Autumn had always been Legolas's favorite time of year. Not too hot, not too cold, and not too many snobbish garden parties he'd be dragged along to. Besides, he'd always loved the feel of crisp golden foliage gently crumpling under his bare feet.

He liked sitting alone in the park, or taking a stroll and feeding the ducks and pigeons along the way. And this was his favorite spot, secluded and peaceful at any given time.

"Mr. Greenleaf?"

Legolas almost jumped out of his skin at the sound of that voice. He turned around and saw a man who almost looked like he'd walked of a fairytale…

The man was old, well into his seventies, possibly even his eighties, yet he seemed to lack the slight frailty that was often associated with senior citizens. He was tall and his posture was regal, as was his strong commanding voice and rich bone-structure. He had long white hair that fell below his waist, reaching a few inches lower than his similarly colored beard. His eyes were dark and intense, the most prominent feature of his dramatic personality. And he wore a long black coat, which could have passed for a robe had it been a bit longer and more spacious.

Legolas almost felt his breath hitch at the sight of the intimidating stranger. Where did he come from all of a sudden?

"Legolas Greenleaf, am I correct?" the man spoke authoritatively.

"I…" for the first time in years, Legolas felt at a loss for words. "I… I'm Telcontar," he finally managed to utter, "Legolas Telcontar, not Greenleaf."

"Of course," the man said with a smirk, "how silly of me to have your last name mistaken." He reached into his coat and pulled out a small envelope that he held out for the young man to take. "I must have the object of whose likeness you'll find inside."

Legolas felt completely lost. He quietly took the envelope & opened it to find a picture of a simple gold ring. "Umm, if you'd like to place an order you can come to the store on…"

The man was gone. Legolas looked all around but found absolutely no sign of him. "Weird…" he muttered to himself, before tucking the picture into his wallet and heading towards his car.

As he made his way across the empty car park, Legolas got the feeling he was being watched. He looked around and saw no one. "Hello?" he called out hoping for a response, but got none. Oddly enough, he'd had the same feeling while leaving his father's office building a few days earlier, but had been too wrapped up in his frustration to pay it any heed. This time however, the feeling was too strong to ignore. He knew someone was out there.

"Hello? Anybody there?" Again, no reply. A chill of nervousness ran up his spine and he decided to just get out of there immediately.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Still can't believe I have to use that bastard's name…" Grumpily the slender blonde woman scribbled her signature onto the tiny receipt and handed it back to the waiter along with a relatively generous tip.

"Still can't believe you're using his credit card."

The woman looked up at her brother casually lighting his after-dinner cigarette. "The word is alimony!" she shot back in annoyance.

"Right," he replied sarcastically, blowing a puff of smoke in her face. He knew she hated that, which was why he loved doing it.

Instantly she burst into a coughing fit that was more than 90 acting. "Why do you always have to be such a pain in the ass, Eomer???"

Eomer just smirked. His sister had always made his life a living hell when he was growing up, and it was petty little jabs like these that made it all worthwhile. Besides, he'd be the first person to admit that Eowyn was nothing more than a self-centered bitch who'd do anything to keep up appearances.

This was the first time the siblings had seen each other in over a month. Eowyn had initially moved in with her brother when she and Aragorn separated, but after two weeks of that they were both at each other's throats. She then found herself a nice little condo by the beach, and a week later, in the arms of her rich handsome neighbor, Faramir. So much for the broken heart betrayed by a selfish husband and a girl who was like the daughter she never had…

"Sure you don't need a ride back?" Eowyn asked half-heartedly.

"Yes I'm sure," replied her brother, taking another hearty puff from his wine-dipped cigarette.

Eomer watched his sister walk out the fancy restaurant and shuddered. Immediately he pulled off the necktie she'd insisted he wear & undid the top button of his dark gray shirt. He hated this place. He hated the atmosphere, he hated the food, and he hated having to wear shit like this for a miserable meal.

By the time he walked out, his cuffs had been undone with the sleeves rolled up to reach a few inches above his wrists, and his shirt was roughly tucked out from his plain black jeans.

Eomer was glad he'd worn sneakers that evening, because what he really felt like after the lousy dinner, was walking down to his favorite Irish-style pub and drowning himself with all the booze his wallet could handle.

He saw a pair of girls as he passed a 7/11. Pretty little things they were, one with nice big tits and the other with a sexy little mini-skirt that emphasized her shapely legs. One of the girls smiled shyly when she noticed the handsome blond man checking her out. He winked back at her and went along his merry way. Maybe he'd find himself a nice little piece of ass at the bar tonight, take her home, and fuck her brains out.

