Disclaimer: Don’t own it and never will.

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                                                  Valilis made her way through the mallorn trees to the talan she and her elder sister shared with their parents. The welcoming feast for the King of Greenwood and the delegation that had accompanied him was over, not that she had been permitted to attend. Valilis had drawn the duty of elfling-minder for the duration of the feast. She was aware that she had likely had more entertainment in the course of her duties than she would have at the feast, but she was still a bit disappointed. It would have been nice to have been given the option. Still, she had enjoyed the company of the young ones, particularly the youngest. Little Haldir was only just beginning to walk and took it as an affront to his dignity each time he landed on his bottom unexpectedly. He made certain everyone knew of his displeasure with that state of affairs as well. Between his antics and those of his elder brother, Orophin, who flatly refused to remain clothed she had laughed almost the entire evening.

                                                    She heard two elves approaching on the path ahead of her and stepped off the path courteously giving them room to continue on their way unhindered. As they rounded the bend just ahead of her and came into her line of vision, she noted them to be strangers, part of the Greenwood delegation. Her attention was riveted to the taller of the two. He exuded an aura of power and authority, more pronounced than that of most elves she knew, but not so much as her Lord and Lady. He moved with an almost feline grace which marked him as one well acquainted with the use of the sword in battle. All these things she noticed in passing, but found herself staring at him, caught by his looks alone. Ai Valar he was beautiful, she thought. Abruptly, she noticed that he was returning her stare with equal intensity and she flushed and dropped her gaze until he and his companion passed. Berating herself for her boldness, she hastened her steps toward her destination.

                                                 Valilis climbed into the talan, her color still high from her encounter with the stranger. Her parents had not yet returned, but her sister was waiting for her. Nimendis had gone to the feast and had the full report for her. Valilis went straight to her sister’s room and collapsed in an undignified heap on the foot of Nimendis’ bed.

                                                 “Well, sister-mine? How went the feast?” Valilis grinned in anticipation; Nimendis was a good teller of tales and always managed to find the humor in any situation. Her sister returned her grin and launched into a detailed description of the feast. Valilis was by turns amused and shocked at her sister’s highly irreverent narrative. Nima had no qualms about speaking her thoughts on any and all subjects and she was doing so to full effect at the moment. When she was finished, Valilis commented amidst a fit of giggles, “I doubt I will be able to keep a straight face when next I see Melir. How could he have overturned the dessert on Lord Celeborn?”

                                                  “In truth, I believe he tripped. It was an accident, of course, but he had atrocious timing all the same. Still, everyone laughed including Lord Celeborn. How did the baby-minding go?” Nimendis smiled in anticipation. She loved baby tending as much as Valilis did and could not wait to hear the latest antics of her favorite young ones. ‘Lilis giggled again and launched the account of her evening.

                                                 “That Orophin! His mother despairs of him ever wearing clothing for more than an hour at a time. I shudder to think of what he will be like when he is grown.” Nima shook her head in good natured exasperation.

                                                  “Indeed! And little Haldir, as fierce as he is now, he will strike fear into the hearts of friend and foe alike when he is grown. That one will be a warrior to be reckoned with to be sure. Ai, Nima! I almost forgot. As I was coming home, I stepped off the path to let two of the Greenwood elves pass. The tall one was, well he was just the most beautiful elf I have ever seen. I am afraid I embarrassed myself by staring.” ‘Lilis blushed again, remembering the way he had returned her stare. Nima giggled.

                                                    “Aye, sister, there were several I would have said that of. If those are the usual sights in Greenwood, I shall have to make a visit!” Nima grinned impishly.

                                                    “Oh yes, and you will explain that to Adar how? ‘ Forgive me, Ada but I simply must go to Greenwood to ogle all the beautiful males!’ I can hear his response now.” Valilis giggled and swatted her sister with a pillow. Nimendis returned her sally in kind and soon the sisters were engaged in a full blown pillow war. It was to this scene that their parents returned.

