Most of you liked the new Valerie, some others will wait to read more about her before deciding if they preferred the Valerie from the Haldir version. Starting in this chapter, you will get to know her better, as she will play a major role in the story from now on...
I greatly enjoyed reading the reviews of Aureleis, Paperlanterns86, Icebend28, Estel undomiel, Manwathiel-Nanethiel, faye50free, kaydub, Fi, ShueYun, Emma, Blood-In-Poison, Angel, world-classgeek, Dorothea Blackmoor and KurandRobgirl. Thank you for sharing your opinion with me!
MeggySky: yes, Legolas will be much happier with his destiny in this story. But Haldir will also be, eventually..
Morwen80: I don't have plans for another story right now – I am concentrating on this one for now. Maybe I will be inspired to write another Glorfindel story or one with the twins – but I am not sure at this point.
KrystylSky and blackunicorne: Allison will play a bigger role in this story, but in future chapters... You will not be disappointed!
Glory Bee: I do plan different pairings than in the original story, while some couples just cannot be changed... You will see in a few chapter what will happen with Allison...
Peridot Eyez: You are right, this Valerie is more suited to fit in a royal family, with her upbringing. But she will be a breath a fresh air for Legolas and his father!
Hirilnin: Don't worry, Valerie isn't such a tough nut to crack! Legolas will know exactly how to seduce her.
Abbyforth: You are right, Legolas has been stalking, and he is not about to stop... But... I like him too much to send him to jail for it!
Iloooveinuyasha1: I hope the new Valerie will keep growing on you!
No name: Thank you for sharing your opinion. I personally don't think both Valeries are actually waiting for a man to change their lives. They both have careers and are strong women, but sometimes they are tired and dream of a different life, whether it is with a man or not... I do hope that you enjoy the story nevertheless...
Chapter 4 ended with:
Valerie sighed and turned her chair to face the window, looking at the city at her feet. She was thinking of dropping everything on a regular basis, dreaming of a quiet life with her children and Allison, preferably on a deserted island where no one would be able to reach them. A place where she would start over and make different choices. She spent five minutes dreaming about this fantasy life, until Rose called her to let her know her next appointment had arrived. Time to end the pity party and get back to business.
Chapter 5 - Contact
Valerie was at the park with the kids, after dinner but before sundown. She loved running in this park while her children played. It was much better than running on her treadmill, but unfortunately she could not train there as often as she would like. Sean and Phoebe were playing in the sand, Sean being the architect of the sand castles while his sister was carrying water between the sandbox and the nearby fountain. Liam was reading at a wooden picnic table, keeping a distracted eye on his younger siblings. Valerie was jogging on the round track around the park, watching her kids every now and then when a blond man appeared at her side, a runner like herself. He was sprinting faster than she did and soon all she could see was his back, with long golden hair attached in a low ponytail. He was tall, slender but still muscular, and if his front side was as attractive as his back... Valerie chuckled and glanced at her children, making sure they were safe.
The man overtook her again less than ten minutes later, and this time, he smiled in her direction when he passed her. Valerie kept running, but blushed deeply. He was so... breathtaking! She had seen her share of handsome men, especially models, but this man? He was in a separate category! She wondered if he had been approached to be a model. He could quickly become a worldwide hit!
Phoebe, who had stopped helping Sean with the sandcastle building, decided to climb on top of the highest slide, despite her mother's multiple commands not to do so in the weeks prior. She stood on the top of the tubular slide and screamed: "I am the queen of the world!" at the top of her lungs. She started turning around to make sure her words were heard all over the park. She suddenly lost her balance and fell in the sand, screaming in terror on her way down. Valerie started running towards her daughter, but the blond man reached her children before she did, running faster than she had seen anyone run. It had almost been blurry. When she arrived at the scene, the man had helped Phoebe to sit and was moving her little legs, asking her if the movements were painful.
"Phoebe! Are you alright?" she cried as she dropped on her knees beside her daughter, catching Phoebe's head in her hands and kissing her hair with relief.
"Mommy!" her daughter whimpered, "I fell from the slide!"
"I saw, baby, I saw!" Valerie hushed, looking at the man who was now watching them with interest.
"Your daughter is fine, she does not have any broken bones. Just a few scratches. She was more scared than hurt," the man said with a strong accent.
