A Vision of Hope by Olorime

Chapter 1

Read Chapter 1

 

Look to this day
for it is life
the very life of life.
 
In its brief course lie all
the realities and truths of existence
the joy of growth
the splendor of action
the glory of power.
 
For yesterday is but a memory
And tomorrow is only a vision.
But today well lived
makes every yesterday a memory
of happiness
and every tomorrow a vision of hope.
 
Look well, therefore, to this day....
 
~ ancient Sanskrit poem ~

 

 

The soft beams of a watery dawn illuminated the dingy chamber where a lanky, dark haired youth lay carelessly draped across a narrow bunk. The light snores of the youth and his companion, a short and dark haired daughter of Man with rather generous attributes filled the chamber's air, redolent with the heady scent of sex and wine. The couple's well earned, post coital slumber was interrupted by the door slamming against the wall.

 

"For fuck's sake, Elrond!" the sleeping youth's exact replica thundered as he stormed in, kicking his way through the scattered clothing covering the floor.

 

Elrond moaned and reached for his companion, but she was already out the door, snatching up her clothes as she went. Her lovely behind jiggled merrily as she pranced through the chickens pecking in the courtyard, sending them flying.

 

"Varda's tits, Elros!" Elrond exclaimed as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "Did you have to scare Cuilgalad away?"

 

Elros picked up his brother's trousers and threw them at him. "Maglor is going to have your balls if he knows how you spent the night. You did not show up for yesterday's lessons. That's the fourth day you have missed this month. If he finds out you were with Cuilgalad, he is going to ground you for a year." He sat on the bed and ruffled his brother's sleep mused hair. "Who would have thought you had such a wild streak?"

 

Elrond stiffened at Elros's touch and slapped his brother's hand away. He started donning his trousers in angry, short movements. "I am tired of people telling me what to do and where to go." He picked up his boots and jerked them on. "I am sick of being coddled, of half-truths and awkward silences." He stood and picked up his shirt and leather vest and marched out the door.

 

"Wait, Elrond!" Elros ran after him. "You know that they are only concerned for you, for us. Maglor says he doesn't want you to be saddled with sorrows for which you are not yet ready."

 

"Who is he to tell me what I am ready for and what I am not?" Elrond answered in a growl. He crossed the yard in quick, long strides and headed toward the stables while putting on the rest of his clothes. He stopped short at the sight of the red haired man standing at the stable's door.

 

"Where were you last night, Elrond?" the man asked while barring the entrance to the stables with his only hand.

 

Elrond pushed past him and headed toward his mount's stall. "That's none of your concern, Maedhros."

 

Maedhros sighed and watched as Elrond saddled his horse and took off at a gallop. He turned and saw Elros gaping in disbelief. Usually, the label of difficult and rebellious belonged to Elros not Elrond. He was worried about this sharp change in his usually calm, steadfast foster son.

 

"I am sorry," said Elros. "I don't know what's gotten into him these past months."

 

"He is growing up," Maedhros replied before walking away.

 

 

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

 

The high, stone hall echoed with the sounds of agitated pacing.

 

"You are going to wear out your shoes, brother," a distracted Maedhros warned from his seat next to the gray marble fireplace that depicted the crossing of the Helcaraxë.

 

Maglor stopped and glared at him.

 

"He has been gone for two days now, Maedhros," Maglor said, while drumming his fingers on the mantle. "That is very unlike him."

 

Maedhros rolled his eyes, reached down and threw a new log into the dying fire. "He is probably out with Cuilgalad again."

 

"And you don't think that's worrisome? She used to be your lover!"

 

"No, not really," Maedhros replied while trying his best to smother a grin. "I know her well, Maglor. Believe me, neither Elrond's heart nor his future is in peril."

 

"This is not what I had in mind for him." Maglor sat down on the chair opposite his brother. "His behavior is so unrestrained of late... I am worried about him."

 

Maedhros could not help himself and let out a soft chuckle. "I am sure that what is on your mind is the least of his concerns. He is just being young and doing what young people do."

 

"Fuck everything in sight..."

 

Maedhros laughed. "Why, yes, my wholesome brother. I remember you going through something similar."

