Author's Note: Hi everyone! Sorry it has taken me so long to update! Life has kind of taken over, but I'm getting back to a lot of my writing. Let me know what you think about this chapter and the story as a whole. I'm always open to thoughts, ideas, and suggestions. You never now, it might end up in the story! Thank you!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to The Lord of the Rings. I own my own original characters and ideas... but I am just playing with Tolkien's genius.
Chapter Three
The warm press of lips on my neck slowly roused me from my temporary slumber. My eyes slowly slid open to find the King gazing down at me – all creamy pale skin and golden hair. Easily getting lost in the blue of his eyes.
My brow furrowed as I realize we were both still naked, tucked into the plush coverings of his bed.
It hadn't been a dream after all. Even if it felt like it had been.
Thranduil reached up and tucked a loose strand of hair behind my pointed ear, ever so gently running his fingertips along the curve of my jaw. He tipped my head back and covered my mouth with his. It was a slow and lazy kiss. Teasing, coaxing, tasting. It had my toes curling against the blanket and my heart pounding in my chest. I tangled my fingers in the loose ends of his hair.
He pulled back from our kiss, no less affected by it than I was if his heavy breathing was an indication. He leaned down, pressing our foreheads together.
"Why did you not tell me?" he asked gently as our eyes met.
I tried to look away but he would not allow me.
"Tell you what?" I replied, with an attempt to sound ignorant, even if I knew what he meant.
"That you were untouched."
I swallowed hard. "Would it have changed anything?"
His lips twitched ever so slightly. "I wouldn't have taken you on the floor."
"How long was I asleep?" I quickly asked to change the subject away from my now lack of innocence.
"Not long, an hour or two. There is still much time for us tonight. I believe I promised you dinner."
My stomach, in rather embarrassing fashion, answered for me and I had to fight a blush. Thranduil kissed me again quickly before slipping from the bed. Obviously comfortable enough in his own nakedness, he told me he would be back in a moment before slipping into the front room. I couldn't help but stare at his rather firm backside as he went.
I had to keep squealing like a little girl, as I pushed myself up into a sitting position. I pulled the thick blanket up and tucked it under my arms to keep myself covered. Thranduil might have been comfortable to walk around naked, but I was not that type.
The dark voice in the back of my mind told me that this wasn't and couldn't last forever. That I was going to have to leave this room and face the reality of my new situation. I had given myself to a man who didn't love me, who could never love me, who with a single word could destroy my reputation and my life. Then I thought of my father and how this could effect everything he has ever worked for. I suddenly felt the urge to hide myself under the covers because I knew there was no escaping now.
The King stood between me and his door. There was no way out.
He returned a few moments later bearing a try laden with food and somehow in the process had managed to find himself a robe. He laid the tray on the bed before settling beside me, propped up on the numerous pillows. He refreshed our wine glasses and handed me my now full glass.
"One would think you were trying to get me drunk, sire," I commented even as I took a very small sip.
Thranduil plucked a grape off the plate and popped it into his mouth with a low rumble that might have resembled a chuckle.
"Quite the contrary, actually. I, myself, am accustomed to the wine and usually keep the company of those who drink as much as I do."
"Father always said that drinking can be a terrible vice even for an elf. That overindulgence can addle one's wits," I said before I could stop myself. I bit my lip again and turned my eyes away from him. Stupid tongue.
I half expected him to throw me from his bed at that very moment. Instead, I felt his fingers on my chin forcing me to meet his icy gaze once more.
"Why do you fear speaking your mind?"
I let out a heavy breath, realizing he wasn't going to chaste me for my comment on his drinking.
"Mother says I talk too much and that I habit of arguing with people just to be contrary."
"Do you? Argue to be contrary?"
I shrugged a single shoulder. "Sometimes I can't help it."
"Like when you decided to goad Lord Arandur into a rather heated disagreement."
"You noticed?"
I had to take another sip of wine to wet my suddenly dry throat at his nod.
"Little happens under my roof that goes without my notice." He paused leaning into closer to my ear to whisper, "You were right you know. If he spends half the amount of time in his work as he claims, he would have known it as well."
I chuckled despite myself as I snatched a piece of fig drizzled with honey off the plate and popped it into my mouth.
"Most people simply chastise me when I cause arguments, let alone actually agree with me."
"I would think the other scholars are purely jealous of the knowledge you have at such a young age," Thranduil commented as he seized my wrist.
