Legolas sat on his bed and gave a gentle nudge to the four-year-old that was sleeping comfortably under the sheets. "galu aur"*good morning*
Níniel made a tired noise and dug herself deeper in the covers
"echuia-lle hên nín" *wake up my child* Legolas said again but this time removing the sheets from his daughter
"NAYYY" the four-year-old attempted to escape from his father but he was too fast for her, he grabbed her and picked her up, then threw her back on the bad making her bounce.
She laughed as she fought to hide again under the blankets, but Legolas stopped her and turned her upwards and began to tickle her.
Hysterical streams of happiness filled every morning in the castle filling the elves of joy and give them the mood for living their day.
Once Legolas was sure she wouldn't' fall asleep anymore he got up and smiled at her "haib lle, aduadar a amin dartha lle man anann*get dressed, your grandfather and I will wait for you to eat*
Níniel was growing to be a beautiful elleth, she has inherited both of her parents' exceptional looks, having the facial features of her father, high cheekbones, straight nose and his eyes, from her Mother she had got her full lips and black hair. However, she has also inherited her strong and straight hair from her grandfather,
She had pale skin, red rosy cheeks, shell-pink lips, and pale lavender eyelids.
She was a kind, overwhelmingly intelligent, and fun-loving child. She could memorize perfectly anything she sees or experiences and understands people without much problem.
She loved stories, she liked to hear Legolas reading bedtime stories, but hates hearing the same ones twice, expecting therefore to hear new ones.
But she was a silent child when she was around strangers, she often wanted her father to hold her, he always did, due to her premature birth, she was small for her age and Legolas had always seen her fragile.
She walked down at the dining hall, where he saw his father and the king sitting on the table waiting for her, she smiled at her father and sat next to her trying to avoid Thranduil eye contact.
"Bain lle tîr" *you look beautiful* Legolas smiled at her brighten the air around them
"Níniel, mîn rîw na-riel naa na-anann ui" *Níniel, one of the rules of being a princess is to always be punctual * Thranduil's hard voice suddenly filled the hall
Legolas gave an angry look at his father; he knew he was going to scold her
"Na-anann lle?" *were you punctual?* he asked her raising an eyebrow
Níniel looked up at him before lowering her head "nay" *no*
"a amman?" *and why so?* the king asked wanting to hear his granddaughter apology
Niniel's eyes were starting to get wet, she didn't like when her grandfather gave her pressure every time she did a mistake
"Adar"*father* Legolas told him to stop as he got up from his seat and wrapped his child in his arms.
"Nay Legolas, boe gelia-re hûr garl-othlonn" *no Legolas, she must learn that every action has consequences*
"It is my job! Not yours" Legolas barked in the human language, he didn't want her to hear the words of the fight he was going to have with his father.
"You should then take action"
"Do not tell me how to raise my child?" Legolas said trying to keep his voice calm for the scared Níniel
Thranduil looked at him shocked, he wanted only to help him, Legolas could never raise his daughter alone, the child needed someone to tell her when she did something wrong, Legolas never had the heart to tell her, she will never grow to be a fine princess of Mirkwood if Legolas kept spoil her.
Looking at his father motionless, Legolas decided it was the right moment to take his daughter away from him.
He was fed up that his father was constantly scolding her daughter, he knows he did it because he loved her, but he was too obsessed by making her into a princess, why couldn't he see her as only his granddaughter? She was only 4; she had thousands of years to learn how to be a princess, why couldn't he just enjoy her while she was young?
Legolas took her back to their room, they had never slept in a different bed since the day she was born and they weren't ready to stop anytime soon, he needed her close to him.
"aduadar ruith na lle?" *Is grandpa mad at me?* she asked with her innocent sweet voice
"Nay, tithen Niniel-nìn *no, my little Níniel" he said as he caressed her delicate face
"amen al-aníra al-riel, amin al-maethor*I do not want to be a princess, I want to be a warrior, like you," she said.
Legolas felt the warm feeling inside him, proud, he was familiar with this sensation, he always has it, but this time it was strong, his daughter was like him when he was a child, he decided to not be a prince but to be a warrior
"er-arad lle naer,wethrine lle*One day you will be one, I promise*
That afternoon Níniel quickly ran into their room, breathlessly laughing. She quickly climbed into bed, buried under the covers. She tried to remain as still as possible, hoping he will never see her. After a few minutes of silent waiting, Níniel heard the steps on the hard floor.
She held her breath, hoping Legolas couldn't see the inconspicuous lump on the bed. The steps went from running to walking, slowly.
