Author's Note: This story came about when I was body-slammed by a rather persistent plot bunny tonight, so I sat down and wrote out a quick little blurb. This isn't necessarily a misadventure, but I think it will work fine in this series. I never meant to write this…I'm actually working on a longer, more involved story right now (I'm on the second chapter actually…), but I just had to write this. It's harmless toddler Estel and big brother Elladan fluff, really. But I think it's cute…hee. Anyway, hope you like this little splatter of a story. Please, if you have time, review!

Misadventures in Imladris:

Maar Mori

Elladan stirred in his sleep as a shrill cry rang through the halls of the Last Homely House. Trying to ignore it, the elf flopped onto his side, firmly pressing his ear into the pillow in hopes of muting the sharp sound. However, being blessed with elven senses, the feather pillow did little to block the cries.

The room from which the distressed sounds came from was only several doors down from Elladan's own chambers, making the sounds even more difficult to block out. Finally, realizing that returning into the blissful slumber that he had been enjoying would be as impossible as befriending an orc, the Noldor elf sat up, blinking sluggishly.

"By the Valar, what is this? The fourth night in a row?" Elladan muttered quietly to himself as he swung his legs to the edge of his bed. He allowed them to hang there a moment before he took the initiative to actually move himself off the bed. Another hysterical cry broke into the night air, nearly causing the dark-haired elf to cringe. "Aí! I am coming!"

Still somewhat disoriented from being woken from a rather pleasant slumber, Elladan toppled into the hallway. He leaned against the doorframe for a moment as silence overtook the darkness again. Perhaps he had stopped…

That thought was immediately vanquished several seconds later as the crying started up again. Elladan visibly sighed and stood up straighter, stretching his arms upward in the attempt to stifle a yawn.

"Elladan?" A somewhat surprised sounding voice caused the elf to snap his head to the right. There stood Lord Elrond looking remarkably awake for, what Elladan assumed, just being shaken out of sleep. "What are you doing out here?"

The twin raised an eyebrow, not sure whether to scowl or laugh at that comment. "How could I not be? That child is wailing loud enough to wake the Valar in the Gray Havens." The slight undertone of whining was detectable in Elladan's voice.

Elrond nodded unable to hide a slight frown on his face. "I know, Elladan. I'll go try to quiet him. I believe it to be nightmares that awake him so recurrently."

Shaking his head, Elladan held his hand out. "Don't worry about it, Ada. Let me handle it tonight. You have dealt with this for the past four nights, you don't need to be exhausted." He paused, looking at the unconvinced face of his father. "I was not truly tired tonight anyhow." He nearly laughed at his last statement. Perhaps that assertion departed slightly from the truth, but Elrond did not need to stay up yet another night.

"Are you sure, my son? I know that you have not dealt extensively with him…" This was Elrond's last offer for his son to take back his generous sacrifice.

"Yes, I am sure." As another sob broke the silence of the house, Elladan wondered what madness had overtaken him.

The elf lord nodded and smiled thinly. "Thank you. If you need assistance, just come to my rooms."

Elladan returned the nod and turned in the direction of the whimpering cries. He was positively starting to question his sanity; he had very little dealings with small children. What was he doing?

Once he reached the room, he slowly turned the knob and silently opened the door, quickly slipping inside. He softly shut the door again and paused for a moment to allow his eyes to adjust to the darker space.

"Aragorn?" His voice was subdued, as he did not wish to startle the child anymore than necessary.

A sudden hiccuping whimper assured the elf that the child was still awake. Elladan soundlessly moved to the large bed where the toddler lay. A wooden frame had been built along the edges to prevent him from accidently pitching himself from the surface of the mattress.

By the light of the stars, Elladan could see the child curled up in the opposite corner, his small legs pulled up to his chin. Tear streaks lined his cheeks and the starlight reflected from the tears that still welled in the child's eyes.

"Are you all right, young one?" Elladan questioned, suddenly dumbstruck with what to say.

The child's brow crinkled slightly as the threatening tears spilled over and streamed down his cheeks. Another sob escaped the toddler and he pulled his arms tighter around his tiny legs.

Elladan quickly shook his head. "No, no! Don't cry, Aragorn, don't cry. Please, I did not mean to frighten you!"

The child lifted his face slightly, his shining gray eyes searching the elf's face. "Daddy?" His voice was filled with hope and he looked more carefully, hoping to see the man he was looking for behind the elf.

Immediately, Elladan was struck with a pang of guilt. He closed his eyes for a moment in reflection. The child thought that his father had come back. At only three years old, it was almost impossible for the young Aragorn to understand that his father would never be coming back. "No." He whispered, opening his eyes again. "Your father is not here."

The hopeful flicker was immediately extinguished from the boy's face and he buried it again in his knees, another cry coming from him. Unable to take the sorrowful sounds any longer, Elladan moved to the other side of the bed where the boy sat.

Now what? Elladan thought helplessly. What do I do? He hesitantly held a hand out, unsure how the young Aragorn would respond to the gesture.

