Title: Elven Hearts Part 5/? 
Author: Anonymous slashlover 
E-mail: katemahoney@prodigy.net 
Pairing: Elrond/Glorfindel, Haldir/Celeborn 
Rating: R 
Summary: Long after the incidents which pushed Imladris into turmoil, 
things are about to change again. 
Disclaimer: They’re not mine. Enough said.  
Notes: Please give me feedback…please?? 
 
MAJOR NOTE READ THIS BEFORE YOU CONTINUE: This takes 
place a really long time after the last part. I don’t know exactly how long 
but it’s a really long time. Celebrìan has come and gone, we have Elladan, 
Elrohir, and Arwen on the scene now, and all three are past their majority. 
Glorfindel is still around and is Elrond’s lover now that Celebrìan has left. 
Just thought it would be smart to update you all before you got really 
really confused.

 
It was raining. Not the typical, annoying kind of rain, but the kind that 
pounded down on the roof to drive one to madness. Elladan was bored. It 
was raining too hard to go outside and do anything, so he was trapped 
inside the Last Homely House.  Many had called it beautiful and Elladan 
had never argued with that, but there was also notoriously little for an 
outdoorsy elf like himself to do.  His younger twin, Elrohir, was much 
more fond of books, therefore finding no problem with spending days at a 
time inside. He was good enough at things done outside; he just had a 
much more scholarly mentality. Elladan was old enough to know that 
sometimes Elrond despaired over both of them; neither son was like 
Elrond, content at both scholarly and warrior duties.  
 
“Bored, Elladan?” asked an amused voice from behind him. It was 
Glorfindel, his tutor and friend. 
 
“Yes,” admitted Elladan. “And how can you not be? There is nothing to 
do…” 
 
“Ah Elladan, that’s not correct and you know it.” Glorfindel had long 
harbored fantasies about both of Elrond’s sons, but was in control of 
himself enough to know not to try anything. They were both innocent 
enough to run back to Elrond and then Elrond would kick him out; and he 
had come to enjoy his life here. “There is simply nothing to do that you 
would enjoy doing. There is a difference.” 
 
“If you say so, Glorfindel,” said Elladan. Obviously, Glorfindel was not 
on his side today. “So what do you propose I do?” 
 
“You could go to the library. That is where Elrohir is…” 
 
“Then no. I don’t want to go there.” 
 
Glorfindel smiled at the unending love-hate relationship between the 
twins. “You could come and help me with the weapons in the armory…” 
 
“That’s sooo boring.” 
 
“You could go the stables…” 
 
“The horses smell.” 
 
“You could help out in the kitchen…” 
 
“It’s too hot and crowded.” 
 
“You could help your father with his medicines…” 
 
“But he’ll start lecturing me…” 
 
“I have given you your options, Elladan. You will pick one of them and 
get out of my hair.” At times, Glorfindel could get annoyed with Elladan’s 
excuses for doing any work. Elladan, he knew, would much prefer to go 
out hunting, or just riding or exploring, things that were just fun. 
 
Elladan flinched at Glorfindel’s harsh tone. “Fine, Glorfindel.” 
 
“What are you going to do, then?” 
 
“Help my father.” Elladan scuttled away. He was, at times, terrified of 
Glorfindel. He knew well Glorfindel’s prowess with weapons and had no 
desire to upset Glorfindel unless it was strictly necessary. 
 
He found his father in his workshop, mixing up something. “Father?” he 
said cautiously. He knew that his father often didn’t like to be interrupted 
when working. 
 
“Yes, Elladan?” asked Elrond without turning. Elrond wondered if Elladan 
had done something wrong and was being sent to him for punishment. 
 
“Glorfindel sent me here to help you.” 
 
“Did you do something wrong?” Elrond asked with a slight smile. 
Glorfindel was like a second father to the twins and Arwen.  
 
“No…well…I guess I was bothering him a little.” 
 
“Ah. Well, haven’t you yet learned to leave him alone when he wants to 
be?” 
 
“He was the one that bothered me, not the other way round!” 
 
Elrond’s smile broadened at that statement. Glorfindel could be, when he 
was in one of his moods, deliberately obnoxious.  Elrond knew this well, 
as his bouts of annoyance usually affected also whether or not he spent his 
nights with Elrond. All of his children knew about his relationship with 
Glorfindel, and of that he was glad. It meant that they didn’t have to sneak 
around, always pretending. “Well, I have a task for you when the rain 
lightens up.” 
 
“Really? What?” This, to Elladan, sounded like something that would 
have to be done outside. And absolutely anything outside was better than 
the best thing inside. 
 
“I need you to go to the market for me and get me…” Elrond searched 
around him and came up with a piece of parchment. “Everything on this 
list.” 
 
Elladan groaned. He hated going shopping. But he couldn’t see a way out 
of it. “Yes, father.” 
 
***** 
 
“Anything exciting happen while I was away?” asked Haldir, walking into 
the room and casually dropping down into the nearest chair. 
 
“Nope.  Nothing. It has been the most boring month in Lorien’s history,” 
came the amused voice from the next room. 
 
Haldir sighed. “Come in here, where I can see you.” 
 
Celeborn emerged, a smile on his face. “Miss me?” 
 
“Of course I did. But I’m too tired to get up, so you’re going to have to 
come over here.” 
 
“Are you ordering me around, Haldir?” 
 
“Yes. Now come over here…but it’s entirely your choice. I’m sure 
someone else here would be happy for my company.” 
 
“You think you can play me like that?” 
 
“Yes.” And Haldir knew that he could. He smiled as Celeborn groaned 
theatrically and then walked over. As soon as he was within Haldir’s grip, 
Haldir reached out and grabbed Celeborn around the wrist and pulled him 
down. “I’m glad to be back,” he whispered into Celeborn’s ear. “Really 
glad.” 
 
Celeborn shifted slightly on Haldir’s lap to make himself more 
comfortable.  “Trust me, the feeling’s mutual.” He kissed Haldir, but 
Haldir pushed him away.  
 
“Honestly, Celeborn, is that all you can think about?” 
 
Celeborn smiled. Haldir played these games with him on occasion, and as 
maddening as they could get sometimes, the end result was always worth 
the preceding pain and annoyance. “And if it is?” 
 
***** 
 
Elladan loved the actual practice of going to market. He didn’t even mind 
buying things, provided that they were things that he wanted. What he 
hated more than anything was being told to go to market by Elrond or 
Glorfindel, or the other small but still large enough to be annoying number 
of people that were allowed to order him around to buy specific 
somethings that he personally had no interest in. Although, it was still 
outside, and for that Elladan was grateful. 
 
He went around the market, consulting Elrond’s list from time to time as 
he bought the things his father wanted. Most of the people in the market 
knew him, as well as being a pretty regular visitor to said market, he was 
the son of Elrond. That got him special privileges other buyers might not, 
like lowered prices or better goods. No one really minded, it was just the 
way things were and the way things would always be. 
 
But one seller did not seem to know that. Elladan went over to his stall and 
the elf running it pointedly ignored him and continued to haggle with his 
present customer, who looked increasingly nervous as he saw Elladan’s 
dagger-like glares. Eventually, the potential customer left without buying 
anything. 
 
The elf turned to look at Elladan with an annoyed face. “There was no 
need to scare off my customer. There is plenty for everyone.” 
 
“I am…” 
 
“I know who you are, Elladan son of Elrond. That does not make you any 
better than any other here.” 
 
This elf was obviously out of his mind. “Of course I am.” 
 
The elf smiled. “How may I help you today, Master Elladan?” 
 
“No, you can’t just change the subject like that. You’ve insulted my 
honor…now I shall have to kill you.” 
 
