Disclaimer: Don't own anything!!
Please, please review.
I am writing this to appease my angry reviewers. Been really busy lately. Not to mention Prince of Dreams is giving me trouble.
Ihni: Sorry that I cannot grant your wish. But I am writing as quickly as I can =) Too many things to do at one time. Have grant and abstract due for work in mid November =(
.. = thoughts or random rambling of authoress.
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Chapter 7:
It was still many hours from dawn. Legolas laid wide awake on his bed, too nervous to get any sleep. Gimli's thunderous snore did not help. The Elf was glad that none of their neighbors had come to complain about the noise. Since slumber evaded him, the Prince decided to take a stroll around the camp outside. But even the tranquility of the forest could not soothe the Elf's troubled mind as he remembered the first day of his warrior training long ago.
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FLASHBACK:
Being prince, Legolas arrived at the training camp with his own entourage of guards. His fellow trainees seemed kind to him, allowing him to stand at the front in the middle of the line for archery class. They did not even jeer at him when his arrows all fell to the ground before reaching the target. However, the moment his guardians believed their little prince had settled in and left, his torture began.
The other Elves pushed him out of the way and laughed at him, telling him that a fat ugly child like him didn't belong there at all. One of them proceeded to steal his quiver and dangled it high, just above his reach. Legolas tried to jump up to grab at it, but with his stubby little legs, he could not leap high enough to get it. He would have been in tears, but he was a Prince and he refused to cry. The young Elf knew he could not fight them with his strength; if he were to get his arrows back, he would have to use his wits and cunning. Instead of jumping directly upwards, he leant forward when he leapt. Though he still could not reach his target, the chubby Elf landed squarely on the feet of his tormentor. The taller Elf yelped in pain and promptly dropped Legolas' quiver as he bent over to check his feet. Though the Elven prince had won a victory that day in regaining his arrows, he had made enemies with his entire class. From that day on, Legolas' warrior training had turned into a living hell.
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Legolas decided that he would sing of his fears of the past the same way that other Elves sing to release their grief. He hoped it would help calm his mind and ease his nerves. The golden Elf glanced around one more time to ensure that he was alone before raising his voice.
// Heart don't fail me now, courage don't desert me. Don't turn back now that we are here. People always say life is full of choices; no one ever mentions fear. Or how the road could seem so long. Or how the world can seem so vast. Courage see me through, heart I trust in you, in this journey to the past. //
When he continued into the second verse, he was surprised to find an adorable little green parrot sing along with him. He stopped and went to the branch where the bird sat. He held out his hand and said, "Come here, little fellow. Don't be scared."
Legolas' voice and smile was so beautiful that the parrot was completely enchanted. Though it had won its freedom not long ago, the bird flew from his branch and took its perch on the Golden Elf's outstretched hand. When the Prince gave the little critter another bewitching smile, it puffed its chest feathers and began repeating, "Thou, O Lady, art the fairest of all" on its own accord.
The Elf laughed and asked the parrot, "Do I really look that much like a girl?" The musical sound excited the bird even more and it started to chirp and sing its line instead of just speaking it.
"Well, I suppose I will have to find you a little treat for your praises. Or should I say to keep your beak busy so you will stop singing them," laughed Legolas as he started back to camp with the parrot.
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He looked at the parrot firmly when he told it to remain quiet when they entered camp. "If they find you, I will get into trouble. We are not supposed to have pets in the army."
To his surprise, the little bird stopped singing and huddled into a ball, trying to make itself as invisible as possible. Legolas smiled at the parrot and sensing the Elf's approval, it tried to curl up even tighter. The two made it to his room without incident and the Prince proceeded to dig through its pack for some food, which was very difficult to do with the bird attached to his hand.
"Please go sit on the chair while I find some treats for you," whispered the Elf, not wanting to wake the sleeping Gimli.
The parrot looked solemnly at the Prince for a moment and resolutely shook his small head. It was refusing to let go; if anything, it clutched at Legolas' fingers even tighter, almost to the point of pain.
"I cannot do this with one hand, my friend. Please let go," pleaded the Elf who was becoming worried that the bird wanted to be a permanent addition to his hand. That would not do since training starts tomorrow.
