A/N: Welcome, my little friends, to chapter 4! I've gotten positive reviews so far... so I'm very excited!

Disclaimer: Well, in this chapter I'm deciding to own Caen, the pond, and Legolas' clothing. Because I can. :)


Chapter Four : A Dip in the Pond

Not again.

Damn it. She had to seduce another elf into giving information. And unfortunately it hat to be the elf that Arwen wanted her to chase after.

Damn her. Damn Morthen. Damn Sauron. Damn everyone.

Caen huffed as she entered the borders of Rivendell. It was time to become a dignified lady again, whether she liked it or not. And she didn't like it. But she pulled it off quite nicely.

Loud voices caused her to stiffen on her horse. Eleven of them. Woodlanders, by their look and accent. By the time Caen had snuck off her horse and toward the voices, they had proceeded to remove their clothing and dive into the pond. Toad's pond. Named that for obvious reasons, as it was inhabited by hundreds of warty toads.

Caen took her time observing them. Sure, she was a spy, but she was still female. A rather amusing idea struck her and she crept over toward the group of laughing elves. Quietly, she started gathering up random articles of clothing, planning to make fools of them when the realized their clothing was missing.

She had just started collecting when a voice yelled in amusement. She ignored it. More yells followed after a short period of silence.

She was just speculating on exactly how stupid Wood elves were when she was hoisted into the air and into the arms of an elf. She screamed and struggled and tried to get down but the elf held on tightly. She was in the arms of a dark-haired elf, and a flaxen-haired elf stood right by him, eyeing her closely. Everyone around her, needless to say, were all stark naked. Her captor's hair was dripping water onto her dress, which made her annoyed.

"Hello, miss," the flaxen-haired one said. "How are you on this lovely day?"

"I would be fine, milord, if he put me down," she glared at the group of elves at large.

"He'll put you down, Lady, if you answer a question or two for us," he gestured around. All eleven elves were standing around her, their bodies drying in the sunlight peeping through the trees.

"Why were you going off with our clothing?" one demanded.

"Well why not?" Caen answered with a shrug.

"Wrong answer!" her captor smiled. He walked her over to the waters edge and tossed her in before she had a chance to even scream in protest.

She jumped out of the water and, dripping everywhere, proudly stomped away from the group of elves, who were all howling with laughter.

Caen walked away, more furious at the elves who had humiliated her than embarrassed at the fact that she was dripping wet and her dress was clinging tightly and inappropriately to her body.

Caen quickly changed her dress and dried her hair in her room, thinking all the while of the morning's events... Morthen's new assignment, acting on a whim, and being tossed into the pond...

Caen dreaded dinner, when she would be forced to start seducing that prince.

As much as she wanted to, she couldn't let her annoyance with the world show. She never could. It came with job description. Look it up, under 'spy'. And/Or "captive of wits".

She sought out Arwen. She was sure that Arwen would know how to waste an afternoon. Most anything Arwen came up with bored Caen out of her mind and time would drag. And the more time that it took till dinner, the better. She loved Arwen like a sister and would never do anything to (directly) harm her, but that didn't mean she had to enjoy whatever Arwen did.

But when she found Arwen, she found her quite busy. She was pressed against a wall and being ravaged by a scruffy human.

Didn't they realize they were in the library?

Caen, now with no one to amuse her and wanting to beat her head against the wall with the mental images of Aragorn and Arwen in the library just now, retreated back to her room where she plucked a book off her shelf and settled on her bed to read it.

She might be a heartless spy but she wasn't an entirely heartless woman.

---

Dinner was never to be missed, no matter how important your work was. That fact had been drilled into her head ever since she was a child. Especially dinners when there were guests present. Which, in Rivendell, was a considerable amount of the time.

Caen spent her time surveying the Mirkwood party over her sister's shoulder, who was too busy chatting with a friend of hers to notice what Caen was staring at. There were a few elves that looked important enough, and handsome enough, to be the prince. But the party seemed to all be the best of friends and no man stood alone. They all laughed and ate and talked animatedly.

Across the room there certainly were many guests. There most guests she had seen in many years. There were Halflings, humans, assorted foreign elves, and... dwarves. Caen scowled internally at the short, fuzzy beings.

Dinner was not all that exciting. It was only when the dancing started in the Hall of Fire did it ever become interesting.

Caen did her duty as a daughter of Elrond, even a foster one, and danced the first dance with a randomly selected elf. She danced for several hours, and when she thought it was polite enough, she retreated into a dimly lit corner to survey the elves still dancing.

Sometimes she didn't understand how she lived this double life... How did she appear so happy all the time and yet be drowning in hatred and fear on the inside? She was just speculating on this fact, when,

"Well, well, well. How's the water nymph tonight?" an amused voice chuckled. It was the flaxen haired elf, Caen realized. She, after giving him a glare that plainly told him to go away, stared back at the crowd.

"You seem to have dried off nicely," the elf tried again.

"You seem to have clothed yourself nicely," Caen couldn't help but say. He really had asked for that one...

"They're rather tight. I had to borrow them from Elladan. I didn't expect a fancy dinner and dance when I came here," the elf chuckled. Caen glanced at him in the corner of her eye and mentally approved. He had archer's arms, she noticed. Rather nice archer's arms.

"I saw you sitting with the Halfelvens," the elf said. "Are you the mysterious adopted daughter that I've never met?" he asked.

"You've met me," she responded.

"Have I? I'm sure I would have remembered..." he furrowed his brow.

"You tossed me into the pond. Have you forgotten already?" Caen smiled, and her eyes twinkled mischievously.

The elf chuckled. "I have met you, then. But I am afraid I've forgotten my manners," he bowed. "Legolas, at your service."

Caen's breath caught. This is what she was supposed to get? She suddenly saw her assignment in a whole new light. This would be one dangerously satisfying mission, no matter how it ended up.

And he obviously didn't remember the first time they'd met in Mirkwood.

"Caen," she responded with a curtsey. Silently she thanked her father. Surely he wouldn't have given her this assignment if he had ever seen how handsome Legolas really was.

"I must ask you," Legolas said, joining her without her permission and leaning against the wall. "...again, why did you attempt to steal my men's clothing?"

"Why not?" Caen's answer was the same. "I was bored."

"Boredom can be relieved in other, more dignified ways, Lady Caen," Legolas said with a smile tugging at his lips.

"Not in Rivendell, I assure you." How was it that she could speak so freely with him already?

"And are you bored right now?" Legolas asked.

"What, are you afraid I'm going to steal your clothing right now in front of everybody?" Caen snorted.

Legolas burst out laughing. His laugh reminded Caen of a tiger. Devilishly handsome looks, but a fierce passion underneath a calm appearance that threatened to strike out at any moment. Danger Caen could do. It was what she was used to. Risks. It was obvious that this Prince knew the hardships of travel and the pain of war.

This assignment might not be half-bad.


A/N: So Caen is a little mischievious. Actually, she's very mischevious! She's just a fireball with nowhere to land, I suppose!

Hope everyone enjoyed the chapter! Thanks to IwishSan, BellaRu, sakura-angel113, Sarahbarr17, Lady Anck-su-namun, and geminitwinz for the nice reviews! Elrond-shaped cookies for all of you, this chapter!

Okay, random note: I've decided that the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants soundtrack is one of the best soundtracks I've ever come by. Seriously, go out and buy it. (it's my current music-muse ;) ) It's worth every cent.

-Ivy

7/23/06