Title: Fair Twins in Middle Earth Did Dwell

Disclaimer: J.R.R. Tolkein is responsible for the world history and background, but the principal characters in this fic are my own. I am writing this for fun and not profit.

Pairing: None yet… only the twins, but no twincest.

Warnings: Occurs post-Return of the King. Not compliant with annexes I-III. Presumes that not all elves have departed for the Grey Havens as of the birth of Aragorn and Arwen's grandchildren, two of which this story details. Will include a good deal of violence and possibly some mild sexual activity in later chapters.

Rating: T for sexual references and some violence.

Summary: Arwen and Elwen, two part-elf descendants of Eldarion son of Aragorn, complete training in arts of the mind and body with elves in Lothlorien to prepare for their part in a prophecy that will decide the balance of light and darkness in the Fourth Age.

Author's Notes: Bear in mind that I wrote this when I was sixteen years old, and will be making only minor changes as I upload the full story in parts. Considering, I'd say it's a pretty fair narrative take on J.R.R. Tolkein's works. The main characters are modeled after myself and a close friend who collaborated.

- 1 -

Tasks Most Difficult

"Hey lazybones, move yourself!" Elwen blinked owlishly in the light of the sun as the bright, buoyant face of her sister Arwen swam into view.

"Unnnnhhh… I can't hear you… jus' a dream. Go away now," moaned Elwen, her thoughts muddled with the stupor of a sound sleep.

Arwen, unwilling to accept defeat, flipped the mattress off the bed and ran laughing down the elegant spiral stair with a disgruntled Elwen quick to pursue.

The twins raced down the stairs with such grace and speed it was hard to imagine them as part mortal. At last, after disrupting many elves in their morning rituals, Elwen had her sister cornered by the edge of a balcony.

"Give up?" asked Elwen.

Arwen snorted, "You wish!" and with that, she leapt over the rail into the green tinged light, with Elwen close behind. Landing on the boughs of the Mallorn trees, they seemed to traverse an unseen path made of sunlight and silvery-green foliage. The trees seemed to lean in toward the two lithe figures as they raced, protecting them from the perilous fall to the floor. This child's game of tag only lasted for moments before,

"Children, when you are done fooling around, get down here. That means now, ladies, not an hour from now."

Elwen rolled her eyes at Arwen; "Atanamir… always ruining the fun," she muttered.

Exchanging peeved glances, the girls ended their game and clambered off the Mallorn branches onto the balcony of fine elven-craft. Quickly they dressed and carried out their own morning routines before racing back down the staircases to the floor of the great forest, engaged in a friendly game of push and shove among siblings as they went.

A tall, silver-crowned elf of noble bearing and solemn composure awaited the twins at the table they met at each day before setting upon the day's grueling lessons and chores. Atanamir was their first and foremost teacher but all of the Faderlings taught Arwen and Elwen, as was their duty. There were none in Lórien who did not care for the twins, and all mourned that so young and promising a pair must bear such heavy burdens as their future promised to lay upon them. Oblivious to their ominous future, the twins paused for a moment in respectful silence for their mentor, and then began to talk to one another rapidly in Sindarin, the tongue of elves.

However, they did not get far into their conversation when Atanamir interrupted them.

"You two are only novices in our ways, but after some time one would think that women of the age of twenty-one, though only children in our eyes, would have more sense than to go cavorting about in such an unseemly manner." The twins protested but their instructor went on as if they had said nothing. "In the future you will do well to remember that when we have guests, such as Daekáno of Rivendell and his party, you are to act as if you two are somewhat civilized. I would hate to have another incident where someone ends up with a bed that is housing your collection of rocks or an item of unsavory nature." Abashed, the young women said nothing, knowing that it would do them little good to speak out.