Once again, the bird responded by shaking its head and tightening its grip. This time, Legolas cried out in pain as the parrot's claws dug into his flesh. The soft sound woke the sleeping Dwarf who leapt from his bed, axe in hand; ready to strike at the one who intruded his sweet slumber. The enamored bird perceived the Dwarf's actions as a danger to its new master and promptly flew off Legolas' hand and started pecking furiously at Gimli's beard. Since groggy from his sleep, Gimli tried to hit the small critter with his axe, but only succeeded in destroy one of the chairs in their bunk. The noise had now awoken the entire army and if Elves made sound when they walked, footsteps heading towards the Prince's room would be echoing throughout the camp.
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The door burst open and a very annoyed Aragorn marched into the room to find the Dwarf battling a small green parrot with an axe. It would have been a very humorous sight, if it were not 4am in the morning. The Man survey the scene again and froze in horror to find that the bird was none other than Arwen's favorite pet that escaped two days ago.
Elrohir still bore the wounds from that unfortunate incident; and he was an Elf, who had superior healing abilities. The Elf wanted to see his sister and found the door open. He walked in and was immediately charmed by the cute little 'magical' parrot that started singing for him. He decided he would reward it with a treat and was about to feed it when Arwen walked in. The Lady was anxious to get her brother away from HER parrot and in her haste to push Elrohir away, she knocked over the cage that held the bird. Without any hesitation, the critter flew out of the room and made haste in clearing the gardens of Rivendell.
Yup, the bird was not very happy with its stay with Arwen. I mean, how many times can one say "Thou, O Lady, art the fairest of all" without getting sick of it. Especially to someone who it didn't think is beautiful at all. If Arwen is another cute little FEMALE PARROT, that would be a different story; or in Legolas' case, if the person could sing more beautifully than any cute little FEMALE parrot. But in any case, let us just say the small bird relishes in its freedom.
The Lady blamed the younger twin for the escape and the tortured screams of one of the commanders of the new joint army reverberated in Rivendell's halls. On hearing those awful sounds, one would think they have entered the dungeons of Baradûr instead of the palace of an Elven City.
If anything happened to that blasted bird, they would all be doomed. The Man quickly stepped into the fray and seized the shaft of Gimli's axe from above. The critter made full use of the advantage and renewed its attack on the Dwarf's eyebrows, causing him to groan aloud and struggle against Aragorn's hold. Legolas who was watching the scene in muted horror finally regained his senses and let out a frustrated, "Stop it, all of you."
To everyone's surprise, both the bird and the Dwarf stopped in their tracks. Well, not entirely since the parrot needed to flap its wings to stay aloft. But very quickly, it flew back to the golden Elf and reattached itself to his hand. At this time, all three commanders of the joint army had arrived on the scene and Elrohir was staring at the small bird that had caused him so much pain.
He knew when he told Arwen that her parrot was with this blond Elf, he would no longer be the only one in pain. The Lady would undoubtedly assume this new recruit abducted her pet and unleashed her awesome fury on the said creature. He felt sympathy for this gorgeous young Elf, who would not stand a chance against his little sister in her Arwen, the destroyer mode. This one's beauty would only make things worse since the Elf was far more exquisite than his sister. His sun-kissed silken tresses, shining azure eyes, delicately sculpted features and lithe sensuous body were what dreams were made of. If Elrohir had not tasted Arwen's wrath firsthand, he would offer to protect this golden Elf. But since he had, he could only wish the new recruit luck.
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"Lasgalen, hand the bird over to us and we will all forget what happened tonight," asked the Man.
"I would love to, but it seemed that the parrot had grown rather attached to me," answered Legolas sheepishly.
"I would say. If only it was that attached to Arwen," snickered Elladan, who promptly received an elbow in the stomach from his younger twin.
Aragorn scratched his head as he tried to think of a solution. He too knew Lasgalen would be in lots of trouble if the Lady found out he had her pet. Not to mention that the bird seemed completely smitten by the golden Elf. That was when the idea struck him. The parrot seemed to enjoy attacking his enemy's hair, targeting the Dwarf's beard and eyebrows. If he could get the critter jealous enough, maybe it will attack his head and his foster brothers could use their superior reflexes to catch it while it was away from Lasgalen. Okay, who are we kidding? He had wanted to do this every since he laid eyes of the beautiful Elf but was just too afraid to jeopardized their friendship for it. But since Aragorn was supposed to ignore Lasgalen from now, the Man really had nothing to lose.
