Months flew by after that sad farewell, and before Elwing could tell, the boys were on the verge of turning four. Her rolly-poly baby sons were now two little thunderbolts running around the palace and deafening the servants with questions.

In early summer-nearly two years after her husband sailed away-the day came. Elwing smiled to herself as she opened the door of her sons' nursery that morning. She stepped in, and let out a tiny gasp realizing that today was a day the twins' father had wanted to personally witness.

He's off in the watery middle of nowhere, and there he will stay.

She shoved thoughts of Eärendil aside and crept up to the shared bed. Elros was happily snoring, squirming in his dreams; Elrond had one arm tightly wrapped around his brother. Judging by the younger twin's blissful expression, the thumb on the other hand was delicious.
Elwing felt half-guilty for waking them up from their endearingly comical sleep, but she also knew the boys would want to stay far away from their bed once she had told them that today was the day.

The young mother gently brushed her hand over their small shoulders. Bending down to kiss them, she let her midnight hair cascade onto their faces. "Wake up, birthday boys," she whispered.

Elrond missed his brother's head by an inch when he bolted up. "It's our burday?" His eyes sparkled.

"Mmmhm," Elwing nodded.

"Bruder! Bruder!" Elrond grabbed a pillow and thwacked it onto Elros's head. "Get up! You gonna miss our burday!"

Elros hated mornings with a passion. He moaned under the covers. "Stooooooop," he whined. "Five more minits!"

Elrond raised an eyebrow. He knew how to unlock his older brother. "There's gonna be cake," he hissed into his twin's ear.

Elros flew out of bed in one leap. "Cake!? Where?"

Their mother watched as they raced each other into the adjacent washroom. "Aren't you forgetting something?" she laughed. The twins came out again looking like Nature intended, plus their soaked hair.

Elros blinked, realizing one tiny flaw in his morning routine-he forgot his fresh clothes before going inside the tub. He nudged his brother, "Hey, Ron, you go get it."

"No, you! I hadda wake you up!" Elrond stood in front of his brother tapping his bare foot with slight annoyance.

"Boys, get in the tub first," Elwing snickered. "Think about clothes after you wash."

"But we did wash," Elrond smirked, ever logical.

"You got wet," Elwing smiled as she herded them back into the washroom.

After bathing the boys (and taking an unexpected bath herself) Elwing proudly led the twins to the breakfast table. To Elros's dismay, there was no cake set out.

While the little family cheerfully decimated their breakfast, a new face came into the dining room. He was tall, silver-haired and pointed-eared. His face seemed grim, but his eyes sparkled with a mischievous glint. His beard twitched in a smile as he greeted his old friend's wife.

"Good morrow!" he hailed in a jolly tone.

She had known Cirdain the Shipwright since adolescence, but Elwing never seemed unsurprised by his charismatic blend of reservedness and fun. "Good morning!" she chirped in a more casual response.

The boys were too concentrated on breakfast. "Hi," the mumbled, not even looking up.

"Elros, Elrond, look up and say hello like the princes you are," their mother warned.

They sighed and stood up from their seats. In a practiced chorus, they said, "Welcome, honored strainer. Feel at home for as long as you knee, and may. . . " They frantically glanced at Nana for the bit they had forgotten.

"And may Varda shine her stars in your favor when you leave."

Puffing up their chests, the twins continued, "May Vardy shine her stars in your flavor when you leave."

"Close enough!" Cirdain laughed. He put a hand on each of the boys' heads. "And what age do you reach today?"

Elros proudly held up give fingers. "Four," he smiled.

"Um, bruder, that's five," Elrond corrected.

"Is not!" Elros glanced at his brother offended.

"This is four," Elrond reached for his twin's hand and pushed in Elros's thumb. His brother replied with a "you're hopeless, Elrond" look.

Cirdain laughed a silvery laugh at the children's antics. "Why do we not discuss that at the beach?"

The boys forgot all about the three bites of breakfast left on their pearl-rimmed plates.

"The beach!? Finally!" Elros was jumping for joy.

"Oh, I wanna play in the sand," Elrond smiled.

Elwing stood up. She knew she should be feeling happy-after all, this was going to be the twins' first day on the beach-but she couldn't take her mind off what the day would be like if Eärendil were there.

"Today belongs to your sons, Elwing," Cirdain said softly, though his eyes were soft.

Elwing nodded and took her eldest by the hand. Cirdain took Elrond, and the four of them went outside to the shore, which was naturally not too far from the palace.

"But our clothes?" Elrond asked softly when he saw his mother settling down on the bare sand.

Cirdain smiled down at the little one. "Your mother dressed you to get wet," he explained. Elrond looked at the wide ocean with awe wondering if it was really all his to explore.

"Hurry up, little bruder!" Elros was already shouting for him. "We get to go in the water, but not too deep," he shouted.

Elrond let go of the shipwright's hand and trotted over to where his twin was calling him. Elros was already sitting in the shallows busy with a mound of wet sand that was supposed to be "the bestest castle ever."

Elrond, however, seemed apprehensive of the glittery foam constantly trying to catch him. He moved back, but the silvery ooze seemed to reach for his ankles with frothy fingers. He worriedly glanced ahead at his brother, who didn't seem to care he was surrounded by those dangerous-looking bubbles.

Elros noticed Elrond's worry and laughed. "It's just wader, scaredy-cat!"

"Okay. . ." Elrond stuck a toe in the bubbling tide. Since the spray didn't engulf him outright, Elrond tentatively stuck his foot further in. He took another step, the another, while his brother watched on, howling with laughter.

Crawling through the tiny stretch of ripples between them, Elros came up to his brother and smirked, "Just get over here, Ron!"
He playfully nudged his younger twin, accidentally knocking Elrond into the water.

Splash! With a shock, Elrond floundered in the finger-deep wave.

"Ros!? Bruder, help me! I'm drownding!" he shrieked.

Elros rolled his eyes. "Are not!" snarked and grabbed his brother by the shirt collar.

Gasping, Elrond blinked into reality. He was thoroughly wet (a horrible feeling when it is unexpected) and he felt as if Manwë had deserted his lungs. He writhed free of his brother's grip and stomped off, glaring at the mean water with contempt. "I'm gonna play on the sand!" he huffed.

Elros shrugged and snickered. "Okay, but I'll stay here if ya need me!"

It's the twins' fourth birthday-and it's time the sons of the sailor knew what a beach looks like. I want to develop this cute idea further, so I divided it.

Fear not, angst-lovers, this is just the fluff before the storm!