#and Gil's breathing

[softquietsteadylove]

Pleaseeeee we need more from the ghost file AU! It’s underrated and funny!

(as always, credit must be shared with @taran-chan who co-authored the first entry and shares custody of this AU with me)

"Hey, Thena?"

"Yes?"

"Why do I do this to myself?"

She smiled into her walkie-talkie. Gil was camping out upstairs while she was on the ground floor. He had initially said that he should be on the ground floor in case someone broke into the house. Then she said that the upper floor was likely more haunted and then he had fallen on that sword instead.

He was very protective, for a giant walking fraidy-cat.

"I wouldn't know the answer to that," she answered back, the click of the walkie's signal punctuating each sentence for her.

"Are you, um," he paused, and she heard the rustling of his sleeping bag. "Are you okay, down there?"

Ah, sweet Gilgamesh. Every hunt, she volunteered to come with him, and every hunt, he worried about her endlessly. She shifted in her own sleeping bag, "I'm fine Gil--are you?"

There was a bit of a silence on his end, because of course he was terrified. He hated doing solo investigations, even though that was always when he got his best evidence (when she wasn't there to corroborate the story).

"I know it's just an old house," he muttered, clearly sharing with her what he had been telling himself endlessly. "It makes...sounds."

"All old buildings do," she agreed, turning onto her back to stare up at the ceiling. Gil was up there, curled up on the carpet in the old bedroom of the woman who had died suddenly in full health on halloween night two hundred years earlier.

"The door's locked, right?"

"Yes," Thena laughed faintly, and he heard him grumbling about how lightly she took things on their hunts. "Gil, I'm safe."

"I just," he sighed and even clicked the walkie in the middle of his strenuous sentence. "I would feel a lot better if I could see you."

Thena shook her head on her pillow. Sweet, sweet Gilgamesh, with his charming words; and he wondered how she kept agreeing to late night ghost hunts with him. "I know, me too."

"What if-"

Thena looked at the walkie, but he never continued his statement. She clicked in, "Gil?"

"Ah, it's nothing."

She pursed her lips, sitting up now. It wasn't as if it wasn't creepy in the old, boarded up house she had broken them into for the night. But she didn't quite see things in the shadows and hear voices in the wind the way Gil did. "Gil?"

"It's okay, I'm sorry if I woke you up."

Thena reached for her phone and maglight, already shimmying out of her sleeping bag. "Do you want me to come up?"

She could practically imagine the look on his adorable face, lips all pouted and big brown eyes. He clicked in, "you don't have to."

"I'm coming up, Gil," she laughed, pulling her boots on again. "It's pretty late anyway. If you don't have much evidence by now I think the rest of the night will be quiet."

"Okay."

He sounded so excited.

Thena walked up the stairs, listening to every creek and moan. Gil was so expressive, always wearing his heart on his sleeve. She adored that about him. "Almost there."

She walked towards the first bedroom on the right, her feet creaking the floorboards. She knocked on the door, hearing a wobbly, "Thena?"

Gil was wrapped up in his sleeping bag, his flashlight on and pointed at the ceiling like a kid scared to go to sleep at camp. She shook her head, "what happened to lights off, hm?"

"Not tonight," he rustled around, emerging from the sleeping bag enough to look at her. He sighed, "you're a sight for sore eyes."

Thena rolled her eyes, "you're just saying that because you're scared that woman is going to appear at the foot of your sleeping bag."

"Well, I am now!"

She laughed as he unzipped the side of it and sat up properly, "I'm kidding Gil."

He pouted at her, holding the unzipped flap open, "just get in here."

Thena blushed. She had left her sleeping bag downstairs. She hadn't even thought about it--maybe she had just thought she would just come up and calm him down. Or maybe she imagined he would be so ready to leave that he would pack up and leave immediately.

"Come on," he urged, even moving the flashlight to beckon her closer. "It's chilly!"

Thena crept closer, tucking herself against his back at first to take off her boots again. "Gil, don't you-"

"Eep!"

A moan ran through the old house and that was all the excuse Gil needed to pull her into the sleeping bag with him, curling his arms around her and even tucking her smaller feet between his own.

"We've been in a lot of houses, but this one really takes the cake," he muttered against her hair, holding her against him like a full sized comfort toy.