Slowly, Aragorn approached the golden Elf and stood in front of him. He held those gorgeous glittering sapphire eyes with his stormy grey ones and leant close until they were only inches apart.
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Legolas knew what the Man wanted to do. He knew he should turn away, but Aragorn's eyes held him captive. The Elf found himself unable to move and wanting to know how the Man's lips would feel on his own. He had never been kissed before and throughout their journey to Rivendell, the Elf had found himself wondering, on more than one occasion, how being kissed by Aragorn would be like. He held his breath as the Man moved closer and claimed his lips.
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The Elf's lips felt so smooth and warm that Aragorn found himself wanting more. He deepened the kiss, using his tongue to demand entry. A gasp of surprise from the Elf at his touch gave the Man the opportunity he needed to slip his tongue into Lasgalen's mouth. The Elf tasted so sweet and enticing. A hesitant tongue rubbed against his, making Aragorn groan in pleasure. Soon, the Man forgot his entire plan to recapture Arwen's pet, as well as the fact that the entire camp was there watching them.
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Legolas knew the moment the Man touched his lips that he was the One. As Aragorn deepened the kiss and claimed his mouth, the Elf could feel the whole world around them becoming hazy until there was nothing left but the two of them and the feeling of the Man's lips upon his. This was what he wanted, what he waited for, his one true love.
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Aragorn's plan had worked, the jealous parrot was pecking very hard at the Man's head, but he was too enrapt in the kiss to notice the small chunk of hair that the bird had succeeded in pulling out. Without much difficulty, the twin Elven commanders of the army captured the bird and constructed a makeshift jail for the misbehaving critter from a trash can. When their task was done, they called out to their foster brother that everything was finished and that he could stop kissing the Elf now. The Man responded by wrapping one hand around the golden creature's hair and pulling his head back for a deeper kiss. They did their duties as good siblings and dispersed the on-looking recruits quietly. After that, they walked outside the room and made bets on how long the kiss would last.
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Twenty minutes later, a very breathless and confused Man emerged from the room, leaving an equally breathless and confused Elf inside. He walked past the twins without even noticing their warnings to him, "You are in serious trouble, little brother."
Please, please review.
I am writing this to appease my angry reviewers. Been really busy lately. Not to mention Prince of Dreams is giving me trouble.
Ihni: Sorry that I cannot grant your wish. But I am writing as quickly as I can =) Too many things to do at one time. Have grant and abstract due for work in mid November =(
.. = thoughts or random rambling of authoress.
************************************************************************
Chapter 7:
It was still many hours from dawn. Legolas laid wide awake on his bed, too nervous to get any sleep. Gimli's thunderous snore did not help. The Elf was glad that none of their neighbors had come to complain about the noise. Since slumber evaded him, the Prince decided to take a stroll around the camp outside. But even the tranquility of the forest could not soothe the Elf's troubled mind as he remembered the first day of his warrior training long ago.
************************************************************************
FLASHBACK:
Being prince, Legolas arrived at the training camp with his own entourage of guards. His fellow trainees seemed kind to him, allowing him to stand at the front in the middle of the line for archery class. They did not even jeer at him when his arrows all fell to the ground before reaching the target. However, the moment his guardians believed their little prince had settled in and left, his torture began.
The other Elves pushed him out of the way and laughed at him, telling him that a fat ugly child like him didn't belong there at all. One of them proceeded to steal his quiver and dangled it high, just above his reach. Legolas tried to jump up to grab at it, but with his stubby little legs, he could not leap high enough to get it. He would have been in tears, but he was a Prince and he refused to cry. The young Elf knew he could not fight them with his strength; if he were to get his arrows back, he would have to use his wits and cunning. Instead of jumping directly upwards, he leant forward when he leapt. Though he still could not reach his target, the chubby Elf landed squarely on the feet of his tormentor. The taller Elf yelped in pain and promptly dropped Legolas' quiver as he bent over to check his feet. Though the Elven prince had won a victory that day in regaining his arrows, he had made enemies with his entire class. From that day on, Legolas' warrior training had turned into a living hell.
************************************************************************
Legolas decided that he would sing of his fears of the past the same way that other Elves sing to release their grief. He hoped it would help calm his mind and ease his nerves. The golden Elf glanced around one more time to ensure that he was alone before raising his voice.
