Maybe she’d just...check on the girl. She could slip into the house, have a peek, and slip back out and be on her way. No one would be the wiser. Sam had wanted her to meet this Mr. Frodo he kept talking about, but she’d really had enough of Hobbits after today. Sighing, wondering why this mattered even a little, she noiselessly entered the house. The warmth of it struck her immediately. She hadn’t realized she was cold. A fire crackled merrily in the great room, and she was drawn towards it, her long fingers extended, taking in the heat.

She didn’t know how long she’d been standing there, hypnotized by it. She wasn’t even sure what made her turn around. There was no sound, just a sudden feeling that she wasn’t alone. Her lips parted when she saw him -- the most beautiful creature she had ever beheld. And... an Elf! A... male Elf.

He was slightly taller than she, and his hair was almost as long. It was gloriously golden blond, and shiny. She wanted to touch it. His features were very fair. He had enormous blue eyes. And he was more well-dressed than any Elf she had ever encountered. Why weren’t there Elves like this in Ingra? If he lived there, she would never have wanted any more adventure than to know him.

Wait, what was she thinking? He might be beautiful, but he was still a stranger, and a male, and just what exactly was he doing in Merry and Pippin’s house at this hour?

“Who are you and what are you doing here?” they both spoke at the same time, both voices low and suspicious.

“I’m just checking on the girl,” she hissed at him. “The Hobbit girl. Are they looking after her?”

He nodded curtly. “They seem to be.”

Ciendriel relaxed. “Are you... are you a friend of theirs?”

He nodded again. “I am Legolas. Are you a friend of theirs?”

“Not as such. I found the Hobbit girl unconscious in the road and brought her here. I am... Ciendriel. Of Ingra.”

“Ingra?” his blue eyes grew wide. “But Ingra is just a legend. A band of Elves deep in the wood, led by a female...”

Cold pierced her. “I assure you -- it is a real place. Am I not proof of that?”

He smiled, and his smile was like sunshine. It made her knees weak. “I am not yet sure you are no more than a figment of my imagination.”

“I don’t understand you,...Legolas.”

Legolas moved forward and put his hand to her cheek. His hand was warm and she wanted to close her eyes and melt into his touch. He bent and put his mouth to hers. Without thought she opened her mouth and his tongue slipped inside without hesitation. Her own rose tentatively to meet his. He tasted like wilderness, like clover, like the deep heart of the forest. She wanted the kiss to go on forever.

And yet she pulled back, and she slapped him.

Instantly she was sorry. Confusion mounted in his eyes. He looked hurt and vulnerable... but not for long. All too quickly he looked angry, almost frighteningly so.

“Why?” he asked. One simple word. She opened her mouth to apologize and he shook his head, laying a long finger against her lips. “No,” he said softly, “Just tell me why.”

“I don’t know you,” she whispered against his finger.

He nodded. “You will,” he said. It was some sort of promise.

***

Angelica felt the mist beginning to melt around her. The heat was melting the mist. Heat created by the two invisible beings with the lovely voices. Merry and Pippin, who chattered on and on, though she was still having trouble figuring out the exact meanings of some of their words.

"Yes, Pip. Slide down there. Use your tongue, lad."

"Like a kiss, Merry?"

"Just so. Kiss her, like you would kiss me."

"Slide my tongue in, then?"

"That's what I said, Pippin."

Heat burst through Angelica. It radiated through her in lazy spirals. Slowly she became aware of her body as the mist grew pale and gray. There were hands on her breasts, tracing lazy circles around her nipples. Soft, curly hair was tickling her thighs as Pippin's tongue swirled eagerly over her most intimate spot. She let out a deep moan, then her eyes opened.

A mischievous face grinned at her. A Hobbit she didn't know, the one who was making her nipples hard as steel. He didn't take his hands from her breasts, and when her mouth dropped open in surprise, he kissed her. As Merry's tongue slid into her mouth, Pippin moved his in such a way that she lost control. Pleasure shuddered through her entire body. She wrapped her arms around Merry and kissed him back, just because it felt nice.

Merry lifted his mouth from hers, his eyes twinkling and bright. "She's awake!"

