Title: Finding the Way

Author: Aglarien

Beta: Chaotic Binky

Rating: NC-17

Pairing: Glorfindel/Elladan

Warnings: None

Disclaimer: Not mine. The great Master Tolkien's estate owns

everything. I promise to return his Elves when I'm done playing with

them.

Author's Notes: Written for My Slashy Valentine.

Request: Elladan/Glorfindel. Some angst is good, sleigh ride, white

roses and a happy ending

Glorfindel stretched as he rose from his desk in the barracks. He

had missed dinner, laboring over the patrol schedules, but it had

been a good day and he had no fear of going hungry. Unlike the court

of Elrond's great-grandfather in Gondolin, the Elves of Imladris,

from bootblack to Lord, could always find a meal, anytime of the day

or night, in the cavernous kitchens of the Last Homely House. Even

when no one from the kitchen staff was working - which was rare -

there was always a supply of food left out for the hungry resident or

visitor.

The air was cold and the crispy fallen leaves crunched beneath the

captain's feet as he walked through the dark gardens. He slipped

through the lowliest door at the back of the house and into the warm,

fragrant kitchen, smiling at the head cook as she punched down a

great mound of dough for tomorrow's bread.

"Lord Glorfindel!" the cook cried out in greeting. "You come in and

warm yourself. Sit yourself down at the table and we will have some

hot food for you in no time at all!" She motioned to a table and

chair close to the great hearth, and called out orders to her helpers

to dish up a bowl of hot stew and bring bread and cheese. She,

herself, poured Glorfindel a glass of Imladris' finest red wine and

placed the food and drink before him.

Glorfindel thanked the cook and her assistants, and dug into his meal

with relish, knowing the cooks were happiest when they could see

Elves enjoying their meals. The captain had been in Imladris for

nigh onto two months, but he still had not grown accustomed to the

hospitality of Elrond's House and the generous nature of the Elves

who resided there.

~~~~~*~~~~~

"Check," Erestor said softly, capturing Elrond's white queen with his

black knight. "Guard your king."

Celebrían looked up from her sewing and chuckled at hearing Elrond's

low rumbling growl. It looked as if her husband would once again

lose to his chief advisor. No one in Middle-earth could beat Elrond

at chess, not even her father, except for Erestor.

Elrohir sat sprawled in a large chair, half reading the book he held

and half carrying on a quiet conversation with his twin, who lay

outstretched before the fire in the family's sitting room.

"I think he prefers males," Elladan said softly. "I have never seen

him react when any of the females fawn over him."

"He never reacts when the males fawn over him either," Elrohir

replied absentmindedly. "I think he cares for neither one nor the

other."

"How can he not care for either?" Elladan responded. "All Elves like

one or the other…or…both…I suppose. We were not made to be alone."

The elder twin sighed. "He's lonely. I can tell. We should have

him spend more time with us," he said decisively.

"He has been invited, Elladan," Elrond said, not looking up from the

chessboard. "This is all new to him. We will allow Glorfindel the

freedom to adjust to his new life at his own pace."

"But it isn't right for one so beautiful to be alone," Elladan

mumbled.

Elrond's eye twitched and one eyebrow rose menacingly. "But it's all

right for one who is not beautiful to be alone?" he murmured, only

within Erestor's hearing.

Erestor's lips curled into a smile, and below the table he nudged

Elrond's leg with his foot. When he had the Elf-lord's attention, he

discreetly shook his head, in essence telling Elrond to keep quiet.

Elrond scowled at his advisor, but Erestor merely placed a finger

over his lips before he said, "It is your move, I believe, my Lord."

"Do not become attracted to him, `Adan," Elrohir said. "He

is...strange."

"He is not strange," Elladan said. "He's just from another time and

place, and doesn't yet know our customs."

"Well…it's weird," Elrohir said, finally paying attention. "He's so

old-fashioned."

"I think his manners are quaint - and genteel," Elladan

said. "Besides, you have to admit, there is no one you've met who

shines quite like he does. Not even grandmother."

"Your brother has a point, Elrohir," Celebrían said, failing to keep

out of the conversation. "Glorfindel is good and pure - and most

noble. A few thousand years ago, you would have thought your

father's customs old-fashioned, as well as Erestor's."

"But he's so old!" Elrohir said to his twin. "You can't possibly be

attracted to someone so much older than you!"

Celebrían quietly gasped and looked at her husband and

Erestor. "Since when is age an issue to the ageless?" she asked her

youngest son.

"I did not mean you, or Ada, or Erestor, Nana," Elrohir said,

blushing slightly at his unthinking words. "That's different."

Erestor set the chess piece he had been holding on the table and

stared at Elrohir. "How is it different? I am old. Older than your

father and now probably older than Glorfindel, I should think, if one

excluded the time he was…dead."

"Exactly!" Elrohir said excitedly. "Glorfindel was *dead*, for

Elbereth's sake!"

"He is very much alive now, brother," Elladan said quietly. "It

matters not to me that he was dead. He died for his people; he died

with honor and was greatly mourned."

"He died, Elladan!" Elrohir said. "He was dead!"