He was even more attractive than she had first thought. His skin was perfect, with a tone so light that it seemed there was some light shining through. His long golden hair seemed silky, like soft baby hair. His hands were aristocratic, but the palms and some fingers seemed strangely calloused. She immediately recognized the hands of an archer who was not using gloves. His nose was straight, and his lips were thin but sensual. Her gaze lingered there far too long before she realized she was staring at his mouth. His piercing blue eyes were studying her while she was staring at him, and when her eyes went back to his, slightly mortified but her curiosity satisfied. He gave her a charming smile that showed his perfectly aligned ultra-white teeth.
"Mommy!" Phoebe whimpered again. Valerie chided herself. Her daughter had been hurt and all she could do was stare at the most magnetic man she had ever met before. But she didn't seem to be able to stop looking at him. She stood and picked up her daughter from the ground. "Let's go home," she told her sons while cradling her daughter to calm her down. "Well... I better get her home to clean the scratches. Thank you for your help," she told the man.
"I did not help much. I am glad she was not hurt," he replied.
They stared at each other for a few seconds, before Liam reminded his mother that they had to go home. He didn't understand why his mother was taking so long to leave the park while Phoebe was crying.
"Goodbye. It was nice meeting you," Valerie said. They walked to the car and drove back home. It was only then that she realized she had not even asked the man for his name. He had helped her with Phoebe, he was the most handsome man she had ever seen, and she had not even thought of asking him his name! She really was a desperate case!
Her sons got ready for bed while she bathed Phoebe and cleaned the scratches on her legs. She put some band-aids with Disney's princesses on each cut, and that was enough to bring back a smile on her daughter's face. Once they were all in bed, Valerie put a coat on, took her laptop and went to sit on the balcony in the backyard. Rose had sent her an email with the additional pages featuring Samantha and her three creations. She opened the email and clicked on the file, but suddenly lifted her gaze from the screen. It had been quite a few days that she felt... observed. As if someone's gaze was always on her, especially when she was outside. She sharply looked in the forest at the end of her land, but could not see anything in the dark. She knew the guards at the gates were doing regular tours of the community, and had always felt secure. She dismissed her discomfort, blaming it on the Christmas issue frenzy. Speaking of which... she looked at the file Rose had sent and smiled. Her team had once again created a little miracle. Samantha looked good, her lack of experience not really showing on the pictures. Olivia's accessories were outstanding and if she were to be honest, the dresses were enhancing the accessories instead of the opposite. Her brother would complain, but she had respected her promise. Samantha and her creations were in the Christmas issue.
She laughed, delighted. In the trees, Legolas smiled. He much preferred to see her laugh than cry.
Valerie picked up her phone and called her assistant.
"Rose? It's great! I love it! Give the go ahead to the graphic team. Now, Olivia told me she had the dresses for me to try for the launch on the 20th. Did she bring them to you? Okay. I will read the speech later tonight and make some changes." Valerie listened for a while then sighed. "No, I will not be bringing a date, and I don't think Allison will either. Did my parents confirm their presence?" Valerie grimaced. "And my brother?" She grimaced again. "Thanks. I will see you tomorrow."
In the tree, Legolas thought that he needed to attend this event, whatever it was. It would be a great way to meet her again. But it was three weeks away. Three weeks lost while he had already spent a month here. That would only leave four months to seduce her. Was it enough? Realizing it might not, Legolas decided that he would run in the park regularly after dinner, in case she would do the same. He needed to be there before her, to make sure she didn't think he was stalking her.
OoOoO
She had seen him at the park three times in a week. If she were honest with herself, their meetings were no coincidences. She had started running there frequently instead of on her treadmill at home, in the hope of seeing him again. The first time, they had not really spoken because Phoebe had been hurt. The second time they met, they had smiled to each other but he had kept running, listening to his music, concentrating on his race. She had wondered why he had not spoken to her. He could at least have asked her about Phoebe. His silence had bothered her greatly. She was not used to being ignored, and she had decided that if they were to meet again, she would not let him avoid her again.
Legolas was running in the large ring when he saw her car arriving in the street. The three kids came out of the car and ran to their usual spot while Valerie was getting warmed up. He smiled to her but kept running, instinctively knowing it would drive her insane. He knew her habits and was very aware that she had come back only to see him. He did a complete tour, and when he was near her again, he was surprised to feel a hand on his arm, holding him. He had been electrified by the touch of her soft skin strongly gripping his bicep to get his attention. This was the action of a woman used to get what she wanted. He liked that in her. He found it attractive, never having seen this in an elleth.
