Chapter 15

Warnings- this is for you Crecylol...sexual innuendos/situations (strong PG-13 to light R) nothing serious its only a quick shot

indicates change of POV

passage of time

italics thoughts or memories

(Haldir)

Bright light shone into my eyes, shaking me at last from the fetters of sleep. I could not remember for the life of me where I was. My head was throbbing most unpleasantly. I sat up listlessly, my limbs heavy as if they were dragging iron chains. Where was I?

Intense sunlight filled the room. It was most likely high noon. I was in my bedroom, lying on my bed, in clothes that I had not remembered wearing the night before. What had happened last night? Memories began flooding into my mind.

Ah, my brother and the drinking contest.

I should have known better. By the looks of it they had gotten me more drunk than I had ever been in my life – I had always made a point of keeping my wits about me when I drink. I just hope I did not make a fool of myself in front the entire population of Lothlorien. I will never live that down. Groaning, I pressed one palm against my throbbing temple and rose from the bed. And where was Elenna? I walked from my room into the main chamber of the talan where I was greeted by a most peculiar sight.

Elenna was curled onto a recliner under the window by the terrace, fast asleep. She was wearing odd clothes that did not fit her at all, and a closer look confirmed my suspicion that she had raided my drawers. The white tunic was much too large for her and had slipped down one pale shoulder during the course of her slumber. Her silky dark hair fell over her shoulders and spilled over the sea green cushion that she tightly to her chest, as if she was afraid it would fly away if she did not hold on firmly enough. Silently, I approached the recliner, careful not the disturb her.

"Sweet Elenna…" I whispered.

So deep was her sleep that she did not even stir at my words. I reached out on hand tentatively and caressed her tranquil face. My eyes travelled down from her face to the splash of milky white throat that showed through the dark curtain of her hair. Her skin looked too delicate to touch. I turned my gaze back to her face and skimmed over the familiar features that I loved so much. The graceful arch of her brows, her small yet prominent nose, the pale red of her lips.

Yet now that I was nearer, her fair countenance seemed to be marred by a dark shadow that seemed to have fallen over her. She seemed to be trapped in the grasp of some horrendous creature that would not let her go. Her hands clutched ever more tightly at the cushion and her face was contorted into a pained expression. She was caught in the throes of a ghastly dream.

"Elenna, wake up." I said softly into her ear.

I could not bear to see her so troubled. In a way, I blamed myself for not being there to ease away her fears. Yet still she did not wake. I gently shook her shoulder and her eyes sprang wide-open, a raging storm of flashing silver. Without warning, one pale hand shot out and grasped my own and she sat straight up, looking over my shoulder at some unseen thing.

"He is coming for me." Her voice said in a terrible whisper.

"It was only a dream, Ranaew." I said soothingly, "nothing more."

"He is coming." She whispered again, her eyes still carrying that dreadful look.

"Elenna." I said a louder tone, trying to shake that look from her face. She started and her eyes focused on me again.

"Haldir." She murmured. "You are awake."

"You look terrible Ranaew." I said concernedly, "Tell me what disturbs your dreams."

"It was nothing Haldir." She said, though there was still a tremor in her voice.

I wrapped my arms around her and rested my chin on the top of her head. Her breathing was still uneven and ragged.

After a moment I released her. She looked up at me, the terrible look gone from her, but I thought I saw a sliver of the shadow still lingering on her face. However, I did not inquire further.

"It is nothing." She said again, this time more softly. I looked into her eyes anxiously, but she gave me a small smile and I was appeased.

"Go for a wash, you reek of wine." She said. I laughed at this.

"Ever painfully truthful you are Ranaew." I said. She smiled again, this time more cheerfully.

"I am not one for flattery, Haldir. You know this." She replied. I smiled back.

"I leave you then, milady." I said, giving her a mock bow. She smiled widely and gave me a small nod of her head. Smiling to myself, I turned and left to rid myself of the results of last night's drinking contest.

(Elenna)

Grasping at a dream is like hopelessly trying to gather fog in your hands. All I could remember was running, running from something terrible that would surely catch me if I stop. A feeling of dread hung upon the clear afternoon light. Haldir had gone, and I felt alone again.

I rose from the soft recliner and walked toward the open windows. The day was glorious, warming the air and filling it with the sweet perfume of the blooming flowers. I sighed. It was not a day to be fretful on. The delightful spring wind eased away fears as the shadows are lessened by sunlight. I breathed in deeply the fragrance on the wind.