The elf raised an eyebrow. “Kill me?” 
 
“Well, I shall have to engage in a duel with you. I doubt you can even use 
a sword…” 
 
“Don’t make any hasty assumptions.” The elf reached back out of view, 
and pulled out an old, but well cared for sword. “So, shall we duel now, or 
later? Or, shall we not duel at all, accept my…sincere apologies and get on 
with our business?” 
 
“Don’t think you will get off so easily, elf.” Elladan pulled out his own 
sword. He had been trained by Glorfindel of Gondolin, and there was no 
way this elf would be able to best him. “Come with me. Where shall we 
duel?” 
 
“Wherever you would prefer, Master Elladan.” 
 
The two made their way to an open stretch of grass. “Are you ready to die, 
elf?” asked Elladan. 
 
“I didn’t know that your father would have trained you to become a 
kinslayer,” said the elf thoughtfully. “Would it not make sense to fight till 
first blood?” 
 
Elladan could see the sense in that and knew that he had been rash and that 
he should have considered his words before they came out of his mouth, 
but he had a surprising tendency to not do so. “Very well, then, elf. We 
shall fight to first blood.” Elladan raised his sword. 
 
It took all of about three seconds for Elladan to realize he was woefully 
out of his league with the elf. It was all he could do just to keep the elf’s 
sword from reaching his body. The elf had a better reach than he did and 
obviously centuries more practice with a sword. He struggled back across 
the grass, any thoughts of attacking gone from his mind. Then the elf 
stopped attacking and fell back to a more defensive stance. Elladan was 
puzzled, but did not waste a second on launching an offensive of his own. 
The elf batted it off easily, but made no attempt to regain the offensive. 
 
Finally, the elf said, “Shall we stop this now?” 
 
Elladan, tired and out of breath and furious with this elf, his own temper 
rising to the surface to block out rational thought, said, “Never.” 
 
The elf shook his head. “Then forgive me for this.” He raised his sword 
once more and neatly hit Elladan in the side of the head with the flat of his 
blade. Elladan dropped like a stone. The crowd that had gathered rushed to 
Elladan’s aid. Before a mob could form, the other elf had disappeared. 
 
***** 
 
Legolas rode through the courtyard, seeing Elrond’s familiar face waiting 
for him. But the older elf’s face was marred with grief. Legolas 
dismounted, handed the reins to a waiting elf and strode over. “What is 
amiss, Lord Elrond?” 
 
“My son, Elladan, was attacked today.” 
 
“My lord, that is terrible! How…how is he?” 
 
“He should survive. The witnesses say that he challenged an elf to a 
duel…and the other elf beat him. Then the elf disappeared. I cannot help 
but think that this elf was sent…by someone to eliminate my heir.” 
 
“There is no need for paranoia,” said Legolas, following Elrond inside. 
Relations between Imladris and Mirkwood were quite cordial now, and 
Legolas visited Imladris routinely. There had never been a repeat of the 
chaos that had surrounded Glorfindel’s arrival. But things were different, 
too. Without Erestor as Elrond’s right-hand man, Imladris still functioned, 
but nothing seemed so precise and efficient as it had before. It was as if 
something had broken, and had been repaired, but not repaired well. 
 
“What else am I to think?” 
 
“Elladan is easy to insult, and it takes very little for him to think his honor 
slighted. This could simply be…” 
 
“Some extremely competent elf that just happened to irritate my son?” 
Elrond shook his head. “Forgive me, this is irrelevant. You did not travel 
all this way to listen to me talk about this.” 
 
“We are having difficulties in Mirkwood. We wanted to ask for a hundred 
of your warriors to help us with our problems.” 
 
“For how long?” Elrond thought about this; that was not an especially 
sizable force, but it was one that would be missed if something bad were 
to happen near Imladris. 
 
“However long it takes.” 
 
“How long do I have to make up my mind?” 
 
“A week at the longest. Things are getting really bad in my home and I am 
simply trying to do whatever I can to stop it from destroying all my 
people.” 
 
“Prince Legolas!” said a surprised voice. 
 
Legolas turned and saw Glorfindel. He fought the grimace that threatened 
to appear on his face. He had always made an honest effort to avoid 
Glorfindel whenever he was in Imladris. “It’s good to see you again, Lord 
Glorfindel,” said Legolas, not meaning a word of it; that was diplomacy. 
He turned back to Elrond. “Please consider our need, Elrond. I don’t think 
you want to see my people destroyed.” 
 
“Of course I don’t, Legolas.” Elrond beckoned for Glorfindel to come 
forward. “Glorfindel, can you take Legolas to his usual rooms?” 
 
“Of course, Elrond. Right this way, Prince Legolas.” 
 
Gritting his teeth, Legolas followed Glorfindel. He knew the way to his 
rooms perfectly fine and didn’t see the reason why Elrond had asked 
Glorfindel to take him there. Legolas made no effort to make small talk. 
He didn’t like Glorfindel and saw no reason to be nice to him. 
 
Glorfindel stopped outside the door. “Please tell me if there is anything 
you lack, Prince Legolas.” 
 
“Of course, Lord Glorfindel.” Legolas opened the door and tried to close it 
quickly, but not quickly enough. 
 
Glorfindel slipped in. “It has been a long time, Legolas. More than two 
years. Have you been avoiding me?” 
 
Legolas had learned long ago that Glorfindel was a lot less prone to be 
violent if Legolas just gave him what he wanted. But he had made a 
concerted effort to conceal his visits to Imladris from Glorfindel, and had 
succeeded surprisingly well. He stepped close enough to Glorfindel that 
their bodies were touching. “No. Do you think I would?” 
 
Glorfindel pushed him to the ground. “Yes, I do.” 
 
Legolas pulled Glorfindel down with him and kissed him. He knew what 
was required of him. And he knew that no matter what happened, no 
matter how rough Glorfindel got (and he did get quite rough on occasion), 
that Elrond would never find out. 
 
Glorfindel liked fucking Legolas.  Legolas was his without any protest, 
whenever Glorfindel wanted. It was like Erestor before Erestor finally 
grew bold enough to stand up to Glorfindel. *But look where it got him.* 
“You are mine, Legolas. You know that, right?” 
 
Legolas wished that he had the courage to go to Elrond and inform him. 
He wished that he had the courage to fight back against Glorfindel. He 
wished that he had the courage to tell his father what was happening to 
him every time that he ventured to Imladris. He wished even that someone 
like Haldir was here, with whom he could talk to openly.  
 
But none of that seemed very likely right now. Glorfindel was waiting for 
an answer from him.  Instead, he kissed Glorfindel with as much fake 
passion as he could muster, wishing more than anything that this was just 
over. But it wasn’t and he had to endure it until Glorfindel decided that he 
had had enough and left. “Of course I’m yours, Glorfindel. Why wouldn’t 
I be?” 
 
Glorfindel thought he detected some sarcasm in Legolas’ voice. But that 
didn’t really matter. What mattered was that at least he had scared Legolas 
into submission and silence; and that was what really mattered. 
 
***** 
 
Elrohir had slipped out shortly after dark. His brother’s injury worried him 
and his remedy for that, as much as his father disapproved, was to drink it 
away.  He went to the town and into the pub; it was full and though people 
recognized him, no one really cared. He got himself some beer and went 
to a secluded corner. He preferred to drink alone, especially when he was 
upset; and he was upset right now. 
 
A little while and quite a lot of alcohol later, a pleasant voice asked, “Do 
you mind if I sit here?”  
 
Elrohir looked up and saw a handsome elf looking at him. Elrohir 
shrugged. “Sure,” he said. 
 
