Elladan's POV

"Elladan!"

Startled, I look up to see Elrohir trudging toward me. I smirk, knowing exactly why he is angry, but I just hitch my quiver of arrows higher up my shoulder and pretend nothing is amiss.

"Why have you not been attending the council meetings?" he asks, raising his eyebrow at me as he stops in front of me where I stand in between the stables and the house.

"Ada (Dad) freed me from the duty of attending them," I tell him.

His mouth gapes open like a fish. "What?" he practically hisses, "Why?"

"He said- and I quote- 'You deserve some freedom and happiness, Elladan. I, too, would rather spend my days in the forest, so I am allowing you to do so while you can,'" I say, mocking my father's voice by speaking deeply and seriously.

Elrohir does not seem to find it amusing.

He throws his hands up in exasperation. "What does that even mean? If anyone should be released from council meeting duty it should be me! At least I do not zone out like a buffoon as I am being spoken to," he says. He seems to be calming down, though, because he smirks at me after his last sentence.
I smirk, too, merry after the day's events. Not even Elrohir's whining can dampen my spirits. "At least I do not whine like an elfling," I answer, pushing past him and walking toward the house. I bow my head to servants and other residents of Rivendell as they pass by every once in awhile.

Elrohir scoffs. "I can whine if I want to. Adar is-once again- giving you special treatment. I mean, you are older than me by just a few minutes, but Ada and Naneth treat you like the golden child."

"Actually," I disagree, turning around and jabbing my finger into his chest, "The golden child would be our dear sister."

Elrohir seems to ponder that for a moment before nodding in agreement. "Yes, you are right. Well, between the two of us, you are the favorite."

I laugh loudly, gaining weird looks from some of the elves around us, and I begin walking again. "You are truly insane, brother. You are the favorite. Adar is always telling me that I should act more like you. He disapproves of everything I do. Do not pretend 'tis not true. He probably made up the "freedom" excuse so that he would not hurt my feelings by saying that I am entirely incompetent. That is most likely the reason why he kicked me out of the meeting."

"Whatever you say," Elrohir mutters, and he follows behind me as I enter my room, and he plops down onto my bed. "So where have you been these past few days? Arwen and Naneth have been acting strange and... secretive. You know how women are sometimes, all giggly and whispering all of the time."

I freeze as I am unbuttoning my tunic. I turn to look at him with furrowed eyebrows. "What?"

Elrohir gives me a look as if I am stupid. "Arwen and Naneth are acting strange and-,"

"Yes, yes. I heard you," I mutter, cutting him off, "I mean, do you have any idea as to why they are acting that way?"

My brother shakes his head. "No, but it started after you began disappearing all of the time. And you have yet to answer my question."

I finish unbuttoning my tunic, and I pull it off hurriedly, pondering this new information. Oh, I knowexactly what Naneth is up to, and if she thinks for one moment that I will allow her to treat me as lovesick puppy then she is mistaken. How she is able to read me like a book, I will never know. I actually thought that I was doing pretty well with keeping my meetings with Taenya a secret.

"I have just been taking Sirdal for a ride in the forest," I say vaguely, pulling on a clean, blue tunic.

"Hmm," Elrohir hums, unconvinced and sarcastic, "The forest. How exciting."

I roll my eyes. "You can believe me or not, I do not care. Just get out of my room," I say tiredly, running my hand through my hair in frustration. My family members love to stick their noses in other people's business, and it frustrates me to no end. They also love teasing and nagging, and that is precisely why I am trying to keep Taenya a secret. Plus, Elrohir would probably take a fancy to her, and I would have to beat him up.

My brother just laughs loudly. "Why can you not tell me? You tell me everything! We are twins after all," he persuades.

I pull on clean pants and turn to look at him, thinking of the pros and cons of telling him. He does keep all of my secrets, to be fair, and I keep his. The two of us, well, we really are close, so I guess there is no real harm in telling him. I just will not allow him to see her, of course. Any male with eyes would take a fancy to her.

