Cup of Sorrow, Cup of Courage
When Gil-galad beheld the tears in the other’s eyes, he reached up and cupped his herald’s cheek. Tenderness flooded his heart in a heated wave.
For a moment they remained like that, unmoving: hand to cheek, fingers curled tightly around the length of an elegant jaw. Only when he felt his lover (his only companion in these last and most desperate nights) stir uncomfortably, Gil-galad drew back.
He had to ignore the pain he saw and the fear he felt. “You are the bravest fighter I have ever seen, Elrond Peredhel. Do not be afraid. You will stay the distance.â€