"Hello!" he read on her lips as he stopped, and he removed his earphones to greet her properly.
"Good evening! I see that your daughter is doing well," he said, pointing her children in the middle of the park. Once again, her son Liam was reading a book while Sean and Phoebe were playing in the sand. The little girl was not getting anywhere near the slides.
"She was fine a few minutes after we got home. I never got the chance to thank you properly so... Thank you again for your help."
"It was a pleasure."
"My name is Valerie," she said, extending her hand.
"Legolas," he replied, and they shook hands vigorously. That also was unusual for an elleth.
"Legolas? I have never heard that name. Where are you from?"
"You obviously noticed my accent! Valerie, I am sorry but I still have 30 minutes to train and I have an appointment later tonight..." he said, pointing at the track. In reality, he wanted to change the subject. He knew he would not be able to fool Valerie like he had fooled Kate. Valerie was an educated woman who had probably traveled a lot.
"Oh! I am sorry! We could... run together? That is, if you don't mind running a little slower than usual! I have noticed you have more endurance and power than most runners."
"Why not? I can walk while you run!" he asked, winking at her. She laughed and they started running in silence.
"Are you running here frequently?" she asked breathlessly after a few minutes.
"It's been more than a month," Legolas replied.
"I got fed up of running on my treadmill last week. It seems that we see each other almost every time I come here."
"Are you stalking me?" he asked with a grin. "Because if you are -"
"No! Although I admit it's starting to look like stalking, I can certify that our meetings are pure coincidences," she lied with assurance.
"I will take your word for it. You seem like a trustworthy woman."
They ran in silence for a while, and Legolas noticed how she was always keeping an eye on her children. "Your children are beautiful," he told her honestly. It had been centuries since the last elfling had been born in Greenwood. The elves could not stand the idea of bringing innocent lives into their world anymore. Not with Sauron's threat rising and the darkening of the Greenwood. In fact, the darkness was so strong in Greenwood that Men, Dwarves and other elven people were calling it Mirkwood. There were a few children in Lake-town, but Legolas had not visited the human town since the death of his mother.
"Thank you. Do you have children yourself?"
"No! I am not married."
"Me neither, but I have children, as you can see."
"Did you get... what is it called in English... a divorce?" he hesitated. He knew perfectly well she did not after hearing her conversation with her sister the healer a week before, but he kept asking questions as if he truly had no idea.
"No. I was never married."
"You have a boyfriend then?"
"No. No husband, no boyfriend."
They continued running, lost in their thoughts. Legolas was impressed to see that Valerie could practically keep up with him, while she was wondering how come Legolas was not sweating. At all. When they were done 30 minutes later, she asked him if he would run the next day. When he confirmed he was planning to, she asked him if he wanted to run with her again. He agreed and spoke a little with the children before leaving. He asked questions to Liam about his book, and asked Phoebe and Sean how old they were and what kind of games they liked to play.
The next day, they ran together again, making small talk. At the end of the run, he took the bag he had left near the children and gave Phoebe toys to play in the sand. Liam received a book and Sean a book of piano scores. The kids politely thanked him and started looking at their gifts.
"How did you know Sean is a musician?" Valerie asked, puzzled.
"You told me the other day," Legolas replied with assurance. Truth be told, he knew he had bought the scores after having seen and heard Sean play music for many days now. When he spied on them. Valerie frowned but shrugged after a while. Hopefully, she would accept his explanation.
"Why do you have pointy ears?" Phoebe suddenly asked. Liam and Sean intensely studied Legolas and realized their sister's question was valid. Valerie simply blushed. She too had noticed the strange shape of his ears but had never dared ask him about it.
"I was born like this. A... malformation, I guess."
"I think it is nice," Phoebe said. "You look like an elf. Can you do magic?"
Legolas laughed nervously while Valerie glared at her daughter.
"Why is your hair so long?" Sean asked.
"Sean!" Valerie admonished. "I am sorry, Legolas. It seems I did not educate my children properly."
"Your children are charming," he said with a smile. "To answer your question, Sean, where I come from, my hairstyle is traditional."