 

"No," Maglor interjected, "I believe your ancient memory fails you. It has always been you with the unrestrained libido, not me."

 

"Not unrestrained," Maedhros replied. "A healthy libido. Something you should endeavor to emulate."

 

Maglor cast a dark look at Maedhros and poured wine into a pair of finely wrought silver goblets resting on the side table. He handed one to his brother.

 

"I just can't understand all this defiance and anger he has been showing of late." Maglor took a sip of the fragrant, dark liquid before continuing, "If it were him working his way through the lads and lasses around here I wouldn't be as concerned, but all this anger and recklessness is very unlike him."

 

All the gaiety and previous lightheartedness fled Maedhros's face. He set his goblet on the table and started tapping a nervous sort of tattoo on the rim. "He is probably having a difficult time trying to reconcile the evil of our previous deeds with the love he bears for us."

 

His brother's face took on an ashen hue. The only sounds that could be heard were the clanging of Maglor's goblet against the polished flagstone floor and the merry crackling of the fire.

 

"How…?"

 

"I told them," Maedhros whispered, his eyes fixated on the liquid sloshing in his cup. "Well, I completed the tale and corrected a few things. I told you they'd hear it from others, that we could not conceal the truth from them…"

 

"And you didn't think to tell me?" Maglor's outraged reply echoed through the cavernous chamber.

 

"I just did not know how to break it to you," Maedhros answered, his gaze still riveted in his wine cup. "Elrond idolizes you and he took the news much harder than Elros."

 

"By Manwë's grace, Maedhros…" Maglor cradled his head in his hands. "What I'd have given to spare them this."

 

Maedhros closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "They need to know what haunts us… what is still required from us… It wasn't easy. I love them just as deeply as you do."

 

"I know, brother, I know." Maglor reached out, grasped his brother's shoulder and squeezed in an affectionate manner. "It's just that I allowed myself to dream this day would never come."

 

SSSSSSSSSS

 

The day progressed from a pale, chilly dawn to an angry, stormy afternoon and finally, to a damp, miserable evening – and Elros's mood steadily worsened with it. He spent the mud-spattered day riding through hail and rain trying to find Elrond until his patience was at the end of its tether. Not only was he cold and hungry, he was also annoyed. His plans for a nice, relaxing evening in the company of a very accommodating lad were spoiled by his foster parents' pleas to look for his brother.

 

Elros tried his luck one last time in a seedy tavern located about half a day's ride from their compound. It was frequented by merchant caravans and wayward travelers and had a reputation of satisfying even the most lascivious desires. Given his brother's most recent actions, Elros thought this place might be the one.

 

The inside of the tavern was dimly lit and the stench of alcohol and unwashed bodies permeated the air. The hard packed dirt floor was strewn with fresh hay and there were rows of battered tables lining the walls, filled with rowdy patrons. In the middle of the room there was a square of polished hardwood that served as a stage. It was surrounded by a few stakes topped by torches to provide better lighting. Sitting at a table close to the polished wood square was Elrond, thoroughly engrossed in conversation with a striking young man seated next to him. Although not as beautiful as Elrond, the youth had an overall gracefulness that made more than a few set of eyes linger upon him. He was youthful in appearance and of slender build. His eyes were the color of the underside of an oak leaf, and they were rimmed in kohl which added depth to their already breathtaking appeal. His long, feathery dark locks had a little curl at the ends and he threw them in a most coquettish manner over one shoulder while casting smoldering, come-hither looks at his companion. He stood to retrieve a tankard of ale from the bar and Elros noticed he wore a pair of baggy trousers of a diaphanous material left very little to the imagination as they hung dangerously low on his hips. They were fastened by a wide belt that kept his privates from peeking through the revealing fabric and on his torso he wore a sleeveless tunic that was short in the front and left his midriff bare, but long on the back and full of ruches of the same gossamer cloth as the trousers. His movements, from the way he sat to the way he walked, even the gestures he made with his hands were graceful, almost feminine, but also meticulous in their exactitude and they had an underlying strength. In short, the young man was a study in seduction, a creature that blurred the line between masculine and feminine, shedding the hindrances of either sex and keeping all the titillation.

