Rating: NC-17
Pairings: Elrond/Gil-Galad
Summary: Written for Belle Bayard. Elrond/Gil-galad with a fair amount of angst in it (I'll even go for character death as we all know what happens to GG)
"When are you leaving?"
Elrond opened his mouth to answer but shook his head. "I never said that I was leaving," he replied uneasily with a half-smile. "I said, we need to think about what to do with the valley. That was all."
Gil-Galad returned the smile silently before reaching to the table and pulling forth a record book that listed important dates and expenses. "We have put a lot of time into making Imladris habitable."
"It was only supposed to be temporary - this is our home," argued Elrond gently. "We should remain here now that things are safe."
"Do you know the tale of Gondolin?" Gil-Galad had a tendency to do this; in the middle of a conversation or debate, he would invoke a bit of history to better make his points. Though younger than half the elves in Middle-earth, the Noldorin High King was no doubt wise and it was rare that his plans led his people wrong.
With a scowl, Elrond stood up and walked across the room to a window. "Yes, I know the story of Gondolin. I doubt there is anyone here who has not been forced to listen to the complete and unabridged version," he muttered in reference to the presence in Gondolin of an elda who had experienced the tragedy to its fullest and returned to tell the tale.
"Gondolin concentrated everything into one small, albeit well protected, place." The king stood up as well, going to a large map of Arda that was spread across one of the walls. "Here they were," he said, pointing his finger at a faint spec on the map where water covered the world. "Hidden, yes, but though out of sight they were not out of mind. Although we do not have the same problems as Gondolin, it makes better sense to have a second place, a place to fallback. Who knows; perhaps at some future point, Imladris will need to fallback here, but if it is the reverse, it would be nice to have that option."
"Annex it for Lindon, then," suggested Elrond, turning around and resting his palms on the window sill. "New Lindon. Run it as you run Lindon and everyone will be happy."
It was Gil-Galad shaking his head now. "Elrond, if I try to rule two lands, I will lose them both. Imladris is too far away for me to keep watch over things. Someone needs to assume leadership there."
"I will not do it," spoke Elrond firmly. "I will not leave Lindon."
"It was your idea for the retreat there in the first place," Gil-Galad reminded him as he left the map and approached the peredhel. "You were the one who saved so many with your thinking. You have always been an asset to the council, one that I must say I am sorry to lose. At the same time, I can see no one doing a better job than you."
"Glorfindel," answered Elrond. "Glorfindel could run Imladris."
"No. There is too much carelessness in him at times. He puts himself in danger too often, and I do not see him stopping simply because he is the lord of an entire city." Gil-Galad stopped before Elrond and said, "He could never do a better job than you will."
"I..." Turning his head away so that he did not have to look at his king, Elrond said, "I do not want to leave you."
A hand tenderly caressed the peredhel's cheek. "I know. But you will not leave me; you will leave Lindon."
"It seems one in the same," whispered Elrond, closing his eyes. "There must be someone else."
"There is no other. We both know this." Gil-Galad placed two fingers beneath Elrond's chin and moved his head to face him again. "Come back to bed," he said softly as Elrond's eyes opened. "Do not stand by the window brooding all night. The air is cold; you will catch a chill."
It was then that Elrond noticed he was indeed shivering slightly from the icy breeze coming through the open window. He allowed himself to be led back to the bed as the king nuzzled his hair and placed chaste kisses upon his brow.
"Tomorrow, we shall discuss this further," Gil-Galad said. "Here, come closer," he added after placing his hand upon Elrond's bare shoulder and feeling it quite cold. Gil-Galad drew a quilt up from the foot of the bed and covered them with it. "You are frozen - stop moving away," he chuckled as Elrond curled his knees and legs up and shifted further from his lover's touch. "Stop being so mannish about this," he chided, scooting over to follow after Elrond. "I am right; I am always right. The sooner you accept that about this the more time we will have to enjoy before you go."
"Ereinion, I do not want to go." Elrond turned on his side to face his lord and lover, his hands touching firm muscles as he was drawn into an embrace meant not only to comfort him but warm him up as well. "I want to stay here. Do not send me away."