She closed her eyes tightly, a giggle threatening to burst out. She could hear her daddy searching around the room, she could feel the blood pounding in her ears, her breathing had slowed but her body was shaking with anticipation.
She squealed when Legolas flung away the covers only to lean down and tickle his daughter as she yelled for help. Her daddy ceased his tickling her and lifts her up into his arms, spinning her around as she squealed in delight.
Pausing in mid-spin, Legolas held the little girl up in the air and looked up into her face.
"Amin mela lle" *I love you* he said and kissed her forehead
Níniel threw her arms around her daddy's neck.
"AD" *AGAIN!" she cheered as she struggled to his father to put her down.
Legolas smiled as he put her on her feet "er brona annan *one last time*
She squealed with joy while jumping awkwardly.
"er, tâd, nêl" he began to count as she saw his daughter sprint outside the room as she was running for her life.
What Legolas did not know, is that she was running for her life.
Before he finished his count he heard a loud noise, as if something hit the walls of the realm, panic started to overcome him as the second crash was heard.
He raced to the door and saw the warrior running towards the now broken entrance of the kingdom, Orcs and spiders were already in attacking the elves. Legolas frenetically looked around, turning in every direction.
"NINIEL!" he called "NINIEL!" his heart was racing hard as the worst thoughts invade him. He couldn't look for her unarmed; he hurried to the armory and grabbed his weapons.
Just as he exited the room he collided on some orcs and rising his knives he started the fight for killing them, he had noticed that the spiders weren't attacking the orcs as they used to do, did they allied.
He heard clogs behind him, it was his father on his moose, he rode were most of the enemy were and crushed them to death.
"Legolas!" Thranduil called searching for his son.
Legolas killed as many orcs he could as he ran to his father "I cannot find Níniel" he said worried, he didn't speak to his father all day after the fight, and even if he was still mad at him, he couldn't tell him.
Thranduil's eyes widen in fears as he stopped slashing the enemy with his long granddaughter was in danger or worst dead.
"I will go find her" Thranduil said, he had a moose, he was faster "block the orcs" He said before gallop away smashing the orcs as they were only dirt
As he rode in every hall in the kingdom he searching everywhere for Níniel with no success,
Flashbacks of the time he spent with him came in his mind.
FLASHBACK
Thranduil set on the floor with his legs crossed, in front of him there was Baby Níniel, and she saw too sitting in front of him chewing her own hands, every time she did so Thranduil fought her to not do so.
Legolas was working to protect Mirkwood and he had left his daughter in Thranduil's care.
The king was determined to teach her granddaughter saying "Grandpa", She said her first word some weeks ago and it was "ADA", by the time she learned new words and was starting to combine them, he felt the right to make her say "Aduadar", so secretly, every time he was alone with her he would try to teach her that word.
"Ped-aduadar" *say Grandpa* he said frustrated but still forcing a smile
Níniel completely ignored him, she found more interesting to bite her fingers.
Thranduil sighed and removed her hands from her mouth and hold them to have complete attention on him "Ped-aduadar" *say Grandpa*
"A-A" she started "ADA!" she said happily
"Nay, Aduadar" he corrected her
"ADAR" *father* she said
"ADU ADAR"
"ADAR" she laughed clapping her tiny hands.
Thranduil was thinking that she was teasing him, she just enjoyed when she answered wrong
"gohena-car an-amin,Ped-aduadar" *please do it for me, say Grandpa* he tried again.
he then heard Legolas steps coming near from the outside, he quickly got up and sat on the chair and waited for seconds before he came in.
Legolas walked straight to his daughter and picked her up, holding her in the air and spin around "Aaye nin-heryn" *hallo little miss* he said to her "Ada dagnir lle" *daddy missed you*
he then turned to his father who looked rather bored about everything as usual "thank you for watching her" he told him
"I will always help you" he said
Níniel than wrapped her hand around Legolas's neck and give him a sloppy his.
"hannon lle, Níniel" *thank you, Níniel* he kissed her back "Amin mela lle" *I love you*
She knew what those words meant, Legolas always told her.
As Thranduil was leaving the pair alone he was stopped by the words the child gave him "Amin mela Aduadar" *I love you Grandpa*
Thranduil turned around to leek at his granddaughter in the arms of his son, he looked at her and then at him, he shared his same surprised face, he then walked to her and took her form Legolas arms "iel maer" *good girl* he said as he kissed her forehead proudly.
that was one of the best days of his life, hi made him remind the day Legolas called him father for the first time, a warm feeling his heart.