 

Elros, who was angry at Elrond, got even more enraged when he saw the young man lean in and steal a swift peck from his brother's lips. Strangely enough, Elros was not sure if the outrage was at his brother for having ruined his chances of getting kissed by a beautiful lad or at the lad for daring to steal a kiss from his Elrond's full lips. Trying to keep all thoughts about full lips, naked torsos and young men with dangerous depths for eyes from his head, he made his way to the table at which Elrond sat.

 

"Fancy seeing you here." Elros half-shouted in order to be heard above the blaring voices of the tavern's patrons.

 

"By Nienna's tears, Elros!” Elrond replied, clutching at his chest dramatically. "You could have killed me."

 

"Believe me, I am nearly there brother," Elros told him while taking the seat opposite Elrond's. "Maglor and Maedhros are out of their minds with worry and here you are, having a grand old time in the middle of nowhere, and a tavern of all places."

 

Elrond shot daggers at Elrond. "I am not a child. As a matter of fact, I am the same age as you. I do not need coddling or anyone to look after me."

 

Elros grabbed Elrond by the front of his shirt and stared into his brother's eyes. He could see his own concerned visage reflected back at him."Then why have you been behaving like an utter idiot of late, Elrond? It is not like you at all to run away, to drown yourself in booze and sex," he finished by stroking Elrond's hair fondly.

 

"I don't want to talk about it, Ros," Elrond whispered. He avoided looking into his brother's eyes and pulled away from his grasp. With fake cheer he turned toward their companion, who had remained silent throughout their exchange, and said, "I want you to meet my friend, Lghed. He is the best dancer in Endorë."

 

Elros shifted his gaze to the sultry youth and for a moment forgot his annoyance and worry. All he could do was stare at those kohl rimmed pools of dusky green and those pouty and delicious bow shaped lips that were smiling at him.

 

"As you can tell, I am this fool's brother," Elrond told Lghed, extending his hand.

 

Lghed returned the handshake and quipped back, "My brother also thinks I'm a fool, but it is he who works in the fields while I dance for beautiful men that walk between worlds."

 

The brothers both raised their eyebrows at Lghed's reference to their half blood, an odd bit of insight from this intriguing stranger. Elrond prevented any further awkwardness by asking Lghed to dance.

 

"You promised, and now my brother is here. He must see you dance!" Elrond gave Lghed one of his most charming smiles. Lghed blushed a little, but nodded and rose.

 

Elros took a couple of silver coins out of his purse and placed them on the table. Lghed pocketed them, gave them a graceful bow and glided to the corner of the tavern where a group of drummers was laughing raucously at some joke. After a few minutes of intense discussion in a language unknown to the twins, and the exchange of some coppers, the drummers and the brothers' newest friend seemed to have reached an agreement. The drummers moved to sit at the edge of the hardwood square in the middle of the tavern. With a nod to the twins, Lghed took to the stage, striking a lissome pose.

 

As soon as his feet touched the wooden square, the tavern went quiet. The drummers rained a slow cadence on the skins and Lghed followed every beat by undulating his hips, his arms snaking in a hypnotic manner, trapping whoever fell under their spell in the depths of his eyes and the charm of his smile. He was demanding, generous, beguiling, enthralling. His body drifted from one end of the square to the other in a fluid dream filled with flashes of soft, supple skin, rippling midriffs and bewitching smiles, but its sole focus remained on the twins. It was for them alone that his eyes lit with promises of passion and it was only for them that his smile got that seductive edge that made loins tingle with anticipation. People began to flock to the perimeter of the square, men and women alike, they reached out their arms trying to touch Lghed, yearning to seize a bit of him for themselves, but he slid playfully in and out of their reach. His touch was for Elrond and Elros alone, and it was only their hands he allowed to touch him.

 

Elrond, familiar with Lghed's wiles, watched as he wove his magic on the unsuspecting Elros. It was impossible to resist him when he wanted someone, as Elrond had found during his brief but intense tryst with the dancer. Lghed had woven his spell and Elrond fell prey to his wiles like a fly falls into a spider web. The hours they spent together gave him a most welcome respite from the terrible visions of the future, the dreams about the past, and the unnatural longing he carried deep inside.

