Lost and Found [Thranduil love story]

Chapter 28: Dreams and Reality

    WARNING! ADULT CONTENT!   

"Forgive me." He whispered when our lips parted.
"For what?" I asked surprised. Either my thinking ability just dropped dramatically, or he had nothing to apologise for.
"For all I have done to you. I have caused you pain..."
"Hush." I put my finger on his lips. I hated listening to such guilty speeches. "There's no need for that. I haven't exactly been an angel myself."
He took my hand in his and kissed it. An electric shock ran down my spine. Seeing this he smiled, and covered my lips with his again. His other hand went to my back, to the dress's fastening.
Feelings overwhelmed me, clashing at me, merging with each-other. I tried to protest, but couldn't make a sound. And fighting the king was as fighting a tree. His strong arms would not move no matter how hard I pushed.
Releasing my mouth, he moved his tongue down my neck, causing a quiet moan to escape my lips. Then he lightly bit my skin just above the collarbone, and at the same moment I felt my dress sliding off of me. Startled I tried to step back, but he didn't let go, pressing me to his body. Through the thin fabric of my underskirt I could feel something hard pressing at my belly. My panic rose with every second.
"But My Lord, shouldn't we wait until the guests..." I started, but was silenced with another kiss. That irritated me. I hated being treated this way. Although irritation got mixed with pleasure when his hands ran through my body. But it wasn't so easy to divert me.
As an act of defiance, taking advantage of the fact that his head was lowered, I took off his crown to distract him. He stopped only for a second, but it was just enough time for me to slip my fingers into his hair and mess them up a little. I grinned at him, seeing the result, along with his stunned expression. Finally, he didn't look so perfect and unreal anymore.
"Well, I guess you are no longer fit to be seen in public." I joked. His surprise was evident. Clearly no one has ever done something like this to him before. Nobody dared. "Now, what should I do with the crown." I mused, moving back step by step. "Maybe I'll try it on. It looks impressive, I wonder if it would fit me." I didn't know what overcame me, but I started feeling playful all of a sudden.
Thranduil had probably realised what was the reason for my strange behaviour, because he began walking in my direction with a predatory grace of a born hunter.
"I would be most happy to appreciate such sight." He smirked. "If you wore my crown... alone."
Imagining this scene made me blush. Heavily. And the fact that I was half naked didn't help.
"Oh, but why don't we start with you?" I asked in a flirtatious tone, trying to pretend I was not feeling shy at all. "It is extremely rude to let your beloved wife freeze in this cold room on her own."
"Would you prefer me to join you, or rather to remedy that?" He asked.
I didn't want to think of how he would try to warm me up, so I quickly replied:
"Sharing is such a beautiful thing. So, let me share this experience with you." I winked at him. I was still forgetting I probably shouldn't do it. He didn't seem unhappy about it though. On the contrary, his smirk widened considerably.
"Do you wish to undress me again?" He inquired. "Should I sit down?" I heard a hint of humour in his voice. He was referring to the time when I was examining the poison left inside him by The Hollow Ones.
"If you please." I pointed at the bed. Well, he wanted to play this game, so let's play.
Watching me with attention he moved to his bed and sat down. As I continued to stand in place, considering my options, he rose his eyebrows in anticipation.
I sighed. It was becoming a habit of mine, especially while being around him. I either let out some air with resignation, or sucked it in with fear or fury. What an irritating husband I had.
Not wanting to risk that he would stand up and take the things in his own hands again, I decided to comply. I walked to him, and stopped just a few inches away. Ok, what next? He expected to be entertained, and since, at this moment, I couldn't do the surprise I prepared together with my elvish servants, I had to improvise. You only live once, right?
"Close your eyes." I ordered and, to my surprise, he complied. Oh, well, after all I couldn't exactly run away, so he had nothing to worry about.
Gathering all the courage I had I sat on his lap.
