Part Thirty-Nine

"So…" Elladan said, looking at Legolas and Haldir now that the three of them had been left alone in the Prince's bedroom. "What are you going to do with me?"

Haldir sat in the bed, covered only by a sheet. Legolas was dressed in the leggings he had been wearing earlier, though he had pulled them up and tied them, and a tunic. Elladan flashed back on the image of him chained to the dungeon wall. The thought made heat spiral through him. No, definitely not the time for it. Would he never learn?

He tugged at the manacle which secured him to the wall. It did not budge. At least he was only chained by one wrist, he thought. He stood to the right of the bed, unable to reach it. He wished he could sit down. No, it did not matter. Surely Legolas would set him free fairly quickly. After all, the pair of lovers would want to be alone.

And it was a shame, Elladan thought. They were both beautiful. For a moment he admired Haldir. Despite his irritated expression, the elf of Lórien was handsome, with his straight nose, full lips, and piercing eyes. He had a more serious and mature look than either of his tender-faced brothers. Elladan thought regretfully of Orophin. He had not meant to hurt the younger elf so spitefully. Part of him regretted his ill-timed taking of Rúmil in the wood on the spider hunt.

Rúmil was a good elf as well, Elladan reminded himself, and now Elladan had likely lost his affection as well. He was not doing very well lately, he thought. Just about the only elf here who did not wish to kill him was his twin brother, Elrohir.

Legolas looked at Elladan warily. "Trust me when I say to you, Elladan, that having you chained to my bedroom wall is as much a punishment for me as it is for you."

"Then the matter is easily solved. Release me."

"Release him only if he gives a solemn oath not to touch you against your will ever again," growled Haldir.

"I will do that," said Elladan. "I believe I have quite lost my taste for taking advantage of the helpless, having had the positions reversed."

"You have not the faintest idea of what it was like for me," Legolas snapped.

"I apologize," Elladan said yet again, starting to become irritated himself. How many times was he going to have to say that he was sorry? He knew he had made a mistake. "If there is some other way you wish me to atone…"

"I could whip you," Legolas said.

Elladan felt a chill of fear at the determined look on the Prince's face. He glanced at Haldir, who had shifted in the bed and was grinning as if he liked this idea. Elladan tugged at his restraint again. It made a rusty squeal.

"You would not dare."

"Why not? Do you think anyone would stop me? You are at my mercy just now, Elladan."

"My father would not stand for it."

"My father would not allow him to protest."

Legolas picked up a whip from one of the tables. Elladan saw that the Prince had quite an arsenal of weapons at his disposal in here. Bows, arrows, knifes of assorted sizes, a sword… no wonder his father had wanted him to take a lover. Legolas twirled the whip in his hand, then cracked it against the stone floor. The sound echoed loudly through the room and Elladan jumped in terror, yanking again at his restraint.

"Please, Legolas," he said, ashamed of himself for begging. "Do not!"

"I have never used this on another elf before," Legolas said, sounding amused. He cracked the whip again and moved slowly towards Elladan.

"I would not have thought this of you," Elladan said with a dry mouth. He rattled the chain of his restraint again, pulling as hard as he could. With a groan and a shower of rust, a length of chain came forth from the wall. Elladan lost his balance and fell onto the bed, which the chain easily reached. His dark hair fell over his eyes, and when he brushed it aside, he found himself face to face with Haldir.

"All right, that is enough," said Haldir. He rose out of the bed in his splendid naked glory, went to the Prince. Elladan flipped over onto his back so as not to be lying on the chain. His left arm remained manacled to the wall. Haldir took the whip away from Legolas and Elladan felt supremely grateful to him.

"I was not really going to whip him," Legolas said.

"I know."

"I just wanted to make him feel what I felt in that dungeon. Fear."

"You certainly have achieved that," Elladan said, irritated that his terror had been in vain.

Haldir enfolded Legolas in his arms and tossed the whip on the floor. Elladan watched as the big elf of the Galadhrim brought his mouth down on the soft lips of the Prince, kissing him with so much passion, so much tenderness, that Elladan felt himself responding. He groaned.

"There are other ways to torture someone, ways that leave no marks upon the skin," Haldir said, his hands sliding under Legolas' tunic. "Ways to tease, ways to taunt, ways to promise fulfillment that can only be granted at your whim."

"I was blindfolded…"

"Then blindfold Elladan."

"He touched me."

"So touch him…however you wish."

"This is a punishment?" Elladan blurted out.

"Oh, it will be," Haldir said so confidently that Elladan shivered.

"Haldir…" said Legolas, looking confused, "I admit that the prospect does intrigue me, but it is you that I love. It seems wrong to touch another."

"I love you as well, my Prince. Yet you are young and have much to learn. Do you think Elladan loves you?"

"No."

"And yet he touched you… You are attracted to him, are you not?"

"Yes," Legolas admitted.

"Then you may use him as he used you, and it will not change what lies between us at all."

"Very well," said Legolas, "But you must play, too, Haldir."

For the first time in many hundreds of years a blush stained Elladan's cheeks. A great shame welled in him as he realized that the way Haldir and Legolas were treating him now was not only how he had treated the Prince, but Rúmil and Orophin and countless other elves at home. He was their plaything. He meant nothing but a few hours amusement to them.

He would never mean anything to anyone, he thought bitterly. He no longer felt lust, or amusement, or even fear. Haldir kissed Legolas again and Elladan could see the affection between them. He felt bitterly jealous.

They let go of each other and turned back towards Elladan, Haldir looking wicked and Legolas licking his lips.

"I wonder if there isn't another restraint on the other side of the bed," Legolas said. "My father is not one to do things in half-measures."

It turned out that there was another restraint, indeed.