Disclaimer: See Chapter One.
A/N: Hey there people! I want to thank you all for your incredible reviews. I love you all! Now, this chapter is more fluff, but soon, very soon I promise, Estel and Legolas will get into a wee bit of trouble. Hehe. You know what I mean. Anyway, my thanks to my absolutely fabulous beta enb2004! You rock girl! Here is Chapter Nine as promised. Enjoy!
While Elrond, the twins, and Legolas were talking, Glorfindel and Erestor were watching over Estel. The probability of Estel waking while they were gone was unlikely, but it was best to be cautious. Estel had surprised them before after all.
"I wonder how Legolas shall take the news about whom Estel truly is," Erestor wondered out loud.
Glorfindel spun around to face Erestor and glared at him. "Be quiet will you?! The walls have ears you know, and Estel has been attacked once already on a supposition alone. In answer to your question, I'm sure Legolas shall take the news fine. He may be a bit shocked but that is perfectly understandable. Now hush and don't speak of it again," he said while making sure Estel had not woken and heard more than he should have.
As it was, Estel hadn't moved an inch and was still fast asleep, much to Glorfindel and Erestor's relief.
Still glaring at Erestor, Glorfindel sat down on the bed gently and pulled the blankets up higher to ward off any chill that Estel might feel. Estel's eyes opened halfway and he shifted slightly when Glorfindel moved the blankets and instinctively snuggled deep into them, not really seeing Glorfindel and Erestor.
Glorfindel and Erestor exchanged amused glances. Perhaps Estel was closer to waking up than they had thought.
"Is he waking up?" Erestor asked in a hushed voice.
"I believe he might be, although I think he is still feeling the effects of the drug," Glorfindel said while observing Estel. The young boy was continuing to shift and his eyes were opening and closing every few seconds.
"I do hope that Elrond gets here soon. He is waking up a lot sooner than we expected," Erestor said, a slight hint of a smile on his face.
"Of course he's waking up earlier than expected Erestor. He's an Elrondion for Valar's sake. Elrond's children are forever and always doing the unexpected, you should have known that by now mellon nin," Glorfindel said with a smile with continuing to watch Estel.
"Indeed you should mellon nin, after all, they are my children," came Elrond's highly amused voice from just outside the doorway.
"Elrond, good, you are just in time. I believe that Estel is beginning to wake up," Glorfindel said hastily.
"I thought that you said he would not wake until after the noon meal?" Elladan said looking at his father, puzzlement written all across his face.
"Aye, well, Estel always has had a tendency to do the unexpected. He isn't all that different than you two and Arwen. Forever doing the unexpected. By the Valar, between the four of you it is surprising I do not have gray hair," Elrond said shaking his head in amused exasperation.
"He most certainly is an Elrondion. Elladan, Elrohir, you must tell me of these other unexpected things he had done later," Legolas said excitedly. The stories were bound to be good.
Ignoring Legolas and his twins for the moment, Elrond sat down gently on the bed and lovingly stroked Estel's wavy hair. "Are you awake yet my tithen pen?" he asked with a smile. He could see for himself that Estel was very close to being fully awake. It would not take much coaxing to waken him completely.
Elrond was proven right as mere seconds later Estel opened his eyes all the way and looked directly at his Ada.
"Ada?" he questioned sleepily. While he was awake, the drug in his system had yet to have been cleansed, as such, Estel was still feeling its effects. All the more so because he was exhausted to begin with.
"I am here ion nin, as are your incorrigible brothers, Legolas, Erestor, and Glorfindel," Elrond said while fluffing up some pillows for Estel to lean back on.
Estel smiled tiredly at everyone before turning his attention back to his Ada.
"Ada, can I go outside now?" he asked sleepily.
Elrond could not help but laugh. Here was an extremely overtired four year old who was only seconds away from sleep asking if he could go outside.
"Not today my tithen pen. You need to go back to sleep and let your body continue to heal. I promise you that tomorrow we can all go outside and you and I will team up together and torture your brothers all day long," Elrond said with a laugh.
"HEY!" the twins exclaimed looking highly affronted.
"Good!" Estel exclaimed happily, his eyes beginning to droop on their own accord despite his attempts to keep them open.
"Go to sleep ion nin, I will be here when you wake next," Elrond said with a smile.
"Love you Ada," Estel said before falling into a deep healing sleep.
"I love you as well my son," Elrond said gently kissing Estel's brow. "You don't all have to stay if you don't wish to. He is simply sleeping and when he wakes up he shall be his usual exuberant self," Elrond said in a soft whisper.
The twins gave their father an incredulous look and immediately plopped down onto the couch that was right by the bed. Legolas, Erestor, and Glorfindel too gave Elrond the same look and settled down on chairs that had had been placed right by Estel's bed.
Shrugging, Elrond allowed it and sat himself down as well. When his sons, Legolas, and his advisors had their minds made up, there was very little he could do to change it.
The rest of the day and night passed very quickly for everyone. Nearly all of them had fallen asleep at some point while watching Estel, making the day and night seem to go by particularly fast. Before they even realized it, the kitchen staff had brought up the morning meal, insisting that they eat it or they would not leave the room. Not wanting to displease the volatile kitchen staff, they all quickly ate and resumed watching over Estel who was still asleep.
