Title: A Moment’s Peace
Author: Anastasia (padawan_ana@yahoo.com) 
Homepage: http://www.slashcity.org/anafic 
Live Journal:
http://www.livejournal.com/users/ana_stasia/
Pairing: Aragorn/Haldir
Rating: NC-17
Status: Complete
Category: Angst, h/c
Summary: In the woods of Lorien, Haldir is able to
offer Aragorn a moment’s peace
Spoilers: For FotR
Archive: Melethryn, Library of Moria,  
Disclaimer: I’m a teacher. ::holds out empty pockets::
 See?  No money.  J.R.R. Tolkien owns the characters
herein. ::sighs::  But they’re lovely to play with…

Author's Notes: Thanks to Caly for the read-through on
this
Story Notes: I don’t know what possessed me to write
this fic but, in the end, I’m very glad it possessed
me. 



A Moment’s Peace
by Anastasia


The lament of the elves continued into the depths of
the night and Aragorn found himself growing
increasingly uncomfortable.  With a heavy sigh, he
stood, wishing ever more fervently that he, like the
Hobbits, could not understand what was being said
about Gandalf.

After checking to be sure the smallest members of the
company were all sleeping soundly, Aragorn headed away
from the singing and into the deepest part of the
forest.  He needed desperately to be alone, to think,
but the song and the voices in his head would not
allow it.

Finding a solitary spot under a lone mallorn tree, out
of the moonlight’s long reach, Aragorn fell to his
knees on the soft, moss-covered ground.  He tried to
breathe deeply, to center himself, but the burden that
had been so innocently placed upon his shoulders
weighed him down; the pressure of it crushed the very
air from his lungs.

“Such sadness and regret,” came a voice from the dark.
 “Not even a king should have to bear so much pain.”

Badly startled, Aragorn’s head came up as he looked
around.

“It does not do for a Ranger to be so distracted,” the
disembodied voice said.

Knowing that his visitor would not be seen unless he
wished to be, Aragorn again lowered his chin to his
chest and closed his eyes.  “Perhaps I wish to be
distracted,” he said softly, almost under his breath.

“In what way?” 

“In all ways,” came the Ranger’s whisper.

As silently as he had approached, Haldir moved from
the shadows and was kneeling across from Aragorn
before the Man could take his next breath.  

“Then allow me to offer my assistance.  The Lady of
the Wood would not wish for anyone in her realm to
suffer needlessly.”

When Aragorn opened his eyes again, they were filled
with great longing.  

“Ah,” Haldir said as he removed his night cloak and
spread it over the ground.  “I see in your eyes that
you would not cause the Lady distress.  She would be
well pleased,” he said with a smile.

Aragorn did not resist as he felt Haldir’s hands on
his shoulders, guiding him to lie back on the
makeshift blanket.  He was too weary from his journey,
too heartsick at the recent turn of events, to resist.
 And he did not wish to.  Tonight he would allow
someone else to take the lead.  


“I know I spoke briefly of it earlier,” Haldir said,
beginning to divest Aragorn of his many layers of
clothing.  “But my heart grieves with you for the loss
of Mithrandir.”  He watched the Ranger’s face fall. 
“Among other things, I can see that it has forced upon
you leadership of the group, for which you don’t feel
ready or worthy.”

When Aragorn flinched, Haldir helped him to sit up and
pulled him into a light embrace.  Baring Aragorn’s
torso, he removed his shirts and set them aside.  “I
know you have a difficult time believing it, but you
*are* worthy, my friend.  Someday you will be a great
leader; this journey is only the beginning.”  Slowly,
with practiced fingers, he began to unfasten Aragorn’s
breeches.

Aragorn closed his eyes against Haldir’s truths.  He
was not ready for leadership; he had only accepted
responsibility for the Fellowship because Gandalf had
thrust it upon him and there had been no choice.  But
sooner or later his lack of ability would be
discovered and he would put the fellowship in danger. 
Or worse.

Velvet-soft lips against Aragorn’s weather-roughened
ones silenced the ranger’s thoughts.  “Don’t,” Haldir
said gently, knowing Aragorn’s mind.  “You think too
little of yourself and it hurts me to see it.”  