 

Elros's breathing became ragged from the many titillating caresses Lghed's hands delivered, and when Lghed stole a kiss from his brother's mouth, Elrond's blood rushed to his groin. He was so engrossed in thoughts of his brother and Lghed, naked and writhing together on the floor, that he did not notice when a pair of burly men were getting too close to Lghed nor that Elros had tensed up as if preparing for a fight. Suddenly Elros was on his feet and Elrond woke from his lust induced stupor. The drummers stopped playing and where jabbering in their language for the men to release Lghed, who was being held by his hair by one of the brutes, a wicked looking knife pressed against his throat, while the other took his lips by force.

 

"Release him!" Elros's voice had a dangerous edge to it.

 

The brute forcing his attentions on Lghed turned and laughed. "Why should we?

 

"Because if you don't, the dancer will not be the only one to taste steel this night."

 

Elros did not wait for the man to reply but sent his knife flying with eye blurring speed into the hilt of the man's knife, causing him to drop his weapon with a yelp yet leaving no mark upon his skin. Lghed took advantage of this to deliver a swift kick to the stomach of the other man leaving him panting for breath. The bar erupted in chaos as some ran for the doors and others ran toward Elros. Elrond and Lhged were by his side in an instant with weapons drawn. Elrond spared a surprised glance at Lhged and the dagger he had produced from the voluminous folds of his costume before looking to Elros and giving him a brief nod. The unspoken communication they had shared their whole lives passed between them swift as lightning.

 

The men's cohorts attacked the trio, but Lghed's drummer friends came to help and the fighting was now at its thickest. Elrond and Elros, trained as they were by battle-hardened generals made short work of the thugs, but they were completely surprised seeing their friend hold his own. The limber dancer was as dangerous fighting as he was dancing. Unfortunately, Lghed's drummer friends were not as skilled and they were not faring as well as the dancer and the twins. Just as the fight was abating, Elros saw one of the thugs who had been knocked to the floor take a dagger from his boot and throw it at one of the drummers, whose back was to him as he grappled with another man. The drummer was panting with exertion and would likely perish from the wound since it was at very close range. Seeing no other alternative, Elros threw himself in the path of the dagger and caught it square in his shoulder.

Elrond turned to watch, horrified, as his brother fell with a loud thump on the floor and a scarlet stain spread through the fabric of his tunic. Anger surged through Elrond's body and the sounds around the room were dimmed by the sound of his own blood roaring in his ears. He ran toward the prone man, his dagger unsheathed, but the drummer chose that moment to turn. He saw the fallen Elf and, in the blink of an eye, ran to the thug, kneeled, and snapped the man's neck with one swift, powerful move.

 

He then turned toward Elrond and gave him a brief nod of acknowledgment and motioned toward Lghed and Elros; they were trying to get Elrond to his feet. Lghed kept batting Elros's hand away from the dagger, a wise move since the wound needed stitching and binding, something that should be done in better conditions than a filthy tavern floor.

 

"Hold, Elros," Elrond chided. He ran to his brother's side and helped him to his feet. "You will harm yourself further."

 

"We need to take him out of here," Lghed told Elrond.

 

"Right, your place is close and it's much better than being out under the elements. He will need rest."

 

Lghed steered the group toward the door and exchanged a few words in that strange language with his comrades over his shoulder.

 

Elros had other ideas, he wanted his brother to take out the dagger from his shoulder and bind his wound so they can get on their way back home. He shook his head and groaned. "Don't talk about me as if I were not here. I'll be fine. Maglor is expecting us."

 

At this Lghed laughed in that husky, seductive manner of his and retorted, "You are as stubborn as your brother. You need looking after, and I happen to know he is an excellent healer. He fixed my ankle, " the dancer told Elros while he stretched his leg. "See? As good as new."

 

Elros scoffed, “Is that how you two met?”

 

Lghed, who dealt with stubborn individuals daily in his line of work, knew that distracting Elros was the best alternative to keep his ill humor at bay.

