"What're you apologizing for?" Stef says, sounding hurt and offended. "Apparently I'm the one who should be sorry." And he runs away into the night. 

I really hope no one saw that. Vanyel looks around helplessly and then sits down on the unfinished balcony. :Maitimo. Help: 

- no one saw that but a lot of people heard it. His face looks shocked, disgusted, just on instinct, without it really connected to anything else - it's probably connected to something else - think about that later - 

- he heads out to see Vanyel.

Vanyel is sitting on the floor of the balcony with his arms wrapped around his knees. :Oh, gods, I'm so sorry - did I cause a scene - I was such an idiot...: 

- you caused some amount of a scene. I - people probably won't bring it up. - you should go home. If you want to - I should've told you that a month ago but I don't want you to go home, I like having you here - but it's not a good place for that -

:I don't want to. Not until Leareth's better: Vanyel has not been under the impression that Leareth is feeling very ready to go back to Velgarth. :If you think I messed up enough that I have to leave, though...: Heavy sigh. 

- no. No, we'll - I think people mostly won't bring it up. And you saved the world. You have a lot of credit here. But - but people won't be as generous to Stef, and a lot of people are starting from a lot of - really awful places, when it comes to this, and if you want to sleep with men you should do it back in Valdemar, and not here. I'm sorry. I don't - if I knew how to change it I would've done it a long time ago.

:It's fine! I have gone multiple years without sleeping with anyone before and it's– it's fine. I was just being drunk and an idiot and I guess I must've been flirting by accident and apparently Stef took this as a cue to kiss me without asking: And he is not going to think about what the kiss was like, at all, possibly ever again. He puts his head down on his knees. :I'm so sorry. This is so humiliating. I thought I was being careful: 

I don't think you did anything wrong, he lies automatically, sitting down beside him. And Stef was stupid but - in a way that should matter a lot less than it did matter. I'm - sorry. I certainly don't think any less of you.

:In hindsight it may have been a questionable decision to send him in particular, even though he is the most talented Bard of his generation. Probably the people they asked - weren't thinking of that. Someone must've told him not to flirt with the Noldor, but...: He hugs himself. :I'd consider whether he should just go home now, except it'd look like a punishment, and, I don't know...: 

Yeah. I -

- I don't know if the Quendi who never lived under the Valar feel strongly about - maybe I can pull together some people who've been wanting to head over to Cuivienen anyway and -

:Mmm. Maybe: He was having such a nice evening, Vanyel thinks wistfully, why did it have to end terribly like this. :Stef won't want to go back, but he's also - not going to be willing to hide this. It's not as bad back home, but it's at all bad, he got into a lot of fights over it. His attitude toward it reminds me of, er, your father about Nolofinwë... Has he mellowed about that? I never hear him talk about it anymore. I guess they're not in each other's way these days: 

I keep them off the same continent and it seems to work okay. If we ask Stef to accompany the people going to Cuivienen I hope it won't come across as a punishment because lots of people want to join that expedition, it's where the Quendi first started, we're really eager to meet the locals there. And - I'm guessing here, it might be even worse, we'd need you with them just in case, but they might not care.

I know at least some people didn't, before we came to Valinor.

Is he - going to get himself into a bad situation, trying to prove something to people -

:I don't know. Probably someone should talk to him. That person definitely, definitely cannot be me - I'm sorry, this is such a headache for you, I should've been more careful...: 

Hey, beats the time when my father threatened to murder his brother in front of everybody the day Leareth arrived. - it's okay. You didn't do anything wrong. I will ...check whether anyone is talking to Stef and figure out what to do if not.

And he can flip through peoples' eyes and ears trying to figure out - is anyone talking to Stef?

:I'll ask Yfandes: Pause. :Dara grabbed him and dragged him back to her guest room. I assume he is getting some kind of lecture. She's very sensible so hopefully it'll be a good lecture: 

She seems very sensible. - I'm sorry, Van. We owed you better than this. 

:It's not your fault. It's fine: Vanyel tips his head back, looks at the stars. :How's Leareth? Did he stay for any of the party?: 

In short stretches, I think - he searches for Leareth.

Leareth has found a place that's less than a minute bolt from his room but also within view of a lot of the festivities. He's sitting next to a fountain, listening to the music.

Yeah. He's fine. 

:That's good: Another sigh. :I assume he has some very good reason why he sometimes avoids me, it's probably Melkor's fault, and - I'm not about to poke him about it or be sad at him, but it does kind of bother me: 

That makes sense. I think it's probably Melkor's fault. But it'd bother me a lot too, and - I'm sure this is not how you imagined finally getting to meet each other in person with no wars on.

:Not really, no. But...at least we're not at war. And we've got time. I mean, I know we've got some possible problems on the horizon, but - this is the first time in a decade that there aren't ten urgent competing priorities in front of me constantly:

That sounds exhausting. I'm glad you can have some time off.