"She's awake!" Pippin fell off from his duties and slid up on the other side of her. "Hoorah!"

In seeming celebration, Merry leaned across her and kissed Pippin much in the same way he had kissed her. A little shock ran through Angelica as her mind raced to process all of this. Two males kissing each other?

"I thought only Elves did that," she tried to say, but her voice was too raspy to be clear.

"She's trying to talk, Merry," Pippin said, breaking their kiss. He was breathless, his eyes wide as he turned to stare at her. Angelica smiled at him and felt a little tremor go through her.

"We've been trying to wake you up for hours, lass," Merry said.

"What happened to you, miss?"

"An elf found you, lying face down in the road. She thought you might be a Shire Hobbit."

"She's not a Shire Hobbit, Merry."

"I know that, Pippin."

"Where's she from, Merry?"

"Why don't you ask her, Pippin?"

"Where are you from, miss?"

"What's your name, lass?"

"Angelica," she said, her voice still barely a whisper.

"Did she say Angelica?"

"She did, Pippin! Angelica. A perfectly lovely name."

"And you're Merry, and you're Pippin," she added.

They nodded, grinning. She thought they were the two most lovely creatures she had ever seen…but something sad niggled inside her, something that was breaking its way through the afterglow of pleasure.

"What is it?" Pippin whispered.

"I can't remember," she sighed.

"Can't remember what?"

"Anything."

***

After Ciendriel had slapped Legolas, they talked all night. Honestly, there had been little left of the night as it was, and the conversation had been embarrassingly punctuated with Hobbit moans, but Ciendriel had the thought, no doubt induced by lack of sleep, that if he tried to kiss her again, she might respond more kindly to it. Hearing her native Elvish language roll off of his lips was almost a sinful pleasure.

She had wanted to go up to check on her charge, but Legolas had insisted she let the Hobbits lie. She wasn't sure what all the moaning was about. Maybe the girl was in pain. Legolas had promised her that the other Hobbits were seeing to the girl's pain, so she had demurred.

Legolas had told her he was of Mirkwood, and she had excitedly revealed that she was on her way there, though she held back the fact that her mother was the Queen of Ingra. She didn't want his behavior towards her to change if he knew she was a princess. He had frowned, saying that he knew of no such call to the elves of Ingra from the elves of Mirkwood, but would readily take her there, as he was planning to head back anyway. Her heart pounded at the thought of him guiding her, the two of them, alone in the wild for days… He was too damned attractive.

She had never desired a male this way before. She thought scornfully of the few male elves of Ingra. They could not compare in beauty to this Legolas Greenleaf. She wondered if those "warriors" of her mother's would catch up with them before they reached Mirkwood. She hoped not. She wanted to explore this desire further.

"The sun is rising," Legolas said at last. They sat close together in front of the Hobbits' fire, which was nearly in embers. She hadn't even noticed the chill of it fading.

"Perhaps I might prepare them some breakfast," she said absently, standing up and looking around for the firewood.

"They'll love you forever if you do," Legolas said, smiling slightly. He stood up and stretched lithely, distracting her. "Though they don't care much for Elven food. I, on the other hand, would be delighted."

"Who said I'm making any for you?" she said, but she was teasing. He frowned, however, as if he were not sure.

Before she could enlighten him, the door burst open. A squat dwarf filled the bottom half of the doorframe, his eyes wild, his bushy hair and beard sticking out at all angles. He was carrying an axe, and looked fearsome. Ciendriel had her bow in her hand, an arrow knocked, and had put herself in front of Legolas before the dwarf could step from the door.

"Don't worry, I've got him," she hissed to Legolas in Elvish.

"No, Ciendriel, don't!" Legolas cried. He pushed her just as she fired, causing the shot to go wild. The arrow struck the doorframe, inches from the dwarf, who hadn't moved. "He's a friend!"

The dwarf dropped his axe in surprise, clearly not having been expecting to be attacked. His ruddy skin turned nearly magenta as he looked at her, looking more and more angry. Legolas took her bow out of her hands gently.

"A friend? That's a dwarf."

"That's a female!" the dwarf roared at Legolas in the same tone.