"Is that what you think I am doing? No, do not think that," he pleaded, kissing Elrond with more intimacy. "You are the right one to send to Imladris. We do not agree on everything, but our politics have always been similar. Imagine this - if you do not go, who am I to send?"
"Send your brother," suggested Elrond in reference to Erestor, an ellon who had been orphaned at the time that Gil-Galad had been sent to Falas. At the time, the two elflings had befriended one another, and as they grew, Gil-Galad had become a protector and something of an elder brother to the intelligent but shy Erestor. Again, Gil-Galad was shaking his head.
"Elrond... brilliant as he is, he is no leader. He can offer suggestion, but making those final decisions himself..." Gil-Galad tilted Elrond's chin back in his direction, smiling adoringly at the pout on his kissable lips. "That brings me to another point. You can not simply populate Imladris with the few merchants, farmers, and messengers who either love you more or hate me most. I expect you to take a few of the more experienced members of this realm with you."
"Such as?" questioned Elrond, already beginning to concede to his lover's plan.
"Such as my brother, who would serve you well as a counselor and, if you were to choose, perhaps as seneschal until the time you have an heir." Gil-Galad laughed as Elrond crinkled his nose and squirmed uneasily. "Maybe even two or three if you're lucky," he added with an unseen grin.
Elrond playfully butted his head against Gil-Galad's chest, causing laughter to erupt from him. "Take that back," chuckled Elrond, pounding his fist gently against his lover.
"Mmm, I had not considered that I needed a massage, but, if you insist." Gil-Galad turned to his other side so that his back faced Elrond and was the recipient of a few final soft blows. "Stopping already?"
"It's hardly any fun if you're enjoying yourself," muttered the peredhel, flopping onto his back with his hands resting under his head. "So you want me to take over in Imladris," he said after some contemplative silence.
"Aye. I hate to be so far away, but I think we both knew we were never really... that something was going to send us down different paths eventually. If you stay here, it would be a disservice to all who have looked to that little fortress, that tiny house in the valley as some sort of sanctuary. Think of your mortal kin, Elrond." Gil-Galad rolled back onto his own back, looking up at the same point on the ceiling that Elrond's eyes were fixed upon. "Imagine, if they see you, one whom some count among their own despite their choice, if they see you as one in power, as one they can sit in council with. They do not quite trust the rest of us; Oropher, Círdan, Amdir and myself. We are so different from them; but you are not. You have the trust of most men, and you have the same of most of the eldar. You were born for this, El-nin... I would be a fool to stand in your way."
"I wish you would."
"I wish I could." Gil-Galad sat up and kept his eyes focused elsewhere as he spoke. "You... we should probably stop... seeing each other like this," he ground out with difficulty. "I... well, we need time to adjust, and..."
"And you think we should stop sleeping together?" Elrond's voice grew colder. "Are you sure you aren't sending me to Imladris because you wish to end our relationship and know no other way how?"
"No!" Gil-Galad seized Elrond by the shoulders, staring him in the eyes. "El-nin, the last thing I would do is hurt you..." There was a pained look on his face as he willed himself to hold back his emotions and continue speaking. "I meant... if we become used to the idea now, then later when we are forced to be apart, it will not be such a terrible thing for us to overcome."
Elrond settled his hands upon his lover's arms, grieving at the sadness that was reflected and mirrored in the eyes that stared back at him. "Then I should go; I can sleep the night in my study," he said quietly, trying to get up.
Strong arms held him in place. "No... not tonight." Gil-Galad pulled Elrond to him, returning the embrace he received. "El-nin, you may not believe me, but this hurts us both. I wish it could be otherwise, I wish I could be certain that someone else could complete this task."
"No, you're right." Elrond nuzzled his nose against his lover's neck, kissing him calmingly, speaking in reassuring tones. "You always know best; that's part of what I love about you. But, not tonight... perhaps tomorrow, not tonight."
"It will take many weeks to prepare your party for the journey- months, perhaps," corrected Gil-Galad hopefully. "If I send Glorfindel along with you, it could be an entire year before you would be ready to depart," he remarked with hope in his voice.
Elrond could not help but chuckle as he drew back a bit, resting his forehead against Gil-Galad's. "I knew you were going to try to get rid of that pestering balrog-slaying captain of yours," he teased.
