Celebration

Eleniel: 15

It was dark outside when the twin sons of Lord Elrond walked down the halls of the Last Homely House, quietly conversing so as not to wake the probably sleeping elves of the rooms they passed.

The two had been up late, talking and drinking wine with their father, Estel, Glorfindel, Erestor, their grandparents, and a few other elves in the Hall of Fire after celebrating the youngest Peredhel's begetting-day, and had now made the decision to retire for the night.

Eleniel herself had left the Hall an hour or so before with her sister Arwen, wanting to catch up on - apparently - 'elleth' things. Arwen was still living in Lothlorien with their grandparents, Galadriel and Celeborn, and she and Eleniel missed each other terribly. Despite them always being ages away from each other, however, they were still extremely close.

The twins stopped outside Eleniel's room. Elladan pushed down the handle and silently opened the door, choosing not to knock in case his sister was asleep.

He walked in, Elrohir following behind, and smiled at the sight in front of him.

Eleniel was lying at the end of her bed, still dressed in the lacy white gown their grandparents had gifted her that she had worn for the celebration. It was strange seeing her dressed in such elleth-like clothing, for she usually detested the idea of wearing dresses and wore leggings and a tunic like her brothers. However, she understood the need for more formal clothing during occasions such as her begetting-day!

As the twins moved closer, they saw that their sister's icy blue eyes were glazed over with sleep.

Arwen was in a very similar position on the other end of the bed, her raven hair fanned out over the pillow her head was on.

Elladan smiled and reached down to gently pick Eleniel up, who stirred in his arms, her eyes slowly blinking as an exhausted look overcame her face.

"Hey," he whispered, "you go back to sleep. I am going to dress you in something more comfortable to go to bed in, alright? There, now. Sleep, my little one."

Eleniel was asleep again in no time after her brother's words, not even waking as Elladan removed the gown and slipped a sleeping tunic and leggings on her. He lifted her back up into his arms and smiled when he felt her nuzzle her head into his shoulder.

When he turned around, he noticed that Elrohir was sat on the bed and Arwen was awake, her eyes closed slightly as she leaned into her older brother's side.

"We did not mean to wake you," Elladan apologised as he walked towards his siblings.

Arwen shook her head with a small smile. "Do not worry," she said, before nodding towards her sister. "Did she wake?"

Elladan smiled. "Not really," he said, moving his head to kiss Eleniel's blonde head.

Elrohir and Arwen shifted over and the older twin gently lay his sister on the bed, covering her with the blanket and watching with a loving smile as she moved into a more comfortable position. Arwen lay down next to her, stroking the little Peredhel's cheek, and Elrohir did the same on the other side, smiling fondly at his two younger sisters.

Elladan grinned and crossed his arms over his chest. "And where do you expect me to sleep?" he asked with a raise of his eyebrow.

Elrohir grinned back. "Hm," he said thoughtfully, "I would say the floor, but it does not look very comfortable, does it?"

The two laughed quietly before the younger twin shuffled closer to Eleniel, leaving space for Elladan to jump in under the covers.

The twins talked for a while with Arwen before one by one they dropped off to sleep, and the room was completely silent save for the quiet breaths escaping the elves' lips.

The sight which later met Elrond's eyes as he opened the door to his youngest child's room to see if she had fallen asleep yet caused a huge smile to spread across his face, and he leaned against the door frame for a long while, staring lovingly at his beautiful children.

How he had gotten so lucky, he would never know.