Elves Do It Better
Warnings: Explicit content, discussion of suicide and suicidal tendencies, violent scenes and physical injury
Disclaimer: I own nothing connected with either LotR or Twilight. They belong entirely to their respective owners
Silwen had let her sleep late, Bella realise as she awoke the next day. The wedding feast would not be before sunset, so she had the entire day to prepare.
The sunlight rippled across her bed, waking her gently as she rolled over, looking blearily out of the sea of silvery covers. Bella blinked, pulling herself back to consciousness, as the sounds of birdsong and the melodious singing of an elleth somewhere in the city trickled through the gaps of the pavilion.
She smiled to herself as the thought of what was about to happen dawned on her. She was getting married today.
In her mind, the familiar warmth of Haldir's love washed over her, and she knew he was thinking the same thing as she. Bella shook her head exasperatedly, and sat up in bed, brushing her hair back from her face. She looked out of her window, at the sunlight streaming in, and couldn't resist the urge to get out of bed and bask in its warmth. Her shift was loose around her toned body, billowing slightly in the balmy wind that filtered through the casement. She could hear the sound of Elven singing, the words effortlessly translating in her head, singing a prayer for happiness and endless prosperity for her Haldir and her.
The wedding would not be until sunset, so she arose and dressed in leggings, boots and a tunic, pausing only to grab some fruit from a bowl set on a table her bed, and ventured out into the city. The song of the Elves echoed in Bella's ears as she walked, across innumerable bridges and walkways, sometimes going down, sometimes up, with no destination in mind, just wandering as her mind did so.
She thought about all she had experienced in the two years since she had fallen into this strange new world, a world she had come to love. This was still much to discover and her duties would not allow her to just go off whenever she wanted to, but she now had eternity ahead of her. Someday, she would explore Middle-Earth and all its secrets she had yet to discover, one day when the Shadow was gone.
Bella knew the Lord and Lady were troubled by the growing Shadow in the East, and her own limited knowledge frightened her. For all her skill and faith in the power of her friends and family, the coming fight would be a difficult one.
Bella heard soft voices, and glanced down over the railing of the balcony where she now stood, and looked down to see the travelling party that they had intercepted on the Western border, gathered around a table set outside pavilions on the forest floor, eating and drinking, all quiet, all grave. Her eyes drifted over the Halfling, Frodo, sat talking to no one, barely touching his plate of bread and fruit, staring into space. She felt again that same sense of dread and revulsion, coupled with pity, as her hand tightened on the railing.
"You feel it, do you not?" a soft voice called to Bella, and she turned to find the Lady gliding towards her, robed in shining white, and she bowed her head as she joined her at the rail.
"I don't know what I can feel," Bella shivered, swallowing around the lump in her throat. "Darkness and death and…rage. Rage so fiery and black, it could destroy everything."
"And is that all?" she enquired softly, and Bella looked to her, frowning. Her piercing blue eyes were curious and intent, as she looked down once more at Frodo, then back to the Lady.
"What else should I be feeling? What do you feel, my Lady?" Bella asked quietly, and she sighed, her gaze travelling to the curly-haired Hobbit almost…yearningly. A chill ran down her spine, and she shivered again despite the warmth of the sun.
"A temptation. I foresaw the coming of this Company, and the burden the Halfling bears. I did not expect to so desire it, with all my heart," she confessed, her white hand tense on the living wood of the railing.
"You must fight it, my Lady. Nothing good could come of that…thing Frodo carries," Bella breathed, as the Lady's eyes flew to her face, almost sparking with anger, before they softened and returned to their twinkling intensity.
"I know I must, Alphwen. What intrigues me most is that you do not feel it, the temptation that I, that all others feel, in the presence of that which the Halfling carries," she replied, and Bella frowned, as the wind teased a lock of hair across my face. Her smile returned, her eyes lightened, and she laughed happily. "It is your wedding day, and you have wasted half the morning. The afternoon approaches, and we must prepare you."
Bella mentally groaned at the thought of what was coming, as the Lady took her hand and began to lead her away, but not before she stole one last glance over the railing and met the knowing, sad blue eyes of the Halfling below, sending a spike of dread and compassion through her body one last time.
The Lady led Bella to a great flet set beside the one she shared with Lord Celeborn, covered with a pavilion, and she saw that several of her maidens awaited them, along with Silwen whose eyes sparkled knowingly as Bella made a face at her.