His hands instantly went to my thighs, which were almost bare at the moment. I pushed them away with a few slaps.
"Not yet." I informed him. He moved back, and I began the stripping process.
Unbuttoning his overcoat I realised I was sitting very uncomfortably for such task. I rose a little, to gain myself a better angle. What happened next was so quick, that I wasn't even sure how he did it. One moment I was leaning over him, and the other his torso found it's way between my legs. I was straddling him. OK, maybe it WAS more comfortable this way. Buut!
His hands went to my legs again, and I had to slap them once more.
"My Lord, can't you sit still for a few minutes like a good boy?" I asked annoyed, while sliding down first peace of his clothes. There was only a white, silky shirt under it, and it was designed to be taken off through the head.
"A good boy has no use in bedchamber." He whispered back, his eyes still closed as I instructed. However his palms started rubbing my skin one more time, moving a little too high, and this time he refused to take them off.
As a punishment I bit the tip of his ear. This seemed to be a mistake. The king groaned, and squeezed my bottom, bringing it closer to his body, so that I could feel the effect my behaviour had on him.
"You know, I've always found the shape of your ears interesting." I started talking, trying to ignore the feeling of something hard pressing between my legs. I wanted to distract him enough, so that he would calm down a bit. I didn't want to risk him losing control again.
"It is yours, human, that seem peculiar." He replied opening his eyes and watching me slowly pull his shirt up. His hands went back to my legs, giving me some space.
"Oh right. Many races here have pointy ears. Hobbits, goblins... are you related?" I asked with an absolutely honest expression on my face. I was not laughing at him. At all.
The king's eyes narrowed slightly, and I used this opportunity to run my hands through his chest, pulling the shirt further up. Which seemed to make him forget what he was unhappy about.
"Are you comparing me to a hobbit? Or perhaps a goblin?" He inquired, a lot more calmly than he probably intended.
"Not really." I replied, pushing him down on the bed and admiring his bare chest. I pulled the piece of cloth further up, over his head and stopped at his arms, pressing them down. "You are more like an orc." I whispered into his mouth. "Big, strong, and with extremely bad temper."
I wasn't really sure what had happened next, but suddenly our positions changed, and it was me lying under him, spread on his beautiful crimson sheets.
The crown, which I put on the bed before, fell on the floor, but he didn't seem to notice.
"An orc?" He asked, taking my arms and locking them above my head. His loose hair caressed my face and breasts.
I searched his face for signs of anger, but found only pretended frown. He was playing along with what I started.
Before I could say anything he attacked my mouth furiously, clearly set on teaching me a lesson or two. As I had nothing against it, I returned the kiss in the same manner. His other hand moved down, caressing my thighs.
"A bad tempered one." I finally replied when we broke off. It was a mere whisper, since I was so much out of breath I could hardly speak.
"Indeed?" He murmured biting at my neck. I let out a small moan, suddenly too aware of a very visible bulk in his breeches.
As a strange feeling of need rose in me, half-consciously I thought it was really odd no one had decided to bother us yet. Especially considering someone had always had before.
One, two, three seconds. Nothing happened. No knock, no voices. It was almost unreal.
Thranduil's lips covered mine again, and then I felt another delicate bite. Like he was trying to be both rough and caring at the same time.
The heat from my cheeks rapidly travelled down, to the lower parts of my body, creating the urge to close my legs. I couldn't do it, however, since the king's waist was still between them.
Feeling my involuntary movement, Elvenking's mouth went down to my breasts, pulling away the top of my chemise. My breath turned heavy, and when his lips closed over one of my nipples while his hand caressed the other. He let go of my wrists in the process, so I caught his hair, and squeezed them, not sure if I should pull him away or bring him closer. But the moment he went further down... someone knocked.
Thranduil froze, and I felt his passion being replaced by anger and something else, a little more sinister. I had an impression that whoever was responsible for the interruption, wasn't going to live long enough to understand what he'd done.