~~~~~*~~~~~

Glorfindel thought about Elrond's offer to join his family after

dinner, but decided instead to retire to his room and continue

reading the book Erestor had given him about the history of Elrond's

family and Imladris. While he was comfortable with Elrond or Erestor

individually or together, and was learning to think of them as

friends, he wasn't sure if he was ready for an evening with the whole

family, including Elrond's sons. Elrohir acted ill at ease in his

presence and Elladan always seemed to be struck dumb. He had heard

many of the Elves in Imladris talk of how kind and learned the sons

of Elrond were, but he had yet to see it in them. Perhaps in time;

perhaps they were as unsure of what to do with him as he was with

them, the captain thought. He hoped they would figure it out soon.

There was something about Elrond's eldest that made Glorfindel yearn

to know him better.

~~~~~*~~~~~

The two dark-haired Elves undressed in silence in the rooms they had

shared for nearly five hundred years, shedding fine robes and

embroidered under tunics in preparation for sleep. Since leaving the

family sitting room the air around them had been a bit emotionally

charged and no words were exchanged. The younger Elf, clad now in

just his undergarments, walked to the fireplace mantel. Examining

the vase of greenhouse flowers sitting on the shelf, he removed one

perfect, full-bloomed white rose, and presented the blossom to his

mate. "I am sorry," he said softly. "I did not mean to hurt you

with my words. I did not think. Forgive me. I love you more than

my life."

"I know you love me and did not mean it," Erestor said, taking the

rose in one hand and pulling the slightly taller half-Elf into an

embrace with the other. "I will always love you, Elrohir. Perhaps

it is not me you should be apologizing to, though."

Elrohir rested his head on his husband's shoulder. "I told my mother

I was sorry."

"It is not your mother I spoke of," Erestor replied. "You belittled

your twin's feelings for a great and noble Elf, Elrohir, and your

words hurt him."

Elrohir sighed. "I just want Elladan to be happy. And Glorfindel is

very…. strange. He is ancient, Erestor."

"So is your father. So am I, love." Erestor smiled and pressed a

soft kiss onto Elrohir's dark hair. "We merely have the advantage of

having "lived" through all the years since our birth, whereas our

valiant Glorfindel has not. Have you asked yourself what you have

done, or should have done, to help Glorfindel find himself and his

place in this strange land? He has been here for nearly two months.

Have you reached out to him at all?"

Elrohir lifted his head and looked at Erestor dolefully. Slowly, he

shook his head. "I have been neglectful and unfeeling, haven't I?"

His head fell against Erestor's shoulder once again.

Erestor nodded. "That you have, my love, and that is most unlike

you. The question is, what are you going to do about it?"

"I will apologize to Elladan tomorrow and tell him that I will

support him in whatever he chooses, and then I will go and visit

Glorfindel - spend some time with him," Elrohir replied, looking up

at Erestor in time to see a raised eyebrow so eerily akin to his

father's gesticulation. He sighed heavily. "Why must you always be

so right, and why must you make me feel like I am still an Elfling at

your knee after all the years we have been married? Very well, I

will apologize to Glorfindel for neglecting him too."

"Good," Erestor replied quietly, a smile on his face and in his

voice. "And I am not your father's chief counselor without reason,

as well you know. You know I am right." He laid the rose on a side

table and wrapped his arms around his mate, holding him

closer. "Love will find a way, Elrohir, as it did for us so many

years ago. If Glorfindel and Elladan are meant to be together, it

will happen in its own way and in its own time."

"I love you so much," Elrohir whispered, nuzzling his lips against

Erestor's ear.

The counselor shivered, not an uncommon occurrence from the touch of

his beautiful husband's lips. "Then come to bed and show me how

much," he whispered sultrily.

