A Quiet Morning In Eregion
Adar/Celebrimbor, One-Shot, Fluff. Cuddles, some kissing. Celebrimbor and Adar spend the morning in bed, and with how warm and comfortable Adar is, Celebrimbor is loathe to let him leave it.
(my other TROP fanfics)
Written for TROP Fluff Week. I ended up combining two prompts for April 3rd, namely 1 "You’re so warm…" and 4 "Stay a little longer…". Wrote this in one go and only gave it one quick edit, so apologies for any mistakes and typos that I might have overlooked. A big Thank You to @rivendellwatch for organizing and hosting this lovely event, it was fun to write something short and sweet while following a prompt (or two, in this case)!
For the longest time, Celebrimbor had considered himself an early riser. It was just the most practical way to start the day, in his opinion – getting up before everyone else meant that he would get to enjoy the morning quiet at his leisure, either with a cup of tea or just as it was.
He oftentimes stood by a window, stepped onto a balcony or even walked the streets of Eregion by himself, to take in the beauty of his city and the greenery that grew everywhere without yet having to mind any of his usual, daily responsibilities.
It also allowed him to start working as soon as possible, and he found he often did his best work before noon, whether it was sketching or the actual smithing itself.
This perception, that rising early was the perferable course of action compared to staying in bed until the late morning, had recently changed, however.
The elf found himself smiling as he burrowed deeper into the soft bed. And the chest of the one he was sharing said bed with.
Adar was warm like a furnace – or, well, a forge. Which Celebrimbor supposed was fitting, considering his forge and the uruk were the two things in all of Middle-earth he preferred to be around the most.
He was also comfortable to lay on, or next to, or against, or even under; despite his build, the other always instinctively found ways to drape himself across the slightly leaner elf that ensured Celebrimbor would not be pressed too harshly into the bed or against the uruk, so that even using him as a blanket was a very nice experience for Celebrimbor.
At the moment, the elf and him were laying on their sides, with Celebrimbor having moved himself down on the mattress to press his head into Adar’s chest, the top of his own head tucked under the uruk’s chin. Who had his arms around the elf’s shoulders and a hand at the back of his head while Celebrimbor had his own arms slung around the other’s middle.
It was a nice place to be, and one the smith found himself incredibly reluctant to move from. He was content, he felt safe, there was no urgent matter he had to attend to. He could feel Adar’s heartbeat through the fabric of his dark night-shirt, could smell the scent of his skin and his hair, heard every even, slow inhale and exhale of breath.
Surrounded and cradled, the elf smiled brightly and just took in the quiet moment. He’d usually gotten up early in the past, to have some peace and quiet, to clear his head for the day ahead and maybe get some inspiration from what he might see or think of.
But he was quite certain that he would get a similar amount of inspiration from being close to the one he cared for, who not only positively influenced him in his work but in mood, and outlook, and so many other things. The other grounded him more than any walk in his city could, just by his mere presence in Celebrimbor’s life.
And, truth be told, it was just nice to soak in Adar’s warmth, and getting to enjoy being close to the other.
The moment held on for a long time; long enough for the sun to rise a bit higher above the horizon, for the rays of its light to shift, until they must have reached the uruk’s face, who groaned lowly in his sleep and turned his head into the pillow he had rested on.
The elf found himself hoping the other might be afforded the chance to go back to sleep, though he also had no objections to the other waking up if it meant they got to continue holding each other some more.
Though, when the uruk groaned once again and then began to slowly shift his limbs away from Celebrimbor, the smith knew the other actually had no intentions to enjoy the quiet after waking up, but was instead planning on getting out of bed.
Usually, Adar was the one who would snort and reach out a strong arm to gently drag Celebrimbor back into bed whenever the other wanted to get up and start his day. The uruk had long endured many hardships and been deprived of many small joys, either by necessity or circumstance, and as a result was quite bold and unashamed to act on what he wanted – that was, being close to Celebrimbor, and being a little selfish for once.
The smith had zero complaints about accomodating him in that regard. One might even say he took joy in encouraging the other to act on his wishes, and gladly let himself be kept from his less urgent duties to remain in bed with the other to cuddle, or talk, or watch the sunrise together, slung around Adar’s back or with the uruk holding Celebrimbor from behind.
Today, however, it was Adar getting up first, and the elf felt giddy as he saw the chance to do things the other way around for a change. He hid his grin in the covers as he let Adar sit up and stretch, then bend down and brush back Celebrimbor’s curls to kiss his temple, thumb stroking the smith’s hair.
"I am afraid we have to get out of bed," the other said, his voice a quiet rumble that made Celebrimbor shiver. Adar had a very nice voice, in his opinion. The elf peaked his eyes open and looked up at the other with what he hoped to be a pitiful look.