He kissed each of Aragorn’s eyelids until the
green-gray eyes opened.  “And it hurts you too; it is
reflected in the depths of your gaze.”

Aragorn bit the inside of his lip to keep his emotions
from showing, but he was unsuccessful at suppressing
the shudder that ran the length of his spine.

Haldir smiled down at Aragorn before moving to trace a
wet line along the edge of Aragorn’s ear with his
tongue.  He chuckled softly at the shiver he felt
beneath his lips.  “So sensual,” he whispered as he
placed a kiss on the ranger’s earlobe and planted a
row of butterfly-light kisses down the jaw and
now-exposed neck.  “You have always been so,
a'maelamin.”

Aragorn arched his back as the oral assault continued.
“I have…missed…you.”  The words were strained; Aragorn
moaned loudly when Haldir’s mouth bathed first one
nipple and then the other, teasing back and forth
between them. “Ai! Haldir! Please!” he said before he
could stop himself.
 
Haldir lifted his head.  “Ah, begging never sounds so
sweet as when it comes from your lips, Estel.  But do
you beg me to stop or to continue?”

Without waiting for an answer, Haldir bent to his work
again.  The wet, eager tongue worked its way down
Aragorn’s chest and belly, dipping into his
bellybutton before delving lower.

When he felt the guardian’s mouth on his hardness,
Aragorn held his breath.  It was what he wanted, what
he *needed*, but a part of his mind said that it
should not be so.  He had the Fellowship to
consider…and Gandalf; it was nothing but self-serving
for him to be thinking of his own physical needs. 

Digging his fingers into Haldir’s cloak, scrambling
for control of his body and mind, Aragorn tried to sit
up, to move away.

“No.” 

The single word from Haldir halted Aragorn’s
movements.  The ranger blinked up at the other man in
surprise.

Haldir’s eyes were kind, his gaze unwavering.  “I will
not allow you this retreat,” he said with quiet
understanding. “You need this.”  At Aragorn’s scornful
look, he continued, “You take care of the needs of the
others; who, then, takes care of you?”

Panting heavily against the continued stimulation, the
ranger had no answer.  He usually took care of
himself, literally and figuratively.  The life of a
Ranger left very little time for personal pursuits.  

“You choose well to remain silent, my friend,” Haldir
said.  “I do not wish you to defend yourself in this.”
He ran his tongue down Aragorn’s length and smiled as
it twitched beneath his ministrations.  “I merely wish
for you to relax and enjoy.”

“Re…ai!” Aragorn threw his head back as Haldir’s mouth
devoured him.

“…lax, yes,” Haldir finished for him smugly, coming up
for air before taking Aragorn deep into his throat.

All coherent thought ceased for Aragorn as the wetness
of Haldir’s mouth and tongue surrounded him.  Dizzy
with need, he felt as though he were drowning in
liquid flame.  Shivering, crying out, he thrust
upwards, his body demanding more attention.

And then Haldir’s mouth was off Aragorn’s cock and
sealed against his mouth, his tongue probing
Aragorn’s.  Aragorn cried out at both the invasion and
the loss.  His despair was short-lived, however, as
Haldir pressed tightly against him, the Guardian’s
hardness meeting his own.

“Hal…dir!” Aragorn all but shouted.  His cry was muted
by Haldir’s warm hand over his mouth.  

“Shhh, mellon-nin.  You need this, but your entire
company does not need to know about it.”  

Haldir’s carefully-arched eyebrow was met with
Aragorn’s own wide-eyed stare.  As he watched
Aragorn’s struggle for control, he continued to use
his weight to hold the Ranger down, undulating his
hips every few seconds to keep the other man’s arousal
at a simmer.  When it appeared that Aragorn was not
going to repeat his earlier outburst, Haldir slowly
removed his hand.

“The hour grows late, my friend,” Haldir said, licking
Aragorn’s now-swollen lips and then licking his own. 
“Mmmm…no matter where you have been or what you have
done, you always taste like the freshest forest
herbs.”  He sucked at Aragorn’s lips and tongue as if
there were no greater nourishment.

Aragorn groaned both at the attention and the
description.  He arched up, attempting to gain access
to Haldir’s body, but was stopped as Haldir pressed
his shoulders back onto the cloak again.