~~~~~*~~~~~

Overnight, the first powdery fall of snow had blanketed Imladris with

a glistening sheet of white. Elrohir carefully made his way across

the frozen courtyard to the barracks, and stood at Glorfindel's

opened door. His hand was raised to rap on the doorframe and

announce his presence when Glorfindel gave a triumphal cry and laid

his quill down.

Glorfindel looked up, hearing someone cough, seemingly to get his

attention. "Elrohir, isn't it?" he asked, standing up behind his

desk. "Please, my Lord, come in." He motioned to the chair in front

of his desk.

"Just Elrohir, please, Glorfindel." The half-Elf stopped for a split

second. "Unless you would rather I call you Lord Glorfindel?"

"No, no," Glorfindel said quickly. "That would hardly be seemly.

You are my Lord's son, after all."

"We rarely use titles here among friends," Elrohir said cordially.

"Is that what I am?" Glorfindel asked, his eyebrows raised. "A

friend?"

"It is what I hope you will be," Elrohir said with a smile, seating

himself at Glorfindel's desk in the visitor's chair. When he

realized that the captain was waiting for his permission to sit, he

motioned with his hand that Glorfindel should do so. Something else

that would have to change, he thought; it was not fitting for the

captain to feel his place was below Elrohir's. Glorfindel's voice

was low and musical, and there were a soft lilt to his words that no

longer existed in Sindarin speech. It was no wonder that Elladan was

enchanted by the returned Elf-lord. "Am I interrupting anything?"

Elrohir asked, glancing at the myriad of papers on the desk.

"No, no," Glorfindel said, quickly straightening up the papers. He

looked up with a smile. "I was a little excited because I finally

finished a duty roster quickly. They have been taking me hours!"

Elrohir looked at Glorfindel and cocked his head quizzically. "Why

so long?" he asked politely.

"The writing - the form of letters you use. The differences in the

spoken words I learned very quickly, but the writing - so very

different than what was used… before," Glorfindel said. "The first

few days I despaired of learning, but Erestor was most helpful to me

and supplied me with books and charts detailing the characters and

words. Elladan even asked me if I wanted him to prepare the

schedules for me, but I had to decline his kind offer if I ever

wanted to learn."

Elrohir covered up his guilt with a smile. How simple it would have

been for him to help Glorfindel, if only he'd troubled himself to

check on the returned Elf's needs. His brother and spouse had put

him to shame. The thought that Glorfindel would have to learn

writing and reading all over again had never occurred to him. "And

your reading? How is that coming along?"

"Much quicker now," Glorfindel said happily. "The last few days I

have rarely had to look anything up. But you did not come to talk

about me. How can I be of service to you?"

"Actually, I did come to talk about you," Elrohir said quietly. He

looked at Glorfindel, the younger Elf's sincerity shining forth from

his sea-grey eyes. "I came to apologize to you. I was uncomfortable

with you and did not know how to act, and so I was not as kind as I

should have been. I did not even think to check if you needed help.

I did not realize how different this would be for you." He stood and

extended his arm across the desk. "Please forgive me, Glorfindel. I

would like to be your friend, if you will let me."

Glorfindel stood and clasped the offered hand in his own. "I would

like that very much," he said softly, a smile gracing his beautiful

face. It seemed the talk he'd heard about the twins was right after

all.

The two sat down again and both began to speak at once. Elrohir

smiled and motioned for Glorfindel to begin.

"May I ask you a question?" Glorfindel queried.

"Yes, of course. I hope you will ask me many," Elrohir replied. "I

intend to make up for lost time and help you in any way that I am

able."

"Your twin," Glorfindel began. "Elladan. He stops in to see me

often and I have seen him watching me from a distance when I am out

in the training yard. He does not say much to me though, and from

the way others speak of him, I think this is not normal?" The

statement came out as a question. "The way he smiles at me makes me

think he wishes to be friends with me, but I am not sure. Do you

know?"

"No, it is not normal," Elrohir replied with a smile. "He is a

little unsure of how to act around you to make you most comfortable.

