GLORFINDEL LION-HEART
Genre: slash, humour, sap.
Rating: yellow/mild orange
Pairings: Erestor/Glorfindel (not the Balrog-slayer, though), Erestor/Legolas
Warnings: AU, and how! A wee bit of angst.
Beta: Miss Enismirdal, the mûmak multiplicator
Feedback: But most certainly yes!
Beautiful artwork by Nellas of Doriath!
Summary: Glorfindel wishes he had a lion-heart. And Erestor.
Author's notes: They only thing this story has in common with my "usual" AU are the customs of the Woodland Elves. Originally, this was supposed to be a stand-alone. Alas, it turned out to be a new series. Thanks for convincing me to write this series, it was a lot of fun!
CHAPTER 8
The journey was long and exhausting, especially for Glorfindel, who was not used to riding for such a long time. He also was not as weatherproof as Legolas, and suffered from the cold. Luckily, there were only a few incidents of a violent nature on their way. Once they were attacked by a pack of Wargs, but the two archers gave them short shrift, and Legolas complimented Glorfindel on his archery skills.
"You do not only know how to make bows, you also know how to handle them. I am impressed, Glorfindel!"
Glorfindel shrugged, but he was touched by the compliment. He had soon overcome his initial reservations regarding Legolas; the Mirkwood Elf had proven to be a fine travelling companion, and Glorfindel appreciated his straightforwardness. Legolas would have never given him a compliment for his skills if this had not been his honest opinion.
When they were only two days' ride away from Mirkwood, Glorfindel could not hold back his curiosity any longer and began to question Legolas about his home realm.
"What is Mirkwood like, Legolas? Erestor… he never talked much about his home, and I am curious to learn about your realm and its customs."
Legolas poked at the embers of the camp fire with a stick. Then he looked up.
"Mirkwood – the name could make you think that it is a place of darkness, but it is not. It used to be Greenwood the Great, and a lot of its beauty is still visible, though we do have unpleasant things to deal with. When it comes to beauty, it certainly cannot compare with Lothlórien or Imladris, but it is my home. We work hard for our living, and so we appreciate the things we have more than others do."
"Like... gems?" Glorfindel asked, alluding to the infamous love of the Mirkwood Elves for jewels.
Legolas frowned.
"Yes, we do appreciate gems, Glorfindel. They are beautiful, valuable and indestructible. No Orc can destroy them, no spider devour them. They remind us that we can survive any hardship. And my ada is especially fond of white gems because they remind him that we must always stay pure of heart, no matter how dark the times are."
Glorfindel nodded, a little ashamed.
"I can understand that. And is it true that you live in caves?"
Legolas had to chuckle when he saw the slightly doubting expression on Glorfindel's face.
"Some of us do, yes. But do not fear, you will not have to live like a bear hibernating, stretched out on straw and eating from the ground! I dare say that my home is as comfortable as yours. My father has excellent taste, and the Great Cave is not only called "great" because of its size. However, some of us do live in telain, alas only those next to the Great Cave. All others we had to give up long ago."
"Why only there?" Glorfindel asked. "I thought this would be the natural way for Silvan Elves to live? High in the trees, close to the sky?"
Legolas laughed.
"This used to be the case, many centuries ago! But Glorfindel, have you ever seen one of our famous Mirkwood spiders?"
Glorfindel shuddered and shook his head.
"No, and I really hope I will never have to see one!" he said, making Legolas laugh even more.
"Oh Glorfindel, if you had seen one of those beasts, you would understand that every Elf with half a brain would wish to put as much stone between himself and the eight-legged menaces as possible. And you would not like to be greeted by eight hairy legs instead of two soft arms after a night of drinking at the tavern! So we leave the telain to the spiders and enjoy the comforts of our caves."
The thought of having to face a big, hairy and poisonous spider gave Glorfindel the creeps. And while it was interesting to learn about Mirkwood's local fauna, this was not the matter he really wanted to talk about.
He took a deep breath, then turned to Legolas.
"You still have not told me what it is you need my help for."
Legolas shook his head.
"Please forgive me, Glorfindel, but I am not at liberty to tell you. Not yet. I can only beg you to trust me that you will not be harmed, and that your participation is required in a noble deed."
"I suppose I will not get more information out of you, even if I beg?" Glorfindel asked.
"Though I would love to see you beg, as I have no doubt that you would do this very nicely, I unfortunately have to say no. But if the outcome of this journey should not be to your satisfaction, I herewith grant you the right to shove that bow exactly where you wanted to shove it during my visit to the archery tournament in Imladris."
Glorfindel's ears turned lobster red, and he stared at Legolas open-mouthed.
"How… why…" he stammered, and Legolas howled with laughter.
"You are priceless, really! My ada is not only king because he can keep his liquor better than any other, Glorfindel. There is strong magic in our family, and while I am not the Lady Galadriel, thoughts as strong and clear as yours are as easy for me to read as one of Lord Elrond's lengthy and, if I may say so, rather pompous letters."
"I am sorry… I did not mean to…" Glorfindel began, but Legolas cut his little apology speech of by slapping him good-naturedly on the back.
"No need to apologise, Glorfindel. You confirmed everything I wanted to know."
Glorfindel, too embarrassed and confused to fully understand what Legolas had just said, completely forgot to ask what it had been that the other had been curious to learn.
Legolas stood up and went to spread out his bedroll.
"Time to sleep, my friend. Only two days, and we will enter the realm of spiders, wine and choleric kings."
He covered the remaining ambers with sand and left Glorfindel wrapped up in his bedroll, wide awake and lost in thoughts.
* * *
TBC