The stranger sat down opposite Elrohir and said critically, “You’ve drunk 
too much, Master Elrohir. What will your father say?” 
 
“What do you care?” asked Elrohir. His mind wasn’t working very well, 
but well enough to tell him to be on his guard. 
 
“Your father wouldn’t approve of this.” 
 
“None of your business.” Elrohir signaled for the waitress to bring him 
another pint.  It appeared surprisingly quickly. 
 
The other elf pulled it away from Elrohir. “No, you’re not drinking this. 
Come with me outside. The fresh air will clear your mind.” 
 
A part of Elrohir was telling him to say no, to just stay here with the 
comfort of his alcohol. But the stranger pretty much pulled him to his feet 
and led him out of the pub. “Where are we going?” asked Elrohir. The 
stranger was right; his mind was quite a bit clearer just from being outside. 
 
“With me,” said the stranger in a much less pleasant voice. He pulled 
Elrohir into an alley and pulled out some rope he had evidently stashed 
there. With what looked like practiced ease, he bound Elrohir’s ankles and 
wrists, and then hit him on the side of the head. Now that Elrohir was limp 
and unresisting, the elf picked him up and left. 
 
***** 
 
“I need to talk to you about something very important, Haldir,” said 
Celeborn that night after dinner. 
 
Haldir could tell that Celeborn was now in one of his serious moods and 
so didn’t reply with a joking comment. He sat up and focused his attention 
on Celeborn. “What about?” 
 
“The two of us.” 
 
Haldir smiled ruefully. He had come to enjoy the time and attention he got 
from Celeborn. It was horrible, but he was starting to believe that he cared 
more about Celeborn than about Erestor. Even though Erestor was long 
dead, Haldir still felt that he should remain loyal to the memory of Erestor. 
“What about us?” 
 
“I…I want to be able to give you more than what you already have from 
me. I want to be able to bond with you, Haldir. You have to know that. 
You have to know that I love you that much.” 
 
Haldir felt his heart stop momentarily. He knew that Celeborn cared about 
him, but he had no idea that Celeborn’s feelings ran that deep. “Celeborn, 
you are already bonded. And don’t even try to deny to me that you love 
Galadriel. I know you do and you won’t be able to convince me 
otherwise.” 
 
“No, I won’t deny it. But you see, she has told me that she plans to sail to 
Valinor. I am too tied to Middle Earth, I have no plans to ever leave these 
shores…Haldir, do you plan, too, to go to the Undying Lands?” 
 
Haldir honestly hadn’t ever thought about it. But now that Celeborn was 
forcing him to, he seriously considered it. “Why are you asking me?” 
 
“Because if you aren’t, if you remain on these shores with me, I want to 
bond with you. When Galadriel is in Valinor, our bond becomes null. I 
would be free to bond with you. But I’m not going to force you to stay 
here with me. I love you too much for that. If you leave these shores 
someday, I will not hate you for it.” 
 
“Celeborn, you’ve given me a lot to think about. I hadn’t even really 
decided before, but now I will give it serious consideration.” He smiled; 
he wanted to end this serious mood. “Until then, though, how about you 
come here and let me see if I can get these dismal thoughts about the 
future out of your mind.” 
 
“Dismal?” Celeborn did approach Haldir, though. 
 
“Certainly. It’s so dismal to think endlessly about the future. It’s better to 
live in the present. What will come will come.” 
 
“How hopelessly warrior-like of you.” 
 
“You never said you wanted my brains. And my body is far better for my 
being a warrior, Celeborn.” 
 
“I have never complained about your body.” 
 
“Then stop complaining about my wits.” 
 
***** 
 
Elrond was pacing his study. It was early in the morning, and Glorfindel 
and Legolas were both silent in the corner, watching him. Glorfindel had 
known Elrond long enough to know that these fits of silent fury passed 
quicker if uninterrupted, and so made no attempt to break the awkward 
silence. 
 
Legolas did not know Elrond so well and made the mistake of talking. 
“What’s wrong, Lord Elrond?” 
 
Elrond spun on him in a fury. “What’s wrong? What’s wrong? What’s 
wrong is that someone out there is trying to destroy my family, that’s 
what’s wrong! First my eldest son is nearly killed and now my younger is 
missing!” 
 
“Elrohir’s missing?” asked Glorfindel in an urgent tone. 
 
“Yes,” said Elrond, seemingly a bit calmer. 
 
“Since when?” 
 
“I don’t know. But he should have been home last night…” 
 
“They are not Elflings any longer, Elrond. If they choose to spend their 
nights elsewhere…well, that is their own business.” 
 
“You think it a coincidence that he’s gone tonight, of all nights?” 
 
“If you believe in your own little conspiracy theory, yes,” said Legolas. 
“But we both know…we all know that chance is reality, and it is much 
more likely that Elrohir went out seeking company tonight after he found 
out about his brother’s injury. It wouldn’t surprise me if he went home 
with some other elf. He wanted company; he wanted to try to forget. Is 
that not as plausible as your conspiracy?” 
 
Elrond had to admit that it was, “I suppose.” A pause. “But I’m still going 
to kill him when he gets back.” 
 
“I’ll help,” said Glorfindel with a small smile. 
 
That brought a smile to Elrond’s face. “Okay. So maybe you’re right, 
maybe this is just a collection of coincidences. But what if it isn’t? What if 
this is some coordinated, orchestrated attempt to destroy my family?” 
 
“Who would want to do that?” asked Glorfindel. “Have you made any 
particular enemies that you are aware of?” 
 
“I don’t think so,” said Elrond. He searched his memory, trying to think of 
every small slight he had caused in the past, trying to decide if any of 
those people would be angry enough with him to do something like this. “I 
can’t think of any.” 
 
“Well, if your son has truly been taken,” said Legolas, “it will only be a 
matter of time before the kidnappers demand ransom.” 
 
“Unless they just killed him,” said Elrond in a remarkably calm tone. 
 
“Then someone would have already found the body,” said Glorfindel. “If 
this is really as planned as you think it may be, then they will not make 
dumb mistakes. If he were dead, we’d have found him. If they were trying 
to make a statement like that, they would want it made very, very loud, 
loud enough that we couldn’t miss it.” 
 
Elrond nodded his agreement. He could see the sense in that. “Then we’d 
best hope that my foolish son is just spending the night with someone. I 
hate to think what this might become if it is something more than that.” 
 
***** 
 
Elrohir came to in a strange bed and he realized that he was not at home. It 
took him several minutes to realize why. Then fuzzy recollections began 
to come back to him. He remembered the elf from the pub, and he 
remembered leaving with him. *So am I at his house now?* Elrohir’s head 
hurt worse than any hangover he’d ever had before. 
 
Then he heard footsteps that sounded monstrously loud, but he knew that 
was only because of his hangover. The same handsome elf stood over him. 
“How are you feeling?” the elf asked, not unkindly. 
 
“Where am I?” asked Elrohir. He was the son of Elrond and he was not 
one to be taken advantage of. 
 
“That is of no importance.” 
 
“Who are you?” 
 
“You ask a lot of questions, don’t you?” The elf’s tone was steadily 
becoming less friendly. 
 
“Your name.” 
 
“Belegtur,” responded the elf, “And now you will stop asking questions.” 
 
That simple sentence caused a million more questions to present 
themselves in Elrohir’s mind. But he bit his tongue and said nothing 
except, “So what do I do now?” 
 
“You stay here. I don’t know when you’re leaving; that’s not up to me.” 
 
Elrohir sat up. “Wait…how did I get here…didn’t I come…home with 
you?” 
 