And, yes, I do think he would like to be your friend. Is there a

reason you ask?" A slight blush appeared on Glorfindel's cheeks and

to Elrohir he seemed almost embarrassed.

"I find him very…intriguing," Glorfindel finally said. "I know you

are mated to Master Erestor - would it be that Elladan also prefers

males instead of females?" He failed to keep the hopeful note out of

his voice.

Elrohir smiled. This discussion was going better than he could have

anticipated, thanks to Glorfindel's directness. He thought he'd have

to pussy-foot around the captain to find out if he liked males and

was attracted to Elladan, when instead the information had all just

been laid in his lap! "I believe he does prefer males," Elrohir

said. "I also believe he is attracted to you, Glorfindel, and I

suspect you are attracted to him as well."

Glorfindel nodded shyly. "I am. I was the first moment I saw him.

But I am old, Elrohir. Too old for someone like your twin," he said,

voicing his concern.

"Did you know that Erestor is older than my father?" Elrohir asked

with a smile. "My beloved husband is probably as old as you are, my

friend, and as he so wisely reminded me just last night, age does not

matter where love is concerned. Love will find its own way. So…

what are you going to do about Elladan?"

Glorfindel raised his eyebrows and looked across the desk at

Elrohir. If Elrond had allowed Erestor to bond with Elrohir, perhaps

he wasn't too old. He really didn't feel that old at all; he felt

young and vigorous, as he had in his youth. It was time to get to

know Elladan better and explore the attraction.

~~~*~~~

Glorfindel straightened his tunic and knocked on the door, although

it stood half open. "May I take a few moments of your time, my

Lord?" he asked when Elrond looked up from his desk.

"Yes, of course, Glorfindel. Please come in - and it's Elrond," the

lord of the valley replied.

"Thank you, my Lord Elrond," Glorfindel said, walking across the room

to stand in front of the half-Elf's large desk.

"Would you like me to leave so you can talk to Elrond alone?" Erestor

asked from his equally massive desk. Although he had his own private

office, he and Elrond had found over the centuries that it was

frequently more convenient for them to work in the same room.

Glorfindel shook his head. "No, no, thank you, Erestor. I do not

mind if you hear, and I will only be a moment." The captain turned

back to Elrond. "My Lord Elrond, I would like your permission to

pursue a friendship with your son, Elladan."

"Please, Glorfindel, just Elrond," the Lord of Imladris

replied. "And you do not need my permission for that, my friend. My

sons choose their own friends, although I am quite sure that Elladan

will welcome your companionship. Or is it something more than a

friendship that you had in mind?" Elrond's grey eyes twinkled.

"I believe it may grow to something more, Elrond, my Lord,"

Glorfindel whispered in reply.

Elrond couldn't help the smile that made his eyes sparkle. "If I

know my son, and I believe I do, I think that will make him very

happy indeed." He looked across the room to see Erestor trying to

hide his grin behind a fall of black hair. "And I would be most

grateful if you would simply call me Elrond."

"Yes, my Lord Elrond," Glorfindel replied. His lips curled into a

smile before he could control his features and once again force a

serious look onto his face.

Elrond barked out a laugh and then pointed his finger at

Glorfindel. "You! You are playing with me!"

"Yes, Elrond, my Lord," the captain replied with a nod. He turned

and left the room and his laughter could be heard out in the hallway.

"I like Glorfindel," Erestor said to his lord and law-father. "I

like him very much."

"Indeed," Elrond replied, returning Erestor's smile. "He is very

hard not to like."

~~~*~~~

"What is it you are making, Glorfindel?" Elladan asked. He had

finally found the captain in one of the outbuildings used by the

woodworkers.

Glorfindel looked up from the length of wood he was smoothing with a

plane. He smiled at the half-Elf. "A sleigh," he replied softly,

pointing at the plans he had drawn on a large sheet of vellum. "We

used them in Gondolin. It was high in the mountains and there was

ice and snow for many months each year. I was told you do not have

any here?"

Elladan heard the lilting, musical voice and swore his heart skipped

a beat before sending all the blood in his body to his groin. It was

no wonder he was always so tongue-tied around the returned Elf when

he had a voice like that. Blessing the fullness of his tunic, he

moved to the drawing. "Oh! It is like a wagon except with a runner

of wood instead of wheels, to better move on the snow! It's very

light and elegant looking. My mother would love to ride in something

like this! Would you like some help?"