Thena blinked, completely pressed into his chest as his hands rubbed circles in the back of her shirt. His sleeping bag was so much warmer than hers.

Gil settled himself more comfortably, finally turning the flashlight off and nestling his cheek against the top of her hair. "Okay, I'm beat. Wake me up if that ghost lady comes by."

"'Kay," Thena just barely managed to squeak out, and her voice was high and squeaky as she said, much to her own horror. She couldn't possibly sleep with her heart beating like this. It was the most adrenaline she'd had in her system all night.

"Hey," he whispered, and it was not helping her forget how close they were.

"Y-Yeah?" she whispered back, only because he couldn't see her face and how terribly flustered she felt.

"You know I couldn't do this without you, right?"

His arms tightened around her, and her hands gripped the back of his flannel in reflex. He was so warm, and he felt so strong, but also soft. Her eyes fluttered, "I know."

"Good," he sounded like he was smiling. He nuzzled her forehead until he could press his lips to it. "I just want you to know how happy I am that you're here."

Thena pressed herself even deeper into his chest, as if he and the ghosts could all see her falling even harder for him in real time. Her hands clung to him as she straightened out her curled spine, really cuddling against him. "I'm happy to be with you, too."

She heard him chuckle in the dark, and her blush intensified. That wasn't what he meant.

"Good," he sufficed to say. "Get some sleep."

She nodded against him, done trying to talk and formulate words with him saying such bone-meltingly sweet things. "Night."

[souredfigs]

Anyways TROP S2 drops August 29

[lovesitcomsandgaystuffs]

biblical accurate oz & gil interaction

[royaltea000]

we know that alfred is insane over gil, but is gil insane over anyone? it doesnt have to be the degree of insane alfred is

Gil is insane overall so it’s very hard to spot a difference when he’s being more so but I like to think, as all unhealthy sibling relationships go in this series - that he’s obsessed with Ludwig. Not to the extent that Ludwig is fixated on him but he’s very much an overbearing helicopter parent in his own trying to make it seem like I don’t give a shit way. He’s calmed down sooo much in modern times but I Know that boy was going through like no less than 20 lessons a day when he was born

[whumpybobbert]

Trust like the Wind - Chapter 1 - Hopeful_Foolx - The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power (TV 2022) [Archive of Our Own]

Elrond sickfic rec! This thing has it ALL you guys! Hiding an illness, betrayal from friends, said friends trying to apologize but failing because Elrond is hiding his illness, grief, fever, delirium, difficulty breathing, gruff/stoic character doing tender caretaking, worry, fever visions... I could go on, but I think those are the main ones.

I think it's even pretty readable outside of fandom context! It's well written, hurts my soul, and everyone should read it! Written by @celebrimbor-apologist (who I believe also has a whump blog here?) as well as several other really good stories.

[aellyne]

@kdramaspace + @userdramas YEAR IN REVIEW 2022 | Masterclass in Acting (male)

In this chaotic world and dramatic reality, the only thing that separates us from evil might be our ability to comfort people’s hearts.

KIM NAM GIL as SONG HA YOUNG in THROUGH THE DARKNESS (2022)

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

The more that is going on around you, and in the world at large pressing upon us (and there is a lot going on, right?!), the more necessary it is for us to consciously self-regulate, so that we are not literally pulled apart by forces outside of ourselves. Fortunately we have some very effective leverage-points for auto-regulating the state of our nervous system that are available to us 24/7.

Breath, for instance, is a direct access whereby you can consciously interact with the unconscious autonomic processes of our habitual states. These states can easily and inadvertently become entrained to external forces rather than our highest intentions for ourselves. If you notice you are feeling "off," that is half the battle! Before laying blame for that feeling on what someone else said or did, or on the larger and very real issues facing the world in any given moment, believe for an instant that in spite of all those that, you are capable of feeling better, and are more capacitated to deal with all those things, when you have directly addressed your own internal state of affairs. Then pay attention to your breath.

Feel your the way that at the "bottom" of your exhale, there is a quiet moment where nothing is going on at all. That's a brief nourishing vacation from it all during which your nervous system can adjust. Then notice that with no effort at all on your part, your lungs suddenly begin to fill with no effort at all on your part as the air, that nourishing spirit, rushes in and reshapes you and moves you. Observe that flashing pause at the top of that free-fill-up when, like at the peak of a roller coaster, you are neither going up nor down, but just taking in the expansive view afforded from that place. Then feel the air rush from you, again without effort, a model for "letting go," freed from constraints internal or otherwise.

