Arwen saw her brothers walking up the steps towards the house and rushed to meet them at the door, "Where's Legolas?"

Elladan shrugged, "Don't know. He vanished when we returned to the stables without a word to either of us, probably got distracted by a tree or a bird or something. He'll turn up."

Arwen frowned but Elladan walked past her without a glancing notice and into the house. But Elrohir came to a stop in front of her and smoothed the crease forming between her eyes with his thumb, "What's wrong, little sister?"

"Legolas. He's been so off lately. Different than he should be."

"Different how?"

"Just," She struggled to find a way to explain it to him properly. To explain how his smile didn't reach his eyes and his laugh didn't make the trees dance. How she hadn't once heard him sing to the stars since he arrived, and how he had shown almost no interest in the hall if fire even though it was usually his favorite place to be. "Different."

Most elves probably would have brushed off her horribly articulated concerns, but never her brothers, and especially not Elrohir. "I'm worried about him Ro."

"Okay." He said, turning back from the house and back down the steps, "Let's go find him then."

Arwen dashed down the steps after him, holding tightly to her dress so that it wouldn't bunch at her feet at trip her. "Really?"

"Yes," Elrohir said with a gentle touch of humor even though his face remained the same, " You know him better than anyone else in this valley, if you say something is wrong, then I believe you."

She struggled for a good response but settled with, "Oh. Thank you."

"You're King Thranduil's favorite for a reason."

"I'm his favorite because I've never broken any of Legolas' limbs nor lost him, twice, while babysitting."

Elrohir gave her a half hearted glare, "He deserved that broken arm and if King Thranduil knew just how sneaky his son was then he shouldn't have left us in charge of the little rat to begin with."

"He isn't little anymore, you are no longer taller than him and Legolas can look you fully in the eyes. So at the very least, he's a regular sized rat."

"If he can look me in the eyes, I do believe if is safe to say that he's almost anything but a regular sized rat."

She rolled her eyes and bumped her hip into his with a laugh, "Why do you always have to have the last word."

"Because Elladan always gets the first so it's only fair."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Eventually they found him, with some not-so-subtle hints from the trees to send them in the right direction. The hints being a trial and error sort of direction with acorns or berries being dropped on their heads when they turned down the wrong path.

Typical.

Legolas sat with his feet dangling in the near frigid waters of the mountain runoff, leaning back leisurely on his hands to admire the clouds. He didn't so much as glance at them as they carefully skipped across the rocks that lead to the small island rock he had settled on.

Arwen removed her shoes and took it upon herself to sit to Legolas' right side, so close that their legs and shoulders touched, obviously ignoring the glare from her brother the moment her feet touched the ice water.

Elrohir sat on his left with his back rested against part of the rock and crossed legs facing the two of them instead of the stream.

When he still did not respond, Arwen leaned her head against his shoulders and let him keep staring at the clouds, "What's wrong?" He didn't say anything, and it didn't appear as if he planned to either. "You can tell us, I swear."

"I know I can tell you, I just don't know yet if I want to." Regardless, he looked away from the sky and sat up straight, his hands coming to rest near his knees.

Arwen kept her head on his shoulder, but moved her arm around his and laced their fingers together, "Why would you not want to?"

He adjusted his feet in the water so that all the loose rocks that hadn't been washed away covered the scars that curled up from the bottoms, "Because there is nothing you can say to make it better, and I know there isn't. But I know you're going to try anyways, because you're caring people and everyone always tries to say something. But I hate it, and I don't want you to. Everything just makes it worse."

But Elrohir wasn't phased by this in the slightest by this deterrent, "So we won't say anything."

"Not one thing." Arwen agreed readily.

Legolas didn't look convinced, "Then what will you do?"

Elrohir shrugged, "If it's what you want we can sit here in complete silence for the next nine hours excpt to point out the shape of a cloud."

Arwen nodded her agreement this time, a silent and demonstrated promise of their silence. Legolas sighed and his shoulders slumped a little and Arwen squeezed his fingers.

"It's the anniversary of my Nana's death. I know that was long ago now, but my heart always gets that cold and dark feeling and if I don't pay enough attention to ignoring it I can feel how the coals and the fire burnt my feet. I will be alright, it will pass as it always does. But trying to be 'Legolas' is just...not something I can be right now. I just need to sit here, and be sad and sorry for myself for awhile."

Arwen folded her other hand over the one she was already holding and turned her gaze to the sky.

Legolas seemed relieved that they kept their promise.

Elrohir pointed a hand to the sky, "Look, that one there looks like a Turtle riding a star."

Both Legolas and Arwen frowned and titled their heads to look at it from Elrohir angle, "Oh. It does."