Trinkets by Independence1776

Comfort

Nerdanel/Indis, we found comfort in each other. Femslash. Ficlet. Rated General.

This was written for an anonymous prompter at Elleth's femslash meme.

It started simply: a cup of tea here, a brief meeting there, a hug farewell.

But when the magnitude of the disaster abated, when the immediate concerns were dealt with, and the middle and long term ones had procedures in place to handle them-- that’s when the quick conversations snatched between meetings and crises became something longer.

Nerdanel hadn’t talked with Indis much before this, mostly because of Fëanáro, but even after their separation, she deliberately had little to do with the royal family (save her sons, but even they kept their distance much of the time, especially after the exile to Formenos). They had given her enough headaches-- and now heartaches-- to last until the end of the world. But the Darkening and its aftermath had changed everything.

When Arafinwë returned, she and Indis worked together to smooth the transition of leadership, though both of them remained on his advisory council. It only made sense to continue to meet outside of it. But their conversations no longer revolved around business.

They talked about growing up in Tirion and on the long journey to Valinor, about Nerdanel choosing a career that wasn’t traditionally open to women (her marriage to Fëanáro had done much to keep it open, especially because she gained the status to actively encourage women to enter it), about Indis falling in love with someone out of her reach, the differences in their cultures, what their favorite foods were, what they hated most about living in Aman, what they liked to do for fun. And they spent time together doing those things.

Indis took her on a picnic for lunch, but rain showers had overtaken them on their way back to Tirion. Given that Nerdanel’s house was near the city gates, they went there rather than travel the slick roads and stairs to Indis’. Nerdanel found a dress that would fit Indis, and they both disappeared into separate bathrooms to dry off and change. Nerdanel came out first, and to have something to do while she waited, she grabbed her current sketchpad off the dining room table to figure out which drawing she’d carve next.

She curled up on the sofa in the living room and began flipping through the pages, starting with the most recent. Her brow furrowed as she turned the pages. Almost all of them were of Indis-- laughing, smiling, sitting, peering out the window, talking to someone, looking over her shoulder, and a myriad of other poses. Some were only lightly sketched while others fully drawn. And the drawings that weren’t of Indis were less than inspired.

Nerdanel raised a hand to her mouth. The last time she’d done anything like this…

“What’s wrong?”

Nerdanel looked up at Indis, fighting back a blush. “I seem to have drawn you quite a lot.”

Indis smiled and sat down next to her. “Show me.”

About halfway through the book, Indis put her finger lightly on the page. “I like this one.”

Nerdanel couldn’t stop the blush this time. The drawing showed Indis peering over her shoulder with a tiny smile on her face. It was undeniable sensual-- and it had been completely unconscious. She glanced over at Indis. “I--”

Indis leaned over and kissed her. Nerdanel’s hands clenched on the sketchbook and Indis pulled back. “I’m sorry. I thought--”

Nerdanel swallowed heavily. “No, it was fine. It was more than fine.”

She leaned over and kissed Indis. They only broke apart when the wirebound sketchbook slipped off Nerdanel’s lap and clattered on the stone floor.