`Ok,' thought Orlando as he made his way over to where all of his friends were sitting. `I can do this. I'm a fucking man right, men don't get afraid. I can ask him out on a date, it's not a big deal. In fact, I'm not even that bothered about what he'll say.' Viggo looked up at him as he approached the group and smiled warmly.

`Oh bollocks, who am I kidding? If he says no, I'll go home and cry like a baby.'

The entire Fellowship was sitting on the outskirts of the forest where they were filming. Wizards, Hobbits and Men alike, were all sitting round talking during their lunch break. He would rather have had Viggo alone for this, but he knew if he didn't do it this lunch time then he wouldn't get another chance to do it today. And if he didn't do it today then he would lose his bottle and never ask Viggo out. And if he never asked Viggo out then he would go home and cry like a baby.

Besides, it's like his best mate Atti had said last night on the phone. "You're gay, he's gay. You're pretty, he's pretty. What more do you need in a relationship?"

Orlando really needed to get some less shallow friends. `I mean Viggo is pretty… Or rather not. He's more a rugged, sexy, manly, gorgeous… Did I say sexy?' Orlando shook his head, getting slightly off track. `That's not the point. I mean Viggo is good looking, and then some, but that's not why I'm in love with him. It's so much more than that. It's everything he does and everything he is.'

"Hey there Elf." Viggo's welcoming grin made Orlando's stomach flip over and do the Hokey Pokey. God damn the man looked good, all ranger clothes and dirty, sweaty hair.

`Ok that's it, that proves I'm in love. Who else would find his dirty hair attractive?'

"Hi Vig. Hey guys." He knelt down on the floor right in front of Viggo, hoping to be able to talk to him alone at some point. He usually loved an audience, but not when possible rejection was in the script.

"Orli, are you coming to Ian's BBQ tomorrow?" Dominic scratched idly at his hobbit foot, not really able to get a good scratch in.

"Yeah man, you can't have a good barbie without an Elf." Orlando winked over at his friend, who started nodding seriously.

"Yes, because chicken and pork are old news. Elf burgers are the way of the future," Dom grinned a huge grin at his friend, his thumb tenderly stroking Elijah's hand as he held it.

Orlando simply stuck his tongue out, much to the amusement of Viggo.

"Ian, are you gonna have those miniature quiches again?"

"I think I can get my hands on some," the Knight gently replied.

Billy looked over at Orlando a little suspiciously. "Did you just ask if we would be having miniature quiches?"

"Yeah, how did you ever not know you were gay?" Dominic asked, shaking his head in disbelief.

Elijah let go of Dom's hand. "Well you know what Tolkien said about Merry. He was the gayest of all hobbits."

Elijah let out a squeak as he was taken by surprise. Dominic had leapt on him, doling out a full on tickle attack.

Orlando knew he loved Elijah for a reason, not only did he take the focus off of him, but this new tickle diversion would give him a change to quietly ask Viggo out, in the hope that everyone else was too busy watching the play fight.

He tore his eyes away from the scene, which he shamelessly found ever so slightly erotic, and turned to face Viggo. His breath caught in his throat when he realized that Viggo was watching him, and had been the whole time. God, he wanted this man. There had been times when they were filming Helms Deep when Viggo had been wet and wielding his sword, when it had taken all of Orlando's self control not to take off his clothes, lay on the floor and beg the man to take him.

Okay, it was now or never. What did he have to lose? Other than his pride and not to mention his heart. His heart had been broken before, and it had mended in time. And as for pride, well where had that ever gotten him?

"Um, so Viggo," he started, his cheeks slightly flushed from the remembrance of his Helms Deep fantasy, "Would you like to, um… Well I mean, would you maybe want to have… Go for a walk?"

`Damn it. Has anyone seen my bottle? Its chicken yellow and it has my name on it. Last seen in 1994.'

Viggo stared at Orlando, as did everyone else now. Everyone waiting expectantly for Viggo to speak. Of course they all knew how Orlando felt about the older man, they just hadn't expected him to ever do anything about it.

Waiting for Viggo's reply was like waiting for a car crash, you knew it was inevitable and you just had to hold on tight and hope to heaven that you wouldn't end up a broken mess.

"Sure." One little word, just one little word and the whole world began to breathe again.

Orlando stood up and smiled nervously at Dom who was grinning from ear to ear at him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

They had been walking for a good five minutes, talking about the movie, and how close they were getting to the books. They had talked like the friends they were and Orlando had soon calmed down and fallen in to a comfortable stride.

"So Orlando, was there something you wanted to talk to me about?" Viggo glanced at the young man beside him.

`Yes, I love you. I want you. I need you. Let's have lots of sex and live happily ever after.'

"No." Orlando shook his head and continued to look dead ahead. They continued on in silence for a bit until Viggo spoke again. "So then why did you want to take a walk with me? Why not one of the others?"

Orlando thought about how he should answer this, and decided to just be honest. "I guess I just like your company."

`Yeah that's an understatement.'

"Oh," Viggo's voice sounded somewhat quiet and thoughtful. "Well, I like your company also."

