked the ink bottle up, putting it to the side and quickly leafing through the pile of documents. "Three hours of reading and signing these have just vanished," she sighed, looking up at Glorfindel.

"Pe-channas!" the warrior all but shouted irritatingly, throwing the tunic onto his bed and moving over to the desk.

Eleniel's eyebrows furrowed. "Me?"

"Me! Erestor told me not to wear long robes around ink bottles, or things like… this will happen! He will kill me if he finds out I did exactly that."

"You didn't do it on purpose."

"I still did it! Do you promise me you will tell him something else happened if he asks?"

Eleniel scoffed. "Of course he'll ask-"

"Gwestog?"

"Why should I?" the elleth asked with a smirk, realising the ellon had reverted into using Elvish words in his desperation, something he and her father had in common.

Glorfindel's frown deepened and he stood up straight, muscles tensing, yet a familiar teasing glint found its way to his blue eyes. "Because if you do not, I shall have to punish you in the worst way I can think of."

"Are the documents si-" Erestor paused in his sentence as he walked into the room and saw the desk half-covered in black ink. He looked up at the young Peredhel and – shirtless? – balrog-slayer, eyebrows raising as he saw their looks of horror. "What happened?"

"Glorfindel knocked the ink bottle over with his robes," Eleniel told him quickly, eyes widening as she realised she had spoken the truth… exactly what she hadn't supposed to. "I mean-" she corrected-"the cat jumped on the desk and knocked it over."

"We do not have a cat," Erestor said plainly, crossing his arms over his chest.

The look on Glorfindel's face couldn't have been more terrifying. "Traitor," he hissed, and Eleniel visibly grimaced.

"Glorfindel," the advisor sighed, "were you wearing long robes around ink bottles again?"

"Yes, Erestor."

"It wasn't his fault, though!" Eleniel said quickly.

Glorfindel threw her a grin. "Stop trying to get out of your punishment. You're in for it, now."

"But Restor isn't killing you!"

The advisor rolled his eyes. "I have no idea what you are talking about, but I regret to inform you, Glorfindel, it is time for Eleniel's lessons."

Eleniel breathed a sigh of relief, which was short lived as Glorfindel poked her side as he passed, silently informing her that he would wait until after she was finished.

"What should I do with these?" he asked, picking up some of the documents.

"Let Lindir know which ones are completely unreadable, and he will get you copies. The ones that are not so damaged you can still send off," Erestor told him.

Glorfindel rose an eyebrow. "And what do I tell those who ask why there are splotches of black on their pages?"

"Tell them it was the cat."

Elvish used:

Rhaich – Curses

Pe-channas – Idiot

Gwestog? – Do you promise?

Someone help me; I'm drowning in Finiel fluff… ~ Gre3nleaf