Finduilas froze, staring at her sister in open horror. She wasn't sure how Denethor was reacting, but she could feel as he took a sharp intake of breath behind her, and guessed he was as surprised as she was to see her sister here. Ivriniel, for her part, merely stood there, eyes wide as she stared back at them, her gaze shifting from Denethor to Finduilas.

Finally, Ivriniel moved. Before Finduilas could do or say anything, Ivriniel grabbed her by the arm and dragged her away from Denethor, so that the elder sister stood as a barricade between them. Brandishing the candle holder in her hand menacingly in Denethor direction, Finduilas saw with surprise the look of sheer rage on her older sister's face.

"What. Did. You. Do?" Ivriniel hissed through clenched teeth, her candle holder outstretched, as if ready to fling the burning candle and melting wax directly at Denethor's bare chest.

Denethor's eyes widened. He opened his mouth to speak, but Ivriniel beat him to it. "I thought I heard strange noises coming from Finduilas' room—so I can to investigate…" Ivriniel heaved an furious breath. "How dare you take advantage of my sister, Lord. You…you…" Ivriniel took a menacing step towards Denethor. He backed up slightly, his back hitting the door behind him—and Finduilas could not blame him. Ivriniel was glaring at him with pure ferocity. "Go back to your chambers, Lord. I will speak to my father about this, and if you ever so much as look at Finduilas again I swear to the Valar I will—"

"'Vri," Finduilas protested, tugging on Ivriniel's robe. "It's not like that—he didn't do anything to me."

"There's no need to protect him, Finduilas," Ivriniel spat, still glaring at Denethor.

"If you let me explain—" Denethor began, but Ivriniel quickly cut him off.

"Must I remind you, Lord, that this is my father's house—and as the eldest child of the Prince of Dol Amroth, I have every right to not listen to your excuses." Ivriniel huffed angrily.

Denethor opened his mouth again, but Ivriniel quickly cut in, "Now, I suggest you return to your chambers, my Lord," the word sounded bitter and hateful on her elder sister's tongue. "And hope that I am in a more…forgiving mood in the morning."

Finduilas glanced at her sister, knowing Ivriniel was infamous for holding grudges, and rarely forgave anyone for anything she considered even a minor insult. Denethor seemed to grasp this as well as he slid out of they way of Ivriniel and her threatening candle stick. He glanced at Finduilas for a moment, before turning and heading down towards the stairs that would lead to the guest wing.

Finduilas opened her mouth to clarify the situation, but found herself being pushed back into her room, and Ivriniel closed the door behind her, giving out a sound similar to a growl. She shoved the candle holder into Finduilas's hands, before she began to pace angrily. "How dare he. I thought he was a man of good taste—"

"Thanks," Finduilas interjected, unable to not feel at least slightly insulted by her sister's words.

"I don't mean you," Ivriniel said, narrowing her eyes as she glared at the door. "I mean…he is not as…well mannered of a man I as I had originally thought him to be. Oh! I cannot stand the nerve of him." Ivriniel was positively shaking in anger.

Ivriniel's back stiffened slightly, and she turned her head quickly to look at Finduilas. "He didn't…he didn't hurt you, did he? Force himself on you?"

"No!" Finduilas said, surprise that her sister had thought of such a thing. Thought of Denethor being capable of such a thing. "No, he… he saved my life," she finished. "Really, 'Vri, he did save me."

Ivriniel narrowed her eyes, tilting her head slightly. "And what do you mean by that?"

"I mean…I was climbing the wall—and I got stuck—or…something." Finduilas frowned, clasping her hands in front of her. "He climbed up to help me—I would have fallen to my death if he hadn't…hadn't rescued me."

Ivriniel blinked a few times, before shook her head. "And how did he know your life was in danger?" she asked.

"Well, he saw me climb up and—"

"Stop," Ivriniel put her hand up to silence Finduilas. "How did he see you—oh! Finduilas!" Ivriniel said, her eyes wide as realization seemed to dawn on her. "You didn't… go through his room, did you? In—that state?" Ivriniel gestured wildly to Finduilas' clothing, or lack thereof, at least in terms of proper clothing.

