15th of September, 2017

A/N: A friend and I decided to make a couple of writing prompts leading up to NaNoWriMo and just to motivate ourselves to write more and get into the flow. So anyway, the first one was 'Leaf' so guess what my first thought was? Of course, you guessed it -our well loved leaf-named elf. Hope you enjoy this little family love/fluff scene! Took me about two hours just written out I think.

Also I'm assuming that even elves can crush leaves under their feet if they wish to (that would suck wouldn't it

Cheers!

Green Leaf

"Why am I named Legolas, Ada?"

Thranduil looked over at his son, who was standing in the garden's center, surrounded by autumn leaves lying at his feet. Just a few seconds ago he had been running around, happily crushing the brown ones under his feet and enjoying the noise.

Now he was quiet, gazing into the forest while he addressed his seated father, who had been reading some document or another lying over a book he didn't truly care about.

"Why do you ask, ion-nin?", the king countered the question with another one and turned the page. Legolas, apparently not pleased with his father's inattention, strolled over and put a bright red leaf on top of his father's book, obscuring the text so he couldn't read on. Displeasure surged through Thranduil. Legolas knew that he had to work, why was he being so stubborn about this?

"Legolas-"

"Ada, why? Please? I just want to know the reason."

Thranduil's temper threatened to surface. Now an interruption. Really, this had been such a pleasant evening just now. The sunset over the treetops made everything look similar to the leaf in his lap, red and orange. To calm down, the king took a deep breath and answered.

"Your mother picked it." Was the short answer, indicating that the topic wasn't what he wanted to talk about right now. Legolas' mother was still a sour spot for both, her death was only a few years past and still instilled a hurt whenever she was mentioned. This situation was no different and Thranduil saw his son visibly flinch but then quickly stiffen in determination.

"That is not an explanation, Ada." He insisted and finally, Thranduil looked up into his son's bright eyes.

"What makes you so insistent so suddenly, tithen-las? Or has this been on your mind for a longer time already?"

The child before him squirmed and dodged his gaze, fidgeting with his sleeves.

"Maybe it has." Came the quiet admittance.

"So what has made you wonder? Leaves are part of our home, the woods, the trees. Your mother was a Silvan elf, I thought it was very fitting to name you thusly.", Thranduil gently explained, taking the leaf from his book and laying it down into his son's hands, which he gently picked from their nervous position on the green tunic sleeves.

Legolas nodded slowly but didn't seem fully convinced.

"But Ada…Leaves wither and die. Elves do not." He held up the leaf by its stem and turned it between his fingers. "I mean…you're already very old and you don't turn red and fall from the trees." There was mirth in his son's eyes, accompanied by a sly smile and even though there was a certain offense in that statement, Thranduil could not help but laugh loudly, having the musical sound bounce between the trees.

He sobered quickly though, because the question was meant quite seriously and he sensed this.

"Oh Tithen-Las. Of course, you're not wrong, leaves are shed for the winter to preserve energy. But the tree lives. These trees are older than you, some older than even me. But it's not true that elves never die. You know this, sadly." He stroked his son's blond hair, so much like his and plucked it behind his ears, gazing at the small face, so much like his mothers. The crease upon his brow was mirrored on Legolas.

"But just as a tree will one day die, the world will too, and with it will the elves. It is what makes life more precious, a time to treasure. It is also what makes spring such a time for joy. When the leaves are so green that the forest almost glows." A smile now gently lit Thranduil's face but he kept his hand where it was on his son's cheek.

"In spring, we revel in the life of the forest. It's when I married your mother. And it's also when you were born." Thranduil paused for emphasis and closed his hands around his son's holding the dead leaf.

"This leaf may not be alive anymore, but in the spring, the tree will give birth to new ones and let the circle of life continue eternally. We named you Greenleaf because you were and are and always will be, our eternal joy." The smile on his lips now was genuine and Legolas nodded, a hint of an embarrassed blush on his cheeks.

"Does that answer satisfy you, oh eternally curious one?", Thranduil joked, leaning back a bit after messing up Legolas' hair affectionally. The little prince gasped dramatically and straightened it in mock shame.

"Ada!" he exclaimed, but nonetheless laughed right after anyway. Finally, he sobered and smiled broadly, nodding.

"Yes, thank you." He said and Thranduil deemed the topic over. Just when he was about to turn back to his book, Legolas called to him once more.

"Ada?"

"Yes, Legolas?"

"Can I keep the leaf or will it crumble?"

Thranduil lifted an eyebrow at the question, gazing at the red leaf still in his son's hand. It was truly a pretty one, over the whole situation he hadn't even noticed.

"I'll ask Galion for a book to dry it in. Then if you treat it carefully, it should hold."

"Forever?"

"Of course."

Sindarin – English Translations

Legolas – Green Leaf

Ada – Father

Ion-nin – My son

Tithen-Las – Little Leaf

A/N: So, hope you liked it! Please leave a review if you did or you notice any spelling or other errors -this is not spell checked, it was just a quick thing. Also I don't remember if Gallion was an actual character or from the movies or if I read about him in fanfic. If I stole anyone's character name pls tell me lol.