// Heart don't fail me now, courage don't desert me. Don't turn back now that we are here. People always say life is full of choices; no one ever mentions fear. Or how the road could seem so long. Or how the world can seem so vast. Courage see me through, heart I trust in you, in this journey to the past. //
When he continued into the second verse, he was surprised to find an adorable little green parrot sing along with him. He stopped and went to the branch where the bird sat. He held out his hand and said, "Come here, little fellow. Don't be scared."
Legolas' voice and smile was so beautiful that the parrot was completely enchanted. Though it had won its freedom not long ago, the bird flew from his branch and took its perch on the Golden Elf's outstretched hand. When the Prince gave the little critter another bewitching smile, it puffed its chest feathers and began repeating, "Thou, O Lady, art the fairest of all" on its own accord.
The Elf laughed and asked the parrot, "Do I really look that much like a girl?" The musical sound excited the bird even more and it started to chirp and sing its line instead of just speaking it.
"Well, I suppose I will have to find you a little treat for your praises. Or should I say to keep your beak busy so you will stop singing them," laughed Legolas as he started back to camp with the parrot.
************************************************************************
He looked at the parrot firmly when he told it to remain quiet when they entered camp. "If they find you, I will get into trouble. We are not supposed to have pets in the army."
To his surprise, the little bird stopped singing and huddled into a ball, trying to make itself as invisible as possible. Legolas smiled at the parrot and sensing the Elf's approval, it tried to curl up even tighter. The two made it to his room without incident and the Prince proceeded to dig through its pack for some food, which was very difficult to do with the bird attached to his hand.
"Please go sit on the chair while I find some treats for you," whispered the Elf, not wanting to wake the sleeping Gimli.
The parrot looked solemnly at the Prince for a moment and resolutely shook his small head. It was refusing to let go; if anything, it clutched at Legolas' fingers even tighter, almost to the point of pain.
"I cannot do this with one hand, my friend. Please let go," pleaded the Elf who was becoming worried that the bird wanted to be a permanent addition to his hand. That would not do since training starts tomorrow.
Once again, the bird responded by shaking its head and tightening its grip. This time, Legolas cried out in pain as the parrot's claws dug into his flesh. The soft sound woke the sleeping Dwarf who leapt from his bed, axe in hand; ready to strike at the one who intruded his sweet slumber. The enamored bird perceived the Dwarf's actions as a danger to its new master and promptly flew off Legolas' hand and started pecking furiously at Gimli's beard. Since groggy from his sleep, Gimli tried to hit the small critter with his axe, but only succeeded in destroy one of the chairs in their bunk. The noise had now awoken the entire army and if Elves made sound when they walked, footsteps heading towards the Prince's room would be echoing throughout the camp.
************************************************************************
The door burst open and a very annoyed Aragorn marched into the room to find the Dwarf battling a small green parrot with an axe. It would have been a very humorous sight, if it were not 4am in the morning. The Man survey the scene again and froze in horror to find that the bird was none other than Arwen's favorite pet that escaped two days ago.
Elrohir still bore the wounds from that unfortunate incident; and he was an Elf, who had superior healing abilities. The Elf wanted to see his sister and found the door open. He walked in and was immediately charmed by the cute little 'magical' parrot that started singing for him. He decided he would reward it with a treat and was about to feed it when Arwen walked in. The Lady was anxious to get her brother away from HER parrot and in her haste to push Elrohir away, she knocked over the cage that held the bird. Without any hesitation, the critter flew out of the room and made haste in clearing the gardens of Rivendell.
Yup, the bird was not very happy with its stay with Arwen. I mean, how many times can one say "Thou, O Lady, art the fairest of all" without getting sick of it. Especially to someone who it didn't think is beautiful at all. If Arwen is another cute little FEMALE PARROT, that would be a different story; or in Legolas' case, if the person could sing more beautifully than any cute little FEMALE parrot. But in any case, let us just say the small bird relishes in its freedom.
The Lady blamed the younger twin for the escape and the tortured screams of one of the commanders of the new joint army reverberated in Rivendell's halls. On hearing those awful sounds, one would think they have entered the dungeons of Baradûr instead of the palace of an Elven City.
If anything happened to that blasted bird, they would all be doomed. The Man quickly stepped into the fray and seized the shaft of Gimli's axe from above. The critter made full use of the advantage and renewed its attack on the Dwarf's eyebrows, causing him to groan aloud and struggle against Aragorn's hold. Legolas who was watching the scene in muted horror finally regained his senses and let out a frustrated, "Stop it, all of you."