I watched him with wide eyes as he licked the remnants of honey from my fingers, effectively ending any further conversation. His lips were soon seeking mine out and I eagerly kissed him back.
Somehow the food disappeared as did the King's robe. He tugged the blanket away from me, baring my form to his gaze.
"Beautiful," he murmured before burying his nose in my hair.
My arms wound around his broad shoulders, pulling his body down to cover mine. Probably enjoying the feel of his naked skin against mine more than I should. Part of me knowing I should have already left his bed. But the warmth of his kisses and the sudden softness in his eyes, something I had never seen before, held me captive. I wondered if he knew what kind of power he wielded over me. If he knew he had already ruined me for any other elf who might court my favor.
In the minutes and hours that followed, not even Eru himself could have pulled me from the King's bed.
There was always talk around Court about Thranduil's prowess in the bedroom, even if it had been years since he had last taken a lover. I never wanted to believe any of it, not wishing to have other's words in my head when I dreamed what it would be like to lay with him. I never wanted anyone else and after this night, I couldn't imagine anyone else.
It was in the last fleeting moments before dawn when I suggested that I might depart before the entire fortress was awake and everyone would know that I had shared his bed. He agreed with my sentiment for discretion since the King didn't want to make himself fodder for Court gossip.
He retrieved my dress from the front room and helped me to dress. I shivered as the tips of his fingers ever so lightly trailing up my back while he laced it up.
In that moment, there were so many questions I wanted to ask him. All pertaining to an uncertain future I didn't necessarily want to think about.
The King sensed my hesitation as he took me by the shoulder and spun me around. He ran the backs of his fingers over my cheek. The warmth I had seen in him only hours before receding back behind the layer of ice normally behind his eyes. He stood straighter, his shoulders more squared. Gone was the lover I had known and in his place was once more the elf I called King.
"I will have a discreet Guard bring you back to your rooms," he murmured, taking my hand and kissing the top of it. "Thank you for the pleasure of your company and for the great gift you have given me."
All I could do was nod stupidly, my tongue feeling like metal in my mouth.
Thranduil summoned his Guard and advised him to take me back, with the upmost discretion. I bid him a quiet farewell before following my escort out the door. The sound of the door shutting behind me reverberating through me with a finality that made my heart sink into the pit of my stomach. I suddenly felt more nervous and jittery with a complete sense of unease. With every step, I took away from the King's chambers the worse it become.
Was there anything behind this one night for me? I didn't dare presume an answer and I had been too scared to ask. He bade me a farewell with a conclusiveness that made me wonder if it really was over.
That by the time I reached my door, I almost couldn't get myself to open it. It was still a little bit before dawn, so my family should still be asleep and I could slip inside and into my bed without much notice. But I simply couldn't. If for whatever reason they were awake, I couldn't face them. My mother, my father and definitely not Caldawen, who would no doubt goad me for details.
Instead, I thanked the Guard making like I was going to enter the room. But as soon as he disappeared around a corner, I turned away from the door. I went to the one place I felt the most comfortable and the safest.
The library.
The massive set of rooms were empty this time of the morning. Well, they were empty most of the time. Lord Velethuil would not arrive for the day's work for several more hours since he often preferred a longer respite in the mornings.
I breathed in the dusty, musty scent of all the leather-bound books and scrolls. The smell smoothing my frayed nerves. I found the book I had been reading a couple of days previous beside my favorite chair in a small tucked away corner.
No sooner did I settle down and open the book, did I fall into a dee dreamless sleep.
I was violently shaken awake a little while later.
"Ari!" I heard Caldawen call from the corner of my mind.
I cracked an eye open to glare at her. I shrugged her hand off my shoulder, burying my face into the back of the chair.
"Go away, Cal."
"Wake up, Ari. Ada and Naneth are worried sick."
I groaned in the back of my throat as I pushed myself to sit up, tossing my hair over a shoulder.
"What's the matter now?" I asked as I continued to pry my eyes open.
Caldawen grabbed me arm and yanked me to my feet. She started to drag me out of the library as I struggled to keep up with her.
"It is almost midday!" she whispered harshly under her breath. "And we have not seen hide nor hair of you since last night! Naneth is worried some ill had befallen you since we didn't see you at breakfast this morning. When I came looking for you, Lord Velethuil said you had been in the back since he arrived. I know it's your habit to fall asleep reading, Ari, but really?"