Finduilas looked down at herself, realizing she was just wearing her shift. "Oh," she said, a little sheepishly. "I went for an evening swim and—"

"Stop," Ivriniel said again, just as sharply as the first time, rubbing her temples with one hand. "Just…stop." She heaved a breath, before pointing at Finduilas. "I thought mother put an end to your…'nightly swims'."

"Well, it's not always at night—sometimes in the early morning—"

Ivriniel waved Finduilas' words away. "So let me get this straight—you went for an evening swim, and then snuck through—the future Steward of Gondor's room… climbed the wall—and he climbed up to save you?"

"Yes, that's exactly what happened," Finduilas said, nodding fervently.

Ivriniel narrowed her eyes. "That doesn't explain the state of yourself," she said. "Where is your dress from this evening? Or a change of clothes if you had the sense to bring any with you?"

"Oh—I…left it…" Finduilas pointed downwards, indicating Denethor's room.

"Oh, Sweet Elbereth," Ivriniel muttered, sighing and staring up at the ceiling. "This is going to cause quite the scandal. Oh…why must I be cursed with such a foolish, idiotic, brainless—"

Finduilas could not help but roll her eyes at this.

"—hopeless, idiotic—"

"You already said idiotic—" Finduilas said, crossing her arms.

"—don't interrupt me," Ivriniel said a little sharply as she pointed an accusing finger at Finduilas. "Finduilas, surely you know why mother wanted you to stop sneaking out to swim at night?"

"It wasn't proper for a young lady to—" Finduilas said, imitating their mother's voice, before Ivriniel cut her off.

"It was because she was frightened at what might happen to you," Ivriniel said, heaving a breath. "What if something had happened to you? What if you drowned? What if you were attacked? What if—"

"Well, I was—attacked, that is, and it all turned out okay…I…guess," Finduilas said, with a touch of uncertainty, scratching her cheek slightly as she tried to see some silver lining of the night she had tried to sneak through Denethor's room that started this whole mess.

Ivriniel swung around to stare at her. "What did you just say? Who was it?" Ivriniel's voice rose slightly, an almost feral look on her face. "Tell me his name—and I will make sure he suffers."

Finduilas looked at her sister, before slowly looking away.

"It was Denethor?" Ivriniel hissed, her voice positively quivering with anger. She grasped Finduilas' arms tightly. "It was that—mongrel, that immoral, that…"

"No," Finduilas said, quickly. "Denethor—Lord Denethor just mistook me for an assassin or a thief. He didn't mean to—"

But Ivriniel was already rolling up the sleeves of her nightgown and robe. "What do you plan to do?" Finduilas asked, raising her eyebrows in concern.

"I—I don't know," Ivriniel said, placing her hands on her hips, a look of concentration on her face. "But I will certainly impress upon him the importance of keeping his hands to himself. And that the House of Dol Amroth will not tolerate such behavior from him. Though there's not much I can do short of treason…" She narrowed her eyes. "But I will try. Treason or no."

"You're taking this too far, 'Vri," Finduilas protested. "It was all an accident. He…I'm at fault as much as—"

"Don't defend him, Finduilas," Ivriniel said sharply. "I will take care of this—oh, and to think I thought him handsome. I dare say his true nature extinguishes any admiration I may have once had for him." She huffed an angry breath.

"But, 'Vri…" Finduilas began.

"Rest, Findi," Ivriniel said, taking the candle from Finduilas. "As your elder sister, it is my duty to not only set a good example for you, but to protect you. And defend your honor." Ivriniel looked at Finduilas with a harsh glance. "No more nightly swims."

And with that, Ivriniel swept out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Finduilas sighed deeply, sitting down heavily onto her bed. She let out a groan, rubbing her forehead, and then fell back onto her bed, staring at the ceiling. She heaved a breath.

This night ended in disaster, that was certain. And Ivriniel seemed now to be on a war path.

Finduilas changed into her night gown and slipping under her covers. She did not fall asleep until the early morning hours.

To be continued…?

Hi! It's been a while! Let me know if you want to read more of this story!

Just a short chapter for now :) I've always had the headcanon that Ivriniel and Denethor never got along (though I also had the headcanon that she did not get along with a lot of people lol) , and that she was a constant thorn in Denethor's side haha so this should be fun :)

Thanks so much for reading!