"You know, I did threaten him once that if need be we would readily use him if a virgin needed to be sacrificed," recalled Gil-Galad. "He assured me that it would not work, but I informed him I would take my chances regardless."
Throwing his head back in laughter, Elrond replied, "You did no such thing!"
"I did, I did," said Gil-Galad, equally as mirthful. "Ask him sometime, he likes to tell the story and scowl a lot in my direction as he does so."
"I am going to miss it here," admitted Elrond as their laughter died down. "I will miss many things, but you I shall miss the most."
"I know."
The pair rested a while in companionable silence as the winds calmed and the flicker of the candles ceased once they had burned down and smoldered into nothingness. "If you would like," whispered the king to his herald in the darkness, "I would submit to your desires." They were still loosely holding one another, and Elrond's slowly growing erection had not gone unnoticed.
"No... not tonight," mumbled Elrond, seemingly caught in thoughts elsewhere. Gil-Galad drew in his breath and was contemplating begging Elrond to in order to ease the peredhel's mind somewhat when he felt his lover shift and reach for the table at the bedside. Soon after a jar was coaxed into Gil-Galad's hand. "I need you tonight," Elrond said quietly, curling Gil-Galad's fingers around the small container before it could be exchanged back into his hand. "Take me, Ereinion, make these nights we still have left together last."
Leaning forward to kiss Elrond, Gil-Galad set the jar aside and rolled Elrond onto his back. Nothing was rushed as their hands explored one another in the darkness. Bare skin was caressed, licked, bitten, tasted, damp from sweat and the trail of their own tongues. Repeatedly, Gil-Galad would cause Elrond to still and groan whenever his fingers slid through the fine, wispy hairs that covered his chest, arms, and groin. It had been the first thing to intrigue Gil-Galad when he had met Elrond- the tufts of dark hair that were revealed by his open shirt, and the questions that came to his mind on just where upon Elrond's body it covered. As a full elf, Gil-Galad was as smooth skinned as any ellon, but this ordinary trait of his seemed just as fascinating to Elrond as Elrond's excess of hair was to Gil-Galad.
Preparation of Elrond's body was as languid a process as their foreplay had been. With nimble fingers, Gil-Galad uncorked the jar and dipped into the cool concoction, a mixture of various things which Elrond had himself created. It had a deep, musky scent and could be used to relax one's muscles, making it ideal for intimate massages. They continued to kiss and to comfort each other with half-finished phrases as Gil-Galad's fingers worked to stretch Elrond's passage.
"We can visit often, there will be reason to..." Elrond's voice trailed as a second digit was worked deep within him.
"We can always mindspeak or..." Closing his mouth over Elrond's, Gil-Galad curled his fingers inside, smiling into the kiss as his lover bucked forward.
Elrond strained to gain some sort of contact, attempting to rub his erection against his lover's thigh. The king kept just out of reach, finding the jar again. A generous amount was used to coat his own erect member before returning to his task of preparing Elrond. "The time apart will strengthen our bond and..." Gil-Galad twisted his fingers and Elrond bit his thumb to keep from crying out his pleasure too loud. With his free hand, Gil-Galad tugged on Elrond's arm and kissed at his fingers. "Do not hurt yourself, El-nin... am I too rough?" he questioned with worry.
"No, no... just the opposite," moaned Elrond, his head rolling to one side and then the other. "I want it to last, but you are drawing it out to be torture!"
Chuckling at the impatience of his lover, Gil-Galad withdrew his fingers and settled himself between Elrond's thighs. Once he had bent the peredhel's legs over his shoulders, the king pressed forward, sheathing himself and pausing once Elrond was filled. With a shuddering sigh, he kept his balance with one hand while the other was used to stroke Elrond's cheek until he opened his eyes. "I am going to miss you, my love," admitted Gil-Galad, feeling the first pricks of tears in his eyes.
"I miss you already," answered Elrond back as he panted in reply. He turned his head to the side and nuzzled against the palm of Gil-Galad's hand before kissing the errant fingers. "But do not cry. There will be a time for tears; not tonight."
"No, not tonight," agreed Gil-Galad as he gently withdrew before gently setting a rhythm that drew out their mutual passion long into the cold, dark night.
The End
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