Orlando's heart was beating so fast that he was sure Viggo could hear it, or at the very least it was causing vibrations through the earth and any minute now there would be an earthquake. Okay, this was it, now or never. It's not like he hadn't ever asked a guy out before. Actually, it was like that. Guys had always asked him out.

To try and calm his nerves he took in the trees and the flowers that were growing around them. `Take deep breaths,' he told himself. He started to think of a song he used to sing when he was at school, it was the only song he knew about the forest, and he didn't know the real words to it.

`If you go down to the woods today, you wont believe your eyes. If you go down to the woods today, you're in for a big surprise. Cos mum and dad are having a shag, and uncle Frank is having a wank. And Grandpa Tom is giving it good to Grandma.'

Orlando kept looking dead ahead, he didn't slow down and didn't dare look at Viggo as he spoke. "So do you maybe want to come over for dinner tonight, you know, like a date?" The words came spilling out of his mouth.

Viggo stopped dead, staring at Orlando, who continued to walk. When he realized that Viggo had stopped, he stopped too and turned to face Viggo. The shock and uncertainty in the older man's eyes made Orlando's heart sink. As what seemed like minutes went by without Viggo saying a single word, Orlando began to regret asking him out. In fact he began to wish for a tree branch to fall on Viggo, hit his head and wipe his memory from the last five minutes.

All Viggo could do was stare at the younger man. Orlando began to ramble, as he turned from Viggo and began walking again. "You know what, just forget I said anything. So how did that scene with Arwen go the other day? Liv's great isn't she, I can't think of anyone better suited to play Arwen, can you?"

"Orlando, stop." Viggo's rich, soft voice made him shiver and close his eyes. The Dane walked over to him, placing his hand on Orlando's shoulder and turning him till they were face to face. Orlando's eyes met his reluctantly, the pale blue burning into his soul.

"You just, you kind of took me by surprise. I wasn't expecting it." He didn't look away from Orlando's eyes once, and he refused to let Orlando break the connection.

"I mean, what the hell do you want with me? Compared to you, I'm a boring old man."

He didn't look like an old man to Orlando, he looked like heaven. The Brit just looked right into his eyes, letting all the love and lust he felt for him come right to the surface. "You are not old and you're certainly not boring." His voice was barely a whisper, and Viggo had to lean in slightly to hear him. "You're…" Orlando searched for the right word to describe Viggo. "You're beautiful."

Viggo's uncertainty left his face and was replaced by a warm smile. "And I don't just mean on the outside." Dom was right, how did he ever think he was straight?

The two men just continued to hold the other's gaze for a while. Words weren't needed, not when their eyes said it all. After a few minutes of silence Viggo's smile widened. "I would love to have dinner with you tonight."

Viggo felt that if he had ever done anything right in his life, if he had ever made a right decision, then this was it. The smile that lit up Orlando's angelic face reassured him that this was without a doubt one of the best decisions he had ever made.

"So what are you going to cook for me Elf?"

Orlando lost his smile. `Shit, good going Orli. Invite him round for dinner, then remember you cant cook to save your life.'

As if reading his thoughts, Viggo came to his rescue. "I tell you what, why don't I stop off at the store on the way over tonight, get some food and we can cook it together. How does that sound?"

The smile was instantly back, and Viggo knew at that moment that he would do anything it took to keep that smile there permanently.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Viggo had arrived, carrying more bags of food then they could possibly get through in one night. But he hadn't really known what Orlando would like and he wanted this meal to be perfect.

They had settled on making pasta in a tomato and basil sauce with fresh bread rolls. Not terribly imaginative but easy and quick to make. Viggo had looked through Orlando's drawers and found himself an apron that said `I can't even think straight,' that had made them both laugh. Orlando had explained that it had been a present from Atti, and he had never actually worn it before. However, the white apron did look good on him, with his cream pants and black shirt.

"Here, you wanna taste this?" Viggo held out the wooden spoon, blowing on it before lifting it to Orlando's lips.

"Mmm, its good."

Viggo laughed. "You have some just here." He wiped the sauce from then side of Orlando's mouth with his thumb, bringing it to his own mouth and sucking the sauce off.

Orlando blushed slightly and wondered what Viggo would do if he just grabbed him and stuck his tongue down his throat.

Viggo dipped his finger in the sauce and bought it up to Orlando's mouth. Orlando opened his mouth, expecting to be fed, instead Viggo dabbed the sauce on the tip of his nose, sporting a big cocky grin. Orlando looked at him as if he couldn't believe he had just done that. "You think that's funny do you?"

"Yes," Viggo said with a serious nod.

`Boring old man my arse,' Orlando thought. He stared at Viggo with complete and utter lust, before he could think it through properly he said in a sinfully seductive voice, "Lick it off."

Viggo felt heat pool in his groin and his stomach tighten. Such simple words with so much possibility. He felt his cock begin to swell slightly inside his pants.

"I don't think that's such a good idea."

"Why not?" Orlando asked, completely unaware that his statement was anything less then innocent.

"Because I don't think I would be able to stop at just licking your nose."

Orlando felt very hot all of a sudden. He smiled slightly embarrassed and went to set the table.

