Bits and Pieces (Rivers' short fanfics, updated 09/06/18)

[RiversD]

Wow, it's been... a while. A very belated thank-you for the comments, guys! They mean a lot.

Dipping my toe into the large and intimidating ocean that is Lord of the Rings. Sorry if the formatting's weird, couldn't quite figure it out.

 

Title: Inheritance
Character: Legolas
Fandom: Lord of the Rings
Tags: male

“Ah-SSCHHIEW! Excuse me.”

It was the third such interruption of the last half-hour. Gimli rolled over to face his companion, who was re-positioning a book across his knees with one hand, the other pressed almost absent-mindedly up to the curve of one slim nostril.

“I thought your kind didn’t get sick.”

Legolas sniffed delicately, leaning his head back so that his silvery hair fell loose over the back of the couch in a soft cascade. “We do not. Not in the ways you are thinking of.”

“And yet you keep sneezing.”

“It is… complicated. And exceedingly… frustrating.” Legolas’ voice clouded over before he had finished speaking, and he wrinkled his nose as though to illustrate his point, bracing his book against further disturbance. The impulse seemed to leave him, however, and he sank back against his cushions with a sigh.

“What’s the cause, then, if it isn’t illness?”

Legolas shrugged, even so childish a movement lent grace by his elvish form. Gimli couldn’t help but be impressed, and not a little jealous. He might have become more comfortable in the company of elves of late, and of one elf in particular, but their ease of bearing still amazed and infuriated him by turns.

“I know of no cause, nor any remedy for it. It is simply a fit that comes over me and demands to be weathered.”

“Strange. Do all elves suffer like this, then? Or are you simply unfortunate?”

Legolas considered this, running a slender finger across the underside of his nose as he did so. There was a pink tinge to the skin there that was unusual for him, except in the coldest of temperatures, and Gimli noted it with affection. It was the small things that most endeared him to this elf, and this interval of harmless vulnerability was charming in a way.

He cleared his throat softly, and shook his head. “I do not think all elves have this experience. Though it is possible it may run in families. I remember my father being similarly afflicted from time to time, when I lived in the Greenwood Halls.”

“Durin’s beard, lad!” Gimli exclaimed. “Don’t give me more to imagine than my mind can take!”

Legolas laughed.

“He is not so terrible, Gimli. Nor so unbending as you seem to imagine.”

“Aye, no doubt you have the right of it. But I had his reputation from my father first, and some things stick hard in the mind.”

“Of course.” Legolas smiled fondly down at him, all indulgence. “I should be quite as nervous to meet your father, had I not seen him at the feasting table in Rivendell.”

Gimli snorted. “You may find cause to fear him yet, if you meet him in his own halls. Dwarves may-”

He had more to say, but let it fall, observing that his companion had other claims on his attention. Sensing the pause, Legolas shot him a look of helpless apology through eyes already half-closed. His delicate nostrils flared with ticklish urgency, and he gasped in anticipation of the coming sneeze.

 “heh…I…for- ht’SSCHHIEW!”

He lurched forward, shielding his face with one hastily-raised arm, his hair tumbling in disarray across his shoulders. His shoulders rose and fell heavily in the aftermath, as though the very act of sneezing had involved considerable exertion. Perhaps it had. Legolas’ habitual sneeze was violent enough to draw the attention of a crowded room.

Gimli pursed his lips in mild concern. “Blessings.”

Legolas raised his head, blinking dazedly in the light. “mm. Forgive me, I interrupted you.”

“Don’t be daft, it couldn’t be helped.”

"Nevertheless, I am sorry. All of this cannot make me the most desirable companion for your evening's relaxation."

“Now you're talking nonsense.” Gimli sighed, got to his feet and moved to stand behind Legolas. “Come here, then. If you’re going to be sneezing into the night, let’s at least fasten your hair out of the way.”

[AngelEyes]

Awww this is adorable. I love their mutual reverence for each other's fathers. 

2 hours ago, RiversD said:

“Come here, then. If you’re going to be sneezing into the night, let’s at least fasten your hair out of the way.”

Love this. Awww.

[The Kneezle]

Man, I've been rereading that steggy drabble for years now and i'm still not over it! so good!! and I love this concept of vague sneeziing fits for magical creatures that are supposed to be above mortal illness that just have no cause or cure, so convenient and fun ;D

[fickle_tickle]

I know this Q story is literally years old but I just discorvered it and damn! The characterization is just perfection! I love how these two interact and thanks to this forum I love poor little Q! He reminds me of my workaholic boyfriend. The softer side of masculinity just melts me, it's to die for! You write him so well, absolutley posh and adorable, so vulnreble yet carrying on in a thoroughly british manner.

On 3/2/2015 at 4:11 PM, RiversD said:

He broke stride to retrieve a tissue with his free hand- he preferred handkerchiefs, but really, with a cold this heavy everything was single use- and pressed it to his nose, tightening his grip on the folders as he did so.

And these sneeze discriptions!! There's such a dynamic body language captured in the movements of Bond and Q. This is so good it should be illegal! Of course he prefers hankerchiefs! I love describing the cold as "heavy" as well. Please, please write more Q!! I'm dying for more of this!!!