"Kids, please get in the car," Valerie commanded. "We have to get back home. Sean has his piano lessons later tonight." The children said goodbye to Legolas and Liam helped his sister attach her seat belt while Sean was putting their toys in the trunk.
"Well... It was nice seeing you again," Valerie told him.
"It was... Do you think... I would like to see you again. In another context than running in the park," Legolas said seriously, maintaining her gaze, trying to convey his interest for her.
"I am very busy nowadays," Valerie said nervously. She thought he was extremely good-looking, she was definitely attracted to him, but... she was not looking for a relationship. She didn't want a man in her life, she reminded herself. She didn't need one. Seeing him in another context than training would make their encounters more serious.
"Just a coffee maybe?" Legolas insisted. He liked this strong beverage that didn't exist in Middle Earth.
"I will be very busy, I am not lying! I... I will see you tomorrow, I guess. Goodbye, Legolas!" She turned around and swiftly walked to the car where her children were waiting for her.
Legolas was disappointed, both with her escape and his own insistence. He had known that she was not looking for a relationship, and had probably pushed her a little too far under the current circumstances. Why did he have to insist? He watched her as she hesitated beside her car. She looked at him and seemed to make a decision. She took a pen and a piece of paper in her purse, wrote something down and walked back to him.
"We have a huge celebration on the 20th. If you are interested to attend... This is my office number, you can speak to Rose, she can give you an invitation and give you all the details. If... you are interested..."
"I will think about it." When he saw the disappointment in her eyes, he quickly added: "I will call Rose tomorrow."
"Good. Goodnight!"
"Goodnight, Valerie." She walked back to the car, and he waved goodbye to the children. Sean and Phoebe waved back while Liam was looking at him with a frown. He was a very clever boy. He was probably the only one that had noticed the attraction between his mother and him.
OoOoO
Legolas had called Rose as promised. He only had to introduce himself and the woman at the end of the line had taken care of everything. That is why on the evening of the 20th, Kate put him on a taxi to go to the chic hotel where the reception was organized. He was late, unfashionably late as per Kate. He had had to go buy a tuxedo with her at the last minute. Kate had assumed he had something to wear for such an evening, and when she had found out he did not, less than an hour before the appointed time, she had berated herself for not having asked before and brought him to this store where he purchased a suit that had cost him the equivalent of one gold coin.
The hotel was impressive, with marble floors, crystal lights and well-dressed employees that reminded him of the chamberlains in Imladris, the city of Lord Elrond. The place was crowded with young and old people, all of them wearing evening attire and jewelry. He realized that this was the equivalent of a court event like there still were in Minas Tirith and in Imladris. No such event had taken place in Greenwood since the passing of his mother. He walked to the reception hall and was amazed to see that around a thousand people were in attendance, sitting at round tables, dancing in the middle of the room or standing at the bars where alcohol was being served. The music was so loud that his ears were aching. He would not be able to stay for a long time if he wanted to remain sane. He looked around, searching for Valerie but he didn't find her at first glance. How was he supposed to find her in this crowd?
The song ended and the singer announced that Valerie Thompson would make a speech. Relieved that the volume of noise would come down a little, he turned to the stage and saw Valerie walking towards the microphone while people were clapping their hands. Amazingly, she looked comfortable under all this attention, a thing he had never been able to manage. He was a well-known warrior in Middle Earth, and knew people were talking about his exploits, but he was fundamentally modest, unlike his father. He did not like attention and avoided it at all costs, something his Adar claimed was costing Greenwood some of its potential glory.
Valerie was wearing a silver gown that bared her shoulders and was fitting her like a glove. There was a slit on her right leg, from the ankle up to high on her thigh, and with each step people could see her right leg, looking quite long with the silver high-heeled sandals she was wearing. She was... splendid. She walked up to the singer and kissed him on both cheeks. The man put both his hands around her waist while kissing her back and Legolas knew he would soon lose his temper if the man didn't remove his hands shortly from her body. Fortunately for him, Valerie turned around and ignored the gesture as if being touched by strangers was a common thing. He realized it was probably the case. All around him, people were kissing and hugging each other as if they were family, women clinging to men while men were putting their arms around the waist and shoulders of the women around them.