END FLASHBACK
As he walked past the cells he noticed a group of orcs running away, it was odd for them. Thranduil rode toward them only to find that they are carrying, what he hoped, an unconscious Níniel, without hesitation he pulled out his sword and dismount the moose to jump on the creatures, killing one by one in fury, then wine he decapitated the last one, he rushed on the body of Níniel, she was still breathing, her eyes were closed but her skin looked unreal, was white as a corpse and he could she blue glowing veins under it.
"no" he whispered "NO NO NO" he said agitating the body "wake up please" he said "echuia-lle Níniel *wake up* he shake her harder.
there was nothing to do, he then just sat there crying for her to wake up.
The battle was over, Thranduil didn't hear cries but only laughs, everyone was unknown of them on the lowers level of the kingdom, he looked at her stomach, she was still breathing, why didn't she wake up?
"Adar?" Legolas saw for far away his father sitting in the floor, at the beginning he thought he was injured, but then he saw a body. Legolas begin running to him and looked that the body. There lay his daughter, his princess, his Níniel on the floor.
He let out a wrenching scream as he hugged the child while collapsing on the floor.
He laid a hand on her stomach, it was moving "why she is not getting up?" he asked his father who was stirring at him with pain in his eyes.
"echuia-lle hên nín" *wake up my child* he said "echuia-lle hên nín" *wake up my child* he repeated
"TAWARWAITH! TULA!" *SOMEONE! HELP!* He yelled desperately
Some guards came running and took the body away, Legolas didn't know it they said something; the world was in silence for him, is gently follow them taking the child to the infirmary.
His heart started to hurt, it was grief, he knew it, the pain came when a nurse removed the tunic from her and revealed a powerful blue glow in her heart and veins, and something was in her blood.
Legolas looked at the confused faces of the healers, no one knew what it was, and his daughter was going to die.
He didn't fell his legs anymore; his heart was beating so fast, his body was shaking and aching.
He fell on his knees.
Thranduil caught his son before he hit the floor, as he grabbed him he noticed that his skin was cold as ice and his eyes were losing his light.
"Legolas, do not fall in grief," Thranduil told him trying to hide his pain "she is yet breathing, there is still hope"
Legolas didn't say anything, he only tried to focus on his father's lips, he couldn't hear him, and he could only feel his heart beating hard on his chest
Thranduil knew that Legolas couldn't stay there, it was just complicating things, the nurses needed to work and Legolas needed to stay away from his daughter.
He raises Legolas on his feet and wrapping an arm around him, he walked him away in his chambers to rest.
*･゜ﾟ･✿･゜ﾟ･*
Níniel found herself in a dark place, there was only a faint light ahead of her and a slight mist, she was scared, a few minutes before she attacked by some orcs, one of them had a blue light in his hand, she remembered that she cried as a orcs hold her while the orc with the blue light hit her hard in her chest before falling asleep.
She thought she was dreaming but never a dream seemed so real to her.
She was sitting on the floor with her knees on her chest crying for her father and Grandpa, but they never came, they left her alone.
Suddenly she felt a presence in front of her; she looked up and saw a white-haired elf's shadow.
"Ada?" she asked as she felt happy again, Legolas came to get her.
But the figure stepped closer to reveal himself, he wasn't her father, it was what it looked a Silvan elf, he had white long hair, similar to Thranduil and gray eyes, he was a tall man, he had high cheekbones, a strong jawline, a straight nose and full lips.
When she saw it wasn't her father she crawled away in fear, she never saw that elf before, his tall figure scared her.
"Amin uuma Adar-lle"*I am not your father* he holds her with his strong voice "Amin nauva uuma awra lle" *I will not hurt you*
Something in his voice told her the opposite.
"boe lle Eryn Lasgalen gwain riel" *you must be the new Mirkwood's Princess* he grimed
Níniel finally found the courage to talk to him"ya naa lle" *Who are you?* she asked still not looking in his eyes
"amin esse ed 'Sauron'"*I go by the name 'Sauron'* he said sounding powerful and with pride.