"Custom would dictate that your female relatives would help you prepare for your marriage, but as you have none here, I pray you accept our services in their stead," the Lady murmured gently, and Bella smiled. Inside the pavilion, there was laid out a great wooden tub, filled with steaming water and scented oils, while several screens made an area to undress. Alongside were several trestle tables on which were laid out combs and carved boxes whose contents were a mystery. Bella really hoped they weren't jewellery.
She went behind the screens to undress, dropping the leggings and tunic to the floor unselfconsciously. Living on the borders with Haldir, Orophin, Rúmil and the others, in such close quarters, had successfully destroyed her previous self-consciousness when it came to nudity. She had nothing to be ashamed of, as she knew she was lean, strong and beautiful. She always had been, but now she knew it, instead of doubting herself constantly. This was the person she was born to be, it just took falling into another world and having her heart broken for her to realise it.
As Bella sank into the welcoming water, the Lady's hand helping her to step in, she remembered Edward and his love for her. She remembered the glow of his skin and the sadness of his smile, and rather than hurting her, she just felt pity for him. She truly hoped that somewhere, at some time, he would find peace, with himself and the world.
Her new life had changed me so much, or rather it had revealed so much. Gone was the klutz, the uncoordinated child that could barely walk two feet without tripping over, and in her place was the honed warrior. And that night, she would truly leave her childhood behind.
Bella smiled to herself, feeling a blush rising in her cheeks, as the others laughed, and the Lady's eyes sparkled knowingly. Oh well, she guessed not all of the old Bella was completely gone…
The past year had been both torture and a blessing for Haldir and her. A blessing because it allowed them time to grow and bind together, as a couple, as a unit, and as comrades-in-arms. He knew her better than anyone and she knew him better than almost anyone except his brothers, and only then because they were older than she. But soon Haldir and Bella would know something no one else had ever known and her heart was thudding at the prospect. That was where the torture had come in, with every look, every touch, every chaste brush of our lips. Haldir was capable of igniting a fire in her body a thousand times more potent than anything she had ever experienced before, even with Edward.
The maidens scrubbed her body and hair, helping her caress in oils to heal the blisters and calluses on her hands and feet, before she stood so Silwen could tip a decanter of warm water over her head to wash away the suds. Her skin steamed from the bath as she stepped from it, and was instantly shrouded in a soft grey robe, and led to a stool where Bella sat and the maidens once more set to work, working more salve into her hands and feet, and up her legs and arms, to leave her skin soft and glowing. Behind her, Silwen stood and brushed her wet hair, now trailing down past the small of her back. The Lady stood watching with a soft, reminiscent smile on her face.
"What is it, my Lady?" Bella asked, as the maidens drew away and left, leaving only Silwen and the Lady behind. She turned and glided across to one of the boxes, laid out beside the ointments and salves on the dressing table, lifting it in her slender, lily-white hands. "I remember a young girl so afraid, so blind to herself and others, and now…" she began, trailing off as Bella blushed and looked down. "And still you are easily embarrassed, Alphwen. There are things we must discuss, what is expected of you tonight especially."
Bella went even redder, if that were possible. "I know the basics. I mean, you're not that dissimilar to mortals…"
"No, we are not, in the physical sense," the Lady agreed, advancing on the young woman as Silwen laid down the brush and began twining her hair into intricate braids and twining them together into one long braid down her back. "But in others, it will not be like anything you have experienced before. The Elves are not like mortals; we are bound to Arda, it is a part of us as we are of it. When you consummate your union with Haldir, you will become a part of it, as we are, and you will experience a new sense of the world around you. It may be disorientating for you, at first. You must be prepared."
"Well, consider me…prepared," Bella muttered, face red as a tomato, as Silwen chuckled behind her at her embarrassment and even the Lady laughed. She opened the box in her hands, and set it down on her lap. Bella gasped at what was nestled inside.
Inside was the swan pendant Arwen had gifted her, but on top of it was a beautiful circlet of gold and mithril, glimmering in the soft, silver light of the pavilion, tapering into sharp 'V's at either end, and at their apex hung a diamond tear-drop. "My Lady?" Bella breathed, as she smiled and reverently lifted the circlet from its cushion and placed it gently on her head, nestling it into her braided curls.
"This once belonged to my daughter, and she wore it to her own wedding," she told Bella softly, as Silwen placed the swan pendant around her neck and clasped it. "You have become very dear, Isabella, to us all. Accept this gift, if only for today, as I know how you dislike such finery."