This is not a "breath exercise" but rather a process of intentional self awareness in the space of the unconscious. When we choose to walk between the worlds like that, even for just a few cycles of breath, we can shift our state.

[Gil Hedley]

[michyeosseo]

Is there no CCTV? What would you do if someone saw us?  – Why would there be a security camera inside a hospital room? And if someone did see us, it is only natural for a daughter-in-law to be at her mother-in-law's bedside.

Yoon Hae Young and Choi Myung Gil as JANG SE-MI & BAEK DO-YI LADY DURIAN (2023) 1.08

[grassbreads]

Actually full disclosure, not to be a fake Mochijun fan, but the reread I finished this week was the first time I've read Pandora Hearts in its entirety since I was a teenager, and MAN it hits different now that I'm not fourteen.

I don't have the brain capacity to get into all of it now, but man. man. Experiencing the back half of Pandora Hearts with adult eyes and comparing that to your teenage half-memories is a wild time.

It's also very funny that my favorite character went from Oz to Gilbert given that I started reading this series for the first time when I was a year or two younger than Oz, and now I'm Gil's exact age.

[hollygl125]

[softquietsteadylove]

I just had an evil idea. What if one day Gilgamesh finally had to make good on his promise to kill Thena if the Mahd Wy'ry ever took over her completely? Maybe he deals with it alone or one of the others finds him, up to you. I know you're good with angst so this should be painful

Gil's chest constricted. He felt like he couldn't breathe. He just stared, trying to wrap his head around what was happening. "No...n-no, I-"

The Deviant--the demonic entity facing him dropped its shield onto the jungle floor. Its vines had reached around the Strongest Eternal and retrieved something to serve as a defense. It was a wall of flesh, used only to absorb the shock of a punch.

The body rolled and tumbled, limbs dead weight, blonde hair falling lightly in comparison. Her eyes were still open, and the white colour that had been fogging them cleared to reveal their usual green. It was dark, and they no longer held their shine. The Warrior Eternal was dead.

Gilgamesh's chest puffed as he tried to breathe. He couldn't. What he was seeing didn't make any sense to him. The face of Thena, his lifelong partner, was staring up at him. But it wasn't her. It didn't look like her. His powers dissipated, sparks of gold disappearing into the still and heavy air, a minimal light in the growing dark.

"That is truly a shame," the devil lamented. "Her powers would have been one of the most useful to me."

Gil couldn't understand the words it was saying either. He knelt--fell to his knees. He reached slowly, delicate as he grasped the shoulder of the woman he loved. "Thena?"

She had no response. Her body was heavy as he lifted her into his embrace. He had snapped her spine, destroyed it in a way even an Eternal wouldn't survive. Maybe it was the most merciful way, with Mahd Wy'ry clouding her mind and that thing holding her, maybe she hadn't known it was he who had landed the killing blow.

He didn't know if it was better if that thing was the last she had seen, or if it would have been better for her to see him, only for him to end her life the way he had. As violent as the nature of their powers were, he never wanted to turn that force unto her. Even in all his years thwarting the attacks of her episodes, he always did his best to protect her and himself.

"Oh, Thena," Gilgamesh whimpered. His breath still came sparingly, his throat constricted far too tight. He cradled her head against his chest, the way he would if she were merely having a terrible dream. He ran his fingers through her hair as he watched the golden lines of her energy pull away from her skin, leaving the grey remains of the physical body.

Gold glittered the air again as the Warrior Eternal's life left her in the last way possible. Their own took cautious and unbelieving steps towards them.

"Gil!"

He felt the vines of that thing at his back. Horrific appendages made to do worse than end life: made to steal it. He set Thena down gently, unwilling to cause her any more unrest.

The trees quivered as he turned, roaring out the energy building up in his body. Rage and grief coursed through him as he turned and grabbed the creature. His hands were more than capable of crushing through its flesh, no matter what being of natural make or nightmare of the stars. He ripped its arms from its body.

Gilgamesh arched his hands up. He watched the shadow of his sledgehammer fists stretch over the beast's face before he brought them down. The forest blew back from the impact, even more than the last time he'd landed a punch like this. And he kept going.