And then I started laughing. I couldn't stop myself. The fact that it really happened again was just too comical. He looked me over, probably not appreciating the sudden outburst of humour. I wasn't certain, as I was unable to focus on his expression. One thing was sure though. Contrary to me, he didn't find the situation funny. At all.
When the knocking repeated he rose, and walked towards the door. Still giggling uncontrollably I covered myself quickly, thinking that this was going to be a very interesting scene.
The king unlocked the door, exchanged a few muffed words with whoever stood on the other side, and then slammed them with such force that I jumped. Oh ok, that was quick...
Sensing his quite violent emotions, I decided he might not be in the mood anymore and started moving to the edge of the bed, not willing to test his patience anymore, but one look at his face made me stop.
I was wrong. This wasn't the end. It was just the beginning.

***

I woke up in, what seemed to be, a middle of the night. The room was pitch black, and for a moment I wasn't even sure where I was, until I remembered what had happened after the ceremony. The memory of it made me blush and wriggle with discomfort. Actually I couldn't even believe that spending entire afternoon and the evening in the bedroom was even physically possible. I'd heard such stories before from some mature wives' tales but had always taken them as metaphors. Oh well then, surprise.
I didn't know what woke me up until I've felt movement just next to me and someone's soft lips on mine.
"Sleep, my love." I heard someone whisper in, what I recognised as, king's voice. And then I fell back into a dreamless sleep.

***

Algernon was watching the prince walking around the room, the elves were kind enough to offer to them. The suite was in full of golds and greens and with rich tapestries and a lot of nature motives. For the knight, who was used to the poor inside of his kingdom's royal palace, this was more than enough. Unfortunately, Rhydian clearly had other opinion and kept complaining about everything. The captain of the royal guard was starting to really regret there wasn't any seeping potion at hand. Or at least a mace. Oh yes, he would love to have a mace with him. Unfortunately the damn pointy-ear creatures took all their weapons away. Well, maybe it was for the best. The knight wasn't sure Rhydian would have ever woken up from his sleep otherwise. Sir Rowanweb was a very patient man. After all his queen was still among the living. However, the foreign king's son made him re-evaluate the level of his endurance.
"How could she?!" The prince roared. The captain rolled his eyes. Here it goes again, he thought. "Just what does she see in that... that..."
"Beautiful king of the elves?" Offered the knight with a mean smile. He, himself, found it quite obvious what she saw in the man. And after today he also understood what the Elvenking saw in her. Her eyes brightened by the strange shimmering gown... He shook his head rapidly. Dear gods, just what was he thinking. It must have been the weariness clouding his mind, yes, the weariness.
"That creature is not human!" Shouted Rhydian.
My, my. So the prince was a racist. Who would have thought. It didn't stop him from drooling over Arwen though. Talking about double standards...
"Neither is she anymore." He murmured, too quiet for his companion to hear. "She doesn't seem to care." He said louder.
"It's magic." Rhydian kept ranting. "That thing bewitched her! Clouded her mind and used..."
"From what it looked like, it is the other way around." Replied Algernon with a sigh. "Poor elf. I fear he may demand compensation for moral damages afterwards."
As a reply the prince threw an empty goblet at him, and the captain decided this was it. It was high time, to silence the royal brat.
The knight's moves were quick. It was enough for Rhydian to turn his back to him for a second, and he was lying spread on the small rug by the fireplace.
Sir Rowanweb sat in one of the armchairs, satisfied with the peace and quiet. He had to think, and hard. No matter the wedding and Anne's own wishes, there was no way he would allow her to stay here. Not when the fate of his kingdom was at stake. He was even prepared to kidnap her if he had to. But first they would have to talk. Alone. No witnesses.