That last was said with such an ironic twinkle in her eye, Bella could only laugh quietly and accept it with grace. The Lady had given her a gift dear to her own heart, her own daughter's wedding circlet, Arwen's mother, and she gently reached up a hand to trace the twining strands of gold and silver, before closing a hand around the swan at her neck. They reminded her of her raven-haired friend, and she smiled through my tears. The Lady wiped them away, brushing a stray strand of hair behind Bella's ear, before she rose and beckoned for Silwen to follow her. Silwen smiled as she pressed Bella's hand in farewell, and she watched them leave as silently as the wind.
With a sigh, Bella rose and approached the previously unnoticed bundle of white cloth that awaited her, slung over the screens, and she rubbed the silken fabric between her forefinger and thumb wondrously.
'My Bella…'
She smiled at Haldir's voice in her head, before she stepped behind the screen and shed her robe, letting it fall to the ground along with the last remnants of her old life. Tonight, she would take her first steps into eternity. Tonight, she would finally be Haldir's and he would be hers. 'At last…'
Haldir stood awaiting his bride as the twilight fell and the forest darkened with it, the sylvan light dimming to soft greys and midnight blues. On the forest floor, trestle tables had been laid out and spread with cloths woven by the Lady and her maidens, laden high with their wedding feast, while some of Lothlórien's finest musicians sang and played in one corner of the clearing. Their closest friends and relatives ate and drank, conversing merrily, as they waited for Bella to appear.
He stood with his brothers, of whom Orophin would act in their father's place, while the Lady had agreed to act in place of Bella's mother. His brothers needled and teased him incessantly, trying to keep his mind from its nervous distraction. Now they were so close, at last, fear had risen up to choke him, nebulous and illogical though it was. It would only ease once they had become one, truly, in all ways. Even with their bond, feeling Bella's certainty and rising excitement, the fear would not abate, not yet.
Out of the corner of his eye, Haldir saw the Lord and Lady descend from the trees, robed in silver and white, and he inclined his head to them, as silence momentarily fell in respect for the rulers of their home.
"Pray, continue!" the Lady called. "Do not cease your merriment on our account. Continue!"
They disappeared seamlessly into the crowd, conversing with many, while he still stood by the table at which Bella and he would sit as husband and wife, his brothers at his side, sipping wine from glass goblets chased with golden filigree. He saw a flash of dark hair and recognised the newcomers, the Fellowship, moving uncertainly through the crowd towards them, and he bowed my head to Aragorn and the Elven Prince Legolas respectfully. They, at least, possessed the manners their Dwarvish companion lacked.
"Haldir, congratulations on this day," Legolas began courteously. "Your bride invited us to attend, if that is pleasing to you?"
Haldir smiled politely and inclined his head. "Indeed, you are all welcome," he replied, with a glance at the Dwarf. "Even you, Master Dwarf. Pray, eat, drink and be merry for a time."
"We thank you, Haldir," Aragorn inclined his head, leading the others away but not before the youngest of the Halflings smiled and spoke up.
"I say, good luck with your new wife and everything. She's a jolly nice girl!" he smiled before rushing off after his friends. Haldir found himself inexplicably smiling at the fresh, happy tone of a one who could have passed for a child, yet was already grown in his people's reckoning.
He felt the slightest frisson of sensation along their bond at that moment, and he set down his goblet as he spotted the glimmer of white, gold and mahogany as she descended the stairway to the forest floor.
Her robe of purest white edged with gold skirted the grass beneath her bare feet, elanor and niphredril dotting the dark sheaves, the fabric glimmering brighter even than the silvery trunk of the melleryn surrounding the wedding party, a golden girdle dropping low on her waist. A hood covered her hair, but Haldir could see the gleam of gold and silver filigree in her hair, and the swan pendant around her neck. She smiled at him, as she walked slowly but steadily through the crowd, and took his outstretched hand.
"Hey there," she breathed as she reached him, and he felt his fear dissipate slightly as he echoed her happy smile. "You ready?"
"For you, always," he replied quietly, as he felt Orophin take his place behind him on the raised platform, and the Lady came to stand beside Bella. Bella's hand squeezed his own, and he pressed a kiss to the silver ring there.
Soon it would be gold and she would be his at last.
The assembled guests fell silent as the Lady smiled and spoke. "There is an old Noldorin custom on such an occasion as this. For my people, it is customary for the father of the groom and the mother of the bride to give gems as gifts to the couple. While neither of you are Noldorin by birth, you are both worthy of it and I am proud to stand beside you both today," she announced, placing a silver chain around first Haldir's neck, from which hung a single, elongated gem that glowed a deep red, stark against the grey of his tunic. Then, Orophin moved forward and placed a similar gem around Bella's neck, and she looked down at the stone wonderingly. The Lady gestured to the couple to take the other's hands, as she stepped forward with her hands raised.
