Authors Note: Ok, to warn you this chapter is kind of jumpy. And you have to look close for clues…kind of, I make them a little easy to see though. Oh forget it! But anyway, thanks for all the lovely reviews. I enjoy them so much. This chapter is about 7 pages long. So I hope that is enough. I am trying to make them a bit longer. Enjoy!

Chapter 2

Tears we cry

Thranduil, lord of Mirkwood pursed his lip and sighed heavily.

Before him, sat hunched on the marble like a beast, was the most foul creature he had ever seen in his life. The elf, that he was surprised was even one of the firstborn, sat arched. His seaweed green eyes watching the clean floor as it reflected his own rancid image. He tried to pounce on it once or twice before obviously deciding it a feeble attempt and giving up.

Around his neck was a thin, yet strong piece of elven rope. But the elf made no move to attack, it only looked at Thranduil with pleading eyes. But what kept the king so puzzled was the smile that was on his face.

He seemed happy, but no one understood why.

"Hir nin, [My lord] he was alone." the warrior at the left of the creature, named Taran saluted in the elven fashion and reported. "We found him following a deer and trying to hit it with a rock."

"A rock?" the elven king frowned and leaned his head in his palm. "And you are trying to tell me that this…this….thing! Is an elf!"

Taran nodded quite unsure himself. "Aye, I tell you now, as surely as I myself am one of the firstborn. So is he." The elf handed off the lead rope to another warrior and walked slowly forward. "I know this is abnormal, my king. But what if he knows? He may know the whereabouts of hir Galanion and his troop."

The door behind the elves creaked and they all looked up, even the strange one, to see Legolas walk through. Aragorn flanking his right side and limping, the crutch beneath his arm. Elladan was on Legolas's left, and Elrond and Elrohir were behind them.

The elven prince came forth and bowed low. "My lord."

Aragorn attempted to bow, but almost toppled over in the process, Elrohir reached out and grasped the man's tunic pulling him back.

"No need to bow, son of Elrond. You may be excused from the Mirkwood customs on fault of injury." the king smiled at the young boy.

"Hannon le, King Thranduil." Estel smiled and readjusted his crutch.

Legolas stepped forward, and smiled slightly.

Thranduil could not help but smile broadly as he saw Legolas's mother come out. The pale golden hair swaying softly as he moved.

"You summoned me father?"

"Ye, I did ion nin, but I did not say you may bring the Peredhil's family." the king looked at each face with an inward smile. It stopped on Aragorn and he noted how much of an impact the young man had made in his child's life. He could not understand what it was about the man that made him so want to smile.

" I know ada, it is just….."

"Do not worry Legolas, it is fine…actually I was rather hoping you would bring them. For their presence is much required also, considering that this may effect Lord Elrond's lands as well."

Legolas could no longer hold his gaze away, and he slowly turned it to the elf that sat hunched on the floor, his ripped pant legs tightening at the tension in his muscles.

"Legolas, please have a seat, you too sons of Elrond, as well as lord Elrond."

The elven prince slowly showed the injured man to a seat and the elves sat beside him.

Taran cleared his throat, and bowed to the small audience. "May I explain once more?" he asked looking to his liege's son.

The blonde prince smiled and nodded in agreement. "Please do, Taran."

The elven warrior looked to the creature that sat on the floor, once again trying to catch the somewhat blurry form on the marble floor.

"As I said, we found this…..elf….in the forest. He was following a herd of deer, all he had to kill them was a rock."

Aragorn looked at the filthy elf that had once again stopped trying to catch his reflection. He looked up at the man with fearful eyes, but a smile crept across his pale face.

"Does he speak?" Estel raised his hand slightly and a thoughtful expression crossed his face.

"My lord?"

"Does he speak?" Aragorn repeated quite hastily.

Taran shook his head. "No, he speaks not common or elven."

The man bit his lip and let his silver eyes wander to the ceiling above. 'Ragged clothing, slouched, mindless……. What did it all mean?'

Elrond looked to Thranduil, through tired and confused eyes. Never had he before seen someone so horrible…and considering his occupation, that meant a lot.

"What race of elf is he?" the elven lord turned his eyes on Elrohir, who had stood up to announce his question.

Taran looked at the elf on the floor and shrugged his powerful shoulders. "He looks as if Caras Galadhon….but as you can see, lord Elrohir, he is so emaciated, bruised, bony, and slouched over, we could not tell."

Elrohir sat back down, defeat in his clear gray eyes. His twin patter him on the back and reassured him in elvish that the question was a good one. However, that still did not matter, their was no telling where the elf was from. If it was an elf.

Many still doubted that it was even an elf, save Aragorn and Taran, as well as his troop.