Viggo cursed himself for the sudden awkwardness his words had created. He replaced the spoon in the pan and followed Orlando into the living room. The table in the corner looked beautiful. Candles, wine, napkins - it was such a romantic setting and Viggo had to go and bring up the topic of sex. He had told himself as he was getting ready for this evening that he and Orlando would take this slowly, truly get to know each other mentally and emotionally before getting to know each other physically.

"Table looks great." He came to stand behind Orlando, stroking the back of his shoulder.

"Thanks." He turned to face Viggo and smiled shyly. "So you think I'm pretty lickable huh?" He couldn't help the amusement in his tone.

Viggo smiled lovingly. "Yeah, parts of you."

Orlando almost asked `which parts?' but he knew that would just bring back the awkwardness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

An hour later they sat at the table, finishing off the last of the wine. Both men were having such fun that time seemed to literally fly. They had talked about Viggo's son Henry, about realizing he was gay, and what that meant for his marriage. Orlando had gone into detail about the time he fell and broke his back, confessing that it still sometimes frightened him how close he came to never walking again.

Viggo glanced down at his watch.

"Oh you don't have to go do you?" Orlando sounded so sad that Viggo could only smile and shake his head. "No, not just yet."

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Once the dishes had been washed and put away, Viggo suggested they take another walk. Orlando lived right on the beach, so it was perfect for a nighttime stroll. They walked beside each other, roughly the same height. They didn't speak for a long time, simply enjoying the crashing of the waves and the cool salty air. Viggo took hold of Orlando's hand and led him over to sit on the sand.

"This right here, one of the best things about living in New Zealand." Orlando looked up to where Viggo was looking and saw the stars. He smiled and watched for a while. "Yeah, they're something aren't they." "In LA you're lucky if you can even see them at all, let alone this brightly." Viggo laid back, not caring that the sand was slightly damp. Orlando copied him, feeling happier and more content then he had ever been in his whole life.

"So I guess this means you would like to see me again? I mean outside of work, like as more then just friends?"

Orlando turned his head to look at Viggo, who was still staring at the stars.

"Yeah, that's exactly what it means." He grinned, turning his head to look at Orlando, whose face appeared to be glowing. "But I don't think we should rush this. I think we should take our time, really get to know each other. I mean its not like either of us are going anywhere."

Orlando smiled and reached out to take Viggo's hand. "That sounds good."

Although he desperately wanted Viggo, he knew that if Viggo wanted to take things slowly, old fashioned courting and romancing, then it just meant that he must really care for Orlando.

`I knew he must be a romantic at heart, he is a poet for Christ sake. I bet he will do things like buy me flowers and leave me love letters.' Orlando's entire body felt warm from the thought of it. `Ok seriously now, how the hell did I ever think I was straight?'

"To be honest with you, I was kind of expecting you to turn me down today when I asked you out." Orlando's voice was shy and made Viggo's heart contract.

"Why would you ever think that?" The older man gently squeezed his hand.

"Well, because you're amazing and I'm… well… me. I figured you'd probably see me as some dumb kid."

Viggo frowned at Orlando and shook his head. "I have never thought of you like that. The reason I agreed to this date was because… well… you're beautiful," he said mimicking Orlando's words from earlier, with a gentle smile. "And I don't just mean on the outside."

Orlando held his gaze for as long as he could, before the intensity became too much and he looked up at the sky again. "Oh wow! Look Viggo, a shooting star." He pointed up and followed the star with his eyes.

Viggo smiled, closed his eyes and made a silent wish, which Orlando noticed. "What did you wish for?"

Viggo turned on to his side, his head propped up on his hand. "If I tell you that, it won't come true."

Orlando smiled softly as Viggo moved closer to him and bent over him. "But I can show you."

Viggo's soft warm lips pressed gently against Orlando's. The most delicate tremors wracked his body, as liquid fire ran through him. The faint hint of stubble scratched against his smooth chin, and all he could do was wrap his arms round the older man's neck, pulling him closer. Their mouths moved gently together, softly molding as one. Viggo let his hand wander freely down the side of Orlando's body, feeling him shiver beneath his touch. Viggo's tongue licked gently at his bottom lip, tasting the lingering wine. He thought that he had never tasted anything so delicious in his entire life. Orlando parted his lips and sighed in contentment as the older man pushed his tongue inside the hot wet cavern. Their skin was on fire, their hearts beating dangerously fast. Viggo's tongue explored every inch of the warmth, softly tasting him and loving him at the same time.

The kiss remained tender and soft, but still with real passion. Orlando let out a soft whimper as Viggo's tongue retreated back in to his own mouth. He kept his lips pressed against Orlando's as he spoke breathlessly. "I think I'm gonna get lost in you. I think I'm gonna love you like I never knew I could."

Orlando felt a tear well in his eye and he closed them tight. When he opened them again they met Viggo's pale gaze, shining down at him with so much love that he felt he might die from it.

"I love you so much," Orlando whispered, stroking his hands through Viggo's hair. Viggo smiled gently and pressed his forehead against Orlando's.

Yeah, they could certainly take it slow. After all, neither of them were going anywhere.