"Nai Varda Tintallë laruva ellor Haldir-va ar Isabella-va, ar nai Eru Ilúvatar alyuva tet!" she cried to the heavens, where the stars now burned fiercely in the sky.
"Nai Manwë Súlimo tiruva Haldir ar, Isabella ar nai Eru Ilúvatar alyuva tet!" Orophin echoed behind him, and together they laid their hands atop the couple's joined ones, as he felt a thrill of heat rush through him, and sensed through Bella too. Her eyes were on fire with starlight and moonlight, and he could feel her heartbeat thudding against his fingers on her wrist.
As Orophin and the Lady stepped back, they removed their silver betrothal rings and gave them back to one another, while Orophin handed his brother a gold ring, and the Lady gave Bella the same. Together, their eyes locked on one another, they slid the gold rings onto the forefinger of their right hands.
"It is done. You are one, together and indissoluble until the final days of this world," the Lady pronounced, and their assembled friends burst into laughter and applause, as Bella moved into Haldir.
"There's a little custom from my home world, where the groom kisses the bride once they're exchanged vows and rings," she told him in a whisper. He frowned playfully down at her, triumph and love bubbling in him like a brook. Soon they would become a flood.
"But we have made no vows," he replied, and her smile deepened. "But I will kiss my bride, if she so desires."
"Oh, she does so desire," she assured him with a teasing smile, drawing closer still. He released her hands only to slide them around her waist and pull her into him, setting his lips to hers. Her hood fell back, revealing the glory of her dark hair and the circlet that sat atop her graceful head. At first, the laughter was uncertain and shocked, but soon it cascaded around the newlyweds in a sea of approval and joy. Despite all the darkness that would swamp this land, such moments were to be cherished.
When Bella deigned to release her new husband, they ate and drank with their friends, received many blessings and gifts for their new life together, and conversed with many. But now a new impatience began driving Haldir, tautening his muscles and shortening his breath. Their marriage was not yet sealed, and so much more awaited them.
The moon rose, and with it, the call in their blood. With one look at his bride, he felt it in hers too, and her uncertainty and sudden fear. She did not understand, could not have done, what awaited them tonight.
With a nod, she smiled prettily and drew away from the others, disappearing into the forest. Haldir waited, fighting the call, before doing so himself, ignoring the knowing glances from his brothers and those he called friends among the wardens.
He slipped into the darkness of the forest and set out to follow his lady to whatever isolated, secret spot she had found for them.
To consummate their union and render it unbreakable for all eternity.
The forest was dark, lit only by starlight and moonlight, as Bella walked through it. She didn't know where she was going, only that she must go, that she had to walk and keep going until she found the place.
So this was what the Lady had meant, when she said she would experience things unlike anything else she had felt before. This call, this urge, this need, burning in her veins like…like vampire venom, but a thousand times more potent and pleasurable. She could feel Haldir coming through the bond they already shared, and she quickened her pace.
'Not yet, not here…'
Bella lost track of time she walked, only that the moon was fully risen in the sky, bright and full. It shed light over the forest as she walked, and she felt as if a thousand ants were crawling over her skin, achingly sensitive, her ears hearing the echoes of rockfall in the mountains and the bubbling of the Silverlode far away. Her heart was pounding as she finally stopped, hearing the ever-closer sound of twigs and leaves rustling under soft Elven boots, as her husband came for her. Her hands trembled as they rose to her hood and lowered it again, revealing her hair to the moonlight.
Something unconscious guided her actions, something stronger than fear or uncertainty, or even modesty. Something older than the light or the dark, the sun or the moon. Instinct.
She was about to become immortal, Elvenkind, and their instincts pushed her onwards, drowning out her nerves and embarrassment in pure need and the urge to give herself to Haldir, to take him into her body and seal their bond forever.
Bella untwined her braids, but left the circlet in place, before hooking her fingers under the shoulders of her gown and pushing, feeling the fabric slide down along the curve of her waist and hips until it hit the floor. She stepped away from it, and further into the moonlight, basking in it as she finally heard her husband's arrival, and the sharp intake of his breath as he saw her.
She listened, her back to him, face upturned to the moon, as his clothing hit the floor. She felt everything fall away, the last shreds of modesty and uncertainty falling away, as she felt him finish his undressing and pace across the clearing to her side. This deep in the forest, they had no fear of interruption or discovery. This was Elvish nature at its most basic and primal, and no one would dare to intrude tonight.