***


I woke up in Thranduil's bed alone. I couldn't tell what time it was, but it had to be late, since both the king was gone, and my body felt well rested and quite satisfied. Only the marks on my skin, and a few tender places told me that what had happened yesterday was no dream. The thought alone made my cheeks burn like I was some kind of shy virgin. The king was a wonderful lover, both gentle and demanding. He was not satisfied until I almost lost consciousness out of all of the pleasure he was giving me. And his sweet whispers that put me to sleep afterwards were full of love and warmth I'd never suspected him of.
I shook my head and stretched when the memory of him started to create some pressure down my stomach. Since my husband was away, probably busy, I decided to go back to my own bedroom and prepare for the day.
After coming out of the bed I realised it was going to be a much harder task, than I thought. My clothes were nowhere to be seen. I wasn't sure who disposed of them, the Elvenking himself or some of the servants, nevertheless they were gone and there was nothing for me to wear instead. Was it because they simply haven't brought it yet or maybe one annoying elf decided to keep me in his chambers this way, waiting for his return? I didn't know, and didn't care. Although somewhere deep I knew Thranduil was probably very busy, I still felt a little hurt. He could have at least arranged for some breakfast to bed...
And then I saw them. All my crown jewels were lying on the small, round table, surrounded with colourful autumn leaves. Someone had taken the time to make a rainbow-like arrangement with them.
Covered with only a sheet I walked towards the table with the feeling of amazement written all over my face. The king had kept his word and I didn't even have to remind him of it. It was a shame he couldn't be here to receive the token of my gratitude. Or maybe it was for the best. I supposed it would have been rude not to make it to dinner tonight.
And it was another reason why I shouldn't wait here for him either. We had guests after all. Two uninvited and very troublesome guests. However, if they had found their way here without the ring's help, maybe they knew how to return.
Energised by the thought of a solution to another one of my problems, I decided to go back to my room after all. All I needed now was something to wear.
With not even an ounce of embarrassment this time I went into Thranduil's wardrobe and took the first shirt I saw. It was so big that it covered my body almost to my knees. It felt like I was wearing a dress. Taking my jewellery with me, I headed out.
The door turned out to be unlocked, which made me feel even better. I guess I was subconsciously afraid of being distrusted again, especially with my surprise-fiancée prince inside the palace walls.
I made my way quickly into my bedroom, happy that there were no decent elves around to see the state I was in. After all, one would have to be blind not to guess what I was doing for the most part of the evening and night. My lips were still a little swollen, skin still tender from all the bites and kisses. Not to mention the ownership-marks he put all around my neck. He had mine in just the same places, so I considered it quite fair. I blushed and giggled, thinking about it. Gosh, we were behaving like teenagers.
"A pleasant night?" I heard a familiar man's voice and turned around startled, almost letting go of my treasure in the process.
"Algernon!" I exclaimed, seeing the knight sitting peacefully in one of the armchairs. "What are you doing here?"
"Waiting for you, Your Highness." He have me a mocking glare. "Obviously." He added.
"Turn around, I need to get dressed." I murmured with my cheeks burning, walking towards my own wardrobe. "If someone sees me here with you in this..."
"You mean if your husband sees you with some other man, alone and half-naked?" He interrupted, standing up and turning around. He was clearly having fun and I seemed to be the source of his entertainment.
"He is very good with the sword, you know." I felt the need to point it out.
"I have no doubt he is." Agreed the knight, still observing the wall in front. "And judging from your looks, it isn't the only thing he's good at."
"Algernon!" I hissed. Talking about such things with the captain of my guard seemed just... wrong.
"Yes, Your Majesty?" He asked, amused again.
"Why are you here for?" I decided to change the subject, before this discussion got out of hand.
"Can't you guess?" He asked. "Well then, I'm sorry to spoil your honeymoon my queen, but you will have to return home with me."
"I know." I sighed.
"And nothing you say will change it, I will not allow... Wait, what did you say?" He turned my way clearly shocked. Luckily I was almost completely dressed in one of my simpler gowns, which didn't require help to put on.
