Disclaimer: I do not own Lord of the Rings.

A/N: Here I am with another one-shot. This one was a request by InkWizard. Enjoy!

LOTRLOTRLOTR

Title: Guardian

Universe: ATR, missing scene

Spoilers for ATR/TSW: None.

Chapter you should read up to before reading this: "All That Remains Chapter Nineteen: Trust Me"

Warning: Feels. :)

Summary: Elrohir and Elladan play a prank. Glorfindel and Legolas bond. Requested by InkWizard.

LOTRLOTRLOTR

Guardian

"This is perfection." Elladan proclaimed boldly. "This is a beautiful work of art."

Elrohir chuckled at his brother's declaration but silently agreed. The set up for their latest prank truly was impressive. Each barrel was so masterfully hidden in the lower corridors of their home that only an elf who walked through those halls every day might be able to see something was different.

Luckily for the twin elves, their target did not live in Rivendell, and would be unable to sense something was amiss until it was too late. At least, Elrohir hoped that Esgal would remain oblivious. If their prank failed to catch the assassin off guard, hours of hard work would be for naught.

"We're going to succeed this time." Elladan said fervently. "He'll finally fall into our trap. He may have evaded us last time— and the time before that— but this time we will win the battle!"

The sound of a creaking door made the twins freeze and they dashed to the end of the hall, grabbing the soul who had stumbled upon them and shoving him back out the door. Aragorn wobbled slightly— surprised by the ambush— but regained his footing without toppling over. Silver eyes flicked between the twins— who smiled sweetly and innocently— and closed in annoyance.

"What are you doing?" Aragorn asked flatly. He raised a hand before they could respond. "Do not try to deny it. You aren't as good at pretending to be innocent as you believe you are."

Elladan dropped the clueless look he had adopted and smirked. "We've set up a little surprise for our friendly assassin."

Aragorn carefully crept forward into the hall, peering around. His eyebrows rose. "That is actually rather impressive." He gave a sniff and frowned. "Is that what I think it is?"

Elladan noticed the disapproval in his voice and was quick to defend their creation. "Don't fret, Estel. It is just enough to disorient him a little, nothing more."

The Ranger still looked uncertain. "I am beginning to think this is unwise..."

The twins glanced at each other and went to their brother's sides, simultaneously putting their arms around his shoulders. Aragorn twitched.

"Trust us, Estel. It is just a harmless prank." Elrohir said. "It may look like a bit much but our enemy tends to avoid everything we try. We need every advantage we can get."

"We just want to make sure he can't avoid our prank this time." Elladan added. "Besides, he knows that we are at war right now. It's only fair that we win at least one battle."

Aragorn rolled his eyes and shrugged out of their grasp. "I suppose it is none of my business. Just make sure to—"

"Actually, since you are here we could use your help." Elladan interrupted. "He will suspect something if we summon him here. If you bring him here, however…"

The Ranger looked between two identical, hopeful faces and sighed. "All right. I'll assist you."

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Legolas let his gaze roam over the dimly-lit hallway he and Aragorn were walking down. The Ranger kept pace with him, not quite leading the way, and noticed the assassin's scrutiny.

"Have you been down here before?" he asked curiously.

Legolas shrugged. "Once or twice. I believe it was back before I revealed myself to anyone other than Glorfindel."

"I still cannot believe you were able to sneak around here for so many years without being noticed." Aragorn muttered.

"Well, that is what I was trained to do." Legolas pointed out with a small twitch of his lips. "If I were unable to move about unknown locations without my enemy seeing, I would be a terrible assassin."

"I suppose that makes sense." Aragorn said thoughtfully. He hesitated, the briefest flash of uncertainty crossing his features.

"Is something wrong?" Legolas asked immediately.

He went to scan for threats but stopped himself. He was in Rivendell, one of the safest places in Middle-Earth. There would be no enemies here.

Aragorn shook himself. "It is nothing. I was just thinking about how I used to be afraid to go down here alone when I was young."

Legolas chuckled. "Are you saying that Little Hope was afraid of the dark?"

"Of course not." The Ranger sniffed. He gestured towards a door to their right. "The storage cellar is here."

"I'll go first and make sure there are no orcs coming to get you, Hope." Legolas teased. He walked through the door, turning back slightly. "See? There is nothing—"

Something blasted into his face. Legolas gasped, inhaling, and a slightly spicy substance entered his lungs. He coughed, wincing as his eyes blurred, and something splashed over his head and shoulders.