Without any warning, the elf in question began to rattle off numerous things, nothing in elvish or common.. all in a strange tongue that none of the elves could translate.

"What is he saying?" Elladan asked, covering his ears at the harsh tones that erupted from the elf's smooth yet dirty mouth.

Aragorn's eyes went wide, he stood up from his seat and put a hand to his head, his eyes were unseeing as he rattled back the sounds that had been spoken.

He picked up his crutch and limped as quickly as he could, sweat dripped down face and he growled at himself for not being able to go faster.

The emaciated elf looked up at him with wide, questioning eyes, and Aragorn leaned against the wooden crutch for more support.

'Oh Eru, it hurt!' he shook his head. 'He could not think of that now.'

By the time he regained his breath, all the other elves were eager beyond sanity.

The man looked down at the elf and smiled.

"What…..did….you….say?" he asked more slowly, and pronounced more so maybe the elf would understand.

But he did not, the being tilted his head to the side like a confused dog and whined once.

"Estel? What are you trying to do?" Elrond stood up on seeing his son lean more against the unreliable piece of wood. "Come sit, before you re-injure yourself."

"No, Ada……I know what he is saying!" Estel tried to lean down closer, but when his broken leg protested, he straightened his back and looked down with annoyance.

His mind ran back to Glorfindel's lessons he remembered one morning for sure, no one else knew of it but him and Glorfindel.

"Glorfindel?"

The blonde turned to face his student with mirthful eyes that glimmered in the new morning sun.

"Yes Estel, what may I do for you tithen pen. [Young one]" he noted the huge green book that the twelve year old mortal carried in two hands, excitement readable in his huge silvery eyes.

"Teach me this language!" the child pushed the book onto the table a broad smile coming over his face. "It looks easier to write than elvish. I think I can write this."

Glorfindel opened the book and frowned at the triangular letters that were written darkly in the books yellowing pages.

"Estel, this is dwarvish." he announce looking at the child, hoping that he would understand.

"Oh, well can I learn that instead." the boy asked.

"No, my lad. Your ada wants you to learn elvish."

"But it is sooo hard!" the child moaned with reproach.

"Well, if you learn your elvish….I promise I can teach you dwarvish. No one else knows it quite as well as I do, and if you learn it you'll have one thing ahead of Elrond."

"Two languages?" the boy groaned and looked at the old book before returning his gaze to Glorfindel. He smiled and nodded with delight. "Can we start tomorrow!"

"Gabilgathol!" the elf yelled at Aragorn with much annoyance spreading from his eyes to his whole face. This brought the man back and he stared at the firstborn with confusion.

Estel rubbed his head, then smiled….he remembered now. "Great Fortress!" he shouted at the wall and then turned carefully around to face his father and brothers as well as his confused blonde.

"What are you talking about Estel?" Elrond stood up and started to make his way toward his son. 'The drug must have gotten to him.' he mused as he came up and grabbed the young man's shoulder.

"No ada…that is what he said. Great fortress."

"How do you know this Estel? You do not know dwarvi…." The elf lord trailed off, and Aragorn almost laughed at the look that came over his face. "Who taught you?!"

The man shook his head and put his free hand up. "That is not point father, the point is that I understand. We can figure out what he is saying."

"But Estel…."

"Please Ada!!! Please, it is all I can do….please…..please…."

The pleads rang in the hall, and Elrond could not stand them, he sat back down and looked at the floor.

"Alright Estel….you may, but we will not sit here all day while you translate." the lord of Imladris looked up at Thranduil, eyes soft. "King Thranduil, where would you like him to do such?"

The elven king tightened his lips and thought a moment before his clear and strong voice cut through the crisp air.

"I suggest he do it in his own room, therefore, if it suits you lord Elrond….you may continue your ministrations on him while he is translating. And he may rest also, for if he was to do it here, it would be most uncomfortable to him." he nodded with satisfaction at the decision and looked to Estel, smiling slightly. "Does this please you, son of Elrond?"

Estel made a somewhat slack bow, and looked up to the elven king. "Very much so."

Legolas sat on the red chair in Estel's bedroom, his form was slumped back and eyes tired. He looked causally at his companion on the floor.

The human looked even more drained than him, the man's was sitting against a pillow at the wall, dark circles marred under his eyes and they were almost closed. His leg was supported by a few pillows that kept it from touching the hard stone ground.

He held in one hand, the crutch, that was now sliding down to the floor.

Aragorn had tried all night to crack the code with the strange emaciated elf, that was now on the floor and watching the firelight that flickered off the rocky floor, trying once again to catch it, with wide eyes.

Legolas smiled as the young man, leaned over as he was taken over by a sleepy haze.

"Estel, go to bed!" the elf ordered.

