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He looked briefly confused, and then groaned, smacking himself in the forehead. “Ah, shit. Okay, thanks for reminding me. You better call Irissë too, there’s no way she’ll remember otherwise. …Really? That means I’m the only asshole who forgot? Yeah, yeah. Okay. Bye.”

He hung up, looking peeved.

“What did you do?” asked Maedhros. “Or not do?”

“Call my parents,” said Fingon. “Why didn’t you remind me it was Rosh Hashanah?”

“Um,” said Maedhros. “Is that my job now?”

“Should be,” said Fingon. “Man, that’s one of my parents’ only real requirements: Phone calls on birthdays, the High Holidays, and for significant life events – Oops, blew that one too.” He grinned sheepishly. “They don’t know you’re moving in with me.”

“Well, L’Shanah Tovah, brother,” said Azaghâl. “If you feel like doing some repentance, you can come to services with me.”

“I might take you up on that,” said Fingon. “Then at least I can tell my parents and they’ll be so shocked and impressed that – Was that the door?” He looked up, frowning as the doorbell rang. “You expecting someone, Nelyo?”

“No,” said Maedhros, getting to his feet.

Fingon looked suddenly apprehensive. “You…you don’t think it’s your dad, do you?”

Azaghâl belched. “Wouldn’t that be fun. Fëanor never liked me much.”

“Never liked you much?” Fingon rolled his eyes. “At least you weren’t sleeping with his son. I mean, as far as I know.”

Azaghâl inclined his head, pensive. “Well, there was that one night…”

“Are you joking?”

“We were really drunk,” said Maedhros, going to the door.

“WHAT?”

“Just a harmless bit of groping,” said Azaghâl, soothingly, and Fingon dropped back, looking stunned.

“I have so many questions.”

“Save them,” said Maedhros, and opened the door. “Moryo, what are you doing here?”

-

“Slow down,” said Maedhros, as Caranthir paced the kitchen. “Why are you in such a rush?”

“I need to talk to Lalwen,” snapped Caranthir. “She’s not answering her phone, she’s not at the gym…Just tell me her address, Nelyo. I haven’t been to her new place since she moved.”

“Why do you need her?” asked Maedhros, a touch of concern in his voice.

“I have some questions,” said Caranthir darkly.

“Not that it matters,” said Fingon, from the couch where he was sitting next to Azaghâl, “but how did you get this address?”

“Mom,” said Caranthir. “She says she’ll send you the muffin recipe, by the way.”

“Tell her she is a goddess and a saint,” said Fingon. “But seriously, Moryo, what’s up?”

“Nothing,” said Caranthir, looking so foreboding that none of them pressed him further. “Nelyo, just give me it already.”

“Fine,” said Maedhros at last, but he looked like he was having second thoughts as he scribbled an address on a scrap of paper. “Listen, when you – ”

“Thanks,” said Caranthir, grabbing the paper, and took off without a backwards glance.

“What was that about?” asked Fingon, as the door slammed.

“I don’t know,” said Maedhros quietly. “But you can bet I’ll be calling Makalaurë tomorrow to check in.”

----

“Haleth?”

“Mmm?”

“Sorry to wake you…”

Haleth raised her head and looked around blearily, confused for a minute as to where she was. This was certainly not her dorm, not even the common room. And this wasn’t her bed, either. She raised herself up on one arm and looked down in surprise to see her other hand resting on someone’s thigh.

She sat up then, embarrassed, and Lalwen smiled at her. “Tired, eh?”

Haleth brushed her hair back out of her eyes and tried to remember what had happened. She and Lalwen had gone out to lunch, and then, unwilling to break off their conversation, had come back to Lalwen’s house. And after that… She blushed, remembering. There had been the intention of watching a movie, which had quickly deteriorated into making out on the couch, followed by… Haleth hurriedly did up her jeans, while in the background the menu options on the dvd they’d supposedly been watching played their repetitive music.

“You drifted off,” said Lalwen softly. “I would have let you sleep, but,” she gestured to her lap ruefully, “I had to pee. Which I am going to now do.” She smiled and ran a hand over Haleth’s hair before getting up and vanishing through the living room door.

Haleth leaned back on the couch, pressing her hands to her hot cheeks. Would there come a time when she could look at Lalwen without blushing like a schoolgirl? So far, it hadn’t arrived. In fact, the only time she didn’t feel like an overgrown teenager with a crush was when all thought was banished by physical touch. When she was sitting astride Lalwen’s lap, fingers knotted in Lalwen’s short hair, kissing her lips bruised, only then did Haleth forget to be shy. Then she would forget that Lalwen was ten years older than her, an actual adult with an actual life and an actual place of her own, whereas Haleth was a twenty-one year old college kid, still living in a messy dorm room, eating ramen five out of seven days of the week, her main preoccupations midterms and managing her work study hours in the dining hall. Lalwen spent her weekends, when she wasn’t working, at museums and art openings, or heading out to the country for overnight hikes and camping. Haleth’s typical weekend was getting high and arguing with Caranthir about whether John Galt was a closeted homosexual.