                                                “Nimendis! Valilis! One would think you were barely out of baby clouts and not both past your majority! Honestly, we cannot leave you alone for a moment.” Their mother, Teluial spoiled the effect of her rant by starting to laugh. Belegdur, their father, made no pretense at sternness, and laughed outright.

                                                   “Good night, my silly ones. Rest well, if you can find any pillows that you have not managed to destroy.” He kissed them both, as did their mother. The two elder elves then disappeared into their room. Nima and ‘Lilis exchanged arch looks and Valilis bade her sister good night.

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                                                  Thranduil made his way to the talan he had been given for the duration of his stay in Lorien, Luinloth following closely in his wake. Ahead of them, a maiden stepped off the path to allow them to pass and as they drew nearer, Thranduil found himself caught by her beauty. Her hair was the color of sunlight, her eyes the deep blue of calm water, and she was fair skinned even for an elf. He noted that she was staring even as he was, and smiled slightly. As they drew even with each other she noted his regard, flushed in a most becoming fashion, and dropped her gaze. He continued on his way, his smile widening a bit.

                                                   The feast had been more enjoyable than he would have predicted, and there had certainly been more than enough lovely ladies to flirt with. He should be weary,  but Thranduil found that he was too restless to consider settling in for the night. They climbed up to the talan, and Luinloth set about getting his king’s bedchamber ready for the night. Thranduil walked over to the window and gazed out over the forest, his mind returning to the maiden. She was certainly the loveliest he had seen that night, but it was the intelligence behind those sapphire eyes that intrigued him most. He was no stranger to the company of the opposite sex, and indeed had lost count of the number of trysts he had had over his years, but he sensed something different about his fascination with this lady. She was not much past her majority, if he was any judge of ages. He usually preferred ladies who had a good measure of experience behind them. He shook his head, irritably. It was unlikely that he would encounter her again and it did no good to dwell on things that would not come to pass.  Luinloth’s soft footfall behind him reminded Thranduil that he was not alone, and he wrenched his thoughts to a more appropriate direction. A moment later, the other elf had the rooms set to rights.

                                                 “My lord, it is the custom here to bathe in the pools, but I can have water heated and brought here for you.” Luinloth sounded as if this would be his preference. Thranduil grinned, feeling the need to ruffle his assistant/valet/herald’s feathers a bit.

                                                  “Nay, if it is good enough for Celeborn, then it shall be good enough for me. I would not wish to cause an undue amount of disruption to our hosts.” Luinloth snorted.

                                                   “Well, there is a first time for everything, or so it is said. I believe I may hear a fish sing next.” Instead of taking offense, Thranduil laughed aloud. Luinloth had known him from infancy and in some ways was a surrogate parent to his king and thus had earned the right to speak his mind, at least in private. He turned and began to gather a change of clothing and towels for Thranduil. The king merely grinned and moved to the entrance, waiting for his assistant. When Luinloth had gathered the required items, the two elves made their way to the bathing pools. Upon reaching them, Thranduil immediately shed his robes and dove in. Luinloth gathered up the clothing he had shed and returned to the talan, giving his king some rare privacy. It was safe enough to do so here, and he knew that Thranduil would wish to take advantage of it.

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                                                     Valilis had been unable to sleep and had decided to take a moonlight walk by the pools. At this time of night it was unlikely that she would disturb anyone. She often took this route when she found it impossible to rest. As she neared the pools, she heard the sound of splashing. Who could be bathing this late? She moved to the edge of the pool that was screened by the foliage where she knew she would not be seen. Elves were not body-shy by nature, and there was nothing illicit about her actions. She sat upon a rock and looked out across the pool. Her breath caught as she realized that the elf in the pool was the same one she had seen on the path earlier.

                                               He stood under one of the small waterfalls, rinsing his hair. He had his back turned to her, affording Valilis an unobstructed view of his lean back and well-formed buttocks and legs. She swallowed hard, an unfamiliar feeling of longing filling her. He turned to face her, and she could not help but let her eyes wander from his finely sculpted face to his chest and flat abdomen and then lower. She flushed, but did not avert her gaze. She had joined other ellyth [maidens] her age in spying on the males as they bathed and giggling about their attributes many times in the past, but giggling was the furthest thing from her mind now. Oh sweet Eru, he was the most beautiful male she had ever seen!