The mortal mumbled something unintelligible and slipped farther into sleep.

Mistan, which the two had named him….for Legolas could see no other fitting name for the poor 'stray' elf.

Mistan hopped over to Estel and gently pushed the hair aside, a worried look on his face. He spoke some more of the horrible language that Estel called Dwarvish, the elven prince watched as tears streamed down the elf's long and bruised face.

"Mistan, what is wrong?" Legolas asked arising from his seat and walking elegantly over to the elf. He looked up and Legolas could see the deep hurt that bordered round the edges.

"He is sleeping." the Sindarin elf informed the unknown, and then quietly grabbed up Aragorn's form from the floor, being careful of his leg and placed him tenderly on the big green quilted bed.

Mistan stood up on two hind legs and looked at Estel's peaceful face, but that was a mistake. For more unwanted tears stung his eyes and he let out a sob as he watched Legolas cover the boy with the covers.

He just watched with a somewhat bewildered expression as Mistan tugged softly at Aragorn's clothing.

Prince Legolas slowly made his way down the hallway. He had missed dinner and was eagerly walking towards the kitchen. Hoping with desperation, that the cook had something left for him.

He sighed as the voices that often plagued his ideas spoke up again about how angry his father would be for missing dinner with him.

"Dûm!"

He turned around to see Mistan, sitting in the middle of the hallway, He was looking in some sort of awe-like state at the walls.

"Mistan! Come on."

The strange elf did not go with Legolas, he did not eve acknowledge the prince.

Legolas let out a sigh and looked at the green eyes that were traveling up and down the walls.

'At least he is not crying any longer.'

This was true, for the prince had had to drag Mistan out of Aragorn's room, he had been hysterical. Balling and screaming whenever he set eyes upon the man.

It seemed that Estel had died.

'Died?' Legolas nodded his head inwardly and an expression of thoughtfulness on his face. 'Of course, he had only started having a complete fit when Aragorn had collapsed.' he inwardly knocked himself in the head and scoffed.

"Yes, Dûm! Come Mistan." he firmly grabbed the other elf's pale, bony hand and dragged him down the hall. 'Like I really know what Dûm is.' the prince snorted and walked down the hall, Mistan following close on his heels, but at the same time, glancing adoringly at the cave walls.

The elven prince watched in horror and disgust as Mistan practically gulped down the food that he had set in a bowl, on the floor. The strange, dwarvish speaking elf had refused to eat from the table, and had dragged his own bowl to the floor, and at once began to slide the meat that was on the deer bone through his sharp teeth. And instead of chewing the deer, he only swallowed. Harsh coughed emanated from his skinny throat as he ate the food as if tomorrow was his last day.

'Which…' Legolas admitted to himself dryly. 'probably would be his last if he continued to go without food.'

The prince pushed his bowl away, a much revolted look upon his fair face as Mistan coughed up a partially whole piece of deer, and then without another thought, ate it from the palace floor.

"I never want to see you eat again." he proclaimed and then looked as if he was about to spill all the contents of his stomach.

"Legolas?" he turned his green face to see Lingwen appearing from down the west corridor, her eyes glimmering softly in the torchlight.

"By all Varda, you look horrid! Are you alright?"

Legolas swallowed down the resurfaced particles and smiled weakly. "Y-ye, Ariel nin. [Yes, my star-maiden]" he answered and cleared his throat once more.

"Oh! Is that your new dog?" she pointed to the slumped figure on the other side eating out of a dish, and the elf prince noted that he himself could have been mistaken for Mistan did, at that moment look very much like a dog.

He shook his head sharply and smiled.

"Ai, good!" Lingwen smiled and wiped her brow.

"Why?" the elven prince implored for more.

"Well because, don't you remember what happened to the last dog, with the Blackberry jam and the chair in the-"

"Alright Lingwen! That is enough!" the elf-lad smiled nervously and patted he on the back, standing up and moving towards Mistan.

"Lingwen meet-"

Legolas had no time to finish, for before he could say anymore, Mistan leapt past the two elves and ran down the darkening hall towards a slightly slouched figure that was slowly making his way towards the dining hall.

The last echoing sound that ran down throughout the palace rooms and corridors was one exhausted, but extremely joyful voice.

"Legolas! I figured it out! I know what he's saying!"

TBC~

What is Mistan saying? Will Aragorn be right? Will Lingwen and Legolas ever get a moment alone? And what did really happen to Legolas's last dog? Hehe.

Actually the funny thing is, I did research on Mistan's new name. It means stray in elvish….and I thought that kinda fit. Sort of. But the real word is Mistana and my friend thought that it sounded to much like I girls name, so I took away one a….but anyhow I have to go…I hope you enjoyed my chapter! Please Review!!!!