 

“Yes, your brother watched my performance and noticed that I was favoring my left foot. He offered to fix it and then... we got to know each other.”

 

Elros only grunted in response.

 

The drummers and the other tavern patrons were helping out the wounded and throwing out the remainder of the band of thugs from the place. The only casualty had been that treacherous thug, but the drummers and the tavern patrons that got involved in the fighting had taken quite a beating. The brothers and their friend were finally through the door.

 

"Stay put, Elros!" Elrond admonished. He was losing his patience at his self-sufficient brother. "I'll stuff you into my saddlebag if you continue wriggling like a worm."

 

Lghed leaned over to Elros and whispered something in his ear. Elros's eyebrows rose and his eyes roamed over Lghed who was at that moment looking down, his eyelashes casting shadows on his cheeks, a rather smug smile tugging at his lips.

 

"I will hold you to that."

 

Elrond felt a twinge of annoyance pass through him at his brother's words. He was jealous, but it was not because Elros was flirting with what would be considered his conquest. No, he was jealous that Lghed had managed to get such a reaction from his brother and he was also cross at Elros for endangering his life the way he did and the cavalier attitude he had toward his wound. Elrond swatted his displeasure and angry thoughts right out of his head and turned toward Lghed.

 

"Won't your friends miss you?" It came out much harsher than he intended.

 

"They know where to find me," Lghed answered. "Leave the horses here. My friends will see to them."

 

Lghed turned toward the small caravan settlement a short distance from the tavern. After a few minutes they reached a large wagon. Lghed gave a small boy at the entrance a copper and gestured for them to follow.

 

Inside, the wagon boasted a rather lavishly decorated interior. Intricate hand woven rugs, cushions, and luxurious fabric covered the wooden floor. Lghed helped Elrond get his brother inside the wagon. As soon as they were inside, Elros crumpled on the floor.

 

SSSSSSSSSSSSSS

 

There was an annoying sound coming from somewhere to Elros's right. It sounded like a harp being plucked, but it was unskilled and persistently annoying. To add to his irritation his shoulder felt as if it had been mauled by a pack of wild wargs. He was sore, his throat was parched, and his mouth felt as if someone had stuffed it full with cotton.

 

"It's no use, Lghed. I am a complete failure at anything musical." Elros opened his eyes and saw his brother sitting with a small lute resting on his lap. The light of a nearby window gave Elrond's hair a blue tinge and his grey eyes shone like stars. Elros's chest tightened with love and affection for his faithful brother. Always there.

 

"No more, please!" Elros croaked, his voice a gravelly rasp. "Please, no more. I'll get up, but you have to stop this torture."

 

Elrond put aside the lute and rushed to his patient's side. He said in a very serious voice, "It is about time you woke." The effect was spoiled by his eyes which were shinning with unrestrained joy.

 

Elros tried sitting up, but the pain in his shoulder stopped him short. Lghed, who was also sitting on the other side of his bed, pushed him back against the cushions.

 

"That blackguard's dagger was tainted," Lghed told him. He grabbed some pillows from a nearby basket and very gently helped Elros sit up. "You gave us quite a fright."

 

Elrond was busy rummaging among the contents on top of a chest that served as a side table. He poured some liquid into a cup and handed it to Elros who took a sip and grimaced. Elrond scowled and with a gentle movement pushed on Elros's elbow, forcing him to drink the whole of the foul concoction.

 

After swallowing the bitter draught, Elros told Lghed, "Oh, I know my brother wouldn't let anything happen to me. He is far too stubborn for that. It must always be his way."

 

"Shut up, Elros. You are embarrassing me."

 

"Oh, yes. I know that your brother likes having his way." Lghed's look had a far away quality to it and his lips were curved in a little satisfied smile.

 

Elrond's ears turned pink. He cleared his throat and added before his brother or his friend could embarrass him further, "Lghed has agreed to deliver a message to our camp, although I am sure Maedhros and Maglor are already scouring the countryside trying to find us. It's been five days since I left."

 

Elros chuckled. "Oh, yes. You better hope Maedhros is not too annoyed with you for having tupped his favorite girl. They'll be sick with worry by now and your chances of redemption are slim."

