A/N:
brownie24 – Dinner should be interesting… oh no, silly Elves.
Coquettish Siren – I know, right? But Féoras is so likeable, and Legolas hasn't been too open with his emotions yet, has he?
HuNkYcHuNkYmOnKeY97030 – Well here's another one!
Remember 1105 – She is definitely confused. ::sigh::
MBDTA – I know, I'm a sucker for cliffhangers.
geminitwinz – I hope this was soon enough!
amrawo – Aw, I'm glad you like it. As for Leggy and Laina, well, we'll see…
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What was wrong with dinner? Well, nothing. Almost nothing.
I had not bothered to dress nicely or anything. It was just a normal dinner in the Great Hall. Féoras, to my chagrin, sat across from Legolas and I saw the empty seat between him and Malian. For a while, neither of them noticed I was sitting across from them. They never really noticed Féoras too much, as quiet as he usually was, and neither of them even looked up from their plates for quite some time. The entire situation was a bit awkward, especially with Féoras turning his head to watch me eat every few seconds and me tentatively looking up at Legolas and Malian to see if they would ever notice. I saw Malian glance to his left a few times, realizing I was not present. Legolas then began to notice as well. Well, this was getting awkward enough for me.
I cleared my throat audibly and both Malian and Legolas' faces shot up. Malian raised an eyebrow and smiled slightly, but Legolas choked on his food. I wanted to laugh but I felt badly for not informing him of my seating arrangements, so I merely smiled and waved. Legolas stopped eating.
"What are you doing over there?" he asked finally, his eyes a bit cloudy for my liking.
"Eating?" I replied, putting a piece of meat in my mouth and chewing it nonchalantly.
"Right, but why over there?" he asked, actually bewildered. I wanted to thump him on the nose but he was too far away so I rolled my eyes instead.
"I'm eating with Féoras," I said, indicating him with a slight jerk of my head.
Legolas' head jerked back. "Who?" What did he mean who?
"What do you mean who? Him," I insisted, jabbing Féoras in the shoulder, causing him to cough a bit and look up timidly at Legolas. Legolas continued to eye the two of us, taken aback and—was it?—angry. His cheeks blushed and he looked down at his meal haughtily.
"Oh," he said to his plate rather than to us. I turned my head to look at Féoras and we both shrugged at one another, continuing to eat. Legolas said nothing more.
Aside from that tidbit of an awkward encounter, dinner was fine.
Who am I kidding? It was a disaster. Legolas brooded for the rest of the time and Féoras and I did not say much, partly because of Legolas and partly because there was nothing to say. So, Féoras, how's the weather? Get shot at by any Orcs lately? How do you think the world is going to end?
After dinner, though, Féoras and I took a walk around the halls. I tried not to notice Legolas stalking off in the direction of the archery range; he usually never practiced before patrol, but I decided to put it out of my mind. Féoras and I walked and talked about nothing in particular, but I do remember the bit of tension between us as we wandered the castle. He kept touching my elbow to direct me or grabbing my arm to help with my limp, the contact sending warning signals to my head. I was unsure of what they were warning me against, but it probably had something to do with my libido. By that I mean I had to be a lot more careful with Féoras than any male I had been with before, in that he was a bit more sensitive and probably a lot more caring than the average male.
I grew tired after a while and Féoras offered to walk me to my room. By now even he knew that I usually spent the night with others to cure my recurring nightmares, so he walked me to Legolas' room and bid me goodnight outside of his door with a small kiss on the cheek and, if I was not mistaken, a rather loving smile. I watched him walk away, noticing the way his stride accentuated his muscular legs and back. More warning signals to my head. I shook it and pushed Legolas' door open sheepishly.
"Leaf?" I said loudly, but no answer came and I figured he was probably still on patrol. Well, there was no harm in sleeping just a little before he got in. I would brave a bit of sleep alone. I lay down, but the dress I was wearing was quickly becoming too uncomfortable to sleep in, so I pulled it over my head and threw it casually on the floor beside Legolas' bed, allowing my head to hit the pillow with a soft thump and falling almost immediately into a quiet sleep.
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I awoke to a hand on my cheek and I felt a burning sensation that suggested eyes trailing my body. The hand moved onto my neck, the gentle fingers caressing, moving down to my bare shoulder, down my arm, over my hip… The hand began to move up again, slower this time, touching my stomach and moving up into dangerous regions.
I opened my eyes. The movement ceased and the hand jerked away, and I saw Legolas' embarrassed face beside mine. I squinted at him for a moment, trying to read the expression on his face but I could feel nothing. Suddenly, Legolas put his hand behind my head and propelled me forward, causing our lips to meet hungrily. I was too tired to recognize my own actions and I felt myself allowing this to happen, allowing his wandering hands to take over and letting his tongue lustfully lick my lips and dart into my mouth.
Wait. Shit. "Legolas," I mumbled forcefully, managing to separate myself from his grasp. He let me go and looked at me, eyes filled with desire. It was almost sickening. "What in Varda's name are you doing?" I asked, my voice rising. What was he thinking? I felt dirty and was quickly becoming nauseated at the sight of him lying there, his half-naked body shielded with blankets, the pleading in his eyes.
"Laina, I can't stop myself anymore," he finally admitted. I moved a bit further away on the bed, wondering how I could stand without exposing my entire body.
"What do you mean?" I wondered angrily, still moving further from him until I felt my foot slide off the edge of the bed. Legolas moved forward, closing the gap, bringing his face so close to mine that I could smell the sweetness of his breath, and could feel it clouding my face.
"I've wanted you for so long," he said, his eyes gently longing for my lips, my body.
"What?" I wanted to scream, but it came out as a hoarse whisper instead. "What in Middle-earth has gotten into you, Leaf?" I grabbed one of the blankets on his bed and used it as a makeshift screen between Legolas' eyes and my naked body. I fumbled around for my dress on the floor.
"Don't go," Legolas begged, grabbing a sheet and standing up too, hurrying to the door to block my path.
"Are you out of your skull?" I yelled at him, nearly thumping him on the nose but thinking better of it, seeing as it was more a sign of affection than anything else.
"Laina, I can't stop thinking about you. When you were hurt, I was so worried…and tonight at dinner, I wanted you away, far, far away from Féoras, and I realized…I wanted you beside me…"
"Stop," I insisted, holding up one hand and indicating that he should get out of my way, now. "Move."
"No," Legolas argued. When had he become so childish? When had he become so dependent on me? When had he decided he—what?—wanted me?
"Leaf, I don't know what you thought would happen tonight but I'm not here to be pawed and I am certainly not here to tell you I want you back," I spat. The nerve! That sickening, pleading look in his eyes was not going away and I could not stand it anymore.
"Laina," Legolas implored, taking a step forward and putting his arms around me.
"Leaf, get off of me, this isn't a joke!" I yelled, prying myself away from his arms and opening the door hastily.
"I've tried to stay away from you, Laina, I've tried to keep myself from looking at you as you sleep but you insist on staying here and I would not have it any other way. I tried to hide it from you but I can't anymore," Legolas was saying, but I was nearly running very fast away from his room. "I can't control myself around you!" Legolas was calling after me. I wanted to vomit.