A/N: Well, it's time again for another update. I know that it's been a while, but I had made a promise to myself that I wouldn't update until I reached 200 reviews. Y'all better thank my friends Raven and Cricket for their hard work of getting me to update! ;; Please don't hurt me because I didn't tell you guys.

Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing besides my warped and corrupt mind, which I don't think that anybody would want; my LOTR movies and books; and my countless knickknacks. I also don't own any of the stories that Meryl tells.

Lij and Spork would say something now, but since they're stuffed animals, they can't talk. If they could talk, they would probably tell you to enjoy this beginning to a mini-series that I've written in this fic. -glances up at them- Yup. That's what they would say.

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Chapter Twenty One: The Prank Wars A Demure Beginning

Meryl woke to the sun shining on her face. It seemed like the normal thing to wake up to in the morning, but it was something she didn't welcome. She rolled over in bed and covered her head with a pillow. Four days had passed since that day she had the nightmare. Since then, she had been confined into her bedroom, and had repeatedly been drugged in several different ways to prevent her from escaping her room. Examples included a bouquet of flowers with a hidden bloom with a scent that puts one to sleep, and since Meryl had refused to consume anything liquid- powdering the food she would eat with a sedative that dissolved when it came into contact with hot food.

She had many visitors while she was confined in her room. Many times the elflings came to her to beg her for a tale. She gave in and told them whatever came to her mind, but refused to speak to them otherwise. She merely stared beyond them, as if she didn't see them. The tales she had told them so far were quite a variation. Robin Hood, Zorro, Romeo and Juliet, the Three Musketeers, The Princess Bride, and The Chronicles of Narnia were only a few of the tales she had told. Meryl had a tough time convincing the elflings that the rings used in the first book of The Chronicles of Narnia were not evil, however.

Others filtered in and out of her room. Gimli came by to wish her a gruff "get-well-soon" before disappearing in the wild. Apparently, he had to return to the Glittering Caves to solve a small crisis that had occurred while he was away. Legolas and the twins visited her often, but she did not respond to them. They dismissed it as her being angry with them for sedating her, and did not press the matter.

Elladan had found Meryl's missing purse hanging in a tree outside her window and had brought it to her. That was one of the only times they had gotten a reaction out of her. Tears filled her eyes as she received it, and she wordlessly thanked the Elf with a grateful smile. When he had left, she hid everything away, and slid the knife that she had taken under her mattress.

Birds sang in the tree outside of Meryl's window as sunlight filtered in through the decorative wood. "Shut up!" she growled at them, while throwing her pillow at the window. It collided against it with a thump, and slid to the floor, scaring the birds away.

Meryl groaned, realizing what she had done and turned so she lay on her back. With no pillow to shield her eyes from the light, she couldn't fall back asleep. Also, she was too lazy to crawl out of bed to get it. Not knowing what to do, she draped a hand over the side of her bed, where Dae was sleeping. A warm tongue began licking her hand, and she felt comforted.

"Good boy, Dae," she murmured. "Good boy."

A thumping nose directed her gaze to the hearth. Dae lay there, his tail pounding against the floor. He smiled a smile that only a dog could do, for he was being called a good boy without even doing anything.

{If Dae is there, who's under my bed?} Meryl thought. Her eyes narrowed to green slits. "Good boy, Dae," she said slowly, almost crooning like, while slipping a hand underneath her mattress. She felt the cool metal of the knife underneath her fingertips, and slowly drew it out.

As quickly as she could, Meryl threw herself out of her bed, crashing to the floor, and thrust her knife against the neck of the intruder, so that the blade touched the skin. Surprise melted into anger when she saw whom it was hiding underneath her bed.

Legolas glanced down at the knife that was held against his throat. "I take it that you are feeling better?" he asked dryly.

"Legolas," she growled, "what in bloody hell are you doing underneath my bed?"

"I thought that you may have needed some cheering up, so I-"

"Bull. You decided to pull a stupid prank on me, is that it?" Meryl interrupted. "By pretending to be my dog?" Her eyes narrowed to slits. "Just what were you going to do?"

The Prince of Mirkwood smiled innocently. "I refuse to tell?" he supplied.

Meryl sighed and accepted that answer, for she knew that he wouldn't give up any more information. She pulled the knife away from Legolas's neck and crawled out from under her bed. He did the same. Meryl crawled back into bed and slid the knife back under the mattress.

"Expecting an attack?" Legolas asked dryly. Meryl remembered that she had asked him the same thing once before.

"You never can tell these days," she replied icily. "Especially with that Orc running around Middle Earth."

"You mean Laeras?"