 

Elrond's face was now bright red. "Oh, that… that, " he stammered, "was an exercise in humility. She called me Maedhros right when… "

 

The rest of his statement was drowned in the wild hoots and laughter issuing from Lghed and Elros. Elrond huffed and glared darkly at his companions.

 

"At least she did… you know, many times!"

 

“And called you by his name while at it,” Elros threw in.

 

“Ugh!” was Elrond's reply.

 

Lghed and Elrond's laughter ignited once again. Elrond groaned and buried his head in a pillow. "Are you done?" His voice was partially muffled by the pillow and it sounded more like he said, "Aww woo doon?"

 

After a few minutes their laughter ebbed. Lghed got to his feet and told them, "As much as I want to hear about Elrond's exploits with the fairer sex, I am sure your guardians are very worried. I should have been gone by dawn, but I wanted to be here when Elros woke." He grabbed a saddlebag from a battered looking chest. "I will be back tomorrow."

 

"Wait!" Elros shouted. "Don't forget..."

 

“Not in a thousand years,” Lghed answered giving Elros an impish wink. He then turned to Elrond. “Elrond, remember what I told you about seers.”

 

“What about seers?” Elros asked, confused.

 

“They drown in the worries for the future, cannot let go of the past and forget to live the present...” Elrond recited in a singsong voice. Lghed scowled at him and threw a pillow at his head.

 

“Look after your brother and...”

 

At that moment Elrond jumped to Lghed's side and covered his mouth with his hand. “I will, don't fret. Now go!”

 

SSSSSSSSSS

 

Once Lghed was on the road and Elrond and Elros were left alone in Lghed's wagon, the tension in the room was palpable.

 

“So, is that the reason you left?” Elros said after a few minutes of uncomfortable silence. “You were having those dreadful visions again?”

 

Elrond averted his eyes from his brother and pretended to be thoroughly engrossed with a vial on the side table.

 

“Elrond?”

 

Elrond heaved a great sigh. “Yes… and no.”

 

Elros rolled his eyes. “Am I going to have to drag it out of you, or would you rather save me the effort and just tell me?”

 

Elrond took a seat next to Elros on the bed. He motioned for him to lie down and checked on his bandages. “I... I was angry... hurt. I am not overly fond of our mother, but I saw the destruction the Feanorians wreaked when they came for the Silmaril. Having Maedhros confirm everything and tell us that he'd do it again made my blood boil.”

 

Elros stilled Elrond's hand. He lifted Elrond's chin with two fingers and looked into his haunted eyes. “That's not the whole reason, though, is it? We have known this for a while. Furthermore, you know they had no other choice.”

 

“They had a choice, Elros, and they made the wrong one!” Elrond cried out. Then gathering his composure he continued, “You are right, that is not all.” He stopped all pretense of being distracted with Elros's wounds. “I had visions about our future...”

 

It was Elros's turn to look away. “So, you know about our choice...”

 

Elrond gave him a dismayed look. “You cannot be serious!”

 

Elros took his brother's hand and tried reassuring him. “That's all they are, Elrond, visions. I am not sure of what I am going to do yet. I am not sure if we indeed can choose as we've been told through dreams.”

 

“Easy for you to say... you'll go while I stay on,” Elrond replied softly.

 

“You have the same choice, Elrond, and you know I love you.” Elros stroked his brother's hair with soft, loving touches.

 

Elrond lunged toward Elros and took his lips in a very heated kiss. Elros was startled but he returned the kiss with as much enthusiasm and passion as Elrond. When they came up for air, Elros croaked, “I've been waiting for you to do this for quite a long time now.”

 

Elrond pulled away and looked at his brother with something akin to horror etched on his face. “You knew.”

 

“Yes, I knew,” Elros confirmed.

 

“And yet you let me flounder around like a fish out of water...”

 

Elros shrugged. “I wanted you to overcome your reservations. I didn't know that you'd sleep with half the people in our settlement in the process of working it out.”

 

Elrond had the grace to blush. “Those visions were very vivid!”

 

“And you thought to act them out with others?” Elros chided him gently. “Elrond, you know me better than that. All you had to do was ask.”

