The five year old twins were ecstatically excited with ridiculously huge grins on their identical faces. Today they had been promised their first ponies and their first ride, on a lead rope sure, but they would be riding by themselves in the saddle, other times they just rode with their father or Glorfindel. The twins had woke up early that morning, pestered their poor father all the way through breakfast and afterwards they had ran to their rooms and gotten ready and then ran off to pester poor lord Elrond a little bit more. “We’re ready,” the twins said in union. “Two hours early, well call me a horse’s uncle!” Elrond said smiling warmly at his twin boys. “Ok, horse’s uncle,” Glorfindel teased gently, “I knew they would be early so I’ve already gotten the ponies ready already”. “Oh you’re a lifesaver, Goldilocks,” Elrond teased back, and then added, “What do you think, should we take these two terrors and introduce them to ‘the other set’?” “Why not,” Glorfindel replied. If you’re wondering what lord Elrond meant by ‘the other set’ let me tell you. Fifteen years ago, wayyyyyyyyyy before little Elladan and Elrohir were born, Wind Dancer, a pure white elven horse mare, had birthed twin foals on exactly the same day the twin sons of Elrond were born on 15 years later. The colts were so tiny that they would barely grow 140cm tall. They were both the same fiery chestnut, both with blazes and four white socks, the only way you could tell them apart was that one had a white spot behind his ear and the other didn’t. The elves called them Yandee and Dandee. Now fully tamed and gentled, they were Elrond’s first choice of ponies for Elladan and Elrohir.
Glorfindel led the way towards the stable’s training ring followed by the over excited elflings chattering and Elrond trailing behind. They reached the training ring and Glorfindel pointed to the two small ponies tethered to the ‘way too high for them’ fence. “Those ponies are all yours,” he said. “Our ponies!” shouted the twins. Both of them ran towards the two ponies and before Elrond or Glorfindel could stop them, Elladan through his arms around Yandee’s neck and Elrohir through his arms around Dandee’s. “My pony”, the twins chorused without realising it, “Mine. Mine. Mine!” Elrond was afraid that Yandee or Dandee would step on one his little ones. But the little ponies stood still and allowed the twins to hug them. A few minutes later Figwit and Lindir were helping the horse master, Ordrophin, carry the tack and the other supplies to the ring. “I’m goin’ to kill you, Figwit,” Lindir was muttering, “I can’t believe I let you talk me into this, I’m a musician not a ‘pony sitter’!” Elladan and Elrohir had released their ponies and were nodding in silent agreement. “We want to ride our ponies” Said Elladan, his deep brown eyes twinkling with excitement. “We want to ride our ponies right now,” said Elrohir with an identical twinkle. “Not yet,” said Elrond, “We have to learn how to take care them first”. The twins knew by now that whenever their father said ‘we’ must’, it always translated to ‘you must’, it was a habit their father, Glorfindel and Erestor had that the twins found ‘extweemwilly ‘noying’. “But they’re our ponies,” said Elrohir, tears filling his extra big brown eyes. “Aren’t they?” Elladan asked with tears also in his eyes. “Yes, yes they’re yours”, Glorfindel quickly reassured before the twins burst into tears, “But we have to take it one step at a time”. “But they’ve already taken lots of steps!” Exclaimed Elladan. Figwit and Lindir chuckled softly and Elrond and Glorfindel exchanged amused glances, Ordrophin actually doubled over laughing and slapped poor Elrond on the back and, since being caught unaware, Elrond toppled over and landed, face first, in a pile of horse dung. Lindir looked like he was holding a time bomb inside himself and it was on the verge of exploding. Glorfindel however rushed to his lord’s aid. “Ooops”, said Figwit hiding more then a smile, “I forgot all about that pile I was meant to clean up this morning, thank you my lord for reminding me”. Elrond, after wiping his face clean with a piece of cloth Glorfindel lent him, drew his finger across his throat indicating Figwit would die later.
Glorfindel and Lindir quickly moved around and untied the ponies and led them around the edges of the training ring, Lindir in front. Glorfindel thought he felt another presence behind him. “Giddyup, Dandee!” yelled Elrohir, he was holding onto Dandee’s tail and shaking it up and down like cart driving reins. “Drop his tail” Glorfindel said in a firm voice. Elrohir still held on. Suddenly Elrond shouted from the other side of the ring. He had been talking quietly to Ordrophin, who was apologising over and over for overreacting, and was horrified to se Elrohir standing behind Dandee with the little pony’s tail in hand. “ELROHIR! LET GO OF DANDEE’S TAIL AT ONCE!” Elrohir finally let go of Dandee’s tail. But he glared at Glorfindel and his father. “He’s my pony,” he told them. Glorfindel sighed. Perhaps being the twins’ ‘pony-sitter’ would be more then he, Figwit, Lindir and Ordrophin could handle.

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