Work Text:
The missive had come by carrier bird--oddly enough, an exceptionally grumpy gull that had nipped his fingers, stolen the bread off his lunch, and then absconded before Fingon could even read the message, let alone consider a reply. Luckily, there was no reply necessary; Elrond had asked him to come to Tumfalas, because Maedhros needed him.
Nothing else need be said. Fingon gave orders that his household and duties in the city be taken up by his steward, and any issues beyond her considerable skill go to Finrod. Then he mounted his horse and headed for Tumfalas. Elrond could deal with his lack of luggage, he had no doubt.
It was more than a day’s ride to Tumfalas, even in the kind of hurry Fingon was in, especially if you don’t leave till after noon, but not significantly more than a day, and the road was clear and smooth, and the moon was bright that night, so Fingon carried on through the night. He arrived on the outskirts of Tumfalas just before noon, his horse grumpy but unstrained, and his heart tight in his chest.
His horse was left in the care of the grooms, who promised pampering, and Fingon turned for the beach, where the household staff assured him he would find the Lord and his family. He hadn’t let himself think it, singing as many of Finrod’s ridiculous ballads as he could remember to keep his brain and mouth busy, but now he couldn’t help but worry about what could have happened that Maedhros had gotten so bad that Elrond had called for Fingon. Their bond didn’t stretch that far, and he was afraid, now, to reach into it until he knew what was wrong. He’d gotten lost in Maedhros’ pain before.
The scene on the beach momentarily stopped him in his tracks.
Maedhros and an elleth Fingon was pretty sure was Elwing Dioriel were sitting leaning on the flank of an enormous tusked beast, laughing together about something; Maglor’s head was in Maedhros’ lap. In the shallows before them Celegorm and Curufin and a Sinda Fingon didn’t recognize were playing an exuberant game of chase with Amrod and Amras and three different sleek water animals (he wasn’t a zoologist, okay?) in varying sizes.
Maglor saw him first, sitting up and crying “Fin!” quite joyfully.
Fingon was still blinking in slight confusion when Maedhros all but tackled him in a hug. He yelped and flailed, and the only reason they didn’t fall was because Maedhros stabilized them both. Contact opened the connection between them, and Fingon found himself filled with Maedhros’ wild joy as he stared breathlessly up in Maedhros’ eyes. “Rhoso,” he said, a little winded and also, as always, a little breathless in the face of Maedhros’ beauty.
“Hi Fin,” Maedhros said warmly, beaming down at him, affection and pleasure flooding the bond between them. “You’re here!”
“I got Elrond’s note,” he replied, looking around for the lord of Tumfalas.
Maedhros’ head tilted. “He sent for you?” he asked.
“You didn’t know?” Fingon replied.
Maedhros shook his head.
“Then there’s nothing wrong?” Fingon said hopefully.
Maedhros suddenly looked thoughtful. He looked back with slightly narrowed eyes at Elwing.
She waved cheerily, so entirely casual that she had to be up to something.
Maedhros looked back at Fingon a little ruefully. “I might have reacted badly to good news,” he admitted. “But really, you needn’t’ve come.”
“Elrond said you needed me. I will always come.”
Maedhros’ face went soft, and he dropped his forehead to Fingon’s. “Fin,” he murmured.
“Good news?” Fingon asked softly, counting Maedhros’ eyelashes.
“Oath’s gone,” Maedhros replied, eyes closed.
That took a moment to penetrate.
When it did, he twitched back, and then lunged forward to hug Maedhros tighter. “Gone!” he shouted, and laughed wildly into Maedhros’ neck.
Maedhros laughed with him, pressing his face into the braids at Fingon’s temple. “Fulfilled,” Maedhros said warmly into his hair. “Earendil gave me his. I gave it back,” he added.
“Of course you did,” Fingon said into Maedhros’ shoulder. “Powers I love you.”
Maedhros pressed his lips to Fingon’s hairline. “You’re my heart.”
Fingon stood there wrapped up in Maedhros’ arms for a moment, knowing he was somewhat rudely ignoring the rest of his cousins, and probably his actual host somewhere but not really caring yet. Maedhros was free.
A soft little chirrup noise came from below them and there was a tug at Fingon’s trouser leg.
Maedhros laughed aloud, a real one, not his little nasal huff, like Fingon hadn’t heard in years. “Really?” he demanded, pulling back to look down.
Fingon felt the squeal leave his throat, but didn’t really hear it. Staring up at them with huge brown eyes was the softest, fluffiest, roundest face on a slinky body. “Oh sweet Powers,” Fingon whispered, dropping to his knees.
The creature chirped and hopped forward, putting forepaws on Fingon’s thighs. This was clearly an invitation, and Fingon immediately pressed his fingers into the soft, matted fur. “Oh you are adorable,” he breathed. “What are you, you sweet thing?”
“Fin, this is Elrond’s oldest son Elladan,” Maedhros said from above. “He’s a sea otter right now.”
“You’re the best thing,” Fingon told the, apparently, otter. “Look at you!”
The otter chirruped and made a solid attempt to climb into Fingon’s lap.
Fingon sat to make the process easier, and gathered the otter up to rub his face into the soft, slightly damp fur. He was squealing again, and he did not care.
Elladan delicately caught one of Fingon’s gold-twisted braids and started winding it very carefully around his paws.
Fingon leaned closer to let him wind more up, rubbed his cheek against the warm fluffy stomach, and crooned, “Who’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen? You are! You are!”
“He is a full grown elf,” Maedhros said dryly from above him.