Haleth chewed her lip, a new anxiety creeping in. Caranthir. While she’d made it very clear to him that she was interested in him as nothing more than a friend, that didn’t make the fact that she was seeing – dating? Hooking up with? – her best friend’s aunt any less…awkward.

His funny, smart, sexy aunt, who was coming back into the room now, having changed into a loose shirt that had slipped down to expose one freckled shoulder…

Lalwen grinned at her, and every thought of Caranthir, and what he might have to say about this, went flying out of Haleth’s head. There were far more important things to consider, like the way Lalwen’s grey eyes sparkled when she smiled, and her dimples, and –

“It’s getting on towards dinner time. Want to stay?”

“Yes,” said Haleth, without having to think about it, and felt warm all the way down to her toes as Lalwen bent over the back of the couch and pressed a light kiss to her lips.

“You’re vegetarian, right? Not vegan, though?” Haleth shook her head. “Wonderful. I’ve got some excellent chèvre, and fresh arugula from the farmer’s market. Goat cheese quesadillas work for you?”

Haleth felt her mouth start to water almost immediately. How was this her real life? Ramen and her grungy dorm room had never felt further away. “That would be perfect.”

They sat at the table together, and ate their quesadillas and drank a delicious white wine that Lalwen had pulled from the back of the fridge – “Fëanaro gave this to me, so it’s probably a better wine than either of our undiscerning palates will be able to appreciate. But wine’s wine, right?” – and talked about the possibility of a weekend trip to New Hampshire to go climbing.

“Have you done any climbing in the Whites? My favorite place has been closed to access for a couple years now because of peregrine nests, but there are others.”

“I actually went ice climbing last winter, somewhere near Manchester, I think? But I haven’t been out in the non-snowy season…”

They were interrupted by a pounding on the door. Lalwen set down her wine, looking up quizzically. “Huh. Let me go see who that is.”

-

Caranthir stood outside his aunt’s door, feeling a buzz of anxiety and anger under his skin. Finally, he was going to get some answers, or be damned. He ran over the questions he had prepared in his head. If she would just answer the door… He raised his fist to knock again, and the door opened.

Lalwen stood there, looking up at him curiously. “Moryo - ?”

“Look,” he began at once. “I want – ” But he broke off as his gaze traveled over her shoulder. He took in the low light, the kitchen table set for two, the wine, the candles…and Haleth, who was looking at him with surprised dark eyes.

He lowered his hand.

“What is it you want?” prompted Lalwen, hand still on the doorknob.

“Nothing,” he said. “Nothing.” He turned to go, and she stepped into the hall after him, frowning.

“Morifinwë…what’s going on?”

“Nothing!” he snapped, and clenched his jaw against the wild surge of anger and disappointment rising in his throat. “My questions have been answered, okay? Enjoy your date, you cradle robber.” And he stormed down the stairs, feeling the color suffuse his cheeks even as Lalwen repeated, half amused, “Cradle robber? Okay, that’s fair. Hey, Moryo – Moryo, come back - ”

But he was already out on the street.

A bar. He desperately needed to find a bar.

“Oh, hello,” someone said, as he rounded the corner, determined to find somewhere, anywhere he could drink himself stupid, “Fancy seeing you out here, Carnistir.”

----

Maglor came downstairs and frowned to see Celegorm and Curufin pressing their ears to Caranthir’s closed door.

“What are you doing?”

“Shhh!” hissed Celegorm, flapping a hand at him. “We’re trying to listen.”

“To what?”

“Moryo has someone is his room,” murmured Curufin, still listening intently. “Someone who’s been in there since last night.”

Squashing his own curiosity, Maglor shooed them away from the door. “For god’s sake, leave him alone.”

“Spoilsport,” muttered Celegorm, but he retreated.

“Is it Haleth?” Maglor asked, unable to help himself, when they were all in the kitchen, Curufin curled into a chair, Celegorm slouched against the counter.

“Nah, bro, didn’t you hear? I mean, for one, she’s as gay as the day is long, but also rumor has it she’s been hooking up with some older chick.”

“I think Moryo got some details last night. He looked furious, but he wouldn’t tell me anything,” said Curufin, wrapping his arms around his shins and resting his chin on his knees. “So I guess he went out and drowned his sorrows…”

“…in booze and sex,” finished Celegorm, looking rather proud. “I always knew the day would come when he’d prove he was related to me.”

