Summary: As the rest of Rohan celebrates their victory, Legolas and Éomer find unexpected comfort in each other's arms. Legolas/Éomer SLASH
Disclaimer: As I'm sure you all know, I am not JRR Tolkien (after all, he is dead) and therefore do not own the rights to any of the characters, places, etc. depicted in the following story. It's sad, but true.
CHAPTER TWO: WHAT YOU DON'T KNOW CAN'T HURT YOU
Dawn broke the next morning bright and early with a beautiful light pink sunrise and the chirping of the many birds native to Rohan. It was chill, though the sun shone brightly, and quiet, besides the sound of the birds of course. It would seem that the activities of the night before, which had carried on a ways into this very morning, had made everyone quite eager to sleep in. The alcohol that many had consumed in celebration might have added to their desire to stay in bed until it was absolutely necessary that they awaken.
The sun had already risen a quarter of the way to its zenith when it came streaming into Éomer's bedroom windows through the thick, velvet curtains, waking Legolas up in the process as it shone into his eyes, glazed over in sleep. He awoke with a start, momentarily confused by the unfamiliar site around him. Then he noticed the arm draped across his bare waist.
His eyes widened as he realized what must have happened. The last thing that he could actually recall was him and Éomer sharing a bottle of whiskey and acting like drunken fools. Oh, Valar! What had he done?
Not that he really needed that question answered; it was quite apparent what had ended up happening. It was then that he resolved to never drink hard liquor again. Ever. Not that that would help him any in his current predicament.
What should he do? Should he wake Éomer and…and what? He was certain that Éomer would be absolutely mortified if he were to awaken to a male as his bed partner, a male Elf none the less. He knew how Edain(1) viewed such things. It would be better if Éomer remained oblivious to what had transpired.
With that thought in mind, Legolas slowly lifted Éomer's arm from its position across him and set it gently down in the place he had formerly occupied as he crept carefully off the luxurious bed. He sighed in relief as he noticed that the action had only caused Éomer to stir slightly in his sleep and reposition himself on the bed. Now all he had to do was find his clothes and sneak out of Éomer's chambers without being caught. Easier said than done.
His clothes were strewn haphazardly about both the sitting room and bedroom of the chamber, causing Legolas to have to hunt them down to where they had been carelessly discarded in his and Éomer's apparent haste the night before. Or perhaps it had only been early this morning. Not that it mattered.
He quickly donned his disheveled attire, making a vain attempt to make himself at least somewhat presentable. He found a horsehair brush on a dresser and used it to smooth the tangles out of his blonde locks before deftly rebraiding them with practiced ease. His tunic was hopelessly wrinkled, though he tried to straighten it out as best as he could. Hopefully he would not run into anyone as he walked the hallways on route to his room, which just so happened to be at about the furthest away possible from Éomer's. Just his luck.
Coming to the conclusion that delaying his departure any longer would only make it more likely that he would be caught, Legolas took one last glance at Éomer sleeping peacefully in his bed before quietly making his exit.
He made it about a third of the way to his quarters before he came across anyone. It was a servant woman who bowed politely as he passed; he tried to appear as composed and serene as usual, though he wasn't sure if he actually succeeded at it. He hoped she had not noticed anything unusual about him, although he was fairly certain she hadn't and would not say anything concerning it even if she had.
He was almost to the safety of his room, where he could change and hopefully make it appear as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened, when he came across one of the last people he wished to see at that particular moment.
"Gimli," Legolas spoke somewhat awkwardly, uncomfortable with the situation he had inadvertently placed himself in and desperately hoping that Gimli wouldn't put him on the spot by asking him any of the many questions he had no answer to as of yet. "What are you doing out and about so early on this particular morning?" he asked, praying to the Valar that it would steer Gimli away from whatever unfortunate topic he most certainly had in mind.
Gimli studied Legolas for a moment before answering, almost as if he was trying to figure out the elf in front of him before eventually shaking his head slightly in consternation as if to say that he would never figure out his enigmatic friend. "For your information, Master Elf, I was on my way to see if you were ready to break your fast yet this morning. Here I thought I had finally managed to rise before you for once. What have you been up to thus far?" the dwarf countered Legolas, asking one of the only questions that the elf had managed to formulate a suitable response to.
"I was merely taking a walk. I would have seen if you wished to join me, but I was unsure whether I should bother you at this time after the festivities of last night," Legolas responded placidly, feeling rather proud of himself for pulling off this half-truth. After all, he had been waling, and-if he had thought of it-he would have decided not to bother Gimli yet…so, it wasn't exactly a lie.
"Speaking of last night…" Gimli began, pausing as if to work out the best way in which to phrase what he was going to say next. "Well, I noticed that you left fairly early on. Did you retire to your chambers?" Gimli asked cautiously, not wanting to offend his sometimes haughty (for an elf) friend.
Legolas let out a small coughing noise, covering up his discomfort by pretending that he was simply clearing his throat before speaking. "I went out to the portico for a short while, then left," Legolas replied, in an attempt to avoid answering the question Gimli was really asking. He could only pray that Gimli would not persist in his line of questioning.
The dwarf seemed not to hear his silent prayers. "Did you have any company on your walk?" Legolas silently cursed his friend.
"Éomer joined me outside and we talked for a short while before I retired," Legolas added to his earlier statement, hoping it would satisfy Gimli's curiosity.
"Éomer? I suppose he has amended his initial opinion of you then? I believe his rooms are in the direction you have just come from…shall we ask if he wishes to break his fast with us?" Gimli inserted innocently, or at least as innocently as was possible for him. Legolas could see a slight smirk showing through his rather bushy beard. The dwarf was obviously rather pleased with himself and seemed to have figured out at least part of Legolas's secret. Insufferable dwarf.
