Running into Love
Part 4

A very happy blond prince was walking the paths of Rivendell. To any observer it might seem that Legolas was on a casual stroll; however, this would be a false assumption. It would be more accurate to say that Legolas was prowling; one might even dare to say stalking, for Legolas was consumed with a need to find a certain elf. Unfortunately for Legolas, this elf was being very elusive and most difficult to find.

Yet, finding the Lord of Rivendell would not necessarily result in a happy meeting. Orders given that morning had been dutifully ignored so that Legolas was no where near the bed Elrond felt the prince should be in. Instead, Legolas had been up for hours; he felt perfectly healthy again. Of course, falling in love had probably helped a lot.

And he was in love; what else could it be? Having never been in love before, Legolas was not exactly sure what it felt like. Being frighteningly obsessed and unable to think of anything except the object of his affections seemed like pretty good hints that he was in love.

So, Legolas, Prince of Mirkwood, had finally found love. There were going to be a lot of broken hearts back home, especially his father's. That was a happy thought indeed; maybe his father would be so mad that he would kick Legolas out of Mirkwood and thus give him a good reason to spend all his time in Rivendell near Elrond.

Elrond.

It was truly astonishing that the Lord of Rivendell would be interested in him, even after he had behaved so badly. Legolas did not know how to account for it but he was not going to worry about it too much. All that really mattered was knowing that Elrond liked him, which he was absolutely certain of. Why else would Elrond be worrying about him so much? It was quite unnecessary especially since Elrond did not get along with his father. So, Elrond must be truly concerned for his health.

Then, of course, there was last night. Legolas had been thinking about it all day and he swore that he could still feel Elrond's touch. And his smell! It was truly indescribable. A musky scent that left Legolas completely incoherent. After Elrond had left, Legolas had spent hours breathing in the air and sheets tainted with Elrond's smell. It had been a very heady experience; the only side effect was that now Legolas was completely addicted to Lord Elrond.

Hence, the hunt for Elrond. Legolas was also quite determined to charm Lord Elrond into loving him. But where was he? It was going to be rather difficult to make Elrond fall madly in love with him if he could not find Elrond. No one seemed to know where he was either and Legolas had asked everyone. It was most strange that the people of Rivendell did not know where their lord was.

Although, there was one place that Legolas had not checked…Elrond's bedchambers. Did he even dare go there?

Oh, yes, he definitely dared.

It was the most perfect place for a rendezvous; the privacy would be most advantageous for a little flirtation.

Walking as quickly as he dared, Legolas soon found himself outside Lord Elrond's bedchambers. Pausing, Legolas stared at the very forbidding door, reminding him that the elf behind the door was often equally as forbidding. This characteristic, while admirable and appealing, was probably going to end up being a daunting obstacle between Legolas and his goal. Not that Legolas doubted the strength of his charms; it was just that…truth be told…he was a little nervous. Just a little bit though. It was obvious that Elrond was interested in him; yet, was he interested enough to overcome his dislike for his rude behavior or Legolas' father? Not likely.

Legolas hated having such doubts, it felt abnormal. He was always confident in everything that he did and felt but ever since meeting Elrond, his steady confidence had run off somewhere. Now, he was confident one moment, doubtful the next or he would be overwhelmingly happy and then a moment later utterly depressed.

Being in love was certainly hard work.

But Legolas was determined to try his hardest to charm Lord Elrond into loving him. Certainly, if he was persistent enough, he could get Lord Elrond to give in to his attraction like he did last night.

With this encouraging thought in mind, Legolas took a deep breath and knocked on the forbidding door.


To the casual observer, the bedchambers of Lord Elrond were empty. This was most peculiar since, as the Prince of Mirkwood discovered, Lord Elrond was not to be found anywhere else in his realm.

However, to the more astute observer, faint movements could be detected in a darkened corner of Lord Elrond's room. Here was the elusive Lord of Rivendell.

Yet, there was something strange about him…was he…sulking? Are mighty lords allowed to sulk? Not likely, but given the circumstances, Lord Elrond should be allowed to sulk. For Elrond was engaged in a terrible struggle, more fearsome, more tiring than anything he had ever experienced on the battlefield or in his throneroom.

He was battling his…attraction for Legolas. The 'L' word was unthinkable given his position as the Lord of Rivendell and the very fact that the word certainly did not apply to what he was feeling for the young prince. It was just a slight attraction that would surely pass quickly, especially once Legolas left. And he would leave; it would be too dangerous for him to stay here. Yet, the very thought of Legolas leaving was upsetting. To never be able to admire the beautiful prince, to never be amused or annoyed by his uncommon behavior? Such thoughts were unbearable.

A knock on the door provided a welcome distraction from his thoughts. Maybe it would be Arwen, he could then tell her what he was feeling and maybe she could make sense of it.

With this hope in mind, Elrond said, "Enter."

Alas, the person who entered was not Arwen but most definitely a distraction. Not exactly the kind of distraction Elrond had been looking for since this elf immediately brought Elrond back to all those thoughts he had just been dwelling on. Yet, how could he be displeased? He clearly wasn't, given his excitedly beating heart and quickening breath. Then, of course, there was the small smile that appeared when Elrond saw an adorably confused and disappointed look flit across Legolas' face when he did not see Elrond.

As Legolas turned to leave what he thought was an empty room, Elrond said, "Was there something you wanted, Legolas?"