“What time did he get in?”

Curufin shrugged. “Well after we were all asleep.”

“So how do you even know he had someone over?”

Curufin shot him a look. “You didn’t hear?”

“My room’s not over his; Maitimo’s is – I mean, was.”

Curufin sighed. “I got up in the night to use the bathroom and…heard them.” His face twisted a little in distaste. “It was…pretty evident.”

“So he woke me up to verify,” said Celegorm cheerfully. “Which I did. And I have to say – props to Moryo. Didn’t think he – ahaha – had it in him.”

-

In his room, Caranthir exhaled as he heard the voices retreat to the kitchen. “All right, I think they’re gone.”

“Do they always do that when you have someone over?”

Caranthir flushed. “I wouldn’t know.”

“Ah.” His companion nodded. “But they’re gone now?”

“Well, in the kitchen, anyway.”

“Hmm. It’s going to be interesting leaving.”

Caranthir chewed his lip. “You could go out the window.”

“You’re not serious.”

“Look, Findekáno used to leave via the second floor window all the time. You wouldn’t even have much of a drop!”

His companion sighed and rolled over so they were pressed together once more. “This was a pretty bad idea.”

“Yes,” said Caranthir, trying not to twitch at the sensation of warm bare skin against his. “I’m not even – I mean, I never thought that – ”

“Indeed.”

“You don’t even like me.”

“What gave you that impression?” A hand ran down his side, and Caranthir bit his lip as a long leg was draped over his thigh. “What exactly about last night made you feel disliked? I would have thought I made my…ah, desires fairly clear.”

“Not last night,” said Caranthir, “just…in general.”

“I like you,” said his companion thoughtfully. “But you are rather hard to talk to, so we haven’t spoken much in the past. But I have always found you interesting.”

“And,” said Caranthir, struggling to keep his voice steady as warm lips found his neck, “I’m pretty sure you’re not single.”

“There’s that, too.”

Caranthir shivered at the words spoken directly into his ear, and he couldn’t stop himself from reaching out and threading his fingers into soft hair and tugging lightly to elicit the moans he remembered from the night before. “…So what, you just don’t care?”

“I didn’t say that.” The low voice was slightly breathless now, and Caranthir felt the heat rise in him as the bright head fell back, exposing a long throat. He yielded to the temptation to latch his mouth to it, and was rewarded with a gasp.

“Why did you do it then?” Caranthir asked, his lips moving against hot skin, closing his eyes as clever fingers took him in hand.

“It’s a terrible quality of mine,” whispered his companion, “but bad ideas have always turned me on.”

-

“My money’s on whatshername, that friend of Turukáno’s.”

“Who, Melleth? No way. Not his type.”

“What is his type? Other than unavailable or uninterested…”

“Um. Brunette?”

“Not even. Remember that blonde girl in high school?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“We should stop,” said Maglor at last. “And when they come out, be…normal, okay? Just casual conversation. Offer her a cup of coffee…”

“Are we sure it’s a her?” asked Celegorm, propping his elbows on the table. “I mean, some of those sounds we heard…”

“I was trying not to pay too close attention,” said Curufin, looking nauseated. “But – ”

“Is the shower free?” Caranthir wandered into the kitchen, towel slung over his shoulder.

“Moryo!” Three avid faces turned to him. Celegorm actually craned his neck to peer over and around his brother.

“…where are they?”

“Where are who?” asked Caranthir.

“Your fu – guest from last night,” said Celegorm, grinning. “Where have you hidden them?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” said Caranthir coolly, though some color was rising on his cheeks. “I didn’t have anyone over last night.”

“Hah!” Celegorm hooted. “Then, man, your solo time is rockin’.”

Curufin stifled a laugh with a cough.

“Okay, enough,” broke in Maglor. “Tyelko, shut up. Moryo, it’s really fine. Don’t let your guest feel like they need to hide…”

“There’s no one here,” Caranthir insisted, scarlet now. “Now, if no one’s using the shower, I’m just going to…” He gestured illustratively with his towel and marched up the stairs, his brothers staring after him.

“I guess that’s that,” said Maglor quietly. “We should just leave well enough alone.”

There was a silence.

“I’m going to look,” said Celegorm, jumping to his feet. Huan leapt up with an excited bark from where he’d been curled at the foot of Celegorm’s chair.

“Tyelko – ” called Maglor exasperatedly, but Celegorm was already vanishing around the corner.

“I think I’ll look too,” said Curufin casually, sliding from his chair. “Just out of curiosity…”

Maglor buried his face in his hands. “Maitimo, where are you when I need you?” he muttered. But against his better judgment, he followed.