Rain in Rivendell
Disclaimer: not mine. Make no money from this. Happy now?
A/N: this story takes place somewhere between the years of 2784 and 2848 of the Third Age, during Arassuil's time as Chieftain of the Dúnedain; it is set after the departure of Celebrían over the Sea and before the arrival of a two-year-old Aragorn II in Rivendell.
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Chapter 1
"It would not take long, Ada."
"We are sooooooo bored. It would give us something to do."
"It needs doing; you said so yourself."
"Yesterday."
"To Glorfindel and Erestor."
"We happen to agree with you."
"And who better for the job than us?"
"Surely you trust us to do it correctly?"
"So, please?"
Lord Elrond Halfelven arched one well-defined eyebrow. "Oh, you think so, do you?"
"No," answered one twin.
"Then why –"
"We know so," answered the other loftily, taking a bite from his toast.
"No."
"But Adaaaaaaaaaa..." the twins chorused pleadingly. The wizard sitting on the opposite side of the table struggled to repress his smile of amusement.
"Your tools will not work efficiently in such weather. Are you blind to the rain?"
"No-oooo..." began the one with a slice of toast in his hand.
"And how came you to hear my words to Glorfindel and Erestor? I was of the understanding that it was a private conversation – hence its conduction inside my study and not anywhere else!"
The twins exchanged guilty expressions and Elladan lowered his toast. "Perhaps – perhaps you should shut your door next time, Ada," he suggested cheekily.
Elrond cleared his throat pointedly and Elladan subsided. "Thank you, Elladan. Now, do you two not have bows to mend?"
"Finished yesterday," answered Elrohir promptly. "Nothing more to do."
"Arrows to make?"
"Not our turn."
"Swords to sharpen?"
"Done."
"Clothes to mend?"
The twins shook their heads.
"Beds to make?"
"Done."
"Rooms. To. Tidy?" (through gritted teeth).
"No-ooo."
Elrond was clearly growing annoyed. The twins caught each other's eyes and fled, having succeeded in their goal of winding up their father. They ran until they reached Elladan's (distinctly messy) bedroom and slammed the door.
"The day is young," Elrohir observed mildly, gazing out of the window to the torrential downpour.
"And we cannot go outside," added Elladan in the same tone as he threw the covers carelessly over his bed, "for it rains so."
"We should tidy our rooms."
"Indeed we should," agreed Elladan. "Except that I happen to like mine like this. I know where my belongings are located. I do not wish to tidy it."
"Have you a better idea?"
"I might do."
"Oh?"
"Ada's room is a little too tidy, do you not think?"
Elrohir nodded. "I do think so."
"I propose that we make it appear more...homely. After all, some call this place, 'The Last Homely House'. All parts need to feel homely, including Ada's room."
"Indeed."
"And he needs some...light entertainment. He needs some fun. He is too serious."
"I could not agree more."
"Come. We shall make improvements. Ada will be teaching some Gondorian history to the young Elves this morning for three hours. That should give us sufficient time."
Elrohir obediently followed his twin to their father's bedroom, as quietly as they could manage, should they be caught. Elladan stopped abruptly outside Elrond's room and doubled back around the corner from whence they had just come, pulling Elrohir into a small room and out of sight just as Elrond strode purposefully past.
"Close," breathed Elladan. "However, we are safe now. Ada had the books that he will require for his lessons. He teaches at the opposite end of the main house." The twins darted into their father's bedroom and carefully pushed the door so that it was almost, but not quite, shut.
"The tidiness is impeccable," remarked Elrohir (quietly, so as to avoid arousing trouble).
Elladan nodded, eyes focused upon the bed. "Last night's dessert has given me an idea, brother dear."
"What was for dess – oh. Ohhhhh!" Elrohir's eyes widened, gleaming as he mentally answered his own question.
"Exactly." Elladan leaned over and pulled back the covers. "Help me. It is far easier to make an apple pie bed when there are two of us. Afterwards I shall venture to the kitchens, where there is sure to be some of last night's dessert remaining."
"Elladan!" gasped his twin in fascinated horror. "You wouldn't dare...?"