                                                Valilis shook herself out of her embarrassment; she was acting like a child. She was not one of the more experienced of her peers, but neither was she an innocent. She looked up again, but he had disappeared. She waited a few moments to see if he had merely gone under water but he did not surface, so she knew he had finished bathing and had left the pool. She sighed, and moved from her seat on the rock to the path once more. She had only gone a few lengths when a figure stepped out in front of her. Her hand flew up to her mouth and she stepped back in shock, losing her footing. She would have fallen if the figure in front of her had not reached out to catch her. She looked up into the face of the elf she had watched in the pool. He steadied her, his face showing concern and dismay that he had startled her. She flushed a dark crimson, and his concern turned to amusement. He chuckled, and she scowled at him.

                                               “My apologies, my lady. I did not intend to frighten you.” He released her and stepped back. “I am curious.  I know it is a custom in Lorien to bathe in those pools. Is it also a custom to have an audience?” His gray eyes were sparkling with amusement. She flushed harder.

                                                “Nay not a custom, but it is not an unusual occurrence. Why do you ask, my lord?” She feigned nonchalance, despite her high color. He only grinned wider and leaned a bit closer to her.

                                                “Did you like what you saw, lirimaer [lovely one]?” His lips were so close to her ear that she could feel his breath against her skin. She tensed and swallowed hard, and surprisingly he stepped back. He studied her face for a moment, and then looked away briefly.

                                                “My apologies once more, my lady. That was crass and uncalled for. I have frightened you again, and that was not my intention.” He met her eyes as he spoke and she read the sincerity in them. “Please allow me to make amends by escorting you to your talan. You have my solemn oath that I will be on the best of behavior.” He bowed, and offered her his arm. She considered for a moment, then nodded her assent and took the offered arm. They walked the distance to her home in silence, stealing glances at each other. She halted them at the foot of the tree housing her parents’ talan, and turned to face him.

                                                 “Thank you, my lord, for the escort.” She paused, uncertain of what else to say.

                                                 “It was my pleasure and my priviledge, my lady,” he replied, bowing over her hand and kissing her knuckles lightly. He straightened, but made no move to depart. She regarded him for a moment, and then grinned cheekily at him.

                                                “Yes, I did.” He frowned, confused for a moment then laughed softly as he realized that she was finally answering his question. He grinned back, every bit as cheekily as she.

                                                “Well then, you have an open invitation to keep me company at the pools whenever I am there.” She blushed again, but laughed as she realized that he meant her no harm. “My lady, I cannot keep calling you ‘lady’ or ‘you’. Will you tell me your name?”

                                                “Aye, my name is Valilis. ‘Lilis to my friends.” She smiled again at him.

                                                “Am I to be one of your friends, then? I would like that very much, I think.” He had an odd look on his face then, as if this was nothing like what he was accustomed to.

                                                “Well, so long as you can mind your manners and not frighten me.” She was beginning to enjoy teasing him. He laughed again, the odd look lifting as if it had never existed. He had a wonderful laugh, she decided.

                                                 “I can but try, ‘Lilis. I make no promises on that as I can be quite an ogre at times, or so I am told.”  A ghost of a smile graced his lips. She drew herself up to her full height as she answered him in a facetious manner.

                                                  “I suppose that will have to do. I retain the right to chastise you, however, if you behave improperly.” He shook with mirth at that and it was a few moments before he could reply.

                                                 “Agreed. Now I shall have to bid you good night before we scandalize your neighbors. I do not wish to cause irreparable damage to your reputation.” He bowed, kissed her hand once more, and turned to leave.

                                                   “Wait, I have told you my name, but I do not know yours!” She called after him, as the realization hit her. He appeared to wince, but looked her in the eye squarely.

                                                   “My name is Thranduil.” With that he was gone, leaving her standing, open-mouthed with shock at the foot of the tree.