Haldir glanced up at the tree that appeared to be talking to him. In reality, it was his brother, Orophin. “Come down here if you wish to address me. You are much too old for these games,” Haldir admonished.

Orophin sighed, took hold of the branch, and dropped down beside his brother. “I hardly wish to tell you at all now.”

“Just because you are a junior member of the guard, Orophin, does not mean you must act in such a manner. If you want to move through the ranks quickly as Rúmil and I have, then stop hiding in trees when you come to give news. Lady Galadriel informed me of the last incident.”

“Oh?” Orophin grinned, trying hard to look sheepish.

“Yes, how you suddenly decided to inform them of the latest orc attack by crawling up the Great Mallorn and onto their balcony. The tea stain on Lord Celeborn’s robes from the jolt you gave the poor lady was quite difficult to remove. If you do not wish to be put on notice, my brother, I suggest you leave the jokes and jests for your free days.” Haldir’s words were firm but kind. He placed his hand upon Orophin’s shoulder to show he was not angry, but merely concerned. “Now, you had news for me?”

“Aye. Your favorite Peredhel lord is being escorted into Caras Galadhon as we speak.”

“Really? I had no idea he was coming.” Haldir frowned, wondering why his lover had not sent word of his arrival ahead of time. “Did he say why he was here?”

“All he would say to us was that he was here for some very important business.”

Haldir’s mood darkened slightly. “Too important apparently to inform me that he would be here. He probably plans to be in day-long meetings and take his meals with the Lord and Lady.”

“Well, they are... er, were... his in-laws... at one time... or something.”

“They still are, technically speaking. The point is, he and I are together. I doubt he is sleeping with the Lord or the Lady. I know for a fact he is not currently with their daughter. He is with me. And as such, he should have at least the courtesy to let me know he was coming.” Haldir looked around the garden to be sure no one was listening. “A fine way to treat me. I always inform him when I shall be in Imladris, and plan for nothing but to be with him whilst I am there. The least he could do was send a note so that I did not need to find out from my brother.”

“Haldir, I am sorry, I assumed you knew he would be here.”

As he shook his head, Haldir wandered down the path away from the garden and into the woods. “I am going for a walk.”

“Would you like me to-“

“Alone, thank you.” Haldir disappeared into the dense cover of the forest.

Nearby, in another tree, an Elf of Rivendell was perched where he had heard the entire conversation. He had followed Orophin back, using the mellyrn for cover. Despite the safety of the woods when both Lady Galadriel and Lord Elrond were present, Glorfindel felt it his duty to do a bit of independent scouting of his own.

He traveled back again the way he came, and rejoined the party that moved slowly toward the city. Lord Elrond casually raised a brow at the golden Elf’s sudden appearance on the white horse that walked alongside the Peredhel’s steed. “Anything amiss, my friend?”

“Nothing for us to discuss amid the company of others,” said Glorfindel softly. Elrond frowned and slowed his horse. Glorfindel did the same, and the rest of the party began to pass by them. One of the guards paused, but he was waved on by Glorfindel, and continued with the rest. Once the party was some distance away, Elrond implored his seneschal with an inquiring look. “Your hidden hero has taken to the trees. He is rather upset you did not let him know you were coming. I was quite surprised to hear it myself; normally, even if you forget, Erestor reminds you of such things.”

“I never forget Haldir,” replied Elrond quickly, and perhaps a little harshly. “Why do you think I came here?”

“For some sort of drab meeting or dreary negotiation, I assumed.”

At this, Elrond smiled slightly. “Then why did you say ‘yes’ when I asked if you would be interested in a short holiday in Lothlórien?”

“I assumed ‘holiday’ was code for ‘drab meeting’ or ‘dreary negotiation’,” Glorfindel admitted. “I really must stop assuming.”

“I came on holiday. I did not say anything to Haldir, for I wanted to surprise him. He is always so kind when he comes to visit. With all the many things he could be doing in Imladris, his chief desire is to be with me. I cannot count the times he has offered to take the watch as the guard-at-arms when there is something of importance happening that I must be at, or the number of nights he sits with me until I have finished my work. I wanted, for once, to be the one to follow him around – though, I did work things out ahead of time with Galadriel so that he would be given time off while I was here. No need for me to spend the holiday chasing after someone who is hunting Orcs.”

“Oh.” Glorfindel nodded.

“I suppose it best now to try to find him before he hides himself so well in the forest that I am unable to track him down.” Elrond nudged his horse forward, and Glorfindel did the same with his mount.