"I said that I know." I repeated, looking at him. "I was planning to do it myself, just didn't know how. Trouble told me, that she can't take me back, because of the latest events... a long story. So, if you know the way, I'll be happy to hear about it."
"Trouble?" He inquired, his eyebrows high. "And, by the way, put a shawl on." He added, looking at my cleavage. Feeling embarrassed again, I started looking around, while explaining.
"Trouble is the name I gave the ring. We had had a lot of problems lately, and she's in a bad shape now." I told him.
"What kind of problems?" He wanted to know.
"It is a really, really long story." I started, but he wasn't so easily discouraged.
"I'm in no hurry." He replied, and I had to give up. I knew Algernon well enough to understand, that he would not leave me alone until he got the answers. The fact that he had been almost nice so far didn't mean he suddenly started to like or respect me. It was probably more of a precaution, since he was now in my very jealous husband's palace and his less friendly behaviour might have been misunderstood. Besides, it was one thing to disrespect me privately, and quite another to do it publicly. And sir Rowanweb always made sure to keep up appearances. Additionally, his red hair was in a slight mess, and eyes bore the signs of a very restless night. It wasn't wise to make him angry when he was in such condition.
"Oh, all right." I said sitting down. After all it really WAS going to be a very long and complicated story. "You asked for it."
I started the tale from the moment of falling into a pond, not omitting anything. There was no point lying to a person, who was supposed to be one of my most trusted men, and possibly had the means to help me. He was listening without a word of interference, allowing me to speak freely. And I was grateful for it.
"So," I said finishing. "Any ideas?"
The knight looked a little stunned. When he told me that he wanted to know the whole story, he clearly didn't expect it to be like THAT.
"And now you have to," He swallowed. "Go back and defeat those monsters or they will kill you both?" He asked, not fully able to comprehend the idea. I couldn't blame him.
"Pretty much, yes." I replied. "Do you know the way back? Maybe? Possibly?"
"Yes." He answered, and I breathed with relief. "But one problem remains."
"What problem?" I asked. What, another one? Gods, have mercy. How many problems can a girl solve within few weeks?
"The problem of convincing your husband to let you go." He pointed out.
"Oh, that one. Yes." I'd almost forgotten about the king's idea of never letting me leave. This night had clearly messed with my head.
"And?" He inquired.
"And what?" I didn't understand. My thoughts were still with one very handsome Elvenking.
"And what are you going to do about it?" He clarified.
"I don't know yet." I admitted. "I don't want to hurt him, but..."
"He may not want to cooperate." He nodded with understanding. "That bond of yours seems strong."
"And how are we going to return anyway?" I asked the most important question.
"I shall signal the wizards, and they are going to open the gateway for us." He explained.
"That's how you got here? The wizards sent you?" I felt uneasy. I didn't trust magic users one bit. They had tried to kill me before. Who could assert, they weren't going to try it again.
"Yes, the Grand Wizard and his underlings themselves. He seems very interested in you." Algernon frowned, seeing the look on my face. "What's the matter?" He inquired.
"I'm not very fond of them, since..." I fell silent. The knight knew what I was talking about, he was there when I almost died because some old hag felt power-thirsty.
"I don't think they are planning your demise." He said. "But we'll be careful."
"All right." I replied, trying to shake off an uncomfortable feeling that came along with the memories. "You know, I'm surprised you're not trying to kill me yourself after all that." I started speaking, trying to change the subject.
"I gladly would." He admitted. "But to my dissatisfaction it appears that we need you alive."
And I would have believed his words if not the gleam in his eyes, which told me he was just joking. I sized him up with my eyes, pretending to be thinking hard.
"What?" He asked.
"Oh, nothing. I'm just wondering how much I actually need you as my guard captain. Especially after you also took on the role of a matchmaker." I replied, pointing at the fact, that I gained an additional fiancée. He grimaced.