“No, you didn’t. You’re too young for me, anyway. You must have really 
had too much to drink last night.” Belegtur laughed. 
 
The prince frowned. “So why am I here?” 
 
Belegtur grinned. “You are here because the time of Elrond as ruler of 
Imladris has come to an end.” 
 
***** 
 
Galadriel walked down the hall to hear her husband and Haldir talking 
quietly. She did not eavesdrop, as much as she wanted to. She knew about 
their relationship and saw no reason to stop it. To do so would result in 
nothing more than making Haldir and Celeborn unhappy. She loved 
Celeborn dearly, and, in his own way, he loved her back. But Celeborn 
had desires that she could not fulfill, and she understood that.  
 
Elrond’s voice suddenly made itself known in her head. It sounded 
sorrowful, almost depressed. “Galadriel, I do not know what to do.” 
 
“What’s wrong, Elrond?” she asked. 
 
“Elrohir has been missing all day, since last night. Elladan lies near death 
in the room next to mine. I cannot help but think that the two are related.” 
 
Galadriel smiled to herself. Elrond had always been marginally paranoid 
and she had never managed to break him of that habit. “What evidence do 
you have that the two are connected other than that they happened in the 
same span of time?” 
 
“…None.” 
 
“Exactly. I’m sure that those you have consulted in Imladris have told you 
the same thing, Elrond. Elladan and Elrohir are both young. They both are 
apt to do stupid things. You did stupid things when you were young. Let 
them be young. They are both intelligent enough to stay away from the 
worst of harm.” 
 
“And if they are connected? If Elrohir has been kidnapped? Then what?” 
 
Galadriel’s face became very solemn. “Then I pledge the support of 
Lorien to restore your son back to Imladris. We will not stand by while 
you are in need, Elrond. You have my word on that.” 
 
Elrond smiled slightly now. “Thank you. You have eased my mind.” 
 
“I know. Try not to worry, Elrond. You are famous for it, but things will 
work out in the end, no matter what. I promise that, as well.” 
 
***** 
 
Elladan came back to consciousness with a headache worse than any he 
had ever felt before. It was so bad that he couldn’t even sit up, much less 
talk or do anything. He could barely open his eyes. “Are you well?” asked 
a voice. 
     
Elladan winced; the voice sounded like it was being shouted. 
“Please…quiet,” he managed to say. 
 
“Sorry,” said the voice, much more quietly this time.  
 
Elladan recognized the voice as that of Glorfindel and forced a smile. 
“What…happened?” 
 
“Don’t worry about that.” Then Elladan felt warm lips on his for a 
moment. “I’m glad you’re okay. I was really worried.” 
 
“What was…the kiss?” 
 
Glorfindel kissed him again. “I’ve wanted to do that for a long time.” 
 
Elladan was seriously confused. His father and Glorfindel had been 
together for as long as he could remember. They had never made a secret 
of it and appeared to be very much in love. “What about…my father?” 
 
“Let’s just keep this to ourselves.” Glorfindel smiled. He knew he had 
roped Elladan in. All he could hope for was that Elladan wouldn’t run to 
Elrond. If he did, Glorfindel would deny everything and claim that Elladan 
was hallucinating or dreaming. 
 
Elladan smiled. “’Kay.” 
 
Glorfindel kissed him on the forehead. “You need to get some sleep. You 
got hit pretty hard. You had us all worried for a while. Don’t do dumb 
things, Elladan, I thought you knew better than that.” 
 
“Want to…see Elrohir.” 
 
Glorfindel winced. “Elrohir’s sleeping. He can come see you later.” 
 
Elladan nodded and turned onto his side, falling asleep quickly. 
 
***** 
 
Legolas walked with Elrond to the courtyard. “We are forever indebted to 
you, Elrond. You have no idea how much this will help us.” 
 
“Think nothing of it, Legolas. We’re allies, and we’re friends, and that’s 
what friends and allies do for each other.” 
 
Legolas nodded. It was, as always, on the tip of his tongue, to tell Elrond 
about what Glorfindel was really like. But he could see how happy Elrond 
was, and he didn’t want to destroy the family that Elrond had taken so 
long to cultivate. So he would say nothing, as always, and do whatever he 
could to come to Imladris as rarely as possible. 
 
“Have a safe journey, Legolas, and do not let anything bad happen to you 
or my men in clearing out your area. Send them home safe.” 
 
“I will do my best, Elrond.” 
 
Elrond heard a small noise behind him and saw Arwen standing there, 
staring at Legolas. “It appears you have an admirer, Legolas.” 
 
Legolas looked at Arwen. “She will be a beauty when she is grown.” 
 
“Indeed she will be. But if she is anything like her brothers, or myself, she 
will be a constant menace as well. Do you want to take her now?” 
 
Legolas grinned. “I will not be tied down, especially to one as young as 
her. I respect your commitment to Glorfindel, but I would much rather 
remain single.” 
 
Elrond smiled as well. “Honestly, the idea of having someone who sleeps 
with you and you only is so…rewarding.” 
 
Legolas bit his tongue so hard it bled. “Of course, Elrond. But I prefer my 
freedom.” 
 
“As you say, Legolas.” Elrond shrugged.  
 
“I wish you well in your search for Elrohir. May you find him well.” 
 
Elrond smile was sadder this time. “Thank you, Legolas. I hope, too, that 
he is well.” 
 
“Mirkwood will support you if he is not. I swear that, Elrond.” 
 
***** 
 
When Haldir woke up, Celeborn wasn’t in bed. Haldir rolled over and 
scanned the room. Celeborn was nowhere in sight. Haldir sighed. 
“Celeborn?” he called. There was no answer. Haldir sat up. He hated it 
when Celeborn left in the mornings without even bothering to tell him. 
 
He got out of bed and quickly dressed then went to search for his lover. It 
took him nearly an hour, but he eventually found Celeborn in his study. 
“Hey,” he said. 
 
Celeborn didn’t even look up. “Hello, Haldir.” 
 
Haldir frowned. Celeborn was rarely this distant to him. “What’s wrong, 
meleth?” 
 
“Go away, Haldir. I'm busy.” 
 
Haldir was hurt. He gave a lot to be with Celeborn, and it didn’t appear 
right now that Celeborn appreciated it. He approached Celeborn, 
wondering if he had said or done something wrong. “Celeborn, if I’ve 
upset you…” 
 
“Haldir,” said Celeborn impatiently, “go away. I’ve already asked you 
once. Don’t make me ask again.” 
 
Haldir frowned and retreated; he was upset now. He found work for 
himself to do and made himself busy until the evening meal, when he felt 
that it was probably safe to approach Celeborn. He, Galadriel, and 
Celeborn all sat together. But today neither Galadriel nor Celeborn were 
there. Ordinarily, Haldir would think that they were off together but he 
had the feeling that that was not what was happening. He was sure that 
something had gone very wrong. That was the only thing that Haldir 
would imagine would make Celeborn so unresponsive. 
 
After the meal was over, Haldir went back to Celeborn’s study. Celeborn 
was there, working. “Hey,” said Haldir cautiously. 
 
Celeborn looked up and Haldir could see how tired he was. Haldir 
wondered what time Celeborn had left last night. “What do you want, 
Haldir?” 
 
“I just…” Haldir shook his head. He knew it was none of his business. 
“Forget it. Goodnight, Celeborn. Oh…and I’m going on patrol tomorrow.” 
 
For a second, the old Celeborn showed through. “But you just came back 
three days ago.” 
 
“I know.” Haldir had arranged it this morning.  
 
Celeborn nodded. “Fine.” Then the mask slipped back into place. “Leave, 
I’m busy.” 
 