Níniel looked up at him, his eyes aren't evil as his voice, they were somehow sad "a Mani naa thand esse-lle?" *and what is your real name?* she asked
The lord looked surprised "Mani?" *What?*
"nara-lle quella ialla-lle Sauron, a i thand esse-lle" *you said they call you Sauron, but that is not your real name* she said wiping her tears
He smiled "Amin Mairon onnen " *I was born as Mairon*
Níniel didn't understand "Mankoi quella ialla-lle Sauron?" *why they call you Sauron?*
"badhor lle laew, uuma lle?" *you ask a lot of questions, don't you?*
"dihena-amin, uuma henia-amin" *sorry, only when I do not understand* she looked around "Amin manke?" *where am I?*
Sauron was frustrated by the questions of the girl "lye ne-gûr lle" " *we are in your mind*
"Mani gûr?" *what is a mind?* she asked confused
He was caught off guard "Mani?" *What?*
"Mani gûr?" *what is a mind?* she repeated
"ne-lle" *inside you* he simply replied, not knowing what to say
"caeda-i" *that is impossible* she said *I cannot see my heart*
"Lye ne-lle! Andodulin" *we are not inside you! you fool!* he yelled
Níniel began to cry "nara-lle" *you said we were*
"hye, Lye ne-lle, a uuma bell-lle" *yes we are inside you, but not in your body* he explained
Níniel felt guilty that she didn't understand but she didn't ask anymore "merna amin bed-bâr" *I want to go home* she said trying to act brave
Sauron looked at her standing there inform of him, he had to deal with this brat until he finally had her body, he hoped it was a boy but it wasn't a problem, when he had his powers back he would completely return himself, even body.
He nodded "dortha-dae, ammin bed" *very well, I will return*
The vision of Níniel became white, as like the sun was hitting her eyes, she blinks a few times before he saw some familiars walls.
She was back home.
*･゜ﾟ･✿･゜ﾟ･*
Legolas sat all day near the resting child on the bed on the infirmary; he was watching every inch of her body hoping he would move.
Thranduil saw near him all the time after he was falling in grief he took him in his chambers and hold him while he cried in his arms, he made him felled loved gain, giving him the forge to get up again and walk back to his resting daughter.
They were staring at the body together praying the Valar to wake her up, the glow in her veins fainted but she was still with her eyes closed, dead.
The father and son heard some movements and saw Níniel slowly opening her eyes, blinking.
When Legolas saw that he jumped and ran to hold her hand.
She turned her head "Ada?" she asked
Legolas caressed her hair "aye, amin naa" *yes it is me* than he kissed her forehead "amin sì" *I am here*
She then looked over to see Thranduil there, looking at her proudly and relieved
"Aduadar?" she asked and he nodded smiling at her "olore amin?" *was I dreaming?* she asked confused
"gobennas Mani?" *what happened?*
" Gwathuirim awra lle" *the bad people hurted you* Legolas explained holding his tears for her
" nay, Alè man" *no, after that* she said Sut naa an-amin?" *how did I come back?*
Thranduil gave a confused look "Mani ume lle quena?" *what do you mean?*
"Amin yassen Mairon" *I was with Mairon* she said "Manke naa ho?" *where is he?*
Legolas gave her a shocked look "Ya naa Mairon?" *who is Mairon?* he asked
"Tanya edhel" *he is an elf*
"glî, lle nev-anann" *Honey, you were every time here* Legolas said
"nay, Amin yassen Mairon!" *no, I was with Mairon!* she insisted as she got up from the bed
Legolas grabbed her and led her back on it "Esta sinome" *you should rest*
"uuma amin echui" *I am not tired* she insisted as she sat back up.
"Lle tyava quel?" *are you hurt?* Thranduil asked as he saw she was moving
Níniel shocked her head and climbed off her bed, she looked around there room, the bed was filled with elves in pain or resting.
she ran and looked every single sleeping elf, at least in her eyes were sleeping, ignoring the calls of her father, she was looking for her new friend, he then felt Legolas picked her up and take her back to her bed
"aníra-amin,cen-Sauron" *I want to see Sauron* she yelled making all the heads of the room turning on her.
Legolas's heart stopped beating, where did his daughter learn that name?
He didn't know what to say he looked at his father who had his same shocked face.
"Ho tyava quel?"*is he alright?* Níniel asked worried, seeing that he didn't answer he called him "Ada?"
"Níniel" Thranduil finally found the power to talk "Manke tanya lasta-esse?" *where did you hear that name?*
She looked him confused " Amin trenar lle" *I told you"* she said "Amin yassen ho" *I was with him*
Thranduil looked surprisedly calm "Mani lle trenar ho?" *what did he told you?*
Níniel thought hard and stammering, like any other child of her age, tried to explain " trenar ho lye ne-lle, Mairon onnen ho" *he said we were in me, and he was born as Mairon*
Thranduil connected everything together "Legolas, you need to take her to Elrond"
Legolas looked up in shock "it's too dangerous" he said
"Legolas, the dark lord is talking to your child," he said raising his voice "you must take her to Elrond"