"I will tell you," I say warily, staring at him seriously.

His smirk disappears at the look I give him. "Is it really that serious?" he questions, his eyes losing their mischievousness for the moment.

"It is to me, and I do not want you to go telling Naneth or anyone else. Especially not Naneth. From what you told me, I think she and Arwen are already suspicious," I tell him with a sigh.

"Well get on with it," Elrohir says, leaning forward and placing his elbows on his knees.

"A few days ago, when Ada sent me out of the council meeting, I decided to take Sirdal for a ride in the forest. When we stopped and he was grazing, I accidentally stumbled across a clearing in the forest. There was an elleth," I say, my voice becoming soft, and I clear my throat in embarrassment when Elrohir smirks, "She is... well, she is absolutely beautiful, Elrohir. She is like nothing I have ever encountered before. She is innocent and naive, and she is very shy. Her personality is so captivating. I have not been able to stop thinking about her since the first moment I laid eyes on her. I have been meeting her every day in that clearing since."

Elrohir looks at me in interest, still smirking. "Of course there is an elleth! I should have known," he exclaims with a laugh, "She must really be something since she managed to capture your attention."

I raise my eyebrow at him. "And what do you mean by that?" I ask him, crossing my arms over my chest.

He chuckles. "Oh c'mon, 'Dan, you never take an interest in anyone. But do not get me wrong, I am happy for you. I promise to keep your little secret between the two of us."

I sit down beside him, feeling a bit awkward, yet strangely excited now that he knows. It is slightly relieving to have someone else know. "You are correct," I reply, "But I have definitely taken an interest in her."

'Ro looks at me with his silly smirk once again. "Have you kissed her?"

My eyes practically jump out of my head at the question, and, much to my immense embarrassment, I blush. "I barely know her!" I exclaim at once, heat spreading up the back of my neck and over my face, "You do not kiss someone you have just met!"

Elrohir throws his head back and howls with laughter. "You should see your face!" he exclaims, and I scowl at him, "Of course you do not kiss someone you have just met. I am not stupid, 'Dan. I just wanted to see your reaction, and it was worth it!"

I just look at him in annoyance, waiting for him to stop laughing.

"Okay, okay," he says, calming down, "On a more serious note, have you at least told her that you like her?"

I shake my head. "No, but I have... implied it."

My brother chuckles and places his hand on my shoulder. "'Dan, you have to at least tell the elleth that you are fond of her. If you do not, she will think that you just think of her as friend, and you do not want that, do you?"

"No, I do not," I say quietly. Honestly, the thought of telling her that I fancy her is more terrifying than facing an army of orcs. Even just speaking to her is difficult sometimes. I am constantly on edge, constantly afraid that I will say something stupid. And she is very shy, so telling her such feelings so soon might scare her away.

"Then you must tell her," Elrohir says with a smile, and he pats my shoulder once before standing and walking to the door, "Now come on, brother. It is time for supper, and you are going to need me to help you with Naneth and Arwen."

_______

Sitting at the table for supper, I see Arwen staring at me with a poorly suppressed smile in my peripheral vision. The atmosphere is awkward, and I have been pretending to ignore Naneth's and Arwen's exchanged glances of secrecy since I first sat down. Elrohir and Adar are perfectly normal, though, as my brother prattles on about how his training went this morning, and Glorfindel chimes in with a funny story about one of his students every few moments causing the two of them to laugh. I sit there quietly, eating the delicious food that the servants brought in a while ago.

Glorfindel looks over at me while 'Ro and Ada are being loud, and he smiles. "Why are you being so quiet, 'Dan? It is not like you," he inquires.

Glorfindel is intimidating most of the time because of his warrior build and solemn disposition, but he is actually very kind and soft spoken. He teaches elves of all ages and backgrounds how to fight, and he is the one who trained Elrohir and me. Really, the only time he is strict and slightly frightening is when he is training. He has been my father's advisor since before any of my siblings and I were born, and they are great friends. Anytime there is a problem, Glorfindel is the first one we go to.

