Whilst the inhabitants of Mirkwood were waking on the morning that the Royal Family were going to go on their trip, so were those far away in Rivendell. Elrohir, one of the two raven haired sons of Lord Elrond sat up in bed, and blinked as the sun shone through a chink in the curtains. He normally would have turned his head the other way before letting his eyes refocus entirely, but this morning, had forgotten.

"Stupid sun," he muttered, jumping out of bed to pull the curtain across. He shook his head once more, before turning back to the double bed he shared with his brother. Their father had mentioned something about getting them separate rooms, but both twins had refused.

"Stupid idea," Elrohir said quietly, climbing back into his side of the bed – the right one – and pulling the covers up over his shoulders. He lay motionless for a while, staring at the ceiling, before reaching across to his bedside table for the cup of water which stood there. It was empty.

"Stupid water," Elrohir sighed, getting once more out of bed and going to his brother's side. "Ah, you call me lazy, but I am not the one still asleep at this hour. Stupid Elladan."

As the young Elf picked up the water, he let his gaze rest on his twin. Elladan's face was covered by his hair, but his breathing was fast and uneven. Biting down on his lip, Elrohir reached down and touched a hand to his brother's shoulder.

"'Dan, are you alright?" he whispered. "Wake up, 'Dan."

As he was being shaken, Elladan's hair fell back from his face, uncovering a shocking revelation: his eyes were shut. Elrohir swore violently – his father would faint if he heard that – and in his panic, tipped the water all over his brother's head. Elladan sat up with a start and looked around wildly.

"What the blazes is wrong with you?" breathed Elrohir, his face pale.

"What do you mean 'what the blazes is wrong with me'? What the blazes is wrong with you?!" Elladan spluttered, blinking water from his eyes.

Elrohir stared at him in wonder, and slowly put the now empty cup back on the table. "You were asleep, 'Dan, and-

"I know I was asleep," Elladan grumbled, "at least, I was until you woke me."

"Your eyes were shut," said Elrohir quietly.

"Shut?"

"Yes. You were breathing heavily and that worried me enough, so I shook you, and in doing so, your hair fell back from your face and I could see that your eyes were shut," Elrohir nodded. "It frightened me. I thought you were...I don't know what I thought. Maybe you were having a dream...or something."

Elladan was silent for a moment, though he reached out to touch a hand to his twin's shoulder. "That is strange. We can ask Ada about it, if you wish. 'Ro, I am sorry I frightened you."

"Ah, you were asleep. You couldn't help it," Elrohir shrugged. "Anyway, you are alright, and that is all that matters. I am sorry for throwing water over you. You are drenched now. Maybe you should get changed."

"I will." Elladan swung his legs out of the bed and stared at the clothes on the floor. "Which are mine and which are yours?"

Elrohir reached down and picked up two random but identical tunics. He smelt both of them, then threw one across to his brother. "This one smells of leaves and trees and nature. It has to be mine."

"What does this smell of, then?" asked Elladan.

"Orcs," smirked Elrohir, ducking as a leather boot came flying his way.

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Later that day, the two brothers sat under the shade of a tree, away from the cruel glare of the sun. Elrohir chewed on an apple, but Elladan merely rolled his around in his fingers, staring out across the garden. The sudden waving of a hand in front of his eyes, however, startled him from his reverie.

"Hello, are you awake?" Elrohir asked. "I was talking to you."

"Sorry," Elladan sighed, shaking his head. "What did you say?"

Elrohir's forehead creased in concern, and he put a hand on his brother's shoulder. "It does not matter. Are you sure you are quite alright? You have been distant for a long while now."

Elladan flicked his eyes down to the ground, and slowly shook his head. "No. Things are starting to come back into my mind; things I did not remember this morning. I...I was dreaming of something when you woke me, and it was...not a very nice dream. Looking back, it seems more like a nightmare."

"Tell me," said Elrohir softly.

"There was a family of Elves and they were in a forest," Elladan replied, his voice distant. "There were many trees, but one in particular caught my attention. There was something about it. Something sinister, despite its beauty."

"Strange," murmured Elrohir.

