I fidgeted a little, putting my finger between my stiff collar and neck. Who ever invented this kind of shirt should be taken out and beheaded. The damn thing was like to strangle me and I watched Pip do the same thing with his so I knew that I'd have help in my quest to punish the idiot who was putting us through this.

"Stop that, love. It's not going to hurt you." Legolas smiled down at me and I wished I could just throw him over my shoulder and escape from this never-ending ceremony.

"You don't know that, you silly Elf. I think it's tightening whenever I breathe in." I cursed under my breath ferociously.

"Hold still, my stubborn Dwarf." He peered down the back of my neck then did something to it that eased it completely. "Better?"

"You are a prince among Elves, Legolas. Do you think you could fix Pip's, too?" I stretched a little for the first time since we'd come out here to the field to attend the coronation of the new king. If there was any justice in Middle-earth, he had on the same damn collar we did under his black and silver mail.

He chuckled and slipped over beside the Hobbits. All of them relaxed almost at once when he went behind each one doing his magic. My Legolas is a most canny Elf and I looked forward to peeling him out of his white tunic and breeches. Looking down at my own tunic, I kept my snort of disbelief to myself. White didn't suit me at all and white velvet was just adding insult to injury.

Legolas returned to my side and I thought how beautiful he looked, like a fine beech bow glowing in the sun. I'd brushed his hair until it shone and spent long moments braiding it off his face. But I left it loose a little over the tops of his ears for I had no wish to share with any of these Men the beauty of his delicate points. He'd returned the favor to me, brushing my hair until it gleamed then braiding it down my back like an inky river down my spine.

Actually, I thought all of us looked quite wonderful. All eyes were on the King as they should be and I watched while Faramir brought out the white crown and offered it to him. But Aragorn handed it back and gestured to Frodo to take it and give it to Gandalf. That was fitting, I thought approvingly. Without the two of them, we'd have all ended up orc-chowder. Now if we could just hurry along and get to the good part of this celebration.

The beer! Not to mention the feast that had been cooking for the last three days.

I had it easy, I thought while we all trailed into the City we'd been living in for several weeks. I was a Dwarf and expected to frown and look stern. Maybe I could sneak away and get out of these silly clothes. Legolas had it much worse since they expected him to be the all-knowing mysterious Elf of legend. His smile was mesmerizing and everyone who was blessed by it tended to shake their heads and gaze longingly back at him.

On second thought, I'd better stay very, very close to him and practice my scowl on those idiots. I just hoped we didn't have to stay and listen to all the speeches. There were sure to be lots of them. I groaned pitifully to myself and hoped for a cushion for the stone seats in the great hall where the dignitaries were meeting. And a mug of beer before they started.

It was going to be a long, long day.

******************

I hummed to myself while I watched Legolas laugh at Merry's joke. The Fellowship had reunited for a private party after the day long celebrations. Up in the tower where the late Lord Denethor had lived, Aragorn had moved in and begun to make the place his own. Faramir had joined us for our memories of his brother and it seemed fitting that we were nine once again.

Sam sat on the hearthrug; his legs spread with Frodo between them and nestled against him. Merry and Pip were an arm length away in the same position. All the Hobbits had kept drinking the surprisingly good beer but at some point, I'd switched to something from a dark bottle that lightened my spirits considerably and almost made up for the longwinded speeches that had lasted most of the day.

Gandalf had a pint of something blue in his glass mug while Faramir and Aragorn were toasting each other with the same dark brew that I was drinking. My Elf was abstinent but then he usually was. He sat on the hearth stone near the Halflings, teaching them an Elven song that sounded almost familiar. Aragorn joined in on the chorus and I thought to myself that he'd never looked this relaxed before.

"Look," Faramir's muffled voice came from a corner of the room where he was rooting around in a dark cupboard. "More bottles."

I got up to help him investigate the new supply of drink and we pulled out six dusty bottles of varying shapes and sizes. One of them was an intriguing six-sided bottle of some deep hued color with a fragment of label. "Who or what is Varya?"

Legolas looked up. "Varya was the name of one of the earliest Elf Clans. The name of their wood was Varyana. They were known for their healing cordials. The few recipes that remain are among Elrond's most treasured scrolls."