It was around noon when Estel suddenly started to move around on the bed restlessly. At first, no one had noticed as they were busy eating lunch, once more under threat of the kitchen staff. Estel quickly changed that however.
"Ada? I'm not tired anymore, can we please go outside?" Estel asked as soon as his eyes had fully opened and he had seen the people around him.
Startled, Elrond nearly dropped his sandwich into his juice and whirled around in surprise.
"Ion nin, good you are up! How do you feel?" Elrond asked while putting down his food and moving to Estel's side.
"I'm fine Ada! Can we all go outside and play now?" Estel asked, his silver eyes silently pleading to be let out of bed and to go outdoors.
"Let us see how that arm of yours is first tithen gwador and then, hopefully, we can all have a good old fashioned snowball fight," Elladan said with a grin.
"Oh Ada, can't we please?" Estel begged.
"We shall see ion nin. I must look at your arm first and then I shall decide. Wiggle your fingers Estel," Elrond said.
Estel wiggled them and giggled in delight that he could move them again.
"Very good ion nin. Now, raise your arm and see if you can make a fist like so," Elrond said demonstrating.
Estel raised his arm and made a fist with no difficulty. He looked up at his Ada waiting for the next instruction.
"If you'll allow me to feel your arm for one minute, I believe we may be able to go outside," Elrond said smiling.
Estel nodded eagerly and waited not so patiently for Elrond to finish checking his arm.
"Well, I do believe that is it ion nin. I pronounce your arm perfectly fit. Now, I know you are eager to go outside and play, as are we. However, you must not strain your arm in anyway. If it begins to pain you, say so immediately for I need to know if it does. That being said, why don't we go up to your room and get you dressed hmm?" Elrond said with a happy smile.
"Yeah! Are you coming to Leggie?" Estel asked, looking hopefully at Legolas.
Legolas rolled his eyes and smacked Elladan upside the head for sniggering at the nickname Estel had given him. "Of course I am coming little one, as are your brothers, your Ada, and Erestor and Glorfindel.
"Can we go now Ada, please?" Estel begged.
"Hold on there little one. We need to get you dressed into something nice and warm if you are to go outside. It wouldn't do for you to recover from your arm injury only to fall ill!" Elrohir exclaimed with a laugh.
"Ill?" Legolas questioned.
"Never mind Legolas, tis not important. I shall explain it to you at a later date. Now, lets go and get you dressed," Elrond said smiling. It was so good to see his little Estel excited. The tired, lifelessness of Estel of the past few days had been quite dull and worrisome indeed.
Estel eagerly climbed out of bed and latched onto his Ada's hand.
"We shall be right back, why don't you all get dressed as well and we shall meet you outside," Elrond suggested.
The others nodded in agreement and they all agreed to meet outdoors within a half an hour. With the agreement, Elladan, Elrohir, and Legolas hastily departed, mumbling something about forewarned, forearmed which left Elrond, Estel, Erestor, and Glorfindel, all heading towards Estel's room.
"You know what we are going to do ion nin?" Elrond said as he walked with Estel and his advisors towards Estel's chambers.
"What Ada?" Estel asked.
"We are going to team up against your brothers and Legolas and take them down once and for all. And you my tithen pen, are going to help us," Glorfindel said before Elrond had a chance to speak.
Estel giggled at the thought of pelting his brothers and Legolas with snow balls. He couldn't wait to see what Legolas looked like covered with the fluffy white stuff!
Elrond could not help but to smile as well. A full fledged snowball fight was something that sounded very fun at the moment, although he knew he would probably regret it later. Thinking about the coldness of the snow, he made a mental note to himself to make sure that he didn't keep Estel out in the cold snow for too long.
"We shall see you and Estel in a half an hour mellon nin. We are going to go change out of these robes and into something more appropriate for the occasion," Glorfindel said with a grin. He had every intention of slaughtering the twins and Legolas with snowballs. He would think of it as.... pay back for all the pranks that they had pulled on him over the centuries.
"Ah, I shall stay with him Elrond and make sure that he does not do something he might regret later," Erestor said with a nervous look at Glorfindel. He had seen the evil smile that had graced the Balrog slayer's face, a look that usually meant an orc was about to be killed most painfully.
"Yes, you do that mellon nin, we shall see you shortly," Elrond said, giving his blonde friend a wary look.
"Come on Ada! The sooner we are dressed the sooner we can go out!" Estel exclaimed pulling on Elrond's arm.
"Coming ion nin. Let us get changed and go and have some fun, as well as supervise advisors who are acting as though they were elflings," Elrond said, muttering the last part under his breathe.
"I heard that Elrond!" came Glorfindel's voice suddenly.
"Come Estel, I believe we have plans to make," Elrond said, his silver eyes sparkling with laughter.
Estel giggled and followed his father into his room where both father and son could be heard laughing for a good many minutes.
Translations:
Ada: Dad/Daddy
Adar: Father
Ion nin: My son
Mellon nin: My friend
Hannon le: Thank you
Tithen pen: Little one
Tithen gwador: Little brother