"Who else would I be talking about?"

Silence lapsed in between the two of them for a few moments before Meryl said, "You know that I'm going to get my revenge on you."

"For what, may I ask?"

"Pulling that trick on me."

"But it failed, so why exact your revenge on me?"

Meryl shrugged. "I'm just thinking along the lines about if it had succeeded."

"You are bluffing. You do not have the courage to do that."

Meryl's eyes narrowed. "Really? You think that I'm joking?"

"For the most part, yes."

An evil smile crossed the girl's face. "Oh, you'll see. This will be great."

"How so? You are still confined to your room. You are not able to leave."

Meryl grinned and raised a finger. "That's where you are wrong, my dear Elf. Today's my last day. The burn on my arm is almost completely healed, so I'm free. I'm moving to one of the permanent rooms tomorrow, since the one I was staying in before was a guest room."

"What of your things?"

"All that was saved from the fire were my purse, the nightgown that I was wearing, Dae, and myself. That won't take much to move to my new room. You know what the best part is? I have a balcony now! Liselle told me that my new clothes have all been sewn for the time being, and that they have been put in my new wardrobe which is now in my new room." Meryl paused to take a breath. "Anything else?"

Legolas's eyes showed some uncertainty. "How do you plan on carrying out your revenge on me?" he asked nonchalantly.

Meryl grinned. "That's for me to know, and for you to find out."

The day progressed and Legolas kept himself alert. Although not showing it, he always checked the room for any sign of a trap. Gradually as the day wore on, he dropped his guard little by little. He then laughed at himself around mid-afternoon, thinking that it was foolish that he actually believed Meryl's threat.

Time soon came for the evening meal, and Meryl was finally allowed to leave her room and sit at the table with everybody. She entered wearing a light green long-sleeved blouse under a forest-green tunic with golden buttons, and breeches the same color of green as her tunic. Her light brown hair had been pulled back into a simple braid. The final accent to her outfit was the golden chain that had been placed around her neck. A golden sunburst hung from the chain and rested on the space just below her neck. Liselle had set out a dress on her bed, but she pretended that she didn't see it while she dressed.

Meryl was aware of the whispers that erupted among the nobles that she didn't know as she set foot in the dining hall. She merely straightened her posture and ignored all that was being said around her. She sat at the table and found herself seated in between Elladan and Elrohir, with Legolas across the table and two seats down. She caught Elrohir's eye and he gave her an encouraging smile before leaning over.

"Do not mind their gossip," he advised. "They usually have nothing better to do."

Meryl smiled at him in gratitude. "Thanks," she whispered.

"So," he said with a grin, "what is this rumor I hear of about a prank that you have threatened our dear Prince of Mirkwood with?"

She raised her eyebrows. "Rumors seem to spread fast, my lord Elrohir, although I wouldn't believe everything that you hear."

"So you are not going to play the prank?" Elrohir seemed disappointed.

Meryl sent him an evil grin. "I never said that I wasn't going to get him back." She whispered and winked.

The Elf changed the subject. "So, do you mind explaining why you are not wearing a dress, like you are supposed to? I thought that your handmaiden had set one out for you." He nodded at Meryl's outfit.

Meryl made a face. "Yeah, she did. I didn't want to wear a dress, so I made up a silly excuse and sent her away. I changed into these clothes and escaped my room before she came back." Elrohir laughed. "Well done. You do not think that she might interrupt the meal to retrieve you?"

Meryl grinned. "I hope not. I took extra precautions and told her that Dae needed a bath after her errand. She didn't seemed pleased, but she agreed." She began to laugh. "The best part is, she doesn't know how much Dae loathes baths."

Elladan glanced at her from her other side. "Would you like to tell me what is so funny?" he asked quietly and with a smile. "If it is about me, I would like to know immediately. If it is about a certain Elven Prince and the prank you were going to pull on him, I would like to know that even sooner."

Meryl laughed. "We were only talking about how I stuck Liselle with giving Dae a bath."

Before Elladan could question Meryl further, Elrond entered the room and sat at the head of the table. He clapped his hands together for everyone's attention before announcing, "Let us eat."

Meryl's attention shifted to the Elves carrying in the trays of food. She heard her stomach give a small complaint, and prayed that the twins didn't hear her. Her prayers weren't answered as Elladan grinned at her.

"It sounds as if someone is hungry," he commented.

"Oh shut up."