The sky was dark by the time the lord and his seneschal reached the heart of Caras Galadhon, but it was less due to the coming of night and more so for the impending storm. Glorfindel looked up at the clouds churning in the heavens and offered his advice. “Perhaps you should wait until morning to seek him out.”

“That would be a terrible mistake. I am not about to let a little rain stop me.” Elrond dismounted as Glorfindel pointed out where Haldir had disappeared. “Please give my regards to Celeborn and Galadriel, but I have more important business to attend to than to pay my respects to them at the moment.” He removed his heavy riding cloak and draped it over his horse’s saddle, handing the reigns up to Glorfindel before he disappeared into the woods.

Despite the perplexity of the maze created by the trees that encircled the city, Elrond had navigated the forest a fair number of times on his own. He very much doubted it was so much a case of him tracking down Haldir, as it was for the warden to discover him wandering about, and hope that Haldir was either angry enough or forgiving enough to confront him.

- - -

After stabling their horses, Glorfindel proceeded to the Great Mallorn. His greetings to the lord and lady brought Elrond’s apologies as well, earning a smirk from Galadriel. Glorfindel shrugged slightly at this, but his eyes shifted away from them and to the royal guard. It was then that he furrowed his brow slightly upon catching the confused gaze of another.

“If Lord Elrond is not here to present himself, then I doubt the additional guardians are really necessary at the moment. No offense is meant to you, of course, Lord Glorfindel, but I have always been under the impression that you are not in need of extra protections for your own self.” Galadriel’s eyes twinkled somewhat mischievously.

“No, not really...” managed Glorfindel, slipping another look to his right, lest his mind have been deceived.

“In that case,” announced Celeborn, “the additional guard is dismissed for the day.” He added something about an invitation to dinner, which Glorfindel hastily accepted before excusing himself to catch the befuddled guard who was now moving away from the chamber.

“Haldir? Haldir?” Glorfindel rolled his eyes and cursed. “Warden, have the decency to slow down for a moment! I have been riding all day and have no time for games.” When Glorfindel caught up to the other warrior, he stopped with a sigh and spoke so no others could hear the conversation. “You will find my lord yonder, in the direction opposite you are going. He is seeking you in the forest.”

“What? And you let him?” Haldir bit his lip, realizing his misconduct, and took a step back saluting. “That is, sir, with all due respect, to let him off by himself in the woods is akin to madness, for one charged with his safety.”

“I thank you for calling me stupid with less bitter words than you initially used.” Glorfindel crossed his arms over his chest. “Might I remind you, warden, that your companion was a great soldier before he founded Imladris, and I will argue, still is. He can take care of himself in the woods, with his bare hands if necessary.”

This Haldir did not dispute, having sparred with Elrond on a number of occasions. It was actually how they had begun their friendship, for Elrond came to Lothlórien to escape his grief, and Haldir had offered combat practice on the council of Galadriel, to relieve Elrond’s sorrow. “What business does he have in the forest, save to get himself lost?”

“Have you not guessed already?” Glorfindel motioned around the great outdoor chamber used to receive guests and take council. “I see no other dignitaries or negotiators lounging about. If that is what you thought he came for, then perhaps you would be rightly served by a cold bed tonight.” The Elda turned and approached the lord and lady to walk with them to the dining hall.

Thunder crashed not so very far off, and Haldir changed his course in the direction that Glorfindel had indicated. If he was lucky, he thought, he might reach him before the rain began and save himself from the possibility of a Peredhel with a cold for the next week.

- - -

Elrond found, to his dismay, that he was now good and lost. “Any time you want to find me, Haldir, is fine by me,” he muttered, leaning against a tree he had passed a dozen times now. “Now would be good,” he called up into the branches, just in case the warrior had been trailing him all along.

Light crackled in the sky and the angry thunder followed. On the outskirts of the city, some of the trees had small flets built at a moderate height, but Elrond saw none of these. Another flash of lightning stabbed the clouds, threatening to tear them open. Elrond sighed, resigned to the fact he would be drenched by the time he made it back to the Great Mallorn.

After selecting one of the shorter trees with an adequate amount of foliage, Elrond sat down upon the ground with his back to the trunk. His stomach growled with disapproval at having wandered away from the city before eating or at least finding some provisions. Then again, he had never had the intention of staying in the woods for this long.