Haldir retreated. He wished that Celeborn cared enough to share his really 
major problems with him, but Haldir guessed that he just wasn’t that 
important to Celeborn. 
 
***** 
 
Glorfindel walked in the room and saw Elrond sitting on the side of the 
bed, his head in his hands. Concerned, Glorfindel walked over and put his 
arm around his lover’s shoulders. “What’s wrong, meleth?” 
 
Elrond shook his head, not trusting himself to be able to speak calmly or 
coherently. He gestured vaguely over to the table. 
 
Glorfindel rose and went over to the indicated table. He recoiled from 
what he saw. It was a single pale finger, with what Glorfindel knew was 
Elrohir’s ring on it. “Elrond…” 
 
“Don’t, Glorfindel. Don’t try. Nothing you say can explain that away. 
Someone has taken my son. I don’t know if they’ve killed him or not, but 
they’re definitely torturing him. I can’t stand that thought. It’s my duty as 
a father to be able to protect my children, and I let Elrohir be kidnapped. It 
is my paternal duty to go after him and find him.” 
 
“You have no idea where he is,” interjected Glorfindel. 
 
“I will find him. If I offer enough money, someone will show up with 
information about where my son is. Someone has to know.” 
 
“Elladan woke up,” said Glorfindel. “He appears fine.” 
 
“Thank the Valar,” said Elrond. “It would be a blow beyond measure if he 
retained permanent damage.” 
 
Glorfindel sat back down beside Elrond and pulled him into his arms. “We 
will find Elrohir, meleth. I swear to you that we will.” 
 
“I’ve contacted Mirkwood and Lorien. They have both agreed to help once 
I know where I’m going. This is not going to end nicely, Glorfindel. 
Whoever has taken Elrohir must surely know that I will go after him. This 
will be not much short of a war.” 
 
Glorfindel closed his eyes, a frown appearing on his face. Yes, he was a 
warrior, but that didn’t mean that he relished the thought of war. Small 
skirmishes, yes, they could be fun, but a major war just meant death and 
sorrow and brought back too many bad memories. 
 
***** 
He was walking through the camp when he heard a familiar voice. There 
were surprisingly few elves he knew here and so he turned to talk to an old 
friend. Then he saw Erestor walking along with a blonde elf, talking and 
laughing with him. 
 
Glorfindel couldn’t miss the other elf’s hand resting on the small of 
Erestor’s back and the way that the other elf found excuses to touch 
Erestor; brushing hair back behind Erestor’s shoulder, patting his arm at 
every amusing comment. It made Glorfindel’s blood boil. 
 
So he walked over. “Erestor, it’s good to see you again.” He pulled Erestor 
over to him and kissed him deeply. “It’s been too long.” 
 
Erestor looked stunned, confused, and ashamed. “Glorfindel…it’s good to 
see you…I…uh…didn’t expect to see you here.” 
 
Glorfindel looked at the other elf with a knowing smile and said gently. 
“My bonded seems to be at a loss for words.” 
 
“Your bonded?” asked the other elf. 
 
Glorfindel wondered how far Erestor had gone with the elf and decided 
that he would rather not know. “Yes.” 
 
Then Erestor surprised Glorfindel by pulling away. “I don’t know what 
you’re talking about Glorfindel. It ended between us a long time ago. 
Don’t think you can do this to me. Haldir, pay him no mind. He’s just 
jealous…” 
 
“Why would I be jealous, you pathetic little scribe?” 
 
The other elf, Haldir, pulled out a sword. “Say that again and I shall 
remove your tongue. Erestor, stay behind me.” 
 
“Relax. Just watch out for Erestor…Haldir, is it?  Yes, he can…be…well, 
I’ll let you find out for yourself.”
 
***** 
 
Elrohir had never before thought that anything could hurt quite this badly. 
He was so confused right now. Everyone seemed to love his father, and 
Elrohir had lived a very sheltered life. He had never met anyone whose 
opinions did not exactly echo his own. Elrohir supposed that, in a way, 
this was a wake-up call. If only it could be a little less painful. 
 
Belegtur came back into the room. Elrohir immediately wiped his pained 
expression away. He didn’t want to appear weak in front of his captor. 
“What do you want?” he asked as bravely as he could manage. 
 
“What I truly want, princeling, is nothing that you could ever understand. 
You have never known what it is to go to bed hungry, to wake up hungry, 
to go to bed the next night even hungrier. You have never known what is it 
to tell your children that you have nothing for them. You don’t know what 
it is to be poor…” 
 
“Well, whose fault is that?” asked Elrohir. “If you can’t get a job…” 
 
“Princeling, there are no jobs to be had. At least not for anyone such as 
me.” Belegtur rolled up his sleeve to reveal a brand just above his wrist, a 
capital ‘T’; thief. “For one foolish incident in my youth, trying to feed my 
family, I am forever shunned.” 
 
“Well…” Elrohir had to admit he did have a little trouble coming up with 
an answer for that. “Criminals deserve to be punished.” 
 
Belegtur stepped forwards. “Have you ever heard of forgiveness, 
princeling?” 
 
“But…surely…not all jobs are closed to you.” 
 
“No. Only the ones that pay enough to support more than a mouse.” 
 
Elrohir, for the first time, felt a little ashamed of his high birth. “Then…let 
me go…and I will talk to my father…” 
 
“But it is not just me, little princeling. It is all the ones out there who are 
not fortunate enough to be friends of Lord Elrond. One job for me will not 
solve the problem. That is something that your kind will never 
understand.” 
 
“My kind?” 
 
“The kind that has never had to work a day in their lives and never will 
have to. My friends and I wish to change that for good.” 
 
“How?” Elrohir was a little afraid to ask. 
 
“We are going to kill Elrond and all his family. And then we are going to 
take over. We will have a fair leadership…” 
 
“How can any leader be legitimate if he has to kill his predecessor? And 
what kind of elf are you, to slay your own kin?” 
 
“Trust me, your precious father would not wish to view me as kin, so I 
will do him the same courtesy.” 
 
***** 
 
Celeborn awoke alone and wondered where Haldir was. Then he 
remembered; Haldir had gone out on patrol. He was upset about that. He 
knew that Haldir had had that specially arranged, and that wounded 
Celeborn deeply. Admittedly, though, he knew that he deserved it. He had 
been heartless to Haldir. But he had been having a tough day. Elrond had 
Farspoke Galadriel and told her of the ring he had received. Celeborn had 
spent the rest of the day trying desperately to figure out where Elrohir was 
being held. But that was still no excuse for treating an elf he loved dearly 
the way he did.  
 
He rolled off the bed and saw a piece of paper flutter to the floor. He 
picked it up. It was from Haldir. ‘Lord Celeborn,’ it read. ‘When I return 
from my patrol, don’t seek me out again for anything other than purely 
professional reasons. Our relationship was nothing but a mistake, built on 
unstable foundations. I am sorry for whatever I have done and I hope that 
you can forgive me for it. Love, Haldir.’ 
 
Celeborn threw the paper down angrily. How dare Haldir break up with 
him? Didn’t Haldir understand that he sometimes had a really bad day and 
just wanted to be alone? He had had the ultimate of bad days and though 
he knew he should have confided in Haldir, he hadn’t, and Haldir just had 
to deal with that. 
 
Now the anger subsided and the grief rose to the surface. Memories of 
their happy relationship came to mind. It had been a strong relationship, 
built on friendship, trust, and love; Celeborn knew that for sure, whatever 
Haldir said differently. He wasn’t ready to give up on Haldir. 
 
He rose up and dressed. He knew he had a long day ahead of him and he 
knew that he would have to work hard in order to have any hopes of 
forgetting Haldir, even for just a day.  
 