"Simply because I have nothing to say," I reply softly, trying not to catch the attention of the others.

His blue eyes analyze me carefully as I continue to eat, and I pray that he will stop speaking of how odd I am acting. After a moment, he sighs slightly and turns his attention back to Elrohir who is gesturing wildly as he tells a story about Elduin, one of our close friends.

"Ion nin (my son)," my mother suddenly says, and I meet her soft gaze, "How was your day?"
"Just like every other day," I reply nonchalantly, and I glance over at Adar to see that he and 'Ro are now listening to the conversation, "Anything is better than sitting in a council meeting."

Ada and Glorfindel chuckle at my attempt at a joke, and Elrohir looks as if he wants to complain about the council meetings again.

"How was your day, Naneth?" I fire back with a raised brow and polite smile.

She smirks at me slightly, knowing that I have caught on to her game. "It was very great, 'Dan. Thank you for asking."

We both just stare at each other for a moment before Arwen breaks up our silent war.

"I have not seen you around the house lately," she says to me, her eyes sparkling with glee.

'Ro coughs from his place a few seats down the table, and all eyes are on me.

"Maybe that is because all you ever do is sit in your room and write letters to Estel," I reply with a smirk, and Elrohir bursts into laughter.

She blushes and looks down at her plate, and I know that I have quietened her for the moment. Even Ada looks as if he is trying not to laugh. But Naneth is not quite finished yet. "'Dan, do not speak to your sister that way," she chides, "Arwen was only making conversation, which is something you seem to be struggling with lately. What has gotten into you?"

"Nothing," I say to my mother before looking at Arwen whose cheeks are still red, "Forgive me, sister, I was only teasing."

She smiles at me. "'Tis alright. You will understand one day, 'Dan, when a lady catches your eye," she says, her tone too innocent.

I narrow my eyes at her, yet her smile only grows wider.

Naneth laughs and the two glance at each other with identical smirks. "Yes, I wonder when that day will be," my mother says, and I grip the arm of my chair tightly.

"'Dan never fancies any elleth, so I do not know what you two are going on about," Elrohir says, saving me, and I send a relieved look his way, "And when is the dessert going to be served? I am craving some of Lady Elora's pie."

I chuckle at his diversion. Everyone knows how much 'Ro and I love the head cook Elora's pie, and my Naneth shoots him him a look. "'Ro, sometimes I think you are still an elfling in that mind of yours," she says with a laugh, and the others join in.

I push my chair back from the table. "Excuse me, but I think I will skip out on the pie tonight," I say, not bothering to be properly excused by the others, and I exit the dining room.

I sigh in content when the cool night air hits my face, and I stride over to the balcony and place my elbows on the railing, looking out over Imladris as the wind brushes my cheeks. My mind conjures up brief images of fiery hair flickering in the wind like flames dancing through the forest, eyes as green as the pastures and rolling hills of the Shire, and an elleth smiling beautifully down at me from where she is perched in a Mallorn tree.

Have you kissed her?

Remembering the question sends a flame of passion I did not know I possessed through my chest like a cool blade. Taenya's beauty is unrivaled, for I have never laid eyes upon one so radiant as her in my entire life. But it was her shy, innocent nature that enchanted me our first meeting. Of course I have imagined what it would be like to kiss her small, pink lips, but those thoughts were always brief and were willed away quickly in embarrassment. It makes me feel guilty to think of her in such a way when she is so innocent and untainted by the evils of the world. When she looks at me, trust swims in those wondrous green eyes, and I again feel guilty knowing that I have already broken that trust, unbeknownst to her. I lied about who I am, but is that truly a terrible thing? I did so with the best of intentions. I wanted us to be equal, when in the eyes of others we are far from it.