Glorfindel nodded and handed Elladan the plane. "Then we must make

it very special if your mother is going to ride in it."

~~~*~~~

The two Elves worked together on the sleigh during every spare moment

they had for many days, and as they worked, they talked and grew

comfortable with one another. Each of them put aside the physical

attraction they felt in favor of first forming a friendship. The

days passed and turned into one week, and then another. Glorfindel

talked about growing up in Gondolin, and Elladan spoke of growing up

at the Last Homely House. They conversed about Elladan's parents,

grandparents, and great-grandparents, and the half-Elf learned much

from Glorfindel. They spoke of Elladan's twin and Erestor, and

Elrohir would occasionally join them and listen to Glorfindel's

stories, pitching in and helping on the sleigh.

A close friendship grew between Glorfindel and the twins, and

especially between the captain and Elladan. To everyone's delight,

the returned Elf began to join the family in the evenings, and his

presence gave Elrond a happy reprieve from the constant losing to

Erestor at chess; Glorfindel now lost to the counselor half the time

in his stead.

At last the day arrived when the sleigh was complete. Painted a

bright red, it would be easy to spot in the snow. Swirling designs,

redolent of those found all over Imladris, were etched out in gold

paint on the open carriage. On the seat, long enough for two, were

stacked furs and blankets to keep bodies warm in the coldest of

weather. Leather harnesses for the horses were strung with tiny

silver bells that tinkled when they moved.

Glorfindel and Elladan stood back and looked at the gleaming sleigh.

It was a thing of beauty, and they both itched to try it out,

especially since winter had firmly set in and the land was covered in

a blanket of snow.

"We should probably try it out before letting Lord Elrond take your

mother for a ride," Glorfindel said.

"We should," Elladan readily agreed, nodding his head

vigorously. "We wouldn't want Nana to be hurt or anything. We

should check and make sure it's safe."

They nodded and then grinned at each other before pushing the sleigh

outside onto the snow and racing to the stables for the horses.

Once the horses were harnessed to the sleigh and the Elves were

seated in the carriage, warmly wrapped in furs, Glorfindel flicked

the reins and they set off across the frozen winter landscape. The

sleigh bells jingled softly and fresh snow fell gently, covering the

Elves in a light veil of white.

The two laughed like Elflings as they glided effortlessly through the

valley with the cold wind turning their cheeks and noses a rosy

pink. Glorfindel guided them in and out, and around the trees, just

to make sure the sleigh was sturdily made, of course.

When they came to the top of a hill and the valley spread out before

them, Glorfindel tugged gently on the reins and called to the horses

to stop. He looked out over the river, the waterfalls, the forested

hills and mountains. "It is beautiful," he said. He looked over to

his companion's smiling face to meet his eyes. "You are beautiful,"

he whispered.

Elladan shook his head. "No. I think you are mistaken. You are the

beautiful one." He pulled his eyes away from Glorfindel's to stare

out over the valley and drew the furs closer around his body, seeking

their comfort. "I love you, you know," he said softly, unable to

keep from voicing his thoughts. "I have since the moment you arrived

and I first saw you. I thought I was infatuated with you because of

your beauty and the sound of your voice, but it's not that." He

shook his head to emphasize his words. "Although your voice still

does extraordinary things to me. These weeks we have worked

together have been very special to me, and I will dearly miss our

time together. Thank you for allowing me to spend time with you - to

get to know you better. I know I must seem awfully young to someone

like you."

Listening to Elladan pulled him from one emotion to another, and

Glorfindel hardly knew which thing to address first. "Elladan, if

you love me, why will you miss me?" he asked quietly. "I do not

understand." Reaching under the furs to find the younger Elf's

hands, he drew them into his own and brought them to his lips to

press a warm kiss to the back of each. "Do you not know that I

return your love? You are, without a doubt, the mate of my heart."

"You do?" Elladan asked incredulously. "I am?" And then he realized

what Glorfindel said was true - here was the Elf he had been waiting

for to be complete. The other half of his soul.

Glorfindel pulled the half-Elf into his arms, wrapping the furs

closely around them as he did so. "I do," he whispered. "And you

are." He let his fingers comb through Elladan's soft, snow-dusted

hair. He breathed in the younger Elf's scent of musty pine and

clean lemon. Unable to resist, he bent his head and pressed his lips

to ones that were the softest he had ever tasted.

Elladan couldn't avoid the moan that escaped his mouth as

Glorfindel's lips covered his own. But just as he was opening his

lips and teeth to allow his love entrance, the sweet lips moved

away. Touching his mouth with his fingertips, he looked up at

Glorfindel questioningly.

"Let us go home, beloved. We will dine together, alone, for there is

much we need to speak of."

"I would like that very much," Elladan said. And then he smiled,

relishing the thought of spending the evening alone with Glorfindel.