***** 
 
Elladan woke up with a smile on his face. He saw Glorfindel sitting at the 
foot of his bed. “G’morning.” 
 
“Actually, it’s the middle of the afternoon,” said Glorfindel, rising to his 
feet and moving to the head of the bed so that he could kiss Elladan. “How 
are you feeling?” 
 
Elladan shrugged. “Okay, I guess. My head kinda hurts.” 
 
“That’s to be expected. Your father wants to see you. Do you want to see 
him now?” 
 
Elladan grinned. “Of course.” 
 
Glorfindel opened the door and Elrond walked in. “Good morning, 
Glorfindel,” said Elrond absently, leaning over to kiss Glorfindel. Elrond 
knew that his sons were comfortable with these small displays of affection 
between him and Glorfindel. “Hello, Elladan. How are you?” 
 
“I suppose I’ll live.” 
 
“You had better.” 
 
“Where’s Elrohir? I want to speak to him.” 
 
Elrond sighed and looked at Glorfindel. “There has been…a problem.” 
 
Elladan sat up, not caring about the shooting pains up his spine as he did 
so. He was very protective of his younger twin. “What happened to him?” 
 
“He was…” began Elrond. 
 
“We think he was kidnapped,” cut in Glorfindel. “We think that maybe 
your accident and his disappearance were related.” 
 
“Do you remember anything about what happened to you?” 
 
“Of course I do,” said Elladan. “Nothing seemed really out of the 
ordinary, except for the fact that the other elf was amazing with a sword.” 
Elladan shrugged. “He even looked completely normal. He looked like a 
nobody.” 
 
And that was the exact problem. Elrond knew that without a somewhat 
reliable description, there would be no chance for anyone to ever be able 
to give him any information. And without information, he would never 
find Elrohir. “There had to be something, Elladan. Think.” 
 
“Elrond, stop it,” muttered Glorfindel. “If he doesn’t remember anything, 
then he doesn’t remember anything.” 
 
Elrond nodded. “I’m sorry, Elladan. I’ll leave you to your rest.  But if you 
remember anything else, you had better tell me.” 
 
“I want to find him as much as you do, father.” 
 
“I know.” Elrond managed one last smile before he left. 
 
“I wish I could do something to help him,” said Elladan to Glorfindel. “He 
looks so upset and I guess he’s gonna be that way until we find Elrohir. 
I’ve never seen him so upset.” 
 
*But I have. When Erestor left.* “There’s not really much that any of us 
can do right now except hope for a miracle.” 
 
“I didn’t think that miracles were too often come by these days.” 
 
Glorfindel grinned. “No, they’re not.” 
 
***** 
 
Legolas was called back from his patrol to hear the devastating news. He 
truly felt for Elrond. No parent deserved to lose their children. He did not 
know what Elrond was going through, and hoped that he would never 
know. He wished that there was anything that he could do, but doubted it. 
 
His father called him in. “I am assembling a force to go to Imladris,” said 
Thranduil. 
 
Legolas frowned. “Why?” 
 
“To assist in the return of Elrond’s son.” 
 
“I didn’t know that Elrond even knew where he was being held.” 
 
Thranduil smiled. “No, he doesn’t, but it won’t hurt to have our support. 
That way when he does find out, he does not have to wait all that time 
before we can send our contingent. I think it’s just a matter of 
practicality.” 
 
Legolas nodded. That made at least some sort of sense. “So why are you 
telling me this?” 
 
“I want you to go with them.” 
 
“As what? The leader?” 
 
“No.” 
 
Legolas was taken aback. “What do you mean?” 
 
Thranduil sighed. “This may sound odd to you, Legolas, but there are 
rumors of an insurrection brewing in Imladris. A group of miscreants 
intends to overthrow Elrond, if the rumors can be believed. If this group 
truly exists, then I think it is only practical to assume that they were the 
ones to kidnap Elrohir.” 
 
“Why do they want to overthrow Elrond?” 
 
“They want to eliminate the upper class.” Thranduil shrugged; he had no 
idea what it was to live the life of one of his underlings, and he really 
didn’t care to find out. “I need you to go there to spy for me. I need to 
know more about this group.” 
 
“You know, father, a lot of people in Imladris probably recognize me.” 
 
Thranduil nodded sadly. “I know. And that is why we are going to have to 
make some changes to your appearance.” 
 
Legolas was outraged. “Absolutely not!” 
 
“It is the only way, Legolas. Do this for me. Do this for Elrond and 
Imladris. Most of all, though, do this for all of us, for Elrond, our family, 
Celeborn and Galadriel. If these rebels succeed, none of the rest of us will 
survive much longer. They must be destroyed.” 
 
***** 
 
Elrohir had seen most of this supposed insurrection. In his mind, they were 
all worthless, lowborn scum.  He was trying very hard to curb that 
opinion, not least because to voice it here would get him killed.  Although, 
they were not all bad men; some, like Belegtur, had gotten into one 
incident and had been since shunned. Of course, there were some far less 
savory characters. Elrohir steered clear of them as best he could. 
 
“So, princeling, what do you think of us?” asked Belegtur. 
 
“I don’t think you’ll win,” said Elrohir honestly. 
 
“And why would that be, princeling?” asked Belegtur menacingly. 
 
“It’s just that all of my father’s men are trained warriors. A whole lot of 
them fought in the Last Alliance. Your men have no practical experience.” 
 
Belegtur nodded. “Okay, then princeling. You can teach my men to fight.” 
 
Elrohir raised an eyebrow. “And why would I do that?” 
 
Belegtur drew a dagger. “Because if you do, my princeling, you might live 
after we kill the rest of your family.” 
 
Elrohir closed his eyes. He did not relish the thought of helping these elves 
to kill his own family and to kill those he cared about most. But part of 
him didn’t want to die, either. And so maybe it was best to just go along 
with what Belegtur said and hope that everything would turn out alright. 
“Okay. I’ll do it.” 
 
***** 
 
A messenger rode up, out of breath. Haldir frowned as he stepped forward. 
Celeborn was not one to exhaust messengers unless it was absolutely 
necessary. The hopelessly romantic part of his mind hoped that it was an 
apology from Celeborn. But his rational mind knew that Celeborn would 
not do that. “What is it?” asked Haldir. 
 
“An urgent message from Lord Celeborn,” the elf said. 
 
Haldir fought the urge to roll his eyes at the elf’s obvious gift for stating 
the obvious. “And what is the message?” he said, a little impatiently. 
 
“Lord Celeborn requests that you return to him immediately.” 
 
Haldir swallowed. He had no idea what that summons pertained to. He 
knew that the note he had left Celeborn was rather harsh. He had not 
meant it to be at the time, but looking back, he could see that it had been. 
On the other hand, it could be something entirely different. “Okay.” He 
had a lot of things to get ready, then. These patrols were not especially 
dangerous, but they still needed a good commander at all times. He had 
planned to be out here for a long time, and so he hadn’t really appointed 
any to take his place. 
 
By noon, he was ready to leave. He knew that he would return by 
nightfall, and that wasn’t nearly enough time for Haldir to think of 
appropriate responses to anything that Celeborn might throw at him. So as 
he rode away from his men, he knew he had a more confused, thoughtful 
expression on his face than most of his elves had ever seen. 
 
He took the time to change before he went to see Celeborn. The main 
reason for this was to give him just that little bit more time to sort out his 
thoughts. When he was changed into clean clothes, he sought Celeborn out 
and found him in his study. “My lord Celeborn,” he said formally, stiffly, 
as he walked in. 
 
Celeborn’s head raised and he smiled a little. “Hello, Haldir.” 
 