Fingon ignored him.
Elladan purred happily, squirming deeper into Fingon’s lap and waving the paws not wound up in Fingon’s braids quite happily. If he objected to the snuggling or the baby-voice, there was no sign of it.
“You are so cute,” Fingon said helplessly.
“There’ll be no living with him after this,” someone said above them.
Fingon ignored that too. He’d discovered that the otter liked having his ears scratched, and made the sweetest little gurgling noise when Fingon scratched them.
“Hey, Fin,” Maedhros said, in the voice that meant he wanted to be paid attention to but also didn’t really want to interrupt Fingon because surely what Fingon was doing was more important. Fingon was conditioned to respond to that voice immediately, because Maedhros was always wrong about anything being more important than him. He looked up.
Maedhros, the Sinda, and Elrond were all looking down at him. There was, probably, a second otter, smaller than the one in Fingon’s lap, between Elrond’s feet. “Oh Powers, there are two of you?” He made grabby hands at the second otter.
“My other son, Elrohir,” Elrond said dryly as the smaller otter chirped in interest and bounded over.
This one was small enough for Fingon to simply gather him up to snuggle close to his face, and he did so. “Hi Elrond,” he said, muffled into the little otter’s fur.
“You have just made their day, maybe their whole week,” the Sinda said, voice even dryer than Elrond’s. Fingon hadn’t known that was possible. “I’m Legolas.”
“Hi,” Fingon said, looking up again from the otters. He was trying to be a good guest and pay attention, but it was hard. “You are so sweet,” he murmured to Elrohir. “Oh, look at your little paws!”
Elrohir squeaked gladly and squirmed down to curl into his brother in Fingon’s lap so Fingon could focus on Elrond’s who was talking to him again. And also there were two otter stomachs pointing up at him and they needed to be petted at once.
“Have you eaten?” Maedhros asked, voice penetrating in a way Elrond’s just did not. “Or did you just ride down here full tilt without planning ahead.”
Fingon grinned winningly up at them. “Maedhros, love, it’s like you know me!”
“He hasn’t eaten,” Maedhros told Elrond. “Fin, come up to the house and let’s feed you before you keel over.”
Fingon stared up at Maedhros, lower lip trembling. “But-?” There were otters. He could be good and focus on people talking to him, if they wanted. But leave?
“Boys,” Elrond said sternly, clearly understanding that Fingon had no ability to not pet the otters.
Elrohir bounded out of Fingon’s grasp and vanished around the tusked-creature, and a dark-haired young elf who looked quite a bit like Elrond, dressed in a long tunic and nothing else, emerged a moment later. “It’s an honor to meet you,” he said cheerfully.
Elladan peered hopefully up at his father without moving.
Fingon made the same hopeful face, slowly gathering Elladan up to his chest.
Elladan meeped quietly.
“Oh sweet Eru, stop it both of you!” Maedhros commanded, laughter breaking his voice. “You have to eat! Elladan isn’t going anywhere, Fin.” He shook his head, mouth pulling inexorably upwards. “The pair of you, I swear.”
Elladan’s eyes widened even further.
Fingon let his lower lip slide out.
“Powers, come here, you reprobate,” Legolas said, and with a little ‘oof’ of effort, scooped Elladan out of Fingon’s arms by the armpits and held him to his chest like a toddler. “Let him eat, you menace.”
Elladan grumbled, but consented to be removed.
Fingon sighed long-sufferingly and let Maedhros help him up. “He’s so cute though,” he said emphatically. How anyone got anything done around here when there were otters, Fingon had no idea.
Elrond was shaking his head in mock-sorrow. “Ruined,” he complained, his eyes smiling brightly even though his mouth was flat. “Hundreds of years of effort keeping him sensible, and you have thoroughly ruined it in an afternoon.”
Before Fingon could reply, Elrond and Maedhros caught Fingon between them and led the way back to the house. Elrohir followed, but Legolas and Elladan stayed on the beach.
Elladan made a sorrowful little mewl, paws waving a farewell.
Fingon couldn’t help but echo both the noise and the wave.
Elrohir couldn’t stop laughing. “Seriously,” he told Fingon. “You have made my brother’s entire year.”
“His sweet little face!” Fingon cried. “And his little paws, and his fuzzy tummy!”
Maedhros shook his head. “This is your fault,” he informed Elrond. “You are the one who brought him here.”
Fingon focused, because Maedhros sounded, under the humor and ribbing, perhaps a little unhappy. “Did I-? Should I not have petted him?” he asked, looking between them. Elladan hadn’t minded, Fingon was sure.
Elrond patted his shoulder. “It’s a joke, Fin. Celebrian and I often joked that if we let on to Elladan that we knew how cute he was he’d be insufferable. I think you told him he was cute more times in the last ten minutes than any of us have since he sailed.”
Fingon looked to Maedhros.
Maedhros smiled crookedly at him, looping an arm around his shoulders. “I might’ve been a little jealous,” he admitted. “You were completely oblivious.”
“Wasn’t,” Fingon argued. “I heard everything you said.”
“I know,” Maedhros said, kissing his temple briefly. “Which is why I stopped being jealous.”
Fingon pressed a kiss to his cheek. “You’re beautiful,” he said quietly.
Maedhros cocked his head; he knew Fingon thought so, but he also knew Fingon didn’t usually just say it, since Maedhros didn’t really believe him.
“You look happy,” Fingon explained.
“Now that you’re here,” Maedhros replied softly, “I am.”