A tray of steaming rolls was set in front of Meryl. Quickly she snatched a few and set them on her plate before Elladan could pull it out of her reach. She then helped herself to an apple, taking the one that looked the tastiest, taking a large bite out of it before she set it on her plate. She had seen Elrohir's hopeful eyes when she had grabbed it, hoping that he could snatch it from her plate when she wasn't looking. She gave him a pointed look before serving herself a portion of meat. She then speared a still-steaming baked potato as the tray passed by her. She cut it into smaller pieces and began to eat.

The meal progressed on with Meryl eating, and keeping an eye out for an Elvish twin hand making its way toward her plate to grab whatever she gotten to first. She even resorted to placing her arm around her plate in a protective manner. She chatted with the twins about things, and kept on teasing Legolas about the prank she was going to pull on him.

Finally, he said, "I do not believe you, Meryl. You do not have the courage to, and now you are only attempting to frighten me and make a fool out of me." In an attempt to change the subject, he said, "Pass the salt, please."

Meryl's eye caught the salt shaker sitting in front of her. It was simple enough, being made of glass with a silver top. She picked it up and handed it to Elladan who passed it to Legolas. He nodded his thanks and began to sprinkle his meat with some salt, but was surprised at the outcome.

His eyes widened as a stream of pepper poured out of the shaker. He glanced at the contents of the shaker, but it was salt. He glanced at Elladan and Elrohir, but their faces were in complete astonishment. He gazed in wide-eyed wonder at the steady stream of pepper until a sound reached his ears. It took a moment for his brain to register what it was. Meryl was laughing.

"This is just delicious!" she said through her laughter. "You should- You should see your faces!"

Legolas glared at her. "Tell me what you have done to ruin my meal."

"Give me the salt and I'll show you."

As he was passing the salt back in her direction, she kept laughing. "And to think that you didn't believe me when I said that I would get you back." She received the salt shaker and proceeded to unscrew the top. It came off and then showed the interested Elves what exactly she had done. Tied on the mouth of the glass part of the shaker was a piece of cloth, tied with a tight string. The cloth had been tied on loosely, to make a depression in the center. Resting in the dip, was a large pile of pepper.

From the head of the table, Elrond demanded to know what was going on. When he heard that it was due to a prank on Legolas, he instantly began to scold the twins. This only made Meryl laugh even more, as the twins tried valiantly to defend themselves. Finally, Legolas told Elrond that it wasn't Elladan's and Elrohir's fault, but rather Meryl's.

Tears from laughing too hard were running down Meryl's cheeks as she explained to Elrond why she had pulled the prank on Legolas. That was a mistake, however, as Elrond proclaimed that she and Legolas were both placed under punishment.

"You two are to report to the library every day after the evening meal for one week. There, you shall find Lord Erestor and he shall put you to work. I say one week because the pranks that you have pulled were light, if you continue however, I will not be as kind. Your punishment starts after this meal. Any questions?"

Meryl raised her hand, an automatic reaction from going to school. "I don't have a question, but a comment. You're not my lord, so why should I listen to you? Why should Legolas, for that matter? He's the Prince of Mirkwood, not the Prince of Rivendell."

Legolas internally winced. After thousands of years of experience of getting into trouble with Elrond, he knew when to keep quiet and to take his punishment. He wished that Meryl didn't mention him in her question.

"If you have not noticed, Meryl, you are currently residing in Rivendell. Therefore, you are under my rule. Now, I am aware that I am not your leader and that you do not follow one as of now, but as long as you are here, you shall listen to me, understand?"

"I understand, but that doesn't mean that I'm going to listen to you."

Elrond rubbed his chin with some thought. "Allow me to put it this way. You are living in Rivendell. Either you can listen to what I say and live here, or you can not listen to me and find yourself on a horse being sent to Lothlórien. Do I make myself clear?"

Ouch. He had her there. In Meryl's opinion, Galadriel was kind of creepy, with her mind reading skills and all. She didn't want the Lady of Lothlórien to be probing her mind and discovering her past. Who knew what catastrophes could occur after that? Meryl would have to explain herself, and risk losing everything.

As much as Meryl hated doing it, she hung her head and said. "Yes Elrond. I understand."

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A/N: Would it be considered crazy to start quoting LOTR and Pirates of the Caribbean during a tennis match? Well, I did that today... ;; It was during gym, and while I was holding onto my racket, I felt like I was wielding a sword. So whenever I swung at the ball, I would mutter a line under my breath. My doubles partner heard me and laughed at me. I wonder why...? ;)

Well, do you like my mini-series beginning? Well don't worry, it gets quite better. Thanks to Platy and Deana for helping me to come up with some very good pranks that will come up in later chapters. My stepbrother actually did the salt/pepper prank on someone once upon a time... It was funny when I heard about it.

Well, 'till next time!

By the Lion's Mane,

Leo