Covering myself with a cloak borrowed again from among Haldir's clothing, I set out swiftly from the talan, making way back to my own. It would not do at all to remain in these clothes. Thankfully, buried deep in the folds of the green cloak, I passed unnoticed through the winding walkways. I breathed a sigh of relief when I stepped back inside my own talan and shut the door.

The talan remained unchanged from when I had left it two days ago after returning from the woods and guard duty. My grey tunic and cloak lay thrown over the back of a chair, beside white-handled twin daggers and my bow. The white dress that I had slipped out of so hastily the night before had fallen in a pile on the floor. The unbound draperies fluttered in the breeze.

I gathered up the soiled clothing and made my way into my bedchamber. I could use a bath as well.

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The cool water refreshed me immensely, washing all worries from my mind, along with the shadowy dreams of the night. I rose from my bath revived and full of energy. I slid on a dress as green as a leaves illuminated by the sunlight and wove into my hair a single strand of green twine that pulled my dark hair back from my face. I felt as joyful as spring. Laughing to myself I spun around my talan, twirling onto the sunny terrace.

I looked out onto Caras Galadhon. Every time I stood upon this balcony, the scene that stretched before my eyes seemed to be changed. Now as I stand there, the golden had all but fallen and the trees were standing white and bare. Yet there could be seen between the bare eaves of the branches, small but brilliantly green leaves that emerged and unfurled, giving the trees an oddly pale green fuzzy look. Three springs had come and gone since I had first stepped foot into Lothlorien, and still I had not seen every face of its beauty.

Softly singing to myself, I left my talan and wandered absentmindedly down the pathway.

(Haldir)

When I returned from my wash, rid of all traces of wine, I found Elenna gone from my talan. Where had the little bird flown again? Always she is restless. I chuckled to myself and set out for a stroll in the warm afternoon sun that filtered down in golden strands from between the near bare eaves of the mellyrn. As I walked, passer-bys greeted me with respectful bows which I returned. Times before, the people of Caras Galadhon had bowed because I was the march warden and Captain of the guard of Lothlorien. But now, I knew there was one more reason for their esteem. It was because now, I was also the grandson of the Lord and Lady, because I had wedded their granddaughter.

I had never known of Elenna's true lineage. It was true that I found her dark hair odd, but I had never remembered it to be the features of the Noldor, the High-Elven kindred that had seen the light of Valinor. I had known that the Lady was Noldor also, but she had the golden hair of her Vanyarin parentage, a color much closer to that of the Silvan and in sharp contrast to the dark coloring of the Noldor. There are now few of that people left in the lands of Middle Earth, they had all but left these shores. All that remained were the people of Lord Elrond's household, the Lady, and perhaps one and two of her maidens.

I had never thought to account Elenna amongst their kindred, despite her obvious display of their features. The Noldor had always thought themselves more superior and refined than those of the Úmanyar which they called us, the races of the Sindar and the Silvan, the Eldar not of Aman. Elenna had seemed more like to the wood elves than any other. She was one who knew the woods and trees, who had walked beside the melodious waters of Middle Earth and lived by it. Elenna had not the icy arrogance of the Deep Elves who call themselves the Wise. She was pure and genuine of heart. This just goes to show the virtues of being raised by wood elves. Not all who dwell among the trees must be what the Noldor call "rustic".

And then again, even if I had realized Elenna to be one of the Noldor, I would have never imagined her to be one of the Lord and Lady's kin. How had Elenna been lost to her kin for such long years unnumbered, she of the highest born family in all of Middle Earth? How had they allowed Elenna, a mere child then, to be lost to the wilderness? And then there was the matter of the Lady's younger daughter, the Lady Nimbrethil, Elenna's mother. Not in all my long years have I ever heard tell of a second daughter to the Lady of Lothlorien.

I was really no closer to knowing about Elenna than the day I had met her in the Northern Fences of Lothlorien. Every new thing I learnt about her just seemed to lead me into more confusion. She really was an enigma inside a mystery…

I was shaken from my thoughts by the sound of soft singing that was drifting around the bend of the pathway, coming towards me. Even though it was sung softly, I could hear it quite well. The happy tune was unfamiliar, but the sweet voice that sang it could be no other.

It was Elenna.