“You told me to come urgently, my lord.” 
 
It hurt Celeborn that Haldir was being so cold towards him. He rose to his 
feet and said, “I need to explain myself, Haldir, and I understand that 
you’re angry with me…” 
 
“My lord, I had quite urgent duties on patrol, so unless this is some 
professional matter…” 
 
“It is,” said Celeborn. “Elrond has received word that he will soon come 
under siege from a group of rebels within his lands. He has asked us to 
send our best warriors. And I want you to go with them. And that’s 
why…that’s why I want to explain myself…in case something happens to 
you. I’m no idiot; I know that it could happen. And I couldn’t stand for 
you to die without you hearing this.” 
 
“Hearing what?” 
 
“That I love you. That I’m sorry that I shut you out. It was a really bad day 
and I shouldn’t have done what I did. But I’m so used to just going within 
myself when I’m upset. It’s been a long time since I’ve really opened up 
to anyone…it’s just like second nature to me.” 
 
Haldir smiled a little. “That doesn’t change anything. I’ve already broken 
up with you.” He bit his lip, hoping that Celeborn would say something 
heartwarmingly romantic at this point. 
 
Instead, he just nodded. “I know. But that…I wanted to try anyway. I 
wanted to know if there was something between us…or if it was just lust 
on both of our parts. When will you be ready to leave again?” 
 
“Can I have a couple of days to relax?” 
 
“There will be time to relax when all of this is over, Haldir.” 
 
Haldir nodded. “Okay. I could leave probably by the day after tomorrow.” 
He turned to walk out of the room. He had hoped that this would be a 
reconciliation of some sort, but it seemed that really there were too many 
differences between them. That was upsetting. But, as Erestor had once 
told him, things happened and if you were to survive, you had to adapt. 
 
***** 
 
Haldir looked up as the flap of the tent opened a little and he saw Erestor. 
“Come in,” he said, smiling. He had been able to tell ever since he had 
seen Glorfindel that Erestor had been in an abusive relationship, 
emotionally if not necessarily physically, and that he had extremely low 
self-esteem. He was doing his best to change that, but it was becoming 
emotionally taxing on him as well. Erestor seemed very clingy, but Haldir 
didn’t want to push him away. “Hey,” he said. He had been intending to 
go to sleep, but now it appeared that he wouldn’t be going to sleep 
anytime soon. 
 
“I’m sorry to bother you…I can leave if you want me to,” said Erestor 
hesitantly. 
 
“No, no,” said Haldir. “Sit down. What is it?” 
 
Erestor sat down, hugging his knees to his chest. “I have been told that the 
past few battles have not gone in our favor…what if we lose this, Haldir?” 
 
“We can’t lose this, Erestor.” 
 
“I know…but what if we do?” 
 
Haldir got up and moved over to Erestor. He pulled Erestor into his arms 
and kissed him on the forehead. He didn’t want to get into any kind of 
sexual relationship with Erestor; being his friend was tough enough right 
now. They had slept together once, the night after Erestor had had that 
conversation with Glorfindel. It hadn’t meant very much to Haldir, but he 
sensed that it had to Erestor. “Well, what do you know of battle strategy?” 
 
“Well…I was a scholar before…I mean, a long time ago.” 
 
“A scholar of what?” 
 
“War.” 
 
Haldir nodded. “So you think that you could help?” 
 
“Maybe. Do you know who is in charge of our battle strategy?” 
 
“Yes. Lord Elrond is.” 
 
Haldir watched as Erestor physically recoiled. “Maybe…he probably does 
not need my help.” 
 
“Why do you dislike Lord Elrond so much?” 
 
Erestor pulled away from Haldir, and rose to his feet. “I should go…” 
 
A part of Haldir wanted to let Erestor go. He knew that it would be a lot 
easier on him if he were just to abandon Erestor. But he couldn’t convince 
himself to do so. Erestor was so fragile right now. “No. You aren’t leaving 
tonight.” He wanted to hit himself. He couldn’t believe those words had 
come out of his mouth. 
 
Erestor frowned. “What do you mean?” 
 
“I think you know what I mean.” 
 
Haldir watched as Erestor studied him critically. “No, I don’t think so,” 
said Erestor. 
 
Haldir was slightly annoyed now. “Why not?” 
 
Erestor shrugged. “I don’t want to make you feel responsible for me. I can 
take care of myself. I learned that the hard way.” 
 
“What do you mean?” 
 
“Bad things happen. Unless you can learn to adapt, to change, you will 
never survive. I apologize for disturbing you, Haldir.” He smiled and 
disappeared out of the tent.  
 
Haldir did not see Erestor again for more than millennia. 
 
***** 
 
Haldir shook his head. He didn’t know why he could never completely 
banish Erestor from his mind.  The Erestor he had met in Imladris had 
been just as little in control as the Erestor he had known during the Last 
Alliance. Haldir had just wanted to take care of Erestor, to make sure there 
was always a smile on his face, to make Erestor happy. 
 
He knew now that Celeborn had been an Erestor substitute. There was lust 
between them, and a small degree of attraction, but not much more than 
that. Haldir knew that a relationship with Celeborn was unworkable. And 
it was best just to face that now, rather than trying to hang onto a dying, 
painful relationship. It was just more practical. 
 
***** 
 
Elrond hadn’t felt this alive in a very long time. Many people were afraid, 
but he wasn’t.  He knew that he wasn’t afraid of anything, especially not 
this pathetic band of criminals. If they tried anything, Elrond knew that he 
could easily crush them. That really helped to keep him calm. 
 
What also kept him calm was the thought that he would soon get Elrohir 
back. He could tell that Elladan wanted to help, too, and that pleased him. 
With Elladan, Glorfindel, and himself fighting, there would be very few 
elves that could overcome all three of them, if there indeed were any. 
*Erestor* the traitorous part of his mind thought. Elrond wasn’t sure if 
Erestor would have been able to or not, but it would be close. But Erestor 
was long dead and so there wasn’t anything he could do about that.   
 
“Are we ready?” asked Elladan, appearing at the doorway. 
 
Elrond smiled at his son. His son had never been in battle before, not 
really. Not that this was going to be a battle, but, gods willing, it would be 
the biggest one that his son would have to fight. A little nervousness was 
to be expected. “We’re going to destroy them. We are better than they 
are.” 
 
“What about the elf that attacked me?” 
 
“That was one elf. And there is Glorfindel and myself here. Both of us are 
better with a sword than you are and I doubt that this elf is better than us.” 
Elrond shrugged. “But I really don’t think that it’s going to be a big 
problem.” 
 
Elladan nodded. “What if one of us gets killed?” 
 
Elrond smiled, but he couldn’t help but acknowledge that there was a 
small chance that it could happen. “I don’t plan on dying, Elladan, but if I 
do, then you are Lord of Imladris. If Glorfindel dies…well, I shall be 
upset, but Imladris will survive. And if you die, I don’t think that you will 
be in any position to care.” 
 
Elladan smiled. His father could talk about this so casually because he had 
actually done this sort of thing before. But to Elladan, this was a deadly 
serious matter. “I’m not kidding.” 
 
Elrond smiled again, but the smile was more subdued this time. “Neither 
am I, Elladan.” 
 
***** 
 
Legolas rode into the courtyard, a subdued smile on his face. He would 
never get tired of Imladris’s beauty, but the thought that it might become a 
battleground was slightly upsetting. He had to come here one last time, 
even though he wasn’t strictly supposed to. But it was just in case 
everything went hideously wrong that he wanted to have one good last 
memory of this place. 
 