Every hit, every strike, every scream he let out of his lungs for a loss of what else to do, that thing would suffer. He would make something incapable of death experience the loneliness of pain. He would make it understand what it meant to be alone--what it meant to fear.

The ground impacted from his strength. He continued. He swung his fists, the air bending around him, compressing and bursting, gold streaking through the dusk as he swung at it like an animal fighting for its life.

The thing was dead. He didn't care. He wanted it to be no more. He wanted to beat it down so small that it disappeared into the wind or bled into the core of the earth. His strength would prove that it was still good for something. Now that he had failed to protect his greatest love, he would enact the greatest punishment he could.

"Gil, stop it!"

They were calling him, but he couldn't hear them. He couldn't understand what they were saying. He kept seeing Thena's lifeless face, the feeling of her Cosmic Energy fading into nothing. Now that there was no more Thena, he didn't even feel like he was on Earth anymore. There was nothing to center and anchor him. He felt as if all of his senses had been shut off and there was only pain remaining.

He had never been without Thena's energy to match the rhythm of his, not in all their millennia together. And now, all the air in his lungs was gone, his blood was no longer flowing because his heart was empty and void. He was afloat, trying to follow what remained of Thena in pure stardust.

Gilgamesh roared one last time as he tore the thing apart. What was once its body cavity was forced open with his fingers like an agate, revealing its jagged insides. Its arms were strewn and its head simply was no more. And yet still looking at it only made him want to do more.

"That's enough," his brothers attempted to pull him away, out of the crater he had created.

He turned away, throwing them off of him. He walked back to Thena, laid where he had left her. Her sisters were leaning over her precious body, but he waved them away.

He picked her up again, cradling her head and her poor, broken back. He held her delicate shoulders, which used to curl into him, seeking his warmth. His fingers slid into the depths of her thick blonde hair. She already felt cold.

His tears fell onto her. Once her hand would wipe them away, but now it lay limp beside her. He rocked them back and forth, his body now unsteady without anything real at all for connection. He pressed his cheek to her hair, "my Thena."

He could hear their family moving behind him. They were building a fire, to release her body, to follow her Cosmic Energy back to the stars and their home. But he held her tighter.

You may have to kill her; that was what they once said. And he had said that was a chance he was willing to take. Because he would take any chance in the world to be with his Thena even one more day. And for beings without natural death, he didn't take it lightly.

But this wasn't right. He didn't want to build her a funeral pyre. He didn't want his eyes to watch a fire consume the life of a woman whose every second and minute and hour he would weave into a beautiful tapestry of if he could.

They should have been home. They would have been in Australia, at the home they had built together. He would bury her in the warm, red sands, under the tree she liked. Life without her would be pain but at least he could continue his mission.

His mission was never to protect earth. It wasn't to kill Deviants or serve some far away god. His mission was to protect Thena. It was to love and cherish the woman who had been by his side from the moment he opened his eyes. And he would have spent the rest of Eternity protecting her, until Earth ripped itself in half to mercifully swallow him up into oblivion.

They expected him to give her up. But this was the woman he loved. He held the body of his wife, as preciously as he would on any day, or any night.

Thena had once said that she didn't want to be the one to kill him. She had begged him to kill her first. He had never agreed, because he didn't want to lie to her, but he didn't think he was capable either. He didn't want to endure the pain of living without her, something surely even his strength couldn't weather.

"I kept my promise," he whispered against her forehead, pressing a kiss to it. What a terrible promise it was. He had taken the chance, but to live with it was something harder.

"Gil," Sersi's soft whisper reached him, her hand on his arm.

"Just wait for me, sweetheart," he cooed to his ever-sleeping wife. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and under her knees, picking her up for the last time. The pyre was ready. Even if it was already lit, he would lean into the fire gently, just to lie her to sleep the way she liked. "I'll come and find you."

[chryzuree]

general 2,3,7 love 2,6,7 domestic life 13 w/ chrysigil :3..