"Thank you!" Valerie said in the microphone, her voice being carried all the way to the end of the room. "It is a pleasure to welcome you to our annual launch of the Christmas issue of Y&S!" People clapped their hands again while an immense picture of the front page appeared behind Valerie. "This year, we have the pleasure of -"
Legolas stopped listening to the speech to concentrate on Valerie and how she looked under the spotlights. If he ever had had doubts about her being worthy of being part of the Greenwood royal family, his doubts were gone. She had everything required to be a preeminent figure in Middle Earth. She would be able to stand beside the rulers of Middle Earth, elvish and mannish, without looking out of place. She was what Greenwood needed to help restore some of its former glory, and with her, Silvan elves would stop being considered a lower race of elves.
There was no issue with the first condition, as far as Thranduil was concerned. The king had also advised Legolas not to bring this woman back if he did not think that he could fall in love with her and spend the rest of his life with her. He had spied on her for weeks, and had liked what he had seen. He had to admit that she was as far from a gentle elleth than a wild mare was from a doe. Surprisingly, he liked that about her. All the ellith he had been in a relationship with before were agreeing with his every word and were not questioning his behavior or opinions. Valerie would not. He had seen her argue with people, be firm in her decisions and tell people the truth, sometimes abruptly, sometimes with diplomacy. The only people that had successfully made her bend her head were her parents, and he knew she profoundly hated it and wanted out of their lives. He could give her a mean of escaping that would bring her a better future.
She had character, but was it enough for him to fall in love with her? The few times he had interacted with her, they had only been doing small talk. But he had gotten lost in her eyes many times, and her smiles were making his heart ache. He knew the sudden increased pace of his heartbeat each time he saw her meant that he was falling for her. He only had to get to know her better to completely fall head over heels. Maybe tonight, he would be able to have a conversation with her, maybe have a drink or two while her children were not around...
Valerie had finished her speech and was being led to the dance floor by a young man that had some distinct similarities with Allison, Valerie's sister. The band started playing again and he heard people around talking about tango while many couples gathered on the dance floor excitedly. He didn't know this dance, but after watching the couples for a few minutes, he thought he could manage and wondered if he could join Valerie and steal her as a dance partner like he was seeing many men do on the dance floor. Valerie and her partner were flawlessly executing the figures but she looked upset and the man was talking to her in low tones. They started to argue in whispers, and as Legolas got closer to them, he started hearing their conversation despite to loudness of the music.
"You cannot do that, John!" she was telling him. Legolas deducted that he was seeing her brother, the infamous John Junior who liked to see his girlfriends in Valerie's magazine.
"Of course I can! And I am going to do it!"
"Father will never let you do that!"
"You want to see his signature at the bottom of the letter of intent?"
"You are a fucking little piece of shit! You have no right to do this! It's my magazine!"
"No, it is not! It belongs to our father, and I convinced him that we no longer needed it in our portfolio."
"I have dedicated all my career to this magazine! I made it the success that it is today! Without me, it would still barely survive!"
"Unlike our parents, I am perfectly aware that you are the cause of the magazine's success. And thanks to you, we will make an outrageous amount of money selling it! But worry not, Father will name you editor-in-chief of another struggling magazine so you can turn it around again. Then, I will sell it just to piss you off -"
Legolas caught her hand just as she was about to slap her brother in the face, and successfully made it look like he was stealing his partner by making her twirl in his arms.
"I am sorry, I wanted to dance with my date," he told John Junior with a cold smile. Stunned, Valerie's brother didn't say a word and watched that handsome stranger leave with his sister.
Legolas could see that Valerie was beyond upset. She had a hard time breathing and she was biting her lips to control her desire to scream or to cry. He led her towards the back of the room where he could see a door with a red exit sign above. He opened the door and saw a small alley with huge containers full of garbage emitting an intolerable smell. Valerie didn't seem disturbed by the odor, as she was taking deep breaths of cold air to calm herself down, without success. The next moment, she was removing her sandals and throwing them with all her strength against a container.
"What happened?" Legolas asked. He had not heard the entire conversation, but he knew her brother had done something to upset her that way. He had sold her magazine, but that did not make sense to him. All her magazines were for sale, no?
He saw her pick up the silver sandals and started to hit the container with them until the fragile ornaments fell and the ground was covered in silver sparklers. She stopped and looked at the destruction, all her rage gone. He saw her bow her head and hide her face in her hands.
"Shit!" she mumbled through her fingers.