“As I was saying, it is late and your friends will be
expecting you back soon.” 

“They are already asleep,” Aragorn argued.  “And none
will be standing watch this night.  There is no need
in ‘Lorien.”

Haldir pushed himself away from the ranger and knelt
over him, speaking calmly, as if he weren’t taking
both of their cocks and rubbing them together in the
tunnel of his hands.  “Nay.  Legolas does not slumber.
 And he knows that something is amiss with you; he
simply does not yet know what.”  He increased the
speed of his movements.

“Ai!” The cry was a whispered growl, as Aragorn fought
against making too much noise.  “Ai!  You seek to
destroy me!”

Haldir laughed softly.  “No, my love.  I seek to
distract you, as you requested earlier.  Surely you
have not forgotten so soon?”  His hands dropped and
his mouth found Aragorn’s chest again, sucking and
biting the already-taut nipples until Aragorn writhed
on the ground.

Aragorn gasped for breath, knowing his release was
imminent.  “By the Valar, Haldir, please…”

“More begging?” Haldir said with a rare smile.  “Were
I not already on my knees, your sweet words would
bring me to them.”  So saying, he took Aragorn’s eager
erection into his hand once more, stroking and sliding
his palm against it, Aragorn’s own wetness aiding his
movements.

“Haldir!” Aragorn’s back arched and his knees bent as
he attempted to escape the intimate torture; his eyes,
though, said that he wanted anything but to get away. 
“Saes, Haldir!” he panted.  “Please! I need…I need…”

Aragorn’s words were vanquished as he was taken into
Haldir’s mouth and drained of his completion. 
Breathless, his heart pounding, he rode out his
release and collapsed bonelessly against Haldir’s
cloak and the ground.

For several quiet minutes, Haldir lay beside Aragorn,
allowing him his peace.  He contented himself with
stroking the Ranger’s hair and holding the now-limp
sex in his hand, knowing he’d given some momentary
comfort at least.  In time, however, his own need made
itself known again; placing a kiss on Aragorn’s damp
forehead, Haldir slid back down between the other
man’s legs.

“Has it been a long time, love?”  Haldir pressed his
body against Aragorn’s as he whispered teasingly into
the Man’s ear.  “Are you still as tight as the last
time we were together?  Or perhaps you’ve allowed the
prince of Mirkwood to bring you some comfort on your
long journey?  Or the Man that has accompanied you?”  

Haldir’s finger, slippery with Aragorn’s seed,
breeched the Ranger’s entrance before the other man
could draw his next breath.  “Easy,” he gentled as he
felt Aragorn tense.  Slowly he lifted his hand, coated
a second finger with the release on Aragorn’s belly,
and pressed it inside.  “No,” he mused.  “I do not
think they’ve had you.”

Aragorn’s hips undulated, his head whipped from side
to side.  “There has…been…no one…” he said hoarsely. 
“There…could not…be…”

“I’m touched that you’ve saved yourself for me,”
Haldir said, thrusting both fingers deeply into
Aragorn, “though it was not necessary.”

Fire burned in Aragorn’s eyes.  “It was…needed.”  He
jerked as the fingers exploring him hit a particularly
sensitive spot.  “I have a…responsibility…as a ranger
and now…as a member of the…Fellowship…”  He bit his
lip to suppress a cry as the fingers left him.

“It is obvious,” Haldir said, standing gracefully to
divest himself of his remaining clothing, “that too
much ‘responsibility’ has placed a great strain on
you.”  Naked, he knelt and delved into the voluminous
folds of his cloak until he came up with a small vial.

“I wish for you to strain in another way,” Haldir told
Aragorn.  Slowly, fully aware of Aragorn’s gaze upon
him, Haldir oiled first his hand and then his cock. 
He was already more than sufficiently aroused but he
allowed himself a few moments to harden even further,
enjoying Aragorn’s lust-filled expression.  

As he nudged the Ranger’s thighs further apart, Haldir
took the other man’s cock in his slick palm, fondling
the length of it until he felt him begin to harden
again.  With a final squeeze and a kiss placed at its
tip, Haldir released Aragorn’s cock and quickly found
the entrance that so eagerly awaited him.