II. GENERAL

2. Did they have an official first date? If so, what was it like?

if by official, you mean it was official in OZ’S book, then yes!! (nobody is parent trap scheming harder than oz to get chrysigil together.. he will stop at nothing to have chrysi as his sister-in-law!!!) it also would up being an official first date when chrysi and gil figured it would be easier in the long run to stop fighting oz’s attempts to get them to be close together. and besides. they did end up bonding & making plans to go shopping early at the market.. flirting.. (oz screaming at gil bc that is NOT a romantic second date!! it shouldn’t be a date at all!!! i’m not making sense, i don’t think.)

ANYWAY, the date itself was going to a new tea house that oz had heard good reviews for. it took some finagling, but he convinced chrysi and gil, separately, that they needed to meet a client / informant there (?? not sure what the plan way, okay), and when they showed up, it was like. oh. well. i guess this is a date now.

oz left an itinerary at their reserved table, which was including, but not limited to, a museum outing, getting a rowboat trip around the lake, going to a botanical garden, a candlelit dinner, and then a walk home through an idyllic park. chrysi and gil wound up bonding over how fucking exhausted they were and how they prefer smaller things, like going on errands nd such. okay, date no. 2 is going to shop for groceries and date no. 3 will be laundry day <3

((important to note that at this point, chrysi’s only flirting w gil bc she feels safe in the assumption that he won’t fall for her, and gil doesn’t realize he has a massive crush on her. oz is tearing his hair out as we speak!! btw alice doesn’t care, bc chrysi’s already her sister.))

3. What was their first kiss like?

it was after gil knocked chrysi the FUCK out during a scuffle, and when she woke up, he worriedly tried to nurse her back to health. in the moment, she called him charming + pretty, and then she gave him a little peck on the lips. gil froze up and didn’t react. it was only after she left that he was like “wait, no, i want another kiss…” <- blushing FURIOUSLY. but unfortunately, he didn’t tell chrysi that and so she doubled down on the whole “safe to flirt because he won’t EVER fall for me” thing. oh boy.

7. What is their relationship with each other's families like?

so, like, disregarding the whole “baskerville clan trying to change time and the world by killing lacie at the beginning, before she got the chance to meet jack” thing, chrysi rlly rlly gets along w them. lottie is like her sister, and so is lily. and, i mean, alice is ALREADY her sister.

ummm, but she cannot stand vincent. fine by him!! he can’t stand chrysi either!!! he thinks that his brother should choose someone else. or no one at all. both chrysi and vince have actively been waging war behind gil’s back for the past 100 years.

OH, for the nightrays (fucking hell, gil has a lot of families), chrysi only rlly gets along w elliot. the rest of them do NOT like chrysi. that’s okay. she doesn’t mind!!!

gilbert hasn’t rlly met any of chrysi’s family, which is for the best. if he met her sister, he would… well, i dunno. i get the sense that if he ever saw the way her family treats her (including gavriel and that whole fate thing), he would push her behind him & try to protect her. chrysi’s like awwww. honey!! anyway, that won’t work. they WILL kill you. let me talk to them.

III. LOVE

2. What are their primary love languages?

gil’s is 100% acts of service. no questions asked. chrysi’s is quality time / physical touch!!!

6. What are their favorite things to do together?

oughhh.. laundry day is their date night.. also they like baking together (NOT cooking though. gil always turns around to find chrysi reorganizing their spice rack bc he wasn’t keeping her properly preoccupied. FUCK.), and also they like watching the sunrise together while drinking tea <333

7. Who is better at comforting the other? How do they usually comfort each other?

hmmmmmmmmm. i mean,i think i’ll have to say chrysi on basis of the fact that she’s more consistent at comforting gil, but honestly?? gil doesn’t do too badly when it comes to comforting chrysi!!! chrysi will jst hold gil and say all the right things (and slightly un-right things, which make gil laugh when they shouldn’t) and kiss him. gil sits silently next to chrysi while he’s trying to figure out a plan for attack + he’s quiet for so long that it makes chrysi finally tell him what’s bothering her. then he’ll hug her, bc he learned frm her that she prefers that. physical touch is her main love language, indeed…

IV. DOMESTIC LIFE

13. Do they have any "couple traditions", or family traditions?

i am the WORST at coming up w traditions.. umm, family traditions include chrysi, alice, and oz trying to drag gil to a graveyard for a picnic every month. sometimes it’s a random graveyard, but more frequently, they’ll go to one w break’s grave & reim’s and sharon’s… they miss their friends :(((( oh no, i’ve made myself rlly sad.