The young adan looked at the offered arm for a moment before crawling forward and holding out his arms expectantly to the bewildered elf. It took a moment for Elladan to register that the child wished to be picked up. Nervously, the elf wrapped his arms around the human child, lifting him from the bed. Instantly the boy buried himself in Elladan's shoulder.

The dark-haired twin was taken somewhat by surprise by the sudden action, but slowly brought his arm around and rested it on the soft baby hair of the child. "You poor thing…" He softly murmured in Sindarin. "I cannot imagine the horrors you have already seen."

A small, somewhat pudgy hand wrapped itself in the elf's long dark hair, pulling it a little harder than Elladan preferred. He decided that if the action calmed the child down, he would handle the slight accompanying pain. He could still hear the sniffles that Aragorn emitted.

"What can I do to quiet you back to sleep, neth-seldo?" Elladan slowly stood, still tightly grasping the young boy in his arms. The elf thought back to what his mother used to do in order to lull him and his twin brother to sleep.

"Would you like to look at the stars?" He softly questioned the child, although he knew he would not receive an answer. In response, the boy tightened his hold on Elladan's long hair. The elf bit back a groan as dull pain coursed through his scalp. "I think I will just take that as a yes." He muttered, trying to readjust Aragorn so that the boy's grip would not be quite so painful.

After reaching a large window, Elladan lightly jumped to the wide windowsill and settled himself on it, making sure not to jostle the child too much. He wasn't even sure if the boy could see the stars, but he hoped that maybe just speaking would soothe the toddler back to sleep.

Gazing into the deep night sky, the elf gazed at the bright specks of light that made of the endless universe of stars. His eyes automatically travelled to find Eärendil twinkling brightly in the heavens. "That," Elladan softly spoke as he rubbed the boy's back. "is your grandfather's star." He paused briefly as he thought it over for a minute. "Or perhaps you are a few generations different than I. Let us just consider it your great-great-great Grandfather. I don't think either of us want to try and count back generations."

Young Aragorn released his death grip on Elladan's dark strands of hair and pulled back slightly, looking for the first time into the elf's face. The twin could not help but smile when he saw the perplexed face of the toddler. "Do not worry just yet. Someday you will understand." He loosed one hand and pointed out into the night sky, lightly chuckling as Aragorn followed his direction intently. "See out there? Those are the stars, the light of the elves."

The child turned back and looked solemnly into the elf's dark eyes. Then he carefully blew a bubble of spit from his mouth and giggled as it burst seconds later. Elladan sat unmoving and unblinking, not sure whether this would be a good time to cry or whether laughing may be the more appropriate response. "Someday…" He murmured again, trying not to cringe when the child took it upon himself to relocate more of Elladan's hair.

"Well, human…" The elf gently tugged back at the hair, regaining control of it. "You are in dire need of sleep – as are some elves around here. What will make you sleepy, hm?" Aragorn reached up and placed his hands on the elf's smooth, pale face, entranced by the slight glow that came from it in the darkness.

Elladan struggled not to laugh when the boy decided to try and investigate the mysterious voids of the elf's nostrils. "You are bound to get in trouble that way, young one." He lightly pulled the toddler's hands away from his face. "Maybe a song will help you sleep. I know whenever Ammë sang to us as elflings that we soon were sleeping. Hopefully the same goes for you."

The twin's soft, lilting voice broke the quiet of the deep night air as he sang a song that he had thought disappeared when Celebrían left for Valinor.

"Close your eyes, little one,

Dream sweet dreams till the rising sun.

Know that I will still be here

Whenever fear comes too near.

Hear my voice and sleep well

In the morning, time will tell.

So do not cry anymore tonight,

Close your eyes 'til morning's light…"

As the song stopped, Elladan could feel the deep, rhythmic breathing of the young human. His head lay lightly on the elf's shoulder and his short arms tightly hugged Elladan's right arm.

Sighing, Elladan resigned to remaining on the windowsill for the remainder of the night. He leaned his head back onto the stone framing and gazed out the window, fixing his eyes on the light of Eärendil. Slowly, his eyes glazed over in elven sleep.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

Lord Elrond stepped silently into Aragorn's room. Elladan had not returned to his room, so he entered the chamber wondering if his son had survived the ordeal. As his eyes settled on the windowsill, a smile slowly formed on his face. Elladan lay, eyes glazed, in a reclined position, his arms protectively wrapped around the tiny form of the peacefully sleeping Aragorn.

Unwilling to interrupt the slumber of either human or elf, Elrond slowly backed out of the room, making sure to soundlessly close the door. As he walked down the hallway, he truly began to hope that perhaps things would work out after all. Hope. Estel.

AN: I know that the song probably isn't of the best quality, but it is supposed to represent a elvish lullaby for very young elves. I would imagine that it would be something simple and sweet. Anyway, if you have time, drop me a review please! Thanks for reading.

Translantion:

Neth-seldo – young child

Mori Maar – Good Night