Aragorn took it from me and brought it closer to the light. "Most of the label is gone but the seal is still good. Gandalf, do you know anything about the Varyans?"

"They were renowned throughout the First Age for the healing centers that were open to all. The Varyan Healers were masters of herbology. They often combined herb lore and magic together to help those afflicted with mortal wounds or diseases." He laid aside his pipe and his empty tankard to take the bottle from Aragorn. "The seal is intact but that doesn't mean that the contents still couldn't have evaporated."

Faramir already had the corkscrew ready. I like a Man who's prepared. Gandalf shrugged and handed it back to him. Moments later, the sound of a pop resounded through the room and it felt like a warm wind swept around us. The scent was not quite flowers or any herbs I'd ever smelled but rather the hint of green growing things after a
Spring rain. Everybody perked up and watched Faramir pour some into an empty glass on the ornate oak table that already held quite a few empty bottles.

It was a deep purple when he held it up to the candelabra. Aragorn took it from him and hesitantly sipped. A look of disgust wrinkled his whole face and he handed it to Gandalf.

The old wizard took a small amount and shook his head. "Interesting."

Legolas was next but instead of making a face, he smiled delightedly and emptied the glass. "But no, it's delicious. More."

"Really?" Faramir refilled it and took a sip but his reaction mirrored his king's.

I took it next and just took a drop. "Sharp ... almost acidic. Not for this Dwarf."

Pip tried it next but he grimaced. "Just like Dr. Dooworthy's potions."

Merry was after him and he obviously agreed with his mate. "The good doctor always said that it had to taste bad to work. I'll bet this really works."

Sam tried it next and frowned. "It's got nettles in it and maybe heart's ease."

Frodo sat up and took the last mouthful. His eyes lit up and he smiled broadly. "No, Legolas is right. It tastes delicious. Like ... like a summer day when the sun is warm but not hot and there's a cool breeze from the river."

My lover nodded. "Quite right, Frodo. Hand over that bottle, Faramir. Since it's not to any of your tastes, Frodo and I will see that it doesn't go to waste."

I shook my head fondly and went back to drinking the dark liquor that Faramir called brandy. And hour went by while stories were told and laughed or cried over. I was on the hearthrug with Legolas between my legs, leaning back against me. He and Frodo had finished the purple cordial and now had a tendency to break into song and poetry at the oddest moments.

Never having seen an Elf in his cups before, I watched Legolas' sunny humor turn silly. He and Frodo made a series of puns that grew progressively more bawdy as time went on. Legolas' fingers began to play with mine and suddenly, right in front of everybody he began to kiss each of my fingers. The shock of it went straight to my groin and I was suddenly rock hard.

He noticed, of course, and the smile he gave me over his shoulder heated my blood further. My Elf always smelled good to me but right then he smelled of desire and love. In a smoky low voice, he whispered in my ear. "Gimli, take me home and fuck me into the mattress."

I almost came right then and there. Standing up, I pulled him up with me. "Time for bed, my friends. Tomorrow will come all too early."

Legolas rose beside me and tossed a bewilderingly beautiful smile over his shoulder. The temperature in the room went up about a hundred degrees and I saw identical looks of lust on Gandalf, Aragorn and Faramir's faces. I would have growled but just then, Frodo jumped up, too.

"Time for bed, Sam. Let's go now." The sultry smile on his face matched the one my lover wore and it looked like Sam had the same reaction that I was having with Merry and Pip not far behind.

We left in a rush and almost ran down the stairs to fourth level. With hasty goodnights, we separated for our own rooms. I no more had the door closed and locked behind us then Legolas began stripping out of his pretty white velvet outfit. His languid movements fired my blood and I ripped off my own clothes, leaving them where they fell.

"I think I know what that cordial was for, sweet Gimli." He crossed to the bed and stretched sinuously before lying down. His eyes drew me across the room and into his arms. "I think it was a love potion and it's working. Fuck me now. Fuck me hard."

His kiss burned through me like a firestorm of desire. He was hot and achingly open to me and I almost dropped the bottle of oil that we kept by the bed. The need to take him warred with my need to not hurt him and I barely had him stretched before he rolled me onto my back and sat down on me with a single thrust that made him howl.