[teafiend]

THE PROTECTOR

GIFs courtesy of @Nungchae (Twitter/X)

favorite character from any media BUT it has to be a woman. in the tags now go (pls talk to me about your favorite fictional women pls pls pls pls)

[teafiend]

All gifs credited to @Nungchae (Twitter/X)

The LIGHTING. She was just so, so gorgeous in each and every shot 🤍🖤💙❤️‍🔥❤️ And the softness and concern in her expressions 🥹🥹🥹 Ep 10 Kang Gil Young was another layer of subtlety.

[morganas-pendragons]

sweet and soft | elrond peredhel

okay LISTEN

I read this prompt about the elves ears DAYS ago and it has not left me alone. it being their most sensitive part of their body along with touching their ears meaning you want courtship.... and I then had a dream about this with Elrond

not a drop of angst in here, I want to kiss him so bad

enjoy!

***

Sunlight cradles the two of you from where you sit among the gardens in Lindon. It is a rare day where the High King has given Elrond reprieve from his duties as Herald, and you both took the opportunity to spend the time together in the gardens where you’d met.

Elrond only had one condition: You had to play for him. As your skill with a violin was renowned, you’d earned your place as High King Gil-Galad’s violinist who was often called upon for important events. It was what had initially drawn Elrond to you, seeing you playing at Gil-Galad's feast.

That was almost six months ago. Now you find yourself enraptured by the Half-Elven man with his head in your lap, your fingers idly carding through unruly curls as you recite lines of poetry from the book he’d brought to read.

Your first mistake in being so engrossed in your poetry is that you miss Elrond’s breathing hitch when your fingers ghost the tips of his ears. He is aware, as are you, what the implications are behind touching the ears of another elf. Elrond has never made the depth of his feelings for you known.

He is cognizant of one detail, at minimum. Elrond wants to court you.

He is also aware that his cheeks are burning as he turns to press his head into your thigh.

Your fingers curl just beneath the neckline of his shirt before dancing upward once again and repeating the same motion. Out of the corner of his eye, Elrond catches the faint smile upturning your lips as you peer down to meet his gaze. His eyes are astonishing already, but washed in the glow of the morning sun, he almost seems as if he is sent straight from the Valar themselves.

“Is something wrong, Elrond?” You ask innocently. He reaches up to snap the poetry book shut, allowing him the opportunity to sit up and face you. “I thought you were enjoying the poetry. This is our weekly routine, after all.”

He takes those next few beats of silence to allow his eyes to sweep across your face. Elrond has known you to be somewhat of a mischievous person, feigning innocence and naivety in situations where repercussions are demanded if fault is admitted.

“I was simply admiring the person who chooses to spend their waking hours with me instead of making practical use of their time,” Elrond remarks, voice stuttering as you curled your fingers into the lengthening curls at his temples to tug him close to you. “And how devious you are.”

You grin widely at him. Elrond is the only person you have ever allowed yourself to be genuine with. Being in Gil-Galad’s favor means that you so often have to wear a practiced facade of grace and poise. There is no room for child like behaviors.

Being with Elrond allows you to truly, truly embrace the very being of who you are. That is one of the many characteristics you have come to love about him.

“Me? Devious? Surely you are joking." You tease. "All I did was-“

He catches your hand before you can do it again. The two of you sit there in silence for a brief moment as you stare at your hand caught in his own. It’s the first time he’s really taken it. Sure, the two of you have walked with one another in these gardens plenty of times, but only as friends.

You have wanted Elrond for what feels like lifetimes. For the sake of yourself and for him as parts of Gil-Galad’s court, you chose to love him from afar. You didn’t want to impose upon Elrond. He already carried enough.

However, given the way he’s looking at you, part of you quietly wonders if he feels the same way and chose not to speak it for fear of your rejection.

Elrond takes each one of your fingers and spreads them apart, laying a kiss on each fingertip before enclosing your hand with his own. Your breath stuttered in your chest as he leaned impossibly closer.

“You know what it means to touch the ears of another elf,” Elrond said lowly. It almost sounds like barely concealed restraint. “Do not tread upon a path you do not wish to walk down.”

You hum softly and grab his chin with your fingers so he will look at you. Trepidation lingers in the depths of the gray irises that stare back into yours. “And if it is a path I wish to tread upon?” You whisper. “Let it be my choice.”