Legolas was not sure if he was supposed to leave her alone or try to talk to her. After all, she had completely ignored his prior question. He didn't have much experience with ellith in distress, especially not with ellith that had such a flamboyant character. Would she accept his support? He came closer to her, until he stood right behind her. He tentatively put his arms around her and he felt her tense against his chest.
"What are you doing?" she asked him, shock obvious in her voice. She gripped his forearms in some half-heartfelt defensive move.
"What happened?" he asked again, insisting to know what was wrong.
She didn't reply for a long time. He could feel her relax in his arms, getting used to his touch. He knew that she didn't trust people easily, and that he still was a stranger to her. The fact that his arms were warm around her naked shoulders probably helped. They were in October after all.
"He sold my magazine to a competitor," she eventually said. "My brother is a vengeful little prick, and nothing will stop him to make my life miserable. He knows, you understand, he knows that beside my children, there is nothing more important in my life than Y&S. It is mine!"
"Can you speak to your father? I know when mine makes a decision that I cannot accept, he discusses it with me and many times, I have been able to gain concessions from him."
"Your father is the president of a company too?"
"Not exactly. But his… profession involves ruling hundreds of people, including me."
"I have to leave... I have to get out of this vicious circle, leave this sick family behind before they succeed in driving me insane!"
Suddenly, they heard the door open and they heard a squeal. "She is here! Wait - What is going on here? Valerie, are you alright?"
Valerie freed herself from his arms and stood beside him, shivering in the cold.
"Yes, Rose, don't worry."
Rose started speaking quickly in her cell phone while assessing the scene of destruction. "Holly! She is in the back alley of the building, use the exit door at the end of the room. I need new shoes, and bring Valerie's bags with her makeup and hair products." She closed her phone and looked at Valerie. "Why are your sandals destroyed?"
"Isn't better than a broken phone? It's easier to replace..." Valerie commented lamely.
"We have been looking all over for you! You need to show up at the reception, so many people want to talk to you about the spring fashion shows. Giovanni asked if you were planning to attend his Milan show this year, and I was not sure since you didn't give me an answer when I asked you last week."
"I don't know, Rose, I didn't make a decision yet." Legolas saw Valerie's pain in her eyes, as she now knew perfectly well that she would not go to Milan in the spring. But she could not tell her assistant that, not now. He was familiar with keeping information to yourself in order to protect the people that depended on you.
Another woman arrived in the alley, and within moments, Rose and Holly were fixing Valerie's hair and makeup while Valerie was putting on brand new shoes. Once they were satisfied that Valerie could go back to her guests, they both turned to him.
"I am assuming that you are the infamous Legolas?" Rose asked.
"Rose!" Valerie chided.
"She was right, he is very good looking! Valerie told us you were not a model, but if you are interested, I could contact someone I know very well who could -" Holly started.
"Holly, you suddenly remind me of John Junior! You two are worse than school girls!" Valerie said, taking his arm to go back to the reception. "I am sorry, I have not been able to teach them diplomacy despite all my efforts. They are desperate cases."
"Is it true that you think I am good-looking?" he asked with a smile.
"I will not answer that question. You seem to perfectly know what your assets are."
Legolas stayed with her for the rest of the evening as she spoke to almost everyone in attendance, and he appreciated that she presented him as her date to the people she met. He answered all the questions to the best of his knowledge, and believed he succeeded in not raising suspicions about his lack of knowledge on certain modern matters.
He could tell that Valerie was upset but kept a happy and confident front for the benefit of her guests and employees. He did all he could to distract her and made sure she had a good time. He even danced with her a few times, but at some point, the volume of the music became too loud for him and he started to think about going back to Kate's.
Valerie immediately noticed his discomfort. "Are you tired? I am sorry, there are so many people here that want to speak to me, it is such a chore sometimes. Did you... want to go home?"
"Are you planning to stay much longer?" he asked, wondering if it was her way of proposing that they leave together or if she was simply asking out of curiosity.
Valerie had not thought of leaving at the same time than Legolas, and certainly not with him! Not after her discussion with John Junior! All she wanted to do was go home, drink a lot, and hide under her bedsheets for a week. But then again, why would she let her brother ruin her evening? She could spend some more time with Legolas. Nothing serious. After all, even if he was the most thoughtful and attractive man she had ever met, she wasn't looking for a serious relationship. Nothing of consequences would come out of this, even if things were going a little too far tonight...