"I would not wish to disturb Éomer's no doubt much needed sleep," Legolas responded with an undertone of trepidation, which he hoped was not obvious to his dwarvin friend. He was eager to persuade Gimli that it would not be the best of ideas for Éomer to join them. He really didn't want to have to deal with seeing the man right now. Or any time soon for that matter.
"Yes, I suppose you are right, my friend. We'll just head down to the dining hall ourselves then, shall we?" Gimli decided, starting to walk down the hallway, obviously expecting Legolas to follow.
"Hold on, Gimli. I would like to freshen up before heading down to breakfast. And perhaps we should ask Aragorn, Gandalf, Merry, and Pippen to join us?" Legolas questioned. "I am sure Merry and Pippen would not wish to miss a meal," he added, a slight twinkle in his cerulean eyes. He still needed to change his tunic at the very least before heading down. Even if Gimli did not notice that he was wearing the same one as last night, he was certain others would.
"Aragorn and Gandalf were planning to meet with King Théoden this morn to discuss the next move we are to take. Merry and Pippen, as you said, never pass up the chance for a good meal; I passed them on their way downstairs while making my way here. If you want to freshen up, I would be willing to wait here or meet you in the hall," Gimli informed Legolas, pausing in the middle of the hallway to await the Elf's response.
"Go ahead, Gimli. I will be there shortly," Legolas replied, uncertain of how long it would take him to get prepared and wanting to be alone with his thoughts at this time, though he did not wish to tell Gimli of that desire.
Gimli nodded gruffly in answer to Legolas's suggestion, then turned around and headed on down the hall. Legolas watched him for a moment before turning toward his room and opening the door. Once inside, he closed the door gently and leaned heavily against its wooden frame. Letting out a slight sigh, he quickly collected himself and, taking a deep breathe, headed to the armor where his few pairs of traveling clothes and some slightly more formal attire that had been provided to him by the King were hung up or lay folded neatly within the drawers.
Opening the topmost drawer, he easily spotted an off-white tunic he had brought with him, along with a pair of leggings in a near forest green color. Changing out of his clothes from the previous eve, he quickly donned the outfit he had selected and finished by fixing his silver clasped, leather belt around his waist and his worn, leather boots upon his feet. Fairly confident in the fact that he now looked presentable and not as if he had just woken from a long night of partying and haphazardly thrown on any old thing he could find, Legolas exited his chambers, ready to join his friends down in the dining hall.
Walking along the corridor, he couldn't help but notice the bright, sunlit sky that shown stunningly blue outside. Birds chirped merrily, a joyous sound that lightened Legolas's mood immediately. It truly was a beautiful day.
Turning a corner, Legolas paused as he spotted Éomer approaching from the other side. Just what he needed. He would have turned around and hidden himself until Éomer had descended the stairs, no matter how out of character it was for him, but for the fact that the man had already noticed his presence, therefore making it too late to flee. So he kept walking. Really, he had no choice. Unfortunately, this meant that he ended up reaching the staircase at the same moment as Éomer, an uncomfortable situation--and one that he had wished to avoid--to say the least.
"Good morning, Prince Legolas," Éomer spoke in a friendly enough manner, giving Legolas a tight-lipped smile, which momentarily confused the Elf. Did the man know? Did he truly not remember, or was he just pretending not to? Or was he merely acting as if nothing had happened because that was the way they were expected to act, the way they should act?
Legolas found that he did not have the answer to any of these questions, so he merely wished Éomer a "Pleasant morn," and graced him with a slight nod and smile in greeting. He was uncomfortable, but maybe if he just went on pretending that nothing out of the ordinary had transpired last night, then everything would be alright.
They walked down the staircase in silence for a moment. It couldn't exactly be described as a friendly silence, but it was by no means hostile. It was more...anticipatory. Finally Éomer broke the awkwardness of it. "Legolas, I am afraid I was not the best host last night. I have heard of the serene and placid behavior of the Elves, and my own conduct must have seemed horridly barbaric compared to what you are used to. Rarely do I consume so much alcohol that I find myself passing out and I am afraid that I did so in your excellent company. For that I apologize," Éomer confided sincerely, bowing his head slightly to Legolas.
Legolas couldn't help but be slightly bewildered. Did Éomer not remember what had transpired between them, instead merely thinking that he had passed out during the lapse in his memory? If so, then Legolas was by no means about to correct him. "You have no need to apologize, Éomer. My own behavior was far from proper and you did nothing to warrant indignation on my part." It was far better this way, with Éomer not knowing. This is the way he had hoped for it to be after all. And yet...he felt oddly offended by the realization that Éomer most probably remembered nothing of their night together. Legolas himself admittedly did not really remember, though he did know what had taken place.
It was all just so confusing. Legolas just wished that it had never happened, or that he could erase all memory of it from his mind. He kept casting surreptitious glances at Éomer, trying to decipher whether the man was acting or not. Legolas had always considered himself fairly adept at reading people, but for the life of him, he could not figure out what was going through the man's head. Perhaps it was because his own thoughts on the subject were so muddled.
They continued at a steady pace to the dining hall, neither speaking up again, but sharing a companionable silence as they walked together, both lost in their own thoughts. When they reached the dining hall, they greeted those already there before parting to sit at opposite sides of the large banquet table. Little did either of them know that the same thought plaguing their own mind was also going through the mind of the other: "How much does he know, and should I bother reminding him of the rest?"
TO BE CONTINUED...
Author's Note: Okay, the chapter is complete although I am not completely satisfied with it. I'm not really sure where I'm going with this fic; it seems to have a mind of its own. I guess what happens in the next chapter will be a surprise for us all. Thanks to all who reviewed; I really do appreciate it and hope you enjoyed this chapter.
Translations:
1) Edain - men