Elrond shudders as your fingers trail upward to tangle in his hair again, and he finds himself unable to breathe as you slowly shift your positions so you can settle yourself into his lap. It's a bold move considering you have done little else outside of resting your head on his shoulder and holding his arm as you venture Lindon's gardens. You're quietly praying that you have not overstepped a boundary.

Elrond doesn’t push you away. He welcomes it. He welcomes you.

He tries to focus on the sights around him to avoid the fear of disappointing you lingering in the back of his mind. You are a sight to behold among Lindon’s gardens. Despite the wonders of the sights around him, none of the flora and fauna that have grown here over the centuries are comparable to you.

“Hey,” You call softly. “Where did you go, nin mel?”

Elrond is not usually one to fumble over his words, but they roll off his tongue before he can stop his rambling, “I do not want to bring any disappointment if I am not what you wish me to be.”

You’d be lying if you said the statement didn’t make you melt. He was so earnest and sweet when it came to ensuring he lived up to what other people wanted but so often gave himself such little credit. “Elrond,” You began, taking his hands into your own to press them against your waist. “I have wanted you for so long. You could never disappoint me, meleth nin.”

You bend your head to the juncture where his jaw meets his neck and place a kiss thereupon. As you anticipate, Elrond groans low in his throat and grasps you more tightly. “Please,” He breathes, breath hot against your ear as you drum your fingers against his neck. “Please touch me.”

It was the closest to a declaration you were going to get at that moment. He wants you to be near to him, to touch him, to be witness to the rawest and most vulnerable parts that he so often hid from everyone else. He had to hide. Who would want to see the human side of the Half-Elven Herald of the King?

You tilt your head and gently graze your fingertips over his ears as he bends his own head to meet your mouth halfway. It's cataclysmic. You've been dreaming about this moment since the first time he asked you to play for him at the very end of one of Gil-Galad's feasts with the other elves who dwelt in Lindon.

Elrond shudders as you come together and lifts a hand to touch your jaw just beneath your own ear.

The action alone causes you to gasp just enough for him to take the opportunity to kiss you more deeply, licking into your mouth with a low groan as you wind your fingers through his hair.

"Elrond," You breathe. The two of you pull away just enough to feel the warm breath of the other on your skin, your fingers twirling circles against his temples as he worked at undoing the braids that hung over your shoulders. You want more of him. You want to bury yourself in his heart and never let anyone hurt him again. "That was-"

"I would very much like to do it again. And again, and again, until you are rendered breathless," Elrond whispers, reaching to the side to pluck a lily from the flower bed before tucking it behind your ear. There is hope lingering on the edge of his tone as he looks at you. A hidden promise for something that you both can chase, not a futile dream he has to chase alone. "But only after I hear you play."

You stand to your feet and motion for the violin case beside him. "One on condition," You reply as you tuck your chin into the base of the instrument and poise your bow against its strings. "There must be more kisses at the end of this song."

You swallow the knot in your throat as the melody begins to echo in the gardens, allowing Elrond the opportunity to lean back on his elbows and peer up at you from his spot on the blanket. "I believe that can be arranged. Is there anything else?" He asks innocently. You raise a brow and pause as his shirt shifts to reveal the skin beneath. Warm, tanned skin that you wanted to... "You're staring. You're going to mess up your song."

"You are distracting me." You retort. "I do have one more condition."

There are several beats of silence between you two as Elrond goes quietly, enraptured by the melody that seems to encompass your entire being as if it comes from the very heart of you. You are the very essence of what makes music beautiful.

When your final note decrescendos into the serenity of the garden's life around you is when you open your eyes to look at Elrond once again.

"What's that final condition?" Elrond asks.

"A date, Elrond Peredhel." You muse, leaning down to return your violin to its case before swooping in to press a kiss to reddened cheeks. "Anywhere and any time. I will leave the rest up to you."

He does not dare move as he watches you walk back towards your rooms. You truly are a marvel, a sight to behold. You are the brightest light that has entered his life since he lost Elros. He would not dare to dim that light.

"Anytime and anywhere," He whispers to himself as he traces his fingers over his cheek. "For all my life-time."

[nevver]

Breathing underwater, Gil Rigoulet