#ElladanAndElrohirAreAGovernmentalProblem

[ponies-before-prophecies]

Who is the mischievous person in all of imladris?

Oh, now this is an excellent question, because there are different ranks of mischievousness in Imladris, and one must categorize them properly.

Let me explain.

Rank One: The Chaos Goblins (Elladan & Elrohir Level)

This is the tier of mischief where the perpetrators operate purely on impulse, reveling in the art of destruction and absurdity. The Twin Terrors of Imladris, Elladan and Elrohir, have long since mastered this craft. Their mischief is immediate and explosive—one moment, you are sipping tea in peace, the next, an entire bookshelf has been rearranged in the wrong order just to test if you’ll notice. One time, they replaced Glorfindel’s sword with a near-perfect replica made entirely of hardened sugar paste. He only realized it when he unsheathed it for practice, and the thing snapped in half like a dry biscuit.

Rank Two: The Elegant Menace (Glorfindel Level)

Now, Glorfindel's mischief is different. It is more refined, more deliberate. His is the kind of mischief that makes you second-guess your own existence. He will gaslight you for fun. If you trip on your own feet, he will tell you, with the most sincere expression, that you actually just got shoved by a ghost. He once convinced a visiting scholar that the famed "Ghostly White Stag of Imladris" was real—and that if it chose to haunt you, you had to leave offerings of honey and sing it lullabies at dusk to appease it. The poor scholar actually did this for an entire week before someone put a stop to it.

Rank Three: The Psychological Warfare Specialist (Elihal Level)

And then… there is my brother.

Elihal does not engage in petty pranks or small amusements. No, no. His mischief is a long game. It is an art form. It is verbal and psychological destruction, tailored specifically to ruin you.

He will physically beat you in a sparring match, then verbally finish the job while you’re still on the ground. He once reduced a fully armed, highly trained warrior to reconsidering his entire life after a fight, purely through well-placed words and a slow, unimpressed stare. He will pinpoint your deepest insecurities and then gently, oh so gently, roast you into oblivion.

Glorfindel is a frequent victim of Elihal’s well-crafted comments. Their entire dynamic is just Elihal calling Glorfindel "an idiot wrapped in golden arrogance" while refusing to acknowledge that he might actually like him. (Which he does. But he will perish before admitting it.)

Also his "pranks" are absolutely devastating.

Rank Four: The Silent Puppet Master (Arwen Level)

Ah, and then there is Arwen. Do not, for even a moment, let her serene composure and elegant demeanor fool you. She is mischievous.

Oh, she is subtle about it, but that only makes her more dangerous.

Arwen does not engage in petty pranks, nor does she waste her time on juvenile antics. No, Arwen plays the long game. She is the mastermind. She is the quiet force behind many moments of pure chaos in Imladris, all while keeping her hands utterly clean. If Glorfindel and the twins are the ones throwing the stones, Arwen is the one whispering, "Wouldn’t it be interesting if you aimed just a little to the left?"

Arwen’s mischief is social strategy. She will set up elaborate schemes, convincing people they had a brilliant idea on their own, when in reality, she planted the thought with the precision of a gardener cultivating a rare flower. She once orchestrated an entire diplomatic misunderstanding between two visiting lords just to get them to argue, simply because she found their posturing tiresome and thought it would be amusing.

And then there is the matchmaking. Oh, the matchmaking.

Arwen will take two unsuspecting victims, decide they would make a charming couple, and casually maneuver the entirety of Imladris around them until they fall in love. You will think it was destiny. You will think the stars aligned. You will think the Valar themselves ordained your union.

No.

It was Arwen.

Always Arwen.

She is the silent architect of chaos. She does not get caught. She does not leave evidence. She will smile at you sweetly while ruining your life in ways you do not even realize.

So you see, mischief in Imladris is not a simple thing.

It exists in tiers. Some will ruin your day in the moment. Some will ruin your week. And some, like Elihal and Arwen, will ruin your entire self-worth if you are not careful.

Choose your battles wisely.