"I feel no more enthusiasm about it than you do. However when you decided to run away, thinking nothing about the welfare of your people..." He stopped himself with effort. He clearly wished to tell me what he thought about it all, but decided not to. In addition to his almost friendly manner it looked just odd and completely not like Sir Rowanweb I knew. And it was disturbing. Something was up, and I just didn't see it. "Summarising, we had no choice. That..." He mumbled something offensive under his breath. "Prince Rhydian realised you were gone and simply blackmailed us. His silence for the promise of marriage."
"He WHAT?!" I shouted, jumping up from the bed on which I was sitting for some time already.
"He claimed you knew each other..?" Said the knight in questioning tones.
"We've met." I confirmed prince's words. "Nothing special really. We travelled together for some time."
"Strange." He looked at me, squinting. "He claims you two are very close friends... almost lovers."
My jaw dropped. Seriously!? What is it, an epidemic? Strange, that before I had become a queen not one man seemed interested, and now I could easily build a harem. How... unpleasant. It Looked like wealth and power could really add much appeal to a person. In other people's eyes that is. The feeling which came with the realisation was sickening. Did Thranduil also..? No, he had no idea who I was. He was even probably convinced I was just some human commoner, a witch – which actually wasn't far from the truth.
Reassuring myself, that my husband wasn't just another greedy man drooling over my power I moved my attention back to the discussion.
"So, what can we do about him?" I asked. "Oh, don't pretend." I snorted, seeing him fake a surprised expression. "I don't believe you didn't think of something when you decided to go along with his idea. You always have a plan, even if it's just breakfast." I laughed. "I'm not sure if even your visits to the restroom are spontaneous."
"I didn't know my queen was observing me so closely." He snorted.
"One must know what to expect of the dangerous creatures of the world." I shrugged. "So, what's the plan this time?"
"None so far. I haven't decided yet." He replied evasively.
Yeah, right.
"But you ARE going to try to get rid of him?" I wanted to know. I was, obviously, not keen on having two husbands. The laws of my world forbid polygamy, but also, what we and the king had was not thought of as marriage where I came from. In other words, at home I was still considered single. And that meant that there were no objections against me marrying someone else. My personal opinion, of course, had no meaning whatsoever.
"I am no more excited about the possible wedding than you are." He admitted. I sighed with relief, but his following words brought the stress right back. "I believe prince Sebastian to be much better match. His kingdom..."
"Stop right there!" I shouted. "There will be no prince Sebastian, no Prince Philip and definitely not that fifty years old prince Edward! I am already married!"
"To an elf from another world." He stated calmly, and looked me straight in the eyes. "This won't do. We need to make an alliance, and fast. You will have to marry one of them."
I wanted to protest, but instead just sat back down, feeling quite gloomy. Oh yes, I forgot. I ran a kingdom now. The truth in his words hit me like a mace. We needed an alliance, protection for the time being, and wedding was the fastest and easiest way to do it.
"But..." My weak protest was cut short by a shake of Algernon's head.
"Barbarians of the south would like to have our lands too if you remember. Even if we somehow convince our other neighbours to leave us alone, we won't be safe." He ran a hand through his hair, which was the sign of a great distress. "So I do hope you'll be reasonable. We cannot allow any more mistakes now."
I covered my face with both hands, childishly hoping the reality would go away if I didn't see it. But it was still there, patiently waiting for my return.
"I'll think about it." I finally mumbled, not wanting to give him any straight answer yet. I understood the necessity, but was still defiant. If there was even the slightest chance to prevent any additional wedding from happening, I was definitely going to take it.
"I certainly hope so." He eyed me suspiciously, but said nothing more.
"For now," I decided to change the subject before any more of my future was planned for me. "The most urgent problem we face is how you are going to exit my chambers without anyone noticing. Because, you know..." I gave him the look. "It's not the best time to make my husband angry or... suspicious about our relations." I added, smoothing the covers of my bed with my hand as a suggestion.