~~~*~~~

Glorfindel lay along side Elladan, an elbow propping him up and a

hand holding up his head. The blond captain held a white rose from

the vase on his mantel in his other hand, and stretched out his long

arm to gently caress the half-Elf's check and neck with its soft

petals. Dinner was long over, and they had retired to the fur-

covered floor in front of the blazing fire.

"When did you fall in love with me?" Elladan asked, lying on his back

and looking up at the captain. He chuckled as the rose tickled a

sensitive part of his neck.

"Just as you watched me, I was watching you," Glorfindel

whispered. "I watched you in the training yard with the guards and

in the healing rooms. I watched you out in the courtyard with the

little ones. I saw what a fine warrior and commander you are, and

then I saw you tend to the wounded and injured, and I learned what a

skilled healer you are. I saw how the Elflings flock around you

whenever you appear and I found out what a kind and loving heart you

have. I watched as you sat with a dying human, comforting him and

holding him in your arms as he breathed his last, and I learned what

a generous and compassionate soul you have. It was very easy to fall

in love with you, Elladan."

"You did all that?" Elladan asked, sitting up and taking the rose in

his hand as he did so, not wanting it as a distraction. He cocked

his head and looked at Glorfindel. "How did you do all that without

my seeing you?"

Glorfindel smiled. "I can be very quiet and unseen when I want to

be. It is a skill that served us well in the ages past."

"All our guards here have finely honed skills, but for me not to know

you were there…" Elladan shook his head. "Will you teach me?"

"Yes, of course I will," Glorfindel answered. He pushed himself up

and pulled Elladan into his arms.

Elladan made himself comfortable in Glorfindel's arms and leaned into

the firm muscled chest. Their arms and hands wound together across

Elladan's chest. "May I ask you something about your former life?"

the half-Elf queried uncertainly.

"Anything," Glorfindel said quietly and without hesitation. "You

alone may ask me of that time and I will answer, dear one."

"Did you have a lover in Gondolin?"

Glorfindel nodded. He had guessed that Elladan would ask about that,

and he admitted to himself that the half-Elf more than deserved to

know - if he was going to be Glorfindel's mate he had a right to

know. "I did. He died the night the city fell."

Elladan hesitated, not wanting to bring up disturbing memories, but

Glorfindel did not seem to be upset talking about it. "Was he your

mate?" He whispered the question.

"No, I never bonded with anyone," Glorfindel answered quietly. "We

were friends - the closest of companions, but we were not in love

with each other. At best we were casual lovers, I suppose. We were

each head of our own house and came together when one or the other of

us felt the need. If one of us had fallen in love with someone else,

the other would have rejoiced in his happiness. Do you understand,

dear one?"

Elladan nodded and smiled. "Yes. Thank you for telling me." He

loosened one hand and entwined his fingers through Glorfindel's

golden mane. "So what happens now? With us, I mean?"

"Now, beloved one, we will spend time together and get to know each

other better, because something tells me that there will be no

unseemly behavior allowed by your family. I am certain they will

insist on the traditions being followed," Glorfindel answered. "So

now I ask your parents' permission to court you, and you will learn

all of my annoying little habits and I will learn all of yours.

After a respectable amount of time, we ask their blessing to become

betrothed. After another respectable amount of time, and please let

it be only a year, we will have whatever sort of wedding they would

like. Does that plan meet with your approval?"