His heat reached for her as he did so, his body pressing against her back as Bella shuddered and closed her eyes. His hands, usually so confident and strong, barely brushed her skin as he slid them along her hips to her waist, before they hardened and pulled her back into his arms. She felt his hardness against her back, and moaned. Fever spread from his touch, now certain and possessive, as he ran them over her body.
His arms hardened around her, and she twined her hands with his so she was doubly entwined, leaning into his strength. "Are you ready for me, Bella?" he breathed against her ear. Bella shuddered and exhaled, leaning her head back to capture his lips. Urgency drove her and confidence filled her as she broke his hold and stepped back from him.
"What do you think?" she replied softly. Her body was aching and hot, ready for his. She bent down, never taking her eyes from his, until her bottom touched the grass, then she lay back, opening her legs and tilting her hips invitingly. She was ready.
Haldir's eyes burned, the gem around his neck glimmering like an ember. Her swan pendant and the gem were cool against her skin, but they would soon turn warm against her skin. He walked unhurriedly towards her, his eyes fixed on her body, and hers on his. His words shivered over Bella as she drank in his sculpted form, ready and as aching to take her as she was to take him. "When we do this, Bella, our souls will join as one."
"More than they already are?" she asked, her brows rising.
"Indeed. A true union of our souls, indestructible and forever. There is no going back now," he stopped before her, a warning flashing through his eyes. She smiled and held out a hand to him.
"Wasn't planning on it. Now get down here!" she replied firmly with a smile, and his eyes flashed again, this time with desire.
"As my lady desires," his predatory smile appeared, as he knelt down and came over her. She leaned up to kiss him, their tongues instantly joining and twining, drawing a moan from both of them. He brushed against her wet centre, and she gasped, spreading her legs wider.
He took his hand away from her face where it had cupped it during their kiss, and used it to guide himself into her, sliding into her wet, aching centre. Slowly, but unstoppable, she tensed as she stretched and her body fought to adjust. The urgency dimmed a little, just when she didn't want it to, and she whimpered.
But then he was fully inside her, filling her to her womb and the pain took on a new level of sensation, the fullness inside her bringing her pleasure even as it stung. But it was nothing compared to the pain of vampire venom or Orc poison. It would not stop Bella.
Haldir's lips touched hers, and she opened her eyes to see his, concerned and apologetic but afire with need. "Move with me, my wife," he commanded gently, as he withdrew and she instinctively raised her hips to retain him with a gasp of loss. When he slid back into her, the pleasure accompanied by pain was intense, and she cried out. She rested her hands by her head for the moment and concentrated on rocking her hips in time with his movements, and as the pain slowly melted away, the fever in her veins reawakened, making her moan. Bella could feel Haldir through their bond, and she sought out his right hand with her own, joining them together, the gold rings on their fingers flashing in the moonlight.
The pleasure grew, like a pressure beneath her skin, her every limb shaking as her mind opened to his, joining on a new level and the last of the pain disappeared. Suddenly, Bella felt everything, her pleasure, his, the call of the moon and the stars above them, the feel of the earth beneath her body, the smell of crushed grass, the elanor and niphredril wreathing them in their perfume, driving them onward.
The lines between them blurred, and she couldn't be sure if it was Haldir or she who shoved him onto his back and straddled him proudly. She couldn't tell if she drew his hands to her breasts or he himself did it, but he was everywhere, inside her, around her, and her energy was unceasing.
Their hips bucked wildly together, and she was shaking and moaning his name to the moon above them, as his hand trailed down her breasts, across her abdomen to the apex of her thighs, caressing her there where they joined, sliding over a single spot that made her cry out incoherently, her mind disintegrating into a wild, primal mess of need, urgency and desire.
Bella was dimly aware of more pleasure and more movement as Haldir's arms clamped tightly around her waist, rising up and then she felt the roughness of bark against her back, her legs slung tightly around his waist and then he was surging into her, strong and dominant. The living pulse against her back, of the forest, the earth, the moon and the stars, all coalesced and centred on the place between her legs and deep inside, where Haldir filled her entirely, again and again. She sought his lips with her own, swallowing his groan gladly as he took her again and again, as long as the call in their blood lasted, sealing their souls together as one, forever.
Bella finally understood what the Lady had been talking about. And it was the most incredible night of her life, full of sensuality and feverish urgency, as far from her fantasies as she'd imagined, never coming close to anything she had ever felt with Edward.
Here, now, she was complete with Haldir within her and their voices joined together in a primal cry, rising to the moon and stars above.
Long ago, she had made her choice and now she finally reaped her reward. She had passed through shadow and death, poison and pain, to reach this moment and she would have had it no other way. She had found Haldir, but more importantly, she had found herself.
Finis