Smiling to myself, I quickly dodged into an empty pavilion nearby just as she rounded corner of the walkway. The sight of her brought a wide smile to my face. She was dressed in lively green with a piece of living twine woven into her dark hair. She was smiling and singing softly to herself, while fawning over a tiny white bird that seemed to follow her around everywhere. It twittered happily in her hand, occasionally rose to flutter around her as she laughed and twirled with it, then returning to her outstretched arm again. She was a lovely sight to behold.

Soon, she passed me by onto the pathway from which I had came from, still singing softly to herself and the little white bird. I slipped quietly from the pavilion where I had been hiding and silently followed her down the path. The little white bird fluttered away this time for good, but she did not seem to notice my presence and continued strolling contentedly down the walkway. Still, I followed her at a distance.

She rounded another bend in the ever winding walkways and I lost sight of her for a moment. As I rounded the corner myself, however, I found no trace of her. The singing had stopped. I looked around curiously, wondering where she could have gone.

Elenna was nowhere to be seen, she seems to have disappeared into thin air. Mystified I leant back against the trunk of one of the large mallorn trees that supported the wooden walkways, pushing away some of the stray branches. As I did this, I revealed before me, one of the narrow wooden walkways that I recognized as the ones that ran far above in the treetops, running the entire length of the city. I had forgotten about this particular branch of it entirely.

So, that was how she made her escape.

I climbed up onto it by the grey rope ladder that was all but concealed in the overgrown branches. I followed it pulling sharply up from the city into the distant green canopy. I still caught no glimpse of Elenna. I was finding harder to keep silent now for the wooden walkways were old and prone to creaking. It swayed dangerously as I finally reached the familiar platform below a rope ladder that led up into the old abandoned watch tower.

I hesitated a moment, but decided to climb up into the high flet, trying to keep as silent as I could.

Emerging through the opening in the talan floor, I found Elenna exactly where I thought she would be. She was leaning against the strong trunk of the mighty Mallorn, eyes closed, basking in the golden warmth of the sunshine. I pulled myself up on the flet and soundlessly sat myself down beside her.

"I thought you had gotten lost Haldir." She said to me, eyes still closed, her face uplifted to the sun.

"So you knew." I said to her.

"Of course." She said. "Sùlimelos never did like your company."

"You mean the little white bird?" I said. She nodded. The green of her dress shone even more brilliantly in the sun.

"You look lovely Ranaew." I said to her.

At this she opened her eyes and looked over at me.

"You remind me of a birch tree in the spring." I said. She smiled rather wistfully, and turned to look out over the forest.

The sunlight on her skin made it appear almost luminous, giving a glow even in the strong daylight. I placed a hand on her cheek and turned her to face me. Her shining eyes looked up at my face. I pulled her towards me and claimed her mouth with a kiss, pressing her hard against the trunk of the mallorn tree. At first she seemed surprised but then her willing hands tangled itself in my hair and she opened her mouth to me. I let my hands roam her back, following the curve of her body, tugging insistently on her dress. I pulled one sleeve down her shoulder and then assaulted her milky throat with my mouth. She gave a little whimper of pleasure.

After that she gave no resistance as I rid her body of its clothing, sliding the green dress from her in one smooth movement. I still had to help her fumbling hands as she tried to relieve me of my cloak and my tunic, but we managed easily. By then, I had trapped her against the wooden floor of the talan. She writhed under me as I once again renewed my assault on her throat, moving lower down to capture her rosy tipped breast in my mouth. She arched her back off the floor of the talan. I quickly rid myself of my last piece of clothing, nudging apart her knees, making love to her under the golden light of the brilliant sun, with the forest of Lothlorien spreading out beneath us in every direction as far as you could see, I made love to my wife.

(Elenna)

He turned my face to him, looking at me with a strange look that I had seen once before. I knew that look. Before I could say anything, he had captured my mouth in a demanding kiss and I found myself pressing into the trunk of the mallorn. His hands became more and more insistent, pulling at my dress, and I knew what he wanted. I gave in willingly. He was wreaking such havoc on my body, inflaming it to his touch, with just his kisses on my throat and lower as his lips travelled down my neck. I was still not used to such sensations, such overwhelming sensations, as he worshipped every single part of my body. I was still so new to this.

He whispered loving words into my ear, caressing me, holding me to him as he sensed my hesitancy. Soon, I knew nothing else but his kisses and his body moving within me. He seemed to know every place in body that was most sensitive to his touch, he made me burn for him.

At last, we lay together on the talan floor. He pulled his cloak over us and rained soft kisses on my head.