“Just…DO…” Aragorn’s plea was cut short both by the
leather glove that was placed in his mouth and
Haldir’s sudden, full entrance into his body.

“Oh, yessss…” Haldir hissed, his cock surrounded by
Aragorn’s tight heat.  “Oh…I have missed you…”

The black leather of his own glove was both sweet and
sour against Aragorn’s tongue.  And much as he wished
to be rid of the foul-tasting thing, he found himself
too excited by Haldir’s use of it—and too afraid of
unintentionally spoiling their privacy with his
shouts.

“I see that we’ve come to an understanding,” Haldir
said, reading the acquiescence in Aragorn’s eyes.  He
lifted his head, as if listening for something, then
smiled.  “My Lady is pleased to know that in the light
of so much suffering there is some pleasure to be had
this night.”

Aragorn felt the heat of embarrassment rising in his
face.  Of course the Lady of the Golden Wood would be
aware of what they were doing.  Her empathy linked her
to the entire forest.  And there were others who were
likely aware of what was taking place.  Aragorn’s
heart thudded at the thought of being so exposed.

“Nay,” Haldir said as if reading Aragorn’s thoughts
himself.  “None stand witness here and only the purest
of emotion and thought will be whispered through the
trees to my Lord and Lady.”  Seeing Aragorn squirm,
Haldir lifted his hips, pulling out of the taut body
and sliding slowly back in.

Aragorn swallowed against the slight burning and bit
down hard on the glove between his teeth.  He could
not suppress the low moan that rumbled in his throat
as Haldir began to move, gently at first and then with
more purpose.

Stopping his movements, Haldir reached up to pinch one
lust-ripened nipple, bringing Aragorn’s thoughts
outward again. “Are you so ashamed to need this that
you must distance yourself from it, my friend?”  The
words held amusement, but also a small amount of hurt.

Cowed, Aragorn forced himself to meet Haldir’s clear,
deep-seeing eyes.  He shook his head forcefully,
allowing his sorrow to show completely.

With an uncharacteristic sigh and a small smile he
almost managed to keep hidden, Haldir bent down to
place a kiss at Aragorn’s temple.  “Never, in my
thousands of years, have I known one so conflicted.” 
He shook his head.  “You have all the skills and
manners of an elf, mellon-nin, but I blame the race of
Men for this less-than-attractive quality of
self-doubt.”

Aragorn reddened at the gentle accusation and darkened
further to realize he was doing so.  He was being
taken by one of the most magnificent creatures of the
Forest and here he was, blushing like a school boy. 
Aragorn shuddered as he tried to contain his roiling
emotions.

“I think I begin to understand you, future king of
Men,” Haldir said, stroking one long finger along
Aragorn’s clenched jaw.  “You are from too many
worlds.  Raised in the home of elves, you think and
move and believe as elves do. Yet you are also an
accomplished Ranger, which has with it another
collection of rules and behaviors.”

Haldir rocked his hips, still hard and ready, though
Aragorn’s arousal had waned somewhat.  “But in the end
you cannot deny what you are, what you will become,
and therein lies the conflict.”  He wrapped his hand
around Aragorn’s cock, trying to renew its interest. 

Aragorn groaned, wondering how it was that Haldir
could know his mind so intimately.  Most of the time
he felt as though he were pulled in too many
directions, that too much was expected of him. 
Instead of feeling like the sum of his many different
parts, more often he felt like he was no one at all. 
The disparaging thought brought forth another moan
from Aragorn’s lips.

“Back to sadness, my king?”  Haldir watched the
fathomless eyes grow bright with melancholy.  “Would
that I could rid you of it forever.  But nay, ‘tis not
to be, I fear.  Yet I would give you this one night,
if you still wish it.”  

The Guardian was used to taking what he wanted, and to
others giving him what he wished, but he would not do
that to the man beneath him.  Too many choices had
been taken from Aragorn already.

In answer, Aragorn closed his eyes and allowed his
arms and legs to fall limply at his sides.  He knew
Haldir would wish for a more definitive response, but
he would have to accept what Aragorn could give.  