"I would."
Elrohir sighed in defeat. "If you must. Though I do not need to remind you, I am sure, that it is on your head when Ada discovers this."
Elladan waved him off dismissively. "No worries." He picked up one side of the sheet while his brother took up the other side and the two duly carried out the task. Elladan then slipped off to the kitchens, returning moments later with the aforementioned dessert in its pie dish, grinning. "There was a substantial quantity remaining. None were in the kitchens and so I was able to carry out my mission unseen." He deftly lifted the pastry lid from the pie and placed it on a plate that he had also acquired from the kitchens, putting that to one side whilst he scraped the pie filling into the place where he knew his father's bare feet would first come into contact with the sheet – and the pie filling. Task completed, he grinned. "Mission accomplished, brother dear. Now, where are the cats? They will make this room far more homely if they are shut in here for, say...half an hour? If they fall asleep in here, so much the better."
As if on cue, three cats, one ginger, one tabby and one black, tore into the room, the ginger one pursuing the others. The twins immediately stepped out of the room and shut the door. Elrohir could not prevent himself from wincing as something landed on the floor with a loud thud. The twins swiftly removed their presence from the near vicinity of ground zero, returning to the relative safety of Elladan's bedroom. Elrond would not discover the adjustments (as Elladan preferred to term it) to his room until nightfall. Both twins were fighting to suppress their laughter. Elladan had been forced to stuff the corner of his pillow into his mouth to prevent howls escaping from his mouth (and subsequently arousing far too much suspicion, should he be heard). "Ada will not know what happened!"
Elrohir had by now managed to see the amusing side of it. "But what can we do next? Ada's bedroom cannot be enough on its own. What is his schedule for today?"
Elladan, deep in thought, removed the pillow from his mouth. "What is arranged for this afternoon?"
"King Thranduil of Mirkwood is due at midday for an important council, and I understand Prince Legolas is also coming."
"Excellent! Legolas will no doubt be willing to assist us!"
Elrohir shook his head. "He is required to attend the council, while we are not. I understand, though, that Gandalf is to attend – hence his presence here in Imladris – as are a number of important Men, including the current Chieftain of the Dúnedain, Arassuil."
Elladan raised his eyebrows in apparent mild interest. "Is that so? Give me a moment, for I have a thought at the back of my mind that is pushing to get out."
"You have a thought? Hold on to it, brother; do not let such a rare occurrence pass without documentation!"
Elladan tossed his pillow at his twin. "I was thinking," he continued, as though his brother had not spoken, "that Ada will have a number of presentations to make."
"Presentations?"
"Please do not inform me that you do not know what a presentation is."
"What form do these presentations take?"
"Reports and the like."
"You know this?"
"If King Thranduil is present, do you imagine it to be any other kind?"
Elrohir rolled his eyes rather inelegantly. "You have rather a good point. Thranduil is somewhat overly fond of reports. But what do you propose…oh!" His eyes widened. "Elladan, you would not be thinking of switching the papers, would you?"
"I perhaps might be."
"But with what?"
Elladan's face fell. "I had not quite reached that point in my thinking yet."
"It must be amusing to the others," Elrohir pointed out, "yet subtle, so Ada does not realise. Nor must it be offensive."
"Except to dwarves."
"Will there be any dwarves present?"
"No. Not to this council, for it does not concern the dwarves at all."
"So much the better."
They sat and thought for a while, until Elrohir rose. "We could always switch the reports for previous reports from some time ago, could we not? Plans for events that were upcoming then but are long into the past now."
Elladan's face lit up. "Perfect! Ada will not realise at first, though the others most likely will, and it should be perfectly harmless! Now we simply have to acquire the reports – something that should not prove too difficult. We know how Ada's archiving system works."
"How could we forget? He certainly spent enough time ensuring that we acquainted ourselves with it. At the time I wondered why we should ever want to know about it in such detail – after all, surely we could simply ask Ada? But that was before today. And now I am extremely glad that he spent so long teaching us."
"I wholeheartedly agree, little brother."
"Let us go at once."
And with that final statement, the twins departed for their father's study.
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~TBC~