It was almost 10pm when Eomer reached the pub. A bit more crowded tonight than usual, but he knew he'd manage to find himself someplace comfortable.

"Master Eomer!" greeted a friendly voice. Eomer didn't even have to look to know it was Gimli the bartender, already beginning to prepare a drink of coke and vodka. "The usual tonight, yes?"

"Absolutely," replied the younger man with a smile.

As he took a sip of his drink, Eomer noticed a familiar slender silhouette dressed in a pair olive-green cargo pants and a tight-fitting brown T-shirt, toped off with a lush mane of pale blond hair. The figure was all alone and seemed completely engrossed in a book that read 'Archery Anatomy by Ray Axford'.NOTE

Without a word, Eomer walked over to his oblivious nephew and playfully smacked the boy on the back of his head.

"Hey!" Legolas exclaimed, and then smiled brightly when he saw who it was. "What're you doing here? Thought you were going to see mom today."

"I was," replied the older man as he took a seat opposite his nephew, "and I did."

Legolas grinned at the weary look on his uncle's face at the very mention of his mother. He knew they never got along, and he knew just how much he detested spending more than 10 minutes a month with her. "That bad eh?"

Eomer rolled his eyes. "Any place filled with a bunch of snobs that serves steamed bugs for $40 is ALWAYS bad!"

"Yikes!" Legolas chuckled. That pretty much sounded like the kind of place his mother would like to go. Luckily, Eomer was nothing like her and was one of the few family members Legolas genuinely liked spending time with. They'd always gotten along, and grew especially close during the three months they'd been roommates. Besides, they were only 8 years apart and were more like brothers rather than uncle and nephew.

"Someone you know?" Legolas asked when he noticed a rather attractive young woman looking their way.

Eomer turned to look, but the woman immediately looked away, only to turn back and catch another glance a few seconds later. "No," the older man replied with an impish smirk, "sure would like to though."

"Go for it then. She can't seem to tear her eyes away from your manly ass anyway."

Eomer grinned and turned to look at the woman again. He knew he was attractive, not that he was arrogant about it or anything, he just happened to be aware of the fact that there would always be someone in the room who'd like to jump his bones. It was that simple. And just as simply as that, he would walk over to her and use every bit of his abundant charisma to persuade her to go along with the said bone-jumping.

Legolas giggled as he watched his uncle try to charm his way into the woman's pants. They'd only been chatting for 10 minutes when she let him stick his tongue down her throat, and a couple of minutes later they both walked out with their hands on each other's rears.

"The Ladies' Man strikes again!" Legolas muttered to himself before knocking back his remaining Long-Island Ice Tea and ordering two more. His book was soon forgotten as the alcohol made it increasingly difficult to comprehend what he was reading. And that was when he decided to make a trip to the men's room.

Legolas didn't notice the pair of green eyes that had been watching him the whole time.

He thought he could walk straight, and he knew he was heading towards the right table… So why was there an extra drink there? And who was the man in a black suit sipping that drink?

"Is this my table?" Legolas asked with a slight slur as he stumbled towards the admittedly handsome stranger. For a second he thought the man looked a bit familiar, but that could just be the booze playing tricks.

"Is it?" the man asked in a feigned surprised tone as he looked up at the beautiful youth he'd been eyeing for the past hour-and-a-half. "I'm sorry, I didn't know anybody was sitting here. I'll leave if you like," he said with a pleasant smile.

"S'ok," Legolas replied as he plopped his slender body down next to the man's. He knew the alcohol was starting to get to him, which was why didn't mind sitting comfortably close to a total stranger. "Do I know you from somewhere? You look like kind of familiar to me."

The man let out a little chuckle. A very sexy chuckle Legolas though. He must have been around 40-ish, with red hair that was slicked back, a neatly trimmed beard, stunning green eyes, and a devilish grin that sent chills down the younger man's spine. Wow… how drunk was he???

"Maybe," the man said with a smirk, "I've been living in this town for the past 10 years. The name's Boromir."

"Legolas," he introduced himself, shaking the older man's offered hand.

"Would you let me buy you a drink Legolas?" Boromir asked charmingly, "that is, if you're old enough to consume alcohol."

"I'll be 23 next month!" Legolas shot back, not realizing that the older man was just teasing.

The reaction made Boromir laugh. He knew the boy was drunk, but one more round wouldn't hurt would it? Besides, Boromir Gondorian was a reasonably decent person who'd make sure that the gorgeous drunk kid would get home safely. Tomorrow morning.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NOTE That really is the name of a book on archery.