To everyone's surprise, both the bird and the Dwarf stopped in their tracks. Well, not entirely since the parrot needed to flap its wings to stay aloft. But very quickly, it flew back to the golden Elf and reattached itself to his hand. At this time, all three commanders of the joint army had arrived on the scene and Elrohir was staring at the small bird that had caused him so much pain.
He knew when he told Arwen that her parrot was with this blond Elf, he would no longer be the only one in pain. The Lady would undoubtedly assume this new recruit abducted her pet and unleashed her awesome fury on the said creature. He felt sympathy for this gorgeous young Elf, who would not stand a chance against his little sister in her Arwen, the destroyer mode. This one's beauty would only make things worse since the Elf was far more exquisite than his sister. His sun-kissed silken tresses, shining azure eyes, delicately sculpted features and lithe sensuous body were what dreams were made of. If Elrohir had not tasted Arwen's wrath firsthand, he would offer to protect this golden Elf. But since he had, he could only wish the new recruit luck.
************************************************************************
"Lasgalen, hand the bird over to us and we will all forget what happened tonight," asked the Man.
"I would love to, but it seemed that the parrot had grown rather attached to me," answered Legolas sheepishly.
"I would say. If only it was that attached to Arwen," snickered Elladan, who promptly received an elbow in the stomach from his younger twin.
Aragorn scratched his head as he tried to think of a solution. He too knew Lasgalen would be in lots of trouble if the Lady found out he had her pet. Not to mention that the bird seemed completely smitten by the golden Elf. That was when the idea struck him. The parrot seemed to enjoy attacking his enemy's hair, targeting the Dwarf's beard and eyebrows. If he could get the critter jealous enough, maybe it will attack his head and his foster brothers could use their superior reflexes to catch it while it was away from Lasgalen. Okay, who are we kidding? He had wanted to do this every since he laid eyes of the beautiful Elf but was just too afraid to jeopardized their friendship for it. But since Aragorn was supposed to ignore Lasgalen from now, the Man really had nothing to lose.
Slowly, Aragorn approached the golden Elf and stood in front of him. He held those gorgeous glittering sapphire eyes with his stormy grey ones and leant close until they were only inches apart.
************************************************************************
Legolas knew what the Man wanted to do. He knew he should turn away, but Aragorn's eyes held him captive. The Elf found himself unable to move and wanting to know how the Man's lips would feel on his own. He had never been kissed before and throughout their journey to Rivendell, the Elf had found himself wondering, on more than one occasion, how being kissed by Aragorn would be like. He held his breath as the Man moved closer and claimed his lips.
************************************************************************
The Elf's lips felt so smooth and warm that Aragorn found himself wanting more. He deepened the kiss, using his tongue to demand entry. A gasp of surprise from the Elf at his touch gave the Man the opportunity he needed to slip his tongue into Lasgalen's mouth. The Elf tasted so sweet and enticing. A hesitant tongue rubbed against his, making Aragorn groan in pleasure. Soon, the Man forgot his entire plan to recapture Arwen's pet, as well as the fact that the entire camp was there watching them.
************************************************************************
Legolas knew the moment the Man touched his lips that he was the One. As Aragorn deepened the kiss and claimed his mouth, the Elf could feel the whole world around them becoming hazy until there was nothing left but the two of them and the feeling of the Man's lips upon his. This was what he wanted, what he waited for, his one true love.
************************************************************************
Aragorn's plan had worked, the jealous parrot was pecking very hard at the Man's head, but he was too enrapt in the kiss to notice the small chunk of hair that the bird had succeeded in pulling out. Without much difficulty, the twin Elven commanders of the army captured the bird and constructed a makeshift jail for the misbehaving critter from a trash can. When their task was done, they called out to their foster brother that everything was finished and that he could stop kissing the Elf now. The Man responded by wrapping one hand around the golden creature's hair and pulling his head back for a deeper kiss. They did their duties as good siblings and dispersed the on-looking recruits quietly. After that, they walked outside the room and made bets on how long the kiss would last.
************************************************************************
Twenty minutes later, a very breathless and confused Man emerged from the room, leaving an equally breathless and confused Elf inside. He walked past the twins without even noticing their warnings to him, "You are in serious trouble, little brother."