The next time he summoned me was uneventful. He sat at his desk and worked, and completely ignored me. He's waiting for me to distract him…isn't he? It was the same room in which I had stolen his crown. Not once did he look up. His pen danced along the pages, tracing delicate carvings along its path. I walked around, and eyed my surroundings with more attention than I had at first. The rock walls were entwined with wood, lovingly enlacing the living fabric. I was extremely self-conscious, as my foot-steps were the only sound to be heard aside from the gentle scrapes of his pen. I really did not know what to do. Steal his crown again? No. He would be bored of that. I walked along the walls and to the balcony, looking out on the massive inner sanctuary of his palace. There was an immense variety of different plants and trees, all more superb than the next. Sunlight seemed to come down from an unseen ceiling and gently bathe the colorful beings. On a general scale, they all meshed together in various and alternating tones of greens, rich and vibrant. The most prominent one, was a deep emerald color, and very soothing to the sight. I sighed from the peaceful atmosphere.
Then my thoughts were brought back to my initial interest. He was still writing away, probably unaware of me on the balcony, with the possibility of my running away. I walked back in, and sat in front of him with an exaggerated sigh. "No wonder you want me to distract you…"
He looked up arching an eyebrow briefly before going back to his work. I leaned forward to watch him write more attentively, to which he seemed slightly uncomfortable. I couldn't read elvish. But the scripture was a delight to see. Once he got comfortable, I grabbed a paper without thinking and studied it. "So what exactly are you taking care of now?"
"Spending's on wine and certain foods from the outside" he replied, eyes still roaming his paper, back perfectly straight, and head held proudly. He even writes in a stuck-up fashion… Before my reasonable mind came back to the surface, my fingers were perfectly folding the material to the shape of a plane… As I looked down at my work, my little smirk jumped back to my lips. He was so absorbed in his world that he didn't notice his pile of paper diminishing little by little (sorted and unsorted papers).
Once I had an interesting amount, I walked over to the balcony, and started shooting them off. I'm probably giving him more work for the future….but he wanted a distraction…I mentally chuckled.
A shine in the corner of my eye caught my attention. There was water further away. Some kind of inner lake, perfectly clear, smooth and placid. Oh! Correction, there were fish sending little ripples about the surface. I sent the papers in that direction, knowing they wouldn't reach it. And as if to contradict me, a gentle breeze came to lazily float by. Funny how these things work out! Once I finished that batch, I went back to the desk and kept folding them without his notice, which honestly couldn't surprise me more. It really showed how much a need of change was necessary.
Once there were about three papers left for him to sort, and all the rest were out the window, I sat in front of him expectantly, waiting for him to realize something was wrong.
Eventually he got through the last one.
He froze as he reached for the next non-existent paper. His gaze slid across his desk to look at the opposite pile, composed of three lousy sheets. Those enticing blue eyes then sailed to me. So engrossed into automatic work was his mind, that there seemed to be some reflective problem as to the issue at hand. He didn't seem angry, curious, or anything. Just…something that lost its task to do, really. Oh dear… I really have to get him out of here more often… To explicitly show what I was doing, I grabbed the three remaining survivors, to inflict upon them the same fate as their comrades. I took my time, folding neatly and slowly. There still seemed to be some detachment in those eyes. It saddened me to see he was missing out on so many things because of his life routine. I stood up, walked to the balcony, making sure he followed my actions. He did. However still sitting down… I waited three full seconds before walking back in front of him, and slamming my hands on his desk.
"I just wasted an entire morning's worth of your work!" I almost screamed at him.
As if I had just slapped him across the face, sparks lit up his eyes, and the tide of anger was making its way in. Finally a reaction! I thought I lost him! I thought exasperatedly.
As if to make sure it really happened, he went to the balcony and watched the remaining papers still sailing on the smooth breeze. I couldn't help but smile as he came back to look at me in utter disbelief. "Well it took you long enough!" I told him sweetly. Anger shifted his facial features at a glance. "Some of those papers were of the highest importance! Delicate situations to be handled with other kingdoms! Orders to be done before the next week! Preparations for-"
"Well let's go get them then! Although I agree it's a shame to go out in such fine weather!" I replied on a sarcastic tone. He was positively fuming now, and started to walk towards the door to get his guards. Well he's angry enough for this to work….I mentally suggested myself. I grabbed the crown off his head and bolted for the balcony. On its edge, I gave a quick glance back to check on him. What I saw nearly gave me a heart attack!