The first bout was hard and fast, his muscles flexing around me while I thrust up with all my strength. We came together but if I'd thought to rest, I was sadly mistaken. He leaned in and kissed me savagely, almost drawing blood with his nip at my lower lip. A purr from deep in his throat hardened me in a heartbeat. Then his fingers pinched my nipples and it was my turn to howl.

"More, Gimli. Don't hold back your passion from me." His pupils were so wide that little color remained. "Love me with all of you."

I rolled him onto his back and split his legs apart to come back inside of him. One thrust and I'd impaled him on my re-hardened cock. He writhed beneath me, panting my name over and over again. Digging my toes into the mattress, I began to stroke in and out of him with the hard, pounding thrusts I'd been afraid to give him. But he'd known that I was holding back and his moans were triumphant when I gave him what he wanted.

He'd never felt this hot before nor so tight and I was rapidly loosing what little rational thought I had left. My fingers were going to leave bruises on his legs but it didn't seem to matter to him. Each thrust felt deeper to me until it felt like I was going to come so far inside that I'd never find my way out. Suddenly he burst between us and that pulled my seed from me with a hard burst that made me lightheaded.

Sighing, I fell forward into his arms, which came up to cradle me against his heaving chest. The silence was electric and I had a sudden vision of the entire palace listening to our cries of ecstasy. My cheek rested near a nipple and I swiped it with my tongue with the very last of my energy. I slipped from him and he moaned a low sob that raised the hair on the back of my neck.

"Legolas?" I rose to look at him and his eyes were wet.

"More, Gimli, please give me more." He practically sobbed. "I need all of you now, right now."

"Beloved, I've emptied two of my balls tonight and the third will do you no good." It had been over fifty years since I'd emptied all of them and that had been with Griselda. I truly didn't know if I could get it up again without a rest.

"Please, my love, fill me again. I need you so badly." He was panting and beginning to flush from his pretty toes all the way up to his delicate ears. "Please more, love, please. Give me that beautiful cock again. I'll help."

He slithered out from under me while I sat back on my heels and wondered at his insistence. That old cordial must have grown more potent with age, I decided. But then his mouth was sucking insistently on my spent shaft and wonder of wonders, I was rising again. Leaving me finally, hard and aching, he sat up and kissed me with a little more love and a little less passion.

I cupped his face in my callused hands and held him there while our tongues met and danced from my mouth to his and back again. His fingers kept stroking me with his slippery seed until I caught fire again. He turned and went to all fours, his spasming pucker inviting me in for the third time. No preparation was needed and I slid in with a sigh of relief. His sigh echoed my own and we stayed like that for a long moment before I began to rock in and out of his clutching channel.

For some reason, impatience left us both and I settled in for the long smooth strokes that we liked best. My body burned a little hotter with each thrust and he seemed to tighten around me like a clinging leather glove. Within a few moments, he was moaning again.

"So good, beloved, so very good. Deeper, Gimli, fill this empty space inside of me. Oh, yes, there, my virile love. More, my sweet dwarf, remind me that I am the lover of the most powerful male in this whole ... fucking ... palace." He growled just a little and that sound went straight to my cock.

Gripping his slender hips with my hands, I began to thrust harder while targeting his sweet spot. He keened aloud and pushed back wantonly. My vision began to blur and the world grew smaller but more intense. We were the only two people who existed. All I knew was tight heat and a pulse that grew louder in the stillness of our bed. Both of us were growling and the urge to come was growing with each passing moment.

The need to mark him came to me between one heartbeat and the next. I looked at his lean back, shining now with the sweat of our lovemaking. Just under the left shoulder blade, his skin called to me. Leaning in with a hard thrust, I licked the patch of skin then bit down hard enough to draw blood.

He howled and clenched so hard around me that I buried myself in his channel and for the first time in years, emptied my third ball. Legolas passed out and fell to the wrinkled sheets, taking me with him. Glued to him with sweat and seed, I rested along his back, still lodged deep inside. My brain didn't seem to want to do anything but relive the amazing events of the last few hours. That was one Haven of a love potion, I thought tiredly. Under my ear, the reassuring sound of his slowing heart sent me right to sleep.

*******************
The end for now