I also did it for selfish reasons. I want her to always see me as 'Dan, and I love hearing that name roll off her lips. I despise being known as a lord of Rivendell. I do not want the responsibilities that come along with that title, with that bloodline. I want to be completely free, the way that Taenya is, and I think that is one of the reasons I am so attracted to her. Her life is the one I have always dreamed about but can never have. If Taenya and I were to grow to love one another, which does not seem so far fetched on my part, would she want to leave the only life she has ever known? Would I want to take away the freedom that she possesses that I have always yearned for? The thought saddens me, for I could not bring myself to hurt her. Being with Taenya means exposing her to the harshness of royalty. She would be eaten alive by the other ladies, for they would surely be jealous of her beauty and sweetness. I cannot do that to her.

But I cannot stop seeing her.

The mere thought of not seeing her smile or her eyes again is too much to bare. I feel such a deep attraction to her even though I barely know her, and I cannot help but wonder if that is normal. Is it normal for me to think of her so often? Is it normal to long for her company so intensely? I wish I had someone to talk to, but who could I trust with such uncertain emotions? Certainly not Elrohir, and he is the only one who knows. So, I am alone, as always.

"'Dan."

I close my eyes tightly as my mother's voice floats to me. Her tone pierces my heart because I can hear the softness in it, the guilt and hurt.

"'Dan, I am sorry if I did something to hurt you. That surely was not my intention," she says, and I glance over my shoulder to see her standing a few feet away, her hands clasped in front of her and her eyes apologetic.

"Naneth," I sigh, her sad eyes making me feel guilty for worrying her, "I am not upset. I know you were just teasing me. You can read me far too well. I am just mad at myself, for I have never been able to keep secrets."

I turn back to look out into the night, and I hear her footsteps approach me until she is standing by my side. She places her small hand on my arm in comfort. "You are my son, Elladan, of course I can read you like a book," she teases me quietly, and I chuckle, "But you must know that I am here for you, and I only want you to be happy. You can tell me anything. I do not want you to keep secrets from me, especially when they are affecting you so."

I stay silent for a moment, secretly delighted to have her to speak with. I meet her gaze. "There... there is this elleth," I begin, and I falter for a moment at the smile that spreads across my mother's face.

She nods slightly. "You can tell me," she says softly.

My gaze once again travels back to the night sky, and I close my eyes, picturing Taenya in my mind. I remember how her soft hand feels in mine when I kiss her knuckles, her rosy cheeks when I find myself staring at her for far too long, and when her nose scrunched up adorably when her arrow missed the tree.

"I met her the other day when Ada sent me from the meeting. She lives in the forest, just outside of Willowdale. She is absolutely beautiful, inside and out. I have never in my life felt this way about anyone," I say quietly, "Am I insane to feel so strongly about an elleth I barely know?"

My mother shakes her head, looking at me with a tender look in her eyes. "The way of the elven soul is a complicated thing, Elladan. Elven souls bond, as you already know, when two elves marry. It is perfectly natural to feel such a way for the person who was created to be your other half. It is as if your soul is searching all these years until you find that person, then it clings to them. You can fall in love without ever speaking, 'Dan. Never let anyone tell you differently. I knew right away that Elrond was my other half."

I meet her gaze, feeling reassured by her words. "Thank you, Naneth," I say.

She leans in and kisses my cheek, rubbing my shoulder softly. "I am your mother. It is what I am here for," she says, and she then smiles brightly, "Will I get to meet this mysterious elleth?"

I laugh at her excitement. "Maybe so," I say teasingly, "I might hide her away."

She slaps me on the arm. "Oh, 'Dan!" she exclaims with a laugh.

I grin at her. "I love you," I tell her.

She smiles widely, her eyes shining in happiness. "And I love you."

__________

A/N: Back to back update! ;) proud of myself! I hope y'all enjoy! Please drop a comment if you liked it! Love y'all to the Moon and back.

( Oh and Roll Tide!!!!!! )

Love,

Josie <3