Elladan shook his head. "That is not all of it. Someone climbed the tree, and although there was laughter, everything was spinning, and nothing was clear to me. Then suddenly the laughter stopped and it turned to screams. The Elf who climbed the tree came back down to the ground, though...not the way they went up."

"They fell," breathed Elrohir. "Who was it?"

"I do not know. There was a woman there, and possibly a child. I think that's who was laughing," Elladan sighed. He was quiet for a moment. "Do you remember Airëlus and Calaen, King Thranduil's sons?"

Elrohir nodded. "Vaguely, but it has been a long while since we last saw them. In fact, we were mere Elflings, were we not?"

"They were in the dream, I think, but I do not see why they were," said Elladan slowly. "You can call me crazy if you wish, but...I have a bad feeling about this, 'Ro."

"Then, we should go and see Ada," said Elrohir. He caught the doubt in his twin's eyes, and smiled gently. "We will not tell him the whole story if you do not wish to. Come, he will be able to ease your worries."

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Lord Elrond looked up as his study door opened, and he smiled benevolently. "Ah, there you are. I have not seen you two since breakfast. Come, sit down."

"Ada, we...we wanted to ask you something," said Elladan carefully. "Can you tell us a little of King Thranduil's family?"

"Certainly," replied Elrond. "Why?"

"Just curious," Elrohir shrugged.

The Elven-lord nodded, and leant back in his chair. "Well, he is married to Queen Findilan, and their eldest son is Airëlus. He is the Crown Prince, and is a few years older than you two. Then there is Calaen. There is not much age difference between the three of you."

"Is there another child?" pressed Elrohir. "A younger one?"

"Ah, yes. That would be Legolas," replied Elrond. "Can you not remember the feast that was held for his birth? We travelled to Mirkwood for it."

"Yes, but he did not look like anything then," said Elladan, "for he was only a few days old. What does he look like now?"

Elrond was quiet for a moment, casting his memory back to the last time he had seen the child. "Legolas has inherited Thranduil's hair and eyes, and although there is some of his father's personality in him, he takes largely after his mother, temperamentally speaking. He is quite a small child, if I recall correctly, smaller than you and his brothers were at that age. Still, what he lacks in size, he makes up for with mischievousness."

"This sounds like an Elfling whose company we would enjoy," Elrohir grinned.

"Hmm. But why the sudden interest?" asked Elrond.

"We...were just having an argument over what colour his eyes are, but you have sorted it out for us. They're blue," replied Elladan. "That was all we wanted, thank you."

Lord Elrond watched as the two young Elves jumped up and went over to the door. "So, who lost the argument?"

"Elrohir," said Elladan.

"Elladan," said Elrohir, at the same time.

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"It was them," Elladan said quietly, as he and his twin went down the corridor. "I saw Airëlus, Calaen and Legolas, and I would be willing to stake my life on that statement."

"Maybe you did, but it was only a dream," said Elrohir gently. "Yes, I understand that it was probably very disturbing, but do not dwell on it, for you are only worrying yourself."

"Yes, probably un-necessarily," Elladan sighed. He paused, and put a hand on his twin's shoulder. "But, what if dreams come true?"

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Jedi Gollum: Mean Misto only stays away for a little while! I get mean-ness withdrawal symptoms!

October Skye: Berian is just like one of those high school bullies, you know? Picking on the younger kids and stuff like that, just because he can. He's not terribly bad, as in, he would never hurt Calaen, but he just likes teasing him. Nasty git!

Irish Anor: You're back at school already? Where are you from? I don't start college til 8th September, and I left school on 23rd June. Luckily, I have some time left!

kathysidle: Yeah, I bet its weird reading a nice Calaen! Its definitely weird writing him!

Legolas-gurl88: Yeah, I like Findilan also. Too bad the chapter with the forest is coming up soon!

eleanor rigbey: I only started posting this on Saturday. Portugal was fun, cos I went with my friend, and there was a lot of alcohol! Gran Canaria is a Spanish island, and one of the nicest places I've ever been!

Right, I know that you're all waiting for the 'forest' chapter to come up, but it's the next one, definitely. Yay, Elladan and Elrohir are in it! They're not gonna be a huge part of the story, but they'll be around for a little while. Until Sunday!