I had watched him grow from a scrawny half-Elf child, to a gangling adolescent, into graceful, powerful adulthood. From afar I admired his cool-headed judgment and clear thinking under fire. As his beauty also grew, I found myself drawn to him more and more. His brother, ever the hot-head, matured apace with him, yet so different, turning away from the Eldar to pursue his ties with Man. How it broke his twin's heart! The eve of that night, I went to comfort him, finding him staring into the star-filled sky at the bright light of his father's ship as it crossed the heavens.

"Though you may be parted, young one, you will forever be in touch with Elros' descendents,..." I tried to reassure him. He bowed his head, refusing to meet my eyes. I could not stand the grief upon that lovely visage and reached out to him. With a strangled sound he turned to me, burying himself in my arms. Ah, such a lovely armful he was... How I struggled with the lust rising in me...

"I will never see his face again, my liege. Never share my deepest fears and desires with him. Who will ever wish to listen to these things, now that he has gone?" he wept against my shoulder.

I held him close, rubbing his back, murmuring nonsense into that delicate ear, and stroking the long dark hair that fell so gracefully down his slender back. My heart pounded in my ears, my groin throbbed as it pressed against those slim hips... Ai, how I wanted him! To my surprise, he moved closer, his tear streaked face turned toward me. His lips stirred against my neck, all but undoing me.

"Young one... Elrond... I will be that heart you turn to, that comforting ear you may speak those darkest needs and anxieties to...If you wish—"

I could go no farther, for his arms snaked around my neck and I could feel his body's response to mine. Ai, Elbereth! Truly a dream come true for this world-weary heart, this turning to me. Rational thought seemed to fly away as I bent to capture those full lips, delving deeply into the warm, moist cavern of his mouth. My hips flexed against his, seeking the proof he wanted me as much as I wanted him.

"I would remain among the Eldar, for only with them am I at home...Only with you," he whispered against my mouth.

I could only wonder if he had chosen this path because of me, but such a prideful thing that would be to believe. How I wanted to take him there, to push down those leggings and aside the robes to expose the needful flesh insistently pressing against my own. I began to tremble in my growing desire, praying to the Valar none would discover us on this public balcony. My rooms lay but a few feet away.

Regretfully, I pulled away a bit, needing to breathe and think clearly. His eyes shone in the bright starlight, glimmering with hurt and desire in a heady mixture. With a tender caress to those troubled features, I set about easing his fears.

"*Meleth-nin,* I would that you not feel shamed for your desires, for I share them as well. Come... My quarters would be the better place to pursue this."

The joy that leapt to his face nearly took my breath again and grasping his hand, I led him up the few stairs to my bedroom. Ithil had risen, shining her light through the windows and painting Elrond's face with her silver brush. It seemed the privacy the walls provided allowed our passion free reign, for I could not keep my hands from him, nor he from me. Somehow my diadem ended up on the table beside the bed, my robes pushed from my shoulders, as his hands sought to explore every inch of me. My body thrummed with desire, yet I strove to maintain control, very aware of his innocence. Many had looked his way, but he had held his distance... Now I could only wonder if he had gazed longingly at me as I had at him.

His hands grazed my buttocks as he knelt before me to unlace my leggings and release the proof of how I wanted him. Those lips... Ai, those lips! He took me in his mouth, caressing me until I shuddered in near pain. My hands grasped his head to slow him. I wanted this first time for him, not my own desires.

"My king?" he asked, a question in his eyes.

"Call me not that in these chambers, *meleth-nin.* For here I am only Gil-galad, not the High King, nor anything else but your lover," I told him, then urged him to rise. "Tonight I am yours to command. Allow me to pleasure you."

I could see his heart beating at the base of his throat and as he rose I pressed my lips to the pulse there. Gently, I disrobed him, then bent to the task he had performed for me. What beauty I revealed caught my breath and tightened my already painfully aroused loins. Arising from a nest of dark curls, evidence of his *peredhel* heritage, his sex stood before me, pulsing with life, a tiny droplet of moisture at the tip. I took him between my lips, savoring his sweet taste, and began my labor of love. Indeed, each groan and shudder I shared, and when he stiffened and poured himself into my mouth, I nearly spent as well.

We moved to the bed, falling into each others' arms. He pushed me onto my back and straddled my hips. My body screamed for release, yet I would not force anything upon him. He took the initiative, licking his fingers, reaching behind him to wet his opening, then positioning himself over my erection. I gripped the bedcovers, using every ounce of my will not to shove myself into that hot, tight body above me.

Tremors ran through me as I continued to lie still while he settled completely on me. His sex, flaccid after his first release, began to rise again. He threw his head back as he began to rise and fall over me, his features showing mingled pain and pleasure such loving often engenders. He braced himself on my chest for a bit, then when his own arousal began weeping, one hand sought to relieve it.

I would not have that, for he pleasured me as surely as he pleasured himself. With a touch, I moved his hand back to my chest, replacing it with my own, stroking the engorged flesh in time to his movements over me. My other hand ran over his chest, tweaking the dark male nipples until they rose into hard nubs, flitting over the taut abdominal muscles as they contracted and relaxed. I could feel his pulse race, watched his sac pull up against his abdomen as he neared completion and knew mine did the same. His body tightened around mine, pushing me over the edge and I poured myself into his welcoming cavity. Hot liquid spilled over my hand and onto my stomach as he tensed and gave a strangled cry... My name, I believe, for I lost much of myself at that moment as well, crying out his name, too. His limbs shook as he collapsed against me, held tightly to my chest as our hearts beat in unison. In my soul, I knew that I had found the one who completed me. No mere lust, but a true completion of the fea.

And so you ask if I mind that he has found someone new? That he took a wife to beget children so his line and that of Galadriel would not end? Ah, that would be a lie if I said it did not hurt. Yet I would not begrudge such a one the need to express all the love in his heart. Whether Mandos will see fit to release me from these halls remains a moot point, but I would not cause *meleth-nin* distress over the issue. Indeed, I am glad he found someone to father children with, though I am aware that did not end happily. The other... Well, that one has a great deal to give as well and with his beauty, who could fault my beloved with losing his heart to him? For I believe he has enough love within that remarkable soul of his that to limit him to our love alone, a fading memory at this time, would be terribly unfair.

Fin