A startled elf was a very rare sight but it pleased Elrond greatly. Legolas was currently giving him a wide-eyed look with his mouth hanging open; Elrond could not help but chuckle a little; the rather silly look was rather endearing.

Recovering his composure quickly, Legolas gave Elrond a dazzling smile and said, "Nothing in particular, milord, I just didn't have anything to do so I thought I would come visit you. Besides, I was rather curious to see what your rooms were like."

That said, Legolas started to wander about the room, randomly picking up things and looking at them.

Elrond was amazed at this blatant lack of respect for his privacy. Yet, why was he surprised? This behavior was certainly consistent with Legolas' previous behavior towards him. As Elrond watched Legolas wander about, a warm, contented feeling spread through Elrond as he saw how interested and pleased Legolas was with his possession. It was such a silly thing to be happy about; yet, Elrond could not help himself, he seemed to lose all control of his feelings whenever Legolas was nearby.

A sudden thought came to Elrond, however, that quickly dispelled this pleasant feeling.

"I thought I had told you to stay in bed."

Setting down the book he was looking at, Legolas walked over to where Elrond was sitting, not looking the least bit guilty.

"Yes, you did. But, as you can see, I am perfectly healthy," Legolas said as he spun around, showing Elrond just how healthy he was.

Giving Legolas a disapproving look and trying to ignore the very pleasing body displayed before him, Elrond said, "You've only been conscious for a day and given the severity of your wounds, you are certainly in no condition to be out of bed. Even though you may feel well now, you are probably aggravating your wounds and you will most definitely feel unwell later on. I insist that you return to your bed!"

"Oh, milord, I didn't realize that you cared about me so much!" said a gleeful Legolas to an astonished Elrond. "But now that you mention it, I am feeling a bit weary, perhaps I should rest for awhile. Although, I'm not sure if I have enough strength to get back to my room. I'll just have to borrow your bed for awhile. That is, if you don't mind, of course."

Without waiting for a response, Legolas plopped down onto Elrond's bed. Elrond was not even sure how he would have responded if he had been given time to. He was certainly astonished but this feeling did not last long, it was soon overcome by a feeling of extreme happiness. An extremely handsome elf was currently on his bed! Who wouldn't be happy? But what to do about it?

Nothing, absolute nothing. While Elrond had to admit that all he wanted to do was join Legolas on the bed; yet, it would be highly inappropriate to do so. There were so many objections to the formation of a relationship between them: the differences in their age and station, Legolas' father, the distance between their homes. So many reasons why he should not act upon his feelings.

"Hey, Lord Elrond! Since I'm so weak and tired, would you mind getting that book I was looking at earlier for me?"

"You're supposed to be resting."

"I am! I'm resting my body just like you said to do. You didn't say I had to relax my mind as well."

Sighing, Elrond got up to get the book for Legolas. The young prince certainly knew how to be infuriating. Elrond wasn't even sure if the prince was truly feeling unwell or just pretending for some strange reason.

Retrieving the book, Elrond went to sit down on the bed and give it to Legolas.

"I had no idea you were interested in the political history of Rivendell, Legolas."

"Me neither! I imagine it's pretty dry, unless you're mentioned in it, that would be the only reason worth reading it."

This was certainly unexpected flattery but Elrond was not displeased. It was a rather novel experience; it had been quite some time since anyone had been interested in him the way Legolas clearly was. Even knowing this though, Elrond still refused to do anything about their mutual feelings.

However, Elrond was unable to follow through with this decision for Legolas forced him into action when the young prince took Elrond's hand and held it to his cheek. Unable to account for such a daring move, Elrond did not try to move his hand. This caused Legolas to smile and snuggle Elrond's hand.

"I knew you wouldn't mind this after what you did last night." The surprised look on Elrond's face prompted Legolas to continue with, "Yes, I was awake!"

Elrond just shook his head in disbelief, unable to think of an appropriate response as Legolas smirked up at him in triumph.

Several minutes passed filled with awkward silence as the two stared at each other. Suddenly, with a rather determined look, Legolas sat up and pressed his lips firmly against Elrond's.

Elrond was so astonished that he momentarily forgot that it was customary to kiss back when being kissed. This paralyzed astonishment vanished very quickly once Elrond realized how wonderful it was having Legolas' soft lips against his. Elrond immediately lost himself to the pleasure of kissing the one elf he desired more than anyone.

It was only when Legolas moaned that Elrond was returned to his senses. What was he doing? This was so wrong; they should not be doing this! Hadn't he decided earlier that any kind of relationship between them would be impossible? This had to stop now no matter how much he wanted to continue, other things were more important.

Pushing Legolas firmly away, Elrond said, "No, Legolas, this cannot be."

"What? But…I thought…"

"No, Legolas. This is wrong."

"Wrong?" Legolas whispered, looking at Elrond with a confused and hurt look.

How could Elrond possibly resist such a look? His chest tightened painfully as he realized he was hurting Legolas; yet, it was for the best.

"You should leave, Legolas."

"But, milord, why…"

"Now, Legolas! Leave me. I wish to see you no longer!"

Giving out a small, pained cry, Legolas left the room.

Once Legolas was gone, Elrond stared at the spot where the young prince had just been laying. In his mind's eye he saw the tears that had been starting to flow down the anguished face as he had fled.

Oh! What had he done?!