Poisonattackedfight.

Legolas hurriedly discarded his cloak before the poison could seep through the fabric. The substance on his hair did not yet burn, but his lungs stung slightly as did his eyes. It made everything blurry but there was no pain— not yet— but he needed to locate the enemy, locate the source and eliminate it.

There.

Two figures were coming towards him and the green-cloaked, dark-haired man behind him.

Ciaran?

Eyes watering, lungs stinging, Legolas pushed his confusion aside. He had located the enemy.

He attacked.

The assassin whipped out his knives as he ran at the blurry figures, one of whom gave a terrified scream. The thin line— rope?— in his hand pulled taut and Legolas heard the sound of something shifting behind him. Where Ciaran was.

Time slowed to a crawl and Legolas threw one of his daggers at his enemy, turning and dashing back towards Ciaran as fast as he could. He could just barely see something that glinted gold and brown falling towards his mentor, who wasn't moving out of the way why wasn't he dodging?

Legolas did not waste any time questioning Ciaran's delayed response. He threw his body over his father's, takin the brunt of the liquid. It slowly dripped down his clothes and he carefully arranged himself around Ciaran's body, curling up in a way that the poison would not hit his mentor. A low gasp below him made him look at Ciaran in alarm, terrified that the substance had reached him, and violet eyes met silver.

Silver eyes.

Not hazel.

Estel.

Legolas' vision cleared. His heartbeat slowed. The instinct to fight and survive fled and awareness returned in its place. He slowly looked at Elrohir and Elladan, and saw the younger twin had his back pressed to the wall.

The assassin's dagger was stuck to the hilt in the stone, aligned with a shallow cut in Elrohir's cheek.

For a long pause, no one moved.

Then Legolas rose to his feet. He looked at his honey-covered cloak, at the silent twins, at the wide-eyed Aragorn, at his bloody dagger. He tried to speak, but the words clogged in his throat. Instead he uttered a small, wheezing sound. From beneath him, Aragorn's arm twitched, reaching for the assassin.

"Es—"

The assassin was out the door. He did not recall getting up or moving. One moment he was next to Aragorn, the next he was fleeing up the stairs and through the halls, pushing past a familiar golden-haired elf as he raced to get away. He thought he heard his name being called but he did not stop to acknowledge the speaker. He just ran ran ran.

Ran away from the scene of the prank.

Ran away from the twins and Aragorn.

Ran away from the knife that had drawn his friend's blood.

I hurt my friend.

Despite being far away from the substance that had blinded him, his sight refused to clear.

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Aragorn was still on the floor when Glorfindel materialized in the doorway. He took one look at the scene before him— Elrohir's wound, Elladan's shock, Aragorn surrounded by honey but completely clean, the knife in the stone— and his blue eyes hardened. He strode into the hallway, stopping beside Elrohir and ripping Esgal's knife from the wall. The Balrog-Slayer lifted it to his eyelevel and traced the splotch of red on the blade. Glorfindel lowered the dagger and touched Elrohir's cheek, studying the mark left by the knife in his hands. Then, with the serenity of a cloud that was about to yield thunder, he spoke.

"What. Happened."

To call his words a question would be untruthful. Glorfindel was not asking for a response. He was demanding one. There was no offer to refrain from answering, because the Balrog-Slayer wanted an answer, and he wanted one now.

It was Elladan who found his voice to speak. "We made a mistake."

Blue eyes pinned him with such intensity that Aragorn was surprised he did not sink into the earth. Luckily, the twin continued without further prompting from the stone-faced Glorfindel.

"We wanted to prank Esgal so we set up barrels full of honey and ale in the hall. All we had to do was pull a few strings and they would dump on him. We… We also built a small contraption to blow cinnamon in his face when he opened the door. We hoped that would make it so he would not see us coming…"

"I think he did not see you coming, indeed." Glorfindel said coolly. "Instead he believed that he was being attacked."

Elladan lowered his head. Despite his small part in the prank, Aragorn's stomach twisted into knots of guilt. Glorfindel reached over and pulled a spare bandage from the Ranger's pocket, pressing it against Elrohir's cheek. When he spoke again, his voice was calmer.