Elladan opted for action instead of words and captured Glorfindel's

mouth in a passionate and deep-felt kiss.

~~~*~~~

Elladan stood at the open door to their balcony, chuckling at the

scene below. Snow was gently falling, the new ice crystals molding

themselves over walls and benches, fountains and statues.

"What amuses you, love?" Glorfindel asked, fresh from the bath,

wearing a light robe and rubbing his long golden hair with a towel.

The captain had returned late that afternoon from a week-long patrol,

and he and Elladan would spend their evening alone, not joining the

rest of Elrond's family as was their wont. Elladan had not

accompanied his mate on the patrol, a rare occurrence, as an unusual

number of accidents caused by harsh ice and snow had required his

skills in the healing wing.

The pair had already shared an early dinner, since Glorfindel had

returned home starving. A collapsed bank and an unexpected foray

into the icy river to rescue a herd of struggling mountain goats had

resulted in destroyed provisions. Delayed by the cold and their

frozen clothing, the patrol had waited only long enough to build

fires to warm the horses and dry clothing before turning for home as

quickly as they could. Hunting, gathering and cooking food would

take too long, and so it was a very hungry group of Elves who

returned to Imladris two days later.

"Look," Elladan said, pointing, and then laughed as the snowball

expertly thrown by Elrohir hit Erestor's back with a "whomp".

Glorfindel joined in the soft laughter as Elrohir was forced to

gather up his long winter robes to run pell-mell into the house,

Erestor hot on his tail.

"I think my twin is in trouble," Elladan said, grinning at his

husband as Glorfindel tossed aside his towel, took up a blanket from

the bed and draped it over them both. He leaned back against

Glorfindel's chest and sighed in comfort as he was enveloped in

warmth. "This is nice," he said softly.

"Hmmm," Glorfindel murmured in agreement. He looked out over the

courtyard, seeing lights flicker to life here and there through

windows, and the occasional Elf dashing home to warmth and comfort

for the night. Imladris was beautiful in any light, but to his mind,

especially in wintertime. It was wintertime a hundred years ago when

he had fallen in love with his mate; it was two years after that that

they had wed on a chill winter's eve beside a roaring fire in the

Great Hall, surrounded by their family and friends. If someone had

told him he could fall more in love with Elladan over the past

hundred years, he would not have believed it, but he had. Each day,

each night, he thanked the Valar for blessing him with his husband's

love.

Elladan turned in Glorfindel's arms and rested his head on the

captain's shoulder. "I missed you," he whispered. "I hated not

being with you, I love you so."

"As I missed you, dear one," Glorfindel said softly, gently kissing

Elladan's temple and nuzzling the sweet-smelling, dark fall of hair.

The scent of musty pine and clean lemon was balm to his senses. His

arms tightened around his mate. "I love you. At night I could not

rest, so filled was I with thoughts of you. My arms ached to hold

you."

Elladan shivered and a whispery sound escaped his mouth. He rolled

his head and ran his lips along his mate's neck, relishing the taste

of Glorfindel's skin. The captain still had the power to reduce him

to a quivering Elfling with just the mellow, honeyed sound of his

voice. Glorfindel had never lost the soft little lilt to his speech

that was so unique in Imladris. "What do you want, my love?" Elladan

asked, his soft breathe caressing Glorfindel's ear.

"I want you - to feel you inside of me, filling me," Glorfindel

whispered unsteadily, Elladan's breath on his neck and ear driving

him crazy. He rotated his hips slowly, rubbing his aroused length

against Elladan's and causing them both to moan.

In hardly a moment Elladan was seated on their bed, his back resting

against the elaborately carved headboard, with Glorfindel straddling

his lap and sinking onto his achingly hard shaft. His lips sought

his mate's, tongues dancing together, thrusting and tasting, flesh

pressed against flesh, both seeking to join in as many ways as

possible.

Glorfindel's arms were wrapped around Elladan's shoulders, bracing

himself, and his fingers twisted in the ebon hair. Leaning into his

mate's passionate kiss, he moaned again. Nothing ever felt as good

or as right as this oneness they shared. Gasping for breath, he sank

once more onto Elladan's turgid member and buried his face against

his mate's neck. "I love you," he whispered, just as strong fingers

wrapped around his aching arousal and stroked him firmly. His lips

sought out Elladan's once again and, unbidden, he recalled the words

Elrohir had told him all those years ago… `Love will find its own

way.'

Love *had* found its own way. In this foreign valley, among strange

Elves who spoke and wrote a foreign language, he had found a home,

friends, a family, and the love of his life. He had found his way.

~The end