"As you can see, people are starting to leave, I could probably leave soon too. I would like to spend some time with you, if you are not too tired? I mean... we didn't have much time to talk, and I wanted to get to know you better," she proposed. "But if you want to go home -"
"I would like to spend more time with you," he cut through her rambling. He was rewarded with a bright smile.
"Good. Let me speak to a few more people, and then we can leave."
OoOoO
He rather liked her house seen from the inside. The atmosphere was warm and cozy, and he was seeing many unknown appliances and objects that Kate didn't have in her own house. He would have to tread carefully not to show his ignorance, which would doubtlessly raise her suspicions. He realized that many of the things he was seeing around him showed that Valerie had more money than the average mortals, although everything looked to be tasteful, not flashy like some rich merchants of Middle Earth liked to do.
Everything was surprisingly clean and in order for a household with three children. He realized it was due to the presence of a servant who was there many hours a day, cleaning, preparing meals and taking care of the boys when they arrived from school. He had no idea where Phoebe was spending her days, Valerie always came back with her around dinner time.
Valerie was in the kitchen, preparing drinks after the departure of the young babysitter. He started walking around the living room and entered the small connecting room where Sean was keeping his musical instruments. His saxophone was in a case on a small table. Legolas opened the case and touched the golden metal instrument that produced sounds he had never heard before. He rather liked it when Sean played the saxophone, he could hear it from the trees in the backyard. But the instrument that he preferred was the piano. He delicately touched a key and was surprised by the low sound it made. He went to the other end of the keyboard, and the key he touched produced a high-pitched sound. Delighted, he tried every key in between, until Valerie appeared in the living room, asking him to stop playing if he didn't want to wake the children.
Legolas guiltily stopped and turned to look at Valerie. She was leaning against the door frame, holding two glasses with orange drinks.
"You never played the piano?" she asked, smiling.
"No. But I love the instrument very much."
"Me too. I used to play when I was younger. I don't have time anymore. Sean spends a lot of time playing music. You probably saw his saxophone too. His violin is in his bedroom, and he keeps his battery in the basement. I cannot stand the noises he is making with that instrument. I am thinking of buying him an electrical battery so he can play with earphones. Our ears would appreciated it!"
Legolas remembered the booming noises he could sometimes hear, coming from the lower level of the house. That must have been the battery. He knew exactly what Valerie was talking about when she said it was annoying her.
They went back in the living room and sat on the couch. They started drinking what Legolas thought at first was orange juice, something Kate usually served at breakfast, and almost choked when he took a big gulp of it. There was alcohol in this orange juice, lots of it, and Valerie smiled when she saw his reaction.
"I like a lot of vodka and peach Schnapps in this cocktail. I ran out of cranberry juice, so it is not as good as usual..."
"What is it called?"
"Sex on the Beach."
"What?"
"That's the name of the cocktail. Sex on the Beach. You never heard of it?"
"No. I am more used to wine and beer, although I must admit I do not like the taste of beer very much. We do not keep some in Greenwood, but the mortals of Lake-town drink beer."
"The mortals?" Valerie asked, raising an eyebrow.
Legolas could have beat himself. He needed to be more cautious. "This is a playful word we use to describe the people of Lake-town. Forget it! I see that you have a lot of books about history," he said, trying to change the subject.
Valerie looked at him strangely for a few more seconds before she turned in direction of the bookcase.
"Those are Liam's books. This kid is knowledge-hungry! He never stops reading or building machines. He has somewhere a list of all the subjects he wants to know about, and despite all his efforts, it keeps growing because each thing he reads about mentions other subjects he is interested to learn about!" she laughed. "His teachers cannot keep up with him. He has already skipped three school years, and the principal wanted him to skip another grade, but I refused. He is much younger than his classmates at this point, and I do not want him to suffer socially."
Legolas was suddenly hit by an Epiphany. He remembered the words of the prophecy:
When the fiery storm and the elven champion meet,
the Halls of Mandos will release the fëar of the great
Scholar, minstrel, warrior, new blood in the elven lines
Reborn kings, twin, warden, hope in dark times...