"Gimli, calm down," Legolas said softly.

"A female elf! And she tried to kill me!"

"He had an axe!" she exploded to Legolas. He looked like he was going to laugh, which only made her more angry. How was she supposed to know he had a dwarf of all things for a friend?

"I came to see if Merry and Pippin needed some firewood," Gimli roared.

"You meant to chop it with your battle axe?" Legolas asked pointedly. Ciendriel didn't think the dwarf could grow any more red.

"Legolas--" the dwarf sputtered, then finally finished with, "It's time to go. We need to be on the road."

"He's travelling with us?" Ciendriel asked in disappointment.

"What do you mean, us?" Gimli glared at her suspiciously.

"I'm taking her to Mirkwood," Legolas said with apparent calm, but his smile had faded.

"What about the harp?"

Was it her, or did Legolas look away from the Dwarf's eyes?

"The harp will wait. I thought you wished to see Mirkwood, anyhow." He sighed. "Ciendriel, this is Gimli, my companion. Gimli, this is Ciendriel of Ingra."

"I thought you said Ingra was a myth, Legolas."

"It's not," she snapped.

"I was wrong, apparently," Legolas said calmly. "Now, if you will just relax, Gimli, we can all have breakfast. We aren't going anywhere today. Tomorrow we'll depart for Mirkwood."

"Tell me I heard you say breakfast," Merry said, trotting down the stairs. He was fully dressed, groomed, and shiny-eyed. Ciendriel was impressed, as far into his cups as he had seemed to be last night. And he couldn't have gotten any more sleep than she had, which was none, what with all the chattering she had heard from upstairs.

"Merry!" Pippin, equally chipper, was right behind him. "Someone's shot our door!"

"SHE did it." Gimli pointed a knobby finger at Ciendriel. "She tried to kill me. Is this elf a friend of yours?"

"She brought us Angelica," said Merry.

"Oh, yes, then that makes her a friend," Pippin agreed.

"Angelica!" Ciendriel said. They must mean the female Hobbit. "Did she awaken, then? Is she all right?"

"She's had a wee knock to the noggin," Merry said.

"Can't remember anything but her name." Pippin shook his head sadly.

"Who is Angelica?" said Gimli irritably.

"Right. That's it exactly," Merry said.

"Now, about breakfast--" Pippin put in.

"Why don't you give her some elfinwort?" Ciendriel said, a little irritated herself. Did men never see the obvious solution? "Brewed properly, it clears amnesia right up."

"Elfin what?" Gimli growled.

"El-fin-wort," she snapped at him. "Honestly."

"It has healing properties," Legolas said thoughtfully. "But I wasn't aware it could be used as a memory restorative. Have you brewed it yourself, Ciendriel?"

"Certainly," she said proudly, her irritation melting under his cool words.

"Elfinwort makes a delicious salad," said Pippin, sighing.

"Too bad it doesn't grow near the Shire."

"It grows in profusion at Mirkwood. Is she well enough to travel?" Legolas asked.

"No and no and no. Travel with females? Legolas, what are you thinking?" Gimli exploded.

"You don't have to come," Ciendriel informed him. "I can't imagine why a dwarf would want to see an elvish city anyway."

"But Merry, I don't want them to take Angelica," Pippin said sadly.

"We'll go too, Pip."

Gimli groaned. Legolas only smiled slightly, once again. "Shall we invite Sam as well?"

"One Hobbit was enough. Five? We'll spend the whole trip making meals."

"Speaking of meals," said Merry, "If no one else is going to cook breakfast, I'll do it myself."

Ciendriel swayed on her feet. She was suddenly exhausted. This whole conversation had taken a greater toll on her than the entire night had. She hadn't slept in twenty-four hours, and her body was telling her that was enough. Legolas put his hands on her shoulders, steadying her. She was grateful for this, but too tired to thank him.

"Is Frodo awake?" Legolas asked Gimli.

"Of course. He's packing," Gimli said, suspicion still in his tone. "Why?"

"Why don't you help Merry make breakfast," Legolas replied lightly. "I'll be right back."

He steered Ciendriel out the door of the Hobbits' house.