The uruk looked radiant in the morning light, sitting with one knee propped up, the other leg on the bed and ankles crossed, leant over so strands of his dark hair fell over his shoulders. His expression was openly fond, and he wore a tiny grin at Celebrimbor’s obvious disappointment. He began to card gentle fingers through the elf’s locks, from his temple to the back of his head, as he tilted his own to watch the smith.
This time, Celebrimbor shivered harder – he was a bit ticklish around his ears, he’d found.
Or, rather, Adar had.
The uruk’s grin turned into a soft smile at the reaction.
"I suppose you are right," the elf admitted, though he thought the exact opposite. He shuffled a bit and turned his face up at the other, hoping that his expression would not give his little plan away.
"Hm," Adar hummed, and bent down again, this time pecking Celebrimbor on the lips. Their kiss was slow to the point of being languid; another indulgence that the elf gladly participated in. He felt as if he were kissing sunshine itself with how warm and soft he felt, touching his mouth to Adar’s. "I will bring over your clothes for you. That way you can remain in bed a bit longer."
Celebrimbor felt affection spread through his body and smiled brightly as a result. He freed a hand from the cocoon of his blankets, cupped the back of Adar’s head to guide him close once more, and give him another kiss. "That is very kind of you. Thank you, Adar."
The other was visibly more reluctant to draw back this time. Perhaps he was already overthinking his own decision. Celebrimbor would gladly to tip the scales even further – but not quite yet.
The uruk beheld him for a long moment, as if torn, before he blinked and sat up fully. "Of course," he replied.
He’d moved to get closer to the edge of the bed and turned around, feet planted on the ground, when Celebrimbor pushed down the covers and sleepily threw himself across the bed. He was a bit more ungainly than he’d have been fully awake, and likely less coordinated too, but he still accomplished his goal.
With his head pressed between Adar’s shoulder blades and his arms wrapped securely across the uruk’s chest and middle, he hummed in satisfaction and then drew his own legs beneath himself, before he used all his strength and gently, but insistently, pulled Adar back towards the middle of the bed.
"On second thought," the elf spoke, half-muffled into the other’s night-shirt, as if he’d ever truly had the intention to let the other leave in the first place, "Not so fast. I think I’d prefer keeping you here a while longer."
Adar, for his part, only resisted Celebrimbor’s attempt for the briefest of moments, likely in surprise, before he readily let himself be pulled back and arranged to Celebrimbor’s liking without question or remark.
A silent permission, which the elf used to tip Adar into laying down again, then press the uruk’s back to his own chest and draw his own covers over the both of them. His arms snuck themselves around Adar’s middle and sought out the other’s hands to link their fingers, and his legs wound themselves around the uruk’s.
This time, it was Adar’s head which got tucked under Celebrimbor’s chin as the elf nuzzled into the uruk’s hair with a content sigh.
He grinned and could practically hear Adar’s raised eyebrow as the other drily remarked, "I take it there is no way to convince you to leave this bed after all? Or to let me leave it?"
"No, I am afraid not," Celebrimbor replied with a quiet chuckle, and while not sounding the least bit apologetic.
The uruk sighed deeply. "What a shame. But I suppose if that is the case, I might just accept the circumstances as they are…" His own smile could be felt when he raised their linked hands up to his mouth and kissed Celebrimbor’s fingers. "Though I must admit, I do not find them very hard to bear at all. In fact, I find myself enjoying them."
Celebrimbor tightened his hold in response and drew the uruk even closer. "Good. I feel very similarly," he said. He lifted his head and placed a kiss behind Adar’s ear. The other twitched, instead of giving a full-body shiver like the smith, but the reason for the reaction was the same.
This, Celebrimbor had found out.
"Let me just hold you a few more moments. You are so wonderfully warm, and it feels very good, getting to have you so close to me like this."
The uruk pushed himself back into Celebrimbor’s chest and tightened his own fingers around the elf’s, who in turn buried his own toes into the fabric of Adar’s sleeping pants. "It also feels very nice to be held by you," a short pause. "Let us just hope we do not fall asleep again. Your servants and my children will have our heads if we do."
The elf nodded, gently, and then relaxed back into the bedsheets. "I am sure one of us will manage to stay awake and alert enough, even if the other doesn’t. We’ll be fine."
This turned out to be incorrect, though neither of the two of them would realize this until much, much later in the morning, when the servants and Adar’s lieutenants would come and look where they were.
For the time being, however, they held each other and were slowly, but surely, falling back into sleep. Warm and safe – and, although unspoken, deeply loved.