"I am not angry with you. Nor am I disappointed. I am merely upset that something like this happened. Your prank should have been harmless. If you had not used the cinnamon it might have been. But you did, and it worked. It startled and confused Esgal enough that he could not tell who had 'ambushed' him and relied on his instincts to survive."

Glorfindel gently dabbed at Elrohir's wound. "Esgal does not trust easily. By nature or nurture he is reserved and careful even around those that are his closest friends. Theoretically, he should have sensed you two hiding long before he walked through the door. He did not, which means he felt safe enough here to lower his guard and not constantly scan his surroundings for threats. Except when he did that, he was attacked. Do you understand what I am saying?"

The twisting sensation in Aragorn's stomach crept into his throat, making it feel like a hand was wrapped around his jugular. The Balrog-Slayer grabbed Elrohir's hand, guiding it so he could hold the bandage to his wound, and stood up.

"Go to your father to get that stitched up. I need to find Esgal."

Aragorn got to his feet. "I'll go—"

"No." Glorfindel said shortly. "I think it would be best if I speak to him alone."

He looked at each of them and opened his mouth, but closed it without saying anything. Instead he turned on his heel and left them in the hall, the evidence of their mistake all around them.

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Legolas sat in a tall oak tree with his knees pulled up to his chest. A branch poked and prodded at his head in a way similar to a hand stroking his hair, but the elf could not find amusement in the tree's awkward attempt to comfort him. He heard the rustles and whispers of the forest and curled up a little tighter, laying his head on his knees. He had half a mind to tell the trees to force Glorfindel to go away, but could not bring himself to potentially harm another friend.

The Balrog-Slayer's ascent into the treetops was not the most graceful thing but it was much better than his normal climbing skills. Legolas suspected that the oak tree had purposely assisted Glorfindel in reaching the silent assassin. The golden-haired elf settled next to Legolas, legs swinging in the open air, and for a time the two merely sat there in silence, listening to the whispers of the wind through the leaves.

"It was not your—"

"Stop." Legolas interrupted before the Balrog-Slayer could finish. "Do not claim it was not my fault."

He felt blue eyes on him but did not raise his head to meet them. "Do you expect me to lie then?" Glorfindel asked.

"What is a lie?" Legolas snapped. He did not mean to shout and instantly regretted it. The assassin clenched his teeth, struggling to rein his emotions back under his control, and forced a neutral mask into place. "I apologize."

"Apology unneeded." Glorfindel emphasized. "What happened is no one's fault. Things simply went out of control in ways no one could have predicted. The twins should have known better than to compromise your senses, yes, but how you reacted is to be expected."

Legolas withheld a scoff. "What is 'expected' is for the recipient of a prank to be startled, not try to murder the prankster."

"You thought you'd been attacked." Glorfindel murmured softly. "I saw your cloak on the ground. You thought poison had been dumped on you, did you not?"

"A paranoid leap in logic, I assure you." Legolas said stiffly. "Who else but me would feel a liquid fall on them and assume it was something to kill them?"

"Who else but you has been trained to anticipate such situations since a young age?" Glorfindel countered.

Legolas's careful control broke just a little. "Stop— Stop that."

Blue eyes studied him. "Stop what?"

"Stop pretending this is fine!" Legolas exploded. "I was so caught up in my training that I did not recognize my friends and because of that I hurt Elrohir! All he did was try to prank me and I threw a knife at him in response. I almost killed him!" His body lurched and he clenched his teeth, trying to stop his shoulders from shaking. "I almost killed him…"

If the Balrog-Slayer was shocked by his rage and sorrow, he did not show it. "You may have thrown that weapon towards him but you did not do so with the intent to kill. I know how precise you are, Esgal. If you believed the twins to be enemies with all your heart, you would not have missed. Even when you were terrified, you recognized who they were."

Legolas looked down with burning eyes, wishing he had his hood to hide his face in. "Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"Yes." Glorfindel said firmly. "I know what you are thinking, Esgal. So heed my words: You are not a killer. You are not a monster. You followed your instincts because those instincts let you survive for so long, but even when caught in the past you showed restraint and empathy. You tried to protect Estel, did you not?"

"I thought he was Ciaran." Legolas whispered into his knees. "I was… so surprised I lost track of when and where I was…"

Warm arms wrapped around him and he flinched, entire body locking. Glorfindel did not freeze or pull away, instead gripping the assassin just a little bit tighter. He was such a fool. Had he not learned how dangerous it was to be near Legolas when he was startled?