"Now," he continued, "there is very little left that we as your instructors can teach to you, but there are tasks you have yet to accomplish. Before I explain them, you are to prove to me that you understand the politics of the regions of Middle-Earth. Elwen, Beleg was king in the year of…"

And so it went on with the elf-lord questioning them from past politics to recent, asking each twin in turn. The adolescents answered each question, rarely hesitating in uncertainty. After a time he judged to be appropriate, Atanamir held up is hand and said, "Enough, you have learned what you need to know. Tonight, the first of many more difficult cered, shall reveal itself to you."

Arwen, curious, asked, "What are these cered for?"

For a moment, a look of deep sadness flashed across the normally stoic face of the elf. Then, he sighed and finally answered, "I have dreaded the day when these words would come, but at the end of your training you are to leave the woods, to go on elsewhere. You cannot yet imagine why, and, in truth, we ourselves do not know exactly why. Our duty has simply been known to us for many years. These are the days of preparation, your final lessons, which are not teachable for your futures are your own, and for you to collect what is rightfully yours. You must claim the path you are to follow."

Startled by the news of their departure from their home, the girls were unable to ask any more questions, for in their hesitation the elf-lord briskly rose and strode away in solemnity. Silence followed the twins for the rest of the day, their mentors grieving to see the hushed behavior of the normally lively twins. The forest seemed to mirror the mood, and it was if a cloud hung about to stifle noise and instill melancholy. The very air seemed thick and depressing without the laughter and activity of the sisters. The cloud thickened, when the twins saw that their few worldly possessions were being either packed away or organized so that later they could be packed away.

After a midday meal of Lembas, Arwen and Elwen picked up their practice blades and went to their sparring sessions. Upon their arrival in the fencing arena, the twins immediately went into their stretches, not even pausing to talk or joke with one another. When done with their exercises they rose up and turned toward their mentors. The tutors that taught them were masters of the blade and warlords in the ages past. Each day Elwen and Arwen fought whatever blade master faced them, in hopes to best all of their teachers.

The twins walked to opposite ends of the field and took their stances. The opponent fighting Elwen was the elf Daekáno, visiting from Rivendell, who wished to see the girls' progress in training. Arwen was fighting Celebaglar, who was young as elves go and the closest to the twins' age at one hundred and four. Celebaglar was there the day the sisters came to live in Lórien; he was the one who they trusted they most because of his carefree attitude, uncommon among elves.

As they crossed blades, the slight sisters seemed outmatched by the two wiry built males. Without warning, Elwen struck out at Daekáno and just a moment behind her, Arwen moved quickly to the left and blocked as Celebaglar swung at her. The practice duels always attracted a small crowd and one could not watch a singular fight without the other, for even though they were two separate duels, they seemed connected to one another. As Elwen attacked, Arwen moved in defense. The fight no longer seemed a fight; the participants whirled, jumped, and moved with such grace that it seemed like a dance.

After a few moments of graceful sparring, each blow matched with blow, Elwen twisted her sword around her opponent's, knocking it from his hand. She turned just in time to watch her younger golden-haired twin effectively outmaneuver her challenger, so he was on his knees with her practice blade at his throat.

Elwen congratulated her sister and the fair maidens moved off to practice their other weapons: bows, knives and even fists, where they were allowed to hit each other, something that had amused the girls immensely in happier days, though they were too well matched to land many blows. At the end of the day, the adolescents silently washed up and ascended the stairs to the formal hall, where once Galadriel greeted the Fellowship of the Ring. The stars shone brightly but even they could not lighten the forlorn mood. The meal was a celebration of the completion of the twins training but it seemed more like a funeral dinner. Those who tried to start conversations ended up just joining the glowering silence.

The two sisters took their leave early from the meal, claiming that they had to be well rested for what was to come, but in Elwen's heart, she knew that she and her sister simply wished to remember times when they had not a care in the world. Unhurried they returned to the room that had been theirs for most of the lives. And each lay awake that night as the moon rose and night embraced the wood once filled with the light of the sun, their hearts heavy with foreboding.