"Did I hurt you, Ranaew?" he asked softly. I shook my head.

"There was no pain this time." I said to him. He kissed my forehead.

"Nor will there be again." He replied. "It will not come again."

I laid my head on his shoulder as we leant up against the cool bark of the mallorn.

"How old are you, Elenna?" he asked. His silvery-golden hair tickled my nose.

"A thousand and some fifty years of the sun." I replied after a thought.

"You are a young little bird." He said. I smiled at his words.

"I suppose you are not so young then." I said. He laughed quietly. "No Ranaew, not quite so young." He said. "I was born at the beginning of this age of Middle Earth. But I am not quite as old as Lord Celeborn yet."

I laughed. "I should hope not. Why Lord Celeborn has walked the forests of Doriath in Beleriand!" I exclaimed. He laughed too.

"But I would love you all the same even if I was, Elenna, I will always love you." He whispered into my hair. I smiled and buried my nose in the crook of his neck.

"I will never stop loving you…"

Later, we wandered the gardens of Lothlorien, its flowers blossoming in the warm spring air, filling it with its pungent perfume. There were flowers of every color imaginable, blooming beautifully under the silver mellyrn, but I delighted in the simple beauty of a small white tree with delicate white and pale green flowers that adorned its slender branches.

"I would not have guessed you to be anything else but a wood elf if I was not told otherwise, Elenna." He said to me as I examined the pallid flowers.

"But I am a wood elf." I replied, picking one off the small tree.

"You are of the Noldor, the people of the Lady, your mother and your father." He said, taking the flower from me and placing it in my hair.

"We are who we choose to be Haldir, a race does not define the person." I told him.

"You sound like the Lady Galadriel." He said laughingly. I smiled at him. "The Lady is my grandmother." He chuckled.

"Long ago, in the youth of the world, did the not the Noldor also dwell in the woods of Middle Earth?" I said to him. "I have never seen Valinor, Haldir, I am just the same as you."

"You speak truly, Elenna." He replied, nodding. "You are wise beyond your years."

"It is not wisdom I speak of, Haldir." I said, "It is merely the truth, nothing more."

"There are many that are blinded from that simple truth you speak of Elenna." He said to me. "To see it is to possess wisdom." I did not answer him.

Silence fell upon us as we wandered about the lush garden, stopping occasionally to admire its magnificence. After a while, Haldir spoke again.

"Where do your kin dwell now? Where live your mother and father?" he asked. I stopped in my path. There was silence, other than the rustling of the leaves and the call of the birds in the trees.

"On the ever green plains of Eldamar, under the shadow of the Hall of Waiting." I whispered, more to myself than to him. He remained silent for a moment.

"I am sorry, Elenna, I should not have asked." He said apologetically. I shook my head. "It was a just question." I told him. "and it deserved an answer." He put a comforting hand on my shoulder. I sat down on the soft carpet of grass, gathering my green skirts to me, he followed my lead.

"I am not grieved." I said to him, "I will see them again. I can hardly remember them anyhow."

"How did they…" he voiced and then decided not to continue.

"They were hunted down by the enemy." I said to him. He looked at me with pity in his eyes. "They were returning to Lorien with me. I was lost to the wild then; the enemy did not catch me."

We fell silent again, letting the forest surround us, the mighty mellyrn towering high into the sky. He put his arms around me, holding me in his embrace.

"You are the only one I have now." I whispered to him. "You are my family."

"You have the Lord and Lady." He said to me. "And in Imladris dwell your mother's sister and your cousins. They are family to you."

I shook my head. "I have not seen them for a thousand years." I said, "They are hardly family to me. And the Lord and Lady, well they are a bit…frightening."

He laughed.

"Well I suppose they are a bit frightening." He said smiling. "but they are your family nonetheless. They care for you."

I nodded.

"We must return back to the borders in two days, Elenna." He said to me after a while. I smiled at him brightly. He laughed at the look on my face.

"You are most amusing, Ranaew." He said, but I only laughed at him.

"All the other guards will be jealous of me." He whispered into my ear. "For while the rest of them leave their wives in the city, I will have mine with me always."

I smiled. "I will not be parted from you Haldir." I said softly. "I can not be parted from you."

"I will let no one take my little bird from me." He said smiling to me.

"Not ever."

two words: read, Review. Ok? Anyone who still wants the pencil sketch can contact me anytime. Just so you know it was specifically drawn for this chapter.

Au-revoir ! till later.