He didn’t actually look much like himself. His hair had been cut to 
shoulder length and had been dyed a rich brown. A dye had darkened his 
skin as well. Legolas was surprised at how much of a difference just those 
two things could make. He knew that he wouldn’t recognize himself at 
this point. 
 
He turned on his horse and rode away. He had work to do.  The fresh 
breeze helped him to clear his mind as he began to search Imladris. He 
knew that it technically shouldn’t be all that hard to find this rebel group, 
as they were more than likely very amateur-ish. And, as he had thought, 
there were hand-made signs on nearly every street-corner. Legolas smiled 
to himself. This would be so easy to get rid of that it would be ridiculous. 
 
Five hours later, he was in amongst the supporters of the as-yet unnamed 
group. They seemed mostly of low-class, very uneducated. Legolas 
doubted that even a quarter of them could handle a sword if their lives 
depended on it. And that would only make it easier for Elrond and his 
warriors to destroy them. But it would also make it harder for Legolas to 
blend in. He had grown up as a member of the upper class and so had the 
manners and attitudes of such. And if he wasn’t careful, that might get him 
killed. 
 
***** 
 
In Elrohir’s opinion, all the elves that Belegtur had found were useless 
incompetents. They would never be able to work under Elrond. But every 
time he found himself thinking this, he forced himself to stop. These elves 
were just as good as him, he would tell himself, and they did not deserve 
to have these kinds of things happen to him.  It got hard to convince 
himself sometimes; but at least he was trying. 
 
Belegtur came in to see him at just after sunset. He seemed tired, as 
always, though what he spent his days doing had never been revealed to 
Elrohir. “You’ve been doing well,” he said. 
 
“Thank you.” 
 
“We’re starting our attack tomorrow night.” 
 
Elrohir swallowed hard. “Do you really mean to do this?” 
 
“Yes.” 
 
“You really want to kill other elves?” 
 
“Yes. I have to. It’s the only way that I’ll ever get my message across…” 
 
“No, it isn’t! You know by now that I can go back to my father and 
mediate a peaceful resolution…” 
 
“All you fancy elves with all your fancy talk don’t know anything. Some 
things can’t be solved with words. What would your talking to your father 
do? It might start to solve the problem for a little while…just until your 
father thought that our revolutionary ideas had been quelled. And then it 
would all start again.” 
 
“You mean to kill my family.” 
 
“That can’t be helped, princeling.” 
 
“So why not me?” 
 
“Because we need you here, princeling. And, if worst comes to worst, and 
we fail, we have you as a hostage. Trust me, princeling, we thought this 
out. We are not idiots. We just lack noble birth.” 
 
“Why do you never call me by my name?” 
 
“Because you people would never call me by mine.” Belegtur shook his 
head. “I can’t see what it is that you feel is so wrong with our actions. We 
are only doing what needs to be doing, for progress.” 
 
“This isn’t progress.” 
 
“If you can’t see that it is, princeling, then you will never understand why 
any of us here do what we do. Perhaps it is because you are of higher birth 
than us. But I think it more likely that it is because you don’t want to think 
that everyone is born equal, truly.” 
 
Elrohir frowned at this declaration. Some part of him wanted to agree with 
it, but another part didn’t. It had always been made clear to him that he 
was better than some, and he was having a hard time dispelling this 
notion. “I do understand…Belegtur,” he said, emphasizing the others 
name, hoping that this would, in some way, ingratiate him a little with 
Belegtur. 
 
Belegtur seemed to take no notice of this diplomatic step and just 
shrugged. “I doubt you do, princeling. And that is why you won’t be 
fighting tomorrow. I can’t trust you not to turn traitor and kill us all. But 
make sure they are all ready to fight tomorrow.” He shook his head and 
walked out of the room. 
 
Elrohir frowned to himself. His whole world had disintegrated and there 
seemed to be nothing he could do to stop it. And above all, he felt so 
alone. None here talked to him, and the new ideas that Belegtur had 
planted in his mind made him feel isolated from his family. He was just so 
confused and didn’t know which way to turn. 
 
***** 
 
A million thoughts were competing for Haldir’s attention as he spurred his 
horse on. Usually, when he was riding, he could dismiss whatever worries 
were impeding most upon him, but it seemed that this was not one of those 
times. Memories of happy times spent with Celeborn, memories of 
Erestor, memories of everything and everyone he had ever loved or cared 
about rising to the surface; not one by one, but in a cluttered mess that 
Haldir would not have been able to disentangle even if he had wanted to. 
 
He had so hoped at the time that Celeborn had wanted to make up for 
everything, but now he was glad that Celeborn hadn’t. He was riding off 
to war now, and there was no time for romance or love in the middle of a 
war. Whatever the old stories and poems said, romance and love just 
distracted one from the real work of fighting. Lust was fine for the 
battlefield, and that Haldir knew well, but love just made things 
complicated.  
 
He had come to realize, over the past day or so, ever since he had left 
Lorien, that he didn’t care whether this war was won or lost. He didn’t 
even really care if he died or not. Ever since Erestor had been killed, it had 
just seemed that he was gliding along, unconnected to everyone and 
everything.  Looking back, he could not find any memory that rivaled any 
of the times he had shared with Erestor. Erestor had been the only elf that 
had made him feel complete. 
 
Now, if Erestor were alive and fighting in this war, then Haldir would 
really have reason to be doing this. Erestor would likely be a target for the 
rebels, though in reality, he was just like one of them, only he had worked 
(and slept) his way up. Erestor was someone worth fighting for. But 
Elrond was not. Elrond, though his temper over what had happened to 
Erestor had mellowed some, was still not someone that Haldir enjoyed 
visits with. 
 
He spurred the horse on faster. He hoped that the speed would help him 
clear his mind. Only it made it worse. Now Erestor’s face appeared in 
front of him, smiling a little in that sad way of his. Haldir closed his eyes. 
When he opened them again, he saw Celeborn with his happy-go-lucky 
expression that he always tried to maintain. He closed his eyes again. This 
time, it was Elrond that he saw. Only it wasn’t the Elrond that Haldir had 
come to hate. It was the Elrond that he had fought side by side with in the 
Last Alliance, the Elrond that he had been proud to call a friend. 
 
Now, in a sudden flash of insight, Haldir realized that none of what had 
happened mattered at all. None of his fights with Elrond or Celeborn or 
even Erestor really mattered. It was all irrelevant in the grand scheme of 
things. What mattered most were friends, and love, not hatred and 
fighting. What mattered were the things that you would die for, the things 
that you would kill for, not those that you would kill. Haldir was surprised 
by these thoughts. As a warrior, he did not often pause to speculate what 
would happen or the consequences of his actions, let alone philosophy. 
But he knew now that what he was thinking was the truth. 

It didn’t matter that he had hated Elrond for however many centuries it 
had been, it mattered that he and Elrond had fought side by side in the past 
and had celebrated the same victories and mourned the same losses. It 
didn’t matter that Erestor had been killed unjustly, it mattered that Haldir 
had had the time with Erestor at all, and that he had made the best of the 
time they had had. It didn’t matter that he did not care for the future of 
Imladris, it did matter that there was no way that he could allow such a 
place of beauty to be destroyed. 
 
Now he found, to his surprise, that all his confusion and madness had 
disappeared. He now only felt a pure sense of clarity, a feeling he had not 
felt in so long that he almost didn’t know what it was that he was feeling. 
He smiled to himself. The whole world made sense to him now, and he 
was saner than he had ever been before. Now he knew what mattered in 
life and now he could do what he knew was right and not be upset at 
whatever price it might demand of him. Up to and including his own life. 
That was simply just the way things went; who was he to judge the master 
plan of higher beings than himself?


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