Errant drops began to fall, sprinkling their ground with silvery dew. Elrond reached for his cloak, to pull it closer, but then recalled having left it with his horse. “Does it have to rain *now*?” questioned Elrond to the heavens, and a streak of lightning followed by an enormous crash of thunder seemed to bring forth a resounding ‘yes’ from both Manwë and Ulmo on this matter.

“Perhaps if you had told me you were coming, you would not have found yourself in this predicament.”

Elrond looked up at where the voice came from to see Haldir perched on a branch overhead, one knee bent and the other leg dangling down. “If I had told you, it would have ruined the surprise,” argued Elrond back.

Haldir blinked. “I am a scout. I hate surprises. I loathe them. Surprises are merely deceptions, which I cannot stand.”

“It was not done to deceive you!” Elrond was standing now, looking for a way to get a good hold on the trunk, but he saw none. “I thought it would please you for me to come for no reason other than to see you.”

“It does,” Haldir said carefully, keeping his smile in check. He wanted so terribly to be angry with his lover, and yet, to watch Elrond circle the tree again and again in confusion was amusing. He decided not to explain just yet that he had climbed the next tree and leaped to this one. “Still, you might have made me aware.”

“And if I had, something unexpected would have happened and caused me to postpone or cancel. I did not want to take the chance of getting your hopes up only to disappoint you. This was the best way – surely you must understand that now.”

Haldir pretended to ruminate on the exchange, though in reality he had forgiven the Peredhel already. “I suppose I can agree with that,” he said finally as the rain fell harder.

“If you would be ever so kind, then, to either come down here or aid me in joining you?”

As he untied a length of hithlain from his belt, Haldir said, “I suppose next you shall ask me to share my supper with you?”

“That goes without asking,” Elrond informed him as one end of the rope dropped down to hang a few feet from the ground. It was easy climbing for the Elf-lord, who was still in prime shape despite those who assumed him to be delicate and unfit beneath his flowing robes. Some knew how much of a disguise the robes were; fewer still were aware of the firm, muscular body that was hidden underneath the fabric. In his riding clothes, it was easier to see he was as strong as the most of the members of the guard that accompanied him.

They ate silently once Elrond was situated beside Haldir on the branch. “I am happy you are here,” Haldir admitted as they finished, in case Elrond had thought otherwise. He leaned over after a slight hesitation and kissed Elrond’s cheek.

“Surely you can do better than that,” Elrond teased, initiating a second kiss himself.

As Elrond’s tongue teased Haldir’s lips to gain entrance, he forgot where he was and leaned a bit off balance. A tight grip on his shoulders saved him from a fall. “Of course I can do better, but I want to get back home without any broken bones.”

“I would suggest we travel back to the city, where no doubt there is a soft bed awaiting us, but that would lead to us getting wet. Then again,” added Elrond, giving Haldir a sensual, sideways look he only gifted the Sinda with, “it is not altogether dreadful to be thoroughly soaked to the skin, if one has said soft bed awaiting them, and someone to share it with.”

“And, of course, a soft bed is most pleasant after one has spent their energy traveling.”

“I assure you, I am far from spent,” Elrond said with a smile.

“Then we must remedy that, as soon as possible.” Any bitterness Haldir might have felt earlier at being uninformed of Elrond’s plans was very soon washed away as they climbed down from the tree and started back to the city. They were drenched in mere minutes and frequently one stopped to shove the other against a tree for a deep, intense kiss or something more passionate.

When they reached the city and were once again in the open, they were assaulted fully by the rain but cared not. With no one around to see, Haldir grabbed hold of Elrond’s hand and practically dragged him to the tree he lived in, lest Elrond should perhaps forget which one it was.

The talan offered them better comfort than the woods and protection from the rain. Clothing was peeled off and hit the floor with a splooshy, slapping noise. There was soon a pile of soppy garments, left to be wrung out later. The pair was more interested in each in exploring each other at the present time than they were with the impending laundry.

Haldir had hastily retrieved a bath sheet that they were using to simultaneously dry one another between kisses. At once Elrond laughed and tugged the cloth from Haldir’s hands. “Never mind a little dampness. As soon as we are dry, we shall sweat and soak the sheets once more. I have missed you for far too long to worry about a little water.”

It seemed Haldir agreed, or at least, the fact that he sat down upon the bed and beckoned Elrond to him made it appear so. A steady rhythm beat down upon the roof of Haldir’s home as they began to make love at the same tempo as the raindrops. The pace of the rain quickened; they, too, sped up. The thunder roared and rumbled; within the talan, they found release.