Liam the reader, knowledge hungry, too clever for his age... Lord Erestor of Imladris, the greatest elven scholar, must have been the same as an elfling! Liam was the scholar of the prophecy! And he was the oldest of Valerie's children. Next came the minstrel of the prophecy, Sean, who played many instruments. The second child of the prophecy. And what of little Phoebe? Was she part of the prophecy or not? Was she meant to remain behind? Legolas doubted a girl such as Phoebe would become a warrior, as the third child from the prophecy was supposed to be!
If his interpretation was right, it meant that he did not have to leave the children behind or take the children with him in Middle Earth just to please Valerie, but that they were meant to come and play a role in the prophecy. And Phoebe would come too, even if she was not part of it.
"So Legolas, enough talking about my sons. I would like to hear more about you. You are from a place called Greenwood?" Valerie recalled.
"Yes."
"Where is it?"
"A small place in the north."
"Near Lake-town."
"Yes," he confirmed, dreading the next question.
"In which country are Greenwood and Lake-town located?"
"In... Europe."
"Wow, can you vague this up for me?" Valerie laughed. "Do you have something to hide? Which country in Europe?" she insisted.
Legolas let his eyes wander on the bookshelf. There were many books about countries. He picked the first one, hoping the country was located in Europe. "Norway."
"Oh! I never went to Norway. But I heard it is a beautiful country."
Legolas sighed in relief. He couldn't believe his luck! "Yes, it is."
"How long are you planning to stay here?"
"A few months. I have to go back home at the beginning of February."
"And what do you do for a living?"
"I am... a warrior."
Valerie studied him for the longest time. "I have to admit that my first thought was that you look too innocent to be a warrior. But somehow, I just pictured you on a battlefield... Beautiful like an angel of light and destruction." She laughed nervously. "Have you ever been in a battle?"
"Yes, in fact, I have been in many battles."
"Were you ever wounded?"
"Yes, a few times."
"Did you ever kill someone?"
Legolas thought for a moment if orcs and goblins could qualify as someone. They were more something than someone, he thought at first. But they were still living beings, beasts that were breathing and killing anything standing in their way. "Yes, I did. Can we please... talk about something else?" Legolas didn't feel that the subject was leading to a discussion that would generate a romantic atmosphere anytime soon.
"I am sorry, Legolas, I didn't mean to upset you. I am sure that while you are on vacation, you don't want to talk about work. God knows how much I don't want to talk about mine right now. I will think about it tomorrow. Let's get drunk!"
"You work tomorrow."
"Are you always this serious?" she teased him.
"I can be anything you want," he answered with a grin.
"Do you have a girlfriend in Norway?" she asked with a twinkle in her eyes.
He thought about Amareth. Was she a girlfriend in the sense that Valerie meant? They had shared a bed for many decades, but he had had short relationships with other ellith too. He liked her, didn't love her per se, and had no intention of binding himself to her.
"If there had been no one in your life, you would have answered much faster than this!" she said, slightly disappointed.
"There is someone I am seeing, but she is not a girlfriend."
"A friend with benefits then?"
"With benefits?"
"Yes. A friend with whom you sleep when it is convenient for both of you."
"I guess she is a friend with benefits," he confirmed. Amareth would absolutely hate that expression!
Valerie took a sip of her drink, observing him with interest. "Is she waiting for you?"
"I don't care, to be honest. I am available, Valerie," he insisted, cutting short her investigation.
"Are you wondering if I am available?"
"I assumed that if you were not available, you would not have invited me here tonight."
"You assumed right," she confirmed. "I am available. But I must warn you: I am not looking for a serious relationship."
"Neither am I," Legolas lied skillfully, knowing any other answer would have meant the end of the evening for him. With Valerie, he needed to use a more subtle approach. Impose himself in her life as if it was simply more convenient for both of them to be together all the time, and slowly but surely become the indispensable lover and future mate.
They looked at each other, trying to anticipate the next move the other would make. Valerie finished her drink and put her glass on the coffee table. She turned to Legolas who had also finished his drink. She wondered if he would welcome her advances or not. He definitely looked relaxed, in a posture that told her he expected her to make the first move, as if he was letting her make the decision for the both of them. She took a deep breath, and before she lost her courage, moved closer to him, her heart beating wildly in her chest. They looked at each other, their faces just a few inches away, before Valerie slowly put her lips on his.
Please do not forget to send me a review! Chapter 6 will start exactly where Chapter 5 ended - with an interesting scene, if you see what I mean...