"You still protected him." The Balrog-Slayer said quietly. "You could have chosen to pursue your 'attackers' but instead you fell back to defend your friend. That is who you are, Esgal. You are not an aggressor or bloodthirsty killer. You are a guardian."

Legolas's laugh came out a little wobbly. "Like in those stories you told Estel?"

"Indeed." Glorfindel said gravely, a twinkle in his eye. He grew solemn. "Just like you did not retaliate with malicious intent, neither did the twins do this out of malice. You can trust them, Esgal. They will not be angry with you, and I am certain they will never do something like this again."

He held out the cleaned dagger Legolas had thrown. The assassin knew what words the Balrog-Slayer did not voice. "You are safe here. You can trust us all."

"I know." He said and took the dagger, returning it to its sheath.

Glorfindel smiled. "Good. Would you like to head back?" "Are you comfortable enough to go back?"

"Yes." Legolas said briefly.

He followed Glorfindel out of the tree, which gave him one final attempted pat on the head. It was more like a smack but it was the thought that counted. The assassin lingered behind the Balrog-Slayer the entire way back to Rivendell, eyes darting about and ears alert every step of the way.

I'm being foolish. I am safe here. There is no danger. I do not need to be so observant.

He could not stop searching.

Because of his vigilance, he sensed the twins long before he saw them. They and Aragorn stood at the end of the bridge that led to the elven halls, with the elder twin pacing back and forth across the stone. Three sets of eyes fell on the two returning elves and the twins rushed forward.

"Esgal, we're so sorry—"

"We didn't know that would happen—"

"In hindsight, the cinnamon was a really foolish idea—"

"We should have known better—"

"It was our fault—"

"We promise to never do it again!"

Legolas raised a hand to stop the stream of apologies. "It is all right. None of that was anyone's fault. Things simply got out of control."

"We're still sorry." Elrohir said quickly. "Our pride blinded us to the faults in our plans. We didn't mean to scare you."

Legolas shifted his weight, desiring to say they need not apologize, but one glance at Glorfindel made him change his response. "I am sorry as well. It was not my intention to react so badly and harm you."

Elrohir gave a small snort. "We dropped something on you unexpectedly. How could you intentionally do anything? Besides, it's not like I'm injured that badly. It will not even scar."

Legolas hesitated, then took a gamble. "If it did you could claim it was a scar received in battle." He kept his tone and face purposely blank.

Elrohir gave a startled chuckle. "I could, couldn't I? Tell me, does it make me look strong and intimidating?" He flipped his hair away from his face and posed.

"No one can look intimidating with those bandages on. Your cheek looks puffy." Elladan said dryly.

Elrohir gave him an affronted look. "Rude." His gaze flicked back to Legolas and his eyes softened. "We truly are sorry, mellon-nin. It will not happen again."

"Good." Legolas nodded once.

"So does that mean your prank war is over?" Aragorn asked hopefully. "I'm rather tired of getting caught in the crossfire."

"You mean you're tired of getting caught in the pranks that miss me." Legolas said idly. "And no, no it is not over."

Three sets of eyes stared at him warily.

"What do you mean?" Elladan asked hesitantly.

The assassin smiled sweetly and walked into Rivendell without responding.

Behind him, he heard Elladan's panicked voice. "Glorfindel, what did he mean? Did he set up something somewhere? Am I going to wake up in a dress or with beetles in my hair again? Glorfindel, what did he do?!"

Aragorn caught up to Legolas and leaned in close to speak in his ear. "You do not have a prank for them anywhere, do you?"

"No, I don't." Legolas said primly. "But they don't know that."

Even though their prank had not worked in the way they had intended, the twins had caught the assassin in it and had nearly gotten Aragorn as well. Legolas could not let that go. He would have his revenge and the twins knew it. But that was the plan. He wondered how long Elrohir and Elladan would live in fear of every nook and cranny before they realized they'd been duped. He hoped he would be there to see the comprehension on their faces.

For what better revenge was there than doing nothing to them at all?

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A/N: Request by InkWizard: "The twins try to play a prank on Esgal a few years after they meet him and he misunderstands/thinks it's an attack and reacts badly."

Sorry it took so long but I finally fulfilled this request. I feel like a bit of a jerk for giving such an innocent summary at the top but I wasn't about to spoil the chapter for you guys. I hope you enjoyed it. :)