Chapter 2: Wet Behind The Ears
Arwen quickly dashed down the elegant hallway towards her bedchambers. She stopped in front of her beautifully carved wooden double doors and burst through them. She glanced around for a sign of her father, before hastily going to her dresser and taking out her nightgown. Taking it in her hands, she made her way to the bathroom. She had no idea what to do; she'd just make it up as she went along. As she passed the glass doors of her balcony, she stopped and took a second look. The doors were open and a tall, dark haired man leaned against the railing with his back to her.
"Why do you dress for bed?" he asked her, never turning around.
"I was in the forest early this morning and you've always woken me on my birthday. I didn't want to disappoint you by preventing continuation of the tradition," she lied with a convincing smile.
"Did the trees give you what you seek?" he asked, oblivious to the prior reunion between his daughter and her love.
"Yes, Ada," she replied truthfully.
"I'm happy to know my daughter's special day will be a joyous one!" he said. Arwen stared at him, a confused expression on her face. Suddenly, a mischievous spark ignited in Elrond's eyes as he said, "I have a surprise for you this morn, my daughter. Friends have come to visit in the gardens. It's been a long while since they've come to call!"
Without delay, Arwen left him with a wide grin that spread from ear to ear. She dropped her lacy nightgown on her fluffy bed and rushed from her room. She bolted down the fancy corridor, down the winding staircase and out the glass doors to the majestic gardens. She knew Elrond would be watching her every move. She must act surprised to see Aragorn. Suspicion would come to her father if he knew she's met with him earlier.
She stopped dead in her tracks as a tall, mangy man reflected in her starry blue eyes. Aragorn had heard her coming and turned to meet her gaze. She hesitated a moment before bounding forward towards him. In turn, he sprint forwards to her. The couple met at the flowing fountain in the middle of the stone courtyard.
Arwen jumped into Aragorn's open arms and kissed him deeply. They wrapped their arms around each other like they'd never let go. They danced in a circle as they embraced.
"Pretend we'd not met earlier," Arwen whispered in Estel's ear. Aragorn buried his head in her dark chocolate hair and nodded his head in response.
Elrond strode into the gardens just in time to see Aragorn take a step too far back. His foot caught the edge of the stone fountain, making him unsteady. The two let go of each other to let him catch his balance. His feet fell out from underneath him and he started to tumble into the clear water. Trying to catch himself, he grabbed Arwen's hand. Unprepared that he would grab her; she plunged into the fountain and onto him with a scream.
Elrond rushed over to the couple and stood at the foot of the fountain, eyebrows raised in question, arms crossed in firmness.
"Forgive us my Lord," Aragorn started with a chuckle, the cleared his throat loudly, "We have fallen!" he finished, stating the obvious in a sarcastic tone.
Elrond looked from the grinning Aragorn to the guilty Arwen. He stared at her intently. Her head remained down to hide the laughter plain in her eyes and her pointed ears were as red as tomatoes. "Go ready yourselves for breakfast! I hope your presence at the morning meal will change with your attire," he stated firmly. With that said, he turned on his heel and excused himself, leaving the two to themselves.
Aragorn and Arwen shifted their gaze from Elrond's exit to each other. They stared into one another's eyes and started to giggle. They had pulled it off! It hadn't been the best plan but it had worked!
Arwen gave Aragorn a toothy grin and closed her starry blue eyes in contentment. When she opened them again, Aragorn was giving her a mischievous smirk. She furrowed her brows in bewilderment before Aragorn took both her shoulders in his hands and dunked her body under the freezing water.
In shock of how cold it was, she screamed into the water. Breathing escaped her thoughts when Aragorn's lips came crashing down on hers. He gave her a brief kiss before lifting her head to the surface for air. She inhaled a deep breath before turning her head to face the prevailing Aragorn.
He had a wide grin on his face that said, "look what I have done! I won!" He was right. For once he had caught Arwen off guard instead of vice versa. He had won. She gave him a menacing "don't you dare do that again" glare in return before collapsing into his arms.
He recognized the look she gave him and turned away to hide the amusement plain in his eyes. He gave her a toothy smile and waited for her reaction.
With a long sigh and sarcastic smile, Arwen replied, "I guess I've fallen head over heels for you!"
A/N: YAY! End of chapter 2! More to come soon!