 

“I should have realized you had seen the visions too, and that you might also be tormented by them,” Elrond said contritely. “I should have trusted you.”

 

“And I you. I should have realized the reason for your recent actions and trusted it was not solely because of Maedhros’s confession.”

 

Elros looked down to where his hand still clasped Elrond’s then back up into his eyes. Elrond gave his hand a squeeze and smiled.

 

“You are wounded, are you sure you want to do this?”

 

“There is no skill of healing you possess that could mend me faster or more completely than what we both want to do,” Elros said. He raised Elrond’s hand and kissed it then reached out and ruffled his hair like he so often did, only this time the touch turned into a caress. “Make love to me, Elrond.”

 

Elrond kissed his brother's cheek and stood. His hands trembled a little with anticipation, he had waited so long and now he felt like it was his first time, and in many aspects it was. It was the first time he would be intimate with someone that he truly loved.

 

Elrond shed his clothes in a heartbeat. He moved to sit on the bed beside Elros, tripping over his pants in his haste. He kicked them off with a muttered oath and was back at Elros's side, panting slightly. He felt foolish, but then Elros stretched out his arms, beckoning, and there was no mocking laughter or derision in his eyes, just desire and affection.

 

He pulled back the sheets covering Elros and knelt between his twin's parted legs. He took his time and allowed himself to feast his eyes on the beautiful line of Elros's muscular legs, the strong thighs that just begged for Elrond to nestle between them, the beautiful member that was already standing proud, its tip glistening; the strong wall of muscles that made up Elros's stomach, his broad chest.

 

“Come to me,” Elros told him in a breathless whisper.

 

Elrond had dreamed of having his brother's hands on his body and the strong, slightly callused fingers caressing his side were his dream incarnate. The gentle, searching touches were electrifying, maddening and Elrond purred in contentment. He took Elros's mouth in a lip bruising kiss, his hands running over the strong muscles in Elros's stomach with feathery, light touches that tore impatient pleas from Elros. Each sigh and groan drove Elrond's excitement to new heights. His arousal twitched and wept and begged for attention, but it was not yet time for that. Instead he centered his attention on the long, strong column of his brother's neck, suckling, biting, marking. Elrond nearly came undone when Elros's hand found his cock and rubbed the sensitive head with the pad of his thumb. From then on Elrond's moves became bolder, harsher, more passionate. He played upon Elros's willing body with more skill than he would ever play upon a lute and Elros responded to each touch with sounds sweeter than any song Elrond had ever heard from his brother's lips. Elrond urged his brother's legs to part and touched him in that most secret place. For a moment, Elros stiffened but then he looked into Elrond's eyes with complete trust and urged him to continue. A finger became two, then it was Elrond's cock breaching that last barrier and thrusting deep, slow. It took all his effort not to spill himself when he was gripped by the tight heat of Elros's body. It was beyond any experience Elrond had ever imagined and he forced himself to slowness, wanting to last as long as possible. Instinct told him to plunge hard, fast, instead he took Elros's arousal in hand and stroke him in rhythm with his slow, leisurely thrusts. That earned him a sharp nip on the shoulder from his brother.

 

“More!” Elros demanded.

 

Elrond laughed at Elros's impatience and increased the pace, this made their breathing become heavy, their movements erratic. He kissed him once more; a hungry, demanding kiss that took Elros over the edge. He reached his completion with a deep groan. Elrond followed a few seconds later burying his head in his brother's neck to muffle the shout of complete ecstasy that tore from his lips.

 

SSSSSSSSSS

 

Hours later, the brothers sat on the wagon's floor, a companionable silence between them. They were having a light meal of bread, cheese and fruit to restore the strength spent in a day of lovemaking. Elros was the first to speak.

 

“What are we going to do about Lghed?”

 

Elrond looked up from the orange he was peeling. He tilted his head to the side and considered the matter for a few seconds. He then chuckled and went back to his peeling.

 

“We let him decide what he wants to do with us.”

 

Elros rolled his eyes. “I knew you'd say that...”

 

 

THE END

 

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Chapter End Notes

Lghed: Seduction in Kabyle (a Berber language of Northwestern Algeria)