Haldir’s eyes twinkled.  “An offering of such
innocence! Even the Lord and Lady of the Wood could
not refuse such a thing.”  

Of their own accord, Aragorn’s eyes popped open. 
Surely the Guardian of ‘Lorien would not choose now to
jest!

“Ah!  So there is still some fire left in you after
all, Estel!  I’m glad of it.”

Blushing at Haldir’s ability to stir his emotions,
Aragorn sat up suddenly, pushing the elf away from
him.  Inwardly he was pleased that it was now Haldir
who wore the look of uncertainty.

Wincing slightly as the Guardian’s ready cock left his
body, Aragorn bit his lip in determination and
repositioned himself on his hands and knees.  He
looked back over his shoulder and his breath caught in
his throat at the hooded look in Haldir’s eyes.

“You said this was my choice, did you not?” Aragorn
asked, barely able to keep the quiver of anticipation
from his voice.

“Always,” Haldir answered in a near-whisper.

“Then I choose this.”  Aragorn dropped his chest to
the cloak beneath him, pillowing his head upon his
folded arms.

Haldir swallowed thickly at the feast of flesh laid
out before him.  “A choice worthy of a king,” he
managed to get out before he grasped Aragorn’s hips
and sheathed himself completely in the other man’s
heat.

“Aiya!  Haldir!  Saes!”  Aragorn’s cries, muffled by
his arms and the forest floor, quickly went from
semi-intelligible common tongue to indistinguishable
elvish as his body was driven into.

“So…sweet…” Haldir panted, sweat beading on his
forehead and trickling down his nose.  “So…perfect…”

Aragorn grunted as a particularly hard thrust found
Haldir’s body pressed tightly against his own.  The
pain was harsher than he remembered, but it was
welcome; there was distraction to be found in pain,
and Aragorn wanted it badly.  

The sounds of discomfort did not escape Haldir’s
sensitive ears.  Leaning forward, he shifted his
weight and changed his angle, wanting not just
pleasure for himself but for his lover as well. 
“Here, mellon-nin?” he asked, thrusting in slowly. 
“Or…here?”  He lifted his hips and, hearing Aragorn’s
growl of satisfaction, quickened his movements.  

“Unnggghh…” The sound came from deep within Aragorn’s
chest, a primitive noise that replaced the words that
would no longer form.  Instinctively, Aragorn rocked
back against Haldir, meeting each movement with one of
his own.  The pain and the pleasure were now one and
he felt as though he were flying.

“Are you ready again, Estel?” Haldir whispered, close
to Aragorn’s ear. For several moments he paused,
running his tongue along Aragorn’s temple, watching
the Ranger hunch up and down against the soft material
of the elvish cloak. “Shall we end this together, you
and I?”  

Haldir’s hand easily found Aragorn’s cock and grasped
it, stroking against the rhythm of his own thrusts. 
Soon, he had Aragorn crying out, begging for release,
his body bucking and writhing against Haldir’s like an
untamed stallion.

“Come with me, my friend,” Haldir coaxed, squeezing
Aragorn’s erection in his palm, mixing rough and
gentle movements until the Man could no longer control
himself.  

With an inhuman howl, Aragorn lifted his face to the
night sky and came.  Feeling Aragorn’s pleasure
warming his cool, slender fingers, Haldir allowed
himself a final thrust before giving himself up to a
series of electrical jolts that he was certain would
give them away in the darkening Wood.

Sated and quite satisfied with the evening’s results,
Haldir dropped down beside Aragorn, throwing an arm
over the Ranger’s bare shoulder.  “Was that…” he
licked his lips, suddenly finding his mouth as dry as
mid-winter grass, “…enough of a distraction for you,
mellon-nin?”

Sluggish in his exhaustion, Aragorn slowly turned to
face Haldir.  Languidly, lazily, he ran a fingertip
along Haldir’s eyebrow, down one high cheekbone and
along the full lips.  “For now,” he said as his eyes
slid closed.  “For now.”

~ el fin ~

Comments?  Anything?

padawan_ana@yahoo.com


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   Nathan: You're straight. You don't know anything.
   Donna: I'm black. And I'm a girl. Try that for a week.
                          (UK QaF)
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