"Wait, what?" I asked, digging my heels into the floor, making her stop. She turned around and glared at me.
"We have been looking for you, you nitwit! Have you not heard a word I said? Why did you not come back to our chambers?"
I crossed my arms about my chest, even as I looked at my feet. "I wanted to be alone."
Caldawen sighed as she approached me and wrapped an arm around my waist.
"Was he unkind to you?" she asked with more compassion that I thought she was capable of.
"Oh, Cal," I sighed, turning into her shoulder. "He is not like anyone else."
"You don't have to tell me now. We need to get you back to Naneth and Ada, but I will wretch every detail about of you later."
I chuckled in spite of myself and shook my head. "I would be more surprised if you didn't, Cal."
No sooner were we back into our chambers, Mother grabbed me into a tight hug.
"Where have you been?" she demanded.
"I went to the library."
"I told you not to worry, Gwedhiel," Father answered as he joined us. "Come, Ari, there is something we need to talk about."
He quickly extracted me from my mother's grasp and ushered me out the door.
"Don't forget, Ari, later!" Caldawen called after us.
Father offered me his arm, which I took graciously. He led me through several long hallways for several minutes in complete silence.
"I'm sorry if I worried you, Ada," I finally said softly.
He shrugged. "I sent Caldawen to the library to find you, because it would be the only logical place for you to be other than in our chambers."
"This is true. But where are you taking me, Ada?"
"Saeldur brought word that the King wanted to see us both."
My eyebrows shut up. It must be serious if Thranduil had sent his personal secretary and valet to deliver a message as opposed to a regular guard.
"Did he say what the King wanted?" I asked quietly.
Father had a knowning smile. "More than you can imagine. It seems like you truly left and impression on the King last night. I did not wish to discuss it with your mother. That's why we are taking the long way to the King's office. He thought it more prudent coming from someone you trust. Though, I personally find the subject," he paused with a sigh, "rather difficult for a father to have."
I caught his implication and felt myself blushing to the roots of my hair.
"I understand, Ada. What is the King's wish?"
I don't think I had ever seen my father so worried and uncomfortable in my entire life. He was a soldier and a strong leader. He was not intimidated by anyone or anything, so to see him unnerved made me worry. Before he could answer, I lightly touched his arm.
"Whatever it is, Ada, it will be alright. Simply say it all outright and then we can deal with the consequences."
He gave me a small smile.
"The King's wishes to take you as his mistress."
My knees buckled and he had to catch me before I fell. I stared at him wide eyed for a long time, what he had said slowly processing in my mind.
"He wants…" I couldn't get myself to finish.
"Yes, Ari. And you will need an answer for him by the time we arrive. It is entirely up to you. But know that with such a position comes certain responsibilities, you might not be aware of."
"Ada?"
"You will be given private chambers in relative proximity to the King. If he so requests, you will join him for meals either in private or at the head table when he dines in the hall. Provide company and solace. But know that everyone will know who you are and what you are to him. There will no hiding it. It will be a lot more attention than you are accustomed. It is something you have to consider."
I nodded, not trusting my voice in that moment.
Everything was racing through my head like a whirlwind. How in two days my life had completely turned upside down. It seemed so far away now, that I dreamed of the King simply knowing my name. Let alone finding myself in his bed and now him wanting more. It felt a weird bizarre dream and part of me wanted to wake up. But part of me didn't.
When we arrived to the King's office, he was there was Saeldur working. He stood over his desk, his hands braced on the desktop, his golden hair falling freely about his shoulders, his crown of leaves and twigs adorning his head. The find silver fabric of his robe was stretched over broad shoulder. He looked every inch the King he was and my heart jumped into my throat.
He gazed up from his work and locked his ice blue eyes with mine.
"Leave us," he intoned with a flick of his wrist.
Saeldur inclined his head before taking his leave. Father kissed me on the cheek and gave my hand a squeeze.
As soon as I was once again alone with the King, he walked out from behind his desk. He stopped before me, taking my now shaking hands in his.
"I trust everything was explained to you."
I licked my lower lip. "Yes."
"And what is your answer."
I was captivated by the blue of his eyes and the feel of his fingers as he touched my cheek. I know this wasn't a decision I shouldn't make without a lot of thought, but I couldn't stop the answer slipping from my lips.
"I will be yours, Thranduil."
As soon as the words were out, he pulled me flush against his hard body and crushed our lips together.
TO BE CONTINUED….