Instead of being where I had snatched the crown, he was right there in front of me, face mere centimeters away from my own, with an angry scowl. Panic took over and I back up, toppling over the railing and into the air. The world spun about me and my breathing still didn't pick back up from the initial shock. A strong hand caught my forearm, leaving me dangling. I looked up to meet his stern, angry gaze, with an innocent, surprised one. He pulled me up higher, not bringing me back on the other side of the railing though… The closeness, the touch, the interaction… My heart skipped a beat, only to feel perfectly at peace afterwards. I used what muscles I had to haul myself closer to his face, passed the crown through my arm to then use it to hold the back of his head, and taste his lips with mine.
The world froze momentarily, suspended (quite literally for me). His powerful hand slowly de-contracted, and let me slip away. As I fell, I met his utterly shocked eyes, only then fully realizing what I had just done. Curse me and my moments of trance!
As soon as I landed, I bolted for the vegetation, cheeks burning from the blush, and eyes downcast. I angled my trajectory for the lake I had seen earlier. A few minutes went by before I arrived at its shore, breathless and unsure of what to do next. The crown came dangling down my arm as a reminder. Should I hide it if I don't want to be utterly sliced up on sight? I looked about and found a perfect shrubbery to conceal it inside. Once I settled the crown comfortably at its center, I sat back against a tree, and waited to see what would happen next.
A few minutes later, I heard someone come to the shore. I looked around my tree to find Thranduil standing there, facing the lake and looking about.
I always have this unnerving desire to push people into the water when they wander too close by. And this moment? This moment was perfect! All my senses thrummed in activity, ready for action.
I bolted at the unaware king. MINE! I mentally roared. As if hearing my announcement, Thranduil spun about and caught me as I tackled him off his feet, and flew into the water with him.
As we broke the water's surface and fell to its depths, he did not let go of me, and actually seemed to hold on. Before hitting the water, I laughed at my achievement, ending up without air afterwards… I tried to struggle out of his arms, realizing he was not letting go. During the little… "water dance" he held my head with one arm, the other wrapped around my waist, and laid his lips upon mine. Caught off guard, I sucked in through my nose, filling my lungs with clear water. I broke the contact to cough what little air bubbles was left in me. Realizing my sudden distress, he brought me back up with ease.
I clung to the shore and "breathed out" the water I had accidentally caught. My lungs ended up stinging from all the coughing, and I just lied there, catching my breath. Practically nothing the other times, now two kisses in one day?! I kept my face in the opposite direction from him, unsure if I wanted him to see whatever face I was making. He didn't talk, didn't make a sound, to the point where I wondered if he really was still there, and I turned around.
He was. Thranduil was sitting at my side, his face blank of any expression. Only his eyes sparkled, betraying his inner feelings. I smiled at him and sat up.
"Distracting enough?" I teased. To my surprise, a small smile pulled the side of his lips. I locked a second too long on them, betraying a blush. And of course he caught that…
I stood up and looked away. "Perhaps it is time to go baa-aACHOOO!" I ended gracefully. Great…This cannot be happening now….
"Indeed" he simply stated, and walked past me towards the great structures of his palace. I stayed there watching him walk away for a moment. He stopped to turn around. "Do you actually wish to stay here and catch a cold?"
I stared in surprise, only to blush beat-red afterwards in embarrassment. "N-No…sir" I stammered, and walked after him.
On our way back, I walked alongside him. Not a word was exchanged. I couldn't help throwing him a nervous, shy glance, feeling that detestable blush sting my cheeks once more. He gave me a long sideways stare, with a barely noticeable, knowing smirk. And yes I blushed again.
If I hoped to perhaps, play this chess game with tact, initially, I was now cornered, and in prey to his deadly charms.
A/N: Sorry for the long wait! I hope this chapter is satisfying, and that you will all like it!
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Love you all dear readers!